Politicians Must Choose Their Friends Better
P.J. O’Rourke, who is no lover of politicians, once said.
Anyway, no drug, not even alcohol, causes the fundamental ills of society. If we’re looking for the source of our troubles, we shouldn’t test people for drugs, we should test them for stupidity, ignorance, greed and love of power.
It is a test that should not just be applied to politicians, but to their friends and donors as well.
Today in the Times we have two stories about people wanting to influence politics.
The first is about the troubles of the Labour Party and their relationship with the Co-operative movement. It contains this classic quote from, a Tory MP; Brooks Newmark.
The toxic element of a great ethical institution like the Co-operative is the way the Labour Party has effectively infiltrated it and infected it because of the benefits they have been receiving from it. The only way the Labour Party could get a loan if it didn’t have the Co-operative Bank is from Wonga.
But then Ed Milliband got his own back on the Tories by complaining about some of their donors. But at least these donors, were using their own money, rather than that of members of the Co-operative movement.
Remember too, that the Liberal Democrats had a dalliance with Michael Brown.
And then there’s the story of Hotchpotch the cat who was left £10,000 by Malcolm Richards who was a large financial supporter of Ukip.
I can smell the fruitcakes.
Perhaps we need say a ten percent tax levied on every political donation. The money could be used for philanthropic purposes, like looking after distressed catfolk.
To Australia Before Breakfast
The Royal Academy had a special show of their Australia exhibition for Friends from 08:30 to 10:00 this morning.
As my boiler is in the process of being changed and my house was extremely cold, I decided to go and took a 38 bus through the rain.
The exhibition was well worth a visit and for me, the paintings of the desert, brought back happy memories of an amazing holiday some years back, where I hired a light aircraft and flew us both round a lot of Eastern Australia.
But as there were few visitors, at that time in the morning, it was almost like your own private view.
This should be done more often.
Imagine being able to walk round an important gallery like that showing the Turners at the Tate Britain by yourself.
I don’t need to imagine, as I did that last night.
Was It The Scams Or The Begging Letters?
The sad news from the Mirror, that lottery winners Adrian and Gillian Bayford are splitting, probably proves that money can’t buy you happiness.
But I’ve never had so many scam e-mails about these winners, and they have been reported as having masses of begging letters, so were these crooks to blame for the breakup of their marriage?
C would have been laughing ironically this morning, as because the divorce is taking place in her old patch, she might have got a slice of the action.
But they will probably do what many do when they get divorced and go to a high-profile, very expensive solicitor in London, when they would get a better deal and service from a trusted local lawyer.
A Preview Of The New Tate Britain
I went to the Members Preview of the upgraded Tate Britain. I have called it the New Britain deliberately!
These pictures don’t do the new building of the art justice.
It was also an absolute pleasure to wander round some galleries and examine the paintings and sculpture virtually alone.
But then that pleasure, is one you get from being a member of the Tate. I also found myself in a similar situation at the British Museum at a Members Party.
A Small Advantage Of Switching To OVO Energy
I’ve just received my contract with OVO Energy, to which I recently switched.
When I switched, my previous supplier was a bit secretive about my Electricity Supply Number or MPAN and it took a couple of phone calls to find it. I don’t think the difficulty was deliberate, but it could have been designed into the system, as a hoop for leavers to jump through!
I’ve now got a one-page A4 sheet of paper, with all my details. So if I find OVO don’t live up to their publicity, I at least have all the details about my supply handy, so switching might be even easier.
So my first advantage is that it will be easier to leave.
The Draining Of Camden Lock
This happens every twenty years or so, to clear out the shopping trolleys and other rubbish. Sometimes, like this year, they change the lock gates.
It has proven to be a popular event this year, as the pictures show. There’s more here on the BBC.
It just goes to show, how everybody loves an event, even if it is not in the mainstream. I had wanted to go down into the lock, but all the tours were full.
Samvo – A Betting Cafe
I’ve seen this type of outlet in Scandinavia, but I hadn’t realised we had them in the UK.
Samvo – A Betting Cafe
They could be an interesting addition to the High Street if they serve good coffee and snacks, as they’ll obviously have toilets. I do sometimes have the odd bet and it should be a much better environment, than the average betting shop, which tends to be where a lot of the local unfortunates gather to loss their hard-earned money. This extract from this page on thee Internet, explainsSamvo‘s philosophy.
“They’re Betting Cafés,” he explains. “We wanted to create something different on the high street, a little more high class; a stylish refit with sofas, somewhere comfortable. The whole café style is more relaxed and it’s very important for us to build a nice atmosphere for the customers to enjoy. We also like the technological aspect so we make sure we’ve got HD TVs as standard and Racing Post touchscreens.
I think we’ll see more of this concept!
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Sebastian Faulks has written a new Jeeves and Wooster book, called Jeeves and the Wedding Bells.
Nice Work If You Can Get It
He has form in taking over from others, as wrote one of the new James Bond books.
But is that right? I prefer original works, although I rarely read fiction.
A Clock On A Pizza Hut
We don’t normally associate fast food joints, with nice pieces of street art.
A Clock On A Pizza Hut
But I did see this exceptional clock on a Pizza Hut in Central London.
Should We Ban Smoking Outside Pubs?
This was the pavement outside a pub near me, on Sunday morning.
Should We Ban Smoking Outside Pubs?
Not only do their customers with a death-wish block the pavement and make it difficult to get by, they leave a lot of mess for our excellent pavement sweeper to clear up.
If nothing else, pubs should be made to clear up the mess their customers create.
The Anonymous Widower 