Thursday, February 09, 2012

Bignews does the ramble Art, Politics, Icy roads, plus local Blog Rankings





Some bloggers, have a sunday ramble, a weekly ramble and possibly a daily ramble, with time to burn yesterday, rather than sit and fester at Flaig Mansions, I thought I've two choices Mrs Me has requested that I tidy up the study/library (spare room with lots of stuff old papers, brochures, magazines, books, tools and work gear) or I could get some fresh air.

I have until the end of the week to tidy up, or else and not having had much fresh air I decided to get out, anyhow although Mrs Me doesn't appreciate these things but I have tidied up the old desktop, defragged the hard drive, removed a lot of rubbish and updated stuff, so despite the bitter cold a walk was by far the more appealing option. I don't generally ramble or muse but here goes.


It's difficult to express how poor our local authority has been in clearing roads, as for pavements forget about it, despite listening to upbeat music on my iphone I could not help but have dark thoughts about our county and district councillors, particularly the former since these blighters trouser I think 13 grand plus a year, for what, couldn't they at least earn the money by clearing paths or something.

I cheered up, once in Margate to realise that contrary to media reports, there was some life left in Margate, and Rooks butchers still sell fine savoury delights such as sausage rolls and one of there unique specialities the cheese and bacon twist, basically a circle of puff pastry, with bacon and melted cheese on top, delicious, even better that, they now sell coffee.

Fortified I stumbled, back into the "Market" then walk down the lower high street, obviously activity is low, but which high street is still thriving, anyhow wandering around the old town, its pleasing to see the shops that are occupied which five years ago were empty, I visited the Margate Gallery which has expanded since I last visited and currently has a fine exhibition of work "Lovers of Light".




I see Southern Gas networks are busy ripping up much of Margate with considerable  mess in the old town, I just hope that they leave things as they found them but I'd take a guess that some of the elaborate blockwork paving will get replaced with tarmac, on to the Harbour Arm, I see this is now colonised by contractors building flood defences,  given that work is set to continue throughout the year, I just wonder how serious the risk of flooding is and whether its worth a years disruption.





Saturday I visited Turner Elements, but through the magic of the mobile phone, got interupted, so yesterday spent an hour or so wandering round the Turner Contemporary, first the Hamish Fulton exhibition, which devotes itself to the artist's interest in walking, with no to wish criticise I cannot help thinking if the artist, was to document his quest to fill out his annual tax return, using randomly sized notices and simple bold text, bullet points, accompanied with equally random pictures, then there would be little difference indeed it might prove more interesting.


Coming to the "Turner Elements", this is as you'd expect marvelous, the exhibition is pegged on the idea of elements as understood by greeks? earth wind water and fire and er air, anyway some great pictures and snippets of Turner capturing ideas, impressions of light and objects, a sort of visual memory, brilliant still a small point, one picture Evening of the Deluge is lit from above and the frame casts a shadow over the picture.

The Turner Elements is a great distraction from the world, outside the gallery is another distraction as much disconnected from the reality as anything inside, at first glance it looks like a hastily arranged Tracy Emin retrospective, from her tent period but happens to be the  "occupy campaign" camped at the bottom of the stairs, you have to admire the futility and stupidity of the protest, a vague and apparently pointless, anticapitalist group with no realistic objectives or goals. I couldn't help wondering whether hidden within the mess of tents, campaigners hadn't pegged out, however on leaving I could hear disembodied voices coming from within the canvas, rather them than me.

Taking a glance at "Occupy Thanet" vacant, facebook page and having taken a gander at the bland meaningless press release, even with the "like" endorsement from local activist and film maker Christine Tongue, someone ought to be kind and tell them their wasting their time.


I hope that someone gets this lot get evicted, Margate harbour area all ready looks a mess, with the harbour arm converted into a builders yard, the clump of tents just by the entrance is a complete pigs breakfast, of course had the protesters a rational objective, instead of wallowing in pity and loathing of vile capitalists, why don't they do something, like get a job, or if they already work, get a better job and be happy.


As a capitalist in the loosest definition, that is I go to work and earn money, I'd like to see that the someone from the jobcentre, makes sure I'm not grafting to subsidise these people, particularly since they can't even bother to articulate themselves.


I applaud protest, when it has an objective like that of the late Brian Haw a long term campaigner, who set up his own peace camp opposite Parliament, reminding politicians of the consequences of decisions over Iraq, for the last ten years and even if you don't agree at least you can respect the man's purpose in speaking up for children and civilians, victims of the Iraq war.

Sorry for the ramble finally, I took a quick glance at rankings using figures from Ebuzzing formally Wikio as you can be sure these are kind to me, which is why I wont be quoting my google page rank which has slipped down the toilet. I know Michael Child publishes monthly figures but anyhoo these are independent.

Bignews Margate score  801
Thanet Press score 833 (mostly from TDC PR who I thought Michael was no longer going to use )
Thanet Life score1000
Thanetonline score 1574
Thanet Star score 1907
Thanet Waves score 14073 (this is the first reference to this site and as such is likely to rise rapidly since  Luke Edwards site is one of the better reads in Thanet,.

NEXT IF I GET ROUND TO IT - Another instance of BBC sloppy reporting?





27 comments:

  1. I'm seriously considering handing out job application forms for Westbrook Tesco - interviewing & recruiting soon - to the work & soap dodgers on the seafront, but I'll probably be wasting my time (& before anyone asks I too am applying for a job there!).

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  2. Only if you get me an application form to be a railroad worker. Deal?

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  3. Peter, head of security or on the deli?

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  4. A few years ago ASDA used an online test for job alplicants to sit. If you were unsucessful you were directed to the Tesco's job web site.

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  5. I don't care if it's cleaning the toilets. It's better than the dole.

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  6. Cheers for the mention, Tony, it's very kind of you. I often worry I bang on a bit too much on my blog and need to work on making my entries more brief and to-the-point, but maybe being long-winded is just my style, I dunno!

    Anyhoo, I'm hoping to do daily posts in future, so let's see if that improves my rankings, shall we?!

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  7. The Beeb is thoroughly owned by the establishment, substitute "sloppy reporting" with "deception by omission" or "disinformation" and you would be closer to the truth.

    The same marxist money that was behind the Arab spring is trying to co-opt the occupy movement, either to steer the ideology, or, failing that, to stir up enough trouble to cause a police state crack-down.

    Private control of our money supply is at the root of all our problems, the only thing nationalised about the Bank of England is the building she is housed in.

    In 1666, as London burned (what a coincidence lol), the Cestui Que Act was passed through Parliament and our collective birthright was removed from us and reappropriated to feed the corporate machine that is turning this planet into a living hell.

    It is high time we threw a collective spanner in the works by taking back our birthright.

    You certainly won't be getting the right solutions from the Ministry of Truth or from any marxist miscreants.

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  8. Nice to see that arch protestor, Christine Tongue, mentioned in your post, Tony. This lady has more causes than I have hot dinners, but significantly she opposes everything.

    Once recall, when the Royal Albion were having their sea front gardens landscaped, that she put on her green hat and lamented the removal of an old laurel hedgerow.

    Well perhaps hedgerow is a bit OTT for this was a sad, tatty old clump of broken down laurel, showing the signs of too many drunks collapsing into it and a receptacle for sundry broken glasses, drink cans and fast food wrappers. A complete eyesore, but if anyone could love it, then it had to be Christine.

    Oft to be seen around town ear bashing in full protestor mode, one wonders if this lady actually gets any pleasure out of life. I suppose there is always the chance of a belly laugh when some Tory councillor slips up on the current icy pavements. Who knows what turns her on?

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  9. Completely agree with your assessment of the vacuous occupy thanet morons. Their press release belongs in a not too bright sixth form essay. Means absolutely nothing. Also spot on Tom Clark re Tongue - anyone who disagrees with her or her Occupy thanet friends she asks 'why are you so bitter?' whilst objecting to absolutely anything and everything, what irony. Disagree with admiration for Thanet Waves - not good writing, not very interesting posts.

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  10. In fact I agree with everything you say that's positive but I hate giving anyone praise or encouragement.

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  11. Those damn protesters and their protesting! What's wrong with them: we all know Capitalism is wonderful and like Tony says we are all capitalists because we go out to work. (Hold on, I'm not sure that's right, I better check that one).

    Instead of being dope-sponging, I mean soap dodging scroungers complaining about free market/Corporate Capitalism they should go and get a job at Tesco! The pay, conditions, pensions there are fantastic.

    What exactly are they after with their barely legible, six form ideals?! A better, fairer model of Capitalism, apparently! What utter tosh when we all know there's no recession and Capitalism is fine as it is. Any problems are all down to those Labour socialists who were in power. The banks and financial sector did a great job but it was government, a leftie one at that, holding them back with silly regulations who got us into this mess!

    After all, the likes of this bloke sees nothing wrong with Capitalism:

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/sep/22/vince-cable-capitalism-city-reaction

    Or this lot, who see nothing wrong with imposing cuts in order to put right what the CommieMarxistFascist Labout lot did to the economy:

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15181547

    As the wonderfully funny Jeremy Clarkson says: we should line the protesters up and shoot them all in front of their families. Why don't we all go to this Oppose eyesore, outside the Turner eyesore, I mean art gallery, and give them a piece of our minds! How about we all wear brownish shirts to identify ourselves? I'll also suggest they stop reading the leftie nonsense that's filling their heads full of rubbish and read something more informative like the Daily Maily or the Daily Express!!!!11!1!!

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  12. If any of the other local shops are offering jobs with better pay, conditions & pensions than Tesco then I'll gladly apply. I wonder if Londis would be better?

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  13. Rooks Butchers isnt that owned by Julie Rook Conservative KCC Cllr who stood as an MP and her Cllr hubby ?

    Probably why I never bother shopping there as I am very fussy where I spend my money.

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  14. I see I am in the bottom half, which figures Tony, thanks for the info.

    Surprised that a nosy bloke like you didn’t bang on the tent flap and ask them what they are about.

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    Replies
    1. Well they do fluctuate Michael, as for hanging about and banging on the tent flap it was far to cold, in fact maybe that is the problem, electrons or whatever frozen, and once the thaw comes the occupy crowd unleash the greatest thing since sliced bread marx and engles etc

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  15. 7:30, Don't you mean your giro cheque? Need that I suppose for your fags and beer and you can always eat down the Sally Army soup kitchen. Now that's what I call selective shopping!

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  16. Tony I did a certain amount of protesting back in the 60s, I don’t regret it, my position at the moment is that I don’t have to agree with everything they say to consider it very important to defend their right to protest.

    I hope to get over to Margate next week and have another chat with them, this will be the third one and I am coming to the conclusion that they are making some important points.

    I have to admit to having a bit of a laugh in the Turner, when I looked up at the top of the central display and noticed it said water and air, rather like something in a petrol station.

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  17. I've been dodging soap all my life.

    Why anyone would want to rub industrial toxic waste all over their skin is beyond me!

    Same goes for sunscreen.

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  18. Speaking of useless councils, the level of TDC's customer care at Gateway is beyond belief. Apart from the fiasco that is birth and death registration, this week saw freezing temperatures INSIDE the building not to mention a total black out on one day.
    Can the running of this "facility" get any worse?
    Answers on a postcard please....

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  19. Are you talking about the fuse problem they had? The staff who had to work under difficult circumstances that were no fault of their own. I think you are being a bit harsh.

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  21. I'm not knocking the staff.They have nothing to do with failures in the heating! In fact they suffer more than the public because they are in a freezing place for hours at a time day after day. They always do their best. I am referring to the management of the place.
    I simply cannot believe that the heating fails in there every winter!
    Who decided they should stay open with no power??
    Un....believable.

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  23. Tony doesn't like security cameras in taxis anon!

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  24. Think you got the wrong end of the stick there James,I am in total agreement with anon 10-15,it is bitter cold in there,how the staff work in those conditions i really don't know,it is bitter cold in there(I wonder what it is like in the building next door....)

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  25. FEB 13 1 15 anon

    I'm removing your video link since it's edited, also as it appears to have been secretly filmed.

    The scene doesn't appear to show the lead up to the conversation, and you have to ask why.

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