Suspect In Connection With Synagogue Fire

Surveillance footage has been released of the moments before a man set Mississippi’s largest synagogue ablaze in an antisemitic attack.

Stephen Pittman, 19, was charged with maliciously damaging or destroying a building by means of fire or an explosive.

In footage shot in the middle of the night, Pittman can be seen emptying a can of gasoline all over the hallway to the synagogue, ensuring that any fire would spread with ferocity once ignited.

In the building’s lobby, Pittman is seen pouring liquid over a couch and the floor while wearing a mask and a hood. The fire tore through the Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson shortly after Pittman was done with dousing the interior just after 3 am on Saturday.

No congregants or firefighters were injured in the fire. Firefighters arrived to find flames billowing out of windows and all doors to the synagogue locked, the chief of investigations for the Jackson Fire Department, Charles D. Felton Jr., said.

Local and federal officials, including those from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, arrested Pittman for investigation of arson at a hospital where he had non-life-threatening burns.

The teen suspect confessed to lighting a fire inside the building, which he referred to as ‘the synagogue of Satan,’ according to an FBI affidavit filed in US District Court in Mississippi on Monday.

Pittman, who participated via video conference call from a hospital bed, was assigned a public lawyer for his first appearance hearing in federal court on Monday. There were obvious bandages on both of his hands.

He told the judge that he was a high school graduate with three semesters of college completed.

Prosecutors said he could face five to 20 years in prison if convicted. When the judge read him his rights, Pittman said, ‘Jesus Christ is Lord.’

Pittman is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary and detention hearing on January 20.

Images showed the charred remains of an administrative office and synagogue library, where several Torahs were destroyed or damaged.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said she has instructed prosecutors to seek ‘severe penalties,’ according to a statement provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.

The suspect’s father contacted the FBI and said his son had confessed to setting the building on fire. Pittman had texted his father a photo of the rear of the synagogue before the fire, with the message, ‘There’s a furnace in the back.’ 

His father had pleaded with his son to return home, but ‘Pittman replied back by saying he was due for a homerun and ‘I did my research,’ the affidavit said.

During an interview with investigators, Pittman said he had stopped at a gas station on his way to the synagogue to purchase the gas used in the fire. He also took the license plate off his vehicle at the gas station. 

He used an axe to break out a window of the synagogue, poured gas inside and used a torch lighter to start the fire, the FBI affidavit said.

Later, the FBI seized a hand torch that a congregant had discovered and retrieved a charred mobile that was thought to be Pittman’s.

Yellow police tape on Monday blocked off the entrances to the synagogue building, which was surrounded by broken glass and soot. Bouquets were laid on the ground at the building’s entrance – including one with a note that said, ‘I’m so very sorry.’

Local and national officials, religious figures and activists condemned the fire at the 160-year-old synagogue, the largest in Mississippi and the only one in Jackson.

It was the site of a Ku Klux Klan bombing in 1967 – a response to the congregation’s role in civil rights activities, according to the Institute of Southern Jewish Life, which also houses its office in the building.

The home of the synagogue’s rabbi, an outspoken critic of racial segregation, was also bombed two months later by the same group.

‘That history reminds us that attacks on houses of worship, whatever their cause, strike at the heart of our shared moral life,’ CJ Rhodes, a prominent black Baptist pastor in Jackson, said in a Facebook post.

The arson underscores the importance of interfaith solidarity in standing up to hate and bigotry, said Jim Berk, CEO of the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, a Los Angeles-based organisation focused on combating antisemitism.

‘It was an assault on the heart of Jewish life in the South, and on a legacy shaped in partnership with the Black community through the long, unfinished struggle for civil rights,’ Berk said in a statement. 

‘This attack is not only an act of antisemitism, it is an assault on that legacy, testing whether the lessons of that era still hold.’

‘That it has been attacked again, amid a surge of antisemitic incidents across the US, is a stark reminder: antisemitic violence is escalating, and it demands total condemnation and swift action from everyone,’ Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of The Anti-Defamation League, said in a statement.

‘This news puts a face and name to this tragedy, but does not change our resolve to proudly – even defiantly – continue Jewish life in Jackson in the face of hatred,’ the Beth Israel Congregation wrote in a statement. 

The congregation is assessing damage but will continue its regular worship programs and services for Shabbat, the weekly Jewish Sabbath, likely at one of the local churches that reached out, said Michele Schipper, CEO of the Institute of Southern Jewish Life and a past president of the congregation.

‘We are a resilient people,’ said Beth Israel Congregation President Zach Shemper. ‘With support from our community, we will rebuild.’

One Torah that survived the Holocaust was behind glass and was not damaged in the fire, Schipper said.

Five Torahs – the sacred scrolls with the text of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible – inside the sanctuary are being assessed for smoke damage. Two Torahs inside the library, where the most severe damage was done, were destroyed, according to a synagogue representative.

The floors, walls and ceiling of the sanctuary were covered in soot, and the synagogue will have to replace upholstery and carpeting.

With just several hundred people in the community, it has never been especially easy being Jewish in Mississippi’s capital city. Still, members of Beth Israel have taken particular pride in keeping their traditions alive in the heart of the Deep South.

Virtually every facet of Jewish life in Jackson could be found under Beth Israel’s roof.

The midcentury modern building not only accommodated the congregation but also the Jewish Federation, a nonprofit provider of social services and philanthropy that is the epicentre of Jewish society in most US cities. 

The building is home to the Institute of Southern Jewish Life, which provides resources to Jewish communities in 13 southern states. A Holocaust memorial was outdoors behind the synagogue building.

Because Jewish children throughout the South have attended summer camp for decades in Utica, Mississippi, about 30 miles southwest of Jackson, many retain a fond connection to the state and its Jewish community.

‘Jackson is the capital city, and that synagogue is the capital synagogue in Mississippi,’ said Rabbi Gary Zola, a historian of American Jewry who taught at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. 

‘I would call it the flagship, though when we talk about places like New York and Los Angeles, it probably seems like Hicksville.’

Beth Israel, as a congregation, was established in 1860 and acquired its first property, where it built Mississippi’s first synagogue, after the Civil War. 

But wait a moment, when was the last time Israel destroyed a mosque, yes, a place of worship!

On 19th October 2023, an Israeli airstrike struck the Church of Saint Porphyrius, where 500 people were sheltering, and then on 8th November 2023, Israel attacked and destroyed the Khalid bin al-Walid Mosque, so it is no surprise that they are avenging.

At least sixty mosques had been obliterated by Israeli bombs. Not only that, but they have also hit hospitals and schools.

I know, I know, I’m going to be called antisemitic, and I am expecting that, but I am in no way antisemitic. I just don’t agree with war, any kind of war, because it takes lives along with it. Call a ceasefire, try to agree on something and get along with each other. You know what they say, ‘an eye for an eye, everyone goes blind.’

A Question Disabled People Dread On Dates

As a disabled person myself, I no longer go on dates because I just know what I will ultimately get asked, and not only do I get asked, men are so blunt about it when they do ask, and this is the most common question asked.

My stomach used to roll because I knew that I would be asked the one question I did not want to answer. ‘Can you still perform sex?’ It’s not actually a question you want to answer or be asked on a first date.

Dating is difficult for disabled people. You always feel that you are prepared for that dreaded question, but ultimately, you never are, and I feel that people have extremely negative feelings about disabled people. I am also Asexual, which makes matters worse.

Some men will ask you the question halfway through the evening, which then makes things extremely uncomfortable for the rest of the evening, and to be honest, men who ask this sort of question, in my view, have crossed the line, but typically, I never see them again.

Quite frankly, it can be extremely frustrating and sometimes upsetting, although over the years I have learnt to have extremely thick skin.

People have implied that the problem is me, but I know that it’s not. There is so much stigma around disabled people, and that should not be the case.

Having a disability should not matter, but it does. I no longer ignore people who make comments or smile through it; I just tell them what I think of them.

When I first became disabled, I realised that there were differences between me and others. I have been told to smile, ‘It will get better.’ Like my disability didn’t matter, but it does matter, it matters to me.

When it comes to dating, you realise that your experiences may be slightly different, but not that different, or how you perceive them to be, and there is not much advice on how to navigate romance, and when dating for the first time, being disabled, you feel alive with possibility, and then it all goes downhill from there.

I have given up dating now, but I do get fed up with people saying, ‘You just haven’t met the right person yet, someone will come along when you least expect it.’

I have learnt to love and respect my disability over the years, but it is disappointing when people make childish remarks. I now realise that it’s not my duty to accept people or enlighten them.

The UK Is Developing 200kg Nightfall Missiles For Ukraine

Britain is set to ‘put leading-edge weapons into the hands of Ukrainians’ with powerful long-range ballistic rockets that can destroy Russian targets more than 300 miles away. 

Nightfall rockets – which are packed with 200kg warheads, can be fired in rapid succession and reach as far as Moscow – could prove a valuable asset in Volodymyr Zelensky’s continued fight against Vladimir Putin’s forces.

Now British firms are being sought by the Ministry of Defence to design, develop and deliver the first three test missiles in a contract worth £9 million.

Hailing the potential of the new weapon, Defence Secretary John Healey told The Sun: ‘You defend your cities by having layers of defence, and you partly defend by being able to attack.’

The Labour minister made the comments while on a visit to Kyiv – and just moments after barely dodging a Russian missile and drone attack in the region on Thursday, which killed four people. 

Explaining how the train he was travelling on was forced to make an emergency stop, he said:  ‘It was a serious moment and a stark reminder of the barrage of drones and missiles hitting Ukrainians in sub-zero conditions.

‘We won’t stand for this and are determined to put leading-edge weapons into the hands of Ukrainians as they fight back.’

The announcement of the Nightall project comes as the Defence Secretary also announced the UK will spend £200 million preparing British troops for deployment to Ukraine in the event of a truce with Russia.

John Healey visited Ukraine to discuss preparations for the Multinational Force with President Zelensky.

The money will be used to upgrade vehicles and communications systems, provide counter-drone protection, and purchase other necessary equipment to ensure troops are ready for deployment.

Healey said: ‘We are surging investment into our preparations following the Prime Minister’s announcement this week, ensuring that Britain’s armed forces are ready to deploy, and lead, the Multinational Force Ukraine, because a secure Ukraine means a secure UK.’

Russia launched a deadly nuclear-capable missile towards Ukraine earlier this week.

After the meeting, Mr Zelensky said he was ‘grateful’ for the UK’s support, adding: ‘It is crucial that the framework for ending the war includes a clear response from the allies should Russian aggression be repeated.’

On Wednesday, Sir Keir Starmer promised to send troops to Ukraine as part of a ‘reassurance force’ organised by the ‘coalition of the willing’.

The government has not yet disclosed the number of British servicemen it anticipates deploying, nor the size of the Western force, which will also include soldiers from France.

Reports have indicated the entire force could amount to just 15,000 men, with the UK providing half the total. 

But in the Commons on Wednesday, Mr Healey refused to give details, saying it would ‘only make Putin wiser’.

On Friday, Mr Healey also announced that production would start this month on new Octopus drones for Ukraine, designed to intercept other drones used by Russia to attack civilian targets.

The UK seeks to produce thousands of drones per month, with each Octopus costing just 10 per cent of the drones they are designed to intercept.

On Thursday night, Russia launched a huge wave of drones and missiles against Ukraine, striking civilian targets and energy infrastructure.

The attack involved more than 200 drones and 20 missiles, according to a British Defence Intelligence assessment, including an experimental hypersonic Oreshnik missile launched against Lviv, in western Ukraine.

The Oreshnik, an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), is thought to have been fired from 1,000 miles away and well within Russian territory.

It is thought that Europe’s largest underground gas storage facility was the target of the frightening strike near NATO and EU territory.

There is no suggestion that the overnight Oreshnik strike was nuclear – despite its atomic capability.

Putin claims targets are incinerated by conventional Oreshnik missiles unleashing a temperature of 4,000 °C, almost as hot as the surface of the sun.

Production of IRBMs was banned by the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty between the US and Russia, but the treaty crumpled in 2019 amid reiterated accusations of Russian non-compliance.

Defence Intelligence said Moscow was likely to have only a ‘handful’ of Oreshnik missiles, which cost far more than other missiles it has used to attack Ukraine, adding its use was ‘almost certainly intended as strategic messaging’.

It seems that the UK government wants war, but if there is a war, we will undoubtedly feel the wrath from Russia, and how is it that a war thousands of miles away has become so close to home? We should probably concentrate on rebuilding our own country before attempting to disassemble someone else’s.

It appears that our government despises the British people, and we can’t even safeguard our own borders against small boats.

In essence, our borders are open, but our government is protecting theirs, but it’s seriously none of our business. If they want a war and fight it out, let them get on with it, because if the shoe were on the other foot, I can assure you they wouldn’t help us.

Russia will attack us if the UK gets involved, and they will claim it is self-defence, which is their right, but sadly, we just can’t keep our meddling noses out of other people’s businesses.

We are constantly told that there is not enough money for our own people, and our government claims it cannot afford certain things, yet it finds unlimited funds for this.

According to our government, there is no help for our country. It is bleeding us dry to support immigrants and war, and our Armed Forces are in short supply, all because Keir Starmer wants to be on the world’s stage, but to be on the world’s stage, you would have to be a natural-born leader. Have a laugh, Keir Starmer couldn’t even run his own bath, let alone his own country.

2025: UK Messages Unwelcoming Non-Whites

It appeared that 2024 would be the year of anti-migrant hatred in the UK after the summer riots: unbridled misinformation that the Wales-born Southport killer arrived on a small boat, checkpoints where drivers were assessed on their skin colour, and mobs endeavouring to set fire to hotels housing asylum seekers. 

But while the country evaded a recurrence of anti-migrant street brutality in 2025, the message that non-white people – ranging from recently arrived refugees to third-generation children – are unwelcome in the UK has only become louder.

It is not inherently racist to debate or disagree with immigration. But it is hard not to see a rising surge of explicit hatred emerging online – for which there is extensive data and which supports offline mobilisation.

The Institute for Strategic Dialogue has been monitoring the spread of this discourse by counting the number of individuals who see postings that contain newly developing anti-immigrant terminology.

Consider the increasing prevalence of the remigration debate in the United Kingdom. Regardless of their citizenship status or legal right to remain, the phrase refers to the widespread and usually forced expulsion of anybody of migrant origin—which almost often means non-white people—from Western nations. However, it has expanded from the continent to the core of anti-immigrant discourse in the UK, having previously been most closely linked to Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland.

In 2023, posts on X discussing remigration, which said the UK obtained a little more than one million views, before surging to nearly 55 million views in 2024. In 2025 to date, these posts have received a staggering 420 million views.

Many lauded demonstrations for remigration held in cities including Manchester, Birmingham and Nuneaton. Others sought to place mass deportations of non-white people as the ‘centrist’ option, implying that they should be grateful that they do not receive mass violence or executions instead.

There has been a similar spike in talk of an immigrant “invasion”, transmuting arrivals on small boats into a great infidelic army. Posts mentioning a migrant invasion of the UK obtained 275 million views in 2023, 600 million in 2024 and 1.4 billion in 2025 to date.

Much of this is unsurprisingly targeted at asylum seekers and irregular migration. The summer was marked by protests targeting hotels in Epping, Canary Wharf and other regions of the country – a situation not helped by colossal unforced errors, including the accidental release of an Ethiopian man who sexually assaulted a woman and a girl. 

But anti-migrant actors are increasingly agnostic as to who they target so long as they’re ‘foreign’ – even when they are elected politicians, from groups not so long ago cynically deemed ‘model minorities’.

In 2024, only one out of the top 10 responses to X posts celebrating Diwali by former prime minister Rishi Sunak and shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel was negative. By 2025, eight out of 10 featured either anti-Indian schoolyard scatology or explicit claims that to celebrate a Hindu festival is proof that an individual is unassimilated. 

Anti-migrant discourse that has targeted the UK has skyrocketed, and having a conversation about immigration isn’t automatically racist. Immigration is a political, economic and social issue, and we can agree or disagree with it because it affects our housing, wages, public services and cultural change, and none of that on its own makes someone racist.

A discussion about immigration isn’t automatically racist. Immigration is a political, economic, and social problem, and people can disagree about policy for numerous reasons—concerns about housing, wages, public services, border management, or cultural transformation. None of that, on its own, makes someone racist – you would have to cross the line and how the argument was articulated.

When debate remains in the realm of policy

  • Concentrating on numbers, infrastructure, or economic impact
  • Discussing integration, legal processes, or border systems
  • Critiquing government decisions or political strategies

These are legitimate political arguments that occur in every democracy.

When it turns into racism

  • Targeting people because of their ethnicity, nationality, or religion
  • Using stereotypes or dehumanising language
  • Treating immigrants as a monolithic “problem” rather than people
  • Blaming entire groups for societal problems

The difference is in tone, intent, and the underlying beliefs.

The simple fact is that the UK is not a big country. It is small, and we cannot accommodate everyone. It’s as simple as that. There is no room at the Inn.

Also, if you want to come to another country, any country, you should immerse yourself in the culture of that country. Nobody is saying that they shouldn’t celebrate their culture, but just remember that they are here as guests, and not to take over our country wherever they see fit.

I am all for different cultures, but not when they infringe on my culture to the point where my culture does not exist anymore. Come over, but play by the rules; that is all we ask.

WASPI Update On ‘Last Chance Saloon’ Warning

Two-thirds of young voters think the Government should pay compensation to WASPI women, new polling shows.

The campaign says there is overwhelming support for its demands among 18-34-year-olds, with 66 per cent saying over three million 1950s-born women should get payouts. WASPI chair Angela Madden warned ministers they are in the “last chance saloon” to deliver justice.

Next month, supporters will learn if the Government will change its mind on refusing compensation after new evidence came to light. Mrs Madden said: “These findings prove that younger people understand the importance of justice and fairness across generations.

“They recognise that when the state fails its citizens through maladministration, it must put things right, regardless of age. The overwhelming support from 18-34 year-olds shows they won’t accept a society where governments can simply ignore independent watchdogs and deny compensation to those who’ve been wronged.”

The survey of 2,095 adults, carried out by Yonder, discovered 53 per cent of 18-34 year-olds believe the Government should hold a debate and vote on whether compensation should be paid. And 77 per cent said people affected by maladministration should be able to receive redress without having to take legal action.

The Government is under pressure to reverse its decision not to award compensation of £1,000 to £2,950 to 3.6 million women. WASPI had been set for a court clash at the beginning of December, demanding a judicial review – but legal action is on hold pending the outcome of the latest review.

Mrs Madden, 71, said nothing short of a compensation scheme will suffice. She said, “This really is crunch time. We need every MP making it clear that ministers are in the last chance saloon.

“If they again ignore the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s recommendations, they risk a humiliating tsunami of national outrage and further legal action.”

Campaigners have raised more than £250,000 to finance their legal challenge. Failures at the DWP meant the decision to raise the state pension age for women was not adequately conveyed. The worst-affected were plunged into poverty after being unable to prepare for the future.

These women were impacted by their state pension age increasing from 60 to 65 and then 66.

Labour were firmly in support of WASI and used powerful words about injustice and righting wrongs, but this was to win votes, and as soon as they were elected, they said no – this is just another illustration of Labour backtracking and lying.

However, it’s going to cost our government a ton of money to compensate these women – how will they pay for it, now that they have robbed it? And if they do manage to compensate these women, the taxpayer will suffer because our government will increase everything.

The government tax us, and then taxes us again and again. Double taxes here, triple taxes there – tax is their new toy! And the best of luck to these extraordinary women who are fighting them – they have made a stand that should be recognised, and now they are showing up our government for all their underhandedness, and backtracking moves.

Labour are like the Starzi, who are crooks and ginger growlers who were all over the WASPI women pre-election, garnering as much good publicity as they could, but then after they won, they began to display their true colours. If they have enough money to sustain migrants, they have enough money for WASPI women.

Labour would never win a general election if one were held right now!

People in the UK are being treated dreadfully, and they deserve better.

Lorraine Stanley Regrets Losing Half Her Weight

Former Eastenders star Lorraine Stanley has reflected on her weight loss transformation, revealing she lost seven stone after fearing she would have a heart attack.

However, the actor, who played Karen Taylor in the BBC soap, said she regrets having surgery to remove 75-80 per cent of her stomach, stating in hindsight she wishes she had “done it with diet and exercise”.

In a new interview, Stanley said she got “really big” while starring in EastEnders due to her salary.

“I think I had too much money,” she told The Sun, adding: “It’s better not working, because I haven’t got the money to eat out every day.”

The actor recently opened up about her weight loss, revealing she underwent surgery after becoming “immune” to jabs.

“I went to a London clinic, paid an awful lot of money and had it done,” she previously told New, calling it “hands-down the best thing I’ve ever done – both for me and for my family”.

Stanley has received support from a fitness expert and dietitian following the gastric sleeve procedure. She has since stopped drinking and altered her diet.

After sharing a photo of her new look on Instagram, EastEnders actor James Bye, who recently left the soap, remarked: “Look at you skinny minny,” while Carly Wicks star Kellie Shirlie added: “Gorgeous inside and out!” Others said she looked “incredible” and “amazing”.

After establishing her acting career in 2000, Stanley had small parts in several BBC shows, including Casualty, Holby City, and Call the Midwife, before landing EastEnders in 2017.

The following year, she won Best Newcomer at the British Soap Awards.

Her other credits include the films London to Brighton (2006) and Made in Dagenham (2010). Shortly before starring in EastEnders, Stanley appeared as a barmaid opposite Tom Hardy in Legend, a film about the Kray twins.

Stanley appeared in eight episodes of EastEnders in 2016, one year before she joined the soap on a permanent basis, playing the small role of Thelma Bragg.

Twelve years before, she played a young version of Laila Morse’s Mo Harris in the spinoff Pat and Mo, which told the backstory to a feud between Mo and Pat Butcher.

But it’s the character of Karen Taylor that Stanley is best known for, having played the part until 2024.

In 2019, the actor, who has a nine-year-old daughter, said it was “nice” to have a permanent role in EastEnders after years of securing bit parts.

“I’ve kind of done everything, but only one episode, so I named myself One-Ep Lou, and it’s nice to have a bit of stability as an actor,” she previously told Channel 4 series Sunday Brunch.

“You appreciate it so much more. Now I appreciate what I’ve got, as opposed to it just being on a plate. I’ve struggled all the way through it – it’s a difficult career.”

Although she has lost a significant amount of weight, she deserves praise for her efforts and seems healthier as a result. It’s far more difficult to do it yourself, and some folks just don’t have the willpower, but she does look amazing – different, but great.

She’s a gorgeous lady, and whether she’s big, small, pink or blue, she should do whatever makes her happy.

Londoners Over 60: Scrap Free Travel?

Travel passes for the over-60s are still in abundance. Should it be, even for the rich?

Why not? We don’t get much for free while we’re here on Earth, but I’m not sure if it should be given to everyone. But those who are on a low income should be allowed a free pass.

The Freedom Pass is given to the over-60s and disabled travellers, and it costs TfL and the London Councils more than half a billion pounds each year.

One would say that this is unaffordable and extremely unfair, but when we have immigrants coming to our shores, and our government is dishing money out for them, then no, it’s not unaffordable or deeply unfair.

As a taxpayer, I would prefer to pay for bus passes rather than help a migrant who comes to our nation with nothing to support themselves.

And don’t forget that people have been paying their entire life for their pension, only to then be told it’s a benefit. I mean, how much more do they want to take from us? It’s not a benefit, it is a contribution that we paid into so that we could get a return when we become of pensionable age, but now our government are making us look like scroungers, and that we are stealing it. But we didn’t steal it, our government did, similar to a Ponzi scheme, which I might add is illegal. It is illegal and considered a form of investment fraud that lures you in with the promise of money.

Putting it into idiot terms, if you pay into something with the assurance of a return, then that is illegal, especially if that said money has been used for something else, other than what it was supposed to be used for.

One has to apply for their Freedom Pass to travel; it’s not automatic. I believe that it should be because the elderly need passes to get around – doctors’ appointments and shops, especially if they live in rural areas, and to have to pay out of their pensions is a lot, and they don’t get a lot to begin with.

Don’t assume that if a person is a pensioner, that they are well off; that is the furthest from the truth.

Retirement, I’m pleased that I reached it, but without a bus pass I wouldn’t be able to enjoy all the benefits like going for hospital appointments and seeing friends – I would just be stuck at home looking at four walls. So, before anybody chews my a*se off for speaking out. Let me tell you, there’s no joy in staring at four walls all day, and it’s definitely not good for your mental health.

We have served our time, paid our taxes, worked our entire lives, and so on, but now our government wants to take away everything from us.

Our government treat us like their old toys, and when they don’t want us anymore, they just toss us out – they just don’t care.

Lots of people die before they turn 60 years old, and a large portion of people over the age of 60 have some kind of health issue. Whether it be bad knees, back pain or arthritis, but our government and NHS are slow to react to support these people.

Despite not being classified as disabled and the fact that the majority of them would prefer not to apply for this status, they persevere and don’t raise any red flags, but how are they supposed to get around, do their shopping and go to medical visits when there is no bus pass?

Many of these people have paid tax all their lives, but the sad thing is, some of them won’t make it past 67, which means that a fair number of them won’t even see their pension for which they have contributed all their lives, and this is totally unfair.

To take money from the elderly is despicable, and I know there are a lot of people who still work after retirement age, but you also need to look around you and see how many people over 50 are not in good health or have underlying issues, so they should be leaving the free bus passes alone.

Primary School Teachers Go On Strike

After students bit and kicked teachers and carried knives into the classroom, teachers at two elementary schools started going on strike.

Staff at Lily Lane Primary School and Ravensfield Primary School in Manchester say they have been physically attacked, and some pupils are too scared to attend class.

Teachers also say there have been instances of pupils being hit, kicked and even spat at.

Both schools are part of the Changing Lives in Collaboration Trust (CLiC), and following the announcement of strike action, the trust stated that the safety and well-being of pupils and staff were its ‘highest priority’.

The trust said teachers were ‘suffering high levels of stress and anxiety, which are affecting their entire lives.’

Rachel Knight and Jac Casson, National Executive Members for Greater Manchester, said: ‘Working conditions at these CLiC Trust schools are devastating the teachers. They are desperate for change. Alongside their physical injuries, teachers are suffering high levels of stress and anxiety, which are affecting their entire lives.

‘All they want is to go to work in a safe environment and to be able to keep their pupils safe.’

CLiC said it was ‘disappointed’ to see the walkout ‘so soon after the ballot without adequate opportunity to respond to members’ concerns’.

Picket lines at both schools are scheduled to take place at 8:45 am on January 7 and 8. Both schools will stay open during industrial action.

Matt Wrack, General Secretary of NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union, said: ‘This strike represents an unprecedented event for our union: two primary schools from the same academy trust taking action over worryingly similar concerns. It is fair to say that this strike constitutes a declaration of emergency from the teachers. The health and safety of everyone at these schools is at risk.’

Leaders at the trust say they are keen to work with NASUWT and respect the right of its members to take action. But added that the union chose not to accept a ‘collective conciliation’.

Strike action at Lily Lane Primary School and Ravensfield Primary School is scheduled for January 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21 and 22. 

Jo Ashcroft, CEO of CLiC Trust, said: ‘The safety and well-being of pupils and staff in all our schools is of the very highest priority to us and we work closely with every one of our schools to ensure they maintain the very highest safeguarding standards at all times.

‘We also support our schools to ensure the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs, are fully met.

‘We completely respect the right of union members to take strike action where they believe it to be necessary, however it’s disappointing in this case that strike action is taking place so soon after the ballot without adequate opportunity to respond to members’ concerns, and despite the Trust having engaged ACAS to offer collective conciliation, which the union chose not to accept. We remain keen to work in partnership with the NASUWT to discuss their members’ concerns.

‘In the meantime, arrangements are in place for both schools to remain open to all pupils during any strike action that ensues.’

It appears that parents are to blame for the lack of discipline and boundaries at home, which clearly extends to the classroom. However, parents are not permitted to discipline their kids, and in the absence of discipline, our nation is full of thug kids who think it’s acceptable to act in this manner.

Smacking a child is not being violent, and that is the problem. Parents have now been led to believe that it is brutality, and now parents are rewarding bad behaviour with a new toy instead of a time-out or a quick smack.

There is a distinction between a quick smack and a punch; we all know that, and discipline should be brought back before it’s too late, although I fear that it’s already too late. Parents should know the boundaries of smacking, and children should also know their boundaries.

An American-style boot camp and the reinstatement of punishment in schools, where teachers are permitted to administer it, are currently the only viable solutions.

We have families out there where the father is never to be seen, and women have little authority at home, or it’s simply children having children, and then we have the scourge that is social media, influencers and wannabe gangsters and the dross that now passes for something bordering on intelligent humanity.

Bring back corporal punishment. The slipper, the cane, and the ruler, because pain focuses the senses and teaches right from wrong. A smack, some tears does stop the disruptiveness. Of course, some children don’t need it; not all children are bad, but some are, and they do need it because some children have become feral and need taming.

Children should not be permitted to access any form of electronic device such as a mobile phone, pc, or tablet, until they are 18 years of age unless it is for school work in school, not outside of it because now most parents just shove a tablet or phone in a child’s face for a quiet life, and just leave them to it.

So, how is gentle parenting and no physical punishment working out for you then?

Two Women Jailed For Posting Hitler Rants

Both a Scots Neo-Nazi mother and her daughter were imprisoned for posting extreme anti-Semitic, racist, and transphobic content on social media.

Shirley Craughwell described non-whites as ‘a different species’ and posted comments including ‘Hitler was trying to save us’ and ‘The need for a new holocaust is never more urgent than now’.

The 51-year-old used emojis connected to the Neo-Nazi movement, had links to publications including the Anarchist Cookbook and regularly used demeaning words.

She also encouraged and recorded a young child enacting Nazi salutations before publishing the troubling footage online.

Daughter Hannah – who used the online name ‘Hannah Hitler’ – labelled the Jewish race as ‘the devil’s children’ and circulated posters publicising a Neo-Nazi white power film in her local neighbourhood.

She was found to have shared racist and transphobic videos on her social media accounts.

The mother and daughter also linked the Israeli state to conspiracy theories, including the 9/11 terror attack and COVID, and denied that the Nazi Holocaust had taken place.

The duo pleaded guilty to hate crime offences heightened by racial and religious discrimination executed between 2021 and 2024 when they appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in November last year.

They returned to the dock for sentencing on Tuesday, where Sheriff Charles Walls was shown further video evidence of the racist and anti-Semitic material the pair had published online.

In sentencing Shirley Craughwell, Sheriff Walls said: ‘The level of hatred, racism and anti-semitism expressed by you is deeply disturbing.

‘You espoused conspiracy theories about white genocide and spoke repeatedly about your admiration of Adolf Hitler and other Nazis and called for another Holocaust.

‘However, your messages were not just offensive, they are violent and threatening in relation to people of the Jewish faith.’

The sheriff said involving the child in her offending was ‘a significant aggravation’.

Shirley Craughwell, of Galashiels, Selkirkshire, was condemned to a 20-month custodial term backdated to November 27.

The sheriff noted Hannah Craughwell had continued to ‘minimise’ her offending, had made ‘racist, anti-Semitic, transphobic and homophobic’ remarks online and circulated ‘highly inflammatory ‘ flyers in public.

The 27-year-old, who has two children, was incarcerated for 16 months.

Lawyer Simon Collins, for Shirley Craughwell, said his client was a grandmother and had ‘a long involvement in conspiracy theories leading her to act on them’.

He said she had experienced isolation during the COVID period and ‘expressed remorse and accepts responsibility’ for her offending.

Richard Soutar, for Hannah Craughwell, said she had ‘gone down a wormhole’ on the internet and had been ‘socially isolated’ and suffered from poor mental health at the time.

Previously, the court was told police received intelligence in May last year that both women had been posting ‘racist, anti-Semitic and threatening’ material on their social media pages.

Prosecutor David Gallagher said officers raided their homes, and Shirley Craughwell was found to have a Telegram account where she had posted thousands of extremist comments while in contact with others.

Mr Gallagher said the material showed Craughwell used emojis in the shape of the Nazi salute, along with the slang term 88 – online slang for Heil Hitler.

She made claims to be ‘a proud racist’ and published comments such as ‘we must unite as a race’.

Craughwell also operated a Facebook page under the alias ‘Goyim AH’ where she posted racist and anti-Semitic memes and web links.

She used the account to distribute material supporting the alt-right group Highland Division – a breakaway from the white nationalist organisation Patriotic Alternative (PA).

The page featured a post from PA’s James Costello, who was condemned to a five-year jail term for provoking racial hostility in 2023 but was released early on licence in December last year.

Police discovered Hannah Craughwell, of Gilmerton, Edinburgh, had an account on the US right-wing extremist chat site Gab where she used the online persona ‘Hannah Hitler’.

She regularly shared extreme right-wing content on the site.

The court was told racist and transphobic material was openly shared on her Facebook and Instagram pages, and she had distributed flyers in her local area publicising the Neo-Nazi propaganda film Europa – The Last Battle.

I do not condone what they were doing, but we have a right to free speech, well, I thought we did. However, what they did was a bit over the top, but on the other hand, perhaps it’s not when we have migrants roaming our streets and raping our women and children. But then, who am I, just another person, and I bet our government are loving having this control over us all!

That’s the trouble when the state determines what is free speech and what is not; everyone suffers the consequences. The law should be applied fairly and equally, but it’s not.

I’m sure everyone has an opinion, but then they don’t all publish it over social media. However, if Muslims are allowed to preach and do what they like, why shouldn’t the white British people be allowed to do the same, because at the moment, this is two-tier at its finest?

This pair were holocaust deniers – that’s fine, they are allowed to their view, but another holocaust, well, that is another thing altogether, and that is what they should have been jailed for, not their beliefs, but to incite another holocaust makes them the most mindless, most unattractive morons that have been scraped from the lower end of the intellectual food chain.

Reform Council To Remove Cast-Iron Lampposts

It is the cathedral city so dear to Charles Dickens, and where he set David Copperfield.

Yet a wonderful assemblage of cast iron lampposts, which have illuminated the streets of Canterbury since Victorian times, is set to be ripped out and swapped for modern alternatives – by a Reform-run council.

Residents and heritage campaign groups have fiercely fought this shift. A petition has been signed by more than 750 people demanding that the council reconsider, but it is standing firm.

Campaigner David Kemsley, of the Alliance of Canterbury Residents Associations, said: ‘These lamp columns are as much a part of Canterbury’s story as its walls or gates – they are tangible links to a Canterbury firm whose craftsmanship literally helped light cities across the world.

‘To replace them with mass-produced steel poles is cultural vandalism.’

A key Unesco World Heritage site, Canterbury boasts about 270 of the cast iron lampposts – many of which were cast in the city’s own HM Biggleston and Sons foundry, a leading supplier of streetlight fittings across Britain and worldwide.

The foundry operated from 1835 to 1963. According to the conservationist campaign group The Canterbury Society, replica columns have continued to be installed and repaired up to as recently as three years ago.

However, only months after Reform took control of Kent County Council in May last year, the plan to replace the heritage lighting with more affordable, contemporary designs was launched.

Reform UK, in its manifesto, says it will ‘stand up for British culture, identity and values’. The Canterbury Society stated that the historic lampposts could be saved by Canterbury City Council and preserved through regular repainting.

Kent County Council said the decision to replace the lampposts had been made following safety inspections last August – three months after Reform took control of the authority. But the Society’s president, Ptolemy Dean, has called proposed new designs ‘clumsy and crude… banal and ugly… grotesque disfigurements’.

Their petition asks the councils to ‘treat heritage street furniture as an asset rather than an inconvenience’ and will be presented to Canterbury City Council.

A county council spokesman said that while it ‘appreciates the historic value and the affection residents have for them … public safety must come first’. They said the lampposts ‘failed structural tests, confirming internal corrosion’.

The spokesman added: ‘Recreating the moulds, or refurbishing the existing lampposts, would not be the most effective use of limited budgets.

‘Creating a mould alone would cost tens of thousands, and each column in excess of £5,000.

‘Installing a modern steel lamppost costs about £168, and adding a heritage-style decorative kit brings the total to around £810. These kits are made from durable, non-metal materials, which makes future safety checks easier, safer, and more cost-effective.

‘Importantly, the existing ornate lanterns will be reused to maintain the character of Canterbury’s streets… Our approach ensures Canterbury retains a heritage look while meeting safety standards.

‘We have been working closely with Canterbury City Council to find a solution.’

It seems that this is not entirely accurate.

Peter Osbourne said that they would not be tearing down Victorian streetlamps in Canterbury. He said that they were not tearing down anything, and this is misinformation. When asked if it was fake news, he said, ‘Absolutely.’

They are going to be replaced, especially if they have been damaged by, say, an RTA with a modern alternative, which will be a quick fix while Canterbury City Council gets its head around it and determines what they’re going to do.

These are age old cast iron lamposts that require some form of repair and Peter Osbourne categorically said that if they have to be replaced they will be replaced with posts that are the same, but made out of different material, but once painted you won’t know the difference, and he said that they are definitely not going to pull out 250 plus lamposts, but if they fail the structural test, they will remove them and replace them with an indentical copy, but it won’t be cast iron, it will be a composite material, and unless you get a microscope to it, you won’t be able to tell the difference.

So, evidently, this is not accurate that they are tearing out Victorian lamposts, but we shall watch this space to see what really happens.

However, putting in new lamp posts that look the same is like building cheap homes, then fitting plastic embellishments on them to look Victorian. Not really the same thing, and probably not as aesthetically pleasing, but at least some thought has gone into it to make it look similar.

This seems like simple logic to me from where I am sitting. The old cast iron ones wouldn’t endure forever, and what should the council do if the testing result indicated that they were dangerous due to corrosion?

Naturally, we should always do all in our power to preserve our cultural legacy, but there are instances when this is simply not feasible.

If this is the top story for that council, then they appear to be on top of things because, in some areas, councils have not emptied their bins for over a year now!

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