LibDem Blogs - Archived! - Wednesday 20th December 2006

Why have I never heard of Paris syndrome ?

I learnt something today, well two things, if you call learning how to re-format and re-install windows on my parents PC. I learnt about something called "Paris syndrome". Most westerners know about the almost legendary rudeness of the French, and particularly people from Paris. However, it comes as a shock to Japanese who have a romaticised view of the French, little knowing about their arrogance and attitude. Apparently four Japanese people have had to be re-patriated to Japan this year alone with medical assistance, so shocked have these Japanese people been. Read more about it HERE. Can anyone think of ...

Confession: Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate Intervened to Stop Chinese Lover from Being Deported

That's right. I can now reveal that I prevented my Chinese wife from being deported from the UK by helping her to make the appropriate applications to the British Embassy in Beijing and the Home Office. In doing so I hope that all concerned will accept that I used the appropriate channels, paid the appropriate fees and did not use undue influence as a British citizen to help my wife obtain valid visa to allow her to live in the UK with myself and my daughter. I think that the BBC, followed by The Guardian has reached a ...

Update on rail tunnel works & partial closure of Dock Street

The City Council has advised me that the above works will start on 8th January 2007 to reinforce the rail tunnel that runs under the Dock Street Area. Buses will only be using Dock Street in a northernly direction, the buses which would normally travel east on Dock Street will, for the duration of the east bound closure, require to use the route onto the large roundabout which handles all traffic from Riverside Drive and West Marketgait. As a result, at peak periods, this is likely to cause congestion in Crichton Street and surrounding areas. The Planning and Transportation Department ...

How to recycle your Christmas tree

The City Council is trying to make it as easy as possible for people to recycle Christmas trees: you can cut it in to small pieces and put it in a green bag for your normal garden waste collection;take it to one of the Council's household recycling centres (which will all be open from Wednesday 27 December) - the nearest one to Selly Oak is at Lifford Lane, Kings Norton, B30 3JH; ortake it to one

Day 2176: Gay Wedding; Church Divorce

Monday: Today we wish CONGRATULATIONS to Mr Matt Lucas and Mr Kevin McGee who have got married in a quiet ceremony followed by a lavish pantomime themed party afterwards. Happy Couple Miserable Buggers "I now pronounce you man and man," said the presiding registrar. "And/or wife and wife." "Oh no they aren't!" came the traditional response from the audience. "Oh yes they are!" said the registrar, formally concluding the festivities. Gay weddings are very popular! There have been more than 15,500 weddings so far! And apparently they ...

Recycling advice for the insane

The Easter Daily Press today produced a nice little chart of things that could and could not be recylcled this Christmas. Unfortunately, they have not produced their chart of things you cannot recycle on their website, but the first thing on their list of things NOT to recycle was, and I'm not kidding, "Ammunition and Explosives". I kid you not !

Even when Lembit Opik does the right thing, people assume the worst !

It's funny how it becomes important news on the BBC to report that an MP has taken up an issue and dealt with it appropriately. So why was it that when I read the story that I expected the worst ? The fact that the BBC is reporting this HERE seems a little odd when it is quite clear that he passed the matter on to the appropriate local MP, as he should have done, and when discussing it with the minister, he stated he knew the person in a personal capacity, as he should have done. I guess ...

Transformation

I've just got home from Fulford Youth Centre drama group's pantomime. I got a sneak preview of it at a Youth Service Awards ceremony just under a month ago- they were pretty impressive then- but they brought the house down this evening with the full performance. It certainly provided some food for thought about what can be achieved with very limited resources- and gave me a few ideas about how...

Of mice and men

A story in the South Wales Evening Post grabs my attention. Factory worker, Mark Jones paid £500 to a local furniture superstore so as to replace his old couch, and had a plush burgundy leather sofa delivered to his Swansea flat. But shortly after its arrival, he discovered a hole in its bottom, surrounded by droppings. His suspicions were later confirmed when he caught sight of a mouse in his house. Now the store has offered to replace the sofa. A spokesperson is quoted as saying: "We try to look at these things sympathetically." I should bloody well think ...

Parliamentary by-election near-miss "caused" by Tory council's "mistake"

Life is full of ironies. Richard Benyon MP was nearly run over by a bus in Northbrook Street, Newbury last week. In his Westminster Diary he commented: “I was nearly run over by a bus in Northbrook Street on Friday. Buses do not rev these days, they purr and this one crept up on me with the speed and stealth of a cheetah... "It proved an expensive experience because I was saved by an

Scissor Sisters at the O2 Millennium Dome

There is some excitement in the humble home of the Walters. My wife has cleverly snapped up three tickets for the Scissor Sisters in July. Great. Something we all enjoy and rave about. They cross the generations do, those crazy sisters. She said it was at something called "O2" in Greenwich - a venue she hadn't heard of. A quicky googly reveals that it is only at the Millennium Dome in the very

Anyone from Liberator reading this?

Because I've written the best Liberal Democrat song ever, and if you're really really nice to me, I might just let you put it in the songbook in time for Glee Club at the next Federal Conference. The Great Tax Debate (Words: Jonny Wright, 2006 Tune: The Times, They Are A-Changin’; Bob Dylan) Once we supported the 50p rate – In the last two elections it served us real great, But we must re-adjust or we'll be out-of-date ’Cause the Tories are back, and they're gaining. So our policy flagship must meet with its fate For the ...

Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiillllllllllllllmaaaaaaaaa!

I was very pleased with myself yesterday at 7.30am. I announced to my bleary-eyed nine-year-old daughter that Joseph Barbera had died. Who he? - ed. Well she didn't say that, but did ask who he was. ...Only the bloke that co-drew Tom and Jerry, Yogi Bear, The Flinstones, Scooby Doo, The Jetsons, Hucklebury Hound and a shed-load of other cartoon favourites which my daughter watched 24 hour a

At 84, the world starts to seem strange

Spare a thought for 84-year olds. My dear father-in-law, a lovely, lovely man, is now 84. We celebrated his birthday last night at a marvellous, trendy eaterie. I did feel sorry for the poor fellow. At 84, things start to feel very alien, I'm sure. Certain reliable things in life start to crumble in front of you. What you used to rely on is now a thing of the past. Take beer mugs. Yes, mugs.

Two miles to life

Not sure if you’ve read about this one or not yet but I’m sure you will soon as it will be all over national tv. A Jersey born Skydiver, Michael Holmes jumped out of a plane on a routine skydive last week but his parachute didn’t open, then his reserve shute failed, he fell over 2 [...]

Do Andrew and Fiona on GMTV get on?

My wife is a seasoned GMTV watcher. According to her, Andrew and Fiona don't get on. You can see it in the way they sit apart/ Andrew folds his arms a lot. Apparently they had an on=air barney a few weeks ago. Can't remember the subject. But they were going at it hammer and tongs. Anyway, today they almost seemed close to each other when Andrew shared the news that his boiler broke down and he

Wafic Said - old friend of the Tories

Thanks to Mark Pack, Duncan Borrowman and Peter on Liberal Review for flagging up the Tory connection (via £100,000 donated by his wife) with Wafic Said. Wafic Said. I've heard that name before, haven't I? Indeed, here is a little episode from the life of one Jonathan Aitken, who was Tory Minister of Defence Procurement at the time of most of these events: September 1993 Aitken is spotted at

Money makes the world go round!

A fair number of years ago - more than long enough for the statute of limitations to apply - OK nearly a quarter-century- I worked for an engineering firm doing business in Iraq and the Gulf States and 'elsewhere in that region'. (If you have ever had a crap in Abu Dhabi airport you have come close to some of our products). I remember taking a train trip down from Coventry to Euston with literally a briefcase full of the firm's money in cash to hand over to an individual in the station concourse. He and his minder gave me ...

Is this why the Tories are keeping quiet on the BAe-Al-Yamamah cover-up?

Mark Pack asked why the Tories were saying saying nothing on the BAe enquiry.

I predict no more predictions

Earlier this year I wrote a list of predictions for 2006 - so here’s how I did: DOMESTIC POLITICS Britain & the USA will begin limited troop withdrawal from Iraq in time for the US mid-term elections in November. At least one senior Liberal Democrat will be forced in to resignation - either Charles Kennedy, or one of [...]

So lets get this right. BAe gives money to Saudi middle men. Saudi middle man's wife pays money to Cameron's Tories

Further to my last post. Lets get this straight: The Tories under David Cameron have accepted £100,000 from the wife of a foreign arms dealer barred from making political donations in Britain. Wafic Said, a Syrian-born Saudi, and his British wife Rosemary are accused of exploiting a loophole in the rules to fund the Tories, who are under increasing pressure to reveal their financial backers.

Protect our Back Gardens.

The Government’s current planning policies treat your back garden as a “brownfield site” - like an old industrial site - which means they are vulnerable to infill development. This is an issue we have suffered from in Leamington especially and we need to be sensitive to the unique nature of our town and the knock on effects of increased traffic, growing parking problems and we need to protect many of the fantastic trees we have that help make Leamington a great place to live. Liberal Democrats believe back gardens serve an important social and environmental purpose and ...

Says it all really:

Generation after generation has been told that all idealists go into politics and government, whereas greedy people go into business. It is not only untrue; the truth is the opposite. The market is not the only place that permits idealists to serve society, but it does provide a test to make sure their ideals conform to reality. The politician may claim to have ideals, but they mostly serve as a

Administrivia

Hmmmm... blogger doesn't send me emails when people comment (despite me asking it to) Which means I never find out if people comment. Apologies if you think I'm ignoring you... (of course, I am also incredibly bad at replying anyway). I never get round to checking via the blogger interface either. Anyone else having this problem? Probably best to email me if you have ideas - as I doubt I'll

The Liberal Vision: increase Freedom, ensure Justice, protect Individuality

Lib Dem blogger Cicero sets out his vision of Liberalism

Waste Tidied and Hogmanay News!

Following a resident’s complaint about the mess of a bin area in the West End, I have to congratulate the Waste Management Department who arranged its cleaning within hours of my contacting them. And … here’s the details of Hogmanay in Dundee City Centre (with thanks to Sheena Wellington for the information!) : Hogmanay celebrations in Dundee's City Centre will include a Lantern Parade and music, fun, foghorn and fireworks at the North Carr Lightship as well as a Family Ceilidh and a church service,! The Family Ceilidh will be held at Meadowside St Paul's Church ...

Post Office Campaign Pack

I have seen a number of people using the press releases in the Post Office Campaign pack I produced last week and which the Political Communications Unit sent out whilst I was in Gateshead. We have now added to it a draft council motion which I know one Lib Dem council group in Scotland has submitted for debate already. Any Lib Dem member wanting a copy of the campaign pack who is not on the

Meacher to stand against Brown, Corbyn to stand for Deputy (not connected!)

The rumours are ex-Environment Minister Michael Meacher will be standing for Labour Leader against Gordon Brown and John McDonnell (if he gets the 44 nominations needed). I actually quite like Meacher or what I have seen and heard of him.

Should Have Kept My Mouth Shut

The 9.05 from Paddington broke down between Reading and Newbury and it was all my fault. I took a call on my mobile as the train pulled out of Reading station from a journalist asking what I th...

Liberal Democrats make change to policy-making process

The party’s Federal* Policy Committee (FPC) has just announced a significant change in the policy making process for 2007. It is setting up a new standing panel of people from which members of policy working groups will be picked in future. The panel will be put together once a year, replacing the old system of [...]

Cameron silent on Al Yamamah

While Labour's hypocrisy over Al Yamamah is astounding the big question is "Where's Dave?" He is tight lipped, hand over mouth, scared maybe that if he opens his mouth the world will look at the timeline of Al Yamamah and spot it all started with the Tories.

Ming: must be bolder and clearer

With the party of liberal democracy plunging in the polls (see below) - it is good that the Lib Dem leader opened up a new front on the policy debate.Ming's speech to IPPR on welfare reform comes at a useful time.The BBC picked up on the main nuggets that was trailed before hand in a piece that has been updated slightly since he made the speech: "People should be given education and a chance to help themselves, but instead millions were being trapped into living on benefits, said Sir Menzies. He said lone parents should return to work when ...

How well do you remember the political year gone by?

Take the Guardian’s Christmas Quiz and find out! I’m slightly disappointed with my result: “You scored 20 out of a possible 25. Excellent. You really know your political onions.” particularly as I’m embarrassed to say I got question number 1 wrong christmas

Al Yamamah: More Labour hypocrisy

A brief recap: after the then Conservative Government signed the Al Yamamah arms deal with Saudi Arabia, Labour politicians were very keen for there to be proper investigations into corruption allegations. Another example found in the archives: in the early 1990s a National Audit Office investigation was given only a very narrow remit and then surpressed. [...]

5 tips to change the world

The Co-op, my excellent hosts at last night’s film-screening, gave some extremely interesting climate change facts to the audience. They handed out a booklet to show how small changes to lifestyle can make a big difference to climate change. I am going to take the challenge to follow the tips below, and I urge you to do the same. We can try and achieve the big things - We can campaign for

An Inconvenient Truth

Last night I was fortunate to be invited to a screening of “An Inconvenient Truth” organised by “the Co-operative”. I think this is the most important film I have seen, and I urge everyone to see it. Essentially it is a film version of the lecture on global warming that has been given by former US Vice President Al Gore over 1,000 times to audiences around the world in recent years. Vice

Al Yamamah: Conservatives silent, again

Another burst of stories in the media about the Saudi Arabian arms deal and Labour’s axing of investigations into corruption. As a Lib Dem it’s gratifying to see the frequent coverage of the party’s views on the issue (yet again), but (yet again) there is nothing from Her Majesty’s Official Opposition (as in this BBC report). [...]

Possibly young

Reading the top five girls’ names for this year, a thought struck me: EARS, the software that ther Lib Dems use for canvass data, has a special filter that identifies people as ‘possibly old’ based on the fashionability of their names. With names such as Olivia, Ruby, Grace, Lily and Poppy making a comeback, [...]

Getting it backwards

A glaring bit of nonsense in an otherwise sensible article by Simon Jenkins today: One of many reasons for not subsidising national parties is that it will further encourage them to ignore the public and live in the lap of the national press. I note that he says ‘national parties’ specifically and not ‘political parties’ more generally [...]

It's my birthday!

A friend just phoned to say that I am in today's birthdays in the Guardian. Sadly - they published my age, but I think they must have got it wrong by at least 10 years.

Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council Job Vacancy

Administrative Assistant to the Lib Dem Group of Councillors Job Ref: CHEXCOFS004 Grade: Grade F £23,175 - £24,708 pa pro rata Details: 20 hours per week. Temporary contract until 18th May 2007. Do you have an enquiring mind, research capabilities and the ability to express yourself coherently and concisely both verbally and in print? Are you interested in local democracy and the political management processes of the Council? If so, this job is for you. Working under the management of the Head of Democracy and as part of the Democratic Team, you will be responsible ...

Government backs mad Reading Council scheme

According to the BBC here Reading Borough Council will receive £6.5m from central government next year to develop its transport strategy. According to Reading Borough that is enough to enable it to proceed with its barking mad plans to convert its Inner Distribution Road (IDR) into an anti-clockwise route. Details from Reading Borough Council of their plan to make the IDR one way can be found here. Local Liberal Democrats have opposed the scheme and the Leaders of the Liberal Democrat Groups on Reading Borough Council, Wokingham District Council, West Berkshire Council and Oxfordshire County Council ...

Leeds escape points deduction

I had been concerned that Leeds were facing a potential points deduction after they included six loan players in their squad for the game at Burnley on 28 November. I guess as they lost the game anyway a points deduction might have been a bit harsh so I was delighted to see that they have been fined £2,000 and £1,000 of that is suspended.

Brainwashed Blair

According to the Iraqi Vice President, on a visit to Washington, Tony Blair was "brainwashed by George Bush" in to not setting a timetable for the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq. Read about it HERE. Is this further evidence that Blair is in the pocket of the Americans ?

Al Yamamah: Labour hypocrisy

Back in the 1980s, Allan Roberts was MP for Bootle and a Labour defence spokesperson. When the Al Yamamah defence sales deal was arranged by the Conservative government with Saudi Arabia and there were allegations of corruption in the air, this was his - and his party’s view: a. He was “quite confident” that commissions (ie [...]

Numb3rs

I saw part of an episode of Numb3rs last week. The show is about a mathematician who solves crimes with the FBI, which, believe it or not, doesn’t actually appeal to me. It seems a bit sub-Monk and the 3 in the title is just wrong. Still, it had my favourite line from recent TV, [...]

Thai shares back up

According the BBC share prices in Thailand rose 9% as trading began on Wednesday recovering from a sharp fall on Tuesday when trading had to be suspended briefly. That fall was a reaction to new rules restricting foreign investment aimed at stemming the surge in value of the Thai Baht. After the market turmoil the restrictions on foreign investments were lifted hence the rise in share prices.

We're in the court of appeal

I need to work out how to handle the procedures, but some time in the new year there should be a hearing in front of a Division Court (three judges) in the Court of Appeal relating to the matter of forcing Ministers to answer questions.

Day 2175: TORCHWOOD: Out of Time

Sunday: The BEST think on the telly at the moment! Yes, I am watching the new DOCTOR WHO TRAILER! Meanwhile, Daddy is still banging on about Torchwood: Life after death again, this week: three people who ought to be long since dead, believed lost at sea in their aircraft, discover a new life and a new world in Torchwood's Cardiff. Like Goldilocks in reverse, our three innocent bears arrive in the 21st Century: one of them finds it too much, one of them finds it not enough and one of them finds it just right. But in each ...

Guardian advent 20th December

Todays link takes you here. Believe it or not this takes you to the MySpace page for Father Christmas.

The First Flush of Love

It's a long time since I've fallen in love, but I do remember the passion, the intensity, the desire to share every detail with my friends. However, unlike Gabriela Imiria, my friends did not include Fiona Phillips and her one million viewers, not to mention anyone who read the full account on the BBC Website. I wish both her and Lembit well, but do we really need to hear every intimate detail on every media outlet? I hope this relationship lasts because I don't think I could cope with the break up.

A,B,C... Z list celebrities

I was recently accused by another Blogger of trying to drive traffic to my site by talk of z-list celebrities. Slightly ironic given the recent volume that has appeared on Lib Dem sites (including his) about Lembit , Sian and a Cheeky Girl. So I will delve into my memory to briefly highlight two other sad celebrity splits that have made the press that I feel fit to comment on. Whitney Houston's

Is this perfomance art?

Michael Stone's lawyer argues that his Stormont actions were 'performance art'. So was this performance art? Or other plans, such as killing Ken Livingstone? In fact, why is this even in court? He was released under the Good Friday Agreement on conditions that he has broken, shouldn't he just go straight back inside?

The art of celebrity

David Cornock is positively scathing about Lembit's and Sian's 'Sunday of Madness': Lembit Opik has always strongly defended his right to a private life free from media interest, although most hacks would suggest that right is undermined once a politician sells details about his private life to celebrity magazines. You can read the salacious stuff elsewhere, although it appears that readers of Hello! magazine will no longer be treated to pictures of Lembit Opik and Sian Lloyd inviting us to share their beautiful home, complete with washing machine from their good friend Richard Dyson. ...

Rewriting history

The level of obfuscation, spin and downright deceit coming from Ministers about the reasons for going to war in Iraq is becoming unbearable. Now the Foreign Secretary is expecting us to believe that the possibility that Saddam Hussein might have weapons of mass destruction which could be deployed against Britain within 45 minutes was a side issue, an 'irrelevance': Ministers were facing questions tonight after Margaret Beckett, the Foreign Secretary, appeared to accept that a key claim over Iraq's weapons capability was in doubt before the 2003 invasion. Mrs Beckett said the assertion that Saddam Hussein could ...

Wednesday 20th December 2006

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