Biden looks set to win the presidency. So was this really a defeat for progressives? (Hint. It wasn't.)
Click on the still above for some lovely footage of my favourite Shropshire town. That link will take you to the British Film Institute site, where the blurb will warn you: Rock 'n' roll arrived in Bishop's Castle in Shropshire giving a lift to the traditional town carnival. Jiving 'hep-cats' dance on one float and the Suez Skiffle Scuttlers are on hand for a satirical swipe at the political crisis that gripped the nation towards the end of 1956 - although their fez and Arab robe get-ups are likely to provoke a different response from modern viewers. But I think ...
Hope is a terrible emotion. It too often leads to despair. But an almost overwhelming hope is the dominant emotion for all those supporting a Biden victory in the US presidential elections. As I write this the election remains in the balance. No bookkeeper will give a Trump victory any odds. Biden is almost certain to win, but the emphasis is still on the words "almost" and "hope". Just when Biden can give his uncontested victory speech is unknown. Trump will not concede. The president has made it clear that he will contest the election result in the courts—right up ...
This is the latest post in a series I started last November, anticipating the twentieth anniversary of my bookblogging which will fall in 2023. Every six-ish days I've been revisiting a month from my recent past, noting work and family developments as well as the books I read in that month. I've found it a pleasantly cathartic process, especially in recent circumstances. If you want to look back at previous entries, they are all tagged under bookblog nostalgia. I started October 2008 with a day in Paris, and visited The Hague overnight mid-month. For half term we visited my sister ...
[IMG: Mummy bag / sleeping bag (Smack, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)] Good to see a briefing from Folkestone and Hythe District Council on their work on tackling homelessness, and specifically housing the homeless, over the coming months. The Winter Shelter will be in place - although it will be delivering help through bed and breakfast spaces rather than the "rotating shelter" used in past years. The Council are committed to continue to work with partners the Rainbow Centre, Porchlight, and Serveco to identify and assist people who are rough sleeping or who are at risk of doing so. It ...
The problem of opinion polls being wrong because the right wing vote is often under estimated has blighted polling for many a year. Voting for right wing parties can often be socially unacceptable so some folks don't admit to doing it. If you live in a rock solid Labour area which has returned Labour MP's and councillors for as long as anyone can remember are you going to admit that you've just gone out and voted for another/different tribe? I use the word tribe deliberately as that's what politics in some areas is like and I've commented on political tribalism ...
Another week with just the one by-election from Scotland, this time for Aberdeen City Council caused by an SNP councillor having become an MP last December. Kincorth / Nigg / Cove, Aberdeen City Kincorth/Nigg/Cove (Aberdeen), first preference result: SNP: 47.4% (+6.7) CON: 20.2% (-1.3) LAB: 12.2% (-5.3) IND (Finlayson): 10.5% LDEM: 3.6% (-1.6) SNP HOLD.https://t.co/BXuQWKuArz pic.twitter.com/fMXrTa9ynl — Britain Elects (@BritainElects) November 6, 2020
The Nature Recovery Network delivery partnership, led by Natural England, was launched today. It brings together representatives from more than 600 organisations to drive forward the restoration of protected sites and landscapes and to help provide at least 500,000 hectares of new wildlife-rich habitat across England. Read more about it in this Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs policy paper.
I'm not an expert on elections in the USA, but am I the only one to be puzzled about the length of time it is taking to count the votes? I have been seriously drawn into this election, staying up for a silly length of time watching CNN, which does seem to give the clearest coverage. I do appreciate that each state sets up its local voting arrangements, and that this privilege is enshrined in the Constitution. As a result, states vary enormously in how efficient they are at counting ballots. The rules about mail-in/absentee/postal voting vary, so that in ...
ALDC's training weekend, Kickstart, is going online and completely free this year (28 & 29 November 2020). Sitting along side it are the Councillors Weekend and specialist training for Agents, Organisers and Affinity Publisher. There are hundreds of campaigners across the country already signed up, and you can join them completely by signing up completely free before November 13th. The event includes 30 hours of top quality training, amazing keynote speakers including our own President Mark Pack and the Leader of the Alliance Party in Northern Ireland, Naomi Long. Kickstart also includes bespoke mentoring for you and your team. This ...
As if we did not have enough to worry about, the Guardian reports on warnings by the National Audit Office that billions of pounds worth of trade with the European Union will face "significant disruption" on 1 January, regardless of whether a trade deal is agreed. The NAO say crucial IT systems have yet to be tested and transit areas for lorries are not ready as the government attempts to prepare new border controls for the end of the Brexit transition period. The planned controls, which had already been rated "high risk", have been further hampered by the coronavirus pandemic, ...
Thu, 12:31: Kosovo President Thaci Resigns to Face War Crimes Charges https://t.co/1nqUx8GGWf Wow. Thu, 13:07: https://t.co/z3LRLRUOPn - Europe ponders U.S. woes - November 9, 2000 My comments from 20 years ago. Though at least turnout seems to have improved this time https://t.co/nLQ0VHFoej Thu, 15:14: Grand Hotel, by Vicki Baum (and the Oscar-winning film) A good readable story, the first "hotel novel"; apparently a massive hit during its original serialisation (readers protested the killing off of one character). #nwbooks https://t.co/Bh1AcILv5v https://t.co/kOho5is93t https://t.co/h7589WnADV Thu, 15:30: A Star Chamber Court in Ireland: The Court of Castle Chamber, 1571-1641, by Jon G. Crawford The ...
Last week The Yorkshire Post published an article by William Wallace on "House of Lords plays vital role in democracy but needs reform". William is our spokesperson for the Cabinet in the House of Lords. In the article he writes: The House of Lords is indefensible in its current form. But it plays a vital role in our executive-dominated democracy. Formally, the UK has parliamentary sovereignty. But when one party has a secure parliamentary majority, government proposals usually sail through the Commons without careful examination. A former Conservative Lord Chancellor once described British democracy as 'elective dictatorship' - when his ...
... this has been the first headline about the US Presidency on election night rather than news from Florida.
i) births and deaths 6 November 2017: death of Scott Fredericks, who played freedom fighter Boaz in Day of the Daleks (Third Doctor, 1972) and turncoat scientist Maxilian Stael in Image of the Fendahl (Fourth Doctor, 1977). ii) broadcast anniversaries 6 November 1964: broadcast of "Horse of Destruction", fourth episode of the story we now call The Myth Makers; departure of Vicki and first appearance of Katarina. The Greeks emerge from the wooden horse, Troy is sacked and Steven is wounded as the Tardis departs. 6 November 1976: broadcast of second episode of The Deadly Assassin. The Doctor is put ...
Residents will know the artwork in the West Port, where public toilets once sat - photo above. Art UK explains its background : "Pyramid and Canopies - Stan Bonnar Commissioned in 1983, the West Port 'Pyramid and Canopies' was not only a sculptural artwork, but also formed the roof structure and stairway down to a newly modernised underground public toilets. The last images in the series, provided by the artist, show the work as it initially appeared. Bonnar was given the brief of proposing artworks for the West Port area of Dundee, and during this creative survey, he saw that ...
