Easy Answer to Deadly Driving

I've got a solution to would-be killers who use their cars as weapons - grab them. Right there and then. Take the means to murder out of their hands.

William Ray, 23, was doing 149mph in his Porche Boxter on the M25 when he was caught. He's now disqualified for just six months. Motoring organisation boss Simon Best said: "149mph equates to two and a half miles in a minute. If anything goes wrong you are unlikely to walk away and you are a grave danger to innocent road users around you."

Do you want to share the road with this lunatic when he gets behind the wheel in a few weeks time? Thought not.

If we took away his prized Porche, at the time of the offence, no argument accepted, then he would have to walk home. Ban him too. We could sell the car to help victims' charities. If idiots like him realised this was the inevitable outcome of his lethal driving would he slow down? I think so.

Teachers Take Holidays in Term Time Too?

Fair cop - I did it. Took the kids out of school in term time. For snow days. or holidays, or even to visit their grumpy gran. Bad parent, but in fairness it never happened after infant school.

Except once, when we wanted to go to the States after one of us recovered from a life-threatening illness. We owed it to ourselves - but we had to jump through hoops because the rules had changed and without detailing the 999 calls, the surgery and the years of anxiety it was a no go. The head had the final say.

Was she right? Too many kids are kept away for silly reaons. What about the teachers? We have two in the family. If they want a holiday in term time is it ok for Tyrone to have a stand-in for two weeks when he is struggling with maths GCSE?

More than 200,000 parents have signed a petition seeking to change rules imposed by Education secretary Michael Gove. How about we just go back to the old days, when two weeks a year out of school was the limit. Fine the parents if they can't keep to that. That's fair and would save us all an expensive and pointless judicial review. 

Stephen Sutton And A Life Well Lived

So sad to hear that Stephen Sutton has died. His mum's heart is breaking with pride and pain.  Stephen knew he was dying but refused to fade away. He made a bucket list and lived his remaining days to the full, hoping to raise £10,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust. His courage  touched millions and he quickly passed the £3m mark

When he had to go back into hospiial as his bowel cancer took it's tolll, 19-year-old  Stehen  put a big smile on his face and said,"It's been a great life!' He showed no self pity, only gratitude for the days he lived to the full.

He even joked that he was sorry to disappoint the snipers who saw a brief respite in his condition as a sign that he was not as ill as he said. Stephen left the ward for only a few days before returning. He died early this morning. His mum mourns her " courageous, selfless and inspirational son."  What a man.

Gods Spit Fury

Allan is very angry. He is letting off steam to fellow god Jevon. "The stupid fools have let me down again! Idiots, all of them! Taken a whole lot of girls and sold them, sold them you hear, because they say I don't want women to go to school!"

"Tell me about it!" says Jevon, "I've had them killing thier own kids. Letting them bleed away the life I gave them! Doctors I bless with intelligence and healing have to sit by and watch. They've learned nothing! Zilch. Unbelieveable!"

"I thought I'd seen the worst of it when they flew those planes into tall buildings. Shouted my name as they did it! They reckon that got them right into my good books! They spatter bits of themselves and everyone else all over the street and my name is the last word they utter. 

"Makes me look like a right tosser!"

Kindness for Mum who Killed

Three lovely little kids are dead by their mother's hand. Three beautiful toddlers who also suffered a terrible disease. It's enough to make a paramedic weep on the job - and that takes a lot.

But to add to the tragedy the mother is not allowed to talk to anyone. Not her distraught husband, her friends or the beautiful daughter she has left. Her solicitor, My Lloyd Marshall, said: " No one is allowed to see her at all, not even friends."

Why? What difference would it make? Surely she is in 100 degrees of hell right now. Why would seeing a friend make matters worse? This is someone who struggled, fought and lost. No one can judge her unless they know all of the facts and that's impossible without inhabiting her head.

We all know what she did. Compassion is all that is needed now.

Phish Food

Odd folk us pet lovers. We think we know what's best for the little blighters.A fish lover gave his gourami prawn cocktail crisps. Gerty, a 40cm fish, blushed pink instead of her usual grey. Too many additives.

So now the London Aquarium is  feeding her a healthier diet - grapes and bananas. Since when did fish eat grapes and bananas? Last time one was lounging on a beach perhaps.

Grapes and bananas! Of course they know best, these aquatics people. Obviously looked it up. We feed our dog Marley chicken and rice, plus kibble twice a day, every day, no change. Apart from the odd bit of carrot. And sup of tea. A new delicacy just discovered and whined for piteously.

Bound to affect him. Got to - but how?

Why Our Kids Hate Maths

At last it's official - our schools are rubbish at teaching maths. Kids in the Far East do better. Go into any primary and it's easy to see why. I did - and stood back amazed as they taught three different methods of doing a sum.

Don't get it this way? Try this. Still not sure? Here's another way. Not got it yet - have a shot at this then. 

Instead of trying one method until everyone was happy with it they kept moving the goalposts. Kids who were confused at first ended up hopelessly lost by the time they had not understood the third, new, method.

Teachers said it was because not everyone would understand one method. Yes they will, just explain it properly to them, explain it again if they fail to grasp it and carry on until - bingo! - they've got it. The way I learned as a kid.

The way my kids learned, all of them excellent at maths. Not because of the schools. They did Kumon, invented by the Japanese. Simple.