HIILSBOUROUGH, TRUTH AND JUSTICE.....AT LAST.

I make no apology for having chosen political subjects for my last two blogs, nor for today’s which concerns its self with the Hillsbourough verdict.

It has taken twenty seven years for he families. the fans, the city and those who died to obtain justice.

Corruption at every level, not only in the Police Force but in successive governments and large sections of the media has been the cause of the disgraceful episode which shames us all.

To the brave people of Liverpool I say, well done, especially those who fought so hard and for so long to achieve this verdict in the face of overwhelming odds.

Now let us hope that those who caused the tragedy and those who contrived the cover up will get the justice that they deserve, public disgrace, and prison where appropriate

Hillsbourough was not the first time that South Yorkshire Police, in cahoots with Government officials covered up the truth and not the first time that the Press played along with them.

The disgraceful conspiracy between these bodies during the miners strike was the forerunner of what happened at Sheffield on that dreadful day.

The climate of cover ups, manufactured evidence and malicious reporting was already well established and a gullible population had become used to believing what they were told.

During the miners strike Margaret Thatches Cabinet colluded with the police force in a successful campaign to discredit the strikers and the Press were happy to assist.

This is not a secret for like the Hillsborough families those who were involved at the time knew what was happening and have suffered a similar vilification by the Media and the contempt of Government and the Police Force.

The West Midlands Police Force who investigated the South Yorkshire Forces conduct at Hillsbourough assisted with the cover up and added to the appalling fiction that the fans were to blame. They lied, they all lied, but now we know the truth.

Andy Burnham, to my utter amazement actually stated in Parliament today that successive governments were responsible for the cover up at Hillsbourough and the conduct of the Police Force during the Miners Strike. Surely now there must be reckoning.

If at last the guilty are punished for their crimes against the people it will be solely due to the courage and tenacity of the Families of those who died and the brave people of Liverpool and I salute them all.

THE NATIONAL UNION OF STUDENTS OPPOSE FREE SPEECH

Way back in 1968 while an Art Student I joined the N.U.S.

This was during the time of the student's revolt and there were, sit -ins and rallies an marches, we were fighting for the rights that today’s students take for granted and Freedom of Speech was high on the agenda.

While politicians attempted to curb our activities by limiting the number of people who could assemble in one place, we continued to fight on. Some were arrested for their beliefs, others lost their place at University or College and the removal of grants was always a threat.

Over the years I have watched with concern successive generations of N.U.S. Committees preside over the erosion of these rights with barely a murmur of decent.

Student Grants have been replaced with Loans insufficient to support the students needs. Student accommodation has become extortionately expensive and Universities have increased their fees far beyond what is reasonable or even in keeping with the standard of Further Education on offer at their establishments.

Finally they appear to have found a cause.

This morning I watched in disbelief as N.U.S.-members defended their decision to ban certain groups from sharing their platform at debates. In effect they are refusing to allow anyone who disagrees with them to be heard, and in doing so have effectively ended the right to free speech within the N.U.S.

Listening to their arguments on “Victoria Derbyshire” I was struck by their self satisfied snugness about what they were doing and their unwillingness to engage with the views of others which differed from their own.

They spoke of creating a “safe place” for their members who are, they claimed intimidated by having their beliefs challenged. What are they really afraid of?

Having reached the exalted position of a place at University it seems odd that these minor dictators have failed to grasp the very basic fact that in order to have a debate all sides of an argument must be represented.

One young man, dressed as if acting in a play about the young Lenin spoke quite rudely to Peter Tatchell a former N.U.S President and now a politician about “gay rights” and was joined by another young man even more offensive than himself.

Peter Tatchell has championed Gay Rights for the whole of his adult life and from a time when the public was far less tolerant of homosexuality than, thankfully it is today. He has been banned from speaking on any N.U.S. platform, because what he has to say makes for uncomfortable listening.

Entire organisations have been blacklisted in order that no one should be offended by having to listen to a point of view which differs from their own. Or, God help us, something not quite P.C!

I have news for these young “lions”. One cannot edit life!

It is dangerous out there and there are people who's opinions are different and challenging, even down right unacceptable, and they had better find this out sooner rather than later.

When the delicate little flowers whom the N.U.S.governing body purport to be protecting emerge in to the real world they will meet with racism, sexism, religious prejudice of all kinds, they will encounter homophobia, political extremism and every kind of small minded bigotry, for which they will not be prepared.

If you lump the arguments about feminism, racism and all the rest together they can NEVER matter as much as every man's right to free speech, without which no real discussion can take place.

These young people have no experience of life and yet they feel it their right to deny others the chance to listen to and discuss the views of those who have been instrumental in shaping the world in which they grew up.

They are denying their members the right to gain for themselves an informed opinion and this is wrong on every level.

Every generation wants to change the world, that is natural, but the stance taken by the N.U.S will be the cause of a great change for the worse.

An entire generation is sleepwalking into a world where they will no longer be able to speak their mind, I find that terrifying,don't you?

CELEBRITY SEX ANTICS COULD THREATEN THE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

Until about an hour ago I must have been one of the few people unaware of the identity of the “celebrity couple” (the information being available on social media)  at the centre of what I can only describe as a legal circus.

Having no interest what ever in the sexual doings of the famous I found the extensive B.B.C. coverage of the farce annoying, many far more important events were given mush less air time.

When informed of the couples identity and the nature of the incident under scrutiny my response was,”So what.”

Of course the real issue is the matter of the freedom of the press to report to the public without hindrance, and although I deplore these ludicrous invasions into peoples private lives I would defend this freedom to my last breath.

Having been on the receiving end of such intrusive reporting in the past I speak with some authority on this subject, I firmly believe that the inconvenience which can be caused by these fearless expose' is well worth enduring to keep this precious right intact.

The problem is, once you begin to erode free speech where do you draw the line?

Most Governments would be ecstatic if they were able to muzzle the press where their own interests are concerned., and as we saw with the Anti Terrorist Laws, who's misuse by Local Authorities and others has become notorious I fear that any changes to this law would be equally abused.

For instance because of the anti Terrorist Law one can no longer hackle a politician at a public meeting. At a Labour Party Conference an elderly war veteran was manhandled out of the assembly by several burly minders merely for shouting “Rubbish” at the then Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Weather or not the Chancellor was talking rubbish matters not at all, what does matter is that we have apparently lost the right to tell him so if we feel that he is!

We cannot have selective freedom of speech. It must be total or it is worthless.

In allowing Celebrities to keep their peccadillo’s private we shall open the door to other far more serious censorship and this is one door that, if we are not to follow countries like China and Russia in to the censorship abyss must remain closed at all hazard.

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AFTERMATH

                                     AFTERMATH

Yesterday's catalogue of catastrophes had repercussions today, our little cat is thankfully much improved but the same cannot be said for the conservatory roof. Being somewhat distracted by yesterdays events I had failed to notice the shocking mess left by the contractor employed to deal with the leak.

What kind of builder rocks up to mend a roof with neither tools or, more importantly ladders? Answer, the numpty who came to fix our conservatory.

Having no means to reach the roof he climbed on to the rockery to gain a little hight and in doing so trampled the plants into the ground.

Unable to fix the roof without tools he abstracted a length of drain rod from our greenhouse and used it to hammer down a loose panel and rip off some Virginia creeper from the wall.

Having banged about for a while he then threw threw drain rod into the flower border demolishing several clumps of Tulip and dumped the massive hanks of creeper on top of a gorgeous display of Bluebells flattening them completely: No wonder he was in a hurry to leave.

After a night of rain I arrived downstairs this morning to find that not only do we still have the two original leaks, we now have a new onto add to the collection…. The floor was awash.

Evidently his violent attentions had made the problem much worse!

My son fired off an irate e mail but as today is Saturday we shall here nothing for at least a couple of days. I am to some extent to blame as I paid little attention to the builders doings while he worked on the roof, but frankly with everything that was occurring at the time I was too distracted to nursemaid this so called professional through what should have been a simple task.

A sleepless night followed yesterday's débâcle, pain caused by the arthritis in my hands reached screaming point around midnight and no amount of pain relief could ease it's onslaught.

Having at last managed to doze off I was awakened at three in the morning by the sound of hammering, it sounded as if someone was attempting to open someone's garage doors with a sledgehammer. I dragged myself out of bed, opened the window and looked out into the darkness and as I watched the lights in several houses came on, the hammering ceased and I returned to bed to sleep no more.

This afternoon our chatty neighbour came round to ask if we had heard the racket. Last time I was unguarded enough to invite her in for morning coffee she was still with us for dinner, I kid you not!

Determined not to make the same mistake again I stood in the porch while she prattled on about prowlers until I was frozen stiff and in urgent need of a pee! I take diuretics, sorry if that's too much information. Deciding that honesty was the best policy I declared my predicament and departed in haste.

In spite of all this it has been a pleasant day, the rain which came through the conservatory roof fell as snow upon the hills which surround our village and remained a beautiful sight throughout the day.

Sparrows were busy stuffing our row of terraced boxes with dead grass and the sun shone brightly although the day was perishing cold.

Being back in the countryside makes up for everything and each day there is something new to wonder at. This morning I noticed that our wild cherry tree was in flower and looking very lovely in the sunshine, and some of our remaining tulips are almost ready to open. Tomorrow, who knows?

Whatever the new day brings will be leavened by the beauty of this lovely place, I truly am much blessed.

                                                 IF IT CAN GO WRONG

Today was one of those dreadful days when everything goes wrong at once.

The morning was set to be troublesome, Pa's visit to the dentist yesterday and the removal of four of his teeth left him in a good deal of pain and with a face like a football. He and as a consequence I too had a disturbed night. I left poor Pa asleep at last when I went downstairs to prepare my son's breakfast at seven thirty. If I'd had the least idea just how much aggravation lay ahead I should have remained safely in bed for the day.

Our cat Moth had been sick in every one of the downstairs rooms…..several times and both of the stoves had gone out. Poor little Moth had been sick the previous evening but had appeared quite recovered by bed time and we had retired untroubled.

Came the dawn!

While going from room to room clearing up the mess I was disturbed first by the Postman, next by a Courier and finally by Sainsburys who arrived with our groceries earlier than expected.

While my son lit the fires in the drawing room and the library I called our local Vet for advice.

Usually our Vet comes to the house in emergencies, today however he was understaffed and unable to leave the surgery. I made an appointment and booked a taxi, while longing for the days when Pa and I were fit to drive and cursing my son for never having learned!

Pa surfaced at twelve and it was as we were having an early lunch that the phone began to ring.

The chap who had been booked to fix the leaky conservatory roof on Wednesday and who failed to arrive called to say that he was on his way….bugger!

This meant that I would be unable to take the cat to the vet and that my son, who must have his novel finished by Sunday would be obliged to stop work and take her himself.

The taxi had barely left when the conservatory man arrived and having taken a brief look at the problem spent the next hour and a half hammering and banging on the roof in a manner so alarming that I feared that the glass would break.

Another telephone call from an obscure N.H.S. department enquiring as to the delivery of Pa's medication threw me into a panic. Apparently afraid that I might be a drug pusher they refused to confirm delivery without first speaking to him in person. Pa was at the Vet with my son. Since this medication is vital I was seriously concerned at this turn of events.

They agreed to call back (reluctantly its being P.O.E.T.S. Day) and relieved I returned to the conservatory the floor of which was now littered with dead spiders and bits of paint.

“A loose pane, infiltrating ivy, and a blocked gutter were the cause of the trouble” He said.

Quite how the remedying of these defects had warranted all the hammering remains a mystery.

I had heard nothing from my son and my concern for the cat was growing by the minute, the gardener arrived unexpectedly to mow the lawn. Recent heavy rain had left the ground sodden and I had misgivings, but what the hell, either he mowed today of it would be two weeks before he returned by which time we would require a baler...he mowed.

His departure was followed by the Avon lady and since I had not completed my order I scrabbled about for a pen and placed an order for God knows what, knowing my luck It will turn out to be some grotty perfume of awful aftershave!

At last the boys returned wit the cat who apparently had worms, thanking the Gods that it was nothing worse I spent the next hour cuddling the little mite and crying on and off.

Next I took a fall, fell on my already; painful wrist and am now in absolute agony and typing with my left hand only.

I mean now to have a large Scotch and a dose of Morphine, I would say goodnight, but it will probably be anything but.

MORE FUN WITH THE TROLLLS

As anyone who has ever surfed the net will know there are two absolute certainties. Firstly it is certain that from time to time one lands in strange territory, secondly one will eventually encounter Trolls.

I have often seen the comment” How the hell did I get here” and although it can be a little disconcerting at times for me it is all art of the fun.

Trolls however are different, they are parasitic little ticks who delight in singling out those who may be vulnerable for their sick games, and take delight in spoiling the pleasure of others on popular sites by becoming so offensive that contributors leave in droves and often the site is forced to close

I recently encountered such a creature after leaving a short comment on a video I had been watching. The young woman, who shall be nameless, treated me to the usual rambling abuse and foul language common to the breed.

When this failed to achieve the desired result she began a barrage of personal insults couched in bad grammar, a woeful dearth of capital letters and littered with glaring contradictions.

Now unable to get the better of me alone she has inveigled a friend into swapping malicious chatter in the hope that I shall get angry and respond. She has not the wit to realise that by doing so she has given me the game.

Hopefully while these silly children amuse themselves in chatting to each together others will be safe from their malice.

What is worrying is the fact that she appears to have employment which gives her a degree of control over vulnerable people. Small wonder that events such as the recent death of an innocent child due to the incompetence of a team of Social Workers happen so frequently when such ignorant, vicious people are place in charge of the welfare of others.

I have some advice to anyone who finds themselves on the receiving end of trollery and it is this. Always remember that they resort to these games due to their own inadequacy. Never explain yourself to them not matter what the provocation and always give as good as you get.

Of course you could ignore them altogether but where' s the fun in that. Wind them up and watch them go, then sit back and enjoy the show.

I spent some time in the garden yesterday continuing the battle with Ground Elder and Cleavers. Since my recent bout of ill health I am easily tired and how I have missed my time out of doors.

The garden looks very pretty now and most of the bulbs we planted are either in flower or well on the way to it, apart that is from the Anemone Blanda corms which were scoffed by squirrels. Ho hum.

LIVING ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE HILL

You will have heard the expression” the wrong side of the tracks” or maybe “The wrong side of town” well I live on the wrong side of the hill!

Living on the wrong side of a mountain or a range of hills means that you get far more rainfall than those more fortunate souls who live on the right side of the afore mentioned elevation.

I learned about “precipitation” while taking a geography course in the dim and distant past, and mighty dull I found it!

Living with the reality of daily torrential rain is far from dull. During the course of just one day we have experienced rain so heavy that In looked as if lengths of chain were falling from the sky, followed by massive hail stones in such quantity that the ground was white over in five minutes and the noise on the conservatory roof so deafening that the cats went into hiding.

Thunder accompanied by sleet while at the same time the sun shone brightly and made the flakes sparkle like tiny crystals followed and the performance was repeated throughout the day.

On the other side of the hill, guess what? No rain, no sleet, no snow, just bright if somewhat chilly sunshine,

I conclude from these events that had I paid more attention in Mr Bradley's lectures I might now be living on the sunny side of the hill. We live and learn!