WHEN IS A WINDFARM LIKE A BLIMP?

Answer: never.

The crummy practice of flying a blimp in order to mislead people over what a windfarm will look like has become fairly widespread. Nimby groups do it routinely, even though it's been criticised by planning inspectors who have pointed out that it does nothing but totally misrepresent the scale, shape and location of a windfarm.

You might as well demonstrate what a copse of trees will look like by flying a giant inflatable pig in the air.

Still, nothing stops our manic nimby neighbours, and so the ludicrous blimp was indeed flown for the benefit (?) of Wychavon District Councillors, this Tuesday. Hopefully, they're bright and sensible enough to see through that shabby trick.

During the night preceding the Councillors' site visit, certain public-minded citizens had been out and had removed the grotty and offensive VVASP placards from various parts of the village. These placards have a terrible habit of appearing in huge numbers whenever a politician or councillor happens to be passing through, and a shockingly large number have been attached to things that don't belong to the nimbies. So removing them from public property was a good deed, really.

Anyway, the nimbies cried foul, and today's Evesham Journal has carried a front page piece about the objectors' "anger" at what they call "dirty tricks". No end of fatuous nimby outrage was spewed over the paper, which failed to note that the placards which had been removed had been put in places where they should never have been in the first place.

The paper also forgot to mention the fact that pro-wind posters were removed and destroyed by the evil anti's, who refuse to allow anybody else to express an opinion. So - a few nimby placards removed from public property - SHOCK HORROR!! - but pro-wind posters removed - silence.

And we were wrong when we said that the witless dupes of VVASP were keeping their heads down while the Councillors were examining the site. One chap followed the Councillors' coach around, displaying a VVASP placard all the while. Others stood around looking like something out of Dr Who. The idiot blimp was raised. And, of course, all pro-wind posters had been taken away and hidden.

So VVASP went out of its way to mislead the Council. Ha! What else is new?