TheEndlessDrive

Every year, as tradition, duty and love demand, at least once, I drive to a part of south London called Streatham. There I visit the graves of the close members of my family who have passed away. Accompanying me on this tortuous journey is my living family.

It is a terrible drive from the edge of North East London to the other extreme in the South of the city. It takes between nearly two hours to as much as three hours to get there. My late father always believed that the right weather for such a journey is incessant rain and today he got his wish. I am convinced he would be laughing as we stood in the torrential rain visiting his grave and that of the rest of our family.

I recited the ancient prayers in memory of the departed and the rain found every square inch of our formerly dry clothing and turned it into a soggy mess, despite our water proof jackets and umbrellas.

I looked at the ages of my close relatives and realized I am already older than two of them, and approaching the age of several others. I felt like, perhaps I might as well wait for my turn at the cemetery to save my kids the cost of a funeral car. My older sister, who was standing next to me, certainly shouldn’t bother buying any long life batteries.

I noticed that the family plot, owned by my late father, still has space for one of us, but I have decided that his saying, “first come first served!” should hold true, and this is one race I don’t want to win.

Afterwards, in case we were not wet enough, we gossiped about our kids and grand kids, as ever they are an endless source of chat. I wonder if, one day, a long, long time in the future, any of our kids will ever bother making such a pilgrimage to our future burial place. Just for the record kids, that will be at the Cheshunt cemetery, and if you do turn up I do hope it will rain every time you come, as I agree with my dad, it should rain in such a place; and rest assured as you stand there with rain dripping off the end of your noses, I shall be laughing.

There is only one thing worse than the drive to the cemetery, and that is the drive from the cemetery, which seems to take even longer in the impossible and impassible traffic. Home never looked drier or more welcoming; and I believe it will be the same for years to come.

PorkBelliesAllRound

At last Congress has voted yes to the rescue package commonly known as the American financial bail out plan. This will mean that a financial rescue package with a potential cost of $800,000,000,000 (yes that’s what $8 hundred billion looks like written numerically) will now be launched to rescue the much tarnished and heavily damaged United States economy.

What makes the passing of this legislation mystifying for a British person like myself is the garnish of pork belly legislation festooned around it. Originally, when this package failed to pass into law it was just a couple of pages long and pure at heart, aimed at rescuing the economy. Now it is several hundred pages longer and is full of all that’s wrong with the American system of democracy. It reminds me of Rome when it was in decline, not long before the fall.

In the middle of the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression, the U.S. Senate dispensed the pork shamelessly. This means that the senators packed the bill with a huge amount of wasteful, shameful goodies to please favored local groups and win support from opponents in today's House vote.

The American government is now going to buy toxic debts from that country’s financial institutions. These are debts that have diminished, or perhaps no remaining value. This plan is iniquitous, as these financial institutions should suffer some consequences for their foolish, or greedy or downright criminal actions. But instead they are about to escape their deserved fate as if they were each a corporate Houdini, minus the talent.

Here are some examples of what pork belly legislation looks like; Section 305 of the 450-page bill, "Modifications of Energy Efficient Appliance Credit." It runs to several pages long and contains separate sections for "dishwashers," "clothes washers" and "refrigerators."

The bill says manufacturers of energy-efficient appliances will qualify for up to $250 in federal tax credits for each machine they produce over the next three years. Total cost to taxpayers: $322 million over 10 years.

Just In case your own refrigerator is not working, please note the bill says nothing about passing any savings on to the consumer.

There are two separate tax breaks for film companies that produce movies in the U.S. that will cost the hard-pressed American taxpayer almost $500 million.

There is an extension of tax rebates to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands on rum duties costing $192 million over 10 years.

Alaskan fishermen who had been victims of the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster will benefit by another $239 million, which is clearly aimed at winning the vote of U.S. Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), who; last week voted against the bailout package.

You can't make this stuff up although to be fair, there are several provisions of the bill that will undoubtedly help millions of people.

But the key problem, that this package does not solve, is that this fix only partially addresses some of the problems of the recent past, it does not address ongoing difficulties within the economy that are still coming downstream. It was essential that this measure was adopted, but it does not mean the problems are over. This is just the end of the beginning.

BacktoTheFutureAgain

It was predicted with some certainty that Prime Minister Gordon Brown was going to administer the coup de grace and finally kill off Peter Mandelson's career in frontline politics when his term as EU trade commissioner shortly expired.

But in a move that has stunned everyone, including veteran expert Westminster observers, he has decided instead to bring his oldest active political enemy back into the heart of British government.

Just when all his foes thought it was safe, along comes the bogeyman of British politics. I refer to the eponymous and clearly undead Peter Mandelson. Lately he held one of the most powerful jobs in the European Union as Commissioner for Trade and now finds himself back in the bosom of the Labour Party cabinet as the UK’s Minister for Business.

Mandelson is now justifying his tag as the comeback king of British politics having been drafted back into the fray for the third time. He doesn’t even have to go through the messy business of having to stand for election to Parliament to take up his position, as he will be made a Lord so that this irksome task is unnecessary. He previously had to give up his Hartlepool parliamentary seat ahead of his move to Brussels.

It was another dramatic twist in a career that has never been short of large helpings of drama and intrigue. This is a man born for political intrigue, a modern Machiavelli.

Mandelson was involved in a major public row over free trade with French and current EU President Nicholas Sarkozy who accused him of trying to sell out European farmers. The feisty French leader also seemed to blame Mandelson’s handling of the Doha round of trade talks for the "no" vote in the Irish referendum on the Lisbon treaty. Both these claims appear unfounded but where the EU Commissioner travels controversy is always sure to be a bedfellow.

Mr. Mandelson claimed his position at world trade talks has been undermined and went on to say that he did not start the row but: "I stood up for myself, I'm not to be bullied." He said he believed the row was over but renewed his warnings on protectionism.

One of the most memorable moments in the boring 2001 general election was Mr. Mandelson's victory speech. In an unforgettable and out of character, emotionally charged performance, the twice-disgraced Hartlepool MP declared at a post-poll rally: "I'm a fighter, not a quitter."

Ever since, and despite never ending high-level opposition right across the Labour Party, he worked quietly and assiduously behind the scenes for yet another resurrection - while publicly declaring precisely the opposite.

For many, of course, his greatest successes were already long behind him. Little did we know that we were in a time machine once again traveling back to the future?

Whatever his detractors may claim Mandelson does have a formidable record. He did help create New Labour. However those that don’t like him say that his alleged tactics - a mixture of bullying, spin and manipulation – created more enemies than friends for him and his beloved Party.

Lest we forget this is the same man who has been an archenemy of Prime Minister Gordon Brown over many years. Their mutual distaste was not just dislike, it was simmering hate. Mandelson was the kingmaker who thrust Tony Blair into the leadership in 1994 after the sudden death of John Smith.

This came at the very moment that everyone thought Gordon Brown was the heir apparent. Mr. Mandelson sniffed the political wind and ruthlessly changed horses at the last moment.

Brown had appeared not to forgive Mandelson for this despite the latter’s stating that he believes the ex Chancellor was Tony Blair's natural successor.

It’s now clear that relations had recently improved, with the EU Trade Commissioner publicly declaring his vocal support for Mr. Brown in this week's New Statesman while urging him not to abandon the New Labour "project".

"I do not think that changing the face at the top is the panacea some imagine," he said.

"But the whole of the leadership must remain true to the values and principles that have delivered us success in the past ten years."

Say what you like about Peter Mandelson, and there are many that do just that, everyone agrees that he has impeccable Labour Party credentials in his DNA. Mandelson was born in London in 1953, where his father was the advertising manager at the Jewish Chronicle. On his mother's side, he is the grandson of Herbert Morrison, the London County Council leader and Labour cabinet minister. This will be the third time he has answered the call to re-enter front line Cabinet positions, having resigned on both previous occasions.

Even Mr. Mandelson's sternest critics accept he is a slick political operator and a good networker. Those that worked with him as a Minister also make it plain that he was a very able Minister.

And with four years as trade commissioner under his belt, he could be a valuable asset as Mr. Brown seeks to beef up his government's response to the current global economic turmoil. For Prime Minister Brown to get this particular gentleman back into his team speaks to his growing desperation to win the next election.

TopCopQuits

London’s Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair, has today resigned after three years in the job. Many, including me thought this action is long overdue.

The Commissioner said that London mayor Boris Johnson, who took over as chairman of the police authority on Wednesday, had told him he wanted a "change in leadership". It has been clear since Johnson won his election as Mayor of London that Sir Ian wasn’t going to survive for much longer. Blair’s brand of political correctness and inept police policies, when combined with his bad luck has proved an unsustainable disaster.

Sir Ian added, "without the mayor's backing I do not think I can continue in the job".

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said deputy commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson will take over as acting head of the Met. Ms Smith, herself a well intentioned but gaffe prone politician said Sir Ian could be "proud" of his achievements and praised his national role in policing and tackling terrorism. But she would say that wouldn’t she, as this Blair has always been one of New Labour’s favorite poodles.

She went on to state, "I pay tribute to Sir Ian for the massive reductions in crime that his leadership of the Met has overseen and his continuing efforts to tackle gun, gang and knife crime.”

"His part in leading neighborhood policing across London has led to Londoners being safer and more confident." Although we have to acknowledge that statistically this might appear to be the case I challenge any politician to make this statement out on the streets of London and stand well back for the violent reaction of the public. The numbers are a statistical anomaly, the facts are that serious crime is still going up and Blair and Smith share some of the responsibility for this.

Mr. Johnson, who has repeatedly avoided publicly backing Sir Ian since being elected mayor in May, had called for the commissioner to be directly accountable to City Hall.

Sir Ian, who took over as commissioner in February 2005, said he would be stepping down on 1 December. His tenure was dogged by more controversy than any of his predecessors in living memory.

Presently MPA auditors are examining Scotland Yard contracts given to consultancy firm Impact Plus, run by a friend.

Sir Ian claimed he was "open and straightforward in informing both the MPS [Metropolitan Police Service] and the MPA about my relationship with someone who was subsequently awarded a contract with the MPS".

Sir Ian has also faced, probably misplaced criticism over the racism row involving the Met's most senior Asian officer Tarique Ghaffur.

More serious than any of these are the question about his handling of events surrounding the 2005 death of the innocent Brazilian citizen Jean Charles de Menezes, who was shot dead at Stockwell Underground station in south London after being mistaken for a suicide bomber.

The Met Police were later convicted of health and safety offences over the incident. Blair’s statements at the time were factually incorrect and appear to have been driven by panic.

Shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve said Sir Ian had taken the "right decision" in standing down.

"It is now clear that they have shown a serious lack of judgment about the leadership of the most important police force in Britain.

"It is vital that a successor is appointed who can restore public confidence."

Blair is the first of London’s top cops to resign since Sir Edward Henry in 1918. It’s a great shame he didn’t go earlier, in fact it’s a pity he ever got the job as he proved inept, unpleasant and disingenuous.

FinancialRethink

Members of the American Congress voted down the $700 billion financial rescue package. Perhaps the first thing on their agenda should be re-branding, with a name like “The Re-launch plan”, which we could all get behind.

It is inconceivable, in light of the seriousness of the instability of the financial system that the Congress negative decision can be allowed to stand. There are now signs that the Senate are going to back a revised version of the plan and this in turn should back the reluctant Congress to follow suit when they are back in town.

It is, of course, essential that the men and women of Congress be made to go sit in a room with wet towels on their heads until they find a solution and do so at once. They have to forget that they are either Republicans or Democrats and remember that they are Americans with a common interest.

We are all looking over the yawning precipice into the nightmare of chaos. We have the seen the first results when Wall Street lost an almost $1 trillion of its value. This is the single biggest drop in value since the present modern style markets were put in place. More days of such drops taking place and we are looking at 1929 type territory.

There have been bumps in this downward trend over the last days, and it is assumed all will be well when the American plan is finally in place. However, and I hate to be a harbinger of bad tidings, there is the reality to face that dictates the reality is still bloody awful and that will mean values will, long term, go down.

Across the world there have been bank rescues, takeovers and consolidations and customer guarantees put in place in the last hours and days, at last count in 8 countries. These are the UK, Ireland, Germany, Iceland, Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg and, of course the USA.

The next part of the doomsday scenario would be for another few big banks to go belly up leading to big, non-financial corporations hitting a brick wall. If this happens we are in for a decade of no growth as was the case in Japan in the recent past.

The thing to remember is that some of these banks in trouble or at risk are huge and solid, with diversified asset bases and no problems of a normal type when measured in normal times, but, in this strange mad world of topsy-turvy economics, suddenly coming under suspicion of imminent failure.

Virtually no one had expected Congress to reject the rescue package, and in fact everyone was so certain that it would be passed that the refusal to pass it was a double negative. The impact on the long-term confidence of the markets around the world will be huge.

How scared should we be? Absolute fear has gripped the markets to such an extent that panic is now seen as an instrument of policy. Everyone must keep calm and we can and will get through this storm, but if the political leaders are not able to get their house in order in short order we are going to see a lot more blood on the carpet, and some of it will be in the form of our own long-term financial security.

With every passing hour of this unparalleled meltdown of our collective financial feel good factor there will be more businesses at risk, more jobs lost and more houses will be re-possessed.

Investments are being decimated and we need to be making sure the financial lifeboats are manned and operational, we have plenty of time for recriminations and punishment later.

In the meantime the politicians must be made to realize that they have to act to find a solution and swim together or they are doomed to sink separately.

ConservativeIdiots

Just when you thought you had seen it all, along comes a new improved idiot who proves you knew nothing. Step forward and take a bow the UK Conservative Party’s Shadow Minister of Transport, a woman called Theresa Villiers, Member of Parliament for Chipping Barnet.

It is difficult to remember that this is the UK’s government in waiting, they almost can’t lose the next election, and everyone, including the present government knows this. However today they gave a clear indication that if ever there was a group capable of turning certain victory into debate they might be it. They are unquestionably trying their utmost to lose the next election if it is humanly possible.

Theresa Villiers made her speech at the Conservative Party Conference in which she announced that a Conservative Government would say no to a third runway at Heathrow, and concentrate instead on the advantages of her unfolding high speed rail plan.

The entire world knows that there is a desperate need for the third Heathrow airport runway so we are left to wonder how this Shadow Minister intends to overcome the problem of too many people wanting to use the congested Heathrow airport bottleneck. It’s simple really, she intends to ignore this reality and instead is pointing the way forward via rail.

Is this an existing rail service, of course not, it is, at her optimistic best estimate, going to be available in about 15 years, and the last such undertaking took a quarter of a century.

In the intervening couple of decades or so we shouldn’t worry that we are throwing away our pre-eminent position as the travel hub between mainland Europe and America, because at least the Greens will be happy!

Yes, Theresa says her Party has plans to introduce a new phase of high-speed rail to the UK, in what she described as a “momentous step forward for Britain’s transport infrastructure”.

She went on to describe how a Conservative Government will build a new high speed rail line between Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham and London, cutting journey times between Birmingham and London to 40 minutes and between Leeds and London to less than an hour and a half.

We have all heard this before and it ignores the fact that people want to do their journeys largely by plane, particularly when it is an inter connecting onwards journey.

Theresa, the Shadow Transport Secretary, said that high speed rail would have many benefits for the UK which she claims will help businesses and generating huge economic benefits, potentially to the value of £60 billion. Let me ask how, when, where to who?

Apparently, she goes on to claim that this will also heal long-standing divisions in the UK economy by shrinking the distance between north and south. But I would ask her why enhanced air travel would not achieve the same result, quicker and cheaper.

Another specious claim by the Shadow Minister is that it will relieve over-crowding on existing lines. Again, we demand details, in which way, when and at what cost will this be achieved?

Last in this entirely stupid list of bogus claim demonstrates the newly minted Green credentials of today’s hopeless Tories; in this one she argues that her policies will be “helping to protect future generations from climate change.” This claim centers around the idea that trains are good and planes are bad. How about the disruption, cost and delay caused by trying to construct a whole new rail network for super fast trains?

Theresa then stakes her claim for posterity, “It will leave a lasting legacy for the future - and it will lay the foundations for a high speed network that I believe will one day stretch across the country.”

She went on to state, “We will target construction of the new high speed line to begin in 2015, with full completion by 2027.”

Theresa is featured on the Conservative web site in which it states, “Theresa is the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport. She owns a Mini, but spends a lot of time traveling round Britain on public transport.” It tells you everything about this series of Green lite policies and statements.

How’s this for an idea, what if we built the new rail service PLUS the third runway PLUS the new airport to the East of London, PLUS a new inner Motorway where the present North and South Circular roads struggle through the beltway of inner London? Do that and you will have done your job properly Theresa, don’t do that and the chronic British transport situation is just doomed to get ever worse.

BritishPowerinOverseasHands

This week has seen Britain allow EDF to purchase its entire nuclear energy capacity. For the uninitiated let’s make it clear that EDF is a French company, part owned by the government of that country. Let us also clarify that the French would never allow the reverse to happen, and they are right and the UK is wrong.

How can the UK justify allowing about 20% of its entire energy generation to fall into the hands of a foreign country that might not always have the same interests as those of the U.K?

The reasons given are that EDF has proven recent experience in construction of nuclear power plants, know how to operate them, and have all the know how necessary to achieve the vast nuclear building program the UK is going to need in the next 20 years.

The country is going to need to replace all but one of the existing generations of nuclear power plants with new, increased capacity and ultra -efficient. Even so there is the real possibility of an energy shortfall within the short to medium term that will not be met by the currently envisaged construction program.

Of course we all can and do support alternative energy generation but we also know that this is just going to be supplementary to our needs, not a replacement for conventional fuels. If we can get this to meet up to 20% of our medium term needs we shall have done brilliantly, more than this is simply mass delusion. The technology is not efficient enough and is too costly.

Furthermore it mystifies everyone that the United Kingdom has more or less totally stopped coal mining when it has more than 200 years of coal supplies under the ground. The country desperately needs energy generation, and it is available under our feet, but our government ignores it. This makes no sense but is allowed to continue as we import coal.

Short-term commercial interests may inform our decisions, and imported coal is for now, cheaper than what we can dig ourselves, but this should have been a strategic decision for the national long-term interest. The UK needs its own fuel and power generation. As a nation I believe the country took the same, mistaken direction over certain other key industries and allowing control over our power generation is a national tragedy in the making.