October 2016 – MUNGUIN'S NEW REPUBLIC

WHERE THERE IS DISCORD…

orgreave

When Theresa stood on the steps of Downing Street and made her victory speech, she didn’t exactly quote Francis is Assisi.

However, she did say that things were going to change. Of course they have, but not quite the way she seemed to suggest.

She was going to champion the little (wo)man, the working classes who had been so badly done by the Eton/Oxford government that her predecessor had led. She was going to sort out ‘Burning Injustice’.

Well, she had a chance to demonstrate how she could do that. It can be summed up in one word. Orgreave.

0rgreave

At Orgreave, during the miners’ strike of the early 1980s, striking miners were beaten by the police and then falsely accused of rioting… crimes that carried serious sentences. And the police got away with it with government support.

Does that ring any bells?

Were there not football fans at Hillsborough who suffered death at the hands of an incompetent policeman out of his depth, incapable of making the correct decision…and were these fans not then blamed for the catastrophe which ensued, accused of urinating on and stealing from dead bodies to make the fans seem at fault? Were they not made to look like inhuman monsters? And was the government not complicit in that?

Yes, they were. And, which force was responsible for this?

The very same one. South Yorkshire Police.

So, given all these facts and the prime minister’s vow, and the fact that she had shown an inclination to have an inquiry into Orgreave when she, herself, was home secretary, it came to me as something of a surprise to find out that the new home secretary, one Amber Rudd, thinks that it’s unnecessary.

Nah, why bother? No one died, could sum up Rudd’s written response. Somehow now, unless people die, it seems that police can get away with anything.

If there had been an inquiry at the time, perhaps the South Yorkshire Police might have sharpened up its procedures a bit and maybe, just maybe, Hillsborough wouldn’t have happened five years later.

Ms Rudd is of the opinion that there was no miscarriage of justice. Let that be a warning to people in England. The police can beat you and accuse you of rioting, but that is NOT a miscarriage of justice.

And there was me thinking that an inquiry would have investigated whether indeed there was a miscarriage of justice, and if there was, named and shamed the people responsible for it.

So Mrs May has fallen at the first hurdle. She gives not a damn about these men, their families, or what they went through.

Seriously folks, could we really expect anything else from the Pound Shop Thatcher?

AS THE USUAL SUSPECTS RANT ABOUT NAT ABUSE (AGAIN, YAWN), LET’S REMEMBER THESE:

arseholes

I refer, of course, to these usual suspects. The tip of the iceberg.

These headlines are the tip of the iceberg.

SOPPY SAMHAIN AND ALL SAINTS SUNDAY

img_20161027_172433480 — 1. Hello from me, Munguin and my friends celebrating Hallowe’en. Don’t worry PP, there are Orangs. I’d not want you to log on for nothing.

ncrow — 2: I’m at the party too…can you see me?

npuan2-paton

3. I’m Puan, the grumpy old Orang. You can read about me here.

nleo — 5. I’d rather not be in a cage, but aren’t I magnificent anyway?

ngreece — 6. My lucky neighbour is in Greece just now.

ndonkey — 9. Hi there. Are you fond of donkeys?

npuan

10. Yep, it’s me again, being grumpy. I’m allowed at my age.

ndounecastle

11. Doune Castle.

nsuns

13. Would you look at that sky?

ndonk — 14. You did say you liked donkeys, right?

nscwildcat

15. Scottish wildcat. There are so few of them left in the wilds.

naru-enjoying-a-rambutan-feast — 16. Lunch at last.

nscot

17. Isn’t Scotland bonnie…if a tad grey?

18. Another amazing sky, in, I’d guess Netherlands.

no1 — 19. I shouldn’t be here, but at least I have a substitute mum, which is better than nothing.

noran67 — 21. OK, that’s it for this week.I’m off to Munguin’s party. See you next week.

Munguin is grateful to Mr Paton for sending us the pictures and the story about the elderly Orang, Puan.

ONE VIEW BEFORE THE REFERENDUM; ONE AFTER

WELL, IF WE DIDN’T CAUSE THIS MAYHEM, SOMEONE ELSE WOULD

yemen

The following list of MPs voted against a Labour motion calling for a ban on the selling or arms to the despotic and barbaric Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; a country where the king is a friend of the Windsors.

Apparently, the foreign secretary said that if the UK didn’t sell arms to them then someone else would, which, although it is undoubtedly true, just about sums up his attitude to morality.

How much better for these kids to be killed and maimed by Great British bombs than by some inferior foreign muck.

a-yemen-3

JOB AVAILABLE FOR SPIES WHO DON’T MIND BEING BORED WITLESS FOR MONTHS AT A TIME

According to the Daily Mail, David Davis has been warned that every other EU government is spying on him in an attempt to discover his strategy for Brexit.

He has been told he should expect the 27 other EU countries to be trying to listen in on his private conversations and intercept his phone calls. davis

So, when we read this Munguin and I fell about laughing. That should be interesting, we thought. The Minister for exiting Europe, who has no actual strategy for exiting Europe.

I hope the other 27 countries have a shed load of time on their hands. Just imagine the boredom:

*****

D Davis: Hello, Rt Hon David Davis here, Cabinet Secretary for Brexit.

Recipient: Yes, how can we help you?

DD: Can you send round a Sweet and Sour Chicken with Boiled Rice, and 5 Spring Rolls?

*****

DD: Hello, Secretary of State here.

Private Secretary: Yes?

DD: I’m bored witless. Do you fancy popping round to the club for lunch?

*****

DD: Can you come in for a moment, Private Secretary. I need your opinion on something important.

PS: Certainly Sir. With you directly. (followed by knock on door).

DD: Do you think the Rembrandt looks better on that wall or that wall?

*****

DD: Hello Liam, David here. Are you busy?

L Fox: Yes.

DD: Doing what, for heaven’s sake? You can’t start with the trade deals till 2019.

LF: I know. It’s a blast, getting paid a Cabinet salary and having nothing much to do. At the moment I’m working on the decor for my stateroom on the royal yacht. This afternoon we’re having a Tiddlywinks competition in the Ministry of Silly Talks.

*****

DD: Hello David Davis, how can I help you?

N Sturgeon: First Minister of Scotland here. I was wondering how the Brexit plans were coming along with regard to Scotland’s continued access to the market.

DD: *Pardon Madame: You have a mauvais number there. Nous sommes “Le Petit Renard Fou” French restaurant. Voulez-vous book une table?

*with appoliogies to Miles Kington!

*****

Any other suggestions?

THIS IS TAKING “DUMMY WHIST” TOO FAR, THERESA

mrs-may

STATEMENT FROM SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT ON BREXIT TALKS

Commenting following a meeting of the Joint Ministerial Committee to discuss the implications of the referendum on leaving the European Union, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “This was a long overdue meeting but unfortunately it was, in large parts, hugely frustrating.

brex

“I set out Scotland’s key interests in protecting our place in the single market, securing continued freedom of movement and ensuring social and employment rights are protected. However, despite a full and frank exchange of views around the table we know no more about the UK Government’s approach to the EU negotiations now than we did when we went into the meeting.

“Four months on from the referendum we finally have agreement on a sub-committee of the JMC for the devolved administrations and the UK Government to discuss the issues raised by Brexit, but there is a significant amount of work to do to make sure that the engagement we have is meaningful.

“As a first step we agreed that there must be a detailed work programme developed ahead of the first meeting of the sub-committee. Crucially we agreed that this must be integrated with the wider process so that the devolved administrations can influence key Cabinet Sub-Committee decisions. We also agreed that there will be a further meeting of heads of government in the New Year.

“The Scottish Government is fully committed to engaging with the UK Government and we will seek to use our influence to ensure that the UK does not pursue a hard Brexit. However it is clear from today’s discussions that we must also continue to pursue alternative options, including bringing forward proposals to protect Scotland’s place in the single market even if the rest of the UK leaves, and continuing to prepare for the option of a referendum on independence if that is what is necessary to prevent the UK taking Scotland over a hard Brexit cliff edge.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-37753392?utm_content=buffere301c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

**********

Bugger the Panda sent me some brilliant photographs and I thought you might like to share. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1IHNgzJC6n3u7WePDtD2v61e4XapYxSB4DJyEwjEIdDo/embed?hl=en_GB&size=m&slide=id.p8

HOLD THE FRONT PAGE: TWO POSH AND OVERPRIVILEGED OLD MEN ARE FIGHTING

queen

Just in case you thought there was anything important going on in the world, let me put your mind at rest.

There is no American election in the offing, and Mrs May’s new boss isn’t going to be decided within weeks.

There is no war in Syria, nor is there one in Yemen, not one that Brits have any part in or should worry about in any case, clearly.

And Britain isn’t facing a crisis in Europe. No sir, it’s all plain sailing, as you’d imagine with Messers Johnson, Davis, Fox and Werrity at the helm of the royal yacht. What do people like Terry Entoure know anyway?

Anyway, no, it’s none of that. So important is the crisis facing Britain, that neither Diana nor even a scantily clad lass is anywhere to be seen on the front page of the Sunday Express. Imagine!

The utter horror facing our country, Munguinites, is that Charlie Rothsay and Airmiles Andy have fallen out about the two bloody, sorry, Blood Princesses.

It seems that, for once, Charles and I agree. He wants to rationalise the royal family,slim it down, presumably to deflect criticism that there are vast numbers of them living at our expense and doing next to nothing for their very expensive corn.

pricesses — Don’t ask me which is which. I don’t know and I don’t care

Andrew, au contraire, thinks that as his children are proper royals, not “married into” jumped up commoners, like, for example, his wife, Fergie, Camilla Parker Bowles and Kate Middleton. They are entitled to be call “Royal Highness” without having to get married to one. Moreover, when unaccompanied by their husbands, Parker Bowles and Middleton are outranked by them. This involves endless curtseying and deference to Beatrice and Eugenie, which will magically melt away if Charles or Willie walk into the room. (Such are the complexities of being a royal. I mean, could you cope with all that? )

Anyway, I digress. Airmiles wants his daughters to be given decent accommodation. Apparently St James’s Palace is small, pokey and not in the least suitable for people of their quality. He wants them moved to Kensington Palace, and he wants them to go on the royal payroll. (Jeez, I wish I had a dad that would do that for me. I always had to get my own houses and jobs!)

As I said Charlie appears to think that they need to slim down the royals and that employing two princesses who normally only ever turn up at family dos when there is sport or fashion to be enjoyed: Henley, Ascot, Wimbledon is probably not the ticket to boost his popularity, which is already way behind that of the Queen..

One of the sisters is about to settle down and get married (and, presumably, cost us even more than present bringing up little Viscounts or Viscountess or Earls or whatever they are). The other seems to spend most of her life on luxury holidays and has just split up with her boyfriend of ten years.

queen-1 — WHY DID ONE END UP WITH SUCH A GHASTLY FAMILY, ONE ASKS ONESELF

I reckon Charlie has got it bang to rights here. Clearly, I wish we could retire the lot of them to Canada or New Zealand or wherever, and install a president in Holyrood House, but I recognise that the queen remains popular and that that isn’t going to happen anytime soon.

So let’s trim them back like other royal families in Europe. Just the monarch and their partner and the next in line and theirs.

After that they should go out, get jobs and provide their own houses.

Let’s hope Charles prevails in this.