Blogs

Juan Watterson Speaker of the Isle of Man House of Keys has been holding forth on population growth during a Tynwald jolly to the Cayman Islands.

The Caymans has imported so much external labour that indigenous people are becoming ‘as rare as hen's teeth’. Juan its seems would like Mann to go the same way. That way we could make every year a ‘year of our Island’ because no bugger would know the first thing about the place. I suppose that would keep Chris Thomas MHK and the other assorted political imports happy.

First they froze you then they starved you soon having a drink of water could become a ‘luxury’.

News that the Manx government is considering metering for domestic water shows there is absolutely no political gutter that this wretched Tynwald will not trawl.

In the Republic of Ireland metering has led to fierce controversy with politicians not only berated but physically attacked. Folk have been jailed in water protests.

I’m worried about the Chief Minister (CM) Howard Quayle MHK! I know it may sound an unlikely scenario as those who used to click into my weekly utterances on CL Facebook before I moved over to the more serene environment of Transceltic usually hoped that every third post would include a knock at Howard.

Still unlikely as it sounds there was never anything personal and if you follow the political meanderings of your average CM (and I’ve followed a few over the decades) you study them astutely - they almost become kindred spirits.

Pity the denizens of the news and news magazine section of Manx Radio. To ensure that programmes have a broad reach - in terms of subject content - they have to have every ‘Tim’, Dick or Harry pontificating on the airwaves.

Of course such a strategy must lead to moments when the interviewer wants to bash his head on the newsroom console or yearn for a days leave.

The visit by the current two political bete-noires of the Isle of Man Margaret Hodge and Andrew Mitchell MPs is reported widely.

MTTV have an interview interspersed with comment describing the pair as ‘two very important people’, Christ I thought it was me who should get out more - obviously it’s Moulton!

There has been a large demonstration in Bayonne in the northern Basque Country calling for the release of several Basque prisoners in French jails.

A strident campaign has been ongoing for some months calling for the release given the changed circumstances in the southern Basque Country and the ETA ceasefire.

Those imprisoned have served long jail terms in one case 28 years. Politicians have joined the protests.

This report from 7seizh:

A Basque pressure group is claiming that ‘social pressure’ has stopped shipments of arms through the Port of Bilbao to Saudi Arabia,

They say the Port had been a major conduit for war materials which are used in their murderous war against the people of Yemen.

Hundreds of containers had been shipped in the past but the group say that for three months no materials have been channeled through the Port (link):

The attempt by Spain to charge a number of Basque youths with terrorist related charges following a brawl with the Civil Guard has been dropped and changed to one of ‘damage and public order’.

However any thoughts that this might diffuse the public anger over the Altsasu defendants has been dashed as the court has handed down sentences totally 79 years to the eight Basque youths involved. The longest sentence for one young person is 13 years.

This is absolutely outrageous given that in the so called ‘disorder’ one Civil Guard suffered just a minor ankle injury.

The Isle of Man ‘through the looking glass’! It's a strange barely comprehensible twilight world which for the most part is inhabited by politicians and statisticians.

Less people came for the TT (in terms of bikes) and yet it was the best ever - let's forget a death or two or the odd maiming.

While the Isle of Man wrestles to avoid polluting the Irish Sea some of our neighbours it seems couldn't care less - read on:

The Isle of Man government and specifically its DOI have got themselves in something of a pickle over how/where to dispose of a few thousand tonnes of toxic waste that accumulates in Peel Marina.

We already have a dump full of this silt at Poortown (near Peel) and there were promises not least to the local authorities that this would be removed in five years - the clock is ticking.