I was in Belfast on Saturday night for the Robert Plant concert.  I have seen Robert Plant many times now but I think Saturday's performance was the best ever.  We got into the queue early and got right up to the front, just slightly off to the right but still with a full view, of the stage.  The time flew in, 2 hours of new tracks, recent tracks and of course, Led Zeppelin  tracks, including one of my favourite's, That's The Way.  A heart-stopping performance from this amazingly talented man and the equally talented Sensational Space Shifters (try saying that sober, never mind after a few).  I would recommend you go and see them but the tour is sold out so if you don't have a ticket now then you have no chance of getting one, I'm afraid. But you can check out the new album, Carry Fire, a relaxing mellow bluesy listen, treat yourself for xmas!

Also on the bill, was the support act, Seth Lakeman, who I didn't know, but have become an instant fan.  Another brilliant musician, he also played with the band, a great fiddle/violin player among many instruments he could put his hand too. He too has a new album out, Ballads of the Broken Few.  I haven't heard the album yet but going by the content of the show, it would definitely be worth the money.

So, a great night out all around, good music, good company and we also had a great meal beforehand.  I can't remember the name of the restaurant we ate in but it is right next to the Travelodge in the city centre near the Ulster Hall, so if in Belfast and in need of sustenance, check it out.  Excellent food and reasonably priced.

But, unfortunately, there was a downside to the night and one of the reasons why I have given up on the big gigs, the 'concert poseur'.  You know the one, the, 'just bought the recent album, and everybody else is going so you have to go, and take none stop selfies and pictures and film and post everything to Facebook so everyone can see what a dynamic and interesting life you live' and annoy the shit out of everyone around you. 

Now, I have been to many concerts and dealt with some extremely annoying incidences, from the stampede of 'queens' at the Cher concert who almost trampled over the rest of the audience in their haste to get to the stage, to the constant selfie-takers/Facebookers at Bryan Adams (where I got to watch most of the concert through their phones) but never had to actually speak up or complain because, well, it's a concert, and people get a bit excited but they usually calm down once the 'star' is on stage and the show started. 

Not this time (by the way, these were 3 males, not females) and the shouting of inanities, yee-hawing and self-congratulatory braying continued unabated to the point where I couldn't actually hear Robert Plant singing.  So, for the first time in my life, after almost being deafened in one ear by the roaring, patience ran out and I turned around and said 'Would you ever shut the fuck up!  I paid good money to come here to listen to Robert Plant, not you!'  So, for the most part it calmed down, at least to a level that was bearable and I was able to enjoy the rest of the show.

We were going to the pub after the show, to meet up with friends and on stepping out on to the streets of Belfast were greeted with, what can only be described as, Dante's version of Christmas.  Party night was on and the sight of hundreds of drunken 'party-goers' in xmas jumpers confirmed to me why I never was, or will be, a party person, especially a xmas party person.  Basically, because I've seen too many of them and too often, they're really not that much 'fun' with everyone trying too hard to 'have fun' or show the world how much 'fun' they are. 

The xmas party crowd usually consists of one person, usually the one with the biggest ego/mouth, at the centre of it all, being the most 'fun' with a few of her/his minions desperately hanging on them, keeping them happy and hoping to share their limelight.  Then, you have the other faction who usually hate the self-same 'centre of attraction', but since it's Xmas and it's supposed to be 'good will to all men', they swallow it back until about 2.30 in the morning when everyone has drunk way too much and the taxi hasn't turned up. 

So, we had a few drinks and headed for our beds and left the party-goers to it but all I can say to the bar/door/PSNI/taxi staff is, you have my deepest and sincerest sympathy and whatever they are paying you, it isn't enough.

My father passed away in July and there is a wee dog at home which needs walked and because my mother is 81, I volunteered, and started walking her. I don't really mind as it'll get me out over the winter and stop me hibernating too much, as if that were even a possibility at the moment. 

I was out on Thursday night, down to Letterkenny to watch my friend and fellow drama group member, Chris Duddy, in Hairspray.  Chris played Tracey's Turnblad's mother, the role played by John Travolta in the recent re-make.  A great turn from Chris as usual and they sold out all 5 nights at An Grianan.

Then I'm out Monday and Tuesday night this week, so far. But I'm hoping for a quiet weekend next week, as I have the God of Rock himself, the following week.  Mot is up next week too so the car goes in on Wednesday for a once over. Then there are, at this point, 3 Christmas parties to come as well. Whew!

As part of my routine with the dog, I try and take her up around the river in Sion at least once on the weekend and as I was at my cousin's wedding yesterday, I took her up this morning.  It was great because we had the place to ourselves, all the good Christians were at mass or church but being outdoors in nature, is church for me, especially when no one else is around.

One of the joys of it, is getting the wellies on, because we have to cross fields and there is muck and water everywhere.  The first day, I was trying to find a way around but then I caught on what I was doing and thought,' I've wellies on, I can just plough on'.  The simple pleasure of being able to tramp through 4 inches of mud and up to 6 inches in water, is a joy I had forgotten and took me right back to childhood.  There's such a great sense of freedom in it and I find now, I hope for rain on a Friday so that there will be plenty of muck and water about on the weekend.

Women miss out on so much fun as they get older.  Last year, my back yard needed cleaning up, the walls were mossy and I wanted to paint them.  So, as I'm on my own, I hired a power-washer and set to work.  It was great, hosing everything down, I loved every minute of it!  I enjoyed it so much, I even went out and bought a hose for myself so I can stay on top of it and I've roped my grand-daughter in too, she hoses while I brush and loves it!

When we were young, we used to wash my father's car, it was something I always enjoyed.  Since I got my hose, I've started washing my own car too.  The simple pleasure of messing about with water and mud, there's nothing better...

Today, I enjoyed afternoon tea in the Silver Birches Hotel in Omagh.  It was our prize for having the winning presentation at work.  If anyone is interested in our storming performance, you can check it out on twitter @BSO_ssar.  You have to download Periscope first as it's a closed site, or something like that, I'm not too sure of the technicalities.  By the way, I'm now available for presentations and after dinner speaking, if anyone is interested in offering me some work!! 

Speaking of work, I was job hunting again this week as my contract is up at the end of December and I saw there was a (public sector) job going in my local area.   Now this is not a government ministerial position, it's just a basic office admin job so I thought I'd download the application form and give it a go.  The application form is 18 pages long, and along with having to fill that in, you may also have to undertake a test as part of the selection process and they outline a list of 22 duties and responsibilities that you may be required to do. 

Looking at the application form, I feel that I should be entitled to be given, at the very least, a diploma in administration just for managing to fill it in.  One of the first criteria for the job is 5 GCSE's or equivalent, and there is a space for you to outline your qualifications and you are advised that 375 words are available for this.  Now, how much can you say about having 5 GCSE's, other than what they are and what grade and maybe the year they were achieved. I suppose you could go into more detail, maybe talk about how nervous you were when you did them, what the weather was like, did the results match your expectations, things like that maybe??

Then, you have another 375 words to outline your typing or word-processing qualification, another of the criteria.  Again, how much can you say about learning to type and passing a test in it? I got on ok with the keyboard but the Q gave me a lot of trouble, D was much easier but on the whole, I would have to say T was my favourite. 

But then you get to the biggie.  You must have 2 years admin experience and you have 350 words for that and it asks you to outline your experience for 5 employers.  That's 5 x 350!

Then you have another 250 words each, to outline your experience in 6 other areas:

Dealing with members of the public and responding to enquiries from a range of stakeholders -One day a man stopped me and asked for directions and I was able to draw him a map on the back of the envelope.  He was very grateful and said I was a 'great help' and a group of people who were standing at a nearby bus stop agreed and asked me where I was from and who I was, one woman knew my mother and said I looked just like her.

Maintenance of administrative and information systems - I put the files in the filing cabinet in alphabetical order and made sure they stayed that way so if anyone came in looking for some information, I was able to go and get it.

Arranging meetings, preparing agendas and taking minutes - I told my friend I would meet her outside the cinema, and told her which film we would watch and what we were going to eat while watching it; popcorn and Maltesers with a large coke.  During the film I checked my watch against the time on my phone to make sure they were both on the same time but then my phone fell in my coke...

Data input and retrieval - I typed a list of important stuff on to my computer, I saved it and went in and found it again later on.

Experience receiving cheques and monies in respect of payments - One time on my birthday, I got a cheque for £25 from my aunt Mary because I told her I didn't want any presents as I wanted the money to put towards buying a new phone.

Use of Microsoft Office applications - I often type things using Word,  I can put numbers on a spreadsheet and add them up using the button at the top.  I used to use outlook to send an email to my friend but now we use snapchat and Instagram instead.  We sometimes still use Facebook but I get fed up with all the angry people and don't use it as much anymore.  One time I did a database at school. We had a list of people and their addresses. it wasn't real people it was just made up and we pretended they were all in this club or something. Powerpoint is fun but I don't really use it much..is there anything else, I don't know...

Then just to round it all off, they have another section: Desirable Criteria Experience and you have 400 words to 'outline your experience in the maintenance and development of specialised computer software systems including preparing and generating reports from relevant data'. Pullllease nooooooo!!!

When you count up the word quota, it comes to 3650 words.  Is it me, I mean, is it?  3650 words and you still have to list all your past employers, all your qualifications and all your personal details, so you're easily talking about over 4000 words for an application form for an admin job.

I had another job interview recently.  Well, actually it wasn't an interview for an actual job, it was an interview to go on a list for a job that may come up at some point in the next year.  Then if it doesn't, you have to apply again and go through the interview process again to go on a list for a job that might come up but if it doesn't you have to apply again and go for an interview, to go on a list...yes, I know! I know! 

When will the insanity end???  It's a fecking admin job, not president of the fecking world!!

 I think, I'm going to go back to waiting tables, my first job, back in the day, Vacarro's café, much simpler and less stressful.  Maybe a bit of painting on the side...

And it's not as if these jobs are paying big wages, they're a bit better than minimum but not enough to justify an 18 page application form, or a merry go round of applying and interviewing.  I almost forgot!  Before you got the interview, you had to do an online literacy and numeracy test too and the online application form listing all your experience, your employers, your qualifications,  yadda, yadda, ya!

I've a headache now, just thinking about it.  Roll on retirement...

I recently submitted a painting to a local art exhibition.  I usually work with a lot of colour but for a change, I tried something more stripped back.  The painting is called 'After the Fall', and is of a tree silhouetted against a pale background. (If I ever get a smart phone, I'll post a picture of it)  Someone in my art class suggested adding some fallen leaves but I decided not to, as I wanted the focus to be on the tree alone.

The painting works on 2 levels.  It can be taken literally; a tree after the leaves have fallen off in autumn, but when I painted it, I was thinking about the Genesis story of the 'tree of the knowledge of good and evil' that stood in the Garden of Eden.  So, my painting is a representation of this. 

The Genesis story has been taken as a literal truth by the Christian church and used for centuries to malign women and justify our treatment as second class humans.  In case anyone doesn't know, it was us temptresses and evil-doers who got the poor men kicked out of paradise because poor dumb Adam couldn't say no (of course) when Eve tempted him with the fruit.  An insult to both men and women.

However, this interpretation has always bothered me, not least for the reasons already stated but when you look at it from a metaphorical point of view, you come to see that this story is about consciousness and that 'religion' has misinterpreted it.

When Adam and Eve eat the 'fruit', they become conscious of themselves and the world, as they now possess the knowledge of good and evil too.  They no longer need anyone to tell them how to act or think; with consciousness, they can now think and decide for themselves how they are going to act.  They have grown up and are no longer children who have to be told what to do.  They have become adults.

This story is telling us about our evolution as human beings and how we grow up (in theory) and learn to think and act for ourselves by using our knowledge, our conscience and applying it to our actions and beliefs.   Once we have become conscious, we cannot 'unsee' reality and go back to the pre-conscious state represented by Eden which is why we are barred from ‘paradise’ forever. 

So, how do we become conscious? 

In order to grow up or become conscious, we have to challenge the things we believe in or believe about ourselves.  For example, do you believe in God and why, or why not? 

So, the tree in my painting is a representation of this.  It is asking the question, who am I when stripped of the delusions of ego, religion, nationality, culture and materialism. Do my actions match the beliefs I have about myself as a human being or am I deluding or lying to myself.

As disappointing as the Simon Reeve in Russia show has been, credit where credit is due, BBC4 have delivered the goods in The Vietnam War which has been running on Monday nights.  This excellent series has fully lived up to all my expectations and is a must for any student of politics. 

As part of DD306, we're studying the Cold War, of which this is one of the direct consequences.  A sorry and dirty mess, death and destruction on a devastating scale but have we learned anything?  Unfortunately, it seems that we haven't or ever will.  With tensions ramping up again between the US and North Korea, and Trump's latest statement on Iran, it seems they're gearing up for a war on two more fronts, with the strong possibility of the nuclear arsenal being rolled out.  The insanity continues.

Meanwhile, I'm off to Belfast in the morning for our first tutorial and then I'm back in Belfast on Tuesday for a job interview.  OMD are playing on Tuesday night in Mandela Hall at Queens and I'm sorely tempted to hang around for the show but my first assignment is due next Monday and then I'm at the opening of an art exhibition on Wednesday and my art class on Tuesday of next week too, so I'm not sure if I can spare the time! Decisions! Decisions!

Got a start on the course so I'm now trying to catch up on the 'news', if it could be called 'news' these days. There's a lot going on politically and so I'm sitting here tonight watching Panorama.  I'm old enough to remember when Panorama was a serious programme with real journalists, sadly, that time has long passed and all we get now is propaganda and not even very good propaganda at that.  Tonight's show is a rather pathetic piece of anti-North Korean propaganda filled with dead-eyed commentators trotting out the same old clap-trap.

Now, I'm not labouring under the illusion that North Korea is some sort of utopian state but the opening of the show talked about North Korea threatening nuclear war.  As I recall, it's the US threatening NK.  We are just being pumped with the same old propaganda we had before the Iraqi invasion. 

I actually watched a piece online a few weeks ago where a South Korean village was protesting against the US deployment of the Thaad Missile System and there are numerous videos online showing South Korean protests against the US but did any of them appear on Panorama?  No, of course, they didn't.  Gone are the days of fair and balanced reporting. 

At least with the internet, we can now seek out the news for ourselves.  Meanwhile, far away from dictatorships, over here in the 'free and democratic' west, Catalans are being beat out of polling booths for daring to try and exercise their right to have political control over their land and lives.  And over in the land of the 'bully' and home of the 'deluded', another mass shooting.  And just when you think it couldn't get any worse, up pops the Tory Party Conference!!

I went to see The Dark Tower last week, the film based on the Stephen King books.  I think this was a one off and it wasn’t a bad effort.  Although, I thought, Idris Elba was too young and fresh-looking for the role of The Gunslinger.  In the books Roland is ancient and has been around forever.  Also, it was all a bit too quick for my liking but I won’t complain too much about having to look at Matthew McConaghey, for an hour and a half, or Idris Elba for that matter!

The Dark Tower is a whole epic of 7 books originally (apparently 2 more have been added which I haven’t read) and were all very enjoyable, except for the ending.  If you haven’t read the series, then you’ll have no idea what I’m talking about now, but I’ll try not to give too much away in case they’re on your ‘to read’ list.  The problem I had with the ending, was the very same thing Stephen King referred to in Misery (great book, mediocre film), when Annie Wilkes pulls Paul Sheldon up for cheating with the story like they used to do in the old Saturday shows, when you were sure the hero had died going over the cliff in the locked, burning car, or some such, but by the next week he has somehow managed a miraculous escape.

The Dark Tower had one of those endings.  Roland had moved back in time and was leaving with the horn of Eld after the battle of Jericho Hill but that didn’t make sense to me.  I’m doing an Annie Wilkes now! He would have had to go back and re-fight the battle in order to win it and in my mind he would also have to go back to when he entered Hambry and save Susan Delgado.

I’ve read quite a few Stephen Kings, they are my pleasure in between the heavy stuff.  Misery is my favourite book, and my favourite film adaptation is Stand By Me.  The re-make of It, is out this week and if the trailers are anything to go by, then it’s something to look forward to.  I know a lot of people were disappointed by the ending in the movie first time around so I’m not sure how that’s going to be rectified but what works in fiction doesn’t necessarily work on screen.  Anyway, I won’t spoil it by giving away any details.  However, I will say that the endings of several of Stephen’s more recent novels were disappointing, Under the Dome was one and Joyland another, Revival too, was a bit of a let-down but my biggest disappointment this year, was not a book but a film, the final Planet of the Apes movie, War for Planet of the Apes.

Firstly, it wasn’t a ‘War’, it was a battle and not much of a battle either and from looking at the trailers beforehand; I was expecting WW3 with nukes.  Mind you, the way Donald and the Young ‘Un are squaring up, we could be headed for the real thing any day now!  I’m convinced Lil Kim, could make a case for an Ulster Scots grant with his name!

The big let-down, apart from the ‘war’, was all the emoting that was going on.  It was like an episode of Dr Phil!  Caesar was giving it all the dramatics of rage and burning anger, like an obstreperous teenager.  While Maurice, the big orangutan, was giving out so much deep and meaningful advice, I half expected him to be given his own talk show. 

Then, there were parts of the story that didn’t make sense either.  How did the soldiers manage to capture the other apes when Caesar was following them, and the other apes had been left behind??  Go figure??  The real pity is, the cgi was the best I’ve seen but like so many ‘epics’, too much thought given to the ‘show’ and not enough to the story.  Yes, James Cameron, I’m talking about your Avatar (great visuals, lazy, old, clichéd story) You think you would have learnt from the hash Lucas made with Star Wars!

Anyway, if the books and movies have been disappointing, at least music brings its own rewards and the God of Rock, himself, the one and only Mr Robert Plant, returns to the Ulster Hall in December!  And I will be there! 

The new Star Wars is out then too, lets hope that's 2 bright spots on the December horizon to look forward to.  May the force be with you or rock on!  Whatever, is your wont!

We were given the Belbin Team Role Inventory at work last week.  It is used to assess what role you feel you are best suited to in a team.  It is named for Dr Meredith Belbin who, in the 1970's, devised the test as a way of controlling the dynamics of groups working together and pre-empting problems or personality clashes by finding out which roles people were most suited to.

So, after doing the test, it turned out I'm a 'plant'.  The supervisor who administered the test and gathered up the results became quite excited about that.  Apparently, plants are a rare thing and don't normally show up but anybody who knows me would certainly agree, I am a indeed a rare thing!  She also said, 'plants are very creative and big thinkers'.  

So, there you go.  I am a rare thing or as defined on Wikipedia, 'unorthodox, bright and free -thinking'  At last, my genius is being recognised!

Going back to the global warming/climate change debate, I've been trying to figure out what is really going on because I couldn't understand why this false science has become so pervasive in the media and across the internet with real scientists being subjected to some serious abuse for trying to talk 'common sense', as David Bellamy put it, when it is not proved or even close to being proved.  Why is this big lie being promoted with such vigour across the entire world and what is the purpose?

Just as an experiment, I tried to talk to a few 'Green' friends about the blog I had researched going over the science and asking them to check it out. This propaganda is entrenched! They refused to even consider it, blinded by their own arrogance. Also, I think, the fact that I'm female and they are male, had a bearing. Here in NI the old attitudes prevail even amongst those who consider themselves open-minded and liberal.

I've also been researching a lot into the Rothschilds, the Fed, the IMF/World Bank and how no matter who you vote for the Rothschilds are still in charge (a blog for another day). The powers that be are still pursuing their own agenda, creating wars as cover to gain control of the energy supplies, the oil and gas around Ukraine, Iraq and the rest of the world and, of course, the big prize, Iran.

I couldn't understand why they were still doing this while pushing the Co2 as a contributor to global-warming, across the media and the internet and call me paranoid, if you like, but I think I've got it!

I think the whole Co2/climate-change agenda is a set-up which will be used to discredit the entire green movement and anyone connected to it. When it suits their purpose, of course, the tide of opinion will be turned through the media, which they mostly control and no one will listen to the environmentalists again. If you don't believe this is possible, I would ask you to look at the Adam Curtis documentary, Century of the Self, to see just how much we are, and have been, manipulated. This will be the big pull the rug out from underneath them and shut them up forever and this will happen when they have locked down the energy supplies of coal, gas and oil for themselves.

Maybe I've been watching too many you tube documentaries but it's the only thing that makes sense to me.  Anyway, all we can do is wait and see and remember you read it here first!

Stephen Hawking, in a recent article, stated that we should start looking around for a new planet to colonise because ‘with climate change, overdue asteroid strikes, epidemics and population growth, our own planet is increasingly precarious’. If all that’s coming, maybe we should just leave now! Stephen Hawking is a clever man, but he’s obviously looking for a big grant to fund research or something. Now, let’s be logical about it and look at the reality. We’re miles from anywhere habitable and he suggests colonies on the Moon or Mars. Why would we leave a planet that is rich in water, plant and animal life to live on a barren wasteland with no water, life or atmosphere? This is another of those statements paraded all over the media that terrorize the population and keep us in a constant state of fear. 

Coincidentally, I have been looking into the science behind ‘global-warming’ and ‘climate change’, for several weeks now and (I have to get the language right here) from the evidence I have gathered, I have concluded that we’ve all been taken for huge ride. 

When it comes to man-made global-warming and climate change, I’ll be the first to admit, I believed it. I didn’t even bother with the science because I thought, ‘well, you can’t lie about science; it’s all based on evidence and research, isn’t it?’  I’ve always enjoyed science programmes, never missed Tomorrow’s World and I even wanted to study it at school but we had a rubbish science department.  I remember looking through the biology books, a subject you weren’t allowed to do until 3^rd year, and the pages on human reproduction were torn out because they had a picture of a naked man and woman in them.  We sneaked a look at the teacher’s book, they were still in his. So, everything in nature procreated except humanity, in the narrow world of the Convent Grammar.   

Going back to the early 1990’s, some doubts were raised. I was doing a Life Sciences course as part of a Foundation course at Magee College and I remember reading this in one of the journals, and it always stuck with me. It said, ‘there is no such thing as an environmental crisis in nature, because nature is always working to repair the damage’. That, and the fact that the teacher didn’t believe any of the environmentalist’s warnings about what was happening. We also discussed the fact, that back in the 1960’s, they were talking about another ice-age which I remember too…barely that is!

But, courses end and life moves on, and you become distracted by other things, and I didn’t give it much more thought.  I could see the benefits of recycling and trying to cut back on energy usage if for no other reason than to save a few pounds, and assumed we were being told the truth because the general consensus in the media seemed to confirm there were problems with the climate. There were stories about El Nino and a hole in the ozone layer and, in 1995, we had the summer from heaven, 3 months of the most beautiful warm, sunny weather and we thought, ‘well, if this is global warming, bring it on!’

And as I sit here and write this, I’m thinking, it’s June, my roses have only bloomed in the last couple of weeks, last year one rose bush didn’t bloom until July and even then it was only for about 2 weeks.  I had my heating on last night, I still have the quilt on my bed and I’ve even had to wear pyjamas a couple of nights this month as it was so cold.  

Now, this all came about because I’ve been having more political debates and discussions with my sister (Me: for Jeremy Corbyn.  Her: not) Then, the topic of climate-change came up; and there’s another thing I noticed recently, there’s less talk about ‘global-warming’ now. The language of the debate is changing and it’s becoming more about ‘climate change’, have you noticed that? Anyway, she has always been a sceptic and has complained a lot about paying taxes for something she said wasn’t true so after some debate she said, check out Piers Corbyn’s website, Weatheraction.com.  At this point, neither she nor I knew Jeremy and Piers were brothers. So, I did.

Weather forecasting is Piers Corbyn’s area of expertise and when he started studying, he noticed a correlation between solar (sunspot) activity and temperature and climate change on earth.  He was so successful in using this information in weather-forecasting that he was able to live off the money he won, betting on the weather when he was at university. 

Now, when you actually read the science you come to understand that the earth has always had periods of warming and cooling. There was a warming period in medieval times, when Greenland was green and the Vikings lived and farmed there.  There was a mini ice-age about 600 years ago (we’ve warmed up a bit since then) but scientists on several sites seem to agree that we are now in a cooling period again. This data is derived from studies on solar activity.   

On the website climatescienceinternational.org, 6 leading British scientists, including Piers and the well-known botanist, David Bellamy, Phd; and many others from around the world, have put their name to this statement:

We, the undersigned, having assessed the relevant scientific evidence, do not find convincing support for the hypothesis that human emissions of carbon dioxide are causing, or will in the foreseeable future cause, dangerous global warming."

It also states their reason for compiling a register of scientists:

‘A common misunderstanding amongst the general public, mainstream media and politicians is that only a small proportion of experts in the climate science community have serious problems with the concept of a carbon dioxide-driven climate crisis. In reality, thousands of climate experts are highly skeptical of this hypothesis.

This fact has been repeatedly demonstrated through open letters, petitions and other declarations.  However, these documents have not had sufficient impact on government policy largely because mainstream media have generally ignored them and so only a minority of the public is aware of their existence’. 

On petitionprojectorg, 31,487 US scientists, 9029 of them Phd’s, have signed their name to another petition whose purpose is:

‘to demonstrate that the claim of “settled science” and an overwhelming “consensus” in favor of the hypothesis of human-caused global warming and consequent climatological damage is wrong. No such consensus or settled science exists.

Publicists at the United Nations, Mr. Al Gore, and their supporters frequently claim that only a few “sceptics” remain…It is evident that 31,487 Americans with university degrees in science – including 9,029 PhDs, are not "a few."

These scientists are instead convinced that the human-caused global warming hypothesis is without scientific validity and that government action on the basis of this hypothesis would unnecessarily and counterproductively damage both human prosperity and the natural environment of the Earth.

So, I started really looking in to this and gathering data about ‘global warming’, I typed in ‘facts about global-warming and I got a site called Co2earth which gives the Co2 levels in the atmosphere which at this time are 400ppm (parts per million) which doesn’t sound like a lot. (I wonder what’s making up the other 999,600 parts.). Anyway, back in the Cambrian period, Co2 levels were at 7000ppm and I also found out that the Cambrian period is ‘famed for its explosion of abundant and diverse life forms’. So no harm done there then!

Now, to be fair, I also checked out the other side. The first thing I noticed about the pro GW/CC sites was that they didn’t have a lot of actual scientists, scientific papers or links to all the evidence and one of the first things I came across, on one of the sites, was a statement that said there was a global consensus among scientists about ‘man-made climate change’, which I knew straightaway from my research, was a lie. According to the GW/CC ‘science’, rising Co2 levels are causing the earth to warm up but the actual real science shows us that reverse is true.  Temperature rises cause Co2 levels to increase.  Part of the reason for this is that warm water cannot hold as much Co2 as cold water and the oceans contain huge amounts of Co2. So, when the water warms up it releases Co2 but Co2 levels are not static anyway and are moving all the time. As a greenhouse gas, Co2 isn’t very big either. They largest greenhouse gas is water vapour, yes, I know, I couldn’t believe that one either.  Water vapour coming off the oceans makes up about 96% of greenhouse gases. Co2 is contained in the other 4% along with methane and other gases. As a proportion of the atmosphere, Co2 is about 0.039% with nitrogen making up 78% and oxygen 21%. Again, that’s not a lot, as Paul Daniels used to say. (Gawd, I’m really starting to show my age!)

Anyway, back to the science!  Co2 or carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring element on earth; it is in everything, plants, animals, the oceans, the land, us, everywhere. As a matter of fact, if there were no Co2, everything would die. We even breathe it in and out. We breathe in 400ppm of Co2 but we breathe out 40,000ppm and as the man says, I don’t think anyone has died from Co2 poisoning while receiving CPR. We could actually do with some more Co2 as it makes everything grow bigger and better, it’s the very food of life for plants and trees.

Now, the earth itself is about 71% water to 29% land. 33% of the land is deserts and 3% is urbanised which doesn’t really sound like a lot either. So if you were worrying about the impact of your non eco- friendly light bulbs, stop now because how much of a difference is that going to make when you look at the big picture?

Here’s another piece of info, 99.9% of the energy that drives the earth’s climate comes from the sun.  And this is backed up time and again by data. When the sun is active the temperature goes up and then the oceans release Co2. Water vapour rises forms clouds and helps to insulate the earth, keeping it warm. You’ll know this from the difference in a clear sky at night and a cloudy one. Clear skies in autumn, winter and spring bring frosts. So, if we’re causing the planet to heat up, then it is only a fraction of a percent and again, light bulb vs sun?  Think about the proportions.

We also have to remember when we hear stories of the highest temperature or warmest month since records began, they have only been keeping records since 1880. (I think parts of England had a hottest day since 1976 last week, didn’t they?)  Again, let’s think about it proportionally, that’s 137 years out of 4 500 000 000. The earth has been around for many years and has gone through many changes so keep that in mind the next time you hear the hottest, wettest, driest day/week/month since records began! 

The main body promoting climate change is the IPCC which stands for the International Panel on Climate Change which was established by the United Nations and the World Meteorogical Organisation in 1988. A lot of their scientific data was drawn from what they call proxy studies which take information from many sources and are notoriously unreliable as models for predicting anything. They have used the Mann ‘hockey stick’ graph to show the rising temperature but this graph is still the subject of debate as to the authenticity of the results and has been subjected to charges of manipulation. Some of the temperature data is taken from urban sites which are naturally warmer. There have also been difficulties in replicating the study which is a really big deal in science. It’s like reverse plagiarism, you have to be able to follow the exact same procedures, to see if you get the same result, otherwise, the study is invalidated.

So, if like me, you were worried about humanity and the future of the planet, then I hope I have eased your mind, keep looking at the big picture and don’t let yourself be terrorised by the government and Al Gore.  Al Gore is a charlatan and I really hope he reads this and sues me so I can take him to court and expose the fraud. Now, climate change is happening because the climate changes all the time so it’s always happening and always will.  Here is a little table showing hot and cold periods on the earth since 200AD. 

200 – 600   Warming

440 – 900   Cooling  (Dark Ages)

900 – 1300  Warming again

1300 – 1850 Cooling (little ice-age)

1850 -  present  Warming with possible cooling period ahead

So, there you have it.  Now, asteroids, I’m afraid we can do nothing about.  A big one might arrive at any time but I would like to think if we were facing some life extinction event like that, then we would pull together and use all those nukes to blow it away in a grand display of human camaraderie while unilaterally disarming at the same time! Kill two problems with one big bang, so to speak.

Epidemics? Again, I think we’re fairly well disposed to sorting out those threats with all the good scientists and scientific knowledge we do have. But if the worst happens, well, the upside is we won’t have to worry about population growth! There you go, problem solved!  See, every cloud has a silver lining…and a large percentage of greenhouse gases! By the way, the population is dropping in Europe so there’s another thing we don’t have to worry about.

I’m going to be a real bore about this from now on, I can’t believe how quickly I learned all this stuff. I didn’t even realise I knew this much until I got into a spat on Facebook about it, and I was able to ream off facts and figures without having to check my notes. I have to say, I even impressed myself and more importantly, I got the last word! Game, set and match to me!!

I’m actually thinking about creating a fake science site and starting an internet rumour about Co2. I’m going to tell people that ‘scientists have reported that if we all held our breath for a minute every day for a year we could reduce Co2 levels by 10%’ and see how long it takes to become an urban myth. So, do me a favour and start spreading it around. 

And for anyone who’s interested, here are a few links to sites with lots more interesting reading and scientific facts.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/history_of_the_earth/Cambrian

http://myweb.wwu.edu/dbunny/pdfs/looming-threat-of-global-cooling.pdf

http://www.plantsneedco2.org/default.aspx?menuitemid=370

https://www.heartland.org/publications-resources/publications/why-scientists-disagree-about-global-warming

http://forecast.uchicago.edu/chapter4.pdf

I was reading an article in The Observer at the weekend by Stewart Lee where he was comparing Donald Trump’s meeting with the Pope as a ‘good vs evil’ encounter.  Trump in this scenario being likened to Satan, and the Pope being the ‘good’ guy.  Whatever your opinion on ‘the Donald’, I really don’t think he is completely evil any more than the Pope is completely ‘good’.  I mean, is Donald Trump really more ‘evil’ than the Pope?

 Look at it this way, the Pope has, for most of his life, been a member of the Catholic Church.  An organisation that has been responsible for the systemic rape, abuse and possible murder of the most vulnerable of children, on a global scale.  There is nowhere on the planet where the Catholic Church has been, that doesn’t have a legacy of the most appalling physical and sexual abuse of minors and that is a fact. I don't really think the title Pope, is short for Protector of Paedophiles, I think that's just a rumour...

Now, as far as I know, Donald Trump hasn’t done anything like that to children.  He does have his faults but paedophilia I don’t think, is among them and certainly not on the scale committed by the Catholic Church.  Now, Pope Francis is head of that organisation and he appears to be a ‘good’ person.  He makes a lot of statements about humanity and appears to say all the right things.  However, as a member of that organisation and now head, what has he done to root out the paedophiles?   Does he have a legacy of outing paedophiles or railing against the terrible abuses being carried out by the membership?

Jimmy Saville, who was once a much-loved ‘national treasure’, is now reviled for the rape and sexual abuse of children, young girls and vulnerable adults.  Would you worship in a church led by Jimmy Saville or even an organisation that regarded him as a ‘good’ person?   Yet, the Pope and the Catholic Church are still seen as something that should be respected? 

Jimmy Saville got away with the things he did because so many ‘good’ people stood by and either said nothing or covered up his behaviour.  This same man was given a knighthood and dined with Margaret Thatcher every Christmas at Chequers.  There is a clip of a video online where the great John Lyndon (aka Johnny Rotten) talks about Saville and what he gets up to.  The clip was never shown back in the 70’s, the powers that be, protecting Saville.  Yet, Johnny Rotten was held up by the media, at the same time, as a threat to the decency of the nation.

There is much that I disagree with Donald Trump about, but I don’t believe he is inherently evil.  He is certainly a product of his environment and upbringing.  Arrogant?  For sure!  Misogynistic? Definitely, but evil?  Well, who’s to say...yet?  And credit where credit is due, he did get rid of TTIP, that foul trade agreement that was going to hand over the nations of Europe to the corporate elite, as if they didn’t have enough of us already. 

Now, his trade deal with Saudi Arabia could be regarded as an evil act but the British government is the world’s second biggest arms dealer/supplier, and to some very dodgy states.  Are they evil or are they just 'protecting' the nation? 

There are acts of evil being committed around the world day and daily.  Some deliberately, some accidentally; like Theresa May, ‘accidentally’ losing that list of paedophile MP’s when she was Home Secretary or now, wanting to bring back a ‘sport’ that involves the hunting, terrorising and tearing to shreds of that most beautiful of animals, the fox.  Not to mention being part of a party that seems intent on grinding the poor, the vulnerable and the working class into the ground.

Which acts are more evil, and which people?  Those who commit the deeds or those who stand silently by and let them happen or help cover them up? 

By the way folks, election coming up, so don't forget to vote, the future of Reynard may depend on you...

I’ve grown tired of the noise of modern life.  Not just noise in the literal sense, but in the metaphorical sense too, the visual ‘noise’ and the ‘noise’ of stuff that seems to be clogging up my life.  The audio pollution seems relentless.   I try not to listen to anything more than I have too.  I had stopped watching the news and I’ve stopped listening to the radio in the morning because I just can’t stand the daily drivel as I drive to work.  And there’s another thing that gets on my nerves, the over the top dramatics of everything, the news, interviews, even quiz shows.  You can’t get a straight answer anymore, there has to be a dramatic pause before everything.  I used to enjoy quizzes but the minute the dramatic pause starts, I turn over or as it is now, turn off.  Which explains why my TV watching is down to 3 shows, The Good Fight, the Grand Prix and Gardener’s World.  Monty Don on a Friday night is the most chilled out moment of my week.  Yes, I know how sad that sounds!  

The sound of silence is seriously under- appreciated and it’s only when you try to find a silent moment that you realise, silence is almost impossible to achieve.  Even when there is no one around, there is still the background noise of cars in the distance or planes passing overhead.  Even at the top of Gortin Glen, you can still hear the distant drone of traffic.

So, I’ve been cutting back and cutting out a lot of stuff recently, I’ve also cut back on my time online, again the ‘noise’ of constant advertising driving me away.   

I’ve been having a bit of a clear out too.  As well as trying to get rid of the audio and visual pollution, I’ve been clearing out my ‘stuff’ as well.  Actually, it’s been less of a clear out and more of a purge, getting rid of all the old stuff that has been clogging up my life and my house.  There is just too much of everything and I feel overwhelmed by it.  Too many clothes, shoes, books, creams, jewellery and all the other useless stuff I have accumulated in pursuit of…I don’t even know?   What is the point of it all?  I mean, what is it all for?  I’ve also found, the more I get rid of, the more I want to get rid of, so I’m still purging. Minimalism here I come..

I’ve also called a halt to all spending.   It’s part of my life plan to try and bring capitalism down by not spending my hard-earned on anything other than the absolute necessities, like food.  So, I’ve set myself a weekly budget of £40, £20 for diesel (I need to travel to work, although I’m looking for something closer to home) and £20 for food, which is doable when you live alone.  I don’t have much debt and I’ll be rid of most of it within 20 weeks or less, although there is one loan that will run until next year, unless I get lucky and get a lift of money from somewhere. 

I was discussing the accumulation of stuff a few months ago with a good friend of mine and he recommended a great documentary called The Century of the Self.  It’s available to watch for free online, and was made by the BBC.  I highly recommend it.  It explains how government and business have basically being doing their level best to brainwash us all.  And they’ve been pretty successful at it too, I have to say.  We have moved from the concerns of the collective, to the promotion of the individual over all others.  It’s basically, divide and conquer by another name.  We’ve been encouraged to put our own individual needs, over the needs of the greater good.  Where we used to have neighbours, now we have competitors in the race to have and to own; better job, bigger house, fancier car, more stuff and more stuff and more... etc, etc. 

And what is all the spending for?  Profits, for the corporations.  The wars and misery in the world today are driven by profit for the few at the expense of the many.  The pursuit of money is a poison for humanity and the planet.  It has caused the most horrific damage, pain, death and suffering to the world and its inhabitants since its invention.  If we got rid of money tomorrow and instead started living by the maxim,’ everyone taken care of’, the world would become a very different place.  All we need is the will to do it…  To be continued

As always, comments are welcome..

I had taken my degree in 2015 without honours.  I had a chance to get involved in a writing project for stage which is presently touring the north west and thought I had finished with studying.  But, now things have settled, the pull back to the books has risen again and I've decided to go back and hopefully finish off with honours.

I wasn't sure what to do and was initially drawn back towards literature and A335.  So, I had a longish talk today with a student adviser and after much consideration I'm going to go for a level 3 politics course.  It seems strange now that I ever considered literature before politics, when you look at the content of the blog.   So, it seems to make more sense especially since my level 2 politics course was one of my highest marks.

So, I'm going to make the most of the summer before getting back to the books....can't wait to get started! The only thing now is which level 3???  I think it has to be Living Political Ideas.  DD306, it's really where my natural interest lies.  I just remembered, Tony Benn left parliament because he wanted to get more involved with political ideas.  Well, I think that confirms it.

So, onwards to hopefully upwards.....