Election Year or Fear!

[ramAnag]

lets say if you make a 10% mark up on selling a product, then it the product cost goes up by eg 50% you will increase your price to maintain the 10% markup - meaning your gross profits in monetary terms will go up 50%. You havent changed your margin but the turnover and cost of sales have risen proportionately. Equally you have a bigger base turnover to spread your overhheads across hence not profit will increase by more than 50%.

Of course the converse is true in that if prices fall then your gross margin will fall proportionately and your ability to absorb overheads will become impaired.

This where windfall taxes are a tad unfair in that they will get you when markets go up, but there is no equivalent relief when markets fall. In an incredibly volatile market where prices were moving significantly from day to day a lot also depends on the timing of the market shifts.

This is an exceptionally simplistic version as oil trading in particular (but also as with most commodities) yjr uses of futures trading hedging an options smooth things out longer term, but in any one quarterly cycle there can be very anomalous results.. The other quarter to quarter impact is simply the massive increase in stock values of oil held at the previous quarter end - pump prices will have gone up whilst the older cheaper stock holdings are being sold of at current higher yields. Then again same things happen in reverse.

The figures for comparison are (per BP) "Reported profit for the quarter was $3.8 billion, compared with a loss of $3.4 billion for the fourth quarter 2025." Thats a lot more than doubled. I suspect what youve seen is results on an underlying replacement cost basis which have approx double butare somewhat "pie in the sky" and not representative of what the actual cost really are.

GP, I know I cannot compete with you on the finer details of finance. It’s your area of expertise, I accept that and value your input where such matters are concerned.

Morally however, my personal opinion is that it is unacceptable for companies and individuals to be profiting from a war which is increasing the cost of everything from going to work, going on holiday, planting crops, delivering food and heating our homes.

[Geoff Parkstone]

PS per Wiki the donation of 1.7 million you reference was made in 2016 to the "Vote Leave" party. He supported various pro Brexit parties including Farage's Brexit Party and also founded the Reclaim Party (formerly Brexit Express) in 2020. In total I'd suggest he has donated way more than 1.7 to Reform and its predecessor Farage fronted parties between 2016 to date. Dont underestimate!!

During the same timeframe the following have donated money to their preferred, Labour, party accoring to google3.

United the Union 52 million
UNISON27 million
GMB 26 million
USDAW 22 million

Hosking must try harder

[Geoff Parkstone]

ra "Morally however, my personal opinion is that it is unacceptable for companies and individuals to be profiting from a war which is increasing the cost of everything from going to work, going on holiday, planting crops, delivering food and heating our homes."

Im with you there but lets look at a bigger picture - there is no evidence that th wwatr will be profitable for BP since one isd only looking at a snapshot for the quarter. How the twists and turns of the oil market will treat them longer term is an unknown. Also, consider this: wasd talking to a mate in shipping at lunch time and already many economies are going back to coal as an energy source (bulker rates are peaking with heightened demand and the Australian coal producers etc are very happy). He postulated thats its conceivable that those companires that have returned to coal wont go back to oil given the higher cost, volatility of supply/demand and the fact that inevitably the conflict in Middle east will not ever be resolved.

Its an interesting theory that I dont altogether buy into, but consider that impact on the environment and the impact on BP profits longer term

[ramAnag]

PS per Wiki the donation of 1.7 million you reference was made in 2016 to the "Vote Leave" party. He supported various pro Brexit parties including Farage's Brexit Party and also founded the Reclaim Party (formerly Brexit Express) in 2020. In total I'd suggest he has donated way more than 1.7 to Reform and its predecessor Farage fronted parties between 2016 to date. Dont underestimate!!

During the same timeframe the following have donated money to their preferred, Labour, party accoring to google3.

United the Union 52 million
UNISON27 million
GMB 26 million
USDAW 22 million

Hosking must try harder

Given the foundations, origins and original purpose of the Labour Party - to provide the working man with representation in Parliament - it doesn’t seem so surprising.

Compare and contrast with Reform UK where the biggest backers are crypto currency magnate Christopher Harbourne, the aforementioned Hosking and Richard Tice who have, between them, contributed 23 million GDP to RUK and it’s rather harder to take Farage’s ‘man/Party of the people’ claim remotely seriously…and I haven’t even had to mention Elon Musk’s possible proposed huge contribution yet.

[Andy_Faber]

Eargate. I always doubted it as it is something seen many a time and oft at WWE and its forerunner the WWF shows.

I googled "if a bullet grazed my ear would it leave a scar?" The answer is...

Yes, a bullet grazing the ear would almost certainly leave a scar. The injury would likely result in a permanent, shallow, or irregular notch in the cartilage, as ear cartilage does not regenerate, and healing involves the formation of scar tissue. While small lacerations might close quickly, significant damage to the skin and cartilage generally leads to a noticeable scar or distortion.
Source - Weniger Plastic Surgery

Key Aspects of a Bullet Graze to the Ear:
Scar Tissue Formation: Because ear cartilage has a poor blood supply, it does not heal seamlessly; instead, the body fills the damaged area with scar tissue.
Permanent Distortion: A graze from a high-velocity round, such as a rifle bullet, can remove skin and cartilage, leaving a permanent depression or deformed edge, as 7 and 1 discuss in their Quora posts regarding similar injuries 2, 7.
Healing Time: Such injuries, while not immediately fatal, can take months to fully heal.
Wound Characteristics: A grazing wound often produces an elliptical furrow with ragged edges, which typically leaves a permanent scar.
Source - PubMed Central (PMC) (.gov)

While some superficial grazing wounds might heal with minimal scarring, any injury that tears the cartilage will leave a lasting mark.

You may think that was a conspiracy theory but it's backed up by fact. His ear shows no sign of having been "shot" and the facts say it would be scarred.

The haphazard way this latest "attack" panned out is, IMO, one of 3 things. A fake, just as I believe eargate to be. A totally amateur affair with no real planning by someone of low intelligence, and this bloke is, apparently, quite smart between the ears. Or the work of someone who's gone doolally.

I respect your right to believe one or more of the scores of conspiracy theories, and hundreds of nuances within each, or to make up your own, but I'm not even sure in this instance what your point is - why in fact does it matter how or if at all his ear was grazed? If you think its an indication that the event didn't happen, you'd better ask the two people critically injured by the hail of bullets as they sat behind Trump or for that matter the family of the poor fellah who was killed.

I think there are too many folk letting their dislike of Trump cloud their judgement

[Geoff Parkstone]

Given the foundations, origins and original purpose of the Labour Party - to provide the working man with representation in Parliament - it doesn?t seem so surprising.

Compare and contrast with Reform UK where the biggest backers are crypto currency magnate Christopher Harbourne, the aforementioned Hosking and Richard Tice who have, between them, contributed 23 million GDP to RUK and it?s rather harder to take Farage?s ?man/Party of the people? claim remotely seriously?and I haven?t even had to mention Elon Musk?s possible proposed huge contribution yet.

So in case 1 we have major contributors sponsoring a party to give them a voice on the political stage = good, yet in case 2 we have major contributors sponsoring a party to give them a voice on the political stage = bad.

I'm struggling to see beyond your own preferential bias

[swaledale]

I respect your right to believe one or more of the scores of conspiracy theories, and hundreds of nuances within each, or to make up your own, but I'm not even sure in this instance what your point is - why in fact does it matter how or if at all his ear was grazed? If you think its an indication that the event didn't happen, you'd better ask the two people critically injured by the hail of bullets as they sat behind Trump or for that matter the family of the poor fellah who was killed.

I think there are too many folk letting their dislike of Trump cloud their judgement

Maybe, or perhaps given the lies, contradictions and obvious falsehoods that surround Trump and spew daily from his mouth and the mouths of the people around him, its not surprising that people are sceptical of the "true" nature of these events.

I don't see anybody suggesting they didn't happen, just questioning the how and why they occurred.


Surely though by now, any vaguely sentient person is beyond thinking that there are any upsides to Trump and his cronies? Which suggests that around 35% of American voters are not even vaguely sentient.

[swaledale]

With the defection of Tory MP's and ex MP's many of whom were in the last government, the argument put forward that Reform at least offer somethig different to mainstream political parties looked increasingly shaky (not that it was a strong one to begin with), a casual look at the part's policies and the background of its members and funders completley demolishes it.

An unusually high share of Reform candidates (compared to other politicians) come from what might best be described as petty bourgeois backgrounds – including small business owners, farmers, landlords and self-employed professionals – rather than from traditionally working-class occupational categories. This contrasts with Reform’s “party of the workers” branding and complicates any straightforward claim around working-class representation.

Third, Reform candidates more consistently espouse pro-business economic stances than explicitly pro-worker redistributive policies. While rhetoric about supporting jobs and lowering the cost of living occasionally surfaces, there is minimal alignment with substantive economic redistribution or strong labour protections that would broadly benefit workers as a class. Indeed, by supporting deregulation, lower taxation and market-oriented reforms, Reform is basically advocating for the same kind of neoliberal policies that have exacerbated class inequality in Britain over the last few decades.

[swaledale]

PS per Wiki the donation of 1.7 million you reference was made in 2016 to the "Vote Leave" party. He supported various pro Brexit parties including Farage's Brexit Party and also founded the Reclaim Party (formerly Brexit Express) in 2020. In total I'd suggest he has donated way more than 1.7 to Reform and its predecessor Farage fronted parties between 2016 to date. Dont underestimate!!

During the same timeframe the following have donated money to their preferred, Labour, party accoring to google3.

United the Union 52 million
UNISON27 million
GMB 26 million
USDAW 22 million

Hosking must try harder

I'd have thought that someone as well versed with figures as yourself would ahve known better than to produce this GP. The comparison surely must be over the time frame when Reform was set up (or changed from being the Brexit party) and should include all major donors to Reform.

How much has Reform UK received in donations?
Reform UK has received £35,828,847.16 in total donations from 333 documented donations.
Who are the top donors to Reform UK?
The top donors to Reform UK are: Christopher Harborne (£22,190,000.00), Jeremy J Hosking (£1,718,000.00), Leave Means Leave Ltd (£990,000.00), Nicholas A C Candy (£990,000.00), and Fiona Cottrell (£750,000.00).
What was the largest single donation to Reform UK?
The largest single donation was £9,000,000.00 from Christopher Harborne on August 1, 2025.
Who is the biggest overall donor to Reform UK?
The biggest overall donor to Reform UK is Christopher Harborne with total donations of £22,190,000.00.
Who has made the most donations to Reform UK?
Tisun Investments Ltd has made the most donations to Reform UK with 33 separate donations totaling £613,000.00.

[ramAnag]

So in case 1 we have major contributors sponsoring a party to give them a voice on the political stage = good, yet in case 2 we have major contributors sponsoring a party to give them a voice on the political stage = bad.

I'm struggling to see beyond your own preferential bias

Agreeing with the responses already offered by Swale but I’d add - beyond my own ‘preferential bias’ - the contributions made by the Unions represent the views (and funds) of many whereas the funding of Reform UK by a few very wealthy individuals is, imo, rather more sinister and less transparent.

[ramAnag]

GP, an innocent (honestly) enquiry. Given your knowledge of all things financial…where do you stand on the whole cryptocurrency thing?
I’ll have to admit it’s all a mystery to me, but Messrs. Farage and Harbourne, amongst other rich men, seem to be major fans, although there are suggestions of serious links to terrorism and other forms of illegality.

[ramAnag]

I respect your right to believe one or more of the scores of conspiracy theories, and hundreds of nuances within each, or to make up your own, but I'm not even sure in this instance what your point is - why in fact does it matter how or if at all his ear was grazed? If you think its an indication that the event didn't happen, you'd better ask the two people critically injured by the hail of bullets as they sat behind Trump or for that matter the family of the poor fellah who was killed.

I think there are too many folk letting their dislike of Trump cloud their judgement

In the last two weeks Trump has published images of himself as a) Jesus and b) a ‘Terminator’ like figure.
I think there are too many people who fail to recognise that he will stop at nothing to further his own agenda and that those who died/suffered injury MAY have been anything other than collateral damage.

[MadAmster]

I respect your right to believe one or more of the scores of conspiracy theories, and hundreds of nuances within each, or to make up your own, but I'm not even sure in this instance what your point is - why in fact does it matter how or if at all his ear was grazed? If you think its an indication that the event didn't happen, you'd better ask the two people critically injured by the hail of bullets as they sat behind Trump or for that matter the family of the poor fellah who was killed.

I think there are too many folk letting their dislike of Trump cloud their judgement

I don't doubt there were shots fired. An off duty firefighter was killed. I do, however, gravely doubt that Trump's ear was hit. That is backed up by the fact that recent pictures of his right ear show no sign of having been grazed by a bullet. Hope that makes things more clear for you. If he'd been hit there would be scarring. Medical fact, as I posted earlier.

[Geoff Parkstone]

GP, an innocent (honestly) enquiry. Given your knowledge of all things financial…where do you stand on the whole cryptocurrency thing?
I’ll have to admit it’s all a mystery to me, but Messrs. Farage and Harbourne, amongst other rich men, seem to be major fans, although there are suggestions of serious links to terrorism and other forms of illegality.

I wouldn't touch them with yours. Most have no substance and a lot of inherent volatility. At best sold by snake oil salesmen, at worst pump and dump Ponzis.

[Andy_Faber]

I don't doubt there were shots fired. An off duty firefighter was killed. I do, however, gravely doubt that Trump's ear was hit. That is backed up by the fact that recent pictures of his right ear show no sign of having been grazed by a bullet. Hope that makes things more clear for you. If he'd been hit there would be scarring. Medical fact, as I posted earlier.

Thanks, it clarifies apart from there being conflicting evidence of amount/type/angle/location of penetration versus blood lost and, why does it matter?