OneGuyFromBarlick

Couldn't agree more David. How can anyone believe there is a place for 'traditions' like this in a modern world. It was always an artificial construct based on the belief that whoever was being venerated like this was imbued with Divine Right. I think even the queen would see that this is a nonsense so why continue with the practice? The truth is that it it is a hangover from the days when the only way the elite could retain power was by shock and awe. You had to convince the common people that you were to be feared and respected, either by veneration or fear.
I see very clear echoes of this in some of the ludicrous comments that came out of Parliament yesterday on Jeremy. His dress was criticised, sneering comments were made about his choice of tie. His attempt to democratise PMQs was sneered at as a gimmick. All this signals to me that they just don't get it. They can't understand what he is trying to do. I'm sure that in all this he remembers how Keir Hardie got exactly the same treatment when he entered the House. There is also an element of fear because in their heart of hearts even the Tories recognise that the House has to be modernised. The burden of custom and tradition is damaging our political processes, look at the flim flam surrounding a vote, it could be done far more efficiently using a simple touch pad. As for the House of Lords.... what a joke that is! I agree that a forum of elder statesmen and women is a good check on the Commons but how much better we could do this.
I'm watching the upcoming snap election in Greece. This is a bigger decision than the original swing to Syriza and the result is going to govern the status of Greece for the next fifty years at least. I hope they stick to their anti-inequality guns!
Interesting times!

Stanley wrote:His attempt to democratise PMQs was sneered at as a gimmick.

Which reminds me of the old joke, revamped to suit today’s situation.
The Delia Llama wishing to be nearer the ordinary people on his visit to London requested a boat trip on the Thames. Nothing ostentatious just a small rowing boat or something similar. On the day of his trip he was followed buy a flotilla of other boats full of dignitaries including the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. Unfortunately, a passing barge swamped the Delia’s boat and caused it to capsize with the Delia falling in the Thames. Immediately, Jeremy Corbyn stepped out of his boat, walked across the water, picked up his holiness and walked back to his boat and deposited him safely in the boat. The next morning’s headlines were, JEREMY CORBYN CAN’T SWIM.

Nice one P! And yes, that's what would happen.
I was thinking about the sneering remarks and attempts to denigrate Jeremy. These tactics are generally used by insecure bullies who see the world as a fight to maintain their personal superiority when they perceive a personal threat. This and the ever increasing tendency of politicians to avoid serious discussion and debate in order to protect their position, what we call 'spin' these days, leads me to wonder whether they lose sight of the fact that the most important aspect of a politician's job is to be a public servant and fight for the rights of constituents. The accepted route of Public School, Oxbridge, intern and then being parachuted in to office doesn't lay any emphasis on service, it's all about advancement. I may be looking at the world through rose coloured glasses but I don't see any of these traits in Corbyn. I don't get the impression that his critics have got this and so they automatically go into default mode, attack the man and not the ball.
When the Expenses Scandal was in full flow I speculated as to whether the tectonic plates of politics were showing signs of shifting. It's slow but I think we are beginning to see this from the popular vote across Europe against inequality backed by the new economic interpretations from men like Piketty and Stiglitz to the current birth pains of a new attitude in the Labour Party. I certainly hope so!

I see that JC has endorsed the renationalisation of the railways, Andy Burnham supported this as well and on the evidence of how the franchises have performed when taken in house during the hiatus between one franchise and another it's a good idea. Not as expensive as it sounds because in those cases where it has happened temporarily the level of subsidy from public funds in no higher, and in some cases less, than what was paid out to the franchisees. It would be done on a line by line basis as franchises expire.
I believe that this would be a good thing and would be welcomed by travellers. In the last days of the Major government rail privatisation was rushed through far too quickly in order to be more a political spoiler than a viable way of improving services. My only proviso is that the accountants must be kicked out of control of the rail authority and control given back to the engineers who actually understand the system.
No crowing about employment figure of late because unemployment is rising. This is a reflection of the difficulties facing manufacturing industry as it slows down under the influence of the global problems, falling commodity prices and of course the China syndrome. See THIS for a pressing immediate problem. SSI are shutting down 'temporarily' at their Redcar steel plant. Events Dear Boy. We are not insulated from the global economy and there are some serious problems, not least the melt down in the EU as 'unity' fails in the face of the enormous problem of refugees moving across the continent. This is not going to improve in the near future....

ILP Clarion House AGM this morning. Should be some good banter as well as a good brew at Ginny Lane this morning.

Saw a relevant little anecdote the other day. The Dalai Lama was visiting London and asked to go on a boat trip on the Thames. He was taken in a small rowing boat with a flotilla of dignitaries following him. Unfortunately the rowing boat sank and the Dalai Lama was drowning. Along came Jeremy Corbyn and walked across the water and saved the Dalai Lama 's life.
Headlines in the Tory press the following day "JEREMY CORBYN CAN'T SWIM " Nolic

The anecdote you read here 4 posts baxk Bolic ? :}

I think it's quite widespread Pluggy.
I know that some would look askance at my support for Alexis Tsipras and Syriza in Greece but it looks as though a majority of the Greek people agree with me. See This for a BBC report on the surprisingly good mandate the party has been given. The extreme Right wing party Golden Dawn trailed badly in the poll which is excellent. I still hold to my opinion that although attacked by the right and accused of being a left wing dinosaur Tsipras has played a very clever political game and had an impact on Europe as a whole.
There is a lesson here for those who are attacking Jeremy Corbyn on exactly the same grounds. Tsipras and his party correctly identified the national mood and the electorate have responded by supporting him. Be sure that this trend in Greece has been noted across Europe, the time may have come for serious political opposition to today's version of free market economic policies that endorse inequality and the political equivalent of chasing 'sound money' and the attack on the poorest as being the cause of our financial problems.
It is a good day, watch out now for reaction from the right....

Apologies for the double post. Couldn't for the life of me remember where I'd seen it. Its a good one though. Nolic

Looks like I should apologise for calling you "Bolic" Must have been a long day..........

In my defence N is next to B on the keyboard. (and x is next to c).

And I is next to O so it could have been a proper typo.

Shouldn't it be plural ?

I thought it was a case of late night "Up Spirits".

I've been watching the LibDem conference. The basic flaw with the Liberal Project is that by concentrating on what always looks like the average, the middle ground, they have great difficulty grabbing attention. Extremes are always more newsworthy and attractive. Despite this they are banging on about Labour vacating 'the middle ground' leaving it ripe for a takeover. Where exactly is this mythical middle ground today? I doubt if it exists. It used to be easy, the rich were Right, the poor were Left and in the centre we had 'the middle class, the natural recruiting ground for the Liberals. Today, many of what used to be the Middle Class are experiencing as much inequality in opportunity and income as the poor. If we are to believe the adverse effects of smarter computers, the clerks, secretaries and middle ranks of administration are facing extinction as the machines take over. They are entering the same territory that destroyed the low skilled labouring jobs. Traditionally these white collar occupations were the lower middle class but they are going to shrink.
As for Vince Cable.... I always wondered about his grasp on reality and his latest utterances about a new centre party and the flood of defectors from Labour coming across to the Liberals sounds barking mad to me. If this is the rescue party, don't hold your breath.
Historically, at the end of the 19th century the Liberals were the radical party and the Tories were for the status quo. The rise of organised Labour destroyed this foundation and that was the start of a long and painful decline. It would make more sense for the LibDems to move en masse to Labour!
The Noble Lord Ashcroft bursts back into the news by blowing a fuse. His unauthorised biography 'Call Me Dave' looks like revenge writing because he didn't get the government post he expected after bankrolling the Tories to the tune of £8million when they were out of favour. I always suspected that Ashcroft was not a nice man and while I hold no brief for Cameron this looks like a very nasty attack that says more about Ashcroft than Cameron. Mind you, the Tories have been sailing close to the wind for years with Ashcroft lured on by the money. This may be self-inflicted injury all round.
News that Saudi Arabia is to behead and crucify a young activist. Truly a different culture .

The commentators are almost unanimous in noting that Ossie in China is acting more and more like a Prime Minister in waiting..... (Theresa must be spitting feathers....) He's riding high at the moment on the evidence of the UK 'economic miracle.... He would do well to rein back a bit on this one, I suspect he is not going to look as smug in a couple of years....
For instance.... Have a look at THIS BBC report on the decision taken by EU Interior Ministers which will almost certainly be ratified today by the Commission. It sets out mandatory quotas for accepting refugees but four central European member countries are objecting. In response they have been threatened with possible holding back of EU subsidies. With an estimate of a further 2million refugees stacked up in Turkey, most of them en route to Europe, this is possibly the most important current problem facing the Project. What strikes me is that the ministers are acting like a federal authority but without a federal structure in place. This situation is exactly the same as the problem of regulating economic policy. Together they are a transfer of political and budgetary control to the Commission. This is an enormous problem and how it is resolved impinges directly on the UK and global economies. On the evidence available we are in for a very rocky and long drawn out ride. Ossie would do well to ponder long and hard on this.

One of the leading Republican Presidential candidates, BEN CARSON doesn't believe in evolution, climate change or the suitability of Muslims as candidates. I'm all for free speech but how such views can be honestly held baffles me completely.
The EU Commission announce they have 'agreement' on the refugee problem. Forgive me if I regard this as whistling in the dark. One thing the EU has proved to be expert at is the use of sticking plaster to hold the show together.
I took the trouble to look at some of the extracts from 'Call Me Dave'. Bottom of the barrel scraping in spades! Full of oblique allegations, mostly from one anonymous source but absolutely no evidence. As I said earlier, it says more about the Noble Lord than his target.... Isn't there a law against revenge porn?

On Ben Carson. Arguably more surprising than his odd views noted in that article is that he is recognised as one of (if not the) most brilliant neurosurgeons of his generation. One article I read concentrating on that aspect of his life noted that he had ‘revolutionised’ neurosurgery. Very odd.

Richard Broughton

That struck me as well Richard. One wonders sometimes about the veracity of politicians seeking office.... (Or am I an old cynic....?)
I was listening to a Hungarian politician on 'Hard Talk' on World service this morning. Not a lot of brotherly love among EU members there.....
I see the Noble Lord Mandelson is pouring his bile over Jeremy again. I wish he'd shut up and go away.....

We enter the Party Conference season, we've had the LibDems and at the moment it's the Greens and UKIP. what strikes me about them all is that the election of Jeremy Corbyn as Leader of the Labour party has stoked the natural tendency of conferences to be positive about future prospects. All of them seem to think that Jeremy is going to be such a disaster that a flood of disgruntled Labour Party voters will swell their ranks. This remains to be seen, the opposite could be true, Labour could suck in voters from all of them.
'This remains to be seen'. This is the crucial question.... What I am hoping to see is the Labour Conference getting behind Jeremy if for no better reason than to give him a chance. I think that the general track of his public statements so far is showing a move in the right direction. Of course, some of his policies will be modified by internal debate and hopefully, agreement. What we need at the moment is a conference of open minds. God knows the much vaunted move towards the mythical centre ground has been a disaster in electoral terms and one wonders what effect the criticisms of the old Labour Beasts has had. I suspect they have simply underlined their failure. I believe that the time has come for concentration on the desperate plight of the poorest and the growth of inequality. God knows the Tories are giving them enough targets. The latest policy to 'support the workers' is to abolish the free school meals for young pupils which was one of the successes of the Liberal participation in the late Coalition government. Echoes of 'Thatcher, milk snatcher'? Every area of social support is under attack. The affordable homes fiasco has been shown to be a failure and the latest statement 'One million affordable homes would be seen as success' is not a promise, it isn't even an aspiration, it's simply a statement of the bleeding obvious!
So, like many others I suspect, I watch and wait in the hopes that natural comradeship and common sense will prevail. Time to act like statesmen and women and not be driven by political ambition or personal gain. It's balancing on a knife edge.....

The Profile on BBC R4 this morning at 05:45 is on Lord Ashcroft.... I shall be listening. I'm looking forward to the Labour Party conference this week. I have a feeling some positions will have been agreed in smoke filled rooms... (Or is that banned now....)

Promising start to the Labour Conference, they have decided not to debate Trident.... Good call, any decisions on this should be taken quietly, away from media spotlights. It would be a gift to the Right wing press to revert to this old argument in public.
It looks as though there is a big rethink going on about Syria following Russia's moves. Hard to see what the outcome will be but at least they are talking to each other. Minds might be concentrated on the main problem, the rise of IS.
Have you noticed how reporting of he 'refugee crisis' in Europe has decreased? It's still there and the problems escalate but I suspect that they have realised that washing dirty linen in public is not productive.....
Later.... Listening to the reports of the conference I am struck by the way that the decision not to debate Trident is seen as 'defeat' for Jeremy. An alternative view is that this is evidence of an organisation taking rational decisions on priorities. I don't think that Jeremy will see it as defeat, just evidence that his approach of seeking wider consensus is working well. This is just as logical a view as the sneering approach of some commentators....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-34374349 Piketty and Stiglitz to advise Labour Party on the economy. Nolic

I would rather attack the tories on the logic of what they are doing and how it actually helps British Buisness - Steelworks in Redcar - no evidence for example. I'll think of more examples later. but the biggest is cutting things like working tax credit - no wonder retailers are suffering from less total revenue sales ( and the likes of Aldi might be good but their product ranges are limited at times ). I doubt I will see much revenue coming my way for planned christmas sales this year - with a target market of young families literally every penny is counting and increases in insurance premium tax and the rate of VAT at 20% is making quality products seem unaffordable .

I saw the Noble Lord Mandelson at the conference yesterday pouring scorn on Corbyn and all his works.... He is actively fomenting internal opposition to forward his failed Centrist policies. Spiteful, vindictive and divisive, I hate that attitude! In contrast John McDonnell made a thoughtful constructive speech which owes much to the new economic theories and makes perfect sense. He ended with an appeal to those who had refused office under Jeremy to rethink and come back into the fold to help. I know which approach appeals to me.... Whatever an individual thinks about the new direction it is not outrageous like the old far left takeover bids and so deserves a chance at least. The Mandelson approach is despicable.....
When I read Piketty and Stiglitz I said that this was a grenade tossed into economic thought. So it has proved to be and it's notable that there has been no serious counter-attack against the new theories because they are backed by deep research. There have been some quibbles over detail but the broad thrust cannot be seriously opposed. Asking them for guidance is another sensible move, these men are a deep well of experience and thought, they both have an impressive record.
I note with regret the 'moth-balling' of the Redcar steelworks. Re-commissioning a large steel plant like that is an enormous project and I think the chances of it happening are remote. I have no quarrel with the reasoning behind the closure, with China alone over-producing steel at a rate of 30 million tons a year and dumping it on the markets this was inevitable. Once again we see the market triumph over the opposing doctrine of supporting home capacity and embedded skills. The same process is going on in other areas like the building of new nuclear capacity and HS2 in the UK. At its most basic level this is Economic Imperialism and at the moment China is using this tactic world wide. Look at Africa......
"The commanding heights of the economy".
Later.... When John made his speech he warned it might be boring, no declamation and no jokes as these were hostages to fortune for the Right wing press. He needn't have bothered! The Sun this morning headlines his speech as 'Far Left'. If thoughtful common sense and use of evidence is 'Far Left', what does this say about 'Far Right'?

If you went to most of mainland Europe and started talking about a ‘far left’ Labour Party now under Mr Corbyn, they’d burst out laughing. It’s a measure of how for 50 years or so and more we’ve been so cowed by whipped-up fears of a leftist bogeyman. The far left in this country is insignificant, as thank goodness is the far right (in reality at the extremes the far right and left are two cheeks of the same backside). But whisper ‘far left’ and too many do have a tendency to come over all unecessary. I mean, we aren’t talking Italy’s Years of Lead here in old Blighty and we never have been.

Richard Broughton