Politics – UKIP – Such a Well Run Party!
UKIP not paid their bills?
UKIP has been receiving plaudits about how much better their organisation has become since the last election. They seem to have modeled themselves on the Liberal Democrats’ local strategy that they have been working for years. UKIP’s local organisations have become much slicker. Testament to that was the show of organisation that they put on for the recent bi-elections. They identified the vote. They organised the vote and then they mobilised the vote. Perfect!
However, not all their organisation seems to be as slick. Their web site has disappeared! It was on UKIP.org. Try putting that in today and you get one of those DNS holding pages. You know the sort of thing, if you do not renew the registration the domain gets parked until you pay up or someone else buys it!
As an aside I have just tried Godaddy.com to see if UKIP.org was available. Sadly, it was not. I really fancied starting a one trick pony political party to grab all that money from Europe while saying how dreadful the European gravy train is. Oh well, never mind, at least I will not have to associate with ex members of the National Front and other sundry nutters.
As a service to the party, just in case someone else has nabbed the various UKIP domains. I can offer them this bit of information. According to Godaddy USKIP.org and variations on USKIP are available. It seems to me that this is a good alternative. After all where else, apart from a skip, would you want to dump stupid policies?
Politics – The Papers React to the News of the Economy and its Current Woes
Osborne “Savaged” over his handling of the economy
Poor old George. There he was a few short weeks ago boasting that under his management we had the fastest growing economy in the developed world. Even if it was true then it is not now and the papers have told him so.
The guardian talked of a blow to the Tories’ strategy of using a resurgent economy as the “springboard” for the general election campaign. It said “Data from the [Office for National Statistics] added spice to the political battle over economic competence when it said gross domestic product per head – one measure of living standards – was rising but the 0.6% increase in the third quarter still left the measure 1.8% below its pre-recession peak.”
Even the Telegraph got in on the act pointing out that net disposable income was static including a pointed cartoon at George’s expense. It then went on to blame those pesky Europeans (nothing changes).
The Daily Mirror spoke to David Blanchflower, who was an economist at the Bank of England. He said that the results on the economy may George “look like a buffoon”.
The savaging came from Danny Alexander the Lib Dem chief secretary to the Treasury. He complained that £60bn of the spending cuts demanded by George are unnecessary, some of us would argue that they are ideology driven. He said “The Tory agenda to keep reducing public spending beyond what is necessary would result in the wilful destruction of important parts of our public services. That is not appropriate or right for this country.”
What happens when your claim to be the only party that can run the economy falls apart?
It’s The Economy, Stupid!
Who Would Have thought that the Economy could be the Tories’ Achilles Heel?
It is official, the UK economy grew slower than thought previously. It grew by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter of 2014 rather than the 3.0 % that was estimated. But, hey ho, that is still growth so where’s the problem?
As David Kern, chief economist at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “The stark revision in annual growth confirms that the pace of recovery is slowing. The most concerning aspect of these figures is that the current deficit has risen to an un-sustainably high level.”
The deficit? I thought that was going to be destroyed by all the cuts? No. (The problem with politicians, one of the problems, is that they use “deficit” and “debt” as if they are interchangeable, which they aren’t. This is true of both main parties, and the Liberals). The Tories were referring to the debt, the structural debt, probably.
Also, revised down was the gross domestic product (GDP) which is one the primary indicators used to gauge the health of a country’s economy. It represents the total value of all goods and services. Think of it as the size of the economy. The current deficit now stands at 6% of GDP. Which is a record, but not one that Gideon, sorry George, is going to boast about. In fact, the current account deficit has been above 5% of the GDP for the last 15 months which is the worst record since the early 1950s.
Who cares? We all should. If you add up all the debt in the country, the government’s, businesses’, personal etc. the total debt is about 500% of GDP. Put like that we should all be scared. It will be almost impossible to get the debt burden down with the size of the current account deficit.
The economy has always been by saved by the positive balance that we enjoyed between the return on our investments abroad and the payments we make to foreign investors. Trouble is, even that has been in deficit since halfway through 2012.
So, we really in the deep do-do. Or are we? One way out could be to keep selling our best, blue chip companies, and any other assets we have to foreigners. But, how long can that go on? Right up to the point where the foreign investors think that we can not repay or service our huge debts and with the scale of our growing debt……………
It’s the economy, Stupid, and it is not good,
Politics – The Tory Party at War
The Tory Party may not be at war but tensions are running high!
The race to be Cameron’s successor seems to be ramping up inside the Tory Party. We all know that Boris (the public buffoon who is really calculating and determined) is in the race. So is The Chancellor George Osborne (formally Gideon Oliver Osborne – the Gideon did not have the common touch. Frankly George, it would take more than a name change). Now, Theresa May is also beginning to make waves, quite big ones actually.
She has been told to get a grip of her aides who are beginning to resemble the packs of aides that surrounded Blair and Brown. Two of them refused to canvass during the campaign for Rochester and Strood. For that Nick Timothy and Stephen Parkinson were suspended from the list of approved Tory Party parliamentary candidates. They said that they could not campaign as it was against the rules for aides to undertake party political work. Both Grant Shapps, the Tory Party chairman and Cameron himself disagreed. May went to bat for her underlings, but to no avail.
Rumour has it that some members of the Tory Parliamentary Party are accusing her of not being a team player. Not the sharpest knives in the drawer are they? She never has been. The question of Timothy and Parkinson rumbles on, they will be admitted back into the Tory Party fold if they agree to campaign, so far they have not done so. Obviously they still have her support.
The Sunday Times (21/12/14) talked of May starting a war against other ministers when she announced that Universities would have to ensure that foreign students would have to leave the country once their studies have finished. That sort of thing always plays well with the rabid right of the Tory Party, or the nasty party as May called it some years ago.
The problem about students over staying has been dealt with. The bogus colleges that was a one way ticket into this country have been closed. The bogus student problem is over. What May is talking about here are those students that been to real universities and colleges, the sort of people who would help this country by using their qualifications here, not abroad.
Not surprisingly her plan will be opposed by The Treasury and The department for Business, Innovation and Skills. They believe that Britain could only benefit if highly skilled overseas graduates are allowed to enter the UK job market after completing their degrees.
Addendum.
An interesting comment from the Daily Mail Online about the war in the Tory Party.
Number Ten is said to be fed up of criticism of what they see as incompetence in David Cameron’s political operation from May’s camp
Chancellor George Osborne is said to have been concerned by a surge in support for Mrs May among party activists, among whom she is now the clear favourite to succeed Mr Cameron, though sources insisted he had played no role in the suspension of Mr Timothy and Mr Parkinson.
One of the Home Secretary’s supporters was yesterday quoted as saying: ‘Osborne is obsessed with having spies everywhere so he can either succeed Cameron or be kingmaker. Theresa has every right to protect her own interests.
‘That is not disloyalty and she will not be intimidated by anyone in Downing Street.’
Tory Party backbencher Nadine Dorries said: ‘The man pulling the strings is Osborne, not Cameron.
‘Osborne is desperate to ensure he has enough Tory Party MPs in place to vote him on to the shortlist of two, which is put before members to choose the next leader, should there be a contest in 2015. Those two are likely to be Boris Johnson and Theresa May.’
She added: ‘If Nick and Stephen become MPs that is two more votes for Theresa and two fewer for George. Theresa has had a lot to put up with. The more popular she is among party members, the nastier it becomes in Westminster.’
Mrs May has repeatedly stressed her loyalty to Mr Cameron and personal relations between the two remain reasonable, though she has never been part of his inner circle.
However, the Home Secretary, dubbed ‘Britain’s Angela Merkel’ by allies, is thought to regard Mr Johnson as a ‘faintly ridiculous’ figure and would run against him if the Tory Party loses in May and Mr Cameron is forced to quit.
So she thinks that the Tory Party might lose in May?
Pre Christmas Blues
What is it about this time of year that brings on the Christmas Blues?
So, a few days until Christmas and we are hosting her sister and boy friend and her nephew. All good people. Even so I am feeling the onset of the Christmas blues. What is it about this time of year?
It is not just that I am working up to and including Christmas Eve, although that does not help. It is not the tension of having to cook the main meal and worrying about the comments as I have refused to do the cooking this year.
The fact is that I love Christmas, or always have done until the last few years. There is the inevitable argument about the size of the tree, the decorations, what we are to be cooked etc.
Then there is the disappointment of the gifts, not the ones I get but the reception of the presents I buy. How many times have I bought beautiful jewellery for it never see the light of day?
If I had a button that would cancel Christmas, would I push it? Dunno.
Politics – UKIP – More Twists to the Soap’s Plot
UKIP Kerry Smith Resigns from the party.
Following on from my last comment about the continuing soap that is UKIP Kerry Smith has resigned from the party. He said that he was “sick of internal backstabbers who hold minor roles in the party”. Now, hang on a second he resigned as the UKIP candidate for South Basildon and East Thurrock after racist and homophobic comments he made came to light.
True, the comments came to light after “insiders” apparently released a tape of the comments, but they were HIS comments. He did say that he was on medication at the time. (As if medication turns you into a racist homophobe.) He will now be an independent councillor on both Essex County Council and Basildon District Council. He also stated that he continues to support the general goals of UKIP. Remember they are the party that went into the last general election saying that they wanted to reduce Social Security to 1997 levels, in cash terms, not adjusted by inflation. They were also in favour of lifting gun controls and heaven knows what else. Actually, heaven may know but not many of their party did as most did not read the manifesto.
In another development UKIP hates the EEC so much that it has created a new pan-European party so that it can skim £1.5m from Europe. The new party is called The Alliance for Direct Democracy in Europe. It is so pan Europe that 21 of the 27 registered members belong to UKIP.
Jumping on the Euro gravy train (as Farage puts it) is not new for UKIP. It already gets money from Europe by being a member of Europe for Freedom and Direct Democracy, another pan European grouping. UKIP skimmed £2.1m from Europ in 2013 with that wheeze.
By the way, UKIP talks of democracy. In 2011 UKIP held a big internal debate on the issue. The party membership voted two to one against UKIP’s affiliation to a PEPP (one of those nice and lucrative pan European groupings).
Politics – UKIP. Just another week in the soap opera
UKIP soap rolls on.
So what happened in the UKIP soap this week?
A candidate resigns after saying that she was sexually harassed by the party’s general secretary during the selection process, although he strenuously denies the claims. He claims that they had a consensual sexual relationship. She denies that claim, very strenuously.
The most interesting plot from the soap was Kerry Smith’s resignation as UKIP’s candidate for South Basildon and East Thurrock. A recording came to light of a phone call that Smith had made during which he made homophobic and racist remarks. Now why he should feel obliged to resign is a mystery. I thought that being racist and homophobic was part of the entry test for UKIP.
UKIP has had been having a bit of trouble in South Basildon and East Thurrock. Smith was the candidate until Neil Hamilton was selected in his place. (You remember that old idiot, him of the strenuously denied Hitler salute while he was a Tory MP. Him with the dragon of a wife. Him with the cash for questions scandal. Him that was destroyed by a man in a white suit.).
Then Hamilton resigned and there were claims that he had been fiddling his expenses (what again? You would have thought that he had learned from the past.) Obviously he denies the claims, strenuously.
Then Smith was reselected, and then resigned. Whither now?
The BBC web site says “UKIP hopes to make a serious challenge for the South Basildon and east Thurrock seat in the forthcoming general election” Serious? They must be joking.
Roni
Roni and I were really good friends 30 years ago when we both lived in Bristol. She then moved back to Wales and we lost touch.
About a year ago she ran across me on Facebook and made contact. Since then we have resumed our friendship. Roni is now a wood turner making amazing bowls, vases and plates. We were talking a few weeks ago and she mentioned that she wanted a web site to help promote her work. I said that she should let me help her set it up rather than pay an arm and a leg to a web developer.
And so Roni-roberts.com was born. Naturally, Roni wanted to make a few changes, of course. However, I had not realised that what makes her a wonderful wood turner, the attention to detail, the not being satisfied until some thing was just right would be applied to the web site. I am more of a “that will do” sort of person. Roni is more of a “That picture needs to be a millimeter to the right” sort of girl…….
At least it keeps me busy, (but I do love it, to be honest).
A New Start?
I am beginning to question just why I have restarted this blog.
It was interesting to re-read the old posts. Some were embarrassing and some I did not recognise. Still, I must have meant it all at the time, so they stay………
Here we go, again……….
For the third time this year I am faced with the prospect of being made redundant.
There seems to be a sense of deja vu going on here. Apparently, I will know my fate by the end of the week. Obviously, my mood has not been too good recently. It is strange how something beyond one’s control can take over your life. I know that the sensible thing is to try to ignore it and keep building my sales on Amazon, ebay, and working on my business blog Earn Money and Work Online. After all, that is my aim, to work from home and make money online. Perhaps this is just a step on the road……………
Phil’s British Heart Foundation Donation – you know it makes sense
