92% of Irish nurses voted to have 2 strikes here, not for pay increases, that they almost definitely in my opinion should get, but for more staff to be employed. I suppose this could come under the umbrella of "conditions" and I remember when I was working on the docks being told that giving up conditions was far worse than giving up money in negotiations as conditions were a lot harder to get back.
Now I have been into hospitals here quite a bit and honestly A&E is a shambles especially in the public system, more staff and beds are needed desperately, and someone should be looking at the management as well, so, I think, these nurses striking is actually for the good of everyone not just a play for an easier time at work. Good luck to them and the Government rather than giving tax breaks to score points in the upcoming general election, should be sorting out the hospitals in this country.
I have just had my Subaru Forester converted to a Goods vehicle because the road tax of €2700 per year was skinning me, it now costs €330 a year but sheeeze what a drama getting it done. First the car was in the garage for 8 weeks, yep 8 weeks to remove the back seats and restraints and put a floor in. Apparently most of this time was due to paperwork taking ages.
Anyway I get the car back then have to go through the paperwork part this involved trying to find a policeman or Gaurda as they are called here, finding a cop in rural Ireland is like trying to win Lotto. Eventually I contacted the main station and managed to set up a time to get my form stamped.
Rolled up to the car tax place which is only open a couple of days a week so the que is up the street with all my forms, Gaurda stamped form, Engineers report form, CVRT pass statement, completed tax renewal form, licence, proof of address, certificate of road worthiness. Ohh its also impossible to find on line what documents are required to do this conversion so I was going on the garage as to what documents were required.
The nice lady at the counter explained that she would need a weighbridge ticket and proof of insurance and would be charging me tax in arrears for the month of October, even though the car weight had been filled in by the testing centre on the CVRT form and the car had been off the road for the last 8 weeks. She explained that there is a form that should be completed before the car goes off the road, but I didn't know it was going to take 8 weeks anyway I went to the local port and got them to weigh the car again as the testing centre in Galway had never been asked for a weigh docket before as the weight is written on the form, it cost €30 to weigh the car, they would have done it for nothing but the printing out of the form cost the money.
The nice lady then asked for insurance details and I explained that I had just converted the car from personal use to a commercial one and the policy was expired, she said Ohh we cant tax an uninsured vehicle. Anyway I commented on how nice her hair looked and asked if she had been on a diet and that her lippy was an awesome shade of purple and she eventually gave me the disc.
The que was now back up the road to Spiddal 24 Gaurda had been drafted in from Dublin to control traffic and the fast food van was doing a roaring trade.
Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Stormy weather and a rant
Well its been a windy mild month so far with a lot of rain this last week. We have had gale force winds and a couple of storm force days chucked in recently and with torrential rain I'm surprised I haven't had more trees down. Saying that I just had one uproot itself this morning in a squall. I'm leaving the cutting of it until tomorrow as I've spent the morning brush clearing and am a bit tired, I don't use the chainsaw if I'm weary as the two don't mix you have to be fresh chopping trees I recon.
Not much been happening here apart from my usual gardening stuff, this time of year is good for reclaiming parts of the property that haven't been done yet as I'm not having to cut lawns and weed and yeah there are no midgies. I hope to get lots of reclaiming done over the Winter myself and will maybe get helpx folks to keep on top of things next Spring and Summer.
My Subaru Forester has now been in the garage for about 8 weeks, there was nothing wrong with it but I decided to get it commercialized to save on road tax, the road tax here is unbelievable €2700 a year for a 2.5ltr petrol AWD. I just cannot afford to pay that and noone would want to buy the vehicle with that much tax yearly. The commercial tax is €330 per annum but the back seats have to be removed and seat belts welded up / back windows blacked out. We have a Ford station wagon as well as the Subaru so if anyone is visiting they can be run around in her. 8 weeks to do the job doesn't seem to faze anyone when I tell them, hey this is Ireland and paperwork here can take forever.
My good friend in Canada is giving me her, surplus to requirements, Samsung S2 as mine went on the blink, she has just upgraded hers to a newer Samsung and there is nothing wrong with the old one. Anyway I rang Canada the other day to talk about the phone and I get the call free as long as its less than an hour, the call lasted about 8 mins and I thought nothing more about it until a couple of days later I went to ring my Mum in Scotland and the wee icon on the phone showed it was still connected SHEEEZE checked my bill and no worries it hadn't been connected for 50 hours solid PHEW.
Terrible the murders in Paris last weekend my thought go out to everyone involved there and also all over the World those that are dead and maimed by this most recent religious conflict. Led me to research ISIS a bit further than what is broadcast in the general media.
ISIS differs quite a bit from al Qaeda in that it It wants to establish an Islamic caliphate, or state, stretching across the region. ISIS imposes Sharia law in the area it controls. Boys and girls must be separated at school; women must wear the niqab or full veil in public. Sharia courts often dispense brutal justice, music is banned and the fast is enforced during Ramadan. Sharia law covers both religious and non-religious aspects of life.
I found it interesting that:
Percent of Muslims who favour making Sharia the official law in their country (source: Pew Forum Research, 2013).
In many countries where an official secular legal system exists alongside Sharia, the vast majority of their Muslim citizens favour making Sharia the official law. For example, while the Egyptian military may have blocked the Muslim Brotherhood's efforts in this direction, 74% of Egypt's Muslims still favour it.
Even in Jordan, Indonesia and Malaysia - Muslim countries with progressive images - the relatively secular ruling elite sit atop Muslim masses, 71%, 72% and 86% respectively of whom want their countries to be ruled by Sharia.
And in Iraq, where the United States shed blood and money for over a decade to try to plant democracy, 91% of its Muslims want to live under Sharia.
• Criticizing or denying any part of the Quran is punishable by death.
• Criticizing or denying Muhammad is a prophet is punishable by death.
• Criticizing or denying Allah, the moon god of Islam is punishable by death.
• A Muslim who becomes a non-Muslim is punishable by death.
• A non-Muslim who leads a Muslim away from Islam is punishable by death.
• A non-Muslim man who marries a Muslim woman is punishable by death.
• A man can marry an infant girl and consummate the marriage when she is 9 years old.
• Girls' clitoris should be cut (per Muhammad's words in Book 41, Kitab Al-Adab, Hadith 5251).
• A woman can have 1 husband, but a man can have up to 4 wives; Muhammad can have more.
• A man can unilaterally divorce his wife but a woman needs her husband's consent to divorce.
• A man can beat his wife for insubordination.
• Testimonies of four male witnesses are required to prove rape against a woman.
• A woman who has been raped cannot testify in court against her rapist(s).
• A woman's testimony in court, allowed only in property cases, carries half the weight of a man's.
• A female heir inherits half of what a male heir inherits.
• A woman cannot drive a car, as it leads to fitnah (upheaval).
• A woman cannot speak alone to a man who is not her husband or relative.
• Meat to be eaten must come from animals that have been sacrificed to Allah - i.e., be Halal.
• Muslims should engage in Taqiyya and lie to non-Muslims to advance Islam.
• The list goes on.
If you ask me the bombing should stop, the refugees should all troup back to their countries where they can happily chop bits off each other, and live under their Sharia Law without the West meddling in their affairs.
Not much been happening here apart from my usual gardening stuff, this time of year is good for reclaiming parts of the property that haven't been done yet as I'm not having to cut lawns and weed and yeah there are no midgies. I hope to get lots of reclaiming done over the Winter myself and will maybe get helpx folks to keep on top of things next Spring and Summer.
My Subaru Forester has now been in the garage for about 8 weeks, there was nothing wrong with it but I decided to get it commercialized to save on road tax, the road tax here is unbelievable €2700 a year for a 2.5ltr petrol AWD. I just cannot afford to pay that and noone would want to buy the vehicle with that much tax yearly. The commercial tax is €330 per annum but the back seats have to be removed and seat belts welded up / back windows blacked out. We have a Ford station wagon as well as the Subaru so if anyone is visiting they can be run around in her. 8 weeks to do the job doesn't seem to faze anyone when I tell them, hey this is Ireland and paperwork here can take forever.
My good friend in Canada is giving me her, surplus to requirements, Samsung S2 as mine went on the blink, she has just upgraded hers to a newer Samsung and there is nothing wrong with the old one. Anyway I rang Canada the other day to talk about the phone and I get the call free as long as its less than an hour, the call lasted about 8 mins and I thought nothing more about it until a couple of days later I went to ring my Mum in Scotland and the wee icon on the phone showed it was still connected SHEEEZE checked my bill and no worries it hadn't been connected for 50 hours solid PHEW.
Terrible the murders in Paris last weekend my thought go out to everyone involved there and also all over the World those that are dead and maimed by this most recent religious conflict. Led me to research ISIS a bit further than what is broadcast in the general media.
ISIS differs quite a bit from al Qaeda in that it It wants to establish an Islamic caliphate, or state, stretching across the region. ISIS imposes Sharia law in the area it controls. Boys and girls must be separated at school; women must wear the niqab or full veil in public. Sharia courts often dispense brutal justice, music is banned and the fast is enforced during Ramadan. Sharia law covers both religious and non-religious aspects of life.
I found it interesting that:
Percent of Muslims who favour making Sharia the official law in their country (source: Pew Forum Research, 2013).
In many countries where an official secular legal system exists alongside Sharia, the vast majority of their Muslim citizens favour making Sharia the official law. For example, while the Egyptian military may have blocked the Muslim Brotherhood's efforts in this direction, 74% of Egypt's Muslims still favour it.
Even in Jordan, Indonesia and Malaysia - Muslim countries with progressive images - the relatively secular ruling elite sit atop Muslim masses, 71%, 72% and 86% respectively of whom want their countries to be ruled by Sharia.
And in Iraq, where the United States shed blood and money for over a decade to try to plant democracy, 91% of its Muslims want to live under Sharia.
According to the Sharia law:
• Theft is punishable by amputation of the right hand
• Criticizing or denying Muhammad is a prophet is punishable by death.
• Criticizing or denying Allah, the moon god of Islam is punishable by death.
• A Muslim who becomes a non-Muslim is punishable by death.
• A non-Muslim who leads a Muslim away from Islam is punishable by death.
• A non-Muslim man who marries a Muslim woman is punishable by death.
• A man can marry an infant girl and consummate the marriage when she is 9 years old.
• Girls' clitoris should be cut (per Muhammad's words in Book 41, Kitab Al-Adab, Hadith 5251).
• A woman can have 1 husband, but a man can have up to 4 wives; Muhammad can have more.
• A man can unilaterally divorce his wife but a woman needs her husband's consent to divorce.
• A man can beat his wife for insubordination.
• Testimonies of four male witnesses are required to prove rape against a woman.
• A woman who has been raped cannot testify in court against her rapist(s).
• A woman's testimony in court, allowed only in property cases, carries half the weight of a man's.
• A female heir inherits half of what a male heir inherits.
• A woman cannot drive a car, as it leads to fitnah (upheaval).
• A woman cannot speak alone to a man who is not her husband or relative.
• Meat to be eaten must come from animals that have been sacrificed to Allah - i.e., be Halal.
• Muslims should engage in Taqiyya and lie to non-Muslims to advance Islam.
• The list goes on.
If you ask me the bombing should stop, the refugees should all troup back to their countries where they can happily chop bits off each other, and live under their Sharia Law without the West meddling in their affairs.
Thursday, November 5, 2015
Nice November weather
No I'm not being sarcastic it has been a nice month so far. There have been some nice sunsets but they are behind a clump of tall pines now when I look from the house, in midsummer the sun sets over the mountains to the west of us about 10-15 degrees further North than at the moment.
Technically speaking, the Sun rises exactly in the east only on or near the two equinoxes (around March 21st and September 23rd), everywhere on Earth except at the North and South poles. At other times of the year the Sun does not rise due east, but some distance to the north or south of due east. The "some distance" gets bigger the further you go from the equator and the closer you get to either pole. Above the polar circles, the Sun can even rise in the north or the south, and doesn't rise or set at all during a period of time that grows from 0 to 6 months as you travel from the polar circle to the pole.
Interesting ehh.
Anyway I have been busy carving with the chainsaw again and have a sitting bear now out the front. The frog also got a coat of paint in passing.
John might be coming up on Friday to give me some gardening tips and incentive to start more projects its good over the winter as there are no midgies and the grass doesnt have to be cut ever week, I did run the mower over a lawn yesterday but that was to pick up leaves rather than rake them as its easier.
Have to go into Galway on Friday for a meeting with a website makeover job and have been busy perfecting an online booking system for the site that will be heaps cheaper for them than using the likes of checkfront.
Technically speaking, the Sun rises exactly in the east only on or near the two equinoxes (around March 21st and September 23rd), everywhere on Earth except at the North and South poles. At other times of the year the Sun does not rise due east, but some distance to the north or south of due east. The "some distance" gets bigger the further you go from the equator and the closer you get to either pole. Above the polar circles, the Sun can even rise in the north or the south, and doesn't rise or set at all during a period of time that grows from 0 to 6 months as you travel from the polar circle to the pole.
Interesting ehh.
Anyway I have been busy carving with the chainsaw again and have a sitting bear now out the front. The frog also got a coat of paint in passing.
Have to go into Galway on Friday for a meeting with a website makeover job and have been busy perfecting an online booking system for the site that will be heaps cheaper for them than using the likes of checkfront.
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