More things which may have been overlooked - - -
Christina
Quote of the month (Roger Helmer’s ‘Straight Talking’ July ‘09)
"Bureaucracy defends the status quo long past the time when the quo has lost its status".
Laurence J. Peter, author of the Peter Principle
£0
Amount of support the government’s £2.3 bn Automotive Assistance Programme has provided to date. (Telegraph 17/7/09)
Budget blackout
Despite all the media fuss about pictures of Sir John Sawers, soon to be head of MI6, appearing on Facebook, insiders are putting on a brave front, insisting no harm was done – US intelligence chiefs have high public profiles, etc etc. Yet one admitted to me that the secret world does love being secret, explaining: “It’s good for recruitment, it frightens the enemy and it’s good at Budget time. Nobody knows what we do – so they daren’t cut us.” [FT - Notebook 18/7/09)
“I have a deep disdain for Tony and Cherie Blair. I couldn’t bear that grinning, money hungry, beaming, Cliff Richard-loving , Berlusconi-adoring, guitar -playing ---. It’s that beaming Christianity and that frightful wife with the mouth on a zip-fastener right round to the back of her head. And both of them obsessed with being wealthy”
Eminence grise JONATHAN MILLER offers a balanced view of our former prime minister and his wife. (Sunday Telegraph 19/7/09)
“In these challenging times the Armed Forces can be confident that securing their success is the number one priority for me and for the Defence Secretary - - - whoever that is. “
[ Cartoon Gordon Brown in Times Online 21/7/09]
Kissinger never wanted to dial Europe
Whenever European leaders want to justify the drive for ever-closer union in foreign policy, they quote Henry Kissinger’s famous remark - “Who do I call if I want to speak to Europe?”. The comment is meant to epitomise Europe’s failure to get its act together on the world stage. The hope in Brussels is that if the Lisbon Treaty goes through, the Americans will finally get that single number to dial; it will be the new EU foreign secretary for Hillary Clinton, and new EU president for Obama.
The Kissinger “who do I call” remark was trotted out at almost every seminar I ever went to Brussels. So I’m delighted to add it to the list of “famous sayings that were never said”.
[- - - - - - -] in fact Kissinger’s concern was the precise opposite - he was fed up with having to deal with a Dane whom he regarded as incompetent and ineffective, who was trying to represent the whole of the EU as President of the Council. Kissinger himself has disowned the remark, and it seems that he was actually seeking to divide and rule in Europe, rather than be restricted to a single voice on the telephone.” (Financial Times 22/7/09)
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Definitions! [re: Swine flu]
“There have been four deaths in Scotland, but they are not comparable to the English figures as officials there have not used the same criteria.” [Is a dead Scotsman not as dead as an English one then ? Or is he more dead? Or can’t one tell? -cs] (BBC Online 23/7/09)
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We keep hearing about “When pigs fly - -” Would this be a case of ‘Swine Flew’ [original by cs 23/7/09]
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"Labour strategists plan to keep [Gordon Brown] away from the cameras in August in the hope that absence will improve his ratings." (Martin Ivens of The Sunday Times - 26/7/09)
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Supreme Leader Pledges New Equipment For Troops
The Supreme Leader has always made it clear that the nation’s Comrade soldiers fighting in Afghanistan would be supplied with whatever equipment they needed (subject to availability).
That is why today we have placed an order for 300 “green helicopters” driven entirely by the windpower generated by their revolving blades. These state-of-the-art carbon-friendly combat aircraft have a range of as much as 5 metres and an in-air troop-carrying capacity of one man (subject to availability of wind).
Rest assured, Comrades, that very soon the war in Afghanistan will be over! G.B (Private Eye / (xx)/7/09)
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