Where?

I'm watching the BBC News at 10 (god knows why).

A trend I've observed all evening (Sky & BBC) is that those who are given airtime fit into the following categories -

• Muslim - Old and Young - Representing "local community" views.
• "Experts" - Usually in terrorism or Islam
• Correspondents/Reporters
• The Police

What I want to know is - Where are the views of the majority of citizens in this country? Do we not have any right to "respond" to this alleged threat within our country?

Of course, you may remember the surge in violence against Muslims in the wake of September 11th and July 7th - is it the case they are worried they may not find views which fit in with their "message"?

I want to know what the majority of people think about "multiculturalism" and "integration" - particularly in light of such events.

Why are the media so scared to report the views of the majority?

10 Years of BBC Online Politics

How times have changed.

Or have they?

Why not take a look at the BBC's first online politics site.

This talks about the impending New Labour government & the demise of the Conservatives.

I'd recommend the On The Record minisite which includes a variety of audio/video feeds and transcripts including, for example, Blair from 1993.

I don't belieeeeve it!

This then this - how convenient.

Do I believe there was a conspiracy to kidnap the soldier? No idea - how could I know anything without reviewing the evidence.

Can't help thinking just how convenient it is to bump Levy from the headlines. I also consider just how little I trust the little cabal at Downing Street these days - wouldn't it be very handy to have a few of these little "operations" just waiting to be acted upon?

Makes the Home Office in particular but also MI5 and the Police look 'tough' and 'switched on' - the Home Office especially needing this 'silver bullet'.

I want to know why this was done today. Why not yesterday or two weeks ago? Why not tomorrow?

I'm suspicious. Scandalous to think you can't even trust the Government in such serious matters because of their past actions.

Cameron was right - it IS time to go Blair.

British People: Mugs

Its not often I read or cite The Sun but on this occasion, I have to (alas) -

JAIL bosses are rebuilding toilets so Muslim inmates don’t have to use them while facing Mecca.

Thousands of pounds of taxpayers money are being spent to ensure lags are not offended.

The Islamic religion prohibits Muslims from facing or turning their backs on the Kiblah — the direction of prayer — when they visit the lav.

Muslim lags claimed they have had to sit sideways on prison WCs.

But after pressure from faith leaders the Home Office has agreed to turn the existing toilets 90 degrees at HMP Brixton in London.

The Home Office refused to reveal the cost of the new facilities — part of an “on-going refurbishment”

Now I could say they are "taking the piss" or that its "tough shit" they can't use the toilet in this way.

But seriously, does Islam condone whatever it was that put them behind bars in the first place? I suspect not.

Is this even correct? I've never heard of anyone "complain" before.

Pandering to this type of nonsense just shows us all as a bunch of mugs. Never mind the fact we've no place for Paedophiles or Robbers, we still have to keep those who profess to be religious happy.

Personally, I'd have told them to like it or lump it. They're lucky they don't have a metal bucket to slop out every morning.

Breaking News: Lord Levy arrested (again)

The BBC are reporting (News 24) that Lord Levy was re-arrested for Conspiracy to Pervert the Course of Justice.

Good.

Hopefully the axe is starting to swing against the players in this scandal.

More draconian nonsense from the Home Office

X-ray cameras could be installed on lampposts on British streets to spot armed terrorists and other criminals, it has been claimed.

According to a leaked memo seen by The Sun, detection of weapons and explosives will become easier if the scheme drawn up by Home Office officials is adopted.

The Sun said the memo, dated January 17, was drawn up by the Home Office for the Prime Minister's working group on security crime and justice.

These and other could be developed for a much more widespread use in public places, it said.

Street furniture could routinely house detection systems that would indicate the likely presence of a gun, for example.

Sky News

You know what? This doesn't even surprise me any more.

Guido Exclusive - Labours "second email system"

I'm reminded of a Simpsons episode.

Lisa was outside a military base. There was a map at the gate "You are here (*) we are not".

Guido.

Wonder how long it takes the mainstream media to catch on.

How long does Blair have left as PM?

What with the ongoing cash for peerages investigation, paedophiles not being sent to jail & the comments of a weak-sounding PM, I'm starting to wonder if Blair has much time left at Number 10.

Even if he somehow clings on to power until summer, just what can he/we celebrate about his time?

• Iraq

• Obvious rise in crime despite "tough on, tough on the causes of crime" - is this New Labour's "back to basics"?

• Obvious increase in waste at bodies like the NHS despite record funding

• Stealth taxes

• The CSA

• The Home Office

• Housing most people can't afford to buy

• Failing public transport systems and congested roads

• Total alienation from politics to more people than ever in recorded history

• Lets not forget - the Millenium Dome, Mandelson, Prescott, Reid, Blunkett, Jo Moore, Lord Levy & all the rest

Blair, when you go, I hope its with a smile on your face. I know there will be on mine - and a rare bottle of champagne to celebrate.

Blair: Defends letting criminals go free

Tony Blair has defended a move to ask judges to jail only the most dangerous and persistent criminals.

The prime minister told the Commons that Home Secretary John Reid was simply reminding the courts of existing sentencing policy in England and Wales.

BBC

Tough on crime, tough on the cause of crime.

MY ARSE.

More scum on the streets now than there was 10 years ago. Just look at Downing Street as a perfect example of how crime has become so pervasive in Blairs Britain.

Bloody cheek!

A Sudanese man has been arrested after he hijacked a plane and demanded it was flown to Britain.

The young man who was armed said he had been persecuted in Sudan

Sky News.

We're world renowned is being a place of refuge. Thats fine. We ought to be. But we aren't all mugs. What a fucking cheek. If that plane had got into our airspace the RAF should have shot it down.

I could go into the whole "first safe country should be sufficient for you to claim refugee status" etc but I won't.

If people seriously think we will welcome a hijacker then they shouldn't even make it to our soil.

Ming is right

Tomorrow is the Commons debate on Iraq.

Instead of being present to explain his decision making process, the latest strategies & our response to George Bush's plan to send more troops to the country, Tony Blair will be attending a CBI Conference.

This government have always put business first and now Blair is using it to justify his absence from a debate he should attend.

Labour MP John McDonnell said that it was "shocking negation of his responsibilities.

Sir Menzies Campbell said that Blair had a "public duty" to be there.

He said it was nearly four years since he had last opened a debate on Iraq, since when 130 British servicemen and women had died and, according to UN estimates, 34,000 Iraqis had been killed in 2006 alone.

"In these circumstances the British people are entitled to hear your analysis and strategy for withdrawal," he wrote.

"I consider that on an issue of such gravity the public are entitled to hear the party leaders."

They are right. Blair is a national disgrace (not that we didn't know this already). His belligerence is astounding. He seems to be getting more stubborn and cocky by the day.

Lets hope Yates of the Yard can wipe that inane grin off his face.

Maybe one day he'll face up to his actions. I doubt it.

Homophobic bigots

It would appear that once again, the idiotic Ruth Kelly is causing a stir in cabinet.

This time its her imposition of her religious bigotry on the legislature of this country.

Once again this woman MUST GO.

She is of no benefit to the citizens of this country, she is two faced, she is disliked almost as much as the Blears (shudder).

Blairs babes indeed.

Daily Mail Editor: Orwellian BBC

I recently wrote about my perception of censorship of anti Labour comments on the BBC website (in response to a bland interview with Gordon Brown by Andrew Marr).

The editor of the Mail (not someone I'd usually feel inclined to agree with) has given a speech in which he contends -

BBC journalism is reflected through a left wing prism that affects everything - the choice of stories, the way they are angled, the choice of the interviews, the interviewees and, most pertinently, the way those interviewees are treated.

He's absolutely right. Look at any BBC current affairs output and you can't miss it.

I support the licence fee for good education and comedy from the BBC (even if they have both been very week of late) but I loathe their biased current affairs output.

The British criminal justice system is a joke

A 21-year-old man has been jailed for life for murdering an amateur photographer in a bungled mugging.

The body of Lee Phipps, 31, was discovered on a path close to his home in South Shields on 2 March 2006. He had been stabbed through the heart.

During the investigation, police also found a 10 second video clip on Nichols' mobile phone, recorded only days after the attack.

In it, Nichols leers into the camera and calls himself a murderer.

Mr Phipps had been on his way to take photographs of a recent snowfall at Cleadon Hills when he was attacked.

Nichols rammed him with a bicycle as he walked along a secluded path, hoping to knock him off his guard and steal his digital camera.

A spot of Mr Phipps' blood was found on Nichols' tracksuit bottoms

But the victim fought back and was stabbed several times, including once in the heart. A spot of blood was later found on Nichols' clothes.

On Tuesday, the judge at Newcastle Crown Court recommended he serve a minimum of 22 years.

Source: BBC

So if its not bad enough that this guy acted how he did, his life sentence was for a minimum of only 22 years. So it wasn't a life sentence at all. Why the fuck are we calling it life then?

What really annoyed me about the story was this -

"It was the most serious in a long line of offences committed by Nichols, who has 37 previous convictions, including robbery, burglary, violence and carrying a knife".

You'd think they system would accept this person was scum and lock them up before they had committed 37 offences.

Yet day after day there is more insane, draconian legislation aimed against the average man on the street.

I don't know why this should annoy me as much, sadly its almost a daily occurrence in this country.

Personally, I support the death penalty and think this bastard should be strung up. I also think that people who are responsible for him being free after 37 offences should be sacked and prosecuted. If the legislation doesn't exist, it should be drafted.

Given the mindless behaviour I constantly see from school children, teenagers and people my age (mid 20's) I very much think things will get considerably worse over the coming decades.

I also work with people from around Europe, they are stunned at some of the things we accept as the norm. I wish I was. Time was you'd feel ashamed to be British abroad when the fat, football shirt wearing clones went on the rampage. I now just feel ashamed to be British full stop.

Thieves

The BBC report that Police are now using Merchant Shipping Act of 1854 to stop people "scavenging" on the beach in Devon.

Normally, I'd be quite happy to see someone get "something for nothing" but in this case, I have to say I'm disgusted with this behaviour.

Taking something without it belonging to you when you are clearly aware it doesn't belong to you is tantermount to theft, no matter how you dress it up.

The sight of these greedy, grasping pond life should sicken and embarrass everyone in this country - It just isn't cricket! Did you see the footage from a helicopter of people swarming around containers like ants or dragging boxes across the beach?

Now we read they are selling this stuff on Ebay.

I think they should be ashamed of themselves and I hope that the police identify and prosecute those who don't declare they have picked this stuff up.

I hope the owners demand their property back.

Above all, I hope they manage to limit the damage to the environment in that part of the country.

How Israel was formed - The Iranian point of view

This is Omid Djalili, probably one of the funniest comedians working in the UK at present. Before I get cursed by anyone, this is meant to be a bit of fun, not a political statement!

The myspace bug (viral)

I've only recently started to blog.

One thing I do try to do is to check the validity of any facts I may post or make reference to.

Whilst searching for something today, I happened to notice this post.

It seemed familiar so a quick search on Technorati revealed this wasn't the only post. Far from it, seems this is quite a popular one to post on Myspace.

Guess the rule of thumb is, if you aren't aiming at teenagers, don't use myspace!

For any of those people who find their way to this post -

This isn't current. These bastards were released in 2001. They now live under false identities - forever protected by the British state

Time to consider change?

Its been an interesting few days in national politics, for starters there was the arrest of Ruth Turner in the cash for honours investigation.

There was also the entirely insane furore about the "racism" on Big Brother. I'm still none the wiser as to who said what, nor do I want to know. There was some discussion about it on this weeks Question Time. The condemnation was quite forceful but seemingly only represented a certain section (or sections) of society. The vast majority of people were not heard. That said, the politicians all took the same approach.

I take no view on this as I'm not aware of the facts of the matter but think its important to note that not everyone shares their views nor does that mean the only alternative views are those of racists.

There was discussion on Newsnight about "Green Corporations" after Tesco made its announcements on helping to reduce climate change. There was a fascinating discussion between an MD (Innocent Drinks) and someone from a 'Green' organisation.

In particular, what interested me were the views of the MD. Typically one would expect his views to be entirely profit orientated with just a nod to the environmentalists. On this occasion I felt his views were quite the opposite and that he (and therefore his business) did indeed consider the environment to be of critical importance - perhaps at the expense of the all important profit margin. Nice to see evidence of true ethics within business for a change!

I then watched David Cameron's latest Q&A video on WebCameron and whilst I didn't share all of his views, I did think he at least appeared to be a far more representative politician than Blair. Certainly, the very fact he participates in this blog and therefore with the electorate is a massive improvement on the way the Labour government has operated over the last 10 years.

Today I've been reading about a U.S citizen who has taken issue with federal income taxes. Of course, you often hear of "crackpots" taking a stand on what at first glance appear to be rather unlikely causes.

In this case his point of view is fairly straightforward - "show me the legislation which compels me to pay this and I will".

The legal issues surround the 16th amendment to the US constitution. Essentially, he feels (as do many others apparently) that it contradicts the 1st-8th amendments. Whether he is right or not I have no idea. I fear things could turn nasty in this case as he's barricaded himself into his home and taken up arms.

However, its led to another concept - If his state taxes have been paid, what purpose do the Federal Taxes serve? Some would argue they lead to big, unrepresentative government - something that could be argued on both sides of the Atlantic.

Is it now time that we reviewed our entire structure of government? From representation to rights and responsibilities and everything else. For example, is Parliament the best way to run our country? Should the citizens now have a direct say in the running of the country (i.e. not having to lobby a representative who will almost always do what their party or own opinions dictate) but each having a right to vote or introduce legislation. Do we need a formal, written constitution? Do we really need a small group of people dictating which things are "good" and which are "bad". Are taxes really the best way to deliver the underlying services we all need? Is economic growth always the best thing for the nation (or planet)?

This country has a proud history and we should never lose sight of that - does that mean we should rely on history and tradition to keep us going into the coming centuries and millennia? No civilisation has lasted forever. Change or die, sink or swim, I think its time we started looking at our nation as a whole and considering how and why things should be done rather than just doing them for the sake of it.

Big Brother "Racism"

How should I put this?

I DON'T CARE

I don't watch it.

I don't know who said what.

I don't want to know.

This type of TV show appears to the dregs of society as it is (that is to say - those who participate or watch this crap are not people I have or want any affiliation with).

If you go onto something like that, you must anticipate people to act as they would in real life. You must expect them to play up for the cameras.

If you can't tolerate it, don't go.

As for these 10,000 complainers - get a life.

Politicians - its absolutely nothing to do with you - get a life. You're there to represent us - do it.

Media - stop giving free publicity to this terrible show and its inane participants.

Again I DON'T CARE

Was it Blair who said...

...Gordon Brown is psychologically flawed?

According to Lance Price via Iain Dale's online TV show, it was.

I wasn't there so I obviously can't confirm or deny this but its interesting to note the following -

Iain Dale: Another thing is that Andrew Rawnsley has said that once Tony Blair ceases to be Prime Minister, he will reveal all. That would add fuel to the fire.

Lance Price: Maybe Iain you heard it here first.

Whatever the situation, what does it say about the PM to have someone in charge of the economy he believes is psychologically flawed? Does Brown have something on him? What, if anything will come out when Blair finally leaves Number 10?

Could prove to be an interesting year ahead of us.

Boredom?

When you think of New Labour, which words spring to your mind?

Spin? WMD? Lies? Corruption? Greed? Ignorance? Arrogance? Revulsion?

I'm sure there are many, many more.

Is boredom one of them?

It would appear both Milliband (you know, that 12 year old twerp) and Blair believe this to be the case...

"If the worst that you have to put up with is boredom in a mid-term, you are probably doing reasonably well." - Tony Blair

You might have watched the Trial of Tony Blair last night, In it he was depicted as someone who just "didnt get it". He didn't comprehend the feelings of the average person. I suspect he's just proven the show was more factual than any of us could have imagined.

Just so you know Tony/Milliband - People aren't bored with you, they despise you

German Justice Minister: Make Holocaust Denial Illegal throughout Europe

I've just been reading this article on the Independent website.

It would appear that the German Government would like to deny British and other European citizens their absolute right to freedom of speech.

Its reported -

Germany is to revive plans to criminalise Holocaust denial as well as the use of Nazi symbols in all EU countries, making them punishable by up to three years in prison.

Ministers in Berlin have identified the move as a priority of Germany's six-month presidency of the EU which began on 1 January. Its efforts come against the background of the formation in the European Parliament of a far-right group, Identity, Sovereignty and Tradition.
The European Commissioner for Justice and Home Affairs, Franco Frattini, has pledged its support for the German push. A spokesman said: "This would give a good signal that there are no safe havens for racists or xenophobes in Europe."

Two years ago, Luxembourg tried to use its EU presidency to push through legislation that would have made Holocaust denial an offence. That push was blocked by Italy's centre-right government. Since then a centre-left government has taken control in Italy and the prime minister, Romano Prodi, is unlikely to oppose the measure.

However other countries, including the UK, Denmark and Sweden, had misgivings fearing that freedom of speech would be compromised. The European Commission says it is confident the law will be sufficiently well-drafted to ensure that genuine historical debate about the Nazi era would not be impeded.

Now I don't know about you but over recent years I've observed a constant attack on Individual liberty in the UK. Whether that be in the drafting and instigation of draconian legislation, proposed mass compulsory databases & emotional blackmail attacks on opinion. I'm not particularly impressed with this suggestion and have no confidence that our current government will resist this call.

Of course, saying this leaves me open to the "well you must be a facist" brigade. Trust me, I'm not. Nor am I a neo-nazi, holocaust denier or any of the other slurs you may wish to throw in my direction.

Just because we don't always approve of what someone says doesn't mean they shouldn't be allowed to say it.

One to watch - The trial of Tony Blair

Tonight, More4 will be screening a feature length drama depicting a fictional trial of Tony Blair:

It is some time in the future. Gordon Brown is moving in. President Clinton is looking for her second term in the White House. And Tony Blair has swapped the corridors of power for carpet swatches in his home in Connaught Square.

But some things don't change: in Iraq there's no let-up to the daily death toll and the ex-PM is as obsessed as ever with his legacy.

Tonight, More4, 22:00

Despair

It would appear that Tony Blair blames everyone but himself for the state of the world today.

I've recently tried to ignore the comments of this idiot because he's finished and what he says should now be irrelevant but he should not be allowed to get away with this kind of accusatory statement -

"Tony Blair has turned the blame for his disastrous military campaigns in the Middle East on anti-war dissidents and the media.

Warning it would take the West another 20 years to defeat Islamic terrorism, the Prime Minister used a wide-ranging "swansong" lecture on defence to denounce critics and the media who have been a thorn in his side since the invasion of Iraq.

The Prime Minister rejected as "ludicrous" the notion that removing two dictatorships in Afghanistan and Iraq and replacing them with a UN-backed process to democracy had made Britain a greater target for international terrorism.

"They now know that if a suicide bomber kills 100 completely innocent people in Baghdad, in defiance of the wishes of the majority of Iraqis who voted for a non-sectarian government, then the image presented to a Western public is as likely to be, more likely to be, one of a failed Western policy, not another outrage against democracy."

Acknowledging the public backlash against the Iraq war, Mr Blair said: "Public opinion will be divided, feel that the cost is too great, the campaign too long, and be unnerved by the absence of 'victory' in the normal way they would reckon it.

But the Prime Minister added: "They will be constantly bombarded by the propaganda of the enemy, often quite sympathetically treated by their own media, to the effect that it's really all 'our', that is the West's fault. That, in turn, impacts on the feelings of our armed forces. They want public opinion not just behind them but behind their mission."

Quite frankly this nonsense does not justify or warrant a normal critique.

HOW DARE HE

He is the one who lied, sent our soldiers in to die and is personally responsible for tens, if not hundreds of thousands of innocent civillian deaths.

LABOUR -

For the love of god, democracy & decency - remove this bastard from office now. Drag him out of number 10 and give him a taste of his own medicine.

UN

Get him to your war crimes tribunal - NOW and charge him with the variety of offences his is understood to have commited including illegal invasion of a sovereign nation against the U.N charter.

There is a better discussion about his speech here


Next - It would appear these filth now want to create yet another invasive I.T. project without offering the electorate any say:

"A giant database of people's personal details could be created at Whitehall under government plans which ministers say will help improve public services.

Tony Blair is expected to unveil the proposal in Downing Street on Monday.

Strict regulations currently prevent one part of government sharing personal information it holds with another.

Ministers argue the data-sharing rules are "overzealous" but the Conservatives say relaxing them would be "an excuse for bureaucrats to snoop".

So-called citizens' panels will gauge public reaction to relaxing privacy procedures so people do not have to repeat personal information to different public bodies - particularly at times of stress such as a family death".

What the FUCK is a citizens panel? Don't you think if you want MY data your should ask ME.

What has happened to this country? Who does this government represent? It would appear it only looks out for itself and for its business contacts.

With all this spin, lies, outright deception, crazy legislation, emotional blackmail, etc is there anything positive to discuss about the UK?

Tears of a President

Story

"Tears trickle down the face of President George Bush as he attends the award ceremony of a young Marine who died saving the life of colleagues.

Cpl Jason Dunham threw himself onto a grenade hurled by insurgents in Iraq.

His body absorbed most of the blast, saving the lives of fellow soldiers".

I wonder how many people felt this way when he announced another 20,000 troops. I wonder how the people of Iraq feel every single day. I wonder if that tear reveals guilt/humanity or is a cynical ploy to obtain some empathy.

BBC Censorship

Some of you may know that the BBC run a basic message board system on their website.

They claim this allows users to discuss the issues of the day or subjects relevant to the particular section of the site.

On Sunday, Andrew Marr interviewed Gordon Brown. This was generally accepted to be little more that a party political broadcast for Brown.

Guido:

"Starts off in Brown's old school, with a posed shot of Brown entering striding across the grounds. We learn he was top boy and in the rugby team. Brown loves being pictured with school children, none are available so the headmistress is drafted in instead.

Marr's interview is in the school library and starts off tamely on education. Brown's smile becomes genuine only when Marr asks him "do you expect to become PM?" Brown swerves direct answer and waffles on about "new politics". Marr asks how his government will be different. Brown proceeds to make a party political on broadcast on behalf of Gordon Brown. Comments.

Iain Dale:

"I didn't have a very good nioght's sleep last night, but I needn;t have worried. All I had to do is tune in to Andrew Marr's programme and listen to the interview with Gordon Brown to be induced into a prolonged zzzzz.

I cannot think of an occasion when I have actually heard Gordon Brown say anything interesting in an interview. He uses a kind of language which normal people just do not indulge in. He manages to go for 15 minutes without saying anything at all. Quite a feat, I suppose.

I now understand why the BBC made so much on its news bulletins about Brown's remarks on Saddam's execution. Brown echoed Prescott's remarks, criticising the grisly spectacle. In itself this is not exactly newsworthy, but because Blair hasn't said anything about the hanging the BBC led its news bulletins with Brown's remarks proof of a further split with Blair. Laura Kuensberg was positively breathless in her comments live int he studio.

The simple fact of the matter is that with any political interview nowadays there has to be a"top line" to emerge from it otherwise the interviewer will be seen to have failed. For Brown's remarks on Saddal to be a 'top line' demonstrates what a mind-numbingly boring interview it was".

More (Google blog search).


On balance I think most people found the interview to be dull at best, shameful at worst.

At the time, there was a discussion on the BBC's "Points of View" message board about the quality of reporting on the BBC.

The Original post stated -

I’m I alone in being fed up with the poor journalism on the BBC news?

They seem to be short of news as all they talk about is Sadam execution (deserved) I might add.

What Gordon Brown thinks (who the hell is he, the man who has robbed us all blind, and put more people in poverty)

England at cricket (so what we have a rubbish team that are over paid to be rubbish)

Can we have news when it happens and not a repeat for days on end, is there so little going on that we have to repeat every 15 minuets the same thing for days on end. Or just a thought maybe the readers have to repeat over and over to learn the script?

One other thing I’m sick of hearing about our over paid sports people like they are important.
And another couple I’m fed up with are climate change and what we should do about it (as if we can make a difference we a are a little country with very little manufacturing) (just another way to increase tax)
and I’m sick of hearing about dangerous dogs when they are illegal (if our lazy police did the job they are paid for this would not be news)


Having just seen the interview, I felt compelled to respond as follows -

"I couldn't agree more.

Unfortunately its a vicious circle in our debased society.

People dumb down, the media feed this, people dumb down more and so on.

Cricket - Minority interest except for when every man and his dog jumped on the "ooh 'WE' won" bandwagon.

Brown - Odious little twerp who is given an easy time by the BBC. If they can't ask serious questions and push for real answers there is no point giving him airtime.

Climate change is important and is happening but until the world acts as one on this, what our country does is entirely irrelevant. Its about time the BBC and other media outlets kept pushing this.

Dangerous dogs.. another bandwagon for them to jump on. Its not the dogs that are dangerous, its the cretins who can't look after their pets.

The big one for me, the biggest annoyance in media parlance is the acceptance that *THE* most important thing in the world is economic growth. It isn't. What matters more than anything is quality of life. You can be the richest individual and nation on earth and have a terrible quality of life, conversely, your GDP can be almost non existent but your quality of life can be many times better than ours.

Can you remember ever hearing this discussed on the news?

Ok, so they have to report events but it seems they report their spin on it and nothing else.

Within a matter of minutes, the post had been removed from the boards.

The following day I was sent an email explaining that my post had breached the rules of the site. Being somewhat bemused, I asked for an explanation of specifically what had been said to break the rules and which rule had been broken.

The response was -

Your post was complained about by another board member, who found this
phrase unnecessarily offensive.

">Brown - Odious little twerp who is given an easy time by the BBC. If
> >they can't ask serious questions and push for real answers there is no
> >point giving him airtime.

The board moderators agreed with the complainant, so failed your
posting."

Is it just me or is that justification insane?

I decided I would double check the meaning of "odious" and "twerp" to ensure they meant what I thought -

Odious: "Arousing or meriting strong dislike, aversion, or intense displeasure".

Twerp: "A person regarded as insignificant and contemptible".

So I'm still none the wiser. Hardly the strongest choice of words, not particularly offensive, simply representing a view of many people.

Removed. Why?

Do you consider those remarks "unnecessarily offensive"?

Are they so scared to criticise this government (post Hutton) that they will even censor members of the public?

Answers on a postcard please!

Brass neck!

This woman must be joking!

"Ruth Kelly has said she will refer the Daily Mirror to the Press Complaints Commission over its coverage of her decision to educate her son privately.

The newspaper had breached the boy's right to privacy by naming her as the minister who took a child out of the state system, she added.

The Communities Secretary said her "sole concern" was for her son".

Whatever your opinion on the rights and wrongs of her sending a child to a private school, the fact remains the interest is with the parent, not the child.

I really hope they go hell for leather to dig out as much dirt as they can on her.

She MUST go

Her sheer arrogance is breathtaking.

BBC release post Hutton board meeting minutes

The BBC has now released the minutes of the post Hutton (whitewash) report meeting of the board.

Certainly worth reading.

January 2004 minutes

February 2004 minutes

To remind ourselves of the context, there is an chronology of events surrounding Hutton on Wikipedia and the public statements from the BBC are available here


Former Director General Greg Dyke

"I am today announcing that I have resigned from the BBC.

My position as director general has inevitably been compromised by the criticisms of BBC management in the Hutton report.

Following Gavyn Davies' decision to go, I felt I too should offer my resignation to the Board of Governors.

I have enjoyed my time at the BBC and in particular I've loved working with so many talented and enthusiastic people.

I am proud of what we have achieved together over the last four years.

With the departure of both Gavyn and myself and the apology I issued on behalf of the BBC yesterday, I hope that a line can now be drawn under this whole episode.

Throughout this affair my sole aim as director general of the BBC has been to defend our editorial independence and to act in the public interest".

Acting Director General Mark Byford

" I would first like to pay tribute to Greg Dyke and his tenure as director general.

Like all colleagues in the BBC I am shocked and saddened at his departure.

Greg has brought tremendous dynamism, energy and drive and is hugely respected by all the staff at all levels throughout the organisation and is recognised for his warmth, integrity and talent.

I recognise it is now my task as acting director general to lead the organisation through what is a very turbulent period.

We must now study the Hutton report carefully, learn appropriate lessons and implement relevant measures.

The BBC must provide high quality, independent, impartial journalism, recognised for its accuracy, fairness and objectivity.

It must be recognised in the UK and around the world for trusted, reliable, authoritative news; intelligent discussion and debate; and courageous investigative journalism set within a rigorous and robust editorial framework.

Creativity is the heart of the organisation and we must strive to promote high quality, innovation and ambition in all we do, serving audiences as a beacon of public service broadcasting.

I believe passionately in the values of the BBC and its role.

As acting director general I will lead it to the very best of my ability together with an outstanding team of colleagues.

My executive committee team also want to put on record their affection for Greg and their great admiration for all he has achieved as director general.

They, too, are very sad to see him go but understand and accept his decision.

As an executive, we are now united in looking forward to working with the Board of Governors to ensure the BBC emerges from this difficult time a strong, independent and vibrant organisation, building on the legacy Greg has left behind".


And lets not forget what started the whole affair, a report by Andrew Gilligan or was it the dodgy dossier?

Either way, it is interesting to note that Greg Dyke claimed to have been "mistreated" and asked to be reinstated.

UK Law (Useful/Informative)

Just spotted this.

According to the blurb -

The UK Statute Law Database (SLD) is the official revised edition of the primary legislation of the United Kingdom made available online.

SLD was released to the public on 20 December 2006. The staff of the UK Statutory Publications Offices would like to welcome all our new users. The content of SLD is available for viewing and private use free of charge


Just never know when you mind need to look something specific up. This could provde to be a very useful resource.

Fuckwit!

The BBC report:

"No abscond is acceptable but absconds happen in open prisons by the very nature of open prisons,"

Correct me if i'm wrong but the vast majority of people in this country do not support the use of these lax regimes in the first place. They've been imposed on us by a small group of people who insist they know best.

Instead of making stupid comments Gerry, why not do something about it.

If you're in prison, you should stay in prison.

Not a difficult system, surely?!

Racist, homophobic?

Just been reading this article on the BBC website.

Apparently -


Mr Page was arrested on suspicion of inciting racial hatred after a pro-hunting speech he made in Frampton-on-Severn.

He said supporters of the traditional country way of life "should be given the same rights as blacks, Muslims and gays".

An argument I find hard to disagree with and certainly not racist or homophobic.

It goes on to say that he wasn't prosecuted and that was that.


Until...

He made a DPA request for the data held by police. He then found he appeared on a "homophobic incidents register" - this seems rather heavy handed. Not quite on a par with forced retention of DNA profiles for innocent people but nonetheless, offensive in its own right.

The was one part of this which was funny though, It would appear that one officer, remarking on a proposed trip to Kenya wrote - "Hopefully, he'll get eaten by a crocodile"!

Ruth Kelly should resign

Recent rumours of Minister sending their child to a £15,000 p/a private school have been confirmed.

It would appear that religious crackpot Ruth Kelly[2] is sending one of her little darlings to a private school for children with special needs after "rejecting state provision as inadequate".

All very well you might say, its a free country, its her choice. On the whole, I would usually agree, but when you consider that Kelly was Minister for Education & Skills between 2004 & 2006 it becomes a different matter entirely.

On top of this, the Times report -

"One of the minister’s officials refused to comment when approached by The Times. The minister is understood to have sought the help of the Press Complaints Commission, the industry’s voluntary regulator, to block publication of all details that might identify him or her".

This isn't to protect the child, the press have no interest in the child, its to save herself from justifiable condemnation.

Kelly, do something slightly honourable - resign, now. No delays, no protracted scandal - just fuck off and don't come back.

Port of Miami

I've just flicked over to Fox News to see them going crazy over a truck which was found to have three people on board rather than just the driver.

Initially my reaction was "stupid melodramatic reporting, happens here every single day". But thinking about it, just goes to show how tight their security is and how lax our is.

Seriously, we just accept it now because its happened for so long, over there it constitutes a major story.

So their land border issues are different but we're an Island!

Eurofighter deal

Those who put money above all else will I'm sure be pleased to find out that the Saudi Eurofighter deal is to go ahead after all.

Obviously we should have all been deeply concerned that the vindictive operation conducted by the SFO could have cost us £££'s!

Don't worry, you can now all sleep soundly in your beds knowing our military technology is being shipped to this bastion of personal liberty and democracy. I'm sure this will help maintain the peace in the middle east.

The Sunday Politics

So, It would appear Gordon Brown finds the manner in which Saddam Hussein was executed to be deplorable.

Fine Gordon. Here's what I find deplorable -

-The illegal invasion and occupation of a nation under entirely false pretences.
-A man who only speaks out about the fate of the dictator he helped capture and execute.
-A man who thinks he is the next leader of Labour but won't insist or demand the current leader pass comment.

He seems to think its a big deal that someone should go to their death being subjected to fairly basic abuse. He may be right in that but lets be honest, that has always happened in executions, public or not.

I'd much rather that than to be blown to pieces by a suicide bomber. How many of those existed in Iraq pre "Operation Iraqi Freedom"?

He's quoted as saying "Even those people unlike me who are in favour of capital punishment found this completely unacceptable" - well Mr Brown, you don't speak for me. I don't approve of the comments at the execution but I quite frankly couldn't care less about Saddam and any hurt feelings before they dropped him through the trapdoor.

I suggest if you want someone to blame, you look in the mirror.

Apparently, Nick Brown thinks Gordon would "renew Labour". Does that make them New, new Labour?

Not sure what this guy is on but its as if he doesn't quite understand just how much people loathe the entire Labour party these days.

He is quoted as saying "We've been in office a long time and there's a sense we are starting to lose our way"

Starting?!

Losing their way?!

Nick, do us all a favour, please, jump off the Tyne Bridge rather than represent the constituency.

All of the stories doing the rounds really fit into this category but how about this for a "You couldn't make it up"-

"Keeping patients in hospital too long takes up the equivalent of 13,000 beds a year and costs £1bn, a think-tank has estimated.

The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) says the bed space and money could be saved if more care was provided outside hospital.

Cutting the number of locations where specialist services are offered would also help, it said".

Nice to see these non medical twerps are taken seriously, isn't it?!

Another round of bollocks from our elected and unelected rulers.

The futures bright, the futures Brown.

Could all escaped prisoners please raise their hands!

What can we say about this one?

Apparently, the head of the Prison service doesn't know how many prisoners are on the run.

But don't worry folks, now this has been pointed out, they're working on it.

After all, there are always "lessons to be learnt" from these scandals, aren't there?

And this government expects us to trust them with more and more of our personal data.

What happened to this country? Wasn't it once somewhere we could be proud of?

At exactly what point did the lunatics take over the asylum? Was it 2nd May 1997 or before?

Is it time we had a wholesale clearout of all senior government and civil service positions, reduce the salaries for these roles by 75% and got people who can actually do the job in place?

More Royal sponging

I've read a number of reports recently that our taxes are being abused by the Royal family in order to pay for protection of Prince Williams girlfriend.

This must stop now.

If these wealthy, over privileged filth want to have this type of protection then they should fund it themselves.

No ifs, no buts.

What are we in this country? Nothing but a bunch of mugs to tolerate this.

Debate is dead. Long live censorship.

I've not been following the story about a junior minister and his thoughts on their approach to the environment but have just read this article on the Sky News website.

In a nutshell it states that his comments were "unhelpful" and that he was told not to make any further statements as "this was simply to avoid fuelling the controversy".

Surely thats EXACTLY what a minister should be doing. Not waiting to be told what to say by some committee or the little Milliband twerp?

Time for Milliband to be sacked.

Anti Smoking

So I'm trying to quit smoking.

Decided on New Years eve that would be my last pack.

The final one was smoked on Tuesday morning.

It was a tough day so I "borrowed" one from a colleague, same yesterday.

So at that point I'd simply cut down (from ~15 a day to 1 wasn't too bad).

I've now managed to reach the 24 hour point and am surprised how good I still feel without one.

That said, It really doesn't help to see pictures of cigarettes on websites, in newspapers and worst of all - in anti smoking adverts.

At this delicate stage I don't want to think about these at all. Can't help thinking that these adverts do more harm than good.

To the the anti smoking campaigners - we know what smoking is, must you really show us?!

And a quick hello to my extra visitors today. Trust you are all well!

Nick Robinson - Biased?

I've often read posts about Nick Robinson's bias on a variety of subjects.

Usually I don't buy it.

However, I've been reading his recent post about "our" options for Iran.

Having read his post the closest he comes to saying anything about our unwarranted intervention is "What should Britain's role be? To oppose military action in all circumstances" and then goes on to list the views of the same old wankers who caused us to go into Iraq.

How about this Nick - We mind our own bloody business and let them build weapons if they want to. Alternatively, we destroy our own first then start lecturing others.

Seems to me Nick you have already decided that Iran are in the wrong and all that is up for discussion is what approach we ought to take.

Spineless

I've been reading with interest an entry on the BBC News Editors blog.

Its a discussion into the rights and wrongs of showing the pre hanging footage.

Some of the comments alarm me greatly. These appear to be adults condoning censorship and sanitisation. Quite why isn't entirely clear, I've copied a few of the comments below.

Is really quite simple you spineless cretins, If you take the "won't someone think of the children" approach you end up giving your offspring an entirely distorted view of the world leaving them less able to make considered judgements in the future.

The world isn't all pleasant or black and white.

"I was deeply offended by the footage shown. Yes, I did expect a modicum of dignity and perhaps compassion from the BBC for a man facing death. I am a viewer who tuned into BBC24 to see if there had been a last minute stay of execution or if it taken place - one minute I was watching a clearly moved Ramsey Clark then turned to get my coffee and was faced with those images."

"I was seriously shocked and shaken to see the footage of the noose being placed around Saddam's neck. I switched on the news and there it was - continually played, hour after hour, whenever the news was on, on both Sky and BBC. That means that all those receptions and offices and waiting rooms who play the news constantly showed the people waiting there footage of a man about to be hanged constantly."

"I am appalled at the lack of sensitivity displayed by the BBC in broadcasting Saddam Hussein's final moments before his execution. I do not engage in this level of voyeurism and I was not given the choice of changing channels."


Another thing that concerns me is the silence from Tony Blair on this subject. He's been very vocal on events in Iraq in the past.

Is this because he knows if he condemns the death of one man people will remind him of the tens/hundreds of thousands of deaths he is personally responsible for? I truly hope his belief in god is real because he knows he too will be judged for his actions.