Thanks for the invite, Mr Cameron

In a news article David Cameron urged the general public to celebrate the Royal Wedding on the 29th April:

"My message to everyone who wants to have a street party is: I'm having one and I want you to go ahead and have one too.
"The truth is that this is a great chance for communities to come together and celebrate.
"So go on - bring out the bunting and let's make this a day to remember. For everyone."

Really good of him to spend the money of the population in advance like this. Quite a few angry voices on facebook and twitter already commenting on this. I especially liked Essex Boy's tweet:

All invited to No 10 street party great idea

and one reply:

Why not all drive [to] Downing St [and] clog city pi** Cameron off!

This kind of pronouncement from Cameron confirms my prejudice that the Royal Wedding is providing a wonderful smoke screen for all the ills of the country and turning the 'lower orders' thoughts away from the terrible cuts that the Coalition Government are inflicting on them. Surely we are not going to be taken in by this?

Supermarkets - without an eye on profits and simply out of the kindness of their hearts - are selling all sorts of tat to make sure the street parties go with a swing so if you fancy eating your spam sandwiches off a Union Jack plate rush on down to your nearest sales point before they sell out.

In a facebook discussion, it was pointed out that 28th April, the day before the Royal Wedding, is Workers Memorial Day which, to quote the website:

The purpose behind Workers' Memorial Day has always been to "remember the dead: fight for the living" and unions are asked to focus on both areas, by considering events or memorial to remember all those killed through work but at the same time ensuring that such tragedies are not repeated. That can best be done by building trade union organisation, and campaigning for stricter enforcement with higher penalties for breaches of health & safety laws.

Workers Memorial Day is commemorated throughout the world and is officially recognised by the UK Government.

This year the Union movement will also be reflecting on the effect the cuts 'in HSE and local authority resources, and the lack of inspection and enforcement activity will have on working people.'

Please click on the website link and find out if your union will have any events near to you. And if not please light a candle at 5.30pm in memory too.

And yes do lets have another great big street party in London to celebrate US. Actually we had a rather good one on 26th March when 500,000 of us marched to Hyde Park. I took our own sandwiches which Other Half and I sat and ate with a couple of Unite union members from Norfolk with whom we had palled up. We all had a good time and it was all very friendly and happy, lots of our friends were there but the crowds were so big and peaceful that we couldn't find one and another.

Of course you may not have heard about this because the newspapers and media didn't report an awful lot about this, concentrating instead on some yobs who did damage in Regent Street who oddly enough didn't get arrested whilst 145 peaceful protestors from UKuncut in Fortnum and Mason did. To offer support to those peaceful protestors please follow the link.

The photograph? Well it shows celebrations in the early 1930s of some of my family [including the original Elizannie] at the wedding of one of them. It is in the part of Essex now included in a London borough and although no-one had a lot of money, all clubbed together to make the dresses, 'do' the flowers and catering and the street provided part of the arena for the celebrations. Working people have always known how to have fun!

Dedicated to Lyn Costello and all her friends and all who do the excellent work at MAMAA