Tuesday 30 November 2021

Tweet Of The Month

Two beauties this month:



Post Title Of The Month

Thanks to a guest poster, November will forever now be...



Quote Of The Month

Nominated by blog regular Dave Ward, via email, LegIron hits it out of the park:

"There is so much stupidity in the world now. I see people who have had two jabs that were supposed to protect them from Covid, then catching Covid, then worrying about how long it will take to get their third jab to stop them catching something they already caught after the first two jabs didn’t stop them catching it.
Our governments are trying to convince the unvaccinated that the vaccines work so they’ll get it, while simultaneously trying to convince the vaccinated that they haven’t worked so they have to get a booster"

Post Of The Month

Blogger (almost) down. Leave your best wishes for the future.

An Audi? There's A Surprise!

Once it would have been a BMW:

Abrar Hajee appeared at Bolton Crown Court for sentencing after pleading guilty to dangerous driving. The court heard the 24-year-old of Browning Close, Halliwell, drove at speed on St Helens Road from Bolton town centre at around 5.20pm on September 28, last year.
As he approached the junction with Morris Green Lane and Deane Church Lane queueing traffic was stationary as the lights were red. The 24-year-old proceeded to drive his white Audi A7 “at speed and on the wrong side of the road, overtaking stationary traffic,” Simon Barrett, prosecuting, said.
When Hajee reached the lights they had just turned green, but two cars were still turning from Morris Green Lane/Deane Church Lane into St Helens Road. CCTV showed the two cars beginning to turn from the junction into St Helens Road, before Hajee appears at a high speed, hitting both turning cars before losing control and hitting another car and the traffic lights on the other side of the junction.
Hajee narrowly misses a pedestrian walking up St Helens Road towards the junction after he loses control.

Sounds like a typical Audi driver to me... 

Defending Hajee, Richard Dawson, said it was a “brief but obviously seriously dangerous manoeuvre” with Hajee driving above the speed limit.
But he stressed that he is a “young man in his early 20s of an otherwise good character”.

When even your brief can't really excuse you, you know you're in trouble. Or should be. 

Sentencing, Recorder Jonathan Gavaghan said this incident could have been “very much worse” as nobody was injured.
“There was no genuine reason for you to rush and you were just impatient and didn’t want to wait,” Mr Gavaghan said.
“You started to blame others for the car crash despite your dangerous driving. You drove fast in a built up area in rush hour with no proper thought for others’ safety.

Yup, a heavy sentence is coming! 

Mr Gavaghan added that Hajee understood the “gravity” of his wrongdoing and “remorse” for what he did.
Hajee was sentenced to a community order including 160 hours unpaid work and was disqualified from driving for two years.

*sighs* Or not. 

Monday 29 November 2021

Baffling Controversies...

Australian TV reporter Matt Doran has made a lengthy, unreserved apology to Adele for...

Calling her fat? Calling her a boring, untalented singer? 

...failing to listen to her new album before an exclusive interview with the singer, calling the bungle a “terrible mistake”.

Eh..? 

Doran was flown to London for the exclusive interview with Adele in the lead-up to the release of her fourth album, which he described as an “unspeakable privilege””.

Wow, really?!? 

“I made the terrible mistake of assuming we weren’t to be given a preview copy of this album because our interview was airing before it was released and Adele’s album was the industry’s most prized secret,” Doran said.
“The day after we landed in London an email came through from Sony, it didn’t mention Adele but it did contain a link to her album.
“The genuine, deadset, hand on heart truth is that I missed it. By an absurdly long margin the most important email I’ve ever missed in my life.”

If that's true, I suspect life has some lessons in store for you...

Doran said throughout the 29 minutes he was speaking with Adele, the singer was “profound” “funny” and “raw”, opening up about her experience with depression and describing it as “end of the world stuff”.
“But all that doesn’t matter because, by missing the album link, however I might try to justify it, I’ve insulted Adele,” he said.
“To Adele I say, I’ve never knowingly disrespected you by deliberately not listening to your work. I am so sorry.
“I also apologise to Adele’s Australian fans and to … our viewers, who through my error have been denied this interview and the insight to her character.”

What happened, Australia? When did you stop breeding Crocodile Dundees, and start breeding this pathetic specimen? 

We Can't Name The Little Animals...

Ava was a Year 8 pupil at Notre Dame Catholic College in Liverpool.
Its headteacher Peter Duffy said: 'She was an incredibly popular girl, with a fantastic group of friends.
'Our deepest thoughts and prayers go out to Ava's family and friends and all those affected by this utterly tragic event.'
Colin Parry, whose 12-year-old son Tim was killed in 1993 when the IRA bombed Warrington, has revealed he had awarded Ava the title of Peace Ambassador after she attended a charity course in 2019.
'What a tragic loss for her family,' he wrote on Twitter. 'Our Peace Foundation will be at her school again on Monday.'
...but does amyone think their history, background and potential, should it ever be revealed, will match that of little Ava's?

Saturday 27 November 2021

I Can Explain, Signor Ortelli...

Sergio Ortelli, the mayor of Giglio, said “This is a legitimate project. I don’t get why there is all this pantomime,” he said.
“The animals are not indigenous to Giglio and they can be legally hunted, like wild boar.”

It's because they aren't animal lovers at all, they are people haters. We have them here, too, sadly. 

And this is a good example of the level of intelligence they possess:


Just who does he think is scenting, then? The horse? The riders...?

I Don't Recognise These 'Peelian Principles', Does Anyone Else?

Dudley Council leader Patrick Harley said he has "lost all confidence" in the borough's police commander Kim Madill and urged her to "consider her position".
He claims she breached protocol by refusing to move on travellers who had stayed at the Budden Road transit site in Coseley for longer than the 28-day period allowed by law.

Did she have a good reason? Reader, she had...well, a reason: 

Chief Superintendent Madill said in making her decision she had ensured the force was "recognising diversity" and "demonstrating our care and compassion for difference".

Peel would have a stroke if he were alive and reading that! What has it got to do with the fact that they are breaking the law?

Patrick is not imprtessed: 

"If she wants to play at being a politician she should give up the uniform and stand for election. There is a protocol in place for dealing with travellers.
"They are not homeless. They are living in caravans on a transit site, which means they can stay for a maximum of 28 days and it's not for her to decide if and when they are moved on.
"I believe her political feelings are affecting her judgment, and in this instance her judgment is flawed.
"She should consider her position."

A position she clearly should be in, in the first place: 

In an email to residents explaining her decision, Ch Supt Madill said the travellers had not been involved in any anti-social behaviour or criminality and were "part of our community at the time".

Except they had, by not moving on when required to do so...  

"I posed myself the questions – if this was a normal landlord/tenant dispute where a tenant had failed to vacate at the end of their tenancy agreement, would the police get involved?"

But it wasn't. This is the 'if my auntie had balls she'd be my uncvle' defence. And it won't wash... 

Assistant Chief Constable for local policing, Rich Baker said: "I fully support Chief Superintendent Madill who has taken a sensitive and proportionate approach to dealing with this matter.
"We will continue to work closely with the council on all matters - including unlawful encampments - for the good of everyone who lives, works or visits Dudley."

Except those who don't live or work in Dudsley, they can clearly do as they likey, eh, Rich?

H/T: Ted Treen via email

Friday 26 November 2021

On Liability...

In a thread about transportation problems at ChicagoBoyz


It's funny, and ... not funny ... at the same time!

H/T: Dave Ward via email

"O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!"

The High Court today issued a warrant for the arrest of a prominent solicitor after she failed to attend a hearing to answer allegations of contempt of court.

You'll never guess who it is...! 

The SRA, which earlier this month obtained an injunction to stop Khan ‘unlawfully’ acting as a lawyer through JFP, alleged Khan was in contempt of court by failing to comply with two High Court orders requiring her to deliver up client files.
Khan sought an adjournment of today’s committal hearing, claiming that she needed ‘emergency elective surgery’ – which Mr Justice Fancourt said was ‘a contradiction in terms’.

I get the feeling the judge is not disposed to give her the benefit of the doubt here... 

She also said that she needed legal representation, although the SRA’s barrister Rupert Allen said Khan had previously been ‘categorical’ in saying she could represent herself.

Heh!  

The judge said he had formed the view that ‘she will not voluntarily attend the court based on everything I have seen of her over the last month’. Fancourt said that the ‘only sensible option’ open to him was to issue a bench warrant, not backed for bail, to ‘have her arrested and brought to the court’. ‘It means she will be found and arrested and brought to the court,’ he added.

I bet every eye in every force is peeled, don't you, Reader? 

The court heard that the committal hearing may be heard on Friday, if Khan can be found and brought to the court.

Wow! Better order in another pantechnicon of popcorn... 

H/T: InspGadget via Twitter

Thursday 25 November 2021

I Think We Have An Example Of Bergmann's Rule Here...


Oh, gosh! How terrible! How will they keep warm?


OK. Never mind...

She said housing association Sanctuary have offered to fix the heating issue, but have asked the family-of-four to move out.
Charmaine added: "We have had no heating since we have lived here. It is so cold you have to have multiple layers on to go to bed."

Pretty sure they meant 'nightclothes', and not blubber! 

"There is a draft that comes all through the windows, there's mould all through the house.
"Sanctuary said they had to come in to get the house sorted but they need so much access."

Errrr, well, yes! How else are they supposed to fix it? 

Charmaine added: "In my eldest daughter's bedroom there is no room to do anything - but they want the room clear to get in there.
"I can't clear my kids out."

Isn't there a forklift driver who could do the job? 

Physician, Heal Thyself...

A family GP used his Twitter account to intimidate a series of social media rivals opposed to his pro-transgender views, a medical tribunal heard today.
Dr Adrian Harrop, 31, who is an associate GP at Brownlow Health Central in Liverpool, gave his supporters clues that would allow them to identity and potentially target individuals for online and even real-world abuse.

Surely, since that's against Twitter's T&Cs, he doesn't still have an account? Well, you'd think not, but here he is

The GMC launched its first investigation into Dr Harrop's pro-trans campaign in 2018, following complaints not only about the content but also the fact that he was a medical practitioner.
Two years later it decided to take disciplinary action against him, deciding that his most extreme tweets had impaired his fitness to practice and amounted to misconduct.

Seems the GMC moves even slower than Twitter when it comes to booting out the wrong 'uns.... 

Wednesday 24 November 2021

The Likely Question Will Be 'Which Incident, Officer?'...

Detective Chief Inspector Richard Vandenbergh from the Met's Specialist Crime unit, leading the investigation, called on any motorists with dashcam footage to get in touch with officers.
He said: 'While our investigation continues to make good progress I am still appealing to anyone who witnessed this fight in the vicinity of West Croydon station on Thursday evening to come forward.'
Especially given that groups of young ferals assaulting each other isn't exactly an unknown occurrence in Croydon...

The Only Shame You Feel Is In Getting Exposed...

The shamefaced Milwaukee District Attorney's Office admitted on Monday it was 'inappropriate' for convicted felon Darrell Brooks to be allowed out of jail on a $1,000 bond three weeks ago after trying to run over his ex-girlfriend, as he was charged with five counts of murder for the lives he took at the Waukesha Christmas Parade on Sunday night.

It'll now be six counts. And the bail is a wee bit higher this time

The amateur rapper has a long criminal history dating back to 1999 with more than 15 arrests in the state of Wisconsin alone for charges including possession of drugs, strangulation and suffocation, battery, illegally possessing firearms as a convicted felon and resisting arrest.

But thanks to liberal activists, that's no bar at all to getting let out on bail! 

On Sunday, he was fleeing the scene of a domestic dispute when he crashed into the crowds after smashing through safety barriers and breezing past cops. One officer tried to stop him by shooting at his car but he stopped because there were too many people around for him to safely fire his weapon.

Or for Brooks to drive, but it didn't stop him... 

On Monday morning, the Milwaukee County DA's Office released a statement admitting it was 'inappropriately low' given his criminal history. They said they'd launched an internal review as to why he was able to get out on bond to commit more crimes.

It's because you're not fit for purpose.  

Milwaukee County Attorney John T Chisholm previously spoke of trying to reduce his county's prison population. He even let a progressive criminal justice nonprofit called Vera perform an 'audit' on his office. Vera, which is based in New York, opposes cash bail, with the implementation of that measure partially-blamed for a crime spike in NYC.
Milwaukee saw murders spike by 95 per cent between 2019 and 2020, with 2021 currently recording as many homicides as there were by the same stage of 2020.

You lwt the fox into the henhouse and gave it a napkin and a knife and fork. What did you think was going to happen? 

Tuesday 23 November 2021

They Just Aren't Learning...

Police have arrested 30 climate activists after a major bridge in central London was blocked by a sit-down protest.

Good, more for the jail cells. Hope they like porridge! 

The bridge had been shut to traffic for a number of hours on Saturday by the sit-in, which initially involved up to 250 people who had marched from the Royal Courts of Justice.

Wait, 'a number of hours'..? 

In the clip obtained by LBC, the animated male can be seen pleading with the eco-zealots to move out of the road on Vauxhall, London, telling them their method of protest was 'not right'. As his tone becomes more exasperated while he watches police officers stand idly by, the man repeats: 'Don't block the road! I need to get home to my child.
'I need to get home, please. You have to think about people as well.'

I guess it's not just the eco-nutters who aren't learning, it's the increasingly useless Met Police! 

Gabriella Ditton, 27, an animator from Norwich, said she has been arrested six times with Insulate Britain, including once for breaking the injunction.
She said: 'I expect to go to prison at some point for at least six months because I am not going to be apologetic about this.
'I have known for a couple of years that the only thing that is going to serve us is civil resistance. I have faith in people coming together. Solutions to this crisis exist, we just need the political will to do it.'

If the police don't want to do the job they are paid for, might I suggest they just don't turn up next time? Then the working people of London can come together and show Gabriella some of that 'civil resistance' she clearly longs for...  

 

It Should Be Referred To The IOPC Due To 'Incompetent Policing'...

Avon and Somerset Police said the incident would be referred to the policing watchdog due to 'prior police contact with those involved'.

That's getting to be a very familiar phrases, lately... 

A woman living nearby said: 'We didn't see much of (the suspect) really, but there had been rows in the past about parking.'

I fondly remember the time when a parking dispute would have meant frosty looks in the street or maybe a scrap between the men of the house, not a home invasion and the murder of him and his wife in front of their children

Anyone else? 

'Two young children were inside the property at the time of the incident and while thankfully they weren't hurt, they are understandably distressed at what has happened.
'They are being looked after and specially trained officers have been deployed to support the victim's families in what is undoubtedly the most difficult of times.'

What a pity 'specially trained officers' weren't deployed to prevent the incident... 

He added: 'We will carry out a full and thorough investigation and we will do all we can to achieve justice for the victim's families.'
'While this appears to be an isolated incident, there will be increased police activity in the area to provide the community with reassurance.
'Incidents like this are very rare... '

Incidents like this are getting more common, the community has no reason to feel reassured and 'justice' is often the very last thing that the system serves up for the families. 

So...what's the point of you, again? 

Monday 22 November 2021

What Happened To 'You Love Who You Love'..?

For many, it was a brave and long-overdue airing of an important and distressing subject: a painstaking investigation into claims that predatory trans women have been pressuring lesbians for sex, published on the BBC News website.
But a leaked email shows that the influential trans lobby group Stonewall attempted to suppress the investigation before it had even been published – and made the extraordinary claim that debating the issues was equivalent to ‘sexual racism’.

Sadly for Stonewall, this doesn't hold the 'third rail' keep off cachet it once did, given how racism claims are unravelling left, right and centre. 

...she (Stonewall’s chief executive Nancy Kelley) acknowledged that in sexual relationships ‘consent is paramount and we all want who we want’, she added that ‘structural oppression can influence who we want’.

I'm pretty sure that's not true. After all, isn't conversion therapy now being banned because you cannot influence desire, and it's wrong to try? 

Corporation executive Rhodri Talfan Davies refused to confirm whether Stonewall had ever successfully swayed its journalistic output.

Oooh, I think we can guess, boyo! 

But speaking to Radio 4’s Women’s Hour last week, Kelley was open about her group’s intentions. ‘I want Stonewall to have more influence on the editorial policy of the BBC,’ she said.

Clearly, the Beeb thought long and hard about that, and said 'Nope!' 

The Corporation’s decision to abandon ties with Stonewall – and publish the article – suggests the BBC is taking a much more robust approach.

Good, long may Stonewall's influence continue to shrink.  

When You Start Throwing Stones...

...all the panes of glass are in danger of shattering. Including the ones in your own house:

Cricket whistleblower Azeem Rafiq has been accused of sending 'creepy' Whatsapp messages to a teenage girl who has gone public with her allegations.
Gayathri Ajith, 16 at the time, told the Yorkshire Post she received texts from the former Yorkshire cricketer about kissing her and inviting her to dinner after meeting her on a flight from Manchester to Dubai in 2015.

Oh dear oh dear... 

The row over Mr Rafiq’s racism allegations against players and officials at Yorkshire County Cricket Club took another twist last night with claims that he had been the victim of a dirty tricks campaign.

Really?  

A Commons source has said that on the eve of Mr Rafiq’s appearance before the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee last week, a senior sporting figure made allegations to members of the committee about aspects of Mr Rafiq’s lifestyle.
The source said: ‘They made various allegations about his private life and told us that as a result we shouldn’t trust his evidence.'

Turns out that person was quite right...  

Saturday 20 November 2021

But I Thought They Had Time Pressures In Schools..?

Children as young as five are having innocent-sounding playground remarks logged as 'racist incidents' by primary school staff, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
For what possible purpose?
Many schools, including those in London, Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Liverpool and Brighton, record incidents on pupils' files which can be transferred when they move to secondary school.
Others use a national database of the incidents for other teachers to access and monitor files.

If only there was such a database for actual misbehaviour. Maybe then genuine threats could be tracked...

School leaders say they are encouraged to report all racist incidents to local authorities, though there is no legal requirement.

There's a saying about journalism:

"One cannot hope to bribe or twist, 

Thank god, the British journalist.

But seeing what the man will do unbribed,

There's no occasion to!" 

I guess we can add 'teachers' to that list!

Adrian Hart, a researcher who uncovered the incident reports at Brighton schools, said: 'The vast majority of the so-called 'racist' incidents we see schools recording are simply evidence of children behaving childishly.'

And these incidents of teachers gleefully recording non-incidents for their fellows is...what? It's not 'childishness', is it? It's something rather more sinister... 

The National Union of Teachers, the National Association of Headteachers, the Local Government Association and Leeds City Council were unable to comment.

I think the word you were grasping for there was 'unwilling'... 

Think Your Headline's Missing A Few Words, 'Guardian'...


Words like 'In Self Defence'. Or 'Who Attacked Him'...

The jury in Kenosha returned to the courtroom early on Friday afternoon on the fourth day of its deliberations, after indicating that they had reached a unanimous verdict.

You can't say they reached a hasty decision, can you? But they clearly reached the right one... 

A turning point in the trial came when Grosskreutz testified for the prosecution but admitted that he pointed a gun at Rittenhouse before the 17-year-old fired his rifle, hitting him in the arm. Others testified that Rittenhouse was pursued by the men he shot dead and the teenager, who testified in his own defence, told the jury he was in fear of his life when he fired his gun.

The prosecution's witnesses turned out to be their downfall, as so often happens in politically-motivated trials. I wonder how that could have hap...


Oh. Never mind. 

“The verdict in the #KyleRittenhouse case is a travesty and fails to deliver justice on behalf of those who lost their lives as they peacefully assembled to protest against police brutality and violence,” tweeted the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) civil rights group.

If they really had 'peacefully protested' no-one would have been shot, would they?

Friday 19 November 2021

Whoops, Eh, Hugh..?

Perennial race-baiter Hugh Muir, in the 'Guardian':



Days after Azeem Rafiq revealed the torment he faced as an Asian player, the situation at Yorkshire cricket club looks no better.

It's OK, Hugh, that's certainly not all we're thinking about now:


We're thinking about anti-semitism too! 

Oh, that wasn't what you meant?

They Should Be Less Concerned With Accusations Of 'Institutionalised Homophobia'...

Detective Constable Yinka Adeyemo-Phillips had previously given evidence to say Mr Whitworth confirmed the handwriting was Daniel’s.
Andrew O’Connor QC, counsel for the coroner, asked if he remembered saying that. Mr Whitworth replied: “I definitely did not say it was.
“Me and (my partner) Mandy looked at it. Cannot confirm it was Daniel’s handwriting.
“We sent it straight off to Ricky in Gravesend to look at it and he could not confirm it was Daniel’s either.
“Anyway, she said, ‘Is this Daniel’s handwriting?’, and I said ‘I cannot confirm it is Daniel’s handwriting, I don’t know’.”

...and far more with incompetence and lying. 

Thursday 18 November 2021

Listen To The Experts?

Why should I?
For decades we have been warned that eating too much dairy such as milk, butter and cheese could raise our risk of serious conditions such as heart disease and strokes — only for more recent studies to suggest they might actually protect us from these by lowering our risk of developing high blood pressure or type 2 diabetes.

But we're supposed to believe they are spot on about everything else, like covid? 

While scientists generally agree that eating saturated fats raises the level of fats in your bloodstream and may increase other risk factors for heart disease, such as inflammation, it is not clear that it directly leads to heart or cardiovascular problems.
Some researchers say saturated fat has been unfairly demonised. Arne Astrup, a professor in the department of nutrition, exercise and sports at Copenhagen University, argues that focusing on saturated fat alone ‘does not make sense’ as there are different types of saturated fatty acids which all have different effects on the body.

As the old wisdom goes, a little of what you fancy does you good. So listen to your granny a lot more, and far less to the self-proclaimed 'experts' who tell you that science is settled... 

'Remarkable'..? Not At All, Judge!

Judge Paul Lawton said: “It is remarkable that having fled violence in Sudan you caused to bring violence to the streets of England.
“You are 27-years-old and a man of previous good character. You have a partner and a young child, and are expecting another one.
“The violence used a potentially lethal weapon.”
It is, of course, Minshull Street, which seems to be staffed with more than its fair share of morons and bleeding hearts.
Mr Lawton sentenced Hasan Suliman to 21 months in prison, suspended for two years, for unlawful wounding. He also handed Suliman a community order and alcohol rehabilitation programme, and told him to pay a victim surcharge.

Suitable sentence for an asylum seeker who stabbed another man with a screwdriver over another woman? I don't really think so, Does anyone else? 

Apart from those trying to convince us that Emad Al-Swealmeen was a genuine Christian, that is.... 

Wednesday 17 November 2021

What An Exercise In Futility...


Surrounded by brightly painted pebbles, posters and paintings calling for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s release, Richard Ratcliffe brought his 21-day hunger strike to an end on Saturday, clinging on to hope his actions have made a difference to his wife’s fate.

He's no Bobby Sands, is he? 

Minutes before he ended the strike early on Saturday afternoon, he said: “My job is to bring Nazanin home, but it’s also to keep a home here, with our daughter Gabriella, for her to come back to. And that is not served by gung-ho stubborn gestures which take things to the bitter end.”

Then what was the point? Your wife is an Iranian national, what on earth does this country owe her?

They Despise You, And They Always Will...


Are you getting it now, Tory voters?

Tuesday 16 November 2021

'Calm'..? We Should Be Livid...

Killer child Marcel Grzeszcz stabbed classmate Roberts Buncis more than 70 times on December 12 last year, after luring him to woodland in Fishtoft, near Boston, Lincolnshire, after believing he was a 'snitch'.
The 15-year-old schoolboy drug dealer was unmasked by a High Court judge at Lincoln Crown Court and sentenced to a minimum of 16 years in jail after he murdered his 12-year-old friend before trying to decapitate him in a brutal attack.

He had a history, of course. They always do. 

It has been revealed he was also expelled from his previous primary school, St Nicholas Primary School in Boston, Lincolnshire, after threatening a girl with a knife.

Just expelled? No criminal charges? 

The defendant then moved to Haven High Academy, where he stayed for around three years, but was excluded for selling drugs both in and out of school. Grzeszcz was then sent to a pupil referral unit where he started the day before Roberts was found dead.

Well, that worked well, eh? 

The Latvian-born victim lived with his single-parent father, who urged calm in the aftermath of his death.

Why? Calm is the last thing we should be about the increasing rise in children capable of murder

Grzeszcz was the school drug dealer at Haven High Academy and was constantly in trouble. It was never explicitly detailed in court, but it is understood he viewed his victim as 'a liability' because his friend knew so much about his illegal activities.

If someone is 'constantly in trouble' why was he at the school in the first place? And why was his family in this country? 

Acting on behalf of the Grzeszcz, defence QC Brendan Kelly admitted the violence was 'extraordinary' but submitted it indicated a 'loss of control' from the defendant.

Even the brief can't fall back on anything to excuse this.  

Well, You Could Knock Me Down With A Feather!

A suspected terrorist who blew himself up outside Liverpool Women’s hospital at the weekend has been named as 32-year-old Emad al-Swealmeen.

I don't think we really need the 'suspected' in there, do we? 

Al-Swealmeen had changed his name by deed poll to Enzo Almeni, in honour of Italian race car legend Enzo Ferrari, to sound more western on his asylum application, which subsequently failed in 2014, Hitchcott told the Daily Mail.

Hang on... *checks calendar* ... so why was he still here? 

He is said to have converted to Christianity after moving to the UK from the Middle East and was later briefly taken in by Christian volunteers Malcolm and Elizabeth Hitchcott in Liverpool. Speaking to the BBC, Elizabeth Hitchcott said: “We’re just so, so sad. We just loved him, he was a lovely guy,” adding she and her husband were “very” shocked by the incident.

How many more are there like this, who take advantage of our lax borders and supine, incompetent asylum process? 

Official sources previously confirmed to the PA news agency the suspect was not previously known to the security services.

Well, he's known now. And who is scrutinising the backgrounds of all the others like him? Not to mention the hordes coming across the Channel? 

Monday 15 November 2021

Get A Grip, Priti!

Or you'll go down in history as an even more useless Home Sec than Teresa May:
Most of the people due to board a controversial deportation flight to Jamaica on Wednesday have been removed from the flight list, as anti-deportation activists have blocked the road in front of a detention centre to try to prevent them from being put on the plane.

Why weren't the police out moving them? Don't you control the police, Priti? 

Originally more than 50 Jamaican nationals were due to fly, but the Guardian understands most are no longer on the passenger list. The flight was due to depart at 1am on Wednesday morning with only two or three passengers onboard.

What a waste of fuel. But on the other hand, at least we're getting rid of some... 

The Home Office said: “Those individuals with no right to be in the UK and foreign national offenders should be in no doubt that we will do whatever is necessary to remove them. This is what the public rightly expects and why we regularly operate flights to different countries.”

Is that supposed to be reassuring when you only have a handful of people on them? 

Not Rare Enough, Chief Con...

The chief constable of Merseyside police, Serena Kennedy, later offered her reassurance over the incident. She said: “While I understand that today’s incident may cause concern in our communities, it should be pointed out that events of this nature are very rare.”

They seem to be increasing in frequency, actually... 

“Merseyside police will continue to liaise with community groups, community leaders, partner agencies and individuals in the coming days and weeks to make sure any concerns are addressed and ensuring that we provide the best possible service to local people.”

Which 'communities', Serena? Which 'community leaders'..? What exactly do you mean by 'local people'?

Sunday 14 November 2021

Saturday 13 November 2021

Sympathy...Draining...Away....

More than 100 people were killed by an explosion in Freetown, Sierra Leone, last week, after a leaking fuel tanker collided with a lorry on a busy road in the capital city.

Oh dear, how sad.  

Many of those who died were young motorbike taxi drivers...

Wow, that must have been some traffic jam! 

...after dozens of riders rushed to the leaking tanker to collect free petrol and were caught in the blast.

Ah. *shrugs* 

 


What's There 'To Understand', Marcus..?

Rashford, recently awarded an MBE for his campaign work, took to Twitter after Neil Foden, the strategic head of Ysgol Dyffryn Nantlle in Penygroes, Gwynedd, warned parents the school cook would not give food to any pupil 'if their debt has not been cleared, or in the future, to children whose accounts do not have enough money to pay for lunch'.
Rashford said: 'Has the pandemic not taught us anything? Can we not be understanding? Come on now.'
He added: 'For many children, lunch at school is the only meal they'll get.'
Surely even a footballer - never the brightest - must understand that you have to pay for things in life?
Mr Foden said a 'handful of pupils' had run up debts totalling close to £2,000, and explained the stance further in an interview with the BBC on Thursday.

That's, what, an hour of 'work' for the likes of Rashford? If he's so concerned why doesn't he offer to clear the debt? 

While there has been some sympathy for the letter from some people, most of those who contacted local media condemned the move.

Well, of course - the vast majority who read this and thought 'Good for him!' have better things to do. 

Another mother said on Facebook: 'Shocking. I was £6 in debt and only realised yesterday. I completely forgot as I've been so busy with opening a new shop, running a business and caring for 4 children it slipped my mind. Not once did the school my children attend message or phoned me. They understand parents are busy and this can happen sometimes. Glad my children don't have a head teacher like this.'

When you're running your business if someone 'forgets to pay' for your goods or services, I wonder what your reaction is...

Lauren Cleary said: 'Even if the parents are spending all of their income on TVs and cigarettes (like the mainstream media would love you to believe), it's still never ever the child's fault. Shameful - where's his duty of care?'

His duty of care doesn't cover freeloaders.  

Friday 12 November 2021

A Quick Perusal Of Her Social Media Would Have Clued You In...

A social worker has been struck off for sending sexual selfies to a teenage boy in her car and telling him that she was in love.
Georgia Thomas, 26, from Swansea, South Wales, engaged in 'sexual activity' with the 15-year-old boy in her care and sent him a string of sexual text messages.

What? A social worker? One of those grey people in sensible shoes and cardigans? What attraction could they possibly have to a fif...


 Oh...

The disciplinary panel heard the breaches took place in August to October 2018 while working as a child care worker for the Athena Group in Swansea.
Miss Thomas did not attend the hearing held via Zoom but the panel concluded her behaviour was 'dishonest and lacked integrity' and her fitness to practise was impaired.

A bit more due diligance would perhaps have ensured she wasn't hired in the first place...but no doubt someone thought she was the idea role model for a teenage boy or girl. 

She was handed a removal order banning her from working in social care in Wales.

Only in Wales..?!? 

Maybe You Should Read This Back To Yourself Slowly, Nesrine...

Nesrine Malik on 'big tech as an excuse for bad behaviour':

When companies reach the scale and reach of Facebook, they can appear, to the right, a little too much like big governments infringing on individual privacy and freedoms. This fear is then easily capitalised on, and all sorts of unlikely victims can claim they are silenced by platforms biased against their politics. When Donald Trump intends to launch a new social media network to “stand up to the tyranny of big tech”, he is echoing the whine of many across the political spectrum. Those who, rather than admit their thinking is less popular than they would like, prefer to believe they are simply conspired against.
Where does this startling claim come from? Oh, just a long screed in the 'Guardian' whining that left-leaning ideas are being crushed by the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, of course... 

It's not that left wing ideas are unpopular, dear me, no! Who could possibly believe such a thing?

Thursday 11 November 2021

The Next Looming Crisis, Created Solely By The Government

Claire Callender, 42, the manager, has already closed 12 of her 27 beds because “there aren’t people who want to do the job”.
And on Wednesday she said goodbye to another care worker, this time because of the new rule making double Covid jabs a condition of deployment for all care home workers in England as of Thursday.

So, what sort of people are leaving? Are they those unreasonable, science-shunning 'antivaxxers' that the MSM keeps banging on about? 

Katie Madden, who worked night shifts at Greenways for the last 18 months, came close to tears when she told the Guardian about leaving. She worked through a Covid outbreak at the home and was ill herself with the virus for weeks. She had planned to get the vaccine, but was anxious about it making her ill again. “The decision was taken out of my hands [when the law making it mandatory was introduced] … and I thought, ‘No, I’m not ready,’” she said.

Yeah. You read that right. A carer who has had covid herself, and in the normal scheme of things would be expected to have some immunity. But no, she must have the jabs. And so it goes on.  

...the rule is only made more difficult by the fact that NHS workers won’t have to get vaccinated until April 2022. Many care staff reluctant to have the vaccine have as a result already moved to the health service.

And will then move again in April, creating yet another crisis. But where will they go? 

Those leaving this week are going to new jobs including in the NHS and handling parcels at Amazon and John Lewis warehouses, he said.

I expect some will retrain as HGV drivers. Remember that, just a few months ago> Another shortage created almost entirely by the government! 

Good Luck With The SODDI* Defence In This Case, Love...

A lawyer for the armorer who oversaw weapons used on the Rust movie set suggested on Wednesday that someone deliberately put a live round into the gun used by Alec Baldwin when he accidentally shot dead a cinematographer.

Well, yes. It didn't load itself, did it?  

Jason Bowles said his client, Hannah Gutierrez, had pulled ammunition from a box that she believed contained only dummy rounds that were incapable of firing.
He said he thought it was possible that someone purposely placed real bullets, which look similar to dummies, into the box.

Errr...isn't she supposed to be an expert? Is 'look similar' what he's hanging his hat on, when his client should know the difference? 

“We’re not saying anybody had any intent there was going to be a tragedy of homicide,” he added, “but they wanted to do something to cause a safety incident on set. That’s what we believe happened.”

Why would anyone want to do that, why would anyone need to do that, when by all accounts there were already lots of safety incidents on set?

*Some Other Dude Did It

Wednesday 10 November 2021

But You're Up Against People Who Don't Recognise 'Good Faith', Zoe...

...here I was, arguing with friends about language: the example was raised of a training course for doulas (freelance, new age birth partners). A trans woman wanted to join the class, and while the teaching doula had reservations, she assented.
I didn’t get what the reservations were, to be honest: a doula is privately engaged – if you had a problem with a trans woman, you simply wouldn’t hire one.

Or bake that cake..? 

The only objection I could divine was if you thought anyone who wasn’t a cis woman didn’t belong around childbirth; but that space has been unisex for years.

Yes, but the men there aren't pretending to be women, are they? 

But back to the language problem: my friends told me the trans novice doula had gone on to object to the word “mother”, and this made the class impossible.

Of course he did. What did anyone think would happen as soon as he got a foot in the door? 

I disagree.

Well, of course you do, because you're not very bright, are you? 

It’s true that, in a medical context, trans men don’t want to be addressed as mothers, since it forces them to choose between their identity as an individual and as a parent, but it doesn’t follow that they want to police all of us into never again mentioning our mothers.

You've just been shown how a desire to be inclusive has backfired, with the inch-taker now demanding their mile. You've seen how language is policed, by first protest and then violence.  You'd have to be wilfully blind or stupid not to see the direction of travel here... 

Sometimes language does have to change.

And sometimes it doesn't. This is once such time. 

The important thing, always, is to operate in good faith.

The important thing is to realise when your opponent has no such qualms, Zoe. 

Tomorrow's Fatal Dog Attack Today...

...likely now thanks to the incompetence and laziness, not to say criminal negligence, of South Yorkshire Police
A 10-year old boy has been left needing a zimmer frame and a wheelchair after suffering a horrific injury at the hands of a dog. John Henry Dundas, from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, was left screaming in agony and unable to walk after a Staffordshire Bull Terrier locked its jaws around his leg on October 6.
The rugby-playing youngster was in his friend’s house when the dog first took a bite at his leg before it paused and took a second bite where it “locked” onto his leg and refused to let go, according to his mum Natasha Dundas.

It's goodnight Vienna for Fido, then?

South Yorkshire Police were called regarding the dog and initially took the canine away but have since returned it.

*blinks* What..?!

Natasha learned after the incident that the same dog has been involved in attacks on others in the area.
The mother-of-two added: "I just can’t believe the dog has been handed back. I don’t understand why they would want a dog like that after seeing what it has done to my son."

Because some people shouldn't have a goldfish, let along a dangerous dog. And for some, what a dog like that can do when it wants to (the images of the injuries are horrific), is the attraction of it... 

"We know it has attacked others before but still nothing has been done. They are still able to walk the dog around our streets off a lead. My son is terrified of it and he will have to watch out for it, even on the way to school."

What have the uniformed incompetents got to say for themselves this time? 

A spokesperson for South Yorkshire Police said: "Police were called at around 8:30pm on 6 October to reports that a child had been bitten by a dog in Essex Avenue, Doncaster.
"The victim, a 10-year-old boy, suffered serious injuries and was taken to hospital via his parents.
"Officers attended the scene and the dog was seized."

Open and shut case, so clear-cut even SYP couldn't screw it up, surely? 

"A man was interviewed under caution in connection to the incident. Officers have now exhausted all possible lines of enquiry into the circumstances surrounding this incident but any new information can be passed to police by calling 101 quoting incident number 866 of 6 October."

One hopes, in the light of Monday's totally avoidable tragedy in Wales, that this decision is now being hastily revisited? And the animal will be seized and application made for its destruction?

Although the early reports that Gwent Police seem to be hanging their hat on whether the dog in that case was one of the four banned breeds in the original DDA, rather than using the full breadth of their enhanced powers under the revision to that act, isn't encouraging... 

Tuesday 9 November 2021

It's Because That's Often Exactly What They Are...

“People are being treated like weapons,” said Van Leeuwen (medical emergency manager with Médecins Sans Frontières), who recently returned from a week-long assessment with local groups including the Ocalenie Foundation and Grupa Granica.
“It’s hard to believe this kind of crisis is unfolding in the EU.”

No, it really isn't. In fact, it was inevitable, when you push Open Borders on an unwilling population. 

Sooner or later, they realise that the people you are inflicting on them, and who are not welcome, are indeed weapons to be resisted. 

At least eight people have died as thousands of migrants, mostly from Iraq, Iran and Syria, have tried to cross from Belarus in recent weeks but found themselves trapped in a densely wooded border zone with no food or shelter from subzero temperatures. All non-residents including journalists, aid workers and foreign observers are barred under a state of emergency declared by Warsaw from entering a 3km-deep (1.9-mile) strip along the border. This week Poland sent 2,500 more troops to the area, bringing to 10,000 the number of soldiers helping border guards prevent attempted crossings, after several incidents in which groups of 60 or 70 people tried to tear down a razor-wire border fence.

Who are these people, anyway? 

...many of the migrants also have significant mental health issues after spending sometimes several weeks being shunted back and forth across the border. “These people need shelter, food, water and medical assistance,” she said. “Their lives need protecting, and they need to be treated according to EU and international law. They are not weapons, they are human beings.”

They are an invasion force. 

They don't come with guns and tanks, but with resource-draining ailments and demands that countries forced to be unwilling hosts should change their own culture to better accommodate them.   

And they are not 'refugees' in any meaningful sense of the word. They will happily tell you so, should you ask:

In September Ahmad Dandashi, who fled Syria for Lebanon in 2012 and then spent more than seven years working for the Norwegian Refugee Council helping fellow migrants, paid $1,200 for a return flight from Beirut to Minsk, via Dubai.
“The country was collapsing,” said Dandashi, 29. “The economy was nosediving. There were constant power cuts. It would get worse before it got better. I’d applied for so many jobs elsewhere, for scholarships … But nothing came. I had to leave.”
A friend had made it to Germany via Belarus and Poland in July, he said, and he and a small group of friends decided to try for themselves.

He's not fleeing war or persecution - he's fleeing a country he and his fellow co-religionists have turned into a cesspit. He's fleeing it because do-gooders like Van Leeuwen have made it easier to do so:

Dandashi made it to a processing camp in Eisenhüttenstadt, just across the German border, and filed his application for international protection.

But the 'international protection' he demands comes from the western nations. Not, you'll note, the other Muslim countries.  

Everyone Could See It Coming...

...and no-one did anything until it was too late:
Police were called after screams were heard coming from a house where children were playing on Monday afternoon. The boy was mauled to death at the scene by the dog which was then shot dead by a police marksman.

Good! No protracted stay in the kennels for Fido, eating Pedigree Chum at the taxpayer's expense. 

I guess this was one of those 'it suddenly snapped, there was no warning' case? 

The dog, believed to be an American Pitbull, had bitten a customer outside a nearby shop at the weekend. It had recently been brought into the area and a family volunteered to look after it for a few hours as a favour to the owner.

Oh... 

A nearby resident said: 'The dog has been a nuisance on the estate for a bit of a time. I took our son down to the local shop a few days ago, and he was down there then and he was lunging at my son.
'My son is three years old and I had to pick up my son just to move around the dog because of the size on him. He was absolutely huge.
'He wasn't a pet - he was taking the owner for a walk, you know. He was massive.'

What a pity the police are too busy with imaginary crime drummed up by activists to worry about the real dangers in their communities, or something could have been done before a young child lost their life. 

Councillor Steve Skivens (Plaid Cymru) said: 'Our thoughts go out to the family and friends of the young man who has lost his life.
'We would also like to extend our thoughts to all the emergency services who attended the incident. Unfortunately an animal had to be put down.'

Wait, what did I just read? 

What sort of society are we living in where, instead of fury at the idiot who purchased a dangerous dog, the morons who offered to board that dog for him (who clearly had young children!) or the police who clearly didn't trouble themselves to check if it was a danger to the community, he expresses regret that it had to be shot?

And how much longer are we going to prosper as a society that lets this sort of thing happen?

Update

It turns out that the house the boy visited was the owner of this mutt after all. Meaning they left their own child alone with a potential killer animal. 

And the police - who seem only concerned with the breed of the animal at the moment - claim not to have received any complaints about it. If that's true, then the people giving statements to the press about it being notorious in the area should hang their heads in shame. 

If it's true it 'takes a village to raise a child', then it seems it takes a village to endanger one's life, as well...

Monday 8 November 2021

Remember When The Law Was Applied Equally And Without Favour?

Posters saying "[redacted]" have sparked a police hate crime investigation. They were found on lampposts in two roads in Basingstoke and near Basingstoke College of Technology.
Hampshire Constabulary was alerted to the posters by a resident on Thursday and said they are being treated as a hate crime.
What did these posters say? "No blacks, no Irish, no dogs?" Or "Only women have vaginas"? 

No. They said "It's OK to be white". So we must conclude from this that the police in this country - certainly those in Hampshire who have form for this - don't think it is OK to be white...

They will, of course, say that that's not true and their hands are tied, and thanks to the ludicrous legislative burden they work under, they have to respond if someone makes a complaint. So, has someone?
Resident Priya Brown said: "These tactics are divisive and they have no place in today's world. They're tactics that are used to divide deliberately by neo-Nazi groups and white supremacy groups. It started in the US but we have seen it here in the UK."

So does that mean that posters and statues proclaiming 'Black lives matter' are now fair game for a complaint on the same basis? Do you think police would be forced to investigate if a complaint was made about them?

If you say 'Yes', then would you like to buy this? 

A spokesperson for the police force said they were liaising with local community groups as part of the investigation.

Will any of those be majority white community groups, I wonder? 

For Fox Sake...

...never give the bloated, politically-correct, incompetent RSPCA any money. Ever!

If their begging letters come through the post, put them straight in the bin. 

If their adverts come on the TV, now's the time to compose tomorrow's shopping list. 

If one of their paid shills approaches you in the street, do what I did once in Southend high street, and tell them in depth and exactly why you won't be giving them any money.

And if granny's thinking about leaving them some money in her will, suggest she donates to ISIS instead. If you're going to hand money over to bloodthirsty nihilistic killers, might as well go with people who don't pretend to be anything else...

H/T: Community Action to Reform RSPCA via Twitter

Sunday 7 November 2021

"Is It Brentwood Or Brentford, Boss?"


"Ah, they both begin with 'B', just pick one..." 

The postal address of the restaurant is “Navestock Side, Brentwood, Essex”!

H/T: Peter W via email

Who Gets This One, The RNLI Or The NHS?


A 'shingles bank'? *rolls eyes*

H/T: i r jackson via email 

Sunday Funnies...

Why is it so strange that actors act? Is it because we don't see much of it these days? 

Saturday 6 November 2021

New York Dog Parks Are Clearly Dangerous Places...

A New Yorker police say is the man filmed attacking an 11 year-old girl in a dog park used to work for a non-profit that helps traumatized children.

So, was he drumming up custom? Why else attack a child unprovoked? 

It was unprovoked, wasn't it?

In the video, a dog owner believed to be DiRenzo and two other dog walkers were seen yelling at the children and their school chaperone at Stuyvesant Square between the intersection of East 16th Street and Perlman Place.
The school children had been throwing dirt and poppers on the ground at the park before the three dog walkers began to intervene.

Oh... 

The cellphone video had captured the beginning of the incident where the three dog walkers were screaming at the children who continued to throw dirt at them.
It was not long before the male dog walker, sporting a beard and sunglasses, then approached a gate. 'All your kids are throwing f**king dirt and f**king poppers!' DiRenzo allegedly yelled at the chaperone.
'We’ve already had to call 911 on them. Grip her the f**k up before I put my hands on her.'

I guess their behaviour explains why they need a 'chaperone' at the park. Does he act?  

The chaperone then attempted to get the children out of the dispute and back to the school building before the situation escalated further.
'What school do they go to? They’re psychos,' the other male dog walker had asked.
DiRenzo then allegedly added that the chaperone was an 'embarrassment' for his lack of control over the rowdy students. The 11-year-old girl then marched towards the suspect before he viciously began attacking her in front of her classmates.
'You fat little bi**h you’re not going to amount to anything in life,' DiRenzo had yelled at her before the attack.
He then began punching her in the face, spraying her with water and even grabbing her by the hair in anger. The girl's 15-year-old male friend was also hit when he attempted to stop the fight.

Despite the fact that the 'children' instigated the whole thing, bystanders are shocked, shocked and appalled. 

Other onlookers and dog walkers were in complete shock as they witnessed the horrifying incident.
'I hope they find this man,' a witness named Rachel said on Friday, before DiRenzo was apprehended.
'This man grabbed her by the neck, her chest, and punched her in the head. Eleven-year-old black young girl. This is not normal. He's dangerous.'

I'm reminded of another famous incident in a New York park that wasn't quite as cut and dried as it seemed initially... 

I've Found Someone With A Fondness For 'The Exercise Of Power'...

...and it didn't take me long at all!
Police officers should face random spot checks on their phones to help tackle the 'revolting' online misconduct as shown by Met officer who shared photos of two murdered sisters, the chief inspector of constabulary has said.

Fair enough. I have a work-issued mobile phone, and no expectation of privacy on it.  

Sir Tom Windsor has said that trawls of private and work mobile phones...

Oh, whoa! That can fuck off! 

...would help deter officers using WhatsApp and other social media channels to share photographs of crime scenes and inappropriate jokes.

Maybe so, but if the police want to look at a suspected criminal's phone, they have to get a warrant, or have them actively under arrest. 

Is this authoritarian whackjob actually suggesting the police should have fewer rights than the people they are dealing with? 

He told The Times he supported the idea that staff and police officers are to be checked in the same way they are required to undertake random drug tests.
It's not at all the same thing. Phones hold all kinds of private data. I assume when they do a random drug test they don't also test for veneral disease, pregnancy and cancer?
He called for a change of policing culture by weeding out police officers who showed a fondness for the exercise of 'power or violence', or 'display racist, homophobic or misogynistic tendencies'.

Has he looked in a mirror? 

'Let's say rather than put the information on an electronic message, the person in question wrote it down, put it in an envelope and posted it to another person.
'Nobody would seriously assert that the paper correspondence should be confidential in all circumstances.'

Nobody would seriously assert that all their incoming and outgoing post should be checked for all police officers everywhere either. Although this idiot probably would, come to think of it...  

Windsor warned, in the wide-ranging interview, that professional standards units and counter-corruption squads, whose job it is to uncover misconduct by officers and staff, were often staffed by weaker detectives.

And there's probably a reason for that. After all, they are clearly lead by weaker senior officers.  

Higher standards to become a police officer were also under consideration.

This, in the profession that's weakened them to get more women and ethnic minorities across the line? It is to laugh.  

Friday 5 November 2021

You've Still Got Blood On Your Hands...

In a damning report, they accuse transport chiefs and civil servants of pressing ahead with the roads despite ‘major concerns’. The officials are said to have underestimated the risk of removing hard shoulders.
Technology designed to save lives is still not in use despite a promise given in 2016 to the Commons transport committee, which wrote today’s report.
Lives would almost certainly have been saved had the technology been in place sooner,’ the MPs say. ‘The promised safety improvements were delivered neither efficiently nor effectively.
...because everyone else told you it was a bad idea before they were built. 

And despite belatedly raising a fuss, you're still content to sacrifice those lives, aren't you?
It stops short of calling for the hard shoulder to be reinstated, saying the reduction in road capacity this would cause could push more vehicles on to ‘less safe’ local roads, resulting in more deaths and pollution.

Would those 'less safe local roads' be where MPs tend to live, I wonder? 

They Aren't Saveable, Judge...

The judge added, ''I've done what I can to help you save your family''.

Why would anyone want to try? 

A single mum has denied being with her children when they broke into a neighbour's home and ransacked it - leaving excrement and smashed eggs on the kitchen floor.
The children stole whatever they could find from the house, before drawing on the walls and leaving cigarette butts in the bathroom sink.There was also apple juice over the bed; and coal over the carpet.
Teesside Crown Court heard that the victim had taken advantage of the lifting of lockdown restrictions to go and visit her mother.

Typical underclass brood of future babymothers and knife crime victims or perps... 

The victim returned home to find her watch, make up, perfume, books and toys missing. Even a packet of noodles was stolen from the kitchen during the raid on Teesside in last year. One of the children was seen heavily made-up and wearing the victim's jumper and scarf a few days after the burglary. The police searched the mother's home and recovered some of the victim's belongings.

And I expect the feral children were all under the age of criminal responsibility? So they had to go for the litter-mother instead. 

Defending, Samuel Ponniah told the court that the single mum had been, ''overwhelmed looking after her children during lockdown'' when she was also pregnant.

Great, another addition to the brood coming up... 

The mum stood at the back of the court in a tracksuit, crying and and talking to the dock officer next to her.
Judge Jonathan Carroll told her to pay attention to proceedings, '' Your life is almost a basket case. You've got children, but you are the adult.
"I don't have a magic wand to fix your situation at all. You have to be in control of your children - they need their mother.
"If I send you to prison, your children would go into care. That is a catastrophic and overwhelming consequence for the children.
"You've got a long road ahead of you. You need significant intervention''.

Costly intervention... 

Thursday 4 November 2021

"Exams is hard, innit fam?"

Exams should use simpler language and have hard questions at the end to avoid ‘demotivating’ pupils, Ofqual has said.

*rolls eyes*

It is, of course, the drive for 'equality'. The wrong sort, naturally.  

Plans to boost ‘equality’ say GCSE and A-level papers must not disadvantage diverse groups such as migrants.
The regulator also wants papers to avoid mentioning ‘contexts’ some pupils may be unfamiliar with, such as travel or social experiences.

Or being able to go from one postcode in London to another without being stabbed?

The advice will not apply where complex language and cultural knowledge is tested, like in English and history...
Yet!
...but will be relevant in maths and science, particularly in scenario-style questions.

I can't wait to see the scenarios they will put in instead! 

The consultation on the proposed guidance, which opened yesterday [Mon], will close on January 24.

Why bother? It's undoubtedly already decided. 

Natalie Arnett, senior equalities officer for school leaders’ union NAHT, said: ‘It’s important that Ofqual ensures it considers the range of learners and seeks to put in place proactive measures to address any disadvantage or differing impact they may face.’

The fact that a union has a post like this tells you all you need to know, doesn't it? 

Ooh, Ooh, I Know, Janet..!


...it's 'when Labour show signs of being even half-way electable'. 

Which reminds me - here's a little something for Claudia Webbe, hopefully soon-to-be-ex-MP:



Wednesday 3 November 2021

Musical Interlude - November:"Doesn't anyone just want to work in the bar industry anymore?"

This was a surprise. I wasn't expecting to like it. And, rather like the one that kicked this all off, is it really a 'musical' in the traditional sense? 

Meh! If 'Mamma Mia' can be counted as one, then so can this. It's 'Rock Of Ages'. And who can deny that this is possibly the best comedy musical track ever?

Oh, I Think We Can...

A family tribute was read at the start of the inquest by Mr Smith's sister, Lorna Webley, describing him as a 'very bright, talented and creative individual' famed for his 'sharp' dress sense, and as a man 'forever altering his own clothes'.
Ms Webley said the death was 'beyond comprehension', adding 'Trevor's life mattered and he did not deserve to lose it in this way.
'One early Friday morning, someone took my brother's life in three seconds.
'At this moment, we cannot explain the proper reason for any good cause for his death.'
He threatened his ex-partner with an imitation handgun and when police came to arrest him, giving him every chance to surrender, he acted like an idiot. Case closed. 

There, saved a lot of time.