The Covid Prison
England is now a vast concentration camp
I am not a number, I am a free man
There is an insidious cloud hanging over England, a pernicious prison created by our own government’s spineless belief in a bunch of discredited scientists and health officials. This has been a year-and-a-half of chaos for the British People extended to August the 14th by inexplicable ‘test-and-trace’ and self-isolation rules. It’s all been a total waste of time and treasure.
Theoretically I am free to go almost anywhere in the UK and most of Europe, but should I find myself anywhere near anyone who has tested positive for the coronavirus then I will be required by the government to go into strict self-quarantine for 10 or 14 days ~ despite the fact that I have been vaccinated and more than likely would never test positive for the coronavirus. And, because of the £37 billion thrown away on the pointless ‘test and trace’ system this grossly inept government will make damn certain that I follow it’s stupid covid laws, regulations, and rules.
Let me give you an example of how insane this all is. All of France is now off-limits to we English because there has been an ‘outbreak’ of the coronavirus on Reunion Island, which is a tiny scrap of land, in the middle of the Indian Ocean, 6,000 miles from Paris. The population of the island is some 860,000, of which some 3,000 have tested positive for the virus. It’s lunatic madness.
If I go into a bar or restaurant here I am supposed to scan my smartphone so that if anyone connected with the place tests positive for the virus, then the government can tell me to self-isolate. I can’t sensibly book a flight to anywhere because it could be cancelled at short notice, and anywhere I go might be put onto the no-go list at the drop of a hat.
Last week the government here told 1,500,000 people that they must self-isolate. No wonder Boris Johnson is pushing to be the most unpopular Prime Minister ever.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
It looks like I will not be visiting my American friend any time soon
Tunes on Tuesday ~ England Swings
if you can remember the swinging sixties
you were never there
Now that England has finally seen the back of, (most of), the stupid coronavirus restrictions, the country is getting back to normal again. England isn’t quite swinging, but I still think this Roger Miller song is appropriate for the mood of the day
Of course some of us are old enough to remember the swinging sixties, when both skirts and cars were tiny minis.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
real mini coopers
very swinging sixties
Songs on Saturday ~ Beep Beep Beep
the fastest accelerating road car in the word is smaller than an old Nash Rambler
It’s a Caterham 7, and for a while I had one of those. These days I have a tiny little Citroen C1, and it is fast enough to keep up with much larger and more powerful cars, especially around town and on English country roads where a Cadillac would be nothing more than an over-large embarrassment.
I think this song by The Playmates is pretty funny.
My little Citroen’s horn really does go Beep Beep Beep.
Which is not quite as funny as the Californian lady on my sat nav, who cannot pronounce English place names at all, and calls a roundabout a roadary…..
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
much smaller than a Nash Rambler
Songs on Saturday ~ Rich Girl
a girl might be born rich
but nobody is born being a bitch
This song is for a very close friend, and she is rich in so very many ways. I like Hall & Oats a lot.
Just because she’s a rich girl doesn’t mean that she pays for dinner.
But she does drive a very cool car.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
not necessarily the cool car she’s driving now
Tunes on Tuesday ~ Bullitt
San Francisco is 50 square miles surrounded by reality
From the Steve McQueen movie, the best car chase scene ever, perhaps. I learned the streets of San Francisco from this film, such that I can walk all around the city without a map. Not bad for an ordinary Englishman.
Certainly a great advertisement for visiting San Francisco.
Steve McQueen did a lot of his own driving in the movie.
At lest one 1968 Highland Green Mustang GT 390 Fastback still exists as does at least one Dodge Charger, (how many of each were originally built, ( 2 or 3), and how many still exist is shrouded in mystery).
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
classic movie, classic car
Tunes on Tuesday ~ KALEO
Unofficially, I’ve driven le Circuit de la Sarthe
One of the great duels at the classic 24 Heures du Mans was between the Ford GT40 and Ferrari 330, which the Ford won in 1966, 1967, 1968, and 1969, beating the Ferrari which had been victorious every year from 1960 to 1965. The Ford was called the GT40 because its roof was 40 inches from the road.
Of British cars that won at le Mans, the Bentley Speed Six won 5 times between 1924 -30, and the Jaguars C and D types won 5 times between 1951 and 1956. Even with the new kink half-way down, the 3.7 mile Mulsanne Straight is terrifying, especially when you reach the hard right at the village of Mulsanne.
The Circuit du Sarthe is eight-and-a-half miles long in all.
Sadly, Steve McQueen never raced there, although he did race at Sebring.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@taltalk.net
Bentley Speed Six Le Mans
Tunes on Tuesday ~ Lionel Richie
sometimes only the original will do
Following the mashup video of Lionel Richie’s Dancing on the Ceiling I posted this morning, here is the original video.
Please don’t try to do this at karaoke if you can’t dance.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
Ferrari Mondial Cabrio
Tunes on Tuesday ~ Madness
Lockdown in England Day 400
It’s been more than a year in lockdown, I recently had a false positive test for COVID-19, and things are really getting to me.
This Madness song says it all.
I like the Jaguar ~ great car, drives like a truck.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
a better Jaguar
Songs on Saturday ~ She Makes My Day
all women are beautiful
it just takes the right man to see it
This Robert Palmer track describes how I feel about today. I hope that you have a very special friend in your life too.
Of course, we guys calls cars, boats, and aeroplanes ‘She….’ too.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
Songs on Saturday ~ Daytona
twelve wild horses in silver chains
Back in the day, when Chris Rea could still sing and great cars didn’t rely on computers to make them work, Pininfarina designed the Daytona. I would contend one of the 10 best-looking cars ever made.
I’ve been to Daytona Beach, and I even know what Daytona means, but I’ve never driven a Ferrari Daytona, not anywhere. And actually, I’d rather own a Jaguar V12 E-Type, but then I am English and not Californian
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
a man’s man’s car
JackCollier7 
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