Another plan ruined

…does anyone personally know anyone currently affected by SARS/COV-2? I ask because I’m really sick and tired of these pointless lockdowns and masks, neither of which have any real science behind them. That’s the second hotel booking on the trot I’ve had to cancel and my patience is wearing thinner by the day. No-one can plan any more. We’re all just watching stupid politicians led by the nose, in turn leading us all deeper into a pit of economic and social disaster because they can’t admit they got it very badly wrong. Like the 1962 Milgrim experiment documented in the video below. The parallels are glaringly obvious.

These punishments, because that’s what lockdowns are, will continue until the virus is gone or a ‘miracle vaccine’ arrives. Neither of which is likely. Not for a coronavirus. Researchers have been looking for a cure for the common cold since the 1960’s, and that is often a coronavirus.   The thing is that SARS/COV-2 is now endemic, that is, everywhere, as the number of tests shows. Yet how many people are sick enough to be hospitalised or even become more than slightly off colour?  Those are the numbers we need to pay attention to.

Our planned Christmas trip, a two day treat which would have helped us both stay sane has fallen to the blunt axes of ‘level three’. I want to know who I sue for wrongful imprisonment and the imprisonment of my family, not to mention the losses to my business interests? I certainly don’t qualify for any ‘furlough’ money and my pensions are still several years away. Therefore any demand for extra taxes to pay for these lockdowns will be met by a negative value on my tax return, so the tax man will end up owing me. As for funding the health service, we’ve fed our respective health services extra billions and got nothing back for it.

We’re told that all these lockdowns were to ‘save’ the health services. Hoo-effing-ray. Unfortunately, a great many people who should have been ‘saved’ by the hospitals that were closed for nothing but COVID-19 cases haven’t been. Cancer diagnoses have been missed. Heart attacks and strokes that got worse and even fatal because they went untreated. Suicides because psychiatric care was neglected. To name but three. We know the body count of people who have been tested positive for COVID-19 post mortem, but what of those whose deaths were due to the political decisions surrounding this pandemic?

By way of anecdote. My own father died at home in extreme pain because of a missed cancer diagnosis, going from a fit and healthy fifty seven year old man to a bag of bones in less than three weeks. The doctors and technicians of the NHS missed his diagnosis, by which time it was too late. Ma Sticker and I nursed him at home until close to one awful midnight she came into the room where I was waiting to do my turn to announce; “Bill, your father’s dead.” Not only that but the GP had prescribed the wrong painkillers, so a brave man died in agony. My own later experiences of the UK’s national health service also left me less than impressed. I’m sure my occasional readers will have similar stories to tell. I’m not a fan of socialised medicine. You can tell, can’t you?

Now all our lives are on hold and despite repeated promises to the contrary, subject to arbitrary disruptions which are only adding to the body count attributed to SARS/COV-2. We were promised Christmas off, but the politicians and corporates have chosen to screw us all over, trying to bore us with tiers and other such half-arsed idiocy.

Right now I hope all the politicians, media and corporate lobbyists who pushed us into this mess, including all the members of SAGE and NPHET all die like my father did. In extreme agony from a missed diagnosis. See you in hell you bastards. You’ll know me. I’ll be the grinning demon with the really nasty barbed pitchfork at reception. Maybe I’ll even give you a friendly little wave before I ram it right where your sun doesn’t shine.

Talk about depressing

Looks like being a lonely festive season here at Maison Sticker. We were looking forward to having family over from the UK and Canada. Possibly even from the fabled land of Oz. Now we’re told; “Sorry- tiers and levels.” from the bullshit merchants currently occupying seats of authority. “No vaccine – no travel.” We’re told. WTF? Did I move to communist freaking China last week and completely miss the memo?

All the talk of getting Christmas off from these godawful f*ckwitted lockdowns turns out to have been a lie. Our civil liberties have been trashed. For what? Do we have a real problem at this point in time? While the WHO’s own web site contains huge amounts of scary details, as Ivor Cummins points out below, the science and base numbers do not support lockdowns. Nor do the previous WHO 2019 health guidelines. As Mr Cummins rightly points out, how come the Japanese, Norwegians and Finns got off so lightly? Healthy vitamin D serum levels perhaps?

Which is why I take 2000UI of D3 (50mcg) daily. No side effects. I’ve been on this dose for the last year and intend to keep it up as I’m quite enjoying all the usual sniffles giving me the go-by. The much vaunted potential kidney problems don’t kick in until much higher doses. Besides, if your diet lacks vitamin D and you live above the 50th parallel, a little extra will do you no harm whatsoever. As an aside; I can still recall children in the UK being born with Rickets, a classic vitamin D deficiency disease. Even in adults. However, Rickets has made a comeback in recent years, partly due to a change in the ethnic mix of the UK, and partly because of dietary and behavioural changes. Not enough time out in the fresh air for example. Something my old school GP used to be quite enthusiastic about.

What I find truly depressing is that the precedent has been set. Everyone’s basic human rights can now be set aside for a disease that mostly damages those only with serious pre-existing chronic illnesses. The rest of us get a sniffle or mild flu-like illness.

Then there’s mandatory vaccinations without consent? Tell me, when was that last legal? Yeah, Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan where POW’s and civilians alike were treated as human guinea pigs. Hands up who wants to go back there? Seriously?

What is even worse is that there is no liability for any damage caused by these measures. No one who can be held to account because governments have given themselves and the pharmaceutical companies a massive ‘get out of jail free’ card. No legal redress for the victims of what is proposed being a large scale, uncontrolled clinical trial. If the jab does make people sick, say from an autoimmune reaction, there’s no compensation, no legal redress.

However, those responsible for the blatant misinformation and any resulting damage shouldn’t think the Nuremberg defence will work when the chips are down. “Only obeying orders.” eh? There’s a price for that. A very high price indeed. A six and a half feet drop attached to a safety rope around the neck used to be quite highly favoured.

How to end lockdowns

Busy making decorations for the festering season at the direction of Mrs S. I’d be happy with a sprig of holly, some mistletoe and a bit of tinsel around our aspidistra. However, with the possibility that lockdowns will be eased over Christmas, we may find our self hosting ‘North’ and suitor. Which would be nice. She likes him a lot, so I will strive not to embarrass her if they do make it this side of the Irish Sea this year. We have the bed and living space. That and it would be good to see her in person again. I also wish ‘South’ would have a bout of good luck and end up being able to visit us from the fabled land of Oz this year. Sadly, this may not be the case.

Notwithstanding, while my hands have been busy I found myself wondering how we get out of this endless cycle of liberty and economy destroying lockdowns? You know, the ones that no-one seems to be paying much mind to out here in the wilder west of the Emerald Isle.

What is obvious is that the evidence is clear. Lockdowns do little or nothing to halt the spread of a disease, any disease. Quarantine works only so long as no-one breaches it. What does work is shielding the vulnerable, the people in care homes with serious health problems until SARS/COV-2 has finished passing through the main population. Locking down everybody means that process is delayed and the damage done, both economically and epidemiologically speaking is far greater, with ironically a higher death count than if we had done nothing.

At this stage of the game, masks aren’t much use by the general public either. The science and the basic numbers are also clear. Peer reviewed and validated study after study confirm that this is the case. By contrast, the panicmongers statistics are simply numbers tortured out of context, doing nothing but to create unwarranted fear. Yes, SARS/COV-2 is a nasty flu bug, nastier than usual, about as nasty as the 1957 Asian and a few other influenza’s since. You know, flu outbreaks we never locked down for?

For a disease like COVID-19 there is no need for a vaccine because it has already burned itself out. Coronaviruses do this. If we managed to shield the vulnerable for six months, there’s no one left to pass on the disease because the rest of the population have been exposed and either brushed it off or become immune. Because the wider population would have already become immune there would be no residual sink of infection, as would be required for re-infection at some later date. Once the disease is done, it’s done. And like a seasonal flu it is done.

All we have to do is as follows; make the lockdown voluntary. With the sole exceptions of hospital and care home residents and workers. In short, shield the people most likely to be harmed by infection. Those who want to be frightened and hide at home can do so. No one should force anyone to wear a mask, ‘social distance’, or hide in their home. Those who choose can work from home, abstain from travel and exclude themselves as much as they like. No employer should discriminate against such people for isolating themselves. The rest should carry on as before February 2020.

As for being on the ‘wrong side of history’. The erudite Mr Cummins & co have a few choice words about that.

The alternative is the growing groundswell of public discontent and dissent, which will not be quelled by threats of censorship. All censorship has ever done is drive a topic underground and make it grow much bigger than it ever could under any other circumstances. The truth always leaks out, one way or another. History teaches us that this is true. Repeatedly.

Comfort food

The main heating went down today, so while we’re waiting for the heating guy to come and fix it, I went looking for recipes for a traditional rice pudding for some good old stick to your ribs comfort food.

Frankly me deario’s the results of my digital perambulations left me distinctly underwhelmed. Is it just me or do some Interweb chef types keep trying to make things far more complicated than they should be? Eggs in rice pudding? Do me a favour.

So I went back to the recipe I learned at Ma Stickers knee, which was an occasional but avidly anticipated treat to accompany Sunday dinner. One which I have adapted for the 21st century and simplified to produce a rich, creamy rice pudding to outdo anything you can get out of a can or packet. And it doesn’t leave you with an unpleasant eggy aftertaste.

You will need:

A three pint saucepan and wooden spoon.
A half cup of Pearl or short grain rice.
A quarter cup of sugar
One pint whole, full cream milk
One half capful of vanilla essence or half a de-seeded vanilla pod if you want to be ‘authentic’
A pinch of Cinnamon or ground Nutmeg if you have it, if not, don’t worry, this dish is great without either.

Method:

Throw rice and sugar in pan. Heat up half your milk in the microwave and add to rice and sugar. Stir. Put on a low medium heat until it begins to bubble. Stir again. Add half capful of vanilla essence. Stir again. Allow to bubble gently but do not boil. Stir again every ten minutes or so until milk has been absorbed by rice and sugar and the mix has thickened. This will take a while. About an hour. Add milk and stir in to reach the desired texture. Some like it milky, I like mine as a creamy glutinous mass. Sprinkle with a small pinch of nutmeg or cinnamon if you want and stir again. Chacun à son goût.

Serve hot or cold with a dab of jam. I like raspberry, but this is a cooks choice. Kids love this as they get to stir the jam into a warming pink mix which isn’t too sweet yet is very grown up. This has always been an instant hit Chez maison Sticker, and in these times when economical and low cost comfort food is an essential to keeping sane, will gain you high praise and esteem, even from teenagers, been there, done that and survived with kudos. May you be accorded the same success.

Happy eating.

Some old English

The more and more I hear out in the media and politics in general, the more I am reminded of a term from late middle English;

Hag ridden

First recorded in the 1660’s, “ridden by hags or witches,” past-participle adjective from hag-ride (1660s); from hag (n.) + ridden. From 1702 as “oppressed, harassed;” 1758 as “afflicted by nightmares.” An old term for sleep paralysis (the sensation of being held immobile in bed, a heavy weight, and accompanied by a sense of alien presence). ‘Hag’ being an archaic term for ‘witch’ or malign woman, and ‘ridden’, well, that is self explanatory.

From the Great reset and Green agenda to the shreds of the pandemic, we are all being ridden or oppressed by fear. We have media people telling us to “Suck it up” if we complain about our rights and liberties being taken away, or suggest that we’d like to celebrate an old midwinter festival without interference from the authorities.

We are being hag-ridden. I can’t think of a more succinct or appropriate description.

I also think Boris Johnson is being hag-ridden by his bitch of a fiance. She’s the one pushing the economically suicidal green garbage and I’d like to see a show of hands of who voted for her to be the UK’s Prime Minister. Anyone? Thought not.

Dead Horse theory

https://t.co/mxaSjA7GAB—
Zahra Abdi (@sara_bilan) March 04, 2019

Saw this on Pinterest today and it made perfect sense. These gross interferences in our human rights that Government is responsible for in the name of some perverse form of ‘safety’ fit the bill. COVID-19 / SARS/COV-2 is a dead horse. Not a ‘conspiracy theory’ but simple common sense.

Dr Mike Yeadon, ex head of Pfizer R & D surmises that the pandemic has been over for months because most of the population is now immune. The pandemic is over, as is the emergency. A simple test using the law of diminishing returns means this logically has to be the case. The disease has already done it’s worst with the vulnerable population.

Yet still various governments are talking about cancelling Christmas. I say to the politicians, put your hands up, admit it’s been a major over reaction and lift the restrictions. You will be forgiven if you are honest. However, that window is rapidly closing. Time to ‘fess up and play fair boys. All the talk of mandatory vaccinations is not a good idea as the worst has been past for ages. The pandemic is fizzling out as they all do. It’s running out of people to infect.

Small aside; in the grocery store around lunchtime I turned around to see a tall girl in her early 20’s standing waiting for her turn with the cashier. She was terrified. The look in the poor girls eyes was of full on rabbit in the headlight paralysing fear. Now I’m not that scary looking a person, and I don’t think her expression had anything to do with me. However, she was almost paralysed with fright, twitching at every little thing or if anyone came within six feet. As I left the store, I found myself wondering if she would be one of the first in line for vaccination and if the vaccine is not as safe as claimed, run the risk of health damaging side effects. For one so young at the very start of her adult life, that would be an unnecessary tragedy. Even so, the fear being pumped out at the vulnerable will have repercussions for years, not merely economically, but socially and emotionally, scarring a whole generation.

Quick statement of interest here; I normally have no problems with vaccinations. I’ve had the set, from TB, MMR, Polio, Diptheria and half a dozen others. And if I’m off anywhere where some nasty bug is endemic, normally roll my sleeve up with a grin. With one particular exception; Influenza. Historically on the three occasions I’ve actually submitted myself to a flu jab, I’ve always been ill for three or four days forty eight hours afterwards, so nowadays I tend to ignore all the wheedling from GP’s and Pharmacists to bare my arm. If forced to, I’ll take a discreet place at the extreme rear of the queue and go “Oh dear, what a shame. You’ve run out of vaccine? Well I’ll be off then. No need to fuss, you did your best. Byee…” And wait for the ones before me in the queue to fall over, or not, as the case may be. If experience teaches you that something is likely to make you ill, doesn’t it make sense to avoid it?

I’d also like to introduce anyone passing who reads this far down my febrile drivel to the ten commandments of logic. Always a handy list to have lying around. Just as a reminder for when the levels of media and political bullshit rise above waist level, like now.

Update: Interesting reports coming out of Milan, Italy. Apparently patients in a lung cancer trial were found to test positive for SARS/COV-2 as early as September 2019. Now Mrs S and I suffered from a very strange bout of an influenza type illness I called ‘The London Cough‘ in November 2019. If the bug was active in Milan, in September 2019, it is not a massive conclusion jump to conclude that we may have already been infected and recovered. If this is true we’re already immune to the bug, not likely to catch it or pass it on and therefore do not need to self-isolate, or wear a mask. We are safe from the world, and the world is safe from us. Isn’t that nice?

The great reset

…Mrs S got a little panicky when she heard about this proposal of how the world economic forum sees our future. This bothers us, because we have carefully garnered our retirement funds over the years and don’t want to be arbitrarily asset stripped by some anonymous arsehead. We’ve worked hard for our money and deserve to keep it. Tax paid.

Apparently everyone is very excited about the great reset, but I can’t raise any enthusiasm because Herr Strangeschwab’s book is such patent rubbish. His proposals have one glaring weakness: they’re based on common ownership, which isn’t an economically scalable concept for more than half a dozen hippies living out in the wilds. According to this academic, all stuff will be ‘rented’ and nothing will be owned by the common person in the street.

Question. Rented from whom? For stuff to be rented, there has to be an owner, right?

Answer: From the state, dummy. The government will own everything, and dole it out ‘fairly’.

Comments: This is laughable and complete hogwash. The ‘State’ is made up of people. Lazy, venal, opinionated arseholes. Just like you and me. Only more so. If you’ve ever had to negotiate the byzantine ways of your local government department, let alone at upper level without blowing a blood vessel or two, it’s slow, frustrating and would make even St Francis of Assisi lapse into a four letter tirade. ‘User friendly’ is not in the lexicon of government departments. Unless you are a member of a favoured minority.

Note: In the society envisaged by Schwab, all private investment will be outlawed. All investment and research will be done by the state.

Comment: Well that’s going to work isn’t it? State committees too often get bogged down in politics, where a given, readily achievable solution could be found by a small, well motivated group in a heartbeat, having everything filtered through layers of rule-bound management means nothing really gets done, well not very fast anyway. Apparently this will be done on a global scale.

Question: Who gets the say as to who gets what?

Answer: By wiser people than the man in the street. By properly qualified experts, slaphead. Not the average idiot who doesn’t have a piece of paper to prove they can use a piece of paper. Or a toilet.

Comment: Having seen the cock-ups the average ‘expert’ has been responsible for over the years, this does not fill me with hope. ‘Experts’ have been behind every major policy disaster of the last thousand or so years. Ordinary people are surprisingly good at making decisions for themselves, when they’re allowed to be. It’s only the tiny minority of Darwin award seekers that give the average person in the street a bad name.

Question: Why do we need this ‘great reset’ anyway?

Answer: To save the planet of course you moron. To save us from climate disaster caused by all you daft pillocks doing things that increase atmospheric CO2 like eating meat, going to concerts, taking days off at the seaside, living more or less where you choose, driving cars and taking nice holidays. Only elite members of government will be accorded those privileges in future.

Comment: Sounds like a recipe for abject misery to me. Reduced to the status of a chattel of the state, denied the right to bunk off and, I don’t know, follow your dreams like being a professional surfer or running a small online retail business, retraining to be a plumber or carpenter or blacksmith or just shoving off to some remote place to paint landscapes and drink in the beauty of the world. Maybe buy an old yacht and learn to sail around the globe, taking your chances where you may. Throwing in the towel on a bad job and just riding off into the sunset. No. Under the ‘great reset’ you will be no more than the property of the state, a slave with no real choices, expected to be grateful for the pittance you will have to live on, and forced to live without hope until your overstressed organs give up the ghost.

Never mind that the CO2 hypothesis of man made climate change is unproven. Or that we’ve had this talk of climate disaster ‘in the next ten years’ stuffed in our faces for at least the last fifty years. The climate will change as it is doing right now and there is nothing anyone, anywhere can do about it. When it comes to weather and climate, humanity is only along for the ride. It has little global influence, and CO2 is not the thermostat of the planet. If you disagree, go on, give me credible proof. Which you can’t. I can cite real, properly qualified climate scientists and astrophysicists who will tell you different in their peer reviewed studies.

To turn one of the ‘great reset’ slogans on it’s head; you won’t own anything, and you won’t be happy. If your stuff can be confiscated on a whim, how can you plan? How can you map out a future that will make your unexamined life even remotely worth living?

History teaches us that every time this kind of top down philosophy has been tried within the last hundred years it has failed miserably, spreading the misery around and filling mass graves from Europe to China and all points in between. The great reset is bollocks.

Tim Pool tells us that the jig is up with this huge steaming pile of horse-puckey that is the philosophy of the ‘great reset’.

We could do with sidelining this piece of portentous poison and the people who promote it. They’re obviously not fit for purpose. The solutions have to come from the bottom up, not the top down. Because the top has nothing but castles in the air filled with marsh gas.

Hunkering down some more

It’s amazing the difference a lick of paint makes. The solid fuel stove in what we’re now calling our library, because that’s where most of our books are, has had a fresh coat of matt black heat proof paint and looks just the business. We’ve also laid in six months plus supply of Yorkshire tea. So no need to pop out to the shops quite so often. Not that there’s anywhere to go because everything’s bloody well shut. So I busy myself as best I can.

Mrs S this morning came across this guy. Theodore Zeldin, philosopher. He’s very interesting. Hint; the title is deceptive.

In a time where people seem to be so angry and intent on imposing their vision on the rest of us, whether we like it all not, Zeldin is pointing in the general direction of a door to the future. Where that door will take us, no one can say. He says that we no longer listen to each other or have proper, in depth conversations without all the mud slinging and tantrums. Which I feel is where the core of all our modern day issues lie.

Anyway. As always; don’t take my word for it; listen, consider and above all, think. I think I’ll be adding his works to our library, where they will rapidly become dog eared from use, as all the best books should.

Good gravy! Or rather not

I’ve been trying to ignore the US elections by playing with my new kitchen gadget / toy. Specifically an air fryer, which does pretty good roast vegetables and makes a reasonable fist of out-of-a-packet frozen stuff that can get a bit soggy if the oven isn’t set up right. It’s also quicker than an oven. I’ve nicknamed it, as is my wont; ‘The Fat Dalek’ because it sits in my kitchen, balefully but harmlessly glowering at the rest of my kitchen appliances through three neon blue slits.

Fortunately the one thing it does not do with my cooking is try to exterminate anything. It also saves me a fortune on cooking oil. Very clean too. All I have to do is cut up the veg right, spice and toss in a little olive oil, throw it in the little container, set it running and bingo! Tasty roast veg. Much nicer than the alternatives, and much better portion control.

Mrs S asked me last night whether it did sauces as well, to which I had to go into a long, convoluted explanation of how the device works and why no, it does not do sauces. Anything breadcrumb coated from the freezer, great, roasts a resounding yes, roasted veg tossed in Olive oil and chips definitely, but nothing ‘wet’ like a pasta sauce, which is tonights culinary offering as part of a nice spaghetti bolognese. My ‘Fat Dalek’ will be a mute bystander to that process.

On the news however, and this is a massive however, you can’t switch on a ‘pooter without getting bombarded with stuff about the US elections. Sounds like Biden might not be in after all. See Viva Frei’s delve through the legalities below.

Well, he said, picking his jaw off the floor, if what the allegations say is only fifty percent true, then the whole Michigan election staff should end up in jail and the new guys forced to redo the entire vote from start to finish with cops and adjudicators standing over them, watching hawkishly for the first hint of impropriety. Oh my. This does rather call the behaviour of certain officials into question and no mistake. Coaching voters? Duplicate voting? Excluding ajudicators / ‘challengers’ from the counting rooms? Stuffing ballot boxes? Falsely registering votes? Blood and sand. Sounds like the soap opera is truly off and running. Wonder if any of those officials likely to be indicted over this matter will flip and turn states evidence? The fallout from those conversations would be illuminating.

Don’t know if the officials in question were going for the contest in how many ways to to skew a vote, but this must be some kind of a record outside of the third world, and I don’t care who was doing it for whom. If the republicans were accused of even five percent of the fraudulent activity alleged, the fourth estate would be screaming from the rooftops that not only is ‘Orange Man Bad’, but a cheat as well and therefore sent home with a sharp note to his mother and no longer allowed to play at elections any more, ever again with brass knobs on, so there and no returns. But they won’t do that for the other side of the aisle because it’s become painfully obvious that much of the US media is bent as a three cent note and not to be trusted without a sworn statement from three independent witnesses and video corroboration from it’s own mother. And probably not even then.

This whole US election business is like the ‘science’ of lockdowns, you know instinctively that something is well dodgy, but there’s bugger all you can do about it but point it out to others and laugh piteously when they regurgitate the nonsense they have been programmed with. They’re invariably those who trust government, not seeing it for the monster big government truly is. Because people who believe that ‘government’ can keep them ‘safe’ don’t understand the Godzilla effect big government can have on the poor bloody individual. Word to the wise; don’t get under it’s feet. Being squished is no fun at all.

Unlike my ‘Fat Dalek’, the gaze of big government is rarely harmless to the individual and should be avoided at all times where possible. As Reagan once said. “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’ Sends a shudder down my spine every time.

This is going to get real interesting, real fast. Let’s see what the courts say.

Update: The FEC is demanding (and getting) recounts of votes, and the overall picture is of massive ‘irregularities favouring the Democrat party.’ This ain’t over. Not by a long chalk.

Additional 15th November; the private Michigan vote challenge has been dismissed on a technicality by a Judge, but the other challenges are still ongoing. Oh well, it passes the time while these pointless bloody lockdowns continue.

Keeping up to date

Rainy day today, sitting in my office idly listening to the rattle of water on the skylights. Our worldly goods have arrived, been unpacked and set in place. I’m doing so many Amazon deliveries that I’m on first name terms with the postman. A few things to come, and Mrs S and I are getting a bit twitchy, having been forced by the lockdowns to sit on our hands when we should be up and moving forward.

Back at our old domicile I’m told they’ve already had their first snowfall of the year. Which is odd, as Victoria BC is supposed to be one of the most snow-free parts of Canada. They’ve even had November frosts. So much for that much-vaunted ‘man made global warming’ eh? Last Winter we had four snowfall episodes, when in most years up until 2008 the snowfall count was zero. Over here in the wilder west of Ireland, we’re told we might get snow once every ten years. I have a seeming that record is going to get ever so slightly dented this year. We’ve already had one unseasonable frost at the end of October and I think we might have to be out getting the cattle and sheep indoors over Christmas. We’re in the middle of a cooling event that has bugger all to do with carbon dioxide.

Did have a nose at the cold weather events from North America. Serious snow. Cold that is making brass monkeys audition as sopranos and Greenland gain ice hand over fist. Have a look at this web site for real time temperature and rainfall stats. Word to the wise; the clever money is on a thirty year cooling trend.

On the other hand, the dopes of organisations like Extinction Rebellion, who choose to disrespect science and the rest of humanity, still believe in an outdated body of knowledge. Which leads me to wonder, if such people want to believe that humanity is a cancer, why do they choose to carry on living? Go on guys. Depopulation has to start somewhere. Or is it just us plebs who have to pay for your delusions? Thought so.

As for these pointless lockdowns, Ivor Cummins (see below) runs the numbers and find that they don’t support the restrictions. Likewise the real science. By ‘real science’ I mean the real world stats and studies, not the shonky Imperial college data models used by SAGE and NPHET. Tell me again, why are these obvious incompetents still in a job?

Regarding the enforcement of lockdown out here in the wilder west of the Emerald Isle, the most I’ve seen on a visit to Ennis the other day, was a couple of Gard, or should that be Gardai, haven’t got the knack of the terminology yet, talking to two women whose ‘crime’ was sitting together on a car park bench, having a quiet natter over Coffee. If the Irish government were to stipulate draconian lockdown enforcement like in parts of the UK, there just aren’t enough coppers to do the job. As for previous (and red faced climbdowns from) various UK Police forces threats that they would be breaking down people’s doors on Christmas effing day, that has hurt the UK Police services effectiveness and may move enforcement into the hands of ‘private individuals’ (hem-hem) who might not have so many scruples over what happens to your friendly neighbourhood burglar. Which is a bad thing for the rule of law. Worse for the criminals of course, but also really, really bad for good governance.

The lockdown enforcement over in the UK does seem to be very uneven, with certain political groups being given free rein to congregate, but those protesting the lockdown restrictions get the heavy handed treatment.

As for further lockdowns, I don’t see how, given the evidence, that they do any good. Or that they can be imposed, yet again, without serious civil unrest from the general population. As for possible mass mandatory vaccinations, there are laws against that sort of thing from the 1940’s. Laws created because of the medical atrocities committed by the fascist regimes of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan. In most, if not all Western nations, the powers that be can ask people for their consent to be vaccinated, they can try to persuade, but cannot use any form of coercion, threat of job loss or other legal or extra-legal sanction. That is unlawful, both in international and domestic jurisdictions in most culturally western countries. This goes for any employer. Consent is paramount and the powers that be know it. If they have forgotten, then they need to be reminded. Because no-one in their right mind wants a re-run of those events from the 1930’s and 40’s.

One thing I’ve noticed from the stats is the low level of demographic information, where we don’t know the sex or ethnic heritage of the deceased. I have heard it rumoured, that those of a darker skin colour, or who practice whole body covering without increasing their vitamin D intake, tend to be at a higher risk of becoming a SARS/COV-2 statistic. Now if that information was publicly available; perhaps, he said naively, that lives could be saved. However it is not, so we are left with rumour and surmise as our only analytical tools. Or plucking numbers out of thin air, as so many ‘government advisers’ seem to do.

As for me, the rain continues to fall and I will be playing with a new kitchen gadget today. In these testing times we must find our satisfactions where we can.

Wall Streets man

Unpacking the last of our personal belongings on Saturday and noted that DJT is fuming over getting beaten in the electoral college that is the US presidential election. Which gave me pause for thought. If massive electoral fraud is not proven and old ‘Sleepy Joe’ Biden is the next US President, I look at it this way. Wall Street and the big corporates got what they wanted.

It doesn’t matter that Biden’s as corrupt as all get out. It doesn’t matter if he’s been picking the public purse through influence peddling. It doesn’t matter that he likes little girls and fondles them in public, and maybe much worse in private. It doesn’t matter that the vote has or has not been been rigged. Biden will do what he’s told because when push comes to shove, he’s Wall Streets man.

Obama was Wall Streets guy, which is how an activist with a minimal Senate term came from almost nowhere to the US Presidency. There was big corporate funding behind him. Clinton was Wall Streets candidate in 2016. Which is why her crimes were glossed over by a suspiciously quiet fourth estate. Trump, on the other hand, might get thrown in the jug on some spurious charge, although I doubt that the Supreme Court, now heavily Republican and constitutional, would allow that. It would take a couple of untimely deaths to shift that balance of power, although Judges that cross the big corporates are known end to up as targets.

All the Green New Deal stuff Biden and Harris talk about will have holes in it big enough for any corporate lawyer worth their salt to drive a truck through. The restrictions will only apply to the ‘little people’ anyhow. This is the reality of the situation. Trump was fun, he annoyed all the right people. However, unless he can prove that the vote was rigged, he’d be better off pulling in his horns and buggering off to play golf. He’s on a hiding to nothing. The US election has been bought and sold by the people who own the world, and BREXIT may well follow it because the corporates and trusts don’t like people doing what they want if it doesn’t make a crooked buck for them.

Besides, Biden hasn’t the intellect, just avarice and low animal cunning, and Wall Street likes that. It means he can be made to dance to their tune. And a merry little jig it will be. Like Trudeau is the corporates man. He does what he’s told and bugger the electorate. Not sure about Johnson, but I have a feeling he’s under heavy pressure to keep on giving the EU second chances. Because the corporates don’t like independence. They like things they can control.

The thing is, all these mainstream politicians are bought and sold. You can always tell who isn’t because a well-oiled propaganda machine is wheeled into action against them. The minute a politician of whatever stripe starts getting the idea they can do what the electorate wants, the boys with the balance sheets go to work. They have margins to maintain. They have NGO’s to do their dirty work and throw them money for this very purpose. Whole tribes of idealistic idiots at their behest, and it’s not just Soros funding them. He’s just the obvious fish in the pond that no-one likes. These activist NGO’s get their money from the big corporates and trusts who use the NGO’s activism to move markets and make money. They even own people within government itself. Which makes me half way surprised that Trump has lasted as long as he has.

So as their funding dries up, all the BLM and ‘hard left’ activists will have to scale back their activities. Less rioting. Less disruption. Because they won’t be needed any more. These activists don’t know, or want to know, that they are the unwitting tools of corporatism, but it’s where they get much of their funding. Because Wall Street and the corporates will have their man in the White House.

Cynical, moi? But of course. I listen to the money men and how they talk. Doesn’t take an Einstein to figure it out no matter what one’s personal feelings are. By way of illustration, there was an interesting (But paywalled) analysis in the UK Times Saturday which tweaked a neuron. About the growth of stocks and bonds under various administrations. One journalist ran the numbers which confirmed my suspicions. A US President of limited impact with a congress and senate in opposition is the best possible outcome for the corporate balance sheets.

Wall Street and the big corporates won this US Presidential election. The rest of us? We don’t really count.

Numbers don’t lie

Here’s an interesting little snippet. You know those ‘674 excess deaths’ we’re supposed to be hiding our heads under the blankets over? I was watching the analysis to the base data by Mr Cummins below. Of those 674 excess deaths, 638 were in their own homes, 67 in care homes, and only 15, that’s right, fifteen directly attributable COVID-19 deaths throughout the whole of the UK in hospital. The NHS was never over stressed.  (Hang on.  638 + 67 = 705?  Umm…. Thanks Ripper. Good catch.)

80% of COVID deaths occur in hospital. So that would make about 18 in total down to COVID-19. Fifteen of whom died in hospital from SARS/COV-2? (Corrected) Is that all? The rest of the ‘excess deaths’ are down to untreated heart attacks, strokes and cancers etc. But then take a look at the stats overall. Overall deaths are below normal for the year. Suicides, on the other hand, are way up.

Therefore, it is not unreasonable to state that lockdowns are not only ineffectual, but actively harmful. The numbers don’t lie. However, SAGE and the Government are lying. The drip-drip of lies via the mainstream media. And they’re killing people. Blood is on the pro-lockdown faction. The Police who suppress peaceful protests. Blood on their hands. Those calling for the Army to be put on the streets. Blood on their hands. Those who ‘double counted’ positive SARS/COV-2 infections, amplifying the ‘casedemic’. Blood on their hands. Those making money on the pandemic. Those who advocate waiting for a vaccine. Blood on their hands.

The pandemic is quite clearly over. It’s been over for months. Why aren’t the lockdowns? Listen to Dr Carl Heneghan, interviewed on Talk Radio 2nd November.

On the personal front, our furniture has arrived and we’re busily unpacking. Mr Bezo’s boys, no matter whether you like him or not, have been doing us proud. We can get stuff from them we can’t source out here in Ireland’s wilder west.

The echoing vastness of our new home no longer echoes quite so much. My bookcases are full. There’s streaming video on the TV via a gigabyte connection, chairs to sit on, and joy or joys, a proper table to dine at. Mrs S has been lighting candles. I have my cookbooks. No-one’s going to starve. The sun even shines occasionally.

I wasn’t surprised

So the UK has is to be plunged into another pointless bloody lockdown. As pressured by SAGE. I thought we had a bunch of idiots in charge over here. No, there seems to be a competition on as to which Government can F*ck their respective populations the hardest.

I find myself wondering if the European academics in question are running a book on how much a given western population can take in the way of economic pain and social misery. Or is this some clever backhanded way of discouraging illegal migrants? “Nah, don’t bother with the West, it’s a third world shithole.” Well it’s certainly heading that way. At least if these lockdowns continue.

Personally I think some bugger, somewhere is laughing up their sleeve at us all, watching stupid, know-nothing politicians and their ‘advisers’ turn once prosperous places into dystopias where only the feral homeless dwell. The feral homeless being the rump of the population after all the smart money has buggered off and found that all their reserves can’t really buy anything because the whole economy has crashed and burned leaving a desert behind it. Only those who know how to grow things out of sight of others will thrive. But that’s the extreme case scenario. All I know is that it will take ten years or so to fully recover from this Government caused mess.

This will be known as the generation that had it all, then threw it away for a bad flu bug.

Me and Mrs S are just KBO’ing. Dealing with each challenge as it arises. Hoping for the best but preparing for the worst and making sure we help the kids out where needed. I just feel like I’m bleeding money for no good reason. And there’s nothing I can do about it.