Tag Archives: #HeadlineTherapy

#HeadlineTherapy Pope Leo criticises how countries are using force to assert their dominon amid ‘zeal’ for war.

Thanks to Sky News Online for this Headline

#HeadlineTherapy King of Spain warns about the risk of ‘dismantling’ the link between Europe and the US

Thanks to Miguel Gonzalez of El Pais Online for the Headline.

Unusually I have combined two Headlines today as Pope LeoXIV and the King Felipe VI of Spain were both speaking at the ” Conference of Ambassadors , the Pope at the Vatican with the Vatican Diplomatic Corps in Rome, while King Felipe VI held a two day conference with the heads of Spanish diplomatic missions worldwide in Madrid.

I suppose we forget about the history of the Catholic Church and it’s relationship with Spain, but the fact that they both call it a “Conference of Ambassadors” is interesting. I must admit at first I thought they had both attended the same event, but they were separate, but both asking for Peace and Level-Headedness when dealing with the challenges that their Ambassadors face.

Pope Leo did not mince his words denouncing countries for ” completely undermining ” peace, saying ” was is back in vogue and a zeal for war is spreading”. He was talking about the many conflicts in the World today and said that” consensus- based diplomacy is being replaced by a diplomacy based on force, by either individuals or groups of allies.” Perhaps we do need to read that in black and white. With the big child in the Whitehouse who’ll throw his toys at you if you won’t be his friend , yes consensus is going out of fashion, Donald might as well sing “if you want to be in my Gang”

King Felipe’s stance is very similar to the Pope, neither want conflict. Spain with it’s common language and most probably a lot of business trade with South America the King’s hope is that his Ambassadors can act with great patience and diplomatic courage, particularly with respect to Venezuela. Also that the closeness of Europe and America must continue, as the benefits are too great and isolationism would be catastrophic as it nearly was in the first half of the last Century. We all need each other

King Felipe was able to be secular and pragmatic, where Pope Leo as leader of the Catholic Church was from a religious point of view, however, they both have valuable messages and maybe all Countries should have a “Conference of Ambassadors” to set out plans for consensus and understanding.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy EU member states back Mercosur deal, French MEPs vow fight in Parliament.

Thanks to Peggy Corlin from Euro News Online for the Headline

Well I wasn’t aware that the EU has been negotiating with some South American Countries, for nearly 20 years for a trade agreement covering Beef, Poultry and Sugar. A trade agreement that would include over 700 million people, including populations from Brazil and Argentina. It is called the Mercosur deal and has now got backing from a host of member Countries but may be brought to a halt in the French Parliament.

Is it needed? I’m not so sure. Sounds globalist expansion to me and for whose benefit? I think we should concentrate on local good quality farming and stop looking to increase the size of our markets. Perhaps the future is smaller quantities and better quality.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading. 🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy Homeless workers need ‘resilience ‘over winter

Thanks to Nathan Briant and Alex Meakin, South of England BBC News Online for the Headline

The Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) means that anyone who is sleeping rough should be given a safe place to stay to get them out of the dangerous temperatures they would experience outside. If temperatures drop below zero three days in a row then the protocol comes into operation.

This means that to find and support SWEP, the Homeless workers both from Charities and the Local Agencies must be out and about approaching those who are in need of help. It must be heartbreaking and dangerous work( considering they may have to travel and walk around in poorly lit areas).

So they need both emotional and physical resilience.

There is an app called Street Link where members of the public can notify the relevant people should they spot someone who they think needs help.

I can appreciate how difficult this job is , I remember seeing a story on a News Programme of a homeless man in a village in Wiltshire who died in the street during a particularly harsh winter. The village made a real effort to give the man a funeral and acknowledge and celebrate his life. I think though , the feeling was they all had wished they’d done something more to prevent his death from the cold

Perhaps experiences like that one generated the need for SWEP and all we can be is grateful for organisations like St Mungo’s and the Salvation Army who continue to do the work in what are very difficult circumstances.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading. 🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy 100 year-old charity to close after transferring £600m to help pay off national debt.

Thanks to Fergus Burnett of the Civil Society for the Headline.

Ah perhaps that’s why Rachel Reeves has had a bit of a breather, my she and the Treasury must feel that their boat has come in. I wonder what Boris Johnson would have done with the money.

The “National Fund” was set up a 100 years ago to pay off the “National Debt” incurred during the First World War. The fund was started by a banker Gaspard Farrer with the amount of £500,000. The fund received other donations from other philanthropists , but has received no new donations since 1985.

There was a court case in 2023 to see if the now £600million fund could be given to existing Charities in the UK, but the Courts have now decided that the money should go to the Treasury and will be used to write of a £670 million gilt.

So there you go , Gaspard Farrer wishes have been followed and the Charity will be wound up and MP’s will still be hiving off expenses and giving their friends Government Contracts and using everyone else’s money for their own purposes. They don’t miss a trick , do they?

Nevertheless , the money was supposed to be used for the National Debt and we have got plenty of that. The Charity itself is being wound down , I wonder though who was living off the interest of all that money, no doubt the Charity had expenses?

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy Lorry drivers ‘face disciplinary action ‘ if they refuse to travel during weather alerts.

Thanks to Holly Lennon of STV News for the Headline

Unfortunately , commercial interests of Road Haulage firms are overriding the safety concerns of their drivers when it comes to harsh weather.

A driver who refuses to take his /her rig out due to bad weather , can be made subject to a disciplinary. This is simply not safe if there are serious weather warnings, perhaps we should just accept that we might not get our Grocery Deliveries or Santa’s Toys may not arrive in time for Christmas.

Of course the Conspiracy Theorists could say that all these Amber and Red warnings are generated by our Climate Change Obsessed Meterologists who just want to bring our economy to a halt and slow down global warming (if it’s happening). Let’s face it they can live in the cold , are vegan and all their children make their own toys out of string.

Apologies for the cynicism, but I do have empathy with anyone who feels that driving a large truck on black ice is not a good thing to do and is not just risking their lives but everyone else’s.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading. 🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy Film producers appeal to PM Modi ‘to intervene’ in Dhurandhar’s Middle East ban: ‘Suppression of freedom of expression’

Thanks to Abhimanyu Mathur ” X and the Hindustan Times for the Headline

The film “Dhurandar” has not been given an official release in several Middle Eastern Countries ( including United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Quatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia) due to an “Official Ban”

The film is about an Indian Spy in Pakistan.

“Dhurandar” has emerged as one of the biggest hits in Indian Cinema and it’s refusal to be shown in the Countries that have banned it is viewed as a direct act of suppression against Freedom of Expression. The approach to PM Modi has been made by the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association( IMPPA).

Apart from the Indian Film Industry being quite powerful, I’m not sure what PM Modi will be able to do . Mind you it makes me want to see the film , apparently it has had a significant success in India amid the Hindi’s, perhaps it is not regarded as a very positive film for Muslims, but they won’t know until they see it and anyway I can’t believe that it would be so biased and negative. Perhaps it reflects a time in history or even the present that needs reflection .

Banning does not solve anything, and I will be interested to see if PM Modi can affect change or indeed is interested in taking up the case.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy Council objects to ‘inappropriate’ solar farm plan

Thanks to Janey Doyle , Wiltshire BBC Online News for the Headline.

Apparently the solar panels with this construction would be four miles wide and two miles long with panels that would stand roughly the height of a double decker bus.

Not surprised the Council and the locals are objecting to it , sounds an absolute monstrosity and apparently the substation is some distance away from the site that would connect it to the National Grid, so where would all the power go?

Oh well, it’ll have to go to Central Government for approval and guess what will happen.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy Canada’s Chrystia Freeland to quit as MP and become adviser to Zelensky

Thanks to Reuters News and BBC News Online for this Headline

It’s hard to know how this could possibly be happening. Apart from the fact that Chrystia Freeland does have Ukranian heritage, and just happens to have played Trump at his own game when it came to negotiating tariffs on behalf of Canada when she was Minister of International Trade (2015 to 2017). Ms Freeland also is an ex- journalist, which seems increasingly a qualification to be successful in Politics.

Interestingly enough on her mother’s side during the aftermath of World War two her mother was born in Germany in a hospital administered by the US Army. Chrystia herself was born in Canada and until her recent appointment by Zelensky was MP for Toronto.

So Zelensky is beefing up his International Economic Power with the aim of reconstructing Ukraine when the War is over , if it is ever over. Meanwhile with houses in Canada, Ukraine and London, Chrystia is well placed to cover the ground wherever she is needed.

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#HeadlineTherapy Money Problem: ‘My sister doesn’t have internet or a smartphone-how can she get online when she’s on benefits?’

Thanks to Jimmy Rice output editor Sky News Online for the Headline

Glad to say someone is addressing the dearth of support there is for people who are economically challenged and cannot access the appropriate levels of internet support. Nowadays it is essential to have access to the internet and we need to make the information that makes it so more available to people.

In an economy that has been led by people with their head in the clouds for far too long, there have been so many left behind. The internet, ie. e.mail, web site searching and doing transactions online is now a necessary part of life. It needs to be accessible and secure . Security is key, we must not shy away from that fact. With accessibility comes responsibility too.

I’m glad to see that some of the Private Providers are offering deals for those who are economically challenged. Though again I think it’s dangerous that there are people out there in the UK , who for whatever reason cannot access anything and it is unacceptable that a Government of any Country allows that situation to occur. It should be part of every Citizen’s rights and a duty of the Government to ensure fairness and accessibility.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading. 🙏

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#HeadlineTherapy Swindon Borough Council telecare support under review.

Thanks to Michael Ribbeck of the Swindon Advertiser for the Headline

In my mind to keep everyone that is frail safe they should have access to this service for free. Also we should value the service and the people that work to provide it. It should be like how the Japanese view their care, that it is an “honour” to care for people who cannot care for themselves.

Apparently those that do have the telecare service pay what they have always paid along with the budgeted increases but have noticed a deterioration in the service. That is not right. If they pay more the service should improve

With the modern digital culture and high speed broadband, everyone should have access to help if they need it . It should not be a question of if people need to pay for a better service.

The opportunity should be to review what is needed , where it is needed and what is the most effective technology and human input to achieve it. In the long run that will save money and reduce distress for those who need the support.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

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