As I mentioned the other day, I've started writing and recording a couple of new podcasts. One will be of my short fiction, the other one, A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs will be just that. They will ... Continue reading →
Remember Catch Me If You Can? Here the real-life Frank Abagnale - the character played in the film by Leonardo DiCaprio - talks about his life and career.
* Paul Walter is a Liberal Democrat activist. He is one of the Liberal Democrat Voice team. He blogs at Liberal Burblings.
Last time I blogged about the threatened Herbert Morris industrial buildings in Loughborough, a commenter recommended the view from the canal towpath.He was right and here it is.
Veteran Shropshire journalist Frank Fuller has never worn his siege tie in 50 years and is not about to start now. It was produced to mark an event in September 1968 which went down in British history. "It was the longest siege in British police history, and I think that still holds good today," said Frank, 88, of Market Drayton.I have blogged about the siege of Weston-under-Redcastle before. . An article in the Shropshire Star tells the story again, with some quotes from people who were involved. I like to think that the comments on my first post on the ...
Here are three quotes from the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, when addressing the Trades Union Congress last week. On Universal Credit (a "rolled up" payment to struggling families): It was supposed to make it simpler and more efficient. It has not done that. It has left too many people worse off, putting them at risk of hunger, debt, rent arrears and food banks. When universal credit comes into an area the [number] going to food banks goes up. What is clear is, if [the government] cannot get it right they need to stop rolling it out. On individual and ...
My regular reader knows well that I am slightly obsessed with the great Finnish writer Tove Jansson, whose Moomin books I enjoyed as a child and whose more mature fiction I have equally enjoyed in recent years. (And I also marvelled at her father's statues of her.) So I have returned to five of the Moomin novels - not all, and a slightly arbitrary choice - to see if the magic remains. And, by and large, it does, as I will explain below. I must, however, register a serious disappointment with my Puffin editions, bought in 2017. Each has a ...
It's one of the questions that most often bounces around the media and Twittersphere regarding my party. It's often diagnosed as the cause of all the party's ills that after Coalition it can't establish its place and purpose in the British political system until it understands what it believes in. One of the most frequently [...]
"Check against delivery" is printed at the top of every pre-released speech. Vince's speech today was advanced emailed with the phrase "erotic spasm" included – referring to the dreams of extreme Brexiters. Vince didn't say that, in the event. I heard him say "exotic sprism" instead. The journalistic consensus seems to be that he said "exotic spresm" – as the screenshot from Channel 4 news above shows. See also tweets below. My own view is that "erotic spasm" is not Vince's type of language. He couldn't bring himself to say it, so fluffed the line – whether consciously or unconsciously. ...
As many of our readers will have heard from other sources, long-standing councillor Gloria Stephen died recently after a long illness. Gloria served as a Dodington Parish Councillor for 23 years, becoming Chairman of the Council. More recently she joined South Gloucestershire Council as a Councillor for the Dodington Ward. Gloria was active within the community for many years, her particular passions being young people and the environment. She was a Guide Leader and a Governor of Raysfield Infants School. She was a committee member of the Southwold Branch of the Avon Wildlife Trust, and volunteered regularly on work sessions ...
Complete with the trailed reference to an erotic spasm (not a plug for his recent novel but rather a reference to the pleasure some got from voting Leave), changed to "exotic" when he spoke, Vince Cable gave his autumn conference speech – perhaps his last such as party leader – today. Cable's recent use of "moderate" has generated much debate about the best short-hand way of describing the party. For this speech, we got four mentions of social democratic, five uses of moderate and six of liberal (not counting its use as part of Liberal Democrat). Such a perfect pattern ...
The storm continues to rage around me, but I'm comfortable. Lots of drug infusions and blood transfusions are helping. Because my platelets had dropped below 10, I've had a transfusion of those this lunchtime. I feel rather better than I did first thing. Nausea is proving to be a bigger problem than it usually is for me, but the platelet transfusion ... The post Transplant +6: Follow the lights appeared first on ten pence piece.
So, Vince Cable is apparently going to refer to Brexiteers being willing to trash the UK economy for the "erotic spasm" of leaving the EU. Is this really the best we could do when Conference has set out what our plans are for the Brexit endgame – withdrawing Article 50 if there is no deal or an agreement to extend it. We have so far been the grown-ups in the room. We shouldn't reduce ourselves to being a Carry On film. Every Conference goer I have met so far – and there have been quite a few – has reacted ...
What is becoming a pattern of complaints about the expenses of Scottish Liberal Democrats being followed by the police finding nothing wrong is in the news again with the clearing of Jo Swinson: Police have dropped their inquiry into Liberal Democrat deputy leader Jo Swinson's general election expenses after being "unable to establish criminality"... The allegations centred on leaflets that the Lib Dens said were not delivered, so should not count towards election spending limits... A Police Scotland spokeswoman confirmed that the force was now concluding its inquiries after failing to find any criminality. Welcoming the announcement, a Lib Dem ...
miss_s_b | The Blood is the Life for 17-09-2018 I posted The Blood is the Life for 17-09-2018 to my dreamwidth blog If you like what you see here (or even if you don't) please consider dropping me a tip: [IMG: Paypal Donate Button] [IMG: Buy Me an uncaffeinated beverage (because I'm allergic to coffee) at ko-fi.com] [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
Joshua Reynolds has won over a packed hustings of Liberal Democrat members to be selected at the party's Prospective Parliamentary Candidate (PPC) in Prime Minister Theresa May's constituency of Maidenhead. He said: I am honoured and delighted to have been selected as the prospective parliamentary candidate for Maidenhead. To represent the people of Maidenhead and its surrounding villages would be a fantastic privilege, and I know that with the hard work and determination of our local Liberal Democrats, we can and will make it a reality. I'm looking forward to engaging with voters young and old who are disillusioned with ...
In as much as speculation about the future of Liberal Democrat individuals is getting any wider attention at the moment, it's about the possible successors to Vince Cable as party leader in a contest most likely to happen in 2019. But there's also a more immediate contest coming up, which is to be the next Liberal Democrat Poisoned Chalice Holder, London Division, aka candidate for Mayor of London. Doing the role well is particularly tough as the contest – which has never yet looked winnable for the party – happens alongside the elections for the London Assembly – where even ...
Those that know me are probably surprised to see me using a football analogy. It is true that I am not a lover of the game. As I understand it the analogy means working with and kicking the ball and ... Continue reading →
Mon, 12:56: RT @davidallengreen: Where we are now on Brexit, a thread. 1. Mon, 13:50: RT @UKPoliticalNews: Very insightful piece from our very own @nwbrux on the constituency boundary changes in Northern Ireland. A very sensi... Mon, 15:49: RT @apcoworldwide: New NI parliamentary constituency plans redraw the map - by our @nwbrux via @BBCNews: https://t.co/brDHEdhDNA #NorthernI... Mon, 18:28: Monday reading https://t.co/yCfR2dz1ry Mon, 21:34: Cheering for @QUBelfast on #UniversityChallenge Mon, 21:39: RT @PatCatney: We must be doing something right in Lisburn when hate groups and xenophobes like Britain First are protesting outside our we... Mon, 23:26: RT @apcoworldwide: BBC News - ...
Members hurrying from conference chamber to fringe meeting hall in Brighton have asked the question: Why are there giant colourful snail sculptures dotted around Brighton? The answer is: It's all the idea of the charity Martlets Hospice, which cares for terminally ill prople. For the next two months, around fifty snails, plus a mini-snail trail for kids, will pop up around the city to raise funds for the charity and also encourage people to #bemoresnail – to slow down, like snails, and enjoy life's precious moments with our family and friends, while we have them close to us. The photo ...
Free Trade as manifested in the repeal of the Corn Laws was a founding event for the Liberal Party. There are signs however that liberals are becoming wary of the phrase. This a clear symptom of the malady that the The Orange Book was seeking to address fourteen years ago. The ailment is that key liberal ideas have been appropriated and distorted by the Conservative Party and in the case of the phrase "Free Trade" by the right wing of that party. So, by association in the minds of many with a weak grasp of history the phrase has become ...
In spite of Sadiq Khan's recent pronouncements, the Labour leadership may be right to resist the introduction of an explicit policy in support of a referendum on the Brexit deal with the EU. Labour's position is now fairly clear – some would say a model of clarity in today's political climate. In the event that [...] The post Corbyn could torpedo a second referendum – just by backing it appeared first on Radix.
My heart always sinks when I see a Parish Council using its power of co-opting a person onto its Council. The power is used to fill a vacancy amongst the Parish Councillors caused by death, illness, disqualification, resignation etc. of an incumbent councillor. It's never a good sign to see co-option taking place, in my view, because it means that local democracy is not working well and no one wants stand for election to fill the vacancy via a by-election. My personal view is that this power should be withdrawn as it should have no place in a modern democracy. ...
From the City Council : THE ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14(1) THE DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL AS TRAFFIC AUTHORITY being satisfied that traffic on the road should be prohibited by reason of BT pole removal works being carried out HEREBY PROHIBIT the driving of any vehicle in Benvie Road (between numbers 27a and 29a), Dundee This notice comes into effect on Thursday 20 September 2018 for 1 day. Pedestrian thoroughfare will be maintained. No alternative routes are available For further information contact 433082. Executive Director of City DevelopmentDundee City Council
Who knows what emergency motions we'll be discussing today? Will we even have a Government by that stage? Will Theresa May still be PM? The day starts without expectation of controversy but you never know in a party business session as we look at recognising the new Lib Dem Campaign for Racial Equality. Policy debates today include promoting a fairer distribution of wealth, and a motion that sets out our demands for a better Britain. And there will be keynote speeches from Scottish Leader Willie Rennie and Vince Cable. 09.00-09.20 Business motion: Renewal of Recognition of SAOs Business motion: Recognition ...
I was talking to a journalist yesterday who told me that he always enjoys Liberal Democrats Conference because we are so optimistic. It comes with the territory, it really does and yet there is a lot to be optimistic about. I don't mean the polls of course. It seems that we are still becalmed in the 9% to 10% territory. I have never seen so few journalists at a Liberal Democrats Conference, with the BBC virtually absent altogether, apparently because of budget cutbacks in their political and current affairs departments. And of course we are still light on Parliamentarians, apart ...
Having got a taste for canals joining the Trent - at Shardlow and Long Eaton - I though I would seek out the point where the Nottingham Canal did so. I did so, but on the opposite bank of the river I found something even more interesting: the remains of the lock where the Grantham Canal reached the Trent. It stands in the shadow of the Brian Clough Stand at Nottingham Forest's City Ground. The short stretch of canal that remains above the lock was today covered by a lurid bloom of algae. Miles to the east, strides are being ...
