Who Really Cares?

 A lingering cold does not put me in the best of  moods but I would have been maddened in any event by the recent news hitting our screens and newspapers. I’ll start with the idiot Vance. What on Earth is he doing supporting Orban in the coming election in Hungary? Is there something we don’t know about the opponents? I don’t know much about Péter Magyar who has been expected to defeat the almost embedded Orban. Why should Vance dash off to appear on stages with a potential loser? Or has he been informed that, whatever people may wish in their vote, Orban will continue to wield power and Vance will look like he had crucial influence. I might start referring to him as Ad Vance as he always seems to be seeking publicity to support a campaign for the Presidency in 2028. How dreadful it would be to have a real fool and religious pain with no manners and little understanding of people to take over from the madness of King Trump. 

Recent revelations about communications between senior Hungarian politicians and Putin make it clear to anyone observing things that Hungary most definitely does not wish to oppose Russia in any way. Memories of 1956? After being so brutally repressed 70 years ago one would think that any signs of Russia wishing to control them again would have been firmly rebuffed as soon as they appeared, certainly in 2022 if not, indeed, 2014. Putin clearly has some hold over Orban and several others in government, to such an extent that they will not support any efforts to assist Ukraine to repel an invader who has acted with ghastly acts of murder and more over more than four years. Do they not respect a nation’s borders?

It is strange to listen to Hungarian academics and government officials try to explain their position. They sound almost identical to Trump in their view that, at this time, Ukraine has no chance of regaining any territory, has lost huge areas, amounts of infrastructure never mind people and that it would be better for everyone if they just stopped and came to some agreement with Russia which, in all essence would almost certainly see vast tracts of land to the south and east ceded to Russian control and I suspect there would be further encroachments after that too. Asked what their view was on the first day of the invasion in 2022, however, most respondents cough and splutter as much as I do. But in their case it is in order to avoid having to reply. One would have thought that Hungary would declare itself in support of Ukraine's defence and help them resist Russian advance.

Thereagain, one would have hoped every other nation in the world other than North Korea would have offered to help resist at Day One. Of course, no-one did. Many good words. Fewer good deeds. Planes promised by Norway in 2023 are still not delivered. Funds that the vast majority of EU states have committed to give to Ukraine have not materialised, blocked by a Hungarian veto time and time again.

Hungary, as she stands today, supports Russia and Russia will support Hungary. I do so hope that Orban loses and someone will open the doors on the treachery of Hungarian politicians over these years. They always sound so reasonable in interviews but I have yet to hear any ask out loud why they support Russia.

The same question might have been asked of Trump. I do not include any of the people he occasionally sends to meetings or to make announcements as it seems pretty clear that there is only one view now in America and that’s Trump’s. One has to wonder where any even faint opposition has disappeared to? We hear nothing by way of sensible alternative views from anyone, democrat or republican. 

His dreadful withdrawal of support for Ukraine and many announcements that Putin has basically won and so Ukraine needs to stop fighting now, to which he will attach in capital letters something about saving lives all point to an extraordinary state of affairs where USA and Russia seem more than just friends these days. We all wonder what the hell Putin must hold by way of a Trump card. But there surely has to be something.

We look at how pathetic Russia’s troops have been, and how lacking in success have been their bombardments and military efforts. For ages now, they had been losing over 1200 men every day and making zero advance. Indeed, Ukraine, whilst not successfully regaining territory either, have certainly hit several places in Russia, destroying oil installations and munitions factories or storage. We don’t know exactly what they hit every time but it seems to cause as much trouble as anything Putin attempts. The one thing Ukraine drone operators don’t do deliberately is kill innocent people on buses. Twice this week a First Person Drone, that is one that is directly controlled by a human, has hit public buses, killing occupants. The person deciding to fire will have known exactly what he was doing and I am not aware of any yellow Ukraine tanks with large windows and little old ladies inside with bags of shopping.

On a normal day in a normal world actions like these, repeated daily by Russian troops, would have been enough to enrage the public, students and everyone who cares about fairness, human life and what is ‘right’ sufficiently to have politicians instructing troops from UK, the British Commonwealth, Europe and, who knows, some other ex-Soviet states to go in and dismiss the invaders. Quite frankly the USA should lead the whole thing as they have the might but I reckon we could get by without them. I have said time and time again that Russia is not strong. They do not have a mass of troops ready to fight. All they have are nuclear weapons, as far as I can make out. Surely if they’d had something else that they could use to bring this horrid war to a bloody end then they would have used it or them. Will no-one call their bluff and go in and attack? Whatever Trump and Putin have agreed behind closed doors, any nuclear or chemical weapons would immediately alienate Russia and substantially add to the cohesion of those involved in supporting Ukraine.

Hungary could sit it out, as could any country with some sort of tie or debt to Putin. But the vast majority could end this the way it should be ended, with the complete withdrawal of Russian troops to where they should have been in 2014. Yes, I include Crimea and some eastern regions which have been very much under Russian control for a long time. I accept that, by repopulation and means more foul, the people in those areas have changed considerably over the years and so just bunging them back Ukrainian passports, language restrictions and all that is not a good move. Care will be needed to help everyone in the contested areas live free and peaceful lives and not be put down by some new authority, especially one celebrating victory.

I challenge Trump or whoever is in charge of USA’s policy on Ukrainian matters to say that this is not a fair outcome, restoring the world to how it was before Russia decided they wanted more land and people within their borders. 

Tell me if I am wrong but, the performance of Russian troops has been useless and I cannot see it suddenly getting so much better that, whereas it could not advance against a handful of Ukrainians, they can defeat fresh and well-trained men and women from all over the world in great numbers. It’s only the fear of Putin hitting the big red button that I believe holds everyone back. Knowing that even without the USA’s missiles, much of his cities and countries would be devastated and he most certainly would not go down well in history after that, my bet is that he would take the best deal offered. And maybe try another day.

Here I am in England banging on about how we should take on the Ruskies. It is unfortunate that I don’t get the impression that Britain could do very much. We have reports of oil tankers merrily passing though our own ‘Straits’ and being protected by Russian vessels of some apparent standing. So we didn’t do a great deal about that. Why not? Why could a boarding party not have approached one of the vessels which declared itself to be under some flag of no relevance to Moscow and proceeded to get it, at least anchored down somewhere by the side of the main thoroughfare. Should the Russian navy have interfered then not only would any action have taken some explaining in International law but also to everyone who seems to think that Russia is totally harmless.

I hear that there are stacks of these tankers, ostensibly carrying Russian oil to other nations but doing so under some disguise. They all need to be stopped. Trump says we should go and take the oil in The Straits of Hormuz. I say there’s plenty on our own doorstep.

This whole business is farcical. Iran included. I like the idea of preventing Iran, or more precisely, fanatical Islamists who hate most of us in the West for reasons I have entirely understood but that’s for another day, developing some weapons that could blow up a few towns here. Remembering all the instances where these crazy people have caused real bad things to happen over the years, no-one wants to see anyone who hates us that much with a nuclear weapon. Even a dodgy one. It’s difficult enough having to tiptoe around anything North Korean observers might read now that Kim Jong Un has a big weapon to show off at rallies. One does wonder just how reliable North Korean manufacturing really is but it only takes one to get off the ground to cause trouble.

The question is whether bombing the place (and now having to bomb it again apparently, despite assurance all the facilities had been destroyed) is really going to achieve much. Better by far would have been some programme to feed into the nuclear development programme there some people who could report back and better advise how to stop it or, perhaps more smartly, create some way in which the West might, in future, be able to turn it in on itself. As it stands now, after such huge attacks and devastation by both Israel and USA, there are going to be an awful lot of people who will be seeking revenge.

Just as we went after the 9/11 organisers, Iranians of a certain culture or religion will be determined to strike back. Sometime. They’ll not do anything quickly but, whatever the outcome of the present mess, be sure that there are instructions being issued as you read this to Islamist terrorists in all parts of the world and those instructions will be to destroy whatever it is they detest so vehemently. I honestly don’t understand what their religion is all about if it not just permits but actively insists on jihad here or wherever and that people who are absolutely innocent, in a normal way of thinking, should be killed. It’s actually worse than Russian drone operators killing little old ladies on a bus in Ukraine. They may well be some guys recently let out of prison and this sort of violence is nothing to them. They fire more for practice or to show the hit to friends than a genuine desire to kill. They could be mentally retarded men persuaded to join the army and encouraged by the impressive pay. They are not normal Russians. But I can see that some ‘normal’ Iranians, who believe a particular interpretation of their religion, will follow whatever instruction they’re given to carry out an attack on our society. Bearing in mind just how many people come to this country and claim asylum and, whether successful or not, seem able to effectively set up home here, there has to be a huge threat to us here and now. Every move that Trump has made has made life for us in Britain, maybe parts of Europe too, much more dangerous. You will look over your shoulder in the shopping centre, the new ones always fine targets for maximum publicity. You will wonder about that bag someone left for a moment unattended and move a little further away. You will look at that hired white van and wonder just what it has inside and just how great an explosion could be caused should the driver decide to head for the church entrance. 

What Trump has done is turn millions of people against us all by this ridiculous bombing and destruction of massive parts of the country. Just as we really cannot comprehend why Russia should have wanted to cause so much suffering and damage to Ukraine and Ukrainians, we simply cannot justify the USA doing the same in Iran.

Israel’s position is clear. They want to eradicate organisations and groups of people, comparatively small in numbers, whose whole aim is to destroy Israel and has been for years. By dismembering Hamas and cutting Hezbollah’s resources they should have provided some hope for the Israelis that they can live in peace. That’s quite different to Trump’s aim. Indeed, do we know what his aim is?

At one point he wanted to destroy Iran’s ability to construct a nuclear weapon. One does have to ask why they wouldn’t simply buy a few from North Korea or even Russia. You can bomb all you like, Donald, but that won’t prevent them firing something at you one day if they want to. Especially now, after you have angered so many additional people who might not have been too bothered until they lost their homes and families under the rubble.

We have seen Russia bomb places in Ukraine and Trump says Ukraine should make a deal. It seems to me that he is not at all concerned that massive areas have become pretty much uninhabitable, whole towns demolished, never mind children lost to far away Russian families, unlikely to be seen again and scarred forever by the experience. Now he has authorised the same crazy bombardment, more in fact, in Iran. The Strait of Hormuz remains closed at this time. Nothing of any advantage to anyone other than those who bet on oil and gas prices has happened. Trump looks really quite foolish to me and, like Putin, in many ways, is kinda stuck. I have no idea what either of them can do to get out of this mess.

As I remarked way back at the start of this article, where are the leaders? Where are the people who can encapsulate public feelings and beliefs as to what is right and what is wrong? Where are the people with the guts, and maybe we need a few with the money too, who can tell Trump to step aside and take over some proper action to persuade Putin to take his troops home and our taking a good hard look at how we can minimise the impact of Iranian retribution and revenge.

I see no-one. No-one prepared to stand up and even suggest action.

History will look back at this time and wonder just how we had all become so pathetic and gullible to enable idiots like Trump, Vance and others to run the show. Trump I can vaguely cope with as he is so ridiculous and so invested with the deals and business that he sees nothing of the human side of what has happened. He’s just unrestrained and slightly mad. Vance, on the other hand, professes to have strong ‘Catholic’ belief, wanting more traditional and family-oriented values. How can he even vaguely match those views without very strongly opposing what Russia has done in Ukraine? How can he think that it can be right to permit all Putin’s monstrous acts to be effectively ignored, and, whilst I do know that Christians are all for turning the other cheek, he is allowing himself and his country to be badly stuffed between some other cheeks by a rampant Putin.

Can we please hear from someone of some power and significance who can talk some sense? Trump, Vance & Co have to go. Putin too but that’s more difficult. As for Iran, I’d just exit stage left and work on converting the scientists.

In the meantime, if you look like an angry Iranian then forgive me for keeping a safe distance, if such a thing exists in this world of chemicals and nasty substances and lunatic drivers and suicidal idiots.

The Ideas of March

 It's now mid-March and the world has largely moved on from Epstein, everyone generally coming to the conclusion that the American had some pretty effective ways to attract the rich and famous and entertained them well. They all look pretty foolish but that really is probably going to be all that we remember in years to come. I am pretty sure Trump was very much involved and did all sorts of embarrassing things but seems smart enough not to have written emails about it or get himself snapped in action. I do wonder, though, whether Putin has some good hard evidence of Trump in action so maybe there is a little more of the story to run.

More important at this time, however, are the battles that are developing across the Middle East and continuing in Ukraine. I am not sure I see anything good coming out of either wars. Much as I despise the attitude of governments in Iran and that of Hamas and Hezbollah and IS, which appears to be reconstituted to represent a significant threat once more, the huge destruction wrought on Iran by US and the IDF has never struck me as being particularly likely to achieve any change. Yes, a number of leading people have been killed and huge damage done to military installations but the old government remains in charge and those now running things will be even more determined to do bad things to America and its allies. 

A significant proportion of the population may well pray for a change, wish the downfall of their dreadful rulers and hope for a better life when they can act and speak freely but bombing the hell out of Tehran, some towns and military installations is not going to help them. Indeed, anyone showing even the smallest signs of support for some alternative government is more likely than ever to be hauled away and shot or lost forever in a cell somewhere. That proportion is still just a proportion and there seems to be a good number of the population who either support the ayatollahs or just go along with what they say for an easy life. Basically whilst the police and army have guns and a presence on the streets then they'll continue to ensure some religious zealot ayatollah remains in charge.

Iran is going to lose a lot of buildings, weapons, planes and ships but it can continue to fire missiles and drones from time to time and cause a lot of trouble for neighbours who might have to to decide that enough is enough and leave Israel and the USA to it. Iran as a nation run by demented ayatollahs who hate Christians and almost anything Britain or the USA do or stand for is unlikely to change anytime soon. I rather suspect that those who survive will be all the more determined to teach us a lesson now. And that is where trouble really starts. For lurking in towns and cities all over Europe and here in Britain are immigrants who, if not themselves from Iran, are sympathetic to the cause of Iran, whatever that is. Destruction of the West, I suppose. Many are probably not bright enough to understand what it is they're for, never mind against, but the clever brain-washing techniques of whoever manages these people, controls their lives and beliefs has been sufficient. They can all be controlled and if someone somewhere calls for them to do something then they'll jump to action and do as they're told, no doubt including wearing some ghastly suicide vest or driving a van at a queue of white kids at a bus stop in Birmingham or similar despicable acts. These terrorists will be the new weapons of war and no amount of bombs on Tehran will make any difference. And they live just a few miles from you, wherever you are.

Now that's scary.

There's a lot of talk about oil prices and, of course, I'll be paying a lot more for petrol next week. There's this narrow stretch of water along which it seems a massive amount of goods and, of course oil and gas, travel and Iran appears able to control who gets to pass at the moment. Because it seems that a ship can be stopped by quite a modest missile of some sort hitting it in the right place and these can be fired from all sorts of places along the strait, keeping ships moving looks extremely difficult and I have to wonder how long it will be before we hear of one of the West's ships being hit as it tries to defend others. That would be a huge shot in the arm for whoever's still running things in Iran and could make America look pretty weak, especially if oil prices are still high and they're unable to control much on Kharge Island.

I do quite like the idea of that - controlling the massive supply of oil by effectively running the whole shooting match at the island. But there are many hostile people around who could well decide to blow up the whole thing and cause chaos in the global economy rather than let the USA run it. So I am not convinced they'll get very far on that track either. All in all, I am not sure I see a way for Trump to get out of any of this and still look good. He will not like that at all.

All that he can say is that it will take a while for Iran to rebuild their nuclear facilities and army. Big deal.

Then there's the other war. Russia do seem to be pretty much stuck where they are. Ukraine do not have the resources to push them back as that requires troops they can't send. But they can defend territory quite effectively now with drones and remote facilities in what has been a quite remarkable series of developments in a short space of time, under pressure too. Ukraine towns are still being hit every night and most days by some missiles and drones and civilians are getting killed or injured just going about their normal lives at a shop or travelling in a bus. Russian sites are also being hit by Ukraine's drones and several important technology facilities appear to have been damaged as have some military and oil depots. 

It strikes me as a bit strange that Russia has not done anything more dramatic or made what anyone would describe as a serious effort to take more territory or cause more huge devastation. One has to wonder whether they really do have the resources? I am, naturally, relieved that they haven't made any major move for a long time and that Ukraine has largely managed to keep going through the winter and preserved such troops as it has. Could Russia be running out of men? They are losing massive numbers every day, more than they are recruiting, so they will soon need to consider conscription - and that's when the government won't be that popular, however the demand to enrol is presented. I guess there'll not be much demonstration, and cutting off people's access to websites and communication via social media that's not monitored by them, will suffocate any sound of dissent anyway.

This does strike me as a good time for nations to help Ukraine make their move - with our troops and weapons from as many nations as can be persuaded to support as possible then it could become blatantly obvious to Putin that not only has he been prevented from further invasion by Ukraine alone and that now there is a real chance that his troops will be forced back. This must be the time when we make a move. I expect nothing from America now and suspect they'll be very occupied in the Middle East. UK needn't be, we could concentrate on Ukraine and actually help, as could most other European nations, showing Putin that he's not going to get anywhere and calling his bluff regarding nuclear weapon threats.

Other nations who might have supported Russia are likely to be too busy elsewhere at this time and, in any event, Russia has not exactly helped them much in their hour of need. Only North Korea looks a bit scary and might offer some support, not that their last efforts were notably successful.

This could be the month that Iran and Islamic State win and America is beaten or, at the very least, required to take an alternative route that they can describe as 'success' but we'll all know is "failure" other than causing a lot of destruction. It could be the month when Putin sees Islamic State as more of a threat to his future aspirations than Ukraine and someone manages to persuade him to switch his attention to that. I fear that his desperate belief in recreating the Soviet Union and destroying Ukraine as an independent state will remain but there's a chance for him to get out while he can and no doubt America could assist with some cheap oil or some contracts for this and that.

Unfortunately, we'll all look back in April and wonder just what the hell we were all thinking in March. And the 20,000 children taken to various parts of Russia from Ukraine are no nearer any chance of seeing their families again. Indeed, as time passes, not only will most of the children start to believe whatever their Russian masters tell them and forget about mothers (who the Russians tell them were unable to afford to look after them or other awful tales) but also the adults left in the towns and villages that have been under Russian control for 4 years will find it difficult if Ukraine does manage to regain control. There will be many who went along with the invaders who will not be popular with their rescuers. The longer time passes, the more people who actually wish to remain Ukrainian will decide to leave these areas and that, in turn, will leave those who actually support Russia as the majority and then what can you do? In so many ways, the longer Putin manages to prolong this war, the more likely he is to be sure of gaining at least those parts his forces now administer.

I guess there is not much anyone will be able to do about that, even if a peace deal were struck today. I do worry about the children, though. For so many, their young minds are so readily influenced and the people teaching them so controlled. I expect even the textbooks refer to Ukraine as part of Russia now and Britain as some terrible place where it is always foggy and men wear bowler hats and everyone is very miserable. Some English men are also very stupid and write long articles saying how bad President Putin is.

God help them, and us. But preferably not the Islam one.

The other Andrew

 I keep seeing my name in the headlines. It's something to do with being called Andrew. 40 years ago I found myself in quite a bit of trouble and attempted to get myself out of trouble by agreeing to be interviewed by the BBC, first on Radio 4 and then in a TV programme. Instead of helping me and focussing on the real baddies, all that I succeeded in doing was making everything worse and wishing I had kept quiet. Prince Andrew, as he was then, has not done himself any favours either and many see him now as as much a bad person as the person who was at the centre of all the events we are now reading about every day, Jeffery Epstein.

When the photo first appeared of Andrew looking quite young and cheerful, with his arm around a young a cheerful-looking Virginia, I don't think anyone was particular surprised and certainly not 'horrified' or concerned in any particularly dramatic way. We knew he liked girls and, although he probably was married to Fergie at the time, his lack of faithfulness to her was no big deal. As I recall, at that time the story was all about Andrew having a bit of a romp with a girl and we didn't pay much attention to who or what the other people were. It then began to emerge that he'd been at parties with Epstein who we then began to learn had shipped in a number of young girls to accompany partygoers at various locations around the world. Still no big deal, as far as I could tell but we then get stories from some of the young girls and things get a bit darker.

The girl in the photo with Andrew tells the world that she was obliged to have sex with him and that Epstein effectively forced whole loads of girls to do things they didn't want to do with men three or four times their age. Then we start to be told that many of the girls were 'young', inferring that they were under age, whatever that means. In the USA, I believe, it is against the law to have sex with a girl who is under 18 in some states, 16 in most. Virginia looks like 20 something in the photo the whole world had seen. I don't think anyone at that point was of the opinion that Andrew was sleeping with very young girls. There began to be stories about Epstein gathering lots of schoolgirls and abusing 14-year-olds and that's what he went to jail for but we weren't calling Andrew a paedophile or particularly bothered about what he had or hadn't done with Virginia.

If he had simply accepted that he'd had a brief relationship with her then things may well have turned out differently. Instead, he denied ever having met her and decided to let the BBC interview him about it all as, by now, Virginia was asking for lots of money and making a scene. Quite why she had been quiet before the photo emerged I am not sure I understand. But now everyone watched Andrew trying to explain how he hadn't met her and should really have dropped his friendship with Epstein far earlier than he did. And things have pretty much exploded ever since. Virginia gets a huge amount of money as some sort of 'out of court settlement' but Andrew remains on the ropes. Now everyone is talking about Epstein and he's killed in his prison cell and then some new investigation by the FBI gets under way and, heavens, everyone you've ever heard of and not liked very much is in the frame for having not only been to Epstein's parties but maybe also enjoying the company of young or very young girls in times past.

It becomes pretty obvious that Andrew really did know Virginia and did have sex with her a few times here and there and, probably, with several other girls too, although so far we have not been given anything to suggest any of his girls were 'under age' or that he broke any laws in that respect. So he starts to appear really rather stupid and even those of us who felt a bit sorry for him at first started to feel a bit frustrated that he could be so badly advised. Basically he looks foolish and very bad now and deserved to be dumped by the family, although I question the removal of his Prince title and his military honours. I thought that a son of a King or Queen was entitled to be called a prince, regardless of their character and he did serve and was respected at the time for his action in the Navy. 

If Andrew had owned up at the start to being with the girl he could have defended any wrongdoing or accusations regarding whether she or any other girl was forced to be with him without too much trouble. There would have been publicity and we might have laughed at his randiness and questioned why he would associate with the leary Epstein but that would largely have been that. Instead we have this circus of documents and commentators and girls who now wish they hadn't been involved and seek compensation. Some may deserve it but I am really not sure many would not have seen the whole thing as some sort of chance to lie back, think of Armenia or wherever and make some money quickly. If we do discover some girls were forced into all this then I accept it is all worth all the trouble of the investigation but one has to wonder why they stayed so long and made no effort to seek help from any of the people they encountered. Surely some of them would have helped if they had seen or been told about forced sex or compliance. It seems to me that those doing most of the commentating on all of this are forgetting that sex and the high life with a bunch of rich, maybe old, but probably clean and harmless men was a small price to pay for the returns they could receive. How many girls would jump at the chance of joining a rich group on a yacht for a few months, knowing full well what was expected by way of services other than some cleaning and cooking. Who wouldn't resist some fun times even if the blokes seemed a bit pervy, in comparison to whatever life they had at home. OK, many might run a mile but I still maintain that a good number would see it as an opportunity or adventure and I still make the point that, unless they really were physically restrained in properties and threatened with violence if they didn't perform as requested, escape if things went wrong should always have been an option. Looking at all the names of people with whom the girls were to be associated or, if not sexually, as company or decoration in the rooms, surely some of these men would have been willing to help any who needed to get away.

If it does transpire that some of these men were asked for help but ignored the requests then I am all for their being taken properly to task for that. But if they enjoyed sex with seemingly willing and cheerful girls who appeared to be older than some minimum legal age of consent then I am not going to be too bothered. whether president, ex-president, minister or prince, that's no big deal. I have to admit to being surprised at some of the names and smile at the rebuttal or assertions of innocence but that's all really.

What does trouble me, though, is the story we are now finding about where men have shared business or financial knowledge with Epstein inappropriately. By that I mean where the men have had access to information which they were duty bound not to disclose, either by law or honour. In the former camp one would place government members who knew when a new regulation or change in subsidy, for instance, might be being introduced but which was yet to become public knowledge. In the latter camp could be business people who had knowledge of forthcoming acquisitions, deals or products which a competitor might usefully benefit from knowing about. Andrew got himself embroiled in this as did several others we have read about. His involvement, though, is going to be his second most significant downfall. The first has to be the way he lied in the BBC interview, At least I was honest in mine and admitted to being foolish and trusting too much some American. He should have done the same.

So I can see Andrew's sharing of business and government information causing more trouble and outrage. He was for some time the Business Envoy for the Department of Trade. And here lies the rub; my brother Rupert travelled with the then Prince Andrew on several trips abroad. I learned of all kind of enjoyable times they had on these trips and I am sure my brother would have been more than happy with the company of some young girls had they been arranged to keep them company from time to time.

So I am now waiting to see if Rupert appears in the headlines one day! And then will my name reappear once again? I don't think I'll agree to be interviewed this time.

We need to do something about Donald Trump. Maybe ignore him completely.

 We live in strange times. There is hardly a day when I have not looked at the latest news and found myself getting annoyed, frustrated, dismayed or just a little bit sad. I really cannot remember when I read some good news about what is happening in the world and in this country and Ukraine particularly.

There is the problem that is Donald Trump, of course. I did have some passing respect at various times since his last election as there was some sense that he wanted to get things done. The problem was that I didn't always like what he wanted to get done nor am I sure that the majority of Americans did either and the fact that he appears to be operating effectively solo I find surprising and extremely worrying. I had read before he was elected that this was a possibility, that he would simply require people to do what he wanted without consultation with anyone and this could be enacted by some sort of presidential power that, mercifully, our top guy doesn't have. If parliament doesn't agree then it doesn't happen. Well, more or less - I'll come back to that later. Despite there being a whole raft of senators and the like elected at the same time, I have not seen any evidence that there has been any attempt by anyone to vote on any of Trump's actions or proposals. He just rambles on some weird Social Media outlet which no-one else seems to be a member of, so it's just Trump sharing a Trump online document, as far as I can tell, and does so in a way that would embarrass me if I were an American. whether I had voted for him or not. It is invariably quite childishly worded content. I accept that he often does get to the point pleasantly quickly in comparison to the dithering of so many other people supposedly in charge, but the phrases and grammar and general presentation leave a lot to be desired and are not what one would expect from the most senior team managing the world's most powerful nation. Except there isn't really a team. Trump appears to do much by himself or, at best, gets someone to do stuff on his behalf but they're instructed to do it exactly as he says and don't have either the nerve nor the ability to tidy things up or query the sense of some posts.

We currently have the crazy nonsense that Trump wants to 'have' Greenland. He wants Greenland to be a part of the USA. As far as I can tell from a great deal of intelligent people who know what they're talking about, the USA already has all the permissions it could possibly need to do whatever it is that Trump wants to do by way or increasing security, creating business or whatever in the country. There are agreements in place between all the appropriate parties to this effect. Disregarding for a moment the fact that Greenland is an autonomous territory belonging to the Kingdom of Denmark, and its citizens are citizens of Denmark, everything that Trump would appear to want can be achieved now. Announcing that the USA wants to 'buy' Greenland or, worse, that they might consider just taking control of the place was something I just smiled at when I first heard about it some months ago. Now it seems that Trump has got himself into a position where he has to get it as part of USA and all hell is breaking loose. It is sheer madness, totally unnecessary and surely someone needs to bring a halt to this ridiculous charade called the Trump presidency.

We have had enough. We have forgiven or put up with enough nonsense, enough announcements of this or that, or threats of this or that which never quite develop as they were going to. We shouldn't be part of this game. I wonder if the best plan for all the world leaders is simply to ignore Trump. Actually not pay any attention to him whatsoever. Sure, he'll rant and rave but he will not actually attack anyone and eventually people in the States will wake up and start finding ways in their Constitution to bring him back down to some form of democracy instead of what is perilously close to dictatorship in many ways.

I am amazed that so many otherwise smart and powerful men and women just sit and watch and do as they're told by this idiot. Maybe he is not an idiot but he is certainly a bully and an inconsiderate arsehole. He has lost the right to tun America and we need to stop paying attention to him.

USA is not about to invade Greenland. They may make an offer that residents find difficult to refuse but I don't see Greenland ever becoming a state within USA.

In the meantime people in USA will have to pay some extra duty on imports from a selection of European countries, including the UK. So be it. We may lose some sales or make less profit but I don't see it lasting long. If it does become permanent then we will retaliate and it will all get evened out after a while, to be rescinded completely by a new president in due course.

The other problem with Trump is his ridiculous treatment of the situation in Ukraine. USA is proving now to be hopelessly unreliable and that sense of untrustworthiness is not going to go down well with anyone over time and will be remembered. Ukraine is and will continue to get by without US support. It will be far more difficult for everyone there, whether trying to keep warm or defending towns and villages from Russian attack, but they will survive. Trump will be responsible for the huge number of additional casualties by virtue of his lack of real support and his stupidity in believing a lot of what Putin has told him. Putin should also have been ignored and, instead of rolling out a red carpet, Trump and, for that matter, every other country appalled by the Russian invasion, should have rolled out vast numbers of troops and equipment and shown that Putin stood no chance right at the very start. That would have ended the war there and then. It could be ended now too, four years later, if Trump and other leaders actually had the courage.

Here in Britain, I have been saddened at the continuation of the gender nonsense and the fact that staff are still being sacked for something they may have said or written in the past. We have Palestinian rights people marching in many towns and Palestinian flags flying left right and centre but display the English flag or support Israel in hammering Hamas, Hezbollah or whoever and you'll be in trouble. What I find really strange is why all the students are not out on the streets declaring how bad Putin and Russia have been and still are, demanding action not words from governments here and abroad. Why are they not supporting the uprising in Iran, not apparently upset that the Islam leaders are killing innocent people in the streets just for disagreeing with their government's policies and wanting change? Where are the Green Party on all this? The main parties may talk about how bad this or that action is but they really are not doing much at all, not have they done since it all began.

There was a Supreme Court ruling to the effect that you are either a man or a woman. Period. But this seems to have been ignored and organisations are still asking people for their preferred prefix and people are being dismissed if they even dare to smile at how nonsensical all this has become. I have no problem with men dressing as women or women dressing as men but I do object when these transvestites start asking for the facilities and rights of the gender they look like rather than what they are. There are also still schools that appear to be helping children get treatment to change the way they grow. I find this unbelievable. There maybe one or two children who genuinely do wish, and would benefit from being able, to have a physical body that more closely resembles their preferred gender but these are surely exceptions, in very low numbers and for whom special treatment is arranged only with the permission of their parents. It is nothing to do with teachers, headmasters or whatever, unless they discern that a child is being badly treated at home, in which case they should report the matter to Social Services and the Police as appropriate, step back and let experts deal with it.

You only have to read the reports each month from the Free Speech Union to see how many people are being dismissed, arrested or generally badly treated by their employers in ways that have to be regarded as grossly unfair and in contradiction to our basic laws. Unfortunately, in many cases there have been all kinds of new rules and regulations brought in, not so much by government as by ministers using Statutory Instruments to enact something that appears not to need parliamentary scrutiny. So stuff can happen that affects us all but which we may only hear about after it has been introduced.

I do accept that most of the woke nonsense actually arrived in Britain under the auspices of a Conservative government, one that I had voted for. I am amazed that they let all this happen and can only assume that most of the people at the top genuinely did not appreciate what was going on in HR departments across the country until it was too late. But when it did become clear and we started to see things like 'hate speech' incidents and worse, as well as a host of restrictions on what anyone felt safe saying at almost any meeting, that government did nothing. It deserved to lose the election but we did not deserve to get the awful apology for a government that replaced them. This lot are downright useless and don't seem to know how bad they are. Most are terribly inexperienced which means the Civil Service get to rule the roost and essentially do what they think best. Sadly, the civil servants are no better these days and many are more inclined to socialism than capitalism and to support Palestine than Israel and many Russia rather than Ukraine.

The whole place has gone to pot. I am so relieved that I have no reason to deal with schools any more or get involved in any of the disputes that I read about. I can hide away and put my head in the sand here in Bozeat in nowhereland, Northamptonshire. I am embarrassed by my country's government. Starmer may not take to social media with silly statements in capitals but he is still pathetic and, despite all the talk, seems unable to convince people to do what is necessary.

We should forget Trump and leave America to do what the hell it wants. By all means tell them what we think but let's not try and do battle with them. Soon enough the intelligent people there will work out how to rebalance the madness and Trump will be a joke in history.

We should act on our own in helping to defend Ukraine and I am sure our actions will be supported by many other nations worried about making the first move. We don't negotiate with Putin. We find a way to stop his advances and also get him arrested along with a bunch of other bad people in what passes for a government there. We deal with the opposition there and help it to gain real momentum.

We should maintain accurate records of who is actually in the country at any time. Those who arrive illegally get sent straight back to where they were last in a safe country. That will usually be France and France should be entitled to do the same, and every other country too, so that every single person planning to make an illegal trip here sees that we are serious about this and they will finish up back where they started. Now, I appreciate that the burden will then fall greatly upon Greece and Italy, being the first landing for many people wanting to move away from Africa or the Middle East. So a concerted EU venture needs to find a mutually funded place that these people can be help while their claims to be at risk in their own country can be decided.

Where someone is allowed to enter Britain then they should not be entitled to benefits or housing. If they choose to come here then they must be supported by someone or have means to support themselves. Why, otherwise, should they come? They come to contribute to British life not take from it. Once they start paying taxes then they begin to get their entitlements as the rest of the nation, health and education first and then other benefits can be earned later. No tax, no free healthcare or education. So think before coming to Britain. They may find other nations more attractive.

I cannot ask anyone to commit to any religion as I could find that hard to do myself. What I would seek, though, is an acceptance that they do not engage in action or activity that threatens anyone resident here. So those whose religion regards Christians as bad people or that regards Jews as people who shouldn't exist or, for that matter, wants to bump off anyone supporting Islam. just to keep things fair, they all get kicked out on the first offence. We don't want anyone here who will stir up hatred. We have enough here already that we can't get rid of. Obviously we have to respect rights of free speech and I am aware of my previous comments about 'hate speech' so I need to be careful. I am thinking, in the main, of supporters of extreme religious sects who preach or support the preaching of taking violent action against others because of their religious belief. Clearly I am happy to have people here who talk about wanting to get rid of Putin and various other evil people so the wording needs to be carefully selected. What we don't want are huge numbers of some religious sect who have as their basic premise the belief that some other group of our residents need to be killed or who come and live here but actually hate what we stand for. Defining what we stand for, though, is not as easy as it sounds. I may try one day. I will probably then get arrested.

Read All About It!

I have recently completed a couple of books. For The Love of Cooper, Friar Minor is a collection of letters that Harold Cooper wrote to my old friend Ugo Vincent in the 1920s and 1930s. Although it is mostly a one-sided conversation, it is possible to follow a lot of what was happening and it was the descriptions of the prairie lands of the northern territories that fascinated me and made the book worth preparing.

I also had another reason. I had inherited the papers from Mr Vincent when he died in the 1980s but had not done a great deal with them. I had been a little concerned at the many references to 'boys' in both the Church and Scouting environments in which both men spent a lot of time. I had always thought highly of my friend Mr Vincent and believed him to be of good character. His preference for male company was understood and, of course, quite acceptable in present times but I could see that this was most definitely not always the case. I was worried that I may find stories of deeds that I would be annoyed to read. Mr Vincent had had a tremendous influence on me in my later teens and over the years from the late 60s but it was his intelligence, lively conversation, challenges to authority that I liked. There was never the slightest hint of anything untoward through the time I knew him. Clearly, though, this may not always have been so.

I shall not say any more here but there are some surprises in this book.

The other is a revision of my own story up to Spring 1985. At this time I had been on a rollercoaster of life, fortune and emotions and really the whole of who and what I was to become in future was in the balance. It is difficult to write about how stupid one can be and it can be a tough read for me these days. Some of my behaviour was not good and I did feel that I needed to cut out some unnecessarily explicit detail and some rambling and repetition. 

I do mean to write the sequel and tie up a number of loose ends but I fear I simply cannot yet do that. I do think that someone could make a great film out of all that happened and one of the reasons for the revision was  so that I felt a little less nervous allowing others to read it, one colleague having good connections with a producer specialising in this sort of tale. Now that would make a good ending!

Both books are available on Amazon at the links available via the images.

My previous publications are also available and are shown below.

Finally, I have a series of Little Chick stories for children and I will summarise these soon in a separate post.

 

So much for Rupert

 I lost a brother yesterday. He didn't die or anything but any semblance of brotherly love did. I guess it had been pretty insignificant for many years. Despite all my efforts I had been unable to visit him or take him to family events since around 2016. He refused to leave Uttoxeter or allow me to drop in during the COVID years and, quite rudely, in my opinion, made no effort to help or even communicate with my son Kyran when he moved to Derbyshire and made no effort to attend, or apologise for not attending, Kyran's wedding  a few years ago.

I had so admired him as a child and we laughed a lot, especially at the dinner table and just catching each other's eyes when one or our parents made a remark that we found funny would make us burst out in laughter. Nine years older than me, though, the difference in our day-to-day lives became greater and greater and he moved to Uttoxeter at the age of 15 in 1958 to begin an apprenticeship with Bamfords, a farm machinery company.

Whereas he had to live during the war rationing years and only gradual improvement in living conditions and family income during the 50s and early 60s, my teenage years saw the immense improvement of life in the mid to later 60s. As well as having a lot more opportunities and possessions, I was lucky to gain a scholarship to attend a very respectable public school whereas he had been at the grammar school and left with just O levels. I moved as an effective only child to a lovely home on a farm in Hertfordshire whereas he had been brought up in a grotty semi in Frogmore, followed by a series of temporary flats in Uttoxeter.

He would comment on the much better luck that I had had from time to time when we met on the few occasions we visited Uttoxeter or attended a family event somewhere else. I always felt some resentment but as he started to earn money and drive a nice Hillman Hunter while I was overdrawn at St. Andrews University he did seem to be achieving more with his life than I was for a while and, although, contact was minimal, about three or four times a year at most, the age difference was becoming a little less relevant and we got on fine.

The first big problem came when he got married - well, probably when he got engaged, I supposed - to Delia Morris, a co-worker at Bamfords and Uttoxeter resident. She was a devout Catholic and the wedding had to be in a Catholic church. I had no idea what the difference was between the Christian Church of England places that I was familiar with and a Catholic one but that was what had to be. My father wasn't particularly happy with this marriage. I have never been totally sure why and I don't think it was because she was Catholic as much as what she insisted that Rupert do, like attend Church with her on Sundays and do slightly different things at Christmas. I suspect that he voiced his lack of enthusiasm for all that on the one occasion Delia actually visited us on the farm in Kings Langley. It would have been around 1968 and the pair never visited my mother and father again as a couple. We all went to the wedding in 1970 in Uttoxeter and, as an 18-year-old student, I enjoyed the wine and the food and the party and failed to notice the clear division at the reception on the day. As many of my uncles and aunts mentioned, and, particularly my dad has never forgotten, the Hills were treated very rudely with many from the Morris side whispering "here come the Prozzies" as we entered and no effort was made by any of the parental generations to chat or share conversation or a drink.

I only learned of this later but how my father, in particular, was treated seems to have been appalling and even my mum, who has to be one of the most forbearing and forgiving ladies in the world, anxious to please anyone and everyone, was upset. The result was that we never visited Rupert and Delia in Uttoxeter again. Rupert would call in at Kings Langley should his work bring him down south and he was my best man at my own wedding in 1971 in St. Andrews, with Delia notably absent.

The expression 'Who's Rupert?' became quite a common one whenever the conversation with my parents turned to him. As the years progressed, mum and dad moved to Doddington in the Fens in the early 1980s but Rupert and Delia never visited, not attended as a couple any of the family weddings and funerals. With many uncles and an aunt and a string of cousins, there were many but only Rupert would attend.

In 1983 my own business had grown quite spectacularly and, promised a large investment by an American broker, I had set up a company to help new businesses get started or for small businesses to grow. I needed good advice on how to select companies and people to support and had taken on as directors two men who had been directors of a client company with which I had got on well for several years before. On a car phone in a park near the Serpentine in the middle of London one day in 1983 I remember a call with Rupert. I had heard that he had been badly let down and a job he had taken in the East of England had been made redundant almost as soon as he had started. It occurred to me that his good experience of dealing with businesses and commerce generally over his career with Bamfords would be very useful for my new company and I suggested he join the team as a fourth director.

Rupert came and met my other two colleagues and we had a great time. He would fit in really well and we began to enjoy each other's company once again, with laughter once more and little talk about the years before. My mum and dad were delighted that we were working together, although Rupert still didn't see much of them. We had a year of wonderful times - many, many nice meals together in Newbury, a memorable 60th birthday party for one of our colleagues on a boat on the Thames, a trip for Rupert and I to Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura in August and another to Kos one wild and windy December. I provided him with a brand new Volvo, in silver and a blue interior, as he specified and a decent salary.

All was looking so good and it was so nice to be proud of my brother again. All the staff liked him and he was good at what he did. And then, in 1985, everything came crashing down. The American broker proved to be a massive fraud and I was in serious trouble, as a trustee of a pension scheme having lost about a million pounds in loans and investments through the American that were not being returned or acknowledged.

Rupert did work hard for several months to try and help colleagues raise some money, through loans secured on some land we could acquire in the Canaries or through other schemes, and it did look as though he might succeed at times but, in the end, every single attempt failed and the whole business collapsed, some elements being forced to close by government and Court interventions. He was briefly thought to be in collusion with me in some sort of fraud that we had conspired together on but I took the hit for everything and deliberately made sure that none of my staff or other directors were accused of anything and their names cleared. It cost me dearly but it was the right thing to do.

He, as well as others of course, lost jobs and income but his expenses and salary were fully paid up to the end. He managed to keep the car too, with my Finance Director finding a way for that to be arranged. Quite soon afterwards I understand that he got a good position with the Department of Trade and was able to continue his life as before reasonably easily. Indeed, when we met at later dates, he would tell me many tales of his trips with Prince Andrew who often led the Department of Trade forays abroad to fly the flag and generate interest. I do think the events surrounding my demise were a big shock for him and his inability to get me out of trouble, or maybe, see the trouble and possible fraud beforehand, weighed heavily on his conscience in the background. It was a subject never spoken about afterwards. 

I was charged with conspiracy to defraud and several counts of theft in summer 1985 and we were not in contact until sometime after I emerged from a year at HMP Leyhill in February 1990. Indeed, it was in February 1992 when we next met when he attended my second wedding in St. Albans. I remember being so pleased he had made it and that some move might be being made towards forgiving me for giving him problems before.

That was it, though, and it was not until dad died in 2005 that we met again. On this occasion he took care of most of the arrangements and there was little interaction between us and no Delia present. It was when mum became unwell and quite difficult to deal with that we started to work together again. Mum was still living in the Fens, a long drive from both Milton Keynes, where I lived, and Uttoxeter where Rupert had never really moved from. We took it in turns to visit every couple of weeks for a while but then, as she became particularly difficult, and talk of finding a nursing home for her began, we started going on the same day, usually a Saturday, every week or two. She would call each of us almost every day and we would have to decide whether whatever she was reporting as an issue was actually serious or not, and whether we needed to drive out there immediately or later. When we did meet, however, we would often go somewhere as just the two of us for lunch and I felt some of the good times return as we laughed once more and talked about our current activities.

I was a lecturer and coming up to retirement. He had been forced to retire from his Department of Trade position but was very much involved in various charitable organisations in Uttoxeter and also with being in charge of looking after the proceeds of a  £1 million grant for some part of Uttoxeter's regeneration. Mum would get annoyed with him and he would shout at her on many occasions which surprised me. I seldom saw him in such a bad mood. Mum could be frustrating but I never needed to get angry with her. Rupert would stand up and stamp his feet and go outside for a cigarette. He was controlling her money and mum would say that she hadn't got any and he would say he had given her so much on this date and so on. To maintain her entitlement to various care support in the home her bank balance needed to remain below a certain amount and so, from time to time, as pension credits came in he would send me an amount which he said was half of the surplus he needed to pull down.

The visits started in the mid 1990s and carried on through to 2014 when the house was eventually sold after he death in 2013. They were much less frequent after she went into hospital in 2013 but we needed to maintain the garden and tidy up her house which we did together. I did most the arrangements for mum's funeral and that was a lovely event, noticeably more memorable than dad's, which several people appreciated, with nice displays of photos and little items on the tables and speeches from several of us at the funeral. No Delia, of course. In fact, on many occasions Rupert would bring either a girlfriend from Essex or an old schoolfriend from Hertfordshire to mum's house during the care and tidying up period. After the funeral, we set about dividing up the things in the house. I found a draft of a will that specifically requested that Rupert not have any personal possessions, only half the property proceeds. It mentioned how offended dad had been at the treatment from Delia and her family over the years and how they wanted nothing of their own to be moved to Uttoxeter. I talked to my first wife, Anne, about this and we decided that no good would come from telling him about this so I put the draft away - it was not a legally binding will, nor did mum and dad's solicitor have any will or instructions. I have never mentioned it.

I have also never told Rupert that he has a sister. Karen was born in 1945 as a result of a relationship mum had with an American officer stationed locally and who was accommodated at her house in the war. Rupert would have been just 1 or 2 and mum was taken by her mum to Portsmouth at some point, presumably when the bulge began to be difficult to hide, where the baby girl was born and immediately taken for adoption. I understand the family was a chemist in the area and the date 6 May 1945 but that is all I have ever been able to discover. Mum told me in the early 2000s and had asked me to try and find some information about the girl. I did try but was not able to get very far with the Salvation Army, who one used to approach in these matters. Quite what was done with Rupert at that time I don't know but I guess he was too young to remember anything anyway. I don't know why I never told him. Dad never knew either, incidentally. The fact that mum had told me and not Rupert had always made me feel that she trusted me with the information but not Rupert, dad being alive still at the time. I may have been wrong and thought about telling him recently but events have left me inclined not to bother as I suspect he wouldn't be interested anyway.

The division of the house things and money went well and Rupert seemed efficient and dealt with the various utilities and sale costs. One thing has always troubled me, though, whilst I received what appeared to be half of the net house sale proceeds, I never did receive anything else. I remembered that Rupert had to keep the bank balance down below £16000 or thereabouts and so there should have been a good amount of around £10000 remaining even after all the utilities and funeral costs. In addition, dad had always kept a few thousand in cash in a wallet in a drawer in the bedroom. I had looked for this in 2005 when he had died but Rupert had been to the house earlier than me to obtain some certificates or something. I assumed it had been moved to a safe place by mum at the time and thought nothing more of it until I thought more about the calculations when mum died. I don't like to entertain thoughts that Rupert succumbed to temptation or maybe considered the funds fairly to be due to him as the older brother doing most of the administrative work. I don't like to but the doubt remains and was reinforced a bit by his remark that I was lucky to get 50% of the house money. This came when I was wondering whether we might develop the house, which stood on a good-sized plot in a pleasant village. The bungalow was in poor condition so would not sell for much. Replacing it with a new building and garage and outbuildings, or even selling the plot with planning permission for the development, could be profitable. I had no funds, though, and Rupert was not interested in using any of the money for this purpose. So it didn't happen. Nor did he agree that I might move there. In 2013 I was living alone in a rented house and would very much have liked to have some more permanent accommodation. It wasn't that nice but I could slowly have made it better. I would have paid a modest rent but he wanted the house sold and I got the impression that he wanted the whole memory of mum and dad there to go. He had hardly ever spoken to dad since the wedding in Uttoxeter, over 40 years ago, and had been increasingly rude with mum in her later years. I don't think he had ever visited the there now I think about it, other than maybe an occasional passing call in on a business trip when he would appear with a girl from his office. Whereas Doddington had become my parents' 'home' to me and, indeed, I had actually lived there myself for a while in the late 80s, and, of course, I had fond memories of the farm in Kings Langley, Rupert had none of this fondness for a place or home and I began to wonder too of his real affection for mum. He certainly had none for dad.

The 'Where's Rupert?' remark that had been a sarcastic one back in the 70s and 80s became a 'Who's Rupert?' from my own children from around the 2000s to this day. He has never had any real conversation or shown any interest in them in all the years. Of particular sadness for me was his lack of any attempt to help my son in Derby as I have referred to before. If I talk about him with them, notably Katie will come out with the 'Who's Rupert?' comment and they all find it strange that, as quite close brothers and sisters themselves, Rupert and I seem distant.

At Christmas 2024 I called to wish Rupert a merry Christmas, as I almost always have done every year, even if that's all we have said. Delia answered. 

"Can I speak to Rupert, please?"

"No."

"Er . . . OK. Where is here?" (thinking he was in the garden or out for a walk or something)

"He's in a Home."

That hit me like a thunderbolt and, after recovery I managed to get the name of the Nursing Home but absolutely no other information at all, no number, no cause, no timescale, no nothing. No apology for not telling me or sympathy either for that matter. It was almost like it was none of my business.

I immediately called the Nursing home and managed to get through to Rupert as he was about to have his lunch. He was a bit croaky and rough but I got the merry Christmas message across and said I'd come up and see him in the New Year.

I went up in January and found him in bed in a small room where he said he had been since some time in September 2024. I said that I had only just found out and asked what had happened but got little response. He said that that was his life now and he would be there for the rest of his life. He had arranged for a friend and Delia's relatives to take care of everything and given a power of attourney to one of them. He almost seemed to say that there was no need for me to know anything anyway and dismissed any offer of help as everything was taken care of. He didn't remember the call or much about what had happened to him before. Delia was at the house, as I knew, and being looked after by people there and all was well, as far as he was concerned. Basically, he didn't seem too bothered about my seeing him and, after about 30 minutes, I was none the wiser about his condition, prognosis nor affairs, and he said he had had enough talking and needed to rest.

I left feeling a bit rejected as well as dejected as it was a big change to see a once lively life-and-soul-of-the-party fellow in such a dead-end street place. 

Two cousins visited in the summer but I was not inclined to make the long trip in a hurry. I had swapped my BMW for a Jaguar but that was very expensive to run and I was looking to change it, putting off the trip to Uttoxeter until I did get something else. The cousins reported similarly to me; a grumpy Rupert who hardly knew them and who shared nothing of much interest.

I did discover from the main nurse at the Home, a very pleasant and helpful lady, that Rupert had become unable to walk around and had been hospitalised for some months in the summer of 2024. I think Delia was unable to look after him and so they had chosen the Home at that time. He had some diabetic problem and needed to wear a urine bag and, initially, was unable to move about much, with painful bones. After coming to the Home, however, the nurse had noticed that there seemed little wrong with him apart from the urine bag necessity. It was her view that he needn't lie around in bed all day and they might make an effort to encourage him to move more. She said he asked why he needed to move and, in a similar remark to what he'd said to me, he had said that he would stay there for the rest of his life and what would he need to have movement therapy or whatever for?

I was planning to visit this Christmas when I got a call on my mobile in the car. It was Rupert, thanking me for the card I'd sent. He then told me that Delia had died but they'd had a private family funeral and, basically, there was nothing more I needed to know anyway. I wished him well and said I would visit soon. He said there was no rush.

I drove up yesterday. I had told the staff I was on my way and they said lunch was at 12:30 so I reckoned I would get there for 11:30 and have plenty of time and, of course, he might only manage 30 minutes anyway. I arrived at 11:40 and his first remark was to say that I shouldn't have come at that time as he would be going to lunch in 15 minutes. He pointed at the clock behind me. I said his lunch was at 12:30 but he insisted it would be 12 and he had already ordered his preferences from the menu. I said I needed to help make arrangements for him now that Delia was gone and presumably there'd be much to sort out. 

"Well, get on with it, we've only got quarter of an hour." he replied.

I said that if he sold the house then the Home would gradually take all but a small amount of the proceeds. £80,000 a year would soon take whatever he received. If a relative was living there then the house would not be regarded as an asset and the government would continue to pay the fees. So it might be worthwhile looking into the options . . .

"Ah, you want to live in my house rent free?" he said quite angrily. 

I said that it might just be me in name or could be someone else. I hadn't really wanted to move to Uttoxeter. I was just trying to protect his money from disappearing. I admit that I was thinking initially about what would happen when he died but I did actually get the impression that he would be around for quite a long time yet as he seemed a lot stronger and more able to move about than before. So I could see that there was no imminent chance of any resources for me anyway.

I had clearly got off on the wrong foot but he soon made his views very clear.

"I will sell the house and it's my money." he started bluntly. "You can't live there. It will be sold and the money pays for my care here. They look after me well and I will spend the rest of my life here. It's not much to look at but I will be here for as long as I live. That's it. There's nothing for you in any of this. We were never very close, were we? I'm not going to do anything for you. You can talk to the people who have been helping me and arrange to collect anything you want from the house."

It was abundantly clear that he was not bothered in the slightest about the house money gradually disappearing and that was simply because he needed nothing now by way of money. Everything around him was paid for. Any phone bills were paid by whoever was dealing with his affairs and it would be they who dealt with the house. I learned that his solicitor, who will manage everything on the legal and tax side, is a member of the Home's management team and Rupert mentioned that he had been advised by him already on 'something to do with assets'. I got the feeling that the Home may well do better from the house proceeds for a few years than government funding. I may be wrong but decided not to pursue that line.

I told Rupert that I felt a duty to help him as much as I could and he only had to ask if there was anything he needed. I was now his next of kin and I said that I was sure he would want to do the same if the roles were reversed. He replied that there was nothing he needed and he didn't want me to do anything. There was nothing for me, he repeated, to do. He didn't want any help from me. It was like the other friends that were local had done so much for him, taking him to Delia's funeral, arranging his bills and finances etc., and I had done nothing in all the time he had been there. I did remind hm that I had tried hard to visit him and take him places in the years before and, indeed, had not even know about his being in hospital or put in the home. I even learned that Delia had died in October but he only told me two months later. All in all, he should appreciate that it was all a bit of a shock and now I am trying to help.

"Don't need you. Don't need anything. This is my money and I'll do what I like with it." That was it. Then he pointed to the clock again. It was a couple of minutes from 12 o'clock. "Get off the bed!" he shouted, and swung his legs over the side, stood up and pulled on a pullover. "I have to go to lunch. You have to go. I go to lunch at 12 every day. It's the only time I get up. So thanks for coming but you have to go now."

I shook his hand but didn't look at him and walked out the door, pulling it behind me quite hard. I was a bit upset at the way he had effectively returned to the days when we knew nothing about each other and didn't care much either. There was no humour, no understanding. He immediately thought I was looking to get his house or something but more than that, I detected that he wanted nothing to do with me at all, as if he had promised Delia that the Hill family would have nothing of theirs, just as mum and dad had not wanted Rupert to have anything of theirs. All the bad feeling had come full circle.

As I looked at Rupert on the bed when trying to tell him I felt it was my duty to be involved in what arrangements he makes henceforth, from his lack of understanding or appreciation, indeed his quite aggressive statement that it has nothing to do with me, I began to realise that this was not my brother any more. There's no love, no desire to help or be kind, to share or enquire. Quite simply, as I drove the long way home after the 20 minutes that seemed like a hour or two, I decided that I had no reason to see him again. 

Farewell, Rupert. You live the life that you make for yourself.

Send in the clowns

The border can only change if the Ukrainian people agree. There might be a majority to accept some interim group of nations controlling a thin slice to the East and Crimea. Otherwise, without support from some other countries on the ground and in the air, Russia will gradually take a little more here, be pushed back a little more there and this will go on for years. 

At some point there have to be elections and there is much worry that they will be falsified to bring in some innocent-looking MPs who turn out to be Russian plants and Russia effectively takes control, with the population then fighting its own 'elected' government and curbed by umpteen new orders. Very messy with major riots and revolution (again) which we'll all just watch. 

If only that 'coalition of the 'willing' countries' were actually willing and took action - but I just see a lot of remote leaders knocking at the border door, scrawling a rude message maybe, and then scampering away.

The 'big' boys seem very weak to me and the 'little' folk like Estonia and Lithuania who are genuinely prepared to go in are too small and also have their hands tied by NATO in a strange twist of things. 

Much of Russia's threat is bluff, with weapons that often misfire and much nuclear stuff already sold by those who were supposed to be looking after it and there's a good reason why they have struggled against the supposedly far less-well equipped Ukraine - they haven't got as much as we think they have. We should call their bluff but no-one's got the balls.  In a strange way, the best hope is actually for NATO to be forced to get involved by a big mistake and a major missile strike on a Polish or Czech city.

A month has gone by since we watched a bunch of leaders bend the knee to Trump in the White House. Perhaps behind closed doors one or two were a little firmer, such as Macron, who has little to lose at home, and one or two others wishing to make a more aggressive move than wagging at finger at easier targets like companies still trading with Russia.

This week we shall see Trump being wafted around England, probably missing Wales, Scotland and definitely missing Northern Ireland and looking interested as King Charles tells him about plants and architecture. This would be a great week to announce that we're joining a group of nations who are planting troops and weapons of all sorts on the Ukraine border with air support, all ready to counter any further incursion into NATO territory and with an unwritten agreement to knock out a few particularly annoying Russian missile operations depots and missile sites, probably by "some errant drone that just happened to go in the wrong direction."

Now where have I heard that before?

All hell really needs to be let loose very soon. It may feel uncomfortable but nothing like as bad as a Russian penis up our collective arse.