AI Shut-downs, and the Iran Peace Deal – what does it all mean?

Why I’d be voting for Binny MacBinface!

Blain’s Morning Porridge July 9th, 2026 – Why I’d be voting for Binny MacBinface! “The problem with political jokes is that they get elected…” The fear of what might follow The Labour Government haunts the Gilts Market. Relief may come from the political implosion of Nigel Farage. Grubby Sleaze surrounds him as the UK’s much-loved Man of the People morphs into a discount-priced Mini-me version of Trump. The Crypto and graft entanglements that envelop him have shattered what made him so successful. Farage is no longer one of us. He is Them. It’s 10-years since the UK’s Natural Environment Council decided it be terwibbly democratic to let the Great British Public choose the name of its new polar research vessel. Someone suggested “Boaty MacBoatface” and everyone thought it a wonderful giggle. Naturally the comedy name won the popular vote… but the thought of the UK’s territorial ambitions being represented around the Southern Oceans by Boaty MacBoatface was too much for the British Antarctic Survey who would operate the vessel. A compromise was reached. The ship was named the Sir David Attenborough after a genuine national treasure.  Since the ship and the drone submersible given the Boaty MacBoatface moniker were launched in 2020 they’ve done sterling research work. The great British Public like nothing more than a good old-fashioned belly-laugh at the expense of the establishment. Which leads me to wonder if Nigel Farage has just made a massive Binny MacBinface error. Wouldn’t it be funny if he loses the Clacton By-Election to Count Binface – the comedy successor to the Monster Raving Looney Party?

Is this the End of Nato?

Blain’s Morning Porridge, July 8th, 2026: Is this the End of Nato?  “Trump is America’s answer to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, weakening a superpower he meant to strengthen.” NATO has been the core of the Western Alliance and Transatlantic Economy. The men in the ill-fitting Florsheim dress shoes have broken it. What will follow is uncertain, but will clearly impact global markets and geopolitics to an enormous degree. The deepening Atlantic rift puts the need for European defence, sovereignty and resilience right at the top of the priority list.  Will this week’s Ankara NATO summit be remembered as the moment NATO ruptured? The summit is heading for the rocks. The strongest and most successful military alliance and economic alignment in global history is cracked. If/when it splinters into broken shards, it will be the definitional end to the era of growth and prosperity that defined the American era. The end of the transatlantic economy will have massive consequences for global trade, markets, and geopolitical alliances. Every investor should be factoring in the probabilities it may happen with their portfolio structures in terms of bonds and tech. It will trigger a rethink/reset of literally every single aspect of modern societies in terms of who controls what, supply chains, and strategic sovereignty as “the pond” becomes a “sundering sea”. You can read the Morning Porridge by subscribing on ⁠www.morningporridge.com⁠ [http://www.morningporridge.com], and have it delivered fresh to your inbox every morning!

Overturn this.

Blain’s Morning Porridge July 7th, 2026: Overturn this. “Some people believe Football is a matter of life and death. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that.” What Football fans would not want Donald Trump supporting their team? Who would say no to Trump’s superpower to reverse any referee decision? His intervention into the World Cup leaves the rest of the world shaking its collective head in disbelief. Another reason to laugh at America. These things have consequences. When is America going to wake up?  “Overturn this…” The Belgian Football Association comment on beating the USA last night said it all. Overturn this. Donald Trump has an unsurpassed ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. The World Cup was on course to be a massive Soft Power win for America. Fans may have been fleeced by FIFA, the official ticket tout, but generally they’ve loved it. Some of the games have been fantastic.  You can read the Morning Porridge by subscribing on ⁠www.morningporridge.com⁠ [http://www.morningporridge.com], and have it delivered fresh to your inbox every morning!

The World Cup, The Berlin Wall, and Soft Power vs Russia

Blain’s Morning Porridge July 6th, 2026 “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist…” England will take a confidence boost from the World Cup win vs Mexico. The Russians will be furious – their war plan requires The West’s resilience and pride is weakened through disinformation and instability. Countering Cognitive Warfare requires the acknowledgement it’s happening, that we fight it, and acknowledge our strengths and weaknesses, and that unity wins!   “C’mon England!” Not words you would ever expect a Scotsman to say…. “Gentlemen in England still abed shall think themselves accursed they were not there (in front of their tellies at 3 am) and hold their manhood cheap while any speaks that watched them upon the bloody field in Mexico…” Well done, England! Beating Mexico 3-2! Of course I did not watch. (Why would I? In the real world I support two teams: Scotland and whoever is playing England!) I expected to wake up to the news England’s hearts had been ceremonially hacked out and their bodies cast down the steps of the pyramid that is the Azteca. Nope. The World Cup is getting interesting. Bring on the Nogs! Engerland..! Engerland..! and we all like Vindaloo… maybe even in the Saracen’s Head in Glasgow? (maybe not…) Time to support the Auld Enemy! Meanwhile, one of my great chums found himself on the front page of the Times this weekend. Steve has erected a piece of the Berlin Wall [https://www.thetimes.com/uk/london/article/berlin-wall-london-garden-dispute-9bgz0njwg] in his back garden. Lefty that I am, I consider the Berlin Wall to be a monument to the success of Free Markets, Democracy and Freedom. A similar chunk stands outside the Imperial War Museum as a reminder of who won the Cold War – a bloodless war the West won by outcompeting the Soviets economically. You can read the Morning Porridge by subscribing on ⁠www.morningporridge.com⁠ [http://www.morningporridge.com], and have it delivered fresh to your inbox every morning!

Happy Birthday America and what ails Broken Britain

Blain’s Morning Porridge July 3rd, 2026 “Reorganising the civil service is like drawing a knife through a bowl of marbles.” Compare and contrast the USA and Britain. The new country and the old. Our problems are not in our inventiveness, our skills or our people, but in how our societies work. We suffer from Politics that don’t govern, Businesses that don’t share, and Bureaucracies that don’t deliver. These are problems of late-stage democracies in need of a reset. Politicians keep promising – maybe one day one of them will actually make changes! Happy Birthday America! Have a great party! Celebrate a quarter millennium of awesomeness! Across the pond in Europe we sincerely mean that. We have much to thank the USA for and much to be proud of. Britain’s finest sailed the ocean to the new world and forged a nation. It was a reaction to a far-away tyrant’s actions, founded on the basis all men are created equal and may only be ruled with the consent of the governed. The new state attracted Europe’s huddled masses giving it the strength and diversity to thrive. Today it is the most powerful nation on Earth – as its’ leader keeps reminding us. The USA has worked pretty well – thus far! You can read the Morning Porridge by subscribing on ⁠www.morningporridge.com⁠ [http://www.morningporridge.com], and have it delivered fresh to your inbox every morning!