Owner: A View from Middle England by Arden Forester URL:http://ardenforester.blogspot.com Join Date: Mon, 25 Feb 2008 07:00:34 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: A Conservative-minded Midlander from the Forest of Arden, with a slight libertarian streak in his make-up. For positive Transatlantic co-operation - backing Ron Paul's Revolution and watching events. Site statistics:Click here
Google says Yahoo to shut the gates on Microsoft 2008-04-10 05:49:24 Microsoft has been sniffing around Yahoo
in an attempt to take over the search engine company. Alongside News Corporation, Microsoft is keen to enter this market. Google
thinks otherwise and feels it best to keep Microsoft out of this arena, so has decided to team up with Yahoo on advertisement sharing.The two search engine giants have announced a two-week experiment that will see them share advertising space. Google will be able to place ads alongside 3% of search results on Yahoo's website. Whilst in no way implying a merger, it is a strategic alliance where the emphasis is more on strategy that alliance.It will, at least, frustrate Microsoft's overtures. My concern is that such a takeover will do no good to the consumer. Microsoft already holds a virtual monopoly in computer software. I Read more:Microsoft
Father and son battle it out for voter sympathy 2008-04-12 07:06:05 There have been many combinations of family electoral success in the UK. In the House of Commons we have husband and wife (Nicholas and Ann Winterton), brothers (David and Ed Miliband), sisters (Angela and Maria Eagle), and many more examples. In local council chambers, many husband and wife teams exist. However, what none of them have ever done is stand against each other in the same seat!Wigan is going to be different this year. Tory councillor Richard Clayton is being challenged by his son, Richard Clayton Jnr, over his matrimonial behaviour. In this election Junior is standing as an Independent. He admits he is "partially" battling his dad as a protest against his father's conduct and says he is concerned about Coun Clayton's refusal to heed earlier pleas to stand down because of it. W Read more:Father
Poole gets into a murky puddle! 2008-04-12 06:28:45 Following on from the snooping by Poole
Borough Council, the couple at the centre of the Starsi-like surveillance have broken cover, so to speak. They are, quite rightly, outraged by this. It would appear that most of the country is too.However, the shameless John Nash (pictured), who is the council's Director of Children's Services says, "We believe we act responsibly, in the best interests of people who live in Poole, using these powers. We do not believe we are MI5 or Rebus or James Bond or anyone else. We try to do it responsibly and we believe we have taken appropriate action, given the information that was passed to us." If he thinks for one minute that TWO WEEKS of stalking, spying, and generally acting like minions in a police state is "acting responsibly", then he must be a very s
Gordon Brown viewed as most disastrous PM! 2008-04-14 07:12:30 It's not good reading for GordonBrown
. According to a YouGov poll for the Sunday Times, he's careering into the pit occupied by Ramsay Macdonald and Lord North! Only 2% think he's doing "very well". That's a feeble number of diehard New Labour fantasists! 26% are prepared to say he's doing "fairly well". That's a bit like telling your mother her cake is a bit stodgy.Against his plaudits come the overwhelming group, 65% who think he's performing "fairly or very badly". So two-thirds of the electorate want him gone is the message. It's not just the Tories complaining of his dithering. Now, the Blairites are chipping in, too.He waited ten years for Blair to disappear, and now it's all going pearshaped for him (and us, of course!). I think the biscuit-taking came to a head with the 10p tax ba Read more:Gordon Brown
Humpty Dumpty English! 2008-04-14 06:49:08 The English
Language is getting a pounding of late. Does it matter? Are we troubled by the way English is used? The BBC are helping two words flourish in ways they should not be used. The first is REPOSSESSION. Only this morning on News24, Declan Curry was happily chatting about REPOSSESSIONS! Does he know what the word means? Probably yes, but his self-regulatory mechanism is failing to get him, and countless others, to use the word FORECLOSURE!Now a lot of Brits have a go at Americans for what they see as abuse of the language, but in many cases it is the Americans that are correct. A person or company can only repossess something that they already own. A car on hire purchase can be repossessed. A bank or building society does not own property in these cases. They are not landlords. By c
Madeleine McCann "suspect" sues the press big time! 2008-04-14 06:14:38 Ever since a gabby journalist from the Sunday Mirror spoke out of turn during the early days of the disappearance of MadeleineMcCann
, life has been intolerable for Robert Murat. He just happened to live in the same small town, but was fingered by the loose lips of a female reporter. She thought he was acting suspiciously, but just went on her feelings alone. Her words were taken up by all and sundry in the media. His house was turned upside down, his personal life dissected like a dead mouse on a clinician's table. Now he is suing Sky News, the Daily Express, Sunday Express, Daily Star, Daily Mail, Evening Standard, Metro, Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror, News of the World, Sun and the Scotsman. The biggest libel action for many moons.Murat has been the subject of relentless speculation, much Read more:suspect
TV host Mark Speight 'found dead' 2008-04-13 13:16:56 The BBC reports that the body of a man, believed to be missing TV presenter Mark Speight, has been found in a remote area of London's Paddington station. A formal identification is yet to take place but will be confirmed on Monday. This is a tragedy indeed. He has been a familiar feature in our house with his programmes about painting, drawing and design. My children thought he was very clever.Humanity has a terrible propensity for self-damage. In this case, Mark has been racked with guilt about the circumstances leading up to the death of his girlfiend. Because of these circumstances, he had been arrested arrested on suspicion of murder and supplying Class A drugs, subsequently being released without charge. Enough in themselves to cause a person to feel that they had no further place in
Roman Catholics in US more in tune with Pope than Rome! 2008-04-15 11:21:09 The Washington Post and ABC News have commissioned a poll of Roman
Catholic thinking in the USA. The poll is perceived as showing that nearly half those respondents consider the Pope and the Church out of touch with their views. It then goes on to give percentages and information about views given.The 45% who think the Church should bend with the wind are in favour, or don't mind, women as priests. They also want other things, which are not identified as such. But the poll says that Pope Benedict is a forceful advocate for traditionalism, including returning prayers, vestments and music from earlier eras to church services. This would suggest that some priests are conducting services in garb somewhat different from vestments, are making up extemporary prose, and plucking their guitars. Not Read more:Catholics
Irish democracy hijacked by EU and its Irish stooges! 2008-04-15 06:19:42 If you ever wondered how undemocratic the EU can be, then just reflect on how they simply HATE referendums. They much prefer the dodgy types like Berlusconi, a man who can win elections even if half the state prosecutors want him in jail!So the EU mandarins have turned their gaze towards Ireland, where a referendum is to take place on the Constitutional Treaty that is supposed to be something else! They have helped to try to fix the outcome by "suggesting" it would be a good idea if Bertie Ahern went before the poll took place. Daniel Hannan poses this on his Telegraph blog.Why did Bertie Ahern stand down as Ireland’s Prime Minister? Alright, because he is facing corruption allegations, but why did he resign now? The Guardian’s Henry McDonald, who knows a thing or two about Irish
polit Read more:democracy
Continental to unite with United? 2008-04-15 05:36:28 The ink had only just dried on the deal between Delta Air Lines and Northwest, when it was suggested that it might be a good idea if Continental
courted United
. These marriages of convenience could well be the only thing that keeps the planes flying, but at what cost?United's flight attendants made it clear yesterday (Monday) that any deal better be in their best interests. "In the event we determine there exists a threat and not an opportunity for flight attendants, we will launch an aggressive campaign to derail any attempt to move forward with a merger that is harmful," Greg Davidowitch, president of the local chapter of the Association of Flight Attendants, said in a prepared statement. Blimey! I hope he keeps it all in house and doesn't let it spill over into the planes. "It's cold ch Read more:unite
Poor choice of words - all round! 2008-04-14 18:15:27 Barack Obama has been accused of denigrating the white working class of America, previously known as blue-collar workers (this election is reverting to the old stereotypes!). All he did was get his words muddled up. He has been reported as saying they were "bitter" but he meant to say they tended to find solace in religion and guns. Best to keep off religion and guns in election year, I'd say. They don't mix at the best of times, but then guns are bit like fishing and football. It's a religion to some!No sooner had Obama finished eating his words, then along comes Rep. Geoff Davis (pictured) from Kentucky. He's had to apologise for using the word “boy” to describe Obama. Davis was recorded (by a mischief-maker, no doubt!) saying, “I’m gonna tell you something. That boy’s finger d Read more:round
UKIP London Mayoral election broadcast 2008-04-14 17:36:02 In the credit where credit is due category, I think Gerard Batten's UKIP message for London is very good. However, best will in the world, I can't help him or any of the other contenders, unless I buy the Bob Mugabe Box of Ballot Fixing Tricks. I can only vote in Solihull.But here is the video, so at least Londoners who haven't seen it can see it here.And for the English Local Elections here is Nigel Farage MEP speaking directly about some of the ills afflicting local democracy!
TV host Mark Speight 2008-04-14 10:28:34 The BBC reports that missing TV presenter Mark Speight was found hanging on a building adjacent to Paddington railway station. British Transport Police have confirmed this. All very sad. A tragedy for all concerned.
Wachovia gets a big wobble 2008-04-14 10:22:38 Wachovia, the fourth largest bank in the USA, has posted a quarterly loss, the first since 2001. The bank made an ill-timed $24.6 billion takeover of Golden West Financial Corp. in 2006, at the peak of the housing boom. Now things don't look so rosy. Andrew Seibert is a portfolio manager at NexTier Wealth Management in Pittsburgh, which oversees $400 million in assets. He has some pithy remarks to make. "They obviously didn't take a close enough look at Golden West. They made a mistake in buying Golden West. The driver of all this is summed up in one word - Greed. They saw the big dollars and they went for it.''What is it with current the crop of bank bosses? They appear to be doing exactly what they advise their customers NOT to do! Wow! David Hendler, an analyst at CreditSights Inc., wen
Ron Paul speaks to 1500 enthusiastic students! 2008-04-14 09:55:17 The message continues and on this video you'll see that the crowds are still there, the enthusiasm is still there, and the message resonates well.In front of a cheering crowd in Gym 1 in the Intramural Building, Penn State University, Ron Paul
spoke about reducing the role of government. Combating rising national indebtedness and a war that is going in the wrong direction are all part of Ron Paul's Revolution. John McCain appears to be in denial on both counts. Pity!
Robert Mugabe - King of the Voteriggers! 2008-04-14 08:44:53 Voterigging is not something that happens just in Zimbabwe. It has been a problem in the neighbouring council to me - in Birmingham. Ballot abuses are not unknown in England. Northern Ireland has had its share of dead men going to the polls. George Bush managed to get the Florida vote tweaked in 2000. Italy is a problem that needs a whole book on the subject. But nobody beats Zimbabwe and Bob the Ballot Rigging Man!There used to be a saying in London about a suspect person, "He's got more front than Sainsbury's!". In Mugabe's case, I reckon he's trying to pass Sainsbury's off as Tesco into the bargain. He's got front and side together. Maybe a kick up the backside is all he knows.I can't believe the other African leaders take all this so seriously. They obviously know the guy's a rascal an Read more:Robert
Louisiana buckles the Bible in favour of death! 2008-04-16 11:05:24 The Parable of the Lost Sheep is seemingly lost on some folk in Louisiana
. They'd rather the lost sheep be fried in oil than be let back into the fold. The Good Shepherd is more concerned for the lost sheep, but if you've just tightened your belt a couple of notches too much, the message might get blurred in the subsequent fainting fit. The State of Louisiana is seeking to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that death
"is not cruel and unusual punishment for the rape of a child" and thus doesn't violate the 8th Amendment. This comes on the day that the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a challenge to the lethal three-drug cocktail used in most U.S. executions during the past 30 years. No matter that the stuff takes a time to wend its way through the veins. I suppose these judges describe themsel
Digby digs in deeper on Brown's account! 2008-04-16 08:00:24 Digby Jones was once the boss of the CBI. As such, he would travel the globe doing his best for British business. Then Gordon Brown
, on becoming Prime Minister, decided it would be a good wheeze to have a "government of all the talents". However laudable this is, it doesn't really work in an adversarial parliamentary system. We have the Government and we have the Opposition. Being semi-detatched from one or the other will always lead to speculation.Now it is said that Lord Jones of Birmingham, as he has become, is wanting to stand down before the next election in order to avoid questions on whether he supported the prime minister. Well, he either does or he doesn't support him. It can't be support of a curate's egg proportion. Some days yes, some days no. Lord Jones protests that "I am a s Read more:deeper
BA careers terminated by T5 fiasco! 2008-04-15 17:23:04 The careers
of two senior British Airways executives were ended abruptly today. Only days after Willie Walsh said nobody was going, these two get the chop. Gareth Kirkwood, director of operations, and David Noyes, director of customer services, are going. One wonders what Willie is thinking. He says he's got to stay in order to sort out the mess. Had he no contributing hand in all this? Sounds like he swanned in all aghast at the terrible chaos, but saw none of it as being linked to him.If Willie Walsh ever appeared on the Apprentice as project manager with these two hapless boardroom casualties, it would be fairly obvious that the audience would be wondering how he escaped. "What was you thinking, Willie? 25,000 bags went missing! You weren't there. You brought Gareth back into the boardr
Charles Clarke sizes up the likely stalking horses 2008-04-15 17:00:43 Charles Clarke
was one of New Labour's beleaguered Home Secretaries. Letting criminals loose by mistake, getting into a muddle over terrorist's human rights and generally bluffing his way out of trouble. He's been a bit quiet of late, but then he's a bit like a volcano. Get a rumble going and he could erupt. Now he's apparently checking out the runners and riders in the stalking horse stakes. According to The Independent, an informative MP says that "Charles has the names". Names of those who would sign up in order to trigger a ballot for a leadership contest. Of course, Clarke denies all this, but then he would, wouldn't he? The MP kindly added that either Mr Clarke or another MP with "nothing to lose" would stand as a way of gauging opinion in the Labour Party.As Jon Snow put it to Brown Read more:Charles
, sizes
, likely
Mugabe goes soft in the head! 2008-04-18 10:10:29 Not only is Robert Mugabe an accomplished voterigger, he's also an umblemished bullshitter and a political bamboozler of the first order. He's an old man that's got more vinegary, more angry, and more wicked as his memory twists his brain. Now he's just made the worst calculation of his life.Morgan Tsvangirai is a perfectly mild-mannered man. Considering he won the election, he's been very civil and kind towards Mugabe. Mugabe's not been kind to Mr.Tsvangirai, having had the MDC leader brutally beaten and generally treated very nastily over the years. Morgan Tsvangirai said Mugabe could live out a good life, he wouldn't be prosecuted and things could be worked out, etc. Not any more. Now it's perfectly possible for Mugabe to meet with a fate far worse that sitting out in a deckchair gazing
Judge thinks Harry Potter is gibberish 2008-04-18 07:37:47 Joanne Rowling, renamed JK by her publishers so that she could sound "more masculine", has had a taste of off-the-cuff judicial thinking. Judge
Robert Patterson Jr, who is overseeing the copyright trial in New York, admitted that he was not a HarryPotter
fan. So much so that he described Rowling's works as "full of gibberish" and "extremely complex". Not exactly sentiments Ms.Rowling wanted to hear.Although she says she is vehemently anti-censorship, she wants to censor this particular book. However, Judge Patterson suggested there was genuine worth in an encyclopaedia like The Harry Potter Lexicon, written by Steven vander Ark, that Rowling is attempting to block by claiming that it breaches her copyright. He mentioned the case of Jarndyce v Jarndyce in Charles Dickens’s Bleak House ab
Grim monkey business in Gibraltar 2008-04-18 07:08:11 It used to be said, and still is probably, that if the apes left Gibraltar
, then so too would the British. I'm not sure what that says about Brits but there may be some linkage!Now, without too much regard for the sensibilities of world opinion or of British historical niceties, the Gibraltarian authorities are planning on a cull of at least 25 monkey
s. It seems one pack of truculent apes is being lined up for the execution chamber. Gibraltar's Tourist Minister Ernest Britto, who has issued a license for their culling, says "The decision was not taken lightly. It is a last resort.". Last resort? The whole idea of Gibraltar for many people is that it is a resort with monkeys that act as a symbol of Britisness. Now they are to be given a lethal injection. Sounds a bit like the US Supreme Cou
SocGen CEO quits over rogue trader 2008-04-18 06:37:58 The plot thickens at Société Générale, the French bank that got into difficulties over a rogue trader. Daniel Bouton is stepping down as CEO, but moving to a more comfy seat as Chairman. There has been pressure on the top brass at the bank, especially from Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, but also from investors.M.Bouton claimed that the bank was hit by this rogue trading scandal all of a sudden. Implying it happened in more or less the same way as Hurrican Katrina or a giant tsunami. You get an early warning of sorts, but it's too late to do much about it in real terms. The Financial Times has been delving into all this. I get the feeling their journalists have picked up more info than they can properly impart. Scheherazade Daneshkhu reporting from Paris writes, "the decision to
Gwyneth Dunwoody dies aged 77 2008-04-17 18:21:47 This has come as a bit of a shock. The BBC has just announced that she has died. Gwyneth Dunwoody
was a great campaigner, a very good chairman of the Transport Select Committee, and a doughty fighter for backbenchers' rights. Nobody coming before her committee, such as Network Rail bosses, would get very far by trying to pull the wool over her eyes. I doubt if she knew how to spin. Very forthright and very acceptable as a member of Parliament.She will be missed.
Elected Senate versus House of Lords 2008-04-17 05:42:04 The American Senate
is vaguely similar to the House
of Lords. In this regard it is the second chamber of a bicameral governing institution. The Americans have a congress, the British have a parliament. One thing that appears to unite the US Senate and the House of Lords is the extreme age of many of the members. It used to be said that the Lords were in God's waiting room. Now there are murmurings on Capitol Hill about the age and competence of some senators.Robert Byrd is a senator from West Virginia. He was born just as the First World War ended. It makes him 90. Some think being as old as that is not the best thing for a senator to be. Others think it an outright impudence that the subject is mentioned. Yesterday (Wednesday) he was managing a two-hour Senate Appropriations Committee hea Read more:Elected
, versus
Putin puts in a put down on divorce talk 2008-04-18 17:07:46 Quite rightly Vladimir Putin
has dismissed rumours that he is going to divorce
his wife in order to take up with a 24-year-old former Olympic gymnast Alina Kabayeva, who is now a member of parliament. On a visit to see the newly re-elected prime minister of Italy, one Silvio (I've got a good election strategy) Berlusconi, Putin said, "I have always reacted negatively to those who with their snotty noses and erotic fantasies prowl into others' lives." Well said, sir!If Mr.Putin thinks Ms Kabeyeva is a cracker, it doesn't automatically make him an adulterer. I know Jimmy Carter once said he committed adultery in his heart. He said, "I try not to commit a deliberate sin. I recognize that I'm going to do it anyhow, because I'm human and I'm tempted. And Christ set some almost impossible standa
A helping hand for the Chinese economy! 2008-04-21 06:33:30 I've just taken delivery of some things I bought at Argos online. I've got five pieces of self-assembly furniture stuck in the hall. On each box is written in bold letters - COUNTRY OF ORIGIN : CHINA - and I'm feeling a tad guilty. Should I? Part of me thinks, oh, what the hell, and the other is thinking of the poor Tibetans, and the rest of them in their undemocratic helotry.I'm going for a cup of coffee! Read more:Chinese
, economy
Prescott and the plum puddings 2008-04-21 06:13:58 John Prescott has always been an odd one out in politics. He is very much in the Jekyll and Hyde mould. Most non-Labourites can't stand his politics and think he's been out of his depth, but quite a lot think he's a great bloke when they get to know him. His long lost illegitimate son, a Tory, thought so. Prescott is a jazz fan and so is Kenneth Clarke. Together, with former Liberal MP Michael Meadowcroft, they had a jazz band of sorts at Westminster. I expect Clarke and Meadowcroft would concur that Prescott is a good chum.Two things seem to drive John Prescott. One is to show people that he's better than they think he is. He sometimes mentions his ship steward days. Once he served Anthony Eden, apparently on Eden's voyage into retirement. Prescott was full of resentment and Old Labour ha
BNP to sue South Wales Police 2008-04-21 05:08:30 I do wish New Labour hadn't given the police forces of this country such a burden with their political correctness nonsense and their Stasi-like approach to dealing with people they can't abide. Instead of debating with the BNP or tackling head-on the political weaknesses of their case, New Labour acts like a grumpy dandy caught out with a dirty shirt. It's all humbug and high-falluting posturing.The BNP is a legal political party. They registered accordingly with the Electoral Commission set up by Blair. But instead of countering BNP policies, New Labour gets the police to round up their canvassers and chuck them in jail for a couple of hours.Now we arrive at the ridiculous position of five leafleters suing the SouthWalesPolice
. BNP Deputy Leader Simon Darby said, “Normally they have
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