Latest Moan From You and Me 2025

Trump is more than happy to buddy up with Putin. They have the same mind set of wanting complete control over everything, especially the money. Trump saying that Ukraine started the war just shows his mentality.

 

I visited Georgia in around 1994 I did not feel safe at all, they didn't have footpaths. I was stopped by the police and threatened with being shot if I moved while they checked my details.
One of the people I was visiting had an AK47 behind the sofa with a sniper sight on so he could "get any deer that strayed into his garden" from the sofa!

 

I travelled, as a tourist right across the US in the 80s and first half of the 90s, I never came across any problems and found everyone friendly, most seemed to like the Brits, as they called us back then, not a name I particularly liked but even so, I've been called worse.
Mostly it was around the south west and national parks, and one trip was from LA to New York. I really liked the mid west.

Must admit I never liked NY, it was a similar shite hole to London.

 

I spent a month there in the summer of 1980. I was shocked by the levels of consumption and the entitled attitude (though we didn’t call it that back then). I have never had the slightest desire to return.

 

Loved California, but the numbers of homeless in San Francisco and San Diego were shocking. The National Parks we visited were amazing, but sadly, sounds like they are going to be let go to rack and ruin, with no rangers to look after them. The USA was always our first choice of destination, although we did feel we had to be aware of our surroundings. Never knew who was going to be carrying a concealed weapon! Such a crying shame, I’m sure there are millions of lovely people there, but how do you tell the good ones? Not all display their voting records on their hats. Last trip there was before Covid, and we won’t go again.

 

If reports are accurate, homelessness in San Francisco has reached catastrophic proportions.

 

I think you can be to suspicious, I wouldn't trust some i see in my own town yet alone in another country, but you can get paranoid if your not careful, I never even considered anyone carrying weapons.
Apart from a really good trip out into the desert in Arizona and the chance to try shooting at tin cans in a dry "wash", the saguaros near the roads and road signs were full of bullet holes in certain places, but lets not get over excited, I never found it a problem.

I remember being on a bus on other side of the border at Tijuana and the window near me had bullet holes in it, its all part of the fun.

 

I used to flip over the border every couple of weeks but these last few years, even "bargains" are no longer a good deal because of our pitiful dollar so I hadn't been back in almost a year. And the dollar was bad then but there are some things you must pick up on their side because you can't get it shipped here. Also I felt some of their businesses deserved my custom. Now I wouldn't go even if the dollar were at par. Not because of the people because most of the border town people are friendly and down to earth but you go deeper in country a bit and then you run into a lot of people with toffee on their beaks. Now, I just don't order anything that I would have to pick up. When someone threatens to invade you or war, even economically, them's fighting words!

I am tempted to go back and read that Berdick/Lederer (spelling?) just to see if it mirrors someone holding high office.

 

It is a problem everywhere! It's just more comfortable to be homeless in California than it is up here in the cold!

 

I don't know if @luciusmaximus is still looking in here - but I can recommend Seedaholic, a NI based company. A good range of varieties, good germination and quick delivery. (They also deliver south of the border, which is useful for me. )

Apologies for the late recommendation, but I've been travelling for a few days.

 

@CanadianLori, we have relatives in Sweden, and they mentioned that they very rarely saw elderly homeless there. They usually had an alcohol problem, and falling asleep outside meant that they didnt survive too many Scandinavian winters. A solution has been that you can only buy alcohol in government run stores. No picking up a bottle of wine at the late night supermarket. You have to go to a Systembolaget, which has restricted opening hours, no special offers or anything to encourage you to buy extra.
I haven’t heard the expression ‘toffee on their beaks’ before! What does that mean?

 

Toffee nosed. It doesn't apply to all but there are bumptious trumptious ...

 

Indeed! But maybe this will be a tipping point. If the US is not a reliable superpower, can it maintain that status at all? It needs the backing of either the EU, UK, etc or Russia and China. Now, if I were China, I might be thinking there’s an opening here. If China ditched support for Russia and said to Zelensky, look, do a minerals deal with us instead and we have the power to ensure your safety, given we are relatively local and our firepower is second to none.

If the US saw it was not the only viable deal in town, things might move a bit more smoothly towards a settlement. China has used soft power across Africa. Why not here? (Of course, there would be no guarantee the soft wouldn’t harden in time. Look at Hong Kong.)

 

I think looking at Hong Kong would even soften up Zelenski.