For the last several weeks that old folk tale of many versions keeps coming to mind. You know the one where the old man's hardworking strong son broke his leg and so was laid up and couldn't keep the farm running. All the old man's neighbors commiserated saying how awful and how unlucky this was. Then the government came through the area conscripting into the army all the young strong men, but couldn't of course take the young man with the broken leg. So now all the neighbors told the old man how lucky he was that his son broke his leg because it saved him from the army! The tale goes on, but that's the drift and for me expresses how I feel about world politics right now--we have no idea how this is all coming out in the wash cuz the good the bad and the ugly are all wrapped up together in one big messy pile up!
Yes this is the problem. Hindsight is 20/20 and foresight never really works well. I just hope it turns out all right. It is definitely a huge shift. It may have been overdue, but...
I'm in northern Ohio, have you guys started getting Ramaswamy ads yet? They are playing nonstop up here! We're a year out from the primary. I wish we had restrictions on when these ads could play, maybe 4 or 6 months out from an election? It is so annoying.
MLB had a hilarious flub this week. They released these hideous overlap hats, where the city/state/team name is overlapped by the team logo. The Detroit one is not bad, cursive lettering Detroit and a nice old English D slapped in the middle. But it turns out when you plonk the Rangers' logo in the middle of the word Texas...it spells Tetas. 🤣🤣🤣 The hats are selling on ebay for hundreds of dollars! I saw one sold for a thousand! Tetas is Spanish for tits. The Angels hat spells Anaels and the Astros hat spells Ashos... Presumably, many people saw these designs (which again are mostly hideous) and just...missed this? I only speak menu and Spanish swears that make it past the tv censors in America and I instantly knew what tetas meant (and then tried to buy a hat lol, my amusement isn't woth more than $100 🤣). MLB missed having the best selling hat ever produced. And Manfred will still complain that baseball isn't profitable...
That is hilarious. I mean who signed off on this? It will not have gone through just one person.
Paddy was so upset and he went out and barked at the branches and logs before they were moved as he couldn't do his usual route around the garden. The sheer size of the wood chippings is impressive and we should have enough logs for another winter. I could not believe how high up the tree surgeon was willing to climb... He said that it was fun but tricky.
It baffles me when these things get through all of the layers of design and manufacturing processes and then some guy at a stores says....Hey, you know what tetas means? 🤣
That is great for you, having all those logs for winter! I love that British people call tree guys tree surgeons. It is a much more appropriate and dignifing term.
But it happens so often and I suspect market etc were v much 'DEI compliant' and knew all the right buzzwords, but none of the actual words.
I was glad to get the wood. My youngest will do some chain sawing when he is next here. He is just much better at it than my husband. And the wood will have a chance to season. It is a mix of ash, beech, lime, sycamore, chestnut and pine so it should burn well in due course.
It was in the manifesto written long before DOGE was conceived. Starmer (actually MacSweeney et al) has been planning this for a long while. Milburn has been working since before the election on the NHS. Labour have never been convinced about 'creating competing markets'
There are reasons why Starmer and Trump do get on, even if they come from different approaches.
It is interesting to see the Blairites return. They were supposed to be dead and buried with a copy of the 'dodgy dossier' through their hearts.
I suspect they will go at it harder, partly because of DOGE and the revelations about waste etc. They have enough of a majority that they can ignore the progressive/Corbyn wing.
I have very little love for the 'technocrats' who were supposed to have superior knowledge. Some of it was done to break the power of the unions though.
I don't disagree with you on that score. One of the best things Reagan did was to 'fire the air traffic controllers' and say -- no unions. However outsourcing to unaccountable technocrats also does not work because they are by very definition unaccountable.
, but Trump could yet prove to be a stalwart defender of democracy and the post WW2 order. One must always have hope.
With all due respect, not being the worlds bitch, not being Europe’s bitch doesn’t mean one isn’t a stalwart defender of democracy. The fact is Trump is an AMERICAN president, voted in by AMERICANS, to look out for AMERICA FIRST. He’s keeping his promises to AMERICANS. And if that means AMERICA is no longer Europe’s bitch and Europe has to do more for itself . Tough.
Like this. The European Union paid more to Russia for energy than it did to Ukraine for military aid, which was affirmed by a Newsweek article reporting that the European Union allocated $21.9 billion to Russian gas and $18.7 billion to Ukrainian aid.
Read the article. It is an interesting take on things.
I certainly hope that Trump isn't Putin's bitch as some are reporting or indeed that he is considered to be fatally weak (Strobel of Washington Post citing intelligence reports https://archive.ph/5Nsdq ). I really hope that he does succeed and makes America stronger. One of the long term aims of Putin's Russia has been to peel Europe away from the US. People are well aware that Putin will revert to hybrid warfare once he gets the ceasefire (on his terms). He is currently playing games with m=nuances and stringing things out until he has advantages.
You need to break down which countries in the EU. I suspect one of the biggest consumers of Russian product is Hungary which is heavily dependant on Russia oil. Orban is v pro- Putin. The Ukrainians as is their habit have just blown up the oil pipeline which goes to Hungary. There is a question about if Hungary will be kicked out of the EU -- Hungary and Slovakia are the most pro-Putin. The figures you are quoting are incorrect btw -- Germany has given £17.7 bil in military aid (yes I know until Nord stream 2 was blown up.. they feasted on it following the Merkel doctrine). This is a list of the 10 largest donor countries. It does depend on if you consider Europe as a whole or individual countries as to who has donated the most. https://www.dw.com/en/ukraine-10-biggest-providers-of-military-aid/a-68861057
And you also need to look at the individual countries' military expenditure. Poland has the most (4.7 rising to 5). Ireland is one of the least at 0.2% -- they have traditionally looked to the UK to provide protection -- on the other side of them is of course the US. Ruth Dudley Edwards was interesting on the Irish charm offensive in Washington this week. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/03/13/ireland-can-no-longer-rely-on-its-charm-to-survive/ or https://archive.ph/4Bbx4
I Really don’t care Michelle. I’m tired of the hammering 24/7. It’s been less than two months and it’s been non stop whining and gnashing of teeth and shock and whining and Pearl clutching and lawsuits. The only difference is now everything is Trump’s fault instead of being Bush’s fault.
Europe is falling. The U.K. is falling. Within a few decades will there be any actual Europeans left or will you all be dhimmis in your own lands. That’s if you all don’t annihilate yourselves first.
Trump ran on America First. Not Europe first or Ukraine first or Palestine first or everywhere else first.
After 80 years, it’s time. Everyone needs to take care of themselves first.
Read the article. It is not actually hammering Trump. It does explain upsides of America First.
There were good reasons why America encouraged dependency on American made kit and software -- it allowed leverage. And that works until they actually pull the lever as Trump did with pulling the US Intel (publicly). It means suddenly the great selling point -- you have America in your corner isn't there any longer. The most worrying places are not in Europe but in the ME, particularly Saudi Arabia. Equally the lessons Taiwan and others are learning. America is supposed to be worried about China's influence.
I grew up in the Silicon Valley. I know how much sway Lockheed Martin (and others have). I know how much the military defence establishment underwrote the tech industry. I am not sure this outcome of countries deciding to go for French, Swedish or So Korean kit was intended.
And I do think the hyperbole about Europeans being replaced in a few decades is just that hyperbole. One of the biggest groups of migrants in Europe is the Ukrainians over 5.2 million in the last 3 years. The US has taken 240k but the rest are in Western Europe.
I personally have no problems with the vast majority of Muslims as long as they keep to the doctrine of separation of religion and state. I have a huge problem when they don't but there again I have problems with anyone who behaves in that fashion (see one of my big objections to the Omni-Cause which is also a philosophical belief). The enfranchisement of all adult citizens not just a select few is one of the great gifts America has given the world. It happened because of the separation between philosophical belief and the state.
I would like the ME to settle down but doubt that will happen until 1. Syria stabilises 2. Lebanon ceases being a colony of Syria 3. Iran stops being a theocracy and 4. some sort of balance between Türkiye and the Saudis is achieved. but this would end the mass migration from there -- plus a total rethink about refugee camps because they have fostered radical Islam.
For the last several weeks that old folk tale of many versions keeps coming to mind. You know the one where the old man's hardworking strong son broke his leg and so was laid up and couldn't keep the farm running. All the old man's neighbors commiserated saying how awful and how unlucky this was. Then the government came through the area conscripting into the army all the young strong men, but couldn't of course take the young man with the broken leg. So now all the neighbors told the old man how lucky he was that his son broke his leg because it saved him from the army! The tale goes on, but that's the drift and for me expresses how I feel about world politics right now--we have no idea how this is all coming out in the wash cuz the good the bad and the ugly are all wrapped up together in one big messy pile up!
Yes this is the problem. Hindsight is 20/20 and foresight never really works well. I just hope it turns out all right. It is definitely a huge shift. It may have been overdue, but...
Hello Northumberland! Good to see You again this Friday. Another fine roundup of articles.
It doesn't sound like You're too sorry to see the NHS get the ax. Interesting articles.
And that was interesting about Blue Labour.
I think Baroness Falkner is right.
I agree with those who say the Met is captured. I hope the courts find it so.
Glad to see the PRA's and FCA's plans on DEI come to a halt.
That is shocking about the Ugandan judge.
I've put Hal Brands article on the to-read list. Yes, we must have hope.
Yes, Putin is the new tsar.
I'm wishing You good luck on finalizing the revisions. Paddy and Hercules look so cute.
And, as always, TY for Your work, Michelle.
The NHS remains -- the bureaucracy which Andrew Lansley put in in 2012 has gone. The salaries paid were staggering and its growth.
The Hal Brands article is a good one. An interesting take but one has to have hope.
Yes, it was interesting. TY again.
I'm in northern Ohio, have you guys started getting Ramaswamy ads yet? They are playing nonstop up here! We're a year out from the primary. I wish we had restrictions on when these ads could play, maybe 4 or 6 months out from an election? It is so annoying.
I don't have a TV, but I get emails. Yeah, way too early.
Great roundup. Poor Paddy!
MLB had a hilarious flub this week. They released these hideous overlap hats, where the city/state/team name is overlapped by the team logo. The Detroit one is not bad, cursive lettering Detroit and a nice old English D slapped in the middle. But it turns out when you plonk the Rangers' logo in the middle of the word Texas...it spells Tetas. 🤣🤣🤣 The hats are selling on ebay for hundreds of dollars! I saw one sold for a thousand! Tetas is Spanish for tits. The Angels hat spells Anaels and the Astros hat spells Ashos... Presumably, many people saw these designs (which again are mostly hideous) and just...missed this? I only speak menu and Spanish swears that make it past the tv censors in America and I instantly knew what tetas meant (and then tried to buy a hat lol, my amusement isn't woth more than $100 🤣). MLB missed having the best selling hat ever produced. And Manfred will still complain that baseball isn't profitable...
Links to the NYTimes article:
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6197869/2025/03/12/new-era-rangers-astros-angels-overlap-hats/
https://archive.ph/mE9bT
That is hilarious. I mean who signed off on this? It will not have gone through just one person.
Paddy was so upset and he went out and barked at the branches and logs before they were moved as he couldn't do his usual route around the garden. The sheer size of the wood chippings is impressive and we should have enough logs for another winter. I could not believe how high up the tree surgeon was willing to climb... He said that it was fun but tricky.
It baffles me when these things get through all of the layers of design and manufacturing processes and then some guy at a stores says....Hey, you know what tetas means? 🤣
That is great for you, having all those logs for winter! I love that British people call tree guys tree surgeons. It is a much more appropriate and dignifing term.
But it happens so often and I suspect market etc were v much 'DEI compliant' and knew all the right buzzwords, but none of the actual words.
I was glad to get the wood. My youngest will do some chain sawing when he is next here. He is just much better at it than my husband. And the wood will have a chance to season. It is a mix of ash, beech, lime, sycamore, chestnut and pine so it should burn well in due course.
Tree surgeon just explains what they do better.
As is said "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" - even if Starmer is taking a less flamboyant approach.
It was in the manifesto written long before DOGE was conceived. Starmer (actually MacSweeney et al) has been planning this for a long while. Milburn has been working since before the election on the NHS. Labour have never been convinced about 'creating competing markets'
There are reasons why Starmer and Trump do get on, even if they come from different approaches.
It is interesting to see the Blairites return. They were supposed to be dead and buried with a copy of the 'dodgy dossier' through their hearts.
I suspect they will go at it harder, partly because of DOGE and the revelations about waste etc. They have enough of a majority that they can ignore the progressive/Corbyn wing.
I have very little love for the 'technocrats' who were supposed to have superior knowledge. Some of it was done to break the power of the unions though.
Even a proggie icon such as FDR believed that public sector unions were a very bad idea. How many times does that have to be proved correct?
I don't disagree with you on that score. One of the best things Reagan did was to 'fire the air traffic controllers' and say -- no unions. However outsourcing to unaccountable technocrats also does not work because they are by very definition unaccountable.
, but Trump could yet prove to be a stalwart defender of democracy and the post WW2 order. One must always have hope.
With all due respect, not being the worlds bitch, not being Europe’s bitch doesn’t mean one isn’t a stalwart defender of democracy. The fact is Trump is an AMERICAN president, voted in by AMERICANS, to look out for AMERICA FIRST. He’s keeping his promises to AMERICANS. And if that means AMERICA is no longer Europe’s bitch and Europe has to do more for itself . Tough.
Like this. The European Union paid more to Russia for energy than it did to Ukraine for military aid, which was affirmed by a Newsweek article reporting that the European Union allocated $21.9 billion to Russian gas and $18.7 billion to Ukrainian aid.
Oh dear. That’s not stalwart for democracy
Read the article. It is an interesting take on things.
I certainly hope that Trump isn't Putin's bitch as some are reporting or indeed that he is considered to be fatally weak (Strobel of Washington Post citing intelligence reports https://archive.ph/5Nsdq ). I really hope that he does succeed and makes America stronger. One of the long term aims of Putin's Russia has been to peel Europe away from the US. People are well aware that Putin will revert to hybrid warfare once he gets the ceasefire (on his terms). He is currently playing games with m=nuances and stringing things out until he has advantages.
You need to break down which countries in the EU. I suspect one of the biggest consumers of Russian product is Hungary which is heavily dependant on Russia oil. Orban is v pro- Putin. The Ukrainians as is their habit have just blown up the oil pipeline which goes to Hungary. There is a question about if Hungary will be kicked out of the EU -- Hungary and Slovakia are the most pro-Putin. The figures you are quoting are incorrect btw -- Germany has given £17.7 bil in military aid (yes I know until Nord stream 2 was blown up.. they feasted on it following the Merkel doctrine). This is a list of the 10 largest donor countries. It does depend on if you consider Europe as a whole or individual countries as to who has donated the most. https://www.dw.com/en/ukraine-10-biggest-providers-of-military-aid/a-68861057
And you also need to look at the individual countries' military expenditure. Poland has the most (4.7 rising to 5). Ireland is one of the least at 0.2% -- they have traditionally looked to the UK to provide protection -- on the other side of them is of course the US. Ruth Dudley Edwards was interesting on the Irish charm offensive in Washington this week. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/03/13/ireland-can-no-longer-rely-on-its-charm-to-survive/ or https://archive.ph/4Bbx4
I Really don’t care Michelle. I’m tired of the hammering 24/7. It’s been less than two months and it’s been non stop whining and gnashing of teeth and shock and whining and Pearl clutching and lawsuits. The only difference is now everything is Trump’s fault instead of being Bush’s fault.
Europe is falling. The U.K. is falling. Within a few decades will there be any actual Europeans left or will you all be dhimmis in your own lands. That’s if you all don’t annihilate yourselves first.
Trump ran on America First. Not Europe first or Ukraine first or Palestine first or everywhere else first.
After 80 years, it’s time. Everyone needs to take care of themselves first.
Read the article. It is not actually hammering Trump. It does explain upsides of America First.
There were good reasons why America encouraged dependency on American made kit and software -- it allowed leverage. And that works until they actually pull the lever as Trump did with pulling the US Intel (publicly). It means suddenly the great selling point -- you have America in your corner isn't there any longer. The most worrying places are not in Europe but in the ME, particularly Saudi Arabia. Equally the lessons Taiwan and others are learning. America is supposed to be worried about China's influence.
I grew up in the Silicon Valley. I know how much sway Lockheed Martin (and others have). I know how much the military defence establishment underwrote the tech industry. I am not sure this outcome of countries deciding to go for French, Swedish or So Korean kit was intended.
And I do think the hyperbole about Europeans being replaced in a few decades is just that hyperbole. One of the biggest groups of migrants in Europe is the Ukrainians over 5.2 million in the last 3 years. The US has taken 240k but the rest are in Western Europe.
I personally have no problems with the vast majority of Muslims as long as they keep to the doctrine of separation of religion and state. I have a huge problem when they don't but there again I have problems with anyone who behaves in that fashion (see one of my big objections to the Omni-Cause which is also a philosophical belief). The enfranchisement of all adult citizens not just a select few is one of the great gifts America has given the world. It happened because of the separation between philosophical belief and the state.
I would like the ME to settle down but doubt that will happen until 1. Syria stabilises 2. Lebanon ceases being a colony of Syria 3. Iran stops being a theocracy and 4. some sort of balance between Türkiye and the Saudis is achieved. but this would end the mass migration from there -- plus a total rethink about refugee camps because they have fostered radical Islam.