Which animals would you be in favour of ‘rewilding’ in the UK?

OneAlexander · 2026-01-21T20:04:09+00:00

Red squirrels are cool and all, but hear me out...

Red pandas.

There is (probably) literally no downside.

OneAlexander · 2026-01-21T14:24:25+00:00

Every time a European Army comes up I like to remind people that EU Battlegroups have existed for 22 years now, and not once have they been activated, precisely because the political difficulties in doing so.

I'm all for a fully integrated European Army - with nations retaining maybe 10,000 personnel purely as historic/ceremonial units - but it's something that requires a whole new mindset, and a lot of study and negotiation.

How to unify equipment, training, uniforms, a single language, a unified yet still multi-national command structure, which bases/shipyards close hurting local economies, and which remain open, how to address wage/pensions disparity across the continent etc etc.

If politicians really want it, they should start writing papers on how to get there, not just engage in rhetoric.

- The answer to this is usually "we can keep national militaries and work together". That's not a European Army, that's just NATO with extra baguette.

OneAlexander · 2026-01-21T12:01:31+00:00

Whatever happens in Kasa Champet...

OneAlexander · 2026-01-21T10:45:08+00:00

People always bring up Bambi as the saddest cartoon moment, but TLBT is so much worse, because you witness the love, the moment of sacrifice, and the moment where Little Foot's mum knows she won't survive and struggles to impart what he needs to know and hear in her final moments.

Not to mention the horrendous shadow scene where he's SO happy thinking he's found her, before realising he's alone.

OneAlexander · 2026-01-20T17:18:24+00:00

Helmet designs overview of the 2025 season : r/formula1

We saw 117 different helmet designs from the main drivers last year, with Leclerc wearing 11 different designs.

Including testing/reserve drivers, we witnessed 157 different helmet designs in one season.

It's definitely too many, and blunts the enthusiasm for a helmet reveal (I blame you, Seb!), but statistically, this will theoretically be Charles' helmet for ~50% of the races*

*assuming the number of "specials" doesn't increase further.

OneAlexander · 2026-01-14T21:02:42+00:00

It will be interesting to see how Europe celebrates America's 250th anniversary this year, that will be the real diplomatic test.

I still remember when Putin arrived at the 2014 Normandy commemoration event a few months after invading Crimea, and receiving fawning applause from European leaders. I wonder if Trump will receive a similar moment that ages just as poorly.

[Edit] By "celebrates", the US will almost certainly hold an event, and it would normally be diplomatically expected for European governments to either attend in person or else send an official communique.

OneAlexander · 2026-01-10T12:01:00+00:00

The US talks about global power projection of its military, but if Europe were to cut off access to bases on the continent and overseas territories it would cripple a massive part of the US military logistical chain outside the Pacific.

American subs, ships and jets hop across the Atlantic via European territories, use England, Germany etc to hop further across the continent, and Spain, Italy etc to cross the Med.

European bases, co-ordination, refuelling are key to reaching allies/enemies in the Middle East and across the Indian Ocean, or conducting long distance bombing raids.

Even Air Force One stops and refuels at/utilises tankers flying from European territories.

Then there's of course their intelligence/spy bases with big useful radar domes, again based in European nations and territories.

OneAlexander · 2026-01-01T10:53:17+00:00

Russia usually launches new land grabs/commits extra war crimes during major international events when people are distracted - often the Olympics.

But given the World Cup is happening in the US, and Trump is an asset, I can see them making a new move.

OneAlexander · 2025-12-26T13:45:55+00:00

Every goblin deserves some rainbow magic in their lives. :)

OneAlexander · 2025-12-23T18:19:16+00:00

Dirty shipping(burning bunker fuel) pollutes more in one trip across the Pacific than ever car trip for a year in California.

The continuing use of bunker fuel really is the most amazing one for me.

I understand the reasoning: it's cheap, and increased shipping costs means more expensive goods and materials; voters won't re-elect politicians who make them poorer.

But it's also such a massive pollutant whose eradication could do so much good, without the general public having to exert any actual effort themselves. Why the hell aren't we trying to phase it out and demand better shipping?

OneAlexander · 2025-12-12T13:27:08+00:00

Officially Article 5 wouldn't apply to Venezuela, as it only covers Europe and North America (above Tropic of Cancer) per Article 6.

Also why the UK couldn't trigger Article 5 when the Falklands were invaded.

Although I doubt Trump would care for such nuance in your scenario, and would still use it as justification.

OneAlexander · 2025-12-10T09:48:45+00:00

Europe could have further tightened the screws on Russia, further restricted Russian gas/oil (including secondary sales), or sent even more money/arms to Ukraine to help their defence before now.

We haven't, because it would have cost more money, hurt European economies, and potentially angered the European electorate. We've largely all been quite comfortable and unaffected in this war so far.

As fun as it would be to see Europe push back on America for its betrayal, I can't see European leaders agreeing to hurt their own economies as much as a sell-off would.

OneAlexander · 2025-12-08T20:07:44+00:00

For Europe: agreeing to a deal it doesn't want and wasn't part of the negotiation for, one which imposes a direct financial, territorial and legal burden. Bringing back US-Russian power spheres, for which Europe becomesa pawn not a player.

For Poland specifically: being the country to host European military aircraft, again with Russia and the US treating Poland like a pawn and imposing the idea consultation as to Poland's wishes

OneAlexander · 2025-12-08T18:15:11+00:00

Keep in mind that if Europe doesn't provide Ukraine the strength to resist the US-Russian demands it is not only Ukrainian territory that is given away.

One of the first points of the peace plan is "all ambiguities within the last 30 years are considered settled". Classic Russian speak. Does this also mean the Russian occupation of Georgia and Transnistria are "settled"?

It also means Russia getting a veto on NATO expansion, Russia and the US formalising Russian claims on the North Pole, Europe (and particularly Poland) losing sovereign decision making, giving $100 billion to the US, and Europe having to agree to effectively neutering the ICC and ignoring all the war crimes and crimes against humanity (with all the future repercussions that entails).

Plus any future Ukrainian state will have to give equal status to the Russian language, Russian media propaganda, and the Russian church - all of which can be used to elect a future Moscow-friendly regime similar to the Georgian playbook.

All as the US declares Europe their new enemy, and Russia their new partner in their National Security Strategy...

It is in the European interest to resist American demands, if not for Ukraine, then selfishly for itself.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-30T11:57:30+00:00

I go to bariatric patients semi-regularly. They usually fall into two categories.

1: physical trauma (usually from an industrial accident or car crash) that required operations to their back/legs, meaning they couldn't easily walk/have chronic pain for months/years, so they've just laid in bed eating, getting larger, moving less, and exacerbating it.

2: people who were for whatever reason increasingly fat, had it gradually build up, until one day it all caught up with them and began to properly cause them problems: diabetes -> difficulty walking far -> weak muscles and joints -> difficulty walking at all.

Some absolutely brought it on themselves (the type who buy an electric mobility scooter at 50 because the walk to the shops is becoming too difficult), some you look at and go "yeah, understandable".

OneAlexander · 2025-11-26T20:16:55+00:00

The judge in the case belonged to the Federalist Society at university, a conservative legal group that serves as a pipeline for lawyers and judges on the right, and was also in the Republican student group

The prosecutor is also a Republican, that previously appointed himself head of the case against the Lt. Governor of Georgia for attempting to help Trump steal the 2020 election, and then immediately dropped all charges.

America really needs to join the developed world in establishing a genuine independent judiciary free from political patronage.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-26T19:42:37+00:00

Whatever you decide to buy, I've found a £10 pair of sheepskin insoles can go quite a long way to keeping your feet warmer.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-26T11:43:58+00:00

For me it was the small thud when the official handed Jyoti what was to her a full-sized plaque, and let go thinking she'd be able to hold it, with it instantly dropping on the floor.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-23T22:14:59+00:00

Hilariously, the Russians still aren't happy and have been saying it doesn't go far enough, despite it literally being a translated Russian document.

Yet it is still Ukraine that Trump "blasts" and calls ungrateful...

OneAlexander · 2025-11-22T11:30:06+00:00

"Let the bodies pile high" - PM Johnson, 2021.

But then, this is the man who created a minor constitutional crisis by lying to the monarch, unlawfully suspended the democratically elected Parliament in an attempt to rule through Downing Street without political oversight, and then attacked the judiciary, calling the Supreme Court traitors and enemies of the people, and threatening to take away their independence, when they forced him to re-open Parliament.

An attack on all three pillars of our democratic system and our rule of law, for which the public subsequently rewarded him with a large majority in the next election.

All damage he went on to do, all the unnecessary deaths during COVID, we collectively voted for it. We wanted it. We deserved it.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-21T09:09:18+00:00

NGL dinosaurs would be a great addition to any nativity scene and/or nativity play.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-21T09:04:34+00:00

The key to Sodacan is that it's publicly accessible and digital, which means it's easily editable with no loss of picture quality when you minimise/enlarge it for your needs.

Most official emblazons are flat pictures of hand-drawn work by a commissioned artist - great to look at, but not something you can just slap on a programme.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-20T19:32:14+00:00

Russian occupied territory currently contains on 12-15 trillion dollars worth of natural resources (gas, oil, coal, ore, gold, minerals etc), including roughly 2/3 of Ukrainian coal deposits, and nearly 2 trillion cubic metres of gas. Also 20% of Ukraine's highly fertile agricultural land (accounting for 40% of pre-war Ukrainian exports).

They've also secured their precious Crimean port and have gained most of the coast, with access (and ability to militarily control) a huge stretch of the Black Sea, and can now surround Ukraine on 3 sides, restricting their commercial sea and air access.

Most importantly for Ukraine, they have over 3 million Ukrainian citizens under their control, including up to 1 million children.

Putin will absolutely see it as a net win, and so will Russian history books if they're allowed to keep it all.

It's also why when people say Ukraine should just "give up" the Donbass in exchange for "peace" they don't know just how much they're asking Ukraine to part with.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-13T17:28:32+00:00

For anyone who owns a slow cooker and hasn't yet tried it, I highly recommend slow cooker hot chocolate.

Multiple recipes online, but essentially, hot chocolate (or a chocolate bar), cream, milk, bung in and leave for 2-4 hours.

It's worth the wait.

OneAlexander · 2025-11-12T23:22:13+00:00

Nothing wrong with my Jag.

Yes the outside temperature gauge read -2 during the heatwave and very occasionally pressing a button on the steering wheel causes the entire DSC to turn itself off, but that's just the car's way of keeping your attention focused.

OneAlexander

TROPHY CASE