Greta Thunberg

This is very unlike me to do two posts for my blog in as little as a couple of days but I thought about writing this a few minutes ago when I saw the demonstrations all over the world and all because of one little girl; her name? Greta Thunberg.

Cities throughout the whole world are demonstrating today because of her. The one person who won't be taking any notice will be Donald (Fake News) Trump. I don't think his latest screw up concerning Ukraine will be satisfied with his usual sobriquet especially as he is part to blame after cancelling the Paris agreement concerning climate change. 

Like Jeremy Corbyn's brother he denies that there is a climate change emergency.

I don't want to get political – BTW regular readers should know my politics by now – but aren't there so many lies told these days; blatant lies not just tiny fibs and so so many conspiracy theories.

I mention Greta Thunberg – who I only have praise for – but you can bet your bottom dollar that someone somewhere has some kind of theory about her doing something bad like how much money she makes or something else that I won't speculate about.

I remember all the money Bob Geldof raised for the famine in the eighties, Red Nose Day, Children in Need – and loads of others where someone said that the money didn't get there. Bod Geldof and Midge Ure have private jets and a fortunes stacked away – all that stuff and all bullshit.

You mention anything: Princess Diana's death, every football match (fixed they say), all the cricket matches (the same), the lottery, the horse racing you name it. Some guy must sit in his little bedsit and be so angry with the world that he makes up stories and some people believe them.

Do you know I bet someone somewhere will say that the aeroplane that crashed killing the Cardiff City footballer is suspicious that the pilot's body was never found and that the pilot swam away – yes funny but I betcha!

So let's celebrate Greta on this wonderful day and consider the earth when you try to destroy it and start taking notice of her and the people that follow her instead of the liars and fantasizers – good wishes.

John Humphrys

All the nines today – 19.09.19 in the UK and 09.19.19 in the USA. Strange number nine, isn't it. Multiply nine by something and the figures will add to nine. For example 9 x 9 = 81. 8 + 1 = 9. Try it: 4 X 9 = 36. 3 + 6 = 9. Or to be difficult 9 x 184 = 1656. Add those together = 18 and those together? = 9.

There we go work that into a code or a crossword clue.

It is a sad day today for British Broadcasting.

John Humphrys decided to hang his writing and interviewing boots up – who's he? I can hear you say, you who only hear background music from your radios in the background of your very busy life, maybe not even listening to the music.

I remember entering a friend's house (not you, he doesn't read this) and he was sitting waiting for me and I could hear Take Five by Dave Brubeck being played. A great piece of modern jazz from my youth, in fact it was so long ago it should be called Was Modern Jazz.

Dave Brubeck, I said, I love him. Then I told him that when he was at The Hollywood Bowl the other four members of his quintet were held up in New York, and four local musicians in LA filled in for them as it didn't make any difference to Dave.

My pal said Dave who?

Brubeck, I said.

Oh, I haven't heard of him.

That's what was playing when I came in, I said.

Well there we go.

So back to John Humphrys, that well known spelling mistake.

He retired today from the flagship Radio 4 current affairs programme on BBC Radio. Radio 4 is my favourite station and is similar to NPR in America; the Today Programme is similar to Morning Edition and later on they have shows like All Things Considered plus lots of news and art shows.

John Humphrys was one of the half a dozen or so presenters but some of the current politicians would never be interviewed by him as they were scared. He would ask the right questions and interrupt if they didn't or just wouldn't answer his questions.

I have 'seen' footage of him interviewing Gerry Adams who was supposed to be in the IRA and he was challenging him to answer; he didn't know whether Adams was a gunman or what (as it happens he wasn't) but Humphrys stood his ground. It was the same with others – he was a young lad when he covered the Indian/Pakistan War, the first man to the Aberfan Disaster, in Wales, which was the catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip in October 1966. The tip had been created on a mountain slope above the village and 144 people died; most of them school children.

So it's sad he's gone on to other things.

I'm not sure if I'd like him though - who knows?

NPR, by the way, is on my computer at the moment and I hear that the USA are holding $160 million from Afghanistan. Is there anywhere where Trump doesn't want to upset? California yesterday and Afghanistan today.