Month: October 2025

I was ecstatic as a 13 year old that England won the World Cup. But why? My rationale 60 years later is that I was perhaps swept along with the nationalistic comments of all around me. My father who had been in WW2 hated the Germans with some justification (his photo of those he joined up with was punctuated with the words dead. Flags were waved and I was proud to be English. However my favorite football shirt was Scotland! I guess I knew the players of England better than those of Germany.

However on my travels abroad I never felt the need to extol my Englishness of Britishness – indeed I was often ashamed of our historic thuggery and pillaging, So I will be unable to block my support for unknown personal/players at the next World Cup. Messi and Ronaldo will be gone or nearly, Yamal will weave his genius, Bellingham will star for England along with Harry Kane, Mbappe will also star along with others. I like football more than my country! No Englishman gets in the GOAT list – Pele, Maradona, Cruyff, Beckinbaurer and Bobby Moore would be a shout, George Best, Drogba. Who cares what nationality they are? Usain Bolt was amazing but not English – who fucking cares?

So nationalism and patriotism are pathetic excuses for the need to replace self-confidence with the need to belong. I guess most people do it – the need to belong, to join a club or even a political party. Everyone I know will not support every aspect of the person they vote for. Is party politics an anachronism based on party loyalty? I am not going to march under the banner/flag of anyone who has fundamental differences to me. I have been there and done that with Blair.

I realise a fundamental flaw in my argument – if asked about hanging – I would guess that a majority would vote for it to be irestarted, despite the possibility of an innocent person being murdered. But why are we voting for parties based on ?

UK, USA, France and Germany are all cutting their aid budget. debt servicing by poorer countries is between 45% and 70% of government revenues. Governments are paying 3 x as much on debt servicing as education and 4x health. With young populations it is no surprise that many are willing to risk death to get to Europe and the USA. Possibly 10000 have died this year trying to to cross to the Canary Island and Spain (E.U.). Poverty also provides fertile ground for extremism and radicalisation, violence and drugs.

The impact is not confined to the LEDC’s – increased illegal migration to rich countries results in resentment and radicalisation by the poorer elements of the MEDC’s who complain about aid whilst they cannot afford a Costa coffee everyday! Yet again we are ignorant of the facts. Cocoa is grown in West Africa but the farm workers have never tasted chocolate – how is this right? Much of Africa is rich in minerals but the global behemoths of the extraction world make billions in profits, and often pay bribes to terrorist groups to keep the factories in the the rich world going. I am not preaching communism – but a move to a more equitable world would benefit all. Ethiopia has been threatened with court action over £1bn of debt – this equals maybe 1/350th of Elon Musks wealth – how can that be right?

A free world for finance is seen to be a ‘good’ thing, yet free movement of people is promoted as a ‘bad’ thing? I am joining the Green Party.

The Mail has correctly and eventually come out against Andy the pervert. But I suspect that they will drop the matter as quickly as an unexpected hot plate – then they can resume with their normal hate campaign against Meghan and Harry. The fact that RandyAndy has no moral compass and lives a priveleged life are irrelevant – they will have noticed that many of their supporters and customers are guilty of Domestic Violence. It would take an Act of Parliament to strip him of the title Duke of York – and I am sure he has others apart from those assigned to him by the intelligent section of the public! Should it go before Parliament – definitely – we need to see the true feelings of those on the right (and those on the left to, and the centre) who are willing to condone this abysmal behaviour. That he was willing to lie about it on the BBC with Emily Maitlis shows that he was aware of its depravity.

I am also willing to share that as an 18 year old I knew right from wrong and acted accordingly. At 18 I had a lovely girlfriend who was bright and sparky. Well one afternoon she got into bed naked and asked me to join her. She then admitted that she was 14 nearly 15. I did not get into the bed – but to my everlasting shame I dumped her 3 or 4 days later. I hope she met someone who not only had my morality, but also greater kindness than I showed. I would love to apologise for my subsequent behaviour Patricia.

Oh god tat was like a Radio One admission slot from the 1980’s!

What else can I say to cheer me up – weather has turned wet and windy, I love it! It is what autumn should be, then winter with frosty mornings and if possible a few days snow! Then spring again and green leaves appearing.

Politics- at least 7 million Americans have demonstrated against Trump and his fascit tendencies – all were in cities – America is divided again, this time between cities and the liberal states and the rural and former confederate states. The Civil War was not long ago in terms of family memories. I remember my grandmother who was alive at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. She was 104when she died in the 1970’s when I was a very young teen – actually I have no clue! I knew she was like a walnut and not a very nice grandma! Never been good with dates!

Gaza – what a surprise – well actually it is! Despite 60000 deaths and $billions spent the Israelis seem to have done little to combat Hamas? Someone needs to exert an authority on the streets, Israel will have killed and destroyed the police or other forms of social control. Like Andyrandy the do not learn from past mistakes. Libya is still totally fucked up after the death of Gadafhi, Iraq id still fucked up after the death of Sadam. Bu also, how are Hamas activists still alive?