The Liverpool Times

Another laptop computer was stolen from a credit union in Kirkby. This time, it was Northwood credit union and the laptop was taken in a burglary of Kirkby unemployed centre on Sunday.

The robbers prised open shutters, and took a chance that they could grab something before the police were alerted by the alarm.

In a previous article we reported on how another Kirkby credit union was robbed. On that occasion the scum also took a laptop.

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The brotherhood of peoples loses a brother

The streets of Istanbul were packed with crowds last Tuesday (Jan 23rd) as people escorted Hrant Dink’s coffin to the Kumkapi Armenian Church where his funeral service took place. Tens of thousands of people walked silently behind the coffin of the slain Turkish-Armenian journalist. Hrant spoke out on the ‘forgotten Holocaust’ which Turkish nationalists do not see as a Holocaust, despite the evidence.

The mourners held up candles, posters and photos of Hrant. The silence was interrupted with chants for “the brotherhood of peoples.” and others chants which stated defiantly to Hrants killers “We are all Armenians! We are all Hrant Dink!”

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You could not make it up.

Kelvin MacKenzie has had ample opportunity to explain himself for his editorial stance over Hillsborough. He has had a bully pulpit for every one of those years. He’s been in the Echo, Post and on all the local news channels, TV and radio stations. He has national and international coverage. We have local councils, who gag the poor and disempowered, giving a platform to a mans has mouthed off, in an open and notorious manner, for most of his adult life.

It makes no sense that the council should do such a thing or to even suggest it. It only makes sense if we prefix the ‘non’ before it.

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When the residents of Northwood Kirkby had concerns over the fumes from the Sonae factory they sought help from local Church men.

Back in 2001 there were genuine fears over the dust emissions caking the windows of properties in a wide area around the factory on the Kirkby Industrial Estate.

It is not ,and has never been, in Knowsley as the owners and the Council proudly boast. More is the pity as the professional groups who live in Knowsley Village would probably responded to the pollution problems with something far different than desperate appeals to Churchmen.

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As reported in the Liverpool Echo recently, another website has faced legal threats with a blog,
called Speke Action being the latest target of bullying threats by the authorities.

We wish the people concerned all the best of luck and see no reason why they should be accused of defaming people who defame themselves.

As with the Kirkby Times and Liverpool Times version of ‘what really happened’, the people of Speke have also gone along with the theory that their local funds are being misused and jobs handed out to anyone from some councillors fancy bit on the side to their mates and family.

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Sonae want to make Chimney Bigger

Sonae in new stupid idea, they want to make the chimney bigger.

Article published, Dec 12 2002, republished in full.
Steve Gallagher, Knowsley Council Chief executive appeared on the Roger Phillips BBC Talk Show today on Dec 12th. (2002) He tried embarrassingly to defend the Sonae Factory in Kirkby which has absolutely NO support from the community here.

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Illegal article No 1

Originally published back in February of 2003, then taken down in 2005 after photocopied print outs of the article, with yellow marker, was sent to The Kirkby Times editor with threats to issue legal proceedings with immediate effect. Bully tactics. Tactics used by the rich and powerful on the poor and powerless. We know them well!

Sonae wanted two articles taken off, but here they are again. We republish the material not as some petty middle finger up to the polluters of Sonae, but for the people of Kirkby, the majority of whom do not want Sonae here, never wanted it here and have never, ever, condemned The Kirkby Times for publishing what was the opinion of the local people.

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The Sonae material which got us banned will be up in due course, after some tweaking.

In the meantime, local websites have been falling over themselves to ‘have a go’, seeing rightly that, although local issues are out of fashion, and the words ‘working class’ are barely reported on the BBC these days, it is , as it always is, the working class issues which come back to us. It is the poor and powerless who are getting the boot put into us in the UK by the rich and powerful.

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Build up to capital of culture 2008 continues

Arsonists have damaged hundreds of pounds of equipment at the St. Mary’s & St. Paul’s Children’s Centre in Bryer Road, Prescot.

The Centre, which is managed by ‘Local Solutions’, will now be closed until the damage is assessed, forensics carried out and the place cleaned up. Needless to say, this will prevent local people attending activities including training courses, family support and various ‘out of school’ activities. The kids, will be heartbroken, but your average scally will likely as not have a good laugh at that one.

The incident which happened on Sunday 14th January 2007 was reported to the emergency services by a parent of one of the children at the nursery. Thankfully due to their quick response the damage was contained however vital play equipment has been lost in the fire.

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A leaflet was recently delivered around Kirkby which states….

“This area of Knowsley is currently suffering from an increase in the number of burglary offences”

It’s actually Kirkby, as the name on Kirkby police station still testifies. Right next to the police station used to be a local magistrate and juvenile court. Kirkby Magistrates court.

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Amid scenes more reminiscent in Hitler’s Germany, Knowsley Council, in an orgy of self praise have set up a road show to tell the people of Kirkby how lucky they are.

Treating the people as if they were living in mud huts, the Council boasted of the investment and jobs they are responsible for bringing in. In 1970, - before Knowsley - 25,000 people worked on the Kirkby Industrial Estate. So people actually did have jobs before the de- industrialisation of the 70s 80s.

It is entirely probable that many Kirkby companies have benefited from the regeneration train that’s been rolling since 1990. Objective One Money has proved so popular that it has now run out. All this is taxpayers money that’s been redistributed by both Tory and new labour since Thatcher was ousted in 1989.

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Just like Ye Olde Days!

The latest themes for The Liverpool Times can be found by changing the themes in the side menu. One is a simple adaptation of the WordPress ‘Classic theme’, with a slight ‘fix’ to an issue which many users have pointed out. The theme also has a fixed width unlike the WordPress Classic original which is flexible and stretches to fill a screen.

That first new theme is called Scouse Classic. It is very easy to read, so swap over if you feel the current look of the website is hard to read. For those interested, that theme is an adaptation of WordPress classic, with a ‘fix’ to the footer problem and its a fixed width, not flexible.

The other theme is called Ye Olde Scouse Classic. This is our most original theme yet. You won’t believe it’s the same website, but it is!

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Meet the new boss, same as the old boss?

If the pundits are to be believed Gordon Brown will be the next Prime Minister. His recent speeches set out a different approach, no sleaze, decency, etc etc.

We could be forgiven to think this new broom will sweep away the totalitarian society new labour has dragged us all into

Though wait a minute. Is this the same Gordon Brown who has had a strangle hold on government spending since 1997 ? The same man who has voted for the six violent wars new labour have pursued since 1997 ?

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A nice story, for nice people.

A wealthy Liverpool man and his only son loved to collect rare antiques, in particular paintings and old prints. They had built up a collection considered priceless and were known far and wide for their love of art. They would often sit and admire the art together, and had spent many happy hours in auction houses and antique shows bidding on this piece or that.

One day, the son passed by the Liverpool waterfront and saw a crowd gathered in state of panic. A young man had fallen into water, but the waves were crashing up so high that no-one had the courage to dive in. The son, being young and a fairly practised swimmer, decided to try to rescue the unfortunate man. He was swept underneath and drowned, but not before saving the young man who had apparently fallen into the water in some accident or other.

The father was notified by the police and identified his son lying in the morgue. As you might imagine, he grieved deeply for his only son.

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Special update to News Ltd

The Kirkby Times republished part of a book called News Ltd, written by Brian Whittaker. The book is very informative and tells the story of Liverpools free press which was kind of like the internet on paper. The book has a chapter which is published on The Kirkby Times and it details the arrest of the then Kirkby council leader, a notorious thief that went by the name of David Tempest. A man whose name is still honoured, inscribed on a brass plaque in the foyer of the Kirkby Civic Building.

Tempest was rudely awakened from his sleep one morning in 1977 by the local police who were not there to get his autograph or join the local labour party. Tempest was arrested along with a contractor called Leatherbarrow and Eric Spencer Stephenson, head of the councils architects department. Between them, they managed to drain cash from a poor working class community that really was struggling in some appalling conditions.

Then as now, property deals are carried out without public auctions and contracts in the building game are won by mere virtue of who you know. Old labour corruption is alive and well today.

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Hillsborough, racism, civil rights, and boycotting the Sun

As reported in a recent article, Liverpool FC fans held a ‘Justice Day’ during the game against Arsenal. The chants for Justice and the banners and flags were a sight to behold, and the message was, in part, a response to the growing pace of the ‘black propaganda’ which will certainly increase as the 20th anniversary of that day of infamy is upon us.

Fans arriving at Anfield were mostly not privy to the demonstration taking place. You might think Liverpool FC could have informed them, via the match programme that many of the fans buy and read before the game. Liverpool FC, as some of the bereaved Hillsborough families have stated, do not do enough as regards the issue of Hillsborough.

The match programme for the Liverpool versus Arsenal match on the 06th January 2007 certainly had enough room in there to explain why Liverpool FC fans were set against Rupert Murdoch.

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