#HeadlineTherapy New prisoner early release scheme begins as probation officer warns “I’ve no idea how we’ll cope”

Thanks to BBC News Online and their live coverage which covered the story from all angles.

I have empathy with everyone caught up in this “early release scheme”. I have chosen the Probation Officer’s view, as they are the ones who are responsible for supervising the released prisoners where the release scheme requires it. It seems that they have been given a significant extra work-load without any increase in resources.

One of the biggest problems is that many people on the early release scheme will have no fixed address , so how do you contact them about appointments, missed appointments or even just to ask how they are doing?

Let’s face it overcrowding in Prison’s did not happen overnight and maybe for some prison was definitely the wrong place to be, but you can’t just pass the problem along to someone else as I believe is the case with the Probation Officer.

Responsibilities and Possibilities should have been clearly defined otherwise this “Early Release Scheme” will fail , and ex-prisoners will return to the already overcrowded prisons and we’ll be back to square one.

Probation officer making a phone call

Namaste and Thank you for Reading.πŸ™

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A man appeared in my room,

Daily writing prompt
The genie grants you a wish. What is it?

A man appeared in my room,

I thought him the harbinger of some doom,

I really hadn’t noticed what he was wearing,

That bare chest and turban were really quite daring,

The gold bangles on his arm,

Reassured me that he meant me no harm,

” You can have a wish” he abruptly said.

” World Peace ” I said and all went quiet,

The television screen went quite blank,

For it had been showing a picture of an army tank,

Some books exploded the newspapers began to ignite,

I doused them out with my water pitcher alright,

Outside as the day began to break; I knew,

That what the genie had done was true.

For everything was calm and quiet,

And what was happening well you couldn’t buy it.

It took some magic from a Genie’s spell,

To take us out of this man made hell.

Mystical robed figure holding a glowing Earth beside an open window
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Namaste and Thank You for Reading.πŸ™

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#HeadlineTherapy UK believes Iran involved in RAF Fairford incident, Burnham says

Thanks to Chris Mason from BBC News Online for the Headline,

Terrorists are scary people and there’s no doubt that we should be aware of the threat they pose.

However, as an ex-Mayor of Manchester who doesn’t know much about rural life, there is a lot of rural crime around, particularly when the price of diesel has gone up astronomically due to the situation and uncertainty surrounding Iran’s status. Yes perhaps Iran did play a role in the attempted theft of diesel if the rise in prices motivated those men.

Perhaps it is worth the effort of driving all the way down from London in three white vans to rob the well-heeled farmers that are distracted by a ploughing competition and perhaps have kept their eye off the ball with protecting their assets, such as quad bikes, diesel storage and any other agricultural implements that they can get there hands on.

As Wes Streeting said about the farmer who initially rang the Police after trying to contact base security and on the “special number ” they were given by the base for emergencies such as this one. Only for it to ring and not be answered. That they only had “a partial picture” of the situation. A pretty scary partial picture if you are confronted by three white vans blocking the road and masked men running around. One of whom gets scared and rings the Police himself, perhaps thinking the farmer is going to run him down in his 4×4. That police call should be interesting evidence.

Yes ,Politicians on all sides, perhaps you have access to information that we don’t and we rightly so can only have a” “partial picture”. However, this Headline is pretty abhorrent. Even weapons of mass destruction need evidence( Tony Blair didn’t come too well out of that ).

Prime Minister Burnham should be more responsible and should let the Security Services do their job and also ensure that those living near the base have their needs respected. Why else give them a “special telephone number” if you don’t plan to answer it? Meanwhile stop this gainsaying and making statements which in reality are heightening people’s fear.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.πŸ™

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I tried E-bay

Daily writing prompt
What are your favorite side-hustle ideas?

When I was young,

Things seemed quite hum-drum,

And it just seemed to pique my curiosity,

To see if I could make some extra money,

At first I tried the old recycling game,

But the plastic bottle introduction drove me insane,

Glass jars and Bottles made a penny for my till,

But plastic only went to land fill,

That idea was quite passΓ©,

So I thought I’d have a go on e-bay,

Selling things that didn’t seem useful to me,

Like my brother’s retro jet-ski,

I made a packet on that at first,

The punters lined up with rabid thirst,

It seemed to be such a bargain,

I never understood all that seller’s jargon,

About ownership and despatching on time,

Perhaps stealing stuff was a nasty crime,

It was only my brother for heaven’s sake,

But they all accused me of being on the make,

So there my hustling came to an end,

And knitting became my timely godsend,

That is really hustle free,

As a jumper takes an eternity.

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#HeadlineTherapy Spain proposes ban on evictions as ousted 87-year old accepts offer to return home.

Thank you to Reuters and NBC News for the Headline.

Pleased to say that Spain’s coalition government are working together to stop “Vulture” funds ie. private funds that buys housing for speculation. At the moment the definition only applies to large funds, however , as UrbagestiΓ³n is a relative small player in the field that it may prove difficult to get an agreement, as many property owners will fall into the small player category.

However, we all know that charging someone double the rent or indeed outpricing property in the local area just to remove a tennant of long standing and good reputation is wrong. So hopefully common sense will prevail and perhaps the tennants circumstances should be considered.

Senora Maricarmen Abascal , I hope returns to her ‘home’ and perhaps the Government will acknowledge the role of a proper ‘home’ in people’s lives,

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.πŸ™

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I used to be a member of an expensive gym

Daily writing prompt
What are five simple exercises to do at home?

I used to be a member of an expensive gym ,

No longer and I know now how to keep trim,

Two plastic containers full of sand,

Swinging them around my head one in each hand

Tones my arms and burns calories,

You can send that gym subscription to hell to freeze,

The rest are stretches of which there are many,

To tone up that belly fat if you have any,

Finally I often repeat,

Stepping on the stairs with my feet,

And finally just to give me balance,

Around the kitchen I will dance,

And there you have it my AI curious friend,

The Battle of the Bulge is at an end.

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#HeadlineTherapy Evicted Spanish pensioner can move back home,lawyer says

Thanks to Victoria Bourne and BBC Online News for the Headline

Maricarmen EscabelΒ  87 ,was carried out on a stretcher from her home of 70 years after being evicted by an investment Company UrbagestiΓ³n who had bought the apartment building she had lived in all her life and insisted that she paid double the rent for which of course she did not have the money for.

Thankfully her Lawyer in negotiations with UrbagestiΓ³n have successfully gained their agreement to let her stay at the rent that she was paying and could afford out of her pension.

However Senora Escabel is in hospital and is not well enough to hear the good news, largely due to being traumatised by the process of the eviction. I hope she recovers and is able to move back to her apartment with the confidence that she can live her final years in her “home”.

Who ever owns the investment Company UrbagestiΓ³n should be ashamed of themselves. The name suggests Urban Management, and I would dearly love to know the owners behind this facade who thought it appropriate to hound a woman out of her home of 70 years.

It’s by no mean definite that Maricarmen will be able to move back to her apartment as she has suffered so much. However, I wish her well and think that she should get some reparation from UrbagestiΓ³n for their harsh actions, lack of understanding and greed.

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Namaste and Thank You for Reading.πŸ™

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#HeadlineTherapy Princess Charlene Exercises the PrivilΓ©ge du Blanc During Pope Leo Meeting

Thanks to Rachel King and Town and Country Magazine Online for the Headline.

Apparently wearing white is not just for brides or first Communion celebrants, but also it is an exclusive privilege for Princesses and Queens from Catholic Countries to wear white when meeting the pope. Fewer than ten women in the World hold this privilege.

This was a surprise to me as how do you define a Catholic Country for one thing? There must be less than ten as only ten women can officially greet the pope in white at present.

The meeting took place in Metz in northeastern France near the borders of Germany and Luxembourg. President Macron and First Lady Macron hosted the meeting , the First Lady not being Royalty was dressed in black as is the required etiquette for a commoner.

What came to mind with this for me was a joke by the late great comedian and raconteur Dave Allen, who talked about a wedding dress for a bride which was white , but with little blue spots.

I’m pretty sure the Pope didn’t care what anyone was wearing, but seriously wanted to get the message across that war and famine was causing inevitable migration of populations and that understanding was needed on the fate of these unfortunate people.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.πŸ™

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My relationship with the World

Daily writing prompt
Which relationship has taught you the most about yourself?

My relationship with the World teaches me every day,

So much to learn yet so little to say,

Laughter smiles, they play a role,

Also sadness will take its’ toll,

A walk in the park or a poorly lit street,

Joy or fear about whom we’ll meet,

So where does it end this beautiful planet,

In the pointless bashing of the head of a gannet?

Cruelty and Progress hand in hand,

Or a child counting grains of sand,

There is no doubt in my mind,

The mystery is there for us to find.

Young child in blue sweater playing with sand and shells on beach
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Namaste and Thank You for Reading.πŸ™

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#HeadlineTherapy Badenoch registers gift of Β£8177 for Murdoch meeting in Greece

Thanks to Kate Whannel and BBC Online News for the Headline.

I just don’t understand how any politician, Senior or Not so Senior can justify gifts from external sources. I mean have we forgotten that there is no such thing as a “free lunch”. In the real world it just doesn’t happen that anyone gives anything away for free.

So why are we satisfied that everything is above board , just because MP’s list what perks they have been given by a deadline decided by Parliament. It’s meaningless when trying to understand whether Politicians are being bought by Corporations like News Corp. What can they possibly be discussing. Kemi’s plans for the Country, surely it’s us and her Party she should be telling not News Corp and why Greece for Heaven’s sake? Did Boris Johnson drop by?

Apparently it’s OK as long as the figures are published in the latest register of members financial interests , in which MP’s must report gifts worth more than Β£300 within 28 days of receipt.

This is just blatant nonsense , I don’t care if Andy Burnham is a keen football supporter, his job does not require him to attend football matches . As he did for Everton’s first game of the season in the director’s lounge no less, listing on the register a gift of Β£677.34.

No, Mr Burnham that was not necessary or deserved. You should have paid for yourself and then we could all be sure that the Football Leagues are not benefitting from some “understanding” between Politicians and Football business dealings. We are all aware that Football is big business.

The register is just a record kept by administrators, in truth there should be more questioning of the why and wherefore of these “gifts”. The damage probably is already done and a list does nothing to prevent it.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading. πŸ™

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