Proustian Pressies….…Save Windermere……From C.A.A.T……
by Bernie Bell - 08:41 on 06 November 2025
Proustian Pressies……
I saw this on the FB page of an old friend who has been known to dabble in antiques……
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1462910208335731
…….which led to the following exchange…..
Me…
“That's still what Christmas wrapping paper looks like in my mind - tho' - I AM 'vintage'!”
P…….
“It has that 'nearly tissue' feel as well. Proustian.”
Me…
“ Yes, it was flimsy stuff.
My lord, Paul - it's brought back memories - more and more are flooding in.
Those standard pressies….’toiletries’ sets with vicious smelling bath cubes. Equally vicious smelling after-shave which no-one ever used.
The deccies that went back on the tree year after year – and making those paper chains to string across the room.”
And now – the telly is already full of ads. which imply that we have to completely re-furnish our houses for folk calling round at Christmas, or we somehow fail as acceptable members of society.
Don’t fall for it! They come to see you, not to scrutinize the state of your sofa or dining table. And, if that is what they’re coming for – let them be disappointed.
Some alcohol-related Remembrance of Christmas Past….
https://theorkneynews.scot/2020/12/13/posh-perfume-makes-you-walk-funny/
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From Matt Staniek ….
“Windermere means the world to me. It’s where I grew up, and it’s where I came to recover after a life-threatening car accident. But this world famous lake is under threat, and I’m fighting to save it. Thanks to Change.org users like you, we have already forced regulators, politicians and water companies to take meaningful action to clean up the lake.
But now, with your help, we have a real chance to stop the discharge of sewage into Lake Windermere for good.
Make it a crime to discharge sewage in Windermere
Windermere, England’s largest lake and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is being destroyed by sewage. Tell the UK Government to make it illegal now.
Sewage is being dumped directly into the lake, fuelling potentially toxic algal blooms that can kill fish, harm pets, and threaten human health. Decades of neglect, corporate greed, and government inaction are wrecking Windermere’s natural beauty. The private water company has prioritised shareholder dividends over environmental protection, while regulators and the Government have failed to hold them to account. It’s time to put a stop to this. It’s time for the law to protect Windermere.
Windermere means everything to me. I grew up here, and I came back here to recover after a life-threatening car accident. Over the last 4 years, I’ve been campaigning to save the lake, and I never imagined the successes we’d achieve — but there’s still work to do to save this iconic lake, immortalised by culturally significant figures like Wililam Wordsworth, Beatrix Potter and yes, even Taylor Swift.
But this isn’t just about one lake.
Windermere is a symbol of what’s happening to rivers, lakes, and coastlines across the UK and around the world. In the UK, it represents a broken, privatised water system that puts profit before people and the environment. Globally, it is a warning to other freshwater systems already feeling the effects of climate change.
Windermere can also be something else entirely: a beacon of hope and leadership. A rallying point to force governments and industries to protect nature, not exploit it. A global example of people power turning the tide.
What We Have Achieved So Far
When we started campaigning, we were told there was no investment needed. All sites operated as intended. Windermere, we were told, was fine. But thanks to your support on our previous petitions, we’ve exposed the truth, changed the narrative, and secured real progress for the Lake in the short-term, including:
- £200 million in new investment committed over the next five years, nearly triple the total of the previous 35 combined.
- The first full review of United Utilities’ discharge permits by the Environment Agency after we exposed how outdated and inadequate they were.
- A surge in regulatory inspections from 0 in 2020 to 35 in 2025 so far, triggering ongoing investigations and potential prosecutions.
- Operational changes on the ground, including more frequent site visits, more staff members hired, increased tank emptying and new backup generators to reduce failures.
- National and international media coverage, parliamentary action, and public outrage, leading to an engineering study which is now assessing how to eliminate all sewage pollution in our lake.
This is all thanks to you. The regulators, politicians, and water companies wouldn’t have acted without ordinary people refusing to accept the unacceptable, and making their voices heard.
But We Still Need Your Help
The tipping point for Windermere will be defined by our changing climate. As temperatures rise, the lake is warming.
The lake’s average annual surface temperature has increased by 1.7°C in the last 70 years. Algal biomass is worsening in the North Basin, deep-water oxygen is declining, and weather extremes are putting even more pressure on inadequate sewage infrastructure.
More rainfall means more sewage discharges. Longer droughts allow algal blooms to proliferate. Without action, we face the very real risk of a catastrophic bloom event that could wipe out fish populations and devastate the ecosystem.
The knock-on effects are significant. Thousands of fish washing up dead on the lake shore would not only be an environmental disaster but would also damage tourism, house prices, and the local economy.
By signing this petition, you can help us achieve our vision of a Windermere free from sewage where algae blooms are a thing of the past. A lake restored for wildlife, people, and future generations.
In the 1970s, Lake Annecy in France faced the same problems facing Windermere, but the community refused to accept it. Infrastructure was built to remove sewage from the lake entirely: a pipe network around the entire circumference that diverted sewage to state-of-the-art treatment centres. Today, Annecy is the cleanest lake in Europe.
With your support, we can do the same for Windemere!
We’ve forced investment. We’ve exposed illegal dumping. We’ve pushed regulators into action. Now we must finish what we started.
We demand that the UK Government make it unlawful to discharge any sewage into Windermere by enacting legislation. Sign the petition and together we can end sewage pollution in England’s largest lake once and for all.
https://www.change.org/p/make-it-a-crime-to-discharge-sewage-in-windermere/psf/promote_or_share
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From C.A.A.T.......
“Statement: Stop Arming the UAE! Stop the Sudanese Genocide!
British-made military equipment, sold to the UAE, is being used by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) for massacres, mass displacement, and starvation in Sudan.
The RSF is committing genocide in Sudan. This includes killing more than 150,000 people, forcing 12 million people to flee their homes, and using starvation as a weapon of war. There are almost 25 million people facing acute hunger and 8 million facing famine.
Military equipment sold to the UAE has been discovered in combat zones in Sudan. This includes British engines, made by Cummins Inc found in armoured vehicles and British-made small weapons target devices made by Militec. Militec was granted an export licence to UAE for the same equipment that was found in Sudan in each of 2013, 2014, and 2015.
Despite the UK government knowing that the UAE has diverted arms exports from other countries to the RSF, the UAE remains one of the UK’s biggest arms customers. In the past three years, the UK has exported £417 million worth of arms exports to the UAE. This includes £113m worth of aircraft and their components, £111m of target acquisition, weapons control systems, and related countermeasures and components, £110m of military electronic equipment, and £32m of bombs, missiles, grenades etc. and related countermeasures and components.
However, instead of taking action and suspending arms sales, this government has courted yet more arms sales, even issuing an official government invitation to the UAE to attend the DSEI arms fair in September. The UK government has also tried to repress criticism of the UAE’s role in Sudan, prioritising arms sales over condemning and challenging the UAE’s supply of military equipment to the RSF.
The UK arms trade is out of control. Successive governments have repeatedly lied, claiming the UK has the most robust arms export control system in the world. This couldn’t be further from the truth. We have an arms export system that exists to maximise arms dealers profits no matter what atrocities are committed using British military equipment.
UK arms companies do not care that their equipment is used to commit genocide. They do not care about Sudanese lives. They only care about their shareholders profits.
This has to end. We cannot stand by while British companies profit from multiple genocides. They have blood on their hands and it is down to all of us to hold both the companies, and this government, accountable for their actions.
For more, see our blog post, ‘Genocide in Sudan, the role of the UAE, and the complicity of the west’. “
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