Xi Jinping UK State visit

[coley]

why would the Chinese give a mouse sized shit?

they flood the market with cheap steel, the market colapses, their competitors go out of business and as the other steels on the market dry up, they can then charge what they like for their tat.

if others - us - fail to appreciate the strategic national interest in having a secure supply of high grade steel, even if that security of supply costs more than buying rubber dogshit on the open market, then thats not really Chinas problem.

What could be a problem, sorry. If this is a bit alarmist, is having to buy Chinese steel to re-arm if the Shyte hits the fan in the next few years.
Just a thought

 

[coley]

Perhaps there needs to be an "OPEC" of the international steel industry ..

Christ onna crutch Wellie, are you really to young to remember 73?

 

[coley]

And all other associated manufacturing industries, but in return we will give you a teensy weenie bit of our financial sector, which rest assured, we will take back,at enormous profit to ourselves, once we have managed to procure a stranglehold on it. But don't worry, we will make sure the companies involved, their CEOs and major shareholders will be able to secure a comfortable retirement.

 

[classicdish]

given that China isn't going to bow to any pressure on its internal politics that we are prepared to bring to bear, i see no point whatsoever in bringing them up.

China has made very clear that the price of potentially very lucrative trade deals - which, for those getting sweaty, means highly skilled, highly paid, very taxable UK jobs to both reduce unemployment and pay for nice things - is silence on its internal politics. speak out - and achieve nothing anyway - and you don't get the deal.

Chinas stance, and its economic power and raft of potential other 'partners' to make that stance a reality, means that 'speaking out' over Chinas brutal, dictatorial, horrible policies has nothing whatsoever to do with making life better in China, its about making people here feel better about themselves.

you either deal with China as it wishes, or it goes elsewhere.

This isn't totally true. Both the US and Germany - which both have strong trading links with China - do bring up human rights issues with China.

If pressure on and public comments about China made no difference to them at all then why do they get so upset about it?

China (both the governmental level and amongst the growing middle-class - who are becoming increasingly international in their overlook) has aspirations towards taking a bigger role in the world, politically, diplomatically and culturally - it does actually want to be admired and respected and have 'status' over-and-above purely economic or wealth-related concerns.

China also wants access the best technology, the richest markets and the most profitable and forward-facing investments, which mean it does have to deal with the main OECD countries - it can't simply be as much of an arsehole as it wants and just 'shop around' - unless it wants to end up dealing with a bunch of second-rate governments, companies, investments etc.

As for 'just wanting to feel better' - I'd rather be guided by what the citizens of China have to say about how we can help them - this while obviously includes higher-profile people like the students in Hong Kong, campaigners in - or exiled from - Tibet, other groups with allies in the west (eg christian house churches) or slightly less high profile people like the Ilham Tohti (an Uighar academic currently serving a life sentence for 'thought crimes') Ilham Tohti - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia it also includes paying attention to the *vast* number of ordinary Chinese people who take part in local protests, for example in rural areas over their farm land being taken from them, in urban areas about working conditions, food quality, and air and water pollution and paying attention to massive issues of inequality such as the permit system which bars internal migrants from free schooling or health care in the cities where they live and work.

 

[kebabking]

What could be a problem, sorry. If this is a bit alarmist, is having to buy Chinese steel to re-arm if the Shyte hits the fan in the next few years.
Just a thought

They are... One carrier is 95% complete, 3 more are in various stages of construction, and they're building enough escorts for a man to be able to walk from Hong Kong to Hawaii without getting his feet wet...

Meanwhile the USN has a rapidly aging fleet and not replacement design, and we're going from 35 escorts to 19 in just 20 years...

 

[Nine Bob Note]

 

[J Ed]

What?

 

[Cid]

Well, at least the UK's shit caption industry has been stimulated by this visit.

Comic Sans ffs.

 

[stuff_it]

I for one would like to know what that transparent screen/cat artefact is on the right of this picture is (released by the official monarchy twitter)

It's clearly there so she can pretend people on the other side of the desk have a kitten on them. A bit more monarhly than pretending they're naked.

 

[Nine Bob Note]

What?

I'm afraid after seeing a picture of two chinese (one of whom was seemingly dressed as a priest at the banquet) and a greek I couldn't get a particular episode of Father Ted out of my head.

 

[Diamond]

This isn't totally true. Both the US and Germany - which both have strong trading links with China - do bring up human rights issues with China.

If pressure on and public comments about China made no difference to them at all then why do they get so upset about it?

China (both the governmental level and amongst the growing middle-class - who are becoming increasingly international in their overlook) has aspirations towards taking a bigger role in the world, politically, diplomatically and culturally - it does actually want to be admired and respected and have 'status' over-and-above purely economic or wealth-related concerns.

China also wants access the best technology, the richest markets and the most profitable and forward-facing investments, which mean it does have to deal with the main OECD countries - it can't simply be as much of an arsehole as it wants and just 'shop around' - unless it wants to end up dealing with a bunch of second-rate governments, companies, investments etc.

As for 'just wanting to feel better' - I'd rather be guided by what the citizens of China have to say about how we can help them - this while obviously includes higher-profile people like the students in Hong Kong, campaigners in - or exiled from - Tibet, other groups with allies in the west (eg christian house churches) or slightly less high profile people like the Ilham Tohti (an Uighar academic currently serving a life sentence for 'thought crimes') Ilham Tohti - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia it also includes paying attention to the *vast* number of ordinary Chinese people who take part in local protests, for example in rural areas over their farm land being taken from them, in urban areas about working conditions, food quality, and air and water pollution and paying attention to massive issues of inequality such as the permit system which bars internal migrants from free schooling or health care in the cities where they live and work.

Agree with all of the above but I think the permit system issue is extremely important.

When I first read about it, I couldn't believe that such a structure had been put in place.

 

[Flanflinger]

Could have at least brought some Pandas with him. We need more pandas.

 

[kebabking]

Could have at least brought some Pandas with him. We need more pandas.

fuck that, bloody useless animals. they eat worthless food and fuck once a decade. extinction! extinction now!

 

[Belushi]

Totally agree, its very difficult to have any sympathy with Pandas. Can eat anything but refuse to consume anything except bamboo, fuck them and their faffy eating ways.

 

[ItWillNeverWork]

I find it rather disgusting seeing us fawn pathetically over the Chinese government. All, no doubt, so that some of Cameron's mates can get rich. If we are to build power stations then we should do it ourselves, but instead the tories are selling us to devil.

 

[weltweit]

So first inward investment announcement, Hinkley Point Nuclear power station.

Do we really need the Chinese to build a power station?

 

[coley]

So first inward investment announcement, Hinkley Point Nuclear power station.

Do we really need the Chinese to build a power station?

We certainly don't need Hinkley!

 

[Idris2002]

Could have at least brought some Pandas with him. We need more pandas.

Osborne would have just taken one and shoved it where the law of value does not apply.

 

[equationgirl]

We certainly don't need Hinkley!

We do unfortunately. all remaining UK coal plants to be shut by 2023. Several gas plants including brand new ones have been mothballed as they're too expensive to run. Can't replace coal Base load with wind turbines, so new plants are needed and will be needed before hinckley comes on line.

 

[kebabking]

...Do we really need the Chinese to build a power station?

we certainly need someone to build a nuclear power station.

the people who - at even the most moderate professional level - built/designed the last UK nuclear power station have long since retired or died. we faced a similar problem designing/building the current Astute class of submarines, it had been so long since we'd done it that significant mistakes were made, and General Dynamics, who build submarines in the US, had to be contracted to come over, clean up the process and rebuild the skills base, as well as provide support to BAES in the design/build. as a result, the seventh and last Astute class submarine will only have three things in common with the first of the class - its black, it goes underwater, and it has people in it.

civil nuclear faces the same problem - which is why my dad, 10 years after retiring, is working 3 days a week for a very large UK nuclear engineering firm and earning a bit more than twice what he did before he 'retired'.

whether China is the ideal partner for such a venture is, what i believe Sir Humphrey Appleby would call, a couragous* decision...

*in this instance couragous was a euphamism for 'if you're lucky this will lose you an election, if you're not so lucky you'll go to prison...'.

 

[equationgirl]

So first inward investment announcement, Hinkley Point Nuclear power station.

Do we really need the Chinese to build a power station?

more accurately, we appear to need Chinese money to build it. We haven't built nuclear plants for a generation, but we still have the capability to build power plants.

 

[UrbaneFox]

View attachment 78363

Back to the caption competition

Corbin, disguised as Yeoman of the Guard, heads for trapdoor lever, "At last I have Prince Philip's best handshaking arm, and before sunset the purple hat will be MINE".

 

[coley]

We do unfortunately. all remaining UK coal plants to be shut by 2023. Several gas plants including brand new ones have been mothballed as they're too expensive to run. Can't replace coal Base load with wind turbines, so new plants are needed and will be needed before hinckley comes on line.

What "new plants" are you referring to? Gas too expensive? Compared to the subsidies being offered to Hinckley?
As for "base load" this is becoming a bit of an outdated idea pushed by the FF lobby in order to scare politicians with the nightmare of 'the lights going out'
A broad based supply based on a largely renewable option would seem to be the way forward surely? Germany /Norway etc seems to be managing it.
If push comes to shove a HVDC cable from Iceland would give us cheaper leccy by far than Hinkley.

 

[coley]

more accurately, we appear to need Chinese money to build it. We haven't build nuclear plants for a generation, but we still have the capability to build power plants.

We have the land and the labourers and the captive consumers, the long term opportunities and profits go abroad.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

We have the land and the labourers and the captive consumers, the long term opportunities and profits go abroad.

Let's not forget that Hinkley is currently a French power station.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Anyway, news from the Chinese visit...

David Cameron has spent a good twenty minutes in the bathroom really giving his mouth a proper rinse after a private meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

“It was a very productive meeting,” said the Prime Minister, as he picked what looked like a small curly hair from between his front teeth.

“Mr Jinping gave our power industry a significant boost by investing in the Hinckley Point nuclear power plant, and I gave Mr Jinping….well, I don’t really think we need to go into what I gave Mr Jinping.”

“Does anyone have a mint?”

Mr Jinping’s private meeting with the Prime Minister followed a private meeting with George Osborne which took place just before the Chancellor’s emergency visit to his proctologist.

Despite the professed success of the meeting, Mr Cameron looked a little unwell as he chatted to journalists and turned positively green when asked about the state balls to be held for the Chinese leader.

He left shortly after, complaining of a wardrobe problem.

“And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll need to have the butler look at these trousers as the knees seem to be really worn down.”

 

[teqniq]

Two British activists were arrested after waving Tibetan flags at the Chinese president’s motorcade

 

[weltweit]

Two British activists were arrested after waving Tibetan flags at the Chinese president’s motorcade

Waving a flag is obviously inflammatory behaviour.

 

[teqniq]

Waving a flag is obviously inflammatory behaviour.

All three were further arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit threatening behaviour.

Actually.

 

[weltweit]

I had never even heard of the offence of "conspiracy to commit threatening behaviour", so they hadn't even committed it, they were just suspected of conspiring to do so ..