School shootings

Most of us here in UK, I suspect, have little real understanding of the nature and extent of school shootings in America. We had our own experiences and swift action resulted. And yes, I am aware that many people condemned the swiftness at a time when raw emotions existed and the handgun ban seems in time to have become farcical when illegal guns seem universally available in big cities.

Despite the problem presented in a review of US shootings, I sense that the strength of weapon holding enshrined in the US Constitution will not be disrupted by the latest incident. Look carefully at the factors associated with the shooters. They also seem alien to us with the medication factor they have.

I have to say that the thing which really will stick in my memory is the suggestion that rifles be available in school corridors in cases such as we have fire extinguishers. Strong situations require strong measures indeed. What would our Health & Safety people say about that?

Is it fair?

A very fine actress. Taxi and Silence of the lambs were much better for her presence. Now, someone has dug up a video of Jodie Foster singing.

Is it fair that so much talent is present in one body?

Switch off brain. Open mouth. Insert foot.

That fool B.Liar has made yet another stupid and, I suspect, lying statement. He was speaking in the context of Prince Harry yes or no going to Iraq. The addled fool said he would be delighted for his children to go to Iraq. Delighted. I repeat 'delighted'

Proud is a word I would accept. Contented - maybe. Of course, he is betting on a winner. None of his children are ever likely to get nearer a war than an all-freeby holiday in the Caribbean. I might just as well say I'd be delighted if my sister were to become a transvestite prostitute. I have no sister so the acceptance is devious and deceitful. But then, what else to expect from that person.

Save a place for me

Sounds like something that would certainly ease the problem of topics for discussion with one’s dinner party neighbour. The item seems to concentrate on female guests

“At each setting there's a large ceramic plate that rests on a cloth runner embroidered with the woman's name and lavishly decorated with symbols of her life and achievements. The plates are painted with vaginal forms, some rising up in high relief, and are also customized with symbolic attributes of the women they honor. The gleaming white-ceramic tile floor beneath the table bears the names of another 999 women painted in gold”

The artist claims she got her inspiration from

“Along each side are 13 place settings, a reference to Christ and his 12 disciples at the Last Supper. Chicago said she wanted to reinterpret "that all-male event from the point of view of those who had traditionally been expected to prepare the food, then silently disappear from the picture."

I suppose we should be grateful that she went the female route and we did not end up with place settings of penis images. The way in which the male organs are displayed would have made it difficult to set out the plates. I did once have a male friend who claimed that he preferred women’s bodies because their sexual arrangements were so much neater. I know what he means but I do not think that such things should be considered part of the enjoyment of a good meal.

Threatening

Any trouble from this lady and this photograph is going straight to her workmates.

Ewe won't believe this

I cannot take this as gospel truth.

Funny though.

Will he go or will he stay?

The recent rise of service deaths in the British area of Iraq, including one where one of our main battle tanks was crippled, has led to questions as to whether Prince Harry should deploy there with his regiment sometime next month.

He has made his own wishes clear. He wants to go and has said so forcibly. What one would expect from a lad fresh out of Sandhurst and as a member of a crack unit. There are stories that the enemy has already circulated his photograph and intend to make him a prime target. They would wish to kill him but his being taken as a hostage is also on the cards. Either would be a serious victory for the group that achieves their aim.

It is not just that he will be working on his own unaccompanied out of the streets. He will have other tank crews with him and under his command. Their very proximity to a Royal target will heighten the already considerable dangers they face every time they drive out of their permanent base. If he is wounded or his vehicle is put out of action, other troops will have to be sent to recover him or his transport and the increased danger will attach to them. Quite obviously, he will be a liability.

He is reported to be making moves to influence the decision makers. I'd suggest this is an abuse of his position as a very new and junior officer; the ordinary Rupert would be stamped upon if they tried the tactic he is said to be using. What he needs is to remember the family's concept of Duty. He is required to do what is best for the country - regardless of what he would like to do. His duty is to be available to fulfill his royal destiny and availability as third in line for the crown. Observation of this duty would preclude his personal wishes. I suppose the example that first comes to mind was his aunt Margaret's decision to break up her romance with Group Captain Townsend. I would not think less of him.

Edited to add - Coments continue to get posted everywhere.

I see the benefit of that

Getting older is supposed to have benefits. The acquisition of intelligence is supposed to come from age. Many cultures respect aged persons.

What seems to happen is that the advances of science allow the old to appear clever. Where I might have had to spend much time reading a collection of newspapers, I can now check out news on the Internet. My knowledge of current events, new ideas, Agent Provacateur underwear - all simplified.
There are even advances which leap ahead. I was concerned that I was in Argos but could not read the item reference as it was too small. Dah Daa - problem solved.
Hey - I'm joking right.

World poverty deaths

We had the joke re Bono clicking his fingers and saying "Everytime I click my fingers, a child dies" to be answered by a heckler who said "Well, bloody stop doing it then"

However, here is something that illustrates the situation without the chance for any heckling. I do not know what we are going to do. We pour resources and money into the area and it just seems to go to waste. Or, does it go to Mercedes showrooms?

Drugs

There is much discussion on the way we treat drug production in Afghanistan. My own dealings with drug abusers suggests to me that whatever is decided as a control method, it will not be easy. So difficult I do not see it working.

In that context, this is an interesting report and commentary.

Causes of crime - what?

As a very junior (i.e. young) investigator I would often find a situation where the only conclusion would be that it was a wonder that the crime had not been perpetrated earlier and more frequently. There was no idea of crime prevention. A few window bars. More than one lock on a door or contained. That was about it.

I served long enough to see this situation reversed. We organised crime prevention courses to train officers how to undertake surveys and forestall easy pickings. Technological advances were taken into our armoury. Closed circuit TV was a back-up to the window bars. Alarm systems became very sophisticated; way beyond a ringing bell that was ignored by most. The new concentration on preventing crime by use of brain power rather than application of the wooden poultice, worked.

Then came the mania for measuring work done and results achieved. Officers were spending more and more time in their stations with paperwork and keyboards. Crime prevention fell off. Guess the result of that.

NuLabour's achievements

I have to be careful when I set out to establish exactly what it might be that B.Liar has brought to this country. My tablets meant to counter high blood pressure can only do so much.

I've found an analysis that saves me the effort. Draws the John Major government in but I can deal with that.

Ninja Mob

Here is another one of those Japanese street gatherings similiar to the one I did a couple of days back

Be great to start something like this is, say, the morning rush hour at a main line London station.

No sooner said than done

Another string to his bow

As if he was not doing enough to supplement his obscene pension, B.Liar is putting himself about as a singer.

I'm an expert. Get me in there.

It must be hard to give up the trappings of high political life one receives as a Prime Minister. I suppose it is because it is so hard that few actually step down.

There is work with this, that and the other foundation. Lecture tours. Plastic chicken dinners where the star struck hoi pollieu can rub shoulders with Mr Big.

So, I see that B.Liar is setting himself up with another few-hours-a-week appointment. That will be nice to have on his c.v.

Veiled threats

We had much consternation, learned debate, ignorant ranting and Islamophobia after Jack Straw commented that women visiting his parliamentary office should drop the veil. This was followed by the female teacher who refused to reveal anything more exotic than her eyes. I thought it had all died down after the point was made by Muslims themselves that the covering-up was not a
religious requirement.

So, if there were any winning to be achieved, it looked as if the common sense party had won. Not so; the judicial masters have spoken and have taken a view. I see it as a cave in.

What a good looking woman my illustration is. Must be in her genes?

Service!

Just amazing what some people will do to get service in busy restaurants

One piece at a time

Seems that a guy decided to steal bits of a boat from his employers - Sunseeker. I was quite excited by this as the blogger asks who was it that wrote a song about this sort of bit by bit thieving to build a car. I knew it was Johnny Cash. Trouble is that someone else had already answered that question.

I might get a mention if I query the value of the bits stolen. Sunseeker is one of the most expensive marques one can buy; new models go for £1M upwards. Seems that they do make cheepo versions though.

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There are times when I find the American sense of history just a little bit too strong.

Iran diary

Iran is not really a land of iPod thieving zealots that make our sailors cry. Or so it seems from this diary of a stay there by a Daily Mail columist. Longish but, to me, an insight into a land where our mistaken perceptions may well cause us yet further problems. If nothing else, we should observe that old adage "Know thy enemy"

John is Searching

Never mind why it is here.

My blog.

My rules.

Home town boys

I have not wanted to get into the VT shootings. We here in the UK have very little idea of the place that guns play in the life of the average American so we are unable to make a lot of sense of the situation.

However, today I came across this. The audio track does not match the visuals all that well but it seems to attempt to examine things from the US perspective. Well, as I see it anyway. Go looky and make your own mind up - maybe.

It's April 23rd

Cry God For Harry, England and Saint George

Yes, it's the day every pc-****wit, eu-wanker and member of the Scottish Raj would rather we all forgot. The day we English should be celebrating our own identity. So with apologies to my less blessed readers, today will be dedicated to all things English.

This royal throne of kings, this sceptr'd isle
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars
This other Eden, demi-paradise
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in a silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall,
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands;
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England

Normal touchy-feely, all-inclusive, diversity-sensitive programming will resume on the morrow.

Ready for something serious?

OK. Coffee. Do Not Disturb notice posted. Fags if you still abuse them.

Go.

Secret no more

Given the sort of attitude I think I reveal here, it may seem strange that I find the Post Secrets site so interesting.

Every so often, I come across something that hits home on me. In this week's posting of new cards, there are two that made me stop and think. My collection of blank spots in the brain is today over the Mythology I Once Knew lobe but I recollect something about a courtier who was so het up that he whispered a secret down a hole in the ground** That is how it got out that his master had asses' ears. I can understand the relief afforded by sending off the cards we see here.

** I was annoyed that something I had laboured at all those very many years ago had gone into hiding. Thanks to the wonders of Google, I found this listing of people who had gained knowledge the keeping secret of which they found bothersome. No exact match but I'll settle for one or other of these. Side note is that the idea of 'hole in the ground' as a depository of secrets is universal across so many cultures.

Recycle or restock?

I do not follow every twist and turn on the environmental debate. Global warming - cyclic or our fault? Carbon footprints, carbon trading. Even with next to zero interest, the buzz words have got me.

So, with that background, I was surprised to find myself agreeing with the points made by a Guardian columnist. The choice of paper alone would normally scare me a mile. However, as a stockist of what she describes as redundant "stuff" (boy's toys within my family circle), I see what she means.

Might even give it a go. Hows about you dear Reader?

Pucker up

Seems that these are the likely costumes that young ladies will be wearing in the immediate future.

Nice. Not too drastic. No need for size zero to get them on.

Should have the builders whistling like a bird cage full of finches.

Part-time staff

So, it seems that our police spend a mere14% of their duty periods on patrol and that at any given time only one in 58 is actually out where they are likely to encounter criminals. Nurses get a little more exposure to their customers where they spend 40% of their shifts alongside a bed.

So, where are they during the periods they are not filling their primary role? In the case of police it is paperwork. Much of this is not related to solving crime or improving the quality of the cases against those in custody. Performance reviews seem to be the villains. So, it seems that what is preventing them doing a better job is the time spent telling us how much better they are doing than before Bliar gave attention to being tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime.

In the case of the nurses, it seems that the 'lost' time is spent in rectifying the faults of others or what might be considered as administration. I remember the days when there were Matrons. Fierce old biddies who ensured that everything ran like clockwork robots. They went on replacement by some management theory vocabulary wonks but were re-instated. Seems they were de-fanged before being brought back. The ways detailed in the nurses employment report would never have been tolerated. The reports one reads when ward cleanliness is discussed reveal filth and shoddy workmanship that would never had existed in days of yore.

So, what price progress?

Waiting for the bang

Way back in my sorta-policeman days, I formed the theory that there is never any such thing as an accident. My work confirmed that what might be described as accidental always had some factor which, had it been dealt with, would have prevented the event.

So, it seems that the killer at Virginia Tech. was a weirdo. He had tendencies and traits that should have set alarm bells ringing. His having been ruled as 'odd' should have prevented him from legally acquiring weapons and ammunition. But they did not.

So - no accident. Looks like there might be a large dent in the 2007 profits of the company carrying the Tech's liability insurance.