Uncle Boris

What can I say? We are looking at the end of municipal-Marxism in London, at last.

I'm hoping that the usual Gaurdianista commentariat lefty scum who were happy to keep the vile Livingslime in office because he wasn't a Tory - are now writhing with self loathing. Why don't you all move out of your Islington and Hampstead homes and practice your benighted champagne socialism elsewhere?

First step - London. Next step - the country. Labour will be reduced to a rump of the whingeing bunch of failed social workers, second rate comprehensive teachers and chippy unionists they always were.

Who was it from Labour two years ago saying that Conservatives will be reduced to a small rump in a New Socialist Britain? Choking on your Leninflakes now aren't you.

In the words of Bozza himself to tinsel-tits on Today: 'I think the media have been denied a target today.'

And to the rest of the apologists for the left - watch out.....your time is coming.....your hegemony is at an end. Blue Britain will be back - and your cosy do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do nannyistic views will be crushed. No more jobs for you lot.

I can't stand Radio 4 anymore

Humphries, Naughtie and Stourton openly drooling at the White Hhouse nominee race churns my stomach. We all know they had a picture of GB2 on their wall labelled 'hail to the thief', but they are taking the biscuit.

My bet is that Obama won't be the next Kennedy. More like the next Carter. Remember him?

Ticked all the boxes the lefties just loved.

Turned out to be the most useless president the colonies ever chose. Whether it was because he opposed 'Nam in the same way Obama opposed Iraq or because Gerald Ford really couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time - either way he romped home, trashed the US economy, faltered over SALT, wet his pants in front of Breshnev and caved in to Khomeini.

There was light at the end of this polictical tunnel. Politicoe, turned actor, turned the Great Communicator came in afterwards. Holding Maggie's hand (May her name be praised) they ended the cold war and turned the Atlantic alliance into the Global salvation it was under Churchill and Roosevelt.

It may take 10 years, but we may see an improvement.

Our Gang

I grew up in the 70's.
Now it wasn't all Life on Mars: spacehoppers, wombles, Slade on the radio and Cortinas the colour of Spangles.
It was a time of Britain's slide into economic obscurity as Keynsian governments bought votes by propping up dead industries. It was the Thatcher revolution which rescued us from this.
Thirty years on the world has changed.
Almost everyone bought into the idea of economic freedom. The nationalised industries are gone but we now face a sclerotic state as inefficient as 1978 - with votes being bought in Labour seats by nationalising a bank.
Naturally one wonders if it had been the bank of Guildford, if Labour would have gambled the cost of twenty aircraft carriers?

But this isn't why I felt moved today. After reading an article on the true winners of the Vietnam war 35 years on in the dear Speccie, I hear that Fidel has retired.

Naturally he has passed the power on unelected (sounds achingly familiar) to his brother.

But my mind cast back over walls falling and the missile threat vanishing to a poster my dad had.

It was called 'Our Gang'.

The photograph was of a football team posing with a ball.

The World XI.

The faces?

Mao
Ho Chi Minh
Papa Doc
Kim (Elder, of course)
Kruschev
Castro
Honecker
Hitler
Stalin
Mussolini
Idi Amin

Nice to see that last of them on their way, eh?

Great Toy

As the paucity of the concept of Socialism slowly reveals itself to a generation too young to remember the last time this country experimented with it, we find that the cries of the Left for 'more socialism!' grow louder - like a wounded beast.
The Right has recaptured the zeitgeist.
Gordo's so called economic miracle collapses like Keynesian economics did when the credit ran out in '73 and the fools who thought we could afford a Socialist state and have an international capitalist economy see their pension plundered to make way for who ever the Left's latest client group is today.

And so people realise that medicine is needed and as ever us Tories have to administer it to sick Britain.

Remember the last time this lot held the reigns, when our economy ended up as powerful as Albania in 1979?

So - in preparation for The Natural Party Of Government to return - I give you a toy I discovered on Iain Dale.

Election-Map

Cheers Iain. I have wasted an hour on a telco playing with this.

Chap approves.

Flying hat cheerfully waved at Mr Dale.

Burma - The North Korea of the Indian Ocean?

One shares the usual horror at what is happening with Burma of late - The Greek Chap puts it much better than I - and includes links.

My mind casts back to the velvet revolutions of the late 80s - and the successes they had. Is the Burmese regime more brutal than that of Romania? It's hard to judge. What is different to then is the sponsor - the skin in the game as we call it in my profession.

Back in 89 - the Soviets were a busted flush. And as their support crumbled their satellite regimes did with them. It would appear that China - hardly a paragon of democratic openness - potentially sees Burma as a satellite - and would gleefully prop up it's regime, and clearly sees the lives of fellow humans as rather cheap.

One wonders why.

Perhaps we see the world slightly differently to them. The Cold war view isn't there anymore for us. We forget the great game between the blocs fought in the buffer states from Angola to East Germany. Things may look a tad different to our chums in Beijing. All that has happened is the Old Bear has gone bankrupt. But There is a lot of her claws left.

I also think there are a host of geopolitical factors clearly at play.

I'm no expert - but I am familiar with some of the terrain - so here's a few guesses.

Could it be unofficial empire - long memories there in the land of the dragons. From suffering at the hands of Japan in the 30s - and a hundred years before that through the colonial manufactories in the great rivers - the Pearl northwards - would suggest that a few satellite regimes with resources and friendly goons at the helm give china a sense of comfort as it grows and flexes it's economic muscles.
The Pacific rim is lined with hostiles - Japan, Taiwan and the Americano-Australian bloc. Recent interventions in the Celebetic Archipelago to defend interests of the old SEATO bloc obviously unnerve China - so landward borders with friendly or propped up regimes may tip a local balance of power in her interests.

Could it be an interest in challenging an Indian economic bloc? India represents the Anglo-Saxon model of capitalism, free trade and democracy that clearly concerns China. How else to maintain the regime if you keep the people in ignorance. With a Maoist insurrection stoked in Nepal, ongoing hostilities in Kashmir - how better to play the great game with India - a Nuclear India after all, than by keeping a modern day East Germany fizzling away to her eastern flank - to hem in any pretensions an economic powerhouse waiting to happen that is the old Raj.
Also If you can keep Kim and his cohorts ranting at the Americans across the 38th parallel and Burma worrying the Europeans - eyes can be blind to other pressures that she may wish to push - Japan - or West into the Sino-Russian frontier. Not the first time they have come to blows either. With a stroppy Russia to contend with - the great game can be played up against the old west and at the same time the old bear can be baited at leisure.

Finally - good old sea lanes. China's navy and therefore her ability to project her interests beyond the Pacific Rim is hampered by her Pacific Navy being largely littoral and the fact as far as she is concerned the scrap with Shek and Mao isn't done yet in Formosa / Taiwan - and all that island represents is the same scale of unsinkable aircraft carrier as we were to the threat of Soviet expansion across the Elbe in 45-89. With the Sea of Japan sonar-ed as tight as the Greenland - Iceland - UK gap was in 88, the Indonesian Archipelago a theocratic bloc - and the Malaccan straits covered as far as fleet movements are concerned - a friendly port in the Bay of Bengal is an ideal place to project interests to your trade enemies.

Power projection is still rated in Flat-tops. When Saddam went buying petrol in Kuwait - Both Maggie and George's Daddy asked the same question - where are my carriers? George 1, of course knew of these things - being a decorated navy pilot himself. She hasn't got them right now - but you can bet they are being built - or bought. (Good article here: Here)

In short - is Burma the soft underbelly China wants to the Indian Ocean? Or a buffer state for security in a cold war mind-set? Either way - this could be the first move in the Dragon flexing Geopolitical muscles beyond her old backyard of the Mekong to the south and represent a push in her interests Westward.

Gweilo ought to watch his step.

Evil at work

Been rather pre-occupied - but this is too important to let go.

The ephemeral nature of the interweb is exposed in it's erasability. To those who seek to silence us - we are but columns on an IP address list. We can be expunged at the click of the mouse.
As small individuals we are not protected either by legal budgets of the press or our ability to quote using parliamentary privilege.

'But, so what?' you might say - 'deleting a blog is just some nerd's website'
This is as big an assault on free speech as rounding up copies of fanzines and burning them in the streets. Except this is cleaner and attracts less headlines other than outrage in the blogsphere.

The whole point is put far more eloquently by the The Devil and The Greek Chap. They have done the research and say it much better.

All that is necessary for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing. To my readers - get out there and comment, chaps.

Where's Boris?

With all the goings on over the Brown bounce and Dave either being on the ropes or showing everyone what for on Newsnight - it all seems to have gone terribly quiet over Boris and the Mayoral campaign.

I do have an observation to make about the arch-chap though.
His Telegraph columns are becoming more and more focussed to what could be described as London issues: transport, street disorder and bike theft and the like.


Is this just me - or has his column become his platform - or was it always thus?
In which case - most of us who read you Boris already would vote for you - you need another outlet!

Economy Blogging

A refreshing view from Boris on HE today:
Here

Been busy today, but:

There was a bit on the Radio this morning about the Gdansk shipyards facing large cuts because of EU competition regulations - on the grounds of their massive state subsidy.

Story Here

I'm not bleating a position either way on this, but it would be ironic that the birthplace of the Solidarity movement which heralded the lifting of the freedom of association restrictions in Poland - heralding the decay of Communism there - would fall foul of another Superstate.....

Or that it only survived the fall of the wall with massive state aid......

In other news....the Beeb has yet again leapt to the aid of Gordo by publicising some data errors in a Conservative Briefing. One wonders why they didn't castigate Patsy (remember her...?) when she pumped money into marginal constituencies, or is there any in depth investigation as to who appointed all the denying chief execs - and just what Millbank's hold on them is.

To be honest when faced with shaming their lords and masters, they will all close ranks, won't they.

Hat tip to Kate for the source for the second one.

Try this Dave

This is the sort of campaign we need........

An Arch Chap

Go for it Bozzer. Time we rid ourselves of that idiot Ken.
Time London had a libertarian instead of that illiberal, statist, islamist creeping, demagogue.

You know it makes sense.

Didn't see you at the Olympics on saturday, though chummy.

Lest we Forget

90 years ago today, men stood and died for freedom. A freedom those who govern us now take terrible liberties with.

Passchendaele

Their courage is beyond our comprehension - for my generation have been spared the horror. Have we a land fit for heroes - or one where those who seek to risk everything in the name of their country are sneered at by their paymasters.

Sleep well, brothers in arms.

Their name liveth for evermore.

Yes, CJ

A striking comment from the comments section on an article from today's Torygraph...(Go find it...)
Who remembers Sunshine Desserts?

The similarities are stunning - we have CJ at the helm - the helm of a sinking ship blindly carrying on as if nothing was wrong.
Surrounded by yes-men and simperers all grateful for his munificence.

'I didn't get where I am today by waiting in the wings for 10 years, Reggie!'

'No, CJ'
'Super'
'Great'.

Politcal climes

A well wisher sent me this .....
Certainly got me pondering - and moreover remembering......
Personally I see myself as a libertarian - but I am not one for ideologies - the less big ideas, the better and let us all carry on with carving out our own niche.
(I actually recall getting stuck into a fairly weighty discussion over whether or not rejecting the concept of Ideology is in fact an ideology)

But give this a go:

Political Compass

I will be interested in my readerships comments on where they lie......

I'm 5.4 to the Right, -6 down Libertarian - meaning I am in the bottom right of the compass - more libertarian than anything else.

Driving Miss Daisy

Good post over at Sigismund to take our mind off the Soviet nonsense going on at the Kremlin - sorry Downing street...... clearly he is going for a script writer job for Mr Clarkson.

One build - take away the engine, and replace it with having to rely on natural atmospherics to stay aloft and you kind of have the gliding thing. Still have to do map works, radios, dodge other planes zipping about at cloud base and the nearest thing to a carrier launch in civvy street.
I do agree - some of us can navigate and communicate whilst aviating / driving.

Other news:

Chicken Yog has a good point on the Blair legacy. Here.

Fez doffed affectionately to the The Sultry Journalist..

The New Soviet

Whilst the Brownites of my readership are no doubt gloating over the turncoat (who's name I will not publish) who crossed the floor - I would like to point out some similarities.

He clearly does not hear the people - for he fears them - why else would he insist that he should not stand for reelection - unless he fears the ire of those who voted him in.
A bit like the coronation of Dear Leader, what?

But welcome to the New Soviet.

Expect more taxes on those of us who actually generate rather than consume wealth - for in the eye of the one eyed, only state spending is worthwhile.
Expect the client state to expand so we are all grateful for his munificence.
Expect even more rigorous controls on freedom of movement - it is for our own safety/good/carbon footprint (delete as appropriate). It may be road charging - but if they can track us effectively enough to charge us for it, expect every possible moving traffic violation to be hardwired.
Expect more curtailment of individual freedom for our own good - like ID cards.
Expect more powers of the state to intervene in our lives.
Expect the cowardly dead tree brigade to continue their toadying - they are no better than Pravda or Trud.
Expect more meaningless targets and statistics - they will want us to believe we are happier, even when credit card Britain goes credit card bust - it will only be those evil landowners who steal housing (And other Daily Mirror shite) who suffer.

Welcome to The United Socialist State of Britain.

You will rue this day, for the lights of liberty are going out over this country - we may not see them lit again for a decade.

PS: A tenner on Kinnock being in the cabinet!

St Boris, again

Watching St Boris on Question time: Blair should be Our Man In Bagdhad.

Priceless.

Maggie

As you know I think she was a rather splendid lass.
Continuing the post from across on at the Lefty Journalist

Three Things good about Maggie:

1.) Broke the Union strangehold on industry
2.) Won the Cold War with The Great Communicator
3.) Turned us from an economy worse than Greece in 1979 - to the 4th largest in the world....

Dive in chaps.....

PS: Sigismund - is the 88 HCDB still drinking well? Failing that Alphonses' Gen XIX would be a treat.....