Politics

They STILL don’t get it – Part The First …

Old woolly Woolas the ex-Immigration Minister and, if the Courts have their way, soon to be ex-MP seems to have learnt very little from the beating Parliament has taken over the last couple of years.

For those that don’t live here or have been asleep since May, Woolly has been found guilty by an Election Court of telling lies about his opponent. Now, whatever we may think, or know, about politicians telling lies, it is an offence under the Representation of the People Act to gob out a load of porkies about your opponent during an election campaign. I, as a veteran of many election campaigns, know that. Woolly knew that before he sanctioned his rather unfortunate publications. (Besides, ignorance of the law has never really been an acceptable defence.)

Being weird, I’ve actually read the judgement of the Election Court which annexed the offending leaflets. I’ve seen them and, again as an election veteran, I can tell you that they go way beyond anything I would ever have allowed, designed, printed, published or distributed. Attack the policy by all means – even have a go at the guy’s record – but personal attacks of the kind Woolly was up to are a no-no – particularly when the allegations aren’t damned well true!

Does this odious moron know anything about morality? It seems morality got sent off on a three week bender because the Party was marginally less popular than a dose of the clap and Woolly faced losing his ticket on the Westminster gravy train.

What is all the more depressing is the calibre of support he’s getting from various corners. Labour MP Graham Stringer is quoted as saying that election battles in marginal seats were not “Sunday-school outings“. He went on “If the courts get involved in elections when people go over the top on policy and sometimes tell lies then we are going to have a very strange electoral process in future.”

Yes, Graham, it might encourage some of you sleazy buggers to clean up your act.

Religion

Joe and his former boss

It seems the pope and his friends are becoming a little too fond of the Nazi analogies.

Back in April this year Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, who is the pope’s preacher, likened what the church was going through as a result of the child sex abuse scandal to the persecution of the Jews under Hitler. Yesterday the old man drew parallels between the Nazi tyranny and “atheist extremism”, whatever that might be.

The owner of the world’s most famous smoking handbag should very well understand Nazi ideology having been a Hitler Jugend himself. (The Vatican now tries desperately to underplay this, saying that he was only doing what everyone his age was required to do.)

At the age of five Ratzinger is reported to have said Continue reading Joe and his former boss →

Religion

Papa has landed

Today is a special day in my family. It would have been my father’s 85th birthday. Today is also the day in which we “welcome” another octogenarian to the United Kingdom. Both men preached the gospels – one I admired immensely (and still do) the other I abhor, and I offer no prize for guessing which one is which.

There has been enormous controversy concerning the pope’s visit, and quite rightly so. Let me get one thing straight. I have no objection to the pope coming to this country as head of the catholic church and spiritual leader of his flock. I do have strong objections to him coming here on a full blown state visit, partly at my expense.

First things first – the Vatican City State is not really a nation state Continue reading Papa has landed →

General

Going Smokeless

What seems now like an age ago, a work colleague pointed me in the direction of a web site selling these here new fangled electric cigarettes.

Now – fess up – I’ve been a forty a day man for the best part of forty years. (Which, incidentally, equates to puffing my way through a 35 mile long cigarette. Worse still, I’ve thrown away a five mile long dogend, but I digress.)

To kick that sort of habit takes a boatload of willpower or some serious alternative chemicals.  And I’ve tried the lot – cold-turkey (lasted about 24 hours), patches, inhalers and even some stuff you can get on prescription, called Champix, which is supposed to lessen the cravings. Nothing worked, so I wasn’t holding out too much hope.

However, I took the plunge and ordered the kit. What the heck – it was only fifty quid and if it didn’t work I could chuck it in the next car boot sale. It arrived promptly and I did nothing much with it for about three months. Had a bit too much on my plate at the time to fart about with something else. I’m beginning to wish Continue reading Going Smokeless →

Media

Aunty’s still dropping her bloomers

Yeah – I know it’s a Bank Holiday, but you don’t expect such august a body as the BBC to field the second eleven on the sub editor’s desk. Just lifted this straight off their story about the Emmy’s:

“Sheen’s third outing as former British prime minister Tony Blair earned him his first Emmy nomination, for The Special Relationship.

But he lost out to Al Pacino, who scooped a rare TV award for his role as an advocate of doctor-assisted suicide in You Don’t Know Jack.

It is an account of the close working bond between Mr Blair and former US president Bill Clinton. Dennis Quaid, who portrayed President Clinton, was also up for an acting award.”

If there really WAS a suicide pact between Blair and Clinton I think we should be told.

Religion

Double standard anyone?

Some may remember that, in February last year, the then Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, banned the egregious Fred Phelps and his equally repugnant daughter, Shirley Phelps-Roper, from entering the United Kingdom. (For those that don’t already know, Fred is the “pastor” of Westboro Baptist Church, about 90 strong and largely members of his own family. He preaches that all the world’s ills stem directly from toleration of homosexuality. He is a man with deeply unsavoury views and a very murky and violent history.) As far as I am aware that ban remains in place.

On 16 September this year the United Kingdom will host a full state visit to another religious leader. This one heads an organisation that:

  • opposes the distribution of condoms, thereby increasing large families in poor countries and the spread of AIDS
  • promotes segregated education
  • denies abortion rights to even the most vulnerable women
  • opposes equal rights for lesbians, gay, bisexual and transgender people
  • fails to address the many cases of abuse of children within its own organisation.
  • rehabilitated the holocaust denier bishop Richard Williamson and the appeaser of Hitler, the war-time Pope, Pius XII.

That organisation has an even murkier and more violent history. (Fred might have beaten seven bells out of his wife and kids, but I’m not aware that he has yet launched a tide of torture, inquisition, crusade and “holy” war onto the world.)

Fred’s nasty views can stay at home, but Joe’s can come to the (taxpayer-funded) party.

Politics

Milking Milton

The Spanish philosopher Geroge Santayana once wrote “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”

You would think that any reasonably sentient Tory politician would remember Thatcher the Snatcher and her infamous cost-cutting exercises when she was at MiniED. Not so La Milton, the tatty-haired MP for Guildford, who recently advised my GP to call me a fatty.

Her latest foray was to propose the scrapping of free school milk for under fives. Now, my recollection of free school milk, drunk by a straw from a third pint bottle that had stood in the corner of a hot classroom all morning, is pretty revolting, so some of the little ankle-biters might not be too upset.

However, I digress, and that’s not the point – which is that we have now had two fairly major wrong-footers from the Cuckfield-Cockupartist in as many weeks. At least Cameron has some appreciation of history and slapped her down as soon as he got wind of it.

The question is “Do we have another Edwina-Bloody-Currie on our hands”?

General

All this and more for £1.94

Oh – the joy of Ebay. The names have been changed to protect the guilty.

From: Buyer
To: Vendor
Subject: Buyer has sent a question about item that ended on 14-Jul-10 18:45:19 BST – Freddy vs Jason – DVD
Sent Date: 14-Jul-10 19:45:41 BST

Dear Vendor,

hello i am really sorry but my daughter has gone on my account and been bidding on a few films … i do not wish to buy this film please can you cancel this please thank you
– Buyer

From: Vendor
To: Buyer
Sent Date: 14-Jul-10 20:10:07 BST

Dear Buyer,

I’m afraid I rather think that is your problem, not mine. Whoever was using your account bid twice on this and I could have sold it to a genuine seller. As it is I now have a final value fee on my account.

I am open to suggestions, but I am not prepared to cancel the item without some recompense.

– Vendor

From: Buyer Continue reading All this and more for £1.94 →

General

Much Wringing of Hands

It’s very sad that we’ve had two highly disturbed loons go crazy with a gun in such a short space of time. Already the “pundits” have appeared again with the “we must learn from this” and “never again” quotes. Fair enough, let’s try! But let’s get something real and in proportion here.

Last night we watched a programme about Derrick Bird. In the last twenty minutes a well-meaning, but very deluded, woman was espousing the virtue of greater gun control. She made the valid observation that countries where guns are more freely available suffer these type of events more than those, like ours, where they are more controlled. Rather misses the point, though!

Guns don’t kill people. People kill people.

I’m sure I’m not alone in knowing someone who owns some impressive firepower. In my case I know several, including a very responsible gun owner. I know where he keeps them, what security they’re under and can take a decent guess about when he will be away from home!

The hand wringer also wants gun licences reviewed annually instead of five-yearly. “A lot can happen in five years to change that person.” she said. News for you there as well, my dear. A lot can happen in five MONTHS to change that person. Take that to it’s logical conclusion and we’d be checking every day – no, every ten minutes in case Mr Firepower comes home and finds his significant other in flagrente with a third party.

Missed point number three? Any seriously disturbed individual could challenge Derrick Bird’s body count with a 4×4 and a crowded bus queue.

Stricter gun control will NEVER prevent another Hungerford/Dunblane/Cumbria.

Ms Hand-Wringer says we should try. Give it a go, but you will fail.