Interesting Links for 12-12-2018

[andrewducker]

Patricio Manuel: First transgender pro boxer in US wins on debut

(tags: sports lgbt transgender usa )

Beijing is trying to rid city of Chinglish before 2022 Winter Olympics

(tags: China language translation funny fail )

Nicola Sturgeon’s clarity on Brexit reminds us what a leader looks like

(tags: UK europe snp )

Time magazine's person of the year is journalists who were murdered imprisoned, and harassed for doing their job.

(tags: journalism )

How “Assuming Good Intent” Undermines Diversity and Inclusion

(tags: intentions diversity society community )

Massive ‘deep life’ study reveals billions of tonnes of microbes living far beneath Earth’s surface

(tags: life )

The brains of meditators are less affected by negative feedback

(tags: brain psychology meditation )

The Sun in its rearview mirror, Voyager 2 is in interstellar space

(tags: space )

How people would feel if the government cancelled Brexit & Britain stayed in the EU?

43% happy, 38% unhappy, 19% don't care/don't know/other.
(tags: polls uk europe viaDanielDWilliam )

Scotland’s biggest chippy opens in heart of Edinburgh

(tags: food Scotland edinburgh )

Dear tech companies, fix your algorithms and stop causing people massive heartache

(tags: death advertising Facebook twitter OhForFucksSake )

Why there should not be a General Election ‘about the EU’ – and why the UK isn’t a democracy

(tags: europe uk democracy voting )

Impeccable timing there by the Conservatives in triggering a leadership election

(tags: conservatives OhForFucksSake )

Finally, a definitive ruling on whether a pop tart is a sandwich

(tags: food ontology funny )

How a Conservative Leadership Challenge works

(tags: Conservatives )

Street paved with chocolate in Germany after colossal spill at sweets factory

It's Christmas come early!
(tags: chocolate accident )

Tory Brexiters demand new leadership vote insisting ‘the will of the MPs’ has changed since 2016

(tags: politics satire true Conservatives )

Comments

[calimac]

Not sure I agree that Sturgeon is showing admirable leadership here. If she really wants Corbyn to submit a motion of no confidence, can't she ask one of her own MPs to do it? Or can such a motion only come from the official Leader of the Opposition?

But the real point comes in the explanation of why Corbyn doesn't want to trigger an election now, that Labour would lose. Sturgeon must know this, so attempting to pressure Corbyn at this point is posturing, not leadership.

[doug]

Interestingly it's not entirely clear what would happen if the SNP at Westminster put down a FTPA motion of no confidence, but if it were the official Opposition, it would take precedence over other business and would be debated at the earliest opportunity.

[mountainkiss]

Agree somewhat but a counter-argument is the ticking clock of 29 March 2019. There's a strong case for not delaying any counter-action.

[calimac]

This all depends on the unsettled question of whether the SNP could table a motion of no confidence by itself.

If so, then it's not necessary to invoke the ticking clock to criticize Sturgeon's lack of leadership. She could ask her MPs to do it at any time, and force Corbyn's hand in response.

If not, then the fault for ignoring the ticking clock is Corbyn's, not Sturgeon's, and what I called Sturgeon's posturing, rather than leadership, still consists of her telling Corbyn to do what she knows perfectly well he has no intention of.