Quote of the Day

Philip Stephens, Financial Times:

By prioritising a hard Brexit for England over border arrangements for Northern Ireland, [Boris] Johnson put economics on the side of Irish nationalism.

Basildon Man

 Financial Times --  

Exchange group Euronext has completed its €4.4bn purchase of Borsa Italiana and will concentrate its operations in the EU by moving its computer servers out of the UK. ... The takeover, formally cleared by regulators on Thursday, means Europe’s largest listing venue will move the computer hardware on which deals on exchanges across the continent physically take place, from Basildon in Essex to Bergamo .. Many have spent millions on superfast cables and microwave radio networks and towers so they can race in milliseconds between trading venues in Slough, Basildon or central London and Frankfurt to execute trades. “It seems like Brexit gets harder and harder as it gets done,” said one trading executive who declined to be identified. However he said ICE had been one of the more expensive providers. “The move will be costly short-term but in the long-term it will be beneficial as [Italy] will be cheaper,” he said.

So one thing that Brexit has found out: Britain was expensive, but affordable by being in the EU. Once out, costs become more of a factor.  

Already Gone

 It's fine to do the "Prince Philip was an immigrant!" discourse if Twitter is your level. But people with a column at their disposal really should do better. Philip was also an immigrant from a different Europe -- one that was no longer on the map when he was born -- that of the multinational empires. World War 1 had destroyed these empires, and replaced them multi-ethnic nation states, that would then go on to destroy each other in World War 2. And what emerged from that was a Europe where borders corresponded more to "national identity," and a Europe with its Jewish population mostly killed or displaced. So rather than the easy layups, how about a reflection on which Europe was better, for whom, and why Philip's life story is more than validation for comfort-zone bourgeois opinions? 

Tonight I'm Gonna (Rock You Tonight)

 

The organizers of the world’s leading events are gathering for an invite-only online conference to discuss the future of events.

Event organizer? Want to join?https://t.co/o089XC05Sb

— Paddy Cosgrave 🏴‍☠️ (@paddycosgrave) April 16, 2021

Live Action Role Playing, Belfast edition

Financial Times -- 

Residents watched the action [riots[ from cars parked six deep in a retail park separated from New Lodge by high railings. “It’s like Netflix,” said one man in his sixties, adding that he had spent the previous nights bingewatching US crime drama Quantico. Some brought snacks.