UK Can't Stay in Politically Integrated EU

The more I listen to this the more I think the UK is in a position to distance themselves from this mess. I feel sorry for the Greeks, but to expect Germany or other EU nations to bail them out is very wrong. If the Germans want to; fair enough, but the UK must distance themselves from this club. It's not working. A Common Market policy was good, but this closer political union is something we can walk away from. We in the UK would be better to do so.

Will Mass Uncontrolled Migration Cause the UK to Exit EU?

Even if David Cameron loses the next election he will leave the idea of yearning desire for EU withdrawal. This issue will not go away - the die is cast. He can't win concessions from the EU because they simply can't make one rule for the UK and different ones for the other members. This would be unfair. 

Big business pro-European newspapers say The UK is on a downward road to EU withdrawal - tremble, tremble. I think it could also be argued that we were on a downward road to European political union, which most Brits never wanted in the first place - yawn, yawn. 

It's not that Brits dislike Europe - they want to get along with fellow Europeans, but do not want to be governed by them. The reasons for this are much more simplistic then Banking regulation and human rights law, which the average British voter does not care about. The ruling classes are more angered by such laws, but they do not account for the majority of the voters. 

There have been good working laws from Europe too and although Brits were not too keen on the EU, they never really wanted to get up on a soapbox over financial issues concerning bank regulation and all. They often saw good laws brought in by well-meaning yet un-elected people. There was not much interest in big boy politics for Brit political classes and other Euro political classes. Let them squabble and get on with it, while we might sigh with detached amusement over wrong shaped banana stories. 

Then the problem concerning European law of free movement of people throughout the EU became apparent when Eastern European countries joined the EU. It has resulted in mass and very irresponsible migration, leaving our country accountable for vast numbers of migrants. One might argue that Spain has vast numbers of Brits living out there, but the reality is, that most of these Brits take wealth out there too. The migrants coming to the UK don't. Like it or not, it is a simple truth and voting people are prejudice - like that or not. They become quite and resentful with no words to argue against trendy liberals who talk them down or smile patronisingly while pretending to listen. 

Then one day the EU passes financial laws that stamp on the Brit big boy's toes and all of a sudden, the EU is forcing us into a political union - they have enforced a single currency on nations that can't cope the way one overall powerful nation economy is. 

Er... tell the electorate something they don't know, or tell them something they care about. We're a bit more fickle than that, but the two heavyweights (UK political class v EU political class) don't get the picture. 

Our Brit ruling classes seem to have said: "Oh dear, never mind let's threaten the EU and tell them to make new laws for us or we'll get the electorate, who are simmering nicely and offer a referendum."

The EU are too financially hamstrung with the currency crisis and the Mediterranean nations that no one realised was cooking the books - hmmm! Also, they can't and will not entertain the grumbling financial institutions of the UK without new legislation. They can't afford too and irresponsible mass migration will blow over. Perhaps it will one day, but not in time for the UK in the EU.

Then the Brit rank and file voter see UKIP has suddenly given the voter a real voice. "Hello, big boys out there - our little issue on mass migration is still very important to us and no one is listening. Your squabble does not matter, we want out anyway."

The EU does not realise they don't have anything we want. They do have this freedom of mass migrations, which we are sure that we don't want and that is all the rank and file voter can see. It's like they are trying to sell us excrement with sugar and our Brit ruling classes are saying; "We will not let you sell them excrement with sugar unless you give us banking and other financial withdrawal rights." Don't bother big boys, we can tell them ourselves and you can run your financial institutions under your laws, but hey, you can't have the benefits of the EU because we don't give a dead rat's backside about it. Oh dear, that wasn't in the script, was it?

The notion of UK leaving the EU is now very real and desirable. I don't think people in Britain are scared of this - many look forward to it, and the key issue is this uncontrollable migration from eastern Europe. This is not what bothers Tories or the political classes. They are more interested in EU regulation upon the city of London and Tory desires for EU withdrawal are based upon this matter of controlling huge corporate finance industries inside the UK. As the political ruling classes go; they can tap into this immigration rank and file frustration for their own ends - large resentful masses of people to use for their own desires, but the notion that we are real people with issues of our own does not seem to have entered the script. Playing politics with people must involve the real important issues at hand and if we are reading from different scripts it is very easy to get wrong. Perhaps the resentful masses are grateful too because now the EU is treading on our big boy's toes, they have found an unwitting and unwilling champion who accidentally opened Pandora's box for us. 

David Cameron thought calling the EU's bluff on a referendum would quash UKIP and the notion of the UK leaving the EU. He would force the EU to the negotiating table and then get a better EU deal that he believes the rank and file voters want. It has not and all we see is more excrement with sugar. It just stokes the fire more. It is mostly immigration that the majority of voters are concerned with and they don't care about the other things. The British political classes don't seem to realise this and neither does the EU. They are too busy fighting other battles while this uncontrolled immigration issue is locked away. UKIP will not go away because they keep arguing on this matter at home, where it counts. In the EU Parliament, Nigel Farage can switch into EU issues for his own ends, concerning the failing currency and the un-elected elite. He does not make too much of mass migration in the Euro Parliament because there is a slight danger that someone might have the notion of doing something about it - clever boy Nigel. 

The EU is checkmated on Brit desires to withdraw from the EU. (The real rank and file I mean) The Brit political elite feels they may have shot themselves in the foot too because they wrongly believed they might blackmail the EU to make concessions or hoodwink the voters to pretend they are getting them. It has not worked because of UKIP who are screaming "Beware of being hoodwinked." 

The political classes are being too closely scrutinised now and we (the real rank and file voters) are aware that the Tories might pretend to get meaningful concessions that they will try to sell the UK voters before the referendum. It'll just be more excrement with sugar. More of what we don't give a hoot about.

Unfortunately for the UK political class and the EU; (both contestants who do not want the UK leaving the Union), The matter has slipped from both grasps. Neither are going to get what they want because they are arguing on issues that do not concern the main electorate.

No matter how the leading political parties dance around this issue or try to play it down; the average voter feels his country is being taken away. All other laws concerning city finance and regulation from the EU don't create too much interest to most voters. Go North, West, East and South across the Isles and the average people are very concerned about mass migration. London is where all the fat cats live and most rank and file voters have little interest in EU regulation, but more in EU law allowing mass population movement across the EU. Every time leading politicians try to play this down it drives people to UKIP. Call people fascist, racist or whatever you may like - they are fed up with being put down on these issues and they can vote and someone has captured the imagination for better or worse.

UKIP

This political party might not have proper leadership policies on the internal welfare of our country, but the play host to such ideas and address the key issues. The mass migration topic is the big hot potato that they are not scared to tackle and other things can go hang for now (even though this might be fickle and wrong in the long run.) People are not racist for this, though we are prejudice, which can't be helped. Also, it is possible that UKIP might also have concrete plans other than such things as uncontrolled migration - who knows? Conservatives or Labour will not win the argument on this, even if they are right because David Cameron has put the cat among the pigeons with the referendum promise.

The opposition Labour party will not voice an opinion either way. If they want to champion EU solidarity, they must start to champion the complete in vote. That would mean nothing on uncontrolled migration and no party is going to be seen doing such a thing. This, of course, seems suicidal at such a moment in time. 

On the other hand, what would happen if Europe allowed individual states across Europe to control migration in-house? By this I mean the EU must revise the free movement of people within the Union for now. Make that law across the EU. This is, after all, what is going to cause UK voters to leave the EU. It is why I will vote for UKIP. It will also cause problems in other nations too. Can Germany and France take all these peoples?

The only press that seems to grasp this is the Irish media that looks into the UK from outside. They seem to know what is going on more than our own big newspapers. Britain's political classes seem to be dancing around the hot potato of uncontrolled and very irresponsible mass migration. It has to be tackled. We don't dislike eastern Europeans and many are very friendly people who do work hard, but there are too many coming here and we are fed up with it being played down when we complain.

Even if the Tories lose the next election, which seems very likely, the referendum will not go away. I believe UKIP might get enough votes to prop up a government that would allow one. Unless Cameron stays in office till the election and makes the sacrifice of not joining such an alliance allowing an uncommitted Labour party in power without a promise of an EU referendum. It is possible that our political classes might kick the can further down the road again.

  

Is the UK Referendum Getting Closer?

When the referendum does come about, will voters be tricked by David Cameron and be presented with mini concessions that amount to nothing within the EU? We need UKIP to pile on the pressure and scrutinise any over inflated mince morsels that the EU pretends to offer. Such deceit, if it does come, will not do.

The EU can go on about cherry picking as much as it likes. Brussels cannot rule here anymore. Not without democratic consent. People of all persuasions have got to see the writing is on the wall for the UK's present position in the EU. It has to be all in or all out without the under the table dealings. Trying to say that the UK could be sleepwalking out of the EU is hypocritical when we have been sleepwalked into this Union without democratic consent. The game is up and it is time to be honest.

David Cameron's authority suffered a huge blow when more than 100 Conservative MPs defied him by voting for a referendum on the European Union. Below is a UK newspaper report of back bench rebellion within government by it ruling MPs. This is not going away. We must have a vote on the EU - in or out.

Britain moved closer to an in/out referendum as Nick Clegg told MPs: "It is a question of when, not if, because the rules [of the EU] are bound to change." He believes one is inevitable because a new EU treaty will be needed to entrench eurozone reforms in the next few years, and the Coalition has already passed a law guaranteeing a referendum if there is a significant transfer of powers to Brussels.

Some 114 Tories rejected pressure from their whips by opposing the Coalition's legislative programme because it does not offer the public a vote on EU membership. They backed an amendment to the Queen's Speech regretting the absence of a Referendum Bill. Although the amendment was defeated by 277 votes to 130, it was the biggest backbench revolt on Europe since the 2010 election.

A ballot is being held this morning for Private Member's Bills, which party command will now seek to use as a vehicle legally to commit to a poll on Britain's relationship with Brussels.

The Eurosceptics were delighted by their show of strength. But Tory officials played down the revolt, insisting it was a free vote because the amendment was in line with party policy. But it was clear that Mr Cameron's decision to rush out a draft Referendum Bill on Tuesday had failed to quell the rebellion.

Douglas Alexander, the shadow Foreign Secretary, said: "This vote is a further devastating blow to the Prime Minister's authority. It demonstrates that David Cameron has managed to turn a Europe issue into a leadership issue. This is a Prime Minister who has lost control of the agenda and tonight lost control of his party."

John Baron, the Eurosceptic who tabled the rebel amendment, warned he was "not going to walk away" from the fight for a referendum, insisting MPs needed to pass legislation to "bridge trust" with the public. He said he had "deep reservations" about Mr Cameron's plan to support a backbench Bill guaranteeing a referendum by 2017, because such a measure could be blocked by "a determined minority".

Mr Clegg's decision to harden the Liberal Democrats' 2010 pledge for an in/out referendum when there is significant change in the UK-EU relationship, put pressure on Labour to follow suit. Ed Balls, the shadow Chancellor, gave Labour's strongest hint that it might support a public vote when he told the Commons: "If there was a treaty change which changed the balance of powers, we would support a referendum. I think it is really important that we understand and listen to people's concerns about Europe and show that we can reform."

Labour and the Liberal Democrats believe Mr Cameron is wrong to fix the 2017 timetable now. Both parties intend to campaign in favour of Britain's continued EU membership. But the statements show they are worried about Conservative claims that they want to deny the public a say on Europe.

Mr Clegg's remarks could remove an obstacle to a second Lib-Con coalition if the 2015 election results in another hung parliament.

Today Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrat Business Secretary, will warn the Conservatives that dancing to the UK Independence Party's tune after this month's local elections could cost investment and jobs.

He will say in a speech: "No serious friend of British business would be advocating the break-up of Britain's relations with the EU. We can't have hearts ruling heads. It is simply self-indulgent and reckless for parties or individuals to risk so much in order to address one concern raised in a council election by just 7 per cent of the electorate."

The Tories insist they are the only main party guaranteeing a referendum. Speaking in New York, Mr Cameron accused Ed Miliband and Mr Clegg of "sticking their heads in the sand" and "pretending nothing has changed" in the arguments over Britain's place within the EU.

He said: "Britain needs to be a part of forging that change, just as the eurozone countries come together and do more things together, so those countries outside the eurozone need to work out how they're going to make their relationship work with Europe."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2324853/Britain-loses-EU-budget-battle-pay-Brussels-EXTRA-770million-year.html

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/400005/Tories-press-on-with-EU-poll-plans

http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/national/news/10423066.Cable_warns_on__reckless__EU_exit/

Big Girls Don't Cry - The Four Seasons

These all remind me of those little times when I could raid the radiogram and go through the records. It was great playing all the old 45s that my Mother and Father were always accumulating.

Sweet William by Millie Small

This one was in my Mum and Dad's forty five collection and when they were out, my sister and I would always play these. I used to think this was a smashing song and it gives me a nostalgic little buzz when ever I hear it.

 .

Marianne Faithfull

I fell in love with Marianne when I was an adolescent. I saw her in a film called Girl on a Motorcycle and I suddenly started realising that women were rather attractive. I felt a strong Wow! factor for her and could not quite work out why I should feel like a caveman who wanted to go out and hunt dragons.

I remember going to school the next Monday and we were all full of it; "Did you see Girl on a Motorcycle." It was an awakening of young male testosterone and suddenly came the teenage years - you know what I mean. Mood swings, pimples and used tissues. I was male, shallow and loving it - well... just a bit.

Could Boudicca the warrior queen have met Cartimandua of Brigantes before her suicide?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CHEI3S8/ref=r_soa_s_i

How long before Boudicca poisoned herself

During the final days of Boudicca, after her defeat by Suetonius and his Roman Army, what could the Iceni warrior queen have possibly done? She was not too far from the southern boarders of the Brigante where another Queen ruled. This was the Queen known as Cartimandua and it is very probable that she would not entertain helping Boudicca in anyway. Cartimandua had given another rebel chieftain named Caractacus to the Romans when he sought sanctuary in the Brigante.

It is believed that Boudicca escaped the battlefield after the defeat of her rebellion and this theory must carry some weight because Rome would have written of such a thing if her body was found among the slain.

If she went into hiding and poisoned herself she remains a myth and for a writer of historical fiction one can milk such a grey area of ‘ifs’ and ‘maybes.’ How long did she remain before taking her poison?

Cartimandua’s dilemma

Surely Queen Cartimandua of Brigantes would have been very concerned by the dreaded warrior queen’s success. As a Roman ally she must have been praying to any Gods that they might hear her pleas. What of her divorced and spurned husband Venutius? He had been driven from the Brigante because of his intolerance towards her friendship with Rome. Surely he did not remain inactive while Boudicca and her Iceni went on the rampage.

The Brigante are a bit of a grey area during Boudicca’s rebellion. Queen Cartimandua was long established as Brigante sovereign by this time and ruled for a further eight years after Boudicca’s demise.

If I could go back in time I would dearly love to interview Cartimandua – more so than Boudicca. She must have had, or had access to; a strong degree of political expertise for she seems to have kept a huge temperamental power at bay to the south and a mischief making ex-husband away to the north.  For well over twenty five years, she was able to keep Rome at ease by collaborating and being a buffer between her divorced ex-husband, in exile in Caledonia among the Picts. Did she really play one off against the other - stroking and pleasing the wolf of Rome while scolding and beating the weasel in Caledonia? If she did, all this must have broken down briefly during Boudicca’s rebellion. For a short space of time in 61 AD, Cartimandua must have been faced with a terrible dilemma. Boudicca looked as though she might win.

With Boudicca to the south and Venutius to the north, Cartimandua must have become anxious because of her Roman friendship – a circumstance that would have no merit among any Britons of the rebellion once Rome was driven off of the Isle.

It is therefore feasible that she may have gone to her southern boarders to stop her people from rallying to Boudicca’s cause. When Boudicca did lose her final battle, Cartimandua may have enjoyed a brief time of adulation from the Brigante commoners. Rome was not going to take revenge on them.

Maybe Cartimandua was more substantial then history portrays her. I can’t help feeling that this Brigante queen may have been more cunning then Boudicca. She may have used Rome as much as Rome used her. Even under civil strife – eight years latter – during the Year of the Four Emperors in 69 AD, Rome thought enough of Cartimandua to send help and bring her south when the empire was consumed in civil war.

All we know is that Cartimandua was allowed to go into exile in mainland Europe while Rome sorted out its civil strife, leaving the Brigante under Venutius to simmer and await Rome’s more special attention in 71 AD. None know what became of Cartimandua as she went into exile. She fades from history and becomes virtually unknown.

I often wondered if Boudicca and Cartimandua may have met between the days of the warrior queen’s defeat and her taking the poison elixir that took her to the afterlife, from where she screams out at us with her story of monumental failure.

But what of Cartimandua – the durable sovereign that reigned for more than twenty five years and even escaped to tell the tale after her eventual demise. I would really love to have had a chat with Queen Cartimandua of the Brigantes.

 http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CHEI3S8/ref=r_soa_s_i

The Right Club - Pro Nazi British Fifth Column of World War II

The Right Club – pro-Nazi British 5^th Column

Archibald Ramsay

The Right Club was formed in 1939 as the United Kingdom drifted closer to the inevitable conflict with National Socialist Germany. In Britain, there was a portion of ‘well to do’ people in society who believed the new German state led by Adolf Hitler was right concerning Jewish people in western culture. The Right club was a British anti-Semitic group whose aim was to make peace with Germany and expose, what they believed to be Jewish-dominated areas of public life throughout Britain. In short, The Right Club desired Britain to become a fascist National Socialist Society in the same mould as Germany. To a degree, many within British society were too preoccupied with the events unfolding in Europe and they regarded The Right Club to be a bit of a pathetic joke – an indulgence of upper-class pink gin-swilling Toffs who had nothing better to do.

The leader of this little band of fascist adventurers was an MP called Archibald Ramsay. Originally a Scottish Unionist MP, but from 1930 onwards he had developed an anti-Semitic view. During this period he became an outspoken opponent of supporters to the left wing cause during the Spanish Civil War, often blaming Soviet intervention for all manner of things. He was a staunch British patriot in perverted ways but then so was Hitler for Germany. Archibald Ramsay had very flawed views as far as a lot of British people were concerned and could not gain any voice in Parliament – any voice of note that is. As the thirties decade progressed and the inevitable war drew close, Archibald Ramsay formed his Right Club with his little group of, perhaps, self-indulgent people who thought along the same lines.

This group of die hard nonconformists waded into alcoves of the establishment - poking and prodding about for avenues of help concerning their twisted ambition. Whilst the British government did not take them seriously; The Right Club stumbled upon a few fine finds and almost brought about a calamity that could have shook the British government to the core and may have isolated the UK in her fight against Germany. This would have led to an event destroying the American President Roosevelt’s ability to push through a lend-lease program for Britain to continue the war against Germany and eventually lead to the USA entering the war on Britain’s side against Germany.

In October of 1939, the US Embassy in London saw the arrival from Moscow of a new cypher clerk known as Tyler Gatewood Kent. He was a 28-year-old who had been moved from Moscow and there seems to have been some controversy surrounding the man even then. He began frequenting the Russian Tea Rooms in London where he met Anna Wolkoff, the daughter of a White Russian Admiral exiled in London after the Bolshevik revolution. She was a member of The Right Club and also spying for Nazi Germany. She began an affair with Tyler Kent and persuaded him to help the cause of The Right Club led by Archibald Ramsay who was sympathetic to the aims of Germany. By now Britain was at war with Germany and the subversive Brits were still hoping to find peace with Germany. They knew the U.S. Government was sympathetic to Britain and France in their stand against Hitler’s National Socialist Germany and needed to find ways of stopping the growing support that President Roosevelt might promote over time. If they could find a way of enhancing scepticism among the voting U.S. public, perhaps Britain might become isolated and starved into peace negotiations with Germany, thus allowing Britain to develop its own National Socialist regime after the Wartime Government fell.

Tyler Kent was recruited to the cause and in essence, was now also working for a pro-Nazi Brit organisation against his U.S. government’s interests and that of the United Kingdom’s established wartime government. As the cypher clerk, he was privy to all secret correspondence between the UK and USA. These important documents, he was able to take to The Right Club where Archibald Ramsay was allowed to sift through them, at his leisure, looking for ways of quickening his country’s exit from the war and becoming in tune with Germany. It should be noted that some think Tyler Kent may have already been working for Soviet Communists and was trying to infiltrate pro-Nazi organisations pretending to have anti-Semitic beliefs. There is something of an enigma about Tyler Kent.

Maxwell Knight – British MI5 Agent

All during the 1920s and 1930s, Britain was in the grip of various new political organisations, from right wing fascists known as Blackshirts and led by Oswald Mosley – plus there were communist inspired trade unions trying to promote all sorts of radical new ideas for Britain. Many of these organisations were infiltrated by British MI5. Head of MI5, Vernon Kell had put a man called Maxwell Knight in charge of infiltrating these subversive groups in the UK. Maxwell Knight had been monitoring The Right Club’s activities and knew that British MP Archibald Ramsay was the secret head of this group. He had three women inside the organisation that were secret MI5 agents and through these field agents, he began to gather intelligence. The ladies were Joan Miller, Marjorie Amor, and Helen de Munk.

JoanMiller worked alongside Anna Wolkoff and very close to Archibald Ramsay who had no idea one of his most trusted helpers was an MI5 agent. Miller and Marjorie Amor discovered that Anna Wolkoff was gathering UK/US secret cyphers from Tyler Kent and then passing it to an Italian Naval attaché who would pass the information to Rome and from there to Berlin. Because the contacts belonged to Joan Miller, Anna Wolkoff would need to come to her to use Italian contacts to pass information via Rome to Berlin.

Maxwell Knight decided to set a trap by using infiltrators to approach Anna Wolkoff in stages at the Russian tea rooms. It was an MI5 agent pretending to be the dedicated British Fascist party member of Black Shirts which was led by Oswald Mosley. The infiltrator was, in fact, a real member of the Black Shirts in all official terms and was friends with William Joyce (Lord Haw-Haw) who was by now in Germany broadcasting Nazi propaganda for the National Socialist cause and a British traitor. This posing Black Shirt was also working for MI5 as a spy. If Maxwell Knight could find documents or evidence of a British MP liaising with a known traitor, he could expose all subversive elements in British society including MP Archibald Ramsay. Anna Wolkoff took the message and once again went to Joan Miller with a request to use Italian agents for a message via Rome to Berlin and William Joyce (Lord Haw-Haw). Knowing for certain that Anna Wolkoff and Archibald Ramsay were traitors; Maxwell got an agent named Guy Liddell to visit the U.S. Ambassador Joseph Kennedy to ask him to waver Tyler Kent’s diplomatic immunity so that MI5 and Special Branch could raid his apartment and arrest him. The urgency of this was made clear to Joseph Kennedy and he agreed to give the British secret service a free hand.

MI5raided Tyler Kent’s place and found him in bed with a young lady. The young American cypher clerk was caught quite literally with his trousers down. Inside a cupboard, they found a case containing almost 2,000 files, among them a plea from Winston Churchill to President Roosevelt asking for 50 American ships to be handed over to Britain in her efforts to win the Atlantic War which was beginning in earnest as the German Wolf packs went against the shipping lanes. If this document had been exposed it would have caused a political embarrassment for the U.S. government and would have caused U.S. public opinion to go against their President taking sides in a war that Americans did not, at this time, want to get involved in. This would have left Britain isolated as France fell and the British Army were driven out of mainland Europe for the next four years. Also within Tyler Kent’s case was a book containing the list of all members of the Right Club meticulously logged by MP Archibald Ramsay.

Winston Churchill had just come to power after Chamberlin had resigned and he had no hesitation in addressing the issue of the subversive elements – no matter how futile they might seem. The Right Club had been underestimated by the government, but not MI5. The British Government would become much more alert in future.

Tyler Kent and Anna Walkoff were charged under the official secrets act. Anna Walkoff got 10 years while Tyler Kent got 7 years. Archibald Ramsay was not charged but was interned in Brixton prison under a defence regulation act, throughout the remainder of the war.

This was a major win for MI5 but things did run very close to the wire. In later years it was claimed the Ian Fleming (James Bond writer) based his character Mon Maxwell Knight. He carried on his work for MI5 and was a naturalist who wrote books. Joan Miller who was one of his successful agents claimed he was homosexual. He died in 1968 age 67.

Archibald Ramsay was to remain in prison throughout the war. He tried to take the New York Times Newspaper to court for running a story on him giving information to the Germans via Dublin, Ireland. He was able to win his case in court against the New York Times, but all the judge awarded him was a farthing in damages. That is less than a nickel in the U.S. He was also liable for the court costs that were very hefty. The New York Times people must have been laughing at such sweet defeat. He died in 1955 age 60.

Anna Walkoff was released from prison in 1947 after her British naturalisation was revoked because she was guilty of spying for Germany. She was killed in a car crash in Spain in 1973. The friend driving the car was another member of The Right Wing Club – Britain’s main subversive anti-Semitic and pro-Nazi force.

Tyler Kent, the young American Cipher was released from prison and deported back to the USA after the war. He got a newspaper running and became linked to the Ku Klux Klan. Although he was seen as a right-wing political activist; his own nation’s security service FBI, believed he was a Soviet sympathiser. He had been made to leave Moscow in 1939 under some suspicion. The Soviets liked to recruit western traitors that appeared Right Wing in their political views so there could be some merit in this. He died a poor man in 1988 in a Texas trailer park.    

Sources:

Spartacus Educational

Archives Hub

State Secrets

The Deighton Dossier

MI5 Security Service

Avalanche Press

Pro EU People Offer Nothing Constructive to UK

I am sure that long term, Britain within the EU can work. However, pro-Euro people can't say it will be alright in the long run, even though it will. British people will not buy this at the moment. Perhaps David Cameron's attempt to kick the can down the road until 2017 might be such an attempt. I can understand this. In the meantime pro-EU needs better teeth then to start fear mongering about the UK being in a disastrous situation if it left the EU. It would not. The UK would probably be better off staying in the EU if it changed. It must change and pro-Euro Brits must emphasis this more. If the EU will not tolerate this, then I would reluctantly agree that the UK must leave.

David Cameron has bought some time, perhaps, but among pro-EU people, there is no one of substance who can offer plausible arguments against mass migration and to change laws we are powerless to impose as a sovereign nation because there is an EU directive prohibiting us. No matter how much the EU, rants that we can't have powers back; they must yield to this. If they refuse, we leave. We cannot possibly stay in under such restricting circumstances. I am in total agreement with David Cameron on this, we need to see what we can change and if we can do this first. We must also be careful that little mince morsels of consent from the EU are not bigged up to appear like we have got power back. There must be clear honesty from our own politicians.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Fanfare For the Common Man

 

One of my absolute favourite memories was of Emerson Lake and Palmer doing Fanfare for the Common Man in a huge empty stadium that I heard was in Montreal, Canada. This was when I left school and started work. I went straight out and began to buy ELP albums and discovered an absolute joy of sound. Brings back very kind memories of my youth/young man discovering tiny bits of the world days.

Self Publish - Attract Buyers to Your Novel

The draft of your book is complete. You are very pleased with your achievement and rightly so. Now you are in a new realm of, perhaps, writing a worthy synopsis and trying to find a Literary Agent who, in turn, will try to champion your work to various good publishers. Maybe you can achieve this and if so, fine – I wish the very best for you and your book. You will not need to heed the rest of this because these things will be done by the worthy publisher and editors of their choice, who will be very good. For many of you, however, there will be the endless attempts at trying to get your work looked at and even when you do get a publisher to view your writing; it will most likely be a disappointing outcome. Sorry to be gloomy, but then one can always keep trying or maybe look at self-publishing.

To try and self-publish a book in this day and age is easier than it has ever been before. However, this is where the first problem will be; because you can get published easily, you really need to be careful not to become too lax due to over excitement with what you are presenting. Your work will not be worthy without proper editing. People are fussy so your editorial work being of good quality is an absolute must. This has got to be the first thing on your agenda before you go ahead with self-publishing. Generally readers will steer clear of amateur written work because most of the time it is sloppy and unprofessional. You will need an independent editor and the web is full of them. Again, there can be pitfalls here too, because anyone can advertise on the net as an editor. Therefore, look for an organisation that has an agency of editors on their lists. These might be editors from various parts of the world that are vetted and have portfolios about their work. I cannot stress the total importance of this because no matter how often you go through your work; there will always be glaring things that you will miss. I can remember working with my editor for one of my novels and some of the things that came back were very obvious, yet I had missed them time and again. Also there will be other less noticeable things that you’ll be grateful of too. When you go to a listing sight of editors; you’ll put your work up for tender and you’ll get various editors bid to do the editorial work for your book. If the novel is about 90,000 words, I think you might be looking at about UK £500 minimum for a basically good editorial job over all. If you are in another country; you’ll need to convert to your currency to get an idea of the outlay. Some might be more and others may be less. Less is not always a good sign unless it is a new editor to the agency books and he/she is trying to break into the sphere. It might be about £450, if it is less; I would be surprised against a word count of 90,000. Obviously if your work consists of about 50,000 words, then you would look at less expense. You might think that this is a lot to pay for editorial work, but I would stress that it is money well spent to get your writing flowing and trim for your readers. Always ask to see a sample and they’ll do one if they want to win your business. The sample usually comes in the form of two presentations. One attachment will be your work with all the corrections clearly plastered about it and suggestion in the right column. The second attachment will look as it does with all the corrections added. When you read this section, you’ll be encouraged by the flow of your work and discover it is usually better. You might get so many good examples, that it will be hard to choose which editor you want. Obviously, you’ll get particular editors that specialise in various different agendas and you’ll be able to choose one suited to your book’s subject matter.

http://www.freelance-proofreaders.co.uk/ (Check out this sight for editors)

At this point you might stop and reflect on self-publishing before you proceed. After all, now you have your work well edited, you might want to consider publishers and Literary Agents again, who might look at your work in a more favoured light. It is worth thinking about for some people. If not, then on with the notion of self-publishing.

Next might be artwork. Most of the publishers you come across will have artwork ideas for your book, but not all of these might be to your taste. You might want to go for an independent artist and once again there are on line agencies that have various artists for such work. This can be costly, so it is up to you.

http://www.freelanceuk.com/find-a-freelancer/art-directors (Check out this site)

As I have mentioned before; there are pit falls along the way and this can become a learning process. Because of the Internet and eBooks, the market is very versatile and there are many people you can reach all over the globe. The problem is trying to reach them because many of the publishers might be small concerns. They’ll get your novel up on the main eBook sights like Amazon, Fictionwise, Diesel etc. However, they will be among thousands and there will be punters sifting through many choices. You will need to attract shoppers to your story. Most of the small publishers don’t have an advertising program for your self-published book and this you must bear in mind. Therefore I would recommend a blog like the one you are reading now. Fill it with all sorts of things of interest and advertise your novel among other adverts. Try to advertise with subtle ways and write things in your blog that you enjoy doing. You’ll learn what type of things will attract people and build links to your blog via YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Use AdSense and advertise other independent products with your own advert among them.

Again in short:

1.     You decide to self-publish (Get editorial work done properly. Do nothing until this is in order)

2.     Once editorial work is done (Stop, think in case you want to try Literary Agents and Publishers again)

3.     If deciding upon self-publishing (Remember you’ll have to try and plug your book too. Blogging with link to YouTube, Facebook and Twitter or other visited sights. If you know anything on SEO it will help to)

Shocking Blue - Venus - retro 1969

The late Mariska Veres was from Belgium and here she is in 1969 singing Venus with her band Shocking Blue. The song has been done by other bands since, but Mariska is still my favourite for this particular track. Good old sound of the retro sixties and I'm sure there are many of you out there that can go back and remember these times of a rather rummy decade. Click and enjoy...  :)

Prehistoric Monster Snake Once Terrorised This Planet.

The sheer size of Titanoboa meant it had no trouble devouring prey as large as alligators

 A recently discovered prehistoric monster snake provides answers about the past - and raises questions for the future.

Around 58 million years ago, a monstrous snake slithered out of the swampy jungles of South America and began a reign of terror.

Weighing more than a tonne and measuring 14m (approximately 50ft) the giant reptile could swallow a whole crocodile without showing a bulge. But a few years ago, scientists never even knew it existed.

"Never in your wildest dreams do you expect to find a 14m boa constrictor. The biggest snake today is half that size," says Dr Carlos Jaramillo, a scientist with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and part of the team that made the discovery.

'World of lost reptiles'

 

Thought to be a distant relative of the anaconda and boa constrictor, the snake - named Titanoboa - was not venomous. Instead, it crushed its prey with the constricting force of 400lbs per sq inch - the equivalent of lying under the weight of one and a half times the Brooklyn Bridge.

“Start Quote

Changing climates and changing continents are the fuel of evolution. But things that happen very quickly can result in the types of change we might not view very positively”

End Quote Jonathan Bloch University of Florida

The fossils were exposed by excavation at the massive Cerrejon open-face coal mine in northern Colombia. In 2002, scientists had discovered at that site the remains of a tropical rainforest from the Palaeocene Epoch - perhaps the planet's first.

As well as fossilised leaves and plants, they unearthed reptiles so big they defied imagination.

"What we found was a giant world of lost reptiles - turtles the size of a kitchen table and the biggest crocodiles in the history of fossil records," says Jonathan Bloch, an expert in vertebrate evolution at the University of Florida.

They also found the vertebrae of a colossal snake.

"After the extinction of the dinosaurs, this animal, the Titanoboa, was the largest predator on the surface of the planet for at least 10 million years," says Dr Bloch. "This was a major animal in any sense of the imagination."

Search for skulls

 

But scientists needed the snake's skull to get a full picture of how it looked, what food it ate and how it might be related to modern species. Last year, a team set out to find it, with little expectation of success. Because the bones of a snake's skull are so fragile, few survive.

"Unlike our skulls, snake skulls aren't fused together. Instead they're connected with tissue," says Dr Jason Head, a snake specialist from the University of Nebraska.

"When the animal dies, the connective tissue decomposes and all the individual bones are generally dispersed. They're very thin and fragile too and often get destroyed. Because Titanoboa is so big and the skull bones are so large, it's one of the few snakes that do make it into the fossil record."

To their amazement, the team recovered the remains of three skulls from which the reptile could be accurately reconstructed for the first time.

Giant animals in history

• Blue whale: still swimming today, blue whales measure 30m (100ft) long
• Brachiosaur: this dinosaur measured 23m (75ft) long and 12m (40 ft) high
• Chan's Metastick: this stick insect, native to Borneo, measures 56.7cm, (22.3 in)
• Pterosaurs - this flying reptile had a wingspan of 5.1 meters (16ft)

Source: US Geological Survey, National Geographic, New Zealand Museum of Natural History

From that, they were able to get a better sense of how Titanoboa lived and looked. A life-sized replica is now on display at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington, and will begin a nationwide tour in 2013.

Aside from the excitement of discovering a new and enormous species of snake, the reptile can tell scientists a lot about the history of the Earth's climate - and offer a glimpse of the possible effects of global warming today.

Snakes are unable to regulate their own temperature and depend on external heat to survive.

"We think the Titanoboa became this large because it was much warmer on the equator after the dinosaurs died 60 million years ago," says Dr Bloch. "We think that's why reptiles in general were larger.

That ability to thrive in a warm climate could be relevant in the event that global temperatures rise according to the projections of climate scientists, Dr Bloch adds.

"It's evidence that ecosystems can thrive at temperatures of the levels that are being projected over the next one or two hundred years."

Return of Titanoboa?

But the climate changes that produced Titanoboa took millions of years. Scientists are less certain about the effects of sudden temperature change.

"Biology is amazingly adaptable. Changing climates and changing continents are the fuel of evolution. But things that happen very quickly can result in the types of change we might not view very positively," says Dr Bloch.

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The Cerrejon open-face coal mine where the fossils were discovered

As well as being warmer, CO2 levels were also 50% higher during the period of the Cerrejon rainforest.

"One big lesson we are learning from the fossils in Cerrejon is that tropical plants and the ecosystem in general have the ability to cope with high temperatures and high levels of CO2, another major concern with the current trend of global warming," says Dr Jaramillo.

"Perhaps the plants and animals of the tropics today already have the genetic ability to cope with global warming."

Does that mean the Titanoboa could one day return?

"As the temperature increases, you have the probability they will come back," says Dr Jaramillo. "But it takes geological time to develop a new species. It could take a million years - but perhaps they will!"

Moyra Melons' Commotion Causing Favorite Ear Rings

Once again, Moyra Melons' happily over excited husband came home from work, to be asked for the benefit of his opinion, concerning her new ear rings.

"What do you think of these?" she asked as he walked into the lounge.

For a brief moment, he was taken aback; as one might well imagine. His reply was a little confused at first.

"Think of what?" He babbled as his eyes almost bulged out of his head.

"Do you like what you see? I have to make sure I get it right and create an impression when we go to your works function," Moyra added excitedly. She was rather fond of these particular ear rings.

"Well I certainly think you'll cause a commotion dear," came his startled answer.

Moyra frowned and looked confused. "A commotion? Oh dear, I just wanted to turn a few heads with these."

"Oh, I can guarantee you'll turn a few heads Moyra."

Moyra Melons calmed down a little as she continued. "Well that is fine, but it still does not explain why I would cause a commotion."

"Oh well," replied her husband. "Perhaps I should demonstrate why you would cause a commotion."

"Please do," replied Moyra as her smiling and appreciative husband closed the lounge door.

Afterwards, Moyra wanted to show him the dress she intended to ware because she had an inkling that he might have been confused on certain matters concerning what she would be showing at the works function besides her ear rings.