RAF faces Pilot shortage

British Royal Air Force has faced shortage of pilots for the military action in Libya as the government applied defence budget cuts to the front-line.

The lack of qualified fighter pilots is so serious that the RAF started to teach trainee Typhoon pilots and let the instructors to go to the front line.

Because of the defence budget cut over the past ten years, the number of Typhoon pilots has remained low.

The British government has decided to decommission HMS Ark Royal, Harrier jets and the Nimrod reconnaissance aircraft, which only would make the situation worse for they played role in Libya crisis.

“We have a declining pool of pilots,” one Libya serving RAF pilot said. “There's less people to do twice as much work. If we are not training any more we are going to run out of personnel very soon.”

“There is a great concern in Parliament about the Government's cuts to RAF pilots. We would be very worried if government cuts were to impede future operations,” Jim Murphy, the shadow defence secretary, said.

The shortage of Typhoon pilots is a big embarrassment for the government as they were forced to postpone scrapping warships in Libyan crisis.

Air Commodore Andrew Lambert, a former RAF pilot who served in Bosnia and Iraq war, said the operation in Libya could become shaky.

“We should put a halt to all defence cuts,” he said. “It does not make sense. The world is getting less stable and if the Government cannot see that, we have a problem bordering on the irresponsible.”

Cameron's warmongering stretches the Armed forces to the limit

The former British chief of the defence has warned that Libya's crisis spread British armed forces “very thin” and put the army under pressure.




Air Chief Marshal Jock Stirrup said Britain is facing “grave dangers” by spreading in both Afghanistan and Libya.



He called for the government to find a political resolution in Libya urgently to take the pressure off the British army.



"We have to think very carefully about the consequences of our continuing military involvement in Libya," the former RAF commander said in the House of Lords.



"Although Afghanistan has been pushed off the front pages for the moment, it still consumes a great deal of our military capacity.



"What little we have had left in the locker over the past couple of years for dealing with other contingencies has consisted mainly of air and maritime capabilities. These have largely been consumed by the Libya operation, so that locker is now looking pretty bare. Yet we still face huge risks."



Lord Stirrup warned of the potential threat to Britain by other Middle East countries and the difficulty the military would face to confront the new crisis.



"Our military intervention, although not designed to oust Gaddafi, can end only with his removal," he added.



"In view of the risks elsewhere, in view of the grave dangers to us should such risks materialise and in view of the degree to which we have now drawn down on our military account, we have yet one more reason for placing the very highest degree of urgency on finding a political resolution to this crisis as soon as possible."


source:http://www.rebelnews.org/politics/europe/752523-libya-oper-empties-uk-military-locker
 
 
Britain’s Armed Forces Have No Cash, but Billions Still Set Aside for Foreign Aid

Britain’s armed forces are now so underfunded that they are incapable of properly defending this country — but the Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) current deficit is only 5.5 percent of the ConDem regime’s “ring fenced” foreign aid budget.


The confession that Britain was no longer able to defend herself adequately was made by ConDem Defence Secretary Liam Fox in an interview with a newspaper.




His admission followed a National Audit Office report earlier this week which found that the Ministry of Defence was already £500 million over budget for the current financial year with “insufficient funds to meet planned expenditure.”



It is projected that at as many as 30,000 servicemen will lose their jobs as the ministry meets ConDem budget cuts which entail a 25 percent “saving.”



Mr Fox said that the “state of the public finances meant Britain could no longer be protected from every conceivable threat.”



In addition, Mr Fox announced that plans to buy hi-tech naval warships and RAF transporter planes could be put on indefinite hold.



“We don't have the money as a country to protect ourselves against every potential future threat,” he told a newspaper.



The war in Afghanistan costs in excess of £5 billion per year, ten times as much as the MoD deficit, while the foreign aid budget runs at £9.1 billion.



In the distorted world of Mr Fox and his allies, it is more important to fight a war in Afghanistan which has nothing to do with Britain (and in fact increases terrorism in this country) than to make sure that our own borders are adequately protected.



The British National Party argues that all foreign wars should be halted unless there is a direct British interest involved, that foreign aid be halted and that British tax money be spent on Britain first.



The BNP’s 2010 manifesto spelled out the party’s priorities with regard to defence:



Defending Britain: BNP Defence Policy



* The BNP will end the involvement of British troops in the Afghanistan war.



* The BNP will not allow British forces to become involved in a war against Iran.



* The BNP will withdraw our troops from Germany.



* The BNP will renegotiate our presence in NATO.



* The BNP will raise Defence spending by one percent over the rate of inflation for the next five years.



* The BNP will institute a Community Award Scheme for young people.

Source: http://www.bnp.org.uk/news/britain%E2%80%99s-armed-forces-have-no-cash-billions-still-set-aside-foreign-aid

US Pastor Terry Jones Vows new Anti-islam Protest

The extremist American pastor who supervised the burning of a copy of Islam's holy book on March 20 has said he will lead an anti-Islam rally outside the biggest mosque in Dearborn, Michigan, on April 22.




“Our aim is to make an awareness of the radical element of Islam,” Pastor Terry Jones in Florida told Reuters on Saturday.



On March 20, Jones, who had already caused an outrage worldwide by threatening to burn copies of the Qur'an last September, broke his earlier promise and burned the holy Qur'an after holding a mock trial at his fringe church in the city of Gainesville.



The Quran-burning has led to two days of deadly protests in Afghanistan and stoked anti-Western sentiments in the Muslim world.



Ten foreign workers for the United Nations were killed after a small number of furious protesters stormed the UN headquarters in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif.



At least ten Afghans were killed and 83 others left wounded in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar on Saturday, on a second day of violent protests over the desecration of the holy Qur'an.



An attack also hit a NATO military base in the Afghan capital, Kabul, the day after protesters overran the UN mission in Mazar-i-Sharif and killed seven foreign staff.



Unrepentant Jones, a former hotel manager turned pastor who claims the Qur'an incites violence, defiantly vowed to lead the protest in Michigan on April 22.



"We find it very tragic any time that someone is murdered but we do not feel any responsibility for that," he said.



Pakistani people have also taken to the streets in a nationwide move to condemn the desecration of the holy Qur'an in the United States, calling such an act a threat to religious harmony.



US President Barack Obama has tried to calm tensions by denouncing the sacrilege, calling the Quran-burning a show of extreme intolerance and bigotry.

Source: http://www.rebelnews.org/society/religion/753809-us-pastor-vows-new-anti-islam-protest

This is is an old video, but still a very revealing interview.
And in answer to Hussein Obama, the bombing of the twin towers was an act of extreme intolerence, the killing of egyptian christians is an an act of extreme intolerence. The burning of a book is nothing in comparison, it is merely burning paper. The supposed religion of peace shows it's true face again.

The group Muslims against crusades are planning to disrupt the royal wedding. Yet another example of failed multiculturalism

OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: MUSLIMS TO DISRUPT ROYAL WEDDING


On 29th April 2011, what is probably one of the most anticipated events in recent years will be due to take place at Westminster Abbey; Prince William and Kate Middleton, will soon exchange matrimonial vows, in the presence of a global audience.



Unfortunately, Britain's continued interference in Muslim lands is showing no signs of abating; the plundering of resources, the murdering of innocent (Muslim) men, women and children and the forced indoctrination of the satanic democratic creed have become hallmarks of a brutal regime led by a very brutal dictator.



In the backdrop of all this, we find that one of the biggest advocates of British imperialism, Flight Lieutenant Prince William, wishes to enjoy an extravagant wedding ceremony, ironically at the expense of the tax-payer.



His direct involvement with the murderous British military and eagerness to inherit the reigns of a kingdom built on blood and colonialism clearly demonstrate what type of legacy he wishes to leave.



In light of this, sincere Muslims have decided to organise a forceful demonstration, to once again highlight that as long Britain continues in its quest to occupy Muslim land and wage war against the religion of God (Allah) that we too shall continue in our efforts to undermine their regime and condemn all of their representatives, military or otherwise.



We strongly advise Prince William and his Nazi sympathiser, to withdraw from the crusader British military and give up all affiliation to the tyrannical British Empire

We promise that should they refuse, then the day which the nation has been dreaming of for so long will become a nightmare and that it will inshaa'allah (God willing) eclipse the protests in Barking, Downing Street and the events of November 11.

 

Source: http://www.muslimsagainstcrusades.com/ 

Barbarism of Buffoons- criticism of western nations illegal intervention in Libya

Islam's contempt for freedom of speech

Mayor accuses Tories of ageism after election deselection

Mayor of Gedling Councillor Pat Blandamer has accused the Tory party of ageism after she was dropped ahead of the local elections on May 5. Winnie Agbonlahor reports

COUNCILLORS on both sides of the political spectrum agree Councillor Pat Blandamer has been doing a good job as Mayor of Gedling.


"She's been raising a lot of money for her charities," said Conservative councillor Sally Mason-Kempster.

And leader of the Labour group, John Clarke, echoed her views. "I think the mayor has been doing good work," he said.

But members of the Burton Joyce Conservative branch, have decided not to let her run as the party's candidate in Burton Joyce and Stoke Bardolph in May's local election – choosing two candidates in their forties instead.

"I don't know why they've done it," Mr Clarke said.

"But it doesn't happen very often. It's like taking the king off the throne while they're still on it."


Mrs Blandamer has also proved a popular mayor among some constituents. Doreen Leighton, 79, of Burton Joyce, said the mayor had been doing "her best for the party and the borough".

She added: "People have seemed to like her.

"I don't understand why she has been deselected.


"I don't know much about either of the new candidates.

"But I would not say Pat is too old. She's always energetic."

Mrs Blandamer, who is 72, believes she has been removed to make space for younger candidates.

"I would call that ageism," she said.


She added: "I have given many years of loyal service to the Conservative Party locally and I have been extremely proud to represent residents.


"This is a disgraceful selection process, which will embarrass the party."

"I was told that they had chosen 'the young ones' instead of myself."

Mrs Blandamer also said she had not been given the chance to appeal and had not received a valid reason why she was de-selected. "I do not believe that the constitutional rules have been followed throughout the process," she said.

Mrs Blandamer has now resigned from the party and is standing as an Independent candidate in Burton Joyce and Stoke Bardolph.


Conservative councillor Rod Kempster, 70, was interviewed to stand again as Conservative candidate in the Kingswell ward but was not chosen by the Gedling Conservative Association. The party has chosen two candidates in their thirties to stand instead.

Mr Kempster said his deselection "came as a complete shock" after almost 30 years as a councillor.

He said: "I never thought in my wildest dreams this would happen in Gedling.

"I'm heart-broken.

"The new candidates we've never even seen before. I cannot get my head round what's going off."

Councillor Wilfred Doe was interviewed as Tory candidate for the Bonington ward but was equally unsuccessful

He said he was "annoyed" at the decision but not surprised.

"I haven't got a clue why I was de-selected. No explanation was made.

"I'm 69, but that doesn't stop my head or mouth from working which is what you need to be a councillor."

He said he stood and won twice in his ward with a comfortable majority.

"I think I was deselected to bring in younger candidates," he added.

"But I think this is a risky strategy. There's a possibility these seats could be lost now.

"I'm thinking about resigning because of this."

John Parr, chairman of the Gedling Conservative Association, said the selection of candidates was carried out according to the rules.

He added: "We have got an ageing population and our future rests with younger candidates."

However, he said the selection had not been a case of "out with the old – in with the young".

"They have gone through a selection process and we have been very democratic," he added

"The ageism argument is completely unfounded. We have retained a large element of experienced, mature people and they are needed to help guide the younger candidates.


"It's a question of ability and how the selection committee wants things. It's not been down to age.

"But every business needs an injection of new blood every now and again.

"After going through the selection process, all councillors were contacted by me personally or by the chairman of their group to notify them about the decision.


"Councillor Blandamer was invited by the chairman of the Burton Joyce branch and myself to a private meeting where we might discuss everything over a cup of coffee or tea. But it was not accepted."



He also said people from a wide age group had shown a growing interest in the party, which the party needed to take notice of.

In total, four Conservative councillors have been deselected from their wards, but one is standing for a different ward.

Some of the more experienced councillors who are standing again as Tories include Councillors John Boot and Alan Bexon who are both in their seventies , and Councillor Wendy Golland who has served for 35 years.