A Few Words on Jimmy Saville

I, like so many, have been shocked and saddened to hear the mounting evidence against Jimmy Saville with regards to abuse allegations stretching back many years. For me, I am filled with a sense of utter shock, dismay and a level of regret - that I had for so long regarded him a part of my childhood in the form of his TV shows during the 70's and 80's.
It is clear that the investigations into his conduct are discovering that the 70's and 80's were a different age and that acts such as those that have been reported were perhaps more common and widespread than we had imagined. The culture was different to today and I fear that there will be those apart from Jimmy Saville who will be worried for the outcome of the inquiries now taking place by both the police and the BBC.
It is such a shame that someone who had done so much good and held in such high esteem is now derided and viewed with such revulsion and anger.
So many questions need to be asked. Among them are why didn't anyone come forward earlier and why didn't the people who claim they knew report their concerns at the time?
There are many who should feel responsible for not doing the right thing and for allowing his conduct to continue in the way that it did. Either people were truly blind to what was going on, or they simply chose not to do anything about it. My personal feeling is that many people did know what was going on and are as guilty in not doing anything to prevent it. I am sure there will be many now who feel profound guilt for what went on, and one can only hope that the investigation will out all those who conspired to let it happen.

Spalding, Lincolnshire's own Wild West

I've written before of my fear that Lincolnshire is becoming a lawless county. Indeed, my nearest town of Spalding has deteriorated so much that there is a petition by the local newspaper to rid the town of drugs and anti social behaviour. Many would consider my views about Spalding as rather harsh, but my criticism for the town and the people who police it is reinforced by the fact that my own mother was assaulted on Tuesday last. She had been waiting for a bus at Spalding Bus Station with my father after their regular shopping trip. A young woman was also at the stop yelling and swearing at someone on her mobile phone. Her language was foul and others in the queue had noticed and begun to keep their distance. My mother decided to speak to her and asked her to moderate her language as there were young children in the queue. The woman reacted violently and knocked my mother to the ground. Being nearly 70 years of age and quite frail, she stood no chance and fell to the ground breaking her pelvis. Thankfully there were many in the queue who had witnessed the assault and they held the woman until the police arrived. She has been arrested and she has been charged with assault. My mother is now in Boston's Pilgrim Hospital and it will be some time before she is back home and many months before she is able to walk unaided.

There is no doubt my mother had been in the right to confront the woman. No one should have to listen to someone's foul mouthed rants and the presence of children made it all the more appropriate to intervene. What is appalling is that someone would knock an elderly woman to the ground for what was in effect a minor request that frankly any of us would have made.
I'm thankful of all those who willingly provided witness statements and to the police who made my mother as comfortable as possible until the ambulance arrived.
The woman, for whom violence was her first reaction, now faces the prospect of a court appearance and a life labelled with a criminal record. I can only hope that the penalty, though likely to be light, will in some way change this woman's thinking and perhaps encourage her to better control her reactions in the future.

So, has my view of Spalding worsened as a result of my mother's assault? Yes I'm afraid it has. It is a natural reaction to being affected by what I see as a society out of control. Lincolnshire, is and always will be, a lawless county. It is difficult to police at the best of times, given its size and scattered population, but the reduction in government funding and reduced police numbers has allowed for areas such as Spalding to deteriorate to the point of being a 'Wild West' town that people now choose to avoid.
Besides the obvious physical harm caused, there will be more damaging mental harm which will be impossible to completely heal. I've no way of telling if and how my mother will be affected by this, but in some I know, such an experience can cause agoraphobia and paranoia.

It is so sad that Spalding has become the place it is. The warnings have been there for some time, but very little has been done to rid the town of alcohol fuelled violence, theft, drugs and gangs. Those charged with running the town need to wake up and realise the lasting damage that's being done.
Spalding was once the jewel in Lincolnshire's crown. Not any more.

Time for a Rethink

The deaths yesterday of two unarmed British police officers in Greater Manchester has rekindled the debate over the arming of our police. British policing policy does not permit the routine arming of police and in such cases where firearms are required, then specially trained officers are called upon to assist. There will be debate in the coming weeks as to the events surrounding yesterday's tragedy, and now is certainly not the time to be doing this. Our thoughts and prayers should go to the family, friends, relatives and colleagues who will be suffering at this time.

I do think we have all had a stark reminder of how policing carries with it an enormous risk and to enter a situation where there are so many unknowns can leave police unprepared and ill equipped. 

The days of the friendly village 'bobby' have gone and we now, sadly, live in a very different age. Some would argue that the age we live in is more violent. The statistics certainly show that we do and one only has to look at the cases of knife crime and violent assault, especially amongst the young.

I do feel that serious thought needs to be given to policing and the ability of officers to tackle the threats we now see on our streets. This does mean looking again at arming police - not necessarily with deadly firearms, but perhaps with some type of stun gun or Taser. The technology is there, and has been for some time. 

For a long time, we have been proud in this country of our policy not to arm our police officers. But times have changed. Violent crime is increasing and it could be argued, in some parts of the country, that it is verging on being out of control. We only have to look at last year's riots and the ineffectual policing that allowed for so much damage and wilful destruction to occur. It really is time for a rethink and to face some difficult truths.

CBT and an Eastern Front

Not a bad day really. A little shopping in Wisbech and it was the first time our new little car had been used. It performed very well, very well indeed in fact.
I had my CBT assessment in Spalding at 2pm. It was just a load of questions about the problems I have and how they affect me. I scored quite high on the depression and anxiety grade and the woman who assessed me did remark that I may benefit from some different medication. She said she would make a note for my doctor.
I did have some difficulty locating the place at first. I had thought it was on the main road, but it happened to be tucked away down an alley way. I did in fact notice one of my support group members departing the place and that was how I managed to locate the entrance. Despite having the assessment today, there's a long waiting list for the CBT service and it could be many months before I am next seen. It was suggested that I try to find a book called 'CBT for Dummies' at my local library. I'll do this on my next visit.
A bit of a to do in Sutton St James today. Someone has taken a shot at a police officer and armed police have now closed the village and access to surrounding roads. It's an ongoing situation as I type this and negotiations are apparently underway to bring the situation to a peaceful end. It's really strange when you see a local village on the TV news. My sister lives in the next village at Tydd St Mary just a few miles from there.
We are once again being warned of some severe weather. It's possible we will have some heavy snow over the weekend but it's by no means certain at the moment. The weather system is coming from the East where temperatures across Russia and Eastern Europe are as low as -30 degrees C. It's looking at the moment as if this could be the worst winter in many years. We'll see...

Broken Britain

In response to the mindless violence and destruction across the UK, this quote from an anonymous Surrey police officer says it all really and I agree wholeheartedly with every word...


'The UK will continue to be under siege from the mindless violence until something changes in the way we police this country. When my granddad was a police officer in the 1940s he was feared by those who broke laws. He acted professionally and upheld the law, but did not have worry about trial by media if used force to restore order. Every use of force by a police officer in the UK has to be documented and justified. Many officers will not use the force necessary to restore order as they fear for their jobs and liberty! The interview with the two teenage girls on Monday shows this really well where they state 'we are showing the police we can do what we want!' The yobs and looters need something to fear [the police] or they will continue their reign of terror on the law abiding community'.