Saturday 7 January: The Sussexes’ appeals for a quieter life are at glaring odds with their public conduct

Posted on by Geoff Graham

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Today’s letters (visible only to DT subscribers) are here.

578 thoughts on “Saturday 7 January: The Sussexes’ appeals for a quieter life are at glaring odds with their public conduct”

    1. Morning Bob3, have mine if you want.
      2 hours ago it was dark and damp, now it is light and damp.
      My forecast for today is staying light and damp until it gets dark and damp.
      Bill Giles eat your heart out!

      1. Probably more accurate than the Wet Office – yesterday we were supposed to be “dry to 1900” and it threw it down at 1100 just as we tried to go for a walk! I went later when it was actually drier than forecast.

      2. It absolutely bucketed down here this morning. Even I looked at it and thought, “I’ll take the dogs later” 🙂 Despite having had the drains done, there was still an ankle deep flood outside my studio (if I hadn’t had the drains done it would have been more than a foot deep).

  6. Russians accused of opening fire despite Putin’s unilateral truce. 7 JNUARY 2023.

    Although Russian officials insisted the truce remained intact, there was no indication of any significant lull in fighting.

    “We are two and a half hours into this proclaimed ceasefire, and actually the whole territory of Ukraine is under air raid alert. So I think that speaks for itself,” Ukrainian MP Inna Sovsun told the BBC. “Basically the ceasefire, the Russians are making it up.”

    It certainly does! It says that the Russians were trying to implement their ceasefire and the Ukies were determined that they should break it!

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-64187704

    2. Does ‘air raid alert’ mean the Ukes are sitting there waiting for something to happen?

    1. The key one – 18th October – Study reports lack of objectivity in favour of negativity and emotion in news headlines.

      Climate change is not an issue. The Earth’s climate does change. What is important is how that is reported and conveyed. We are being lied to solely as a system of control.

      It really is 1984.

  9. 369429+ up ticks,

    Morning Each,

    If the Sussexes had initially settled down to a quite domestic life
    the brace would have been completely useless as
    deflection material.

    But as it stands with arry and his harakiri travelling circus act tis the perfect set up for the local politico’s to continue with
    their campaign of destruction as RESET forges ahead.

    Saturday 7 January: The Sussexes’ appeals for a quieter life are at glaring odds with their public conduct

    1. With my usual display of modesty, I will paste my comment in the DT.
      All joking aside, I can see a huge tragedy approaching.

      “MeGain is the Sorcerer’s Apprentice. For financial gain she has dabbled with matters she does not understand, and has unleashed a sequence of events that will be far more serious than a wet floor and dancing brooms.”

  10. On the 15th ballot over a series of four days, Rep. Kevin McCarthy finally won the coveted title: Speaker of the House. He had been backed by Pres. Trump.

    1. In theory, some important concessions were made, to improve the method/process of bringing the Bills to the House.
      Fingers crossed 🤞.

    2. Trump’s backing probably hindered more than it helped.
      If the Republicans want to get the next President I’m afraid that the truth is that they would be better off dumping Trump.

        1. You must read different sources.

          https://nypost.com/2023/01/04/taliban-20-digs-against-kevin-mccarthy-as-house-tries-to-pick-speaker/
          https://www.ft.com/content/8db7bcf4-0012-4586-a818-3bce9d3aedf5
          https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/13/us/politics/trump-mccarthy-speaker-republicans-freedom-caucus.html

          McCarthy won because of making concessions, not because of Trump’s interventions.
          https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-house-speaker-fight-enters-fourth-day-amid-antebellum-era-dysfunction-2023-01-06/

          1. No latest, Trump made a phone call the Getzh ( ?) and it was then sorted at next vote. Do not believe the MSM.. I will have to keep you posted on the real world.

          2. And you really think that made the difference given what they’ve conceded?
            The speaker has been emasculated.
            I will have to keep you posted on the reality behind what appears to be the real world.

          4. As usual, Sos, you join those who believe that Democrats, despite their vote-rigging, have the answer.

            Poor you. keep believing until you die.

          5. That just goes to show how little you actually understand about what you read.
            I hate the Democrats vehemently and particularly the current corrupt crop of liars and thieves.
            If you ever bothered to think beyond the obvious you would see what has been done to the position of Speaker and it certainly does not favour democracy.

          6. Good luck with all your expositions but I’m convinced that democracy is dead and the WEF will get it’s bloody way. and it will be bloody.

      2. If you wish to believe the NYT et al that’s your prerogative but I wouldn’t use those publications to wipe my butt with – they lie.

  12. Morning, all. Cloudy and breezy here in N Essex.

    Two days ago I posed the question about Dr John Campbell and what I considered to be his despondent demeanour in a video. This morning I came across this compilation of Dr Campbell’s transition from being generally supportive of CV-19 information and the measures being taken to combat the infection through to his realisation that not everything in the World is as it seems when following the ‘narrative’. The video I originally commented on is not included in the compilation. A pity.

    Dr John Campbell – The End of Evidence Based Science

      1. Is it a case that the ever mounting evidence doesn’t have an effect on YT’s ‘fact’ checkers? The Dr was always careful to not break the ‘rules’ of that capricious entity.

  14. Good Moaning.
    It is still the pantomime season (no, not THAT one).
    Yesterday we went to the Mercury Theatre to see the pantomime – Beauty and the Beast.
    I feel so sorry for the jolly peasants, dancing and singing their hearts out; even the two main characters, valiantly setting the scene and falling in love at first sight know darn well that the audience share one single thought …. Where is the Dame? And her sidekick – usually an incredibly dim son or servant.

    2. I saw a thread on Facebook trying to justify grooming infant school children with the argument that the pantomime dame is already an established part of our culture. A straw man of course. The panto dame is a deliberately hideous figure of fun. Try mocking a Story Time Drag Queen? Straight to court for “transphobia”.

      1. She appeared; in something dead tasteful, of course.
        Occasionally, she and sidekick actually stuck to the script.

    4. The parts you missed are…..
      Playing Jack and the Beanstalk at St Albans.
      My feeling under the weather left my seat empty. But I heard all about it……oh yes I did !

      1. Wot a shame.
        Even teenage grandchildren have passed the awkward stage and thoroughly enjoyed it.

  15. Good morning all. A damp and miserable start to the day, light rain, heavy overcast and 6°C.

    1. Cheer up BoB, the daylight hours are getting longer. And you got what you wanted at (and from) the auction. If the worst comes to the worst you can stay indoors and listen to some good music.

      1. Given the amount of cloud we have the earlier hours of daylight are barely noticeable!
        Being able to see the sunrise whilst driving to Colsterworth yesterday was a rare treat though and certainly made the drive worth while on its own.

        1. We well remember the “expert” on the BBC news stating that the drought was so bad that we would have

          hosepipe restrictions in force not only for 2022 but the whole of 2023.

          Anyone seen him lately?

          3. Good morning, Bill. This post of yours elicited a laugh from me as loud as one of Tom’s morning posts. Well done!

  17. ‘Morning All

    Medley Time

    Harry’s early trauma

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6f57b53a9fe6485dedc609b0ebcd90c95fad647cdf07fb3d786be1b6bbcde22b.gif

    Logic

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/73ae3194062b5d3b2dd4c3db64ddd8cb4967c92e411afa4ff1e471927a8a3bc3.jpg

    Illogic

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/47e67843b0fbde360cae42a3f0884c8634a87bef19a6d6dcd5e5dad4fe8a9eac.jpg

    Oi Laffed

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f469e32b292cd746d183332bb779af0d137ad309af9ec2ef163a7aa47a8cc67e.jpg

    Just because……..

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/0c5dac426bb670b4e85393ff93b3cd1164917241fd7cec6443ffc0459418697b.jpg

  18. Morning all 😉 😊
    Well one prediction has happened already 95% chance of rain. Just what we need another wet weekend. Sarc.
    I just wonder how long we will have to wait until the ‘Royal War’ comes to an end and the public entitlement to a quieter life is considered.

    1. The Biden administration is rotten to the core.

      The Democrats will win the presidential elections in 2024 – there is no way that the Republicans can ever win no matter how the voters vote.

  20. Harry, to paraphrase advice to one of your family’s predecessors, in the name of God, shut the f… up.

    1. Madam and drugs – plus bad genes – have pushed him over the edge.
      I feel sorry for his family; how on earth do they quietly remove him from the stage and give him the care he needs.

          1. Actually it would make more sense just to detain him in the Tower at HM’s Pleasure. Visitor numbers would soar just to seem him humiliated……

          3. Such a course of action would serve two purposes. It would be a re-enactment of Traditional Royal prerogatives and secondly it would offer a degree of protection from those seeking to avenge 25 Martyrs …..

    2. Good morning all,
      From the Spectator: Harry’s mission to save the Royal Family
      https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/harrys-mission-to-save-the-royal-family/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=CampaignMonitor_Editorial&utm_campaign=BOCH%20%2007012023%20%20House%20ads%20%20AC+CID_88b0dddf5518fd87ba362089865fde97

      “….It’s a good question — why would anyone embarrass themselves so royally?
      Well, Steerpike has a theory, if you’ll indulge. Harry, the loyal soldier, is on a top secret mission to save the royal family. He’s doing so by destroying himself for their benefit.
      Lots of monarchists have been greatly concerned that, after the death of the Queen, the House of Windsor would fall apart. King Charles can never be as popular as the Elizabeth II. The younger royals — not just Harry and Meghan — simply cannot resist meddling in politics and PR shenanigans.
      Perhaps Harry understood that at some subliminal level — and, accepting that he was the spare not the heir, resolved to do everything he could to make the British public sympathise with and appreciate his father, the King, and his brother, the future king. And to do that, he knew he had to trash himself. Greater love hath no man than this…       ”

      After all the vile spite & lies from Harry and meagain, I, for one, certainly have more support now for the King than I otherwise would have.
      And for a ‘man’ who claimed he feared for the safety/security of his children, boasting about how many taliban scum he killed has to be the ultimate proof of his sheer stupidity.

    3. Good morning all,
      From the Spectator: Harry’s mission to save the Royal Family
      https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/harrys-mission-to-save-the-royal-family/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=CampaignMonitor_Editorial&utm_campaign=BOCH%20%2007012023%20%20House%20ads%20%20AC+CID_88b0dddf5518fd87ba362089865fde97

      “….It’s a good question — why would anyone embarrass themselves so royally?
      Well, Steerpike has a theory, if you’ll indulge. Harry, the loyal soldier, is on a top secret mission to save the royal family. He’s doing so by destroying himself for their benefit.
      Lots of monarchists have been greatly concerned that, after the death of the Queen, the House of Windsor would fall apart. King Charles can never be as popular as the Elizabeth II. The younger royals — not just Harry and Meghan — simply cannot resist meddling in politics and PR shenanigans.
      Perhaps Harry understood that at some subliminal level — and, accepting that he was the spare not the heir, resolved to do everything he could to make the British public sympathise with and appreciate his father, the King, and his brother, the future king. And to do that, he knew he had to trash himself. Greater love hath no man than this…       ”

      After all the vile spite & lies from Harry and meagain, I, for one, certainly have more support now for the King than I otherwise would have.
      And for a ‘man’ who claimed he feared for the safety/security of his children, boasting about how many taliban scum he killed has to be the ultimate proof of his sheer stupidity.

    4. It sounds to me as though that load of old tosh was written by Someone Else – a woman. Necklace? Pah!

  21. Reposted from last night

    Saturday 7th January 2023

    Lady of the Lake

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e281877e66f9640965428cfaf7612b736a56b10f037dc7830d6ff3f7e0f8aba9.png

    and

    Many Joyous Returns

    With very best wishes

    Caroline and Rastus

    Hope you had a good night’s sleep and your weariness has passed.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/445e2c3749ef19dad14914165f16acc4eb10a378602d2b6e47f9816126a4f77e.jpg

    (The picture of the lake used to illustrate Sir Walter Scott’s poem)

      1. Morning Stormy…In case you hadn’t noticed you appear to have accidentally turned off spellchecker….

        1. Thank you for asking! The lurgy is running its course, another day of tiredness. But I’ve now established that two people I know had it before Christmas and got better reasonably quickly, so I’m hoping to feel better tomorrow.

  22. 369429+ up ticks,

    Would it help any in regards to the invasion influx if we relinquish Dover as the electorate majority did with London,
    build an exclusion wall around it and give it to the french, that is if china does not own it already.

    Saves any travel / transport cost straight off.

    Compensate the Doverians handsomely with a payment they cannot refuse.

    1. Cheaper to hire some vigilantes with machine guns mounted on the front of their solid fast small boats. One weeks work would save us billions.

  23. I see in the DT, there’s now a big question mark over did covid jabs cause heart problems ?
    But of course not, climate change caused thousands of people to suddenly die and or collapse and end up in hospital.
    Just 75 years to wait and find the truth?
    Justified Speculation has overtaken that already.

    1. Well if the vaxx really is a lethal biological weapon then it seems likely that whatever passes for government will need a large contingent of abled bodied unvaxxed personnel to dispose of all the bodies….

      1. 369+ up ticks,

        Morning S,

        That is a much needed unblinkered view as opposed to the blinkered, lets not face reality view.

        1. The Japanese government are running an inquiry into why so many of their vaccinated

          citizens are now having heart problems.

          Anyone got the link?

          1. I can fetch it if required.
            Dr. Cartland is well up on current links & news of this sort.
            He is to be found on Gettr.

  28. Happy birthday Lottie .

    Be happy!

    Today is the day you were brought into this world to be a blessing and inspiration to the people around you!

    1. Wishing you a very Happy Birthday Lottie!
      Hope you have a wonderful day and sending love and best wishes to you!
      😘🎂🍾🍷🍷

  30. Probably missed by most of you last night.
    __________________________________________

    More wind from the BBC. There’s one ENORMOUS fact missing from this report. Most Nottlanders should be able to work out what it is.

    Wind generated a record amount of electricity in 2022

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-64179918

    And don’t read the comments if you want a good night’s sleep.

    1. I have to confess that I couldn’t gas the answer. However, if the leftoids are going to use the plural of ‘impact’ along with ‘climate change’,
      I shall adopt the convention.

      (article contains the phrase “the impacts of climate change.”)

      1. Electricity constitutes about one-fifth of the UK’s total energy requirements so the record 26.8% is still only about 5% of everything.

      1. Thirteen may be unlucky for some but it would have been gross if he had asked her what the square of a dozen is!

    4. “These seats are reserved for Albanians.
      Actually the whole bus is taken, so you must get off at the next stop.”

  33. Today is Christmas Day for those of us of the Orthodox Faith. So I wish you all a happy Christmas and post a Christmas chant with lyrics.

    In the dark night, over Bethlehem,
    The clear dawn was gone, the earth covered with light.
    Holy Virgin, Holy Bride,
    In the den of the poor Son gave birth.

    Refrain:
    Sleep, Jesus, Sleep, Little,
    Sleep, you, star, mine.
    Your fate, my dear,
    I sing to you.

    Gently kissed, covered with a cloth,
    She put to bed, quietly started the song:
    You grow up, You, Son, You will become an adult,
    In the world you will go, My baby.

    Chorus: Sleep, Jesus …

    The love of the Lord and the truth of God
    You, in a world of faith, will bring your people,
    The truth will live, the shackles of sin will break
    But on Calvary, My child will die.

    Refrain:
    Sleep Jesus Jesus sleep little baby
    Sleep, you, my star
    Your fate, my dear
    I sing to you
    …
    Sleep Jesus Jesus sleep little baby
    Sleep, you, my pink blossom
    And with hope in You
    The whole world is watching!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2h5YBrcbEHY&t=7s

  35. Only have one task to complete today and it hasn’t started well. Just been over to the laundry and all the machines are taken. The attendant suggested I leave my stuff there and go back in about 20 minutes.

    Got a wee bit of a cough and cold but had a reasonably good night, by my standards, so while my temperature was high last night, it was back to normal this morning. This is relative. I know 37.2 is considered within the normal range but this morning’s 36.4 is my normal.

    Reading up on this, at 65+ one’s normal body temp tends to be lower than is usual for younger people.

    3. Sorry you are feeling rough Sue E.

      The weather doesn’t help, mild temp but windy and very damp .

      I don’t feel very motivated at the moment .

    4. I’m not yet 65, but freezing all the time – even wrapped up in my big, beautiful, blue all-wool jumper. Dr took tests, but no answer yet.

    2. 369429+ up ticks,

      Morning JN,

      Surely when one case of positive harm is proven then a charge similar to culpable homicide can be brought forth
      against politico’s / pharmaceutical hierarchy.

      . Culpable homicide.—Whoever causes death by doing an act with the intention of causing death, or with the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, or with the knowledge that he is likely by such act to cause death, commits the offence of culpable homicide.

    3. Looking at the comments some posters say that one should be wary of trusting unsourced stats.

      I would reply that if the politicians and the MSM can make up their own statistics than why shouldn’t anybody else do so too,

  37. I wonder what Salman Rushdie’s advice would be to the Dork of Stupidsex, regarding the long memories, simmering hatreds and determination of fundamentalist Islamic killers?

    Satanic Verses published September 1988, fatwa issued February 1989.
    They have made several attempts and are still trying to kill him and in August 2022 they nearly got him. That’s a very long time for you and all your extended family and friends chess pieces to be looking over their shoulders.

    Well Harry, on that time scale, if you survive, you’ll all still be being hunted in 2055.

  38. Interesting article by JRM in todays Telegraph. He needs to defect to the Reform Party

    Brexit is being surrendered to the declinist Europhile establishment
    Despite having all the tools to supercharge the UK economy, Whitehall appears to have genuflected again before EU laws and regulations

    JACOB REES-MOGG
    6 January 2023 • 7:00pm
    Jacob Rees-Mogg
    City of London seen at sunrise on December 16 2022
    Red tape: reform of financial services regulation would make the City of London more dynamic and competitive CREDIT: YANN TESSIER/REUTERS
    The United Kingdom has saved £191 billion simply by not being a member of the European Union. That figure represents the degree we would have been on the hook for what the Commission proudly calls “the largest stimulus package ever” and this excludes any contingent liability for the risk of bankruptcy of other EU member states.

    This is just one of the major Brexit successes we have already banked. There has been a steady stream in recent years. Some large, such as the vaccine rollout, some apparently small but which will have great impacts, as with the changes that will allow gene editing and unleash agricultural innovation. Others are still wending their way through Parliament, like the Financial Services and Procurement Bills.

    Brexit has achieved the primary goal of restoring democratic control. This is a momentous thing in itself and needs no further justification. The right of people to choose how to be governed is the most powerful right there is. Yet Brexit is also a means to an end. The economic success of democracies in the long run tends to be better than autocracies, but as Allister Heath has previously written so clearly in these pages, we cannot simply sit back and assume success will come our way.

    Now that Parliament has the right to govern, and the Government the right to lead, will they take the risks that lead to growth or will they bask in the comfort of the waning sun that once shone so brightly over Europe?

    Advertisement
    Some 4,000 EU laws lie mouldering on the statute book, passed without Parliamentary scrutiny and sometimes against the wishes of HM Government. Fourteen hundred of them are so obscure that they had to be dug out of the National Archives. This was the practical effect of membership of the European Union, unelected and unaccountable, whose laws spewed forth from Brussels and which had, at most, a cursory debate in the Commons, but could be neither amended nor blocked.

    The Retained EU Law Bill (REUL), which as a minister I was involved in preparing, is designed to release us from this burden. It would require that all these laws, which intrude across British business and personal life, are either repealed or are turned into UK law. The Bill prevents them being extended, which would allow over-zealous bureaucrats to use a deregulatory measure to regulate by sleight of hand. Suffice to say that this is a task that any competent government department ought to be able to manage smoothly.

    All the old files explaining these rules will be available: the purpose of each should be perfectly clear. For those laws that were really necessary, transposing them into UK law will add clarity to the statute book by removing a separate and alien legal code. Yet we are told that the Government now hesitates, advised by civil servants that many hundreds of new colleagues would be needed.

    The implication is that our Rolls-Royce departments are incapable of going through the law books with a highlighter pen. This is obstructionism dressed up as idleness. Civil servants are more than capable of the task, which ought to already be under way.

    These laws and regulations were imposed by an EU system that does not function and is in the process of making Europe poorer, not to mention making the rest of the world poorer too. Its burdensome, anti-competitive, innovation-destroying rules serve only to keep sluggish incumbent corporations out of the insolvency courts. Indeed, this system will ultimately bring to an end the unique period of European prosperity that Britain unleashed through the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century.

    Because the opportunity of Brexit allows us our freedoms, it is of the utmost importance that the United Kingdom diverges from this EU model. And since we must lift the burdens of excessive regulation and unleash the competition on which innovation and wealth depend, protected industries that charge consumers high prices are bound to be displeased by these changes and can be expected to lobby furiously against them.

    Yet policies that are pro-consumer and reduce prices ought to be welcomed in an era in which the spectre of inflation has returned. No one is talking about a Wild West without consumer and health protections – of which the UK was incidentally a pioneer long before the EU, the Sale of Goods Act 1893 being an early example.

    Reducing regulatory burdens across the economy is fundamental to our future prosperity. So it is a particular concern that the Government is apparently being led away from the related initiative of “regulatory budgets”. These would make sure that governments know the total economic effect of regulations before they impose them, instead of using them as virtue-signalling totems.

    For example, was the cost of the lights going out – or of dependency on volatile energy prices from other sources – considered when almost all our coal-fired power stations were blown up? There ought to have been a budget to outline the potentially high cost of an apparently medium risk.

    The inheritance of the EU regulatory system is now an urgent problem across our economy, not least for the steel industry. After Brexit, the UK took the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and gold-plated it to make it even more costly. This is rendering steel firms virtually unviable, like other energy-intensive industries on which many of our regions depend. The result is that the government needs to bail them out through subsidy.

    This is a merry-go-round of cash that serves only the interests of the ever-expanding state, because it does not even achieve its green aims: Britain’s heavy industries are already among the greenest in the world and burdening them with such regulations forces us to import from more polluting economies.

    If there had been proper regulatory budgeting, these high-minded, nice-to-do regulations would have been exposed. Instead, the Government now risks killing the British steel industry, destroying jobs while increasing emissions worldwide. If the ETS is not to be done away with entirely it needs urgent and deep reform at the very least. Yet this is just one example. The economy does not have to work in this way.

    Budgeting properly for the regulations we impose on the economy does not mean that governments will never regulate, but it will mean that they are forced to be honest with voters about what the costs will be. So many regulations are admired as worthy without consideration of the economic consequences. Surely one of the lessons of the Covid lockdowns is that a greater analysis of the costs ought to have been done. This logic should be applied more generally.

    Perhaps it is not surprising that those who still resent the result of the referendum do not want the burdens of over-regulation to be lifted. It is pointless to try to understand all the Remainers’ ultramontane and sacred mysteries, but some clearly want to see us tied into the EU in the hope that, even if the UK is not a member, we can shadow its rules and embrace its inefficiency, or the Hilaire Belloc principle of “always keep a-hold of nurse for fear of finding something worse”, the mantra of managers of decline throughout the ages. Some refuse to acknowledge the connection between prosperity and a free and self-governing democratic system.

    In a perversion of logic, a lordly Times columnist has even called the REUL Bill undemocratic. Laws that came in without scrutiny or consent but were pushed through under the European Communities Act must therefore be kept, possibly because the House of Lords, that most democratic of bodies, does not like it.

    A referendum result said that the UK wanted to take back control of our money, laws and borders. A general election result comprehensively confirmed that decision. But most of the work has not been done. Payments to the EU continue, the borders remain leaky and the laws have not yet been repatriated.

    The REUL Bill provides the greatest possible impetus for completing this task. It establishes a mechanism for the removal and reform of these regulations with far greater scrutiny than they received when originally introduced. Legislators in both houses will be able to exercise fully the sovereignty of Parliament in areas where they were once entirely subordinate to the European Commission.

    A repeal and reform of huge swathes of financial services regulation would make the City more competitive and dynamic now it is outside the EU, to the benefit of the UK. It is European regulations and decades of case law which have helped to jam up planning and development, whether by the Habitats Directive or the European Court’s 2018 ruling which has barred planning permission for hundreds of thousands of homes while the UK suffers an acute shortage of housing.

    If we are to learn a single lesson from the pandemic it is that top-down, box-ticking and process-driven bureaucracy is the way to ruin, as the communist Chinese are now discovering. And if it were not for Boris Johnson’s determination to blow away the risk averse process to vaccine procurement – for which he was widely attacked at the time – we would not have recovered from the pandemic as quickly as we did. Were it not for the rapid repeal of many unnecessary EU regulations around HGV licences, the lorry driver shortage of 2021 would not have been eased in time for Christmas, while labour shortages continue to plague the Western world.

    The successes of Brexit are already legion. The REUL Bill offers the opportunity to change fundamentally the way Britain is governed and do so for the better. But there is a risk of this being lost now, at this late moment.

    What type of defeatism is it that would have a Bill passed by the democratically elected House emasculated by Europhile peers? What type of idleness is it that besets senior civil servants, allegedly working from home, who are murmuring that this is all too difficult? What type of government would it be that fails to deliver on its cornerstone promise?

      1. I am becoming more and more convinced that the only way that Brexit will be enacted properly is if at least 100 disaffected Conservative MPs resign their seats and join the Reform Party.

        But are there as many as 100 MPs in the Conservative Party with enough integrity to do so? Because if there aren’t Brexit is doomed.

    2. What type of government would it be that fails to deliver on its cornerstone promise?

      An ex-government.

    3. If the levers of government refuse to recognise a democratic decision, then they must be removed, with violence if necessary.

  40. Following in the footsteps of Oberst.

    Which rock group has four men that don’t sing?

    Mount Rushmore.

  41. Years ago when Ian Duncan Smith was a ghost of a Tory party leader , he visited South Dorset , and he toured some of our smart Tory loyal villages .

    He was gauche , remote , behaved as if he had a swagger stick under his arm , and didn’t look anyone in the eye, sort of talked over his nose.
    He seemed to be totally uninterested in the Tory members who turned out to meet him , and sadly his presence didn’t leave a good impression .

    Look at what he has written in the DT letter page.

    SIR – Harry’s fratricidal attack on his

    genus

    Looks mean-spirited and

    overzealous.

    It’s not credible to claim

    Reconciling’s your aim

    When you sound so bitter and

    jealous.

    Sir Iain Duncan Smith (Con)
    London SW1

  42. Fighter pilots of the RAF and the RFC before them proudly kept tallies of the enemy aircraft they had downed. What are guns for?

    1. Morning JBF

      Listen up now , thousands of single Arab type men have floated across the English channel to reach our southern shoreline .

      I wonder how many of those people , who are safely bedded down in British hotels courtresy of the tax payer , how many will be mendacious trouble makers .. how many are Taliban , intent on destrying us all now that the idiot Prince has revealed his kill tally.

      3. They will need British citizenship before they can enter the House of Commons to operate as ‘mendacious trouble makers’.

        1. What?
          Are you trolling?
          The RAF and RFC only shot down drones, ha bloody ha, tell that to their families.

      2. I was about to ppost the same.
        And it was definitely not on to shoot at pilots dangling under a parachute.

        1. Although the Germans did it – there are eye-witness accounts of that. TomNeil recounts how he was furious when a young Sgt Pilot shot down a 109 that they were shepherding to Manston. It made him feel very confused about the morality of war.

    4. as did the Fleet Air Arm and The Army Air Corps

      All the services also had a stencilled ‘bomb’ for each sortie carried ot

      Helo have a “Red Cross” stencil for each Search and Rescue/Casevac mission carried out

    5. During WWII intelligence was a prime factor in decision making. The tally of aircraft destroyed or damaged when compared to the fairly well known production capabilities of the enemy allowed the attrition rate to be calculated and decisions made accordingly.
      Having Aces in squadrons was obviously good for both training and inspiring as well as boosting/maintaining the morale of the new pilots.

  43. Brexit is being surrendered to the declinist Europhile establishment
    Despite having all the tools to supercharge the UK economy, Whitehall appears to have genuflected again before EU laws and regulations

    Jacob Rees-Mogg : https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/01/06/brexit-surrendered-declinist-europhile-establishment/

    Some BTL exchanges:

    Rastus C Tastey

    Without a government and a civil service which actually want to carry out the democratic vote for Brexit then Brexit will never flourish.
    It was Peter Mandelson who said that we are now living in the post-democratic age. How true – it no longer matters what the people want what matters is what The Powers That Be want.

    moto man

    “This is obstructionism dressed up as idleness. Civil servants are more than capable of the task, which ought to already be under way.” So start sacking them. The people will support it. We’re fed up with their agendas.

    Reply to moto man by Samantha Saunders

    ‘Obstructionism dressed up as idleness’ would describe RM or should it be the other way around? Who asked for us to be held in hock by an extreme right wing of the Tory party that has paralysed everything?

    Reply to Samantha Saunders by Vikki the Viking

    What on earth are you talking about?

    Reply to Samantha Saunders by Percival Wrattstrangler

    So to your way of thinking carrying out the decision of the voters is what the extreme right do and thwarting what people vote for is what those who are not extreme right do?

    This seems to be a pretty clear admission that anyone to the left of extreme right wants to suppress democracy!

  44. Both King Charles and Prince William have stated that Prince Harry’s
    boast that he has killed 25 Taliban is wrong.

    They went on to say that they hoped that his bragging would not elicit
    any retaliation from the Taliban at any of Price Harry’s public
    appearances at…

    Saturday
    13.00hrs. NBC Studios, Burbank
    17.00hrs. Counterpoint Books, Los Angeles

    Sunday
    14.00hrs. California Polo Club, Los Angeles
    20.00hrs. Beverly Hills Hotel

  45. Prince Harry had a frostbitten penis at Prince William & Kate Middleton’s wedding.

    Others had the chicken.

      1. I just rang Alcohol Concern.

        I Told them I was worried I didn’t have enough beer in the fridge…

        They’re quite rude, aren’t they?

    1. Mongrels , all of them .

      In the land of their great grandparents , they would have been beaten , hung , chopped to bits .

      Innocent people are being murdered everyday..

      I think the public should view those felons .. providing they are immobilised in public stocks before they are hung .

      1. They should be kept in solitary confinement. I’d be willing to bet they were all on full benefits too.

  47. Brendan O’Neill in Spiked.

    “The ideology of lockdown lingers on

    We’re still being pressured to suspend our freedom for ‘the greater good’.

    Brendan O’Neill

    chief political writer

    4th January 2023

    The ideology of lockdown lingers on

    Share

    Wait, we’re still being asked to save the NHS? To limit our lives so that we don’t get injured or sick and put pressure on this sacred institution? Nearly two years after the first lockdown, when we were put under house arrest to protect the NHS from being overloaded with Covid patients, we’re once again being told to restrict our daily activities so that we don’t do something dumb that might require the attention of a doctor. The logic of lockdown survives. The idea that our freedom must sometimes be suspended for the good of institutions staggers on. Post-lockdown? You wish.

    In the first lockdown in 2020 the main mantra was: ‘Stay Home. Protect the NHS. Save Lives.’ That’s what those looming government ads told us, in black lettering on a yellow background, the colours used to warn of a physical hazard. This time the physical hazard was us. It was a pretty serious reworking of the social contract. For decades we thought the NHS existed to protect us from sickness. Then it turned out it was our solemn duty, one enforceable by cops, to protect the NHS from… well, us. Now, in the supposedly post-pandemic era, the NHS apparently needs us to lock down our lives once again, like good minions making sacrifices to appease the god of public health.

    NHS officials are telling us to avoid doing anything ‘risky’. In December, when ambulance workers in England and Wales were striking, we were told by a government health minister to avoid going for runs if the streets were icy and to stop all contact sports. Shorter version: ‘Stay home. Protect the NHS.’ In the run-up to the new year, the chief medical officer for Wales, Frank Atherton, went further. Given how stressed the NHS is, we all have a responsibility to stay out of ‘trouble’, he said: ‘This is not the time to be putting yourself at risk with dangerous activities.’ ‘[D]on’t drink too much’ was one of his tips. Another was to avoid strenuous exercise. ‘Now is not the time to be going out and starting to do a huge long run’, he said. Maybe Stay Home instead?

    The lingering impact of lockdown has left our societies incredibly confused. So the hospitality industry, still reeling from the loss of business it suffered during the lockdowns, is pleading with us to dodge Dry January this year. ‘Keep going to pubs’, as one headline summarises the industry’s cry. And yet then we have health officials telling us to dodge drink to make sure we don’t fall down or have a scrap and end up requiring a time-starved nurse to fix us. So, do we protect pubs or do we protect the NHS? Do we go out or stay home? Which lockdown-ravaged institution should we reorder our lives around saving?

    Make no mistake: the current NHS crisis is in part a result of lockdown’s ravages. ‘The health and care system is under such pressure’, says Atherton in his plea to us to stop doing stuff. There are various reasons for this. There’s the usual winter sickliness, the rise of both flu and Covid, a little bit of hangover from the strikes, and just that mundane, everyday disarray in the NHS, which we’re not allowed to talk about, I know. But there’s also the fact that we essentially shut down the health system for months on end in the lockdown era, or at least sternly warned people against bothering their GPs or A&E with their tiresome ailments. And this created backlogs of patients. Of course it did. The British Heart Foundation estimates 30,000 excess deaths from heart disease as a result of ‘disruption’ to health services, including the disruption of the pandemic years. Experts warn that Europe faces a ‘cancer epidemic’ after an estimated one million diagnoses were missed during the pandemic.

    Who knew – discouraging use of the health service has negative consequences for health. As early as April 2020, Cancer Research UK was warning that the number of people being referred for urgent appointments for possible cancers had fallen by 75 per cent. But anyone who tried to make an issue of this, who raised concerns about the transformation of the National Health Service into the National Covid Service, was shouted down. Shut up. Stay home. Save the NHS. The middle classes’ deification of the NHS has made it very difficult indeed to shine a light on the NHS’s failings. Surely this cult-like worship of the NHS will end now? It is estimated that there are currently up to 500 deaths a week as a result of delays in A&E. Stop celebrating this institution, seriously. The NHS is failing us. It needs an urgent and massive overhaul.

    As part of that overhaul, let us remember why the NHS exists: to serve us. The idea is, or should be, that we citizens can live as freely as we please, safe in the knowledge that we have funded and built a health service that will catch us when we fall. Yet that idea has been utterly turned on its head by the ideology of lockdown. Now we apparently must self-limit our freedom, and certainly avoid risk, so that we rarely darken the door of the poor NHS. We are witnessing an authoritarian reimagining of the citizen, where we are no longer autonomous beings making independent choices about our lives, but reckless creatures who must occasionally be leashed to ease the burdens on bureaucracy. And it isn’t only in relation to public health. On climate, too, the logic of lockdown dominates, with pressure continually being put on us to live smaller, less impactful lives. Appease the NHS, appease Gaia – that’s your role now, citizen.

    Some call this solidarity. In truth, the fretful suspension of free living under pressure from health bureaucrats and eco-authoritarians is the opposite of solidarity. This is not an active coming together of people to achieve a shared goal – it is the cajoled atomisation of people so that they won’t be a ‘drain’ on institutions or the planet. People worry about Long Covid. I think we should be more worried about Long Lockdown – the baleful onward march of the idea that liberty must occasionally be curtailed for the greater good. Listen, we didn’t screw up the NHS – you did. Never has it felt more apt to say: ‘Physician, heal thyself.’ “

    1. “It is estimated that there are currently up to 500 deaths a week as a result of delays in A&E.”
      Any other contributory causes?

    2. I don’t know his stance from the beginning of the scamdemic but, whatever it was, where has his protest been all this time? Many of us on Nottl have been forecasting all the consequences right from the beginning but the MSM is distinctly on the side of HMG, WEF, etc. etc.

      Plus the fact that the experimental gene therapy is nothing but a money making exercise for those in on the scam.

    3. The ‘NHS’ is an organisation. It can’t fix itself. All these critics should be taking aim at the people working in it (no all nurses are hardworking angels, believe me) but also people not working who could fill some of the thousands of vacancies.

    1. Giving disproportionate effective influence to fanatical minorities seldom works out well.

      BLM, LGBT+, the LibDem Cameron alliance, the stop oil maniacs, the Climate change nutters, etc.

      1. I quite agree.
        However, are the 20 involved a ‘fanatical minority’?
        And importantly, do they represent a fanatical minority, or a majority of those who vote Republican?

        1. Most Republican voters despise McCarthy according to recent polls.

          Hopefully the twenty Republicans holding out over many ballots have managed to obtain sufficient concessions to straitjacket the Speaker. I suspect Trump’s endorsement had strings attached too.

    2. I haven’t been following what’s been going on, and didn’t realise it was a right wing element that was holding things up. As you say, if the so-called centre right and the Democrats don’t like the concessions, they can’t be all bad.

    3. If the Speaker has to listen to his party members, is that a bad thing?

      He certainly will not go off on any extreme program with the threat of being removed from office ever present..

    1. When the very first boat wasn’t turned back at gunpoint, this was inevitable. They have all got to be removed. They’re incapable of living in a civilised society.

  53. Let’s start a Wordle thread so that my dear hubby can go on bragging about me.

    Wordle 567 4/6

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

    1. Well done Caroline. It took me five today.
      Wordle 567 5/6

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

          1. 😁😁😁 Got it in three earlier on a different PC then did the same one again on here

    3. A Wee Birdie Three for me.

      Wordle 567 3/6
      ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
      🟨⬜⬜🟨🟨
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

        1. Caroline and Richard .

          In real life I expect you are a delightful couple , and pretty well nicely matched , I daresay your read each other really well, and probably never ever have any conflicts.

          I admire those qualities .. you are both very lucky.

          1. You are right, we are lucky to have each other.

            We have our moments, like anyone. I can’t say that we never ever have any conflicts, because we do. We can both be pretty vocal about things but our disagreements never last long and are usually about trivial issues. But the one thing that we have never, ever, argued about in our 34 years of marriage, is money.

          4. My ex and I argued about lots of things, but not about money! Most of the time I was married to him, he earned it and I spent it.

          7. Sage advice given to me about marriage; never let the sun go down on your anger (i e make up a quarrel before you go to bed).

    1. I would not call the Covid vaccine a success at all. Ivermectin would have been better and cheaper.

    1. Yep, although now they are one all.. Moh on the edge of his seat waiting for the 2nd half.

      The world comes to a halt when the game is on . It was a 12.30 start .

  56. Hello. It’s a very cold blustery day that’d chill the bones . A horrible miasmic unpleasant atmosphere as the outdoors has a awful dampness . I shall be more bright, sunny and cheery tomorrow but today not so. I’m just about to have Broccoli and Stilton soup that my husband Is making.. very slowly but he’s a man. I shall make Beef Bourguignon this evening which Is cooked slowly.

  57. My cousin who lives near Corfe Castle in Dorset now has a Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy that they’ve named Rainbow – what a silly name for a dog . She should’ve been called Bonnie, Poppy or Tara instead of a name associated with the NHS and wokiesm .

    1. They have probably named it after the Rainbow nation , the name Mandela coined for South Africa.

      Ridgies are amazing dogs providing they have loads of space and a decent meat diet .

      My sister has owned several and my neice has a couple .. they are good guard dogs , essential for South African living.

      1. They live in Poole but take the dog to other areas nearby for a run – tomorrow it’ll be the New Forest . They’re English, have no connection with Africa and wouldn’t even know who Nelson Mandella was . They call her ‘ Bow ‘ for short .

    2. A dog’s name should reflect their temperament or appearance. Thus the cat is called Beast. Mongo is called Mongo – from the Blazing Saddles character. My first beloved Chloe was Claude, from all teeth and claws.

      1. Our boxer dog was called Rumpole because:

        i) Rumpole of the Bailey defended but did not prosecute; boxer Rumpole defended our children but never attacked anybody even though he was not at all gruntled if other dogs entered his territory;

        ii) The face of Leo McKern (who played Rumpole on TV) was very like the face of our dog.

      1. As in 500 deaths a week from NHS issues? I have no data on that. There’s a difference between the deliberate and wilful murder of another human being over drugs than the NHS fouling up/being too late to properly respond (I’m also waiting for an appointment, so I’m in that list as well).

        The NHS needs radical change, it is simply not fit for purpose, but then which part of the public sector is these days?

    2. 360429+up ticks,

      W,

      What ,one where the criminal gets done and the innocent get off scot free ? could that really happen.

  59. There is now some speculation in the international as well as the British press as to whether Prince Harry is guilty of High Treason.

    One of the objections to stripping Harry and Migraine of their Sussex titles is that they will then use their Prince and Princess titles which will be just as bad, if not worse.

    However if Harry is found guilty of High Treason then he could surely be taken out of the line of succession by an act of Parliament and no longer be entitled to call himself Prince or his Wife Princess?

    Do we have any constitutional lawyers on the forum?.

    2. Doesn;t work that way, Rastus.

      If their titles are removed by parlaiment then they begin the next stage of greivance and actually have a weapon – ‘Look! We told you they hated us!’ and that plays into their publicity seeking profiteering.

      The best we can do is stop blasted well reporting on them. Give them nothing. Thing is, people want to read about these characters – even to complain about them and that sells papers which sells adverts.

      1. 3695429+ up ticks,

        W,

        It is media protecting political overseers as in . DEFLECTION.

        Royal watchers in this instance should go back to picking fluff out of navels.

      2. But if it is done by Parliament rather than by the king then would this not deflect the whinging Harry’s venomous spite away from his family?

      3. They’re being used as distraction from disastrous economic news.
        It’s been officially admitted that the CIA murdered Kennedy.
        On Christmas day, three power stations were sabotaged in Washington.

        But hey, let’s fill the papers with stories about Harry.

        1. It’s been officially admitted that the CIA murdered Kennedy.

          Do you have a link for that? Preferably from a trusted news source.

        2. What power stations? I live about 90 mins from Washington and have not heard anything about this.

          7. Thanks Tom. Hope you are all right. It’s not been a bad day, except for the awful weather.

          8. Washington State (sorry!)
            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNXzIv_uLC0

            I have been doing some work for a company that’s in the energy sector, and I can tell you that they are very aware that they are the front line of the next war. About five years ago, the same malware was found on the computers of several European energy generators, just lying dormant
            So I do take these stories seriously.

    3. However if Harry is found guilty of High Treason then he could surely be taken out of the line of succession by an act of Parliament and no longer be entitled to call himself Prince or his Wife Princess?

      We could hang, draw and quarter him. If it was good enough for William Wallace surely its good enough for this neurotic little creep?

      1. “We could hang, draw and quarter him.”

        A popular expression but the sequence is always quoted in the wrong order:

        1. The victim is DRAWN to the place of execution on a hurdle pulled by oxen.
        2. The victim is HANGED but cut down before death and disembowelled.
        3. The victim is chopped in FOUR (actually five including his head for separate impalement).

        Sorry if I’m teaching granny to suck eggs, Minty but others need to know.

    4. Harry’s conduct would be forgotten within 5 minutes and it would be ascribed to beastly racism.

    5. If it comes to a High Treason trial and Harry is found guilty, surely he will get a long prison sentence. I can’t see it happening.

    6. Meghan Markle has been ‘an agent of destruction’ from the start says top biographer

      “This is treachery of the highest level. The point about this operation – and it is an operation – is that it is very skilfully calculated. Every appearance, every interview, is part of a jigsaw designed to build up Meghan as an international figure. It’s very cleverly devised.”

      Mr Bower claims: “She has been an agent of destruction who knew exactly Harry’s vulnerabilities, and she played to them by offering a needy man a solution to his problems, and most of all an escape. I do believe he wanted to escape due to his intellectual weakness, emotional turbulence and unhealthy obsession with his mother. Meghan came in demanding not only parity [with Kate and William] but superiority.”

      Mr Bower, a former producer of the BBC’s investigative programme Panorama, whose previous subjects have included Prince Charles, Jeremy Corbyn and Tony Blair among others, interviewed 80 sources for his latest book. He firmly believes Meghan never had any intention of staying in the UK, “Except on her terms, which was to be number one”.

      “It could never end well. She is an intelligent, driven, ambitious woman who couldn’t understand how Kate, who had never seen poverty or experienced the continuous rejection that Meghan had faced building her career, was higher up the pecking order. She didn’t like the hierarchy; it isn’t the American Way.

      https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/1718023/prince-harry-meghan-markle-Royal-Family-Prince-William

        1. Meghan’s not that bright either. It’s not clever to burn as many bridges as she does.

          1. I think she genuinely thought her attacks would be well received, bring great sympathy and lead to many book/netflix/guest speaker etc deals. All because she is such a narcissist, and cannot even begin to imagine anyone would not believe her. She quite likely expected a response from the King, William and others to add further to her perceived grievances.
            It seems the longer the Royal family keep quiet, the deeper the hole she and her unstable husband dig themselves.

        1. I don’t see it.
          The man is crass, gobby and lacking sense, but I don’t see that he betrayed the military – selling secrets, for example, just that he lacks the ability to STFU.

          1. He’s made the military more of a target for the Taliban after his stupid revelation of how many he apparently killed.

    8. AH Bliar got away with treason, perhaps his fiddling with the laws might also protect Harry.

  60. Afternoon all,

    I guess a lot of us who use Windows 8 or 8.1 will know that Microsoft will stop supporting it after Jan 10th 2023.
    I read an article that came on my tablet this morning that I would be in big doodoo if I didn’t promptly ditch my Windiws 8.1 desktop and buy a new Windows 11 laptop.

    Well it’s MOH who uses a desktop W8.1 machine so, having checked its upgradeabikity to Windows 10, I finally to the plunge and activated a dowloaded Microsoft Media Installation tool to upgrade the desktop from W8.1 to W10.

    I started at 09:30hrs this morning and it finished installation at 13:30hrs with no hitches and MOH hardly noticed any difference in the slightly modified interface screen.

    I’ve just read another article this morning that many people who buy Windows 11 machines would prefer to go back to using the old Windows 10!

    1. Windows 11 is full of Microsoft bloatware, I downgraded to Win 10 with a clean install. I certainly wouldn’t recommend Win 11.

    2. Afternoon Angie. I’ve just installed Windows 11 over the top of my Windows 10 on this Laptop at the urging of Microsoft. The only difference I’ve noticed so far is the menu. I think quite probably there’s very little difference in these “Upgrades”, they are more for revenue than technical improvement!

      1. Afternoon Minty,

        I think Microsoft has made it more problematic to uprade a Win8/8.1 to Win10 rather than Win10 to Win11. A lot depends on the hardware available in an existing PC.

        In my journey through various Microsoft upgrades I have found that things I used to use were missing in the upgrade and I waa left on my own with Google to find out how to do a replacement fix.

    3. An unnecessary task, Angie, I’m still using Windows 7 professional. There was no need for you to upgrade, it’s just that Microsoft doesn’t support these earlier versions but they still work.

        1. I’ve got the original Windows 1 floppy disc set, I wonder if they are worth anything. Also Windows NT, probably the best Windows version ever made.

    4. I have done the same to 3 computers that various family members own. Each time I changed the HDD to a SSD, that makes quite a noticeable difference. Each one was upgraded from Win 7 to Win 10. Brother has just bought a new PC win Win 11, “new improved recipe” so to speak. Time will tell if it is any better. I think I would like to load a debloated version of Win 10 to see if that is any better.

  61. V late on parade and I’m going back to bed having posted this.

    Deathbed Confession

    Jake was dying. His wife, Becky, was maintaining a candlelight vigil by his side. She held his fragile hand, tears running down her face. Her praying roused him from his slumber.

    He looked up and his pale lips began to move slightly. “Becky my darling,” he whispered.

    “Hush my love,” she said. “Rest, don’t talk.”

    He was insistent. “Becky,” he said in his tired voice, “I have something that I must confess.”

    “There’s nothing to confess,” replied the weeping Becky. “Everything’s all right, go to sleep.”

    “No, no. I must die in peace, Becky. I … I slept with your sister, your best friend, her best friend, and your mother!”

    “I know, sweetheart,” whispered Becky, “let the poison work.”

    1. That made Roman concrete sound really interesting – my heart used to sink back in the days, pre-retirement, of being faced with lots of ancient mortar that you were expected to write an interesting report about.

      1. Roman concrete is interesting – they managed to make stuff that set underwater and became stronger! We’ve got Roman ruins round here with mortar and concrete that’s in better condition than some of the modern stuff!

    3. Thinking about it, they probably have to insert a sop to Carbon Zero just to get published.

  63. Shopping & shnow shovelling… it’s been an “exciting” day, and I’m knackered. Dug Second Son’s car out – it was just a white hummock about 8 feet high! Poor car – and it rewarded me by starting instantly on the key. Excellent! SWMBOs car needs a new battery, service & MOT, so we’ll check it in with Firstborn for the appropriate attention.

          1. They’re missing quite a few. Gitmo too. They’ll be gathering at Davos from 16-20 January.

          2. Or Dartmoor Prison near Princetown in Devon – an appropriate name if Harry is invited to go and stay there if he is convicted of violation of the Official Secrets’ Act.

        2. You were on holiday until recently in Devon…. My “”joke” was that shovelling 10 feet of snow was the sort of thing you do in Devon…

          I’ll go and have another lie down.

  64. Simulating discrimination in virtual reality (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
    The role-playing game “On the Plane” simulates xenophobia to foster greater understanding and reflection via virtual experiences.

    Situated on an airplane, players can take on the role of characters from different backgrounds. To animate each avatar, “On the Plane” incorporates artificial intelligence knowledge representation techniques controlled by probabilistic finite state machines.
    Players engage with three characters: Sarah, a first-generation Muslim American of Malaysian ancestry who wears a hijab; Marianne, a white woman from the Midwest with little exposure to other cultures and customs; or a flight attendant. Sarah represents the out group, Marianne is a member of the in group, and the flight staffer is a bystander witnessing an exchange between the two passengers.

    This simulation utilizes an interactive narrative engine that creates several options for responses to in-game interactions based on a model of how people are categorized socially. The tool grants players a chance to alter their standing in the simulation through their reply choices to each prompt, affecting their affinity toward the other two characters. For example, if you play as the flight attendant, you can react to Marianne’s xenophobic expressions and attitudes toward Sarah, changing your affinities. The engine will then provide you with a different set of narrative events based on your changes in standing with others.

    Coming to every school and university in the near future. Compulsory mental vaccination.

    1. “Sarah, a first-generation Muslim American of Malaysian ancestry who wears a hijab

      I know whose hand baggage I’d be checking for explosives.

      2. It’s funny, the game makes the assumption that the white woman is the antagonist. It is she they diminish ‘not much exposure to other cultures’, as if the muslim is the worldy, courageous one.

        And you can ‘increase your standing’ by making the ‘right’ choices. Meaning you’re penalised for not giving the accepted responses. You are forced to conform to the orthodoxy of obeisance. This is fundamental to the problem every country overrun with muslims has. They don’t fit in. They don’t obey, they continue their way of life whereever they are, and then complain when that anti social behaviour is challenged.

        Now MIT are reinforcing that same crippling genocide of freedoms.

    2. Yet… we have a woman wearing a hijab. She’s already presenting her racism to america. We’re told to accept their views, but there’s no consideration that, in fact, the real racism comes fomr those refusing to integrate completely, abandoning their old attitudes and perspectives in favour of those of the host country they have moved to.

        1. Not really, but thank you for asking!
          I’m feeling rather cheerful at the moment, due to having eaten scrambled eggs, an orange and some home made marzipan with dark chocolate (just what I could lay my hands on!)
          But still can’t stand up for too long, and can’t wait for another early bedtime.

          1. What’s all this? I have missed this news.

            I hope you are testing yourself every hour and, of course, wearing a mask.

            At least you haven’t lost your appetite!

          2. Take it easy then and have another early night with HWB. A little of what you fancy does you good!

          3. Might you be suffering from vertigo? It can be caused by a virus and can make you feel sick (as well as dizzy).

          4. Good lord, I did not know that!
            I assumed it was tiredness – it has gone away now. I sometimes get nausea when the weather changes as well, or when I wear my reading glasses while walking around.

  65. On the subject that 1 in 200 folk are trans:

    In an effort to stop people partaking of the urine abour religion on census forms:

    The campaign was wildly successful, leading to 390,127 people choosing the way of Luke Skywalker in the 2001 census, including 2.8%
    of the population of Brighton. The “Jedi Knight” trend caught on around the world, leading to thousands of others doing the same in Australia,
    Canada, Ireland and elsewhere    .

    The option was removed for 2021.

    As Max Boyce used to say “I was there:

    I still declare myself preganant whenever asked for personal medical details

    1. Why is this insignificant group given so much pandering? Why do those suffering from this trans schizophrenia get a vote at all?

        1. Is it the tranny mob or the woke politicians and do gooders that are making all of the noise?

          Most of the LGBT couples round here just want yo live their lives quietly with their partners. It is the enablers who are continually discriminating and dividing.

  66. Thank you all for your very kind birthday wishes. I have had some cards and many emails so feel blessed with friends and my son. We were going to go out for dinner but decided to stay home- the weather is dreadful again! I am surprised half the population isn’t suffering from either rust or mildew 😉
    Dinner will be Chicken Piccata with asparagus and mushrooms and some vino.
    Thanks again for all the good wishes.

    1. Many happy returns. I am so glad that life has changed so much for the better for you. You deserve it.

    4. Yo Lottie

      Happy BD for today and of course even happier 364 Nonbirthdays, til your next one

    5. I hope you are having a very Happy Birthday Ann – is your MH making the dinner for you? We had a couple of hours of sunshine this afternoon, but monsoon rain the reast of the time.

      1. He is a very good cook but mainly for Oriental type meals. This is my choice as I like Italian food. Plus, he tends to use every utensil and pan in the kitchen when he creates;-)
        I think the only weather phenomenon we haven’t seen today is a blizzard. It’s miserable.

        1. Mine seems to be feeling a bit better today – he unloaded the dishwasher and put things away. Also has decided to make a greengage tart – (greengages from our tree and frozen during the summer), pastry from

          Morrisons….. but it’s a start.

          1. Glad to hear he’s on the mend, these things take time as we know here. I think if the weather cheered up a bit we’d all feel better.

          2. So glad to see he is moving about the kitchen! Greengage tart, yummy, haven’t had one in years. Enjoy.

    6. Ooh you must be catching up with the rest of us. Given a couple of years you will be able to add old to cynical!

      Happy birthday.

    7. May all your lakes be wine lakes of the highest quality and may you live long enough to imbibe lots of them, with friends and family.

    8. Sorry, Ann, I didn’t log on until late. Hope it’s been a good birthday and enjoy dinner. I’ll have a glass to you in 20 minutes.

  67. Am not feeling well today so have been binge-listening to a podcast series on the scandal that was the German “fintech” company Wirecard, as the trial has begun over in Munich.

    The Germans are not coming out of this in a good light at all.

  68. I felt just like the word today

    Wordle 567 6/6

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

      1. Lil’ Birdie Three for me.

        Wordle 567 3/6
        ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
        🟨⬜⬜🟨🟨
        🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    2. Bogie for me.
      Wordle 567 5/6

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

    1. “Energy flow practitioner”
      Is he thanking the power company for keeping the lights on?

    1. It’s all about control and power. Destroy civilisation, destroy everything good and stable, force a new order where they define what is and isn’t acceptable.

      They are trying frantically to turn the world into the miserable dystopia of 1984.

    1. They haven’t got the intelligence or capability to address the root cause of the problem so they take the route of least resistance – raise taxes to buy their way out. Hunt is an intellectual lightweight.

      1. Have the fools learned nothing from Putin’s war in Ukraine? Are they utter morons? If we rely entirely on foreign powers for energy, fuel, food and materials, we’re incredibly vulnerable and it will, obvious, destroy us.

        1. Well, Germany made an attempt to diversify their fuel suppliers and look what happened. One fuel supplier sabotaged the supply link with the other.

  72. We generally buy a paper Telegraph on Saturdays, so I dutifully got one when I went out earlier on.

    Sat down to read most of it – lots of Prince Harry rubbishing, but further on in, I noticed a two-page spread on possible Vax harms by Sarah Knapton. Having gone through the possibilities of Myocarditis (much more likely from covid infection than vax) she came to the conclusion that the vax has saved thousands of lives, rather than damaging young and not so young men.

    I can’t say I was convinced.

    I’m more convinced by Dr John Campbell, who seems to have had an enlightenment, having studied lots of data in depth over the last couple of years. He used to be in favour of the vaxes, but no longer.

    1. I am sure it will have saved lives, but nowhere near as many as claimed.

      I don’t think we will genuinely know the damage done, if much, until several years down the line. If it does turn out to be a new Thalidomide or in terms of commonly used drugs or materials, eg tobacco and asbestos or talcum powder, the effects and costs could be catastrophic.
      A very technical article on predicting adverse effects
      https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-18305-y

    2. I am reposting from yesterday’s thread as follows:

      I read recently from a whistleblower (a contractor charged with managing two laboratories in the US and the Wuhan laboratory) that Covid was engineered in US funded research laboratories as a ‘gain of function’ bio-weapon. The mRNA vaccines were similarly engineered as counter-measures.

      There were no animal trials, no testing and no clinical trials. Government funded contracts for the manufacture, supply and administration of the Covid vaccines gave exemption from liability to all parties.

      A perfect recipe for disaster as we see unfolding before our very eyes.

        1. The Fauci Twitter files drop will expose the fraud and the Satanist cabal behind everything evil we have witnessed in the last two years and more.

          1. If the Democrats don’t find a way to stop it.
            Of course, if there’s a way to attack Trump with them they will be pushed out to cause maximum damage.

          4. Remember when Trump was musing to himself about possible treatments and he was then damned by those saying he advocated swallowing bleach – of course he said no such thing.

          5. Everything Trump said or did was twisted.
            It continues to be the case and always will be.

            It’s why I think he’s now damaged goods and the Republicans should drop him as far as they can, he no longer helps their cause..

          6. A few hours ago I had a weekly chat with my cousin, who advised me that “President Trump” was “a terrible man”. I didn’t argue the point as she would have told me what a fool I am. I simply said “Well he’s not President now, it’s President Biden”. She immediately changed the subject. Politicians, the MSM and, yes, “The Sheeple” have a lot to answer for.

          7. It might not seem to be the case, judging by my most recent posts regarding Trump, but I think he was a good thing for America at the time, he exposed just how much corruption and nepotism there is in US politics and in Washington in particular.

            He’s done his job, and should pass the torch, for my money it should be to DeSantis.

          8. Its strange how DeSantis does not attract the same amount of opprobrium as did/does Trump. This makes me wonder.

          9. DeSantis, according to Trump, was a MAGA man, now he’s established himself, with a strong voter base, he’s distancing himself from Trump.

            Like it or not, the only way to win elections in the modern environment is to appeal to the swing voters.
            Blair, for all his faults understood that well.
            Until the GOP stop trying to appeal more to those who will vote their way come what may, and instead concentrate on those who want the best for themselves and their families and will vote accordingly, they are going to remain in the wilderness.

            Freeloaders will always vote left, the GOP need to appeal to those who tend left, but put their own interests before those of the freeloaders.

          10. I don’t know much about De Santis, Sos, but as far as Trump is concerned I totally agree with you. The man has been hideously maligned by the Democrats and the MSM, but was the right man for the job in 2016. His main fault was his unpredictability during his term in office, and John Bolton’s book concerning his trying term attempting to steer Trump in a sensible and consistent direction is a real eye-opener which I would recommend to all NoTTLers.

          11. True, but twisted by the Democrats who actively sought to destroy an enemy. Not by facts.

          14. So do I, but Biden has recently announced that he proposes to stand again, and he’s three years or so older.

            My problem with him is that he’s now damaged goods and will more likely ensure another Democrat win.

          15. And if you read Mercola you will find that food grade hydrogen peroxide is an actual treatment for covid and covid-type illnesses – his web site gives instructions.

            Edit: I have just found this.

            https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2023/01/08/how-to-nebulize-hydrogen-peroxide.aspx?ui=4697793730bd3463975d8bacf9d5a20a4aa7029902e3afe3b899f7d660c3b478&sd=20140215&cid_source=dnl&cid_medium=email&cid_content=art3HL&cid=20230108_HL2&cid=DM1322974&bid=1689598601

          16. We’ve already seen the Fauci emails and drawn our conclusions from them. I’m waiting for the nasty little dwarf to be convicted.

      2. The gain of function research is not permitted in the US which is why it was funded abroad. Apparently there is an HIV stand in the Covid structure that is most unlikely to have got there by chance mutation, and makes the virus highly contagious. Not being a medical man, I’m unable to verify this.

        2. There exists a ‘furin cleavage site’ – don’t ask.

          The furin cleavage site consists of four …
          This insertion could have occurred by random insertion mutation, recombination or by laboratory insertion. The researchers say the possibility of random insertion is too low to explain the origin of this motif.

          For recombination to occur, there must be a donor, from another furin site and probably from another virus. In the absence of a known virus containing this…
          …the researchers discount the recombination theory as the mechanism underlying the emergence of PRRA in SARS-CoV-2.

          Leaving: The origin of SARS-CoV-2 furin cleavage site remains a mystery.

          Like much else re CV-19 and the “vaccines”, mystery prevails.

          Origin of SARS-CoV-2 Furin Cleavage Site Remains a Mystery

        3. “...which is why it was funded abroad.”

          Notably in Ukraine, a non-state, where such things are allowed – until Putin bombed the hell out of them.

      3. David Martin told us from the start that there were 72 patents on the spike protein. There simply isn’t any good motive for such research – which was why it was forbidden.

    3. Knapton’s article was briefly open to comments. Then it wasn’t. Then the comments already posted disappeared. Bill and Melinda have contributed millions to the Telegraph in the interests of ‘Global Health Security’.

      I’d unsubscribe, but one has to get one’s news from somewhere.

  73. That’s me for this dreary, grey and wet day. Much the same tomorrow, I fear.

    Have a jolly evening.

    A demain

      1. 369429+ up ticks,

        Evening S,

        Currently hard to tell, try Bletchley Park they may have the answer

      1. 369429+ up ticks,

        Evening A,

        I’m not so sure of the surely, is it any more unbelievable than a practising cottager becoming PM ?

      2. Hard to tell. Her posts would suggest so but her profile should declare it if it’s a spoof and it actually states…
        “ Scholar. Activist. The first openly LGBTQIA+ Muslim Imam(ah), fighting for intersectional feminist social justice. She/Her/Hers”

        1. Only if you believe that a Muslim woman would not defer to men and be breeding:feeding stock, and would be discouraging the rape of the Kafir!

        2. Which all implies she is suffering a demented form of doublethink. I know this is fairly normal for Lefties, but she really seems bonkers.

    3. Why only stop breastfeeding boys? Is Shaykha Alia trying to turn all we laydees into lesbians? (No offence to homosexuals of either gender.)

      1. Breast is best.
        I acknowledge that some women find it impossible, but, sake of argument, imagine what might be easier, pumping God knows what into children via manufactured food or human produced food.

        2. It was very difficult for me. My son was 4 weeks early and in intensive care. He got used to breast milk, which I expressed, but from a bottle. When he was home, he just wouldn’t feed and woke up all the time at night. I ended up ignoring the health visitor and giving him a bottle. Poor little lad was hungry and he gradually began sleeping more.
          Sometimes a mother’s instinct is better.

          1. Yes, it can be difficult, and to an extent I was generalising and I agree in some cases, but I suspect that expressed milk fed from the bottle would have been as good, if not better.

            HG was lucky as were her very greedy boys, they weaned fairly early and have always had very healthy appetites.

          2. Mothers should always listen to those instincts and just as importantly the nhs should take heed of those instincts also.

      2. It looks like I’m being “stopped” on this forum. Many posts being “Stopped” and disappeared.

  75. Off topic

    Has anyone heard news of roughcommon?

    The last I recall was that his wife was dying and he did not expect her to live much longer.
    After 57 years of marriage it must be very hard to go through, I hope he is amongst friends and family.

    1. I believe he commented a couple of days ago and, Rastus could confirm this, I think he has a birthday coming up soon.

    2. I believe he commented a couple of days ago and, Rastus could confirm this, I think he has a birthday coming up soon.

  77. Good evening Mr Wales.
    Your IQ and aptitude test results have finally come through and they indicated that your best career paths were Prince or arsehole.

    I’m sorry we were too late, and that you’ve chosen arsehole.
    Prince might have been more agreeable.

    1. He had no choice about being a prince, as it’s hereditary. Being an arsehole – is that nature or nurture?

      1. It was a joke…

        You may remember a film where the tests produced something along the lines of
        IQ 0 Occupation Church or Army
        IQ 1 Bookie’s runner

        1. The only qualification needed for being a ‘Prince of the United Kingdom’ (which is listed as Harry’s occupation on Archie’s birth certificate) is who his father was. So no IQ test is needed.

      3. Reminds me of the line from the film The Professionals.

        Robert Ryan’s character: You bastard!

        Lee Marvin’s character: In my case, Sir, that was an accident of birth. But you, Sir, you’re a self-made man.

        https://www.google.com/search?q=The+Professionals+You%27re+a+self+made+man+clip.+Ryan&ei=RAC6Y6WKNICmkdUPjoGX2A8&ved=0ahUKEwilvOq0zrb8AhUAU6QEHY7ABfsQ4dUDCA8&oq=The+Professionals+You%27re+a+self+made+man+clip.+Ryan&gs_lcp=Cgxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAQDDoKCAAQRxDWBBCwAzoGCAAQHhANOgoIIRCgARDDBBAKOgUIABCiBEoECEEYAEoECEYYAFCXF1j5amDqmgFoAXABeACAAd4CiAHPKZIBCDEuMjguMy4ymAEAoAEByAEIwAEB&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:10434bc0,vid:wQMRlb7OIz0

      1. Donald will of course require the Speaker’s support if he stands in the next Presidential election.

        1. I think he has it. Trump has far more chance on being the next president than most realise.

          2. Ha, well the democrat vote rigging is a given, what will the US voters do about it?

            7/8 of 3/6th of f’all, is about my estimate Stupid people.

            God help you, ‘cos nobody else will.

      2. I saw that, but that does not mean Trump clinched the deal.
        What clinched the deal was the emasculation of the position of Speaker, as you will see in the coming months.

          1. Well, if that deal genuinely is down to Trump it shows just how enfeebled he has become, it’s a disaster for the Republicans and a triumph for the Democrats.

            The next weeks and months will show it up for just how bad it is.

          3. I hope I’m wrong, but we will see.
            It only requires one dissenting voice to stir up problems again.

  80. The last few days of the Republicans’ Theatre in delaying the election of the House Speaker did have one interesting side effect. With the House not in session on Jan 6th the Democrats didn’t have the opportunity to crow about the Capitol ‘Insurrection’ on the second anniversary of the event. Some may think it was deliberately planned – I couldn’t possibly comment….

  83. That’s me off to bed.
    The weather eased and in fact turned out quite fine for a couple of hours about mid-day so I took the chance to play with my new acquisition.
    I’m damned certain that Tirfor Jacks were lighter and not so demanding to set up 45y ago when I last used one!

    However, it did the job I wanted it to do so quite satisfied.

  84. Evening, all. I concur with the view of the leading letter writer. Why is Harry all over our screens like a rash when he wanted privacy?

    1. Errr… because he was lying. Her intent all along was to profit from invented farce that she could spout with impunity, safe that the situation the Monarchy is in – having understood it – prevents them defending themselves.

      He just went along with her plan and is now too embroiled in the farago to back out. There may be a situation where he didn’t want to and she said ‘or else’.

      In either case, when the money dries up, the publiicity vanishes she’ll dump him for another rich dupe and continue the cash grab, along the lines of ‘Oh Harry was horrible to me…’

      These people are broken at a fundamental level.

        2. Too disturbed, too unbalanced….& also too desperate.
          After all, it would/will be a terrible realisation.
          There are already uncomfortable moments – as when she keeps grabbing his hand in public, & he pulls away.

      3. Anyone see the swinging baby bulge which somebody posted on this forum yesterday?

        DNA testing needed all round!

    3. Because it is a deliberate distraction from what is really going on, people dying on sports fields, vaccine injuries left right and centre, city lockdowns….. ooohh! must get ’em talking about Harry and Meghan but especially Harry.

      2. Agreed, Mum. Any distraction, at the moment, is much welcomed by the MSM. Fcuk ’em all.

  85. And now the teachers are going to strike. NHS, trains, ambulance drivers & etc. This is lockdown under another name. As a former teacher, I never went on strike even though I was in the NUT. That was for back up in case it was needed; it never was.

    1. Well done, Birthday Girl!

      I too never went on strike and never belonged to a teaching union. Indeed the only union I ever belonged to (apart from my marriage with Caroline!) was the NUS because I could not opt out of it!

  88. Goodnight, gentlefolks. I shall try to sleep until the morn, inject a little humour into the day’s transaction. Love you all. Goodnight and God bless.

  89. Goodnight Y’all. Thanks again for all the birthday wishes- you are too kind.
    Sleep well as I hope I shall.

  93. Why does Harry’s book make me think of the following familiar or once-familiar sentences.

    1. Spare me/ us the gory/unnecessary details.

    2. Spare the rod, spoil the child.

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