Thought of the Day

“one of the worst manifestos in history”

--George Osborne on the UK 2017 Conservative manifesto

The waste had to go somewhere, though, so it was dumped near the airport, but this attracted flocks of seagulls, which became a hazard for aircraft. Attempts to shoot the gulls brought howls of protest, so machines were brought in to play loud music that would frighten them away.

-- BBC on efforts to handle Beirut's rubbish

Even YouGov, [which has] tended to estimate higher Labour support than most pollsters, recorded a three point drop for Jeremy Corbyn's party in their final poll.

-- Daily Telegraph on the morning of the UK General Election 2017

“Vote Labour for the many, not the few.”
-- The Labour Party adopting a phrase from our own article here and repeated by Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn during last night's TV debate.

I know there is no extra payment you don’t want to add. No tax you don’t want to rise, but the fact is we have to concentrate our resources on the people who need it most. We have to stop thinking as you do, that there is a magic money tree. You have to be accountable on the money you want to spend.”

-- UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in a TV debate last night.

I love proving people wrong about me.

-- Robert Gagno, Canada's no. 1 pinball player who refuses to let autism define him.

We have an exciting time ahead. Alongside these initiatives, we're also making changes behind the scenes to increase operational efficiency and reliability through new technologies

-- Alex Cruz, CEO British Airways, 6 April, 2017. On 27 May, the airlines computer systems crashed leaving thousands stranded for several days.

With [the French] it's wit and badinage that's aye the joke. With [we English] 'tis ever action and that war between our words and what we be which they across the channel have named hypocrisy. And what we be is all mixed up with alien blood and refugees from tyranny like a bag pudding boiled within the pot we call the British Isles. 'Twas ever thus: 'twill ever be; a ragamuffin race of scoundrels born of pirates on the run.

-- Tom Sharpe, The Throwback, on Being English. 1978

I'm sure that Salman didn't carry out such an act but there are hidden hands behind this, security authorities doing something against the Libyan community especially the youth there.

-- Ramadan Abedi, father of Salman Abedi, the alleged bomber at the Manchester Arena, appearing to say that his son was in some way set up by UK security forces wanting to damage the reputation of Libya.

Economic activity in Europe has yet to fully recover nearly eight years after the global financial crisis

-- IMF 15 May 2017, ignoring that the statement establishes that the crisis is not actually over.

I like to keep my personal life personal. We couldn't have children. We dealt with it and we moved on. I hope nobody would think that mattered. I can still empathise and understand people and care about fairness and opportunity"
-- Therese May, UK Prime Minister, after criticism from some that as a childless, middle aged woman, she was not qualified to speak on various matters.

I'm a big advocate of freedom: freedom of speech, freedom of expression, freedom of thought

-- Jimmy Wales, founder, wikipedia (sic) which has demanded Burger King apologise for inserting the true contents of their Whopper product into that website's description of the company and its products.

Stealing from capitalism is not like stealing out of our own pockets. Marx and Lenin have taught us that anything is ethical, so long as it is in the interest of the proletarian class and its world revolution.

-- Nicolae Ceausescu, Communist leader of Romania. Tyrant.

He who protests is an enemy; he who opposes is a corpse.

-- Pol Pot, Communist leader of Cambodia

One must not be right against the Party. One can be right only with the Party, and through the Party, for history has created no other road for the realization of what is right.

--Lev Davidovich Bronstein a.k.a. Leon Trotsky. It is not clear if he was speaking honestly or sarcastically attempting to defend himself against charges of disloyalty.