What Sort of Message?

What sort of Message?
When I was at Bangor University in the early 1970’s it was common, as in other universities, to see graffiti daubed somewhere on the campus. Some scrawled in huge ungainly letters, others in neat uniform capitals. It seemed that some of the authors spent a considerable time and effort on their compositions possibly to the detriment of their studies.
One particular piece of graffiti I can still remember, not because of its message – there appeared to be none. Nor its artistic execution, it had 2 words small, plain and in capitals. BUM DAVIES was written everywhere. Usually graffiti scrawlers are content with a few locations, but this person’s effort appeared on the walls of virtually every toilet, male and female, on ceilings, walls and gate posts in the University. One evening on entering the Students Union’s cloakroom to get my jacket, there he was pre-occupied with his indelible pen writing the same two words BUM DAVIES. We both stood there, uncertain of each other’s reaction, I broke the silence by uttering ‘What do you think you’re doing?’. He swept passed me and up the stairs.
I never saw him again, what was his message?
Confused messages are coming regularly from our politicos. Currently, some of our MPs with an enhanced sense of entitlement are flailing around trying to justify their ‘expenses’. Sometimes the message is hidden behind the rhetoric, in this case – ‘we abided by the rules, we’re sorry’ – in fact means: – we took an opportunity to fleece the taxpayer, we’re sorry we got caught.
Recently, the arrest of 12 Pakistani students, proclaimed by our Prime Minister as a ‘very big terrorist plot’ was a fiasco. Similarly the ricin plot, airline bomb plot, London Underground cyanide plot all hailed as dangers beyond the simple citizen’s imagination, came to nothing.
The common thread behind these apocalyptic warnings is ‘Be very much afraid’. The message is that our political masters are attempting to frighten us, the public into surrendering our rights and subjecting us to ever more surveillance.
I suspect that Swine Flu is to some extent a political godsend in that as it is frequently hailed by our political class as a soon to arrive pandemic. One gets the impression that some scientists are equally susceptible to exaggerating the dangers of Swine flu – a lucrative research grant perhaps? Searching the internet and papers one of the very few articles that puts Swine flu into perspective declaring that it’s a Eurasian epidemic as it appears to have originated from pigs. Pigs are not native to the Americas, having been introduced from Europe over the past 400 years. By way of contrast the thousands of years that the populations of Europe, Asia and Africa have lived with domesticated animals, this has allowed them to evolve greater immunity and genetic resistance to domestic animal derived viruses. Will swine flu follow the same route as Mad Cow Disease and Bird flu?
In an information overload society all organisations have to shout their message longer and harder, what’s crucial is that a fright fest of propaganda should not destroy the true meaning of the message.
What of BUM DAVIES? I suspect that, like those who carved initials on trees, he wanted to leave his mark but didn’t want to be known.

Fragmentation Politics for Gwynedd?

Bangor bangs the drum for Fragmentation Politics?

On Saturday the 21st March a Bangor based pressure group organised a march along the High St. to the town clock in the centre of Bangor. Some 200 turned up to articulate their grievances; the main complaints were against Cyngor Gwynedd for the lack of re-generation initiatives and in particular, facilities for the young in the city.
The citizens of Bangor and other towns in Gwynedd can justifiably point the finger at the lack of urban investment in their communities as compared to Caernarfon. By my reckoning some £25 million has been spent on Caernarfon town’s infrastructure since re-organisation in 1995.
The good people of Caernarfon are the best judge of how well that money’s been spent, but spent it has.
The organisers of the Bangor protest and those that attended felt that both the City Council and Cyngor Gwynedd had ignored their requests for long enough for them to form a party and contest elections. If this had got off the ground this time last year, just prior to the Local Government elections, who knows what effect they might have had. Their main electoral obstacle now is to keep up the momentum and enthusiasm for an electoral change for a further 3 years before the next elections. This will not be an easy job.
Single issue or fragmentation politics is generally healthy for the body politic. It gets the powers that be to concentrate and acknowledge that they may have overlooked some aspect(s) or problem(s). There are many examples, the suffragettes and pay legislation, to name but two.
Another reason for fragmentation politics is the low esteem that most politicians are held in the eyes of the public. This regard for them has recently fallen off the bottom end of the graph with Home Secretary Jacquie Smith’s ‘imaginative’ expenses claim for a 2nd home, together with her husband’s somewhat unorthodox use of public monies to rent ‘adult’ video films. This coupled with Education Minister Tony Mcnulty’s ‘expense’ of a 2nd home in his parent’s house gives the impression that politicians spend some effort on politics but their real talents are reserved for their expense claims.
An example of politics of fragmentation closer home is Cyngor Mon where the auditor has been minded to write a report on the conduct of the Council. The Chief Executive’s contract has been short circuited and reports of Councillors flouncing out of meetings is quite common.
Pressure group politics however can be short sighted. Pressure groups, by their very name exist to apply pressure, not to take a fair and balanced view – local or national government finds it very difficult to satisfy them or accomodate their sometimes parochial desires.
Pressure group/fragmentation politics is to be found now in Cyngor Gwynedd. Llais Gwynedd formed for the sole purpose of rescuing some small rural schools from closing won 13 seats in the local government elections nearly a year ago. It is too early to tell if Llais Gwynedd can gravitate from merely being a party looking for an argument on schools into evolving a broad credible political strategy for Gwynedd.
A balance between the micro (lack of investment in particular areas of the county) and the macro (balanced expenditure across the county on numerous services) is very hard to achieve. Fragmentation politics will not make the job any easier.

Bangor yn dyrnu’r drwm ar gyfer Politics Darnio
Ar Sadwrn 21ain o Fawrth ymgyrchodd grŵp o Fangor ar hyd y Stryd Fawr i’r cloc yng nghanol y ddinas. Mynychodd tua 200 i leisio eu cwynion, y rhan fwyaf yn erbyn Cyngor Gwynedd am y diffyg strategaethau adfywio, ac yn enwedig i’r ifanc yn y ddinas.
Mae gan ddinasyddion Bangor a threfydd eraill yng Ngwynedd perffaith hawl i bwyntio’r bys at y diffyg gwariant trefol yn eu cymunedau i gymharu â Chaernarfon. ‘Rwyf yn amcangyfrif bod tua £25 miliwn wedi ei wario ar isadeiledd y dref ers ail-drefnu yn 1995,
Trigolion Caernarfon yw’r bobl gorau i farnu ar ddilysrwydd y gwariant yma, ond mae’r pres wedi ei wario.
‘Roedd trefnwyr protest Bangor a’r rhai a fynychodd y cyfarfod yn teimlo bod Cyngor Dinas Bangor a Chyngor Gwynedd wedi anwybyddu eu gofynion am ddigon felly, ‘roeddent am ffurfio parti politicaidd a chwffio etholiadau. Pwy a ŵyr be fasa wedi digwydd blwyddyn yn ôl os ‘roedd y parti yma mewn bodolaeth blwyddyn yn ôl, cyn yr etholiadau Llywodraeth Leol? Nid yw cadw’r momentum i fyny am 3 mlynedd arall am fod yn job hawdd.
Mae politics un pwnc neu ddarniog, ar y cyfan yn iach i’r gyfundrefn boliticaidd. Mae’n gorfodi’r pwerau sydd mewn grym i ganolbwyntio a chydnabod bod rhai agweddau neu broblemau wedi cael eu hanwybyddu.
Mae ‘na rheswm arall am poletics darnio, y diffyg parch sydd gan ran helaeth o’r boblogaeth i wleidyddwyr. Mae’r diffyg parch ‘ma wedi plymio’n is yn ddiweddar gyda’r Ysgrifennydd Gwladol Jaquie Smith a’i ail dy, a’i gwr yn llogi ffilmiau ‘adult’ ar bwrs y wlad. Ychwanegwch y Gweinidog Addysg Tony Mcnulty a’i ‘ail gartref’ yn nhŷ ei dad a’i fam ac mae’r cyhoedd yn cael yr argraff bod gwleidyddion yn ymdrechu rhywfaint yn politics ond yn cadw eu talentau arbennig ar gyfer tal a threuliau.
Mae esiampl o poltics darnio’n agosach adref yng Nghyngor Môn, ble mae’r archwilydd wedi ysgrifennu adroddiad ar ymddygiad y Cyngor. Mae contract y Prif Swyddog wedi cael ei ddiddymu ac mae achosion o Gynghorwyr yn gadael cyfarfodydd yn ddisymwth yn aml iawn.
Ellir politics y ‘pressure group’ bod yn fyr ei olwg. Mae ‘pressure group’ fel mae’r enw’n deud yn bodoli i osod pwysa ar y gyfundrefn a dim i geisio dod at farn gytbwys ar y mater sy’n eu poeni nhw. Mae llywodraeth ganolog a lleol yn ffeindio hi’n anodd felly delio gyda nhw.
Mae ‘pressure group’ politics ‘nawr yng Ngwynedd. Ffurfiwyd Llais Gwynedd ar gyfer achub ysgolion bach y wlad. Enillwyd 13 o seti bron blwyddyn yn ôl. Mae’n rhu cynnar i weld os yw Llais Gwynedd am esblygu o fod yn barti’n chwilio am ddadl ar ysgolion i ddatblygu strategaeth boliticaidd ar gyfer Gwynedd.
Mae’r balans rhwng y micro (diffyg sylw i rai ardaloedd) a’r macro (sylw cytbwys i’r sir i gyd) yn anodd iawn i gyflawni. Mae politics darniog ddim am neud y job yn haws.

Grave Matters

‘Do not be ruled from beyond the grave’
The quote is from Tom Paine (1737 – 1809) author of ‘Rights of Man’ . His writings on an individual’s human rights in society annoyed the government of the day driving them into an incandescent rage. Such was their irrational hate of his work that they tried to arrest him as a traitor.
‘Do not be ruled from beyond the grave’ was a reference to some laws, customs and strictures, no longer appropriate, in society at that time (and still today) were passed and laid down by rulers, long since dead. These laws and customs, though inappropriate still held sway.
In Gwynedd and other Councils however, we now seem to be subject to rules and restrictions from above the grave. Our old friend Health and Safety has made numerous visits to several cemeteries in the area, festooning them with coloured tape, wooden stakes, laid down memorials and notices warning the general public of how dangerous a place a graveyard can be.
Previously, in my work as a Managing Director, I was responsible for the Health and Safety of about 30 staff together with clients and visitors at the factory/workshop. H & S comes down basically to an assessment of risk, how do you reduce that risk and are there other alternatives to avoid that particular risk. We all take an H & S assessment when crossing a busy road, looking both right & left and noting traffic density and any other relevant factors. An H & S for crossing an open field would be different, looking down instead of both ways, in case you put your foot in it.
So, how risky are our visits to these cemeteries? From Parliamentary Questions (the references are 140507,140535, and 140508) asked by John Mann MP, these can be summarized as follows:-
Question:- How many graveyards were inspected by the Health & Safety Executive in 2006. Answer:- No serious incidents reported, so none inspected.
Question:- How many incidents of falling gravestones in the last 20 years? Answer:- Reliable data for the period requested not available. However data shows that 21 serious accidents have occurred by falling gravestones and memorials over a period of 7 years.
Let’s see if we can make something of these statistics. H & S Executive covers the whole of the UK – about 60 million people. How many people visit UK cemeteries in a year? This includes those who work there, visit a grave or attend a funeral. Some visit several times a year, such as those who have recently lost a loved one, or monumental masons, and maintenance teams. My estimate (guesstimate) that all the above groups, workers, frequent visitors and the once only throughout UK amount to about 10 million visits in a year. So over a period of 7 years – about 70 million visits with 21 serious accidents. This gives about a 3.5 million to 1 chance of a serious accident if you plan a visit to your local graveyard.
The response of the Councils to this risk has to a large extent been inappropriate and in some instances downright in-accurate. The use of the ‘topple tester’ in particular has caused a lot of controversy.
Back to Parliamentary Questions/Answers :- ‘ …. The Justice Minister has written to local authorities urging a proportionate response to the question of memorial safety. Councils need to balance the (often slight) risk of injury against the certainty of distress if memorials were laid down.’
The Ministry of Justice – which the Health and Safety Executive comes under, has recently issued a paper on ‘Managing the safety of Burial Ground Memorials’. In the document it urges restraint on testing for safety and suggests that simple visual inspections are perfectly adequate in most cases. This should bring an end to the ‘topple test’ and strapping rows of memorials with wooden stakes.
Let’s hope that these messages get home to the Cemetery Authorities so that we can see the last of the unsightly plastic tapes and wooden stakes.
‘Peidiwch â chael eich rheoli o du hwnt i’r bedd’
Mae’r dywediad yma gan Tom Paine (1737 – 1809) awdur ‘Rights of Man’. ‘Roedd ei lyfrau ar hawliau dynol yn y gymdeithas wedi cynddeiriogi llywodraeth y dydd. Cymaint ‘roedd atgasedd y Senedd tuag at Paine bu ymgyrch ganddynt i garcharu o am fod yn fradwr.
Mae ‘Do not be ruled from beyond the grave’ yn gyfeiriad tuag at rhai ddeddfau a rheolau, sydd erbyn hyn ddim yn berthnasol mewn cymdeithas ac wedi eu llunio gan reolwyr o’r hen oes.
Yma yng Ngwynedd fel Cynghorau eraill, ‘rydym dan reolau a rhwystrau uwchben y bedd. Mae’r hen gyfaill Iechyd a Diogelwch wedi bod yn ymweld yn gyson a nifer o fynwentydd yn yr ardal. Mae o’n gadael ar ei ôl, tapiau coch a gwyn, stanciau pren, gerrig beddau’n fflat ar lawr a rhybuddion yn deud wrth y cyhoedd pa mor beryglus yw’r mynwentydd.
Pa mor beryglus yw mynd i’r mynwentydd yma? O’r Cwestiynau Senedd (cyf. 140507, 140535, 140,508) gofynnwyd gan John Mann AS. Talfyriad o rain yw:-
Cwestiwn:- Faint o fynwentydd archwiliwyd gan Adran Weithredol Iechyd a Diogelwch yn 2006. Ateb:- Dim adroddiad o ddamwain difrifol, felly dim archwiliad o unrhyw fynwent.
Cwestiwn:- Faint o achlysuron o gerrig beddau’n syrthio yn ystod 20 mlynedd diwethaf? Ateb:- Nid oes data dibynadwy ar y cyfnod yma. Serch hynny mae’r data yn dangos 21 damwain difrifol oherwydd cerrig beddau’n syrthio dros gyfnod o 7 mlynedd.
Oes ‘na wers yn yr ystadegau hyn? Mae’r Adran I & D yn gweithredu drwy Brydain Fawr, poblogaeth o thua 60 miliwn. Faint o bobl sy’n ymweld â mynwentydd yn UK mewn blwyddyn? Yn y ffigwr yma bydd angen cynnwys y rhai sy’n gweithio yna, ymweld â bedd neu fynychu angladd. Mae rhai ohonom yn ymweld nifer o weithiau mewn blwyddyn,er engraifft pobl sydd wedi colli perthynas neu ffrind, neu seiri maen a gweithwyr chynnal a chadw’r mynwentydd. ‘Rwyf yn amcangyfrif (tybio) bod y grwpiau uchod yn golygu bod tua 10 miliwn o ymweliadau i fynwentydd y flwyddyn trwy’r UK. Dros 7 mlynedd - tua 70 miliwn o ymweliadau gyda 21 o ddamweiniau difrifol. Mae hyn yn gyfystyr i 1 siawns mewn 3.5 miliwn o ymweliadau i’r fynwent os ‘rydych am fentro trwy’r giât.
Mae ymateb y Cynghorau i’r risg yma wedi bod i raddau helaeth yn amhriodol ac weithiau’n anghywir. Mae defnydd y ‘topple tester’ yn enwedig wedi bod yn ddadleuol iawn.
Yn ôl i Gwestiynau/Atebion Senedd ‘........ mae Gweinidog Cyfiawnder wedi ysgrifennu i’r Awdurdodau Lleol yn annog ymateb rhesymol i’r cwestiwn o ddiogelwch beddfeini. Mae angen i Gynghorau pwyso a mesur y risg bach o niwed yn erbyn y sicrwydd o drallod os yw gerrig beddau’n cael eu gollwng i lawr.’
Mae’r Weinyddiaeth Cyfiawnder sy’n goruchwylio’r Adran Iechyd a Diogelwch wedi cyhoeddi papur yn ddiweddar ar ‘Managing the safety of Burial Ground Memorials’. Yn y ddogfen mae’n annog ataliad ar brofion ar gyfer diogelwch ac yn argymell bod archwiliad gweledol yn ddigonol mewn rhan fwyaf o’r achosion. Delir hyn ddod i derfyn y ‘topple test’ a rhwymo rhesi o gerrig beddau a stanciau pren.
Gobeithio bod y negeseuon swyddogol yma’n cyrraedd yr Awdurdodau Mynwentydd be y bu'r tapiau plastic a’r stanciau pren yn diflannu o’r mynwentydd.

Euro pounds the Pound

Euro pounds the Pound

When Sterling (the pound) was riding high amongst world currencies the exhilaration of holidays abroad, especially in countries with a weak
currency was ‘happy days’. Recently however, with the pound plunging against the Euro it seems that some serious monetary consequences will be visiting us.
Will this make any difference to us living in Gwynedd? I think it will affect us in 3 ways. Firstly, holidays abroad will definitely be dearer in the Eurozone, with €1 = 67p sometime last year we’ve seen rates as low as €1 = £1 recently, that’s a 33% devaluation.
UK is a big importer of finished goods, particularly from the EC. Watch some of these import prices taking off in the near future. The recession however will to some extent damp down this process.
The third effect will depend on 2 factors, the depth of the recession and the weather. If the weather this Summer is good, it will benefit the tourist trade along the North Wales coast, particularly Gwynedd. Fewer families will head off to the Costas due to devaluation and the recession, and provided they can still afford some sort of break, we here should see some benefit.
Is there a better way out there? This year we’re ‘celebrating’ the 10th anniversary of the Euro. When it was first launched it was derided by some as a ‘toilet currency’. I’d venture to suggest that our currency, the Pound, is closer to the pan than the Euro nowadays. I was surprised to hear William Hague a Tory shadow front bench spokesman say that if the Conservatives won the next election they would never take us into the Eurozone. NEVER is a very big five letter word in politics.
With the American Dollar and the Euro beginning to dominate the world currency markets, isn’t it time we thought of joining the Euro? If we as a country want to take a realistic part in international economic and financial re-structuring, we’ll have to ditch Sterling and adopt the Euro. That is unless we want to stand outside the European financial counting houses waving our Pounds in the vain hope that someone in there will listen. In the end, I predict that we will reluctantly join, having had the unpleasant experience of Sterling, which is not a reserve currency, being buffeted about on the stormy seas of the world’s currency markets.
PS. In one of my recent blogs (if you scroll down it’s still there) :- WHAT WILL SWITCH ON THE LIGHTS? I predicted that Wylfa 2 was on the cards. This is now going to happen, together with about 10,000 jobs.
I also flagged up some serious doubts about wind generation. On the coldest day of this year so far, UK power stations were generating some 58,000 MW of electricity. Wind was contributing less than 100MW (.2%) to this demand. Wind farms have an installed capacity of 1,300MW yet the actual generation (100MW) was only 8% of capacity. Wind generation has a long way to go to make a significant difference.







Euro’n pwnio’r Bunt
Pan ‘roedd y Bunt ar frig y don ymysg arian y byd, ‘roedd gwyliau dramor, yn enwedig i wledydd gyda chyfradd newid gwan yn erbyn y Bunt yn wyliau dedwydd. Yn ddiweddar, gyda’r Bunt yn suddo yn erbyn yr Euro mae ‘na chanlyniadau digon difrifol yn gwynebu ni.
Sut bydd y sefyllfa yma’n effeithio arnom ni yng Ngwynedd? ‘Rwyf yn credu y bydd o mewn 3 ffordd. Yn gyntaf, bydd gwyliau tramor yn ddrytach yn ardal yr Euro, am gyfnod yn 2008 ‘roedd €1 = 67c ond yn ddiweddar ‘roedd mor isel a €1 = £1, gostyngiad o 33% yn ei werth.
Mae’r UK yn fewnforiwr sylweddol o nwyddau, yn enwedig o’r EC. Bydd gost rhai o’r nwyddau yma am godi’n sylweddol, ond bydd y dirwasgiad byd eang yn lleihau rhywfaint ar y broses yma.
Bydd y 3ydd effaith yn ddibynnol ar 2 ffactor, maint y dirwasgiad a’r tywydd. Os yw’r Haf yma am fod yn dda, bydd y diwydiant twristiaeth yn Ogledd Cymru’n elwa, yn arbennig yng Ngwynedd. Bydd llai o deuluoedd yn hedfan i’r Costas oherwydd gwerth y Bunt a’r dirwasgiad, ac os fedran nhw dal fforddio gwyliau, delir yr ardal yma cael rhywfaint o fudd allan o’r newid yma.
Oes ffordd arall allan o’n trafferthion? Blwyddyn yma ‘rydym yn ‘dathlu’ 10 mlynedd o’r Euro. Degawd yn ôl ‘roedd rhai economegwyr yn galw’r Euro yn ‘arian tŷ bach’, ‘rwyf yn tybio bod y Bunt yn nes at y toilet heddiw na’r Euro. Rhyfedd oedd clywed William Hague y Ceidwadwr amlwg yn deud yn ddiweddar os enillir nhw’r etholiad tro nesa’, bydd y Torïaid byth yn mynd a’r UK i mewn i’r Euro. Mae BYTH yn air mawr iawn yn y byd politicaidd.
Gyda’r US Dollar a’r Euro yn dechrau tra-arglwyddiaethu’r marchnadoedd arian, ydi hi’n amser ymuno a’r Euro? Os ‘rydym fel gwlad am gymryd rhan realistig yn ail gynllunio pensaernïol arian y byd bydd rhaid cael gwared â Sterling ac ymuno a’r Euro. Yn y diwedd, ‘rwyf yn rhagweld byddem yn ymuno’n anfodlon, ar ôl cael profiadau annymunol ar y moroedd tymhestlog y marchnadoedd arian.

On Message?

As one Royal Occasion, Prince Charles’ 60th Birthday last month fades into the past, another occasion swims into view. That of the Queen’s Christmas Day speech.
When I was a child, my mother insisted that our family sit in front of the TV at 3 o’clock, Christmas Day to listen to the Queen. Even as teenagers, my brother and I were expected to attend this televisual gathering. In those days, it was a common occurrence throughout Great Britain, and even deemed ‘unpatriotic’ not to assemble in front of a radio or TV for this annual occasion. The Christmas Day speech used to be broadcast live up until 1960, when they were thereafter pre recorded.
A glance at the viewing figures over the 14 years (1992 – 2006) shows a dramatic decline from 17.9 million to 8.5 million. I don’t think this is a surprise to even the most ardent Royal watcher. The younger generation, my children for instance, take a more iconoclastic view of the Royals and hardly if ever listen to the Queen’s Christmas Day speech. When the present Queen ‘retires’ will the future King drum up more viewers?
Another change in the Royal repertoire will be the National Anthem
‘God save the Queen to ‘God save the King’. Will it be time to call for a change and commission a new anthem?
The present anthem is, according to my researches, virtually unique amongst the 192 national anthems in the world, apart from Brunei where the anthem is ‘God bless his Majesty’ referring to the Sultan of Brunei. All the other anthems have a similar content to the Welsh National anthem, referring to the land, mountains, rivers people and ancestors. No other anthems refer to either living monarchs or rulers.
How did ‘God save the Queen’ come about? It originated in a patriotic song first performed in 1745. It became known as the National Anthem at the beginning of the 19th Century. It has never been officially adopted as the British National anthem, either by Act of Parliament or Royal proclamation. Although, usually, only the 1st verse is sung there are in fact 6 verses. The 6th could hardly be sung nowadays, even by the Prime Minister in a fit of incandescent rage against the Scottish National Party.
Verse 6
Lord grant that Marshal Wade
May by thy mighty aid
Victory bring.
May he sedition hush,
And like a torrent rush,
Rebellious Scots to crush.
God save the Queen!
So when the Queen finally takes leave of her office, would it not be a magnanimous gesture by the future King to banish the present National anthem, and instigate a competition to find a more suitable anthem for a less obsequious nation?

Beth yw’r neges?
Fel mae un achos brenhinol, sef pen-blwydd Tywysog Charles, mis Tachwedd, yn llithro heibio. gweler achos arall yn nesáu, araith y Frenhines ar ddiwrnod Nadolig.
Pan ‘roeddwn yn blentyn, roedd mam yn mynnu ein bod, fel teulu yn eistedd o flaen y teledu am 3-00 y prynhawn i wylio'r Frenhines. Hyd yn oed pan ‘roedd fy mrawd a minnau yn ein harddegau ‘roedd y disgwyl i wrando a gwylio dal yna. Yr adeg yna ‘roedd hi’n arferol hyd a lled Prydain i wylio’r araith a hyd yn oed yn cael ei ystyried yn anwlatgar peidio.
Mae’r nifer sy’n gwylio dros gyfnod o 14 mlynedd (1992 – 2006) yn dangos newid sylweddol o 17.9 miliwn i 8.5 miliwn. Mae’r genhedlaeth ifanc yn llawer llai tebygol o wrando ar araith y Frenhines. Pan fydd y Frenhines yn ‘ymddeol’ bydd y Brenin newydd yn medru cynyddu’r gwrandawyr?
Newid arall yn y drefn bydd yr anthem genedlaethol. ‘God save the Queen’ i ‘God save the King’. Tybed bydd hi’n amser newid a chael anthem newydd? Mae’r anthem bresennol, hyd y gwn i, bron yn unigryw. Dim ond Brunei sydd a ‘God bless his Majesty’. Mae bron bob anthem arall yn cyfeirio at y wlad, eu pobol, ac weithiau ei mynyddoedd, môr neu afonydd. Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau yn debyg iawn i nifer ohonynt.
Sut ddaeth ‘God Save the King’ i rym? Dechreuodd fel gân wladgarol tua 1745. Erbyn dechrau’r bedwaredd ganrif ar bymtheg ‘roedd yn cael ei adnabod fel anthem genedlaethol. Nid yw erioed wedi cael ei fabwysiadu yn swyddogol fel anthem genedlaethol Brydeinig. Fel arfer dim ond y pennill 1af sy’n cael ei ganu, y faith yw mai 6 pennill ar gael. Ni fedr canu’r 6ed, hyd yn oed gan Gordon Brown y Prif Weinidog wrth felltithio Plaid Genedlaethol yr Alban.
Pennill 6
Lord grant that Marshal Wade
May by thy mighty aid
Victory bring.
May he sedition hush,
And like a torrent rush,
Rebellious Scots to crush.
God save the Queen!Felly, pan fydd y Frenhines yn gadael ei swydd, delir y Brenin newydd ddechrau gydag awgrym cael gwared â ‘God save the King’ a chael cystadleuaeth am anthem newydd mwy addas i Brydain Fawr?

Go to Jail ...

Go to Jail.....

At the beginning of November, the Board of Cyngor Gwynedd decided to support the inclusion of the Ferodo site as a possible location for a new Jail here in North Wales.
Reading the Council report which carried the recommendation, there appeared very little in the way of either statistical evidence nor an in-depth evaluation of the pros and cons of such a development.
What in the report is in favour of this new jail? Briefly the points are as follows:-
Development of Caernarfon as a legal and justice centre – substantial economic benefits.
The presence of the University and Ysbyty Gwynedd. The use of nearby resources.
The Welsh language. An opportunity to develop a bi-lingual prison administration and support through the medium of Welsh to the area’s prisoners.
Economic situation and local employment.
Access and public transport
The site is currently brown field land and building a prison would lead to the site’s regeneration.
If one was evaluating this report in the form of a Business Plan or proposal, the interested parties would be homing in on the USP’s (Unique Selling Points).
With the possible exception of one point, all the rest are not unique but could equally be applied to various towns in North Wales. Close to a university, hospital, public transport etc.
The possible exception is point 3 – the Welsh language. Is it likely that the mandarins in the Home Office, Whitehall, (who run the prison service) will be bowled over by this argument? I suspect that a bi-lingual prison service in Caernarfon will not be a high scorer in the list of their priorities for a new prison.
How many prisoners will there be? The prison is needed for 400 – 500 prisoners. According to Gwynedd’s report there were in July 2008 approximately 800 adults in prison from North Wales. Of these 120 came from Gwynedd (about 95 men, 25 women). It doesn’t take much maths to work out that there would be a lot of empty places in the prison if we depended solely on local law breakers.
Here’s the nub of the issue. With possibly as many as 350 – 400 ‘spare beds’ in the prison, the bed fillers could be from well outside the locality. My enquiries revealed that there is a tendency for some families to move into the area of a prison if the ‘breadwinner’ is serving a prison sentence. It’s not uncommon for these families to rely heavily on Social Services and other local and national government bodies.
Unfortunately, due to the number of offenders currently in prison in Great Britain, one aspect of prison – re-education and preparation for life outside prison has to an extent received the back burner treatment. Some would argue that on re-entering society some ex-convicts have been ‘re-educated’ so that they can now practice their unlawful trades to much better effect.
So what does the Home Office say about rates of re-offending? From their website the 2000 – 2005 frequency rate of re-offending fell from 189.9 to 167.9 re-offences per 100 offenders. Not a statistic to bring gladness to the hearts of the law-abiding citizens.
In what was supposed to be a balanced report from Cyngor Gwynedd, none of the above points were mentioned. Is it a case of ‘ Be careful in case of what you wish for comes true?’
Mynd i’r Carchar
Ar ddechrau Tachwedd, cymerodd Bwrdd Cyngor Gwynedd y penderfyniad i gefnogi cynnwys safle Ferodo, Caernarfon fel lleoliad posib ar gyfer carchar yng Ngogledd Cymru. Yn yr adroddiad nid oedd llawer o ystadegau na werthusiad o’r datblygiad arfaethedig yma.
Mae’r adroddiad ar we’r Cyngor, ond yn fras, o blaid y prosiect oedd:-
Datblygiad Caernarfon fel canolfan cyfreithiol - lles i’r economi
Lleoliad parod y Brifysgol a’r Ysbyty - adnoddau
Yr Iaith Gymraeg. Cyfle i ddatblygu gweinyddiaeth ddwyieithog, cefnogaeth i garcharorion trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg.
Sefyllfa economaidd a chyflogaeth leol.
Mynediad i drafnidiaeth gyhoeddus.
Mae’r safle’n bresennol yn ‘brown field’ bydd adeiladu carchar yn adfywio’r safle.
Os ydym ni'n edrych ar yr adroddiad yma fel Cynllun Busnes, ble mae’r USP’s? (Unique Selling Points)
Eithrio efallai un pwynt, nid yw’r gweddill yn unigryw, maent yn berthnasol i nifer o drefi yng Ngoledd Cymru. Fel agos at Ysbyty, prifysgol, trafnidiaeth etc.
Yr eithriad, yr Iaith Gymraeg, ond faint o sylw bydd Whitehall yn rhoi i bolisi dwyieithog i garchar yng Ngogledd Cymru?
Faint o garcharorion fydd ‘na? Mae angen garchar ar gyfer 400 - 500. Yn adroddiad Gwynedd adroddwyd bod tua 800 yn y carchar o Ogledd Cymru- Gorffennaf 2008., 120 ohonynt o Wynedd. Mae’n amlwg bydd ‘na nifer o lefydd gwag yng ngharchar Ferodo os ddibynnir ar ddrwgweithredwyr lleol.
Dyma wraidd y broblem. Gyda chymaint â 350 - 400 llefydd gwag yn y carchar, mae’r llefydd gwag yma’n cael eu llenwi gan bobl o du allan i’r ardal. Mae ‘na thueddiad i rai teuluoedd, pan mae ‘gwr y ty’ yn y carchar, symud i ardal y carchar. Yn aml iawn mae angen gofal dwys i’r teuluoedd yma gan Wasanaethau Cymdeithasol ac asiantaethau eraill.
Yn anffodus, gan fod carchardai ym Mhrydain mor llawn, mae addysg a pharatoi’r carcharorion ar gyfer bywyd tu allan ddim yn cael blaenoriaeth deilwng. Mae rhai yn dadlau bod ‘ail addysg’ yn y carchar yn neud nhw’n ddrwgweithredwyr gwaeth ar ôl dod allan.
Beth am ystadegau’r Swyddfa Gartref am ail-droseddu? O’r wefan mae amlder ail droseddu yn 167.9 ail-droseddu ar gyfer bob 100 o droseddwyr. Dim yn statistic sydd am lonni calonnau'r rhai sy’n byw yn yr ardal. Nid oedd ‘run o’r pwyntiau uchod wedi eu crybwyll yn adroddiad Cyngor Gwynedd. Ydi carchar yn Ferodo yn:- Byddwch yn ofalus am be ‘rydych yn gobeithio rhag ofn iddo droi’n wir.?

'I hear you knocking...'

‘I hear you knocking...’
It was Benjamin Franklin who said ‘In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes’. Even for 3rd generation welfare dependents cashing in their Giro cheques, there’s still VAT and Council Tax to pay. Some of us may think that death is optional, given the advances in medical science. But no, every one of us will experience the swish of the scythe from the Grim Reaper. Will the final cut be at the time of our own choosing or are we subject to the vagaries of the throw of the dice by the Reaper as to when our number’s up?
During my time on Cyngor Gwynedd we regularly had workshops on various topics. About 2 years ago we had one from Social Services on planning for 2020 and beyond. The County of Gwynedd, in common with the North Wales coast has a high proportion of the elderly living here. This coastline is often called ‘Costa Geriatrica’ due to the fact that it receives a large number of elderly retirees. Statistics show that the majority of us cost the NHS more during the last 3 years of our lives than at any other period. Similarly Gwynedd Social Services will be asking for more and more money from the Council budget to care for the increased number of the elderly.
For the workshop, Councillors and officers were divided into groups of 4 and told to think of radical solutions for 2020, ‘think outside the box’. In my experience, this invitation can result in unexpected suggestions. Our group of 4 proposed that Social Services should run ‘Courses in Voluntary Euthanasia’ . As expected, this was not given a wholehearted welcome by the senior policy wonks in the workshop.
As things stand in Britain, the situation is confused between law and ethics. The ‘right’ for the terminally ill to sign themselves off can land them or their relatives/partners in trouble with the law. We’ve read about several examples recently of individuals having to go to Switzerland to arrange their own death with dignity.
As medicine gets more sophisticated and expensive, it can keep us alive longer, but at what cost to quality of life? As the century unwinds, the demographic curve will show more geriatrics as a proportion of the population, with fewer tax payers having to support them. The government can try and persuade their senior citizens to take more exercise, eat healthier food and not smoke. There is however a limit to these benefits. I can’t envisage any government handing the old folks the equivalent of a pistol and bottle of whiskey, but will there be a re-appraisal of long-term care?
With the possibility of several of us spending our final years in hospital or care home, incontinent , addle-headed and crawling our way through death’s door, will there be a choice? Will we play a waiting game with the grim reaper or make provision to invite him in?
‘Pwy sy’na.......’
Dywedodd Benjamin Franklin ’D’oes dim yn y byd yn sicr ond marw a threthi’ Mae hyd yn oed derbynwyr taliadau lles yn gorfod talu TAW a Threth Cyngor. Efallai bod rhai ohonom yn meddwl bod peidio marw yn opsiwn gyda gwelliannau mewn meddyginiaethau, ond na mae’r Crymanwr Difrifol yn sicr o alw heibio. Ydi’r toriad olaf am fod dan reolaeth ni neu hap a damwain fydd hi?
Yn ystod fy amser ar Gyngor Gwynedd, ‘roedd cyfleoedd i gymryd rhan mewn gweithgorau ar wahanol bynciau. Tua dwy flynedd yn ôl bu Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol yn cynnal un ar gynllunio ar gyfer 2020 a thu hwnt. Mae gan Gwynedd, fel nifer o gynghorau eraill ar hyd arfordir Gogledd Cymru canran uchel o bobl mewn oed yn byw yma. Gelwir yr arfordir yn ‘Costa Geriatrica’ yn aml, oherwydd y nifer fawr o henoed sy’n dod yma i ymddeol. Mae ystadegau’n dangos bod mwyafrif ohonom yn costio mwy i’r NHS yn y 3 mlynedd olaf o’n bywyd nag yn unrhyw gyfnod arall. Felly bydd Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol Cyngor Gwynedd yn gofyn am fwy a mwy o bres o’r pot canolog i edrych ar ôl yr henoed.
Ar gyfer y gweithgor rhannwyd y Cynghorwyr a’r swyddogion i grwpiau o 4 gyda’r cyfarwyddyd i feddwl am atebion radical ar gyfer 2020. Meddwl tu allan i’r bocs. Bu grŵp ni’n awgrymu ‘Cyrsiau ar ewthanasia gwirfoddol’ - nid oedd hwn at ddant swyddogion polisi’r adran Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol.
Fel mae pethau’n sefyll ym Mhrydain, mae’r sefyllfa’n ddryslyd rhwng y gyfraith a moeseg. Mae ‘hawl’ i’r claf tynnu’r plwg arno’i hun yn medru achosi trafferth gyfreithiol i’w deulu/partner. Mae nifer o achosion yn y papurau newydd yn ddiweddar yn son am unigolion yn mynd i’r Swistir i drefnu diwedd urddasol i’w bywyd.
Fel mae triniaeth meddygol yn gwella ac yn mynd y fwy costus, mae o’n cadw ni’n fyw am hirach, ond ar ba gost i ansawdd byw? Fel mae’r ganrif yma’n ymlwybro ymlaen, mae’r demograffics yn dangos fwyfwy o henoed fel canran o’r boblogaeth, gyda llai a llai o drethdalwyr yn eu cynnal nhw.Bydd y llywodraeth yn perswadio’n henoed i gymryd fwy o ymarfer corff, bwyta’n iach a pheidio ysmygu. Ond, mae’na ben draw i’r gwelliannau yma. Ni fedraf weld y llywodraeth yn awgrymu potel o chwisgi a gwn i’r henoed, ond yn debygol bydd ail-edrych ar ofal tymor hir.
Gyda’r posibilrwydd o fwy a mwy ohonom yn gwario ein blynyddoedd olaf mewn ysbyty neu gartref henoed, yn baeddu ac yn gwlychu, yn ddryslyd yn ymlusgo tuag at ddrws angau, bydd y dewis ar gael? Be fydd hi? Chwarae gem aros gyda’r Crymanwr Difrifol, neu alw ef i mewn?