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Tuesday 30 November 2010

No I have not forgotten about 5Live

Complaint type: BBC News
Location: England
What is your complaint about: Radio News
Programme title: 5Live News
Transmission date: 29/08/2010
Complaint category: Bias
Complaint summary: Anti-Israel bias complaint not replied to
Full complaint:
On 30 August I complained about an instance of blatant BBC bias and have yet to receive a reply; three months and no reply, not overly impressive. Here's a copy of my original complaint, maybe you could be so good as to actually respond to it with a full and accurate answer. ''Your news bulletins featured a piece about an Israeli rabbi who had called for a 'plague' on Mahmoud Abbas. A despicable comment I agree but maybe you could point me to the 5Live news bulletins that reported the genocidal statements of senior Hamas and Fatah politicians and/or religious leaders. For example did 5Live report Hamas cleric Ziyad Abu al-Haj's Friday sermon of 3 April 2009 in which he said "The time will come, by Allah’s will, when their property will be destroyed and their children will be exterminated, and no Jew or Zionist will be left on the face of this earth."? Did 5Live report the words of Dr. Ahmed Yousuf Abu Halabiah, a member of the Palestinian Sharia (Islamic religious law) Rulings Council, and Rector of Advanced Studies at the Islamic University on 13 October 2000 when he said "The Jews are the Jews. There never was among them a supporter of peace. They are all liars… They are terrorists. Therefore it is necessary to slaughter them and murder them, according to the words of Allah… It is forbidden to have mercy in your hearts for the Jews in any place and in any land. Make war on them any place that you find yourself. Any place that you meet them – kill them. Kill the Jews and those among the Americans who are like them… The Jews only understand might. Have no mercy on the Jews, murder them everywhere." If you did not report such Palestinian calls, why not? Why are the words of one Israeli cleric, however vile, newsworthy whereas those of Palestinian clerics and politicians are not?'
Receive a reply: Yes
Contacted us before: Yes
Complaint related to previous contact: Yes
Reason for contacting again: Haven't received a response yet
Title: Mr
First name: NotaSheep
Surname: MaybeaGoat
Email address: notasheepmaybeagoat@gmail.com
Under 13: No

Chasing the BBC up on that old BBC anti-Israel bias

Further to this post and its predecessors I thought 'nothing ventured, nothing gained' so I tried again and lodged another complaint with the BBC:
'I lodged a complaint about serious BBC bias on 30 August, received a totally inadequate response on 28 October, chased immediately and have received no further response.

Here is my original complaint:
'Your Middle East news features a piece about an Israeli rabbi who had called for a 'plague' on Mahmoud Abbas and other reprehensible comments. Despicable I agree but maybe you could point me to the BBC web site news articles that reported the genocidal statements of senior Hamas and Fatah politicians and/or religious leaders. For example did the BBC web news report Hamas cleric Ziyad Abu al-Haj's Friday sermon of 3 April 2009 in which he said "The time will come, by Allah’s will, when their property will be destroyed and their children will be exterminated, and no Jew or Zionist will be left on the face of this earth."?

Maybe you could also show me where BBC web news reported the words of Dr. Ahmed Yousuf Abu Halabiah, a member of the Palestinian Sharia (Islamic religious law) Rulings Council, and Rector of Advanced Studies at the Islamic University on 13 October 2000 when he said "The Jews are the Jews. There never was among them a supporter of peace. They are all liars… They are terrorists. Therefore it is necessary to slaughter them and murder them, according to the words of Allah… It is forbidden to have mercy in your hearts for the Jews in any place and in any land. Make war on them any place that you find yourself. Any place that you meet them – kill them. Kill the Jews and those among the Americans who are like them… The Jews only understand might. Have no mercy on the Jews, murder them everywhere."

If you did not report such Palestinian calls, why not? Why are the words of one Israeli cleric, however vile, newsworthy whereas those of Palestinian clerics and politicians are not?'


Here is the totally inadequate response I received:
'    'Dear Sir or Madam,

    We do not report every inflammatory comment by Israelis or Palestinians. There are many on both sides.

    Rabbi Ovadia Yosef’s comments were reported because he is such an important figure, and because the comment came at a time when Israeli-Palestinian peace talks were being resumed. He is the spiritual leader of Shas, a party represented in current Israeli government, and a former Chief Rabbi.

    The comments were widely criticised by US and Israeli leaders.

    I am sorry for the delay ion replying to your complaint.

    Best regards,

    Middle East desk
    BBC News website'


Here is my emailed response:
''Thank you for finally replying to my complaint, although I note that you have not actually answered my complaint.


You write that 'We do not report every inflammatory comment by Israelis or Palestinians. There are many on both sides.' - My complaint acknowledged that the comments were 'reprehensible' and 'despicable' and asked you to 'point me to the BBC web site news articles that reported the genocidal statements of senior Hamas and Fatah politicians and/or religious leaders.' I don't ask that the BBC report every genocidal statement made by a Hamas politician or religious leader, where would you find the space? But to report none of these comments does look rather strange.

I gave you some examples to help you in your search, did you find any examples reported by the BBC? Did you even look? If not, how do you know that you give equality of coverage? If you did not report such Palestinian calls, why not? Why are the words of one Israeli cleric, however vile, newsworthy whereas those of Palestinian clerics and politicians are not?'



You write that 'Rabbi Ovadia Yosef’s comments were reported because he is such an important figure, and because the comment came at a time when Israeli-Palestinian peace talks were being resumed.' - I cannot disagree with your point about the timing of his remarks. Maybe you could point me to the BBC's coverage of Yasser Arafat's comments on Jordanian TV on the very day that he signed the Declaration of Principles on the White House lawn in 1993 "Since we cannot defeat Israel in war, we do this in stages. We take any and every territory that we can of Palestine, and establish a sovereignty there, and we use it as a springboard to take more. When the time comes, we can get the Arab nations to join us for the final blow against Israel."



You write that 'He is the spiritual leader of Shas, a party represented in current Israeli government, and a former Chief Rabbi.' - Indeed he was albeit the Sephardi Chief Rabbi and from 1973-1983; he is not a member of the Knesset. Maybe you could show me where the BBC reported the words of Hamas' spiritual leader, until 2004, Ahmed Yassin when he said that "Reconciliation with the Jews is a crime" and that Israel "must disappear from the map".



You write that 'The comments were widely criticised by US and Israeli leaders.' - Indeed they were and rightly so, but my complaint was not about the coverage of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef’s comments, but about the lack of coverage of equally or more reprehensible comments by Palestinian political and religious leaders. By not addressing this point you have not answered my complaint, preferring to answer a different question.



I must ask you to actually answer my question rather than a question of your choosing.


Regards

NotaSheep '


Is it possible that the BBC could actually address my questions and respond accordingly rather than either ignoring my questions or answering a different question.'

evident.

Students with no sense of proportion


'Northumbria University Students sing about the true value of education' and manage to be tasteless, out of proportion and factually wrong.


Thanks to Guido Fawkes for the video spot.

Complaining to the BBC about anti-Israel bias

Further to this from this earlier today I decided to make a formal complaint, not that I expect a particularly illuminating reply:
'I note that you report that :

'Israeli orthodox rabbi stirs up racism debate

From a pine-covered mountaintop in the far north of Israel, the Sea of Galilee is just visible through the mist below.

This is the idyllic setting for Tzfat, as it is known in Hebrew, or Safed, as Arabic-speakers call it, a holy place for Jews. It is said to have been founded by a son of Noah after the great flood.

In the past few weeks it has also become famous for a decree made by its chief rabbi who instructed residents not to rent rooms or houses to Israeli Arabs.'

And on and on and on.


Oddly I do not remember the BBC ever reporting on the Palestinian Authorities Chairman Mahmoud Abbas's statement pre the resumption of peace talks that:

"I will never allow a single Israeli to live among us on Palestinian land,"


How come when a minor 'Chief Rabbi' makes a statement about non-Jews that at most will apply in one town in Israel, the BBC report the news, but when the head of the Palestinian Authority makes a similar but anti-Jews statement that affects the whole of the Palestinian Territories that is not deemed to be news?'

The BBC with a story they want to tell and a story that they happily do not report

The BBC are pleased to report that:
'Israeli orthodox rabbi stirs up racism debate

From a pine-covered mountaintop in the far north of Israel, the Sea of Galilee is just visible through the mist below.

This is the idyllic setting for Tzfat, as it is known in Hebrew, or Safed, as Arabic-speakers call it, a holy place for Jews. It is said to have been founded by a son of Noah after the great flood.

In the past few weeks it has also become famous for a decree made by its chief rabbi who instructed residents not to rent rooms or houses to Israeli Arabs.'
Do read the rest of the report, it's the usual BBC anti-Israel piece.

Oddly I can see nowhere on the BBC any report about Palestinian Chairman Abbas's statement pre the resumption of peace talks that:
"I will never allow a single Israeli to live among us on Palestinian land,"
So when a minor 'Chief Rabbi' makes a rule that at most will apply in one town in Israel, the BBC report the news. But when the head of the Palestinian Authority makes a statement that affects the whole of the Palestinian Territories that is not deemed to be news. Why?

Climate Change news round-up

1) Warning Signs  reports on the cancum Climate change gathering and he's not happy:
'Billions worldwide have been wasted on the needless reduction of GHGs. Billions here in the U.S. have been diverted to two of the most unpredictable and least effective means of energy production, wind and solar power.

Billions have been wasted on the U.S. mandate that ethanol be mixed with the gasoline Americans purchase, despite the fact that ethanol releases more CO2 into the environment than gasoline without it. Due to expire on December 31st, it would save an estimated six billion dollars. Even Al Gore has disowned ethanol.

The IPCC meeting in Cancun begins on November 29 and will generate a lot of hot air for two weeks.'

2) Here's a link to three climate Change lectures, go on take a look.

3) MIT World have another lecture, this one is entitled 'Uncertainties in Climate Forecasts: Causes, Magnitudes and Policy Implications' and is by Stephen H. Schneider. It is nearly an hour and a half long to wrap up warm when you watch it.

Five questions that I don't think I will get an answer to (even further update)

Further to this post I can report that Mary Honeyball has not replied to my follow-up questions or posted my last chasing post. I have today asked her this question:
'Hi Mary, is there any chance of a reply to my follow-up questions of November 26th? I asked them because I don't think you fully answered the last two original questions. I look forward to seeing this 'reply' and your answers on your blog very soon.

NotaSheep '
I wonder if Mary Honeyball will a) post my question and b) answer my points?

Monday 29 November 2010

Climate scientists know...

I have often posted a Guardian article from July 2006, here's what I said the last time I posted it - Guardian in normal, my comments in italics:

"Peering into the future is a tricky business, especially for something as volatile as weather and climate. But scientists know a lot about how events will unfold. They use giant computer programs, evolved from those that make weather forecasts, to work out how the atmosphere will react to the blanket of carbon dioxide we humans are steadily wrapping around the planet. As we do, and as more of the sun's heat is unable to escape, the air and the sea warm. But that takes time, which means that whatever we do, our climate destiny is fixed for the next few decades."
So it's a tricky business but the scientists with their clever computers can tell us what will happen, I'm interested and convinced, do tell what the future holds...
"Here, we present a picture of what might happen in Britain over the next century if the world fails to take serious action, and global emissions continue to rise at about the same, or a slightly slower, rate. So what does it reveal?"
Yes, yes go on
"Rainfall will decline in the summer and the increased deluges in winter will struggle to replenish thirsty reservoirs because much of the water will run off the baked ground."
Oh no, I must go and buy water butts and Mediterranean type plants and cut back on water usage because summer rainfall is a thing of the past. Thank heavens this is so because Wimbledon have taken the roof off of Centre Court as they start to build the new movable roof. At least Wimbledon will be unaffected by rain in 2007!

So I was intrigued to read Joanne Nova who found a similar forecast in The Independent in March 2000:
'Snowfalls are now just a thing of the past
By Charles Onians, 20th March 2000
Britain’s winter ends tomorrow with further indications of a striking environmental change: snow is starting to disappear from our lives.
Sledges, snowmen, snowballs and the excitement of waking to find that the stuff has settled outside are all a rapidly diminishing part of Britain’s culture, as warmer winters – which scientists are attributing to global climate change – produce not only fewer white Christmases, but fewer white Januaries and Februaries.
However, the warming is so far manifesting itself more in winters which are less cold than in much hotter summers. According to Dr David Viner, a senior research scientist at the climatic research unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia,within a few years winter snowfall will become “a very rare and exciting event”.
“Children just aren’t going to know what snow is,” he said.
The effects of snow-free winter in Britain are already becoming apparent. This year, for the first time ever, Hamleys, Britain’s biggest toyshop, had no sledges on display in its Regent Street store. “It was a bit of a first,” a spokesperson said.
The chances are certainly now stacked against the sort of heavy snowfall in cities that inspired Impressionist painters, such as Sisley, and the 19th century poet laureate Robert Bridges, who wrote in “London Snow” of it, “stealthily and perpetually settling and loosely lying”.'

Do you remember last winter in London? I seem to remember lots and lots of snow and kids sliding down nearby hills on sledges, trays and bits of cardboard but I must have been mistaken because in 200 we were told:
'According to Dr David Viner, a senior research scientist at the climatic research unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia,within a few years winter snowfall will become “a very rare and exciting event”.
“Children just aren’t going to know what snow is,” he said.'
Has Dr Viner been approached for his comments?

'John Rentoul: The right to speak truth unto prejudice'

John Rentoul defends Howard Flight's right to free speech and much of what he said.
'John Rentoul: The right to speak truth unto prejudice

The words about breeding by a former Tory MP were correct. It was the ritual 'gaffe' fallout that was really unspeakable

...

The soon-to-be Lord Flight suggested that state benefits encourage claimants to have more children. "We're going to have a system where the middle classes are discouraged from breeding because it's jolly expensive, but for those on benefit there is every incentive," he told the Evening Standard. Both parts of that statement are demonstrably true, but the social psychology of groupthink requires everyone to perform their allotted roles in rituals as formalised as those of the Roman Catholic Church that condemned Galileo.

First, journalists report a "gaffe" – a word of almost theological definition, which is not used in normal English. Opposition politicians and commentators then condemn the maker of the gaffe, often for things that he or she has not said but for an implication or extrapolation. The third stage of the ritual involves disciplinary action and attempts to avoid it. In this case, Flight went through the full sequence of available responses, from "my words were taken out of context" (which they weren't) to an "unreserved apology" and a retraction. That proved enough to avoid stage four of the ritual, and to persuade David Cameron not to withdraw his nomination to the peerage. '
The politically correct left and their thought police control too much of what passes for public debate in the UK and I can't see how that will change as they are too well entrenched.

A special "No shit, Sherlock" award

I feel that Der Spiegel deserve a special "No shit, Sherlock" award for their headline:
'International Jihadists Use Karachi as Hub'
Jihadists operating out of Pakistan in general and Karachi in particular - "No shit, Sherlock"

Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Italy, Belgium, Spain... but is there more to worry about?

Following on from my last piece, I have somewhat less humorous news about EU debt. The consensus view is that the EU countries that are in real trouble and have or will soon have to ask for (or have forced upon them) bail-outs are Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Italy, Belgium and Spain; but is there more to worry about? Yes the UK is often mooted as next in line but what about Germany? Germany's debt problems were not too large but these bail-outs might be an issue for them. As The Telegraph reports:
'Credit default swaps (CDS) measuring risk on German, French and Dutch bonds have surged over recent days, rising significantly above the levels of non-EMU states in Scandinavia.

"Germany cannot keep paying for bail-outs without going bankrupt itself," said Professor Wilhelm Hankel, of Frankfurt University. "This is frightening people. You cannot find a bank safe deposit box in Germany because every single one has already been taken and stuffed with gold and silver. It is like an underground Switzerland within our borders. People have terrible memories of 1948 and 1923 when they lost their savings."

The refrain was picked up this week by German finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble. "We're not swimming in money, we're drowning in debts," he told the Bundestag.

While Germany's public and private debt is not extreme, it is very high for a country on the cusp of an acute ageing crisis. Adjusted for demographics, Germany is already one of the most indebted nations in the world.

Reports that EU officials are hatching plans to double the size of EU's €440bn (£373bn) rescue mechanism have inevitably caused outrage in Germany. Brussels has denied the claims, but the story has refused to die precisely because markets know the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) cannot cope with the all too possible event of a triple bail-out for Ireland, Portugal and Spain. '
Read the whole piece and ask yourselves how on earth do we all get out of this mess? I really don't see a way, it looks like doom and disaster all the way to me.

How can broke economies lend money to other broke economies who haven't got any money because they can't pay back the money the broke economy lent to the other broke economy...


Understanding the EU economic mess, Australian style...



Thanks to Dizzy Thinks for the spot.

Not a good time to be working in the Iranian nuclear programme

First Stuxnet :
'At Natanz, for almost 17 months, Stuxnet quietly worked its way into the system and targeted a specific component -- the frequency converters made by the German equipment manufacturer Siemens that regulated the speed of the spinning centrifuges used to create nuclear fuel. The worm then took control of the speed at which the centrifuges spun, making them turn so fast in a quick burst that they would be damaged but not destroyed. And at the same time, the worm masked that change in speed from being discovered at the centrifuges' control panel.

At Bushehr, meanwhile, a second secret set of codes, which Langner called “digital warheads,” targeted the Russian-built power plant's massive steam turbine.

Here's how it worked, according to experts who have examined the worm:

--The nuclear facility in Iran runs an “air gap” security system, meaning it has no connections to the Web, making it secure from outside penetration. Stuxnet was designed and sent into the area around Iran's Natanz nuclear power plant -- just how may never be known -- to infect a number of computers on the assumption that someone working in the plant would take work home on a flash drive, acquire the worm and then bring it back to the plant.

--Once the worm was inside the plant, the next step was to get the computer system there to trust it and allow it into the system. That was accomplished because the worm contained a “digital certificate” stolen from JMicron, a large company in an industrial park in Taiwan. (When the worm was later discovered it quickly replaced the original digital certificate with another certificate, also stolen from another company, Realtek, a few doors down in the same industrial park in Taiwan.)

--Once allowed entry, the worm contained four “Zero Day” elements in its first target, the Windows 7 operating system that controlled the overall operation of the plant. Zero Day elements are rare and extremely valuable vulnerabilities in a computer system that can be exploited only once. Two of the vulnerabilities were known, but the other two had never been discovered. Experts say no hacker would waste Zero Days in that manner.

--After penetrating the Windows 7 operating system, the code then targeted the “frequency converters” that ran the centrifuges. To do that it used specifications from the manufacturers of the converters. One was Vacon, a Finnish Company, and the other Fararo Paya, an Iranian company. What surprises experts at this step is that the Iranian company was so secret that not even the IAEA knew about it.

--The worm also knew that the complex control system that ran the centrifuges was built by Siemens, the German manufacturer, and -- remarkably -- how that system worked as well and how to mask its activities from it.

--Masking itself from the plant's security and other systems, the worm then ordered the centrifuges to rotate extremely fast, and then to slow down precipitously. This damaged the converter, the centrifuges and the bearings, and it corrupted the uranium in the tubes. It also left Iranian nuclear engineers wondering what was wrong, as computer checks showed no malfunctions in the operating system.

Estimates are that this went on for more than a year, leaving the Iranian program in chaos. And as it did, the worm grew and adapted throughout the system. As new worms entered the system, they would meet and adapt and become increasingly sophisticated.

During this time the worms reported back to two servers that had to be run by intelligence agencies, one in Denmark and one in Malaysia. The servers monitored the worms and were shut down once the worm had infiltrated Natanz. Efforts to find those servers since then have yielded no results.

This went on until June of last year, when a Belarusan company working on the Iranian power plant in Beshehr discovered it in one of its machines. It quickly put out a notice on a Web network monitored by computer security experts around the world. Ordinarily these experts would immediately begin tracing the worm and dissecting it, looking for clues about its origin and other details.

But that didn’t happen, because within minutes all the alert sites came under attack and were inoperative for 24 hours.'

Now I read on Sky News that:
'Iranian state media has reported that a nuclear physics teacher was killed and another injured after coming under attack in Tehran.
The university teacher was killed in a car bomb blast and three people were wounded in another explosion, Iran's al Alam Arabic language television reported.
Al Alam said the dead person and one of the wounded were nuclear physics teachers.
State radio said the attackers planted a bomb on each of the teachers' vehicles.'
Not a good time to be working in Iran on any sort of nuclear project...

The warmongering Israel

The BBC narrative of the Middle Wast is that of a warmongering Israel being the threat to peace in the area. I wonder how they will report the Wikileaks revelations that it has been the representatives of Saudi Arabia who  have called upon the the United States to “cut off the head of the snake” by launching military strikes to destroy Iran’s nuclear program. Meanwhile Jordan and Bahrain have been 'openly' calling for Iran’s nuclear program to be stopped by any means, including military and the UAE & Egypt have called Iran “evil,” and an “existential threat” which “is going to take us to war.”

Those pesky Israelis...

Leslie Nielsen R.I.P.


Leslie Nielsen, the star of the Airplane and Naked Gun films has died  - thanks for the laughs.

That's something to warm me on a cold morning in London with a Tube Strike trying to ruin the day for me

England make 517-1 on final day of first Ashes test match with Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott setting a series of records before Andrew Strauss declared. Australia replied with 107-1 having been set 297 to win from 41 overs. The match finished in a draw.

A draw at Brisbane after that first innings score is a good result for England, especially with that large second innings score for the loss of just one wicket. The Australians will draw comfort from their second innings score. If the batsmen won this test then what on earth will happen at the batting paradise that is Adelaide?

Sunday 28 November 2010

Fatah's double standards

'The faction that is led by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and which leads the PA has officially declared its formal refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish State.

...

The Fatah Revolutionary Council over this weekend voted to “affirm its rejection of the so-called Jewish state or any other formula that could achieve this goal” at its fifth convention in Ramallah.

“The Council also renews its refusal for the establishment of any racist state based on religion in accordance with international law and human rights conventions,” the council said in a statement issued at the end of the convention.'
INN report the above. Fatah definitely refuse to recognise Israel as a Jewish state as part of 'its refusal for the establishment of any racist state based on religion'. I wonder if by similar logic they refuse to recognise the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran or the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to name but three; or is it just Jewish states Fatah have a problem with?

The one hundred and eighth weekly "no shit, Sherlock" award

Sky News seem shocked to report that:
'Wikileaks: Saudi Arabia Urged Attack On Iran'
Saudi Arabia opposed to Iran and its expansionism in the Middle East, who would have thought it?

"No shit, Sherlock"

Lily Allen does impressions as well!


From 2009 - Lily Allen 'does' Cheryl Cole, Dannii Minogue, Britney Spears and others

Are you ANTI? That's are you Angry, feel Neglected, in favour of Traditionalism and anti Immigration?

The Mail reports that Nothing British think they have identified this large group.
'The acronym ANTI comes from four defining characteristics. First they are ‘Angry’ about the political system. They are tired of broken promises and ­political ­parties ready to surrender solemn pledges as soon as they are in office.

Last year’s expenses crisis wasn’t the ­beginning of their disdain for MPs, but it did confirm their low view of parliament and politics.

Secondly, they feel ‘Neglected’ ­financially, and because of this are much more ­pessimistic about their future than the ­average Briton.

They are the pound-stretching class. They have to watch every penny. They worry about keeping their jobs. They resent their taxes going to ­undeserving causes or being used to bail out Ireland and rich bankers.

The third characteristic of the ANTI voter is ‘Traditionalism’. They hold traditional views about crime, drugs, ­family values and national pride. They worry their country is changing too fast and not for the better.

Finally, and most importantly, the ANTI voter is opposed to large-scale ‘Immigration’.

The worry about immigration isn’t about race, except for a small minority. It is about pressure on the housing stock. It’s about ­competition for scarce jobs.

It’s about children trying to learn in schools where English isn’t the first language for many of the class.

When questioned, 89 per cent of these ANTIs said they would be more likely to vote for a party that promised to be tougher on ­immigration; 85 per cent said they would be more likely to vote for a party that promised to take back powers from Europe; 81 per cent said they would be more likely to vote for a party that promised to crack down on crime.

Moreover, 94 per cent of BNP ­voters and 91 per cent of UKIP ­voters agreed with the statement that ‘Britain is no longer a fair country that rewards its people based on merit’.'

'Climate policy has almost nothing to do anymore with environmental protection, says the German economist and IPCC official Ottmar Edenhofer. The next world climate summit in Cancun is actually an economy summit during which the distribution of the world's resources will be negotiated.'

The Global Warming Policy Foundadtion report a fascinating interview by Bernard Potter with German economist and IPCC official Ottmar Edenhofer. Read the whole piece and you will see that those of us who have been saying for quite some time that the Global Warming scare was a means to an end and that the end was clear, may have been correct.


Thanks to The Daily Bayonet via Theo Spark for the spot.

The real global disaster that awaits us in 2012?


Scary - yes, possible - yes, likely - ?
How would the UK be affected?
How to prepare? Buy gold, silver, a generator and long life food - or just ignore it like most politicians.

Yes I know this video is from the National Inflation Association but how sure are you really that it won't come true?

Thanks to Theo Spark for the spot.

The EU strikes again

On Monday new rules come into place meaning that immigrants wanting to marry a Briton or other UK resident will have to pass a basic English test before they are handed a visa in bid to promote integration and crack down on sham marriages. This is a policy which is somewhat late but then Labour were never interested in minimising immigration, just 'rubbing the right's nose in diversiry'.

However there is an obvious problem with this legislation and that is that that EU citizens who are not British are exempt. This is because the spouse of an EU citizen is automatically given the same right to free movement as the EU citizen under EU rules.

Thus the new rule will actually discriminate against British citizens because EU laws mean other Europeans living here can bring in a foreign partner from anywhere in the world without having to pass the test.

Saturday 27 November 2010

Just one negative story about Israel!



What is happening at the BBC Middle East News only one negative story out of the 11 top stories on their home page and that one's not even true. Have the BBC run out of negative stories about Israel, have they realised that Israel is not the evil state that they used to portray it as or is it a mistake?

By the way is anyone surprised by the BBC's usual anti-Israel outlook when they run both an Arabic and Persian World Service?  I wonder how much news story crossover there is?

Finally a female French singer we can all get behind



Alizee Jacotey - "Jen ai marre"
She's got something...

Thanks to Blazing Cat Fur for the spot.

Can you hear the gritted teeth?

The BBC  report that:
'Councils are being urged to celebrate the "Christian basis" of Christmas.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said "politically correct Grinches" should not be allowed to obscure the fact the festival marks Christ's birth.

He said festivals like "Winterval" - which combined secular and inter-faith elements in 1990s Birmingham - should be consigned to history's "dustbin".'
Is it my imagination or can I hear teeth being gritted at the, oh so, politically correct BBC?

‘This is not an issue of race or ­religion, but about right and wrong, and people committing criminal acts. Vulnerable girls are being exploited for sex. We must stand together as one, people of all backgrounds, to denounce these vile acts.’

As the BBC won't report properly what is behind the rash of attacks on predominantly white girls by overwhelmingly Asian men in the North of England, actually the BBC generally don't even report those two simple facts, I thought you might appreciate The Mail's Special Report.
'If this was a one-off, it would be deeply ­troubling indeed. The reality is, it’s not. Many schoolgirls — one just eight — living in towns and cities all over the north of England are ­falling prey to gangs who groom them to be sex slaves for themselves or other men.

...

The resulting court cases have marked ­similarities. A gang of five Asian men was jailed earlier this month for a total of 32 years for a string of sexual offences against girls aged between 12 and 16 in Rotherham, South ­Yorkshire. The judge, Peter Kelson QC, told the men they were ‘sexual predators’, adding: ‘You had what you regarded as your fun. Now you will take your punishment. All five of you were ­convicted of sexual activity with a child. The clue is in the title: a child.’

This case came just weeks after a privately-educated schoolgirl, forced into sex slavery at 14, bravely gave evidence in court against nine Asian men, who were jailed for her ‘­sustained sexual abuse’ over many months.

The girl was picked up by the gang while walking through Rochdale, Greater Manchester. They took her to a nightclub, gave her vodka, and then drove her to a private house where three men had sex with her. For 11 days, missing from home, she was passed around ‘like a piece of meat’ from man to man before finally managing to escape.

The experience of all these young girls has an uncomfortable element to it. It is a subject that in politically correct modern Britain is almost taboo — rarely spoken about by the police, the courts or even the ­agencies that counsel the girls afterwards.

The simple fact is that the ­perpetrators are almost all Asian and from the north of England — and their victims white.

This week, the BBC reported the Derby case repeatedly on radio with barely a mention of the fact all but one of the gang members were Asian, or the fact the vast majority of the victims — 22 of the 27 mentioned in court — were white girls.'
The missing factor in these stories and not mentioned by any of the media, seems to be Islam; if so why should other 'Asians' such as Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhists tarred with the same brush?

Another Barack Obama error that the BBC managed not to report

Following on from yesterday's compilation of Barack Obama misspeaks here's one that I had missed:
'Explaining why he was trailing Hillary Clinton in Kentucky, during the 2008 Presidential campaign Barack Obama said:
"Sen. Clinton, I think, is much better known, coming from a nearby state of Arkansas. So it’s not surprising that she would have an advantage in some of those states in the middle."
Hmmm, just one problem Barack Obama's home state of Illinois actually borders Kentucky, whereas Arkansas is some way away, separated from Kentucky by Tennessee and Missouri ... Oddly the BBC and MSM completely ignored this story but loved Sarah Palins remark about seeing Russia from her state - a comment that actually made sense in context.


'Marr splashes out on Theresa May'

Bearing in mind that there are two famous Theresa May's: one is our current Home Secretary, the other a (now retired)  'glamour model', I don't think that that Standard headline is entirely suitable... 'splashes out' - what an image it leaves in the mind!


Can you tell which is which?

Yes I know the glamour model was Teresa May not Theresa May but that would spoil a good gag; oops another inappropriate word...

In fact I have covered this similarity before... Once you start down this path it's hard to stop the double entendres from just flowing... Enough, no more!

My apologies I forgot to commemorate the dead of Mumbai

Yesterday was the second anniversary of the Mumbai massacre. Here's some video to explain and help you to remember...







183 people killed and almost 500 injured by Islamic terrorists from or at least funded/controlled by Pakistan.

When the UK police warn of Mumbai/Bombay style attacks on London this is what they mean.

So when the terrorist attacks on London come, will it be inflatables full of gunmen coming up the Thames heading for Westminster or Canary Wharf? Or will it be Transit vans converging on Trafalgar Square or Westfield? How many Londoners will be killed before the terrorists are stopped? How many innocent people will suffer the pain of loss and suffer the fear of travelling to work not knowing if that will be the day of the next attack?

I am sorry readers but that is likely at some time to be our future in London and likewise Paris, Rome, New York etc.

Friday 26 November 2010

That idiot Sarah Palin

I have just had this emailed to me and the stupidity of Sarah Palin is beyond doubt:
'My fellow Americans in all 57 states, the time has changed for come.
With our country founded more than 20 centuries ago, we have much to celebrate – from the FBI’s 100 days to the reforms that bring greater inefficiencies to our health care system. We know that countries like Europe are willing to stand with us in our fight to halt the rise of privacy, and Israel is a strong friend of Israel’s. And let’s face it, everybody knows that it makes no sense that you send a kid to the emergency room for a treatable illness like asthma and they end up taking up a hospital bed. It costs, when, if you, they just gave, you gave them treatment early, and they got some treatment, and ah, a breathalyzer, or an inhalator. I mean, not a breathalyzer, ah, I don’t know what the term is in Austrian for that…'

Hold on, how come I haven't heard of these before? Oh I see, my apologies all of the above were spoken by Barack Obama not Sarah Palin  and therefore  of no interest to the BBC or mainstream US News.


The above quotation is from Sarah Palin's Facebook and thanks to Weasel Zippers for the spot.

Satire Israeli style

CIF Watch have a funny piece, here's the beginning:
'Israeli NGOs horrified by the developing humanitarian crisis in Ireland have organized a flotilla called Viva Dublina. A spokesman for Viva Dublina said: “We are horrified by the developing humanitarian crisis in Ireland!” Viva Dublina has been loaned one of the world’s largest luxury cruise liners by an Israeli shipping mogul to act as a flotilla from Ashdod to Dublin. The mogul wrote a letter to Ha’aretz saying: “I am horrified by the developing humanitarian crisis in Ireland!” The ship will be used to return the useless junk and out of date medications sent on flotillas manned by anti-Israeli Irish activists that are currently clogging the warehouses in Ashdod after Hamas refused to accept the “donations”. Egypt has asked if the flotilla can stop in El Arish to take similar “donations” that are clogging the warehouses there. Egypt says it prefers to use its warehouses to store kassam rocket parts and Mercedes-Benz sedans for Hamas.'
Do read it all...

Streetfighting moggies and crows



That would explain the noise that I hear coming from my roof every so often.

The BBC, the Chandlers and UK based Somalis

The BBC just kept on telling us how the Somali community in the UK was working for the release of the Chandlers and upset by it. here's a few examples of this 'narrative', designed to make us feel warmer towards a section of immigrants that people seem not to like as much as others.

1) BBC World Service:
'Chandlers' release: How Somali exile negotiated with pirates

Rachel and Paul Chandler, a British couple who were held by Somali pirates for more than a year, were freed two weeks ago.

Dahir Kadiye is a Somali exile and former taxi driver living in London who helped to negotiate their release.

He spoke to the BBC's Fergus Nicoll about how he helped persuade the Chandlers' captors to let them go and how they reacted when they found out they were free.'


2) BBC News:
'The couple from Tunbridge Wells in Kent are on their way home and will no doubt be celebrating, as will be their family and friends.

So, too, is the large Somali expatriate community, especially those in the UK.

But who is to thank for the release of Paul and Rachel Chandler after 338 days in captivity?

Many people played a part but none so more than the UK's Somali community, keen to avoid more negative headlines.

People who were involved in securing the couple's freedom have told the BBC that the ransom demand was met by a few Somali Good Samaritans along with the Somali government.

When their kidnap was first confirmed on 23 October 2009, Somalis living around the UK were worried - for the Chandlers but also about what the rest of the British population would think of them if anything happened to the elderly couple - Paul is 60, while Rachel is 56.

"If the poor old couple were killed, can you imagine how bad it would be?" asked Ridwaan Haji Abdiwali, a presenter for the London-based satellite Somali channel, Universal TV.

He was one of those who organised the Somali diaspora to show its support for the Chandlers.

The Somali community is no stranger to bad press.

Mention the name Somalia and for many a fearful and suspicious vision of warlords, pirates, terrorists, gangs and police-killers is conjured up.

And the diaspora knows it only too well.

The total Somali population in the UK was estimated at 101,000 in 2008, although many believe the true figure is closer to 250,000.

The majority were welcomed to Britain as refugees in the 1990s.

Although most still dream of returning home, until peace comes to their war-ravaged and lawless homeland they remain stuck in places such as Wembley, Bristol and Birmingham.

For now though, the UK is home, and because of that, the community felt a calling to help out.

"It began as a sort of a feeling that we have among the community in Britain because we are British but because we come from Somalia," Mr Abdiwali told the BBC.

And also because "it is in our culture of the Somalis to look after the elderly people."

Beneath their negative image is a humble and closely-intertwined - some may say insular - community where trust is king.

Many joke that as a Somali you are automatically an activist and entrepreneur.

It is these qualities that drove the community elders and leaders to spring into action, organising meetings and rallies.

The campaign to free "the poor old couple" was born.

Mr Abdiwali dedicated his Have Your Say TV programme to the issue and it became an arena for the community to vent their anger and drum up support.

"People were phoning into the studios demanding their release. There was big pressure. People were very angry.

"I also interviewed Ali Gedow [the spokesman for the pirates who were holding the Chandlers]," he recalled.

"I gave him a very hard talk, asking: 'Why are you holding this old British couple? Do you believe that you will be paid if you kill or humiliate the life of old people? What food do you give them?' I asked him all these things. And every week we called him up."

The UK-based Somalis used their strong ties to their families back home and the clan structure which lies at the heart of Somali society to exert pressure on the pirates to free the Chandlers.

This led Mr Gedow to phone up Mr Abdiwali and complain: "Stop the pressure, you're annoying us. All we want is the money."'
And on and on and on.


3) The BBC timeline includes this entry:
'16 November 2009:

Representatives of the Somali community in the UK record messages - for broadcast on the BBC World Service and Eastern TV Network - appealing to the pirates to free the Chandlers on humanitarian grounds.'


The BBC seem less eager to report what The Mail reports:
'Two members of the Somali pirate gang that held Britons Paul and Rachel Chandler hostage for 388 days are believed to have family in the UK.

One of the pirate leaders says he plans to travel to the UK to join his wife and two children, who have claimed political asylum and live in London.'
Read the whole Mail piece and ask yourself whether you think it totally out of the question that at least one of the Chandlers' abductors ends up living in the UK on benefits? Also ask yourself if you are 100% confident that there is no chance that at least one of the Chandlers' abductors manages to sue the UK government for compensation, maybe for loss of earnings? This country is becoming has become a laughing stock for being an easy touch.

Labour springs its well laid trap

Harriet Harman's equality legislation passed this year was passed for a reason, and that reason was not 'love'. Thus The Guardian's report that:
'George Osborne is facing a formal investigation by the equalities watchdog to establish whether the Treasury fulfilled its statutory duty to assess the impact of the spending review on women, disabled and ethnic minority people.'
did not surprise me. Labour knew they would be out of office soon and so left behind all sorts of traps for the incoming government. The fact that the Conservatives have to govern in a coalition with the LibDems means that they cannot repeal these pieces of legislation as easily as they otherwise might thus the impeccably left-of-centre, but statutorily reinforced Equality and Human Rights Commission announced today that it would launch a formal assessment into the Treasury's conduct prior to the spending review last month:
"Under the public sector equality duties, covering race, gender and disability, the Treasury, like all public bodies, has a legal duty to pay 'due regard' to equality and consider any disproportionate impact on protected groups when making decisions, including decisions about the budget. Where decisions are found to have a disproportionate impact on a particular group protected by the legislation, public bodies must consider what actions can be taken to avoid, mitigate or justify that impact."

This week we've seen this 'equalities' legislation and Alistair Darling's EU crisis sign up emerge as well laid traps, what others will follow?

One of the problems of paying too much attention to the media and chattering classes

David Cameron's speedily administered slap on the wrist to Howard Flight was the result of his not being a conviction politician but a person too easily influenced by the media and the chattering classes. Howard Flight's words
"We're going to have a system where the middle classes are discouraged from breeding because it's jolly expensive. But for those on benefits, there is every incentive. Well, that's not very sensible."
may not have been very sensitively expressed and the use of the word "breeding" in relation to matters of class is a tricky area but he was right.

The BBC's reaction to Howard Flight's comments was as predictable as it was vicious. They managed to get the usual suspects to line up with their evil Tory type comments. There was:
Shadow work and pensions secretary Douglas Alexander: "These shameful but revealing comments cast serious doubt over David Cameron's judgement in personally appointing Howard Flight to the House of Lords only a few days ago.

"Last week one of the prime minister's senior advisers told us we'd never had it so good and now his latest hand-picked peer comes out with these comments."


TUC general secretary Brendan Barber branding the ex-MP "an insensitive throwback to the worst of 1980s politics".


Plaid Cymru MP Hywel Williams branded the comments "disgraceful" and said they "showed the Tories' true colours".'
The Mirror of course lashed out and I presume the other left-wing papers did too.

I had a bit of driving to do this morning and so listened to more BBC Radio phone-ins than I would usually do and I was fascinated that the majority of the callers seemed to be supporting Howard Flight's comments and his right to make such comments. I was surprised by the number of callers ringing to say that they worked in Benefit Offices or similar and that they knew of many many young women who were having children for the benefits that would accrue to them as a result. Yes there were those who deprecated Howard Flight's sentiments but I get the feeling that they were the type who automatically hate anything a Conservative says and love to be offended on behalf of themselves and others. The weight of calls was such that I believe even Nicky Campbell was moving towards a position of agreement with Howard Flight; listen to the last half an hour of his Radio 5Live show and see if you agree. I don't know what the views were on the Victoria Derbyshire show as I have all but given up listening to her, her show being bad for my mental equilibrium. I do know that the callers to Vanessa Feltz's Radio London show that I heard seemed to be overwhelmingly supportive of Howard Flight.

I did learn an interesting fact from this listening; apparently once a child reaches the age of 10 he or she is no longer allowed to share a bedroom with a sibling so many council housed families are routinely moved to a larger house when they run out of bedrooms. I wonder how many children there are in private accommodation that share bedrooms after the age of 10?


What do I conclude from this? First, I may be wrong but it seems that the majority of the UK population seems to have realised that the excesses of the Labour years have to stop. They seem to have realised that whilst they were prepared to tolerate inefficiencies, waste and supporting scroungers when (they thought) they were getting richer, they are not prepared to do so now the economic pigeons have come home to roost.

Second, I wonder if David Cameron will realise that the country is willing to be lead to 'the right', or more accurately toward sense and prudence or if he will carry on trying to pointlessly carry favour with those elements like the BBC who hate him and all he stands for.

Third, I hope that the BBC take note of the seeming change in the country's sentiments but somehow I doubt that they will. Rather than listen to the people, the BBC will continue to listen to the likes of Polly Toynbee and carry on attacking the 'nasty Party'. Rather than listen to the people they will try and lead the people back to the sunlight lands of Labour righteousness.


Looking around the blogosphere it seems that I am not alone  in my thoughts but what I also found interesting was the analysis of two sites. The first is Channel 4's Fact Checker and here is their analysis and (somewhat reluctant) conclusion:
'Howard Flight’s turn of phrase was not only clumsy but offensive. But at its heart was a valid question: do tax and benefits influence how many children people have?

Earlier research suggests it might. In 1999, the independent financial think-tank, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, looked at the impact of the introduction of child-related welfare which went up the more kids you have – benefits like Gordon Brown’s cherished tax credits.

It found that between 1999 and 2003  government spending per-child on these benefits rose by 50 per cent in real terms, and that there was an increase in births (by around 15 per cent) among low-income families.

David Cameron has promised to stop child benefit for higher rate taxpayers from 2013. So will that discourage the better off from having more children?

Child benefit accounts for a smaller proportion of income for better off families than poorer households.

But that’s not the only middle class welfare cut the coalition government is making.

Higher rate taxpayers (the richest 15 per cent of families),  will also have their tax credits taken away.

The poorest families, by contrast will keep their £21-a-week child benefit and will also see their tax credits increase from £44 to £47 per week.

The coalition’s decision to put up rail fares will also hit better-off commuters.

So it’s no wonder the Labour leader, Ed Miliband, is making attempts to reach out to what he calls “the squeezed middle”.

Cathy Newman’s verdict
To suggest, as Howard Flight did, that it was somehow more “sensible” for the middle classes to have bigger families was downright offensive. But if he’d expressed himself a different way he might have had a point. If he’d pointed out that the combination of spending cuts – everything from stopping child benefit to increasing rail fares – and the soaring cost of living was “squeezing” the middle classes, few would have quibbled with him.'
 The second is from the always readable Chris Dillow aka Stumbling and Mumbling, who is definitely no Tory, as his last line will demonstrate:
'But the truth - of course - is that people do, at the margin, respond to incentives. If you raise the cost of having children, people will have fewer of them.
For example, this study of the introduction of working tax credits - which increased work incentives for single parents - found that the move "led to a significant reduction in single mothers’ subsequent fertility."
This paper finds that:
Financial incentives play a notable role in determining fertility decisions in France...Adding to the existing tax-benefit system a child subsidy of 150 euros per month...would raise total fertility by about 0.3 points.
And there's also evidence here (pdf) from Israel.
It is, therefore, clearly true that withdrawing child benefit from top earners - forget that "middle class" crap - will discourage them from "breeding."
In this sense, Mr Flight is quite right. Where we might disagree with him, naturally, is in the class hatred indicated by that last sentence. But then,who would expect anything else from a Tory?'

I don't see any 'class hatred' in what Howard Flight said just some home truths that many on the left would prefer to ignore and many on the right are often too scared to vocalise for fear of the sort of vitriolic attacks that Howard Flight has experienced.

Of course there  is another angle to this subject and that is the effect of immigration on the British indigenous poor but that is something that I will tackle another day.

Five questions that I don't think I will get an answer to (further update)

I have replied to Mary Honeyball on her blog, as below, I wonder if she will be so kind as to answer them?

Thank you very much for your answers to my five questions, most illuminating. I have some follow-ups if you don't mind as I think you have left a few parts  unaddressed. If I repeat all of the original questions and answers as well as my requests for illumination this message will become far too long so I have summarised:


1) re Interest rates if UK had joined Euro a few years ago
A good answer - thank you


2) re interest rates if UK joined EU soon
A good answer however you have not mentioned that by joining the Euro the UK would lose its freedom to set interest rates to suit its economic conditions and not those of a collection of other countries


3) re future cds spreads
An interesting answer - thank you


4) re your economics qualifications.
I am sorry but that is not an answer to my question but an attack on bankers. Are you saying  that because most bankers, along with almost all politicians,  did not foresee the economic problems that were brewing,  a knowledge of economics is a liability, or at least not useful in this area?  I ask again what are your qualifications in economics? You must have some good background knowledge to have answered points 1,2 & 3 so ably?


5) re a future referendum on joining The Euro.
Mary Honeyball do you really think that that is really an adequate answer? 'I would follow the line of the Labour party on this issue.' I hesitate to use the parental cliche but 'If the Labour Party told you to jump off a cliff would you?' At what point would you stop following Labour party instructions? You want the UK to join the Euro, so I suppose the question really is if the benefits of joining the Euro are so obvious do you believe that the people should be able to decide such matters?



Mary Honeyball, do please answer my follow-up questions as I think we really are making some progress'

I will report back.

Five questions that I don't think I will get an answer to (update)

Somewhat surprisingly I see that Mary Honeyball MEP has replied (well in part) to my five questions.

'Thank you for all the many and varied comments on this post, I have been reading them with interest. Unfortunately due to work commitments I will be unable to answer them all, but I thought I’d take this opportunity to answer NotaSheep’s list of questions which seem the most constructive in terms of this discussion. I will repeat each question here so that you can read them.
1) If the UK had joined the Euro more than two years ago would you expect UK interest rates to be lower or higher now?
Interest rates as set by the Bank of England were 3% on 25th Nov 2008, and dropped steadily to reach 0.5% in March 2009, since when they have been unchanged. Interest rates set by the ECB were 3.25% on 25th Nov, and dropped steadily to reach 1% in May 2009, since which they have been unchanged (key figure is Main refinancing operations). So in last two years we can assume that interest rates in the UK would not have been different to any large degree had we been part of Euro. In years 2002-2006 the data reveals that Bank of England rates were about 1.5-2% higher than European Central Bank. Obviously we cannot state what the ECB rates would have been had the UK been a member of the Euro, since the impact of the UK on the macro data and models the ECB uses to set rates would have been very high, given the relative size of its economy. One could argue that, assuming the ECB drew the same conclusions as the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee, the rate of ECB rates would have been marginally higher than they were, but not as high as those set by the Bank of England. But this is mere speculation and impossible to prove.

2) If the UK joined the Euro within the next six months would you expect interest rates to rise or fall?
Given that interest rates BoE and ECB interest rates are virtually identical, and have been for the last 18 months, one would imagine that UK interest rates would not change greatly. Impossible to say however, depends on unknowns such as demand led-inflation resulting from any economic recovery, spike in commodity prices etc vs. decreases in wage inflation caused by austerity measures etc.


3) If the UK joined the Euro within the next six months would you expect the UK’s credit default swaps to rise by more or less than 300 bps?

I would expect them to remain where they currently are, assuming that UK’s triple AAA rating were to remain in place when it joined the euro. But again, total speculation.

4) What economics qualifications do you have that enable you to state that ‘joining the single currency … is the best one for our country’
I think we can all remember that the bankers, who we know had many economic qualifications between them, managed to get it so wrong on the economy.


5) If you are so certain that ‘joining the single currency … is the best one for our country’ would you support a referendum to put this question to the UK electorate?

I would follow the line of the Labour party on this issue.'

Hmmm. Let's see what we have here:
1) A good answer, I wonder from where it comes.

2) A good answer although there is no mention that by joining the Euro the UK would lose its freedom to set interest rates to suit its economic conditions and not those of a collection of other countries

3) An interesting answer

4) Oh dear, not an answer to my question but an attack on bankers. Is Mary Honeyball saying that because banker got it wrong a knowledge of economics is a liability, or at least not useful? I wonder what are her qualifications in economics, she must have some background knowledge to have answered points 1,2 & 3 so ably?

5) Oh dear it would seem that Mary Honeyball is a sheep - 'I would follow the line of the Labour party on this issue.' I hesitate to use the parental cliche but 'If the Labour Party told her to jump off a cliff would she?'

I will put these comments to Mary Honeyball and see what she replies, somehow I think that the she will consider the correspondence closed as she has 'answered' my five questions, even though she has only partly. However I may be wrong, either way I will report back.

Thursday 25 November 2010

What is sauce for the EU goose is not sauce for the Eurosceptic Hannan


Once again we see that free speech and the EU seem not always to be mutually compatible.


This is a follow-up to this morning's post about Godfrey Bloom and this post about Nigel Farage's speech.

Five questions that I don't think I will get an answer to

Mary Honeyball (Labour MEP) has just posted an intriguing blogpost that ends thus:
'I have always been in favour of joining the single currency and, I must say, am once again beginning to feel vindicated that my point of view is the best one for our country.'
I have asked her five questions, do you think I'll get some sensible answers?

'Five questions for you re the implications of the UK joining the Euro:

1) If the UK had joined the Euro more than two years ago would you expect UK interest rates to be lower or higher now?

2) If the UK joined the Euro within the next six months would you expect interest rates to rise or fall?

3) If the UK joined the Euro within the next six months would you expect  the UK's credit default swaps to rise by more or less than 300 bps?

4) What economics qualifications do you have that enable you to state that 'joining the single currency ... is the best one for our country'

5) If you are so certain that 'joining the single currency ... is the best one for our country' would you support a referendum to put this question to the UK electorate?


I await your considered responses with some interest.'


UPDATE: 14:34
Mary Honeyball did you enjoy your visit to my Blog? I see that someone from http://maryhoneyballmep.wordpress.com/wp-admin/index.php has just paid me a visit. Does this mean I will be receiving answers to my questions or are you just looking for ways of dismissing my views?

Should Victoria Beckham sue?


The BDS movement find someone with a worse singing voice than Victoria Beckham and could the man playing David Beckham have made any less effort?

Oddly when looking for BDS's website I googled 'BDS Israel' and found myself here at Buycott Israel; nicely done people, nicely done!

In case you are unaware BDS stands for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions; that's of Israel the only proper democracy in the Middle East, odd!


Thanks to Israelly Cool for the spot. He's got more bad BDS protests.

Nigel Farage speaks a lot of sense and even manages a 'bunker mentality' line and does not get thrown out of the European Parliament



As usual a good, honest assessment of the situation by Nigel Farage, but the EU is not listening they are too busy accumulating power and wealth.


Thanks to A Tangled Web for the video spot.

Robert Peston confusing apples and pears

From Twitter:












Would you not have thought that the BBC's Business Editor would a) know the difference between a measure of revenue & a measure of stored value and b) be careful not to misinform the public? Or are he and the BBC more interested in 'interesting' headlines than reporting facts?

Wednesday 24 November 2010

The EU, Godfrey Bloom, Free Speech and historical parallels



Godfrey Bloom called out "Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Fuhrer" during a speech by Martin Schulz, MEP, the Socialist Group President. I think  Godfrey Bloom might have been upset by Martin Shulz's remarks that the UK's 'special position needs looking at' as it is tearing Europe apart and that Europe needs taking in 'another direction'. Godfrey Bloom, like many in the UK and elsewhere in the EU, is not certain that the EU should move in 'another direction'.

Nigel Farage's logical assessment is dismissed and Godfrey Bloom is removed from the chamber.



So if one day a majority of MEPs decide 'democratically' that all MEPs not in agreement with them be removed from the chamber will that be acceptable to the Chairman & President? If, once these dissenters are removed, the MEPs pass resolutions 'democratically' to keep the removed MEPs from ever re-entering the chamber would that be acceptable to the Chairman & President?

What might follow then?

This is a very slippery slope and before you dismiss my argument I suggest that you brush up on your history surrounding the passing of the 1933 Enabling Act in Nazi Germany before deciding.


Thanks to Grant Tucker at Iain Dale for the video spot.

'Spain is fundamentally ugly' - Is it time to really panic yet?

'Spain is fundamentally ugly. That’s why Spain’s five year credit default swaps have risen from under 100 basis points at the start of the year to over 300 bps now. Remember, Irish CDS started 2010 at 150 bps, pushed up to 200 bps mid-summer and recently hit 600 bps as the country teetered on the verge of bankruptcy.
But unlike Ireland, Greece and Portugal, Spain really is too big to rescue. Spain’s banking sector assets of nearly €3.5 trillion are almost €1 trillion more than three other countries’ combined.'
More at The Wall Street Journal but it's not a reassuring read...

Can the BBC not see the link?

The BBC report that
'Irish unveil tough four-year recovery plan
The Irish government announces its austerity plan

The Irish government has unveiled a range of tough austerity measures designed to help solve the country's debt crisis.

Among the spending cuts and tax rises are a reduction in the minimum wage, a new property tax and thousands of public sector job cuts.

The four-year plan is designed to save the state 15bn euros ($20bn; £13bn).

The government is also negotiating a bail-out package with the EU and IMF, expected to be worth about 85bn euros.

The recovery plan outlines plans to cut 24,750 public sector jobs, achieve savings in social welfare spending of 2.8bn euros, and raise an additional 1.9bn euros from income tax.

It also details plans to raise VAT from 21% to 22% in 2013, with a further increase to 24% in 2014.'
Can the BBC really not understand why if the Irish need this austerity plan to 'help solve the country's debt crisis', the UK might need to take some similar measures to stave off similar intervention by the IMF and the EU?  With this in mind will the BBC now start reporting why the Conservatives are having to 'savagely cut' UK public spending , or will they continue to push the Labour Party/Trade Unions line? I think we all know the answer to those questions...

Is the London Borough of Ealing the nexus of evil?

Monday nights Panorama programme revealed thatone distribution centre for the controversial Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education's textbooks was on Northfields Avenue, Ealing W13. I remember the fuss over the teaching of Sharia Law and intollerance at the King Fahd academy on East Acton lane, Ealing W3 and of course there is the North Korean Embassy on Gunnersbury Lane, Ealing W5.

What is going on in Ealing and should not the local MPs be investigating?

What do Stephen Pound (Ealing North - Labour), Angie Bray (Ealing Central and Acton - Conservative) and Virenda Sharma (Ealing Southall - Labour) have to say on this subject?  Actually I don't think any of the three sites are in Ealing North but Stephen Pound must have an opinion about this, he has one about practically everything else.

Propagandising the EU

The EU have spent some more money on trying to get the European public to support the EU. The UK effort is centred on The EU and Me. Whilst the site starts with the rubric:
'The UK, as most of us know, is a net contributor to the EU budget. Therefore it’s understandable that people in this country want to learn more about how we benefit from our collective contribution. On this website you can find out how the EU helps with:

* Moving around Europe freely and safely
* Giving UK consumers a fair deal
* Making our food and environment safer
* Fighting crime and policing borders
'
It is unfortunate that the first news story about the benefits of the EU to the UK is this one:
'The European Commission is today asking the UK Government to repay €3.779m (approximately £3.3m) of European agricultural money due to late payments and overshooting the financial ceilings for 2009. This is part of a clawback from 19 EU countries of € 578.5 million of EU farm money unduly spent. This money returns to the EU budget because of non-compliance with EU rules or inadequate control procedures on agricultural expenditure. Member States are responsible for paying out and checking expenditure under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and the Commission is required to ensure that Member States have made correct use of the funds.'
That will get the British leaping to support the EU, won't it?

Of course the BBC are terribly supportive of the new site:
'The European Commission is making a fresh effort to persuade Britons they benefit from EU membership, with the launch of a new website.

The website, called The EU - What's In It For Me?, promises a "no-nonsense guide to what the EU delivers".

It has sections on travelling and working in Europe, the environment, fighting crime and consumer protection.

Only 36% of Britons polled by Eurobarometer said the UK had benefited from membership - the lowest in the EU.

The website also highlights projects that the EU has helped to fund in each region of the country, and aims to dispel what it describes as myths and "urban legends".

Despite the fact the UK is viewed as one of the most eurosceptical of the 27 member states, more than 80% of Britons who took part in a Gallup poll for the European Commission last year said they knew little or nothing about the EU.
'Filling a gap'

About half of the respondents (47%) said they would be interested in receiving more information.

The European Commission has, for some years, published a pamphlet giving its account of how the European Union influences daily life in the UK, and the new website is designed to do the same job online.

"We are really trying to keep things very practical," said Antonia Mochan, head of media at the European Commission's UK office.

"If someone wants information about the EU health insurance card, for example, they can come and find it. There is a video explaining how it works," she added.'
I especially like the wording 'Despite the fact the UK is viewed as one of the most eurosceptical of the 27 member states'. You see to the BBC the UK population is not Eurosceptic they are just viewed that way. Of course one way of testing this hypothesis would be to hold a referendum on EU membership but then that might prove quite how Eurosceptic the British are and the BBC don't want that.

Denis MacShane the listening MP

I have been following Denis MacShane on Twitter for a while now and I don't think he is in 'listening mode' as the last Labour government used to say. Wikipedia  reports in summary that :
'On 14 October 2010 it was announced that the Parliamentary Labour Party has withdrawn the whip from MacShane while he is under criminal investigation for his conduct.'
In more detail Wikipedia relates that:
'MacShane, during the expenses scandal of 2009, was accused in The Daily Mail of having been less than open/honest with his expense claims. The Daily Mail featured a story stating that MacShane had claimed £125,000 over a period of 7 years for his garage, which he used as a constituency office. One fellow Labour MP privately told the journalist that he was ‘very surprised’ at the scale of Mr MacShane’s claims given that he does not have to pay to rent an office. ‘I pay £6,000 a year in rent so if he doesn’t have to pay that, it sounds like a lot of money,’ said the MP.[21] In 2008, MacShane had supported Michael Martin as Speaker, calling for Conservative Douglas Carswell to be disciplined for calling for Martin to resign for failing to reform expenses.[22] In total, MacShane was ordered to repay £1,507.73 in wrongfully claimed expenses, with his appeals against the ruling being rejected.[23][24] In addition MacShane is alleged to have passed twelve invoices from the "European Policy Institute" for "research and translation" expenses to the parliamentary authorities, the EPI is an organisation controlled by his brother, Edmund Matyjaszek, and claimed for eight laptop computers in three years.[25]
It was reported on 14 October 2010 that the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards (on instruction from the Standards and Privileges Committee[26]) had referred a expenses related complaint about MacShane from the British National Party[2] to the Metropolitan Police. This refers to the claiming of a total of £125,000 in expenses for his supposed constituency office, which was revealed to be nothing more than a shabby single garage. The Labour Party confirmed MacShane had been suspended from the parliamentary party in the meantime.[27]
MacShane had previously written an article for The Guardian in which he played down the expenses scandal writing "there will come a moment when moats and manure, bath plugs and tampons will be seen as a wonderful moment of British fiddling, but more on a Dad's Army scale than the real corruption of politics".[28]'
I do not know whether Denis Macshane is guilty of any misdeeds over his expenses, however I do know that he seems oddly reluctant to acknowledge that he is under 'criminal investigation'.  I have asked him, via Twitter, over ten times why he has not disclosed to his Twitter followers that he has been suspended from the Parliamentary Labour Party and for what; he has not replied or informed his followers. If he considers that he is innocent then I would have thought he would be shouting his innocence at every opportunity, he's not normally shy of letting us know what he thinks.

To the BBC it's the little things

The BBC report on the couples 'Sharing a Wedding Day with Will and Kate but being the BBC there has to be 'a pop' at royalty in there somewhere:
'In a far bleaker association, it is also the day Eva Braun is thought to have married Adolf Hitler in the bunker in Berlin, before they committed suicide together.

That coincidence, and the question of whether Prince Harry might point it out to the royal couple, drew enough attention to make it one of the top trending topics on Twitter on Tuesday'

Yes there we go, because Prince Harry once wore an unfortunate choice of uniform to a fancy dress party he's fair game to be linked to Nazism and Adolph Hitler for ever more.  Oddly the BBC seem not to hold that opinion of another public figure who once dressed in a Nazi uniform; Ed Balls as his transgression is not mentioned by the BBC; anyone might think the BBC were in some way... biased.

Panorama on the teaching of Sharia Law and intolerance in UK schools

I watched Monday's Panorama programme but thought I would leave the blogging until I had seen if anything positive came out of it. The programme itself contained few if any surprises, shockingly Islamic schools teach Islamic law and that means homosexuality punishable by death by stoning, burning in fire or being thrown off a cliff, thieving by amputation (first of a hand then of the diagonally opposite foot), adultery by stoning etc. etc. etc. This was blamed on the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education's influence and textbooks. Now I am no supporter of Saudi Arabia but if you have only just discovered that their schools promote Sharia Law and hatred of people of other faiths, especially Jews, then you really have had your head in the sand for a long time. The King Fahd school in Acton (London W3) was exposed some years ago here's my piece from August 2007 reporting the story and here's my piece from February 2008 reporting in part that:
'The school agreed to destroy these books however it appears from today's Daily Mail that "Under public pressure the Academy eventually agreed to destroy 2,000 books but photocopied them first for future use, he told the tribunal."'
As I wrote in 2008:
'as of March 2007 the Telegraph was reporting that "More than half of private Muslim schools have not been inspected for five years, while some have not received a full inspection for a decade. An analysis of the 114 independent Islamic schools in England registered with the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) has found that Ofsted reports are available for only 53. Most of these involve recent visits, but two reports are for the 1997-98 academic year. Most of the other 61 schools, and their 6,000 pupils, were inspected five or more years ago but, because of a gap in the law, their reports have never been made public. The law has now been changed, but is not retrospective."

The report ended "An Ofsted official said: "Since the introduction of the Education Regulations 2003, there has been a cycle for the inspection of all -independent schools who are not members of the Independent Schools Council and covered by their inspectorate. "Ofsted has not yet completed the first full cycle of reported inspections, but it will be completed by the end of March 2008." If a school had no published report it had not yet had a full reported inspection, but would have one in the next year."

Of course this will not now be the case as this Labour Government announced this month that Muslim private schools would no longer be subject to Ofsted inspections but would instead be inspected by the Bridge Schools' Inspectorate which would be more "sensitive" in its inspections of Muslim schools.


This situation is not going to end well for this country.'
Just as following the 2007 investigation we were told that the textbooks were being taken out of context:
'the principal of the King Fahd Academy in Acton, an Islamic school in West London, who admitted that the school uses textbooks which describe Jews as "apes" and Christians as "pigs" and has refused to withdraw them. Dr Sumaya Alyusuf was interviewed on Newsnight back in February when she said that the quotations about apes and pigs had been taken out of context. I would like to know the context and how Dr Alyusuf thinks that it was alright to liken the majority of people in this country as apes. You can read more about this story here.'
This time The Standard reports that:
'The former president of a network of part-time Muslim schools today defended the teaching of sharia law.

...

Ahmed Meliebary, who was president of the group in 2001, said amputations as a punishment for theft was part of the koran's teachings on sharia law.

He said: “Cutting off the hand is the maximum penalty for stealing but there are strict set of conditions that need to be met before it is done. It is a way of telling students not to steal but in a different way and by teaching the maximum punishment it acts as a deterrent. If it used for first-timers they are not meeting the strict condition for this type of punishment to happen.”

...

But he said he had never seen a Saudi textbook which taught that sodomy should be punished by death, and denied that the schools inflamed anti-Semitic sentiment.
“Jews are our cousins as they come from the same forefathers,” he said. “The teachers are screened before coming here and requested to fit into the UK ideas of tolerance.”'

If you missed the Panorama programme then you can watch it in two parts below





Read more on this subject, there's plenty available out there, and judge for yourselves what Sharia Law and its proponents teach. Then ask yourselves how happy you are that British schoolchildren are being taught to hate Jews, that thieving should be punishable by amputation and that homosexuals should be killed.