Tories Fear Scots Will Break Away
This is the headline on a piece on the front page of The Sunday Times today.
Whether the Scots vote for independence is up to them, and I don’t care one jot, as I see advantages in both outcomes.
If the Scots leave the United Kingdom, whether we are English, Scots or Welsh, we’ll see a whole lot of tortuous and very lengthy negotiations, which will make those in Northern Ireland at the present time, seem like a couple of two year-old twins arguing over a cake.
On the other hand if they stay, we’ll avoid any hassle with lots of domestic things, like travel, banking, insurance and energy. At the present, I don’t use any companies domiciled outside of England for my basic needs, as I don’t want a foreign government interfering in my affairs.
But there’s the advantage if the Scots leave, in that the English parliament would then be able to vote for what is best for England and Wales. We could for example move our time to that of France, Germany and most of Europe, as Scottish backwoodsmen wouldn’t be able to sink the legislation.
If Scotland breaks away, they will probably take control of their fishing industry and pictures like this one, will become more common.
Peterhead fish In London
I lkike good fish, but whether the EU would let them keep it from the Spanish and the Dutch is another matter.
If they did break away, that would of course, be the end of it and we wouldn’t have to have the argument again. Unless, they wanted to rejoin, but I do think the English would have a view on that!
Scotland would probably make a go of it alone, for one of the same reasons Ireland did. There is a large diaspora, who will support the country, through thick and thin.
At the moment the English and the Scots are like a couple trapped in an unhappy marriage. Both, to kiss and make up and go for a divorce are better options than struggling on!
I do hope that both sides accept this referendum as a full and final conclusion. but I doubt they will!
Farage Says Yes!
Nigel Farage of UKIP saying that the UK should accept more Syrian refugees is a bit of a surprise.l Here’s an extract from a report on the BBC.
The UK should take in some refugees from Syria’s civil war, UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage has said.
He told BBC News that Western countries should agree to take an allocation, but he did not specify numbers.
I wonder what his typical supporter thinks of this statement!
Ulster Says No!
The talks in Northern Ireland seem to have ground to their inevitable conclusion, as is reported here on the BBC. Here’s the first bit.
Talks aimed at solving some of Northern Ireland’s most contentious issues ended on Saturday without agreement.
The five main parties will meet again early on Monday to discuss parades, flags and dealing with the past.
I am getting sick to death of the same entrenched attitudes, that have cost all of us billions of pounds.
Who is going to rid us of this troublesome country?
Most of my friends from Eire don’t want this bigotted basket case either!
One point that has to be made. In most of England, we don’t have any religious parades that are contentious and you rarely see flags flown that some might not like. Even the cross of St. George has gone from something that was only flown to annoy to a flag flown with pride. So why if we can do it on this side of the water, can’t the Northern Irish do it.
I was also in Liverpool in the sixties, where there was a nasty undercurrent of religious tension. You don’t hear anything negative like that, from the city now!
Real Fans Don’t Like Certain Teams
I’m a real football fan, who has followed the game probably since about the age of six or so, when my father first took me to White Hart Lane. One of the early games I saw was when Newcastle and the legend, Jackie Milburn, were visitors. I think Spurs won and I do know that Ted Ditchburn, their goalkeeper was outstanding and that Jackie Milburn missed a penalty. Other teams, I saw in the fifties and early sixties with my father, included Leeds with John Charles and Stoke City with Stanley Matthews. I watched most Cup finals of that era on the television, but the earliest I remember is probably the Manchester City v Birmingham City final of 1956, when Bert Trautmann broke his neck and Don Revie played as a deep-lying centre-forward.
my father had had a long history of both playing football and supporting Spurs. He always said, that he first went to Spurs in a pony and trap, and hisfather paid a boy to hold the horse’s head during the match. i think too, he’d been at the 1921 Cup Final.
I started going to Ipswich when my parents moved to Felixstowe. Usually, I was taken by the next door neighbour as getting between Ipswich and Felixstowe in those days wasn’t easy by public transport. As I was living in London most of the time, I still cycled to some of Spurs home matches and later at Liverpool University, I visited both Everton and Liverpool and quite a lot of teams in the area, including Manchester United, Preston, Leeds, Blackpool, Blackburn and Burnley. I didn’t carry a camera as I do now, so there is no record of the visits to the old grounds. Some were very rudimentary and far inferior to how they are today. I remember that getting to Old Trafford involved getting a steam powered shuttle train from the centre of Manchester. I think this was probably, when I took the train from Huyton.
Over the years, I’ve developed a dislike of certain teams. I won’t mention them all, but the usual suspects are there.
This last few weeks, I’ve been watching the story unfold at Cardiff City. I don’t like bullies and I very much feel that the club, the fans and the manager have been very badly treated.
So I felt quite a bit of delight, when Sunderland scored their second goal tonight at Cardiff.
To not win couldn’t have happened to a more deserving owner!
Is This The Most Dangerous Level Crossing In The Country?
Level crossings are generally a danger on railways. In East Anglia and Essex, there are a number that should have been removed years ago.
Buit surely the one described in this article from the Thurrock Gazette, must surely be the most dangerous of them all. What makes this one even more dangerous is that there is no alternative route, and sometimes emergency vehicles get stuck, waiting for a train.
When the London Gateway Port, is fully open, there will be regular mile-long freight trains passing this crossing.
I found out about this crossing on the BBC London News tonight. When I saw the report, I was surprised that no-one in authority had ordered Network Rail to do something about it.
I thought the level crossing in Lincoln was a disgrace, but this one is much more dangerous.
Don’t Rob Banks, Because They’re Much Better At Robbing You!
This wonderful statement was made this morning by Justin Urquart Stewart on BBC Breakfast this morning, as he commented on a report saying bank robberies in the UK had dropped by 90% in the past decade.
Justin must be the nation’s most recognisable stockbroker. Or is he the only recognisable one?
A Street For Coeliacs In Nottingham
On Saturday, the fourteen of December, I went Nottingham to see Ipswich play.
As I often do in the city, I had a meal in French Living in King Street, as they know their gluten-free well.
They have now expanded to include a creperie that does gluten-free and King Street, where they are, now has two chain restaurants, which are safe for coeliacs.
So if you want gluten-free food in Nottingham, head to King Street.
I took the tram up the hill from the station. and then it was a short walk.
It will be interesting to see if other restaurants opening in the area, will also do gluten-free offerings.
An Unusual Sight On Boxing Day Morning
I was surprised to see the binmen at work in the dark on Boxing Day.
An Unusual Sight On Boxing Day Morning
I didn’t put my rubbish out, as there was virtually nothing.
They’ve Renumbered The Hackney Eight!
Or I think it is just five at the moment according to Wikipedia, as others have other duties!
But they have been given new registration numbers.
They’ve Renumbered The Hackney Eight!
Someone has decided that it would be tidier, if they were all in sequence. LT6 was originally registered as LT12 FHT. This picture from Flickr shows the same bus with its original number.
The Anonymous Widower 