Why this Blog?

A place where I can lament the changing times; for eccentric comments on current affairs and for unfashionable views, expressed I hope, in cogent style; also occasional cris de coeur largely concerned, I regret to say, with myself.



Comments

I welcome your comments, so do please write. Please note however that all comments are moderated prior to publication. Whilst I fully appreciate that life can be frustrating, nevertheless, abuse, SMS language and illiteracy will not be tolerated!

Thursday 30 May 2013

Yasmin Alibhai-Brown

In this post that I submitted the other day, I referred to transportation to the South Sandwich Islands as a suitable method of dealing with Islamist (or in fact any) religious extremists, terrorists etc.

On Monday this week, owing to the fact that the only newspaper left at the newsagent was The Independent, I came across an article by Miss Alibhai-Brown.  She wrote: 

"And at moments of high tension, the most liberal and democratic of us fantasise about transporting them all [Islamist fanatics] to a remote cold island, their own dismal caliphate where they could preach to each other and die."

Could it be possible that Miss Alibhai-Brown had seen my article?  Otherwise it came as quite a shock that she might have something in common with this writer, but as is well known, life is "full of surprises" usually in my experience, unpleasant ones.  I must say that "dismal caliphate" is a well-turned phrase, but implying (at least, I draw the inference) that there might be something undemocratic about transporting these ordures is surely erroneous.  How many of Miss Alibhai-Brown's fellow Britons would be likely to support such a scheme?

Quite a few I should say.

Until the next time.

Wednesday 29 May 2013

Watch This Space

I have a suspicion that my blog, though being hardly a suitable destination, might be being read by famous lefty, Miss Yasmin Alibhai-Brown.

Update tomorrow.

Until then

Miscellaneous Rants

Typically, the older I get the more annoying life becomes.  Once upon a time one might meet lefty females who would ask "Why are you so angry, Paul?"  There is a simple answer to this: "Because there is so much that gets on my tits."

Last night, the BBC on Newsnight interviewed famous lefty George Monbiot who is a sort of activist for "environmental" and ecological issues.  This crackpot wants wolves to be re-introduced into this country; cretin.  This has already happened in south-eastern France where the shepherds have to stand idly by whilst their flocks are decimated by these vermin.  The sheep-farmers are not permitted to shoot the wolves.

Pathetic.

And I'm bloody annoyed (as always) about the slackness that is causing a steady decline in the English language.

Why do the railway companies insist on addressing us as "customers?"  We are NOT customers, we are passengers.  I suppose that before long patients will be referred to as "customers" of the health service.  Rubbish.

And pronunciation!  Why cannot anyone pronounce the words "for" and "to"?  Why have they become "fer" and "ter?"  Slackness.  The BBC is very guilty: their people cannot pronounce "formidable," controversy," or "centenary" correctly - these just being examples.  Here are the BBC pronunciations, followed by the correct versions:

forMIDable - FORmidable
conTROVersy - CONtroversy
cenTENary - centeenary

The last has suffered from what I call Kenya trouble - ever since the pronunciation of that state's name was modified in honour of former terrorist Jomo Kenyatta.  Today I see that Mount Everest has to be referred to by some jaw-breaking name.  Nonsense, same as Myanmar for Burma, Mumbai for Bombay, Innuits for Esquimaux, etc., etc. ad nauseam.  The worst example arguably, is referring to Red Indians as "Native Americans."  John Wayne or Ronald Reagan or Martin Luther King were every bit as "native American" as Geronimo.  More cosy PC rubbish.  I would not of course object to "aboriginal Americans" or even at a pinch "indiginous Americans."

I watched a terrible film the other day: Sword of Sherwood daing from 1960 and featuring Richard Greene as Robin Hood.  A Hammer production, it was truly pathetic except in one respect: every actor spoke beautifully.  It was balm for my long-suffering ears.

I hate change.

Grrrrrr.

Until the next time.


Friday 24 May 2013

WOOLWICH - An Afterthought

Since it is politically impossible these days, in the West at least to execute the sort of vermin who carried out yesterday's attack, for me this begs the question about what could we actually do with these appalling people - and the perverted maniacs who "radicalise" them.

I suggest that the penalty of transportation, to British territory elsewhere be reinstated; why not?  We would not be "infringing their human rights" by deporting them to countries who have a better idea of how to deal with terrorists, and anyway, tragically many of these people actually have British passports.

I see with interest that the South Sandwich Islands, British sovereign territory in the South Atlantic, are unoccupied and have been since we kicked out the illegal Argentinian base that was installed there in 1978.

So it's very simple: gather together the murderers and thugs who pervert the name of Islam with their deranged activities, and their horrible hate-purveying ranters (e.g. Abu Qatada), give them 50 sheep and some packets of seeds and deposit them in the South Atlantic.  Problem solved - and of course this punishment will apply to any other "radicals" who try to stir up trouble.  The climate there should cool their ardour a little and there would be the added bonus of their presence being likely to dissuade the Argentinians from attempting another take-over!  Since the climate may well be a bit too tough for the sheep (though I dare say there may be some hardy breed) I suppose we might stretch a point and give them some fishing tackle!

Until the next time.

Thursday 23 May 2013

WOOLWICH

Not much to say on this topic.

The disgusting attack on a British soldier in broad daylight carried out by a pair of deranged Islamist scum is of course, profoundly shocking.  I am delighted that the pair were shot by the police and I hope that pain they will have to endure will persuade them that their Allah is not perhaps as merciful as they were inclined to believe; perhaps they were hoping to be shot dead and thus collect their heavenly reward of 72 virgins?

I would like to think that some good might come out of this appalling crime in that the government will finally show some real balls, ignore the bloody EU and kick out some of these extremist scum (e.g. Abu Qatada).  These islamist cretins merely serve to build up hatred and cause social divisions in this country; it is good to see that the Muslim Council has unreservedly condemned the attack - as of course they should.

Depressing though it was to hear that some young fanatics expressed themselves pleased at the outrage.  These perverted vermin should be put down; they merely serve to encourage the nasty lower-class yobs in the English Defence League as has already been demonstrated.

Until the next time.

Saturday 18 May 2013

Eminently Quotable

Is the great Whig politician, the third Lord Palmerston (1784-1865).


Palmerston famously practised "gunboat diplomacy" when a British subject, one Don Pacifico was attacked by an anti-semitic mob in Greece in 1847 while the Greek police stood idly by.  Palmerston, very much a Liberal, believed that any British subject should be able to rely on his government for full protection and support.  To this end he sent a warship to blockade the port of Piraeus, provoking an international row and a political storm at home: he managed to upset not only Russia and France but perhaps more impressively, Her Majesty Queen Victoria herself!

Nevertheless I admire such confidence; surely the last British politician to demonstrate such resolve was Winston Churchill?

And it was Palmerston who made the famous statement as follows (often misquoted incidentally):

"Therefore I say that it is a narrow policy to suppose that this country or that is to be marked out as the eternal ally or the perpetual enemy of England. We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow."

It was a BBC television programme that prompted this piece: the programme concerned the 150th anniversary of the openeing of the first underground railway service in the world, in London in 1863.  Of cousre the first train was to carry a collection of VIPs, and Lord Palmerston, then 79, was invited.

He declined with the observation that "I'd like to think that I shall remain above ground a little longer."

Stylish I think.

Until the next time.