War, BBC and Sounds.

BBC

Eighty years ago today Neville Chamberlain informed the nation that "This country is now at war with Germany." Listen here.

Many inform us that Chamberlain was quite successful as a chancellor of the exchequer during the 1930's.  While they attack his appeasement policy towards Adolf Hitler they accept that he also introduced money to pay for both a Fighter Defence and a Bomber Command.  Money was also found to strengthen the Royal Navy and yet he failed to provide monies for the army, possibly that was sensible as the British Army in 1939 still appeared willing to fight the last war and had not developed modern strategy or tactics.  

Chamberlain's great failure however was less his appeasement rather than his failure to understand Hitler.  Adolf just wanted to win the last war, his whole policy was to take over the land mass to the east and enslave any who opposed him, Neville never understood this.  Neville also had been successful and this many say led to his belief that he alone could bring the world situation to a peaceful conclusion.  His arrogance would have been worthwhile had he understood his enemy, he did not.

By 1938 Chamberlain was beginning to understand his failure.  The merging of Germany and Austria, the invasion of Czechoslovakia and the threat to Poland brought home his failure.  He did however have the courage to stand up to Adolf in the end and threaten war if the Germans did not leave Poland, a coward would not have done this!  

So early on a Sunday morning, some churches rigging up wireless sets so the congregation could listen, the British state heard Chamberlains words.  Nobody rejoiced, no flags waved, all understood the situation and were aware of the cost.  

In Germany few rejoiced, indeed the Nazi leaders gathered together to listen to this news and afterwards silence reigned.  Goebbels turned to von Ribbentrop and snarled "Now what!"  Teamwork and shared responsibility was not a Nazi virtue.

 

Such a major event in a life, and participating in a war that is won is about as major as is possible, leaves an affect on an individual and a nation.  The UK still carries the success as well as the aftermath of the second world war.  The aftermath saw an improving society, better housing, the NHS, schools, education for all and improved laws in the work place.  The memory of the war was ever with those who fought or came afterwards.  As the empire died the boast of a great past increased!  Today, as a small nation stronger in the EU than alone, many wish to return to that past. However the past has gone and the UK cannot survive alone.  The war has influenced many to vote for leaving the EU as they reach for an imaginary past, most who do so were not born in the war and never saw the suffering caused.  Interestingly those who now lead the Leave campaign care little for the war and never mention it, they care for position, fame and vast fortune as they line their pockets while subjecting the nation to austerity.  

The soon coming election, based on Boris's promises of money for education, NHS and everyone else, all too soon to be false, will fool many who wish to be fooled.  The opposition, is there one? will offer similar lies also unfounded.

Looking at all this maybe it would be good if the EU did go to war with the UK, well England at least, and send their bombers over here once again.  England deserves that!

BBC Sounds

     
So I woke this morning and stumbled through to sit at my desk staring into space until I woke enough to have breakfast.  I looked for Radio 3 to find some noise and discovered that 'the page is missing' and was redirected to BBC Sounds the new, expensive and absurd replacement for the popular and efficient iPlayer.
Why?
What sort of con is this that my link is sabotaged for the sake of the shockingly poor 'Sounds' mistake?  They say £10 million was spent adjusting the iPlayer to create 'Sounds' I wish I had been consulted as I could have saved them several million. If they continue to replace my links to justify this I may be tempted to scribble a note to someone in the BBC, they will ignore it but they will notice it...
After a search I have replaced the links and hope this time it will remain untouched by BBC executives failing at their job.
As I am on I might as well mention 'The Political Butterfly Effect' which was broadcast yesterday.  This featured the phenomenon of noise in the wrong place.  It appears that talk on Radio 4 must always be accompanied by needless noise drowning out the words and hindering hearing what is said and enjoyment of decent programmes.  I realise these producers come from the 'Punk generation' but they do not have to prove it!  Yesterday we were supposed to be in the House of Commons bar so they supplied appropriate sounds thus rendering talk useless.  These drink loving producers spend an enormous time in such places so must realise that nothing can be heard in them unless your ear is up against the speaker!  Radio 3 talks do not require needless noise why so on Radio 4? 

 

Wednesday Rant

The SPFL, the Scottish Professional Football League, has forced all the clubs in the league to support this LGBT organisation on the grounds that this is 'inclusive.'  If any one club was to oppose this move they would of course be harangued by the mob and classed as 'enemies of the people.'
I for one object to this and I am not alone.  Fear of such mob rule has stifled debate, not that there was any debate allowed, as to whether it is right to push such a lifestyle on people.  The lack of opposition means that homosexual and lesbian lifestyles are now offered as 'choices' and wee also have the spurious claim of 'trapped in a wrong body' demand now being pushed by the 'trans' lobby.
What a confused world.
Science has proved we cannot be in the wrong body, those who think they are are confused and require help to sort out their minds, as indeed do gays as they were not 'born that way' either as far as I can see but something or someone has brought them into this way of thinking.  It can be changed.
As we grow we are afflicted on all sides by parents, neighbours, circumstances, war, deprivation and assaults of various kinds, often these occur long before our minds are able to understand and many things that affect us today happen in the first two years of life, a time from which we have usually little memory.  Our reaction to the world around us as we go brings inward changes which in my view can lead to gay attitudes or indeed trans feelings.  Parents who fail in their role can also be a cause if they follow a false 'liberal' attitude that lets the child follow their own way, often with disastrous results.  
The good Lord died so that we can be saved, not just in the long term after death but beginning here and now, this requires total obedience to Jesus and he will lead us through all our failings to the abundant life he offers and wishes us to grasp.  The seriousness of the situation around us today does not move many however.  The lie of 'love' which allows people to do that which destroys them really is no more than an excuse to allow themselves to do their 'own thing' and not consider consequences.  If you 'love' people you speak truth not lies to them.
The Scottish government wishes to pursue a LGBT teaching in schools, indoctrinating children in lies, and this on a subject they do not require until adolescence.  Organisations are quick to jump on the LGBT bandwagon to avoid being out of step with the mob, the SPFL are usually out of step with Scottish football so why did they jump on this bandwagon?  I made comments to a chief constable the other day on twitter regarding his flag flying for the 'trans community.'  I wanted to know why he does not fly flags for old people, victims of crime or anyone else.  He had no answer, I did not expect him to, the PCs are so PC especially at a high level as it gets them promotion.  The power of the LGBT mob is growing and those who oppose are being beaten down, only Christians stand up against this as they care for people and wish truth to reign instead of lies.  Mob rule under a government that has no morality, an opposition with no teeth and a population that wishes for an easy life has been seen before, we know where this leads...

I am at the end of this book.  It was required reading as I saw a talk on the parliament channel in which a speaker claimed great things for Neville Chamberlain implying he was quite a good PM after all.  I had to know more.
Being the stepson of Joseph Chamberlain, a man who had revolutionised Birmingham in the late 1800's and reached cabinet level in parliament while his half brother Austen also became a member of the Tory cabinet Neville possibly wished to make something of himself in politics.  He certainly did well in Birmingham as a local councillor and later Lord Mayor, he was an efficient administrator and improved the dire social problems around him in many ways.  When eventually elected to parliament he was a decent debater and as a minister and later Chancellor an efficient   operator.
His main aim was to improve the social conditions of the poorest, a great difference to today's Tories, and some say he did this very well, at least in the Midlands.
Neville did find opposition tiring and was extremely rude to the Labour party members even according to the House attitudes of the day and never bothered to make friends with those who differed in their views.  Underlying this was an arrogance that never left and brought him down.
As chancellor for many years he avoided the worst of the recession of the late 20s and early 30's even encouraging rearmament to some extent building both a fighter and bomber force for the RAF.  This was too little and too late as Adolf Hitler had already a massive armed force and Neville neither wished to figt him when we could not win, not fight at all if he could avoid war.  This from all the right reasons but failing to comprehend the mind of Hitler in any way.
His efficiency as an administrator is seen when Churchill put him in his cabinet to do all the paperwork he despised, a job taken over by the equally efficient Attlee on Chamberlains death.  His death came when all his good work was undone by his abject failure to appease Hitler and avoid war.  It is said that had he resigned in 1937 rather than become PM he would be greeted as a great statesman, instead his failure is all most of us know about him.
This failure was not just caused by inefficient intelligence operators, nor was it bowing to a bully, but a main fault was the arrogance that grew within Chamberlain with the idea that only he could prevent war and this stopped him from having a clearer view of the world around him.  His failure depressed him and no wonder.  He was the last man to declare war and yet that became his duty.  It is not difficult in some ways to feel sympathy for Neville Chamberlain but that does not excuse his failure.
These small books on various 20th century PMs are well worth reading.  Not too big yet carrying decent information, I recommend them, if you like that sort of thing.