Snapping coppers
Yet another one for the government’s ‘helping ourselves to your liberties’ file:
The British Journal of Photography reports that from February 16, the thrill that is photographing coppers acting like arses will be taken from us by new laws ‘that allow for the arrest – and imprisonment – of anyone who takes pictures of officers ‘likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism’.’
The BJP continues:
‘A person found guilty of this offence could be liable to imprisonment for up to 10 years, and to a fine.
‘The law is expected to increase the anti terrorism powers used today by police officers to stop photographers, including press photographers, from taking pictures in public places. continue reading… »
“You can fly to Holland”
I’ve watched this debate on the Geert Wilders farce twice now and I still can’t decide whether Keith Vaz was so ill-prepared for it that he completely self-destructed, or whether he was just obliterated by the other members of the panel. Either way, his performance in trying to defend the government’s decision is pretty pathetic:
Event: Fighting Poverty & Inequality in an Age of Affluence
Saturday, 21 February. 100 years on from the Minority Report, Lord Roy Hattersley will lead a Fabian Society and Webb Memorial Trust conference to celebrate the life and work of early Fabian pioneer Beatrice Webb. The event aims to contribute to a contemporary debate on the strategy for fighting poverty and inequality in today’s Britain.
continue reading… »
Call on The Sun to support social workers
Following the conclusion of the trial of the carers of Baby P, The Sun led a major campaign against the social workers who worked with the child.
In an open letter to the newspaper, Community Care magazine’s Daniel Lombard asks its editor, Rebekah Wade, to rethink its agenda on social work issues, which could ultimately damage child protection efforts and children’s social work overall.
continue reading… »
Top Stories and Blog Review Sunday 15th Feb 2009
Nationwide
Labour suffer a defection.
Blame Brown: Revenge of the Whistleblower.
Richard Dawkins on Charles Darwin.
Pretentious arse pontificates about blogging then picks his top 100 (don’t read his five politics picks unless you want steam to come out of your ears, although he does feature Chris Dillow elsewhere)
International
Global Warming may be much worse than we fear.
Mugabe has bought a secret house in Hong Kong.
Michael Jackson is flogging off his crap.
Scientists Agree: It’s in His Kiss.
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Jennie Rigg
President Baroness Ros Scott does the 25 things meme and it’s actually INTERESTING (although not as knicker-wettingly hilarious as Empress Jessica’s version); requisite Lib Dem prowess on the Wii and Doctor Who geekery is evident.
The Award-winning Alix Mortimer feels terribly sorry for Manchester, cradle of the Labour party’s social experimentation.
Mr Quist has a cunning plan for Lib Dem recruitment (which would probably work for the other parties too)
Lynne Featherstone is wondering where all her suitors are, given that she’s second only to Andy Burnham in the sexy politician stakes.
Norfolk Blogger has the knives out for poor old Lembit.
Jonathan Calder has an interesting tale of the consequences of privatising justice.
The Hedgehog From Hell has goatse’d the Daily Fail. Serves the buggers right, I say.
And finally, if you just can’t get enough linky goodness, follow the well-trodden path to Septicisle.
The rationality of Valentine’s Day
Paul Walker says Valentines day is irrational. Giving a woman money, he says, is Pareto-superior to dinner and flowers.
Now, I’m not famed for understanding women. But my hunch is that a man who says: “I can’t be bothered with that Vally day bull. Here’s a £100 – get yourself another pair of shoes,” will not be getting any action for a while.
Giving women what they want is rational. Some women want romantic gestures. And this demand can be rational, especially for a woman who is looking for commitment. I say this for four reasons:
continue reading… »
Fourth Carnival on Modern Liberty
Jennie Rigg is hosting the fourth Carnival on Modern Liberty – a weekly roundup of civil liberties related blog posts across the UK. Next week the Carnival will be hosted by Matt Wardman; you can submit your links from this page.
Who’ll be Labour’s next leader?
Mike Smithson asks if Ed Balls might be the next Labour leader. No, is the short answer. To my mind I can only see one vaguely credible candidate: Ed Miliband. If anyone even thinks of James Purnell they should shoot themselves in disgust. Or I’m sure Laurie Penny would be willing to do it.
Social Liberal Forum launches
A group of Libdem party activists, including myself, have launched the Social Liberal Forum. The SLF wants to help contribute to debate in the party about how the mainstream social liberal traditions and values of the party should be applied to the huge challenges facing British society and the world.
We believe the Liberal Democrats must continue “to be the party that guarantees strong public services and tackles inequality in a way that the Tories would never contemplate.”
continue reading… »
The Tories want ‘freedom’ for pay-cuts
The danger of twelve years of New Labour in power is that it’s easy to forget the Tories’ true nature. It’s in the interest of every single person in and out of work that the true substance of the Conservative party remains visible to all.
For evidence, look no further than Christopher Chope, Tory MP for Christchurch, Dorset. When the minimum wage was brought in in 1999, Chope almost had a seizure. The idea that the weakest members of society could be paid a touch more really didn’t agree with him. In the Commons, he barked that it would have “a massive impact on small enterprises”, in line with his party’s view that the minimum wage would quickly cause an economic collapse.
Which is why, in the face of overwhelming evidence, David Cameron was later forced to admit that the opponents of the minimum wage were wrong. But that doesn’t mean the old Tory instincts were kept at bay. Of course they would be daft to openly campaign to scrap the minimum wage as they wouldn’t want to be seen as the party in favour of a pay cut to millions of workers in Britain. So, with the crisis as the perfect platform to attack workers’ rights, they’re now trying a sneakier, more bizarre approach.
continue reading… »
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» Revealed: govt to restrict abortion counselling despite Nadine Dorries vote
» Would raising the tax threshold actually help the poorest?
» To win London, Ken Livingstone has to step outside his comfort zone
» This trade agreement with India will destroy thousands of lives
» UK debt hasn’t hit £1 trillion – mostly because of QE
» The benefits of being a “burden” on society
» Today’s economic figures will simply confirm UK’s “lost decade”
» Have Labour realised the election is more than three years away?
» Violence in the office
» Want a more responsible capitalism? Reform how pensions work
» The world is entering the third phase of the crisis, warns ILO
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