Forum menu
None of what you wrote implies intelligence just a knack for knowing the right answer in an exam/test situation.
Exactly, as binners says, "He’s not a bright lad, is he?"
Eton and Harvard give scholarships to people who aren't very bright because, well I'm too sure why but that's not the point.
And who honestly thinks that you have to be bright to be on a University Challenge winning team?
Don't get me going about people with PhDs from Cambridge.
Ernie - my best mate, who’s a paramedic, says this about his older brother, Who also went to Cambridge, and has many, many letters after his name, but generally struggles to tie his own shoelaces
“He could calculate how many beans were in a tin, but he couldn’t tell you how to open the ****er!”
😂
Incidentally: said older brother is now quite senior in the M.O.D. Nuff said
So if I want a big new ****ing shiny train set like that one from the nice bit of SE England where rich people live to that nice bit of Central and East London where rich people work, I simply need to adjust my attitude? Mint!! Now I know where I’m going wrong.
sandwich - a PhD is awarded based on an original piece of research which is rigorously assessed during the course and subject to a viva in front of examiners.
Your reference to '...the student's speciality' is a nonsense.
Intellectually, he is miles ahead of most of the population - and that includes most contributors to this forum.
I say that as a card carrying labour member.
Intellectually, he is miles ahead of most of the population – and that includes most contributors to this forum
But the rest of us don’t necessarily have to be that bright to do what we do. I draw pictures for a living. Not massively intellectually taxing, but I like to think I’m pretty good at it
These people are tasked with running the country. A job they seem to think they were born into and entitled to
Doing a great job, aren’t they?
There seem to be a lot of them with the most expensive educations money can buy, yet judged by their words and actions come across as thick as mince… Kwartang, Raab, Braverman and of course, the head thicko… Boris himself
Dropping the odd bit of Latin in doesn’t really cut it, does it?
There are many different types of intel
Books is only one type
Politics is not technocratic it is 'pragmatic' but from different persectives, intelligence has little to do with it. Politics is about conflict between classes and the tories represent profit-takers rather than wage/salary earners. Dr Kwasi represents the rich, his intellect doesn't make him right, there are loads of Phd socialists.
History is full of intellectuals who were wrong and sometimes dangerous. Don't kow tow.
He can be super clever and still out of his depth in an impossible job. They've got to pretend breaking the country to achieve personal power was a good idea.
How about this fine, upstanding, principled example of a Conservative MP. Heaven help us!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-61723119
I do think our present politics has been infantilised by the cult of Boris, Brexit and the nationalist populism it represents which has reduced everything down to the level of the lowest common denominator
It reduces even the most intelligent people to idiots as they try to provide answers to incredibly complex problems by regurgitating three word slogans
How about this fine, upstanding, principled example of a Conservative MP.
I wonder if the funding will actually arrive? He wouldn’t be the first to have such an assurance quietly forgotten.
IoW dude is right to be looking after his constituents but he would’ve got better assurances sticking half of his budget on Liar Liar in the 2:40 at Kempton Park
Poor sod was told they were ‘looking at it’ in 2019 - forever the optimist.
I continuously forget how well educated Kwarteng is as he does a cracking job of sounding stupid every time I see/hear him open his cakehole on TV/Radio. I guess I need to learn that British cap-doffing deference to an Eton & Oxbridge education that some are only too eager to demonstrate.
How about this fine, upstanding, principled example of a Conservative MP. Heaven help us!
> https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-61723119
Well they've been buying voters like that since Cameron. Vote in a Tory council and the council gets more money. Vote in a Labour one and they get cuts. If you're in a Labour area you look next door at the Tory roads/parks/etc and see how much nicer it is, so give them a try at the next election.
As for Kwarteng, he's probably not stupid, he's just a liar who's allied himself to Johnson and so is stuck defending the indefensible and trying to explain how doing nothing to "level up" is actually even better than doing real things.
No deference; just stating thefacts.
Off to get my 'get yourself a PhD' flashcards for tomorrow's bus trip.
This brainy stuff is a piece of piss.
a PhD is awarded based on an original piece of research
That the student carries out, or in other words their specialised area of expertise. Tomato/tomato I think
Re the PHD thing, a relative of mine got a degree at St Andrews then his PHD at Oxford.
Thick as mince, unemployable and zero common sense.
Go figure.
a PhD is awarded based on an original piece of research which is rigorously assessed during the course and subject to a viva in front of examiners.
True but in the majority of subjects it reflects the ability to be focused and work hard rather than genius (With the exception of dentistry where they hand them out to address a status complex).
Intellectually, he is miles ahead of most of the population – and that includes most contributors to this forum.
TBF I have a PhD and I'm as thick as shit. Mine was only from Newcastle though so maybe that explains it?
I’ve just seen Peter Bone, defending Johnson as always, referred to as ‘Zombie Sven’ on twitter which has made my night. 😂
Tbf I've worked with several Postdocs who are **** clueless in their own area of expertise and you are left genuinely wondering how on earth they got a GCSE, let alone a doctorate, sometimes quantity can beat quality when it comes to getting a PhD.
I've also supervised many medics studying for PhDs and they have varied from the very smartest people you will ever meet to people I wouldn't trust to cook me dinner let alone treat sick people.
The other key is confidence; decent supervisors and examiners can spot a bullshitter, but that public school confidence really can be something to behold, combined with the contacts & networking it builds up, you can end up with some seemingly incredibly successful idiots.
I'm not saying that's the case with Kwarteng, but.. ..
When you look at this lot, it’s hardly a glowing recommendation for the most expensive education money can buy?
Or maybe it is? If Suella Braverman can get to be attorney general, Dominic Raab deputy PM and Liz Truss Foreign Secretary then surely anyone can be anything they want
I wouldn’t let any of them run a bath
I simply need to adjust my attitude? Mint!! Now I know where I’m going wrong.
Yes they are trying to resort to Jedi mind tricks, You are now better off with us even though your house is colder and your kids are hungrier and you are struggling to sleep because you are worried about money
TBF I have a PhD and I’m as thick as shit.
Well my highest academic achievement is two O levels, and one of them was art. So on the "Binners Scale" I'm probably a bleedin' genius.
Education and intelligence are not the same.
No surprise from Jake Berry, no doubt Rossendale will still vote him in again next time though🤷♂️
@BorisJohnson
delivered Brexit, delivered vaccines and is delivering on #LevellingUp Rossendale & Darwen and the North. I will be supporting the Prime Minister in tonight's vote
There are many different types of intelligence. Different psychologists argue about how many and how to define them but its clear this is so which is why we get folk like Johnson - clearly inteligent in some areas and clerly thick as pigshit in others
Well my highest academic achievement is two O levels, and one of them was art. So on the “Binners Scale” I’m probably a bleedin’ genius.
I would have you as one of the most emotionally intelligent ( sometimes defined as interpersonal intelligence) folk on this forum. this is one of the areas Johnson is thick as pigshit. passing exams only uses some types of intelligence and can be very narrow indeed
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_multiple_intelligences
No surprise from Jake Berry
It’s just more soundbites. Our resident Tory bell end James Daly has been saying exactly the same
I love the claim ‘he’s been delivering the Levelling Up agenda’
Eh? By doing what exactly?
Absolutely ****all!
Mr Daly was made to rake down social media posts before the local elections claiming ‘he’s been delivering the Levelling Up agenda’ and quoting large cash sums. Turns out some funds had been applied for from various government schemes but none actually approved
And we all know where the funds from these various Tory schemes all end up and it’s far more likely to be Surrey than East Lancashire
Move on now, leveling up, getting on with the job: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-61717478
“Delivering”
Announced 30 mins before the confidence vote results.
Shameless
How about this fine, upstanding, principled example of a Conservative MP. Heaven help us!
Kinell, there's a lot to unpack there.
Openly admits to voting for Boris not even for a bribe but because of the (likely empty) promise of a bribe. Wants to move on before anyone looks at it too closely. Still stands by his vote because a lie about funding is preferable to not being considered at all.
Wow.
Rossendale & Darwen
Wait, when was that a thing? It's "Blackburn with Darwen."
Council is Blackburn with Darwen.
MP is Blackburn - labour & Rossendale/Darwen - Tory
Edit - been this way for many years, I'm 35 and don't remember it not being this way. Makes no sense.
As I said Tax cuts next.
They basically have one tool.
Flush busted.
Lots of allegations whizzing about re Johnson drawing a line and last night's interview.
And now giving the NHS some further public kicking - handy distraction.
“Nadine Dorries, the missing link between the vegetable and mineral kingdoms”
Marina Hyde in the Grauniad. Made me spit my tea out.
Was just watching Good Morning Britain (yes, I know) and one of Johnson ex girlfriends was on. Apparently he is not suitable for PM role which then became the breaking news banner "PM not suited to role". Breaking news indeed.
Intellectually, he is miles ahead of most of the population – and that includes most contributors to this forum.
And he knows what the 'plan' is, he just knows that it can't yet be 'revealed' to Joe Public - hint, it's not a benefit to 99% of us.
I've worked with many folk like him - and wouldn't even trust them to tell me the time, disingenuous b**tards every last one of them.
Daily Mail is going in big for operation save Big Dog. All talk of traitorous remainer plots, BBC run coups against bawjaws etc
Does feel like this could end up with bulk of the conservative party lurching further towards the cult of Boris/Brexit with a large, increasingly alienated rump left behind. Exciting times
Quotes that haven't aged well - An occasional series
Britain faces a simple and inescapable choice - stability and strong Government with me, or chaos with Ed Miliband
David Cameron - May 2015
All talk of traitorous remainer plots, BBC run coups against bawjaws etc
https://twitter.com/MattChorley/status/1534422226216407040?s=20&t=OcMBRmEbGFu4iBHeDQw6iw
The Daily Mail have gone full nuclear with their propaganda campaign. It's actually quite clever, in that they side with public sentiment on their criticism for Johnson, whilst simultaneously championing everything that he stands for.
So Javid says - referring to the 1922 committee proposal to remove the 12 month restriction - that it isn’t appropriate to change rules to suit an agenda….
Hmmmm
It’s fun to point out hypocrisy but utterly pointless. Whenever an interviewer does it, the standard response is along the lines of, “well, I simply don’t accept that…” and off we go.
Quotes that haven’t aged well
It has probably aged better than you might have imagined. Cameron was of course to refering to the possibility of a Labour minority government. Here is a fuller quote :
It's the start of a week when Britain will decide its future. By Friday you'll either have Ed Miliband or me as your prime minister," Cameron said.
"It's that simple -- an inescapable choice: me leading a strong and stable government, or with him: the chaos of being held to ransom by the SNP.
"Your vote can and will make a difference. It's that's close."
According to the latest opinion poll taken a couple of days ago which suggests a 4% Labour lead it is still pretty close - it would probably leave Labour at least 40 seats short of a majority.
I don't think there has been an opinion poll for many months which suggests a Labour majority government. Obviously how stable a Labour government that relied on the SNP for its survival would be is another matter, but the Tories can still reasonably pursue that line of attack which appears to some degree to have frightened voters in the past.
Obviously how stable a Labour government that relied on the SNP for its survival would be is another matter,
And even if it was stable it wouldn't last long as part of the pact would no doubt be a Scottish referendum and surely they would get it right this time.
It does amuse my why you always take the most negative polls for labour. Other polls show 10% leads and the running poll of polls show a 8% lead(ish) for the last 6 months+
Move on now, leveling up, getting on with the job: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-61717478/blockquote >
It's interesting that Sir Graham Brady is an MP for the area this goes through and was against the route and this was cancelled 30 mins before the results. It all stinks as the BBC have edited the article to remove his name now.
It does amuse my why you always take the most negative polls for labour. Other polls show 10% leads and the running poll of polls show a 8% lead(ish) for the last 6 months+
Provide me with a link that shows an average 8% Labour lead over the last 6 months (which would probably still result in a hung parliament anyway) in the last 4 months there has only been 2 opinion polls which gave Labour a double digit lead. I have no idea where your 10% lead comes from.
Amusing as it might seem to you I took the latest opinion poll which reflects the current situation in which the PM is in dire straits because that was what being discussed - the situation right now and whether Cameron's quote was applicable right now.
It is widely claimed, including extensively on this forum, that the only way the Tories can be defeated is by Labour working with other parties.
I don't agree with that but fully accept that currently there is no realistic possibility of Labour winning a general election and forming a majority government, Labour is simply offering nothing, beyond claiming to have a different name, to make that likely.
So do you agree that the Tories could still use that line of attack and the quote could be used again? Something along the lines of "Starmer can't win a majority, he would have to rely on the SNP for support. The SNP would insist that he implements left-wing policies which you don't agree with. The SNP would also demand an independence referendum which could result in the breakup of the United Kingdom - do you want to be responsible for helping to facilitate the breakup of the United Kingdom?"
Yes that SNP attack line can and will be used again I am sure. I took the numbers from a guardian article. Maybe 8% is optimistic but its not nearly as dire as you want to show. You don't post a poll that shows a 10% plus lead
http://www.electionpolling.co.uk/polls/general-election
https://www.politico.eu/europe-poll-of-polls/united-kingdom/
https://www.politics.co.uk/reference/latest-opinion-polls/
"Although Labour’s lead in the polls has dropped back from the 9.5% peak that it enjoyed in the period between mid January and mid February 2022, that lead has started to increase again in late May following the publication of the Gray Report. The Lib Dems also appear to have nudged up 2% in the polls in the last month."
Labour has been running eight to 10 percentage points ahead of Johnson’s party for months now; if Keir Starmer starts to pull away and establish a more decisive lead, it could cement Johnson’s status as an electoral liability.
No link to their source tho
I don’t think there has been an opinion poll for many months which suggests a Labour majority government. Obviously how stable a Labour government that relied on the SNP for its survival would be is another matter, but the Tories can still reasonably pursue that line of attack which appears to some degree to have frightened voters in the past.
Do folk still believe the bollox that a Govt with a big majority is always a positive for the country, and that coalitions are intrinsically bad?
And note, both the SNP and Labour are centre left and probably the only policy they disagree on is the 'Union'.
Once more:
The SNP will NOT enter coalition with anyone. They want no part in governing England
Supply and confidence deal perhaps but the price would be high otherwise it on an issue by issue basis and the SNP will always vote down a tory government and will not vote down a labour government
Do folk still believe the bollox that a Govt with a big majority is always a positive for the country, and that coalitions are intrinsically bad?
I think a lot of people do. In fact, look across Europe and Scandinavia where coalition governments have been and still are a disaster for social democracies whereas strong and stable systems such as those used by Belarus and Hungary are relatively nirvana-like.
I wonder if enough people experience delays on holidays it'll continue to be in the news, prompting those 'what's going on?' articles which will make people start to realise it's a systematic problem not just one of those things, or the airport's fault. And if that happens, along with all the other systematic problems, people would probably be more likely to vote for change.
Do folk still believe the bollox that a Govt with a big majority is always a positive for the country, and that coalitions are intrinsically bad?
We're much more like the US than people like to admit. As in the US, people in the UK have an instinctive distrust of government and the establishment (apart from the royal family who inexplicably get a free pass), and so they prefer politicians to have the power to do stuff which otherwise would be obstructed by bureaucrats and/or minority interests.
I mean, the last coalition was such a raging success wasn't it? And then it was followed not long after by May's completely ineffective minority govt. Is it any wonder people prefer strong majority governments?
Starmer looking much more comfortable than Johnson at PMQs
Johnson looking angry from the off
I mean, the last coalition was such a raging success wasn’t it? And then it was followed not long after by May’s completely ineffective minority govt. Is it any wonder people prefer strong majority governments?
The problem with the LibDems is that they don't have any red lines which makes them very difficult to vote for. They can promise whatever they like but the only thing you can be certain of is that any campaign promise will go out the window the minute they are given a sniff of power.
The DUP are the opposite. They have red lines. They dowsed themselves in petrol and wandered the halls of Westminster screaming that they were going to burn everything down if anyone approached any of their red lines. May had no chance because she was trying to find a solution to an unsolvable problem, something Johnson got around by flat out lying about there being a solution.
Somewhere between the LibDems playdough like commitments and the DUP's fanaticism there's a way of making coalitions and minority governments work.
"48 new hospitals"
Lots of noise, no delivery.
TBF I have a PhD and I’m as thick as shit. Mine was only from Newcastle though so maybe that explains it?
An acquaintance/former employer has a phd in archeology. He says the 'Dr' prefix is excellent for securing bank loans.
There is a bit of conflation going on here re SNP. Having reps in UK Parliament is not "governing England" it is representing the Scottish electorates in the UK Parliament while Scotland remains in the Union. If they wanted no part in that, why do they even field candidates? Or they could stay at home and not take their seats like the Sinn Fein reps?
"97% of Scottish MPs want Johnson gone."
Blackford on good form (as he so often is).
Blackford is as always exceptional value for money.
Might not be fully on board with the Snp but damn he's good
Hels - some stuff at Westminster directly effects scotland. While that happens we need representation. However thats very different from entering coalition and thus taking ministerial posts. Its longstanding SNP policy that they would not enter a coalition in Westminster.
"Johnson got as mmany votes from Scottish Tories as there are pandas in Endinburgh Zoo"
from SNP MP
More Dorris coverage for you...
https://twitter.com/PickardJE/status/1534492186812751872?s=20&t=3cuYFQAd-YXRtpegAQlDrA
Johnson delivering for the British people...
Falling real household incomes will be the main driver of a slowdown in the economy, combined with fiscal and monetary policies that are turning “restrictive”, it added...
[Times Paywall]
Boris Johnson Broke Britain.
Building on the idea of SNP in a Westminster coalition (positions can change and they would be bonkers to pass that one up if Scottish independence is the goal - West Lothian aside) what cabinet post would you give to Ian Blackford? Minister for Witty Comebacks?
@hels, to be fair, that would probably deliver more value for the country than the "minister for Brexit opportunities" currently does, has done, or will do.
I have no time for Blackford. a pompous windbag
So, Minister for Orotundity?
Boris Johnson Broke Britain.
Damning article in the New York Times today basically saying the UK is economically ****ed with inflation, wage demands and Brexit.
The only thing I take from PM questions week after week is that Lindsay Hoyle is ****ing useless
UPDATE : Forums not broken, currently testing certain features, no need to worry
Tech Team
is that Lindsay Hoyle is **** useless
Not everyone will agrees with that. Pretty sure Johnson thinks he is great.
“Johnson got as mmany votes from Scottish Tories as there are pandas in Endinburgh Zoo”
One is known for being fat, hairy and (politically) impotent, and the others are pandas.