The Collar. It's meaning & Ceremonies

Family left without heat for nine weeks

By Linda Fort

February 07, 2013 (SOURCE)

A mother-of-six was left without hot water and proper heating for nearly nine weeks after the council “lost her paperwork”.

 Through the bitter cold and snowy winter weeks with sub-zero temperatures, Kelly Hughes, 30, of Heroes Walk in Whitley, and her family huddled round two electric heaters and showered at the homes of relatives since the first week in December.

 Mrs Hughes said her gas boiler started to play up in her Reading Borough Council-owned house late last year. The council sent out an engineer to fix it, it failed again and another engineer came out and fixed it again.

 It finally gave out in the first week of December and Mrs Hughes was told it needed a new part.

 The council gave her two electric heaters and her wait for the repair began.

 The weather turned bitterly cold and the snow started to fall.

 She said: “The house was really cold. We used one heater in the living room and moved the other one between the children’s bedrooms. We didn’t have any hot water for nine weeks either.”

 Mrs Hughes’s children – aged two to 14 – had to go off to family and friends to shower. “I bathed the little one in the house, warming up pans of water, but we couldn’t all do that,” she said.

 She said so long without proper heating had made the house bitterly cold and there was mould growing on walls in the coldest corners.

 She said: “I rang the council almost every day to try to find out what was happening. At one point they said they had lost my paperwork.”

 Finally, at the beginning of last week, a contractor came out to look at the boiler – and condemned it.

 She said: “It was obvious they should have done that at the beginning of December.”

 On Thursday last week, Mrs Hughes had high hopes someone would actually come out the following day to replace her boiler and in fact her boiler was in the end replaced on Friday.

 She said: “I think it is a disgrace. I don’t like complaining, but I just didn’t know what else to do.

 “It didn’t look as though they were going to do anything until my dad threatened to speak to the newspaper.”

 Reading Borough Council spokesman Oscar Mortali said: “We are sorry for the obvious inconvenience caused to Ms Hughes and her family for the delay in dealing with this problem and understand that the length of time this has taken to resolve is not acceptable.

 “A new boiler was fitted on Friday last week and Ms Hughes will be offered compensation for the use of electricity and for the obvious inconvenience.

 “The delay relates to a problem reported in December.

 “An engineer visited the next day, advised new parts were needed and we supplied Ms Hughes with temporary heaters while we waited for those parts to arrive.

 “However an administrative error meant the parts did not arrive until late January and it was then found a entirely new boiler was required.

 “This was fitted as a matter of urgency on Friday last week.”

Here are SOME of the comments from the public:

This is a story I read in my local newspaper. The story itself isn't noteworthy but the comments and reactions from some readers made me angry. the appalling attitude and opinions of some people are offensive to me. the media has done a good job demonising anyone claiming 'Benefits', giving people a scapegoat, allowing society opportunity to kick those whom they think are 'the cheats, low-lives, scroungers who consume our taxes. 

(Please view pie-chart taken from government welfare site AND it is BEFORE the cuts)

The reality is far from that described by the media. If you breakdown welfare spending into sections, it is clear that the Governments top expenditure  (36%) is pensions!! Even if you added up Council tax benefit, Housing benefit,Disability Benefit, Employment & support, Income support and job seekers, it still amounts to less than the State pension and pensioner benefits.

What's next people, we start picking on the pensioners as scrounger because they didn't invest in private pensions???

The Party for People Who Hate People

Here is an article I discovered on Huffington....... It matches up with a slightly modified well known poem I posed on my FB some time ago.... (Below article). 

Lets blame the downfall of society & the economy on everyone except ourselves...oh wait, I can't say that because I'm not a Conservative party supporter.

The fat, thin, elderly, young, weak, poor, sick, those with or without pets and anyone who reads anything, particularly facts, are the "root of all problems", said someone in Parliament somewhere today. The government announced that these would be the targets of their new policies to lower the debt or perhaps deficit - depending on which week it is and what they said last time - for 2013.

 According to a party spokesperson there are two major factors for this fresh, new stance. Firstly they are taking into consideration that absolutely none of their plans to kick-start the economy have worked so far and they have no other ideas. Secondly they've looked at the way that countries such as Iceland and now even the US are gradually clawing their way back into the international market, and have decided to ignore their tactics as that would be too sensible and no way as fun as "just killing off the population".

 Obese people are the first to be targeted because, as the Health Secretary said "they are easy targets on account of there being more to fire at. Harder to miss you see? Why can't I just shoot them? Who makes these bloody laws anyway?"

 Anyone whose BMI scale is higher than that of any of the athletes who won gold shiny things at the Olympics, will be forced to go to the gym or have their benefits cut. The hope is that without benefits these 'money gulpers' will have less money to be able to afford to eat decent and healthy food, therefore increasing their size rapidly and dying of heart attacks before the welfare system has to deal with their ungrateful selves.

 The think tank study into this suggests that their "whale-like carcasses can be used to burn as fuel for our fancy cars and jet planes or to create more soylent green than the average impoverished orphan. This could then feed several impoverished orphans at once so they can work in factories longer." Next up are the elderly who the government suggest that it's best to just "freeze back into work". The Department of Health, working alongside the Department of Work and Pensions on this area of debt reduction say that by taking away winter fuel allowance elderly people will be more inclined to go out and work in order to stay warm via movement and heaters in the workplace.

 "Should all go to plan", said another spokesperson to the one earlier, "their homes will be too cold to return to, and they'll have to stay at work all night. Then we can repossess their flats and house and sell them to millionaires to keep those whacking great truffles in". Calling it the 'Work To Live, Until You Die As You Haven't Long Left' scheme, or WTLUYDAYHLL for short, it's hoped that this will save the government tens of pounds. Ultimately this'll mean they can definitely continue to ignore any tax not coming in from huge companies that take them to lunch, as they really do like lunch.

 All this should ensure that taxpayers money is not spent on those who "suck the life out of the tax system like poverty tramp leeches, disgusting, disgusting poor people. Urgh, urgh I feel sick thinking about them" and rather on increasing minister's salaries along a higher rate than the 121% increase they've had in the last five years. The Secretary For Work and Pensions aims to change his job title to Lord of The Strong, Damner Of The Weak and Pathetic to highlight exactly what he has to deal with. He said: "I just don't understand why these people feel they should have anything ever. We've taken away lots of jobs and now they are complaining they can't get jobs. Well, I think it's as though they aren't even trying to get the jobs that we've made sure aren't there. And if they aren't trying, then why on earth should they be allowed to eat, or stay warm, or get around or just generally not die?" 

Changing their slogan to 'The Party for People Who Hate People Who Aren't Their Friends' they are hoping this new 'honest' face will increase votes in 2015. Or at least kill off anyone who might vote against them. Over the next six months its rumoured all houses without working chimneys will have them restored so children can sweep them for sixpence and 'stop trying to learn anything, the bloody skivers' while plans to use disabled people as speed bumps in roads are still being discussed.

 The PM stated: "Look we can't just splash money on an Olympics and Jubilee every year so we've just given up trying to pretend we think you deserve to be even remotely happy. Unless someone comes up with a better idea you'll just have to knuckle down and accept 2013 is going to be crap for everyone that is too lazy to afford to go on a skiing holiday."

First they came for the communists,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.

Then they came for the socialists,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for those on welfare,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't on welfare.

Then they came for the public sector workers,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a public sector worker.

Then they came for the pensioners,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a pensioner.

Then they came for the asylum seekers,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't an asylum seeker.

Then they came for the foreign passport holders,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a foreign passport holder.

Then they came for those not British born,

and I didn't speak out because I was British.

Then they came for me,

and there was no one left to speak for me.

Leadership in political parties.

http://itsjustahobby.wordpress.com/2013/02/25/authority-and-politics/

In which Carter muses aloud about the nature of leadership in political parties.  The exposure of the ugly rumours about Charles Rennard is following the typical narrative arc of such a story. First we had the splashy exclusives in the paper that made the scoop.

To counterpose those we had the carefuly worded denial from Rennard’s lawyers. Suddenly, as if the story was no longer about the truth, or Rennard’s guilt or innocence, or, heaven forbid, the victims, we had to focus shift onto Vince Cable’s denial that anyone knew anything, and Nick Clegg’s  careful admission that yes, he knew something five years ago.  More will follow. That’s almost a certainty. Not just about Charles Rennard though.  One of the most noticeable trends in politics is the way in which scandals follow the loss of authority, rather than preceding it.

The MP’s expenses scandal followed a collapse in moral authority throughout the political class, rather than preceding it. However, scandals within a party almost always follow either  a loss of leadership and authority, or a loss of a sense of purpose.  That the Liberal Democrats have been assailed by such a loss of a sense of purpose is probably not as clear now as it will be after the 2015 general election, but the key question is, ‘What are the Liberal Democrats for?’  It seems like an obvious question, but it’s not. In a binary system, in the UK with two major parties, the LibDems provided a way of not voting for either major party, a kind of refuge from the polarities of Labour and Conservative. That unique selling point was of course undermined by the formal coalition agreement of 2010. Not by the act of entering into coalition – that will have seemed like a good thing to many moderates, but the signing of an explicit coalition agreement was a signal of alignment that will have made many moderates dubious about the degree of ideological commitment involved.  Here’s a secret you probably already knew dear reader. Political parties are full of flawed, compromised politicians who are just one headline away from the end of their careers.

Now, Stavvers wrote brilliantly here about how to avoid sex scandals. Since so many politicians eschew that method they’re always on the brink of exposure.  Except…. Except there’s a kind of devil’s pact between the media and the politicians. While a party or politician possesses authority, the press will ignore stories they know about. It’s no different to the way in which Jimmy Saville was able to deploy his fame as a shield against accusations.  

There’s a second devil’s pact though. The media are far closer to politicians than they care to admit. Journalists have their secrets, their fears and their insecurities. Journalists know that, in a world where there’s too little money and too little time to develop stories properly, they’re dependent on the benevolent stream of stories from politicians and their press officers.  Except when authority declines, and they sense that the stream of stories is going to end sooner or later anyway.

Then, suddenly, it becomes open season on a politician or a party. That is the fear for the LibDems now, that for the next two years it becomes open season on them.  There’s an intra party devil’s pact too. Within the party everyone knows that all heroes have feet of clay. Authority is loaned by the party membership and supporters to the leadership, to enable them to deliver on their ambitions and hopes. As soon as the ambitions and hopes diminish, or become unattainable, the loan of authority is recalled, and the party becomes an ungovernable infighting mass.  

For the women members of the LibDems who have told their stories about Charles Rennard, that recall of authority in the face of diminished hopes and abandoned ambitions has begun.

BDSM Forced Feminization - a Guide for Female Dominants and Male Submissives

DEVIANT ART

In the world of female dominance, one of the most prevalent methods of subduing a man is the forced feminization of a strong, decidedly male man. The interesting thing is that this seems to be a prevalent fantasy amongst male submissives. They need this when they are submitting to a female dominant. What does this entail though and what makes it even more effective?

Forced feminization starts with the changing of a male name into a female name like Patrick into Patricia or creating a new name that has nothing in common with the submissive's current name. The male submissive is also referred to as a "little girl", "slut" or "whore". The male genitals are often renamed as well to make them seem female e.g. little patsy or something like that. Sometimes the genitals are bound to hide it and make the male seem even more female. Chastity also plays a large role in making sure that the male forgets that he is the dominant person and that his sexual needs are more important than the woman's needs. He becomes painfully aware that his male genitals now mean nothing as he has become a sissy and something to be used and made fun of by superior women or men. Once again, this is consensual and these men want and need to be treated this way.

 To add to the effect of a sissy, the male is also dressed in high heels, lacy underwear and uniforms universally used by male dominants when they role-play with fem submissives. These would include little girl dresses, cheerleader outfits, French maid uniforms and lingerie only. The idea is to make the male look like a woman. He will be forced to shave and will often be reminded of his place with spankings or canings while dressed this way. Remember that this is not a crossdresser - this man is forced to wear these clothes, even if he would never choose to wear it himself.

 The male sissy will also be expected to perform tasks that are traditionally female like household chores, cooking, serving his Mistress or dominant in every way like bathing her, doing her manicures and pedicures and serving her sexually with her using a strap on. This does not mean that the man is bisexual either. Keep in mind that this form of play is based on humiliation and debasement and since most submissives who need this form of play are male, this type of humiliation works well to keep them under a dominant's control.

 The male sissy will often be as exposed as a female submissive, perhaps more so and will be the subject of conversations on how pathetic he is or how unattractive some part of his body is. Women like to dominate men in this way. Maybe it is because of being treated like this for so long by men and now getting the chance to reverse the roles. Whatever the reason, it is a highly erotic form of domination that gives a lot of pleasure to both the female dominant and the male submissive.

 Forced feminization can however become more permanent though when a man consents to changing his gender and I would consider this edge play. It takes a deeply committed relationship to get to this point. I also think that this process should not be undertaken at all, but then I have stated that my kink is not the same as others' kink and that we all need to respect that. If the male felt trapped in a male body and always identified as a female, then I see no reason why this extreme could not work, but in all other cases I would really think about it about a thousand times before demanding it of a male who does not identify as a woman full time.

COURTESY OF BDSM 101

BDSM in the mainstream and abuse.

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Exam­ples of slave humil­i­a­tion training:

• Act as objects (furniture, ashtray, footstool, art, etc.)
• Address Dom’s as Sir, Ma’am, etc. — I don’t consider this slave training humiliation only good slave behaviour
• After sex, making sub lick off own cum
• Age play
• Anal plugs under clothing — for some slave’s this is effective slave train­ing humiliation for others it is just fun or feels good.
• Ask for drink, food, cigarettes, etc. — this is natural
• Bathroom use control — this is natural
• Blindfolds — by itself I don’t consider it slave training humiliation
• Bondage that exposes body and/or places in odd positions
• Boot worship at odd moments — this can be effective slave training humiliation if used in public
• Caged in private and alone
• Carrying a doll or toy around — can be effective slave train­ing humiliation in public
• Crawl on all 4s
• Cum or urinate into their food — effec­tive humiliation for many
• Curse words (Whore, Slut, Worthless, etc.)
• Dancing/stripped tease
• Displayed in cage
• Eat from a pet dish
• Eat from floor
• Eat without utensils
• Ear­rings that don’t match
• Enema
• Eye contact restrictions
• Feed submissive from hand
• Foot worship
• Forced nudity
• Forced masturbation where MIstress chooses in public places
• Forced shopping for BDSM toys
• Forced slave auction
• Forced to go to bathroom in front of others
• Gaging
• Golden shower
• Inspection of body cavities in private / public
• Ignoring slave
• Handcuffs in public
• Handcuffed to a shopping cart while shopping
• Harem–serving with others
• Having food chosen for him
• Hav­ing cloth­ing cho­sen for him
• Hold ping pong ball or coin against wall with nose
• Hood
• Human Garbage Can
• Immobilization
• Lead on leash
• Leave bathroom door opened
• Leave note with embarrassing instructions
• Made to urinate in front of others
• Maid services
• Make sub wear underwear that you’ve urinated on
• Mask
• Nipple clamps under see thru top
• Orgasm control and/or denial
• Pet roles (act like a dog, cat, etc.)
• Presenting in private and public
• Send shopping with note and hand it to clerk
• Serve others (supervised or unsupervised)
• Shave head
• Shave pubic hair
• Slap face
• slave positions (kneel, stand, etc.)
• Spanking (public)
• Speech restriction
• Stand in corner
• Swallow urine
• Suck dildo in car, so others can see
• Take pictures or videos
• Tattoos (temporary)
• Verbal abuse
• Wear cat collar with bell on ankle in public
• Wear diapers
• Wear Masters cum on your face without wiping
• Wear no bra under see thru top
• Wear no panties under see thru clothes
• Wear collar everywhere
• Wear clothes that are ripped or mismatched.
• Wear a sign around neck or write on body (slut, slave, etc.)
• Undress in front of others
• Use as ashtray