Dave, we're at Yeovil on Tuesday night - do you think it'll go ahead? Just a heads-up for all WFC fans going: http://www.ytfc.net/news/article/20140213-flood-collection-1357343.aspx
How ironic that a bank that has wasted millions, mis-sold millions in PPI and given out hundreds of millions in bonuses wants the general public to dig deep into their own pockets to help pay for things that should be paid for by either the state or insurance companies
Barry, Yeovil is well clear of "The Levels," and it's eased off a bit down here, I'd say there's a very good chance it will go ahead!
Afternoon all - it's a glorious day in sunny NW London. I am sure I am not alone in feeling a bit dirty about wanting a Steptoe victory today to keep the sesson alive a bit longer.
Totally agree with that - in fact it mightily pisses me off. That and the looks you are given when you say "No", as though asking you to justify why not....
So a British bank wants to help others, which is good. With other peoples money, which is not. I bet they are the same one that advised investing in Landsbanki without checking them.
Looking at the latest score, I actually can't help but laugh.... 1-3. Sheff U beat the Florists by the same score...
I see that the Scottish Independence vote took a very twisted turn this afternoon. EU President on the BBC this morning stated that Scotland would have to request to join the EU and a number of countries would be very likely to block it, not because of any dislike of Scotland, but for purely personal reasons. Spain in particular would be highly unlikely to vote to agree to let Scotlnd join the EU - if they did it would send messages to the Catalans and Basques that this would be something for them to strive for. Of course the response from the SNP was very predictable - just said he was speaking rubbish. I wonder when the SNP will produce some real arguments with detail behind them
It seems the Steptoes may be getting a helping hand thanks to some shady goings on by the manager and some senior players at Wet Sham! http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/feb/15/ravel-morrison-west-ham-united-waste
w-y, Didn't watch this myself but opinion up here is that, given this was the BBC, it was simply stage managed to the extent that Andrew Marr's performance was an embarrassment for them. Barroso's opinion wasn't questioned by Marr at all - it was simply accepted, which is highly unusual for Marr. It would seem that Westminster have merely changed tack away from their currency threat after realising that it has backfired on them - and produced an 'expert' for the BBC to read a carefully worded script so obviously written by the Better Together campaign. There are plenty of European lawyers who have the same view as the SNP and very few, if any, who agree with Barroso, so the SNP's 'rubbish' response may have been predictable, but is probably very accurate. You might well be wondering when the SNP will produce details - up here there are plenty who are wondering when Westminster will stop their bullying, threatening and 'Yes-bashing' and actually tell the Scottish why they would be Better Together. They haven't yet, and quite possibly know that it isn't true.
BB why is it that you loathe the "English" so - or is that, like me, you loathe the Tories and what they have done to our society?
I certainly don't loathe the English, just the Tories and, to a large extent, the class system. Come to think of it, they're one and the same. Admittedly, I'm also not too fond of the other English political parties either - but I suspect that that dislike is shared by many Englishmen. And you're right, it's what they have done to our society that I find both unacceptable and unforgivable. If only there was such a thing as a benign dictator....
BB - what the Scots don't seem to realise is that they have been given a privileged position. They can vote to end the UK. The Welsh, Irish and English don't get to have a say in this - and I think even Scots living in he rest of the UK don't get a say. If there is bullying going on it is by the Scots themselves. Those in favour of Nationalism want to walk away and then to have whatever parts of the former UK suits them. Will they in future pay for defence - I doubt it but if it ever came to it would they shield themselves under a nuclear umbrella - of course they would. If they want independence from the England, Wales and Northern Ireland that is fine - but who says they should have our Pound? It is not bullying to tell them that they cannot have their cake and eat it. We did not join the Euro as we do not believe in a common currency where there is not political union. That goes for an independent Scotland. Sorry but independence means independence - not walking away from the bits you don't like and keeping the good bits. I think most Scots are too sensible to fall for Salmond's line of argument but unless you are in his camp please do not follow his line on bullying and the rest. There is no certainty about whether Scotland would or would not be accepted in the EU - and I am sure there are some in Europe - maybe the Spanish is a good example for their own "devolution" reasons - who would oppose them.
Disagree with you there Harry - what many don't seem to realise is that the Scots are not being asked to vote to end the UK, they are being asked if they want to leave the UK. If they vote Yes and leave - the UK will still remain, albeit one member country less. As to them having "our pound" - you forget that it is just as much Scotland's pound as it is other UK members' - it is a UK asset, not England's, and Scotland does actually own a percentage of those assets. It's Westminster that want to have their cake and eat it, not Scotland - they are telling the Scots that they can't have their share of the assets but at the same time telling them that they have to take on their share of the debts. If those aren't the actions of a bully, then what is? Just as an aside re the currency, there is actually nothing to stop Scotland continuing with Sterling anyway - it being a currency zone currently comprised of the UK, Ascension and Tristan de Cunha, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, and the British Indian Ocean Territory. The Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey are in formal currency union with the UK, and are 'Crown Dependencies'. Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands, and St. Helena use a currency board to peg their pound to the UK pound - and other unofficial users include Uganda, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Rwanda, Malawi, Botswana, and Mirpur in Kashmir Pakistan. I'd say that if Zimbabwe and Sierra Leone can use the pound, there's no reason why an independent Scotland can't. To date, Westminster's underhand tactics have already broken the terms of the Edinburgh Agreement in terms of delivering a fair test - now to add to that, they have also threatened to completely renege on that Agreement by ignoring a majority Yes vote. Democracy in action or a case of bullying to get their way? I hope you're not basing your thoughts of the Spanish intending to veto Scotland's application on what Barroso said to Marr today? He is, after all, Portuguese and obviously shouldn't be speaking for them. Unfortunately, I can't find the link as evidence, but the Spanish themselves recently told the SNP that that would not be the case - and I guess the Scots have an ace up their sleeves anyway with fishing rights, which seemed to work for Iceland. What should worry the rest of UK more is that Westminster simply don't seem to realise that the rest of Europe, if not the world, are watching their actions with interest, and are less than impressed. That alone has the potential to cripple the UK more so than Scotland deciding to leave, but of course politicians being politicians, they will simply blame Scotland if that happens.
What about Irn-Bru???? Scotland - be free - England will miss you. I have always thought the 'UK' is stronger with everyone united though... According to the BBC "The referendum on Scottish independence will be held on 18 September, with voters being asked the Yes/No question: "Should Scotland be an independent country?" So we'll have to simmer down until then...
I think that there is a big difference BB to pegging your currency to that of a different country and expecting that country to bail you out if things go wrong. Remember that the UK tried to tie the pound to the Euro, but when the traders got a run on sterling going there was no help coming from across the channel. Keep the pound if you wish, but don't expect the Bank of England to support it against those who would make money from buying and selling it. That of course supposes that the Scots are not wanting to have London setting their interest rates for them. With regards to Europe watching there has been little interest in France so far. The only real comment I have seen has compared the SNP and it's leaders to the ones in Corsica who would like to break away from France. Every few years there is an upsurge in nationalism, but then leaders on the island change and there are a few more years without any great unrest from the majority. The ones who do continue to agitate are the ones looking for political power, but eventually people vote them out or ignore them as they become fed up with being told what they should do.
