Bijou Drains

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Viewing 15 posts - 646 through 660 (of 2,053 total)
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  • in reply to: Soviet-Union and pedophiles #226260
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    If active paedophiles were sent to the gulags, at least I could finally say something positive about the USSR!

    in reply to: UK/US ‘justice’ – Assange extradition hearing #226236
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    Should we consider asking Murray to have an interview in the Standard, we have done before, Tony Benn and Im pretty sure we had an interview in the early days with Paul Lafargue. It doesn’t mean that we agree, but I’m sure it would add a few copies to the Standard.

    in reply to: Coronavirus #226169
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    As far as I can see from what I have read, the thrombosis issue is linked to the Astra Zenica vaccine, rather than Moderna or Pfizer. The thrombosis types are, again as far as I have read, generally a specific type of thrombosis associated occuring with specific sites in the brain. (I don’t think that teh AZ vaccine was used very widely in Spain, but you would know better than me)

    The Thrombosis occurances that were associated with the AZ vaccine also appear to have occured much earlier that the time you state, between 1 and 7 days

    I think when the whole thing comes out in the wash we will be able to see what the long term, however my view is that we need to balance risks, i.e. the risk of a side effect (very rare) severe illness and or death from COvid (still rare but far more common than the fatal consequences of the vaccine.

    I say that having suffered a small stroke in March last year, 4 days after my first AZ jab (I was assured by my GP that the two things were not linked but he didn’t look very convinced when he said it!)

    in reply to: Marx, and the myth of his ‘Materialism’ #225902
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    Sorry I haven’t had a chance to contribute, I have been up to my eyes with some work related stuff. I will try and make a contribution at some point next week.

    in reply to: “Socialism is Evil” #225868
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    I have always been sceptical about the “fellow travellers” argument.

    The various Christian recruiting organisations do not generally make a beeline to the other Christian sects, they look more at other faiths and the non-believers. They have been in the game for nearly 1,900 years more than we have, perhaps they’ve picked up a few tricks.

    in reply to: Russian Tensions #225864
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    A further complication was Kruschev’s redrawing of the boundary of the Russian SSR and the Ukrainian SSR. The Crimea and much of the Donbass area had been in the Russian SSR, Krushchev apparently redrew the boundaries to hobble Ukrainian nationalism within the USSR. Still don’t think the current Russian government have any wish to create an on going insurgency crisis by trying to take full control of the whole Ukranian state. They may wish to solidify their games so far and add a further hinterland in the east of the current Ukraine to join up Russia with the Crimea (and more importantly the mineral wealth of that area).

    in reply to: Elon Musk faces pressure over Tesla business in Xinjiang #225797
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    Perhaps the US Lawmakers should also examine their own backyard.

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/23/prisoner-speak-out-american-slave-labor-strike

    in reply to: Russian Tensions #225786
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    Part of the difficulty with estimating military prowess is the way in which military power is measured in spending. I used to live next door to guy who worked for the MOD as part of precurement. What he used to say is that in the UK due to the system that is used in the UK and even more so in USA the process is filled with cronyism, bribery and mismanagement.

    Because of this the the price paid and budget of these governments cannot be compared with the costs of other nations such as China and the Russia.

    For example the estimated costs of Main battle tanks range from, ZTZ -99 Chinese $2.5m, T-90AM (Russia) – $4.25 million, The Abrams M1 (USA) – $8.5 million, The Challenger 2 (Great Britain) – $8.6 million and the French AMX-56 Leclerc comes in at about $12.6 million. (not that I am in the market to buy one, the insurance is too much)

    I might be that if push comes to shove between Russia and Nato, numbers and simplicity may overcome over engineered and over technologically developed hardware, as the Germans found out in WW2, when the Tiger and Panther tanks were overwhelmed by high numbers of T34s and Shermans.

    in reply to: Status differentiation in a socialist society #225714
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    I always thought that being humourous WAS a way of raising my social status (the topic of discussion). However to be fair to MC my family and loved ones HAVE always WARNED ME that it wasn’t big and wasn’t clever, a bit like swearing and farting. (Where we still diverge)

    In childhood it definitely provided a degree of protection from the myriad of psychopaths and general “heed the balls” that inhabited my particular part of working class culture.

    And I would hope, actually insist, that taking the piss is a prerequisite of any socialist society.

    A point that I am certain that my antagonist/partner in crime, L Bird would, possibly for once, support me!

    in reply to: Status differentiation in a socialist society #225703
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    “As for the complexity of debating politics and philosophy, though, mate, you’re clearly in the right party!”

    I didn’t realise it was a party, I thought it was a work event. Nobody warned me that the SPGB was a Party. I have therefore informed Her Majesty the Queen that I was a member of the Socialist Party during the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral. I only went to Head Office for 25 minutes.

    in reply to: Status differentiation in a socialist society #225690
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    LB (much as I love you and your cookie ideas dearly) – Having spent many years of fruitless attempts to engage with you about your frankly bizarre ideas regarding the requirement of holding plebiscites about scientific theory, claims that you can provide no evidence of any living person supporting, ideas which you have provided no supporting evidence or citable quotations from any noted political source to back up your proposed system of universal plebiscites, claims that are based purely based on your self assertion that Marx thought this, or Marx said the other, I have given up any attempt to engage you in any rational or productive debate.

    We now have the spectacle of another interesting debate about the nature of status within a Socialist Society sidelined by your personal hobby horse.

    No doubt you will counter any views or arguments other than those with telling those who disagree with you that they “talk to rocks”. You refuse to answer any of the obvious flaws in your proposals such as:

    “considering the enormous number of scientific theory how could resources be allocated to carry out the necessary number of plebiscites required”
    “even if the plebiscites were held, what would happen to those of us who think that alternative theories are more plausible that than the ones receiving the majority vote”
    “If a scientific orthodoxy (voted on by a plebiscite) turns out to be incorrect, what is the process for changing that orthodoxy?”

    Your only response is to state that anyone who asks these questions doesn’t understand Marx.

    That is not a process of debate, that is you stating the same thing over and over again, a dictatorship of one.

    Anyone who doesn’t indulge you with discussion of your impractical, unsupported and idiosyncratic notions, is dismissed as being either a Leninist, a crass idealist or uneducated.

    Fortunately for you, it appears that you believe that reality exists only within the confines of your own furtive imaginings. Therefore as I don’t materially exist, you don’t need to worry. Clearly I am a figment of your oppressed consciousness.

    As I have stated in the past, no doubt we would get along like a house on fire if we were having a couple of pints together and shooting the breeze and I wish you no ill. Sadly, however, your debating style of ignoring the questions asked about your views leaves with me no other option than use my default option of taking the piss, so taking the piss I have and taking the piss I will continue.

    in reply to: Status differentiation in a socialist society #225686
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    Understanding sarcasm deoesn’t seem to be your strong suit does it, Birdy boy.

    I suppose it’s because most people take your views and ideas seriously (Sarcasm alert- Sarcasm alart-Sarcasm alert!)

    in reply to: BBC licence fee set to be axed #225681
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    I have the same issue in reverse, you can’t access RTE and RTE player in the UK (to watch the Gaelic Football or the Hurling).

    There are ways around things………..

    in reply to: Status differentiation in a socialist society #225679
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    No doubt, in L Bird world we will have to have a full world wide plebiscite before we fall in love.

    • This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by Bijou Drains.
    in reply to: The Dark Future of the USA #225677
    Bijou Drains
    Participant

    I think that one of the most important lessons for ourselves as democrats, who wish to use democratic processes to use democratically organise a transformation of society, is that all of the nay sayers of the left, who have told us for decades that the democratic process would be over thrown are wrong.

    The big lesson of the capitol building riots were that the protestors captured exactly that they captured the building. Watching the news feed from that event the thing that the protestors found was that they were overjoyed that they had captured the building, which was followed very quickly by puzzlement because they despite capturing the building, the (capitalist) democratic process continued. YOu could practically see the thoughts forming in their heads “well we’ve captured the building, what are we going to do now”

    Another example of this was the election of the 1st Dail in 1919, the delegates didn’t recognise the Westminster Parliament, the assembly created their own assembly building, but they remained as being generally recognised as the legitimate democratically elected assembly.

    A future Socialist majority might be barred from entering the halls of Westminster, but they will still retain the legitimacy of the elected delegates of a Socialist majority. The state exists because the vast majority believe in the legitimacy of the state, if a majority of those people consider the elected delegates to be the legitimate body that represents them, there is little that a recalcitrant minority can do about that.

Viewing 15 posts - 646 through 660 (of 2,053 total)