YOUNG PEOPLE PROTEST AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE –A BEACON OF HOPE!
Last weekend thousands of British school children went on strike demanding action on climate change. Although them skipping school received a mixed reception including condemnation from Theresa May, to me it was a beacon of hope in a bleak country.
My generation has been a disgrace. Those who voted leave voted to destroy the country and to trash the futures of their children and grandchildren. They voted in favour of a racist, discriminatory agenda. Those who voted remain were derelict in their duties in doing nothing really significant to make the case for staying so we have ended up with the fiasco we have.
To me one of the greatest areas of advancement since the end of the 2nd WW has been the development of international organisations such as the United Nations, NATO , the IMF , the World Bank and of course the EU . They could all probably have been more successful but they have all made a contribution to facing up to the many problems which in our 21st century world which are international not national. Climate change, security, health and many more are the challenges young people will have to face in their lifetimes. The protest about climate change would strongly indicate that young people have a much better understanding than their parents of the challenges and the road to resolution. Their belief that the future lies with international groupings would support the idea that the young are likely to be in favour of remaining in the EU. No wonder that the Tories are reluctant to extend the franchise.
If you want a good holiday film I would highly recommend “The Kid who wants to be King”. It is an allegorical fantasy set in a modern Britain which is riven by division and controversy with a host of challenges. The country is threatened by a dark, evil character Morgana who is not a million miles from Theresa May. The story is a replay of the Arthurian legend with a young school boy finding Excalibur on a stone in a local building site and ending up leading an army of school children in a fight against the forces of evil and destroying Morgana.
All great stuff.

NOT AVAILABLE THIS WEEK –I HAVE TO GO SHOPPING!
As far as I can ascertain Timperley have at least 5 teams in their cup semi-finals. Admittedly that is quite a lot of semis but it would be a reasonable hope that some of our teams make it to Rochdale for the Flags weekend.
I have played a lot of lacrosse in my lifetime but not got many or medals to show for it. Unless you are Cheadle it is the same at most clubs and although I am not very comfortable with the way they collect their silverware as a club there are many things to be admired about Cheadle from the top to the bottom. I have been uneasy on their policy of taking top players from weaker clubs.
I started playing in 1956 and the silverware has been very rare to say the least. In 1963 (I think) I played on a William Hulme’s GS team which beat South Manchester A to become the only school team to win a big trophy. In 1969 I was on a Hampstead team which took an upset 7-6 win over the amazing Lee side. Since then zilch. I have had good times with Timperley. When I joined the Club 1st team were playing at the level our B team now play at. We have had lots of wins and climbed up the League ladder. We have won, as a club, a host of Junior trophies.
However, senior silverware has been largely absent, as is the situation for most clubs.
If you play a sport winning is part of experience but not for many .Most teams are losers not champions. The opportunity to win does not come along very often so to have our 3 men’s team all playing in semi finals you would hope would concentrate minds and heighten enthusiasm. If we get our strongest teams out all are capable of at least reaching finals.
It is dispiriting to hear already that there are people indicating that they are unavailable for the semi finals. Life is very short journey and sporting careers even shorter. Is not a rehearsal for anything so when an opportunity comes along you would think that people would grasp the opportunity with both hands. What can be more important on these very particular occasions?

MANCHESTER BUILDING BOOM. IS IT SUSTAINABLE?
If you live in the Manchester you cannot but be aware of the number of cranes that there are in Manchester city centre.
If you start including Salford Quays and the Airport you are currently well over to 70 cranes in the city. You take one down and another appears.
One of the big development areas is to the south of the city centre where Owen Street and associated developments are going to bring 17 high rise (used to be called skyscrapers) to the city centre. There are currently something like 9 blocks on site but there are more to come. This project if it completes will take over 10 years.
According to the information available there are over 60 new projects with planning permission which are likely to go on site in the next year. As a Keynesian I see much reason to be optimistic but not with nere-do-wells on the side lines looking for a cheap buck, I do worry about the sustainability of the city development programme. How long can sustainable growth continue - 10 years - 20 years or only a couple of years before the wheels come off?
Development is an essential aspect of the Manchester model in that it provides the income which is essential for the Council to be able meet its growing commitments particularly in social care which the government is increasingly failing to meet.

TRAFFIC CHAOS
Anyone who travels into central Manchester knows that the traffic situation is horrendous. Particularly terrible is the ring road heading out on M602.
The main cause is road works and to a lesser degree building work which is closing road lanes, particularly for services.
We are told that when completed we will receive a massive benefit from improved traffic movement. However, the completion of one set of road works has been a trigger for the announcement of another whole batch of work. I suppose that they have to find somewhere to put the cones.
Problems do not seem to be restricted to Manchester. I regularly drive from Manchester to Altrincham and over the years have tried numerous routes none without their problems.
Recently I have developed a further challenge which is running my 15 year old granddaughter from her home near Stamford Park to her horse which is stabled out in Dunham. To make the journey it is difficult to avoid the town centre without a big detour. In recent weeks the town centre traffic seems to have got worse with, for example, the traffic trying to turn tight at the traffic lights at the junction of Regent Road and Stamford New Road queuing back to the Bentick/Groby Road junction.
Tinkering with traffic light timings could make a significant difference particularly in Manchester, but I understand there are not the resources to do anything significant.
One cannot escape the view that reducing city and town centre traffic is a part of the policy to reduce pollution.
The development of the tram system, the encouragement of cycling and the reduction in parking provision alongside increases in charges.

PRESIDENT TRUMP IS DESTROYING THE US CONSTITUTION
Donald Trump is probably the worst US President in recent history – even more corrupt than Richard Nixon and more incompetent than George W Bush. He is a person who it is difficult to warm to and is it seems that he is a dishonest, misogynist, and racist.
One of Trump’s election promises was to build a wall along the border with Mexico to prevent the invasion of immigrants from south and central America. There would seem to be vastly varying views as to how serious this “invasion”actually is with the figures currently at their lowest for some years.
The UK is always claiming that we do not have need of a written constitution. That position is being sorely tested with Theresa May using every device she can possibly think of to avoid any control of the Brexit process by elected Parliamentarians.
One of the things I have long admired is how the Founding Fathers set up the US Constitution and how successful it has been in making the US a great country (no need to make America great again. It was already a great country in my book but that greatness is being demolished by Trump.)
If ever you go to the US go to Monticello, the home of Jefferson, in Virginia. If in some imaginary world, I was allowed to live anywhere I wanted to I would chose Monticello. It is a truly stunning place.
Jefferson was a far from perfect but he was the driving force behind the creation of a new constitution for a new country.
The US Constitution is based on a doctrine of the separation of powers. There is the legislature (Senate and Congress), the Executive (The President) and the Judiciary (the Supreme Court).
Each branch of government controls the others operating a system of checks and balances. In my lifetime every US President has seemed to me to consider the Constitution sacrosanct until you get Trump, who seems to think that the Constitution is his personal plaything.
Congress carried out its constitutional duty and blocked the funding for the wall which triggered the disgraceful shutdown of the US government.
Trump has now decided that the Wall is so important that it justifies him declaring a State of Emergency which would allow him to access other funding streams.
It has always seemed to me that a state of emergency was something which affected the country and was importantly outside the general political debate. Trump has decided to make a political issue into one of national significance.
The Congress will obviously respond, as it should, by blocking funding. The issue will then go to the courts and ultimately to the Supreme Court. When it is at the Supreme Court, Trump, who has recently altered the political slant of the court with significant right wing appointments, expects the Court to rule in his favour.
Trump’s actions will create an obvious conflict of interests and blur the distinction between national interests and political policies. Building a wall was a political policy and in the future you could clearly have the Democrats, following yet another High School shooting, deciding that gun control is a national emergency.
To me this would seem to me that the US Constitution is being dragged into the gutter.
Make America Great and impeach Trump!

IS C4 THE ONLY NEWS PROGRAMME YOU CAN TRUST?
Years ago when you went to the US you were able to take a superior attitude in that our TV and in particular the news coverage by the BBC was superior to the North American alternative.
These days the news coverage from the BBC is worryingly lacking in quality.
BBC correspondents seem to be of a very low quality who rarely put the views of the interviewees to very intense scrutiny.
The BBC news programmes are struggling for credibility.
Newsnight fails miserably to challenge the views on the issues of the time.
Being interviewed by Andrew Marr is hardly being rigorously interrogated.
Question Time has for many years been the BBC flagship current affairs programme. It has become an undisciplined bear garden where clearly right wing views have precedence. It is even claimed that the programme director has very right wing views which is reflected in the number of UKIP and extreme right wing people who find their ways onto the panels and into the raucous audience.
My wife and I are news addicts and have come to the conclusion that your only chance of getting an objective view point is on C4. The journalists who work for C4 would seem to be unique in that they are willing to hold the feet of people to the hot coals.