Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

reason for not voting for the (at present) big three



Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Albert Einstein

paraphrasing is really not difficult or time-consuming .... per below, it's a shame sticky refuses to read, let alone learn! .....

Bank of England minutes show some members closer to voting for rate rise
some Bank of England policymakers think the case for raising interest rates is becoming stronger
all members agreed it would be necessary to see more evidence of slack reducing before an increase in Bank Rate would be warranted

increasing concern that house prices are rising too far too fast. The bank said low rates could distort the property market.
The BoE said that its Financial Policy Committee could tackle the housing issue when it meets next month

The BoE reiterated that it would only raise rates gradually …..It could be argued that the more gradual the intended rise in Bank Rate, the earlier it might be necessary to start tightening policy,"
On the other hand, a premature rate rise could choke off growth, policymakers said.

Although Britain's economy is still slightly smaller than before the financial crisis, the BoE forecasts it will grow by 3.4 percent this year, which would be its fastest rate of growth since 2007.

The history of elections since 1900 shows the Liberal party never won fewer than six seats even when its national support slumped to 2.5% in 1951. More recently, the Liberal Democrats managed to win 52 seats in 2001, with only 18% national support. Why did UKIP win no seats in 2010 with a vote share of 3.17%, and why does it need around 20% support to win a few seats.

The answer is a combination of three separate factors:

Established local strength The Liberal party had been one of the two major parties until 1922. It had built up strong local roots in many areas, and was able to maintain some of these roots even as its national support withered. That left some concentrated pockets of Liberal support, which were able to elect Liberal MPs. For instance, four out of the six Liberal seats in 1951 were in the "celtic fringes" of Scotland and Wales.
Strong candidates Having strong well-known candidates can draw in support from other parties and beat the national trend. This "incumbency factor" was visible at the 2010 election in seats like Eastleigh (Christopher Huhne) and Brent Central (Sarah Teather) where a well-known Liberal Democrat incumbent held the seat against the odds.
Tactical voting The Liberal Democrats have benefitted from tactical voting in recent years. Where they are in second place to one of the major parties, they can benefit from tactical votes from natural supporters of the third-placed party. Typically they gain tactical Labour votes in the South to "keep the Tories out", and vice versa some tactical Conservative votes in the North.

None of these factors apply to UKIP at the present time. They do not have particular local roots, although their 2013 council wins may be an opportunity to plant some new ones for the future. They do not yet have particularly well-known and strong candidates, other than the leader Nigel Farage. And they are unlikely to benefit from tactical voting, since they are viewed as being to the right of both major parties (rather than in-between), and they do not start from second place in any Westminster seat.

an interesting article .... source?

Have you Little Englanders considered all moving to the same area and then setting up your own "Little England Country" within it? You could then lobby the government for some sort of Independence/Self Government, something like Wales, Scotland or more recently Cornwall?

This place is probably to far north for most of you http://http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-27313889 ... But I think you may get the idea with a bit of intelligent thinking.

No takers? Bit further to go but how about this one then http://www.property.org.uk/unique/islands.shtml

http://www.interpretermag.com/budget-figures-show-putin-has-been-preparing-for-war-for-four-years-nemtsov-says/

Budget Figures Show Putin has Been Preparing for War for Four Years, Nemtsov Says

Staunton, May 12 – A government’s priorities and plans are most clearly shown in its budget, and over the last four years, the budgets Vladimir Putin has proposed and imposed are those of a leader preparing for war rather than someone concerned about the needs of the Russian people, according to Boris Nemtsov.

In a report on Ekho Moskvy on Saturday, Nemtsov, a Russian opposition leader, publishes a table showing Russian budgetary figures by sector and year since 2011. Over that period, military spending has risen 80 percent, and spending on the special services [intelligence] and police has gone up 50 percent.

Putin’s priorities are obvious, he says. They are headed by “preparation for war and repressions inside the country.” They do not include education, health care or infrastructure development.

The greatest budgetary loser, Nemtsov points out, is education, spending for which if one takes inflation into account has fallen by 30 percent. That has led to the imposition of tuition at the university level and “the degradation” of higher education. The Russian opposition figure says that he is “certain that this is the conscious policy of the highest authority.”

Putin “doesn’t need the intelligent and the educated,” he says. Such people “give unnecessary questions, aren’t loyal and are more difficult to zombify.”

Spending on health care, again with inflation taken into account has fallen by “almost a quarter.” Given that high levels of mortality exceed fertility and “under conditions of African-level life expectancy,” such a pattern of spending on health “cannot be characterized as anything but that of an occupation regime.”

Nemtsov says he is “convinced that the preservation of the nation is not among the plans of the Kremlin.” Instead, Putin and his regime want to continue to depend on immigrants and the sale of raw materials. And in that event, they do not need all that many workers. Fifteen million would suffice.

The central Russian budget has also cut financing, with inflation taken into account, to the regions by 40 percent over the past four years. Given that the Kremlin has imposed a wide range of unfunded liabilities, it is no surprise that many regional governments are in debt and have had to freeze development projects, pay and benefits.

As Nemtsov points out, even the regime’s main support group, the pensioners, have suffered. This year, the pension budget “practically did not increase,” even though the number of pensioners did and the prices for the goods they need did as well.

The opposition leader concludes with a rhetorical question: “Is this not too high a price to pay for the desire of one man to rule forever by enslaving his neighbors?”

Supporting England at the World Cup is like voting UKIP

Football’s mega-tournament taps the same psychic source of self-regard, self-loathing and jingoism as Nigel Farage, says Chris Moss



'Flags are tied to a long tradition of claiming that Britain is God's chosen nation' Photo: Alamy



By Chris Moss

8:18AM BST 21 May 2014



Let me say this from the outset, just so you know where I’m coming from: I know no UKIP supporters. I would likely disown any putative friend who fancied Nigel Farage representing them in an arena he openly despises.


I’m glad to say that most of my friends are not nationalists. None are out and out royalists and a few are lukewarm republicans. I don’t know anyone with any strong feelings towards the St George’s Cross flag.


There’s nothing unusual about my friends in this regard. Notwithstanding the feeble attempts by state and media at revivalism, none of us pays special attention to St George’s Day and many of us continue to associate the St George’s Cross flag with poverty, sink estates, skinheads and bulldogs. That’s a pity, but it’s a fact.


Yet, come June 14, we shall all gush with what passes for patriotic fervour and, with the aid of alcohol and collective testosterone, may even let out a few cries of “Eng-er-land”. Facing that (suddenly) longstanding enemy, Italy, we will get behind our national squad and choke on prejudices we’d like to give air to, about our opponents’ propensity for fascism, dirty play, arrogance and slipperiness.


If we drink enough, we may even begin to make – or at least laugh at – quasi-racist jokes about Argentina, Germany and, well, any other country we happen to come up against.




More bilge here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/10840656/Supporting-England-at-the-World-Cup-is-like-voting-UKIP.html

Got to watch these Ruskys very closely.

Just like camoron and his tory boys.

They dont like it up em, no they dont like it up em.

stan - may one assume that you are firmly entrenched in the camp diametrically opposed to ukip? ..... that is to say, you also want no further discussion on the eu set up .... in other words, you're all for further federalisation and think that the present set-up is just hunky-dory?

you're not an mep by any chance, for that would certainly explain why you want nothing changed? ...... just keep my wallet filled would seem to be the mantra

Under David Cameron’s government, morale in the Armed Forces has collapsed and is getting worse - Coaker

Vernon Coaker MP, Labour’s Shadow Defence Secretary, commenting on the 2014 Armed Forces Continued Attitudes Survey, said:

“Under David Cameron’s government, morale in the Armed Forces has collapsed and is getting worse. Over a quarter of service personnel say they are dissatisfied with service life, and almost a third of all servicemen and women across the Army, the Royal Navy and the RAF rate their morale as low.

“Our Armed Forces personnel are the very best of British, so it is shameful that under this government fewer than 30% of them feel they are valued by their Service.

“No-one knows more about the Armed Forces than the Armed Forces themselves. So, after the government promised to sort out the Reserve recruitment crisis, it should be a cause of concern that only a third of those in the Army feel that the Reserves who have joined are well-integrated with the Regular force.

“Our servicemen and women demand and expect better. Defence Ministers need to show they are listening and will take action to address the concerns raised.”

ENDS


MAY 21, 2014 (12:42 PM)

Alf, "just keep my wallet filled would seem to be the mantra"... Talking of wallets isn't it about time that you got back to work? -):

Of course the Armed services are dissatisfied, they have faced extreme cut backs which have cost lives, lost support after exiting the services (help mentally and socially getting back into work) and have watched fellow service men die fighting causes Joe public doesn't support let alone agrees with the government financing.. Was it any different under Labour, actually no!

Guido Fawkes ‏@GuidoFawkes 52s
Top Tory MP Attacks "Panicking" Cameron Euro Strategy.........

MAY 21ST, 2014

Top Tory Attacks Cameron Euro Strategy..



The awkward squad are getting their verdict – and attack lines – in early on the Tory European campaign. David Davis lambasted the coordinated CCHQ attacks on UKIP last night, telling Guido that they have only driven more voters to UKIP:

“The only way to fight UKIP is to occupy their ground. Cameron has started to try and do that, but it’s too late… They only react when they are panicking and the no one believes it.”

Basher says he has come round to Lord Tebbit’s ‘forgotten Tories’ idea; Thatcherites who abandoned the party in 1992, and have not voted since, have been awoken. They’ve not come back to the Tories though. He predicts a 32 24 22 win for the ‘kippers, with the Tories in third and an unexpectedly high turnout for a Euro-vote. Consider this a preview of next week if those numbers are correct.

Was it any different under labour Shortie says re- to Armed Forces, well sorry have to disagree.........at least in them days they had a safe job but no longer under the Tories just look how they have substituted volunteers for reservists and the TA.

As always with the Tories its about setting the grounds/conditions for privatising so further down the road tax cuts can be made for their chums in the City.

Remember Iraq, lack of kit, suitable kit, plus half the country thought it was someone elses battle anyway.

"Lord Tebbit’s ‘forgotten Tories’ idea; Thatcherites who abandoned the party in 1992, and have not voted since, have been awoken. They’ve not come back to the Tories though. He predicts a 32 24 22 win for the ‘kippers, with the Tories in third and an unexpectedly high turnout for a Euro-vote."

That's about it for me. It sums up my feelings pretty well. I really do feel like an ignored Tory and one whose feelings and expectations of the Tory party have been forgotten.

My vote for UKIP in the MEP election should shake things up a bit.

And of course, there is still some time for mind changing ahead of the GE, not that it might affect me too much.

Actually, the armed forces were worse off under Labour and in particular Brown. Have we forgotten the lies Brown told about equipment shortages and lack of helicopters. It was a major scandal at the time.

Well they had a JOB, now they get laid off after serving their Queen and country slung on the dole que most of them with post tramatic stress disorder and what does IDS do??????

HE FINDS THEM FIT FOR WORK and cuts thier benefits. Shame on the Tories.

And if were talking about equipment, what the F good is 2 Air Craft Carriers without airplanes on them??????????????

Come of it both of you the top brass in the military say its never been as bad.

And shame on you Hays, the tories used to be the party for the forces, no longer anymore, even the Police Force are distancing themselves from the party these days.

Just look at the funds taken away from them today, Teresa May and the tories are despised.

I don't think the tory party is despised in itself, but it's leadership is, no doubt.

Simply not credible.

i am now :-)
mind you, i was working for a project in the caribbean at 10:00 last night, so i took a few hours off to compensate