brommy

Leaving the EU and whatever it entails is going to be a long and difficult journey, but that doesn't mean the journey won't be worth it. What people think of where we eventually get to will be highly subjective, but let's at least get there.

I'm genuinely reminded of my last house move. I thought it was the right decision to move but I couldn't be certain whether I'd like the new area, whether the neighbours would be nice or whether the house would have issues not picked up in the survey. The seller turned out to be a very dodgy character. When I refused to meet his demand for an extra £2000 for the carpets (half of which were royal blue, FFS!), he kept delaying the move. After months and months of hassle with him and his solicitor, the moving day finally arrived. He obviously hadn't cleaned it since my final viewing, some months earlier. The carpets had been removed or damaged, the kitchen was thick with grease and the oven was broken, the showers and toilets were filthy and blocked, all the sink plugs had been ripped off their chains and taken, all the light bulbs had been removed or smashed. The day reduced my wife to tears. It took a lot of hard work, money and a long time to get our new house the way we wanted it. Two of our neighbours weren't that nice so for a couple years it was awkward at times. One of the awkward neighbours moved away after 3 years and the other 'grew up' and is now pretty decent.

If I'd have judged the move after a week of putting the first offer in, or even two years after the actual move, I might have regretted it. After 5 years or so, our house finally felt like our home. It's now 18 years after the somewhat traumatic move it turned out to be one of the best things my wife and I have done for our Villa family. 

I occasionally drive past where I lived 20 years ago; it has gone downhill.

9 hours ago, sidcow said:

Wow,  Tony needs a bump! 

Was he there again on Saturday or is that funny photo of him with Jack an old one? 

He was at Villa Park on Saturday. After his recent comments about jet-lag and his appearance and speech at the world robotics conference, we should look very closely at what may or may not be Tony in the future.

24 minutes ago, StefanAVFC said:

"it's too early to judge" is such a cop-out.

Why?

I think it's way too early to regret voting either way. I'll be judging whether the result was the correct decision in 10 years or so.

Well Santa's got to fill his time with something when he's off duty.

"Facebook Live! Is he ready?"  

Artificial grass. First couple were too high and I wasn't entirely convinced by the samples on offer. My favourite was after some haggling on the price and the length of the guarantee. 

Voted. Currently leading.

27 minutes ago, Xann said:

So Norman Tebbit was once conjoined!

4 hours ago, sne said:

So is it true that they are legally forbidden by the BBC lawyers to do any "specials", "road trips", "challenges" or "rebuilds"?

If so they might as well cancel the show. 

I doubt it. As each episode of the first series is in a different country, it could be argued that they are all "specials" and/or "road trips" and the premise of the SAS section in the second episode was definitely set as a "challenge".

There are a few theories why Gestede took the penalty ahead of Kodjia. I suspect there is a continually updated pecking order at the club but it could also be that substitute Gestede was physically and mentally fresher than Kodjia and/or that keepers are usually briefed about the penalty technique of the opposition's starting XI first choice penalty taker which wouldn't have included Rudy.

Rosberg has had more car failures than Hamilton so Rosberg was probably due a more reliable season.

Jack has stopped falling over quite so easily outside of the box, is getting on with the game quicker when the referee doesn't award a fowl and is pressing the opposition more when he's not got the ball. All big improvements to his game. As unspectacular as it may have been to most, I particularly enjoyed him running at the Cardiff player who was lining up a long pass forward in the last few minutes of yesterday's game. Jack started 20 yards away and was never likely to be able to tackle the player before the pass was played. The Cardiff player saw Jack running at him and played a hurried pass out of play and slipped over in the process. Impressive commitment from Jack so late in the game.

1 hour ago, Tayls said:

When Elphick came on, did Chester switch to the left side of CB, or did he remain on the right side? 

Elphick played right CB, Chester on the left.

You'll be able to save better when you're happier in your new place.

Any way of you getting a mortgage and buying instead of making landlords richer?

3 minutes ago, Meath_Villan said:

Your soul 

My soul isn't worth anything like $53 or a Fire HD 8!

20 minutes ago, Meath_Villan said:

Anyone with a relation in the states the Fire hd 8 is like $53

If it's 'like $53', what does it actually cost?

Good luck, hope it goes well for you.

Is there a deposit you will lose if you don't pay your current landlord the 28 days rent in lieu of notice?

1 hour ago, snowychap said:

It's 704 measures not 704 deals that are affected by protectionist measures.

You're right - the report is talking about protectionism in its widest form and thus it's non-tariff barriers as well as tariffs and it says towards the end that:

The report would still suggest that protectionism is an issue though it seems to have the EU down as one of the least bad offenders and seems to suggest that emerging markets are more of a problem (save for India).

What proportion of world trade is affected by the 704 protectionist measures? As I wrote, if it's a very low proportion then a quarter increase may still mean comparatively few protectionist measures affect world trade and if it's a large proportion we either accept it's increase is part of world trade or ensure new UK trade deals are different even outside the EU.

15 hours ago, snowychap said:

And yet tariffs or trade restrictions continue to be imposed.

 

15 hours ago, snowychap said:

Applying the EU's understanding of protectionism, the total number of trade restrictions adopted by G20 members since 2008 reached 704 measures at the end of June 2014.That number was by 23.4% higher than the total in June 2013

Three comments:

The quoted report lists numerous types 'trade restrictions' that don't equate to tariffs.

I don't know whether 704 is a high percentage of the total G20 trade deals. If it's 704 amongst tens of thousands then even a 23.4% increase to a very low proportion equates to not a lot.

Supposing the 'trade restrictions' did equate to tariffs in many cases and the '704 trade restrictions' already in place at June 2014 did represent a significant proportion of the total number of trade deals, it appears that tariffs are already something we have to live with, irrespective of leaving the EU.

There is nothing I can do to influence the negotiations in leaving the European Union, so I'm not stressing too much. Currently, I'm financially better off because of the referendum result but I accept that may change. Most of the 'leavers' I have spoken to after the  result have accepted there may be a 'price to pay'.

There is little to be gained in imposing trade tariffs so my guess is that after a period of grandstanding (mostly by the EU in an attempt to cement or paper over (depending on one's view of the future of the EU) the cracks created by the first large country to leave it's Union), there will be agreements in place that don't significantly damage the trade of the UK and the EU. Of course the finance markets will continue to be volatile but there always has been periods of volatility, so little change there. Facts will continue to be interpreted to support either side of the argument but as the years pass and decades pass, the UK's former membership of the Union will fade to a distant memory.

We need to know what the scope of Tony's plan for Villa Park is before making suggestions. There is little point in talking about a new stadium based at the centre of a new sports/retail/residential complex with direct transport links to the city centre, if Tony sets a budget that will only stretch to jet washing the dirty concrete on the back on the North Stand. Similarly, there's little point in restricting our thoughts to fast beer pouring devices if Tony's got large investment and development plans. Come on Tony, give us a clue! 

I hope your kids get well soon, RV.

4 hours ago, Designer1 said:

I think he looks better. Like someone you hope finds love on The Undateables.