Category: Environment

So Polanski came second, a respectable result but he will be gutted that his party let him down. I have come to appreciate party discipline – he was basically torpedoed by the very left wing who voted for the Zionism = racism motion at the party conference. Areturn to the environment is essential for a Green Party that has made inroads since the general election. If party members want to be in a very left wing party, they should fuck off and join one, I might even vote for them in a proportional representation situation! It was good however to see that the two R parties (repugnant and repulsive) were in 4th and 6th places, and the nasty party 3rd all with less than 10% of the vote.. Labour and Greens got about 80% of the vote.

I do not believe the figures for autism and ADHD which have risen from 1 in 7 to 1 in 4 in the last 30 years. Besides the fraudulent claiming of welfare, is it just an excuse for underachievement in the parents eyes of their children? I have a family member who is autistic and there is no doubt that he needs 100% care, but I also taught for 35years and only in the last 4 did I came across ‘at risk -suicide, do not let go to the toilet by themselves’ warnings. there have always been children with ‘special needs’, but why the explosion of claims. Middle class parents will always seek advantages for their children, and if they cannot pay the extra for private education, they will manipulate the system – about 20 years ago my very middle class ‘good’ school received over 100 requests from parents for their offspring to have extra time in public exams (GCSE’s), most were refused and it was unusual for the remainder to actually use the extra time because they needed it, Also potential employers should be told if students needed extra time. This is not to enable them to discriminate – many special needs students would make exemplary employees, but maybe not in superacademic fields (I admit to being uncertain about the last comment). Those who actually need it should be swiftly identified and given help, but a graph in the Guardian showed around 60% with a common mental health condition and ADHD and autism.

If this is true society must be totally fucked up. Are we getting better at diagnosing problems, becoming more precious about our children or is there a real problem associated with diet, air quality, media use, climate change? The world also seems to be ever unsafer, quicker and less benign than it ever was.

Weather – the UK recorded a record 40 days when temperatures were above 30C, and 1354 wildfires, but the tories and the 2R’s do not give a shit about our children ad grandchildren and future generations – its all about profit! And the MoD have objected to 4 wind farms on the grounds it affects radar, really! Perhaps we should have more wind farms on the coast to disrupt incoming drones and their radar?

So, despite Trump’s assertion that he had had the possible assailants ‘under view’ for a long time, it still took a local resident with a seeming 6th sense, in the early hours of the morning to be suspicious. She tried calling the base – who did not reply – and then dialled 999, the police arrived in 15 minutes (which would seem to be rather tardy in the circumstances?). It appears that no prior intelligence was involved and the police must be commended for a brilliant job. So Trump is talking out of his arse again!

Back home Burnham seems determined to grasp the elusive problem of care homes. This will definitely require a tax of some sort, but is a problem that has been hanging around for way too long. Philip for the Tories bangs on about a ‘death and dementia tax’ – he is determined that he gets his inheritance! and offers no alternative, which is no surprise – years of tory rule and talking about the problem resulted in ‘diddly squat’.

the long range weather forecast for the next month is for high pressure and lower than normal rainfall. I hope it is not a lull before the storm situation. A high court judgement has been passed allowing a housing development in an area identified by the Environment agency as being in a category of highest risk. I hope Persimmon Homes will cover the insurance claims for the new residents of Yatton. Basically, what is the point of the Environment Agency if their objections can be so easily overridden.

And well done the Republic of Ireland mens football team for making a point about the genocidal regime of Israel before winning 3-1. Football has a lot of politics going on at present – a multi-billion enterprise cannot hide behind glib phrases like ‘keep politics out of sport’. Russian athletes are currently banned from the Olympics but that is likely to change with pressure from the next hosts President – yes it is Trump! i agree that sport should occur as an honourable activity between opposing players/sides, but life is becoming ever more complicated. From expensive, advantage giving footwear and body suits in athletics, to financial chicanery in football, the situation is barely better than in the last century where Soviet ruled/influenced countries athletes dominated some athletic results with records that still stand. Sport will do well to maaintain its integrity over the next few years.

So the tories want to stop benefit recipients spending the money on fags, alcohol and betting.  This may seem virtuous, but for those addicted it will be cruelty and cause more crime and domestic violence.   Oh the rich really do have a control freak syndrome.  Basically we need a certain level of unemployment and it is well known that the Thatcherite policies pursued by various tory governments meant that our manufacturing base was destroyed and hard working people put onto benefits.  Their children and grandchildren now have the choice of unskilled work at minimum wage levels in call centres or shopping warehouses, often on zero hours contracts.  At least Labour are trying to reverse this slide into hopelessness with new GCSE’s, already being criticised as providing a second class education for the poor – by tory rich parents, are they worried that a technical qualification may become more prized than a pseudo-academic one?

The outgoing Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres’s parting shot was to emphasise the need for action on climate change.  However world leaders seemed more concerned with petty squabbles and point scoring than address the extreme weather affecting our planet.  On which, Ed Milliband has released a full unreacted report by the Joint Intelligence Committee of the uk which had been suppressed under Keir Starmer (why?).  Milliband pointed out that climate change provided a challenge not just for climate and environmental ministers but foreign policy makers and  national security.  He was presenting to EU foreign ministers and other countries.  Maybe we will take a world lead in environmental matters.

Am I jealous that. Reform has received £72m in 2 donations, just offended. TBH I am not, but I do not have the answers to what is a real problem. Apparently Musk has said that Restore can have whatever it takes, he will find a way past the law that prohibits it. We have seen in the USA how elections are bought via copious TV ads. In the UK without union donations Labour would be finished, especially in a post industrial phase. Of course the rich will donated to a party that promises less tax for the rich, and if that means lower spending on welfare and the NHS – so be it – they do not need either, they have private health care, their children have a private education and they have over generous pensions. Not jealous, just offened by the ability of the rich to manipulate the system, especially when it benefits cryptocurrency billionaires. Maybe total donations should be capped at £1 for very vote received in the last election (with modifications for local council elections (being fair to Reform!), and the usual 5% of the vote minimum. That would allow parties to be on a more even keel come election time. I would introduce it retrospectively, and any past donations above this level confiscated for the Treasury. If someone is so selfish to encourage a party to follow their views – then they should pay more tax.

SAND BAGS – The Environment Agency does not provide sand bags for individual properties, whilst the council may have a stock of them to use in emergencies, usually for vulnerable people. So if you want to be prepared for an El Niño autumn/winter you need to get online and order some. Be aware that taking sand off a beach is usually illegal and if prolific can cause flood damage to nearby properties.

The Israeli government is explicitly supprorting settlers who kill and maim Palestians (including children on the West Bank) and has the audacity to tell the governments of the UK, France and Canada, that they are on the wrong side of history. The British Consulate in East Jerusalem has been closed and the US Ambassador to Israel threatened retalitory sanctions – bring it on! Unfortunately Badenoch sought to make a political jibe at the government of the UK – she is becoming increasingly irrelevant. Various Jewish groups have condemned the Governments move on the grounds that it encourages anti-semitism. Instead they should be applauding the government and condemning the Israeli Government and the settlers who are commiting ethnic cleansing. Sir Edward Leigh and a long standing member of “Friends of Israel” said he wholeheartedly supproted the government thus supporting the argument that not all tories are complete morons!

Monty Don has called an end to his stint on Gardeners World – I am not a great fan of the programme as it points out my deficiencies as a gardener (or should I be more honest and say ‘in the garden’, but I have watched bits and appreciated his calm voice and practical advice.

A ‘technical issue’ halted flights into and out of the UK yesterday – a multibillion £ business. My first thought was not how/why the issue occured – but why did they not have back up – it reeks of cost cutting and profit margins! I was once phoned during the school holidays with a marketing questionnaire – and being the holiday I accepted the call; one of the questions was which airline do consider the safest! My reply was that I would not consider getting on a plane without feeling that it was 100% safe (I did not really think about safety when boarding a Fawcet Airlines plane from Lima to Cusco! despite seeing a mechanic giving the engine some wellie with a hammer!). However whistle blowers and passengers almost being sucked from planes do make me suspicious! My passport has run out and I have no intention of renewing it or getting on a plane again. And yes I do know that planes are safer than cars! (although that statistic, like many, is flawed!

At least 100 golf clubs breached their licences for the extraction of water but no prosecutions or fines have occurred – it make me want to get my hosepipe out and spray the road! Golf is just a way of spoiling a good walk. But this revalation proves that the agencies set up by the last government have no teeth, are possibly stuffed with compliant board members (paid by our taxes). A challenge – name one government regulatory agency that has any evidence of doing its job properly!