Fred Olsen have just sent us an additional programme of the special black tie events that will taking place on board every week during the cruise, and also the special theme nights, such as the Egyptian night when we sail through the Suez Canal, the Indian night as we sail from Kerala, or the Carnival night as we sail through the Panama Canal. Sounds exotic, but I am aware that Albina is unlikely to attend any of these, and I must confess that black tie events are not my scene, either. Perhaps I will attend one or two on my own, with her permission.
Also I have just been on a visit to the Moorfields Centre in Ealing Hospital and they have concluded that my two eye operations have been succesful. It only behoves on me now to go to Specsavers to get a new eye test and then order a new pair of glasses for the voyage, with the assistance of Albina of course. There is no way that such an important task as choosing my own glasses, could be left to me alone. She is responsible for my outer appearance, namely what I wear, what shoes and underwear I need and what glasses I wear. The only choice I have left is the colour and shape of my hat. After all, she is the one that has to look at me, not myself. In any case, she has ordered an eye test for the same date as me, on January 18th., so we shall sail through this ordeal together.
In the meantime I am bombarded by news from the outside world. Prince Harry has gone completely loopy. In his new book with the suggestive title, "Spare" he has come up with embarassing private revelations about himself and his family which is like a written version of Britney Spears running naked and despairingly cutting off her hair. Embarassed young commentators accosted by a journalist on the streets of Windsor, who would normally have been considered sympathetic to Harry, have said that his narrative should have been kept private, and should be an internal family matter. Harry talks of the most trivial incidents, like a near punch up with his brother, jokes with his father about his parenthood, arguments over Meghan's bridesmaids dresses, or how he was seduced by an older lady at back of a pub and had his bottom spanked, all items one would hesitate to include even as anecdotes in a jovial biography, let alone a serious account of the royal family. Perhaps he expects us to reel back with horror at the injustice of it all, as he rakes in his milions from the book and continues his lavish life style. . Then on top of that triviliaty, he claims to have killed 25 members of the Taliban, a revelation which normally no modern soldier would ever give, and describes them only as chess pieces in a conflict. For the first time in my life I found myself agreeing with a Taliban spokesman who criticized this statement about a chess piece and stated that every one of those he killed had a family. His own army mates have expresses horror and dismay at such a statement and it could even lead to some clerical body issuing a fatwa. That will complete his personal security more than ever, while he screams from the rooftops about preserving his family's privacy and safety. The book is just a car crash.
Free advice to the royals. Do not respond. This book has imploded on itself and its author, and it wounds Harry fatally. Also please don't issue any more anonymous palace responses such as the one claiming that his behaviour hastened the death of the Queen, and was "like a machete in the back" to the royal family. That's also a hysterical statement and will only justify the need for a further wounded response from Harry. By all means, express sorrow and sympathy for your son , Your Majesty, but do not correct anything, as you are facing the ravings of a madman, regardless of how true his staements are.
In the meantime Sunak and Starmer have issued their respective new year statements of intent, devoid luckily of any bombast, but somewhat lacking in presenting any vision as well, or likely to solve any of the immediate problems facing everyone in this country. At least the UK is no longer governed by mad people and rogues, even though the current lot do not seem to be in control of events. Regrettably, Sunak is still in no position yet to finding a way to end the strike nightmare, and Starmer is not in a position to help him. The dying agony of this government continues, but so does the agony of so many hungry pensioners and young families, not knowing where to turn, and seeing no immediate light at the end of this long tunnel.
Of course, Putin's Orthodox New Year truce remains a hoax and a piece of Russian PR, aimed not at the West, but at the Russians themselves, as Putin cements ever closer the Russian state and the Russian Orthodox Church in their joint crusade to slay the Ukrainian monster and restore an imperial Russia. It is only as expected, while the endless bombardment of Ukrainian power sources goes on. Experts are beginning to expect this war to continue throughout the rest of this year.
Also fascinating statistics, based on the 2021 Census results, which show that less than one percent of adults over 16 has an issue with their own gender that they was born with, and just 3% do not consider themselves to be heterosexual. There is, however, one fly in the ointment in this analysis. It seems 7% of the adult population failed to respond to an optional question on their sexual orientation. That leaves the staistics quite unreliable. So the issues of LGTBQ remain important as a measure of our tolerance and understanding, but they only impact on the daily life of a relatively small minority in the UK. Gone are the wild claims that upto a quarter of the population are gay. By all means enjoy the Gay Pride marches but be aware that they represent only a small and loud minority. People with disabilities are a much larger and a more important and a more deserving minority to protect.
Finally, I have been sent a long report on You Tube based on a tedious one hour analysis by the independent TVN station in Poland, which undermines the conclusions of the Macierewicz Commission about President Kaczynski and 94 other Polish leaders being victims of a bomb on thir plane in 2010. The conclusion was that in the fog at Smolensk, the plane crew misread their instruments and hit some raised ground after losing the tip of its wing against a tree. The deconstruction of the Commission's conclusions was so thorough, but so tedious, that I fell asleep watching it, so it must be true! Just joking. I will listen to it again tomorrow, when I come back from Cambridge. However, this report has led to yet another attempt by the PiS government to remove TVN's licence to broadcast, although their viewing figures now challenge the official main state TVP channel. I am desperate to see that corrupt malevolent Polish government removed.
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