The last Royal Wedding

Mrs S and I were discussing this particular topic today. The usual squishy smarmy media overkill, the hyped up 'threats' of a few people who really need to go out, get a job and do something positive with their lives. The whining about 'heavy handed policing' before the couple have even walked down the aisle.

I was particularly amused that Brown and Blair haven't been invited, and vouchsafed that the only thing that would make me watch is if at the end when the happy couple were making their vows, the two ex Prime Traitors were dragged off to the Tower for a little off the top. A new block and freshly sharpened axe being mere courtesy details. I'd love to have the ticket concession for that particular event. I could retire.

"We should be so lucky." Said Mrs S. "I could do with a giggle."
"I won't watch. Seen one Royal Wedding, seen 'em all." I replied.
"It'll be the last one." She opined.
"Really?" Quoth I. A little surprised.
"The Royal family will cease to exist in it's current form in the next ten years. The EU will see to that." She continued.
"I know Charley boy is getting cosy with the Commission. You don't think someone has offered him the top job do you?" I posited.
"All a bluff. No politician worth his salt wants a hereditary hierarchy, unless of course it's his progeny." Mrs S shrugged.
"So you reckon it's game over for the Windsors?" I asked.
"Afraid so." She said. "I used to be quite fond of the Royal Family."
"I still won't bother watching." I said. "Even if it is the last."
"Got enough DVD's for viewing this week?" She asked.
"Sure." Said I, and that was the end of the discussion. Red Dwarf and the latest series of House MD it is, then. I'm working that day anyway.

By the way: It can (and has been) cogently argued that Queen Elizabeth the second has broken her coronation oath. Therefore, if said oath was ever a two way bargain between Monarch and Subject, one could be forgiven for thinking that neither she and the 'firm', nor the government of the UK, has any sovereignty left over UK born residents at all.

As an additional thought; to show loyalty, one must swear or affirm it in front of witnesses. An oath of fealty to any authority can never simply be assumed without at least some tacit or overt agreement from all parties.

Funny things, oaths and promises.

Arrangements made.

After a full day spent making arrangements, booking flights, cars, hotels, relatives back bedrooms and sundry divers means of transportation, Mrs S and I are lighter in pocket but easier of mind. Well, at least she is. I'm just the designated driver on this particular mission.

We will be arriving in the UK this Summer for a brief familial sojourn attempting to studiously ignore every negative, while spinning the positive. I do not intend visiting any of my old stamping grounds, apart from a side trip to visit parent and pick up a passenger, and will be looking for such diversions in the way of lounging around, either in a pool, sauna, or with a book, avoiding watching Television, and not giving the proverbial tinkers cuss about anything but the specific task in front of me. Fortunately, every hotel we are booked into have pools and saunas. My swimming shorts will be packed.

Will be spending as little time as possible in shopping areas. Will drive at or slightly below the posted speed limit. Will avoid contact with anyone in a uniform or having even the vaguest whiff of officialdom about them. Will give Charity Muggers a brief withering look of contempt before ignoring their protestations and going about my own business. Of course there will be the tedious ministrations of Airport Security, but as I intend carrying nothing but my duty free allowance across the various borders I must cross, they will have no cause to give me grief. I may be caught pointing and laughing at the odd Windmill, and privately marvel at the delusion that caused its consideration as a means of effective electrical generation. I will probalby gasp briefly in amazement at the cost of living in the UK. I may be heard softly sighing with relief as the plane taking me home to Canada exits UK airspace.

At various junctures I may snore pointedly, at which point Mrs S will stick an elbow in my ribs. The die is cast, the money spent, and I have my own thoughts about what will please me.

Oh, snow

Awoken around ten to five this morning by a selection of thumps and bumps outside the window. Thinking that we had some form of wildlife problem, Mrs S got out of bed to peer through a gap in the curtains. "Bill?"
"What?"
"It's been snowing."
"Oh."
"It's falling off the roof."
"Can't be that cold then." I rolled over and went back to sleep, to be confronted by the images below at eight in the morning.
A modest sprinkling of three to four inches coats everything, but I'm not concerned despite all the nonsense being shunted about cold weather being (Yet another) symptom of the farcical 'global warming'. It's a busted flush, a nonsense to scare the gullible and small children who don't have a grounding in Physics.

We have winter tyres and a brand new 4x4, the log store is well stocked. Warming? what warming? Winter still has three more months to run.

Zzzzzzzz.

Cameron is right, but then he's very wrong as well

Heard about this speech on energy security from David Cameron, Prime Minister of somewhere or other in Europe. Some little principality or other that is effectively under direct rule from Brussels.

"The fact is, we've got a very clapped-out electricity generating capacity"

Fine. with you so far. Out of date Power Stations and infrastructure in need of replacement. Very cogent thinking there.

Here's where it all goes horribly wrong; "that is pumping carbon into the atmosphere and we need to replace it."

Replace the carbon? Carbon particulates, Carbon Monoxide or Carbon Dioxide? Carbon Buckyballs? Or replace the power generation infrastructure?

Oh dear. "What we want is green, reliable, cheap electricity, and we're not leaving that to chance. We're setting out policies today that will deliver that.

More windmills and Solar panels? More inefficient, subsidy hungry pipe dreams based on the discredited postulation that the world is warming uncontrollably and it's all our fault?

They'll also have the spin-off advantage of helping to make Britain one of the greenest places for green energy, for green electricity" for green investment and crucially for green jobs anywhere in the world."

Ooo, oo, I know the answer to this one! Spain, anyone? Hey, haven't 'Green' jobs been a real success story over there, eh?

This has to be the definition of insanity. Repeating the same action again and again in defiance of what's actually happening in the real world.

I think they're missing the point here.....

From those very clever chaps over at Wattsupwiththat we hear that;

"Climate scientists plan campaign against global-warming skeptics."

Yeah but guys, isn't this a case of shooting the messenger(s)? If your damn postulation carried any weight then at least some of your predictions should have come true by now. Shouldn't they?

Maybe these soi-disant 'climate scientists' should be revising their alleged 'theory' to reflect reality instead of going on the warpath against honest doubters.

Sounds like someone has seen their funding in danger of slipping away.

Anything new? Thought not.

Back in the land of the compos mentis after a nice nights sleep in my own bed. Has anything changed?

Dozy items insisting that we wreck the global economy because of ........................... (insert suggestion here) or go vote at Kates

Popes visit to UK attracts protest (If you aren't a Catholic you don't have to go). Who gives a shit anyway?

Grumbling tremors at Katla have subsided for now. A watched pot never boils.

The fog has lifted and I've got better things to do. I'm having the day off. TTFN.

The latest scare story

London overdue for 'killer' quake! Scream the headlines in the Tellytubbygraph, the Greeniad and all the other tabloid junk that passes for mainstream 'science' journalism in the UK nowadays. The real experts are sceptical, even derisive, and it even turns out that the word 'overdue' is a media invention.

As for a 5.5 being 'deadly'? Oh good grief! Out here on the Pacific rim, a 5.5 tremor is considered workaday and nothing exceptional. If there's a 5 or 6 out in the subduction zone out beyond Juan De Fuca, we often don't feel a thing hereabouts.

This is so much claptrap it's morphed into a kind of 'Truth-lite', or perhaps it's even the 'new truth' (H/T to Al Jahom there).

Call that 'science reporting'? Because I bloody well don't. And I haven't even had my morning coffee yet. Sheesh.

Fear and disassociation

Reading the news in the Tellytubbygraph, and the hilarious comments thereon from both public and an apparent clique of paid lobbyists pissing in the fountain of public discourse, I am more and more of the opinion that many people are just not versed in the day to day business of life. Take this little op-ed about dogs.

Let me declare an interest here, on the whole I like dogs. They are an excellent guide to their owners. My own slightly scruffy mutt is somewhat excitable, loves new friends, and is only ill tempered when pushed to extremes. He, like his owner, loves having his back scratched and tummy rubbed and is a complete slut when it comes to affection. He's not terribly brave or clever, yet will stand his ground against all comers when the need arises. I love him to bits. Yet even so, there might be people who fear his exuberant and enthusiastic mode of greeting. Unlike his owner he is sometimes too indiscriminate in his affections. Ergo, he sometimes needs his boundaries reset. No big deal.

Now the above should not prove surprising. I grew up in a house where dogs and cats were kept as pets, and so received a thorough grounding in how to deal with them in all their moods, including unhappy visits to the vet. Giving pills to cats and other such hilarity were part of my boyhood training. How to approach a strange dog on and off his 'turf'; all that stuff. I have the scars to prove it. So in the Sticker household both owner and dog are what might be called 'well socialised'. Unlike some of the dog hating denizens of the comments section.

Now I can understand disliking or distrusting some of the more aggressive breeds, but hating all dogs? That's just plain irrational. Rather like hating all cats. That's a phobia not a reasonable response, and there should be no room on the statute books for phobias.

The aforementioned says a great deal more about dog haters as people than anything else. It bespeaks a fear of the world outside of their narrow little minds. More often than not they want a 'law' against everything they personally can't cope with, forgetting that laws need enforcement and that's why property / council tax is often so high. They dissociate from the simple truth that the more you want from Government, either local or national, the more you have to put in. They also seem to forget that Government at whatever level is horrendously inefficient. The bang for buck ratio being very poor indeed.

Governments are good at very big stuff, like roads, defence, law enforcement etc. That is because such projects require large investments of manpower and energy not available to most individuals or groups. What Government can't do is live your life for you or wipe your arse when you forgot; and it is unreasonable to expect such institutions to do so. For example; a Policeman's job is not to deal with every slight or hurt you might feel, nor should they be expected to do so. When they are asked to do so, the response is often a world weary "Oh what is it now?"

If you can't personally deal with dogs or other domestic animals the advice is learn a strategy or avoid them. If you can't do that then, tough.

The thought does occur that anyone demanding 'there should be a law agin it' should be asked how much they personally are willing to pay for said enforcement. Want cleaner streets? How often do you want them cleaned? A dog warden to clean up all the dog poo? Okay, put your hand on your wallet and shell out for his salary. Failing that, do something about it yourself. Clean up the dog mess or challenge the owners to do so in person. Most of us dog owners already do. It's not unreasonable.

The point is that big brother government is broke, and if you want anything more then you have got to pay for it; not your neighbour, or the guy at the end of the street, but you. What an excellent idea.

The problem with this blogging lark

......is finding something worth saying when others have said it (often far better) before. I'm bored with all the playgroundish "Yes it is!", "No it isn't!" pantomime that passes for debate in some of the comment sections. Even more unimpressed by the politicised dross spewed into the public domain by so-called 'professional' journalists, who are supposed to know better. Or is that just me being hopelessly optimistic?

In some ways it's like watching verbal trench warfare with no prospect of armistice over common ground. Nothing gets moved forward or resolved because honesty is the first casualty of any debate, yet without adherence to factual data there can be no forward motion. For example; if I try to build a house out of a material not structurally strong or weather resistant enough; said house will, sooner rather than later, collapse. It doesn't matter what I 'believe', I cannot change how a material behaves under given conditions, even if I were to 'prove' my contention with statistical studies.

I am by training and inclination, an empiricist. If presented with a given statement I always ask; "Does it work?" If yes, all well and good. If no, then let's bin it and go onto something that does work, or modify said statement to fit the actuality. Sorry if that sounds unimaginative, but that's just me at the moment.

Maybe I'm a little down right now. Might have something to do with the recent haze from the forest fires happening around the rest of the province. That and waiting on other people to do their various things. Perhaps I should take a little 'me' time and go fishing for a while. My neglected rod is hanging over the door, the sea is not far away. Hmm. Time for a little time out.

Update. What the post looks like in Google Translate Polish;

...... Jest znaleźć coś, co warto powiedzieć, gdy powiedział, że inni (często o wiele lepiej) przed. Jestem znudzony wszystkie playgroundish "Tak jest!", "Nie, nie jest!" pantomima, która przechodzi do dyskusji w niektórych sekcjach komentarz. Jeszcze bardziej upolityczniony wrażenia przez żużel wygłaszane do domeny publicznej przez tzw "zawodowych" dziennikarzy, którzy mają wiedzieć lepiej. Czy to tylko ja się beznadziejnie optymistyczne?

W pewnym sensie jest to jak oglądanie słowne wojny okopowej bez perspektyw zawieszenie broni na wspólnej ziemi. Nic nie zostanie przesunięty lub rozwiązane, ponieważ uczciwość jest pierwszą ofiarą jakiejkolwiek debaty, ale bez przestrzegania zawartych w nich danych nie może być ruch do przodu. Na przykład, jeśli staram się budować dom z materiałów nie strukturalnie silny lub wystarczająco odporne na warunki atmosferyczne; powiedział domu będzie, raczej wcześniej niż później, zapaść. Nie ma znaczenia, co ja "wierzę", nie mogę zmienić, jak zachowuje się materiał w określonych warunkach, nawet gdybym miał "udowodnić" moje twierdzenie z badań statystycznych.

Jestem z wykształcenia i nachylenia, empiryzmu. Jeżeli występują razem z danej deklaracji zawsze pytam, "Czy to działa?" Jeśli tak, to wszystko dobrze i dobrze. Jeśli nie, to niech to bin i przejść na coś, co działa, lub zmodyfikować tym sprawozdaniu, aby pasowały do rzeczywistości. Przepraszam jeśli to brzmi wyobraźni, ale to tylko ja w tej chwili.

Może jestem trochę w dół teraz. Mogą mieć coś wspólnego z ostatnich mgła z pożarów lasów dzieje wokół reszty województwa. Że i czeka na innych ludzi do robienia różnych rzeczy. Być może powinienem trochę "ja" czas i łowić na chwilę. My zaniedbane pręta wisi nad drzwiami, do morza nie jest daleko. Hmm. Czas na trochę czasu na zewnątrz.

We're all doomed - as usual.....(Sigh)

Well, if you believe the Tellytubbygraph we're all about to suffer as Nasa scientists brace for 'solar tsunami' to hit earth. Apparently there's a C3 class solar flare building which threatens to;

"destroy satellites and wreck power and communications grids around the globe if it happened today."

Well. what's a C3 Solar flare? Well, according to this page on Spaceweather.com;

Compared to X- and M-class events, C-class flares are small with few noticeable consequences here on Earth.

Well slap my thighs, I wonder who is talking up what? Just as an aside, the article concludes that;

"A Nasa spokesman was unavailable for comment."

Are the guys on the ISS worried? Not according to their web page, the ISS crew are more concerned with fixing the air conditioning. Hey, maybe they know something a 'science journalist' doesn't?

What the hell, it's been British Columbia day today, and I've spent a goodly part of this afternoon swimming in the pool and trying out my new diving mask having sorted out the mobile phone conundrum. If we're all doomed (again) tomorrow, I might as well enjoy the summer while it's here.