Category Archives: Fail!

Cheshire West and Chester Council deputy leader Les Ford in ‘special needs’ storm – Chester Chronicle

Less Ford

{Community would be better served with less Les Ford!}

Deputy council leader Les Ford has apologised for offending parents of special needs children by calling their loved ones ‘a burden’.

Parents, Mencap and the National Autistic Society have complained about Cllr Ford’s remarks during meetings where Cheshire West and Chester Council decided to bill parents of special educational needs (SEN) children £880 a year towards the £5,200 school transport costs.

Pupils up to four-years-old or between 16 and 19 years or with medical needs are eligible for the charge from September, which is reduced to £660 for the first year only. Low income families pay half.

Cllr Ford (Con, Helsby), who has since apologised for any offence, told the April executive meeting: “We have a burden, as everybody does, when you have a person like this in one’s family.”

Parents were also offended by the phrase ‘the state of that child’, when he told the March executive meeting: “Every parent has a duty to get their children to school, irrespective of the state of that child, whether it be SEN, autism or whatever.”

Explaining why he used the term ‘burden’, Cllr Ford told The Chronicle : “It’s our burden, not theirs, because we have to pay for these people.

via Cheshire West and Chester Council deputy leader Les Ford in ‘special needs’ storm – Chester Chronicle.

Tory councillor calls disabled children a ‘burden’

Like our double-down racist wannabe-famous right-wing cowboy talking all about what he knows (not) about “negroes.”

Pride's Purge

(not satire – it’s the Tories!)

Tory councillor Les Ford –  deputy leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council – said at a public meeting that he thinks disabled children are a “burden”.

And when asked to apologise for his offensive remarks, Cllr Ford dug himself into an even deeper hole by explaining that he meant disabled children were not a burden on their families but were a burden on councils “….. because we have to pay for these people.”

Here’s the full story from the Chester Chronicle:

Deputy council leader in ‘special needs’ storm

Could this be part of a local election strategy by the Tory Party to win back votes from UKIP by trying to be even more foot-in-the-mouth offensive than they already are?

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Please feel free to comment.

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kNOw justice, kNOw peace | Flickr – Photo Sharing!

kNOw justice, kNOw peace

cop on horseback kept a close eye on the protesters. I saw no incident during the march last Sunday. the HPD did a good job in separating the two opposing groups along the way.

 

567

 

July 21, 2013

via kNOw justice, kNOw peace | Flickr – Photo Sharing!.

Settlers attack 7-year-old girl in south Hebron hills | Maan News Agency

Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian family in the south Hebron hills on Thursday, injuring a seven-year-old girl, a peace group said.

At midday on Thursday, two settlers riding a quad bike attacked four children and their mother with stones as they were returning from school to the villages of Tuba and Maghayir al-Abeed, Operation Dove said.

A seven-year-old was hit by a stone and fell while attempting to escape, injuring her head. She required five stitches for her wound.

The family was attacked while using the only available path without requiring a military escort, which usually accompanies children from Tuba and Maghayir al-Abeed to their school due to the threat of settler violence.

via Settlers attack 7-year-old girl in south Hebron hills | Maan News Agency.

{Bigger Fail Than Thought!} A Defiant Rancher Savors the Audience That Rallied to His Side – NYTimes.com

“I want to tell you one more thing I know about the Negro,” he said. Mr. Bundy recalled driving past a public-housing project in North Las Vegas, “and in front of that government house the door was usually open and the older people and the kids — and there is always at least a half a dozen people sitting on the porch — they didn’t have nothing to do. They didn’t have nothing for their kids to do. They didn’t have nothing for their young girls to do.

Continue reading the main story

“And because they were basically on government subsidy, so now what do they do?” he asked. “They abort their young children, they put their young men in jail, because they never learned how to pick cotton. And I’ve often wondered, are they better off as slaves, picking cotton and having a family life and doing things, or are they better off under government subsidy? They didn’t get no more freedom. They got less freedom.”

via A Defiant Rancher Savors the Audience That Rallied to His Side – NYTimes.com.

Egypt’s diversity test – Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Only the Abrahamic faiths are acceptable as openly practiced religions. Believers of other faiths can practice their religions, but only in private, and have to keep their beliefs a secret. Years in courts have only won Egypt’s Baha’is a meager compromise: the right to ID cards with a blank space in the mandatory religion field, instead of being forced to falsely identify themselves as Muslim, Christian or Jewish. Even this victory still faces obstacles on the bureaucratic level. Marriages are not recognized by the state since it only accepts religious, not civil, unions. Paternity, inheritance and other issues stemming from this lack of recognition is a constant legal nightmare that disrupts their daily lives.

via Egypt’s diversity test – Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East.

Four Arrested In Williamsburg Beating Of Gay Black Man: Gothamist

Four members of Williamsburg’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish community have been arrested in connection with the beating of a gay black man in Williamsburg last December, an incident that has been investigated as a possible hate crime.

The suspects, who allegedly attacked 22-year-old Taj Patterson as he was walking along Flushing Avenue near Spencer Street early December 1, were rounded up by law enforcement officials this week, police said. Two of the suspects were apparently plucked from Israel, where they fled following the attack, the Daily News reports. They are expected to be arraigned later today, and more arrests are likely.

Patterson was walking home alone from a party when he was attacked by a horde of roughly 20 Orthodox Jewish men, who beat him while yelling anti-gay slurs, including, “Stay down, f—-t!” Witnesses said the men all appeared to wearing similar uniforms, leading to speculation that they may have been members of Williamsburg Shomrim, a Jewish neighborhood watch group that patrols the area.

via Four Arrested In Williamsburg Beating Of Gay Black Man: Gothamist.

Avian Flu Diary: WHO EMRO Statement On MERS-CoV

The World Health Organization (WHO) is concerned about the rising number of cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in recent weeks, especially in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and in particular that two significant outbreaks occurred in health facilities.

“Approximately 75 percent of the recently reported cases are secondary cases, meaning that they are considered to have acquired the infection from another case through human-to-human transmission,” Regional Director of WHO for Eastern Mediterranean Dr. Ala Alwan said. “The majority of these secondary cases have been infected within the healthcare setting and are mainly healthcare workers, although several patients are also considered to have been infected with MERS-CoV while in hospital for other reasons.”

via Avian Flu Diary: WHO EMRO Statement On MERS-CoV.

Nepal Scrambles to Bring Striking Sherpas Back to Mount Everest – The Wire

{Seems now, it is all just about the money, not lives, honoring their friends, or safety.}

As it stands, the Sherpas already made their demands clear to the Nepalese government before yesterday’s walkout. They want substantially more money in compensation to the families of the 16 guides who died last week. Originally, the government offered a sum equivalent to $415. As the AP explains, the Sherpas’ counter offer is just over $20,000. The government responded by increasing the sum to $15,620, still far below what they’re asking. The guides also outlined a number of other demands for the government’s consideration, originally with a Monday deadline. It’s not yet clear what the Tourism ministry is willing to to bring this year’s (very lucrative) season back.

To be sure, a Sherpa vote to walk away from the 2014 climbing season was not taken lightly: the livelihoods of the famed guides depends on the 2-month window each year when it’s relatively safe to make a summit attempt. As the New York Times explains, Sherpas can make $3000-$5000 for a season of work. The average annual income in Nepal is about $700.

via Nepal Scrambles to Bring Striking Sherpas Back to Mount Everest – The Wire.

ExxonMobil Partners with Plan International to Combat Ebola Outbreak in Liberia – MarketWatch

{A little disease-wash to cover ire when spills pollute the land, sea, rivers, and air never hurts, I guess…}

Plan International USA today announced a $75,000 grant from ExxonMobil to help contain the spread of the Ebola virus in Liberia. The grant will support local authorities who are responding to the epidemic by disseminating prevention messages via TV, radio, and SMS. It will also support the supply of hand washing kits to all schools in the county of Lofa.

via ExxonMobil Partners with Plan International to Combat Ebola Outbreak in Liberia – MarketWatch.