[juggernaut] roll on february

Some of you might recall, two years or so ago, when Martine Martin and I went a bit OTT and started claiming here, here, here and here that the meddling with the Lords was the road to Blairite and Brownian autocracy.

Well? Look at it now. Look at the arrogance with which he deals with parliament during PMQ time, which he could not possibly get away with unless he knew he was now unassailable within parliament ... plus the other things he knows are coming up.

Some time later, Ian Parker Joseph wrote, on EU policy:

The headlong rush to get the Reform Treaty ratified by 1st January 2009 is so that there can be ‘elections’ on a regional basis to the European Parliament later in the year, which under the EU Constitution will be a rubber stamp parliament ruled over by the European Commission and the Council of Europe, run by EU commission president Jose Manuel Barroso until the new Presidential office is set up.

Scotland and Wales are safe, and will remain as they are, with their own new parliaments, each being a region to remain intact, but they will lose national status, and be downgraded by our new master in Europe to regional status. England will no longer exist as a country, just 9 regions. The UK as represented in Europe will be known as the 11 regions of the UK.

At the same time, Party Politics will also be abolished. Westminster will be closed as a debating chamber and will become the headquarters of the London Region, the South East Region, and the Governor of the UK. There will no longer be a Conservative, LibDem or Labour Party. Never again will there be a democratically elected UK government, an opposition and democratic debate.

I posted the following in 2006, based on a year 2000 document I'd saved, giving this version of events of the next two decades, as distributed by people I'd prefer not to name:

An economic collapse that will devastate the economy of the US and Europe, much like the great depression. One reason that our economy continues limping along is the artificial support that the Federal Reserve had given it, manipulating interest rates, etc. But one day, this won't work (or this leverage will be withdrawn on purpose) and the next great depression will hit.

The government will call in its bonds and loans, and credit card debts will be called in. There will be massive bankruptcies nationwide. Europe will stabilize first and then Germany, France and England will have the strongest economies, and will institute, through the UN, an international currency. Japan will also pull out, although their economy will be weakened. Peacekeeping forces will be sent out by the UN and local bases to prevent riots.

The leaders will reveal themselves, and people will be asked to make a pledge of loyalty during a time of chaos and financial devastation. Doesn't sound pleasant, does it?

I see no reason to backtrack on any of those assertions above, give or take some details here, some dates there. The itinerary is the same and is becoming more and more likely as we head closer to it. The UK election must come within 18 months but by then, there's an even money chance there's not going to be any more parliamentary democracy, for a number of reasons:

1. Ireland will pass Lisbon second time round [look at the sweeteners now being offered if Ireland gives the correct answer, especially in recession];

2. The EU will implement the above Parker Joseph quote. I'm not sure of the chronology of the thing and which comes first but that's what is in the pipeline. They're only awaiting the Irish ratification.

Already 80% under EU law, with a crippled pound against the euro, bankrupt Britain and in particular, England, is down for the count.

Watch next February closely but better still, wait for the call for all of us to pull together in the coming time of extraordinary necessity. A Churchill will appear but I don't think it's going to be Gordon Brown.

Brown has claimed to save the world and in the twisted, rarified atmosphere he cavorts about in, he could well have a point - he may well have, in their terms, saved the world. In our terms, he has helped devastate it.

[greece] the real story behind the riots

Wolfie gave me a "could do better" report card on the Greek issue, which was not my intention to actually pursue. Just haven't had time to do a big exploration yet but Cassandra has and she gives an insight into the behind the scenes issues and the historical perspective to the thing:

Back in Greece the riots are being executed with the use of the Internet and other new media techniques, such as instant messaging (IM) from mobile phones to web pages, Indymedia, along with the use of CB’s, Facebook pages, walkie-talkies, computer mass generated SMS, Twitter, and the construction of “flow-networks” and already established “dark networks” within the city.

The moment they were reported with their usual MSM report-the-reaction-but-not-the-cause style of reportage, there seemed anomalies, with the old military regime invoked and a wholly disproportionate response by students who seemed far more ... well ... anarchic than one would expect.

It's the natural reaction of bloggers to automatically see the poor students as freedom fighters against a monolithic and evil government. The latter may be so but the former are certainly not innocent and there was far more to this than met the eye. It's worth reading Cassandra's article in full.

Here's a further read on the matter while we all try to get to the core of this thing.

[internet censorship] the next battlefield

In Australia, the government has launched an e-democracy website:

Predictably, hundreds of the comments published so far have criticised Senator Conroy's plans to introduce a mandatory clean feed for all Australian internet users, which would introduce a level of web censorship that's far beyond that of any other Western democracy.

"I am offended that Senator Conroy has likened censorship opponents to child porn supporters. It is a straw-man argument and offensive to basic principles of democracy," one reader wrote.

Sigh.

[private eye] and the man of straw

Parliamentary democracy itself may well be the bulwark againt totalitarianism but the two party system sure is not. What's worse, it breeds rank hyocrisy, as the Eye has just pointed out in the current edition [1225, p3]:

In fact, 1995 was dubbed "the year of the leak", with civil servants across Whitehall falling over themselves to hand over documents to the opposition. The cross-party European forum found that there had been 38 significant breaches, with the Home Office and Transport Department handing over most. It got so bad that even internal reports on how to plug leaks were ... er ... leaked.

And who were the most high profile utilizers of these leaks? That's right - Blair and the man of Straw.

[train journey] chance encounters, danger and intrigue

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A long rail journey can be likened to a fabulously drawn out meal for two - the aperitif, the amuse-bouche, the entrée, plat principal, the fromage, dessert, the café and the digestif, a little dancing, a moonlit walk by the river, followed by a long languid night.

The rail journey may even signify freedom, liberty. It was Ernest Bevin who said:

"My policy is to be able to take a ticket at Victoria station and go anywhere I damn well please!"













Couldn't agree more. At Victoria, looking at the big board, with some cash in the pocket and thinking: "I might just go there for the hell of it." It gives one a sense of freedom.

The long distance journey should be taken by rail.

The air flight is one frenetic rush, the car is nerve-racking, the bus is abysmal and bumpy but the train, curving its way through the countryside, whooshing then rattling, sitting back in the seat and gazing from the window with absolutely nothing you must do except meet that elegant lady sitting two seats across from you.










But better is planning the journey, looking at the brochure, viewing the itinerary, arriving at the busy station with its wrought iron roof frame and finding the platform, being met by the attendant, stowing the baggage and then finding the restaurant car for the aperitif.


A Swiss itinerary might fit the bill:

Zermatt - The last section of the journey takes you through wild and romantic larch woods, through avalanche protection structures and tunnels, to the world renowned car-free town of Zermatt. Just before you arrive in the station, the majestic Matterhorn, 4,478m above sea-level, looms up before your eyes.

The Visp - Zermatt section of the line was opened in 1891 after two and a half years of construction. The foresight of the railway engineers of the time is amazing, they realised that the valley communities who had lived off the land for centuries would have to look to tourism to sustain them in the long term.

And so it was - the new rail connection brought a new lease of life and prosperity to the people of Zermatt. Today, the tourist infrastructure of Zermatt leaves nothing to be desired.








Perhaps you prefer danger and intrigue:

At 8:45, the Orient Express arrives at Belgrade. Poirot gets out to stretch his legs, but, because of the bitter cold, quickly returns to the train. The conductor informs Poirot his luggage has been moved to compartment number one, M. Bouc's carriage.

M. Bouc moved to the Athens coach to allow Poirot a spot in first class. Compartment N1 is directly next to Mr. Ratchett and two doors down from Mrs. Hubbard.

While returning to his compartment, Poirot is cornered by Mrs. Hubbard. She tells Poirot that she is "dead scared" of Ratchett and tells Poirot she heard Ratchett trying the communicating door between their apartments the night before.








Abe Lincoln was once moved to write about a rail journey:

A lonesome train on a lonesome track --
Seven coaches painted black --
A slow train, a quiet train
Carrying Lincoln home again;
Washington, Baltimore,
Pittsburgh, Philadelphia,
Coming into New York town,
You could hear that whistle for miles around
Crying, Freedom! Freedom!!

Even with modern trains, there is something old-worldly about some stations and some services. John Betjeman was moved enough to write Pershore Station, or A Liverish Journey First Class:

"The train at Pershore station was waiting that Sunday night
Gas light on the platform, in my carriage electric light,
Gas light on frosty evergreens, electric on Empire wood,
The Victorian world and the present in a moment's neighbourhood."

Can you picture yourself on the Orient Express?

Imagine it is the mid-1930s, and you are in Istanbul. You dine at the Pera Palas Hotel, the hotel established by the Wagons-Lits Company in 1894 specifically to cater for Orient Express clientele, and still a great hotel today.

About 9pm, you head down to Sirkeci station for the 22:00 departure of the Orient Express. You need to eat beforehand, because there is no restaurant car attached to the Orient Express when it leaves Istanbul - this isn't attached until Kapikule on the Turkish/Bulgarian border, in time to serve breakfast.




Each 'S' type sleeping-car has 10 wood-panelled compartments with either one or two beds (one above the other) plus a washbasin - there are no baths or showers on board. The sleeper compartments convert for daytime use into a compact carpeted sitting room with sofa and small table. There is no lounge car or seats car, at least not this side of Trieste.

At Sirkeci station, under the station lights, you catch you first glimpse of the blue and gold sleeping-cars of the Orient Express. It's a very short train - Just four sleeping-cars, with a baggage van ('fourgon' in French) at either end.










Anything is possible on a rail journey. I can't decide if my favourite journey was from Bordeaux to Madrid or from Helsinki to the north through the myriad lakes. Perhaps it was the train from Bergen to Stockholm to Turku. On a first class rail pass, it allowed you to travel either class according to the state of the train and the destination. And in earlier days it really was not all that expensive for a one month pass.



I know it's not really done in Britain and I usually don't break into bonhomie with people on a train but sometimes, over a long journey, when both seem willing, it can be a small pleasure. Chance encounters, that missed train, accidentally bumping into someone, it's all possible on the train:

My wife Asya and I met on a train from London to Leicester. She is Polish and had just arrived in the UK for a six-week working holiday at Hothorpe Hall near Market Harborough ... There were plenty of empty seats when she boarded but she stood watching her case until the train departed leaving the only free seat next to me! We both should have been on the previous train but were both delayed.









I myself was on a train from Madrid to Firenze and met a girl. One thing led to another and we stopped off in Narbonne. She went on to Firenze and I followed later, via Finland. That's the sort of thing which trains make possible.

I've left the down side till the end but it need not be a terribly down side. Sure there are these things to consider:

* If you only speak one language (like English) then you have just encountered what could be your first problem

* The ticketing lines at trains stations are for the most part always long.

* Train connections in Europe can be awfully close when it comes to connecting time.

I really do think that planning and preparation can alleviate many of these but that cuts down spontaneity, one of the joys of train travel. And as for the language barrier - consider it a challenge rather than a barrier.

Travel by rail.

[finance sector] always be positive

Question: What's the definition of optimism in the finance sector?

Answer: ironing five shirts on a Sunday night.