Salt n Vinegar

It would be interesting to be a fly on the wall when a director of a company tries to explain to the other board members what it was about Truss that led him to pay any heed to her consultancy's views on anything.

Nice to get some silverware. An award so prestigious that I doubt if one in a hundred people have ever heard of it. I know that any good news is good news, but sheesh..

Aye, I can think of few things that will better help us close the gap with Celtic than a photo of someone whose only qualification for his role is that his parents got c*ck-happy. The obsession that some of my fellow supporters have with that dysfunctional family is quite tragic. If the club want to put up photos round the place of folk who ACTUALLY give a rat's backside about the club, and contribute to it, I'd rather the club plastered the walls with photos of supporters - and of the newspapers back pages after defeats. The King? I doubt if he could find his way to Ibrox with a map, a compass or a satnav. We might as well put up a photo of Daffy Fkkn Duck.

It does seem strange but that's my experience too. Seen it in the Greek Islands, Italy and France. Favourite tactic is on first night, go to the bar, order a whisky (malt if available - Laphroaig usually gets an admiring glance) then say "from my country". Frequently ensures good service, especially if the "vindaloo" lot are around.

There's nothing like consistency...

That must be the ultimo insult! (reaches for coat...)

I've heard a few clips of her speaking in the Commons and it's pretty obvious that she can string together a coherent sentence or two. Her contribution on the F...ism issue was excellent as was her one about her being the only person in the UK of her age getting Westminster support for her housing costs... “The government quite rightly pays for me, with taxpayers’ money, to be able to live in London. My housing is subsidised by the taxpayer. Now the chancellor in his budget said it is not fair that families earning over £40,000 in London should have their rents paid by other working people. “But it is okay if you’re an MP. In this budget, the chancellor also abolished housing benefit for anyone below the age of 21. So we are now in the ridiculous situation whereby because I am an MP, not only am I the youngest, but I am also the only 20-year-old in the whole of the UK the chancellor is prepared to help with housing.” Further, I wouldn't have thought that Glasgow University would have been in the habit of randomly handing out First Class Honours Degrees in Politics and Public Policy, which Black was obtained in 2015. Given her political career to date and her qualifications, it seems to me that she is indeed... what was it DPB referred to.... (checks post...) oh yes "articulate, sounds educated and is aspirational".

Personally, I'd rather they armed bears, but that's probably just me...

The Donald not having a good week.

This case certainly demonstrates the immense sense in the manner in which part of our legislature is constructed. Maybe she could ask one of the 26 Bishops in the Lords for some guidance on appropriate behaviour? After all, they have to do something useful to justify their membership

It will certainly be interesting with these two at the top of the SNP Westminster group. I thought that sometimes Blackford pulled his punches a little. I doubt that the new young team will "play nice".

Trump must know he's in trouble if compared to him Bolton looks the sane person in the room...

Don't know what all the fuss is about. Clearly, a fine way to put people into a revising chamber of a modern democratic government is to include folk who are senior office-holders in one organisation whose purpose is to maintain and promote belief in the supernatural and the distant descendants of folk who supported a monarch by sending his estate's serfs to fight in wars, or provided the monarch with "personal services" or covered up extra-marital affairs. Or similar. And of course, don't forget some of the other means of securing a seat in the Lords... bunging a few million quid to political parties, losing elections, being the pals of defeated or disposed-of former leaders, etc. All of course ideal qualifications for those to be given political power - and with no upper age limit an appointee can exercise that political power for decades... with no democratic means of removal. Much better than that boring, new fangled "democracy" nonsense. What a country. If only a UK political party with an intention to abolish the House of Lords had ever managed to gain a majority at Westminster over the last say, 112 years... oh, no, wait a minute...

Just seen the BBCs newsman from England standing outside Holyrood (I say "from England" - presumably, as I don't remember ever seeing him on Reporting Scotland - maybe nobody from BBC Scotland was available?) Seems to me that he was talking utter bovine excrement as he talked about Labour trying to "entrench the powers of the Scottish Parliament to prevent the UK government from chipping away at the devolution settlement..." How interesting. I wasn't aware that the "constitution" now allowed the Westminster Parliament to bind its successors. Jacob Rees-Mogg will do his nut. Nah, enough.

Godz, innit?

It is bad enough that politicians in this country have to swear an oath to unelected hereditary figureheads but as I understand it three elected members of the Quebec Parliament haven't been allowed to take office because they have refused to do so. Pathetic, servile nonsense. (Source - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/dec/01/canada-quebec-end-elected-official-oath-king-charles) Welcome to 21st Century democracy.

I'm neither Jedi nor a Labour supporter, but if I had to guess, it might be that a significant part of it would be that London Labour fear being slaughtered by the Tory supporting media for them "getting into bed" with the SNP.

It's all going very well, isn't it? "A Scottish firm has revealed how it was forced to abandon all trade with Europe after Brexit hammered the “nail into the coffin” of its export business. Andrew Duff, who runs butchers MacDuff 1890, said it’s now easier to export to Hong Kong than it is to Europe." (source - https://www.thenational.scot/news/23161092.lanarkshire-business-forced-stop-trade-eu-due-brexit/) About time too.

I understand that there's a few in Raith for the wraith to choose from...

The Brexit mob will claim this is a Brexit benefit as it will "encourage" British tourists to holiday at home, thus boosting the British tourism industry. Jacob Rees-Mogg will be dancing in the streets.

Susan? SUSAN? The Great Flying Spaghetti Monster (blessed be his noodly appendages) will have your guts for garters!

Oops. Labour doing better in the polls.... right on cue, the determination to screw up their election prospects appears... former leadership candidate David Milliband hints at return to the Commons. Can't imagine that the Tory leaning parts of the press will make anything of that, no siree!

Careful now. You have possibly offended those folk who think that the planet's winds come from huge disembodied heads or from huge caucasian swimmers only just keeping their heads above water. (Other opinions are available.)

Hmmm... Must confess to being a bit conflicted here. What's the difference between paying fees and moving into the catchment area of a "better" state school by buying an expensive home that "ordinary" folk couldn't afford? As I heard (dunno if it's true) that a Labour education convener in Edinburgh did... Boroughmuir, I seem to recall. Will the state also ban aspirational parents from buying extra-curricular tuition for their kids? If it is not tax free presumably that unfair advantage for the parents of better off kids is fine and dandy. So that's ok then. Is it? Taking away the vat aspect purifies the inequality? Don't think so. Education - like (laughably) religion - has been seen in tax terms as a public good, therefore justifiably in receipt of tax breaks. If questionable benefits to wider society are the the determining factor for tax breaks I'd much rather that religion lost its tax advantages first. I am a member of a Scottish charity which has education as a major aspect of its charitable status justification and none of it relies on myths and legends or claiming knowledge about the origins of the universe that, frankly, no mammal can possibly "know" to be true. Maths and physics delivered in a particular sort of school - no tax break. Burning bushes, talking snakes and women turning into salt - tax break? GTF! Yes, drink has been taken. Danger of a rant developing so I'm off to my kip! Oidhche mhath!

As I understand it, it can be quite difficult for voters to know that he is in the Labour Party as he appears not to make much mention of that minor detail on his election material . (So I was told by my younger laddie who lived in his constituency for a couple of years. Urban myth?)