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Isn't it great, 'human rights' cases brought by the EU against the UK have fallen by a staggering two-thirds. It's the only time in decades no more huge fines are being imposed on the UK, because we are winning an unprecedented number of cases in front of EU judges, and fines are being limited on those we lose. A pure coincidence that this fall aligns accurately with the announcement of our referendum, or maybe not? This same "coincidence" happens every time an EU country (e.g. Ireland) is granted a referendum - then it's back to Brussels diktat. Here's another coincidence: 1975 was the year of Harold Wilson's referendum on our membership of the then "Common Market" and was the only year in history that we ever got back a bit more than we paid in to the common budget. Since then it has been a steady more more more from Brussels. Next year's demands on the UK will be truly eye-watering as the failing southern European economies demand even more support, and more Balkan states join for what they can get - Frau Merkel just loves spending other people's money on failure in good old East German fashion. What's the odds Quisling Dave told his EU chummies that if there were any more out-of-the-blue demands for extra money, or any more impositions on the UK in the run up to the referendum that his IN campaign was sunk? There were a few EU gaffes in the early days of the campaign, but the word has surely got around the evil empire that they'd better be very very careful until the UK sucker vote is in. I pray for a decisive Leave vote, as otherwise this could become one of the longest running and most painful threads on the board, as we are punished for ever believing that we could restore our self-determination.

And all the publicity about the EU referendum is masking the elephant in the room TTIP . ,

"otherwise this could become one of the longest running and most painful threads on the board," Otherwise????????? The amount of debt which will be....and......is.....and.... has been....racked up by the EU will be eye watering...... Its like knowing what will happen to the Titanic and refusing to get off at the stops at Cherbourg or Cobh as she sailed onwards.......

Thanks Merc for your kind comments,and Canny Lass......,Aa cudn't mek aal these stories up if a tried,noo a shudn't a sed "Stories"..[!],cos every single word aa type is,to the best of my memory,true and correct. One little snippet of info a missed oot,but ye's folks 'll probably knaa aalriddy,regarding lifting tubs back onto thi way,when they become de-railed,was what the lads at the shaft areas had, slotted through the belt haading tha breeks up..!.....an "A**se - Flapper",med oot o' a scrap biit o' aad conveyor belting,shaped like a Grandads old fashioned shirt tail, and placed as suggested......to prevent serious back damage due to lifting and pushing sets of tubs along the way, using thier backsides and legs to push with. Us lads on heavy transport and timber or girder -leading,inbye,never used a flapper,but the shaft lads could be lifting lots of times during a shift,they were dealing with sets of tubs every minute of the day! A pit-term dictionary would probably start with that term!When ye hear aad-timers,[of pit village origin!] sayin'...."Whey,it's time aa was in kip"....or....."Aam not ganna get nae kip wi aal that bliddy racket...".......then read on! "Kip" was the area leading to the shaft,as described above,and was formed by splitting the horizon of the roadway,usually aboot a hundred yards,sometimes less,so that the tubs ran slowly,free-fall,to the shaft ,after being detached from the haulage rope which brought them outbye from the conveyor belt loader-end. The creation of a lang, man-made, swalley,["The dish"],where the chummings could run into,from the shaft-sidings,ready to be coupled up into sets,meant that the "Dish-lad",hanging the sets onto the rope to go inbye,was working below the "Kip-lad",who was "Lousing-off" the sets [from the rope],and occasionally,dregging the tubs,and de-coupling them,so they would be sent singly to the shaft...... SO!...."Kip" refers to a raised area such as that which leads up thi wooden hill to thi bed-shed!.......Phew!,wat a thing ti try and describe to thi lay-person,withoot sending them ti sleep! At Choppington high pit,the kip and dish weren't separated by a great deal,so when you went inbye from the shaft,you were walking past full tubs of coal whizzing past you at approximately shoulder-height.[that was the wheels level with your face!!]. One of my marra's was working in the dish,hingin'-on,[attaching sets to the hauler rope to go inbye to be filled at the loader -end..],when he tripped and instinctively reached out to the kip to save himself from going down,....hand went onto the kip-rails.....tubs came by........fingers off....[have I not already told of that one?.....] That was in 1960-ish....other pits had a false floor laid,completely separating the kip,and the dish,with a small hatch through which the kip-lad would pass the clips........["Jockeys" ..as used in the High-Main at Bedlington A pit],down through the hatch,to the dish-lad. To describe the different types of rope-clips for anybody to understand,would take me a day,going at my pace! For reference,where google might be of assistance,here are some types.........:[1] Hambone [2] Jockey [3] Pigtail [4] Victor Dog-grips [5] Lashing-chain [6] Illegal [!!!] Improvisation....such as a "Belt-hinger" ....[a thin steel stranded wire sling]....or a short length of lighting cable [armoured..and very strong!!] ....or anything you could lay hands on that would work.....even a length of conveyor belt cut into narrow strips and half-hitched around the rope...!!! Howw!!,ya taaking aboot pitmen heor,ye knaa,thas nae cranes doon there ,or shops like lord tool hire......ye had ti get thi job done in stinking conditions,and if ye didn't have the proper gear,ye invented it!! Noo it's just come ti me,come on here, any aad pitmen who can say they remember,or used,the Victor Dog-grips...the most dangerous rope clip ever invented,and they were used on steep gradients ...[every Westerly roadway at Choppington high pit],and never failed to detach themselves and send sets of timber and girders and machinery,......amain![running back doon the bank at ninety miles an hour.....ripping the roadway girders oot and closing the place!!!] Most of the time,in mining,aal these clips were attached to the tubs,and to the haulage rope,[usually 1/2" or 5/8ths " ]....with the rope constantly in motion,so when ye put thi clip on,ye had ti jump oot thi way in a flash,cos the tub wud "click"away,suddenly,from a standstill! Imagine us kids,aged 15 years aad,down the training gallery,at Seaton Burn pit,learning from a supervising instructor,[mostly aad-timers who had health problems and had ti do light work...],hoo ti put a lashing -chain onto a moving steel rope and hing it onto a tub......straight from wor classrooms ye knaa!! Sum of us didn't reach the blokes elbow height!! Anyway....ya standing beside ya tub,ye have the chain ready in ya hands.the chain is heavy,and aboot 3 or 4 feet lang,with a big round link at one end,and an oval-shaped link at thi other end. The links are made from 1/2" steel bar,the moving rope runs on the floor through a deep groove in a wooden sleeper,put there for this purpose. The tub is standing back,aboot three feet from this grooved sleeper. Every now and then ye hear a click,it's okay,it's JUST a loose wire sticking up out of the rope [like barbed-wire!]...catching the wood sleeper. Right!....ye step forward,put ya boot OWA the rope on top of the groove,in effect trapping the rope under ya sole of ya boot.....[H&S....?] The rope is actually rubbing up against ya sole....ye bend doon,IN FRONT OF...ya tub,hold the big link up against ya boot side ti anchor it,slip the rest of the chain under the rope,[avoiding ya leather glove being caught on a loose wire and dragging ye away ....],catch ya chain and dae the same again three times forming loops of chain aroond the rope,which all the while is slipping through the loops up against ya boot.......[hoping all thi while a loose wire doesn't come alang and rip ya boot,and ya foot...!]. Noo!The smart bit,[authorised by Her Majesty's Inspector of Mines,and the Regulations....1954 M&Q Act...]........!! Quickly,ye slip the small oval lnk through the big round link,keeping it loose....mind......!!....then...get ya sheckle,[a "D" link with a threaded pin/bolt],and put it through the oval link and hook it onti thi cruk,[or chain...as the case may be..],of ya tub,keeping the chain slack or else it will click away and pull the tub over you! Once ye have the sheckle bolt in and screwed up tight,ye step back and tek ya foot off the rope and the chain quickly tightens on and yanks the tub set away,with no mercy or forgiveness for any mistakes made!!...[ye had ti quickly learn ti hae ya wits aboot ye!] All during that operation,you are bent double in front of a set of tubs,with a moving rope,and the possibility that other tubs might bump the set from behind ...knocking you under the tub wheels. Which brings me nicely to another old pitmatic saying........"Aye poor owld Billy bumped the set last neet....".....old Billy came into a misfortune of sorts,either in the pit,or even crossing the road.......you know what it means. "Divvent ye **** aroond wi me,son,or else ye'll bump the set.."!....[a different connotation!] Well folks,a ownly came on ti say thanks ti ye's aal!!! Little Black Jess [LBJ],is biting me leg ti gaan waakies.......and luk at thi time.....again!