The vulgarity of New Labour

Just after PMQs today the Government moved the writ for a by-election in Crewe and Nantwich. This election is caused by the death of Gwyneth Dunwoody, the fiesty Labour MP who was a long-serving proponent of traditional socialist values. Because of the undue haste in pushing this election through (the funeral hasn't yet been held) some members rightly felt this was unfortunate. Nicholas Winterton (Conservative MP for Macclesfield) and Simon Hughes, for the Liberal Democrats, both voiced sadness at this move. When Ann Winterton (Conservative MP for Congleton and wife of Nicholas) spoke, she was interrupted by John Spellar. When Spellar eventually rose, it was to speak in the typically vulgar tones associated with his side of the house.

I noticed Geoff Hoon, the Chief Whip, looking decidedly uncomfortable, and the words from Harriet Harman bordered on the humbug. They could have waited a week, at least. It just goes to show what a shower these rather nauseating people are. I can't wait to see them gone.

As for the local elections tomorrow, don't vote Labour, please. They just don't deserve it.

Obama shows no reverence to the reverend

Barack Obama has quite rightly distanced himself from the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., who has some flaky ideas indeed. Whatever else one may think the American government has done or not done, only a moron could think that it might have brought AIDS to black neighbourhoods and that it has conducted terrorism. Obama said of Wright, "I may not know him as well as I thought". That is true of many friendships and relationships.

Some are saying that this may be a pivotal moment in Obama's campaign. I can't think why. Just because an ageing pastor comes up with some odd-ball comments, it does not mean anyone remotely associated with him thinks the same. If that was the case, we could all catch this thought disease and end up thinking all kinds of stuff.

As the woman vicar said to the bishop!

For those who say the Church should get modern I suppose adultery and infidelity are not what they are thinking of. The real world has both in spadefuls it seems. It is therefore very sad when such things encroach on the lives of Church members and clergy. Not that those of us in the Church are less capable of falling short. Far from it.

In the Church in Wales, the Right Rev. Carl Cooper resigned as Bishop of St David's yesterday. He had apparently been having an affair with a married woman who was also the bishop's chaplain and communications officer. The Daily Mail erroneously described her as a vicar, but then all priests in the Anglican Church are vicars to the popular press, even if they are curates, chaplains, rectors, assistant priests or priests-in-charge.

This is a sad state of affairs, literally. What I find difficult is that both sides seem more attuned with the ways of the world rather than trying to reconcile their actions with their faith. With the modern approach to a more laissez faire version of Anglicanism, the "moving out" and "splitting up" comes before trying to maintain marriage vows.

The New Testament (1 Timothy 3:2, 12) says, "A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach. . . ." Not all live up to that and one should never judge, but giving in quite so easily seems to me to suggest a lack of willingness to try again.

Brown dismisses Levy's Blair claims

In the "Well he would say that" department of political life, Gordon Brown brushes aside assertions made by Lord Levy. When something like this is revealed, it is either true, partly true or a fabrication. I've said that I feel it is true, or at least as true as Lord Levy remembers it. These kinds of remarks are not normally forgotten.

Either Lord Levy is a liar or Tony Blair is a liar. Lord Levy writes in his memoirs that "He (Blair) kept saying that he had never realised how duplicitous Gordon was, and what 'a liar' ". So Tony Blair thought Gordon Brown was a liar. There's a lot of them about in New Labour, that's for sure.

Gordon Brown told the BBC in an interview that Blair's office "has made it clear that this in not an accurate reflection of what Mr Blair has said". Not an accurate reflection. But are we to deduce from that that it did reflect some truth. In all this we will all have to make up our own minds. However, the facts of this leave one thing very plainly true. There is at least one liar amongst them.

No love all in Levy/Blair tennis match

Tony Blair must be some kind of rotten chum to his friends. When the going gets tough, let them hang out to dry. When they fight back, call them liars. It's all a bit pot calling the kettle black. Blair's been dissembling since his schooldays. It seems to be an inherent character trait. Those at Fettes with him felt a sensible distance was required at times, otherwise they too could be hauled up in front of the Headmaster. Gordon Brown came to believe that he couldn't trust Blair's integrity. No doubt, Blair felt likewise. It had long gone past the point where the dog was chasing its tail. The tail had a life of its own!

Blair first got to be friends with Michael Levy at a Jewish fundraising dinner party in 1994 and they eventually ended up as tennis partners. Levy is better known now as Lord Levy, chief fundraiser for Blair's New Labour organisation. I have no doubt that in the ten years since his enoblement (granted by Blair in 1997), Levy and Blair chatted about Brown, amongst others. I do not disbelieve Levy. Not because I have any reason to, but because Blair's denial sounds so hollow.

I would say that Blair said to Levy that he believed Gordon Brown “could never beat” David Cameron at the polls. That has more than a ring of truth in it. Lord Levy wrote in his memoirs that Tony Blair “told me on a number of occasions he was convinced Gordon ’could never beat Cameron’”. He said the former premier felt he could have won a fourth term had he not stood down last summer. All this rings true for me.

Many journalists will attest to the fact that the Blair/Brown relationship was mostly a tense one. John Prescott has openly said he had to mediate between the two. Blair's weak and limp denial makes Lord Levy out to be a liar. I very much doubt that. Levy has been angered by the way he has been allowed to be humiliated in the cash-for-honours scandal. However, he has hit back by revealing truthful statements rather than fanciful concoctions.

So I have no time for Blair, a serial dissembler. What I find vaguely interesting is that on reception into the Roman Catholic Church, Blair must have been told about certain credal values. He appears to have ignored bearing false witness whilst in the Anglican Church. I trust his mentors in his new spiritual home now have gently reminded him of this commandment from Moses' tablets!

No Playboy at playtime for the boys in Baghdad

Censorship? No, it's more about decency. That's what Paul Broun unveiled in his House bill last week (April 16). The upstanding Congressman from Georgia says his Military Honor and Decency Act would amend a provision of the 1997 Defense Authorization Act that banned sales of “sexually explicit material” on military bases. Paul's all worried about the morals of the boys fighting the insurgents and renegades in Iraq and elsewhere.

“Allowing sale of pornography on military bases has harmed military men and women by escalating the number of violent, sexual crimes, feeding a base addiction, eroding the family as the primary building block of society, and denigrating the moral standing of our troops both here and abroad,” Broun said. Now don't you hold back, Paul! You tell those guys that reading this stuff can make them go barmy and bawdy, and even belligerent. One part of the provision states that if a print publication is a periodical, it would be considered sexually explicit if “it regularly features or gives prominence to nudity or sexual or excretory activities or organs in a lascivious way.” Nudity lascivious, then? Too much control, Paul. Too much of you bothering about other people's private business.

The same thing's happening in Britain. Some New Labour control freaks want to add all sorts of stuff to the catch-all Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill. Thankfully we have such people as the Earl of Onslow to look out for us and our freedoms. Commenting on the definition of "extreme pornographic images" during a debate on the bill, the Earl said -

"My Lords, are we not facing the terrible problem of definition? Where you have a definition that says that an extreme pornographic image is an image which is, "(a) pornographic, and (b) an extreme image", that is like saying a dog is a dog or a horse is a horse; it gets you absolutely nowhere.

There is a wonderful museum in Paris, the Musée d’Orsay, which is full of the most beautiful pictures. One of them was commissioned by the Turkish ambassador in around 1860. It is a close-up painting of a lady’s genitalia, and I believe it is called the Mother of the World—

Lord Faulkner of Worcester: “L’Origine du Monde”.

The Earl of Onslow: I thank the noble Lord. My bet is that the Turkish ambassador commissioned that painting for sexual arousal, and yet there it is, displayed in the Musée d’Orsay. Some Greek vases have pictures of Priapus on them. If Priapus was to do the things he is threatening to do, it is fairly likely, because of the size of what he has got, that they would result in serious injury to a person’s bits and pieces. We are here in the problem of definition.

I wonder what the Congressman thinks of such a painting. Would he include it in his bill? Paul Broun should ponder on definition, because it will be a problem for him as much as anyone else.

O'Connor not 4 Justice 4 England (or London)!

Matt O'Connor, the substitute candidate for Mayor of London on behalf of the English Democrats, says he has halted his campaign to become mayor. O'Connor replaced Garry Bushell, the well-known columnist, social pundit and all-round diamond geezer. Appearing on Vanessa Feltz's radio talk show on BBC London, O'Connor complained about lack of publicity. I can't think what he is meaning, as he got quite a bit. The trouble was it was all about him and his past exploits in Fathers4Justice.

As Sir Alan Sugar might say on firing a hapless candidate in The Apprentice, "You're a complete shambles. You're fired!". The English Democrat campaign had an air of mystery laced with a we-know-something's-going-on-behind-the scenes inclination. It was badly thought out with little or no contribution from leading EDP people. O'Connor's website has been pulled leaving him saying, "With the benefit of hindsight I probably should not have stood for them".

I would have thought that the Kilroy episode with parts of UKIP turning into Veritas turning into whatever would have sobered the mind. Anyway, he's still on the ballot so it that sense nothing has changed. If O'Connor is right and he get's no more publicity he can't complain. He'll get the vote he would have got if he hadn't resigned!

Ken Clarke to propose a dog's dinner for England!

The West Lothian Question has been asked again. The Conservatives are thinking like mad, especially those in the Democracy Task Force set up by David Cameron. But I fear they've failed to make good grades. No straight A's coming from Ken Clarke.

He's implacably opposed to an English Parliament. "We've got one!", he says, meaning the Houses of Parliament at Westminster. This Victorian pile is the British Parliament, build to glorify the political embodiment of the Empire. It is not an English parliament.

So we will get, as The Daily Telegraph reports, a compromise between those who want English votes for English laws and those who would leave things be (undemocratically so, but they wouldn't mind!). Legislation affecting only England, an education Bill, for instance, would receive a second reading by the entire Commons; but its committee stage, where the measure is subjected to line-by-line scrutiny and can be amended, would be for English MPs only. When the Bill came back to the Commons for its report stage and third reading, all MPs would again have a vote. But the Government would be bound to accept amendments agreed by the committee, or risk losing the legislation.

Non-English MPs still having a say. It's the current state of affairs with a dollop of royal Tory icing on top! We would still have two types of MP, still have part-time MPs job-sharing with MSPs, but we'd have the added dimension of report stage and third reading votes becoming rigged.

It's not what I want, and it is probably not what the majority in England want either, if a Newsnight Poll is anything to go by.

Tony Blair caught out as fare dodger!

He had a lame excuse. He doesn't carry money, or at least not this time. However, the guard on the Heathrow Express allowed him to carry on, as someone paid up for him. OK for some. The press have had a field day, pointing out the ironies of it all. But I like the overseas press the best, especially The Hindu. This is what they think of "the 54-year-old mega-rich Middle East envoy"!

Tony Blair may have earned millions since leaving office last year but when it came to paying his own train fare, the former British Prime Minister was found short of cash. The 54-year-old mega-rich Middle East envoy recently jumped on the Heathrow Express which allows passengers to buy a ticket on board.

But when the ticket collector came round to first class, a red-faced Blair could not cough up the 24.50 pounds fare as he did not have enough cash in his wallet, the 'Daily Star' reported on Wednesday.

However, he was bailed out by a co-passenger who paid the fare to save the blushes of the former British Premier. "We do not know if he had any money on him or not but one of the people with him paid for his fare," a spokesman for Heathrow Express said.

In 2001, Blair's wife Cherie was forced to pay a ten-pound fine plus a 7.90-pound fare when she was caught travelling to Luton from London Blackfriars without a ticket.

If he visits India again, he better not get caught out on one of their trains!

Blair gives Livingstone a helping hand

A week today it is polling day in London for the mayor. Ken Livingstone looks like he is just a bit behind. Who else to get to help him out? Why Tony Blair, of course! All in the aid of securing victory for Labour, so Gordon Brown doesn't cut such a pathetic figure.

Three glorious sides of a dodgy triangle. All three corners pointing to trouble.

Come next Thursday, I say - DON'T VOTE LABOUR! If the 10p tax band fiasco is anything to go by, New Labour (and Ken's Maverick Labour) don't deserve any further time in the corridors of power. Now we know. Labour don't give a fig about the poor.

The last straw was seeing Yvette Cooper wingeing on TV about it all. She's got a nerve. She and her husband Ed Balls have seen to it that they feathered their own nests before even thinking of the weak and vulnerable. They should go and stand in the corner!

Dutch director Paul Verhoeven's "realistic" rape thesis of the Virgin Mary!

In the "probably happened" theories this one is added to a long line of debunking books about the life of Jesus. According to Paul Verhoeven a Roman soldier got a basic instinct and raped Mary. Joseph said nothing of much significance. The Catholic League in America is up in arms. I wouldn't bother. An omnipotent God can look after Himself.

Verhoeven can answer for himself. St. Paul will simply ask, "Where did you get such a preposterous idea from?". I'd far rather "let all grow until the harvest" than seeking to ban his book, or put him in jail or something.

Fox News has the story.

Innocent customer dragged from his bed at 3 am!

Another story in the "if you've nothing to hide, what have you to fear" department. Quite a lot! In this case, a man went to Tesco to do some shopping but the myopic security guards took his car registration and gave it to the police. Why? Because some thief had stolen a plasma screen TV ( a feat in itself!) and managed to walk past the guards. In a totally separate incident, a woman claimed that this man, Simon Brasch, who works for a hospice charity, had scratched her car. One thing led to twenty-four and later, at 3 am, Mr.Brasch was dragged from his bed after the bizarre mix-up following his visit to the supermarket eight hours earlier.

“I felt humiliated and degraded, I felt like a criminal. I was left to languish in a prison cell, my individual rights were completely put aside for a plasma TV,” he said yesterday. “I told them, ‘I have got a full-time job, I’m a database manager for a national charity, I manage a library. This is ridiculous, you’ll see a big mistake has taken place’. It was the worst night of my life.”

Two questions. Are the security staff at Tesco so poorly trained that they can't ask simple questions? Are the police so poorly trained that they can't ask simple questions? It's an outrage that people are treated in this way. TEN HOURS in a police cell! What is it? All the mounting paperwork that the police have to fill in. "Sorry Mr.Brasch, this'll take at least ten hours to sort out. We're up to our eyeballs in bumpf!"

The trouble today is that all customers are seen as potential shoplifters, all accidents are seen as potential criminal investigations. Common sense and civility have left the brains of "management". We are all likely to end up in a police cell like Mr.Brasch. There isn't anyone of us who isn't.

As The Times reports, the thief and TV are still missing.

Is this the Britain we want?

John McCain's running mate?

Who do you think John McCain should pick as a suitable running mate in November? He's just got round to considering who might be the one.


If a choice is not listed in my poll, tell me who I left out!

Uncle Sam saw you drive from Bognor to Brighton!

For those who keep bleating about the anti-terror laws and how effective they are should think again. Saying, "well, if you haven't done anything you shouldn't be worried", and sounding all prim and proper about it is no good. Jacqui Smith is living up to her status as a typical prying New Labour Home Secretary. All apparatchik and no common sense.

She has discreetly (or by stealth!) introduced new measures which will allow images of cars captured on road-side cameras, and "personal data" derived from them, including number plates, to be sent overseas to such august organisations as the CIA. The Daily Telegraph has uncovered her weasley ways. When she announced last year that British anti-terrorism police could access "real time" images from cameras used in the running of London's congestion charge, she did not imply that it could be used by "others". A statement by Miss Smith to Parliament on July 17, 2007, detailing the exemptions for police from the 1998 Data Protection Act, did not mention other changes that would permit material to be sent outside the European Economic Area (EEA) to the authorities in the US and elsewhere. Typical New Labour. All spin and deception.

So when you are out for a drive this weekend with the family, give a wave to the cameras as you pass by. After all, Uncle Sam wants you to know he appreciates your co-operation.

St.George and the New Dragons

Today is St.George's Day. I hope everyone will have a happy day. Of course, that depends if people remember. It is all too easy for the English to forget in their busy lives. After all, its a fairly muted affair. The BBC mentioned the day, but suggested that more people celebrate Guy Fawkes Night than bother with giving St.George much attention. He got the short straw in the patron saint stakes. Some wags have even suggested he didn't exist.

However, as the 21st Century dawned so too did a re-awakening in being English. What is so wrong in being proud of one's heritage, country and culture? Nothing! Everywhere else celebrates and has parties, so why not us?

Today in the Daily Mail, Justice Secretary Jack Straw bemoans the fact that right-wing groups have hijacked the flag. He says we should all be proud of the English flag and St.George's Day. He says they had a great party in Blackburn. Well OK Jack, good on you, but it's not as rosy as you paint the picture. Bradford Council, and their chums down at the police station, got into a hissy fit about it. Some silly talk of riots. And there's more across the country.

If Jack Straw wants England to celebrate England, let him apologise for New Labour. St.George still needs to slay a few dragons. New Labour dragons.

There are three lined up. Political correctness, political dissembling, and political unfairness. All three either pushed or condoned by the apparatchiks of the regime.

Political correctness - nothing correct about it, just political censorship basically.
Political dissembling - most of the Cabinet have taken truth-bending to the boundaries of direct lying.
Political unfairness - England gets the rough end of a devolution dog's dinner! And there's all the rest, like the 10p tax band, the post code lottery, and arbitrarily closing post offices.

St.George still has work to do. England has a good patron saint. We need to give him proper recognition!

See the website of The Royal Society of St.George

Ron Paul's followers fall foul of the old ways!

Robert's Rules of Order are no good in the Republican Party. Mugabe's Rules of Order (watered down version) more likely. So the Republican Party cracks down on Ron Paul activists. The Missouri GOP is determined that nothing will stop John McCain getting all 58 of Missouri's delegates. Ron Paul activists marched into the cafeteria of Kirkwood High School on Saturday to attend a meeting. Don Griffin is a conservative Republican activist and Paul supporter. However, according to convention chairman Rich Magee, "These are not Republicans, in my opinion." A stand-off ensued, with Griffin shouting, "It was a ramrod job!'', as he was denied proper access to the cafeteria. Angry Paul allies were escorted out shortly after the meeting began.

Brent Stafford, the pro-Paul chairman of the ousted St. Charles delegate bloc, said some old-guard Republicans misunderstand his side's motivation. "We're trying to return the Republican Party to its conservative roots'', he said. What people like Rich Magee should consider is that politics in America is pretty well played with a hard ball approach. If you want your say, you're expected to toe the line of the majority or just shout at the four walls of your kitchen. He should ask himself if that is democracy.

Ron Paul's revolution is about a fairer democracy. With this cafeteria cook-up, it seems America has a long way to go.

Alitalia alinogood for Air France-KLM

Alitalia has been jilted! No shot-gun wedding, the courtship's over. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Franco-Dutch carrier "has definitively yanked its offer off the table". So no wedding feast.

Silvio Berlusconi will have to come up with an emergency rescue plan if this ailing airline is to keep flying. Italian taxpayers should ready themselves for their new prime minister knocking on their doors with a big begging bowl.

BAA to be broken up?

The Competition Commission is halfway through its deliberations on the merits of BAA having the lion's share of British airports. The BBC still hankers after the old "British Airports Authority", but BAA is not British and it certainly lacks authority. Airports seems to be the only word with a common thread in all this. When Margaret Thatcher privatised the monolith, she probably had no idea of how air travel would increase and that the Spanish would be running the show.

Now the CC has embarked on a probe to see if it is a good thing to force Ferrovial to divest itself of one or more of the airports in their ownership. "We are particularly concerned by its (BAA's) apparent lack of responsiveness to the differing needs of its airline customers, and hence passengers," said Christopher Clarke, chairman of the BAA airports inquiry. He said he was also worried that having so many airports owned by BAA meant that big development projects were being carried out one at a time. I think that the CC's concentration on capacity overlooks the dire need for competition.

Both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are looking to BAA to divest itself of an airport or two. "The case for breaking up BAA gets stronger by the day," said Shadow Transport Secretary Theresa Villiers. "BAA's monopolistic grip on so many of the UK's major airports has not been serving passengers or airlines well - as can be seen from the debacle at Terminal 5 and the yearly Heathrow hassle during the summer months," she added.

Personally I'm not affected, as Birmingham Airport stands alone from the airport groupings. However, it shouldn't be about what I want, it is about making the lives of Heathrow passengers a bit better. I can't see the existing BAA set-up figuring it out in a hurry.

Mr. Fayed's female fixer

I think Mohammed Fayed recruits the types that Alan Sugar would reject. There's a plummy-voiced woman called Katharine Witty in Fayed's employ, who's sole claim to fame is appealing to us, the good people of Britain, to indulge his, and her, fantasies. She has the brass neck to complain about Gerald Howarth, a Conservative MP who suggested yesterday, in the House of Commons, that Mr.Fayed was a "thief, a crook and liar". Howarth suggested he be deported as an undesirable alien.

Ms.Witty (is she witty?) said it was "cowardly" to "abuse parliamentary privilege" by insulting an individual. Excuse me? Insulting an individual? Is she barking? Mr.Fayed has spent the last ten years using the courts to suggest that the Duke of Edinburgh arranged to have Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed murdered. The whole idea is preposterous, but then Ms.Witty is into such stuff. I think it's time Mr.Fayed went back to posh retailing and kept away from the fantasies and the fictions of life.

Taxpayers' cart put before bankers' lame horse!

Last night on Channel 4 News there was a chap from the Leek Building Society talking to Jon Snow. Snow is like Paxman. He can spot waffle and weasle words. The chap in question (didn't get his name) said he thought this injection of taxpayers' money was a "start". Jon Snow, asked him how much money was required. "If you're going to drop cash in the ocean, how much is needed?" The answer seemed less than satisfactory, but he did say one thing that I thought, well, that sums it all up.

This money is to rebuild confidence. Apparently, it's all down to us, the suckers who feel we can't trust the banks. It's all our fault! We should be thinking more positively. House prices aren't falling, it's all a bad dream. But when this money finally comes across from the sticky fingers of Mervyn King and his coffer keepers, we are all to be good boys and girls. Be thankful and think good things!

Are these bankers completely devoid of a culpability brain cell? "Oh, we did no wrong. We just lent to fools like you!" So now they get bailed out by us, yes US, the taxpayers. Want to know where the 10p tax band's gone. Into the pot, to be cooked up with some other delectable ingredients, such as stealth taxes and VAT increases.

It's about time, as Ron Paul keeps telling Americans, that we took our country back. It's not Alistair Darling's money, Mervyn King's money, it's OUR MONEY!! Billions going into propping up a financial system that has all the hallmarks of the South Sea Bubble! Well, it's popped and we need to make sure they don't get greedy, risky, and reckless again.

Tory rebel Bob Spink becomes Ukip's first MP

The Daily Telegraph has announced that the UK Independence Party will announce today that Mr. Robert Spink, formerly of the Conservative Party will join the party. The BBC announces that he already has!

So UKIP gets its first MP. It would have been better for them, I suppose, if they had won the seat in an election, but gaining a seat by whatever means (foul ones excluded, of course!) is OK. UKIP can be pleased that they have an MP, two peers, and ten MEPs. Makes a baker's dozen!

When I posted before that Bob Spink might join UKIP I was told "You're welcome to him!". As I'm not a member of UKIP, I'm not bothered in that sense. However, it helps the cause of those against the centralising powers and interfering nature of the European Union. Personally I want to see the EU transformed into a Commonwealth of Europe. I want a big exit door constructed for the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers, and all the brown envelope brigade of Brussels to go through so that they get the sort of radar checking you find at airports!

In the meantime, UKIP gets Bob Spink! We'll have to see how effective he becomes as a UKIP member rather than a Conservative one.

A helping hand for the Chinese economy!

I've just taken delivery of some things I bought at Argos online. I've got five pieces of self-assembly furniture stuck in the hall. On each box is written in bold letters - COUNTRY OF ORIGIN : CHINA - and I'm feeling a tad guilty. Should I? Part of me thinks, oh, what the hell, and the other is thinking of the poor Tibetans, and the rest of them in their undemocratic helotry.

I'm going for a cup of coffee!

Prescott and the plum puddings

John Prescott has always been an odd one out in politics. He is very much in the Jekyll and Hyde mould. Most non-Labourites can't stand his politics and think he's been out of his depth, but quite a lot think he's a great bloke when they get to know him. His long lost illegitimate son, a Tory, thought so. Prescott is a jazz fan and so is Kenneth Clarke. Together, with former Liberal MP Michael Meadowcroft, they had a jazz band of sorts at Westminster. I expect Clarke and Meadowcroft would concur that Prescott is a good chum.

Two things seem to drive John Prescott. One is to show people that he's better than they think he is. He sometimes mentions his ship steward days. Once he served Anthony Eden, apparently on Eden's voyage into retirement. Prescott was full of resentment and Old Labour hatred when he came face to face with the Tory grandee. He vowed he would get to a position in order to have the likes of Eden bowing and scraping to him. In that, he more or less succeeded, except Eden was gone.

The other thing that drives Prescott is money. He sees that as an antedote to his former struggles. However, it's OK for him to have money but not those that inherited it. So the class warrior is still in him. Money and status, plus a bit of sexual gratification added to the mix. That makes John Prescott fairly human, subject to temptation and giving way big time. I won't condemn him for that. What I will condemn him for is his political barbarity. Destroying perfectly good homes, so that "affordable housing" can be put up in their place. Planning decisions that are bizarre at best and getting himself a job, causing maximum mayhem, at something called the ODPM (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister). That is what I criticise him for.

So when he admits that for the last 20 years or so he has been a mixture of Tommy Tucker and the boy in the sick bay, I can only say that I am not going to kick him when he is vulnerable. Others have had a go, suggesting it is all much about nothing. I would say it can't be. Eating disorders are not only a major problem for those they afflict, but also for those around the sufferers. Pauline Prescott deserves a medal!

The one thing John Prescott said was ""Now I've come out about my bulimia, I hope I might do something to help the many young women - and others - who suffer from it. I hope that it will encourage people to come out and discuss these matters and not suffer in silence." Brave words, John. But "others"? You mean men, surely? Men suffer from bulimia, just as they do breast cancer and other "female" complaints.

So I think John Prescott has finally admitted that he has weaknesses and they can be overcome. It is a great pity he allowed them to smother him and turn him politically into a man prone to misjudgement and petty meanness.

The lesson here is that suffering in silence does more harm than good. I'm not concerned who knew what when. What I do think is that Blair, rather than saying "Well, John will be John", should have helped John rather than let him carry on gorging and vomiting at almost every dinner or function he went to. And he would't have had to endure all the fatboy jokes as well!

BNP to sue South Wales Police

I do wish New Labour hadn't given the police forces of this country such a burden with their political correctness nonsense and their Stasi-like approach to dealing with people they can't abide. Instead of debating with the BNP or tackling head-on the political weaknesses of their case, New Labour acts like a grumpy dandy caught out with a dirty shirt. It's all humbug and high-falluting posturing.

The BNP is a legal political party. They registered accordingly with the Electoral Commission set up by Blair. But instead of countering BNP policies, New Labour gets the police to round up their canvassers and chuck them in jail for a couple of hours.

Now we arrive at the ridiculous position of five leafleters suing the South Wales Police. BNP Deputy Leader Simon Darby said, “Normally they have a look at the leaflet, check it and maybe take names and addresses. In this case they were arrested. Obviously, they were not very happy about it. They were asking all kinds of questions about our movements in South Wales. Certainly there are good grounds for compensation.” The BNP compensated for this? How much, I wonder, if it happens?

The police have no business rounding up people at election times. Leave that kind of stuff to Mugabe! All the moron who authorised this is doing is giving a potential windfall to the BNP and giving them the opportunity to act as the browbeaten innocents!

New Labour - New Morons!

Cameron's highwire act to woo Blairites

David Cameron has woken up with a good idea in his head. Talk nicely about some political opponents and they might see a winner in the making. That winner being David Cameron. He's making an audacious attempt to woo top Blairites into his circle of opinion, saying they've made a good fist of their jobs and generally have the right policy thinking. "We are going to be a government for the post-Blair era rather than trying to turn the clock back." That is a sensible comment, but chatting up Stephen Byers, a man who dissembled as well as Blair did, is probably going a bit too far.

I'm not against co-operation, or agreement where it makes sense, but this strikes me as being a touch too gimmicky. On the list of potential Tory totty is Alan Milburn. Now I'd put him into the league of competent modernisers and definitely Blairite New Labour, but he's not a Tory. He's as keen on meddling as the next one on the list.

What David Cameron needs to do is to set out his own policies, give us a solid view of his beliefs and principles, and tell us what he wants for the next 25 years with regard to Europe, immigration, town and country planning and the health and education services. The Netherlands has a 25-year plan for such things as airports and housing. Why not us?

New Labour was all about spin and presentation. On top of that there was a certain amount of deception. Yes, it's true not all New Labour adherents are bad, but in the main they have increased our bureaucracy, upped the level of state interference, and enjoyed destroying our traditions.

The Daily Telegraph reports that it was granted exclusive access to Mr Cameron on the local elections campaign trail last week during which he disclosed his determination to push ahead with reforming the Conservatives - potentially with the help of leading supporters of Mr Blair. I hope not. I really do. It will be like a Trojan horse or, more likely, a Trojan mule. The country is fed up with New Labour, but the potential Conservative vote since 1992 has, over the Blair years, gone all over the place. It's landed in UKIP, English Democrats, and other smaller parties. Some has just become armchair statistics. Others have become "radicalised" and joined the LibDems!

David Cameron needs to build a conservative consensus that can rally behind him. Chatting up New Labour apparatchiks doesn't do it for me, and I suspect quite a few others.

Television nostalgia!

For those old enough to remember. UK Midlands and North ITV viewers, that is!

ABC presents.....

and the legendary Lew Grade's ATV. Sit back and, oh, it's Crossroads............

Political correctness breaks out in Bradford (again!)

Bradford Police in West Yorkshire have had a double dose of political correctness come their way. It seems they can't abide anything English. The gobbledegook stuff they come up with is "health and safety" when they succeeded in banning a St.George's Day parade. The mean-spirited plods, who were in collusion with the council chiefs (a bunch of ne'er-do-well plonkers), just rabbitted on about this one issue. Shame on them. Why don't they go to China to enjoy themselves?

Bradford City councillor Quasim Khan said, "We were told by the police at the meeting that the original route had not been risk assessed and if we wanted a march to go ahead on that date, St George's Day, we would have to accept a smaller, different route. The police officers were getting quite animated, saying things like 'look, this just isn't going to happen'." Police and council officials said they did not have sufficient warning of the event. Nonsense. Apparently these apparatchiks thought it would cause a race riot. What rubbish!

Are we living in England or in a police state that was once England? We need to get rid of these people before they make our lives more of a misery. This parade was supposed to bring the communities together. Now all it has done is spoil everything for children who were looking forward to dressing up and all the community groups who had planned to stage the multi-cultural event. 1,500 schoolchildren were due to take part. Not now.

Hey kids! The mean old spoilsports ruined your party.

Putin puts in a put down on divorce talk

Quite rightly Vladimir Putin has dismissed rumours that he is going to divorce his wife in order to take up with a 24-year-old former Olympic gymnast Alina Kabayeva, who is now a member of parliament. On a visit to see the newly re-elected prime minister of Italy, one Silvio (I've got a good election strategy) Berlusconi, Putin said, "I have always reacted negatively to those who with their snotty noses and erotic fantasies prowl into others' lives." Well said, sir!

If Mr.Putin thinks Ms Kabeyeva is a cracker, it doesn't automatically make him an adulterer. I know Jimmy Carter once said he committed adultery in his heart. He said, "I try not to commit a deliberate sin. I recognize that I'm going to do it anyhow, because I'm human and I'm tempted. And Christ set some almost impossible standards for us. Christ said, 'I tell you that anyone who looks on a woman with lust has in his heart already committed adultery. I've looked on a lot of women with lust. I've committed adultery in my heart many times. This is something that God recognizes I will do--and I have done it--and God forgives me for it." And which man in the world - heterosexual, that is - hasn't looked at a woman fondly? Certainly the tongue-wagging journalists and snotty-nosed critics have, without a doubt.

Putin says there is "not a single word of truth" in any of it. What is true is that tabloid journalists do have erotic fantasies and they do prowl into others' lives. Putin is dead right there.

Mugabe goes soft in the head!

Not only is Robert Mugabe an accomplished voterigger, he's also an umblemished bullshitter and a political bamboozler of the first order. He's an old man that's got more vinegary, more angry, and more wicked as his memory twists his brain. Now he's just made the worst calculation of his life.

Morgan Tsvangirai is a perfectly mild-mannered man. Considering he won the election, he's been very civil and kind towards Mugabe. Mugabe's not been kind to Mr.Tsvangirai, having had the MDC leader brutally beaten and generally treated very nastily over the years. Morgan Tsvangirai said Mugabe could live out a good life, he wouldn't be prosecuted and things could be worked out, etc. Not any more. Now it's perfectly possible for Mugabe to meet with a fate far worse that sitting out in a deckchair gazing at the failed crops and crumbling buildings. Why? Because those that told Tsvangirai that things could change, that is telling Mugabe the game was up, ratted on the deal. What idiots. Didn't they see what happened to that dozy dictator, Caucescu? Mugabe's got a few sleepless nights coming up!

Mugabe has the cheek to say, "We, not the British, established democracy, based on one person, one vote". Fantasist! One person means Robert Mugabe, one vote means his and his alone. Because if he can ignore an election result all the other votes are meaningless.

Herald headlines should read - "Mugabe meets Humpty Dumpty to swap notes". That's the real world of Zimbabwean government thinking.

Judge thinks Harry Potter is gibberish

Joanne Rowling, renamed JK by her publishers so that she could sound "more masculine", has had a taste of off-the-cuff judicial thinking. Judge Robert Patterson Jr, who is overseeing the copyright trial in New York, admitted that he was not a Harry Potter fan. So much so that he described Rowling's works as "full of gibberish" and "extremely complex". Not exactly sentiments Ms.Rowling wanted to hear.

Although she says she is vehemently anti-censorship, she wants to censor this particular book. However, Judge Patterson suggested there was genuine worth in an encyclopaedia like The Harry Potter Lexicon, written by Steven vander Ark, that Rowling is attempting to block by claiming that it breaches her copyright. He mentioned the case of Jarndyce v Jarndyce in Charles Dickens’s Bleak House about the pain and damage of a long drawn-out suit.

I can't think what she wanted to embark on such a thing for. It's not as though he's writing a copycat book. It's a reference book. I think she did herself no favours by saying, in a rather loud way, “I believe the floodgates will open. Are we the owners of our own work?” Such a question could get people thinking. It got the judge thinking!

I've never read a Harry Potter book, or seen a Harry Potter movie, but my wife thinks the whole thing fantastic. We've got the books and the movies! Gibberish is not a word I think my wife would concur with. What this is all about is that Ms Rowling got left behind in the reference book stakes. Mr vander Ark beat her to it. She says she has been planning her own. Umm!

Grim monkey business in Gibraltar

It used to be said, and still is probably, that if the apes left Gibraltar, then so too would the British. I'm not sure what that says about Brits but there may be some linkage!

Now, without too much regard for the sensibilities of world opinion or of British historical niceties, the Gibraltarian authorities are planning on a cull of at least 25 monkeys. It seems one pack of truculent apes is being lined up for the execution chamber. Gibraltar's Tourist Minister Ernest Britto, who has issued a license for their culling, says "The decision was not taken lightly. It is a last resort.". Last resort? The whole idea of Gibraltar for many people is that it is a resort with monkeys that act as a symbol of Britisness. Now they are to be given a lethal injection. Sounds a bit like the US Supreme Court's latest decison regarding lethal cocktails has spread to areas further afield.

Franco Ostuni, general manager of the Caleta Hotel, said guests rooms have been vandalized by monkeys scrounging for extra food. Mr.Britto says, "Children are frightened, people cannot leave their windows open for fear of the monkeys stealing, apes can bite and contact with them runs the risk of salmonella or hepatitis." Well, what has been going on for three hundred years? Have 25 monkeys suddenly flipped? Surely the apes have had enough in the way of food before? How come they now want to raid hotel rooms and scare little children? I don't get it.

Apparenty the cull will take time since the monkeys must be lured into cages and then sedated before killing. Tourists going to Gibraltar will see manic monkey catchers running all over the place trying to tempt these beasts into cages. Doesn't sound too good. I'm sure they could just sit back for a moment and ask themselves if the monkeys are getting enough food. I'd get a bit stroppy if my rations dried up and, smelling good tucker in a hotel room, was threatened with extermination for attempting to get at some of it!

SocGen CEO quits over rogue trader

The plot thickens at Société Générale, the French bank that got into difficulties over a rogue trader. Daniel Bouton is stepping down as CEO, but moving to a more comfy seat as Chairman. There has been pressure on the top brass at the bank, especially from Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, but also from investors.

M.Bouton claimed that the bank was hit by this rogue trading scandal all of a sudden. Implying it happened in more or less the same way as Hurrican Katrina or a giant tsunami. You get an early warning of sorts, but it's too late to do much about it in real terms. The Financial Times has been delving into all this. I get the feeling their journalists have picked up more info than they can properly impart. Scheherazade Daneshkhu reporting from Paris writes, "the decision to split Mr Bouton’s role comes only weeks in advance of a crucial report by the board’s crisis committee that one insider suggested to the Financial Times Thursday could have “severe” conclusions." Severe conclusions? Don't tempt us! Find out what they are please.

On the other side of the fence, so to speak, is the trader himself, now suing the bank. Jérôme Kerviel may have some financial facts that sit uneasily with all this. Who knows? The trouble is that banks have been less than transparent and now they are getting themselves into the blame game. A good shake-up is needed with proper (not over) regulation and a requirement that dodgy dealings are a thing of the past.

Gwyneth Dunwoody dies aged 77

This has come as a bit of a shock. The BBC has just announced that she has died. Gwyneth Dunwoody was a great campaigner, a very good chairman of the Transport Select Committee, and a doughty fighter for backbenchers' rights. Nobody coming before her committee, such as Network Rail bosses, would get very far by trying to pull the wool over her eyes. I doubt if she knew how to spin. Very forthright and very acceptable as a member of Parliament.

She will be missed.

Elected Senate versus House of Lords

The American Senate is vaguely similar to the House of Lords. In this regard it is the second chamber of a bicameral governing institution. The Americans have a congress, the British have a parliament. One thing that appears to unite the US Senate and the House of Lords is the extreme age of many of the members. It used to be said that the Lords were in God's waiting room. Now there are murmurings on Capitol Hill about the age and competence of some senators.

Robert Byrd is a senator from West Virginia. He was born just as the First World War ended. It makes him 90. Some think being as old as that is not the best thing for a senator to be. Others think it an outright impudence that the subject is mentioned. Yesterday (Wednesday) he was managing a two-hour Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the Iraq war that for the time being silenced critics who say he’s no longer fit to serve as chairman. The average age of the Senate is 63, which implies half are in the bus pass club!

The House of Lords also has a lot of older members. It is not unusual for centenarians to be cogitating on the latest piece of legislation. Lord Shinwell was over 100 and still going. On his 100th birthday he came out of the chamber to greet both Neil Kinnock, the then Labour leader, and the press. Egged on by a tabloid hack, the peer leaned forward to Kinnock and said "You'll get nowhere by grinning all the time!" and Kinnock went a violent shade of carrot red. When you get old you can say what you want more or less. Senator Byrd has told his detractors to "Shut up".

Those campaigning in the UK for an elected second chamber should look at the US Senate. Yes, it's elected, but unless you've done something really wrong and even that may not matter, you get to stay there until you snuff it or get wheeled out. The American voters don't get much say in the matter. In fact, if the Senate turned into a sort of House of Lords, probably not that many would know or care.

Senator Byrd has had been in hospital twice this year. He uses a frame on occasions to get around. The health and stamina of the senator has been a question mark for months because of his weakening physical condition. His mobility was limited further in February by a fall at his home, the subsequent discovery of a urinary tract infection and an allergic reaction to medication that put him into hospital. All this leads to the speculation.

Byrd is the longest-serving senator in history. Probably of any parliament or congress for that matter. And because senators go on and on, people come to believe that they are there for ever. A kind of perpetual politician. Elections come and go, but the senators stay the course. I get the feeling that these rumblings are not about his age, but about how the Congress is adminstered.

Robert Byrd, is currently president pro tempore of the Senate, which makes him third in line to the presidency. That is why he is still keen to demonstrate his abilities, no doubt. But are the American people so sure?

Louisiana buckles the Bible in favour of death!

The Parable of the Lost Sheep is seemingly lost on some folk in Louisiana. They'd rather the lost sheep be fried in oil than be let back into the fold. The Good Shepherd is more concerned for the lost sheep, but if you've just tightened your belt a couple of notches too much, the message might get blurred in the subsequent fainting fit. The State of Louisiana is seeking to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that death "is not cruel and unusual punishment for the rape of a child" and thus doesn't violate the 8th Amendment. This comes on the day that the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a challenge to the lethal three-drug cocktail used in most U.S. executions during the past 30 years. No matter that the stuff takes a time to wend its way through the veins. I suppose these judges describe themselves as Christians. Do they say their prayers with petitions to God to bless this killing cocktail?

I find it amazing that, when confronted with a crucifix and mention of such punishment, Americans get uneasy. Death is at the heart of Christianity, foregiveness at its core. The buckle of the Bible belt is a tight-fitting thing, indeed!

Punishment should be about three things - fair retribution, denial of liberty, and rehabilitation. It is surely not about debasing ourselves to make us feel better in a transitory moment.

I wonder what those who are keen to see killers killed think when they get to the hoped for promised land. Will they just sit and scoff when it comes to prayer time in Heaven for sinners? Jesus said "there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent." It is a mighty hard business being a Christian, but forgiveness is high up on the list.

Of course, none of this should imply a namby-pamby approach to justice. Serious crimes require to be punished, but if the rehabilation element is lacking, then it is tantamount to society saying the prisoner has no chance to be reformed and redeemed. Part of the rehabilitation process must be a positive aspect of repentance.

We will all be far better off if we look up rather than look down.

Digby digs in deeper on Brown's account!

Digby Jones was once the boss of the CBI. As such, he would travel the globe doing his best for British business. Then Gordon Brown, on becoming Prime Minister, decided it would be a good wheeze to have a "government of all the talents". However laudable this is, it doesn't really work in an adversarial parliamentary system. We have the Government and we have the Opposition. Being semi-detatched from one or the other will always lead to speculation.

Now it is said that Lord Jones of Birmingham, as he has become, is wanting to stand down before the next election in order to avoid questions on whether he supported the prime minister. Well, he either does or he doesn't support him. It can't be support of a curate's egg proportion. Some days yes, some days no. Lord Jones protests that "I am a supporter of Gordon Brown and I believe in what he is doing". Apparently, two-thirds of the country do not believe in what he is doing, and want him gone.

In all this, I detect a certain amount of distancing. Digby Jones says he's not a political animal, but he is. It's just that his politics is business politics and not party or Westminster politics. I'm sure he's doing his level best as Trade Minister. He's not a member of the Labour Party, true. But he is a member of the British Government. When it comes to an election, his membership of whatever will not be an issue. His being a part of the Brown era and his support of it will.

BA careers terminated by T5 fiasco!

The careers of two senior British Airways executives were ended abruptly today. Only days after Willie Walsh said nobody was going, these two get the chop. Gareth Kirkwood, director of operations, and David Noyes, director of customer services, are going. One wonders what Willie is thinking. He says he's got to stay in order to sort out the mess. Had he no contributing hand in all this? Sounds like he swanned in all aghast at the terrible chaos, but saw none of it as being linked to him.

If Willie Walsh ever appeared on the Apprentice as project manager with these two hapless boardroom casualties, it would be fairly obvious that the audience would be wondering how he escaped. "What was you thinking, Willie? 25,000 bags went missing! You weren't there. You brought Gareth back into the boardroom. Why him? A wizz at computers, eh? And what of David. No good, was 'e?" It would make good TV if nothing else!

However, the T5 story goes on. A bit like Peyton Place, for those who can remember it. Now insurance companies are saying they won't insure lost bags in Terminal 5. It's never ending. Someone needs to get a grip, and it's not just the bag handles.

Charles Clarke sizes up the likely stalking horses

Charles Clarke was one of New Labour's beleaguered Home Secretaries. Letting criminals loose by mistake, getting into a muddle over terrorist's human rights and generally bluffing his way out of trouble. He's been a bit quiet of late, but then he's a bit like a volcano. Get a rumble going and he could erupt. Now he's apparently checking out the runners and riders in the stalking horse stakes. According to The Independent, an informative MP says that "Charles has the names". Names of those who would sign up in order to trigger a ballot for a leadership contest. Of course, Clarke denies all this, but then he would, wouldn't he? The MP kindly added that either Mr Clarke or another MP with "nothing to lose" would stand as a way of gauging opinion in the Labour Party.

As Jon Snow put it to Brown, "Ten years as Iron Chancellor, ten months as a dithering Prime Minister?" All this must be very depressing for him, now being labelled the John Major of New Labour. Major didn't get to see a stalking horse. He just went into the garden of No.10 to tell journalists he was calling a leadership election. John Redwood obliged by being his opponent. Brown may not get the chance to walk amongst the daffodils.

The elections on May 1st will be dire for Labour. The economy won't be much changed by then, either. If the plotters and schemers aim to chuck him out, this summer will be the time to do it. In some ways I hope they don't succeed. All new leaders get a honeymoon. Ditching leaders is not uncommon. Ireland's just done it, in the hope that the new man, "Biffo" Cowen, will bring home the bacon. I would prefer Brown to stay, so we can vote on his government's terrible record with him as Prime Minister as well as Chancellor. A period of sleaze, spin, corruption, money wasted on pet projects and potty policies. Yes we've had it OK, but we've deceived ourselves big time. Brown just fed us the juicy gravy. Now it's run dry!

Roman Catholics in US more in tune with Pope than Rome!

The Washington Post and ABC News have commissioned a poll of Roman Catholic thinking in the USA. The poll is perceived as showing that nearly half those respondents consider the Pope and the Church out of touch with their views. It then goes on to give percentages and information about views given.

The 45% who think the Church should bend with the wind are in favour, or don't mind, women as priests. They also want other things, which are not identified as such. But the poll says that Pope Benedict is a forceful advocate for traditionalism, including returning prayers, vestments and music from earlier eras to church services. This would suggest that some priests are conducting services in garb somewhat different from vestments, are making up extemporary prose, and plucking their guitars. Not being a Roman Catholic in America, I can only guess!

I fear the tragedy of clerical abuse has clouded some of the responses. However, it is hard to see that this is representative on such a small sample of 292. What it tells me is that, just like the Anglican Church, there are many who see Christianity as reflecting what they want and not what the Faith teaches them.

If the priesthood is seen as being a matter of human leadership, then it matters not who is a priest. However, the Church has taught differently over the centuries, emphasising the sacramental nature of priesthood and its combining nature with Christ. Marriage of priests is not the same issue as female ordination, although this poll confuses them a bit. Priestly celibacy is a discipline not a doctrine. It could be that the Pope may lead towards rescinding this discipline, back to early times. I doubt if female ordination will be on the agenda, not because it is right or wrong, but because it is not discerned as being compatible with the Faith.

As an Anglican Catholic, I'm intrigued by these answers, but not surprised. A similar ongoing "debate" is entrenched in the Anglican Church, but with the figures for change and innovation somewhat higher. That's why an ex-Roman Catholic is now calling the shots in the Episcopal Church. What the Pope makes of her, I do not know. But it defines the situation nicely. On one side, but from both churches, are the ecclesiastical democrats and on the other side, the traditionalists.

Irish democracy hijacked by EU and its Irish stooges!

If you ever wondered how undemocratic the EU can be, then just reflect on how they simply HATE referendums. They much prefer the dodgy types like Berlusconi, a man who can win elections even if half the state prosecutors want him in jail!

So the EU mandarins have turned their gaze towards Ireland, where a referendum is to take place on the Constitutional Treaty that is supposed to be something else! They have helped to try to fix the outcome by "suggesting" it would be a good idea if Bertie Ahern went before the poll took place. Daniel Hannan poses this on his Telegraph blog.

Why did Bertie Ahern stand down as Ireland’s Prime Minister? Alright, because he is facing corruption allegations, but why did he resign now? The Guardian’s Henry McDonald, who knows a thing or two about Irish politics, is in no doubt. The Taoiseach stood down to ensure a “Yes” vote in the only national referendum on the European Constitution Lisbon Treaty that the EU couldn’t cancel.

McDonald quotes a senior Irish government source saying: “Fianna Fáil didn’t want the referendum on the European treaty to be diverted into an electoral judgment on Bertie Ahern. His going now gives Brian Cowen a chance to sell the yes campaign on its merits for Ireland free from any diversions such as Ahern’s personal finances.”

Makes sense to me. Had Bertie stuck around, the plebiscite might have become a referendum on what the Irish call “gombeenism” (very roughly, “sleaze”). And the last thing Eurocrats want, what with their accounts not having been audited for 13 years, is a vote about corruption. So now, instead of the referendum being a chance to vote “No” to a discredited leader, it’ll be held in the middle of the honeymoon of his successor – almost certainly the Euro-fanatical Brian Cowen (known to his detractors as “Biffo” Cowen: Big Ignorant F***er From Offaly”).

Well, I hope the voters in Ireland see through this Euro-Gombeenism (great new hyphenated word for me!) and vote NO without any hesitation. They won't be voting against Europe, or trade, or good international relations, but they will be denying the troughfeeders in Brussels the satisfaction they are so desperately wanting.

We need to stand up for democracy. This new guy, Biffo Cowen......well! If he's such a big so-and-so from Offally, then the NO vote should be massive.

No To Lisbon Campaign

Continental to unite with United?

The ink had only just dried on the deal between Delta Air Lines and Northwest, when it was suggested that it might be a good idea if Continental courted United. These marriages of convenience could well be the only thing that keeps the planes flying, but at what cost?

United's flight attendants made it clear yesterday (Monday) that any deal better be in their best interests. "In the event we determine there exists a threat and not an opportunity for flight attendants, we will launch an aggressive campaign to derail any attempt to move forward with a merger that is harmful," Greg Davidowitch, president of the local chapter of the Association of Flight Attendants, said in a prepared statement. Blimey! I hope he keeps it all in house and doesn't let it spill over into the planes. "It's cold chicken, or nothing, sir!". It could be a very distressing time with grumpy flight attendants.

I've got a vested interest in that Continental fly out of Birmingham to Newark. From a selfish standpoint, this could be a good thing. We might get a United route to the West Coast. According to Roger King, of analysts CreditSights, such a merger "could be pretty quick, because they have already talked to each other".

So Continental United or United Continental? Oh, it's going to be hard choosing who comes first. The Hon. Charles Rolls was able to convince Henry Royce that their cars should be called Rolls Royce, much to Henry's chagrin. Rolls had the money and connections but Royce had the engineering skills. So today, those owning such a car simply refer to the Rolls. However, if you venture into Derby (where they make the aero-engines) and ask the workers where they work, they'll tell you - ROYCE'S!

Poor choice of words - all round!

Barack Obama has been accused of denigrating the white working class of America, previously known as blue-collar workers (this election is reverting to the old stereotypes!). All he did was get his words muddled up. He has been reported as saying they were "bitter" but he meant to say they tended to find solace in religion and guns. Best to keep off religion and guns in election year, I'd say. They don't mix at the best of times, but then guns are bit like fishing and football. It's a religion to some!

No sooner had Obama finished eating his words, then along comes Rep. Geoff Davis (pictured) from Kentucky. He's had to apologise for using the word “boy” to describe Obama. Davis was recorded (by a mischief-maker, no doubt!) saying, “I’m gonna tell you something. That boy’s finger does not need to be on the button.” Davis then told the crowd, at a Republican fundraiser, that he participated in “closed, highly classified national security simulations" with Obama. All he did was to talk of a younger man (three years younger!). I would hardly think a mean thought entered into it, apart from thinking Obama was not fit to be president.

What this says is that you have to pick your words carefully when out on the election stump. Say boo, and it's a whole gaggle of geese that start flapping and hissing. Both men have had to grovel, saying they had a "poor choice of words". Who hasn't been in such a situation? Only a paragon of virtue, and there isn't one of them in the race!

UKIP London Mayoral election broadcast

In the credit where credit is due category, I think Gerard Batten's UKIP message for London is very good. However, best will in the world, I can't help him or any of the other contenders, unless I buy the Bob Mugabe Box of Ballot Fixing Tricks. I can only vote in Solihull.

But here is the video, so at least Londoners who haven't seen it can see it here.



And for the English Local Elections here is Nigel Farage MEP speaking directly about some of the ills afflicting local democracy!

TV host Mark Speight

The BBC reports that missing TV presenter Mark Speight was found hanging on a building adjacent to Paddington railway station. British Transport Police have confirmed this. All very sad. A tragedy for all concerned.

Wachovia gets a big wobble

Wachovia, the fourth largest bank in the USA, has posted a quarterly loss, the first since 2001. The bank made an ill-timed $24.6 billion takeover of Golden West Financial Corp. in 2006, at the peak of the housing boom. Now things don't look so rosy. Andrew Seibert is a portfolio manager at NexTier Wealth Management in Pittsburgh, which oversees $400 million in assets. He has some pithy remarks to make. "They obviously didn't take a close enough look at Golden West. They made a mistake in buying Golden West. The driver of all this is summed up in one word - Greed. They saw the big dollars and they went for it.''

What is it with current the crop of bank bosses? They appear to be doing exactly what they advise their customers NOT to do! Wow! David Hendler, an analyst at CreditSights Inc., went a stage better. He said, "Wachovia is now looking almost as bad as Washington Mutual on the mortgage side. This shows investors have to be more cautious and not take management's word for granted.'' That's telling us they can't be trusted.

Integrity out - greed in! Great banking motto, I must say. And all this talk of losses? Unless the bank is burning dollars in some dumpster at the back of the building, somebody else is benefiting from the cash. Nobody loses money unless they drop it in the street. It is a game of winners and losers. A sort of snakes and ladders for bankers!

Ron Paul speaks to 1500 enthusiastic students!

The message continues and on this video you'll see that the crowds are still there, the enthusiasm is still there, and the message resonates well.

In front of a cheering crowd in Gym 1 in the Intramural Building, Penn State University, Ron Paul spoke about reducing the role of government. Combating rising national indebtedness and a war that is going in the wrong direction are all part of Ron Paul's Revolution. John McCain appears to be in denial on both counts. Pity!

Robert Mugabe - King of the Voteriggers!

Voterigging is not something that happens just in Zimbabwe. It has been a problem in the neighbouring council to me - in Birmingham. Ballot abuses are not unknown in England. Northern Ireland has had its share of dead men going to the polls. George Bush managed to get the Florida vote tweaked in 2000. Italy is a problem that needs a whole book on the subject. But nobody beats Zimbabwe and Bob the Ballot Rigging Man!

There used to be a saying in London about a suspect person, "He's got more front than Sainsbury's!". In Mugabe's case, I reckon he's trying to pass Sainsbury's off as Tesco into the bargain. He's got front and side together. Maybe a kick up the backside is all he knows.

I can't believe the other African leaders take all this so seriously. They obviously know the guy's a rascal and a vagabond. But they can't bring themselves to break ranks. They probably think it will do their "liberation" creditials no good. Well, stuff those and just get rid of the tyrant. Any further delay, and things could get far worse. Is it any wonder that the world looks at African leaders and does a double take?

Gordon Brown viewed as most disastrous PM!

It's not good reading for Gordon Brown. According to a YouGov poll for the Sunday Times, he's careering into the pit occupied by Ramsay Macdonald and Lord North! Only 2% think he's doing "very well". That's a feeble number of diehard New Labour fantasists! 26% are prepared to say he's doing "fairly well". That's a bit like telling your mother her cake is a bit stodgy.

Against his plaudits come the overwhelming group, 65% who think he's performing "fairly or very badly". So two-thirds of the electorate want him gone is the message. It's not just the Tories complaining of his dithering. Now, the Blairites are chipping in, too.

He waited ten years for Blair to disappear, and now it's all going pearshaped for him (and us, of course!). I think the biscuit-taking came to a head with the 10p tax band abolition, but there are loads of other cockups and crises.

Should we wait another two years with grumpy appearances at the dispatch box, a crumbling economy, and a control-freaked cabinet? My answer is NO!

Humpty Dumpty English!

The English Language is getting a pounding of late. Does it matter? Are we troubled by the way English is used? The BBC are helping two words flourish in ways they should not be used. The first is REPOSSESSION. Only this morning on News24, Declan Curry was happily chatting about REPOSSESSIONS! Does he know what the word means? Probably yes, but his self-regulatory mechanism is failing to get him, and countless others, to use the word FORECLOSURE!

Now a lot of Brits have a go at Americans for what they see as abuse of the language, but in many cases it is the Americans that are correct. A person or company can only repossess something that they already own. A car on hire purchase can be repossessed. A bank or building society does not own property in these cases. They are not landlords. By constantly repeating this word, REPOSSESSION, it conveys a message, on a drip-drip basis, that property ownership is in the hands of the banks.

The Americans quite rightly speak of mortgage foreclosures. One forecloses on a loan if a person is in default. However, that person has options to safeguard their financial situation. They can 1) Remortgage to get a better deal, or 2) Sell the property for a cheaper one, or 3) Pay off the loan in its entirety (not the most likely situation, I admit). In all this, the lender does not and never will own the property, providing the mortgage is paid according to agreements.

'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone,' it means just what I choose it to mean, neither more nor less.' Taking the Humpty Dumpty view of language, using the word repossession in place of foreclosure, the whole emphasis is moved from one of ownership to one of dependency. It is very easy for people to say "Oh, well, the bank own's my house!", even if they mean it in gest. It is also not the right word in the first place!

The second word is tiny, but, boy, has it permeated the whole of society. That word is OF! Here again, BBC News and almost everyone else is using OF when it is not necessary. ALL OF THE TIME! All OF this, all OF that! It is not needed. All this, and all that! That is all that is needed!

I appreciate that it is not a great grammatical sin. Most who say "all of" will resist stepping into "off of", but it appears to be a symptom of the way English is going. Pendantry can be self-destructive, but I think a certain maintenance of standards should be encouraged without letting the pedants loose!