POLITICS CORNER

[Stanley]

Good account of the hustings Ian. I like the idea of Stephenson struggling!
P, dead right but you are sane and logical, if every voter was like that we would have a lot better country!
David, my only defence at the moment is that the same polls said that May was a shoe-in. That didn't go well.
A fortnight is a long time in politics and I get the impression that the Tories are coasting and at the same time getting rattled and defensive as awkward questions are raised. Now is the time for the Labour leadership to go flat out and hopefully give them a pasting. That's what happened last time from a lower base and they almost did it.
I'm living on hope and avoiding as much 'news' as possible.

[PanBiker]

Results of Sally's interview are in the Guardian today, saw it online last night. Slightly altered in some areas but on the whole the gist of the problem comes over from what she related.

[Tizer]

I'm living on hope and avoiding as much 'news' as possible.

I've fallen into the ranks of those who believe that our politicians in general are not up to the job. It's not because I've changed but rather that the current bunch are largely incompetent. I well remember Richard Broughton (Bruff) saying something similar 3 or more years ago. He pointed out then that they didn't really understand many issues, and especially our relationship with the EU. If anything it's got worse rather than better. I've got a suspicion that Dominic Cummings, said to consider himself an anarchist, wheedled his way into the inner circle with the objective of causing sufficient disruption and chaos that there would have to be major changes in the way we are governed. Perhaps even Putin's interference in our politics might do some good in the long run. By heck, we need a change!

[Tripps]

my only defence at the moment is that the same polls said that May was a shoe-in. That didn't go well.

I'm not giving it too much credence either. This election will throw up some surprising results, and the issue of Brexit will in many places, override tribal loyalties. To what extent - no one knows. There are still two weeks to go and much can, and probably will happen before the 12th December.

I woke up this morning to an interview with Mr Johnson on LBC. it had not been trailed so it came as a surprise. I guess it was hastily arranged as an alternative to one with Andrew Neil, which he is avoiding. If his people thought it would be easier, and be a substitute, then it was a bad miscalculation.

In an full hour programme, Nick Ferrari together with a selection of members of the public phoning in, absolutely (in my opinion) destroyed the man. I don't think he gave a convincing answer to any point raised, and gave many examples of his 'evasive bumbling clown' mode. I doubt if any floating voters would be rushing now to support him, and quite a few of the undecided will be removing him from their list of options.

So that's all three main parties ruled out - What's a chap to do?

[plaques]

I can now reveal from a leaked secret memo issued by CCHQ+ that Andrew Stephenson MP for Pendle is so far ahead in the polls, with a potential of 6,000 vote majority, that he and his team will be assisting in the Burnley campaign to help the Conservatives in gaining a complete landslide in the East Lancs: area. Although the 'Get Brexit Done' has been a huge success Mr Stephenson will still be urging people to vote Conservative in their postal ballots,
This will allow him to take a back seat in any further discussions avoiding any potential upset to his image. The memo also states that the activists have noted that voters in this area are so gullible guidable that no further action is necessary to maintain his lead. If the weather proves to be inclement on polling day then vulnerable Conservative voters should not put themselves at risk unnecessarily.

PS, If the Express and Telegraph can do it so can I.

[Tizer]

Mrs Tiz spotted this one...
`Daily Mail owner buys i newspaper for £50m' LINK

[Tizer]

So that's all three main parties ruled out - What's a chap to do?

Take a pin with you into the voting booth? Whoever gets in it's going to be a calamity!

[PanBiker]

The next hustings event will be interesting to see if Stephenson can raise more that the dozen or so supporters at the last session. We will be getting their early to ensure a place in the fun. As I related before Azhar had him hands down at the last do. Another bonus come election day is that Azhar will be at the top of the ballot paper.

[plaques]

Tripps wrote: ↑29 Nov 2019, 12:32
So that's all three main parties ruled out - What's a chap to do?
Take a pin with you into the voting booth? Whoever gets in it's going to be a calamity!

Take heart here's a song for both of you, Stealers Wheel.

[Tripps]

Another bonus come election day is that Azhar will be at the top of the ballot paper

Serious question - do you think he has a chance of winning? I see that 5 /1 odds still available.

I have noticed the Labour has pledged to plant 2 billion trees by the year 2040. On the back of my envelope that's well over a quarter of a million planted every day (including weekends), for the next twenty years. I think that can go into the 'unlikely' department.

[chinatyke]

...
I have noticed the Labour has pledged to plant 2 billion trees by the year 2040. On the back of my envelope that's well over a quarter of a million planted every day (including weekends), for the next twenty years. I think that can go into the 'unlikely' department.

Figures courtesy of Diane Abbott?

[Stanley]

It gives me no pleasure to see that I am not alone. Rest assured that my vote is safe, rock solid Labour, that's the only anchor point I have at the moment, the fact that at its core Labour have the most ethical and principled policies. Ignore the obvious errors, GE campaigns tend to encourage rash promises.
I get a whisper that Cummings is back from whatever his medical procedure was.... That man is rabid.
Johnson leaps in to take advantage of London Bridge stabbings. Expect much attempted emphasis on that as a diversion.

[plaques]

Cummings was described in a previous post as an Anarchist but so is Noam Chomsky, Probably one of the highest IQ men that's ever lived. I must admit to being a fan of his. Chomsky's anarchy is more in line with having balanced views and not allowing single groups either the state or dictators to impose their system on others. This is a totally different view of anarchy that the Americans like to define as a system without rules or laws, which when you think of it is probably because the Trump's of this world fit into the dictator class.
Can't see the wood for the trees? Headline grabbing numbers which as far as the UK is concerned will never happen although Ethiopia did 350 million in a day. Trees Better to be planting trees than to be letting all those lions roam about the streets.

Odds of 5:1 sounds about par. only the well heeled capitalists can afford to throw money away in this way to influence peoples thinking. Propaganda that's what I call it. Lets wait and see, common sense will prevail.

[Tizer]

The tree planting targets and promises more examples of the hype being generated in the election run-up. I'm all for planting more trees but I prefer people to be more realistic in their approach. Yes, you can plant large numbers of trees if you have enough land to dos so but we have to remember that our population is growing, and there are other promises to be met such as building hundreds of thousands more houses. Planting large numbers of fast-growing conifers is an attractive proposition but bad for wildlife - in this country they tend to be barren. Planting too many monocultures encourages diseases and we are already losing a lot of oaks, ash and horse chestnuts to disease. Not all land is suitable - you might have seen on a Chris Packham TV programme where kids were planting trees in a boggy field. Most of those trees will probably die soon. I commend the efforts and have planted trees myself but let's not get into bragging contests about it!

Cummings was described in a previous post as an Anarchist but so is Noam Chomsky, Probably one of the highest IQ men that's ever lived.

To clarify, I wasn't criticising Cummings for being an anarchist. We need disruptors at the moment otherwise I fear we're heading towards a very hard line form of government, whether it be left or right. We need one something like those kaleidoscopes we had as kids that you shook up and it all came down in a different configuration!

[Stanley]

"common sense will prevail"
That's what I keep telling myself Ken but it isn't always helping!
If I allowed my anarchist tendencies free rein I'd be extremely radical! I'd reform the Monarchy and the Honours system for a start. Then I'd attack spurious 'traditions' starting in the Houses of Parliament. The present layout encourages confrontation and actively discourages collegiate behaviour. Fancy dress would be banned. The voting system would be changed both in Parliament and the country and 'rules' like the abolition of the 'revolving door' into outside life would be properly enforced and that's just for starters!
I have had to stop myself, I could become very boring!

[plaques]

Just to bring everyone up to speed, or the lack of it, on the reinstatement of the Colne -Skipton railway line. A computer simulation has been carried out to judge the disruption to traffic of a level crossing at grade across Vivary Way, Assuming that the train intervals remain at current levels, approximately one per hour, a single crossing is assessed at 3 minutes. ie: 6 minutes including the return journey. This delay is at the time of writing considered acceptable since the traffic is generally stationary for most of the time and an extra 6 minutes will not be noticed. Alternative proposals of a secondary sub-station on the north side of Vivary Way with a fly over bridge for pedestrian access has been suggested but this is being held in abeyance until Blackpool pleasure beach release some of their Big Dipper vehicles.

Remember you have read it here first.

[PanBiker]

Isn't the thinking now to avoid level crossings when reinstating lines? I thought that was one of the rules.

[Tizer]

Are the above posts referring to a standard railway or a light railway? They have different regulations. A lot of those in other countries are light railways, in between standard railway and tramway. I wish we had more light railways and trams in Britain, especially electric ones. When I watch the Michael Portillo overseas episodes I drool over the railways and trams they have abroad.

[chinatyke]

You can fool some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time! Nice one!

[Stanley]

You never know with P......
Quite predictably, Johnson piled in on the London Bridge stabbings yesterday but made the mistake of blaming it on Labour as it was them who introduced early release from prison. I'd like to think that Jeremy would have stuck to condolences but Johnson's accusation meant he had to respond and pointed out quite fairly that the police funding cuts and the unfenced cuts to the Justice System were equally culpable. "You can't protect the public on the cheap!" In the discussions that followed in the news reports, all the experts in the field backed Corbyn and in addition cited the botched Grayling 'efficiency improvements' to the probation system and the failure of Gove, as next Justice Minister, to do anything to rectify the mistakes. This view was backed up by the secretary of NAPO, the prison officers union, who cited the shortage of experienced warders and the cutting of funding for rehabilitation in prisons.
I get the feeling this might have been a mistake on Johnson's part, but in the present febrile atmosphere who can tell?

[Tizer]

You can fool some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time! Nice one!

You know more about Colne and Skipton than I do. The Big Dipper was obviously a joke but the rest seemed quite feasible to me. We've had talk of a line being resurrected here.

I'm gobsmacked by the rail workers going on strike in December across the south of England just when there's a critically important general election. It plays into Boris Johnson's hands and makes things look bad for Labour. Whose side are they and the union on?

[plaques]

Sorry about that Tizer, it was meant to sound plausible. In less that 2 miles after enduring three roundabouts, four sets of traffic lights (incorporating crossings),and four separate pedestrian crossings before finally hurling themselves down to the motorway roundabout where the use of indicators is banned, that's another story. the last thing they want is another 6 minutes delay.

Railway strike, This is a long running dispute between the Rail Union and a private company 'South Western Railway' (SWR)

Ref: Why are they taking place?
The strikes are part of an ongoing row about the role and responsibilities of guards. New trains allow driver-only or driver-controlled operation – including closing the doors – and unions want to ensure guards keep a safety-critical role. Although SWR says it will guarantee a second crew member onboard, unions say they have not had sufficient assurances and believe that guards could be axed in the future if companies choose to do so.

Taking a cynical view one could say that the Company has engineered the strike to put the unions in a bad light and to give Johnson a boost. On the other hand 'what's a man supposed to think'?

[PanBiker]

In another post I relate our journey home from Leeds on Saturday night where a fight broke out on the train when stationary at Kirkstall Forge. This fracas was dealt with by the guard who promptly called the police. We were six carriages back from the driver so without a roaming guard who can access any carriage fairly quickly how would that pan out with only a driver? I am in full support of retaining the guard on every train they help to ensure the safety of all the passengers and indeed the perpetrators of Saturdays fracas who were rolling around along the side of the carriage and could have come to serious harm without some form of supervision and the guard controlling the train until the cavalry arrived.

[Tizer]

I'm in favour of having more staff than just the driver, especially on long journeys - but striking now? It will drive even more people towards the dreaded Boris juggernaut because they're all in `Boris will sort it' mode!

[plaques]

About four years ago I caught the 8 pm - Blackburn / Burnley hospital shuttle bus back to Burnley. It had been a long day and all I wanted to do was close my eyes. Saturday evening is apparently when the druggies use the free service to move from town to town. A young girl stoned out of her mind walked up and down the bus then tried to get out on the motorway. The driver kept the door locked. Fortunately two lads restrained her, actually they sat on her until we got to Burnley. God knows what would have happened on a train with no guard.