Well, somebody had to do it. The detailed information about MPs claims has been available for some time and The Daily Telegraph was first to go public with selected snippets last week. And nauseating snippets they were too. The great and the good of all Parties have been filling their boots on a mind-boggling scale - think 'quantitative easing' for the Westminster set. Our political representatives - the same 'honourable members' who have been talking of austere times, belt-tightening and difficult choices - have broken no rules, of course; perish the thought. No, it's all been done by the book - the famous, now infamous Green Book - and clearly some members spend more time studying this tome than they do on scrutinising other, clearly less important pieces of legislation.
Whiter-than-white Lord Mandelson blames the press! Yes, it's a right wing conspiracy! It's nothing to do with MPs being greedy bastards, it's the system that's at fault and the Tory press are making mischief. Doesn't it turn your stomach? Within the rules? Yes, but what about Harriet's famous 'court of public opinion'? Our economy goes down the tubes, thousands are losing their jobs yet the Westminster elite has never had it so good. Recession? What recession? And these are the same people who lambasted 'Sir' Fred Goodwin's greed!
There's clearly loads more to come out, so other than waiting until July the government may be as well releasing all the salacious details - every bath plug, every wreath bought for a Remembrance Service (and then claimed back on expenses), every box of tea-bags - now, straight away. The European and English local government elections are just weeks away, and the steady drip-drip of more damaging revelations could well continue right up to polling day. Embarrassing, yes - but can things really get any worse by releasing all the incriminating details now?
Woolas looking sheepish
If the allowances revelations were horrific enough, we witnessed another car-crash moment when Immigration Minister Phil Woolas was door-stepped by actress Joanna Lumley in the House of Commons. The redoubtable Miss Lumley apparently forced a change of government policy on the Gurkhas on live TV - quite a feat.
This could set a precedent - next week East Enders' Dot Cotton will be invited to put forward her ideas for solving the Middle East crisis, while TV chef Ainslie Harriot will be tasked with solving the banking crisis ....
Surprise surprise
In a week of shocks and surprises perhaps one of the biggest turn-ups was Hibs' unexpected victory at Tynecastle. It wasn't a classic (how many times have I said that about Hibs games this season!) but a make-shift team showed commendable grit and ground out a deserved if unlikely victory. What a different season it might have been had the team shown such a fighting spirit in their other games. You don't mind losing (much) when you feel the players are giving their all, but too many times this season that just hasn't been the case.
Hibs could still have a say on the destination of the League title, but expecting them to perform consistently over two games is probably asking too much. Rangers come calling at Easter Road on Wednesday, the title theirs to lose. Can Hibs spoil the party? Celtic will be hoping so, but I think not. Then again with Hibs, you just never know ...
Local Matters
Out socialising on both Friday and Saturday nights (karaoke on Friday at the Club; meal at La Lanterna and an early birthday party for Knutt in Monteith's off the High Street on Saturday) so a very lazy Sunday afternoon for me - just haven't got the stamina any more!
Spent a couple of hours watching birds feeding - again, disappointingly, no sea eagles but dozens of sparrows coming and going. The bird feeder is clearly the Drylaw version of the Whistle Stop Cafe! Two in particular seem to have a voracious appetite - I know it's not a feeding trough, but I have now called them Hazel and Blears (pictured).
We were also visited by a vixen and her cub for a while yesterday, while down in the View Brian tells me that the vixen there has produced four cubs this year. It's always a joy to watch these wee things out playing under the watchful eye of their mum; I'll hopefully get some pictures next week.
The flowers? Lots of wind and rain this week and little sun so not much progress on the colour front. The lavender? Still there, but sleeping I think. I tried threatening it last week so this week I have been treating it with kindness. The difference - sod all, as they say in Yorkshire. We're still officially in Spring, however, so I will try to remain patient.
Community Matters
On community matters, I've heard of two prominent community activists suffering heart attacks over the last couple of weeks and that makes me even more determined to limit my level of involvement; prioritize the things I am currently involved in. There's more to life than meetings, and I'm still trying to get the balance right. I still feel guilty sitting out in the garden enjoying the sun - I feel I should be 'doing something'. That's not healthy and it's not right - it's got to change.
Having said that it's not so easy to extricate yourself from community activities and I have three voluntary community meetings next week. We also expect some news about the future of the NEN - sub-groups of the Board were meeting last week to come up with some proposals, so at least we should know our fate soon.
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