Snow - shock horror

Once again, the country has large swathes where nothing moves due to a couple of inches of snow. We knew it was coming. It has been here before. Again, the same disruption when it settled. We are not talking blizzard conditions or wind having caused deep drifts. Amazing. With all the devotion we afford to new technology, we still cannot deal with what happens in winter. Flooding is the same. Heatwaves still kill off old people.

Insofar as we here in Scotland are concerned, we demonstrate that it does not have to be quite as bad as England is reported. I went out to get the papers about 7 this morning. There was about 2 inches of snow quite crisp. However, all the pavements had been swept by the little gritter sort of machine that we have and there was no threat to my normal wear shoes. The roads had been gritted. I saw snow ploughs coming back in to the depot so it seems the rural roads had been dealt with. I felt a certain smugness.

What are little boys made of?

Your Personality Cluster is Introverted Sensing

You are: Responsible, ethical, and trustworthy Loyal, with a sense of roots in your community Someone who treasures and remembers the past Adverse to surprises and the unknown

What's Your Personality Cluster?

Well, don't know how but it seems right to me in a number of areas.

You have a go

Buddy, can you spare a dime?

Whilst we might be partners of the US in TWOT, the amount that is allocated to defence spending amply demonstrates that we are nowhere near equal partners. We have the same aim. Here the Chancellor-soon-to-be Prime Minister is cutting back on defence expenditure. Soldiers' lives come cheaper than adequate protection and medical care.

Not so much 'Can you spare a dime?'; more like 'Got any gum chum?'

Humdrum life

Want to lead an exciting life - just like they show in the adverts?

Try the Guest Blog to get some idea of how exciting things can be - not.

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When does the action start? Where is the adrenaline?

Abandon hope all ye ........

New Labour Information Minister, Hazel Blears, on Radio 4′ The Westminster Hour, last night:
The next election will be won and lost in those super-marginals like Crawley, Hove, Harlow, Dartford, Swindon. These are the places where we’ve got to go out and fight for what we believe in. And, actually, if we in the Labour Party really are talking about the things that people are interested in about the state of their streets, the police, vandalism, the NHS, getting a decent education for their children, that’s how we’ll win the election, that will motivate Labour member’s and supporters.

So, if you are not in one of those super-marginals, tough. Labour/Arbeit does not intend to waste time getting out and about to see what you may currently be thinking about the state of the streets, the police, vandalism, the NHS, getting a decent education for your children, or how they will win the election. Even a rudimentary scan of any paper; whatever their political stance; will show outthe problems and failures. People do not want to discuss these - no discussion is needed. What they would appreciate is some sure and firm committment to do something about these problems. But then, the public are dealing with politicians so when did they ever have te chance of a fair and straight deal?

I set out my stall above with the intention of a good and detailed analysis. But, you know what? I've lost the drive. Nothing will improve. There will be no changes. Sure, we will have promises that the expenditure of yet more of our money will change things. Acres of forest will be sacrificied in promulgating new quick-fix legislation that will baffle and overpower those meant to apply it.

We are doomed.

And the world scene is no better.

Abandon hope all ye ........

New Labour Information Minister, Hazel Blears, on Radio 4′ The Westminster Hour, last night:
The next election will be won and lost in those super-marginals like Crawley, Hove, Harlow, Dartford, Swindon. These are the places where we’ve got to go out and fight for what we believe in. And, actually, if we in the Labour Party really are talking about the things that people are interested in about the state of their streets, the police, vandalism, the NHS, getting a decent education for their children, that’s how we’ll win the election, that will motivate Labour member’s and supporters.

So, if you are not in one of those super-marginals, tough. Labour/Arbeit does not intend to waste time getting out and about to see what you may currently be thinking about the state of the streets, the police, vandalism, the NHS, getting a decent education for your children, or how they will win the election. Even a rudimentary scan of any paper; whatever their political stance; will show outthe problems and failures. People do not want to discuss these - no discussion is needed. What they would appreciate is some sure and firm committment to do something about these problems. But then, the public are dealing with politicians so when did they ever have te chance of a fair and straight deal?

I set out my stall above with the intention of a good and detailed analysis. But, you know what? I've lost the drive. Nothing will improve. There will be no changes. Sure, we will have promises that the expenditure of yet more of our money will change things. Acres of forest will be sacrificied in promulgating new quick-fix legislation that will baffle and overpower those meant to apply it.

We are doomed.

And the world scene is no better.

Gay parents

This comes from wawibf@thefridaything.co.uk. I’ve reproduced it in full to save viewers having to decide whether they want to follow a link. Whilst the language is hardly that of learned debate, I think it makes very valid reading. I see what the guy is getting at.

Where would we be without gay people? Without Oscar Wilde, AlanTuring, Gore Vidal or even Christopher Biggins, the world wouldmost definitely be a poorer place, although the precise purposeof Pete Burns remains unclear.But this week it's been impossible to avoid the unpleasant rowabout whether Catholic adoption agencies should be forced toconsider gay couples as adoptive parents under anti-discrimination legislation. The customary hackles were raised,but what the row seems to boil down to is essentially a hideouscollection of prejudices about gay people, including:1) They will try to make their children gayWritten down in black and white, this sounds utterly ridiculous.It's the implication that any adopted children will either beencouraged to be gay, or will learn from example and thus turnout gay. However, there isn't any real evidence that thisactually happens. It also suggests a horribly distorted view ofgay couples who want to adopt, and one which a tiny bit ofthought would correct. Are children going to be adopted bymilitant we're-queer-and-we're-here activists and raging scenequeens, or are they going to be adopted by ordinary people whodesperately want children but just happen to be gay?2) Gay parents are somehow not as good as heterosexual onesHaving two dads or two mums *is* a bit unusual, and let's faceit, you're going to get a few kickings in the playground. Butyou've got to toughen up at some point, and attitudes toward gaypeople are slowly changing. And if you didn't know any different,having two dads would be normal, if deeply tedious ('Dad and Dadare in the shed, tinkering with the broken strimmer. Again.').Then there's the fact that parenthood is such a complicatedbusiness that being gay is unlikely to be of paramountimportance. Surely the key thing about parenting is that parentswant to make a good job of it. What's more important, thesexuality of your parents, or getting help with your homework anddecent Christmas presents?3) Gays all live in a Frankie Goes To Hollywood videoThere are aspects of gay culture, that, without putting too finea point on it, are a bit debased - in particular the subcultureof aggressively casual sex. However, this is horribly unfair: gaypeople who want to adopt will, like heterosexual people, have toprove they can provide a stable environment for the child. It'salso deeply prejudiced - while some gay people behave like themost ridiculous stereotypes of gays, the average gay person doesnot spend all day every day wearing biker gear, growing amoustache, huffing poppers and listening to C&C Music Factory.Leaving aside religious cant, it's hard to see what thesubstantive objections to gay parents are. Sure, it's not*typical*, but then how many families are?

Great minds think alike?

Guest this time around is a 93 year old man. I've read his item more than once but cannot quite decide whether or not I am with him on the subject of shuffling away from this mortal coil

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Mr Presley has left the building

Good game come boredom killer

Guarantee that within three goes, you will find that absolutely essential phrase for your next Executive Summary.

Written for me?

Here's a nice story about the perils of dipping into old books belonging to other people.

The kicker in the tale applies to me - but then - I've always known that. Whilst said volume is interesting to me, it is an essential for my acquaintances.

So?

Nice comment on the collusion report regarding RUC and Loyalist killers. I have read what is there but see no names.

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More money wasted for political ends.

Salvation cometh

The guest might describe himself as a Yorkshire person; known for forthright opinions they are not reluctant to air and as a ranter but, frankly, I find some attraction in a Britain he forecasts should the man Reid be elected rather than the expected Brown.

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No rest for the wicked. Only problem is how many wicked would there be?

Say no more

Tony Blair on Ruth Turner 2007:
Ruth is a person of the highest integrity for whom I have great regard and I continue to have complete confidence in her
William Hague on Jeffrey Archer 1999:
This candidate is a candidate of probity and intergity - I am going to back him to the hilt

The Niggar Family

See, it can be done.

Ye olden days

I came across this fragment whilst looking for something else. Wonderful tales. I seem to get diverted this way quite often but, who cares, my time is my own.

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How things used to be

The End

Cancer wins again.

Damn. This guy was just such a fighter. If you didn't know of him, read back.

Definitions

This is just what is needed - once we all get these straight in our head, the whole concept of blogging becomes very simple.

Freedom to work

Most people make decisions about their life and work based on what is generally considered “right” and “good.” This is living from the outside in: letting others people’s expectations rule your life. You do what you do because that’s what you have been told to do. It’s a good recipe for frustration and stress. Living from the inside out means finding your own innermost values and basing all choices on those. That’s the best way to increase your happiness with whatever you do for a living.

Read more about this theory. Fine if one has the power to determine whether one can actually choose between 'outside' or 'inside'. This assumes one has actually managed to get up that triangle.

I had a boss whose theory was that work was not something that could ever be enjoyed. It we did enjoy what we were doing, it was not work.

Time saver

I find it easier to compose complicated stuff off-line on my w.p. programme. Some of these do not allow copy & paste and I use TinyURL. This chops great long URL down into easily managed shortURL.

This is just a demo. You can get a button that goes on your links toolbar and that makes it ever easier

Enter a long URL to make tiny:

Deletions

I've removed a couple of entries. I had an e-mail from a reader who questioned their presence. I've deleted them. No big deal to me.

I cannot guarantee that I will not cause him/her to again comment at some date in the future. I blog what I find interesting. If it is not totally my own work, it comes from the Main Stream Media (MSM) or from other blogs that are open to all who have Internet access. I am fully aware of the sort of material that would justifiably offend an adult with the widest of open minds. As a crime investigator, I have seen and dealt with very hard pornographic material and think I can readily identify that which should not appear here. Rewind - I blog what I find interesting. Harmful matters do not interest me.

I had to run the deletion decision a few times. I do not wish to add, even in the most peripheral way - to those who are demanding controls on what we do and say in our blogs and on the Net in general. In the end, it came down to the fact that my correspondent had asked a calm question in a reasoned manner. No hectoring. No insults under the cover of comment. I recognise that I do have a limitation on my social skills and one result of this is that I attach little weight to the care and respect for others that was normal before we entered the Valley of Death that is Political Correctness. This can manifest itself as if it were a lack of self-respect. I am aware that there are a very very limited few whose criticism would ever cause me the slightest concern; this awareness means that I do try and tread carefully and lightly but, in the end, I decide what I do, say and think.

No more Mr Nice Guy

I am known for my lack of concern regarding my social skills ability.

Hence, I like this

Excuse you?
By Mr Angry on People
I have resolved (not in a new years way, that is for those of you with low motivation), to stop saying ‘excuse me’ to people I do not hear or understand.
I have realised that pretty much without fail, any lack of comprehension on my part is due entirely to the communicator. It is them, not me.
Their errors can be numerous, whether they be mumbling, whispering, talking to fast, or simply not paying me enough attention. Yet, when this happens, our first reaction is to say, “Excuse me?” in a “I’m sorry but I have useless ears, what was that again” way. When in reality, what you are actually saying is, “OK numbnuts, let’s try this again, except this time I want eye-contact, volume and a decent attempt at enunciation, OK?”
Honesty is a valued personal trait in society, apparently, so why do we insist on these false apologies? I want to see some harsh truth out there on the streets.
It is the same when someone bumps into you in the street, before you know it you are looking at them apologetically, and saying, “Excuse me”. And not in a cool sarcastic way. I mean in an “Oh my god, I can’t believe I got in your way there, what a twat I am” way.
This apologising for things that are not your fault is a debilitating English disease that I have now resolved to leave in my past forever. It has been removed from my genetic make-up. If we look at yesterday alone, then where there would previously have been at least four “Excuse me”’s, instead I used two “speak ups”, one “Christ, stop mumbling!” and one, “Look where you’re going wideload!”.
And do you know what? Without fail they all said, “Excuse me”.
I feel better for it. I suggest you do the same.

There is the door Mr B.Liar

Quote::
"On the part of the military, they need to accept that in a volunteer armed force, conflict and casualty may be part of what they are called upon to face."

Blair - I've no doubt you've been on this website and I hope you're reading this. I sit here typing this in tears of anger, frustration and despair.Having never served, HOW FCUKING DARE YOU make a comment like that. The finest, brightest, strongest, bravest young men and women in this country signed on the dotted line in selfless service of their country and you BETRAYED them by sending them into unsound conflict without adequate support.YOU have made the decision to send young soldiers into a HELL from which some have never returned....And if you think I'm being unreasonble, consider for a second my friends and comrades who will never again see the light of day. Consider the parents who leave their brave young son's bedroom just as he left it in the false hope that he might one day come home to them. Consider the children who, whilst you were no doubt enjoying a family christmas, wept and sobbed because daddy wasn't there to open his presents - Because you murdered him in your political pandering.May your dreams be haunted for the rest of your days by the youth and laughter which you've so smugly poured away.Blair. You fcuking cnut.

That is a entry on a military Forum. It comes from someone known as a balanced and reasonable poster. Comments on this are all favourable.

It just emphasises how totally out of touch the man, appointed as Prime Minister, is with the (military) man in the street. He who used to claim to be a man of the people - hey - I'm - It's just I'm one of you hey yeah has totally lost it. He should go. As soon as possible. His successor is immaterial - Old Nick the Devil himself would be a better choice.

Voice from the past

I've had much enjoyment from reading the advice given by that old guy Sun Tzu. Maybe because it reflects events that have happened to me. His comments at the Guest Blog have some weight.

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Soldier's version of Confucious He Say

Just sometimes ............

Just sometimes, satire is the best way to make one's point. Here a GP enters the world of NHS management .......

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Row, row, row your boat

Learn if you can

I had a small problem from a guy, firstly 'anonymous' and later 'Joe', who tried to contact me through the comment facility. He chose not to take up my suggestion he contact me by e-mail when I deleted his comment without publishing it.

This comes from someone else who has had the same sort of problem. I find it kind of a neat solution to the situation. I'll save it in case I need to use it again.

Regarding one post to which one particularly irrelevant comment was appended, I responded to Rod ‘Breaker’ McCoy that while I appreciated his comments to previous posts, I do not allow people to use the courtesy I allow to make comments on my website for the purposes of advertising their services. I also contended that comments should be relevant to
the content of the post rather than discuss other, unrelated issues. To this, Mr. McCoy responded the following:

I object to your attitude. You dont (sic) anwer (sic) questions. Your site is organized to discuss only your opinions. You
are arrogant and afraid to hear other better informed opinions.
You are the enemy of people who seem to have the same cause.
However, you are weak and spiteful towards people who want to do more than whine.
You only want to publicize your own drivel and keep others from getting ahead or stating their views.
I consider you as bad as a leftist or a muslim (sic) imperialist.,
(sic) only to you the objective is to vent only!
Do not contact me again !
(sic)

Smith responds:
You should give up caffeine and use the money you
save to purchase a spell checker. Beyond this, I suppose that I should recommend that you find a good counselor.

Baden-Powell he say Be Prepared

Apparently this thing flew into London Heathrow the other day.

The modified 747 is the so-called 'National Airborne Operations Center' (NAOC) — informally known as the 'Doomsday Plane' because it is designed to serve as the Pentagon's backup headquarters in case of a catastrophic attack on the United States. The NAOC on alert 24 hours a day, seven days a week — although there are four identical planes that rotate duty, and also serve as backup to Air Force One. When President Bush's plane blew some tires while in Vietnam recently, the NAOC flew in to drop off the spare set that it routinely carries for itself. Unlike Air Force One, the NAOC can refuel in midair and is designed and supplied with engine oil, and food and water for the crew to be able to stay aloft for days. Its full crew includes intelligence analysts, communications specialists, maintenance troops, and even its own security force. It constantly monitors all major U.S. commands and the location of nuclear forces, keeps an eye on potentially hostile military troops, gathers intelligence data, and monitors the whereabouts of every U.S. government official in the line of succession. The NAOC also carries with it at all times about a dozen of the most relevant war plans in case senior officers need them at hand.

I have italicised the bit “can refuel in mid-air”. Nothing wonderful about that John you may well say. Yes but it is meant to “ serve as the Pentagon's backup headquarters in case of a catastrophic attack on the United States”. Catastrophic is the word to note. So, just where will the tankers get the fuel from? Oh – plenty in store suitably dispersed about the USA. The same lucky dispersal applies to the tankers. Still, at least there is some arrangement. Just wonder what we here in UK have. I would like to think we have no equivalent and that B.Liar and those who have done so much to jeopardise and downgrade our defences were well involved at the heart of any catastrophe. Maybe we could bribe a rogue RN officer to set any up as a target any airborne Number 10 with the nice new Trident resources.

Cannot resist

I know I was to have a day off but this innovative piece of road signing by our American cuzzins just had to get wider notice.

Obviously, cell phones in cars are not just a UK problem.

Leave of absence

Sorry folks - day off today.

My brain hurts.

Hello officer

Lots of criticism here in UK about the police. They cannot be found or seen, they ignore serious crime and over-prosecute minor offences, they .... well, the list goes on and on.

No one goes into the police for an easy life. There is a challenge and they have a desire to make life better for others. Much of the libel and slander has a foundation but it because of the system and not due to the personalities.

Read the Guest Blog to get some idea of how a policeman's mind works. See if policework is a job for you.

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Read about it

We should have known

I've mentioned previously (I can't be bothered to track-back where as the actual post is immaterial here) how surprised I had been at the apparent lack of knowledge regarding the Arab mind shown in the pre-Iraq War planning. UK certainly had a vast reserve of men with tremendous knowledge and experience in the mores of the Muslim mind. I met many in Government service during my Middle Eastern adventures who were more Arab than the Arabs. There may be mention that such matters were considered but the current misunderstandings suggest otherwise. (To me)

One of the greatest Arabists we had was T.E. Lawrence. He demonstrated how it was possible to get fiercely independent tribes to work together with a common aim. The scene in the film of Lawrence of Arabia where the man at the well was shot because he was off his tribal area was not an invention to add drama. That is what tribalism was all about and still haunts what we are trying to do in Iraq. The tribe is their life blood. "How many relatives do you have in Baghdad?" "Oh, about a thousand" was an exchange recently recounted in a blog. Lawrence also experienced the way in which the lack of an after-hostilities plan demolished all the good he had done.

So, for all those of you who will be planning for Iran, here is a short treatise in his own words about how to get along with the men from the Middle East. Even if you are just an onlooker, his 27 Commandments might spark your interest in further study of very complex matters.

Bloody hell

Fancy something like this running about in the fields. This is mega frightening. My dog has run under the table whimpering. I'm sure she will have nightmares tonight.

Way to go

I do not know whether this guy is telling the truth or is hogwashing. If it is true, it is a perfect example of why the American way of doing things works for individuals.

I am not being disloyal to my country when I say that I can think of few here in UK who would have faced these sort of problems and made the struggle to rise above them.

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Read it and see what you think

Soaps

Well, it’s back. All over UK the personal programming for Thursday night TV has the one fixed point around which all else must adjust. ER has returned. The onward march continues strong. Though, I have to say, IMHO not as strong as it used to be. For me, the last really good season was the one where we lost Doc Green. He held one’s attention whenever he was in view.
I did once read some learned treatise along the lines that no show maintains it’s initial drive beyond the third season. Certainly, they do change. The writers learn what switches us on and concentrate on those ideas. ER used to have as many plots and sub-plots as there were characters but now we have the one continuing theme (currently Abby, Kovac and the baby) with two or three other threads which arise and are settled within the one hour time frame.
For me, the American series idea started with Bonanza. One of my sons seemed to have the firm idea that he had been abducted from the Bonanza ranch by aliens and transported to be left with us. He used to mount-up astride the back of the sofa and gallop into action with (his) Uncle Buck. MASH came along just as I had left the service and reminded me of my spell in Korea and other associations with the American Army. The Tannoy announcements with their surreal messages never failed to get a laugh from me. The mix of poignant and comedy was perfect to the extent that I always thought the series could have been adopted by the anti-war brigade as propaganda. MASH was one where I thought the level went right through to that final episode. The Col Potter years were vintage. Henry and Hotlips were a constant joy. Radar and Klinger were company clerks from hell.
MASH led us into Hill Street Blues. The action on and off duty between Furillo and his DA girlfriend was a solid base for the zany Fay whilst Belker and the SWAT guy could always be relied upon for solid plotting and performance. I think I can close my eyes and watch a rerun of the alligator in the sewer episode. It followed the style where it featured a number of intertwined storylines in each episode, and pioneered depiction of the conflicts between the work and private lives of officers on which the police procedural was centered. The show had a deliberate "documentary" style, depicting officers who were flawed and human, and dealt openly with the gray areas of morality between right and wrong. NYPD followed. Here again, tremendous stuff at first but I lost interest when Sipowitz got married. Nudity and profanity gained a TV footing from this show.
I can remember the earliiest American shows that came over. Peyton Place, Dragnet, Untouchables. There must have been some differences here as I cannot recall plots or characters with any clarity.
Some shows took off and changed format. Law and Order as I recall it started with the law firm run by a very large guy. It has become the Law and Order of today. This has overtones of Dragnet for me.
Another thing I got from these shows was the music. Great stuff.
I can only remember a very few British TV dramas. That is, aside from Blackadder which must be amongst the very best matched only by Porridge. Upstairs Downstairs, Forsythe Saga, Onedin Line all seemed to be written for export more than home consumption. I’m told the supremacy of the American product is a cost thing. We can buy many more hours from them that we can make here.

Devil dog

For those essential moments of light relief, I sometimes dip into Dear Prudence (http://www.slate.com/id/2157385/fr/nl/) and see how society in the USA lives. The piece below had a special significance here in UK where a pit bull type dog savaged and killed a small girl. Police action discovered a wide net of pit bull breeders which is a dog totally banned here. As a dog trainer and owner, I cannot understand the continued existence of any dog that draws human blood so, for my money, the question of Cujo coming to the get-together would never have arisen as he would have gone up the Golden Stairway.

Dear Prudence, My sister has an old dog, part pit bull. The dog has always been very skittish, and over the years, has nipped at the ankles of men and on occasion a woman (including myself). My husband, brother, and two older sons have been nipped on several occasions, and the dog is now starting to nip at the ankles of my 7-year-old son. We really never made much of an issue of this. Recently, my sister attempted to take the dog outside, when it bit her and held on to her hand, causing puncture wounds and resulting in a hospital stay for a severe infection. She insists this was not the dog's fault because he is deaf and was startled. Whenever my parents have a gathering at their home, my sister insists on bringing the dog. Last night, my mother asked me if my family would like to come over for a get-together. I respectfully requested that she ask my sister to leave the dog home. This morning my mother told me that the gathering has been cancelled because of my request. Please let me know if I am out of line.
—Wants My Son in One Piece

Dear Wants, So, collectively, the family leaves with fewer limbs than it came with—what is this compared to the happiness of a demented pit bull? No, you are not out of line, but something is awry with your family dynamics if your mother would prefer to cancel the event than tell her daughter she has to leave Cujo at home. Untrained dogs who view grandchildren as appetizers should be banned from family social events. Don't back down.
—Prudie

Ms Rice does not curry favour

The perfect pixie speaks out giving Iraq's PM notice that he is living on borrowed time if he does not get his people more involved. Seems that raid on the Iranian building was just a forerunner of action US might take in dealing with countries who seek to interfere with Iraqi progress.

Certainly no lack of resolve to go all the way in Iraq and never mind that report.

Well received

So, looks as if the news about troop reinforcements in Iraq is generally approving.

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President Bush ups the ante

Report from Iraq

Interesting report from Iraq. By a (very) senior officer so we can know he has had the opportunity to see a wide area of what is going on.

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As a general sees things.

Nineteen

My message here is simple. You can make a point without being disrespectful. You can make your point without attacking Politicians, Soldiers, Veterans and those who support them. You can make your point without blocking of streets to wave
banners, spitting on soldiers or demeaning the sacrifice of those who choose to serve

This comes from a blog passed to me by an American friend. It follows upon a very moving poem that claims to be known to many Australians. That is at http://mikegulf.blogspot.com/2007/01/i-was-only-nineteen.html and deserves reading in it’s entirity. The Australians were heavily into the Vietnam operation to an extent we Brits may not fully appreciate.Their participation then can well form the basis for a course of conduct now.

This is for "Joe"

You have emerged from Anonymous and refer to yourself as Joe. I control the comment section and your ranting will never get into the blog. You comment on personal matters with absolutely no full knowledge other than what may have been drip fed into your mind. I have asked that you contact me on my e-mail address and I will most certainly answer any query you may have or comment on anything you wish to raise through that channel. On here - never.

Sorry folks. I object to being stalked.

Icon

This blog is appropos nothing really. It was sent to me by a friend in America who knew I'd appreciate the sentiment.
I always saw Wayne as an icon of the way America worked. I admired his open stance on many things. His 1971 comments about white supremecy (no prominent role for blacks until they were sufficiently educated) caused a rumpus but coming on the tail end of my own opinions based on what was happening in England they rang a bell with me. My most-loved area of America was that South West bit around Arizona (sorry John - you bit is nice too) and I think that followed on from seeing so many Wayne films. Plus I like deserts and wide open space. That long drive into Monument Valley from Kayenta down a dead straight road into the canyon country always had me wetting myself in excitement. I'm going to have to end this - I feel a quick dip into The Searchers coming on.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am just going to tack on an admin note. I moderate comments - this following an episode where some idiot wanted to use the blog to post ideas that had no connection with the subject of my post. I have again had a situation where "anonymous" wished to take up something in my personal life with no connection to anything I had written.
I know who "anonymous" might be. I rejected the comment but if the coward who thinks he is sheltered behind that name wishes to contact me (j.wood999@btinternet.com) I will deal with his problem.

Not just any old mum

Has to be a Spanish - old age pensioner mother.

Words fail me.

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Nice to know that it is not just our NHS that is mad

Boredom wins

The companies who provide our car insurance and the home insurance are ones we have used for quite a while. I have had to use the car insurance twice and found that they were quick and efficient. The home insurance seems to do what it says on the tin when I asked for some advice a while back.

Given these standards, I do not chase around getting alternative prices prior to renewing. They make it easier to drift along like this by advising me well in advance what the next year's premium will be.

Sitting here in a state of absolute boredom, I thought that I would try out one of these instant quotes over the internet. I have two speeding fines and expected a significant hike in costs for those.

A little chastened in my financial abilities, I now have a car insurance scheme at 50% of what I was paying and a home insurance that is just under 60% of the old cost. I tried out the help desks of both the new companies and it seems they have call centres here in England so I will never be subjected to la la land lingo.

I'm now looking to see just what else I can chip away at on the internet quote front.

Putting 2 and 2 together

This struck a chord with me as I have just finished a stimulating half-hour assembling a set of book-shelves. It all ended up OK as I had no pieces left over and no pre-drilled holes showing empty. However, the whole process is fraught with tension as one knows that at any time it can all go wrong and there is no way back once dowels have had glue applied and those patent screw devices have been tightened.
When we moved to what is now Chez Nous, we bought a large work-bench to go in the attic. This is a reasonable project as the attic is quite large. The difficulty to instant gratification by buying a bench was that the final flight of stairs is quite circular and is also narrow. Solution – buy a kit. Take it upstairs in the smaller constituents and assemble it there. To say that the IKEA workbench is a complicated unit is a real understatement but we managed it. Problem will come if we ever decide to try to take the bench with us as we move. It will be a job for a guy with a chain-saw.

The saga continues

We hear long explanations from USA and Britain that things are well advanced towards Iraq being run by the Iraqi people.

That, of course, was prior to the cellphone video that was taken in the death chamber finding it's way to world-wide distribution. I'm told that the old phrase about "couldn't organise a pi*s up in a brewery" has now been altered to "couldn't organise a hanging in Iraq" when one needs to signify a total lack of organisation. Even something as simple as taking note of the fact that his death took place on a religious holiday was ignored. This was compounded when critics of this spoke out and were told that it was only a religious holiday for the people of Saddam's sect.

And now we have this. The allegations that the body was abused and ill-handled were met by officialdom, not with promises of an investigation, but dismissed as being a political manouvre. I do not aim to prejudge any inquiry but we have all seen the jubilation and insults tendered when his statue was toppled such that it appears that some demonstrations do tend to get out of hand.

I am not a tree-hugging softie here. I fully support the execution. I'm content that it should have been carried out in Iraq by Iraqis. Where the Americans dropped the ball was in not making sure that the thing was properly carried out. 1 -2 - 3 click; all over. Now, I feel his whole arrest, detention and trial were debased by the manner of his death and the chaos that provided a incubator for the allegations we are now seeing.

OK - so where from here?

This article claims that there is almost universal acceptance that going to war in Iraq was a wrong decision. Blame is scattered about like chips at a birthday party.

But, hasn't it taken a long time for this opinion to surface? How long will it take to work out what has to be done with this misbegotten child - where is the plan for the future? President Bush is expected to make some fairly decisive announcement in the next week. I just hope that these decisions are not polluted by the 20/20 hindsight wizards "You got it wrong going in there. How do we know you are right now?"

I'd rather stick pins in my eyes

Is that a thong she has just pegged out?
Tone the Tourist has a nice set of man boobies. Doubtless, he will go on the lecture circuit in a nice little dark blue topless dress.

Please tell me

that this is not true!

I can accept teachers full enough of themselves to upgrade the incident but what on earth was in the mind of the police officer who handled the call? Did he not possess language robust enough to tell these people where to take their complain?

Mind you - if this 'weapon' is so effective, we could supply another battalion or so of front line troops just from the dregs that congregate in our larger cities at around closing time.

Due balance up the river

It is somehow comforting that in the times in which we now live, people can be found to unearth, ferret out, research and then publicise matters that I am sure are of no real relevance (or interest) to the great mass of the world's population. I've guested one such instance. Look in by all means but don't settle down for the long haul of reading it in it's entirity. I got near to terminal jaw ache from my yawning.

Still, I suppose the correspondents mother loves him?

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG

Amazon is amazing

!

First looks deceive

I mentioned my daughter doing a business trip to Dubai.
Here she is - soaking up a little bit of local colour.
The idea that women are all demure and sweetness and light when covered in this manner is now well destroyed.

Where are they now?

I sometimes wander off into the ether of the Internet in search of "Where are they now?". Not the main personality of a newsworthy incident but the lesser players.

This came to me through a blog I follow. Ms Lewinsky certainly went through the mill. To us on the small side of the pond, everything concentrated on Clinton and we seemed to know little of the woman in the case. The vagaries of the female mind when romance - or even just plain old sex - are inexplicable to most males but I did wonder what was to become of her. So, nice to see that she appears to have come out the other side of the cloud in her young life without too much of an apparent disaster. I never condemned her - the adage about it taking two to tango was in the front of my mind. The item I link makes me feel a little bit better about how the world works.

Leading a lazy life

Good job I'm not paid my pensions at so much a word that I write on here.

Do not know why but the Muse seems to have dried up. No problem. It will come back; see you all then.

Quick work

"THE hanging" was such a disgusting shambles that I had wanted to avoid it. However, I'm a sucker for conspiracy theories (not the subjects but the mechanics behind them that takes a few facts and knits them together to make something like a large mesh fishing net) and I see they have already started regarding old Soddem.

Modern safety devices

My car has seven air bags. Total all-around protection in the event of a crash.

Of course, that many is a bit over the top for some people?

Stir people up

Seems there is a whole lot of shouting going on about how and where the world started.

I'm staying out - except for this which strikes me as a clever advertisement

And I thought

I was the only miserable bstard blogging.

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http://barrybeelzebub.blogspot.com/2007/01/and-very-berry-christmas-to-you-all.html

Cheerer-upper

Never mind the smell of napalm on the morning air! Tea is brewed, bacon about to go into the pan and eggs just waiting to be cracked.
Not too long before we are back to the open air life in one or other of the wonderful outdoor spots we have here.

Get away

Right now, the wind is howling. It is coming here directly from Siberia. The rain is coming from the refrigerator by the temperature and if I were religious I'd be looking for the man who builds Arks.
So, I've printed this off and stuck it alongside the monitor. Not that a place such as this is on my holiday list - we stay in UK now we have the dog and flying has degenerated into something that is more akin to stuffing human beings into pig styes than anything else. No - this shot serves to remind me of when we used to live in places like this and a scene as depicted would have been our regular afternoon hang-out.
Happy happy days.

New ideas

Rather like this. Not quite sure what is being advertised - if anything - but Celine Dion as a sort of Madonna figure and Wallmart as hell somehow appeals to me.

Any last wishes?

Think I will take my life in my hands and put this up. Be nice now folks - no sending Mrs WTMW e-mails drawing it to her attention.

I've just repeated it to show what a leisured life we men used to lead.

Instructions to a wife.

Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have be thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they get home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed.
Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you'll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.
Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.
Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Run a dustcloth over the tables.
During the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering to his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.
Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Encourage the children to be quiet.
Be happy to see him.
Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.
Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.
Don't greet him with complaints and problems.
Don't complain if he's late for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through at work.
Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or lie him down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.
Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.
Don't ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.
A good wife always knows her place.

2007 - Almost there

So. almost another year gone and I am still above ground. I guess that will have to be the Good News. I have never understood the drive to come up with a set of Resolutions at the start of a New Year. If something is a good idea or in need of implementation into one's life then it should be set in motion without awaiting a new season. There are many other new beginnings in a year; why not choose Spring to plant new ideas or ideals?
I suppose that I have always been lucky enough to be able to recognise the things I can achieve, differentiate them from those that I cannot and then leave that selection process alone. No point in tilting at windmills whose vanes are rusted in place. This property and attitude means that I can ignore much of what goes on outside my own immediate circle. The events in the wider world still interest me but neither inspire or demand that I actually do anything. I do reserve the right to be critical but doubt that I would respond to any call for les citoyen to storm the barricades. This must, in personal terms, be a Good Thing. The world is a totally fupducked and there are very many barricades that would have attracted me in previous years. This reticence (or acquired wisdom?) is something I find comforting and unpleasant in equal parts. I would dearly like to be part of that comradeship of combat but can get by with standing at the window shaking my Zimmer frame.
This life-style of mine seems to have been carried over into the genes of my children. They have encountered problems but attack these as challenges and do not see them as burdens. I hope they will always realise that a difficulty only becomes a problem if tolerated.
What would I ask for in the New Year? Leaving aside the obvious Peace On Earth of course. Has to be a selfish personal request. My Black Dog is incapacity - either mental or physical. I doubt that I'll be reciting Plato at 93 whilst engaged in pleasuring some young lady of 65 but that would be the ideal. I hope that what I have done with my medical notes and in other ways will ensure that I do not end up plugged into a 13 amp electrical outlet like a coffee machine. Please can I have the bed nearest to the cleaner's station.
That is about all I would really ask for.
As for anyone who has stayed the course and got this far. What about them? The answer has to be to hope that they all get whatever they might ask for. So - there you are; a free hand. But remember the other old adage, be careful what you ask for.

Big event - do not miss this

Just in case your boss refuses to give you time off for the Big Drop Day, make do with this.

Nice thing to know

When sudden disaster strikes, it is comforting if one knows what it is that has gone wrong. Believe me.

This old feller must be grateful he stuck to his work all those years ago when his work was being threatened by young girls with pony tails and jitter bug routines to set the blood racing.

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG
Physician - heal thyself

Be a good boy

My mum used to say when I was a small lad that if one complied with social conventions, no harm would result. This was just after she caught me 'writing' my name in the snow by peeing. However, that sort of thing was always reputed to have other associated angers - electrified fences for example. I was often tempted in the wilder parts of my hill-walking jaunts just to splash and dash on the sheep control fences. Maybe it was the story of this sort of thing?

Sabotage

Without going into the rights and wrongs, there is a large body of opposition here in UK regarding requirement that we all have ID cards allied to all sorts of gizmos such as iris recognition. So, may be an idea to think of a way to have a ID card but not have it identify you - know what I mean?

Thank you. You can go now

Sometimes, just sometimes, I think that the internet tells me more than I really wish to know thank you.

Hang 'em high

Gets more like a spaghetti Western every day! And, this is the administration that we think is the thing that will run the country keeping it stable enough for long enough for us to say "All Over" and run for the roof to get on the helicopter. Oh no - that was how the other place ended wasn't it?

Get serious - II

This follows on neatly from my last previous post.

Nuff said?

Get serious

Nice to see that we are really serious with this anti-terrorist thing.

The police side is that it is no offence to hold extremist views. We have - it seems - evidence from intercepts but cannot use it because of concerns about civil liberties.

And all this when the boss of the Met police has said that the threat level of a significant terrorist action is high and increasing daily.

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG
Not evil - just misguided

I've been robbed

I wrote an e-mail to a friend the other day in which I expressed my preference for Gingerbread Men as there was always “that little bit extra” Seems I am going to be denied that luxury now the p.c. police have struck. Surprised they were allowed to retain the description 'Ginger' which is sometimes used as an insult.

So near and yet so far

I had heard bits of the story of the family who got stuck in snow in America but only a very small bit. The husband decided after some days with his stranded vehicle to hike out and see if he could get help. His wife and kids stayed with the car. A cell-phone engineer's tip was not heeded for two days and a hotel refused to give credit-card and cell-phone information to police in the search for the missing California dad. It is chilling to think just what was going through the minds of the lost family in those last moments. Eventually, the mother and kids were found almost by accident but the father died from hypothermia just a very short distance from salvation. As a wanderer in the sandy deserts, I was instructed to stay with vehicle in the event of any problem and to set fire to the spare tyre so as to attract attention to myself. We always carried extra water. Who the heck would imagine that those sort of survival skills would be needed on a vacation journey in one of the most advanced countries of the world.

Wanted

I know I was supposed to be having a duvet day but this item (below) made me fall out of bed laughing so I'll let you have it while it's hot.

My main and first thought is how the heck the relevant police department will find a way to display an illustration of the stolen item in the Crime journal? And what about the future of the Turin Shroud Enterprises Inc if we get good DNA from any recovered item?

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Any useful leads to Madonna please

It's Holiday Time

Whether you are a Winterval person, a frantic Happy Christmas-er or attender of Midnight Mass

HAVE A GOOD BREAK

Hostilities are suspended until the whole thing is over and I feel safe to venture out from under the duvet.

Follow that star

I don't think it is blasphemy.

Different folks - different strokes

We here in Europe have to see things American through the media filters. The papers print what sells.

The US Marine Corps stand charged with employing soldiers responsible for a considerable number of civilian deaths at a place called Haditha. It has been presented as troops running riot following an attack upon them. My guest blog sets out to show just how difficult it is to get truth in such cases. Note especially the comments of the US contractor as to veracity of Iraqi witnesses. This has a resonance with me. We knew that it was very likely that a civilian "witness" would lie and did the extra digging to get to the truth.

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG
Another view of events at Haditha

Same hymn book, different page

I'm just listening to announcement that UN has imposed sanctions on Iran.

Seems that The Free World is convinced that Iran is developing a warlike use for atomic materials. Because of this, we are doing the sanctions boogie.

Doubtless the assessment of the threat came from intelligence sources.

Just like the info re Iraq and WMD and 45 minuties.

Look where that has got us.

Tony Blair

Brought to you by The Friday Thing.

TONY'S CHRISTMAS TOUR: PEACE OFF
=
The Prime Minister's announcement this week that he wants a
proper job after he leaves Number 10 was met with some approval.
'It's about bloody time,' was the sane person's response.
'Whatever I do afterwards, it has to have real purpose to it,'
said Tony of his retirement plans. If he'd only said that all
those years ago when he gave up being a lawyer to become a
politician, we might not be in the mess we are now.
Meanwhile the Blair Premiership continued on its meandering,
meaningless way, like an elderly, senile and incontinent tomcat
looking for somewhere to pass away with a scrap of dignity. The
Middle East was Tony's destination to sprinkle the seasonal magic
fairy dust of peace on earth and goodwill to all.
To be honest though, like Christopher Reeve's final and piss-poor
Superman movie, Blair's 'Quest for Peace' should have been
laughed out of town. (It certainly seems to have been largely
ignored.) Take his passive-aggressive attitude towards Iran, for
instance. Only a month ago he was saying 'a new partnership is
possible' with Iran. He said as much this week but then called
for an 'alliance of moderation' across the region to reign in
Iranian extremism. (Nothing to do with the Bush Administration
refusing to engage with Iran, it goes without saying.)
Just who the 'moderate' Middle Eastern members of this 'alliance'
are going to be isn't quite clear. Is it Turkey, who he visited
last Friday, with its refusal to acknowledge its genocide of the
Armenian population in 1915, its persecution of the Kurds and
where it's a crime to insult 'Turkishness'? How about Egypt,
where Blair was on Sunday and where he likes to holiday, that
likes to lock people up for criticising the government, beat pro-
democracy protesters and where torture by the security services
is widespread?
What about the United Arab Emirates, from where Tony gave his
'alliance of moderation' speech on Wednesday, with its hereditary
system of government, widespread abuse of migrant workers,
flogging as a punishment and censorship of the press? He clearly
didn't mean Palestine whose democratically elected government he
refuses to recognise. Er, Iraq? Some 'alliance of moderation'
this is shaping up to be. If this was Star Wars, Darth Vader
would have parked the Death Star and gone for a fag, safe in the
knowledge that the rebels were doing his job for him.
Meanwhile, in Iran - founder member of Blair's 'Arc of Extremism'
and not a venue on his 'Out With A Bang 2006' farewell tour -
democratically-held elections delivered victories for the
moderate and reformist parties and gave short-arsed gobshite and
Holocaust-denying president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a slap in the
chops. You have to laugh. Blair spends the week shaking the hands
of various blood-soaked princes, torturers and other anti-
democracy monsters in order to try and sort Iran out and all the
while it's working hard to do the job for itself. It's a funny
old world.
And Blair's world is shrinking. Yet, with fewer and fewer people
telling him what a great job he's doing and more and more queuing
up to tell him straight just what a blood and shit spattered
hellhole he's made of the place, he sails blithely on. He's
starting to look like Sam Lowry at the end of Terry Gilliam's
movie, Brazil: humming to himself in his self-concocted fantasy
world while horror and degradation still swirl around him.
While Tony was leading his charge across the sands of Arabia and
beyond, no less a figure than Iraq's vice president accused Blair
of having been 'brainwashed' by George Bush. And after all Tony's
done for Iraq as well - what an ungrateful bastard. According to
Tareq al-Hashemi, Blair apparently agreed with him on a timetable
for troop withdrawals only to change his mind after seeing Bush.
Well, Tony did say this week that 'when I first started in
politics, I wanted to please everyone, and you can't please
everyone'. They say that if you try to please everybody you end
up pleasing nobody. That said, it's difficult to think of anybody
Tony's pleased since arriving at his decision to stop trying to
please everybody. Anybody reading this who has recently been
pleased by Tony, can you get in touch - we'd like to have you
stuffed and put in a museum.
And then came the report from the Chatham House think tank which
said the Iraq war had been a 'disaster' and a 'debacle', and
Blair had made the 'mistake of offering unconditional support for
US initiatives in foreign policy'. Using a phrase that should be
carved on New Labour's tombstone, Foreign Secretary Margaret
Beckett described the report as 'threadbare, insubstantial and
just plain wrong'. We imagine she should know, working for a
Government that's produced more than a few dodgy dossiers its
time. '45 minutes from doom,' anybody?
The think tank, previously a respected and grand enough platform
for speeches by the likes of Gordon Brown, is now reduced to the
status of wrong-headed whiner for having the audacity to express
an informed opinion. Like so many others. Outgoing UN Secretary
General, Kofi Annan: he was against the war so MI6 bugged his
office. Weapons Inspector, David Kelly: told a reporter that the
'45 minute from doom' stuff was cobblers, was fed to the press by
the Government, killed himself. Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw:
said 'I don't see any circumstances in which military action
would be justified against Iran, full stop', was demoted. You can
see why so many people around Blair keep their traps shut, like
being a member of Frank Sinatra's famously toadying entourage,
one word out of place and the good times are over. Sometimes
unpleasantly.
Just why Blair thinks he's the man to bring peace to a region
whose various and complex troubles have foxed the world's
greatest thinkers for over four thousand years, and who he thinks
might be listening to him, is for minds more psychoanalytical
than ours to reason. After Iraq, his selling weapons to any mad
bastard with oil and a chequebook, and his cosying up with
torturers and dictators, it's like putting God - a dead-beat dad
if ever we saw one; knocking up some poor young girl at
Christmas, then disappearing into thin air - in charge of the
Child Support Agency.

- The Friday Thing

Hello Hello Hello What's all this then?

Police condemned over fruit caution. And they wonder why the respect for the forces of Laura Norder are at an all time low. Whatever happened to exercising discretion? This 'result' will figure in B'liar's statistics when he next needs to lie about how his strict new methods are cutting crime. And, in the background, a man wanted for murder walks past dressed as a woman.

Good will to all men

This is just a comedy blog - or is it? Comes from a member of that wonderful profession of lawyer.

MANDATORY HOLIDAY WEALTH TRANSFER PROGRAM 2006

To: Attorneys

Once again, we're all forced by social custom to help the less fortunate among us afford food and shelter for the holiday season. Below are some guidelines for holiday tipping. Just as we do regarding your bonuses, feel free to adjust based on your subjective evaluation of people's performance, whether or not it bears any resemblance to reality.

As previously explained in the memo titled SALARY SHARE CALCULATION FOR HOLIDAY BONUS PURPOSES (12/18/06), one "share" as listed below is equivalent to 0.01% of your salary plus bonus, before taxes. Thus, if your salary+bonus is $200K, one "share" for purposes of these guidelines would be $20. Your personal secretary: 10 shares Each secretary (up to 4) in your local secretary pool: 2-3 shares Secretary coordinator (the woman with the funny looking hats): 3-5 shares, if you have changed secretaries multiple times this calendar year and required her assistance. Any paralegals you work closely with: 10 shares Document pool workers you can identify by sight: 5 shares The pastry guy with the narrow eyes: 1 share The hirsute woman who cleans the offices: 2 shares or some leftover food The copy machine repairman with the bad breath: 1 share if he has been of service to you in the past year, otherwise you are better served avoiding him Creepy security guard: 3 shares Hiring partner: 10 shares, or a nice bottle of wine

You should try and refrain from handing your gifts out before Christmas Day, since we want to encourage attendance at work by you and also by the people in line to receive the gifts. If they stay home, they deserve whatever gift penalties they end up receiving. In addition, please give them checks instead of cash -- most of them do not have the self-control to save their cash until they get home and will spend it on drugs and beer instead. We want to try and avoid a repeat of last year's Secretary Rave on the 38th floor conference room. Best wishes for a billable holiday season

Innocence

Just look at her eyes and tell me how you can explain to her what is happening.

Merry Christmas - pah! humbug so far as she is concerned.

Would you buy a car .... Part II

Well, would you?

Comes from this lady but you might need to register if you go there.

Police work

The writer of the Guest blog is a serving police officer who fell foul of his Force's policy on blogging. He did not just curl up and die. He moderated some of his criticism of police methods and got top cover from a media publication

Good thing we did not lose him. This is just the latest in a number of good articles where he puts across the police view well.

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG
A police officer writes

DNR

This is back-up for the reason I carry a ID tag with "Do not resuscitate" instruction

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG
Do not resuscitate

Would you buy a used car from this man?

This is reproduction of an item in a national paper. In full as it may require registration.

Long time since we could say that an Englishman's word was his bond I know but this moron is dragging everything down to his bent level.

By Francis Elliott, Whitehall EditorPublished: 17 December 2006

Detectives investigating alleged corruption in BAe's dealings with Saudi Arabia believe that the probe was being bugged, The Independent on Sunday has been told. A source close to the investigation made the remarkable claim as Tony Blair's defence for stopping it on the grounds of national interest began to unravel.The head of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) disputed the official claim that the investigation was unlikely to result in charges. Robert Wardle said he had a "different view" from Lord Goldsmith. The Attorney General told Parliament on Thursday that he had agreed to close the case after he had "obtained the views of the Prime Minister and the Foreign and Defence Secretaries" on the effect the probe was having on Anglo-Saudi relations.But in fact Tony Blair personally took charge of efforts to pressure the Attorney General to drop the probe.

He ordered supportive assessments from the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign Office. These were then presented to the head of the SFO and formed part of Lord Goldsmith's "public interest" justification for calling off the probe.The Prime Minister's determination to stop the SFO investigation has left the detectives working on the case furious. It was the fact that the probe was progressing well that caused its closure, they believe. Some 15 officers from the SFO have been working for more than three years on allegations that BAe bribed foreign officials. The investigation, led by assistant commissioner Helen Garlick, was about to take possession of banking documents in Berne, Switzerland.One senior figure who had been helping the SFO said the investigation's security had been repeatedly compromised. "I was told by detectives that the probe was being bugged. They had reached this conclusion because highly confidential information on the inquiry had been reaching outside parties."The claim will fuel suspicions over the forces brought to bear on the SFO to call off its investigation since BAe's chief executive, Mike Turner, was forced to deny claims the company had used a £60m slush fund to bribe Saudi officials.

The alleged fund arises out of the Al Yamamah contract secured by Margaret Thatcher. It is said to have earned BAe Systems, Britain's biggest defence firm, and its predecessor British Aerospace, £43bn over the past 20 years.Investigators were about to gain access to Swiss banking documents that, they believed, could have provided strong evidence of corruption. Last month Mr Turner said the Saudi government had halted commercial talks over the £10bn Eurofighter deal because of anger over the SFO inquiry. It is believed that the story was orchestrated by Lord Bell, who has run a PR campaign on behalf of the defence firm and the Saudi royal family.It was claimed scrapping the contract for 72 Typhoon fighters would threaten 50,000 jobs. But international law forbids countries from using commercial considerations to exempt firms from anti-corruption prosecutions.The exemption helps explain why Mr Blair ordered the preparation of a special Cabinet Office report, arguing that Britain's security was at stake.

Whitehall sources say Downing Street was keen that Des Browne, the Secretary of State for Defence, and Margaret Beckett, the Foreign Secretary, shared responsibility for the decision to scrap the inquiry. But they were only asked for tightly defined assessments of the effects of a downturn on defence and foreign relations.Yesterday Mr Blair said: "Our relationship with Saudi Arabia is vitally important for our country in terms of counter-terrorism, in terms of the broader Middle East, in terms of helping in respect of Israel and Palestine. That strategic interest comes first." He said the probe would have led to years of "ill feeling between us and a key partner and ally and probably to no purpose".Campaigners will decide tomorrow whether to mount a legal challenge.

The investigation, led by assistant commissioner Helen Garlick, was about to take possession of banking documents in Berne, Switzerland.One senior figure who had been helping the SFO said the investigation's security had been repeatedly compromised. "I was told by detectives that the probe was being bugged. They had reached this conclusion because highly confidential information on the inquiry had been reaching outside parties."The claim will fuel suspicions over the forces brought to bear on the SFO to call off its investigation since BAe's chief executive, Mike Turner, was forced to deny claims the company had used a £60m slush fund to bribe Saudi officials.

The alleged fund arises out of the Al Yamamah contract secured by Margaret Thatcher. It is said to have earned BAe Systems, Britain's biggest defence firm, and its predecessor British Aerospace, £43bn over the past 20 years.Investigators were about to gain access to Swiss banking documents that, they believed, could have provided strong evidence of corruption. Last month Mr Turner said the Saudi government had halted commercial talks over the £10bn Eurofighter deal because of anger over the SFO inquiry. It is believed that the story was orchestrated by Lord Bell, who has run a PR campaign on behalf of the defence firm and the Saudi royal family.It was claimed scrapping the contract for 72 Typhoon fighters would threaten 50,000 jobs. But international law forbids countries from using commercial considerations to exempt firms from anti-corruption prosecutions.The exemption helps explain why Mr Blair ordered the preparation of a special Cabinet Office report, arguing that Britain's security was at stake. Whitehall sources say Downing Street was keen that Des Browne, the Secretary of State for Defence, and Margaret Beckett, the Foreign Secretary, shared responsibility for the decision to scrap the inquiry. But they were only asked for tightly defined assessments of the effects of a downturn on defence and foreign relations.Yesterday Mr Blair said: "Our relationship with Saudi Arabia is vitally important for our country in terms of counter-terrorism, in terms of the broader Middle East, in terms of helping in respect of Israel and Palestine. That strategic interest comes first." He said the probe would have led to years of "ill feeling between us and a key partner and ally and probably to no purpose".Campaigners will decide tomorrow whether to mount a legal challenge. Source: The Independant

No to ID

After a considerable amount of huffing and puffing defending a new ID card scheme that would have cost billions, the gubmint has decided that we already have most of what we need allowing us to get the same result at far less cost. An example of the way they throw our money around is the disclosure that £35M has already been spent on IT consultants to get us to the aborting of the grandiose cock-up.

Sable

My lovely dog is an Internet star

The Man writes again

I make no apology for passing on what this man says. Not enough people get the benefit of his views.

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG
Uncle Fred says a mouthful. And, you should buy his books.

Tiny url

This is here as a Public Service. Clever little piece of kit.

Enter a long URL to make tiny:

How can we win?

One of the (few) benefits of the sort of media reporting we have now is its world wide spread. Events in far away lands get to us within a very short time. This ease and speed mean that we get to know of things that may have escaped us.

Even in some cases where the gubmint might prefer we do not get updated.

All that airport bother and vast expense seems to have been based upon dodgy intelligence.

All those qualities a leader should have - where are they?

Just further comment on how El Presidente rules his Empire.

Maybe I was right after all?

Mrs Welcome to MY world is a member of a quilting circle. They all get together twice a fortnight and have a good old gossip, drink tea and make quilts.

All ladies of a certain age. All very similar in outlook. Very closely bonded. As a self-imposed exercise I set about writing the tale of a quilters circle where the members were all lesbians and the craftwork was just a cover for their activities. I was quite pleased with it and a few trusted members were shown the finished item. There must have been a lightness of touch as it was well received.

I thought of it as just an exercise. However, as the Guest Blog may indicate, strange things can well be simmering under the surface of any like minded ladies who can use an innocent past time as a cover to what they really get up to

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG
As ye sew, so shall ye reap.

6th July 2007 - 50 years

Planning is in hand -
further updates to follow

Up up and away

There was a hot air balloon up over Berwick as we drove in today. It was a fine sunny day and with that almost endless landscape one gets up here. Fine and clear.

Reminded me of the sort of balloon I would have chosen if I had gone into the sport. This guy really had cloud-hopping capability even though he is just playing with the surface of the water. There was no drama in what he is doing here - everything was under control. He brought it down just enough to dip the end of a toe into the water and then he was up, up and away.

Super. Worth money. 

Kipling puts 6 tarts in a box

The current investigation into the seemingly-serial murders of prostitutes in Ipswich has suggested that the women now dead were working to sustain their heroin habits. I detect a little bit of fluffiness here but will leave that for now. What this 'new' knowledge has done is lead to calls for drug use to be legalised or regulated in some other way. Theory seem to be that if these unfortunate females did not have to sell their bodies to fund a £500 per day habit they would not have been so vulnerable.
I am a little bit cold on this theory. There are vast numbers of women who live in abject poverty who do not just say 'fu*k it, I'm going on the game'. They get by. Getting by may seem a poor target in sociology terms but I am here contrasting their position with the girls who decide the street is the answer. They have found a way to obtain £500 a day. Those who do not get exposure to the under-life that is vice or drugs over-emphasise just how degraded these women must be. The drive for the money overcomes the self-respect. We have no way of knowing that merely giving a woman the drugs she seems to crave will balance out the – to her – simple way of earning a large sum of money. They have no asset other than their raddled body. Their education is generally unfinished and there is no alternative employment. Easing the pressure to earn does not mean they will suddenly turn into hordes of Mother Teresas or Lady Dis. Knowing that she is sitting on a gold mine will not make it easy to sit at home surrounded by kids and empty Buckfast bottles whilst watching CSI Bangalore. They are quite capable of creating some other activity that requires regular injections of easily earned cash.
If we give heroin to working girls, it will not be long before other users seek to obtain what they will see as their democratic rights to freeby drugs. The latest figures I can find regarding drug use in UK suggests that it is really only a very small minority who indulge. The media headlines about a drug threat sell papers but do not convey the scale of the situation. There can be few other minority activities – about 2% - where we would spend such potentially vast sums to achieve no really guaranteed result. The homicides in Ipswich are already leading to a wider discussion regarding prostitution. Not before time but any such legislation changes should not be undertaken in a knee-jerk reaction. Some thought needs to be given to the pimps and other third-parties in the commercial sex industry. They are in it for the money and legalising drugs will do them no favours.