SNAPS ON SATURDAY

I've never doubted that he was an inspiration to people in the Second World War. He was a spin doctor of extraordinary talents, suitable for the times, where people expected to be spoken down to by their "betters", but I've also always suspected that he liked nothing better than to play at soldiers. He seems to have confirmed it.

We all know not to believe what we read in the papers.

Note: Please add "Must have no compunction about sending people to an early grave".

Proof positive that you can succeed by being sneaky rather than clever, lying through your teeth and cheating as much as you can on expenses. It works. Give it a try. Or we'll sanction you and you'll starve to death.

"Get back in your box and shut up Kez" signed John.

Superb interview. Some people can carry off obfuscation with some measure of success. Some just look hopelessly out of their depth. Guess which she was.

You never really know whether he is deceitful or just plain dim.
Probably a mixture.

Good way to start September.

Let's have none of this Gaelic nonsense on our police vehicles.
Only 1% of the population understands it.
Latin, on the other hand, is taught at Independent Schools ...
So 33% of MPs can understand it.

And they told us it was by the grace of God.

Seems a sensible way to generate  membership 

...or maybe she likes calling people liars and cheats...

Oh Harriet...you bit off more than you could chew.

Isn't history lovely?

I always suspected this. Isn't Harriet Harman a cousin of some sort
 to David Cameron?

You shall be judged by the company you keep.
So, Mugabe, you just went down in my estimation!

Some surprises there....Switzerland? Germany? New Zealand?

Oh, and 100% in Northern Ireland didn't vote Tory!
Not to mention 100% who didn't vote for the dross
and dregs you elevated to the aristocracy, or the rest of that
House of Ill-repute.
And while we're on, remind me how many voted for the Saxe Coburgs?

WHAT CAN WE DO...?

For folk in Dundee, this is how we can help.

You can drop off tomorrow morning at the Charleston Bar or Peaches and Pearls salon at 13 Milnbank road 9-6.30pm or Sunday all day at the Charleston bar..

If next week then GMB 38 Whitehall Street (across from Papa Joe's).

In other places around Scotland there is a list of ways you can help here.

WHY ARE WE WAITING?

And what are we waiting for...till Blair and Straw and the rest of them  are dead and can't be prosecuted?

Let's have the report now.

ANOTHER DEAR PEREGRIN LETTER...

Just thought I'd share this drivel with you. If it wasn't so pathetic it would be funny, and if it weren't so funny it would be pathetic. Anyone who Mr Feldman is?

Peregrin, Have your say on the future of the Conservative Party – take this quick survey on some of the most important issues facing the Party today. I want to make sure the Conservative Party keeps getting stronger - so that we can keep on improving our country and delivering security to families across Britain. So I want to hear your views on what we’re doing as a Party: how we can get even more people involved; how we can keep attracting great candidates to be MPs; how we can do even more in your area. So please take this quick survey today – your views will help shape the future of our Party: Thank you,   Andrew Feldman Conservative Party ChairmanPS. It’s important everyone gets their views heard – so please have your say now. Survey: Party Review Survey Have your say on the future of our Party Have you ever supported the Party in any other way? Please tick all that apply I’ve donated I’ve volunteered I’ve shared graphics or videos online I’ve done another activity to help the Party I've attended social events None of the above Would you ever consider doing any of these activities to support the Party? (Please tick all that apply) Donating Sharing graphics or videos online Volunteering Buying merchandise (from the Party shop) Attending social events Why haven’t you become a Member? Never thought about it Never been asked Too expensive Don’t want to get involved in local politics/be contacted by my local association Other: please state Would you ever be interested in becoming a Member? Yes No Which if any of these would make you more likely to join? (please tick as many as you like) Reducing the cost of Membership Financial incentives for joining eg money off products, special offers Knowing more about the benefits Being asked Knowing friends of yours had joined A regular Membership magazine None of the above How much do you think regular Membership should cost (current cost: £25), bearing in mind all money goes towards the Party? £5 £10 £15 £20 £25 More than £25 If you didn't become a full member, would you be interested in becoming a Registered Supporter for a small donation - or in return for giving your time volunteering, or sharing graphics online? Yes No First Name Last Name Email Postcode Your responses and contact details a

SCOTLAND WANTS TO PLAY ITS PART. WILL BRITAIN LET US?

Munguin echoing the call for more action from Scotland

This blog supports the First Minister's pledge to hold a summit meeting tomorrow with representatives of local councils, charities, politicians, religious bodies, and leaders of opposition parties.

We recognise too that Kezia Dugdale proposed the same idea, and that Willie Rennie has said he will be attending. We've seen tweets from Ruth Davidson praising what the UK government does, but suggesting that we need to do more. We very much hope that she will attend tomorrow's meeting, and that Patrick Harvie will also agree to be there. We need a unified approach on this.

This isn't about party political point scoring. It's seems fairly clear that the parties in Scotland will work together, putting their differences aside.

We are pleased, and proud of that.

We are aware that the UK sends money to countries in the Middle East to help them with the crisis that they have been coping with for some years.  This information may aid understanding of the problems that these countries are suffering. Remember that one in five people in Lebanon is a Syrian refugee!

Craig Murray has interesting blog here proposing that there might be a bit more financial aid coming from Saudi Arabia, which bears a not inconsiderable responsibility for the situation. 

Our First Minister has written to the British PM to tell him that Scotland wants to do its fair share, like most other European countries, large and small. However, unlike most of them, we need the permission of the London government before we can offer help.

Let's hope he reads it and reacts favourably. 

WARNING: THESE IMAGES MAY DISTRESS YOU

Seriously: Do not read on unless you have a strong stomach.

I wanted to share this with you.

Not everyone who reads this will feel as strongly about this as I do. We've talked about it on here quite a few times, and I know there are some who at least to some extent, disagree with me.

That's fine. I have no problem with disagreement, but it won't make me feel any less wretched.

The refugee crisis is horrific. I'm not sure that horrific is quite strong enough a word, but it is the best I can do for just now. Maybe you can improve upon it.

My Twitter feed keeps throwing up pictures that I find seriously distressing. It would be easier to simply unfollow the people who are tweeting this, but that won't make it go away.

Just for example, here is Homs in Syria. A before and after pic. This is what people are fleeing. 

It used to be a nice place, busy, clean, greenish... and now it's not.

People used to live in these houses, work in the shops, go to the schools.

This is where some of these people are now. (Don't go any further unless you are prepared for a shock).

I don't know whether these dead people came from Homs or not. The chances are that they didn't. They may not even have come from Syria. They may be Libyan, or Iraqi, but Homs is typical of the kind of place they are leaving. And the conditions there aren't a hell of a lot different from those in Tripoli or so many other places in the Middle East or North Africa.

This has happened to too many people. Too many people desperately looking for a new life have found death at the hands of people traffickers who have charged them their life savings to get away from the bombing and killing.

Humza Yousaf, our minister for external relations, has said that Scotland and the Scottish government stands ready to do its part in the international effort to help the refugees, along with countries like Germany, Sweden, Austria and even little Iceland. Nicola Sturgeon has backed him on this.

London, it appears, does not share his humanitarian outlook. 

It seems the British Prime Minister, whilst busily reminding us that "we" are a Christian country, hasn't got past page 2 of his Bible and his boss, whose every action is  mindful of the teachings of Christ, must be on a day off.

These kids could be your kids, or my kids. How can we do so little?

GIDDY AND THE BOMB

It looks like Mr Osborne has already decided that, no matter what conclusion parliament reaches next year about Trident, he's going to spend in excess of £100,000,000,000 on it anyway.

The only alternative to that assumption is that he's wasting £500,000,000 on upgrading Trident's facility at Faslane for nothing.

Some of the tweets I have read have suggested that 6,000 jobs will be created by this investment, but Mr Osborne himself said that there would be around 1,500 extra jobs over the renovation process.

Much was made during the referendum campaign of the number of jobs that were dependent upon the naval base at Faslane. Jackie Baillie went into overdrive and excelled herself with the lies, warning of 11,000 jobs being at risk in the event of Independence.

Figures released by the MOD under the FOI legislation, however, showed  that only 520 civilian jobs at Faslane and Coulport were directly dependent on Trident.

According to the MoD. “There are 520 civilian jobs at HM Naval Base Clyde, including Coulport and Faslane, which directly rely upon the Trident programme.

"Of them, 159 are employed by the MoD and 361 by the MoD’s contractors, Babcock Marine and Locheed Martin.

"Most of the workers – 310 - live in West Dunbartonshire or Argyll and Bute, with the rest living elsewhere in Scotland (103) or at unknown locations (107)."

So in fact, what we were really talking about appears to be 310 people living in the area and 103 living elsewhere in Scotland... that would be 413 (at the time of the figures being produced).

How many of the new jobs will be for residents of West Dunbartonshire or Argyll and Bute, or the rest of Scotland, and how many of them will be bussed in to camp on a Monday morning, and back out on a Friday afternoon?

**********

I am happy that Mr Osborne wants to spend that much money in Scotland. It is an enormous amount of extra spending in our country, given the ever shrinking size of the Scottish government's income. I wonder though if it wouldn't be better spent on areas which are in dire need of investment. 

Labour and Tory alike seem at present to be extremely concerned about the lack of money available for colleges of further eduction. It is, in fact, a concern that I share, although I'd point out that England is having exactly the same problem. A lack of finance means that many 6th form colleges are under severe financial pressure!

We must find money for people who wish to pursue education other than that provided by universities. We need plumbers, bricklayers, hairdressers, electricians, plasterers, roofers, etc, etc... This £500 million could make a huge difference to college budgets.

But wait, Mr Osborne says that without Trident we would be in grave danger. It is our insurance policy. (I hope if there is danger lurking, it is a little more effective than the other insurance policy we all thought we had... National Insurance, but that's by the way).

You see, I'm concerned, having friends in many countries over Europe, Asia, South and North America, that you can only be safe if your country has nuclear weapons. I mean what about my friend Elizabeth who lives in Montevideo, Uruguay, or Dirk in Cologne, Germany, Dani in Gothenburg, Hristina in Bulgaria, or Daniel in Québec?

I wish someone in the mainstream press, maybe even the BBC, would ask Mr Osborne what these people are supposed to do to be safe? Come to live in Scotland?  No, maybe not. He doesn't want swarms of immigrants, does he?

The answer is that they are covered, in the highly unlikely chance that they might be attacked, by the USA. 

Now, of course, we could be accused of niggardliness in wanting the protection of the USA's nuclear weapons, but not wanting to pay for them. And that would be a fair criticism. But does Iceland, or Denmark, Germany or Austria, Finland or Norway currently pay for their protection? After all they are all infinitely richer than we are. 

Spo the question is, why does broke Britain pay out this vast amount? 

OK, we know the answer, or at least part of the answer. It's so that the likes of Cameron and Osborne get to sit at the top table and look down smugly on other more successful countries, safe in the knowledge that, as long as they keep bowing low enough, they have a special relationship with the USA.

I've always wondered if it would be acceptable that those of us who feel we need protection would make a small contribution to the financing of these WMDs. After all America has more than they could ever possibly need. OK, the top seat would have to go, but that will only ever affect a handful of people.

In the meantime, the great threat to all of us appears to be from terrorists, who fly planes into buildings or blow up railways and métros.

How is a nuclear deterrent supposed to sort that problem?

Any ideas, George? 

Anyone?