Thursday, September 29, 2022
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
OTK: What's for Dinner? Smoky, Creamy Pasta with Burnt Aubergines and Tahini | Ottolenghi Test Kitchen
Get the recipe here.
Aerial Footage Shows Destruction and Flooding Caused by Hurricane Ian
Drone footage from Florida, where Hurricane Ian has left a trail of destruction, shows widespread flooding of urban areas. The hurricane, considered one of the most powerful to have hit the US, made landfall on Wednesday and has left more than 2 million people without power. Joe Biden has approved a disaster declaration, which makes federal money available to help state, tribal and local recovery efforts.
Florida rescue crews search for residents trapped by floods. DeSantis says ‘we’ve never seen a flood like this.’ Biden declares disaster
Florida rescue crews search for residents trapped by floods. DeSantis says ‘we’ve never seen a flood like this.’ Biden declares disaster
Tax Cuts Funded on Backs of Poor ‘Morally Indefensible’, Say Campaigners
THE GUARDIAN: Government could seek to reduce welfare benefits spending in wake of recent mini-budget
Poverty campaigners have said it would be “morally indefensible” for ministers to fund tax cuts for the richest on the backs of the poor, amid speculation that ministers may reduce welfare benefits in the wake of last week’s ill-received fiscal statement.
Friday’s mini-budget announced billions of tax cuts benefiting high earners, but the subsequent market fallout plunged the UK’s finances into near crisis. The government is expected to have to make tens of billions of pounds of public spending cuts later this year to try to put the UK’s finances on a sound footing.
With prime minister Liz Truss having made high-profile political commitments to increase defence and NHS spending, welfare is seen as a prime candidate for cuts. » | Patrick Butler, Social policy editor | Thursday, September 29, 2022
‘A reverse Robin Hood’: key exchanges from Liz Truss’s radio interviews: Memorable points from prime minister’s morning round of interviews at a glance »
Poverty campaigners have said it would be “morally indefensible” for ministers to fund tax cuts for the richest on the backs of the poor, amid speculation that ministers may reduce welfare benefits in the wake of last week’s ill-received fiscal statement.
Friday’s mini-budget announced billions of tax cuts benefiting high earners, but the subsequent market fallout plunged the UK’s finances into near crisis. The government is expected to have to make tens of billions of pounds of public spending cuts later this year to try to put the UK’s finances on a sound footing.
With prime minister Liz Truss having made high-profile political commitments to increase defence and NHS spending, welfare is seen as a prime candidate for cuts. » | Patrick Butler, Social policy editor | Thursday, September 29, 2022
‘A reverse Robin Hood’: key exchanges from Liz Truss’s radio interviews: Memorable points from prime minister’s morning round of interviews at a glance »
No Big Deal. Just Two Guys Walking Together, Holding Hands.
One thing that impressed me years ago when I worked in the Middle East was the sight of two men walking down the street, holding hands. Naturally, coming from the West, I was very surprised to see it at first. Why? Because homosexuality is strictly verboten in Middle Eastern countries. Men holding hands seemed a gay thing to me in those days.
However, what I soon discovered was this: men holding hands in the Middle East is not a gay marker at all. It is simply two Muslim brothers showing warmth and non-sexual affection for each other. It has everything to do with the Muslim brotherhood. It is also a mark of respect for the other. In fact, as a mark of respect, they also kiss each other, particularly on the forehead. I lost count of the number of times I saw my male students showing each other affection, even in the classroom. But I stress that they were not sexual gestures.
There are many aspects of Islam which are most impressive: this cultural habit is/was one of them. How uptight we Westerners are when it comes to men showing each other affection in any shape or form. Particularly the further north in Europe one goes; and more especially in the Anglosphere. Brits are probably the most uptight about this sort of thing. (I am the exception.)
This affection was often shown to me, their instructor, as well. My students—I always taught adult males there—also used to want to walk down the corridor holding my hand as well! It was a mark of their respect for me. They would also carry my briefcase for me back to the staffroom. At first one is a little surprised (and embarrassed) to walk down the corridor holding another man's hand (I wasn't out in those days), but one soon gets used to it.
We could learn a lot from the Islamic world. Christianity, it seems to me, lacks that sense of warmth and brotherhood. And if you’re British on top of it, that awful ‘stiff upper lip’ used to have to be shown. When I was growing up, it was so all-pervasive in the culture. Back in the day, a man dare not show his true feelings at all! Fortunately, it has got a little better over the years. Brits are not the emotional cripples they once were! Alhamdulillah !– © Mark Alexander
L’inflation alimentaire en France s’approche des 10 % dans les supermarchés
LE MONDE : Certains produits de première nécessité, comme les pâtes ou le riz, se sont envolés de 20, 30, voire 130 % sur un an. Et le rythme ne ralentit pas.
« L’invitée surprise. » C’est ainsi que Jean-Philippe André, président de l’Association nationale des industries agroalimentaires (ANIA) qualifie l’inflation. Il se remémore, qu’il y a un an à peine, le sujet n’était même pas abordé. Depuis, la valse des étiquettes s’est enclenchée dans les rayons des supermarchés. Et le rythme ne ralentit pas. Après avoir franchi la barre des 5 % en juin, l’inflation alimentaire s’approche désormais du seuil des 10 %.
C’est le constat dressé par le cabinet d’analyses IRI France, qui publiait, jeudi 29 septembre, les données collectées à la fin de ce mois. Cette société qui scrute les achats des consommateurs après leur passage en caisse avait enregistré un premier frémissement des prix à la hausse, en décembre 2021.
Neuf mois plus tard, elle constate que les prix des produits de grande consommation ont bondi, en un an, de 9,11 %. Sur les seuls produits alimentaires, la progression est de 9,75 %. IRI France pointe les rayons épicerie salée, crémerie, surgelés et glaces, où les hausses de tarifs dépassent les 10 %. Avec une mention spéciale pour les viandes surgelées dont l’inflation frôle les 30 %. Seuls les apéritifs anisés se distinguent avec une tarification en léger retrait. » | Par Laurence Girard | jeudi 29 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
« L’invitée surprise. » C’est ainsi que Jean-Philippe André, président de l’Association nationale des industries agroalimentaires (ANIA) qualifie l’inflation. Il se remémore, qu’il y a un an à peine, le sujet n’était même pas abordé. Depuis, la valse des étiquettes s’est enclenchée dans les rayons des supermarchés. Et le rythme ne ralentit pas. Après avoir franchi la barre des 5 % en juin, l’inflation alimentaire s’approche désormais du seuil des 10 %.
C’est le constat dressé par le cabinet d’analyses IRI France, qui publiait, jeudi 29 septembre, les données collectées à la fin de ce mois. Cette société qui scrute les achats des consommateurs après leur passage en caisse avait enregistré un premier frémissement des prix à la hausse, en décembre 2021.
Neuf mois plus tard, elle constate que les prix des produits de grande consommation ont bondi, en un an, de 9,11 %. Sur les seuls produits alimentaires, la progression est de 9,75 %. IRI France pointe les rayons épicerie salée, crémerie, surgelés et glaces, où les hausses de tarifs dépassent les 10 %. Avec une mention spéciale pour les viandes surgelées dont l’inflation frôle les 30 %. Seuls les apéritifs anisés se distinguent avec une tarification en léger retrait. » | Par Laurence Girard | jeudi 29 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
The Liz Truss BBC Local Radio Interviews
Released On: 29 Sep 2022
Available for over a year
Liz Truss speaks to eight BBC Local Radio stations, defending her mini-budget, saying she was prepared to make "controversial and difficult decisions" to get the economy moving.
Newscast has assembled the full set of interviews.
The BBC local radio round has been a pre-conference tradition for political party leaders for many years, a chance to speak directly to voters.
Thanks to our colleagues at BBC Local Radio in Leeds, Norfolk, Kent, Lancashire, Nottingham, Tees, Bristol and Stoke who produced these interviews.
The presenters were Rima Ahmed, Chris Goreham, Anna Cookson, Graham Liver, Sarah Julian, Amy Oakden, James Hanson and John Acres.
Newscast is hosted by Adam Fleming. The producers of this episode were Louisa Lewis, Jonathan Aspinwall, Chris Brindley and Carlie Swain.
Listen to the interviews here.
Disastrous Liz Truss interviews show BBC local radio still packs a punch »
Liz Truss speaks to eight BBC Local Radio stations, defending her mini-budget, saying she was prepared to make "controversial and difficult decisions" to get the economy moving.
Newscast has assembled the full set of interviews.
The BBC local radio round has been a pre-conference tradition for political party leaders for many years, a chance to speak directly to voters.
Thanks to our colleagues at BBC Local Radio in Leeds, Norfolk, Kent, Lancashire, Nottingham, Tees, Bristol and Stoke who produced these interviews.
The presenters were Rima Ahmed, Chris Goreham, Anna Cookson, Graham Liver, Sarah Julian, Amy Oakden, James Hanson and John Acres.
Newscast is hosted by Adam Fleming. The producers of this episode were Louisa Lewis, Jonathan Aspinwall, Chris Brindley and Carlie Swain.
Disastrous Liz Truss interviews show BBC local radio still packs a punch »
Just Economists Losing Their Minds over Trussonomics
Le Royaume-Uni s’enfonce à nouveau dans la crise politique
LE MONDE : La panique a gagné les rangs des députés conservateurs, après l’intervention inédite de la Banque d’Angleterre pour éviter une panique financière provoquée par le « minibudget » du gouvernement de Liz Truss.
Avec leur « minibudget » – en fait, un énorme stimulus fiscal au seul bénéfice des plus riches –, la première ministre britannique, Liz Truss, et son chancelier de l’Echiquier (le ministre des finances), Kwasi Kwarteng, ont provoqué une tempête financière, mais aussi une nouvelle et profonde crise politique. Et ce, trois semaines seulement après leur prise de fonctions, alors que le Parti conservateur se remet juste du scandale du « partygate » et du départ humiliant de son précédent chef de file, Boris Johnson.
Face à cette spectaculaire et catastrophique entrée en matière, les commentateurs politiques parlent déjà d’« opération-suicide » pour la dirigeante, mais aussi pour les tories : en détruisant la crédibilité économique de la droite britannique, MmeTruss offre un boulevard aux travaillistes, qui, après douze années dans l’opposition, rêvent désormais tout haut de Downing Street. » | Par Cécile Ducourtieux (Londres, correspondante) | jeudi 29 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
Read in English.
Avec leur « minibudget » – en fait, un énorme stimulus fiscal au seul bénéfice des plus riches –, la première ministre britannique, Liz Truss, et son chancelier de l’Echiquier (le ministre des finances), Kwasi Kwarteng, ont provoqué une tempête financière, mais aussi une nouvelle et profonde crise politique. Et ce, trois semaines seulement après leur prise de fonctions, alors que le Parti conservateur se remet juste du scandale du « partygate » et du départ humiliant de son précédent chef de file, Boris Johnson.
Face à cette spectaculaire et catastrophique entrée en matière, les commentateurs politiques parlent déjà d’« opération-suicide » pour la dirigeante, mais aussi pour les tories : en détruisant la crédibilité économique de la droite britannique, MmeTruss offre un boulevard aux travaillistes, qui, après douze années dans l’opposition, rêvent désormais tout haut de Downing Street. » | Par Cécile Ducourtieux (Londres, correspondante) | jeudi 29 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
Read in English.
Teilmobilmachung in Russland: Zehntausende haben das Land bereits verlassen
NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG: Vor allem Männer, aber auch Frauen und Kinder fliehen seit dem 21. September ins nahe Ausland. An Grenzübergängen haben sich zum Teil kilometerlange Schlangen gebildet. Der Exodus aus Russland dürfte weiter anhalten.
In der kasachischen Stadt Uralsk stehen Russinnen und Russen Schlange, um sich zu registrieren. | Denis Spiridonov / AP
Seit der russische Präsident Wladimir Putin am 21. September die Teilmobilmachung von 300 000 Reservisten verkündet hat, sind die Ausreisen von Russen nach Europa stark angestiegen. Laut Zahlen der europäischen Grenzschutzagentur Frontex sind zwischen dem 19. und dem 25. September fast 66 000 russische Staatsangehörige über die Landgrenze legal in die Europäische Union eingereist – 30 Prozent mehr als in der Woche zuvor. Aktuellere Daten liegen derzeit nicht vor, die Zahlen dürften inzwischen aber weiter gestiegen sein.
Der grösste Teil der Grenzübertritte nach Europa entfällt dabei auf Finnland, wo letzte Woche mehr als 40 000 Russen eingereist sind. Estland und Litauen verzeichneten laut Frontex je über 9000 Grenzübertritte. Die baltischen Staaten haben ihre Einreisebestimmungen jüngst stark verschärft, und kürzlich hat auch die Regierung in Helsinki angekündigt, die Einreise russischer Touristen stoppen zu wollen. » | Jonas Roth | Donnerstag, 29. September 2022
Warum Europa russische Deserteure und Kriegsdienstverweigerer aufnehmen sollte: Noch sind Russlands Grenzen offen. Die Zahl der Männer steigt, die vor der Mobilisierung fliehen. Wie sollen die europäischen Staaten mit ihnen umgehen? Sind sie bedroht oder eine Bedrohung? »
Seit der russische Präsident Wladimir Putin am 21. September die Teilmobilmachung von 300 000 Reservisten verkündet hat, sind die Ausreisen von Russen nach Europa stark angestiegen. Laut Zahlen der europäischen Grenzschutzagentur Frontex sind zwischen dem 19. und dem 25. September fast 66 000 russische Staatsangehörige über die Landgrenze legal in die Europäische Union eingereist – 30 Prozent mehr als in der Woche zuvor. Aktuellere Daten liegen derzeit nicht vor, die Zahlen dürften inzwischen aber weiter gestiegen sein.
Der grösste Teil der Grenzübertritte nach Europa entfällt dabei auf Finnland, wo letzte Woche mehr als 40 000 Russen eingereist sind. Estland und Litauen verzeichneten laut Frontex je über 9000 Grenzübertritte. Die baltischen Staaten haben ihre Einreisebestimmungen jüngst stark verschärft, und kürzlich hat auch die Regierung in Helsinki angekündigt, die Einreise russischer Touristen stoppen zu wollen. » | Jonas Roth | Donnerstag, 29. September 2022
Warum Europa russische Deserteure und Kriegsdienstverweigerer aufnehmen sollte: Noch sind Russlands Grenzen offen. Die Zahl der Männer steigt, die vor der Mobilisierung fliehen. Wie sollen die europäischen Staaten mit ihnen umgehen? Sind sie bedroht oder eine Bedrohung? »
Truss and Treasury Secretary Fail to Reassure Markets as Bond Yields Rise, Stocks Tumble and Pound Slides – Business Live
THE GUARDIAN: Prime minister and Chris Philp fail to restore investor confidence in series of interviews, as government bond yields rise and stock markets tumble
The prime minister, Liz Truss, and the Treasury’s no 2, Chris Philp, have both done a round of broadcast interviews this morning – but their comments appear to have done little to reassure markets.
Government bond yields are rising again, the stock market has tumbled and the pound is sliding. Sterling is now worth $1.0789, a 0.9% drop on the day.
The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 indices have lost 1.8% and 2.3% respectively this morning. Germany’s Dax has dropped 1.9%, France’s CAC has slid 1.8% and Italy’s FTSE MiB fell 1.1%.
Despite a barrage of criticism, from the International Monetary Trust and the former Bank of England governor Mark Carney, the government is refusing to perform a U-turn on the package of £45bn of unfunded tax cuts aimed at the wealthy it announced on Friday. There is also no sign at the moment that the fiscal policy statement planned for 23 November could be brought forward.
Truss said this morning: “I have to do what I believe is right for the country and what is going to help move our country forward.” » | Julia Kollewe | Thursday, September 29, 2022
The prime minister, Liz Truss, and the Treasury’s no 2, Chris Philp, have both done a round of broadcast interviews this morning – but their comments appear to have done little to reassure markets.
Government bond yields are rising again, the stock market has tumbled and the pound is sliding. Sterling is now worth $1.0789, a 0.9% drop on the day.
The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 indices have lost 1.8% and 2.3% respectively this morning. Germany’s Dax has dropped 1.9%, France’s CAC has slid 1.8% and Italy’s FTSE MiB fell 1.1%.
Despite a barrage of criticism, from the International Monetary Trust and the former Bank of England governor Mark Carney, the government is refusing to perform a U-turn on the package of £45bn of unfunded tax cuts aimed at the wealthy it announced on Friday. There is also no sign at the moment that the fiscal policy statement planned for 23 November could be brought forward.
Truss said this morning: “I have to do what I believe is right for the country and what is going to help move our country forward.” » | Julia Kollewe | Thursday, September 29, 2022
Market-turmoil and Slumping British Pound after UK Government Announced Economic Plans | DW News
Thom Hartmann: Has PM Liz Truss Wrecked the UK Economy? Featuring Richard Wolff
Is British prime minister Liz Truss trashing the economy of her country? A tax cut for the rich and little for the poor. The pound sterling has crashed against the dollar and the euro.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has publicly rebuked the UK government, which is almost unheard of.
Is the country spinning out of control financially?
Bio: Professor Richard Wolff, Economist / Co-founder, Democracy At Work / Author of numerous books including The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself (also available as an eBook) / Host-Economic Update w/Prof. Richard Wolff on FSTV
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has publicly rebuked the UK government, which is almost unheard of.
Is the country spinning out of control financially?
Bio: Professor Richard Wolff, Economist / Co-founder, Democracy At Work / Author of numerous books including The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself (also available as an eBook) / Host-Economic Update w/Prof. Richard Wolff on FSTV
Wednesday, September 28, 2022
Emergency Action by Bank of England amid UK Economic Turmoil
As the economic storm clouds over the UK darkened further still, the Bank of England today staged a dramatic intervention - saying it will start buying up government debt in an effort to stabilise markets and protect pension funds.
The surging cost of borrowing, sparked last week by the Chancellor's tax-cutting plans, had earlier drawn a stinging rebuke from the IMF - but the government says it's sticking to its guns, although departments will be asked to identify 'spending efficiencies'.
Labour says parliament should be recalled so the prime minister is held to account over the crisis.
Truss and Kwarteng are not fit for purpose. They need to go. Go before the UK economy is totally ruined. Both of them are greenhorns. No to tax cuts for the super-rich! No to Kwarteng’s voodoo economics! – © Mark Alexander
The surging cost of borrowing, sparked last week by the Chancellor's tax-cutting plans, had earlier drawn a stinging rebuke from the IMF - but the government says it's sticking to its guns, although departments will be asked to identify 'spending efficiencies'.
Labour says parliament should be recalled so the prime minister is held to account over the crisis.
Truss and Kwarteng are not fit for purpose. They need to go. Go before the UK economy is totally ruined. Both of them are greenhorns. No to tax cuts for the super-rich! No to Kwarteng’s voodoo economics! – © Mark Alexander
Whitney Houston : I Wanna Dance with Somebody | Official Video | Reupload
Tory MPs Tell Truss: Sack Kwarteng or Face Mutiny
THE GUARDIAN: MPs express disbelief over sterling slump as privately some fear PM’s government is ‘dead on arrival’
Liz Truss visits a business in Kent with Kwasi Kwarteng. One MP said: ‘Kwasi will have to go. She won’t have any option.’ Photograph: Dylan Martinez/Reuters
Liz Truss is facing growing pressure from jittery Conservative MPs to sack Kwasi Kwarteng or face a mutiny after the Bank of England’s emergency intervention to address the turmoil in the financial markets.
The move prompted comparisons to 1992’s Black Wednesday, when the UK was ignominiously ejected from the European exchange rate mechanism.
Tory MPs expressed disbelief at how sterling had slumped after the government’s mini-budget sparked market turbulence, compounded by the chancellor’s subsequent remarks, at a time when households across the country were already struggling with the cost of living.
They said Kwarteng would have to resign for the party to survive the financial crisis, as they urged the prime minister to reverse her plan to scrap the top 45p tax rate, which they said had been received badly in their constituencies. » | Pippa Crerar and Jessica Elgot | Wednesday, September 28, 2022
Why are these poseurs in hard hats? You don't need hard hats in offices! Such vanity! It would be far better if they thought more about how to do their jobs properly and better. Then, perhaps, we wouldn't be in the mess and economic chaos we now find ourselves in, with the pound in freefall. God what a pair of dorks! – © Mark Alexander
Liz Truss is facing growing pressure from jittery Conservative MPs to sack Kwasi Kwarteng or face a mutiny after the Bank of England’s emergency intervention to address the turmoil in the financial markets.
The move prompted comparisons to 1992’s Black Wednesday, when the UK was ignominiously ejected from the European exchange rate mechanism.
Tory MPs expressed disbelief at how sterling had slumped after the government’s mini-budget sparked market turbulence, compounded by the chancellor’s subsequent remarks, at a time when households across the country were already struggling with the cost of living.
They said Kwarteng would have to resign for the party to survive the financial crisis, as they urged the prime minister to reverse her plan to scrap the top 45p tax rate, which they said had been received badly in their constituencies. » | Pippa Crerar and Jessica Elgot | Wednesday, September 28, 2022
Why are these poseurs in hard hats? You don't need hard hats in offices! Such vanity! It would be far better if they thought more about how to do their jobs properly and better. Then, perhaps, we wouldn't be in the mess and economic chaos we now find ourselves in, with the pound in freefall. God what a pair of dorks! – © Mark Alexander
Not for the Politically Correct! Some Thoughts on Smoking
MARK ALEXANDER: I recently came across this article, delightful and politically incorrect, on smoking cigarettes.
It appealed to the contrarian in me. Now please, don’t misconstrue my message here: I am NOT advocating the smoking of cigarettes or tobacco. Indeed, I quit smoking nearly six months ago, on April 10th. I have smoked no cigarette since; and nor have I had any cravings for one. But this article, written in 2008, delighted the sense, probably because one reads such articles only very rarely these days. Nowadays, cigarette-smoking has become the bête noire of our age. These days, smoking is the root and source of all ill health, from cancer and cardiovascular disease to hair and teeth falling out! People have lost all sense of joie de vivre it seems, especially in the Anglosphere. People have become bores. Absolute joyless bores! Moreover, they see the flaws in others, but forget to look in the mirror and see their own flaws! Exactly what the Bible tells us not to do.
I know that this article is quite old now, but it is still excellent. It is so refreshing to read an article like this about smoking these days. One comes across few such articles in this smoker-unfriendly world we now inhabit. Smoking cigarettes has become the bête noire of our age. It is such a pity. I believe that if done in moderation, there are positives to the enjoyment of a cigarette. Even though medical experts don't know why, it has been found that people who smoke (or have been smokers in the past) are far less likely to suffer from Parkinson's disease. It possibly helps in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, too. But they keep all this very quiet, of course; it doesn't fit in with the dominant narrative: that smoking is the cause of all bad health issues.
I would be the last to advocate smoking to anyone. I am myself an ex-smoker. I had a twenty-a-day habit for most of my adult life. It gave me great pleasure; in fact, I only ever smoked for pleasure; I never smoked out of addiction. I never felt addicted to the habit.
But smoking today has in many ways become a pain: one cannot smoke anywhere in public anymore; cigarettes are so costly; and so many people frown upon the habit. So I decided to quit. I gave up with no problems whatsoever. I have never once had even a craving for a cigarette since. But I still love to see others enjoying a smoke. I also have fond memories of the times in which I did smoke. Those were the more tolerant years.
The article appears in ESQUIRE here.
Enjoy the read! – © Mark Alexander
It appealed to the contrarian in me. Now please, don’t misconstrue my message here: I am NOT advocating the smoking of cigarettes or tobacco. Indeed, I quit smoking nearly six months ago, on April 10th. I have smoked no cigarette since; and nor have I had any cravings for one. But this article, written in 2008, delighted the sense, probably because one reads such articles only very rarely these days. Nowadays, cigarette-smoking has become the bête noire of our age. These days, smoking is the root and source of all ill health, from cancer and cardiovascular disease to hair and teeth falling out! People have lost all sense of joie de vivre it seems, especially in the Anglosphere. People have become bores. Absolute joyless bores! Moreover, they see the flaws in others, but forget to look in the mirror and see their own flaws! Exactly what the Bible tells us not to do.
”Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.” – KJB, Matthew 7, 5I wrote a comment apropos of this great article. It appears under the handle ‘mar5508’. This is it:
I know that this article is quite old now, but it is still excellent. It is so refreshing to read an article like this about smoking these days. One comes across few such articles in this smoker-unfriendly world we now inhabit. Smoking cigarettes has become the bête noire of our age. It is such a pity. I believe that if done in moderation, there are positives to the enjoyment of a cigarette. Even though medical experts don't know why, it has been found that people who smoke (or have been smokers in the past) are far less likely to suffer from Parkinson's disease. It possibly helps in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, too. But they keep all this very quiet, of course; it doesn't fit in with the dominant narrative: that smoking is the cause of all bad health issues.
I would be the last to advocate smoking to anyone. I am myself an ex-smoker. I had a twenty-a-day habit for most of my adult life. It gave me great pleasure; in fact, I only ever smoked for pleasure; I never smoked out of addiction. I never felt addicted to the habit.
But smoking today has in many ways become a pain: one cannot smoke anywhere in public anymore; cigarettes are so costly; and so many people frown upon the habit. So I decided to quit. I gave up with no problems whatsoever. I have never once had even a craving for a cigarette since. But I still love to see others enjoying a smoke. I also have fond memories of the times in which I did smoke. Those were the more tolerant years.
The article appears in ESQUIRE here.
Enjoy the read! – © Mark Alexander
How to Roast a Goose | Waitrose
Get the full recipe here.
Geese are in season here in the UK from September 1st. Personally, when I roast a goose, I like to stuff it. Not only with meat stuffing, but also with bread stuffing. My own home-made sage and onion stuffing made with my own freshly-made breadcrumbs. This goose has not been stuffed, but looks absolutely delicious nevertheless.
At Christmas, I often roast a goose in preference to roasting a turkey. There is not as much meat on a goose, and geese are much more expensive than turkeys, but the flavour of a well-raosted goose served with apple sauce is simply outstanding.
If you have never tried roasting a goose, I would suggest that you try roasting one. You will not be disappointed. – Mark
Liz Truss' Ex-colleague Says She's Been Humiliated, and Labour Could Let Him Back into Politics
Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng are not up to their jobs. The Conservatives are no longer up to the job of governing this country, either. They have been in power for far too long. They are stale. We need change in this country.
Brexit was a very stupid idea. We should never have left the EU. It was national suicide. We shot ourselves in the foot. We are Europeans. Our destiny is in Europe. We need to return to the European Union asap. The adolescents have had their time in the spotlight; now it is time for the grown-ups to take control again. – © Mark Alexander
Nach dem Fehlstart von Liz Truss wittert Labour-Chef Starmer die grosse Chance auf einen Machtwechsel
NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG: Der Labour-Vorsitzende Keir Starmer hat seine Partei aus dem Griff der altlinken Corbyn-Anhänger befreit. Nachdem Liz Truss mit ihrer Schuldenwirtschaft die Märkte aufgeschreckt hat, will er die Tories erstmals nach zwölf Jahren wieder von der Macht vertreiben.
«Eine fairere, grünere Zukunft»: Keir Starmer bei seiner programmatischen Rede am Labour-Parteitag in Liverpool. | Jon Super / AP
Seit dem Wahlsieg von David Cameron im Jahr 2010 sucht die britische Labour-Partei verzweifelt nach einem Rezept, um die strategisch gewieften Tories von den Regierungsbänken zu verdrängen. Nun bietet sich der Partei erstmals seit Jahren eine realistische Perspektive, bei den spätestens Ende 2024 stattfindenden Unterhauswahlen an die Macht zu kommen – wenn nicht aus eigener Kraft, so doch dank der Unterstützung oder Duldung von Liberaldemokraten und schottischen Nationalisten.
In den Hotel-Lobbys und Bars in Liverpool, wo die Labour-Mitglieder noch bis am Mittwoch ihren jährlichen Parteitag abhalten, war in den letzten Tagen statt des üblichen Fatalismus eine neue Zuversicht greifbar. Und Labour-Chef Keir Starmer erklärte bei seiner grossen programmatischen Rede am Dienstagnachmittag: «Dies ist ein historischer Moment für Labour.» Labour im Umfrage-Hoch » | Niklaus Nuspliger, Liverpool | Mittwoch, 28. September 2022
Seit dem Wahlsieg von David Cameron im Jahr 2010 sucht die britische Labour-Partei verzweifelt nach einem Rezept, um die strategisch gewieften Tories von den Regierungsbänken zu verdrängen. Nun bietet sich der Partei erstmals seit Jahren eine realistische Perspektive, bei den spätestens Ende 2024 stattfindenden Unterhauswahlen an die Macht zu kommen – wenn nicht aus eigener Kraft, so doch dank der Unterstützung oder Duldung von Liberaldemokraten und schottischen Nationalisten.
In den Hotel-Lobbys und Bars in Liverpool, wo die Labour-Mitglieder noch bis am Mittwoch ihren jährlichen Parteitag abhalten, war in den letzten Tagen statt des üblichen Fatalismus eine neue Zuversicht greifbar. Und Labour-Chef Keir Starmer erklärte bei seiner grossen programmatischen Rede am Dienstagnachmittag: «Dies ist ein historischer Moment für Labour.» Labour im Umfrage-Hoch » | Niklaus Nuspliger, Liverpool | Mittwoch, 28. September 2022
Die Gretchenfrage: Hübl und Tetens streiten über Gott | Sternstunde Philosophie | SRF Kultur
Barbara Bleisch diskutiert die Gretchenfrage mit Philpp Hübl und Holm Tetens.
Heute sind die meisten Philosophen Atheisten. Nicht so der Berliner Philosoph und Wissenschaftstheoretiker Holm Tetens, der den Gottesglauben neu für sich entdeckt hat. Sein Kollege Philipp Hübl findet, dafür gebe es keine guten Gründe. Barbara Bleisch leitet den Disput über die Gretchenfrage. Gottesbeweise haben in der Philosophie eine lange Tradition, aber die Ungläubigen überzeugen sie nicht. Möglicherweise liegt dies daran, dass sich Gott gar nicht beweisen lässt. Aber macht es dann Sinn, an ihn zu glauben? Durchaus meinen jene, die Gott als höhere Macht verstehen, die unserem Leben Sinn verleiht. Doch ist Gott damit nur Trostpflaster und Einbildung? Nicht zwingend, denn auch die Nicht-Existenz Gottes lässt sich nicht beweisen. Weshalb also nicht an ihn glauben? Die Philosophen Holm Tetens und Philipp Hübl debattieren unter der Leitung von Barbara Bleisch die Frage nach Gott.
SRF Sternstunde Philosophie vom 11.10.2015
Heute sind die meisten Philosophen Atheisten. Nicht so der Berliner Philosoph und Wissenschaftstheoretiker Holm Tetens, der den Gottesglauben neu für sich entdeckt hat. Sein Kollege Philipp Hübl findet, dafür gebe es keine guten Gründe. Barbara Bleisch leitet den Disput über die Gretchenfrage. Gottesbeweise haben in der Philosophie eine lange Tradition, aber die Ungläubigen überzeugen sie nicht. Möglicherweise liegt dies daran, dass sich Gott gar nicht beweisen lässt. Aber macht es dann Sinn, an ihn zu glauben? Durchaus meinen jene, die Gott als höhere Macht verstehen, die unserem Leben Sinn verleiht. Doch ist Gott damit nur Trostpflaster und Einbildung? Nicht zwingend, denn auch die Nicht-Existenz Gottes lässt sich nicht beweisen. Weshalb also nicht an ihn glauben? Die Philosophen Holm Tetens und Philipp Hübl debattieren unter der Leitung von Barbara Bleisch die Frage nach Gott.
SRF Sternstunde Philosophie vom 11.10.2015
Protests Grow in Russia over Call-up to Fight in Ukraine - BBC News
President Putin’s order to call up another 300,000 soldiers to fight in Ukraine is being met with widespread protests.
Reports have circulated on social media of people with no military experience being drafted, as well as others who are too old or have disabilities.
Thousands of Russian men have been heading for the country’s borders as they attempt to evade conscription.
Huw Edwards presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Steve Rosenberg in Moscow.
Reports have circulated on social media of people with no military experience being drafted, as well as others who are too old or have disabilities.
Thousands of Russian men have been heading for the country’s borders as they attempt to evade conscription.
Huw Edwards presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Steve Rosenberg in Moscow.
I Was a Conservative Peer – Tory Voters Will Not Tolerate Liz Truss’s Bungs to the Rich
THE GUARDIAN: You don’t have to be a socialist to find UK levels of poverty intolerable – but Liz Truss lacks the empathy to see it
Liz Truss. ‘The public reaction to Trussonomics is at a level that the woman herself probably cannot grasp.’ Photograph: Maja Smiejkowska/Reuters
Subtlety does not feature large on the short list that is the Liz Truss skill set. She had been campaigning for the Tory leadership long before Boris Johnson was forced to vacate it. In May 2019, as Theresa May sat uncomfortably in No 10, a newspaper profile declared of Truss: “She’s not so much a dark horse as one that has painted itself blue and wrapped itself in flashing neon lights.”
Last weekend she used that same newspaper, the Mail on Sunday, to laud the tax cuts launched on Friday and assure the country she would be “unapologetic” in pursuing a strategy that was already frightening the markets on which its success depends.
Truss’s single-mindedness won her the Tory leadership. Even though a majority of Tory MPs did not favour her, she directed her sledgehammer campaign at that self-selecting small band, Conservative party members, and they rejoiced in her promise of drastic cuts to tax and regulations. » | Patience Wheatcroft | Wednesday, September 28, 2022
Patience Wheatcroft is a journalist and crossbench peer (formerly Conservative)
Subtlety does not feature large on the short list that is the Liz Truss skill set. She had been campaigning for the Tory leadership long before Boris Johnson was forced to vacate it. In May 2019, as Theresa May sat uncomfortably in No 10, a newspaper profile declared of Truss: “She’s not so much a dark horse as one that has painted itself blue and wrapped itself in flashing neon lights.”
Last weekend she used that same newspaper, the Mail on Sunday, to laud the tax cuts launched on Friday and assure the country she would be “unapologetic” in pursuing a strategy that was already frightening the markets on which its success depends.
Truss’s single-mindedness won her the Tory leadership. Even though a majority of Tory MPs did not favour her, she directed her sledgehammer campaign at that self-selecting small band, Conservative party members, and they rejoiced in her promise of drastic cuts to tax and regulations. » | Patience Wheatcroft | Wednesday, September 28, 2022
Patience Wheatcroft is a journalist and crossbench peer (formerly Conservative)
The Last, Painful Days of Anthony Bourdain
THE NEW YORK TIMES: A new, unauthorized biography reveals intimate, often raw, details of the TV star’s life, including his tumultuous relationship with the Italian actor Asia Argento. And it’s drawing criticism from many of his friends and family.
A new book about Anthony Bourdain reveals fresh details about his life and last days. | Alex Welsh for The New York Times
After Anthony Bourdain took his own life in a French hotel room in 2018, his close friends, family and the people who for decades had helped him become an international TV star closed ranks against the swarm of media inquiries and stayed largely silent, especially about his final days.
That silence continued until 2021, when many in his inner circle were interviewed for the documentary “Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain” and for “Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography.” The two works showed a more complex side of Mr. Bourdain, who had become increasingly conflicted about his success and had in his last two years made his relationship with the Italian actor Asia Argento his primary focus. But neither directly addressed how very messy his life had become in the months that led up to the night he hanged himself at age 61.
On Oct. 11, Simon & Schuster will publish what it calls the first unauthorized biography of the writer and travel documentarian. “Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain” is filled with fresh, intimate details, including raw, anguished texts from the days before Mr. Bourdain’s death, such as his final exchanges with Ms. Argento and Ottavia Busia-Bourdain, his wife of 11 years who, by the time they separated in 2016, had become his confidante.
“I hate my fans, too. I hate being famous. I hate my job,” Mr. Bourdain wrote to Ms. Busia-Bourdain in one of their near-daily text exchanges. “I am lonely and living in constant uncertainty.”
Drawing on more than 80 interviews, and files, texts and emails from Mr. Bourdain’s phone and laptop, the journalist Charles Leerhsen traces Mr. Bourdain’s metamorphosis from a sullen teenager in a New Jersey suburb that his family couldn’t afford to a heroin-shooting kitchen swashbuckler who struck gold as a writer and became a uniquely talented interpreter of the world through his travels.
Mr. Leerhsen said in an interview that he wanted to write a book without the dutiful sheen of what he called “an official Bourdain product.” Indeed, he portrays a man who at the end of his life was isolated, injecting steroids, drinking to the point of blackout and visiting prostitutes, and had all but vanished from his 11-year-old daughter’s life. » | Kim Severson * | Tuesdaay, September 27, 2022
* Kim Severson reports on the nation’s food culture. She had interviewed Anthony Bourdain several times and led coverage of his death.
‘I am lonely’: controversial book reveals Anthony Bourdain’s final days: Family and friends are upset by new biography divulging Bourdain’s moods – and texts – in the lead-up to his death »
After Anthony Bourdain took his own life in a French hotel room in 2018, his close friends, family and the people who for decades had helped him become an international TV star closed ranks against the swarm of media inquiries and stayed largely silent, especially about his final days.
That silence continued until 2021, when many in his inner circle were interviewed for the documentary “Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain” and for “Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography.” The two works showed a more complex side of Mr. Bourdain, who had become increasingly conflicted about his success and had in his last two years made his relationship with the Italian actor Asia Argento his primary focus. But neither directly addressed how very messy his life had become in the months that led up to the night he hanged himself at age 61.
On Oct. 11, Simon & Schuster will publish what it calls the first unauthorized biography of the writer and travel documentarian. “Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain” is filled with fresh, intimate details, including raw, anguished texts from the days before Mr. Bourdain’s death, such as his final exchanges with Ms. Argento and Ottavia Busia-Bourdain, his wife of 11 years who, by the time they separated in 2016, had become his confidante.
“I hate my fans, too. I hate being famous. I hate my job,” Mr. Bourdain wrote to Ms. Busia-Bourdain in one of their near-daily text exchanges. “I am lonely and living in constant uncertainty.”
Drawing on more than 80 interviews, and files, texts and emails from Mr. Bourdain’s phone and laptop, the journalist Charles Leerhsen traces Mr. Bourdain’s metamorphosis from a sullen teenager in a New Jersey suburb that his family couldn’t afford to a heroin-shooting kitchen swashbuckler who struck gold as a writer and became a uniquely talented interpreter of the world through his travels.
Mr. Leerhsen said in an interview that he wanted to write a book without the dutiful sheen of what he called “an official Bourdain product.” Indeed, he portrays a man who at the end of his life was isolated, injecting steroids, drinking to the point of blackout and visiting prostitutes, and had all but vanished from his 11-year-old daughter’s life. » | Kim Severson * | Tuesdaay, September 27, 2022
* Kim Severson reports on the nation’s food culture. She had interviewed Anthony Bourdain several times and led coverage of his death.
‘I am lonely’: controversial book reveals Anthony Bourdain’s final days: Family and friends are upset by new biography divulging Bourdain’s moods – and texts – in the lead-up to his death »
En Iran, « le voile est devenu l’un des rares vestiges religieux d’un régime abusivement présenté comme celui de mollahs »
LE MONDE – CHRONIQUE : Depuis la révolution islamique de 1979, le régime n’a cessé de glisser dans les mains d’un pouvoir d’essence militaire dont les gardiens de la révolution constituent la colonne vertébrale, analyse Gilles Paris, éditorialiste au « Monde », dans sa chronique.
En plus de quarante années d’existence, le régime iranien a survécu à bien des défis. Contre ceux de l’extérieur, qu’ils viennent de ses ennemis irakien ou américain, il a toujours su jouer du ressort patriotique avec succès. Face à la contestation issue de son peuple, de loin la plus menaçante, il a usé et use encore principalement de la matraque. Sans aucune réserve. En témoigne la répression du mouvement né le 16 septembre après la mort suspecte en prison d’une jeune iranienne, Mahsa Amini, arrêtée pour avoir porté son voile d’une manière jugée inappropriée.
L’histoire récente ne peut que conforter les dignitaires de ce régime dans leur choix. Depuis le début du siècle, ce dernier a résisté de cette manière à la plus grande vague de son histoire : la contestation des résultats de l’élection présidentielle de juin 2009 par un cadre du système, Mir Hossein Moussavi, classé parmi les réformateurs internes. » | Gilles Paris, Editorialiste | mercredi 28 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
En plus de quarante années d’existence, le régime iranien a survécu à bien des défis. Contre ceux de l’extérieur, qu’ils viennent de ses ennemis irakien ou américain, il a toujours su jouer du ressort patriotique avec succès. Face à la contestation issue de son peuple, de loin la plus menaçante, il a usé et use encore principalement de la matraque. Sans aucune réserve. En témoigne la répression du mouvement né le 16 septembre après la mort suspecte en prison d’une jeune iranienne, Mahsa Amini, arrêtée pour avoir porté son voile d’une manière jugée inappropriée.
L’histoire récente ne peut que conforter les dignitaires de ce régime dans leur choix. Depuis le début du siècle, ce dernier a résisté de cette manière à la plus grande vague de son histoire : la contestation des résultats de l’élection présidentielle de juin 2009 par un cadre du système, Mir Hossein Moussavi, classé parmi les réformateurs internes. » | Gilles Paris, Editorialiste | mercredi 28 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
Shahbanu: Women, Life, Freedom
WIKIPEDIA: Farah Pahlavi.
The Downfall of the Iranian Shah | Patrick Bet-David #CLIP
Patrick Bet-David gives a fascinating assessment of the powerful influence of Iran's Shah and the impact of his downfall on Iranian society.
Moving to America from Iran at the age of 10 with his family, Patrick Bet-David has proceeded to establish an enormous and respectable presence in the business and social domain. He is an entrepreneur, businessman, author and social commentator. He is the founder of PHP Agency Inc., one of the fastest growing companies in the financial marketplace and Valuetainment, a media outlet focusing on educational and inspiring content on entrepreneurship.
Moving to America from Iran at the age of 10 with his family, Patrick Bet-David has proceeded to establish an enormous and respectable presence in the business and social domain. He is an entrepreneur, businessman, author and social commentator. He is the founder of PHP Agency Inc., one of the fastest growing companies in the financial marketplace and Valuetainment, a media outlet focusing on educational and inspiring content on entrepreneurship.
Iran Protests: Unrest Continues over the Death of Mahsa Amini
Truss Takes a Bold Economic Gamble. Will It Sink Her Government?
THE NEW YORK TIMES: Three weeks into her term, Prime Minister Liz Truss’s financial plans have thrown the markets and Britain’s currency into chaos and put her future in peril.
Support for the Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister Liz Truss, has plunged in the polls. | Tolga Akmen/EPA, via Shutterstock
LONDON — Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain campaigned as a tax cutter and champion of supply-side economics, and she won the race to replace her scandal-scarred predecessor, Boris Johnson. Now she has delivered that free-market agenda, and it may sink her government.
Four days after Ms. Truss’s tax cuts and deregulatory plans stunned financial markets and threw the British pound into a tailspin, the prime minister’s political future looks increasingly precarious as well.
Her Conservative Party is gripped by anxiety, with a new poll showing that the opposition Labour Party has taken a 17 percentage point lead over the Tories. It’s a treacherous place for a prime minister in only her third week on the job.
Labour is seizing the moment to present itself as the party of fiscal responsibility. With some experts predicting the pound could tumble to parity with the dollar, economists and political analysts said the uncertainty over Britain’s economic path would continue to hang over the markets and Ms. Truss’s government.
“It’s entirely possible she could be replaced before the next election,” said Tim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London, who is an expert on the Conservative Party. “It would be very, very difficult to conduct a full-blown leadership contest again, but I wouldn’t rule anything out.” » | Mark Landler | Tuesday, September 27, 2022
LONDON — Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain campaigned as a tax cutter and champion of supply-side economics, and she won the race to replace her scandal-scarred predecessor, Boris Johnson. Now she has delivered that free-market agenda, and it may sink her government.
Four days after Ms. Truss’s tax cuts and deregulatory plans stunned financial markets and threw the British pound into a tailspin, the prime minister’s political future looks increasingly precarious as well.
Her Conservative Party is gripped by anxiety, with a new poll showing that the opposition Labour Party has taken a 17 percentage point lead over the Tories. It’s a treacherous place for a prime minister in only her third week on the job.
Labour is seizing the moment to present itself as the party of fiscal responsibility. With some experts predicting the pound could tumble to parity with the dollar, economists and political analysts said the uncertainty over Britain’s economic path would continue to hang over the markets and Ms. Truss’s government.
“It’s entirely possible she could be replaced before the next election,” said Tim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London, who is an expert on the Conservative Party. “It would be very, very difficult to conduct a full-blown leadership contest again, but I wouldn’t rule anything out.” » | Mark Landler | Tuesday, September 27, 2022
Tuesday, September 27, 2022
Whitney Houston with Enrique Iglesias : Could I Have This Kiss Forever | Official HD Video | Reupload
Die Haare der Iranerinnen – ein langer Kampf für Selbstbestimmung
NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG: Gerade finden in Iran die grössten Proteste seit Jahren statt. Frauen kämpfen gegen das Regime und den Zwang, sich zu verschleiern. Das Kopftuch ist seit der Zeit des Schahs ein Politikum – damals, weil er es verboten hatte. Ein Blick zurück.
Die Haare der Iranerinnen erzählen seit 86 Jahren die Geschichte der politischen und religiösen Grabenkämpfe des Landes. Wer darf sie sehen, wer nicht? Die Freiheit, selbst darüber bestimmen zu dürfen, entzog bereits der Schah Reza Pahlevi den Iranerinnen. Er wollte sein Reich modernisieren, reiste in die Türkei, wo er sich von Atatürk die Politik des rigorosen Westkurses erklären liess. Islamische Kleidung, da waren sie sich einig, sei ein Symbol, das der Modernisierung widerspreche. Der Schah, der autoritär regierte, verbot 1936 das Kopftuch.
Für viele Iranerinnen und Iraner war das ein Angriff auf ihre Werte. In Persien, wo der schiitische Islam (Zwölfer-Schia) seit dem 16. Jahrhundert die prägende Religion ist, verschleierten sich Frauen, weil sie daran glaubten und weil es Teil der Kultur war. Das Kopftuchverbot bedeutete deshalb für viele weniger Freiheit: Manche Familien wollten nicht, dass die Töchter und Mütter unverschleiert das Haus verliessen; und es gibt Erzählungen von Frauen, die sich jahrelang nicht auf die Strasse trauten, weil sie sich ohne Kopftuch zu entblösst fühlten. BILDSTRECKE » | Karin A. Wenger (Text), Martin Berz (Bildredaktion) | Dienstag, 27. September 2022
A Fine Economic Mess in the United Kingdom
THE NEW YORKER: With the pound hitting record lows, financial analysts are questioning the competence of Britain’s new government.
Stocks in the U.S. fell again on Monday, dragging the Dow Jones Industrial Average into bear-market territory—since hitting a peak early this year, it has now fallen more than twenty per cent. The Federal Reserve’s determination to stamp out inflation by raising interest rates is spooking investors, and so is the precipitous decline of the British pound in foreign-exchange markets. On Monday, a senior Federal Reserve official, Raphael Bostic, took the rare step of criticizing a foreign ally, saying the British government’s new package of tax cuts, which sparked the sell-off in the pound, “has really increased uncertainty.”
Spare a thought, if you will, for patriotic Brits. Having just buried Queen Elizabeth II, their last remaining link to a time when their schoolbook maps showed great swaths of the earth’s surface colored imperial red, they now face a humiliating currency crisis. In Asian trading early on Monday, the pound sterling hit an all-time low of $1.035 against the U.S. dollar. When trading shifted to Europe, the battered currency rebounded a bit amid speculation that the Bank of England would announce an emergency interest-rate hike to strengthen the pound. On Monday afternoon, the currency’s slump resumed after the Bank of England announced no rate increase but said it may enact one at its next policy meeting, which isn’t until November. » | John Cassidy | Monday, September 26, 2022
Stocks in the U.S. fell again on Monday, dragging the Dow Jones Industrial Average into bear-market territory—since hitting a peak early this year, it has now fallen more than twenty per cent. The Federal Reserve’s determination to stamp out inflation by raising interest rates is spooking investors, and so is the precipitous decline of the British pound in foreign-exchange markets. On Monday, a senior Federal Reserve official, Raphael Bostic, took the rare step of criticizing a foreign ally, saying the British government’s new package of tax cuts, which sparked the sell-off in the pound, “has really increased uncertainty.”
Spare a thought, if you will, for patriotic Brits. Having just buried Queen Elizabeth II, their last remaining link to a time when their schoolbook maps showed great swaths of the earth’s surface colored imperial red, they now face a humiliating currency crisis. In Asian trading early on Monday, the pound sterling hit an all-time low of $1.035 against the U.S. dollar. When trading shifted to Europe, the battered currency rebounded a bit amid speculation that the Bank of England would announce an emergency interest-rate hike to strengthen the pound. On Monday afternoon, the currency’s slump resumed after the Bank of England announced no rate increase but said it may enact one at its next policy meeting, which isn’t until November. » | John Cassidy | Monday, September 26, 2022
Hello Dictator I ARTE.tv Documentary
WTF! There are so many dangerous politicians around these days! – © Mark Alexander
Volksbefragung über Russland-Sanktionen: Viktor Orban versucht die EU erneut zu erpressen: Die ungarische Regierung lässt das Volk über die Strafmassnahmen gegen Russland abstimmen. Dabei geht es Orban darum, die EU in Verhandlungen über Finanzmittel unter Druck zu setzen. »
Ottolenghi Test Kitchen (OTK): Extra Good Things: Parmigiana Pie with Tomato Sauce
Get the recipe here.
Regierungsumbau in Saudi-Arabien: Kronprinz Mohammed bin Salman wird Premier
DER STANDARD: Umstrittener Kronprinz gewinnt bei Erneuerung des Kabinetts weiter an Macht – Khalid bin Salman neuer Verteidigungsminister
Ein Screenshot vom Foto im Artikel.
Riad – In Saudi-Arabien hat es am Dienstag nach einer Mitteilung des staatlichen Fernsehens einen Umbau der Regierung gegeben. Mohammed bin Salman, der umstrittene, aber mächtige Kronprinz, hat dabei eine weitere Schlüsselposition dazugewonnen. Er wird auch Premierminister des weitgehend absolutisisch-islamistisch regierten Königreiches. Bisher hatte sein Vater, König Salman, das Amt ausgeübt. Auch sonst wird das Amt des Premiers, des formellen Regierungschefs, gewöhnlich vom König ausgeübt. » | red. | Dienstag, 27. September 2022
Riad – In Saudi-Arabien hat es am Dienstag nach einer Mitteilung des staatlichen Fernsehens einen Umbau der Regierung gegeben. Mohammed bin Salman, der umstrittene, aber mächtige Kronprinz, hat dabei eine weitere Schlüsselposition dazugewonnen. Er wird auch Premierminister des weitgehend absolutisisch-islamistisch regierten Königreiches. Bisher hatte sein Vater, König Salman, das Amt ausgeübt. Auch sonst wird das Amt des Premiers, des formellen Regierungschefs, gewöhnlich vom König ausgeübt. » | red. | Dienstag, 27. September 2022
Guerre en Ukraine : fuir ou protester, les réponses des Russes à la mobilisation militaire édictée par Poutine
LE MONDE : Depuis la mobilisation militaire « partielle » décrétée par Vladimir Poutine le 21 septembre, qui concerne officiellement 300 000 réservistes, les manifestations se succèdent et des milliers de Russes tentent de fuir le pays. Synthèse d’une actualité sans précédent.
Des recrues russes devant un centre de recrutement militaire à Bataysk, lundi 26 septembre 2022. AP
Face à la contre-offensive ukrainienne, le président russe, Vladimir Poutine, a annoncé, le 21 septembre, la mobilisation de centaines de milliers de Russes pour combattre sur le front. L’ordre est devenu immédiatement effectif et un décret a été publié peu après sur le site du Kremlin. Le Monde fait le point sur cette mobilisation et ses conséquences.
Le décret de mobilisation comporte dix points : tous ont été publiés, sauf le 7e, qui reste confidentiel et inquiète les Russes : il concernerait le nombre de civils russes qui doivent rejoindre l’armée. Le média d’opposition Novaïa Gazeta Europe a écrit, citant des sources au Kremlin, qu’un million de Russes pourraient être concernés. Ce que Dmitri Peskov, le porte-parole du Kremlin, a démenti.
Après l’allocution de Vladimir Poutine, le ministre de la défense russe, Sergueï Choïgou, a précisé que 300 000 réservistes étaient concernés par cet ordre de mobilisation, soit à peine « 1,1 % des ressources mobilisables » dans le pays, estimé à quelque 25 millions de personnes. Ces renforts seront déployés pour « consolider » et « contrôler » les lignes arrières, le long d’« une ligne de front qui fait plus de 1 000 kilomètres » dans le sud et l’est de l’Ukraine. Les hommes ayant une formation spécialisée (tankistes, servants de pièces antiaériennes…) seront mobilisés en priorité, a-t-il insisté. » | Le Monde avec AFP et Reuters | mardi 27 septembre 2022
Face à la contre-offensive ukrainienne, le président russe, Vladimir Poutine, a annoncé, le 21 septembre, la mobilisation de centaines de milliers de Russes pour combattre sur le front. L’ordre est devenu immédiatement effectif et un décret a été publié peu après sur le site du Kremlin. Le Monde fait le point sur cette mobilisation et ses conséquences.
Le décret de mobilisation comporte dix points : tous ont été publiés, sauf le 7e, qui reste confidentiel et inquiète les Russes : il concernerait le nombre de civils russes qui doivent rejoindre l’armée. Le média d’opposition Novaïa Gazeta Europe a écrit, citant des sources au Kremlin, qu’un million de Russes pourraient être concernés. Ce que Dmitri Peskov, le porte-parole du Kremlin, a démenti.
Après l’allocution de Vladimir Poutine, le ministre de la défense russe, Sergueï Choïgou, a précisé que 300 000 réservistes étaient concernés par cet ordre de mobilisation, soit à peine « 1,1 % des ressources mobilisables » dans le pays, estimé à quelque 25 millions de personnes. Ces renforts seront déployés pour « consolider » et « contrôler » les lignes arrières, le long d’« une ligne de front qui fait plus de 1 000 kilomètres » dans le sud et l’est de l’Ukraine. Les hommes ayant une formation spécialisée (tankistes, servants de pièces antiaériennes…) seront mobilisés en priorité, a-t-il insisté. » | Le Monde avec AFP et Reuters | mardi 27 septembre 2022
Le double jeu de Viktor Orban avec l’Europe
LE MONDE : Menacé de lourdes sanctions par la Commission européenne s’il ne rétablit pas l’Etat de droit, le premier ministre hongrois semble faire des concessions. Mais il continue simultanément de critiquer Bruxelles et de faire cavalier seul à propos de la Russie.
Analyse. Moins de vingt-quatre heures après avoir présenté son projet de loi pour établir une « autorité de l’intégrité », le gouvernement hongrois a lancé, samedi 24 septembre, le processus de recrutement du directeur de cette nouvelle institution destinée à lutter contre la corruption. Elle est la principale concession faite par le premier ministre nationaliste Viktor Orban pour éviter la sanction de 7,5 milliards d’euros que la Commission européenne a menacé d’infliger à la Hongrie d’ici à la fin de l’année si elle ne fait pas d’efforts pour rétablir l’Etat de droit. Un conflit emblématique à l’heure où le succès électoral de la leader d’extrême droite Giorgia Meloni en Italie soumet l’Union européenne (UE) à un nouveau choc.
En Hongrie, la nouvelle agence aura le pouvoir de saisir la justice, de suspendre des appels d’offres litigieux ou même de bannir certaines entreprises des marchés financés par l’UE. Elle sera « totalement indépendante », promet l’article premier du projet de loi qui devrait être adopté par la majorité écrasante de M. Orban au Parlement hongrois. La Hongrie a jusqu’au 19 novembre pour prouver que l’autorité a commencé ses activités. C’est l’une des dix-sept conditions que la Commission a posées, le 18 septembre, pour donner son accord au déblocage des fonds européens. » | Par Jean-Baptiste Chastand (Vienne, correspondant) | mardi 27 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
Read in English.
Analyse. Moins de vingt-quatre heures après avoir présenté son projet de loi pour établir une « autorité de l’intégrité », le gouvernement hongrois a lancé, samedi 24 septembre, le processus de recrutement du directeur de cette nouvelle institution destinée à lutter contre la corruption. Elle est la principale concession faite par le premier ministre nationaliste Viktor Orban pour éviter la sanction de 7,5 milliards d’euros que la Commission européenne a menacé d’infliger à la Hongrie d’ici à la fin de l’année si elle ne fait pas d’efforts pour rétablir l’Etat de droit. Un conflit emblématique à l’heure où le succès électoral de la leader d’extrême droite Giorgia Meloni en Italie soumet l’Union européenne (UE) à un nouveau choc.
En Hongrie, la nouvelle agence aura le pouvoir de saisir la justice, de suspendre des appels d’offres litigieux ou même de bannir certaines entreprises des marchés financés par l’UE. Elle sera « totalement indépendante », promet l’article premier du projet de loi qui devrait être adopté par la majorité écrasante de M. Orban au Parlement hongrois. La Hongrie a jusqu’au 19 novembre pour prouver que l’autorité a commencé ses activités. C’est l’une des dix-sept conditions que la Commission a posées, le 18 septembre, pour donner son accord au déblocage des fonds européens. » | Par Jean-Baptiste Chastand (Vienne, correspondant) | mardi 27 septembre 2022
Article réservé aux abonnés
Read in English.
Kwarteng’s Tax Cuts Will Force ‘Significant’ Interest Rate Rises by Bank of England
THE GUARDIAN: Chief economist says mini-budget will increase inflationary pressure in remarks likely to further spook mortgage borrowers
The Bank of England’s chief economist, Huw Pill, says: ‘It is hard not to draw the conclusion that this [tax cuts] will require a significant monetary policy response.’ Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images
A senior Bank of England official has warned “significant” increases in interest rates will have to be imposed by the central bank in response to tax cuts put forward by Kwasi Kwarteng in his mini-budget.
The Bank’s chief economist, Huw Pill, said the chancellor’s planned tax cuts would act as a stimulus and increase inflationary pressures, with the result that interest rates would need to go higher than previously forecast.
“In my view, a combination of the fiscal announcements we have seen will act a stimulus to demand in the economy,” he said. “It is hard not to draw the conclusion that this will require a significant monetary policy response.”
Pill’s remarks are likely to further spook homebuyers and mortgage borrowers near the end of a fixed-rate mortgage about the cost of financing their loans. » | Phillip Inman | Tuesday, September 27, 2022
UK’s cost of borrowing on international markets overtakes Greece and Italy: Five-year British government bonds fall dramatically as traders price in higher risk of default on debt »
A senior Bank of England official has warned “significant” increases in interest rates will have to be imposed by the central bank in response to tax cuts put forward by Kwasi Kwarteng in his mini-budget.
The Bank’s chief economist, Huw Pill, said the chancellor’s planned tax cuts would act as a stimulus and increase inflationary pressures, with the result that interest rates would need to go higher than previously forecast.
“In my view, a combination of the fiscal announcements we have seen will act a stimulus to demand in the economy,” he said. “It is hard not to draw the conclusion that this will require a significant monetary policy response.”
Pill’s remarks are likely to further spook homebuyers and mortgage borrowers near the end of a fixed-rate mortgage about the cost of financing their loans. » | Phillip Inman | Tuesday, September 27, 2022
UK’s cost of borrowing on international markets overtakes Greece and Italy: Five-year British government bonds fall dramatically as traders price in higher risk of default on debt »
Zwei heiße Männer; ein heißer Kuss | Reupload
Gustav Klimt in the Sign of Hoffmann and the Secession Exhibition | Floornature
Details of the exhibition in Brussels here.
Italy’s Far Right Triumphs in Election
FOREIGN POLICY: Giorgia Meloni is expected to head the country’s most right-wing government since World War II.
Giorgia Meloni, leader of the Brothers of Italy party, speaks at a press conference at the party electoral headquarters in Rome overnight on Sept. 26. ANTONIO MASIELLO/GETTY IMAGES
Far-right firebrand Giorgia Meloni is set to lead Italy after her party, Brothers of Italy, received the most votes in elections on Sunday. She is expected to head the country’s most right-wing government since the era of fascist leader Benito Mussolini.
Brothers of Italy ultimately won 26 percent of votes—six times more than it received in 2018—while the right-wing coalition it was part of secured 44 percent. But the election was marked by record-low voter turnout, with just 64 percent of people participating, almost a 10 percent drop compared to the last general election.
Meloni represents the “the last, probably, available option for Italians to voice their discomfort with the political establishment and with the way the economy has been managed,” said Carlo Bastasin, a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Low turnout, he added, “is another form of Italians’ discomfort with the political situation.”
Since entering politics, Meloni has experienced a meteoric rise to the top, as Giorgio Ghiglione wrote in Foreign Policy in August. Her success was largely built on “the credibility crisis of her adversaries on the left and her allies on the right, who have all become increasingly inconsistent in the eyes of the public,” he wrote.
Despite her efforts to soften her position ahead of the election, Meloni is known for her hard-line stances, famously proclaiming: “Yes to the natural family. No to the LGBT lobby. Yes to sexual identity. No to the ideology of gender.” On immigration, she has pushed for a Mediterranean “naval blockade” and previously declared that Italy’s existing policies could transform it into the “refugee camp of Europe.” » | Christina Lu, a reporter at Foreign Policy | Tuesday, September 27, 2022
Far-right firebrand Giorgia Meloni is set to lead Italy after her party, Brothers of Italy, received the most votes in elections on Sunday. She is expected to head the country’s most right-wing government since the era of fascist leader Benito Mussolini.
Brothers of Italy ultimately won 26 percent of votes—six times more than it received in 2018—while the right-wing coalition it was part of secured 44 percent. But the election was marked by record-low voter turnout, with just 64 percent of people participating, almost a 10 percent drop compared to the last general election.
Meloni represents the “the last, probably, available option for Italians to voice their discomfort with the political establishment and with the way the economy has been managed,” said Carlo Bastasin, a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Low turnout, he added, “is another form of Italians’ discomfort with the political situation.”
Since entering politics, Meloni has experienced a meteoric rise to the top, as Giorgio Ghiglione wrote in Foreign Policy in August. Her success was largely built on “the credibility crisis of her adversaries on the left and her allies on the right, who have all become increasingly inconsistent in the eyes of the public,” he wrote.
Despite her efforts to soften her position ahead of the election, Meloni is known for her hard-line stances, famously proclaiming: “Yes to the natural family. No to the LGBT lobby. Yes to sexual identity. No to the ideology of gender.” On immigration, she has pushed for a Mediterranean “naval blockade” and previously declared that Italy’s existing policies could transform it into the “refugee camp of Europe.” » | Christina Lu, a reporter at Foreign Policy | Tuesday, September 27, 2022
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