ANOTHER GLIMPSE OF JAGO - AND MORE IMAGES OF HIS ARTWORK

As we near Christmas 2019. I still have no word from Unicorn, the publishers, about the publication date for 'The Remarkable Life of Jago Stone'. It was going to be October 1, then December 1. Both dates passed, with many apologies from Unicorn. But sometime I hope in early 2020 the biography of Jago will be in bookshops and available online. Having worked on and reread a number of final drafts since completing the book over a year ago, I can say with conviction that the book does provide a remarkably interesting and worthwhile read - and visually it is a treat!

In these last couple of months I've had a fruitful contact through the medium of Facebook with a toy-bear-maker, Jean Grogan. We share a bond with teddy-bears. Those of you who read my thoughts regularly will be familiar with Peter Ted and his adventures. He's my bear. His partner is Sally Anne; she's Louise's teddy. Here's a link to press for those of you unfamiliar with this interesting side to our life:

https://robdonovan.blogspot.com/2019/07/peter-ted-goes-to-his-oxford-gaudy.html


Jean, as I say, makes them. Here's her website address:

https://www.facebook.com/littlescruffsbears/


Jean made contact and began telling her Jago Stone story in early November. Jago, it seemed, used to come 'most days' into the Tea Shop that she and her husband ran in the village of Sedgeberrow near Evesham in Worcestershire.

The parish church of Sedgeberrow, near Eynsham in Worcestershire.

This is Cotswold territory - and around fifty miles and a hour and a half drive from Hellidon in Northamptonshire where Jago had been loosely based. Quite some distance. The year is 1984. As

RESISTANCE NEWS - LOVE IN THE CORBYN FAMILY - AND OUTSIDE

In a statement on Twitter last weekend, Jeremy Corbyn's sons - Tommy, Seb and Benjamin -  

expressed their pride in their father, He may have been the leader of the Labour Party when it experienced a crushing General Election defeat but they argued their dad had paid the price for being ‘honest, humble and good-natured in the poisonous world of politics’. They also praised his lifetime record of championing the ‘less fortunate’ and for producing the ‘most wonderful manifesto the country has ever seen’. They claimed that Jeremy Corbyn had suffered the ‘most despicable attacks, filled with hatred’. 

                                                            

                                                                Absolutely right.

Jeremy Corbyn's three sons - Tommy, Seb and Benjamin - in 2018

Here is their inspiring letter:

I wanted to shine a spotlight on their Twitter letter to widen its circulation and increase the numbers reading it. When so much of what hits our senses is angry and abusive, it is so important to be taken

THE RESISTANCE BEGINS - STILL NAILING JOHNSON

I got the timing wrong - but The Road to Justice continues. The Resistance begins.

At just past 22.00 hours, as the exit poll prediction was announced, I stared at the screen in disbelief. I went to bed in the early hours before the results were announced for Camborne, Redruth and Hayle - the seat where I canvassed, as part of a large and dedicated team, nineteen times in five and a half weeks - around two hours plus travel each time - for the admirable Paul Farmer, the Labour candidate. I had chosen to devote my energies in this marginal constituency where the Tory MP was only 1500 or so votes in front at the last election in 2017 rather than my own St Ives, Penzance and Helston neck-of-the-woods where the battle was between Tory and Lib-Dem candidates with the Labour candidate out of contention. Yesterday, I woke up to find that the Tory MP for Camborne, Redruth and Hayle had been returned with an increased majority. Paul had amassed 18,064 votes. The sitting Tory MP had gained 26,764. The Tory majority is now 8,700 votes.

I am gutted - but the resistance starts straightaway. Objectively, from an academic perspective, it is fascinating and remarkable to observe how on one day in one country a meme becomes manifest. Across the country, a swing to the Tories is apparent, varying between around 5 to 10 per cent on average but still a consistent feature throughout England and Wales. It is a swing shaped by people not voting for the Labour Party and often choosing to vote Brexit rather than Tory in Labour-held seats. Why had people abandoned Labour?

Still the message of hope and intent - still a signal to the rich and powerful: 'We are on to you!'

An email arrived from the United States yesterday morning. One of my American contacts from my research into the life of Jago Stone - Christopher Michas - was asking: 'What the hell happened? How do the Tories win today. I just don't understand.'

I replied:

It's very hard to take - Why did it happen? So may Brits felt betrayed by politicians not delivering on the UK vote to Leave in 2016. The Tory party in government (2016-19) failed to deliver Brexit - that failure gave the Remainers the opportunity to demand a second Referendum - and their voice was strong enough to lead the Labour Party to change policy and seek to offer hope to both Brexiteers and Remainers. The Brexiteers up North and in the Midlands and in north Wales felt further betrayed and Labour lost scores of seats in their traditional heartlands. Plus Labour's leader, JC, was subject to media and political besmirching - and too many people turned against him - he became a scapegoat. Yet he remains what he has always been - a decent and honourable man who has a wonderful vision of how people should live together in a fair and just society. We are heading for being a bad country under Johnson. It's scary.

This is a blogpost that is taking shape as I write. This morning, Skwawkbox - my wonderful source of news that 

A QUESTION OF INTELLIGENCE - WHY BORIS JOHNSON IS UNFIT TO BE PM

In the pages of The Road to Corbyn (2016), I nailed Boris Johnson when he was still the Mayor of London. I'm having another go now. Video evidence emerged at the beginning of this week from the Labour Party campaign headquarters. Boris Johnson is seen delivering a speech and the key quote from the oration is headlined:

'INEQUALITY IS ESSENTIAL'

You can see this video when you tap into my Timeline on Facebook or access my Facebook 'The Road to Corbyn' page. I find the contents of Johnson's speech vile but it is important to hear and see it being delivered to get a better measure of the man. He made what he would consider his oration in 2013 when Mayor of London.

With my thanks to the band 'IQ' and their album 'Resistance' - I am a founder member of the group calling itself 'IQ Resistance'.

Here is a transcript - with some commentary from me:

"As many as 16% of our species have an IQ below 85 ….

 [Where did that figure come from!?! - Back in 1976, I married Louise in July knowing that I would be going back to university in September - to Manchester to study for a M.Ed. in Curriculum Studies; an opportunity to engage for the first time with the disciplines of psychology, sociology and

TORY SHAME (2010-2019) - THANK YOU, SKWAWKBOX!

The long list of shame: Tory 'achievements' 2010-2019 by SKWAWKBOX (SW) Shame: Tories have been a blight on the UK Below are some things the Tories never promised in their manifesto, which voters may wish to bear in mind this week. As 'achievements' go, it's a shameful list entirely in keeping with Tory values: more than one in three children live in poverty - more than 4 million national debt has risen £1,400,000,000,000 from £850bn to £2.25 trillion UK government and policies condemned by UN for inflicting needless poverty and misery 43,000 NHS nurse posts unfilled student nurse bursary abolished 5 million bed spaces per year gone millions of cruel benefit sanctions millions left with no funds - intentionally - through Universal Credit system massive failed NHS privatisations massive social care crisis approximately 185,000 extra deaths linked to politically-driven austerity 10,000 fewer medical professionals 25,000 fewer bed spaces for mental illness almost half of people claiming disability benefits have attempted suicide food bank use up 2,400% homelessness up 1,000% rough sleeping up 1,200% Bedroom Tax caused mass evictions evictions running at record highs massive cuts in school funding student fees up 300% student debt has risen 150% forced academisation of schools against parents' wishes 1,000 Sure Start centres closed 780 libraries closed 700 football pitches closed removal of EMA (education maintenance allowance) for poor pupils pound down appr. 15% versus EUR and USD manufacturing in recession construction in recession services close to recession 25-30% cuts to all govt departments 25-30% cuts to all councils, mainly centred on Labour councils in poorer areas half of councils close to bankruptcy 21,000 fewer front-line police 20,000 fewer prison officers 10,000 fewer border officials 10,000 fewer firefighters OECD calculate 3 million hidden unemployed, rate is really 13% mushrooming insecure work: temporary, self employed, gig economy and zero hours contracts only 30k full time work positions created. almost half of workers are in insecure work: self-employed, ZHC, or part-time 'precariat' 80% of the 5.3 million self-employed live below the poverty line more than 1 in 3 self-employed only earn £100 a month 25% cuts for our disabled people 80% cuts to Mobility Allowance. Remploy closed 40% of working households just one crisis away from destitution 70% of households have less than 10k savings 60% of households can only survive 2 months without a wage household debt reaches new peak, despite emergency base rates 50% increase in hate crimes 150% increase in knife crime to 22,000 per year teenage suicide up by 70% suicides up 12% just in 2018 self-harm among young women up 70% life-expectancy down - for first time in decades - by 3 years lowest ever NHS satisfaction level council-home building down 90% 200k social homes lost ZERO starter homes built, despite Tory flagship programme council home-building down 90% one million families on council home waiting list 36,000 teachers have left the profession multiple collapsed private rail franchises collapsed building and maintenance giants leaving schools and hospitals in the lurch - that the government knew were coming and ignored This is only a partial list. More will no doubt be added. None of these things were mentioned by the Tories in their manifestos. A vote for Boris Johnson is a vote for more of the same. A vote for Labour is a vote for real change and a return to a decent country. The SKWAWKBOX needs your support. This blog is provided free of charge but depends on the generosity of its readers to be viable. If you can afford to, please click here to arrange a one-off or modest monthly donation via PayPal or here for a monthly donation via GoCardless. Thanks for your solidarity so this blog can keep bringing you information the Establishment would prefer you not to know about. If you wish to reblog this post for non-commercial use, you are welcome to do so – see here for more. SKWAWKBOX (SW) | December 8, 2019 at 11:12 pm | Categories: Analysis, comment | URL: https://wp.me/p2sftc-B7l Comment    See all comments Unsubscribe to no longer receive posts from The SKWAWKBOX. Change your email settings at Manage Subscriptions. Trouble clicking? Copy and paste this URL into your browser: https://skwawkbox.org/2019/12/08/the-long-list-of-shame-tory-achievements-2010-2019/