Absence of Comment 151

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I have spent the last couple of days as the guest of Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, which is annoying as there is much I wanted to write about.

Was meant to be tonight at premiere at Ecuadorean Embassy of new John Pilger doc which event hopefully will put minds at rest over Julian.

Apologies recent orders of signed copies of Sikunder Burnes delivery will be delayed a bit till I get out.

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151 thoughts on “Absence of Comment”

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  • Habbabkuk

    The following might be of interest to some readers.

    Conservative MPs talked out Ms Mhairi Black’s private member’s bill on Friday. The bill aimed at introducing a code of conduct for Job Centre staff that, if implemented, would have seen claimants’ circumstances taken into account before any sanctions were imposed.

    However, very few Labour MP’s turned up to back the bill, whilst the Tories orchestrated a plan to make sure the bill was talked out.

    It would appear that when it comes to the most vulnerable in society, change for the better, is not at the forefront of the Westminster agenda.

    • fred

      I’m afraid our Scottish MPs aren’t too experienced when it comes to politics. They descended on Westminster making it clear they intended to destroy and disrupt, ignore convention and throw a spanner in the works at any opportunity just because they can.

      http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/nicola-sturgeon/11564429/SNP-candidates-threaten-to-deliver-Westminsters-worst-nightmare.html

      Then they start crying like little whipped puppies because nobody will to support their bills.

      Pathetic.

      • Shatnersrug

        I mean she knew they’d talk it out – if she was actually serious about private members bills she’d take a motion on whether filibusters ought to be ruled out of order, or a mandatory voting time was placed at the end of every session to prevent such weasel words, as it was I can see it as litttle more than playing to her base.

        • fred

          Politics is just horse trading, if you want something you have to offer something.

          You can’t alienate everyone then expect them to back you.

          • Republicofscotland

            And the British government are offering, long term poverty, low wages a privatised NHS, more illegal wars, Dickensian workers rights, a clamp down on free speech, and many more odious regressive acts.

            No you keep your horses, by the looks of it you’ll need them, when you flee back across the border after Scottish independence.

          • fred

            Young pregnant mothers round here are facing over a hundred mile trip by ambulance, on roads that are some of the worst in Britain at the best of times let alone in winter.

            http://www.johnogroat-journal.co.uk/News/Maternity-unit-in-Caithness-General-to-be-downgraded-29112016.htm

            How long have health and transport been devolved in Scotland?

            Bollocks to your doomed fantasies of the future it’s the hear and now reality of the SNP government failures that condemns them.

          • Republicofscotland

            Ha.

            And too think that the Scottish NHS, is in better shape than the English NHS, what does that say about your point of view?

  • Republicofscotland

    Meanwhile “tank girl” Ruth Davidson leader of the Tory branch in Scotland, has veered even further to the right by backing a hard Brexit if need be. Davidson had previously opposed a hard Brexit.

    Of course the nasty party’s plan was exposed by Lord Lawson, when he said “Brexit, gives us (Tories ) the opportunity to finish the job Margaret Thatcher started.”

    Roll on indyref 2.

  • Republicofscotland

    Meanwhile as I’ve stated in here before, they’d be no Scottish fishing industry if it weren’t for the EU, reeling in greedy Scottish fishermen, who brought stock to the brink.

    Now it appears there is a thriving “black fish” market that has seen £63 million in black fish pirated from Scottish waters. There are three (MPV’s) Marine Protection Vessels, currently patrolling Scottish waters, trying to protect stocks, and prevent illegal pirating of fish. But still dozens of fishing boats Scottish, trawl for fish beyond their quotas, that will eventually lead to depleted stocks again.

    The MPV’s also patrol and catch foreign vessels, who take fish above there quotas, though those cases are said to be less common in nature.

    • Habbabkuk

      I thought only English people carried the seeds of greed?

      ******************************

      Re the policing of the activities of Scottish fishermen: is this not a responsibility of the Scottish govt and not Westminster? If so, complaints about non-performance should perhaps be addressed to Mrs Sturgeon rather than to the mostly English readers of this blog.

      • Republicofscotland

        The overall point is that, remaining in the EU, would in a sense help protect fish stocks, stock that even Marine Scotland say could could be depleted by over fishing, it’s all a question of sustainability, Brexit opens the door to over fishing.

        • Habbabkuk

          You’re getting a bit confused here, with great respect. After all, you chose to write about over-fishing, didn’t you.

          With whom does the responsibility for policing the activities of Scottish fishermen lie – with the Scottish govt or not?

          If with the Scottish govt, then you should be addressing your complaints to the Scottish govt and tell them to get their finger out. Nothing to do with Westminster and the majority of the readers of this blog, who are English.

          Over and out.

    • Kempe

      The reverse might be true. Access to British fishing grounds was a condition of the UK joining what was then the Common Market and something Ted Heath famously lied to Parliament about. It’s Spanish fishing vessels which have the worst reputation for landing illegal catches, fishing out of season and using undersized nets.

      Fish stocks have not been helped by decades of a Common Fisheries Policy which believed that dumping tonnes of dead fish back into the sea every year was an effective conservation technique.

    • Republicofscotland

      And your point is?

      Many members of the Scottish political parties, chop and change on what they’ll vote for, I’m sure the Labour branch office in Scotland has quite a few secret indy supporters.

      A poor point Fred.

    • Habbabkuk

      Anon1

      I have just seen the first few minutes of the link you kindly posted and am already impressed. It certainly looks as if most of the regular “commenters” on here could watch it with great advantage (I shall watch the entire link later today, of course).

      In a way it seems to tie in with what I’ve said on several occasions about people like Noam Chomsky, namely that if a person is a genius in one field he can be a complete fool in another or, at the very least that great expertise in one field in no way confers similar expertise in another. The first few minutes of your link seems to take my theory further: even if you are an expert in your field (as Arthur Schlesinger Jnr was in politics and public affairs) you can still get it wring list of the time 🙂

      Thanks again for supplying. You deserve a bottle of good Israeli red from one of the excellent vineyards which have been developed on the Golan Heights over the last few decades.

  • nevermind

    Maybe this will cheer you up, special medicine and nothing to do with Ed Ball being voted out of ‘cum prancing’.
    The canaries were on form yesterday playing the Brentford team
    NORWICH 5 – 0 BRENTFORD

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