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Iraq-US Battle for Hearts and Minds

06/05/07 15:47 | Permalink

According to a Pentagon poll of US troops in Iraq, more than a third condone the use of torture 'if it saves a comrade's life', while ten per cent admit to having kicked, slapped or punched Iraqis. The report concludes that tours of duty should be shorter than six months, as those troops posted in Iraq for longer periods are more likely to suffer mental-health problems.

It seems that at least a third have already been there far too long!

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Local Elections 2007

03/05/07 15:49 | Permalink

Politicians are becoming comparable to buses, you don't see any for ages and ages and then three come all at once. That happened to me today, so I knew it must be Polling Day for the local elections. All of them naturally wanted to be my best friend and once again I was left with finding the motivation to vote for a) Mr Arrogant b) Mr Patronising or c) Mr Hopeful. Faced with this great decision it was tempting to be as apathetic as most voters are nowadays and stay in the warmth of my house.

However, if I did, I would not be able to live with my guilt at betraying the people who fought so hard to gain me the vote and, more importantly, I would disqualify myself from moaning about the winners in the years to come. So, I was faced with a dilemma; I could not bring myself to vote for the two main parties but I did not want to waste my right to vote.
It was tempting to use the excuse that these are not 'real' elections anyway and the people standing are not 'real' politicians, but in some ways the elections for a local authority are more important and the effects more closely felt.

The answer to my problem appeared to come through my letterbox this morning. I live on The Isle of Sheppey in Kent and have been here for about nine years. It's a place where the scenery mirrors the population, in that it can be extremely attractive, or just plain ugly. As an 'islander' we tend to look a bit inwards from the rest of 'civilisation' and with the government spending 100 million pounds on a new bridge, we are suspicious of the desire to develop large swathes of the countryside.

The election leaflet of the independent party 'Sheppey First!' seemed to be very appealing, especially as it was fighting against the changes to the local schools, unrestricted new building, being treated as a poor relation to the mainland wards and the most eye catching of all, the claim that “Sheppey has suffered for years because more money has been taken from the island than is spent here.”

It seemed I had found a party I could support, until I looked at the bottom of the page to read the leaflet had been printed by a firm that was not on the island and not even in Kent, but in that great county across the estuary, Essex!!

It seems that 'Sheppey First!' have shot themselves in the foot and I am now back to square one.
My house is seeming to be very cosy at the moment!!

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Blair's Legacy

02/05/07 15:52 | Permalink

You cannot have failed to hear by now, that yesterday was the tenth anniversary of Tony Blair becoming Prime Minister. Much news print has been used discussing his legacy; Is it his misguiding the electorate over the war in Iraq? Is it the Cash for Honours debacle or is it the the massive increase in the amount of public spending over the last ten years? It is, of course, all these things and more, but what seems to be escaping the forum of discussion is his success at diminishing the long held democratic process of governing this country.

Members of Parliament used to represent their constituents first and their party second. It was quite common to see them arguing against their party if they did not agree with what was being attempted. Since Blair's regime took over the reigns, those MP's have been effectively neutered and are actively encouraged to follow the party line at all times. They must be constantly “on message” and not do anything unless it has been cleared by the party PR machine first.

Decisions that used to be made by the collective Cabinet now appear to be made by an unelected group at the inner circle of power. The Cabinet appears to have become just a rubber stamp to the decisions being made.

The news media are now closely managed and announcements from government are made when it is convenient, rather than when they should be due. Protesters are now barred from demonstrating within the earshot of Parliament - unless they have been officially approved - so MP's are now isolated from the discontent of the very people they represent. Monitoring of the individual's every action has increased almost exponentially, so that wherever you go nowadays, you are leaving a trail that can be followed and recorded for future use. Accountability for any mistakes made while in office is no longer accepted by the people who should be accepting it. The list goes on and on........

But, the real legacy of Mr Blair is the fact he has weakened the respect the public once had for politicians and made them almost figures of contempt.

What is worrying is that what follows him - whatever the colour of the party - is going to be no better!!

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Sting in the Bush

02/05/07 15:50 | Permalink

Four years on from the day President Bush stood under a banner proclaiming “Mission Accomplished” while claiming “major combat operations” were over, the everyday situation in Iraq proves how wrong he was. In the aftermath of 'Shock and Awe' where the US tried to impress the world with their military technology and firepower, he is now as trapped by his ego as he is by the situation he created.

The cost has been massive. So far, more than 3,350 of his own countrymen have been killed. The financial cost has already exceeded 400 billion dollars. Things are not improving - last month rated as the sixth deadliest month for US fatalities since the conflict started in 2003.

President Bush had sold the conflict to the world as being a war on global terror but according to figures released by the US State Department, terrorist attacks worldwide have increased by 25% and the number of fatalities caused by terrorism in the last 12 months has risen by 40 per cent.

Even a child knows that it is a dangerous thing to kick a sleeping hornet's nest; when they are disturbed, they fight back, and you get badly stung!!

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Food Adverts and Child Obesity

25/04/07 16:31 | Permalink

With the news today that a study by The University of Liverpool has shown that children who watch adverts for food more than double their intake of food afterwards I express some cynicism. Apparently, after watching such adverts obese kids ate 134 per cent more than normal, overweight kids 101 per cent more and normal children (whatever that may be) 84 per cent more.

As usual it sounds like an excuse and there is no mention of either personal or parental responsibility while the advertisers take full blame.

It does however give food for thought (sorry). If kids are so influenced by what they see in adverts maybe we should replace the food ads with ones for bicycles and the obesity problem will be solved overnight.

Somehow, I don't see the theory holding up!!

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Open House for Government Inspectors

25/04/07 10:59 | Permalink

I, like many others I am sure, have always been of the impression that once the front door of my house was closed I was entitled to a life of privacy and others were to respect that right. I knew if I was to engage in criminal activity, or if I were to defraud the VAT man, I was at risk of a visit from the relevant authority without first having issued an invitation. Aside from these two and a couple of others, I thought I was safe in my 'castle'. It was therefore, something of a shock that a new report from the Centre For Policy Studies highlights there are no less than 266 ways that State authorised individuals can now enter my home.

While it is tempting to immediately blame the present government, for once, it cannot all be laid at their door, as several of the newer categories have come from that ever increasing interference on our lives, the dreaded EU directive. That said, there is no doubt that domestic powers are also being granted without the appropriate debate and our personal rights are diminishing daily.

The report 'Crossing The Threshold' is interesting to read and includes a hypothetical 'A Day In The Life Of A British Subject' where an illustration of the practicalities of these powers is described on an average family day. There is also of course, a full list of the 266 laws with individual descriptions.

Give it a read and sleep easier at night........not!!

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Bee Warned!

23/04/07 11:43 | Permalink

For a long time now, the argument has been raging over whether modern society is being harmed by the excess radiation caused by radio waves from the likes of mobile phone masts etc. Some scientists believe that excessive use of a mobile phone can lead to tumours appearing on the side of the brain where the handset is most used while it has also been reported that the increasing use of Wi-Fi connections for computers in schools and offices has led to a rise in symptoms like headaches, sleeplessness, dizziness and nausea being experienced by users of the technology. Children are thought to be particularly at risk as their skulls are not as thick as that of an adult and their nervous systems are still in development. Of course, the mobile providers and others are keen to refute the claims being made.

I have always tried to keep an open mind but must admit to being concerned about being surrounded by what has been described as an “electronic smog”. I guess, like most, I think if it cannot be seen it can be ignored, but at the same time I have been concerned about the invisible waves passing through my body.

Now though, two things have happened which have made me more careful and both involve the humble bee. Firstly, was the report last week that bees are being disorientated by the radiation in the surrounding air so they could not find their way back to the hive and have duly perished. The second, and far more convincing to me, was a story in yesterday's Independant on Sunday. It concerned a man who moved to an old house in Bath and in doing so he inherited an attic with 30 nests of bees. He called the exterminators on two separate occasions but both times the bees returned to cause havoc in his household. It was not until last Summer when he installed a Wi-Fi internet connection that the bees left his house for good.

Forget waiting for the scientific proof. By the time the arguing is over it might be too late. That story alone convinced me to reduce the power output of the Wi-Fi connection in my home by three quarters and there has been no noticeable difference to the performance.

Thanks Bees!!

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Salt in Food

21/04/07 17:14 | Permalink

So, another new study has reported what we already know, that too much salt in your diet is bad for you. The study by a US team from Boston was thought to be so important that it made the lead story in the early evening news on ITN last evening.

The average daily consumption of salt per person in the UK is 9g. Scientists say that by cutting this to around 6g per adult (children should have much lower amounts) the chances of getting cardiovascular disease are reduced by 25 per cent over 10 to 15 years and the risk of dying from the same disease is cut by 20 per cent. Three quarters of the salt we eat is already within the food we buy. The cost of treating heart attacks, strokes and heart disease is already a huge burden on the National Health Service in the UK and predictably the government are keen, and it makes total sense, to see the 3g drop in place by 2010.

But, how will they achieve their goal when they are reluctant to legislate against the powerful food producers in this country? It is, on the face of it, a very easy problem to solve - ban the excessive amounts of salt added to the food that is for sale. The government though, would rather be seen to be doing something than actually doing it. They see the cure for obesity and it's associated diseases in the UK will be found by the soft option of banning advertising for so called junk foods. In reality, it makes no difference if adverts are no longer seen, while the products are still being sold in the supermarkets.

You only have to stand at the checkout in any big store to see the amount of these products people have in their trolleys. Are we to believe they have watched an advert the previous night and thought “I must have that”? Of course not.

As the famous phrase says “You are what you eat”. The government must take direct action to reduce the additives that are in our food to a safe level as the stakes are both life threatening and costly to treat.

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BBC Journalist alive?

19/04/07 18:35 | Permalink

What good news that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas says the missing BBC reporter Alan Johnston is alive. Speaking in Sweden, he confirms his intelligence services have discovered which group was holding Johnston but he would not give any further information. It can hopefully only be a matter of time until further proof is forthcoming and he is released. Johnston was seized on March 12th in Gaza.

Seizing members of the world's press is both stupid and pointless. They act as the conduit to bring grievances from within individual countries to the whole world population. Without their reports - often at locations where they might seem reckless in their pursuit of the facts - the world will be a much more closed society and individual freedoms will be exploited and suppressed by ruthless regimes.

We look forward to his early release, but until that time, the pressure must not be allowed to fade.

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Bank Withdrawal

17/04/07 17:44 | Permalink

How great it was to read this morning of the Norfolk businessman who has successfully reclaimed - and been repaid - almost thirty six thousand pounds from the National Westminster Bank for

what he considered to be illegal charges made to his account for being overdrawn. Like most of us at one time or another, he had suffered cashflow problems while waiting for his customer's cheques to clear their account into his. As we know, there is a delay of some three days between the two procedures completing, during which the banks benefit from the interest gained on the amount. Each time he was overdrawn during this period, he was charged a thirty five pound fee by the bank, which on some months amounted to three thousand pounds per month. He finally had enough of what he considered to be gross overcharging and using advice gained from the website of the Consumer Action Group he sent one of their standard letters off to the bank in January of this year which was subsequently ignored. So, he then started a legal action using the government's Money Claim Online Service and a case conference had been scheduled for May 11th.

Last Friday, a cheque for the full amount arrived with a letter from the bank's solicitors, denying they had been guilty of overcharging but were settling in full, because the costs of a court case would be more than the amount claimed

Campaigners however, say that if the banks did turn up to face a court hearing they would be forced to admit the true cost of a bounced cheque was more like two pounds than the thirty they have been charging their customers. Most of the main banks have recently taken to refunding similar claims, some relating to charges dating back several years, rather than having to admit their real costs in court.

Surprised? No of course not. For years the banks have been treating customers like they were lucky to be able to deposit funds at their facility rather than the other way round. The charges have been both unjust and unreasonable.

It is always good to see a bully getting a black eye!!

Another useful resource is Money Saving Expert

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Guns Rule OK?

17/04/07 13:19 | Permalink

Once again, America and the most of the world are in shock during the aftermath of what was America's worst criminal shooting yesterday. Thirty two people at the Virginia Tech University were killed as a gunman rampaged across the campus. Questions will inevitably be asked about the authorities handling of the situation but one thing is certain, there will be a re-opening of the same old tired gun debate that has raged for years and seen countless lives lost during the time it has continued. It is doubtful if anything will come of the debate as the all powerful pro-gun lobby will once again dig in and put forward the most ridiculous arguments in favour of gun ownership.

I was shocked to hear one such argument put forward by a pro gun lobbyist interviewed on the BBC news last evening. He stated the belief that if the students had all been armed, the gunman would not have been able to carry out the crime to the extent he did. While I might be tempted to concede that the gunman might have been shot earlier, how many others would have been caught in the crossfire? It is a ridiculous argument and one that does not hold up to logical examination.

As a European, I find it almost inconceivable that an individual can buy weapons so easily and use them so often, as the citizens of the US. It is possible for one individual to own literally scores of weapons and ammunition without any stringent check into the person's background or need. They are not only weapons confined to personal protection but many are classed as military assault weapons and have devastating firepower. Why would anyone need these unless they have something seriously wrong with their outlook on life?

We all know the tired old argument put forward about the individual's right to bear arms, but surely there must also be a right to be able to study and plan for the future, in what is normally a quiet University, without the possibility of being killed.
If you are in any doubt about that premise then I suggest you ask the families of the victims!!

(It is reported that around 30,000 people die from gunshot wounds in the United States every year and there are more guns in private hands than in any other country)

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Plastic Surprise!

16/04/07 14:35 | Permalink

It has been a while since I last wrote anything to do with the environment or re-cycling, mainly because I am fed up with the hijacking of the subject by self righteous politicians. Yes, we all know that global warming is a reality but even the scientists cannot reach agreement on how harmful it could be and being an MP and being seen on TV riding a bicycle does not even begin to solve the problem. There is no single cause to global warming and it is as much down to the natural demands of the massive increase in the world's population as it is to do with manufacturing and the like.

No politician is ever going to be brave enough to tell us to reduce the population, so instead, we get our local councils sending us another plastic bin to allow us to take part in a fortnightly collection: one week for re-cyclable rubbish and the next for household. It is a one size fits all solution to the problem they have been given of meeting their re-cycling targets.

I have always been conscious of the need to try to re-cycle and to that end I visit my local centre often but I was shocked the other day when I took a boot load of plastic bottles which I had been diligently collecting only to find they did not have the means to process them. The nearest centre that could handle the task was 40 miles away.

Given that a huge number of families now drink bottled water and get their milk in plastic containers, it seems strange that rather than trying to re-cycle these items, the council were still going to put them in the landfill. I could have re-cycled asbestos, wood, car batteries, tv's or almost anything else but plastic. How ironic it now seems, that the new bin being sent by the council is made of that material.

One can only wonder at how much pollution was produced in the manufacture of the millions of bins being distributed throughout the UK!

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He scored an own goal!

16/04/07 12:13 | Permalink

I must confess to feeling some sympathy for the beleaguered Defence secretary Des Browne. While I give him full credit for standing up and taking full responsibility for the misjudged decision to

allow the 15 Navy captives to sell their stories to the media, he made the fatal mistake of saying “the buck stops here”. By doing so, he has, predictably, allowed himself to be used as the complete fall guy for the whole sorry episode.

If, as Tony Blair claimed yesterday, he (TB) had successfully brought the sailors home (in reality he didn't and had no idea they would be released until it was announced by the Iranian President as a gesture of goodwill) then it seems unlikely that the occupants of either No 10 or No 11 Downing Street would have been unaware of the decision being made at the MoD.

What seems more likely, is that after suffering the humiliation of witnessing the televised pictures of the 'captives' shown on Iranian TV, the UK government spin doctors saw a golden opportunity to 'hit back' at the Iranians and score a goal against them. This would have the added benefit of gaining backing for the anti Iranian stance being taken by both the UK and US governments.

Sadly, it backfired and a scapegoat had to be found.

Poor old Des Browne!!

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Blame Tennis!

11/04/07 10:23 | Permalink

After the government's rapid U-turn which placed a ban on our forces personnel from selling their stories to the media, it was less than surprising to find that Ministers were yesterday playing 'blame tennis' over who was responsible for the original decision. No-one would come forward to comment to the media and press officers were allegedly either refusing, or unable, to answer questions directly.

What should be remembered is that the team playing for Number Ten are past champions at 'spinning' the ball and directing it to any part of the court they decide.

My bet is it will land at the feet of the MoD

Any takers?

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Hostage to a Fortune

10/04/07 10:23 | Permalink

If the lucrative televised interview between Leading Seaman Faye Turney and Sir Trevor McDonald illustrated anything last evening, it is the total lack of judgement of all those involved. Whether it be the navy, the Ministry of Defence, the government spin machine, Faye Turney or indeed the executives at ITV, it seems it has backfired in the most spectacular way.
Instead of being spellbinding television with tales of hardship and physical threats meted out to the navy personnel, it was instead, a damp squib of a story which even the highly respected Mr McDonald seemed almost amused to be presiding over. For in reality, there was nothing to tell. Most Britons who have been on a cheap package holiday would come back with tales that were more frightening than those of Miss Turney and her colleagues. Perhaps that is why to date only two of the 'hostages have 'sold out' to the press.

The Navy is hardly suffering the same hardship in the Gulf as it's sister forces. It has the soft option of patrolling the disputed waters between Iraq and Iran, gathering intelligence and attempting to stop smuggling of prohibited goods into Iran. It is not under serious threat from attack, as the skies are controlled by the allies and neither Iran nor Iraq are known as a great naval threat. So perhaps it is for this reason that the personnel on HMS Cornwall have got complacent and allowed two of their patrol boats to be 'escorted' into Iran - you could hardly call it kidnapped as by her own admission Faye Turney stated the initial contact with the Iranians seemed friendly. It seems the HMS Cornwall personnel - for whatever reason - had let their guard down and allowed an opportunistic Iranian patrol to seize the initiative.

From there, as we all know, it snowballed and the navy captives became a pawn in a much bigger battle for the hearts and minds of the respective home countries. Tony Blair insisted the patrols had most definitely been in Iraqi waters at the time they were apprehended and the Ministry of Defence issued a map showing the exact location of the patrols against the red border line. As usual though, they were being 'economical with the truth' and it came to light - as it always does - there is no agreed border between Iraq and Iran.

So back to the main point; why were the 15 naval personnel given permission to sell their stories? Well, it is obvious that the Iranians had scored a great PR goal against the West. They exposed a weakness in the military might of western forces at a time when Iran is facing increasing rumblings from the US over development of its nuclear capacity. In short they gave us all a mischievous black eye and then gave us a 'gift' by releasing the 'captives'

So what better way for the British government to regain lost ground, than for the 'captives' to tell their stories of hardship at Iranian hands to the waiting world. After all, the media would lap it up as it was an easy story for the hacks who could then be home early for Easter. Unfortunately, no-one had banked on the lack of 'hardship' to be told and the fact only two of the captives took up the offer. There were no bruises to be displayed and only perceived threats to be talked of. They say a picture tells a thousand words and unfortunately the pictures the Iranians took - of a laughing, smiling, compliant group of people - had already taken root as the true state of events.

Faye Turney has allowed herself to be used as a pawn firstly by the Iranians, and then by her own government's spin machine. She has shown a lack of judgement which will not be glossed over by sharing some of her spoils with the crew of her ship. While those military personnel who face real danger on the front line in both Iraq and Afghanistan live in everyday fear of dying, she is now able to enjoy her fortune.

It is a bad day for the reputation of the once great British Navy. Once again they have managed to lose two craft!

Who would bet against Ms.Turney leaving the service and increasing her potential by being voluntarily incarcerated in the Big Brother house by this time next year?

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Good old plain English!

21/01/07 19:36 | Permalink

Has Gordon Brown been offered a place on the panel of TV programme Call My Bluff?
In a recent statement while on a tour of the Indian continent he is quoted as saying the following:
'And therefore I am also seized that we face new challenges.....'
and
'By being prepared to use hard power as well as soft power, by not resiling from the need in certain circumstances....'

Seized? Resiling? it even confused the spellchecker!

Well, it confused me too, so I looked up the mystery words and 'seized' means being aware of, while 'resiling' apparently means recoiling. Whatever happened to the plain English campaign?

If as expected, he becomes the next Prime Minister of this country, it will be funny to watch the residents of the House of Commons rushing to their local WH Smith store to purchase a dictionary.
Not sure what the grass roots supporters of his party will do though.... continue to read The Sun?

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Goody or Baddie?

21/01/07 18:27 | Permalink

Goody or baddie? Is Jade a racist or is she just guilty of being a bully? Is there really a difference?

The generally accepted evidence against her seems to rest on whether the specific words she spoke about fellow housemate Shilpa Shetty were racist comments, but is racism about individual words or is it about an 'attitude' towards someone from a different culture or race? Either way, is it not all bullying in it's most basic form?

Jade took the public flak for being the most vocal and visible in the CBB house. Her outburst against Shilpa was true 'car crash' TV and I am sure the producers of the programme were popping the champagne corks while congratulating each other for their fine casting and manipulation of the growing animosity being shown by Jade and her cronies towards Shilpa. They must in turn share the guilt.

Jade's two closest allies, an ex-singer and a silly girl who lives with a footballer (that's celebrity?) were just as guilty as Jade but relied on making comments behind Shilpa's back - their mimicking of Shilpa's Indian accent was particularly juvenile.

So does Jade deserve the treatment she is getting? Hell yes. She was guilty of bullying whether it be racist or otherwise and that should never be tolerated.

If it is the end of her career - which I do not believe for a second, as the UK public has the memory span of a goldfish - she will be able to console herself with the millions she has accumulated from a career being seen as thick. Her ego will be damaged because she has allowed herself to believe what her sycophantical PR agents have told her - hence her delusional claim to be the 25th most influential person in the world!!

But, whatever opinion you may hold about the latest goings on in the big televised house on Channel Four, you have to stand back and be amazed at the ballyhoo from around the world about what is in essence a very silly programme!

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Another disgrace in Iraq!!

15/01/07 20:35 | Permalink

I made a conscious decision not to comment on the hanging of Saddam Hussein and the extraordinarily barbaric scene at his execution. Firstly, because I was sickened by the images on the front pages of the dailies. Secondly, because for his trial to be fair it should have taken place away from the bias and bigotry of the differing sides in Iraq and thirdly, because the Americans abdicated their responsibility by blindly handing him over for his execution without first making certain it was handled in a professional and dignified manner.

In short, it was a bad day in the development of the human race.

The Iraqi government eventually claimed they could not understand how people had got in to observe the execution while carrying their mobile phones - despite the fact it was a maximum security area.

Well today, they have managed to do it all over again to two of Saddam's closest aides, except this time they have learnt from their previous error and filmed it with no sound so that any allegation of jibes or insults aimed at the condemned men could not be proven. In addition, they have gone even further towards proving they are not responsible enough to administer their "justice" in the dignified manner expected by the civilised world. They did not just hang, but actually managed to decapitate one of the men.

The Iraqi government is quoted as saying the beheading was accidental.
Yeah right!!

It is now way beyond time for the international community as a whole to condemn this latest "incompetence" by the Iraqis and point out that the mentality behind their present behaviour is no better than that of which they accused their predecessors.

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Dick by name.....

14/01/07 19:37 | Permalink

It has been reported that US Vice president Dick Cheney has told Fox News that Iran was "fishing in troubled waters" by aiding attacks on US forces and backing Shia militias involved in sectarian violence in Iraq.
He is quoted as saying: "I think the message that the president sent clearly is that we do not want (Iran) doing what they can to try to destabilise the situation inside Iraq.

That seems a bit rich coming from one of the leaders of a country that has not only 'destabilised', but completely destroyed, the infrastructure, morale and basic human rights of the people of Iraq. It has also caused lawlessness and secrarian violence to increase exponentially.

With the increase in numbers of US troops being sent to the country who would bet against a 'show of force' aimed at the Iranians, with the intent of 'liberating' yet another oil rich country?

If there is one thing in life that is a constant it is that politicians do not read history books!

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25 per cent of Americans can't be wrong - can they?

31/12/06 22:33 | Permalink

You may be surprised to hear that according to a telephone poll conducted by Associated Press-AOL News in the States, 25 per cent of Americans - yes one in four - believe that 2007 will see the second coming of Jesus Christ.

There again you may not be!

I bet Elvis is worried!

Happy New Year!

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Xmas is over.....

28/12/06 20:03 | Permalink

Another christmas is over but if you recently landed from another planet how would you know?
Easy..... there have been fights in Tesco over bread, the telly has been crap, the streets are covered in litter and sick, the 'soaps' have all been more depressing than usual (as if that is possible), the ad breaks are full of cheap sofa offers and we are being persuaded to subscribe to 'World of Knitting' magazine - yet again!! All this, and the cheap holiday ads are yet to come!!

So what does this say about the great UK population? Well, in short not a lot!
People have been fighting to take advantage of the excessive amount of time they have been given off work by increasing their overdrafts and/or credit card bills and queuing outside shopping centres in the middle of the night to grab that special bargain that they probably never even knew they wanted - let alone can afford!

Mental Health Professionals report this as their busiest time of the year with more people thinking about committing suicide than at any other time.

Does not take a genius to guess why....... only another 362 days to next xmas!!

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Trust me I'm Your MP!

24/12/06 12:01 | Permalink

How interesting to see that Cabinet Minister Ruth Kelly - who is Minister for something or other very memorable (having been moved from education after making a 'cow pie' of it all) - might be attempting to move her seat to a neighbouring constituency.
Is it because she prefers the nearby neighbourhood? Perhaps the standard of education is better at the schools down the road?
No, it is nothing more than she wants to move to a seat with a larger majority and thereby secure her position as an MP without having to work for the honour. Her present constituency has a majority of just 2,000 while the neighbouring one has a majority of almost 12,000. According to "a senior party source" Ms. Kelly is convinced she is likely to lose another election - and be out of a job - if she stays where she is.
This seems to sum up the attitude of most MPs nowadays. Rather than represent the interests of the people who have put their trust into what they see as the honesty and integrity of their chosen representative, they run at the first sign of a rocky road in order to protect their over inflated salaries, pension schemes and expense allowances. They are not interested in protecting the people who have given them their job, they are only interested in protecting their own futures.
In Ms. Kelly's case, if she were to lose her seat at the next election, it would be because either she had not been seen to fulfill her role to her local electorate, or the government, of which she is a Minister, has lost any appeal it once had to the local people.
Either way it used to be known as democracy!

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Cash for Peerages 2

15/12/06 20:26 | Permalink

So the Prime Minister Tony Blair has finally been questioned at No.10 by the police. However, it seems that he was not questioned under caution - allowing him to be seen as a witness rather than a suspect - and the head of the police investigation into the affair was not present at No.10 for the interview. This suggests that a deal was made between Downing Street and the police to allow a favourable picture to be presented to the public.
What is more interesting is that still no-one has asked to see the accounts for how the alleged amount of fourteen million quid in 'loans' was spent. After all, neither the Deputy Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer or the party treasurer claims to have any knowledge of it.
Perhaps the police are saving their caution for the interview where they ask to see the books!
Could be interesting!!

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News or Entertainment?

15/12/06 17:07 | Permalink

I am not sure which I have found more shocking over the last week. Of course I am, like everyone else, shocked by the murder of 5 women in Suffolk but I think running close is my shock at the sheer feeding frenzy of the press and media in their coverage of these terrible events. It has almost become light entertainment to the various news organisations while they try to "analyse and inform" with information and conjecture that is probably nothing even close to resembling the truth. It has almost been bloodlust.

Of course, this cannot be totally laid at the door of the news organisations, as the police must bear some responsibility for feeding this frenzy. I was surprised on Tuesday afternoon to watch a press conference - less than two hours after the latest two bodies were discovered - led by the Chief Constable of the local force and the chief investigating officer. I would have thought that these two gentlemen would have been expected to be standing in the fields at the site of the discoveries wearing wellies and directing the search for clues. Instead, they were in front of the cameras at another location announcing the 'discovery' of the two bodies. Following the press conference they were then giving individual interviews to anyone who had a microphone - preferably attached to a camera!
Is this a good thing? I remember the days when the police avoided giving press conferences for fear of revealing information that might highlight their progress in catching the murderer. There was also a view it might prejudice any subsequent trial.
So why are the police now so keen to appear on the TV at every opportunity and why has the man who is supposedly responsible for leading an investigative team of what is reported to be over three hundred men, got the time to give regular updates to the feeding journos? Could it be that the investigation has been unofficially taken over by officers who are more

experienced in investigating this sort of crime but the local officers are being allowed to look like they are still in charge? Does it really matter? I guess not as long as the murderer is caught at the soonest possible moment.
What it does do though, is increase the frenzy of the media. We then get interviews and opinions from every conceivable 'expert'. Retired detectives, criminal psychologists, forensic scientists and anyone who might have 'something' that adds to the theories is dragged in front of a camera to hypothesise about what may be the motivation or method being employed by the killer and the methods by which he may be caught. I have even seen an interview with two young frightened single women sitting in a bar who have told us how they are careful not to get caught out by the killer while their full names are shown at the bottom of the screen. A challenge to an unstable calculating killer if ever there was one!
This killer must be caught as soon as possible, but an 'investigation' by a news organisation is not the way to get it done. Sky News in particular are acting like they are playing a giant game of Cluedo and I am sure they think they are going to solve the murders themselves with the help of their various 'experts'
I hope when the person is eventually caught his trial is not jeopardised by the possibility of failing to find a jury that has not been influenced by the things they have seen on the TV or read in the press.
As they say......never let the facts get in the way of a good story!!

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Is It Worth Getting So Cross?

24/11/06 20:04 | Permalink

I have never really understood the need to flaunt one's religion and the wearing of a cross I see as the religious equivalent of a football fan wearing their team's shirt. I find it unnecessary and it does nothing to convert me to either of those beliefs, but that is a personal view. If you are truly a believer - whatever your faith - you surely do not need to display the fact for all to see, unless of course you are trying to convince yourself. Surely, true multi-culturalism will only ever be a practicality when we are all seen to be the same and are able to live together with no-one flaunting their beliefs to another.
So the recent storm

over an employee's bending of the rules at BA should never have got so much attention. It did though, because the application of what is a condition of employment was not, as usual, administered fairly. Those of other faiths are openly allowed to 'bend the rules' by wearing jewellery and clothing that is supposedly a display of their own religions. This opened the gate for the employee in question to make a rather public stand and reap a lot of press. It now has several politicians and The Archbishop of Canterbury climbing aboard the publicity train and displaying their outrage while predictably suggesting a boycott of British Airways flights.
BA now have a dilemma of their own making. They either have to interpret the rules fairly and apply them evenly amongst all beliefs - and I can almost hear the cries of persecution coming from some quarters already - or they lose the patronage of those politicians and religious leaders who are being hypocritical by condoning the principle of rule breaking. After all, the only thing they will sacrifice is those comforting perks - like free upgrades and complimentary drinks - received when they take a flight with BA!

A tough choice for BA but both have their attractions!! I do not see it lasting long!!

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Taking the 'P'?

22/11/06 10:10 | Permalink

I don't know about you, but I am getting increasingly uncomfortable when I hear the word 'poverty' used to describe some people's living conditions in the UK.

Technically, I guess it is correct; it is defined in my dictionary as "the state of being extremely poor" although what officially counts as extremely poor I do not know.
However, my definition of 'poverty' is somewhat different. It is what we are shown in the likes of programmes like Comic Relief or concerts like Band Aid. It is where people do not have the means to even have water to drink let alone begin to drag themselves out of the mire and into a better life.
The sight of a person scavenging in a dry barren wasteland looking to find a few grains of rice is far more descriptive of 'poverty' than that of a 'poor' person in the UK who can still afford to waste what little money they may have by smoking it at £5 for 20.
The word 'poverty' in the UK often seems to be used as an excuse to cover the effects of not living by the meaning of another 'P' word....Priority!!
It is insulting to those who are truly poor to think otherwise!!

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Guilty Without Charge?

20/11/06 13:05 | Permalink

So Tony Blair is still pushing for a 90 day detention period before suspected terrorists need to be charged while his Attorney General is saying he can see no evidence to support a period that long.

Surely, if you have not found an offence with which to charge someone within three months - the current limit is 28 days - then you must have been acting on pretty thin evidence in the first place.
I guess I am old fashioned, but the tactics used by both Britain and the US in the oft used expression 'fight against terrorism' are starting to remind me too much of those of the old Soviet Union or the 'disappeared' of South America.
Without doubt, there is a serious threat from 'terrorism' but I am still of the belief that the odds are more in favour of me being run over by a naked nun on a bicycle than bumping into a real life terrorist or of being the victim of an act of terrorism.
I might be wrong, but at the moment I am suspicious of the reasoning for ever increasing restrictions on personal freedom. Part of that suspicion stems from the government doing nothing to provide proof to the contrary. Instead, the Home Secretary and the Head of the Security Services make statements about x no. of active plots that are known but leave the question "why have they not arrested these suspects if they know about them?"
Could it be that the UK's prisons have 'no vacancy' signs due to overcrowding or have they already kitted the 'suspects' out in orange boiler suits and hoodies and sent them for a stay to the US run holiday camp in Cuba?

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Oh for Opposition!

14/11/06 16:02 | Permalink

If you have been reading my recent posts you could be forgiven if you have got the impression I am just anti new labour. I am not. If the opposition parties showed any opposition, or indeed ideas that are either sane, deserving or original, I would be able to include them in the debate, but they do not. Instead, they waste everyone's time trying to emulate the labour party's 'style over substance' presentation and the use of spin.
As we all know, a pig wearing a dress is still a pig.
Oink oink messrs Cameron and er.....whoever that Liberal bloke is!

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Water water everywhere....

14/11/06 10:46 | Permalink

Recently I received a paper from my local council explaining the need for a recycling policy which would mean an extra bin for recyclable rubbish and an alternating weekly collection. What fascinated me was the argument being used "...the recycling processes often use less natural resources (such as precious water) than when working with raw materials" Have I been asleep? Since when did water become "precious"?

My understanding of science is this planet has a fixed amount of water. The amount never changes, it is just re-cycled. What does change is the form in which water is to be found, whether it be as ice, ocean or steam etc.
So what they should have said is that 'drinking' water is precious and indeed it will be unless the water companies change their piratical practises and invest in long term rather than short term gain. They should cease their plunder of assets which should have been used to improve storage, pipework, new technology and the like. In addition the government. whether local or national, should give up their crackpot ideas for covering the South East of England with new housing until they have fathomed a way to increase the water supply to an already overstretched area of the country.
Global warming is apparently already melting the ice caps and raising the sea levels, so in reality what we are going to see is not a lack of water but a great deal more!!. If we believe the environmental forecasting models most of the Thames gateway and all it's associated new housing is likely to be an underwater city anyway.
We should never let fact get in the way of good spin!

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Cash for Peerages

12/11/06 14:30 | Permalink

So we are now told that Blair's cronies are "outraged" the investigation into Cash for Peerages has been taken seriously and they have started to brief against the team from Scotland Yard tasked with the investigation. What I find interesting is the question 'what happened to the money?'. Whilst we have been led to believe the alleged "loans" were used to fund Labour's last election campaign, there does not seem to have been an ounce of accountability as to how the amount was spent. Indeed, the labour treasurer appears to have been kept in the dark about the whole thing.
If this were any private company running an everyday business, such weak accounting practices - or lack of them in this case - would not be permitted. We are being asked to accept 'on trust' that fourteen million pounds of 'loans' was eaten up by the great hole that is election campaigning. No one thought for a minute about claiming back the VAT, or the legitimate expenses that could be offset against tax liability? It seems at best unlikely and at worst inconceivable that the leaders of a party that is running UK plc should have left itself wide open to questions of inpropriety and abuse.
If our Prime Minister is so concerned about the seriousness of the investigation by Scotland Yard he should offer to help them out by volunteering an interview instead of hiding behind the fortified doors of No.10!

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Read it or save it?

08/11/06 09:27 | Permalink

Back to the environment and look how much useless material arrived with just two newspapers over the weekend. How does this make sense when the very same newspaper has been preaching the benefits of waste management?
I am sure the argument will be made that it is re-cycled material but hang on a second; doesn't recycling use a considerable amount of energy too? Surely it is better to leave the trees standing upright in the first place - where they can fight the effects of Co2 emissions and give us all some pleasure - than fill my letterbox with crap. I am not going to buy or read any of it!!

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All's Fair In Love and War?

06/11/06 19:50 | Permalink

So a tyrant is to be hanged. Yes, after a trial lasting a year, several different judges and a handful of dead lawyers, Saddam Hussein has finally been pronounced guilty and sentenced to death for Crimes Against Humanity. If his appeal against conviction is unsuccessful he could be dead within two months and as I understand it, he could have been facing even more horrific charges. So why do I not feel comfortable about any of this? Why when most of the red top tabloids were celebrating the verdict this morning was I feeling left out? It is simple; if it smells rotten it usually is!

At the end of the first Gulf war General Norman Schwarzkopf (Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces) had forced the Iraqis out of Kuwait, beaten all resistance from their elite Armies and was at the gates of Baghdad where he would probably have had Saddam in custody within hours. For some inexplicable reason he (Schwarzkopf) was stopped and instead was ordered to negotiate an Iraqi ceasefire resulting in Saddam being allowed to escape unpunished. Why? We have never been told, but as sure as eggs is eggs it is likely to have been for reasons of convenience to the US administration based thousands of miles away in the safety of Washington. One could speculate that perhaps Saddam was still of use to them in some way; or perhaps they (the US politicians) did not want to be lumbered with the problem of a highly public trial where they would be seen as the "bad guys" in the eyes of the rest of the world. You will notice that I have been charitable so far in not mentioning anything about Iraq's oil supplies!
And so life went on for several years until the latest US government - which as we all know is "coincidentally" led by the son of the President in office at the time of the first Gulf War - decided he had intelligence that good old Saddam had weapons of mass destruction and the whole world was at risk. Seeing himself as a "good bloke", Bush The Younger decided to save us all by bludgeoning the UN into handing him a mandate to "liberate" Iraq. While this might sound like an invasion, it was not of course because riding into battle at his side was the good old British Government who had been spun the same story about WMD by it's omnipotent leader Prime Minister Blair.
As we all know, the "liberation of the people of Iraq" was over very quickly by the use of superior technology and a good smattering of bombs. However, although the "war" was easily won the peace has been harder to achieve. The powers that be seem to have forgotten that one man's liberator is another man's army of occupation and of course surprise surprise, the reaction to being occupied er sorry liberated was to resist strongly and at every opportunity. The Americans tend to label anyone who resists their will as a terrorist and so the justification for the occupation shifted to become a war against terrorism. I would though, like to think, that if anyone invaded good old Blighty, I would immediately and actively start resisting and would myself be seen in the eyes of those occupiers as a terrorist!
Saddam was discovered soon after the main hostilities ended hiding at the bottom of a well and once again the US were given the problem of what to do with him. Someone came up with

the great idea to have him tried by his 'own people'. That way the US could pull the strings but not get the blame for his ultimate death, as it would be the Iraqi's who would be seen to be placing the noose over Saddam's neck. So despite the protestations of the outside world and requests for Saddam to be given a fair trial outside of Iraq - possibly in The Hague where other Despots and Tyrants have successfully met justice face to face - the Americans decided they possessed a far greater wisdom than others and we now find ourselves with the result they wanted but did not want to be seen obtaining.
All well and good until I started to think about it and realised that almost as many deaths have occurred since Saddam was deposed as happened during his rule. While the responsibility for these deaths cannot be directly laid at the door of the "liberators" they would do well to at least have a few sleepless nights while they ponder the results of their actions.

If Saddam is feeling short changed by his verdict he might be interested to learn that the word Tyrant is defined in the dictionary as:
a person exercising power in a cruel, unreasonable or arbitrary way and
a ruler who seized power without legal right

Suddenly, it all seemed a bit close to home!!

Hello Mr Saddam I have Messrs Bush and Blair on the line.............!!!

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Blowing a Storm?

01/11/06 21:04 | Permalink

I just don't get it. We all know that global warming is no longer just the rambling of the green lobbies but is in fact a reality, having a highly visible impact on the environment. We all know we want to do our bit to preserve the planet and ease the burden from Co2 emissions but how do we even begin when the Government have got it so badly wrong? Instead of making it affordable to 'ease in' the changes necessary in our personal lives they have - predictably some would say - taken a sledgehammer to crack a nut. Rather than giving us the carrot to encourage us to make a start they have decided to rely instead, on a heavy beating with a big stick, using the theory that we should be punished for having the cheek to enjoy a life we all work so hard to achieve!

I would love to install a wind turbine and solar panels to my house - after all I live on the coast and the wind is never in short supply - but the predicted savings do not make the outlay necessary an attractive proposition. I would love to buy a more eco friendly car but when you look at the price of these vehicles it is not even an option. Why? because the government are receiving huge returns in taxes on these items.

By reducing the rates of tax they could be encouraging investment in all things green and make the whole thing viable. Instead, they are thinking of raising taxes on the eco "unfriendly" items.
For example, rather than make energy saving bulbs cheaper, tax the old type to close the price gap and of course pocket the increase! Charge people with high emission cars extra duty - even though they are already paying more in fuel tax than anyone else - and of course pocket the increase! Charge a green tax on the flights you take when you have a well earned holiday and of course pocket the increase! and so on and so on....
History - a subject the present government is not keen to promote - has shown taxes just don't work in changing people's way of life.
The present proposals are in reality just opportunism. They are a way of exploiting and profiteering from something that effects all our futures. After all, there is a rather large hole to plug in the Chancellor's Global Warfare Chest!!
Don't be fooled and beware the "Robber Barons!"

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So this is a Blog?

11/10/06 13:59 | Permalink

Well, at last I have got around to talking to my electronic therapist! I am not sure of the value of the Blog or indeed if anyone ever gets to read them but I felt it was about time I started emptying the sludge from my head into a form whereby others might get to share and either agree with my thoughts and comments or not! I guess it will end up being controversial to some and agreeable to others but hey.....we are all different and thankfully are still allowed the freedom of our own opinions - at least for now!!

I hope you will get to enjoy reading some of mine.......

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Just a Thought!

It Can Be A Mad World!