Greece And The European Union: I'm So Angry I Could Pitch A Tent!



Occupy Brussels anybody?

 The good old Greeks, I love them. Along with the Italians, Irish, Portuguese and Spanish they conned the EU into throwing pots of cash at them and lived like the decadent young party goer who'd won a rollover lottery jackpot. And who can blame them? Now it's time to say whoa, money's run out, you've got to change your ways and it looks like they're going to say up yours and refuse.

For years Eurorealists, Eurosceptics or whatever you want to call us have been saying the EU was a disaster waiting to happen and the Euro would be the ultimate cause of the disaster. The PIGS fiddled the books to claim they had the right figures to join the Euro, and the rest of the nutcases in the Eurozone ignored the truth and went along with it. Result? Inevitable crisis after inevitable crisis until it's teetering on the brink of true disaster.

In the old days when I foolishly thought UKIP was a credible force, one of the members used to tell me that we were really wasting our time, the EU would collapse in on itself way before we had the influence to extricate ourselves from the con trick. Looks to me like Bryan was right.

I'm on the list of speakers for an independent think tank and occasionally go into schools debating the EU with a Europhile. I'm tired of the amount of bull they come out with to try and justify continued membership of a monstrous, undemocratic, bureaucratic monster. They come out with things like 'the EU has kept the peace in Europe since the last war'. No! We only joined in 1973, 28 years after the war and I don't think we'd been at war with Europe since 1945. Or 'we would lose our trade with Europe if we left the EU'. No we wouldn't. We buy much more from EU countries than we sell to. The French wouldn't suddenly refuse to sell us wine or the Germans motor cars. They claim the EU is democratic. In that case why do they ignore referendums, such as those in Ireland, Denmark and France that go against them and carry on regardless?

No, the European Union is a vanity project run by and for Europe's political class. It epitomises the decadent, self-indulgent egocentricity of a dying civilisation where the leaders swan around grandstanding and living like kings while the rest of us tighten our belts. When you visit Brussels and Strasbourg and see the stinking luxury and extravagence of our unaccountable rulers you see why the people of Greece are likely to tell their rulers to stick their austerity measures. Greedy grasping bastards in the establishment got us into this mess, but we're the ones who'll have to live in poverty to bale them out.

Merkel and other leaders consult the people: EU style!

Last week I was at the theatre in Manchester watching a superb play called Good, by C P Taylor. In a nutshell it tells the tale of a throughly decent German academic in the 1930s, complete with Jewish friends, who gets sucked into working for the regime because of the subtle and creeping takeover of all aspects of life by the regime. Very interesting and topical I thought.

When I left the theatre, it was a matinee, I put the radio on to hear what had happened during the last couple of hours at the Euro summit, called to discuss the current crisis. Incredibly assorted 'leaders' had turned up and they had spent the previous hour and a half preening and posing in front of cameras smiling and looking pompous and self-important. They then went in for a chat before enjoying a sumptuous banquet! Good to see where their priorities lie.

Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last, the EU has made me so angry I could pitch a tent.

All Saints Day

It is good to have a Holy Day of Obligation that hasn't been moved to a Sunday for convenience, I'm looking forward to Mass at 12 15 at Lancaster Cathedral.

It is an opportunity for believers to remember all saints and martyrs, known and unknown, throughout Christian history. As part of this day of obligation, believers are required to attend church and try not to do any servile work.

Remembering saints and martyrs and dedicating a specific day to them each year has been a Christian tradition since the 4th century AD, but it wasn't until 609AD that Pope Boniface IV decided to remember all martyrs. Originally 13th May was designated as the Feast of All Holy Martyrs. Later, in 837AD, Pope Gregory IV extended the festival to remember all the saints, changed its name to Feast of All Saints and changed the date to 1st November.

Father, All-Powerful and ever-living God,
today we rejoice in the holy men and women
of every time and place.
May their prayers bring us your forgiveness and love
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Anti-Catholic Nutjob Alert

I received a comment today from somebody using the pseudonym 'Scout'. It seemed innocuous enough, if a little terse and was about the chap who has just been demoted for his Christian beliefs. So I posted it.

Then I looked at his blog and immediately sent his comment to the bin. He seems to have an unhealthy obsession with Catholics and his blog is dedicated to his obsession. Tell you what Scout, just provide the world with a list of Catholic bloggers, then people can read and make their own minds up whether we are mad or not. On the other hand, placed alongside your fruitcake ramblings, the most bizarre blogger would look highly rational.

Now I believe in free speech and am very dubious about any form of censorship, but I do draw the line at nutjobs using my blog to promote their lunacy. That is why I binned his comment.

There is a much more considered post about 'Scout' than this on That The Bones You Have Crushed May Thrill where the valid point is made that if 'Scout' wrote a similar blog about Muslims, he would be accused of Islamophobia.

It seems that he is trawling the blogosphere looking for Catholic blogs to get angry about, a strange pastime. 'Bones' has been hit as, it seems has Smeaton's Corner and Catholic and Loving It! I feel quite humbled and unworthy to be in the trenches alongside such tremendous Catholic bloggers as those three.

If you would like to make up your own mind about Catholic bloggers I recommend the Guild of Blessed Titus Brandsma, where there are some of the finest Catholic blogs and bloggers you'll find .

More On Adrian Smith, Oppressed Christian

I'll give the politically correct their due, they really do manage to offend everybody, regardless of race, ethnicity blah, blah, blah.

I remember a few years ago a council in East Lancashire harassing a woman who had a piggy bank on her window sill in case it offended Muslims en route to the mosque. I remember seeing an Imam interviewed at the time telling us how his Muslim congregation had found the council's action deeply patronising and offensive.

Now Trafford Housing Trust have united gays, Christians and most rational people in opposition to their victmisation of a Christian employee for daring to express his views on gay marriage.

It now transpires that the Trust acted against him because they were scared of losing the formal approval of an organisation that helps young gay people find housing. Stalin is alive and well after all it seems.

Full story at the Christian Institute.

Gay Marriage And Adrian Smith

You may remember Adrian Smith, the man who was demoted by Trafford Housing Trust for not believing that gays should be married in churches, rather they should stick with civil partnerships? Well below are excerpts from two letters that appeared in the Mail on Sunday yesterday:

I find the treatment of Adrian Smith truly immoral. He's done nothing but express a personal opinion in a private capacity, something he is wholly entitled to do. It is my hope that he is successful in his legal challenge.

Jamie (Somerset)

While some may view his comments as harmless, I believe there is the real possibility of offence. He made his position untenable as soon as he made these comments in a public forum, and as such will have to live with the consequences of his actions. 

Anthony William Mitchell (Cambridge)

Some key words are missing from the above letters. One contained the words 'as a non-Christian gay man', the other 'The Rev'. Can you guess which contained which?

I think The Rev Mitchell typifies all that is wrong with the Church of England. Furthermore, as I find his letter offensive, I trust his bosses will be demoting him to grave digger, where he'll have to live with the consequences of his actions. Oh, but they are probably too busy supporting 'Occupy' to do that.

More On Liberal Democrat Nutters.

The Lib Dems have a history of bizarre chracters, so I thought I'd do a quick update. Here we go:

Lib Dem MP John Hemming's wife has just been sentenced for kidnapping his lover's kitten. Full story.

Lib Dem 'Mithering Business' Secretary Vince Cable, who constantly whines about businesses not paying enough tax, has been fined £500. Oh yes, it was for failure to pay a tax bill. Full story.

Then there's Chris Huhne, Energy Secretary. He's spent the summer denying claims from his ex-wife that she took speeding points on her licence on his behalf. As far as I know the case is still being looked at by the Crown prosecution service. Full story.

I won't mention Huhne's clanger when he sent what he thought was a private message to his open Twitter feed. But if you want to find out more the full story is here.

And we're being ruled by these clowns!

Poll: Should The Number Of Charity Shops Be Restricted?

There has been a fuss this week about charity shops and whether their numbers should be restricted.

They get rate relief that other shops don't get and have voluntary staff, which other shops don't have. Because of this they can undercut other shops, such as secondhand bookshops, and help to destroy our high streets.

They raise a fortune for charities and provide invaluable experience for volunteers many of whom, as a consequence, go on to new careers in the retail sector. They help poorer families to buy quality goods at cut prices. They help to save our high streets by filling shops that would otherwise be empty.

The truth lies somewhere in between. Are charity shops merely taking advantage of a free market? Or are their tax advantages and volunteer staff killing other businesses? Should their number be restricted?

Please feel free to leave a comment and to vote in the poll on the side bar.

You Fat Bastard!

I don't care what anybody says, we obviously have too much money swilling around judging by this report from the BBC.

There is a group of researchers in the Midlands, the Human Metabolic Research Unit aka 'flab lab' looking at why so many people are fatties. It's costing a fortune in salaries and space age equipment to suss out if somebody is fat or not. What a waste!

I was brought up being told to eat little but eat often. They've spent a packet on research to come out with that gem.

I was brought up to eat slowly, that way you'll digest your food properly and enjoy it more. They've spent a fortune to come up with that.

I have a mirror and kitchen scales. Admittedly I rarely use them as it is depressing. They've spent a fortune on a machine called a  whole body calorimeter.

If they paid me about £40,000 a year I could save them a fortune in research by telling them why people are fat. Here are one or two reasons:

Fat people often drink like fish.

Fat people often eat junk food too often.

Fat people eat too much cheap processed food.

Fat people don't exercise enough.

Millions of pounds is being wasted on pointless research. I've explained obesity in one short blog post. I might apply to the Department of Health for a research grant now, to research how to lose weight.

Morrissey To Sue NME

As I've said before, there is more tripe written about Morrissey than probably any other current entertainer. Here is my last post about the singer and people writing bullshit about him.

Morrissey is now suing the NME for defamation. In an interview he was quoted as saying:

"With the issue of immigration, it's very difficult because although I don't have anything against people from other countries, the higher the influx into England the more the identity disappears.

"Other countries have held on to their basic identity, yet it seems to me that England has thrown it away...England is a memory now. Other countries have held on to their basic identity, yet it seems to me England was thrown away."

Nothing wrong with that I'd have thought. But Morrissey claims that the NME have twisted his words and defamed him. No surprise there with the NME! Even the interviewer has disowned the article.

Full story from Brand Republic.

EU Referendum Debate-Who Voted For?

Thanks to Max Farquar here is a list of those MPs who voted for a referendum or abstained. If your MP isn't on the list I'm sure you know what to do.

Conservative MPs
Stuart Andrew (Pudsey)
Steven Baker (Wycombe)
John Baron (Basildon & Billericay)
Andrew Bingham (High Peak)
Brian Binley (Northampton South)
Bob Blackman (Harrow East)
Graham Brady (Altrincham & Sale West)
Andrew Bridgen (Leicestershire North West)
Steve Brine (Winchester)
Fiona Bruce (Congleton)
Dan Byles (Warwickshire North)
Douglas Carswell (Clacton)
Bill Cash (Stone)
Christopher Chope (Christchurch)
James Clappison (Hertsmere)
Tracey Crouch (Chatham & Aylesford)
David Davies (Monmouth)
Philip Davies (Shipley)
David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden)
Nick de Bois (Enfield North)
Caroline Dinenage (Gosport)
Nadine Dorries (Bedfordshire Mid)
Richard Drax (Dorset South)
Mark Field (Cities of London & Westminster)
Lorraine Fullbrook (South Ribble)
Zac Goldsmith (Richmond Park)
James Gray (Wiltshire North)
Chris Heaton-Harris (Daventry)
Gordon Henderson (Sittingbourne & Sheppey)
George Hollingbery (Meon Valley)
Adam Holloway (Gravesham)
Stewart Jackson (Peterborough)
Bernard Jenkin (Harwich & Essex North)
Marcus Jones (Nuneaton)
Chris Kelly (Dudley South)
Andrea Leadsom (Northamptonshire South)
Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford)
Edward Leigh (Gainsborough)
Julian Lewis (New Forest East)
Karen Lumley (Redditch)
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley)
Karl McCartney (Lincoln)
Stephen McPartland (Stevenage)
Anne Main (St Albans)
Patrick Mercer (Newark)
Nigel Mills (Amber Valley)
Anne-Marie Morris (Newton Abbot)
James Morris (Halesowen & Rowley Regis)
Stephen Mosley (Chester, City of)
Sheryll Murray (Cornwall South East)
Caroline Nokes (Romsey & Southampton North)
David Nuttall (Bury North)
Matthew Offord (Hendon)
Neil Parish (Tiverton & Honiton)
Priti Patel (Witham)
Andrew Percy (Brigg & Goole)
Mark Pritchard (Wrekin, The)
Mark Reckless (Rochester & Strood)
John Redwood (Wokingham)
Jacob Rees-Mogg (Somerset North East)
Simon Reevell (Dewsbury)
Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury)
Andrew Rosindell (Romford)
Richard Shepherd (Aldridge-Brownhills)
Henry Smith (Crawley)
John Stevenson (Carlisle)
Bob Stewart (Beckenham)
Gary Streeter (Devon South West)
Julian Sturdy (York Outer)
Sir Peter Tapsell (Louth & Horncastle)
Justin Tomlinson (Swindon North)
Andrew Turner (Isle of Wight)
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes)
Charles Walker (Broxbourne)
Robin Walker (Worcester)
Heather Wheeler (Derbyshire South)
Craig Whittaker (Calder Valley)
John Whittingdale (Maldon)
Dr Sarah Wollaston (Totnes)

Two Tory MPs acted as tellers :
Peter Bone (Wellingborough) and Philip Hollobone (Kettering).

Two Tory MPs voted in both the Aye and Noe lobbies which counts as an abstention :
Iain Stewart (Milton Keynes South) and Mike Weatherley (Hove)

Labour MPs
Ronnie Campbell (Blyth Valley)
Rosie Cooper (Lancashire West)
Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North)
Jon Cruddas (Dagenham & Rainham)
John Cryer (Leyton & Wanstead)
Ian Davidson (Glasgow South West)
Natascha Engel (Derbyshire North East)
Frank Field (Birkenhead)
Roger Godsiff (Birmingham Hall Green)
Kate Hoey (Vauxhall)
Kelvin Hopkins (Luton North)
Steve McCabe (Birmingham Selly Oak)
John McDonnell (Hayes & Harlington)
Austin Mitchell (Great Grimsby)
Dennis Skinner (Bolsover)
Andrew Smith (Oxford East)
Graham Stringer (Blackley & Broughton)
Gisela Stuart (Birmingham Edgbaston)
Mike Wood (Batley & Spen)

Liberal Democrat MP
Adrian Sanders (Torbay)

Democratic Unionist Party MPs
Gregory Campbell (Londonderry East)
Nigel Dodds (Belfast North)
Jeffrey Donaldson (Lagan Valley)
Rev William McCrea (Antrim South)
Ian Paisley Junior (Antrim North)
Jim Shannon (Strangford)
David Simpson (Upper Bann)
Sammy Wilson (Antrim East)

Independent Unionist MP
Lady Sylvia Hermon (Down North)

Green Party MP
Caroline Lucas (Brighton Pavilion)

David Morris MP, Morecambe and Lunesdale

As snivelling little yes men go David Morris, my local MP takes some beating. Is he voting yes or no in today's Commons vote on whether we should get a referendum on EU membership? Well, he's behaving like a man with no conviction or principle by tabling the following amendment:

"This House calls upon the Government to publish a White Paper during the next session of parliament setting out the powers and competences that the Government would seek to repatriate from the EU, to commence a renegotiation of Britain’s relationship with the EU and to put the outcome of those negotiations to a national referendum."

In true Tory style he makes the right noises, but action will come at some point in the future. He's doing Cameron's dirty work by sending a smokescreen across the whole issue today thinking we are all stupid enough to fall for it. Well I'm sorry David, but we're not all as stupid as you.

It gets worse, he really goes into some kind of dreamland on his website when he says:

“I think we should also bear in mind that this is without question the most Eurosceptic Government we've had since the early days of Margaret Thatcher’s term, before the Single European Act 1986 and the shadowing of the Deutschmark. The Prime Minister has pledged to refuse any new powers for Brussels without a referendum and is now working in earnest to repatriate powers to the UK. This is proof that us Eurosceptics are winning the argument, and that if we hold firm we will ensure Britain becomes a sovereign country again.”

I say 'dreamland' because it would be rude to accuse him of making things up wouldn't it?

I wonder what Morris will be doing after the next election? Maybe he'll go back to being a hairdresser.

EU Referendum v Coalition Government: A Message To David Cameron

When you are strong arming your MPs to vote against giving us a referendum on membership of the European Union remember one thing. Well over 100,000 people have signed petitions demanding a referendum, not a single person voted for the coalition government you head.

David Cameron and the Conservative Party's Final Betrayal of the British People

Tomorrow will see Cameron crush the hopes of millions when he denies us our right to a referendum on leaving the European Union. It was Ted Heath who sold us to Brussels for forty pieces of silver, well a few million quid anyway, and successsive govenments, Tory and Labour have continued to shaft us ever since. What can we do?

What I don't understand is why Cameron and co repeatedly claim that in these times of economic collapse we need Europe more than ever. How would you feel if you were on a sinking ship and, rather than manning the lifeboats to get you clear, the captain strapped you on to the deck of the sinking vessel?

As there is no credible party fighting for our withdrawal from the EU maybe we should have a 'British Spring'. Our democracy is constantly being attacked by authoritarian governments so surely if we did rise up against our oppressors we too could count on military support from NATO.

On a serious note tomorrow, if it goes as I expect it to, will prove one thing, that the Conservative Party is a busted flush and no longer deserves the support of anybody who is vaguely patriotic.

England, Home of UK Uncut, Occupy and other Silly Prats

Move along now. Dale Farm is closed, haven't you got St Paul's to go to?

We needed a change this week, Mrs B and yours truly. It's healthy to have a change of scenery now and then, so we packed a few bits and cleared off to France.

We stayed in a little town an hour from Calais on a nice little camp site, we have a little caravan you see. For four or five weeks of the year we travel in our caravan. That's what caravans are for, travelling. It's great, because after a few nights we hook up and move on to somewhere new. We travel.

So it was refreshing to hear, while we were away in our caravan, that the Dale Farm residents had been moved on. They must have got really lazy and I'm sure they will be grateful soon when they find pastures new. Ten years on one site? I'd be going stir crazy after ten weeks on one site. And these cheeky gits call themselves 'travellers'! Of course you won't be pleased if they land up next to you and your home, but that's another tale.

Then there are the nobheads 'occupying' places like the outside of St Paul's Cathedral in London because they're a bit fed up. Funny that, because when we got fed up and wanted a change we used to go camping too. Then we got a bit old and hey presto, we got a caravan! See the link? But we used to camp in places like the Alps and the mountains of North Wales, not concreted urban areas.

We have been fed up with political crap for years too. So we got involved with politics. In fact I've been active in politics for over 30 years. But what has happened in those 30 years? Not a lot because people don't find slogging the streets putting leaflets through letterboxes 'sexy'. They don't like having to persuade others, even those on the same side, that x, y, or z is the way forward. They take another route. They grandstand. They seek attention and an adrenalin rush by posing around, making twats of themselves and annoying most of the population.

You had 'peace camps' in the '80s with dickheads in dreadlocks juggling in silly hats. You had 'Swampy' and co trying to save woodland in the '90s with dickheads in dreadlocks juggling in silly hats. Now we have dickheads in dreadlocks juggling in silly hats to 'end poverty' outside St Paul's.

Pose around on YouTube and make a few headlines on dodgy satellite TV news stations, it's much more pleasant than leafletting Gorton or Wythenshawe on a wet Wednesday night in October. So why don't people rush to support your UK Uncut and Occupy nutters and sweep them to power? Because most people think they are prats and lefty mongs.

House of Commmons to Debate European Union Referendum

Many congratulations to Nikki Sinclaire MEP. She has achieved, single handedly, something that no other group or party has been able to achieve, a referendum on whether we stay in or leave the EU.

The historic House of Commons debate on whether the UK should be allowed a referendum on whether to pull out of the European Union is set to take place next week on Thursday the 27th of October 2011 from mid-day onwards in the main chamber. This follows the presentation to Downing Street of a petition calling for a referendum.

If MPs vote in favour of a referendum, David Cameron will come under huge pressure to offer the British public a chance to say for once and for all if they want to withdraw from the EU.

The Commons Backbench Business Committee met this week to set the date. Nikki, who instigated and then delivered, along with a broad cross-party delegation of MPs and MEPs, the petition of over 120,000 signatures to No 10 Downing Street said: "This is a victory for democracy, and for the common man whose voice has been ignored for too long. It has been a long haul, but gathering these signatures has been a great experience, and my thanks go out to all those people who worked so tirelessly to make this happen".

The motion that has been submitted for debate is:

This House calls upon the Government to introduce a Bill in the next session of Parliament to provide for the holding of a national referendum on whether the United Kingdom
(a) should remain a member of the European Union
(b) leave the European Union
(c) re-negotiate the terms of its membership in order to create a new relationship based on trade and co-operation.

Nikki has vowed to keep the pressure on David Cameron and his government. "The signatures keep coming in" she said today, "and next Thursday we will be back at the door of 10 Downing Street with even more. The people are speaking out now, the government must listen."

I believe this is the petition that so-called UKIP leader Nigel Farage refused to sign. Scared of the gravy train ending perhaps? Although I wouldn't hold my breath on the Commons voting for a referendum I applaud Nikki, who has worked tirelessly and selfessly for our independence since being elected. That UKIP chose to expel her reflects on the motives and character of UKIP's leadership I would say.

It's Friday, Morrissey Time!

There must have been more bullshit written about Morrissey than about any other singer in the world. One semi-literate blogger has even claimed that Morrissey has people searched on their way into concerts and any meat found is confiscated. I assume he meant ham butties and not human flesh! The truth is that the food stalls at a Morrissey festival appearance recently stopped selling meat when he was on stage, it was a tribute to his vegetarianism.

So, as it's Friday here's a bit of classic Morrissey, sans bullshit:

The NHS-Abusing Us All

It's been good today to see the mess that is the NHS being criticised, as it should be. I'm sick of the appalling waffle people come out with whenever the NHS is mentioned.

The staff in the NHS are only interested in their own positions in my experience. Yes, that's a sweeping generalisation, as is the bullshit about nurses being 'angels' and all NHS staff being such 'caring people'. If we only had one nationalised supermarket, and it was as incompetent and wasteful as the NHS we would have a revolution on our hands. But as soon as the NHS is mentioned the brainwashed just drool about how marvellous it is. So, here is a list of the disasters that I can name off the top of my head within our glorious system of nationalised healthcare:

My mother-in-law went in fit and healthy, apart from having norovirus. She was so badly treated in hospital that she broke her hip and has been unable to walk since. That was in 2007.

A friend of mine lost his aged aunt after she was effectively starved to death in hospital.

A neighbour was left in a wheelchair in a 'broom cupboard' for ten hours when he was taken into hospital. He died a week later.

When my wife visited her mother she showed me a photograph of a toilet. It was so filthy I thought it was on the council estate where her parents live. It was actually the toilet in the hospital where her mother was being (very poorly) treated.

I spent a night in hospital in 2007. When I was preparing to leave the next day I glanced under the bed. There was a pool of dried blood under it, left by a previous occupant of the bed.

When my father-in-law visited his wife in hospital he lost his cap. Four days later my wife visited and found his cap under the bed on the floor, which obviously hadn't been swept or mopped for at least four days.

A friend of mine visited his mother in hospital. When there he contracted MRSA.

Remember Harold Shipman?

Remember people being poisoned at Stepping Hill Hospital?

And before I'm accused of being a right-wing nutter read this report from The Independent.

Here is a 1998 BBC article about NHS disasters.

Then all you get from Dave is the boast about how much more the Coalition is spending on the NHS than the last lot. Populist crap! Throwing money at crap just means the crap gets more expensive. Until politicians and the populace stop bullshit drooling about the 'glorious NHS' we will continue to see it get worse and worse and worse.

Let's face it, if virtually any other industry had such an appalling record of mistreating it's customers it would have either died a natural death, or been closed down by the government years ago. And just remember the next time NHS unions are marching to 'save your NHS', they are really marching to feather their own nests.

Where's The New Margaret Thatcher?

The bland leading the bland.

What a sanitised, dreary shambles of a PR exercise the Tory Party conference was. It epitomised the complete lack of imagination in current British politics. Where are the characters? Where are the big ideas? Where is the passion? When the big news of the week is the Home Secretary being attacked by the Minister for Justice for talking about a moggie, you know we are in the shit!

The people hate the European Union and the Euro is crashing before our eyes. But still Dave and co insist on telling us that the EU is good for Britain. Call the yellow vans then, he's obviously having some kind of mental episode.

The NHS is a shambles, swallowing  money at a faster rate than your average Frenchman guzzles pills. But still Dave insists on pouring money down the plughole. The only madder thing than that is the lefties still crying that the Tories are goint to crush the NHS. I first heard that in 1974 and knew it was bollocks then. The next pinko liberal I hear wailing about the Tories killing the NHS is likely to receive a bloody good kicking.

Tell you what, here's a radical idea for the NHS. If they spend a mere £1 a day on food for patients why not charge them for food? Who can't afford £5 a day? What would the patient spend on food at home? Then they could improve food in hospitals by spending £2 a day, surely good for people who are ill, and spend the other £3 on something like cleaning the wards many of which, in the two hospitals I have experience of at least, are filthy. Personally I'd just privatise it, my health is far too important to have a health system run by politicians.

This week I had a Tory having a pop at me for referring to Margaret Thatcher. I wasn't suggesting that Thatcherism Mk II is the answer to our current problems. What I meant was where is the politician with the big ideas? Where is the politician with charisma? Where is the politician who will stand up for what he believes in rather than doing what his pollsters, those grey men in suits and no ties claim the public want? Where is the politician who will actually listen to us rather than the liberal establishment and media?

Sadly I've come to the conclusion, having seen some of each party conference, that we now have the bland leading the bland. Let's face it, a Tory Party that couldn't even beat a Labour Party led by a pillock like Gordon Brown is in serious brown stuff.

St Edmund Campion-Lancaster and Liverpool

There will be two performances of Campion-An Elizabethan Chronicle by Peter Hardwick on October 28th at Lancaster Cathedral at 7-30, and by St Francis Xavier Church, Liverpool on 29 October.

The play tells the story of St Edmund Campion's mission and martydom in 1581 aged 41. Admission to the play in Lancaster is free with a retiring collection for the Cathedral Fabric Fund. In Liverpool the tickets are £5 and can be bought by ringing 0151-298 1911.

Any more information please contact me via comments or email.

David Cameron's Conference Speech In Full

Here is the full speech that David cameron would be delivering to the Conservative Conference today, if I had written it for him:

"I am resigning forthwith so that you can elect a leader who is a true conservative on the things that matter, such as the EU, the economy and taxation and, most importantly, defence.

Now, thank you for giving me the chance to play at Prime Minister, I have enjoyed playing with Nicky Clegg, but I'm not up to the job so that's it, I'm off!"

Cue the ranks of snoozing delegates rising from their slumber before giving him a standing ovation and breaking into three choruses of:

Goodbye-ee, goodbye-ee,
Wipe the tear, baby dear, from your eye-ee!

Then there is a rendition of various patriotic songs before the delegates depart wondering what the hell had just happened.