Obligations...

When I read that Brown was knackered I leapt for joy, but then I realised they only meant he was tired. Also, you would have thought that from a laddish cabinet we could expect our armed forces to be looked after but unfortunately the news just gets worse and worse. How many deaths have to occur before immediate and correct action is taken. For months we have known that the British Army was and is operating with "woefully inadequate" resources that was putting soldiers' lives in danger.

All that news came home to roost with a vengance with the current spate of soldier deaths in Afghanistan. Some because we are using unsafe vehicles:

The vehicle chosen by the Ministry of Defence to replace the controversial Snatch Land Rover - in which 37 British soldiers have been killed by roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan - was rejected by the U.S. Army after it allegedly failed explosive 'survivability' tests.

An MoD official working on urgent operational requirements for Afghanistan said the Treasury had made it clear that there was no extra money for vital equipment, including armoured vehicles. [Times]

And others for lack of helicopter transport and cover. Plans to send extra helicopters to southern Afghanistan to support British special forces had been cancelled, one defence source said. (same link) This last has finally resulted in the political gloves coming off. Browns dereliction of duty: "Labour's decision to cut the helicopter budget in 2004 by £1.4 billion was catastrophic. Gordon Brown has always been unwilling to fund Tony Blair's wars." Liam Fox (shadow defence secretary) said.

The 5,000 British troops in Helmand, who comprise more than half the total British deployment, have just 10 Chinook helicopters and five smaller Lynxes between them.

In comparison the 8,000 US marines serving in the province have 120 Chinooks, prompting British forces to have to borrow from their US counterparts.

David Cameron condemned the 'scandal' of UK helicopter shortage in Afghanistan. In a speech on international aid today, the Tory leader said the government should supply British troops with more equipment.

"The government must deal with that issue as a matter of extreme urgency."

And just to show that the Navy are struggling too (hattip colonel blimp R5L): MPs slam 'disgraceful' Type 45 destroyers: "Perhaps the term 'disgraceful' is a bit harsh for merely supplying ships years late, massively over budget and without their main weapon system. That would actually be about par for the course in the MoD."

But deliberately choosing to pay double for mostly French and Italian weapons, thus rendering yourself so cash-strapped as to turn the resulting ships into largely irrelevant one-trick ponies, when you could have bought powerful Aegis ships in a Scottish tin... that's disgraceful, yes

Brown insists that the UK has the troops and the equipment to do the job. The army disagrees; I know this sort of clash has always happened but it just seems that now resources aren't being made available which is especially strange and frustrating when Brown and Darling say things like "You can’t send troops to the front line and not be prepared to see it through in terms of the . . . resources that they need" Then get on and do it!

Oscillation option...

AC or DC. One hundred Serbian Dinars, that is probably more than the equivalent of what the man who's picture appears on the note had to his name: the man was celibate, fastidious, meticulous and who loved a pigeon ...and who's inventions would have made him the world's richest man by far - in fact one contract alone would have been enough to make him the world's first billionaire had it not been contrary to "his future vision of free power" - yet he died destitute and with significant debts: Nikola Tesla. Later in the same year of his death the US Supreme Court upheld Tesla's patent number i.e. reversing their previous reversal and recognizing him as the inventor of radio. [Wiki] Today is the 153rd anniversary of his birth, an odd number to be sure but one he would appreciate (divisible by 3, just one part of what is now assumed to be obsessive-compulsive disorder).

When his name is mentioned most think of radio wars (fighting with Marconi over the patent for the invention of radio) or the earlier Current Wars where he played a major part in the uptake of AC instead of DC (and getting revenge on Edison who had apparently "diddled him" whilst Tesla was in his employ) but there a multitude of lesser known works, stuff of science fiction: his papers were declared to be of national importance, all his effects were seized on the advice of presidential advisers and none other than J. Edgar Hoover who declared the case most secret because of the nature of Tesla's inventions and patents. Directed-energy weapon/peace ray/ death ray, call it what you will. He tried to prevent WWII and saw the "preventative possibilities in his new invention which embodied "death ray" characteristics". A system he said he had tried to sell...

...to Great Britain for $30,000,000 on the basis of his presentation that the device would provide complete protection for the British Isles against any enemy approaching by sea or air, and would provide an offensive weapon to which there was no defense."

Wow. Much talk of lightening balls and particle ray beam etc. Ideas that didn't necessarily go away with various reports of foo fighters during that war, or through the 80's but continue to this day. I digress, suffice to say he was most definitly one of the world's greatest inventors and a pioneer in his (electrical) field.

The oscillation option? As mentioned above Tesla is clearly thought of as an electrical genius but he was also responsible for a number of mechanical and other devices. One such was the Tesla Oscillator - his "Earthquake Machine". Apparently he once joked that he could split the Earth with one of these devices, and no-one ever knew if he was joking...!![credit to EclipseG - your page wouldn't load]

Oneirocritic oneirataxia...

"Turning the Tide on Democratic Pessimism"...an odd phrase to use: doesn't he know that the tide turns, you can't turn it; you can use it but have to ride it or fight it (and you can survive the fight but you won't turn the tide) OK, OK, I know what he means...

David Miliband had the honour of giving the John Smith Memorial Lecture last night, (published yesterday in the New Statesman) Despite reams of well-written waffle there was the usual soundbites and not a small amount of mistakes, misunderstanding and/or lies. I'll leave you to find out what and where but one phrase was:

"Ironically, one of the things for which the Left has always striven has been an end to deference, an increase in the sense of power enjoyed by people. People want a say not just an answer."

An end to classism maybe but certainly not an end to deference, they revel in it. Also note the "sense" of power, not power itself, oh no, the Left is all about control of the people. Clearly, and par for the course, there was also some not so well written pap:

"If there is no such thing as society, why is there such a thing as Facebook?"

...imagining what Smith might say if asked to participate: this was Miliband suggesting that the Conservatives' assertion that "the 'post bureaucratic' new technology of production, distribution and exchange has rendered progressive politics outdated" was facile. The gist of the whole speech was that they need to change, audit, think forward, reinvent...again. They need to be more like John Smith, more like Obama, more like the Greeks (NO, I'm serious, and he didn't mean the ancient world-changing empire)

oneirataxia n. - inability to distinguish between fantasy and reality
oneiric adj. - having to do with dreams
oneirocritic n. - someone who interprets dreams [luciferous logolepsy]

OAS office...

Let's suppose for a minute the following: London's mayor began a hunger strike on Friday calling on the EU to mediate in the UK and demanding Gordon Brown's government hand over funds to pay city employees. Mayor Boris Johnson announced his hunger strike as he turned in a document with his demands to EU officials, a city planning director told The Associated Press.

Johnson was democratically elected mayor and has protested what he calls a violation of the democracy after Brown appointed a member of his ruling party to a new post as top authority in England's capital. The pro-New Labour National Assembly has also transferred nearly all of Johnson's budget and services to the new authority.

OK...that's fiction but now imagine the OAS office in Caracas and the above is more or less the equivalent of the situation with Chavez in Venezuela and the reason why Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma began a hunger strike on Friday. He has called on the OAS (Organization of American States) to mediate in Venezuela and to assure that Chavez's government hand over funds to pay city employees.

"The opposition mayor was elected last year and has protested what he calls a violation of the constitution after Chavez appointed a member of his ruling party to a new post as top authority in Venezuela's capital. The pro-Chavez National Assembly has also transferred nearly all of Ledezma's budget and services to the new federal authority."

The timing is interesting as the OAS is in the news re Honduras although the following quote is completely relevant to the situation in Venezuela:

"Will the OAS ever be capable of understanding that simply holding elections has never been and never will be a valid, sufficient argument for classifying a government as democratic?"

VenEconomy: Who Violated the Constitution in Honduras? It makes for interesting reading...if you're interested!

"There are fears that, once again, this collapsing organization, which counts among its members several governments of a totalitarian bent, will not enforce the Democratic Charter to defend respect for the Constitution in Honduras and the principles of a true democracy. It is more than likely that the OAS will, once again, succumb to the demagogic temptation to defend certain fledgling dictators disguised as democrats."

The OAS met yesterday and suspended Honduras [July 5th OAS press release] only the 2nd time that they've taken such a measure: the first time was Cuba in 1962 and such is the irony of life that Cuba was reinstated LAST MONTH (June 2009) at the 39th General Assembly of the OAS, in...wait for it...HONDURAS! Despite this suspension they refused to get involved in the "return" of ousted President Manuel Zelaya ** who seems intent on making bloody an as yet bloodless affair and although the whole incident has been 'widely criticised by the international community' it is not as simple as the "right wing coup" it seems to have been made out to be. [BBC Q&A]

** This return is expected today and the Hondurans have said they will refuse to let the plane land...

Update 7am (July 6th) : They did refuse to let it land last night [NYT].

The flyover infuriated some members of Honduras’s air force. “That was a flagrant violation of our sovereignty by a Venezuelan aircraft,” said an air force officer who spoke on the condition that he not be identified. “They entered our airspace without permission and they were flying lower than allowed. It was an act of provocation.”

And there was blood, although not the first according to Pablo Ordaz's write-up in El País this morning who also syas that many demonstrators were damning the name of Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez who had said there would be blood. Just over an hour ago (6a.m. Spain time) Zelaya gave a press conference in El Salvador where his plan landed. He was accompanied by the Presidents of Ecuador, Paraguay, Argentina and El Salvador. [El País]

Outing obscurantism...

You knew that the laughable bitch-slap-fest that was the "we're more gay-friendly than you" tit-for-tat this week was about more than perceived equality and the pink pound: there could be more bad news being buried but the Times today reports of 'doomsday' cutback plans being drawn up by senior civil servants;

Senior civil servants have let it be known that they are sceptical about the claims made by both main parties on public spending.

This news encourages me in that at least some in power have the country foremost in their minds. Top marks also to Steve Bundred head of the spending watchdog the Audit Commission the who stated the obvious fact that "politicans had failed to be honest about cuts" but more importantly called for "severe pay restraint" for public sector workers.

The article (by Jonathan Oliver, Isabel Oakeshott and David Smith) also mentions the looming mutiny inside the Cabinet and Downing Street over Crash Gordon's "failure to admit that a future Labour government would have to reduce public spending." Failure to admit, nice; lying, scheming toe-rag would be more accurate.

Downing Street advisers have warned the prime minister they are ready to quit unless he sacks the cabinet minister they blame for encouraging him to make misleading claims about budget figures.

Yes! They are demanding the removal of Shaun Woodward who has a special role advising Brown on strategy (that would be the "calamitous strategic miscalculation" or in other words the sorry scene we see at PMQs now of lie, obfuscate, lie, dither, say "zero % rise" etc). Apparently a Downing Street insider has said that his [Woodward's] influence has "triggered a bitter row behind the scenes, with senior figures including Lord Mandelson". LOL!

Unfuckingbelievable...two things today (today being Thursday ...posting after midnight) have left me open mouthed in disbelief: one was pleasant: Cheryl Cole's dress that she wore Tuesday night, or not so much the dress but more specifically Cheryl Cole in it; the other, and the one not based on lust, is the poor level of intellgence (if that is the right word to use) of some UK students. Every year there are similar tales of falls in standards - coinciding with rises in pass-rates - and every year there are similar stories of primary school students or secondary school pupils etc and what they don't know...this time it is gobsmackingly worse in that the following refers to 18 year old university first-years: "Trendy teaching is 'producing a generation of history numbskulls'"

(Daily Mail, click on image, as usual opens in new tab)

Please tell me you're astounded too...by the way...these weren't students in lycra-knitting media studies or Egyptian modern art for vegan monocyclists; they were firstyear undergraduates reading history in 2006, 2007 and 2008.

P.S. I answered all five correctly in the time it took to read them...maybe 20 seconds? In fact in that time I also gave the monarch of both sides in Q2 and in Q4 gave four of the 20-odd possible correct answers.

Obvious obfuscation...

It's not hard to understand, it's not hard to see...so why does UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown insist on avoiding the obvious answers? He is either stupid (I don't really believe this, honest!), certifiable (it's certainly a possiblity!), or has a sinister ulterior motive (we haven't got that far yet) or knows [or hopes] something very few people know). And after all the hoohah he seems intent to keep digging the hole deeper by claimimg he is being honest with people [BBC]; he claims he "always told the truth" (psst..only liars ever say that!)

Brown certainly appears frustrated and "furious that the current debate focuses on his integrity and his honesty" but he has ONLY himself to blame: no aides, no assitants, no cabinet colleagues, no other minister. The BBC's Nick Robinson and the C word:

" [Brown] has changed his description of what is happening to capital expenditure three times in three weeks at PMQs...Today, he also declared that current spending would go up by "zero per cent"

Eh? Surely not...this is the PM right? Not a Rory Bremner sketch? David Cameron may not be very popular with his constant attacks on Brown but he is making Brown look more out of touch.

"...neither the prime minister nor Lord Mandelson seem to put much store by what the Treasury says these days. Curious times indeed." Image link to Stephanomics; Who to believe?

Optimistic official opposition...

"It’s finally happened," Daniel Hannan tells us, (in the - at last - revamped Daily Telegraph blog pages)...he was talking of a "real" opposition in the EU.

"The European Conservatives and Reformists held their inaugural meeting today [Wed 24th] in an atmosphere of unprecedented amity and optimism."

"It is one thing to read about the ECR on paper, another to sit among its members. Here was as sober and respectable a gathering as you will find in Brussels: ex-ministers, professors of economics, former diplomats. Six of the nine participating parties are in government in their home countries." Crackpots, extremists, facists...these are the taunts from the left; they are wrong, they are hypocritical.

"Odd, isn’t it, that pro-Brussels parties are somehow inoculated against the possibility of extremism"

God news all round. A new force to combat the careering juggernaut. "We now have a mechanism in place to advance a wholly different vision of Europe: one based on free people, free markets and free nations". I live in hope.

Out, out, out III...

More brownstuff from Brown: "I will not walk away from Downing Street". Mr Brown told The Times he had no intention of standing down writes Philip Webster, Political Editor.

Fuck no...you'll be dragged out kicking and screaming by the sound of it. Despite yet more lies today [FTWB] from Gordon Brown he states that newcomers must sigh a pledge: the pledge says, amongst other things, that they must commit to "prudence with public money", LOL! What a complete Tango With Added Tango.

Three absolutely lovely pairs...and I don't mean the shiny, spray-on trousers. The lovely ladies in the picture below were working today to show us a new type of bra. Apparently the new ba has been designed to "mimic the ideal lift and support achieved when women hold up their own bust with the help of a brand new structure shaped with four ‘fingers’ that is moulded into each cup" thereby replacing the underwire. Note the "their own bust" and note as well the two girls left and right showing this in practical terms; the image below shows how this 'four finger lift' works...
One thing occurs to me - well, more than one - what was that phrase again? "...mimic the ideal lift and support achieved when women hold up their own bust"...then, looking at the position of the thumbs (and ignoring completely the lack of one finger), who's hands are those meant to be?