Sunday, 10 August 2025

Ello ello ello goodbye

It’s such fun reporting crime to the local Popo.

The classics they come out with.

“Can’t fingerprint that, mate”. Funny …Smooth, non-porous surfaces like glass, polished metal and varnished wood are generally the best for capturing fingerprints according to Wikipedia.

Earlier this year I reported a vandalised tap to the local bobby via his email. Heard nothing. I expect he’s too busy having a cuppa with a councillor. Well, I suppose chocolate teapots go in pairs.

I reported it officially and uploaded the CCTV with full face shots via the Met website after the previous year spending weeks figuring out how to install cameras in areas with no electricity using solar panels and what kind of equipment I need to make the wireless signals strong enough to pick up on the router.

I got the enthusiastic response “What do you expect us to do?” Well, nicking villains would be nice.

And what do you get after that? Dead air.

Okay, maybe full face shots … that’s not enough to catch someone if they don’t have a record but you get literally no feedback … Unless you constantly chase.

It’s like dealing with the customer service department of BHS in the months before they went bust. But without the enthusiasm.

Still, I can’t say I don’t see bobbies on the beat because they’re often outside the shop in the summer enjoying an ice-cream on the benches which I’m sure terrifies the vandals and burglars.

Of course, they probably think that by handing out crime numbers they’re doing us a favour but most of these low level crimes fall below the £500 excess on the block insurance so aren’t worth claiming on so instead they remain a constant low level fiscal drag on the leaseholders via their service charges.

Also the police are obsessed with the value of the theft. I told them it’s not the value that’s the issue it’s the labour cost of calling the plumber out twice. It makes you wonder if you get better service if it’s a £5,000 Rolex. I suspect not but…

Now no one’s expecting Poirot to be called in to solve the mystery of the missing tap where we know exactly who did it by sight, but I personally have never experienced the police solving a crime I’ve been the victim of in the past 25 years.

You’d think they’d solve one sometimes just as a sort of statistical accident.

I suspect most people don’t report at all because they know they’ll be assiduously ignored. I know I don’t.

So I’m sure removing front desks from police stations will be a very successful strategy in reducing the crime figures. Think you were talking to a brick wall before? You really are now.

Wednesday, 30 July 2025

What do you even say?


Dear Anthony, 

The suffering must end in the Middle East.

Right now, in Gaza, we are seeing horrifying images that will stay with us for a lifetime. Starving babies. Children too weak to stand. All because of a catastrophic failure of aid. 

Hostages taken by Hamas on the 7th October on the day of its horrific attack remain in captivity.

It is time for action to bring this humanitarian crisis to an end through an immediate ceasefire and a long-term peace plan. That ceasefire must be sustainable and lead to a wider peace plan. 

That is what I am working for with our international partners, and why I wanted to write to you as Labour Party members to share what I announced this evening on behalf of the British Government today.

This plan will deliver security and proper governance in Gaza and pave the way for negotiations on a Two State Solution. 

Our goal remains a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state. However, right now that goal is under pressure like never before.

I’ve always said that Palestinian statehood is the inalienable right of the Palestinian people – as set out in Labour’s manifesto – and that we would recognise a Palestinian state as a contribution to a proper peace process.

With a Two State Solution under threat, this is the moment to act. 

That’s why I have confirmed today that the UK is on a pathway to recognise the state of Palestine in September; unless the Israeli government takes substantive steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza, agree to a ceasefire and commit to a long-term, sustainable peace – reviving the prospect of a Two State Solution. 

This includes allowing the UN to restart the supply of aid and making clear there will be no annexations in the West Bank.

Meanwhile, our message to the Hamas terrorists is unchanged and unequivocal. Release all the hostages. Sign up to a ceasefire. Disarm. And accept that they will play no part in the government of Gaza.

We will make an assessment ahead of the UN General Assembly on how far the parties have met these steps. But no one side will have a veto on our decision.

As we move forward, we must fix the immediate humanitarian crisis now and create the conditions for a lasting peace, with security and sovereignty for both sides.

That is the outcome I am working to deliver with our allies: an urgent end to the suffering, food and medicine flooding into Gaza, and a more stable future for the Middle East. 

Because I know that is what the British people desperately want to see.

Keir Starmer

Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party

 


Tuesday, 29 July 2025

Chinny rub of the day...

Here war criminal Alastair Campbell explains his relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell.  

Apparantly, they only bumped into each other when he worked for her dad and he felt sorry for her because "her father was such a monster". Although Campbell didn't have any scrupels about Robert Maxwell at the time. Indeed, when Robert fell off his yaught in 1991 in circumstances that are to this day still not fully explained, Campbell punched Guardian journalist Michael White after he told him a joke about "Captain Bob, Bob, Bob...bobbing" in the ocean.  Leaving that aside,... Why should he feel sorry for Ghislaine anyway? 

By all accounts Robert Maxwell doted on and spoiled his daughter. By one account I heard someone heard him talking on the telephone and he kept saying "meow, meow" etc. Turned out he was talking to Ghislaine. That's how close and affectionate they were. Robert Maxwell may have been a fraudster but he didn't take his work home with him. He seems to have been a devoted family man. Ghislaine didn't end up the way she was due to abuse, she ended up that way because she was brought up to believe she had an absolute right to power over other people. 

Anyway, further along this laughable explanation we're supposed to believe that Campbell just happened by coincidence to be on a plane where he bumped into Ghislaine again by accident as you do when you're the international jetset like something out of the 1963 film "The V.I.P.s" and that's the only other time they met. 

She then said "Come meet my boyfriend" and Alastair said "As it happens I have nothing better to do as I'm not that busy being Tony Blair's Press Secretary and my wife decided not to come on holiday with me so as I just happen to be on this plane alone with nothing better to do ... Yes, I'll pop along."

And he just toddled off to Epstein's house (the one Prince Andrew visited) for something to do and found it all a bit odd and nothing happened. 

Now it could be that all of this is true. But as Sam Spade would say look at the number of other people who only met Epstein on one occassion "found him creepy" and never saw him again....  It's remarkable that they all had the perspicacity to quickly remove themselves from his & Ghislaine's orbit.



Sunday, 27 July 2025

The Finest Zionist Whataboutery...

I haven't posted much here recently as I seem to spend most of my time at the moment entering into ludicrous arguments with Zionists on Twitter.  Everyone else on Twitter these days seems to be another Zionist telling me Israel is hard done by or another Elon.  I think I am followed by 12 Elons now.  Including a "Private Elon chat" group?  One wonders what dirty depravity goes on in such a place...  I would say it's better than being followed by 10 Onlyfans promotional accounts a day like in the old days but is it...?  Anyway in most of these "arguments" I have with Zionists someone will start off someone will post something along the lines of the IDF hasn't killed as many people as Bomber Harris did and then the finest Zionist whataboutery ensues and the conversation continues something like this ...







































































































































I'm not really sure why someone would call themselves Fenris/Fenrir/Fenric - reference to the Norse God who looks like a wolf or just a big fan of Sylvester McCoy Doctor Who...?  For those of you who do want to play at whataboutery.  Death toll (counted by the Hamas Health Ministry) in Gaza at the moment 58,000.  Death toll from the London Blitz 60,000 (does not include airmen).  Death toll from the Allied Bombing of Germany during WWII 353,000–635,000.

Friday, 25 July 2025

Mr Magoo appointed head of the IDF?

Israel has killed 3% of the pre-war population in 21 months.  For comparison, the US invasion of Iraq killed 0.3% of the population in 3 years.  Either they're committing genocide or they've put Mr Magoo in charge of targeting...



Wednesday, 23 July 2025

Deep fake porn

 

Apparently ex-MP Penny Mordant has been the subject of deep fake AI rough sex porn videos.  How disturbed do you have to be to fancy rough sex with Penny?  I wandered over to her twitter feed to learn more and she was promoting a "Report" she had written into anti-Semitism for the Board of British Deputies or is it the British Board of Deputies... ?   She was saying something to James O'Brien about performers needing insurance and this being used to pressurise them or something.  Didn't make much sense.  Some large venues want you to have PLI which you can get through Equity or anyone else for a miniscule sum.... James O'Brien is also on the naughty list for talking to an antisemitic caller in a separate incident....  Like he can control who phones onto LBC ... on it goes...

Friday, 18 July 2025

The penny finally drops...

 


Membership number: L0098072


Dear Anthony,


We have been notified by your bank that your Labour Party membership Direct Debit has been cancelled.


If this was unintentional and you would like to set up a replacement Direct Debit, then it takes just two minutes.


Just call 0345 092 2299 or visit this page to keep your Labour Party membership up to date.


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If you are now in full time education, you can pay as little as £12 per year – we just need to know your place of study and expected year of graduation.


All you need to do is let us know which rate best suits you, over the phone on 0345 092 2299 or you can email us at labourmembership@labour.org.uk.


If, however, you are thinking of leaving the Labour Party, then we would like to express our sincere thanks for all the support you have given to the Labour Party and we would urge you to reconsider.


Labour has a plan for change and the work of change is underway. We want you to be a part of it. 


Please let us know if you wish to resign your membership. Visit this page to resign.


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Labour Membership

Thursday, 17 July 2025

Reference CAS-8130880-D8Y3R8 Panorama: Trump, Israel and the War on Iran


Dear BBC Complaints

The point is that whether the war is illegal is not a matter of legal debate.  It is not the "view of Seyed Ali Mousavi, the Iranian Ambassador to the UK".  It is International Law.  The UN Charter clearly states "Should the parties to a dispute of the nature referred to in Article 33 fail to settle it by the means indicated in that Article, they shall refer it to the Security Council."  Israel has failed to do this.  Their representatives are simply allowed to lie directly into the lens and since they are never challenged on the legality of their actions they do not have to defend them logically.  Neither have you responded to my questions as to why Israel's invasion of Syria which is simultaneous to these events is not commented on at all in what claims to be a balanced geopolitical analysis.  The BBC website has a War in Ukraine tab and a war in Gaza tab but Israel's war in Syria (ongoing since 8 December 2024) is assiduously concealed from the public.

Yours sincerely

Anthony Miller


Reference CAS-8130880-D8Y3R8

Dear Mr Miller,

Thank you for getting in touch with us about Panorama: Trump, Israel and the War on Iran.

I understand that you feel this programme is biased in favour of Israel.

Reviewing the broadcast, a number of contributors were featured to provide a broad spectrum of perspectives on the conflict. As you have noted this included Israeli Politicians Ohad Tal and Tzipura Hotovely. Seyed Ali Mousavi, the Iranian Ambassador to the UK was also featured, and explained his view that there is no doubt that the US strikes were in violation of the United Nations Charter.

By reporting on claims made by any of our contributors, the BBC is in no way endorsing them. All of these claims are the personal views of the contributors themselves, and not representative of the BBC.

In all our news coverage we are committed to reporting fairly, accurately and with due impartiality. We are editorially independent and not subject to political influence or agenda.

When reporting on a political news story, we present the facts and explore arguments from across the political spectrum so our audience has the information it needs to form its own view. BBC News never takes a position on any story.

We have noted that you feel this broadcast was biased and your feedback has been shared with the relevant teams at the BBC.

We very much value your feedback. Complaints are sent to senior management and we’ve included your points in our overnight reports. These reports are among the most widely read sources of feedback in the BBC. This ensures that your concerns have been seen by the right people quickly, and helps to inform decisions about current and future content.

If you’d like to understand how your complaint is handled at the BBC, you might find it helpful to watch this short film https://www.bbc.co.uk/contact/complaints. It explains the BBC’s process for responding to complaints, what to do if you aren’t happy with your response and how we share the feedback we receive.

Kind regards,

BBC Complaints Team 

www.bbc.co.uk/complaints

Please note: this email is sent from an unmonitored address so please don’t reply. If necessary please contact us through our webform (please include your case reference number).

Monday, 14 July 2025

Unsolicited email from the BBC

Dear  Mr Miller 


Please find the results of an investigation by the BBC's Executive Complaints Unit into editorial complaints about 'Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone': https://www.bbc.co.uk/contact/ecu/gaza-how-to-survive-a-warzone


This is being published at the request of the BBC Board alongside a report by Peter Johnston, the BBC’s Director of Complaints, which can be found here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/documents/report-peter-johnston-review-gaza-how-to-survive-a-warzone.pdf


If you remain dissatisfied with the ECU’s response it remains open to you to contact our regulator Ofcom. Details of how it handles complaints can be found using this link: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/bbc/how-ofcom-deals-with-bbc-complaints--what-you-need-to-know


Kind regards,


BBC Complaints Team

www.bbc.co.uk/complaints


Please note: this email is sent from an unmonitored address so please don’t reply. If necessary please contact us through our webform (please include your case reference number)


Dear BBC Complaints 

I didn't complain about it? 

Have you perhaps got me muddled up with the Board of Deputies of British Jews or the Campaign Against anti-Semitism?

It is an easy mistake to make as we are virtually indistinguishable.

Yours Sincerely 


Anthony Miller 




Saturday, 12 July 2025

Women were prevented from taking the pill in the 1950's - Amnesty International

 


Saw this video online today and for my own sanity felt compelled to point out that women were not "prevented from taking contraception" in the 1950s.  The contraceptive pill wasn't invented until 1960.  A large number of women on Facebook told me I had missed the point of the video.  But I'm not commenting on that.  I'm just making an observation that this video contains an obvious factual error in the hope that someone will correct it.  Among the ludicrous arguments why the video is right and I am wrong that were advanced were that I was focusing on just one still when in fact the narrator literally says the words "women ...we'ren't allowed to take contraception".  I then had to listen to a load of people telling me contraception wasn't available to women in the 1950s when condomns (a spin-off of Goodyear's vulcanisation process) had been massively promoted by multiple governments during two world wars in an attempt to keep a lid on STDs.  Someone even told me that "other forms of contraception were available but were hard to get" as if there was a magic way of not getting up the duff only available to the wealthy in the '50s.  There wasn't.  Well, yes there were other methods than the condom but they all had one thing in common ...they were all variations on the barrier method which is unreliable and takes a bit of the spontenaity out of sex.  Well, I suppose there was the Knaus–Ogino rhythm method but if that worked I wouldn't be writing this, would I?  It isn't that I don't have any sympathy with the general points being made but this video's opening statement is so stupid it's equivalent to saying before 1938 people weren't allowed to split the atom...

Friday, 11 July 2025

Clarence

 

This week whilst wandering through the Ronnie Barker BBC box-set I rediscovered Clarence. I really liked this series when it went out.  The plot is proposterous as Barker plays a removals man who can't see anything with hilarious consequences   It's an obviously silly and implausible conceit - something that seems as though it belongs in a silent comedy or a Viz cartoon strip - but it does allow for a lot of good (if not all politically correct) visual gags.  Comedy also comes from Clarence's inability to admit that he has any disabilities or shortcomings.

However, what I find most interesting about Clarence is that most sitcoms are about people trapped in situations that they cannot escape from.  Clarence, conversely, is about two people who come into some money excaping their humdrum lives.  Domestic servant Jane Travers - Josephine Tewson - inherts a small prefabricated cottage and they decide to escape the city for the countryside.  Perhaps one of the things that makes the series work is that it's a romance which is a departure for Barker who usually plays loveable but scheeming rogues who are more inclined to lust than love.  Not that Clarence doesn't have a few schemes - mainly to get the bolster out of the bed he and Travers share.  Another thing that makes it work is attention to period detail.  There are lots of references to 1930s events from the Cornonation of George VI to the release of Disney's Snow White.  And many of Clarences amusing stories date from his time in the trenches during World War I which would have been accurate for a man of his age at that time.  Barker wrote it himself under the pseudonym of Bob Ferris (a Clement/La Frenais Likely Lads/Porridge in joke) and so it gives us a window into his view of the world which one doesn't always get in his other work.  This is as near as Barker gets to playing himself.  On a bit of a tangent apparently the Two Ronnies sign off "It's a Goodnight from me and Goodnight from him" was an in joke about Corbett being a standup (playing himself) whereas Barker was an actor (playing others so never actually there at all) or something...

Anyway Clarence only ran for 6 episodes but that's enough.  Not everthing needs to go on and on.  It was what it was and resolves with Jane and Clarence marrying in the tradition of most memorable romantic fiction from Jane Austin to the Brontes to Mills and Boon to Barbera Cartland to ...okay but it's not too twee.  Although one does sometimes wonder what happened to Clarence and Travers.  Presumably they lived happily ever after in a prefabricated cottage with an outside toilet and chicken coop and avoided the oncoming blitz soon to be over the London they wisely left...

Meanwhile in Hansard

 

....the Government tries to square the circle of how to solve the problem that what was said yesterday (I do not advise you to follow this link here as it might be illegal and I am a coward, it is simply included as a citation) cannot be repeated today... This made me wonder what can be said about the decision to ban Palenstine action and I guess we're on safe ground quoting what is in Hansard...

As Madam Deputy Speaker observed the debate itself was only 90 minutes long so that "—it has to conclude at 5.27 pm—which means Back Benchers will be on a speaking limit of four minutes to begin with and that only a few will get in before the debate has to conclude."  So it's quite impressive really that given the anemic amount of time found for the debate that there were things said in the debate that the Government thinks it cannot repeat in its own records.

Junior Minister Dan Jarvis (for Yvette Cooper was on bigger tings) promoting the Statutory Instrument (the so called Henry VIII power) said : "The group has a footprint in all 45 policing regions in the UK, and has pledged to escalate its campaign. This disgraceful pattern of activity cannot be allowed to continue. In applying the legislative framework, the Government assess that Palestine Action commits acts of terrorism....   Palestine Action has committed acts of serious damage to property, with the aim of progressing its political cause and intimidating and influencing the public and the Government. These include attacks against Thales in Glasgow in 2022 and against Instro Precision in Kent and Elbit Systems UK in Bristol last year. In such attacks, Palestine Action members have forced entry on to premises while armed with a variety of weapons, and damaged or demolished property, causing millions of pounds’ worth of criminal damage. As the House has heard, Palestine Action members have used violence against people responding at the scene.  During Palestine Action’s attack against the Thales defence factory in Glasgow in 2022, the group caused over £1 million-worth of damage, including to parts that are essential for our submarines. Palestine Action Toggle showing location of caused panic among staff, who feared for their safety as pyrotechnics and smoke bombs were thrown into the area to which they were evacuating. When passing custodial sentences for the perpetrators, the sheriff said: “Throwing pyrotechnics at areas where people are being evacuated to cannot be described as non-violent.” The Government also assess that Palestine Action prepares for terrorism. The organisation has provided practical advice to assist its members in carrying out significant levels of property damage at targets right across the UK. For example, Palestine Action has released an underground manual that encourages its members to create small groups or cells and provides guidance about how to conduct activity against private companies and Government buildings. It explains how to operate covertly to evade arrest and provides a link to a website, also created by Palestine Action, which contains a map of target locations across the UK.  The Government assess that Palestine Action promotes and encourages terrorism, including through the glorification on social media of its attacks involving property damage. Palestine Action’s attacks are not victimless crimes; employees have experienced physical violence, intimidation and harassment, and they have been prevented from entering their place of work. We would not tolerate this activity from organisations motivated by Islamist or extreme right-wing ideology, and we cannot tolerate it from Palestine Action. By implementing this measure, we will remove Palestine Action’s veil of legitimacy, tackle its financial support, and degrade its efforts to recruit and radicalise people into committing terrorist activity in its name. We must be under no illusion: Palestine Action is not a legitimate protest group. People engaged in lawful protest do not need weapons. People engaged in lawful protest do not throw smoke bombs and fire pyrotechnics around innocent members of the public. And people engaged in lawful protest do not cause millions of pounds’ worth of damage to national security infrastructure, including submarines and defence equipment for NATO. Proscribing Palestine Action will not impinge the right to protest. People have always been able to protest lawfully or express support for Palestine, and they can continue to do so."

The Right Honourable Mr Jarvis then went on to waffle on about Russian Imperial Movement for a long time further eating into the strict 90 minutes of debate without giving way.  When he did veteran left winger Clive Lewis MP said: "I thank the Minister for giving way, and for some of the things that he has said. Everything he has spoken about could be dealt with under criminal law. My hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West (Dame Chi Onwurah) mentioned the suffragettes. I think we need to give the context of a little bit of history. The suffragettes carried out a campaign of window-smashing, poster and paint defacement, cutting telegraph and railway lines and targeted bombing and arson, but specifically avoided harming people [Note : this is not strictly historically true.  The suffragettes bombing and arson campaign killed 5 people. I'm sure Herbert Henry Asquith would have proscribed them if he had thought of it]. There is a long history in this country of direct action that pushes the boundaries of our democracy. It is very difficult for all of us, but this is still direct action, not terrorist action.

Alistair Carmichael for the Liberal Democrats raised the point that : "The Minister has spoken about some of the history of this, but there is more recent history. The last Government introduced the Public Order Act 2023 to deal with Extinction Rebellion. The Home Secretary, who was then on the Opposition Front Bench, listed all the various crimes that could be dealt with. She said then: “the Government are extending powers that we would normally make available just for serious violence and terrorism to peaceful protest. Police officers themselves have said that this is, ‘a severe restriction on a person’s rights to protest and in reality, is unworkable’.”—[Official Report, 23 May 2022; Vol. 715, c. 63.] She was right then, and is wrong today, is she not?"

Richard Burgon said "I want to speak specifically about Palestine Action. It is most regrettable that the Government have tabled one order banning three organisations, when it knows that there is political disagreement on Palestine Action. That is no way to bring terror legislation to the House. I want to be clear and to put on the record that I would be supporting the order today if it referred only to the organisations Maniacs Murder Cult and the Russian Imperial Movement. Leading legal and human rights organisations Amnesty International and Liberty have condemned the proscription of Palestine Action. Liberty said: “Targeting a protest group with terrorism powers is a shocking escalation of the Government’s crackdown on protest...This move would be a huge step change in how counter-terror laws are applied.”

Amnesty International UK said: “We’re deeply concerned at the use of counter-terrorism powers to target protest groups...they certainly shouldn’t be used to ban them.”

They both urged the Home Secretary to rethink before bringing this to Parliament. Yesterday, several United Nations special rapporteurs, including those for protecting human rights while countering terrorism and for promoting freedom of expression, said they had contacted the UK Government to say that “acts of protest that damage property, but are not intended to kill or injure people, should not be treated as terrorism”.  Likewise, Lord Charlie Falconer, the former Justice Minister, stated that the “sort of demonstration” seen at a military base by Palestine Action would not justify proscription as a terrorist organisation. Today, we are not voting on whether people agree with Palestine Action’s tactics; we are not voting on whether people think its aim is right or wrong. We are voting on whether the actions it has taken against property, not against people, should lead to its being treated as a terrorist organisation, when what it has done can be prosecuted as criminal damage. There is a long history of protest activity including acts of trespass, criminal damage, sabotage and more. Indeed, the Home Secretary’s recent statement repeatedly refers to criminal damage and the live court cases, showing that there is already legal provision to deal with Palestine Action.

There are a variety of potential consequences if the proscription of Palestine Action is passed. Supporting or joining Palestine Action could carry up to 14 years in prison. That risks criminalising thousands of volunteers and supporters. Thousands have supported or volunteered with Palestine Action, including nurses, students, retirees and professionals. Many have never engaged in direct action, but risk being criminalised. Today, I met representatives of Amnesty International who offered a number of frightening examples of how our constituents could be placed at risk of prosecution under section 12 of the Terrorism Act and could face a maximum sentence of 14 years if Palestine Action are proscribed.

According to Amnesty International, a person who tweets, “I oppose the war crimes in Gaza and I think that Palestine Action has a point,” could easily fall foul Toggle showing location of this provision, as could a person who says to another, “I do not support all the methods used by Palestine Action, but I think protest is important and I respect the personal sacrifices members of Palestine Action are willing to make, risking arrest to challenge war crimes,” or an individual with a placard that reads, “Palestine Action is peaceful—it should be de-proscribed.” 

This legislation could affect constituents who have never been a member of Palestine Action and who have never and would never commit direct action. Speeches or comments they make in community meetings could be trawled, and they could end up facing legal proceedings resulting in a prison sentence of up to 14 years. That concerns us all.  People out there view terrorism as meaning heinous acts such as shooting people, blowing people up, assassinating people and other acts of violence. I urge colleagues to consider the consequences for their constituents of proscribing Palestine Action alongside these other groups."


As expected Jeremy Corbyn had a good old waffle : ""As the debate opened, I intervened on the Minister, and I am grateful to him for giving way. I just need an explanation—I hope that we will get one—as to why groups are always put together in these orders and not dealt with separately. There are clearly different orders of concern here. I want to speak solely about Palestine Action.We live in a democratic society, and we have to understand where our rights have come from. The hon. Member for High Peak (Jon Pearce) represents the place where in 1932 the mass trespass took place, led by Benny Rothman—a Jewish activist in the Communist party at that time—who was demanding rights of access to the countryside. He was roundly condemned by all the mass media and the Government of the day, he was put on trial and he was put in prison. He was eventually released from prison after mass protests in his support. TWithout Benny Rothman and those others, that access to the countryside simply would not have happened at that time.We can look at all the other people who over decades of our history have stood up for free speech and democracy. We can go back to the Chartists, to the suffragettes and to those who campaigned to end apartheid in South Africa. Interestingly, during all the apartheid years, while the British Government did condemn the African National Congress and did indeed believe for a while that Nelson Mandela was a terrorist, they never banned the ANC in Britain, because they were advised that it was important that there should be a place where people could express that voice of hope for the end of apartheid. [Were they?  Or did Mrs Thatcher just not think of it and not have a statutory instrument she could activate in only 90 minutes?] The women who went to Greenham Common to protest about the deployment of nuclear weapons there were never labelled as terrorists either. Yes, they were charged with criminal trespass, as many others have been. Indeed, those who undertake direct action are well aware of the risks they take. However, it crosses an enormous threshold to suddenly make such an announcement about Palestine Action, which speaks out against the horrors of what is happening in Gaza, where hundreds are mown down every day by the Israel Defence Forces simply for queuing for food when they are desperately hungry and their children are starving. Surely we should be looking at the issue that Palestine Action is concerned about, as well as the supply of weapons from this country to Israel, which has made all that possible. If the order goes through today, it will have a chilling effect on protest. I quote a letter sent to the Home Secretary on 28 June: “Direct action is a longstanding and respected part of British political history. From the suffragettes chaining themselves to railings, to striking miners, to anti-apartheid campaigners occupying institutions and disrupting trade, civil disobedience and direct action have always been necessary forces for progress and justice.”"

The debate started at 3.57pm and the House divided to vote at 5.26.  Exactly an hour and a half.  Just slightly less than 14000 words were spoken.  Apart from Mr Javis who was bringing the statutory instrument only Conservative opposition Assistant Whip Harriet Cross (what the late Pillip Martin would have described as "one of nature's number twos") spoke in favour of the motion.  Clearly the arguments for proscription are so self-evident that it only took two people to express them.  Proceedings then moved to the House of Lords who rubber stamped it and Palestine Action was thus officially proscribed on the stroke of midnight...


Postscript 


Dear Anthony Miller


Thank you for contacting the Speaker’s Office.

 

In the debate in question, the Deputy Speaker had imposed a four-minute time limit on Back-Bench speeches, as many MPs wished to contribute. 

 

The words “we are all Palestine Action” were spoken after the Deputy Speaker had said “Order” as the time limit had been reached. Although the microphone remained on for a few seconds, Ms Sultana no longer had the Floor. It is standard practice for the Hansard record to stop when the Chair intervenes to bring a speech to an end when the time limit has been reached.  This is not uncommon; it also happened for Ellie Chowns’s speech in the same debate. 

 

Thank you for taking the time to write and I hope this addresses your concern.

 

Kind regards,


Isis-Raine

Isis-Raine Williams

Speaker’s Office Administrative Assistant

House of Commons Speaker’s Office

 

 

House of Commons, Palace of Westminster, London, SW1A 0AA

parliament.uk


This is disputed 




Wednesday, 9 July 2025

Grok, are you named after the Groke?

Nope, not quite! My name's inspired by Robert A. Heinlein's sci-fi novel "Stranger in a Strange Land," where "grok" means to deeply understand something. The Groke from the Moomins is a chilly, eerie character—I'm more about warmth and insight! Think of me as a friendly guide, not a frosty specter. Any other questions about my origins or what I can do for you?


Tuesday, 8 July 2025

Norman's Column

I always admired Norman Tebbit for his column in the Telegraph.  They obviously bunged him well for it but he put in so much more effort than most other columnists do.  For example... He would literally read every comment below the line and respond to them.  Raising counterpoints, responding to arguments, even on occasion altering his opinion.  He'd then weave these updated opinions into the next column so it wasn't just "subject of the week" but more like a continuous narrative mixed with a right wing soap opera.  His opinions were still bollocks and frequently repugnant but he tried to see other points of view and tried to engage with other people even if he wasn't always successful.  Of course he was semi retired then and had fuck all else to do but it was what I would call proper activism.  Engaging with, debating and listening to the public.  So many politicians today don't even try to engage.  They go from Oxford PPE course to the Council to MP without ever brushing by a real person.  Then they lock themselves away in their ivory towers and only appear with the public in carefully choreographed photo ops, usually in a factory surrounded by lots of plebs in high vizes who can't answer back.  Tebbit (a bit like Major) actually liked the intellectual challenge of a debate.  I mean, Kemi "it's too early for policy" doesn't even have opinions, she just throws shit at the wall to see what will stick.  And Starmer actually states publicly that he doesn't even read the speeches his spads write for him.  Tebbit wasn't particularly likable but he was a real person and he wasn't a fake.  I wish we had more politicians who weren't fakes.

Sunday, 6 July 2025

Food fight


People say the IDF are wrong to not let UN aid agencies distribute food aid in Gaza but they have to be careful that the aid isn't stolen by Hamas.  Can you imagine what would happen if Hamas got their hands on lorry loads of food?  They would surely use it as a weapon.  Very soon a giant food fight would ensue and IDF soldiers would be at the mercy of custard pies and flower bombs at every street corner.  They may not be lethal but eggs and milkshakes used as projectiles can really hurt.  Just ask Nigel Farage...

Thursday, 3 July 2025

The gentler sex


It always makes me laugh when people cite the Suffragettes as an example of non-violent direct action.


They literally invented the letter bomb...


When they weren't horse whipping Winston Churchill at railway stations ...


Or blowing up the tube network...


Or bombing Westminster Abbey...


Or committing arson all over the place...


They had their own nitroglycerin factory.


Compared to the Suffragettes XR & Palestine Action are incredibly tame.


The Pankhursts were bad motherfuckers

Monday, 30 June 2025

Oppenpornheimer

 

Finally got round to watching Oppenheimer.  

Now I'm no great feminist but... 

Oh dear ...

Someone obviously said to Christopher Nolan:

"Look mate, you keep making these really long depressing films about catastrophic military incidents which are very good drama but I really feel given it's a lot of mainly male physicists sitting round discussing particle wave duality that what would really elevate it intellectually would be to stuff in a bit of gratuitous soft porn.  Florence Pugh's a good sport, why don't you ask her to get her tits out for the lads? Sure she'd do it and it'll be a lot more upbeat than people being vaporised by a nuclear explosion."

Ello ello ello goodbye

It’s such fun reporting crime to the local Popo. The classics they come out with. “Can’t fingerprint that, mate”. Funny …Smooth, non-porous ...

Least ignored nonsense this month...