Dr. Gonzo

Oh nice this has all of the fucking services I waste my money on in it!

I own both and I like both. I like using Netflix more - and out of all the different streaming services I have ever used (and I've used a shitload now)... I think they have the best UI and things just work better on Netflix. I actually hate getting around the Amazon app on my TV, I think it's a pretty shit interface and it loads very slowly. I do like that Amazon's got sporting events and sometimes other live events. And giving the original Top Gear crew The Grand Tour and giving them an outrageous budget means I'll use it just for that.

The UAE's basically a Saudi puppet - you might get told to throw matches against them now

I don’t think Arsenal will ever be rid of Kroenke because he once said something along the lines of “the love English fans have for their teams makes them an incredibly exploitable asset” at a conference.

They just have to do what City and PSG do and have other their companies funnel money in as sponsorships and they can easily get passed FFP. It’s sportwashing or whatever they call it. That’s why non-Newcastle fans that go to matches should design chants/banners around things like dismembered journalists, starving out Yemen, and their support for groups like ISIS and Al Qaeda. MBS bought them to try to make the West forget, so it’s probably a good idea to make sure it’s not forgotten each time they play.

I appreciate that, because I'm not sure I would ever forgive the Saudis for making me hate Gerrard

I don't blame Newcastle fans for being excited, especially after such a long time under someone as unambitious as Mike Ashley. I actually have a great deal of respect for Newcastle as a club and for their fans especially. But because of that great deal of respect, I do find it a bit disturbing all of this twerking for MBS that's going on. I agree with you there's a great deal of hypocrisy because I like Disney products too and I use Instagram and WhatsApp - but to be fair, the Saudi Public Investment Fund is a minority shareholder in those companies - but now they're outright owners of Newcastle, aren't they? Tbh I feel bad for Yemeni or Iranian (but especially Yemenis) Newcastle fans (I'm sure some exist, my Iranian uncle went to uni in Newcastle... there's probably a small community out there for both groups) because I don't know what they're meant to feel now and any Newcastle fans that have any strong feelings regarding human rights. Tbh there's lots that could be on the front pages of negative news for the Saudis, so you're a bit lucky in regard that much of the embarrassing news that should be covered more in the West sort of gets a blind eye in terms of press coverage because the US & UK are very complicit in some of the worst that regime does.

I hope this goes better than the last group of people the Saudis funded that also use black and white colours In all seriousness, I think this is pretty shit because I liked Newcastle as a club. But now I think I might have to hate them more than Everton and United, and that’s weird.

Tbf MBS is leading a campaign of starvation on Yemen, an advocate for the Balkanisation of the country my mums from, and got caught ordering dismembering a journalist alive and sort of just got to shrug his shoulders and lol about it. And one of the biggest exporters of Wahhabism… I’m not claiming to be a perfect person or anything, but you are now owned by a group chaired by one of the genuinely worst people alive imo. So people are going to hate your club for him being involved with your club. Myself included.

Oh I posted the video in the Brazil football thread on here. Shocking stuff though, I've never seen anything like that in any football match ever in my life. The guy deserves his arrest for attempted murder.

It was more in reference to this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Jamal_Khashoggi So they'd better find a way to write positive stuff so as to not offend MBS

Newcastle journos are probably a bit excited and a bit terrified now

It would be some kind of remarkable spending cuts though, no? Because the current debt level doesn't really account for the recent budget that was passed or the next budgets. It seems bizarre to me because I don't think the UK has a limit on how much debt it can incur. I looked into the debt ceiling and it only came into effect in the US during WW1 when America's isolationists wanted to try to cap the military spending (which, funnily enough... I can't imagine America ever willingly cutting back on military spending ever again). I think taxes going up in the US was an inevitability really. I think the Biden administration did say they're looking at raising taxes on people making more than $400k a year - and really when we consider how low taxes are in the US and how many tax avoidance strategies are codified into US tax code (which is why we don't see too much about the US in the Pandora Papers) - I think going after those big earners makes a lot of sense. Looking at how the US's budget deficit ballooned after tax cuts for the wealthy and corporate tax cuts... it does seem logical. In a time where income inequality is rampant, it seems a bit weird that those at the upper end of the tax brackets pay so little in comparison. But if the debt ceiling isn't raised and if they expect the US government to be able to operate as normal... I suspect that would mean a massive tax increase for pretty much everyone. And I don't think that will help the economy very much. The working class and middle class feeling a high pressure financial squeeze from taxes, inflation, and stagnant wages will further shrink the economy. So I really hope they do get rid of this idea of the debt ceiling. It seems like an unnecessary creation that was first put in place for reasons that most people in the US government would laugh at now - and it's just being used as a way for one party to hold the economy hostage. As far as US taxes go, I'm all for raising taxes on people making $400k a year... and for raising corporate tax rates. But I do hope that Biden raises the SALT deduction cap that the last administration massively lowered of... because that was an absolute bullshit way to raise taxes on certain states for no real good reason & it absolutely fucked me (and many other people here). And I don't think people in states that have higher state tax rates that allow those states to provide services (in lieu of receiving federal funds for similar services) should be subsidising the states that receive federal funds for the same services they should probably be providing on their own... Probably shouldn't complain though, my tax liability here is substantially less than what it would be in the UK because of the US's silly tax rules.

@Eco @Cicero can either of you explain this debt-ceiling debate that's going on in the senate? I know the democrats wanted to kill the filibuster (which I... also don't understand why that exists) to remove the debt-ceiling... but fellow democrat Joe Manchin refused (I also don't understand how this guy became the most powerful senator in America...) What does that mean for the US if the debt-ceiling isn't raised? The US can't pay off its debts?

Got to say... the Brazilian FA's been very annoying this season. First trying to get our players banned from playing for their clubs if they want to comply with COVID rules for international travel (cunts), but their scheduling for Brazil v. Uruguay means Alisson & Fabinho are likely to be ruled out from playing over the weekend.

The craziest thing about being able to toggle back and forth is... playing the remaster (where they've actually done an absolute shitload to remaster the game), it looks how I remember Diablo 2 looking in my head when I think back about playing it. Then I toggle on "old school graphics mode" and it's mental how my brain had like given Diablo 2 some HD memories considering how absolutely dogshit the graphics were.

I think this is in the Brazilian 6th tier... but it's still shocking. Player's been charged with attempted murder for that.

I'm going to Las Vegas this weekend. It's not my favourite place in the world, but at least there's very good food there.

Tensions between Azerbaijan & Iran are flaring up. I think it's just sabre rattling because I don't think either country actually wants to go to war with another, but the rhetoric is getting pretty fucking close to wartime rhetoric. @Khan of TF365 - yeah I'm not surprised by any of the misinformation. Tbh, I think it's the new normal with social media - countries running psy-ops campaigns on people in other countries to influence global politics. It's pretty common knowledge that most people won't fact check anything, so it's a really effective way at controlling political narratives in other countries.

Pirlo being linked with the job now. Seems a bit weird as he's got 0 Barca connections whatsoever, had about a week experience with the Juve U23s and then was absolute shit as the Juve manager.

Pay up @MUFC and maybe I'll PM you a pic of my feet

Anything that keeps MBS out of football is justifiable imo

I agree with you it's tone deaf... but realistically, what other statement could be made that isn't tone deaf? Realistically, anyone trying to become a police officer isn't going to outwardly give signs that they're a rapist or a murder. I think they knew the statement would be tone deaf, but I honestly am not sure they could make any statement that was any less tone deaf that wouldn't further undermine public confidence in the police more than this police officer already undermined public confidence. I'm also fairly confident Couzens' rape and murder of Sarah Everard made caused a big negative impact on the morale of police officers themselves. And I can see why they'd want to carefully word any public statement to not further undermine the morale of police as well as not further undermine public confidence in the police. So at the end of the day, I think we get a statement that's a bit bland and tone deaf... but realistically, I can't see them making anything other than a bland tone deaf statement. It's a bit political how they have to respond in public comment, tbh.

Is American military intelligence just bad... or do they lie to the public? Remember when they told us that Iraq definitely did have WMDs still (and not the ones the US sold it in the 80s and 90s) - turns out that was a complete fabrication, but I think recently I was watching something where an ex-CIA analyst seemed to be genuinely maintaining that it wasn't a fabrication but just bad intel. Then not understanding the depth of corruption regarding Afghanistan... despite propping up that government entirely? I just can't believe they wouldn't have known the full scale of corruption in the puppet government they put in place.