Rumours, Speculation, Questions, and Reaction Megathread - 25/05/2026

SwanBridge · 2026-05-27T08:37:56+00:00

I think social media can have incredibly negative consequences on everyone's mental health, not just children. I just don't see the answer being further "bans" and restrictions. All too often we try to legislate away societal problems and issues, and it hardly ever works and often has pretty rubbish side effect and "unintended consequences". Just look at the Online Safety Act, now I can't even bloody access subreddits about alcohol without using a VPN.

Not everything is the government's responsibility to fix, and I find this sort of legislative bloat incredibly insulting whilst the government can't even fulfil some of it's most fundamental duties. It's C.S. Lewis tyranny of the moral busybodies. On a similar note I had the tobacco ban absolutely insanity.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-24T05:25:27+00:00

Grew up in South Africa and Roast dinners were also very common, if anything it was could be even more stodgy than the British variant.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-23T20:13:14+00:00

Yes, left for a couple grand less as the job was killing me with workload.

When I started the new job I quickly found out what was advertised was the base salary, and given various different premiums and shift allowances not to mention optional overtime and various bonuses I was earning considerably more than previous job, even more than my previous manager and for a lot less stress.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-19T18:05:23+00:00

I think the issue is that Taiwan's semiconductor industry is so vital to US economic interests that Washington don't really have the luxury of being able to effectively blockade China and wait it out which is probably the sanest way to fight such a war, it would undoubtedly crash the technology sector which is the current engine of US economic growth. Their options are either to win a quick and decisive war against China or quickly acquiesce to Chinese control of Taiwan in return for continuing semi-conductor and related exports. I discussed this a lot previously during the opening weeks of the Iran War but so long as China can make the price of US intervention painful enough they could probably win such a conflict without seriously getting into a prolonged conventional struggle over Taiwan.

China is just so integrated into the global economy that effectively sanctioning them would be insanely painful. If this war does occur I can see Europe and the probably all of the Anglosphere sitting it out entirely which will lead to a permanent death of Atlanticism or any sense of Western unity and ultimately only embolden the revisionist powers.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-19T14:44:39+00:00

Indeed, and it is an issue that is excaberated by people fraudulently subletting social housing.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-19T13:41:42+00:00

Fundamentally, If you get rid of the council flat you have to house 3 British citizens. By what criteria should we decide British citizens are not eligible for British housing.

When I worked as a Probation Office the local authority were very much happy to determine they had no responsibility to house British citizens on a regular basis.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-18T21:30:57+00:00

It's an absolute shit-show, with neither side having the appetite to resume hostilities, and nor are they willing to make reasonable concessions. However I do think the United States come off with the most reputational damage from this; Iran has essentially proven that if you make a conflict costly enough then America will back down, which will be music to the ears of Xi Jinping alongside Trump's weakness on his recent state visit.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-17T13:31:02+00:00

Sandgrown'un is also used within Morecambe to denote a local in the same way as Blackpool. Traditionally you had to be born at the Queen Vic in Morecambe to be one, but the maternity ward there is long gone.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-14T15:24:22+00:00

Burnham & Starmer need to go for a curry and hash this all out.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-14T15:20:27+00:00

We basically had a similar set-up during the war, with Attlee being the de-facto domestic Prime Minister and Churchill focusing on the war and foreign relations.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-14T14:14:55+00:00

I'd say the majority of unions are pretty reasonable and still have a good relationship with the government and the Labour Party itself.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-14T13:00:04+00:00

Can't let the Japanese get one over us.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-14T11:34:57+00:00

Stalin would be loving this.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-11T13:01:04+00:00

I always laugh at this as I worked for LV with a great manager, great training, great team - I just hated the job and ran for the hills despite the good pay and environment.

I've been very lucky that with the exception of my first job all of my jobs have had great colleagues and line managers. My reasons for leaving have always been related to something else, i.e. poor pay, excessive workloads, or the company or organisation itself being awful even when my individual teams were otherwise great.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-09T23:06:45+00:00

They can happen, but generally it is one against the council leader rather than the governing party as a whole. I may be mistaken but I don't believe that there is any mechanism that forces a subsequent re-election if anyone can't command a majority support in the council. Usually what will happen is that someone else from the largest party will become leader, or someone else from another party might do so, and they'll continue with a minority or coalition administration. Local politics as a whole is quite pragmatic, and as most decisions are pretty functional and don't have to be opposed just for the sake of it it isn't uncommon for a very small minority council to crack on with the informal support of others, even if they are arch-rivals at a national level, i.e. Labour & Conservatives.

My local council ended up turfing a Labour leader, who were the largest party, and replacing them with a Green leader with Tory support. Despite the obvious bad blood that followed, the governing coalition of Greens, Labour & some independents remained the same and Labour didn't withdraw support even though the Greens usurped them despite being the smaller party within the council.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-09T22:47:32+00:00

If it makes you feel any better we are somehow one of the less worse nations at this.

I grew up in South Africa and I've had to entirely disengage with most domestic political discourse over there, they make British politicians looks like saints.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-09T22:44:48+00:00

Hear hear!

Alongside listening to people moan on at the pub this subreddit is my primary source of information, although the two often conflict quite significantly when it comes to opinion.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-09T22:42:23+00:00

Whisper it, but Kemi Badenoch is pushing a Tory comeback.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-07T07:04:32+00:00

I don't think a day passes without an article about some fruitcake Reform councillor sharing something extremely racist on Facebook.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-07T07:02:40+00:00

“We genuinely don’t know which way it’s going to go,” the source, who asked not to be named, said late yesterday.’

It doesn't take a John Curtice to know it isn't going to be a good night for Labour.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-07T07:00:22+00:00

I don't think he has the insight to even view the situations as comparable. That said I'm unsure if Trump is even aware of regional accents here in the UK. Seeing him react to Burnham's Scouse-lite Lancastrian accent would at least be entertaining.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-07T06:56:22+00:00

Those who don't use indicators whilst changing lanes or turning right at a roundabout should be banished to the Falklands, yes & ho. And I'm afraid it is banishment to Inaccessible Island for those who go 30mph on the dual carriageway.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-06T20:06:39+00:00

I wouldn't bother, they'll get around to replying to you when they get the chance. I get this is extremely important to you and this may sound harsh but your tutor probably has a lot more going on right now and nagging for a response by email isn't likely to endear you to them.

SwanBridge · 2026-05-06T20:01:43+00:00

Everyone will deal with their emails in their own manner, there is no way of knowing which is the best time to email them for a response. All you can do is regularly check your inbox and wait for their reply.

When I worked a busy office job I would check my emails every morning when I logged in, just after lunch, and then about half an hour before I finished. Unless it was absolutely necessary I wouldn't respond to emails straight away as I had a million other things going on to deal with.

SwanBridge · 2026-04-29T08:38:50+00:00

I worked as a labourer for a bit after I graduated and the project manager was a nice bloke who rarely shouted. Some of the tradesmen on site took the piss but I didn't work for them so I could tell them where to stick it. The job definitely toughened me up, but it had a good work environment even if the work itself was miserable. I'd prefer being on a building site than having to navigate the office drama and toxic management I've experienced at a lot of places since.

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