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#91
Off the Record / Re: Israel-Hamas War 2023
Last post by DGuller - July 17, 2025, 03:05:33 PM
Quote from: grumbler on July 17, 2025, 02:12:53 PMI've never understood the argument that, because people don't protest against, say Syrian attacks on civilians, that they are evil when they protest against, say, Israeli attacks on civilians. That's pure bullshit whataboutism, designed to distract from the real issue. The fact that one set of actions is indefensible doesn't at all relate to the fact that another set of actions is indefensible.

People demonstrate when they think that their demonstrations might make a difference. You don't see mass demonstrations against cancer, even though it kills more civilians than Israel, Syria, and Saudi Arabia combined.
The issue with selective protesting is the same as with selective law enforcement.  It raises questions as to whether the law is being enforced out of principle, or because it is a convenient tool to achieve an unrelated end.  It's not always whataboutism to dig into why things are done selectively.
#92
Off the Record / Re: Hungarian Politics
Last post by Valmy - July 17, 2025, 02:48:24 PM
I just have a hard time believing that in the middle of an existential war against Russia, an anti-Hungarian mob is going to form and start committing ethnic cleansing just because the Hungarian government is mad about this one guy dying.

But it is Eastern Europe, their ways are foreign to me.
#93
Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic
Last post by HVC - July 17, 2025, 02:40:54 PM
:yes: Back hugs and shame is for everyone, not just affair partners
#94
Off the Record / Re: General issues
Last post by HVC - July 17, 2025, 02:39:57 PM
Quote from: Syt on July 17, 2025, 12:29:46 AM
Quote from: Baron von Schtinkenbutt on July 01, 2025, 12:28:08 PMWell, it's not going to be so simple.  The database schema doesn't have a proper foreign key setup, so I need to manually identify every table that references topic IDs and edit those columns as well. :rolleyes:

Surely you can let AI do that? - Every manager, currently.

Alternatively: "Can't you just do search/Replace"? - Users who think data tables work like Excel sheets.

Other option is go the classic route and outsource to India :P
#95
Off the Record / Re: Israel-Hamas War 2023
Last post by Sophie Scholl - July 17, 2025, 02:39:01 PM
A lot of this...
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#96
Off the Record / Re: General issues
Last post by Josquius - July 17, 2025, 02:37:26 PM
So... Doom?
#97
Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic
Last post by Valmy - July 17, 2025, 02:37:25 PM
Maybe they were just good friends? Can't a married man take a woman who is not his wife to a concert and panic when pointed out by the front man of the band they came to see and not fall under suspicion? What a cruel world we live in.
#98
Off the Record / Re: What does a TRUMP presiden...
Last post by Valmy - July 17, 2025, 02:32:47 PM

 :rolleyes: We're doomed.
#99
Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...
Last post by HVC - July 17, 2025, 02:29:22 PM
Quote from: Sheilbh on July 17, 2025, 02:14:10 PMI saw one left wing union official wondering if Starmer is actually even less suited to be PM than Sunak or even Johnson - and I'm not totally sure I disagree which is not where I thought we'd be a year ago.

Problem is I don't think the left, anywhere, has well suited candidates. They got so good at culling dissent that that they annihilated their pool of new, younger, candidates. Canada got lucky, for example. Trump helped, inadvertently, to crush our maple MAGA candidate. Whether Carney makes a good PM in the long run is left to see, but he was better then the alternative on either side.
#100
Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...
Last post by Sheilbh - July 17, 2025, 02:29:21 PM
I also wonder if there's sort of a muscle memory/have a hammer see nails side to it. Arguably the most effective period of his leadership was expelling Corbyn and decisively moving Labour against the left and that is what his team keep repeating at every turn. It's slightly like Trump seeing tariffs as the answer to every policy question. Every political challenge and Starmer withdraws the whip - I think we're up to maybe 15-20 MPs now which is wild after one year and I can't really work out what the political strategy for it is or what it's trying to achieve. Unless it literally is to try and force the remaining Labour left into a new party.

Edit: Also I think it matters that Starmer was an incredibly lucky leader of the opposition (slightly reminiscent of how Theresa May became leader and PM because all of her opponents imploded before her). He was supposed to be the transitional, Neil Kinnock figure for the right of the party. Someone from the soft left who could help regain control of the party and fight the hard left before losing the election and, after 18-9 years in opposition the party faithful would be so desperate for power they'd embrace someone like Streeting. Instead the Tories blew themselves up repeatedly and Starmer accidentally became PM.