Tweet Of The Month

Well played, Co-Op man, well played...

Post Title Of The Month

AlJahom on the EU pressure to interfere with internet access:

And The Champ briefly comes out of retirement to note the corona virus effect on another modern virus:

Quote Of The Month

DumbJon on the way COVID-19 posed a challenge for the Open Borders crowd:

"The left has spent a hundred years sneering at World War I generals and their cold-blooded decisions to keep throwing away lives with hopeless, head on attacks. Now, suddenly, open borders are in the firing line and these people are all but giving out white feathers to anyone who questions the sanity of Italian citizens being locked down and unable to go anywhere.... except Heathrow.

Hey, I consider The Omega Man to be an underrated conservative classic, but I don't want to live in it!"

Post Of The Month

A tie this month. Longrider exposes the insanity of the anti-smoking lobbie's policies while Squander Two makes a welcome return to discuss risk assessment...

"How Dare They Say We Are Out Of Touch With People!"

"Why, they don't even understand how important gender issues are!"

Congratulations, Bas. In a very tough field, you've come across as a prize example of why the UK public are now looking at senior officers with even more thinly veiled contempt than usual.

Pretty soon, the veil is going to drop completely.

Who Are You To Decide What's 'Essential'..?

Britons have brazenly flouted Boris Johnson's strict instructions not to leave home other than for essentials, by stocking up on homeware and DIY equipment.

Good for Britons, I say! I thought we were supposed to 'never, never, never shall be slaves'!

Shoppers in Stockton-on-Tees have been spotted emerging from B&M with a variety of non-urgent items including a lava lamp, paint a houseplant and doormats.

So what? So bloody what?! I went to Tesco yesterday, got essential food items and....a new houseplant!

When can I expect the public shaming to begin?

B&M has remained open as it sells essential products including food, groceries and pet food, but many shoppers appeared to stock up on other goods inside the store.

While you're picking up your dog food, you pick up some paint to do some DIY while you're stuck at home. What's wrong with that?

The flagrant disregard for the strict orders further risks spreading coronavirus as the Government desperately wants the public to remain at home.

How? If you're already there anyway!? 

Stephen King Opines...

Funnily enough, the authorities have failed to 'take the necessary steps' to prepare for killer clowns, rabid dogs and self-driving homicidal cars too.

Blimey, Steve, it's like they think you write fiction or something...

"It Just Means The Colour, Right..?"

No, 'Mail' picture editor, it doesn't.

That's a brown-phase black bear. There are no 'brown bears' in California...

"Professional Signwriters? Why Would We Need Those?"

"We've got a printer, after all..."

Sunday Funnies...

We used to have no.4 .... but I guess that's progress!

Why Is This Man Not Behind Bars For Life?

Harland, formerly of West View, Pegswood, has 133 previous convictions - including for assaulting his mother by holding a knife to her throat when she would not make him a sandwich.

He pleaded guilty to GBH with intent and was jailed for seven years, with an extended licence period of a further three years.

But after that, he'll be perfectly safe to let out? Again...

Tony Cornberg, defending, said Harland had anxiety, depression, a problem with alcohol misuse and that it was a "pressure cooker situation" between him and his mum.

The lawyer noted her mental health difficulties and claimed there "something similar to provocation" had gone on.

I wish I believed in Hell, so I could imagine there's a special place in it for people who make a living defending someone like this by blaming the victim...

Come In PC 601, Your Time Is Up...

The extraordinary incident took place outside the Grodzinski bakery in Edgware, north-west London, this morning, when police spotted the owner using a can of non-permanent spray chalk to help maintain social distancing of two metres.

And went over to congratulate her? Well....no, of course not.

The officer told the flabbergasted woman that she had graffitied the pavement and if police failed to punish crimes like these there would be 'anarchy', adding: 'I can't help the law. We're going to be ticketing soon to stop people congregating - is that wrong too?'.

 If you can't tell the difference, PC 601, then you shouldn't even be in the farce at all.

A witness who filmed the incident told the policeman: 'People are dying and this is what you care about, this is ridiculous, this is horrendous' and the officer replies: 'The law doesn't stop unfortunately. It's still a criminal offence. The law is the law and it doesn't change because of what is happening. There would be anarchy in the world'.

People have been urging the police to 'use their common sense' and police the new laws with discretion and judgement. But it seems PC 601 wasn't in the queue when those were handed out!

And for once, the Met have suddenly realised what's in store for them if they try to double down and back their moron no matter what:

A Met Police spokesperson said: 'The officer advised the woman that he was planning to issue a ticket for criminal damage. However, following a further conversation, no ticket was issued.

'The actions shown in this video do not reflect the current policing style that the MPS seeks to adopt. The officer has been spoken to and all staff on the borough will be reminded about using discretion where appropriate in these exceptional times.'

Why is he still on the farce at all? He should be retired along with this idiot.

Now, I don't doubt that the police are - mostly - doing the best job they can in the circumstances. But if they don't get a grip on the idiots amongst them, they risk losing what little respect they still maintain amongst Britain's law abiding majority.

And that's something even more dangerous than Kung Flu...

Plus Ca Change Plus C'est La Meme Chose

Criminals will no longer be called “offenders” by the probation service under a move to “reset” the language and create an “inclusive culture.”

I'd say that it's difficult to 'include' people who are behind bars, but then I remember how few of them are actually locked up!

Instead of being known as an offender, anyone under supervision will be referred to as a “person subject to probation services”.

You have to laugh, or you'd cry...

It will cover both criminals serving community sentences for low-level offences as well as prisoners released on licence to serve the remainder of their sentence in the community.

Mingling petty thieves with murderers.

As part of the reform, the term “Offender Manager” will be replaced with “Probation Practitioner”, while “Offender Management” will become “Sentence Management”.

I have other titles they could use. But, then, this is a family blog.

H/T: Service via Twitter

"...some believe the force is going too far."

Really? And are they doing anything about it?

One senior Tory MP told MailOnline: 'Probably what will happen is a quiet word from the policing minister to the Chief Constable of Derbyshire saying: 'can you ease off here, we don't want to give you a haranguing, but we have got enough to worry about without you telling off people who are just taking their dog for a walk.'

What's the point of a 'quiet word'? They should dress down the power-grabbing moron on live TV.

Since we seem to be going in for public displays of approbation like some mawkish Third World country, we might as well do the same when someone needs to understand they've overstepped the mark too.

We shouldn't be too surprised to find it's the Derbyshire farce, they do have form...

The MP added the government was in a difficult position where looser advice saying people could be 'reasonable' would risk being exploited by 'idiots'.

They didn't worry about instructions to the police being exploited by authoritarian jackbooted thugs  (what happened to 'don't call us', then?) who long for the power to decide if your shopping trip is 'necessary', did they?

But surely they don't have the manpower for this? Aren't they always crying 'lack of resources!' when asked why they are so woeful at their main task?

Experts have said the enforcement will divert officers from investigating other crimes, but forces including the Met insist it can form part of their usual patrol duties.

Well, seems to me they just shot themselves in the foot with that one, eh? If they can set up roadblocks to check if Mabel's trip to the corner shop is really necessary, they can pull out all the stops when her car is stolen.

Can't they?

A Nation Of Shopkeepers?

Or a nation of informers?

Police are urging the public to stop calling them about cafes and restaurants remaining open.

How times change! When this newspaper went to print last week and I was compiling this post, the idea that people would call the police for this seemed ludicrous.

But now? Not only are they being encouraged to do so, but the police have been forced into a 180 and will have to respond!

Posting on their Twitter page today, Sussex Police said: "We’re getting calls about cafes and restaurants still open.

"We are reminding premises of the Government's advice if they are open.

"However, some will be operating a takeaway service, not affected by the measures.

"Please keep our lines free for those that need us. Thank you."

Do they now mean 'Please keep our lines free for others to report a neighbour taking more than the one permitted exercise walk per day'..?

Who is most to blame for this hysteria? Well, it's people like this:

As the intro to the old show 'Dark Skies' warned us: "They're here. They're hostile. And powerful people don't want you to know."

Who's The One Suffering Here?

A prolific Oxford thief who 'blighted the lives' of city residents has been given a ...

Lengthy prison sentence? Lethal injection? David Thompson's “three-strikes-and-we-put-you-out-to-sea-on-a-fucking-raft” policy?

Sadly, no...

... final chance and will embark on a residential rehabilitation scheme.

Of course! Who really expected anything else...?

The 46-year-old of no fixed abode, who has 120 previous crimes to his name, mostly for theft, appeared to be sentenced after he admitted 33 more offences.

/facepalm

How can it be possible for one person to rack up that criminal history and still be allowed free reign?

Speaking on behalf of Lennon probation officers said that he suffered from substance misuse problems.

No! Everyone else suffers. He doesn't!

Sentencing, Judge Peter Ross said: "You are 46 years old, you have had a long history of drug abuse which has blighted your life now for many, many years."

*grinds teeth*

"And it has blighted the lives of so many innocent people upon whom you have preyed, committing offences in order to raise money for your drug habit."

That's the salient point, isn't it? So why not sentence him accordingly?

"You have a chance now which will never be repeated."

Really? Bet it is!

He said that if a non-rehabilitative course had been taken he would consider a jail term in the region of three years for the latest crimes.

Instead Judge Ross ordered a three-year community order for Lennon.

I really hope he burgles a relative or pal of this bewigged cretin.

Some Light At The End Of The Tunnel...

A new body promised by Theresa May to tackle “deep-seated societal injustices” has never been convened and never will be, the Observer has been told.

The former prime minister’s pledge to create the Office for Tackling Injustices (OfTI) won praise from inequality campaigners, who said it was an important part of the battle to reduce opportunity disparities over race, gender, deprivation, sexuality and disability. The chair of the new office was also announced when May unveiled the plan last summer. May, who in her first speech as prime minister in July 2016 pledged to fight against “burning injustice”, said she wanted it to hold “government and wider society to account”.

However, more than eight months after May revealed the plan, the office has never been convened – with some of those involved believing it will never be established.

It'd take a heart of stone, wouldn't it?

Expect More Of These!

A woman accused of fraud while working at an estate agency failed to attend court because she was self isolating after her friend returned from Italy.

A likely story!

Keisha Lee, 36, was due to attend her trial at a London magistrates court on Thursday, but did not turn up because she was self isolating amid coronavirus concerns.

The court heard Lee contacted the court on Wednesday to say she had been in contact with somebody who may have coronavirus and that she is self isolating.

Lee, of Balham, is accused of committing fraud by abuse of position while working as a tenancies administrator at Chesterton's City of London.

But it worked, of course.

District Judge Michael Snow adjourned the case until next Thursday and said the court should expect defendants in those circumstances to attend, following current government advice.

In relation to the defendant's specific circumstances, he said: "The government advice is not that you self isolate at this stage."

He added: "I think we are going to have to be careful with just adjourning cases. We have to follow government advice.

"The court should expect defendants in those circumstances to attend. If government advice changes then fair enough.

"I am going to put this forward until March 19."

By which time she'll have a new excuse. Or the courts will have ground to a halt...

Utter Insanity...

...not to mention a total waste of resources:

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) was called to probe how Sussex Police Chief Constable Giles York responded to an incident last year.

Mr York spotted 37-year-old Ryan Prince in distress on the A264 near Pease Pottage at lunchtime on July 25.

And just drove on by, callously abandoning an innocent to his fate?

Well...no, actually. Sorry Melvin!

He was the only driver to stop to try help Mr Prince, who had taken cocaine and later died in hospital from multi-organ failure.

So why on earth was he investigated?

Because of the death and the contact between Mr Prince and Mr York, the IOPC were called in.

And as bureaucracies the world over do, they chose to press on despite the obvious inappropriateness of any action. Why not? It's only taxpayer money, after all...

Coroner Veronica Hamilton-Deeley said Mr York’s actions were “exemplary”. Mr Prince died from a drug related death the conclusion was misadventure.

And what do the IOPC have to say for themselves?

IOPC regional director Sarah Green said: “My thoughts remain with Mr Prince’s family, friends and all those affected by his death.

“Our investigation concluded there was no indication officers may have breached standards of professional behaviour.”

You really needed to investigate to know that?

And what about some thoughts for the officer who was needlessly investigated, instead of the drug taking moron who could easily have killed others as well as himself?

So Much For 'Keep Calm And Carry On'...

Oh, Jerry, if only you'd known...

...but then, that was for when the Luftwaffe were dropping 1000lb bombs, not really serious things like a bad flu with a 97% recovery rate.

In a grim address to the nation from Downing Street, Mr Johnson said family reunions, weddings, baptisms and other social events must be cancelled to stop the NHS collapsing under the strain. Funerals can go ahead attended by just a handful of closest relatives.

The government just threw the UK economy and everyone's rights under a bus to protect ... the NHS.

Am I missing something here?

Going out for exercise will be allowed once a day, but parks will be patrolled to make sure there is no abuse of the rules.

Really? You mean the local councils that let yobs and drug addicts have free rein in our local parks for years will now open up cupboards and haul, blinking, into the sunlight the beloved old 'parkie', all set and raring to go'?

Police will have powers to fine those who do not fall into line, and disperse any public gatherings.

Yes, those same police who stood by while London burned several years ago and people lost their livelihoods, their homes, their pets and their loved ones will now stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood, disguise fair nature with hard-favour'd rage, then lend the eye a terrible aspect and ... fine little Mabel who they think might have taken more than the maximum one permitted walk per day?

...closing all shops selling non-essential goods,​ including clothing and electronic stores, and other premises including libraries, playgrounds and outdoor gyms, and places of worship

And here we see the terrible gulf between those who rule us and ordinary life. Who think they can be the ones to define what are 'essential goods'.

"But Tamara, if we close libraries, what will the people stuck at home do for entertainment?"

"Oh, Tarquin, you are silly! They all have Amazon Prime on their Kindles, yah?" 

We are governed by utter morons. Cinemas, I could understand. People go to those in groups. But libraries?

And have we forgotten that modern libraries are not just book repositories, but places where people have been encouraged to go to access vital services, get internet access for job searching and banking, etc?

Run the country? These people couldn't run a bath...

As Longrider says:

"Somewhere between “we’re all going to dieeeeee!” and “there isn’t a problem.” was a sensible and pragmatic approach: Isolating the vulnerable and allowing the healthy to get sick, thereby building herd immunity. However, they have chosen a path that fascists across the world will applaud. This evening, any belief that we live in a free country died as we all submitted with barely a whimper to indefinite house arrest."

We live in interesting times. Hmmm. That's an old Chinese curse, isn't it?

"We understand that the woman has some history of mental illness..."

Like me, I suspect that you too are as sick of hearing this as you are of news of the next store to shut up shop due to Coronavirus:

'We have sent specialist family liaison officers to support the family. This is a family's worst nightmare. The incident is horrendous and I cannot begin to imagine what the family of this little girl are going through.

'We are determined to quickly understand how this came to happen, leaving a young family so distraught and so devastated in an instant.'

At least he didn't trot out the cliched 'these events are very rare'.

Because they aren't, are they?

'Guardian' Schizophrenia...

"How dare you blame Chinese people for the virus!"

"People are to blame for this, we've ruined everything, oh, woe is us!"

C'mon, they can't both be true!

How can you not be to blame for eating everything that can't crawl or slither away fast enough, despite the evident health risks?

I Know Panicbuying Has Produced Food Shortages...

...but I don't think there's any need to contemplate cannibalism!

Well, This Is Appropriate...

'Nuff said!

Sunday Funnies...

Remember when unbridled capitalism was something the US welcomed, and not sneered at...?

Never Let A Crisis Go To Waste, Eh, Open Borders Advocates..?

Farzana Khan (writer and community organiser) in the 'Guardian':

While we want to highlight the importance of community organising, local action alone isn’t enough. The truth is that we are trying to plug gaps left by the government, which is why we’re calling on it to match the community spirit and solidarity of our network by quickly pushing ahead with measures such as guaranteed sick pay for all, expanding free wifi to those without an internet connection, support for renters and the release of immigration detainees.

Ah, yes, of course. In amongst the 'waah, give people more taxpayer cash' demands, she can't help but slip in the usual goal, can she?

In conjunction with local work, these government decisions would protect people at the sharpest end of inequality in the UK.

These people aren't from the UK. We owe them nothing but a speedy return to their home countries.

'Reason' Has No Bearing On This...

...in fact, you could have stopped that sentence just four words in. It shows what many think of government reassurance.

And the rest? Just greedy and selfish. Just...people!

 

Isolation Seems The Best Thing For Him...

Robert Chubb enjoyed strolling through Preston Park in Brighton as part of his daily routine.

But he attacked an innocent woman walking her dogs through the park.

It may have been because he felt she had interfered with his routine, Brighton Magistrates’ Court heard.

Who cares why this psycho felt he needed to assault someone?

It has left the victim, who The Argus has chosen not to name, with concussion and suffering with anxiety when she goes out to walk her dogs.

She said: “It happened so fast. I never spoke to the man, he has never spoken to me. But he came from behind and attacked me.

“I have not really been going to the park as much with my dogs.

“I don’t want to see the man any more, I don’t feel safe going out.

“He punched me and then walked off. That’s what makes me struggle more. Because if I did something or said something I have no idea what it was and fear it could happen again.”

It already has happened far too many times....

Suzanne Soros, prosecuting, said the incident happened on July 16 last year. Ms Soros said Chubb has committed 12 previous attacks on other people between 1984 and 2017.

Twelve. Twelve! Why is he still free to walk the streets?

Chubb, of York Road, Hove, represented himself in court, and a probation officer and District Judge Amanda Kelly explained to him the effect his conduct had on the victim.

The probation officer said Chubb has previously completed unpaid work but sometimes struggles juggling the community service with rehabilitation sessions.

He said Chubb has a desire for more human contact and has been quite isolated because of his condition.

No, because of his actions.

Judge Kelly said: “I know your routine is important to you, but that lady’s routine has been disrupted because of your conduct.

“She liked walking her dogs without worrying about being attacked, but is now too afraid to do that.”

She ordered Chubb to complete 120 hours of unpaid work in the next 12 months and told him to pay £200 to the victim.

Meanwhile she banned him from Preston Park for three years as part of a restraining order and said he will need to find a new route for his routine.

So he'll go to another park instead. How long do you give it until he assaults someone there?

And how long will it be before the authorities do their job, and make sure he's somewhere he can't assault innocent members of the public?

If You Want To Keep Something, You Need To Own It...

An Abbey Wood family are "heartbroken" after learning their home of more than 60 years will go back to the council, after their grandmother's death.

'Their' home? It's a council property.

Veronica Davie, of Panfield Road, sadly died at the beginning of this year, January 9. Ms Davies' granddaughter, Alison Basset, of Grovebury road, says the home should be kept within the family.

Then maybe you should have exercised the right to buy while she was still alive.

Ms Basset could not be classed as a joint tenant on the property, and is currently on band B1 priority for overcrowding and has reportedly been on the housing list for 10 years.

I bet she has some of the usual reasons for...

Yup! Called it!

“Nan would want us to have her house and her grandchildren to grow up there.

“My 17-year-old daughter and 13-year-old son share a room and I share with my nearly 3-year-old.

“My son has autism and my daughter has psychogenic non-epileptic seizures.

“I have had no luck getting re-housed with the council and have continuously been messed about by them."

*sighs*

"We Must Do More..."

"...we must do, errr, ummm, wait, I'll figure it out in a moment..."

Parents are increasingly worried about the safety of their children after a teenager was murdered on a bus in South Norwood – the third fatal stabbing in Croydon this year.

Why? If their children aren't in gangs, they should be fine.

This morning residents were shocked that another young life had been lost on their doorstep.

John Ormesher said: “Every time this happens it is just another wasted life.

“There have been enough murders to see that something needs to be done, but it is very easy to say that and do nothing about it.”

Would you like to suggest something?

Kieron McNulty from Selhurst said that his children, aged 16 and 14, are now frightened that they will be attacked where they live in Penge. He added: “It is a worry, you’re worried about saying the wrong thing to someone and getting stabbed, that civility has gone.

“There has got to be more stuff for kids to do.”

Ah, yes. The excuse that these criminals are stabbing each other because 'there ain't no yoof clubs, innit fam?'...

A woman who has lived in the area for the past 65 years said that it has changed dramatically in that time. She added: “I don’t go out at night anymore, things like this worry me.

“Why do they do it, the young ones? It’s all against each other. You’d think they would want to be kind to each other.”

Maybe they should listen to more Carpenters, and less drill rap...

And Kim Russell who lives nearby was shocked by the news. She said: “It is very, very sad. I’ve got a teenage boy myself and I worry about him all the time.

“I am in this area every day and you don’t expect something like that to happen on a bus, I use the 130 twice a day.”

Why don't you? Buses seem to be preferred hunting grounds for underclass gangs. Even outside London.

Another man on his way to the shops had not heard about the stabbing, but said that sadly incidents like this feel ‘normal to him now’.

They feel normal to a lot of people.

And Ranim who runs Avantgarde Autos in Whitehorse Lane heard about the stabbing on his way to work this morning (March 9).

“It is tragic, I think more can be done to help the youngsters. They are killing each other.”

'Help them' in what way?

Don't Do Drugs, Kids....

Alexander Aldridge has been given a fine after admitting common assault of an emergency worker and having four bags of cannabis.

The 22-year-old appeared at Southend Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday to admit both charges.

Hmmm....

The incident took place on Sutton Road in Southend on February 22 at the scene of a crash.

Aldridge, of Cheltenham Road, Southend, had approached the officers at the scene asking where his girlfriend was, as it was her vehicle involved in the crash.

He became aggressive when the officers couldn’t help him, shouting at them, and eventually pushing one of them.

Ah, the 'thought processes' of the underclass at work...

The officer told him not to do it again, but he did, resulting in the officer pushing him to the floor.

Pity he didn't do a bit more for dentistry in Southend this time...

As he was taken into custody, Aldridge produced four bags of cannabis which was then confiscated by the officers.

Times it doesn't pay to get into an unnecessary ruck with cops? When you're holding drugs.

Speaking at court, Aldridge told the magistrates’ bench: “I acted irrationally and I shouldn’t have done it.

“I turned up to the vehicle and the airbags were out and it was all smashed up.

“The vehicle belonged to my partner and I was just panicking.”

So it made perfect sense to assault cops at the scene, rather than phone your partner. If you're a habitual cannabis smoker, that is...

Aldridge added that to this day he does not know if his partner at the time had been involved in the crash.

*boggle*

I Think You’ll Find He Is ‘The Wrong Crowd’

James Partridge, defending, said his client had a tough upbringing in Zimbabwe, where he was put up for adoption.

He witnessed domestic violence and had to hide from his adoptive father.

In Seaford, he left home at the age of 14, and saw a friend get stabbed when he was a teenager.

Mr Partridge said White had fallen in with the wrong crowd and started using drugs and alcohol.

He sounds a lot more like they were the right crowd...

But since 2018 he has “got his life back on track”, and is taking prescription drugs for depression.

Which explains why he decides to fight all comers one evening at the train station. Hey, perhaps for him, that was 'getting his life back on track'!

But Judge Jeremy Gold QC said: “I have viewed the footage of your behaviour on the night in question.

“You were determined to fight that night, and it all took place in Seaford Railway Station.

“You have experienced things as a young man and child that you should not have experienced.

“But you are an adult now. You cannot constantly rely on that as an excuse.

“You can’t drink yourself into the state where you behave in this way.”

/applause. A judge who gets it, finally!

Just Leave Them To It...

The group of mainly University of Brighton students booked out the room on Wednesday. Once inside the campus room, called G4, in Grand Parade, Brighton, they barricaded themselves in and are now refusing to leave until their demands are met or until an ongoing staff strike ends on Friday.

It would have to be Brighton, wouldn't it?

The students want the striking university staff’s demands met and also want the Student Union to show its support for them. They also want compensation for missed lectures.

They support the people making them miss lectures, and think they should be compensated by the people who are the targets of such action..?

Humanities student Izzy Smith, 21, said: “We wanted to support those who are striking and so we decided we would occupy a room.

“There is a fair amount of space in here, there are windows to put banners up and it was fairly easy to barricade.

“We are well versed in our rights – they told us that they were going to get someone called Barry to get us out.

“He still hasn’t turned up, we keep saying ‘where’s Barry?’, we think he might be myth.”

I hope 'Barry' is the head of the police riot squad, and he kicks down your flimsy barricade, pepper-sprays you, and drags you out by the hair...

The group. who call themselves The Brighton Student Lobbying Group, are taking it in turns to stay inside the room, with some sleeping overnight while others bring in supplies such as biscuits and Doritos.

One striker said she had to go to the toilet in a bottle.

Wait, hang on. That's all normal teenage life, isn't it? Just nail the door shut and use another room for the duration. 

Does COVID-19 Drive You Mad?

Because if so, it's rife in our schools already:

Wandsworth Council in South-West London has circulated guidelines saying that permanently and immediately excluding any child who has carried or used a knife against others 'is not appropriate'.

Wha...?

The council claims the suggested change in policy will 'ensure that our schools are safer places for staff, pupils, parents and visitors'.

I note they don't even attempt to explain how...

Last year a report by MPs and peers warned that exclusion from school could actually be the 'tipping point' which leads children to pick up a knife.

For 'MPs and peers' read 'racehustling charlatans' like Sarah Jones, Labour MP for Croydon Central who presides over the kind of underclass gang-haunted nightmare of a borough where gang wars spill into public transport hubs in broad daylight in front of commuters.

Tom Bennett, the Department for Education's independent behaviour adviser, has argued against making the link that exclusion leads to knife crime and suggested campaigners were driven 'more by ideology than evidence'.

Which is a polite way of saying they care more for progressive politics than public safety. And he's not wrong. 

I Wonder If They Teach Economics..?

Bobbi Ehsan of Loxham Road, Chingford, was caught by Barking and Dagenham Council enforcement officers during a routine visit to Dagenham Sunday Market on June 17, 2018.

Doing what? Why, selling knock-off designer gear:

In total, officers seized 381 fake replica football kits and Calvin Klein briefs.

Whoops!

Ehsan - a staff governor and senior teacher at New City College in Poplar High Street - was ordered to pay £14,490 under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2020, £4,339 to Barking and Dagenham Council and a victim surcharge of £20 at Snaresbrook Crown Court on February 26.

She must be on a pretty good salary there. Why would she need the extra income?

Expect To See More Cases Like This...

Ashleigh and Ged Barnett allege that until the one-to-one sessions began last September, their daughter appeared comfortable in her body and showed little interest in transgender issues.

But they say she had changed completely by November, sporting a short haircut and talking about feeling that she was really a boy. They were confused by the transformation until they met her headteacher to discuss another matter and learned that their daughter had been having weekly sessions with the head of the school’s LGBT group.

A group that cannot reproduce in the normal manner has only one option to increase its numbers.

And that's to recruit.

The couple said they were furious when they found school staff had let the teenager attend the sessions ‘behind our backs’.

Mrs Barnett said: ‘The school didn’t think it was fit to tell us. We are her parents, but responsibility to care for our child has been taken away. The attitude is that it’s the child’s choice and it’s got nothing to do with us.

‘Children at 13 or 14, especially girls, are sometimes not happy in their own bodies – that’s what puberty does to you. They are very vulnerable. It only takes one person with an agenda to plant a little seed that they are “in the wrong body”.’

Unfortunately, it's not 'just one person' with an agenda. There's a whole bunch of them, and they are becoming increasingly vocal.

And the people who should be standing firm against them are instead shuffling their feet, coughing and looking away sheepishly.

In recent email correspondence with the couple, headteacher Jane Davies said she believed their daughter should be left to use the changing facilities she preferred.

‘We will continue to provide a safe environment for [your child], but it is not our place to alert you to how she feels,’ she wrote. ‘It is important that you understand that she is old enough to make her own decisions.’

If she decided to skip school, would this useful idiot think she was old enough to make that decision? She's bloody thirteen!

Their daughter is now seeing a psychologist, who said it was ‘appalling’ that schools had ‘unqualified people mentoring young students’.

It's more than appalling. It's a national scandal.

Eikon chief executive Chris Hickford said: ‘The suggestion any Eikon member of staff would train others to radicalise young people is not at all accurate. The training assistant may well have been at professional networking events that Eikon also attended or helped facilitate, but Eikon has not provided LBGT+ training to him.’

What do you think these 'networking' events are, then?

Meet Them Halfway, Love…

A mother is pleading to be moved out of a mouldy council flat as she fears it could kill her.

Juliette Mottram has lived in the Ventnor Villas, Hove, property with three teenage children since February 2

Since then, she says, large patches of mould have grown across the flat.

The mother of five, who suffers from an immune condition, fears it is going to aggravate her illness.

Oh, these stories seem to proliferate faster than COVID-19...

Brighton and Hove City Council said she has repeatedly refused its staff access to the three-bedroom flat to fix the issues.

She seemed happy enough to invite the media though...

When The Argus visited the property there were large patches of mould across the flat.

They took lots of pictures. Which didn't really help her case much:

A little snippet about her past appearance in local newspapers also appears in comments. 

Maybe Don't Choose The First One That Comes Up..?

...not only did she 'weaponise' her ornithological activities outside the house — but inside it, too.Living with the widow was an African grey parrot called Ringo. The species is highly intelligent and notorious for its ability to mimic noises heard in its environment, and the Appletons claim the bird's singalongs — everything from advertising riffs to operatic arias — were the equivalent of 'Chinese torture'.

I wonder if they are intelligent enough to get the right image from the photo bank?

Yes, I've Often Wondered, Actually...

...in fact, as often as I've wondered why no photo editor can ever find the right illustrative image to match a story. That's an anaconda, not a 'sea creature'.

Sunday Funnies...

I'm astounded they could restrict it to just five...

"Let my name stand among those who are willing to bear ridicule and reproach for the truth's sake, and so earn some right to rejoice when the victory is won."

And the victory is all the sweeter when your enemy flounces off the battlefield:

The entire race equality committee of Equity has resigned in protest after the actors’ union apologised on its behalf for criticising Laurence Fox’s views on race and paid an out-of-court settlement to the actor after he threatened to sue them for libel.

Indeed it does...

'Learning Those Lessons', Eh..?

Ruth and Zac Jones, from Bristol, say they have had a brick thrown through their window and four vehicles set on fire, among a series of targeted attacks similar to those that preceded the death of Bijan Ebrahimi in 2013.

The Joneses have logged more than 50 complaints with police over four years, but claim they are still targeted on their estate in the north of the city.

Zac, 29, who has a rare skin condition that he says leads to him being bullied, says that neighbours make homemade signs falsely alleging he is a paedophile.

If that sounds rather familiar, it should. Clearly, the place is a shithole, inhabited by underclass morons.

And the police have learned nothing, as usual:

One officer – since dismissed for sharing racist posts on Facebook – who was investigating the targeting of the Joneses believed that Ruth was the aggressor and not the victim, and had even smashed her own car windscreen.

Did he have any proof? It seems not.

Police say they have been working with Ruth and Zac Jones, including putting them on a “problem solving plan”.

Since it seems their problem isn't so much their neighbours as the useless, racist, lazy cops they have to deal with, I wonder how that could ever help...

The chief inspector of Avon and Somerset police, Mark Runacres, said the “force has made great strides since the Ebrahimi case”.

He added that having studied the call logs of all of the incidents, the sentiments of the dismissed officer “are not reflected in the response” of others.

"It was just one bad apple! The others are all fine, honest!"

We Can All Do The Sums, You Know...

Squeezed together in their double bed, the children end up hitting each other in their sleep, causing nose bleeds and tears.

Dad, Nosakhare, and mum, Joy Ogbeide, a part time kitchen assistant, sleep on the living room floor.

'How terrible that the taxpayer can't chip in to get them housed in better accommodation' is the subtext.

But wait a minute...

Since 2014 the family has been hoping for a bigger home, joining scores of families living in overcrowded accommodation bidding for social homes when they become available.

But Nosakhare said the family has never risen above 300 in the queue.

*counts on fingers*

If you're overcrowded, it's not the council that's to blame, is it? They didn't provide you with three more kids while you were living in a one-room house (paid for by the taxpayer)...

Newham's deputy mayor, Cllr John Gray, responsible for housing, said: "If I could get the homes to house these families I would, but they simply aren't there. We have hundreds of families with similar levels of overcrowding. It's unacceptable. We are doing everything we can, we're on their side, but we need help from the government."

No. You need self-control and less dependency and entitlement from these families.

Wheels Of Justice Grinding Ever More Slowly...

Zachary Smith had got into his car with his partner and was reversing out of the driveway on November 17, 2017.

This resulted in a moped having to stop which caused the riders of the moped, who had been drinking and taking Class C drugs that evening, to become angry.

Rudkin, 18 at the time, got off the moped and started shouting and (sic) Mr Smith through the driver window, before his friend joined him. Mr Smith got out of his car to try and get the men to leave, but then one struck him in the face, resulting in his teeth being knocked out.

Rudkin then joined in, hitting Mr Smith and a fight broke out between the three along with Mr Smith’s girlfriend.

The duo then behaved aggressively towards neighbours who tried to diffuse the situation.

Lovely!

Ian Cliff, mitigating, told the court Rudkin was remorseful for his actions and had not offended since the incident, and that it has taken more than two years for him to be sentenced.

Don't you wish, just once, they'd come up with something different?

Judge Samantha Leigh (Ed: *sighs*) told Rudkin: “You had a lot to drink with your friend that evening and Class C drugs were taken.

"You had lost all sense of perception and your behaviour was quite frankly disgusting.

“You are not the person that knocked the teeth out but of course it was a joint enterprise.”

We all know what's coming...

Rudkin, of Walpole Walk, Rayleigh, was given six months in jail suspended for 12 months, 100 hours unpaid work and 30 days rehabilitation. He must also pay Mr Smith £750 compensation.

With two years interest?

"Something For The Weekend, Sir?"

Hairdressers, barbers and beauticians in Sutton will soon receive training on...

Hairdressing? Shaving? Lipstick applying?

...how to spot the signs of domestic abuse.

Oh...

They will be offered the coaching as part of a new drive in the borough to tackle domestic abuse called Transform, Sutton.

The council's thought process behind this revolves around the idea that as people often share personal information with stylists and hairdressers that they might not discuss with family or friends.

Well, they probably won't now that there's a chance they'll be listening in waiting to contact the authorities!

It comes after Sutton hairdressers, beauticians and students attended an event to find out more about the scheme and sign up for training, alongside the new Domestic Abuse Commissioner for England and Wales Nicole Jacobs.

The event was organised by the NHS locally and the Local Authority, with support from the area’s domestic abuse transformation board made up of a host of local organisations.

Ah, well. It's only taxpayer money.

Remember How They Were Going To Get Tougher On Knife Crime?

In 2008 at Haringey Magistrates’ Court [he was] put on a community order with an unpaid work requirement for possessing a blade on October 6 that year.

Two years later at Camberwell Magistrates’ Court he was convicted of possessing another kitchen knife with a 7.9-inch blade and sent to a Young Offenders Institute for five months.

And maybe if he'd faced longer sentences he wouldn't have been on the streets stabbing five people, one of whom is now paralysed.

Kakaire is set to be sentenced on 29 May after reports are prepared.

What more reports are needed?

Just Show The Bodycam Footage To The Daft Old Cow...

Annabelle Forbes was arrested on November 25 last year in Preston Road, Southend, following a disturbance.

The 22-year-old was not the cause of the disturbance, but when police were dealing with her at the scene, she began to cause them issues.

When she tried to grab one officer’s earpiece, she was brought to the ground and handcuffed.

Good!

Body cam footage from officers shows on one occasion, after Forbes cocked her leg in an apparent kick out when she was against the police car in handcuffs, the officers pushed her to the floor.

This caused her to hit her face on the ground and break several teeth.

One of those was lodged in her gum, later causing an infection.

Ooh, wait, wait, I have it somewhere....

Yup! Knew it was due another airing...

Whilst in custody, Forbes spat at one officer, and later pushed another with her foot.

Clearly, the loss of teeth didn't hamper her much.

Judge Samantha Leigh (Ed: Oh...) demanded an explanation...

...for why this piece of human detritus was taking up valuable resources? No. Of course not.

...for why Forbes was pushed to the floor, as she was in handcuffs and had no way of protecting her head.

She also queried why she did not receive immediate medical attention.

I expect they were too busy dodging the spittle and the kicks to get paramedics involved...

A police spokesman said: “An investigation is currently being carried out by our Professional Standards Department in relation to this case and therefore we are unable to comment while enquiries are ongoing.

“We do however take on board the judge’s comments.”

"...and hope the daft old mare gets assaulted by some street scumbag, when we won't bother to bluelight to that report in a hurry."

Naivety...

Plans to convert a pub, believed to be hundreds of years old, into an Islamic culture centre have been delayed due to concerns about noise and parking.

Yup, it's this one again.

A Basildon Council spokesman said: “No decision has been made on this application to date.

“Officers have requested further information from the applicant relating to noise and parking issues and are waiting for a response.

“An extension of time to determine this application has been agreed by the applicant’s agent until March 18.”

Why give them an extension? Is it so mad old duffers like this one can spout forth?

Borough historian Vin Harrop added: “I echo the concerns about parking, but it’s an issue everywhere. I am pleased with the community centre plans and think it should be given the go ahead.

“I am sure the people using the centre would be obliging and think the council should get on with it.”

Yes, we've seen how 'obliging' they are, haven't we?

Feel The Gratitude!

Kevin Aling, 61, Gordon Wilkie, 45, and Andrew Ellis, 54, say homeless people in Brighton are crammed into temporary accommodation “like cattle” and exposed to unsafe, unsanitary conditions – something the council denies.

Kevin, who has been on and off the streets for almost 50 years, now lives in a council building on Grand Parade.

So, the taxpayer's housed him. What's his beef?

He said: “It’s like a cattle farm in there. We shouldn’t be housed in these conditions. The council’s temporary accommodation is designed to get as many people in as possible. It’s overcrowded and the council doesn’t care about our safety.”

Kevin said: “The council thinks that once we’re off the street they can wash their hands of us. What they don’t realise is that they’ve got to help keep us off the street.”

Why? They don't have to help keep everyone else off the streets, do they?

What makes you think that you deserve more than the basic help they've just given you? Which is more than most people get...

The men said people in temporary accommodation are living in squalid conditions. Kevin said the building “stinks” of urine.

“When I moved in the mattress stank – everything does”, he said. “No one in that council has been where we are. We’re treated like stuff they wipe off their shoes.

“They just can’t cope with the number of people on the street. And they’re not listening to our complaints. If they want me to go back and die on the street, I’ll do it.”

I don't know what they want, but me? I'm pretty sanguine about it...

"Get Out Of Jail Free Card?" "That'll Do Nicely..."

Karly Lester has been spared jail after police found crack cocaine and cannabis in her home on Canvey last year.

What?! Why?

Mitigating, Tony Ventham told the court that Lester had been coerced into the drugs trade by an experienced dealer.

He said she was “vulnerable” due to the fact that she was trying to care for her two young children, one of whom has health issues, and in her desperation fell into dealing.

Oh, who's going to f...

Judge Samantha Leigh...

Damn!

...decreed that Lester was not a major player in any drugs enterprise.

She said: “She was struggling financially as so many people are. This was totally, as she now realises, the wrong step to take to get out of the situation she was in.”

Lester received 24 months in prison suspended for two years, 200 hours unpaid work and 60 days of rehabilitation.

Judge Leigh added: “If you do as I ask, you will not go to prison.”

Chances are good she won't even if she doesn't...

Should Have Worn A Burkha, Chum...

...then they'd have had to let you in!

Fathers4Justice campaigner David Chick arrived at Brighton Magistrates Court yesterday dressed as a combination of Spider-Man and Superwoman.

The 53-year-old was not permitted to enter the courtroom while magistrate judge Tessa Szagun liaised with Chick’s defence solicitor Linda MacDonald.

The judge clearly hasn't had the required diversity training:

Judge Szagun said: “I would have given him the benefit of the doubt if it was for World Book Day but it’s not appropriate if he’s coming into the court as a protest.

“I think I have got to make a point to say that it’s not acceptable and he needs to remove the face paint if he wants to be dealt with in court today.

“I have got to make sure the dignity of the court is maintained and he’s not given an opportunity to make a mockery of that.”

Sweetie, the courts have no dignity any more. And if he'd declared himself 'transgender', you'd find yourself on the other end of the court to your usual seat for those comments...

Judge Szagun gave Chick the opportunity to remove his make-up, but he chose not to.

Is he an arse? Yes. But so's the law, for allowing one but not the other...

Judge Szagun adjourned the case until April 29 at 9.30am in Brighton Magistrates Court.

One to watch...

They Hunt In Packs Now...

Southend:

A mum claims a gang attacked her son “like a pack of wolves” outside a Southend seafront pub.

The woman, who would not be named, said her son was stabbed by a gang of five outside Chinnery’s pub in Marine Parade.

Wickford:

A gang chased a teenager into a restaurant before beating him up, an eyewitness says. The group, in their teens, followed the boy in Wickford High Street on Monday, before chasing him across incoming traffic and cornering him inside a pizza restaurant on the road.

Worthing:

Unruly youths brawled with passengers and a conductor on board a train. The teenagers reportedly kicked and bit a group travelling from Worthing towards Durrington in the early hours of Sunday morning. One man who was attacked said he had gone to a gig but ended up “having a scrap” with the goading yobs. The incident was filmed on mobile phones, he said.

This is the Britain the progressives built...

Nice Range Rover...

...is your 'Jeep' parked behind it?

Well, There Is Truth In Advertising After All...

...it does promise the 'true taste of Pakistan' and, errr, that's what customers got!

H/T: Barbara Roscoe via Twitter

Sunday Funnies...

God bless Nancy Reagan's astrologist....

Is The Penny(wise) Finally Dropping?

Translation: "Shit! It might be me next!". Which for someone who is only too happy to whip up a mob on Twitter against whoever it pleases him, is quite the revelation.

Although this is not 'censorship', as the increasingly-unhinged wordsmith would have it. The government isn't stifling Allen. The mob is.

The rights to the book will now return to Allen.

It'll be interesting to see what happens next. Will he find another publisher? Will he self-publish?

Hmmm....

 Gonna need this!

The Moron Of Minshull Street

A mother who was spared jail over a high-speed car chase because she has a young daughter has now been let off community service for the crime after she claimed she has a 'mood disorder' caused by debt.

*rolls eyes*

Sentencing Judge Lever told Swain she had a 'lucky escape' from sentencing despite her 'playing fast and loose'.

He said: 'My recollection was that I gave this young lady a good talking to and made it quite clear she had to do this order and that her 10-year-old child wouldn't save her from jail if she didn't do it.

'I took an exceptional case not jailing her but she needs help. I am not amused by her driving but if she's a sensitive human she might need all the help she can get from the probation service.

'And I can't have a situation like this where she plays fast and loose. Although I am running out of road, the last thing I want to do if she is distressed is to take the ultimate sentence.'

The bewigged old duffer has form:

A Romanian girl who went on a nationwide shoplifting spree has been allowed to go home to save the British taxpayer £8,000 in jail costs.

Madalina Horvath, 19, travelled to the UK in 2015 and stole more than £15,000 worth of goods – including 16 Apple products in one go – across various cities from Cambridge to Manchester.

A judge this week called her a ‘complete disgrace’ and told her to go home immediately to ‘tell her friends’ what happens to foreigners who break the law in the UK.

She did. She told them it was nothing. It's why there's so many of them here now.

And he's the idiot in this case too:

Graham Benbow, 55, appeared before senior judge Bernard Lever after losing his temper and attempting to drive through an open barrier at the airport to avoid paying £3 for dropping off a passenger.

An airport official tried to stop him by standing against the barrier, but ended up on the bonnet of Benbow's Mazda 3 hatchback and was carried along the road for several hundred yards. Benbow then crossed a roundabout before police stopped him on the M56.

Sentencing Benbow, of Stockton Heath near Warrington, at Minshull Street Crown Court, was handed a six month sentence suspended for two years by the judge, who said he was '100 per cent against' the new charges introduced at the airport last July.

This is why we have the crime rate we do in this country.

Coming Over Here With Their Work Ethic....

...running the scams and crime capers our own home grown criminals are too lazy to run:

Two brothers, Stefan and Sorin Covrig, and a third man, Ciprian Buda, were the manufacturers of the tickets.

They used blank tickets, card readers, computer programs and printers to produce fake tickets on a massive scale. When their homes were raided officers seized nearly 60,000 blank tickets, which if turned into counterfeits would fetch up to £20million.

After months of investigating the group, officers moved to arrest phase, raiding homes in London and Leicester and arresting Silva, Sorin Covrig and Buda. A joint operation with Romanian Police tracked down Stefan Covrig in his native Romania.

Ah, Romania. Are there any crooks left in the country?

Seven Romanian nationals accused of conspiring to burglary and one man who is said to have acted as a “fence” to conceal the group’s illegal products appeared on trial at Kingston Crown Court to face the charges.

Gavril Popinciuc, Vasille Paragina, Marian Albu, Traian Mihulca, Marian Mamaliga, Ilie Ungureanu, Liviu Leahu deny conspiracy to commit burglaries and conspiracy to disguise and remove criminal property.

Mohammed Enus, the accused “fence”, denies conspiracy to disguise and remove criminal property and handling stolen goods.

Meanwhile, elsewhere...

Two Romanian burglars drilled through a bookmakers into an upmarket jewellers to steal £300,000 worth of gems while a half-marathon masked the noise, a court heard.

Florin-Cristin Neagu, 46, and Sorin Munteanu, 44, allegedly dug into the basement of George Attenborough & Son on London's Fleet Street before fleeing the country.

Thanks, freedom of movement!

Odd Publishing Decisions...

Yes, it's the usual whinge from the usual suspect.But when I clicked back, the entire text of the story had vanished, leaving that one full stop.

But the comments were still there, and give you a flavour of the article all the same:

One wonders why they didm't just kill the wkole story, comments and all...

If You Want More County Lines Drug Gangs...

...this is how you ensure you'll get them:

Because the reason they are used is because they will be treated as innocent victims, idiots!

Chief Constable Simon Bailey, child protection spokesman for the National Police Chiefs' Council, said: 'We are alive to many of the issues in this report. We are already committing increasing resources to [protecting children].'

But he added: '[The report] correctly points out that the demands on the police service have increased at a time when our resources have fallen.'

And whose fault is that? Maybe you could use them a bit more wisely?

'We are dealing with a perfect storm of increased reports of non-recent abuse, ever growing online offences and the challenges of familial abuse.'

That's because you've encouraged all of these, either by excessive action in the former, or lack of action in the latter.

Sometimes, Even They Have A Point…

Environmental campaign group Extinction Rebellion staged a protest over plans to build 172 homes in an area thought to be at risk of flooding.

What are the developers thinking...?!?

The homes, planned for Gunners Park, Shoebury, would be below the current high tide mark.

Plans for the homes were previously approved, but stalled because of fears over flooding.

The Environment Agency would only allow the homes to go ahead if work planned on nearby seawalls offered a one in 200-year flooding event protection but those now in the pipeline will offer less than half that.

Then how did it get through planning?

So, You Didn't See The Huge Bus Bearing Down On You..?

Louise, who works at Roots Research in Grand Parade, said there were no signs to warn pedestrians about a new alternative lane layout, and the pedestrian crossing machine was not working.

She said: “I was leaving work to get some lunch and was crossing the road where I usually do.

“Normally there are two lanes going in the same direction towards London Road, and so I didn’t look that way because there’s normally no traffic coming from that direction.

“I heard a man shouting something and then I was hit, side on.”

Louise, who lives in Helena Close, Portslade, said she put her arm down to steady herself and her wrist was broken in two places.

She said: “Luckily I didn’t hit my head.

“The bus driver came out and I was just sat there in shock, feeling sick.

“I’m annoyed at myself for not looking, but if there were working lights or a ‘look both ways’ sign, this would not have happened.

“We walk across that road every day to get lunch and are always saying how ridiculous it is.

“It was an accident waiting to happen.”

...but you'd definitely, positively have seen the signs, if they'd been there?

Back To (Avoid) The Future

Southend Council’s deputy leader, Ron Woodley, wants the current road layout, which cost £7million, to be scrapped after ten years.

Residents have long complained about the confusing road layout. Campaigners have also criticised the shared space area near the station.

This is where pedestrians can walk, cars can be driven and bikes can be ridden with no noticeable difference between where roads end and pavements begin.

Yes, you guessed it, it's this again.

Residents have joined calls by Mrs Allen-King for a roundabout to be brought back.

Posting on the Echo Facebook page, Karen Butler said: “Put it back how it was.

“It was another waste of council money.”

Marie Edmonds posted: “Good, it’s a death trap.

“Put the roundabout back.”

Ah, well, it's only taxpayer money. And not even entirely residents of Southend, at that!

The scheme was funded by a £25million government grant which also financed the Cuckoo Corner and City Beach improvements.

Plenty more where that came from, eh?