LibDem Blogs - Aggregated!

Like many other Liberal Democrat members, I have received party leader Charles Kennedy's New Year Message in my inbox. But are the ideological sentiments expressed in this message sincere, or are they just some old bollocks cobbled together to keep the activists happy? Most party members were probably cheered to read this passage: "A clear division is emerging in British politics: the politics of fear versus the politics of hope. Labour is counting on the politics of fear, ratcheting up talk of threats, crime and insecurity. While the Conservatives are re-working their populist scares about asylum and the

The New Year is a time for reflection. With a general election looming in Britain, it is a good time to consider our long-term prospects and reappraise our political priorities. Jared Diamond (writing in today's New York Times) examines a fundamental issue that will scare off the politically timid; the historical reasons why some societies have collapsed while others have survived. "When it comes to historical collapses, five groups of interacting factors have been especially important: the damage that people have inflicted on their environment; climate change; enemies; changes in friendly trading partners; and the society's political, economic

Whilst I don't really like the honours system, I can just about see why Matthew Pinsent (4 Olympic Gold Medals over 12 years) and Tanni Grey-Thompson (11 Olympic Gold Medals over 16 years) became Sir and Dame, but why did Kelly Holmes (2 Olympic Gold Medals over 1 summer) also become a Dame?