UKMT January '15 - We're gonna party like it's 1985

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > UKMT January '15 - We're gonna party like it's 1985

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Spangly A: May 14, 2009; God help you if ever you're caught on these shores

A man's ambition must indeed be small
To write his name upon a shithouse wall

Spangly A posted:

This poster is not for turning.

Don't try this after you run pedestrians over though

# ? Jan 22, 2015 16:16

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# ? Jun 8, 2024 23:12

Microplastics: Jul 6, 2007; It's what's for dinner.

Kegluneq posted:

Do you know anything about how insurance works?

Look at you getting trolled

# ? Jan 22, 2015 16:16

Phoon: Apr 23, 2010

LemonDrizzle posted:

Sometimes the Telegraph is amazing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/11359984/The-Tories-need-to-make-a-fantastic-offer-to-win-the-election-heres-a-suggestion.html

E: I like the part where the government will apparently seize all housing association stock

# ? Jan 22, 2015 16:16

Kegluneq: Feb 18, 2011; Mr President, the physical reality of Prime Minister Corbyn is beyond your range of apprehension. If you'll just put on these PINKOVISION glasses...

Pissflaps posted:

Yes. I'm fully insured.

You would probably pay less if you weren't you. Worth considering.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 16:52

Guavanaut: Nov 27, 2009; Looking At Them Tittys
1969 - 1998; Toilet Rascal

Kegluneq posted:

Do you know anything about how insurance works?

Like betting, only they don't have to have gambleaware stickers up.

Also you can be mandated by law to make certain types of bets, like in places that don't have a proper National Health Service or Road Accident Fund.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 16:56

Cerv: Sep 14, 2004; This is a silly post with little news value.

Pissflaps posted:

Yes. I'm fully insured.

how much is your premium?

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:14

Pissflaps: Oct 20, 2002; by VideoGames

Cerv posted:

how much is your premium?

Bit personal this.

Rest assured, my careful driving has been rewarded with low, low premiums.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:26

communism bitch: Apr 24, 2009

Pissflaps posted:

Bit personal this.

Rest assured, my careful driving has been rewarded with low, low premiums.

itd cost you less if you didnt buy insurance imo

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:31

Pissflaps: Oct 20, 2002; by VideoGames

Oberleutnant posted:

itd cost you less if you didnt buy insurance imo

But then I couldn't legally drive?

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:35

communism bitch: Apr 24, 2009

Pissflaps posted:

But then I couldn't legally drive?

so you'd save money on petrol too

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:37

Darth Walrus: Feb 13, 2012

Phoon posted:

E: I like the part where the government will apparently seize all housing association stock

I'm not hugely familiar with the mechanics of the British housing system(s). Can someone walk me through just how insane this is, please?

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:39

JFairfax: Oct 23, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

Oberleutnant posted:

itd cost you less if you didnt buy insurance imo

The police use automatic numberplate recognition cameras to see which cars have insurance.

You're OK driving uninsured if someone else has insured the car, in the sense that you're relatively unlikely to get caught, but obviously if you get into an accident you're screwed.

But driving uninsured is a dick move and something that you can get caught for relatively easily.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:45

Lugaloco: Jun 29, 2011; Ice to see you!

The Debates are gonna get interesting:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-30935369

quote:

Broadcasters have put forward new proposals for the TV election debates which would include the SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Greens.

It comes after David Cameron refused to take part unless the Green Party was included.

The BBC and ITV would stage debates involving the Conservatives, Labour, Lib Dems, Greens, UKIP, SNP and Plaid.

Sky and Channel 4's plans to host a head-to-head between Mr Cameron and Ed Miliband remains unchanged.

The move comes after discussions between the broadcasters following a political row over the proposed format for the debates to be held during the election campaign.

BBC political editor Nick Robinson said the broadcasters' new proposals seemed designed to call Mr Cameron's bluff.

He said Mr Cameron faced a choice to either accept seven-way debates which could "split the left" or continue to resist them on the grounds they could "dominate the campaign".

'Unacceptable'
The live prime ministerial debates featured for the first time in the UK at the 2010 election.

They proved popular with the British public, being watched by 22 million people.

The initial proposals for the 2015 general election campaign included:

- a head-to-head between Mr Cameron and Labour leader Ed Miliband
- a three-way debate feature Mr Cameron, Mr Miliband and Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg
- a debate between the leaders of the Conservative Party, Labour, Lib Dems and UKIP.

But Mr Cameron raised a number of objections to the proposals, principally that Green Party leader Natalie Bennett should feature.

He said it was wrong to include UKIP leader Nigel Farage in one of the debates but not "other national parties".

This prompted Mr Clegg, Mr Miliband and UKIP leader Nigel Farage to write to to the prime minister saying it would be "unacceptable" for him not to appear - and urging the broadcasters to press ahead without him.

UKIP leader Nigel Farage accused the PM of being "chicken", and Mr Miliband claimed the Mr Cameron was using the Greens as a "pathetic excuse" to avoid the debates.

But Mr Cameron said the Labour leader was scared of debating Ms Bennett for fear he would lose votes to the Green Party.

Ms Bennett has argued that the polls and public opinion support the case for the Greens to be included.

Last week Mr Clegg suggested the broadcasters should come up with new proposals for the debates, saying he was "not wildly happy" about the offer on the table "because it excludes me as a leader of a governing party".

The suggested schedule is for debates to be held on 2 April, 16 April and 30 April, ahead of the UK-wide poll on 7 May.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:58

Pesky Splinter: Feb 16, 2011; A worried pug.

^^^
[e]: Beaten.

Election 2015: New format proposed for TV debates

quote:

Broadcasters have put forward new proposals for the TV election debates which would include the SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Greens.

It comes after David Cameron refused to take part unless the Green Party was included.

The BBC and ITV would stage debates involving the Conservatives, Labour, Lib Dems, Greens, UKIP, SNP and Plaid.

Sky and Channel 4's plans to host a head-to-head between Mr Cameron and Ed Miliband remains unchanged.

The move comes after discussions between the broadcasters following a political row over the proposed format for the debates to be held during the election campaign.

BBC political editor Nick Robinson said the broadcasters' new proposals seemed designed to call Mr Cameron's bluff.

He said Mr Cameron faced a choice to either accept seven-way debates which could "split the left" or continue to resist them on the grounds they could "dominate the campaign".

quote:

Last week Mr Clegg suggested the broadcasters should come up with new proposals for the debates, saying he was "not wildly happy" about the offer on the table "because it excludes me as a leader of a governing party".

- - -

Fred Talbot trial: Ex-TV weatherman 'staged naked orgy'

quote:

Former TV weather presenter Fred Talbot staged a naked orgy involving 10 drunken schoolboys on a canal barge before later sexually abusing one of them on board, a jury has heard.

The former teacher, 65, allegedly asked some of the pupils to pretend they were girls and lie on top of each other as photographs were taken.

The incident is said to have taken place on a school trip in the 1970s.
Mr Talbot denies 10 counts of indecent assault.

Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard the weekend trip was organised by Mr Talbot, who at the time taught biology at Altrincham Grammar School for Boys.

The court was told the alleged victim - who believed he was aged 14 at the time - was "quite drunk" after Mr Talbot, two of his adult friends and some older boys on the excursion returned from the pub and shared beers they had brought with younger boys.
Double bed

He said: "[Talbot] said let's pretend we have got some girls back from the pub and we had an orgy.
"He said we needed to take some photographs so you can pretend there is some girls here.
"We were very drunk. I think they turned the heat up and we took our clothes off.
"One boy would lie on another boy and would pretend the one underneath was a girl.
"They took a lot of photos."

He recalled one of Mr Talbot's friends on the trip was a man in his late 20s or early 30s nicknamed Spider, who wore biker-type clothing
The witness said Mr Talbot was "in charge" and "telling us what to do".

He said the "orgy" went on for up to two hours before everyone went to sleep and Mr Talbot said he was to stay in his double bed because there were not enough bunk beds for all the schoolboys.

The complainant said in a partitioned area of the barge the pair slept naked before Mr Talbot fondled him.

He told the court: "He showed me what to do. He said this is natural and this is how men touch other men, because I didn't know what was going on."

The following morning, he said Mr Talbot told him to never speak about the incidents.

source:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-30912073

Pesky Splinter fucked around with this message at 18:06 on Jan 22, 2015

# ? Jan 22, 2015 17:59

keep punching joe: Jan 22, 2006; Die Satan!

Brown Moses posted:

Like Jimmy Saville before him, Leon Brittan just died, so expect all the stories about him to come out.

I dunno, the Tories have all been quick to sing his praises. Surely, they wouldn't if anything was likely to be revealed in the short term at least.

edit: Oh SNP in the debates now, prepare yourselves for a Sturgeoning.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:12

LemonDrizzle: Mar 28, 2012; neoliberal shithead

i believe the technical term for a seven way debate is "a colossal flaming trainwreck"

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:20

keep punching joe: Jan 22, 2006; Die Satan!

LemonDrizzle posted:

i believe the technical term for a seven way debate is "a colossal flaming trainwreck"

Or normal state of affairs in a multi-party democracy (albeit with PR rather than FPTP).

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:24

JFairfax: Oct 23, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

LemonDrizzle posted:

i believe the technical term for a seven way debate is "a colossal flaming trainwreck"

sounds like they should get Fred Talbot to co-ordinate

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:26

Pesky Splinter: Feb 16, 2011; A worried pug.

JFairfax posted:

sounds like they should get Fred Talbot to co-ordinate

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:36

namesake: Jun 19, 2006; "When I was a girl, around 12 or 13, I had a fantasy that I'd grow up to marry Captain Scarlet, but he'd be busy fighting the Mysterons so I'd cuckold him with the sexiest people I could think of - Nigel Mansell, Pat Sharp and Mr. Blobby."

It'll be just like the American primary debates!

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:37

Angepain: Jul 13, 2012; what keeps happening to my clothes

LemonDrizzle posted:

i believe the technical term for a seven way debate is "a colossal flaming trainwreck"

As opposed to regular debates, which are generally slow and painful trainwrecks. At least this one'll have explosions.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:39

JFairfax: Oct 23, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

probably more like this poo poo show

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rpj96hv5euw

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:39

Pissflaps: Oct 20, 2002; by VideoGames

These debates are just a farce.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:48

Disinterested: Jun 29, 2011; You look like you're still raking it in. Still killing 'em?

Basically the debates are now a bad episode of Question Time.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:49

JFairfax: Oct 23, 2008; by FactsAreUseless

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/london-mayor-election/11363421/Boris-Johnson-takes-the-fight-to-Islamic-State.html

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:54

Pesky Splinter: Feb 16, 2011; A worried pug.

Pissflaps posted:

These debates are just a farce.

They've always been a farce. Just heads saying some soundbites to try to reel in voters, or to blaming the previous/current government for their failings.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:55

Microplastics: Jul 6, 2007; It's what's for dinner.

Disinterested posted:

Basically the debates are now a bad episode of Question Time.

Every episode of Question Time is a bad episode of Question Time

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:58

neonchameleon: Nov 14, 2012

The interesting part about the seven way debate is that it looks to me as if there's a natural three way alliance between the Greens, the SNP, and Plaid. The SNP and Plaid are, of course, not in competition at all. And all the Green target seats are in England. So they don't need to worry about differentiating from each other and with three people in agreement and the other four knifing each other they can control the debate and make each other look good.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 18:59

McDragon: Sep 11, 2007

Screw having debates, just get the fucktrumpets on the Last Leg and have Adam Hills call them all dicks. It'd be about as useful and a lot more entertaining.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 19:01

Cerv: Sep 14, 2004; This is a silly post with little news value.

Pissflaps posted:

Bit personal this.

Rest assured, my careful driving has been rewarded with low, low premiums.

Everyone else was sharing.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 19:03

Communist Thoughts: Jan 7, 2008; Our war against free speech cannot end until we silence this bronze beast!

Nah it probably won't happen, this is just the media and Cameron playing chicken.

Would be nice though, all the proposed debates sound like utter poo poo.

Labour, Tory, Libdem, Ukip debate is just 3 entrenched establishment parties debating a butthurt upstart establishment party.

It'll be nice to see all the main parties trying to "outleft" eachother to not get flanked by the greens, SNP and PC (only in soundbites of course).
Actually the much more likely thing is to see the Big Three trying to call left wing policies outdated dangerous lunacy and trying their best to reassure people that they are cunts. Which is why I want to see this 7 way debate, might be the first time in a while we see some actual alternatives on the teevee!

# ? Jan 22, 2015 19:54

Spooky Hyena: May 2, 2014; Choosing to benefit from an empire of murder and genocide makes you complicit.

lol, nice meltdown

It does satisfy me on a balance perspective (although where's the DUP? They are a larger party than half the parties going), although I am a little saddened that they picked the ridiculous option rather than the easy route (just taking UKIP out).

# ? Jan 22, 2015 20:14

Lord Ludikrous: Jun 7, 2008; Enjoy your tea...

Fat Turkey posted:

Jesus H, people are complaining that sub £200 insurance premiums are too high? I've just paid out £550 up from £400 with 4 years no claims in my late 20s in an old C3, no points or criminal record, with the only accident I've been in was completely accepted 100% fault by the other party as pulling out when they should have given way. What I'd give for sub £200 (I would give less than £350).

And I shopped around for that price, that was the lowest.

I honestly think insurers decide quotes by throwing a dart at a wall with various values on it. When I was shopping around for a car, it would cost me more to insure a 12 year old 1.2 Peugeot 206 than it did the 7 year old 1.6 turbo Mini Cooper S that I eventually got. Then one weekend all the quotes jumped by about 500 in price before going back down in the week to less than the one I originally started with.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 20:20

Car Stranger: Feb 16, 2005

Large debates may be unwieldy, but the quality of discourse is usually loving shocking anyway. It'd be good to see left wing party leaders introduce alternative narratives which could put the established parties in rather awkward positions.

The Greens have a lot of very populist policies. Bennett seems like a good speaker - straightforward, less politicking than most. Some mainstream exposure and dialogue with the major parties could do them a lot of good.

Ludicro posted:

I honestly think insurers decide quotes by throwing a dart at a wall with various values on it. When I was shopping around for a car, it would cost me more to insure a 12 year old 1.2 Peugeot 206 than it did the 7 year old 1.6 turbo Mini Cooper S that I eventually got. Then one weekend all the quotes jumped by about 500 in price before going back down in the week to less than the one I originally started with.

It's all based on actuarial models which hoover up massive amounts of data and shift for really dumb reasons. Someone told me a related anecdote, which I have since forgotten, but IIRC the gist of it was that a good amount of variability in insurance quotes is to do with limiting exposure of the insurer to business risk rather than fundamental data about your car, driving habits, location etc.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 20:36

feedmegin: Jul 30, 2008

ThomasPaine posted:

I genuinely get so mad at this whole attitude of STEM-worship (not saying you're guilty of it).

Can we please start measuring and rewarding disciplines by their overall social utility rather than purely by their economic potential please, tia

Not to mention when people talk about STEM and how industry needs more of it, they don't usually actually mean STEM, they mean computer science (and even then only because industry hates paying non-poo poo wages to anyone who isn't management). The country is not, as far as I'm aware, crying out for more biologists or theoretical physicists.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 20:39

MrL_JaKiri: Sep 23, 2003; A bracing glass of carrot juice!

feedmegin posted:

Not to mention when people talk about STEM and how industry needs more of it, they don't usually actually mean STEM, they mean computer science (and even then only because industry hates paying non-poo poo wages to anyone who isn't management). The country is not, as far as I'm aware, crying out for more biologists or theoretical physicists.

The UK needs more out of work Computer Scientists

http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/jul/18/graduate-employment-by-university-and-subject

Alternative Answer: "That's a funny way to spell Statistics"

# ? Jan 22, 2015 20:43

Stottie Kyek: Apr 26, 2008; fuckin egg in a bun

Hell, I am a statistician, and the only people hiring at the moment are financial services and the odd few consultancy firms. I guess it makes sense since finance makes up a stupidly large proportion of the UK economy, but it's not really "industry" and it's not exactly innovative, beyond funding a few statisticians' and economists' PhDs. It's like a brain drain happening within the same country, I know lots of bright maths grads at work who could be doing something useful in public services, (if they got enough government funding), energy sector, life sciences, manufacturing etc. but instead we're all just shuffling money around. The defence sector has a few openings for physicists and engineers, and there is a lot of useful research that comes out of military projects, but that doesn't make up for the damage done by the UK's arms trade and the sort of end-users it deals with. It took me six months to get a job (in finance :ohdear:

) in the first place after I graduated, and a lot of other folk on my course had similarly tough job searches, it's not like STEM degree = automatic success.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 21:25

sebzilla: Mar 17, 2009; Kid's blasting everything in sight with that new-fangled musket.

Greens: We want to do [good policy]
Establishment party X: You can't pay for that, idealistic nonsense, we're a serious party of government bla bla bla.
The public: *votes UKIP*

# ? Jan 22, 2015 21:35

Prince John: Jun 20, 2006; Oh, poppycock! Female bandits?

Right on cue given the discussion in the last couple of days, the Beeb has published a summary of Churchill's 10 greatest controversies.

One thing I hadn't realised was that the 'gassing the natives' episode referred to tear gas and was in the context of reducing loss of life.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 22:19

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# ? Jun 8, 2024 23:12

Angepain: Jul 13, 2012; what keeps happening to my clothes

Stottie Kyek posted:

Hell, I am a statistician, and the only people hiring at the moment are financial services and the odd few consultancy firms. I guess it makes sense since finance makes up a stupidly large proportion of the UK economy, but it's not really "industry" and it's not exactly innovative, beyond funding a few statisticians' and economists' PhDs. It's like a brain drain happening within the same country, I know lots of bright maths grads at work who could be doing something useful in public services, (if they got enough government funding), energy sector, life sciences, manufacturing etc. but instead we're all just shuffling money around. The defence sector has a few openings for physicists and engineers, and there is a lot of useful research that comes out of military projects, but that doesn't make up for the damage done by the UK's arms trade and the sort of end-users it deals with. It took me six months to get a job (in finance ) in the first place after I graduated, and a lot of other folk on my course had similarly tough job searches, it's not like STEM degree = automatic success.

As someone finishing a Masters in statistics this year, and whose career plan is basically "please dear god anything but finance", I would like to simply say in response la la la, I'm not listening, can't hear you, tra la la etc. These fingers are staying in my ears until August.

# ? Jan 22, 2015 22:36

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > UKMT January '15 - We're gonna party like it's 1985

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