On The Sexes And "Equal" Pay

TheEye has not been able to watch the new on the BBC today. It has been too painful. Actually Sky has been just as bad...for we have yet another report out claiming that women are horribly done by in the world of work. 

Denizens of Liverpool can stop reading at this point...this post doesn't affect you.

So let's consider the headlines and then the unspoken facts which balance out the hand-wringing. With any unofficial, unverified, unaudited non-government report (that bit is glossed over rather quickly in the reports) we should always ask ourselves who has written it and what their motivation could be.

Or, to put it another way: who is the author Lord Davies of Abersoch? Indeed, for it is he! Mervyn Davies...ex Labour Minister under Gordon Brown (who elevated him to the Lords), and a close friend of Peter Mandelson (no, not that close. Wash your mind out.)

You don't get that nugget of info on Sky or the BBC today.

If we listen beyond the headlines we learn that for middle management pay, women are paid more than men and for upper management women's pay is increasing faster than male pay. But at a speed that will supposedly converge in 98 years.

And yet the only thing you walk away from the news reports remembering is that 98 year figure. Great spining, Lord Labour Bloke of Aberthingy.

Trouble is, a number like that is an example of Proofiness...the use of misleading statistics to confirm what you already believe. Just take a series of apple-to-orange comparisons and you can justify the invention of a raft of feminist policy initiatives whilst actually achieving nothing useful at all. Usually causing more damage than benefit.

This isn’t to say that all is equal between the genders in the labour market - it isn't. But exaggerating and sensationalising them as we've seen on the news channels today only encourages resentment-fueled demands of government which are impossible to satisfy. This is followed by the tribunal and compensation culture which destroys small companies and whole industries alike.

Ignore the news today - put a dvd on.

Read more...

EU Kills The Land Rover

We read that Land Rover confirms new version of its Defender model, according to the BBC.

Good news, it seems? Innovation? Progress?

The current Defender was first introduced in 1948 and has gone on to enjoy sales of more than two million around the world.

Its basic design has changed little over the past six decades.

..but it isn't. What al-Beeb doesn't tell us we have to learn instead from the Financial Times (Subscription needed):

JLR is retiring the current Defender because its carbon dioxide emissions are too high to meet stricter European Union rules on CO2.

Of course the BBC are partly funded by the EU specifically to encourage the spreading of propaganda, so is it any surprise that our taxpayer-funded news service only selectively reports the news it sees fit?

Read more...

Guns Don't Kill People...

Firstly, TheEye would like to apologise for a lengthy absence from the blog. Life has taken a temporary sidestep into madness and nonsense. There's light at the end of the tunnel at least. This long weekend isn't it, but a few days of respite have arrived.

In the meantime, my very grateful thanks to my friend Max Farquar for keeping you entertained here for the last few weeks. I am deeply in his debt.

And to stay on the subject of madness, consider this further step in Britain's well documented spiral into collective doom:

Children will be banned from watching shooting events under Boris Johnson’s Olympic ticket giveaway.

London schoolchildren are eligible for 125,000 Olympic tickets but these will not include any featuring guns, as Games organisers and City Hall fear a backlash from the anti-gun lobby.

Giving children tickets to the events, at the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich, could have appeared at odds with Mayor Boris Johnson’s bid to quell teenage gun and knife crime.

Er, because our gun-control mania worked so well stopping the recent riots?

In the recent trouble, TheEye would have liked to have seen riot control done with longbows. A pile of looter corpses with arrow shafts lodged in them whilst police on horseback charged the rest...it'd be Agincourt or Crecy all over again.

“Remember kids, bows and arrows don’t kill people; Olympic archers do!”

Read more...

Vote For Me ...

... or I'll remote wipe your iPhone and probably your iPad too because iCan.

Jobs for President 2012

 

Read more...

GHADAFFI - PREFERRED FATE?

I know that the bleeding hearts at Amnesty International want to see their new hero, Ghadaffi, sent to the Hague, where he can enjoy pleasant accommodation secure that he will avoid the Death Penalty. But the question I have for you is, assuming they catch him alive, who should he die for his crimes?

Read more...

STUPID IS....

I've heard of turkeys voting for Christmas but never figured that this would be a central part of French economic policy...

The French government is to impose an extra tax of 3% on annual income above 500,000 euros (£440,000; $721,000). It is part of a package of measures to try to cut the country's deficit by 12bn euros over two years. The tax increase came after some of France's wealthiest people had called on the government to tackle its deficit by raising taxes on the rich.

I can only presume those in favour of paying more taxes have the same DNA as those who supported the Terror.

Read more...

What's That In Your Pocket Or Are You Just ...

In true ASE tradition I thought I'd take a look at some of the more obscure news websites today, in an effort to bring you one of those 'strange but true' items that The Eye is so well-known for.

Nope. Nothing to speak of in the Austrian Times. Unless you're interested in how a mare managed to get wedged between two spruce trees in the middle of the forest. A bit of a non-story, that one, not even a faint muttering about an eye witness possibly seeing an inebriated Austrian leaving the scene, whilst hastily hoisting up his lederhosen ... or something.   

However, the Croatian Times does not disappoint and comes up with a perfect recipe for ridicule via this in depth piece of reporting about a shoplifting event in Slovonia:

A middle-aged man has tried to steal half of a roast chicken from a store in Slavonia in Croatia’s east by stuffing it in his pants. (Yes, you did read that right - although no mention of which half of the chicken had been stuffed. i.e. head end or backside end. We like to know these things. It's important. Was he 'giving' the bird a blow job or was the bird getting it up the 'no no') The chicken – previously cut for him by one of the sales assistants (Still no clues there then) – was not amongst the items he gave to the cashier, which first raised suspicions. (Not the fact that he looked as though he'd got a lunchbox the size of Linford Christie's with steam coming out of it then) The man also seemed nervous and fidgety (you don't say) as though something was poking him, (oo-er!) the store’s salesperson noted. "I was disgusted when I saw what he had done. I was not sure whether to pity or hit him. (Hit him? Don't you mean hit ON him - with a package that size who'd blame you) The hot chicken was steaming, (Maybe that's because it was hot) the paper was all torn (that'll be all the fidgeting) and everything got glued to the crotch, (Oh purleeze - too much information) and his pants were oily," (personal hygiene not his strong point then) said one of the bystanders. Local police say that more and more often food is being stolen from the stores. (What! No one was looking in to it? How disappointing .. and what other food are Austrians stuffing down their pants these days then?)

And that was all there was. How disappointing. No mention of the other items that were in the trolley. Surely, the reporter could have mentioned he'd got a couple of veg in there ... to go with his meat. No sense of humour, those Austrians.

Come on, let's show them how it's done.

Cue assorted hot bird, fowl crotch jokes, etc ....

Oh, and in case you're wondering what that picture has to do with anything ...

think about it. Much better than an image of a bulging pair of steaming trousers, dontcha think.

Max ;-)

Read more...

Happy Birthday Hercules

Although the C-130 Hercules didn't actually become operational until 1957, today is the 57th anniversary of it's maiden flight. On 23rd August, 1954, the Lockheed Hercules four-engined turbo prop transport aircraft took to the skies for the very first time.

Everyone's lives have been touched by the Hercules over the last fifty years or so, for one reason or another. On a personal, and more lighter note, I'm constantly reminded of the C-130 several times a week as a pair of them regularly fly over Farquar towers. Usually at night. Which is nice, especially as I know the chickens will be waking me again at first light.

Thanks to Caratacus, a regular contributor over at Max Farquar, for reminding me of this auspicious occasion which will, know doubt, jog many memories for all of us. Some good and some not so good.

Where did all those years go to, eh?

Max ;-)

Read more...

More Passion In Downing Street

The mind positively boggles at the thought. Doesn't it. David Cameron demanding more passion at 10 Downing Street is not a thought I'd like to dwell on for too long but fear not, it's not as bad as it seems, so you can put down the mind bleach ... for now.

It appears that 'More Passion' relates to a neon artwork installation donated to Downing Street by that eminent non-entitity Tracey Emin. Yes, that Tracey Emin. The one who couldn't be bothered to make her bed and then decided to display it, fag ends dirty knickers an' all, at some arty farty art gallery or other ... for others to get enjoyment out of. Hmmph ... whatever turns you on, I suppose.

Some say that the neon artwork now makes the doorway to the Terracotta Room, on the 1st Floor of Number 10, look like the beckoning entrance to some seedy nightclub or other. Others say [well, just me actually] that if Tracey Emin was really trying to bring "a bit of an edge" to Downing Street, then she would have achieved that far more successfully by crafting her neon sign to read 'EU Referendum Now'.

Just a thought.

Max ;-)

Read more...

Red4

This is unashamedly a military blog. If anybody isn't familiar with the news then RIP Red 4 Flight Lieutenant Jon Egging.

The splendid Capt Haddock noted this tragedy in the previous thread. It appears this top chap stayed with his plane to keep it away from a residential area at the cost of his own life. Good drills that man.

Jon flew the Harrier GR9 before joining the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team.

Age – 33

Education – Jon attended Southam School in Warwickshire gaining A-Levels in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. He was a member of 2028 (Southam) Sqn Air Training Corps from age 13. During the sixth form he was awarded a Royal Air Force Flying Scholarship and had his first solo flight in a Cessna 152 flying from Wellesbourne Mountford Aerodrome. Following a gap year spent working in the UK and travelling around Australia, Jon went on to read a BSc in Environmental Science at Southampton University. He joined Southampton University Air Squadron and was awarded a Royal Air Force Bursary in his second year.

Career – Whilst at University Jon completed Elementary Flying Training with the University Air Squadron, flying the Bulldog; he went on to join the Royal Air Force in 2000. Selected for fast jet training Jon flew the Tucano and Hawk before becoming a ‘Creamie’ Qualified Flying Instructor on the Hawk at Royal Air Force Valley, teaching both students and instructors. Jon went on to serve with IV(AC) Squadron - 'Happy IV' – based at Royal Air Force Cottesmore, flying the Harrier GR9. During his time on the front line Jon was proud to support coalition ground forces when flying operational missions in Afghanistan. He has also taken part in exercises in the United Kingdom and America. As part of Joint Force Harrier, Jon served with IV(AC) Squadron on HMS Illustrious, flying training missions off the UK coastline. He became the Squadron Qualified Flying Instructor during his last year on 'Happy IV', making the transition to teach on the Harrier Operational Conversion Unit, based at Royal Air Force Wittering, in April 2010.

Background – Jon became interested in flying at an early age, inspired by his airline pilot father who used to take him ‘down route’, allowing him into the cockpit for take off and landing. Jon lived in Rutland with his wife Emma. In their spare time they enjoyed road and fell running as well as travelling the world together.

Per Ardua ad Astra

Read more...

TheEye isn't late on this bandwagon but was instead...biding his time.

A few days ago everybody linked to the blog which proves that only blonde females ever get A-Levels. And they always jump too. Odd, eh?

The local submission from Gibraltar is not as good as some of the totty on offer over there but the point remains proven...blokes don't pass exams. Ever. Congratulations especially to the young lady front right who is a friend of this blog.

TheEye would have submitted this to the definitive site on the topic but they only accept links by Twitter, have given up with that now personally and...frankly...can't be bothered... Totty pictures are enough.

Read more...

Top marks to the Canadian government for re-instating the "Royal" prefix to their Navy & Air force. St C has had the pleasure of serving in action alongside our Canuck brethren in Bosnia & Afghanistan, and holds them in the highest esteem. They rank close to the top of the last of the martial races.
They have some wonderfully named Regiments & Units and (sad spotter that he is) St C often takes delight in reading the Canadian Order of Battle for Normandy just to immerse himself in the history that the names evoke.

Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry

Royal 22^e Régiment (with the great moto (Je Me Souviens)

5e Régiment d'artillerie légère du Canada

1st Regiment Royal Canadian Horse Artillery

Being just 4 of those that I was lucky enough to serve with.

Possibly my favourite two names are

Le Regément de Maisonneuve and Lord Strathcona's Horse. How sad that we in the UK have ruined our own regimental names, leaving ourselves with the sanitized "The Rifles" and "The Mercian Regiment".

BZ Canada, BZ

Read more...

Lies, Damn Lies, And EU Immigration OptOuts

We've been fed the line over and over again that this is simply impossible under EU rules.

The European Union executive gave debt-stricken Spain the green light on Thursday to restrict Romanian workers from seeking employment on its territory, citing the need to protect its labour market.

Spain will be able to impose work permits on Romanians until the end of 2012, an exception to EU rules that allow citizens to work freely throughout the bloc's 27 member states.

So how come the Spanish are doing it then, if it's so impossible? Do we just not ask our EU masters nicely enough? Or do we was them too nicely? Or (most likely) not at all?

"The Commission understands why, at this particular juncture -- because of the dramatic employment situation and the very complex financial environment -- the Spanish authorities wish to step back from full free movement," he added.

This is at a time when 2 million Romanians have left their own country for work elsewhere in the EU - with the UK as the 3rd most popular destination. Offically 4 million EU nationals live in the UK so you can bet that the real number is double that. On top of the 2 million who have left, 1 in 3 of the remainder intend to leave Romania too.

If Spain can say that it's full up, why can't the UK?

Read more...

You Have Too Much Money If...

Do you have an iPad? Maybe a bag for your iPad?

Meh

The ultimate accessory has to be this $500 iPad case from The Bernie Madoff Collection...things made out of Bernie Madoff's old clothes.

The one in the picture is made of cashmere. Nice.

Each of his sweaters and pairs of trousers cam make four iPad cases, and they all come with a certificate of authenticity. Just in case you...say...ever needed to prove what they were...

Read more...

Question Time LiveBlog 11th August 2011: Crime Special!

David Cameron may have recalled Parliament today to discuss the looting and criminality, but we all know who really think they run the country. Yes, the BBC have recalled Question Time.

As usual the media are exaggerating the disturbances. What the BBC called looting in Liverpool, we all knew as Wednesday but most importantly for Police Force Service quotas we have heard no reports of smoking ban violations or inner-city foxhunting.

On the panel tonight we have an utterly unbelievable lineup of John "thug and adulterer" Prescott, LibDem Brian "my boyfriend didn't deal in pot" Paddick, an exotically be-hatted Iranian called Camila Batmanghelidjh, also exotically be-hatted but in a different way Rev John Sentamu and Fraser Nelson.

As a frequent critic of the government Fraser Nelson fits the BBC panelist profile of token rightist nutter so why isn't there a representative of the government? At all? Society has fallen apart after 13 years of socialist education and social policy but you'd at least expect BBC pet wet rag Ken Clarke on their speed dial to make a mess of the case for the defence.

TheEye will be joined by the splendid David Mosque in moderating what promises to be a partisan carve-up unparalleled in the West since the Treaty of Versailles.

TheEye intended to put together Shot Bingo for this event. "Deprived", "Cuts", "Fatcha" and so on. Maybe even doubles for Miners Strike. But the targets are too obvious and there's an 'elf'n'safety lawyer risk to how much liver damage would be caused. Tequila, my friends, is the way forward. But limit yourself to a bottle. TheEye, to keep a sense of refinement, may open some calvados.

Join us at 10:30pm at your peril.

Read more...

Question Time LiveBlog 11th August 2011

Question Time is currently on its summer break, and is scheduled to return on 8th September.

But! In terrific news for Bias-Watchers everywhere - there will be a special edition broadcast live this Thursday specifically to discuss the riots. It's going to be terrible and you know it.

Join us here for the usual Live-Chat at 10:30pm on Thursday....and bring alcohol. You will need it.

Read more...

UK Riots...And Iran

This post is offered without comment, really, because it speaks for itself.

Someone is seriously taking the piss. It's the sort of thing you'd expect to see on the Daily Mash or the Onion. Incredibly it seems to be genuine.

Iran has called on the British police to exercise restraint against people protesting over the killing of a Black man in London.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast urged the British government to order the police to stop their violent confrontation with the people, IRNA reported in the early hours of Tuesday.

Mehmanparast asked the British government to start dialogue with the protesters and to listen to their demands in order to calm the situation down.

The Iranian official also asked independent human rights organizations to investigate the killing in order to protect the civil rights and civil liberties.

Read more...

Great Excuses

I was really drunk at the time.

Most of us have used that one. Some of us more than once. And that's just counting this week.

Great news for blaggers everywhere, then, from the always entertaining Albuquerque Journal:

Sunland Park Mayor Martin Resendiz admitted in court-related proceedings that he was drunk when he signed nine contracts with a California company suing the city for $1 million.

“The day I signed … I had way too much to drink. It was after 5 p.m. and I signed it (the contracts) and I didn’t know what I was signing,” Resendiz wrote in response to questions from lawyers for the architectural design firm Synthesis+. “My sister had to pick me up.”

TheEye is paying close attention to this court case - if he gets away with it then no contract will ever be safe again....which will be amusing to say the least.

Source here but it needs some effort to get past the ads

Read more...

Riots

...and so it appears that the rioting in Tottenham may not have been caused by the death of a local gangster who shot at a policeman - saved by the bullet embedding in his radio. Now we're looking more at a gangster with a fake gun, the police shooting twice and...well, it's all getting tricky.

TheEye avoided the whole incident by hiding in a place that the rioters would never discover...the nearest Job Centre.

The chaos has produced several great opportunities - for race-baiter and general scumbag Lee Jasper to get on television, for Kay Burley to reinforce her reputation on Sky as a moron and, well, steaming piles of other stupidity. Mostly from the rioters who decided to start a demonstration based on principle and quickly realised that nicking a radio alarm clock and some carpet off-cuts was the best outcome. Kudos to the Scot who gave up looting when he realised he needed a pound coin to use a Tescos shopping trolley.

The BBC (almost) produced some comedy gold: "Clasford Stirling, a resident of Tottenham for 32 years, said the area looked like a battlefield..." but they forgot to add "...and then the rioting began."

The only good thing TheEye could track down is this rather good time-lapse video of Tottenham burning. The rumour is that the riots have caused millions of pounds of improvements.

Not clever of the local ethnic minorities to destroy so many police cars though, as it reduces their main method of local transport. And not a surprise that they raided a retail park with a Comet, JD Sports and Lidls - but toiletries giant Boots remained untouched.

Read more...

We Told You So (Euro Edition)

And so they did. Is there an apology on the way from Clegg, Mandelson, Blair, Clarke, Heseltine etc?

Thought not.

Read more...

Get Your Money Back, Sunshine

Now it's not often TheEye mocks the surgeon-afflicted. But it's Wednesday, so let's go with it. Good money was paid for this operation, apparently...

Bloody hellfire. On a stick.

Johnny Vegas, you've really let yourself go, man.

POOLE council has warned a stadium company about its tourism role after a transsexual was left ‘humiliated’ because she [it] could not use the female toilets.

Victoria Saxe-Coburg from Springbourne, Bournemouth said she [it] was left in floods of tears by a security guard during a Poole Pirates speedway match.

The 55-year-old, who had a gender reassignment operation more than 20 years ago, said she [it] was told to use the disabled toilet after another spectator made a complaint.

Surely that name is pinched rather than inherited. Having an surname inextricably linked with our very own Royal Family...well, if this thing is related to Queen Victoria in any way then TheEye will eat his panama. Without salt.

The newspaper running the original story (Bournemouth Echo) didn't open this story to Comments. Not bloody surprised, frankly.

From the ever-spectacular APILN

Read more...

The Hottest Day Forecast Since Records Began

...no, not today! Instead, 150 years ago today. For this is the 150th anniversary of the first ever forecast by the Met Office. It was published in the Times and is (right)

Monday 1st of August 2011 is a very special day for the Met Office. We will be celebrating 150 years of forecasting for the nation, marking the anniversary of the first ever public weather forecast appearing in print.

Starting with the lines "general weather probable in the next two days", the short piece which appeared in on page 10 of the The Times in 1861 was a bold move which started forecasting as we know it today.

That makes the 2nd of August 1861 the hottest day forecast since records began :-)

Now things are very different. Barbeque summers and similar awful predictions have gone horribly wrong and we were famously told that 'it won't be very windy tomorrow'

The Met Office is now a global Trojan Horse for the we're all going to boil to death alarmists but can't guess what might happen tomorrow....although says it can guarantee to within a percentage of a degree what will happen in 50 years time if we don't recycle our potato peelings.

Happy Birthday to the Met Office...you politically corrupted bandwagon jumping hysterical bastards.

Read more...

My Big Fat Geek Wedding

When Miguel Hanson and his fiancee, Diana Wesley, got married on Saturday (two days ago), a computer program Hanson wrote served as the minister.

During the wedding, held in the Houston home of Hanson's parents, the couple stood before a 30-inch monitor in the backyard. In a robotic voice, the computer greeted the guests, and told the story of how the couple met.

Presumably ending with: Do you accept the terms & conditions of this matrimony? : Y/N

His parents must have been grateful that they'd finally got rid of the weird geek from their basement - although maybe that's where the honeymoon will be?

Still, computers marrying people. Then it'll be people marrying computers. That's bad enough, because Genesis (the Book, not the band) tells us how bad it all went the first time a woman got involved with an Apple.

Then they will demand computers in the military. And we all know how that movie ends...

That's not a picture of the lady in the story - its a blatant excuse to use a picture of a woman with large breasts

Read more...