Top Comments: the Week that Was in Britain edition

A brief look at just the past few days in the UK, after-the-jump ….

But first: Top Comments appears nightly, as a round-up of the best comments on Daily Kos. Surely ... you come across comments daily that are perceptive, apropos and .. well, perhaps even humorous. But they are more meaningful if they're well-known ... which is where you come in (especially in diaries/stories receiving little attention).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Send your nominations to TopComments at gmail dot com by 9:30 PM Eastern Time nightly, or by our KosMail message board. Please indicate (a) why you liked the comment, and (b) your Dkos user name (to properly credit you) as well as a link to the comment itself.

It seems somewhat prophetic, as World War II began in Europe eighty-three years ago this week (as the NYT image above shows).

Britain has had an uneasy transition out of Boris Johnson — as I noted in July with Hugh Grant supplying the hi-jinks (of “Yakety Sax”) on the day of his resignation. Yet he insisted on hanging-around until his Conservative Party formally met to select his successor (nearly two months later) which turned-out to be the favorite in the race, Liz Truss winning the party’s vote. 

For UK politics, my favorite essayist is Jonathan Freedland of The Guardian newspaper. Last Friday, his title was Once the world had Gorbachev and Mandela. Now we have Trump, Johnson and Truss. (Kinda sez a lot).

This past Tuesday, Jonathan wrote on the extra handicap that the new British prime minister Liz Truss faces: her predecessor (like 45) is unwilling to go away; perhaps hoping he will once again regain party leadership. In fact, he is “leaving office because of rule-changing by others, rather than rule-breaking by him”.

It figures: as in concluding his final address to Parliament, Boris began w/this line:

“I want to use the last few seconds … to give some words of advice to my successor, whoever he or she may be. No. 1: Stay close to the Americans”.

I wonder if by “the Americans” he meant himself (born in New York City) and his now-also-deposed Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak (who came in second place to Liz Truss in the Tory vote), who had a … US green card at his disposal.

Regular readers of mine know that I have a fondness for the official feline at No. 10 Downing Street … and this past Tuesday, he opined:

A great deal has been written on this site about the Queen’s death — favorable and reminding people of the legacy of the British Empire — and so I’ll add little. My favorite item: her seeming comfort being with Barack and Michelle Obama … 

Then, when 45 made his visit in 2018… she wore a brooch given by the Obamas.

Jonathan Freedland sums-up his thoughts on her death well.

The Chief Mouser of Downing Street sums-up the state of UK politics.

Let’s close with the apt 1973 song by members of the UK band Colosseum forming a short-term band Tempest… with Funeral Empire.

Now, on to Top Comments:

From elfling:

In the diary by boatsie about the effects of climate change causing current heat waves— Nonlinear wrote this excellent comment about his successes with a solar energy cooperative in red rural areas.

From Denise Oliver Velez:

In my own Caribbean Matters diary today — AVeng posted this comment about the celebration of Onam today in Kerala, along with many other insights about things happening in India.

Highlighted by Waimer:

In the front-page story about the death of Queen Elizabeth II— Top Comment, laughing til I cried! The way rfhusker immediately makes it about him with Russia Russia Russia & FBI!

And from Ed Tracey, your faithful correspondent this evening ........

In the front-page story about the county clerk in Colorado pleading not guilty to election tampering yet may have a subordinate testify against her — on two occasions John in Denver helpfully answers questions posed by other posters: one on socio-political analysis, the other on legal issues.  

Next - enjoy jotter's wonderful (and now eternal) *PictureQuilt™* below. Just click on the picture and it will magically take you to the comment featuring that photo.

TOP PHOTOS September 7th, 2022 (NOTE: Any missing images in the Quilt were removed because (a) they were from an unapproved source that somehow snuck through in the comments, or (b) it was an image from the DailyKos Image Library which didn't have permissions set to allow others to use it.)

And lastly: yesterday's Top Mojo - mega-mojo to the intrepid mik ...... who rescued this feature from oblivion:

1)  If I am an atheist, does that mean granting tax  … by tjlord +223

2)  I have been uneasy about Ukraine’s actual prospe … by Philip Munger +184

3)  If this was some Joe Blow NSA contractor with to … by TortugaSeven +182

4)  This is delicio​us. But I’m going to be … by FLwolverine +141

5)  Izyum is fully cut off. East of the Oskii less s … by kos +119

6)  There are a number of reports that Ukraine is cl … by quaoar +116

7)  Given that his co-conspirators got somewhere in  … by G2geek +110

8)  Getting ahead of things here, but how nice would … by manwhogetsthings +109

9)  Congrats on your 1st diary. by funguy2playwith +102

10) And all his properties, everywhere, would be tur … by nailbender +98

11) Whose god? … by Maltie +95

12) Holy s**t Batman! … by offgrid +92

12) I really am enjoying this. … by gharlane +92

14) [embed] by DEMonrat ankle biter +91

14) Read Me First … by The Geogre +91

14) DOJ should just indict him. They have obstructio … by Maltie +91

17) IANAL, but this does sound a lot like a judge ge … by sigmarthebad +90

18) Excellent news, excellent coverage and analysis! … by HeyMikey +86

19) Show me even one time when Stephens  took o … by buffan +83

20) The whole “NATO threatens us” has been nothing b … by Keranis +81

21) Looking at that map again, I’m surprised Russian … by kos +80

22) I remember Kos in April saying that Volokhiv Yar … by sumdumguy +78

22) [image] by Euro Yank +78

22) Mark— A meta question for you. Have you and Kos  … by I am not Arthur +78

25) Yes, They look light green on my monitor, but ye … by kos +77

25) Well, there were the Kurdish, but trump sold the … by manwhogetsthings +77

25) They suspect Ukraine is heading straight toward  … by DEMonrat ankle biter +77

28) My beautiful baby brother died of AIDS in 1994.& … by art ah zen +76

28) Maybe kidnapping men and boys off the street, fo … by ATinNM +76

30) A bit of beauty and happiness for all. by Cmae +75