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4-Apr-2026

No Laughing Matters

USA + Israel V Russia + Iran
Putin is getting unprecedented [unpresidented?] negative press in Russia over the Ukraine invasion attempt. And Trump is under threat from US politicians and big business for grossly miscalculating - or even adequate explaining - the attacks on Iran.
Both leaders have caused massive suffering - at home and abroad - while blowing billions on weapons. In the case of Putin there is the additional matter of wasting so many lives - including within his own forces.
There is a feeling that something at the top as got to give. Perhaps Putin will be deposed by a Kremlin coup. Perhaps Trump will suffer a smilar fate in Washington. Perhaps one - or even both - will succumb to the pressure of office

Chagos Islands Fraud?
After all the earlier concerns over the worst-case of dodgy dealing in living memory we now learn that the EU’s fishing factory ships are planning to rip through the marine conservation zone around the islands as soon as possible after the treaty with Mauritius is ratified. Fifteen years of UK-policed protection will be wiped out.
Clearly the value of the US base would plummet if Mauritius restricts nuclear weapons / ships or places restrictions on their roles. Given that this is not just possible but likely, the UK will be left with a 99-year lease on a worthless - and possibly underwater - asset.
Update 10-Apr2026; Headline -Chagos Islands deal on the brink as Keir Starmer is forced to delay handover plan after Trump withdrew his support and branded it an 'act of great stupidity'. Keir Starmer has been forced to withdraw legislation that would hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius after Donald Trump dropped his support.

Concerning Prospects
The Middle Eastern war has already caused enough disruption to oil and gas production to make life hard in Europe for months - or even years - to come. In fact some countries with debt mountains close to their maximums could well be pushed too far and default. A weakened Germany economy will not be able to prop up all the EU’s failing economies. So not the best time for the UK to have ‘closer ties’ with the EU. We would no doubt then incur our ‘fair share’ of the all the failing countries problems.
Sadly for Grandad [and the majority in the UK] our current leaders seem determined to get us entangled in EU red tape - and pay dearly for the privilege.

Money Trails
The most effective method for getting nearer to the truth in many complex issues is to find out who gains financially. One classic current case is of course the surrender of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. The EU, China and the new owners are strongly in favour. There are billions to be made - or simply given away by the UK - for decades. Amazingly the USA will not be liable for any costs - which explains their initial lack of concern. And with UK lawyers being paid handsomely to represent both sides of the deal it’s a win for them either way.
Much the same drives Big Don to bully countries and get his hands on rare earth minerals and oil / gas - see Iran, Ukraine, Greenland, etc. Perhaps the discovery of oil in the Chagos Islands would make for some radical re-thinks [Falkland Islands next?]

tags: war, power, military, expanding conflicts

18-Mar-2026

Green Logic

NorthSeaOilMeme

tags: crazy, political, expensive, pointless, laughing stock

28-Feb-2026

Duck Soup

LameKeir-1 Let me be clear ... the latest by-election result was a deliberate strategy to lull the other political parties into a false sense of confidence. Come the May elections we will smash the gangs ...

Not a quote rather just a comment on what might well be put out by the terrible lame-duck government that we now have.

Not that the grossly distorted vote last Thursday was a glowing endorsement of fair and free democracy in action. The shocking result makes a joke of the present voting process. More a buy-election than a by-election

It was also clearly one where different communities were targeted with selected “partial manifestos”. Ensuring that any unsuitable facts and promises were kept undercover until it was too late for voters to rethink. So we have a Jewish, gay and vegan party leader carefully avoiding anything that might be detrimental with some groups of voters.

Despite all of this the result still stands (so far) making the Greens winners through a huge anti-Labour shift .... So much for the policy strategists at Number 10.

Update 1-Mar-2026
Developments in the Middle East have firmly relegated UK election issues to the trivia section. An escalating conflict between the USA and Iran has now drawn in Saudi Arabia and all the smaller Gulf states. There are even unconfirmed reports of attacks against Cyprus in the Med and a US aircraft carrier. Both are denied but the feeling remains that a wider conflict has moved from possible to likely. The phrase World War Three is aired a lot.
One certainty, however, is that Britain’s political leader has sunk even further into the Duck Soup with another showing of weakness that can be seen not just by the British public but also by a worldwide audience. How are the mighty fallen!

Update 3-Mar-2026
From Express website headlines - Cowering Keir Starmer has once again shamed Britain in the eyes of the world. Starmer's behaviour on Iran has been so utterly spineless, stupid and catastrophically damaging to Britain as to show him desperately unworthy of the office he holds.

Keir Starmer humiliated as Macron rushes in French warships to defend British bases. France is sending its own armed forces to defend UK-owned military bases, raising questions about Britain's ability to defend itself.

Update 4-Mar-2026
From Daily Mail website headlines - Starmer takes the 'Great' out of Great Britain: A 'strategically illiterate' PM who Trump mocks as 'no Churchill'... with a Navy fleet stranded in port as British base is attacked leaving 'Nelson spinning in his grave'.

Update 5-Mar-2026
From Daily Mail website headlines - Now Spain sends ship to protect Cyprus as island blasts 'weak' Britain, Royal Navy languishes in port and Iran drones hit top secret RAF base.

According to the Daily Mail only two of the six Royal Navy Destroyers are operational - even though HMS Dragon was clearly unable to operate and HMS Duncan is at an undisclosed location. It is stated that HMS Dragon was disarmed in preparation for maintenance - a bit unusual when HMS Dauntless was also in maintenance after being operational just a week ago. The fact that half the compliment are being refitted and that one, HMS Daring, has been out of action for over 8 years shows it’s not just the current PM’s fault.

tags: weak, dishonest, corrupt, defeat, votes

19-Feb-2026

Sell Out #2.2

It’s hard to comprehend but it’s four years since the Russian mad man attempted to annex the whole of Ukraine.

TrumpStarmer2 The fact that Russia’s 2022 invasion force was not just stopped but soundly defeated - by the much smaller forces of Ukraine forced Russia to withdraw back to Belarus and instead try to expand the earlier illegal gains in the south and east.

Over the four years since, Russia has inched forward through suicidal attacks that have cost hundreds of thousands - if not millions - of lives.

The USA and Europe have contributed massive military aid - but since DJT was elected for a second term the US support has been increasingly reluctant. The US President’s apparent obsessions with being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize - and getting Europe to fend for itself - have lead to a string of attempts at peace deals.

So far these deals have been loaded heavily in favour of Russia. Setting requirements that no Ukrainian leader could accept - unless under massive duress. A sell-out of the injured party in favour of the invader. Starmer and the other European leaders have been pushed into the background and look simply bit-part players.

Meanwhile the families that were evacuated to the UK are giving up hope of ever having a recognisable country to return too.

tags: weak, dishonest, corrupt, sell-out

5-Feb-2026

Got Away With It?..continued

I did not know .. that the Prince of Darkness was totally unsuitable to .. be our US Ambassador, have a seat in the Lords, be trusted with confidential government information, etc etc ... seems to be our Prime Minister’s defense.

StarmerBB1 But even the Labour worker-bees on the backbench are getting agitated at the succession of wrong decisions and hasty reversals.

Things are so bad that no one is sure about exactly what policy is in force on main key issues. Or in which direction the British Ship of State is currently heading .. if anywhere at all.

Different politicians are making contradicting statements. Not uncommon with opposing parties but not good when they are supposed to be on the same team. It was even reported that some Reform MPs voted with Labour by mistake in the confusion.

Update 9-Feb-2026
The out of control Ship of State has hit the iceberg and freezing cold torrents are engulfing the passengers and crew. The Captain remains at his post for now - but a quick change of plan looks unavoidable ...

Update 13-Feb-2026
The survivors of Ship of State have been picked up by a ghost ship sailing near by. However the State’s Captain, Rodney Karno, now claims that he did not know there were still icebergs in these arctic waters with climate change and besides that he was told he was heading for the Indian Ocean via the Cape. Meanwhile media reports claim his team of special advisors had all been fired days before the voyage started and were seen celebrating their massive hand-outs in the Maldives.

Update 18-Feb-2026
Now Ted Millibrain, one of the survivors, has demanded that the ghost ship stops using diesel power and instead uses sails. In response the ghost ship’s captain has provided Ted with a small boat and directions on how to get to Dover. Meantime the ship now heads towards its home port - Murmansk.

Update 7-Mar-2026
On arrival in Murmansk the Russian authorities jailed all the rescued survivors pending their trial for spying .. no news since.

tags: weak, dishonest, fragmented, chaotic, Fred Karno’s Circus, shambles

27-Jan-2026

Sell Out #1.3

Yet another posting about the stupidity and weakness of the UK’s political leaders.

Ever since October 2024 what should have been a fair and just solution over a tiny area of the ocean we have had politicians (and their advisors) show incredible incompetance - especially from the Starmer-Lammy duo.
BIOT2
There is little point in repeating all the ups and downs of this sorry saga so far. But we can look forward.

And with the discovery of a clause in the existing USA-UK lease on Diego Garcia in the Chagos Islands requiring it to remain under British sovereignty the whole transfer of ownership plan collapses.

It would require the USA to agree to a lease change - an unlikely move and one that seems at odds with a 19-Jan-2026 posting in Mauritius...

The U.S. Department of Defence has awarded a major base operating support contract for the strategic Diego Garcia facility, signaling continued long-term investment in the site amid sensitive ongoing negotiations regarding the territory’s sovereignty.
The contract, awarded to the UK-US joint venture Amentum Mitie Pacific, begins with an initial $85.2m fixed-price agreement.
However, with all options and extensions included through to January 2034, the total value is expected to exceed $656m.

AND just a week earlier was the posting that ... Defence analysts have raised the alarm over the UK losing sovereignty, warning that access could be renegotiated or influenced by other powers, specifically citing China’s growing interest in the region.
Furthermore, legal experts warn that because Mauritius is a signatory to the Pelindaba Treaty—which establishes a nuclear-weapons-free zone—it could legally prohibit the presence of nuclear-capable submarines in Chagos waters the day after ratification.
This would potentially place AUKUS operations and Britain’s strategic deterrent in “immediate jeopardy,” as there is reportedly no other site in that region capable of sustaining such fleets.

In short the UK Bill that the Labour Government voted to approve is a shambles. The nails were already being hammered in the coffin of common sense - before the faulty bill was stopped by the House of Lords. Hopefully the next move will be a complete bill rewrite or a kick into the political long grass ...

From Express website - A game-changing letter is expected to land on Sir Keir Starmer's desk "imminently" withdrawing US support for the controversial sale of the British Chagos Islands. According to GB News, the US State Department is set to send a potentially bombshell communication to the Prime Minister and Foreign Office with a change of America's stance over the deal.

Status Update 5-Feb-2026
Contradictory statements about Trump’s opposition to / support for the Chagos deal - together with silence from the Whitehall civil servants - means Gradad has no idea if the deal is scrapped or approved .. as bigger issues make the headlines.

Update 13-Feb-2026
From Daily Mail website - Sir Keir Starmer wobbled over the Chagos Islands deal and was talked down by Jonathan Powell and Lord Hermer, it was claimed on Thursday. The Prime Minister was said to have changed his mind and reconsidered whether to go ahead with the agreement to cede sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius. Eventually, his National Security Adviser Mr Powell and Attorney General Lord Hermer talked him round, the Spectator reported.

Follow the Money?

Update 17-Feb-2026
From Facebook - Information now coming out from Independent journalist @RobertMidgley07 and also discussed on tv by Mark Francois seem to indicate that the government has zero legal justification for handing over sovereignty of the Chagos AND may have lied to parliament multiple times. If that is true it should not only cause the bill to be pulled but could / should also cause high level sackings if not a collapse of the government.

From Express website - Adam Holloway an ex-British Army officer who served as a Captain in the Grenadier Guards, sailed through a British-imposed exclusion zone to land on Île du Coin on Monday alongside a group of Chagos Islanders determined to establish a settlement there.
The extraordinary scenes were captured on video as First Minister of the Chagossian government-in-exile, Misley Mandarin, held aloft a Union Flag and shouted "God save the King!" Mr Holloway personally helped the four-man group raise funds for the mission and worked on mapping the route they would take.

Update 19-Feb-2026
From Express website - The Maldives has sent a missile-boat to British waters off the Chagos Islands, signalling its intent to state its claim to the territory Keir Starmer is planning to give away to Mauritius. Several foreign vessels have already been intercepted by the ship.
Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu has formally rejected the UK's agreement to transfer sovereignty of Chagos to Mauritius, together with the entire legal basis of Keir Starmer’s proposal.

So now the weak, deceitful PM and just parts of his secretive deal have lead to a situation where anyone can claim some or all of the Chagos Islands. And following the money has raised questions about how much the British lawyers will get as a bonus if the deal completes. It seems possible that this will run into millions - especially since the Mauritius government can pay for it out of the money British tax payers will have to stump up to keep the US base on Diego Garcia. Then the question is who gets a share of the bonus?

From Dr. Maurizio Geri, a former NATO analyst - Mauritius ... has struck a pointedly triumphalist note on the Chagos, verging at times on trolling. On the very day UK chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves rubber-stamped spending cuts, Port Louis announced it would use British payments to eliminate its debt and abolish income tax for most of its workforce, leaving British taxpayers underwriting tax cuts abroad while being told there is no money left at home.
More troubling than the tone was the substance that followed. Having secured the principle of sovereignty, a newly elected Mauritian government sought to reopen key elements of the lease arrangements for Diego Garcia, pressing for greater concessions and shorter terms. Trusting that Mauritius will prove a reliable long-term partner requires a leap of faith that recent conduct does little to justify.

Update 20-Mar-2026
After another month of no progress we have on the Express website - Donald Trump could buy Chagos Islands if Keir Starmer's deal collapses ... Foreign Office Minister Hamish Falconer last week said: “I can’t see an option where the President buys the island. “We’re committed to the deal that we have struck. It is one that we’ve done in close confrontation with our allies.” Surely that should read consultation with our allies?

Starmy1-1a

tags: weak, dishonest, corrupt, sell-out

9-Jan-2026

The Return of the Self Appointed Emperor

EmperorDonald1-250 Opposition groups in the US have been declaring that their president has been taking on the mantle of a king.

But Grandad’s view is that being a mere king is a title beneath the scale of the actions taken or planned by the current US leader.

It seems increasingly likely that we are seeing the return to an age of empires. And just like for Napoleon in 1804 the day will surely come when Donald the Great will crown himself Emperor of the Americas.

However the nations of Europe will be reduced in importance to mere observers. With the Danish, French, Dutch and British remnants of their earlier empires all taken under US control. [Ed - 20 Mar 2026- a report that the US could buy the Chagos Islands if Mauritius plan fails] And with US military aid in defending Europe’s eastern borders being a commercial venture having to be paid for through conscripted Europeans and by hard cash.

Politicians such as Starmer will find themselves mere puppets. Leaders who only cling on to declining power if they don’t upset the Emperor - and to a lesser extent their people.

tags: new world order, Trump, ignored international law

2026NewYear1

Earlier postings ...

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