Politics

[Aaron N]

In the long run. Water always wins.

We can certainly mismanage it though

 

[Accidental Villain]

I'm convinced the British government exists solely to gaslight and torment British people at this point.

Absolutely spot on there!
I own some property abroad, currently housing British middle-class "refugees".
These are hard working, value creating, excellent people that according to my broker have thrown in the towel being taxed to death, to fund net-zero and all the other idiot monkey business the British gov. are into.
UK is becoming a banana republic and it is very sad to see. People of UK/Europe need to wake up.

 

[Pondoro]

Norway is currently not much better..its all about a socialist experiment to make the state filthy rich and tax the inhabitants to death.

 

[Tanks]

Norway is currently not much better..its all about a socialist experiment to make the state filthy rich and tax the inhabitants to death.

It is interesting that they produce almost half as much oil as UAE, But tax their people significantly more compared to zero tax at UAE.

 

[Brent in Az]

The plague of locusts comes in many forms.

 

[spike.t]

Watched a couple of this guys videos, and he doesn't hold back from telling the truth about how it is in African countries....or how the people behave....this one on slavery reparations is blunt and to the point as well....

 

[Scott CWO]

That’s all true. I think the more accurate thing people should say is that they are wasting usable water. If you live in a dry area or drought conditions it is possible to convert usable water to unusable water faster than it is replenished.

If you were in the dessert with 5 gallons of usable water for an extended period it wouldn’t be smart to use it to wash your hair. No the wayer wouldn’t disappear forever. But you’d die of thirst before being able to replenish your usable water.

On a larger scale a towns water system could be depleted faster than it is replenished or someone on a well could use water at a rate faster than the well ca produce. In those cases I would say the town or household could be wasting usable water.

That’s a local problem about cleaning capacity and local water availability. Not a problem with true “wasting” of water as if it is gone forever.

 

[Brent in Az]

Not surprising.

 

[spike.t]

His videos are quite amusing usually taking the piss out of putins efforts in Ukraine....

 

[spike.t]

One for the oil guys to check.....does his info sound correct and how long to repair that part of the refinery?

 

[spike.t]

A proper headmistress on the left wing liberalisation of the education system, and it's effect on the children in it....

 

[Nyati]

Just asked my nephew who has been in Barcelona for almost a year now and he said they are getting a little reprieve on the coast compared to inland.

What makes a big difference is humidity, today Barcelona has 65% while Madrid has only 27%

 

[spike.t]

So who is getting screwed by who.....Thoughts.......

 

[318AE]

I was in Berlin this last weekend, as I needed to be in Potsdam this week.

What a shit show. Except for my 18C hotel room, everything was a sweat drenched misery. I first thought there might be brown outs or electricity failures, but given so very little has AC, I doubt that is really a risk. There was some banal government PSA messaging about eating lighter and being less active etc.

I went out to dinner one night and saw this guy putting up what looked like one of those emergency blankets you find in a first aid kit, over his balcony doors. In an odd way, it reminded me of watching central Texans try to drive in the snow. Well intentioned but likely not that effective.

Putting up with the whole ordeal seemed to be perceived more as a civic duty than an infrastructure failure. The common explanation being “it’s wasteful to have AC for only a few days a year”.

Whatever the case, it just can’t be wasteful in terms of the operational electricity cost. How much can it really cost to run a mini split in your bedroom for a few nights or even a month a year?

 

[steve white]

How does a government justify setting energy so expensive that it will predictably lead to the deaths of vulnerable people?

I don’t know why energy has become the luxury of the rich in Europe, especially with such available reserves up north, and historic alternatives like nuclear. But for Canada, I have long thought that the regressive carbon tax and similar approaches to energy to be unethical. If we accept we have to save the planet, why does the fodder have to be at the detriment of those least able to absorb the cost of the transition?

While the “excess” may seem distasteful, the fact is that Americans will always allow a system that benefits the most.

OMG, you and Redleg are making me ever more grateful to LIVE IN AMERICA! We really won the lottery when we were born in the good ole USA.

 

[Nyati]

How the lefties think economy works

 

[steve white]

Also... is there anyone on here from the DC area? I was watching the Big Weekend Show yesterday. They were going on and on about how that "state fair" was packed. The video footage I saw looked... "sparse"? It seems like neat idea - and maybe this ties to the previous conversation about people not getting hyped about 250. But it just didn't look heavily attended to me. Has anyone attended? Thoughts?

I have read that Republics seldom if never last more than 250 yrs? And that when a declining empire codifies total sexual freedom, they have 90--100 years left to collapse/takeover? (IF that happened in the mid 60's where are we on that timetable as well) I think this might be reflected in stats on who is patriotic and who is not. I am disturbed by those with a bent to cultural suicide. But you have to have a culture you support, after all. Are we several steps down the path of the decline of the Roman Empire?

 

[Tundra Tiger]

I have read that Republics seldom if never last more than 250 yrs? And that when a declining empire codifies total sexual freedom, they have 90--100 years left to collapse/takeover? (IF that happened in the mid 60's where are we on that timetable as well) I think this might be reflected in stats on who is patriotic and who is not. I am disturbed by those with a bent to cultural suicide. But you have to have a culture you support, after all. Are we several steps down the path of the decline of the Roman Empire?

My grandpa used to wonder aloud about this, and he would compare football stadiums to the Roman colosseum.

 

[steve white]

Watched a couple of this guys videos, and he doesn't hold back from telling the truth about how it is in African countries....or how the people behave....this one on slavery reparations is blunt and to the point as well....

Are you sure this is not AI? I cannot see any black person saying these things. If he is real, have HIM address the UN, lol.

 

[Red Leg]

I have read that Republics seldom if never last more than 250 yrs? And that when a declining empire codifies total sexual freedom, they have 90--100 years left to collapse/takeover? (IF that happened in the mid 60's where are we on that timetable as well) I think this might be reflected in stats on who is patriotic and who is not. I am disturbed by those with a bent to cultural suicide. But you have to have a culture you support, after all. Are we several steps down the path of the decline of the Roman Empire?

This historical general rule of thumb was actually analyzed by Lt Gen Sir John Glubb, a British military professional and recognized historian in an essay published back in 1976 titled "The Fate of Empires and Search for Survival." Known to history as Glubb Pasha, his biography is fascinating - particularly for someone with a Middle East focus.

In any case, my father, a historian also, sent me a copy while I was in Germany and quipped that I might look forward to eventual command of the Praetorian Guard. I dug it out a couple of years ago, and again just now. In his analysis, he does not politically differentiate between republican or Imperial forms of "empire."

I think he is largely correct. The United States is very much Imperial in the reach and breath of its military and economic power as was Rome or Victorian Britain (whose worldwide empire survived about 250 years).

His theory is based upon a 10 generation rule during which empires progress through six stages. 1) Age of Pioneers - a breakout of a hardy nation like our colonial and revolutionary period. 2) Age of Conquest - American manifest destiny. 3) Age of Commerce - Acquisition of great wealth through trade. 4) Age of Affluence - Over consumption and rejection of civic responsibility. 5) Age of Intellect - Prioritization of academic, scientific, and artistic endeavor over production. 6) Age of Decadence - Political tribalism ( Brent and Big Easy? ), currency debasement, celebrity culture, high economic inequality, and eventual collapse.

He lists a number of historical examples that generally follow that timeline ranging from the Assyrians thru the British Empire. Fifty years later he does seem to be pointing a finger directly at the US.

In fairness, there are also a number of republics in particular, that do not follow his predictive timeline ranging from France and Weimar on one extreme, and Venice or San Marino on the other. Rome in all three of its guises (Republic, Western Empire, and Eastern Empire) doesn't exactly fit either, though the phases hold up well.

If interested, the Essay is available on line.

https://people.uncw.edu/kozloffm/glubb.pdf