The Ulverston Flag Festival approaches

Two weeks to go: with Flags going up on April 29th.

The new Ulverston Flag Group will be putting up 25 new flags outside the Coro to welcome The 10th anniversary of Printfest. The original flag makers have been reinvigorated and very active since January making flags for the two groups that now exist. New flag makers have made about half of the twenty flags going up on private houses in The Gill, these will be joined on Monday 2nd by those outside the Coro when Printfest ends.

A taste of the flags that are to come from the Ulverston Flag Group is given each market day when six flags are put up on the Market Square.

Have we moved forward from the days I discussed this festival's future four years ago in 2007 on another blog?

For the most part the main event is still in the hands of the same people.

With two groups working in their respective areas the event should be a knockout.

Putting your life on the line for a matter of principle

In Britain, this is a rare concept.

It was true in the past but there are few who will make a stand in the cold light of day to put their lives at risk.

One of the values of discussing philosophy with others in Ulverston is that it has helped me work out more clearly what my actions in every day life will be.

This is one of them.

If there is something I feel strongly about I am ready to die for it.

This could happen in the street with a gang of youths or as a result of upsetting powerful people.

Both at the moment are very unlikely scenarios but if the time comes and until then, I am ready to put myself at a disadvantage by speaking out here on this blog and elsewhere.

Below we have an example of someone who is clearly taking extreme risks for the ultimate benefit of those around him.

I believe he is worth supporting now:

Ai Weiwei is the most famous artist in China, best known for his iconic "Bird's Nest" stadium that was the focal point of the Beijing Olympics.

Ai has always pushed the envelope, both with his internationally-acclaimed art and with his outspoken criticism of the Chinese government.

But these past weeks have brought Beijing's harshest crackdown on dissidents in more than a decade. And on April 3rd, government agents arrested Ai at the Beijing airport and seized papers and computers from his studio.

We don't know where Ai is now. The Chinese government is holding him on flimsy charges of "economic crimes" -- an allegation often used to silence dissenters.

Twelve leading figures in the international arts world, including the directors of the Guggenheim, Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, and Tate Museum, have started a petition on Change.org demanding that the Chinese government free Ai Weiwei.

The regime in Beijing has proven largely resistant to pressure from foreign governments. But they've made a huge push to raise China's profile in the arts -- the government just finished building the world's largest art museum. Widespread condemnation, led by the arts community, may be our best chance to save his life.

Please sign the petition to free Ai Weiwei as soon as possible:


http://www.change.org/petitions/call-for-the-release-of-ai-weiwei

Thanks for taking action,

- Weldon and the Change.org team

Going the rounds !

How does she keep her face straight?

Parents

I am mixing with parents that encourage their children to think independently at the young age of three.

I see these children thinking completely for themselves.

If they step out of line, they are given space and time to figure out the consequences of their behaviour.

They are not punished but given time to reflect and make choices in an unemotional reasoned atmosphere.

Lots of time is given to talking things through.

One the other day, with a grin on their face seemed to decided to misbehave,  just to see what would happen.

They got told off, given reasons for the action being requested and then were left quietly to reflect on what they had done with nothing further being said.

After a few minutes they carried on  . . .

behaving as requested.

They had been convinced that this was the best thing to do with no emotional pressure to do so.

Here was a human being who was growing up as a self confident person who would make balanced judgements in the future on what was best for them.

With the uncertainties of todays world we need people who can think for themselves who will be able to decide clearly and without pressure what is best for them.

They will become people that can step out of the shadows of their parents and make decisions for themselves.

It's good to realise that there some exceptionally good parents around.

How many "F"s

Have you come across this one?

How many "F"s do you see in the following text.

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE-

SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIF-

IC STUDY COMBINED WITH

THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS.

I was absolutely convinced that there were only three.

There's no trickery!

I gather I'm a person of average intelligence!

See here

Get ready for hot summers and really cold winters like the last ones.

The Flow of our Gulf Stream that has such a major effect on our climate is threatened.

Please read this article.

This would be the end of 'comfortable Britain'.

We are being warned that the melting of the artic ice cap releases 7,500 cubic kilometers of icy melt water that if winds change could flow south and disrupt the flow of the Gulf Stream.

Reliable scientists estimate that we will lose heat equivalent to the amount that can be generated by a million power stations

Read this article and understand it.

We'll cope better if we are prepared.

Progress on Ulverston's main street procedes at less than a snail's pace

It's now a fortnight since we requested a meeting with our county councillor James Airey.

Progress on the work down Market street in the last fortnight has been extremely slow.

At this rate of progress, the work will not be completed by April 29th the day the Flag Festival is due to start which features this very street.

Of the festivals in the town, this is the one that our traders feel brings the most benefit to the town; others certainly have an impact but for the most part result in little trade and in the case of the Dickensian Festival can cause considerable disruption to shop trade.

Many of the traders are deeply upset with the casual approach by Amey towards getting the work done quickly and the apparent lack of concern from the County Highways Department.

Questions are being asked as to how this contract was set up and whether there is a penalty clause in Amey's contract for overrunning.

Was even a completion date agreed?

The traders want answers and their politicians to take action.

Changes to the information, here, on the right

I've shuffled things around so that you can check the weather easily.

I've inserted the two places that I find most helpful.

I hope you all find this helpful.

From Amnesty International

 

 We're all enjoying gorping at the events  in the Middle East on tele.

It's easy to treat the news like an alternative Eastenders.

Here's a chance to be part of the action!

If you think you've got problems - think of these.

(Do you know what it's like to be a refugee ? - I know from experience in 1941, it can be very painful especially returning to this country from France, having lost all our belongings and being treated with great suspicion by fellow English people because my mother was French. The only people to help were the Quakers and one family in particular. Thanks to them we were taken care of. . .  )

Dear Geoff,

Right now, hundreds of thousands of people are fleeing for their lives from violence and persecution in Libya into neighbouring countries. Take action now

We're demanding that EU countries offer meaningful assistance to both the refugees and to countries such as Egypt and Tunisia which are bearing the brunt of the exodus.

The EU bears a heavy responsibility on account of its failure in recent years to acknowledge and take into account Libya’s dire human rights record and because of its proximity to the affected region.

We need you to contact the Foreign Secretary William Hague and tell him to step up efforts to help those affected by the desperate events in Libya.
Send an email: Protect refugees and migrants fleeing Libya
Thank you for your continued support for our crucial work to protect human rights in Libya, and across the Middle East and North Africa region.


Kristyan Benedict
Crisis Response Campaign Manager

P.S. Please visit and bookmark our Middle East and North Africa campaign site to keep up to date with the latest news and actions from the region.

Why wasn't this diagram discussed at the Planning Meeting yesterday ?

It shows the projected path of a truck entering Union Lane around a blind corner.

The shaded black shaded area represents a pedestrian pavement which is driven over.

The movement of pedestrians along Union Lane wasn't even discussed at the planning meeting.

Councillors were not even aware of the Persimmon's 30 page Transport Statement from which this diagram is taken.

In this plan above, pedestrians have to cross the road at the most dangerous place in the road: the location of a blind corner.

This will become the most dangerous intersection in Cumbria.

Time was not given to raise this issue because Cumbria County Highways chose to ignore it saying that there weren't any problems with the proposed plans.

Their total statement to the planning committee reads:

"I can confirm that the proposal is broadly acceptable to Cumbria Highways. The development will fall under advance payments code procedure operated by Cumbria County Council, and roadworks must be constructed to an adoptable standard.

"I accept the recommedations of the safety audit and developers notes, provided these are followed.

"Conditions regarding construction details of roads and footpaths and the provision of parking for vehicles associated with the construction works are recommended."

How can there not be problems when 60 additional cars in the new development start to use this lane.

Those of us that live here never/rarely turn round this corner in this way. We approach the lane from the north where visibility is good.

Will the new residents on the development all be this careful?

Safety issues were not discussed at the meeting because of the above statement by CCC. The issues were confined to the need for housing , especially affordable housing, and the preservation of the old wall that is within the conservation area.

Because of the weak statement from CCC , we believe that the decision of the planning committee is unsafe and will be challenging it if at all possible.