Saturday 2nd September 2006

10:10 pm

Sorry readers, it's all trial and error at the mo

Gravatar Been faffing around for ages like a total plonker trying to work out how to import a Google Videocast into my blog so readers only have to click on it to watch rather than having a url link. Never too ashamed to admit defeat, yesterday I sent out a 'help' message on our bloggers e-list. Quick as a flash Ryan Cullen who set up LibDem Blogs - came back with the answer. It's so simple when you know how. Took the easy download option as my first try - quite pleased with the result. Ming Campbell ...

MessageSpace
8:11 pm

A wet Saturday in my exciting (not really) life

Gravatar Today was miserable, weather wise. I realise that Manchester has the rain to thank for the cotton industry, with the rivers powering the factories and all. But that was 150 years ago and since the Lib Dems are the party of the environment, I think it only fair that we move on from weather that leads to smog-chucking mills towards the type of economy that thrives on mild sunshine and refreshing
6:45 pm

Google Image Labeler

Gravatar Tag pictures for points with Google Image Labeler. By playing the game, you can help Google build a better image search engine, as unlike flickr Google doesn't have any real way of knowing what's actually in the pictures it indexes.
3:48 pm

The finishline

Gravatar LQ4O0110 Originally uploaded by Radders. I got to Millenium Point in plenty of time, although there was already a good crowd lining the barriers.I decided to get take an arty set of photos, rather than trying to get a head on shot. The photo is of Mark Cavendish of T-Mobile, who came in 2nd on the stage. I'd guessed at the shutter speed I'd need to get a blur, but over did it (this was at 1/40), I could have got something better at 1/100, but you don't really have time to change your settings...The riders ...
3:41 pm

The Peloton in Shifnal

Gravatar LQ4O0057 Originally uploaded by Radders. Came through about 2mins 20sec behind the leaders, and they'd only gone about 25 miles!The picture shows the CSC team leading the peloton, with Martin Pederson, the leader, wearing the yellow jersey. The rider next to the yellow jersey gave me quite a stare as he went past (not sure why as I was safely sat on the pavement).The cyclist waving his hand and chatting to his QuickStep team mate is Tom Boonen wearing the world champions rainbow jersey.
3:41 pm

Where do you want to go today?

Gravatar As others have done this, I thought I'd give it a go as well. I've also been to the states, but I've just shown the European map. create your personalized map of europe
3:32 pm

Tour of Britain flies through the region

Gravatar LQ4O0032 Originally uploaded by Radders. Yesterday I took the day off work to watch the Tour of Britain as it whizzed through the West Mids.The route started in Wolves, but I decided to hop on a train to Shifnal, and then get back to Birmingham to see the riders cross the finishing line. As it was a "normal" race, rather than a timetrial, I rationalised that I'd actually only see them fly past for about 5 secs, so decided to try and see it twice! As it was, there was a break away by 7 seven ...
3:05 pm

More on "satanic abuse"

Gravatar I am pleased to see that a lot of people seem to have found my posting on the Orkney "satanic abuse" affair. There is another on the subject by The Ex-Communicator, who makes two important points. The first, which I should have emphasised more in my own post (or did the original programme make it less clear than it should have?), is that: The articulate middle class Quaker family got their kids back after a couple of months (thank god) the illiterate single mother whose abusive husband was in jail didn't get her kids back for five years. That's ...
3:00 pm

Open Capital Partnerships

Gravatar My good friend Chris Cook, responsible for opencapital.net has just written an article on how Limited Liability Partnerships could transform capital financing. This is clever stuff. And, as I wrote the other day in Social Enterprise 101: More than profit we need to be looking at this sort of stuff to help finance 'community interest' capital projects.
2:57 pm

Children to Tackle 'Menace' Blair

Gravatar I'm sure that most readers of this blog would be absolutely chilled to the bone at the thought that the next wave of Blair authoritarianism will be interference in families. It is utterly appalling that Blair thinks he somehow has the right to intervene in families before children are born. There are many children from wealthy families who become trouble makers. Look at the history of the current President of the United States, your mate George W. Bush Jr. Drugs and alcohol and drunk driving charges. This approach is appalling stigmatisation and can only serve ...
DataFlame
2:56 pm

Born Free? Not if Tony gets his way.

Gravatar Good article on The Dissenter's Voice: The return of eugenics about Blair's latest lunacy - criminalising children before they are even born on the advice of : our old friends those Guardian reading, Labour voting, middle class lefties with bad 2:2 in SociologyIt's bad enough that they keep children in jail, but pretending to identify criminals in the womb is simply evil. Blunkett, being
2:34 pm

Britain's Image Abroad Damaged by Labour's Immigration Rhetoric

Gravatar When I was growing up in Folkestone I developed a strong love of books and would spend considerable periods of time at the library in Grace Hill. Just inside the library building was a picture of Belgian refugees fleeing the German invasion in World War 1 being welcomed at Folkestone harbour. There was a time when Britain had a positive reputation for reasonable tolerance towards refugees and immigrants. Sadly it seems no longer true. An interesting article on the Guardian website suggests that a number of people are fed up with the way they are treated in ...
2:20 pm

More Yorkshire leg-spin

Gravatar Earlier in the summer I was writing about Adil Rashid. But he is not Yorkshire's only young, England-qualified leg-spinner. This morning's Guardian reports on Yorkshire vs Middlesex at Scarborough: Weather permitting - and judging by the dire forecasts, it may not - Yorkshire should complete a desperately needed victory today, after their two young leg-spinners Mark Lawson and Adil Rashid took all of their opponents' second- innings wickets in less than 50 overs. If Lawson's return of six for 88, a career best, was the outstanding effort of the day, it was only one of a number of fine ...
1:01 pm

Resignation retrospective

Gravatar Tony Blair's Resignation (Time Trumpet) As I have now got the hang of videos I thought that this alternative view of the events that led up to Tony Blair's eventual resignation would provide an interesting counterpoint.
12:23 pm

Paying for results

Gravatar As Welsh Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson I do my best to keep up with the latest news on my subject, however this piece in today's Western Mail stretches credibility. The paper reports that independent schools believe that their GCSE results prove they are giving parents value for money. This is not news, it is marketing. Top of the table is Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls, where boarders can stay for around £17,121 a year and parents can expect exceptionally high results. The headteacher of St John's College Cardiff, says that a key feature of independent schools ...
12:14 pm

More on that row

Gravatar The Western Mail reports just the facts in the continuing public spat between John Marek and the Presiding Officer this morning with very little elaboration or comment. I tend to agree with Wayne David MP, who on yesterday's Good Evening Wales advanced the opinion that the row is damaging devolution in Wales. I was rather bemused in a good way, by the fact that in both that article and this one, the paper has stopped ringing me up for comment and now just quote from this blog.
11:35 am

Waking up up to the smell of coffee

Gravatar The continuing speculation over the leadership of the Labour Party is reaching fever pitch this morning with all of the papers reporting on Tony Blair's reluctance to name a date. The Guardian reports that rebel MPs are warning that this lack of any news has could provoke a challenge to his leadership: The prime minister's call this week for an end to speculation inflamed his critics, amid signs that mainstream MPs are joining the group of leftwingers and disgruntled ex-ministers commonly written off as the "usual suspects" by the Blair camp. MPs are sounding out colleagues about ...
10:33 am

Mosaic and Political Campaiging - guest article on politicalbetting.com

Gravatar The link is to the guest article I have written for political betting.com
10:21 am

Racial profiling and terrorism

Gravatar My latest column is now up on my website - it's about racial profiling in the struggle against terrorism (and the thoughts triggered when a suspicious looking person sat near to me on the train).
10:10 am

Wolverhampton Marathon

Gravatar The Wolverhampton Marathon takes place tomorrow. It is in it's ninth year, there will also be a half -marathon. It actually takes place near my home at West Park. Good luck to everyone taking part - who knows if I start training now I may manage to enter the half-marathon next year.
9:10 am

Day 2067: Maybe you could come back when you have some ideas

Gravatar Thursday Those were the words that SUAVE presenter of the Today Programme, Mr Ed Stourton used to close his interview on Thursday with Shadow Minister for Tuck Shop Money, Mr Boy George Osborne. It would be a mistake to overlook Mr Stourton's talents: he is always polite and smooth-talking but he has a keen intelligence and often manages to get more out of his interviewees than the abrasive if flashy style of the more famous Mr Humpy. Nevertheless, it was quite clear that Mr Boy George was proving to be a frustrating subject: claiming to have come up ...
8:38 am

Underpass - west end Perth Road

Gravatar Residents have brought to my attention the state of the underpass at the very far end of Perth Road (the one that runs across Perth Road just east of the Invergowrie boundary to the west of Clovis Duveau Drive). See photos below! I have reported this to the City Council's Planning & Transportation Department asking for action to remove the graffiti.

Previous days:

Friday 1st September 2006, Thursday 31st August 2006, Wednesday 30th August 2006, Tuesday 29th August 2006, Monday 28th August 2006, Sunday 27th August 2006