Plenty more of these on my Disused Stations label.
I'm all out of inspiration at the moment. It's been sucked into a black hole known as my dissertation and hopefully will reappear at some point after September. But it is really important to vote – and vote Remain on Thursday. So in lieu of me being able to write something sensible about the referendum, can I heartily recommend these ... The post Bloggers and friends for Remain appeared first on ten pence piece.
Kath Pinnock was supposed to be campaigning for Remain with Jo Cox on the afternoon she died. This is the tribute she gave this afternoon in the House of Lords. My Lords, Jo Cox was my MP. She was savagely attacked and murdered on a street just yards from the market place where we were due to meet that very afternoon to campaign together on an issue about which we both cared passionately: being part of an open, co-operative EU. That was not to be. Jo had strongly held, principled, views. She was willing to work with all those who ...
[IMG: Merton photo 2] Merton Liberal Democrats were very pleased and somewhat surprised to be among the first winners of the Party's "referendum pledge challenge". The vast majority of the winning groups are areas of (often recent) historic strength for the party with an organisation to match – so it was a real boost to us to see the local group's name up there. Last summer, bolstered by our newbies, we agreed a selection of campaign themes that articulated who we were and what we wanted to achieve as a group. This included the EU referendum/staying in the EU. A ...
My nominations for the John W. Campbell Award were: Andy Weir (finalist) Kelly Robson L.S. Johnson Iona Sharma Sunil Patel Those who topped the File 770 straw poll were: Becky Chambers (22) Andy Weir (22) Natasha Pulley (16) Scott Hawkins (10) Kelly Robson (10) Alyssa Wong (10) with nobody else getting more than five. Sebastien de Castell and Pierce Brown were each nominated by one File 770 responder, and Brian Niemeier by none. All of the finalists apart from Alyssa Wong were on the slate; it's reasonably to assume that Weir would have made it without slate assistance, but Becky ...
This Thursday our country faces its most important choice in a generation, as we vote on whether to remain in or leave the European Union. Your Focus Team believes it's vital that you use your vote to support REMAIN. We believe we should stay in the EU, because that's how we can tackle our most important problems - through a strong economy that can pay for vital services like the NHS and co-operation to tackle complex global challenges like climate change and terrorism. Being in Europe keeps many jobs safe and makes sure we get lots of investment in Britain. ...
Embed from Getty Images In a recent analysis in the Washington Post of why Republican voters keep on supporting Trump and his "macho gone beserk"-rhetoric, the veteran American political analyst E.J. Dionne cited a classic book about Right-Wingers and their rhetoric, what they believe their phrases can accomplish. The social scientists Seymour Martin Lipset and Earl Raab observed in their classic book from 1970 "The Politics of Unreason/ Right Wing Extremism in America, 1790-1970" that: Right-wing extremists have always highlighted 'the magical power of the word' and the faith that just saying the right thing, believing the right thing, is ...
If I get a spare half hour over the next day or two I'll be clearing out older blog posts These will mainly be Blyth Town Council diary posts and posts that are no longer relevant.
First, an explanation. Ten days ago, I posted a blog about the peculiar meltdown of the Southern Railways franchise. By the following week, it was being read at the rate of 3,000 people an hour. I have to admit this rather scared me. I also wrote an open letter to the chief executive of Southern's operators, Govia Thameslink Railway. Between the two posts, there were just over 100,000 views. This was a measure partly of how many people were desperate at the delays, and how little it was being covered in the wider media. I since took them down again, ...
We can still lose. The worse case scenario can still come to pass. You are still what is standing between Britain and a disaster. Living in Korea does rather limit the amount I can contribute to the campaign to keep Britain in the EU. I've given money and turned my social media accounts into a [...]
[IMG: Jeremy Browne - Some rights reserved by Foreign and Commonwealth Office] On City AM, Jeremy Browne has been explaining that Europe fears Brexit because it would unleash forces that could prove impossible to control. He writes: In Britain, we inevitably focus most on how our departure from the EU would affect the UK. What the other countries in the EU mainly worry about, however, is how it would affect Europe. They are standing back, nervous that any intervention could be open to misinterpretation and be counter-productive, but they watch our referendum with trepidation. The consensus is that it would ...
The organisers did a great job in the build up to yesterday's celebrations and all was nicely set up for a grand day. Trouble is you can't order the great British weather to turn up shinning and it turned up bucketing! From 3pm it was very heavy rain but even so everyone seemed to be making the best of it and having fun. We certainly got wet and Scrummies refreshment marquee was full to bursting. [IMG: Packed into Scrummies refreshment tent] Packed into Scrummies refreshment tent It was great to see all the barges, narrow boats and canal cruisers lined ...
I have to be honest and say that I had not heard of Jo Cox MP before she was murdered but what I have learned about her since leads me to think that in a Parliament with few shining progressive stars these days she must have been one of them. With the Lib Dems severely reduced in numbers, a Labour Party that is inward looking, authoritarian and at war with itself and the SNP looking like an uncomfortable marriage of supposedly social democratic and narrow nationalist values the left of British politics is frankly in a mess. Jo Cox, we ...
We've heard a lot in the last few weeks about "taking our country back". It's not the kind of thing that would generally resonate with me. After all, I care far more for people than I do lines on maps. Patriotism doesn't really shape my politics, or my personal identity. But what I do have in common with most people is an identification with my community and the society in which I live. As a liberal, and a Liberal Democrat, I naturally want that society to be open, tolerant and inclusive. All this talk about "taking our country back" has ...
Embed from Getty Images Mark Williams has written an article for The Hill, the Washington based news source. Under the eye-catching headline "Happiness is still ground for punishment in Iran" Mark writes: A couple of years ago, Western audiences were noticeably shocked at the news that several Iranian youths had been arrested for the "crime" of dancing together and posting a video of themselves celebrating life to the strains of an American pop song called "Happy." It was one in a long series of vivid reminders of repression in Iran. But unfortunately it was one of only a few that ...
In Thursday's EU referendum everyone will have their own vote, and make their own decision. We wanted to share with you why the whole Lib Dem team across Prestwich and Bury are voting to Remain on Thursday. Firstly, we're voting with our heads. Everyday realities like jobs, prices and pensions make a massive difference to all of our lives. Across the world economic prosperity can be a fragile thing, as this country has known through recessions, banking crisis and more. But at the moment we're lucky enough to be a core part of the word's most successful trading club. As ...
Mon 20th
12:14
Congratulations to Maghull Canal Fest a brilliant event 200 yrs of the Leeds Liverpool canal
on board the Pride of Sefton 2 with the Mayor of Maghull (and Josh her consort), Peter Gill the chair of Aintree Parish Council (and his wife) and Bill Esterson. As the clouds darkened over Melling I set sail on the Pride of Sefton at the head of a flotilla of narrow boats making their way into the Canal Fest in Maghull. The Canal tow paths and bridges on our way were lined with people joining in the celebrations for the 200th anniversary of the Leeds Liverpool canal. Our destination was the Canal Fest being held at the Maghull Cricket ...
Embed from Getty Images And so the Brexit campaign tells us how much better things would be if we went it alone. Well, let me share my own experience as a former Headteacher and bring some perspective and reality into the argument. Apparently we constantly lose out financially by being in the EU. Not my experience. My school was a relatively successful rural comprehensive in County Durham. As with many rural schools, we struggled each year to balance our budgets and were certainly not favoured by either central or local government. No Building Schools for the Future, Excellence in Cities ...
the pill box we passed On board the Pride of Sefton on Sunday as part of the 200th anniversary celebration for the Leeds Liverpool canal I had the pleasure of the company of Captain Dan. As we made our way from Aintree to Maghull he provided a fascinating commentary on the canal and its history Of particular interest are the war time defences that were established along the canal in this part of Lancashire. Dan explained the 'stop line' to me and pointed out the pill box that we passed. Captain Dan explaining about the war time defences. Photo courtesy ...
Video emerges of Boris Johnson supporting the European single market - ITV News RT @petefrasermusic: In any sane world, this would raise tough, awkward questions for Johnson. It won't though. Via @Freedland Instagram Finally got around to trying Jeremy's for lunch. Proper Beer selection small but well kept. Food... Take your country back from those who seek to destroy it | Nick Cohen | Opinion | The Guardian RT @johnb78: I often disagree with Nick Cohen. This is not one of those times. British fascists are as dangerous as ISIS, says Derbyshire Police sergeant — RT UK RT @Bikeyjezmo: @polhomeeditor ...
Liberal Democrat Newswire #81 looks at the latest switch arounds in the Liberal Democrat message, an inside account of getting on the Lib Dem approved candidates list, the background to the election expenses scandal and more.
Well worth watching this video by Professor Michael Dougan before you vote."Dishonesty on an industrial scale" EU law expert analyses referendum
[IMG: Thomas Mair, accused of the murder of Jo Cox] Jo Cox' killer, Thomas Mair One of the ideas in group relations is that we are all in various groups, and sometimes what we do makes most sense if it is seen in the context of the group. It's possible to push that too far, but it can be a helpful way of looking. What goes with this is an idea that, when there is pressure on a group, someone eventually acts in a way that addresses it. This isn't necessarily a great leader. In fact is often the weakest ...
Embed from Getty Images The tragic death of Jo Cox is a potent symbol of what Britain in 2016 has become. A society in which blame of the other, hatred of those with differing opinions and distrust of MPs have all sadly become de rigueur. Yet she is also a beacon of what one human being can do to change the course of politics and something good has to come from her tragic death. She entered the House of Commons just a year ago and campaigned fervently to change government policy on refugees. George Osborne said tonight that Jo would ...
I've come to the point where one of the chief reasons I want us to vote Remain on Thursday is so we don't have to talk about the European Union again for another year at least. As a Europhile, it pains me to say this, but after the last few months it is how I genuinely feel. If we vote for Brexit many horrors await us, but a big one of them will be having to be obsessed with Europe for another two years at least. I don't think I can handle it – I might go off and become ...
What tellers can and cannot do is often a cause of friction on polling day. So here in full is the Electoral Commission's guidance. It does not have the force of law, but in practice if there is a problem with elections staff trying to be far too restrictive over telling, quoting this guidance almost always sorts things. (I put it that way round, as being too restrictive is almost always the problem.) In particular note the old favourite issue of the appearance of tellers: Tellers should wear coloured rosettes of a reasonable size, as this assists electors by making ...
The Conservative party's biggest donor, the telecoms giant Lycamobile, has been raided by French police on suspicion of money laundering and tax fraud, BuzzFeed News can reveal. Nineteen people were arrested in Paris last week and nine of them were charged on Friday, including Lycamobile's general manager in France, Alain Jochimek. The investigation was launched in the wake of revelations by BuzzFeed News last year that the international telecoms group employs three cash couriers to drop rucksacks stuffed with hundreds of thousands of pounds twice a day at Post Offices scattered across London... The Conservative party has accepted donations of ...
Anybody who seeks to predict how Thursday's vote on European Union membership will go is a fool. It is far too close to call. However, there was a feeling over the weekend that some people are pulling back from the leave option for a number of reasons. Whether this is enough to give Remain a clear win is an unknown factor but the emergence of what Dan Hodges calls 'Project Hate' has a clear role to play in that trend. He writes: Three weeks ago we all woke to the following quote from a pro-Brexit MP: 'I don't want to ...
The Botanic Garden is holding a garden advice clinic this coming Thursday (23rd June) - all welcome. It takes place in the Botanic Garden's Education Centre between 2pm and 4pm. Normal Botanic Garden entrance charges apply.
Clothes, Cameras and Coffee: My Grandma, President of the Earth A lovely family reminiscence. #fb (tags: doctorwho photos ) How undemocratic is the EU? Nothing like its portrayal in the media. (tags: eu ) Four Goods and a conclusion Some points in favour of the EU. (tags: ukpolitics eu ) Failed Daily Caller 'Writer' Throws Temper Tantrum About Being Debunked by snopes.com Snopes stands up for its own. (tags: Media ) Letter to an old, old friend who is voting to Leave the EU Nick Harkaway writes. #fb (tags: ukpolitics eu ) Berlin ready to lure tech firms after Brexit ...
War and the remembrance of war have dominated my time as Mayor. I am to lead the Act of Remembrance at the war memorial on Lord Street for the Battle of the Somme, lay a paving stone to commemorate a Bootle man who won the Victoria Cross, attend a performance of Faure's requiem on 11th November and so it goes on. On Saturday night I attended The Waterloo Dinner . The original dinner held in the same hotel in 1816 was attended by William Gladstone's father. In recent years the present owners of The Royal Hotel; Brian, Pauline and Gordon ...
Blog Categories: Political Comment Vote: 2 votes + Vote up! - Vote down! Almost every self-declared libertarian I've heard from seems to believe some version of the idea that "leaving the EU is the greatest step toward liberty we can make in our lifetimes". I disagree. In fact I go further and suggest it would be a regressive step to give those who wish to rule us from the den of thieves and liars at Westminster free rein, as they see it, to get on with what Michael Gove chillingly to me at least called "patriotic renewal". For a couple ...
