I hear back from my MP this morning…

I have listened very carefully to all of the views, advice and information that I have received in the last few weeks on the question that will be put to Parliament today on Syria. I have met with my own constituency Labour Party where there was a very well informed and comradely debate on this and I have debated this with the local North West Durham Fabian Society. I have been contacted by hundreds of constituents and have received briefings and advice from church leaders and charities. I have also listened to the Prime Minister when he set out his case for bombing Syria. Having listened to all this I have decided that I will voting not to bomb Syria.

I believe that the issue that Parliament should be debating is how to remove the territory from ISIL/Daesh control, achieve an eventual ceasefire amongst other forces and bring about a transitional settlement to end the Civil War. This is an incredibly complex and difficult diplomatic task, but the first steps are already being taken via the Geneva Process.

I do not believe that the PM has made the case for bombing. I have seen no credible plan particularly in relation to what happens when the bombing stops. I cannot see how dropping even more bombs is going to improve things for the people of Syria, 250,000 of whom have already died in this civil war and the suggestion that our bombs are more accurate than two super-powers who are already bombing is, in my view, ludicrous. I do appreciate the arguments about us needing to stand together with our Allies but not sufficiently to justify the Government’s proposed actions.

Finally I cannot see how the UK joining in the current bombing in Syria will help the process, or defeat ISIL/Daesh; and there is a danger that it will unintentionally lead to civilian casualties and deepen the sense of grievance which ISIL/Daesh feeds upon.

I was appalled by the Paris massacres. People going about their business on a Friday night, enjoying a meal, watching a football match or attending a music concert represents the best of human nature. People joining together to deliberately murder other people in pursuit of a twisted ideology represents the worst of human nature. Those who in any way seek to transfer the blame for these actions to Western Governments are wrong but I believe that history shows that the West’s response to past terrorist actions have been disproportionate and have made matters far, far worse.

For all these reasons I will be voting against the Government’s proposal to bomb Syria when it is put before the House of Commons today.

Yours sincerely,

Pat Glass MP

Tribalism, I suppose.

I read that as “tribadism”.
Which kinda makes sense, seeing they’re a pair of canutes.

What we need is a huge animal with the brain of a chicken. Eg brontosaurus

On that basis, chicken is more cruel than human

Well, funnily enough I was going to suggest this. If the meat volunteers is that ok?

Chickens are pretty stupid

Yes, but do the chickens know that?

It’s not about the cuteness or otherwise of the animal being eaten, it’s purely about the number of lives taken. Bigger animal = fewer individuals killed for the same amount of dinner. Therefore, chicken is more cruel then beef. (Or whale).

He’ll never need to work again.

Bolleaux.

Shouldn’t that be “Brilleaux”?

You mean where the cycle path passes the entrance to the house?
Cycles I guess. I don’t suppose pedestrians would expect to have to give way to the driveway, unless a sign said so.

a lot of people can’t afford the higher UK prices that come from our relatively higher wages.

I don’t get this – we can’t afford good quality stuff because we are too well paid?

“We also have a major problem with gangs of up to 30 going up in the dark and using headlamps to tear all over the estate doing a lot of damage when no-one’s about to stop them.

If they’re a major problem it shouldn’t be too hard for Chris Tate to find one of these gangs and speak to them, or evidence of the damage they are causing. But that would involve doing some work.

Martin has it. Saying much more would land you in court for contempt.

It goes on all the time. Suppose a Bond film is released ; this will make a news item on Today, another on WatO and a third on PM. Front Row will cover it, as will The Film Programme and Back Row. You and Yours will find a consumer angle. Woman’s Hour will have feminist deconstruction and Book at Bedtime may we be a Bond novel…etc. It’s mainly because it’s cheaper than filling the programmes with anything original.

A good inch over near Consett which has also frozen hard. Sketchy. Sun is shining though. A ride may be on the cards.

I stepped backwards in a supermarket aisle and nearly fell over a yellow plastic cone warning about a slippery floor.

Does anyone really need reform other than guidebook writers?

You say that as though guide book writers didn’t matter!
The serious point, though, is that an area is trying to develop a tourism base including promoting cycling, the best trails often cannot be promoted because they are not rights of way for cyclists.
Opening up the countryside to all responsible, non-motorised users will greatly benefit all the businesses dependent on visitors.

Thanks for the hint. I was wondering what to buy you for Christmas.

If a driver is pulling out from a row of parked vehicles or in particular from behind a van, they can’t see nor do they expect to see a cyclist coming the other way, made worse as the cyclist can’t give the parked cars a very wide berth into the face of oncoming traffic

So put the cycle path on the other side of the parked cars, and separate it from the parked cars with the walking pavement. Duh.

It a right that was stolen from the common man probably around the time of the Enclosures in England. Out of interest, any historians out there who can pinpoint when/if this right was stolen?

Quite true, mostly in the 18th Century. At that time you had to be a landowner to be an MP and you had to be a landowner to vote. All the Lords, were, of course, landowners too.
The Inclosures (Enclosures) were deals made by landowners for landowners.
UK Male suffrage:
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/citizenship/struggle_democracy/getting_vote.htm

It could be worse. It could be a Cooplands (Formerly Peters)

To be honest, (and I say this as a highway designer), its very rare that we get a brief for a scheme which places cycle use as a high priority or driver in the scheme.

And yet if you accuse our Highways officers of making cyclists and pedestrians of lower priority than motorists they deny it- even when they are at the same time outlining a redesign of a roundabout that will take cyclists 9 minutes to get from one side to the other if the lights are against them at the approach road crossings. This is being done to reduce the time taken to cross the city centre by car by a minute or two – the aim being to “reduce air pollution”. I despair.

I like Gretchen, she writes some funny lyrics and always has her country ‘n western tongue firmly in her cheek.

“Po’ waat trash”…

Doe anyone else find the Park style tools with the big plastic handle at the bend a bit of a nuisance? I find the handle gets in the way when trying to reach certain bolts, eg rear brake mount bolts on road bikes. Also, the short end is too short to fit in to some rear mech mounting bolts so you have to use the round end for a 10nm fit. The other other thing is that they are badly balanced so I drop them all the time.

Shared on the Hamsterley Trailblazers’ Facebook page..

A metal church, yesterday.

Loved that!

Mungo, doing what he does best

Peaceful protest never changed anything. That is why it’s allowed.

contact lens cleaning solution. It’s mostly distilled water anyway.

Long and lustily. she also has a sneeze that can rattle the windows.

Re. Steed…I had to stop buying What Mountain Bike when it started referring to bikes as “sleds”, “race weapons” and “trail hammers”.

“Gifting”. Where’s that come from, as if I couldn’t guess? Last week I saw a box of biscuits in a shop described as a “gifting pack”.

I don’t believe anyone ever got them. It was an in joke.

Just wondered how long it takes most people to get to a reasonable standard.

I’ll get back to you if it ever happens.
It’s not a competition (unless you are racing); If you feel pressured by following riders, do as you did and let them go.Take your own time, learn from better riders, ask questions!
I found my technique improved with strength – even when I thought I was getting fitter and could do more miles, it wasn’t until I had the power in my legs to drive the bike forward over tricky lumps and bumps that I started to get more fluent (relatively).

goon +1 This has been annoying me for quite a while now. The BBC seems particularly bad at doing this. I have also heard pre-planned and even pre-prepared for heaven’s sake.
Today I heard “cross-subsidised” which, from the context, seems to mean the same as “subsidised”.

Think yourself lucky you don’t have to work in one of those retail outlets which start with the Xmas music in October.

Ooh yes, Dave Mattacks, how could we forget him?

DS music was forced into the shape that fitted into the kind of venues that the band found themsekves playing. It wasn’t for the better, IMO. His guitar playing is best close up and in yer ear.