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Julian Cope presents Head Heritage

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10 years old............
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IanB
IanB
6761 posts

Edited Dec 09, 2015, 14:54
Re: 10 years old............
Dec 09, 2015, 05:40
dhajjieboy wrote:
To answer your question...

I am a Field service engineer by trade.
I repair everything. I still exist pre download era.

Harry Truman was very much of his era, as was Queen Victoria.
Or Lawrence of Arabia.

As always though Ian, Well thought out.


That's good to hear. I miss mending stuff. My current phone doesn't even open. Not unless you don't want to close it again. Ditto the iPad and the iPod and the tv and the computer.

I think Truman would thrive today on the world stage (police actions were his calling card, containment redefined as victory) but he would be a fish out of water domestically.

We are in an era of policy by spread sheet (this after an era of policy by opinion poll). In this case it's not the inner workings under the chassis you can't see. It's the people under the numbers. The smaller the people the less visible they are under the zeroes.

Behind every shit decision will be a chart showing the cost/benefit analysis of each policy position with a pay-off (electoral or fiscal or strategic) some months or years or decades down the road. Whether it is selling arms to enemies or cutting in-work benefits or bombing civilians or killing our renewable energy industry there is a cold eyed technocratic pragmatism that trumps all human instinct and feeling and common sense. Look at what they did to our allies in Greece. With friends like these etc.

Back in the era of Thatcher and Reagan, and their eastern block and Chinese and Cuban counterparts, leaders on all sides knew what they thought on any issue before they saw any numbers or heard from the analysts. They needed to be talked out of a position not persuaded into one from neutral. Not exactly a religious certainty but a total faith in their nose and gut as human beings. People (rightly) mock Thatcher for wanting to run a country like a corner shop or a farm but that is a hell of a lot better than running it as a crooked casino where certain punters know ALL the winning numbers before any one else has their wallet out.

Trump is all dog whistle and no real conviction other than in the power of his own celebrity. That is not the same thing as Reagan at all. Hilary is simply put a woman out of (her) time.

Corbyn is a gut'n' nose guy and people respect that even if they don't agree with him. I suspect Sanders has better polling numbers on honesty and character than what he actually stands for.
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