Ross Brand BBC Distraction Bullshit

God, am I sick to death of the this endlessly regurgitated crap from the media!

What purposes does it fulfil, apart from allowing media wankers to pleasures themelves in public?

1) distraction from the reality of recession and the Mandelson-Osborne-Deripaska scandal

2) fuel for the incoming Tory government to start dismantling the BBC.

And, as a postscript to reveal the utter intellectual vacuousness of our elected representatives, is a post from Devil's Kitchen regarding MP Tom Harris's reaction to receiving a copy of Orwell's 1984.

Mr Harris appears to have been asleep while the government was passing various bits of legislation which increase the intensity and scope of the surveillance we are to be put under (and which we were not told about).

Why The Mirror Is A Shit Newspaper

Because like most British 'news'papers it either ignores or deliberately obscures the truth.

In this case, for instance: Tony Benn writing about post office closures without mentioning the EU elephant in the room (as covered in a previous post of mine); and Gordon Brown being portrayed as a hero 'warning off the moneylenders from repossessing homes'.

Many people are unaware that their homes may be at risk over relatively trivial amounts they owe on loans and cards - and not just if they miss mortgage repayments.

So says the magnanimous Mirror, failing to tell you, of course, that the legislation allowing this to happen (Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007) went through parliament with the full knowledge and support of His Great Prime Ministerness Gordon Brown.

Odd, then, that he is now portrayed as being 'very concerned about financial firms demanding repossession orders to chase credit card debts.'

Under the laughable heading 'Analysis', John Husband in the same excremental journal agrees that the Great Unelected One is right.

What's interesting from a linguistic point of view is the use of the word 'moneylenders': makes it seem as if the perpetrators are a bunch of seedy, greedy, backstreet loan sharks. As opposed to a bunch of seedy, greedy, high street banks and credit card companies, who have just had their wallets filled with our cash for having screwed the world's financial system.

Mandelson Is After Your Internets - Be Afraid

From The Register:

Ministers led by Peter Mandelson are considering a power grab at the independent company at the centre of UK's internet infrastructure, The Register can reveal.

Mandelson's Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) has asked Nominet, which is in charge of the .co.uk registry, to justify its independence from Whitehall.

There is nothing these bastards don't want to control. The internet is a source of trouble for the politicos because it represents individual freedom (which they don't like). It also allows freedom of expression, freedom of information and provides a platform for ordinary people to find out about and discuss the realities of political life (something not provided by mainstream media). None of which the politicos like.

And it's also a source of revenue.

If the government manages to get away with this (and it will be tantamount to theft) the results will be predictable: an increase in costs, inefficiency on a gargantuan scale, corruption, and, of course, censorship. If they can't price their critics out of the market then they can simply ban them.

Welcome to China-UK.

Whores

Mandelson in Russian clover. He stays at the luxurious Baltschug Kempinski Hotel while his colleagues are put up in The Golden Ring. Surely that's the wrong way round? Enough said.

Blair makes millions since leaving Downing Street. You can't keep an old socialist down.

Campbell is now making it all up. Madness!

Petition Against Compulsory Registering of Mobile Phones

The online petition against this nonsense here.

The Union Jack Banned From Number Plates

(Destroy)

There's been a bit of to and fro among some blogs recently about whether the EU really has banned the use of national flags on licence number plates and, indeed, whether you can be fined for doing so. This written answer from Jim Fitzpatrick below clears it up.

Vehicle Number Plates

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what regulations govern the bearing of representations of (a) the EU flag and (b) the Union flag on motor vehicle licence plates. [225018]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001 permit the voluntary display of the GB Euro symbol on number plates. These Regulations would not permit without amendment the Union Flag or other national identifiers.

In other words: you are not allowed to display your own country's flag on your number plate. You can have the EU's symbol, but nothing else.

I'm not a flag-waver myself but the pettiness of this strikes me as beyond credulity. Just think of the mentality of the people who sat down and thought about this long enough to make it law. Then think about the mentality of the buffoons who allowed it to be passed, without comment, into British law. Have they nothing better to do? Was our cash well spent on this piece of legislation?

Links: Bloggers 4 UKIP, Gerald Warner in The Telegraph, The EU Sceptic.

Iain Sinclair Explains It Himself

Hastily following on from the last post, here's Sinclair's own account.

Library Bans Writer and Australians Get Net Censorship

An interesting post over at Areopagitica about Hackney council cancelling a reading in a library by Iain Sinclair because they don't like his views on the forthcoming Olympics.

And, having thought the Australians were smarter than us for demolishing attempts to set up an ID card and database similar to those planned by our own dear leaders, I find they're now intent on censoring internet access automatically.

More Nonsense from the Braindead Brigade

The Times reports that officials have 'floated the idea' of compelling all buyers of new mobile phones to register their details on a government database. This is, apparently, to combat (you've guessed it) terrorism and crime. Because, as any fule kno, crims love prepay phones because they're anonymous, so the government doesn't know what they're up to. Except in the case of the Omagh bombers, where they were tracking two of them via their mobiles but still did nothing to stop them blowing up lots of people.

The idea is based on the IMEI number of each phone, not the SIM. This is programmed into the hardware and can, supposedly, be changed. Free software is available if you want to do this - which you might, just out of bloody-mindedness. Be warned, though, because changing the IMEI number of your own phone is ILLEGAL in the UK.

If you don't fancy the idea of having this extra layer of surveillance imposed on you, then you can keep on using your existing phone or only use old or recycled ones. Or perhaps not even bother with one at all.

Don't forget that soon all the details of all your phone calls (not the content - not yet, anyway), mobile, landline and internet, plus all your internet usage, will be logged and stored automatically. See my previous post on this.

Have a nice day.

Is the EU Worried We're On To Them?

Trawling the internet for further information on the EU's hidden part in destroying the British postal system I came across this. Issued in May, presumably as a response to growing awareness that the EU is directly responsible for legislation that is resulting in the closure of British Post Offices, it's described as a 'Fact Sheet' and yet bears the odd instruction 'not to be quoted from'!

It's basically a deceitful attempt to shift blame from itself onto the British government (and, to be fair, the government is guilty - of allowing the EU to get away with this legislation and of implementing measures well before they should). Look here and here for the truth. A combination of 'liberalisation' (ie enforced competition) and restriction of subsidies is at the core of it.

For instance, if you wondered why the Post Office introduced that insane method a couple of years ago of judging the cost of postage by whether an envelope would fit a specific size 'letterbox', then here's your answer.


An article in today's Observer, 'Mandelson urged to halt Post Office Closures' by Toby Helm, talks about Labour MPs calling on Mandelson to block all further closures. Nowhere in the article does Mr Helm acknowledge the part of the EU in this mess. Possibly because he doesn't know? The idea of Mandelson, having just returned from a 4-year jolly at the EU, facing the bureaucrats down and actually doing something useful is laughable. Mr Helm seems unaware of this irony.

However, not all British journalists are as useless as Toby; Henry Porter continues to wage his lonely war against the government's destruction of our freedoms, with an article attacking that pudding-faced cretin of a Home Secretary after the 'scrapping' of the 42 days bill.

Thank You and F Off

Andrew Lahde, a Californian hedge fund manager, has sold up and quit the business, explaining his decision in a trenchant letter in which he describes the managers of companies such as Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers as 'idiots'.

Even last year Lahde knew which way the world was going, ie down the pan.

British Government Says No To Transparency About The EU

The government finding time to block a bill that would have compelled ministers to reveal how much influence the EU had in our legislation. A ten-minute bill by MP Mark Harper. No guesses as to why.

And in the meantime Mandelshit returns to become a baron, pocket a million quid and enter the cabinet, unelected by anybody common.

Britain Bails Out Iceland Bank With £100 Million Bung

"The Bank of England is today providing a short-term secured loan of up to £100 million to Landsbanki, to help maximise the returns to UK creditors,'' Mr Darling told MPs. (Australian News).

Wouldn't it have been simpler (though a bit too honest) for our government to say they would directly cover the losses incurred to British customers by the collapse of Landsbanki rather than going round the houses like this?

First heard this briefly on the morning news yesterday (Monday); then it totally vanished, never mentioned on the main news at all. What a surprise.


42 Days

The Lords graciously chucked out the government's attempt to extend detention to 42 days. Surely they have something else up their sleeve? Read UKLiberty to find out what they'll do instead. Bastards.


Councils Turning Off The Lights

This has been bubbling along for a while but has only just come to the surface in national media. Some councils are considering turning off streetlighting at different times in order to cut costs (and also save the planet). Some have already begun trying it out.

Take into account the high costs of fuel, the stress on the national grid, etc, it's only a matter of time before lighting in public places and buildings becomes rationed. Blackouts are on their way.


Cleese On The Other Palin

John Cleese on Sarah Palin. I know he's lived in the States for a long time, but anyone else find his accent annoyingly transatlantic?

Hitchens US Banana Republic

The banking crisis - Hitchens (Christopher) nails it again.

The North American Union - As Good an Idea as the European Union

THE NORTH AMERICAN UNION

It seems the political classes everywhere are intent on installing Big Brother states. The EU are busy at it, while our press and local politicians keep quiet about it. So too in North America, where the politicos of Canada, Mexico and the United States continue to plan their equivalent of the EU - the North American Union.

Somehow I can't see too many Americans being happy about abolishing the borders with Mexico and having their tax dollars spent on improving Mexican infrastructure. Nor can I see many Canadians accepting the abolition of social healthcare and the handing over of military power and decision-making to the US. As in Europe, this is all going on without full disclosure to the people (because if they knew, they'd kick it out). Unlike here in Europe, however, I can see how it may result in civil disobedience and violence. And I know which side of the barricades I'd be on.


THE STIFLING LAYERS OF GOVERNMENT

An illuminating description of the layers of government we now live beneath. Totally agree with reducing the numbers of politicians and also believe we should limit their abilities to do anything.


THE 'COST' OF IDENTITY FRAUD

UKLiberty on the government's dodgy figures about the cost of identity fraud.


BRITAIN BACKPEDALS ON ANTI-TERRORIST LAW AGAINST ICELAND BANK

Having invoked a supposedly anti-terrorist law to sequester the assets of Iceland's bank, the British government is now frantically backpedalling. Presumably because it realises, a bit late, that this was not a smart move. Not smart in terms of relations with a friendly country. And not smart in showing up that its 'anti-terrorist' legislation is nothing of the sort. Just like a lot of its other 'anti-terrorist' laws.

The EU Threat to our Post Offices

Thousands more post offices could disappear if the Royal Mail doesn't win the contract to handle the card account used for issuing pensions and benefits. The Observer reports on it here, pointing out that the government may delay its decision until after the crucial Glenrothes by-election.

You may ask why the Royal Mail is having to compete for its own business. The answer is that the government no longer runs this part of the mail service: the EU does. Under EU regulations the government is compelled to put the contract out for competitive tender.

You won't hear about this fact either from the politicians or the British media. The former won't speak of it because it would reveal just how much of our sovereignty they have given away to Brussels; the latter won't because they're ignorant and useless.

Mandelshit In, Blair Out

So, Mandelshit's back. Soon to be a lord, just so that Brown can squeeze him into the cabinet without the hassle of having to be elected by the voters. Arse.

And Blair is out as London's top cop. Labour must be cock-a-hoop that the sod's gone: they've been wanting to get rid of him for ages but now Bojo has done the deed for them they can make out that he's to blame and is politicising the whole thing. As if the position of Chief of the Met isn't a bloody political position in the first place. The media are cravenly following this line. Can't they fucking well think for themselves? Arseholes.