BryanTheSnail

168 Followers
436 Following
520 Posts
Don't follow me. I'm lost too.
Another former overworked hex miracle worker for UK law enforcement. Currently trying to eat my weight in butter tarts, maple syrup and donuts.
@bazcook
Where else were you expecting him to keep his confetti cannon?
@jerry @xabean
Not in the U.S. but I feel you. Recently retired and took out insurance cover (not so much for in depth health care as we are in Canada, but mainly for travel cover and some dental, optical benefits). The cost was something of a surprise but probably way less than it would cost if I lived in your neck of the woods.
@ukscone
Having gone down that rabbit hole I've left myself with this as an earworm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SE08AXk0jU
Keith michell captain beaky TOTP 15 02 1980

YouTube
@ukscone
If you want a real earworm from that era there is always this one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O465enGz03w
Lieutenant Pigeon - Mouldy Old Dough • TopPop

YouTube
@ukscone
My parents thought they were on to a winner when they bought me one of their LPs for Christmas.
I did actually quite like this track
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwFXf8RdI4A
Middle Of The Road - Louise (My Little Ship)

YouTube
@CleoQc
Like others this is guesswork based on friends' (including various flavours of LGBT+) experiences.
BC is probably the most tolerant and left leaning.
I'd stay away from Ontario in spite of Toronto being reasonably tolerant the province as a whole is pretty right wing. Same for Alberta in spite of pockets which are popular with LGBT+ community.
From the rest Newfoundland & Labrador and Nova Scotia may be worth considering. The Maritimes in general have a reputation of being left-leaning. Stepdaughter is happy in Halifax, and LGBT+ inclusivity is very important to her.
@amuse
You seem convinced that this will still be an important topic for people by the time defcon comes around. My cynicism won't let me believe people will still be talking/thinking about this at the end of the week.

RE: https://flipboard.com/@bbcnews/top-stories-hc55lmo2z/-/a-kkjKDEJGTDK_Qc8GiFCKFQ%3Aa%3A3199692-%2F0

This is a lie.
Denmark owning Greenland is as much of a deterrent to China and Russia as any NATO nation, including the USA. would be. China and Russia are no more of a threat to Greenland than they are to Tuvalu or Samoa.
Trump wants Greenland for it's mineral resources and to pressurise Canada.

Trump seems to be dishing out threats to Mexico now, and has historically, in one form or another, attacked very other country in the world (including, let's not forget, the penguins on the Heard and McDonald Islands).
I can't help musing about how long the USA would survive if every other country enacted a blanket ban on trading with the USA. No oil, meat, financial services, gas, timber, cocaine, silver, electricity, steel, clothing, aluminium, grains, cars, fentanyl, guns, gold, ammunition, diamonds, alcohol, technology or rare earth metals. Nothing. Not even a sheet of paper.
The attitude portrayed by the USA is that everybody else in the world is dependent on it and it can do what it pleases. Not all that different to the Russian and China attitude. "You need me more than I need you. You better do what I say and give me what I want."
Maybe it's time they were all taught a lesson that no single country is more powerful than a world acting in unison (I know that's unlikely but it's nice to consider it).
I don't know how you make this happen. The North Korean's will never go along with anything the South Koreans are involved in, likewise Palestine and Israel, and the list goes on .... in spite of Trump bringing peace to all these countries and stopping all those wars.
I feel like one of those people saying all they want is world peace. I figure I'm not alone in this. I also figure that, like me, others who feel the same have no idea how to achieve it.
How do you make people lay down their weapons and work together to make this world a better place? (A lot of people will answer "Religion" but will then start wars over which religion is correct.)
I don't know the answer. I don't have the answer. I'm old and tired.
I've seen events which should have brought the world together to work as one towards a common good - landing and walking on the moon, the assassination of JFK, the Killing Fields, the fall of the Berlin Wall, Tiananmen Square, Fall of Saigon, Indian ocean tsunami, Ethiopian famine, collapse of the USSR, and the list goes on.
In spite of those events , here we are, still in our insular, nationalistic shells. Thinking we are better than every one else. Our country has it right and everyone else is wrong.
We think we are better and every one else should listen to us. We're wrong.
It's time we started listening to others. It's time we started acknowledging that we might not be the one with the answers. It's time we started acknowledging that maybe we have been getting it wrong. It's time that the world started to act as ONE. It's time that we listened to others and found common ground instead of forcing our viewpoint on others. It's time that we accepted that we are not always right and we can get it wrong. We can be misled. We can accept that what we have believed in was wrong and try to do better next time.
No, I don't have answers. In spite of all that I've seen going wrong, I do still have hope. I'm Scottish and Canadian, but I don't just have hope for Scotland and Canada, I have hope for the world.
I want to see a world that values Palestinians, Gays, Israelis, South Africans, Lesbian, Indians, Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, Christians, Trans, Catholics, Agnostics, Queer, Atheists, Conservatives, Bisexual, Liberals, Socialists and everyone that didn't make that list. I want to see a world that unites against those that don't respect others. I want to see a world that works together to make life better for everyone. A world where those that don't cooperate and work together for the benefit of all are shown the error of their ways - maybe by reminding them that they depend on others and unilateral action works against their long term interests.