Dammit, (Sir) Lewis was robbed! And by a Dutch schoolboy! Sorry, sorry, I am still in my dressing gown and jim-jams and I have just spent the last two hours watching the Malaysian Grand Prix. Perhaps the heat and humidity got to (Sir) Lewis because, although he finished second, he did not appear to be in his usual fighting form. On the other hand, perhaps he just has a more sophisticated sense of priorities than me because he must know that young Verstappen(151/2) is something of a wild child and as that 'damned Hun' is his main opponent it was hardly worth being taken off by a kid who is no threat to his championship hopes. On the other hand, that Aussie-Italian, Ricciardo, could have remembered his Commonwealth duty and given that 'damned Hun' a shunt as he was trying to overtake. Honestly, you can't rely on anyone these days and 'Her Maj' will not be amused!
House Notice: Not only am I late to my keyboard this morning but I am out for lunch later at a local hostelry with old friends. Alas, because I will be driving, I will not be drinking so at least my usual rubbish on this blog will not be entirely incoherent!
Chamberlain and Munich: I have read one or two reviews of "Munich" by Robert Harris. Now, of course, Mr. Harris is a novelist not a practicing historian although from the books I have read he seems to have studied the backgrounds in detail. I gather that in this book he makes an effort to rescue Chamberlain from the almost universal opprobrium which was heaped upon him after he came back from Munich and waved his useless bit of paper. In effect, I gather from the reviews, Harris suggests that Chamberlain had no other alternative given the pathetic weakness of British military power and that what he did was to give us precious time in which, mainly, to build up our precious fighter strength. I confess that I have always had some sympathy with that view but I need to re-read some of my history books to remind me of the details.
Ban the burqa? Well, that's what the Austrians have done. Personally, I am conflicted on the subject. On one hand, there is something intrinsically anti-social in keeping your face covered. On the other hand, I am not too keen on governments laying down orders as to what people can or cannot wear. I might be more sympathetic if they introduced a law ordering some of those grossly fat, female 'lardies' who waddle about in our towns with bare bellies covered in tattoos!
More "Munich": Sorry but it is a fascinating subject. Over at Taki's Mag there is an interesting review of Robert Harris' book by Alan Massie which is worth reading. He reminds us that in 1938 Britain only possessed 20 Spitfires so a declaration of war would have been disastrous.
Has anybody seen 'The Kraut'? I refer, of course, and as usual somewhat disrespectfully, to Charles Krauthammer, a man who really does deserve the honorific of 'the distinguished commentator'. He has been on the missing list for some considerable time and I miss him and his usually wise words. Does anybody have any news of him?
That's it, Mrs. May has to go: I have just read Peter Hitchens' column in The Mail. Apparently, Mrs. May took time last December to visit HMS Ocean, a helicopter carrier which, in these straightened times, is the flagship of our fleet - yeeeeees, quite! Following a special visit in the Persian Gulf she said in a speech to the crew, ‘Here on HMS Ocean all of you are a vital part of Britain’s global mission… and you can be very proud of everything you are doing.’ Four months later she has flogged it off to the Brazilians for a fraction of what it has cost us to build including an 18-month refit. In the meantime, our two new aircraft carriers paddle about without a single aircraft to land on their decks.
No more rumbles today
Duffers - thank you for the heads up re R Harris's new book, in my view he is one of the top two or three novellists of our era.
Posted by: Cuffleyburgers | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 11:53
David, "at a local hostelry with old friends"...if it was to The Tippling Philosopher...my invite must have gotten lost?
Posted by: Whitewall | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 13:40
Are you playing hooky so you can watch the New Orleans Saints and the Miami Dolphins off in London in about 35 minutes in Wembley Stadium?
Posted by: Up2L8 | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 14:24
Correction: Should have read "face off"
Posted by: Up2L8 | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 14:26
Cuffers, glad to have been of service. One of his I read fairly recently was "An Officer and a Spy" based on the story of Alfred Dreyfus - excellent!
Sorry, Whiters, it was to The White Hart at Bishop's Caundle, jolly good grub!
Oddly enough, Uppers, I cam home from my pub lunch and fell asleep - no surprise there - and when I awoke there was this peculiar, start-stop, American game on the telly. It was boring enough to send me up here to the attic to escape!
Posted by: David Duff | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 17:09
Ban the burqa? Aye! Austria is being invaded. Ban any form of Sharia as well.
Posted by: Whitewall | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 18:20
Dr. Krauthammer has had a scheduled surgery and is doing well in recovery.
Posted by: Whitewall | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 18:37
Thanks, Whiters, and I hope that he makes a swift and sure recovery.
Posted by: David Duff | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 18:57
David,
I am in complete agreement with you about May having to go. Actually, I think it's inevitable. The Tories are a lot of things, but they aren't completely stupid. Self preservation is a wonderful motivator and they aren't exactly blind to the fact that they don't have a snowball's chance in hell of beating Corbyn with (dis)May as PM.
As soon as Brexit is out of the way, the long knife will be expertly planted between the shoulder blades and someone else will take her place. However, if she even starts looking like muffing Brexit, the knife will fall much, much sooner.
As far as I'm concerned, the happy event cannot come too soon.
Posted by: Richard | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 19:56
Boris won't wait until after Brexit to stick the knife in. His "alternative manifesto" sounds a lot like the sharpening of a blade.
Posted by: Bob | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 20:22
"In the meantime, our two new aircraft carriers paddle about without a single aircraft to land on their decks."
Correct. And don't, David, be getting your hopes up to rectify that soon.
http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/14514/over-100-a-10s-face-groundings-while-dozens-of-f-35s-might-not-ever-be-able-to-fight
Er, thanks for the "investment $" helping us [me] out!
Posted by: JK | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 20:58
The White Hart you say? Did you see a glimpse of Judge Jeffreys? He would have been dressed 'oddly'.
Posted by: Whitewall | Sunday, 01 October 2017 at 22:29
Re: Burqa bans, it has been illegal in Texas, and some other states, for nearly ninety years, to cover the face in public. This was the measure that effectively destroyed the Ku Klux Klan in many Southern states. The so-called "antifa" do their destruction and pillage behind covered faces, and could/ should be prosecuted for that, as a beginning.
Conversely, there is little for any society to gain by having people go about with their faces hidden.
Posted by: Michael F Adams | Monday, 02 October 2017 at 01:27
No matter how much Chamberlain's agreement with Hitler gets the whitewash treatment, I do not for a moment believe it was done to give time for Britain to rearm. Cowardice is a far more likely reason.
Handing the Sudeten over to Hitler, along with all of the Czech's defences, guaranteed the invasion that followed. It also gave Hitler one of the world's largest and best arms manufacturing businesses, thus fuelling even more blitzkrieg.
It was at the Czech Skoda factory that the Wermacht's Panzer tanks were made!
I believe that after the war several leading Nazis said that if Chamberlain had stood his ground, Hitler would not have annexed the Sudeten.
Posted by: Bob H | Monday, 02 October 2017 at 09:13