Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

This is how Denmark became a World leader in wind turbines, through grass-roots community initiatives encourage by Government. We need to move away from wasteful large energy plants to more, smaller community energy plants.

Green Alliance blog's avatarInside track

This is a guest post by Agamemnon Otero, co-founder of Brixton Energy and Repowering South London.

Solving our energy problems calls for a rethink of our energy investment, generation and distribution systems. It asks us to look beyond blaming the big energy companies or individual consumer habits, to focus on creating an affordable system where all energy users are the key to the solution, as opposed to ‘the problem’.

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Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

Unfortunately, since the 1990s under Stringer’s and Leese’s control, much of Manchester’s heritage has been destroyed. To make way for glass, concrete and steel buildings that are not fit for the 21st century. Many of them lying empty or only partially occupied. A tram system that displaced the railway and not the motor-car. Manchester has become one large slum in the making.

History Me's avatarhistoryme

Preserving the heritage of the once mighty metropolis of Manchester

June 7, 2012 

© 2005-2012 Look and Learn

This edited article about Manchester originally appeared in Look and Learn issue number 720 published on 1 November 1975.

As its name suggests, like Rochester and Cirencester, Dorchester, Lancaster and Chester, the great city we know today as Manchester, capital of the north, was a Roman castra, or crossing place. It was established where a number of their major through-routes, to Hadrian’s Wall at Carlisle, to York, to the Dee estuary and to London, crossed.

Set the point of a pair of compasses at that crossing-place, marked by the 15th-century cathedral, and draw a circle five miles in radius, and you enclose a million people. Double that radius, and your circle encloses a population of 2,500,000, the largest concentration of human beings in one area…

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Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

Nursing and Auxiliary staff are already overworked and under-paid. The NHS is e too top heavy with senior management and consultants.

SKWAWKBOX's avatarSKWAWKBOX

10 days ago, I wrote about the letter that North Tees & Hartlepool NHS Trust had issued to all of its employees, threatening to sack and re-employ them if they refused to sign a variation to their Agenda for Change (AfC) contracts removing the right to unsocial hours enhancements to sick pay. As I wrote, while I appreciate – and staff mostly concur – that there is some abuse of sick leave by a small number of staff, this should be addressed via disciplinary measures on those staff and not by penalising the vast majority of hard-working staff who are likely to be absent because of stress, infections or injuries (back injuries, for example, are commonly incurred while lifting patients or trying to prevent falls) picked up in the course of their work.

If you want to see the letter in full and see the coercive tactics being employed by…

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Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

Something most ‘right-minded’ people have believed for generations. That Israel and the US are guilty of crimes against humanity.

occupiedpalestine's avatarOccupied Palestine | فلسطين

Russell Tribunal on Palestine | Oct 16, 2012

PDF version

 

1. The fourth session of the Russell Tribunal continued its historic function of articulating civic protest and carrying the weight of insufferable conditions at a moment when the world society is facing its most incredible challenges. It should be noted that the UN Charter was created to emphasize the rights of people and not states.

2. The final session of the Tribunal focused on the responsibility of the United States of America (US) and the United Nations (UN) regarding the Israeli breaches of international law towards Palestine. There is now a situation in which Israel has achieved a status of immunity and impunity by their complete disregard for the norms and standards of international law facilitated by the US.

After hearing various witnesses and experts, the Tribunal has reached the following conclusions (it should be noted that invitations…

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Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

The rotten core of the British political system, both Conservatives and Labour should be voted out.

John Ward's avatarThe Slog

The one-word secret of Hunt’s success:

NEPOTISM

His relationship to Virginia Bottomley…..his dealings with the British Council….his inheritance of the SW Surrey constituency….his father’s history in UK Health provision….the Health interests for whom Bottomley now works….his capture of the Health portfolio in the recent reshuffle.

♣  ♣  ♣  ♣  ♣  ♣  ♣

Throughout his career, Jeremy Hunt’s advancement somehow always seemed to involve his path crossing that of the former Virginia Bottomley, known since 2005 as Baroness Nettlestone. Now – with the help of some initial sleuthing by regular Slogger Jackie – I can offer readers a big clue: they are cousins. Laid out below (for anyone with any feeling for the importance of meritocracy) is how still, in 2012, career progress of the type admired by David Cameron – “the leg up” – is alive and well. One where the right tie, who you know, and above all a…

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The Marcellus Shale Documentary Project, Photographing Fracking – NYTimes.com

Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

As well as the USA, where residents are fighting the expansion of Shale Gas Methane extraction, known as ‘fracking’: The Marcellus Shale documentary project Photographing fracking. NYTimes com

it is also a problem in Australia with Coal-seam Methane  extraction: http://youtu.be/wCMcr27uAg4

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Funny weather we’re having… how the melting Arctic is affecting global weather patterns in a sinister way | Campaign against Climate Change

Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

An article on Climate Change, going into some detail on why we are experiencing some very unusual weather.  It is those in the Global South and the poor in the Global North who suffer most, from these extreme weather patterns.  And as he states, we are now on a slippery slope downwards, which we will not be able to get back up.  And what do our leaders do, more of the same, which is the cause of Global Warming.  It is time, those in the Global North, cut back on their excessive consumption and waste.  It is time to throw away the motor car and give up flying on holidays abroad.  Because, in the end, this is going to adversely affect everyone, no matter how much money you have.  You cannot eat money, gold, shares, bonds or even bricks and mortar.

Funny weather we’re having… how the melting Arctic is affecting global weather patterns in a sinister way | Campaign against Climate Change.

The Silent Pandemic – the risk to children’s health

Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

Many childhood illnesses are on the rise, and a growing body of scientific evidence links pesticide exposure to this troubling trend.
Using facts and findings from the current body of evidence, I hope you’ll join me in taking a stand for kid’s health!
Let’s make protecting children from pesticides a national priority, one conversation at a time >> Public Action

The site may be American, but the problem is also relevant within the UK.  Especially as more and more Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are finding there way into processed food.  Monsanto GMOs particularly have been adapted to be resistant to Round-up, a pesticide which is known to be a carcinogen.  Some of the information that can be found on their site:

When it comes to pesticides, children are among the most vulnerable. Pound for pound, they drink 2.5 times more water, eat 3-4 times more food, and breathe 2 times more air. They therefore absorb a higher concentration of pesticides than adults.

Infants and children also face unique exposure because of how they interact with the world: they crawl on the ground and put things in their mouths — including their hands. They also face exposure during critical windows in the womb and via breast milk.

Developing Brains & Bodies

Children drawingsSince they are growing so quickly, infants and young children are more susceptible to the effects of pesticide exposure than adults. Their developing brains and bodies are in the midst of complex and fragile developmental processes that regulate tissue growth and organ development — and these developmental processes can be irreversibly derailed by pesticide exposure.
Drawings by preschoolers exposed to pesticides (Valley) compared to those by preschoolers not exposed (Foothills). See “Developmental Delay” below.

Research indicates that children exposed to pesticides either in utero, or during other critical periods face significant health risks including higher incidence of:

  • Birth defects
  • Neurodevelopmental delays & cognitive impairment
  • Childhood brain cancers
  • Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
  • Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD)
  • Endocrine disruption

Many of the worst pesticides, known as “persistent organic pollutants,” or POPs, contaminate our water and soil for years. They move on the wind and in streams, rivers and oceans and concentrate as they move up the food chain. Other pesticides are so widely and heavily used that they contamine our food and water supplies (chlorpyrifos and atrazine are good examples).

Health Effects: The State of the Science
Get the latest on the state of the science, including reports on Brain Development, Autism, and ADHD. Learn More »

So, while farmer and farmworker’s children bear some of the highest risks, pesticides contaminate the environment and permeate the food supply such that even kids in city cafeterias face daily exposure.

SKWalkers views on George Osborne’s speech

Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

A thoughtful critique on George Osborne’s speech and all it entails. I would not agree with the writer that things were improving under Labour. I see them both, as seriously evil, political parties that protect the rich and corrupt.  And have not taken on-board, the fact we have to move away from this ‘growth’ mentality.  We live on one planet but living as if we live on three.

SKWAWKBOX's avatarSKWAWKBOX

I’ve been a bit out of circulation since yesterday evening because of work travel, so maybe someone else has already done this. But maybe not. Most of the media reports I’ve seen on George Osborne’s speech yesterday at the Tory party conference have centred on his laughable scheme to have employees swap their employment rights for shares in their employer’s company. I’ll take a look at why it’s ridiculous too, but first I want to take a look at the other things he said and what they say about him.

My mother used to love reciting the old saying, ‘Whenever you point a finger at anyone else, you’re pointing three back at yourself’. Of course, that that was a form of finger-pointing never seemed to occur to her – but that doesn’t mean it isn’t often true!

So, let’s take a look at Osborne’s speech in some detail (though I’m…

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Ripped-off Britons: Key political fibs, and some tips on how to refute them

Posted on by Patrick Sudlow

I have posted before, that the UK, especially the City of London Corporation is the biggest Tax Haven in the World.  Our political elite, Labour and Conservative constantly tell us they cannot tax the rich because the financial sector would leave this country.  They also tell us, it is unfair to tax the rich, because success should be rewarded.  But we know, they have only been successful by acting in a criminal way and evading tax.  That, money will trickle down, but for generations we have seen the reverse.  The article below gives some answer, you can use in reply to the nonsense being peddled by the political elite.

Ripped-off Britons: Key political fibs, and some tips on how to refute them.
You can send a message by signing the following petition, asking for a reform of the banking sector:

Big Change in Banking  

The papers are full of stories of how the Conservatives are going to cut benefits, claiming tax-payers are sick of paying for the work-shy.  Most of those who are on benefits have no choice, there is no paid work for them.  The way the Economy is modelled, does not take account of those who do unpaid work, such as housewives and those who care for relatives.  We are going back to the times of Dickens, were the poor were thought to have brought on themselves and deserved punishment.  Whilst the rich fleece each other in a very corrupt business world.

Jobless and big-families lose benefits  

I wonder, are those who are in employment and earn more than the average wage, will continue to receive child benefits, even though they do not need it?  The cuts are supposed to be in the region of £10 billion but the Government is taking about spending £70 billion of a Trident missile program replacement, not mentioned in the papers.

Welfare-cuts of £10 Billion 

And of course this ‘Green’ Governments commitment towards renewable energy, which has seen the Chancellor talk about tax-breaks for ‘fracking’.  Has disillusioned major energy companies, who are now talking not investing in the UK.

Green Energy under threat