Who would have thought of it. You’re sitting at home in downtown Birmingham England, watching reports of how Jihadists kidnap, torture and kill Western hostages in downtown Baghdad, and then you think to yourself- what a good idea!  It’s been reported that a ninth person has now been arrested in Birmingham over what senior security sources say was an alleged plot to kidnap a member of the UK armed forces.

Police made the arrest this afternoon on a motorway near the city. Eight suspects were earlier arrested following a series of morning raids. The “significant” operation involved police and the security service MI5. Security sources said a terror plot not aimed at mass casualties would mark “a different approach” to UK terrorism.

Nowhere does the “M is for Muslim” word appear, even though these arrests were in Muslim areas. Oh, and guess what? Yes, one of the locations raided was an Islamist book shop.

I’m guessing that all those taken into custody are followers of the ROP. I’m guessing that they were all very quiet types, who had maybe started showing a great devotion to Islam. I’m guessing the MSM will try and downplay this as quickly as possible. Remember – don’t mention the war! Ssshhh.

Not being one to lightly attempt a change in the way we live in this, this sceptre’d isle, I would ask all who read, and of course comment upon this blog to check out my PETITION  page, and if you agree, and of course qualify as either British or as a Resident, please sign, and ask all your contacts to sign as well!

This amused me. Bono to succeed Rowan Williams as the next Archbishop of Canterbury, perhaps? It’s from an excellent article by Kevin Myers, writing in the Irish Independent today on the relentless corruption of Christianity in liberalsaville. 

Take the decision of the abysmal Bishop of Grantham in England, Timothy Ellis,to host what he is calling a ‘U2-charist’, to replace the traditional service at the start of Pentecost. This will consist of a live band playing U2 songs instead of hymns, in St Swithin’s Church in Lincoln, from which all seating will be removed so that the congregation can dance and wave their hands. "We are hoping that the service will be a fresh way to look at worship, less formal, less rigid. People will be able to express themselves in any way theywish," said the Right Rev.

 

Lord have mercy on us with clowns like this as Bishops! Kevin adds……

…is it any wonder that when Muslim fundamentalists see the unprincipled travesty that passes for Christian worship in England, they chuckle happily? 

Still, with all the pews removed from the church to enable the audience to swayand wave their arms in the air, more prudent ‘worshippers’ can slip out just as the collection plate comes round. Which is effectively what Bono did when he transferred his music publishing company to Amsterdam after discovering he might have to pay some taxes inIreland on his royalties.

And those unpaid taxes, of course, would have gone into the government exchequer, which he endlessly demands should make larger contributions to developing countries, even as he reduces his own payments to it. The really dazzling aspect of this disgusting humbug is that he has gotten cleanaway with it, as the media continues to fawn and salivate over him.

Simply because he is listed in the ranks of the great and good by the liberal-left,he’s armour-plated against the damnable truths of his own hypocrisy.

There we are. Such is life. Hoc est enim corpus meum. Spirit moves in mysterious ways.

That’s the advice immigrants wishing to live in the town of Herouxville in Quebec, Canada, have been given. The rules come in a new town council declaration on culture that Muslims, (who else?) have branded "shocking and insulting."

Quebec is in the midst of a huge debate on integrating immigrant cultures. Montreal police are investigating an officer who wrote a song called That’s Enough Already, which says immigrants are undermining Quebec culture. Sounds common sense advice to me – even when coming from Quebec!

I see that a strike by thousands of civil servants is threatening to disrupt public services from tax returns to benefits. Members of the Public and Commercial Service (PCS) union are walking out over alleged plans to cut more than 100,000 civil service jobs.  (Pretty unlikely given that Gordon Brown has actually recruited in 500,000 public sector jobs in order  to keep his slave army growing)

The action may disrupt courts, passport offices, job and driving test centres. With this strike coinciding with the last day people have to get in their tax returns, it is suggested that people may be fined because there is no one around to process their return.

This is not a problem. I say FINE the civil servants concerned. Why should we, the tax-payer, risk being fined because they are intent on feathering their already grosslyl gilded nests even further, at our expense? Remember these are the people who will be retiring early on generous final salary pension schemes, funded by those of us outside the public sector. But that’s not good enough, they want more, much more.

But demonstrating that even Strikes can have some positive outcomes, the news is that the Welsh Assembly will be closed today as a result of this walkout. So, not all bad news!

If these "highly-skilled" civil servants are so unhappy with their lot, why not bail out and try to earn a crust in the private sector?

I watched a trailer for a t.v. programme which featured children ballroom dancers, and I wondered if I had somehow entered a parallel universe; one where the silly was normal, and the unbelievable was credible! Here were featured boys and girls aged somewhere between nine and thirteen, dressed as adults, twirling and revolving as though they understood the nature of the sexual element ever present in dance. Am I alone in my revulsion of the exploitation of innocence and the innocent; or am I just not ‘cool’?

There ought to be laws protecting children from parental abuse disguised as ambition; hang on a bit, there are such laws, it’s just that they’re never enforced!

Whenever we read about how peaceful and tolerant Islam really is, and how the psycho actions of the militant few cast a shadow over the peaceful majority, up comes a story like this.

A Pakistani man and woman were tied to a tree and stoned to death on suspicion of committing adultery. Hundreds of people are killed every year in predominantly Muslim Pakistan, most of them women in backward, rural communities, after being deemed to have dishonoured their families. Police said they had arrested two people over the killing of the man and woman at the weekend in a village in Punjab province. "The man and woman were relatives and were stoned to death by their relatives," senior police officer Zafar Bokhari told Reuters by telephone from the central city of Multan.

How barbaric is this? More pertinently, how un-Islamic  is it? Any religion which permits such depravity in its name represents a threat to civilisation. We don’t need stone age family values in the 21st century. I feel so sorry for the man and woman who have lost their lives in this grotesque manner.

It’s never easy to sustain an argument that is diametrically opposed to the propaganda pumped out by Government, the MSM, the major political parties and the overwhelming majority of columnists, the great and the good. Some days I grow weary in my protest at the bastardisation of democracy in Northern Ireland in the name of "peace" and were it not for outlets like ATW, I’m not sure that I wouldn’t entirely withdraw from the arena. Today is such a day, when I feel weary as I watch terrorist godfathers being feted by one and all, when I see unionist leadership turn once more into political whores and when I contemplate an election that has no point.

Let’s try and deal with this as simple as possible.

IF Irish Republicans are truly sincere about their desire to support law and order (LOL), then here’s a test I would set them. Could they please provide the police with all information as to which IRA figures authorised the La Mon House atrocity and the Claudy bombings? Assuming ..ahem…such terrorist monsters are still around, that is. A tad tricky, perhaps? Could Ms O’Loan not hold an enquiry? No justice for the next of kin of IRA murders then?

If the latest IMC report is accurate, giving the IRA "a clean bill of health" as the media has been chiming, can it provide us with a reason why the IRA Army Council structure remains intact? Can it reveal what increased revenues have come into the Exchequer as a result of the putative ending of massive IRA smuggling of illegal fuel throughout Northern Ireland?; Can it also explain how some IRA members have retained arms for "personal use" when in fact we have told been told the IRA has decommissioned ALL of its weapons?

Presenting terrorists as neo-democrats is all part of the Government game. Those of us who oppose the peace processors know this. But I think what sickens me most is the sight of unionist politicians swallowing the hype and guff and going along with the fantasies peddled by the immoral media. Their lust for power exceeds any point of principle and so we face a situation where an election will be held shortly in which the Unionist parties will stand on a mandate of power-sharing with unrepentant terrorists who seek to subvert the State.  This is the core of the deal pushed by Government since 1997, and it is a deal no decent person can ever accept.

Unionism may be doomed because its political leadership is so easily purchased. All the leading unionist leaders are under no doubt as to the true nature of the people with whom they are asked to share power with. Were they ignorant of this, one could possibly forgive them. But instead they knowingly propose to do that which is wrong on the basis it gets them into power. If the electorate returns such manipulators to office then electorate deserves all it will get. I suspect, however, the main feature of the coming election will be the refusal of many unionist voters to go to the polls and vote for a Parliament of whores.

"Why does socialized medicine seem to work in some places and be a disaster elsewhere? Anyone who reads the British press is assaulted daily with tales of how cancer patients have to wait months for an appointment with an oncologist, or a candidate for a hip or knee replacement has to wait years. In France, such delays can be measured in days or, at most, weeks"

The French healthcare system reigns supreme in my opinion. It is an example of ‘socialised’ healthcare that works. Largely down to a (fairly complex) public private hybrid structure I admit - but  – if it works it works. And Im all for looking at issues on ‘merit’. 

So here is a little summary of how this seemingly complex but functioning system works so you can make up your own minds…. 

The fundamental principle of healthcare in France is universal coverage (little wrong in that ).  That universal coverage requires an element of personal contribution but in two ways -and it also differs to the British system in that it is NOT ‘free at the point of need’.  

Basically 20% of your gross salary in France goes towards paying your ‘Securite Sociale’. And a big chunk of this is funneled into public healthcare. The government provides the ‘floor’ to which every legal resident of France (and the EU) has access under la Couverture Maladie Universelle (universal coverage) and you then decide the ceiling.

Basically to top up the difference between what the state pays and the cost of treatment, you take out an insurance policy to cover the difference – a mutuelle, which gives you your ceiling.

Routine visits to the doctor or to a clinic for x rays, blood tests etc cost around 20 euros.  When seeing a doctor or specialist you pay the full bill and are reimbursed at a later date (about a week). Generally speaking, you are covered for 70 per cent of the cost of a visit to a GP or specialist. For more expensive treatment such as hospitalisation the government and your "top up" insurer will pay direct on your behalf.  Surgical procedures have a tarif. Say for Major Surgery 95% of that tarif is government subisidsied. Minor Surgery 80% ; Pregancy/Childbirth 95-100%; Prescribed Medicines 35%-65%; X Rays 70%; GP/Specialist Visits 70%.

If your income falls below a certain level (for example, 10, 768€ for a couple) the government covers you, offering an average level of healthcare.

To ensure you get your reimbursement (and are entitled to it) you need to present a Carte Vitale which stores your pic, name address and mutuelle details in a chip, along with your blood group and critical medical history.

Choice and speed are in abundance. You are free to choose your own GP (and there are loads) and see whoever whenever you want. A specialist referral is generally same day or the next day, blood tests and x rays are carried out at clinics to which your doctor refers you the same day or as convenient to you. You are thoroughly and quickly assessed and there are no waiting lists in France either.

My experience of French hospitals is that they are modern, clean and comparable to our private
hopsitals in standards. More generally, Doctors appointments (inlc emergency) are easy, quick and kept on time.

The French system is costly (but I cant see them giving it up). This article here examines some of the choices as they weigh up what and where they cut back. But it is also worth bearing in mind that France spends 10% of their GDP on health - and it gives everyone unlimited care, the US (as a privatised comparison which may not be fair) spends 15% but has 46 million uninsured, and 15 million more underinsured – Medicare falls to the government to write off.  The United Kingdom, spends just 6% of GDP on health services in comparison.

Most western nations are looking at how to manage healthcare. The French are looking to curb spending.
But they start from a good premise – that of excellence that must be maintained and excess to be removed. Rather than in the UK where the excess has not justified even excellence. Or in the US where having such a high spend leaves many in a 21st century western nation unable to seek treatment – or (anecdotal…) in my sisters case flailing around with your knee-cap down by your ankle with an ambulance driver refsusing to administer painkillers unless you whip out your insurance.

I would be prepared to pay what it takes to have a system that works and is fair.  What i object to here is the excess without a consistent standard for all (as to be fair some benefit from excellent GPs and local hospitals) – and – the utter abuse that leaves our system open to health tourism. Id like to see a health system that underpins all. However ‘Free at the point of need’ is an outdated mantra that does not work for the 21st century. Not when Mr Umbongo rocks up from somewhere in Africa and leaves his terminally ill brother in a wheelchair in an NHS reception needing expensive treatment and then buggers off.

You can read more compare and contrast experiences here:-

A Tale of Two Heart Attacks – UK and France
US and France - A Conservative American convert to ‘Socialised’ Medicine

Anecdotally – My father was taken ill in France not so long ago and the speed and efficiency of diagnosis and care was incredible. And talking to staff at a hospital in France when i was in a hospital there some years back, i was struck by how fiercely proud they are of this system and this is reflected in their work – a healthy culture all round! 

Moreover

"The performance of the system is also judged by the health of its population. France ranks high in terms of overall health and mortality figures. In 1997, female life expectancy at birth (82.3 years) was second only to Japan. Old-age disability is on a marked downward trend, particularly for men, in line with trends in the U.S. and Japan. The same is true for infant mortality, which is just above the very low levels in Scandinavian countries"

As readers will know, I am hoping that either Rudi Guiliani or Newt Gingrich may become the next President of the United States since I think, on balance, they have pretty solid views. I am also hoping that the Democrats do not win the White House, and IN PARTICULAR, Hillary Clinton is kept well away from the levers of Presidential power. I know that she has some competition for getting the nomination in the form of young Barack Obama, whom the MSM appears to have a collective orgasm over!

Now then, I happened to come across this scurrilous story, revealing that Obama’s father was a drunk, a bigot and a polygamist. So WHAT? It’s not right to blame the sins of the father on the child, and I fail to see why this sort of muck is raked up. I have no sense of support for anything Obama says POLITICALLY, but I do support his right to say it without having his father’s life raked up in front of him.

Why one could think that stories like this are a gift for Hillary….mmmmm…surely not…..