Quote:
Originally Posted by SV650rules
Too many people who run this country down, we regularly swap places with New York as the best financial centre in the world. ARM processors of Cambridge, world leaders in powerful energy efficient processors for mobile devices ( which were ignored by others because 'mobile phones would never catch on, they were just a fad' ). Concord, ( the only bit the french designed was the decor ) flew so fast and so high ( without afterburners due to genius who designed the engine intakes at Filton ) that few military jets could catch it ( EE Lightning was pretty much only one, and that had no range ). As Bibio says many tech advancements come out of UK but are sold off or given away for peanuts. For a small Island with 0.1% of world population we really do punch well above our weight. I say a p0x on people who run this country down.
Name one other country that has thrown so much money at people and companies during the Covid-19 emergency ?
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I'm assuming you mean that Concord could cruise without afterburners because it needed them to reach cruising speed.
Spending on covid bailouts? We are not even close:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52450958
ARM who were British are now Japanese and heading for Saudi ownership. Creating ideas and then selling them to other countries is not a great example of being a world leader - it shows we're lousy at business.
I'm not running the country down but we talk and strut as if we are as important as we once were. We need help from the Americans to launch our nuclear weapons, we had vital help from them in the Falklands. In Iraq we sent soldiers into battle in unprotected Land Rovers. The second aircraft carrier was going to be mothballed because we couldn't afford to run two (but now have magically found the money) and like I mentioned before, we need US Marines on board because of our lack of aircraft. We talk big but don't have the money to back it up so maybe our rhetoric should match our finances? Painting the flag on a military aircraft is the same thinking - looks impressive but we cannot back it up and it would need to be repainted in a hostile situation hence it's a waste of money. If the PM wants to fly, let him go commercial airlines and save money. (make it Ryanair).
In science, based on number of scientific articles published we are 5th., by patents we are 12th (below Brazil). The LIBOR scandal dented our financial reputation and yes, we are number 2 at the moment, Brexit will probably change that (according to the City).
Sport? I know little but based on soccer competitions we're as good at that as we are in the Eurovision song contest.
I write to my MP regularly asking him to intervene when our engineering companies are being sold off, Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds being the last. He's a Tory, says he can't intervene in the free market. It's in the national interest! Finally, they are now talking about introducing a law that will stop hostile takeovers by foreign companies. I'd like to think that the virus will be a wake up call since we were so ill equipped to deal with it in terms of making the necessary medical protective equipment but based on my experience of the last 50 years nothing will change, but let's hope
