sábado, 28 de marzo de 2015

Oratio obliqua of opiparous opuscule...






It is very rare to read an article where you agree with every single word! James Delingpole has managed to do just that, today in Breitbart London:


I call them the "Wankerati" [...] But this isn’t about talent – or lack of – it’s about personal politics. Everyone on that list ranges in outlook from the nauseatingly bien-pensant to the rabidly left-wing, to the point where you could fairly confidently predict their position on any number of topics from Nigel Farage, Israel/Palestine and global warming all the way through to mildly racist jokes, foxhunting, bankers, positive discrimination and the European Union. Oh, and Jeremy Clarkson, of course." [...] 


This isn’t really about Clarkson. It never was about Jeremy Clarkson the man. It’s about the things he represents: puerile humour, laddish banter, irresponsibility, political incorrectness, smoking, drinking, driving fast cars and enjoying them, admiring the military, kind of half wishing you could be in a war so you could test your mettle, practical jokes, taking the piss, saying things you’re not supposed to say, public school, bad hair cuts, not worrying about fashion, thinking Margaret Thatcher was great, thinking foreigners are funny, “racist” stereotypes, chauvinism, and so on.

Lots of people still think that way, even though they’re not supposed to. Now Clarkson’s gone there’s no one at the BBC – literally NO ONE, for the BBC has always been good at purging such people or making sure they never get a look-in in the first place – to speak for them.
"

Superb.

Oratio obliqua of opiparous opuscule...


It is very rare to read an article where you agree with every single word! James Delingpole has managed to do just that, today in Breitbart London:
I call them the "Wankerati" [...] But this isn’t about talent – or lack of – it’s about personal politics. Everyone on that list ranges in outlook from the nauseatingly bien-pensant to the rabidly left-wing, to the point where you could fairly confidently predict their position on any number of topics from Nigel Farage, Israel/Palestine and global warming all the way through to mildly racist jokes, foxhunting, bankers, positive discrimination and the European Union. Oh, and Jeremy Clarkson, of course." [...] 
This isn’t really about Clarkson. It never was about Jeremy Clarkson the man. It’s about the things he represents: puerile humour, laddish banter, irresponsibility, political incorrectness, smoking, drinking, driving fast cars and enjoying them, admiring the military, kind of half wishing you could be in a war so you could test your mettle, practical jokes, taking the piss, saying things you’re not supposed to say, public school, bad hair cuts, not worrying about fashion, thinking Margaret Thatcher was great, thinking foreigners are funny, “racist” stereotypes, chauvinism, and so on. Lots of people still think that way, even though they’re not supposed to. Now Clarkson’s gone there’s no one at the BBC – literally NO ONE, for the BBC has always been good at purging such people or making sure they never get a look-in in the first place – to speak for them."
Superb.

martes, 24 de marzo de 2015

OPEC or Osborne...






"What cost of living crisis? CPI inflation falls to zero for first time on record" writes Nelson Fraser in The Spectator. Indeed but not for the first time ever apparently but certainly the first time since the Consumer Prices Index was created in 1989 (click to enlarge image). More good news in the article by Fraser for those suggesting 'deflation' could be a problem.



Of course CPI doesn't include all household expenses; that would be the Retail Prices Index (RPI) which includes mortgage and rent (and Council Tax); these would be most people's highest outgoings but even this Index hovers just over the 1% mark. One commenter asks who is responsible, oil price fall or the Chancellor...

OPEC or Osborne...


"What cost of living crisis? CPI inflation falls to zero for first time on record" writes Nelson Fraser in The Spectator. Indeed but not for the first time ever apparently but certainly the first time since the Consumer Prices Index was created in 1989 (click to enlarge image). More good news in the article by Fraser for those suggesting 'deflation' could be a problem.

Of course CPI doesn't include all household expenses; that would be the Retail Prices Index (RPI) which includes mortgage and rent (and Council Tax); these would be most people's highest outgoings but even this Index hovers just over the 1% mark. One commenter asks who is responsible, oil price fall or the Chancellor...

sábado, 21 de marzo de 2015

Otoño o Ostara...






Google has this doodle today which I though was a bit odd...'Primer dia de otoño' (First day of Autumn) until I remembered I was in the southern hemisphere...d'oh. Ostara back home and if you're a bit of a pagan: "The spring equinox in the Northern Hemisphere falls on Friday March 20 this year, marking the time when the sun passes over the celestial equator. Wiccans and other neopagans observe the day as Ostara, a festival that celebrates the season's change from dark winter to brightening spring." [HuffPo] Of course yesterday for many also saw a supermoon and a solar eclipse! [EarthSky] ooooo.

Otoño o Ostara...


Google has this doodle today which I though was a bit odd...'Primer dia de otoño' (First day of Autumn) until I remembered I was in the southern hemisphere...d'oh. Ostara back home and if you're a bit of a pagan: "The spring equinox in the Northern Hemisphere falls on Friday March 20 this year, marking the time when the sun passes over the celestial equator. Wiccans and other neopagans observe the day as Ostara, a festival that celebrates the season's change from dark winter to brightening spring." [HuffPo] Of course yesterday for many also saw a supermoon and a solar eclipse! [EarthSky] ooooo.

miércoles, 11 de marzo de 2015

Operose Oisin...




...or not, as the case may be. [edited very late to correct name!] No doubt most now know the 'news': Jeremy Clarkson has caused another fracas and has been suspended from the BBC:


"Sources said he was accused of hitting the producer in an incident last week, and the remaining three episodes of the current series might not be broadcast."

A Change.org petition supporting Clarkson - and remember all the details aren't out yet*! - is passing 260 thousand as I write this (Anti PC in action?); it reached 100K within 6 hours of being posted yesterday just after 5 p.m. by Guido.

Clarkson allegedly hit a Top Gear assistant producer Oisin Tymon; this has been said to have been because no food had been laid on during a day out filming but who knows: JC has had a fair bit of stick on various occasions for all sorts of nothings, this however could be a bit more: before the 'Je suis Jeremy' starts we should realise that hitting a colleague wouldn't wash elsewhere. That said, maybe Oisin had previously been a leaker of one or more of the 'naughty Jeremy' stories (Oisin poison has a ring to it), or maybe he liked pink ties, or maybe he's 100% innocent of any fault. No doubt soon all will be revealed.

It's causing a Twitter and media storm - naturally - and I particularly like THIS hilarious Tweet from Maggie Lavan (I hope she doesn't mind me copying it here).




Operose Oisin...


...or not, as the case may be. [edited very late to correct name!] No doubt most now know the 'news': Jeremy Clarkson has caused another fracas and has been suspended from the BBC:
"Sources said he was accused of hitting the producer in an incident last week, and the remaining three episodes of the current series might not be broadcast."
A Change.org petition supporting Clarkson - and remember all the details aren't out yet*! - is passing 260 thousand as I write this (Anti PC in action?); it reached 100K within 6 hours of being posted yesterday just after 5 p.m. by Guido. Clarkson allegedly hit a Top Gear assistant producer Oisin Tymon; this has been said to have been because no food had been laid on during a day out filming but who knows: JC has had a fair bit of stick on various occasions for all sorts of nothings, this however could be a bit more: before the 'Je suis Jeremy' starts we should realise that hitting a colleague wouldn't wash elsewhere. That said, maybe Oisin had previously been a leaker of one or more of the 'naughty Jeremy' stories (Oisin poison has a ring to it), or maybe he liked pink ties, or maybe he's 100% innocent of any fault. No doubt soon all will be revealed. It's causing a Twitter and media storm - naturally - and I particularly like THIS hilarious Tweet from Maggie Lavan (I hope she doesn't mind me copying it here).

domingo, 8 de marzo de 2015

Outrageous opportunist obnubilation...






I seem to have missed the period that Sky News turned into a shitty caricature and combination of the worst aspects of toilet paper lefty rag The Daily Mirror and the laughable biased BBC News. Just WTF is this? "Thatcher 'Turned Blind Eye' To Paedophile MPs". Documents show Mrs Thatcher was made aware of the claims about the Liberal MP before he was handed the honour in 1988. I have no problem with Labour MP Simon Danczuk exposing Cyril Smith as a child abuser; I do have a problem with him and Sky News acting like the worst of the worst gutter tabloid.



Their own report tends to belie both the headline and Danczuk's comments; it goes on to say that the then Political Honours Scrutiny Committee had written to Margaret Thatcher explaining that police had investigated Liberal MP Cyril Smith in 1970 for "indecent assault against teenage boys" between 1961 and 1966 when he was a Labour Party Councillor; also that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had decided "there was no reasonable prospect of conviction" but that "One may regret this kind of press reporting but it could be revived if an award to Mr Smith were made" (referring to the fact that the case was reported in the Rochdale Alternative Press and Private Eye). Labour Lord Shackleton - who had written the letter - also said it would be "slightly unfortunate" if the revelation meant the Liberal MP didn't receive the knighthood.



I got more info from The Guardian; never thought I'd be using them to show what fucking cunts Sky News are.



Apparently a 2nd letter to PM MT said that the committee had some hesitation about the award but “so far as we believe and have been able to ascertain, his past history or general character does not, in all the circumstances, render him unsuitable” and yet another letter on the topic said Smith had been given the benefit of the doubt because he had not been prosecuted. The then cabinet secretary, Sir Robin Butler asked for more info:


The case for taking the exceptional step of writing to you in this way is to protect the prime minister (and the Queen) while also being fair to Mr Smith.



He said the committee wanted to know “whether the case against Mr Smith was not well founded; or whether it was a sound case, but that the evidence was not likely to stand up in court”.

I'm sure Simon Danczuk isn't acting like the prize cunt and he certainly isn't entirely partisan (he knows his own party 'are at it' too); maybe it was Sky News that put the headline; however, wouldn't it be true to say that rather than this being "a real stain on Margaret Thatcher's legacy and I don't get any pleasure from saying that, but she turned a blind eye to it"  as Danczuk has stated, wouldn't it be fairer to say it was the Cabinet Office/ civil servants, not Margaret Thatcher? Or at the very worst she acted on the various snippets of advice she was given by trusted aides at the time? 

Outrageous opportunist obnubilation...


I seem to have missed the period that Sky News turned into a shitty caricature and combination of the worst aspects of toilet paper lefty rag The Daily Mirror and the laughable biased BBC News. Just WTF is this? "Thatcher 'Turned Blind Eye' To Paedophile MPs". Documents show Mrs Thatcher was made aware of the claims about the Liberal MP before he was handed the honour in 1988. I have no problem with Labour MP Simon Danczuk exposing Cyril Smith as a child abuser; I do have a problem with him and Sky News acting like the worst of the worst gutter tabloid.

Their own report tends to belie both the headline and Danczuk's comments; it goes on to say that the then Political Honours Scrutiny Committee had written to Margaret Thatcher explaining that police had investigated Liberal MP Cyril Smith in 1970 for "indecent assault against teenage boys" between 1961 and 1966 when he was a Labour Party Councillor; also that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had decided "there was no reasonable prospect of conviction" but that "One may regret this kind of press reporting but it could be revived if an award to Mr Smith were made" (referring to the fact that the case was reported in the Rochdale Alternative Press and Private Eye). Labour Lord Shackleton - who had written the letter - also said it would be "slightly unfortunate" if the revelation meant the Liberal MP didn't receive the knighthood.

I got more info from The Guardian; never thought I'd be using them to show what fucking cunts Sky News are.

Apparently a 2nd letter to PM MT said that the committee had some hesitation about the award but “so far as we believe and have been able to ascertain, his past history or general character does not, in all the circumstances, render him unsuitable” and yet another letter on the topic said Smith had been given the benefit of the doubt because he had not been prosecuted. The then cabinet secretary, Sir Robin Butler asked for more info:
The case for taking the exceptional step of writing to you in this way is to protect the prime minister (and the Queen) while also being fair to Mr Smith.

He said the committee wanted to know “whether the case against Mr Smith was not well founded; or whether it was a sound case, but that the evidence was not likely to stand up in court”.
I'm sure Simon Danczuk isn't acting like the prize cunt and he certainly isn't entirely partisan (he knows his own party 'are at it' too); maybe it was Sky News that put the headline; however, wouldn't it be true to say that rather than this being "a real stain on Margaret Thatcher's legacy and I don't get any pleasure from saying that, but she turned a blind eye to it"  as Danczuk has stated, wouldn't it be fairer to say it was the Cabinet Office/ civil servants, not Margaret Thatcher? Or at the very worst she acted on the various snippets of advice she was given by trusted aides at the time? 

sábado, 7 de marzo de 2015

Ocracy obloquy...






NO! No, no, no! Lord Baker (an ex Conservative Party chairman) has written an article for the Independent: "General Election 2015: Why a Con-Lab coalition may be needed to save the United Kingdom"! NO! The BBC reports it: "A Conservative-Labour coalition may be needed after May's election to prevent the SNP holding the balance of power". A Conservative-Labour coalition would mean the end of a lot of things, I'd say credibility of British politicians but that's already scrapping the bottom of the barrel; it could disillusion the electorate beyond the point of recovery and as such could open the door for something worse. 

Ocracy obloquy...


NO! No, no, no! Lord Baker (an ex Conservative Party chairman) has written an article for the Independent: "General Election 2015: Why a Con-Lab coalition may be needed to save the United Kingdom"! NO! The BBC reports it: "A Conservative-Labour coalition may be needed after May's election to prevent the SNP holding the balance of power". A Conservative-Labour coalition would mean the end of a lot of things, I'd say credibility of British politicians but that's already scrapping the bottom of the barrel; it could disillusion the electorate beyond the point of recovery and as such could open the door for something worse. 

Open offerings...






Venezuela the best in the world? YES! And I agree: when we're talking about the best breakfast: HERE (but last year!) Adam Lapetina (at Thrillist: "obsessed with everything that’s worth caring about in food, drink, and travel") gave the thumbs-up to Venezuela's arepa; certainly hasn't got the best photo on that blog but I can confirm it's a great way to start the day - of course like all good breakfasts it doesn't have to be limited to the first meal either. My favourite arepa (that link has better photos!) was always 'domino' (black beans and cheese - the image, left) and in the case of this list 'la arepa dominó ' (hehe). Don't worry about the beans, an arepa can be filled with pretty much anything you fancy. Unfortunately the flour they use to make these arepas is one of the staple foods that continues to be in short supply; shortages that are blamed on smuggling, 'unscrupulous businessmen', economic war by the evil empire, aliens (probably) but anybody rather than the clowns in charge.



Interestingly, in the Thrillist best-breakfast list England, Scotland and Ireland all come in the top 5 albeit with variations on the same theme; all equally good too IMHO.

Open offerings...


Venezuela the best in the world? YES! And I agree: when we're talking about the best breakfast: HERE (but last year!) Adam Lapetina (at Thrillist: "obsessed with everything that’s worth caring about in food, drink, and travel") gave the thumbs-up to Venezuela's arepa; certainly hasn't got the best photo on that blog but I can confirm it's a great way to start the day - of course like all good breakfasts it doesn't have to be limited to the first meal either. My favourite arepa (that link has better photos!) was always 'domino' (black beans and cheese - the image, left) and in the case of this list 'la arepa dominó ' (hehe). Don't worry about the beans, an arepa can be filled with pretty much anything you fancy. Unfortunately the flour they use to make these arepas is one of the staple foods that continues to be in short supply; shortages that are blamed on smuggling, 'unscrupulous businessmen', economic war by the evil empire, aliens (probably) but anybody rather than the clowns in charge.

Interestingly, in the Thrillist best-breakfast list England, Scotland and Ireland all come in the top 5 albeit with variations on the same theme; all equally good too IMHO.