HOT AIR FROM THE EU

Huge sums promised by rich nations including the UK to help developing countries tackle the climate change chimera cannot be accounted for, according to a study.

A total of 20 nations pledged up to 410 million dollars  a year in 2001, resulting in a pot that should be worth well over 1.6 billion dollars

So far so good - what generosity! However... 

But only 260 million dollars has been paid into two United Nations funds earmarked for the purpose according to the latest figures, the BBC World Service investigation said.

Oh dear!

The EU said the money was collected in "bilateral and multilateral deals", but was unable to provide data to back up the claim.

What?

Artur Runge-Metzger, the senior climate change negotiator for the European Union, said the EU had done what it promised to do. "We can say we met the promise - climate finance has really been stepped up," he told the BBC. But he admitted the EU was unable to provide data to show it did pay the money. "It's sometimes very hard to say what is the climate bit of this financing," Mr Runge-Metzger added.

I am sure that Mr Runge-metzer can make whatever claim he wants but when he casually dismisses the need to provide any evidence of such he demonstrates once again the hot air and deceit that flows from the EU.

DUMB BLOND

Here's another reason not to trust the Conservatives..

A former secondary modern schoolboy whose politics were coloured by what Thatcherism did to his native city of Liverpool is to have his surprising status as one of David Cameron's court philosophers confirmed tomorrow. Phillip Blond, the intellectual father of "Red Toryism" is launching a new think tank, ResPublica, to take Tory thinking further into the left's traditional home turf.

Mr Blond has a problem with the free market and his rise within the Cameron Cons is evidence that there is a red streak running through the once blue blood of British Conservatism.

HOW THEY SPEND YOUR MONEY (cont)

NHS bureaucracy has soared in the past two years to the tune of £78m.

The amount spent on employing managers has risen by a quarter, or £78 million, in the past two years, the study shows.

NHS Trusts blamed Whitehall targets for the increase. 

It comes a day after NICE, the drugs rationing watchdog, refused funding for life-prolonging bowel cancer drug Avastin, saying it was not cost effective.

That's how it works. The bureaucrats in the NHS blame the bureaucrats in central government whilst pocketing the cash even as patients die. Socialised healthcare - it's bad for the soul.

BEING INTOLERANT OF TOLERANCE...

Here is an interesting take on the Fort Hood massacre from my friend Ron Mossad...

First a few well chosen quotes that set the stage....

This was an individual who does not, obviously, represent the Muslim faith"
--Janet Nepolitano

"And as horrific as this tragedy was, if our diversity becomes a casualty, I think that’s worse."
--General George W. Casey

"Allah-u Akbar!!!!"
--Major Nidal Malik Hasan

It's not just about Nidal Malik Hasan. There are movements right now in the United States, that are literally committing acts of treason/sedition like this one on American soil, using American companies and proudly displaying their work to the rest of the world. Would these people be allowed to speak like this about the countries they support IN the countries they support? Why are we tolerating this? Why do we allow these people to operate at will and poison uninformed minds on the internet? 

They are using our own rules against us. And the media is ignoring them. Our politicians are ignoring them. How can we afford to ignore them? How can we afford to continue being indifferent to this evil while it plots against us and our families? Why do we refrain from calling it what it is? Why are we afraid to be honest with ourselves?

I'll tell you why. You see while Nidal Malik Hasan acted to kill those soldiers at Ft. Hood he did not act alone. Political correctness aided him. Indifference abetted him. Tolerance of evil gave him aid and comfort. And we are all accomplices.

In the end...WE as a society killed them. Our collective conscience silently screams in desperate horror for us to blank out this fact but we cannot do it anymore. Our future as a liberal democracy depends on it. Hasan needs to be punished for his act of war but it's time we as a society started taking responsibility for our own actions, or lack thereof. 

WOODEN HEADS!

The creation of new forests and woodlands across the country will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 10 per cent and protect communities at risk of flooding, according to a scientific study.

Planting trees in 23,000 hectares a year for the next 40 years — about the size of Queen’s Balmoral estate, or a town the size of Kettering, Northamptonshire — would result in just an extra 4 per cent of land for trees, bringing a total of 16 per cent forest in Britain.

This study was commissioned by the Forestry Commission who would, of course, be the primary beneficiary of such taxpayer largesse. Why just think of all those extra jobs. the opportunism behind this report is staggering, especially the notion that planting trees will protect communities at risk of flooding! It's not that I have a problem with woodland but if we want to increase the space it occupies let's stop pretending that it will save the planet!

BOB THE BUILDER GETS SCORCHED

I happened to be in Belfast last night just as the Christmas Lights were officially switched on by children's TV personality Bob the Builder. There is also a nice Christmas market located in the City Hall grounds and all in all it was not a bad sight and a sign that Belfast has moved on in recent years.

However, not everyone has moved on...

Rival groups of young people were involved in sectarian clashes during the switching on of the Christmas lights in Belfast. Windows were broken in two vehicles in the North Street area and fires were started in Castle Street. Two males aged 19 and 17 and a 14-year-old girl were arrested but have been released pending further reports.

I saw some of these young people and they looked to be either drunk or drugged. It's sad to see that this young generation has such hatred of others. 

WE DON'T NEED NO EDUCATION...

Two stories this morning - compare and contrast..

More than two million children are being taught in schools that are mediocre or failing, inspectors said yesterday. A 'stubborn core' of incompetent teachers is holding pupils back and fuelling indiscipline and truancy, Ofsted warned. Despite a raft of national initiatives, a third of schools still fail to offer a good education. 

Got that - millions of children being let down, young lives ruined by inadequate teaching.

Now, read on...

Youngsters in schools will also be taught that it is wrong to hit girls and not to bully transsexuals as part of the national curriculum. Trainee teachers will have to learn about gender awareness and domestic violence before they can qualify and Ofsted will inspect how well schools are performing in promoting equal opportunities and preventing gender violence.

The Government see schools as laboratories and are far more interested in using them to advance their "equality" agenda than in providing a decent education for children. It is for this reason that I would like to see schools become more independent of the political class.

THE MAIDEN'S PRAYER....

Ever hear the Maiden's Prayer?

"O Lord make me chaste, but just not yet"

I thought of this when reading that Northern Ireland’s MLAs were told “get a move on” over double-jobbing after the Assembly voted to delay axing the practice until 2015.

Oh, they LOVE the £££££'s!

An Assembly vote allowing the political parties another six years to reach the position of one person, one job, today came under fire from watchdog bodies.

Rightly so. These people are serial troughers, out to protect their pockets at all costs and to hell with the poor taxpayer.

US ECONOMY BAD, UK WORSE!

The American economy, the world's largest, grew by only 2.8 per cent between July and September, far below the original 3.5 per cent estimate.

Although today's figures mean that the US has cemented its theoretical emergence from recession in the third quarter — leaving Britain as the only major economy in a full-blown slowdown — the rise in gross domestic product (GDP) is less than expected, with analysts forecasting a 2.9 per cent rise in services and output.

So, the US is not doing well I am sorry to say, but even so, the UK is doing worse than ANY major economy.

Yes, Gordon Brown - the man who saved the world - assured us that we were better placed than any other major economy to weather the recession. We can all see now just how delusional and incompetent his judgement really is! 

STRIKE DOWN SOUTH...

Here's how the recession really impacts into a nation...

Up to a quarter of a million public sector workers have taken part in a national strike in the Republic of Ireland. Civil servants, some medical staff and teachers are protesting at government plans to cut the public sector pay bill by 1.3bn euros next year. They say they cannot take any more cuts in their wages after an emergency budget earlier this year. Almost all public offices and schools were closed.

There is talk of ANOTHER strike next week ahead of the emergency budget.

The Unions have great power in the Republic and there are major problems ahead as the Irish economy sinks deeper in the mire.

I think the UK is going to go through a similar situation from next summer. In all fairness to the Irish government they are at least trying, no matter how awkwardly, to deal with the financial mess. Gordon Brown is in denial that there even IS  a problem! He still pretends he is going to "invest" and so spend his way out of economic meltdown. Poor Gordon. The UK trade unions are less powerful than in Ireland BUT they have concentrated influence in the State sector and the State sector is the one facing severe cuts, so I wouldn't be surprised if next summer in the UK sees the beginning of what the Irish Government is now facing - rebellion on the streets as public workers seek to offset reality.

PRESIDENT PALIN....

"Polls show that Palin's favorability numbers are a mirror image of those of Obama. She is respected and loved by the Republican base, while Democrats despise her. Granted, independent voters have significant reservations about her capability to be president, and this would be a hurdle in the general election. But to win the Republican nomination, Palin needs only to get enough support from the base to win early key states. Already, in nearly every poll today, she has a level of support that makes her a viable primary candidate. Just look at the crowds and the buzz her book tour is drawing."

She is on a roll, she can improve, she could be a viable candidate....

HANGING ON THE TELEPHONE

WHAT is the point of a Crown minister?

Bob Ainsworth, the defence secretary, has blamed Barack Obama and the United States for the decline in British public support for the war in Afghanistan.

Mr Ainsworth took the unprecedented step of publicly criticising the US President and his delays in sending more troops to bolster the mission against the Taliban.

Since ministers exist now to go where Brussels and the White House direct, it cannot be long until Britons forget what it is to govern ourselves in our own self interest.

PUT THEM AWAY...

Interested to read that four MPs and peers involved in the expenses scandal could face jail sentences of up to ten years after the police asked prosecutors to consider charges for fraud or false accounting.

The Crown Prosecution Service must now decide whether to go ahead with the prosecutions after a five-month investigation by Scotland Yard’s Economic and Specialist Crime Unit. The four have not been named by Scotland Yard. Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions, is expected to decide whether to prosecute the politicians within a month.

I hope they do proceed and gain convictions and that the guilty are then treated for what they are, common criminals. The concern is that we are only talking a small number of what has been a vastly larger group of politicians who systematically raided the public purse to advance their own financial advantage. Setting higher standards is the essential requirement going forward - we need Parliament to be disinfected and ensuring the removal of troughers and thieves is a step forward.

A SWAP TOO FAR..

I sincerely hope that reports that Israel and the Palestinians are close to reaching agreement on a prisoner swap that could mean freedom for an Israeli soldier held for more than three years in exchange for the release of nearly a thousand Palestinian terrorists, are wrong.

Gilad Schalit, the young Israeli corporal captured by Hamas in a cross-border raid in June 2006, could be freed as early as Friday, when Palestinians observe Eid al-Adha — a traditional period for amnesties. Among those expected to be released by Israel is Marwan Barghouti, a leading candidate to succeed the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, who has threatened to step down over a lack of progress in the peace process. Barghouti, the leader of the Fatah young guard, is serving multiple life sentences for murder and attacks on Israelis during the last intifada.

I fully understand why Israel would like this young man freed but it is wrong to appease the Palestinian terrorism. In particular, to release the mass murderer Barghouti - a LEADING candidate to replace Abbas please note  - is morally reprehensible. If Israel does this, it will ensure future kidnaps.

THE BEST EDUCATED GENERATION EVER?

Each year we hear from government and educationalists how brighter and brighter school-leavers are getting, scoring higher grades than ever, setting new records of academic achievement. On the back of this the political class pat themselves on the back, teachers get paid more, and there is a general feel good factor. Just one problem with this - it is at odds with reality!

Millions of school and college leavers are 'not fit for work', the boss of Marks & Spencer warned yesterday. Chairman Sir Stuart Rose said too many didn't even have a basic grasp of the three Rs.

His company is one of the country's biggest employers, with a 65,000-strong regular workforce as well as 20,000 Christmas temps. It comes weeks after Tesco chief executive Sir Terry Leahy called the education system 'woeful' and said employers were too often 'left to pick up the pieces.' In an outspoken attack in London yesterday, Sir Stuart, 60, said: 'They cannot do reading. They cannot do arithmetic. They cannot do writing.'

I think this is a common view held amongst many employers, large and small. It is shocking to see so many allegedly educated students who are, in fact, unable to master basic mathematics, and who struggle to comprehend the written word.

Sir Stuart is pointing out a major problem in our society but he will be ignored by the radical egalitarians who have caused so much damage to Education. A return to rigorously applied high standards on the basics is what is needed. We also need to see academic based selection and a focus on the essential elements of the core curriculum. Less sex education classes and more basic maths should assist in this regard.

ON THE RUN, JUSTICE ON TRIAL...

I see that Jane Andrews, the former aide to Sarah, Duchess of York who was jailed for life for murdering her boyfriend, is on the run after absconding from East Sutton Park open prison in Maidstone, Kent.

Get this.  

She was jailed for life in 2001 for murdering Tom Cressman, 39, in Fulham, west London, by stabbing him and battering him with a cricket bat after he refused to marry her.

Last year, just seven years after her conviction for these vicious murder of Mr Gressman, she was sent to an Open Prison from which she has now escaped.  What sort of JUSTICE have we when convicted killers are treated so gently? This woman took a life and now she is on the run having spent eight years in jail as her "life sentence." Our system of justice  is profoundly flawed and yet I wonder what, if any, lessons will be taken from this total failure? How many more killers are in Open Prisons? What indeed is the point of an Open Prison?

RECYCLING FOR CASH...

So, who thinks that Conservative plans to pay people to recycle their household rubbish is a good idea?

"People will accumulate points for the household waste they recycle and be able to use the points to claim up to £130 a year in vouchers from major retailers like Marks & Spencer and Tesco. It is estimated that the financial incentives could help raise household recycling rates nationally by at least 30 per cent a year. A rise in recycling would in turn mean less rubbish simply being dumped in landfill sites. Councils are currently taxed by the Government for every tonne of waste they send to landfill."

I don't like this idea for three reasons.

1. I think that there is nothing wrong with properly managed landfill. It takes up a tiny percentage of our landmass and can be seen as the most efficient if done right. 

2. It ignores the fact that the REASON Councils are taxed for every tonne of waste sent to landfill is because of the EU. Were we not in the EU we would not be taxed at all. 

3. I don't like Nanny State interfering with the private citizen, be it through reward as in this case, or punishment in the Labour model.

Can I ask who reading this willingly recycles and feels that in doing so they are making a positive impact on the environment? When we read about how our recycled waste ends up in landfill in poorer nations it makes we wonder why we bother. Is it OK to pollute other nations but not our own?  

A NEW ALLIANCE?

THE chairman of the UK Independence Party has said the party will consider an alliance with Jim Allister's TUV in future elections.

Paul Nuttall, UKIP MEP for the North West of England, was speaking to the News Letter yesterday after a low-key exploratory visit to the Province. UKIP has only one politician in Northern Ireland at present — Kilkeel councillor Henry Reilly, who defected from the UUP. Mr Nuttall described TUV leader Jim Allister as “a good guy” who worked closely with UKIP in Europe when an MEP. “The reason we didn’t stand here in the last European election was to give Jim a free run,” he said, adding that UKIP “will explore” the possibility of an alliance with him in the future.

I have a lot of time for the UKIP and the fact that they see the TUV as natural allies here in NI is interesting. The good guys should end up in the right alliance.

GORDON'S GOLDEN HERITAGE...

I note that Gold has a high of 1173 dollars an ounce today.

Readers may remember that back in May 1999, Gordon Brown took the decision to sell off half of the UK's gold assets at an average price of 276 dollars an ounce.

King Midas in reverse.

WHIPPED PONTIFF?

I read that Pope John Paul 11, who died five years ago, who is being considered for sainthood by the Roman Catholic Church, whipped himself. 

As part of the Vatican's investigation thousands of documents have been collected and examined by officials from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. 

Among them is the testimony of Tobiana Sobodka, a Polish nun of the Sacred Heart of Jesus order, who worked for Pope John Paul in his private Vatican apartments and at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo near Rome.

Sister Sobodka said: "Several times he (Pope John Paul) would put himself through bodily penance. "We would hear it – we were in the next room at Castel Gandolfo. You could hear the sound of the blows when he flagellate himself. He did it when he was still capable of moving on his own." The flagellation is also confirmed by another bishop who has given testimony. Emery Kabongo was a secretary for Pope John Paul. "He would punish himself and in particular just before he ordained bishops and priests," he said.

Given the behaviour of some of those bishops and priests he might have done better to whip them!!!