Current Affairs 2025

[Ray B]

For us 'Freeloaders ', it's quite amusing for a country that's frightened of it's own shadow and not that long ago were paranoid over Ruskys around every corner.
Just imagine the flack we would have got coming across the pond if it was us who leaked top secret information.

[oldbluefox]

Doesn't give you much confidence in the "Leaders of the Free World" does it? A total embarrassment.Putin must be laughing his little socks off.

[Ray B]

The guy who was addressing The United States Senate this afternoon came across as not a lover of Trump. He outlined all the people from the different departments in the security of the United States with a wealth of experience, who the President has got rid of, finishing up with the mother of all f@&k ups, the messaging over an unsecured platform.
As was said, if it was a general in the military who messaged on the unsecured platform, he would have been sacked.
Will heads, like Vance, roll, unlikely according to a pundit. Trump is expected to ride it out, hoping it will fade away.
We will see.

[david63]

I am fairly sure Trump has not got a clue about tariffs. This evening during a press interview he said that the tariffs will bring trillions of dollars into the USA - does he not know that it is the importer that pays the tariff, so all he is doing is circulating dollars through the tariff system!!

[david63]

Looks as if Rachel from accounts has got her sums wrong, again, and will have to reduce welfare benefits even more than last week.

Strange world this world of politics. It now seems to be OK for Labour that policies have to change to cope with world events but it was derided when the Conservatives did it for the same reason!

[Onelife]

It’s certainly difficult keeping up with world events...and its economic fallouts, but I personally feel that the labour party have come to realise that their “left to centre” socialism aspirations are no longer an option and have now moved more to the “centre right” of politics’

This is good news for both their party, and I believe, our economy as a whole, indeed the more I listen to Rachael Reeves the more I think she has a grip on where she is taking our country…definitely more than where the conservative party were taking us. Time will tell whether or not this proves to be the case but I’m quite optimistic that we do now have a Labour party that is prepared to become unpopular for long term gains.

I’m thinking of adding Racheal to my all-time favourite ladies…she has a bit to go before she’s up there with Meghan and Theresa but she is getting there.

[oldbluefox]

I’m thinking of adding Racheal to my all-time favourite ladies…she has a bit to go before she’s up there with Meghan and Theresa but she is getting there.

Bad news for Lisa Nandy......fickle!!!

[Onelife]

I’m thinking of adding Racheal to my all-time favourite ladies…she has a bit to go before she’s up there with Meghan and Theresa but she is getting there.

Bad news for Lisa Nandy......fickle!!!

I didn’t want to draw attention to the lovely Lisa as I know she has just started her weight watchers plan…you know how cruel some people can be

…come to think of it I need to start mine soon

[Stephen]

How many times have we heard the same old rhetoric along the lines of ‘feel the pain now for the long term gain’, which never happens. Either because the party in power cock it up or there’s a new government coming in with other ideas.

[Onelife]

How many times have we heard the same old rhetoric along the lines of ‘feel the pain now for the long term gain’, which never happens. Either because the party in power cock it up or there’s a new government coming in with other ideas.

Most of us will have those sentiments Stephen but in our present political system this Labour party “under its new management” are the best chance we have in breaking that chain, imo.

[david63]

Yesterday was just a farce and waste of time.

Rachel from accounts spent half an hour reading out a load of telephone numbers purporting to be the state of the nation in five years time. At the moment nobody can predict what the state of the nation will be in five days/weeks/months let alone five years.

Never thought I would see the day when Labour became Robin Hood - first the pensioners (winter fuel allowance) now the disabled - who will be next? And where are all these jobs coming from that those on benefits are going to be able to take up?

And why does she keep going on about the "working man" being better off? Does she not know that there are others in this country?

[Onelife]

There is a lot of truth in that David, but in Labour’s defence, they do have 4 years three months to hopefully put in place a more robust system of governance. This of course would be in complete contrast to that of the conservative party who spent more time performing U-turns than steering this country’s future.

I do, like you have reservations about how they are going to assess who is, who isn’t capable of work…. If its anything like the way Ian Duncan Smith went about it with his tick box, move two fingers and your capable of work fiasco… then gawd help them.

[Stephen]

Can someone explain to me what this plonker is going on about when he says other countries have taken they’re money and jobs!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4vjwzv22eo

[Mervyn and Trish]

I don't think even the plonker himself can explain it.

[david63]

Nope, not a clue other than he thinks that it is going to help the US economy and bring trillions of dollars into the US. Somebody needs to tell him that it is the importer (i.e. the US) that pays the tariff which in turn increases prices and any dollars in tariffs is the US's own money.

As a businessman he seems to have a poor grasp of economics.

[towny44]

Nope, not a clue other than he thinks that it is going to help the US economy and bring trillions of dollars into the US. Somebody needs to tell him that it is the importer (i.e. the US) that pays the tariff which in turn increases prices and any dollars in tariffs is the US's own money.

As a businessman he seems to have a poor grasp of economics.

What he is wanting to achieve, is to bring back manufacturing jobs to the USA, and it appears that some of the Asian car manufacturers are considering doing just that. However even if that is successful, I doubt that they will be able to be fully competitive with Asian, European and Mexican manufacturers, and the result will just be higher prices for US made cars, which is why their manufacture went abroad in the first place.

[david63]

What he is wanting to achieve, is to bring back manufacturing jobs to the USA

I agree 100% that that is his vision - effectively to make the USA totally self sufficient - in fact he has stated that he wants the US back to how it was in the 1960's (not unlike his hero, Putin) - the problem that he seems unable to grasp is that the world has moved on and it is a global marketplace.

If that is his aim then imposing tariffs now will not make that happen - there are no "flat pack" car factories that you can have up and running next week, it will takes months if not years to build a factory and create a total supply chain for the factory, by which time his time as President will be over.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Yes I'd like the US back to the 60s. When presidents were assassinated. Works for me......

[Onelife]

Yes I'd like the US back to the 60s. When presidents were assassinated. Works for me......

[Ray B]

Careful Merv, the way things are moving, Maderia may be part of the USA before you try to come home.

[Stephen]

Trump decides increase af tariffs to 30% starting with the UK. Bang goes our special relationship.


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crrzl1l9w95o

[Onelife]

There is no such thing as friendship where business is concerned…time to see if Keir is a man, mouse or a sucker for punishment?

[david63]

There too much hype around Trump's tariffs. The media, being the media, like to make more of something than is necessary in an effort to justify their existence.

In theory Trump putting a tariff on UK goods entering the US has no affect on this country as it is the importer that pays the tariff. The problem that might come is if the US demand for those goods falls away, due to rising prices, and the UK suppliers do not have alternative markets and to some extent fluctuating markets are normal factors in business.

Playing "tit for tat" and putting tariffs on US goods entering the UK will have an impact on the cost of living if those goods are everyday items (not sure how many buy a Harley Davison on a regular basis).

What we don't know is how much the US is prepared to pay for goods that they cannot get elsewhere or cannot produce themselves.

For a businessman Trump has a poor grasp of economics.

[towny44]

Funny how things change, in the past the GOP voters used to be the business owners, middle class executives and upper working classes. Now they all seem to be ill educated gun toting out of work red necks.

[Meg 50]

Funny how things change, in the past the GOP voters used to be the business owners, middle class executives and upper working classes. Now they all seem to be ill educated gun toting out of work red necks.

who say they are Christian - but a different form of Christianity to absolutely anywhere else in the Universe!