178 Responses to START THE WEEK OPEN THREAD….

←Older Comments
  1. John Anderson says:
    July 14, 2015 at 5:43 pm

    5pm Radio 4 News Programme – “Obama hails the Iran deal, Netenyahu attacks it. Who is right ? We will ask Jeremy Bowen”.

    Yeah, great. Why not ask Yolande and Orla and Jon as well. We know they will all be unbiased.

       21 likes

  2. An English Gentleman says:
    July 14, 2015 at 5:45 pm

    I think this might be a duble post so apologies if it is……..

    I like this explanation of the Greek bail out by the ECB and EU…….

    It is a slow day in a little Greek Village. The rain is beating down and the streets are deserted. Times are tough, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit.

    On this particular day a rich German tourist is driving through the village, stops at the local hotel and lays a €100 note on the desk, telling the hotel owner he wants to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one to spend the night. The owner gives him some keys and, as soon as the visitor has walked upstairs, the hotelier grabs the €100 note and runs next door to pay his debt to the butcher.

    The butcher takes the €100 note and runs down the street to repay his debt to the pig farmer. The pig farmer takes the €100 note and heads off to pay his bill at the supplier of feed and fuel. The guy at the Farmers’ Co-op takes the €100 note and runs to pay his drinks bill at the taverna.

    The publican slips the money along to the local prostitute drinking at the bar, who has also been facing hard times and has had to offer him “services” on credit. The hooker then rushes to the hotel and pays off her room bill to the hotel owner with the €100 note.

    The hotel proprietor then places the €100 note back on the counter so the rich traveller will not suspect anything. At that moment the traveller comes down the stairs, picks up the €100 note, states that the rooms are not satisfactory, pockets the money, and leaves town.

    No one produced anything. No one earned anything. However, the whole village is now out of debt and looking to the future with a lot more optimism. And that, Ladies and Gentlemen, is how the Greek bailout package works

       7 likes

  3. Leamas says:
    July 14, 2015 at 6:30 pm

    Mark Easton’s report on the BBC situation on the Six focussed on a fightback against “what [the BBC] sees as its commercial and ideological enemies”.

    No mention of the BBCs ideology, and certainly no mention of why the hell it has one when its charter requires that is should not.

       17 likes

    • Essexman says:
      July 14, 2015 at 7:26 pm

      Some fuckin race hustlers on the One Show promoting, another programme about slavery. That is English ,Hideously White People ,owning slaves in the America’s & West Indies. Of course, no one else, apart from the English did slavery, did they?

         24 likes

      • Mr Glodstone says:
        July 14, 2015 at 7:49 pm

        “It was not until November 1962 that the government of Saudi Arabia, which was exempted from British abolitionist efforts in the 19th Century ‘on religious grounds’ found a ‘favourable opportunity’ finally to abandon slavery on paper”
        John Alembillah Azumah – “The Legacy Of Arab-Islam In Africa”.

        Why don’t the BBC do a feature on that and the continuance of slavery in Muslim lands, such as Mauritania? Instead of denigrating this country, which was the principle driving force in seeking the cessation of slavery and the slave trade.

           21 likes

      • Leha says:
        July 15, 2015 at 12:05 am

        There was a proggy on Yesterday channel tonight about how the Norse Viking invaders took thousands of folks from these islands to be sold into slavery, I think It’s about time for some reparations and a bit of compo and the Norskies to wear hair shirts and apologise profusely to us.

           9 likes

        • Mr Glodstone says:
          July 15, 2015 at 8:36 am

          The programme should also show to whom it was the Vikings sold those slaves – Muslims.

             3 likes

  4. logiebored says:
    July 14, 2015 at 7:58 pm

    Radio Five Live had their ‘Persian Special Correspondent’ on this afternoon giving his take on the Iran nuclear deal.
    “It is a good deal for all parties” was his considered opinion, when asked to comment on the proceedings. I didn’t get his name, but it was obvious that he was locally based; to Tehran anyway.
    I do realise with 5 Live we’re dealing with Janet & John news gathering, but even their listeners, Darren and Kellie, must raise an eyebrow when their fave station comes over all Press TV.

       16 likes

  5. Thoughtful says:
    July 14, 2015 at 9:03 pm

    Petrol & diesel is likely to plummet now Iranian oil is free to flow into international markets. Even if Saudi cut production it is unlikely to have much effect.

    You can bet that Saudi and the other Sunni Muslim states have sanctioned this deal before Obamas administration was allowed to make it, and the Saudis are saying nothing about it to the press.

    http://news.yahoo.com/irans-nuclear-deal-puts-saudis-edge-170846259.html

       6 likes

  6. brett says:
    July 14, 2015 at 9:05 pm

    Anyone else catch the 100grand house programme on bbbc 1,8pm. Labour councillor from bury, mr khan, decking out his new build with a prayer to (the almighty) allah, aided and abetted by piers and tristram. We pay for this. At least we found out that he modelled it on -dubai hotels -that he frequently visits, not cheap eh, but he was doing it on a budget he tells us. More questions than answers for me.

       15 likes

    • Lobster says:
      July 14, 2015 at 11:01 pm

      I wonder if he had any difficulty getting planning permission?
      Possibly not ………

         6 likes

  7. Dover Sentry says:
    July 14, 2015 at 9:42 pm

    Muslims stole 1.25 million European slaves between 1530 and 1780. The Barbary Pirates operated from the Mediterranean.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_pirates

    ‘Historian Robert C. Davis estimated that between 1530 and 1780, 1–1.25 million Europeans were captured and taken as slaves to North Africa, principally Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, but also Constantinople ‘

    This is never referred to by the BBC. Why?

    But at least Blair apologised on my behalf for the enslavement of blacks. Have any other apologies been made for the enslavement of my English people by the Muslim Barbary Pirates?

    ..

       23 likes

    • Al Shubtill says:
      July 14, 2015 at 10:22 pm

      Quite right DS; also most of the slaves who were transported across the Atlantic, went to South America and not the U.S.

         13 likes

  8. Guest Who says:
    July 14, 2015 at 10:31 pm

    It would seem the ‘stars’ are out tonight. And they have written a letter:

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/bbc/11740010/stars-open-letter-to-david-cameron-over-bbc-reforms.html

    Some may feel a collection of millionaires and the odd billionaire pitching to keep a gravy train, reliable PR partner and/or ideological fellow political Traveler in the style to which they are accustomed, on the back of the public, is a bit rich.

    Maybe, like the over-75s, they could be invited to chip in if they are that smitten?

       16 likes

    • Dover Sentry says:
      July 14, 2015 at 10:48 pm

      Thanks to Guest Who for the link.
      And what a bunch of luvvies have aligned themselves to the BBC.

      Including Prof Brian Cox of warmist fame:
      Prof Brian Cox, BBC presenter, believes “a diminished BBC would mean a diminished Britain”

      How on earth could a diminished BBC mean a diminished Britain?
      How can any sense be made of those words?
      How can the diminishment be quantified?
      It can’t. It’s total bollards.

      ..

         21 likes

      • dave s says:
        July 15, 2015 at 12:37 am

        It is actually offensive to me. That bunch of typical wealthy and right on so called talent have no conception that for their bloody BBC to use prison as a means of enforcing payment of the tax that keeps it in being is not acceptable under any circumstances and cannot be defended. This is 2015 not 1315.
        Sorry luvvies it is that simple. The BBC adds nothing to England . It takes and takes and it is never enough for it.
        Make it fly on it’s own. Time for it to leave the nest and then we can see just how many of us really want it.

           16 likes

        • Pollystuscannyvilla says:
          July 15, 2015 at 7:45 am

          The following are the names of those who signed. I doubt if any are NOT millionaires.

          Wth the single exception of David Attenborough and yes Michael Palin none are worth their inflated fees.

          If they love the Beeb so much let them dig deep in to their deeper pockets…or take a pay cut so we pay less and help save their precious institution…or go on strike and show some luvvie solidarity…No didnt think so.

          David Attenborough

          Clare Balding

          Melvyn Bragg

          Brian Cox

          Daniel Craig

          Richard Curtis

          Judi Dench

          Chris Evans

          Stephen Fry

          Nick Grimshaw

          Miranda Hart

          Lenny Henry

          Gary Lineker

          Michael McIntyre

          Steven Moffatt

          Trevor Nelson

          Annie Nightingale

          Graham Norton

          Jamie Oliver

          Michael Palin

          Adil Ray

          JK Rowling

          Mark Rylance

          Simon Schama

          David Walliams

          Rachel Weisz

          Claudia Winkleman

          Reggie Yates

             9 likes

  9. The Old Bloke says:
    July 14, 2015 at 10:57 pm

    A diminished BBC means a diminished Labour Party.

       18 likes

    • G.W.F. says:
      July 14, 2015 at 11:20 pm

      Ha ha ha. Just read the Telegraph piece about the luvvies who have soaked the taxpayers and hogged time on the BBC. Do they really think that anyone outside of the BBC care what they think?

      But missing from the list is that odious little creep, Hignify Hislop and the greatest historian or something like that Prof Mary Beard.

         17 likes

  10. Al Shubtill says:
    July 14, 2015 at 11:47 pm

    Just caught a little (accidentally) of this Alan Yentob documentary about American black writer Toni Morrison.
    She said “No one loves like black people” can you imagine the response if a white writer had said the same: but about whites.
    Total inverted racism, which seems to be perfectly acceptable at the Al Beebus.

       19 likes

    • D1004 says:
      July 15, 2015 at 7:43 am

      I saw old Yentob having a wank fest over another Black writer as well. The self hater had a field day. Listening to the woman rabbiting on about her hatred of white people, how her father would never let them in the house, etc.
      Full of the usual things, ‘strange fruit ‘ played over the same old photos, pictures of riots, other black writers whinging about their lot in life. Got a very attractive female writer to read to camera a part of a book where the writer opened her legs and let the Black Buck fuck her hard…..God, Yentob hates himself so much, does he go to the nice cellar in SW19 where the neighbours complain about the noise ? Probably on the top floor phones speed dial.
      These ‘liberal’ leftie self haters would have had to invent the American Negro if they never existed, they love them so, no other group on human history has suffered so much…..according to them. Is Yentob next going to interview that woman of Scandinavian ‘heritage’ and ask her why she so wanted to be black ? He might as well ask his mirror.
      What is the obsession ? Why do they need to go west and feel the love ? Sad, sad, verging on being mentally ill.

         8 likes

  11. Stuart B(eaker) says:
    July 15, 2015 at 8:02 am

    Lying by omission, again..

    This morning’s interview with Lord (Chris) Smith of the ‘Task Force on Shale Gas’ conveniently omitted to mention that this official-sounding body is in fact an ‘independent’ organisation with close links to the anti-carbon energy movement, through funding and membership.

    The same tactic used recently to give the ‘Committee on Climate Change’ a spurious air of official status, when it is in fact a partly Grantham Institute staffed and backed ‘independent’ organisation.

    Another lie by omission this morning – the crisis in baseline energy provision, discussed at length with but a single mention of the solar/wind dimension to it all, and a complete failure to give the audience an opportunity to understand the wrecking-bar effect that green policies have had on the stability of our supplies.

    Just another couple of routine, tiresome, examples to put into the review of the BBC – anyone listening out there?

       12 likes

  12. AsISeeIt says:
    July 15, 2015 at 8:04 am

    It’s not often that you’ll hear a journalist exclaim that they are ‘glad’ a big story has come to an end.

    Anyway, I had assumed that BBC news presenters were not supposed to express their own personal opinions on stories. Does our national broadcaster not frown on such personal opinion appearing to represent the corporation – on Twitter for instance?

    No such worries for former CBBC star Ore Oduba. This iconoclastic BBC sports reporter seems to have been granted the leeway to go his own way. From Wimbledon – where a chastened John Inverdale cowered at the margins – our Ore bravely referred to the females in the game not as Ladies or Women but ‘girls’.

    Now this morning Ore Oduba tells us he is ‘glad’ the Raheem Sterling transfer story is over.

    That’s the greedy, disloyal, recreational-drug-using, dissappointing performances for England, young black footballer.

    So our Ore is ‘glad’ the bad publicity surrounding his transfer is over. Well, how can the BBC promote the black posterboy when he’s being shown up by his bad behaviour in the press day in day out?

    Come on Raheem, play the game.

       10 likes

  13. Jeff Waters says:
    July 15, 2015 at 8:25 am

    Scott Walker: A Republican candidate made by liberal activists? – http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-33511971

    This article can be summed up as:

    ‘Noble liberals attempt to thwart evil conservative, but alas their valiant efforts tragically backfire.’

       7 likes

  14. Geoff says:
    July 15, 2015 at 8:41 am

    93% of those listed above are guaranteed to have me hastily reaching for the channel up button should they appear on screen.

    This morning for the 1st time in months I caught 5 minutes of Breakfast Time, from the local news and weather to the programme itself, its a load of over feminised, over inclusive insipid tosh, how people can stick it for more than 5 minutes, Christ knows.

    Flick to Radio 2 Evan’s is on holiday I hear, I’ll take a punt, who do we get standing in? Bloody Sara Cox, unimaginative 90’s chav presenter with the ‘text us your funny stories’ ‘tell us what your doing today’ matra. Is this the same station that at Breakfast time, brought us Ray Moore and Terry Wogan, intelligent presenters who were able to amuse us for hours without the safety net of texts and Twitter.

    You bet the bBC has lost its way, dumbing down is rife, they’ve won, they’ve produced a nation of adult kids unable to think for themselves, a nation of tattooed and metalised freaks, not long now until the bBC will be making a programme about ‘weird’ untattooed people, roll up roll up come and see the amazing untattooed woman….

    I digress!

       10 likes

  15. JimS says:
    July 15, 2015 at 9:08 am

    Radio 4 Today was doing a report on its would-be favourite, youngest MP, Mhairi Black and her maiden, (can they still say that?), speech in the House of Commons.

    I’m curious, can’t the BBC pronounce her name, or is she such a product of a Blair Edukayshun that she can’t pronounce it, (var, as in jar, – ee), either?

    But then, as we and the Islamic State know, we all have the right to self-definition nowadays don’t we.

       5 likes

  16. Thoughtful says:
    July 15, 2015 at 10:08 am

    What qualifications / experience do you need to qualify as a BBC reporter / Journalist these days?

    Well, none it appears, only that you are a Pakistani, a Muslim, and that you have ‘started a course’ in Journalism.

    The BBC being so credulous and Politically Correct won’t actually check this, to verify if its true or not because as everyone knows Pakistani Muslims are scrupulously honest to a fault !

    Such is the case of BBC South East presenter Reham Khan who has recently left Britain to marry Pakistani Imran Khan.

    However on closer examination she never actually did start a course, the college she claimed she had enrolled at doesn’t offer such a course, or any in journalism at all, and has no record of anyone with her name !

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3161669/SEBASTIAN-SHAKESPEARE-Fresh-intrigue-past-Imran-Khan-s-new-wife.html

    It seems that the BBC now doesn’t care about someone qualification or experience when recruiting, the most important thing is your ethnicity and religion.

       6 likes

  17. Thoughtful says:
    July 15, 2015 at 12:07 pm

    Very strange story with a surprising lack of detail leading me to conclude that the Chinese were probably right and the people deported were Jihadis.
    To claim that they were not terrorists because some were doctors and businessmen is truly laughable.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-33532550

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3161103/Eleven-British-tourists-arrested-China-terror-group-having-propaganda-hotel-rooms.html

       1 likes

←Older Comments