CHAOS, CHAOS AND .......... OH YES, MORE CHAOS !

I had thought that Brexit had reached absolute rock bottom a few days ago, but I was wrong. Yesterday, having rather laughingly "taken control", the House of Commons managed to reject every alternative put before them.

Having rejected Mrs May's withdrawal agreement twice, the Commons, led by the arch-Remainer and egotist John Bercow, voted on a range of possibilities from abandoning Brexit to leaving without a deal, which happens to be the current legal position in the event of no deal being agreed. Having lambasted the government for being in chaos, the Commons then demonstrated that chaos isn't confined to those around Mrs May but is just as rampant throughout parliament.

Speaker Bercow has done nothing to help things with his blatant support for anti-Brexit factions and, now, his reiteration that he will not allow the government to hold a third vote on Mrs May's agreement unless there are significant changes to the relevant motion. Across the Channel, representatives of the European Union must surely be oscillating between amazement, amusement and downright despair as they watch the UK's political class tie itself in knots.

If our MPs weren't so diametrically opposed to the result of the 2016 referendum and actually stood by their own party manifestos from 2017 as well as their previously expressed support for invoking Article 50, the UK would be leaving the EU tomorrow. Shockingly, their duplicity and anti-democratic actions mean that we won't leave until at least April 12th, unlikely though that is, possibly on 22nd May, and much more likely never.

If there is ever a resolution to this farce, Mrs May has now committed to resigning and handing over the poisoned chalice to some other poor sucker, but who will it be ? Front runners include Michael Gove, whose ambitions will surely be killed off by supporters of Boris Johnson, Sajid Javid, whose recent cock-ups at the Home Office must have severely dented his chances, and Jeremy Hunt, a somewhat suave Remainer who seems to have a Teflon coating; Boris, of course, is loved in the party at large but not supported in Parliament, though it's widely believed that if he makes it on to the shortlist of 2 names to be voted on by the national party, he will win. Dominic Raab could be another contender and, as a staunch Brexiteer, he can't be discounted, while there must also be a chance that someone like David Davis could slip in as a short term leader to deliver a Brexit trade deal and then make way for someone from a younger generation.

For what it's worth, I can't see any of the senior women in the party having a snowflake's chance of getting the job. Amber Rudd has shown her true colours as an unreliable member of the cabinet and Andrea Leadsom blew her chance a couple of years ago. Esther McVey, smart though she may be and Brexiteer with it, simply doesn't have the gravitas. Someone who I think could sneak through is current Brexit Secretary, Stephen Barclay, who was virtually unknown a few months ago. He's been sure-footed and calm at the despatch box and has generally come across well. Might he be the 'dark horse' in this race ?

Only time will tell what happens next, and when, and for whom that bell tolls.

EU TO CONTROL TIME AND SPEED

As the UK government and parliament degenerate into total chaos and the prospect of any meaningful exit from the European Union fades into the distance, the control freaks of that Union have been busy dreaming up yet more ways to micromanage the lives of its citizens.

Within the last couple of days, while Speaker Bercow has been doing his best to destroy democracy in the UK, the loons in Brussels have voted to require every member state to follow ne rules about their time-zone arrangements; in short, the practice of moving clocks forward in spring and back again in autumn will be outlawed and all will have to choose which clock setting they prefer, and stick to it for ever and a day. Someone in the UK hierarchy has apparently said that we will continue to move our clocks twice a year "once we've left the EU", but what will happen if, and quite possibly when, our anti-democratic parliamentarians prevent that from happening ?

Secondly, another little wheeze that was voted through yesterday would see all cars sold in the EU after (I think) 2022 fitted with cameras that would magically read roadside speed limit signs and automatically ensure that they are complied with. One can only wonder how this will actually be achieved, at what cost, with what chaos and to what real end. The roadside infrastructure would have to be standardised, with all across Europe having the same design, the same height and positioning; the huge amounts of overgrown hedges and trees that abound in the UK, and no doubt elsewhere, would all have to be cut back and properly maintained - fat chance ! What would happen on roads which currently have no signs ? How would cars fitted with the new devices be integrated with older models which are free to speed as they like ? What about the simple fact that the UK uses MPH, while most of the rest of Europe uses KPH ? It's a potential nightmare idea, dreamt up by liberal-left politicians who are certain that they know what's best for the rest of us poor plebs. Presumably, this is a precursor to eventual satellite tracking of all vehicles, another nightmare scenario. 

(Oh, it seems I'm behind the curve. UK government representatives have already said that we will be lumbered, whether we leave the EU or not, and GPS tracking is part of the package - more lunacy as BIG BROTHER controls more and more of our lives.)

I find it amazing that while the EU cannot see its way to a technological solution to the supposed Irish border issue, it can come up with a technological means of controlling every motorist throughout almost the whole of its continent. I find it unbelievable that they should see a need to interfere in the lives of people by insisting on rules about time and clocks. Have these faceless bureaucratic busybodies nothing better to do with their own time ?

With every passing day, I grow more convinced that the UK must get away from this insane organization. Sadly, our masters in Westminster remain wedded to what they perceive as the security of a European super-state, ignoring the fact that it is, in reality, a moribund, insular, protectionist, controlling and interfering anachronism. Thank heaven that I'm much nearer the end of life than the beginning. 

IS BREXIT DELAYED, BREXIT DENIED ?

The European Union has graciously granted the UK a stay of execution. Brexit will no longer occur on 29th March 2019, but might happen at some later date. Or it might not.

If MPs vote for Theresa May's withdrawal agreement next week, Brexit will be delayed until 22nd May; if they reject the agreement, then they have until 12th April to put forward some other plan that is acceptable to the EU. Given the concerted efforts to frustrate Brexit altogether, it seems most likely that MPs will reject the May 'deal' and we'll be landed with some proposal that may be acceptable to the EU and to the Remain lobby, but will be a kick in the teeth to the 17,400,000 people who voted to simply leave the EU. 

Currently, much is being made of a petition on the government's own website which has seen one seventh of that number sign up for Brexit to be cancelled. The media, in particular the BBC, has been awash with anti-Brexit campaigners while the voices speaking in favour of leaving the EU have been strangely few and far between. As I write this, Lucy Powell, a Labour Remainer and Corbyn supporter, is being interviewed on television; a few minutes ago, it was the turn of Hilary Benn on the radio. Before that, it was the Conservative's Nick Boles, talking as though he knew better than the rest of us what was in the best interests of the country, that being, of course, to stay tied to the EU's apron strings.

Yesterday, we had the unedifying site and sound of Anna Soubry being rude and almost offensive to Nigel Farage as she tried to drown him out on 'Politics Live'. Staying in the European Union, or remaining so closely aligned with it as to be no different, is portrayed as the only sensible option while those with a contrary view are treated as madmen, cabalists, extremists, anarchists or worse. Interestingly, all this invective comes almost exclusively from one side in the argument; the representatives of the Leave side have been largely calm and measured and have avoided throwing insults at their opponents.

A weak and divided government led by a weak Prime Minister. An opposition led by left wing dinosaurs who are still fighting the battles of the 1930s. A cabal from Scotland who have no interest in the United Kingdom but simply long for the day when they will be able to bestride the world stage on their own account, minnow-like. Worst of all, a Parliament of self-serving egotistical anti-democrats, far more interested in having things their way than in carrying out the Will of the People.

God Help Us !

WHAT MPs ARE GOOD AT - SELF-INDULGENT NAVEL GAZING

Theresa May has apparently offended many Members of Parliament by her words of yesterday, both in the House of Commons and later in her address to the nation. However, what she said had much truth in it.

She accused MPs of navel gazing and of being self-indulgent over the matter of Brexit. She said that the people were tired of the political games and arcane procedural rows that had dominated matters in recent times. The response from many in the political class as well as some of the media has been to throw brickbats at her, but is she really so wrong ?

In their frantic determination to prevent Brexit, or at least to emasculate it, MPs have undoubtedly used every trick in the book, including dredging up centuries old parliamentary rules; the attempts of some to 'wrestle control' from the government has been nothing but a game. The opposition parties have shamelessly played political games in order to achieve their own ends - Labour wants a general election, the Scottish Nationalists want independence for Scotland and the Liberal Democrats want Brexit stopped by any means possible.

Strangely, it seems to be only the Conservatives who have no ulterior motives and are simply arguing amongst themselves about the 'type' of Brexit to be sought, although they have certainly been gazing overly long at their navels and some have indulged in the assorted schemes designed to frustrate government plans. However, after Mrs May's performances of yesterday, this may now change, and the ulterior motive around which much of her party may coalesce could well be getting rid of her as soon as possible.

What fun times we live in !

BREXIT ON A KNIFE EDGE.

Theresa May must surely be one of the least competent Prime Ministers this country has ever had. In being so, she joins a sadly lengthy list of others who have risen to the top but ultimately proved to be incapable of doing the job. Is this not a perfect, if appalling, example of the Peter Principle in operation ?

Even over the last 70 years, the UK has suffered under the leadership of incompetents too many times - Theresa May joins Anthony Eden, Alec Douglas-Home, James Callaghan and Gordon Brown in being a Prime Minister who quite clearly is not up to the job. None of the others lasted very long in office and we can but hope that Mrs May is gone in the very near future as well.

Mrs May's return from Brussels a few months ago, figuratively waving her agreement at us, brought back thoughts of Neville Chamberlain's return from Munich. Chamberlain, yet another in that panoply of incompetents was a man completely out of his depth and utterly unable to comprehend the realities of life in 1930s Europe. Mrs May does not understand, and neither do many of her Parliamentary colleagues, the realities of life in 21st century Britain. 

The people voted to leave the EU. They did not vote for any 'kind' of Brexit, they voted for Brexit, full stop. They understood that leaving the EU meant leaving the customs' union and the single market, something which was made very clear by both sides in the argument at the time. They voted in the expectation that the government would act accordingly, not with an expectation that there would be years of political chicanery followed by delays and even calls for another referendum, dressed up as a 'peoples' vote' by some in order to avoid use of the 'r' word.

Now that Mrs May has written to EU representatives asking for Brexit to be delayed she has finally broken the solemn word given to the British people in 2016 and reiterated many times over the last 3 years. She is not fit to be our prime Minister and the government that she leads has failed in its duty to the people. At the same time, the opposition parties have done no better, using Brexit as a tool for their own political ends, and have equally ignored the referendum result.

Neither another referendum nor a general election will resolve this problem. Mrs May must go; the government, under a new Prime Minister, must carry through the commitment given to the British people in 2016 and ever since, deal or no deal. Members of Parliament, who have already voted in favour of leaving the EU on 29th March and enshrined that decision in law, must now comply with that law. 

Otherwise, democracy is dead and one wonders who will bother voting for anything in the future.

FORCES OF DARKNESS SEND DEMOCRACY TO DODO-LAND.

And so, Brexit is off, at least for the moment and quite possibly for good.

After what's been reported as a stormy meeting of the UK Cabinet yesterday, Prime Minister (though for how long ?) Theresa May is going to formally ask the European Union to postpone its exit from their nasty little club. Apparently she's going to ask for a 'short' extension, whatever 'short' might mean and however it may be interpreted by the EU.

There have been reports of huge unrest in the government as well as in the Conservative party at large. The EU has made it clear, yet again, that they propose doing nothing to help the situation, the UK Parliament has made it clear that they can't agree on anything but would much prefer Brexit to be cancelled altogether. Media pundits are rubbing their hands at the prospect of another 3 months, at least, of being able to pontificate and give us all the benefit of their wisdom, such as it is.

With elections for the European Parliament due in late May, things couldn't be much more confused and there's no sign that there'll be any clarity any time soon. It's been suggested that Leavers are happier than Remainers over this latest development as some believe that 'No Deal' is now back as a serious option, but isn't it more likely that a 'short' postponement will lead to a never-ending one ? Our 'representatives' in Parliament will be working overtime to ensure that they make the most of the extra weeks or months to muddy the water, to obfuscate and render any Brexit arrangement as meaningless as possible. 

It seems to me that the Forces of Darkness are well on the way to winning and Democracy in the UK is all but extinct, just like the Dodo.

10 DAYS AND COUNTING DOWN TO BREXIT

The UK government really is at sixes and sevens over Brexit, even more so now that Mr Speaker Bercow has stuck his oar in, again. It seems he will not allow yet another vote on Mrs May's Brexit 'Deal' unless the relevant motion is substantially different from what has gone before.

Both sides of the argument have claimed that this is actually good news for them. Remainers say that it means we can't now leave on 29th March and a long extension to the Article 50 date must be agreed; Leavers claim that the legal position is clear - without approval of anything else, leaving on 29th March is now the only obvious possibility.

If ever we needed proof that parliamentarians represent themselves rather than their constituents, it's come in the endless arguments over Brexit during the last 3 years. Having handed the decision to the people, most Members of both Houses of Parliament have spent that time looking for ways to frustrate the result of the referendum and now, with just 10 days to go to a withdrawal date for which they all voted, they continue to chuck obstacles in the way. At the same time, the European Union does all it can to add fuel to the flames with its own interminable machinations, bureaucracy and adherence to labyrinthine rules and regulations. 

If I was Theresa May which, thankfully, I'm not I wouldn't have arrived at this point because I'd have told the EU what we were going to do rather than going cap-in-hand and asking what they'd permit. Nonetheless, we are where we are so what now ? To me, it's obvious. Mrs May should tell those in Brussels that her 'Deal' cannot be voted on again and is, effectively, dead; the alternative, as agreed by Parliament and enshrined in UK law is that the United Kingdom will leave the European Union next Friday, 29th March 2019 without an all-encompassing withdrawal agreement in place. 

She should then ask them what THEY are going to do about it.

IS MASS MURDER EXTREMISM, TERRORISM OR SOMETHING ELSE ?

Last Friday's events in New Zealand were appalling though hardly unexpected. Somewhere it was bound to happen and it will happen again. Yesterday's incident in Utrecht may have been the act of a madman or may have been another in a long line of similar events.

Our political masters, the media and the left-leaning establishments that we all seem to have to suffer all point the finger at 'terrorists' and the rise of so-called 'right wing extremism' as the problem, but in doing so they are simply denying the truth. They themselves are the principal cause. The perpetrators of the murderous rampages that have been seen in recent years may be terrorists and may have right wing political views, but they may also simply be reacting to circumstances in the only way that they see possible. 

Permitting immigration on industrial scales; allowing immigrants to establish separate 'communities' and to wholly change the character of large areas of major cities; permitting these immigrants to behave as though still in their home countries and failing to ensure any meaningful level of integration; immigrants standing apart from the pre-existing population and being so obviously different, through language, clothing, food, religion and customs; introducing ever more stringent laws to protect the immigrants while discriminating against the indigenous population; making expressions of dissent from the politically correct line criminal offences through the introduction of highly subjective 'hate crime' laws. These, and more, are the root causes of the shocking events that happen with dreadful regularity.

History tells us that incomers often take over, oppress and even decimate existing populations; one has only to consider the fate of the indigenous peoples of North America to realise this, while the Australian Aborigines and New Zealand Maoris fared little better. European colonizers around the world took over, dominated and often brutalized most of Africa and Asia, following in the footsteps of the Romans who virtually wiped out the older Celtic civilizations of Northern Europe. Given these precedents, is it any wonder that the established populations of Western nations are, to say the least, unsettled by the mass immigration and, in some cases, have taken to demonstrating their unhappiness in brutal ways ? At the same time, the incomers, feeling their cultural heritage to be under attack, fight back and some, the most ardent, become evermore entrenched in their own views, take up arms and carry out what we now call 'terrorist attacks'.

This is not say that the reactions of either have been right or justified, but it does put them in a different light. The politicians who have created the conditions for this mess simply ignore their responsibility and charge on, regardless, leaving the people to cope. They introduce more and more new laws, talk endlessly about integration, diversity, equality, discrimination, understanding and much more, while doing nothing to tackle the root causes of unrest. In a pointless and utterly pathetic gesture, the New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, has said that she will deny the perpetrator of Friday's massacre in Christchurch the notoriety that he craves by never mentioning his name; MY GOD ! Is that really the best she can do ? Will that have any effect on other potential mass murderers ? It's worthless rhetoric designed to appeal to an emotional audience, nothing more nor less.

In order to win this war, politicians need to stop being political and start becoming psychologists and sociologists, but not of the left-leaning namby-pamby type. They need to stop trying to force people to 'do the right thing', but to accept that there are limits beyond which people will not be pushed. If the right actions aren't taken very soon, quite simply, 'We ain't seen nothing yet'.

DEMOCRACY IN ITS DEATH THROES.

Events in Parliament yesterday allied to the continuing utter intransigence of the European Union surely demonstrate in the starkest terms why Brexit is so necessary.

Despite the promises made in the run-up to the referendum in 2016 as well as the commitments made in the manifestos of both main political parties prior to the 2017 general election, far too many of our laughingly named 'representatives' in Parliament have continued to do everything they can to prevent the government from implementing the Will of the people. They do so with an arrogance and egotistical superiority which is breath taking.

At the same time, officials of the European Union, of which there appears to be an ever expanding number, have exhibited their own unique brand of arrogant intransigence, doing absolutely nothing to help to facilitate an orderly Brexit. It seems clear that their true ambition is to bring about an eventual revocation of the UKs application under 'Article 50', and they will stop at nothing in order to thwart Brexit. They are well aware of the concerns of the UK in respect of the principle stumbling block, the 'Irish Backstop', and yet have steadfastly refused to do anything meaningful about it; additionally, they have rejected all proposals to mitigate the problem. They sit in their ivory towers in Brussels and Strasburg and look down on us, the common people whom they despise, and on national parliaments which they see as little more than annoying irrelevancies.

The only answer for the UK is to leave the EU as soon as is humanly possible, and that means on 29th March 2019. Deal or No-Deal, who cares, just get us out of this nightmare and out of the grasp of the Barniers, Junckers, Tusks, Verhofstadts, and all the other overblown, tin pot dictators who prowl the corridors of Europe.

There are no more than 16 days left in which to save democracy in the United Kingdom.

BEGUM'S BABY MAKES NO DIFFERENCE.

Now that Shamima Begum's baby has died, the usual suspect are up in arms and demanding the Home Secretary's head. Shame on them.

Of course it's sad that the baby died but the responsibility rests solely on its parents, who decided to desert their Western home countries to join up with a fanatical terrorist organisation dedicated to destroying the Western and its culture. It was only when things went wrong that Begum and her husband discovered that they wanted to return 'home', back to the countries they'd forsaken and effectively betrayed. Without showing any remorse for her actions, Begum wanted to take advantage of the UK's health service, something which was missing in her chosen life. Well, life isn't like that; as the EU's negotiators have repeated over and again, you can't 'cherry pick'

When Begum chose to pursue a life with the terrorists of ISIL, she chose all that went with that life. That her baby has died, joining the 2 others which she says also died, is her fault, her husband's fault and the fault of the organisation which they chose to join, with its twisted logic and medieval, barbaric philosophy. Home Secretary Sajid Javid was absolutely right to deny this woman a return to the UK and the death of the child makes no difference. 

There are times when politicians actually do have to take a stand and, on this rare occasion, Javid took a stand and git it right. Those now criticising him are doing so simply for their own vested interests and political ends.

ASDA POINTS THE WAY ON KNIFE CRIME.

Much hot air is being expended on the vexed subject of 'knife crime'. Attacks and murders by knife-wielding thugs have increased in number many fold in recent times and some of the victims seem to be nothing but people in the wrong place at the wrong time. The media and assorted other groups have done their bit of ranting and raving and government voices have made the usual banal statements. Nothing very positive seems to have been done, possibly until now.

ASDA, the supermarket chain has just announced that it will remove all single item knives from sale in its stores, with immediate effect. While this move is unlikely to have much effect on its own, it may lead others to consider how to prevent myriads of knives from getting onto our streets. Frankly, ASDA's approach is far too limited and we already have a clear precedent as to what to do with items which should not be easy to purchase, or steal.

In the good old days, shops had counters, behind which members of staff stood; goods for sale were often kept out of the customers' reach, behind the counter or in glass cabinets under the counter. Shops actually had enough staff to see if more easily available items were in danger of being stolen. While some larger department stores still operate in such a way, supermarkets have virtually done away with counter service and have reduced staffing to an absolute minimum. Consequently, almost everything, including knives and other potentially dangerous items, is openly available with little if any oversight. Except for cigarettes.

Cigarettes are acknowledged to be dangerous to health, specifically to the health of smokers but also, though much less so, to others in the vicinity of smokers. After a prolonged campaign, cigarettes have been consigned to closed cabinets behind counters, while knives remain on open display and easy to steal. Why ?

Surely the increase in 'knife crime' has as much to do with the easy availability of knives as it does with the number of police on the streets; surely shops which have put knives on open access are every bit as much to blame for the increase as is any government official. The answer to the easy availability is to ensure that knives which, unlike cigarettes, can be a truly lethal weapon, are made subject to strict control. Shops should be made to keep them in secure locations and no knives should be sold without there being proper communication between customer and a trained member of staff who is able to assess the bona fides of the purchaser.

Once availability has been properly tackled, it's then a matter of dealing with the cultural issues which have brought the carrying of knives to such a level. Unfortunately, that will take politicians with the gumption to ignore shouts of 'Racist' and be prepared to get properly stuck in to clearing out the gangs of drug dealing thugs that now seem to inhabit all of our major city centres. 

What chance that happening ?

BREXIT CRUNCH-TIME : DEAL OR NO DEAL ?

Anyone who wants to know why so many people voted to leave the European Union need only take note of the way in which this egregious organisation has behaved over the last 2 years.

The so-called negotiations over Brexit have been nothing of the sort; all that's happened is that officials of the EU have done their best to frustrate the Will of the UK's electorate by finding ways to make effective negotiation impossible. Everything has been done according to the EU's 'rules', not that any actual rules existed before the EU invented them just in time for discussions to begin. The invention of a problem around the question of the Irish border, followed by an effective refusal to accept any of the solutions offered, was nothing more nor less than a mechanism to prevent Brexit. In time-honoured fashion, the EU has done everything possible to create a situation from which it hopes that the UK will either simply forget about leaving or will hold another referendum, one that will produce the 'Right' answer.

Despite many weeks of effort to find a way around the opposition to Mrs May's original 'deal', the EU has remained utterly intransigent. It will not re-open the 'Withdrawal Agreement', the 'Irish Backstop' is immutable and it is up to the UK to find a solution. Even in the last couple of days, EU officials have 'urged the UK to table fresh proposals' to break the impasse. That proposals have been put forward, in bucket loads, and all roundly rejected, is ignored; the EU holds all the Aces and continues to play them.

Why our government hasn't been stronger from the outset is a matter which can be debated for ever, but it now finds itself caught between an intransigent European Union and a Remain focused Parliament. There seems almost no chance of any meaningful advance in the discussions with Barnier, Juncker, Tusk et al, and so Parliament will be faced with either voting to accept the original 'deal' or voting to delay, or stop, Brexit. There has been much talk about the UK agreeing to a customs' union arrangement, something which would be anathema to Brexiteers as it would effectively keep the UK tied to the EU and unable to trade on its own terms. Labour wants the UK to tie itself to EU employment legislation and many continue to demand a second referendum on the most spurious of grounds.

'Project Fear' has swung into full operation, again, in recent days with scare stories from the car industry, NHS, police and others hitting the headlines. 'No Deal' would be so catastrophic, claim those involved, that it must be avoided at all cost. Fine. Let's avoid. Let's tell the EU, loud and clear, that either they agree to changes to the Irish Backstop or 'No Deal' it will be. They are every bit as worried about 'No Deal' as are the frightened bunnies in Westminster and, if they are made to believe that 'No Deal' is a real prospect, they'll soon  have second thoughts.

The problem is that there are too many in Westminster who simply don't have the stomach for a proper fight. The lily-livered, liberal elite are far too scared of losing the benefits they've accrued over the years to risk even the slightest possibility of losing them. These people have no belief in the UK and no thought for the world of the future; they have no love for democracy just a love for the status quo. They hate the prospect of change and have nothing in common with those who made the UK the world power that it still is. 

More shame on them.