Iraqi Oil

The problem of Iraq will not go away. Now we are being told, at last, about the agreements between the Iraqi government and the oil companies. Why did we go into Iraq, never ever was about oil of course.

It was to get rid of weapons of mass destruction!

Now when is Gordon going to tell us about what has been negotiated with the DUP to get them to vote with the government on 42 days. Can't wait!

An early death

If I had been asked for my input into choice then this is what I would say.

My father died in the early nineties after being discharged from hospital and on being taken home in an ambulance. His bed was needed and he had a heart attack in the very ambulance bringing him home, he died in the hospital which had just discharged him.

My Mother died just over a year ago and effectively died of starvation and dehydration. She was however treated with dignity and care. She died in the same hospital as my father.

Now I have no problem in saying that if anybody thinks that I am going to die in the same way as my parents then dream on. There must be an alternative and that is that I will choose when I want to die. I want that choice!

If I find out that I have either of the curses of modern living, namely either Dementia or Alzheimers, or any of the conditions which result in me not being who I am, if you understand my meaning, then I will demand an early death.

My way, my choice!

NHS at Sixty

There is a problem which nobody wants to seem to talk about and it relates to insurance.

Let us say that you have no medical health insurance. You notice a lump or a changing mole. This might indicate either breast cancer or some form of skin cancer.

You know that if had health insurance then you might be entitled to a payment. However, if you take out insurance then you are told you cannot claim within six months, or you must not have a diagnosed condition so you take out the insurance and wait for six months.

In six months you go to your GP who then says what you always knew. You have either breast cancer or skin cancer. You then claim on your insurance.

The problem, if you had gone to your GP when you first knew then something could have been done, however, because you had waited six months before seeing your GP your condition is now terminal. Either that or your quality of life, and that of your loved ones, after surgery, is not pleasant. Oh, and you are going to die.

At least you have the knowledge that you have collected thousands on your insurance, you can live life to the full for those last few weeks of your life. If only!

Investigations showed that you knew and therefore not entitled to any payments. The wonders of insurance. Or you may collect on your insurance and then have to pay for any treatment through the NHS.

A fanciful story, or is there an element of truth?

Bullion sales

Some people quite rightly blame Gordon Brown for selling off the gold reserves for a low price compared to what the value is today.

May I say that I used to be employed by a Merchant bank in the City and they were also bullion dealers. They were also responsible for setting the price of gold every day with other banks in the City. It was a bad, no disastrous move to sell the gold reserves.

However, we should blame all governments and organisations going back to when the British National Oil Corporation (BNOC) was set up. We have sold off our oil and gas reserves and now there is effectively ever dwindling reserves. Yet what are we asking the middle east countries do, yes, sell their oil and gas cheaply so that we can maintain an unsustainable standard of living.

I think some people fail to understand that foreigners are not stupid. Why should they dig us out of a hole of our making. It's not only the gold it is, well, everything. It's nearly all gone!

Afghanistan

Am I angry? You bet I am. Go to the BBC site which I show below which shows the deaths in Afghanistan:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5121552.stm

this sad site lists every death of British soldiers in Afghanistan since 2001.

What is noticeable is that between 9th April 2002 and 28th January 2004 there were threee, yes three deaths in Afghanistan.

The causes as listed were one accident, an unlawful killing by a British soldier, and the the third was the suicide of the soldier who carried out the unlawful killing.

Now what has gone so terribly wrong that we are now learning of an ever more disastrous situation with regard to our soldiers. No wonder Sir Jock Stirrup says that we 'are stretched beyond the capabilities we have'.

We must announce our withdrawal from Iraq, our soldiers signed up to fight for Queen and Country not an American President who will soon leave office.

The reason why Afghanistan has failed is that the military, under orders from the government, transferred must needed resources to Iraq. For what?

So, when Gordon Brown goes before parliament yet again he will have to be sombre and say how terrible and sad it all is but they are dying for a noble cause and it must not be in vain etc...and then what exactly. This is a disaster and must not be tolerated, what is the point other than for our soldiers to die, for what?

Out of Iraq

There is now an opportunity for this disgraceful government to extricate itself from the shameful Iraq escapade.

All along it has been said that we, the government, will listen to the forces on the ground. Well surely this is now the time for Brown to listen to Sir Jock Stirrup, the actual Head of the Armed Forces, and to announce that the job has been done. We can do no more.

We can then complete our retreat and send the soldiers to Afghanistan where they will fight and die in another war which has absolutely nothing to do with Britain.

Our soldiers signed up to fight, and possibly die, for their Queen and Country, after all it is an oath of allegiance to the Queen which they take, not to American Presidents, nor the UN, nor NATO.

How many soldiers have died in Iraq since the turn of the year. How many died each week whilst Blair was PM. Every week he came to Parliament regretting the loss of yet another life. Now with Brown what has changed. That's right we now talk and act with the very people who killed our soldiers. It was always going to be the case that we would have to leave, well thanks to Sir Jock now is the time.

At least one returning soldier has spoken at Stop the War meetings and he has now been silenced by MoD Court injunctions, let's see how they can silence Sir Jock Stirrup. Will they ignore him as well?

SAS Deaths

Surely there is a serious issue here and that relates to the SAS. I always thought that the MoD never comments on activities by our special forces and no reference is being made by the families of the other SAS members who died. Were they asked by the MoD not to comment, is there an agreed news black-out.

We know that at least one of the dead was soon going to leave the army. Why is there no huge press coverage by the media on this important issue. Has there been an MoD embargo, similar to the one which the appalling media allowed in respect of Prince Harry. We are being manipulated, and I for one don't like it.

If the MoD are going to remain silent, and consistent, on certain issues then the way the death of the intelligence officer must be subject to a news black-out. I know that this is contentious but we seriously cannot hide behind the emotional black mail as exerted by the now notorious MoD press manipulators.

It is illuminating to note the case now going through the courts of the soldier who died as a result of alledged 'beasting' by his superiors. Surely, I cannot think that the news of the deaths in Afghanistan is meant to divert attention from this other case.

Coffee House

This is a sure sign of the death knell of party politics as we have known it for decades. All MPs must be elected as independents. All votes must be free votes. We must acknowledge that the days of a PM are gone. We must actually have a democratically elected 'President'.
There must be a directly elected second chamber, and before you say it I know this sounds very , well American.
Our system of government is falling apart in front of our very eyes. If MPs seriously consider, as I do, that Brown should never have taken power without an election then the power actually lies with members with any conscience. They also should resign their seats, all of them. The game is over, the revolution is not far away, and who thought that the USSR would collapse, just use your imagination.
Brown paid for the war and subsequent occupation of Iraq. With Bush in town over the weekend now is the perfect time to announce our imminent withdrawal from Basra, we have retreated to the air base after all. Have you not noticed how many British soldiers have been killed in Iraq this year, we always were the problem and never the solution.

Brown must go

Quite simply Brown lacks any legitimacy and must call a general election.

Brown

Of course Brown should resign. He lacks any legitimacy and has done since Blair announced that he would serve a full term and failed to do so. He continues with our failed expedition into Iraq and as for the economy! He should have called an election as soon as he took over as a result of the coup. I know we are being told to move-on but some of us never will. Brown is a disgrace to democracy and as an intelligent person he knows it. I finish by the standard quote 'you can fool some of the people some of the time, you can fool all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time'. The emporer has no clothes and in the land of the blind the one eyed man is king. Only now we have regained our sight and we don't like what we see.