HOW THE PARASITIC BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY WILL BE SPENDING (SPENDING THE BRITISH TAX PAYERS MONEY) CHRISTMAS AT HOME WITH THE LEECHS YOU MIGHT SAY.

Source: Getty

Queen Elizabeth II has officially departed London to prepare for her Christmas break, so we thought it was a great time to take a look at how the royal family traditionally celebrates the holidays. Unfortunately for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry, Christmas with Granny doesn’t mean they’ll be spending the holidays in a relaxed family atmosphere. In fact, Christmas at the queen’s official Winter retreat, Sandringham, is a different beast altogether. If your only knowledge of British aristocrats comes from Downton Abbey, we’ve put together a handy guide to how the most famous family in the world celebrates the holidays.

The Protocol

Source: The Sandringham Estate

While most of us think of Christmas as being a quiet, casual time at home, the holidays are hardly a low-key affair for the royals. Attendees to the queen’s Christmas celebrations are required to adhere to court protocol, including bowing or curtseying to their royal superiors and paying attention to who enters a room first. Even the guests’ arrivals are coordinated based on seniority, with junior members arriving at Sandringham first and the more senior ones arriving last. Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, always arrive last, as Charles is the immediate heir to the throne. The queen arrives at the estate usually a day before her guests so she can oversee the preparations.

In addition to coordinating their arrivals, guests have to adhere to the queen’s perfectly timed schedule. They are typically given an outline of their activities upon arrival so they can coordinate their outfit changes and timing. Guest also cannot go to bed before the queen, who typically stays up until midnight. (However, we imagine exceptions would be made for sleepy babies like Prince George.)

The Clothes

Source: Getty

Again, Christmas at Sandringham is not a casual affair, and guests are expected to make at least three outfit changes throughout the day, including an outfit change for morning activities, a new ensemble for afternoon tea (usually a suit or tweed dress for women), and formal attire complete with jewels at dinner. Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, once complained that she once had to wear seven different outfits in a 24-hour period when she used to be invited to the holiday celebrations.

The Food

Keeping with tradition, the food at Sandringham tends to be your typical holiday fare, including a Christmas turkey accompanied by winter root vegetables like parsnips. Royal guests also start their days on the estate with a typical English breakfast, complete with bacon, sausages, kippers, and kidneys; however, Princess Diana’s former chef, Darren McGrady, remembers that women would often opt for lighter fare like fruit, which they would take in their rooms.

Prince Charles famously brings in his own organic vegetables and food to eat that come straight from his garden in Highgrove. Darren noted that Charles preferred poached plums from his estate, so his valet would often place up to four bottles of the treats in the estate’s fridge. In addition to food, guests sometimes would bring their own china to dine on, even if that means that it won’t go with the queen’s setting. “They like the continuity,” Darren said.

Christmas Eve

Guests typically arrive at the estate on Christmas Eve in the early afternoon, where they are ushered to their rooms to change for tea. At 4 p.m., the crowd gathers in the White Drawing Room for tea and snacks, while children are given last-minute ornaments to decorate the Christmas tree. Then, everyone is ushered into the Red Drawing Room, where tables are set up with presents which are, again, displayed in order of royal precedence. (The family opens their presents on Christmas Eve rather than Christmas Day, as the queen believes Dec. 25 should be reserved for religion.)

Rather than fancy gifts, the royal family exchanges cheap joke presents — the sillier, the better. Diana famously made a mistake during one of her first Christmases at Sandringham, bringing in expensive cashmere sweaters and luxury items to give to her in-laws. It appears that Kate has gotten the hang of royal gifting, as she reportedly gave Prince Harry a plastic Grow Your Own Girlfriend kit during an early visit. Previous gifts that made a splash include a padded toilet-seat cover that Princess Anne gave Prince Charles and a pepper mill that one guest gave to Prince Philip.

Later, the family changes once again for dinner, donning their best formal clothing and jewels. The adults and older children dine together, while the youngsters play in a nursery. After dinner, the queen stands to signal to the women in the party that they should move to another room for coffee, while the men stay behind for an after-dinner drink.

Christmas Day

Source: Getty

After breakfast, the entire royal family dons their best church clothing for a visit to the Sandringham parish church at 11 a.m., where they are usually greeted by a large crowd of fans and photographers. Then, everyone heads back to the big house for lunch, which includes a Christmas turkey and a selection of cold meats, before watching the queen’s annual Christmas message on TV at 3 p.m.

After lunch, the family is free to roam around the estate or, if they prefer, stay inside and watch TV, which is usually full of special Christmas-themed TV shows from the country’s biggest programs.

Boxing Day

Source: Getty

Following another traditional breakfast, the group heads out for an annual pheasant shoot on the estate. The men are the only people who are allowed to take part in the hunt, as ladies are not allowed to use a gun in the presence of the queen. Once the shoot is over, the party begins to break up, with everyone heading home to spend the holidays with other members of their families. Kate and William typically visit Kate’s parents in Bucklebury before heading to Balmoral to meet up with Charles and Camilla again. However, now that the Cambridges have a home at nearby Anmer Hall (which sits on the Sandringham grounds) there is talk that the Middletons will stay at Anmer Hall and join the royal family for various events during the holiday.

While everyone else takes off, the queen and Prince Philip will remain at Sandringham until February. Reportedly, the queen insists that the Christmas decorations stay up during her entire term at the estate.

Wynton Marsalis Jingle Bells – YouTube

Wynton Marsalis Jingle Bells – YouTube.

so here we go jingle bells , i am getting the spirit shall we say of this hols . happy , high happy spirit of xmas ,. till some z…..t barsteward comes and pisses on my parade.!him or the wife !

JOHN PERKINS

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Mass Breastfeeding Protest Planned At Claridge’s After Asking Mum To Cover Up.POWER TO THE MOTHERSRIGHT ON GIRLS STICK IT TO THEM.

 

TOMIE JONES  These people that say they don,t want to see babies being fed , when they are feeding , drinking ,etc. put a sheet over them .Idon,t want to see them feeding. , IN THIS CASE IN CLARIDGE,S THEY WERE ALL EATING INCLUDING THE BABY.WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?I am right behind you girls.

 

Mothers are to stage a mass “nurse-in” outside Claridge’s hotel today to protest after a woman was “humiliated” by being asked to cover herself up when she was breast-feeding in its restaurant.

Mother-of-three Louise Burns complained that the Mayfair hotel asked her to put a napkin over her baby’s head.

Claridge’s has said it “embraces” breastfeeding but requests that women are “discreet towards other guests”.

Louise Burns with and without the napkin over her baby’s head

Nigel Farage became embroiled in the row on Friday, suggesting mothers could “sit in the corner” in restaurants to avoid offending people.

He insisted it was “not too difficult” to feed a child in a way that was “not openly ostentatious”.

Setting out his views on the subject on his regular LBC radio phone-in, Mr Farage said: “I am not particularly bothered about it, but I know a lot of people do feel very uncomfortable.

“This is just a matter of common sense, isn’t it? Given that some people feel very embarrassed by it, it isn’t too difficult to breastfeed a baby in a way that is not openly ostentatious.”

He argued it was “up to Claridge’s” what rules it wanted to operate.

Pressed on whether it would be right for a hotel to ask mothers to use the “ladies’ room” to feed, the MEP replied: “Or perhaps sit in the corner, or whatever it might be. That is up to Claridge’s.

“It’s not an issue I get terribly hung up about but I know particularly people of the older generation feel awkward and embarrassed by it.”

Major US academic body backs boycott of Israeli educational institutions American Studies Association says move is ‘in solidarity with scholars and students deprived of academic freedom’

The boycott movement claimed a major victory earlier this year when Stephen Hawking pulled out of a conference in Israel. Photograph: Felix Clay for the Guardian

A prestigious US academic body has joined a growing movement to boycott Israel in protest at its treatment of Palestinians, in a move both welcomed and condemned in a bitterly divisive international arena.

The American Studies Association (ASA), which has more than 5,000 members, is the most significant US academic organisation to back a boycott of Israeli educational institutions following a two-thirds majority vote. Around a quarter of members took part in the ballot.

The ASA resolution was “in solidarity with scholars and students deprived of their academic freedom”, the organisation said in a statement. It cited “Israel’s violation of international law and UN resolutions; the documented impact of the Israeli occupation on Palestinian scholars and students; [and] the extent to which Israeli institutions of higher education are a party to state policies that violate human rights.”

The resolution bans “formal collaborations with Israeli academic institutions, or with scholars who are expressly serving as representatives or ambassadors of those institutions”.

The vote came amid renewed calls in the aftermath of Nelson Mandela’s death for an international boycott drive against Israel similar to the anti-apartheid campaign.

Last week the major Dutch drinking water firm Vitens announced that it was severing commercial links, including joint projects agreed just weeks earlier, with Israel’s national water company, Mekorot, in protest at its activities in Israeli settlements in the West Bank. “The company concluded that it would be very difficult to develop joint ventures together, considering the fact that they cannot be seen as divorced from their political context. We follow international law,” Vitens said in a statement.

At the same time, the UK government issued an explicit warning to British businesses over the risks of involvement in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including potential damage to a company’s reputation. There were “clear risks related to economic and financial activities in the settlements, and we do not encourage or offer support to such activity,” it said.

Earlier this year, the EU established new guidelines that prohibit giving funds, grants, prizes or scholarships to Israeli bodies with links to settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, prompting a furious response by the Israeli government.

The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, drew a distinction last week between boycotting products and companies connected to settlements and a more widespread boycott of Israeli institutions and goods. “We do not ask anyone to boycott Israel itself,” he said in South Africa. “We have relations with Israel, we have mutual recognition of Israel.” But, he added, “we ask everyone to boycott the products of the settlements”.

The ASA move, which is not binding on its members, drew angry responses from Israeli ministers. “This is an unworthy act that does not dignify the association,” said the science minister, Yaakov Peri. “To our regret, in the recent past we have seen numerous examples of the mixing of politics with science, and we are acting to eradicate those phenomena.”

Avi Wortzman, the deputy education minister, also condemned the decision. He said: “This is a disgraceful attempt to meddle in the internal policies of the state of Israel under the guise of an academic debate and equal rights supposedly. The state of Israel grants all of its citizens an equal opportunity in the academic world and encourages the integration of minorities in academia.”

Ronald Lauder, the president of the World Jewish Congress, said: “This vote to boycott Israel, one of the most democratic and academically free nations on the globe, shows the Orwellian antisemitism and moral bankruptcy of the ASA.” The association was deeply biased and disconnected with reality, he added.

The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel hailed the ASA’s “refusal to be intimidated by the persistent efforts of defenders of Israel’s regime of occupation, colonisation and apartheid”. The move was “a significant step in the direction of holding Israeli institutions accountable for their collusion”, it added.

The US-based Jewish Voice for Peace also welcomed the ASA’s move, saying it represented a “significant milestone in the growth of the BDS [boycott, divestment and sanctions] movement in the United States”. Boycotts to pressure Israel to abide by international law were not inherently antisemitic, it said.

The American Association of University Professors, which has 48,000 members, has rejected calls for a boycott of Israeli institutions. In the UK, the University and College Union supports one.

Earlier this year, the boycott movement claimed a major victory when Stephen Hawking pulled out of a conference in Israel in protest at its treatment of Palestinians.

Other British personalities who have declined invitations to visit Israel include Elvis Costello, Roger Waters, Brian Eno, Annie Lennox  Mike Leighand many others, including the author Ian McEwan .

Black families woke up this morning knowing that the lives of their children are worth less than the lives of white children in America.At the root of this nation it,s always been that way.

Black families woke up this morning knowing that the lives of their children are worth less than the lives of white children in America. The deep distrust of law enforcement in their own communities that so many African Americans feel just got deeper last night — 108 days since the killing of unarmed teenager Michael Brown — when the prosecuting attorney announced the decision not to subject the police officer who killed Brown to a trial where all the facts could be publically known and examined.

Ferguson protests Monday night. Photo by Heather Wilson

We now all have the chance to examine the evidence — released last night — in the grand jury’s decision not to indict white police officer Darren Wilson, who fired multiple bullets into Michael Brown. But the verdict on America’s criminal justice system is already in for many Americans: guilty, for treating young black men differently than young white men.

According to veteran prosecutors and defense attorneys,many things were unusual about the grand jury that ultimately decided not to indict Wilson. But most unusual may have been the decision to hold the news until after dark — as anxiety rose and hundreds gathered on the street. The decision was reportedly in by 2 p.m., so why did authorities wait seven hours to announce it? Why did they wait until people were off work and anxious young crowds had gathered outside police headquarters in Ferguson? Focus quickly turned from the grand jury’s decision to the response in the streets. While most protestors remained peaceful, the media naturally focused on the very unfortunate violence.

Other large questions remain. Why did prosecutor Robert P. McCulloch never mention in his long statement last night that Michael Brown was unarmed? Why did a trained police officer decide he had no other option than to shoot more bullets into Brown after he had fled their confrontation? Why did anyone have to die? Why did a prosecutor, in his long 25 minutes of explanation of why Wilson was not indicted, sound more like a defense attorney for the police officer instead of an advocate for the unarmed teenager who was shot and killed? Why were the “conflicting accounts” of the confrontation between Officer Wilson and Michael Brown not subjected to a trial? The resulting decision from the grand jury was completely foreseeable in a nation where police officers are almost never indicted for the use of deadly force — especially when it is white police officers killing black people.

It was a very sad night for America. I echo St. Louis area pastor, Rev. Traci Blackmon’s words this morning: “I hurt, I really hurt for the young people who did everything they could to be peaceful and nonviolent and to raise their voice; but the anger and rage of a few made the narrative very different this morning.” Even though most of the protests in Ferguson and around the country were peaceful, it was painful to watch President Obama speaking to the nation on a split screen with scenes of violent protest in Ferguson. In his powerful speech, the president spoke the truth when he said, “We need to recognize that this is not just an issue for Ferguson; this is an issue for America.” He also reminded the nation of the recent words of Michael Brown Sr., the dead boy’s dad, words that have touched many of us so deeply.

The dad who lost his son said, “Hurting others or destroying property is not the answer. No matter what the grand jury decides, I do not want my son’s death to be in vain. I want it to lead to incredible change, positive change, change that makes the St. Louis region better for everyone.”

It’s time for us all to honor the wishes of Michael Brown’s father and mother. Whatever the facts might have revealed in the trial that will never happen, the time is long overdue to subject our criminal justice system to the requirements of racial justice. The racialization of that system and its policing behavior toward people of color is beyond dispute. The police force in Ferguson that is completely unrepresentative of the community and whose behavior has caused such deep alienation among the people they are supposed to serve and protect has become a parable. Ferguson has become a parable in America, for how black lives are less important in the ways our laws are enforced. Ferguson is not only in Ferguson.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the nation’s apostle of nonviolence, once said: ”a riot is the language of the unheard.” He also showed us that only disciplined, sacrificial, and nonviolent social movements can change things.

It is time to right the unacceptable wrong of black lives being worth less than white lives in our criminal justice system. The broken relationships between law enforcement officials and their communities are deeply felt and very real. How law enforcement interacts with communities of color raises fundamental, legitimate issues that must be addressed by the whole nation if we are to move forward. The changes we need in both policies and practices must now be taken up in detail. Our neglect has led to anger and hopelessness in a new generation, but their activism will also help lead us to new places. It is indeed time to turn Ferguson from a moment to a movement, and Michael Brown’s life and death must not be allowed to be in vain.

Masturbate to keep warm this winter, says Osborne

George Osborne has suggested that those concerned about fuel bills this winter should masturbate to keep warm.

“It’s time for innovative solutions,” said the Chancellor.

“Masturbation is something that everyone can do; I do it, the Prime Minister does it, the Deputy Prime Minister does it constantly.”

There are calls each year for Government to help vulnerable people with fuel bills.

“Government handouts for this issue are not the solution, if you’ll pardon the pun,” continued the Chancellor.

“There are many innovative ways to approach the situation, if you’ve an old person next door, why not do it for them and help keep you both warm?”

“If you’re on benefits, perhaps charge a pound to do it for other people? But remember to declare any income, obviously.”

Osborne on winter fuel crisis

The opposition was sceptical of the idea.

“I don’t see how fifteen seconds of frantic waggling can really help,” said Ed Miliband.

But the initiative has been broadly welcomed by the public

“Yeah, I mean, I always try to crack one out before I get out of bed,” said fervent masturbator Simon Williams.

“And, I’ve got to be honest, it does warm me up in the morning.”

The mood was best summed up by Kerry Greene of East Sussex.

“At least the Government’s finally come out and admitted that it’s full of wankers.”

Get y

Who is the coolest, David Cameron or Barack Obama? – YouTube

29:00

Russell Howard’s Good News – Series 9, Episode 5

by Russell Howard’s Good News

41,874 views

29:19

via Who is the coolest, David Cameron or Barack Obama? – YouTube. OK LAST ONE BUT IT IS THE BEST, WHAT A DICK CAMERON IS . YET STOP THINK BRITIAN IS IN HIS HANDS  S H I T ! ABAMA IN THIS CASE IS SOOOOO COOL! WATCH TO END DAVID CAMERON BRITAINS KNOBHEAD!

 

The difference between US vs UK Ebola news coverage – YouTube

The difference between US vs UK Ebola news coverage – YouTube.

love this, the yanks are such knobs scatch their arse  and it,s in the spaghetti.

Alexei Sayle’s Marxist demolition of Strictly Come Dancing.WHAT IS WHITE AND SHOOTS ACROSS THE FLOOR? COME DANCING.

 

My hatred of ballroom dancing is in direct proportion to my love of pretty much all other forms of the art. In the 70s a good friend of mine from Southport Art College had been one of the Kings of Northern Soul at Wigan Casino. When he moved to London I would occasionally accompany him to all-dayers at the 100 Club on Oxford Street. My uncoordinated flailings on the dance floor were the least lovely aspect of these events but nobody seemed to mind, and I was always happy to be there simply because I always found myself so moved by the unselfconscious beauty and energy of the other dancers. There was something about the choreography and the avowedly working-class nature of the whole thing that always made me want to smile. (Wigan council found Northern Soul so challenging that they demolished the Wigan Casino and replaced it literally with nothing.) Similarly, if I am at a fiesta in some dusty town square in southern Spain when the band plays a sevillana and the entire pueblo (young and old, sleek teenagers and arthritic abuelas, schoolteachers and peasants) joins in with the steps of this ancient folk dance I am suffused with an overpowering love of all humanity – but if I accidentally see ballroom dancing I want to vomit.

Everything is wrong with ballroom dancing: the clothes, the music, even the expressions on the dancers’ faces, plus, of course, the dancing itself. The reason for this is simple: you get points for it. Ballroom dancing is an aesthetic pursuit, an art form, that has been turned into a competition the result of which is that everything is done to attract the attention of the judges. The competitors must try to fit within a set of rules and so a tawdry, flashy, kitsch aesthetic takes over. Imagine if actors got points for doing Shakespeare what kind of overblown, hammy performances you would get. Now ballroom dancing is not alone in promoting this repulsiveness: close relatives are figure skating and the disturbing Olympic event of rhythmic gymnastics (can anybody explain why it is only little girls in tight costumes who perform this “sport”?). All of this would not matter except a huge number of people are getting their perception of what dance is from watching Strictly, and this is disturbing.

If you see a couple performing a proper Argentine tango, you are watching a dance created in the brothels of Buenos Aires that reeks of melancholy and sex and is accompanied by complex music that has grown alongside the dance and is inseparable from it. Then you watch the ballroom version, all gurning faces and robotic, angular, hideous movement, which on the show is generally accompanied by awful music that has absolutely nothing to do with the dance; you are seeing a great popular art reduced to a terrible travesty. An Argentinian friend of mine said: “When I see ballroom dancing what I always think of is impotence.” And he is right, a dance between men and women is always to some degree about sex but there is nothing more sterile and uncarnal than ballroom.

Now, obviously, dance is not revolutionary in itself; art cannot directly affect politics, and, in fact, politics doesn’t seem able to directly affect politics. The audience from Giselle at London’s Royal Opera House are not going to storm into the streets and seize the telephone exchange no matter how elegant and authentic the performance, but what the celebrities who appear on Strictly are doing is taking part in the ongoing cultural war on critical thinking. Just as in as in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four where “War is Peace”, “Freedom is Slavery” and “Ignorance is Strength” so in Strictly ugliness is beauty, prancing is dancing and Judy Murray is Ginger Rogers. The end result is that when people are confronted by the truth they cannot see it because they have been so confused by lies. But watch out for my one man show Hot Tango, Cool Salsa coming soon to an arts centre near you.