This is Northumberland Calling 8.11.24

The Labour Grandees eat humble pie, Shattered glass ceilings, Bread Riots in Gaza and pogroms in Amsterdam edition

Hello America (Particularly Central Ohio) this is Northumberland Calling

After the election of Trump Labour grandees like David Lammy, foreign secretary and the deputy leader Angela Rayner have been having to eat humble pie, innards and all as they are now in Government and not in Opposition. They played a dangerous game of student politics and have had their fingers burnt. They are being forced into a position  which Trump enjoys – having to abjectly apologize for their earlier remarks. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/11/07/rayner-called-trump-buffoon-who-has-no-place-in-white-house/ or https://archive.ph/ByA5b

One of the first things was to keep Karen Price, the current UK Ambassador to the US on instead of giving the plum position to one of the Labour Grandees like David Miliband or Baroness Amos. Price famously went over just as the lockdown restrictions were coming into force. Johnson had had to remove the previous ambassador when his remarks about Trump were leaked. Trump held the airspace open until she arrived. She arranged for Starmer and Lammy to have supper with Trump in September (thus showing that she had some inkling of the possible outcome and possibly more political acumen than the Labour party). https://www.thetimes.com/article/256d405f-3d7d-428c-9b6f-8c14802e18cd or https://archive.ph/f2ydl

NB it is unlikely Starmer will put the interests of country before party and turn to Nigel Farage for assistance, even though Farage and Trump are personal friends because the Left would not stand for it and Farage reckons there is a trade deal to be done before Trump starts imposing tariffs. Instead he will have to face the prospect of Farage influencing Trump without moderation. Farage is many things, but one thing he holds dear is Great Britain and its welfare. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/11/07/nigel-farage-donald-trump-friendship-a-problem-for-labour/ or https://archive.ph/tWd2e

It is a problem for Starmer, not the least because of the huge growth in Brit-Shoring which has happened in the last few years in the Film industry, tech and consultancy. Basically because of the exchange rate, British employees are cheaper than US ones. It costs less to fly someone from London or Dublin to NYC than to fly them from Wyoming. Tariffs could affect the British economy in many more goods and services than simply Scottish Whisky. This explains about Brit-Shoring and why it is now a headache for Starmer: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/11/03/how-britshoring-turned-the-uk-into-a-us-economic-colony/ or https://archive.ph/sAD4y

Trump’s new chief of staff has shattered one of the few remaining  so-called glass ceilings in Washington. A woman has never held the position before.  Susie Wiles, the daughter of the late NFL broadcaster Pat Summerall which explains a lot imho, happens to have one of the great all time political comeback stories herself. She is credited with being able to work with Trump instead of against him. They started working together in 2021 when both their careers were supposed have been over.  His triumph is surely her triumph as well. This is a profile of her – https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/politics/2024/11/06/susie-wiles-discreet-de-facto-leader-of-the-trump-campaign/ or https://archive.ph/SyI3C

It is well to remember that Trump does not have to  feign an interest in American football. He once owned a franchise in short-lived USFL – the New Jersey Generals. However that long standing interest in American football, wrestling etc held him in good stead when he appeared on various podcasts in what is now being called the manosphere or bro-land. Apparently his son Barron was instrumental in choosing the podcasts to appear on, but his ability to speak to them fails to surprise me. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/politics/2024/11/07/how-barron-trump-helped-his-dad-win-the-bro-vote/ or https://archive.ph/C6oVy

If you are interested in Trump’s plans, it would be well to look at his election site which does have a list of things (Agenda 47) which he is going to put in motion on Day 1. One is a plan to end Gender Insanity as he called it in Feb 23. You can tell he and Wiles were new to the problem then as he speaks of Assigned at Birth when it should be Observed and Recorded at Birth, with any ambiguities properly diagnosed through non-invasive testing. https://www.donaldjtrump.com/agenda47/president-trumps-plan-to-protect-children-from-left-wing-gender-insanity

The UK government has once again extended its temporary block on Puberty Blockers:  https://www.gov.uk/government/news/extension-to-temporary-ban-on-puberty-blockers

Justin Welby was involved in the cover up of a highly abusive behaviour of someone associated closely with the wider Church of England leadership. Welby considered resigning but decided not to. Given his failure of judgement over the Paula Vennells affair (he wanted to make the former CEO of the British PO  a bishop), I would suspect that there is little chance that Welby will resign over anything. He prefers to reflect on the wickedness of long dead relations and lecture other people…  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14056473/Fury-Justin-Welby-helped-cover-crimes-Church-Englands-prolific-abuser-targeted-100-children-young-men.html

Jeremy Clarkson is furious at the response of the British government to his plans for a farmer’s protest over the proposed changes to inheritance tax on 19 November. He claims it is another example of two-tier policing and if he had draped his tractor in a Free Palestine flag, it would not have been capped at 1,800 people. It is the first event, not the only event. Clarkson will get the farmers organized btw. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/11/08/jeremy-clarkson-fury-protest-farmers-inheritance-blocked/ or https://archive.ph/Aszze

Yesterday marked the fourth day of riots against the gouging of humanitarian aid in Gaza. The riots have spread and now happening in parts of Gaza which the IDF has not cleared which means Hamas’s control is slipping. Hamas has had control of the humanitarian aid and have resold it at inflated prices to help gain funds. The Institute for the Study of War keep reporting on this. I think it is significant because it is where you often see power crumble in totalitarian regimes. https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-november-7-2024

The 3 Hs and IR  having basically failed in the Middle East and created a catastrophe for ordinary Palestinians and Shi’a Muslims in Southern Lebanon (opposite of their honeyed promises)  have turned their malign attention once again to the West. The hounding of Israeli football fans in Amsterdam on the eve of the Kristallnacht commemorations marks a change in strategy. The 3 Hs and the IR are not the West’s friend. Peaceful protest is one thing. This sort of violence is another. It is time for the Netherlands to step up and say –Never Again is Now. There have been 57 arrests and more are expected. Israel has sent rescue planes for Jews in Europe. https://www.thetimes.com/world/europe/article/israel-rescue-mission-antisemitic-attacks-amsterdam-6p7ffv06z or https://archive.ph/ixFbt

Here, I have been wearing my Procrastination Princess tiara and have been utterly distracted by the US election. The writing goes slowly but things should improve next week.

I put bee fondant on the hives to feed the bees. In the colder weather, bees will not take a sugar syrup and so a candy fondant is used. The bees in one hive seemed particularly grateful. In really cold weather bees go into a bee-ball and hibernation, consuming far less food, but this has not happened yet. The ivy is out which is an important late autumn food source, but the bees have to be able to fly (i.e. it needs not to be raining).

I have also started my Christmas preparation – mincemeat (which is basically vine fruit, booze and suet) needs to sit for several weeks until being made into pies. Mincemeat does last and tastes much better if made from scratch. The Christmas pudding and Christmas cake also are on the list.  I am experimenting with sauerkraut this year as well.

Paddy self-soothing on Bonfire Night by destroying an old slipper

Paddy did not like the bangs from the Bonfire Night  fireworks (some gundog he would have made). I ended lying on the floor with him curled into net to me to get him to settle while the village had its huge firework display. He is very pleased that the fireworks are now over for awhile (they always do a display at New Year’s)

If you want to find me during the week, I have started putting things on Celia M’s Jottings in Purple  

which is where a number of refuge FP commentators are hanging out as they dislike the current FP policy on comments. The discussion is usually lively as you might expect from former FP commentators. Depending on how firmly my Procrastination Princess tiara is attached (aka how well my actual writing is going), I may end up getting distracted.

Hopefully everyone else’s week was a good one. I look forward to seeing you in the comments.

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