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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 28, 2024 12:57:43 GMT
Interesting stuff from Germany. The Foreign Minister is a Green, so therefore the whole ministry is ran by the Greens.
"As the German Greens drop to their lowest polling numbers since 2018, a new scandal is brewing at the country’s Foreign Ministry. According to reports confirmed by the Ministry, which is run by Green politician Annalena Baerbock, the German judiciary is now investigating civil servants for allegedly deliberately accepting forged and incomplete visa documents. Reportedly, German staff at consulates and embassies in countries including Syria, Pakistan and Afghanistan were advised to accept fake passports, thereby enabling migrants to legally travel to Germany, despite violating existing rules that require proper documentation.
What was originally treated as a handful of cases could now actually be in the thousands, and the impression that a Green-run ministry has been prioritising ideology over proper legal procedure would further accelerate the party’s voter exodus. Migration is becoming an increasingly salient issue, particularly after a 20-year-old German was brutally beaten to death this week by, police claim, a Syrian migrant who entered the country in 2018.
Of course, the Greens’ support of mass immigration has never been a well-kept secret. Most memorably, the party’s Vice President of the Bundestag Katrin Göring-Eckardt responded to the 2015 migrant wave by saying: “We are being given people as a gift.” Contained within that line is the Greens’ basic attitude towards any kind of immigration, regardless of legality.
Since 2015, however, the German public has sobered up to the downsides of mass migration, and the impact on crime rates especially can no longer be denied. Berlin’s Chief of Police, Barbara Slowik, made this clear in a statement last week in which she acknowledged that the main perpetrators of the city’s spiralling knife crime are “young, male, and of non-German background”.
Although the investigation into forged visa documents is ongoing, the fact that the Foreign Ministry is yet to issue a denial — not to mention Baerbock’s own silence on the matter — is a strong indicator that the authorities are acting on more than a hunch. There have been suggestions in the past that the ministry was bending existing rules to fly in people from Afghanistan, and this is the most substantial charge yet. The accusation amounts to one of Germany’s most important federal ministries engaging in a form of human trafficking: enabling migrants to enter the country under false pretences or with forged documents is a crime prosecutable under existing law.
While this story is still developing, the question Germans are asking is no longer whether the forgeries took place but rather what the extent of the deception was and — crucially — who was involved. It is unlikely that Baerbock gave any such orders herself, but it’s entirely possible that her staff may have acted in accordance with the ideological preconceptions of their boss. The Greens are currently witnessing not just the discrediting of their liberal immigration policies, but also the rapid erosion of their voter base."
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 28, 2024 11:08:18 GMT
That line in BOLD is just rank stupidity Oldie. It's no different to the line used during the Brexit debate of "not all Brexiteers are racist, but all racists are Brexiteers". Haven't you got any other six form throw away comments to come out with? PS - So who is Dianne Abbott going to vote for then? and if you want to see a racist just look at the Labour candidate who is standing against Farage in Clacton. If a white person had said some of the things he has said, he/she would be hounded out! You really should stop trying to tar everyone with the same brush. So Who do you think ignorant racists will vote for? I haven't got a clue and I would be so presumptuous to make a guess.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 28, 2024 9:45:40 GMT
Reform are a small party just starting out. I think they only have something like five full-time staff. They don't have the massive resources of Labour or the Tories. They don't have a 'central office' etc, so yes, there will be idiots attached to them but as they are found they are booted out. It will take time to develop the party. What have Labour done about the racist that is Dianne Abbott? How long was Keith Vaz allowed to continue in the Labour Party? Idiots do attached themselves to political parties but that doesn't mean the whole party reflects their views. Find them, kick them out, from whatever party. It's pretty juvenile to attempt to discredit a whole party on the views of just one man. If it was just one man that last sentence would be true. It's not. Whilst all members and supporters of Reform are not ignorant racists, Reform is the party that all ignorant racists will vote for.Then you have the stupidity of Farage...would I want to be associated with any of that? I don't think so. That line in BOLD is just rank stupidity Oldie. It's no different to the line used during the Brexit debate of "not all Brexiteers are racist, but all racists are Brexiteers". Haven't you got any other six form throw away comments to come out with? PS - So who is Dianne Abbott going to vote for then? and if you want to see a racist just look at the Labour candidate who is standing against Farage in Clacton. If a white person had said some of the things he has said, he/she would be hounded out! You really should stop trying to tar everyone with the same brush.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 28, 2024 9:38:07 GMT
This is what many (including on here) have been saying for a long time, yet you continued to support Biden. The Democrats are attempting to play a huge con trick on the American public. Vote Biden in, but they just don't know who they will get as it is obvious that if Biden did win he'd step down in a matter of weeks and whoever is VP will become President. Shame on Biden's family for putting him through this as well. It is clearly obvious he is a sick man. I don't buy into any sort of conspiracy theory. This issue was widely discussed post debate tonight A large number of senior democrats now saying it was a mistake to honour tradition and stand aside to allow a sitting President a run at a 2nd term, if he/she wants to. Talking openly now of replacing for the Convention later in the year. Not a conspiracy theory, just plain common sense at what we have all been watching for the last 18 months or so. The Democrats were hoping that Biden could at least remain functional until the election and they are now realizing what the rest of us knew, that Biden is just not up to it.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 28, 2024 7:08:54 GMT
Reform are a small party just starting out. I think they only have something like five full-time staff. They don't have the massive resources of Labour or the Tories. They don't have a 'central office' etc, so yes, there will be idiots attached to them but as they are found they are booted out. It will take time to develop the party. What have Labour done about the racist that is Dianne Abbott? How long was Keith Vaz allowed to continue in the Labour Party? Idiots do attached themselves to political parties but that doesn't mean the whole party reflects their views. Find them, kick them out, from whatever party. It's pretty juvenile to attempt to discredit a whole party on the views of just one man.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 28, 2024 6:59:07 GMT
What a horrifying debate over here tonight. One guy was psychotic, a pathological liar. The other guy could barely walk whilst displaying the mental acuity of a seriously ill man. It was so painful I had to look away. Whilst I can support Biden's policies it is difficult to support the idea he is in any fit state to be President. This is what many (including on here) have been saying for a long time, yet you continued to support Biden. The Democrats are attempting to play a huge con trick on the American public. Vote Biden in, but they just don't know who they will get as it is obvious that if Biden did win he'd step down in a matter of weeks and whoever is VP will become President. Shame on Biden's family for putting him through this as well. It is clearly obvious he is a sick man.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 27, 2024 14:55:00 GMT
That's because it's no good sticking your fingers in your ears and shouting, "la, de dah, de dah" and hoping the issue will go away. Whether you like it or not it is a primary issue in many elections across Europe. It affects the Health Systems, Housing, Education and many other areas of life for people. One problem you actually highlight without realizing it is the use of the word "again". Yes, it will be mentioned "again" because the politicians are ignoring the issue. It won't go away and it is an issue of real concern for many people. I think I said yesterday that immigration is to high. So I ask again, why are the current government issuing over 1.2 million immigrant visas annually? Why? No idea why. Maybe we should be asking the question of what the Civil Service are doing. After all, I doubt any Government Minister is signing these Visas off. Once again though, you are ignoring the real issue of illegal migrants! Just what are Labour going to do about them? It's no good Starmer saying, "they will be processed"!.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 27, 2024 14:32:41 GMT
Former Conservative donor Sir John Hall switches support to Reform UK..by Luke Walton, Political correspondent, BBC North East and Cumbria.ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/vivo/live/images/2024/6/27/4fbd47ad-35c6-441f-86fb-abf927896a76.jpgFormer Conservative donor Sir John Hall has confirmed that he is switching support to Reform UK. The businessman and former owner of Newcastle United Football Club said concerns about the level of immigration had prompted his switch of allegiance, adding he was moving away from the Conservatives with a "heavy heart". Asked if he would be donating to Reform UK, Sir John confirmed that he would, but refused to say how much he would be giving the party. Sir John was attending a Reform UK rally near Sunderland - where he was introduced to around 1,000 party supporters by Nigel Farage. Immigration....again That's because it's no good sticking your fingers in your ears and shouting, "la, de dah, de dah" and hoping the issue will go away. Whether you like it or not it is a primary issue in many elections across Europe. It affects the Health Systems, Housing, Education and many other areas of life for people. One problem you actually highlight without realizing it is the use of the word "again". Yes, it will be mentioned "again" because the politicians are ignoring the issue. It won't go away and it is an issue of real concern for many people.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 27, 2024 7:47:27 GMT
What are their 'regressive policies"? There was a very good article written in The Spectator back in January. I was hoping to transcribe some of the salient points made which would back up my point, but my account with them won't let me, perhaps because I am in the States at the moment, I don't know. But here is the link www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-reform-party-is-too-wedded-to-the-free-market/Opening paragraph "What exactly does the Reform party stand for? Helpfully, its leader Richard Tice gave a press conference on Wednesday at which he sketched out some of his party’s principles and policies. The millionaire businessman described the Tories and Labour as ‘two sides of the same socialist coin’, citing in evidence ‘record high taxes’, ‘record high wasteful government spending’, ‘record nanny state regulations’, and ‘mass, uncontrolled immigration on a scale this country has never seen before" As the headline of that article suggests those points, other than migration, could have been written in 1979. Here is the thing. I don't disagree that the issues raised need to be addressed, it's the misinformation and very opaque policy solutions to address them that I object to. Let's take them individually in the order that Tice raised them. 1. Record High Taxes. No dispute, that is a matter of fact. But, we have very high levels of current account borrowing and national debt to service. If we are to radically cut taxation then we need to radically cut government spending. It's a bona Friday policy to do exactly that, but Reform are not spelling that out. Note: We have been here before with this stuff haven't we. With Thatcher and Reagan. They are never honest, although Thatcher was more brutal than Reagan. I was living in the States for the whole of Reagan's tenure. He was brilliantly entertaining but the fiscal policies were a disaster He came to power promising to cut taxes and slash spending. It was here I read the term to "hypothecate" spending for the first time. I thought it was a great idea. But, Reagan didn't do it. He cut taxes but kept spending. The national debt spiralled, inflation became embedded at between 10 to 4% over his two terms. But the biggest impact was the growth of inequality. To quote "Reaganomics had positives, such as lowering inflation and unemployment rates, and boosting the stock market, but it also increased the federal deficit, income inequality, and led to jobs with lower wages and a shift in manufacturing oveseas" That legacy of inequality has impacted America (and the UK) for decades now, I would argue leading to Trump, Brexit and Reform. Voters looking for someone or something to blame, but missing the target. Reform are aping this with some dewy eyed mysticism. It failed before, to promote it again is regressive. 2. "Wasteful Spending/Nanny State Regulations" As above. I am sure there is grotesque waste in Government spending, but name it. It's easy to say. Nanny State is just a tired old trope, mostly spouted by people who do not like a regulatory framework. We have done this for years, but nothing ever happens. It is a diversion and regressive to keep on about it again unless it is spelt out 3. Immigration What this is all about in reality. Legal migration into this country is far to high. But instead of whistling to the racist tendancies of many in our society why not ask why? Why, after cancelling free movement, is the government issuing work visas to over 1.2 million overseas applicants a year? If our economy doesn't need them? Why. Is employment levels in the UK high? Yes it is. Why do we have over 7 Million people economically inactive? Just saying we will cut net migration to zero answers none of those questions And then Farage adds the horrible language of " speaking in different languages", of "not understanding our culture" Pure dog whistling. To try and return the UK to an insular, inward looking society, both economically and socially is regressive. "2. "Wasteful Spending/Nanny State Regulations"
As above. I am sure there is grotesque waste in Government spending, but name it. It's easy to say. Nanny State is just a tired old trope, mostly spouted by people who do not like a regulatory framework.
We have done this for years, but nothing ever happens. It is a diversion and regressive to keep on about it again unless it is spelt out" - So basically you are saying that 'yes' there is grotesque waste in government spending, but it's always been that way so why even bother to talk about reducing it ! Is that really your argument here? "3. Immigration
What this is all about in reality. Legal migration into this country is far to high. But instead of whistling to the racist tendancies of many in our society why not ask why?
Why, after cancelling free movement, is the government issuing work visas to over 1.2 million overseas applicants a year? If our economy doesn't need them? Why. Is employment levels in the UK high? Yes it is.
Why do we have over 7 Million people economically inactive?" - Too many questions here. Yes, legal migration is an issue, but this doesn't even mention illegal migration which is the real issue that people are worried about. As for the 7 million 'inactive' people, well, there are a lot of ideas floating about that will help reduce that. The next question of course is just what are Labour's answers to these issues. The answer appears to be 'they haven't got a clue what to do'. Next, is it racist to question the effect that immigration is having on the NHS, schools, housing etc etc? By attemping to play the race card all you are doing is attempting to close down the debate. Labour are correct. This country does indeed need change, but both of the usual suspects will not and cannot bring about those changes. Same old parties, same old policies, both parties trying to introduce more tax rises without you knowing it instead of working out how they reduce government waste. It's easier, lazier and immoral to take more money from the taxpayer rather than work to reduce government expenditure with the prime example being the NHS. All we ever hear is that it needs more money. Government spending on health has gone from 7% of the national budget to 11% in just eight years, yet the NHS is still 'on it's knees' apparently. More money won't fix it, and we all know that. This also applies to higher taxation to so say provide more funds for 'services'. The UK does need change.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 26, 2024 17:02:40 GMT
What are their 'regressive policies"?
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 26, 2024 8:20:19 GMT
I know that there have always been people who are cynical about politicians but now they seem to be a huge majority....why's that ? This can be traced back to the aftermath of Brexit when politicians ignored the democratic will of the people (that's what they really think of democracy ) and basically stopped the country from moving forward,the result ? millions held their nose and voted for Boris Johnson "to get Brexit done" and to let the country move on...now the politicians are reaping the bitter consequences of their actions. Totally agree. The three years after the Brexit vote in the HoC was an utter disgrace to democracy.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 26, 2024 8:07:14 GMT
Are the people who are about to elect this Labour rabble stupid Oldie? Many of them probably voted for Brexit. And yes, I did read the article. The thing with this election is that normal people of the center have little choice. Who is going to vote Tory after their record of the last 14 years? Who would consider voting for a private company owned by a charlatan who is dog whistling to racist intent and with a innumerate proposition? Nobody I know is excited by Labour under Starmer but they feel they have little choice. I am sure also that many who do vote for Labour will be part of that narrow majority that voted for Brexit. Many that I interact with bitterly regret having done so or turn away sheepishly when the topic comes up. Brexit being the utter shambles we predicted it would be. Yes, I agree, I don't see why anybody would want to vote for the Tories, but please, can you stop this nonsense about 'racist intent' with the Reform Party. Please point out a single policy of theirs that has "racist intent". You claim that Farage is Dog Whistling, well, you are doing the exact same thing with your headline comments that contain no substance.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 26, 2024 8:03:45 GMT
Let me tell you a story (yeah, Max Bygraves walt!). I work in an environment where billions of Euros are gambled on a daily basis. If just one customer rings up with a problem we usually identify the problem and fix it within 30 minutes. Usually it is something to do with something that single customer is doing. Now, if five customers ring up with the same problem the alarm bells start ringing, and I mean that quite literally. An alarm will sound in the office and we also have a flashing red light. The whole team has to stop what they are doing and concentrate on the problem, because if five customers are reporting the same thing then it must be something our end ( I think the threshold for the alarm is three customers). The Post Office had hundreds of customers complaining about the same thing, yet they adopted the position that those hundreds were all wrong, and they were right. And no-one will go to prison. A cover up on a monumental scale. All three major political parties are complicit in this national scandal. That ITV drama at the start of the year has fed nicely into the growing feeling of disenfranchisement. This helps the protest parties - Reform and Greens. Some idiots think that voting Labour will change things for the better. Milk & honey on July 5th. Morons. and don't forget, Labour have changed !
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 25, 2024 16:54:33 GMT
All this attention and flak thrown at Farage is quite interesting. If his party win five seats it'll be a minor miracle. It does seem as though a lot of people are scared stiff that he may, may, in the long term upset the political applecart. The problem is that people like Oldie spend all their time with their obsession with Farage, while ignoring the disastrous policies that Labour will introduce, or the tax rises they will not talk about. I would love to be able to debate Labour's tax policies but I don't know what they are. Do you? Other than regurgitating headlines? As I said previously I agree with the IFS, we, the electorate, are voting in a vacuum as no party is being honest about the fiscal position the UK finds itself in. As for Reform, if opinion polls are anything to go by I think they are nailed on for three. That's the nature of democracy isn't it. Sometimes people vote for very stupid people. Starmer has said, "there will be no tax rises for working families".......he's lying. Why don't the media pick him up on this?
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2024
Jun 25, 2024 16:32:43 GMT
Post by Nobbygas on Jun 25, 2024 16:32:43 GMT
What absolute nonsense. This election is nothing to do with Brexit as neither of the main parties are prepared to talk about it. Are Labour planning to take us back into the EU? They won't say because history has proven it is not a vote winner. Labour are scared to admit that that is what they want to do. Did you read the whole article? In any event the events of the past 14 years were predicted (not Brexit, even I thought people would not be that stupid, but here we are). Are the people who are about to elect this Labour rabble stupid Oldie? Many of them probably voted for Brexit. And yes, I did read the article.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 25, 2024 16:29:22 GMT
Let me tell you a story (yeah, Max Bygraves walt!). I work in an environment where billions of Euros are gambled on a daily basis. If just one customer rings up with a problem we usually identify the problem and fix it within 30 minutes. Usually it is something to do with something that single customer is doing. Now, if five customers ring up with the same problem the alarm bells start ringing, and I mean that quite literally. An alarm will sound in the office and we also have a flashing red light. The whole team has to stop what they are doing and concentrate on the problem, because if five customers are reporting the same thing then it must be something our end ( I think the threshold for the alarm is three customers). The Post Office had hundreds of customers complaining about the same thing, yet they adopted the position that those hundreds were all wrong, and they were right.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 25, 2024 16:18:27 GMT
I caught some of his evidence today. Once again we heard, "I didn't see that e-mail", which was sent to him. He was the expert witness at many trials and he claimed that he didn't know people were being sent to prison on his evidence. He claimed not to know the difference between a criminal trial and a civil one. Horizon was his baby and he just couldn't accept (then) that there were flaws in his system. His job title was "distinguished expert" yet he claimed he wasn't an expert! He came across as a Techie sort of guy who couldn't understand the politics of higher management.
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2024
Jun 25, 2024 16:10:53 GMT
Post by Nobbygas on Jun 25, 2024 16:10:53 GMT
The view from the USA "These are the bitter fruits of austerity: an experiment in sado-monetarist economics and financial barbarism. Not much unites those five prime ministers other than the constant ritual tribute in blood to their coiffed icon, Margaret Thatcher. Yet Thatcher, back in the 1980s, did not lie about how brutal the first shock of neoliberalism was going to be. She coldly promised torture before riches. Its sequel, however, was pitched by its architect George Osborne, chancellor under David Cameron, as a bit of belt-tightening resembling that most prized memory in the national canon: the Blitz Spirit. Come on, chaps, buck up and give it some welly. The shattering of society into thinner fragments was supposed to be a hardy adventure. Midway through this downhill plummet, Britain bumbled backward out of the European Union. The wreckage of this four-year disaster can now best be seen as an attempt to escape the harsh bite of austerity. Brexit was a retreat from hunger into myth: an embrace of antique fables about British pluck and derring-do, a belief that even without an empire and an industrial base this archipelago might reclaim past glory. Faced with profound turmoil, much of the nation turned to a half-remembered falsehood about their grandfather’s generation, marching along with Churchill. This election is the reckoning Brexit postponed." newrepublic.com/article/182987/british-election-reckoning-brexit-postponed?utm_source=flipboard&utm_content=thenewrepublic%2Fmagazine%2FThe+New+RepublicWhat absolute nonsense. This election is nothing to do with Brexit as neither of the main parties are prepared to talk about it. Are Labour planning to take us back into the EU? They won't say because history has proven it is not a vote winner. Labour are scared to admit that that is what they want to do.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 25, 2024 16:06:24 GMT
All this attention and flak thrown at Farage is quite interesting. If his party win five seats it'll be a minor miracle. It does seem as though a lot of people are scared stiff that he may, may, in the long term upset the political applecart.
The problem is that people like Oldie spend all their time with their obsession with Farage, while ignoring the disastrous policies that Labour will introduce, or the tax rises they will not talk about.
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Post by Nobbygas on Jun 25, 2024 15:58:41 GMT
For clarity I derided the idea that this "civil war" would be welcome because it would destroy France and subsequently the EU. In that claim, it was hoped the candidate from the far left would be the catalyst for that. Here, Macron is warning of the dangers of the far right. Macron is right, but any extreme group or party are a potential danger to a civil society. He has taken a huge gamble which personally I think he will lose. From where I sit it appears the centre of French politics is dissatisfied with him and as it appears there is no viable centre ground candidate the extremes of left and right come into play to fill the vacuum. If the Labour Party do not deliver, on the presumption they win, then this is where we will end up. No Oldie, read it again. He also says the same danger comes from the Left. Don't forget, it was the Left who rioted after the EU elections in France, not the Right.
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