Strike out!

The big news yesterday was a huge strike by public employees - hospital workers, teachers, immigration - which today was ruled a dud. It was all about complaints over having to pay more toward their pensions and work longer to collect, something that didn't resonate well with the populace in the private sector who lack the largesse of public pension.   Something like two-thirds of schools were closed so parents took the opportunity to do some early midweek Christmas shopping. My daughter's school was open for Sixth Form, but not for the 11 to 13 year olds.  It actually worked out nicely - she commented on how "stress free" it was without the "little kids" and we had a relaxing conference with the head of Sixth Form.   At Heathrow the passport barricades were manned by "volunteers" from other departments and apparently they did a cracking good job, too, as there were fewer delays than normal! So much for all the anticipated illegals sneaking in.  The occasion couldn't pass without another ornery Brit going off at the mouth.  Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson riled the BBC audience when he  jokingly or not opined that public sector workers should be executed in front of their families. There's talk now of him getting fired!  Well, that's proof the speech police didn't go on strike!