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Michelle Styles's avatar

And in a surprise to very few, the two men who were on trial for felling the tree at Sycamore Gap have been found guilty. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/09/sycamore-gap-vandal-previously-accused-destroy-countryside/ or https://archive.ph/QxcDP

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jt's avatar

Glad to hear. TY.

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Michelle Styles's avatar

And on the back of the Freedom in the Arts, a generous donor from the Free Speech Union has allowed the |FSU and FITA to launch a 50k fund for artists who have been impacted from the preforming arts. https://freespeechunion.org/the-freedoms-we-defend/performing-arts-fund/

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jt's avatar

Hello Northumberland! Good to see You again.

That was interesting about the trade deals. And the Ukraine deal and the military situation there.

That's incredible about the Russian spy Marsalek.

That was also interesting about German politics.

I was glad to see Scotland obeying the law about women's spaces. And glad to see the report by the FITA group.

Paddy looks great, even if he smells funny. And I'm glad the bees are doing well.

Also glad to hear about the Regency novel. Looking forward to it.

TY, as always, Michelle. Greatly appreciated.

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Michelle Styles's avatar

SO good to see you again JT. Always brightens my Friday.

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Unwoke in Idaho's avatar

Did Paddy get his ears raised?

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Michelle Styles's avatar

He had the fur on his ears trimmed so it wasn't so long and not so shaggy. He also had the feathers on his legs etc removed. I lost the argument as I liked his feathers. A little came off of his tail.

He had his nails trimmed.

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Bruce Miller's avatar

As Sternberg's WSJ editorial actually points out. Merz has a problem because the AfD is wrongly called extremist and is growing in popularity precisely because the mainstream fools keep ignoring the seminal issue of Islamic immigration and its destabilizing effect on German society. The globalist ghouls who've run Europe are heading for a reckoning they will really not like. And the same garbage the American FBI pulled on Trump and his supporters is being repeated by the silly German stat security services (worthy successors to the Stasi).

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Michelle Styles's avatar

Oh I think Merz does have a problem and it will be interesting to see if he can successfully thread the needle. He just does not need or want the US to interfere. I thought Vance's remarks a few days ago were interesting about the fact that true friends should be able to have these sorts of conversations but the US and Europe were true friends regardless. Obviously someone has had a word...

I see the Swiss are unhappy at the new German border regulations as they were undoubtably playing pass the parcel with the migrants. The UK does need to get far stricter about its border enforcement. The amount the tax payer is paying for the hotels etc is unsustainable. Whilst I agree that there does need to be immigration reform, the whole 'choose your country of sanctuary' was never supposed to be a thing when the protocol was first set up.

Migrants in the UK include the Ukrainians, the Hong Kong Chinese as well as those from the Middle East and Africa.

The reasons the illegal migrants are spared deportation does get ever sillier -- the latest is an Iraqi feared being killed because of his tattoos. This is a problem with the immigration judges and who was appointed to be the judges, plus the guidance they have been given. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/09/migrant-spared-deportation-because-he-has-tattoos/ or https://archive.ph/NP6FH

Labour is bleeding support to Reform (as are the Conservatives) over this issue. Powell had to finally apologise for her 'little trumpet' remark regarding the grooming gang inquiry. Blue Labour has realised the danger. I don't think other factions have.

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Bruce Miller's avatar

The political realignment occurring because of the disdain and outright hatred of government to native born citizens is stunning.

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Running Burning Man's avatar

On the US - Ukraine minerals deal, "One can only hope that it does mean the US will provide security guarantees"?

Not. A. Chance. Ukraine is about as popular as herpes these days here. Zelenskyy even less so. weapons, maybe some intel. Maybe. Guarantees? No way.

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