Not another penny to this bunch of crooks

Whilst this may well have happened …

A woman has admitted to fraudulently pocketing more than £26,000, which donors believed would be sent to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Eileen McDonagh, 33, pleaded guilty to four charges of fraud by false representation and a further charge of concealing, disguising, converting, transfering or removing criminal property at a Bath Magistrates’ Court hearing on 22 May. McDonagh, of Redbridge, London, was convicted of using a card machine to collect money that donors thought was going to the RNLI.

A spokesperson for the RNLI said: “It is disappointing that generous donations intended to save lives at sea did not reach our charity. “RNLI face-to-face fundraisers carry an official ID card and we would encourage people to check this before donating if they are unsure.”

Martin McDonagh, 35, of Walthamstow, London, also appeared in court and pleaded not guilty to the concealing, disguising, converting, transferring or removing of criminal property amounting to £4,151. The pair were granted unconditional bail and sent to Bristol Crown Court, where they will appear on 27 June for their next hearing.

… it’s not the only issue with the Royal Illegals Ferry Service or with its funding:

“Looking to” is he?

Maybe We Should Find Out Who Has Been Teaching Them They Are In The First Place?

 

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Children will be taught that 'worrying and feeling down' are not mental-health conditions in an attempt to curb Britain's spiralling worklessness crisis.

Surely we should find out where this message is coming from, first? 

Teachers have been told they must avoid encouraging pupils to self-diagnose 'normal feelings' as more serious problems such as anxiety and depression.

The radical change in policy will be issued in new guidance to schools amid escalating concern over the number of young people being signed off sick.

Sounds like it'd be a good idea to start with the GPs then to me... 

Bridget Phillipson, the Education Secretary, told The Telegraph: 'For too many children today, their understanding of how to manage their mood and regulate their emotions is coming from social media, rather than their parents, teachers or trained professionals.

Ah, no, of course it's got to be blamed on the new Big Bad (and the thing the Labour Party are desperate to control). How fortuitous, eh? 

The changes come in new instructions on how to teach RHSE, which were issued last week. Some of the instructions surrounding mental health had been contained in a previous draft of the guidance, which was drawn up by the last Tory government.

More modern Tory nonsense coming to light? Quelle surprise, eh? 

Ms Phillipson's changes to the schools guidance are the latest evidence of concern within Downing Street over the growing scale of mental-health claims. This is despite Labour attacking the Tories when it was still in opposition for suggesting that too many people were being signed off with milder conditions.

Yes, well, that was then, this is now, when they are finding out that being in power is nothing like being in opposition. 

Some notes on VPNs

A summary of things in general through ggl search:

A VPN, which stands for virtual private network, protects its users by encrypting their data and masking their IP addresses. This hides their browsing activity, identity, and location, allowing for greater privacy and autonomy. Anyone seeking a safer, freer, and more secure online experience could benefit from a VPN.

At the time of writing, using a VPN in the UK is completely legal, and using one to bypass the new age checks should not be considered a crime. BBC iPlayer, for example, detects VPN usage primarily through IP address analysis and geolocation discrepancies. They check for shared IP addresses used by multiple devices, which is a common characteristic of VPNs.

Additionally, if your IP address suggests you're in a different location than your device's GPS indicates (on mobile devices), it raises a red flag. Here's a more detailed breakdown: 

IP Address: VPNs assign a different IP address to your device, making it appear as if you're browsing from a different location. BBC iPlayer monitors IP addresses and can identify VPNs by detecting shared or blacklisted IPs.

Geolocation: On mobile devices, BBC iPlayer can compare your IP address with your device's GPS location. If these locations don't match, it suggests VPN usage.

One VPN con is the fact that routing your traffic through a secure server often leads to slightly lower internet speeds. Your data has to physically travel over a longer distance to reach a VPN server, and the encryption process causes slowdowns as well.

Thankfully, there are ways to mitigate any speed reductions:

First, VPN users can connect to a local server rather than one that’s farther away. You can also set up split tunneling to keep certain websites or apps unaffected by a VPN. This feature allows selected trustworthy pages and apps to bypass your VPN connection while keeping the rest of your internet traffic protected.

Unfortunately, not all devices are compatible with VPNs. Some smart TVs, game consoles, and other internet-connected devices may not directly support VPN connections, limiting your ability to secure certain apps and online services. This issue can easily be remedied by setting up a VPN on a Wi-Fi router. With a VPN covering your router, any device connected to your network enjoys an encrypted private network. You get all-around network security, including on devices that otherwise aren’t VPN-friendly.  

Not every VPN can deliver the same level of protection. Without robust encryption protocols, your browsing data and real IP address can leak. VPNs that lack security features like a kill switch or double VPN can also lead to a riskier online experience.

In many cases, underperforming VPNs are free ones. Apart from weak encryption and limited features, free tools can flood you with ads and force you to connect to slow, congested servers. Finding a reputable service with an extensive server network is key to getting VPN protection that actually works.

Many internet users see a VPN’s price as a disadvantage, but paid services are generally a better choice than free options. On top of data caps and slower speeds, free VPNs might even put your privacy at risk by selling user data to advertisers and other third parties. For a reliable and secure VPN, consider subscribing to a trustworthy paid provider. Many offer long-term plans at a lower cost per month, so budget-conscious buyers can still find tools that are both high-quality and affordable.

Like any software, running a VPN can consume additional resources on your device. This is usually a bigger issue for things like smartphones and laptops that frequently rely on battery power. Encrypting data adds to a device’s workload, which can lead to shorter battery life and slower performance. However, modern VPNs are optimized to minimize processing power and resource usage, so the extra security and privacy tend to outweigh any trade-offs in performance.

While VPNs are legal in most countries, some governments have chosen to restrict or ban them outright. Violating these VPN laws may result in fines or other legal consequences.

In Case, You're Asking, Durham Constabulary, Yes, You Are The Baddies....

The police demanded to know why she had visited Israel, whether she was planning to go back and whether she felt safe to go there. ‘I asked them, “What do you think happened? That the Jews kidnapped me?”’ said Ms Passmore, who has had an interest in Jewish people after studying the Holocaust for her degree.

What ever gave the police the impression that they were entitled to knock on any citizen's door and question them about their interests?

‘I kept saying to them, “I don’t understand why you are here” and they said only that they were there to check on me.’ She said when the officers first knocked on the door of her County Durham home and explained they were there to talk about safeguarding, she worried it was about her autistic son. ‘But then they mentioned Israel and said, “We aren’t here about your son, but about you, we’ve had a complaint”. I was absolutely gobsmacked,’ said Ms Passmore of the July 4 visit.

This is, of course, a Prevent initiative. That project set up because of all the Islamist terror attacks, which has now branched out - due to the lack of Islamists? Or due to the desire of politicians to try to pretend that there are other equally valid threats out there? 

She had a second visit ten days later after she complained about her doorstep interrogation to local Reform councillor and former television presenter Darren Grimes, who wrote to Durham Constabulary. This time Ms Passmore, who posts on X as @MummyisTired and has nearly 17,000 followers, faced a Prevent officer and a police superintendent. It was the first time she learned someone had reported her to Prevent.

And she'll never be allowed to know who. 

Ms Passmore said that on the second visit she was told the investigation wasn’t about her trip to Israel, even though that is what all of the questions on the earlier interrogation were about.

Yes, the police lying again. No matter how many times they are caught doing it, they keep on. They just don't ever appear to get any better at it!

A Durham Constabulary spokeswoman said: ‘Each Prevent referral is reviewed to determine whether further action is required including, where appropriate, assessment to determine if there is an immediate security threat, or whether a vulnerable person is at genuine risk of radicalisation.’

Well, you clearly failed here. Assuming your goal was to do all that in the first place, anyway. 

It’s not what you write on the placard

To be unaware of what’s going on around the west, even the world, does not help us understand just how similar the playbook is, how coordinated.  Yes, note the things going on in our own land for sure, in detail … but keep one eye open for similar happening thousands of miles away:

More Red Flags There Than A Communist Rally

It seems the 'Guardisn' for once, have found reason to be sympathetic to a small business owner. And being the'Guardian', they have of course picked the wrong one:

“He had a bank account, he was already working when he came to work for us, he’d had a university education and we were paying back the loan for him,” said Sullivan. “Where were the red flags for us?”

Well, Mark, apart from why someone with a university education wanted to work in a chip shop, a foreigner to boot, there is this: 

When the man was hired in early 2023, he provided the chippy with a national insurance number, proof of student loan payments and housing benefit receipts from the local council. He also provided a photocopy of his British passport and was paid via pay as you earn (PAYE) through HMRC.

Accepting a  photocopy, not seeing the original, which Mark describes as a mere 'clerical error'. 

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said there was widespread worry among small business owners about falling foul of complex Home Office rules, which could lead to potentially “fatal” fines for companies. It called on ministers to “accept that the size of employer now gets reflected in Home Office fines and systems”.

It's mostly small businesses, that don't have large HR departments, that fall for the chancers and scammers, so this isn't surptising. And it's only going to get worse:

Enforcement against illegal working, which has already ramped up, looks likely to increase further. Earlier this month, speaking after announcing an agreement with France over small boat crossings, the prime minister, Keir Starmer, said the government was undertaking a nationwide crackdown on people working illegally, which he claimed was happening “on a completely unprecedented scale”.

It's about time. Maybe the Federation of Small Businesses should be campaigning to have illegals sent back straight away instead? 

A government spokesperson said: “Employers are responsible for carrying out right to work checks and there is comprehensive guidance and support on how to do this. The checks are free and take minutes to complete, with businesses able to utilise digital ID verification technology to support the process.”

So, no excuse Mark, you were caught bang to rights. 

The Online Safety Act

Sometimes, tech difficulties mean that text and links are fraught and only copy and paste works:

Found that elsewhere ... poor chap's gone simple ... started rabbiting on about flowers and things.  A once noble mind now o'erthrown.

Maximum exposure required … locally

Just thinking it’s the most effective way … local protest in every town with a taken-over hotel … make its name infamous … also applies to schools … and in both cases, the head honchos given max exposure.

With something super-localised, e.g. just up your street there, the chances of a couple of hundred residents turning out is far better than having to arrange travel, plus overall numbers actoss the nation are higher. I for one might be prised out of my sbode, go up and protest … hotel, school, hospital, whatever.

No! No More Pointless Laws And Legislative Bureacracy!

We’ve had too many of these! Are there no genuinely accidental deaths anymore?

Sspeaking after the conclusion of the inquest, Benedict's mother Helen Blythe said: 'Three and a half years ago, we lost our son. Benedict died in a place where he should have been safe - his school. 'Benedict's death was preventable and was caused by a cascade of failures -individual, institutional, and systemic.'

Actually, no. For once, there’s no one to blame except fate, cruel nature and happenstance. 

Factors which the jury found 'probably caused' Benedict's death include the delayed administration of his adrenaline, opportunities for cross-contamination or mix up of milk, and that his allergy plan was not shared with teaching staff.

On Wednesday, the foreperson of the jury at Peterborough Town Hall said: 'We deem the probable source of the allergen that caused the fatal anaphylaxis is the ingestion of cow's milk protein, most probably from his own receptacle during break time.'

So, did staff stanfd around with their thiumbs up their arses, doing nothing? Reader, of course not. 

The inquest heard Benedict's adrenaline auto-injector (AAI) was administered twice by a teaching assistant, before CPR and a defibrillator were attempted but he died later that day at Peterborough City Hospital.

They had the equipment, they had the training, and it still didn't help. And of course, the grieving parents want something to change.

'We demand change. We call on this government to protect our children with Benedict's Law, making it mandatory to have an allergy policy in every school, staff allergy training including understanding allergies, how to manage them and identify signs of a reaction, and respond quickly in an emergency, and spare adrenaline allergy pens in every school.

They had all that, and it still didn't work. So how about you campaign for a law that all children with such life-threatening allergies be raised well away from normal life instead? It'd make more sense. 

Please check blog policies numbers 4 and 5

After reading those, dear readers, please consider these:

Compare the two known commenters at the top to the three sniping from behind Anon/Unknown protection. Need I add anything further?

There’s a strong case, of course, that a moniker such as Mark’s or Andy’s can be just as Unknown or Anonymous … we ask for no proof, we just accept in good faith, do we not?  Honour system … remember honour?

Again I ask … compare the tone of the two gentlemen at the top and that of the three below.