Water is the "new" Oil!

I have just finished reading a sad new twist to the fate of war torn Iraq, after nearly six years ravaged by strife and the ruination of its infrastructure, a new and even more worrying fate is befalling it's beleaguered inhabitants.

The once mighty Euphrates river, once the "life bringer" to this cradle of civilization is drying up. It's tributaries are now just muddy ditches and the salinity close to the coast has reached such high levels that towns are being evacuated as thousands face drinking water shortages and their animals die.

Has this been widely publicised? For I have not seen any reporting in the run up to this new human tragedy. As if living under a tyrant for so many years was not enough, this new setback just compounds the living hell that has befallen this country. After being used as a battlefield by radical Muslims in their struggle with the west. Now the populace face the threat of massive droughts and power cuts as the river empties and the turbines in the hydro plants stop spinning due to a lack of river flow.

In the marshlands, the people who were subject to some of Saddam's worst atrocities, have a new battle against the dropping water levels, which they seem unlikely to win. This will lead to the subsequent destruction of their culture and way of life, something Saddam never managed to do.

A vast part of the problem, lies in the fact that country's higher up the Euphrates and it's tributaries have been damming and draining the river for their own needs, leading to a massive drop in river flows and water levels in Iraq.

How long can this go on, before military action over water, becomes the next excuse for carnage in the middle east. Is it not time, that the World as a whole, tried to address this problem, for without it, a country which was once a birthplace of civilization, will become nothing more than a stinking arid wasteland!

The BNP and the rise of Extremism

We recently had a BNP candidate in the small East Devon Town of Ottery St Mary. Not normally known as a "hot bed" of racial tension, but none the less, indicative of the spread of extremist politics to the leafy lanes rather than the "dark satanic mills" of the north of England...I felt the need to put "quill to parchment" on the subject, my comment reads below....

I am sure, that as the next few years unfold, we will see BNP candidates fielded in far more towns across the South west and support amongst the electorate growing. Sadly, this is the fault of a political class that currently run our country and are not prepared to listen to the worries of the ordinary man in the street. This is how extremism rises, we only need to look back a few scant years, to see the rise of Mussolini, Hitler and Moseley, all extremists, born out of the desperation of recession and depression when the working man and women were ignored by the elite political classes, they were treated like dirt and down trodden. The intelligent leaders of the far right, recognised this and pandered to their fears. Much as the BNP does today. Visit the BNP website and look at their "proposed policies", many of which are nothing more than the things folk worry about and discuss down their local. Bemoaning the fact that the government "never listens". One would have thought that a Labour government would have been more "in tune" with the "working man" but instead they have betrayed the very people who struggled to create their movement many years ago. These people then feel disenfranchised, they fall foul of job cuts, they see their life's work fall apart, their pensions wither, they see crime un punished and a policing system which protects the criminal and affords him or her "rights" whilst denying the victim any form of worthwhile justice. This heady recipe, is one that foments extremism and enables clever leaders to capitalise on peoples fears. Sadly, the "far left" are no better, stupid stunts like pressurising the chairman of Broadclyst Village Hall, so he cancelled a BNP event and "egging" Nick Griffin, only reinforce the BNP's cause, as it is seen that democracy is denied them. This helps them avoid debate in the public arena and thus the magnifying glass never shows the transparency of their policies or their failure to act in a manner which is suitable for a party within a democracy.
I personally do not think the rise in the support for the BNP has been solely down to the recession. We are inheriting the results of a generation of trendy "left wing" thinking, with no "moral yardstick", a generation of "Ethnic Diversity" that we didnt need, as we were all quite able to get on with our neighbours whatever their creed or colour. Unchecked immigration has caused many people to feel "strangers in their own land", yet the government fails to address the problem, those that question it are branded "rascist". Asylum seekers are wideley reported in the media, as being given endless benefits, whether true or not, the damage is done, friction is created. The opening of Europes borders, has made our border, only as weak, as the weakest border in Europe. Once in the EU, unchecked travel, gives illegal immigrants ease of movement, yet the government is so "In Thrall" of Brussels, we do nothing to halt it. Whilst all of these things seem small when taken singly, add them to the recession, the rising crime rate and unemployment and you have a fertile breeding ground. The government and the incoming government, need to address the fears of all folk, before we see history repeat itself, with equally bloody consequences to people of all races that live in this country.

The furore over the release of the "Lockerbie One" seems to be gathering pace, with a group of our "Special Friends" from across the pond having started a website calling for a boycott of England and Scotland...

http://www.boycottscotland.com

Having read their site from top to toe, i was minded to send them the following mail...


It was with some sadness I read your prolific and verbose diatribe on why "England and Scotland should be boycotted". My sadness was for the usual myopic "woe is us" attitude you have taken against a decision made by elected men and women in a free and democratic country. Or at least allegedly free and democratic. Do not misunderstand me, I have full sympathy for the men, women and children who perished on the plane, equal in measure to the sympathy I hold for innocent civilians murdered by American "Blackwater" terrorists in Iraq or those classed as "collateral damage" after raids in Iraq and Afghanistan. Human life is sacred, no matter what creed or colour and as a race of people the USA occupies no moral high ground whatsoever when it comes to killing people to further its business or political interests. Whether it be in Nicaragua, Iraq, the homelands of the Sioux or elsewhere on this "muddy ball" that we call home.

The freed bomber, should have remained in custody until the end of his life, for what he did. That is without question. But your campaign to destroy the jobs of ordinary men and women in the United Kingdom is as twisted as the intelligence you used to tell us that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction.
As a society, for years, you funded the IRA, sponsoring murders,kneecappings and summary torture and execution on the streets of Northern Ireland and bombings on the streets of the UK, yet it was only with 9/11 and the harsh results of terrorism being hammered home on American soil, you ceased your funding of murderers on our soil.

Now you cry wolf, now you shed tears of anger, because our leaders have decided to free this man. I do not agree with it, but I live in a democracy and the decision to free him was taken under a "democratic umbrella". That democracy was hard fought and won, by the generations who gave their lives during WW2 to ensure tyranny did not win. Sadly you cannot turn democracy on and off. Not all the decisions made will be agreed with by the majority, but the most important thing, is that the decisions are made with the political mandate, which has been handed to those in power, by those who have exercised their right to vote. I personally did not agree with our soldiers being sent to Iraq or Afghanistan, but I voted for the government and therefore abide by their decisions.

SO please stop this small minded anti British/Scottish nonsense and cast the microscope over the blood your countrymen have on their hands. The bible tells us: "Let he whom hath no sin, cast the first stone", perhaps you should put your basket of stones down and use them to "build bridges" instead.......

Plastic Glasses in pubs....

Oh my God, I thought "Big Brother Britain" couldn't get any worse, but I read today that the government is investigating the feasibility of forcing pub goers to drink from "Plastic Glasses".

Why you ask, is it "elf an safety", is it "greener", what other possible reason could the arbiters of our personal freedoms have for inflicting yet another blow to pub culture.

Well, you guessed it...Yes that's right, too many people are badly injured by thugs using beer glasses as weapons. So rather than increase deterents, or give prison terms to violent scum, our good old "PC government" are going to do what they do best. "Punish the majority of law abiding citizens" rather than deal with the scum......WOOP WOOP WOOPITY WOOP! what an awesome idea, I bet it took at least two "think tanks" and an "all party committee" to come up with that ludicrous infringement on our civil liberties. Working on the basis that there are also too many people severely injured by cars, I wonder how long it will be, before the government decide we must all drive foam rubber cars?

Who in heavens name comes up with this complete shite, surely they must have something more productive to do?

Warwickshire Police waste £1.4 million of Taxpayers money

Warwickshire police spent nearly £1.4 million pounds of Taxpayers money to police this years "Bulldog Bash". After a concerted campaign to stop it! Claiming it was a "Fund raising event for organised crime". During the weekend the following were the police figures from their own force web site...

Bulldog Bash – Operational Update

During the four-day operation a total of 450 officers and staff from Warwickshire Police and five other surrounding forces were on duty each day.

The operation resulted in:

* 448 people being searched.
* 11 people being arrested, including:

Two men from Birmingham, aged 41 and 44, were arrested in connection with a robbery in Reading.

One man from Hampshire, aged 44 years, was arrested on a recall to prison for fraud and theft offences.

One man from Lancashire, aged 33 years, was arrested for assault.

Six people were arrested on suspicion of drugs offences.

* In total nine lock knives were surrendered, small amounts of substances believed to be cannabis, cocaine and amphetamine were also recovered.
* There were also 13 street cautions for drugs offences and one for possession of an offensive weapon.

All at a cost of £1.4 million pounds. Now if my maths are correct, that is less than one person searched per officer on duty.

Out of 11 arrests, 3 were unrelated to the event. six were for drugs and 1 assault. Which out of a crowd of 23,000 people, I thought was awesome. As for 9 lock knives and a small amount of drugs seized, not exactly worth the investment of £1.4 million quid.

When the event has been well run and violence free for years.

If Warwickshire Police have that much money in the kitty that they can afford to waste it, I would like to suggest they donate it to "Help for Heroes", as our brave lads are up against real danger every day and paying the ultimate price. They could do with the support when they come home that £1.4 million would bring.....IMHO of course...

Late Night Blues

So, another day over on our little ball of mud and it's work tomorrow. Lets hope that the coming week brings the usual round of excitement and challenge we have come to expect. I wandered around the new Princesshay shopping centre today in search of a 21st present for my daughter. How does this temple to consumerism keep going, already there are empty shops and the ones that are still open are all in the middle of massive sales. Even then, the place was like a morgue! How long will these business's be able to keep going in this current economic climate and how long will it be before "joe public" finally wakes to the fact that as a country we are not only "morally bankrupt" but "financially bankrupt" as well. The government has led us down a path "paved with cash", only now the debts have to be paid and the public purse is empty. I fear the rise of extremist politics, brought on by the stark fact that ordinary men and women can no longer afford to live! Or at least not in the manner to which they have become accustomed, these hard working people are seeing those that do not work and those that sponge off the state, getting everything, whilst they fall by the wayside as their companies lay them off, or their business's go bust. Not exactly a recipe for happiness and contentment. The question that needs asking, is "will someone get a grip of the rudderless HMS Great Britain" before it founders on the rocks? or will Nu Labour just continue following their course to destruction.? Who knows? but someone really needs to for all our sakes.....

Lions Led By Donkeys

Yet again we see the coffins of more of our brave lads coming through "Wooton Bassett" on their way home from Afghanistan. When will Gordon Brown, do the one thing to restore his reputation and negate his lacklustre role in this sordid war and "PULL OUR TROOPS OUT"!

Historically Afghanistan is unwinnable, yet we the public are treated to the endless streeling BS that this government spouts to justify our role there. We are told that it is too "make our streets safe from terrorism", we are told it is to lessen the flow of drugs into this country, we are told the Afghans want us there. None of which cut any ice. We were told that we were in Iraq, because of WMD's only there weren't any. Dr Kelly was blatantly murdered by the establishment as he was an embarrassment to "B Liar and Co", without him putting a spanner in the works, TB could justify jumping on Bush's coat tails and going into Iraq.

The simplest thing we can do, is pull out our forces and bring them home, strengthen our Navy and patrol our coastline, using the Royal Navy and the Raf, backed by the Army on the ground. Any drug smugglers intercepted, just sink their cargo and send them back to wherever they came from. Simple and cheaper than prison. Stop people smugglers and maintain our sovereign integrity. Then we should ensure, that our troops are only sent abroad to intervene in areas where we have legitimate interests, or where the lives of British Nationals are at risk. Meanwhile, the Afghans and the Taliban, can happily bomb themselves back into the stone age and create a regime of their choice.

Long Time No Post

Well here we are, how time fly's when you are having fun! Nothing much has changed in the world, at least not for the better. Surprisingly the predictions from my Dec 2008 post came true and the recession is biting hard. The useless shower that is the "Labour Government" is still taking the country on a "one way trip down the shitter" and the general public seem more interested in the activities of this countries second rate media stars than they are in our ruination. "Dumbing down en mass methinks".

Budleigh Salterton remains the hotbed of "Latent Nimbyism", with every idea to bring a bit of life to the town being flamed by the "geriatrica" as usual. Perhaps that's what makes the place so quaint....?
The summer has been as crap as any of recent memory and I am sick of the sight of skint morose northerners, wandering around Exmouth and Budleigh without "two brass halfpenny's" to rub together. I know times are tight, but if you cant afford a holiday, don't take one. Stay and be miserable at home.

I have just come back from visiting the battlefields of Normandy and the First World Wars cemeteries around Ypres in Belgium. It is the second time I have been and it is just as sad as the first. We started at Pegasus Bridge and made our way back toward St Mere Eglise. For three days, then rode our motorcycles to Ypres and the surrounding memorials and sites of interest. Very sobering and something I think every British School child should do, alongside a visit to Auschwitz, Oradour Sur Glan and Anne Franks House.

Whilst away an old school friend asked me to write a letter on her behalf to our local MP Hugo Swire, she regularly reads my letters to the paper and required my skills as a scribe.

It would seem, that our "Caring Sharing Labour Government" is insisting on cutbacks within the NHS trust and locally, they are intent on closing several homes for mentally handicapped adults and "dumping them onto the vagaries of the profit led private sector care system" allegedly to give them "Choice"...Don't you just hate that word, these people don't want choice! they want care, attention, warmth and kindness. They want stability, tranquillity and a routine which allows them to lead a calm existence. What they don't want, is to be ripped out of a happy well ordered environment, where they have been for up to 15 years and plunged into some hell hole, where they are a "cash cow" not a human being.

Why why oh why is it always the ill, the handicapped and the infirm or elderly who suffer at the hands of Nu Labour. If they want to cutbacks, spend less on useless pen pushers, quangos,focus groups, ethnic diversity officers and all the PC bullshit that infests every nook and cranny of the public sector. I thought Blair was possibly the worst PM in my lifetime, but Brown is rapidly filling the boots that Tony left him.

Oh well rant over for now! back soon with some more tit bits from my world...........

The crunch!

Well, here we are, up crap creek without a paddle, our countries finances in ruins, unemployment rocketing, bankruptcies and repossessions rising, yet like "Nero" Gordon Brown, "fiddles whilst Britain Burns!" I fear that the situation now, will seem like a picnic, after the xmas period is over. With many businesses hanging on by their teeth in the vain hope of a Christmas rush, the New year will see a rush of further job losses and firms closing. The banks will start to pull in lines of credit and minimise their exposure where possible, leading to more personal bankruptcies and repossessions. All the while the "Great Gordo" will stand back and pontificate about his grandiose schemes to borrow more to get us out of trouble, when it is preciseley this borrowing culture that has led us here. It is time that the great British Public, awoke to the fact that our country has been "flushed down the shitter" by Blair, Brown and their Nu Labour cronies. Our once proud nation has been reduced to a giant benefit led, paper driven culture, where innovation and risk have been replaced by short termism and extreem greed . We do not manufacture anything anymore, our farmers have been decimated, so we need to import food, our North Sea Oil has been sold to pay for our benefit culture and our transport infrastructure has been allowed to fall into disrepair, due to a lack of maintenance and poor funding. Virtually every thing we buy, comes from China and all we have become reliant on, is "moving 0's and 1's" via computer keyboard, buying and selling debts and dodgy financial products, leaving ourselves open to a massive crash. To remain in power so long, Nu Labour have promoted excess spending with borrowed money, to instill a "warm fuzzy feeling in the populace", who have been labouring under an illusion of "good times" for far too long. Gordon says he wants to borrow more money to stimulate growth, yet why would this man wish to stimulate, what his party has done so much to destroy? Any money plowed into "growth" by Labour will be good money after bad, as Labour have presided over nil growth, whilst running the country. We need real growth! Innovation, Invention,long term risk and less corperate greed, to get things moving. Lets hope we see some and very soon........................

Fire Chiefs Earn, whilst their men burn!!!

Well here is a cracker, as reported in todays Western Morning News. It would seem that greed has no bounds in the eyes of those in the hierarchy of Devon and Somerset fire brigade.

Whilst Devon faces major swinging cuts in fire cover and manpower, fire Chief Paul Young and four other senior fire officers were awarded "more than £109,000 in wage increases". Their cynicism knows no bounds and I cannot believe how people in positions of power such as this can expect any respect from the fireman on the ground. This is at a time when fire fighters face daily attacks from yobs and scum whilst attending "shouts" and in some areas are being issued with "DNA" kits to get DNA samples from phlegm, which has been spat at them.

This, stinks and is just another example of mis management, greed and avarice, with public funds.

YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES!!!!

Saving Petrol

The British Solution to Save Petrol.

Gordon Brown wants us to cut the amount of petrol we use......

The best way to stop using so much petrol is to deport 3 million illegal immigrants!

That would be 3 million less people using our petrol. The price of petrol might come down..... Then

Bring our troops home from Iraq to guard the Channel....

When they catch an illegal immigrant crossing the Channel, hand him a canteen, rifle and some ammo and ship him to Iraq ...

Tell him if he wants to come to Britain then he must serve a tour in the military defending the freedoms that our troops have been fighting for....

Give him a soldier's pay while he's there and tax him on it.....

After his tour, he will be allowed to become a citizen since he defended this country.....

He will also be registered to be taxed and be a legal resident..... .

This option will probably deter illegal immigration and provide a solution for the troops in Iraq and the aliens trying to make a better life for themselves.. .....

If they refuse to serve, ship them to Iraq anyway, without the canteen, rifle or ammo.....

Problem solved.....

If you think this is a good solution to both the problems, forward it to your friends. .........

Nice Quote

Found today on a friends webspace....


The very existence of flamethrowers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, "You know, I want to set those people over there on fire, but I'm just not close enough to get the job done."


Ian

LEST WE FORGET

"AMENDED POST" The following post has been shown to be incorrect and part of a circulating e mail, falsely claiming the removal of the holocaust from the national curriculum.

Please see this link for more info:


http://www.boycottwatch.org/misc/UK-Holocaust.htm



IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE THIS YEAR...READ THIS AND ENSURE OTHERS READ IT TOO...


It is a matter of history that when Supreme Commander of the Allied
Forces, General Dwight Eisenhower, found the victims of the death camps, he ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and even made to bury the dead.

He did this because he said in words to this effect: 'Get it all on record now - get the films - get the witnesses - because somewhere down the track of history some bastard will get up and say that this never happened.'

In Memorial

This week, the UK removed The Holocaust from its school curriculum because it 'offended' the Muslim population which claims it never occurred.

This is a frightening portent of the fear that is gripping the world and how easily each country is giving into it.

It is now more than 60 years after the Second World War in Europe ended.

This email is being sent as a memorial chain, in memory of the
6 million Jews,
20 million Russians,
10 million Christians
and 1,900 Catholic priests
who were murdered, massacred, raped, burned, starved and humiliated while the German and Russia peoples looking the other way.

Now, more than ever, with Iran, among others, claiming the Holocaust to be a `myth`, it is imperative to make sure the world NEVER forgets.

This email is intended to reach 40 million people worldwide.

Be a link in the memorial chain and help distribute this around the world.

Don't just delete this. It will take a minute to pass this along.



'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil, is for good men to do nothing'.
Edmund Burke

Happy Birthday

Hey diddle e dee! it's birthday time for me, well at least it was on Friday. Today its the ex's birthday. So big birthday hugs to Rosemary, who is suffering from the nasty cold doing the rounds. Keep smiling xxxx

Happy Anniversary to me...

Only 11 days to go....yeeee harrrr!!! and its my anniversary. No not my wedding anniversary, but the third anniversary of me being knocked of my motorcycle and injured by that blind piece of human excrement TIM CHADWICK I am sure good old Tim will be enjoying the festive season with his "Born again Christian mates" all having a little jolly at this festive time. Well "Timmy Baby" I wont be having a jolly, because i am still suffering, looking forward to another visit to a back specialist on the 21st, because i am losing the feeling in my toes. Oh and of course your stinking insurance company still haven't settled. Because "oh yes, I forgot" you driving half a ton of ******* toyota into me, didn't cause me any long term problems, just exacerbated a pre existing condition!!! I do hope you never break any limbs in a ******* car accident, coz guess bloody what, once they have healed, I might just pop round and break them again, after all, they couldn't charge me, because i would only be exacerbating a pre existing condition!!! YOU ******
All I can say at this festive time of year, is "I hope you choke to ****ing death on a stuffing ball" at least you will get to meet your "chum upstairs"

Fuel Protest

I haven't been blogging for a while, but news of merit!! The action group transaction 2007 are organising a new round of fuel protests from Saturday 15th December. Look out for them at

http://www.transaction-2007.com/

Sign up and give them your ideas and support as to how we can protest about this total abuse of taxation!!

Ian

Great quote I heard today..

If you keep on doing what you have always done, you will only end up with what you always got.....

Now there's a recommendation to change!!

If you are searching the net for a T Shirt with a difference, visit the guys at :

http://www.threadless.com/

For some original T Shirts, which you will not find else where. You can even submit designs of your own, such as the superb "Communist Party"pictured by "Tom Burns" or the superb "Pie Chart" by "Graham Dobson". Well worth a look.

Proof that blogging has been around for ages.

An early illustration of a "Blogger" using the early version of "Windows" only able to "Scroll" in one direction and with limited ability to cut,copy and paste, the early Bloggers still managed to produce some fine work.

been writing to the Western Morning News Again

Not particularly normal of me to write such a politicized letter, we will see if they publish it, although having had one in the E and E last week and one in the WMN this, i may be pushing my luck..

I was sad to read in the papers on Wednesday that Tony Blair was finally leaving us, but my sadness was for only one single reason!

That reason, being Gordon Brown. For if Tony was bad, I think Gordon will be a complete disaster. The advantage, if any, with Blair, was that although he was busy ruining the country, he loved to "posture" on the world stage and therefore did not, luckily for us, concentrate his energies 100% on the destruction of this country and its institutions. Gordon however, seems far less of an "international politician" and I fear "Tony's legacy" will pale into insignificance, in relation to Gordon’s.

With interest, I scanned the national media to see the comments of Blair’s acolytes on the fantastic achievements of his years in power and I could not believe my eyes to read some of the complete drivel with which he was being credited. How can anyone, however deluded, be fooled into thinking that he has: A: improved the NHS. B: lowered unemployment C: improved care for the elderly and disabled or most laughably D: reduced crime in this country and “brought peace and democracy to Iraq”!! Even living as we do, in a beautiful area of the country, it would be hard for anyone to accept any positive aspect of “Blair’s Britain”.

Whilst I would be the first to admit, that David Cameron and the Conservatives are no better. Bestowing honours upon TB, for his great works is a total "crock" The man and his government have taken this country to "Hell in a handcart" and mark my words, it will only get worse.

As a nation, we need to “wake up” and "smell the beans", to look around ourselves and observe the hospitals, riddled with infections, look at the thousands of bureaucrats, behind the scenes. See the money that this government haemorrhage's away into quangos and spin-doctors. Watch the local councils and see them closing old peoples homes and homes for disabled kids, due to “a lack of funding”, whilst advertising jobs at 40k a year for "outreach workers", or "ethnic minority inclusion officers" etc. Whilst the burden of ever increasing council taxation allied to reductions in services affect our daily lives and the insidious introduction of environmental taxes on us, as a means of “stealth taxation” actually does nothing for the environment, merely funds more beaurocracy and regulation.

Look in your shopping trolley and if you are lucky enough to be able to read after having exited our "dumbed down education system", read the labels, see where your food and shopping comes from. Observe how little we produce anymore and how much we rely on imports of food and vital products. Take in the environment around you, observe the litter, the drabness, the state of our roads and utilities and ask yourself why? Where are our taxes spent?

Walk the streets of any town and feel the cold chill of fear that now stalks many former havens of peace and tranquillity. Ask yourself, "do I feel safe?". When was the last time you saw a police officer? Even worse, when was the last time you held a Police officer, a Judge or a politician in any form of respect? When was the last time that you saw a criminal adequately punished for crimes against the innocent?

Our police forces have become politicised beyond belief and are now little more than some sort of “eastern European Stasi” more interested in enforcing “PC government dictats” than making our streets safe for all. The legal and judicial system has become a “cash cow”, with millions being made on legal aid and compensation claims, whilst true justice for the victims of real accidents and crimes has become a joke. Those people who “make the laws”, administer and run the legal system and also much of government, make “true justice” a mere “pipe dream”, but allow themselves a dangerously large amount of power, over all of us “mere mortals”

These, unfortunately are the legacies of “Blair’s Britain” and we must ask, “Whatever happened to our Britain”? Sadly though, until we see a great "sea change" in British politics and a return to politics being "For the people and by the people", we as a country will only have ourselves to blame for the mess we have allowed ourselves to become....

I R Woolger