The adults really have left the room

Greta Thunberg has warned "those in power" she will "not be silenced when the world is on fire".

The teenager was welcomed by chants of "Greta, Greta" as she addressed some 15,000 people at the Bristol Youth Strike 4 Climate (BYS4C) event.

She accused politicians and the media of ignoring the climate emergency and "sweeping their mess under the rug".

And much of the responsibility for the adults leaving the room lies with the BBC.

Joe Biden's memory lapse

Joe Biden was not arrested in South Africa while trying to see Nelson Mandela, his campaign has conceded.

The US presidential contender had repeatedly said he was arrested during a trip there in the 1970s, when South Africa was under apartheid.

But a deputy campaign managers told reporters Mr Biden had been referring to an episode where he was "separated" from black colleagues at an airport.

Mr Biden is counting on black support to win South Carolina on Saturday.

Clearly the Democrats need to do something here, something to reassure voters that they have sound group of candidates battling for the presidential nomination. This is merely a suggested starting point but maybe voter reassurance could be along these lines  –

• Bernie Sanders has never been medically certified as insane.
• Elizabeth Warren isn’t the horrible shrieking harridan she appears to be.
• Mike Bloomberg understands ordinary folk as only a guy worth over $60 billion can.
• Pete Buttigieg isn’t the biggest wuss ever to stand as a presidential candidate.

Obviously it needs more elaboration but in a nutshell that should do it as a viable starting point.

Harry asks to be known as Harry

Bloody tourists

The Duke of Sussex asked for delegates at a tourism conference in Edinburgh to address him simply as Harry.

The prince was speaking at the Travalyst event being held in the Scottish capital...

In his address, Prince Harry - who is known as the Earl of Dumbarton when he is in Scotland - warned that the growth of tourism was threatening to destroy some of the world's most beautiful places...

He warned that if steps were not taken, there was the risk that more of the world's "most beautiful destinations" would be closed or destroyed.

He said this could also lead to "more communities becoming overwhelmed, more beaches shut because of pollution, and animals and wildlife driven from their natural habitat - which has a huge impact on communities and reduces tourism opportunities".

It's a real problem - anyone can see that. When it comes to the prospect of mass tourism overwhelming those beautiful destinations, how are the elites going to tell the rest of us to f**k off and stay at home? I'm sure they'll find a way.

Seems remarkably feeble to me

Former Liberal Democrat leader David Steel has quit the party and the Lords after an inquiry said he "turned a blind eye" to claims of child abuse.

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse criticised political groups for not acting on complaints.

It accused Lord Steel of an "abdication of responsibility" over accusations against the late MP Cyril Smith...

He was elected as a Liberal MP in 1972, and Lord Steel said he had discussed the allegations with him in 1979 after an article appeared in Private Eye.

The peer told the inquiry that he "assumed" that Smith had committed the offences, but took no further action because "it was before he was an MP, before he was even a member of my party - it had nothing to do with me".

Is that the best Lord Steel can come up with after forty years to mull it over - nothing to do with me? He says he only knew about the allegations after an article appeared in Private Eye so not a leader with his ear to the ground presumably.

Baron v Gestapo

 An interesting YouTube channel and a stirring story I'd forgotten. It seems like another world now, light years away from modern life.

Bernie on Castro

BERNIE Sanders' praise of the Cuban dictator Fidel Castro may spell the 2020 downfall of the Democratic frontrunner.

During a 60 Minutes interview with Anderson Cooper on Sunday night, Sanders said Castro's communist Cuba wasn't actually that bad.

What is it about daft old farts? Usually the UK trails the US when it comes to fashion, but this time we toyed with our daft old fart before the US. Has the world gone mad?

Bernie cements his status

Bernie says - The American people are sick and tired of a president who lies all of the time

Oh dear Bernie, of course he doesn't lie all the time. So that's - er - a lie Bernie.

Why would anyone ever imagine that Bernie has the brutal nous and the steel backbone to be an effective US President? Do his supporters prefer ineffective? Maybe they do.