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Clare Short aims for proportional representation

Posted on September 15, 2006 by Tim Ireland

The Daily – Exclusive: Clare Short to step down amid controversy (Sep 11): In a controversial speech to an academic symposium this afternoon, she said that she wanted to be free to advocate a hung parliament so that the Lib Dems could “do a deal” to ensure PR. She did not specify that the deal would be with Labour, and pointedly noted that “PR is now in the objective interests of the Conservatives”. She expected to see “the Labour Party crumble as the Tories did [in 1997]” but a social democratic party to rise from the ashes.

BBC – Clare Short resignation letter in full (Sep 12)

Independent – Clare Short: I’m standing down so I can speak the truth (Sep 14): The Labour Party has lost its way, our constitutional arrangements are broken and the gap between the political elite and the country grows ever wider… Stay and fight, some argue. But there is no discussion of policy any more. The challenge to Blair and discussions of a new leadership are confined to personalities and all commit to continue the Blair errors. My conclusion is that the key to the change we need is a hung parliament which will bring in electoral reform. Then we would have a second election. Labour – with existing levels of support – would have one-third of the seats in the Commons, the Tories something similar, and we would be likely to see some Greens and others added, creating a plurality of voices and power centres in the Commons. British politics would then change profoundly. Parliament, and in turn the people, would have to be listened to, Cabinet government would return, the error-prone arrogance of Number 10 would end, and we would have a chance of creating a new politics, a more civilised country and a more honourable role in the world.

Independent – Short faces expulsion from Labour Party (Sep 15): The Chief Whip, Jacqui Smith, announced yesterday that she is lodging a complaint with Labour’s national executive, arguing that Ms Short has broken a rule which bars any party member from encouraging electors to vote against a Labour candidate. “We have had calls coming in from MPs all day about this, and people are very angry,” a party source said. “Jacqui has written to Clare twice before about her interesting thoughts that her parliamentary colleagues should be defeated. Previously we tried to arrange a meeting with four or five of the most marginal MPs who wanted to talk to her about it, but she refused.”

Independent – Arrogance and insecurity (Sep 15): In lambasting Ms Short, Ms Smith and the Parliamentary Labour Party are only revealing their own insecurity and guaranteeing greater publicity for her views.

I’ll second that… and add this:

Listen to Teh Boobs! With the subtle use of the phrase “interesting thoughts” – New Labour has yet again shown its uglier side, with the repeated suggestions that those who oppose Blair only do so because they are mentally challenged and/or unbalanced.

The Scum have an even more … erm… interesting viewpoint….

It would appear that everything that Clare Short says can be ignored because she’s not attractive (so it goes without saying that – for informed comment – one should turn to Page 3):

Today Keeley (19, from Kent) is “over the moon” that MP Clare Short is ‘on the way out’ and says; “Page 3 girls and the fans will be glad to see the back of her – mind you, who’d want to see the front of her.”

(For the record, I currently disagree with Clare Short on the subject of boobies in ‘news’ papers and think that Page 3 should stay exactly where it is… on the condition that The Sun takes its rightful place on the top shelf as a result.)

Blair Watch – Clare Short – Too Little and Too Late: I’ve said it before but Labour Party members remind me of battered wives, clinging on to a distant past, swearing that they can change things and making excuses for the abuse.

I’d also agree with that. All of the True Believers who can’t resist a dig at Clare Short’s Iraq two-step will one day have to do a two-step of their own when they are forced to protect their seat by declaring to the world that they had been lied to. Why, if only they had been told the truth…

Why, if only they had been paying attention, more like.

These same people even have the audacity to proclaim that Clare Short doesn’t stand for ‘Labour values’.

Do torture and murder count as Labour values? I don’t think so…. that’s why I spend so much time going for Blair’s throat.

But the blame can’t be put entirely upon Blair; there’s also the corrupting influence of power to deal with… one very good reason to begin a serious debate about proportional representation.

Posted in Tony 'King Blair | Comments Off

Only a vote for the Republicans can save you from the terrorists

Posted on September 13, 2006 by Tim Ireland

BSSC – A War on the “War”: It was widely expected that President Bush would not use the anniversary of September 11th to make a controversial or politically motivated partisan statement but last night that is exactly what he did. The willingness of the Bush administration to manipulate the deaths of 3,000 people for their own purposes apparently knows no bounds. It really is a sickening spectacle.

Agreed.

We’ll want to watch the mid-terms very carefully… if the Democrats look like making significant gains, Bush could very well choose to undermine our security in order to gain a few votes for the Republicans (if he hasn’t done so already).

Also, Bush and Blair are equally guilty of repeated claims that they must stand firm in Iraq to protect the Iraqis from the threat of terrorism… that they themselves brought to that country!

Bush is the worst offender on this front; in one breath he will repeat the lie that Iraq was invaded to protect the Iraqi people and in the next he will proudly proclaim that Iraq has become the central front of the ‘war’ on terror (thus keeping it away from U.S. shores).

So what’s it to be, George? Did you seek to save the Iraqis or did you seek to put them in harm’s way in order to keep Al Qaeda out of the shopping malls of America?

UPDATE – Well said, that man! (transcript)

Posted in George W. Bush | 1 Comment

Sexy Ami calls for unity

Posted on September 13, 2006 by Tim Ireland

Boobs! Unity! Boobs! What better way to achieve unity than to launch an attack?

Ignore the almost uniquely positive view of Blair’s performance at the TUC conference (and Blair – again – attempting to claim the moral high ground by climbing to the top of the mountain of bodies he has created).

Instead, simply note how closely Blair’s stance matches that of the editorial, and the ‘opinion’ of the girl who appears on Page 3 with her jugs out.

Also note the poisonous attacks against ‘lefties’ who – we are assured – are wholly responsible for repeated attempts to undermine the Labour Party and will no doubt hand power back to the Conservatives if allowed to continue their rampage unchecked.

Tony Blair:

“You are entitled to do this. But you must realise those who are hostile to a Labour government and everything we want to achieve, you are doing precisely what they want. Not very sensible.”

Tony Blair:

“And now we have had three terms of Labour government for the first time ever in 100 years of trying. And every year I’ve come to the TUC as prime minister. But remember the 18 years before, when you never had sight nor sound of a prime minister. For 18 years, you were addressed by the leader of the opposition. The problem with that title is that it’s true to what it says on the tin: the leader opposes. The leader doesn’t do, because he has no power to do anything. However difficult it is, however fraught our relations from time to time, make no mistake: I want the TUC to carry on being addressed by a Labour PM, not go back to being addressed by the leader of the opposition.”

Rebekah Wade:

“What an irrelevance unions have become. The orchestrated walkout by placard-waving hardliners as Tony Blair spoke to the TUC was petulant and stupid. As well as downright disrespectful to the man who, no thanks to them, got their once unelectable party into power after 18 years in opposition. These deluded dinosaurs think that by childishly hollering “troops out” at the PM they speak for us all. They should remember this: Blair was re-elected by the British people just 16 months ago, despite all the flak he was taking over Iraq. If it wasn’t for him the TUC would play host each year to the leader of a permanent opposition. How conveniently these fools forget the enormous changes Blair brought about for their members – and which the TUC should unreservedly applaud: economic stability, more people in work and a minimum wage. Instead Bob Crow thinks it is somehow within his remit to accuse Blair of killing thousands of British servicemen. Meanwhile the TGWU’s Tony Woodley naively expects the Prime Minister to publicly apologise to the TUC for the Iraq war. What planet are they on? OK, so they opposed the Iraq invasion. But surely they and their members should now welcome the new democracies – and union rights – in place there and in Afghanistan. Gordon Brown did well to stand firmly behind his boss and publicly condemn the protests. That’s the kind of outspokenness The Sun demanded of him if he’s to look like a PM-in-waiting. We look forward to more of it at the party conference this month. Blair rightly pointed out with some anger that the turmoil union hardliners seem set on causing within Labour plays into Tory hands. But you wonder if they don’t feel more at home yelling slogans from the opposition trenches anyway. The Bob Crows of this world won’t be happy until Labour is back in the hands of the 1970s-style Lefties voters no longer tolerate. Many Sun readers are in unions. They want and deserve a modern, progressive movement which is in touch with 2006, not this backwards-looking rabble. What a breath of fresh air that would be. How delighted Blair must now be to have given his last TUC speech. Yesterday’s troublemakers were in a minority. But the rest were too timid to send him off with anything but a 23-second ripple of applause. It was a disgracefully lacklustre farewell for a Labour Prime Minister of nearly ten years’ standing. Union membership is collapsing, and no wonder. In another few years they’ll struggle to fill a conference hall.”

Sexy Ami (who was sad to see Tony Blair booed at yesterday’s TUC conference):

“Delegates were daft to jeer and walk out when Blair was speaking. I’m just glad that Gordon Brown backed Blair on this occasion”

On this occasion. Aren’t you glad we live in times when glamour models can have their words so carefully chosen for them?

UPDATE (14 Sep) – OK, folks… it’s all over. Move along… nothing to see here!

Zoe (24, from London) is relieved that Tony Blair and Gordon Brown have finally ended their rift. She says: “Hopefully they can get on with running the country and end all the bad blood. I think the whole bust-up didn’t do them – or Labour – any favours.”

Zoe speaks the truth!

Posted in Page 3 - News in Briefs, Tony 'King Blair | 5 Comments

Dipsticks on parade

Posted on September 13, 2006 by Tim Ireland

Remember to never ever stand up for what you believe in, kids. The costs are too great! The blows are too crippling!

(cough)

Dennis Paul

Just under a month after ‘quitting’ his weblog, Dennis Paul has deleted the entry about his decision to quit and brought his weblog back to life (but not before deleting the link to it from his main website). He began quietly enough by doing his bit for local law enforcement officers before swiftly returning to form with this post where – under a number of hilarious pseudonyms, he carries on yet another lively conversation with himself that includes this subtle jibe: Pinnochio said… Wow! If I drink in the bar at 16, do I become a real boy? Or maybe even a man, like Chris!!

I don’t see what this can be other than an ‘innocent’ reference to the smears about Chris Ward published by Mike Chambers and propagated with the help of Dennis Paul.

He then follows with an entry that’s clearly designed to get up my nose. My ire isn’t raised, but my curiosity is… as this flurry of activity just happens to coincide with:

1. A renewed attempt to ‘bring balance’ to Anne Milton’s Wikipedia entry, the highlight of which is this edit.

2. Renewed publication of comments at the weblog that smears Chris Ward, including yet another attempt to pass off a comment about it being OK to have sex with kids as one of mine.

Charming… to the last.

Gareth Davies

What is it with this guy? Is he totally unable to conduct a straight debate? I’m going to pester you to take a fresh look at this:

“I have no need to defend David’s online activities. I don’t intend to. But Bloggerheads don’t seem to comprehend that if activists talk to each other, or get involved in activities they might regret, it’s not evidence of a conspiracy. It’s evidence of a passion for politics, for the business of ensuring that the party that represents your views wins. Sometimes supporters go too far. I think David has in this case. But it’s hilarious to read one of Blogggerhead’s anonymous ccommenters demanding that David put his name on the websites he publishes, when Bloggerheads went to town on me as a Labour stooge for suggesting much the same thing about the Backing Blair website.”

There wasn’t a single anonymous comment on Bloggerheads demanding that David Taylor put his name on the websites he publishes… Gareth made it up to support his ‘point’.

He’s also made a misleading suggestion about my being ‘anonymous’… something he does with baffling regularity (his most recent effort; referring to me here as “the anonymous Manic of Bloggerheads”).

The Backing Blair site was launched publicly, here at Bloggerheads and prominent links to myself (and others responsible for Backing Blair) appeared on every main page of the site.

While Gareth Davies, on the other hand, took a ‘moral’ standpoint against the Backing Blair website without declaring that he was employed by the Labour Party in a regional party call-centre.

I initially gave Gareth a few days to realise what he had linked to, but now I think he’s known all along and doesn’t care. During his purely moral objection to Backing Blair, he said this:

“The odd mix of ultra lefties, half baked trots and dilettantes behind the BackingBlair campaign seem to have got their underwear in an uproar over the faintest of suggestions that people who campaign for a particular electoral outcome on the Internet should be forced to play by the same rules as political parties. It’s not about censorship, or totalitarianism. It’s about having open accountable elections. That means knowing who’s placing adverts and running campaigns, and who’s paying for them. All I ask is that if a site wants to campaign for a particular vote at an election, or against a political vote,it should have a declaration of who publishes it, on whose behalf, who pays the bills, and that it should be a criminal offence to make false statements about who the publisher is, and about the source of the money to pay the bills. Now, that’s not complicated is it?

Well, yes, it *can* get complicated sometimes… especially when councillors who don’t declare their formal role with the Labour Party campaign team continually make false allegations about independent campaigners in an effort to undermine them.

Posted in The Political Weblog Movement | Comments Off

David Taylor: well and truly rumbled

Posted on September 11, 2006 by Tim Ireland

Take a look at this (spotted by Dizzy):

Domain name: johnson4leader.co.uk
Registrant: David Taylor
Registered on: 05-Sep-2006

Domain name: johnson4leader.org.uk
Registrant: David Taylor
Registered on: 05-Sep-2006

Domain name: johnson4leader.com
Registrant: David Taylor
Registered on: 05-Sep-2006

Domain name: johnson4leader.org
Registrant: David Taylor
Registered on: 05-Sep-2006

Look at the dates; before there was an alleged plot by Brownites to depose Blair, there was an actual plot by Blairites to undermine the Chancellor and push Alan Johnson as the next PM!

In the last hour, Taylor has started redirecting these domains to the home page of U.S. Senator Tim Johnson in a pathetic attempt to throw people off the scent. But he – and Blair – are totally busted. So much for calls for unity.

UPDATE – At the same as he registered these domain names, David Taylor also registered alanjohnson.info, davecameron.org.uk, gordonbrown.org (which you’re already familiar with), and thelabourparty.net, *plus* the following back-ups for an existing project, just so no-one could hijack him, I suppose: transpero.org.uk, transpero.info, transpero.org, transpero.co.uk (why, it’s almost as if David had a little bit of cash lying around and thought ‘what the hell’…)

UPDATE – Now David Taylor’s trying his puppy-dog act on Dizzy.

IMHO, David should abandon his dream of becoming the next Alastair Campbell; Ali-C doesn’t care who thinks he’s a bastard, and is just a little bit better at covering his tracks on covert operations.

Posted in Tony 'King Blair | 1 Comment

5 years

Posted on September 11, 2006 by Tim Ireland

What can I say when this already says it for me? Boy, it’s a good thing that the terrists haven’t changed our way of life, isn’t it?

(Link via Scaryduck. More on New Labour charmers later today or perhaps tomorrow. A mystery virus is raging through the house right now and I have buckets to clean.)

Posted in The War on Stupid | 1 Comment

Tell the world what you stand for

Posted on September 9, 2006 by Tim Ireland

For Queen and Country: Tonight’s example of New Labour Delusion comes from the website Keeping the Faith. This is a pro-Blair website set up to support the beleaguered Tony Blair. It has a list of 50 achievements during his time in office… Anyway, the one that has really offended me, is this gem, according to the site, one of Blair’s top achievements is – 16. Banned anti-personnel mines – If just one of those Blair supporting goons can tell me what sweet fuck all good that does when Cluster Bombs are being dropped like confetti in Iraq, Afghanistan and by the Israelis in Lebanon (thanks to our government for letting them pass through our airports), then I’ll personally vote New Labour at the next election.

And napalm, Daz. You forgot to mention napalm.

PS – Remember Gareth Davies? He’s chipped in with this little effort to help David Taylor achieve the status of hapless victim and – 18 months after our original exchange – he *still* hasn’t managed/bothered to answer this question: “Do you support detention without trial based on intelligence gained through torture?”

UPDATE (11 Sep) – Sounds like a ‘yes’ to me.

Posted in It's War! It's Legal! It's Lovely!, The Political Weblog Movement, Tony 'King Blair | 1 Comment

David Taylor Vs. Clare Short

Posted on September 8, 2006 by Tim Ireland

Whoops… I missed one! Let’s begin with two links for beginners…

Bloggerheads – David Taylor is a busy man (and a new media genius)
Bloggerheads – Keeping The Faith: more on David Taylor

… and the now-customary email exchange:

Tim Ireland: David, It would appear that you’ve been up to a great many dirty tricks online. During these activities, you appear to have been extremely personal, very hostile, and largely anonymous. Don’t you think it’s a bit rich accusing me of hostility for making you slightly less anonymous?

David Taylor: I have not been behind dirty tricks campaigns on the internet! If you have examples, I would like to see them.

Fair enough. He did ask, after all….

After Clare Short resigned from Blair’s cabinet (in her 2003 two-step), David Taylor purchased the domain name shortchange.org.uk and – showing that he hasn’t learned a heck of a lot in the past few years – used a framed-redirect on that domain to pages hosted at http://shortchange.smallplanet.co.uk/

You can see an archive of one of the relevant pages here.

If you poke around, you’ll notice that David continually (and ever-so-tactfully) used the word ‘confused’ instead of ‘unbalanced’ (an ongoing brief against Short that came from many Blair supporters).

On your travels, you may also notice that his name did not appear on the website and – in another familiar twist – he insisted that “SHORTCHANGE is not affiliated to any political organisation.”

But…

As you can see from this Birmingham discussion board witnesses at the time watched him being unpleasantly outed on Midlands Today (15th April 2004):

There has been an online campaign to oust Clair.
Tonights Midlands Today exposed the 18 year old fat wanker behind it and confronted the lard arsed shit in his Welsh home. Typical Young Tory (in fact New Labour, but whats the difference).
I thought we should wreck his site.
http://shortchange.smallplanet.co.uk/
But like the cowardly little turd he is he has taken the site down now he has been exposed.
Well done Mids Today!

(Oi! Now *that*, ladies and gentlemen, is personal and hostile.)

You can see the ‘removed’ version of the site archived here and you can also see David Taylor bringing a new version online here in 2005 (after the fuss had died down, natch).

11 days after the exposé by Midlands Today, this article appeared:

icNorthWales – The boy who took on Clare Short: A North Wales teenager has been revealed as the mastermind behind a controversial website set up to undermine Labour rebel Clare Short. But David Taylor from Llanfihangel, near Ruthin, stressed he never meant to cause any harm or offence to the former Minister, and said that it all started off as a bit of a joke… An intriguing list of people were blamed for setting up the site, from political opponents to an inside dirty tricks campaign… But it turned out to be the work of 18-year-old David, a New Labour supporter who was furious at Miss Short’s actions. David, who is studying politics, business and economics at Yale College in Wrexham, said the protest started off as a joke, a bit of political satire. It was not planned to achieve anything and he said that he certainly did not set out to cause any offence.

Again, we’ve hit familiar territory; denials that are plausible if viewed from a great distance, and those irresistible puppy-dog eyes.

But look at this page and tell me if you think it classifies as ‘satire’…

Read the petition and tell me that it “was not planned to achieve anything”…

It should also be pointed out that – although David Taylor claimed that the site “attracted almost 60,000 visits in four weeks and was inundated with e-mail messages from voters” – the petition attracted a grand total of 159 signatures.

Again, we’re in very familiar territory:

The Register – Galaxy of saboteurs trashes ‘Save the Blair’ petition: As of Friday morning the revived keepingthefaith.org.uk listed a scant 80 named signatories, but claimed to have more than 4,000 supporters, and, weirdly, that “we have a lot of data entry left to do.”

Pfft!

(I can laugh, because I know what it feels like to be the worst player on a losing team.)

So, what are we left with?

Well, even if the Clare Short attack site was just an independent audition-piece, this gifted youngster has since been employed and deployed by New Labour on a formal/regular basis… and not a lot has changed in his style, behaviour or delivery. Oh, *and* David hasn’t been entirely forthcoming with the truth.

All of that makes me very suspicious of any claim that the Keeping The Faith website is an independent venture.

OK, folks… that’s the halftime whistle. Dave has failed to win me over with earnest pleas of innocence, and he has also discovered that it is *never* a good idea to suggest to me that I’m ‘wasting my time’ looking into this or that.

Right now I’m thinking of having a much closer look at his alleged role in the Walter Wolfgang affair. Hell, if it’s true, the boy would pass into LEGEND!

I wonder if good ol’ Walter would be willing and able to ID him?

(Psst! Normally, this is the part where the wounded party seeks to soothe that hot feeling on the back of their neck by deciding to have a go at me. Or, David could amaze us all by coming clean on his wicked past and swearing to always tread the path of light in future…. erm, but he’d have to come clean on his wicked past before I’d believe him.)

Posted in Tony 'King Blair | 1 Comment

Hello to all of the little people

Posted on September 8, 2006 by Tim Ireland

This is just lovely. Go, enjoy, and then waste the rest of your afternoon with the B3ta newsletter from whence it came.

Posted in Inneresting | Comments Off

Oh, this did make me chuckle…

Posted on September 8, 2006 by Tim Ireland

BBC – Clarke reignites leadership row: Former Home Secretary Charles Clarke has accused Gordon Brown of “absolutely stupid” behaviour during the furore over Tony Blair’s leadership… Mr Brown met Tony Blair on Wednesday after a day of open warfare – and a string of resignations – over Mr Blair’s refusal to name a departure date or stand aside. The meeting prompted speculation about a deal between Mr Blair and Mr Brown over Mr Blair’s exit from Number 10 – an impression reinforced, says Mr Clarke, by a picture of Mr Brown grinning as he drove away from Downing Street. Mr Clarke said: “A lot of people are very upset and cross about that. It was absolutely stupid, a stupid, stupid thing to do… He is talented and brilliant but there are these little incidences like the grin in the car that build up a terrible picture.”

Rachel North – Another Elephant in the room!: Yeah, those unfortunate little incidences can be buggers can’t they? Especially when the pesky media get hold of them.