coakes242

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• Commented on What are you reading this summer?
  Ta, I'll order it, assuming I don't manage to mangle the title up....
• Commented on What are you reading this summer?
  Gawd, should be; Starting Dictator by Robert Harris, the third in the Cicero series, as Imperium was the first. The second Maplewood should be Chapelwood by Cherie Priest. The first was Maplecroft. I blame the hot weather....
• Commented on What are you reading this summer?
  Roy, I've been trying to track down a book about the economics of the Third Reich which, from memory, suggests that the Nazi's were increasingly likely to have to start a war from some point in 1936, but that their...
• Commented on What are you reading this summer?
  Nightmare Stacks, obviously, Paul Cornell's Who Killed Sherlock Holmes, as I was hoping the third in the series would not have Neil Gaiman in it, finished Robert Harris' Lustrum last night ahead of starting Imperium, as I'd forgotten how Cicero...
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Also; There were no previously promised votes on the EU that didn't take place. Ok. Tony Blair promised one on ratifying the European Constitution in 2004, but took full advantage of the French and Dutch rejecting it to avoid going...
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Yup, I'd go along with that. However, Hard to nobble someone who will get booted out if you upset their voters as long as he has nowhere else to turn to, that effectively offers the same amount of power with...
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Turn that around slightly for a moment; Any Tory PM who spent time as a SPAD under Major, would know that a Tory government with a smaller majority, should avoid digging into that particular plague pit at all costs, surely?...
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Umm, yerssss, that same ubiquitous technology that seems to given us algorithmic timelines, mass surveillance, confirmation bias and Boaty McBoatFace. And only slightly earlier, Manchester City fans apparently voting to name one end of their new stadium after Colin Bell....
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Yup. Clearly. And my suspicion is that an awful lot of times the phrase "Murdoch press" , particularly in certain Guardian articles, and related echo chambers, is code for just this....
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Ha ha! Presumably he'll be close enough to chat to Heath about it....
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Well, yes, I see where you're coming from, and it definitely does have the advantage of being simple. It's just that while the pollsters clearly made a balls-up of epic proportions, probably due to some assumptions about the nature of...
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Here's a thought... Why are we having a referendum right now? Not because CallMeDave woke up one morning and shat himself at the photos of Farage having a pint and a fag in the papers. To put it another way,...
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Aaah, yes. Couldn't quite get the reference, as I haven't read much by Holt. Tried, but kept thinking "I can see this should be funny, but it isn't". I think I first heard the EEC has kept the peace in...
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Be afraid, be very afraid. The Milk Marketing Board was dissolved in 2002....
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Thanks, that looks more like it....
• Commented on The unavoidable discussion
  Umm, didn't the French just remove their nukes from the NATO command structure? And either your dates are wrong, or they dropped out after the collapse of the Soviet Union....
• Commented on Random thought for the day
  Chancel Repairs. First knew about this only a few years ago when looking into buying a house and it showed up in the deeds. It isn't really general upkeep, but very specific repairs. Which by their nature are not cheap,...
• Commented on Random thought for the day
  Not sure that's entirely true in the UK. In England at least, covenants may be written into the deeds of the property, by the owner. The ones I've seen have ranged from "you may not park a caravan or commercial...
• Commented on That "Annihilation Score" spoiler thread you're all asking for
  Ah. Quick rundown for UK housing: Detached : A dwelling that sits entirely within its own plot, unbuilt land (even down to a couple of inches ) on every side. Semi (or semi-detached): a dwelling that shares a common wall...
• Commented on The Scottish Political Singularity, Act Two
  Something slightly peculiar about the election, which doesn't appear (I'm English, living in the south-east) to be widely appreciated. Nicola Sturgeon, as leader of the SNP, is getting the airtime and coverage, which is fair enough. She isn't standing for...