Jeremy Corbyn on Amber Rudd

There has been disquiet that Amber Rudd is merely a scapegoat for Theresa May's policies. May wanted to outdo the racism of UKIP and her hostile environment was part and parcel of that policy.

Jeremy Corbyn tweeted today. I think you will agree:

Today I've been meeting people from the Windrush generation. They’ve made an incredible contribution to this country.

With @AmberRuddHR's departure, @Theresa_May has lost her human shield.

The Prime Minister should end the “hostile environment” she created. 

 

 

Charles to head Commonwealth

The accession of Charles Windsor to the leadership of the Commonwealth has been portrayed (at least by the more toady sections of the press) as a great victory for monarchism. Nothing could be further from the truth. The choice of Charles Windsor  as a new figurehead underscores the irrelevance of the Commonwealth.

The Australian Government for example couldn't care less whether Mickey Mouse or Goofy became head of the Commonwealth. Australia is now officially a South East Asian nation. In the terms which count to Australian big business - i.e. dollars - trade with South East Asia is seen as more important than clinging to the remnants of Empire.

Charles makes George III look like a model of sanity. According to legend, George made a tree on his estate prime minister. Charles regularly talks to his plants. If you find he tries to replace May with a hawthorn don't say I didn't warn you.

To underline how in touch he is with the modern world,  Charles told Anita Sethi that she didn't look as if she were from Manchester. This was laughed off in The Sun as "like father like son", another blunder in the mould of the loveable Prince Philip.

Anita Sethi did not find it amusing and regarded it as evidence that Charles had no business leading the commonwealth. In the Guardian article entitled "Dear Prince Charles, do you think my brown skin makes me unBritish?" she said "Most of all, I feel angry that there could be such casual ignorance in the corridors of power, an ignorance that also permeates society – not least because some British people of colour invited here have been threatened with deportation. They don’t look like they are from here, according to some."

It is way past time to sweep away these royal parasites.

Cuts in Worthing

In WORTHING, your council will have £83 less to spend on your household by 2020 than they had in 2010. 

Under the Tories some of the most deprived areas in the country are hit the hardest, while Tory councils are given a better deal. 

On average, Tory councils will have £128 less to spend per household, while Labour councils are hit four times harder – losing £524.

Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

I see from the Worthing Herald that Christopher James has been allowed to stand as a Conservative candidate after a good five years with the obnoxious racists of UKIP. Is this a change of heart or a sober assessment of the chances of UKIP gaining or losing seats on the council? Doesn't the Tory Party have some kind of de-nazification process for former UKIPpers and if not why not?

Is there a principled difference between the Tories and UKIP?


UKIP started out as a protest against the EU but with the infiltration of the National Front a number of racist, misogynist and homophobic policies which are irrelevant to the EU came to the fore. Voters in Durrington should be aware of precisely what they are voting for. Is it a wolf in sheep's clothing?

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AI blues

If people are seriously concerned about the impact of AI, they could do worse than remember the ideas of the  scientist and writer, Isaac Asimov, who formulated the three laws of robotics. The first of these was, "a robot may not harm a human being or by inaction allow one to come to harm.' 

This is a far cry from the aims of the military planners but it brings a human perspective to the problem. We could do with one.

Gatwick Detainees

The address of Gatwick Detainees Welfare Group is 
The Orchard, 
1-2 Gleneagles Court, 
Brighton Road, 
Crawley,
 RH10 6AD

It is easiest to donate online https://www.cafonline.org/charityprofile/gdwg

Art exhibition at Cockatoo Island

Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour was the venue for an art exhibition which appropriately challenged the prevailing orthodoxy of the Turnbull Government. Turnbull has sought to gain votes by running a hate campaign against asylum seekers and promoting a nationalist "Australia First" policy.

The exhibition was dominated by an exhibit by Ai Weiwei which was made with rubber from a factory in China which produces boats used by refugees. It is entitled "Law of the Journey" and reflects the conditions under which many refugees have risked their lives on the sea.

Another exhibit was a replica of the Hiroshima bomb which was an accompaniment to an animated display by Yukinori Yanagi which centres on an eyeball in which are reflected the atomic tests, many of which were carried out in the Pacific.

Cockatoo Island itself has a grim past. On it you can still see the barracks in which convicts lived in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions. You can also see the scarcely better accommodation of the soldiers who were guarding them and the luxury accommodation provided for the privileged officers. All of these were built with convict labour i.e. slave labour.
One artwork which interested me depicted one of those unfortunate convicts.

Is there any principled difference between the Tories who sentenced them to transportation for life 150 years ago and their heirs who say of asylum seekers who died in the Mediterranean "they made their own choice"?