[Tiste Simeon]

Just about on topic, but some good news! Austrian far right guy defeated (soundly by all accounts...)

[Tiste Simeon]

So... While this is by no means the end of Brexit, I am quite happy with the news today.

If nothing else because all the hate rags like the Daily Mail are fuming, as are their idiot readers...

[worry]

What's the deal with the defeat of Amendment 86? Betrayal of the Good Friday Agreement?

[Mezla PigDog]

I expect the official position is similar to that of the devolution bills that the Good Friday Agreement stands as is because it does not reference membership of the EU in the text (I assume, I haven't read it!).

In practise it's all a bit of a fuck up and nobody knows how it will work out. The big deal about it is that the Ireland/NI border will be the only land border between the UK and the EU and nobody wants to go back to having checkpoints on that border as it harkens back to the bad old days. The government has said there will be no new checkpoints there. Politics aside it would be bloody expensive.

I'm really pissed off that all of the amendments were blocked. Most were straight up common sense. The most annoying one was the amendment to force a public review of funding for the NHS as the Leave campaign had their "£350m a week extra for the NHS" slogan on their bus. Prominent Leave campaigners voted that down. This is what happens when the fucking Tories have a majority, they won't even face up to words on a page. We need more by-elections sharpish.

I read an interview with Ken Clarke at the weekend and he said that the government keeping everything quiet looks to him like they have no internal agreement on what to do about any of this. I reckon he's right.

This post has been edited by Mezla PigDog: 10 February 2017 - 10:19 AM

[Gorefest]

Ken Clarke, the only Tory with a brain.

In the meantime I would like to appeal for aid. I am being held hostage by the UK government as a bargaining chip. My home nation of the Netherlands cannot come to my aid as they are tied down by bureaucratic EU regulations. I would look to the USA for an intervention force but recent events in Yemen do not fill me with confidence. Russia will just use my pleas for help as internet propaganda. China will take it as an excuse to sell cheap toys to Brexit voters who will assume that the cute union jack stencilled vest on the teddy means it was made in a proper British factory. Japan crossed my mind, but seppuku is not my personal idea of a noble escape. I could of course just bide my time and hope that it will all work out in the end, but that seems a far too practical and non-hysterical thing to do in this age of populist scaremongering. So I was thinking of either an internet sit-in or some sort of aggressive pamphlet action from my fellow Malazanites, anything really that will make the Daily Mail pause and pay attention to my plight. Because they like kicking foreigners out but they like personal sob stories even more and they will rally the sections of the British population that really matter, i.e. pensioners, white males, and the disenfranchised who valiantly manage to live off benefits next to their cash-in-hand fulltime commitments.

This post has been edited by Gorefest: 10 February 2017 - 01:42 PM

[worry]

All the Brits probably saw this already but this is LOL-funny.

[Tiste Simeon]

Yes I'm sure he hated that and as such I loved it!

[Darkwatch]

So following a post Tiste put up elsewhere, I'm going to tell you how Brexit actually has a negative impact on my life (which is the reverse question of the aforementioned post).

Some may wonder how I as a Canadian could be impacted by Brexit in any direct way right now. The UK will only truly be out of the EU in 2 years and only then will the trade deals truly fall as well as other EU positives. So even had I been some kind of importer or exporter I'd have another 2 years.
The thing is in my line of work there aren't a large number of jobs available. I've been lucky lately to get one that's actually permanent, but with companies going up and down so regularly who knows what will happen. For a while I was looking at going international, specifically somewhere in the Commonwealth (since I'm Canadian) or in la Francophonie.
Going international is difficult since you need a work visa which can be long to get unless an international firm picks you up and even then they have to get visas which still takes time which means long dry spells without income and no reserves to see through it. I mentioned my intention to some family at which point they reminded me I had family in the UK which meant getting access to a permanent resident status or even citizenship might be doable and shorter than if I had none. They also reminded me that because the UK was in the EU I'd be able to then work in Europe as well as the UK as needed.
This was amazing news, and an edge for getting a job since I could tell employers there wouldn't be any hassle of getting a visa for me if I was sent to Europe. It opened up a whole new pool of possibilities.
I contacted the British High Commission and started getting the documentation together.
Then the referendum went through.

Basically by the time I'd gone through the submission process I'd still have the ability to go the UK but would then be cut off from the rest of Europe. That's not supposing that the UK Parliament doesn't decide to throw good money after bad and just make immigration much harder, thus locking me out of the UK as well.

Luckily as I mentioned above I managed to get a job here, but I definitely would have liked to have expanded options when looking for work.

[Kanese S's]

Nigel Farage is such scum. Just want to punch that smug jackass in the face.

[Tiste Simeon]

Kanese S, on 11 April 2017 - 12:33 AM, said:

Nigel Farage is such scum. Just want to punch that smug jackass in the face.

Such a relatable statement...

[Khellendros]

Theresa May is calling an unscheduled press conference in 15 minutes' time.

Early election announcement? Or nuclear war?

Maybe she's resigning...but somehow I doubt that.

[Khellendros]

Early election it is - 8 June.

Conservatives will win, probably increase their majority. The interesting thing to see is if the Lib Dems recover at all from their pounding at the last general election, using their anti-Brexit stance.

[Khellendros]

And of course:

Will Labour unite to do their best to stave off a disaster at the polls?

Or will they let themselves be murdered so that it might force Corbyn to resign?


I'm betting on the latter, because why unite for the party and do your best for its members when you can be vindictive instead?

[Tiste Simeon]

Yeah I'm going to vote Lib Dems mainly for their anti-Brexit stance. Can't vote for Tories because they're ruining the country and I can't vote for Labour as they seem pretty spineless at the moment.

Also predicting Farage to make a return sadly.

[Messremb]

Oh great.

Now there'll be 2 months of backstabbing, 3 months of uncertainty whilst the transitions happen after the election. That's 5 months off the negotiating timetable just gone. If I was the EU I'd refuse to talk to anyone now till after the dust has settled. This isn't how you do negotiations, May.

Not to mention all the claims that'll be thrown around and another round of lies.

On the plus side it is a chance for the Scots to reduce the power of Sturgeon.

Also, I'm in Amsterdam / Florence that week. Guess I'll need to make alternative arrangements to vote.

[Messremb]

Tiste Simeon, on 18 April 2017 - 12:33 PM, said:

Yeah I'm going to vote Lib Dems mainly for their anti-Brexit stance. Can't vote for Tories because they're ruining the country and I can't vote for Labour as they seem pretty spineless at the moment.

Also predicting Farage to make a return sadly.

In all honesty the LibDems have no chance. I've always gone that way (or Green when the chance permits) but it is really going to be a waste this time.

What the country needs is a crushing defeat of either Labour or Conservative. Major landslide etc so the winning party goes into negotiations strong and undivided. Another coalition would be a disaster, as would a near even split.

[Khellendros]

Tiste Simeon, on 18 April 2017 - 12:33 PM, said:

Yeah I'm going to vote Lib Dems mainly for their anti-Brexit stance. Can't vote for Tories because they're ruining the country and I can't vote for Labour as they seem pretty spineless at the moment.

Also predicting Farage to make a return sadly.

I would vote for whichever party has the most chance of ousting the Tories in your constituency. I'm traditionally a Labour supporter but I'll be voting Lib Dem because Labour has no chance in my seat. The only way to stop a Tory big majority is to vote tactically. Unfortunately, that also means the Labour/Lib Dem/Green parties need to agree not to stand in the way of each other's challenges in marginal seats. Which is very very unlikely to happen.

[Khellendros]

Messremb, on 18 April 2017 - 12:46 PM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 18 April 2017 - 12:33 PM, said:

Yeah I'm going to vote Lib Dems mainly for their anti-Brexit stance. Can't vote for Tories because they're ruining the country and I can't vote for Labour as they seem pretty spineless at the moment.

Also predicting Farage to make a return sadly.

In all honesty the LibDems have no chance. I've always gone that way (or Green when the chance permits) but it is really going to be a waste this time.

What the country needs is a crushing defeat of either Labour or Conservative. Major landslide etc so the winning party goes into negotiations strong and undivided. Another coalition would be a disaster, as would a near even split.

Negotiation strength is secondary to me compared to domestic policies. You also forget that a large majority does not negate division - May's biggest trouble comes from her own party with the hard Brexiters. I would much rather see a coalition government or continued small majority, than an overwhelming one which can continue selling off all public services.

[Mezla PigDog]

Cripes. I have no idea how I'm going to vote. Might have a chance to oust our pro-brexit Tory MP. I feel the NHS and the social care system is equally high on my agenda though. I'm going to read the Lib, Lab and Green manifesto and see what's what then probably vote the one most likely to oust Lilley. I promised myself no more tactics after the last general election though..... It's all fucked though. The left vote will split and the Tories will increase their majority. People are greedy and/or idiots and the press is on their side.

[Fid]

Can I just have 8 weeks on a desert island with no TV radio or news? It is going to be hideously tedious again. Only good news is that HIGNFY is back on Friday and a new series of the News Quiz.