Off Topic Politics Thread

  • Please bear with us on the new site integration and fixing any known bugs over the coming days. If you can not log in please try resetting your password and check your spam box. If you have tried these steps and are still struggling email [email protected] with your username/registered email address
  • Log in now to remove adverts - no adverts at all to registered members!
I'm not overfond of Starmer but he doesn't hang about taking action.
"Keir Starmer has sacked Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US over his association with Jeffrey Epstein.

The Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty told MPs that Mandelson had not disclosed the extent and depth of his friendship with Epstein, a convicted child sex offender, when he was appointed as the ambassador.

He said No 10 had not known about emails from Mandelson to Epstein suggesting his 2008 conviction for soliciting a child for prostitution was wrongful and should be challenged.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “In light of the additional information in emails written by Peter Mandelson, the prime minister has asked the foreign secretary to withdraw him as ambassador."
 
I'm not overfond of Starmer but he doesn't hang about taking action.

He had to act fast as Trump is arriving next week. Can't have his new mate embarrassed by Mandelson's own JE scandal still being a hot topic.

This what happens when you appear to have lost any tangible principles - constant fire fighting.



.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Number 1 Jasper
When Trump arrives in England, he will undoubtedly have his own private US security people. Are they (legally) allowed to carry guns, in Britain? could our customs/border force/police ask them to 'leave their guns at the desk', to be picked up when they leave Britain? Extending this, what would happen if one of his (probably armed) guards takes it upon themselves to shoot someone, on the pretext that they looked like they might have tried to attack Trump?
 
Of course now the various theories start coming out - Trump wasting no time blaming the "radical left" (hello Reichstag fire moment) whilst others are saying that Kirk had slowly started turning against Israel and in an interview with Megyn Kelly had called for the release of the Epstein files, so in him the right had their perfect expendable martyr (hello Reichstag fire moment part 2).

I don't know enough about sniping to know whether a 150-200 metre shot like that is a hard shot, but it feels like it probably is quite 'pro'? As I say though, thankfully that's not something I know. Do we have anyone with ballistics knowledge here?


Fairly easy shot on a sitting target with 5.56 or above. Achievable with 100 or so rounds practice
 
Probably was going for centre mass, but went high and got a "lucky" shot in the neck
I've seen a couple of people say Charlie Kirk was wearing some sort of body armour and the bullet hit him in the chest/shoulder and was deflected up into his neck somehow. Supposedly you can see this if you look at the close-up video in slow motion. I won't be checking that myself though. I accidentally saw the close up video and have absolutely no interest in watching it again.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Schrodinger's Cat
Wasn't it the case the Trump rally assassination attempt should have been "easily" achievable considering the weapon and distance?
On this I'm sure I've seen people say the only thing that saved Trump was the fact he turned his head at the exact moment he did and if he hadn't the back of his head would have been blown off.
 
Appears that Kirk was a Right Wing Extremist. Never heard of him.
Up until recently you wouldn’t have done if you weren’t a YouTube watcher and/or in that bubble. He became more prominent in the last election cycle. He also started doing podcasts including guesting on some from “across the aisle”
 
Extremist might be a bit far. By American standards, anyway…
By our standards he probably would be. Their democrats are closer to our old one nation Tories (at least at leadership and establishment level) than Labour

Or used to be at least. Probably closer to this brand of Labour than ones before

remember the one nation Tories? I sort of miss them. Compared to the current offering on the right
 
  • Like
Reactions: ......loading......
Ultra conservative perhaps. He would have been seen as an extremist headbanger pre-Trump, he played a conspicuous part in helping shift the Overton window
Yes. Which is why all the right wing reaction of “all he did was ask questions and have debates” is disingenuous. But I wouldn’t expect anything different from the loudest voices on that side

Not that it is a good reason or justification for what happened to him. He didn’t deserve that