RIGHT BACK AT YA COE!

Excitement is growing. All over these islands last night people could hardly sleep.


Was this because of the Euro crisis from which we are told we will never recover? No. Was it then because the Queen's diamond jubilee fandango had commenced? 


Nooooo. 


It was because a plane carrying the Olympic Torch, Coe, Nick and Anne had landed on Cornish soil to be met by no less a personage than Tessa Jowell (I wonder where Olympics minister Jeremy Hunt was?), and was due to make its way around these islands bringing the Olympic spirit to each and every one of us, who, after all, have footed the bill, and who won't be allowed to use the Zil lanes!


Well, of course, it got off to a stunning start today as does anything that Locog organises.


'A dozen disabled patients confined to wheelchairs were left bitterly disappointed following a mix up in the route of the Olympic torch relay. Residents of St Theresas were allocated a special council approved area on the roadside at the southern end of the beach near St Michael's Mount but their excitement at waving golden streamers and Union Jack banners for the torchbearer was quickly replaced with confusion. The Locog torch relay convoy of sponsor trucks and official vehicles whizzed by, but so too did a bus containing the torch and torchbearer. "It was more than awful to see, it was bitter, bitter disappointment," local resident Veronica Taylor said.' From the Telegraph.

So.... that's fine then. The "sponsors' trucks and official vehicles" of the "People's Games" whizzed by ignoring disabled residents and leaving them disappointed. Bravo Coe!


The BBC woman who was with Jowell last night waiting for the specially painted plane to land was almost manic with excitement, which bodes badly for the actual games. If they get this excited about the lamp (which after all doesn't date back to ancient Athens, or even to the start of the modern games, but in fact (embarrassingly) to Adolph Hitler's 1936 Berlin games (it's being nicknames the Nazi flame) the BBC will surely explode when the first event takes place. (Now wouldn't that be a pity!).


Ever eager to provide a service to its readers, and so that no one misses out on the overwhelming excitement of the occasion, Munguin's Republic links here to a map of all the exciting places that this exciting Nazi torch will visit, in order that you can be prepared with your bunting (handily also useful for jubilee street parties in the rain).

Meanwhile I understand that David Cameron, who has, of course, we understand, nothing at all to do with handing out honours, has instructed civil servants that athletes who win golds will not automatically get gongs. They will have to prove that they have put something back into sport before that will happen. (Suddenly remembering about legacy, Dave?) But I wonder what honours will be heaped upon those who have "organised" this shambles.  Lady Tessa? Sir Boris? and heaven knows what we can give Seb. He's got everything bar membership of the royal family.


I'm reminded that, when asked about the GB football team to be playing at the Olympics and the fact that the Scottish and Welsh FAs were very dubious about be subsumed into the English FA, Coe said:   "Yes to 2012 GB footy team – The Scots and Welsh? F*** 'em". (Footy!!!!... don't you just love it when posh people try to be common. Anyway, right back at ya Seb!!!


Well, there you go. The People's Olympics for all the people's of these islands.


Pics: (1) The authorities won't be happy that two Cornish flags and no butchers' aprons appeared in this photograph. BTW, has the fire gone out in that pic? (2) Dear old Annie carrying the flame off the plane, with Cleggie, Coe and Becks (surely Sir Becks after this). (3) Apparently this is British Airways' "moment to shine" (click to enlarge the pic). If so, all I can say is I hope they have a lot of polish, because it is, without exception, the worst airline I've ever flown, added to which, it's half owned by the Spanish!!!! 

YOU WOULDN'T WANT TO BE ON THE SAME PLANET AS SOME OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE WRAPPING THEMSELVES IN THE OLYMPIC FLAG

Photo courtesy of War on Want

While companies like Nike, Puma and Adidas make millions from the London Olympics, their workers are paid on average 16p per hour, with some getting as little as 9p.


What's more, workers in all three companies have been beaten, verbally abused and some even sexually harassed by their managers.


Some workers had to put in 80 hours a week to earn enough to feed their children. One Nike supplier employee told the charity War on Want that she had to get up at 4 am to cook breakfast and get her child ready for school. It is compulsory to be at the factory gate at 7 am, although work doesn't start till 7.30. She then works 9 hours before she can take her bus home, a journey which takes her an hour.

Adidas is the official outfitter of the London 2012 Olympics, supplying the GB team's uniforms, which were designed by Stella McCartney, and the uniforms for the 70,000 volunteers (Big Society) who will help run the Games. It also sponsors many sports "stars", including David Beckham and Jessica Ennis. It is hoping to sell around £100,000,000 worth of Olympic themed sportswear.


Nike has apparently sponsored 25 national teams including the high profile ones like Germany, China and the USA.


These companies are making vast amounts from the Olympics while abusing the workers who actually produce the merchandise.


I wonder what the original Olympians would make of the foul and disgusting business practices that the Games have now attracted.
*****


Despite what some of the commentators here would like to think, everyone that I spoke to in Paris about the Games is delighted that the disruption, dirty, noise and unpleasantness that is the Olympics has gone to London and not to Paris. 

IF YOU DON'T PUT YOUR HEAD UNDER Mme GUILLOTINE YOU ARE LESS LIKELY TO GET IT CHOPPED OFF

"Drat! How could I have been so stupid?"

I’m sick of hearing about England’s FIFA carry on and them blaming the BBC for it. Now Ken Livingston has apparently been saying that it would have been better to put off the Panorama programme until after the draw.

Surely that is nonsense. If the BBC had held it back, would it not have been and would not England then have been, complicit in the corruption?

Would it not have said: "We know that you are a corrupt body, but as long as your corruption is working for England we will turn a blind eye".

It's said that England has been humiliated. Actually I don’t think it has. But if it has, it is surely only because it sent a high ranking prince (probably its next King), along with its PR/marketing prime minister and its most iconic footballer to do a job that Sport England, the FA and the English sports minister should have done.

They are apparently furious because Prince William had guaranteed support from 7 people who then voted for Russia. Are all the people involved in the presentation rank amateurs? Did they think that people don’t tell lies? Especially folk that are overawed by, and don’t know how to say no to, royalty.

They should have had some real intelligence out there finding out whether it was worth sending Prince William for the entire event, if at all, along with David Beckham, and Cameron doing shuttle diplomacy. He flew over, did his salesman bit, flew back to do PMQs, because his other half was in Kazakhstan, and then flew back to Zurich. It was like it was the only thing that needed his attention, while the whole of England slithered to a halt, and it also meant that he invested a lot in it.

A yes would certainly have been a coup for him at this difficult time with riots and protests against student fees and non taxpaying government ministers and advisors. He would have been able to associated himself with a general sense of joy in England had he brought back the tournament. As it was he has associated himself heavily with England’s failure. And worse showed himself to be a poor sportsman by refusing to telephone Mr Putin and congratulate him. (Reminiscent of Mr Brown and Mr Salmond 3 ½ years ago.)

Of course Alex Salmond did exactly the same thing when Glasgow was up for the Commonwealth Games. A risky business and he shouldn’t have gone in my opinion, but at least he pulled it off.


Sporting tournaments should be dealt with by sporting organizations. Of course governments need to be behind these bids. They have, after all, to guarantee improved infrastructure and underwrite the event. But if they needed a political figure the English minister for sport should have been sufficient.

One more grouse.

“I felt humiliated. I felt my country humiliated. I felt every British citizen had been humiliated.” wrote Dan McCurry on Labour Uncut.

No they haven’t Dan. I shouldn’t think that even every Englishman has been humiliated. Many won’t care, probably quite a few will be laughing like a drain at Cameron smarting from a defeat that he should never have been associated with, but for his ego.

But for certain, whilst most reasonable Scots aren’t gloating, (we, after all, would never have got it), we aren’t even slightly humiliated.

Other Pics: Wills got all dressed up for the occasion (wee shame). I actually do feel sorry for David Beckham. He’s a good guy doing his best for his country. He deserved better. And this is (hold on I’ll look it up) Hugh Robertson, Junior Minister for Sport in England. Of course, how could I have not recognised him?..... Happy looking fellow, innit? Hmmm.

ENGLISH PRINCE: SOLDIERS' TARGET PRACTICE: DEAR MPS

While I wait for an opportunity to listen to today's FMQs, I decided to get a few minor irritations off my chest. (Please note that when I refer to "dear MPs", I mean that they cost a lot, and not that they are in any way beloved.)

I note that Prince William, who is part of the England bid to host the World Cup, has said that he is English. "I love football, we English love football and it would be an honour for us to host the World Cup."

That’s cool with me. They are welcome to him. It was probably a little slip in his speech, but he has proved how he feels about his own identity.

I can’t help thinking that it is a sign of desperation that one of the world’s most iconic footballers joining the prime minister of England wasn’t felt enough to win the prize: they had to trot out an English Prince as well, and one who has just received massive publicity for announcing that he is going to do what millions of other people do every year, get married.

Still, I suppose you have to use what you can get. Perhaps the glittering of Williams’s metaphorical crown will make up for the cheesy PR prime minister, and the fact that there was, yet again, crowd trouble at an English football match last night.

***

I wonder if I was the only person to shake his head in wonderment this morning when I heard about the sentencing of an American soldier who, as part of a gang went on a drug induced rampage killing Afghan civilians for no apparent reason, except that they were there.

The soldier did the American equivalent of “turning Queen’s evidence” by telling about his mates, in order to get a reduced sentence for his part in the shootings. For sport (aren’t there any wild animals in Afghanistan for the huntin’ shootin’ fishin’ set?), these brave boys, heros maybe, went out and shot anyone that crossed their path.

It’s hard to believe but ex-Sgt Robert Stevens was a medic. I shouldn’t care to be treated by him. He says that he didn’t actually kill anyone himself, but would you believe him? Anyway, pour encourager les autres, he was given a 9 month jail sentence and busted down to private.

Not only did he go around with a gang that was killing human beings for sport, a filthy and despicable thing to do, he has also given terrorists every reason to hate, even more, the westerners who are in their country (at the invitation of the Afghan government of course, but we can all remember what they American government said, and didn’t want us to know, about the Afghan government, don’t we). This piece of filth will, more than WikiLeaks, have the blood of his comrades on his hands. So was that an appropriate sentence? And they want to execute the Wikileaks’ Assange for treason. Wow!

***

And surprise, surprise the Honourable (?**?!*!?**?) members are angry about their expenses and the body that administers them. (It appears they have stopped handing out money willy nilly for no other reason that the MOPs demand it.) The greedy, useless 650+ have claimed over £3 million in the last 3 months... sheesh... including Conservative Keith Simpson, who received £20,752 over the period - mostly for travel expenses to and from his constituency in Norfolk. Now correct me if I’m wrong, but Norfolk isn’t that far from London; certainly not as far as Scotland, so how was he travelling? We already know that they have been working a housing fiddle already, and apparently some are still charging first class rail fares.

Now they want to waste yet more of the time that WE pay for to debate the matter in the House on the subject. Now, we know that they think we are stupid and all have memories that hardly stretch from one episode of Emerdale to the next, but I really do think that they should be aware that we are hurting out here despite what the Noble Mr Young thinks; it’s cold and gas bills are soaring; we are paying back the excesses of a small number of stupid people... them included. So a wee piece of advice to them.

Shut up, get on with your bloody jobs at £66,000+ and keep your greedy, fat heads down, before the public turns, and you find them chopped off and lying at your feet.

Just a thought.

Oh and before they try to have me arrested for Treason, I mean that in a metaphorical sense. (Sorta.)