It won't be entirely fair, because Labour would still lack a sense of direction under any leader right now. But Ed is going to be one hell of a fall guy come next May....
When you think of the bile that Labour has invested in painting Nick Clegg as a pantomime villain. Only to discover their guy is held in even worse regard.
Crutched Friars is my favourite London street name. Someone's probably already mentioned it.
Mr. JS, why so? The name is a left over from a religious house that once stood on or near the site. This House belonged to a Branch of the Betheren of the Cross who always carried with them a staff depicting the Crucifixion. From that staff of the cross we get through the wonders of English, and no doubt cockney wit, Crutched Friars.
As an aside it is remarkable just how many religious houses (i.e. monasteries and nunneries as well as parish churches) existed in medieval London, which was not itself a big place. I would guess that including the churchyards they probably took up close to 30% of the space.
It has been mentioned here a few times before, but Cameron is a lucky politician. Whether you believe it is pure chance or he makes his own is moot because it is perhaps another way of saying that he is a great politician.
The debate on drugs this week I watched with keen interest.Every MP who spoke supported the need to look to change and it was only the Labour front bench who defended the status quo and Alan Johnson confirmed Labour's stupidity on the issue.The Labour party's position is- we are not prepared to consider evidence.As a test of evidence-based policy,both Lab and Con fail.Labour especially,has its head up its anus.It's become one of those things no-one is even allowed to talk about Lots of green gold,lots of tax revenues and bad news for pharma and alcohol.The times they are a changing everywhere except the UK.The polls keep saying the UK public are ready to change and the UK could be a model of regulation. Maybe private investors drive policy.People can't if governments refuse to even consider evidence including systemic racism.The war on drugs is a war on black people.
Crutched Friars is my favourite London street name. Someone's probably already mentioned it.
Mr. JS, why so? The name is a left over from a religious house that once stood on or near the site. This House belonged to a Branch of the Betheren of the Cross who always carried with them a staff depicting the Crucifixion. From that staff of the cross we get through the wonders of English, and no doubt cockney wit, Crutched Friars.
As an aside it is remarkable just how many religious houses (i.e. monasteries and nunneries as well as parish churches) existed in medieval London, which was not itself a big place. I would guess that including the churchyards they probably took up close to 30% of the space.
The debate on drugs this week I watched with keen interest.Every MP who spoke supported the need to look to change and it was only the Labour front bench who defended the status quo and Alan Johnson confirmed Labour's stupidity on the issue.The Labour party's position is- we are not prepared to consider evidence.As a test of evidence-based policy,both Lab and Con fail.Labour especially,has its head up its anus.It's become one of those things no-one is even allowed to talk about Lots of green gold,lots of tax revenues and bad news for pharma and alcohol.The times they are a changing everywhere except the UK.The polls keep saying the UK public are ready to change and the UK could be a model of regulation. Maybe private investors drive policy.People can't if governments refuse to even consider evidence including systemic racism.The war on drugs is a war on black people.
It has been mentioned here a few times before, but Cameron is a lucky politician. Whether you believe it is pure chance or he makes his own is moot because it is perhaps another way of saying that he is a great politician.
Yet another appalling headline for Miliband.
Cammo is a shit politician. The reason he looks good is in comparison with even shittier politicians, namely Cleggover and DeadED. Nigal stands out as a beacon of light compared with all the above.
MikeK is a specialist at recycling old stories, especially if they are anti-semitic. In this case his breathlessness seems to have got the better of him. Egypt's action is actually to counter terrorist activity on the border and residents have been offered compensation for the move. Rather different from Israeli activity in Gaza, but I wouldn't expect a kipper-thumper to have perspective. Or sound judgement.
Wait until the voters read about what a tight fisted bastard Ed Miliband is . Giving 2 p to a beggar is worse than giving nothing.
There's talk that in tonight's YouGov, Miliband's ratings are worse than Clegg's ratings.
Should that prove to be the case, then there's every chance that Labour's showing will also be down. Does this mean I can go to bed tonight dreaming of predominantly blue bar charts, accompanied by optimistic, Fisheresque-type projections of the Tories' prospects? In short TSE, are YOU on the early morning shift?
It has been mentioned here a few times before, but Cameron is a lucky politician. Whether you believe it is pure chance or he makes his own is moot because it is perhaps another way of saying that he is a great politician.
Yet another appalling headline for Miliband.
Cammo is a shit politician. The reason he looks good is in comparison with even shittier politicians, namely Cleggover and DeadED. Nigal stands out as a beacon of light compared with all the above.
Wait until the voters read about what a tight fisted bastard Ed Miliband is . Giving 2 p to a beggar is worse than giving nothing.
There's talk that in tonight's YouGov, Miliband's ratings are worse than Clegg's ratings.
Should that prove to be the case, then there's every chance that Labour's showing will also be down. Does this mean I can go to bed tonight dreaming of predominantly blue bar charts, accompanied by optimistic, Fisheresque-type projections of the Tories' prospects? In short TSE, are YOU on the early morning shift?
The big news of the day for me is that Labour have managed to throw into question, however slightly, one of their prospective nailed-on gains at the general election, by selecting for Bradford East (LD maj 365) the person who contrived to lose Bradford West to Galloway in the 2011 by-election.
suggests the party could win up to 10 seats in the county in optimal conditions.
By elections, in other words.
Depends how you measure it, Audrey/Andy.
At a General Election, I have by my reckoning six Kent seats down as being more UKIP friendly than Rochester. They are Faversham, Gravesham, Folkestone, Sittingbourne, and the two Thanets.
Naturally if the Conservatives decided to throw the kitchen sink at these constituencies, I'd reassess the figure at more like half a dozen.
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
People love the Labour brand. I don't quite know why it is as resilient as it is, but I generally just assume Labour will hold up better than might be expected from either their leader's ratings, or assessment of their competency. If you don't want a Tory government - regardless of whether or not you might like their policies, but whether you are not 'supposed' to want a Tory government - you vote Labour, even if poorly led. That only takes them so far, but sometimes it is enough.
Crutched Friars is my favourite London street name. Someone's probably already mentioned it.
Mr. JS, why so? The name is a left over from a religious house that once stood on or near the site. This House belonged to a Branch of the Betheren of the Cross who always carried with them a staff depicting the Crucifixion. From that staff of the cross we get through the wonders of English, and no doubt cockney wit, Crutched Friars.
As an aside it is remarkable just how many religious houses (i.e. monasteries and nunneries as well as parish churches) existed in medieval London, which was not itself a big place. I would guess that including the churchyards they probably took up close to 30% of the space.
Almost as many nuns as whores...
Oh, I doubt that Mr. Spyn. Even in early medieval times when the city authorities were jolly keen on chasing prostitution from the city (see Cock Lane in Smithfield and the Bishop of Winchesters' geese in Southwark) I doubt that the number of nuns exceeded the number of ladies of negotiable virtue in the City of London.
suggests the party could win up to 10 seats in the county in optimal conditions.
By elections, in other words.
Depends how you measure it, Audrey/Andy.
At a General Election, I have by my reckoning six Kent seats down as being more UKIP friendly than Rochester. They are Faversham, Gravesham, Folkestone, Sittingbourne, and the two Thanets.
Naturally if the Conservatives decided to throw the kitchen sink at these constituencies, I'd reassess the figure at more like half a dozen.
Yes I overstated things a bit by saying 10. I think I'll check the class statistics for each Kent seat as an exercise.
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
People love the Labour brand. I don't quite know why it is as resilient as it is, but I generally just assume Labour will hold up better than might be expected from either their leader's ratings, or assessment of their competency. If you don't want a Tory government - regardless of whether or not you might like their policies, but whether you are not 'supposed' to want a Tory government - you vote Labour, even if poorly led. That only takes them so far, but sometimes it is enough.
Thanks for your thoughts - BTW congrats on the S Yorks competition!
MikeK is a specialist at recycling old stories, especially if they are anti-semitic. In this case his breathlessness seems to have got the better of him. Egypt's action is actually to counter terrorist activity on the border and residents have been offered compensation for the move. Rather different from Israeli activity in Gaza, but I wouldn't expect a kipper-thumper to have perspective. Or sound judgement.
Yes and I agree with what Egypt is doing in this case. Of course the world wouldn't have remained shtoom if Israel had gone into Gaza and started blowing up houses for 800 metres on its side of the border to prevent terrorism.
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
Labour voters are very forgiving of the failings of their leaders.
Or have very low expectations.
Callaghan. Foot. Kinnock. Blair. Brown. Miliband. Not exactly a stellar line up is it?
I don't like Blair, but he was apparently an excellent leader given his electoral successes. If he was less than stellar, either they wouldn't have won, or wouldn't have won so big at least, or on multiple occasions, no matter how weak the opposition. As Cameron may end up proving (thanks to UKIP), it may be possible to lose to a terrible opposition.
ETA: While temporarily basking in the glow of congratulations for a correct prediction, I should really try to come up with something faux-profound to put across and actually have it taken seriously. Hmm, I've got nothing yet, but give me a moment.
I live in Kent and without doubt Ukip are strong around here (Ashford). My worry as a Conservative is not quite so much that there will be a huge fall off to Ukip but that the Labour vote will switch to them in big numbers. It seems to me almost impossible to call at the moment. In addition my lot are stupid enough to try and overthrow David Cameron post Rochester. To get rid of him is to lose a guy who consistently out polls his Party. But to challenge him but not get rid of him is also to weaken him greatly. There is no plus side to what The David Davis's of this world are plotting to do.
Even among Labour voters just half think Ed Miliband is doing well, while 44% say he is doing badly. By contrast, Cameron enjoys the backing of 97% of Conservative voters and Clegg is supported by 71% of Lib Dems.
Mr. Llama, ah, I'm always a bit fuzzy on when Gascony, the Bretons et al. had their distinctiveness hammered out of them and were conjoined to France.
Mr. Easterross, I don't watch Who Do You Think You Are? usually but the one with Matthew Pinsent was quite good. It ended with a fantastic ancient scroll which completed his family tree by having him directly descended from Jesus [as it were, because he was the descendent of royals, who all claimed divine right and lineage to a greater or lesser degree].
We can actually document descent from Mohammed and Saint Louis, among others :-)
Even among Labour voters just half think Ed Miliband is doing well, while 44% say he is doing badly. By contrast, Cameron enjoys the backing of 97% of Conservative voters and Clegg is supported by 71% of Lib Dems.
The Cameron one is always the stat that confuses me. I know malcontents are the loudest from any party, usually, but given how consistently he gets such ratings in polling from his own party supporters, his detractors are amazingly loud, possibly because so many of them seem to be MPs or prominent pundits I guess? Despite an increasing amount of negativity, and hardly a total lack of it before, given Ed M's ratings there, I'm surprised we haven't seen more from his malcontents to be honest.
A good example of the country going to the dogs is the fact that the first version of the Casualty theme music from 1986 was and is by far the best. Why they don't use it today beats me:
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
Labour voters are very forgiving of the failings of their leaders.
Or have very low expectations.
Callaghan. Foot. Kinnock. Blair. Brown. Miliband. Not exactly a stellar line up is it?
I don't like Blair, but he was apparently an excellent leader given his electoral successes. If he was less than stellar, either they wouldn't have won, or wouldn't have won so big at least, or on multiple occasions, no matter how weak the opposition. As Cameron may end up proving (thanks to UKIP), it may be possible to lose to a terrible opposition.
ETA: While temporarily basking in the glow of congratulations for a correct prediction, I should really try to come up with something faux-profound to put across and actually have it taken seriously. Hmm, I've got nothing yet, but give me a moment.
Congratulations on your excellent prediction, Kle4. You must tell us later how you did it. Some may suspect you used the famous Price Is Right strategy, but I will have no such nonsense. I am sure it was psephological skill.
As to the Party/Leader mismatch, there must be many examples to be found here in the UK and abroad, modern and ancient. The most obvious would be the heavy defeat of war-hero Churchill at the hands of the distinctly uncharismatic Atlee. But there must be others, plus a significant near miss in 2010 when the worst PM in living memory came close to scraping a draw with David C.
Other PBers can think of better examples though, I'm sure.
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
Labour voters are very forgiving of the failings of their leaders.
Or have very low expectations.
Callaghan. Foot. Kinnock. Blair. Brown. Miliband. Not exactly a stellar line up is it?
I don't like Blair, but he was apparently an excellent leader given his electoral successes. If he was less than stellar, either they wouldn't have won, or wouldn't have won so big at least, or on multiple occasions, no matter how weak the opposition. As Cameron may end up proving (thanks to UKIP), it may be possible to lose to a terrible opposition.
ETA: While temporarily basking in the glow of congratulations for a correct prediction, I should really try to come up with something faux-profound to put across and actually have it taken seriously. Hmm, I've got nothing yet, but give me a moment.
Labour only seem to dislike their leaders that win and form governments (Blair, Wilson,MacDonald) apart from Atlee. They seem to be more neutral about Brown and Callaghan, who were PMs but election losers.
I live in Kent and without doubt Ukip are strong around here (Ashford). My worry as a Conservative is not quite so much that there will be a huge fall off to Ukip but that the Labour vote will switch to them in big numbers. It seems to me almost impossible to call at the moment. In addition my lot are stupid enough to try and overthrow David Cameron post Rochester. To get rid of him is to lose a guy who consistently out polls his Party. But to challenge him but not get rid of him is also to weaken him greatly. There is no plus side to what The David Davis's of this world are plotting to do.
It's not Davis you should be worried about. Its Liam Fox and Owen Paterson who are out on manouevres. Isn't Fox producing a whole bunch of videos of the policies he favour's (without Tory Branding)?
Indeed. Note the original vertical (non-NSDAP) orientation.
Mind you, I seem to recall that these had to be painted out with washable paint, or covered in paper discs, for the delivery flights, were they not?
And the Finns had to change to their modern white/blue/white roundel for their planes and military vehicles in 1944/45 when they lost the Continuation War.
I seem to recall the Latvians, across the Baltic, had the same national roundel but with red swastikas.
My favorites are some of the cross streets below around paternoster square (ave maria lane, sermon lane, preacher lane, boring preacher lane, godliman road, etc)
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
Labour voters are very forgiving of the failings of their leaders.
Or have very low expectations.
Callaghan. Foot. Kinnock. Blair. Brown. Miliband. Not exactly a stellar line up is it?
I don't like Blair, but he was apparently an excellent leader given his electoral successes. If he was less than stellar, either they wouldn't have won, or wouldn't have won so big at least, or on multiple occasions, no matter how weak the opposition. As Cameron may end up proving (thanks to UKIP), it may be possible to lose to a terrible opposition.
ETA: While temporarily basking in the glow of congratulations for a correct prediction, I should really try to come up with something faux-profound to put across and actually have it taken seriously. Hmm, I've got nothing yet, but give me a moment.
Congratulations on your excellent prediction, Kle4. You must tell us later how you did it. Some may suspect you used the famous Price Is Right strategy, but I will have no such nonsense. I am sure it was psephological skill.
If only. I just figured Labour would continue to do very well in a heartland despite all the recent troubles there, and assumed UKIP could probably count on gaining around half the votes which the other parties who stood last time got, plus all the LD vote share (not the same voters, necessarily, but an equivalent amount), though as it is the Tories did considerably better than I expected. And given Labour got 51% last time, and came even closer to it going to the second round this time, and who knows what would have happened to the end result with the second preferences, and I may have cut things a little finer than I had anticipated.
Mr. Llama, ah, I'm always a bit fuzzy on when Gascony, the Bretons et al. had their distinctiveness hammered out of them and were conjoined to France.
Mr. Easterross, I don't watch Who Do You Think You Are? usually but the one with Matthew Pinsent was quite good. It ended with a fantastic ancient scroll which completed his family tree by having him directly descended from Jesus [as it were, because he was the descendent of royals, who all claimed divine right and lineage to a greater or lesser degree].
We can actually document descent from Mohammed and Saint Louis, among others :-)
Most people in this country are descended from Edward III, Charlemagne, Muhammed, Confucius, Nefertiti among others...
Man of Kent I worry about those two as well but trust me, Davis is after the top job. He has one chance and that is before the 2015 GE. After that he has none as if DC loses it will go to a generation younger than Davis. Davis is getting things lined up and that is why he is" unavailable for comment" at the moment. Cheers.
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
Labour voters are very forgiving of the failings of their leaders.
Or have very low expectations.
Callaghan. Foot. Kinnock. Blair. Brown. Miliband. Not exactly a stellar line up is it?
I don't like Blair, but he was apparently an excellent leader given his electoral successes. If he was less than stellar, either they wouldn't have won, or wouldn't have won so big at least, or on multiple occasions, no matter how weak the opposition. As Cameron may end up proving (thanks to UKIP), it may be possible to lose to a terrible opposition.
ETA: While temporarily basking in the glow of congratulations for a correct prediction, I should really try to come up with something faux-profound to put across and actually have it taken seriously. Hmm, I've got nothing yet, but give me a moment.
Congratulations on your excellent prediction, Kle4. You must tell us later how you did it. Some may suspect you used the famous Price Is Right strategy, but I will have no such nonsense. I am sure it was psephological skill.
If only. I just figured Labour would continue to do very well in a heartland despite all the recent troubles there, and assumed UKIP could probably count on gaining around half the votes which the other parties who stood last time got, plus all the LD vote share (not the same voters, necessarily, but an equivalent amount), though as it is the Tories did considerably better than I expected. And given Labour got 51% last time, and came even closer to it going to the second round this time, and who knows what would have happened to the end result with the second preferences, and I may have cut things a little finer than I had anticipated.
Rochester will be the true test of my 'methods'.
So by how much do you reckon the kickboxer is going to win in Rochester?
Indeed. Note the original vertical (non-NSDAP) orientation.
Mind you, I seem to recall that these had to be painted out with washable paint, or covered in paper discs, for the delivery flights, were they not?
And the Finns had to change to their modern white/blue/white roundel for their planes and military vehicles in 1944/45 when they lost the Continuation War.
I seem to recall the Latvians, across the Baltic, had the same national roundel but with red swastikas.
Man of Kent I worry about those two as well but trust me, Davis is after the top job. He has one chance and that is before the 2015 GE. After that he has none as if DC loses it will go to a generation younger than Davis. Davis is getting things lined up and that is why he is" unavailable for comment" at the moment. Cheers.
You may be right. DD has a track record of reckless and self destructive behaviour.
Mr. Llama, ah, I'm always a bit fuzzy on when Gascony, the Bretons et al. had their distinctiveness hammered out of them and were conjoined to France.
Mr. Easterross, I don't watch Who Do You Think You Are? usually but the one with Matthew Pinsent was quite good. It ended with a fantastic ancient scroll which completed his family tree by having him directly descended from Jesus [as it were, because he was the descendent of royals, who all claimed divine right and lineage to a greater or lesser degree].
We can actually document descent from Mohammed and Saint Louis, among others :-)
Most people in this country are descended from Edward III, Charlemagne, Muhammed, Confucius, Nefertiti among others...
Of course they are.
If you can back to John of Gaunt you can get all sorts of interesting links.
Indeed. Note the original vertical (non-NSDAP) orientation.
Mind you, I seem to recall that these had to be painted out with washable paint, or covered in paper discs, for the delivery flights, were they not?
And the Finns had to change to their modern white/blue/white roundel for their planes and military vehicles in 1944/45 when they lost the Continuation War.
I seem to recall the Latvians, across the Baltic, had the same national roundel but with red swastikas.
Man of Kent I worry about those two as well but trust me, Davis is after the top job. He has one chance and that is before the 2015 GE. After that he has none as if DC loses it will go to a generation younger than Davis. Davis is getting things lined up and that is why he is" unavailable for comment" at the moment. Cheers.
Indeed Davis is noticeable by his silence. That said I cannot imagine any circumstances in the short term when he might become leader. He would have to be anointed and I imagine there is sufficient opposition to him within the PCP to ensure that doesn't happen.
Indeed. Note the original vertical (non-NSDAP) orientation.
Mind you, I seem to recall that these had to be painted out with washable paint, or covered in paper discs, for the delivery flights, were they not?
And the Finns had to change to their modern white/blue/white roundel for their planes and military vehicles in 1944/45 when they lost the Continuation War.
I seem to recall the Latvians, across the Baltic, had the same national roundel but with red swastikas.
Labour are seeking to embarrass the tories by ensuring Reckless is elected. Reckless as well as the incumbent is essentially a tory, albeit selfserving, not an your usual ting tong hating kipper. The circumstances of his defection make it a plausible strategy as the tory vote is clearly going to be split.
Its a dubious strategy, both morally and politically, but where there is no sense there is no feeling as they say.
Even among Labour voters just half think Ed Miliband is doing well, while 44% say he is doing badly. By contrast, Cameron enjoys the backing of 97% of Conservative voters and Clegg is supported by 71% of Lib Dems.
The Cameron one is always the stat that confuses me. I know malcontents are the loudest from any party, usually, but given how consistently he gets such ratings in polling from his own party supporters, his detractors are amazingly loud, possibly because so many of them seem to be MPs or prominent pundits I guess? Despite an increasing amount of negativity, and hardly a total lack of it before, given Ed M's ratings there, I'm surprised we haven't seen more from his malcontents to be honest.
Activists dislike him, and those who are ukip inclined have already gone. Gay marriage is the thing over and over again which has caused many a loyal conservative to switch.
Labour are seeking to embarrass the tories by ensuring Reckless is elected. Reckless as well as the incumbent is essentially a tory, albeit selfserving, not an your usual ting tong hating kipper. The circumstances of his defection make it a plausible strategy as the tory vote is clearly going to be split.
Its a dubious strategy, both morally and politically, but where there is no sense there is no feeling as they say.
You do release it was that bastion of Kippery, the BBC that invented the character "Ting Tong"?
Labour are seeking to embarrass the tories by ensuring Reckless is elected. Reckless as well as the incumbent is essentially a tory, albeit selfserving, not an your usual ting tong hating kipper. The circumstances of his defection make it a plausible strategy as the tory vote is clearly going to be split.
Its a dubious strategy, both morally and politically, but where there is no sense there is no feeling as they say.
You do release it was that bastion of Kippery, the BBC that invented the character "Ting Tong"?
May is unbelievably useless. She's probably rolling this out now to distract from the Home Office being sued by the cleric who was allegedly conducting sham marriages before trial collapsed due to UKBA incompetence.
Mr. Llama, ah, I'm always a bit fuzzy on when Gascony, the Bretons et al. had their distinctiveness hammered out of them and were conjoined to France.
Mr. Easterross, I don't watch Who Do You Think You Are? usually but the one with Matthew Pinsent was quite good. It ended with a fantastic ancient scroll which completed his family tree by having him directly descended from Jesus [as it were, because he was the descendent of royals, who all claimed divine right and lineage to a greater or lesser degree].
We can actually document descent from Mohammed and Saint Louis, among others :-)
Most people in this country are descended from Edward III, Charlemagne, Muhammed, Confucius, Nefertiti among others...
Of course they are.
If you can back to John of Gaunt you can get all sorts of interesting links.
(But ours is documented via the Mashams)
Your documentation that X is an ancestor of you is almost certain proof that X is an ancestor of me also...
According to various plausible mathematical models, before around 700 AD, every single human is either ancestor of no one alive today, or ancestor of everyone alive today. Therefore, if someone from this period is a proven ancestor of someone alive today then they must be ancestor of everyone alive today.
The next election will probably be determined by the cost of living issue.The Tory press will denigrate MMiliband and praise Cameron but in the end the voter decides.The Power of common sense is paramount and I can't see Cameron as the next Prime Minister.Farage is irrelevant and so is Clegg.Miliband may do well in the televised debates but either way he seems to be the most likely next occupant of number 10.
I have a feeling that the time is approaching when Islam will simply be banned in Europe. Muslims will be expelled, mosques will be closed, etc.
Islam, a very noble religion when practiced properly, is unfortunately going thru a convulsive, and medievalist, revival. This is entirely incompatible with western liberal values. And in the end even the weediest liberal will fight back.
As the official Soothsayer of PB, I think there Will Be Blood. Unless Islam undergoes a sudden contrary Enlightenment (not on the card rights now) then Islam will be purged from Europe, or quite fiercely constrained within Europe, by 2025-2030.
No western nation - e.g. France - could tolerate a population approaching 20% Muslim (and heading north). The burqa ban is the mere beginning.
The next election will probably be determined by the cost of living issue.The Tory press will denigrate MMiliband and praise Cameron but in the end the voter decides.The Power of common sense is paramount and I can't see Cameron as the next Prime Minister.Farage is irrelevant and so is Clegg.Miliband may do well in the televised debates but either way he seems to be the most likely next occupant of number 10.
In the latest Mori Issues Index Inflation / Prices was mentioned by just 7% of those surveyed. It was the 13th most mentioned issue
May is unbelievably useless. She's probably rolling this out now to distract from the Home Office being sued by the cleric who was allegedly conducting sham marriages before trial collapsed due to UKBA incompetence.
No, they are doing it to ban free speech. It is a worldwide legislative trend. Cameron has already made a chilling speech to the UN wherein he argued that those who question the official line on 9 11 must not be allowed to air their views. Expect similar legislation if Labour get in.
May is unbelievably useless. She's probably rolling this out now to distract from the Home Office being sued by the cleric who was allegedly conducting sham marriages before trial collapsed due to UKBA incompetence.
No, they are doing it to ban free speech. It is a worldwide legislative trend. Cameron has already made a chilling speech to the UN wherein he argued that those who question the official line on 9 11 must not be allowed to air their views. Expect similar legislation if Labour get in.
Our UK parliament is bringing this forward, so just as well we have the European Court to protect our right to free speech!
It's in the Sun, so therefore its not working class culture? That's your argument?
Its obvious the modern. Labour party hates the WWC. That's why they want to dilute them with immigration and discriminate against them in the employment market. There's no other sensible reason for bringing over arranged brides from Bangladesh and then saying they deserve a job more than a local white woman.
@Socrates - can you share with us what white working class culture is in England and what bits of it Labour hates?
They hold in contempt virtually all of it. The working men's clubs, the affection towards our our armed forces, the smoking and drinking pub culture, the crude jokes, the monarchism, the flag-waving patriotism, scouting, the lad's magazines, the desire to move up in the world, the tabloid-reading, etc etc.
You're creating a straw man here. You seem to see the WWC as essentially the Sun (with the odd exception of scouting). It's a lot more diverse than that, which is probably why the Sun's readership has declined so sharply, and the Labour Party is too. You get a few snooty types in all parties, but it's not general.
May is unbelievably useless. She's probably rolling this out now to distract from the Home Office being sued by the cleric who was allegedly conducting sham marriages before trial collapsed due to UKBA incompetence.
No, they are doing it to ban free speech. It is a worldwide legislative trend. Cameron has already made a chilling speech to the UN wherein he argued that those who question the official line on 9 11 must not be allowed to air their views. Expect similar legislation if Labour get in.
The last bastion of freedom must therefore be the unelected House of Lords, who once before squelched Labour's plan to criminalize so-called "holocaust-denial"...
God, these 1- and 2-point Labour leads really are the worst possible scenario. I would rather a run of clear Tory leads so that it can really hammer home to the "powers that be" that they have NO CHANCE of winning on their current track, and that drastic changes need to be made (possibly including the most obvious change...). These wafer-thin leads allow them to cling to scraps of delusion and means they're squandering their last window of opportunity to wake up.
Islam will only go through an Enlightenment when it is properly intellectually challenged in public debate. But most of the idiots in the establishment not only run scared of doing this, they silence those that do - by screaming racism and trying ostracism if they can, or by force of law if necessary. Just look at the reaction you get if you mention the entirely accurate historical fact (which Muslims acknowledge) that Mohammed had sex with a little kid.
May is unbelievably useless. She's probably rolling this out now to distract from the Home Office being sued by the cleric who was allegedly conducting sham marriages before trial collapsed due to UKBA incompetence.
No, they are doing it to ban free speech. It is a worldwide legislative trend. Cameron has already made a chilling speech to the UN wherein he argued that those who question the official line on 9 11 must not be allowed to air their views. Expect similar legislation if Labour get in.
Our UK parliament is bringing this forward, so just as well we have the European Court to protect our right to free speech!
I don't disagree. As I said here a while back, I want out of the EU, but the most important thing is not the legislative instruments we are beholden to, but the intentions of those in power. Our Government is determined to follow the US in its mission to use fear of terror, crime, and disease, to strip their respective populations of all rights. It is the state against the individual, and we have been too stupid and too worried about being called tinfoil hat wearers to see it.
@Socrates - can you share with us what white working class culture is in England and what bits of it Labour hates?
They hold in contempt virtually all of it. The working men's clubs, the affection towards our our armed forces, the smoking and drinking pub culture, the crude jokes, the monarchism, the flag-waving patriotism, scouting, the lad's magazines, the desire to move up in the world, the tabloid-reading, etc etc.
You're creating a straw man here. You seem to see the WWC as essentially the Sun (with the odd exception of scouting). It's a lot more diverse than that, which is probably why the Sun's readership has declined so sharply, and the Labour Party is too. You get a few snooty types in all parties, but it's not general.
I thought he was saying that not all the WWC's views will match that of the Sun. Perhaps most do, but not all.
Comments
http://www.britishtelephones.com/bell19a.htm
FallenAngel retweeted
❤️Israel❤️ @I_LUV_ISRAEL 15m15 minutes ago
Egypt Army Enters Gaza, Destroys Homes Making Buffer-Zone & World is Silent http://www.israelandstuff.com/egypt-army-enters-gaza-destroys-homes-making-buffer-zone-world-is-silent#.VFVRhC_Og_R.twitter …
Yet I wonder why it hasn't made the main news channels?
When you think of the bile that Labour has invested in painting Nick Clegg as a pantomime villain. Only to discover their guy is held in even worse regard.
Hur hur hur.....
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-29825889
As an aside it is remarkable just how many religious houses (i.e. monasteries and nunneries as well as parish churches) existed in medieval London, which was not itself a big place. I would guess that including the churchyards they probably took up close to 30% of the space.
Yet another appalling headline for Miliband.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-29825889
I wonder what the reaction would have been if Israel had suddenly done this? OK I know!
First time Lab have had successive 32s since summer 2010.
Lots of green gold,lots of tax revenues and bad news for pharma and alcohol.The times they are a changing everywhere except the UK.The polls keep saying the UK public are ready to change and the UK could be a model of regulation.
Maybe private investors drive policy.People can't if governments refuse to even consider evidence including systemic racism.The war on drugs is a war on black people.
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/11/01/legal-marijuanas-market-value-could-soar-by-2020.aspx#.VFVNwXVUif8.twitter
Nigal stands out as a beacon of light compared with all the above.
Does this mean I can go to bed tonight dreaming of predominantly blue bar charts, accompanied by optimistic, Fisheresque-type projections of the Tories' prospects? In short TSE, are YOU on the early morning shift?
Ed himself is polling below Clegg, yet Labour are polling something of the region of 4 times as much as the LDs in % terms.
But the VI has Lab ahead
LAB - 32% (=)
CON - 31% (-2)
UKIP - 18% (+3)
LDEM - 7% (=)
GRN - 6% (-1)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika
At a General Election, I have by my reckoning six Kent seats down as being more UKIP friendly than Rochester. They are Faversham, Gravesham, Folkestone, Sittingbourne, and the two Thanets.
Naturally if the Conservatives decided to throw the kitchen sink at these constituencies, I'd reassess the figure at more like half a dozen.
Far right groups clash with anti-fascists in Rochester ahead of by-election
Leaders of BNP splinter group Britain First say they have "almost everything" in common with Ukip and are backing Mark Reckless "one hundred per cent"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/11203651/Far-right-groups-clash-with-anti-fascists-in-Rochester-ahead-of-by-election.html
Or have very low expectations.
Callaghan. Foot. Kinnock. Blair. Brown. Miliband. Not exactly a stellar line up is it?
Actually the EU as a whole has English as an official language, so it will count as a member of my new expanded Commonwealth.
ETA: While temporarily basking in the glow of congratulations for a correct prediction, I should really try to come up with something faux-profound to put across and actually have it taken seriously. Hmm, I've got nothing yet, but give me a moment.
Thanks, I wonder if there is a limerick about a jolly old bishop of Winchester.
Ministering his flock or stuffing his geese.
A good example of the country going to the dogs is the fact that the first version of the Casualty theme music from 1986 was and is by far the best. Why they don't use it today beats me:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXMl-IMHgxQ
As to the Party/Leader mismatch, there must be many examples to be found here in the UK and abroad, modern and ancient. The most obvious would be the heavy defeat of war-hero Churchill at the hands of the distinctly uncharismatic Atlee. But there must be others, plus a significant near miss in 2010 when the worst PM in living memory came close to scraping a draw with David C.
Other PBers can think of better examples though, I'm sure.
http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2014/10/liam-fox-launches-one-minute-fox-campaign/
I get the sense that the real battle to replace Cameron is only now just beginning
Mind you, I seem to recall that these had to be painted out with washable paint, or covered in paper discs, for the delivery flights, were they not?
And the Finns had to change to their modern white/blue/white roundel for their planes and military vehicles in 1944/45 when they lost the Continuation War.
I seem to recall the Latvians, across the Baltic, had the same national roundel but with red swastikas.
My favorites are some of the cross streets below around paternoster square (ave maria lane, sermon lane, preacher lane, boring preacher lane, godliman road, etc)
Rochester will be the true test of my 'methods'.
I worry about those two as well but trust me, Davis is after the top job. He has one chance and that is before the 2015 GE. After that he has none as if DC loses it will go to a generation younger than Davis. Davis is getting things lined up and that is why he is" unavailable for comment" at the moment. Cheers.
http://www.marketrasenmail.co.uk/news/letters-opinion/ukip-rise-they-are-not-laughing-now-1-6382076#.VFVftWBpSl0.twitter
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/41/a3873341.shtml
You are right re the delivery, bu there problems with the whitewash.
Except Jonathan Jones, the Guardian's art critic, who views it as a pro-UKIP installation.
If you can back to John of Gaunt you can get all sorts of interesting links.
(But ours is documented via the Mashams)
http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/5033197.print/
Good job I didn't link to images of Latvian Airforce, cue for rant from a much missed poster.
Labour are seeking to embarrass the tories by ensuring Reckless is elected. Reckless as well as the incumbent is essentially a tory, albeit selfserving, not an your usual ting tong hating kipper. The circumstances of his defection make it a plausible strategy as the tory vote is clearly going to be split.
Its a dubious strategy, both morally and politically, but where there is no sense there is no feeling as they say.
http://littlebritain.wikia.com/wiki/Dudley_and_Ting_Tong
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/11202290/Sharia-law-or-gay-marriage-critics-would-be-branded-extremists-under-Tory-plans-atheists-and-Christians-warn.html
According to various plausible mathematical models, before around 700 AD, every single human is either ancestor of no one alive today, or ancestor of everyone alive today. Therefore, if someone from this period is a proven ancestor of someone alive today then they must be ancestor of everyone alive today.
https://www.ipsos-mori.com/Assets/Docs/Polls/Octoberissuesindex14tabs.pdf
Its obvious the modern. Labour party hates the WWC. That's why they want to dilute them with immigration and discriminate against them in the employment market. There's no other sensible reason for bringing over arranged brides from Bangladesh and then saying they deserve a job more than a local white woman.
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/city-stand-by-bell-1156557