Bruno Maçães says the attempted coup in Washington this week is further proof that we live in an age that is collapsing the distinction between fantasy and reality. "Any story which depends on obtaining documents from US government sources will become impossibly dangerous. No British journalists would dare to handle it, let alone publish it." Writing before the unexpected verdict, Peter Oborne and Millie Cooke considered what the extradition of Julian Assange would have meant for journalism. William Yang asks if the mass arrest of pro-democracy figures in Hong Kong signals the beginning of the end for the territory's civil ...
Donald J. Trump's political career is very likely over. But Trumpism lives on. The disrupter-in-chief, conspiracy theorist extraordinaire and the world's most outstanding example of a self-deluded politician has finally gone too far. He clearly incited thousands of supporters to march on the seat of American government in an attempt coerce elected representatives into overturning the election result. The assault on the US Capitol while senators and congressmen met to confirm the results of the November vote, was an attempted coup, insurrection, sedition and treason. Trump's baseless claims that the election was a fraud were the inspiration behind the riots. ...
New year, new day for my weekly books roundup. Current Gormenghast, by Mervyn Peake At Childhood's End, by Sophie Aldred Out of Africa, by Karen Blixen Last books finished The Prisoner: A Day in the Life, by Hank Stine The Home and the World, by Rabindranath Tagore The Starless Sea, by Erin Morgenstern Next books Doctor Who: The Thirteenth Doctor Volume 2, by Jody Houser Gallimaufrey, by Colin Baker
At the end of last year, Ian Kearns and I published a short report called Citizens' Britain: a radical agenda for the 2020s. The title was in homage to Paddy Ashdown's book of the same title from 1989, and the core of the approach remains exactly the same: we see the task of liberalism today as being to put more power in more people's hands. We quote Paddy to start the report: A society cannot be free and is very unlikely to be successful for long unless the men and women in it have real power to determine their own ...
The Party President, Mark Pack, has published his monthly report: The chaotic incompetence of a government that declares schools safe on a Sunday, sends children back for a day and then closes them is the sort of thing that should be the domain of political fiction. Sadly and tragically, it's the government we suffer from in Westminster. It is a reminder about how important it is that we recover as a party, and a spur to our efforts to ensure we do our part in defeating the Conservatives at the ballot box. The elections due in May across England, Scotland ...
Thu, 14:17: RT @madeleine: My family came to America after fleeing a coup, so I know that freedom is fragile. But I never thought I would see such an a... Thu, 14:53: RT @CNBCPolitics: 'I can't stay here' — Mick Mulvaney resigns from Trump administration, expects others to follow https://t.co/pC64gkIsjh Thu, 15:01: The Secret Visitors, by James White It's definitely a novel of its time; the galactic federation is interested in Earth, apparently, because our planet is unique in having a) an axial tilt and b) decent scenery. #nwbooks https://t.co/hsIV74LePc https://t.co/P2rlRLuFvC https://t.co/XsKqH0rbkU Thu, 15:36: Actors of the Century: a Play-Lover's ...
I noted the other day that I was running out of Liberal Democrat things to do. The last remaining role I have is that of membership of the Appeals Panel for England, and my five-year term expires in March. It can be renewed once, however. As a courtesy, I notified the Regional Secretary once her re-election had been confirmed more than five weeks ago but, as I haven't heard from her one way or the other, I'm guessing that either my services aren't required, or nobody cares or, quite possibly, that the Appeals Panel for England has become obsolete. In ...
Here's my latest report from the party website: The chaotic incompetence of a government that declares schools safe on a Sunday, sends children back for a day and then closes them is the sort of thing that should be the domain of political fiction. Sadly and tragically, it's the government we suffer from in Westminster. It is a reminder about how important it is that we recover as a party, and a spur to our efforts to ensure we do our part in defeating the Conservatives at the ballot box. The elections due in May across England, Scotland and Wales ...
Well no readers of this blog site will be surprised at that heading of course. I've pretty much always looked upon myself as being a European and am not for changing that view. I'm probably a tad more EUish than Jim Hancock but his latest blog posting on the matter is pretty much blob on for me. Go on have a read of it via the link below:- jimhancock.co.uk/hancocks-half-page/ One thing that has long concerned me is the links between Trumpism and Brexit and how the major payers in both have openly interacted in their joint promotion of their own ...
We are part of a wide fellowship in search of an intrinsically fairer economy and social outcomes. We stand explicitly for the 'well-being of the individual'. We are democrats. Democracy binds our society together, but struggles to do so when our day to day experience of economic life does not accord with our values of mutual support and well-being. A plural democratic society requires a plural economy and politics but we do not have either. I founded a not-for-profit organisation advocating the use of our existing housing stock to create affordable tenancies, and identified it as an intervention to societise ...
You really cannot make this stuff up. The Independent reports that Brexit campaign group Leave.eu has moved its internet registration to the Republic of Ireland in order to be able to keep its .eu suffix after the UK quit the European Union. The paper says that quite rightly the move has sparked waves of criticism on social media, with pro-Remain philosopher AC Grayling branding it: "The looking-glass world of Brexit hypocrisy": The group, founded by businessman Arron Banks and backed by Nigel Farage, was a loud voice for Leave in the 2016 referendum campaign, and has remained in operation since ...
Welcome to the latest in my occasional series highlighting interesting findings from academic research that are relevant to political campaigning.
Fri 8th
08:30
Whoniversaries 8 January: William Hartnell, DMP #9, Day of the Daleks #2, Face of Evil #2, 4 to 5
i) births and deaths 8 January 1908: they don't get more fundamental than this: birth of William Hartnell, who played the First Doctor from 1963 to 1966, and returned for The Three Doctors in 1972-73. ii) broadcast and production anniversaries 8 January 1966: broadcast of "Golden Death", the ninth episode of the story we now call The Daleks' Master Plan. Both the Doctor's Tardis and the Monk's arrive in ancient Egypt, pursued by the Daleks and Mavic Chen. The last of the surviving episodes from this story. 8 January 1971: broadcast of second episode of Day of the Daleks. Jo ...
From Sheena Wellington : Saturday morning playing is back! We've all been missing our Saturday morning fix of tunes and, with no sign of classes being able to start in-person again any time soon, classes are moving online. Obviously, the format will be slightly different, but hopefully still enjoyable. A mixed instrument class will run 11am - 12 noon on Saturday mornings using Zoom, starting this Saturday. Here is the Zoom link: MoragAnne is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Topic: Saturday morning class Time: Jan 9, 2021 11:00 AM London Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83717837909 Meeting ID: 837 1783 ...
