Seen in the News

[PanBiker]

I read a bit more about the killing of that man in a night club in Birmingham.

He was sports coach at our Ruby's former Primary School in Stratford.

[Stanley]

VJ party Bankfield Avenue Heaton Norris August 1945.
Was this the one David?
PS. I know you won't believe this but who is Katie Price. I honestly don't know beyond hearing the name mentioned in the news... Am I missing anything?

[Big Kev]

I know you won't believe this but who is Katie Price. I honestly don't know beyond hearing the name mentioned in the news... Am I missing anything?

Just put her name into Google. A minor celebrity who started in The Sun newspaper on page 3.

[Tripps]

Was this the one David?

Yes it is.
I doubt they gave three months notice, did a risk assessment, and had insurance cover of £5 million. If they survived WWII then a street party should have been relatively safe.

Kev has answered the other query.

Try Gemma Collins too. I think that is called 'jumping the shark' . She has lost three stones in weight you know - many times.

[Stanley]

Definitely not David.... we'd survived a war, we were going to survive a street party!
As for the Gemma Collins clip from the Manchester Evening News.... All I can say is that the paper has gone downhill since I was a lad!

[Tripps]

We always had the Chron. Manchester Evening Chronicle.

[Stanley]

I rather think we did as well David and the Manchester Guardian in the morning! (Those were the days before the Guardian went soft and scuttled down to the Great Wen.)

[Stanley]

see THIS BBC report on what Sunak is to say in a speech today about students being taught some form of maths until they are 18 years old on the grounds that numeracy is essential in a world of data.
All well and good but i have news for him, the directors of education in the Board Schools of the 19th century were just as fixated on Reading, writing and arithmetic because these were attributes essential for workers in industry. This is the same motive that drives Sunak today but he forgets the value of the humanities. (I would say that wouldn't I....)
Over the last couple of decades we have seen the value of disciplines like history, philosophy and Archaeology together with languages (including English) devalued by educationalists and even some universities. Let's not forget music, English Literature and drama. These subjects are just as important as numeracy. One wonders whether this is the view of an accountant who knows nothing beyond maths..... From the way he is governing the country I suspect this is the case!

[Tizer]

Talking of which, I recommend this book: `Gunpowder and Geometry: The Life of Charles Hutton, Pit Boy, Mathematician and Scientific Rebel' by Benjamin Wardhaugh, published by Harper Collins. LINK I borrowed it from the library and found it fascinating and enlightening. (Don't confuse the author with James Hutton, the famous geologist and another `North Briton' of note, and of the same era.)

[PanBiker]

BBC report on what Sunak is to say in a speech today about students being taught some form of maths until they are 18 years old on the grounds that numeracy is essential in a world of data.

Along with many others of my peers educated in the 50's and 60's. I was taught basic numeracy at Primary school, then algebra and logarithms at Secondary. Which I suppose is where a lot of folk left off.

I didn't do A levels or sixth form but I did have to do five years of Calcs and Principles during my City & Guilds at College into my chosen branch of electronics. Half a lifetime later I had to add rafts of binary mathematics at Lancaster University on various IT related courses and my CISCO training.

Probably because I have never had to use most of it practically and certainly not in the last ten years or so. I cant remember half of what I once had in my head!

I do still consider myself above what the government cite as the problem, that a lot of the population only have the numeracy of the average primary school student.

Our Daniel excelled at Mathematics and was top student at West Craven and then won prizes for Further Maths at Nelson and Colne College. He achieved a degree in Advanced Mathematics at Warwick university and was at last using some of his skills in that area by the time he was 30 or so. As you all know we lost him in an RTA when he was 32.

[Big Kev]

Prince Harry's memoir has only been released in Spain so far but it's all over the news. Does anyone care? I'm certainly not interested in family arguments.

[Stanley]

Trouble is Kev that there are so many people out there hooked on quibbling celebs and spoiled kids. The sooner the book is published in the UK and everything hashed over by the red tops the better.
It has no attraction for me whatsoever, apart from this all being obvious evidence that the 'royal family' is totally dysfunctional.

[Big Kev]

One for Tizer I reckon, Cornwall space launch on Monday. A ride out, packed lunch and a flask of tea.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-64197667

[Stanley]

So tell me, have I understood this correctly? You go and sit there in the dark 'watching' a 747 take off?
Surely there's more to it than that. And what's this about umbrellas not being allowed at an active airfield?
Sorry, include me out, I am underwhelmed.....
On another subject....see THIS CBS report on the shooting of a school teacher by a 6 year old pupil on Friday. That's right.... 6 years old. What is the world coming to when this can happen?

[Tizer]

So tell me, have I understood this correctly? You go and sit there in the dark 'watching' a 747 take off?
Surely there's more to it than that.

Sorry to disappoint you but yes, that's all there is to it unless you like `refreshments, toilets and a silent disco'. It's just a 747 taking off. Note: The Spaceport said: "Although it will be dark, you'll still be able to witness some aspects of the launch and experience the sounds and smells that come with it." Aren't most people in the UK already familiar with `the sounds and smells' of a 747? All you'll see for real (i.e. not on the big TV screen) is a 747 take off in the dark. The actual launch of the rocket from the plane takes place `off the coast of Ireland'. I hope they mean the west coast and not the east in case the rocket is a dud and falls to Earth. If the rocket is successful it's going to litter the atmosphere with yet more satellites and drive the astronomers crazy. There'll be more excitement watching their reaction than the `space launch'.

[Stanley]

So it's just one more example of Beardie's aptitude for self publicity is it. (I take it he is still the figurehead...)
I'm still struggling to come to terms with THIS. I've heard reports that it was definitely a deliberate shooting. He shot the teacher in the stomach during a maths class....
Remember all the hype during the run-up to the 2012 Olympics and the spending frenzy in East London? We were promised that a major spin-off would be the encouragement to take part in sport and exercise that would result.
See THIS for the somewhat belated verdict on what actually happened according to the Public Accounts Committee. Very little it seems.
The MPs said: "Despite Sport England spending an average of £323m of taxpayers' money each year since 2015, the percentage of active adults increased by only 1.2% between November 2016 and November 2019. "Nearly two in five adults in England still do not meet the chief medical officer's guidelines for recommended activity.".
The committee report also says: Hopes for a boost to grassroots sport from London 2012 "failed to materialise", with the proportion of adults participating at least once a week falling in the first three years following the event
I suppose it comes under the heading 'It seemed such a good idea at the time'.

[Tripps]

Looks as if the launch has been less than successful. There has been an 'anomaly'.

That's a shame.

"Space is hard" is the message, and they will try again.

[Stanley]

Quite right David. See THIS BBC report.
A jumbo jet operated by the American Virgin Orbit company carried a rocket out of Newquay, Cornwall, to release it high over the Atlantic Ocean. The rocket ignited and appeared to be ascending correctly. But word then came from the company that the rocket had suffered an "anomaly". The satellites it was carrying could not be released and were lost.
"Matt Archer, the launch director at the UK Space Agency, said the issue occurred in the upper segment of the rocket. "The second-stage engine had a technical anomaly and didn't reach the required orbit," he explained. "

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on the news that the number of 'Excess Deaths' in 2022 is among worst in 50 years.
More than 650,000 deaths were registered in the UK in 2022 - 9% more than 2019. This represents one of the largest excess death levels outside the pandemic in 50 years. Though far below peak pandemic levels, it has prompted questions about why more people are still dying than normal. Data indicates pandemic effects on health and NHS pressures are among the leading explanations.
Meanwhile Sunak and his henchmen stand back from addressing the problems that are being raised by the current bouts of industrial action. (Grant Shapps is blaming excess deaths on the actions of the strikers.....)

[plaques]

See THIS BBC report on the news that the number of 'Excess Deaths' in 2022 is among worst in 50 years.

Dr John Campbell raised Excess Deaths in one of his latest talks. 16 mins. He makes the point that it needs investigation. I think the feeling is that because it is also occurring across the world it can be ignored by the UK government.

[Stanley]

In my mind I make a link with previous reports we have had about the fall in life expectancy in some of the most deprived parts of the UK. What is being reported is not progress.....

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on the use of dangerous chemicals in some beauty products.
"Major beauty brands Urban Decay, Revolution and Inglot are selling make-up in the UK containing "forever chemicals", BBC News has found. These pollutants - known as PFAS - have been linked to serious health concerns including cancer. They are not illegal in the UK but five European countries are expected to propose an EU-wide ban on Friday. L'Oréal, which owns Urban Decay, told the BBC it was "well underway" with phasing out the chemicals.
PFAS, which stands for poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances, are resistant to oil and water, making them highly valuable to the make-up industry. Historically they have been added to products to make them last longer, improve finish and preserve the colour of eyeshadows and lipsticks. Many brands are now "PFAS-free" because of the increasing evidence of the negative environmental and health impacts from these compounds."
I knew about these chemicals but was under the impression that we had already banned them.
The EU seems to be on the ball. Will we be agile enough to follow them?

[Tizer]

Could we see the beginnings of a new political party here?...
`London Mayor Sadiq Khan to say he can't ignore 'immense' Brexit damage' LINK
`Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is set to attack what he will describe as the government's "denial" of the "immense damage" he says Brexit is doing. In a speech at Mansion House in the City of London, he will call for a shift to greater alignment with Europe. The Labour mayor is expected to say the consequences of leaving the EU "can't be airbrushed out of history"....'

[Stanley]

"The Labour mayor is expected to say the consequences of leaving the EU "can't be airbrushed out of history"....'"
The Tories are hell bent on doing just that and must be stopped. The path they are taking us down, a reversion to the worst aspects of 19th Century Laissez Faire management of society, an impoverished population and a totally imbalanced economy in which the gap between rich and poor grows daily can only lead to disaster and penury for all. They are so thick that they don't realise that this deterioration of society is going to destroy their way of life as well. I have long predicted that the end result will be a scattering of closed communities with private security defending them against the tide of unwashed poor rioting at their gates. Surely they can understand that this destroys their quality of life as surely as it does for us proles?
See THIS for a good example of the damage their policies are doing to our society.
"Striking ambulance staff feel "utterly betrayed" by attempts to "paint them as uncaring", a union has said. The GMB union has written to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, accusing him of "demonising" paramedics, call handlers and emergency care assistants who are striking over pay and conditions. Ministers have accused workers of putting lives at risk during strikes. In response, Downing Street said it "greatly valued" ambulance workers and the "door remains open" for talks."
We have all seen Sunak's response during PMQs when he linked excessive deaths not to under-funding of the NHS but striking workers. Make up your own mind where the truth lies.....

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on a shooting in London.
"A seven-year-old girl has suffered life-threatening injuries in a shooting close to a central London church. Police responded at 13:31 GMT to reports shots were fired from a moving vehicle, as a remembrance service took place at St Aloysius Church in Euston. The Met Police said another girl, aged 12, and four women, aged 21, 41, 48 and 54, were also injured. The 48-year-old may have life-changing injuries while the 21-year-old's condition is not life-threatening. A police representative said the other two women were not in a life-threatening condition and that the 12-year-old girl had been treated for a minor leg injury."
I suppose it's a product of my age but I and shocked by the fact that cities like London are more and more looking like Chicago. What is happening to the level of policing?