Friday 27 October: Splits over Israel raise fresh questions about Labour’s fitness to govern

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477 thoughts on “Friday 27 October: Splits over Israel raise fresh questions about Labour’s fitness to govern

  1. Good morrow, Gentlefolk. today’s story

    Lottery Winner

    Sammy Cohen, having luckily survived the Holocaust as a young man, moved to England and worked hard as a tailor for many years, just barely making a living.

    One weekend he decided to buy a National Lottery ticket, and was thrilled when he won 10 million pounds!

    He gave up work and had a wonderful country home built, with a swimming pool, ballroom, marble columns, statues and chandeliers… He invited all his friends to a sumptuous housewarming party.

    At one end of the ballroom there was something on the wall covered up and Sammy got everyone together to see it unveiled. He pulled a cord and there was a gasp of horror as a life-size portrait of Adolf Hitler was revealed!

    “Sammy, for God’s sake!” they said, “This money must have lost you your sanity! How can you, a Jewish person, have a picture of Hitler on the wall?”

    Sammy grinned, pulled up his sleeve, pointed to his forearm and said, “Who do you think gave me the winning lottery numbers?”

  2. Splits over Israel raise fresh questions about Labour’s fitness to govern

    People have doubts about Labour’s fitness to govern?

    1. Excellent.
      He didn’t mention cyclist riding two abreast stopping our tanks from reaching our ports on time to be shipped to France.

  3. 378157+ up ticks,

    Morning Each,

    Letters: Splits over Israel raise fresh questions about Labour’s fitness to govern

    This is a letter in jest surely, they were UNFIT to govern the second the park toilet cottaging ghoul lifted the latch on mass morally illegal immigration.

    If more proof is needed regarding this political shower of SHITE check out the JAY report and the 16 plus year cover up.

    Their sister governing parties fare no better within the coalition.

    1. Whereas John Smith, Neil Kinnock and Michael Foot were the best prime ministers we never had.

      1. 378158+ up ticks,

        DW,
        John Smith (RIP) well thought of by many,
        Micheal Foot, acceptable.

        neil kinnock?
        Your labour slip is really showing.

      2. I’ll grant you John Smith at a pinch, but the others? Michael Foot may have written against appeasing the Natsis and opposed the EEC, but he was leader of CND and rabidly left wing. As for Kinnock, he was only interested in feathering his nest in the EU (and the dynasty lives on).

  4. Lot of fuss about AI at the moment on the MSM, when you hear that government wants to keep us safe, one instinctively knows that means taking away more of our freedoms.

    I’m not that worried about artificial intelligence myself it cannot be more harmful than the intelligence shown by our governing classes.

        1. yep. The input data was manipulated very early on when they realised that letting AI learn from unedited data resulted in AI being….racist!

    1. Given the correct and honest information, Robots would make a far better job of running the country than Westminster and Whitehall do.
      Think of the savings on expenses alone.

      1. I don’t know whether to rejoice or despair:

        My son, Christo, is a design engineer who designs robots; my son, Henry, was awarded a distinction in his M.Sc in Computer Science and Data Analytics and writes AI computer programmes!

    2. AI is good for private sector profitability and productivity.

      However, Mr and Mrs Sunak’s main family fortune is invested outside the UK, in India; Infosys is a firm which does a lot of manual data entry operations and employs circa 335,000 people. AI today is capable of removing 300,000 jobs from that organisation. Now look at the potential effect on public sector paper pushers in the UK.

      Nottlers such as BB2, Wibbling (and the War Queen) understand a zillion times more about AI than I do, but generally mass unemployment can be tricky for politicians. (one reason why WW3 is an option)

  5. 378157+ up ticks,

    So very bloody true,

    Stef Anthony Coburn 🗣
    @Stef_Coburn
    A mysterious point of perception, of unknown origin, empirically experiencing hypothesized ‘objective-reality’, as a multiple-vector, subjective data-stream..
    4,322 Following
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    leilani dowding 🌸🚜 ☮️
    @LeilaniDowding
    ·
    8h
    Wonderful mother. We need more like this 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽

    Stef Anthony Coburn 🗣
    @Stef_Coburn
    ·
    9h
    There’s no middle ground!

    Our future is ours to make?
    Or our future is theirs to dictate?
    You go one way or the other.

    To make no decision is not just your refusal to decide.
    It is your rejection of your very right to decide.
    The nightmare scenario cannot be allowed to happen.
    Quote
    Stef Anthony Coburn 🗣
    @Stef_Coburn
    ·
    Oct 26
    ANDREW BRIDGEN – ALL OF THE UNITED KINGDOM VOTE FOR THIS REFERENDUM NOW – LINK BELOW
    https://bitchute.com/video/0BrNO5RejSYN/

    https://x.com/Stef_Coburn/status/1717656305777668367?s=20

  6. Good Moaning.
    Rats …. Harry and Dolly obviously woke Phizzee earlier than Spartie woke me.
    But then, neither of us are morning people.

          1. Not sure, Noel has moved to NZ.
            I worked in his house early 70s just as he started on Top Of The Pops.
            A decent likeable chap with a good sense of humour.

      1. When they are 10,000 miles away and a useful tool for destroying the west ….. then they are flavour of the month.

        1. I have just made the same point before having seen yours!

          I have added that once Islam has destroyed the West China will wipe out Islam.

      2. I think they are happy to do business with them as long as they don’t start making problems inside China. And Iran has oil…

      3. They like them as long as they don’t come to China. They are very useful as a force to destroy other civilisations and when they have wiped out the West China will wipe them out!

  7. 378157+ up ticks,

    Not long to go now,

    Stef Anthony Coburn 🗣 reposted
    Sharon Carby 🇬🇧🇦🇺
    @brexitsharon
    ·
    Oct 25
    When the political war breaks out there will be two factions:
    1. Right-wing patriots, veterans, ex-coppers, squaddies etc

    2. Muslims, socialists, remoaners, illegals and wokies (many of which suffer malnutrition from veganism and ranadan).

    Who will win?

    truth will our for sure.

      1. Good morning Jeremy and everyone.
        Honest of you to admit your pacifism, and scepticism and moral fortitude. However, when the revolution comes the danger is that people with similar beliefs might be classed as ‘useless eaters’.

        1. One of my favourite choral pieces is Elgar’s ‘The Music Makers’, a setting of poem by Arthur O’Shaughnessy which begins

          “We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams,
          Wand’ring by lone sea-breakers, and sitting by desolate streams.
          World losers and world foresakers on whom the pale moon gleams,
          Yet we are the movers and shakers of the world, forever it seems.”

  8. Good morning, all. Overcast with a light mist hanging between the trees.

    Picked up a snippet of this video on this week’s The Highwire and I decided to find the complete video. It’s short but puts Geneva on the spot re WHO, GAVI etc and their desire for World control.

    Pascal Najadi Exposes Geneva

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/0e3e4771ca18d5c3009b70e079c6026392c9a0ae45c7e60d40c6f7f39e354f31.png

    NB – Use the link to watch the video, not the screen capture picture.

  9. Good morning all.
    A dull and misty start this morning with 4°C on the Yard Thermometer.

    From the BTL comments, it appears that Common Purpose is beginning to attract attention at last:-

    Pauline Maridor
    8 HRS AGO
    As far back as the Levenson Inquiry Controversy, I have often wondered what is the motive behind ‘Common Purpose UK.’ Their slogan says it all to me. Leading beyond authority.
    It is a multi tentacled organisation bent on ‘joined up GLOBAL government’.
    In the NatWest fiasco: Alison Rose DID BREAK THE LAW over the ‘de-banking’ of Nigel Farage.
    However, unsurprisingly, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has made a ruling in this case, concluding the law was broken, but has decided not to take any further action.
    What a treat to see the ‘Common Purpose’ mafia in action… that Rose having resigned already, is enough punishment for NatWest, a simple slap on the wrist will suffice.
    ‘Common Purpose’ are circling the wagons to protect the status quo.
    This decision is despite earlier revelations that Rose still possibly stands to benefit from significant payouts from the partly State-owned bank for years to come.
    Break the law but no sanction, penalty, penal or civil procedure will be taken.
    It seems the ICO are doing NatWest, Coutts and Rose a huge favour; could that be because they also disapprove of Nigel Farage and consider the offence entirely justifiable? (Cont…)

    REPLY8 REPLIES52
    0
    REPORT
    Pauline Maridor
    8 HRS AGO
    Reply to Pauline Maridor
    (Cont…)
    I would bet my pension that all senior personnel throughout ALL our institutions and corporations have attended a Common Purpose training course. What did they learn – cannot say, its secret.
    Astonishingly public organisations are still spending public money sending staff on CP brainwashing courses.
    Brexit of course, wrong footed Common Purpose, what a shock that was for the elite.
    This is why the establishment was so reluctant for us to leave the EU. I doubt if BRINO will halt the aims or progress of Common Purpose.
    Common Purpose is an EU organisation that trains those in public office to have the same view.
    They run training courses for Lawyers, Judges, Senior Police Officers, and the like. This is in preparation for the post democratic society envisaged by the EU/WEF, so that its policies are universally adopted to implement their policy and legislation.
    The government looks after its own. They, long ago gave up bothering to hide how corrupt they are.
    I believe most Chief Constables have been on at least two courses; that would explain a great deal as to why our Police service is so dire… no longer fit for purpose. They are now merely the uniformed para-military branch of the social work department.
    And people still believe we live in a trustworthy and moral democracy?
    Bread and circuses for the great unwashed serves their purpose. EDITED

    John Kirby
    7 HRS AGO
    Reply to Pauline Maridor
    Yes,,,
    Common Purpose is a left wing 5th column
    infiltrating all administrative public sector fields.
    Why has it not been investigated?

    L Lewthwaite
    7 HRS AGO
    Reply to John Kirby
    A question best answered at a personal level. Many a topic discussed over a meal here is initiated with a jest. Is the listening device flashing a red light? Hopefully not a reality in what is left of my lifetime . There are more and more points of view best kept unspoken for fear of consequences. EDITED

    Jock Baillie
    4 HRS AGO
    Reply to Pauline Maridor
    It would be very beneficial to have all senior police officers confirm links to this group.
    ACPO – particularly METPOL should answer this question

    Warren Sheehy
    3 HRS AGO
    Reply to John Kirby
    Indeed. Thinking back to Covid when Boris gave a press conference from Downing St, his lectern had the words Build Back Better. A few hours later Sleepy Joe did a similar press talk with those identical words on his lectern. Coincidence? EDITED

    A Allan
    1 HR AGO
    Reply to L Lewthwaite
    And people are stupid enough to have an Alexa lurking in their house.

    M Cleary
    11 MIN AGO
    Reply to John Kirby
    Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

    Rosie Waters
    5 MIN AGO
    Reply to M Cleary
    Who knows, but money talks.

    1. When I was studying in the Soviet Union, everybody knew we were being watched and listened to. It only seems to be dawning on people now that it’s been happening in this country, too.

  10. 378158+ up ticks,

    Dt,

    The Covid inquiry isn’t interested in the truth about lockdown
    Recent hearings suggest a striking lack of curiosity about whether shutting down was a good decision

    Does this mean we need another inquiry board to check out the initial inquiry board if so we are trying to run in treacle.

    Why not use the peoples jury system 12 common sense ordinary folk given the gathered reliable evidence sitting in judgement.

    1. They lied from the word go, so as what normally happens in British politics those responsible for the continuous mal-administration are lying and just covering their backsides and leaving one hell of a mess behind them.
      Next on the lies adgenda ?

  11. Morning all 🙂😊
    Grey and misty, I suppose that means misty
    and murky.
    Our boys had two goldfish by the same name.and another called Michael.
    Of course labour are not fit for government.
    Their deputy said they would build 150 thousand new affordable houses (just to rub it in) with an emphasis on greenbelt. And the next day her boss told us 1.5 million new houses. How is this going to work ? Apparently already many councils have failed to get their monetary houses in order and are going into bankruptcy.
    Hardly surprising given the fact that so many people now, make no contributions at all, towards their keep. Free loaders, hundreds of thousands of them out there.
    Government’s and Whitehall are to blame.
    Useless idiots.

    1. That’s the key sentence. Hundreds of thousands of people make no contribution. but i isn’t hundreds of thousands. It’s tens of millions.

    2. The sooner the house of cards collapses, the better and the least painful. If it drags on ten years more, the remedies and rebuilding will be awful, not just painful.

      1. The best example of how useless our political classes are was Yes Minister and Yes Prime minister and of course the UK original House of Cards.
        “Everyone has their price Mattie”.

  12. A student in the U.S for his science project posed the question ‘Should this dangerous chemical be banned?’
    It is responsible for the deaths of 1000’s of Americans every year by ingestion.
    It is a constituent of acid rain.
    In gaseous form it can cause severe burns.

    86% of the student body agreed it should be banned.

    The chemical is Dihydrogen Monoxide.

    1. I agree. 8 billion creatures on this planet are largely made up of this stuff, and are profoundly toxic to life.

    2. Water, water, everywhere,
      And all the boards did shrink;
      Water, water, everywhere,
      Nor any drop to drink.

      [The Rime of the Ancient Mariner: S.T. Coleridge]

    3. The Washington Post 26 years ago.

      DIHYDROGEN MONOXIDE: UNRECOGNIZED KILLER

      By James K. Glassman
      October 21, 1997

      The chemical compound dihydrogen monoxide (or DHMO) has been implicated in the deaths of thousands of Americans every year, mainly through accidental ingestion. In gaseous form, it can cause severe burns. And, according to a new report, “the dangers of this chemical do not end there.”

      The chemical is so caustic that it “accelerates the corrosion and rusting of many metals, . . . is a major component of acid rain, {and} . . . has been found in excised tumors of terminal cancer patients.” Symptoms of ingestion include “excessive sweating and urination,” and “for those who have developed a dependency on DHMO, complete withdrawal means certain death.”

      Yet the presence of the chemical has been confirmed in every river, stream, lake and reservoir in America.

      Judging from these facts, do you think dihydrogen monoxide should be banned?

      Seems like an open-and-shut case — until you realize that this chemical compound is plain old water (two hydrogen molecules bonded to one oxygen, or H 2 O, which can drown you, scald you or make you go to the bathroom.

      Last spring, Nathan Zohner, an enterprising 14-year-old student at Eagle Rock Junior High School in Idaho Falls, Idaho, conducted his science fair project on just this theme. Nathan distributed a tongue-in-cheek report that had been kicking around the Internet, “Dihydrogen Monoxide: The Unrecognized Killer” (from which the quotes above are drawn), to 50 of his classmates.

      These are smart kids who had studied chemistry; many of them, like Nathan, have parents who work at the nearby Idaho Nuclear Engineering and Environmental Laboratory. Nathan simply asked them to read the report (which is completely factual) and decide what, if anything to do about the chemical. They could even ask the teacher what DHMO was, but none did.

      In the end, 43 students, or 86 percent of the sample, “voted to ban dihydrogen monoxide because it has caused too many deaths,” wrote Nathan in the conclusion to his project, adding that he “was appalled that my peers were so easily misled. . . . I don’t feel comfortable with the current level of understanding.”

      Me neither, and it’s not just kids I worry about. Nathan’s project, which won the grand prize at the Greater Idaho Falls Science Fair, was titled, “How Gullible Are We?” But ninth-graders aren’t the only gullible parties. I’m sure that, if Nathan tried the same experiment on adults, he’d find at least as many would want to ban DHMO.

      Says David Murray, research director of the non-profit Statistical Assessment Service in Washington, “The likelihood is high that I could replicate these results with a survey of members of Congress.”

      Murray, whose organization “looks out for misleading science that’s driving public policy over a cliff,” ran across the Zohner story a few months ago on the Internet. But he writes, “we thought it sounded like an urban myth — too pat, too neat.” He discovered from local press reports that it was indeed true. I confirmed it too, after talking earlier this week with Nathan’s mom, Marivene, who says that Nathan wants to be “a scientist in the nuclear field,” like his dad.

      The implications of Nathan’s research are so disturbing that I’ve decided to coin a term: “Zohnerism,” defined as the use of a true fact to lead a scientifically and mathematically ignorant public to a false conclusion.

      Environmental hysterics — Vice President Al Gore springs to mind — and ideologues in such fields as race, women’s issues and economics are adept at using Zohnerisms, with help from the media, to advance their agendas. A few examples:

      The breast-implant mania. Dow Corning was driven into bankruptcy through lawsuits over its silicone implants — even though science doesn’t support claims that they’re dangerous. Marcia Angell, executive editor of the New England Journal of Medicine, cites the problem jurors “have in thinking in terms of probabilities, or in acknowledging the possibility of coincidence.”

      Research, she says, has consistently failed to find a link between silicone and disease. Yes, women who have implants get sick, but, in a typical study, “the implant group was no more likely to develop connective tissue disease than the group without implants.”

      White flight. In the headline above an article Sunday about population growth in rural areas, the New York Times claimed, “Hint of Racial Undercurrents Is Behind Broad Exodus of Whites.” Steven A. Holmes, the reporter, wrote that studies by demographer William Frey “show that of the 40 fastest-growing rural counties, virtually all are at least 70 percent white.”

      Shocking? Well, according to the Bureau of the Census, 83 percent of the U.S. population is white.

      Finding Zohnerisms in the press, Congressional Record and speeches of administration officials makes a great parlor game. One place to start is the collected speeches of EPA chief Carol Browner, who has used Zohnerisms masterfully to promote expensive, disruptive new standards for particulate matter and global warming — despite evidence from scientists that is, at best, inconclusive.

      That’s a shame. In a land where technical ignorance reigns and susceptibility to Zohnerisms is high, it’s the duty of politicians, journalists and scientists to present facts responsibly and in context.

      After all, think what would happen if the EPA really did ban dihydrogen monoxide. The writer is a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/1997/10/21/dihydrogen-monoxide-unrecognized-killer/ee85631a-c426-42c4-bda7-ed63db993106/

  13. Good day all,

    Another day in clown world. Bucketing down outside, wind in the South, 9℃ > 12℃ today.

    David Frost is on to the pointlessness of the Covid enquiry which will not ask the right questions and the incompetence of the lawyers which takes one’s breath away.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/9cac0c5684e6394236c64bfd4e2ae01c34e5fc8565e3d80c90d6c6569e2c7d4f.png

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/75dadb78a43e134aa4aa103a5cad08ba4eaf5cb866aca3c1e1e7b84ba46ffc41.png

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/35a625e93f8ea274656f4ae0434a55592fa75bc11a561048f1ac0a311a4091a0.png

    We don’t need an enquiry. We need a full-blown criminal investigation.

    1. Absolutely correct.
      What we really need is a military tribunal as in the Film A Few Good Men.
      The ‘They’….. “can’t handle the truth”.
      The lying bastards.

      1. Yet…. the Colonel was right. Some people do not want to know the truth. If you read comment threads you get endless whinging rants about ‘da wich’ or pensioners, or baby boomers, or businesses, or energy companies, or supermarkets.

        People are ignorant. They *like* being ignorant. Ignorance gets them the ability to pretend the problem is ‘something else’. Not their laziness, their lack of work at school, their poor qualifications, their greed, their disinterest in saving, the government (oh so often the fault is government), that they don’t understand how complex systems work because they just not bright enough (and this includes me much of the time). Their inability to put 2+2 together and come back with 4.

        Worse are those (the guardian is especially good at this) prefer to stop the blame at the first point, such as ‘there are not enough houses.’ But refuses, abjectly to do the next few whys:

        Why’s that?
        Well there’s too many people in the country
        Why’s that?
        Massive uncontrolled immigration coupled with overly generous welfare
        Why’s that?
        Because our birth rate was falling to accommodate our new service based economy and Labour wanted a voting block it could rely upon
        Why’s that?
        So that the entrenching of a massive state machine to deal with unskilled welfare dependent immigration could be justified.

        The Left never, ever go back enough to the root cause. They like saying ‘waaagh, Torweees!, Waaaagh!’ – replace Left for idiots and any subject and you’ve got a huge problem of uneducated, ignorant children who prefer not to look at reality as it is, preferring their sugar coated topping.

        1. I see the value of ignorance. It leads to contentment. It’s the knowing which upsets and annoys.

        2. I was given the excuse that a particular town needed all the extra housing because it had an ageing population. Nobody ever considered that in that case, the inhabitants would be dying off and housing would become available.

    2. The inquiry is designed to put officialdom in the clear. It’s decision is already made, but it is, in that tiresome statist way going through the farce.

      It’s pointless:

      It will find nothing.
      No one will be held accountable
      Any recommendations will be ignored
      The same will happen again.
      It will cost hundreds of millions

      Every single government inquiry in my memory goes through the same farce.

    3. As a lawyer friend said to me when I repeated some of the stupid things said by one of our legal trainees at work, “What you have to understand is that you don’t have to be intelligent to be a lawyer”.

      1. I used that fact to my great advantage when I would invariably to run rings around them in court. I once had a barrister on the rack; his face was puce and he was raging as I ridiculed his feeble efforts, at discrediting my evidence, from the witness box. Eventually the judge intervened to save the hapless barrister from further torture. He said, “I think it may be time to move on, Mr Goldthorpe, since it is clear to me, and to the jury, that the officer has your measure!”

        Put me in a witness box and my innate sadism kicks in.

          1. Afternoon, Paul. If your evidence is watertight and you remain truthful, then no lawyer on this planet can find holes in it. In desperation they inevitably try to attack the person.

            Big mistake. Huge.

    4. I met a friend in town this afternoon. I didn’t recognise her until she spoke to me; she was masked up to the eyeballs. “I’ve had Covid” she told me, “so I’m taking no chances. It’s highly contagious”. Funny, when I had it, MOH didn’t catch it. End of conversation!

  14. Breaking News – book reviewers are calling Rachel Reeves new book a must read plagiary turner

    1. This is vegan food for those who yearn for meat. Surely the point of veganism is not only to shun animal products but also attempts to mimic them.

      1. I have argued that very point with a good number of vegans but they are all far too brain-damaged to comprehend it.

          1. The idiots think (I use that term loosely) that they can supplement the proteins, vitamins and minerals — that are not present in their weeds — with pills. This leads me to two further questions:
            1. What clown thinks that the chemical pseudo-nutrients in pills are a substantial replacement for natural nutrition? The body simply cannot assimilate or absorb them the same way as they can naturally-digested vitamins.
            2. Why put yourself on an unnatural (for the species) diet that simply does not provide the necessary nutrients that your body needs? To me this is akin to suicide.

          2. The only cognitive dissonance they observe is that of being both sentimental about animals and a meat eater and to some extent they have a point. I can acknowledge that pigs are lovely intelligent creatures and still enjoy pork sausages because I don’t have to see the animal being slaughtered, let alone do it myself.

  15. For some reason which I can’t work out, Safari will not take me to the DT website so I have to use Firefox. I cannot copy and paste a link from Firefox into a comments box so I have to take and post a screen-shot. Are any of you Mac-brained compu-wizzards who might be able to give me a clue?

    1. I’d start by clearing your browser cache on Safari completely.

      However, I don’t use Safari at all on my Mac. I just use Firefox. Grab version 120 now, get yourself disqus auto expander, ublock origin as extensions and thank me in the morning!

      https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/disqus-auto-expander/

      I’ve found weird combinations of login and apps can muck around with Disqus. The problem is, Disqus wants to re-write the link for tracking purposes – this is a deep intrusion of privacy, but disqus doesn’t care. If you have extensions that interfere with javascript (such as tamper monkey or url cleaning extensions (as I do) – it will simply not let you do it. Safari may have that sort of feature turned on as part of it’s privacy controls.

      Apple make a big song and dance over stopping other sites tracking you but grab a whole heap of data for themselves.

  16. Tucker on banning the Ukrainian orthodox church, and America’s role in wiping out Christianity in other countries.
    https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1717662135172595719

    Why is nobody talking about Acapulco? Please, no jokey links to old songs – the city has just been destroyed by a Category 5 hurricane which struck without warning, and was not predicted by any models.
    Can directed energy weapons make a normal storm turn into a hurricane? Crazy question, but we live in crazy times.

      1. I think that is correct, ogga, and the huge efforts that Mr Global makes to wipe out Christianity show its strength and how much they fear it.

    1. It is incredibly sad to see the usual suspects – the blacks – immediately set about stealing and looting. What is wrong with them?

      1. They seem to have an ongoing hate worm in their heads. I suppose it goes all the way back to slave trading.
        But there were thousands of others traded before Africans were even considered as slaves. Perhaps that’s part of the problem.

    2. Climate change of course
      https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12675611/Horror-aftermath-Acapulco-Tropical-paradise-Otis-hurricane.html

      Warm water is fuel for hurricanes. Hot, deep water is like an all-you-can-eat buffet.
      Globally, the world´s oceans have been setting monthly surface heat records since April. The surface waters off the Mexican coast were warm but ‘not crazy warm,’ said University at Albany atmospheric scientist Kristen Corbosiero. Bennan and McNoldy said those waters were maybe 1 or 2 degrees above normal.
      Below that, the water was much hotter than usual ‘and there’s just a ton of fuel out there right now,’ McNoldy said. Still, the storm didn’t linger and feed on that, which would be expected in rapid intensification, Brennan said.
      The heat content in the deeper ocean worldwide has been smashing records. It’s from human-caused climate change, McNoldy and other scientists said, as the oceans act as a sponge to absorb a lot of the excess heat caused by the burning of coal, oil and gas.

      From earlier in the article:

      Forecasters and meteorologists are baffled at how they did not see Otis’ catastrophic path coming. The city was warned it would just be a tropical storm, but the usually-reliable computer models failed to predict its explosive intensification.
      ‘It’s one thing to have a Category 5 hurricane make landfall somewhere when you’re expecting it,’ University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy said. ‘But to have it happen when you’re not expecting anything to happen is truly a nightmare.’
      MIT atmospheric sciences professor and hurricane expert Kerry Emanuel said that ‘the models completely blew it.’
      McNoldy said there may be a mystery ingredient that scientists just don’t know right now, but water is key.

      These morons blame their models for being wrong here but still believe that they MUST be correct re climate change. Too stupid to see the contradictions and cognitive dissonance.

      edit for typo

      1. The heat content in the deeper ocean worldwide has been smashing records. It’s from human-caused climate change, McNoldy and other scientists said, as the oceans act as a sponge to absorb a lot of the excess heat caused by the burning of coal, oil and gas.

        Serious question: is there anyone on here able to explain the mechanism that takes atmospheric warmth and deposits it into the ocean depths only to then allow this warmth to rise – convection currents – and affect weather patterns e.g. hurricanes?
        To my simple mind heat travelling downwards to the depths only to then rise is counterintuitive. Perhaps the journalist didn’t correctly report what was said?

        No chance that heat from the Earth’s molten core is involved, then?

      2. Conveniently forgetting the huge underwater volcano near Tonga last year, which NASA said could raise the ocean temperature by up to one degree.

    3. This latest report on hurricanes in the eastern Pacific is dated 1 Oct but it shows normal activity in the region. I cant find any data on this site looking back a week or two but I’m sure it would have tracked Otis. I watch the Atlantic side if I’m headed that way or out of interest and it is a good source of info (if you are interested). Why is it not on the news! Probably, the brewing war and the steaming US fleet have more pulling power.

    4. Far more important things fill the DT columns. ” Millennials and Gen Z swap gravy for ketchup at Christmas dinner”…. I now feel fully informed. Haven’t posted a link, dont want to waste anyone’s life.

      1. Read the Daily Wail yesterday. No news, just similar guff, plus descriptions of the life & opinions of pretty ladies.

    5. Acapulco

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fF1_LDdls7I

      Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

      The persecution of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine is because its supreme Patriarch is the Patriarch of Moscow and always has been. It reminds the Ukrainian fanatics that their pretense of being something other than Russian is false. The church therefore makes the ideal scapegoat to deflect from the ills inflicted on Ukraine by its present fascist regime.

    6. Acapulco. Prime real estate like Lahaina in Hawaii. They do like their beach front properties don’t ‘they’…

    1. Got up at 0700 to walk the Springer. Heavy rain. Put on full wet kit – wellies and waterproof trousers etc. Left at 0720, walked for an hour – not a drop of rain fell. English weather.

  17. Amy Mek
    @AmyMek
    One of Belgium’s bravest politicians, Filip Dewinter:

    “If you have majorities of Islamic believers in a city, or in a country, it’s over and out for the democracy – because Islam is anti-democratic – Islam is a theocracy, committed to Allah, committed to their own religion, but not committed to democracy.

    So the real danger of our democracy is Islam, not right-wing, conservative, patriotic parties.

    We are defending democracy against the threat of Islam, not the other way around.”

    See the full interview here: http://youtu.be/vYz-je9S574

    Remember: “Islam has religious, legal, political, economic and military components. The religious component is a beard for all the other components.

    Islamization occurs when there are sufficient Muslims in a country to agitate for their so-called “religious rights.”

    When politically correct and culturally diverse societies agree to “the reasonable” Muslim demands for their “religious rights,” they also get the other components under the table. Here’s how it works…

    As long as the Muslim population remains around 1% of any given country they will be regarded as a peace-loving minority and not as a threat to anyone. In fact, they may be featured in articles and films, stereotyped for their colorful uniqueness.

    At 2% and 3% they begin to proselytize from other ethnic minorities and disaffected groups with major recruiting from the jails and among street gangs.

    From 5% on they exercise an inordinate influence in proportion to their percentage of the population.

    They will push for the introduction of halal food (clean by Islamic standards – it is actually nothing more than a Sharia money-making scheme to support jihad ), thereby securing food preparation jobs for Muslims. They will increase pressure on supermarket chains to feature it on their shelves — along with threats for failure to comply.

    At this point, they will work to get the ruling government to allow them to rule themselves under Sharia, the Islamic Law. The ultimate goal of Islam is not to convert the world but to establish Sharia law over the entire world.

    When Muslims reach 10% of the population, they will increase lawlessness as a means of complaint about their conditions (Paris — car-burnings, riots). Any non-Muslim action that offends Islam will result in uprisings and threats (Mohammed cartoons, Quran burnings).

    After reaching 20% expect hair-trigger rioting and violence, jihad militia formations, killings, and church, synagogue, and temple burnings will occur often, etc.

    At 40% you will find widespread massacres, chronic terror attacks, and ongoing militia warfare

    From 60% you may expect unfettered persecution of non-believers and other religions, sporadic ethnic cleansing (genocide), use of Sharia Law as a weapon, and Jizya, the tax placed on infidels

    After 80% expect State run ethnic cleansing and genocide.

    100% will usher in the peace of “Dar-es-Salaam” — the Islamic House of Peace — there’s supposed to be peace because everybody is a Muslim

    Of course, that’s not the case. To satisfy their blood lust, Islamic supremacists then start killing each other for a variety of reasons.

    “Before I was nine I had learned the basic canon of Arab life. It was me against my brother; me and my brother against our father; my family against my cousins and the clan; the clan against the tribe; and the tribe against the world. And all of us against the infidel. — Leon Uris, “The Haj”

    It is good to remember that in many, many countries, such as France, the Muslim populations are centered around ghettos based on their ethnicity. Muslims do not integrate into the community at large. Therefore, they exercise more power than their national average would indicate.

    (Adapted from Dr. Peter Hammond’s book: Slavery, Terrorism and Islam: The Historical Roots and Contemporary Threat.)

    So, what percentage do you think your country is at? Unfortunately, each of your countries welcomes illegal migrants, so none of us truly know the sheer numbers of Jihadis in our communities.

  18. Amy Mek
    @AmyMek
    One of Belgium’s bravest politicians, Filip Dewinter:

    “If you have majorities of Islamic believers in a city, or in a country, it’s over and out for the democracy – because Islam is anti-democratic – Islam is a theocracy, committed to Allah, committed to their own religion, but not committed to democracy.

    So the real danger of our democracy is Islam, not right-wing, conservative, patriotic parties.

    We are defending democracy against the threat of Islam, not the other way around.”

    See the full interview here: http://youtu.be/vYz-je9S574

    Remember: “Islam has religious, legal, political, economic and military components. The religious component is a beard for all the other components.

    Islamization occurs when there are sufficient Muslims in a country to agitate for their so-called “religious rights.”

    When politically correct and culturally diverse societies agree to “the reasonable” Muslim demands for their “religious rights,” they also get the other components under the table. Here’s how it works…

    As long as the Muslim population remains around 1% of any given country they will be regarded as a peace-loving minority and not as a threat to anyone. In fact, they may be featured in articles and films, stereotyped for their colorful uniqueness.

    At 2% and 3% they begin to proselytize from other ethnic minorities and disaffected groups with major recruiting from the jails and among street gangs.

    From 5% on they exercise an inordinate influence in proportion to their percentage of the population.

    They will push for the introduction of halal food (clean by Islamic standards – it is actually nothing more than a Sharia money-making scheme to support jihad ), thereby securing food preparation jobs for Muslims. They will increase pressure on supermarket chains to feature it on their shelves — along with threats for failure to comply.

    At this point, they will work to get the ruling government to allow them to rule themselves under Sharia, the Islamic Law. The ultimate goal of Islam is not to convert the world but to establish Sharia law over the entire world.

    When Muslims reach 10% of the population, they will increase lawlessness as a means of complaint about their conditions (Paris — car-burnings, riots). Any non-Muslim action that offends Islam will result in uprisings and threats (Mohammed cartoons, Quran burnings).

    After reaching 20% expect hair-trigger rioting and violence, jihad militia formations, killings, and church, synagogue, and temple burnings will occur often, etc.

    At 40% you will find widespread massacres, chronic terror attacks, and ongoing militia warfare

    From 60% you may expect unfettered persecution of non-believers and other religions, sporadic ethnic cleansing (genocide), use of Sharia Law as a weapon, and Jizya, the tax placed on infidels

    After 80% expect State run ethnic cleansing and genocide.

    100% will usher in the peace of “Dar-es-Salaam” — the Islamic House of Peace — there’s supposed to be peace because everybody is a Muslim

    Of course, that’s not the case. To satisfy their blood lust, Islamic supremacists then start killing each other for a variety of reasons.

    “Before I was nine I had learned the basic canon of Arab life. It was me against my brother; me and my brother against our father; my family against my cousins and the clan; the clan against the tribe; and the tribe against the world. And all of us against the infidel. — Leon Uris, “The Haj”

    It is good to remember that in many, many countries, such as France, the Muslim populations are centered around ghettos based on their ethnicity. Muslims do not integrate into the community at large. Therefore, they exercise more power than their national average would indicate.

    (Adapted from Dr. Peter Hammond’s book: Slavery, Terrorism and Islam: The Historical Roots and Contemporary Threat.)

    So, what percentage do you think your country is at? Unfortunately, each of your countries welcomes illegal migrants, so none of us truly know the sheer numbers of Jihadis in our communities.

    1. The distressing thing is that this sort of information has been available for a long time but STILL people do not see the threat.

      1. The shallow response from the terminally tolerant is usually, “but I have a friend who’s Muslim” or “but I know a Muslim and”…

        1. I had a similar response from a retired clergyman who’d spent some time with a muslim family out east. I pointed out taqiyya and kitman and various injunctions about the kuffar in the koran, but he wasn’t convinced.

      1. Google now refuses to find it but the UN has since admitted that there was no attempted genocide in Bosnia. It was as real as the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The US government decided that it was in its interests to break up Yugoslavia. NATO, that (in)famous peace-keeper, bombed the hell out of Belgrade, deliberately targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure. The same establishment has the gall to wag its collective finger at Israel and spout crap about “a proportionate response”.

    2. 378158+ up ticks,

      Morning TB,

      Courtesy of the lab/lib/con coalition party current member / voters we will know shortly.

      1. What’s the point of democracy when people won’t vote for your preferences, ogga? It’s not worth having if people are too stupid not to vote in ways you approve of.

        1. 378158+up ticks,

          Afternoon DW,

          Within this Country and its remnants of free speech do you have a problem with my stance on the electorate & the voting majority ?

          1. 378158+ up ticks,

            DW,
            I was really concerned about having your permission
            As we are witnessing, the majority voter has landed this nation in dire straights this is inclusive of my family
            and that is what I take issue with.

          2. What is to be done with these voters? How are they to be prevented from voting as they do?

          3. 378158+ up ticks,

            DW,
            I really am the last one you should ask I have only a smattering of Arabic, suggest you should ask your party leader,kneel.

          4. As you well know, many millions who don’t speak Arabic also vote the wrong way. Please note that I do not and never have been a member of any political party.

          5. 378158+ up ticks
            DW,

            For all I know you could be a top ranker in the lab party
            But I will take your word on the issue, that’s the type of bloke I am.

    1. If only it were true.

      The Salzburg Airport confirmed to The Washington Post that it does not, in fact, have a help desk for sunny Australian vacation hopefuls who found themselves in landlocked Austria instead.

      “There is no such counter at Salzburg Airport, never has been, as a matter of fact. I have never heard of anyone travelling to Salzburg by mistake, when they actually wanted to go to Australia,” Susanne Buchebner, deputy head of public relations for the Salzburg airport, said in an email.

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2023/10/26/austria-australia-airport-counter/

      1. I do wonder if anyone ever really travelled 200 miles from London to the village of Stamford Bridge near York when they intended to go to Chelsea football ground but that too is a nice funny (if implausible) story.

        1. True story. I once booked a hotel in Talmont (France) and on arrival discovered that there were TWO villages called Talmont…..

          1. Visitors to Firstborn’s farm ignored my driving instructions knowing better, and went to the other Rollag, about 40mins drive and a mountain ridge away.

        2. People intending to go to Rufford Park in Nottinghamshire have been known to catch the train to Rufford in Lancashire, near Southport.

      2. While we were staying at a B&B in Crick the owner, on hearing that we lived near Crich, told us that he’d been asked more than once where the tram museum was. It’s in Crich, some 70 miles away!!

          1. I worked for a year in a Student Union travel office. I don’t think the manager much appreciated me pointing out that she was directing students wanting Stansted Airport to Stanstead Abbotts.

          2. The racecourse is at Bangor on Dee. Brough Scott (when he was a jockey) once went to Bangor near Conwy and wondered why there was no racecourse.

  19. Very heavy dew. Still misty in the village – but thick fog a couple of miles away. The MR just gone out on her bike to collect Jerusalem (if that word is sill allowed) artichokes from a neighbour whose garden is overwhelmed with them.

  20. The letters regarding letters sent home by schoolchildren reminds me of one I received when I was 9 from my Dad who was in the Merchant navy – it was signed with his full signature as Captain of the ship – I often wondered which official organisation received a letter signed ‘Love Dad’

  21. Funny how Gaza can “run low on food” but not on rockets, guns, ammunition etc…

    I just don’t understand it… (sarc)

    1. Big fat Hamas leader sitting in mansion in Doha: “Food shortage, what food shortage”?

  22. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/634232e09fd47c729ec449158ed7a003b6a73af0ada1f093526b92aa3725cde4.png
    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/27/nigel-farage-dismisses-report-natwest-debanking-whitewash/

    If the government does not intervene then it is failing in its duty and encouraging large corporations to lie brazenly to the public.

    Here is a chance for Labour (which it probably will not take because it lacks the integrity and the courage to do so)

    Labour should claim that though the party does not agree with Mr Farage’s views his rights as a British citizen and the treatment he has received from NatWest have implications for all of us and that the Labour Party, when it is in government, will take immediate action against the directors of NatWest and the law firm it employs.

    Such a decisive move by Starmer would certainly be of very grave concern to the pathetic Mr Sunak!

    BTL (Ratty)

    This is beyond disgraceful.

    In the interests of openness regarding a company owned 40% by the taxpayer:

    i) The Board of Nat West should be dismissed;
    ii) The Law firm Travers Smith should be closed down and all its partners debarred from ever practising law again.

    1. Just posted something on this above, i was so incensed i posted before i read anything posted here today.

    2. Actually, if I remember rightly (which I may not do) it was Travers Smith’s lawyers who acted for Maxwell, who stripped his employees’ pension funds… Just saying.

      Edit: or Travers Smith Braithwaite, as they were called at the time. Also edit – “acted for”.

  23. The police have become a soft touch to fashionable activist thugs

    Forces should be applying the law equally, not giving special treatment to hunt saboteurs and protesters

    BEN WALLACE • 26 October 2023 • 8:00pm

    In the next couple of weeks, trail hunts will start up all over the countryside. Whether you support the activity or not, we should all be worried by the policing of them. Because wherever you find the hunts, you will find thuggery in tow. Dozens of saboteurs and self-appointed “monitors” will trespass, threaten and thump their way across the land.

    Sadly, this has been going on for years, but the difference these days is that the police stand by and regularly do nothing. Last year, I witnessed first-hand masked thugs shouting abuse at children and trying to rip the wing mirrors off hunt followers’ cars. And the year before, I saw a saboteur with a skeleton mask throw a punch at a trail hunt worker less than 10 feet from a police officer who did nothing. Pubs where meets gather are threatened, in the same way that gangsters threaten people who fail to pay protection money. Farmers find their equipment vandalised. And still the police do nothing.

    Thuggery is being tolerated and local police leadership inaction is in danger of undermining the consent so vital to allowing officers to do their job. Some police chiefs have clearly taken the decision to turn a blind eye, or perhaps they wish to focus on other things and hope we all just go away. A few have even tried serving Asbos on legal hunts rather than the threatening mob.

    Policing, like justice, should be administered without fear or favour. But it seems “favour” and what is in fashion is now very much the driving force, rather than equality before the law.

    Over the past few years, we have seen the same with protests. Do we really think the BNP or the English Defence League (EDL) would be granted permission to construct a stage next to the Cenotaph as the pro-Palestinian demonstrators were? Or would Fathers for Justice have been allowed to block Oxford Circus for three days with a pink boat in the same way Extinction Rebellion did two years ago? Of course they wouldn’t. Their feet wouldn’t have touched the ground.

    Don’t get me wrong. I am not a fan of the EDL or any groups like them. I abhor bigotry and racism. I also despise those who glorify terrorists or preach religious intolerance. But we seem to be in an era where a protester’s right to cause offence or threaten others is calibrated by the trendiness of their cause. The more fashionable or more politically correct it is, the more disruption its champions are allowed to cause. If darling Rosemary or Torquil from Dulwich can impress their middle-class parents by blocking the M25 in the name of the “environment”, that’s fine. Never mind the hard-working builder or nurse trying to get to work.

    This one-sided policing risks alienating millions of people. It sneers in the face of people whose views are not considered fashionable or within the trend. Worse still, it starts to infuriate law-abiding citizens who see their right to go about their business without disruption or harassment become secondary to the rights of those who do not wish to obey the law.

    This is not about powers. The police have numerous laws and powers to stop this thuggery and obstruction. But their leadership seems scared to use them. I meet many rank-and-file officers who are equally frustrated. And there are small things that could make a difference. Under Section 60aa of the Criminal Justice and Public Order act, a superintendent can authorise that local police can make people remove balaclavas or face coverings. It would have the same impact as CCTV had in the 1980s when it was introduced at football matches. If people know they can be identified, it has a remarkable impact on their behaviour.

    Religious extremists, those who incite terrorism, rioters and hunt saboteurs could be identified, logged and prosecuted. The internet is blighted by that same “safe space” of anonymity. Trolls use it to bully and groom others.

    Next year, as a general election looms, the League Against Cruel Sports and numerous environmental groups will no doubt seek to buy Labour as they have done in the past. The question for Keir Starmer will be whether he will bow to thuggery and extremism, or seek to rise above it and recognise that tolerance means accepting other people’s right to go about their business without harassment or obstruction. All of us deserve the protection of the law, not just the few who fit the fashion of the moment.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/26/the-police-have-become-a-soft-touch-to-activist-thugs/

    Plenty of remarks BTL on the lines of “Why don’t you do something? You’re in government!” He’s not, of course, having returned to the backbenches but is probably the ‘wrong sort’ for the type of government we have at the moment. Perhaps he said something indiscreet in a cabinet meeting and was forced out.

    The only quibble I would have with this article is his qualification in respect of the BNP and the EDL. The former definitely was ‘racist’ by the modern definition; the latter pointed out the dangers of Islam, although undoubtedly includes members of the former. However, it isn’t necessary to refer to either in this way to warn of the police’s highly selective policing.

    Carpe Jugulum
    I was a police officer for thirty years and despair at what passes for police officers these days. Police radios are equipped with an emergency button that overrides ALL other transmissions. That facility was supposed to be used when you needed urgent assistance and really was a last resort. Colleagues who are still serving now tell me that they are being used several times every shift by woefully unprepared younger officers who should never have been recruited in the first place.

    The very, very simple fact, never admitted by the woke garbage now infesting senior ranks, is that policing is an inherently aggressive occupation that relies on an underlying threat of violence. Not once in thirty years did I arrest a villain who complied with arrest instructions out of a sense of social obligation. They complied because they were confident bad things followed on from non-compliance. Far too many of today’s recruits lack the aggression, and confidence, to confront a gang of yobs. It is far easier to ignore offences and avoid confrontation.

    That basic reality is now ignored by recruiters and we have officers incapable of carrying out basic patrol duties. Meanwhile the capable thieftakers paper their bedrooms with tactical complaint notices crested by defence lawyers and never get promoted.

    The answer is to go back to recruiting officers who are confident, capable and comfortable in confrontation, note woke lettuces who fold in fear of violence. The next step is to make arrest and detection records THE primary factors in promotion decisions.

    Perhaps then we could return to functional policing.

    1. Autumn Hunting (formerly known as “Cub Hunting” until it was renamed to avoid association with fluffy little cubs – they are, in fact, fully grown and quite capable of marauding the countryside) has been underway already in some parts of the country (depending on the crops/state of the ground etc). It’s only on 1st November that Opening Meets take place. I agree that the police “service” has been emasculated by pandering to the “none shall be refused and we’ll drop the standards to be inclusive” brigade.

  24. A date for the diary… Asia’s first Gay Games will be held in Hong Kong, in what organizers hope will stoke public debate and awareness of LGBT rights in one of Asia’s leading financial hubs. The Games will open on Nov 3 and run till Nov 11.

    1. Ridiculous. First I’ve heard that gay athletes can’t compete in normal games. Why must they always make such a parade out of their sexual preferences?

    2. Who will compete under which gender or will there be 57 varieties of each event to satisfy all known perversions?

      1. I don’t really know, but I think the relay team need to look before accepting any batons…

  25. BBC has ‘never been so disappointing’, Tim Davie told over Israel coverage

    Robert Jenrick confronted the director-general over the corporation’s refusal to brand Hamas ‘terrorists’ in a 1922 Committee meeting

    By Ben Riley-Smith, POLITICAL EDITOR • 25 October 2023 • 10:22pm

    Tim Davie, the BBC director-general, has been confronted by a Cabinet minister who said he had “never been so disappointed” in the corporation as he had over its coverage of Israel. Robert Jenrick, the immigration minister, made the remark during a behind-closed-doors meeting between Mr Davie and the 1922 Committee of Conservative MPs on Wednesday.

    Mr Jenrick told the BBC boss that many British Jews had “lost confidence” in the corporation in the last fortnight and urged him to change policy by letting reporters call Hamas “terrorists”. But Mr Davie rejected the suggestion and defended the existing BBC policy, which is to state that Hamas has been proscribed as a terror group by the UK Government.

    The Telegraph understands that Mr Jenrick said the following to Mr Davie, or words to this effect: “I’ve never been so disappointed in the BBC as I have been this past fortnight. I worry that the organisation has lost the confidence of many people and in particular the British Jewish community. That loss of confidence began with the BBC’s refusal to call Hamas terrorists. Will you reconsider that and change your editorial policy?”

    ‘Corporation must remain impartial’

    The exact wording of Mr Davie’s response is not known, but he rejected the call to change the rules about how Hamas – the terror group whose attack on Israel saw more than 1,300 people killed – is described by BBC journalists. A BBC spokesman also defended the existing approach to describing Hamas, arguing that the corporation must remain impartial in its reporting.

    The meeting saw many tough questions aimed at the director-general, according to Tory MPs present in the room. Mr Davie attended the gathering after an invitation was extended prior to the Hamas attack. One Tory MP reportedly received cheers of support from colleagues as she heckled Mr Davie and urged him to call Hamas attackers “terrorists”.

    The BBC director general is also said to have accepted some mistakes were made in the corporation’s coverage of the Gaza hospital explosion, according to Tory MPs. Reports about the incident initially appeared to accept Hamas’s claim that an Israel air strike had destroyed the al-Ahli Arab hospital.

    However, the Israeli government swiftly denied responsibility and published what they said was evidence proving the rocket that had caused the explosion was fired from Gaza – a conclusion that the UK and US governments have both now endorsed.

    ‘BBC staff have been crying in toilets’

    Last week, Jonathan Munro, BBC News deputy chief executive, said the broadcaster’s “language wasn’t quite right” during live reporting of the incident.

    In a separate development, The Times reported that the BBC’s approach to the conflict allegedly left some staff crying in lavatories and taking time off work. The paper stated that an email detailing concerns, including that the BBC was “treating Israeli lives as more worthy than Palestinian lives”, had been sent to Mr Davie.

    One source was quoted as saying: “Staff have been crying in the toilets and freelancers have been sacrificing earnings by not showing up to work because of the distress caused. Many people are feeling deeply disturbed.” [Absolutely priceless!]

    Meanwhile, it emerged that Robbie Gibb, Theresa May’s former director of communications, will be among the BBC executives handling a review of the corporation’s immigration reporting. During the 1922 Committee gathering, Tory MPs banged their desks when Mr Davie mentioned Mr Gibb’s role in overseeing the review.

    The review itself had already been announced and is being headed up by Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory, alongside Samir Shah, a broadcasting executive. Mr Gibb is one of a number of members of the BBC’s Editorial Standards Committee, which has been tasked with handling the report. Mr Davie himself also sits on the committee.

    A BBC spokesman defended Mr Davie’s decision to attend the 1922 Committee, which is made up of Tory MPs and usually has cabinet ministers present as guest speakers.

    The invitation had been extended in July before Hamas attacked Israel. The BBC spokesman said the broadcaster’s executives regularly met with MPs “across the political spectrum”.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/25/bbc-coverage-disappointing-israel-jenrick-tim-davie-hamas

  26. BBC has ‘never been so disappointing’, Tim Davie told over Israel coverage

    Robert Jenrick confronted the director-general over the corporation’s refusal to brand Hamas ‘terrorists’ in a 1922 Committee meeting

    By • Ben Riley-Smith, POLITICAL EDITOR25 October 2023 • 10:22pm

    Tim Davie, the BBC director-general, has been confronted by a Cabinet minister who said he had “never been so disappointed” in the corporation as he had over its coverage of Israel. Robert Jenrick, the immigration minister, made the remark during a behind-closed-doors meeting between Mr Davie and the 1922 Committee of Conservative MPs on Wednesday.

    Mr Jenrick told the BBC boss that many British Jews had “lost confidence” in the corporation in the last fortnight and urged him to change policy by letting reporters call Hamas “terrorists”. But Mr Davie rejected the suggestion and defended the existing BBC policy, which is to state that Hamas has been proscribed as a terror group by the UK Government.

    The Telegraph understands that Mr Jenrick said the following to Mr Davie, or words to this effect: “I’ve never been so disappointed in the BBC as I have been this past fortnight. I worry that the organisation has lost the confidence of many people and in particular the British Jewish community. That loss of confidence began with the BBC’s refusal to call Hamas terrorists. Will you reconsider that and change your editorial policy?”

    ‘Corporation must remain impartial’

    The exact wording of Mr Davie’s response is not known, but he rejected the call to change the rules about how Hamas – the terror group whose attack on Israel saw more than 1,300 people killed – is described by BBC journalists. A BBC spokesman also defended the existing approach to describing Hamas, arguing that the corporation must remain impartial in its reporting.

    The meeting saw many tough questions aimed at the director-general, according to Tory MPs present in the room. Mr Davie attended the gathering after an invitation was extended prior to the Hamas attack. One Tory MP reportedly received cheers of support from colleagues as she heckled Mr Davie and urged him to call Hamas attackers “terrorists”.

    The BBC director general is also said to have accepted some mistakes were made in the corporation’s coverage of the Gaza hospital explosion, according to Tory MPs. Reports about the incident initially appeared to accept Hamas’s claim that an Israel air strike had destroyed the al-Ahli Arab hospital.

    However, the Israeli government swiftly denied responsibility and published what they said was evidence proving the rocket that had caused the explosion was fired from Gaza – a conclusion that the UK and US governments have both now endorsed.

    ‘BBC staff have been crying in toilets’

    Last week, Jonathan Munro, BBC News deputy chief executive, said the broadcaster’s “language wasn’t quite right” during live reporting of the incident.

    In a separate development, The Times reported that the BBC’s approach to the conflict allegedly left some staff crying in lavatories and taking time off work. The paper stated that an email detailing concerns, including that the BBC was “treating Israeli lives as more worthy than Palestinian lives”, had been sent to Mr Davie.

    One source was quoted as saying: “Staff have been crying in the toilets and freelancers have been sacrificing earnings by not showing up to work because of the distress caused. Many people are feeling deeply disturbed.” [Absolutely priceless!]

    Meanwhile, it emerged that Robbie Gibb, Theresa May’s former director of communications, will be among the BBC executives handling a review of the corporation’s immigration reporting. During the 1922 Committee gathering, Tory MPs banged their desks when Mr Davie mentioned Mr Gibb’s role in overseeing the review.

    The review itself had already been announced and is being headed up by Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory, alongside Samir Shah, a broadcasting executive. Mr Gibb is one of a number of members of the BBC’s Editorial Standards Committee, which has been tasked with handling the report. Mr Davie himself also sits on the committee.

    A BBC spokesman defended Mr Davie’s decision to attend the 1922 Committee, which is made up of Tory MPs and usually has cabinet ministers present as guest speakers.

    The invitation had been extended in July before Hamas attacked Israel. The BBC spokesman said the broadcaster’s executives regularly met with MPs “across the political spectrum”.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/25/bbc-coverage-disappointing-israel-jenrick-tim-davie-hamas

  27. It appears to have missed the salacious daily mail but the latest on beloved Trudeau is that his wife has re-partnered.

    Having an affair and shacking up with someone else is apparently too common for our masters – so the other couples divorce petition mentions that she has re-partnered.

    Even with posh wording, it still looks good on him!

          1. Trudeau looks as though he is married to his mirror. Those boyish good looks haven’t lasted all too well – it’s a long time since visiting female politicians and royals were knocked sideways by his toothpaste commercial smile.

        1. Well he wouldn’t be poor, or middling, would he? Women like those never go downwards…

        1. During a rail strike my father gave a lift to one of the office girls in his open AC. She hopped over the door and put her high heel straight through the seat cushion. That was the last time she had hèr leg over in his car.

  28. I am reading a report in City AM., an on-line newspaper that Alistair Heath used to edit before he moved to the Terriblegraph.

    Quote: “An internal review into the conduct of former Natwest boss Dame Alison Rose has concluded the CEO made an “honest mistake” when she leaked confidential information about Nigel Farage’s finances to the BBC.”

    I’m sorry, but this is hogwash. Even the office cat at a UK regulated bank knows about data confidentiality and GDPR. If Dame Alison didn’t know what she was doing was wrong, she wasn’t a fit and proper person to run the bank. If she did know, she broke the rules and it wasn’t an honest mistake.

    But she has got away with it.

    1. Like Boris got away with telling TfL to pull an advert from the side of a bus because it offended Stonewall, and Neil Ferguson gets away with wildly exaggerated models and the SAGE “scientists” got away with damaging masking and lockdown rules…if you push the agenda, you can get away with murder.

      1. Don’t get me started on Matt Halfcock who still hasn’t been properly investigated for his behaviour, decisions, contracts etc.

        1. Hancock will be thrown to the dogs eventually, it’s only a matter of time. He’s the sort of odious little lickspittle that they always get rid of in the end.

      2. Well look at Neil Ferguson – not judging a book by its rather ugly cover but by the content. When have his predictions actually been correct? Empirically (so “scientifically?”) he should be dismissed as a charlatan.

    2. Nurse: “Ooh I’m sorry, I didn’t realise that you inject a vein, not an artery”…

    3. Let us hope that she and Nat West have not got away with it.

      Let us hope that for once politicians intervene and punish the directors of Nat West, Coutts and the Rose woman.

      That woman – unlike the flower from which she stole her name – would not smell as sweet by any other name – she would always stink like an open sewer.

    1. It’s yer cultural relativism, innit? It’s odd how cultural relativism is acceptable in some places but not others. You’d think it would have universal applicability but, in the jarringly dissonant way it works, some cultures are viewed through absolutist eyes.

    2. How are they going to know if someone is a Jew, unless they enter wearing obviously Jewish garments?

      1. There is a Jewish look. Think Mike and Bernie Winters. However yes, many would have to be wearing the yellow badge or at least orthodox clothing. The orthodox ladies wear wigs and they’re meant to look like wigs, so it’s very obvious.

        1. I thought the orthodox women kept very much to their own communities. I used to see them when I lived in Stamford Hill, decades ago.

          And yes, there is a Jewish look beyond the dress (in SH, the boys looked like pasty-faced bespeckled miniature men in their suits.

          When I lived in Bushey, there were many too, not that orthodox, but you could tell them by their features – and, I’m afraid, every now and then by their behaviour. I really don’t like to sound disparaging, because I know several lovely people who are jewish, but in an area where there is a community some do seem to look down their noses at other people: it’s not endearing. I knew several people who would not work for them because of the high-handed/rude way in which they were treated.

          Edit; I have no doubt it would be similar with other people who were the “RICH” in a community, but it doesn’t look good.

          1. Back in the 80s when I worked in the children’s department in Selfridges, the wig ladies were always very much in evidence at sale time. The buyer was greatly amused by this but happy that they bought so much. When the wealty Arabs turned up, her focus was on party dresses of the over-the-top synthetic confection variety becasue those were guaranteed to sell well with that demographic.

          2. I lived in Kensington for most of my early life, near Kensington Palace. When the Palace gardens-adjoining Royal Garden Hotel was sold to Arabs, the clientele changed. Rich Arabs, dripping in gold like over-decorated Christmas trees, thronged.

            I heard from someone who had connection there, that these gold-draped rich people used to use curtains to wipe their *rses on, and left the rooms in a state that practically needed fumigation, let alone deep-cleaning.

            You could take the Arab out of the desert, but…….all the gold in the world doesn’t do vice versa.

            EDIT: perhaps the same can be said morally and behaviourally about some of the people who have been forced upon us by successive governments. I shall not be sad when Tony Blair gets his karma.

          3. Oh, they shat on the carpets in the changing rooms in Selfridges too. Commonly an extended family would emerge from limousines in Duke Street and the oldest grandmas would sit on the floor at the foot of the escalators while the rest piled their shopping on the floor around her. The rich ones have adjusted more now but back then they were ostentatiously wealthy but still behaving like desert nomads.

          4. It’ll take more than a generation or two of money to change their stone-age outlook.

            The same can be said for others, welcomed into our formerly lovely country by the disgusting Blair and his political descendants.

          5. You could have left out “of money” from your first sentence. Second and third generations are still mediaeval in their mindset.

          6. That’s interesting. My late sister worked there as a cookery demonstrator for Prestige many moons ago.

        2. In the early 1970s I shared a house in Fulham with a friend who was Jewish. He was fair haired and blue-eyed and didn’t look remotely Jewish.

          He came from a rich family and his marriage was quite an event held in the parents’ very grand garden in Gerard’s Cross with a rabbi officiating, a cantor singing, a tabernacle, a broken glass and all the trimmings!

          When he first started going out with his future wife he told her that he would never be able to marry her because she was not Jewish. “No problem,” she said “I shall convert to Judaïsme” and she went to all the necessary classes and jumped through all the hoops. She had brown eyes, a tawny complexion and dark hair and looked far more Jewish than her husband even though she was not.

          They have been married now for 50 years.

          1. Good for them.
            Apparently, a several times Great-Grandmother was born in a shtetel in the Ukraine during Tsarist times and after emigrating to the UK with her parents, married outside of the religion.

    3. I guess the Turks have given up wanting to join the sinking ship EU then. Can’t imagine there are that many Jews in Istanbul, it seems like superfluous spite. Of course, if you can also put up signs saying “Muslims not allowed” then everyone could just let their prejudices hang out.

      1. Of course Christopher Marlowe wrote The Jew of Malta,a play about a Jewish merchant, Barabas.

        The Jews have always been singled out. The brilliant Tom Lehrer came from a secular Jewish family and his song about National Brotherhood week is brilliant. Here is one of its verses.

        Oh, the Protestants hate the Catholics,
        And the Catholics hate the Protestants,
        And the Hindus hate the Moslems,
        And everybody hates the Jews.

        and here is the song itself:

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIlJ8ZCs4jY

          1. I have never hated the Jews indeed, as the cliché has it, some of my best friends are Jews.

            I think Tom Lehrer was pointing fun at the mindless hordes of anti-semites.

          2. It annoys me when people are told “everybody does [whatever]”. All too often I don’t; eg I never loved Diana Wales or wanted the Irish to win all our best races 🙂

      2. I would love to put up a sign “Muslims Not Allowed”! The cover of my latest British Horse magazine has a smug looking muzzie woman dressed in islamic clothing on it (it isn’t Sheika Hissa). It offends me deeply.

  29. Never mind Ukraine, Gaza, Islamification, Transsexualism, Global Warming and Vaccine-Induced Global Depopulation, I’m more concerned about hoodies. This harmless garment appendage has its place. It’s handy to cover the head and ears when cold or wet. What grinds my gears, though, is wearing the covering indoors or outdoors on warm sunny days. It’s very much the preserve of young men although they have little appreciation of how it appears to others. Do they know they look utterly dorky in presenting a sullen adolescence they should have grown out of by now? Have they no concerns about impeded hearing and restricted peripheral vision? Perhaps it’s the look of unapproachable furtiveness which excites them. All I know is that, when I’m Prime Minister, I will proscribe them unless the weather is inclement.

    1. David, they don’t understand impeded, peripheral, unapproachable, inclement or proscribed. Kool innit.

      1. As I’m not particularly young, I hope I’m excused when I simply forget to remove my hat once indoors. Blame it on my age.

      2. I know someone who wears a cap indoors and it looks odd but in her case it’s excusable because the poor woman is losing her hair.

      3. There is no reason why women should not wear a hat indoors. HMQE2 did so at lunch in the Mansion House in her Silver Jubilee year. Men who wear hats indoors, on the other hand (unless they are Jewish) …

    2. Young people often don’t know much at all, but having just started on the road of learning anything they think they have the answers. I was one myself. A rabid socialist at 17.

      1. I can honestly say I have never been attracted by socialism (despite the fact that my family were all left wing), even as a youngster. It’s only as I’ve got older and more experienced, however, that I began to appreciate how little I did know!

    3. The biggest problem is, they think they know everything and don’t have much respect for the older generation.
      And spend too much time with a mobile phone in their faces.

      1. Keeping one’s wits about one is important when walking the streets so as to avoid oncomers staring into their telephones instead of looking where they’re going. I’m still unaccustomed to people using hands-free telephones when they’re out and about. They sound as if they’re talking to themselves.

    4. There was a young girl wearing one (with the hood up) in the queue in front of me this morning. She seemed polite and pleasant, though.

    5. I have one – had it for 11 years or so – nice and warm on a chilly day. I don’t keep the hood up when I’m slouching around though. Mine says “Save our Rhino” on the front.

    1. What has Norfolk done to warrant this meagre ration of sunlight? This part of Hertfordshire has been rewarded with some lovely sunny autumn weather the past few days, including right now.

          1. That is where I studied computer science, it wasn’t a university in those days and mainly peddled useful hnc and hnd courses.

            Not quite todays standard for computer training, there were about twenty of us sharing a small Elliot 803 for practical work.

          2. When I was driving down to Essex in my student days I used to breast the rise to Bishop’s Stortford and know that it was going to be flat all the way (bearing in mind I’ve spent most of my life near the Welsh Mountains).

      1. Twas sunny here too – washing dried, went shopping about 4pm, and while in was in Morrisons, there was a downpour – but it had stopped before I came out.

      1. Hope I can manage to install it on a USB stick without such drastic measures.

        I wanted to ask you though, how long do Cavalo Nero plants last? Will they overwinter and do a second summer, or will they go into flower next year?
        They are delicious, just as you said – and my children are getting trained to go out into the garden to seek food for lunch!

        1. They will over winter . We sowed this years crop on 4 April. They last and last.

          Just remember to cut just the leaves you need – NOT the whole head!

  30. Yo all
    From sunny Benidorm
    We are here for a fortnight
    Lovely weather and “All Inclusive” at Hotel

      1. As you will see I found Instant Sunshine’s song about Herts and posted it for you under one of your posts.

        They also wrote a very good song about Spanish holidays. It is in my repertoire but I can’t find a version to play on the Internet. Here is the first verse:

        We’ve all been on a holiday to Spain,
        And next year we shall all go there again
        Not one of us could tell a cold gazpacho from paella
        But we all had a lovely time.

        1. Indeed you did, Richard, and that was much appreciated at the time when you posted it as a Birthday treat.

          Your birthday wishes to us all are a lovely NoTTL reminder of what a very special forum this is.

    1. I spent my 21st birthday in Benidorm three days celebrating. And a few beers. Well quite a few infact.
      Loved it, but it’s changed quite a lot since then.
      Have a great time.

    1. As you commented the other day I have, in my time, eaten a few pies. Do trombetti go well in meat pies?

      1. They are a universal vegetable. Purée for infants; soup; salads; omelettes or just as a vegetable to accompany meat pies!

        1. What intrigued us about them was the way that one could cut off sufficient for whatever meal one was using it for, and the cut would self seal, keeping it fresh to be used even many days later with no need for refrigeration..

      1. Only after we had taken them in, cleaned and wrapped for winter did I think I could have made a word!

        They are by far the best we have ever had.

        1. I am impressed by your trombetti frames. I tried similar this year with pallets for my squashes, but it didn’t work. They grew nicely up the pallets, then came a hailstorm that knocked them back, and they never really produced much. Very disappointing. Was thinking I should just let them run along the ground next year – but then they’d be eaten by slugs!

          1. Growing on the ground is OK in Italy or the south of France but not in northern climes.

            My frame is permanent – I replace the soil each year. The uprights go 12 inches into the ground and are supported by iron pickets at each corner.

  31. Just been in Sainsbury’s Barnstaple.
    What a nightmare.
    Bigger than Heathrow, with twice as many people in it. All with trollies and moving at microspeed. Can’t see the labels over the aisles. Only wanted a bag of soft mints, so fuck it, back out in car now.
    Just at the moment, want to be home. Fewer people, and most things work. No TV showing shite episodes of prehistoric MASH at ear-splitting volume.
    Back to Norway tomorrow, thank God.

    1. I envey you Obs, I had a bit of a mare earlier this afternoon trying get to hospital for blood tests. It usually take 15 minutes to get there, it took forty. More roads closed, its been going on for months. When I managed to park first half hour free.
      I walked into phlebotomy department and every seat of around 60 plus were taken. I came home and phoned the surgery to go somewhere else. 17th of next month.
      It was one of those journeys were I felt I wished I was somewhere else.
      I’ve never been involved with so many morons on our roads, narrow country lanes. Even confronted by a large van coming towards me on a one way street.Effing and blinding at me.
      It might be a bit chilly in your neck of the woods. But I think sanity is more emphasised.

    2. At least you can escape to sanity. Spare a thought for us poor beggars who are stuck with it 🙁

    3. I would not have thought that the population of North Devon was sufficient to support such a vast supermarket. Plymouth or Exeter, sure, but Barnstaple?

      MASH, as with Friends, How I Met Your Mother, Frasier, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Big Bang Theory, and other popular US tv comedies of decades past are broadcast in the UK on a permanent rotation basis. As soon as the final episode airs, it’s straight back to the very first one.

      1. As it happens, Google Maps tells me that Barnstaple and its environs support Asda and Tesco Superstores, a Tesco Extra and Tesco Express, a Sainsbury’s, an Iceland and Iceland Food Warehouse, three Lidls, an Aldi, a Marks & Spencer supermarket, a Co-op and a Londis. They’re spoilt for choice.

        1. I beg to differ. I think they are excellent examples of the genre. Just a few days ago I saw an episode of Friends I’ve seen several times before. It still made me laugh. They are beautifully constructed, scripted and acted sitcoms.

  32. Boris Johnson reveals he is joining GB News. 27 October 2023.

    Boris Johnson has revealed he is getting his own programme on GB News – the oatest Tory politician to join the right-wing TV channel as a presenter.

    In a video posted on X, the troublesome former PM said he was “excited” to sign up to the “remarkable” new channel – boasting that the show would allow him to share his “unvarnished views” on politics.

    “Unvarnished views” i.e. Blatant Lies!

    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-gb-news-presenter-b2437198.html

        1. The saddest words: What might have been?

          Getting rid of Mark Steyn was the beginning of the end.

  33. Afternoon (just about) all. Anybody who entertains the idea of Labour being even remotely fit to govern has clearly had his head in the sand and his ears blocked since 1945.

    1. As someone posted on here a few days ago, Conners, some people live and learn but most just live.

    2. The electorate consists of those born before 2006, the great majority of whom were born after 1945. I don’t know when political memories first become established in growing minds, but current affairs don’t have much impact on the under 10s, so even those born in 1945 wouldn’t be very aware of the political scene until 1955. I was born in 1956 so my awareness of what happened before 1966 is mostly derived from history rather than direct knowledge. It wasn’t until the late 1960s that I had much of a real time perception of political news. In effect, before 1970 was either before I was born, a baby, a toddler or a child before becoming a teenager in 1969. Most of the electorate are younger than me so had neither head nor ears until even later. If asked for the median age of those eligible to vote in the UK, I’d say it was those born after roughly 1975. Would it be about right to say that 18-48 year olds are approximately the same in number as those aged 49 and older? I might very well be under-representing younger adults. Maybe the advent of the Thatcher administration in 1979 marks the 50/50 dividing line of the electorate.

  34. 378158+ up ticks,

    I do believe these governing overseers are openly acting out TREASON on many fronts.

    Tess Summers 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇮🇪
    @tesssummers98
    Lefty woman on GBNews just accusing Ben Habib of ‘dogwhistle’ ie racist talk for warning about taking in refugees from Gaza. He warned that they’d been indoctrinated by Hamas since childhood to hate the West, which is why other Arab countries won’t take them. The racist jibe was pretty stupid as Ben’s father was born in Pakistan. But then lefty do-gooders like her are so naive and so dumb

    https://x.com/tesssummers98/status/1717795543160705296?s=20

  35. Another lady the like of whom we are never to see again:

    Pippa Latour Doyle MBE, SOE agent, was born on April 8, 1921. She died on October 7, 2023, aged 102

    Had it not been for the ingenuity of the Special Operations Executive’s technical branch and her own presence of mind, the 23-year-old Phyllis “Pippa” Latour, believed to have been the last surviving female agent in SOE’s F (France) Section, would probably not have lived to see VE Day.

    She had parachuted into Normandy in the early hours of May 2, 1944, a few weeks before D-Day, to join the “Scientist” circuit of the Maquis, the French Resistance, as their wireless operator — or in SOE slang, “pianist”. The role of the Maquis was to gather intelligence on the Wehrmacht and targeting information for the Allied air forces, and then switch to active sabotage when the invasion began. Everything therefore relied on the wireless operator’s ability to send Morse code messages back to London and to remain undetected.

    Knowing that the invasion was coming, but not precisely where or when, the Germans were on heightened alert. All civilian movement was potentially suspect and spot checks were frequent. Latour, her French sufficiently fluent and her looks youthful and Gallic enough to pass for une jeune fille normande, went about the Scientist area — some 40 square miles — by bicycle, passing as a soap-seller. One day, she and others were rounded up in a routine sweep and taken to the local gendarmerie for questioning. The SOE’s technical branch had miniaturised the tools of her trade, however: “I always carried knitting because my codes were on a piece of silk,” she recalled in an interview years later. “I had about 2,000 I could use. When I used a code I would just pinprick it to indicate it had gone. I wrapped the piece of silk around a knitting needle to insert it in a flat shoe lace which I used to tie my hair up.”

    At the gendarmerie, “a female soldier made us take our clothes off to see if we were hiding anything. She was looking suspiciously at my hair so I just pulled my lace off and shook my head. That seemed to satisfy her. I tied my hair back up with the lace. It was a nerve-racking moment.”

    It was one of several searches, but each time her childlike gaieté somehow got her through. Yet it had almost prevented her joining the SOE in the first place.

    Phyllis Ada Latour was born in 1921 aboard ship in Durban, South Africa. Her father, Philippe, a French doctor, was on his way to the Belgian Congo. Her mother was English, but soon after reaching the Congo, with tribal war raging, her father sent them back to South Africa. He was killed not long afterwards.

    When Latour was three her mother remarried. “My stepfather was well off, and a racing driver. The men would do circuits and they would often let their wives race against each other. When my mother drove, the choke stuck and she couldn’t control the car. She hit a barrier, the car burst into flames, and she died.”

    Her father’s cousin became her guardian, and she went to live with his family in the Congo. “They were really the only parents I knew. When I was seven my ‘new’ mother went riding as she always did. The horse came back without her … When they found her she was dead.”

    Latour was initially educated at home and then in Nairobi, Kenya, before in 1939 going to secretarial college in England. When war broke out she volunteered for the Women’s Royal Naval Service, who naturally enough given her secretarial skills put her to administrative work. Wanting something more active, in 1941 she transferred to the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) to train as a mechanic. There, her language skill was recognised and in 1943 she and a dozen others were sent for what was coyly known as special training: “It was unusual training — not what I expected, and very hard.”

    Initially the SOE selectors were far from convinced she was the right material, an interim report describing her as “a naive, ingenuous girl with a love of excitement, full of a confident optimism in which judgment plays no part … She is no more than a child in her gestures, behaviour and outlook and has no grasp of the realities of life. Quite unsuitable.” Or, as a female agent-turned-trainer remarked, “cheerful little scatterbrain … uncontrolled and stubborn”.

    Eventually, though, “They told me they wanted me to become a member of the SOE. They said I could have three days to think about it. I told them I didn’t need three; I’d take the job now.”

    Then began her real training. She already knew Morse code, but needed to speed up her key-work, and also to become handy with weapons. The SOE also employed a number of “old lags” to teach “tradecraft”. Latour increased her climbing ability thanks to a cat-burglar, and learnt to pick locks courtesy of a former peterman.

    On April 30, 1944, the BBC broadcast the coded message “Le vin rouge est meilleur” (“Red wine is better”), notifying “Scientist” that Latour — codename “Genevieve” — would be landing. Two days after dropping into France she sent a message — the first of 135. By 1944, sending was the “pianist’s” most vulnerable moment. The high-frequency wirelesses needed to send on high power, with long antennae, and the Germans had developed an effective system of direction-finding (DF) by triangulation. “They were about an hour and a half behind me each time I transmitted. Each message might take me about half an hour so I didn’t have much time. It was an awful problem for me so I had to ask for one of the three DF near me to be taken out. They threw a grenade at it. A German woman and two small children died. I knew I was responsible for their deaths. It was a horrible feeling.”

    Come the invasion, she had 17 wireless sets hidden in various farms, and was often living rough in woods and barns and always short of food. Her work only ended when the Americans overran the Scientist area. She returned to England in October, whereupon SOE proposed returning her to the WAAF, in which she now held the rank of Section Officer.

    Latour protested. Her debrief report said “Tons of guts. Wants to go on with the work, provided it’s dangerous enough.” So she was re-briefed to drop behind the lines into Germany, but the mission was abandoned because of the rapid Allied advance after the crossing of the Rhine in March. She was instead discharged soon after VE Day, and appointed MBE (Military).

    Subsequently she married Patrick Doyle, an Australian engineer, and lived in Kenya, Fiji and Australia. They divorced in the 1970s, and she brought up their four children in New Zealand on little money. In 2014, along with other Normandy veterans, she was appointed a chevalier of the Légion d’Honneur by the French government.

    Latour remained loath to talk of her experiences, always conscious of the death she had brought to French civilians in consequence of the Allied bombing, and that 12 of her 38 fellow F Section female agents were executed by the Germans.

      1. And – like so many of that generation – completely self-effacing and modest about it all.

    1. To have done all that knowing that to be caught would mean brutal interrogation, torture and summary execution takes some courage. RIP, dear lady.

    2. Respect. Stupendously courageous lady.
      Endless gratitude from this old bugger. Thanks, Pippa. Raising a glass…

  36. Elon Musk calls Humza Yousaf a ‘blatant racist’ over ‘whites fill all top roles in Scotland’ speech. 27 October 2023.

    Elon Musk has called Humza Yousaf a “blatant racist” in response to video footage of a speech the First Minister gave decrying the lack of prominent non-white people in Scotland.

    The world’s richest man took to his X social media platform, formerly known as Twitter, to launch the attack on Mr Yousaf after viewing a post that contained a clip from the 2020 speech.

    Mr Yousaf, who was then Scottish justice secretary, took part in a Holyrood debate on challenging racism in the wake of the murder of George Floyd in May that year. The footage has since been used to claim he is bigoted.

    If I can’t have Vlad for Prime Minister I will settle for Elon!

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/27/elon-musk-appears-to-call-humza-yousaf-a-blatant-racist/

    1. Same old story once they get their feet under the table the destructive nature kicks in. How long will it take before our political idiots realise what is actually going on.

          1. It was a purely cosmetic exercise as no judge would have handed down such a sentence. There would have been no point as human rights legislation had already effectively outlawed death penalties. The UK’s membership of the European Council made the country subject to verdicts of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg which applies the European Convention on Human Rights to its member states, since incorporated into UK legislation by the Human Rights Act. The Convention, to which the UK is a signatory, forbids death penalties. Any death sentence would have been subject to appeal and overturned, either in Strasbourg or, nowadays, in the UK. Besides, I cannot imagine anybody being appointed to the judiciary in this day and age with an appetite for death penalties. They simply wouldn’t get the job.

          2. Why does it take the whole of parliament, both Commons and Lords, several readings of a Bill, as well as acquiring Royal Assent, before a law can be made …. yet one bloke can abolish such a law at whim?

          3. There was neither a need to remove it nor to keep it. It was a legal dust bunny. it was removed to tidy up, not to make any material difference.

          4. Strange then that they chose that one to tidy up when there are so many arcane laws still in force.

        1. I can’t see that happening. Their crooks manage to keep that shiite Kahnt in the driving seat. While he’s been wrecking our capital city..

  37. ‘For the first time in my life, I am ashamed to be British’
    From the policing of the pro-Palestine protests to Nigel Farage’s debanking – we reveal this week’s biggest discussion topics.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/27/telegraph-readers-palestine-protest-police-israel-un-farage/?li_source=LI&li_medium=liftigniter-rhr

    BTL

    The woke are ashamed of what Britain was; I am proud of what Britain used to be.

    The woke also seem to loathe Britain as it is now – and here we are in agreement.

    Britain has become a loathsome place in the last 30 years since the Conservatives turned on Thatcher and allowed the pathetic Mr Major to prepare the ground for the ruinous decade of Blair’s premiership which has resulted in the total moral collapse of Britain.

    1. I feel for our parents and grandparents generations. Many gave their lives to keep our country safe from attack and invasion. But our brave ancestors have been to badly let down by politics and the c evil service. Our country is no longer safe for the future of our own grandchildren. Politicians should be put in jail. But of course the jails are full.

    1. That reminds me of an advert for a ton of hard core which was erroneously eagerly accepted by a responder who was most disappointed when the truck delivered it.

    2. When a friend and I constructed a concrete base for my garden shed I told my friends that I need some hard core but unfortunately had no copies of Playboy or Playgirl. Lol.

  38. That’s me gone for this day of three halves. Fog; gloom and sun. In equal parts. Picked all the remaining outdoor tomatoes to store and let ripen.

    We both used the new step ladder and were agreeably surprised by its stability. Wish I had had it before…(sighs..)

    Looks like a fine day tomorrow. So more autumn clearance awaits.

    Have a spiffing evening.

    A demain.

  39. It may just be my natural pessimism, but the Gaza conflict has gone ominously quiet.

    I fear a big bang this weekend.

      1. From or into?
        Either way, there is relatively little appearing on MSM as far as I can tell.

        1. Boredom – battle fatigue setting in. Much better to concentrate on the vile language used by the Cabinet Secretary…

        2. Financelot
          @FinanceLancelot
          ·
          32m
          BREAKING: Senior Israeli Officials are stating that “Tonight is the Night” and that the Full-Scale Invasion of the Gaza Strip will begin in the coming hours.

          1. It’s appeared in the Guardian just a moment ago.

            Israel-Hamas war live: Israeli military to expand ground operations in Gaza tonight, says IDF

            Big bang this weekend it is.

        3. The power and comms have gone off. Wonder how that happened! I suppose the only realistic tactic is to occupy the Strip, and then patiently strangle Hamas of their resources before flushing them out. I dont hold much hope for the hostages.

          1. Israel unleashes ‘unprecedented’ airstrikes on Gaza: IDF steps up ground operations and tells Palestinians to flee south NOW as invasion looms – while phone lines and internet are ‘cut’ across the city

            Agree re hostages.
            Either way I fear Hamas will do something grotesque, film it and publish it.

            https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12681083/Israeli-warplanes-unleash-airstrikes-unprecedented-scale-Gaza-Hamas-claims-communications-internet-cut-IDF.html

    1. Meanwhile, officers have made 4,960 visits to vulnerable premises in the capital, including 730 schools and around 3,400 religious places in the last three weeks.
      Officers have launched ten counter-terror investigations in recent weeks related to the conflict and an online portal has attracted 1,500 referrals, of which 240 will be looked at more closely.
      There are currently ten live terror investigations, the force said.

      If that doesn’t hammer home how badly we have been infiltrated by people who hate everything we stand for, nothing will.

      1. And the police said it took 3 years to bring these sickos to justice. They include one who was given a 6 year sentence. Presumably since he has already been in custody for 3 years, then with “good behaviour” he will be released 24 hours after arriving at jail.

  40. I’m getting a bit fed up with racial discrimination…. An e-mail exchange I’m in the middle of with Age Concern. Starts at the bottom.

    ‘Hi A..,

    Thanks for the note, and I’m pleased that Age Concern is committed to celebrating the diversity of all old people hence my question, when is White History Month? Because if there isn’t going to be one then that would seem to be discrimination on the grounds of colour, wouldn’t it?

    Regards

    David

    Sent from my Galaxy

    From: Campaigns

    Date: 27/10/2023 11:55 (GMT+00:00)

    To: D……..@hotmail.com

    Subject: RE: Reflecting on Black History Month

    Dear Mr W,

    Thank you for your email. Black History Month is a time to celebrate the significant contributions from people of African and African-Caribbean heritage have made, over the centuries, to shaping the dynamic and diverse country we are today.

    However, Age UK is committed to celebrating the diversity of all older people, and to support everyone to overcome the barriers to their full inclusion and participation in society. You can read more about our commitment on our website here – https://www.ageuk.org.uk/about-us/people/our-commitment-to-equality-diversity-and-inclusion/

    Kind regards,
    A.. …..
    Supporter Engagement

    7th Floor
    One America SQ
    17 Crosswall
    London
    EC3N 2LB

    From: David W….

    Dear Mr Farmer,

    Thanks for this. When are you planning on having a White History Month?

    Regards

    David

    From: Paul Farmer, Age UK

    Sent: 26 October 2023 10:18

    To: d………@hotmail.com

    Subject: Reflecting on Black History Month

    Age UK Campaigns

    Dear Mr W…..,

    I wanted to share an article I’ve written about Black History Month with you.

    I’ve taken this time to reflect on how older Black people are still disproportionately affected by the challenges of later life. I, and all of Age UK, are committed to addressing the particular difficulties older Black people face – including campaigning to reform the failing Windrush Compensation Scheme.

    Of course it’s also important to celebrate the wonderful ways Black people have shaped our society.

    I have really enjoyed hearing about some amazing events Local Age UKs are involved in across the country. For example, in Bradford, nearly one thousand students performed for older people in their community to recognise Black artists such as Sister Sledge, Beverley Knight and Heather Small; and in Tameside, older people in the area participated in a ‘Black Girl Magic’ exercise class with an all-Black female soundtrack!

    I hope you will continue to work with us to celebrate the contributions of all older people and ensure they get the support they need, not only during Black History Month but throughout the entire year.

    Best wishes,

    Paul Farmer
    Chief Executive
    Age Concern’

    1. Their argument of course is that we have to overdo it now to make up for not doing it at all before.

      Which completely ignores the sound reasons that people of Sub-Saharan African heritage have never featured in the history of the once civilised world.

      They never documented their own history because they had no written language of their own. Their achievements weren’t documented by others because they didn’t achieve very much.

      The Black History of Europe is largely fabricated. Very 1984.

    2. So, I wasn’t aware that the Windrush arrivals were taking a cut in standards, living conditions and lifestyle in travelling to live in the UK, and so needed compensation for that. In fact, were they kidnapped into slavery back then in the 1950s? How appalling!
      /sarc

    3. I got so fed up earlier in the year being told by the Yacht Association, the Institute of Advanced Motorists, the ICAEW etc that they were ”celebrating” Pride Month and so must I. No. Leave me alone. Leave me out of this.

  41. Off for a walk to Cromford & back with eldest daughter so will sing off now.
    G’night all.

      1. No, unfortunately.
        Listened to a rather pleasant duo though over an excellent couple of pints of Titanic Plum Porter though.

  42. Radio 4, PM.

    Evan Davies: “We’ll talk to Nick Lowles of Hope Not Hate which campaigns against racism and extremism.”

    Lowles: “I think we are entering a really dangerous time…my fear is that the polarisation of the debate will be exploited by hardliners on both sides and the consequences of what is happening in the Middle East will have a quite a long tail in the UK.

    “It’s led to anger and violence and is being exploited by both sides to further divisions in communities. It’s being used by the Islamist extremist die to say ‘We can’t trust British society, this is what they’re like, the West is joining up with Israel against Muslims’. On the other side it’s weaponised by the political right saying ‘This proves multi-culturalism has failed and Muslims can’t co-exist in Western society.

    “I’m fearful for those people who being threatened and attacked online and the impact it’s going to have on community relations.” [Who is being threatened?]

    When asked by Evans if the ‘progressive cause/Left’ should be clearer in its denouncement of the events of Oct 7th, Lowles said: ‘Yes, and I don’t think they’re unwittingly falling into it [the anti-Semitism] but some of them are consciously doing so and openly supporting what Hamas did…there is a dangerous thread running through elements of the progressive Left.”

    Lowles was a member of HMG’s Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group for 10 years [hatred of, not by…]: “After Lee Rigby’s murder and the 2017 attacks there was a conscious effort to de-escalate tensions…this time, the government must be mindful of its rhetoric and should reach out to all communities…things may get worse over the next few weeks and the authorities have to be ahead of the game. I’m not seeing any of this happening now.”

    Lowles is either speaking with a forked tongue or is dangerously naive.

      1. Some real hate on Any Questions? this evening when Dan Hannan opined that it would be very wrong to attempt to call a cease fire with an organisation that holds hostages. A woman in the audience had interrupted him earlier and went off again in a big way. David Blunkett told her “We feel your pain.”

        Perhaps someone somewhere will analyse the recording and discover what the heckler said…

  43. After my frought afternoon I’m going to indulge in a wee dram in an hour and popping off to bed.
    Goeie nag almal.
    😴

  44. Par at Wordle today.

    Wordle 860 4/6

    ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟩
    ⬜🟨🟨⬜🟩
    ⬜⬜🟨🟩🟩
    🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    1. Same here

      Wordle 860 4/6

      ⬜⬜🟨⬜🟩
      ⬜🟨⬜⬜🟨
      ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    1. Picture of a Muslim woman but quote by a white man. Misleading, certainly.
      An attempt in the article to show balance but all the pictures bar one show people in the same café. Lazy interviewers!

    2. Carol Tate, who works in early years education, backs calls for a by-election and said: “It was a bit of a shock to hear somebody in that position could be doing something like that.”

      The 55-year-old, who has lived in the town all her life, hopes a new MP would deliver more shops, especially clothes and children’s retailers.

      Because that’s what MPs do: they “deliver more shops, especially clothes and children’s retailers”. Whenever I feel dismayed by the local poor choice of clothing retailers, I ask my MP to deliver one. It’s their business nous, you see. Entrepreneurs fail time and time again to see the opportunities available to them. I’m glad MPs know how to fill gaps in the market.

    3. I understand the car/tree episode having just written my car off in collision with tree. – Stress!

  45. Poll on Youtube.
    ‘Is it acceptable to protest by holding up the traffic?”.
    So far, 90% no, 10% yes.

    1. Perhaps so, but traffic-disrupting protestors are 10 times more virtuous than their complainants so, by my reckoning, that makes 90% no, 100% yes.

  46. Well, now we know. Had England snuck past South Africa last weekend, they would not be troubling the All Blacks tomorrow night.

  47. 378158+ up ticks,

    Pillow ponder,

    leilani dowding 🌸🚜 ☮️ reposted
    Ben Pile
    @clim8resistance
    A reminder of the refreshing perspective that this man will bring to the channel:

    * Banning boilers.
    * Banning cars.
    * Lockdowns. Lockdowns. Lockdowns.
    * Squandering an 80 seat majority on his & his wife’s Net Zero fetish.
    * Taking Europe closer to WWIII and counselling against diplomacy.

    YOU CAN GET THAT ON ANY OTHER “NEWS CHANNEL”.

  48. BBC Radio 4 loses hundreds of thousands of listeners

    Slump in audience for the Today programme contributes to loss of 477,000 listeners

    By Craig Simpson • 26 October 2023 • 8:27am

    BBC Radio 4 has lost hundreds of thousands of listeners amid a slump in the Today programme audience.

    Official figures show the flagship current affairs programme has lost around 375,000 weekday listeners since October last year. This has contributed to an overall shrinking in audience numbers for Radio 4, which has lost 477,000 listeners.

    The BBC World Service has experienced an even sharper drop in listeners, with its average weekly audience falling 33 per cent from 1.4 million in July-September 2021, to 940,000 in the same period in 2023.

    However, the corporation saw more favourable responses to its other stations, including Radio 3, which grew its audience by 17 per cent partly thanks to a popular Proms season.

    Radio 2’s audience also appears to have stabilised following the departure of the veteran broadcaster Ken Bruce.

    The station had an average of 13.5 million listeners in the third quarter of the year, broadly unchanged on the previous three months, after a drop of one million from 14.5 million in January-March.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/54645bc6c4c26a03ec5437d5db8b102384300dd718d6ff6b8a83ada19fe8da8d.jpg
    The figures come as the corporation has sought to make savings in the face of high inflation and a licence fee freeze, including plans for local radio stations to share more content and transmit fewer programmes unique to their areas. Journalists at the BBC have taken strike action in protest against the proposals, which also include shifting some World Service television and radio broadcast services to digital.

    In its recent annual plan, the BBC stated its savings target has increased by 40 per cent to £400 million.

    Charlotte Moore, the BBC’s chief content officer, said: “Radio 2 continues to be the country’s most popular station and I’m delighted with the flying start Vernon Kay has made to mid-mornings as the UK’s biggest radio show, bringing his warmth, energy and charisma to listeners up and down the country. We’ve had an incredible summer of music and sport with record-breaking figures at the Proms reflected by Radio 3 reaching over two million listeners with their unique commitment to live classical broadcasts.

    “The Ashes, Wimbledon, the Women’s World Cup boosted 5 Sports Extra significantly as well as delivering for 5 Live and BBC Sounds.”

    Sam Jackson, the controller of BBC Radio 3, added: “It’s so encouraging to see BBC Radio 3 reaching a weekly audience of over two million people, with the station welcoming around 300,0000 new listeners during this period. We have evidently drawn in more lighter listeners this summer, and we hope those who have discovered the breadth of distinctive programming on Radio 3 will now stay with us for the longer term.”

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/26/bbc-radio-4-loses-thousands-listeners-slump-today-programme

    1. BBC Radio 4 hasn’t lost me as I’ve very rarely listened to it. It would be better to say it’s never gained me.

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