On:
In: Jim Lynch

And having writ moves on, nor all thy piety nor wit, shall lure it back to cancel half a line nor all thy tears wash out a word of it. Fitting way to start with the opening lines from the Rubiyat of Omar Kayyam by Edward Fitzgerald, although as usual I only remembered a fragment of it and had to consult The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Quotations – must choose something simpler next time.  Anyway the fingers of history are moving rapidly onward and we are not getting enough time to work out what is happening. Latest on Sunday of this week Mrs May isRead More →

On:
In: Stephen Bird

Over the years, there have been a number of things which have symbolised Britain’s self-perception. Things like the famous capacity to pull together when things get rough, the muddle through compromises, the willingness to put the country first. Yet all of these are falling apart in the pursuit of victory in the Tory civil war over Europe. A civil war which is now engulfing the entire English political system. With the utter contempt with which most people now view their supposed “representatives“ in the Commons. Far from “taking back control” of their laws the MPs seem hell bent on refusing to accept control because ofRead More →

On:
In: Uncategorized

It is often said that people get the leadership they deserve. If so, it’s hard to imagine just what the membership of the Labour Party have done to deserve this lot. For the last year or so Labour have sought to hide their differences over Brexit behind claims that what they want is a General Election. Yet now, when the Government are floundering hopelessly does he go for the jugular? No! Instead Craven Corbyn plays socialist debating society games. Instead of leading the charge to get rid of this shambolic tory government, he and Labour’s Shadow Cabinet table a motion of No Confidence not inRead More →

On:
In: Maureen Forbes

I often comment or complain about BBC Question Time and the concerning feeling that it arises in me where I feel as if I need to throw something at the TV. As we recently bought a new one, the temptation has lessened somewhat even though it cost 1/10 of the 12 year old “media system”that came with the house when we moved in. How on earth does that even work? Technology prices continue to fall whilst standards raise yet basic essential food and household requirements get ever more expensive but decrease in size. Definitely a conundrum for Lewis Carroll. It is rare that I watchRead More →

On:
In: Grant Thoms

It’s not long ago that a Leader column in the Scots Independent talked about Theresa May as akin to Harry Houdini. No matter how much she got tied in knots and chains, she somehow wriggles out. The last few weeks are a case in point. Just as commentators and opponents (both within the Conservatives and outwith) were predicting she would be out the door of Number 10 by Christmas, so the departure point was postponed to the first vote on her Deal. Well that has come and gone. Despite the biggest Commons defeat on any topic by a post-War government, Mrs May has arisen toRead More →