The Shaftmaster's Blog of Wisdom

Onsdag 15. juli, 2020

Well Johnson's said there WILL be a new inquiry into the Government's handling of the coronavirus. I see why, but letting BoJo just go on with his handling will still be a good thing... I guess?

But honestly I'm extremely worried my views are becoming more conservative by the day. I'm proud to be a socialist, but what's worrying me is my rigid support of the Government. They're making more and more mistakes. But then, Rishi Sunak's pretty darn competent.

In other non-COVID news, a partial supernova has apparently made this star spiral across our galaxy. That actually sounds cool.

More news in that Bulgaria and Croatia have both joined ERM 2, the next step to eventually joining the Euro. NO, NO NO. I worry for said countries. The European single currency hurts national pride and if the Lev and Kuna go, the high elements of nationalism in these countries will be supercharged. A poor move.

I'll sign off. Goodbye.

The Shaftmaster

Torsdag 9. juli, 2020

Hurrah! Finally I got a haircut. The sheer length of it before was driving me crazy.

Apparently Rishi Sunak announced yesterday that in participating restaurants you can get 50% off your meal if you eat out. Don't have to cook and get a meal half price... sounds good to me!

Damn - the BBC is going ahead with its TV licence thing. I feel so bad. This shouldn't be happening. I expect the Red Button will go too.

Oliver Dowden shall be doing a press briefing at 5. It's worth my time. It's good we're opening up so fast.

Joe Biden has criticised Trump's coronavirus handling. Rightly so. It's been too haphazard. You should always have a plan to do something. He's just not caring - probably playing golf, for all we know.

Also, Bulsonáro's got corona. I'm trying to stifle a laugh.

But on a more serious note, just bloody stay alert. It doesn't take much.

The Shaftmaster

Mandag 6. juli, 2020

Well. Encouragingly, the coronavirus death toll is only 16. That is, however, not denying that each one of those 16 is a life, a story lost to a silent, invisible killer.

I have been fairly rigid in my support of the Government and Boris Johnson throughout this crisis, but now I'm struggling to find the death toll. It's getting more and more difficult to find it by the day. It doesn't feel right.

I was going for a short walk today around my local area on the outskirts of Bristol and saw more people out on the field than ever (not including festival days). Most were pretty cool with social distancing, but it's only 1m IF IT'S IMPRACTICAL TO FOLLOW 2m. It's easy to socially distance on that darn field.

Anyway, as for diplomatic news, the outlook is currently very bleak. China has warned the UK not to "interfere" in the Hong Kong saga. Unfortunately, Xi, Britain has a right to interfere under the treaty that signed Hong Kong over. But we can't come for you. The risks would be terrifying. Don't worry about us, Xi, Great Britain is too "great" to follow any reasonable advice or follow its promises. It's not brave. It's not great at all.

And Starkey's come out and apologised. Should have been sooner. Slavery comes under the official definition of the word "genocide", I think you'll find... "so many darn blacks"... you're lucky people haven't realised how long it's taken you to regret - well, possibly - your comments.

I'll sign off. Stay safe all.

The Shaftmaster

25 June 2020

Goodness gracious - how long has it been since I last blogged?

Anyway, more news. No corona stories today (other than the death toll has reached 43,000). Apart from the COVIDIDIOTS in Bournemouth today.

Also, 331 Conservative MPs have voted against regular testing for NHS staff. One week you clap for carers, the next you deny them their safety. Horrible.

Next up is Robert Jenrick. Though the Westferry idea is relatively new, the political crime is as old as politics itself: quid pro quo.

So Tower Hamlets Borough Council refused planning permission for a residential housing block, which Jenrick overruled after meeting former Daily Express and Channel 5 owner Richard Desmond at a dinner. Two weeks later, in suspicious circumstances, Desmond donated a large sum of money to the Conservative Party. Also, Jenrick decided to overrule Tower Hamlets the day before a new infrastructure levy came in piling an extra £40m on top of Desmond's application.

He says he feels he's cheated the community. I say the same.

And lastly, Russia has celebrated Victory Day when the Soviet Union won against Nazi Germany in WW2 with the usual military parade - no social distancing, of course - and Moscow came out to watch the parade, despite orders to stay home. Ugh... ignorance is winning once again.

I'll sign off now. Stay alert.

The Shaftmaster

16 June 2020

Well this was an announcement I didn't see coming. The Prime Minister has just announced the merger of the Foreign Office and Department for International Development.

It's a pretty unexciting topic to discuss on this blog, but apparently it, to Boris at least, is sensible to have them both speak with one voice. I agree with him on this point, but crucially it undermines that same voice. I'm not a fan. Plus, I think of Dominic Cummings when I see that. He's doing what he did to Sajid David. Get more power, by giving more of a role to No. 10.

Also Marcus Rashford has made Boris extend the free school meal voucher scheme. I didn't expect the government would be that willing to take advice from a celebrity footballer. But these are strange times. And they certainly are, if the government is doing things based on celebrities' wishes. That said, however, I am happy.

15 June 2020

Y10 and Y12 are now expected back in school. It is safe. But I'd be reluctant to take the risk. And non-essential retail is allowed to open, at least in England. It's politically a good time to reopen them; not crashing the economy as much as they could.

They're saying the thug who urinated by the policeman's memorial has been jailed. Good. People do not understand the protection the police give us, and they take it for granted. And yes, that is my statement of opposition to defunding the police.

I saw an article on BBC Sport today about the rising racism in football. There is a problem. It cannot be denied. It cannot be tolerated for much longer, although I fear it is now the norm. No-one's going to have the power to stand up to racists. And that pains me.

But the laws aren't adequate for the new age. I remember when Bulgarian hooligans abused good English players back in October, they were fined a mere €30,000 by UEFA. That's diddly squat to a football organisation. If you end up scoring and cupping your ears to the fans who abused you, screw you. Booking for inciting the crowd.

Well, actually, I see why the last one's there. But surely standing up to abuse can be excused? Nuh-uh. It's UEFA protocol: this is what you've got to learn to get past. It's a shame, but sadly, is life fair after all?

Sadly not. And racism has to be stopped.

The Shaftmaster

14 June 2020

There's been little news in the way of corona other than that there's been "only" 36 COVID-19 UK deaths, according to Matt Hancock. But 36 deaths is not "only" 36 deaths. Each of those is a life, a life lost to an invisible serial killer. Also, this is a Sunday tally, so is less than what it would normally be. I'd be interested to see a new R-rate. In the mean time, stay alert, people.

So I'm going to dedicate this entry to an entry I've been meaning to discuss with you for some time: the dangers of the assumed facts of social media.

So I was looking on my Twitter feed a while ago and saw this video.

To mark #Belsen75 we sat down with @dimbleby_jd to discuss his father's dispatch; the interview turned to #fakenews & #medialiteracy. It forms basis of 4 new online self-guided KS3 materials: https://t.co/hTE0cxKPZr

RT @MeaUcl @BeaconBvga @MiaLeanne1 @S_AM_Costa @LawnManorHums pic.twitter.com/nnMDrgpVZu

— Holocaust Education (@UCL_Holocaust) 8. juni 2020

And I retweeted that.

"How important is it to be media literate?"

You've got to be able to tell the fact from the fiction. It's more important than ever. Doing social media like me has made me sceptical of a lot of the things I see. Use common sense: if it's too good/bad to be true, it probably is. https://t.co/brRGs7hgvl

— Toohak113 (@toohak113) 10. juni 2020

I pinned my retweet. And it still applies. Jonathan Dimbleby says in the video "Now, if we don't say 'Hang about - what's that person really saying? What does that picture really tell us? Do I trust that person? What criteria do I use to assess whether what I am told is valid? Whether it's reasonable? Whether it's fair? Whether it's true? Whether it's accurate?' Those things are fundamentally important."

I could not agree more. What is the most useful source to look at? And now, with all that goes on in the world today, when "everyone has one of these [a mobile phone] in their hands, judging what is true", it is important to tell the fact from the fiction. I'm here to source it all out for you, but we need to learn how to trust what we see when we swipe up on our feed.

The Shaftmaster

13 June 2020

Realised I hadn't blogged yesterday: sorry about that.

More corona updates: first of all - London. I'm sorry to say the Black Lives Matter protests are still going ahead, are as the far-right racists' counter-protests. It's been a sad day for London.

The way I hear it, the whole of Britain's neo-Nazi football hooligans - the BNP, EDL, National Front... you name it - are all descending on London to defend racist statues. I feel for the police. People weren't supposed to come down today: whether that was Black Lives Matter protestors doing the right thing and standing up to systemic and institutional abuse, or the thuggish fascists who are simply there to spoil for a fight.

I'm hoping they'll end at five, take the carefully-planned route set out for them by police. They won't, though. I know it.

That's the far-right for you: people with dated, disproved views still thinking they have the right to intoxicate others with their bigoted rhetoric. Truth is: you have the right to free speech, but it's morals to not spout white supremacist, racist falsehoods. They displease people. They infect people. They turn people against the truth.

But people weren't supposed to have descended on College Green anyway. COVID-19 isn't the only virus probably affecting people here (face coverings really aren't enough). Racism is a virus too, and it's spreading as I write. The racism R-rate is probably even higher than that of coronavirus.

In other news, Trump has postponed a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, due to its date's association with the slavery movement. I'm sorry, but this is a clear publicity stunt. Trump does a lot of these. I know when he tries to appeal. He's done so here. I think coronavirus could be his downfall come November.

Talking of U.S. politics, I heard my preferred Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders did an interview over the phone with the New Yorker the other day in which he gave a stance much closer to Joe Biden's than many had expected from him. I do think, however, that interview was to prove to Joe his pro-Biden credentials. Remember, Bernie is thought of as a disloyal figure to top Democrats. This might be what he needed to get back on Joe's radar.

I also see that Premiership players are supposed to wear 'Black Lives Matter' instead of their shirt names. Hopefully, the world is finally starting to wake up to its old past.

Now the far-right is attacking police. I'd better sign off before I am physically sick.

PLEASE NOTE NONE OF THE BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTESTORS ARE CURRENTLY PERPRETATING VIOLENCE

The Shaftmaster

11 June 2020

I woke up unusually early: 8 A.M. should be a fair time. I hope I can keep that schedule.

Enough boring guff. More corona updates. Apparently Gavin Williamson's going to give more details on the national catch-up plan in the Commons next week. It's a good decision; British children will never have a greater opportunity to learn, learn and learn.

One's willingness to learn and see the world is something I cannot quite stress the importance of. Life isn't fun when you're sat upm looking at your two laptops on your desk, from both very contrasting eras; on one you're playing the theme music from Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and the other you're typing a random useless blog.

I'm trying to make a home page for this blog to expand this site into something much more than a simple blog. I've got a small guestbook on the go, ready to put out there when the home page is ready to go online.

Oh Lord. And now Sheilas' Wheels is in my head.

It's safe to say I'd better sign off. Stay alert.

The Shaftmaster

10 June 2020

A lie-in is relatively useful (unless, of course, you sleep until 2pm, as I have realised today).

Well, it's been another eventful political day (there's a lot of these with corona). So after winning solitare on my 2002 Windows XP computer three times in a row, I just decided to write this.

Apparently kids here have to catch up with schoolwork once the coronavirus pandemic is over. Not my favourite solution, but sometimes you've gotta do what you've gotta do.

I was on PA (the Politics Amino, it's a group of politics addicts enthusiasts who just debate and post random stuff) today, and someone I was debating with about Trump's chances of re-election come November said Trump's COVID-19 response was "excellent". He proceeded to say I was "just like the people in Russia and China", a "Maoist cultural revolutionary". Honestly, I'm not a commie. I'm proud to call myself a leftie, but never a communist.

The BBC are saying that the coronavirus is surging in "new places", like Latin America. I fear that Brazil has nowhere near hit its peak, and Bulsonáro, the Brazilian dictator, predictably putting private profit before public health, is still happy to let the virus spread. It's calamitous. It defies logic.

I'm very confused by, and very concerned for, my world right now.

Keep your distance, and we'll get through this. I'll sign off.

The Shaftmaster

9 June 2020

Yet another day of lockdown and we're already 2 weeks in to the long, hard summer term. Time flies by when you're staying at home.

That Gavin Williamson came on the telly today in the Commons. As useless as ever. Children cannot be going back to school right now, not when a second spike is possibly imminent. I trust the Government is listening to the science but if the science really says you can drive 260 miles in lockdown when you've not had a corona test and you've sat much less than 2m with people you KNOW have been infected, then I really don't know what to say.

Black Lives Matter has still been going on. I heard that the next statue target is of Cecil Rhodes, the founder of the Rhodesia colony (modern-day Zimbabwe). I am, don't get me wrong, however, angry to pieces with the Winston Churchill target. Yes, he held racist views, but he fought against a greater evil that was Nazism. I just think these Bristol protests have, to some degree, been hijacked by a bunch of people taking advantage of a noble cause.

Seriously, my heart actually breaks for the poor guy having to clean the Churchill statue because (a) who knows who could have touched that thing and (b) he's got a difficult job as it is, clearing spray paint off a Westminster statue.

Sorry to end on a sad note, but unfortunately that's just how I see it.

The Shaftmaster

8 June 2020

So here we are. Almost out of lockdown. Well - hopefully.
I'm just sitting typing random HTML stuff in my room.

Damn Twitter has been going off all day. Apparently Black Lives Matter people tore down the Colston statue here in Bristol. I'm not sure if I can be happy it's gone, or angry at the protesters for their criminal damage and the thuginess that affected Bristol yesterday. To be completely honest, it should have come down earlier. I support the Black Lives Matter movement and its aims, but tearing down statues is one step too far for my liking.

My hobby and strength is current affairs, and so that's probably what I'll be blogging on mostly. I may be blogging fairly regularly. All I ever wanted was to have a Geocities website. They were cute. Neocities is the next best thing.

Will we have a second spike here in Britain? I really don't know. The R (that's the rate of corona re-infection) here in south-west England is 1.0 exactly. If the R is 1, then that basically means that anyone who gets corona will, on average, spread it to 1 other person. When the R is below 1, the virus doesn't spread. Pre-lockdown, the R was around 3, the natural rate for COVID-19. Now, it's about 0.7-0.9 across the UK. My area is the UK's second-highest (Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are checked on the R as their own areas, they're not split into areas like England).

Whelp - better get going. I don't know how often I'll update this blog but I assure you it will be regular and frequent.

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