I agree entirely with the line that a Red Bull front row would actually be the most interesting result of qualifying, rather than the most tedious, if we got it.
"Tony Blair has a problem, partly of his own making. No matter what he says many people will close their ears just because he’s Tony Blair.
Large swathes of voters probably wish never to hear from him again and that’s understandable. But for people in his own party, who care as deeply as he does about Labour winning again, not to listen is irrationality bordering on insanity."
Avery LP - List of State Funerals etc. What an interesting list ! The decision to have a state funeral for Lord Carson seems really strange, and the decision to have one for Lord Napier of Magdala (whose only claim to fame was a very easy military victory over the Emperor of Ethiopia) must have been questionable even at the time, but otherwise the choice of who to have state funerals for seems to have been remarkably sound, and reflects unexpected credit on those who took the necessary decisions.
The State funeral of Lord Carson was held in Belfast which did somewhat narrow or focus the field of mourning.
He was however a Kent boy.
Which bit of being born and brought up in Castle Lambert, Athenry, sitting as the MP for TCD, serving as Solicitor General for Ireland, and finally walking 'the high road to treason and despair' makes him a Kent boy?
As an aside - I'm surprised that he had a state funeral (fan of his though I am). Could the decision have been made by Stormont?
Died at his home in Minster, near Canterbury, Charles.
As to who made the decision it would have to have been Parliament on motion by the government under Baldwin.
If Jimmy Saville had still been alive would he have been on the invite list? He did of course, spend a few Christmas hols with the Thatchers.
According to him - but not backed up by the official record. But believe a serial child molester, why not?
It's interesting to read this article from the Daily Mail back in 2008, in the light of the things that have now been said about Jimmy Savile.
It sounds like that if Savile had still been alive (and not in police custody awaiting trial) that he would have managed to bluster his way into the Cathedral whether he was on the invite list or not.
Avery LP - List of State Funerals etc. What an interesting list ! The decision to have a state funeral for Lord Carson seems really strange, and the decision to have one for Lord Napier of Magdala (whose only claim to fame was a very easy military victory over the Emperor of Ethiopia) must have been questionable even at the time, but otherwise the choice of who to have state funerals for seems to have been remarkably sound, and reflects unexpected credit on those who took the necessary decisions.
The State funeral of Lord Carson was held in Belfast which did somewhat narrow or focus the field of mourning.
He was however a Kent boy.
Which bit of being born and brought up in Castle Lambert, Athenry, sitting as the MP for TCD, serving as Solicitor General for Ireland, and finally walking 'the high road to treason and despair' makes him a Kent boy?
As an aside - I'm surprised that he had a state funeral (fan of his though I am). Could the decision have been made by Stormont?
Died at his home in Minster, near Canterbury, Charles.
As to who made the decision it would have to have been Parliament on motion by the government under Baldwin.
Predictably the tide is turning. All the ephemeral respect has passed and we are now coming to terms with the death of a person that many considered poisonous. The next few days and the funeral will be interesting and I suspect unedifying. A bit like that pitiful day when Ceaucescu waved to his people and they started booing.
I've used it a lot in my international travels for my non-partisan work - I've found it opens doors to have a Wikipedia entry as it somehow legitimises you.
Do you also use your portfolio of SeanT quotes?
No, I reserve those for Labour selection meetings.
Predictably the tide is turning. All the ephemeral respect has passed and we are now coming to terms with the death of a person that many considered poisonous. The next few days and the funeral will be interesting and I suspect unedifying. A bit like that pitiful day when Ceaucescu waved to his people and they started booing.
Will this end up like your "Northern Rock" prediction?
As much as it pains me to agree with a member of the Champagne Socialist Luvvie fraternity, I think Roger has a valid point. It has all the potential of turning into a circus, and we now have the prospect of a week of left/right frothing and counter frothing before the event itself, with the chance of some argy-bargy (not from Kirchner, mind) on the day itself as various grave dancers and Starbucks warriors try to reach the procession.
Over the next few days, the cost, the parliamentary recall, the invites, her legacy, maybe even Savile will all be Tweeted, Facebooked, Blogged and everything else in between. It's gonna get messy, and boring.
I think I might hibernate for the next week or so.
Dave passes up another opportunity to withdraw his slur that UKIP voters are racists.
Laura Brander @laurabrander Asked if he still thinks UKIP voters are ‘closet racists, loonies & fruitcakes’ the PM tells @julieetchitv "I’ll choose my words carefully"
“When you watch the news and documentaries, you see a Conservative leader who was authoritative and a conviction politician - and compare that to the people we have now who are weak and lily-livered. It’s a particular problem for the Conservative party.”
Pleased to see my bullshit-o-meter is working well when it came to Umunna (and Hunt, for that matter, although he's kept a low profile at Health).
Undoubtedly recent events will lead the Conservatives that what they need is a no-nonsense, tough female leader. Yes, pbers, I once again predict that Justine Greening will become Conservative leader.
"Because most of the time the three main parties are jockeying for the lead on this crowded terrain, our politics is now conducted less in Technicolor, and more in a softer focus with a great deal more attention to what people say they want, as opposed to what one leader believed, and sometimes uniquely knew, they would like. The consequence of this close attention to the nation's expressed preferences is, paradoxically, an almost unprecedented level of disengagement from, and disbelief in, politicians' ability to make people's lives better. "
There are HUGE unresolved challenges, disparity, globalisation and regional deprivation, which Frank Field talked about yesterday and which none of the parties are addressing.
This is starting to feel like the mid-70s - parties jockeying to 'manage the decline'.....
So many Tories lose their senses when it comes to Thatcher, they're incapable of understanding just how deep the blood runs.
If Cameron has misjudged the public mood with his Thatcherthon, it would not be a surprise.
I've no idea whether the media will have a story to run with to keep Thatcher in the headlines tomorrow, but on Saturday and Sunday it will be all about the parties those in Class War et al have long had planned - including in Trafalgar Square itself.
How does the line go? Something like - With enemies like that, who needs friends?
Anyone who might have a reasonable critique of Thatcher's political legacy, and the hagiography that has been gushing forth, will be much more inclined to bite their lip, and Cameron will have something of a free run to the funeral itself.
Half the bleedin' population seem manic since she passed on.
I think it's mainly people of a certain age getting all nostalgic for a time when politics was more interesting.
I can agree with that. You look back to the 80s, and see Maggie, love her or loathe her, making decisions, some good, some bad, steering her own course, fighting her corner, and then you glance over to 2013, and see Cameron, Milliband, Clegg, tiptoeing around, scared to upset the wrong voting block, trying to be all things to all men.
No wonder kids who weren't even born then want to get in on the act and start rioting!
"This is starting to feel like the mid-70s - parties jockeying to 'manage the decline'....."
I agree, Ms. Vance, and it is probably for the same reason it was then - none of the political leaders has the imagination and/or gumption to see how the country can get out of the mess, so managing the decline is all they can offer. Maybe a leader will emerge who will change the terms of debate, but I am not sure even this sceptred isle will be that lucky twice.
Mr. Llama, this may well be one aspect of UKIP's rapid growth.
Farage et al. are not afraid to upset people who will probably never vote for them anyway (contrary to the way Cameron acts towards Guardianistas). They're also willing to contest one of the central pillars of modern politics which all others support (the EU).
I think Rafael Behr (linked to earlier) sums up well what is going on:
The late Baroness Thatcher is now the subject of two different categories of controversy, inseparable but in crucial ways distinct. One is about her life, the other about her death. The former is by far the greater argument. It is a debate that is triggered by her passing but not generated by it. Its contours have been visited, explored, surveyed and mapped many times already over the past decades.
The second controversy is much smaller and is, in adherence to the parochial laws of Westminster that amplify pettiness and shrink intellectual ambition, the more rancorous. It is the question of whether the unarguable historical significance of Thatcher’s accomplishments justifies their treatment as a subject of national reverence.
I wonder if Thatcher had died under a Labour government, would she have got the Ceremonial Funeral? It does appear that Blair signed off on it, but I guess he could have always changed his mind.
Some leading Conservative figures, talking wistfully about Baroness Thatcher and what she could still do for the party, sound like heavy drinkers who cannot admit they have a problem. They keep going back for more. It is all they know. But until they deal with this Thatcher addiction they cannot win again.
The Tories need to go to political rehab, but they say no, no, no.
I wonder if Thatcher had died under a Labour government, would she have got the Ceremonial Funeral? It does appear that Blair signed off on it, but I guess he could have always changed his mind.
Blair would have called her The People's Prime Minister
I wonder if Thatcher had died under a Labour government, would she have got the Ceremonial Funeral? It does appear that Blair signed off on it, but I guess he could have always changed his mind.
And how would it have looked when the "downgrade" leaked?
I have no doubt both Blair and Brown prayed nightly for the continuing health of Baroness Thatcher - "Please God, not on my watch."
Mr. Llama, this may well be one aspect of UKIP's rapid growth.
Farage et al. are not afraid to upset people who will probably never vote for them anyway (contrary to the way Cameron acts towards Guardianistas). They're also willing to contest one of the central pillars of modern politics which all others support (the EU).
You might well be correct, Mr. D., Farage, for all his faults, offers something that the gormless three stooges (Cameron, Clegg, Miliband) don't - hope. The system will work against UKIP of course, but I think we should be looking at them as the Labour Party Pre-WW1.
The 12 Labour canidate for Easington Colliery Parish Council have all been elected unopposed.
So they don't need to go out and canvass 80 year old former miners next week.
The Easington county division (2 seats) have 2 Labour candidate (both from Colliery), 1 Independent (from Easington Village) and 1 Green (from Peterlee)
Mr. Llama, they can't bitch about that. They knew the system and they chose a stupid approach which has seen them gain useless, small votes in every constituency instead of focusing solidly on one area.
@Carl. "But until they deal with this Thatcher addiction"
Unless I dreamt it I could swear I heard Lord Gummer eroticizing about her wrists and ankles in the HoL. Seriously weird at any time but about an 87 year old dead woman?
And Kettle hits it squarely on the head. The Tories simply lose their senses when it comes to That Woman.
Quite why the Conservatives think that it is politically sensible to revive all these symbols of the Thatcherian high tide escapes me. It is a decision made on autopilot. It is as though none of the sensibility that made the Tories finally grasp the "nasty party" nettle or elect David Cameron rather than a Thatcherite still exists.
And Kettle hits it squarely on the head. The Tories simply lose their senses when it comes to That Woman.
Quite why the Conservatives think that it is politically sensible to revive all these symbols of the Thatcherian high tide escapes me. It is a decision made on autopilot. It is as though none of the sensibility that made the Tories finally grasp the "nasty party" nettle or elect David Cameron rather than a Thatcherite still exists.
Kettle hits it on the head.... because you agree with his view, and any other anti Thatcher/anti Tory view. I could post unlimited articles supporting the opposite view.
You, and the Tories both need to get over your Thatcher addiction. Let the old girl go, buried with dignity, and move on, all of you.
And Kettle hits it squarely on the head. The Tories simply lose their senses when it comes to That Woman.
Quite why the Conservatives think that it is politically sensible to revive all these symbols of the Thatcherian high tide escapes me. It is a decision made on autopilot. It is as though none of the sensibility that made the Tories finally grasp the "nasty party" nettle or elect David Cameron rather than a Thatcherite still exists.
she beat you, she set the terms of politics, you changed nothing she did, move on.
Worth also remembering that breaking consensus/tradition can go wrong, such as when Aurelius was followed by Commodus [bloody stupid that was. Even Basil II's approach of having no kids or heir was better than deliberately leaving the throne to a lunatic incestuous git].
And Kettle hits it squarely on the head. The Tories simply lose their senses when it comes to That Woman.
Quite why the Conservatives think that it is politically sensible to revive all these symbols of the Thatcherian high tide escapes me. It is a decision made on autopilot. It is as though none of the sensibility that made the Tories finally grasp the "nasty party" nettle or elect David Cameron rather than a Thatcherite still exists.
Kettle hits it on the head.... because you agree with his view, and any other anti Thatcher/anti Tory view. I could post unlimited articles supporting the opposite view.
You, and the Tories both need to get over your Thatcher addiction. Let the old girl go, buried with dignity, and move on, all of you.
TFS we need a new thread, Dan Hodges explains why Haysi Fantayzee breaking up is bad news for Ed Miliband
And Kettle hits it squarely on the head. The Tories simply lose their senses when it comes to That Woman.
Quite why the Conservatives think that it is politically sensible to revive all these symbols of the Thatcherian high tide escapes me. It is a decision made on autopilot. It is as though none of the sensibility that made the Tories finally grasp the "nasty party" nettle or elect David Cameron rather than a Thatcherite still exists.
she beat you, she set the terms of politics, you changed nothing she did, move on.
The Greenham Common women won the Cold War
The TUC freed Eastern Europe from communist dictatorship
The Falklanders wanted to be Argentine
British Leyland Cars are better than Nissan
Who needs mobile phones when the GPO can fit a landline in 3 months
British tourists want currency controls so they don't overspend on holiday.....
At least it keeps the spotlight away from Chuka Harrison.
'The Shadow Business Secretary, tipped as a future Labour leader, was unable to deny that he was the source of the flattering addition, which was published in 2008, before he entered Parliament.'
Wish we could, but after recalling Parliament for a gushathon, Dave has now arranged a massive State funeral.
I agree, but what's done is done. Let it go. Stop funding Amazon. Stop fuelling the outrage bus.....or admit it, that the left are loving this as much as the right are, and carry it on as the old girl is buried.
The sad fact is, someone may get hurt. Some copper, or some protester, might die. All because the main political parties in this country are revelling, or mourning an old lady's death.
@Alanbrooke At least it keeps the spotlight away from Chuka Harrison.
Oh I don't know though:
"One of the Labour party's rising stars faced fresh embarrassment today after he claimed he could not remember if he used a computer at the law firm where he worked to compare himself online to Barack Obama. Chuka Ummuna, the shadow business secretary, has face searching questions about his use of websites to bolster his personal profile while also being a a member of an exclusive social networking site for so-called ‘jetrosexuals’.
At least it keeps the spotlight away from Chuka Harrison.
'The Shadow Business Secretary, tipped as a future Labour leader, was unable to deny that he was the source of the flattering addition, which was published in 2008, before he entered Parliament.'
Don't miss the second Cllr for Frosterley Ward of Stanhope Parish, the last one for Frosterley Ward of Stanhope Parish, the 5th in Wolsingham Ward of Wolsingham Parish
Marvelous talking shop in hospital,in between the odd vomit,the wise sages say no to paying for her funeral,they are having trouble in paying for their own.
With all the verbiage about Thatcher, for or against, Cyprus rears her tawdry bum to the wind. It seems that that country will now have to find a further €6.5 billion to get that loan from the rest of the EU:
Trouble is again bubbling in the Mediterranean. Wasn't there a subterranean volcano around that island somewhere? Or was that off Crete. No matter; prepare for lava flows.
All because the main political parties in this country are revelling, or mourning an old lady's death
No main political party is revelling in it.
One main political party is way overdoing the mourning for a "divisive" (or can we now say "widely and deeply despised"?) politician.
Have it your way. I can't be arsed to argue. No Labour leaning person is in anyway grave dancing, funding Amazon, or fuelling up the outrage bus. Her funeral should pass off quietly, then.
Wake me up (before you go go) when you've all finished frothing.
Channel 4 leading on Syria and G8, US gun crime law, UK organ donation...and finally, was Thatcher's "big bang" responsible for the global economic crisis.
Channel 4 leading on Syria and G8, US gun crime law, UK organ donation...and finally, was Thatcher's "big bang" responsible for the global economic crisis.
With all the verbiage about Thatcher, for or against, Cyprus rears her tawdry bum to the wind. It seems that that country will now have to find a further €6.5 billion to get that loan from the rest of the EU:
Trouble is again bubbling in the Mediterranean. Wasn't there a subterranean volcano around that island somewhere? Or was that off Crete. No matter; prepare for lava flows.
If I were Cyprus I'd be giving serious consideration to the "nuclear option" of printing Cyprus Pounds and clearing off out of it all. Sure rampant inflation and a probable devaluation of over 50% would ensue thereby "confiscating" savings via that route, but if you are losing 60 odd % possibly for deposits over 100k euro what's the difference except you'd make tourism and whatever else you have to sell competitive overnight
Channel 4 leading on Syria and G8, US gun crime law, UK organ donation...and finally, was Thatcher's "big bang" responsible for the global economic crisis.
News is returning to "normal"..
North Korea and Cyprus didn't make it then ?
North Korea covered by (failure of) G8
Good to know the Chinese call Kim Jong Un "little fattie"...
The candidates elected unopposed in County Durham parish councils include: Farmer (some) Farmers Wife (which sounds as she's the wife of former than 1 farmer) Resident since 1946 Male Widow 67 years old Housewife Semi-retired, Retired Senior Lecturer in Accounting Captain RFA various Retired Independent, Determined to make Wolsingham nicer Retired Farmer 3 Conservatives 2 UKIP 1 Green and many more.
Mark pack writes ,Chuka Umunna: Wikipedia is the least of it
The other reason is utterly trivial by comparison, though it sticks in my mind as it amuses me for it involved his press officer being scared of Umunna appearing in an interview alongside… er, me. There he, a Tory MP (Matthew Hancock) and I were waiting to appear on the BBC News Channel, me having been told we would appear in a panel format together and his press officer urgently arguing with BBC staff to ensure that instead Umunna got to appear on his own. Perhaps he was worried I’d floor him in a panel format with an interesting fact about a paperclip…? Somehow I think a real Obama would not be worried about having to appear alongside me. (Baffled, quite likely. But then so would I be. Even if Obama did once act as my warm up man.)
If I were Cyprus I'd be giving serious consideration to the "nuclear option" of printing Cyprus Pounds and clearing off out of it all. Sure rampant inflation and a probable devaluation of over 50% would ensue thereby "confiscating" savings via that route, but if you are losing 60 odd % possibly for deposits over 100k euro what's the difference except you'd make tourism and whatever else you have to sell competitive overnight
I'd be surprised if they haven't already. You have to keep these things very quiet for fear of capital flight. Even discussing the possibility would probably not be publicly mentioned.
If I were Cyprus I'd be giving serious consideration to the "nuclear option" of printing Cyprus Pounds and clearing off out of it all. Sure rampant inflation and a probable devaluation of over 50% would ensue thereby "confiscating" savings via that route, but if you are losing 60 odd % possibly for deposits over 100k euro what's the difference except you'd make tourism and whatever else you have to sell competitive overnight
I'd be surprised if they haven't already. You have to keep these things very quiet for fear of capital flight. Even discussing the possibility would probably not be publicly mentioned.
The only tricky thing would be to sneak the banknotes in without anyone noticing. SAying that, they could have already done it when the RAF airlifted a load of Euros into the country earlier last month.
Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable impression of Margaret Thatcher? •Very favorable 36% •Somewhat favorable 32% •Somewhat/Very unfavorable 15% •Not sure 17%
Comments
http://www.espn.co.uk/redbull/motorsport/story/105112.html
I agree entirely with the line that a Red Bull front row would actually be the most interesting result of qualifying, rather than the most tedious, if we got it.
Large swathes of voters probably wish never to hear from him again and that’s understandable. But for people in his own party, who care as deeply as he does about Labour winning again, not to listen is irrationality bordering on insanity."
Lance Price:
http://labourlist.org/2013/04/dont-close-your-ears-just-because-its-tony/
This is the second 'don't ignore Tony' article on Labour List this afternoon....
It sounds like that if Savile had still been alive (and not in police custody awaiting trial) that he would have managed to bluster his way into the Cathedral whether he was on the invite list or not.
More like the day Maggie waved goodbye to the unions and the UK economy started booming.
Can we move on?
It would be good for us all.
Won't mention it again.
You can't claim I am not trying to help.
Even on such a grand state occasion that made me laugh out loud and made me wonder why no one had used it before
That praises are without reason lavished on the dead...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/chuka-umunnas-british-obama-wikipedia-entry-came-from-his-former-office-8569083.html
And Avery it really matters that Carson is Irish... Otherwise how will I ever convince Neil or my Irish-ness...
I never doubted your Irishness! As far as I'm concerned Irishness is open to anyone and everyone who wants to claim it.
Over the next few days, the cost, the parliamentary recall, the invites, her legacy, maybe even Savile will all be Tweeted, Facebooked, Blogged and everything else in between. It's gonna get messy, and boring.
I think I might hibernate for the next week or so.
“When you watch the news and documentaries, you see a Conservative leader who was authoritative and a conviction politician - and compare that to the people we have now who are weak and lily-livered. It’s a particular problem for the Conservative party.”
http://www.hertsandessexobserver.co.uk/News/Bishops-Stortford/UKIP-leader-Nigel-Farage-on-the-election-trail-in-Stortford-20130411113514.htm
Don't insult the voters, insult the politicians!
Most Rev John Sentamu
David Frost
Sir Trevor McDonald
Sir Timothy Rice
June Whitfield
Joan Collins
Anya Hindmarch
We will be needing you to put out the fires.
If Cameron has misjudged the public mood with his Thatcherthon, it would not be a surprise.
Is this the line up for the new edition of I am a Celeb, get me out of here?
Undoubtedly recent events will lead the Conservatives that what they need is a no-nonsense, tough female leader. Yes, pbers, I once again predict that Justine Greening will become Conservative leader.
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/tessa-jowell/margaret-thatcher-reflections_b_3060575.html
On one thing, however, I think she is wrong:
"Because most of the time the three main parties are jockeying for the lead on this crowded terrain, our politics is now conducted less in Technicolor, and more in a softer focus with a great deal more attention to what people say they want, as opposed to what one leader believed, and sometimes uniquely knew, they would like. The consequence of this close attention to the nation's expressed preferences is, paradoxically, an almost unprecedented level of disengagement from, and disbelief in, politicians' ability to make people's lives better. "
There are HUGE unresolved challenges, disparity, globalisation and regional deprivation, which Frank Field talked about yesterday and which none of the parties are addressing.
This is starting to feel like the mid-70s - parties jockeying to 'manage the decline'.....
But seriously, yes, it's a mainly Tory disease in the context of the current political landscape.
The response of the mainstream left has been balanced. The response of the mainstream Right has been slightly unhinged.
"Tim'll fix it". Apologies!
How does the line go? Something like - With enemies like that, who needs friends?
Anyone who might have a reasonable critique of Thatcher's political legacy, and the hagiography that has been gushing forth, will be much more inclined to bite their lip, and Cameron will have something of a free run to the funeral itself.
A couple of previous Chief Whips would have been quite grateful if they had been able to do that.
IIRC Rentoul's rection to her retirement announcement was: "Lab gain"
Besides which, we're nearing a fork in the road, with a sheer cliff to the left and a difficult mountain to climb on the right.
No wonder kids who weren't even born then want to get in on the act and start rioting!
I agree, Ms. Vance, and it is probably for the same reason it was then - none of the political leaders has the imagination and/or gumption to see how the country can get out of the mess, so managing the decline is all they can offer. Maybe a leader will emerge who will change the terms of debate, but I am not sure even this sceptred isle will be that lucky twice.
Farage et al. are not afraid to upset people who will probably never vote for them anyway (contrary to the way Cameron acts towards Guardianistas). They're also willing to contest one of the central pillars of modern politics which all others support (the EU).
The late Baroness Thatcher is now the subject of two different categories of controversy, inseparable but in crucial ways distinct. One is about her life, the other about her death. The former is by far the greater argument. It is a debate that is triggered by her passing but not generated by it. Its contours have been visited, explored, surveyed and mapped many times already over the past decades.
The second controversy is much smaller and is, in adherence to the parochial laws of Westminster that amplify pettiness and shrink intellectual ambition, the more rancorous. It is the question of whether the unarguable historical significance of Thatcher’s accomplishments justifies their treatment as a subject of national reverence.
Some leading Conservative figures, talking wistfully about Baroness Thatcher and what she could still do for the party, sound like heavy drinkers who cannot admit they have a problem. They keep going back for more. It is all they know. But until they deal with this Thatcher addiction they cannot win again.
The Tories need to go to political rehab, but they say no, no, no.
I have no doubt both Blair and Brown prayed nightly for the continuing health of Baroness Thatcher - "Please God, not on my watch."
So they don't need to go out and canvass 80 year old former miners next week.
The Easington county division (2 seats) have 2 Labour candidate (both from Colliery), 1 Independent (from Easington Village) and 1 Green (from Peterlee)
Unless I dreamt it I could swear I heard Lord Gummer eroticizing about her wrists and ankles in the HoL. Seriously weird at any time but about an 87 year old dead woman?
The Tories are not funnelling profits to low tax paying multinationals by buying a 74 year old song!
Whose got the problem?
Quite why the Conservatives think that it is politically sensible to revive all these symbols of the Thatcherian high tide escapes me. It is a decision made on autopilot. It is as though none of the sensibility that made the Tories finally grasp the "nasty party" nettle or elect David Cameron rather than a Thatcherite still exists.
You, and the Tories both need to get over your Thatcher addiction. Let the old girl go, buried with dignity, and move on, all of you.
Wish we could, but after recalling Parliament for a gushathon, Dave has now arranged a massive State funeral.
The TUC freed Eastern Europe from communist dictatorship
The Falklanders wanted to be Argentine
British Leyland Cars are better than Nissan
Who needs mobile phones when the GPO can fit a landline in 3 months
British tourists want currency controls so they don't overspend on holiday.....
At least it keeps the spotlight away from Chuka Harrison.
'The Shadow Business Secretary, tipped as a future Labour leader, was unable to deny that he was the source of the flattering addition, which was published in 2008, before he entered Parliament.'
The sad fact is, someone may get hurt. Some copper, or some protester, might die. All because the main political parties in this country are revelling, or mourning an old lady's death.
"One of the Labour party's rising stars faced fresh embarrassment today after he claimed he could not remember if he used a computer at the law firm where he worked to compare himself online to Barack Obama.
Chuka Ummuna, the shadow business secretary, has face searching questions about his use of websites to bolster his personal profile while also being a a member of an exclusive social networking site for so-called ‘jetrosexuals’.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2307514/Labours-Chuka-Umunna-remember-DID-use-law-firm-liken-Barack-Obama-Wikipedia.html#ixzz2QB6vmZeM
http://content.durham.gov.uk/PDFRepository/NoticeOfUncontestedElection.pdf
Don't miss the second Cllr for Frosterley Ward of Stanhope Parish, the last one for Frosterley Ward of Stanhope Parish, the 5th in Wolsingham Ward of Wolsingham Parish
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2307514/Labours-Chuka-Umunna-remember-DID-use-law-firm-liken-Barack-Obama-Wikipedia.html
The Mirror,mirror on the wall politician keeps us laughing at him.
'Chuka Ummuna, the shadow business secretary, has face searching questions about his use of websites to bolster his personal profile'
Fills in the substance free zone?
No main political party is revelling in it.
One main political party is way overdoing the mourning for a "divisive" (or can we now say "widely and deeply despised"?) politician.
It seems that that country will now have to find a further €6.5 billion to get that loan from the rest of the EU:
Trouble is again bubbling in the Mediterranean. Wasn't there a subterranean volcano around that island somewhere? Or was that off Crete. No matter; prepare for lava flows.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22106194
'(or can we now say "widely and deeply despised"?) politician.'
But couldn't be more widely or deeply despised than a politician that was responsible for 500,000 deaths in a war based on lies and fantasy WMD's
Wake me up (before you go go) when you've all finished frothing.
News is returning to "normal"..
Good to know the Chinese call Kim Jong Un "little fattie"...
At Least Chuka Harrison gives us a laugh.
Farmer (some)
Farmers Wife (which sounds as she's the wife of former than 1 farmer)
Resident since 1946
Male
Widow 67 years old
Housewife
Semi-retired, Retired Senior Lecturer in Accounting
Captain RFA
various Retired
Independent, Determined to make Wolsingham nicer
Retired Farmer
3 Conservatives
2 UKIP
1 Green
and many more.
Perhaps Chuka could post the polling results.
The other reason is utterly trivial by comparison, though it sticks in my mind as it amuses me for it involved his press officer being scared of Umunna appearing in an interview alongside… er, me. There he, a Tory MP (Matthew Hancock) and I were waiting to appear on the BBC News Channel, me having been told we would appear in a panel format together and his press officer urgently arguing with BBC staff to ensure that instead Umunna got to appear on his own. Perhaps he was worried I’d floor him in a panel format with an interesting fact about a paperclip…? Somehow I think a real Obama would not be worried about having to appear alongside me. (Baffled, quite likely. But then so would I be. Even if Obama did once act as my warm up man.)
= lol
http://www.markpack.org.uk/40404/chuka-umunna-wikipedia-is-the-least-of-it/?utm_source=WordTwit&utm_campaign=wordtwit&utm_medium=referral
Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable impression of Margaret Thatcher?
•Very favorable 36%
•Somewhat favorable 32%
•Somewhat/Very unfavorable 15%
•Not sure 17%
Favorable / Unfavorable {Net}
•Margaret Thatcher 68% / 15% {+53%}
National survey of 1,000 American adults was conducted April 8-9, 2013. The margin of error is +/- 3 percentage points.