My Little Cleaver

Last night I listened to my 57 yr old brother, and my 17 yr old daughter, bemoaning the armies of hoody wearing youths who prowl our urban landscape, terrorising the innocent. They even referred to them as ‘hoodies’.

This has to be the last word in senseless, prejudiced generalisation. The hoody is a very practical, affordable, modern garment. Large numbers of teenage boys wear them. Some of these boys find themselves going through an antisocial phase. Duh! Teenage boys have found it hard to stomach society ever since there’s been a society. Does this mean that anyone who wears a hoody should be treated as a dangerous criminal? Most of these ‘disaffected youth’ also wear trousers, have teeth, and sleep with their eyes closed. Are these characteristics we should view with more suspicion? Read more »

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Last night I spent the evening watching the tube. November 13, and already TV ads are working their dreadful sorcery. An endless list of gift options and food and drink items for the feast, now a mere 6 weeks away, are paraded before hapless viewers.

Why does this still affect me? Its not that I want to rush out and buy all this crap, but rather that I feel guilty because I don’t want to. The arch winks and sly grins of a high sheen cast of glamour cats and kittens, would have me give in to their blandishments and START SPENDING MONEY!! Read more »

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This little magazine dropped through my letterbox the other day. Its purpose is to summarise police work in the area over the past year. All very commendable, but I take issue with one claim made in an artice entitled, ‘Life on the street’. In it, PC Christian Dicks states that, “The average homeless person in Cambridge can make £400 a week by begging.” He goes on to say, “In London I’m told its more like £1000.”

I cant help wondering where PC Dicks gleaned this information. My guess is it is the result of an exaggerated account of a particularly good day. Perhaps, a few days before Xmas, someone wound up with £73 one evening. He or she was probably far from average. Most likely they were playing seasonal music. Excited by their success, they bragged about it to fellow beggars & buskers, rounding their earnings up to £80 in the process. In this new polished version of reality, our braggart puts in a 5 day week and earns £400. And hey presto, in the giddy world of statistics, £400 becomes average earnings. Read more »

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Asked in May to review expenses by Downing Street, Sir Thomas Legg, a former civil servant, has applied new limits to categories like gardening (£1,000 a year) and cleaning (£2,000 a year). Both Gordon Brown, and Nick Clegg have made public their intentions to pay back money claimed for these activities.

Every household in the country would like the services of a cleaner and a gardener. Most of us either pay for these out of our pockets, or do without and do the work ourselves. Yet taxpayers are expected to fork out so Gordon Brown and company can keep the heirlooms dusted and their herbacious borders looking trim? In their second homes? Read more »

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My daughter turned 17 on Monday. So, after a bracing cup of cowboy coffee, I finally made the phone call I had been dreading. I wanted to know how much it would cost to insure my daughter to drive my car. Am I nuts? Read more »

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Here is a sorry tale of modern day ineptitude.

My twin sons in New York bought their younger brother in England a birthday present. In good faith they mailed it to him at our home address. A considerable amount of time passed, after which we received a letter from Parcelforce Worldwide, informing us that HM Revenue & Customs had raised(?) a VAT charge of £18.44 on my son’s parcel. To this Parcelforce had added a Clearance Fee of £8. Delivery of the parcel was subject(?) to payment of charges totalling £26.44.

And so, a 14 year old boy must save up most of his pocket money for 3 weeks in order to receive his birthday present? Read more »

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I was browsing comments after watching this moving video clip. Most were full of praise and wonder. One stood out in opposition. The writer claimed global warming was a hoax, suggested the speech and video were part of a sinister political exercise, and most disturbingly, claimed the USA was ‘the most generous nation in the world’.

Quite how he thought that dubious fact countered what the young girl had said is beyond me. But it highlights a flaw in so many of our good intentions. We are confusing donating with sharing. They are not the same. Read more »

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So Madonna has told David Letterman and his audience that she doesnt like being called ‘Madge’. She said to Letterman: “You know, that’s one of the reasons I left England, so I don’t have to hear the word ‘Madge’ any more….” Read more »

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