Reality And Common Sense Makes Another Labour Crackpot Idea Obsolete....

 ...even before the bill can get voted on! 

The Free Speech Union said: 'This is a landmark victory, not least because it renders the Government's efforts to roll out an official definition of 'Islamophobia' largely pointless.

Mr Lee, an atheist, holds the belief that Islam 'particularly in a traditional form - rather than a reformed, modernised, moderate and Westernised form - is problematic and deserving of criticism', the tribunal heard. He argued that his intention is to raise legitimate questions and generate debate, saying that the IFoA's treatment of his beliefs is 'problematic' for western democracies.

They sacked him for his beliefs, not even expressed in the workplace, but on social media.  

At a preliminary hearing held by video link at the London Central Employment Tribunal in July of this year, Employment Judge David Khan ruled that Mr Lee had established that he genuinely held the pleaded belief, which meets the definition of a 'protected belief' under section 10(2) of the Equality Act 2010. The judge wrote: 'I do not find that these tweets and the pleaded belief are mutually exclusive. Nor incompatible.

'I find that the claimant's evidence in relation to these tweets, that he was inveighing against the offending doctrines and practices because they continued to be treated as authentic and officially sanctioned by Islamic leaders, was not inconsistent with the pleaded belief.'

Another triumph for the Free Speech Union! 

'If describing Islam as "backward", "a con trick", "a dangerous cult", "the root of the evil" and calling the Prophet Mohammed a "monster" are all expressions of an "Islamic-critical" belief that's protected by the Equality Act, trying to ban people from saying these things in the workplace won't be possible.

Not that it'll stop HR Karens from trying in future, after all, it's not their money, is it?  

'The judge in this case has grasped the important distinction between disrespecting a belief and disrespecting a person who holds that belief. 'Too often, robust criticism of Islam is treated as a form of harassment against Muslims and conflating the two has had a chilling effect on free speech.'

Indeed so. I hope the Met Police is watching this verdict closely. 

This Man Never Heard The Phrase 'Quit While You're Ahead'...

Martin Bentley, 67, was 'prepared to use whatever means he could' to avoid going back to the office when Covid lockdown rules were relaxed, a tribunal in Liverpool heard. He got his way and worked from home until his retirement in 2024, despite an Occupational Health report suggesting he could work in person with no issue. 

But that wasn't enough for him, oh dear me no...

After attempting to sue HMRC for disability discrimination, Mr Bentley was branded as 'vexatious' and ordered to pay £20,000 as his claims would never have succeeded.

That's for his share of the costs of his hopeless case. Anyone else would keep their mouths shut, but not Mr Bentley, who has rushed to press to blame - his union! 

Mr Bentley has not blamed himself for what happened, but instead holds his union accountable, claiming it encouraged him to take legal action. At his home on the 12th floor of a block of flats in Bootle, Mr Bentley told the Daily Mail: 'I have to pay back £240 every month until the money is all paid back.

'I am more angry with my union, the Public and Commercial Services Union, than anyone else. They encouraged me to go down this path, saying they had never seen a worse case of victimisation.''But then they abandoned me. They didn't even turn up for the hearing, leaving me on my own.'

They could clearly see the way the wind was blowing, given the wealth of evidence presented at the tribunal about the way HMRC bent over backwards to accommodate his claims. 

During his time at HMRC, he gave evidence for a female colleague's employment tribunal. Her allegations had been against Michael Connell, who, upon finding out that Mr Bentley had given evidence against him, sent him a Teams message describing him as a 'spineless little f***ing worm' and a 'sneaky slimy prick'.He later claimed he had been abused and that his department had done little to support him.

It shows just what sort of idiots they hire for HMRC when someone decides to abuse a subordinate on a recordable communication app open to the rest of the team. 

Anyone Other Than Ukraine Would Draw Condemnation For This

A computer game-style drone attack system has gone “viral” among Ukrainian military units and is being extended to reconnaissance, artillery and logistics operations, the nation’s first deputy prime minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, has told the Guardian. Drone teams competing for points under the “Army of Drones Bonus System” killed or wounded 18,000 Russian soldiers in September, with 400 drone units now taking part in the competition, up from 95 in August, Ukrainian officials said. The system, which launched more than a year ago, rewards soldiers who achieve strikes with points that can be exchanged to buy more weapons in an “Amazon-for-war” online store called Brave1 filled with more than 100 different drones, autonomous vehicles and other drone war material. It has a leaderboard topped by teams with names such as Achilles and Phoenix.

Can anyone imagine the screams of outrage from every columnist in the Guardian if this system existed in any war involving UK or US forces? Or the Israeli Defence Force? 

Yet strangely, there's not a hint of concern on moral grounds about this, in the article.

Oh, my mistake, there is one after all - not on morality issues though, purely on future success grounds.

But the extension of the points-based system comes amid warnings that increasing reliance on drone warfare is not something Nato countries should follow because Russian defences against such unmanned aerial attacks have become formidable.

Why? Coulsd it be that left wingers are all massive hypocrites who hate the West and everything it does. but will tolerate anything from favoured groups without a peep? Surely not?  

'It's a sad and tragic fact that accidents like this do happen as a result of bad luck.'

 Well, yes, indeed. If you have the bad luck to be born to a thick chavmum who ignores the rules on car seats while accepting a lift from her pissed up girlchum.

A young woman who was drink-driving when a baby was thrown through the open window of her car in a crash wept in court today as she avoided jail.

How?  

Stevie Steel, 24, and a friend had bought three bottles of wine for a day out at the beach when she collided with another vehicle shortly after they left. Her Ford Focus rolled onto its roof and her friend's six-month-old baby, Harry Kiely, was 'thrown through the window' and died from catastrophic head injuries.Harry's mother, Morgan, 22, was given a two-year suspended sentence in July after she was convicted of manslaughter by gross negligence. Her son had not been strapped into his seat properly during the short journey in Clacton, Essex. Steel has now received a one-year term, suspended for a year, after admitting causing death by careless driving while over the prescribed limit.

Tests showed Steel had 43mg of alcohol per 100ml of breath, compared to the legal limit of 35mg. But the judge suspended her sentence today, saying there was 'very considerable personal mitigation'.

Such as? 

She was of previously good character, had admitted the offence and had expressed remorse. She also has a young child with her ex-partner.

Ah, the usual load of old flannel. 

Christopher Martin, defending Steel today, said his client had spoken to charities about helping with campaigning against drink driving. This was 'with a view to try and nail home how serious the consequences of this type of offending really are' for young people.

 Well, they are going to look at the extraerdinary leniency offered to this pair and conclude that there really aren't any, so that might backfire! 

The defendant was also disqualified from driving for five years and must pass an extended test before returning to behind the wheel.

Should have been a lifetime ban. 

We Will Remember Them...

His flying jacket still has her perfume

Memories of the night

Play across his mind

High above the fields of France,

 

A single biplane in a clear blue sky 1917,

no enemy was seen

High above the fields of France

Oh she looks,

 

But there's nothing to see

Still she looks Saying "Come back for me"

He tells her "Just remember me this way

Here am I more true Than anything I do

High above the fields of France"

 Lyrics from Al Stewart, 'Fields of France

Update: I know Longrider has raised concerns about the RBL; though I agree wholeheartedly with the creep of corporate culture into charities that get too big, but = though I schewed the traditional paper poppy this year for a brooch with a spitfire in a wreath of enamelled poppies from the RAF charity = I still link to it as I have done since my first Remembrance Day post. 

And from Jeff Wood via email, this astounding AI created video that will soon no doubt be needed for our veterans, as their numbers dwindle.

Probably Right, So How About Locking Up Mental Patients Instead?

 

A member of train staff who intervened to protect passengers as the service approached Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire remained critically ill in hospital but his condition was now stable, Heidi Alexander said. She said there was no evidence of a terrorist motivation, adding that she could not be drawn on the possible mental health of the 32-year-old suspect after witnesses to his arrest recounted him talking about the devil. One witness said the suspect had asked the police to kill him. Alexander said there would be visible patrols of British Transport Police officers at stations for the next few days to reassure passengers, but rejected the idea of security scanners or arches.

For once, a Minister isn’t taking a knee-jerk approach, because it’s clearly a non-starter. So much so even a Labour dimwit can see it.

“We have thousands of railway stations across the UK, and those stations have multiple entrances, multiple platforms. What we can’t do is make life impossible for everyone, but we do need to take sensible and proportionate steps to make the public transport network safe.”

So how about making life - free and part of society - impossible for the perpetrators of such rampages, who appear to be overwhelmingly black and often have had several run ins with the authorities before they launch their final attack? No? Didn’t think so!

Really, 'Mail'?

 No, not really. The actual answer is 'big angry herbivores':

Deaths on safari are on the rise, with several reports in the last 18 months alone. The most recent case of this was in July 2025, when a British tourist and her friend from New Zealand were killed by a charging elephant during a 'sunrise safari walk' in Zambia. In July 2024, a Spanish tourist was horrifically crushed to death in front of his screaming fiancee by an angry herd of elephants after he got out of his car to take photographs in a South African game reserve.

*sigh* 

Two months prior to that, Lisa Manders, 70, from the US state of Connecticut, was killed by a hippo in Zambia, while out on a ‘bush walk’ during a dream safari trip with her husband Craig. And in April last year, a crazed bull elephant attacked tourists on safari in Zambia, leaving an American woman dead, after chasing a safari truck for more than half a mile through a national park.

I guess not having any weapons for self-defence on these trips (and the men able to wield them) is asking for trouble. 

In the past three months, even safari workers have faced with aggressive wildlife.

Well, pretty sure it'll be in the job description... 

'African safaris have become extremely popular, and many top destinations are sold out months in advance. ‘This has led to a proliferation of many smaller operators, lodges, and even artificial safari parks or “game reserves”, closer to urban populations. ‘Some tourists unfortunately take shortcuts and book with less reputable operators, or choose cheaper options on the outskirts of recognised game reserves, where human-wildlife interaction is more prevalent and safari activities are perhaps more risky.’

Couple that with the modern generation's stunningly blase attitides to risk, and it's a recipe for disaster: 

'There’s also the fact that safari lodges have become increasingly luxurious and glamorous, which could potentially dull a visitor's sense of danger. 'Social media likely plays a role too, by exposing people more regularly to the idea of what's out there.'

The social media images of an enraged 6 ton jumbo crushing a vehicle as if it were a beer can don't seem to have been viewed often enough then.

If She'd Cut Herself On A Sharp Knife Would You Complain To The Media About That?

 Silly damn question - the answer's almost certainly 'Yes',

Amy, 36, from Norwich, bought the brush online for £4 to "make life easier" with housework, but it caught in her daughter's hair when the child took it out of the box. She reported the item as it appeared on the shopping site to Norfolk Trading Standards, who said Temu had now removed it from sale in the UK.

Amy said that when the brush arrived, her daughter picked it up and "it just came on, the brush flew off.. and just sucked her hair in". "I didn't realise how bad it was at first," she said.

I was puzzled as to the nature of this brush, until I saw the image accompanying this story:  

And I realised I had the very same type of brush, bought from Lidl's home cleaning range. It's motorised, works on battery power and the idea of leaving it where a small child could access it would be unthinkable to me, who doesn't even have - or like - children. 

"I don't want any other child to go through what she's been through."

They probably won't, because not all mothers are fucking stupid or careless... 

A spokesperson for trading standards said Temu's UK representative "voluntarily withdrew" the product to conduct a review of the appliance in line with legal requirements, particularly in relation to warnings and instructions.

As if parents like this one would read any instructions. 

The Only Surprise Is It's Not 'A Woman In Her Mid-60s'...

A dog has died after being attacked by an XL bully. The attack happened in the Kessingland fields at 4.15pm on October 12. The dog died two days later.

Lowestoft Police would like to speak to a white male, in his mid-60s, who was seen with three dogs at the time of the incident. Police are urging witnesses to get in contact via 101.

Because these days it's usually women who rescue threse weapon dogs. 

H/T: Dave Ward via email

Ladies And Gentlemen, I Have Finally Found It!

 The most unbelievably and insufferably arrogant person in the UK! Beating off, I have to say, some pretty strict competition but he did it with ease:

Imagine the astonishing level of self-absorption you have to have to claim children are 'suffering' by not being able to read your works? 

It was against this backdrop (The Taliban's decicion to stop girls attending school, Reader)  that I read about the school in Weymouth, Dorset, that had removed American author Angie Thomas’s wildly popular young adult novel The Hate U Give from its Year 10 reading list, apparently in response to the objection of one parent, former Conservative councillor James Farquharson. While copies of the book would continue to be available in the school library, its removal from classrooms sent a worrying message: that one man’s comfort could be considered more important than the rights of an entire student cohort to access literature that might speak directly to them, never mind that it may contain dangerous or difficult ideas.

They can, of course, still access his scribblings freely, by walking into a bookshop or opening their Kindle and clicking the little shopping trolley icon, he's just lost his ability to have them given no choice but to read it by having schools ram it down their throats... 

The use of my novel, Pigeon English, is also under review at the school, thanks again to Farquharson’s intervention. His objections to my book – which he shared on Facebook having read the first 13 pages and Googled some reviews – centre on its use of profane language and depictions of violence and sexual behaviour.

Well, why on earth would we want children reading that, then? 

Pigeon English explores some of the same themes as The Hate U Give, social injustice chief among them. It draws on my experiences growing up on a diverse and deprived council estate in Luton in the 1980s and 90s, and on the killing of Damilola Taylor, the Nigerian schoolboy stabbed to death in Peckham, London, in 2000.

Sound like a feelgood read. 

The novel was very much directed at an adult readership, which I felt could parse some of its more troubling content and recognise the urgent social questions it posed. I did not predict that it would end up in the hands of schoolchildren or being dissected in classrooms; nor was I consulted when the decision was made in 2015 – rubber-stamped by a Conservative education secretary – to include it on the GCSE curriculum.

Should they have consulted you? This man's ego clearly knows no bounds. As if he'd have said anything but 'Yes please!' 

When Caravaggio’s Madonna di Loreto was unveiled in 1606 it scandalised Rome; not because it dared to put a face to the newborn Christ but because it showed the dirty feet of the peasants who knelt to venerate him. Centuries later, do those same prudish sensitivities still prevail?

Good god, he's comparing himself to bloody Caravaggio now!