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t The Cyprus experience ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello to All

Well I suppose that all good things must start somewhere and for me that somewhere is HERE. In the next few pages I will set out to try and link you with all the good things on the internet. Please excuse me however if on occasions I wonder off into my "Angry Young Man" mode (Did I say Young)? Well if so then it is just a touch of hope or desparation that you will have to excuse me for. I have been collecting interesting sites now for some time and with the help of BLOGGER I have crated a number of Web sites to hold them. Please click on ANY of the links below to be taken to that particular subject.

Great Programs and links

A collection of everything I have found good on the Web inc. Programs,Games, Utilities and those "Just plain interesting sites"

Just Games

GREAT (FREE) games and game sites on the web.Database

Childrens Sites and games

Games sites for Children. I have checked out all of them and I found them all safe at the time of testing.

Holiday Links and Sites

A site that contains all those hard to find (again)holiday sites, Airlines and those Great late breaking deals.

Diabetes.

Medical info on the subject PLEASE NOTE--Many of the links on here are taken from medical web sites. In order to read them all you need do is REGISTER (FREE)the one time and you will then be able to read all the content contained on line.

Cutting edge Medicine

Keep up to date witht the latest in medical matters

The Tory who told Brown to his face that he's a disaster

THIS Man is a TRUE Politician. Our Countryneeds more (lots more) like him

A Tory who criticised Gordon Brown to his face in a brutal personal attack has won an army of fans worldwide.

A video of MEP Daniel Hannan delivering a withering assessment of the Prime Minister's handling of the economic crisis has become a surprise hit on the internet.

More than 730,000 users have viewed it on YouTube, making it the most popular clip on the site two days in a row.

Mr Hannan's assault came after the Premier had given a keynote speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Tuesday.

As Mr Brown looked on through gritted teeth, shaking his head, the Tory lambasted him as a 'Brezhnev era apparatchik' who was ' pathologically incapable' of taking responsibility for his role in the financial crisis.

AN OBITUARY PRINTED IN THE LONDON TIMES.

AN OBITUARY PRINTED IN THE LONDON TIMES.

 

 'Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, 'Common Sense', who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:  Knowing when to come in out of the rain; why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.

 Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

 His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouth wash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

 Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.  It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

 Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took  a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own  home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

 Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement .

 Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust. His wife, Discretion, his daughter, Responsibility, his son, Reason.  He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights; I Want It Now; Someone Else Is To Blame; I'm A Victim.

 Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on.

Insurance victory for gran who besieged head office

What  a GREAT Girl

When Dorothy Green needed to contact her insurance company, she encountered the sort of frustration familiar to millions.

One-gran demo: Mrs Green with her placardDozens of phonecallsfollowed over several days, during which she was kept on hold for a total of three hours, but got nowhere.

When others might have given up in despair, this 79-year-old grandmother refused to surrender to faceless bureaucracy.

The retired primary school teacher, who has just lost her husband to cancer, wanted to know why the £56,400 value of her life insurance policy had been halved.

Despite being 'very frightened', she travelled 130 miles in the snow from her home in Peterborough to the York office of Norwich Union chief executive Mark Hodges.

Staff refused to let her speak to the boss but, undaunted, Mrs Green returned three days later, only to be arrested after police were called.

Mrs Green spent several hours in a cell, but the next day she pressed on with her battle. After again being told Mr Hodges would not see her, she reported him to police - as a missing person.

In the end, bosses at the insurance giant decided they could ignore her no longer and promised to honour their original settlement. Mrs Green said they told her it was a 'misunderstanding'.

Her story has echoes of the 1989 film Roger and Me in which maverick director Michael Moore relentlessly pursues General Motors boss Roger Smith who closed the plant in his hometown.

Mrs Green was sold a life insurance plan in 1994, guaranteeing a payout of £56,400 when she died.

But over the past six years, Norwich Union has reduced this to £26,000, she said. A letter last month saying the new sum would be introduced unless her premiums soared left her 'shaking' with anger.

After drawing a blank with her phone calls, Mrs Green made her first visit by train to York on January 30, spending several hours in the offices.

She said staff initially claimed Mr Hodges was on holiday for a month and later that he was 'in a meeting'. Distressed, she returned home, only to return three days later. This time, the reception desk called the police.

'I was taken away in a car in a police cage,' said the pensioner. 'They didn't treat me badly, I just talked to a doctor to see if I was loopy. They decided I wasn't.'

She was released without charge and stayed the night in a hotel. 'The next day I went back to the offices one last time to ask if I could see Mr Hodges, but I never did.'

During this final visit, she posed outside the office with a placard around her neck reading 'Dorothy Jean Green' in a desperate attempt to attract attention.

Tragically, the day after her return home her husband Paul died.

However, Mrs Green now has the peace of mind of knowing the full amount of her policy will go to her four grandchildren on her death.

'But it has taken nearly six years of worrying, two-and-a-half days in York, six hours on the telephone and sitting in a police cage,' she said.

'I just wanted to ask Mr Hodges why they kept asking for more money and trying to reduce the payout. It's not really about the money. I think something should be done to make things fairer. I have asked Norwich Union to come to my husband's funeral as a goodwill gesture.'

A spokesman for the insurer said: 'A director has spoken directly with Mrs Green and resolved her complaint.'

Is Peace Out Of Reach?

Has peace in the Middle East become nothing more than a pipe dream? As Bob Simon reports, a growing number of Israelis and Palestinians feel that a two-state solution is no longer possible. 

I agree with him. Its a pity that BOTH sides started acting like Humans

So Proud to be ENGLISH

From The Queen's Royal Lancers Website:




Goodbye to my England , So long my old friend
Your days are numbered, being brought to an end
To be Scottish, Irish or Welsh that's fine
But don't say you're English, that's way out of line.


The French and the Germans may call themselves such
So may Norwegians, the Swedes and the Dutch
You can say you are Russian or maybe a Dane
But don't say you're English ever again.


At Broadcasting House the word is taboo
In Brussels it's scrapped, in Parliament too
Even schools are affected, staff do as they're told
They must not teach children about England of old.


Writers like Shakespeare, Milton and Shaw
The pupils don't learn about them anymore
How about Agincourt, Hastings , Arnhem or Mons ?
When England lost hosts of her very brave sons.


We are not Europeans, how can we be?
Europe is miles away over the sea
We're the English from England , let's all be proud
Stand up and be counted - Shout it out loud !




Let's tell our Government and Brussels too
We're proud of our heritage and the Red, White and Blue
Fly the flag of Saint George or the Union Jack
Let the world know - WE WANT OUR ENGLAND BACK !!!!

Premium bonds reveal 600,000 fewer winners

For all those people with Premium Bonds I suggest you read this article. I was wondering why I had stopped getting even the odd £50 LOOKS LIKE YET ANOTHER SCAM BY THIS LAME GOVERNMENT.

Premium bonds reveal 600,000 fewer winners

• Stephen Bates
• guardian.co.uk, Thursday 8 January 2009 01.25 GMT

The chance of winning prize money with premium bonds has plummeted in the last year, following cuts in the Bank of England's base rate, figures revealed last night.

The prize fund has been halved from £114m a year ago to £57m for the 20 million people who own the tax-free, but non-interest paying bonds, and over the past year the total number of winners has dropped 600,000 to 1.1million. The amount in the prizefund is based on the equivalent of a month's interest on the value of the bonds invested, and the Bank's base rate has been cut three times, from 5% to 2%, since the start of October. Monthly prizes range from £50 to £1m. Starkly, whereas last January 531 people won prizes of more than £1,000, last month only 26 did. A year ago 29 people won £50,000 prizes and 14 won £100,000, but this month there will be only one award for each amount, as well as two £1m prizes. Those with £1,000 in bonds this time last year had a 43% chance of winning, now reduced to 28%.

Angela Mason, spokeswoman for National Savings and Investments which runs the scheme, said: "The rate of return on premium bonds, as with other savings products, is influenced by economic circumstances. Given the historically low levels base rate has now reached, we are looking closely at all the options available to us so that we can make the right decision for all premium bond holders.

"People invest in premium bonds for different reasons. This may be for the chance and excitement of winning large prizes, or many regular tax free prizes or because premium bonds are simple to manage and can offer easy access to their investment."

• © Guardian News and Media Limited 2009

A CHRISTMAS POEM TO REMEMBER

 The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
 I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight. 
 My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
 My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
 Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
 Transforming the yard to a winter delight.

 The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
 Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve. 
 My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
 Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
 In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
 So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

 The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
 But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear. 
 Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know, Then the
 sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
 My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
 And I crept to the door just to see who was near.

 Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
 A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight. 
 A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
 Just a young man, huddled here in the cold.
 Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
 Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

 'What are you doing?' I asked without fear,
 'Come in this moment, it's freezing out here! 
 Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
 You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!'
 For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
 Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts.

 To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
 Then he sighed and he said 'Its really all right, 
 I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night.'
 'It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
 That separates you from the darkest of times.

 No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
 I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me. 
 My Gramps died in France on a day in December,'
 Then he sighed, 'That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers.'
 My dad stood his watch in the Korean cold,
 And now it is my turn to try and be as bold.

 I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
 But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile. 
 Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
 The red and white flag... the Union flag.
 I can live through the cold and the being alone,
 Away from my family, my house and my home.

 I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
 I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat. 
 I can carry the weight of killing another,
 Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
 Who stand at the front against any and all,
 To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall.'

 'So go back inside,' he said, 'harbor no fright,
 Your family is waiting and I'll be all right.'
 'But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
 'Give you money,' I asked, 'or prepare you a feast?
 It seems all too little for all that you've done, 
 For being away from your wife and your son.'

 Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
 'Just tell us you love us, and never forget. 
 To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
 To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
 For when we come home, either standing or dead,
 To know you remember we fought and we bled.
 Is payment enough, and with that we will trust, 
 That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.'

 PLEASE, would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many  people as you can?

 Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities.

Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe.

Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.

 

 

SHERIFF JOE IS AT IT AGAIN!

Sheriff JoeGotta love this guy............He has my vote

You all remember Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona , who painted the jail cells pink and made the inmates wear pink prison garb.  Well.........

 

SHERIFF JOE IS AT IT AGAIN!

 

Oh, there's MUCH more to know about Sheriff Joe!

 

Maricopa County was spending approx.  $18 million dollars a year on stray animals, like cats and dogs.  Sheriff Joe offered to take the department over, and the County Supervisors said okay.

 

The animal shelters are now all staffed and operated by prisoners. 
They feed and care for the strays.  Every animal in his care is taken out and walked twice daily.  He now has prisoners who are experts in animal nutrition and behavior.  They give great classes for anyone who'd like to adopt an animal.  He has literally taken stray dogs off the street, given them to the care of prisoners, and had them place in dog shows.

 

The best part?  His budget for the entire department is now under $3 million.  Teresa and I adopted a Weimaraner from a Maricopa County shelter two years ago.  He was neutered, and current on all shots, in great health, and even had a microchip inserted the day we got him. 
Cost us $78.

 

The prisoners get the benefit of about $0.28 an hour for working, but most would work for free, just to be out of their cells for the day. 
Most of his budget is for utilities, building maintenance, etc.  He pays the prisoners out of the fees collected for adopted animals.

 

I have long wondered when the rest of the country would take a look at the way he runs the jail system, and copy some of his ideas.  He has a huge farm, donated to the county years ago, where inmates can work, and they grow most of their own fresh vegetables and food, doing all the work and harvesting by hand.

 

He has a pretty good sized hog farm, which provides meat, and fertilizer.  It fertilizes the Christmas tree nursery, where prisoners work, and you can buy a living Christmas tree for $6 - $8 for the Holidays, and plant it later.  We have six trees in our yard from the Prison.

 

Yup, he was reelected last year with 83% of the vote.
Now he's in trouble with the ACLU again.  He painted all his buses and vehicles with a mural, that has a special hotline phone number painted on it, where you can call and report suspected illegal aliens.  Immigrations and Customs Enforcement wasn't doing enough in his eyes, so he had 40 deputies trained specifically for enforcing immigration laws, started up his hotline, and bought 4 new buses just for hauling folks back to the border.  He's kind of a 'Git-R Dun' kind of Sheriff.

 

TO THOSE OF YOU NOT FAMILIAR WITH JOE ARPAIO

 HE IS THE MARICOPA ARIZONA COUNTY SHERIFF

 AND HE KEEPS GETTING ELECTED OVER AND OVER THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY:

 

Sheriff Joe Arpaio (In Arizona ) who created the ' Tent City Jail':
He has jail meals down to 40 cents a serving and charges the inmates for them.

 

He stopped smoking and porno magazines in the jails.  Took away their weights Cut off all but 'G' movies.

 

He started chain gangs so the inmates could do free work on county and city projects.

 

Then He Started Chain Gangs For Women So He Wouldn't Get Sued For Discrimination.

 

He took away cable TV Until he found out there was A Federal Court Order that Required Cable TV For Jails So He Hooked Up The Cable TV Again Only Let In The Disney Channel And The Weather Channel.

 

When asked why the weather channel He Replied, So They Will Know How Hot It's Gonna Be While They Are Working ON My Chain Gangs.

 

He Cut Off Coffee Since It Has Zero Nutritional Value.

 

When the inmates complained, he told them, 'This Isn't The Ritz/ Carlton......If You Don't Like It, Don't Come Back.' More On The Arizona Sheriff:

 

With Temperatures Being Even Hotter Than Usual In Phoenix (116 Degrees Just Set A New Record), the Associated Press Reports:
About 2,000 Inmates Living In A Barbed-Wire-Surrounded Tent Encampment At The Maricopa County Jail Have Been Given Permission To Strip Down To Their Government-Issued Pink Boxer Shorts.

 

On Wednesday, hundreds of men wearing boxers were either curled up on their bunk beds or chatted in the tents, which reached
138 Degrees Inside The Week Before.

 

Many Were Also Swathed In Wet, Pink Towels As Sweat Collected On Their Chests And Dripped Down To Their PINK SOCKS.

 

'It Feels Like We Are In A Furnace,' Said James Zanzot, An Inmate Who Has Lived In The TENTS for 1 year.  'It's Inhumane.' Joe Arpaio, the tough-guy sheriff who created the tent city and long ago started making his prisoners wear pink, and eat bologna sandwiches, is not one bit sympathetic.  He said Wednesday that he told all of the inmates: 'It's 120 Degrees In Iraq And Our Soldiers Are Living In Tents Too, And They Have To Wear Full Battle Gear, But They Didn't Commit Any Crimes, So Shut Your Mouths!' 

Way To Go, Sheriff!

 

Maybe if all prisons were like this one there would be a lot less crime and/or repeat offenders.  Criminals should be punished for their crimes - not live in luxury until it's time for their parole, only to go out and commit another crime so they can get back in to live on taxpayers money and enjoy things taxpayers can't afford to have for themselves.

 

If you agree, pass this on.  If not, you must have been aquainted withe the Sherrif