New Year predictions

I'm utterly crap at making predictions I just hope that 2011 is a better year for me and mine, you and yours too of course, though considering the accuracy of my predictive talents, you might regret me wishing you that.
Still it's fun having a go, so here's my wish list/prophecy of doom.

Politics will be riven by scandal (as ever) and at least one big name in the Tories will be forced to resign and the Lib Dem popularity in the polls will continue to nose dive though the coagulation will survive the year.
The EU referendum petition will get the required number of signatures and the government will be forced to debate the issue. The difference in opinion between what the government think and what the people want will become clearly apparent and Cameron will use the Tory whips to crush any motion for a referendum causing a massive party row and weakening his leadership though not fatally (unfortunately)
The EDL numbers will continue to grow as will the number of cases of Muslim Grievance Syndrome. Society tensions will also continue to grow as multiculturalism, diversity and equality prove to be hollow shells for keeping society happy.
Sport, haven't got a clue who will win the premiership, but West Ham will be relegated.
Global Warming and the mean Green environmental machine will finally be exposed for the charade it is, expect politicians to move onto the next biggest cash cow/tax raiser aka biodiversity, still green and still a charade.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most accurate, I'd give all the above a 3, I know how accurate I can be, I avoid bookies like the plague as I'd be their best customer.

Descriptive or insulting?

I don't really know any homosexuals, well I do know one, but I've never discussed the issue with him, I don't even think he knows I know, certainly his parents don't. I have discussed various issues they have online in a few debate forums I haunt and mostly found them to be nice guys, level headed and not at all bothered that some feel uncomfortable around them so long as they aren't actually being abusive about it. The EDL have a Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, Transgender division which has always struck some as odd, well at least until you discover what Islam has in store for gays, they are treated well on demo's most people being of the opinion that what you do in your bedroom is your business, they don't mind being called gay either, it's all in context really...

Daily Mail.

Jobcentre bosses are investigating claims that staff taunted a couple with homophobic abuse during weeks of discrimination - calling them 'gay boys'.
Steve Mellor, 23, and Roy Pearson, 28, say they were victimised for being homosexual whenever they went to claim their benefits.
The Department for Work and Pensions is now looking into claims that staff abused them and labelled them with the derogatory term.

Is "gay boys" a derogatory term though? It does depend on context, certainly it is descriptive, but was it meant to be insulting, or just that a description of the two guys and not meant to be insulting. I can certainly think of worse insults, though they claim they had no problems in in previous Jobcentres, just in this one when they declared themselves to be a couple. So, were the Jobcentre staff being rude and insensitive? I doubt it, no more than they treat pretty much everyone the same, the places tarnish the soul of pretty much everyone who works or attends them. Nothing quickly gives you a lower opinion of the general public than actually having to deal with them after all. I suspect this is just another compo claim, the guys being "professionally offended" I may be wrong of course, they may just be sensitive souls. Either way they should no more be upset about the designation "gay" if they are gay than I would by the designation "breeder" (I have the kids to prove it)
Personally I'm of the opinion that they should be told to "grow a pair" and be less sensitive, but I think that about most offended by insult cases anyway.

I owe my soul to the company store

It's an old Tennessee Ernie Ford song about the days when mine owners would only pay their workers in chits which could only be redeemed at the company store, the prices were of course inflated and by the time pay day came along they owed money to the mine owner, a vicious and self perpetuation situation where they could not escape their debts.

Express.

NEXT week’s VAT rise means Britons will have to work three extra days before they earn enough money to cover their annual tax bill.
The Adam Smith Institute predicts that “tax freedom day” would fall on May 30.
It means the equivalent of every penny earned by the average worker for the first 149 days of the year will go to the Treasury.
The think-tank said it is six days more than in 2009 and three more than this year.
It is almost entirely down to the extra revenues the Government will rake in by increasing the sales tax from 17.5 per cent to 20 per cent on January 4.
It will be the longest period for the milestone since 2007 when it stretched into June and has led to calls for targeted tax cuts next year.
Tom Clougherty, the Institute’s executive director, said: “The fact that we spend almost five months working for the state and only seven months working for ourselves is a shocking indictment of big, wasteful government. Britons are still desperately overtaxed.” 

5 whole months before anything you earn actually becomes yours! 3 days longer because of the VAT hike imposed to try and reduce the debt Labour saddled us with! A government which is still spending more of our money because it refuses to grasp the nettle and reduce its size and scope. A government which pours billions of our cash daily into the EU who still after 15 years can't get the auditors to sign off its books. A government which ring fenced £9 billion of foreign aid whilst pensioners were hit with higher fuel bills and died in the recent cold snap. A government which ring fenced Health Care whilst wages went up and productivity went down. A government so incompetent that they only managed to slow down borrowing rather than get it paid back.
And the Tories used to boast about being the party of small government!
Liars, cheats and economic incompetents!


Some people say a man is made outta mud
A poor man's made outta muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong

You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store



Bastards!

An uphill task

The Telegraph cautiously dipped its MSM toes into the murky waters of the Islamification of the UK fear today in one of its editorial views. Though the focus of its warning was a strange one in the shape and form of David Cameron.

Telegraph.

The leader of Ukip, Nigel Farage MEP, must have groaned when he learned that the French National Front is now modelling itself on his party. Marine Le Pen, who is poised to take over leadership of the Front National (FN) from her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, describes it as a "patriotic" party that has more in common with Ukip than the BNP. Given the sinister resonances that the words "National Front" have in Britain, Miss Le Pen has presented Ukip's opponents with a seasonal gift. "Ukip – backed by the French National Front" is a rhetorical swipe worthy of David Cameron's description of the party's supporters as "fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists".

We should not, however, be too quick to dismiss reports that a sanitised Front National has succeeded in reaching out to a new constituency. The FN's selling point is its opposition to the "Islamisation" of French public life – but not, it is careful to add, to Islam itself. Miss Le Pen claims that pork is being taken off the menu in French schools and that state funds are being used to build "ostentatious mosque cathedrals". She may never be elected president, but over a quarter of French voters approve of her; at no point in the history of the Fifth Republic has an aggressive Right-wing party enjoyed such support among the middle classes.

It may seem inconceivable that British politics could move in the same direction. But we should not be too relaxed about the fact that populist Right-wing parties have never broken into the mainstream of our politics. Two points need to be made.

First, that Muslims have migrated to Britain in enormous numbers over the past 40 years; one of the heaviest waves of immigration was encouraged by the last government. The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life estimates that there are 2,869,000 Muslims in Britain, an increase of 74 per cent on its previous figure of 1,647,000, which was based on the 2001 census. No demographic statistics are reliable in an era of open borders, but such an expansion is unprecedented.

The second point is that – different political traditions notwithstanding – Britain is beginning to experience French-style anxiety about Islamisation. The fact that many terrorists are Muslims may lead to unfair assumptions about the loyalty of British Muslims. But, at a time when – according to some surveys – around 40 per cent of the Muslim community support the establishment of Sharia, fears of social fracture are understandable. Meanwhile, government attempts to ease tension by empowering to unelected "community leaders" have caused huge resentment. It is worth noting that the Oldham and Saddleworth by-election next month was caused by the disqualification of a Labour MP caught stirring up anti-Muslim sentiment.

Well their facts and figures are mostly correct as far as it goes, though they can't take into account illegal immigration not all of which is Islamic of course. Though they certainly got to the nature of the fear in the setting up of an alien culture with its own Sharia courts (100+ at the last count) and its inbuilt violent association with terrorist outrages. Yes I know not all Muslims are terrorists, but certainly most terrorists are, something which the UK public is at last waking up too.
The thing that got me, is that they seem to want Cameron to do something about it and I rather doubt that he can, certainly not without getting rid of the Human Rights act (a promise he made though isn't keeping) and getting us out of the EU so we can control our borders properly, something he obviously has no intentions of doing.
However the biggest giveaway of Cameron's intentions comes from his support for Turkish entry to the EU, oddly enough pointed out by Dennis Skinner.



Notice that Cameron cannot give a straight answer on this, though this odd statement is telling...

“Not for the first time, I found myself thinking that it is mainstream
Britain which needs to integrate more with the British Asian way of
life, not the other way around.” - David Cameron, “What I learnt from
my stay with a Muslim family,” The Observer, Sunday 13 May 2007.

That's not the way it's supposed to work, they integrate with us, we're tolerant of them until they integrate, then their cultural oddities are just that, odd. Instead though they believe we have to change to accommodate them and their views and some are prepared to be violent in order to force us to do so.
So I don't know why the Telegraph thinks Cast Iron Dave will do anything, certainly his political leaning seem to be directly opposed to what the UK public actually want (like most politicians) and mirror nicely what the political classes actually believe is best for us.
Frankly I'll give it another 10 years before it explodes in the politicians faces at the latest. I strongly suspect that Fascist UK plc is on its way and it wont be a pretty sight. Either that or an army driven coup/civil war.
Either way I foresee dark times ahead for Old England as our politicians lead us ever further into cultural division all in the name of diversity and equality.

Wonder what the excuse will be at the next election?

PFI, private finance initiatives, supposedly the New Labour way of getting stuff done on the cheap with low payments over a length of time until they were payed off. My parents used to call it "doing it on the never, never."
Naturally it has come back to bite us, like most Labour schemes, at around about £15,000 per taxpayer, approximately 5 times what was said at the time.

Express.

EVERY working family in Britain faces an average total tax bill of nearly £15,000 for Labour’s botched public-sector investment schemes, an MP claimed last night.

New analysis of hundreds of Private Finance Initiative deals set up under the last Government showed repayments are likely to total five times more than previously thought.

The miscalculation arose because Labour ministers failed to assess the long-term costs of the privately-funded schemes.

Senior Tories now fear the ballooning expense of PFI deals may be the most damaging legacy of Gordon Brown’s years at the Treasury and in Downing Street.

Tory backbencher Jesse Norman, who wants PFI providers to give back some of their profits from public sector deals, analysed the expected total costs of the 544 PFI deals agreed under Labour.

He estimates the average repayment cost for every working family will reach £14,800. Labour estimated it would be just £3,100.

Mr Norman, MP for Hereford, said: “Under Gordon Brown, Labour went on a spending splurge with borrowed money which taxpayers’ will eventually have to pay back many times over.

“As a senior Treasury adviser working for Gordon Brown, Ed Miliband bears responsibility for a borrowing trick that will mean future generations saddled with billions in debt.” Private Finance Initiative deals were used by the last Government to secure money for dozens of schools, hospitals and other public sector buildings.

Oh utter joy, not only are we saddled with higher costs and rising prices, it seems there will be no future respite either. Anyone hoping that the Tories might get around to some sort of tax break will be whistling into the wind, any savings they make will have to be ploughed back into paying off Labours largesse for the next 25 to 30 years. Not that the Tories seem to be that interested in cutting back the state, slowing it down a little yes, but actually cutting it back? Well, not that I or any others can see.
To add insult to injury for the taxpayers...

Many PFI deals also oblige the public-sector managers of the buildings to use cleaning or maintenance services from PFI providers, often at a much higher cost.

Labour, wrecking the UK economy from its very beginnings proving once again socialists have no grasp of economics and seem to believe money grows on trees and will never run out.

My flag is a flag not a religious symbol!

The Cross of St George is the flag of my country, it has a long history dating all the way back to 275/303 AD. It's known as the symbol that the crusaders wore over their armour, though that isn't as important to the English, well the Christian English at least. It's important to us because it's our flag and St George is our Saint, even though he has little to do (if anything) in our country. The earliest mention of him being by the Venerable Bede way back in 701 AD mentioned as a martyr only. The real significance of the flag comes when it was adopted by England and the City of London in 1190 for their ships entering the Mediterranean to benefit from the protection of the Genoese fleet during the Crusades and the English Monarch paid an annual tribute to the Doge of Genoa for this privilege. In England the Synod of Oxford, 1222 declared St. George's Day a feast day in the kingdom of England. Edward III put his Order of the Garter under the banner of St. George, probably in 1348. The chronicler Froissart observed the English invoking St. George as a battle cry on several occasions during the Hundred Years' War and so the Cross of St George was recognised as the flag of this land, not because of the crusades, but because it prevented our ships being plundered by the Genoese and so became recognised as the symbol of England.
However there are certain British who have a problem with this, despite it being part of the union flag.

Reading Chronicle.

THE English Defence League staged a protest in Reading today (Thursday) in support of a man arrested after hanging a St George’s flag outside a mosque.

Around 20 members of the controversial campaign group came from across the South East to demonstrate outside Reading Magistrates’ Court monitored by a heavy police presence.

Among them was co-founder Tommy Robinson, who told The Chronicle: “Our argument is with militant Islam. What’s far right about protecting women’s rights and gay people’s rights? The problem is the teachers of Islam, it’s got nothing to do with your colour. It all comes back to the Koran.”

Inside the court 37-year-old Tilehurst man Ronald Peterson was on trial for religiously aggravated harassment. The court heard he went to the partially built mosque in Oxford Road, west Reading, on May 30 to protest over the way its planning application was handled by the borough council.

Peterson, with two other men, draped the St George’s flag on a fence, posed for pictures and chanted “E, E, E.D.L” and “England”.

Witness Urfan Azad, 32, told the court he was in the nearby Reading Tea House and went outside after hearing the chanting.

He said he dialled 999 because he was concerned the situation could escalate, and added: “My concern was the flag needed to be taken off the fence because it might be seen by Muslims as a religious symbol. I felt upset about the whole incident. I’m British myself, I was born in Reading. It’s made me feel a bit socially excluded.”

Police arrived on the scene within minutes and, without warning him or giving him a chance to move on, arrested Peterson on the spot. Sgt Lee Barnham said he spoke to Mr Azad, and added: “He was offended by the use of what he considered to be a religious cross against the site of worship.

“It was clear he was upset and felt intimidated. I was satisfied an offence under the public order act had been committed.”

Peterson, who described the mosque as an “eyesore” and “monstrosity”, told the court he was unhappy because it had not been built in the required time but instead had planning permission re-granted and was given council funding.

Peterson denied being a racist but said he had a problem with the ideology of Islam. He added: “Go and see countries that are run by that ideology, it’s oppressive.”

District Judge Andrew Vickers reserved his verdict and the case was adjourned until January 13.

Yes, that's right, a certain type of British hates our flag and feels socially excluded from the rest of us. he also thinks that Muslim's (for he is a Muslim himself) might see it as a religious symbol, which as you can tell from the short history I've mentioned, it isn't. Nor do the police come out of this with any great merit, they could have asked the guy to take the flag down (though why should he, it isn't a crime) instead they locked him up without warning. But this shows that the cops are willing to charge someone for others being upset about their own mistaken perspectives. Azad's insinuating that anyone who flies the flag of England is perpetuating a particular religious angle, this really should have been laughed out of court as otherwise this leaves the judge on a very prickly fence any other outcome would put the cross of St George at risk and alienating a very large percentage of the country who support their football team for one.

Of course you can go vice versa too with this whole religious offence malarkey.

So this:
"Witness Urfan Azad, 32, told the court he was in the nearby Reading Tea House and went outside after hearing the chanting. He said he dialled 999 because he was concerned the situation could escalate, and added: “My concern was the flag needed to be taken off the fence because it might be seen by Muslims as a religious symbol. I felt upset about the whole incident. I’m British myself, I was born in Reading. It’s made me feel a bit socially excluded." 

Can be changed to this:
"Witness John Smith, 32, told the court he was in the nearby Reading Tea House and went outside after hearing the chanting. He said he dialled 999 because he was concerned the situation could escalate, and added: “My concern was the Mosque needed to be taken down because it might be seen by non-Muslims as a religious symbol. I felt upset about the whole incident. I’m British myself, I was born in Reading. It’s made me feel a bit socially excluded."


It strikes me that the police are over compensating for previous neglect and it is time all hate crime procedure was put in perspective in relation to crime as a whole and that flying the flag of your country in your country can never ever be seen as a hate crime. Mr Azad should himself have been arrested for wasting police time.

Merry Christmas

To those who chose to read the ramblings of a mad Englishman, many thanks and may your Christmas's be as wonderful as mine.

Christmas thoughts 3

I'll be away seeing my wonderful granddaughter up until Christmas Day, when I have a long journey home as I'm at work on Boxing Day.

So here are a few thoughts each day to tide you over.

For those of you who believe as I once did.

Ten Commandments for Christmas
1. Thou shalt prepare early. Don't wait until the last minute to get into the Christmas spirit.
2. Thou shalt keep Christ at the centre of Christmas. Don't allow yourself to be overwhelmed by the commercialism of the season. Resolve to read one of the Gospels during December. Mediate upon what it means that Christ came into the world.
3. Thou shalt make Christmas a family time. Do things together: Decorate the tree, play games, bake cookies, shop, write cards, have devotionals, go carolling, attend church together.
4. Thou shalt remember those who are less fortunate. Contribute significantly to an organization serving the needs of others throughout the year. Give a Christmas gift to your church.
5. Thou shalt give thyself with every gift. Put some thought into the gifts you purchase. Give a gift that represents you. If possible, make something instead of buying something.
6. Thou shalt learn to be a good receiver. Many of us have trouble receiving graciously and gracefully.
7. Thou shalt put music into Christmas. Buy several Christmas CD's and play them again and again. Attend church choir cantatas and special Christmas programs. Sing carols with loved ones.
8. Thou shalt slow down. Remember: Christmas is supposed to be a season of peace, not hypertension.
9. Thou shalt remember to worship. The church is the place you are most likely to be reminded of the true meaning of Christmas.
10. Thou shalt receive Christ into thy life. Don't just talk about the Christ of Christmas, receive him into your life as Lord and Saviour.

Christmas thoughts 2

I'll be away seeing my wonderful granddaughter up until Christmas Day, when I have a long journey home as I'm at work on Boxing Day.

So here are a few thoughts each day to tide you over.

"What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus? Claustrophobic."
-- Unknown

Christmas thoughts

I'll be away seeing my wonderful granddaughter up until Christmas Day, when I have a long journey home as I'm at work on Boxing Day.

So here are a few thoughts each day to tide you over.

"Christmas gift suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect."
-- Oren Arnold

Cashing in on fear

Energy bills are rising, mostly because the energy minister is an enviroloon who still believes in global warming climate change whatever the hell they're calling it this week. So energy providers are being hit by carbon taxes to subsidise useless green power in the shape of bird choppers and solar panels. And because these methods are subsidised by all us tax payers, people are checking out to see if they can get a hold of them.

Express.

CANNY home owners are avoiding huge rises in energy bills by turning to solar power.

With British Gas and npower respectively increasing their tariffs by seven per cent and 5.1 per cent, leading solar panel installer HomeSun said hits on its website have risen by 72 per cent.

The number of people registering with the firm to see if they qualify for free panels has tripled.

HomeSun is set to install and maintain 100,000 units for free under a scheme where customers keep all the power they need and the installer receives fees from energy suppliers, known as Feed-in Tariffs.

HomeSun estimates its panels can cut energy bills by up to 40 per cent.

Chief executive Daniel Green said: “Even on the shortest day of the year, with bleak overcast skies, solar panels will generate enough energy to light your Christmas tree.”

They really are talking total bollocks, most solar panels don't work when covered in snow for one thing, don't work at night, need regular cleaning (despite claims from the companies selling them) and lose efficiency over the years. Most household use more power than a set of Christmas tree lights too, the average set running at about less than an amp, or 40 watts depending on if they are filament lamps or more often these days low powered LED's. Assuming you get more power in the summer, I still can't see families saving that much, so I reckon it's some kind of con and saving 40% likely to be on a cloudless day on the summer solstice. I might be wrong though, I'm sure that someone will put me right if I am. So quick calculation time, I reckon on about 1500 KWh/ year and a payback of about 8%, not the 40% claim, might be more, might be less depending on how many panels are fitted.

Well the catch is of course  is this, the company offering the free solar panels gaining a 41.3p per Kw incentive. They will be using your roof to take a government grant off you. This is the equivalent of taking your chicken lunch off you and throwing you the wish bone to chew on. most people so inclined to go for solar power will wish they had installed them yourself.
Yes they'll get small savings off their electricity bills, but will lose out on the thousands of pounds government grant, the grant that's coming out of the taxpayers pocket.
So is it worth it? Only for as long as the government can screw us with carbon taxes, even then you'll get a minimum return on your investment if you buy them yourself.

The evil within

I don't know where the idea of multiculturalism came from, oh I suppose I could google it, but I suspect it will be of the "Left" or more likely the liberal left as some sort of antidote to nationalism no doubt. The problem is that multiculturalism promotes exclusivity rather than inclusivity. It celebrates differences rather than similarities at its worst it promotes ghettoism and extremism mostly because the idiots who try to run this country made it "racist" to criticise anyone from another culture living here and instead of a country vibrant with diversity, we ended up with communities at daggers drawn because they have been either protected by the state or abandoned by it.
So this sort of thing should come as no surprise.

BBC.

Twelve men have been arrested during a major anti-terrorist operation, West Midlands Police said.

The men - five from Cardiff, four from Stoke-on-Trent and three from London - were detained on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism in the UK.

The suspects, aged between 17 and 28, were detained by unarmed officers about 0500 GMT.

Police are searching many properties. No explosives have yet been found.

West Midlands Police said in a statement: "All were arrested at or near their home addresses, with the exception of one suspect from Stoke who was at a domestic property in Birmingham.

"Searches are now being conducted at the home addresses, plus the address in Birmingham and another residence in London.

"The suspects will be held at police stations in central London, the North West and the West Midlands."

Most of the suspects are British but a small number are believed to be from Bangladesh.

"The suspects are believed to have been involved in a plot against targets in the UK," he said. "This is not believed to have been a potential plot of a Mumbai-style attack, but a plot involving explosives or bombs."

Why do I suspect that these "British" men will be followers of a certain religion beginning with I and ending with slam? Why do I suspect that they wont identify with Britain at all, but with a certain community beginning with M and ending with uslim? Well not unless the INLA are recruiting in Bangladesh these days. At core it's because certain communities have been told it's ok not to integrate with the UK as a whole. So a nest of extremists have grown within their midst, they haven't really mixed with the UK population simply with their own circle and eventually fallen in with the extremist fringes of that community, or so say the leaders of said community.
However, any group that has this verse "O you who believe, do not take the kafireen as awliyaa' (friends/helpers) instead of the Believers, do you wish to take Allah as a proof against you?" [Qur'an an-nisa 4: 144] should all be suspect, particularly as they believe their religious book cannot be changed or perfected, leaving the rest of us to wonder who's fooling who.
So the political class in the UK allowed an evil cult to grow in our midst, protected by the ignorant in their own communities, free from criticism and scrutiny till it grew large enough to threaten us all. They are even permitted to lie to us in their cause, This 'Holy Lying' is known as taqiyya (sometimes spelled taqiya or taquiya). It is holy because it is blessed by both Allah and Mohammed. Allah is 'the best of deceivers' (Koran 3.54), and Muhammad said "War is Deceit"; and Islam is always at war with the infidel until the Jews are exterminated, Christians enslaved, and all others converted or killed.
So any Imam popping up and telling us this isn't the real Islam is lying, this is the real Islam, the one that's always at Jihad, the false Islam is amongst those Muslims who just want to live their lives like us free from bother, like the guy who might run your local shop.
Some in the UK are waking up to the threat in our midst, shame it isn't the government or the political classes, who regard any criticism of the real Islam as racist. This needs to change, as a French report on Luton has it, "When I was a child, non-Muslims were more numerous here," recalled one of the proponents of Shariah, Saiful Islam, 31. "Where have they gone?" it asks you. "They have gone elsewhere. They have failed to integrate ..." That's right, they expect us to integrate with them...

The creeping hand of censorship and the state

Every day it seems the government is interfering in our freedoms, usually using some pretext or other involving something that some don't like to bring out a raft of legislation to give them (the state) a degree of control over who sees what and how. The internet is of course one of their biggest bugbears, the rapid dissemination of information and news through it causes governments throughout the world headaches, even if a lot of it is half truths and conspiracy theories, though the current Wikileaks hoo hah is a prime example of governments getting upset over their dirty washing being aired in public, even if non of it was too surprising or particularly controversial.
One of their methods is of course to attack our freedoms by attacking porn. There are certainly some disgusting examples out there and some of it does break current UK laws, though as it isn't held on UK sites, there's not a lot the government can do other than prosecute those who download it here. Well that's never stopped the state for looking out for a means to control the internet access we have.

Telegraph.

Ed Vaizey, the communications minister, has called a meeting with the country’s biggest broadband providers, including BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk, to explore changing how pornography gets into homes.

Instead of using parental controls to stop access to explicit websites, a block will be placed at source, meaning adults will have to specifically opt in to receive the images.

The move is designed to prevent children from being exposed to sex at an early age and follows warnings about the hidden impact of pornography.

However, many technology experts said the plans were unworkable even if the broadband providers signed up to a voluntary code. It relies upon the Government or the internet service providers themselves having a complete and up-to-date list of pornographic websites.

Also, critics argued, the move was "censorship through the back door", and could end up restricting many legitimate websites.

And I've no doubt, the critics are right, the government of this country have driven a horse and cart through our ancient rights over the last 30 years or so, so an attack on what we look at on the internet is not that surprising. Using porn as the pretext is part of their usual "for the cheeldren" approach as it gets over protective numpty parents on board to support various illiberal pretexts to censorship. If they don't want their kids looking at porn, don't give the kids internet access in their bedrooms out of site of the parents, simples. Though truth be told, most kids can run rings around their parents when it comes to technology, still, with graphic images, it's a lot harder. Though the parents have no control over what their kids will see at other kids homes. Still, the government shouldn't be encouraged to think they can get away with this sort of thing and such measures need to be fought for by civil liberties groups, because once the government have a degree of control, the bastards are sure to expand it to block sites that they don't want us to see involving the government. Much easier to control us if we don't know what's going on after all.

Sexual hypocrisy

What two (or more) people choose to get up to in their sexual lives is fine with me, so long as 1) it isn't costing me anything, 2) they are harming no-one but themselves, 3) they don't try and involve me. I don't go into gay or singles bars and I don't expect anyone to try and pick me up in my local. So when I first learned about Nigel Evans A senior Tory MP and a Commons Deputy Speaker coming out my first thoughts were so what?

Telegraph.

Nigel Evans, the deputy speaker of the House of Commons, has decided to "come out" in a newspaper interview because he wants to "clear the air".

The sexuality of the MP for Ribble Valley has long been the subject of speculation in Westminster, though he voted against lowering the homosexual age of consent to 18 in 1998.

It follows the announcement by Crispin Blunt, the Conservative justice minister, that he was leaving his wife of 20 years to come to terms with his homosexuality in August.

Mr Evans has never been married and does not have a long-term partner.

Fair enough, save for one small detail, "he voted against lowering the homosexual age of consent to 18 in 1998" So you know exactly where you will stand with Nigel Evans, he will as most MP's do, toe the party line even if it makes him a total hypocrite where it comes to equality of his own sexuality. And if he'll toe the party line on this, what else will he toe the party line on?
Hopefully this might clear the air for him and he'll adopt a more independent attitude, though again I have my doubts, most politicians don't, they vote for what the party wants rather than what their constituents want. Doesn't matter how many letters they get or how repulsive the political agenda, the lobby fodder are fed through the mill to produce the results, even if said results weren't in the manifesto, or even in Labours case if they were, but the leadership decided to ignore them anyway.

Not that Labour are saints when it comes to matters of homosexuality...

A Labour Party member bombarded a gay colleague with malicious text messages after losing out to him in a party election.

David Bradley sent rival Ed Bramall homophobic messages after members had selected Mr Bramall to fight a seat at this year’s local elections.

Bradley, who contested the Weston-super-Mare seat for Labour at this year’s General Election, sent 33 texts using references to homosexuals.

At Bristol Magistrates’ Court Bradley, of Warmley, Bristol pleaded guilty to a charge of harassment without violence by sending the text messages to Mr Bramall’s phone between March and August.

Yet to most of the UK save for a few religious or political extremists, we'll shrug our shoulders and think who gives a damn? Which shows we're less hypocritical than politicians at least, though that's not too hard.

Snow, snow, quick, quick, snow

Bloody awful this global warming isn't it? It's fairly chilly sitting where I sit at the moment, all the doors are open and they are loading trailers at a rate of knots as they aren't sure what the weathers going to do over the next few days, so in typical private industry style they are getting it out whilst they can (ooer missus!)
So what's the official line for the rest of the country?

Telegraph.

Snow prompts health authorities to urge Britons to stay inside

Health services have advised against travelling unless absolutely necessary as the freezing weather leads to a surge in injuries. 

Up to ten inches more snow is expected over the next 24 hours with icy conditions remaining beyond Christmas.

Blizzards up and down the country are causing poor visibility for motorists and roads that have been cleared are likely to become treacherous as they ice up overnight.

Yep, take time off and relax, never mind that your bosses and customers might be relying on you, just phone in and say "It's snowing" 
It's official, the Health service says so cos they don't want any extra work that our taxes pay them to do anyway. This is the same health services in which wages have gone up but productivity went down. Still, I don't know about you, but I'll be making the attempt to get to work tomorrow, having a 4 x 4 will help no doubt, but I'd feel honour bound to make the attempt anyway. There was only one day this year when I couldn't make it in, it was when I couldn't get my old Mondeo up the hill at the end of my street, I've changed cars since then, though I may still just park on the flat bit on the other side of my streets bollards that make it a cul de sac. Best not to take a chance that someone else might just block the street. Most people will be on their weekends, so the roads shouldn't be too bad, though it will be interesting to see what happens on Monday, if some decide they fancy an extra few days off leading up to Christmas. Might not be that many though, the teachers are now on their hols and they seem to be the biggest culprits next to council admin workers.
Still, it does look nice, if a bit cold.

Justice? I don't think so.

Asylum seekers are here on our good sufferance, we let them stay here because they may face persecution at home (the genuine ones anyway) In return we expect them to obey our laws and generally keep their noses clean, we don't expect them to kill people unlawfully and then be allowed to stay, well not unless you're a judge anyway.

BBC.

An asylum-seeker who left a girl dying under the wheels of his car while banned from driving can stay in the UK, two immigration judge have ruled.

Iraqi Kurd Aso Mohammed Ibrahim was jailed for four months after knocking down Amy Houston in Blackburn in 2003.

Her father Paul Houston, from Darwen, told judges last month they had the power to bring his "seven years of hell to an end" by sending Ibrahim to Iraq.

But two senior immigration judges have now ruled he can remain in the UK.

The judges agreed with Ibrahim's legal team's case that his human rights would be impinged if he was sent back to Iraq.

And what about Amy Houston's human right not to be run down by a driver who was banned? Why should we allow an asylum seeking murderer* leave to remain here, I don't care if his human rights are infringed by sending him back to Iraq, he's already made it damned clear he doesn't give a shit about our human rights or laws!
And only 4 months for killing someone whilst banned? Justice has become a joke in this country and some out there wonder at the rise of the EDL when people like this just get a seemingly slap on the wrist and then to add insult to injury are allowed to stay!
Aso Mohammed Ibrahim, should have served 25 years, if possible transferred to an Iraqi jail, if not taken from prison after his sentence, put on a plane and dropped off at Baghdad airport and at the moment I'm of the opinion that dropped off should be at 25,000 feet!

*Call it manslaughter if you will, but killing someone whilst driving a car after you're banned puts it into the category of murder in my eyes.

Can't pay, wont pay?

Seems local councils are out to pick the pockets of taxpayers again to plug a black hole in their pension schemes.

Telegraph.

Every household in Britain will need to pay an extra £200 a year to plug the black hole in local Government pensions, figures have suggested.
Latest research suggests the deficit in Local Government Pension Schemes in England may have more than doubled in the past three years to £100 billion.

It compares with a shortfall of £42 billion three years ago, according to the data published by pension consultant John Ralfe.

He suggested taxpayers and scheme members will have to pay some £4 billion extra a year into local authority pensions to plug the gap over the next couple of decades.

It equates to an increase of two-thirds in pension contributions, from £300 to £500 a year for every household.

Mr Ralfe attributed the widening gap to the performance of the stock market, saying pension promises of local Government could not be met without additional contributions from taxpayers.

This is the major problem in final salary schemes and it's not going to go away unless something is done to deal with it fairly radically. Not that I expect the various public service unions to react well to radically. Ending these schemes would be one way to tackle it, increasing members contributions too, increasing the retirement age for public servants would be another one, no pension till you're 65+ might just crack it.
The way they are going though is to tap into ordinary residents and pick their pockets in the middle of a recession. Guess how well that's going to go down.

Most people only want to pay for the services they see councils providing that are useful. Emptying the bins, lighting the steets, repairing the pavements, parks, leisure etc. They don't see the need to pay for town twinning trips, idiotic green initiatives, diversity co-ordinators, council propaganda (news letters), race relations initiatives, translation services etc. If they were scrapped and councils streamlined, perhaps the increases could be met from that.
I'm not going to hold my breath on that though. I'm just sick and tired of having my pocket picked for stuff I have no interest in paying for and council pensions is one of them I pay my own pension, why can't they pay for theirs?

Picking our pockets in the name of Gaia

Motorists are going to get a discount if they buy limited range slow charging electric vehicles, guess where the discount is going to come from taxpayers?

Daily Mail.

The first nine plug-in electric cars to qualify for discounts of up to £5,000 are revealed today.

The 'green' emissions-free cars which can be charged up from household mains and deliver 2p-a-mile motoring, go on sale from the New Year with a Government 'Plug-IN Car Grant'.

From January 1, 2011, motorists buying the first three of the named electric cars will get 25 per cent off, up to a maximum of £5,000.

The electric 'plug-in' discount comes as the Government also announces more places around Britain where the cars can be charged up when out on the road.

The taxpayer hand-out aims to kick-start the market for electric vehicles, which are exempt from the London Congestion Charge.

 I don't see why I as a taxpayer should be subsidising anyones buying preference, particularly when the vehicles involved are absolutely no use to me whatsoever. They have limited range, drive at night, in fog or just have the heater going it can get a lot less, large charging times and what they don't tell you is limited battery life with the power pack having to be replaced after 5 or so years at a coat of... you guessed it £5,000. OK if you're just knocking about town occasionally, even then watch your power bills go through the roof too. You might not be buying petrol, but you will be buying electricity.
On top of this usual green madness is the fact the government is handing over taxpayers cash to subsidise this, I'm sure the usual reasons will be trotted out, investing in our future, prices will come down if more are bought, emerging technology etc. Still picking my pocket to do it though.
Can't imagine what will happen when the lights go out in 2012 when the power stations start closing down, doubt the windmills will keep this lot going.

Observations and impressions

There's a Daily Mail. article today on the EDL which seems to prove the case that the MSM simply don't have a clue about who or what they the EDL are about. Mind you the Daily Mail has form for picking the wrong sides getting behind Oswald Mosely and his British Union of Fascist, running the headline "Hurrah for the Blackshirts!" back on the 8th of July 1934. I guess that's why they seem so sympathetic to the troglodytes in the UAF, as they appear to be the forerunners of the Blackshirts, or even the Nazi Brownshirts of the Sturm Abteilung, they may proclaim to be anti-fascists, but their whole repertoire comes straight out of the bumper book of fascism.
I note the article is co-written by Paul Bracchi. He has previously published the names and addresses of a single mother, a disabled man, a grandmother, pregnant women and three pensioners who intended to vote for the BNP in an election, and suggested they be attacked in their homes by a far left black power group. So this sort of deranged hatchet job is par for the course for this guy. Still they don't seem to have fooled the commenter's, with the tide being totally in favour of the EDL and what people believe they stand for, rather than the Mails soccer boot boy image. He even managed to get the EDL's numbers wrong, not 40,000, more likely 65,000 with a core of about 6000 activists, though actual numbers are hard to come by, there being no official membership, a deliberate policy to prevent government interference in their aims.
The other bit of news that had the MSM's knickers in a twist was the loudly announced headline that the EDL had invited Pastor Terry Jones to speak at their demo in Luton. Well, that was the impression you were given anyway, the truth is a little more prosaic though and the EDL leader put the case for the EDL quite openly last night on Sky when he said that the Pastor had asked the EDL if he could speak, not the other way round. Many of the rank and file of the EDL were unhappy about the Pastor speaking and the decision was made that he would not be asked to speak.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20022176-504083.html

Statement regarding the approach by Pastor Terry Jones to speak at one of our Demonstrations.

The English Defence League wish to correct a falsehood that is being propagated by the international media: we did not invite Terry Jones to speak at any EDL event, he approached us and we agreed in principle but we have since taken an indepth look at him and his church . Terry Jones won international notoriety by threatening to burn the Koran. We believe firmly in upholding the principles of free speech and free expression, and believe that he should have been free to do so, and protected by law enforcement authorities from those who would have tried to harm or kill him had he done so.

At the same time, we strongly disapprove of burning the Koran, precisely because we believe in those principles of free speech and free expression. We do not believe the Koran should be burned, but rather read, so that people come to understand its inherent violence, supremacism, and hatred and contempt for non-Muslims. It is essential that people know what the Koran teaches, so they can see how far its teachings are from the free traditions of England that we have pledged our lives to uphold and defend.

The English Defence League has made it clear in previous press statements that it has a great deal of sympathy with some of the views and opinions of Pastor Terry Jones specifically related to Islamic Extremism. We share similar concerns with him regarding extreme Islam, shariah law and of course the Qu’ran. We are also deeply concerned over his personal targeting by the home secretary, Theresa May, with respect to a possible U.K. banning order. These issues notwithstanding, we still have some reservations about Pastor Jones and we do not agree with all of his opinions or indeed all he stands for.

The EDL is extremely proud of its diverse support base including it’s primary base of geographical divisions from all across England encompassing much ethnic diversity. In addition we have specific divisions drawn from groups particularly threatened by encroaching Sharia: a Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) Division; a Jewish Division and recently a Pakistani Christian Division. The EDL also enjoys the active participation and support of many former members of the Armed Forces. In light of our strong commitment to these groups and some of the Pastor’s statements and associations, we feel it inappropriate to offer Pastor Terry Jones an invitation to attend an EDL demonstration.

The EDL can confirm that Pastor Jones will not be attending the English Defence League demonstration against sharia in Luton on 5 February. We wish him success in his efforts to oppose the rise of sharia in the United States and thank him for his interest in the EDL.

The EDL are vastly more complex than meets the eye, although "feet on the street" (attendance at a demo) counts big time with them, working behind the scenes is a small army of activists who would never strike anyone as hooligans, they are very knowledgeable of their enemies (Islamics and the left) and very media smart too having got to grips with social networking such as facebook as well as blogs and internet forums to pass on their message, linking up with various international anti-jihad groups as well as the Tea party in the USA. Talking to some of them in their forum convinced me that they knew what they were doing and certainly were not the right wing, frothing at the mouth, hooligans the MSM and their opponents had branded them, enough to decide to link to their common cause. The EDL even had volunteers out after the student riots cleaning up Churchill's statue.
The greatest asset they have when dealing with the left is that they are totally apolitical, they can't be pidgeonholed very easily.

The left (and the MSM) scream racist = they point to their ethnic members.
The left (and the MSM) scream fascist = they point out they aren't political, having members from all political groups.

Also much of the left in recent years have made some very poor political choices directly from their opposition of the USA and all things American. This has lead them into various blind alleys such as supporting Hamas and Hezbollah despite their obvious Islamic supremacy motives with its barbaric legal codes on women and gays. This means that they can be put on the back foot by pointing out their defence of Islamics puts them directly at odds with equality of women as well as gay rights too, one of the corner stones of the lefts belief in those groups supporting the left in any revolution. Pointing out their silence over Islamic gestures such as the poppy burning again puts them on the back foot, they simply can't answer the criticism without appearing to betray their allies.
Again with Hope not hate, despite their coming out and addressing Islamic extremism, it can be pointed out they are comparing chalk and cheese, the EDL do not fly planes into buildings, blow up tubes and buses, nor do they praise those who do.
The weakness of the EDL's opponents on the left will always be their hypocrisy, they've tied their campaigns to the Islamic mast and now they face the real possibility of going down with the ship. The EDL continually hold them to account, because they are vulnerable to accusations of "terrorist supporters" and of course if they cut and run they will be left with nothing. Pretty much like the Iranian socialists who helped in their revolution, arrested and executed once they'd served their purpose, assuming of course the Islamics win.

People really need to remember, the EDL is only 18 months old, it is a group in it's infancy, such groups often work out their policies and strategies over years but so far the EDL are running rings around their opponents. Yes they have their occasional moments when they don't get it right, yes some of them are certainly no angels but they are far more diciplined than outward appearances would suggest, police forces have noted that the EDL will follow police instructions when on a demo, the same cannot be said of their opponents.

So, that's some of what I've learned about the EDL, interesting group, interesting people and a worthy cause. They even have a good sampling of English Nationalists sprinkled amongst them. Do I agree with everything they say and do? Hell no, but that's common amongst the membership too, the discussions are quite robust and generally good natured though. They do all agree that Islamic expansion should be stopped in its tracks in the UK, they have no problem with anyone being a Muslim and integrating, they have major issues with Islamist preaching (and doing) that which the Quran requires by way of Jihad including a definite stop on any form of sharia law or courts being implemented in the UK, also a total stop on foreign money being used to build mosques too.
In short...

Are they racist? As a group no.
Do they hate Muslims? Again, no.
Are they fascists? No.
Hooligans? No.
Nationalists? Yes, though civic or liberal ones, not racial. The term they use is Patriots.

The alcohol jihad

I like a drink, I rarely drink to excess and I have never ever caused trouble when drunk, fallen over once or twice, but never injured anyone including myself. Some people can't handle their drink and do cause trouble though, however that's no good reason to either ban alcohol or make it prohibitively expensive. We have laws to deal with drunk and disorderly behaviour, if they were properly enforced then the situation of public drunkenness  that gets the righteous so up in arms wouldn't be an issue. As it is, the police are either doing paperwork to justify their existence or chasing motorists, a far easier target.

Express.

THE Co-op was accused yesterday of luring teenagers into binge drinking by selling four cans of own-brand lager for just 79p.

Industry experts branded the price “an utter disgrace”, adding that it was probably the cheapest beer deal they had encountered.

One furious mother could not believe it when her eight-year-old son pointed out the four-pack, equivalent to 26p a pint, and worked out that it was cheaper than his favourite chocolate bar.

26p a can is cheap but as for the mothers outrage, well nobodies making the silly bitch buy it now are they? It's not compulsory to buy beer at supermarkets now is it? Did someone change the rules when I was down in Devon?
As for those who do buy it, if they cause a nuisance whilst drunk, lock them up, simples.
As for the experts, what business is it of theirs as to what price the Co-op sells their beer at? The stuff is only 2.5% abv, you'd probably spend more time in the loo than actually getting drunk on it. But no, the quango's and fake charities that get so much of our hard earned cash have to be involved and tell us what we can and can't do. Personally I say sod em! What I do with my body is my business, not theirs, never has been, never will be. If I want to drink myself into an early grave that's my business too. That I choose not too should give them pause, adults are capable of making rational decisions with their lives without their help, that we do would put them out of a job, so that can't be allowed now can it?
So the sad end to this tale comes into view...

“The Co-operative is a socially responsible retailer, and it is our policy not to sell alcohol below cost price. The price of the product was reduced because it was close to its sell-by date.

“This should not happen and we will address this.”

Bastards!

Lies damned lies and police demo numbers.

 The EDL were out protesting in Peterborough today, no trouble really, so no massive media reports similar to the student imbeciles on Thursday. Numbers weren't that great either, though as it's leading up to Christmas non too surprising either. However the one report I did see had the police putting the numbers at 500...

BBC.

Eleven men have been arrested during an English Defence League (EDL) march and counter-protest in Peterborough.

There were a variety of public order offences, including suspicion of assaulting police officers.

About 1,000 officers from 18 forces policed the protests. Cambridgeshire Constabulary said about 500 EDL protesters were involved.

They said about 80 people took part in the Peterborough Trades Union Council protest and no arrests were made there.

Both groups were escorted by police to and from the city centre.

 Does this look like 500 to you?



And this wasn't even the full demo, at least another 200 joined the march after this, the EDL themselves reckoned 1000 to 1500 and I think they're probably closer to the truth.
Apparently the UAF now think the EDL are some sort of danger to migrant workers too...

"The EDL hope to stir up hatred against the city's Muslim population and the many migrant agricultural workers who travel from across Europe to work on farms during the harvests," a spokesman said.

And they wonder why no-one takes them seriously anymore?

There are some pics here courtesy of RM

Bashing the Bishop

Whilst currently not a practising Christian, its roots go deep into me and affect my outlook on life, I was once accepted as a candidate for training to be a Vicar, but in the end having met the other candidates and their odd views on God and the bible, decided that I wasn't interested, preferring to be involved in youth outreach instead. In essence this is why I have such disdain for a great many of the hierarchy of the C of E and their cosy relationship with the liberal left and it's multicultural equality of all wrecking spree on the countries indigent dwellers. I did have a good bit of time for those who stood up for their beliefs though, the ex Bishop of Rochester, the Rt Rev Michael Nazir-Ali for one and The Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu, both oddly enough not originally from this country and its wishy washy so called Christian mainstream church. These guys actually believed in the teachings of Jesus including the ones that the C of E hierarchy would like to forget such as Jesus scourging the money changers in the temple and saying "I come not to bring peace, but to bring a sword" (Gospel of Matthew 10:34) which completely rubs the "gentle Jesus meek and mild" brigade up the wrong way.
I particularly liked Michael Nazir-Ali's stance on extreme Islam too, Last year, he received death threats after saying some areas of the UK had become no-go areas for non-Muslims because of Islamic extremism.So he hit a real nerve there, shame he had to go, the fact he got death threats rather made his point for him too. His replacement sadly is Right Reverend James Langstaff, who believes the church could be given a greater role in protecting the most vulnerable and talked about the "hard work" that would be needed to form new partnerships with the government to help deliver social care in the future. In other words he's not interested in the threat to England by the fascistic ideology posing as a religion that is Islam, he probably doesn't see the persecution of Christians in Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan and Egypt (and all over the Islamic world) as a problem as it will never happen here, not like any Bishop's have received death threats now is it...
Well not Bishops who have kept schtum about Islam anyway.

You couldn't make it up

Coldest December in 30 years, snow all over the country, (except where I was) Fuel and food shortages in many areas, people struggling to get to work (when they bothered at all) and what do our rail bosses do?

Express.

RAIL bosses made the farcical decision to take two de-icing trains out of service at the height of the big freeze, it emerged yesterday.

The locomotives were away for their annual service when the Arctic weather swept in.

Network Rail was accused of “total incompetence” for sending the vehicles for maintenance during the winter rather than the summer.

Rail services in Kent, Surrey and Hampshire, where the vehicles are based, suffered severe delays due to snow and ice, with some passengers stranded on trains overnight.

That's right, they sent away the de-icing trains for a service. Yes it was probably cheaper, yes it was probably scheduled, but servicing a vital piece of kit designed to keep your rails free from ice and snow in the winter?

Epic fail.

Revolting students

What do I think about student fees?
Well I'm all for people paying their way, however as my generation weren't saddled with massive debts for simply going to university (we got grants can you believe it) the students cause does have my sympathy... To a certain extent. I believe that fees should be selective, that certain courses or disciplines should be free because that is what the country needs, engineering, maths, physics even foreign languages should be subsidised, the rest can be put to a sliding scale with perhaps a degree in flower arranging or media studies costing a lot more than history or geology. Not that I've particularly thought this through, but it makes a certain amount of sense to me that what the country needs, the country should pay for, what the country doesn't need, the person taking the course should pay for.
The startling hypocrisy of Labour who introduced fees and top up fees is of no surprise of course, it was their ill advised ambition to get as many young people into university as possible, so we ended up in the position where companies took on graduates rather than those with A or even O levels, though considering the massive dumbing down of education in the Labour years the standard remained the same, it just takes the students longer to get there, I'd match my school qualifications against most graduates in the softer studies any day if only because I've seen their exam papers and can do a lot of the stuff in them in my head and I was only considered an average student. For Millipede E to criticise the increase in fees that the previous Labour administration imposed shows a complete lack of understanding of the situation. We don't need so many graduates, only the creme de la creme should be going to university, the top 10 to 15% all the rest should be dealt with in house by company training and sponsorship, that would enable the state to once again fund higher education rather than make everyone suffer in it.
You do have to wonder why only now that the National Union of Students are protesting though, then again as a socialist organisation perhaps even they realised that doing it under Labour would have been the equivalent of shooting themselves in the foot. They should have been manning the barricades a decade ago, it's far too late now, even if they do block the fees increase, all it will do is make universities withdraw the more expensive unnecessary courses, which is probably the coagulations plan B.

Misunderstandings and misinformation.

John Ward the Medway resident blogger brought this to my attention.

Far-right group's meeting cancelled by pub

A pub landlord has shut the door on the English Defence League after they hired out a function room under a different name.

The Kent branch of the EDL – a far-right group set up last year to oppose the spread of Islamic extremism across the country - had made plans to hold a meeting at O'Connells, Chatham, at 8pm tonight.

Labour councillor Vince Maple, who actively campaigns for the Love Music Hate Racism campaign, said the pub had now cancelled the booking.

"I have spoken to pub and police and they confirmed, unsurprisingly, that the room was booked in a different name and the pub had no idea the EDL were planning to use their venue.

"They have now confirmed there will be no meeting of any description tomorrow."

Chief Inspector Peter de Lozey added: "Kent police in Medway have been made aware that there is information circulating that the English Defence League plan to hold a meeting tonight at a public house in Medway.

"We have spoken with the licensee of the pub in question and have been advised that the meeting will not be going ahead."

So being interested in the EDL I set off to do some checking and yes this was the case, in order to avoid trouble from various groups opposed to the EDL the local division decided to use a different name to hire the room. Unfortunately secrecy does not work in these cases particularly where facebook is concerned and details of the meeting were free to all, so a bit of an own goal for the EDL division there.
That said, there's the usual misinformation being thrown around by the media and the Labour party guy too.
The EDL are not right wing, they're a multi ethnic, multi racial, multi sexual single issue protest group, they certainly have right wing members (right wing as in Tory/UKIP) but they also have a good few left wing members as well, as any check on their forum will tell you.
Pub landlords have the right to bar anyone from their premises if they don't want them there, I have no problem with that, they also have the right to take the consequences in loss of trade and income too, the EDL meet in pubs and spend money, you'd have thought in these days of pub closures the cash would be useful though I suspect the real reason is ignorance fuelled by lies and propaganda from Vince Maple who clearly doesn't understand a genuine working class movement when he sees one, preferring to believe the socialist line that working class movements should be socialist controlled and not spontaneous.
The meeting did go ahead however in a different pub (Cricketers Arms, Rainham) after offers were made to the division on the news breaking, also the EDL have learned the lesson and no longer hide who they are, the poppy day disgrace having turned the tide of public opinion away from the states pets and given the EDL a far higher and better profile in the public's eye than previously due to the unceasing negative press they got from the MSM and socialists in general. 
As a member of the EDL said 

"Was speaking with one of the fb group last night ref this, its a bad move to not inform any landlord of a pub as to what group you are. We held a meeting when Kent with one division in a pub in Chatham and we were up front with the landlord who by the way is mixed race and there were no problems, you need to be honest and not ashamed. The next meet and greet is being held in Dover and has the full consent of the landlord so there wont be no drama, just be honest is the best way."

So lessons learned, I suspect naivete from the EDL rather than any complex plan to deliberately cover up who they are, trying to avoid trouble rather than inviting it, yes it came back to bite them and they learned a lesson from it, I doubt it will be repeated.

Arrivals and expectations

It's been an exciting time for me over the last 10 days and quite eventful. We set off for Devon on a beautiful Friday morning, blue skies if a bit cold for our long trip and we had no problems with traffic, even passing Stonehenge en route on the A303. Wasn't until we approached Barnstaple over Exmoor that sleet and snow started, even then it was more of a nuisance and didn't settle at all.
For the next couple of days we played tourist, visiting a village called Clovelly which allows no cars in it and is built on a fairly steep cobbled street from a clifftop to the harbour.

Quite a beautiful place even if was freezing cold and a very nippy breeze blowing the sub zero temperatures even lower. We were also becoming aware of what was happening in the rest of the country snow wise, as you can see above we were in the one part of the country that didn't get any.
The following day we visited Boscastle in Cornwall where they had that dreadful flood a couple of years ago, again a really beautiful place, and the pottery there is well worth a visit, they even have a witchcraft museum.

On the Tuesday night, my good lady and I celebrated her 50th Birthday with a Chinese meal in Barnstaple, we'd just, finished when we got a call saying that my step daughters waters had broken, so we hurriedly paid up and went to the house expecting a long wait as it was her first. How wrong we were, we got there to find her in agony and something was clearly not right so we ended up doing a frantic drive to the hospital with a very gravid young lady whose contractions were coming at two minutes apart, complete with the father and the full maternity kit for the birth (including a big pink yoga ball) The drive seemed to take an age though it was only 20 mins top and yes I broke a few speed limits en route though not when cornering, there's something about a screaming young lady in the back of your car that can energise even a safe driver. We got there safely and daughter, father and my good lady vanished into the maternity wing leaving me stranded with the big pink yoga ball. Next thing was that several medical staff pelted past me running and looking very concerned, when you see medical staff rushing, you know there's a problem. Seems the baby was breach and an emergency caesarian was required, we'd got her there just in time as though she was full dilated, the baby hadn't started down the birth canal.
So on Tuesday the 30th at 10:30 pm my beautiful Granddaughter entered the world (7lbs 15oz), screaming but healthy, her mum totally out of it on morphine, but recovering nicely.

The next few days passed by with hospital visits and preparing the house for her homecoming and as they don't like you to stay too long in hospital, she came home on Friday, with her Mum, proud Dad and Grandparents. She then proceeded to keep everyone awake till the early hours as she got wind and howled the house down, still one very messy nappy later we got her settled. The new parents not being too sure of how babies actually "operate" but we all have to start somewhere.

We spent the next 2 days helping them to settle in before returning home, though she has been out and about being showed off to various other relatives.
Coming back was a wrench, you kind of get very used to toting a little baby around in your arms but the new parents need the space and have a steep learning curve ahead of them, though we'll be back at Christmas to share the day with them.
The trip back was odd, freezing fog but very little snow till we got back into Kent, but even then seems we missed the worst of it, though I suspect it will be back at some stage. I did hear about someone in Chatham reporting a snowman theft though, daft beggar put £2 coins in the eyes then decided it was a police matter as the whole snowman went missing, don't know what it says about the people here, but most anywhere else they'd have settled at nicking the coins, must have been a damned good snowman.