How About Drawing Up Plans To Deal With the Africans In Ireland?

Protests against immigration have erupted into violence in Northern Ireland after far-right activists called for demonstrations in response to a stabbing attack that was captured in a graphic video.

Ealier yeaterday this article was all about the plans being drawn up to contain any disturbances. As we can see, waking up this morning to the news, they were ineffective. 

Ryan Henderson, the assistant chief constable, appealed for calm: “Sporadic pockets of disorder have broken out in a number of locations across Northern Ireland this evening, including incidents in which a number of vehicles have been set on fire. We are urging everyone to remain calm, act responsibly, and avoid any activity that could place themselves or others at risk.”

They are acting in defemce of their communities, because they can't trust you, the authorities, to do so.

Earlier, O’Neill urged the public not to be persuaded by social media accounts to start causing disorder. “For all of those people out there who are stoking up tensions in that social media space, who are happy to raise tensions, they do not represent us. We are good people and I don’t want to see anybody living in fear.”

But as a result of the attempted beheading (not a simple 'stabbing' as you are determined to keep raferring to it), people are already living in fear! Of the people who you are letting into the country and granting social housing to. And the Left wing press is determined to paint well-establised concerns as you being influenced by outside forces, not by those people have seen with their own eyes'

The victim was revealed to be Stephen Ogilvie, in his 40s, who last night remained in a serious condition in hospital. It is understood he lived in the same block of social housing as the suspect

Why?  The safety of the native population should be paramount, and 'asylum seekers' about whom we know nothing should not be hoiused in social housing, or be allowed to walk the streets. The streets on which the authorities themselves make sure not to live. 

The suspect travelled from Dublin to Belfast by bus on 10 February 2023 and claimed asylum, said Boutcher. “There is no trace of this suspect on any of our national security databases, and he was not known to the Police Service of Northern Ireland. I’ve been in direct contact with the head of terrorism policing in the UK. At this stage, we have no information to suggest that this was terrorist-related.”

It caused terror, didn't it?  

This Is No Way To Shed The 'Two Tier' Shame...

I'm beginning to think the Met Police's PR team contains some saboteurs:

The Metropolitan Police will not investigate the harassment of national treasure Dame Helen Mirren by a pro-Palestine activist, according to reports. The Oscar-winning actress, 80, was called an 'evil Zionist b****' by Corbynista Tom Carroll as she walked along the street in London with her husband, Taylor Hackford. 

Scotland Yard initially treated last year's incident as a possible hate crime, but have since decided not to proceed with the investigation.

 Why? 

It is understood the decision was taken after officers spoke to Dame Helen, who has long been outspoken in her support for Israel.

I feel they are trying to imply that she doesn't want the fuss, but they should say that if so. Or remind themselves that this is the UK and people don't have to 'press charges' here and do the job they are paid to do... 

Especially when the perp is a known danger to women:

In 2018, Carroll was wanted in connection with a brutal assault on an 84-year-old woman at Shoreditch High Street station in east London whilst he was on his way from a violent far-Left protest. Five years later he handed himself in to police in 2023 where he pleaded not guilty but was sentenced to 12 months' probation & 200 hours' community service for the lesser crime of threatening behaviour.

So, he got let off, and I could understand the police's frustration with that, but it's not a reason not to do their part. 

 

You're Right, It Does, And You've Drawn The Same Wrong Conclusions From It Again...

Watching the harrowing footage of what would become Yves Sakila’s final moments of consciousness, it is hard not to be reminded of the agonising death of George Floyd.

Had this one too consumed mass quantities of dangerous illegal drugs, then? 

Sakila was declared dead in a Dublin hospital on 15 May, a short time after being pinned to the ground by security guards outside Arnotts, a city centre department store.

Congolese-born Sakila had allegedly been suspected of shoplifting in the store and fled.

Maybe he should have remained in the store to plead his innocence then. 

In these deeply distressing images, the 35-year-old is being restrained by a group of security guards for nearly five minutes. He tries to protest but his shouts are muffled in the concrete when one of the men appears to put his knee on the back of Sakila’s neck. By the end of the video, Sakila has stopped moving.

The cause of death has not yet been established – an initial post-mortem examination reportedly inconclusive. Nor is it likely that the police investigation into claims of excessive force will establish exactly what was going through the minds of those involved.

Probably struggling to subdue a suspect who was trying to escape, no more than that.... Oh, and perhaps thinking about the danger they could have been in!

Yet, this is what I would like to understand. What would compel someone who can see that a person is being forcibly restrained by several men, to kneel on the individual’s neck? Would it have been different if the man suspected of stealing had been white?

No. Because it hasn't made any difference in this case. Securuty guards are there to stop shoplifting, and they will tackle you if you are black, white or sky-blue pink! And if shoplifting is a dangerous pasttime, it doesn't seem to have stopped anyone.

Six years ago we gathered and protested in the streets under Black Lives Matter banners. We were finally addressing the racism in Ireland that was overlooked for so long. Was all that in vain?

Not for the founders of BLM who made out like bandits, Sean!  

As black people in Ireland, it feels as though we are repeatedly asked to sweep such horrific “incidents” under the rug, as though they are isolated tragedies, unconnected to any patterns or larger systemic issues.

Well, they are clearly connected to the criminality that seems to be overly present in the black population. But I feel you wouldn't want to discuss that... 

But even after an event that has drawn international attention, most of the country appears to be in denial. The taoiseach, Micheál Martin, offered his condolences, adding that “the situation will have to be thoroughly investigated” and that “a lot of people are clearly very concerned about what has transpired here”. But showing no willingness to ask if racism may have played a part in Sakila’s handling lets the danger grow.

Because he can see that it clearly didn't.  

There are justified concerns about not prejudicing the investigation. But in a climate where former prime ministers join in the scapegoating of marginalised and often racialised communities for the shortcomings of decades of failed leadership, the lack of a profound debate about systemic racism risks enabling more violent behaviour in the future.

The discussion of 'systemic racism' as a policy is getting a hammering in the UK at the moment, but you do you, Sean.

You're Just Not That Riveting, Clearly

Rosamund Pike confronted an audience member during a performance of Inter Alia at Wyndham’s Theatre in London’s West End on Saturday. The actor, 47, who won an Olivier award for her role as a crown court judge in the show, blasted an audience member for texting during the climax of the play.

How very dare they not pay attention! 

During the curtain call, Pike pointed out how unacceptable it is for audiences to use their phones, especially during pivotal moments.

If you were any good in the play, maybe they wouldn't? 

A member of the audience said after the performance that Pike seemed “genuinely upset”, the Times reported.

Ah, bless... 

Pike is not the first thespian to criticise audience behaviour in British theatres. Just weeks ago, Cynthia Erivo brought her performance of Dracula to a standstill after noticing an audience member filming on a mobile phone.

Rather like being at school, they punish the entire audience because one member is acting up.

It's Not 'Too Hard' To Reverse Direction, Actually...

Gaby Hinsliff takes the field to defend anti racism training, because of course she does...

The two families have never met but are bonded both in grief and in a desire to avoid what Webber called “political grandstanding”.

The two families referred to being Hanry Nowak's and Barnaby Webber's, victim of Valdo Calocane. United not just by the loss of a family member, but by betrayal of the establishment in dealing with the crime.

There is no way back from this madness without acknowledging hard truths. Calocane was sectioned and discharged four times, and two of his doctors testified that race hadn’t influenced those decisions. But Dr Jonathan Gibson – who saw Calocane four months before the killings, and now believes he should have pushed for his patient to be forcibly medicated – testified that he had been repeatedly told psychiatry was “institutionally racist” and too coercive, especially with young black men, adding that he was “viscerally” aware of the argument and “I do not believe it had no bearing on VC’s care”.

Not do most people. 

If professionals are now questioning their own judgments and assumptions, then that’s healthy and necessary – and I say that as a writer who has had to learn how to do it. But it’s also undeniably difficult, forcing people in already complex, pressured careers such as policing and medicine to work with what can only be described as a bewildering number of mental tabs constantly open – including the idea, expressed in police guidance now being reviewed by government, that fairness isn’t necessarily treating everyone the same.

Give us an ecxample then! 

(Reading a deaf suspect their rights like anyone else is equal treatment, for example, but it’s not fair if they can’t hear you.)

That's clearly the case, because they are physically incapable - so are you saying that black people are physically incapable of obeying the law and refraining from murder!? I can hardly believe it! 

Though a consultant psychiatrist should be capable of exceedingly fine judgments, it’s a big ask of an 18-year-old security guard on minimum wage or a rookie police constable straight out of sixth form. Walking these high wires takes skilled and supportive management, and better diversity training, not less.

Oh, bless them! What sort of 'better diversity training'?  

If any professional has been too squeamish, then the takeaway is that kneejerk assumptions either way are dangerous and need confronting, not that the legacy of the Macpherson report on racism in policing needs dismantling, as Farage is now arguing. The lesson of Henry Nowak’s awful death is not that Stephen Lawrence’s has somehow ceased to matter, but that lessons must be learned from both.

Ding Ding Ding! Lefty Buzzword Bingo in play! 

The Dam Has Broken...

The furore over two-tier policing intensified last night after a supermarket boss accused officers of treating a false claim of racism more seriously than rampant violence by shoplifters.

And I feel he'll not be alone in speaking out.

Iceland founder Sir Malcolm Walker says 'two-tier policing isn't just happening on the streets' as he revealed cops rushed to one of his stores three minutes after a phoney accusation of racism was made against a shop supervisor. The entrepreneur made a formal complaint to Scotland Yard after the Asian supervisor was handcuffed and dragged to a police car by officers who rushed to the scene when a black customer made a complaint of racism after being caught tampering with milk bottles.In contrast, Sir Malcolm said, police often did not attend even when staff had been seriously hurt or threatened with violence by shoplifters.

The gloves are obviously off - once one speaks out, there's no reason for the others to stay silent. Who will speak up for their staff next? 

That Tune's Familiar: Parody Songs

Another song that seems to be popular for parody makers, as the king of parody himself, Weird Al Yankovic, has proved, but as a lifelong 'Trek' fan, I chose this one.

Back To Basics For Westminster...

 

...but just wait for someone to claim 'cultural appopriation', Matt.

Sunday Funnies...

 Only 21? And the robot hummingbird is cool!

Because They Aren't Cooked In Beef Dripping, That's Why!

London leads the way in so many culinary fields. It can’t be beaten for fine dining. We have a sandwich game second to none. And the sushi is so good people have been known to travel from Japan for it. But Achilles had his heel, and we have fish and chips.

Not entirely true, I feel, my local - which provides my regular Friday night supper - is good. I wouldn't use it if it wasn't. But I've had better. On holiday recently, walking the John Muir Way from Dunbar to Belhaven on Bank Holiday Monday (and getting sunburned!) we stopped in at the Brig and Barrel for a meal before heading back to Edinburgh. 

Now, cod is not the usual up there, it's haddock, so I had beer battered haddock, and it was quite different from the occasional haddock I've ordered here just for a change. Probably because it was locally caught and fresh, not frozen. And even the beer that went into the batter was local, from the brewery next door.

The truth of it is, the capital is the worst place in the country to eat our national dish. I should know: I wrote The Standard’s best fish and chip guide. The best in London, sure. But if anyone told me that these were the best fish and chips in Britain, I’d feel as if I’d been slapped round the face with a wet haddock.

Two of my picks for best London chippies, Golden Union in Soho and Seashell of Lisson Grove in Marylebone, were nominated for this year’s National Fish and Chip Awards. Neither were eventual winners though as York’s The Scrap Box was named best takeaway and Trenchers of Whitby won best restaurant.

Both from 'oop North', it should be noted. 

Why are fish and chips in London such a damp squib when the capital excels at every style of cooking under the sun?

He then laboriously tries various suggestions: that cod is tasteless compared to haddock (true, if haddock is fresh), that whatever fish is used, it's not as fresh (sone truth to that!), that it just doesn't taste as good unless it's eaten at the seaside (rubbish! though I'll test that theory if I take a day trip to Rye next month as planned) but he never thinks to question the cooking oil. 

Beef dripping is far preferable! Forget health worries, it just is...