Archive for September, 2008
David Cameron A Year On…
September 7th, 2008 | 
Author: 
There will always be people who will ‘knock’ David Cameron because they do, whether because they are socialists who are appalled at his increased stature coinciding with the diminution of Gordon Brown’s or hard right people like Simon Heffer for whom he can never do anything “Right Wing” enough for them.
However, the most interesting thing about David Cameron is the fact that he “learns” which might well mean that he is listening to people beyond his immediate support team. If he can continue to do this and learn to live “outside of the Westminster bubble” as a personal objective, he could prove to be one of Britain’s most significant post WWII Prime Ministers in due course.
Posted in Politics | 
Tags: A United Kingdom, British Interests, Parliamentary Reform, Politicians, The European Union | 
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Technology has, No Value Beyond Immediate Use
I have a Friend who was born in the same year as me, 1945 and rather oddly on the very same day in October as my elder brother Michael who died in New York in the late 1970s and was born in 1943. My friend Alan and I met at Primary School and over 50 years later are still mates through thick and thin.
Anyway, earlier on this year he bought an iPhone and passed me his rather nice Nokia N73 he had been using which was fine except, I warned him that I might pass it on to one of my Sons because it was far more sophisticated than my current PAYGo usage or indeed, requirements. However, I suspected that he rather wanted me to have it and in due course I found someone to whom I could pass on my rather nice but simple Nokia I had bought in January to replace my 5 year old phone.
The Next POTUS ?
Of course as a British citizen, I don’t get a vote in November on who will be the next President of the United States but and this is true, I placed a mental bet last January that it would be John McCain and there was a pretty big field then in both camps. To me he seemed the only viable candidate but let’s leave it down to the American electorate, they will decide. Although Sarah Palin is a ‘big political risk’ in some ways, choosing her for VP may prove to be a “master stroke” if they make it to the Oval Office.
Charles Clarke Winds Up Labour
I have always felt that Charles Clarke was rather unconvincing as a “political big beast”, big maybe but not in the political sense. However in what he is saying from a Labour Party perspective is broadly speaking correct, the train will very definitely hit the buffers hard at the next election and a wipe out that sees them reduced to third party status and being replaced by the LibDems as the main Opposition Party, is a very real possibility.
Forced Marriages or a Total Disengagement from British Society ?
Something in the Telegraph yesterday caught my eye and I mailed in a couple of comments but the starting point was the story concerning the Labour MP for Keighley, Ann Cryer who is going to step down at the next General Election. As the DT said:
“She has been a doughty campaigner on behalf of those young women in her constituency, usually of Pakistani background, who have been forced into marriage. Her brave stand has brought her into conflict with leaders of the Muslim community in her constituency. Partly as a result of these pressures – and, no doubt, the emotional scars caused by the premature deaths of two husbands – Mrs Cryer has decided to call it a day.”