Today the Councillors of Edinburgh committed political suicide, they reversed a decision on the Trams Project that they took last week and decided to lumber the city council taxt payers with a £250 million pounds plus loan for the next 30 years. They had the chance to end the tram line at either Haymarket or St. Andrew's Square or cancel (or mothball it until they had the appropriate funding to complete it). They decided to continue it onto St. Andrew's Square.
I have just sent the following email to all councillors to express my sentiments as enough is enough. The email listing of the councillors is below it, and if you want to express your sentiments just send an email to yourself and bcc the listing and you can email all councillors at the same time (it will save you five minutes of your time).
Email to all councillors
"Dear Councillor
I would like to register my utter disgust at the decision that was voted through by the City Council regards the Edinburgh trams.
All councillors have acted in deplorable and disrespectful manner with respect to the wishes of the Edinburgh citizenry. Have the council at any time put the matter of the building of trams to the electorate or have political and business interests circumvented these wishes?
If the proposed trams were really for the benefits of the citizens of Edinburgh, why were they not started at Leith or one of the main transport arteries leading to the city centre? The majority of the people of Edinburgh in their day-to-day lives do not need to travel to the Airport. Have you forgotten that your main responsibilities are to the citizens of the capital not your political party and the businesses that you may be too close to?
Recently we have had riots in England, and I believe that this was mainly due in part to the political elite continuing to put their own political interests above the wishes of the people. You no longer listen to us.
I have yet to meet anyone in Edinburgh that is in favour of the trams but, of course, I do not mix with the high exalted company that you rub shoulders with.
For too long you have been depending upon the apathy of the electorates but I believe that this has now changed. You can no longer hide behind your ivory towers, the citizens of Edinburgh now need to be heard, of course, this means in the city elections in May you can expect a much harder examination of your policies and principles (if you still have any).
I have heard the rumours of a non-payment of council tax campaign until the trams project is halted or mothballed. Maybe if council business could not be conducted it may concentrate your mind and remind you in no uncertain terms that it is the citizens that hold the power.
I should like to think that I may get a reply to this email but given that most people think that politicians do not care about the electorate, I may be waiting sometime. However, I may be surprised.
Yours in anticipation"
Email listing
jenny.dawe@edinburgh.gov.uk, george.grubb@edinburgh.gov.uk, steve.cardownie@edinburgh.gov.uk, rob.munn@edinburgh.gov.uk, elaine.aitken@edinburgh.gov.uk, ewan.aitken@edinburgh.gov.uk, robert.aldridge@edinburgh.gov.uk, jeremy.balfour@edinburgh.gov.uk, eric.barry@edinburgh.gov.uk, angela.blacklock@edinburgh.gov.uk, michael.bridgman@edinburgh.gov.uk, deidre.brock@edinburgh.gov.uk, gordon.buchan@edinburgh.gov.uk, tom.buchanan@edinburgh.gov.uk, steve.burgess@edinburgh.gov.uk, andrew.burns@edinburgh.gov.uk, ronald.cairns@edinburgh.gov.uk, maggie.chapman@edinburgh.gov.uk, maureen.child@edinburgh.gov.uk, joanna.coleman@edinburgh.gov.uk, bill.cook@edinburgh.gov.uk, cammy.day@edinburgh.gov.uk, charles.dundas@edinburgh.gov.uk, paul.edie@edinburgh.gov.uk, nick.elliott-cannon@edinburgh.gov.uk, paul.godzik@edinburgh.gov.uk, norma.hart@edinburgh.gov.uk, stephen.hawkins@edinburgh.gov.uk, ricky.henderson@edinburgh.gov.uk, lesley.hinds@edinburgh.gov.uk, allan.jackson@edinburgh.gov.uk, alison.johnstone@edinburgh.gov.uk, colin.keir@edinburgh.gov.uk, louise.lang@edinburgh.gov.uk, Jim.Lowrie@edinburgh.gov.uk, gordon.f.mackenzie@edinburgh.gov.uk, kate.mackenzie@edinburgh.gov.uk, marilyne.maclaren@edinburgh.gov.uk, mark.mcinnes@edinburgh.gov.uk, stuart.mcivor@edinburgh.gov.uk, tim.mckay@edinburgh.gov.uk, eric.milligan@edinburgh.gov.uk, elaine.morris@edinburgh.gov.uk, joanna.mowat@edinburgh.gov.uk, rob.munn@edinburgh.gov.uk, gordon.munro@edinburgh.gov.uk, alastair.paisley@edinburgh.gov.uk, gary.peacock@edinburgh.gov.uk, ian.perry@edinburgh.gov.uk, alasdair.rankin@edinburgh.gov.uk, cameron.rose@edinburgh.gov.uk, jason.rust@edinburgh.gov.uk, conor.snowden@edinburgh.gov.uk, marjorie.thomas@edinburgh.gov.uk, stefan.tymkewycz@edinburgh.gov.uk, phil.wheeler@edinburgh.gov.uk, iain.whyte@edinburgh.gov.uk, donald.wilson@edinburgh.gov.uk, norman.work@edinburgh.gov.uk
Friday, 2 September 2011
Saturday, 23 July 2011
I am a Norwegian
I am from Edinburgh and consider myself Scottish through and through. However, after the terrible terrorist attacks in Olso and Utoeya Island and after hearing a Swedish man in Oslo say that "he was now a Norwegian" I understand exactly what he means and everybody should be declaring that "I am a Norwegian".
Our national barb Rabbie Burns wrote that a song called "A Man's a Man for A' That", in principal, the song indicates that that everyone is same under the skin. Another Scots phrase is "We are all Jock Tamson's Bairns" which loosely translated means "we are all John Thomson's Children" i.e. we are all the same species 'homo sapiens'. As such we should all work to the benefit of all the human race and not one of the many human ideologies or religions.
For God's Sake (whether you are Christian, Muslim, Bhuddist, Jewish, etc.) let's stop this type of senseless killing now and live together as humans. Politicians do not matter, everyone of them has their own interests at heart. They are the ones that have led so many to war and have created the situations that have led humans to kill humans.
As humans we do need guidance but with normal common sense, human morality and ethics it should be the starting point to allow us to progress as a race.
Our national barb Rabbie Burns wrote that a song called "A Man's a Man for A' That", in principal, the song indicates that that everyone is same under the skin. Another Scots phrase is "We are all Jock Tamson's Bairns" which loosely translated means "we are all John Thomson's Children" i.e. we are all the same species 'homo sapiens'. As such we should all work to the benefit of all the human race and not one of the many human ideologies or religions.
For God's Sake (whether you are Christian, Muslim, Bhuddist, Jewish, etc.) let's stop this type of senseless killing now and live together as humans. Politicians do not matter, everyone of them has their own interests at heart. They are the ones that have led so many to war and have created the situations that have led humans to kill humans.
As humans we do need guidance but with normal common sense, human morality and ethics it should be the starting point to allow us to progress as a race.
Thursday, 23 June 2011
Edinburgh's Disgrace
This usually refers to the National Monument on Calton Hill, which in the 19th Century was to be built to commemorate the war dead in the Napoleonic War. However, after the start of building the project ran out of money and was never completed see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Monument,_Edinburgh It seems that Edinburgh and it's notso worthy leaders never learn the lessons from the past.
In 2007 the Labour Edinburgh Council decided to build a tram system in the city and over the past years the project has run out of control. However, in the 1950s Edinburgh Council ripped up the trams system which had served the citizens for many years as they were considered to cause congestion to the public bus system and cars. It was announced yesterday that to cancel the project would cost more than £750m pounds as opposed to £700m to build the trams from the airport or £770m to complete the route to St. Andrews Square.
Next week the Council will decide on the future of the project but given the way the Council has handled the project they should be the last people to make any decision on the project. The local Newspaper the Evening News has called for citizens to get in touch with their councillors to tell them off their concerns. The problem with the Councillors of all parties are all linked in with the project and do not want to be associated with cancelling what is considered by the citizenry as a very expensive vanity project. If this had been in the past when the Edinburgh Mob held the council to account probably by lynching a few members of the city fathers.
To make a comment to the councillors go to http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/councillors and email them. It's a pity that we can not get a petition page set up (unfortunately I don't have the technology to set one up) or that the citizens of Edinburgh turn up to the Council offices in great numbers on 30th June.
It should be noted that the SNP government try to cancel the project when elected in 2007 but the other parties forced them to continue with this project.
This project as I have indicated should have looked at the past and also the recent past with respect to the Millenium Dome and the Scottish Parliament Building.
In 2007 the Labour Edinburgh Council decided to build a tram system in the city and over the past years the project has run out of control. However, in the 1950s Edinburgh Council ripped up the trams system which had served the citizens for many years as they were considered to cause congestion to the public bus system and cars. It was announced yesterday that to cancel the project would cost more than £750m pounds as opposed to £700m to build the trams from the airport or £770m to complete the route to St. Andrews Square.
Next week the Council will decide on the future of the project but given the way the Council has handled the project they should be the last people to make any decision on the project. The local Newspaper the Evening News has called for citizens to get in touch with their councillors to tell them off their concerns. The problem with the Councillors of all parties are all linked in with the project and do not want to be associated with cancelling what is considered by the citizenry as a very expensive vanity project. If this had been in the past when the Edinburgh Mob held the council to account probably by lynching a few members of the city fathers.
To make a comment to the councillors go to http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/councillors and email them. It's a pity that we can not get a petition page set up (unfortunately I don't have the technology to set one up) or that the citizens of Edinburgh turn up to the Council offices in great numbers on 30th June.
It should be noted that the SNP government try to cancel the project when elected in 2007 but the other parties forced them to continue with this project.
This project as I have indicated should have looked at the past and also the recent past with respect to the Millenium Dome and the Scottish Parliament Building.
Thursday, 9 June 2011
BBC ALBA and Freeview Radio
It must have seemed a great idea at the time that Scotland has it's own Gaelic TV station, but this has led to the exclusion of BBC Radio Scotland and it's Gaelic equivalent from the Freeview delivery system. This is apparently due to the lack of bandwidth when the TV station is running. The BBC seem to think that more people in Scotland listen to BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Radio 1 Xtra and BBC Radio 6 Music than our own national radio stations. Given that BBC Radio 6 Music was saved quite recently due to lack of listener numbers, this seems to indicate that someone in BBC England must have thought that lets really p*** off the Scots.
It should also be noted that according to the 2001 census that only 1.2% of the Scottish population aged over three years old speak Scottish Gaelic. What about the majority of the population who like listening to our national radio station? No point in sending comments to BBC Points of View they would probably not be broadcast. The Scottish Mob should start bombarding the BBC with complaints via their webpage at http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/
It should be noted that if you are trying to complain there is no button for Gaels to complain but there is a button for the Welsh.
It should also be noted that according to the 2001 census that only 1.2% of the Scottish population aged over three years old speak Scottish Gaelic. What about the majority of the population who like listening to our national radio station? No point in sending comments to BBC Points of View they would probably not be broadcast. The Scottish Mob should start bombarding the BBC with complaints via their webpage at http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/
It should be noted that if you are trying to complain there is no button for Gaels to complain but there is a button for the Welsh.
Friday, 3 June 2011
Corporate Vandalism by Edinburgh Council
I like many others think that graveyards are an important link to the past. It does not really matter, of course, whether any of your family are buried within the graveyard. All of those interred deserve the respect of those walking amongst the gravestones but also of those who are charged with their duty and care. In the last year I have spent many happy hours walking through graveyards within Edinburgh and the Lothians.
With this in mind, I accuse Edinburgh Council and other councils up and down the land of corporate vandalism with respect to council-run graveyards. Using health and safety legislation Council workers are instructed to go into graveyards and toppled gravestones that may be in an unsafe state. Recently the City of Edinburgh council has decided to spend quite a bit of money (£50,000) improving four graveyards in the centre of the city (potential tourist hotspots).
One graveyard that I have spent a lot of time in recently is the Grange Graveyard. From my pictorial evidence you can see the damage that has been done already. None of these gravestones has fallen naturally but has been toppledby council workers. This graveyard is away from the usual tourist haunts but historically it is very important.
This council and other councils have a tendency of thinking about the money that may flow in from tourism but forget that the citizens who live in their cities and towns who pay the council tax are the ones who pay their salaries and also give them the money to implement some of the most stupidest plans.
It should be noted that this stupid health and safety legislation was introduced a few years ago when a gravestone crushed one person down in England.
With this in mind, I accuse Edinburgh Council and other councils up and down the land of corporate vandalism with respect to council-run graveyards. Using health and safety legislation Council workers are instructed to go into graveyards and toppled gravestones that may be in an unsafe state. Recently the City of Edinburgh council has decided to spend quite a bit of money (£50,000) improving four graveyards in the centre of the city (potential tourist hotspots).
One graveyard that I have spent a lot of time in recently is the Grange Graveyard. From my pictorial evidence you can see the damage that has been done already. None of these gravestones has fallen naturally but has been toppledby council workers. This graveyard is away from the usual tourist haunts but historically it is very important.
This council and other councils have a tendency of thinking about the money that may flow in from tourism but forget that the citizens who live in their cities and towns who pay the council tax are the ones who pay their salaries and also give them the money to implement some of the most stupidest plans.
It should be noted that this stupid health and safety legislation was introduced a few years ago when a gravestone crushed one person down in England.
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Sunday, 1 May 2011
The BBC and its Dumbing Downhill Spiral
The past few years people in the media (other than the BBC) have complained that the BBC are trying to dumb down their output. I feel that this is the case but the area where the BBC are dumbing down is with respect to their editing of online articles, onscreen subtitles and even script editing.
A few examples
On their website I have had to constantly contact them with respect to factual errors. A recent example is when they were reporting on a row of Georgian tenements on MacKenzie Place in Edinburgh and showed a picture which appeared to be from around the 1950s with a title of "Edinburgh in Georgian times" I contacted them indicating that it would have been impossible to have a picture from Georgian times as cameras had not been invented in the period of 1714 to 1830.
Recently a newsreader read a script about a bomb discovered in Northern Ireland, that was indicated to be 'both viable and sustainable', this was repeated twice in the space of an hour. Of course, the script was meant to read as 'both viable and substantial" otherwise after exploding the bomb might have had positive green and environmentally-friendly effects.
And finally, wrong titles appearing on screen, this morning on "Something for the Weekend" during the item "what year was this programme on". One of the newspaper clippings was entitled as being from the "Independant" as opposed to the "Independent". This comes a few weeks after one of the most brilliant BBC programme "A History of Celtic Britain" an expert named Paul Russell was listed as being from the University of Cambrdige and not Cambridge. Although I am sure that the same mistake would not have been made with subtitling for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridges' wedding.
Speaking as a proofreader I find this type of thing not only annoying but also an indication that standards are going downhill fast.
A few examples
On their website I have had to constantly contact them with respect to factual errors. A recent example is when they were reporting on a row of Georgian tenements on MacKenzie Place in Edinburgh and showed a picture which appeared to be from around the 1950s with a title of "Edinburgh in Georgian times" I contacted them indicating that it would have been impossible to have a picture from Georgian times as cameras had not been invented in the period of 1714 to 1830.
Recently a newsreader read a script about a bomb discovered in Northern Ireland, that was indicated to be 'both viable and sustainable', this was repeated twice in the space of an hour. Of course, the script was meant to read as 'both viable and substantial" otherwise after exploding the bomb might have had positive green and environmentally-friendly effects.
And finally, wrong titles appearing on screen, this morning on "Something for the Weekend" during the item "what year was this programme on". One of the newspaper clippings was entitled as being from the "Independant" as opposed to the "Independent". This comes a few weeks after one of the most brilliant BBC programme "A History of Celtic Britain" an expert named Paul Russell was listed as being from the University of Cambrdige and not Cambridge. Although I am sure that the same mistake would not have been made with subtitling for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridges' wedding.
Speaking as a proofreader I find this type of thing not only annoying but also an indication that standards are going downhill fast.
Wednesday, 27 April 2011
The Other Guys and the Royal Wedding
I have just watching the Royal Wedding Channel (BBC) on which there was an article on a group of St. Andrew's University Students called the "Other Guys". I think it sums up the BBC and their attitude to the Royal Wedding that everyone in the UK is waiting with total anticipation to see 'Kate' and 'Wills' tie the knot. According to a recent poll only 30% of the UK population are interested in this wedding. Every one of the interviewees from St. Andrews was what we would call in Scots as talking with 'bools in their mooths'. None were what you could call "commoners" like Ms Middleton (aye that's right). Given that the BBC have separate stations for sport and other events why do they not put it on one of these stations leaving BBC One as a Royal Wedding free station. It would stop me and others from swearing alot.
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