Spreading Culture....

But not one we'd like modern thugs to pick up again:

British Transport Police (BTP) has released images of three people who they want to speak to after the incident which took place at Elm Park Tube station on Saturday, February 24.

The 'incident'? Acid throwing. And for once, not the usual suspects:

 

Puzzling. I've been browsing the local press and social media, and can't see anyone claiming this is gang-related. On Facebook, several people have claimed the boys were targeted at random. 

But it seems to be more common these days, everywhere. Like it once was. 

On February 10 a 52-year-old woman was left with burns on her back and head after having a corrosive substance thrown over her in a pub in Basingstoke.The day after, a manhunt was launched after a man was attacked with a 'noxious substance' in St Laurence Graveyard in Ramsgate, Kent. The attacker fled the scene and the victim was rushed to hospital for treatment to burns at the back of his head. And the same day as this police officers were involved in a three-hour stand-off with an alleged 'acid attacker' who seized a London bus and threatened the driver and passengers with an unknown substance in Croydon.

And the 'experts' are puzzled. And have to fall back on old tropes.  

Prof. Gill told MailOnline earlier this month: 'With these attacks on the rise, the criminal justice system must ensure that its response is informed by the perspectives of survivors who have lived experience of its current responses; further, it must be able to influence national police guidance and training and to scrutinise them to more clearly understand the underlying motivations of perpetrators.

'However, protecting acid victims and working to prevent this form of gender-based violence is not merely an issue of legal, police policies and practice; acid attacks can only be eradicated by social change.'

Oh, Prof, 'gender based violence' went out the window. It's no longer the scorned man (if it ever was, as the Samizdata link above shows) or jealous woman, it's a bit more widespread now. 

'Gosh, How Unexpected' Said Nobody, Ever...

Actress and TV presenter Danielle Mason...

Sorry, Reader, no idea...

...claims her 12-year-old son, who has autism, hasn't been to school for over a year due to a lack of funding for his special educational needs - and says 'he'll never go back because his confidence has been knocked so much'. Mason, 41, who lives in Bracknell, says her son Rudy, who should be in Year Eight, has been declined a place at numerous schools in Berkshire after he was excluded 21 times from his last school, The Brakenhale School.

Twenty-one times...! 

Speaking to MailOnline, the mother-of-two claims that the schools 'cannot cope' with her son's EHCP [Education, Health and Care Plan] due to a 'lack of government funding' - and that he's received homework for the first time in a year this week. She says her daughter Delilah, who also has an EHCP due to mental health problems, is currently in Year Six at primary school, and has also failed to get a place at several senior schools.

Two children with mental health issues? Gosh, what are the odds?  

The mother claimed her son would be excluded for 'silly reasons' such as coming in wearing his trainers instead of his school shoes, while other days he was 'triggered' when the school couldn’t handle his needs properly.

But sweetie, those aren't 'silly reasons', are they? 

Danielle revealed it has become like a full-time job trying to find a place for her children's educational needs.

It's probably the only full-time job she's ever had. And she's failing at it miserably. 

Those Dreaded Words...

'Poster Girl'. It's a red flag:

The Army’s poster girl for diversity is suing defence chiefs after allegedly suffering a catalogue of racist abuse. Corporal Kerry-Ann Knight, who has fronted Army equality and diversity campaigns, has taken her case to an industrial tribunal. In court documents she accuses senior officers of presiding over an ‘obvious culture of bullying, discrimination, racism and sexism’.

Her claims are understood to be based on her service at the Army Foundation College, where she is an instructor.

Who couldn't see that coming at Army HQ? Hopefully whoever it was doesn't man a front line watch position!

In 2019, she fronted the £1.5 million ‘Your Army Needs You’ recruitment campaign and featured prominently on posters.

In the same year, The Mail on Sunday revealed how she was racially abused by six soldiers while stationed at a UK military base in Germany. Her attackers were disciplined for using offensive words and accusing her of using her skin colour to secure promotions.

The first I could understand, but not the second. Is 'it's the truth' only a defence against libel then, and not anything else? 

It’s Time The Magistrates Were Forced To Hire Her As Their Chauffeur…

A mother of two who fled the scene of a road accident after a boozy lunchtime binge has walked free from court despite being convicted of drink driving twice in five years. Cheryl Hughes, 43, tested more than three times the alcohol limit when she was arrested at home following a minor prang involving her Ford Focus.

At Chester magistrates court, Hughes, faced jail after she admitted driving with excess alcohol but walked free after a judge ordered her to get treatment for alcohol issues. She was ordered to complete a nine month alcohol treatment programme as part of an 18 month community order and was also banned from driving for 40 months.

Another inexplicable ruling from one of those female judges we are told are so necessary to 'humanise and balance' the justice system... 

Sentencing Hughes, District Judge Jane Hamilton said: 'The figure of 110 was registered in your breath and you had an accident which you had no recollection of. I find this very serious bearing in mind it is the second offence of driving with excess alcohol since 2019.

'It is a matter for which I could have imposed a custodial sentence for and this is something you need to tackle head on as Mr Coupe put it.

Well, why didn't you? If anything is crting out for it, it's a case like this one, where the accused does not cooperate. 

'You need to confront the fact that you do have an issue with alcohol. You have not acknowledged that in your presentence report and you did not acknowledge that when you had the last community order.

So why should she acknowledge it now, when there's been no punishment? 

'If you keep on failing to acknowledge that this is a problem it is not going to go away, it is going to keep recurring. If you do not go to the probation as requested and do not provide evidence as to why you did not do it, you will have breached this order.

'If you are breached, you can go into custody. It is that serious. I could have required you to do the extended retest before you ever get your licence back. I am not going to at this stage but if you are convicted of drink driving again in the future that is one option the court has.'

If the justice system keeps on failing to acknowledge that lack of justice in cases like this is a problem, maybe our faith in it is going to go away.  

About The Only Thing Rishi's Got Right!

The head of the nation's biggest police force hit back at Rishi Sunak yesterday over 'inaccurate' claims that officers are failing to enforce the law in pro-Palestinian protests.

Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley warned that his staff's 'confidence and willingness to act' is being knocked by criticism that they are 'woke and fascist' in their response to the marches, which have cost taxpayers £30 million.

What was knocking their willingness to act before the PM decided to point out their failures, then, Sir Mark? 

Mr Sunak said: 'I have met with senior police officers and made clear it is the public's expectation that they will not merely manage these protests, but police them. And I say this to the police, we will back you when you take action.'

I can't help but feel you'll be waiting a long time for that, Rishi. And let's face it, you haven't got a long time, have you..? 

Pardon Me..?

I suppose they technically are 'firearms'. 

But I wouldn't want to trust my life to one in a self-defence situation with anyone armed with anything stronger than a rolled-up newspaper.

Can I Assume There’d Be No Fuss About This...?

...if they’d have simply had the foresight to dress in #womanface first?

Streaming TV: The Witcher (NetFlix)

Confession time: I loved the PC games. And I read the books, though didn't enjoy them quite as much. So when they said they were filming it, based on the novels, I wasn't expecting much. When they said they were casting Henry Cavill, even less, as I'd found him rather wooden in 'Superman'. 

But I was wrong! He was amazing in the role. So it was a sad day when the creators decided he wouldn't continue. 

Consorting With The Enemy

A radical imam who helped prompt the government's extremism crackdown is reportedly still active in his local mosque where he 'speaks to primary school children'.

Shakeel Begg was found to be an 'extremist preacher' by a High Court judge in 2016.Begg has also continued to work with the Met Police and in September, Trevor Lawry, the local borough commander visited the mosque for an interfaith forum.

Who's shocked? Anyone? Bueller? 

Furthermore the force supported Begg's libel case against the BBC in 2016 saying he had supported Prevent - the government's counter-extremism programme.

Should they have to investigate themselves under terrorism legislation then? 

Lord Justice Haddon-Cave dismissed this, saying that Begg had promoted religious violence 'by telling Muslims that violence in support of Islam would constitute a man's greatest deed'.

At last, a judge with common sense instead of Common Purpose! 

A spokesperson for The Met denied that Mr Begg had an advisory role with the force and instead attended a faith breakfast with officers. They said these types of events are critical for 'engagement work' and that the purpose of the faith breakfast was to talk about the 'stop and search charter'.

Yes, we know, it's who you want to 'engage with' that's worrying us... 

It’s Not ‘Resilience And Determination’…

In her initial Instagram post, Rasetarinera said the incident allowed her to reflect on her journey as a business owner.

“As I reflect on this ordeal, I am reminded of the resilience and determination that have propelled me forward as a black woman entrepreneur,” she said. “While Tesla’s actions may have caused temporary setbacks, they will not deter me from pursuing my passion and serving my community with integrity and pride.”

...it's the usual 'scream and shout on social media until you get what you want'. 

Musk’s company Tesla had ditched an order for 4,000 mini pies from Giving Pies, a Black-owned bakery in San Jose, in central California, bakery owner Voahangy Rasetarinera said on the cafe’s Instagram account five days ago.

Interesting the woman herself doesn't capitalise the word 'black' but the paper does. 

The incident occurred after Rasetarinera’s bakery received a last-minute order for 2,000 pies from Tesla on Valentine’s Day – a $6,000 catch for the small business, KTVU reported. Tesla doubled the order to 4,000 pies before ultimately canceling the order without paying, Rasetarinera said.

In her Instagram post, Rasetarinera said to fulfill the order she had to turn down other Black History Month catering inquiries, purchase additional supplies and prepare her staff for a “demanding production schedule” – for which she was not compensated.

Maybe US business practices are different, but most perishable orders have a clause that cancellation within a certain time frame before delivery will incur a penalty. If she didn't institute such a clause, more fool her. 

But never lose a chance to grandstand and claim victimhood, eh?

“To me, it was clear that Tesla’s corporate culture prioritized convenience over accountability, disregarding the livelihoods of small business owners like myself,” she said. “This experience serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerability faced by small businesses when dealing with larger corporations. Despite our best efforts to uphold our commitments and provide quality service, we are often left at the mercy of decisions made in corporate boardrooms.”

Oh, give it a rest! It was a decision made in a corporate boardroom that got you compensated after you'd whipped up a fuss, but I bet you're fine with that one...