One of the first things I remember thinking when I was first diagnosed was "Why me? This isn't what was meant to happen." It's a thought I've found myself coming back to recently. It's a thought I know others also think this when it comes to their health, whether it be physical or mental issues they suffer with.
Alright, so here I am in a surprisingly hip hotel close to an airport - indeed, it's called Moxy - so evidently I am off somewhere. And that is indeed true, although exactly where will have to wait until tomorrow. For now though, I am in Vienna, the city of the waltz, of coffee culture, and of one of the best political jokes ever. A man is in a Viennese cafe and, turning to his friend, says, "I hear that there'll be a revolution in Russia soon.". His friend scoffs, "And who's going to start that then, Herr Lenin and ...
I am just back from a lovely afternoon at Transgender Pride Scotland. I hadn't expected to be there but my plans changed – sadly too late to take place in the march in the biting cold and driving rain and sleet. By the time I got there, the crowds were happily ensconced in a conference centre near the main student halls complex in Edinburgh. In the shadow of Arthur's Seat, packed sessions on such subjects as tackling transphobia, what to expect at school, navigating gender identity issues as a non binary person, speech and voice as well as creative workshops ...
Sat 31st
21:55
Bertrand Russell remembers the terror of playing host to Mr Gladstone as a 17-year-old
I knew Bertrand Russell's younger son Conrad, who was an inspirational figure in the early years of the Liberal Democrats. I am therefore three moves from Mr Gladstone - and almost anyone of importance between him and the Second World War.
Final prep for tonight's #JoshuaParker bout - who's your money on? @anthonyfjoshua or @joseph_carterUK pic.twitter.com/9X0Wm0fylb— Principality Stadium (@principalitysta) March 31, 2018Even though @joseph_carterUK is the Welsh Liberal Democrats' housing spokesperson, councillor for Pentwyn and Llanedeyrn, and Cardiff Lib Dems' housing and social services spokesperson, my money is on Anthony Joshua. Lord Bonkers adds: Pound for pound, Joe Carter ("The Pentwyn Puncher") is the best Liberal Democrat boxer since Sugar Ray Michie.
No, it wasn't called "hacking" back then: it was called "scientific hooliganism". Let's talk about Marconi, Nevil Maskelyne, and a demonstration that didn't go as planned.
Esther McVey says it is a good thing is teenagers have Saturday jobs. Though the reasons she gives are too narrow - all about readying themselves for the world of work - she is right. Because such a job teaches teenagers things about people and the world they won't learn in the classroom. And if, like me, you come from a poor family, the extra spending money is very welcome. As a teenager myself, I first had a job I didn't much enjoy in a gentlemen's outfitters and then one in a secondhand bookshop where I thought I had died ...
Non-fiction: 8 (YTD 16) An Outline of the History of Pharmacy in Ireland, by William D. Moore M.B. A History of the Universe in 100 Objects, by Steve Tribe and James Goss Iain M. Banks, by Paul Kincaid So, Anyway..., by John Cleese The Road to Somewhere, by David Goodhart After Europe, by Ivan Krastev Free Radical, by Vince Cable No Going Back to Moldova, by Anna Robertson Fiction (non-sf): 3 (YTD 11) The Bean Trees, by Barbara Kingsolver Julian, by Gore Vidal How Green Was My Valley, by Richard Llewellyn sf (non-Who): 9 (YTD 28) Provenance, by Ann Leckie ...
Welcome to the latest in my occasional series highlighting interesting findings from academic research. Today, "Does Campaigning on Social Media Make a Difference? Evidence from candidate use of Twitter during the 2015 and 2017 UK Elections" by Jonathan Bright, Scott A Hale, Bharath Ganesh, Andrew Bulovsky, Helen Margetts and Phil Howard. Their conclusion is a version of "yes, it does": We find support for the idea that Twitter based campaigning is associated with voting outcomes, a finding which is robust to a variety of different model specifications and a strong empirical test using a two wave panel design. How big ...
Ladies, we've all been there, queuing for the loo with that growing sense of dread - did I remember to put my birth certificate in my handbag? As we all know, access to women's facilities is subject to approval from the gender police, and the terror when you approach the attendant with the explanation that [...]
This is my response to the Lib Dem immigration policy consultation paper. I have also posted it on my blog, as I believe this issue deserves a rather wider audience. I will note first of all that I do not ... Continue reading →
Today is the annual Transgender Day of Visibility. This afternoon, I'm heading into Edinburgh for the Trans Pride Scotland event and I'm really looking forward to seeing the stalls, workshops, talks and meeting lots of lovely people. Today really matters to me. As a liberal, I instinctively strive for the rights of people to be able to express who they are without fear. When I was at university, so many of my lesbian and gay friends weren't out. When I went to uni in 1985, technically homosexuality had only been legal for five years in Scotland. Homophobia still exists, but ...
It's Trans Day of Visibility. So I'd like to say to all my trans friends (and I have a few) that it's great you're visible - this day and every day. You're fantastic people and I'm privileged to know you and, in some cases, having been able to share in your journey. It's such a shame then that The Guardian, of all newspapers, chooses to use Trans Visibility Day to come up with something like this: Don't you just love it when a man explains to you what it means to be a woman? Not only does it fail to ...
MyFitnessPal hackers shocked at how bad your diet is Man who moved from Antigua 59 years ago told he is in UK illegally Yet another installment in the "The Home Office Are Bastards" canon. Man arrested for terror offences after filming police officer's bad parking - iNews Also the police can be bastards on occasion. It's almost like unfettered powers lead to abuse... Straight people think bisexuals are 'confused and promiscuous' So do gay people, to be fair #ShotByBothSides Are You a lib Dem? contribute to the party's consultation on immigration. Please. if you actually ARE a liberal there's no ...
Saturday last week saw our latest action day in Dunston Hill and Whickham East. A day of deliveries and door knocking.
Fri, 12:22: RT @APCOBXLInsider: Your Easter weekend read is ready: with only 12 months to go until the #UK leaves the #EU, we give you the latest on #B... Fri, 12:56: The Rise in Self-Proclaimed Time Travelers https://t.co/Em51q5Syy2 All fake, of course! Fri, 16:05: British 'exceptionalism' drove Brexit, but EU media aren't buying it https://t.co/z67n7C5MWM The view from EU27. Fri, 20:08: If I was us, I wouldn't start from here: Damian Gorman, Good Friday Agreement +20years https://t.co/ERakiklt2d Fri, 20:48: I Tried to Befriend Nikolas Cruz. He Still Killed My Friends. https://t.co/ANXpuSTQHS Heart-rending. Fri, 20:59: RT @TJFKerstens: Spice up your Easter ...
There is a rule in politics, as in other walks of life, that when in a hole stop digging. It is a rule that Labour's former disputes panel chair would do well to follow. I believe that the facts in her case are not in dispute. Christine Shawcroft, stepped down as chair of Labour's disputes panel on Wednesday after questioning the suspension of an alleged Holocaust denier. As the Guardian reports an e-mail has been made public in which she questioned the suspension of the Peterborough council candidate Alan Bull: Bull was accused of sharing on Facebook an article headlined ...
There's been a bit of a confusion over the last dates to respond to the policy consultations that the party is running at the moment. The policy papers themselves give Friday 31st March 2018 as the final date. However, you haven't missed the boat as the party website says we have until 4th April. This is just as well, as I have left my response to the 67 questions of the immigration paper until the last minute as usual. I have to say that the consultation paper is one of the most profoundly depressing things I have ever read. When ...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-43542805 The BBC has the story on its web site – see link above Carnival Corporation, the cruise firm that owns P&O and Cunard, is facing a boycott from LGBT travellers after halting gay weddings on some ships. Frankly, whether you are gay or straight is not the issue, the issue quite clearly is that Carnival needs to register its ships elsewhere. If they don't they are allowing a poor light to shine on their business by continuing to register them in Bermuda. Please take your ship registering business elsewhere Carnival.
Campaigners, outside Maghull Town Hall trying to save Sefton Borough's high grade agricultural land and Green Belt from development. There's a very odd Labour Party leaflet doing the rounds in Lydiate and Maghull at present which seems to have an unhealthy fascination with Donald Trump's infamous 'fake news' phrase. I don't intend to comment on the majority of the leaflet but on one very very bizarre part of it. It says:- 'What they say: The Council has released land for development... but this is FAKE NEWS' – It then goes on to say under the heading 'THE TRUTH' that 'The ...
As we reported yesterday, Willie Rennie is running the 117 miles of the Fife coastal path to raise money for Scottish mental health charity SAMH. Yesterday he ran more than 40 miles from Kincardine to Buckhaven. The weather was not in any way co-operative – the odd shower might have been a bit refreshing but driving rain, cold and sleet is never fun. He's now raised more than £5000 – with £1000 going on since Thursday. If you want to give him some motivation to keep going, please give all you can here. If you want to go and cheer ...
From the Curator of Museum Services at the University of Dundee : Tower Foyer Gallery, University of DundeeNow on and running until 9th June Monday to Friday 9.30am to 7pm and Saturday 1pm to 5pm Our understanding of the Victorian lunatic asylum, and our perception of the history of psychiatry, is often fed by myth and fiction. The nineteenth century did indeed see a massive rise in the building of asylums, as institutional care became the dominant means of caring for the insane. But what do we know of the lives of those who entered them as patients? How did ...
