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#91

Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic

Last post by Grey Fox - December 02, 2025, 03:51:01 PM

A facet, I find that, we often forget about media before easy & fast communications is how no one outside your area of information travel was going to critic you.

People possedding better information than the Daily Express about Finland, didn't know what DE was publishing nor had anyway to communicate it rapidly.

It was all small bubbles, all slowly travelling on the highway of news of the time without any concern where any other bubbles where going.

#92

Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic

Last post by Sheilbh - December 02, 2025, 03:28:05 PM

I'd go for green ink to really hit the point home

#93

Off the Record / Re: The AI dooooooom thread

Last post by Baron von Schtinkenbutt - December 02, 2025, 03:27:33 PM

It's OK, they know how to take it on the Qin.

#94

Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...

Last post by Sheilbh - December 02, 2025, 03:27:09 PM

So are we looking at a new political landscape where what used to be the Tories are now Labour, what used to be Labour are the Greens and (what used to be UKIP is Reform)?

No I think this is vibes - and Labour's abyssmal lack of an actual strategy.

In actual terms Labour's raised £66 billion of taxes (largely on employers) which is largely being spent on public services and welfare. They've introduced VAT on private schools, got rid of non-doms and now the mansion tax. Changed the fiscal rules to allow £100 billion of extra capital spending plus re-writing the Treasury Green Book to privilege non-London investment. Started nationalising the railways as well as establishing a state energy company and national wealth fund investing in new renewable projects (while ending new North Sea gas extraction licenses). Plus they've recognised Palestine and there's an arms embargo on Israel (except for certain spare parts contracts).

But for internal factional reasons the Labour leadership has decided to always "punch a hippy" by fighting the Labour left, which means they're just alienated. But also there's no overall strategy or message tying it all together. It's definitely left wing, not what the Tories would be doing but it just all comes across as accidental and incoherent.

I would add, because of course I would, that a lot of those changes - particularly on investment and nationalisation - depend on planning reform and state capacity or they will not have an impact that people notices. That capital spending and investment will not matter if it is tied up in consultations and planning appeals or being pissed away on lawyers' fees. But this government is absolutely addicted to prioritising process over outcome.

#95

Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic

Last post by Baron von Schtinkenbutt - December 02, 2025, 03:26:51 PM

And signed in beet juice blood!

#96

Off the Record / Re: The AI dooooooom thread

Last post by Tamas - December 02, 2025, 03:18:15 PM

Haha, racist jokes!

#97

Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic

Last post by Tamas - December 02, 2025, 03:17:20 PM

Tamas, you ought to write their editor a letter.

It is going to be strongly worded!

#98

Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...

Last post by Tamas - December 02, 2025, 03:16:12 PM

So are we looking at a new political landscape where what used to be the Tories are now Labour, what used to be Labour are the Greens and (what used to be UKIP is Reform)?

#99

Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...

Last post by Sheilbh - December 02, 2025, 03:09:37 PM

Apologies for the X link - but Sultana really is outflanking Corbyn from the left (slightly funny seeing Jones trying to give her many well sign-posted off-ramps that she just ignores)
https://x.com/owenjonesjourno/status/1995556619866784166?s=20

I thought this was quite a fun very quick summary of the conference as I think there are still people who have hope from this (including in this video) and they seem very nice and maybe it will work out. But to me it feels like a huge disappointing missed opportunity from 800k people signing up in interest over the summer - which I think is a bit sad (especially because I don't like the Greens )

What is also interesting and I think healthy though is that you had serious reporting of it - from the left media like Novara, but also from the New Statesman. I think that's a good thing and when you've got two parties to the left of Labour having surges at different stages, the press (and academia) need people who can cover and understand the radical left just as much as the radical right.

#100

Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic

Last post by crazy canuck - December 02, 2025, 02:24:16 PM

I can tell that you came of age during the time when communications were instantaneous.

When I began practising law, we still relied on something called the postal acceptance rule.  I won't get into the details of what the rule was, but suffice it to say that it was necessary because communications were delayed by the time it took the post office to deliver a letter.

And that was in the early 90s. Think about how much more inefficient communications were during the time you are being critical of.

It's not often an issue nowadays but you still learn the postal acceptance rule here that an offer is accepted at the point the letter is posted even if it is delayed or doesn't get to the person. I remember my contract tutor giving us an essay on the postal acceptance rule and Trollope - which was great.

It's a long time ago but I think the relevance is that Trollope worked or the Post Office and timing of post is important in a number of his novels. But I think the essay basically argued that the invention of a reliable, trustworthy, affordable, quick postal service across the country was a huge information revolution. So offer could be accepted at the point of posting because it would get to the offeror and it would get their quickly.

Yes, exactly so.  The post became so dependable that an assumption was built into the law that the post had been delivered by a certain point.  Syt, interesting that when you were taking your exams, in your country it was three days.  Here it was, iirc, two weeks.