4 ms·

UK is a confused country now on many fronts. They did Brexit, and having second thoughts about it. Prisoners keep getting released by mistake. Excel sheets are

by zkmon 1y ago

UK is a confused country now on many fronts. They did Brexit, and having second thoughts about it. Prisoners keep getting released by mistake. Excel sheets are shared by mistake and the coverup results in a mess.

bamboozled 1y ago
America feels very confused too, so there’s that…
- watwut 1y ago
  America is not confused. It is super confident and its party in power is doing exactly what they worked for hard for decades.
  - mcswell 1y ago
    I'll agree, up to the last word: s/decade/year/. The Republican party of a couple decades ago was an entirely different thing. I'd even go so far as to call the current Trumplican Party "RINO"s, because they bear little or no resemblance to the GOP.
    - antonvs 1y ago
      Much of what we're dealing with now has been in the works since at least around 1950. The Southern Strategy is well-documented, for example. The party's position on restricting voting has been consistent over the years. Reagan's opposition to social programs (demonizing "welfare queens") and outright racism was a big part of why he was elected. (Reagan quote from the Nixon recordings: "To see those monkeys from those African countries. Damn them. They're still uncomfortable wearing shoes.") It wasn't a coincidence that Reagan began his presidential campaign where civil rights workers were murdered by the Ku Klux Klan, with the cooperation of local law enforcement. That is what is at the heart of the Republican Party, and has been for at least 75 years. There are many other examples of this kind of thing. What you're describing from a couple of decades ago was essentially a facade, a mask. What's changed in recent years is that the mask has come off - as members of the party feel increasingly threatened by people who they see as unlike themselves, they can no longer afford the pretense of respectability.
      - mcswell 1y ago
        The idea that your opponents were merely masking themselves is simply a way of pillorying them. And both sides do it to each other: the right accuses the left of only pretend to care about the poor. And it's wrong, no matter whether the left or the right is doing it.
    - watwut 1y ago
      I dont agree here. Party did not chamged last year at all. This is what the conservatives worked for a long time. They set it up so that things happen this way. The moderates would prefer someone more respectable and less hysterical to lead it, but that is just a difference of style. There is nothing RINO about current republican party. It is logical consequence and result of this recent history and of what its voters believe in.
      - mcswell 1y ago
        "The moderates would prefer someone more respectable and less hysterical to lead it, but that is just a difference of style." I'll just say that I disagree.
jacquesm 1y ago
But what did you think of the article?
- zkmon 1y ago
  I meant that UK is confused about it's foreign policy, allies, domestic politics etc. The decision seems technically correct, for now. But can they hold on to this direction? They just celebrated the tariff deal handed-off to them by the same man.
  - throo0000ss 1y ago
    I don't think they're confused. They support some actions, but clearly they're not going to support someone no matter what they do. They supported Israel's right to defend themselves. That support evaporated when Israel decided to continue a war that was doing more than just removing Hamas. In this case, they're probably okay with fighting drug traffic, but not with blowing up random boats and killing those in them without any due process and any proof of them being drug traffickers... or whatever is going on with Venezuela. Things like Brexit are different. Some managed to convince part of the population that the UK could be stronger alone and dictate terms to a much larger and stronger economic block. But reality doesn't care about what we believe and the UK still has to trade with the EU, be aligned in terms of laws and standards, be part of defense alliances, etc. The current government could ignore this reality and do what the previous government was doing, but clearly that wasn't working.
BryantD 1y ago
The Netherlands has also cut back on intelligence sharing with the US: https://intelnews.org/2025/10/20/01-3416/ https://intelnews.org/2025/10/20/01-3416/
- AniseAbyss 1y ago
  The Netherlands has Caribbean islands off the coast of Venezuela. If the US blows up a bunch of fishermen by accident it would be awkward. You can actually sue the Dutch government for this kind of thing and win.
deleted 1y ago
[deleted]

by zkmon 1y ago

bamboozled 1y ago

America feels very confused too, so there’s that…

watwut 1y ago
America is not confused. It is super confident and its party in power is doing exactly what they worked for hard for decades.
- mcswell 1y ago
  I'll agree, up to the last word: s/decade/year/. The Republican party of a couple decades ago was an entirely different thing. I'd even go so far as to call the current Trumplican Party "RINO"s, because they bear little or no resemblance to the GOP.
  - antonvs 1y ago
    Much of what we're dealing with now has been in the works since at least around 1950. The Southern Strategy is well-documented, for example. The party's position on restricting voting has been consistent over the years. Reagan's opposition to social programs (demonizing "welfare queens") and outright racism was a big part of why he was elected. (Reagan quote from the Nixon recordings: "To see those monkeys from those African countries. Damn them. They're still uncomfortable wearing shoes.") It wasn't a coincidence that Reagan began his presidential campaign where civil rights workers were murdered by the Ku Klux Klan, with the cooperation of local law enforcement. That is what is at the heart of the Republican Party, and has been for at least 75 years. There are many other examples of this kind of thing. What you're describing from a couple of decades ago was essentially a facade, a mask. What's changed in recent years is that the mask has come off - as members of the party feel increasingly threatened by people who they see as unlike themselves, they can no longer afford the pretense of respectability.
    - mcswell 1y ago
      The idea that your opponents were merely masking themselves is simply a way of pillorying them. And both sides do it to each other: the right accuses the left of only pretend to care about the poor. And it's wrong, no matter whether the left or the right is doing it.
  - watwut 1y ago
    I dont agree here. Party did not chamged last year at all. This is what the conservatives worked for a long time. They set it up so that things happen this way. The moderates would prefer someone more respectable and less hysterical to lead it, but that is just a difference of style. There is nothing RINO about current republican party. It is logical consequence and result of this recent history and of what its voters believe in.
    - mcswell 1y ago
      "The moderates would prefer someone more respectable and less hysterical to lead it, but that is just a difference of style." I'll just say that I disagree.

jacquesm 1y ago

But what did you think of the article?

zkmon 1y ago
I meant that UK is confused about it's foreign policy, allies, domestic politics etc. The decision seems technically correct, for now. But can they hold on to this direction? They just celebrated the tariff deal handed-off to them by the same man.
- throo0000ss 1y ago
  I don't think they're confused. They support some actions, but clearly they're not going to support someone no matter what they do. They supported Israel's right to defend themselves. That support evaporated when Israel decided to continue a war that was doing more than just removing Hamas. In this case, they're probably okay with fighting drug traffic, but not with blowing up random boats and killing those in them without any due process and any proof of them being drug traffickers... or whatever is going on with Venezuela. Things like Brexit are different. Some managed to convince part of the population that the UK could be stronger alone and dictate terms to a much larger and stronger economic block. But reality doesn't care about what we believe and the UK still has to trade with the EU, be aligned in terms of laws and standards, be part of defense alliances, etc. The current government could ignore this reality and do what the previous government was doing, but clearly that wasn't working.

BryantD 1y ago

The Netherlands has also cut back on intelligence sharing with the US: https://intelnews.org/2025/10/20/01-3416/ https://intelnews.org/2025/10/20/01-3416/

AniseAbyss 1y ago
The Netherlands has Caribbean islands off the coast of Venezuela. If the US blows up a bunch of fishermen by accident it would be awkward. You can actually sue the Dutch government for this kind of thing and win.

deleted 1y ago

[deleted]