Grexit

Poor old Greece, well and truly stuffed by the EU Banks. So, now the banks will milk Greece for every penny and for many many years to come. NGOs will now have to increase the support to the poor and prop up the medical system. More soup kitchens and more austerity.

Greece effectively just got taken apart and sold by the EU into slavery for decades. Now there will be a flood of young people leaving Greece and the already shrunken GDP will continue to shrink. The IMF and the Central Banks will make sure they just charge enough on the loans to keep Greece paying for decades and they will now run the country caring not a jot for the massive cuts to education, pensions, medical, defence and other essentials. Life expectancy in Greece for the poor just got shorter.

Geopolitically Greece will become a failed state unable to act as bastion for Nato in the Eastern Adriatic and countering Turkey. Nato will be weakened and Greece will edge towards Russia and the other Orthodox nations like Serbia in the region who also have much to dislike the EU for. A bad days work yesterday and for what.

I predict bad things will come of Greece selling its soul to stay in a flawed currency. This was a case of better a day as a lion than the life of a mouse and Greece was bullied into a mouse trap.  The poor will stay poor, the sick will become sicker and we could well see aid in many guises being sent to Greece as un-employment (already at 50% for the young) hits higher levels. Already 20 business a day are going broke.

I only hope someone somewhere has a little morality left. But, I doubt it.. We have no politicians left who are not in the pay of the bankers. The EU just got a very scary club and I for one will vote to leave it at the first chance. I think Finland will do the same. I prefer freedom to being told what to do by the Germans.

Good luck Greece your going to need it.

This picture was taken this week in Athens and the same picture can be taken anywhere in Greece and on any day. Look at Europe in 2015 and wonder at where we are going wrong.

How would you like to see your Mother reduced to this? This bullshit has to stop. When a political system cannot look after and defend its poor, sick, elderly and young then it has failed and the European Union (ha! Union?) failed totally yesterday and miserably by showing no compassion or moral obligation on even a basic human level to the people it is supposed to protect. Shame

List of Huntingdonshire Cabmen Weekending 10th July 2015

Awards are here by promulgated:

1st Gear:
Ada Dada
Dilbert Deranged - Daffodil Minor


Second Gear
David Davidson-Davies
Sluice Faucet Snr Rtd
Grundfuttock the Flabbergasted
Adrian Skin-Blemish

Third Gear
Victor Voluminous-Voglemunchburger
Hampton Trouser-Press
Oliver Oligarth-Sprain
Frampton Frampton


Fouth Gear
Mouse Minor
Harpoon Wilson-Picket
Mandible Tooth-Whitening
Terrapin Tragedy

Fifth Gear - in waiting
Prudence Nightly
Tom Prong
Wilson Wilburforce-Trousertrumpet

RIP
William Ground-Water
Peter Wombleboard-Spillage
Kingsley Crabs-Infestation


Special Notice;
Hungerford Chapter has been placed in special measures due to un-authorised use of metric units. Please note only Imperial measurements and time are to be used in demi official memorandi. Failure to do so may invalidate use of pump priming during the hours of darkness and where loud shirts are specifically allowed.

Steam Powered Wireless Sorry Radio

I love Radio Four.. It is an English Institution, but it contains two of the worst programs known to man in during the day. Womens Hour and the Archers. The Latter we have discussed at length some time ago. An every day tale of country folk it is not. If I lived in Ambridge it would be for pure curiosity to see what strange event happens next. Eddies first miscarriage being about 50 to 1 at the moment followed by Mrs Dale popping in for  a  natter about her diary with Doctor Finlay at odds on.

But woman hour that is in a league of its own. Never is there a happy item. Its just one hour of how to loose weight usually by some terrible condition requiring amputation, or slow agonizing death allied to the use of slimming pills or whatever the Daily Mail is headlining as this weeks curse. Then we have daily bashing doled out concerning anything male with handy link on the website to whatever lame arse charity, or single issue pressure group has formed a herd.

Why cant we have Mans Hour with such handy tips as how to rebuild a MG Roadster and how to avoid your prostate being inspected by folks you dont know or wish to. A segment on wine storage in your shed would be good and the correct method of whiskey distillation using the old water boiler and a hose pipe.

I gave up yesterday trying to get something to listen to that did not end in prozak.  I was spinning through the waves and on one was some idiot speaking advanced Essex "noawah see init sick totalleee whatever right no problems that was Milly Cyst with her banging track and now the news", on two it was a major item on what electric cars should sound like "My horse was startled the other day by an electric car. Its very dangerous and I think they should sound like waves or similar" and another women who said and I quote here: "I have run over four cats since I brought a Prius"! Is that a case for the RAC or RSPCA I mused.  I moved on to local radio to hear some sad arse describing the last moments of a lizard apparently eaten by a bigger Lizard...QED? and then the problems getting recompense from a builder who had installed a window with the handles on the outside!!!!!!!!!!!!! Maybe its time for Happy FM I thought as I put on a cd.

OK OXI it is!

Yippee,
The cradle of democracy has spoken and told the banks to shove it and done so with gusto.

Fantastic and possibly the first signs of spring after a long dark winter of capitalist excess. Could we now see a return to real equality, fraternity and dignity for the people of Europe. And and end to poverty, austerity and rampant banker excess.

May this be the wake up call for the EU to end the run of its un-elected chambers and a curtailment of the IMF and banks rule by austerity and imposition of poverty on those it is supposed to be there to serve not rule. Fingers crossed.

Of course the news media will have a field day headlines like:
"Thousands leave Greece"
"Banks could collapse"
"Elvis found on mount Olympus"
"Greek Prime Minister ate my Hampster".
"Emergency EU summit"
"Greek Banks cause run on Pitta Bread"
"Greek leads EU revolt"
"Greece apply for oyster card blocked by Boris"

As we speak you cannot get a hotel with a veranda in Athens thanks to the news teams setting up sat dishes next to the sun loungers. Also, all the heads of Euro, IMF ECB and even bloody Wonga are packing their swimming cozys and booking the Ryan air to an airport only 100 miles from Athens. Naturally, easy terms on loans and no questions asked. Hold on! Isnt that how we got in this mess.

Five drakmars will get you ten that the Russians will soon be on the scene causing a run on house prices on the Adriatic and I bet even the Syrian refugees will stop going.

At last we finally got some humanity back into politics and the rights of the people against the endless pursuit of the minority for riches and of course what really is causing panic is the possibility that Portugal, Spain, Italy and Ireland may now ask for their loans to be re-scheduled. Ha! Brilliant. For once could the one percent who own 90 percent of the wealth of this world be in for a "hair cut".. I for one hope they get scalped.. A good dollop of beans on toast and switching off lights might do them good.

Cream Tea

Yesterday was a very warm day. It was even warmer in the kitchen of the local church making endless cups of tea while the girls made endless plates of cream teas. the village did a splendid job of turning out the scones and jam while the local farmer donated the strawberries. The cue was a mile long at times and I think we must have served half of the area. By the time my shift had finished at 3.30 I was bathed in sweat and ready for a breather. Good fun mind you and so nice to be able to do something towards the greater good.

Two dear friends turned up just in time to carry on the good work and it was good to see them roll up their sleeves and get stuck in. I, like them, have no idea about the rest of the village fete. We never got time to see it. A simple day, but fun with the joy of a common cause.

Greece
Well, today is the day we find out whether the good people of Greece will send the Bankers packing. I do so hope so. I do so hope they fire the first shots across the bow of the rampant capitalism that has wrought havoc with the poor carrying the burden and the rich few as always simply moving to new grass and better pickings.

Wednesday in UK will bring the Chancellors Budget and £12 billion  of cuts to the benefit and welfare budget. I wonder how much the poor, once again, will pay for the £1.8 trillion lost by the banks. My dear Lord! £1.8 trillion???????? How many hospitals, how many  children lifted from poverty, how many pensioners able to pay their power bill without freezing each year. How many with dementia given proper care and how many Nurses would that pay for.. ?

I still cannot fathom how the Bankers and Government make us responsible for paying back money they lost and we never saw a penny of. It has to be at the very least morally reprehensible. Why can they just print money to get the banks out of the mire they themselves created and yet cannot print a quick billion to help those using food banks to feed themselves. 2 million children in poverty in a country like UK.. No... tis wrong and those that created the debt should for once carry the burden.

Go on Greece..

List of Huntingdonshire Cabmen

List of Huntingdonshire Cabmen Week Ending 3rd July 2015:

Awarded First Gear:
Splodnick the Terrible Son of Splodnick
Spencer Strange-Denture

Awarded Second Gear
Lady Montford Mountjoy-Kneetremble
Henry Paul Jones Hermitage-Ramshackle
A.Bee
Wendleberry Wrist-Action Jnr


Third Gear
Non Applicable

Fourth Gear
Susan Sauce-Buchett
Terrence P Hampton-Smallmole
Jody J Juniper-Spline

Fifth Gear
Henrik Wambamalouba-A-Wambambou
Paul Countersunk-Castlelatednut
Cresta Nasal-Twine

RIP
Brenda Burnished-Bedstead
Mandy Post-Natal
Mutt Pratt


Special Notice:
Following has been suspended:
Wales

Greece

Well, I have to say I like the Greek Government a lot.. Much more than the German government does that is for sure. Shame the Germans (as if!) just cant get that the honor of Greece and the well being of its people came before bending before the banks. The Greeks thought why should we have to borrow to pay just the interest on a loan that is breaking the country and driving the poor to starvation with penury. Good for Greeks to teach us about democracy again and I wish them luck with their referendum. The Greek government has done the right thing asking for a vote of confidence and a mandate to carry on into possibly very uncharted seas that lie ahead. The government will need the people to navigate the course ahead and thus give the EU a shot across the bows that it really needs.

What gives the banks the right to enslave a nation? Those same banks that gave Greece lavish terms and turned a blind eye to the warning signs that Greece was not ready for currency union now charge massive interest on the loans they gave Greece and would keep them broken for decades. Austerity for all after a summer of plenty. Typical.

I think its time the the EU halted and decided just what it was for,  a monolithic generator of rules without recourse to national members law,  monetary union beyond public control. Or, a place that actually has morality and is  democratically responsible to its members? I would suggest Portugal, Ireland, Spain and Italy prove that monetary union was a bad idea and without any real hope of prospering.. Moldova and other new EU nations will prove likewise that a two speed Europe would have been a better idea and the lack of that two speed Europe may prove the undoing of the EU. Unless the Eu adapts to the needs of emergent and fragile democracies who for many years lay beyond the iron curtain and only now are showing green shoots and they are tender then it will kill the green shoots off before they have chance to bloom.

The EU has tried to be too much to too many people and frequently without a mandate from the people it serves. It actually feels the other way around.. We serve the EU and that cannot be right. Greece may be the wake up call it and wee need.  

Time the EU stayed out of the business of trying to be a giant state and balance to America and tried to do its job. A European Union of member states constructed for the benefit of those states. Not Government of those states. We all have our own governments for that.

Further, Central Banks should be held far more to account for the damage the wreak.