Charity Begins at Home...?

I was impressed by the screaming headlines in the press this morning concerning the tower block fire yesterday.  All called for someones head, all yelled about safety, all demanded something ought to be done.
Where were they several years ago when the tenants of this block demanded changes?  Where was the press opposition when the Labour Party attempted to ensure landlords made their properties safe for tenants?  They were nowhere as these were not important stories for the daily press, sex, scandal, political intrigue and immigrants sells papers not dangerous housing, especially among the lower orders.  Especially when some 71 Conservative MPs who voted against the Labour bill demanding landlords took action were and still are landlords themselves!  The Tory press would not mention this.
Out of some 400 or so tenants less than half have been identified, I feel for the foremen who have to clear the building once it is made safe.
When these buildings arose in the 1950's they were an answer to a desperate housing problem.  It was not long before the dehumanising aspect of the style of building came to the fore, and indeed the misbehaviour of the people living in such blocks.  Lack of authoritative control, ignorant tenants and soon these places were wastelands.  Only once done up and sold off to paying owners with porters, sorry 'Concierge' at the door could such places work.  It is not just the building but the people that ruin such creations.  Of course many were badly designed, many have been destroyed and more human housing produced but in the end the people decide whether a housing development works or not.
I liked the idea of being high up, great views, wonderful skies, but if the lift breaks you are trapped.  We know know, and ought to have known long ago, that fire is a hazard to be avoided.  No block of flats ought to go over four stories in my view, this enables most firemen to gain access to you.  It was very difficult to watch the pictures of the trapped high above, or listen to the tales of the survivors.  This made worse by endless speculation and repetition of survivors stories over and over again to no-ones advantage.  
Of course the £62 million or so taken from the Fire Service has to play a part, closing fire stations, and I read somewhere that yesterday the government sold all the fire engines and equipment to a private company on the very day this fire erupted.  That requires checking but sounds just like this government.  I was intrigued to find a link on Twitter to an item in the London Evening Standard blaming cuts to services as one factor responsible for the fire, the Evening Standard the paper now 'edited' by one George Osborne the failed chancellor of the Exchequer who brought in the 'austerity' that gave us the cuts and decimated the Fire Service, the Police, the Ambulance crews, the NHS and everything else!   I wonder if George read that item?

When I met one of my women today we discussed, among other important topics, the response to the tragedy.  People were collecting items to send, food, clothes, blankets and the other daily requirements that the folks from the tower have lost.  I noticed some wished to do so round her, others as far away as Fife were offering items and then I began to think something was not right here.  For a start this disaster occurred in London, relatively close to the centre of the city and with seven or eight million people and a good number there willing to help there is no real need for people at a distance offering such aid.  A friend of mine is in close contact with the Latymer Church which is close to the tower and had things been desperate I suspect a call would have gone out for items.  

So what makes people respond this way?  When I was fifteen the Aberfan disaster occurred.  This was a mining village in Wales where an unsteady coal bing, the residue of coal waste that towered above the village gave way and fell across the village destroying the primary school and killing around one hundred and fifty young children.  Far away in Edinburgh watching this unfold on our rented Black and White TV I was gripped with a desire to go and dig out the kids.  An absurd idea as if miners and police could not save the I certainly would not.  
Years later while working for a charitable organisation I came across a wise item in a magazine where the author asked about those helping at Aberfan, they would come for miles to help he said but would they care about the man next door having a breakdown?  It is easy to rush to a disaster, it is hard to cope with daily stress of individual or local group disasters, no less real but not so spectacular.   Is rushing to a disaster such as this from far away the right thing to do, is it really 'loving your neighbour?'

  
Another man who has had a personal disaster is Tim Farron the Lib-Dem leader.  His party did not have an great success during the election, it did however grow from I think 8 seats to 12 so it wasn't all bad, but he himself was hounded by the media not on his policies but because he follows Jesus.
When interviewed there were few policy questions merely constant queries regarding whether he thought as a Christian homosexuality was a sin.  This was the constant refrain and sadly he failed to cope with this.  Instead of loudly brazing it out and saying "Yes it is!" he attempted to compromise out of 'consideration' for others opinions.  This was wrong!  The other day a senior Liberal in the House of Lords resigned because he objected to the biblical position offered by Tim, this has forced Tim Farron into resigning his position as leader.  A mistake in my view.  This Lord ought to have been castigated for his intolerance, his prejudice and his religious discrimination and thrown out of the party!  It is the Liberal Party after all so why has he now allowance for liberty?
Underneath all this lies the clear anti-Christian forces that dominate the media, that through the gay lobby harass those who stick to Christian principles (the Muslims are however never attacked as they might fight back) and white, middle class socialists, who have never done a proper days work in their lives, dominate the world.  We must obey their commands and accept homosexuality and all the other apparently new found behaviours as normal even if they are not.  From primary schools now children are indoctrinated to believe such behaviour is normal, instead of accepting people who behave thus, a very big difference!  The gay lobby leads the attack on the church as that is the truth that the power behind them hates, Christians such as Tim Farron ought to be given support to take his stand and not attacked constantly because of this.

We are right to wonder if there would have been a Lord grumbling if Tim won a lot of seats, we are right to wonder if all would be different then?  Possibly the Lord was only one man involved in a coup and we will soon know if his friend the new leader, whoever he may be, invites him to be a spokesman for something in the Lords.

I was forced out into the sunshine thrice today.  Not only did I have to visit two supermarkets to obtain cheap supplies but the brutes at the bird feeders broke one of the feeders and later I had to walk in the heat wearing dark glasses and bumping into things just to buy another.  Naturally the young girls at the counter were impressed with my 'James Bond' approach, I could tell by the way they looked at me, one of them even woke up long enough to almost smile.  I could see she was finding it tough having spend many years in school learning about many things and discovering work was in fact boring!  Having gained umpteen 'O' and 'A' levels and been interviewed as if she was applying for work as a rocket scientist she finds herself at a check out in a far too warm and stuffy store dealing with the public!  Poor lass, I hope something better arrives soon.  I always like to cheer such as her up by reminding them they can leave at 65 or 70 and enjoy retirement but they always look so glum when I do.  
It's a giggle mind! 

Ramblings

Today was a day of meetings.
Having spent most of the morning attempting to wake myself from my slumbers I had to march out for a meeting at St Paul's at midday.  I stuffed my face with fattening cakes while there telling myself I would eat no more all week.
I lied.
Our discussion revealed the details of how most of the folks there landed up as Christians, and how interesting each persons story was.  I kept quiet at this point, no point in boring them when they were happy.  I avoided grasping a loose 'Bakewell tart' as i left intending to keep to my promise and walked along the road enjoying the sunshine and contemplating what I had heard.  How these folks always either teach me something or make me feel inadequate when I hear their tales.

The museum discussion was straight forward.  Exhibitions, changes in the shop, plans for the future, the usual stuff all accompanied by Ginger Cake which I accidentally shovelled down my throat.  It is good for you they say!  Naturally I said little here and let my good friend Peggy do all the talking, something she is able to do well, and I just nodded in agreement courteously.  
Each of the 'top dogs' spoke of their work, our accomplishments and what they required from us.  I kept quiet here.  One thing I do think will be good is getting people to write or even better record their stories for history.  We do have one audio CD of folks telling their experiences of work  in the town and (£2 to you) and getting them to reminisce on their past lives, good and bad, would be a wonderful idea.

The good thing is I miss out the papers when I am busy.  I therefore do not get worried by the pap they offer us.  However I note the PM is going ahead (apparently) with 'Brexit' even though no-one is too sure what it means and the Chancellor man has rubbed George Osborne's face in it as politely as  a Conservative Chancellor can, with a smile.  The Cameron/Osborne past is so foul in the eyes of the Tory Party that a video of Cameron's time was greeted in stony silence, most unusual for this party.  Now he is of to make money, I bet he makes less than he thinks he is worth.

Sick!

In three months time one of these two, George Osborne the incompetent Chancellor and Boris Johnson the man who as Mayor of London sold it to the Chinese and Russians, will be leader of the Conservative Party and therefore Prime Minister!   This is the result of the referendum in which the little englanders with their fear of immigrants roused voted for Boris and to leave the EU.  From what I could gather, and it is not easy to gather EU info, we were better off inside attempting to change things.  Now we are out, the trade deals worse and they will change the EU without us.  Scotland will soon attempt another referendum on independence.  This will be a 99% success if Boris or George come to the throne.  Neither know where Scotland is, neither care.  The only good thing about all this fuss is the removal of David Cameron.  From now on he tours the world getting paid extortionate fees. 

I am thinking of joining the thousands who at this moment are heading north to Scotland and a fairer society.  Nothing can stop this bar the lack of money and rain, I am sick of rain!

At least it is over, however after October we will possibly have a general election  and go through all this again.

A Cough in the Park

With the sun shining, the sky blue I took my cough across to the gardens to see some Spring.  This was the furthest I've roamed for weeks and it was a typical English Spring day, cold!  There was warmth in the air when the wind ceased but as it failed to cease much and blew from the east it hurled a chill at those fooled into thinking it was Summer.  When does Spring start and end I ask?  The official date appears to vary with metrologists and various others disputing what starts when.  I suppose in the UK it makes no difference anyway, it will not resemble a tropical land anytime soon.  
One thing that was clear was the Englishman's desperate desire to take his clothes off!  Not too bad today but all around I saw men and a few women in T-shirts when the weather was not yet warm enough for this, I helpfully coughed loudly in their direction to inform them of their next couple of weeks endurance test. 

Our cretinous leaders have pulled a great one this week.  Not that long ago they opposed tariffs on Chinese steel imports as George Osborne was desperate to get his hands on the Chinese cash, now said steel is flooding the market and 15,000 UK jobs will be lost.  Not only but also the steel produce still made in the UK will now have tariffs of around 42%  placed on it by the Chinese!
Selling the nation to the Chinese, Russians or Arabs of any type appeared to be a winner for George Osborne, now like almost everything else he touches it is falling apart.  Poor George his hopes of becoming Prime Minister are fading.

 
How nice to see the daffodils swaying in the wind today.  So many varieties of one flower were on view.  The council ones were darker and brighter than those planted long ago by the gardener in what once was a school garden but individual daffs seen in a variety of gardens had various shades of yellow.  None I suspect were similar to those seen by the poet that time up in the hills of the Lake District, those would be wild daffodils and not the type manipulated by green fingered peoples in greenhouses.  Such a variety of yellows, as indeed there were varieties of green to be seen.  Soon however the buds which have appeared will blossom and the world will smile once more.


"I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD"

          I WANDERED lonely as a cloud
          That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
          When all at once I saw a crowd,
          A host, of golden daffodils;
          Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
          Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

          Continuous as the stars that shine
          And twinkle on the milky way,
          They stretched in never-ending line
          Along the margin of a bay:                                  10
          Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
          Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

          The waves beside them danced; but they
          Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
          A poet could not but be gay,
          In such a jocund company:
          I gazed--and gazed--but little thought
          What wealth the show to me had brought:

          For oft, when on my couch I lie
          In vacant or in pensive mood,                               20
          They flash upon that inward eye
          Which is the bliss of solitude;
          And then my heart with pleasure fills,
          And dances with the daffodils.
                                                              1804.   William Wordsworth

James Cleverly MP.

BWT

This is James Cleverly the local Member for Parliament.  He is a Conservative and recently like all members received a substantial increase in his MP's salary worth around £7000 a year to him.  This means he is now paid about £70,000 a year.  On top of this he remains a member of the London Assembly (or council if you like) for a period earning another £18,000 I think it is for this.  James remains a Major in the Territorial Army (or Reserves as the Conservative government now call it) an organisation he joined after injury forced him out of the regular army. Pay rates for such an officer are around £124 a day (daily rate is normal here) with occasional 'bounties of around a thousand.
As an MP he will be able to claim enormous expenses for almost everything work related, has a 'card' that enables this at good rates, and various subsidised 'tea rooms' in the House of Commons to ease his working day.  James Cleverly will also come into contact with a great many people seeking his advice, some of which may well offer legitimate payment and others may lead to other advantages.  
Nothing wrong, criminal or illegal as far as can be told so far.  Nothing indicates a man who does anything but works hard for his income, a good income and lifestyle which he and his family no doubt enjoy.
My one problem is that recently the Conservative government, the one that allows big business to avoid tax (George Osborne's family firm paid him a bonus of £1500 after avoiding corporation tax for ten years while paying no tax on millions of profits!  He is the Chancellor, the governments money man!), this government that encourages tax dodging has cut benefits for the disabled by £30 a week!
James Cleverly, the man doing so well himself, voted in support of this cut!
How can well paid satisfied members of the House vote to cut benefits from the weakest while doing nicely themselves I ask?  Many of those dependent on vehicles have lost their support and are now trapped in their houses, others are losing equipment that keeps them alive, others suffer everyday losses re foodstuffs and daily requirements.
James Cleverly appears to support this attack on the poorest and it does not sit well with many of us.

    
This morning we awake to the ceaseless chatter re the budget.  George Osborne will start spewing forth his budget this afternoon and we all know what it will say.  For days we have heard it will cut £4 Billion from somewhere and no increase on Beer duty, at least that appears to be the main two topics.  What happened to keeping such things quiet until the day?  One thing we all know is that the rich will not be stopped avoiding tax, this has been ensured by the appointment to the top ranks at the Tax Office of three men famous for advising big companies on tax avoidance.  The cutting of thousands more tax jobs will also follow! 
I will ignore all this.  Each budget day the government party tell us how wonderful this is, the opposition tell us how awful, the facts we discover arrive the next day once various 'experts' (and there are always 'experts' on hand to explain) have studied the results of the changes.  Rarely is it good news.  Only the top elite will benefit once again and the rest will carry the burden.  That's how it is.

Game, Cuts and Rock!

123

It has become my habit recently to retire to the East Wing and recline on the divan listening to those 15 minute Radio 4 programmes, if that is I can find one worth setting my ears to.  This is not easy as the BBC iPlayer Radio has a lot of such programmes, and many others also yet finding one to suit the present mood means a search through the archive.  When a suitable programme is found I then listen while fiddling with the 123 Solitaire game.  It appears impossible to just listen, my fingers need to run across the keys while I listen.  Just twiddling the thumbs does not satisfy.  Possibly I edge into a coma while doing this, some would say what's the difference from the norm, but it eases the cares of the day.  
Of course I use my full intellect on the Block Game also, or even Bouncing Balls, any game that does not require deep thought and yet keeps the fingers and mind entertained simply will do.  I tried Tetris but cannot turn the sound off, this makes listening to the wireless difficult, so I end up on one of the Solitaire games.
Life is so difficult innit....?

Brilliant tactic by George today.  He has leaked to the media his desire to cut 40% of the government spending.  Brilliant!  Where will he cut?  Nowhere that votes Conservative or pays into the Conservative coffers, so big business will continue to dodge taxes as will the owner of the 'Daily Mail.'  I suspect those full time carers may lose their £61 a week benefit, already his policies have threatened 300,000 children, but their folks don't vote Tory, and who will be next is the question?  As his Eton prefect mate wishes to invade Iraq I suppose he has to find the money for that from somewhere, and the weakest can do nothing about this as their is no opposition in the UK parliament today other than the SNP.  

Edinburgh Evening News

  
Good News!  Edinburgh Rock has been saved!  I knew this was one brand that could not be allowed to die.  One James Anderson, a local lad, has stepped in to save the factory.  Growing up near the place and knowing it was only age that forced the sale he has decided to keep the company going and pleased dentists everywhere!
These sweets, Edinburgh Rock, Pan Drops, Soor Plooms and Rhubarb Rock have eaten away at kids teeth for generations and to lose such an important part of the Scots diet would be unthinkable.
That reminds me, I better take my teeth out of that glass...

Thursday Thought

As expected I awoke early this morning.  Listening to the dulcet tones of the shipping forecast being aired is a good way to come back into the world.  I would have preferred it to be nearer seven mind.  I therefore had no choice but to rise, waddle through and make breakfast with whatever was not yet past its sell by date, well not too far past anyway. 
My dim mind glanced through the online papers, each right wing nutbag proclaiming much joy over George Osbornes fiddled budget.   Each budget day the papers are the same.  The majority are ruled by the right wing barons who tell of Conservative budgets as wonderful events that bless the nation. Labour ones are miserable failures.  What passes for alternative views rambles on and makes little sense as they merely blame the Tories and ignore faults elsewhere.  It therefore becomes a requirement the day after a budget to listen carefully to the many experts who appear offering their tuppence worth to the world.
The net result usually means the lying creature has given money with one hand and taken money away with the other.  So it is with George yesterday.  An increase in the minimum wage u to £9 say the papers, actually it will not reach that high until 2020, which is five years away and a cut in tax credits (used to bump up the take home of those on minimum wage) which means for every pound George has given he has taken £1:50 or so away.  As always the Tory budgets appeal to the 'Daily mail' reader and panders to their beliefs, built on Tory lies in said paper, and ensures the lemmings will vote for the Tory's next time.  These are the people who voted to rid the taxpayer off the cost of nationalised industry, Gas , electric, water, trains, buses etc.  These are the very people who now happily pay through the nose for these industries because they no longer cost the taxpayer anything, the same taxpayer who is paying ten times the cost he would pay if they remained nationalised!
George fooled the famous IDS, he was celebrating for no good reason yesterday, possibly he understands how many will suffer because of this attack on the poorest?  I suspect he has pictures of Dachau on his office wall to cheer him up in the morning.
Another budget, another hoo-ha and the richest benefit with lower taxes, at least those that pay tax, unlike the owner of the 'Daily Mail' who has not paid tax for many years.   Housing benefit cuts will lead to homelessness, other cuts will cause many problems to which George answers "Get a job" or "Get a better job" and this from a man who has never had one? He certainly never worked for the minimum wage, never had to find accommodation from a grasping Tory landlord, and never lost his job becasue the boss would not pay the new minimum wage.
The 'Toffs' rule us today and call themselves 'One nation Conservatives.'

 

Aye, right!

I went back to bed after this.

Sometimes I canny understand the selfishness of wimmin!  Here is this one, living with a nice, kind, thoughtful man who looks after her every need and yet when eh has some spare time to play a video game with his pal she interrupts him and I suspect demands he speak to her, in spite of him being busy.  
How does a normal lad of today deal with such a woman?  He puts a few sedatives in her drink and lets her sleep until midday the next day that's what.  How kind, thoughtful and caring.  Did she appreciate the sleep, did she thank him for his concern, did she not feel blessed that by sleeping and keeping her mouth shut he and his pal could finish this important game?  No, not this lass, she ran to the police!  Tsk!  Can a man not get any peace these days?  No, the nasty judge fined him Euros 500.

News from the north east of England includes a 23 year old who saw a 6 year old kick an old man's walking stick.  When the 23 year old told him he was was told to "F off" by the kid.  he then went to a shop, bought a bar of soap and stuck it in the kids mouth.  
The child is known to be 'out of control' probably benefited from his experience.  He will not be so rash next time.  Would you believe the court took the kids side?  Mum says the sentence, a conditional discharge plus costs, was insufficient.  I think he should take the soap to mum or make the bint look after her son.  I suspect dad will not be available to do so.

England are apparently playing cricket against Australia somewhere or other.  Did they not do this last week, or the week before?  Does anyone care?  A man throws a ball and another man attempts to hit it with a big stick while all around a dozen other men stand idly by watching.
Would digging up the grass and building social houses for the old, the poor and those disabled by life not be a better use of such areas I wonder....?


Time to go back to bed again, that's twice already today.  Aint life grand?

They and Us!

Daily Telegraph

Yesterday saw the UK budget speech by Chancellor George Osborne.  The usual patronising waffle while he offered a budget aimed at stopping wavering Tory voters from voting for the UKIP party, a party the Conservatives fear may lose them many seats.  To that end the savers and pensioners, mostly Conservative regulars they consider, have been offered money, and that will appear just a month before the next election.  However the Eton educated Toffs have made many mistakes revealing just how far they are from real life in the UK.  Eton Toff Cameron, somehow wormed his way into the Prime Ministers job, George brought in Rupert Harrison, a friend from Eton days, as an advisor and together they have taken us back to 'class war.'  
At a previous budget Harrison suggested taxing hot food taken from Bakers shops such as the renowned 'Greggs' shops.  This led to a hubbub known as the 'Pastie Wars.'  A 'pastie' as you know being a type of pie filled with meat and veg (or so they claim).  The inference drawn was this was food eaten by the masses and the Conservatives were attacking the 'working class,' so to prove their 'equality' Dave and George rushed to Greggs and were photographed 'enjoying' hot pastie bought from the shop.  All other political leaders raced to join in and the whole nation laughed at the out of touch attempting to impersonate real life.  No one was fooled.  
The tax never arrived, the idea dropped like a hot pastie and the Eton set, from all parties, rushed to an expensive restaurant to get rid of the taste of the pastie.

Yesterday George fed the voters he requires but he remembered the lower orders also.  Oh yes, the peasants got one penny of a pint of beer (hooray) and the many who attend 'Bingo' clubs to lose a few pounds while hoping to win a jackpot that will never arrive were told that the tax paid will be reduced substantially (woopee).  
Enter Grant Shapps.
Grant is the Chairman of the Conservative Party and MP for Welwyn Hatfield. He, like Dave and George, is famous for his foo-pahs, though he was not educated at Eton.  Shapps has fought hard battles in life, once being knocked out in a car crash and unconscious for a week when in Kansas, and not long after he married he developed Hodkin's Lymphoma.  Possibly all the drugs required to heal have left a hole in his head?  You see this chairman of the Toffs party made use of Twitter posting the picture at the top off the page and revealing the heart of the Tory Party.  The implication that 'hardworking people do nothing but play Bingo and drink beer was quickly seized upon by the world on Twitter.  Bingo and Beer are good enough for 'them,; or is that 'they?'  The 'plebs' already have 'pasties,' now they have beer to go with it.  The response filled Twitter and the papers printed some for us.  
These came from the 'Daily Telegraph.'  

When a political party shoots itself in the foot today the whole world wide web is available to remind them of their folly.  Now George and Dave will just laugh this off, George is more worried Boris Johnson will become an MP and his personality disorder might make him leader of the Conservative Party, a job George is desperate to obtain when Dave is dumped after the next election and this to these men will be easily ignored.  
What cannot be ignored is the 36,000 jobs that they claim have been created recently, especially as 2.5 million remain unemployed!  What the budget did not do was remove some of the 750,000 who use 'Food Banks' from the need to do so, and nothing was done re carers paid a pittance to care 24 hours a day.  Still, 'it's a wealthy country' and 'we are all in this together,' aint we....?  


.

Happy People

CNN

Here we see a happy group of people, some may be acting quite a bit of course. I wonder whether the smiles for the young leader concern the new of the UN report which has outlined the atrocious conditions in this unhappy land.  I have taken some interest in NK for a while, such places hold a fascination based on the limited news that comes from there.  The secret and very dangerous state does make me want to look over the border and see what is going on.  For a very long time we have known of the cruel regimes behaviour, the supposed nuclear weapons, the labour camps and the starvation that occasionally hurts the land, now however the world may be forced to pay attention.

Cruelty is not unusual in that part of the world.  The Japanese declared Korea a 'protectorate' well over a hundred years ago, and peace has not returned to this unhappy land, at least the northern half, since. Korean women were forced to serve Japanese soldiers during WW2 and many guards on the 'Burma Railway' were in fact Korean.  Survivors often stated these men were much crueler than the Japs! During the Korean war of 1950-53 James Cameron and Bert Hardy brought reports and pictures of the terrible treatment given by the South Koreans to prisoners from the north and questioned why we defended them. This did not make them popular!  

While South Korea appears intent on following the west into chasing vast wealth the people in the north endure their situation usually devoid of much information from the outside world. They are not all ignorant of the goings on elsewhere but they are wise enough not to mention it.

The masses of rockets aimed at the millions living in the South Korean capitol Seoul tends to put most folks of military action.  Especially when even a decisive campaign might lead to vast numbers of dead. So what can be done to enable change here?  I suppose nobody knows, but at least this report may well offer positive impetus to change in North Korea, and any improvement however small is to be welcomed. 

Good old George.  Once again he has risen silently and put his foot in it.  He has decided, supported by the Lib-Dem and Labour leaders, that Scotland cannot use the 'Pound' if they desire independence.  A brilliant piece of support for the 'Yes!' vote!  It appears to have worked superbly.  We all know that whatever they say today will mean nothing tomorrow, when Scotland is free the 'Pound' will most likely still be the currency used.  Ramblings from unknown EU leaders may also support the 'No' vote but in the end mean little, the EU will support Scotland in the end, in spite of Madrid!

I like it!

  

.

Now I'm Not One to Complain....

Now I am not one to complain, everyone knows that.  However in the months leading up to Christmas I have been inundated with chancers informing me that I must re-insert my details, so the thieving crooks can rib me.  Ninety percent of these pretend to be from Nat West Bank in some form or another. Not only do I get them daily I am getting three or four at a time some days, all Nat West! Occasionally they change to 'Smile,' or 'HSBC,' but mostly it is 'Nat West' customers who appear to be so stupid as to reply to a document that does not contain their name, account number or any other authenticating details.  We all for for them at times but come now!

Eusebio one of the great footballers has died at the age of 71 from heart problems.  A sad end to a great player and a great man.  Mozambique born he qualified to play for Portugal where he spent his time playing for Benfica, making them one of the 60's most powerful sides.  He played in cup finals, European Championships and was regarded as second only Pele!  During the 1966 World Cup Portugal found themselves three nothing down to a then popular North Korea.  I was one of many who saw Eusebio take the game by the scruff of the neck, score four of Portugal's five goals and rob Pak Do Ik and all of their moment.  It was an astonishing feat at the time.  Only rarely were football matches televised in the 60's but a friendly between Manchester United and Benfica was shown one night. Nothing much about this friendly game sticks in the mind bar one free kick.  The ball was placed about fifteen yards inside the Benfica half and Eusebio lined up to take it.  I recall commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme exclaiming, "I think he is going to shoot, he is!." The Manchester United goal was in the other half off the field!  Eusebio did indeed have a seventy five yard effort on goal and this shot went straight and true slipping a few inches past the post!  He would never have scored but it was a fabulous effort!  This man played 745 matches scoring 733 goals, a feat few will ever equal if any!  One of the world's great players.

George is laughing again!  He has told of his intention to cut £12 .5 Billion mostly from the Welfare budget.  How interesting that the 'Daily Mail' readership, who vote for this, will be impressed but not as much as the corporate tax dodgers who will be left untouched with their millions.  Robbing the poorest is easier than taxing the rich, who are Georges friends. There is around about £100 Billion available if George stooped tax dodging, but this is easier and a sure vote winner!  Rob the poor and pay the rich, it's the Conservative way!

Is climate change causing problems?  Around 1966 I noted a small story in the 'Edinburgh Evening News, in the days when that was a newspaper, mentioning that the Polar Ice Caps were melting. How come it has taken so long before action results?  Many time politicians have gathered to discuss the climate, notes were made, agreements reached and almost nothing has occurred, except climate change!  The US is suffering a great ice age this week, the weather stream comes all the way across the Atlantic and reaches far into the Mediterranean.  Snow, rain, storms, mixed with high tides, all bring trouble and yet we still think climate change is a lie.  We have had our share of rain, but no floods, and I feel for those who have seen large areas of normally dry land disappear under four or five feet or river water.  The ongoing effects will never leave them.  Oh and it's raining as I speak!

  

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Diet Friday

I call this 'Diet Friday,' but not in referring to myself.  My slim, malnourished, eight stone body needs no diet that I am aware of except a large turkey or side of beef.  That not appearing I will once again return to thieving from the neighbours mouse traps and find some nourishment that way.  The diet I refer to is the one now being experienced by millions who have stuffed themselves for two days and then stupidly stepped upon their weighing machine.  I can see many women looking in the mirror muttering, "I'm fat, I'm ugly, my hair is a mess," then turning to the man of the house and demanding "You need to give me a compliment!"  "OK," says he all too willingly, "Your eyesight is good."     

He too soon joins the diet.

I have yet to confirm this but I am led to believe that the 'Times' has decided that George Osborne, the mathematically challenged Chancellor of the Exchequer is their 'Man of the Year!' Yes George Osborne! The man who considers two and a half million unemployed acceptable, the man who sees no problem with ever growing Food Banks, the man who does nothing for million pound bonus's for bankers including those the nation still owns! 'Man of the Year?'  Goodness Gracious!  It appears Rupert Murdoch has decided the Tories will win the election and George will oust Dave from the leadership.  Dearie dearie me, if that does not add a million vote to the Scottish Nationalists I don't know what will!

  

Life does not get easier for the Heart of Midlothian.  Severely hampered because of previous money problems the side consists basically of the Under 20 side with one or two older players added.  Sadly injury and those yellow cards referees use against us in a biased manner are not helping the team. Mentally and physically tired the younger lads are giving their all as they know there is no alternative. The manager has no other option and several lads are playing at a level just a wee bit above them at present. The wolves are circling, the dreaded drop must be faced, and no rich man is available to hand in a couple of million to Scotland's biggest club.  The SFA have their hands tied, although they stretch for Rangers funnily enough, and the club must face the fact that the future may be a drop down.  Ah well, the commemoration of the 14 year old Tynecastle F.C. player who dropped dead on the field a few days before Christmas puts all this in context, especially as an 18 year old Hibernian player died in his sleep the same night!  If the Heart of Midlothian goes down then down we go.  The club must survive and return in due course, however long this takes.  At least we can be happy we did not deliberately avoid taxes like some I could mention.

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Dawn, George and Storm

The dawn came up not quite like thunder this morning revealing a bright sun glinting off the clouds.  The day ahead beckoned brightly.  When the sun shines the world is a better place, people almost smile, and indeed beneath the thick clothing they had wrapped themselves in they may well have been smiling, it was just impossible to know.  

George Osborne must have been delighted.  Before leaving for the House of Commons he entered his office at the Treasury, sat in one of the newly installed seats (the office revamp costing a mere £10.2 Million) and began to read his notes on cutting public spending by £3 Billion.  

For the most part I have ignored what he said.  An attack on the lazy young was not unexpected, they do note vote but the 'Daily Mail' reader does, and shifting a pittance here and a pittance there he hopes to rescue his party from destruction at the next election, and replace Cameron as leader.  After all he is the one doing all the work, right George?  Whatever he says makes little difference to most of us.

  

Yesterday, as the sun raced far too quickly below the horizon, I crossed the field heading for town.  Today the rain hammered down at a 45% angle.  The wind reached 25 miles an hour here yet way up north in the Scots Highlands winds of 148 miles an hour were recorded!  Snow fell, winds blew, trains were halted, lorries turned over and sadly people died.  Much nearer here along the East Anglian coast a combination of wind and high tides threaten to engulf the homes of many.  Electric pylon falling all over Scotland, followed by flooded houses near here.  I become grateful to be housed, upstairs, in an area that rarely suffers damage like those poor folks endure.   

There is something about a tree bare of leaves that stands stark against a blue sky.  I do not refer to the blue sky being so rare, my thoughts concern the contrast between the two.  There are photographs in there, however I fail to get them out. 

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Something Happened Today....

....but I am not sure what it was.  I think it may have been what they call'The Budget.'  This is a time when the man responsible for the nations money stands up in the House of Commons and lies in his teeth.  After his long speech, Gladstone's could take over four hours back in the day, the leader of the opposition gets to his feet and offers quotes written out the night before by his friends, even if they don't fit.  They usually do however as most replies to such speeches contain similar words to previous replies, just as most budget speeches are the usual half truths and lies as before.  Most folks stay as they are, some lose a bit, others gain a bit, but the same amount of cash is pushed backwards and forwards and the poorest stay poor, the rich keep their lolly.  Usually these little talks can sound so uplifting, and much cheering from the government back benches ensues.   However within 24 hours more alert folk have exposed the lies, the weaknesses and the dubious nature of what has been offered.  Most of us remain as we were, except of course when it is the last budget before an election, then the chancellor is full of tax cuts, benefit hikes, and anything else he thinks will get him most votes.  With George and his dim PM Dave I doubt they will have the depth of foresight to offer what is required there however.

I myself spent some time attempting to find the 15th century, it appears to have gone missing.  While I can find info regarding individuals it will not connect to the houses I am interested in, which is annoying.  However incidentally I did find a woman living in this house in 1926 who made corsets!  By 1933 a different man was resident and he had been replaced in 1937 by a doctor.  In those days I suspect the house would have offered decent living accommodation plus room for a surgery, one that was paid cash for in those days!  Old medical joke, 
"What did you operate on Jones for?"  
"£100."  
"No, I mean what had he got?" 
"£100."  
The Tories would that day back!
The doctor who used this place as a surgery lost  his father during the war, probably from old age, and he must have done well for himself to be living round the corner in a 'big hoose!'  Probably another successful doctor I imagine.  It's funny the things that turn up when you Google a name.  This does not help me discover info on 15th century houses, or those from other eras but does entertain my little mind. 
  
Oh yes, and the plague in the late fifteen hundreds killed over 800 people in this town, and that with a population of around two and a half thousand.  There were lots of 'doctors' around then also.  
Sleep well!

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Horrid Winter, Horrid Politiicans

Disgusting!  No warning given that I would awaken to such a sight!  Disgusting!  Who sent this mess to us here?  It's a disgrace!  Thick snow all over the place and no reason for it.  Horrid!  Naturally the nation has crawled to a halt, not counting those who skidded of the road of course.  People will ask questions as they always do, "Why are we not prepared? Why does this happen? What is to be done?"  Daft people waste time answering such folks.  It's winter, that's why!  I'm moving to Australia where it never snows or rains!  How delightful!  

 

Daily Mail

The smug face of Chancellor George shows how satisfied he is after announcing he is once more taking from the poor and giving to the rich!  That will please the 'Daily Mail' readers.  His plan is simple, reduce the money offered to those on benefits, and tax the rich.  However the tax is not a tax, just fiddling with the terms enabling the richer types to benefit while real cuts affect the poorest and disabled.  Our beloved Chancellor will be planning a holiday like last years (£10,000 ski holiday if I remember right) while his rich friends ask their accountants to fix their tax returns in a manner worthy of their huge wages.  Those on £67 a week like I once was will be happily wondering how to pay the heating bills.

The Conservative lie is a simple one.  Based as you know on the idea of telling a lie over and over again until it is accepted as truth.  Thus the 'Daily Mail' and 'Telegraph' fill their pages with tales of scrounging lazy types, always working class, who refuse to work and receive huge handouts.  It can be exaggerated to the nth degree if the recipient is a black immigrant.  This tells those that still have a job, and they do exist, that they keep the scroungers in luxury.  In no time at all resentment builds up and wallah! Votes for the Conservative Party!  Maths tells a different story.  As mentioned many times before the unemployment figures stand at around two and a half million, job vacancies number around four hundred thousand, therefore it is not folks scrounging it is a lack of jobs.  Create a million or two jobs and most people will rush to take one.  However that is difficult, and indeed almost impossible to achieve during the depression so the Tories encourage disunity by blaming the lazy, the immigrants and anyone who fits their bill.  The reader of the right wing press wants to believe he is working to keep everyone else well fed but will soon change his mind - on the day his company collapses!

George satisfies the middle class right wing reader while taking from them and giving to those at the top, his type of person.  Since Thatcher this has gone on, attacking the poorest and feeding the richest.  The so called Labour government, who's leader made around twenty or thirty millions in recent years and has a very complicated tax dodging system going for him, claimed things were going to get better, and they did for him!  Now we have the worst government I can remember, shored up by the Lib-Dem 'fag,' and little hope of change while the world around us collapses, except for the top level of course.  

I'm so glad I trust in Jesus who never failed me through that horrible time.  Maybe this will cause others to do the same.  Things can only get worse for the next few years, not better and there is none who can lead us out of this.

               
On the other hand there is of course that 'British pluck' that sees black humour (a phrase banned by Rotherham council I believe) in every situation.  Some kids must have been out early today and made the most of the horrid, disgusting, foul snow to leave us these two creatures.  Hopefully not fashioned on the parents!  I am better prepared for the next snowfall, I bought a brush to remove the horrid stuff from the pathway today.  For years we have struggled without one because it was not worth buying (and a £2.99 that's a lot of money for me to spend) and naturally by the time I got home the horrid stuff was turning to slush and has gone.  Bah!