Category Archives: History

Iraq 2003-15: a wordless poem

Posted on November 24, 2015 by odeboyz

       

Posted in History, War | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

The first ‘Selfie’: Narcissus

Posted on September 8, 2015 by odeboyz
Posted in History, Humour, Poetry | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Revisiting old memories

Posted on August 14, 2015 by odeboyz

Just on a whim, the other day I decided to revisit the place in Islington North London, where I and my family lived from the late forties to the mid sixties. A tedious tube journey mostly on the District line … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiography, History, housing | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

British Police: a wordless poem

Posted on August 4, 2015 by odeboyz

    (Chris)

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

The Price of Virtue: Bailing out Slave-owners 1833

Posted on July 24, 2015 by odeboyz

Slavery was abolished in the British Empire in 1833. Key to abolition was the willingness of the British government to compensate slave-owners for their property. The government budgeted £20 million, supervised by the Slavery Compensation Commission. This huge amount of … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History, Politics, Religion | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Junk Drawer

Posted on July 3, 2015 by odeboyz

I don’t know about you but when I’m not sure where to keep some small objects, they tend to end up in my junk drawer. Over time, (and I do mean years) that drawer refuses to shut tight, as normally … Continue reading →

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The Nobel Peace Prize as Satire

Posted on May 26, 2015 by odeboyz

1973: Henry Kissinger for realising he’d lost the war South East Asia, especially Viet Nam. 2009: Barack Obama for not starting a war in his first nine months in office. (Chris)

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The 1908 Old-Age Pension Act

Posted on May 15, 2015 by odeboyz

The 1908 Old-Age Pension Act was revolutionary legislation embodying the very best of British politics. For the first time there was to be state intervention in the living standards of the people. Assistance was given through non-contributory pensions recognising that … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History, Politics | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Just Moments in Time

Posted on May 7, 2015 by odeboyz

Well over sixty years ago my best friend was a boy named Paul Brewster. Paul was a big lad even at the age of nine or ten where I was comparatively small. Paul and his Mum and Dad lived on … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiography, History, housing | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Joys of negotiating coalitions: Belgium style

Posted on May 5, 2015 by odeboyz

2007 Forming a government took 197 days 2010/11 Forming a government took 541 days Very few citizens of Belgium noticed that they didn’t have an elected government in place.

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