Non white and non Christian Blighty: The middle aged old boys’ club: The million dollar Numpty: Taxi!: Blackpool bubbles: Buggy bread: and the PC crossing.

‘Tis warmish, wettish and not a jot wobbly at the Castle this first day of twenty eleven plus one, the study is bulging with busted ex adding machines and his Maj has discovered the joy of  stealing one of my slippers and hiding it whilst I am in the land of nod. 

I would like to wish all visitors, commenter’s and blogosphere friends a very, very happy and prosperous new 2012.........well you never know.

North of the border

There is allegedly a bit of a hoo hah at the Al-Maktoum College of Higher Education in Dundee, Professor Malory Nye, 47, claims he was dismissed from his job because its hierarchy viewed his race and religion as a threat to its Muslim values.

His wife Isabel Campbell-Nye, 42, alleges she was also forced out of her position as head of the college’s English language centre because she brought in too many students who were not Muslims or Arabs.

Or in other words white and Christian.

The independent college, which operates as a charity in partnership with the University of Aberdeen, advertises in its prospectus that “multiculturalism is at the centre of our vision and structure”.

According to a “spokesperson” “The Al-Maktoum College will vigorously defend its reputation as a centre of excellence within the higher education sector and the good name it has won over the last ten years here in Dundee, nationally and internationally.”

“Professor Nye was dismissed from his post as Principal at the College following a period of suspension on full pay and an inquiry conducted by the College Chancellor.”



Which way is East?



And:

U-Turn Cam is in the do-do yet again

By dishing out special privileges to 'his friends in the City' following the news that Mr Ruddock is to be knighted.

Shadow Cabinet Office minister Michael Dugher accused the Prime Monster of going back on his promise to 'clean up politics'.

Mr Ruddock is known for using a tactic described as 'short-selling' in the wake of Northern Rock's share price crash, after which it had to be saved by the taxpayer.

This involves allowing the price of stock to plummet before buying it back at a rock-bottom price.

Mr Ruddock's donations to the Conservatives – which total almost £500,000 – date back to 2001.

He has been handed a knighthood for services to the arts and philanthropy, on the back of his roles as chairman of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and as a trustee of New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art.

 Meanwhile a Cabinet Office spokesman defended the decision to award Mr Ronson with the honour.

'If someone has served their time and gone on to do wonderful works, I don't think that prevents someone from receiving an honour,' he said.

Mr Ronson is also known for bringing self-service petrol stations to the UK and building the Heron Tower, the City of London's tallest structure.

Oh well; that’s alright then.......

Over the wet thing on the left where twenty eleven plus one occurred a few hours later

A Lexington man is accused trying to use a fake $1 million bill to pay for his purchases at a Wal-Mart.

Michael Anthony Fuller, 53, of 3 Parker St., walked into the Wal-Mart on Lowes Boulevard in Lexington on Nov. 17. He shopped for a while, picking up a vacuum cleaner, a microwave oven and other merchandise, totalling $476, an arrest warrant says.

When he got to the register, Fuller gave the cashier the phony bill, saying that it was real.

Store staff called police.

Fuller was later charged with attempting to obtain property by false pretence and uttering a forged instrument, both felonies, court records show.

The largest note ever printed was the $100,000 bill, which featured President Woodrow Wilson. The bills, which were not available to the public, were printed from Dec. 18, 1934, through Jan. 9, 1935, and were used for transactions between Federal Reserve banks.

Fuller was being held Friday night in the Davidson County Jail with bond set at $17,500. He is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.

 

Sod it, does that mean my stack of sixty two pound notes is a bit dodgy then....

Back in beautiful Blighty

To the posh bit of the Smoke, a minicab complete with “driver” managed to lurch down a slope and land on top of a parked car in Hampstead, North London. No one was hurt.

Karel Asiyo, who owns the VW, said: “I normally park on the other side of the road – I wish I had this time.”



Still; at least she has a taxi to get about in while the insurance is sorted out....

And up a smidge and a bit

Blackpool residents have been left baffled by a mysterious foamy substance which has blown in from the sea, carpeting a number of roads.

The foam is piled several feet high in areas closest to the sea, making driving conditions particularly treacherous.

Locals have expressed worries that the phenomenon is caused by polluting detergents, and said it is forcing people to stay at home.

But environmental experts have allayed their fears and suggested the foam could be the result of waves churning decomposing algal matter.

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: 'We have taken samples of the foam as obviously if this is caused by any kind of polluting material, we need to know about it.

'Early samples are not showing any trace of detergent so we think it could be the combination of decomposing algal matter churned with the tide and the westerly wind which is causing the foam.

It is not the first time the area has been awash with the foam, which came in from the sea like a snow blizzard following recent winds of up to 90mph.

'We know it happens occasionally and can disappear again quite quickly so we will be looking further into what triggers it,' said the spokesperson.

I blame the Frackers.

Dahn Unda

Entomologist Skye Blackburn breeds edible bugs and sells them as novelty gifts.

The businesswoman puts crickets and mealworms into lollipops or covers them with chocolate as a 'tasty' treat.

"Eating insects is a fairly new concept," she told Sky News.

"It is a little bit unique and most people wouldn't expect to get a gift like this but they have been really popular this Christmas.

"We try to put the bugs in an edible form which people would recognise."

Ms Blackburn grinds up roasted mealworms and uses the flour-like powder to make other foodstuffs like banana bread and biscuits.

She said: "We kill them ethically; we freeze them which put them to sleep so they don't feel any kind of pain.

"We keep them in a very sterile environment feeding them organic grains and vegetables which increases the flavour of the bugs themselves.

The chewy creatures, which have a crunchy, biscuity taste, have proved so popular that Ms Blackburn says she is planning to expand her menu in the New Year.

She said: "We are adding water bugs, scorpions and even tarantulas."

Yum, yum........

And finally, this first day of the Olympic year

To the county of sausages and a green colour, Lincolnshire County Council is rolling out new signs at pelican crossings in Boston, and walkers are being asked to wait for the green figure before they cross.

The authority says the signs are helping to keep the streets as safe as possible, but critics have questioned whether the change has been motivated by political correctness.

Alan Bell, senior engineer at the Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership, said: "We need to do all we can to help keep people safe on the county's roads. These signs remind people to cross only when the green figure is lit."

He added that the wording of the signs varies across the county.

While some crossings retain the traditional green man, the crossing at John Adams way in Boston has been given a new sign asking residents to "Cross with the green figure".

Nice to see that the New Year is starting out just like the old one finished.

That’s it: I’m orf to check out some optical lattices.

And today’s thought:

Angus