Thankfully ( /sarc ) Starmer and the Labour Party have acted swiftly to cancel by-elections in many areas of the UK. “Democracy dies” through the Left clinging to power here and in Europe.

Dear UK,
As a lover of your country, I sadly believe that you have only one solution to your corrupt, inept, and anti-British government. We had only one solution back in 1861, and got through it. The left will not give up, and they truly deserve what they should get if you and other Brit patriots can sum up the courage...and the arms.

I expect all 500 protesters will be arrested.

More info ---

" 'It is important to understand that this is not a Home Office consultation. "This is a proposal being driven by a private business, Clearsprings Ready Homes."
Source: Home Office 'not behind' asylum seekers plan in Welsh village North Wales Live, 15 January 2026.
"The proposition is part of the Government's pilot scheme to move asylum seekers from hotels and private landlords to new or refurbished properties following anger over the multi-billion-pound accommodation bill.
"Protests erupted earlier this month in Crowborough, Sussex, with 1,000 residents taking to the streets to protest against plans to house hundreds of migrants."
Source: 'Keep our kids safe!' Plans to house asylum seekers in Welsh village spark outrage among locals GBNews, 17 January 2026.
" 'It is important to understand that this is not a Home Office consultation. This is a proposal being driven by a private business, Clearsprings Ready Homes. To my knowledge, this is now the third time in recent years that Clearsprings has brought forward a proposal for this site. On the previous two occasions, the proposal was formally objected to by Wrexham County Borough Council'."
Source: Wrexham Council to object to proposal to house asylum seekers in former care facility The Leader via MSN, 15 January 2026.
While the government and a "private company" try to politick this, one learns that "Clearsprings Ready Homes is a British company which provides housing services, primarily for the Home Office. Clearsprings have operated all asylum seeker housing in Wales since 2012, and have also operated asylum seeker housing in England. Accommodation and services provided by Clearsprings have been repeatedly investigated and criticised for their poor quality, with some asylum seekers living in what has been described as "dire living conditions...."

Simple picture. A "private" entity working for the UK government and using UK government funds is bacially running "dire living conditions" slums.

Proof?

"...allegedly breaking housing law nearly 40 times.
Source: Housing company fined £140,000 over poor state of Swindon homes Swindon Advertiser, 14 January 2026.
"There have been several allegations that asylum-seekers housed in Clearsprings-operated accommodations have suffered sub-standard treatment.
"Clearsprings houses about 30,000 asylum seekers across southern England, London and Wales.
"The company leased houses in Swindon as part of its contract with the Home Office to provide housing for asylum seekers."
Asylum housing firm avoids prosecution for breaches BBC, 16 January 2026.

Basically well-connected chappies involved in what surely seems good, old fashioned fraud. Rather like those Somalis here. And....

"...Graham King, an Essex businessman who has accumulated a £750 million fortune, partly through taxpayer-funded government contracts.
"King's business empire includes Clearsprings Ready Homes, which has provided asylum accommodation to the Home Office since 2000. Clearsprings currently receives a whopping £3.5 million a day for asylum housing and transportation, even though the company has long been accused of providing substandard and unsafe accommodation.
"The Guardian reported in 2019 that hundreds of asylum seekers were crammed into Clearsprings accommodation which was overrun by cockroaches, rats and mice. Lawyers described the sites as 'depraved' and likely unfit for human habitation.
Source: Asylum housing tycoon is among the UK's wealthiest – here's what conditions are like inside the properties his company runs the Conversation, 22 May 2024
Note that last source's date. Almost two years ago. Fat cat in business working on fat cats in government grants get rich. So, yup, basic corruption. Courtesy of illegal, incontrolled migration and fraud.

Welcome to the “New World Order”

Wait no empty prisons or offshore islands where they could put tents ?

I hope we have as much guts to demonstrate like they do.

My Welsh ancestors are fuming in their graves. And our Corgis, past and present, are planning revenge.

Most painful thing they can biter off? Yep, that thing.

My great grandfather emigrated from Wales to the USA in 1863. Other members of his family and neighbors arrived before and afterward. As I was doing my family history research, I discovered a fair number of my relatives still live in the general vicinity of Aberystwyth. One of my cousins is an avid genetic genealogist. I uploaded my DNA file from ancestry and confirmed a solid genetic relationship to him on a specific chromosome unique to him and my great grandmother.

I'm dismayed at the leftist pantywaist denizens of the Welsh Senedd. They are pro invader, anti-native Welsh in their words and deeds. It will take a serious cleaning out of members of the Senedd to make any headway against the social and financial damage they are doing.

Luckily, my second cousin Walt found me about 25 years ago and filled me in on our family history. My penniless ancestors, a brother and sister, walked from Kidwelly, Wales to the nearest English port. No possessions, just the clothes on their back and some kind of yarn spinning machine.

Landed on the island of Nevis, indentured servants who couldn’t read. He cut down trees, a job too hard to waste valuable Black slaves on, and she was a “spinner” Apparently something there could be turned into yarn. Worked on Nevis for five years to pay off their bills for transport on ships, then were dumped on US shore in what became North Carolina.

At some point, they set off on a trail for “The West” to claim land of some sort. Stopped and went North, ended up almost freezing to death in Missouri and Idaho. My dad was the kid who broke out of poverty even though he never finished high school...SMART....I grew up in a beautiful house with a pool in the best neighborhood in what was ranked a few years ago as the “7th wealthiest “ suburb in America.

Given our family history, I have ZERO patience with or compassion for the poor poor immigrants illegally crashing through our borders and adding zilch to our country.

Footnote: In 1966, I was in Stanley Park in Vancoucer, BritishColumbia. Saw a nice boy walking a dog. Instantly fell in love with the dog. “What kind of dog is that””

“A Welsh Corgi”

Got home and bought one. Before internet, had to read ads in dog magazines. “Brymore’s Big Joe” arrived at the Chicago airport soon after and we’ve had Corgis ever since. Little blood brothers and sisters.

Did the village vote for immigration?

My great grandfather worked in the lead mines near Ysbyty Ystwyth until he grew too big to enter the mines around age 11. His father had died of tuberculosis, so his uncle adopted all of the children. They lived in Llanfihangel-y-Creuddyn and tended sheep for the family business. The family business was making shoes for the lead miners as well as generating wool and meat from slaughtered sheep. My great grandfather's mom admonished him to "avoid the evil shoe business". Shortly after being assigned work tending the sheep, he made his exit to Liverpool where he worked until age 18. At that point, he signed on as "ship's company" to cover his voyage to the US. On arrival he found his sweetheart from Aberystwyth living in Pittsburg, PA. He wanted to make a good impression on her father as a prelude to marrying her. He chose to join the Union Army. Boot camp was held on a flat bed rail car rolling to the front. He and his fellow soldiers were poorly trained and were captured by the Confederates. He languished in a Confederate POW camp from 1863 until 1865. When released, he married my great grandmother and they raised 19 children. My grandfather and his twin brother were born in 1887. All of the children graduated from college. Many of them became farmers and engineers. My grandfather was a civil and mechanical engineer with many patents for machinery and cement pipe designs. He was often consulted for help in designing factory floor manufacturing equipment by Charles Kettering. When not designing machinery, my grandfather was working for the Bureau of Reclamation building dams and canals.

I have zero patience with calls for "reparations". My family doesn't owe a penny to those grifters. Likewise, nothing is owed to the invaders here illegally and stealing from the taxpayers.

I admire Welsh corgis. The face of a collie. The body of a dachshund. I have a mini black and tan dachshund. She's is my little sweetheart. My wife just acquired what was advertised as a "jack russell terrier". She has very long legs, a very long body and ears that stand straight up. We had a DNA test done. She is 50% chihuahua and easily 20 other breeds. She is also a total sweetheart. My pups make my days better.

Forget it. The Britons no longer are armed. They gave their guns.

Their island nation is now a dystopian nightmare and they’re begging Trump to save them.

You can go to You Tube and see these videos for yourself.

I never in my life thought I would see this happen to these people.

They’ve lost their minds.

These people probably laughed at and sneered anyone who warned these things would happen. Now look at them.

....” He was often consulted for help in designing factory floor manufacturing equipment by Charles Kettering”

Amazing. Really smart guy.

I was friends with Kettering’s granddaughter, Susan, who lived four blocks from me in Hinsdale, IL when we were high school. She died a couple of years ago and left $20 million to her University; undoubtedly more millions to her family.

AND, I had a Dacshund named Trudi when I lived there. Just one cat now, Daisy, who is a real handful. Vet laughed when I first took her in,”She’s a tri-colored Tabby, very smart and very fierce”. She was definitely the alpha kitien of the litter, which is what I liked about her. However, she’s still the alpha, relegating me to beta in my own home.

Cats rule.

No two ways about it, blood must be spilled. It’s tough to see such passivity in a once proud people.

I was friends with Kettering’s granddaughter, Susan, who lived four blocks from me in Hinsdale, IL when we were high school. She died a couple of years ago and left $20 million to her University; undoubtedly more millions to her family.

Very cool. My dad grew up in Grand Rapids, MI. His dad ran a cement pipe factory. The cement pipe factory was built on land owned by my grandfather. He permitted building the plant for 51% ownership and agreement to build his designs. He designed the equipment that made the pipes. An aside, my grandfather was offered the position of brigidier general to head up the building of the AlCan highway. It would have been a real great opportunity. He was summoned by the Secretary of War where he was told how critical the products of his cement pipe company were to the war effort. He told the Secretary that he would have all the pipe he needed and turned down the opportunity to build the AlCan highway. My grandfather and Kettering lived at an interesting time. A couple really talented engineers.

I asked grok to dredge up his company name. A biography follows.

Chester Elmer Edwards: A Biography

Chester Elmer Edwards (1887–1971) was a prominent leader in the American concrete pipe manufacturing industry during the first half of the 20th century, renowned for his contributions to infrastructure materials production and industry advocacy. Born on May 20, 1887, in Shawnee, Perry County, Ohio, Edwards relocated to Michigan, where he became a pivotal figure in the operations and growth of the Lamar Pipe and Tile Company in Grand Rapids. The company was a major producer of reinforced concrete sewer, culvert, and cast cement pipe products. His career spanned the interwar period and extended into World War II, when such materials were essential for wartime construction, civil engineering projects, and post-war rebuilding efforts. Edwards married Elsie May Dunn on June 15, 1920, and they resided primarily in Michigan.

Early Career and Industry Leadership

Edwards rose to prominence in the concrete products sector during the 1920s and 1930s, a time of rapid expansion in U.S. infrastructure driven by urbanization, road building, and sanitation improvements. He was affiliated with Lamar Pipe and Tile Company, located at 2696 Chicago Drive SW in Grand Rapids, which specialized in durable, reinforced concrete pipes for municipal and agricultural use. Under his influence, the company became a regional leader, supplying materials for projects like prestressed concrete bridges in Michigan.

In 1933, Edwards was elected chair of the American Concrete Pipe Association (ACPA, now the American Concrete Pipe Association), serving until 1935. In this role, he represented Lamar Pipe and Tile on the national stage, advocating for standardized manufacturing practices, quality control, and industry regulations during the Great Depression. His leadership helped stabilize the sector amid economic challenges, promoting innovations in pipe durability and installation techniques.

Edwards also served on key industry committees, including the regional administrative committee for the Concrete Pipe Manufacturing Industry, where he collaborated with peers on labor, safety, and production standards. These efforts were documented in federal reports on small business relief and code contributions under the National Recovery Administration (NRA) in the mid-1930s.

World War II Era and Contributions

During World War II (1939–1945), Edwards's company ramped up production to support military and civilian needs, including drainage systems for airfields, roads, and utilities. Grand Rapids' manufacturing base, including Lamar Pipe, benefited from wartime contracts, though specific details on Edwards's direct involvement in defense production are sparse. His pre-war emphasis on safety and efficiency likely aided the company's wartime operations, ensuring reliable supply chains for cast cement products critical to logistics and base construction.

Post-war, Lamar Pipe continued to thrive under similar leadership, contributing to Michigan's highway expansions and the state's concrete bridge inventory. The company was acquired by American-Marietta Company in 1954, marking the end of its independent era.

Awards and Civic Engagement

Edwards was recognized for his commitment to workplace safety, a pressing concern in heavy manufacturing. In the early 1940s, he received a $100 annual award from the National Safety Council (or a similar body) as the Michigan state chairman directing the most outstanding safety promotion program in his industry. This accolade highlighted his efforts to reduce accidents in concrete production, which involved hazardous machinery and materials.

Beyond business, Edwards appears to have engaged in local civic affairs in Grand Rapids, though records are limited. He may have served on housing or community boards, aligning with the era's focus on post-Depression recovery and wartime housing shortages.

Personal Life and Legacy

Edwards spent his active professional years (likely 1920s–1950s) in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He passed away on May 19, 1971, in Davison, Genesee County, Michigan, at the age of 83, and is buried in Old Scotland Cemetery, Jameson, Daviess County, Missouri. Genealogical records confirm his marriage to Elsie May Dunn (1891–1976), though details on children or other family members remain sparse in public archives.

Edwards's legacy endures through the ACPA's foundational work and the enduring use of concrete pipes in American infrastructure—many of which trace back to standards he helped establish. His tenure at Lamar Pipe exemplified the blend of technical innovation and leadership that fueled Michigan's industrial heartland during turbulent times. For deeper research, consulting local Grand Rapids historical societies, ACPA archives, or digitized city directories (e.g., Polk's) may yield more personal details.

Thanks for info on your fabulous grandfather. My daughter was born in Grand Rapids, so it’s a special place for us.

Interesting how alike Freepers are when you dig a little deeper into their lives. Similar ages, life experiences, world view.

Let’s take a deeper dive into that tomorrow after a good night’s sleep.