The Political Thread

[Frank]

US telly news man fails at history, geography, economics, and current affairs:

http://youtu.be/T0IiVyFM4yo?t=7m1s


CNBC's Kernen: You have pounds anyway don't you still?

Shanahan: We have euros.

CNBC's Kernen: You have euros in Ireland?

Shanahan: Yes. We have euros, which is eh...

CNBC's Kernen: Why do you have euros in Ireland?

Shanahan: A strong recovery....

CNBC's Kernen: Why do use euros in Ireland?

CNBC's Kernen: Why wouldn't we have euros in Ireland?

CNBC: I'd use the pound.

Shenahan: We use euro.

CNBC: What about Scotland? I was using Scottish eh ... Scottish pounds.

Shanahan: They use Sterling.

CNBC: They use sterling?

Shanahan: They use sterling. But we use euro.

CNBC's Kernen: WHAT? Why would you do that?

Shanahan: Why wouldn't we do that.

CNBC's Kernen: Why didn't Scotland? No wander they wanted to break away.

Shanahan: They are part of the UK we are not.

CNBC's Kernen: Aren't you right next to er?

Shanahan: We are very close but entirely separate.

CNBC's Kernen: It is sort of the same, same island isn't it?

Shanhan: And in the North of Ireland they have sterling.

CNBC's Kernen: They do?

Shanhan: And in the North of Ireland they use sterling.

CNBC's Kernen: It is just too confusing...

[Banners]

I hope that CNBC guy isn't in charge of anyone's pension fund.

[Theblazeuk]

Jesus christ, this man is a professional 'journalist'.

[Proudhuff]

Jesus christ, this man is a professional 'journalist'.

No he's on TV.

[Theblazeuk]

It's no wonder the Daily Show is America's best news show.

[von Boom]

That's so funny, sad and scary all at once.

All credit goes to Shanahan for 1) Not laughing hysterically at these people's absolute stupidity and walking out, and b) not leaping across the desk to slap Kernen up the head.

[Banners]

The UK will only have to pay half of the £1.7bn budget surcharge demanded by the EU, Chancellor George Osborne says, according to the BBC.

Cool. I'll only pay half my taxes, and we'll see what Chancellor George Osborne says then.

[Old Tankie]

It's all just smoke and mirrors, the EU will get the money one way or another.  Dave is still heading for the exit door of No. 10.

[Proudhuff]

...and the knives out for his buddy Ed Moribund too, scared to think what muppet they will replace him with.

[Theblazeuk]

That's so funny, sad and scary all at once.

All credit goes to Shanahan for 1) Not laughing hysterically at these people's absolute stupidity and walking out, and b) not leaping across the desk to slap Kernen up the head.

Wouldn't it be a much better world if these idiots were called on their idiocy though? What would Shanahan have lost if he'd said "Can you let the adults talk now?".

[TordelBack]

That's so funny, sad and scary all at once.

All credit goes to Shanahan for 1) Not laughing hysterically at these people's absolute stupidity and walking out, and b) not leaping across the desk to slap Kernen up the head.

Ach, I wouldn't blame anyone Out Furren for not grasping the whole UK/GB/NI/IRL/STG/EUR bollocks, it's ridiculously confusing in the first place and no-one can know everything about every poxy little group of countries.  What gets me is, despite having been exposed on air as being ignorant of every particular (which I've already absolved him of), he concludes with:  "you use the Euro, you should never have done that". While it's a point of view, it's one based on a no-doubt superior analysis drawing from his detailed knowledge of the economic situation 20 years ago of a country whose political and geographical location he's not even remotely clear on. 

Now that's stupid.

[Fungus]

Yes, he has no clue about the subject matter. But it's the rudeness that's incredible - to tell Shanahan where he/Ireland are going wrong. Bizarre.

[Professor Bear]

The UK will only have to pay half of the £1.7bn budget surcharge demanded by the EU, Chancellor George Osborne says, according to the BBC.

Cool. I'll only pay half my taxes, and we'll see what Chancellor George Osborne says then.

Sorry, Banners, apparently you have to pay your taxes in full but you are perfectly welcome to lie to the public and say you only paid half.

[Frank]

So, a compromise has been announced which allows one side to announce they won a concession and the other to say things were always going to play out this way:

What is it about the sudden appearance of this entirely made-up controversy - which allows Dave Cameron to thump his lectern for the cameras and insist he won't be handing over the hard earned cash of the folk who pay his wages to EU mandarins (at a time when he needs to out-Farage Farage) - which makes me think it's been cooked up by Dave and a Brussels establishment who see him as their best chance of keeping the UK and its cash inside the EU?

I suppose a phony press war with Herman Van Rompuy is preferable to engineering an actual war with a third world nation when you have an election to win.

[The Legendary Shark]

An imaginary argument amongst  imaginary leaders over an  imaginary debt to be paid with  imaginary money for imaginary services.
.
I can't imagine why people are so upset about it.