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On Having Kids…

  I first published this rather amusing, but scathing, anecdote on the subject of having and bringing up kids last April.  However, since then the issue has become a rather more serious one for our country's future, with some interesting, and quite chilling, findings recently brought to light. These would tend to confirm a marked unwillingness to embark upon the 'reproductive journey' amongst our indigenous population (i.e. those who were actually born here). Perchance our potential parents have looked at their ever-dwindling bank balances and rocketing tax bills...and seen the light.  And who could blame them given the prospect of even worse to come over the next 3 years ? Recently announced birthrate statistics have shown a marked downward trend in the course of the last 3 years, with the overall tally for 2024 down to 1.41 births per woman in England and Wales, a record low for the 3rd year in a row. This is of course well below the replacement level of 2.1, and might...
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A ‘Cure’ for the Common Cold - and Other Respiratory Diseases

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Editor's note: Three years further down the line since the orirginal publication, we've now effectively reverted to pre-pandemic behaviour - with the expected increases in respiratory and other infections. This year's flu season is a case in point, with rapid spread of a virus, and low vaccine uptake combining to make it a bad one. The precautions outlined below are still very relevant, although it may be difficult to adopt some of them, particularly for those living in family groups. For anyone with compromised immune systems, however, they are a must, and for the rest of us, should prove a useful protective shield, particularly during the winter months. ----------------------------- S ince we are now well past the 2nd anniversary of the first UK Covid lockdown (March 23rd 2020), I thought it might be useful to review what we've learnt from the pandemic over the last two years, and make some suggestions as to how to apply some of this to help us all prevent respiratory...
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Amazon are withdrawing support from their older Kindles on May 20th - Is yours now defunct ?

  Amazon’s Kindle eReaders were ahead of their time when they first emerged in the late noughties, and were the first of the e-ink long battery life specialist readers to hit the mass market. They have amassed a large following of dedicated reader fans since then, and have proven themselves robust and long-lasting devices. They are also the preferred vehicle for reading eBooks, given the probems associated with long-term use of LED screens.  Amazon have been steadily phasing out support to their older devices for the past couple of years, with restrictions on registration for their oldest models, but there has been considerable concern voiced amongst the Kindle fan-base over the recent 'final' announcement   by Amazon that they are withdrawing support from all of their older devices from May 20th. This doesn't in fact cover the whole range of Kindles, but only applies to anything manufactured before 2012. It means that readers will then no longer be able to use their ...
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Election Politics: Have Momentum Shown Their Hand too Early ?...

 Looking back at this blog from before the 2024 election, it's interesting to note that Labour's internal strife is still continuing apace, and is likely to come to a head if, as predicted, Labout take a hammering in the local elections on May 7th. If there is to be a change at the top, it will be highly likely to occur within a few weeks of this debacle.  Make no mistake, though, Starmer will fight tooth and nail to keep his job, despite his almost universal unpopularity amongst electorate and MPs alike. And he won't hesitate to throw as many of his colleagues 'under the proverbial bus' as it takes to do so.  He may yet reap the whirlwind of a huge majority, soon, despite his efforts - most will by then regard him as an electoral liability, and it won't take many of them to vote against him to administer the 'coup de grace'.  The only problem as far as we're concerned is whether whatever regime follows him makes things even worse...and crashes the e...
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The Future of Modern Warfare: World War 3 and Beyond

 Editor's note:  Last summer's outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Iran sadly bore out the prediction made in the previous revision of this blog for the eternal Middle East 'powder keg'.  Some might say it was inevitable that this particular conflict would come to a head soon, given Iran's determination to get a nuclear bomb, and the old Ayatollah's openly declared intention to use it to destroy the state of Israel. The speed at which it happened does seem to have taken many by surprise, though. Arguably the Iranian regime has, by its actions over the last 40 years, brought its own inevitable destruction on itself. Unfortunately it's the Iranian people who will probably bear the brunt of the suffering that arises from its death throes, which now promise to be quite protracted......  For a more detailed look at Trump's options, and the likely outcomes, check out the most recent blog. Read on for some more background to the conflict.... -------- As ...
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