Wednesday 29th April 2015

Post by **refitman** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 7:26 am

Morning all.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 7:31 am

Morning Dan. Today's the day we see Ed & Brand. Have to admit to feeling some trepidation...

TechnicalEphemera · Post by **TechnicalEphemera** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 7:44 am

Finally Labour actually launch what will hopefully be the main offensive.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/po ... 11130.html

Cuts, lies and NHS.

Would you believe a man who lies about his football team?

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 7:47 am

Morning !

I feel trepidation too, for several reasons.

1. The right wing press, unsurprisingly, have attacked Ed over the Brand interview.
Radio 4 quoted the Mail calling Ed a clown, unfit for office, because of it.

2. The Tory stunt about a law freezing taxes for five years.
Apart from the obvious economic issues involved, I'm worried it'll resonate with undecided voters.
Does anyone know if this has been done before ? Why a law, are the Tories saying they can't be trusted on their own promises without an act of Parliament ?

Aargghh....just heard John Humphreys gleefully reading from the press calling Ed pathetic & desperate & a joke.

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 7:53 am

More deaths to lay at the door of the Coalition ?

''Coalition 'derailed life-saving salt reduction plan'
The coalition government derailed a programme that aimed to save lives by reducing the amount of salt in food, health experts have claimed.

Reforms under then health secretary Andrew Lansley "stalled" the progress of a successful salt reduction strategy, which could have prevented around 6,000 deaths from stroke and heart attack, the experts claim in analysis published in the BMJ.''

http://www.itv.com/news/2015-04-29/coal ... tion-plan/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:03 am

That SNP woman who tweeted that nasty comment to Harry is still at it this morning, trying to get sympathy!
Claiming she's a diabetic yet last night she posted pics of the Magnum, cheesy wotsits and sugary drink she was scoffing, along with ice cream. No amount of medication will help if she eats like that.

She has plenty of venom for fellow Nats too...

claire robertson @clairerobsc1 · 10h 10 hours ago
this crap i get when i tweet something they dont like oh you dont represent the party what fucking planet are they on

@clairerobsc1 · 10h 10 hours ago
saying i dont represent the party who the fuck does she think she is

TechnicalEphemera · Post by **TechnicalEphemera** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:13 am

yahyah wrote:Morning !

I feel trepidation too, for several reasons.

1. The right wing press, unsurprisingly, have attacked Ed over the Brand interview.
Radio 4 quoted the Mail calling Ed a clown, unfit for office, because of it.

2. The Tory stunt about a law freezing taxes for five years.
Apart from the obvious economic issues involved, I'm worried it'll resonate with undecided voters.
Does anyone know if this has been done before ? Why a law, are the Tories saying they can't be trusted on their own promises without an act of Parliament ?

Aargghh....just heard John Humphreys gleefully reading from the press calling Ed pathetic & desperate & a joke.

The tax stunt can be linked to cuts and easily unpicked. The right wing press has been printing shit about Miliband for weeks, nobody is listening.

Willow904 · Post by **Willow904** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:23 am

TechnicalEphemera wrote:
yahyah wrote:Morning !

I feel trepidation too, for several reasons.

1. The right wing press, unsurprisingly, have attacked Ed over the Brand interview.
Radio 4 quoted the Mail calling Ed a clown, unfit for office, because of it.

2. The Tory stunt about a law freezing taxes for five years.
Apart from the obvious economic issues involved, I'm worried it'll resonate with undecided voters.
Does anyone know if this has been done before ? Why a law, are the Tories saying they can't be trusted on their own promises without an act of Parliament ?

Aargghh....just heard John Humphreys gleefully reading from the press calling Ed pathetic & desperate & a joke.
The tax stunt can be linked to cuts and easily unpicked. The right wing press has been printing shit about Miliband for weeks, nobody is listening.

The tax stunt is just that, a stunt. Like all parties that have no hope of a majority and therefore will never be in a position to implement their promises, the Tories are just talking bollocks now. I expect it's already been agreed with Clegg that he'll force them to put up VAT as part of a coalition agreement!

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:30 am

Ed Balls did a good job of parrying John Humphreys ridiculous lines of attack (I call them that because that's clearly what they were) over the Tories promise of a new law re no tax rises (that is so desperate IMO) and calling Miliband doing an interview with Brand demeaning and other such words .... what an utter dork Humphreys has become.

As Ed Balls said - the coalition legislated to balance the books, eliminate the deficit ..... they haven't done it though, have they? Balls said he believes they'll savage tax credits instead. That should really worry a lot of people - 4.5 million according to Balls.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:32 am

Morning all - where are my manners.

What I really logged in to tell you was that I've just watched a great tit stuffing its bill full of fuzzy yellow felty bedding as it tore into an old very frayed tennis ball that our dogs play with. What a delightful start to the day. Building nests is well underway.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:35 am

I had to hunt for that tweet but found a screenshot - what a charmer eh. She also said:

claire robertson ‏@clairerobsc1 10h10 hours ago
@thefifer1314 i deleted it so the fuckwits babbling have nothing to bitch but a sure that prick blair has saved it

(Blair McDougall is a Labour supporter who helped campaign for No)

Sadly, all parties have people like her

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:35 am

yahyah wrote:That SNP woman who tweeted that nasty comment to Harry is still at it this morning, trying to get sympathy!
Claiming she's a diabetic yet last night she posted pics of the Magnum, cheesy wotsits and sugary drink she was scoffing, along with ice cream. No amount of medication will help if she eats like that.

She has plenty of venom for fellow Nats too...

claire robertson @clairerobsc1 · 10h 10 hours ago
this crap i get when i tweet something they dont like oh you dont represent the party what fucking planet are they on

@clairerobsc1 · 10h 10 hours ago
saying i dont represent the party who the fuck does she think she is

I looked at her twitter line ... and just thought there's something not healthy going on there all round - most of it seems pretty obsessive and aggressive ... hitting out.

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:37 am

rebeccariots2 wrote:Morning all - where are my manners.

What I really logged in to tell you was that I've just watched a great tit stuffing its bill full of fuzzy yellow felty bedding as it tore into an old very frayed tennis ball that our dogs play with. What a delightful start to the day. Building nests is well underway.

Morning is birdy time.

Was going to post for Tinyclanger but as you've shared your lovely image....saw a robin fledgling sitting on the bench outside the window earlier. An adult was bringing it worms. What a racket it made, even through the double glazing.
It was plumper than the adult, so must have been hatched for a while.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:39 am

rebeccariots2 wrote:Morning all - where are my manners.

What I really logged in to tell you was that I've just watched a great tit stuffing its bill full of fuzzy yellow felty bedding as it tore into an old very frayed tennis ball that our dogs play with. What a delightful start to the day. Building nests is well underway.

I watched a sparrow picking about in our gravel the other day. She was there for ages & I couldn't understand quite what she was doing until I saw her sideways on & saw she had a beak full of dog hairs !

We now make a point of sweeping the kitchen floor & putting the dog hairs outside, instead of in the bin

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:44 am

I like the idea of 'Birdy Time'. Nice ones yahyah and pk.

Donating the dogs hair is a fine gesture. (much better than knitting it up into clothes as some people apparently do ....)

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:46 am

rebeccariots2 wrote:
yahyah wrote:That SNP woman who tweeted that nasty comment to Harry is still at it this morning, trying to get sympathy!
Claiming she's a diabetic yet last night she posted pics of the Magnum, cheesy wotsits and sugary drink she was scoffing, along with ice cream. No amount of medication will help if she eats like that.

She has plenty of venom for fellow Nats too...

claire robertson @clairerobsc1 · 10h 10 hours ago
this crap i get when i tweet something they dont like oh you dont represent the party what fucking planet are they on

@clairerobsc1 · 10h 10 hours ago
saying i dont represent the party who the fuck does she think she is
I looked at her twitter line ... and just thought there's something not healthy going on there all round - most of it seems pretty obsessive and aggressive ... hitting out.

I've put my compassionate hat on, because someone as twisted and angry as that needs it, as they are clearly not functioning as they should.

She may be suffering from aggression linked to poorly controlled blood sugar.
If she is, as she claims, suffering from diabetes and stuffing herself with the cheap junk food she regularly claims she is, & photographs then it could be that.
Although I thought irritability was linked more to low blood sugar.

Putting on my cynical cap, maybe she is just a nasty moo, diabetes & crap diet nothing to do with it.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:48 am

I don't have access to the full piece but Sean Kemp, once a spad to Clegg, says EM was right to sit down with RB:

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/redbox/topic/ ... nd/summary" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have tried and tried for hours now, but I still can’t understand why people argue that Ed Miliband shouldn’t have agreed to an interview with Russell Brand.

Ever since pictures were tweeted of Miliband leaving the comedian’s home there have been people desperate to sneer at the decision by the Labour leader to be interviewed for Brand’s YouTube channel. Certainly, the prime minister disapproves: "I haven't got time to hang out with Russell Brand. This is more important, these are real people, this is what the election is all about," said the man who campaigned alongside Carol Vordeman, Gary Barlow and Michael Caine in 2010. Or maybe the prime minister felt sitting down with Brand lacks the gravitas of his own Heat magazine interview where he revealed "he nearly stripped off to his waist to wrestle a rat in his kitchen".

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:53 am

Pinched this from Kernowken on AS blog:

''A spokesman for the Charity Commission said:

“Signing a letter in support of a political party is not a legitimate activity for a charity. We will be writing to all four charities to establish the facts and expect them to remedy the situation swiftly if they have not done so already.

Those in hot water are:
•Keith Dewhurst — chair of Diverse Cymru
•William Morrison — chair of East Doncaster Development Trust
•Adebimpe Oputa — project manager of Marsha Phoenix Memorial Trust
•Uldis Revelins — chair of the Latvian Welfare Trust''

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:53 am

pk1 wrote:I don't have access to the full piece but Sean Kemp, once a spad to Clegg, says EM was right to sit down with RB:

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/redbox/topic/ ... nd/summary" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have tried and tried for hours now, but I still can’t understand why people argue that Ed Miliband shouldn’t have agreed to an interview with Russell Brand.

Ever since pictures were tweeted of Miliband leaving the comedian’s home there have been people desperate to sneer at the decision by the Labour leader to be interviewed for Brand’s YouTube channel. Certainly, the prime minister disapproves: "I haven't got time to hang out with Russell Brand. This is more important, these are real people, this is what the election is all about," said the man who campaigned alongside Carol Vordeman, Gary Barlow and Michael Caine in 2010. Or maybe the prime minister felt sitting down with Brand lacks the gravitas of his own Heat magazine interview where he revealed "he nearly stripped off to his waist to wrestle a rat in his kitchen".

I think it's another example of Miliband showing his mettle ... understanding he needs to be bold and not care about the automatic media pillory (it's an outlet that threatens their stranglehold on 'news' and discourse after all), and realising that it does really matter that he tries to talk to a group that aren't engaging with Labour or, in some part, any of the current political parties. Not sure that the people who follow Brand are going to appreciate being dismissed as being not worth being talked with, or somehow being part of a demeaning spectacle either.

ohsocynical · Post by **ohsocynical** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 8:57 am

rebeccariots2 wrote:Morning all - where are my manners.

What I really logged in to tell you was that I've just watched a great tit stuffing its bill full of fuzzy yellow felty bedding as it tore into an old very frayed tennis ball that our dogs play with. What a delightful start to the day. Building nests is well underway.

I've already seen some birds flying off with their beaks stuffed with food. Do some nest and lay earlier than others?

PorFavor · Post by **PorFavor** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:00 am

Good morfternoon.

First vulture of spring [not] spotted -

The Mirror reports this morning that work and pensions secretary – and tub-thumper for the £12bn welfare cuts – Iain Duncan Smith failed to turn up to his own constituency hustings. It reports:
Iain Duncan Smith.
Iain Duncan Smith.

Voters from Iain Duncan Smith’s constituency last night called for him to be sanctioned – with his MP’s salary suspended – for failing to show up at his local hustings.

Candidates from six other parties – Labour, Green, Lib Dem, Class War, TUSC and Ukip – managed to make the event at Woodford Memorial Hall. But the sitting MP failed to show up in his constituency of Chingford and Woodford Green in north London.

Organisers said he had been “called away to the north-west of the country” after a “late change to his schedule”.

Duncan Smith – who doesn’t live in the constituency – was quoted as saying “these things often happen”. He had given some answers to prearranged questions via Facebook. (Guardian Election blog)

Edited

Brackets.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:02 am

Sophy Ridge ‏@SophyRidgeSky 36m36 minutes ago
Was Miliband's Russell Brand interview stroke of genius or terrible mistake? Here's my verdict http://news.sky.com/story/1474209/milib ... is-no-joke" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; …

Even if Brand's message sends shivers down the spines of politicians, it's hard to argue with a desire to engage and reach out to voices who may not be friendly. At the time of writing, the trailer of Brand's interview with Miliband has reached over 200,000 views. The Labour Party's party political broadcast, also released on Tuesday evening, has just 15,000.

Perhaps it wasn't such a bonkers idea after all.

tinybgoat · Post by **tinybgoat** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:04 am

TechnicalEphemera wrote:
yahyah wrote:Morning !

I feel trepidation too, for several reasons.

1. The right wing press, unsurprisingly, have attacked Ed over the Brand interview.
Radio 4 quoted the Mail calling Ed a clown, unfit for office, because of it.

2. The Tory stunt about a law freezing taxes for five years.
Apart from the obvious economic issues involved, I'm worried it'll resonate with undecided voters.
Does anyone know if this has been done before ? Why a law, are the Tories saying they can't be trusted on their own promises without an act of Parliament ?

Aargghh....just heard John Humphreys gleefully reading from the press calling Ed pathetic & desperate & a joke.
The tax stunt can be linked to cuts and easily unpicked. The right wing press has been printing shit about Miliband for weeks, nobody is listening.

My worry is that of they're prepared to say they won't increase taxes, they must have an alternative planned.
Obvious ones are more cuts, privatisation.
Possibly inventing new taxes, though think this is unlikely.

What about slashing local government funding,
reforming council taxes, and putting responsibility on local government to increase taxes.

It would hit Labour areas hardest, and also fit in with Evel plans.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:05 am

yahyah wrote:Pinched this from Kernowken on AS blog:

''A spokesman for the Charity Commission said:

“Signing a letter in support of a political party is not a legitimate activity for a charity. We will be writing to all four charities to establish the facts and expect them to remedy the situation swiftly if they have not done so already.

Those in hot water are:
•Keith Dewhurst — chair of Diverse Cymru
•William Morrison — chair of East Doncaster Development Trust
•Adebimpe Oputa — project manager of Marsha Phoenix Memorial Trust
•Uldis Revelins — chair of the Latvian Welfare Trust''

I thought I read somewhere that Dewhurst is a Tory candidate. He really should know better ... and I think his actions show a real conflict of interest with his role as Chair of a charity. He should stand down from that role - or be pushed - IMO.

ohsocynical · Post by **ohsocynical** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:05 am

yahyah wrote:More deaths to lay at the door of the Coalition ?

''Coalition 'derailed life-saving salt reduction plan'
The coalition government derailed a programme that aimed to save lives by reducing the amount of salt in food, health experts have claimed.

Reforms under then health secretary Andrew Lansley "stalled" the progress of a successful salt reduction strategy, which could have prevented around 6,000 deaths from stroke and heart attack, the experts claim in analysis published in the BMJ.''

http://www.itv.com/news/2015-04-29/coal ... tion-plan/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A couple of years ago I watched a programme on BBC iPlayer about fast foods and how they get us hooked on it. The presenter was an expert and said when the Cons first got in they approached Lansley who said if they could make a proper case about reductions in sugar and saturated fats, then he'd bring in legislation to force the food companies to comply.

So they did. Went the US, gathered information because they were at the forefront of the fast food revolution and as we lag behind them, what was going to happen here re- type two diabetes and obesity, a few years down the road....

And Lansley backed down. Obvious he'd been got at by the food company's lobbyists.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:06 am

Claire Phipps on Andrew's blog seems to have enjoyed herself.

David Cameron has said he has no time to “hang out” with the “joke” Russell Brand. He’s very busy, you see:

Busy, busy, busy:

(followed by a photo of him & Katie Hopkins which I won't copy on the basis of pure decency)

OK, this one was for Comic Relief:

Spacedone · Post by **Spacedone** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:07 am

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:09 am

ohsocynical wrote:
rebeccariots2 wrote:Morning all - where are my manners.

What I really logged in to tell you was that I've just watched a great tit stuffing its bill full of fuzzy yellow felty bedding as it tore into an old very frayed tennis ball that our dogs play with. What a delightful start to the day. Building nests is well underway.
I've already seen some birds flying off with their beaks stuffed with food. Do some nest and lay earlier than others?

I think it will depend on lots of variables Ohso - weather, micro climate, availability of food, etc etc. Some birds will manage several broods in a season if they can ... some blackbirds I've known have been particularly prolific.

fedup59 · Post by **fedup59** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:10 am

Morning all

I think there must be some arcane political rule that says political discussion with certain sections of the electorate are not acceptable. Only explanation I can think of for the sneers because Ed is aiming to talk to people who like Russell Brand and would explain why so many Tories don't turn up for their own hustings!

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:12 am

My husband [who has an interest in the classics] made the point that Humphreys has fully morphed into Daily Mail man after hearing his interview with two academics about Thucydides.

Humphreys sneered, implying that reflecting or thinking about things has no place in modern life...why would anyone want to study a two thousand year old Greek ?
Also snide comment about the Greek finance minister being someone who admires Thucydides' work.

Whatever Humphreys deals with is always matched up to Humphrey's ego.
Makes for poor listening.

Spacedone · Post by **Spacedone** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:13 am

The other day someone was asking which dungeon the Tories had locked Chris Grayling in for the election campaign. It turns out he's campaigning in Dronfield (North East Derbyshire constituency: Labour majority of 2,445).

Lonewolfie · Post by **Lonewolfie** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:13 am

yahyah wrote:Morning !

I feel trepidation too, for several reasons.

1. The right wing press, unsurprisingly, have attacked Ed over the Brand interview.
Radio 4 quoted the Mail calling Ed a clown, unfit for office, because of it.

2. The Tory stunt about a law freezing taxes for five years.
Apart from the obvious economic issues involved, I'm worried it'll resonate with undecided voters.
Does anyone know if this has been done before ? Why a law, are the Tories saying they can't be trusted on their own promises without an act of Parliament ?

Aargghh....just heard John Humphreys gleefully reading from the press calling Ed pathetic & desperate & a joke.

Aftevemornington...

I saw somewhere last night (possibly on here, so apologies if it was

) a comment saying that even though the MSM will see this as a massive 'own-goal' by Mr Ed, the fact that Brand has 900,000 followers (and the preview was watched by 197,000) it is a very powerful way for Mr Ed to be seen - and after this (and if Clouncy Funt won't turn up to Marr, he won't do Brand) the more erudite of Brands followers will get the message (that they're not 'all the same')...R4 Toady is just that - a simpering fawning snivelling Gollum of a program - an ounce of awareness of the outside of the bubble would allow them to understand that, if they've not been able to convince people of the 'Ed's pathetic, desperate, a joke, a 'backstabber', a copper-bottomed sh*t, in Len McKluskeys' pocket, in Alec Salmond/Nicola Sturgeons' pocket, dangerous, weak, ineffective etc' line over the last 5 years, it's really not going to work 9 days from (their) armageddon.

Speaking of Clouncy - is there anywhere we could get odds on him actually showing up to the Beebs' 'Leaders Question Time'? (aka 'try as hard as possible for everyone to unsettle Ed' - handpicked audience (of likely Kippers) and 3 vs 1 on the stage)...Empty might still feel that he's at a bit of a disadvantage though - I wouldn't be surprised if he found something really really absolutely important to do instead - no-one else to act as a shield (no - I don't believe(TM) Brittans protege will be a shield - a bit like protecting a hens egg from a 155mm howitzer with a sheet of origami paper).

Here in Hope (just north of Peterborough (following events in Nepal/Everest, reference to Landslide removed out of respect for those affected - the political one is still on it's way in just over a week though

) it seems CCHQ have poured money into Bilderberger Boles' campaign - a huge number of 'in-field' hoardings...I'd have expected more concentration on marginals than those unfortunate constituencies that have a 50%+ Tory vote....but perhaps this is Clouncy and Gidiots' 'Great Strategy'...maybe GrantMichaelSebastianCorinne StockheathFoxGreenShapps told them it'd work.

TheGrimSqueaker · Post by **TheGrimSqueaker** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:17 am

Morning all.

I am a trepidation free zone. The preview/clips released of the Miliband/Brand interview have given me no cause for concern thus far and the reaction of the right wing press (and Humphreys) suggest that they realize this was a shrewd move on Miliband's part; I'd half hoped he would accept the Last Leg challenge, but going the Brand route is far braver, proves he isn't afraid of anything and knows he has the confidence & ability to make this work.

As for Cameron's tax pledge ........ who is going to be stupid enough to believe him?

danesclose · Post by **danesclose** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:21 am

Morning all. Depressing story in The Guardian about the lack of affordable housing, particularly in London but also to a lesser extent nationwide

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2015/a ... -in-london" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

ohsocynical · Post by **ohsocynical** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:22 am

yahyah wrote:My husband [who has an interest in the classics] made the point that Humphreys has fully morphed into Daily Mail man after hearing his interview with two academics about Thucydides.

Humphreys sneered, implying that reflecting or thinking about things has no place in modern life...why would anyone want to study a two thousand year old Greek ?
Also snide comment about the Greek finance minister being someone who admires Thucydides' work.

Whatever Humphreys deals with is always matched up to Humphrey's ego.
Makes for poor listening.

The other week, Mr Ohso, on John Humphries - who is that fucking idiot?

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:27 am

Lonewolfie wrote:
Speaking of Clouncy - is there anywhere we could get odds on him actually showing up to the Beebs' 'Leaders Question Time'? (aka 'try as hard as possible for everyone to unsettle Ed' - handpicked audience (of likely Kippers) and 3 vs 1 on the stage)...Empty might still feel that he's at a bit of a disadvantage though - I wouldn't be surprised if he found something really really absolutely important to do instead - no-one else to act as a shield (no - I don't believe(TM) Brittans protege will be a shield - a bit like protecting a hens egg from a 155mm howitzer with a sheet of origami paper).

He will turn up because they aren't going to be on stage at the same time. He is first up followed by EM then NC. They get 30 mins each of questions by the audience (and doubtless there will be numerous interruptions by Dimbleby (when will that man piss off & retire ?!) who will do his level best to disturb the flow).

Spacedone · Post by **Spacedone** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:29 am

TheGrimSqueaker wrote:Morning all.

I am a trepidation free zone. The preview/clips released of the Miliband/Brand interview have given me no cause for concern thus far and the reaction of the right wing press (and Humphreys) suggest that they realize this was a shrewd move on Miliband's part; I'd half hoped he would accept the Last Leg challenge, but going the Brand route is far braver, proves he isn't afraid of anything and knows he has the confidence & ability to make this work.

As for Cameron's tax pledge ........ who is going to be stupid enough to believe him?

Someone from City AM. They were overjoyed about the pledge last night.

RogerOThornhill · Post by **RogerOThornhill** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:34 am

Morning all.

Top rated comment on the DM story about Brand/Miliband...

Ed, your credibility has just jumped into the toilet, grabbed hold of the handle and flushed itself away. If this is the sort of company you feel you should be keeping, I wouldn't trust you to run a bath, let alone a country. It's because of clueless politicians like you I'll be voting UKIP.

Oh dear, that's not what the DM wants at all!

And since when is it acceptable for a national newspaper to refer to what is likely to be the next PM as a clown?

I'd love to see Miliband challenge Dacre to interview him and ask him why he thinks this is fair comment.

TheGrimSqueaker · Post by **TheGrimSqueaker** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:42 am

Spacedone wrote:
TheGrimSqueaker wrote:Morning all.

I am a trepidation free zone. The preview/clips released of the Miliband/Brand interview have given me no cause for concern thus far and the reaction of the right wing press (and Humphreys) suggest that they realize this was a shrewd move on Miliband's part; I'd half hoped he would accept the Last Leg challenge, but going the Brand route is far braver, proves he isn't afraid of anything and knows he has the confidence & ability to make this work.

As for Cameron's tax pledge ........ who is going to be stupid enough to believe him?
Someone from City AM. They were overjoyed about the pledge last night.

They are paid to believe. Aside from them only the terminally stupid (aka Tory Trolls) will buy into it. Another Cameron piecrust promise.

ohsocynical · Post by **ohsocynical** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:42 am

TheGrimSqueaker wrote:Morning all.

I am a trepidation free zone. The preview/clips released of the Miliband/Brand interview have given me no cause for concern thus far and the reaction of the right wing press (and Humphreys) suggest that they realize this was a shrewd move on Miliband's part; I'd half hoped he would accept the Last Leg challenge, but going the Brand route is far braver, proves he isn't afraid of anything and knows he has the confidence & ability to make this work.

As for Cameron's tax pledge ........ who is going to be stupid enough to believe him?

It's certainly not in Conservative interests to have the great unwashed demanding more and better.

I do think many of Brand's supporters won't have bothered to register and Ed will have been aware of that, but he and his advisers are far from stupid. It was a clever exercise in showing Labour will try not to leave anyone behind if they get in.
Also in the future elections will be carried out to a greater extent on social media and the Labour team are keeping abreast of the trend.

Interesting that a while back Brand got a lot of press when he urged people not to vote. And we were also hearing about the huge drop in registration.

Ed has based much of his campaigning on bringing the disillusioned back into the fold by proving that there can be a government that works for all, not just a small section of society.

The push for registration went very well, and it was generally thought Labour would be the party that did best out of it.
Now Ed dares to engage with another lot who might, just might vote Labour in future if he can change their minds.

Tut, tut, Ed. What are we going to do with you?

PorFavor · Post by **PorFavor** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:46 am

There's another sweat and spittle flecked speech from David Cameron coming up (BBC). Hope you've all brought your pac-a-macs.

TheGrimSqueaker · Post by **TheGrimSqueaker** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:47 am

ohsocynical wrote:
TheGrimSqueaker wrote:Morning all.

I am a trepidation free zone. The preview/clips released of the Miliband/Brand interview have given me no cause for concern thus far and the reaction of the right wing press (and Humphreys) suggest that they realize this was a shrewd move on Miliband's part; I'd half hoped he would accept the Last Leg challenge, but going the Brand route is far braver, proves he isn't afraid of anything and knows he has the confidence & ability to make this work.

As for Cameron's tax pledge ........ who is going to be stupid enough to believe him?
It's certainly not in Conservative interests to have the great unwashed demanding more and better.

I do think many of Brand's supporters won't have bothered to register and Ed will have been aware of that, but he and his advisers are far from stupid. It was a clever exercise in showing Labour will try not to leave anyone behind if they get in.
Also in the future elections will be carried out to a greater extent on social media and the Labour team are keeping abreast of the trend.

Interesting that a while back Brand got a lot of press when he urged people not to vote. And we were also hearing about the huge drop in registration.

Ed has based much of his campaigning on bringing the disillusioned back into the fold by proving that there can be a government that works for all, not just a small section of society.

The push for registration went very well, and it was generally thought Labour would be the party that did best out of it.
Now Ed dares to engage with another lot who might, just might vote Labour in future if he can change their minds.

Tut, tut, Ed. What are we going to do with you?

Spot on. The Tories and the MSM might not have 'got' social media yet, but Labour most certainly have; some of that will be the Axelrod influence, but a lot of it is simply down to the demographics of the supporters.

And, yes, quite a few of Brand's followers may not have registered, but I bet a fair number have - don't forget that c. 700k people in the 16-24 age group registered during the recent campaign - and if this makes a chunk of them vote Labour rather than one of the other Left wing parties then it is job done for Ed.

danesclose · Post by **danesclose** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:51 am

PorFavor wrote:There's another sweat and spittle flecked speech from David Cameron coming up (BBC). Hope you've all brought your pac-a-macs.

I wonder whether he'll repeat his stunt from the last election & not sleep for the final 48 hours because he's campaigning round the clock

utopiandreams · Post by **utopiandreams** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:52 am

Shocking news has emerged from Buckingham Palace this morning where they have announced that they shall not be taking David Cameron up on his kind offer. In what was seen as attempt to ingratiate himself to patriotic royalists and to regain UKIP voters after one of Nigel's recent outbursts, it is understood that David Cameron had volunteered himself to nurse-maid the forthcoming royal baby. An embarrassed spokesman from Downing Street admitted that Dave had been advised to milk the royal baby for all its worth.

ohsocynical · Post by **ohsocynical** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 9:59 am

yahyah wrote:My husband [who has an interest in the classics] made the point that Humphreys has fully morphed into Daily Mail man after hearing his interview with two academics about Thucydides.

Humphreys sneered, implying that reflecting or thinking about things has no place in modern life...why would anyone want to study a two thousand year old Greek ?
Also snide comment about the Greek finance minister being someone who admires Thucydides' work.

Whatever Humphreys deals with is always matched up to Humphrey's ego.
Makes for poor listening.

So it's okay for Boris to refer to the classics [not many days ago re tax?] but not anyone else.

Tish · Post by **Tish** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 10:04 am

The press mewling over Brand is ridiculous. The idea that there is something inherently wrong about being interviewed by Brand, when politicians of all parties line up to go on dross like This Morning or The One Show, and Cameron even signed up for that toe chewingly awful interview with Heat Magazine is just bizarre.

Either the mainstream media don't realise just how much more plural the media has become, or they do realise and are shitting bricks as they slide further into irrelevance. It just makes them look more and more out of touch.

ephemerid · Post by **ephemerid** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 10:06 am

After our bit of fun with slebs endorsing political parties yesterday, I am impressed by Ed's willingness to talk with Brand.

Brand is a very immature individual, with a touch of the Peter Pan syndrome. This is actually a very common trait in people who are in recovery from addiction, particularly if they were using substances and/or engaging in destructive personal behaviour for a long time.
Once they are in recovery, they often get very involved in something else; it's partially a subconscious ploy to get some displacement activity going to replace the addictive activity, and/or possibly the result of the self-centred immaturity of addiction which is as hard a habit to break as the addiction itself. Many recovering people get involved in treatment/recovery work (I did) or become evangelists for something-or-other.

Despite all that, Brand is, like most recovering people, well-meaning. He has thrown himself into the support of various groups in London fighting the mass evictions on council/social estates; and his anti-voting stance, however silly I think it might be, is clearly a view he holds with some justification - I've heard a fair bit of this on the doorstep.
He has a following, and any politician seeking office who turns down the opportunity to engage with it is foolish. Ed is prepared to sit down with this guy and talk to him. Even if Brand himself comes out of that conversation with his beliefs unchanged, some of the people who see that exchange may well be impressed by Ed and consider voting for him.

Whatever the media does and says, they can't deny that Ed is happy to have any discussion that will improve his party's chances at the polls and get his message across. Personally, I think that is commendable; it's also very brave. It also shows that he is not afraid of the public whose votes he's asking for - there have been many un-staged photos of him nattering with people and happily walking about with voters.

In contrast, we have OGRFG chickening out of the TV debates and making a hash of the appearances he deigned to allow; IDS refusing to attend a hustings; McVey failing to turn up for a live discussion on LBC in Liverpool; Shapps, the party chairman, in hiding seemingly; Osborne and Cameron controlling their media appearances (and the hacks who follow them around) to the Nth degree; junior ministers being trotted out on some sort of rota to answer questions on the likes of the Daily Politics; people like Hague, who is not seeking re-election, putting his face everywhere and promising everything presumably on the grounds he lie his socks off and can run away on the 8th.May anyway.

Managing PR is all about how a thing looks - I would have expected the Tories to do better than this. Their campaign has been poor so far.
Dave is getting desperate now - all this passion and whatnot rings very hollow, especially as it's expressed in front of an audience who invariably look bored, have probably been press-ganged to attend by their employers, and who in some cases wander off to do something interesting.

As things are not going all that well for Dave, I am worrying now about what new viciousness they've got up their carefully rolled-up sleeves.
I'm holding my breath expecting some nasty personal thing to come out - I hope they don't find one.

ephemerid · Post by **ephemerid** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 10:14 am

PorFavor wrote:There's another sweat and spittle flecked speech from David Cameron coming up (BBC). Hope you've all brought your pac-a-macs.

Now then, Por.

Cameron doesn't sweat. He exudes liquefied adipose fat on exertion. He won't do an Osborne and go on a diet because he's greedy.

This passionate campaigning is all about exerting himself to the point that there IS a point in doing it. It's not about the election.

What is required in these fat-loss emergencies should you find yourself within spraying distance is full HazPak attire.

Hope that helps.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 10:17 am

PorFavor wrote:There's another sweat and spittle flecked speech from David Cameron coming up (BBC). Hope you've all brought your pac-a-macs.

There was much talk in the meeja about how Ed doesn't look 'Prime Ministerial' whereas Dave has a 'gravitas' befitting the role of PM.

Compare & contrast the two men now:

Ed suited & booted, cool & calm, prepared to do the difficult stuff; Dave suit-less, sweating, shouting, dodging the difficult appearances.

I know which I prefer.

utopiandreams · Post by **utopiandreams** » Wed 29 Apr, 2015 10:17 am

All this birdie talk is making me feel homesick... and I only live about half a mile away. We used to have three blue tit and a robin's nests that I had provided and a wren's nest under the eaves of a workshop I'd built. Usually a couple of blackbird and a thrush nest in one of the hedges, sparrows and starlings in the eaves and roof space of the house and collared doves in conifers next door.

That doesn't begin to cover the bird-feeder visitors or those that frequented the fruit trees and bushes I planted when we first moved in, nor the squirrels, hedgehogs or occasional fox for that matter. We never once got any cherries by the way, they were always gone before they had ripened.

One of my favourites only came twice a year if we were lucky enough to see them, a dozen or more long-tailed tits, once in Spring and once in Autumn. They would usually stock up for about an hour.