RedRob72
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Posts posted by RedRob72
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Did we start using the poppy to remember the fallen in the Opium Wars?
Professor Moina Micheal, an American Humanitarian from Georgia, conceived the original idea of using the Poppy as a symbol of remembrance, for those who were killed or injured during World War One.0 -
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/46057836
And Crusaders win 3-0 against Newry.
I was actually in Ballymena last night, not a stone's throw from The Showgrounds!
Heading over for the Linfield game at Seaview end of Jan, which might make a welcome diversion from watching the Gers at present! [emoji47]0 -
If Jeffrey gets time and backed by the board he'll win a trophy (and I don't mean the Co Antrim Shield!).
Cracking result for the Sky Blues last night, Glenavon probably feeling a little hard done by after dominating most of the 2nd half and getting the equaliser. Thing I like about the IPL is the no-nonsense stuff on park and despite the weather conditions last night, both teams got proper stuck in. No diving and falling about, feigning injury, no continual harassment and abuse of officials from the players, and the Ref’s take, being ‘ach c’mon son get yerself up and get on with it’’.
The overall quality of play might take a bit of stick, but I’d rather watch that than some over the overhyped stuff in the EPL on Sky/BT Sport.0 -
Drop of the Balvenie DoubleWood. Just the ticket, with the football on. Ballymena Utd Vs Glenavon.
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No time for Corbyn, but the journalists who doorstep him every morning as soon as he leaves the house, (repeating the same anti-semitic accusations), are just c*nts. Give the guy some respectful privacy at his home ffs!!
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Doesn't look like it's going to get any better, anytime soon.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/kirsty-wark-formally-applies-question-13128339
Fiona Bruce handily placed at 8/1 behind Wark @ 7/2
https://smarkets.com/event/930887/tv-and-entertainment/presenters/question-time-presenter-june-2018
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Reschurunt.
On your last point, C4 and certain BBC propaganda are now rife with presenters/narrators who can barely speak vaguely intelligent English, innit bruv.
Urban ghetto grammar, white people using black youth, London ‘street’ patois! Not just youngsters, you hear adults doing it too! The use of F instead of Th (fink & fought) is indeed a mark of the brainless.1 -
Oooh, Kate Andrews is on... an absolute legend at beasting deranged feminists. Has she tussled with McElvoy yet?
Not quite, they are both being over shadowed by the brilliant insights from the deeply thoughtful Shappi Khorsandi!
David Dimbleby’s introduction described her as a Comedian. Seems he was bang on.0 -
Is this awful or what?
I’m starting to think, that the only reason I watch this every week, is to see how shite it is, both the audience and panel. I’m sure there must be some scientific term that describes this masochistic tendency?
You can see how the P&B audience have left this programme in droves by the meagre number of posts this thread receives on a Thursday evening.0 -
When did pubs start letting in kids? Thats another thing that just never happened when I was wee.
I’m down south so unsure of the law in England mate?0 -
Sat here at this moment sat in what looked a nice enough boozer for a wee pint and a bite to eat whilst working away. Some c*nt, presumably a local getting fired in at the bar whilst his kids are playing hide and seek around the other punters in the pub, then shouting at them when they interrupt his ‘audience’ and shitey patter.
It isn’t the kids fault they are bored as f*ck whilst he gets blootered. Some c*nts just fill you with despair! Think it’s time to find somewhere else.0 -
Interesting in the sense that presumably you concur with it ?
Voted to remain on the basis that it makes no sense to me whatsoever to leave our biggest trading partner, but that doesn’t stop me trying to understand an opposing view.
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Interesting collection of thoughts from former Australian PM,Tony Abbott.
It’s pretty hard for Britain’s friends, here in Australia, to make sense of the mess that’s being made of Brexit. The referendum result was perhaps the biggest-ever vote of confidence in the United Kingdom, its past and its future. But the British establishment doesn’t seem to share that confidence and instead looks desperate to cut a deal, even if that means staying under the rule of Brussels. Looking at this from abroad, it’s baffling: the country that did the most to bring democracy into the modern world might yet throw away the chance to take charge of its own destiny.
Let’s get one thing straight: a negotiation that you’re not prepared to walk away from is not a negotiation — it’s surrender. It’s all give and no get. When David Cameron tried to renegotiate Britain’s EU membership, he was sent packing because Brussels judged (rightly) that he’d never actually back leaving. And since then, Brussels has made no real concessions to Theresa May because it judges (rightly, it seems) that she’s desperate for whatever deal she can get.
The EU’s palpable desire to punish Britain for leaving vindicates the Brexit project. Its position, now, is that there’s only one ‘deal’ on offer, whereby the UK retains all of the burdens of EU membership but with no say in setting the rules. The EU seems to think that Britain will go along with this because it’s terrified of no deal. Or, to put it another way, terrified of the prospect of its own independence.
But even after two years of fearmongering and vacillation, it’s not too late for robust leadership to deliver the Brexit that people voted for. It’s time for Britain to announce what it will do if the EU can’t make an acceptable offer by March 29 next year — and how it would handle no deal. Freed from EU rules, Britain would automatically revert to world trade, using rules agreed by the World Trade Organization. It works pretty well for Australia. So why on earth would it not work just as well for the world’s fifth-largest economy?
A world trade Brexit lets Britain set its own rules. It can say, right now, that it will not impose any tariff or quota on European produce and would recognise all EU product standards. That means no border controls for goods coming from Europe to Britain. You don’t need to negotiate this: just do it. If Europe knows what’s in its own best interests, it would fully reciprocate in order to maintain entirely free trade and full mutual recognition of standards right across Europe.
Next, the UK should declare that Europeans already living here should have the right to remain permanently — and, of course, become British citizens if they wish. This should be a unilateral offer. Again, you don’t need a deal. You don’t need Michel Barnier’s permission. If Europe knows what’s best for itself, it would likewise allow Britons to stay where they are.
Third, there should continue to be free movement of people from Europe into Britain — but with a few conditions. Only for work, not welfare. And with a foreign worker’s tax on the employer, to make sure anyone coming in would not be displacing British workers.
Fourth, no ‘divorce bill’ whatsoever should be paid to Brussels. The UK government would assume the EU’s property and liabilities in Britain, and the EU would assume Britain’s share of these in Europe. If Britain was getting its fair share, these would balance out; and if Britain wasn’t getting its fair share, it’s the EU that should be paying Britain.
Finally, there’s no need on Britain’s part for a hard border with Ireland. Britain wouldn’t be imposing tariffs on European goods, so there’s no money to collect. The UK has exactly the same product standards as the Republic, so let’s not pretend you need to check for problems we all know don’t exist. Some changes may be needed but technology allows for smart borders: there was never any need for a Cold War-style Checkpoint Charlie. Irish citizens, of course, have the right to live and work in the UK in an agreement that long predates EU membership.
Of course, the EU might not like this British leap for independence. It might hit out with tariffs and impose burdens on Britain as it does on the US — but WTO rules put a cap on any retaliatory action. The worst it can get? We’re talking levies of an average 4 or 5 per cent. Which would be more than offset by a post-Brexit devaluation of the pound (which would have the added bonus of making British goods more competitive everywhere).
UK officialdom assumes that a deal is vital, which is why so little thought has been put into how Britain might just walk away. Instead, officials have concocted lurid scenarios featuring runs on the pound, gridlock at ports, grounded aircraft, hoarding of medicines and flights of investment. It’s been the pre-referendum Project Fear campaign on steroids. And let’s not forget how employment, investment and economic growth ticked up after the referendum.
As a former prime minister of Australia and a lifelong friend of your country, I would say this: Britain has nothing to lose except the shackles that the EU imposes on it. After the courage shown by its citizens in the referendum, it would be a tragedy if political leaders go wobbly now. Britain’s future has always been global, rather than just with Europe. Like so many of Britain’s admirers, I want to see this great country seize this chance and make the most of it.
Article taken from Spectator magazine 27 October 2018.0 -
Big test for Ballymena next Friday against Glenavon at The Warden Street Showgrounds. And Crusaders are away to Newry, hoping to get back on track.
On the Saturday Linfield look a shoe in against Warrenpoint Town at Windsor, big one at Bangor between Ards and Dungannon, a tasty encounter in prospect at Solitude between Cliftonville and Glentoran, and floundering Coleraine travel to The Brandywell for a north west derby against Institute.
Ballymena going well last few weeks JG, including their performances in the Shield, should be a decent game next Friday night!0 -
Princess Eugenie couldn’t wait to have her wedding reception pics developed!1 -
Standard of 'debate' tonight is absolutely terrible. I mean, it's usually bad, but this is dreadful.
Who would ever have thought that Lisa Nandy might be the only member on a QT panel even remotely worth listening to?
Horrible watching, it’s nearly as cringeworthy as having to sit through ‘The Apprentice’.0 -
Good win tonight, just when the usual jitters were starting (again). This year’s Championship title race is going to be a cracker, hopefully Leeds will stay in the mix.
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As someone whose paternal Grandfather was a former member of the Black Lodge in Northern Ireland and whose upbringing was staunchly staunch, I don't summarily dismiss anything or anyone lightly; at one point in time I was one of those 'others'.
Age however sometimes brings maturity and wisdom, and I've (very) long since abandoned any association with the Unionist cause - quite the polar opposite in fact. As a result I tend to have a dim view of those on every side who cling, religiously in too many cases, to the dismal practices and beliefs of the past, sugar-coating them in weasel words like 'heritage' and 'tradition'. Aye, right.
Agreed, but also that nationhood and citizenship can sit comfortably with heritage and tradition in the lives of most moderates, outwith religious dogma.0 -
Earlier in the process it was stated that ‘nothing is agreed until everything is agreed’ today an EU spokesman has said (I paraphrase) ‘it doesn’t matter if if 90%, 95% or99% has been agreed, until the Irish border situation is resolved then 0% has been agreed’.
The only way it can be pushed back or ‘parked’ is if Artcle 50 doesn’t come into effect on 31 March and I don’t see that happening.
Guy Verhofstadt; it would be hard to find a more committed European Federalist?0 -
Do I take it you’ve just re-read your post about symbolism then noticed your own avatar? [emoji849] Hmmmm0 -
Some agreement must be reached on the border issue before the U.K. leaves.
Think we’re just going round in circles here. The agreement being that there is an extended transition period to resolve the border issue, if that needs to include the fixed time-line of an extension beyond March 2019 then fine. We can continue to work on that with our EU counterparts whilst we attempt to get everything else in place.
It doesn’t make any sense whatsoever to say that because one issue appears to be insurmountable at present that we just drop everything else.
Like you, I didn’t want this, but without offering some space and flexibility, both sides are only going to exacerbate the frustrations and discomfort of this untidy break up.
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An awful lot of things should have been thought about before the referendum was offered.
The suggestion of extending the transition period by an unspecified number of months, is, as you say merely kicking the problem down the road.
By not specifying how many months would be required to finalize matters is akin to saying we'll just leave everything open-ended for the time being.
It isn’t kicking the can down the road, it’s temporarily leaving it where it is. Unless every other component of a Brexit ‘deal’ is wholly dependent on the outcome of the NI/ROI border issue, why not attempt to get as close to completion on everything else before the 29th March.
It seems as though both sides are floundering on the border contention, maybe a step away might offer a fresh perspective, once other key issues have been resolved.
Unless, (as Detournement mentioned back up the board) the EU are determined to stall and use the border as a means of enforcing continued membership of the single market.0 -
She bravely took on a sheep as well. all on her ownsome. Doubt she was expecting the replies she's getting.
[/url] https://twitter.com/LSwitlyk/status/1052216609757175808
The c*nts who allow that ‘sport’ on private land are just as bad.
Just feel despair looking at that picture. What an incredibly stupid pair.1 -
I never mentioned unification; the notional semi-detachment of Ulster from the UK is a symbolic nightmare only for Unionists of a boneheaded mentality. Tradition, heritage, etc., matters less to most people than practicality.
The traditions and heritage of others, summarily dismissed as boneheaded symbolism won’t help much either.0
The James McClean Sponsored Poppy Thread
in The General Nonsense Forum
Posted
Oh I’m sorry, I thought you were being serious WB.