ATW FRIDAY NIGHT JUKEBOX

The stuff you find on this new fangled youtube, eh? No cat strangling in this one -

A VERY PECULIAR BLOKE ON THE BEACH

D-DAY piper to be honoured by the French.

Bill Millin, now 86, tried to raise the morale of incoming troops with his tunes, as shells exploded overhead and machinegun fire raked Sword Beach.

The picture of the 21-year-old commando became one of the enduring images of the landings which paved the way to Hitler's defeat in the Second World War.

Now he is to be immortalised in a life-sized statue by the people of Colleville Montgomery, which he helped to liberate in 1944.

Quite right too. It's the weekend here and my blood pressure can't take much more politics. So tonight I'll be raising a few to Piper Bill, the mad bugger. Apparently Millin played "Hieland Laddie" stepping off the landing craft, "Road to the Isles" on Sword Beach, then at the Pegasus Bridge it was "All the Blue Bonnets Are Over the Border" followed by a very brief "Nut Brown Maiden" he played for some French Ladies, cut short by a heavy mortar barrage.

Some time later, German snipers admitted they didn't target him because they thought he was mad. They may have had a point. Millin was portrayed in the 1962 film The Longest Day, by Pipe Major Leslie de Laspee, the official piper to Her Majesty The Queen Mother -

Al Gore is a Liar!

From the article, which shows us just how Al Gore will profit by government intervention in the market in promoting environmental whacko ideas:

"It would be very helpful if you have government initiative. Without it, it will take longer for these to be economically viable," Patterson told Cybercast News Service. However, Bert Ely, a financial analyst with Ely & Associates of Alexandria, Va., is skeptical that the kind of green investment portfolio Gore is advocating can be profitable without government action. History has shown green companies to be risky ventures, he says

"Wind power, solar and bio-fuels all operate on tax subsidies or purchase requirements," Ely told Cybercast News Service. "The government stimulates demand. The most notorious subsidy is the 51 cent gas credit for ethanol."

"To the extent that you got some kind of government mandate here, whether it is cap-and-trade or a purchasing requirement, a taxpayer subsidy, to me that's a dicey way to look for a return on a venture because what the government giveth it can taketh away -- and often does," Ely said. "You're making a political bet, not an economic bet."

(A cap and trade system would set limits on the amount of carbon a company can emit. The limits are called a "cap." If a company has to exceed the limit, it would be allowed to buy credits from companies that pollute less. This transfer would be the "trade.")

In public statements, KPCB (Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers - a firm in which Al Gore has become partnered with) has pointed to the likelihood of new government policies as a selling point for investors.

It looks like a good turnout of intrepid Americans in Portland, Oregon. They were there protesting Al Gore and his scandalous and shameful promotion of the lie of 'global warming':

Portland, Oregon??!! That bastion of liberals and lefties? Gore is in trouble if the Portland, Oregonians are assembling against him!

HT Mr. Grey Ghost.

Cross posted at Grizzly Mama.

Monica

BNP GOES MULTI-ETHNIC

An elderly Sikh who describes Islam as a "beast" and once provided a character reference for Nick Griffin during his racial hatred trial is set to become the British National Party's first non-white member.

Rajinder Singh, an anti-Islam activist in his late seventies who blames Muslims for the death of his father during the Partition of India in 1947, has been sympathetic towards Britain's far-right party for much of the past decade even though he currently remains barred from becoming a member because of the colour of his skin.

Singh should soon be able to join the BNP.

The reality is that there is widespread concern at the advance of Islam in the United Kingdom and until the main political parties address this, the BNP will grow. This is a shame but if the current political elite are too dhimmified to address major community concerns then they have no one to blame but themselves for this development. It is obvious that Labour and the Lib-Dems have no intention whatsoever with dealing with Islam and the Conservatives seem distinctly luke-warm on the issue. So if no one else will speak up for the people....

PIGS POLICING PIGS

David Curry, the MP who heads the Westminster committee responsible for policing Commons expenses, has claimed almost £30,000 for a second home that his wife has banned him from staying in owing to the claim he was using it to have an affair!

However he has now resigned as chairman of the parliamentary standards and privileges committee at the news of a media investigation into his affairs and faces a formal inquiry into his claims.

What confidence can we have into how our politicians manage their affairs when EVEN those charged with policing expenses can be seen to be less than purer than pure?

When asked whether Mr Curry used the house, his next-door neighbour, Valerie Flather, who looks after the property, said: “That is his business.” Questioned as to whether the house represented good value to the taxpayer, she replied: “Damn the bloody taxpayer.” She then hung up

Says it all. They have nothing but contempt for us.

DEBT OUT OF CONTROL....

It seems to me that 2010 will see the UK economy slump into even deeper recession. I hate to be a doom-monger but it's important to call things as you see them. 

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said that even if Britain reduces its deficit in line with other leading nations, it will still have the rich world's biggest deficit from now until 2017 and potentially beyond, casting serious doubt on its economic credibility. The warning coincided with shock public finance statistics showing that public borrowing in October was 88 times what it was in the same month last year, making it likely that the Chancellor will miss his £175bn borrowing forecast this year.

The economic catastrophe that Brown has presided over has yet to become fully visible in my view. It will ONLY be from next July, when the Conservatives actually try to halt the debt spiral that the scale will become clear. I don't like the Conservatives much but I do feel that they are being handed a scorched earth economy and I wish them well in trying to handle it.  

For David

They Say Everybody Has Their Price

And, according to abcnews.com, Senator Harry Reid guesses that Democrat from Louisiana, Mary Landrieu’s price is $100 million for her “yes” vote on the ObamaCare bill that Reid is now sheperding through the Senate. 

From abcnews.com: 

“…On page 432 of the Reid bill, there is a section increasing federal Medicaid subsidies for “certain states recovering from a major disaster.” 

The section spends two pages defining which “states” would qualify, saying, among other things, that it would be states that “during the preceding 7 fiscal years” have been declared a “major disaster area.” 

I am told the section applies to exactly one state:  Louisiana, the home of moderate Democrat Mary Landrieu, who has been playing hard to get on the health care bill.

In other words, the bill spends two pages describing would could be written with a single world:  Louisiana.  (This may also help explain why the bill is long.)

Senator Harry Reid, who drafted the bill, cannot pass it without the support of Louisiana’s Mary Landrieu.

How much does it cost?  According to the Congressional Budget Office: $100 million.”

HT: Hyscience

REACTIONS TO EU DEVELOPMENTS..

Elvis Costello reacts to the news that the EU have selected their new top twosome..

SPOT THE LIE?

Baroness Ashton has just been anointed, behind closed doors,  to become the first ever Foreign Minister of Europe. Here are five facts about her - can you figure out which one I have just made up?

She was an administrative secretary for CND between 1977 and 1979 and was later elected a vice-chairwoman of this organisation with strong communist roots'

She is married to Peter Kellner, the left-leaning former journalist turned YouGov pollster

She is a big X Factor fan but only mentions enjoying the theatre in Who’s Who

A full-size Dalek stands in the corner of her sitting room. 

She was elected to an important position in British politics 

THE NEW FACE OF EUROPE...

Here they are - the new face of Europe. What a pair. This, dear friends, is the new European President Herman Van Rompuy (Belgium Prime Minister) and the new Foreign Minister Baroness Ashton. 

DIM AND DUMBER...

Have you been forced into buying those very expensive "energy efficient" light bulbs? If so, do NOT read on..

"Energy-efficient light bulbs lose on average 22% of their brightness over their lifetime, a study has found. In some cases they emit just 60% as much light as traditional models which are being phased out of shops, it says.The study in Engineering and Technology magazine concluded that consumers were being misled by the bulbs' packaging.

PRESIDENT BLAIR EXITS...

Breaking news. As the Eurocrats discuss who will be the first European President (No need to consult the people over so trivial a matter, that's so passe!) over fine cuisine and good wine, news emerges that Tony Blair has been rejected and Gordon Brown has conceded this point. Blair will be desolate that despite his years of crawling to Brussels, they still rejected him. Herman the Belgium looks like being the man who gets the job .

A 'Photo Op'

As seen in the Washington Post, Obama's words of encouragement and wisdom, nay: caring, 'You guys make a pretty good photo-op.'

This said right after he informed them that they won't be getting the reinforcements that they so desperately need right now. Coalition casualties are on the rise, but tough tooty. Obama needs another photo op.

Can I share the despicable feelings that I have for BHO? Every single day, he does something even more stupid than he's done before, and every day I think to myself, 'He surely can't beat this, can he?' But every single day, he does! He beats it!

I was lucky enough to serve under Reagan. I always knew that he cared about the men and women in the armed forces. I feel bad for the men and women in the military today. I have 1 nephew serving right now. If I could reach in and pluck him out, I would do it right now.

Obama is a disgrace.


Monica

THE WONDERS OF BEER..

I can think of at least of two of ATW's finest East Coast commentariat who will be cheered by the news that..

Drinking a bottle of wine a day, or half a dozen beers, cuts the risk of heart disease by more than half in men, it has been shown. In one of the largest studies of the link between alcohol and heart disease, researchers have found that the protective effects of a daily tipple are not limited to those who drink moderately but also extend to those who consume at what are conventionally considered to be dangerously high levels.

So, heart disease CUT by more than a half if only SIX PINTS are consumed daily. Mr Sam Adams - can you hear me? All the do-gooders are squealing in outrage at the results of this very important study! My issue with it is that IF I was to drink that much every day I would never get anything done. Some of my critics might think that a good outcome! 

RICH DIVERSITY?

Get this;

A sadistic mother-of-eight has been found guilty of subjecting six of her children to a 'sickening' six-year campaign of abuse and neglect. The 37-year-old beat her children - aged between four and 16 - with objects including a belt, a broken coat hanger and a meat-tenderising mallet, a court heard. She was found guilty of 18 charges of horrific abuse including scratching one of her daughters with a knife and burning another with a hot screwdriver.

And who, pray, was this monster?

 
The mother, a Jamaican national living in Cambridge, was found guilty of 18 charges including nine counts of assaulting a child under 16 in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering with injury to the child's health.  The woman was heavily pregnant when the allegations were made and has since given birth to her eighth child. All of her children are now in care of the social services.

WHY is this woman in our country?

REPLAY OR MOVE ON?

It's creating quite a stir in football sporting circles!

Last night, the Republic of Ireland were knocked out of the World Cup qualifiers in Paris. France beat them 2-1 so assuring themselves a place in the finals. The thing is, the French cheated, handling the ball into the net. The player concerned, Henri, has even admitted he handled the ball - which IS cheating.

The Football Association of Ireland has asked Fifa for their World Cup play-off against France to be replayed. Republic of Ireland were beaten 2-1 on aggregate after France won by a goal which saw captain Thierry Henry handle the ball in the build up. However, Republic manager Giovanni Trapattoni does not expect Fifa to sanction a replay.

Trapattoni is being a realist but it is a shame. I had hoped the Republic would win and I happened to even watch the game. But football is not a sport anymore and fair play and sportsmanship mean little anymore. It's a bit like international Athletics. Same idea. England were similarly defrauded many years ago by Argentinian player Maradonna. 

Sarah Palin- A Republican in Name Only

The Grand Old Party finds itself in the political wilderness, and accordingly a product of the actual wilderness is presently garnering the most attention. 

Palin's supporters are not deterred by her failings, her quitting, her empty resume, her bizzare speechs and interviews, her fabrications and her lack of original substantive policy ideas.   They are motivated in great part by the enemy my of my enemy is my friend, and Palin's thoughtless slogans have made her a target, fairly and at times unfairly by the left. 

A great leader?  Please.  She quit the one elected office she managed to get elected to.  An innovator?  Please.  I don't think even her most rabid supporters can point to anything that resembles a fresh idea on any topic of the day.  An outsider?  Hardly, her record of cosy relations with Alaska's political establishment is mixed at best.  And she's outside of the Beltway not for a lack of trying but for an inability to connect with all voters.  An intellect?  Please, she travelled through more towns to gain a college degree that a circus troop.  A great debater?  Please, she can't get past Katie Couric, and her venue of choice is the teenageland of Facebook.   Shrill waters run shallow. 

A good Republican?  Please.  Her support comes from the its our way or the highway eternally angry and dismayed fringe of the party.  She is the Jesse Jackson of the Republicans, a person who could never win but who appeals to a vocal minority within her own party.  In fact her greatest appeal to the fringe is that they can project upon her the idea that they would rather destroy the Republican Party than permit a Reagan-like appeal to the majority.  And if she can shake some rubbles out of the rabble by her book sales, Sarah is all for it.  Because Palin isn't interested in the Republican Party, she's interested in Sarah Palin.         

ENERGISING THE BASE...

Further to Grizzly Mama/Trolls post below, I would also like to pick up on the Palin phenomenon.

"College students ditched class, employees skipped work and some huddled in the cold overnight just to make sure they get an orange wristband Wednesday that would let them meet Sarah Palin.

Thousands gathered outside a Barnes & Noble and chanted "Palin! Palin! Palin!" for the kickoff of the former Republican vice presidential candidate's "Going Rogue" book tour, which has taken on the feel of a political pep rally.

"She's a person of faith, she has a family, she has gone through a lot of the trials and tribulations we have. I'd vote for her in a heartbeat," said Lana Smith, a dispatcher at a bus company who took the day off work and had been waiting in line since 5:30 a.m.

"Someday I hope her name is up in lights and I'll have had the privilege of meeting her," Smith said.

County music played as Palin's tour bus, painted to resemble the cover of her book, pulled up to the Woodland Mall in Grand Rapids."

"I just can't tell you how good it is to be back in Michigan," the former Alaska governor told the crowd, which chanted "Palin! Palin!"

"Alaska and Michigan have so much in common, with the huntin' and the fishin' and the hockey moms, and just the hardworking, patriotic Americans who are here," Palin said.

Now then, Palin is patronised by the Beltway set and I know there are many in right of liberal circles whose opinions I respect who have issues with her. I understand there concerns but I also believe that Palin has star-quality, she has charisma and she talks to ordinary Americans in a way that the Obamesssiah can but dream. She is not an elitist, she is one of the people. I think her character is her greatest asset and I admire her unflinching determination to stand up for her country whilst the current President travels around the world apologising for it.

The snivelling UK media also patronises Palin choosing to follow the Democrat line that she is stupid, a hick, a failure. The curious thing is WHY, if all this be true, that Democrats and the media shills spend SO MUCH TIME and effort expressing their puerile hatred of Palin. If she's the fool they claim, what's the problem?

The answer is that they see her as a threat, pure and simple. How it will work out I don't know but all I can say is that at this point, Sarah Palin is the single biggest asset that the GOP/Conservatives have.  The GOP elite hate her - that's fine, they have failed their country by not providing leadership when it counted so who cares what they think?

At times of crisis, leaders DO emerge. Palin is one and I look forward to her "Going Rogue" tour stopping off here in downtown Donacloney where she will get a warm welcome from yours truly, a rogue male!

CHUCKLE-VISION

It's touching, really.

The former Democratic Unionist leader Ian Paisley has praised Sinn Fein for keeping its word on power-sharing despite the dissident threat. Mr Paisley said he was encouraged and hoped relations between First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness would "steady".

The IRA must be delighted at this praise extended the way of Butcher Boy McGuinness and the crew.

Of course the reality is that all the DUP/IRA axis has delivered is institutionalised incompetence. I am certain unionist voters will weigh up Paisley's words of praise for the IRA and judgre accordingly at the polls.