Though land reclamation projects have since incorporated it into the mainland, Black Tom was once a small island in New York Harbour next to Liberty Island. In 1916 it was the most important assembly and US shipping centre for munitions and gunpowder being sent to the Allies, according to an article by Elizabeth Nix. She says: While the United States had not yet entered World War I and was officially neutral, American munitions dealers could legally sell to any of the warring nations. Most of the arms, however, were going to the Allies - Britain, France and Russia - because ...
Best for Britain has published a report looking at ways the government could be forced to call a referendum on Theresa May's Brexit deal. Roads not yet explored: Routes to a final say sets out four possible roads to this outcome: Amendments to the Section 13 MotionReplacing no deal with a Final SayVoting down the deal and negotiating a Final SayDemonstration of political support to get no deal off the table The second option is the most radical as it would make the raising of taxation dependent upon the government agreeing to a second referendum. For more detail, follow the ...
Gatwick Airport was put out of action for, I think, 36 hours over three days during the pre-Christmas rush by alleged sightings of drones flying dangerously over the air corridors. I have no informed comment to make over the obvious questions: Why is not the sale and operation of drones strictly regulated?Why is such a technologically proficient nation unable to catch and disable the drones within minutes?Why, with all our superior technology, are we now unsure as to whether there were any drones at all?Doubtless there will be a full enquiry and in the fullness of time excuses will be ...
Second frame of third story ("Crossroads of Time", written by Simon Furman, art by Geoff Senior): (This frame is the first appearance of the Marvel character Death's Head outside its original environment in Transformers comics. In the story, the Doctor shrinks Death's head from its original giant size using the MAster's Tissue Compression Eliminator.) This is a collection of the first eleven Seventh Doctor comic stories that ran in Doctor Who Magazine issues 130-150, from late 1987 to mid 1989. Four of the stories were written by Simon Furman, the others being by Mike Collins (scripting for a change), Grant ...
One of the things that many people do not realise about politics in Liverpool, or for that matter, the Country is that most politicians get on with each other most of the time. In Liverpool, Lib Dems and Labour vote ... Continue reading →
This wasn't a slam dunk decision. Since moving away from my local party in 2017 where I was relatively active, albeit in the background, I haven't attended any type of political meeting or undertook any real campaigning. Being detached from such things does weaken the ties but that wasn't what I was truly struggling with. The big problem was the fact Brexit has become this all consuming behemoth of a monstrosity that is suffocating the life out of actual politics. You know, the day to day things that actually make a difference to all of our lives. It is clear ...
I was off burning the Christmas chocolate calories in Peterborough today. Here's why other Liberal Democrats should head there too if you haven't yet, especially if, like me, you live in London.
Second paragraph of third chapter: Though she was not seated in an easirest which would automatically afford her slim body maximum comfort, she hoped she gave the woman facing her the impression she was entirely relaxed and certain of herself during their interview. That this . . . this Foostmam was stubborn was nothing new. Itlothis had been trained to handle both human and pseudohuman antagonism. But the situation itself baffled her and must not be allowed to continue so. I'm sorry to say that I completely bounced off this Andre Norton novel, particularly disappointing given how much I enjoyed ...
Looking back at my 2018 predictionsThere's still a few days until the year ends, but I don't think that makes much of a difference to the predictions I made back in January. Let's see how well they turned out, shall we? There won't be a General Election or referendum in the UK this year during 2018, but we'll likely be in the run-up to one by the time New Year's Day 2019 comes around.Well, I was definitely right on the first part, and even if we're not officially in the run-up to either a General Election or referendum, there is ...
Fri 28th
13:00
LibLink: Olly Grender Paddy Ashdown leaves behind a legacy of profound decency and kindness
Olly Grender, who for so long was one of Paddy Ashdown's closest colleagues, has written a lovely tribute to him in the New Statesman. She highlights how he was willing to say things that weren't popular but showed his commitment to liberal and humanitarian values: "As Liberal Democrat leader (from 1988-1999) he "banged on about Bosnia" every week in parliament, to the groans of most MPs, but he was vindicated: a humanitarian atrocity was happening on Europe's doorstep. He fought for the Hong Kong Chinese to obtain British citizenship, a deeply unpopular position but the right one. He inherited a ...
April It was revealed that the Conservatives had decided not to electrify the Midland main line north of Kettering before the 2017 general election, but had not made the decision known until afterwards. Ray Wilkins was my second Chelsea hero after Charlie Coooke. Even so, I was surprised how his death upset me. I reviewed Chris Rennard's autobiography, not least for its description of the old East Midlands Liberal Party office in Loughborough: The East Midlands Regional Party was considered to be one of the most viable in England because it owned a (near-derelict) house in Loughborough. The house did ...
[IMG: 'Nothing Matters'?] MSNBC, the American news channel, analyses Trump's overuse of the phrase 'Nothing Matters' in his numerous attempts to deflect attention away from his actions to hack away at democracy. The conclusion reached is that facts... The post 'Nothing Matters'? appeared first on FeministMama.
One of the major difficulties for those the Remain side of the Brexit debate has been how to appeal to the patriotism of many Leave voters who instinctively feel that it is the Brexiters who stand up for Britain. In order to combat this perception, I have drafted the following pro-forma to send to MPs. In this I try to put an argument against Brexit in which patriotism is at the centre of the stage. If you like it, and your MP is not already committed to us remaining in the EU, please feel free to use or adapt it ...
Thu, 12:56: RT @AeroDork: @NewHorizons2015 The data @NewHorizons2015 sent back from Pluto was jaw-dropping stuff. There's no overstating it. https://t.... Thu, 15:35: The Name of This Book Is Secret, by Pseudonymous Bosch https://t.co/utzRxzg7ya Thu, 16:05: Latest in an occasional series of posts on great legal rulings, the opening paragraph of the judgement of Judge Sus... https://t.co/YOGc6vlW5D Thu, 17:11: RT @cstross: OMG. Just discovered that Laibach released a new album last month: a cover version of "The Sound of Music". So wrong, and ye... Thu, 18:46: Delta of Venus, by Ana�s Nin https://t.co/JAPhhwV6fO Thu, 20:48: Laibach - The Sound of Music ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of a new political podcast featuring former Lib Dem Voice editor (and celebrity streaker) Stephen Tall and, er..., former Lib Dem Voice editor (and rumoured book author) Mark Pack. Shortly before Christmas we recorded a trial episode which, depending on what both we and you make of it, may also be the last episode or the start of something new for 2019. I think there's a gap in the field of excellent political podcasts for a 'two people chatting' format with a Liberal Democrat lean, though as you'll hear from the trial ...
Following its demise as a paid-for magazine, Ad Lib has lived on in a low-key way as the brand name for occasional information for Liberal Democrat members, such as through blog posts on the party website.
Fri 28th
09:55
Underrated albums and their effect on politics and society, part 4 of 5: "The Power of Lard" by Lard
The first thing to say is that this was described upon release as an EP, which should technically disqualify it from this list. However, the record clocks in at almost 44 minutes, which however you arrange the nomenclature, is a long player by any accepted yardstick. So, it qualifies as far as I'm concerned. That's good because while I love all three of the albums I have already told you about, this is easily the one that you'd bring out if you were trying to have a party. What I mean to say is that I can imagine some of ...
In her Scotsman column this week, Christine Jardine has what she calls a "proper pointy-fingered rant" about homelessness: "I won't use the word I'm thinking, it's what you might term unparliamentary language. Let's just leave it at I am disappointed. Yes, there are often social, medical or family issues responsible for people sleeping rough, and most people who are homeless are not on the street. I also agree that we need to tackle those issues in very different and specific ways. Building more houses will not help those who need social care, perhaps because they got into a spiral of ...
Jeremy Corbyn's problem with anti-Semitism in the Labour Party does not appear to be going away, despite the efforts of his party's NEC to correct their earlier misjudged response to the crisis. As the Times reports, the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, a human rights organisation which researches the Holocaust, has placed Corbyn and the Labour Party fourth in their list of the top ten anti-Semitic incidents around the world. The Labour leader was dogged by accusations of antisemitism for much of the summer after The Times's revelation that he had hosted an event comparing Israel to the Nazis. This was followed ...
