Clapham Omniblog: Dahn ver Fevvers! - The demise of the London pub

Clapham Omniblog - Dahn ver Fevvers

In which Colin and Reg discuss the demise of the Feathers pub

*Please note the following is a verbatim transcription from the original pigeon cockerney*

Reg: 'Ear Col, see ver Fevvers iz fynelee closing?

Col: Fackin shayme, fackin shayme.

Reg: Yer, en mye oll man useta goh vehr zinz abaht befawer ver sekin world wahr. Fakkin tragik.

Col: Myne yew, vatz ver way s'all goin. Pahb trade's bin dine awn itz ahss fer dekades. Eye fink ver pahtee sevin was ver staht orve it.

Reg: Yehr, eye mene, vatz wot killed orf ver juganbottel trayde, innit?

Col: Well, et aynt reel beer ennymawr, s'all a fakkin glaws er bleedin chemykals and summat.

Reg: In verr sevennies, aye culd gahr ahwp 'annin 'ahn, end vehr's be fakkin' pahbs awl over vat manner!

Col: Yehy, ver Dray 'orse, ver Prins orve Whales,fakkin Dewke orve Norfumberland, Red Lyin...

Reg: Well, vehr's always gotta be a pub cawled ver Red Lyin, en err, coaws its vehr lawrw, eh?

Col: Well, etts vose mawrkittin wankahs vats verr cawse, gahn ranhd ann feamin' ver pawbs.

Reg: Aah mene, yer gahr ahwp Ol Oke common an ver woz vat Enry ver ateff, bean ver Enry ver bleedin' ateff fahr as fakkin lawng as eye culd remember.

Col: Fack, vehr awld Ennry, wort ahppend ter vat ven?

Reg: Fakkin mawrketten cahnts, vahts wort append, eh? Gawhn enn fackkin' changed it. Eye mean ett woz aswl vat Jakkerbean dahk Oke enn sumpchus velvet seats, nahn er yer fakkin verlawr, fakkin verlawr, pawr mahns velvitt, enn it? Eh?

Col: Eye wehnn in verr abaht nyne een sevenny nyne, s'abaht ver larhrst fakkin 'ime, enn et was fuller Awresenl s'porters, enn vey worz gettin' er bit fakkin lahree, caws ver Lahnlor was rahnnen shawt orve Wortneys Rid Barill.

Reg: Jehr nawhr wort, yerd nawt rekkignyze vehr playce nahr Cawl, s'wun orve vose fakkin gastrer pahbs naw.

Col: Caws ver fakkin' ea'ees, vatz vhen ver woz awl vose fakkin feam pahbs stahwtid. Lyke vose Ferrit and fakkin' ferkynz, Ferrit enn fakkin fawrskinz, wort eye ewsed ter call ver fakkers!

Reg: Fakken Slahg enn Lettis, enn ahwl sawter fakkin ahwl bollux lyke vat.

Col: Eye mean yehr daht see voze fahken Burnyy Inns nahr, deryer, vayze awhl fallinn bah ver fakkin' way side ern awl.

Reg: Eye means, taystes change, yerd gahr ahwt ter erhnn fakkin' Burnyy, ehhnn, yer'd avven fakkin' gyenawmus stayke, enn ernn Prorn cawktayl fer yer fakkin stawr 'err, yewd avvern fakkin' eyce cawld Lawgah enn verr fakkin' awl wummen er'd avvenn fakkin' glahws orve Blu Nunn awr a fakkin' chilled Berjollis, cawze Burny worze err bitt mawr sphistikaytid vahn vehr rahn orve ver mille sorta gaff, eh?

Col: Enn orve caws, yer'd ave yer Blakk fawriss Gaottoxes fawr yer pudn, enn rill Cawfee frawm wun orve vose glahws jugs vat was kipt fackkin; ahwt, enn, vey'd givv yer a cuppl ehr Ahrfta Aytes wivvit. Yerr myte avven Braahndee een err a fakkin' ceegawr ter nnd et awf.

Reg: Cawse, vehr worz mawr munny 'baht venn. Ahr meen, vaht worze att ver hyte orve yer Margrit Fatcha years, eye mene she may nawt err been vat poplar wiv sum orve yer lectricate, baht she fakkin gawt us awf ahr fakkin' aswses ahfter vat fakkin' mess wort ver Labia paa'ee gawhn enn leff us enn, awfta ver fakkin' Winn'err orve fakkin' discawntent.

Col: Venn yehr gawt vat Blayerr enn' iz fakkin' Kaffy culcha. Fakkin' Cham pinn fakkin' Sewshylissts frawm fakkin' Islyn'unn enn fakkin be'rrr pawrts orve 'acknee enn fakkin' Oxtun. Baht fakkin' furty yearz ergo, yerr kuld pick upp an ahhs enn voze bits orve Lunnen ferr a fakkin' sawng.

Reg: Vey've awl puhd verr lerr'err klahsis aht orve playcis lyke vat enn wear ver fakkz vey gunna gehr ter? Isle tell yer ware mayte, vay aave ter move aht 'err Lunnen and fakk orve ter playcis lyke fakkin Essix.

Col: Ennyway, yehr kummen dahn verr Fevvas awn Frydee? Caws its ver lahst nite s'opin. Bee err shayme ter see Wally ang awhp iz tee tahl, bert vatz ver fakkin' wayze itz gahn Reg.

Reg: Eye errd Walleez, ez mooven ter fakkin' Crowma. ez bawt wun orve voze fakkin' bunnglows by ver fakken sea enn awl.

Col: Wort, zee ahpennin ernuvva Pahb lyke? orzze juss re'ireen?

Reg: Nahr, eez fakkin' pakken it ahp mayte. Wurdiz vat heez gawt er millyun en ern arf for verr Pahb, wehl, eye meen, wortz ver fakkin' poynn er werkin, eh? Myte erz well juss gehr en nnjoyze yersell, ehh?

Col: Wehll, yers sayz vat Reg, baht, wozz ee gerna ave ahp fakkin' Crerhmer? Inn ver Summa, playcer be fuller famlees awhn ollidees, ehn in ver winn'err, s'ahll garner be fakkin' greyan awribbel wiv fakkin' rayn pissen dahn orf ver Nawf C, ennit?

Reg: S'nuff ter mayke yer wanner kmitt fakkin' suicide, enn itt? Fakk vat fer a fakken' gayme err Soullwjerrs. Awllz gernner appen, iz vat, eez garner enn up awn a fakkin' grey fakkin' chewsdee fer instunz, sittin' in iz fakkin' livvin rume, watchinn fakkin' Sky spawts err summin, unner iz ole wumens feat. Sheez garner get well pissed awf wiv 'I'm bahr fakkin Awktowberr, eh??

Col: Eye fink if vatz worts its gerrner bee lyke, isle gerr en jahmp awf fakkin' Tahr Brij or summat. Eye fink if ett cayme dahn ter vat, eyed fakken just enn it mayte.

Reg: Yerr kummin dahn ver Fevvas venn?

Col: Nahr, izza fakkin' shittole, ere's me stawp Reg tara.

Reg: Yehr, see yer mayte, Oi, Coll, see yerz in vat fakkin' Wyne Bahr venn!

Petrol & Diesel cars no more? Well, what about aircraft, they are never mentioned as polluters!!

The biggest single source of CO2 in the UK -

Heathrow Airport airline traffic

You Couldn't Make It Up!

When the Heathrow airport runway expansion plan was passed, it came to light that Heathrow was the largest single source of CO2 produced in the UK.

So, if you're a true Greenie, then you'd surely be in favour of reducing air traffic.

The 'answer' to increased CO2 and other pollutants from Heathrow aircraft exhausts was - to introduce an ultra low vehicle mission zone around - yes Heathrow airport as one area.

This has the effect of charging motorists vehicle excise duty, duty on fuel, congestion charge and perhaps an extra levy in certain zones. Four 'consumption taxes' when the aircraft flying above them enjoy tax free fuel do they not? 

Petrol & Diesel distillation

Petrol and Diesel are by products of the 'distillation' of oil in simple terms - at certain temperatures, Petrol and Diesel separate out from the Crude oil product. Essentially, these are products that can be sold and if not used, well what are you going to do with it?

Electric fantasy

Petrol / Electric and Electric never found fame in the early 1900's because the electricity wasn't there as it is now in the form of mains coverage, for those using batteries, the batteries were heavy and less efficient and didn't last long.

Petrol electric - where a petrol engine drives a generator and the current fed to a motor fared better, but the cheap cost of petrol meant this faded out.

Battery is wrong, wrong,wrong

Using a battery to drive a motor is the wrong way to go about the job - the frictional losses of 25% of efficiency through transmission coupled with the weight of the car render this an ultimately futile exercise. Coupled with the draw on the current starts to deaden the battery as you use the power it contains.

Petrol and Diesel have great calorific value for their size. If you get me. The potential energy they contain is truly enormous.

Politicians love the idea of electric cars, but I doubt few of them have any idea of how cars work or the toxic sludge that is created when your 'green' battery is made.

So, where is all your electricity coming from to make the power for these batteries? Nuclear, Coal, Gas? Not very clean are they.

Ok, the windmill or two and the solar panel may help, but how long are you going to sit by the side of the road waiting for the solar panel to give you enough volts to get to the nearest town?

Realities

Vehicles are cleaner and more fuel efficient than thirty plus years ago. Government officials rarely have the 'nous' to know what they are talking about when it comes to technical things like vehicles, being in the main career politicians and yes men and women who rarely have any grasp of the subject they are in charge of in government.

Where else in the world could a complete amateur be given a job they know perhaps little or nothing about?

Rather than go down the LPG route for cleaner vehicles, the getting rid of internal combustion engines (which are about the best current solution to meet our transport needs) is folly.

How will your sales rep doing 30,000 miles a year manage with an electric car?

How long will a battery make a big Tractor go for?

Or your articulated lorry hoping to make a delivery to a supermarket and the power goes, so does the cooler and the produce goes off.

Why not tax aircraft for the damage they do?

The bottom line is no one in the media or government EVER mentions aircraft emissions.

It is about as galling to endure as seeing a grinning politician without a clue, 'welcoming' emissions reduction when we all know that the plan is not workable and they are only the mouthpiece.

This is what happens when you put unqualified people in charge.

Like Robotics, we need an up front educated debate about things that will impact on our future -  headed by people who know their subject, not wallies.

Adult site age verification proposals - will they do more damage than they seek to prevent?

We live in a connected age - where Data is king

How will the proposed Age Verification of Adult content sites be workable?

Is it just a means of prurient intrusion and meddling,

when more pressing issues relating to private citizen's safety exist?

The proposal to introduce age verification is unlikely to be workable and should be rethought.

How will this sit with the British adult entertainment industry for example?

Is verification just the prudish whimsy of puritans with too much time on their hands?

The world has changed markedly since Lady Chatterley's lover was made legal to buy back in the 1960's. So should the age when people can observe certain content be lowered to reflect how society has moved on?

If we propose to give the right to vote at 16, should we then lower the age one can see 'adult content' too?

Political views you can vote for then, at a lowered age of 16 could have very far reaching effects, perhaps 'beyond the ken' of the young voter. If you are effectively going to bestow this level of maturity on young adults, what else are you going to change?

The proposal to introduce effectively censorship of 'adult content' sites by instituting an age verification system, will not prevent those from under 18 from seeing 'adult content.'

Back in the 1980's, WH Smiths still used to have the 'Top shelf' magazines of what we would consider today to be 'tame' publications, which were judged to be pornographic then, and only for sale to those over 18. Nowadays you can see far more explicit material on television than was in those publications.

In our day back in the 80's, the savvy U18's would just wait for the mags to be put in the bins behind the shop and pick their own out and then lend them around their mates. This shows how the 'system' did not work. None of us turned into sex maniacs as a result of our curiosity or what we saw.

Conversely, if you worked in a news agents doing a paper round you could often sneak one of these mags into your bag and view it later. Another example of how getting round the 'system' was done.

Indeed, some of these 'Top shelf' magazines beyond the 'attractive' visual content, contained interesting articles not concerned with sex, which discussed subjects about humans, humanity and our future, business, the environment for example, often written by top journalists of the day.

Fast forward about 30 or more years and the current U18 Millennials generation are far more technically savvy typically than those over 18.

They will simply, if they want to see this content, get around the verification which only applies to UK sites. They can get around parental controls, just as a 'for instance'.

What about social media sites? Adult material can be posted there. With so many posts a day on these sites, the industry cannot really monitor it.

How does this verification sit with sites like Amazon or Ebay? Could you get a debit card at well under 18 and buy things on that site without any verification checks?

Certainly you can buy 'mainstream' 18 videos and 'adult toys' on mainstream e-commerce platforms and certainly those videos made in Europe leave nothing to the imagination. You only have to check out the titles and click on the descriptions to see what they purvey.

Some European countries have videos rated at U18 which in other countries would be R18, so how does this work when a video can then be legally purchased in this situation because the verification for one country is more relaxed than another and the video is not reclassified for sale in the UK and is supplied from Europe, not the UK? The system falls down.

So, are these big retail sites going to be subject to this sort of verification, regardless of what you purchase on them, just to get on to them to do your on-line shopping? Would you then have to get age verification just to go on Amazon and buy a packet of pencils?

What would happen is that the parents would allow the use of their accounts to get around the bureacuracy, which potentially could lead to circumvention of the process and if they did not check what was purchased, the system then ultimately fails.

And below is another example of where verification falls down.

A male and female aged 16 can legally have sex, but they can't legally buy a video depicting sex if that video is rated '18'. That video for example, may not contain anything as explicit as what they do with each other, perhaps.

At this age, they can't legally drive either. Or buy alcoholic beverages. But they can have sex and / or get married, with parental consent.

'Verification' has potential dangers attached.

We have seen numerous examples of companies whose websites have been either hacked or had data stolen and sold on by employees to criminals and moreover, often sold on many times after.

The consequences of data theft these days, is certainly a very serious matter.

Data is valuable.

Data about people's viewing habits, interests and sites visited is gold.

Verification by its very nature will record everything.

This could have very damaging consequences.

If data is stolen, especially if you are a celebrity, a well-known public figure or have a prestigious and important job, you could be wide open to extortion, this may lead some to suicide, rather than be exposed and their shame coming to light in the media.

The obvious place this is leading to, is that the person with the 'right' data can use it illegally to maliciously and ruinously destroy people and also sell it on many times, causing likely more damage than if the situation was left alone and verification was not sought and this data not gathered.

So, what is in it for the authorities?

Money perhaps?

Verification will most likely not be free.

Now, we were assured in recent years that private data would not be interfered with, except when national security was involved and rightly so.

So what is to prevent 'verification data' about what sites you visit not being scrutinised later and kept and possibly used against you as inference of the person knowing what things interest you?

How can we trust the verification sites not to start data mining this 'gold' that they will be in possession of?

Most top E-commerce sites use behavioural algorithms to 'suggest' content you may be interested in.

So what happens on a shared computer, where a 'verified' adult uses it to visit adult sites and suggestions later pop up to visit similar adult content sites when the computer is being used by someone else, someone who may not be 18 or could be an older relative, or someone prudish, or a religious person whose beliefs do not accept the adult material being offered as 'acceptable' - you can see how this could happen?

To be honest, individuals as I see it will have no control over the 'guardians' of data or the data that they generate.

Individuals, like the 'bin divers of yore', will simply find ways to legally circumvent the process.

In conclusion, I am not advocating abandoning or lowering the age when people can see adult material, but, it is patently obvious that 'verification' is not the way forward and could create more problems than it would solve.

BBC1 11.25pm the Natives: This is our America: At Standing Rock, helping the Lakota people of the Pine Ridge reservation and the DAPL situation

The sacred symbol of the feather at Standing Rock -

All the American Indian tribes people are children of the feather

What do you know about DAPL, Standing Rock, the Lakota people?

A BBC1 program takes you there, but here's a primer to give you a head start...

Sioux nation

The Sioux nation, of which the Lakota people are one tribe, live near to a place called Standing Rock in North Dakota. This is where the DAPL North Dakota oil pipeline is being installed.

I have learned much about the Lakota culture and it is truly fascinating. The Lakota like many other tribes lived a simple life, but they enjoyed things we today with all our trappings of wealth and consumerism have lost.

A Pine Ridge man surveys the Buffalo

the heritage between Lakota and Buffalo goes back countless years

They had little if any crime, no laws, no taxes, young and old were cared for and safe in their society, we might call this a utopia, until the 1600's for people like the Lakota, this was 'normal.'

The Eagle that arrived at Standing Rock -

a message of support from the Lakota ancestors?

The Buffalo nation - 'Tatanka oyate'

The Lakota Indians refer to themselves as 'Tatanka oyate' the Buffalo people or Buffalo nation, their  lifestyle was on the lines of 'the planet owns man, man does not own the planet'  - they were the 'new age' long before aspects of their lifestyle was 'borrowed' in the 1960's.

The White Buffalo - part of Lakota heritage -

a human woman was said to have shape shifted from a white buffalo calf

and given the Lakota people guidance and told them their purpose.

The Lakota people were corralled into reservations, Pine Ridge being one, Porcupine Ridge another, in the shadow of the sacred Black Hills. The US Government that long ago took the Indian lands, often gave reservations back to the Indians, which contained valuable resources.

For the Lakota people, the Black hills contain valuable resources, but the Lakota out of principal, refuse to sell the hills for mineral wealth exploitation.

All the American Indian people have affinity and regard for the animals in our world that fit in with their beliefs.

The late Russell Means - a great advocate for progress for humanity,

regardless of people's origin - a legend and hero

Famous Lakota people

Famous Lakota people from the Sioux nation have become well known, Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse from the past and modern day people such as Russell Means have by their own efforts shown great presence, knowledge and earned a place in human history.

The idyllic looking Pine Ridge, where the Black Snake is headed

The Black snake

The North Dakota Pipeline is an oil transfer pipeline which will send oil across the top of the US to refineries. This pipeline is said to be routed across sacred Sioux burial grounds and the concern is that leakage of oil into watercourses such as the Mississippi river would be catastrophic.

Unarmed people from the Sioux nation and other tribes as well as people

from other countries, came to Standing Rock to peacefully represent their views

The confrontation

The name 'Lakota' means 'peaceful people' and the people who gathered at Standing Rock were certainly that. Yet, they were met by a militarized police presence that sprayed them with tear gas and attacked the unarmed and peaceful people with batons and worse.

People from all nations came to support the Sioux people, tribes that had been hostile to each other for some time also came together to support the Sioux, a situation of reconciliation that was worthwhile, perhaps meant to happen.

Still the stand against the pipeline goes on.

So what is life like at Pine Ridge reservation?

Life at Pine Ridge is grim - but the people are resilient

and trying to make a better life

Many people think that Indian reservations are rich from Casino Dollars, far from it. At Pine Ridge, a situation exists that should shame America, if not the rest of the world.

The Lakota people are living in a situation that if it was Africa, would have fund-raising pop concerts raising money for it and massive relief efforts pouring in by the truckload. However, the Lakota don't benefit from the 'debt to slavery' card being played.

Africa has had trillions of Dollars given to it, by rights it should be a first world country all over, yet we still get media reports of poverty and third world conditions -  so where has the money gone?

If only places like Pine Ridge could get investments of money and materials....

Sadly for Pine Ridge this is not happening and the Lakota people like many of the other tribes are facing great hardship.

I have been working for free with some of the people there to help with advice on building economic growth through responsible commerce going, in line with their respect for resources beliefs and I am hopeful that the Lakota people can help themselves back to a situation that is good for them

The town of White Clay abuts Pine Ridge and has a number of

liquor stores that feed alcoholism - an incoherent man here on the ground is one

victim of this very economically poor area of America

Alcoholism and addiction must be defeated

Sadly, with the despair of the grinding poverty at Pine Ridge, some of the Lakota are turning to Alcohol and narcotics to try and block out the reality of their lot. This situation must be defeated and turned around for the Lakota people to be able to enjoy life and not be poisoned by these vile alternatives.

The Sacred Fireplace project

One man has a vision to turn this sort of problem around, a Lakota man named Pete Catches. He is the grandson of the legendary Lakota Chief Crazy Horse.

Pete V. Catches at home at Pine Ridge

Pete Catches dedicating offerings a the Oceti Wakan site

Oceti Wakan is a Lakota phrase meaning 'Sacred fireplace'  -  the purpose of this project is to provide a cultural centre to preserve the Lakota heritage and culture, also to provide education to the young Lakota people to learn the Lakota language and to provide preventative information on addiction.

You can visit the website here and donate if you wish at http://www.ocetiwakan.org/

There is hope

A new home being built at Pine Ridge from sustainable materials

There is no doubt that the Lakota people at Pine Ridge need help to survive. Their problems include a need to live an authentic life but in a modern world. My advice to them is 'The future is the past, is the future.'

My message is that building on an American Indian piece of wisdom 'you already have everything within you to succeed' that the Lakota look at their heritage which provides them with a wealth of knowledge and free resources that they can direct to ways of creating some wealth, whilst doing the least damage.

To the non-Indian people, we have a lot to learn from people like the Lakota. The ways of consumerism are putting us on a course of running out of planet. We need to modify what we do and redefine our modus operandi.

A number of far-sighted American Indian people have made prophecies that would come to be true - World Wars, telecommunications, railways, to name but a few. They also predicted a time when humans would all have to come together to survive, that time may be with us soon.

The Medicine Wheel  - Coincidentally the colours signify the colours of people -

White, Yellow, Red and Black

From the Clay

A Sioux man told the story of how the great creator which the Lakota call 'Wakan Tanka' fashioned a human 'out of clay'  -  the same is true of the bible in which it is said Adam was made from the Clay.

The Sioux story is that the human from the Clay was baked and three attempts were made to get the colour right, on the fourth attempt, the great creator succeeded in making the Red man.

Adam or 'Adamu' means from the Earth, from the rib is a mistranslation.

The wisdom of the American Indians is amazing -

I would have loved to have met Floyd Red Crow Westerman

Wisdom

One of my great friends was half Commanche Indian and although I knew him for only 12 years, he was one of my great friends. He was a WW2 veteran and was about 40 years older than me at the time.

I came across the American Indian wisdom whilst doing some research for a book on robotics of all things and this coincided about three or so years ago with my own transition of my life.

Suddenly the base of my life shifted and when I started to look into the wisdom, I found much I was already thinking along similar lines too. This wasn't just me, it was others who were starting to re-think what they were doing. Looking into this I found it was happening across the planet.

The conclusion I came to was that we as a species need to change and the people who could help us with that are the American Indian people.

Clapham Omniblog: Awstrahlia?

Clapham Omniblog - Awstrahlia?

In which Colin and Reg discuss Col's trip to Australia

*Please note the following is a verbatim transcription from the original pigeon cockerney*

Reg: Fack me Col, where's you bin, ah fawht yerd gawn an' died.

Col: 'old yer bleedin' awses Reg, ah's bin ter Awstrahlier, dintcha git me bleedin' postcard?

Reg: Yer, yer muss 'ave a right bundle of Orange ter affawd vat sort awliday.

Col: Well, aye ahd wun of vose anewdities come up, sah ver awld trahble insisted we went aht ver ter see her cuzzin.

Reg: Any good?

Col: Fackin mayzin myte. Fakkin bawstid of a jerney, abaht a day's flight.

Reg: Jer miss Cannin' 'ahn venn?

Col: No.

Reg: My old woman's awn abaht gahn abrawd, fackin' Majawkus or summat like vat. Myte look et Bennydawm or Ibeefia awr Lanzerotti. Spose it beats Clacton or Sarfend.

Col: Sarfend's ver awrsole awve Essix, 'sa ryte fackin' dump. Ver's awl vose re'irement places up ver East cahst, lyke Nawfuk en Linkunsheer, noyzee beacis in ver summa en fackin' wet and grey in ver fackin winn'a.

Reg: Yer, maykez yer looz ver fackin' will, dunnit? Fack me, s'lahk an jerry attrix's open prison. 'Ere, dja kno Ted Smiff's moved?

Col: Wot Ted oo played ver Banjer dahn ver Fevvers?

Reg: Yer, vats ryte Col. Jus upz en leaves, moved ter fackin' Linkunsheer 'en ee.

Col: Eye errd vat ver Fevvis is gern, 'an all.

Reg: Syne orv ver tymes Col. Veyz awl clahsen dahn, awr bean mayde inner feam pubz awr trendy gaffs vor ver Ippsters and yer trendy types wots bine up playcis dahn in Wahtchappl, awl voze places dahn Eest,

Col: Aye rimembiz venn yer kud bah wun of voze gaffs dahn Eest Ayte fer fack all munny. Bahta cuppler fahsand kwid, mynd yer, vaht worz in ver erly sixties, eye mean wort vey gawn for nah? Baht best part of a millyun?

Reg: Ah tahmes change, myte.

Col: Yer an' nawt fawr ver betta 'n awl. Ennyways, I'm gittin' awf myte, Ahll see yerz in ver Fevvers wan nyte, fawr its gawn.

Reg: Yer, tra myte.

Don't call me Ska face - the 2 Tone music scene that did more positive things for race relations than people realise

Ska legend Prince Buster - replete in 'Pork Pie' hat

Punk Britannia

1970's Britain - a picture of industrial strikes, football hooliganism, disaffected youth, PVC, economic doom and gloom and in 1976, punk rock. For those of you who weren't there, this is what it was like...

Football hooliganism became the safety valve of disaffected British white youth

The rise of disaffected youth, in the form of the 'Skinhead' 'Bootboys' and the rival Punk rockers, was causing concern to the government of the day.

Punk rock, an angry movement adhered to by disaffected youth, facing no future, few jobs and whipped up by the late Malcolm McLaren who saw the potential of publicity, was taken very seriously by the security services who feared the unrest that may ensue from this type of point of view might spill out into the general populace - the 'Anarchy in the UK' espousal was angry and deeply worried those in charge of the nation.

Many of those in positions of influence had served in World War 2 and knew only too well the significance of the Swastika armbands that many Punks wore as part of their 'shock' appeal or not as the case was. They certainly got noticed and that was the point.

The publicity-savvy Malcolm McLaren 3rd from right with the Sex Pistols

signing a record deal outside Buckingham Palace

Worse was to come, for the 'Agent Provocative' Malcom McLaren who managed the punk super group the Sex Pistols, engineered a publicity coup that saw the group sign a record contract outside Buckingham Palace.

National Front graffiti was common place

The group unleashed their own take on the national anthem, with a nihilistic rant full of disaffected rhetoric entitled 'God save the Queen,' which it is alleged actually topped the pop charts in the week of the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977, although the record was banned by the BBC, which only served to ensure it sold in great numbers, yet another publicity coup for Mr McLaren!

National Front supporters in the 70's

Punk, with it's nihilistic 'anarchy in the UK' undercurrent, was opposed by the anti-immigrant white males (& sometimes female) often right wing -leaning 'Skinheads' some of whom were active in the then 'National Front party' - a legitimised interest group that wanted to repatriate non-white immigrants. Punk wasn't about racism, just shock.

Typical Skinhead 'Bootboys' - not all were racists

The National Front staged many marches and public assemblies to support their cause and National Front graffiti was often seen daubed on walls. The uniform of the Skinhead was a pair of Doc Marten boots, usually 17 hole, jeans, taken up to the top of the boots, a Harrington or US Air Force style MA1 jacket and Stayprest shirt, topped off with a 'buzzcut' hair do.

Not all the menacing looking 'Skins' were looking for trouble, or were rabid racists, they were often labelled 'trouble' but were more likely to help an old lady across the road rather than nick her handbag.

The 'Bootboys' looked menacing

The Rude Boys

For the people who were immigrants from the West Indies in Britain, they faced casual everyday racism, attacks from some of the 'Skins' and stop and search by the Police. This stop and search which the black people perceived as discriminatory and done just because of their skin colour contributed to the riots in 1981.

A pair of 'Rude Boys'

When the immigrants came to Britain largely from the West Indies in post war Britain, they also brought their music. And in the enclaves of North London, Harlesden for one and in the Midlands in Handsworth, Birmingham, Dudley and Coventry, areas where large numbers of black people lived, the 'Ska' music of Jamaica started to be heard.

Perceived persecution of black people by the Police led to tension and riots

In 1979, the term 'Rude Boys' started to become known more widely. This was applied to the West Indian people who dressed in sharp suits, trilby or 'Pork Pie' hats and in dress terms equivalent of the 1960's 'Mod' - curiously the white 60's Mods favoured the Motown music of Detroit, performed by black American artists and also Ska, from that era.

The 2 Tone image from the late 70's Ska 'revival'

Prince Buster was one of the leading artists of the Ska movement in the late 1950's and his music would filter in to the UK Mod scene of the 1960's. When the 2 tone scene got off the ground in the late 1970's, his oeuvre became fashionable again.

Coventry band The Specials c. 1979

Stop your messing around..

The Ska revival of the late 1970's broke convention. Bands like The Specials, from Coventry, were made up of both white and black performers, a somewhat unusual arrangement for the time in British music.

The Selecter - fronted by Pauline Black

Inevitably, this drew both white and black people to their performances and one of the great buzzwords of the time was 'multiracial integration' - Ska music of the revival certainly did make this happen.

The Ska revival group 'Bad Manners'

fronted by the enigmatic Buster Bloodvessel aka Douglas Trendle

Ironically, it also led to many of the Ska followers who were skinheads, to come to live performances, here you might expect a rather 'volatile' situation, but the reverse was often the case.

Bands like The Specials and The Selector, made up of white and black performers settled down the issues of integration and through mass exposure to millions of British citizens through music programs of the day such as Top of the Pops, changed attitudes.

Legendary nihilistic punk rocker Sid Vicious, lashes out

One step beyond

In North London, a group proposing to call itself the 'Morris Minors,' started out with some original Ska covers, such as the Prince and Madness, by legendary Ska artist Prince Buster.

Somewhere in Camden, Madness and Morris Minor van

Based in Camden, North London and performing in the nearby areas of Kentish Town, Islington and the like, they took the original Ska and put their own stamp on it.

By coincidence, The Specials from Coventry, also used the Ska framework to pen their own songs such as 'too much too young,' 'gangsters' and 'ghost town' whilst still covering original Ska hits.

The Fun Boy Three - refugees from The Specials

The music scene was very fluid in the post punk era, giving rise to the New Romantic genre as well as the Ska scene.

The Specials lost Terry Hall, Lynval Golding and Nev Staple who left to form the Fun Boy Three, a group that broke another barrier, multi-racial and with supporting female musicians. This musical direction produced some interesting records although this group was sadly short lived.

Madness in their heyday of the late 70's

Madness started to write their own material and forged a career that has seen them remain a part of the British music scene.

In the round, Ska music has not only given us enjoyable music, but helped to heal the divisions of black and white people. The National Front and the Punk movement are now remnants of forty years ago and monochrome nostalgia. It just goes to prove that music is for everyone and good can come out of it. A sort of law of unintended consequences, but a good one.