Archive
Music while I work
Stacey Kent : The Changing Lights. Another pitch perfect performance from one of my favourite singers.
Question
What’s the difference between a street artist and a vandal?
Could it be that a street artist is good at it?
Back-firing
Start the weekend with a laugh, that’s my principle. No problem today, thanks to the telly news, which led with the pantomime horse that is the two Eds, Millipede and Balls, visiting Scotland to campaign against independence. Thanks guys. Please stay among us for the remainder of the debate.
If that wasn’t funny enough, they were joined by the Director General of the CBI failing to explain why his organisation, which was resolutely against the Yes campaign ten days ago, has withdrawn its opposition. I came to that from watching Twenty Twelve, the classic spoof TV series. I couldn’t tell the difference.
Too bad
I’ve been wishing for David Moyes’ departure from the Man U job for a few months now, but I take no pleasure from it. As for his succession, it should always have been Guardiola, but now the timing is wrong for him. Anyone but Van Gaal; he’s nearly as old as me, he didn’t stay the course at Barcelona, twice, and he’ll be ripped apart by the English media.
Stormy weather for the No fleet
Sorry I’m a little late this morning. I had to rush down to the beach count the number of British naval vessels out in the Forth protecting the Scottish coastline. Know what? I looked as hard as I could, through my best binoculars. yet I couldn’t see a single one.
The First Sea Lord . . . a title that could have come straight from Gilbert and Sullivan . . . tells us this morning, on the instructions of the people who appointed him, that Scotland’s defence would be weakened if we could no longer rely on his navy. I wonder if he would tell us, in support of his claim, how many of those vessels other than nuclear Trident submarines are deployed currently in Scottish waters. No, I didn’t think so .
As the referendum draws closer, we can expect a scare story every day, orchestrated by the Westminster machine, with the help of its cronies in the London press, who are, lest we forget, currently living in fear of post-Leveson regulation and looking on with a degree of trepidation as the Brooks/Coulson trial unfolds. Will we be frightened into voting No? I rather think not.
YES for Scotland.
Music while I work
Jim Tomlinson: The Lyric. Jim’s a decent sax player, but his main asset is his his wife, Stacey Kent; this album is all about her.
Contrast
Varied reading material in our house over the weekend; Eileen had the newly finished 2015 Skinner, and I had the newly published Rebus.
Each of us enjoyed the experience.
Better Apart
Lord Robertson, former UK Defence Minister and NATO Secretary General, has the reputation of being a sensible man. If so, after yesterday’s bizarre outburst in New York, he should fire his speechwriter. If, by any chance he wrote it alone and unaided, he should seek counselling, as a matter of urgency.
I suppose we might feel complimented by the suggestion that Scotland is central to the defence of Western Europe. On the other hand, most right-thinking Scots will be scandalised by the language that was used. The increasingly vicious No campaign has never presented a single lucid reason against Scottish Independence. Instead we have seen a sustained series of threats, of which Lord R’s is the emptiest and the most ludicrous.
YES for Scotland.
Quintin Jardine's blog 