Former Disqualified Councillor Talking B*ll*cks?

Well hello there! I've been busy working in the Third World - Or the Isle Of Sheppey as we all call it! But I'm sort of back! For how long I do not know, but hey - that's the fun of it! Actually, all things aside, I've been rather busy and doing some work out of the area and at times, out of the country. That said, I'm not sure, whether "Blogs" have had their day or not. With the advent of the Twittersphere these days that seems to be taking over, I may look to move to that. Anyhooo.............. So here I am, back in my beloved Ramsgate. I've moved now so am no longer on the East Cliff but am still withing the Ramsgate East Area (just) in land a little more and enjoying life! Work is hard but very rewarding at times. And with reward comes the occasional Drinkypoos! In fact, I did this on Sunday just gone and found myself at a place called The Great Tree which used to be The Shakespeare pub along Margate road. It's now a micropub and was actually quite pleasant. I've been a couple of times and I've been made to feel very welcome so I went again on Sunday and who should I see "propping up" the bar but this chap

Yes it's none other than Bowen Fuller. Once a TDC Councillor for Salmestone Ward for the Tories and if I'm not mistaken (please help me here) he was disqualified from Thanet District Council for doing NOTHING!!! Well they say an Elephant never forgets (and I have put on a few pounds recently) but what I found most amusing was the Mr. Fuller was conversing with regulars in the pub (he'd been there several hours already by this point) telling them that he was from New Zealand and that he'd been in The Army!!! Well having been born and bred in Thanet, I do know that Mr. Bowen Fuller was a pupil at St Georges School in Boredstairs from 1983 to 1988 so where on earth he got his new found roots from I'll never know. So the Moral of the story? Tories still seem to lie even after all these years? Well, maybe but todays moral is........ Thanet is such a small place, the chances are that someone will know/recognise you so don't talk Bollocks or you may get caught out! I think that's fair isn't it?

Out of Quarantine - How things have changed

Blimey, that year went quick! No sooner than I mentioned Swine Flu, I sneezed and was carried away by the men in black! It's been quite worrying. Mrs. Daktari woke up in pigtails and even came out in rashers!

I assure you, after many a liberal application of Oinkment and Juantibiotics we are both just fine.



So whats new? A coalition government (which I don't think will last 5 years) and lots of idiotic Sun readers making such comments as "Labours scorched earth policy" and even bigger morons going on about unelected prime ministers (highly amusing because we don't actually vote for a prime minister like the USA vote for a president!) and as for scorched earth, let us not forget Margaret Thatcher!

Other than that, it's the same old, same old isn't it? TDC despite no longer having Sandy Shores or whatever his name is as leader, still have the same stigma attatched to them (i.e. They're all barking mad!) Ramsgate's Town Council have moved house and the Ramsgate Society are in League with the Devil - Oops sorry I mean.... The Ramsgate Society have got TDC behind them (will there be a coup against our beloved Town Council? lol)or will that lovely poster get back up advertising that Hairdressers business - Poor sod. The guys trying to make a living and eveyone wants him to be another unemployment statistic!

Westgate Pavillion has been shut. Do you know, I've never been there. I was born here in Thanet and have lived a significant portion of it here but I've never been to the Westgate Pavillion. I always kind of got the impression it was a little bit how Littlewoods in Ramsgate used to be - i.e. you've got to be over 70 before they'll let you in!

Tracey Eminem put a sign up in Margate saying "I never stopped loving you" - In Neon!
Well Tracey, it seems that the Council stopped loving the place years ago and are now trying to change that tack at the expense of other places in Thanet!

Not only that Cllrs Mark Nottingham and Mr. Simon Moores seem to quite dislike each other with one trying to do the other over in court for something or other (and we voted these people into Local Government? Gee Whizz!!!!) perhaps one of our local film makers could make a movie of it. Maybe along the lines of a FROST/NIXON type thingy. We could have Nottingham Moores. Ooh erm.. maybe not cos that sounds like somewhere you might find someone unsavoury with a murder conviction.

In short a year has past and it's still not looking good is it? Such a shame that no one on any of the councils (or parliament for that matter) can do anything that seems to turn around Thanets fortunes.

So here I am! A year from before and still rather sad at it all really. But it's nice to be back!

Swine Flu Pandemic declared by The WHO!

Not that WHO - although it would have been quite amusing if Roger Daltrey had told us that he hadn't been working on old material and was really one of the world's greatest scientists!

The World Health Organisation has declared a global Flu Pandemic. Needless to say, the newspapers will all be full of scaremongering!

So what does it mean for us? Well not a lot of difference at the moment. A Pandemic just means that it's been prominent is 2 or more Countries.

Should things worsen, well I can assure you that here we are well prepared for it. Procedures are in place should Anti-virals such as "Tamiflu" should need to be given to people. Should this be the case, various Doctor's Surgeries and Pharmacies across the UK will become points of contact for you to recieve whatever treatment is required.

So basically, don't panic and don't believe the hype that will probably be in the Newspapers tomorrow! Should you have reason to believe that you do have Swine Flu, telephone your GP's surgery. Don't go in otherwise (should you have swine flu) you would infect a lot of sick people and it's those people who are most likely to contract the illness!

You can of course phone NHS direct but you may only get Crackling!

And I wouldn't bother with looking for a facemask. They don't work very well anyway and, after about 20 minutes don't really work at all!

Unless the threat gets worse, just carry on as normal.

Mind you, I do believe that the Government has already started to change important things to remind us of the horror that is swine flu. They're even starting to change nursery Rhymes........

This little piggy went to market,
This little piggy stayed at home,
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none.
And this little piggy had influenza A virus subtype hemagglutinin protein 1 neuraminidase protein 1.

A joke I know but with our political parties.... anything's possible!

Rozzers about so who's met their "Waterloo"?

Just coming home tonight I see that there are 2 rozzers with a squad car and they have blocked off Plains of Waterloo where it joins Wellington Crescent.

Any ideas? There's obviously something going on! Or has the nanny state found out the true identity of East Cliff Richard???

Prescription Charges - We're quite Lucky Really!

My my that was a Christmas party and a half!

Welcome back to the OGM's Rambles.............................................................

So Tony (BIGNEWS Margate) had a ramble about NHS Prescribing guidelines as reported in the Screws of The World Newspaper.

I can understand where Tony's coming from and on the surface, the whole thing looks pretty damn unfair.

Before I start to ramble about this topic, have a read of something I spoke about last year regarding prescription charges here

Ok, now you've read that, lets go on to the topic of prescribing guidelines. It's been going on for years!!!!!! That's the short answer. The long answer is that if a patient is not exempt of prescription charges the GP will quite often prescribe 2 months (in exceptional cases even 3!) however, guidelines for prescribing 28 days is aimed primarily at those patients who take many different medications (in most cases, the elderly)

There is a good reason for prescribing in 28 for this catagory of patients. It's often the case that their medications can change quite frequently. If the GP were to prescribe say 3 months worth and then after one month, the medication needs to be changed then that consitutes quite a waste of medication which results in more cost to the NHS and of course that means you and me!

Don't get me wrong. I'm not defending the NHS here but I can personally say that on many an occasion, I have witnessed complete wastes of medicines costing hundreds of pounds and it's often due to over prescribing.

On saying that, I'm no lover of the Tax we pay via the prescription charge.

But here's the thing............... What if we had to pay for prescriptions? i.e. the cost of the medicine itself. The vast majority of medications prescribed actually cost a darn site more than £7.10 as a matter of fact, I had to get 2 prescriptions for Mrs Daktari today. I had to pay £14.20 but if I'd had to pay for the actual drugs, I'd be looking at about £50 to £60!!!!

It's not ideal, but until someone has the balls to get this lark sorted as to why Wales don't pay at all etc. I'd rather carry on the way things are at the moment.

It's rather late but Happy Christmas

Well my shift has finished so just a quick note to wish you all a Healthy and Happy Xmas!

Don't forget, if you need Medical Advice, try the pharmacy on duty (usually found in your local rag!) or if it's more serious contact a Doctor.The on call doctors telephone number is 0844 8001234

Seasons greeting to you all from the OGM!

Nothing Changes does it?

Greetings one and all. I trust all of you are well.

I've been away for a while out of the area on secondment and working too many bloody hours but now I'm back! So what did I miss? Anything new? Nope! The Manston airport haters still hate it and anyone who likes it. The Council are still trying to sell off property owned by us (the general public). Rick bless him, still writes novels in the comments section on other peoples blogs, the Maritime museum is up sh*t creek etc etc etc etc.

It's not surprising that our local newspapers aren't even fit enough for our fish and chips. The same old news just seems to get recycled!

So what ramblings for today? Well.........................................

First, it was very sad to hear of the death of Oliver Postgate. His programmes influenced an entire generation including myself. But was he our greatest living Thanetian? Not in my opinion. He was born in Hendon in Middlesex, which, (although my geography isn't brilliant) is no where near the Isle of Thanet. To me, they have to have been born here to be a Thanetian. But of course that's just my opinion. But it was nice to see according to a recent ECR Poll, Brenda Blethyn be crowned with that very same accolade. Which of course is fine as she was born right here in Ramsgate.

Which brings me to my next point...........

Mrs. Daktari had saved me the "front page news" of the Adscene which had the headline "Granville Theatre to Close!" Oh no I thought, not another place gone! But wait, it turns out the headline was incorrect! In a later edition of the said local rag, a very small apology and many corrections were made to the inaccurate story and it turns out that the Granville are just short of funds but not at this moment closing at all!

It's nice to see that when the newspaper gets it wrong, they don't really help the situation by making the corrections somewhere where people will actually see it! I wonder how many people now think it has closed and don't even bother in finding out? Which of course in turn, may well mean less people visiting it!

Bob Geldoff managed to switch on the xmas lights in Margate with anyone throwing spare change at him - or deodorant for that matter!

And apparently we're all now better off with 2.5% taken off V.A.T. which in real terms is a few pence here and there, although the adverts on the telly make it sound like the savings are HUGE!!!!! And people are still on about whether we should join the Euro or not. Most people I know straight away say no. But would your average joe on the street really be that street smart fiscally to know where we'd be worse off or not? But that's a debate for a whole other time.

It's probably safer to wait for the DFS sale where I know I'll definitely make a saving! ;)

On a lighter note, it seems that Jeremy Paxman was in Sandwich yesterday as he was doing something on Pegwell today. Anyone with any more information on that?

Right! Ramble over, I'll be back to my usual self soon once I've had some kip and start working some reasonable hours again!

TTFN

It's True! GOD really does help old people!

Oh alright! Not that GOD but G.O.D. (otherwise known as the not so lesser spotted Gerry O' Wotsit)

I was trying to find somewhere to park near my home up here on the Eastcliff (which is not an easy thing to do considering many employees of shops in the town use it as free parking! Grr!!) when I approached Homefleet House only to see all the cars grind to a halt whilst Gerry helped an old lady across the road. No hype, no photos, just someone helping another person in this world down here on planet thanet!

Whether you agree with his ideals or not doesn't matter. We're all quick to criticise, but good on you Gerry for showing that there are still people who will go out of their way to help others. Believe me, there are a lot of people round here who wouldn't have even bothered helping.

I did contemplate using my camera on my mobile to get a shot but seeing as I was driving, I didn't facy breaking the law! Plus I think we've already seen him loads in the local rags!

Just thought I'd share that with everyone as it made me feel good to look at the brighter side of life! Now I can take the rose tinted specs off!

A nice evening down the Harbour

Well that's what I had! A friend of mine who is originally from Ramsgate but has lived abroad for the past 14 years had popped back to see his folks and so decided that we should pop down the harbour for a pint or ten! And enjoyed some fabulous beers in several establishments

Having see how Ramsgate has been in the past, my old chum commented on how it seems that Ramsgate has pulled its socks up a bit. He has fond memories of the town and we really did reminisce about the old days of Ramsgate and the fun that could be had.

While remembering the "good old days" of our yoof, it then turned to sadness as we looked at things now gone such as Pleasurama, The Marina Swimming Pool etc.

Despite not having lived here for 14 years he's always kept abreast of what's happened here and is sad that so many things seem to have vanished.

When I explained about the council that Ramsgate will be getting, he thinks it can only help the town.

Only time will tell of course but it's always interesting to get an old resident of the towns view.

Do you know what you're drinking?

I always said there was something in the water!

Now it would seem that my little catchphrase is actually right! Rather than regurgitate what you can already find on the blogs, I strongly suggest that you check out Michael Childs blog on the subject here.

It's all rather worrying really isn't it? If you're not sure what Cyclohexanone is or you find most of the stuff on the internet a bit hard to understand, then basically...................

It is a colorless, oily liquid with an odor reminiscent of peppermint oil and acetone. Over time, the color of the liquid changes to yellow. Cyclohexanone is slightly soluble in water (5-10 g/100 ml), but miscible with the most common organic solvents. Cyclohexanone is employed as an industrial solvent and it is also used in the production of adipic acid, cyclohexanone resins, caprolactam and nylon 6.

I could go on but in short, it's toxic! Oh yes, and it could be in our water supply!

Now I'm sure that the clean up operation is pretty strict but it does seem a little odd that we're only really hearing about it now after 12 years. THAT is what concerns me.

The problem is, now I'm wondering what else has happend in the past that we should really have been told about? That's the $64,000 question!

It pains me to say it but serial antagonist "Rick" has really done some work of importance here for everyone in Thanet. Hopefully more will come to light as time moves on (although let hope it's not in another 12 years!)

I do wonder though if some of it has escaped in the water though, what with Eastcliff Richard's recent hissy fit and Maisiegrace's view of Margate through rose tinted specs!

Nurse.........The Screens!!!!!!

Council approved but they don't like it up at TDC do they!

The Ramsgate Council thing has been approved and it would seem that the usual stuff about how it's going to cost us more money etc etc is being spurted out left right and centre. One of the most notable being councillor Mike Harrison.

Well, that's democracy for you! Ramsgate voted and the winner was for Ramsgate to have its own Council, so frankly we'd better start getting used to the idea!

Personally, if it costs us a bit more but means that more can be done for Ramsgate then I'm all for it. You don't get anything for nothing do you! And Broadstairs have a council and that seems to be alright!

All Mike Harrison has done is bash on about Gerry O'Donnell like he's the spawn of Satan or something. All Gerry did was get passionate about the town he lives in and wants it to have greater control over the things that happen in it.

It doesn't mean that Gerry will become a councillor, he'll have to stand like anyone else and if he's voted in, then so be it. But of course, people may vote for someone else.

There are things that do make me chuckle though, like Mike Harrison saying that he wont stand for election in this council as he opposed it and it wouldn't be right! Surely Mike, the best thing you could do is to stand and then fight the system from within - if that's what you want to do!

By saying he wont stand, my interpretation is that Mike isn't all that interested really in Ramsgate. If he was, he would stand!

So come on Mike, show us that you do have the interest of the town that voted for you to represent part of them on TDC!!!!!

So my final opinion on this is the following..........................................

None of the TDC Councillors for Ramsgate have said anything positive or they have stayed silent about the creation of this new council. So I would urge anyone who reads my ramblings to remember this when it comes to the elections in 2009 because if these people start popping up as candidates, it'll be a bit hypocritial wont it?

Mark my words, I'm sure that some of them will stand and frankly I think that their current actions (or lack of them) should be testament as to why they shouldn't represent us!

This is a good opportunity to get Ramsgate back on track. Let's hope the electorate don't miss an opportunity to get the best for our town.

Richard Eastcliff Gives us some Medical Advice

Well not exactly but Richard did post something informative from one of his readers here about the Flu Jab and how you can get it from a place in Broadstairs called Pierremont Pharmacy.

I can tell you in the land of the NHS that the post is correct in the fact that if you are not a high risk patient, you are not automatically entitled to this jab. This is yet another reason why private clinics start doing so well because most people who actually want the jab are the people who don't want to be sick off work.

I think I'm going to have to nip to Broadstairs to have a look at this Pharmacy. I've had a look at their website here and actually I'm now rather intrigued as it would seem that their clinical rooms are much nicer than mine! I'm surprised that Ken Gregory's not told us about this place as it's in Broadstairs.

Still, it's nice for a change to see a pharmacy getting involved in this way thus taking a little pressure off G.P.'s and frankly I don't think I've seen a set up quite like this. But why isn't there something like this in Ramsgate? It's always in Broadstairs! OK so we've got a nice big Boots in the High Street and there's the other one next door to Rooks which looks rather dark inside, but none of these places seem to be offering what this place is doing Broadstairs.

OK. So this part of the ramble is the serious bit, and of course this is my own opinion (other medics opinions may vary!).

It the flu jab worth it? - YES! It can help stop the spread of Flu which is a virus, so it can be stopped.

But the flu jab can give me flu though can't it? NO! Despite what anyone might tell you, it is impossible to get flu from the jab as the vaccine contains inactive antigens. You may get some cold like symptoms for a day or two but that's it.

Have I got a cold or do I really have flu? You will know if you have the flu! Most people will be suffering from just a rather nasty cold and claim they have flu but they haven't. Basically, if there was a million quid sat over the other side of the room and you were told you could keep it if you went over and picked it up, if you had a cold you'd get the money, if you have flu, you wouldn't give a monkeys about the dosh!

So final bits of advice?

I think it's worth having a flu jab. It's only protective against 3 strains of the virus but they are the most likely ones to be lurking around.

Phone your Doctor's Surgery and check whether you can get it off them for free. If you can then brilliant, if not, then you've got the choice to go elsewhere and pay to have it done or of course not have it at all. It's your choice!

And remember, by having a flu jab it also reduces the chance of you passing on the virus to someone else. Influenza is still a large killer so it's better to be prepared.

I hope this posting has been helpful for some people. If you want more info on flu then your best bet is to type it into a seach engine or check Wikipedia.

Stay Healthy!

More Ramblings from the OGM

Greetings one and all from the OGM (Ken Gregory's little nickname for me)

It's been a while but sometimes life in the world of The Great Daktari can be rather busy however, I'm back!

So what have I missed since my last rambling? err.... Chinagate/planning/chinagate/planning etc etc

Despite my own ramblings being a little non-existant as of late, I do try to keep up with my daily dose of favourite bloggers.

So what really has kept me amused on the blogging scene since I last rambled? Well I guess it's got to be the china gateway malarchy really. Whether you're for or against it's made great reading and has still been more interesting that reading the local rags.

The great thing about this blogging lark is that anyone can voice their opinion. Some (dare I say) more sensible than others.

There's a great deal of passion when it comes to this chinagate thing. Michael Child's Thanetonline blog can certainly tell you that as can Tony's Bignews Margate. For the time being I don't think I'll ramble on to much on this subject as many others are already doing such a good job. Whether you are for it, or against it, well that's your own choice but my advice to you is do watch out for the propaganda that seems to spew from both sides of the fence. It could distract you from the topic in hand. Actually, it would seem that Goebbels is alive and well in Thanet and having fun with both sides.

All I will say, is that it would be nice to see what more of TDC's Councillors have to say on the Topic. Obviously, the blogging worlds Ken Gregory needs to be careful of what he says (due to the planning chair etc) and I fully understand that. Even Sandy Ezekiel gives you a straight answer on his opinion (a first I know! Although if you want to debate who funded the trip to China, you'd better start a new topic). So what do the other councillors have to say on this matter? Come on chaps, tell us the truth! Or as Jamie Oliver would say "Try something new today!"

Rozzers Down the Seafront

Just a short one here.

It would seem that something's going on down the seafront on the road heading towards the port as there were at least 4 police cars that I could see blocking off the exit into harbour parade.

Anyone know what's going on?

Another vote about a Ramsgate Town Council

According to "Your Thanet" Newspaper, next year, we're to get a vote on whether or not we want a Town Council in Ramsgate or not

Didn't we have a referendum the other year to decide this? What a wast of money organising yet another vote.

On one side, it looks like we could end up voting in more bureaucrats to waste our taxes on, but on the other, we already have a load that are wasting OUR money in the form of TDC organising this farce of a vote! Perhaps us Ramsgatonians will see sense and vote in people that will be more sensible - but I doubt that'll happen!

Of course G.O.D. (Gerry O'wotsit) is pleased that this is happening. Now I'm not going to knock the chap as he's really been passionate about this, but just how much money is all this voting malarchy costing us?

All I'll say on the matter is, if we do end up with a Town Council, don't just vote with your usual opinions on who's best, let's really look into who they are and what they can do for our town.

For what it's worth, Broadstairs seem to do just fine with one so who knows, it could be just the thing that Ramsgate needs.

The Jury's out on this one but it'll be interesting whatever happens

Addington Street "Victorian" Fair - Is it worth it?

Greetings one and all! Sorry I've not been on in a while but it's been a hectic couple of weeks and now I'm able to relax a bit with a few days off!

So..........................
The Addington Street "Victorian" Fair. it's a simple question. is it worth it? I've not been in a couple of years but it would seem that this year TDC are doing the old red tape bit with liability insurance etc.

Part of me says I should understand because of safety etc etc - but hang on! My memory of this infamous street fair is nothing more than a boot fair with a few people in victorian costumes.

So it's a simple question, personally I don't think it's worth it. Sad to say, but there aren't really many shops there any more.

If you're stuck for something to do on sunday, you'd be better off nipping up to the boating pool on the westcliff as there's a superb model boat day going on there. And it actually makes a lovely afternoon out. Mrs Daktari and myself went there a couple of years and were pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable it was.

Or of course you can but some tatt in Addington Street!

Wansum Jazz

OK so the Wansum Jazz Festival is in full swing! Already there's people commenting on blogs saying it's a waste of time.

Well from where I am it's sounding very nice. People have braved the naff Bank Holiday weather and there's some really nice music going on.

Personally I admire the people who have braved the weather and I also admire the performers.

For once on the Bandstand at the Eastcliff there is something going on which doesn't sound like a strangled cat!

All too often events that appear on the bandstand end up mostly being panned out with awful Karaoke singing so this is a nice change.

The only thing that I think is a shame is that very little seems to happen on the bandstand during the good weather. In other words, very little appears on there during June & July.

Now I know that it's Bank Holiday weekend but what's wrong with a normal weekend?

What else can we have go on at the bandstand? There's plenty of room down there and I'd hate the council to think that as it's not used much, it's a waste so they might as well get rid of it. Lets face it, anything's possible when in comes to Councils and Spare Land.

So........... Any suggestions?

Plain Jane & Other bits of the Gazebo

Well we've obviously hit a bit of a nerve when it comes to Plain Jane and her "Column" in the Isle of Margate Gazebo!

Apparently, after more than FIVE years of doing her column, she says "I am no better at predicting which columns will get the letter flooding in- and which will bring forth a resounding Silence" - perhaps that's telling you something Jane!

According to her blog - sorry, newspaper column, she didn't expect the response that she got regarding her column in last weeks Gazebo regarding Thanet Blogging.

Had she not read any of the said blogs? If she had, maybe she'd have been more prepared for the response she recieved both on and offline!

I also see that she decided to take a swipe at Ken Gregory because of his "rude" comments about using her page to line the cat's litter tray. And her excuse for the vast amount of incorrect information in her original comments? Well they were due to writing in in the hours before going off to a wedding!!! Frankly I thought Ken's comment about the litter tray was funnier than the said article!!!! And all this from someone who's hair is several different colours!

So not only was there no care or attention to detail made to her column, from her comments this week, it would seem that she can't take what she tries to dish out!

So while we're on the subject of local newspapers, let stick with the Gazebo.................

Well the letter's page is still much the same including Eurobaiting this week from Roger Arnold from UKIP! Yes as per usual according to Roger the EU is taking TWO MILLION POUNDS "Every hour, every night and avery day" which if believed equates to £48 Million per day! Can anyone verify this?

Of course, the usual letters from Councillors verbally pulling a silly face and sticking their tongue out at other councillors continues

But "Daktari's Favourite Letter of the Week" has to be the last one that was sent by Mr. E. Brownlee which read...............

"May I send a message to the low-life postworker who stole my grandson's birthday money between Margate Genereal Post office and Broadstairs. I hope you enjoyed spending it and I wish you nothing but ill will fot the future"

Why was this my letter of the week? Well mainly to prove my point that the editor of these newspapers seriously need to look at some of the things they publish. What kind of a world are we living in when a newpaper is publishing a letter telling someone (in slightly different words) "I hope you choke on it" - well that's a really nice and sensible thing to read!

My advice to the editor? Don't publish letters like that! Pass them on to your "Reporters" who would probably be able to turn it into a bit of news. You never know, they might just enjoy doing the work!

To Pay? Or Not To Pay?.... That, is the Prescription

Firstly my apologies for the lack of ramblings over the past few days. Yours truly has been a little on the busy side work wise but a number of people are healthier for it!

So what am I on about here? Well, although I've not had chance to ramble, I have been able to peruse other blogs and one thing that came up in one was to do with the fact that Scotland will be recieving free prescriptions from 2011.

Wales already have free prescriptions but here in good old blighty people are still having to pay £7.10 for each item on a prescription whereas in Scotland they are only £5 (work that one out!) and they are reducing it each year to eventually Zero!

Personally I think this is a bit unfair. The last time I looked, we were all still part of the UK. Is it time that we all had free prescriptions?

A number of years ago, one man went to the European Court as he thought it unfair that if you were a woman over 60 you didn't pay but if you were a man, you didn't get them free until you were 65. They deemed the practice unlawful and now anyone over 60 gets free prescriptions.

Will there be someone brave enough to do this regarding charges? Surely the variation or price or even a lack of one cannot continue.

Should we just let Scotland and Wales get on with it? Perhaps they really should go their separate ways and maybe set up passport control on the borders - I really don't know.

Not only is this grossly unfair to the people of England, but it's unfair to anyone who's income in not particularly great but doesn't fall into any of the exempt catagories

Maybe we should dig out the Wansum Channel and declare independence.

I'm thinking we could then have a new political party on the scene called the Thanet Independence Party (AKA - T.I.P.)

It's time us Englanders got something for a change!

Blogs or Newspaper Columns?

Your choice! Which one's more entertaining?

OK lets put it another way................. Thanet Blogs or Jane Wenham-Jones' (now referred to as JWJ) Column in the Isle of Margate Gazebo?

Well frankly there's no choice is there? No I'm not "Bigging up" my blog! My ramblings are just my opinion and if you wish to comment, well you're always welcome.

The reason why I say there is no choice is that the world of blogging offers us everything (well almost!). Whether you just want to find out what's been happening in your area, read someone elses opinion on a particular topic, just want a laugh. or just want to read a "verbal spat" between two people! - You can get it all on these Blogs! And in the local Gazebo? Well you can read childish comments, probably more spats (usually from councillor's in the letters section!) and some often not very well reseached "Journalism" - I use that word VERY loosely!

What's JWJ done to upset me? - Nothing, but after having read her latest blog...oops sorry, "column" about blogging, bloggers etc, I just did not find it very constructive.

Her column contained a number of inaccuracies be they either the wrong name of someone or a wrong blog address - admittedly, that was mainly Eastcliff Richard and I'm sure he's not losing any sleep over it! But for someone to suggest to it's reader to have a look at someone's blog if you've nothing better to do or there's nowt on telly, they clearly haven't done their research very well have they?

Anyway, these are the bits that tickled me when I read her column............


1. Her sarcasm regarding Tony Bignews' grammar - so what if the grammar's incorrect? At least he's having a go and frankly having read a couple of his blogs, I've discovered already that they're more informative and entertaining that JWJ!

2. JWJ used half a newspaper page on her column only to tell us "I like my rants short and sweet" - could've fooled me (and many others I'm sure)

........actually (like her columns) I could go on forever but you get the idea! If you'd like to read her article, trawl though some of the blogs on here for the link and read someone's blog along the way, I promise it'll be more entertaining!

In short, where she was trying to be funny, she wasn't. The jokes about Ken Gregory's change on party politics are so old that the mold growing on them have formed their own Folk Trio and have just had a cracking week in Broadstairs! - now if she'd said Ken was like Litmus Paper and changed colour to suit the situation (sorry Ken!) I may have laughed out loud.

I've never read any of her books and I've no desire to either - incidentally if you "want to be a writer", get yourself a pen and paper, if you put the two together, you might just be amazed at the results.

All I'll ask of JWJ...... next time, please try to get your research right, oh and keep reading Councillor Green's Blog! ;)


Nurse! - The Screens!