hanekam

It was a very good system. Collecting it's own fees added a degree of separation between government and public broadcaster and protected it's independence.

The European model used to be empowering the public broadcaster to collect a TV licensing fee, but is now moving to direct tax payer subsidy because internet streaming made that too easy to circumvent

Western conservative parties were mostly fiscally responsible until the 80s, and outside the USA they've tended to come around on many civil liberties. Women's suffrage was passed with cross-aisle support in many European countries, for instance, as was same-sex marriage. Even today, the conservative parties in Northern Europe mostly stand for fiscal responsibility. In general, conservative parties in systems with Proportional representation seem to be much less exposed to capture by the far right.

I'll almost certainly never vote conservative, but given how many do, I'm thankful to be living in a country where that means budget cuts and reduced income tax for the upper middle, and not the stripping away of rights and liberties and deficit-funded tax cuts for the rich.

That's the point. The Republican party isn't conservative at all, but radical. They've abandoned most conservative political positions, including orthodox fiscal management, and exchanged conservative values for a constructed collection of 'traditional values', which are derived less from tradition than from the endless grievances that have replaced policy as their political program

Corbyn was the worst thing that could've happened to Labour. The man just did not understand the role of Party Leader and could not prioritise party or country over his own nostaligia-tinged ideological pet causes

He's making light of how twisted the US understanding of the word "conservative" has become.

Finland

Norway, not Finland. Women have a duty to serve but so few are called up that it's kind of voluntary in practice.

Salads and sandwiches should be served room temperature, never right out of the fridge cold

This is bordering on the conspiratorial. The Russians believed they would defeat Ukraine very quickly. They never expected to be in this situation

Grit your teeth

Stiff upper lip

Sisu

Many ways to articulate this

On the other hand, China had access to those resources already, and are now much more exposed internationally, as evidenced by recent Western efforts to "de-risk" economic relations.

India are making a lot of money but they've also lost their main weapons supplier and are now forced to turn to Western countries to fill the gap. A position they most definitely didn't want to be in.

It isn't good news for Russia either.