Category: Uncategorized

New to BlueSky – please forgive me

So we have had the budget. Personally it seemed OK, But nothing much on the environment – only an increase in tax on private jet passengers which no one should have a cause to complain about (who the fuck actually needs a private jet of their own?). Fuel tax remains unchanged which is probably sensible for businesses. The only controversial one I have seen is the cut to inheritance credits for farms? However the elephant in the room – climate change was not mentioned. I was expecting the announcement of a major investment in the Green Energy Bank or whatever it is called. Just investment in carbon capture which is purely to appease the oil companies – carry on polluting and we will invest in the clean up. So it was an economists budget which will appease most of those who voted Labour.

Something I am qualified to comment on! So Uk rate is 1.44 which is half that from 1963. Add in a further complication about the age of mothers and we have a demographic problem that has epic implications. Let me simplify this – women are having fewer kids, woman are having kids later, the % of working aged people is shrinking quite rapidly. Add in long covid and mental health issues and this becomes a crisis.

AI and robots may help with the job scenario. But fortunately we are not the first country to face this situation, South Korea, Italy, Hungary and others are already facing up to the problem. The immediate answer that comes to mind is migration? Some areas of London already have nearly 100% of births to non-white parents. Not a problem to me but some will object.

I also have an environmental concern about the growth of our population – both UK and world. So we have fewer workers and more old needing aid. The economics need to be spelt out – and fast.

What is it about them that makes them so obnoxious? And I am talking about the mega rich mostly! Sir Jim Ratcliffe is part owner of ManU and has just spent over £100m on the Americas Cup Challenge. He also sponsors cycling. Whilst there are worse things he could be doing with his money it seems such a waste? Musk has splurged $45b on Twitter. Where is the humanity and compassion? Footballers get a lot of criticism for their wealth but many support charities in a big way.

Tax the bastards and let the public (via voting in GE’s decide where to spend the money?

So Russia may be behind a number of plots to destabilise the west. If Trump is elected we can expect more, especially in formerly Soviet friendly republics like Hungary and East Germany. Trump has said he will end the war in Ukraine in one day – presumably by caving into his mate Putin. I am sure many Ukrainians agree that a peace will cede territory to Russia, but only if equitable with guarantees.

Meanwhile USA has flexed its muscles against the Houti in Yemen with strikes using deep penetration bombs. Is this a warning to Iran?

And then China which Sunak raised at PMQ’s yesterday. Military practises all around Taiwan might have been used to test the temperature of world support for Taiwan?

Other conflicts continue without publicity; Sudan, Myanmir and increasing tension on the Guyana/Venezuela border.

I also do not know enough about computer networks but it seems obvious to me that National networks like the electricity grid, the NHS and probably many more should be broken down into regional units or smaller. It may be less efficient, but having all your eggs in one basket seems risky in the present climate.

Argh CLIMATE. We need to shout this from the rafters. The potential impact on food supplies in the future is being discussed. Hurricane Milton has affected the orange crop and Juice is at a record high on markets. Cost will be easily in excess of $1billion. Mixed farms used to be the norm in the UK – if one crop failed another would be ok. But with globalisation monoculture of a region can become serious.

I am aware that I am rambling like one of Trumps speeches – but I am not standing to be president of the ‘still’ most powerful nation on earth.

I am also concerned that individuals are gaining power within our democracies. Musk was able to leverage enough capital to buy Twitter for $40 billion. That sort of money goes a huge way when used on social media and in advertising to manipulate votes! Only diehards would claim that they could not be swayed with bullshit information. Brexit certainly was – it only took 2% of voters to fall for the false information.

American internet is awash at the moment with a tidal wave of obviously weird information that seems to be believed by at least 30%. I am also sure that I would disagree with Harris on probably 60-65% of issues, but it is worth remembering that Obama was not perfect either! They are all warmongering capitalists at heart. Bernie Sanders and Ralph Nader never stood a chance against the wealth of the capitalists and their control of the media. A bye-polar world is not dangerous (stalemate) but stiffles innovation.

Our patriotic press are still banging on about the police escort for Taylor Swift – in my not so humble opinion it made absolute sense. A terror plot had been foiled in Vienna but 3 concerts cancelled. The value to the British economy was in £10’s millions, and the cost of a police escort with blue lights possibly a few thousand £’s. And who gives a fuck anyway? Well the Sun and Mail for starters care very much. They seem to care less about Starmer trying to get investment in the UK.

So it is 17 days to the budget. Plenty of time for the billionaire owned press to fabricate stories, and for disgruntled civil servants (Public School trained) to ‘leak’ stuff. Cos that is what it is at the moment, just stuff. Hopefully labour will have a budget that is socially equable – when was the last one? Hopefully it will have major environmental and climatic concessions. With Hinkley Point needing to raise another £5 billion and carbon capture needing £22 billion (can someone publish the sums where the carbon giants are being bribed to co-operate)! New housing is great and needed but not at the cost to our waterways. Increasing tax on homes left empty would be great but problematic!

Are facing death threats in the USA! We know that the internet is populated by idiots but this goes further! A far right congresswoman, Marjorie Taylor Greene has claimed that “they can control the weather”, whilst a former national security advisor to Trump states’ Hurricane Helene was an ATTACK caused by Weather Manipulation”. Trump has also been making false claims about FEMA money going to illegal migrants. The truth does not matter when appealing to fuckwits!

Meanwhile extratropical storms have caused flooding in southern Morocco with 100mm of rain in 24hrs. Whilst a 50 year record it is in itself not overly strange. What is more worrying is the increasing unpredictability of weather across the globe. It is inevitable that rising temperatures cause increased precipitation. This will impact ecosystems and and agriculture. Crops in the UK have been way lower than usual which could havwe impacts on food production in the future. 170 ski resorts in France have closed due to a shortage of snow and snow cannons are normal at many resorts. My research reveals that Bristol has received the average for a year in the first 9 months of 2024, so we can expect at least a 25% increase?

But the Republicans in the US not only deny climate change, but refuse to even utter the words!

A lovely word I use to avoid swearing, sometimes! I also like the phrase’ they walk amongst us’. Until they both apply to me! I realised a while bck that I was still paying a chunk of money via my contract to pay for the actual phone. So feeling clever I amended my contract, but also decided to get a new phone – one of the grandchildren can hve the old one! So new swanky phone arrives with instructions in multiple languages, all of which are too small to read. But no worries Parish has done this multiple times before. So after a struggle I get the box opened (Round 1 Parish). Eventually after a while I manage to transfer the data from my old phone by following the very cler instructions on the phone itself. (I think this was a draw as I had multiple wrong turns). but I got there. Then I activated my bank details, easy-peasy! I also installed SIRI in my favorite Irish voice – the finish line and the trophy is mine!

Is the Nation State obsolete? In many ways the answer has to be yes. Multinational companies proliferate bleeding money from economies and into the pockets of a very small number of incredibly rich and usually men. They pay minimal tax and I wonder how many small businesses have been ruined by the likes of Amazon and McDonalds, etc. The mega tec companies have the power to influence elections. Taking back control was a theme often used to camoflage Brexit’s undoubted racism, ut was never a practical solution to the lack of control felt by impoverished in the UK. Indeed taking back control is only possible in a trade bloc the size of the EU. I think Labour are coming to realise that it is not them who control the economy – they can only tinker with the edges! I will refer to AI later!

Conflicts are pursued in the name of nationalism/tribalism. Russia invaded Ukraine to salve the needs of old score Soviet communists. Israel is pursuing tribal tendencies to create an ever growing area. Similar disputes are occuring in Myanmar, Sudan/South Sudan, China and elsewhere. In the two most publised conflicts the flags of the combatants are very conspicuous. Both are conflicts about control and territory. Would Hamas have committed its atrocity if Israel had not been persecuting Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank? Were Russian speaking Ukranians being persecuted against?

Would the world be a better place without tribes/nationalism? I believe so, but I also believe that the world would be a better place without the likes of Musk, Gates, etc. amassing vast wealth as individuals. I have often wondered how the world would have developed without the vast expenditure in the Middle Ages on churches, cathedrals and monasteries; and in other parts of the world on similar religious edifices. Now they rich spend the money selfishly on super yachts and multiple houses/apartments with an array of servants/employees! The Royal Family of the UK are exemplars of this (and perhaps more transparent, as they are publically funded! The latest nouveau riche are behaving like the brats they are! Forget the supposed altruism of Gates and Warren Buffet – they have pledged to give 90% of their wealth when they die to charities. Who choses which charities? I will bet that it will not be based on the most in need of help. PS> Bill Gates is still worth $100 billion according to the internet! (he still has shares in Microsoft).

Can these fuckers be reigned in? It has always amazed me that companies do not follow the example of John Lewis and profit share! An article in yesterdays paper discussed how investors! had taken $160 millin from Toy’srUs before it went bankrupt – and how many local shops were driven out of business before bankruptcy.

‘Small is beautiful’ was written in 1973 and is possibly becoming more relevant by the day!