Hull City crush Arsenal
To use a Big Brother quote - OH MY GOD
Hull City have beaten Arsenal by 2-1 at the home of the gunners.
What a result. I cannot believe it
It has completely messed up my fantasy football league for this week but who cares.
How I wish I'd had a bet on Hull
I thought that they would be beaten 4-0 or more
WOW - congratulations guys. Glad you made me eat my words.
Tiger Tiger burning bright...go for it...
Published Date:
27/09/2008
Modified Date:
27/09/2008
Do we need a town council?
DO we need a town council?
That's the vexed question I have been asking myself all week.
On balance, the answer is most definitely NO - we don't NEED a town council.
Okay, it does do good work - sometimes.
It campaigns when campaigns are needed to improve the town. But a chamber of trade would be just as effective. Or a civic society.
And they wouldn't cost us money
That's my beef with the town council - the money it spends on things which are quite simply not necessary.
There are hundreds of examples of this...
But, I'll just give you a few.
The new offices are the biggest waste of money. They are superflous. The town council said it had outgrown its old office but this isn't true. It was cramped, but that's all. Not too small by any stretch of the imagination.
Now the clerk and her assistant use only a small portion of the new offices, perhaps a third.
Another third of the new office is compeletely un-used, save for displaying a couple of leaflets, and the final third is occupied by someone totally unconnected with the town council.
Our town councillors don't even meet at their new offices - well not often anyway - as they still use the Community Centre...even though the new offices are large enough for all their meetings. How much money does that waste.
Of course, the problem is that the money the town council spends is not theirs. It's mine. And yours. But it is treated as though it is theirs.
For example, this week, councillors agreed to buy a gazebo. £400 it will cost. Nice, but not necessary.
And we pay thousands and thousands of pounds in wages for a Tidy Team we should not have to pay for. I have no problem with the Tidy Team themselved as they work hard and do a bloody good job.
Only, they should be employed by the East Riding of Yorkshire Council and not the town council as many of the jobs they do are the ERYC's responsibility. Grass cutting, repairs, property mainenance, keeping the streets clean etc
So, we are paying two lots of council tax for the same end result.
The town council also took over responsibility from the ERYC for the market, for public toilets and work at the cemetery. Why? These are all things which were being administered by the ERYC and for which we are now effectively paying twice (anyone who doubts this should check their council tax bills for the years in which the town council took responsibility for certain functions. They will notice that tax did not go down in those years. It went up each and every year, as did the town council precept or separate levy on the people of Driffield).
So, where's all this moaning leading.
Well, here's a suggestion.
Let's suspend the town council for a couple of years. Disband it, and see if it makes any difference to the town, its appearance and the way we live.
The credit crunch is crunching. We don't have the money for luxuries such as a town council.
If we all save a couple of quid a week it could make a big difference in the months to come. It will buy a bread loaf. Or a bottle of milk.
Think about it and get back to me.
If I get enough support I may just start a campain - do you think the town council would support me?
Published Date:
09/05/2008
Modified Date:
09/05/2008
Vandals and hooligans
Oh joy of joys - the clocks have gone forward, signalling the start of ever lighter nights.
And for Driffield, the change of seasons also marks another milestone - the beginning of the vandalism season.
For the next six months, the town can expect to witness gangs of kids roaming the streets, smashing bottles and windows, getting drunk, damaging cars and spray painting walls.
It happens every year.
A good old fashioned copper once told me that the most successful policemen were Sergeant Wind and PC Rain - and he was right.
Nothing keeps the hoodies and hoolies, thieves and bandits at bay better than bad weather.
So light nights are bad news all round in this era of modern policing, in which the police are seldom seen or heard.
This year, my first experience of vandalism season started within hours of the clock going forward when a teenage scroat in a souped up bacofoil bullet parked outside my house with his stereo cranked up to industrial volume.
I could feel the sound as it vibrated through the brickwork. He was only there for 15 minutes but it was long enough to make my blood boil.
I could have called the police, but what would be the point? Nothing would have come of it.
So, a great start to vandalism season then.
One minor but damn annoying incident, no damage.
Restult!
How I look forward to the return of Sgt Wind and PC rain.
Published Date:
01/04/2008
Modified Date:
01/04/2008
Drink drivers are scum
I hate drink drivers.
In many ways, they are the scum of the earth.
Obviously, they are not in the same criminal league as murderers and the like.
But they are up there at the top of the second division.
Because they are potential killers.
And when they cause an accident, they never die themselves. It is always someone else who suffers.
Yet it's all so unnecessary.
There is no need to drink and drive, just as there is no need to burgle old ladies or take heroin.
It's simply a selfish act by people who cannot be bothered to walk to the pub or to take a taxi home or do not have the will power to order a soft drink.
Whatever, there is no excuse.
A bloke once said to me "I feel such a prat if my mates are drinking pints and I'm on Coke".
Well whoop-de-doo, we can't have that, now can we.
Male pride hurt.
Disaster.
But I bet those so-called mates wouldn't be mates for very long if our drinker ran over one of them and crushed his head into the Tarmac on the way home after a drinking session.
Another reason why people drink and drive is that there is no real deterrent.
For one thing, they are unlikely to get caught unless they crash.
There are so few coppers on our roads these days that people can drink drive to their heart's content, perhaps with the exception of Christmas, when our boys in blue have a little purge before disappearing once again into the shadows.
And even if our drink driver does get caught he or she is unlikely to get much of a punishment. A short ban, a few quid fine and Bob's your aunt Jessie, they're back behind the wheel in the blink of a double Jameson's.
Which is why I would like to see the law toughened up.
I firmly believe that drink drivers who are caught should be banned for life. No excuses, no second chances - forever, a one time punishment which lasts for eternity.
There are far too many cars on the roads now, so this is a glowing opportunity to make sure that the vehicles which do remain are piloted by responsible people who obey the laws of the land.
Banned drivers should also be banned from drinking ever again - which would probably hit people even harder than the driving ban.
And, in order to make sure that both bans are effective, banned drivers should be subject to regular blood tests to make sure that they are not drinking. Furthermore, these criminals should pay for blood tests themselves - plus an extra few quid - so the cost is not a burden on the government and the addtional money could be used to put more coppers on the beat.
Bingo - problem solved.
Ask me another..........
Published Date:
15/02/2008
Modified Date:
15/02/2008
When did you last see a policeman?
I am a big supporter of the police.
I think that the boys and girls in blue do a difficult job in difficult circumstances.
I think that they deserve every penny of the pay rise for which they have been fighting - backdated.
And I know that if I was the victim of a serious crime they would work hard to bring the culprits to book.
But, I think that the police are hampered at every step by bureaucracy and pointless paperwork.
I also think that this bureaucracy stops the the police doing their job in the way that the public want them to do it - by means of largely high visibility policing.
Whenever I speak to a grass roots copper - which is quite ofen - they say they would rather be out patrolling the streets than sitting in an office doing paperwork.
I am sure that most people feel the same way about our crimefighters
Which is why I have been conducting a little experiment called "When did you last see a policeman?"
The rules are very simple - to spot a policeman (not a PCSO or traffic warden but a proper bobby) on foot, patrolling an area other than the town centre at any time, day or night.
I remember when I was a kid, I used to watch Dixon of Dock Green. I realise now that it was a make believe programme but it reflected real life and always showed a copper on foot, walking the streets, checking doors and and making sure that businesses were secure.
Now, many years later, I am a big dog who who is old enough to be out late at night or up early in the mornings and the people I see most at those odd times are the ones who are likely to be up to no good, in their baseball caps and hooded tops.
I never see a copper... ever....well hardly ever. And only then, in a car.
Which brings me back to my experiement.
Since I started cop-spotting on January 1, I haven't seen one bobby on the beat on foot - day or night - other than in the town centre. Not one. Not even in the distance.
What's more, I don't know anyone else who has.
On the other hand, a little egret was seen last year at the Tophill Low nature reserve - and they are VERY rare.
Published Date:
12/02/2008
Modified Date:
12/02/2008
It has ter b U
The Driffield Post reports today that plans are in the offing (what the hell's an offing?) for yet another supermarket in Driffield, which will take the total of plans now being offed for new supermarkets to six - two for Tesco, two for the former cattle market site and one for a new Aldi on the Viking Centre site.
The latest idea is to build a new superstore and petrol station off Skerne Road.
Those involved in the scheme will not say which supermarket is involved, only that it is one of the big four.
Obviously, they are patting their back pockets in anticipation but in all honesty, Skerne Road seems to be a far better location that that proposed with regard to any of the other plans.
The Cattle Market won't work because the roads leading to it are too small and too dangerous to take the heavy traffic (especially trucks) attracted by a supermarket, the Viking Centre is partly outside the official council designated shopping area for Driffield and George Street, where Tesco wish to expand, is too small for the size of store being proposed.
I believe that supermarkets should be outside town and Skerne Road seems to be as good as it gets, although that road also needs widening, so the houses along the right hand side as you drive towards Skerne will need knocking down. But that's a simple enought task. No one lives there anyway.
Published Date:
11/01/2008
Modified Date:
11/01/2008
Favourite Limericks wanted
I need your favourite limerick as I hope to donate a number of them to the town council. It will give them something to talk about other than hanging baskets.
Here's mine:
There was a young lady from Bude
Who went for a swim in a pond.
A man in a punt
Stuck his pole in the water
And said:
"You can't swim here"
"It's private".
Here's one from Jill Pick, of the Driffield Times (she needs medial help, I think you will agree)
There was a young man from Darjeeling
Who got on a bus to Ealing
It said on the door:
'Don't spit on the floor'
So he lay down and spit on the ceiling
And here's one from Suzie Towne, who lives in a village but likes big cities.
There was a young worm that squirmed
Oddly its hair was permed
We told it to shoo
Til our faces were blue
But alas it always returned.
Published Date:
08/01/2008
Modified Date:
24/01/2008
From A to B - a pet keeper's guide
I like animals.
I eat loads of them, wear clothes made from them and occasionally ride on contraptions pulled by them. Such as trains. Come on, think about it - horsepower...try and stick with me.
I couldn't live without animals and they couldn't live without me (they would starve for one thing and foranother thing they would never be allowed to drive unsupervised, although my cat is almost there).
Which has set me wondering about Bees (see the subtle link there), although that new film about a Hull City supporter who is an irritating pain in the backside and can fly probably also had something to do with it.
Bees are great. They wander around aimlessly during warm weather, bumping in to things, helping flowers to have sex, and making honey.
They also buzz a lot. Isn't that marvellous?
No wasted time in trying to express themselves with words, they just buzz - happy, sad, angry, loved up. There's a buzz for ever bee emotion.
And no one seems to have a bad word to say about bees (except for those people who have been stung by one - probably their own fault any way. It's never wise to ignore a "get out of the way" buzz)
It would be wonderful to see bees all the year round. Drinking and making merry, buzzing and making honeycombs from old egg cartons.
So I propose to see if I can get somone to set up an indoor hive, where bees can buzz all winter while warmed by central beeting and fed by flowers from Inter-Flora.
Sounds like a plan - perhaps even a tourist attraction.
Burton Agnes Hall, for example, could have its own bee room. People would travel from miles around to visit the attraction. Well, at least from Driffield.
Bee happy. Sting would visit. Bet ya, he would
Join me next time for ants and how they should open a restaurant with Hugh Feanley-Whittingstall and Ainsley Parriot.
In the meantime, I shall be mostly designing wallpaper.
Published Date:
07/01/2008
Modified Date:
07/01/2008