Where did yesterday go? Some thoughts on prime ministers. Immigration stuff. And gender in chess.

Yesterday disappeared down the rabbit hole of family business, involving running round some shops and even doing an evening trip to York to take Granddaughter Number Two back to university after a mini-trip home to attend a dental appointment.   

I mentioned prime minsters' lecterns the other day. i was hoping to find a photo but without success. On the subject of prime ministers, here’s a little something off social media by journalist Jon Sopel: 

“After tumultuous week, worth reflecting: in the 37 years from 1979 to 2016 there were just 5 prime ministers. 

In the 6 years since 2016 we’ve also had 5 PMs. 

Something pretty destabilising must have happened that year.”

Worth thinking about!

They’re discussing immigration again on the radio news, especially the huge numbers of desperate people trying to cross the Channel in small boats. They’re talking again about the need for France and the Uk to cooperate and possibly find a solution. Fingers crossed! According to this article there is an extra problem here in the UK of children disappearing from immigrant reception centres. Despite the emotive language, most of the disappearing “children” are teenage boys, full of the spirit of adventure, no doubt, but still vulnerable. The system needs some work! 

Current reports say that an extra problem is Albanians, making their way on visa-less travel through the EU and then attempting to reach the UK on the Channel boats. They’re clogging up the system for people with more genuine need for asylum. 

And now here’s a piece of nonsense from Newsthump. As I am the wife of a chess player, it amused me.

“Chess dismissed as 'woke nonsense' after revelation that pawns can later self-identify as Bishops, Knights, AND Queens

Chess, the five-hundred-year-old abstract strategy game has today been dismissed as a tool of the wokerati after it was revealed that the pawns used in the game can later identify as bishops, knights and even Queens.

Derek Williams, 65, a retired battery chicken farmer who is always on the lookout for the next big thing to be outraged by, spoke of his outrage, telling us, “It’s outrageous, absolutely outrageous”.

“I don’t play chess just so these woke pieces can go around being all modern and gender-fluid. A pawn is a pawn is a pawn. That’s it. That’s the way it is, and that’s the way it should be. All this self-identifying nonsense is what’s stopping Brexit from being a success, and it needs to end now.

“I don’t care if my opponent thinks this pawn that reached my side of the board can suddenly identify as a Queen, I’m not having it. He’ll be telling me his pawn is a bloody attack helicopter next!”

Williams said his point had a more serious element, telling us, “Pawns just going around identifying as queens willy-nilly threatens the rights of real queens. If you have pawns going around pretending to be queens, what happens to the queens’ safe spaces, huh?

“The sooner we cancel Chess, the better.””

The serious business of gender identity, however, is still being discussed in the Scottish parliament right now. 

Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!