LibDem Blogs - Archived!

I know you’re there, I know you’re a Lunartalks reader: I’ve clocked your IP. We’ve had our disagreements in the past, principally when Word for Mac has ‘unexpectedly’ crashed and lost a load of my work. I might have implored Mount Rainier to erupt and wipe out the Microsoft campus, and wished to see your Word coders, baseball bat in hand to discuss Word’s ‘instability’, but that’s in the past

I've had a bit of stick from Tristan (thanks!) about what he sees as tokenism with regards to Simon's declared intention to appoint two deputies, one a woman. Of course, whenever we seek to address inequality there is a danger of it being seen as tokenism, and I agree that is not what we want. However, I have to say that where there is some recognition of the importance of proportionality it does change things. For many years I was active in Unison where proportionality is a policy which has clearly lead to the union being ...

"If it was energy and enthusiasm that decided this leadership race, Simon Hughes would surely walk it... he's working an 80 hour week... his popularity with Lib Dems means no-one is ruling him out."

An even more intelligent tale from 1989, this complex and political horror story moves very quickly and definitely needs your brain in gear. It too has underlying themes, though they’re less obviously spelt out than in The Ice Warriors; religion, sex, environmental catastrophes and evolution jostle with masses of film references and the idea that no side is right in war, though – in a Cold War thriller before the Cold War – some Liberals may raise an eyebrow at its apparent friendliness to Stalinism, or at least Leninism. This one’s set during the Second World War (without Nazis, who ...

Broadcast – and some episodes burnt – by the BBC before we were born, I got to know this from the novelisation, which I was fond of particularly for the cover painting of the killer reptile-monster with lightning crackling round its clamp-like claws. These days I can make a slightly more grown-up appraisal, but the killer reptile-monsters are still a major part of its appeal. Set a thousand years in the future, there’s a new Ice Age (the ‘60s scientific fear before evidence of global warming, with a scene setting out the ecological fable that’s still great despite four decades ...

My back’s gradually getting better and I’m feeling less grumpy, so I’m getting up to date here; I’ve added an index to my posts so you don’t have to scroll through the lot, I’ve replied to a few more comments and, having had a go at one of last week’s big political events, I’d like to turn to something much more entertaining. A week ago visited friends in Cambridge (seat of the splendid David Howarth), watching a selection of Doctor Who stories – The Ice Warriors, The Deadly Assassin, Arc of Infinity and The Curse of Fenric – and eating ...

North Wales Police Authority has rejected the Government's plans for a single all-Wales police force. South Wales, Gwent and Dyfed Powys are due to follow suit. Yet Peter Hain is adamant that a deal will be reached by Friday. Either he knows something we don't or he is seriously deluding himself. If the Government wants this merger then they are going to have to force it upon the four police authorities and pray that the subsequent hike in Council Tax does not undermine the whole project. This is a no-win situation for the Labour Government and the Secretary ...

Posted by Chris. I have mentioned before that Ming Campbell injects quite a lot of wit into his speeches. His attempt to make a joke about the Dunfermline win at PMQs last week, however, was met with a stony silence - not surprising, of course, that our opponents would not wish to laugh at such a joke. One old tale that he that he has been telling at the Leadership Hustings has raised a laugh and a little bit of discussion elsewhere. It has more than one version and there may be an element of truth in it: In one ...

The Assembly Parliamentary Service and the House Committee have been wrestling with the problem of staff car parking for years now. The issue is that we do not have enough car parking spaces down Cardiff Bay, whilst those we are using are under threat of being developed in the near future. We also have a duty to sustainable development, which means that we should be encouraging staff to use public transport. Unfortunately, although they are improving the trains and buses running to and from the Assembly are not always available when they are needed. We have looked at introducing ...

The BBC informs us that Preston, lead singer of The Ordinary Boys, is the great great great great grandson of the Whig prime minister Earl Grey.

Although this is a multi-poster blog, I thought that I would write about my personal choice for the next Liberal Democrat leader: Sir Ming Campbell. In most primary campaigns in the US, there is a familiar dynamic: a fund-raising product of the powers-that-be in Washington DC, whose name-recognition has meant a good poll lead [...]

MR R.T. CULLEN AND MISS H.E. QUINTON The engagement is announced between Ryan, elder son of Mr Thomas Cullen, of Camden London, and Mrs Sallie Cullen of Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, and Heather, youngest daughter of Mr and Mrs Peter Quinton of Pinchbeck, Lincolnshire.

Lord Bonkers writes: It's a pity the Austrians weren't hotter on This Sort Of Thing in 1938.

Prime your chuckle buttons for Guido Fawkes and Quaequam Blog!

I stumble out on deck, the first coffee of the day steaming in my hand, the Mournes are in bright clear sunlight, the water of the Lough blue and rippled by the wind whipping down from Carlingford Mountain behind me, where, legend has it, Finn MacCool's face can be seen in the rocks and where Queen Meabh exterminated a rival tribe who would not turn over to her their prize bull. A whimsical

In a sometimes nasty world, it's good to read a touching piece like this. All of me at Lunartalks is in complete agreement. Uncle Fred is also one of P.G.Wodehouse's finest creations. His advice to lovesick young men was often to embark on 'a good, stiff binge'.

Avian flu hasn't yet arrived and the farming sector is already doing what it does best: demanding compensation. Away from sick chickens and over to sick democracies, anyone who hasn't already would do well to read the Observer's Henry Porter at his blistering best in Blair's new laws leave us at the mercy of future tyrants. One apt para: "...to compromise the freedoms of a society which has no

A spokesman for Simon Hughes said: “My feelings - as usual - we will slaughter them all.” Quoth Mr Hughes: Although the race is close, the evidence is that I have a slight lead with the other two battling it out for second place. Good luck to Simon, and I’m really pleased for him if he’s feeling confident. [...]

More evidence came in yesterday's Observer newspaper that in some cases continual use of cannabis by adolescents can lead to psychosis. SocietyGuardian.co.uk | Society | Focus: Cannabis psychosis: Off your head? As a series of new studies proves the link between cannabis dependency and mental illness, an Observer investigation reveals the plight of young users struggling to find help to deal

Speaking at the South African Press Club in Cape Town on Friday 17th February, former Liberal leader David Steel gave strong backing to Chris Huhne's ability to tackle Gordon Brown if he inherits the leadership of the Labour Party.

I’d like to praise Colin Breed, Jeremy Browne, Ed Davey, David Howarth, Mark Oaten, Lembit Öpik, Adrian Sanders and John Thurso. I’m delighted to take this opportunity, as there are at least a couple of these Lib Dem MPs who you won’t catch me praising very often (though more amongst them are generally excellent). It’s because they were the ones who voted against the smoking ban last week, and I just don’t like banning things. Every time the sentence “Liberal Democrats today called for the banning of x…” is heard, I wince. It’s simply not what we’re there for. ...

I’ve managed to reinstate Wordpress pages (e.g., my gig list) by creating new pages and pasting the text into them. This didn’t work before I upgraded to Wordpress 2 so something there must have fixed the problem. Tags: wordpress

Well done Andy Murray on becoming the youngest Brit to win an ATP title. At 18 years 9 months he is 1 year and 1 month younger than Greg Rusedski and 3 years 7 months younger than Tim Henman. Also encouraging is that he has acheieved this peak a full year younger than Roger Federer, who he has already played and although beaten was not humilated. I know that we shouldn't put pressure on him but

The new library and community centre at Hook is taking shape. Compare it with the old library and hall: The Council has been issuing regular newsletters about the Hook Project. Some misleading things have been written about this project, especially in local Tory leaflets. I will charitably assume that they have misunderstood some of the...

Peter at Pigeon Post is highlighting various Bloggers for Ming. The emphasis on positive reasons to vote for Ming cannot be emphasised enough.

That’s it, they’ve blown it. If Fabergé are going to give bejewelled eggs to the Conservatives in aid of their financial drive, I don’t feel I can patronise them any longer. Consequently I shall not be purchasing any of their products for my family this Easter. I call on fellow Liberal Democrats to support my boycott of Fabergé eggs. Here are the gory details

For those struggling to understand how Dick Cheney missed the quail and shot his friend instead then you may wish to try this little game. Personally, I thought it a bit harsh that he should be hunting Dan Quail. Was it the failure to spell of potato correctly that did it?

John Hemming's declaration that - in the wake of the West Midland's Hustings - he has decided to support Ming Campbell takes Campbell's declared suppport to 32 MPs - more than half of the total. John had this to say: Compared to Chris Huhne, Ming was clearer about the need to be sensitive in the way in which resource taxation is applied. People will know that I see the practical limits to resource consumption being the availability of resources. Within the context of that debate how one rations out the availability of resources becomes a complex decision that needs ...

Rather late in the day Rob Knight has revealed how he is going to vote. He tells us that Ming's campaign has not been policy-heavy, but it has demonstrated a solid commitment to liberal principles. I believe that when voting for a leader, I should vote for the person most likely to stand up for the principles that I believe in. Of all three of the candidates, Ming Campbell is the most consistent in doing this. Much has been made of his "gravitas" and, although I think this can be exaggerated, I think he has the credibility to ask ...

Doctorvee expressed concern last week that Owen Barder’s satire has become the future. First, there was the abolition of democracy. Then, on Thursday he spoofed the Government’s “respect agenda” by suggesting they would ban swearing. Today, The Mirror reports that: Teenager Kurt Walker was given an £80 fine for saying “F*** all”. […] Kurt was walking to the youth [...]

Having had the 'pleasure' of being a political spouse in the past (my ex-wife is a former Chair of Democrats Abroad and was at one time a member of the Democratic National Committee), I am perhaps more sympathetic with the predicament that David Mills finds himself in than most others might be. As Chair of Dulwich West Norwood Liberal Democrats, I might be expected to draw some small amount of

Would any legal types care to speculate on the the enforcability of street signage that requires a knowledge of local fixtures in order to comply? The assumption is that all men and women who drive cars must take an avid interest in football. I found this sign not far from Finsbury park, but at least a [...]