Porn- Courtesy Of The Tax Payer

I do tend to moan a lot about the British leadership, but in retrospect, there is an awful lot to moan about.

Not only do our political representatives get a nice fat paycheck, as well as an expenses account to help them fund and decorate a second home, it seems we are now paying for their pay per view porn!

The last thing the labour government need in a time of economic downturn is revelations such as this.

Okay, so it might only be an argument about 5 GBP, but that is not the point is it?

I have to work my socks off to get the money I earn. I don't get to fly around the world, stay in the best hotels, and meet some fascinating people. Just like you dear reader, I have to pay the mortgage, the gas, electric, food, taxes...blah blah blah, with out any help at all from the government. While small businesses are struggling to keep going, our government representatives are busy filling out ridiculous expenses claim forms and expecting us to pay for everything from flat screen TVs to the porn they watch on them!

I wonder what happened to the days when the Kings and Queens ordered Parliaments to be dissolved. The Queen Of England has a guillotine in that tower of hers in London, maybe it should stop gathering dust and be put to good use!

Question Of The Week

Alcohol - Should the worlds favorite drug be more restricted or even banned?

In almost all countries in the world, adults are allowed to buy and consume alcohol with very little restriction (although there are often laws about the exact hours that bars and shops are allowed to sell alcohol, and laws against drinking and driving).

This is in contrast to the legal situation with regard to other mind-altering (or ‘psycho-active’) drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy, acid, and heroin etc.

The experience of ‘Prohibition’ in the USA in the 1920s and 1930s, when there was a huge black market in alcohol run by a powerful criminal underworld, makes most people very wary of trying that solution again.

In this debate the you can argue either for tighter restrictions or for complete prohibition. This is one subject that boils down to a debate about what balance should be struck between the need to protect society on the one hand and the need to preserve individual liberties on the other.

This is a not a difficult one for me. I have not touched an alcoholic drink now for almost a year, and my life has change dramatically. I am a much calmer person, I feel and look healthier and I feel much more positive about the direction my life is taking.

Alcohol is just as addictive as any drug, it is also just as destructive. Those that are addicted to alcohol often find themselves loosing their marriages, families, jobs and lives. Any drug that is this addictive should be treated like any other, and be made illegal. These are my reasons why;

Violent crimes, including child abuse, sexual assault, domestic violence and even murder are predominantly fuelled by alcohol.

Despite advertising campaigns, there are still thousands and thousands of drunk drivers on our roads today causing death and destruction.

Health systems are struggling to cope with the amount of admissions for drunken related injuries in our A&E departments, as well as the increase in liver disease.

Have your say.

What do you think about this topic?

Feel free to put forward your views and opinions.

Do you think Alcohol should have more restrictions or be banned?

Birthday Cheer!!

I just cannot believe that my Little baby is one year old today. It hardly seems like two minutes ago that I was racing to the hospital and holding her in my arms for the first time.

Like any other baby having their first birthday, she doesn't know much about it, but I have taken lots of photographs to mark the occasion!

So what did we buy her? Well she is not walking yet, only shuffling on her bottom, but she does like to spend time outside watching her big sister riding her bike. Well now, she no longer just sits in her pram to watch her sister, she can now ride alongside her!!

Smart Trike Plus is a brilliant invention. A trike which has supported seating, (with harness), parent handle, and a sun shade (perfect for Spain). We bought it from Otherland. Although they are UK based, they ship to the EU, so we were really happy at paying the extra delivery fee for this great product.

Libby loves it too. We have already been out in the garden with the Smart Trike this afternoon and she was chuckling and Wooo Woooing with delight as we trundled around the garden.

All that racing around has left Libby tired, so she is having a nap at the moment, which gives me a little time to put up the birthday banners and blow up some balloons!

Caption Contest.

Today I am introducing a new element to the blog...A caption contest.

Each month I will put up a new photograph and you have the chance of winning some great prizes.

Who can play?

Anyone. There are no restrictions, it's open to all.


What do I need to do?

It's simple. We give you a picture and you come up with a witty caption. Submit a new caption as many times as you wish. The more times you enter, the more chance you have of winning.

How long do we have?

Closing date for this month ends on the 7th April, which should give you plenty of time.

So...What can I win?

This month you can win an ebook work of fiction. One lucky winner will be sent a PDF copy of 'Bicycle Shop Murder' by Robert B. Robinson. Here is a quick synopsis :

Greg Tenorly lives a quiet and lonely life in a small East Texas town, until he is selected as a juror for a murder trial. A beautiful, mysterious redhead befriends him, and seems to have a romantic interest. But is she merely using him to influence the outcome of the trial? By the end of the first week, three people connected with the case are dead, and Greg is beginning to fear for his own life.

So here is this months picture (cats stuck in a vending machine). Good Luck!

Earn Extra Income

I don't even want to discuss what is going on in the news today. There is just so much violence and murder at the moment that it is all making me wonder what on Earth is happening to the World.

On a happy note, I have to congratulate my daughter Lauren, who finally found the courage to ditch the stabilizer wheels on her bike this afternoon. After a few bumps and scrapes, she is now officially a member of the two wheelers!

One thing I do want to tell you about is a new website I found last week that offers some freelance work at home opportunities. Now normally I don't buy into this sort of thing, but to be honest with you, I am really glad I did.

The company is called Income Seekers and they do exactly what it says on the tin! After I signed up, I received my ebook and it had links to numerous websites that pay you to do all sorts of work using your very own computer. I have already taken a look at some of the recommended opportunities, and have signed up for all but one. Every single site I registered with has already approved and accepted my applications, so I plan to get straight to work after finishing this post ( I am pretty excited).

So, If you are wanting to do something a little more productive with your spare time, go along to the Income Seekers website and start earning a little extra cash for yourself :)

Education, Education, Education.

A story that has been talked about a lot today has really got me shaking my head. I think it has evoked feelings of both disbelief and shame; Shame that some school pupils in the UK think that Auschwitz is either some type of beer, or a religious festival.

More than 1.3 million people perished in the Nazi concentration camp during the Second World War, but a recent survey of 1,000 high school children aged between 11 - 16 revealed that 25% of them had no idea about Auschwitz.

Of the 1,000 pupils 10% did not know what it was, 8% thought it was a country bordering Germany, 2% thought it was a beer, 2% said a religious festival and the remaining 1% said it was a type of bread!

Looking at the bigger picture, there are around 4.5 million children that fit into this age group within the UK, and this potentially means that a staggering 90,000 children could wrongly identify Auschwitz as a type of beer.

I think it is such a tragic reflection of the British Education system. It is a crime in itself that the history of World War Two is already being lost. We have to remember that this is still history from living memory. People are still around today who were there, who can still recollect horrific events in such tiny detail.

Everyday we are doing things and creating our own history, but surely these statistics cannot be ignored. I just want to know what is going on in modern history classes today that makes the events of World War Two missable.

DNA Test The Dog Dung

There is nothing worse than taking the kids out for a walk in the park, down by the beach, or just down the street, and constantly having to tell them to watch where they are walking because of the amount of dog Sh*t in the area. It's just disgusting...in fact it makes me feel physically sick.

When I came across this story today I just had to tell you about it.

German conservative MP Peter Stein has plans to end the mess dogs make on the streets in East Germany, by sending out officials to inspect the piles of dung on the street and test it's DNA to trace the canine culprit and fine it's owner.

Many countries now fine dog owners for not cleaning up after their pooches, however not very many ever get caught as the excuse of 'it wasn't my dog' is often used.

Now I think this is an excellent idea, but I am not convinced it could work. Can you imagine the cost implications in setting up a doggy DNA database and keeping it up to date!

Before I go any further I have to point out that I am not against dogs at all, in fact I have one of my own, but I don't see why I should have to clean excrement from my baby buggy wheels, or from the shoes of my seven year old every time we go to the playground.

If people are not prepared to pick up the crap their dogs leave behind, then maybe they shouldn't even have dogs at all.