Blogs

In February 2000 the funerals took place of the seven crew members of the Scottish fishing boat Solway Harvester. It was on the 10th January 2000 that the boat set out from Kirkcudbright (Scottish Gaelic: Cille Chuithbeirt) in south-west Scotland. They fished until the following day 11th January and planned to set sail home. Due to the stormy conditions they sought refuge in the shelter of Ramsey Bay (Manx: Baie Rhumsaa) on the northeast coast of the Isle of Man.

On this day, 14th February 1844, the Garden Pit at Landshipping, Pembrokeshire (Welsh: Sir Benfro) was flooded by the River Cleddau (Afon Cleddau) and 40 colliers, men and boys were drowned. The community gathered today to rededicate a memorial exactly 175 years after Pembrokeshire's worst mining disaster. The waters of the Eastern Cleddau river broke through into the coal mine, a section of which ran below the estuary. On the day there had been warnings of the dangers. At about lunchtime the miners left the workings because of the quantity of salt water seeping into the mine.

So that everyone is kept informed, Agan Tavas has found it necessary to make the following press release regarding Lloyds Bank

PRESS RELEASE BEGINS

The site of the burial of Highland clan chief Ewen Cameron of Lochiel (February 1629 – February 1719) has been discovered after 300 years. He was a staunch supporter of the Jacobite rebellions and died aged 90 in 1719. He was famed for his strength, ferocity and bravery in combat, which led to him being called the Ulysses of the Highlands. His noted combats included the Battle of Killiecrankie (Scottish Gaelic: Blàr Choille Chnagaidh)  which took place on 27 July 1689 during the First Jacobite Rising when a combined Jacobite force of Scots and Irish secured victory.

With the rise in feminism and raised awareness of the environment dominating the headlines, advocates may look towards an inspirational leader to guide them through their campaigns, but historically St Bridget, who has links with the Isle of Man, may well tick all the boxes.

A detailed reply here to my query to the Chief Minister about free school meals and the exclusion of the children of migrant workers. I queried if it meets the obligations of the Island under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Chief Minister avers the current situation complies with the Convention

An Irish parliamentary Committee has been told that Peatlands are as important as the Tropical rainforest for our planet. This from Green News ie:

“Conservation measures to protect Ireland’s unique peatlands over the past three decades have been a “colossal failure”, an Oireachtas committee heard today.

The stark warning from Padraig Fogarty of the Irish Wildlife Trust came during a hearing of the heritage committee on the preservation of biodiversity of peatlands this afternoon.

They say ‘you wait for a bus and then two come along together’. Following hard on the heels of the ‘Climate Change Coalition’ (CCC) comes this:

http://www.iomtoday.co.im/article.cfm…

The CCC want to save the planet the Irish Sea Centre (ISC) objective is more modest simply the ecosystem of the Irish Sea. I’m one hundred percent with them.

The Drone Campaign Network are staging their ‘fly kites not drones’ campaign which highlights the use of drones in extrajudicial killings globally again this year from 17-24th March.

The campaign group staged the first demo of this type last year - here is the youtube video from last year which lists support from New York to Kabul, Hastings to Glasgow, London to Leicester :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=8&v=_tAe2YPxXdI

Is the Isle of Man government and its executive a closed book and do the media help them keep it that way?

On Manx Radio today Anthony Webber a former politician in the Channel Isles avers that the Island and other dependencies lack transparency. Well tell us something we didn’t know because the Isle of Man is essentially ‘a closed book’ from which we occasionally get extracts via the media. There is no concept of openness and accountability and we only have to look at the various scandals over the years everything from planning enquiries, the constabulary to utility loans etc