5th November 2012
Once an individual or group is in denial it take a long, long time for them to see the reality of a situation. The debacle arising from the mis-selling of Payment Protection Insurance is, in my view, a very good example. The premiums could amount to anything between 13% and 56% of the protected sum and often in reality insurance was not required by the applicant. The profits on the policies were obscene. Banks ploughed into selling the policies from 2005 onwards and did not stop until, I think, 2010. Even then they mounted a failed legal challenge in April of that year arguing they had done nothing wrong. It is only now, over three years later, that they seem to be getting to grips with the full scale of their liabilities, with HSBC for example make a further provision of $800 million this week and Lloyds setting aside another £1 billion last week. A culture of wrongdoing can become very firmly entrenched.
This afternoon has been a bit like 8th July 2011 for me, the day David Cameron first announced he was setting up two phone hacking inquiries, later changed to one. From his Gulf tour the Prime Minister says he is arranging an investigation into the fall out from Steve Messham’s Newsnight child abuse allegations last Friday. Yesterday Downing Street was saying anyone with information should go to the police. Today’s release is so rushed all we know at the moment is that a senior independent figure will lead the probe. I see politics as being at the heart of that. Politicians, including Mr Cameron himself I feel, have been hard on the BBC for the way they have dealt with the Jimmy Saville revelations. The last thing the government want is the same sort of mud thrown at them especially as a former Tory cabinet minister is in the mix.
At about 8.15pm on 7th January 2004 Lieutenant Colonel Robert Workman was shot dead at the door of his cottage, Cock House, in Hertfordshire. At 5 o’clock the next morning a man made a 999 call and asked for an ambulance to go to a similarly stated but different address. That man has never been identified but the details of the call indicate to me he was playing silly games. In 2010 police arrested Mr Docherty-Puncheon for the murder of Mr Workman. Today a jury has found him guilty of that offence. That came about due to Mr Docherty-Punceon apparantly confessing to cell mates, something he says he did not do, that he had committed the deed when he was on remand in Bedford prison for another suspected offence.
I know no details of that matter at all but it reminds me very much of a case from Kent which I did have cause to think about quite deeply at the time. That was the killing of Lin Russell, her daughter and near killing of her second daughter by hammer blows whilst walking down a country lane back from school in the village of Chillingdon in July 2006. A diagnosed psychopath from the Medway Towns in Kent was arrested by police for the murder in July 1997. The following year Mr Stone was found guilty by a jury on the basis of confessions he apparently made to three separate prisoners whilst on remand. Mr Stone however was very upset by that outcome. The Court of Appeal ordered a retrial after it was alleged that one of those prisoners was paid £5000 for lying about his involvement by The Sun newspaper with promise of another £10,000 if Mr Stone was convicted. Mr Stone was found guilty again in 2001. Mr Stone applied for another retrial but lost. In 2007 the Criminal Cases Review Commission agreed to look into the matter for Mr Stone but in 2010 announced they would not be taking their investigations any further.
I have no special knowledge about that case either, however when I thought about it at the time I concluded Mr Stone was probably out from North Kent with others on the day of the murder committing burglaries on targeted households in the village at the behest of a group I now refer to as the Gang. That he would also murder on the day was not foreseen. Indeed his action was a gross act of indiscipline and it was necessary to make an example of him. He was, I suspect, set up in prison.
Mr Stone’s thought processes however are not like the rest of us. Perhaps he could not remember properly what he had done in Chillingdon or did not consider it important. However what he did know was that he had never confessed to anyone and he felt very strongly that he had been wronged. He wanted to do something about that.
David Cameron started a three day tour this morning of Gulf states. No particular reason for that at the moment as far as I can see.
6th November 2012
In Chapter 9 of my book I wrote about the rape conviction of the footballer Ched Evans although without naming him. He has today lost his appeal against the guilty verdict. I cannot remember where I got my information from but I see from a BBC webpage this afternoon that I related the story incorrectly in one respect. The first man in fact did admit he had had sex with the young lady as well as Mr Evans. In a way though that makes it even worse. I cannot understand how a reasonable jury can decide that a drunken woman can consent to sex with one man but then a short time afterwards refuse it to another, when she herself said at the trial that she could not remember anything. However it appears that if a jury decides that is what happened as a matter of fact, and there were no errors in legal procedures, three senior Appeal Court judges can do nothing about. That in my view is a totally unsatisfactory state of affairs.
Farming Today this week was entirely about the ash dieback problem. In the past we have lost 100 million elms due to fungal infection and the Americas have had 3.5 billion chestnuts die.
The News Corp owned Wall Street Journal reports today that Neil Heywood was in contact with an MI6 official for twelve months before he died. Apparently no money changed hands so strictly speaking William Hague’s statement in April that he was not an employee of the British government in any respect, was correct. Nevertheless I expect the story was leaked to the American paper by the Gang in order to create maximum embarrassment for Mr Hague when he is under pressure, I expect, for the terms of reference that were adopted when the Waterhouse Inquiry was set up during his tenure as Welsh Secretary.
One reason for David Cameron’s Gulf trip has become apparant today, I would say. After local consultations no doubt he has said whilst in Abu Dhabi he would support offering President Assad safe passage out of Syria if that would help end the bloodshed there. He made it plain though he was not suggesting he should necessarily be offered any form of immunity from justice. The Syrian opposition are meeting in Qatar this week of course.
From the Radio 4, 7.10am newspaper review on Sunday I know that that day’s Sunday Times reported 70% of Brits would vote for Barack Obama and 7% for Mitt Romney.
7th November 2012
The participants at a governmental summit today were informed that the ash dieback fungus has been found at 115 locations, mostly in the eastern half of the country. That makes me believe our masters had intelligence before the whole story blew up about what was in store for us. If that is the case then lets hope MI5 are at last starting to do their job as advertised on the can. It would mean some of their operatives have infiltrated themselves into large parts of the criminal fraternity to a sufficient extent that they are able to identify large scale schemes coming down from above.
It is amazing what a bit of confidence can do. Barack Obama was supposed to ge giving a short thank you speech to his supporters this morning. Instead it was lengthy, visionary oratory telling America how they are going to sort themslves out. It was word perfect.
I see from a BBC webpage up this morning that the former Democrat, Joe Lieberman now an independent, has lost his Connecticut Senate seat to Christopher Murphy, the official Democrat candidate. Mr Murphy’s other opponent was the Republican Linda McMahon, a professional wrestling executive who is reported to have spent $42 million on her election campaign.
It has been a busy day for both David Cameron and Angela Merkel. This morning Mr Cameron was on the Syrian-Jordanian border visiting a regugee camp. Mrs Merkel has been at the EU parliament in Brussel, repeating her Greece stance of, I want the UK very much to stay as one of us. This evening they had dinner together in Downing Street. I hope that indicates a known American president means that some definite forward looking plans can be put in place by our world leaders in all sorts of fields.
I thought it was quite noticeable at the start of Channel 4 News this evening how, now that the truth of the American electors’ wishes are known, some thoughtful analysis and interviews took place. The hour of the confusing spin doctors is past. Although 59% of whites voted for the Republicans yesterday, the Democrats are much more popular with the young, women and ethnic minorities. Demopraphiic changes mean things will only get worse for the right wing. At the moment Latinos account for 16% of the population. In 2050 it will be 30%. It seems to me if some politicians with pretty hateful views want to get elected again they will have to start thinking about things in a different way.
I was quite suprised to see John Boehner being reported on the BBC TV news tonight saying he wants to find a way forward with the President on their fiscal cliff problem. He said he wants to see Mr Obama lead in an inclusive way.
8th November 2012
Bradley Wiggins was knocked off his bike outside a petrol filling station at Wrightington near Wigan at 6pm last night when he was in collision with a car. He cracked some ribs and and bruised his wrist. He was kept in hospital overnight for observation. Then this morning the British cycling head coach was injured in a bike crash in Manchester. I expect that has got some people pretty worried, uptight and tending towards the paranoid when travelling out there in the open. Fortunately Mr Shane was wearing a helmet but even so it appears he suffered bleeding on the brain.
Mr Cameron has been politically active this week, something the Gang Master did not like to see at all I expect. This morning on live television he was given a written list of six people who have been accused on the internet of committing child sex abuse. Fortunately he had the sense not to look at the list and put it down on the table in front of him face down. I understand the presenter has apologised to the extent that it appears the camera angle was such that it was possible to read some of the names as he gave it so the Prime Minister. Mr Schofield will have been completely innocent in that. It reminds me of someone once walking into Downing Street as referred to in my book.
The New York area is suffering another wintry storm after hurricane Sandy last week. 270,000 customers are experiencing power cuts with winds up to 60mph.
9th November 2012
I have done no delving into the North Wales child sex abuse allegations but main stream media are reporting Tory Peer and former party treasurer, Lord McAlpine’s statement this morning saying he was not involved in any way. It appears it was he who Steve Messham was thinking of but, perhaps fortunately for Steve, didn’t name. The Guardian reported yesterday that it seems likely the abuser was another member of Lord McAlpine’s family, with the same surname, who lived locally and has since died.
I have just heard on the 6pm Radio 4 News that Steve Messham says the picture he was shown of his abuser in the early 1990’s, and whom the police told him was Lord McAlpine, was not in fact that gentleman. That is how the Gang worked then and that is how they work now.
I had better not go into the details but a bulk run of my book is currently being printed showing the wrong ISBN (International Standard Book Number). It is the unique identifying mark for all hard copy publications so is quite important. I was speaking on the phone yesterday to a salesman for a large printing company and, without any prompting from me whatever, he called the workings of the book trade Machiavellian. You have autors, publishers, typsetters, printers, distibutors and wholesalers, all tightly shut in their own little boxes, supplying the bookshop at the end of the chain. They all of couse take their cut along the way. Why you can’t just have one in-house company doing everything I have no idea.
It does seem a little odd to me that every American state managed to count it’s electors’ votes on Tuesday in businesslike fashion, except one. Florida will not have their tally completed until tomorrow. Of course that was quite relevant in 2000 when there was much tension caused by their late count having a bearing on the final presidential result. You see the Gang when they are strong in a geographical area or field. I suspect therefore they permeate key areas of Florida society where the established late vote culture could give them the opportunity of trying to determine who should be the next President in a close contest. They know they have the ability to do that in the state should it come to it.
10th November 2012
It was very obvious this morning when John Humprys was interviewing George Entwhistle how badly let down John felt by the Newsnight affair. The reputation of an organistaion he cares for has been very badly affected by what has happened, they have all been tarnished with the same brush and he deeply feels the hopelessness of the situation. The piece would never have been aired if the journalists had notified Lord McAlpine beforehand of their intention to broadcast nor if they had shown Steve a photograph of the man he thought was his abuser. The tradegy of the situation is that it detracts from a really good news story. There was a covered up paedophile ring in North Wales in the 1970s and ’80s. If Newsnight had not been distracted by a famous name the furore would never have happened. At least Mr Cameron did not allow himself to be personally drawn in.
Some of us might be running around like headless chickens at the moment but at least the FT is it’s normal measured self. An excellent three part editorial in today’s paper in my view. The author or authors first advise Mr Obama he needs to bring in some potential detractors into his team so that a consensus for future policies can be built; otherwise it warms unforeseen accidents could befall him as has happened to it’s list of second term presidents in the past. Then it highlights the beneficial power of business in so far as the compensation policy holders will receive after their victimisation by Hurrican Sandy. Lastly it tells us all to allow Nadine Norris do exactly what she wants. If it is important to her to spend a month in the Australian jungle with cameras everywhere who are we to complain about that. We should all be quite capable of drawing our own conclusions, including those who voted for her at the last election I trust.
On 24th October Tom Watson spoke of information available to the police at the time of the conviction of Peter Righton in 1992 indicating the existence of a widespread paedophile ring in this country at that time. He subsequently wrote to the Prime Mininster and suggested 10 police forces had not adequately investigated such claims, including Kent. I also heard a journalist from the Centre of Investigative Journalism speak on the radio last week saying that, although he had had no contact with Mr Watson, his information was similar.
Just like Mr Clinton before him the reputation of the now past head of the CIA has been damged in the eyes of the rest of us by inappropriate sexual activities carried out in private. The fact that Colonel Patraeus’ resignation came two days after President Obam’s re-election cannot, in my view, be a coincidenece. Reading the reports I would say Mr Obama knew nothing about it until Mr Patraeus contacted him. Everything from there must be speculation. So here goes.
The Gang would not be where they are now unless they have got a lot of things right. I suspect one of those is that important things are kept very tightly shut within one small cell of people, as Julian Assange pointed out to John Humphries once in an interview. When you realise that, the obvious way to fight back is to create you own cell or cells within your security services. I supect that is what is now happening in both Britain and America. I think it possible our cell reports direct to our Prime Minister. The principle though is that if those people are completely hidden from outside it is extremely important they know exactly what they are doing and their motive is true. They will never tell us what is going on. I for one will try and keep them on their toes. But ultimately we can only hope for the best.
Rio de Janeiro will be in the world’s spotlight in the coming few years as we build up to the next World Cup and Olympics to be held there. The authorities have launched a determined effort to do something about the drug gangs and militias which control many of the poor areas. I have just read a piece in last weekend’s FT magazine about that which quotes a public official as saying, everybody knew Rio was a divided city but for 40 years nobody did a single thing about it. Who says sport has got nothing to do with politics.
Another report in it’s accompanying newspaper notes that the course of Hurricane Sandy was not unique. The Long Island Express of 1938 did the same thing, no doubt for the same meteorological reasons which were noted by some people at the time. That unfortunately was not predicted and about 700 people were killed.
11th November 2012
One of those nice little Gang stories was highlighted on Sunday on Radio 4 this morning. Eight years ago a new water company sent the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in Jerusalem right on the edge of Israel, a water bill. Previously the church had always been treated as exempt from charges. Nothing was done about chasing that bill but now the water company say they want full payment to the present day, a sum amounting to £1.5 million. The church, run by six separate denominations, says it does not mind paying in the future but it is not fair it should be charged back water rates. The water company has now obtained a court order freezing the church’s bank account meaning they cannot pay any bills at all. The Israeli government is trying to mediate between the two warring sides. Lets hope by concentrating on helping others in need the government might be able to do something about their own paranoid, set upon way of thinking.
Good can come out of evil. Gordon Brown, representing the UN, was in Islamabad yesterday with President Zardari where a programme funded by the World Bank and the UK was announced to give $2 per month per child to Pakistan’s poorest families so that three million of their boys and girls can be put through school.
After their week long meeting in Qatar the to-be-named National Coalition for Opposition Forces and the Syrian Revolution has chosen a leader. He is a mderate Sunni Muslim cleric who fled Damascus in July, Moaz al-Khatib.
One thing I am very sure about after yesterday’s events is that John Humprys has absolutely nothing to feel badly about. John is John and we love him for it. As far as Mr Entwhistle is concerned his confident TV statement last night shows he feels comfortable about what he has done. He is a good man who will find many other good things to do in the future. The problem I am afraid, also evident in the decision to drop the Jimmy Saville Newsnight story and which you see over and over again, is the culture within a small group of people. In this case, an honest lot I am sure, shutting themselves into tightly shut boxes so that no one was talking to anyone else. That is how the Gang arrange things as I say in Chapter 7 of my book.
It seems the Labour MP Ben Bradshaw also sees it that way. He has said that Mr Entwhistle was hung out to dry by those around him and had been badly let down by BBC News managers.
I heard on the World at One at lunchtime that in exactly the same way as George Entwhistle was steamrollered by the Jimmy Savile story as soon as he became Director General, his stand-in, Tim Davie, had a very similar experience. There, three weeks after his appointment as director of BBC Audio and Music, Mr Davie had to deal with the Russell Brand/Jonathan Ross affair.