Author Archives: odeboyz

Flogging and Courage: the British Army 1800-81

Posted on January 12, 2017 by odeboyz

Discipline in the British Army was sadistic. There was institutional savagery with floggings and public execution occurring so frequently they were normalised. The army had a subliminal desire to ‘toughen’ up soldiers for the ordeals that lay ahead of them. … Continue reading →

Posted in History, War | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Drinking

Posted on January 10, 2017 by odeboyz

“You drink way too much” she said in her special voice. Her voice, for preaching, and sorting me out and Explaining that I’m a half-wit let loose on the world Because of the stupidity of my mother and sisters. I … Continue reading →

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Bette Midler (71) congratulates Mick Jagger (73) on the birth of his eighth child

Posted on January 10, 2017 by odeboyz

“Congrats to Mick Jagger becoming a dad again at 73. Which reminds me, I need to pick up a pregnancy test, because I’m, like, 936 weeks late!” Chris

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A strong young man

Posted on January 6, 2017 by odeboyz

Back in the early seventies whilst working as a newly appointed foreman plumber at the DLO (Direct Labour Organisation) for the London Borough of Hackney a job came in for a roof repair to the Stoke Newington Town Hall. Of course, … Continue reading →

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By the wildwood lake

Posted on January 3, 2017 by odeboyz

In a forest deep, where gnarly willows grew Next to a deep still lake, in the bowl between steep green hills There dappled sunbeams played in the wildwood’s shade Several small streams ran through. Over millennia, the lake became deeper, … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Obama and Trump meet God

Posted on January 3, 2017 by odeboyz

Obama and Trump are standing at the throne of heaven. God looks at them and says, “Before granting you a place at my side, I must ask you what you have learned, what you believe in.” God asks Obama first: … Continue reading →

Posted in Humour, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

The Odeboyz Christmas Getaway

Posted on December 20, 2016 by odeboyz
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The Political Ambition of Boris Johnson- British Foreign Secretary

Posted on December 20, 2016 by odeboyz

“Why should we not form a secret society with but one object, the furtherance of the British Empire and the bringing of the whole world under British rule, for the recovery of the United States, for making the Anglo Saxon … Continue reading →

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Workhouses: did Charles Dickens get it wrong?

Posted on December 16, 2016 by odeboyz

Britain was a swaggeringly confident country in 1834 with a firm belief in laissez-faire economics. Yet they created a tightly regulated centralised welfare system which deleted localised authority by imposing national standards. Every aspect of the new system was laid … Continue reading →

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Adolf Hitler: Man of the Year, 1938: Time Magazine

Posted on December 14, 2016 by odeboyz

Time (1939): Adolf Hitler: Man of the Year, 1938: “What Adolf Hitler & Co. did to Germany in less than six years was applauded wildly and ecstatically by most Germans… …He lifted the nation from post-War defeatism. Under the swastika … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Politics | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment