The Future Shape of our Publishing

Dear Readers,

Waldorf and I are keen capitalists. We've decided to expand our services but don't want to accept any responsibility for anything that goes wrong.

Today we launched http://leaderlectures.blogspot.com/. We have contracted out everything to Publacon International Incorporated. We shall, naturally, continue to claim credit for successes.

With fuzzy hugs,

S&W

Coleman the 'blood stained' hypocrite?

Waldorf and I are listening to Radio 4 as I type. We're listening to "The Saturday Play - Cry Hungary". We both remember the Hungarian uprising and were moved and upset then. As I listened to the play and, especially, heard about them trying to gain control of the radio station, Brian Coleman's various comments over recent months came together in our minds.

I started to think quite how the people of Tibet would feel about Coleman effectively demanding that blogs should only be allowed at the behest of the State? That they should be crushed as they, as Coleman believes, "Undermine the political system"?

Coleman is it not pretty sickening that you seek publicity supporting those suffering under oppression whilst simultaneously stripping from their hands the only tools they have to gain their precious liberty?

Iain Dale socks it to 'supine' Tory Councillors

Our dear friend and fellow weblogger, Iain Dale, has socked it to so many of the Tory Councillors, who behave similarly to the ones we see in GDfB, in wonderfully trenchant article.

"Two blogposts from Taking Liberties and Donal Blaney worry me. Both have examples of Conservative councils indulging in what can only be described as very unConservative like behaviour.

TalkSport's Jon Gaunt has been suspended by the radio station after he called a Redbridge Conservative councillor a "Nazi" for introducing a policy of banning parents who smoke from fostering children.

And Tory controlled Guildford Council has told the owners of burger vans that unless they provide healthy foods rather than burgers and kebabs, their licenses to trade will be withdrawn.

I'm not going to rant on about it all being political correctness gone mad (although it is). What it demonstrates is that these councils are presided over by weak politicians who have little control over their officers. It's about time they learned what the word Conservative actually means."

Statler and I agree with him 100%.

[Statler nicks the keyboard from calm patient Waldorf] Iain is speaking up for so many Conservatives who are just sick and tired of remote and unaccountable 'Conservative' Councillors who are getting elected and forgetting which party they are supposed to represent.

[Waldorf snatches keyboard back and plies Statler with sherry] Well said Iain (and Statler)

P.S. Click on link above to see full post with links to mentioned articles.

Official: History ended in 1984

Update: So ... Who knows why history ended in 1984?

Waldorf and I are baffled.

GDfB are doing a nice thing. They are making an Veteran's Avenue of Lime Trees in Hendon Park. Waldorf served in the American War of Independence Crimean War and is disappointed that conflict is not in the list.

• Palestine 1945-1948, Malaya 1948-1960, Korea 1950-1953, Cyprus 1955-1959
• Aden 1955-1967, Radfan 1955-1967, Suez 1956, Borneo 1962-1966
• Northern Ireland 1969, Oman Dhofar 1969-1976, Falklands 1982

We're baffled that the GDfB has decided that history ended on 31 December 1984. Presumably those who died in action in serving this great countries interests, including in Iraq, Bosnia, etc., are too modern.

We can't work out what the significance of 31 December 1984? Comments please.

£1,000,000 Council House disgrace

UPDATE: The Council comments in Daily Express

"Barnet council said it had no involvement in finding a property for Mrs Odia, which was arranged privately. It said Mrs Odia is paid “considerably less” housing benefit than the £25,000 quoted, but was unable to confirm the exact figure.

Council leader Mike Freer said councils had no control over entitlement criteria for housing benefits, which are paid on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions. The Pensions Secretary James Purnell ordered a review.

He said: “The housing benefit system does need to support people on low incomes, but also has to be fair to the taxpayer.”

_________________________________________________________________

We've always admired Barnet's flat building housing supremo, Councillor Lynda Hillan's generosity with tax payers money. However today's Daily Mail made us choke on our Cornflakes. The Daily Mail reports that the Council is paying for a family of six, on benefits, to live in a £1,000,000 detached house in Edgware at an annual rent of £25,000.

Both the Tax Payer's Alliance and Government Ministers have expressed concern. Good to see that the GDfB is continuing on it's march to Stalinism.

Statler and I have written an email to Councillor Hillan. We find our home a bit pokey and given our recent Iceland investment issues, are a bit strapped for cash. Let us hoping she can find us a £1,000,000 tax payer funded house too, we know how much she must be able to empathise with those staring over the abyss into bankruptcy.

Coleman lambasts Freer as a twit!

UPDATE: Statler and I have decided to follow OGLL (Our Great Listening Leader) and have got our own Twitter page.

In an extraordinary outburst our dear friend Cllr Brian Coleman has launched a full on attack on Michael Whitney Freer as a 'twit'.

Cllr Freer has just launched a new web service here. Just a day later in his column in the Barnet Press, Brian Coleman slams him,

"..Twitter (presumably a site for twits).

In my view, politicians should concentrate less on Facebook and more on face-to-face contact and leave twittering to those late night debates at Westminster"

How long till he gets the sack, Waldorf and I wonder....?

RogT has a very good weblog post on the whole article.

Boland Bounces from Barnet to Boris

Our old friend Jim Dunton from the Local Government Chronicle has written an article claiming that GDfB's big boss, Leo Boland, is off to work for the Greater London Authority as Chief Executive.

Rumours have been flying around that Mr Boland wanted out for some months and Councillor Lynda Hillan is reported to have recently expressed concerns that the GDfB's bureacratic officers were out of control.

It's a mystery to us why he states at the end of his piece,

LGC understands that several London chief executives approached to throw their hats into the ring for the GLA job declined.

We are sure that others, having seen that Leo was applying, were intimidated by his talent. It's not as if Mr Boland would be the third person to hold the job in 6 months is it?

Word reaches us that the negotiations have been very testing, lasting several weeks. Concessions were made to Mr Boland including a 60" Plasma screen (50" wasn't big enough) and a £1,400 laptop set up (as all Barnet officers now have).

Sources close to City Hall suggest the sticking point was over a taxi allowance. Brian Coleman clearly used his magic to resolve that one.

We wish Mr Boland very well in his new job and wonder how many weeks it will be before embattled Councillor Michael Whitney Freer promotes Mr Brian Reynolds to fill the gap.

Absolute nincompoops

We can't believe it. Waldorf and I are risking our Ovaltine going cold to post this. Whilst viewing Don't call me Dave's latest article we found a link to this site.

Now we have accused the GDfB of being a bit wobbly. But employing Dr Bunsen and Beaker - ARE THEY CRAZY?

We are sure to leave our balcony whenever those two crazy fools come on the stage and we have berated Kermit constantly to not let them in.

Now they are advising Barnet.... Oh dear!

Credit crunch brings us back

With some sense of sadness, Statler and I have been forced to return from our 18 month cruise prematurely. Unfortunately our financial advisors, working under our policy, seem to have invested in some cheap bank shares.

Northern Rock wasn't the way to go. At least they weren't that bloody stupid to deposit large sums in Icelandic banks!

With some sense of embarrassment, we were frogmarched from our breakfast 10 days ago. Apparently our credit card was bouncing. We were outrageously put into one of the emergency dinghys and pushed off into the ocean.

Wet and weary we are now back in Britain.

In our absence it seems some young whippersnappers have had the audacity to trespass on our weblogging activity in Barnet and all sorts have been happening. As a welcome back we have recorded a little video for you below.