Mrs Pencilneck

Must admit, having had a certain amount to do with council types, you have to admire a persons willingness to engage in local government activity because it is (not to put too fine a point on it) duller than scabby ditch water...but that's what it comes down to, it's planning applications, rubbish, pavements, crime - all the kind of stuff that about as exciting as cold rice pudding but all contributes to our sense of well-being. Wish there was a formula to make seem a little less tedious as democracy would be made a little easier...

As someone who moved back, I'd say that yup, it's home....a good feeling

A few questions... Is it just the level of rudeness that is scarily prevelant that you object to that makes you think it's all going breasts aloft, or have you reported crimes and nothing has been done so you feel like you might as well not have bothered? I'm curious because there is a school of thought out there who've put forward the idea that it's not crime that's rising, it's the fear of crime that's on the increase.... Just a thought like....

The plan is to (potentially) amalgamate Blyth Valley Borough Council and Wansbeck District Council - and that includes Cramlington, Seaton Deleval, Blyth.......It'll be more or less that same geographical area covered by the South East Northumberland/The rest of Northumberland split that was discussed at the referendum for a North East Assembly a couple of years back. I'm playing devil's advocate here, but one of the things that Blyth Valley have been very, very good at doing in the last few years has been self-promotion and making sucessful bids for funding from regeneration organisations (and also seeming to make reasonable-to-good use of the money that they receive, rather than a bloke in a suit walking on 2 foot of astroturf on Ashington main street) - It's the kind of skill that a combined South East Northumberland Council may be able to make use of and may be of benefit to us here in Bedlington in the future. If we also get to have a louder voice in terms of having a larger population of people in reasonable income brackets, fewer social problems (i.e. Cramlington) - PLEASE DON'T LYNCH ME for mentioning that some of this area might be a bit less than salubrious - we might end up better off, hell, we may even end up with a swimming pool! We might just get what we want - possibly. Though if you don't mind, I'd prefer not to bet the farm on it just yet.... Some stuff on the Wansbeck District Council website

Tried that before, didn't work

I fear this new board may have gone the way of all flesh...

It was just conjecture about miners strike guilt and besides, I'm not quite old enough to know in any detail what the political landscape was like when the boundaries changed...and do agree with you on Bedlington being at the geographical heart of the district....

That was the original Ashington hospital that was in the middle of Ashington and is now just a patch of waste ground where myself, a goodly wedge of my friends and most of my family popped into the world that I was referring to. To be honest I couldn't work out the Wansbeck was built where it was either....especially when nothing is being done with the land that the old hospital stood on.

All I was commenting on was that if we were to apply a strict definition of who's "Bedlingtonian" or "Ashingtonian" based on whether or not you born in Ashington Hospital, this forum would be a very different place, and probably very quiet.

It depends on the take up of an particular ISP in a particular area, BT sells chunks of bandwidth to an ISP, who sell bandwidth to domestic users....if a bunch of folk have say all gone for Eclipse, your speeds will go down at peak times because all the contingency has been used up by all the other people using the same broadband service as you...i.e. the bit of slack that means that you can get "up to 8Mb" is being used by the other people in your area who you share an ISP with. Hopefully that makes some sense......

I think a person's parents had to try very hard not to have their kids in Ashington hospital if you come from round 'ere as there isn't (or at least there wasn't during the 60's, 70's and 80's) really anywhere else with a labour ward within a 15 mile radius. I think one of the reasons that Ashington is getting more help now is because people feel guilty about the royal seeing to that the town got after the minors strike. All told it was pretty much left to rot...plus unlike Bedlington, it wasn't the most attractive of towns to begin with.

They also get that ruddy great metal hoop at the entrance to the Jubilee industrial estate....urban regeneration people, madder than a barrel of mad monkeys on acid.....

It's windy outside

That wasn't aimed at you, Herr Kolonel...

Right.... You're a Grammy nominated, "still make a decent amount of wedge out of your back catalogue" kind of guy. You have consumed a little Cristal or some other quality beverage of choice. You are in New York, noted for it's high level of taxi provision. Why get yourself arrested for drunk driving 4 times in 10 months? You can probably afford to have a flunky on call to pick you up...who isn't one of your parents or your other half... Ye knaa what it is...

Hoover the stairs and don't miss the corners man......chop chop Marital stereotype 'r' us....

"there was this nationalist politician called Adolf Hitler, who stirred up the nation of Germany to war by pandering to the people's ignorance and fear after the misery of the Great Depression. He then tried to take over Europe whilst killing many innocent people along the way" Though if you listen to your granny, apparently the war was a great laugh...

I've thought about it, but it wouldn't be in the spirit of informed debate would it?

Oh symptoms.... Your post is lovely and I salute you... Right...One thing that has alarmed me about the path that this discussion has taken is that the prevailing argument seems to be "my racism is okay, but if the other fella holds equally discriminatory beliefs about me then I'm perfectly within my rights to get all shirty about it". Racism is a two way street but that doesn't make it right - and believe me I'm no supporter of positive discrimination, whether you are man, woman, hermaphrodite, frog, banana, jew, Queen of Sheba or what. Which is what the black chap whose name I've forgotten appears to have been arguing. I think the one thing that has come out of this discussion is that the turban-clad chap who agreed that you shouldn't be able to get into the police force without the correct qualifications is Sikh. I've met a few Sikh folk (and I can count at least one amongst my friends) and I would like to make a couple of points 1.) The vast majority of Sikh folk can not in any way be described as "!*!@#'s" for the simple reason that they were displaced as a consequence of the partition of India - the birth of Pakistan caused this group to have to move out of an area where they had lived for about 800 to 1000 years the vast majority of Sikh's are tightly involved in their local community here regardless of colour or creed (and not just with people from the Indian sub continent). Sunderland Temple are a very good example of this. It's a bit more subtle than white/brown/black....It would be useful if there was a little less polarisation and a little more experience brought into the discussion...

Bad husband Enough of this banter......

Your photos are all really good. Weel done and all that...back in the day, I'd been there once or twice when I was involved in the scouts....(For the record, I am and have always been a lass BTW) You can actually tell that that building is in good structural nick as the roof isn't bowing and is still largely on one piece. It's one of those where if you had a few (hundred) grand to spare you could do the whole "Grand Designs" bit on it and it'd be lush. Unfortunately, there is a trick in the building trade where you buy old/listed buildings as a nameless building company, hang on until they fall apart, sell 'em then knock them down. Bast***s I know, and the price seems a little harsh when you can buy a nice flat that isn't made of cardboard with all mod cons on Rothesay or Victoria Terrace and still have change out of £80K roughly half a mile up the road.... Do they think we're daft? The high school alone would do my napper in...

It was on TV when they were talking about this pilot scheme to inform parents (I think) if there are convicted peodophiles living in their area. I think the footage dated from those protests that happened a few years ago. Quite unfortunate if your name is Phil....

Aye, I agree that the situation mentioned above is terrible but the main feel of the argument seems to have been "let's turn our backs if they aren't british" Okay, we may not agree with particular groups about various aspects of their culture, and may actively feel that certain bits are just plain wrong, but it isn't our decision to make. It is though, up to us to be warm, welcoming and accepting of other peoples differences where appropriate. We can't change someone elses culture, but we're not in a position to stand in judgement either.

Poor lass, she shouldn't have to go through that kind of !*!@# . Here's some stuff I found on-line that might help her, if she wants to do anything about it... Foreign Office, Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) - normal rates apply 020 7008 0135 or 020 7008 0230 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm or 020 7008 1500 (at all other times) The FMU offers confidential information and helps anyone in the UK that is scared they may be forced into a marriage. The FMU team can also help people in the UK forced overseas to marry. Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) Foreign & Commonwealth Office Room G/55 Old Admiralty Building Whitehall SW1A 2PA Email fmu@fco.gov.uk Aye, but do you not think that that we're all a bit paranoid about our identity, and maybe try to get along? Colour, religion, gender, sexuality, station, top end? It's not a big leap