British Taxpayers Are Funding Spanish Bull-Fighting

British taxpayers are subsidising the controversial sport of traditional bullfighting in Spain to the tune of £13.5 million a year via European farm subsidies, a report has disclosed.
Common Agriculture Policy payments worth more than £110 million a year are given to Spanish farmers using their pastures to rear fighting bulls and, the study concluded, “without such backing bullfighting would probably be on the brink of financial collapse”.
Spain’s parliament is currently debating a new law which would declare bullfighting a protected national pursuit, a move that would overturn existing bans on bullfighting in the Canary Islands and Catalonia and would guarantee public subsidies for the industry.
The government’s move to enshrine the status of bullfighting comes as the industry suffers extreme difficulties in the face of public spending cuts which have seen local councils slash funding for annual fiestas featuring taurine events.
Roger Gale, the Tory MP for Thanet North, and the president of the Conservative animal welfare group, called on the subsidies to be axed.
“I don’t think British taxpayers will be too chuffed to find out they are paying for Spanish bullfighting.. The commission needs to stop making excuses and sort it out.”
(An extract from an article by Bruno Waterfield, Brussels, and Fiona Govan in Madrid, 15.05.2013)

This disgusting spectacle has its days numbered.
I believe that in the last five years the number of corridas has fallen by nearly 50%.
The aficionados will blame the crisis but the reality is that youngsters just aren’t interested.
As for Catalunya, I think I’m right in saying that even if the corrida is declared an asset of cultural interest the Catalans can still prohibit it.
San Sebastian has taken steps to outlaw bullfighting, too.
(Marianico, Spain)

Understanding Is A Fountain Of Life To Those Who Have It

Proverbs of Solomon…

How much better to get wisdom than gold,
To choose understanding rather than silver.

A man of understanding keeps a straight course.

The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,
Turning a man from the snares of death.

A patient man has great understanding.

Wisdom reposes in the heart of the discerning
And even among fools she lets herself be known.

The lips of the wise spread knowledge.

A fool’s talk brings a rod to his back,
But the lips of the wise protect them.

A patient man calms a quarrel.

He who scorns instruction will pay for it,
But he who respects a command is rewarded.

The path of life leads upward for the wise.

A man of knowledge uses words with restraint.

Understanding is a fountain of life to those who have it.

Lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel.

The path of the upright is a highway.

Whoever heeds correction gains understanding.

The house of the righteous contains great treasure,
But the income of the wicked brings them trouble.

Blessed is he who is kind to the needy.

A happy heart makes the face cheerful,
The cheerful heart has a continual feast.

If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor,
He too will cry out and not be answered.

As water reflects a face,
So a man’s heart reflects the man.

The memory of the righteous will be a blessing,
But the name of the wicked will not.

The Benefits Cap Will Cost the Taxpayer More

David Cameron said it was “amazing” that Labour isn’t supporting the benefits cap.
Here are six AMAZING reasons why no one in their right mind should support it…
1. Charities fear the cap will make 40,000 people homeless.
2. A senior LSE economist says families with four kids living in the Home Counties could be left with just 62p-a-day to feed and clothe each child.
3. It will split up struggling families.. Separated parents can claim up to £1,000-a-week, while a couple living together will be capped at £500.
4. The DWP’s former chief economist Jonathan Portes says there’s “no evidence at all” of claims that the cap is sending people back to work.
5. It will create what even Boris Johnson has described as “Kosovo-style ethnic cleansing” as poorer people are forced out of affluent areas.
6. The total saving to the £201billion benefits bill will be a measly £110million-a-year.. a fraction of 1% – or, according to a leaked memo from Tory Eric Pickle’s office, it will actually cost the taxpayer more.
So, the benefit cap won’t work, it won’t save any money, it will cause fear and misery to tens of thousands of people and it will divide our country.
Apart from that, it’s a brilliant, well-thought out, humane reform of the benefits system.
AMAZING that Labour’s not supporting it.
(An extract from an article by Ros Wynne-Jones, 17.04.2013)

Network Rail was fined £450,000 for refusing to install safety equipment that would have saved the life of a woman motorist killed on a level crossing.
Some other facts:
Four directors of the state-funded company will share bonuses of £633,000.
That’s on top of £1.4million in salaries between them.
The firm gets £3billion of public money to maintain the system.
Big bonuses despite being on track to miss punctuality targets.
The company said bonuses would be even bigger – 20% higher – if punctuality and safety had been better.. An interesting alibi.
This is rather like a robber saying he’d have stolen more if the bank had more cash.
(Paul Routledge, 12.04.2013)

We May Never Really Discover The Meaning Of Life

A man either lives life as it happens to him, meets it head-on and licks it, or he turns his back on it and starts to wither away.
(Gene Roddenberry)

Know that the same spark of life that is within you, is within all of our animal friends, the desire to live is the same within all of us.
(Rai Aren)

No event in life is so terrible that one cannot rise above it.
(Robin Hobb)

We may never really discover the meaning of life, but the knowledge we gain in our quest to discover it is truly more valuable.  
(Jack Canfield)

Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. 
(C.G. Jung)

Faith gives you an inner strength and a sense of balance and perspective in life. 
(Gregory Peck)

The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it. 
(Terri Garey)

Anything that you learn becomes your wealth, a wealth that cannot be taken away from you.. Whether you learn it in a building called school or in the school of life.
To learn something new is a timeless pleasure and a valuable treasure.
And not all things that you learn are taught to you, but many things that you learn you realize you have taught yourself. 
(C. JoyBell C.)

I never approve, or disapprove, of anything now…
It is an absurd attitude to take towards life. 
(Oscar Wilde)

I assumed that everything would lead to complete failure, but I decided that didn’t matter.. that would be my life.  
(Jasper Johns)

Few of us ever live in the present…
We are forever anticipating what is to come or remembering what has gone. 
(Louis L’Amour)

One of the sanest, surest, and most generous joys of life comes from being happy over the good fortune of others. 
(Robert A. Heinlein)

The error of youth is to believe that intelligence is a substitute for experience, while the error of age is to believe experience is a substitute for intelligence.
(Lyman Bryson)

All of us have a path to follow and the path begins on earth. 
(Richard Matheson)

Stop searching the world for treasure.. the real treasure is in yourself. 
(Pablo)