by Julian Ruck
The Welsh-speaking Crachach (or Taffia depending on your point of view) are up to their usual old tricks again. You know, keeping it in the family, jobs for this life and the next and not what you know but who you know.
The Silk commission is looking into the devolution settlement and the powers of the National Assembly of Wales. Also on the Commission’s radar is the much debated control of the Welsh media.
Not long ago, I interviewed one Lee Waters, director of the ‘independent’ Welsh think tank, the Institute of Welsh Affairs. The purpose of the interview was to explore the abject lack of diversity and indeed equal opportunity that appears to exist in Welsh governing institutions. There was also the question relating to whether or not the push for Welsh language nationalism was having a negative impact on the Welsh economy.
Mr Waters immediately accepted that there was a problem here ie that Welsh institutions are run mainly by white, Welsh speaking, middle class and Welsh educated personnel. However, he followed this up with the more facile excuse that “Wales has the same problems as all other Western societies.”
So then, one can conclude that in his view, a white Dai Berlosconi or a white Dai Chirac is fine because everyone else is at it? The nasty Tories also came in for some passionate opprobrium from the independently minded Waters too. Quite obviously a man who prides himself on apolitical inclination if ever there was one!
A simple case of denial perhaps? But then the Welsh Crachach are resilient if nothing else
It must be pointed out here that Mr Waters is himself a Taffia warrior with impeccable Crachach credentials. His responses generally to this particular interlocutor could only be described as bullishly defensive whilst at the same time being sneakily evasive. White, Welsh speaking and yet another alumnus (as if one would expect anything less?) of a Welsh university madrassa, and previous political sidekick of our old friend Carwyn Jones, the gentleman also has a history in Welsh media – naturally. A common denominator or two here where another Crachach acolyte is concerned, one Emma Watkins, director of the independent lobbying Welsh organisation, CBI Wales no less. Perhaps the word ‘independent’ has a different meaning when translated into Welsh?
Now before readers of Uncut begin to wonder if this is Ruck traipsing off to la la land then do note the following email I sent to the loquacious Mr Waters (one can forgive him this, he is Welsh after all) post interview, it adds a certain Celtic piquancy to this pot of simmering cronyism and jokey ‘independence’.
Copy of email sent 17.23 November 21st 2013
Dear Mr Waters,
Before writing a column for Uncut and in the interests of accuracy, will you please confirm that following your interview, you are of the view that post- devolution Wales suffers the same problems as the rest of Europe?
Also, would you be good enough to confirm that last year the IWA refused to comment on or debate the issues relating to taxpayer funding of Welsh literary endeavour etc
If no reply is forthcoming then I will assume the above to be the case.
Thank you for your time,
Julian Ruck
There was of course no reply and Mr Waters will no doubt confirm this. So why you must be wondering, would the good director refuse to respond to a perfectly reasonable request? After all, the IWA prides itself on being an independent and above any kind of political partisanship think tank and supposed reputable forum for honest public debate?
The answer may lie in the fact, that it is a recipient of Welsh government funding, and that one of its founding fathers is none other than our old friend ex-BBC Wales controller Geraint Talfan Davies (now chairman of the Welsh National Opera and father of the present director of BBC Wales, you have to hand it to them, these Crachach boyos get around, don’t they just!), who had his very own autobiography paid for by the taxpayer five years ago. Title of this learned tome? Yes you’ve got it: “At Arms Length!”
And the IWA is supposed to be above the winning of friends and favour in Cardiff coffee house intellectual circles – albeit that it receives tax-payer bungs and many of its members belong to Welsh institutions intent on maintaining exclusive Welsh speaking Crachach elitism and jobs for the boys security- many of these ‘members’ have also been admirably loyal passengers on the Taffy Express taxpayers’ gravy train too, you know the sort of thing, arts grants, bursaries etc etc.
Thus the blatant and shifty refusal over a year ago to join me in any kind of public debate re the taxpayer and Welsh arts funding and in spite of these issues being exposed in the national press and on national television.
They really are ‘all in it together’!
I have digressed slightly here for which I duly apologise, but let me now bring you back to the thorny issue of who should control the Welsh media (such as it is) and what the laverbread coated, cockled up and Mabinogion obsessed wise men at the IWA have to say about it?
The Welsh language TV channel S4C (which in the words of Jeremy Hunt, ‘no-one watches’ and which indeed has zero audience figures for some of its programmes) should be devolved to the Welsh government – well, we all know what that means: Let’s throw billions at it and keep our fingers crossed but for God’s sake don’t upset the subsidised Welsh language writers and broadcast apparatchiks who don’t have to compete in a normal commercial environment and must always be allowed to wallow in their self-important if deluded and astonishingly inept steamy mud-baths of taxpayer largesse.
Independent investigations over management skulduggery, sneaky funding arrangements (and by the way it’s all UK BBC licence fee payers who fork up for 95% plus of S4C’s funding, albeit that it has less than 1% of the TV viewing audience, and this is on a good day!) and wholesale minority tyranny are the name of the game where S4C is concerned. As for scrutiny and accountability, don’t be silly, this is Wales.
I’m all for the preservation of the Welsh language and using subsidy to further this aim, but throwing billions at lost causes that are both ineffectual and where people are struggling to put food on the table is simply not the way, and you can be sure of one thing, if the Welsh government gets a grip on Welsh broadcasting then there will be more Welsh language content and nationalist angst in mainstream English language channels – BBC Wales will be up for this, guaranteed*.
Carwyn’s team druid is more than particular when it comes to responding to Freedom of Information requests, its ‘Ministers’ won’t be interviewed, ‘openness’ and honesty are not in the Dai Johnson lexicon and to cap it all, most Welsh politicos only watch the X-Factor and Strictly Come Dancing anyway!
Wales is already one of Europe’s most public sector dependent economies, all Welsh Labour will do is lob billions at broadcasting failure and wait for redemption from a Ouija board, just like it always does. On the other hand, it might yet again recruit news reader Huw Edwards to dish out another load of Welsh historical garbage and propaganda in order to hide its sacred but chinless tracks.
Devolved Welsh broadcasting powers?
God help the Welsh.
NB Aled Eirug, a member of the S4C Authority, is able to give his views to ‘private’ Welsh literary meetings (keeping it in the subsidised family again, perhaps?), but sadly is unable to voice an opinion for Uncut as this may be considered ‘public’? And there’s me thinking S4C is a publicly funded organisation and therefore subject to public scrutiny, but then the Crachach do tend to be a trifle reticent where exposure outside a Welsh media comfort zone is concerned.
Julian Ruck is an author, journalist and columnist. He also makes contributions to both Welsh and national broadcasting and media
Tags: Crachach, Institute for Welsh Affairs, Julian Ruck, Letter from Wales, S4C
Drivel. Plenty of non-whites speak Welsh. Plaid even has a welsh- speaking Asian councillor. Loads of children from immigrant communities (including the English) now speak welsh. The only reason any adult can have for not speaking welsh is because they can’t be arsed and/or are too lazy – in which case they can hardly complain if they are excluded from certain jobs.
You really need to start your own party Julian as you are hopelessly out of step. Plaid, Labour, Lib Dem, Tory, BNP and even UKIP now support the Cymraeg policy – about the only party that doesn’t is the Communist Party of Great Britain (although they do support ‘every nation has the right to self determination’).
To Taffia,
One Asian councillor?! Plenty of non-whites speak Welsh?! Are you serious? And as for adults not speaking it, this may well have something to do with the fact that it has minus zero application outside a 200 mile radius and that only 15% of people in Wales know how to read and write it!
Still, I suppose this is better than the 1% who watch S4C.
JR
is this the same Julian Ruck who has made racist comments about Welsh-speakers, has been caught out plagiarising, and threatened legal action against Welsh publishers who rejected his books if they made this fact public? I’m puzzled: Ruck attacks the literary scene in Wales yet omits to mention he sent his novels to 3 Welsh publishers who turned him down. This is why he is a vanity press baron – the ‘public subsidy’ he attacks would have been more than good enough if he’d been taken on by a publisher!
What a joke.
Diversity, or lack of, inclusiveness, accountability and public subsidy of the arts and broadcasting are all worth discussing but those issues were lost among the cliches, and paranoia and what, I guess, were patronising attempts at humour.
Bemused by this. This ‘journalist’ phoned me on 1 November and ranted about the dominance of Welsh speakers, interspersed with the odd, ‘don’t you agree’. I tried to be as patient as I could. I have no record of his email, nor any idea of what he refers to.
Hilariously his piece is based on the premise that I am part of a Welsh-speaking Crachach, when my level of Welsh is very poor and certainly has played no part in any job I’ve ever had. And the idea I’ve been born into some privileged elite doesn’t withstand scrutiny.
Apart from the fundamental factually inaccuracies the rest is a matter of fair comment. We are all entitled to our prejudices. But I think Labour Uncut should aspire to better coverage of Wales than this.
More monoglot crap from Julian, peppered with the usual ‘no accountability because no one speaks to me’ rubbish.
For those who don’t know, Julian’s ‘contributions’ to newspapers consist of chauvinistic rubbish like this;
http://www.llanellistar.co.uk/Julian-Ruck-Women-t-park/story-20413273-detail/story.html
But Labour Uncut doesn’t seem to like female columnists, so that won’t bother them.
And when he’s not writing these piss poor articles, ‘columns’, and woefully bad novels (see here for details http://jewelsfromjulian.wordpress.com ) he’s getting banned from the local Spar!
http://www.llanellistar.co.uk/Author-Julian-Ruck-banned-Spar-store-Kidwelly/story-20413355-detail/story.html
Can Labour Uncut get someone who can
A. Write
B. Is politically aware.
C. Who actually knows Welsh history.
D. Knows Welsh culture.
E. Doesn’t have an inbuilt inferiority complex due to being Welsh.
F. Isn’t a discredited buffoon.
I agree tafia. I live with a mixed race fluent Welsh speaker. I know English people who speak Welsh, a Pole, and French and German Welsh speakers. But Julian sits in his study in Kidwelly, and sees nothing of modern Wales and nothing that he cannot schew to his own blinkered, crude opinions. Go and see Wales Julian. You don’t care for facts, ie plaid having Asian councillors and a non Welsh speaking leader, as it doesn’t fit your narrative.
So the Welsh Labour Party have a policy of nominating Cymraeg speaking candidates and only employing Cymraeg speakers?
So we have reached the point where the English speaking majority are now barred from obtaining employment in Wales?
….and the English speaking majority are subsidising S4C.
S4C being the most subsidised television chanel in the world and the only programmes that are watched are a soap opera and rugby.
These two programmes being produced by the BBC.
https://www.s4c.co.uk/abouts4c/viewing/e_index.shtml
Julian (and Origami), squeal all you like but the fact is the only people in Wales who can’t speak Welsh do so because they can’t be bothered to learn. So it’s their problem and their fault and no one elses. Here’s a thought, if you want a job where the specs state you must be a welsh speaker then go and bloody learn it.
In welsh speaking areas nearly all the children speak welsh irrespective of their ethnic origins
To Lee Waters,
I note your hilarity fails to deny the substantive facts of my piece. For such an insignificant ‘journalist’ as I, I cannot help but wonder why you agreed to be interviewed by me in the first place?
I can only assume that you picked up the slithery art of denial from your guide and mentor Carwyn Jones.
You would do better I hazard, to limit your public and puerile pronouncements to the more insular and certainly ‘insignificant’ Institute of Welsh Affairs.
Julian Ruck
Julian – can you answer my points about your rejection by subsidised welsh publishers?
Julian wrote this:
“That may sound shocking considering I’m a Welsh author, but cards on the table, this particular form of communication sounds like a turkey being strangled and should, like the Dodo, have been confined to the history books years ago.
Constantly having this gobbledygook rammed down my throat is too much. It’s made me miss my train on more than a few occasions I can tell you.”
so much for Julian not having ‘anything against’ Welsh-speakers! Labour Uncut: since when was bigotry allowed on your site? Oh yes – since Ruck joined you…
To James and all your other multiple identities,
If I may quote directly from John Davies’ ‘A History of Wales’:
Caradoc was ‘the father of the Anglo Welsh’; with him, as Gwyn Jones put it, ‘the war horn was blown, the gauntlet thrown down, the gates of the temple shattered…the Anglo Welsh had arrived….with the maximum of offence and the maximum of effect.
Caradoc believed that prejudice, philistinism and sexual guilt were the foundations of the ‘Welsh way of life’.
Nothing much has changed then, where you are concerned!
Julian Ruck
To Lee Waters,
You didn’t receive my email as quoted in my column, and yet you received the email I sent you yesterday advising you of the column’s publication.
How frightfully odd? It must be those damned Taffia hackers again!
Julian Ruck
I think Mr Ruck is Kidwelly’s answer to Nigel Farage, though Farage has charisma and can hold his drink better, judging from the reports of Kidwelly’s shopkeepers and pub landlords.
Firstly, Labour Uncut really need to work on the quality of their contributors. This is no more than an unguided rant by a deluded individual with an axe to grind.
He is well known for his scattergun comments and then his inability to take criticism where it is leveled at him:
http://www.llanellistar.co.uk/Kidwelly-author-Julian-Ruck-challenges-Dyfed/story-19623620-detail/story.html
And with columns like this, I think we get a rather good measure of the man:
http://www.llanellistar.co.uk/Julian-Ruck-Women-t-park/story-20413273-detail/story.html
Mr Origami, to your first comment:
‘So the Welsh Labour Party have a policy of nominating Cymraeg speaking candidates and only employing Cymraeg speakers?
So we have reached the point where the English speaking majority are now barred from obtaining employment in Wales?’
No.
‘….and the English speaking majority are subsidising S4C.
S4C being the most subsidised television chanel in the world and the only programmes that are watched are a soap opera and rugby.
These two programmes being produced by the BBC.
https://www.s4c.co.uk/abouts4c/viewing/e_index.shtml‘
To your second point. No. The BBC is obviously more highly subsidised, I fear you misunderstand the definition of subsidised. Here is how S4C is, and is going to be, funded;
S4C is financed from its advertising revenue and a fixed annual grant from the UK Department for
Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), receiving £90m of funding in 2011.[23] Additionally, some Welsh-language programming (including Newyddion and Pobol y Cwm) is produced by BBC Wales as part of the BBC’s public service remit, and provided to S4C free of charge.
S4C is controlled by the S4C Authority (Awdurdod S4C), an independent body unconnected to Ofcom, the regulator of other UK television channels such as ITV and Channel 4.
From 2013, responsibility for funding S4C will begin to transfer to the BBC, with the DCMS reducing its funding by 94% by 2015.[24] The BBC will provide around £76m of funding to S4C by this date, resulting in a cut of around 25% to S4C’s annual budget.[25] This decision has been challenged by Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (The Welsh Language Society), which wants the proposed transfer of responsibility for funding S4C from DCMS to the BBC to be stopped.[
“It must be pointed out here that Mr Waters is himself a Taffia warrior with impeccable Crachach credentials. His responses generally to this particular interlocutor could only be described as bullishly defensive whilst at the same time being sneakily evasive.”
Rather than describing them, might you cite them verbatim?
I didn’t actually receive the email telling me of the piece either. I returned your initial call because I am polite and have nothing to hide. Despite your reputation I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt. That’ll learn me
Before a referendum on tax raising powers we should have had a referendum on whether the people of Wales want to be bullied into Cymraeg medium education by the threat of being excluded from employment.
Why should a few people have control on such an important and fundamental issue, let’s have a referendum, let’s have a referendum to see if the people in Wales really want to be run by an oligarchy.
Lee Waters a member of the Welsh-speaking crachach? Evidence? He’s never that I know of spoken in Welsh on TV or radio, and his main language is English. He’s also, in terms of background, hardly an establishment member. What are you on about?
To Lee Waters,
A reputation that fearlessly challenges the Welsh establishment and exposes its rampant cronyism, raging complacency, incompetence, ultra-nationalistic and eye wateringly smug delusions of self-importance, to an astute and wider national audience, I think you will agree.
Your words ‘But I think Labour Uncut should aspire to better coverage of Wales than this’, says it all.
You people have existed in a pretty bubble of trite self-satisfaction and the toothless scrutiny of a cosy Welsh media for far too long, the fact is that you are simply not equipped to deal with any kind of ruthless challenge or opprobrium. Gwyneth Lewis’ chronically naïve and libellous attack on me in the Guardian (which had to be corrected and parts of it withdrawn) is a classic example.
What is so special and unique about Wales, that it should be exempt from the norms of rigorous democratic accountability and oversight??
Well Mr Waters, welcome to the 21st Century but more to the point I note that in neither of your comments do you challenge the substantive facts of my column. By all means do so and I will duly respond, otherwise to quote John Major, ‘put up or shut up’.
Quod erat demonstrandum.
Julian Ruck
PS And this is one Welshman who is not anyone’s pocket, least of all the taxpayer’s.
PS To Lee waters
And Mr Waters, you might like to explain to readers why the IWA refuses to hold an Open Debate on subsidies and Welsh arts when your brief as a ‘think tank’ is to do precisely this.
As stated above, this particular subject has attracted national media interest and yet the IWA still refuses to respond.
Now, why would this be? It wouldn’t have anything to do with the fact that the ‘independent’ IWA’s very own literary section is paid for by the taxpayer, would it?
Julian Ruck
To Lee Waters,
My apologies, in the interests of accuracy, I should have written in the previous comment, that ‘the ‘independent’ IWA’s literary section is paid for by the Welsh Labour government’.
I see no reason why Mr Waters’ posts here prove that he was alerted by email. After all, if he was told he was being interviewed for this site, he would presumably keep an eye on it.
Julian, judging by Mr Waters response, it would appear that you are telling porkies again? Every time you type, your reputation goes further into the doldrums.
To Ramsey Campbell,
I must say, it is gratifying to know that after nearly two years you are still scrutinising every word I write!
If, as Mr Waters maintains he did not receive my emails, then this merely illustrates yet again, how incompetent Welsh institutions are, does it not?
My own email account confirmed that they had been sent.
Julian Ruck
I’d like a debate on Welsh arts subsidy, but as I know that Mr Ruck has been multiply rejected by Welsh publishers (and lied about it in print), but has threatened them if they reveal this, it’ll be rather a one-sided debate, because one side will be lying and the other will be debating as if with a normal and truthful person.
What’s the point?
Mr Akira Origami says: “…..we should have had a referendum on whether the people of Wales want to be bullied into Cymraeg medium education by the threat of being excluded from employment.”
That is complete and utter rubbish.
The overwhelming bulk of jobs do not require bilingual ability as a mandatory requirement. Those that are are widely known therefore of those are the jobs you wish to do, in the areas you wish to do them, then you will have known it donkeys years ago – certainly in the case of most people under 30 since before they even left education.
The Cymraeg policy was never hidden and was always openly talked about by all of the parties and always has been. It is a 4 generation thing (ie 100 years). If you didn’t know this then you either walk around with your eyes shut or are stupid.
Again we come back to the fact that the only people in Wales who cannot speak Welsh can’t because they are to lazy to learn. Obviously the fact that certain jobs are closed to them is not an issue of any importance to them – otherwise they would go and learn it.
Likewise it is not an electoral issue – if people were upset about it they wouldn’t vote for parties that support it – but the overwhelming majority do vote for parties that support it. Likewise if the party faithful had a problem they would attempt to overturn it or turn away – but they don’t. In fact it is accepted as electoral suicide not to support it – so much so that UKIP now support it (along with devolution).
More and more schools in Wales are becoming Cymraeg at the request of the parents and it is becoming more common now to find them in areas such as Port Talbot, Swansea, Cardiff and in places like Wrecsam, Deeside and Conahs Quay. It is spreading rapidly from it’s North West Wales heartland.
Is it a coincidence that the only support Ruck gets on this site is from someone who hates Welsh and Welsh-speakers and runs a blog of bigotry that mocks minority culture?
Just askin’.
To Taffia,
Whilst your zeal is to be commended, do explain why all the evidence( including Census data) concludes that Welsh speakers are in decline, and that your very own Welsh Language society has declared a ‘national emergency’ where the language is concerned.
This is in spite of Welsh medium schools receiving more money per pupil than English medium schools. Discrimination is of course, an art form in Wales.
All the best,
Julian
PS I don’t speak Welsh, albeit that I am reasonably adept in other European languages , not because I am lazy but simply because it is of no use to me, as is the case with the majority of people in Wales.
Mr Ruck is very carefully not addressing the fact of his being rejected by Welsh publishers and lying about it, or the statement he made, which I helpfully provided above for readers, in which he makes a bigoted comment about Welsh.
Why not?
Where is our fearless FOI campaigner here?
Mr Ruck:
1 – which Welsh publishers turned you down, when and for what books, please?
2 – Have you threatened any of them with action if they disclose the above facts in the course of investigation?
3 – What did you reply to them when they turned you down?
“This is in spite of Welsh medium schools receiving more money per pupil than English medium schools. Discrimination is of course, an art form in Wales.”
The above statement is a lie, by the way.
Welsh speakers are not in decline – you know very well that is raw unadjusted data (or at least it is to be hoped you are bright enough to know).
There are more welsh speakers than there have been for decades. The problem is that younger welsh speakers are moving to England for work to be replaced largely by old English retirees which, as you very well know explains the massive shortage of young people, the large-scale closures of schools because of the falling numbers of pupils and the rising average age in what is a largely static population.
The ‘National Emergency’ of the WLS is quite explicit that more needs to be done to stop young people moving away – we are literally turning into an old peoples home, particularly on the Costa Geriatrica, and the cost to the NHS of this double-whammy age distortion of young out, elderly in is chronic.
The numbers of welsh speakers in England is rising though which is a good long term trend..
The reason you don’t speak welsh Julian is because you are lazy. This is evidenced by the poor quality of your work.
“If, as Mr Waters maintains he did not receive my emails, then this merely illustrates yet again, how incompetent Welsh institutions are, does it not?”
No, it proves that email systems sometimes fail. I’ve known this happen with emails between publishers, for instance – in one case they had to resort to communicating by Skype. To suggest that this is somehow specific to Welsh institutions is very silly indeed, and evidence of bias.
“younger welsh speakers are moving to England”
There is an alternative theory – they prefer an English speaking environment and culture.
Why don’t you Cymraeg fanatics set up a Cymraeg version of Labour Uncut or are you too lazy and prefer an English speaking environment and culture.
Your last paragraph borders on the surreal. There is a belief in Wales that poor quality of written English is caused by not speaking Welsh. Is this what school children are taught in Welsh medium schools?
PS I would suggest OAP bashing is quite offensive to most people.
“Cymraeg fanatics” Mr Origami? You’re the one who only ever writes about Cymraeg, and spend his time either trolling about the language or putting up ludicrous minority-bashing guff on your so-called blog.
Imagine being so sad as to be obsessed by a language you don’t speak. Bizarre. You’re the Cymraeg fanatic – other people just speak Welsh.
I concur Mr Roadway. I’d also like Julian to explain the term ‘language nationalism’? I’ve never heard anyone else use it, it’s etymology seems unclear and its definition baffling.
The term ‘Welsh language nationalists’ strikes me as meaning ‘Welsh person who is bilingual’. Can Julian clear this up?
I’m glad Lee Waters responded to Julian’s latest pack of lies. I would give someone the benefit of the doubt, but seeing as this article looks like unsubstantiated rubbish, I won’t. Also, julian, your track record and reputation is terrible.
dave!…call me an individual or original but the correct term for the language is Cymraeg I believe.
PS I am not obessesed dave, I just have a worry about democracy in Wales.
Maybe you are a democracy basher dave?
Mr O, the correct English term for Welsh, which I don’t speak, is … ‘Welsh’.
I have consulted your blog, and it is entirely about how much you hate and fear Welsh and its speakers, so yes, you are an obsessive. Not least because all your comments here and elsewhere are about Welsh, regardless of the tenor of the articles you’re commenting on. You also mock Welsh names, Welsh culture and lie about Welsh-medium education. You are not an ‘original’, just a bizarre crackpot with a phobia of minorities and a paranoid sense that ‘democracy’ is defunct because things you hate – mainly Welsh – have a place in a political culture which is consensually accepted and agreed by the parties we – democratically – vote for.
Your attack on Lee Waters, a non-Welsh-speaking journalist who has the measure of Ruck’s bull****, for being a member of a welsh-speaking elite is a case in point.
when you are defined only by what you hate and fear, you’re an obsessive.
It doesn’t get much clearer than that, I’m afraid.
dave rodway et al:
WHY, I ask you, if Mr.Waters has nothing to hide,and especially as the new IWA director is he afraid to hold an Open Debate on the subject of subsidies in Welsh publishing?
Furthermore the previous director ,John Osmond also refused numerous requests to do so.
If Julian Ruck is in fact such a, ‘waste-of-space’ and telling, ‘porkies’ [to quote Abell’s use of nursery language ] why is IWA afraid of a direct confrontation ?
I would be glad to be enligthened, Lee.
Mr r
I worry that since devolution the 2nd rate, amateur…very amateur “politicians” that have occupied the Assembly building have have created a mess that gets worse with every day they occupy the place. By creating a cartel among the parties with no opposition will get us into a further mess.
The “blog”as you call it, is my artwork and I am submitting it to the Art Council to Wales.
PS I haven’t attacked Lee Walters – your nasty mind is losing it dave.
Can Julian Ruck clarify the matter of his submitting novels to Welsh publishers in the hope of getting them published (by subsidised presses): how many, when they were rejected (which they were), and what he replied to said publishers?
It’s important to know whether a man who claims to oppose funding for publishers has an axe to grind, or indeed whether he once sought to benefit from said funding by – as he did, as everyone knows – being published by those he now attacks.
FOI and all that!
Julian know you’re role and shut your mouth jabroney
I’m not sure it’s nasty – it’s more exasperated. You’re the one who spends their time attacking people on the basis of the language they speak and telling lies about the cost of Welsh education. You use an attack by Ruck on lee Waters to air your repetitive so-called grievances against one thing – Welsh – and moan on about referendums when your anti-devolution lot got thumped in the last one.
Gillian Brightmore is the recipient of a handsome arts council grant (taxpayer-funded), which she fails to mention, so I’m sure your ‘blog’ is in with a chance there!
So we have reached the point where the English speaking majority are now barred from obtaining employment in Wales? and dave thinks that is OK.
…and dave’s rational?
Cos u is a minority basher.
Some justification dave.
“So we have reached the point where the English speaking majority are now barred from obtaining employment in Wales?”
Mr O,
As you know full well, but continue to lie about: there is no such point, because we are not barred from employment in Wales. I say this as a member of the English speaking majority who has a job in Wales, oddly enough. Not sure who or what you are, but you are a serial one-issue fantasist.
Which is why you are a minority-basher, and not unlike those who fulminate about jews running all the banks etc.
What you indulge in in your blog and here is classic mix of deceit, paranoia and fear of the Other. We’ve seen where that leads across Europe and for most of last century.
Some legitimate questions have been raised here about whether Mr Ruck has made failed attempts to get his work published by publishers he now attacks, and whether or not he has sought to silence people about the truth of his woeful submissions to those he relentlessly attacks.
If Labour Uncut had any integrity, they’d ask him to come clean about his own conflict of interest here.
It must surely be time for an English Language Commissioner.
I worry about some of the people who have posted above just another round of anti welsh point scoring