In todays news...

[Count Steer]

Interesting how they are blaming whistleblowers, maybe they should blame the CPS for rigging evidence.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c05j4dng9q0t

Lady Justice Thirlwall tells the hearing that since the Court of Appeal judgment rejecting Letby’s appeal was handed down, there has been a “huge outpouring of comment” from some quarters about the validity of her convictions.

Lady Thirlwall says this has come, as far as she is aware, almost entirely from people who did not attend the trial.

She says that “noise” has caused “enormous additional distress” to the parents of those babies.

The inquiry seems to be making assumptions and dismissing experts before it begins.

I have no idea whether Letby is actually guilty or innocent but a fair few people who sat through the trial and appeal are adamant that there was not one bit of physical evidence that she killed anyone. She was convicted on purely circumstantial evidence and to get 15 life sentences is a bit worrying.

It is also mooted that her defence was inadequate which should be grounds for appeal. Let's face it, it's not as if the UK justice system has always been just.

*Edit* 15 whole life sentences

Letby's conviction is outside the scope of the inquiry though. It assumes the conviction is safe and only looks at how the deaths had been allowed to happen and who is culpable for letting it happen, what systems had failed etc. (Which is why Lady Thirwall was doing a bit of pitch rolling and expectation management).

[Mr. Dazzle]

I do hope they truth prevails.

Of course, if she is innocent....someone else killed all them babies, or there were quite a few failings at the Hospital in question, so you'd probably want to find out.

[Yambo]

I do hope they truth prevails.

Of course, if she is innocent....someone else killed all them babies, or there were quite a few failings at the Hospital in question, so you'd probably want to find out.

As I understand it, quite a few more babies died than the 7 Letby was accused of killing. There were possibly quite a few failings at the hospital but again, I have no idea how many babies died or what the going rate is across hospitals in the UK for comparison. Likewise, how many babies have died since Letby was arrested or taken off that position?

[Screwdriver]

My understanding is after this unusually high death rate was discovered she was tasked by a psychiatrist/grief counsellor to write a cathartic note in response to those deaths. In that note she appeared to admit culpability, "It was my fault", "I killed them", "I hate myself" etc.

She was subsequently arrested and charged. That note was then submitted to the jury without telling them how, why or when it was written. They would have assumed it was a letter freely admitting guilt.

Seems a bit odd if that was true, especially if the jury did not know the provenance of that "confession".

[Horse]

[quote="Mr. Dazzle" post_id=328

As I understand it, quite a few more babies died than the 7 Letby was accused of killing.

Harold Shipman was estimated to have killed 284 patients, but was convicted for 15.

[JamJar]

My understanding is after this unusually high death rate was discovered she was tasked by a psychiatrist/grief counsellor to write a cathartic note in response to those deaths. In that note she appeared to admit culpability, "It was my fault", "I killed them", "I hate myself" etc.

She was subsequently arrested and charged. That note was then submitted to the jury without telling them how, why or when it was written. They would have assumed it was a letter freely admitting guilt.

Seems a bit odd if that was true, especially if the jury did not know the provenance of that "confession".

She wrote it in her diary and I doubt very much she was told to write that it was here fault. Having said that, I have no idea whether she is guilty or not as I don’t have access to all the evidence for or against.

[David]

Seems a bit odd if that was true, especially if the jury did not know the provenance of that "confession".

She wrote it in her diary and I doubt very much she was told to write that it was here fault. Having said that, I have no idea whether she is guilty or not as I don’t have access to all the evidence for or against.
[/quote]



HEY....we will have none of that balanced opinion here, thank you......

[Screwdriver]

No, I think they were in fact "scribblings on a post-it note". Here they are from a reputable source:





First few seconds tells the story, rest of the video really does make you wonder if justice was served or if a scapegoat was blamed for institutional failings.

[Mussels]

[quote="Mr. Dazzle" post_id=328

As I understand it, quite a few more babies died than the 7 Letby was accused of killing.

Harold Shipman was estimated to have killed 284 patients, but was convicted for 15.

The problem here is Letby couldn't have killed the other babies but the CPS left them off the chart so it looked like she was there for all or most of the deaths.
She might well have done it but statistics should never be evidence, especially ones so biased that they wouldn't even be allowed in adverts.

[Saga Lout]

...

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, Margaret Thatcher, Noam Chomsky, David Attenborough, Frank Lloyd Wright. Old age is no indication of ability. It is entirely down to the individual.

...

I don't think Maggie belongs on that list, even if she was one of the best Prime Ministers we've ever had. Head and shoulders above recent incumbents.

Thatcher's daughter Carol first revealed that her mother had dementia in 2005, saying "Mum doesn't read much any more because of her memory loss". In her 2008 memoir, Carol wrote that her mother "could hardly remember the beginning of a sentence by the time she got to the end".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_ ... Later_life

[Screwdriver]

...

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, Margaret Thatcher, Noam Chomsky, David Attenborough, Frank Lloyd Wright. Old age is no indication of ability. It is entirely down to the individual.

...

I don't think Maggie belongs on that list, even if she was one of the best Prime Ministers we've ever had. Head and shoulders above recent incumbents.

Thatcher's daughter Carol first revealed that her mother had dementia in 2005, saying "Mum doesn't read much any more because of her memory loss". In her 2008 memoir, Carol wrote that her mother "could hardly remember the beginning of a sentence by the time she got to the end".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_ ... Later_life

I was just winging it with a list of world leaders and great thinkers who were still immensely capable into their 70's. I guessed at their approximate ages (hovering around 70) and Thatcher just makes my list being PM in her 60's before joining the House of lords in her 70's i.e. a period around 1985 -1995.

Nobody lasts forever and sadly of course as you say, she did succumb to dementia in her 80's.

It is a surprisingly common way to go. According to the ONS, about 12.5% of us will die from Alzheimers/dementia (inc, comorbidities) with peak rates occurring around 85-90 years of age...

[ZRX61]

I guess none of this happened because it was reported by CCD....

https://climatechangedispatch.com/heat- ... en-energy/

and every news outlet in the State that reported the same thing are all lying?

[Screwdriver]

I guess none of this happened because it was reported by CCD....

https://climatechangedispatch.com/heat- ... en-energy/

and every news outlet in the State that reported the same thing are all lying?

What makes you say that??

[Count Steer]

I guess none of this happened because it was reported by CCD....

https://climatechangedispatch.com/heat- ... en-energy/

and every news outlet in the State that reported the same thing are all lying?

They must be 'going green' in Texas too.

'Number of major blackouts by select state in the United States 2000-2023. Between 2000 and 2023, Texas was the leading U.S. state for major power outages, with almost 264 blackouts in the 23-year period. California followed, with 238 major power outages throughout the period under consideration'.

Maybe yer infrastructure's just crap and can't cope due to under-investment and profit squeezing utilities?

[MyLittleStudPony]

The Unions (TUC and UNITE) have turned on Starmer and I think there is a bit of back bench rebellion over his winter fuel payment cut. Lets see how he responds...

Robustly it turns out.

The toxics will be taxed. Which seems fair to the young.

[Taipan]

The Unions (TUC and UNITE) have turned on Starmer and I think there is a bit of back bench rebellion over his winter fuel payment cut. Lets see how he responds...

Robustly it turns out.

The toxics will be taxed. Which seems fair to the young.

And hit the whinging young too. Tax breaks only for the property owning army of boomers, the cornerstone of every society!

[Mr. Dazzle]

I guess none of this happened because it was reported by CCD....

"Our goal is not to change your mind but to share with you all the studies and papers that consistently contradict the theory of CO2-driven global warming. And to have a little fun when we can".

You can tell that's true because they're posting articles about electricity infrastructure failing and policy decisions. Go with the science

[Mr Moofo]

The Unions (TUC and UNITE) have turned on Starmer and I think there is a bit of back bench rebellion over his winter fuel payment cut. Lets see how he responds...

Robustly it turns out.

The toxics will be taxed. Which seems fair to the young.

MAybe they could turn their attaention to the idle, anxiety ridden young, who's uneployment is rocketing. Wonder who will pay for the NHS, mental health support, train drivers , public sector workers and their pensions?

[MyLittleStudPony]

The Unions (TUC and UNITE) have turned on Starmer and I think there is a bit of back bench rebellion over his winter fuel payment cut. Lets see how he responds...

Robustly it turns out.

The toxics will be taxed. Which seems fair to the young.

MAybe they could turn their attaention to the idle, anxiety ridden young, who's uneployment is rocketing. Wonder who will pay for the NHS, mental health support, train drivers , public sector workers and their pensions?

Certainly not the old. It's down to the young to pay for all those things now. And support the grasping old racists who took what they could and left a broken and socially rotten planet for future generations to sort out.

It's neither here nor there for me; I am middle aged. But I do feel sorry for the young. At least the tide may be turning in their favour to some degree.

[Cousin Jack]

The tide IS turning. For way to long the UK has overpaid itself in benefits (including Pension Credit and Winter Fuel). The next 5 years will need to be hard, if they aren't, and the bleeding heart brigade get their way, the following decades will be absolutely brutal.

I was taught, and I taught my daughter, to save for the future, and only borrow as much as you can deal with in Plan B. Most people seem to assume that they can live for today, and if it all goes tits up the state will provide.