Just back to HK in time for super typhoon.

Went to Arsenal and Brentford.

Some general observations of London.

English is less spoken than ever.

SW postcodes on a different planet to SE. SW11 and SE25 may as well be in different galaxies.

The NHC has to be changed to avoid the annual stabfest on the Monday.

People generally are getting bigger, the acceptance of being obese as OK is scary, big pharma loves an unhealthy population.

Public transport works well until you get to the ULEZ extension areas.

Central London / West End continuing deterioration, proper shops being replaced by scam/front candy shops etc.

Very few if any police on foot patrol anywhere apart from football matches, saw some of the useless community liason types who are pretend police in Greenwich directing tourists.

Most people I spoke to shrug in acceptance that almost all crimes will go un punished.

All in all rather a sombre picture.

* I have never seen such a quiet impotent crowd as Brentford, nice stadium for away fans, food and drinks good and ok prices except the beer price goes up closer to kick off, can't complain at London Pride for 4 quid a pint

Edited by HKOwen (31 Aug 2023 4.45pm)

Responsibility Deficit Disorder is a medical condition. Symptoms include inability to be corrected when wrong, false sense of superiority, desire to share personal info no else cares about, general hubris. It's a medical issue rather than pure arrogance.

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"The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command." - 1984 - George Orwell.

Whilst I agree with every word, I also think that us 'indigenous' types as I saw the native English described the other week have to shoulder our share of the blame.

We voted for these arseholes. Time and time again. And many of us cheered on the implosion of the Trade Union movement because we saw it as being 'left-wing'. And yes, its leadership were but in and of itself then it offered at least a collective structure that the Right could, and should, have taken control of. Instead we sold our souls for 'Right-to-buy'. And I am as guilty as anybody of this so this is not a finger-wagging exercise.

But more a plea. There are no electoral solutions open to us. So therefore the only route of protest left, as seemingly passive-agressive as it seems, is to not play the game anymore.

Every observation made about London is true. As it would be for Paris, Berlin, Malmo and every other Western Europen city. This is the point. People need to be ready to re-think what nationalism is because the people embedded in the top most echelons of every Western society are not our friends.

Even places like Italy, which actually voted in a party you could believe might stop the rot, have shown what a sham it all is.

"The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command." - 1984 - George Orwell.

"Go to London, I guarantee you'll either be mugged or not appreciated. Catch the train to London, stopping at Rejection, Disappointment, Backstabbing Central and Shattered Dreams Parkway".

Same narrative of societal implosion but this time in the very heart of what should be the ideal England. This story is, at least for me, far far more disquieting than anything that happened over in Notting Hill.

[Link]

"The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command." - 1984 - George Orwell.

Oxford Street: BBC reporter witnesses attempted robbery on Oxford Street live on air [Link]

Lovely

Now Zaha's got a bit of green grass ahead of him here... and finds Ambrose... not a bad effort!!!!