Too much 'Gaiety' & Lord Mayor of Manchester?

THE art historian, journalist, and critic, Brian Sewell, died in 2015 aged 84.  Four years before his death in July 2011, he wrote in the ‘Daily Mail’:

'Is it true that the lives of heterosexual Mancunians are haplessly intertwined with transvestites, transsexuals, teenage lesbians and a horde of homosexuals across the range?  Is Manchester now the Sodom of the North? Where once we had no gaiety at all, we now perhaps, have rather too much.'

Sewell’s article, ‘What have they done to Corrie?' focused on how Coronation Street characters were becoming increasingly gay, something almost unthinkable, in the days of Ena Sharples and Minnie Caldwell. He wrote:

'The Lesbians, Sophie Webster and Sian Powers caught ‘in flagrante’ by Sophie’s mum Sally. Sean Tully, the barman, set to tie the knot with boyfriend Marcus Dent. Middle-aged cross-dresser, Marc Selby and Hayley Cropper, the first transsexual to appear on the screen in 1998.'

Although Sewell acknowledged that the creator of Coronation Street, Tony Warren, was a homosexual as well as scriptwriter Daman Rochefort, he seemed to think that in this age of political correctness and equal opportunity, minorities are given the opportunity to punch above their weight. After all, gay men are supposed to make up just 6% of the British population. More importantly, he pointed out:

'Scots favour Scots, Irishmen favour the Irish, Armenians favour Armenians, Jews favour Jews, homosexuals have always favoured other homosexuals. Its how minorities gain strength through influence.'

Manchester is known for being one of the most LGBT- friendly cities in the UK. It also has one of the highest numbers of people living with HIV outside of London. The City Council recently elected a 44-year-old gay man, to be the Lord Mayor of Manchester.

'Sworn into his historic role - with a quote from disco legends Abba', Councillor Carl Austin-Behan, from Crumpsall, a former ‘Mr Gay UK’, left school with only one GCSE in drama.  In 1997, he was drummed-out of the RAF when it was discovered that he was a homosexual. Previously employed with Great Manchester Fire Service, he now runs a cleaning company. Councillor Austin-Behan has said that he’s ‘passionate’ about promoting the achievements of Manchester’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, (LGBT) community and will,

'Use his year in office to highlight prejudice towards the Tran’s community and work to make HIV testing more readily available in Greater Manchester.'
The Lord Mayor also believes, that: 

'People with different identities and sexual orientations, shouldn’t just be respected in Manchester, but celebrated.'

Just why any of us should pay respect or celebrate someone, because they are of a particular identity or sexual orientation isn’t quite clear, but it sounds like the most conceited nonsense. Surely, respect is something that is earned and not owed to anyone?  

While Councillor Austin-Behan is to be applauded for his stance on fighting discrimination and for trying to make HIV testing more readily available, it’s clear, that the Lord Mayor’s horizons are extremely limited.  In fact, they don’t seem to stretch much further than Canal Street, the ‘Gay Village’, and what lies in the interests of homosexual’s. To be a successful politician, one needs to be far more circumspect and never forget who is paying you.

Apart from its claim to be a ‘gay-friendly’ city, Manchester also has another claim to fame. In 2011, it was dubbed the child poverty capital of Britain, with some 25,000 children growing-up in severe poverty.  In April 2016, more than 50,000 emergency food supplies were handed out to families across Great Manchester who were struggling to feed themselves in the sixth richest nation on earth.  For many, living in Greater Manchester, life is akin to living in a Northern Poorhouse rather than a Northern Powerhouse.

What the Lord Mayor of Manchester thinks about this appalling state of affairs, isn’t quite clear, because he’s too wrapped up with LGBT issues.  But if anybody deserves our respect and ought to be celebrated, it is in my view, the seven courageous homeless campaigners who Manchester City Labour controlled council tried to jail in September 2015, for up to two-years, for fighting homelessness in the city. I say, give them a medal!

Duke of Westminster: Who Owns the North?

by Christopher Draper (formerly published in Northern Voices 15)

 TO be fair, Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, the sixth Duke of Westminster doesn’t own all the North but 11,500 acres of Cheshire, 23,500 acres of the Forest of Bowland, 42 acres of “Liverpool One”, 1,800 acres of north Wales and 96,000 acres of Scotland is enough to be going on with. That’s not all, for Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor also owns 300 acres of central London comprising the top-drawer districts of Mayfair and Belgravia. When the United States sought the freehold of their London (Grosvenor Square) Embassy, Gerald counter-claimed with a demand that the U.S. hand back to the Grosvenors Florida and Virginia which he alleges the Americans stole from his ancestors after the War of Independence. The Americans backed down and now plan to relocate from prestigious Belgravia to a freehold site at Nine Elms, Wandsworth. Such is the power, wealth and influence of Gerald, Duke of Westminster, Britain’s richest landowner (not to mention his extensive landholdings in 17 other countries around the globe).

 Currently estimated at about £8.5 billion, Gerald’s wealth comfortably exceeds that of the poorest 10% of the British population (£7.0 billion). In other words, Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor is worth more than 6.3 million ordinary people. 

 Ill-Gotten Gains

 He might not be handsome, clever or strong but Gerald certainly selected the right ancestors. Gilbert Le Gros Veneur (spot the connection) came over in 1066 with the Conqueror (“William the Bastard”) and shared the spoils of Norman rape and pillage. The “Gros Veneurs” were rewarded with vast tracts of rich farming land around Chester that, to this day, continue to provide the family with their magnificent country seat of Eaton Hall.

 Another great wodge of the Westminster’s wealth was acquired through the 1677 strategic marriage of Sir Thomas Grosvenor to the 12-year old Mary Davis. Mary came with 300 acres of Ebury Manor that the Grosvenors shrewdly developed to create Britain’s most valuable real estate, Mayfair and Belgravia.

 Two Brain Cells or One?

 Expensively educated at public school (Harrow), Gerald managed to pass only two O-levels (his daughter, Lady Edwina, says one) yet, surprisingly, this limited academic success didn’t prevent Gerry’s elevation to the Chancellorship of the University of Chester in 2005. Nor did it stop him reaching the rank of Deputy Commander Land Forces of the Territorial Army, despite suffering a nervous breakdown in 1997 and a blizzard of damaging publicity in 2007. Fortunately Gerald’s lawyers forced the genie back into the bottle and details can now only be discovered from overseas sources.

 Gerry hates unpleasantness and prefers to promote his academic credentials; Pro-Chancellor Keele University 1986-93, Chancellor Manchester Metropolitan University 1992-2002, Fellow Liverpool John Moores University 1990, Honorary Fellow University of Central Lancashire 2001, Honorary LL.D. University of Keele 1990, Honorary LL.D. University of Liverpool 2000 and D.Litt. University of Salford 2000.  Not bad for a man with two O-levels.

 Not What You Know…

 Gerald is a personal friend of Prince Charles and his wife Natalia, a descendant of George II, is the godmother of Prince William. The Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Princes William and Harry all attended the 2004 Chester Cathedral wedding of the Grosvenors’ oldest daughter, Lady Tamara Katherine (b.1979). According to the Financial Times, Daddy gave Lady Tamara £10 million as a wedding gift.

 The second daughter, Lady Edwina Louise Grosvenor (b.1981) is married to broadcaster Dan Snow, author of “Death or Victory – The Birth of the British Empire”. The youngest daughter, Lady Viola Georgina Grosvenor (b.1992) remains, as yet, unmarried.

 Gerald’s only son and heir apparent, Hugh, Earl of Grosvenor (b.1991), celebrated his 21st birthday in 2012 with a £5 million “black tie and neon” party in the grounds of Eaton Hall. The 800 partygoers naturally included Prince Harry and entertainment was provided by Michael McIntyre and Rizzle Kicks.

 “The Field” country pursuits magazine identifies Hugh as, “the cream of the crop of younger shots”, “Hughie’s a great shot on the grouse”. Fortunately there are several shooting estates at hand and overseas there’s the Grosvenor’s beautiful 37,000 acre Spanish, Finca La Garganta Estate near Seville. “Teeming with stags and wild boar”, La Garganta is, “one of the largest and most exclusive hunting estates in Western Europe” where Princes Wills and Harry, Hughie G and King Juan Carlos frequently enjoy killing sprees. The facilities of La Garganta include a luxuriously appointed ten-bedroomed hunting lodge, a private railway station and a staff of one hundred.

 Three Cheers for Hitler

 The first Duke of Westminster was Hugh Lupus Grosvenor (1825-1899) who was gifted the title by Queen Victoria. Elected MP for Chester at the tender age of 21 he played little part in parliamentary politics until 1866 when he campaigned against the Reform Act. His real passions were horse racing, deer stalking and shooting.

 The passions of the much married second Duke of Westminster, Hugh Richard Arthur Grosvenor (1879-1953), were more varied. A notorious womaniser, anti-semite and Nazi sympathiser he was in his element indulging in a ten year affair with French traitor and Nazi agent Coco-Channel. An all-round, selfish, insensitive brute, Hugh Grosvenor long remained an open-admirer of Hitler. Fiercely anti-gay, in 1931 he “outed” his homosexual brother-in-law, William Lygon, Lord Beauchamp to King George V and Queen Mary. “I thought men like that shot themselves”, was the King’s response. Lygon was rapidly despatched abroad and died an exile in America.

 Gerry, the present Duke of Westminster, acquired his astonishing wealth directly from Hugh “the fascist” who bypassed three intervening Dukes to entrust the Grosvenor fortune to the one year-old Gerald who inherited on his eighteenth birthday.

 Rebellion Below Stairs

 The sixth Duke of Westminster is a socially aware, sensitive man who’s President or patron of more than 100 organisations and charities. His servants at Eaton Hall don’t seem entirely convinced and according to Mrs Frances Hewson the Duchess is a harsh task master with an obsession about the disposition of toilet rolls. Sacked by the Grosvenors in 2001 for “gross misconduct” their former housekeeper was blamed by the Duke for provoking staff to “a stage of rebellion”.

 For her part Mrs Hewson claims “the Duchess sent back the sheets, adorned with their “W” monograms, if any bore a single crease…the lavatory rolls in each of the 20 en-suite bathrooms had to be positioned so that precisely two sheets hung down” and the housekeeper, “was not allowed to return from walking the family spaniel at 5.30 each morning until he had done two poos and a wee”.

 Before dismissal Mrs Hewson was employed to serve the Grosvenors at Eaton Hall from 5.30 am until 3pm before returning for two hours each evening “to turn down the beds”. After sacking her, solicitors offered Mrs Hewson £5,000 to keep quiet and abandon an action for unfair dismissal, she refused but lost anyway. The lawyers then obtained a legal injunction to prevent Frances Hewson publishing a book revealing more about life at Eaton Hall.

 “Virtue not Ancestry”

 In 1381, when the ascendancy of the Grosvenors was but three centuries old the English peasantry rose up and cast off the yoke of aristocratic oppression. Tragically, they accepted the written guarantees of young King Richard II to then right their wrongs. Once dispersed the rebels were easily overcome by well-armed knights and noblemen as Richard vindictively declared, “Serfs you were and serfs you will remain!”

 Six centuries on we’re still subjects not citizens yet many continue to bend the knee and applaud these pompous, pampered drones. If we look up to them it is unsurprising that they, most assuredly look down on us. 

 It’s rumoured that in his heart of hearts even Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, the sixth Duke of Westminster KG, CB, CVO, OBE, TD, DL, CD knows his vast wealth and status is undeserved. His aristocratic power and prestige is all smoke and mirrors. With his two O-levels and a lawyer-suppressed personal life Gerald knows he’s not worth more than six million ordinary folk and his family motto, “Virtue not Ancestry” is an ironic joke.

 As long as Gerry grinds the organ, the likes of Michael McIntyre, Rizzle Kicks, and assorted solicitors are suitably employed as performing monkeys but independent-minded Northern folk can see the Duke has no clothes.

'Anarchy' = Absence of government in Spain?

THE word 'anarchy' in its dictionary definition is often defined as 'an absence of government'.  Though pedantic thinkers, including anarchists, will often rely on narrow dictionary definitions of the meaning of words, modern philosophers like Ludwig Wittgenstein have discredited this approach to the pursuit of meaning.  Those of us come from a Wittgensteinian or ethnomethodological tradition consider the meaning of a word to be in its use.
Ironically the reality of the present situation in Spain is that for the first time since January 1492, when Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon – the Catholic monarchs – occupied Granada completing their conquest of Moorish Spain, Spain has always had a government.  Even at the time of the Spanish Civil War in 1936-37 when the Spanish anarchists were at their strongest, their was a government in Spain (actual there were two if we count the Nationalist one and even the anarchists ultimately accepted the invite to join the governments in Madrid and Barcelona).
And yet, since December 20^th, last year., when the elections failed to give any party a necessary majority to form a government and attempts to form a coalition failed, Spain has had no effective government.   Under the Spanish system a Spaniard votes for 'diputados' (MPs) who elect the prime minister.  Then with a parliamentary majority, the winning party proclaims its leader, but without a majority, the parties need to negotiate.  This means a voter may end up supporting positions he/ or she would not normally support.  Today voting for the Socialist Party may mean a leftist coalition if the Socialists join with the Podemos Party, or a vote for the centre-right may involve voting for the conservative Popular Party (PP) and then get an alliance of the PP and the Ciudadnos Party.  It offers a blank cheque to the parliamentary parties, but even then the Spanish parties have not been able to get any agreement.  
Because of this failure to get agreement a second election had to be called on June 26^th, which ended in a very similar result to the one last December.  For more than 250 days Spain has been unable to elect a government. 
As things stand a 'caretaker' government is in place: the Partido Popular.  But it can't appoint new ministers, and from its original 13-member cabinet, only 10 are left.  The caretaker government has no authority to approve next year's budget, a basic tool of government and which should be in place by October; as you read this experts in constitutional law are pouring over the legal texts to search for a line that suggests authority in the current situation.  It has been nine months since the government enacted any laws:  its members are too busy campaigning and negotiating. 
Martin Caparrós, a journalist on the New York Times writes:
'These days, the “meanwhile” government manages everyday matters, and not very well.  In a situation that lacks legal status, no one wants to be in charge of important decisions, affairs are delayed and decisions never made...'
The life of ordinary people continues much as always, and Seňor Caparrós continues:
'In everyday life, a country without a government looks dangerously similar to one with one. ...  There are those who wonder if governments are so necessary and seem uninterested in any attempt to form one.'
This week, Mariano Rajoy of the PP will try to be reinstated as qa fully functioning prime minister.  But his option are limited.  If he fails, his party will probably call for new elections to be held on the 25^th, December.  If so that should give a boost to any latent anarchism in Spain, because Seňor Ranjoy and his party will be hoping the by calling an election during Navidad will benefit the right with a low turnout, but it will merely deliver a death blow to any vain expectations in elections whatever the outcome.  Especially since the Spaniards have a long history of distrust of governments.

'The Matter of the North'!

MELVYN BRAGG celebrates the history of the North of England in a new Radio 4 show, The Matter of the North:

The ten-part series, began yesterday Monday 29th August, with Bragg delving into stories spanning the end of Roman rule to the present day.

According to Mr. Bragg the North is as much a country as any other geographically defined country.  Melvyn Bragg's program explores the historical, religious & intellectual roots of what became the North of England.

The program begins in the 5^th Century when the Romans built forts in places like Maryport on coast of Cumbria, before the bulk of them began draining away.   

Arguing that the North is as much a country as any other geographically defined country.  Melvyn Bragg's program explores the historical, religious & intellectual roots of what became the North of England.
In the program Mr. Bragg will travel around Northumbria, Cumbria, Yorkshire, Liverpool and Manchester, exploring the pivotal historical moments and cultural contributions from the region, which have helped shape the Britain of today.

The blurb on the BBC website declares:

'This is the story of the North, one that has the history of most countries. The area has twice the economy of Scotland, if it were a country in its own right it would be the eighth biggest economy in Europe, and it’s been the scene of the greatest revolution in the world – the industrial revolution – the retreat of one empire – the Roman military – and the advance of another, the Roman church,'

Mr. Bragg says:    'Invasions from the East by the Vikings, and from the South by their cousins the Normans, the former enriching the English language, the latter marching up from London to destroy much of the North and leaving centuries of bloody rebellion and justified resentment.

'It’s here in the North that the original culture of England was founded after the Romans, the dissent and non-conformism bred great inventions, and that a particular sense of humour was developed... I think it’s a wonderful part of the world and like most people who’ve been born and brought up in the North I feel this is as much a country as any more neatly geographically defined place on the planet... And it’s not a bad time to look at the roots of northernness in this referendum year when there’s been much talk of a North-South divide – there’s no doubt that being northern matters greatly to people in 2016.'

Across the 30-minute episodes, Bragg hears from a cast of northern voices including Dame Judi Dench, David Hockney, Lee Hall, Jimmy McGovern, Ian McMillan, Geoffrey Boycott, Maxine Peake, Frank Cottrell Boyce, Chris Bonnington and Joan Bakewell.

The Matter of the North will broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 9am (Monday-Friday) from Monday 29th August – Friday 9th September

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Where's the free press in Tameside? What has happened to democracy?

Hail the Leader

A number of people have told us of their difficulty in getting letters published in the local newspaper, the Tameside Reporter & Chronicle. In September 2012, we revealed in an exclusive report that New Charter Housing Trust had bought the newspaper. Given New Charter's very close links with Tameside Council, we asked if this wasn't a sad day for democracy. At the time of the takeover, the Manchester Branch of the National Union of Journalists(NUJ), suggested that New Charter had acted as a 'proxy' for Tameside Council in buying the Reporter. Another commentator predicted that we would see "Lashings of corporate agenda and the banning of dissenting voices."

Many of the senior managers at New Charter Housing Trust, including Ian Munro, Group Chief Executive, were former Tameside Council employees. Similarly, a number of Tameside Councillor's are on the Boards of New Charter including 'proudly pro-business', Kieran Quinn, the Labour leader of the council. The housing trust also run three 'Academy' schools in the borough and own Tameside Radio, the local radio station. The council also used New Charter as an agency to run the 'Troubled Families' initiative, a failed government scheme that targeted families who were considered to have social problems.  Each agency was paid a £1,000 fee and an £800 result fee. The work was not put out to tender by the council and no other agency was invited to  apply. The council argued at the time that they were under no legal obligation to do so, as special rules applied. In August, it was reported that nationally, the £1.3bn scheme, had had "no discernable impact" on employment, truancy, or criminality.

Given the level of cronyism and nepotism which is a characteristic of the incestuous nature of Labour politics in Tameside, it is arguable whether there is any free press in this part of Greater Manchester. Politically, the borough is effectively a one party state. In 2013, the Electoral Reform Society (ERS), said that Labour dominated councils like Manchester, Salford and Tameside, were at risk of becoming the equivalent of 'one-party states' like North Korea, China or Cuba. In the Autumn of 2008, 'Private Eye', disclosed that agents of the council, were holding regular meetings with local newspaper editors, to suppress 'sensationalist' reporting.

One third of Tameside Council is comprised of married couples, couples, or people who are related to one another. Both the leader of the council, and his wife, Susan Quinn, are Droylsden councillors. The wife of Roy Oldham, a Freemason, and previous Labour leader of the council,  was also a Tameside Councillor. During 2011-12, the Quinn family, pulled- in between them, £111,314.96 from their political appointments as Labour councillors.

Needless to say, you're not likely to read about any of this in the Tameside Reporter & Chronicle, which nowadays, struggles to give the newspaper away free. You certainly won't find a word of criticism in the newspaper today, regarding either the council, or New Charter Housing. Is it any wonder that newspapers are going out of business when they no longer hold the powerful to account which is a hallmark of a properly functioning democracy. Since 2008, 150 local newspapers have closed in England and it's hardly surprising. How a housing company with such close links to the council, have been allowed to control a radio station and a local newspaper, beggars belief. What we have here, is Tammany politics in Tameside.

The Humbug of Professional Feminism

by Les May

I AM not a feminist.  I dislike feminism as a philosophical stance, because I see no reason to privilege one section of society over another and as a political stance it seems to me self serving, inherently reactionary, intent upon perpetuating unfairness and hierarchies, and destructive of personal relationships.  

Now simply writing this is probably (certainly?) enough to get me lumped with the men that Julie Bindel was writing about in her 2006 opinion piece for the Guardian, 'Why I hate men'.  Seemingly writing that you 'hate' men is OK but writing 'I hate EMOs or Goths or..' well fill in you own list here, could get your remarks logged as 'hate crime'.

Perhaps the height of absurdity has now been reached when a recent piece in the 'i' newspaper turned out to be an interview with a 'professional' feminist, a job which I assume is more lucrative and less tiring than say working for Sports Direct or Amazon.

But whilst 'professional' feminists are still mercifully rare, building a career around feminism is not.  I've already mentioned Julie Bindel who certainly falls into this category, but she is almost unknown outside feminist circles.  Much better known is Labour's  Harriet Harman, she of the 'pink bus' and cousin to David Cameron.  The 'pink bus' campaign did not go down well with some women as you will see from Ella Whelan's comments at Spiked Online.

Harriet's silence on Simon Danczuk's past and recent activities in Spain is telling and suggests she is a bit of a humbug.  In 2002 the BBC reported:

'Crown prosecutors are to be urged to press on with prosecutions in cases of domestic violence, even if the victim wants the case dropped.

Solicitor General Harriet Harman is backing the move as part of a range of measures to crack down on domestic abuse.

'It is about where the public interest lies when the victim is insisting the case be dropped," she will tell a police conference on domestic violence on Tuesday.

'She might want to forgive him, but the next time he assaults her she could be killed.'

So why did she not speak up when the Mail on Sunday reported at length in July 2015 on what Karen Danczuk's family claimed happened in Spain in 2008.  And why, after Mr Danczuk was arrested in Spain recently following an incident which has striking similarities with the 2008 incident, is she still silent?

And before anyone tells me that Mr Danczuk is suspended from the Labour party at present and does not hold the Labour whip, you should know that he is once again trying to sail his ship with a Labour flag, as you will see if you check out his job advert.

Labour MPs have other things to think about at present, like their holidays, but even if they are wise to keep their mouths shut about Simon's recent constituency office tryst, the story Karen Danczuk told in the Sun on Sunday only a few days ago merits a response.  At least from a woman who was once a Labour Solicitor General.  Ironically it is a group of men who were expelled from the Labour party who have made the link between the events in Spain in 2016 and 2008, and want the fallout from the latter re-opened.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2006/nov/02/whyihatemen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_Bindel  

http://www.spiked-online.com/newsite/article/the-british-feminist-party-no-thanks/15924

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/feb/10/pink-bus-labour-women-mps-kitchen-table-tour-female-voters

http://www.spiked-online.com/newsite/article/harmans-barbie-bus-the-new-face-of-feminism/16697

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2348319.stm  

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3157459/Disturbing-questions-Simon-Danczuk-crusades-against-abuse.html

http://www.w4mpjobs.org/JobDetails.aspx?jobid=57245  

http://northernvoicesmag.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/call-for-expusion-case-to-be-re-openned.html

El Mondo Reports 'ESCÁNDALO • Parlamentario laborista ': 'SCANDAL OF LABOUR POLITICIAN'

Danczuk's 'Crime of Passion' Defence?

Under General Franco Simon Danczuk Could Have Killed Karen!

The report below on the El Mondo website by Marina Bou is interesting because it gives us a Spanish slant on the strange 'polemics' of the Danzcuk crisis.  El Mondo is perhaps the second most influential national newspaper after El Pais in Spain.  What English speaking readers should understand when considering this particular violent incident in the province of Alicante,

is that once upon a time in similar circumstances Simon could have killed Karen and had a strong defence under the 'crime of passion'.

In the early 1960s, when I was working and living on the Cabo San Antonio on the Costa Blanca (White Coast), just  up the coast from where the Danczuk's have their 'house', I was told by my boss of cases in which men in Denia had killed their wives caught red-handed having affairs and who were then liberated after murdering them.  The only worry then was for the men, and it was only I believe a defence for men (not women) who had been cuckolded, to depart their pueblo (town) so that

they themselves would not become victims of a vendetta from members of the victim's family.

As I understand it, the 'Crime of Passion' defence existed in Spain for cuckolded men like Simon Dancuk, until the death of General Franco in the mid-1970s.  Given the other excuses and justifications for his curious behaviour Mr. Dancuk, MP for Rochdale, has come up with so far, I'm surprised he hasn't fallen back on this historic 'crime of passion' defence.

Perhaps even more surprising is the silence of the British feminists over the exploits of the Honorary Member for Rochdale.  What for heavens sake, does the man have to do to incur their wrath?    Apart from Janet Street-Porter on the program 'Looses Women'; so far as I know, only one woman has spoken out against the curious conduct of Simon and Karen Danczuk.  That woman is the former Rochdale Labour Coucillor, Eileen Kershaw, who lives up Whitworth near Rochdale: she wrote a piece entitled 'Pack it in Karen' in the Rochdale Observer, and this was later reprinted under the same title on the Northern Voices' Blog.   
Karen Danczuk told to 'Pack it in'!

******

How the Spanish press are reporting the Rochdale 'SCANDAL' as Simon Danczuk, the 'Labour politician' assails his former wife - a translation into English is underneath the Spanish account:

EL parlamentario británico Simon Danczuk, de 49 años, fue arrestado la noche del domingo (date 14th, August 2016) como supuesto autor de un delito de violencia de género contra su mujer en Alicante, el destino elegido por la pareja para disfrutar de sus vacaciones junto a sus dos hijos. Danczuk fue enviado ante un tribunal especializado en este tipo de crímenes en Orihuela, después de que su esposa tuviera que ser trasladada a un hospital con un pequeño corte provocado durante una fuerte discusión.

Tras pasar dos noches en el calabozo (la primera con la Policía Local y la segunda con la Guardia Civil), ella no presentó cargos y el caso fue archivado este martes una vez ambos declararon ante el juez en una audiencia a puerta cerrada.  El político -suspendido por los laboristas en diciembre al admitir que había enviado mensajes de alto contenido sexual a una joven de 17 años- fue liberado el mismo día debido a que su mujer se negó a ratificar en la corte lo que había dicho a la policía. Según la prensa británica, la familia se encontraba de vacaciones en su casa del municipio valenciano de Algorfa cuando empezó la pelea y los vecinos llamaron a la Policía Local, que lo arrestó y lo retuvo en el calabozo hasta que la Guardia Civil lo remitió a los juzgados de Orihuela.

El político -cuyo partido se ha negado a hacer ningún comentario- salió supuestamente de su casa esposado por la policía, tras arrebatarle el teléfono a su esposa y lanzarlo a una piscina al grito de "Karen, sólo quiero hablar contigo". La pelea habría surgido de una escena de celos de Danczuk, que se casó con su mujer tras su elección como parlamentario en 2010 y habría aceptado recientemente su adicción al sexo y una aventura con una joven de 22 años. Ella saltó a la fama después de compartir una serie de fotografías subidas de tono en Internet. La decisión del tribunal aún no es definitiva, pues se puede apelar si cambia de opinión y decide testificar contra su marido.

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Escándalo en España
translation of the above report in El

by Marina Bou (London 18/08/2016) on El Mondo website

The polemics of Simon Danczuk:  arrested in Alicante for harassing his partner:
THE British parliamentarian, Simon Danczuk, 49-years-old, was arrested on Sunday (14^th, August) for allegedly being the author of an offence of violence against his partner (Karen Danczuk) in Alicante, where the couple were enjoying their holidays with their two sons.  Danczuk appeared before a Special Court for these types of crimes in Orihuela, following which his partner (Karen) was taken to hospital with a small cut provoked during a strong discussion (Spanish journalistic irony or under statement?).
After he past two nights in cell (the first with the local police and the second with the Civil Guards), she (Karen Danczuk) did not present her evidence and the case was filed this Tuesday (16/08/16) and both parties accepted a declaration before a Judge in a private audience. 
The politician, Danczuk – who was suspended by the Labour Party last December when he admitted sending messages with a high sexual content to a young girl of 17-years – was liberated (by the Spanish authorities) on the same day that his partner failed to ratify in the Court what she had previously told the police.  According to the British press , the Danczuk family were taking their vacations in their house in the Valencian municipality of Algorfa when a an argument began and the neighbours called the local police, who the arrested Danczuk and took him to the cells and later to the Civil Guards barracks before placing him before the Judge in Orihuela.
The MP, who did not want to comment, is believed to have left his house in handcuffs with the police, after snatching the telephone of his partner and throwing it into the swimming pool with the cry:  'Only Karen wants to talk to you'.
The row had cropped up after a jealous scene of Danczuk, he had married Karen after his election in 2010, and has recently admitted his addiction to sex and an adventure with a young 22-year-old girl.  For her part, Karen, sprang to fame after she shared a series of risqué photographs on the Internet.  The decision of the Court in Orihuela is not yet final, it is still possible for there to be an appeal if there is a change of opinion and (Karen) should decide to testify against her partner (marido).

Call for Expusion Case to be re-opened!

SEVERAL former Labour Party members accused of 'bullying' Simon Danczuk in 2009, and later as a consequence expelled from the party, now want their case to be reopened in the light of the incident in Alicante last week in which Simon's former wife, Karen, ended up lying in a pool of blood.  After this Mr Danczuk spent two nights in a police cell.

The incident bears some similarities to an earlier case in 2008 when there was an allegation that Simon had 'hit' Karen.  This was later denied by both Simon and Karen.

In 2009, the expelled members had asked for an investigation of the facts, but they had been expelled for circulating 'nonsense' accusations about Mr. Danczuk. 

Consequently, given recent events the expelled group want their case re-heard.

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/30065/former-mayor-quits-labour-party-over-danczuk-debacle=

ROCHDALE ONLINE & Danczuk's Expenses

DISGRACED Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk's expense claims are being questioned again.
It has been revealed that Danczuk claimed £186.68 for a flight from a family holiday in Alicante to London Gatwick airport in May 2015.
In an email to the Independent Pariamentary Standards Authority (IPSA), Paul Mitchell has asked "why should the taxpayer foot the bill for a flight from a family holiday..."
Mr Mitchell's email reads:
 'Mr Danczuk has a holiday home near Alicante and spends considerable time there during school holidays.
 'On 19 May 2015, a day before flying back to the UK from his holiday home, he posted on Twitter that he had had a few days away.
 'On 20 May - the date of the flight claim - he posted, again on Twitter, that he was being sworn into Parliament.
'It does, therefore, beg the question why should the taxpayer foot the bill for a flight from a family holiday to be sworn into Parliament?
'I await to hear from you.'
For more go to https://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/

Orgreave Truth at Stockport TUC

21st September 7.30 pm

Open Meeting All welcome

Stockport Labour Club

2 Lloyd St, Stockport SK4 1QP

STOCKPORT TRADES COUNCIL 

No Justice, No peace

Barbara Jackson, secretary of the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign (OTJC) is coming to Stockport to talk about the pickets at the now infamous coking plant which provided fuel for Britain’s steel industry.

Miners, many in shorts and stripped to the waist in the hot summer sun, were unaware of the carnage to come — vicious and unprovoked police violence which turned the countryside into a battlefield.

Launched in November 2012, OTJC wants an independent public inquiry into what happened at Orgreave. It wants the police and the government called to account.

We will be showing the film 'Battle for Orgreave' made in 1985 by Yvette Vanson , part reconstruction and part original footage.

Freedom Collective & the Emperor's Balls

by Les May

IN the UK if the words 'anarchist' and 'collective' appear in close proximity it is likely to conjure up in the readers mind images of a couple of fit young men manhandling an old man. But just at the moment in five cities in the USA they are likely to be greeted with a wry smile.

Last week the anarchist artists group Indecline titled the statues they set up overnight in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco and Cleveland 'The Emperor Has No Balls'.

The five identical statues depicted a naked, portly and poorly endowed Donald Trump devoid of testicles.  The New York parks department removed the statues saying 'NYC Parks stands firmly against any unpermitted erection in city parks, no matter how small'.

Danczuk, Feminism & Family Violence?

by Les May

A REVIEW of Erin Pizzey's book 'Prone to Violence' on Amazon has the title 'A revelation that has remained buried for decades'.  Although, as the reviewer says, Pizzey founded the first refuge for the victims of domestic violence in West London in the 1970s she seems to have been largely forgotten by present day feminists who are more concerned with how many women CEOs there are in the FTSE 100 or whether enough women appear on UK banknotes.

The reasons why are explored in the Amazon review and on Wikipaedia but they can be said to revolve around her claim, based upon her research, that one must distinguish between 'genuine battered women' and 'violence-prone women'.  The former she defined as 'the unwilling and innocent victim of his or her partner's violence' and the latter defined as 'the unwilling victim of his or her own violence.'  Essentially she was arguing that in at least some cases one must recognise a 'mutuality of domestic violence.'

Now you may be tempted to apply this thesis to the Danczuk's. Certainly it would explain why Karen initially made to her family accusations against Simon about an incident in Alicante in 2008, only to withdraw them a short while later and why we have recently seen a rerun of the same behaviour after Simon was arrested, again in Alicante, only for Karen to decline to confirm statements she had made to the police two days earlier, when the matter came to court.  But don't be too hasty.  There may be another explanation.

If Karen had followed through and pressed charges the Danczuk 'gravy train' would have come off the track.  Even Danczuk, brass necked though he is, would have found it difficult to resist the pressure to resign as an MP if he had been found guilty of being a 'wife beater'.  If he can stick it out until 2020 he will receive a further £274,000 in salary during that time.  And then there's the generous expenses, parts of which fund his constituency office which in April re-hired Karen as a part-time employee at a reported salary of £12,000.  If she sticks with him after the recent incident that's going to amount to £40,000 by 2020.

As I pointed out in my article 'Simon Danczuk on his way to the bank' from January of this year, as soon as he ceases to be an MP he is 'Mr Nobody' again.  His lucrative line in 'assisting' newspaper with stories of his indiscretions would dry up immediately. Stories like, 'I was drunk and horny' and 'I need counselling for my sex addiction' are only of interest to the press so long as he is an MP.

But it's not just Simon who appears to benefit from his indiscretions.  Check out the pictures which appeared in the Sun over the past week or so.  Initially Karen was shown with a scarf discretely draped over her right shoulder hiding her wound and the picture credited to 'News Group Newspapers'.  Next day we got the works (a.k.a the full monty) with her 'gruesome' wounds on display and the pictures credited to 'Fame Flynet'.  Was this a 'nice little earner' for Karen?

Then there's today's little offering in 'The Sun on Sunday'.  I was expecting 'My night in a Spanish hell-hole' and 'I need anger management' from Simon.  On expenses of course!  What we got was a double page spread of 'Karen Danczuk on terror of hubby's crazed bust up', 'Wild MP yelled and kicked in glass door', 'I feared he was going to kill me', 'Violent row left me paralysed with fear', and 'I woke up in a pool of bood.. I'm scarred for life'.  And that's just the captions!  Was this another 'nice little earner' for Karen, or was she just being public spirited?

Now call me Mr. Cynical but I cannot help noticing that if Karen had been willing to confirm what she appears to have initially told the Spanish policeman it would have been reported world wide as news and there would have been no Sun exclusive.  Just as 'I'm sorry I haven't a Clue' fans know that 'points mean prizes', seasoned Danczuk watchers know that 'exclusives mean cash'.

Explaining her unwillingness to press charges of domestic violence with, 'Do I want to be the person that finally ends his career?  Do I want to be the person who tells my sons their dad is in prison? No.' this interview may bring about both of these.

We already know that a complaint has been lodged with with Greater Manchester Police asking the force to investigate the allegations.  The seriousness of Karen's claims in the newspaper article are of such a nature they may give an impetus to this and will not doubt provide a basis for further complaints.

I'd be surprised if Rochdale Lib-Dems did not have a finger in this particular pie.  But who can blame them?  Throughout 2014 every possible attempt was made to smear them using the using the real and imaginary claims about Cyril Smith's antics.  Now it must be like Christmas and Birthday all rolled into one, courtesy of the Danczuks!

But don't write off the Danczuk duo just yet.  Karen still has the minor problem of earning a living to pay the bills and no doubt Simon still has access to a smartphone and Twitter.

I have repeatedly urged Rochdale Labour party to begin the process of disengaging itself from Simon Danczuk.  He's bad news and it's not going to get any better.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Prone-Violence-Erin-Pizzey/dp/0600205517#customerReviews 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erin_Pizzey 

 

http://danczuk.tripod.com/domestic-behaviour.html 

 

http://northernvoicesmag.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/simon-danczuk-on-way-to-bank.html 

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3549022/Now-Simon-Danczuk-HIRES-ex-wife-Karen-help-run-office-guess-picking-12-000-bill.html 

 

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1623573/karen-puts-injured-chest-under-wraps-as-she-heads-off-to-tell-court-to-free-mp-hubby/ 

 

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1629869/karen-danczuk-spotted-with-gruesome-wounds-after-waiter-bust-up-with-estranged-hubby-simon/ 

 

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1646861/karen-danczuk-says-shes-scarred-for-life-after-mp-hubby-simon-kicked-in-glass-door-during-crazed-bust-up-on-family-holiday/  

 

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1636054/mp-simon-danczuk-faces-second-police-investigation-for-attacking-his-ex-wife-on-holiday-in-spain/

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/30065/former-mayor-quits-labour-party-over-danczuk-debacle=

Simon Danczuk | CommonSpace

https://www.commonspace.scot/tags/simon-danczuk 

What the Simon Danczuk newspaper coverage says about British ...

www.theguardian.com  › Media › Simon Danczuk

 

Danczuk's in Boozy Bust-up!

by Les May

IT's deja vu all over again, again!
So after a night in a police cell and a second one in a Civil Guard holding cell, Simon Danczuk left court in Orihuela after state prosecutors asked for the case to be shelved seemingly because ex-wife Karen declined to ratify at court what she’d told police.  The court in question specialised in violence against women so the fact that he is now a free man does not in itself mean that he is entirely without a stain on his character.  Presumably the Spanish police would not have acted in the way they did without good reason. 
This looks awfully like a re-run of what happened in Alicante in August 2008. On that occasion Mr Danczuk called allegations that a row between them escalated into violence ‘vicious mischief making’, adding that they were ‘totally untrue and absolute nonsense’.  A detailed account of what is said to have happened was given on 12 July last year by a Mail on Sunday (MoS ) journalist, David Rose.  It contains the interesting line that 'a spokesman for Mr Danczuk said that the claims of violence were drivel, fed by Trotskyist loons’.  There's the 'T' word again!
At the time I suggested that the then acting leader Harriet Harman should suspend Mr Danczuk temporarily until a new investigation into what happened between the couple in Spain and subsequently, which took into account both the statements made by Karen Danczuk's family to the MoS and the copies of texts sent by Karen to her family. 
Strictly speaking there never was an investigation into what happened in Spain in 2008.  The original investigation was into the behaviour of seven members of Rochdale Labour party in signing a letter to the Rochdale Observer asking for an investigation into what had happened in Spain. 
Given Mr Danczuk's behaviour before he was suspended from the Labour party in December 2015 after the first 'sexting' incident, the irony is that the charges were brought under rule 2A.8 which reads:  'No member of the party shall engage in conduct which in the opinion of the NCC is prejudicial, or in any act which in the opinion of the NCC is grossly detrimental to the party.'
Seemingly writing articles for the Tory press attacking the Labour leader does not fall foul of this rule. 
For me the most interesting question is whether the seemingly dysfunctional family unit that is the Danczuk's will have social workers crawling all over their lives.  Will they be subjected to 'case conferences' and 'core group meetings'?  Will their children find themselves on the 'at risk' register?  Will they find themselves in court explaining why their children should not be placed in foster care?  Or are these just things we reserve for the poor and the 'underclass' who find it difficult to defend themselves?  
Sixty years ago in his 'bible' of social democracy, The Future of Socialism, Tony Crossland made it clear that an equal society is not just about the distribution of income or wealth, it was also about how equally power was distributed in a society.  It's a lesson we have either forgotten or never learned.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1617406/labour-mp-simon-danczuk-ended-up-in-police-cell-after-holiday-row-with-estranged-wife-karen-who-ended-up-in-hospital/ 
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/simon-karen-danczuk-spain-assault-11757474
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3157459/Disturbing-questions-Simon-Danczuk-crusades-against-abuse.html
http://northernvoicesmag.blogspot.co.uk/2015/07/will-labour-suspend-mr-damczuk.html
http://northernvoicesmag.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/danczuks-victim-of-2009-breaks-silence.html

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