The Dates All Set !
Quote from jkwebster06 on May 22, 2024, 8:30 pmJuly 4th (don't the Americans have that as a special day !?!) is for the General Election ! Rishi blindsided us all (apart from the gobby Beth Rigby on Sky News), most thought it would be the Autumn. Starmer & Davey will now get their "election train" in motion although Starmer's been campaigning for weeks whilst Ed Davey is the most useless politician I've ever known. Back to the odious (in my eyes) Beth Rigby, she of the ton of bright red lipstick smeared across her face - she was co-presenting outside No.10 and was constantly looking at her phone when being spoken to and forever referring to a former cabinet minister or a Shadow minister who was giving their views , anyone who she classed as important but NEVER divulged a name, basically name-dropping with out giving a name, but in reality it seemed to me was just reiterating her OWN viewpoints - why would these "important people" want to text her outside No.10 ? At the end of the PM's address she then referred to her phone again, but this time repeating what we'd just heard from the PM but in a way to make the listener believe she was the only one with the information and was "live" reporting. Her co-presenter smiled (through gritted teeth & rain) in a way that said " Shut Up & let me get a word in !" You'll gather I'm not a fan of Ms Rigby, in fact she's on a par with the other odious pair of Chris Mason (BBC) & Robert Peston (ITV), each of them seem to think we should hang onto their every word - Argh !! John (JKW)
July 4th (don't the Americans have that as a special day !?!) is for the General Election ! Rishi blindsided us all (apart from the gobby Beth Rigby on Sky News), most thought it would be the Autumn. Starmer & Davey will now get their "election train" in motion although Starmer's been campaigning for weeks whilst Ed Davey is the most useless politician I've ever known. Back to the odious (in my eyes) Beth Rigby, she of the ton of bright red lipstick smeared across her face - she was co-presenting outside No.10 and was constantly looking at her phone when being spoken to and forever referring to a former cabinet minister or a Shadow minister who was giving their views , anyone who she classed as important but NEVER divulged a name, basically name-dropping with out giving a name, but in reality it seemed to me was just reiterating her OWN viewpoints - why would these "important people" want to text her outside No.10 ? At the end of the PM's address she then referred to her phone again, but this time repeating what we'd just heard from the PM but in a way to make the listener believe she was the only one with the information and was "live" reporting. Her co-presenter smiled (through gritted teeth & rain) in a way that said " Shut Up & let me get a word in !" You'll gather I'm not a fan of Ms Rigby, in fact she's on a par with the other odious pair of Chris Mason (BBC) & Robert Peston (ITV), each of them seem to think we should hang onto their every word - Argh !! John (JKW)
Quote from DavidFullard on May 22, 2024, 10:50 pmPeston and Mason agreed 100%. Peston’s breathless, gulping, hesitant speech idiosyncrasies just add to his general ’kickibility’. Mason is the class swot, nerd of nerds, his whiny, nasally smugness is wrapped in a barely disguised anti Tory reporting style. I surmise Rigby is a Sky reporter? I have never knowingly seen or heard her.
I thought the PM delivered an eloquent speech today. He barely glanced at his notes. He spoke clearly in an ‘easy on the ear’ tone albeit I wish he had a bit more zest, some ‘kpow’ in his delivery. But he is who he is. A safe pair of hands when all’s said and done. I am in no doubt we will be wishing he was still PM after the GE…for all his faults.
But who in heaven’s name allowed him to stand in the pouring rain unprotected? The rain seemed to steadily increase the longer he stood there. I can only assume HE gave instructions forbidding an aide to appear with an umbrella. It sas a mistake in my opinion. His £2800 Saville Row bespoke suits are tailored short in the leg anyway…before any rain induced further shrinkage.I have said it before in this forum and I say it again. He may well have called the GE earlier than expected because he has simply had enough. He is a devout Buddhist and family man. He has high principles and more money than he can spend in a lifetime. He inherited the proverbial crock of sh*t after the Truss debacle. But most political pundits expected him to hang fire till the Autumn to at least allow himself to complete 2 years in post. I hear and read theories of him not wanting to wait till the weather improves, boat landings increase and the expected inflationary flatlining begins. I don’t buy into those latter theories
We should be under no illusions. The country is in deep trouble. The NHS is almost past the point of no return. We are unable to defend ourselves or field any campaign force above a single division. We have too few ships, aircraft, MBTs, artillery pieces etc etc. We have no viable air defence systems apparently. Our police forces and fire services are riven with racism, misogynism, criminality and worse. And in the midst of it all the nation struggles with 2 of the biggest scandals in modern history those of The PO and The Blood Transfusion Tragedy.
Both scandals are deeply mired in political intrigue along with private and public sector cover ups. Corruption, monumental duty of care failures as well as likely corporate manslaughter are also bywords in these desperately sad disasters. The snails’ pace of payment delivery and unfairness of the sums offered to many of the Sub Postmaster/Mistresses serves only to exacerbate the ineptitude of it all.It all sounds bleak. Well things aren’t exactly rosy to be honest. I remember when Labour fell out of favour in the Brown years shortly after Blair ‘abdicated’. After so many years in power, with the economy in the doldrums and less pressures then than the Government face now, the thought in the Labour camp was….let the Tories inherit the crock of sh*t we have created. We’ll sit a session out and come back stronger than ever once they’ve sorted our mess out. If any Tories are thinking along similar lines presently they would do well to remember the 15 + years of political solitude Labour faced afterwards.
Peston and Mason agreed 100%. Peston’s breathless, gulping, hesitant speech idiosyncrasies just add to his general ’kickibility’. Mason is the class swot, nerd of nerds, his whiny, nasally smugness is wrapped in a barely disguised anti Tory reporting style. I surmise Rigby is a Sky reporter? I have never knowingly seen or heard her.
I thought the PM delivered an eloquent speech today. He barely glanced at his notes. He spoke clearly in an ‘easy on the ear’ tone albeit I wish he had a bit more zest, some ‘kpow’ in his delivery. But he is who he is. A safe pair of hands when all’s said and done. I am in no doubt we will be wishing he was still PM after the GE…for all his faults.
But who in heaven’s name allowed him to stand in the pouring rain unprotected? The rain seemed to steadily increase the longer he stood there. I can only assume HE gave instructions forbidding an aide to appear with an umbrella. It sas a mistake in my opinion. His £2800 Saville Row bespoke suits are tailored short in the leg anyway…before any rain induced further shrinkage.
I have said it before in this forum and I say it again. He may well have called the GE earlier than expected because he has simply had enough. He is a devout Buddhist and family man. He has high principles and more money than he can spend in a lifetime. He inherited the proverbial crock of sh*t after the Truss debacle. But most political pundits expected him to hang fire till the Autumn to at least allow himself to complete 2 years in post. I hear and read theories of him not wanting to wait till the weather improves, boat landings increase and the expected inflationary flatlining begins. I don’t buy into those latter theories
We should be under no illusions. The country is in deep trouble. The NHS is almost past the point of no return. We are unable to defend ourselves or field any campaign force above a single division. We have too few ships, aircraft, MBTs, artillery pieces etc etc. We have no viable air defence systems apparently. Our police forces and fire services are riven with racism, misogynism, criminality and worse. And in the midst of it all the nation struggles with 2 of the biggest scandals in modern history those of The PO and The Blood Transfusion Tragedy.
Both scandals are deeply mired in political intrigue along with private and public sector cover ups. Corruption, monumental duty of care failures as well as likely corporate manslaughter are also bywords in these desperately sad disasters. The snails’ pace of payment delivery and unfairness of the sums offered to many of the Sub Postmaster/Mistresses serves only to exacerbate the ineptitude of it all.
It all sounds bleak. Well things aren’t exactly rosy to be honest. I remember when Labour fell out of favour in the Brown years shortly after Blair ‘abdicated’. After so many years in power, with the economy in the doldrums and less pressures then than the Government face now, the thought in the Labour camp was….let the Tories inherit the crock of sh*t we have created. We’ll sit a session out and come back stronger than ever once they’ve sorted our mess out. If any Tories are thinking along similar lines presently they would do well to remember the 15 + years of political solitude Labour faced afterwards.
Quote from jkwebster06 on May 29, 2024, 9:03 pmThe campaign trail is well under way, Starmer making every photo opportunity, surrounding himself with dozens of NHS female staff today, Rishi content to be "sleeves rolled up" in a factory whilst Davey acting, and looking like, an absolute buffoon on a pushbike in Wales and paddle boarding in Windemere. How on earth did he get a knighthood ? I could Google the answer but he's not worth the effort in my opinion, a truly absolute buffoon who makes Boris seem like a Statesman ! It does make it a straightforward "2 horse race" IMO, Rishi Sunak versus Smarmy Starmer, one with ideas & one without ! Let battle commence........ John (JKW)
The campaign trail is well under way, Starmer making every photo opportunity, surrounding himself with dozens of NHS female staff today, Rishi content to be "sleeves rolled up" in a factory whilst Davey acting, and looking like, an absolute buffoon on a pushbike in Wales and paddle boarding in Windemere. How on earth did he get a knighthood ? I could Google the answer but he's not worth the effort in my opinion, a truly absolute buffoon who makes Boris seem like a Statesman ! It does make it a straightforward "2 horse race" IMO, Rishi Sunak versus Smarmy Starmer, one with ideas & one without ! Let battle commence........ John (JKW)
Quote from jkwebster06 on July 3, 2024, 8:13 pmIt's nearly all over -the promises with inflated amounts of money to spend, wild accusations and poll figures that contradict themselves daily (apart from the one constant, Labour will win). What can we expect from Starmer & Co. ? I think a lot depends how long he can keep his Party together - will they go down the same self destructive road that the Tories did, stabbing each other in the back at every opportunity ? No doubt Corbyn & the Momentum crowd of Hard Lefties will be planning, no, plotting their way to subvert , with Raynor in the wings ready to pounce , and Starmer unable to keep control. He'll try all right, but he lacks the charisma or strength of will IMO to halt the onslaught of Hard Leftism that I fear will be inevitable sooner rather than later.
Anyway, the stage is set, this time tomorrow the exit polls (usually accurate) will predict the result - God help us !! John (JKW)
It's nearly all over -the promises with inflated amounts of money to spend, wild accusations and poll figures that contradict themselves daily (apart from the one constant, Labour will win). What can we expect from Starmer & Co. ? I think a lot depends how long he can keep his Party together - will they go down the same self destructive road that the Tories did, stabbing each other in the back at every opportunity ? No doubt Corbyn & the Momentum crowd of Hard Lefties will be planning, no, plotting their way to subvert , with Raynor in the wings ready to pounce , and Starmer unable to keep control. He'll try all right, but he lacks the charisma or strength of will IMO to halt the onslaught of Hard Leftism that I fear will be inevitable sooner rather than later.
Anyway, the stage is set, this time tomorrow the exit polls (usually accurate) will predict the result - God help us !! John (JKW)
Quote from Mick (Stockton) on July 5, 2024, 8:47 amYES John, YOU [And the polls were right. I and Mary DID vote but I (For one ) did not take part in the "DEBACLE" And on a lighter note "IT FEELS GOOD TO BE BACK" unfortunately I will have to rush off as I have a promise to keep with "026 Jones".
Mickey S.
YES John, YOU [And the polls were right. I and Mary DID vote but I (For one ) did not take part in the "DEBACLE" And on a lighter note "IT FEELS GOOD TO BE BACK" unfortunately I will have to rush off as I have a promise to keep with "026 Jones".
Mickey S.
Quote from jkwebster06 on July 7, 2024, 8:26 pmGlad to see you back Mickey, don't leave it too long before telling us your reasons for a such a long absence , we've missed you ! You must have loads to tell us of what's happening in your neck of the woods & even if you haven't, make something up !!
All the best, John (JKW)
Glad to see you back Mickey, don't leave it too long before telling us your reasons for a such a long absence , we've missed you ! You must have loads to tell us of what's happening in your neck of the woods & even if you haven't, make something up !!
All the best, John (JKW)
Quote from Mick (Stockton) on July 11, 2024, 12:31 pmHi John, David, ......All, Sorry for the long absence but I've been in the wars I'm afraid[Fell over a coupe of times! I'll explain... FIRST TIME was a couple of months ago "we" [Mary and I] were due to go down to Leicester to have a look at Matthew's new house... [He used to live in Castle Donington].... Anyway.....when asked to get the suitcase out of the attic I slipped and fell down the steps (4 I think) and although winded didn't break anything as I later fond out. So I called 111 just to be on the safe side.
To cut a "Short story long" (as they say) lol, they referred me to and made an appointment at the "Walk in centre" at Bishop Auckland Hospital and after being assessed told me that as I was over 50 it was the Hospital's policy to refer any one with a suspected damaged ribcage to Darlington NHS for further assessment?..................TBCont'd [ Well John you did ask]
wlk imn
Hi John, David, ......All, Sorry for the long absence but I've been in the wars I'm afraid[Fell over a coupe of times! I'll explain... FIRST TIME was a couple of months ago "we" [Mary and I] were due to go down to Leicester to have a look at Matthew's new house... [He used to live in Castle Donington].... Anyway.....when asked to get the suitcase out of the attic I slipped and fell down the steps (4 I think) and although winded didn't break anything as I later fond out. So I called 111 just to be on the safe side.
To cut a "Short story long" (as they say) lol, they referred me to and made an appointment at the "Walk in centre" at Bishop Auckland Hospital and after being assessed told me that as I was over 50 it was the Hospital's policy to refer any one with a suspected damaged ribcage to Darlington NHS for further assessment?..................TBCont'd [ Well John you did ask]
wlk imn