OneGuyFromBarlick

You're right Peter. I read the report right through.... It's a chilling level of communication and evidence of how intelligence-led modern military actions are. That is so frightening.....
Ten minutes later. I was thinking about that report as I brewed my morning coffee. I have no doubt it's genuine but I feel it might have been stage managed by Israeli Intelligence to 'prove' to the West how merciful they were being in giving prior warning. It's all too pat, us getting a verbatim report like that after such stressful circumstances.... Something very strange about it.

Stanley, it's a very strange war and, I believe, the word is `asymmetric'. I guess somewhere someone will be calculating the ratio of Palestinians killed to Israelis killed.

`UK forests face 'catastrophic ecosystem collapse' LINK
`Silent forests devoid of life are a possibility within a generation in our already deforested nation, according to a panel of British experts. "Ecosystem collapse", where trees suddenly fade and die, could happen within 50 years, they warn. But the 42 experts said if we act now we can avert the catastrophe...'.

You give many links to the BBC.

I just followed one and got the usual warning about cookies. It's very easy to say "yes that's fine" but try to avoid them and they take you to another world - where you can do almost anything except refuse them. Page after endless page of information - but no option to refuse. I gave up finally and decided to manage without the words from the BBC.

I've never seen such a complex situation on any other site. Many just say accept or refuse. Why is the BBC so insistent that they have my data?

Did you know it takes the full licence cost of nearly eight thousand five hundred licence payers just to fund the salary of Gary Lineker? For that and many other reasons I don't like the BBC much.

That's fairly obvious David!

See THIS BBC article discussing the status of NFTs.
When Homer Simpson comes up with a get-rich-quick scheme it usually ends badly. In the latest episode of The Simpsons the hapless dad turns his son Bart, and then himself, into NFTs to make millions. It all goes wrong when Homer finds out from a floating pizza cat that "the NFT craze is over". The episode has been widely applauded by NFT fans and sceptics alike for successfully poking fun at a side of the crypto world that exploded a couple of years ago but has now gone very quiet. So is the floating pizza cat right, and are NFTs really dead?
If you take the trouble to read further you could come to the conclusion that it's not dead but certainly in major decline.
As we have remarked here before, it's very hard to see how paying for something that has no substance with 'money' that is also only a concept, is ridiculous. Someone somewhere is laughing all the way to the bank!

Watched the news on ITV last night and was struck that in the Gaza conflict they led on the plight of the Palestinian civilians. The other glaring fact was that they never mentioned once that Hamas "was a terrorist organisations as recognised by the British Government ........". A refreshing change from the daily repeat on the BBC.

See THIS BBC report .....
It is now "virtually certain" that 2023 - a year of deadly heatwaves, floods and fires - will be the warmest on record, new data suggests. The prediction follows "exceptional" high October temperatures. Global average air temperatures were 0.4C warmer than the previous high of October 2019, according to the EU's climate change service. Driven by carbon emissions and an El Niño weather event, this was the fifth month in a row of record warmth. Extreme global temperatures will likely continue into 2024, researchers say. That this year will be the warmest ever recorded is now pretty much unavoidable: the last two months of 2023 are extremely unlikely to reverse the trend and high temperatures around the world have continued into November.
As we near the end of the year this prediction firms up. One part of me says good because of the affect on my energy bills but then I recognise that for millions throughout the world this is very bad news.

Panbiker, there's been lots about the effects on the Palestinians on the BBC web site, such as this article: LINK

And the BBC's Jeremy Bowen has taken a lot of criticism and abuse for describing what's happening to the ordinary Palestinian folk,

The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) and Israeli ministers yesterday made fierce and dangerous criticism of several news organisations such as Associated Press, the New York Times etc claiming their journalists knew about the 7th October Hamas attack in advance and didn't warn Israel. They claim reporters were present as the Hamas fighters moved in. All the news organisations are enraged and deny knowing anything in advance and saying none of their staff were present in the area. There has been a shocking response from at least one Israeli minister who said that reporters working for those organisations `should be assassinated'. Not surprisingly the news people now accuse the Israeli government of putting all their staff in great danger. The Israeli government and IDF seem to be digging themselves into an ever deeper hole and losing the sympathy of many people and governments worlwide.

But not seen on TV.

There is a parade today in London. It dates back 800 years, and Dick Whittington was in it once (not the panto - the real person), so they say, and the star of the show this year is Jim Moir (AKA Vic Reeves) Wow. It's usually a bit amateurish, and naff to be frank. Lots of cadets and stuff but I've always enjoyed watching it in previous years. For some reason I can't find it this year during my usual channel hopping. Is there something else going on?

Lord Mayor's Show.

From childhood we all know what came after the Lord Mayor's Show, and look what I missed

"A giant pig float was by Members of the Worshipful Company of Paviors, (no me neither) the inflatable had their crest on it"

I wonder if their Coat of Arms says "We're in the area and have a load of tarmac left over"
In Latin that's "sumus in area et onus tarmac superfuerit"

I like it. . .

Can't have anything diverting attention form the Braverman Leadership Campaign David!
I see your sporting namesake made the headlines yesterday. LINK
I am told there is no need to feel sorry for THIS lady.....
The ex-boss of NatWest, Dame Alison Rose, will lose out on £7.6m after she admitted to discussing the closure of Nigel Farage's bank account. Dame Alison will receive her £2.4m fixed pay package, but will not benefit from share awards and bonuses she had previously been entitled to. Dame Alison resigned in July after she spoke about Mr Farage's bank account with Coutts, which is owned by NatWest. The former chief executive said she accepted the bank's decision.
Can anyone explain to me how someone can be worth a payout of £10M?

See THIS BBC report and reflect that Suella Braverman will be pleased. A 'nuisance' taken off our streets!
Homeless people's tents in central London have been destroyed during a Met Police operation. Refuse workers threw the tents into the back of their lorry on Huntley Street, Camden, at about 15:00 GMT on Friday. Elodie Berland, who volunteers with outreach organisation Streets Kitchen, recorded the scene after being called there by some of the homeless men. The Met said it "worked with University College London Hospital and other partners in response to concerns". It is understood that the NHS hospital trust, which has a building entrance on the road, requested the dispersal of rough sleepers but not the destruction of tents. Refuse company Veolia was contacted for comment.
Will anyone sleep sounder now that this menace has been dealt with?
The report goes on to say that the tents and personal belongings of ten homeless men were thrown in the refuse wagon. Words fail me..... I hope I am never at these people's mercy!

Have a look at THIS report from Northern Ireland.
A man born without hands or legs has been told he will soon no longer get a daily visit from a care worker to help him shower and get dressed. DJ Calvert told BBC News NI: "I've been let down - and I'm not the only one.". It was proof that Northern Ireland's health and social care system had "crashed", said the 49-year-old.
I daren't allow myself free reign to comment on this story but leave it up to you.
This is the sort of country you live in these days.....

See THIS BBC report that the Israeli Defence Force has sent tanks and commandos into the emergency department at Al Shifa hospital in Gaza City.
Israel says its military is carrying out an operation against Hamas in Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. An eyewitness inside the hospital tells the BBC they saw tanks and commando soldiers enter its main emergency department.
The ordinary citizen, like me, has no way of assessing this news beyond total revulsion. I have no way of knowing if Israel's claims about Hamas having underground bunkers beneath the hospital. All I know is that it is a hospital that is not functioning because of the fighting and men, women and children, including premature babies, are dying. We had a report yesterday that the hospital is digging a mass grave in one of its quadrangles to bury 150 bodies....

`Supreme Court rules against the UK government's plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, saying it's unlawful' BBC Live

I heard that report Peter and I note that Sunak's immediate response was to say that if necessary he would change UK law to alter that position.
Have you noticed how he tends to speak as though he was going to do these things, not that he would get his government to do them.

I saw THIS BBC report and wonder what the hell is happening in the country?
Two boys aged 12 have been charged with murdering a 19-year-old man. Shawn Seesahai, 19, died when he was fatally stabbed in Wolverhampton on Monday evening. The boys were arrested a day later. The pair, who cannot be named due to their age, are set to appear before Birmingham Magistrates' Court on Friday. Mr Seesahai's mother has described her son as a "courageous, compassionate and confident young soul". The boys have also been charged with possession of a bladed article.

See THIS BBC report that speculates about the chances of Hunt cutting benefits and tax in his Autumn Statement.
Tax levels in the UK are currently at their highest since records began 70 years ago, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank. The government's single biggest source of revenue is through taxes on people's earnings, known as income tax, but there has been no speculation of cuts to that. However, the BBC has been told Mr Hunt is considering cutting inheritance tax, which is a 40% tax on the value of the estate - the property, money and possessions - of someone who has died. The tax is charged on the part of an estate that's above the threshold, but only applies to about 4% of estates and no tax is paid if the estate is valued at less than £325,000, or if anything above this threshold is left to a husband or wife, civil partner, charity, or a community amateur sports club. If a home is part of the estate and a person's children and grandchildren stand to inherit it, then the threshold can go up to £500,000. The tax sparks considerable debate, partly owing to the fact many people are concerned about it and find it difficult to understand.
If he does this and at the same time cuts some benefits many will find this hard to understand beyond simply buying wealthy Tory's votes especially when he has previously said tax cuts are "virtually impossible" and instead warned of "frankly very difficult decisions" in the Autumn Statement on Wednesday, which is when he will outline the government's latest tax and spending decisions.

Fraudsters are nothing if not creative. I wonder how many other QR codes are being changed or forged?..
`Thornaby: Woman targeted in £13k train station QR code scam' BBC

I almost never use a QR code. At first I thought you just pointed the phone at it , but when nothing happened, I guessed you had to take a photo of it. How am I supposed to know that? Then things over which you have no control happen - that won't do for me - so no thanks.

I don't think my life is impaired buy not using them.

My QR reader shows me the URL and I have to confirm if I want to continue

I'm with you David. I have never used them and don't feel disadvantaged. Why make life more complicated than it has to be?

Big Kev wrote: ↑18 Nov 2023, 13:45 My QR reader shows me the URL and I have to confirm if I want to continue

But the scammers can clone web sites, URLs etc.

Tizer wrote: ↑18 Nov 2023, 16:22

Big Kev wrote: ↑18 Nov 2023, 13:45 My QR reader shows me the URL and I have to confirm if I want to continue

But the scammers can clone web sites, URLs etc.

They do but there will always be typo or an extra letter in there. The 'real' URL will be hidden behind the clone, you just have to look at them very closely. They rely on people just having a quick glance or not looking at all.

THIS got my attention.
Four people have been injured, two badly, following a dog attack. North Wales Police went to an address on the Llŷn peninsula in Gwynedd on Friday morning, after reports of a dangerous dog. Two people were airlifted to hospital with serious injuries, and another two had minor injuries. The dog involved was destroyed, and is yet to be examined to establish the breed. A total of 37 dogs and a number of cats were seized from the address.

See THIS for the dire state of what is called 'news' in the UK today.
Nigel Farage has said he is "a hero" to some people and "a villain" to others, as he appeared in the new series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here. "In the jungle you're going to find the real me," the former Ukip and Brexit Party leader promised viewers. He is the latest political figure to star on the ITV show, following in the footsteps of the former health secretary, Matt Hancock, last year. Farage is earning £1.5m for taking part in the show. That is much more than the £320,000 that Hancock was paid last year, according to the register of MPs' financial interests.
In a world full of tragedy we pay someone £1.5M to eat maggots or similar. The Roman circuses in the Coliseum are reckoned to be sure signs of the decay of the state. Ask yourself what this means for Britain today.......
On another matter. I am listening once more to practitioners singing the praises of ;Regenerative Farming' and reflecting that this is Greenwash! Regenerative Farming is nothing more than what I was always taught as a pupil in Warwickshire as good practice and what had always been described as 'Mixed Farming'. I shall bump my article on it.....

Here it is......

WHAT’S THE BEEF?

In the days when my beard was black and I was driving a flat wagon which modern truckers would laugh at, a 90hp engine, 4 gears and a legal payload of 10 tons, I used to make a regular trip across to Sherburn in Elmet in East Yorkshire to pick up ten tons of barley for Cyril Richardson at Little Stainton who compounded his own cattle food. The name of the farmer I went to was Mr Bramley and I always used to enjoy visiting him because he was an able man, treated me with respect and I always learned from him.

The sharpest memory I have of the farm is the day Mrs Bramley asked me to come into the kitchen after we had loaded the 80 railway hire sacks each weighing 280lb and sheeted them down. She gave me a pint of tea and asked me if I’d like a beef sandwich. When I said yes, she asked me what sort, Angus or Hereford? I had to admit that I didn’t know there was any difference; as far as I was concerned beef was beef, full stop. She gave me some of each and I sat there and advanced my education. The thing that strikes me now is that they were so enthusiastic about beef on that farm that they always had at least two joints on the go from different breeds.

Mr Bramley ran Home Farm on the same cropping system that his father and grandfather had used. There were three rotated field crops, barley, turnips and grass. He kept Hereford beef cattle which grazed in summer and in winter were fed on barley, chopped turnips and straw in covered straw yards. The cash flow came from sales of finished beef cattle and surplus barley.

The beef cattle were bought as stores in Ireland and shipped across to Birkenhead. Jim Bramley and his mates used to go to Ireland for the sales in the spring and buy the best cattle they could obtain. Back in the 1960s they were paying £400 and £500 apiece for the beasts. I asked him how they could make any profit and he surprised me by saying that they couldn’t, they always made a small loss so I pressed him further, I knew there had to be an explanation.

He explained that the cattle were never intended to be profitable. The reason he farmed them was two-fold; he liked cattle, enjoyed rearing them and competing for prizes at the winter fatstock sales but the economic reason they were on the farm was as part of the farm machinery. They ate grass, turnips and barley and trod straw to make manure for the crops. This input maintained the condition and fertility of his land and resulted in a surplus of barley which provided the profit. A side benefit of the system was low stress and disease levels in the herd, the straw bed fermenting under the cattle kept them warm and killed off bacteria. He admitted that the main benefit to him was that he loved going out and watching prime quality contented beasts kept in the best conditions he could provide them with. Here we had a happy man making a profit out of producing top quality beef and grain with the added benefit that he was improving his land in the process.

Fifty years on it sounds like some Utopian dream doesn’t it. So what brought on this attack of nostalgia? I was listening to Farming Today on the BBC this morning and they were describing the moves in the USA to break away from traditional line breeding of cattle to a system where the selection of the breeding stock was based simply on performance. The resulting animals are finished on feed lots that can hold upwards of 100,000 cattle and rely heavily on hormonal and other chemical additives to raise conversion rates and keep down disease levels. The interviewer visited farms in Yorkshire where this technology is being adopted and the conclusion was that this was another nail in the coffin of the small scale traditional grazing farm.

My conclusion is that I must be some kind of a dinosaur. I bitterly regret the loss of the old style mixed farm which gave a good life to both the farmers and the stock. Apart from the purely agricultural considerations this is an erosion of a management system which has served us well for hundreds of years, preserved a landscape and nurtured a way of life which has made an enormous contribution to our social system. It seems to me we are losing out all round here and I wonder if considerations like these ever cross the minds of the people making the changes. Only one thing is certain, we can never go back and even though I shan’t be here to see it, I’ll lay a small bet that our children will live to regret it.

SCG/10 January 2004
830 words.