Red Poppy Remembrance Scam

 Here we go again ‘wear your poppy with pride, remember, lest we forget’ and other such jingoistic entreaties. Out trot the masses to chuck a few coins in a tin, pin on the poppy replica and walk away thinking ‘I’ve done my bit’ when actually they are just another sheep running with the flock. The Remembrance Sunday do in London will be carried out with all solemnity and pageantry choreographed to perfection as it is every year and few will notice that it represents in microcosm the conducts of the wars they pretend to remember. The massed ranks of military personnel, past and present (& don’t miss the Chelsea Pensioners,”Arh bless ’em” brought in for a bit of colour and to tug at the patriotic heartstrings) who will stand for hours, perform their attentions and marching on cue whether they are freezing cold or soaking wet before finally getting get a mug of hot tea and making their journey back in the following hours. Meanwhile the royals, the politicians, the military top brass will arrive just in time to perform their wreath laying with sad solemn faces before walking stiffly away to their clubs, offices, pubs, for a double Scotch and a warm up to discuss the Sunday papers or, in the case of the royals to wave briefly at the adoring crowds from a balcony at Buckingham Palace.

So it is with all wars, rich men sending young men out to die protecting their wealth.

If we’re going to remember let us remember what we know from history, not the myth of our lads going bravely over the top for king and country but that the choice they had was go over when the whistle blew to take a chance on survival or the certainty that if they didn’t obey their own officers would shoot them there and then or have them taken away for a perfunctory court martial and shot at dawn by their mates who, if they didn’t, would be shot themselves. I would argue the really brave ones were those said they will not kill, the conscientious objectors, who suffered terribly for their stand. Let us recall too that the UK, France and the USA following the end of WW1 stole the resources of Germany, the iron, steel and coal leaving the German people destitute and starving that soon paved the way for the rise of Hitler, Nazism and WW2.

Coming more up to date let us remember the war against Iraq to seize back control of the oil fields to feed the greed of the richest in the West. Let us remember the war in Afghanistan yet another war for greed and a natural gas pipeline running from Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan and so bypassing Russia.  Can’t have a pipeline that the Taliban would be likely to blow up!

Let us also be aware that we are one of the evil nations of the World that supply weapons for others to kill millions just for the rich man’s profit.

Whenever there is a war there is no problem finding Billions of Pounds to fight it, there is no problem finding Billions to prepare for the next war, because there always is one, war is profitable, so there should be no problem in finding the money to care for those who are damaged in fighting those wars. The only problem is that the rich men, the faceless corporations who benefit, want the people to fight for them, to die for them on the cheap.

I remember but I don’t wear that damned poppy.

Child Abuse

 This is a baby, just a random photo of a baby I found on the Internet.

He could grow up to be a doctor or an architect, a famous artist or a bricklayer, an airline pilot or a fisherman. In fact he could grow up to become anything he chooses and is capable of.

 This is another baby boy. He is called Prince George.  He could grow up to be a doctor or an architect, a famous artist or a bricklayer, an airline pilot or a fisherman. In fact he could grow up to become anything he chooses and is capable of. Except! He won’t be allowed to, he won’t have a choice at all. He will be brainwashed right from the beginning of his life to believe that there is no other choice than to become a king when he is 50, 60, 70, who knows when. Every aspect of his life will be manipulated towards this one expectation of heading the family business. Should he eventually wish to marry then he must choose from a selected group of women and even then she will be carefully vetted for suitability and in her turn trained to be the incubator of the next unfortunate for brainwashing.

Whether you believe in the monarchical system or like me a republican there can be no other words to describe the treatment baby number 2 receives as anything less than CHILD ABUSE.

Amazement!

You would think by my time of life it would take a lot to surprise me and it does but I am genuinely shocked how blind to truth many of you are out there.

The government is spending at least £50 Million on WW1 remembrance events not to mention local costs and of course various royals trundled around to make fine speeches prepared for them to deliver in praise of millions of soldiers sailors and airmen who died in those terrible four years. Not one of those men is still alive so why is this enormous energy being spent on publicity, media connivance and money that would be better spent on feeding our hungry who are forced into Food Banks?

So what is going on? Well let’s start with what it’s not, just briefly. If it was about remembering the dead, then we should be reminded of the terrified men ordered over the top knowing the insanity of the orders and that  they would be facing machine gun crossfire resulting in either death or if ‘lucky’ serious injury resulting in being sent back to England. Knowing too that too question the madness or to refuse the order even if suffering from what we now know to be Post Traumatic Stress Disorder would mean being shot on the spot by their own officers. We should be reminded also of the incredible bravery of conscientious objectors who through religious or moral reasons refused to fight and were also shot by firing squad or served long terms in prison with the worst of conditions. We should also be reminded that some CO’s died working in coal mines and also in particular, those who joined the Friends Ambulance Brigade (mostly Quakers) who served on the front lines collecting the injured under intense fire very many of whom were themselves killed. It’s not either, about learning the lessons of history because clearly we haven’t, repeating the same mistakes over and over again, in WW2, Korea, Vietnam, Egypt, Falklands, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya …….

So what is it about? It’s about conditioning your minds, mild brain washing if you like, into nationalism, patriotism and an acceptance of waging war yet again if required. It’s about the royals and senior figures strutting the stage of history, making themselves look good bedecked in medals and rank that they have not earned but been given by their peers. It’s about politicians who have never been in the thick end of war spouting about the bravery of others long since dead about who’s lives they know nothing and care less. It’s about linking the past to the present and glorifying our vast war machine and gaining your acceptance for the massive expenditure that you have to pay for. When they spend £200 Billion on nuclear weapons that they can never use you will hardly murmur, or tens of Billions on aircraft carriers which by their very nature mean they are preparing for wars far away already, you won’t bat an eyelid. When hundreds of our soldiers die in Iraq or elsewhere and thousands lose limbs for the City of London you raise money for artificial limbs but you don’t ask why, you don’t say stop. Two million people marched before the Iraq war to say NO and they fear that next time there may be 10 million, 20 million, marching and demanding an end to war and the capitalist war mongers and arms salesmen will not add to their fortunes if we say no more. Capitalism not just thrives on war it depends on war. Fear of war allows acceptance of expenditure on the military and remembrance keeps that bit of fear in the mind, linking the past to the now.

 

Finally, they will not be remembering or reminding us of the mutinies and the strikes in the military towards the end of the 1914-18 war nor will they point out how many were shot and crushed as the uprising took hold and were put down by the government. So when you see ceremonies, hear some politician praise those poor sods in the mud with the stench of death all about, or see heroic films just ask yourself what is behind it? What thoughts are they trying to put into your mind? 

 

Royal Raid Attempt on Poor

No wonder the Royal family want to be exempted from the Freedom of Information Act. Not content with the millions of Pounds that the taxpayers are forced to hand over to them in order to fund their lavish lifestyle, they even attempted to dip their greedy hands into the fund set up to help people on low incomes heat their homes. The report in the Independent shows just how far they will go to line their bulging pockets even further.

A Right Royal Scandal

While the rest of us are facing deep and disgusting cuts in our living standards and public services from this con-dem coalition, Prince William is to cost us an extra £1.4million per year in security costs.

Why you may well ask? It seems he is in ‘training’ with the RAF in Wales and he doesn’t want to live on the base like every other trainee but to take up residence in a Welsh cottage. This means personal 24/7 police protection for someone who contributes nothing to the national economy. What a disgrace!

Manifesto You Wont See (Mine)

DEFENCE: We believe that threatening the annihilation of millions of fellow humans is wrong so we are getting rid of all nuclear weapons. This will make us less of a threat and so reduce our risk of attack. We will also save billions of Pounds.

We will have a review of the past few hundred years to see just why we have rampaged around the globe engaging in acts of aggression and stop doing it. Our military services will have only defensive weapons and therefore we will finally pose no threat to any other nation thereby further reducing our risks to near zero.

HOUSING: No further second homes will be allowed and existing ones will pay treble Council Tax until there are no more homeless or sub standard housing. All private property will become State owned on the demise of the current owners. (This will reduce house prices enormously and make them affordable places to live in and not investments for profit)

ENERGY: Rail, Electricity supply, Gas and Water will be re-nationalised.

WAGES & BENEFITS: All State benefits (except unemployment) will be cancelled and in their place the national minimum wage will be raised to a level fit to live on, along with pensions. There will be no unemployment benefit on leaving education until at least two years of employment have been completed. Benefit will be earnt by community service to prevent drifting into benefit dependency. No one will be allowed to earn more than ten times the minimum wage and bonuses will be outlawed. A fair days pay for a fair days work will be the norm.

TRANSPORT: Cities and urban areas with good public transport will be subject to an extra vehicle tax similar to the London congestion charge. Money raised will offset fuel reductions to those in rural areas where personal transport is essential.

DEMOCRACY: A good idea which will be adopted starting with an elected Head of State rather than an unelected monarchy. The second chamber shall also only have elected members. A fair voting system will be adopted where no vote is a wasted vote.

All connections between religion and the State shall be severed and all tax advantages currently applied to churches, mosques etc will end.

CRIME: All drugs will be de-criminalised and available on prescription thereby cutting up to 70% of crime. This will have the added benefit of slashing the prison population which doesn’t work anyway and saving huge sums of money.

The creation of a more fair and equal society would of itself reduce the incidence of crime. The current method of sentencing is ineffective, there being no point in a fixed time inside, therefore custodial terms will be opened ended. That is to say when it is considered the offender is ready to take his/her proper productive place back in society then they are released with adequate support and not before.

EDUCATION: Management costs will be no more than 1% of the budget and teachers will revert to running the schools and colleges. Choice of school will be abolished and all schools will be of an approved standard in all areas. University fees will be abolished but a small lifetime increase in income tax will enable graduates the satisfaction of repaying society for the privilege.

Private education establishments will be abolished by ever increasing taxation.

HEALTH: Management costs as for education. Medical staff taking more responsibility for running hospitals and clinics etc. A State pharmaceutical research facility will be set up and tight controls put on those in the private sector. Drugs which are highly expensive and merely prolong life by months will not be available.

Private health care will be abolished by progressively rising taxes.

LAND: All land will be nationalised without compensation and a rent paid for all private property upon it.

Freedom Diminished

A couple of days ago the Commons voted for restrictions to the Freedom of Information Act so that senior members of the Royal family are exempt for FOI requests. This is a disaster for democracy.

Should this Bill make it through the process and let’s hope it fails of course, then we will not know what lobbying Prince Charles, for example, has been doing on behalf of his architectural preferences or some of his other crack pot schemes. We will not know if Government decisions are being made in the interests of the people or of the Royals.

As long as we have an unelected and hereditary head of state then Royals should be subject to more scrutiny not less.

Duke of Hypocrisy – sorry, York

You may not read The Telegraph very often but do read this article for a big laugh before you choke on an upwelling of outrage.

The Duke of York, Prince Andrew, had the gall to say that he was taken aback at MP’s expenses and this from a guy who last year spent £4,000 of our money on a 146 mile helicopter trip. The mind boggles.

Cost Cutting Dave

So, David Cameron, leader of the Tories and likely to be our next Prime Minister (God help us all) promises that he will cut Minister’s salaries by 5%, take the subsidy off the Commons restaurant and reduce the cost of government cars. After all, as he put it:- “If there is something that really annoys people it’s seeing politicians swanning around in chauffeur driven cars like they’re the Royal Family.”

Good point Dave so how about having a close look at that Royal Family and the estimated cost of £183 million per year that they cost us? If, as you say, leaders should lead by example then unelected leaders should set an even greater example don’t you think?

Planning Officer Charlie Again!

Prince Charles has been trying to impose his architectural preferences again as a report in The Guardian today shows. He tried to get an architect sacked and one of his own choices put in to replace him. This is by no means the first time this has become known (see) and one wonders how many times he has used his influence.

Let’s keep it simple. Charlie may be right or Charlie may be wrong in his views. Charlie is unelected and unqualified. Charlie only has power and enormous influence because he was born into a particular family.

If we truly value and want a genuine democracy then that power, that influence must be removed and the only way to do that is to remove that family from it’s position.