Saturday 10 October 2009: It was the return of Nazi “Sieg Heil” salutes and the racists chants of, “If you all hate Pakis clap your hands” – something they say they are completely against – as the English Defence League (EDL) returned to the streets of the UK, this time it was in Manchester.

Despite last month’s Guardian newspaper exposing the EDL links to the Britsh National Party and other such groups, the EDL maintain they are non-racist, non-violent and a multicultural group with a membership of thousands across the UK.

Saturday’s EDL numbers must now draw concern that they can pull in a large crowd of up to 1000 people for their protests, with supporters travelling to Manchester from Southampton, Bristol, Arsenal in London, Wales and Scotland.

This may have had something to do with the England football match not being televised, but also the fact – as the interview shows – disillusioned, angry white youths are turning to the EDL in the face of the current social and economic ills, because they see no future in any other political group. That is something that needs addressing, and quick.

While the main demonstrations of EDL and UAF were kept apart by 500 police officers, at a cost of £200,000 to the UK taxpayer, clashes erupted in the surrounding streets leading to 48 arrests. Police used dogs to deter violence, but that only led to more violence, as numerous people from both protests and a several journalists suffered dog bites.

Move ahead, Wednesday 5 August, and Lloyds have lost £4bn in the HBOS takeover, a takeover paid mostly by the UK taxpayer, part of the £500bn bailout by the UK government in November 2008.

Has anyone thought to ask the question; did the Lloyds/HBOS funds get mixed up in the City bonus bin?

All material on this blog – stills, video and print – is (c) Jason N. Parkinson 2008. All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the AUTHOR for access to any material and the extensive four-year video archive.

jasonnparkinson@gmail.com

The London Aquarium has a wide variety of sharks, from Hammerhead to the notorious Sand Tiger. Speaking to the staff during feeding time we discovered those in the tanks had become so used to humans that when divers entered the tank the sharks ignore them. One staff member commented it would be better to see them in their natural habitat but it would be impossible to return these specimens to the wild.

While watching and filming these wondrous creatures you soon realise sharks are highly misunderstood, generally thanks to Steven Spielberg, although maybe the blame should be pointed at author Peter Benchley. But as one poster in the aquarium states, more people are killed by toasters every year than in shark attacks.

All material on this blog – stills, video and print – is (c) Jason N. Parkinson 2008. All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the AUTHOR for access to any material and the extensive four-year video archive.

jasonnparkinson@gmail.com

G20 organiser and University of East London Professor of anthropology Chris Knight was joined by Socialist Worker Party speaker Martin Smith and Samantha and Marci, the sisters of Sean Rigg, who died in police custody at Brixton police station in August 2008.

Demands were called for an end to police brutality, the end of criminalisation of protestors and the arrest and imprisonment of those officers involved in the death of Ian Tomlinson.

The films expose non-democratic processes by Brent Council to impose the ARK Academy school, how the national public opinion is now turning against academies as evidence proves the system is failing on a massive scale, a brief history of some Academy sponsors and how the American inspiration of academy schools segregates pupils by social class and economic status.

Local residents talk about the biased and misleading council-backed literature designed to sway them towards Academy schools and witnesses talk of the “vermin-ridden” Wembley site.

Wembley ARK Academy Head Teacher Jacqueline Steele is caught in a bold face lie, denying the children would be put at risk by being educated on a construction site, yet video evidence shows the temporary school site still under construction at a time when the first 60 pupils were being educated there.

Recent further investigation also gives an us an idea who is behind the ARK Charity, the most favoured academy school sponsor, and also shows it is the same faces trying to privatise UK state education that are the very same people behind the global economic crisis.

The Liberal Democrat campaign trail in the last Brent council election was in total opposition to the Academy School program, the brainchild of ex-prime minister Tony Blair. But as soon as they gained control of Brent they went about-face and started the most aggressive program to install the ARK Wembley Academy.

Enter Paul Marshall, co-founder of hedge fund Marshall Wace. Marshall invested £162,000 into the Lib Dems and was a researcher for Charles Kennedy. Marshall is also listed on the trustee/director page of the ARK Charity website.

With him you will find Stanley Fink, hedge funder, short seller, multimillionaire and regular donor to the Conservative party.

Also on the list of ARK trustees and directors is Jennifer Moses, who you may remember in the Goldman Sachs scandal. Her secretary managed to steal £1 million from her own savings. Moses, of the Lib Dem think-tank CentreForum, was appointed special advisor to Gordon Brown this year. Her job was to be advising the PM, from her £10 million Hamstead mansion, on finance and poverty. Further rumours claimed she would advise on PFI contracts, the Iraq war and non-taxation of the rich.

The most recent report to be found in this scour of the online newspapers said Moses backed out of the unpaid advisory job, due to her husband losing £20 million in the credit crunch.

All material on this blog – stills, video and print – is (c) Jason N. Parkinson 2008. All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the AUTHOR for access to any material and the extensive four-year video archive.

jasonnparkinson@gmail.com