Author: Richard

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THE SUNDAY STUMBLE

I thought of more professional terms like the Sunday Surmise, or the Sunday Sermon, or even the Weekend Wankfest. But a stumble through events seems most appropriate!

Firstly I have made a strawberry sponge – the test will be in the eating! Basically a sponge recipe with home made strawberry jam in the middle topped with stewed strawberries and lemon. I might add double cream for complete decadence! and then sprinkle some nuts on top! Pickled onions – first 2kg done, and pickled garlic up next. Baguettes – Millie is doing her bit at the moment, so this evening or tomorrow morning. My baguettes with herbs went down well, next time I will try with some flaked chilli, or even homegrown chillies. Tomatoes are very slow at the moment – not enough sun? I still have breakfast of raspberries when I go down to water the greenhouse, and have left the mulberries for Martin who is coming tomorrow. Apple harvest also looks good this year.

Well enough about me, int he News. First off, the sinking of the super yacht. This is very disturbing! Mainly because of the absurd amount of publicity it has received. He was said by a friend to be a lovely unassuming and grounded person. So unassuming and grounded that he owned a million £ boat with worlds largest mast. Not exactly bashful then! The drowning of his daughter aged 18 is obviously very sad – but as I did not know her, no more sad than the deaths of desperate people travelling across borders all over the world. It is a fucked up world!

Then Kate Allsop – front page again as she let her 15 year old son go inter railing. I had no idea who she was or that her family has close connections with Diana’s – did this help her get a job on TV? So basically a rich and connect mum lets her privileged son, aged 15 go inter railing with a 16 year old mate. Let us leave aside the rich and privileged bit (I am fairly certain he will have stayed in hotels rather than roughing it on park/railway station benches around Europe. Personally I think tat if he was mature enough I have no problem. I would not have been happy if it had been my son at 15, but like me he took a while to mature (and others seem to regress like Donald Trump! – is he even let out alone?). However I would have been happy for either of my daughters (Maz will say different, but she had to teach me to be cool – and I did put her on a train from Weston-super-Mare to Newhaven alone and aged about 12! Tams at 18 went to Africa with a pal and without the financial or societal backup. One of my memorable moments. Tams would use my credit card to buy clothes and always paid me back. I was a tad surprised when she told me she had just put £££ on it which was for a flight for her and Sofia to South Africa and the Buzzbus and a safari! So I back Kate Allsop all the way.

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INTERNATIONAL EMBARRASSMENT

So a UN report criticises the UK for its racism in government, Parliament and the media.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/article/2024/aug/23/un-urges-uk-to-tackle-rise-in-racist-hate-speech-by-politicans-and-public-figures

It does not name names, but we can be clear that most, if not all the Tory candidates to suceed Sunak will be on the list along with Reform and most of the published and broadcast media, the Met Police and other public bodies. Labour should also be concerned – Starmers initial speech on Gaza was horrendous!

However racism has become so mainstream that even a family member can say “I am not racist but ….” with no sense of irony! I can give explanations for this but not excuses. For my parents generation (and their influence over my generations thinking) the war was a good reason for xenophobia. This was amplified by the media, controlled by the upper classes and rich who really only supported the war effort once it became apparant that Hitler would use (please do not fact check this – I can be as guilty as any of converting a random thought into fact! Was I thinking of Remains of the Day”). TV had the Black and White Minstral Show (although even in my pre-teens this was embarrassing) and then “some mothers do have them” which was funny, very racist and I (sounding like Donald Trump) sided with the long haired scoucer trade unionist).

So my generation were indoctrinated at every opportunity – no lessons about the slave trade for me, just hearing about our racist heroes of the past like ‘Clive of India’, Captain Cook, Drake and Churchill. No mention of Winston sending the troops in against strikers or his role in the Indian Famine. Signs were up in B&B “No blacks, Irish or queers”. A very intolerant society. But it also gave birth to the Sixties and rebellion against the conformity of austerity. Hippies opened their horizons whilst the Mods and Rockers craved for the lost norms of the past. Then along came the skinheads – a tribe for the failures and those failed by society. Being and acting like a moron became the norm for a sector of society. 30p Anderson and Farage and the others realise this is a fan ase neglected by the main parties. In the days before Thatcher when we had an industrial base these guys (and they are mainly men) had jobs in factories and identified with their trade union. As the Trade Unions lost membership so the football Ultras and yobo’s proliferated. As hooliganism was cut back on, then these people had no ideological home. Car theft also lost its shine as it became more difficult.

But my relative is not poor – home owning and well off. Former mod with a police record to prove it. He and I suspect his family have become radicalised by the media of the Mail, Sun, GB News etc. Their fear, bigotism and paranoia defies logical explanation. Their paucity of ideas and ideology craves a symbol to follow (Flag, badge, club) basically anything to hide the fact that they are pathetic morons who can only articulate their views via the sound bytes of the rich and wealthy.

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BYLINE TIMES

I just received this months copy of the Byline Times and want to give it a shout of approval. Yes it is an echo chamber for my views, but I challenge anyone to provide me of any wrong facts that are in the paper.. And no I do not fully agree with all analysis – e.g. Sonia Purnell’s analysis of the riots was I believe too simplistic.

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SUPERTANSKII

I try to articulate my thoughts on topics, but sometimes I read or hear something which says what I think so clearly that I just have to post it! So here it is

I also must say that I am in awe of this capable young woman, and I am also aware of the abuse she has suffered from internet low life. I have 2 daughters 1 son, 3 granddaughters and 1 grandson and 1 step grandson so I am extremely pleased to see an independent, comprehensive educated young woman creating a wonderful role model.

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CO-INCIDENCE?

or fate? Mike Lynch , who is missing after his wifes (tax evasion?) super yacht sank under a tornado was tried for the sale of Autonomy for £11bn. His co-defendant Stephen Chamberlain was killed in a car accident on Saturday night. Whilst both were acquitted other members of the company were jailed for upto 5 years.

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MIDDLE EAST

Time to reveal my ignorance – but unlike te racist bigots I am willing to be corrected.

Israel – A state born from Europe’s guilt – this guilt is odd, maybe the wrong word even, would sympathy be better? My vocab is too limited to give it a proper name. It was conceived in an attempted genocide, but also in a racist world. Palestinians were not treated as equals, just people/things to be displaced for the Jews. Did the Allies know about the death camps, to be honest it would be inconceivable that they did not! In war I accept that difficult and morally indefensible decisions have to be made, or at least are made (Soviet troops waiting near Warsaw being one I have a small knowledge of).

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WAGES

the Mail quotes economists saying that the pay rises given to workers will cause inflation! Surely the tax cuts mooted by the last Government are the same? but the Mail never states this. They just want to criticise workers for getting a well deserved and long waited for rise. They do not also complain abot the FTSE100 CEO pay rises – but to be fair these are probably not inflationary as the money will be sequested abroad to avoid paying tax.

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STRIKES

Predictably the RW Media is getting its knickers in a twist regarding strikes. What none of them seem to be picking up on is that the latest strike threats are about working practises. For too long the Tories have pushed back on the unions thus stiffling their campaigns for better working conditions. The 21st century demands an end to bullying and manipulation in the work place. Arrogance and misogeny have no place in the work places of this country. We need to build on the minimum wage to enforce minimum standards of behaviour by all in places of work. And this should apply to customers too! If employers do not like our standards they can just FO!

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WHITE FRIGHT

The RW media seem determined to capitalise on the fears, insecurities and inadequacies the white poor (I refuse to call these morons working class – work is an anaethema to them). Two tier policing is ridiculous, we have had a multi-tiered policing in this country for ever. From strip searching of black school girls, stop and search through to the impunity with which golf course members can drive hope pissed most nights without fear of a breathalizer, to the tax dodgers like Tice and Rees-Mogg who seem to be unaware of the incongruity of tax avoidance and patriotism.

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BIGOTRY

I am tired of the bigotry that has come to pervade our lives. I may be too quick to concede that migration is causing problems, especially when others maintain a racist dialogue with being even willing to discus solutions other than their moronic own. Is social media to blame? I believe that it no more to blame than the Mail, Telegraph, Express, Sun, GBNews, Talk Radio and others that pedal the same old crap relentlessly. People make choices and those who follow the stench also do so on socail media. I believe that the BBC has become too political over the last 14 years with its willingness to promote the likes of Farage – but it still has some journalism and does try to do some fact finding regarding stories.

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