Top Stories – 15th April 2009
Nationwide
Real IRA threaten new campaign on Britain
Appalling treatment of detainees laid bare
DNA pioneer: drop innocent from database
How Nordic countries celebrate young lives
International
Taleban leader risks his life to seek peace
North Korea ejects U.N. monitors
Somali pirates hijack 4 more ships
Germany bans genetically modified corn
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / coming later
Watch: Crazy TV host on Obama
Fox News’ newest star – Glenn Beck – in action. An interview with Daniel Hannan awaits, perhaps?
New footage of police brutality uncovered
Now, The Times has some incriminating footage:
The Metropolitan Police is examining new footage of alleged violence by a police officer at the G20 demonstrations earlier this month. Video material and still photographs appear to show an officer swiping at a woman with the back of his hand before drawing an extendable baton and striking her on the legs. Scotland Yard said the actions of the officer in the video raised “immediate concerns”. The Met said that it would identify the officer in the footage urgently and was “in the process of referring the incident to the IPCC”.
More at the BBC.
Update: The officer has now been suspended. (h/t Will)
And that would be the same IPCC that kept changing its story.
Mark Pack:
First the IPCC said CCTV footage relating to Ian Tomlinson being hit by police was given to them by Channel 4. Then the IPCC said actually there were no CCTV cameras covering the incident. Then the IPCC said actually, yes there were cameras but none of them were working. And today the IPCC brings us its fourth version: “The police watchdog has said its chairman [Nick Hardwick] was wrong to say there was no CCTV footage of an alleged police assault at the G20 protests”
So eventually the IPCC did turn up CCTV footage which wasn’t available for earlier some reason.
continue reading… »
Statebook: because knowledge is power
How much data is held about you by government? Who can get hold of it? What else do they want to know about? And what do we need to do to stop it?
There are a growing number of large government databases. You’re on them. You probably don’t know who might look at that information, how safe the data is or if the databases themselves might contravene your rights.
That’s why Open Rights Group has launched a new spoof Statebook tries to show, based on the JRRT / FIPR Database State report.
Above all though, we want you to act: the next big project, Intercept Modernisation (IMP), will be on the cards in the next few months, will further threaten your rights. IMP is about amassing even more of your communications data, and making it easier to access and analyse– possibly by placing the data in one enormous state database of your email traffic, phone calls, VIP and Facebook messages.
The tide is turning on civil liberties: across the political spectrum, people have had enough. Clause 152 showed enormous public concern, and the government backed down. Visit the site, and take a first step to stop more snooping on the internet by emailing your MP.
Poll: public against tax avoidance
A YouGov poll commissioned by the UK’s centre-left pressure group Compass has demonstrated overwhelming public support for the government to close in on personal tax avoidance which is estimated loses up to £15BN of public money each year.
The results reveal that 77% indicated they agree that the government should do everything it can to close this £15 billion gap lost through personal tax avoidance.
continue reading… »
Danson buys New Statesman
New Statesman have sent over this press release
Geoffrey Robinson MP is delighted to announce that Mike Danson, founder of Datamonitor, is the new owner of the New Statesman magazine.
continue reading… »
Top Stories & Blog Review Tuesday 14th April 2009
Nationwide
Advisers to be sacked for personal attacks
Teachers demand 10 per cent pay rise
Academics to boycott new student immigration rules
A whistleblowers’ helpline for City fraudsters
International
Two die in clashes as troops besiege Bangkok
Rabbi-in-chief: Obama’s Jewish connection
Yade: The political star who’s eclipsing Sarko
Pakistan agrees to sharia law in Swat Valley
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Jennie Rigg
Sorry, sorry, sorry, I know the netcast is late, but LOOK! I has a Dreamwidth! Lookit their Diversity Statement! This is a proper blog platform for Liberals! It’s all open and transparent and does all the cool things LJ does and WordPress does with none of the pains in the butt!
* cough *
Sorry. Bit excited. Will cast net now. Sorry.
Chicky Yog points out some of the things that are being covered up by the MSM hysteria over some pointless emails. Still, who cares about protesters getting arrested or war inquiries when there’s Westminster tittle-tattle to obsess over…
The World is My Country on China’s interaction with Africa and how it affects us all.
Gneil, Charlie Stross, and our very own Sarah have good posts on amazonfail.
LavenderSparkle has a fantastic post on the politics of the hijab (and other head-coverings for women).
Richard Herring reviews The Boat That Rocked in somewhat caustic terms.
The Lay Scientist points out a stunning bit of Daily Fail hypocrisy and double standards.
And if you’re in the mood for feeling some feminist rage, you can read Crimitism‘s long and detailed review of all the fail in The Nice Guy webcomic, or you can browse through previous Netcasts
Does Iain Dale know much about blogs?
A couple of days ago Tory blogger Iain Dale wrote an article for the Sunday Telegraph which repeated the same meme that left-wing blogs are boring and right-wing blogs is where the impact and numbers are at.
Usually I let it go because it seems to be a psychological condition amongst right-wingers that they have to continually pat themselves on the back in fear of looking inadequate. As the latest amusing example, here’s Daniel Hannan MEP desperately pleading to be let into the club. I don’t even have the heart to give him a primer about blog ‘hits’ versus ‘absolute unique users’. Anyway, Iain Dale said:
Over the last few years, Right-of-centre blogs such as my own (Iain Dale’s Diary), Guido Fawkes, ConservativeHome, Dizzy Thinks, Nadine Dorries MP, Donal Blaney, Devil’s Kitchen and John Redwood’s Diary have come into their own. Several are now read by more than 100,000 individuals every month.
…
Bloggers like me, Tim Montgomerie of ConservativeHome and Guido Fawkes have become part of the media punditry circuit. But on the Left-of-centre, tumbleweed still blows around the blogosphere.
Gotta love the ‘media punditry circuit’ quote. But tumbleweed, really?
continue reading… »
Top Stories – 14th April 2009
Nationwide
Advisers to be sacked for personal attacks
Teachers demand 10 per cent pay rise
Academics to boycott new student immigration rules
A whistleblowers’ helpline for City fraudsters
International
Two die in clashes as troops besiege Bangkok
Rabbi-in-chief: Obama’s Jewish connection
Yade: The political star who’s eclipsing Sarko
Pakistan agrees to sharia law in Swat Valley
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / coming later
‘Smear-gate’ has no impact on seats
Mike Smithson on Political Betting:
However much excitement there has been over the past four days it’s perhaps worth reminding ourselves that “Smear-gate”, or whatever you want to call it, has failed to persuade the serious political punters who play the spread markets to pile onto the Tories or to sell Labour seats.
Oh dear.
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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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