Mailwatch(ed) Forum

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I must be the only person in the world who finds Truss interesting but anyway. Hard to argue that she didn't do something right re the members.

If you'd have been choosing someone to come through the field, it would have probably been Priti Patel, who had a bigger job, with massive scope for pleasing members. Truss had a much less important job with international trade. But Patel went nowhere, and Truss made herself the most popular minister among members, with her dynamic buccaneering trade deals (sic). Members might have voted Brexit to keep out Poles, but they wanted something positive sounding too. Truss provided and then ran for leader in the same vein, except with the economy. A winning (political) strategy.

That suggests to me that the Braverman-style stuff may not be enough. Badenoch's got herself the successor job to Truss, and seems to have toned down her Braverman stuff a bit. I think that she'll beat Braverman.

Rosvanian wrote: ↑Sat Nov 04, 2023 5:25 pm It will be a very brave magistrate who dishes out a fine to a charity for being charitable to a homeless person.

I think you don't know enough magistrates...

Kemi Badenoch, in a rather unexpected interpretation of her role as the business secretary and minister for women and equalities, has this week been digging up the queers and wokes at Stonewall.

She remains the third stalwart in the Patel/Braverman coven.

Rosvanian wrote: ↑Sat Nov 04, 2023 5:25 pm It will be a very brave magistrate who dishes out a fine to a charity for being charitable to a homeless person.

The Monarch, a British person who has more homes than Millets has tents, is going to have to read out that shit next week. He'll be fine.

kreuzberger wrote: ↑Sat Nov 04, 2023 6:59 pm Kemi Badenoch, in a rather unexpected interpretation of her role as the business secretary and minister for women and equalities, has this week been digging up the queers and wokes at Stonewall.

She remains the third stalwart in the Patel/Braverman coven.

Fair point. I think she'll beat Braverman by looking like she can focus on actual work as well. 42% of members voted for Sunak, so there's still a constituency for that.

Labour PPC here has an angle, which is a bit awkward for Braverman. The figure comes from a 2020 survey, apparently. It is specifically the percentage of British nationals who are homeless, who are the majority but not all. But it's still a lot.

Tory here with the real villain of the piece. Not the gobshiting Home Secretary, but the Commissioner of the Met, who points out that she hasn't exactly helped his task of policing the marches.

The Tories seem to conveniently forget that it was Suella Braverman who appointed Mark Rowley even though there were a number of better candidates available. Perhaps Suella needs to explain why she thought he was the best person for the job. Or did she just pick him because she thought he would be a stooge who she could easily control?

Rowley came across as impressive in the interview, no fool who went as far as a public servant can in public to tell Cruella to butt out.

It gets worse.

Braverman and Sunak can be nicked first for undermining democratic protest. And all the goons who attack judges because they don't understand the separation of powers.

All themes in O'Brien's new book:

Rules apply only to other people
We cannot be wrong - if proved wrong, simply change the criteria
We can do whatever we want

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sat Nov 04, 2023 7:13 pm Labour PPC here has an angle, which is a bit awkward for Braverman. The figure comes from a 2020 survey, apparently. It is specifically the percentage of British nationals who are homeless, who are the majority but not all. But it's still a lot.

I must admit, I throught the proportion higher than one in 20.
I had expected the number to be closer to the oft-quoted one in four, which applies (applied?) to the prison population.

Anybody looking at the later figure might conclude that there's something about "service" that breaks people.
A compassionate "pro military" government might devote more effort to solutions / prevention.

What happened to the military covenant? Cameron used to bang on about that.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sun Nov 05, 2023 10:52 am What happened to the military covenant? Cameron used to bang on about that

Costs money.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sun Nov 05, 2023 10:52 am What happened to the military covenant? Cameron used to bang on about that.

Worth the back of an envelope it was written on.
Empty gammon herding rhetoric in good times.
Kipling had their number as far back as 1890.

For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an` Chuck him out, the brute! "
But it's " Saviour of 'is country " when the guns begin to shoot;

Public relations heroes in wartime.
An unaffordable expense in peacetime, or when "invalided out".

How is Suella going to establish who is genuinely homeless? At the moment councils and housing associations will carry out checks to see if people are entitled to social housing and if they have a priority or not. But nobody would put themselves out on the streets in the middle of winter if they have got other options.

satnav wrote: ↑Sun Nov 05, 2023 12:06 pm How is Suella going to establish who is genuinely homeless? At the moment councils and housing associations will carry out checks to see if people are entitled to social housing and if they have a priority or not. But nobody would put themselves out on the streets in the middle of winter if they have got other options.

You think she cares? If you're on the streets you're fair game. See also genuine Romanies, asylum seekers, unemployed and all the others down the ages.

Okay, so 5% are the Sainted Squaddies: what about the 95% who ain't?

I know, or actually knew, two homeless persons. One sofa-surfs and has done for several years after being chucked out of the family home after a fight and having a restraining order slapped on him. Trouble is, the place he calls 'home' for the moment may be getting sold soon as the elderly gentleman is thinking of selling up and moving near to, or in with, his sisters. I think he knows somewhere he can crash but for a year he was sleeping, well concealed amongst his belongings, in a storage unit.

The other one is sadly no longer with us. He had a troubled background (father was in jail a lot) but was best described as a cheeky chappie. The last time I saw him he was begging in an arcade and he called my name out as I approached. So I sat down and had a long chat with him and how he'd ended up where he was and how some of his family refused to help him; there was a sight, me in my Barbour jacket sat next to this poor lad. It certainly got a few looks.

As I left, I bunged him £20 and said "for fuck's sake, try and get a roof over your head tonight". I didn't expect what came next: he threw his arms around me, burst into tears and just said "thank you".

Some months later, I learned he'd taken his own life. His funeral was very well attended at the church in the village we grew up in, and all the homeless people he got to know attended. All behaved respectfully and impeccably, which is more than can be said for some.

Every time I go to see Mrs. B. at the cemetery, as I leave I walk past his grave (he's buried next to his sister - alcoholism claimed her) and always say the same thing: "You are not forgotten."

Action Man has got involved. He's a nasty bit of work.

What's supposed to have happened here? Johnny doesn't know- hence the sly "appearing to".