Lo, I am returned! Sorry, sorry, but life has been somewhat hectic by my usually sedentary standards. Wednesday I was rushing to finish the PowerPoint design of a re-jigged talk on the subject of Waterloo before giving supper to a friend who was about to fly off to Florida to see his first grand-child. Thursday was spent rehearsing my spiel before setting off in the evening to a near-by Officers' mess which was putting on its annual Mess Night. I had pleasure in telling them that the one and only time previously that I had entered an Officers' mess was about 50 years ago when I was on 'jankers' and had to peel the spuds for the officers' dinner! Anyway, sufficient for me to tell you that the Bar shut at 0200 hours! so on Friday I was 'walking wounded'. However, that evening it was off to a near-by village hall for a concert party in aid of the Haiti appeal fund. A bit of a duty call but to my intense surprise it was one of the best evenings out I have enjoyed since we moved down here 8 years ago. Then it was Saturday and out again to a local hotel for dinner to celebrate a friend's birthday. Yet again I awoke on the Sunday with only the vague memory being of my own voice boring on ... and on ... and on! I do like dining in hotels. It is so pleasant to begin and end the evening in a comfortable lounge with big armchairs and settees. Then today, a good friend and neighbour having returned from his lair in Singapore, we gave him a slap-up, traditional, English Sunday lunch. Roast lamb and allthe trimmings followed by fruit crumble. After inspecting the back of my eyelids this afternoon I thought I had better return to my blog and see if I had any readers left!
South Africa pulls the chain on itself: The president of South Africa, who recently slid past a corruption charge, has announced that he, along with zillions of his fellow countrymen, has tested HIV-positive - correction: should read 'negative' (see below). Such an example to his people, and meanwhile, Julius Malema, the head of the ANC (African National Congress) Youth League, continues with his anti-white agitations and, according to the American Thinker, defies authorities by singing his murderous song Kill the Boer, Kill the Farmer. As the usually prescient Alan Sullivan points out, when you have killed all the farmers - you starve! Malema has just visited Zimbabwe and is now off to Venezuela to earn his Masters Degree in corrupt thuggery. We should beware because if Marxist-backed pirates close off the approaches to the Suez Canal and a 'wannabe' Mugabe' controls the trade routes round the Cape then we might be in for some uncomfortable times.
Figes f***s up! The, er, distinguished historian, Orlando Figes, has 'fessed up' to concocting on the internet vicious anonymous reviews of other historians' work and then, according to Oliver Kamm, using libel laws to threaten a newspaper into silence. Oddly enough, years ago I fell for the rave reviews of his book, A People's Tragedy, bought it and found it unreadable. When it comes to hissy fits, academics make 'luvvies' look like pussy cats!
Reasons to be cheerful: Good news, bad news. The good news is that the 'Baldrick' of so-called climate science, 'Little Willy', is leaving the country in September. The bad news is that his self-confessed little willy has managed the act of reproduction. Thank God he's leaving the country, I couldn't stand two of 'em!
That Stephen Hawking, what does he know? Apparently, the emminent professor believes there really are lots of aliens 'out there' but, like a good father warning his children against suspect adults, he tells us not to speak to them. Honestly, I know the Prof' has his difficulties but he really should get out more, especially on the internet which is absolutely jam-packed full of the wierdest aliens you could ever imagine. He could make a start with 'Little Willy' who definitely originates from Planet Zog.
Are they up to it? I promised to keep this blog an election-free zone and I will keep to my word until the penultimate day. However, that doesn't stop me commenting on the forthcoming elections 'over there'. By all that is reasonable the Republicans should slaughter the Dems and rip the Congress away from their lunatic hands - but will they? I thought 'Camerloon' would do the same to Labour but it hasn't quite worked out that way. I keep reading bits and pieces to the effect that there are divisions in the GOP leadership and indeed, divisions amongst their supporters many of whom are looking for a Reagon-type revolution. We can but hope!
My mates, 'Dave', George and William: Oh, yes, this blog moves in the highest political circles, I would have you know. I have lost count of the number of e-mails I have received from 'Dave', George and William importuning me for my vote and addressing me as Dear David. Bloody cheek! Only my friends use my Christian name, not pushy, political, door-to-door salesmen.
Anyway, I'm back now and hope to resume 'Boring for Britain' in my usual way.
Additional: Don't miss this classic Steyn essay - that's an order!
Correction: As my observant commenter, Tim Newman, points out, I completely mis-read the BBC report that the ultra-clean living president of South Africa tested negative for HIV. The reasons for my mistake are various. Perhaps it was a simple confusion, me being both simple and confused, on the exact meaning of 'negative' and 'positive' where the former usually means 'bad' and the word 'positive', in this particular context, also meaning 'bad'. What is definitely 'my bad', as the Yanks put it, was to allow my instinctive dislike of Zuma to allow what passes for my mind to leap to a, er, negative conclusion. Or perhaps, it is just a further proof that I am thick as a post! I assume that will be a hundred lines, Mr. Newman? (Also, I am irritated to find that TypePad has taken away the little button which allows me to score through a word or phrase - grrrh!)
What can Kamm mean by "Figes's laywer [sic]"? Didn't his school teachers tell him that with names that end is "s" you have the choice of using, let us say, James' or James's, save that you must avoid the treble sibilant e.g. you write not "Jesus's" but "Jesus'". The more pertinacious sort of schoolboy will enquire, of course, "Sir, sir what about " Jesus' sake", sir, that's a treble sibilant?"
Posted by: dearieme | Sunday, 25 April 2010 at 23:46
According to the BBC, Zuma is HIV negative.
Posted by: Tim Newman | Monday, 26 April 2010 at 07:53
Well, 'DM', I'm definitely not going to defend Oliver Kamm's English, or anyone else's come to that, given my own, er, idiosyncratic variations on a theme. I have often wondered about that apostrophe after an 's' ending so I am very grateful for the lesson - ta!
Posted by: David Duff | Monday, 26 April 2010 at 08:50
Tim, well spotted, see above for my mea culpa.
Posted by: David Duff | Monday, 26 April 2010 at 08:52
DM, the "(sic)" refers to the spelling of "lawyer", which comes out "laywer", not to the apostrophe.
Posted by: Dom | Monday, 26 April 2010 at 15:42
Aha!! Thanks, Dom.
Posted by: dearieme | Tuesday, 27 April 2010 at 10:21