Get Yourself a Heavy Metal Tattoo

Hi Everyone

When my children and grandchildren said that they were hungry, my usual answer was that they had never been hungry in their lives. I do not pretend to be able to solve the problems between Israel and Palestine, but like most other people, I think that the situation there is and has been for at least the last three months - intolerable. When Israel said that they were going to eliminate Hamas, I said that it was something that would never happen. Although they claim to have killed many of its leaders, I would guess that Hamas now has more recruits and sympathisers across the Middle East than it had almost two years ago. Now we have entered the blame game where Israel is saying that food is being stolen by Hamas but even if some of it is being stolen, the world knows that nowhere near enough food is going into Gaza. As someone approaching middle age, I have read about a number of conflicts across the world, and on almost every occasion, my information has come from those brave war correspondents who have been on or near the front line. On this occasion, international correspondents have been barred by Israel from entering the territory on the pretext that they could compromise their tactical plans. Now all the news we get is from what is described as independent, trusted reporters who Israel apparently refuses to recognise. If Israel has nothing to hide and is comfortable that, in the circumstances, they are doing the right thing, all they have to do is allow international reporters into Gaza but in this complicated and fractured world we now live in, that all seems to be too simple. 

It is only in the last two weeks that I have been introduced to heavy metal ‘music’ as Ossie Osbourne - The Prince of Darkness, as he was known, has died. He was born about an hour down the road from here and apparently, with his group Black Sabbath, invented heavy metal. I have no idea what I was doing in the 1980s when this ‘music’ was popular, as the only heavy metal I knew about was when we were building a steel framed building.

While I have always been receptive to most kinds of music, having been exposed to this heavy metal over the last two weeks, all I can say is that I am very glad that it passed me by, and how Ossie Osbourne can be described as a singer is completely beyond me. Judging by the thousands who attended his funeral this week, it is probably another example of how much we are out of touch as we approach middle age. 

In a very early edition of this Rubbish about three years ago, I said that if I came back again, I would be a tattooist and my friend would come back as a tattoo remover, as that would give us a more lucrative living. I know that it is another of those age things, but I cannot understand why anyone would want a tattoo, and my imagination runs riot when I think of decorated old wrinkly skin in years to come. On a local social media site this week, someone was asking if anyone could recommend a tattooist. Within a couple of hours, about six different names came up in just our local area, so now I will have to reevaluate my career the second time around. On second thoughts, do I want to work another fifty years to watch our governments take ever more of my hard earned money, unless of course if I come back as the Prince of Darkness

Just a Thought:

War is what happens when language fails.

If WW3 is fought with the weapons presently at our disposal, WW4 will be fought with sticks and stones.

My friend told his family that he liked heavy metal. He got an iron anvil for his birthday.

Research shows that facial tattoos completely eliminate certain kinds of anxiety. For example, you will never have to worry about getting a job. 

Brian