The Brexit Boondoggle

[Brantly B.]

When you're a child there's a certain understanding that even if you break something yourself it's somebody else's job to deal with the consequences, because you're powerless and can't be expected to do anything about it.

People who never stop feeling powerless have no reason to believe that this isn't forever the case.

[Mongrel]

That's an insane ride. I don't even give a hoot in hell if it's fake.

[mharr]

Not a chance, I grew up with these people. This is a dramatisation of real events. Possibly a dozen real characters have been boiled down into two or three concentrated archetypes.

[Mongrel]

Oh they definitely COULD be real - that I have no problem believing.

Yes, it's more likely that there's been a collection of idiots, rather than one person. But if you, or someone else I trusted was telling me the truth, told me you personally knew someone who was literally unbelievably stupid, well, that's where the line about fiction having to make sense comes in.

Funny enough, the most believable thing about the whole story is something very subtle: it's the way he avoids giving details about his wife (while still praising her).

[Grath]

I thought that thread got conclusively debunked when he claimed that there was a canceled train when anyone can look up the train schedules and see that there was no canceled train?

[mharr]

A cursory Google hasn't netted me anything I'd call conclusive on that front in either direction, just this brief reddit exchange: https://old.reddit.com/r/brexit/comment ... nt/fwoz100

[Thad]

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1277505330885386240.html

dog came into my office and is staring at me

she has not yet tried to shake my hand

[Mongrel]

I thought that thread got conclusively debunked when he claimed that there was a canceled train when anyone can look up the train schedules and see that there was no canceled train?

The Independent is claiming it's fake on the same basis as well as the other bits about the story: https://www.indy100.com/article/fake-br ... er-9599401

...as well as being hilariously huffy that Remainers are making fun of Brexiteers and don't care about The Facts!

There's reasons to think it's real (posted above) and there's reasons to think it's fake. Aside from the questionable evidence about the OP, all the bits about the boss as well as the repeated hinted backstories are rather too stock-comedy.

But everyone on this board knows that people that stupid do exist: Britain elected one of them Prime Minister.

And it's not like England has a monopoly on 'em either...

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1277505330885386240.html

dog came into my office and is staring at me

she has not yet tried to shake my hand

Like I said, even knowing probably fake, it's still fantastically entertaining and well-written.

[Friday]

Thad let her outside as is your duty

[mharr]

Okay this is more covid news really but we all know which way these fuckers voted in the referendum, and bwahaha. WTF are they thinking trying to go on holiday like this is any other year? Rhetorical question obv.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/0 ... idaymakers

Travel latest: Transport Secretary among holidaymakers facing quarantine on return from Spain

Speaking to Sky News' Sophy Ridge On Sunday, Mr Ashworth said: "You couldn't make it up that Grant Shapps is over there on holiday in Spain when he is the Transport Secretary - I think that tells you everything about the sort of Government approach to this."

[Friday]

I know there's like, deep sociological and geo-political reasons why, but sometimes it feels like everybody in the world just got together and decided that hey, now would be a really good time to just elect the worst fascist asshole morons imaginable.

[Mongrel]

They're gonna Hard Brexit, aren't they.

I guess the only thing we can hope for is that the Tories get eaten alive.

Like, literally.

You know, due to the food shortages.

[Friday]

There is in history always a moment where politics switches, in the minds of the people, from theoretical stuff happening to other people, to real shit happening to them.

For the US, that day is probably going to be the election, for the UK, it will be a Hard Exit.

[Yoji]

Sounds like the one that I heard attributed to... the boomers? Millennials? I forget, whatever.

Anyway, people can't see past their own nose, so they don't see trouble until they've already walked into it.

[JD]

I used to assume Trump would lose support when he failed, but then I realized he could avoid responsibility by blaming his failures on his enemies.

Brexit goes the same way. The government makes unreasonable demands, then blames the EU for not acceding to those demands. Support for the government grows because they're portrayed as fighting for the people, and every problem can be blamed on the EU to bolster the public opinion that Brexit was the right choice.

Most of the British newspapers are owned by wealthy individuals like Rupert Murdoch, and are strongly partisan toward the Conservative party. This strongly affects the ability of the Conservative party to disseminate propaganda. The BBC has to remain politically neutral, but in practice it's becoming increasingly biased. Now it has been reported that the Conservatives are appointing a Daily Telegraph editor as head of the BBC, and a Daily Mail editor as head of the UK's broadcasting authority.

[Thad]

I used to assume Trump would lose support when he failed, but then I realized he could avoid responsibility by blaming his failures on his enemies.

I'm not sure how well that's actually working. His approval rating has been remarkably consistent, but it's never been high; it's never even broken 50%.

He hasn't lost much support, but his support wasn't that high to begin with. I'm not sure how well this "I've done great, it's all China's fault" routine is actually playing with anyone outside his base. Guess we'll know in a few weeks.

[Büge]

[Mongrel]

(Yes, the more accurate German translation is "Ah, that's good to know. I'm not involved in the negotiations at all.")

[Thad]

Brexit deal cites "modern e-mail software packages including [...] Netscape Communicator 4.x."

Experts believe officials must have copied and pasted chunks of text from old legislation into the document.

[...]

The document also recommends using 1024-bit RSA encryption and the SHA-1 hashing algorithm, which are both outdated and vulnerable to cyber-attacks.

[Mongrel]

NSFW (artificial "sex arse")(also it's an image of a full page article from the Sun or Mirror or w/e, so also just plain trash):

I voted Leave... but now I've got 10,000 SEX ARSES stuck at Calais!

i am fucking losing it