WHAT IS A TRILLION, ANYWAY ?

Eurozone leaders meet to discuss how to resolve their ongoing financial crisis and the commentators throw around numbers that are simply mind-boggling - not mere billions any more, but we are now into trillions of Euros, pounds, dollars, or anything else you care to mention. Does any of it make sense or even really matter ?

What we have is a crisis caused by governments and economists. Forget all the ire aimed at 'bankers', other than the entirely incompetent ones like Fred Goodwin and Eric Daniels, they've done no more than apply the rules that applied to their businesses, rules that were set by governments. Additionally, they responded to the pleas of their governments to lend, lend, lend, as much as possible so as to 'stimulate the economy', in pursuit of an economic theory that has now been shown to have been rather flawed, to ever greater growth. That they didn't really have the money to lend and that most of the loans were unsupported by sound business cases was of minor importance.

In the Eurozone, we have the scenario outlined above multipled by a factor of billions as a result of the utterly impossible Euro project. Anyone with a brain cell knew that trying to cram together many nations with disparate economies under a single currency was doomed to failure, and so it has proven. Perhaps those that chose this path actually did so knowing that it would fail and that they would then have an opportunity to propose even closer union as the only logical step - this has only just occurred to me as an option but it makes terrifying sense.

Thinking more about this, it's bloody obvious that the original perpetrators of the Euro knew full-well that 'stage 1' was doomed to failure; they also knew that the only realistic solution to that failure was a 'stage 2' that involved even greater union between the member nations. What they didn't, and couldn't include in their calculations, was the financial crisis that has occurred quite independently of the inevitable Euro mess. When both crises are put together, the result is a total melt-down of the Euro, which is exactly what has happened.

It is now being reported that the Eurozone leaders have been discussing a potential change to the European Treaty as part of the resolution to their problems, something that should automatically lead to a referendum in this country; being a cynic, I wonder if this is a manufactured move designed to 'head off' Monday's debate and vote in the house of Commons. Of course, DC has said that any change would be in our interest, no doubt another attempt at a Monday bypass; one also wonders whether his words may be a precursor to an attempt to say that a referendum is unnecessary as we won't be affected by any consequent change.

We all know what a bunch of prevaricating and disingenous crooks and liars our politicians are. We also know that whatever they come up with, it's us, the people, who will pay. Is it any coincidence that the country currently doing best in Europe is Belgium, and they've been without an effective government for months.

To answer my original question, "Yes, it does make sense, even if the numbers are beyond our comprehension and it matters far more than the vast majority realise or even care."

FORGET GADDAFI; TIME TO WORRY ABOUT TOMORROW..

One has to wonder why the western world is expending so much energy worrying about the exact circumstances of the death of Colonel Gaddafi.

This brutal, and wholly insane, dictator surely got his just deserts, delivered with far greater efficiency than any western nation would have achieved - arrest, charge, trial lasting years and, quite probably, the accused dying before a judgement was reached or sentence could be carried out. Gaddafi's end may have been unpleasant to western eyes but was no more than simple justice in the eyes of the millions whom he terrorised over more than 4 decades.

Could it be that the western nations are somewhat queasy because of their own ambiguous relationships with the deceased colonel ? After all, he was alternately 'western darling', 'personification of evil' and 'reformed villain to be courted', before finally becoming the most hunted tyrant on earth. When we remember that it's only a few short years since Tony Blair kissed and hugged him in the desert, it's perhaps not surprising that at least some western leaders feel the need to raise an eyebrow at the manner of the colonel's departure from this life but, frankly, they should keep quiet.

Gaddafi is dead and will be mourned by very few; what we have to worry about now is the future. History suggests that whatever comes after him is unlikely to be particularly benign and is quite likely to spiral towards another military dictatorship before too long; if the Libyan people manage to avoid such a fate they'll be setting a new benchmark for developing countries.

G.O.D TWISTS THE KNIFE IN FOX'S ENTRAILS.

The Cabinet Secretary's report on the Liam Fox affair seems to leave no room for doubt. Despite his protestations, Fox has been found guilty to such an extent that any future roles in government must be considered highly unlikely, at least over the next few years. While the report apparently clears Fox of making any personal profit from his dealings with Mr Werrity, it makes it clear that the former Secretary of State for Defence broke the 'Ministerial Code' as well as ignoring the advice of his officials and continuing to behave in a way prejudicial to his post. The report was, in fact, so damning that the Cabinet Office repeatedly delayed its publication while they tried to work out how to respond to it in a way that would prove least harmful to the Government itself.

As I have written previously, Fox is one of those unbelievably arrogant people who, having reached a position of great power and authority, seem to think themselves so far above the rest of us that they can do whatever they like without fear of ever being called to account. People like this are singularly unsuited for high office and yet they seem to attain it, and then hang on for dear life when it all goes wrong. In the end, they do nothing but harm to themselves and their careers, their office and, in cases involving politicians, their parties.

The old adage of 'All power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely' continues to be true and its truth is continually reinforced by the likes of Mr Fox and his chums. 

CORNERED FOX HAD NOWHERE ELSE TO RUN.

Finally, and not before time, Liam Fox has resigned. That he hung on so long says a huge amount for the arrogance and total lack of any sense of morality that is so prevalent in modern day politicians.

Whether Fox really resigned or was sacked, he had to go. For a minister in such an important position to be guilty of, at the very least, 'poor judgement', is wholly unacceptable and he should have gone as soon as the details of his actions began to emerge; given the apparently dubious nature of Mr Werrity's business affairs and relationship with Fox, it's surely questionable whether Fox should have been appointed in the first place.

Whatever the truths in all this, we've hopefully seen the last, at least for some years, of the incompetent Mr Fox, for which we should all be grateful.

PACK CLOSES IN ON FOX.

As the furore over Liam Fox rumbles on, Government and Tory politicians do their level best to divert attention. Today, it's reported that Chris Grayling, that fishiest of Tory ministers, is supporting the continuation of Fox's career by saying that he thought the days when the private lives of politicians were considered of relevance to their professional activities were long gone. He might wish !

Comments like this show just how wriggly our politicians are. I really couldn't care what Fox, or Grayling or any of the rest of them do behind closed doors and with the lights on, off, dimmed or turned to some extreme part of the spectrum, except when it impacts on their public roles. If Fox has been abusing his public position by involving a close personal friend in matters of state in which he has no place, that bothers me; if he has compounded the problem by being disingenuous about the situation, that bothers me even more. If Fox has been in a sexual relationship with someone, and then lied in order to cover it up, that would bother me, not because of the relationship but because of the lied. Fox has admitted to 'serious errors of judgement' and, in a Secretary of State for Defence', that horrifies me.

In a case like this, simply saying 'Sorry' is not enough. Any of Fox's friends and colleagues who claim that it is are clearly living in a very different world from the rest of we poor mortals, whose feet would not have touched the floor as we were thrown out on our ears by outraged bosses for any similar offences. Fox has to go, and the sooner the better.

FOX THERE FOR THE KILL.

Now I read that Liam Fox has apologised for 'errors of judgement' in mixing his professional and personal lives.

Being a doctor, Fox must have had drilled into him the importance of never doing such a thing. As a politician, he must surely be aware of the necessity of never allowing such a thing to happen.

Do we really want, as Secretary of State for Defence, a man who has ignored such basic essentials of his training and background ? Can we afford to have such a man as a senior minister or even as a Member of Parliament ? What does his acknowledged behaviour say about his intelligence and understanding of the responsibilities of his position ? It's either extreme arrogance or stupidity, both of which are unacceptable.

If he isn't sacked, what will that say about his boss ?

FOX CAUGHT IN THE HEAD-LIGHTS.

Yet another political figure has been caught with his trousers down, metaphorically speaking. This time it's Liam Fox, Defence Secretary, but in real life a doctor. Why didn't he keep with the occupation that the country paid a fortune to train him in ?

Fox is someone I've never really warmed to and who comes across as a typically oily politician. His recent misdeameanours are likely to spell the end of his ministerial career, for now, but no doubt he'll be back as soon as his mates think we've all forgotten what all the fuss was about. How different from the world of half a century ago, when John Profumo vanished from political life and spent the rest of his time doing good deeds. If only today's self-serving and grotesquely obsequious 'public servants' would do the same.

No chance there, then.

POLITICAL NONSENSE AND WE ALL PAY !

Most of the recent news is so ludicrously banal, or just plain stupid, as to be not worthy of any significant comment.

Today, an assortment of senior Metropolitan Police Service officers have ben cleared of any wrong doing with regard to the 'phone hacking scandals, even though some have already been forced to resign from their positions due to the accusations.

The resignations were politically required and had nothing to do with any failings of the incumbents. I hope that the victims will extract every last halfpenny out of the self-serving politicos who were ultimately responsible for their self-sacrifice and arrival on the dole. The only trouble is that WE, THE PEOPLE, have to pay for all the compensation they'll eventually get because the only money that the government has is OURS.

RIOTERS MUST BE QUELLED AT ALL COST.

It seems that my initial comments about the current round of rioting and vanadalism were somewhat wide of the mark. As more and more sub-humans have ventured onto the streets of our cities, creating scenes not witnessed for decades, if ever, it's now clear that the police actually do need the more active support of government if they are to restore order.

With rioting and looting spreading to Bristol, Birmingham and Liverpool, there can be no doubt that more forceful measures are needed. The gangs of youths that have been rampaging around the streets, terrorising residents and shop-owners, looting and destroying properties and attacking the police, appear to be motivated by a desire to cause as much trouble as they can in the pursuit of what they probably see as 'a bit of fun'. Hiding behind a blanket of supposed 'disaffection' with the rest of our society, they are uneducated, jobless and rootless; these animals should be rounded up and incarcerated on some off-shore island, where they can do whatever they like, without affecting the rest of us. They have no place in civilized society.

There's been much talk this morning about what additional measures can be introduced in the battle to reclaim our streets and major cities from the rioters - water-canon, the army, rubber bullets. I say bring on all three and give the forces of law and order free rein to do whatever is necessary to rid us of this pestilential scourge in our midst.

NEITHER 'BULLS' NOR 'BEARS', BUT OSTRICHES AND CHICKENS.

The meltdown currently being experienced on world stock markets is causing much hand wringing and very little real action.

Governments hold meetings while the people watch their savings and pensions vanish down the drain. In Europe, the lunatics who invented the 'Euro' stick their heads in the sand, ostrich-like, and refuse even to contemplate the dismantling of their pet project, even though this is the only long-term solution to the difficulties they are now experiencing. Instead, the European Central Bank has committed itself to buying up vast amounts of worthless Italian and Spanish government bonds, the consequences of which action will eventually be visited on the people of Europe, but not before enough time has passed for those responsible to be long gone. In the UK, it looks increasingly likely that the Bank of England will issue yet more paper through it's scheme of 'quantitative easing', a programme that will inevitably lead to uncontrollable inflation in the future, making us all much poorer but, again, not before the current incumbents of office has departed and can no longer be held accountable. As for the USA, their borrowing is continuing to grow and their economy is clearly not in a healthy state; with a Presidential election due next year, the risk of political paralysis is real and markets will become increasingly jittery as a result. Added to all of the other factors, there seems little likelihood of there being much good news in financial circles for at least the next 18 months. The old stock market adage of 'sell in May and go away' should, perhaps, be amended to 'sell now and come back in 2013' and even that may be far too soon.

The problem is that no one is willing to take the action that is really needed for fear of the dire electoral consequences. We have all been living beyond our means for decades and now the chickens are finally coming home to roost; the final evil day of reckoning is upon us and all we can do is batten down the hatches and hope. In the meantime, the Chinese must be laughing their socks off. 

DID ANYONE READ THE RIOT ACT ?

The disgraceful events that began in Tottenham and subsequently spread to other parts of London over the weekend have led to the usual breast-beating, recriminations and panic amongst the political elite.

Labour MPs have been quick to use the events as a means to attack the police, obliquely of course, and the government. The Home Secretary has felt compelled to rush back from holiday in order to hold talks with senior police officers, and others are busy blaming anyone and everyone in whatever way suits their own special interests.

The truth is that the rioting and looting was carried out by yobs and criminals who will exploit any opportunity to behave in ways that the majority of our society finds repugnant; these people have no excuse for their actions and the nonsense spouted by their apologists is nauseating. Whatever the supposed stimulus, their behaviour was that of sub-human mobs and should be roundly condemned.

Why the Home Secretary should have to curtail her holiday is a mystery. London has an elected Mayor who is responsible for the Metropolitan Police; surely, if any political figure needs to be involved, it is he, though I fail to see why there needs to be political involvement at all. This was a law and order issue and the Metropolitan force should be left alone to deal with it; having suffered so much turmoil in recent weeks already, the last thing they need is more politicians with vested interests stomping around in their size 9s.

FIFA : ETHICS RULE, OK ?

What a surprise ! FIFA, that organisation so wedded to open and honest behaviour, has determined that its former Vice President, Mohamed Bin-Hammam, is guilty of bribery and has banned him from football for life. Given that he is 62 years old, the ban is hardly likley to affect his playing career, though it may stop him from drawing on the vast wealth and patronage that is gained annually by officials of various national footballing bodies.

Bin-Hammam was involved in the controversial bid for the 2022 World Cup from his own minute state of Qatar. The findings of FIFA's Ethics Committe' must surely call into question the validity of both that bid and the voting that was associated with it. Separately, there is a report that the now ex-FIFA representative and Vice President, Jack Warner, handed a caseful of cash to various of his Caribbean colleagues in an effort to bribe them to vote in favour of the Qatari bid; whether or not this is true, coupled with the decision over Bin-Hammam, can the decision to hold the 2022 event in Qatar possibly stand ?

Knowing FIFA, anything is possible. It's more than likely that neither Warner nor Bin-Hammam is guilty of anything that would stand up in a properly consitituted court of law but, in the kangaroo environment of a FIFA court, they have both been covered in sufficient **** to ensure that FIFA emerges as the good guy while they are both condemned as villains. It's also more than possible that voting for the 2022 World Cup will be revisited as no one, other than Qatar, really wants it to be there; given the controversy, this would be a perfect cover for FIFA to look elsewhere without appearing to have been in the wrong, itself, in the first place.

What is most noticeable is the total absence of FIFA's President from the news in the last 3 or 4 weeks; might he be keeping a low profile and hoping that none of this **** sticks to him ? Overall, an entirely corrupt organisation has simply shown itself to be every bit as corrupt as everyone knows it to be, though no one of any power seems really prepared to say so.

BAN KI-MOON : THE INVISIBLE MAN.

The United Nations has re-elected its Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, for a second five year term. Frankly, I wasn't yet aware that he'd served his first term, so little impact has he made on the world stage; yes, I've heard of him and know what position he holds, but he's hardly hit the headlines as a world leading figure.

As a South Korean, this man is little more than a puppet of the USA. His re-election is little more than an affirmation of the continuing influence of the USA over the UN; the USA sees itself as being far more important and significant than the UN and puts up with its existence for political reasons only. In truth, the USA will always do whatever it likes, regardless of what the UN might think or say.

The idea of the UN was a good one, though it was, in reality, a mechanism to enable the western world to control the rest, particularly the Russians. It has developed into a largely impotent organisation, though it now has three major players, with the Chinese joining the USA and Russia as the ones all the rest have to listen to. As with so many world-encompassing organisations, it provides a talking-shop for politicians and civil servants but rarely achieves anything of value.

Mr Ban (or is it Ki-Moon ?) is simply the latest in a long line of largely pointless, impotent and gutless holders of his post, although t always looks good on the CV. Today, he continues to serve the interests of the nations which really run things, the US, Russia and China; in 5 years he will be replaced by another US puppet, unless the Chinese decide otherwise.

EURO-BOLLOCKS

As expected, the Euro-Zone countries have conjured up an agreement to ensure that the Greek economy does not collapse, at least this week.

When the idea of the Euro was first floated, I thought it was ridiculous; when it actually came into existence, I was with those who saw it as simply a political manoeuvre in the drive to create a single European state and one that simply could not work. Today, I am with those who still see it as such, but also now see it as a total failure, a disaster that the governments so intimately involved cannot afford to recognize.

Today, European governments are congratulating themselves on their success in resolving the recent crisis. They are merrily burying their heads in the sand and ignoring the future consequences of the current mess; yes, they have staved off immediate catastrophe but the real achievement is to push back the day of reckoning for a few months or, perhaps, a year or two.

Greece still cannot pay its debts, any more than can Ireland; Prtugal, Spain and Italy are all in trouble as well, all in part due to their involvement in the Euro-zone. At some point, the chickens will come home to roost and, given that Germany cannot afford to carry the burden of all of these economies for ever, the rest of the Euro-zone will eventually start to feel the effects. Worse than this, those EU countries not using the Euro will also bear substantial costs, and that includes the UK.

The clear result will be that we will all become significantly poorer. Stock markets will rise, but inflation will negate any profits; indeed, inflation will negate any financial gains made by ordinary private individuals in usually accessible, and safe, investments. In due course, the costs of failure have to be borne; the Euro is a nonsense dreamt up by politicians pursuing their own, largely hidden, agendas, and it is doomed to failure. The trouble is that the costs will be borne not by the responsible politicians but by the poor people who never understood what they were being dragged into in the first place. The European Union was created as a mechanism designed to prevent another European war but, in reality, it is much more likely to cause one than not. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the idea of a united Europe may well have made sense; in 2010 it still makes sense that European countries work closely together in a variety of ways, but trying to tie highly disparate economies together in a fiscal and monetary strait-jacket is a policy for total mayhem, which is what we have.

The Greek economy has, effectively, failed; Ireland is in the same boat and Portugal is not far behind. Spain and Italy are tottering on the brink and Germany is currently bearing most of the pressure. Eventually, the German people will cry 'Enough !', and then watch out.

PHONE HACKING : WHO WILL RESIGN NEXT ?

The more I hear and read of the 'phone-hacking' saga, the more I despair.

Ignoring all the sordid details, what is most depressing is to have confirmation that our press are so willing to subvert any semblance of morality for a good story, that our police are apparently so corrupt as to happily sell information to the aforementioned press and, worst of all, that our political masters are 'in-bed' with the leading figures of the same press.

Many of us have probably had a pretty low opinion of all 3 institutuions for many years, however, to receive such damning confirmation of our worst fears is hardly welcome news. What we now have is a news organisation in terminal decline, a police service in turmoil and a Prime Minister so damaged as to be impotent.

News International is surely dead in the water. It's very recently departed chief executive, Rebekah Brooks, has been arrested today, following in the footsteps of the Prime Minister's other friend, Andy Coulson, as well as several other News of the World executives and reporters; it can only be a matter of time before the police come calling on James Murdoch, son of the organisation's patriarch. The scandal seems likely to spread to the US where the Murdoch empire is based and, if wrong-doing is found there, the literal wrath of God will be visited upon it. Not only will the British end of Rupert Murdoch's operations be under threat, but so will his entire life's work. Whether or not any of those currently implicated in wrong-doing will eventually be tried, found guilty and imprisoned is another matter, however, the damage has already been done.

As for the police, the scandal has, today, cost Sir Paul Stephenson, Metropolitan Police Commisoner, his job. Sir Paul made the fatal mistake of hiring a former News of the World employee, Neil Wallis, to be his adviser and he now sees this as a possible impediment to the ongoing investigation. In resigning, Sir Paul will, no doubt, be taking early retirement on a large pension, a significant cushion to the blow of having to give up his job, though he could still find himself embroiled in the ongoing saga. There can be little doubt that some police officers have had various degrees of involvement with the press over many years, not all of it legal, and any proper investigation is likely to produce an awful lot of dirty washing. Sir Paul will almost certainly find himself giving evidence in the future, as will many of his former colleagues.

When we come to the political involvement in all of this, we have to wonder just how far our 'wannabe' leaders have sunk in order to gain power. We all now know that the Murdochs and their upper echelons have been wined and dined by a succession of Prime Ministers and party leaders; we also know that the now suspect Andy Coulson and Rebekah Brooks are close friends of the family of the current Prime Minister, David Cameron. Cameron has, in fact, continued to try to justify the closeness of his contacts with these, and other, media contacts in the face of mounting criticism. Some of this criticism has been justified and some has been simple political cant; the maniacal tirade from Gordon Brown last week was an example of a man trying to regain some credibility while having no idea of how to go about it. At the same time, the appallingly 'holier-than-thou' attitudes of many other leading figures has been nauseating, and I do not confine my remarks to politicians; many journalists are just as culpable.

As Prime Minister, Cameron has been, at best, mediocre. Since the emergence of this media scandal, he has been seriously weakened and his House of Commons performances have been poor; lacklustre though he is, Ed Milliband has had the upper hand in recent exchanges and has taken the lead over the 'phone-hacking issue. Cameron has, at no point, taken control of the storm that surrounds him; he has, in fact, fed it through his continuing and inexplicable support for Andy Coulson. What this has done is to call into question his judgement, something which, for a Prime Minister, is all-important; the grey suits in the Tory party must now be on alert, wondering if they will soon need to be looking for a successor.

Where will all of this end ? It's anyones' guess but there seems sure to be some changes in media ownership, a lot of hand-wringing in the Met, and some serious rethinking amongst the political elite, before we all get tired of the story and 'business as usual' is resumed.