Facebook Campaign for my Allotment Options

[Nothing Much]

Good tune.x2lls. No doubt he gets aound on Syd's bike.

I tried to do Facebook and I suddenly have 400 people wanting me to be friends so I shut down and decided to ask
my Daughter how to cope. I know about 5 personally.
The rest are people who have commented on videos on youtube.
It is like video streaming of films....You liked that do you want to watch this?

I am now inundated, because I stepped over the threshold, with unread E-Mails. In a very gracious script.
All from Iraqi Kurdistan. I feel a bit pursued, but as I have no clue what is there. I am leaving it alone.
So at the moment I am keeping off the Allotment site too. Facebook as well.
So I will try and log on next week when I find out what to do. And ' like' your campaign.
Christopher.

[Nothing Much]

Hindi Princesses sounds fun. I know a nice shed to store them in.

Strangely one of the posters is someone I knew for 35 years. Got divorced and pestered
me with French Jokes, Just passed them on when she got my e-mail address. A nightmare.
Firstly I can understand a bit of franglais.But after translation they are just not funny. About 40 a day
Even I can't translate that quickly.

It turns out I was not the only person who had had ask her to desist. At least I could read the words.
Some people are a bit daft and I have a fear that I have mistakenly set foot in a minefield.
The posts that are coming through at the rate of knots is alarming . And it is a private group I clicked on.
ce

[Penelope]

Hindi Princesses sounds fun. I know a nice shed to store them in.

Strangely one of the posters is someone I knew for 35 years. Got divorced and pestered
me with French Jokes, Just passed them on when she got my e-mail address. A nightmare.
Firstly I can understand a bit of franglais.But after translation they are just not funny. About 40 a day
Even I can't translate that quickly.

It turns out I was not the only person who had had ask her to desist. At least I could read the words.
Some people are a bit daft and I have a fear that I have mistakenly set foot in a minefield.
The posts that are coming through at the rate of knots is alarming . And it is a private group I clicked on.
ce

Facebook, like Twitter, a fools toolkit.

[Nothing Much]

Yes Penelope. Quite right.Like Nigerian e-mails it has been in newsprint for years.
I didn't realise it is impossible to get out of even if you don't post anything.

The poster I had known for about 10 years had embedded my videos years ago from youtube.
Suggested I try his facebook page. There is nothing untoward on this problem. I get greetings at Christmas.
It is just the linkage that caused me to have a bit of a flutter.

After all we get on well here. Don't we.
ce

[Penelope]

Yes Penelope. Quite right.Like Nigerian e-mails it has been in newsprint for years.
I didn't realise it is impossible to get out of even if you don't post anything.

The poster I had known for about 10 years had embedded my videos years ago from youtube.
Suggested I try his facebook page. There is nothing untoward on this problem. I get greetings at Christmas.
It is just the linkage that caused me to have a bit of a flutter.

After all we get on well here. Don't we.
ce

Indeedeley doodeley !

[NWNREADER]

We know a song about that

Our shed, a very very very nice shed, with two dogs in the yard, life used to be so hard.......

Father wears his Sunday best
Mother's tired she needs a rest
The kids are playing up downstairs
Sister's sighing in her sleep
Brother's got a date to keep
He can't hang around

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

Our shed it has a crowd
There's always something happening
And it's usually quite loud
Our mum she's so shed-proud
Nothing ever slows her down
And a mess is not allowed

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...
Something tells you that you've got to get away from it

Father gets up late for work
Mother has to iron his shirt
Then she sends the kids to school
Sees them off with a small kiss
She's the one they're going to miss
In lots of ways

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

I remember way back then when everything was true and when
We would have such a very good time such a fine time
Such a happy time
And I remember how we'd play simply waste the day away
Then we'd say nothing would come between us two dreamers

Father wears his Sunday best
Mother's tired she needs a rest
The kids are playing up downstairs
Sister's sighing in her sleep
Brother's got a date to keep
He can't hang around

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our plot

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

Our shed, was our castle and our keep
Our shed, in the middle of our plot

Our shed, that was where we used to sleep
Our shed, in the middle of our plot

Our shed in the middle of our plot

[Cognosco]

Father wears his Sunday best
Mother's tired she needs a rest
The kids are playing up downstairs
Sister's sighing in her sleep
Brother's got a date to keep
He can't hang around

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

Our shed it has a crowd
There's always something happening
And it's usually quite loud
Our mum she's so shed-proud
Nothing ever slows her down
And a mess is not allowed

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...
Something tells you that you've got to get away from it

Father gets up late for work
Mother has to iron his shirt
Then she sends the kids to school
Sees them off with a small kiss
She's the one they're going to miss
In lots of ways

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

I remember way back then when everything was true and when
We would have such a very good time such a fine time
Such a happy time
And I remember how we'd play simply waste the day away
Then we'd say nothing would come between us two dreamers

Father wears his Sunday best
Mother's tired she needs a rest
The kids are playing up downstairs
Sister's sighing in her sleep
Brother's got a date to keep
He can't hang around

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our plot

Our shed, in the middle of our plot
Our shed, in the middle of our ...

Our shed, was our castle and our keep
Our shed, in the middle of our plot

Our shed, that was where we used to sleep
Our shed, in the middle of our plot

Our shed in the middle of our plot

Sounds idyllic until NTC got involved and needed to raise some cash to subsidise their other Administration costs?
Would be even more idyllic for both allotmenteers and taxpayers if they were given the option of a vote to take on self management

It would really solve a lot of the present problems if the allotmenteers were allowed to have a free vote regarding self management? It would get Simon off their backs. I would still like to hear the councils version of the problems regarding Simon's eviction history. They can't now rely on the old excuse of confidentiality!
It may even go some way to restore the rock bottom image of the council that I believe the taxpayers have of them.

[Cognosco]

They have made several public statements about my allotment tenancy. Here's the one where they describe how they revoked the forfeiture. As they say:


Far from being lowest cost and lowest risk the council have already run up a legal bill for the tax-payer of several thousand pounds, not to mention the significant embarrassment surrounding their refusal to release the minutes of that meeting, and they still now have to apply to the court for a possession order just as before. True, it is more difficult for me because I have to use public law and human rights arguments to defeat the Notice to Quit rather than the simpler aruments about the unfairness of the tenancy agreement term and such, but all the council have succeeded in doing is digging themselves into an even bigger hole.

If what the Council claim is right, that this is a dispute over £20, then they allowed matters to get completely and utterly out of propotion. It's illuminating to understand that the town clerk wouldn't offer me the new tenancy agreement after Trading Standards made the Council revise the unfair one, and illuminating too to understand that the Council were using the threat of eviction to compel me to sign a secret no-criticism clause.

Not for the first time the Council also wheeled out is slanderous and humiliating personal slurs:

Perhaps if the Council had actually discussed the fairness of the rent review term with me rather than threatened me what would happen if I complained about it we might not have got into all this mess. What the Council need to realise is that just because my analysis of allotment rents shows theirs to be in the top 10% nationally and my analysis of their budget shows that they spend £100k on a service that could be delivered better for free, that doesn't make my saying so libelous or vexatious.

Well someone has to be at fault don't they? How can you even suggest it would be our esteemed council when have the taxpayers ever known them to be in the wrong?

If you had not stood up to the councillor who was a neighbour on your allotment site then a lot of this would not have come about. Also if the council had bothered to study the law and apply it fairly then this would have not come about.
If the council had not tried to place a disgraceful gagging contract on you this would not have gone as far as it now has. If the council had published the minutes of a meeting that they are alleged to not have published this would not have come about.

The best thing that could possibly happen now is for the council to meet with you and a representative to discuss where to go now to avoid any further embarrassment for the council and to shake hands, withdraw the eviction notice, and let the allotmenteers decide if they want self management or not by arranging a ballot. Less cost all round for the taxpayer and a saving of face for the council.

[blackdog]

Good tune.x2lls. No doubt he gets aound on Syd's bike.

Syd didn't have a bike - he only borrowed it.

[NWNREADER]

I am not an NTC resident, and I know no more than anyone else who has seen the threads by Simon.
I think a few NTC voters need to write to their own councillor and ask questions about the accountability issues.

[Cognosco]

I am not an NTC resident, and I know no more than anyone else who has seen the threads by Simon.
I think a few NTC voters need to write to their own councillor and ask questions about the accountability issues.

That has already been tried and the council reply was that they will not divulge any information that involves a dispute with an individual. It would seem that they pick and choose which rules they will apply and which they will ignore?
Any other suggestions to get them to open up with information? It would seem that the stance is we have behaved appallingly and the best way out is to say nothing unless we are forced to!

[NWNREADER]

That has already been tried and the council reply was that they will not divulge any information that involves a dispute with an individual. It would seem that they pick and choose which rules they will apply and which they will ignore?
Any other suggestions to get them to open up with information? It would seem that the stance is we have behaved appallingly and the best way out is to say nothing unless we are forced to!

I am not suggesting asking questions about the combat with Simon, I suggest asking questions about the matters Simon has raised, the decisions the Council has made, the policies (?) it is following.
That way they are being asked by more than one person and the matters really cannot be ignored. Either that or NTC voters will increasingly become vexatious complainers...... Which would be interesting come election time

[Newbelly]

We know a song about that

Our shed, a very very very nice shed, with two dogs in the yard, life used to be so hard.......

Does Simon have a shed in his garden as well? If so I am put in mind of a Monty Python sketch...

[NWNREADER]

Does Simon have a shed in his garden as well? If so I am put in mind of a Monty Python sketch...

But his name is Simon Kirby, not Arthur Jackson

[Cognosco]

I am not suggesting asking questions about the combat with Simon, I suggest asking questions about the matters Simon has raised, the decisions the Council has made, the policies (?) it is following.
That way they are being asked by more than one person and the matters really cannot be ignored. Either that or NTC voters will increasingly become vexatious complainers...... Which would be interesting come election time

Do you ever get a straight answer from councillors? The problem is they know they have no opposition in Newbury when it comes to election time, so really they do not care one iota what some people think of them - they rely on the bulk of the electorate who has had no dealings with them - to just cast their vote as usual for a blue rosette. The only difference this time will be the LibLiars will be out of the running so Blue councillors will have a clear run to the winning post. Unless Dave happens to get it really wrong of course or some other new party arrives on the scene to give the mainly disenfranchised majority in the country someone to vote for. Perhaps you could ask the relevant questions NWNREADER of the council for us and then post the replies for all to see as no one else can get anything sensible out of the council it would appear? Good Luck with that!

[Nothing Much]

Syd didn't have a bike - he only borrowed it.

Thanks Blackdog.I am obviously a front runner for "Ace Reporter" at NWN.

I know the song . I have the LP. I have Google. I know he walked to Cambridge ,& stayed.
I just didn't check the details.....(he says grovellingly).
ce.

[blackdog]

I know the song . I have the LP. I have Google. I know he walked to Cambridge ,& stayed.
I just didn't check the details.....(he says grovellingly).
ce.

It's one of those silly songs that I can't forget - and a unique album.

[NWNREADER]

Do you ever get a straight answer from councillors? The problem is they know they have no opposition in Newbury when it comes to election time, so really they do not care one iota what some people think of them - they rely on the bulk of the electorate who has had no dealings with them - to just cast their vote as usual for a blue rosette. The only difference this time will be the LibLiars will be out of the running so Blue councillors will have a clear run to the winning post. Unless Dave happens to get it really wrong of course or some other new party arrives on the scene to give the mainly disenfranchised majority in the country someone to vote for. Perhaps you could ask the relevant questions NWNREADER of the council for us and then post the replies for all to see as no one else can get anything sensible out of the council it would appear? Good Luck with that!

As I am not an NTC resident they would be perfectly entitled to ignore my questions. They are not accountable to me.

[Dodgys smarter b...]

Syd didn't have a bike - he only borrowed it.

Yes, and it had things to make it look good.

[Cognosco]

I would welcome that, though I share Cognosco's despair at getting a straight answer, but it is the only way to get some accountability.

There's the whole business of the rent increase: The latest court case from Southampton shows that 47% wasn't lawful when football pitches went up a few percent and bowling rent not at all. Whatever the true position on the fairness of the rent review term, the council need to revoke my eviction on these grounds alone.

There's the whole business of self-management: The Council need to discuss the possibility of saving £100k, just calling me names isn't any argument.

There's the whole business of NTC's lack of respect for fundamental rights of freedom of speach and freedom of association. Gagging clauses and calling awkward people vexatious is not on.

And then there's the whole question of the Council's accountability. The Council have chosen to behave badly and refused to be accountable for that behaviour.

I think we need the advice of a specailist solicitor for this as the council refuses to talk or explain to anybody even their own electorate? Have you consulted a Law Centre Simon? The nearest one is Swindon. As the council has, it would seem, breached you human rights then they may take up your case for you. Worth a try. Even if you have to pay you could make a public appeal for donations I am sure there are a lot of good people who would be willing to contribute towards the cost of bringing a rogue council to account.