Stagecoach Exeter

may I for a change complain about the coverage by the Echo of the complaints/moans against our local bus passenger service provider Stagecoach. For myself I find that the fare for me to travel from Salmon Pool Lane to the City Centre is very good value at £1.35. This of course does not compare favourably with the cost of car parking for an hour in the centre, being almost twice as much, but I am after all contributing to the pay and pensions of Stagecoach personnel.Talking of which I also find the coverage of the pay/allowances for our overworked councillors to be quite offensive as they do such important work. Take, for example the labour leader of Exeter City Council, Peter Edwards. Now if I look at my copy of the Stagecoach Group Pension Scheme leaflet for December 2005 we can all see how hard Peter Edwards works. Peter was a Trustee for the Pension Scheme. Not only that but Peter was also the Employee Trustee for Stagecoach in Warwickshire, Stagecoach in Oxford, Stagecoach West and Wales, Stagecoach East, Cambridge & Peterborough and finally Stagecoach South West. Now how on earth will our Peter find the time to set-up and run Exeter Unitary Authority. You see what I mean by not fully understanding the hard work that ordinary members of the public put into working on our behalf.So, please let us find space in our hearts to understand the level of committment from those willing to put themselves into public service on our behalf and let's stop moaning all the time.

Exeter Unitary bid

I have recently received and returned my Voter Registration Form from Exeter City Council and would like to draw to readers attention the following information.Don't lose your right to vote is the headline on the attached narrative to the form and yet the Exeter City Council elections which are due to be held on Thursday 1st May 2008 according to this piece of paper are to quote 'correct at time of going to press'. Now why should they add such a caveat because I personally can see no reason whatsoever why these elections should not be held. That is not unless some of the councillors are afraid that they may lose their seats, and taxpayers money, or conversely it may actually give the true architect of this policy, Roy Slack, a chance to get back into office. So, come on any councillor or council official give us just one good reason why there should not be elections on the 1st May 2008. I do not want any contracts entered into, or decisions of a long term nature made, if Exeter is to become a Unitary Authority until elections have been successfully held.Before you answer just read the Gould Report on the disgraceful shinanigans which took place at the last elections held in the democratic Scotland and wonder why some of us think that we are being mislead over this important issue. We are seriously getting more like a banana republic all the time, a plague on all your houses.

Youths getting drunk

so glad that Princes Harry and William were able to find the time to go over to France to watch our boys take on the South Africans. What surprises me is that was not our Prince Harry so desperate to go to Iraq that he was going to resign from the army because the thought of his boys taking on those awful foreigners with him just sitting on his backside was just too much for him. What do you want to do with your life at taxpayers expense Harry?What disgusts me is that they appear in at least one national daily (Daily Mail) getting absolutely drunk and setting such a poor example to our young people. How can we tell the youth of today to restrict their drinking whilst these two young men manifestly are nothing but spoilt yobs. As for young people being shot on the streets of Britain what exactly do you think our soldiers were doing in Iraq, handing out sweets?

War in the middle east

the situation in the middle east is deteriorating by the day and I think that we should have a statement from the Prime Minister immediately. Can he share with us his vision about the particular situation with regard to Iraq and Turkey.The reason for my desire for knowledge is that during the American surge in Baghdad, something which we no longer hear about, the Americans could not seriously trust any of the local troops who they had trained. Accordingly they used troops from the Kurdish area, stupid or what! Now of course the PKK are the insurgents into southern Turkey and therefore, just like Britain and America resist the insurgency into Iraq then of course Turkey has every right to resist the insurgents into their Country.This however will result in Turkish military action against the Iraqi Kurdish area and Britain and America are obliged to protect Iraq from foreign threats. So, Britain and America will have to defend against Turks, and of course from my knowledge Turkey is still in NATO.So, Gordon Brown please share with us your thoughts and vision as to how you think a general war in the area can be avoided because the Armagheddon which some of us saw coming is getting closer. Oh, and before you say this is nothing to do with Exeter and the westcountry where do you think the soldiers who will have to fight and die for the vain politicians come from? Yes the westcountry.

Mamon in Exeter

I am just so pleased at the success of the new Princesshay mamon centre. As reported in the Echo on Saturday can we expect to see yet more very expensive handbags disappearing off the shelves. As for the clothing then Exeter women may not be the best dressed in the westcountry but their clothes seem to be the most expensive, could it be the case of mutton dressed as lamb.Well I just cannot wait until Christmas when we celebrate the birth of the saviour of the world by spending even more money on gifts when, if anybody bothers to read the papers, our soldiers do not get the care and attention they have earnt, and we can get totally drunk and obese whilst the people of Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan can let another year pass with the multiple deaths of their loved ones.We can also celebrate the wonderful bloodless transition of power from Tony Blair to Gordon Brown and maybe even take the time to read the reasons why some people are of the belief that Dr David Kelly did not die from his own hand but was murdered. Oh what joy it is to be a christian.

BBC

we have the ridiculous situation with regard to tax proposals as put together by Gordon Brown when he was chancellor and now Alistair Darling who is chancellor now that Gordon has grabbed the crown of being our President, sorry Prime Minister, after the coup which has overthrown Tony Blair who now gives speeches in America talking about defeating terror, the sort of terror brought to Iraqi families when soldiers kick down doors and take innocent people away to be tortured, sorry again, interrogated under extraordinary rendition.My point, Inheritance Tax is to be reduced so that rich people can pass on even more of their wealth to children. In the meantime the poorest members of society who have no children will in May have their taxes increased because of the abolition of the lower rate of tax, also they can expect substantial increases in their council taxes. So thank you very much socialists, sorry again, new labour.Finally, the one eyed king, sorry Gordon Brown, is still telling us that there is to be no referendum and that MPs will really scrutinise the new constitution, sorry Treaty of Lisbon, but if there is anything they don't agree with then it will not be changed. Does anybody wonder why some of us are very concerned that the researchers and producers of the news on the BBC are the ones to be reduced in number. What will happen if I and they disappear, we might as well just have the news from the government.

Disability allowance

I'll tell you why an awful lot of us are really annoyed at the way that this government considers us to be incompetent idiots. Take the matter of the abject failure to deal with the level of unemployed and the significant number of individuals receiving disability allowance or whatever it is called nowadays.I was born in 1949 and there were literally millions born just before and just after me. What is now happening is that the post war bulge people are now coming up to retirement, either at 60 for women and 65 for men. Accordingly, when we reach the ages indicated earlier if anybody was receiving any disability payments instead of unemployment then they will come off the figures and receive their old age pension instead. Accordingly, because of the demographic structure the government will claim a reduction in those receiving disability payments. I wish that more people had studied statistics so we can stop being misled.

Gordon Brown

GB has stated that he wants Parliament to vote on the new European Treaty. He supported a manifesto that included the proviso that there should be a referendum. He reneges on this pledge and he wants MPs to scrutinise it. This is false because MPs must put themselves forward for election based on how they would vote for the Treaty to be ratified. Now that means there must be a general election.

Katie Hopkins

during the last week there have been various letters relating to the employment by the Echo of a certain Katie Hopkins and the fact that the Editor has 'sacked her'. My view on this episode is that if there is seriously something which she wishes to get off her chest then there is nothing to stop her from doing what I do and that is to write to Points of View.Now for this she would not be paid, just as I do not receive any payment for my contributions. In the past the Echo has had various letters also suggesting that I should not be permitted to express my contentious views through your letters page and the Editor has taken the quite right decision to allow my 'interesting' views to be aired, and although the number of my letters printed has reduced the quality is still there. So, I say to Katie if you seriously have anything to say then say it. However with you not receiving any payment I personally will not be surprised if there is a deafening silence from your pen. Goodbye, Katie.