@ThomasCArthur Interesting initial thread from Tom. And an equally interesting response from yourself. But I'm afraid I think you just don't get the point of Tom's thread or understand Nicola's approach. Let me explain.

What follows is a thread.

@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 1. Firstly, you should know I'm a Yoon who voted No in 2014. I've followed the split in the Yes side with great interest. It may help to see this from a Yoons perspective.

*I hate the term Yoon, but I'll use it here for ease.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 2. I'll start by telling you, imo, what the biggest threat to the Union is; Brexit. Many of us moderates and undecided were turned off Indy by the blood & soil stuff was so prevalent on the run upto 2014.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 3. The blood and soil stuff returned with vengeance during the Brexit campaign and many of us who were turned off by Indy because of this started to question Britishness.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 4. The shambolic exit and bumbling Boris government has compounded this and many of us moderates and pragmatic have started to become open to the idea of Indy.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 5. Meanwhile, while all this has been happening over the course of a few years...Nicola has been biding her time in the background, patiently allowing Boris and Co to give themselves enough rope to hang themselves.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 6. While Boris has been turning many of us off, Nicola has been trying her best to play down the decisive them & us approach so favoured of her predecessor and many high profile bloggers.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur So where are we Today? Is it 20 polls in a row showing Indy in the lead? Many of us ready to open up to the idea of Indy. SNP in commanding lead. Nicola has bided her time brilliantly and is about to strike at precisely the right moment.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 8. When SNP get their landslide later this year, they will go out for a ref. And when Boris refuses that, support will go through the fkn roof. Boris telling us what we can & cannot do? Many will support Indy purely on a point of principle.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 9. HOW CAN YOU GUYS NOT SEE THAT?
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 10. Now here's the biggest threat to Indy. Salmond. The Rev. Hardcore bloggers. Tommy. AUOB. I could go on. Us moderates and floaters, we don't care that the UK government has built an office complex in Edinburgh.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 11. We don't consider ourselves to be a repressed colony of England. We don't care about any of the decisive shit they constantly bang on about. We genuinely wants what what's best for Scotland. In 2014 that may well have been remaining in the UK
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 12. Today, though... what's best for Scotland may well be as an independent nation, and members of the EU.
@SandyWito1 @ThomasCArthur 13. I think and hope I've made my point... I'm in danger of rambling now. But seriously, the decisive them and us, the hardcore approach, trying to put the idea that the English are c**ts and we are repressed didn't work in 2014. It wont work today, either.

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So, as the #MegaMillions jackpot reaches a record $1.6B and #Powerball reaches $620M, here's my advice about how to spend the money in a way that will truly set you, your children and their kids up for life.

Ready?

Create a private foundation and give it all away. 1/

Let's stipulate first that lottery winners often have a hard time. Being publicly identified makes you a target for "friends" and "family" who want your money, as well as for non-family grifters and con men. 2/

The stress can be damaging, even deadly, and Uncle Sam takes his huge cut. Plus, having a big pool of disposable income can be irresistible to people not accustomed to managing wealth.
https://t.co/fiHsuJyZwz 3/

Meanwhile, the private foundation is as close as we come to Downton Abbey and the landed aristocracy in this country. It's a largely untaxed pot of money that grows significantly over time, and those who control them tend to entrench their own privileges and those of their kin. 4

Here's how it works for a big lotto winner:

1. Win the prize.
2. Announce that you are donating it to the YOUR NAME HERE Family Foundation.
3. Receive massive plaudits in the press. You will be a folk hero for this decision.
4. Appoint only trusted friends/family to board. 5/
I've seen many news articles cite that "the UK variant could be the dominant strain by March". This is emphasized by @CDCDirector.

While this will likely to be the case, this should not be an automatic cause for concern. Cases could still remain contained.

Here's how: 🧵

One of @CDCgov's own models has tracked the true decline in cases quite accurately thus far.

Their projection shows that the B.1.1.7 variant will become the dominant variant in March. But interestingly... there's no fourth wave. Cases simply level out:

https://t.co/tDce0MwO61


Just because a variant becomes the dominant strain does not automatically mean we will see a repeat of Fall 2020.

Let's look at UK and South Africa, where cases have been falling for the past month, in unison with the US (albeit with tougher restrictions):


Furthermore, the claim that the "variant is doubling every 10 days" is false. It's the *proportion of the variant* that is doubling every 10 days.

If overall prevalence drops during the studied time period, the true doubling time of the variant is actually much longer 10 days.

Simple example:

Day 0: 10 variant / 100 cases -> 10% variant
Day 10: 15 variant / 75 cases -> 20% variant
Day 20: 20 variant / 50 cases -> 40% variant

1) Proportion of variant doubles every 10 days
2) Doubling time of variant is actually 20 days
3) Total cases still drop by 50%

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I think a plausible explanation is that whatever Corbyn says or does, his critics will denounce - no matter how much hypocrisy it necessitates.


Corbyn opposes the exploitation of foreign sweatshop-workers - Labour MPs complain he's like Nigel

He speaks up in defence of migrants - Labour MPs whinge that he's not listening to the public's very real concerns about immigration:

He's wrong to prioritise Labour Party members over the public:

He's wrong to prioritise the public over Labour Party