Gordon is a Moron

Puerile title, but I just can't help myself. Based on three things that have come up in the last couple of weeks, Gordon Brown has proved himself worthy...
Firstly, his inexplicable decision to apologize to Alan Turing amounts to "Apology Turettes" and I have nothing to add to John Shepherd's excellent letter to the Independent on September 21st http://http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/letters/letters-browns-apologies-1790745.html, except...Why did the media report on the apology so slavishly? This was the story "du jour", repeated endlessly. Why no critical analysis? Did the journalists have nothing else to do or were they just too lazy to go out and hunt for the real story that was (no doubt) lurking there hoping to remain out of the spotlight.
Second is the case of Lady Scotland, the Attorney General, and her illegal housekeeper. Now the housekeeper herself is saying that Lady Scotland did not look at her passport. Never mind the so-called technicality of whether Lady Scotland photocopied the document, the elephant in the room is that this woman was illegal. So if Lady Scotland had looked at the passport she would have known this. Technicality or not, given Lady Scotland's position she should have resigned or been sacked. I watched Gordon's performance on the Andrew Marr show yesterday and cringed while he smugly talked about leadership and taking the hard choices. This wasn't a hard choice Gordon and you blew it.
Thirdly is the G20 story that Gordon Brown's people tried five (yes five) times to get a meeting between him and Barak Obama but had been turned down. This is just too embarassing. The so-called "Special Relationship" is totally lop-sided. When are we going to learn that they are just not that into us?!! Every PM seems to fall into this trap but Gordon Brown's neediness is even more pitiful than most. The fact is, that as the Lib-Dems so succinctly point out, we will start to count more with the Americans when we count more in Europe. It's just that simple.
If it weren't such a catchy title to a song, "moron" might not be the first name I could think of to call him. But nevertheless it fits, and I rest my case.

Charitable Fundraising

Today I had lunch with my father at a restaurant in Thame (called The Thatch http://www.thethatchthame.co.uk/). As we looked over the menu I noticed a footnote relating to a "charitable donation". I assumed it related to an item on the menu, in the way that Pizza Express donates a small amount to the Venice fund for every Venezia pizza sold. When our bill came there was a charitable donation of 50p itemized. The explanation was that the MD of the restaurant was going to climb Kilimanjaro and the "profits" from money raised would go to two charities. Profits? In other words after the patrons of the restaurant have financed this man's jaunt up Kilimanjaro (most people call this a vacation) anything left over will be donated. How big of him. I know this is not new (after all the motorbike ride across Africa that the Princes William and Harry went on not so long ago was exactly the same kind of escapade) it is nevertheless the most outrageous scam. Did we object? No of course not, we didn't want to make a scene (actually my father would have loved to). But that is exactly what the manager was relying on. No, I just came home and wrote a blog post. Oh and I might go online and write a scathing review of the restaurant too.