Friday, April 23, 2010

9.4 million viewers watched the first party leaders' election debate.
4.1 million viewers watched the second.
I believe there is to be a third. Maybe they intend to keep plugging away until they've bored everybody stiff.
I wonder if anyone mentioned the w*r last night, or is it still Basil Fawlty rules?

7 comments:

fleming said...

I read your Clegg post on AACS. Your posts are not hard to find over there. There are so very few comments on AACS at all anymore! You-know-who's charming personality ran them off I guess...:)

Anyway, regarding this comment of yours about "Clegg". I dont know him. But I do know a fair number of brits. And frankly, brits are not "anti-america" in the least. Sure we argue like brothers or cousins some time. But we brits and yanks have much more in common with each other than we will ever have with the paleos or other such groups.

So my man, wax on all you like about the glorious days to come when middle easterners turn the UK into an islamic state, or communism takes hold across the land. Neither scenario has a snowball's chance in hell of ever coming to pass.

fleming said...

Caterpillar Posts Larger-Than-Expected 1Q Profit;View Boosted

"The heavy machinery maker also raised its 2010 forecast, now projecting earnings of $2.50 to $3.25 a share on revenue of $38 billion to $42 billion. Its view in January was earnings of about $2.50 a share on revenue of $35.6 billion to $40.5 billion.

"Economic conditions are definitely improving, particularly in the world's developing economies," said Chairman and Chief Executive Jim Owen. "Industry activity and orders are significantly higher than last year and are at record levels in some areas. As a result, we are hard at work ramping up production to meet increasing demand from customers."

Oh gosh! Boohoo for BDS! :)

Jemmy Hope said...

Of course Brits are not anti-American in any great number. But many of us despise the attitude of your ruling class, the Bushes, Cheneys, et al. We also despair at times at the gullibility of the majority of your people, believing any old crap about Saddam-Bin Ladin alliances, Iranian threats to international security and stability (as if such things existed).
Gordon Brown is a politician and a liar; Nick Clegg is a politician and a liar. Nothing they say is worth a fiddler's fart.
As for BDS and Caterkiller; if their figures are true (you're in the finance sector, flem, you know what I mean) then the fighters for social justice will no doubt determine to press harder. Rome wasn't built in a day and the South African apartheid state didn't collapse overnight.

fleming said...

We dont have a ruling class Jemmy, come on now. That is just silly talk. I do what I want, when I want, how I want and only if I want. Mostly, everything I do is legal, too :)

I guess our "gullability" is tainted after 9-11, the orignal WTC attacks, the shoe bomber, the underwear bomber, etc etc etc. We are a dumb bunch but even we start seeing patterns after a bit. And no, we dont consider surrender a way to achieve victory. (didnt Mr Chamberlein's appeasement strategy teach us anything?)

Iran, well you know, the whole Iran hostage thing was a bit of a pisser, not to mention those three students/"cia agents" they are holding now. And you know those constant death to america chants, burning the flag stuff, has us a little in the we dont love iran so much camp. Frankly, I think the best thing would be for the US and Iran to really get it on -- winner take all. I mean, its not like we are ever going to resolve our issues. A good war can be very cleannsing. We are pals with Germany, Japan, Vietnam and even Iraq now :)

So you really think a few million nasty paleos, rebellious student types and communist/anarchists who dont actually buy any of their products can financially harm a $40B in worldwide sales company? Caterpillar is hated by the tree huggers too, and they are still selling lots of back end loaders.

Interesting editorial in WSJ today that basically said Peace Procesees NEVER work. If you look at the issues, that is right. The only exception was in N Ireland where the warring parties finally just figured it wasnt worth the effort anymore. Otherwise negotiations would have never proved successful.

I know most americans dont ever expect anything to come of the "ME peace process". Its a total joke. For the situation to change as you want there will have to be a major confrontation and Israel must lose. I dont see that happening without something VERY dramatic. Nuclear/Biological/Chemical attack? And if any of those ever came to pass, there would be HELL to pay.

fleming said...

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Tuesday accused Iran and Syria of arming Hezbollah with increasingly sophisticated rockets and missiles, saying the militia's arsenal undermined stability in the region.

"Syria and Iran are providing Hezbollah with rockets and missiles of ever-increasing capability," Gates said at a joint news conference with his Israeli counterpart, Ehud Barak.

"And we're at a point now, where Hezbollah has far more rockets and missiles than most governments in the world, and this is obviously destabilizing for the whole region and we're watching it very carefully."

yea, we sure are crazy guillable to think of iran as we do...

r.s. said...

"We dont have a ruling class"

You do but you just don't realize it. In the US voters are given the "choice" between two parties whose key policies barley differ once you peer beyond election rhetoric. The Democrats and Republicans may differ in style and tone but the imperial content of their world view is virtually indistinguishable, and rarely discussed in public. And the political parties are in any case merely window dressing, a distraction from the reality behind them, in which Congress, the Pentagon, the CIA and the FBI, along with a vast bureaucracy, provide the continuity of a one party oligarchic state. This is why US foreign policy remains quintessentially imperialist and exploitative, pursuing identical goals no matter who sits in the White House.

Jemmy Hope said...

You're talking about the USA, r.s.
Fleming lives on another planet.