Month: December 2018

YOU DIDN’T MENTION THE PRESCRIPTION CHARGES…

Of course, there are many more advantages to living in Scotland than the ones listed above.

The health service is measurably better than in the UK on most counts; Council tax is lower in general; trains run more efficiently; there are more police per capita; the prison service hasn’t been privatised and ruined; likewise the probation service; water charges are lower because we don’t have to pay for fat cat salaries on top of paying to catch, store and distribute water… and deal with waste; government committed to reducing greenhouse gases more quickly than the English/UK government, so fresher air, and so on.

Additionally, some of the worst of the Tories’ evil social security excesses have been mitigated.

Of course, off the top of my head, I can’t think of all of the benefits… please feel free to add some if you can. A full list is a useful tool for discussion with doubters.

++++++++

PS Murdo is a right twerp, isn’t he?

WE PAY THIS MAN’S WAGES…

First of all, if your party votes for something, it’s very brave, some might say foolhardy, to suggest that it is a ‘yet another failed SNP government policy*’.

Your colleagues may not save you a place in the dining room!

Ok, firstly, you might want to suggest that, maybe, in the light of experience, it is a policy that, with hindsight, in view of events (alright, Sir Humphry, get to the point: Munguin) it might be worth looking at again.

Secondly, correct me if I’m wrong, but it is hard to see how anyone can draw the conclusion that encouraging people to drink less alcohol before they drive can be a contributing factor to a reported increase in accidents. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but it wouldn’t be my go-to conclusion.

Image result for first minister at FMQ

No, instead of trying to score a cheap and incorrect point (which was bound to be disproved within seconds and very publicly, by the First Minister) would it not have been sensible to phrase your question thus:

‘Presiding Officer, I note that an article in “The Lancet” reveals statistics show a 7% increase in road accidents in Scotland since 2014. Would the First Minister confirm that her government will look into why that has happened and take such steps as are necessary to remedy the situation?’

That way perhaps you would have contributed to an investigation into the cause of the reported increase in accidents for the good of all of us. Isn’t that why we pay you?

The added advantage is you wouldn’t have looked like such a complete nob.

No, don’t thank me.

****

PS: Does anyone know who he is? Answers on a postcard.

 

 

Random Thoughts

!!!!Maybot
Where? In Japan? On the Moon? 

Senior Tory to me: “with the vote postponed, are the promises to my colleagues of peerages and knighthoods still good?”. They should have read the small print.

So Dame Arlene no more?

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!!!EES
Nei, du kan ikke så gå bort og prøve med Nord-Korea
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Senior Tory: “The Irish should really know their place”.

They do know their place, mate. They are in a union with 26 other nations which have got their backs. That is their place and they are IN it.

Unlike the UK which is Billy No Mates and OUT of it.

Also, this is a really interesting negotiating strategy. Only the British Tories would have thought up something so fiendishly cunning.

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!7
Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha… where are you resigning, Fluffy?

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I dunno…

Does anything ever go right for this hapless woman?

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!brex1
I nearly forgot. We have this extravaganza to look forward to.

From Torquil Crichton.

McDonnell to – we call the shots “We’ll put one down when we can win it. My view (on SNP) is they want is to lose a vote of no confidence, avoid a general election, they know we’re breathing down their necks in Scotland and will take seats off them.”

McDonnell, obviously high on something, putting the head jockess well and truly in her place over a proposed motion of no confidence. I expect they don’t want to call a motion of no confidence because, in a general election that might follow, they might lose, and look REALLY pathetic, or worse still, win, and have to sort of the s***show that May is leaving in her wake.

Oh, and just out of interest, has anyone seen any evidence of this neck breathing anywhere?

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ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER BAILOUT FOR CROSSRAIL

But it is a good day to bury bad news

crossrail12

No wonder our GERS figures are so bad. Scottish taxpayers are subsidising the £16bn…yes £16bn… late-running, bailout-prone Crossrail. It is, at the moment running 1 year late and £2bn over budget.

But I recall that Murdo and Wee Willie Rennie got in an awful stew when, due to bad winter weather, the Forth Crossing was a little later that had been forecast. (Although as I recall it was earlier than the first estimates which had overoptimistically been revised down.)

I’m pretty sure that, despite all the money my taxes are pouring into it, I won’t get any benefit at all from Crossrail. It’s not heading for Scotland, is it?

!!!!!!!murdo
Of course, Murdo is a bit of a twerp.

Is there anything at all that the Conservative government (or their MPs, MSPs) touches that isn’t an out and out bùrach?

Answers on a postcard to Munguin, Munguin Towers.

 

JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT IT COULDN’T GET ANY STUPIDER …

THE “MEANINGFUL” (TITTER) VOTE WILL GO AHEAD…EXCEPT, AS USUAL, WITH HER, IT PROBABLY WON’T, BUT IT MIGHT HAVE TO…

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 7 minutes ago

Would be pure 100% classic May to delay the vote. She has spent the last two years kicking away problems so they can kill her another day.

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I had been going to write about the appalling business of Jackson Carlaw’s lies about the Scottish Health Service’s record on ‘flu injections in comparison with their English counterpart’s record. He did this by comparing the English figures with Scottish figures from the month before.

Needless to say, an investigation showed that Scotland had done a better job than England. It will be interesting to see if he apologises from misleading parliament as the First Minister has requested.

However, these events have been overtaken by the by now regular occurrence of Mrs May, at least apparently, going back on something that she had absolutely been very clear, not to mention strong and stable about.

This from the BBC.

Theresa May is to make a statement to MPs at 15:30 GMT amid reports Tuesday’s vote on her Brexit deal is being delayed.

That will be followed by a statement from Commons leader Andrea Leadsom – and then a statement from the Brexit secretary on Article 50.

Two cabinet sources have told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg Tuesday’s planned Brexit vote will be delayed.

There is not yet any official confirmation of the move.

Downing Street had been insisting the vote would go ahead, despite Mrs May being widely expected to lose it.

But a third Cabinet source has told the BBC the vote is “definitely off”.

Image result for KICKING A CAN DOWN THE ROAD

She apparently intends to give a statement to the House of Commons at 3.30.  

Promises, like piecrusts, in Mrs May’s book, are made to be broken.

But, and here it gets even dafter, it may be that she won’t be able to postpone the “meaningful” vote as a Tory (yes TORY) MP points out.

The PM does not get to pull a vote. The House will have to vote to pull a vote. I will oppose. We need to see this deal off once and for all.

 

So, stay tuned.

Sometimes she even beats Trump in the bizarre.

How the world must laugh.

WORLD CARTOONS

Politico.com, USA.
Caglecartoons.com, Netherlands.
Charlotte Observer, USA
Columbus Despatch, USA.
Minneapolis Star-Tribune, USA.
Augusta Chronicle, USA.
Boston Globe, USA.
Latvijas Avize, Latvia.
Der Spiegel, Germany.
Politico.eu, Belgium.
New York Times, USA.
Politico.eu, Belgium.
Der Standard, Austria.
Caglecartoons.eu, Belgium
La Vanguardia, Spain.
Omaha World-Herald, USA.
Columbia Missourian, USA.
The Boston Globe, USA.

Thanks to BJSAlba for sending these.

SOPPY SUNDAY

Image result for baby orangutans
Come on, mum. let’s play hide and seek.

n baby fox
Want to play?
Lichtenstein Castle in Germany (as opposed to Liechtenstein).
n bear
Just sitting here, thinking.
n carpet chameleon
I’m just sitting here changing colour.
n blackcapped chickadee
Black-capped Chickadee’s the name.
n cuillin blaze
Blaze took this one of the Cuillins. He’s a pretty smart dug, although I think that the Wii Shiite may have helped him out.
n crqanes
There’s always someone got to dress up fancy.
n family
We’re deprived animals. Only one bed for all of us. Someone phone the SSPCA.
n diamond beach iceland
Diamond Beach, Iceland.
n babydog
Hi (or High) Five
n mummy
The best bed ever.
n mush
Omelet for dinner?
n pus
Anyone seen my brother?
n collie
Hello, I’m here…
n saksun faroe
Faroes.
n slow loris
I’m… a… [yawn]… slow… loris. You still there?
n teide, tenerife
Mount Teide, Teneriffe.
Image result for baby orangutans
I’m just looking after this pussycat, who in turn is looking after me. See you next week.

 

FEAR NOT. RICHARD LEONARD IS BOUND TO BE ON THE CASE

I MEAN HE WOULDN’T JUST TWEET HIS ANGER WITHOUT ACTUALLY DOING ANYTHING, WOULD HE?

Rudd is rolling out her defective benefits system in Edinburgh just before Christmas.

She must know that it will leave families penniless at perhaps the cruellest time of the year. When people will have no money to put on their electricity and gas meters, no money for kids’ treats and no money for food.

Image result for richard leonard

Fortunately, though, as we noted above, Richard Leonard is on the case.

This is absolutely shameful.

So, presumably, tomorrow he will be writing a letter, along with Nicola Sturgeon, to Treeeza, demanding that Universal Credit (and hopefully all other benefits) be devolved to Edinburgh where they will be overseen by ministers who are actual human beings.

I can’t tell you how angry I am about this.

Until they iron out the faults in Universal Credit it shouldn’t be rolled out anywhere at any time. But, although, as you know, I hold no brief for Christmas and all its tra la las, you’d have to be some kind of fool to believe that it was appropriate to roll this shambles out in December when you know that the folk concerned will get no money for FIVE weeks.

What kind of person would sign off on that?

Image result for amber rudd
Rudd

Oh yeah, her, silly question.

Not that this one would have been any more human.

Image result for esther mcvey
McVey

We probably suggested this last year, but we make no apologies for doing it again this year. Munguin and I (and Munguin’s gran and I) won’t be buying big presents for each other. Instead there will be a small token gift. We’re all lucky enough to have all we need. Whatever else we would have spent on gifts will be used to help food banks.

Staples, some treats and maybe some little presents for children who otherwise would have nothing.

Nothing for kids, at Christmas?

Jings, that’s such an un-Christian thing for a deeply religious Prime Minister and monarch to preside over.

Image result for theresa may at church
The walls should start to crack as you walk through the door, you dreadful, heartless, cruel woman.
Image result for the queen at church at christmas
I don’t suppose you or yours will go without over the festive period.

As for the Daily Record, can I just respectfully remind them of this:

Image result for daily record vow

So, don’t you look so smug! We didn’t think you were promising us THIS fiasco.

IT’S GOOD TO KNOW THAT THEY’VE THOUGHT THINGS THROUGH