Thursday 25 February 2016

Right time to get Political

To be informed nowadays is difficult.

WHAT? you have internet, papers, the Television news, Mobile phones why do you think you are not informed?

Let us examine this.

Internet.

You can find immense amounts of information here. But how do people find this. Wiki? yes Wikipedia is a goto scourse for most lazy students Homework. It is full of errors, not the founders fault but think aboout it. every single entry in this on line encyclopedia was put there by someone with an opinion. Even the most factual pages are subject to corrections and opinions.

Google it. Then you are subject to Googles filters, and they do exist. If google does not like a thing on the web then they delete it from their search engine. FACT.

Newspapers. When reading a newspaper, always keep in mind that they do not sell if they do not pander to the percieved prejudices of their reader targets. And they decide what to put in the paper.And What NOT to put in there.

Facebook, twitter, myspace etc. you anly see the feeds from friends and such, most of who i suspect will have the same political view as you.

It is difficult to get the full picture on anything these days. Witness the furore going on in the UK at the moment on UK Brexit. The Uk will be getting a referendum vote to see if they stay in the EU or exit.

Now I have my views on this, but they are informed by what I see and read and get told. I can not state that the facts I am maing my judgement on are actually the facts, because I get them from the media. And even an old cynic like me knows that I am not getting the truth.

Politicians are teling us different things every day on this. No one is actually putting out the full, uncensored facts. And even those who say they are are tainted by the lies or misdirections they have used in the past.

The best you can do is get the information from many opposing views, judge them by their content, ask "who is telling me this, what are their views, where do they stand politicaly" Then Choose.


Tuesday 23 February 2016

Sorry of you have been looking for this blog under its old Domain of Bob Parker Photography. Changed the name. Aparently Grumpyodgit, grumpyoldgit1, the grumpyoldgit, and any variation is taken. So I got fed up.
Must go and have a look at the others.

Monday 22 February 2016

New day
New Grump

MOTOR ELECTRICS.

OK, so this is a bit of a personal situation one. I Own a Boom trike,Picture below.

Now I am not sure if the manufacturer is at fault here, I know that someone is, who has no idea of European weather and electrics.


The Trike was fitted with a tow bar, by someone who knew more about welding thn electrics. They have caused problems since fitting.

Here are a few things that should have been considered on this trike, but were not.

Connecor blocks. Left exposed to the elements and not sealed with Tape, Silicone, or shrinkwrap.

Light fittings in the fenders, covered with a bit f plastic, which allows water round the sides thus rotting the metal fittings.

Fuses, in a setting so tight and Flat that it takes pliers to get at, and access is problematic.

Ok so it is Custom. But Custom does not mean Bodge.

Having said that, its not as bad as a Friend of mine who found that  the Electrics were all red wire, and platted.

So far I have used Silicon tape where ever I can to seal the connector blocks. Re wired one fender light system and fitted connector blocks because the wiring was not fitted with them. Rebuilt the internals of one light fitting because it fell apart when I looked at it. Well the internals came out when I took out the bulb.

Now the engine will not run. Averything else is working, but there is no spark. Bugger, must have disturbed something. Thing is, I have no wiring diagram, no experience on this type of engine. And no idea if it is something I did when rewiring the fender, or another problem that decided now was a good time to apear.

So, not being flush with monney at the moment, its down to me, any friend I can get to have a look, and praying.

Might start a video blog on this.

Should be good for a "how not to do things"
Hello Silence

Today is a bit of a ramble. No Grump.

I have seen the beauty of a sunrise over the oceans of the world. I have swam in all the oceans and most of the seas, apart from arctic and antarctic.

I have seen the Northern lights, and the Phosphorescent waves. I have seen the Persian gulf , at night, lit up with Phosporescence so marvelous, you could see the wakes of ships, the trails of Dophins and whales, the movement of Fish.

The silence of the Wilderness, the rustle of wind in leaves of a forest. The look in a mothers eyes as she cradles her child.

All these wonders, all this beauty.

And the uglyness of Fighting, beggers on streets, people so poor they live in tin shacks, sometimes next to mansions. I have been driven to tears at the sight of slums, yet at the same time I have seen a man emerge from a hovel, wearing a freshly pressed shirt, tie, and looking smart. Human endurance sometimes amazes me.

We look at the things that anger us in our lives, the things that irritate and make us protest. Most of us are raging against the indifference of others. Yet, we miss our own indifference to the suffering under our noses.

Get some perspective on life. Really, I am not insulting you here, I am giving advice.

Where ever you are, what ever your problem, however much the world is pushing you down. Find a peacefull spot. In a park, by a river, in the country, by the seaside. Your choice. Sit, or stand. Remove the thoughts that daily get you worried or worked up. Look at the scenery, feel the breeze. Relax for one minute. Really Look at the beauty in your surroundings.

Remember, the more we restrict our own horizons, the smaller we become inside.

I will get back to grumps later in the week.

Saturday 20 February 2016

Hello Echoing silence.

Todays Grump.

Politicaly Incorrect.

Sorry if this one offends anyone. I know this blog is mainly going out to the echoing silence of my self absorbtion, but hey. Its a good way to vent.

Politicaly Correct. The way that nowadays the utterances of anyone can cause offence , and this is treated as a crime. Hold on, since when did it become the responsibility of anyone to hold a poll around the audience before they express their opinion? Ok so a lot of statements are offensive. I for one would quite happily argue that anyone extorting violence to another because of race, creed, or belief, this is offensive. But hold on, that statement itself can be seen as offensive to some who demand the right to denegrate others. See where this is going? No? Ok lets examine this:-

If you hold a stand on any subject, you can absolutely guarantee there will be someone out there who holds the oposite view. (in my case I can usualy find her sat in the front room). So what ever you say, will offend them. This is called discourse, or conversation, in extreme case it is Argument. But nowadays those who do not even want to listen to the oposing viewjust trot out "that offends me". At which stage they think that they have claimed the moral high ground. Nope, all they have claimed is the intellectual low ground. They are saying "that statement is against what I believe but I cant be bothered to argue this fact, so I will get affronted and expect you to change your ways to comply with mine. Do it , Do it now, Dont say anything else but sorry, Dont even breath untill you comply". Then if this does not work, play the racist card, There is bound to be some way you can chuck that in, If the person causing the so called offence is White, male and anywhere between 12 and 80 you cant be wrong.

That offends me,HA. My answer is usually " your attitude of offence is an offence to my sensibilities, you offend me, what are you going to do about it?" Best way to start an argument I have found yet. Not that it works, these are usually the type of person who just starts talking and shouting and talking over the top of anything you want to say untill you go away. You see they do not want you changing their mind, they do not really want to change yours. All they want is the world to be how they see it, and everyone to do as they are told.

I am sorry, I relly , really set off in this Grump blog to try be ironic, put a bit of humour in. But hey, this may happen when I get the worst of my Grumps out of the way.

Oh, and I WILL find that bloody spellcheck eventually.

Friday 19 February 2016

Good Day peeps
Todays Grump

MEDIA

Seems a little disengenious to be talking about media, on a blog. Just goes to show how insidious the modern 10 second fame had got.

Social Media, such as Facebook and twitter, seems to be keeping you informed, but in reality, because you have chosen your friends and aquaitences, who share your views in the main. All you are getting is reinforcement of your beliefs.

This is why Britains first and Religous intollerants and their like, have such a following on social media. Take a look , a real look at your Facebook news feed, is it news. No its people posting about some ilness, some food, a cat, and anything political is normally reinforcement of what you think you already know. So it is really easy to fall in to the belief that if your feed is full of this sort of information, this must mean almost everyone is sharing your view. Meanwhile out in the real world people are protesting.

It is not just the social media sites. Take a look at your news. I suppose The Daily mail (fail) has just about cornered the market in on line Newspaper replacement. People do not have to hold the paper on the train or buss anymore or wressle with it at the breakfast table, just click and away you go. But really, The Daily Fail. Its Bias is evident in almost all its stories. And most telling when it does NOT report on events, such as the Junior doctors Downing street protest, the Taxi protest. The Protest of Bikes in london that almost brought the capital to a standstill. But Kayne West mouthing off, yep that should keep the masses entertained whilst we help the establishment Screw them again.

People, the Internet is full of truth and crap, and sifting through it is getting harder. WIKI is so full of misinformation and pure WRONG that it should be renamed the encyclopedia of falsehoods and myths.

Get out there, get invlved, walk the countryside, talk to people, observe, dont just sit on the chair, or couch and take in info from the screen. It is a beautifull, scary, wonderous, dangerous, Absorbing world out there. Go find it.

Thursday 18 February 2016

Well, here is the first post from the new look at life.
I started this blog as a way of getting my Photography noticed. Then realised that my photography is not that noticable. Then I thought to myself, why limit it to Photography? Well, looking at some other Bloggers It seems that some are very specific to their intrest, some ramble on ( a bit like this) and some just seem to want to entertain. Right, lets try all of this.
Bit of background.
I have recently had a bit of a do with my back, this means I have been trying to get back to work, trying to get treatment , and basicaly realising that this country has a few problems. It has started turning me in to a right old Git, and I thought, This is not me. Turns out, this is me.
When did this happen? Its not that long ago I was laid back, Friendly. Willing to let things slide for an easy life. Is it some form of evolutionary switch? Do we all turn in to crotchety old fuddy duddies after a certain age? I will be looking at Cardigans as a valid clothing choice next!

SO lets get todays GRUMP of and running.

THE MOBILE PHONE

Marvelous invention, the idea that you can be in touch with loved ones and buisness at any time of day or night when needed. No more hoping to catch people at home or in the office. Emergency calls at your fingertips. They really were a good idea.

Gone Wrong.

When was it that we started to become Mobile Zombies? Who decided that this little box would hold all your life. We needed, (well when I say needed I mean wanted), something to make phone calls on, and with the extra bandwidth, maybe, text messages. What we have now is a little box that constantly demands attention no matter what we are doing or where we are, and it is as if it has found that swich that Babies have access to, we do not seem to be able to ignore it. It makes us feel guilty if we miss a call. It beeps, buzzes or plays music to us to get our attention to the fact htat there are lives availale on a game. For some of us, finding the actual button to make or answer a call has been hidden, the sound has taken a back seat to the screen.

And the number of people who walk through life with their head down, looking at the screen, not here they are going! How many times have I had to get out of the way of some idiot, lost to the world, walking along a street oblivious to their surroundings? The ones in the supermarket, looking in to space as they talk on the phone. We all hate the ones who think they have the right to hold a loud conversation on a bus, in a pub, in a restaurant, on the train. At one time if you saw someone walking head down Mumbling to themselves you would have thought them a Nutter. Nowadays its probably someone on the phone to someone. Not that much difference really when you think about it.

They are an addiction. They are as dangerous as other addictions. If you think i am exagerating try going without yours for a day or so and see when the anxiety starts.

Grump of the day Complete.