Night mission- November 1941

Frost on the ground
crunches underfoot to the sound,
and vibrations of twin wasps.
Into the belly, the keeper of the brain
to the nerve centre for a seat
in the cold hardness of war.
Moving slowly o'er the grass
and into the reaches of space.
Into the arms of a waiting enemy,
and wishing forever for home........

© George Murphy September 15, 1995

This is one I done some time ago. Picture a Newfoundland pilot crawling into one of these planes on a cold winter night. The pic is a plane called the "Beaufighter", the type used by the 125 Newfoundland squadron in England. Not the same call letters on this one, but might have been a scene that could have taken place when one of our boys took to the English skies. The squadron later converted to Mosquito's. They started off on Bolton Paul Defiants before going to Beaufighters.

I have a few more bits of poetic justice that I'll put up here in the coming weeks, particularly as we get close to Remembrance Day.

Duelling Poets
or
Dar, dar dar, dar, dar, dar, dar, dee, dar…..


So, we hear the Pickards are done, caput
So sad to see them go.
They’re relegated to play the bard
in some poetic overflow.

In exchange for journalistic fun
They threw lines out in befuddlement,
Alas, no more to get the CBC buck
that small entitlement!

And now, you say, with sharp wit
from this enduring coast of fog.
There has to arise that great white hope
maybe heard about in news or blog?

They’re to inform, cajole, banter,
And get the people talking.
Like the gossipy government worker,
off for dinner and Kent’s Pond walking!

It’s there that you might find him
Walking off poetic prose.
Or it’s her in the Mall a shopping
For Christmas gifts I s’pose!

No wait! That’s her a driving
To her law firm on the streets there just off Water.
Or maybe it’s him in CBS
Who wants to help in poetic slaughter!

They’ll all have to have the streetsmarts
Match words like Harper and Ignatieff
That Harvard raised Canadian
Who didn’t follow Kruschev!

Good hunting I say I hope you find
the replacement for the Dual Pickard poets.
Dunno where you’re gonna look?
C’mon people. Don’t be afraid to show it.

So, what’s the chances of poetic licence
Under the guise of the CBC?
Well, you have to come up with your own words
Get your own rhymes people and leave mine be!

Oh my Geoff what was the trick
The Pickards all played on us?
Why did they plan this vengeance
And start up all this fuss?

They’ve asked us all to go the line
Ah so, what’s the poetic diff?
I still can’t think of a single word
To rhyme with Ignatieff.

I’m trying here Geoff
To think of something to go with entitlement.
But I can’t come up with a thing
To meet the Pickard’s enlightenment!

Ahh, I guess I won’t , but,.. no!… Just wait
I just took that mental jog.
And your listeners can find this piece
right in George Murphy’s Blog!

Cuzz see, I’ve just upped the ante,
And let have it all real nice.
Couldn’t I just find the words,
And with that, I think I got ‘em twice!

The challenge there for all to see
For the next in line of the CBC airwaves bards,
To boldy go with poetic rhyme
And go one up on the dual Pickards!

© George Murphy October 18/06

Why I'd fill the heating oil tank...

Keeping an eye here to heating/stove oil pricing and I'm thinking that NOW might be a good time to top the tank off and here's the reasons why...

While spot pricing for heating/stove oils dropped back the past couple of weeks, pricing for heating/stove oils have rebounded slightly in the face of possible OPEC cuts that are coming in the next two days.
Spot prices have, in fact, reached a point where any more upwards volitility may lead to early interruption of prices to the important winter commodity. The last three days average a 1.8 cent a litre increase but it's the last business day that is alarming. Yesterdays trading price was 3.6 cents over my month-end fix of 48.10 cents a litre.
Two more good days where heating/stove oil trades up and the possibility is there for interruption of pricing.
That means you'll get to pay a little more for it...

While the numbers could trade down enough in the next day or so enough to prevent early interuption of pricing, that doesn't mean that they'll head downwards.
Au contraire!...
Remember...We're now into the winter heating/stove oil demand season and there are enough conditions out there that warrant close watching by the consumer.
1) Possible OPEC cuts to production.
2) Draws on inventory, or lower than expected production of heating/stove oils.
3) Colder weather. That'll be enough to increase demand ahead of refineries going through the changes to produce heating/stove oil-what they like to call "maintenance".
4) The winter demand season. Because the product is in need at this time of the year, prices have the tendency to rise along with the season.

If Interruption happens, look for the possibility over the next few days as the OPEC news breaks and the markets swallow what they'll tell them and translate that into news the companies like to hear, an increase in pricing to come.

That's it from me for now,

Regards,

George Murphy
Group researcher/Member
Consumer Group for Fair Gas Prices
gasprices@hotmail.com

Gasoline to Drop...

Not much Change in Heating/Stove oils

Hi to all...
Latest numbers are showing a 1.8 cent a litre drop in gasoline pricing to come to Newfoundland and Labrador while heating and stove oils may not show that much change.
Here's the reason I say that (on heating/stove oils).
According to the last couple of days data, namely from the 9th to the 11th, I have had three sources giving me three different numbers on spot pricing of the products. If I go by the lower number, that shows a .96 cent a litre drop, in other words, almost a cent. If I go to the higher number the markets threw out, that number gets less than that.
In other words, there may be no change.
The latest market news of a drawdown on heating oil inventory is now another reason why I'm telling everyone to fill their tanks now.
Todays data from the Energy Information Administration shows a drawdown on inventories that was larger than what was expected to the commodity.
Add to that, the fact that we are about to enter the winter demand season and we have the imputus to a future increase in pricing.
I reccomend that you all fill your heating/stove oil tanks ASAP.
I have to look at my data after final prices come into effect to know what was the right one to begin with.

Airline News-Please read and pass it on...
As some of you are aware, I am pursuing the whole "fuel surcharge" deal where, the airlines charge extra on airfares to help offset the "increased cost" of jet fuel.
The Air Transport Association of Canada was out this week in response to clims from myself that it was time to reduce the surcharges in light of drops to jet fuel pricing along with drops in crude oil.
They say they're not going to budge.
In an interview with CBC New Brunswick http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2006/10/11/nb-airfuel.html the industry sopkesperson said that "the recent drop in prices are helping the companies make up for losses."
Beg your pardon?...

The airlines of this nation seem to forget that the fuel surcharge the consumer is paying was meant to catch up with the extra costs associated with fuel costs in the first place, were they not?

The facts are these:
1. Three international airlines have now dropped some, or all, of the fuel surcharges they were charging on airfares, so much so, that I can now put about $50 US in my pocket merely by flying with them. KLM, El Al and Lufthansa, have all dropped surcharges on passenger tickets.
2. Air Canada, Canjet, Westjet have yet to move. Air Canada is a member of the Star Alliance that also includes Lufthansa. If lufthansa can drop rates on travel, surely the National airline can?...
3. Jet fuel pricing has dropped from an average of 68 cents a litre ($2.20US a gallon) to roughly 51 centa a litre($1.70 a gallon) since July. Fuel surcharges have been added to ticket pricing since last March by Air Canada. Capture your market share by dropping your price!

STAY TUNED IN ON THIS ONE.

Regards for now,

George

Hang in There Baby!

Keep an eye to the blog in the coming day or two as, I will have details on impending drops in gasoline and heating oils.

Remember...

Heating oils may drop in the next day or two but we are now in the demand season for the fuel and the international situation may move things back up again. While crude is dropping, the heating oil price is beginning to "even out" a little so, when that price drops, I'd fill the oil tank.

I'll post the release in a day or two, and that will have all the gory details on what's to come, probably the morning of the 12th.

Should show somewhere around 96.6 or so for the st. John's area...

Regards,

George

Well people?...
I think it's time for the airlines, worldwide at that, to drop some of their ticket surcharges!
Time to make a noise I think!

George

News release


Jet fuel prices are dropping…

Time for the airlines to remove some charges from consumers’ ticket prices

Paradise, NL. October 04,2006 – While the price of oil has been dropping and resulting commodity prices for gasoline and heating oils have dropped at the consumer level also, the price of airline tickets has not been as responsive to declining crude oil costs.

Consumers everywhere including Newfoundland and Labrador and the rest of Canada as a result, are paying too much for airline tickets that were increased as a result of increasing jet fuel costs. According to Murphy, they've dropped radically in recent weeks.

“While the price for jet fuel has seen a dramatic drop in recent weeks, we have not seen the airlines drop fuel surcharges that consumers were forced to pay as a result of those same increased costs. Prices have dropped and so should airline ticket prices,” said George Murphy, group researcher for the Consumer Group for Fair Gas Prices in St. John’s,NL.
“The last time Air Canada increased surcharges on a consumer level, jet fuel prices were recorded by the US Energy Information Administration at almost 68 cents a litre Canadian. Since yesterday, that same price has decreased to 51 cents a litre, a 17 cent a litre drop for which consumers are on the hook.”

All the Canadian airline companies, Air Canada, Westjet and Canjet, applied fuel surcharges to consumers in the face of rising crude oil costs.
Consumers in Canada have been faced with increasing airline ticket prices since the winter of 2001 when crude oil prices started to skyrocket. In recent weeks, crude oil pricing has dropped almost $15 US a barrel.
“The airlines should be honest and up-front with the consumer and give back what they so desperately wanted just a few short months ago. We gave then, are giving now and it’s time the airline industry return the favour and they should act retroactively for anyone about to take a trip.” He said.

-30-


For more information, contact:

George Murphy
Group researcher/Member
Consumer Group for Fair Gas Prices
gasprices@hotmail.com

Rebranding

Now they've taken our colours

from that burgundy to Tory blue,

So, I have to change my Newfoundland tartan

because they'll want to change that too...

Oh, Here we have party colours

and on my knapsack I'll have to stitch'er,

but it's the first time I ever saw that plant

this time, without the pitcher!

Well, the experts got together

and set out designs on the cabinet table,

a limited target audience,

these were the ones enabled?

How much did they say they paid for that?

For a million they missed the Target,

for a cartoon look and feel

They want to take that to market?

God guard thee Newfoundland and Labrador

from sun-up to sun down,

please change their minds from this look and feel

that looks like something from a clown...

George Murphy

I simply couldn't resist!...The only thing I did like about this was the type of font used. Other than that, the weak link to Labrador and the sick looking Pitcher Plant...and dropping the old Newfoundland and Labrador reddish-ocre colour.Call it burgundy, but I loved it.