Through The Keyhole

Having suffered aurally during the 1980's under Lloyd Grossman's irritating plum in mouth accent asking us all "Who would live in a house like this" I thought I would refurbish the genre and ask all of you politico's:

WHO WOULD CAMPAIGN UNDER A BANNER LIKE THIS?

"So..................Lets look at the clues:"

The patriotic yet slightly disturbing prominent use of the union flag (it's only a jack when it is on a ship) shows us that this party is serious about it's BRIT appeal whilst the absence of a party logo makes us suspicious of their intent. More right wing than right on.

"This should tell us something about the person who sent out this literature"

But let our journey through the leaflet continue and look beyond the picture on the wall

So...................Lets look inside the clues are there as we go through the content of the leaflet

Quote

"I continue to be in touch with a number of ********* and SPADS to arrange visits"

(I have removed the word in asterisks to make it more difficult for you, but SPADS? what in god's name is a spad? and do we want them visiting?

Obviously this party is down with the eusystolistatists and likes us to LOL and made me LMAO

The leaflet printed locally in er.................. Newcastle Upon Tyne, goes on to tell us of the "much welcome news for council tenants" of substantial PFI credits and promises personal involvement in potential spend and benefits to tenants

So an advocate of all things borrowed and bought by the market then? no social conscience for these folk.

and who can resist the temptation of joining the groups local Facebook site which now has "132 members"? which is only 3200 less than Northampton infamous but now sadly deceased lady of the streets 50p Lil

So who would send out a leaflet like this? Pro PFI, wrapped up in the union flag, down with the kids on Facebook (and the oldies) printing by local workers on Tyneside and tempting us with visits from SPADS (I won't spoil it by telling you what they are I will let you research that yourself.

So whose candidate is hiding behind the electoral door wrapped up in the clothes of all their neighbours

The BNP? Cameron's New Tories?, PFI crazy Local Liberal Democrats?, Nude Labour?

The clues are all there............................. Its over to you our internet audience......................................

Whose candidate? whose party can live with an image like this?

Answer in comments below please.

Astragate, the fallout.

I have just read my colleague John Dickies last post on the troubles besetting local Council Leader Tony Woods following the 'Astragate' affair http://johndickienorthampton.blogspot.com and must agree to disagree with my friend and elder statesman on an important point of description

John, understandably annoyed at Woodsy's reference to him in the report as not a 'Bona Fide' member of the public has now compared the local leader of the Lib Dems in Northampton to Uncle Joe Stalin, suggesting that anyone disagreeing with the leader would find themselves sent to the gulag never to be seen again.

This is a disgraceful slur on the Leader of the Council and totally inaccurate. You see I have it on very good grounds that after witnessing Cllr Woods strutting around Northampton Market arms behind his back, nose in the air, king of all he purveys, indifferent to any opinion other than his own, that market Trader 'Fitzy' has likened Woodsie to another more self effacing member of the dictators club...............................

IL DUC'E, himself!

And judge for yourself below the resemblance is quite striking. It seems as if this tag has now caught on across the square and cries of "IL DUC'E, IL DUC'E" are now to be heard from traders whenever he sets foot on the Market.

And that should trouble Cllr Woods more than his local difficulties with the standards board. You see in my view the issue of where he parked his untaxed car pails into insignificance when placed beside the comments contained within the report from Tony Woods when interviewed by local investigator Phillip Mears.

It is the air of arrogance and indifference when questioned that condemns him, not his actions alone. See http://www.northamptonboroughcouncil.com/councillors/Published/C00000651/M00006288/AI00029532/PMearsrpt.pdf

According to 'IL WOODSY' The two complainants are not even "Bona Fide" members of the public and their interest was 'Political' It reminds me of the time he refused to attend a public meeting in the Guildhall in January because that was also 'Political'

Press interest he tells us was puerile and his whole manner of suggesting that he was far too busy to abide by the law of land smacks of self importance and lack of understanding of how others will judge his indifference. He was busy every day and every night we are told? but going to the theatre or watching the Arsenal were far more important than abiding by the law.

He also reveals that he told the Chief Executive in October 2008 that he would move his car in November when he could afford to do so, when and after he had received his backdated increase in his Cllr Allowances!

And this was before we had even discussed the matter of increased allowances in Full Council. Shouldn't he have declared an interest? after all his judgement and the decision he took to vote himself a huge pay raise in the middle of a reccession was obviously clouded by his need to get his hands on a quick back payment to ensure his car was legal again!

The report also reveals that despite alluding to the Chief Executive that he had registered the car as off road with a SORN certificate in January that no such registration had taken place and that as a result he was issued with a fixed penalty notice thereafter.

I said to Cllr Woods earlier this year at a full council meeting, when I accused the Lib Dems of not listening to the public view that it is the little things that do for you in the end, and I can't help but think that if he had been a lot less cocky, a little less arrogant, and a little less triumphant then in ridding the town of dangerous Alderman, (Like John Dickie) then the public and John would have been perhaps a bit less eager to have exposed him to a taste of his own medicine.

The local standards board committee will of course have the final say, and thats how it should be, but the damage to his reputation and the Lib Dem group on the Council not to mention his standing within his own group are probably damaged far beyond the level they need to be.

Sometimes saying Sorry at the outset not at the end is a far better policy. Sometimes remembering that whatever the title says on your post that you are no more important now than you were first achieved office and supposed greatness is also very good practice.

It's humility, and genuine remorse that will save you Tony not belittling your detractors and undervaluing their opinion.

Here is the news, or not, parts three, four, five etc

By now you will have got the general drift, white supremacists bought before the courts after threatening or carrying out terrorist attacks, their trials not covered by the mainstream media and their sentences not equitable when compared with other cases over the years be they young muslims or old Irish

So heres a few more recent cases for you to be concerned and amazed at...................................

Lets start with Neil Lewington, Mr Lewington has just been on trial at the Old Bailey charged with the preparation of terrorist attacks using home made bombs made from tennis balls and weedkiller. He made the bombs at his parents home in Reading and aimed to target those who he thought of as 'non British' searches of Mr Lewington's home revealed a notebook entitled "Waffen SS UK members' handbook" which contained drawings of electronics and chemical mixtures. He had once told a woman that "the only good Paki was a dead Paki." Mr Lewington has been found guilty and will be sentenced in September. Press Coverage has to say the least been sparce.

Or how about the case of Robert Cottage? a former 3 times BNP candidate jailed in July 2007 for possessing explosive chemicals in his home. Police comments at the time informed us that following his arrest they found the largest amount of chemical explosive of its type ever found in this country. The national coverage of Cottage’s arrest in October 2006 amounted to exactly 56 words in a single “news in brief” item in the Sunday Times. Cottage was charged under the obscure Explosive Substances Act 1883, not the panoply of modern anti-terror laws now at the disposal of the police which probably explains his lenient 2 and a half year sentence! Cottage told the court that "the evils of uncontrolled immigration' would lead to civil war which would be imminent and inevitable."

And then there is Martyn Gilleard, another Nazi fantasist and a pedophile who in June 2008 was arrested after police found nail bombs, bullets, swords, axes and knives in his flat, together with more than 39,000 indecent images of children on his computer.

In addition he left a note in which he had written, “I am so sick and tired of hearing nationalists talk of killing Muslims, of blowing up mosques, of fighting back. Only to see these acts of resistance fail to appear. The time has come to stop the talk and start to act.” In another note, he wrote that he wanted to see "reds" - left-wing activists - attacked with "lightning strikes" and "home-made grenades". Gilliard was jailed for 16 years and there was only sporadic and not surprisingly limited media coverage.

And then there is Nathan Worrell? This neo-Nazi, described by police as a “dangerous individual”, who hoarded bomb-making materials in his home, and was found guilty in December 2008 of possessing material for terrorist purposes and for racially aggravated harassment. He was jailed for 7 years. Worrell admitted to police that he was a white nationalist. He signed his texts off as "88" - a code for Hitler. The trial heard Worrell left racist stickers at the home of Susan Crofts and Mohammed Chowdhery and on a lamppost. One sticker read: "Only inferior white women date outside their race. Be proud of your heritage. Don't be a race-mixing slut", while another from the Combat 18 group said: "It's our country. Let's win it back. Repatriation now." His trial attracted just two passing references in the popular national press, in the Daily Star and the Sun.

Medhi Hussein highlights the above cases in the New Statesman and helpfully informs us that Europol, the European police agency, suggest that the threat of Islamist terrorism is minimal compared with that carried out by separatists and nationlist groups. Across Europe in 2006, one out of 498 documented terrorist attacks across Europe could be classed as “Islamist”; in 2007, the figure rose to just four out of 583 – that’s less than 1 per cent of the total. By contrast, 517 attacks across the continent were claimed by or attributed to nationalist or separatist terrorist groups, such as ETA in Spain.

Now to me a terrorist is a terrorist, the taking of innocent life or the threat to do so is abhorant to us all. But why do the British Media reserve their press inches for the minority of Muslim offenders whilst conveniently missing or skirting over stories such as those outlined above?

It is no wonder that the country is becoming paranoid and Islamaphobic when it is being fed such an unbalanced view from the press as to the real nature of the threat that surrounds us all. It is also no wonder that Britain's Muslim youth feel so alienated and stigmatised.

The threat to our security and community is most definitely out our there, it is very very real, but it isn't necessarily always dressed up in dark skins and beards and the sooner the media realise this and start to present a more balanced view of what is happening the better we will all be for it.

Here is the news, or not, part two

Following on from the post below about the biggest terrorist arms raid since the 1960's being curiously missing from the mainstream news, I thought you would welcome this similar scarcely covered story (which did at least make it to the BBC) about how the far right are dealt with (or not) when they are finally bought before the beak.

A Derbyshire man, Neil Macgregor 36 was recently up before a Scottish Court where Sheriff Andrew Mackie heard his plea.

Mr Macregor threatened to blow up Glasgow Central Mosque, in fact he went a little bit further than that, let him explain in his own words in an email he sent to Strathclyde Police which was given to the court as evidence. He said:

"I’m a proud racist and National Front member. We as an organisation have decided to deal with the current threat from Muslims in our own British way like our proud ancestors.

“Our demands are very small. Close all the Mosques in Scotland, we see this is very easy – even you guys can handle that.”

He then issued a barrage of sickening threats, centering on the internet killing of Ken Bigley.

He wrote: “If our demands aren’t met by next Friday we’ll kidnap one Muslim and execute him or her on the internet, just like they did to our Ken Bigley.

“Those monster evil Muslims cut off his head with a kitchen knife, so we would like to repay the compliment. Every week we’ll kidnap and behead a Muslim if our demands aren’t met.”

... “We will also detonate a box of nails in the Central Mosque on Friday night.”

MacGregor then followed up the e-mail with a call threatening to blow up the Central Mosque.

Threats to kill a Muslim a week, and blow up a Mosque? what's the tariff on that then under the Prevention of Terrorism Act?

15 years? 5 years? maybe being held indefinitely at her Majesty's pleasure? (a bit like Phil the Greek)

No Mr Mackie decided that he needed medical treatment not punishment and dished out a tough sentence of 3 years probation.

3 years probation! you couldn't make it up, Neil Macgregor is, as we speak is free as a bird walking around Derbyshire a man at full liberty.

The trial didn't even make it to Scotland High Court system and serious questions are now being asked as to why the matter was allowed to be dealt with by the junior Sheriffs court system?

I can but wonder what would happen if a member of the Muslim community was bought before a court having admitted to threats to kill a Christian a day and blow up Glasgow Cathedral, on demands that all churches in Scotland be closed?

Judgements like this do little to promote any sense of equity within our legal system and the failure of most of the press again to report the trial or its outcome will not help to convince the Muslim community that the media doesn't operate a wicked policy of double standards when reporting such matters. It also adds to the concerns of many that the dangers of far right extremism in our country are being underplayed and under reported

Well done the BBC at least, and believe it not The Scottish Sun, but if you wanted to read the news elsewhere you would have to subscribe to newspaper titles and websites well outside of the UK.

Or of course read this blog...........................................................

And so it begins...........................................

From yesterdays Northampton Chronicle and Echo:

http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news/Dog-owners-facing-tough-line.5554023.jp

http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news/Fines-issued-for-people-littering.5554024.jp

As predicted the easy and probably deserving targets come first, but Black Sack Offenders and Barbecue fans everywhere be on your guard, the Council fixed penalty notice is coming to a street near you very soon.....................................

Stealth Tax fear is very real

I cannot say that I have ever been a fan of the Daily Express, it always seemed to me to be the polite Tory voters version of the Daily Mail. In other words another racist, bigoted free market loving rantsheet but one which chooses its words more carefully.

But yesterday it's headline struck a chord with me. I had posted below about the dangers of 'FREE' and I shared my concerns as to the future of tiered local Council Services where the basic service remains free (but paid for in your council tax) whilst enhanced services will be charged out at a premium. And It seems now that the Daily Express agree, particularly in respect of how future refuse collection services are to be delivered and charged all in the name of 'efficiency' and 'recycling'

So with the revelation by the Local Government Association that there is already a £4bn black hole in local councils accounts ( £2.7bn loss on development deals and £1.3bn in lost interest on bank deposits) and tough government settlements expected for at least the next 4-5 years where will local councils find the ways and means to squeeze that extra cash from us?

Well, first of all expect more parking fines (if that is possible in Northampton!) Figures reveal that last year that Westminster Council bought in more cash from Parking and parking fines than it did in Council Tax! and overall £10bn was collected by local authorities in the name of keeping our streets clear of inconsiderate drivers.

And expect more fixed penalty notices for a wider range of misdemeanors, dog foulers and litter louts probably deserve a good dose of fiscal punishment, but how long before we all risk getting an £80 fixed penalty notice for accidentally putting the rubbish out on the wrong day or dropping apple cores for the birds?

Perhaps schools will issue fixed penalty notices to parents for late or non delivered homework or how about a letterbox tax for non compliant letterboxes? (you know the ones they are either the silly sort side on where you have to twist your whole body to deliver anything, or even worse the bottom feeder where you bend to deliver and drop everything you are holding.

Maybe they will introduce a local Barbecue Tax or fixed penalty notices for invasive cooking odours, or an annual limit on visits to the Park with top up vouchers available for frequent visitors.

I of course have my tongue firmly in my cheek when suggesting some of the above measures, but not all of them.

On the issue refuse collection charges I would hazard a guess that the truth is coming to a wheelie bin or black sack near you very soon. Already Northampton Borough Council has started limiting who does and does not get a black sack delivery (to save money spent on sacks) and thier recycling services are dependent on your post code and wealth (believe it or not only those with drives and large gardens can receive garden waste and glass collections whilst residents in terraced streets get neither)

What all this will inevitably lead to is the creation of multi tiered services with fixed penalties introduced for any who then fall foul of the new regimes and service conditions, with less Council staff delivering services and more delivering tickets and summonses. Our Councils will go from their past incarnation of being providers to all become enablers and then on a step further to becoming enforcers

You have been warned!

Free the Castle Ward Two - Update

Well, thankfully myself and John are still at liberty, still awaiting the careful consideration from the Crown Prosecution Services finest minds in their York Based electoral Fraud Office, (See post below, Labour tough on Crime Soft in the head) But the stupidity of our foes it seems knows no limits or bounds.

First of all let me apologise to one or two members of Northampton South Constituency Labour Party who were upset at my general swipe at the party in the last post, it is clear to me now that they or the collective local party, had no hand in "grassing us up" or the decision to do so!

The real snitch and defender of the public good against malicious imprint crime it seems was Tess Scott's agent Les Marriot who we are told acted alone as an individual, although when questioned by unhappy members as to his actions and also for effectively shooting the party in the foot he said that if he "hadn't have done it then, someone else would have" The mind boggles.

Anyhow to my delight I was recently given a copy of Labours latest leaflet that is doing the rounds in Castle and Ecton Brook Wards. It is a shiny little number from 'Clyde and Tess' or 'Clyde and Keith' with scripted text telling us that they called round today (they perhaps would have done better if they called around during the election)

The leaflet is pretty inoffensive, the usual knocking copy and grumble sheet, but it wasn't that which caught my eye. It was not surprisingly the imprint.

The all important legally necessary imprint on the leaflet tells us that it was "Promoted by David Brede. On behalf of Clyde Loakes and Tess Scott all at 97 Charles Street, Northampton NN1 3BG and printed at The Labour Club, 97 Charles Street, Northampton NN1 3BG"

All fine apart from the fact that the Labour Club is a separate business to the Labour Party and has no print facility. The print facility is NLPP (Northampton Labour Print and Press?) and is situated upstairs at 97 Charles Street in the "Labour Halls" office Their printer an aging but well used risograpth doesn't print on glossy card and cannot produce any colours apart from black red and yellow.

So where was this glossy blue, black and white card printed then? it certainly wasn't printed at 97 Charles Street that's for sure? It seems Clyde is unhappy with the quality of their output? And if it wasn't printed at Charles Street why say it was? At least my heinous crime was committed by omission (i.e. I forgot to put an imprint on it) instead of like theirs being an outright deception to hide its true origin, and as a result any expenditure on it.

It was suggested to me that I report this scandalous breach of the imprint law to the boys in blue, as an act of revenge, but of course I won't as I can't be bothered and mores the point I wouldn't waste the time and resources of the Police or the CPS on such a petty misdemeanour. Perhaps Les Marriot will dob em in? Or one of the other caped crusaders of the peoples print police he refers to.

But whatever happens I do hope that someone will learn the lesson relating to stones and greenhouses and I also believe that Clyde and Tess they should concentrate their minds on explaining their actions to NLPP and why they feel it is OK to use their name and company address on a leaflet that was clearly not produced by them. After all the Tax man just might ask NLPP where the invoice is?

In the meantime myself and John are plotting an escape to Dubrovnik in the event that the news from York isn't good

FREE - The ultimate money spinner

Free is the new Capitalist mantra, everything it seems, from Airline seats to Laptops computers are now available for all, for free.

Free is a question of when, not if, as corporate bodies wake up to their inability to compete on price and accept that in a competitive market, price falls always ever downwards until it reaches the marginal cost.

When abundance creates new scarcity when a product becomes free, value migrates upwards. Companies don't want customers anymore they want fans. Why sell 1m widgets costing 10p each to make at £1 to 1m customers and make £900,000 profit when you can give 50m widgets away to 50m people and sell on to them or derive from them advertising revenue of at least 50p per person and make mega millions? Or convince just 5% of the 50m to spend more to upgrade their free widget?

The Internet has redefined 'Free' with Google, Facebook, and Twitter (and indeed blogger) all providing free social networking platforms for millions of customers who they can then sell to, and then sell advertising space for. Microsoft now also realise they can't compete against 'free' as they prepare to launch free versions of their "online" software such as Word, Publisher and Excel to the public.

People like 'Free' and once they are hooked they will then pay more for additional add on costs to either a) save time or b) improve their status. In fact 'Free' is often the most expensive product out there.

The airline ticket may be free, but the admin charge, the extra baggage cost, the sell ons (cars and hotel rooms) not to mention the on board monopoly on £3 cups of tea and £5 sandwiches, more than compensate for 'Free'. One of these days the pre flight advice will come with directions as to where to insert your coins for oxygen supply in the case of an emergency! or a life jacket as an additional extra!

Free. also comes in the guise of the "part product" not the whole version but 'upgradable' at a cost, or the 'free trial' or even craftier the 'limited free use' with whopping great bills for anything used above the limit.

So where does it all end? Well, where corporate Britain leads Local Government eventually follows, as so it was that as a County Councillor I was asked last week for my views to possible changes to the Registration Service (Births Marraiges, Deaths) . They want to amalgamate the current district based service making it Countywide and make it more 'customer focused'.

Still a free service of course, but hang on let me read the small print? It says that 'enhanced services' could be provided at a premium? For instance the standard wait for a replacement certificate (which used to be about 5 mins) is now to be 3-5 days! but you can have it while you wait if you pay a premium! Likewise, want to marry in the Registrars Office on a Saturday? Of course Sir/Madam, at a price that is.

So beware, although none of our Council services are ever free (We already pay for them through the Council Tax) 'Free' looks like becoming an ever tempting commodity, with services being tiered and graded and customers broken down into 'can't afford' and 'can pay extra' .

Imagine where it could all lead? "We can only pick up your rubbish for free once a fortnight , but for a premium we could manage once a week?" Or maybe even free education being delivered in schools owned by Multi National Companies who then charge the local community a fortune to use the facilities out of hours? (oh sorry, the Tories already dropped that one on us in Northamptonshire 4 years ago)

Health and Education under Blair's choice agenda is already half way there of course, How much longer will it be before all this new choice in the Health Service and access to quicker services and appointments will come at a premium?

And can every parent really choose which school they want their child to attend unless they can afford the price of a house in the agreed catchment area and the cost of "additionality" for ever exotic school trips and top up tutoring and equipment.

Our society risks becoming even more divided into a nation of 'haves a little for nothing' and 'haves what they want' on receipt of a top up payment

It's becoming less a case of keeping up with the Jones' and more a case of keeping up with the Barrington - Alexanders. (Of course if you are really posh like HMQ then you can have a triple barrelled surname Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and a top up double barrelled surname Mountbatten -Windsor chucked in for 'Free' to help you sound less German!)

Our councils though, through their data bases have more access to potential top up paying customers than most, if not any of the blue chip companies so beware 'Free' is coming through a letterbox close to you, and when it does don't be surprised if it has a Council return address on the envelope.

This advice is given to you FREE with thanks to Chris Anderson and WIRED for getting my brain warmed up

Norwich North, and the winner is?

With Parliament in recess it will be some months before Chloe Smith the Tories 'Vous êtes belle, mademoiselle' and declared victor of last weeks by election in Norwich North takes her seat in the Commons Chamber. And perhaps November or December before she makes her maiden speech, and then just after the Christmas recess she will no doubt be preparing for her defence of the seat at the general election.

So what comfort can she take from her victory? surely her 7000 majority over Labours Chris Ostrowski will be enough to soothe her? even though the seat next year will be fought on the revised less favourable boundaries than was the case at the by election. (the new parliamentary boundaries only applying from the next general election)

Well, only time will tell but the real winner from last weeks poll is difficult to determine when you compare the votes cast for each of the main parties last Thursday with those from the 2005 election. Look for yourself:

Labour 2005 21,097 2009 6243 a loss of 14,854 votes

Conservative 2005 15,638 2009 13,591 a loss of 2047 votes

Lib Dem 2005 7616 2009 4083 a loss of 3533 votes

That makes a staggering drop in the votes for the three main parties from 44,300 in 2005 to 26700 in 2009 a drop in support for the combined tally of the big three of 17,600 lost votes

17,600! thats enough to win the contest outright, and at a by election prior to a general election that David Cameron's Tory party look favourites to win it is inexcusable that the Tory vote that turned out to support their candidate should fall. Labours loss was down by a staggering 70% from their 2005 support and with turnout only marginally down from 60% to 45% this was far more than a simple case of their loyal and faithful staying at home. The Lib Dems meanwhile seem to be shrinking before our eyes, becoming also rans and struggling to pick up any floating voters who now seem to prefer to vote elsewhere.


Of course UKIP (1122 to 4068) and the Greens (1252 to 3350) both did well accumilating an extra 5044 votes between them since 2005. But the bigger picture seems to be one of major discontent with the main three parties.

I believe my old friend Ian Gibson should have stood last week as an Independent, and perhaps he will do so next year. Despite the claims that he was wrong to allow his daughter to live with him in his London flat (I would have done the same) or that he shouldn't have sold the flat to her at a reduced rate (slightly more controversial, but are people saying that if he had sold it for more profit to a stranger then that would have been OK?) Ian is still well respected in the town.

It seems that Labour Party supporters in Norwich when asked on the doorstep felt that he had been harshly treated when compared with certain others in Labours higher ranks, and they were right. The kangeroo court which barred him standing for re-election cared little for the facts and only wished to take the opportunity of getting rid of one of the awkward squad who actually stood up for his constituents and refused to be controlled by the whips office. There will be MPs from all partys standing in the general election next year with far more guilty consciences than Ian, and with so many people deserting the main three parties in such huge numbers and a need for more Independent members at Westminster then I hope he considers standing again, but this time without the party straightjacket.

It's less troops we need in Afghanistan, not more helicoptors

Those of us who both voted against and opposed the war in Iraq and also questioned our over commitment in Afghanistan faced harsh critics in Parliament, and in the media. We were labelled 'disloyal', and as 'acting against British interests', and we were told more times than I choose to remember that we were 'unpatriotic' and in acting in the way we did, putting the lives of British Soldiers at risk.

All of this of course was hogwash, and as an example my refusal then to disclose papers leaked to me of Blair and Bush's secret pacts and crazy plans had little to do with me defending the dynamic duo, but everything to do with the need to protect the lives of British troops whose lives would have been endangered at that time if the document had been released.

Today though, 9 years on, the world certainly doesn't feel any safer? Iraq is still divided, Afganistan even more dangerous and Iran and North Korea have been added to the list of potential future engagement zones.

And yet we as a country, and as individuals seem confused and drawn between conflicting needs of both giving praise to those calling to better arm our troops and at the same time retaining a distaste for war which led millions to oppose it in the first place, and many still calling for quicker withdrawal.

My own opinion for what it is worth, is that at a time of austerity and of high unemployment and of threats to cut public spending on our public services coming from all three of the political parties, than an additional invoice to UK Government for more helicoptors, more military hardware and an upgrade to the Trident programme is fundamentaly wrong and about as welcome as the world outbreak of Swine Flu.

Britains problem isn't that its armed forces are under equipped, it is that they are overstretched and forever performing a role as "World Policemen" which far exceeds our capability, our purse and our true standing in the world. Our troops are some of the finest, if not the finest in the world, but there are too few of them and the cost of keeping them in the theatre of war is greater than the country can afford and the cost of losing them too high a price for families to pay back home.

So is it simply national pride which continually places us and our troops on the frontline? or is it a misguided notion of us still being the world power we were in past centuries?

Whatever it is, the cost in pound notes and in the loss of British life gets higher and higher by the day and someone in Parliament at some time will need to be brave enough to question the constant calls for more money, more equipment and more troops and say "can we really afford all this? isn't there a better way? Shouldn't other NATO Countries be doing there bit?

There can be no military solution to the problems of religious extreemism be they Islamic or Christian, problems of indifference by minorities in whatever country are best dealt with on home soil by those in authority and who have been given authority through the accepted will of the majority within there respective nations. Iraq and Afghanistan will only begin to heal their wounds once American and British Soldiers who are seen as occupiers, are removed from the scene.

In the meantime chasing the Taliban around the Pakistani mountains is only aiding their ongoing recruitment campaigns and driving a further wedge between the West and the Islamic world.

And Britain needs also to realise that we are no longer the biggest kid in the playground and that we can no longer afford to involve ourselves continually to the levels we do. I would rather we played a smaller part in a bigger Nato engagement than continue to put British lives at risk by asking our troops to enter the theatre of war hanging on to the coat tails of our better equipped and more cash rich american cousins.

And we would do well to remember that whilst no war is ever truly won, humanity is always, inevitably the loser