GroveHillWanderer

And I had made the assumption that when Trump announceded "reciprocal" tariffs, it wouldn't include putting tariffs on countries that don't impose any tariffs on the US. You know, in the spirit of reciprocity and all. However, that assumption has turned out to be false. Singapore is one example. They have no tariffs on US imports, yet they are subject to a 10% rate under this newly announced scheme.

OK, but as far as I can tell, you're talking about how it used to work in the past. This is a whole new regimen of tariffs. We don't know whether the old rules are going to apply here (again, unless you have a link to something that speaks athoritatively to how this will work under the new scheme). The article @placeholderquoted from said it's not clear whether under this newly announced tariff scheme, each border crossing would attract tariffs or not.

You keep saying that. Do you have a source that confirms that? I'm not saying you're wrong, but having some kind of link to a reliable source would be nice.

The tariffs are nowhere near reciprocal. To be reciprocal, the tariffs would have to be based on what the other countries charge the US. But they're not, as a quick look at the numbers clearly shows. Just take Thailand as an example. Thailand has an average tariff on US imports of less than 9% yet they have been hit with a tariff of 36%. That's not a reciprocal tariff.

How is it "a far more significant criminal act"? Lagarde's crime was a single count of negligence, for failing to ask enough questions about a compensation payment to a businessman that had been authorised by an independent three-member arbitration panel which she did not control. As for Le Pen, as the judge at her trial stated, one of the reasons her sentence was as much as it was, is because she wasn't guilty merely of negligence, she was guilty of deliberately embezzling funds for the benefit of her organisation, her family and friends, in a continuing scheme that extended for a period of 11 years.

True. I think the words of a construction expert quoted in a BBC article, are apposite here. "... it appears a "flat slab" construction process was being favoured - which is no longer recommended in earthquake-prone areas." "A 'flat slab' system is a way of constructing buildings where floors are made to rest directly on columns, without using beams." "While this design has cost and architectural advantages, is performs poorly during earthquakes, often failing in a brittle and sudden (almost explosive) manner." https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8d4dn18nzgo

You're seriously relying on Steve Kirsch, the renowned vaccine misinformation superspreader as a source? This Steve Kirsch? This tech millionaire went from covid trial funder to misinformation superspreader https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/10/05/1036408/silicon-valley-millionaire-steve-kirsch-covid-vaccine-misinformation/ Activist misuses federal data to make false claim that covid vaccines killed 676,000 https://www.news-medical.net/news/20230901/Activist-misuses-federal-data-to-make-false-claim-that-covid-vaccines-killed-676000.aspx Steve Kirsch and the Seduction of Simplicity https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking/steve-kirsch-and-seduction-simplicity

There's only one effective way to deal with such a poster - do not reply to them. The following very sage advice can be found online:

The 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar took place at 06:20 UTC, according to the USGS website. https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/?currentFeatureId=us7000pn9s&extent=20.08175,95.27256&extent=23.91599,97.53025&range=week&magnitude=4.5&timeZone=utc&list=false

That's not necessarily true - not if they have already suffered structural damage and there are strong enough aftershocks.

There's a term for what the Trump administration is - a kakistocracy.

The following NASA article explains how melting icebergs do raise sea level, albeit only slightly. Melting Ocean Ice Affects Sea Level – Unlike Ice Cubes in a Glass https://sealevel.nasa.gov/news/261/melting-ocean-ice-affects-sea-level-unlike-ice-cubes-in-a-glass/

I've read it and it states quite unequivocally that it can only be invoked under two specific sets of circumstances, as follows. 1. There is a declared war between the United States and any foreign nation or government .... 2. [If] any invasion or predatory incursion is perpetrated, attempted, or threatened against the territory of the United States by any foreign nation or government ... Perhaps you can tell us which of those two sets of circumstances you think apply to the current situation.

He could not have "ridden out his years" here. If you read the Independent article that @Moonloverlinked to, they had already tracked him down in Thailand using AI-based facial recognition technology and Cheshire Police had started the process for extradition.

Not sure where you're getting this from. The video starts with the young man coming onto the older couple's (leased) property, picking up their plant pots and dumping them at their front door, then waving at their camera and yelling to gain their attention. All the footage comes from the same viewing angle, so it's clear that the entire video is from a CCTV camera at or above the older couple's front door and everything we see takes place in front of their house. This is also made clear by the narrative of the events in the interview they gave to The Sun newspaper. And although the older guy did aim a slight kick at the younger guy, even if he made slight contact (which it's not clear that he did) that is absolutely no justification whatsoever for prolonged frenzy of violence he was then subjected to. The older guy was punched twenty-two times in the head, after he was already lying unconscious on the ground. And these were not light taps, these were full swings of each arm, against a motionless, unconscious and therefore defenceless older opponent. In what universe is that justified by an attempted kick out that as far as I can tell, might not even have landed?

Yes, it was already posted on this thread, on the first page.

Some of the reports seem to suggest that, but in The Sun article that seems to be the original source of the story it sounds more like they were selling because they no longer felt safe there. https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/33737639/brit-couple-retired-thailand-beaten-neighbours-prison/

They're losing ground in Kursk, but not in the East. They're making progress against the Russians in both Toretsk and Pokrovsk while things remain fairly static elsewhere. Ukraine War Map Shows Kyiv Regain Ground in Two Major Strongholds https://www.newsweek.com/ukraine-war-map-regain-ground-toretsk-2036296

America is benefiting from tariffs right now? That's interesting, since even Donald Trump isn't claiming that. He says there will be some temporary disruption before the benefits are felt. So please give us some examples of the benefits that are currently being experienced by Americans.

The current acting head (a Trump appointee) is apparently saying more or less the same thing. Social Security’s acting chief privately admits DOGE ‘will make mistakes’ while cuts delay processing of claims, report says https://fortune.com/2025/03/08/social-security-cuts-layoffs-doge-delays-processing-retirement-disability-claims/

OK, but the person they first went out in response to, was British. His Thai wife didn't show up till later in the piece. And actually, from the video it seems that they didn't even go outside till he'd left. However after they were outside, he appears to return along with his wife.

We don't know that they didn't do that, but when they saw their neighbours ripping up plants in their garden and went out to see what was going on, they surely never expected the situation to descend into such extreme violence.

It's not just that the other couple brought a court case though. It was the police that came and arrested them, confiscated their passports, fingerprinted them and charged them with multiple offences. As for it being likely the case will be dismissed, the Middlesbrough Evening Gazette reports the couple as having been warned that they will most likely be going to jail.

You can have a land dispute over the land that you currently occupy, whether you own it or not. For instance, let's say you have a lease on a property. If a neighbour then comes and builds on part of the property you are leasing and you dispute their right to do so (which is what appears to have happened here) then you have, de facto, a land dispute.

Not quite - it was a British man with a Thai wife and a British couple that were involved. And if you watch the video, I don't think you can really call both couples "aggressors" - the younger couple was mercilessly pummeling the other with punches, kicks and knees, while the elderly couple were just trying to stave off the attacks they were being subjected to.