November Election?

It does seem to be the only topic of consideration on the lips (and keyboards) of anyone interested or involved in politics.

The Conservatives are playing "come and have a go if you think you're hard enough" and Brown isn't yet replying.

I've always been in the camp that said there won't be an election this year. I still believe that (although I've gone from 99% sure to about 75%). I just don't see why Brown would do it. Having spent 10 years plotting to become PM and making his desire plain the chance of risking it after only 100 days seems foolish. And while the claims that he has no legitimacy as he wasn't elected make a good playground taunt they actually mean nothing. We don't elect prime ministers, we elect parties and the Party Leader is PM. John Major didn't go in 1990 and there is no reason for Gordon Brown to go to the Palace now.

He's also missed the boat. A week is (as the old cliche goes) a long time in politics. If he had made an announcement this time last week it would have gone well, but the Conservatives have had a good week. Some good, sensible policies have been announced, a stunning show of unity was on display and by all accounts Cameron played a blinder. The polls are already showing an upturn for the Conservatives which, if the doubters can keep their opinions in check for just a bit longer, will probably continue.

The trip to Iraq didn't go as well for Brown as he had hoped. People saw it as the shabby headline grabbing trick it clearly was.

And then there's just the practical reasons. It's hard enough to get people to go out to vote on a warm spring evening in May - it will be damn near impossible in November. Particularly in Scotland and Wales where election fatique will still be in place.

If there's a postal strike it will screw up postal votes and the delivery of election communications - a death knell for many of the smaller candidates.

And of course the register is 11 months old. Even with the rolling registration now in force about 10% of the population wiill still be losing their votes.

Of course the cynics among us may think this plays well with Brown, I'm not sure. A determined Get Out The Vote operation could kill some of his marginal seats. And as for Scotland? The SNP are doing well, despite some defeats in the chamber they are still in their honeymoon period. This could take out some MPs where Brown can least afford to lose them - if he can't keep his backyard happy can he keep the rest of the country?

An election now would be a massive waste of time and money. I don't think Brown will go. Having said that - I did make sure to post my electoral registration form just in case....

Too Much To Say

Since coming back from holiday things have been just a little busy and I've neglected the blog appallingly. I know that all 2 of my regular readers must be heart-broken....

And it's not as if I don't have things I want to speak about. Darfur, early election, crackdown on trafficking women, and abusive(?) Celtic fans are all on my mind this morning alone.

I'll try to talk about some of this stuff over the next couple of days. I know you can't wait.

Worrying News from Burma

A recent news release from Burma Campaign UK. This is hugely concerning. David Milliband speaks to the Labour conference today at 12.30 - I look forward to hearing his comments.

Burma Campaign UK sources in Rangoon have reported that soldiers have been ordered to shave their heads, in possible preparation for infiltrating peaceful demonstrations. They would start rioting or attacking police, providing the regime with a pretext for a brutal crackdown on protestors.

Sources indicate that soldiers from Light Battalion 77 in Rangoon have been given the order. Sources also report that the regime has ordered 3,000 monks’ robes from a factory in Rangoon.

It is a tactic the regime has used in the past, including at the Depayin massacre in 2003, during which Aung San Suu Kyi was arrested. Regime militia dressed as monks were involved in the ambush which left up to 100 democracy activists dead. State television today reported that action would be taken against protestors.

“We know from experience that the regime is capable of opening fire on civilians,” said Mark Farmaner, acting Director of Burma Campaign UK. “The regime came to power on the back of a massacre in 1988 that left at least 3,000 civilians dead. They have also been accused by the UN of breaking the Geneva Convention for their deliberate targeting of civilians in attacks on ethnic minorities.”

Despite the widespread expectations that the regime will use violence to suppress protest, the international community has been remarkably silent, with the French government being the only one to make a strong statement warning of consequences if the regime responds with violence. ASEAN has also expressed concern.

“The regime has been held in check by the peoples’ respect for the monks and the fact that the world is watching, but the scale of protests means they will be looking for options that allow them to justify a crackdown,”said Mark Farmaner. “The UN Secretary General and other world leaders must speak out and make it clear that a violent response in unacceptable. At the moment the international community seems to be willing to watch from the sidelines as the regime moves closer to a massacre. If the regime does attack protestors, this will have been one of the most widely predicted massacres in recent history, and makes a mockery any government’s claim to be committed to human rights.”

A better day for wildlife - and wildlife photographers

You might remember a few weeks ago I wrote about the Yangtze River Dolphin potentially becoming extinct. Turns out that this might not be the case after all...

As was pointed out in the comments by Darren - who has used this as the starting post for his new blog on life as a wildlife photographer. Please take some time to visit his blog and follow our journey as Darren adds more stories and photos. It's going to be quite exciting.

And coincidentally it's just 200 hours now until we go to Kenya.

Theatre Review - Absurdia

So I decided to be clever and move my theatrical visits on from the musicals. And I took my friends along to expand their minds too. A non-musical play. That's what we needed.

So on the whim of an attractive looking e-flyer from the London Theatre Newsletter I picked Absurdia. A play about absurdities in life. Starring Peter Capaldi. And you got a free toy elephant when you booked. What could go wrong?

Well, the script for a start. Maybe I'm not clever or middle class enough but it was rubbish. Mr and Mrs Paradocks (or whatever they were called) were unhappy that the elephant they had delivered was too big. And where were the gum boots? And could Mr P please form a government. And on and on with the inane ramblings. Other people laughed. They seemed to get it. We were the only ones who appeared to be lost. It was bad, bad, bad.

The first member of our group walked out after 50 minutes. The next two found the tea-cosy on the man's head after witterings about why was the wallpaper pushed up against the wall the final straw. The pub down the road from the theatre provided an enjoyable place to spend the night. I've never walked out of the theatre before and felt really bad about doing so but on the other hand - life's too short.

If you like French absurdist comedy, or you're just a bit poncy, then this might be the play for you. For us it was a waste of hard earned cash. I'm going back to see Avenue Q - it's the only thing to scour the experience out of my head.

Also - I never got my elephant.

Remembering Raphael Lemkin

Today is the 48th anniversary of the death of Raphael Lemkin - the man who created the concept and word "genocide".

Lemkin was a Polish-Jewish lawyer who became interested in the as yet unnamed crime of mass murder and extermination of specific groups. His interest was first raised by the events in Armenia and the experience of Assyrian Christians in Iraq.

Lemkin first presented his theory of a crime of barbarity as a crime against international law to the League of Nations in 1933. The same year Hitler came to power in Germany.

Following the Holocaust which decimated Lemkin's family he continued with his fight to have genocide - the word he created in 1943 - recognised as an international crime.

He died at the age of 59, having seen the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide come into force in 1951. Only 7 people attended his funeral.

Today we should all remember Raphael Lemkin - he gave a name and a definition to a crime which have previously not been defined. We honour Raphael Lemkin by recognising where genocide is taking place and working to stop it.

Protect Darfur
Massacre of Assyrian Christians
Genocide Watch

Call to Action - Urgent

This from Harry's Place, c/o Iain Dale.

"Pegah Emambakhsh is an Iranian national who sought asylum in the UK in 2005. Her claim was rejected and she was arrested in Sheffield on Monday 13th August 2007. She is scheduled for deportation to Iran on 27 August 2007.

If returned to Iran, she faces certain imprisonment, likely severe lashings and possibly even stoning to death. Her crime in Iran is her sexual orientation - she was in a same-sex relationship.

Ms Emambakhsh escaped from Iran, claiming asylum, after her lover was arrested, tortured and subsequently sentenced to death by stoning. Her father was also arrested and interrogated about her whereabouts. He was eventually released but not before he had been tortured himself.

Ms Emambakhsh has a more than well founded fear of persecution if she is returned to Iran. She belongs to a group of people - gays and lesbians - who, it is well known, are severely persecuted in Iran.

According to Iranian human rights campaigners, many lesbians and gay men have been executed since the Ayatollahs came to power in 1979.

In 2006 a German court ruled that an Iranian lesbian could not be deported as she risked death because of her sexuality.

The UK Border and Immigration Agency (BIA) have chosen not to believe that she is in danger if returned to Iran, even though the UK government are well aware of the dangerous situation that gay people face there.

The BIA will be committing a serious miscarriage of justice and a gross human rights violation if they insist on Ms Emambakhsh's deportation.

The Asylum Seeker Support Initiative in Sheffield are now getting Pegah new solicitors in order to make a fresh claim for asylum based on new evidence and expert testimonies. A stay of deportation is needed to give Pegah time to prepare and submit this fresh claim.

Pegah's MP, Richard Caborn, has already won one stay of deportation and is working secure another postponement of deportation on 27 August.

You can help. Please write or email asap the British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith and to Pegah's British constituency MP, Richard Caborn (see details below).

Pegah Emambakhsh's Home Office reference number is: B1191057. This number must be quoted in any letter, so the Home Office can identify
and access her case.

Letters need to be sent TODAY by first class post to arrive tomorrow, Friday 24 August, at the latest. If you can't send a letter, a fax is a good alternative, and an email is certainly better than nothing. Mark all correspondence "For the personal attention of..."

Please write to:

Rt Hon Jacqui Smith MP, Home Secretary,
2, Marsham St,
London SW1P 4DF

Fax no: + 44 (0) 207 035 3262 or +44 (0) 207 035 2362
Email: smithjj@parliament.uk

Rt Hon Richard Caborn MP,
Sheffield Constituency Office
2nd Floor, Barkers Pool House
Burgess Street
Sheffield S1 2HF

Fax: + 44 (0) 114 275 3944


Please don't let Pegah be quietly deported to face torture or death. Our letters can make all the difference."

As I have only found the story it is too late for a letter but please do consider sending an email or a fax - no matter how basic it is. The Labour Party has a good record on LGBT rights - don't let something like this shame the Government or the country.

You'll Win On Health - Just Get It Right

There are three subjects that the electorate care about - health, crime, education. Get those three right and no matter what else is happening you'll win the election. Other issues will have an impact but if you don't get these three core issues right then you're dead in the water. William Hague knows that - about 90% of the country backed the Save the Pound campaign in 2001, people queued up to sign the petition but in the end it didn't change their vote. People care about the environment but will choose who to vote for based on who'll get the yobs off their streets, not who'll save the polar bears. And try being in the line of fire when parents don't get their first choice schools - county councils change hands over these issues.

David Cameron is absolutely right to take Brown on over the Health Service. It's in a shocking state and people care and will choose who to vote for based on who they trust on health. Telling people that despite the spin local hospitals and services are under threat and pledging to protect them is a winning strategy. As long as people have faith you will act on it. Nicola Sturgeon can vouch for that one.

But for god's sake get it right. You had a great start to the week - I bet members loved the thought of a bare-knuckle fight on such a key issue, then it all went wrong. Turns out the research wasn't good enough, local MPs weren't fully on board and then an idiot researcher (probably the same one who bollocksed up in the first place) got bullied into apologising. Things like this detract from the strong central message.

A couple of tips - get your research right from the start and double check the work of 17 year old Emily and Tarquin, make sure the local MPs/PPCs know what's going on in their area and are fully behind it, know that the vested interests (the Trust managers) will come back at you and be ready to take them on too, never apologise to them and for god's sake keep going. Use Andrew Lansley more - he's attractive and appealing to the general public. Oh and yes - keep banging on about health.

Health, crime, education. Might never be the causes de jour - but will always be the things the swing voters care about.

Assault with a cocktail sausage

The "you couldn't make it up" brigade is having a little paddy at the moment. Some little cretin has been charged with assault for throwing a sausage roll or a cocktail sausage or some finger buffet food at a man.

All very innocent apparently and how dare the evil police take this poor delicate little angel into custody? Wasting tax-payers money and making a mockery of our courts?

Here's how:

1 - The man was in his 70s and had been subject to intimidation from gangs of feral little brats. He thought he had been hit by a stone and reported it to the police.

2 - The innocent little hero of our story was charged because he had already faced three reprimands for his behaviour. Not quite the little saint mumsy would have us believe apparently.

3 - The weapon of choice doesn't actually matter. What does matter is that people are scared to go out of their houses because of the behaviour of children aged 11 and 12. Big brick or cocktail sausage the intent behind the abuse is the same - to bully, to intimidate and to stake out areas as uninhabitable for anyone except the gangs.

I'm only sorry the little thug didn't get sent down for 6 months. One less of the little bastards on the street.

Women - Beware This Man

This is Colin Read. Colin is 25, soon to be divorced and earning £90,000 per year. Colin isn't that bad looking. But women, do take care not to get involved with Colin. He's a violent, wife-abusing thug.

Colin's wife committed the vile offence of not making his sandwiches. Colin slashed her feet while she slept. When a few days later his wife tried to speak to him about it he beat her up again. Stupidly she hadn't learned her lesson and didn't iron his shirt for a work function. He branded her on the back with an iron.

His wife had to be summonsed to be court to give evidence against him. He was found guilty of ABH. The sentencing recommendation was for a community service order.

Colin was handed a £2,000 fine. As he and his abused wife are getting a divorce "the circumstances of the marriage" which led to the attacks no longer exist so a prison sentence would "help no-one". Because Colin has a job with long hours the Recorder didn't think he could fit a community based punishment into his busy schedule.

So girls, if you see this man in a pub or a club and you think he looks nice, protect yourself against him. The courts will do nothing to protect you.

Classic FM - Broadening The Mind

I've taken to listening to Classic FM while reading in bed. It's all fairly standard, "famous" classical music - nothing experimental here, just right for winding down while reading.

The other night though I learned two new things:

1. The soundtrack to the film Trading Places is mostly based on Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro"

2. Billy Joel's This Night is based on Beethoven's sonata Pathetique.

Of course Classic FM didn't tell me that - I had to get up at 11.30 and google it when I heard the Beethoven and was lying in bed saying, "but it's Billy Joel, what's going on, it's Billy Joel".

Classic FM - educating philistines the world over.

Time to close Chessington Zoo

The foot and mouth outbreak in Surrey has led to part of Chessington World of Adventure's "petting zoo" being closed and included in the exclusion zone.

Let's take this opportunity to close what to me appears to be an entirely cruel animal hell-hole. I've visited Chessington Zoo once and I was brought to tears at the sight of the animals in their enclosures. A "family" of lions was in a pretty small area, not much bigger than the office I work in, and since when is a natural family unit of lions a male lion, one lioness and two cubs? Visitors are also subjected to the patronising spin on their signs telling us that the pacing and excessive grooming is natural behaviour. No it's not - it's abnormal and it's caused by their imprisonment.

I'm dubious about the role of zoos at all but Chessington is the worst I have ever seen, the animals in this zoo are nothing more than features in a theme park, kept behind glass to keep the visitors happy while they queue for the more exciting rides. I can see no conservation or education value whatsoever. In my opinion it's time to close it down.

Visit the Born Free Foundation website for more information on Zoos in the UK.

Good on you hen

One of the things that really annoys me is lottery winners being all smug and sanctimonous and "It won't change my life, all I want is a little second hand Ford KA, I'll stay in my job" etc, etc. Bugger that.

I play the lottery to change my life. If I won £5million quid I would get a new house, I'd get that Jaguar XKR or Aston Martin DB9 that I keep being told that I couldn't drive because it's too big for me, I'd have the holiday home in Barbados and much as I love my job it would be Adios King's Cross.

So I was really pleased to hear that a woman who has just won £30something million on the Euromillions Draw has quit her job and is looking for a villa in Italy.

Well done on your win and have a fabulous life with no more money worries.

Why Are The Unionist Parties Scared to Talk?

I was really quite annoyed to see the three unionist parties in Scotland come out in opposition to the Independence White Paper. Of course they don't agree with the White Paper, they are unionists, they don't want to see independence but I don't see what the problem is with a White Paper or with the "national conversation" that Alex Salmond has suggested.

My views on independence are mixed. In the past couple of years I have moved towards thinking it's a good idea. I've joined the SNP but not just out of a desire for independence but also because on issues like civil liberties the SNP view is closest to my own. And there's the family connections too. If I lived and voted in Scotland I would be exactly the kind of person the conversation would be aimed at. I would have voted SNP this year, I was delighted to see the SNP become the largest party in both Holyrood and Local Government but ask me if how I'd vote in an independence referendum and I'd really struggle.

I get so angry when people say that Scotland COULDN'T be a successful independent country. Of course it could. It's a country of intelligence, talent and a solid base of natural resources. When I hear the English argument of "we fund them Scotch they should be grateful" I get so wound up and feel like singing Corries songs until the cows come home.

There are questions that need to be answered on both sides. A couple of quick examples off the top of my head:

What would happen about the Royal Family? I'm not a commited Unionist these days but having a Republic of Scotland would be a crunch for me.

Why are the SNP so keen to leave one Union but will happily sign up to deeper union in Europe? It seems a contridiction to me.

Why are the Conservatives happy to support a referendum on Britain in Europe but not Scotland in Britain?

I think both sides of the debate have persuasive arguments. Neither has anything to fear - although the Unionist knee-jerk, debate-stifling reaction would imply that they are scared. Putting their fingers in their ears and shouting la-la-la won't stop the White Paper being published and it won't stop people thinking about it.

Politics should be about great debates - this could be one of the greatest ever. It would be a shame if only one side was talking.

Not a Good Day for wildlife

So if you're a wildlife lover yesterday pretty much sucked.

First the news about the Yangtze River Dolphin. Another species extinct and let's be blunt, more are on the danger list including tigers, pandas, polar bears and many more that aren't quite so famous or popular.

Then the horrendous story from the Democratic Republic of Congo about the shooting dead of four mountain gorillas. Not for their meat, or their skin, or anything else that might drive desperate people to poach animals, but just because a human had a gun and could shoot them.

Man may be the most advanced animal on the planet, but sometimes when you see what we're doing to our fellow creatures it just doesn't seem like it.

The things you learn....

...when you're surfing the internet instead of working.

Anson Williams who played Potsie in Happy Days is the second cousin of Dr Henry Heimlich, of Heimlich Maneouvre fame.

There you go...

My Annual Problem

As part of my job I have to write resources for people to use and I'm very lucky that I have some colleagues who can offer support and informed advice which always makes what I write better. But every year the same problem comes - how do I incorporate everyone's excellent comments and suggestions and simultaneously keep the word count down?

If anyone knows how to square this circle I'd love to hear it.

Scotland loses an MEP - World Keeps Turning

So the Electoral Commission (spit, spit, curses upon them) have recommended that Scotland - along with most other UK regions - should lose an MEP.

I should care. My newly-found Nationalism should be rearing up in several respects. Scotland isn't just a region of the UK it's a country. While the number of MEPs Scotland has is proportionate to other UK "regions" it isn't to other countries in the EU. Slovakia and Finland have roughly comparable population to Scotland and both have 14 MEPs - double Scotland's current quota. This is clearly another case of Scotland being done down by being in the Union. I really should care.

I don't. The number of politicians a country has doesn't interest me in the slightest. Add Europe to the equation and I start to rock back and forth in boredom. Yes it's appalling that Scotland is under-represented, yes the European institutions control 99.99999999% of our laws, yes it's all very important. But really - I couldn't care less.

Do any of us get a good deal from our MEPs? Are the seven current Scottish MEPs earning their whack as it is? Okay, I live in Surrey so can't really speak with great authority on the coverage of Scottish MEPs in the local press and TV but the only one I've seen getting any sort of coverage is Struan Stevenson and his excellent animal fur campaign. The rest all seem to be a bit anonymous.

So yes, I'm sure it's all very important, but wake me up when there's an interesting politics story in the headlines.

Designer Babies

I'm concerned about the potential for "saviour siblings" and the relaxation of the rules which MPs are apparently calling for. "Saviour siblings" is a highly biased way of describing these babies, it makes it sound all very cuddly, innocent and positive. Of course "designer babies" is equally as biased and has less positive connotations. The idea sounds positive enough, allow embryoes to be developed which will help to cure illness in children. But what is the cut-off? What will happen if the babies born turn out not to be as helpful as had hoped? What is the extent of their usefulness? Blood transfusions? Gene therapy? Organ harvesting?

To me this is a dangerous precendent to set and there are many, many more questions to be answered before such a move could be allowed.

Babies are not a commodity be it in monetary or genetic terms.

In defence of David Cameron

Since I left the Conservative Party two years ago (at roughly the same time as David Cameron became leader but not because of that) I have undergone a real change in attitude towards it. When in the past people told me that the nasty element so often seen was the face of the party I argued against that, but I came to realise that they were right. Not that every member is nasty, in fact some are fantastic and there are some elected representatives who are fantastic and who I would vote for, and even work to see elected again. But the truth is that the real face of the Conservative Party is too often the smug, sneering, nasty, frothing-mouthed, Daily Mail reader that we're all used to.

And boy has is reared itself up over David Cameron and his trip to Rwanda. The howls from the loony wing of the Party have been deafening. How dare he go to Africa and find out what's happening around the world? Why do we care what happens to the colonials? The Rwandans don't vote - why bother? Why wasn't he in the country looking at the flood?

Well, let's take the last point - yes, for some people the flooding this week has been devastating. But really - do they want some politician to fly over them in a helicopter tutting and rolling his eyes? If he didn't have a bucket and a mop to help clear up then he wouldn't be of any use to anyone. But on the other hand, he had already visited flooded areas in his own constituency before he went to Rwanda. A Prime Minister must be able to concentrate on several urgent issues at once, running the country and fulfilling international duties cannot stop because of a crisis. Instead our leaders must be able to juggle lots of balls in the air.

And it was a good thing going to Rwanda. If we want to stop genocide happening in the future we have to understand what happened and why. We must learn to read the signs. No genocide ever starts as a genocide - it starts with name-calling, it starts with exclusionary policies and it starts with labelling people as different. If we can recognise the first stages then maybe we can help stop the second, third stages taking place. And if we can stop genocide occuring, if we can help people to be safe in their own countries, maybe we can stop so many coming to the UK (shameless nod to right-wing sensibilities).

13 years ago the world stood by and allowed a genocide to take place in Rwanda. And the genocide is still taking place there - women and children are still dying of AIDS; people are still dying from their wounds and killings are continuing. I'm delighted that David Cameron went to see for himself what is happening in Rwanda. It can only make him a better politician and perhaps even a better Prime Minister.

Daily Mash Gets It Right Again

First a dislaimer - I am a huge Harry Potter fan, I was queuing at 1am outside a bookshop in Zurich to make sure I got my book, I was upset at a couple of the deaths but people do need to get over themselves.

Thankfully the Daily Mash puts it all into perspective for us.

CHILDLINE TELLS POTTER FANS TO FUCK OFF

CHILDLINE, the charity for abused children, will tell distraught Harry Potter fans, upset at the ending of the final book, to 'fuck right off'.

The charity is predicting a deluge of pathetic, over-indulged youngsters when the final installment of the fantasy series is published this weekend.

A Childline spokesman said: "Children have become so detatched from reality that they will gladly waste our time crying down the phone because of an entirely fictional trauma.

"It's very easy to blame people like Esther Rantzen and Lorraine Kelly for this relentlessly sentimental and immature approach to life, so let's just do that."

As fears grow of mass suicide among seven to 39 year-olds, Harry Potter publisher Bloomsbury has been installing nets and crash mats around tall buildings .

And the owners of large Gothic buildings are bracing themselves for millions of bouquets being left at the gates, because it bears a faint resemblance to Hogwarts school.

Child psychologist Dr Wayne Hayes, said: "Are you fucking kidding?

"There are children trying to get through while they're being beaten up, but by all means give Childline a call because you don't like the ending of a book, you spoiled little shit."

Where's the Taliban when you need them?

Frankly, I can't imagine anyone who could rouse me into a homicidal rage more than Jude Law. But if he can sort out peace in Afghanistan then fair play to him.

Organ Donations - Consent or Presumed Consent?

This story about the Chief Medical Officer for England suggesting that we move from consent driven organ donation to presumed consent concerns me.

I carry (I think) an organ donor card. I have since I was very young and first understood what organ donation was and what it meant. I have always felt very strongly that should anything happen to me I very much want my organs to be donated. I have also warned my family that should this not happen I will haunt them - and not in a good way.

This has always been my choice. I know that not everyone in my family feels the same way and I know that others just don't know how they feel about it. That's fine. If (and I pray I'm never) in the situation where I have to make such a decision I hope that I will always respect the feelings of my family members.

I am really concerned about the idea of presumed consent and how this could develop. Presumed consent takes the decision away from the individual and their family about their body. I accept that as suggested there is an opt-out option, but how likely are people to actually find out how to opt-out and do so? People never think that dreadful things will happen to them and won't therefore prepare. Hence the lack of people with donor cards despite the estimated 70% of the population who would be willing to donate organs.

And if consent is presumed does this mean that organ harvest will become a consideration in treatment? Will families be rail-roaded into making decisions about turning off life support as the state already has a call on the body parts?

Surely there are better ways to increase proactive organ donation? A first step would be to ensure that inclusion on the register was binding. As far as I know it currently isn't. Increase awareness of need for organ donation, make it easier to sign up to be a donor - have cards in every library and every supermarket in the country.

Let's make sure that a rise in proactive consent negates the need for the government to take away yet another of our civil liberties - the right to control our own bodies.

If you haven't already registered and do want to - sign up here.

And in more breaking scientific news

Old people are humourless grumpy so and so's.

Anyone who has shared a Glasgow bus with the muppets on that or have been subject to a long queue in a Post Office can confirm this one.

People really are quite nice

Sometimes, just sometimes something happens which reminds you that on the whole humans really are quite nice animals.

This is one of those times.

Make Pompous Celebrities History

From today's Third Sector news:

Levels of understanding about poverty in Africa are lower now than they were before Make Poverty History, according to the latest research.

Public Perceptions of Poverty, a report compiled by Comic Relief, is based on responses from 2,000 people to questions asked at regular intervals from December 2004 until January this year.

The proportion of respondents who were "very concerned about poverty in poor countries" fell from 30 per cent in 2004 to 22 per cent.

In the latest round of research, 57 per cent said they knew nothing about trade justice, and only 26 per cent said they strongly believed that the debts of the world's poorest countries should be cancelled in full. This figure was down from 33 per cent in 2004.

Andrew Darnton, an independent researcher who coordinated the results for Comic Relief, said the findings were "broadly depressing".

He added: "People are more aware that the causes of poverty can be political. However, MPH didn't open up the issues of debt, trade and aid to the public, and there are massive gaps in their knowledge, which nobody in the sector has done anything to address."

Hopefully this will encourage all the sanctimonous climate change bandwaggoneers to stop their preaching

Well Done Roger

Well done to Roger Federer on his amazing five in a row. The match was one of the best Wimbledon finals I have seen in years - both played brilliantly and it was a delight to watch. Roll on next year - can we see a six in a row? And will it take another 25 years for someone else to match it?

This is how we deal with terrorists in Glasgow

John Smeaton - hero of the failed bomb plot

Join the Facebook appreciation group

The definition of Irony...

An English actor playing Ian Hamilton, ringleader of the gang of students who stole/repatriated the Stone of Scone, in a new film.

Not all Americans are dumb....

Glasgow SNP councillors - possibly the best council group anywhere ever

Lots of members of the Glasgow SNP council group sponsored me in my Walk for Life - despite the fact that I actually don't know most of them, so big thanks to:

Cllr John McLaughlin (well he had to really!)
Cllr Grant Thoms
Cllr Alison Thewliss
Cllr Alex Dingwall
Cllr Billy McAllister
Cllr Craig MacKay
Cllr Kenny McLean
Cllr Iris Gibson (although her son hasn't paid up yet!)
Cllr David Ritchie
Cllr Alison Hunter
Cllr Phil Green
Cllr Jahangir Hanif
Cllr George Roberts

Sorry if I've missed anyone out and a massive thanks to everyone else who sponsored me too.

Celeb-Spotting - The Return

After an extended absence Celeb-Spotting returns.

Today I spotted Noel Fielding of The Mighty Boosh at Kentish Town Tube. Skinny bloke, needs to put on some weight - particularly on his little girl legs.

Could this be the start of a flurry of rubbish celebs? We can only hope.

Craig Was Robbed!

I have become utterly addicted to Britain's Got Talent. Partly because - as it turns out - Britain really doesn't have very much talent.

The semi-finals are now on, and tonight the baton-twirling Craig was knocked out. In favour of a bloody sqwaking child who people voted for because the country is too damn sentimental to tell children that they're really just a little bit rubbish. I enjoyed Craig's baton twirling show and found it much more entertaining than the precocious nonsense that got through.

Of course, having defended Craig, the winner really does have to be Paul Potts.




I swear if a brattish child beats this guy I will have a hissy fit.

Born Free

Having seen the news about the CITES agreement on the Ivory Trade and wanting to blog on it I immediately turned to the Born Free Foundation website. And wow - what a transformation. Soooo much more attractive and responsive than their old website.

I will be back with more on the Ivory Trade agreement and my thoughts on that - but in the mean time do pop into Born Free and find out more about their work. Also have a look at the Chief Exec's Blog.

Fantastic people, fantastic job.

Dropping the Debt Monster

As I said yesterday I am delighted that the new SNP Executive has abolished tuition fees for Scottish students in Scottish universities (and none of your nonsense about endowments - it was a tuition fee). As someone who would never have gone to university without my fees being paid the thought of University becoming some sort of exclusive preserve for those who could afford it horrified me.

There aren't many things that government/taxpayers should provide for the public but education is one of those things. A country needs teachers, lawyers, doctors, etc etc and it should pay for their education. That's not to say that unlimited years should be covered with a whole load of perpetual students being funded forever though and I'm also not so convinced by the need for grants though, there is only so much money in the public purse and life isn't perfect.

When I worked for the Conservative Party pre-2005 I was delighted that the policy was to abolish student fees and in the constituency I worked in we worked quite a lot on this policy because we knew it was the right thing to do. I was horribly disappointed when David Cameron reversed this policy - it was just one more example of a very rich man assuming that the rest of the population could afford the lifestyle he can.

This was a good statement yesterday and the £15/£20 million cost is one well worth paying - in fact at approximately £3.63 per person it's a downright bloody bargain.

The SNP Whirlwind

Well, people who think politics is boring obviously haven't been paying attention to the last month in Scottish politics. From the final declaration of the results, to the threatened legal challenges, the discussions on coalition and deals to Alex Salmond's election as FM and Tony Blair's refusal to even speak to him it's all been really very exciting.

And amongst all this the new Executive has been making some really quite substantial policy announcements - the reversal of the decision to close A&E Units, cross-party co-operation on sex offenders, the NHS Staff pay deal, plans for a new Skills strategy, the investigation into rendition flights, discussions with GPs on opening hours and today's exceptional announcement that education will once again be free in Scotland. (more on that later)

In a world where politics can be depressingly homogenous the SNP are proving that there are significant differences between the Parties and that voting a new government in will change things. Of course, not everything will be plain sailing - all of these excellent policies will have to be paid for, and that may mean a tax hit. So more interesting times ahead.

New Links

I've added a few more blogs to the sidebar and a new category of "Makes Me Laugh". Pop in and see these sites - your day will be that little bit better for it.

F1 Whining

For a sport full of men leading rich, glamorous lifestyles F1 really does harbour some whiners. Latest complaint comes from reigning World Champion and number 2 in the race Fernando Alonso who is complaining that McLaren favour Lewis Hamilton.

Is he kidding? Does he not remember Monaco?

Face facts Fernando - Lewis is coping much better with the pressure this year than you are. Suck it up and beat him, or be pleased for your successful team-mate. But don't be a whiny brat.

Walk for Life - The Finish Line

Walk for Life

The Walk for Life for Crusaid was on Sunday and I walked 10k around some of London's best spots. I am really pleased to have raised over £350 - makes the sore thighs all worthwhile. Thanks to everyone who sponsored me and if you haven't yet you can at my fundraising page.

How not to balance the books

So the NHS not only turned about its deficit last year but had a £500m surplus.

This is not a good thing when waiting lists are on the increase, operations cancelled, junior doctors cannot find work, hospitals are unclean and patients and staff are just generally fed up.

The NHS is not a profit making organisation - a £500m surplus is as bad as a £500m deficit as it implies that more emphasis has been placed on cost-cutting than on patient care. Still, I'm sure that there have been plenty of clip boards purchased.

The NHS is in a real mess at the moment and the government are doing nothing about it other than claiming everything is better than under the Tories (a decade ago).

2012 Logo

They say:

"When people see the new brand, we want them to be inspired to make a positive change in their life.
Tony Blair

"This is a truly innovative brand logo that graphically captures the essence of the London 2012 Olympic Games - namely to inspire young people around the world through sport and the Olympic values"
IOC President Jacques Rogge

"This is not just a marketing logo, but a symbol that will become familiar, instantly recognisable and associated with our Games in so many ways during the next five years."
Tessa Jowell

I say

"Bloody ugly mess"

You Lost Jack - Get Over It

Stayed up late last night to watch the First First Minister's Questions with the First SNP First Minister. All the reviews I had read (ok so Brian Taylor's and Indy Gal's) had highlighted both how good Salmond was and how amusing Annabel Goldie always is so it seemed like one to watch.

What struck me wasn't how good Salmond was - and he was, or how funny Annabel was - and she was but how angry Jack McConnell was. He sarcastically stressed the words "First Minister" as if he still can't believe that he was beaten, his face was either grey or white with bitterness and he banged on about how the new Executive should do exactly as he would do.

It's hard to lose elections - I know this from bitter experience, I was a Conservative Party member from 1994-2005 but you don't get anywhere by sulking about the result a month later and throwing your toys out of the pram.

Opposition is an important job, Governments have to be held to account for their actions. Jack McConnell demeans himself, his position, the First Minister and Executive and most of all the Scottish electorate by behaving like a petulant, spoilt brat.

The best of bears

I bought myself A Bear Called Paddington the other day and read it on the tube yesterday. It really is as good as I remember from my childhood. Paddington truly is the best of all the literary bears.

I still have a warm glow inside.


(picture from Paddington's official website)

Things have to get worse before they get better

New Scottish Deputy First Minister and Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon will be announcing this week a strategy for tackling waiting lists. All politicians like to sound tough on waiting lists - waiting lists must come down they all agree but no-one actually knows how to do it and instead they set arbitrary targets which clinicians spend their time struggling to meet.

We now have the situation where there are waiting lists to get onto the reportable waiting lists - the figures look good but people are still waiting to be seen. My suggestion to Nicola Sturgeon is to strip away the previously set targets and take some time to properly assess the situation without taking into account hidden lists.

There will be a short-term hit and bad publicity as the times appear to go up massively, but if a government is serious about tackling problems it must first know exactly what these problems are and have the guts to put in place a strategy which will achieve long-term results, even at the expense of short-term bad headlines.

The missing phone call

Both on Sunday AM (on Sunday) and the Jeremy Vine show yesterday Scotland's SNP First Minister Alex Salmond highlighted that the had yet to hear from Tony Blair. This is just unforgivable discourtesy.

I accept that Blair will not be happy with the result in Scotland and that Alex Salmond probably wasn't who he wanted to see occupy Bute House, however he should have phoned by now to congratulate (even through gritted teeth) the democratically elected First Minister of a constituent nation of the United Kingdom. Not doing so is just an example of the petulance that I have come to expect of our soon to be departed PM.

The PMOS said yesterday that:

"as he was aware, phones were two-way communication devices. He was not sure whether we had received an approach from Mr Salmond's office either."

So he's going for the mature approach then. He has also said in the past week that the "Prime Minister had been to Washington and Iraq, and therefore had been rather busy" and they weren't interested in "gesture politics". Here's a couple of points - I'm sure in this day and age the PM's plane has an airphone. Even on the rainbow tour he can make a thirty second call. And some gestures are actually just good manners - John Major left him a bottle of champagne and a note in number 10 in May 1997 as nothing more than a gesture and to wish him luck.

Blair is always happy to talk about the respect agenda but until he learns some himself he has no right to lecture me on it.

Well Done Mars

I was dismayed a few days ago to find out that Mars were planning on changing their production methods to include using animal products and therefore make their products unsuitable for vegetarians.

I'm not a vegetarian and as anyone who knows me can tell you I have a healthy, some may even say unhealthy, dislike and distrust of the nut cutlet-munching, hemp sandal-wearing smug gits BUT I do think that wherever possible we should be moving away from using animal products and certainly not swapping perfectly acceptable non-animal products for animal products. I was very disappointed with the decision and filled out a form on the Masterfood website to say so.

I was very pleased to hear of the reversal of the decision and even more pleased to receive the email below today.

Well done to Mars. We all make mistakes - it's a wise company which acknowledges their customers' anger and speedily rectifies their mistake. I look forward to a summer of Snickers Ice Cream.

Mars Email

"Thank you for taking the time to contact us in connection with the change of ingredients in our chocolate confectionery and ice cream range.

Please note that after recently changing the source of some of the whey that is used in some of our chocolate products we have received lots of feedback that this decision has made it difficult for some of you, especially those of you who are vegetarians, to continue to enjoy our products. We realise that we made a mistake and we apologise. We have committed that we at Mars UK will ensure that a selection of favourite brands including Mars bars, Snickers bars, Galaxy and Maltesers will be suitable for vegetarians in the near future.

Meanwhile we are currently experiencing unusually high volumes of contacts from our consumers and therefore we hope that you understand that, rather than answer your question individually, we are attaching a list of questions and answers we believe would be useful and help answer your enquiry.

Alternatively you can visit our web site (www.masterfoodsconsumercare.co.uk) for this, and other useful information.

Once again thank you for taking the time to contact us. Please do get back in touch, at the dedicated email address below, if your specific query has not been answered and we will do our best to get a speedy response to you.

Yours faithfully

On Behalf of Fiona Dawson
Mars UK
fionadawson@masterfoods.co.uk

Q1.What are you announcing?

A1.We have recently changed the source of some of the whey which is used in our chocolate products made in the UK from a vegetarian friendly variety to one which contains traces of traditional rennet from animal sources. We have received lots of feedback from consumers and reversed this decision.

Q2.Are you reverting to vegetarian recipes for all of those products that were subject to the ingredient change?

A2.Yes, this announcement means that favourite products - Mars bars, Snickers bars, Galaxy, and Maltesers will once again be suitable for vegetarians.

Q3.You make lots of other brands - what about the suitability of them?

A3.Other products will also be suitable for vegetarians including Minstrels, Revels, and Ripple. However, Twix, Bounty and Celebrations will continue not to be suitable for vegetarians.

Q4.I'm a vegetarian - which products can I eat / should I avoid?

A4.Currently we cannot guarantee that our products contain vegetarian rennet. However, we are starting to change our manufacturing process with immediate effect. We want to get our vegetarian products on the shelves as soon as possible. During this process of changing the recipes we will provide updates on this consumer care website, on a regular basis. If you are not sure about the suitability of our products please call us on 0845 0450042.

Q5.Why did you decide to change the ingredients in the first place?

A5.We made the change to broaden our supply base in order to ensure we could continue to provide our consumers with products of consistent quality in the future.

Q6.Will you now consult with consumers on any future changes to products?

A6.Yes. This change was a mistake and we are sorry that we may have prevented consumers from enjoying the products they've always enjoyed."

Too true to be funny

The Daily Mash reports on the Scottish election fiasco

I may have found a new favourite website.

(Techni) Colour me unimpressed

Has Andrew Lloyd Webber lost his mind?

How could he kick out Daniel -granted I want Lee to win and have since the audition stages but to choose Lewis over Daniel was just stupid, particularly as in the sing-off Daniel totally sold "Bring HIm Home" - one of the hardest songs in the musicals - while Lewis really struggled.

It's like that useless bird from Maria all over again. Andrew gets his favourites and dumps the good ones to keep them in. Unfair.

Still - I would say that Lee's only serious competition has now gone so that's a good thing.

The Rainbow Tour Continues...

So Blair is spending his last 6 weeks touring the world being glamorous and saying cheerio to all his pals. I've always thought he was Evita-like in his pronouncements.

Better not meet any Italian former Admirals...

And the prize for no self-awareness goes to....

...Margo MacDonald MSP.

She has advised someone to "go and find a darkened room and have a quiet lie down" - exactly the words I used about her today.

Margo doll - we all love you, but you've made a roaring arse of yourself in the past week. First standing against Alex Fergusson when he was obviously the right person for the job and getting soundly whipped in the process. And then not voting for Alex Salmond as First Minister just because you were in a wee tuppenny bit with him.

You give good advice Margo, maybe it's time to take some yourself.

Ban on Gay Men Giving Blood

A few weeks ago I signed yet another petition on the 10 Downing Street website. This one was calling for the ban on gay men donating blood to be over-turned. On the day after International Day Against Homophobia to receive the following reply just summed up why the day is needed and why we can't claim that the UK is quite there with equal rights:

"The Government has a duty to ensure that any rules applied to blood donation by the National Blood Service (NBS) achieve a balance between risk reduction and security of supply. The self exclusion criterion concerning gay men has been reached through a close analysis of the epidemiology of confirmed HIV and Hepatitis B positive tests among blood samples from people donating blood at United Kingdom Blood Service sessions.

The Government has been advised that every year from the analysis of nearly three million donations collected by the United Kingdom and Irish Blood Services, about 40 donations are confirmed to be positive for HIV. Of these, a third to a half are given by men who, following further enquiries by the NBS, reveal that they are gay men. Some are donating for the first time but some have given at least once in the previous two years and tested negative on the previous occasion. These figures indicate that some gay men are still giving blood in spite of the current rules.

Although safer sex campaigns have had an impact, it is still considered that the risk of gay men being infected with HIV remains sufficiently high to include the criterion that they should not donate blood. Unfortunately, this means there will be healthy gay men who would be suitable for giving blood but who are excluded by the rule.

However, it is not practical to expect donor session staff to be able to differentiate between gay men with lower or with higher risk lifestyles, so all gay men have to be excluded."

So - because 0.006% (or 0.0006 - it's 6.666667e-4 for you maths geeks) of blood transfusions are affected approximately 7-10% of the population are stopped from giving blood. And who are the other two-thirds to half of the donors whose blood is contaminated?

This is institutionalised homophobia dealing in ridiculous stereotypes of the worst kind. And its shameful coming from a government which claims to be commited to equality

Hyperbole

Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are pairing up to star in a new film. To fans of either or both actors this is a good thing. I may even make sure I see it myself.

Co-producer Avi Lerner has apparently said that it is an "event in world history". Really? A bit of exaggeration don't you think?

Peace in Northern Ireland (when it happens) is an event in world history
Genocide in Darfur is an event in world history
Even a Nationalist Government in Scotland is a small event in world history

Two actors being paid to act is not an event in world history, it is a film to look out for.

The cats fight back

For those of you upset by the vicious tortoise the other day the cats strike back

International Day Against Homophobia

Today is International Day Against Homophobia

There are still 80 countries in the world where it is illegal to be gay and many more where homophobic attacks are common place and not taken seriously by the authorities.

If we want to live in a civilised world Homophobia - and all other forms of discrimination - have to be eliminated.

Happy Birthday Alan

Today is Alan Johnston's 45th birthday - he was kidnapped 66 days ago in Gaza. We don't know if by terrorists or common criminals (if indeed there is a difference), but the Palestinian government knows who has him. And they probably know where.

If the Palestinians want to be taken seriously as a legitimate government in a volatile world they have to work towards the release of Alan Johnston and the three Israeli soldiers Gilad Shilat, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev.

There may be legitimate reasons for protest against Israeli or Western nations by the people in Gaza - kidnapping is no a legitimate protest. Hamas have it in their power to bring these four men home - they should do so immediately.

Happy birthday Alan - hope you are at home with your family soon.

Eurovision - Taking It All A Wee Bit Seriously

Apparently some vacuous Lib Dem MP has tabled an Early Day Motion calling for a review of the Eurovision voting. Far be it for me to accuse anyone else of taking Eurovision too seriously, after all my shrine to Terry in pride of place in our living room, but honestly....

Is this the best the Lib Dems can come up with? It's hardly a matter of parliamentary importance that the Eastern European nations are ganging up on the poor hard done by nations of the West. Don't let him hear Terry's class suggestion that we should build a wall between east and west, he'll be out there in a flash.

The killer tortoise

Go tortoise. But I thought you guys were supposed to be slow?

Campaign Launch - Scooch for Number One.

My countdown to Eurovision was rudely interrupted by the 40 minute broadband update turning into a 48 hour down-time. So didn't get to finish with a couple more classic clips and my own prediction. Which is just as well because it was a Ukrainian win with Scooch coming a respectable mid table. How wrong I was.

"KD Langovich" (my friend Davy's description not mine) winning with a bland nothingness of a song and poor Scooch being humiliated. And let's be honest not deserving to at all. For the first time in over a decade I am going to buy a single - Scooch have to become number one in the charts. We need to show our support for them. Genuinely this was one of the best British entries in years - it was camp, it had great outfits, a dance even drunken people could do (and trust me by the time Scooch came on we were all drunk!) and the best carry-on-a-like lyrics ever.

So come on, buy Scooch's single and take them to number one.

Countdown to Eurovision ... Part Seven

How could anyone miss the king of Eurovision?

A sensible agreement

Its been announced that the SNP and the Green Party have entered into formal agreement which falls somewhat short of full coalition. To my way of thinking this is a GOOD THING. I'm suspicious of coalitions, people either have to lose too much of their own policies or a minor party gains far too much influence based on their vote share. Why should the fourth party have had the Deputy First Minister-ship in the past? This agreement acknowledges the support of the Green Party and offers benefits without losing the control that a party needs in Government.

I hope that this is enough to secure an SNP administration, but I still feel a bit concerned about the likliehood of a grand Unionist agreement.

Countdown to Eurovision ... Part Six

The woefully misunderstood Daz Sampson from last year. As with Scooch, it's a delight to see people well into their 30s do Eurovision while claiming to be much younger....

Countdown to Eurovision ... Part Five

The final scorecard is now available.

Ta Radio 2 - we love you, Sir Terry and Ken Bruce.
xxx

Big Bloody Deal!

So the Electoral Commission is ordering an enquiry into the chaotic counts in Scotland last week. That's a relief to all concerned I'm sure....

Here's my suggestion. Let's skip the protracted and undoubtedly expensive enquiry and abolish the Electoral Commission. They are an unelected, unaccountable bunch of inexperienced hacks who know nothing about running elections and nothing that they have done in the past however many years they have been in existence has aided democracy in Britain in the slightest. Despite being the "elections watchdog"(!) they will not employ people who have either worked for a political party or in electoral administration for the past five years. You know - the people who know how elections are run. The Commissioners who do have experience in local government do NOT have this experience in electoral administration but in areas such as Urban Planning. But mostly the commissioners are people who are members of numerous quangos and committees.

And how comprehensive will their own in-house investigation be? Not very I suspect. I was an election agent when a pilot scheme of electronic voting was carried out. In their reviews did the electoral commission get in touch with me to discover my experiences, the experiences of candidates or electors who contacted us? Did they hell.

I hold out no hopes whatsoever for the success of these enquiries. No-one with any common sense will be asked for their opinions and it will all turn out to be someone elses fault.

Countdown to Eurovision ... Part Four

Come on the Scooch

Countdown to Eurovision ... Part Three

Oh dear oh dear - semi-final results are very disappointing.

No Belgium, no Switzerland and their live vampires and no big Draq Queen from Denmark. Instead rubbish singers from Eastern Europe who actually think it's a song contest....

It's time for the countries of Western Europe to rise up and start to block vote against this bloc voting, let's reclaim Eurovision in the name of over the top campness and get away from wailing wummin and pretty boys (Both in and out of bands).

Come on Scooch - we look to you to lead the way. Fly the Flag for a camp-fest.

Blair Steps Down

(image from BBC News)

Ok, so it's hardly an exclusive but Blair has just announced his resignation.

It was shaping up as the best speech of his career, starting with a nice tribute to his agent. As an agent who never got thanked I thought it was a particularly nice touch. Then a comment about the best way to avoid the pitfalls of power was to step away - a very insightful statement.

Then he got all political. Oh dear. It all went downhill from there.

He asked when we last heard of pensioners freezing to death because they couldn't afford to pay their bills. Last winter. Fuel Poverty kills up to 25000 pensioners every single year and 4 million people are believed to suffer from fuel poverty.

He boasted about better results in the NHS and Education. Only if you accept that the targets these results refer to are a good thing. The major point is that spending on the NHS has doubled since Blair took over yet benefits are not doubled. There are waiting lists to get onto waiting lists, the MTAS system is in total disarray, MRSA deaths are on the increase, I could go on and on....

He took credit for intervening in the Kosovo crisis which is fine - but what's happening today in Darfur?

I didn't hear any mention of the NI peace progress as Radio 2 came and went from his LONG speech however I doubt there was tribute paid to John Major.

The speech, like all of his Premiership, sounded bloody good - but once you start thinking about it it just doesn't seem so impreesive.

Countdown to Eurovision ... Part Two

Some personal favourites on their way

Countdown to Eurovision ... Part One

Quite apt celebratory 200th post. Eurovision is coming closer and the party is being prepared.

I haven't listened to anyone except the mighty Scooch yet, I enjoy the surprise that the night (or semi-final night) brings.

So - scorecards for semi-final printed off, countries allocated to a couple of people, first thoughts on the Terry Wogan shrine and decorations started - and all ideas welcome on these. Next steps - actually do the shrine, make the food, buy the Ouzo and (I suppose) actually clean the house.

It's getting affy exciting.

Margo for Presiding Officer?

Hmmm

Interesting theory - I like it. Although I do wonder if the schoolboy fantasies of a strong woman with a bit of power are starting to get out of control. First Bella, now Margo....

Get on with it

While I'm pleased about the election results on Thursday (ok mid-morning Friday), Scotland hasn't come out of the day well. The counting process was a shambles, the electronic counting was deeply flawed, the ballot papers were dreadful and the decision to introduce STV on the day of a general election was a recipe for chaos. And now the Parliament won't actually start back on time.

Sweet Jesus what is going on? If this is a Labour/Lib Dem ploy to show that Scotland couldn't cope as an independent nation then it's working pretty well. Run the country - this shower couldn't run the proverbial piss-up. Or rather the SNP could run it, the others are just stalling. It's time for Labour and the Lib Dems to accept the result and let the party with the most seats get on with running the country - and show that minority government can work.

Self Awareness Is A Wonderful Thing....

The few days campaigning in Glasgow was a bit of an eye-opener for me. Turns out I am a bad-tempered control freak. I like things to be done my way and when they aren't then they are just wrong. For two pins (actually a salary matching the one I'm on now) I would move back to Glasgow and sort the SNP out - I guarantee they would win several more seats FPTP within 8 years; but I would probably make myself the most unpopular person around.

But the most worrying thing is when I express surprise that I am bad tempered no-one has rushed to my defence. Everyone just looks shocked it took me so long to realise it.

Apologies to anyone I snapped at in the past week (or even longer than that) but frankly you were doing it wrong and should just accept that my way is best.

Book News

How is exciting is this?

A new book by Armistead Maupin, following the wonderful Michael Tolliver's story.

Surely the literary event of the year - with the possible exception of Harry Potter. I may have picked my first book for the holiday.

And if you're in Liverpool the man himself will be reading as part of Homotopia.

Very exciting....

How not to do negative

Not all negative campaigning is bad - if your opponents have a poor record in office or policies that are damaging then to point this out may be negative but fair. This isn't fair comment - this is just a particularly nasty little rant.

I don't care who wins this ward - I just hope it isn't the Lib Dem.

Scientists for the Union

Ok, apparently 61 scientists have declared their support for the Union. Good for them. Like the rest of us they are entitled to their opinion.

The story claims that if Scotland becomes an independent nation its position as an inventive nation would be jeopardised. Scotland has three of the world's top 200 universities (I'm assuming Glasgow is one of them - all the best people go there :-) ) but it seems that this wouldn't be the case after independence.

Why?

Would independence cause all Scottish academics to lose their brains? Would Scottish scientists lose their knowledge of the periodic table? Would the microscopes in Scottish labs be taken back to England on the submarines carrying Trident?

It's a pathetic argument. Argue from a principled position - don't scare-monger. Let's not pretend that Scottish independence will cause a leaking of IQ points. It won't. The cultural arguments for the Union are strong - despite being a member of the SNP I have a great deal of attachment to the Union, I love the Royal Family - the thought of a republic horrifies me. I think unionists have exceptionally strong emotional, cultural, economic, political and historical arguments. They aren't using them. They're being negative and demeaning the intelligence and talents of the people of Scotland.

Labour are getting desperate. They know it's time.

I spoke too soom

So there I was just the other day congratulating the Catholic Church on their eminently sensible and compassionate decision to abolish the state of limbo for babies who died before baptism. Was this a breakthrough into the 20th Century (still probably a bit early for the 21st)? Then this!

The Pope is planning to bring back the traditional Latin mass. O-kay. Which includes a prayer calling for the conversion of Jews. Not okay. The prayer reads:

"Let us pray also for the Jews, that the Lord our God may take the veil from their hearts and that they also may acknowledge our Lord Jesus Christ." and asks for Jews to be "delivered from their darkness."

Really? When anti-semitism is still prevalent in Britain is this really the best message for the Vatican to be giving out?

Jews (I assume as I'm not Jewish) don't want to be delivered. They have nothing to be delivered from. They aren't in darkness, they have their own faith and beliefs and these should be respected.

The Church is apparently concerned about the decline in church numbers and the alienation of some of the more traditional figures. It should consider people who are still basically Catholic but abhor the position on homosexuality and regard the position on contraception as killing millions of people across the world of AIDS.

One step forward - three back I'm afraid. For a more sensible point of view visit the Council of Christians and Jews.

Catholic Church Abolishes State of Limbo

This is a story that I first picked up on back in October last year. The Church has announced that the state of limbo for babies who die before baptism has been abolished

This is a great move which will bring comfort to thousands of religious parents who lose their babies before baptism. Previously babies were believed to exist in a state somewhere between heaven and hell and not able to experience the peace of heaven and the love of God. I would think that for a religious family this is a added burden at the worst time in their lives.

All we need now is for some movement on homosexuality and contraception and the Catholic Church will be moving into the 20th Century.

The dangers of Lemsip....

Our beloved Government have mooted the idea of taking cold and flu medicines off the shelf as people are using them to make crystal meth. Apparently.

While I'm not denying this is happening I'm pretty sure that a knee-jerk reaction of clearing the shelves of lemsip, night nurse and benylin won't help. What it will do is start to place an intolerable pressure on GPs. In the past couple of years I've had 4/5 colds - probably pretty average. I've been to the doctor once (and I'm convinced it was a bout of the flu rather than a cold), the rest of the time I've dosed up on lemsip, night nurse, benylin, tixylixx, sudafed and got on with it. I think most people probably do.

The chaos that will ensue when everyone with a minor sniffle turns up at their GP needing a cold medicine doesn't bear thinking about.

Working time will be lost as people don't go into work but wait by their phones to be the first to get the one appointment available that day. Others will not bother and hope that they don't still have it in two weeks time when the next appointment is available.

Pharmacies will get much busier with chemists taking up much of their time on cold remedies.

And drug dealers will continue to manufacture crystal meth and causing misery in our communities.

Surely a better plan is to invest more in frontline policing to stop the drug dealers and leave the rest of us alone?

Has Salmond Slain the Business Dragon?

For as long as I can remember one of the biggest arguments against independence has been that Scotland couldn't go it alone and that businesses would desert Scotland creating a business-free zone. Alex Salmond has clearly spent a lot of time and effort in courting the business community - and presumably upset some of the more leftie elements of the SNP in doing so - and this is now paying dividends. Today the SNP announced that 100 business men and women had signed up to the following statement:

"Scotland can be more successful. That is why we are supporting Alex Salmond and the SNP on May 3."

Looking at the list there seems to be a mix of small and large businesses and I wonder if Salmond has finally slain the dragon of lack of business support?

As someone from the right of the political spectrum this is something which is really quite encouraging - no longer are the SNP viewing the business community with suspicion instead there is now a recognition that a strong independent Scotland must have its own strong and successful business community. I look forward to the SNP continuing with its campaign of drawing in all elements of Scottish life in its efforts.

Any Dream Will Do

I'm already loving Any Dream Will Do the follow-up to last year's How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria. And narked that poor Johndeep got booted out on Saturday - I'd liked him.

My favourite is the fabulously twinkly-eyed Lee. I really do want him to win. No-one else is really standing out for me so far, although Lewis was great on Saturday.

But has anyone else noticed that the boys are much cry-ier than the girls were last year? Fabulous. And musical theatre has never seen quite so many "girlfriends" in the one room. Mmm-hmm.....

Something I Don't Say Often...

Here is an excellent speech by George W Bush. This is why Holocaust remembrance is just so important.

Bush at United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on Yom Ha'Shoah

Facebook...

....crazily addictive and I'm not quite sure why

Rules of life #639

If you come into more emails on a Monday morning than you received all of the previous week it's going to be a busy one....

Am Confussed

For some reason I have been reading the statistical analysis of the Glasgow Shettleston constituency for the elections in a couple of weeks. Great bloke standing for the SNP :-) Anyway among all the usual guff there was a section on how people get to work and the categories?

By Public Transport - aye
By car - aye
By motorbike/bicycle/on foot - aye
Other - Whit? What other methods are there? and how can 4.4% of the Shettleston workforce be using them? Helicopters aren't much cop down the Shettleston Road and would heelies not count as going on foot?

Any help in letting me know what other could possibly be would be most welcome. Otherwise my brain will continue to hurt.

Treating...

One of my favourite breaches of election law, delighted to see it in the news after too long an absence. The good old provision of meat and drink....

Just a warning to candidates - buying the team a round in the pub after a good day's canvassing is not treating, and you are legally allowed to do it - so do!

Celeb Spotting

I saw Frances de la Tour for the fifth time just outside Tesco at King's Cross today. Time to acknowledge it. She's obviously stalking me until I tell the world she has been celeb-spotted. But no more mentions, after seeing someone for five times in the same place then it's no longer a celeb spot - it's just someone who lives/works near you.

Also saw Michael Winner coming out of the Ivy a couple of weeks ago.

Must try harder to get better celebs....

Time Wasting Nonsense

So Christine Grahame thought it would be fun to hijack the Tory manifesto launch.....

Bully for her. Fighting against a Lib-Dem majority of 538 Ireally wouldn't have thought this was a good use of her time. Instead it's the kind of petty, annoying stunt that confirms all the bad preconceptions about politicians.

Hen, in the couple of hours spent planning and carrying out that stunt you could have delivered a thousand leaflets.