Polite Notice

My non virtual life has preoccupied me and now I'm starting a new job, which will consume a lot of my time. Blogging has/will be casual. My apologies.

Tis The Season

I've been a terrible host of late and I offer my apologies for the lack of posting. Work and other factors will hopefully calm down from now on. Have to admit to apathy descending upon me too, polling is just scary at the moment, as scary as Brown's smug little smile. I hope too that the same old stories in the news will turn over soon as we start to enter election time. It's all been a little non eventful, with politicians going out of their way not to offend a single voter.

In the mean time, I take this opportunely to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a hung over free new year! May that enviable kebab late on new year not turn nasty on you and may it really be meat.

This Is a Non Party Political Message

I feel I've neglected my blog and readers lately, with the combined effect of not a lot outraging me in the news, and politics in general being quite slow while work has been busy. I have in my spare time been working on a couple of personal projects. To make up for my neglect, I post one of them on here, in case any of you are interested in what I do outside of this blog.

This is an animated fake fickbook test I'm working on.

Shortlisted For An Blogging Award

After my award mocking what happens, I get short listed for one, I believe that's called irony. I do feel quite conflicted in how I should react, I've being pondering all day on what I should write in this post. I usually like to rebel, yet that's somewhat curbed by it being the Lib Dems that have shortlisted me. If it had been Labour, sarcasm would be dripping from this post, I don't have to worry about a Tory award, having used the word "regulation" and "Tony Benn" on this blog in a non derogatory way - more than once.

Yet as irrational as it may be, it feels conformist placing a sticker on my blog. It would be like the shortlist I was on for class captain in school, but taking it seriously enough to not tell everyone I will give them 2p to place in their ties to stop indiscriminate peanutting. Or not running my campaign at Brownies on the issue of abolishing singing and jumping over the toadstool at the end of the evening. Perhaps however the compromise is just say thank you and leave it at that.

So I say to Lib Dem Voice, those that have/are voting for my blog and those that didn't but took the time to take a look.

Thank you!

Blog Awards

I've not written anything until now on the Total Political Blogging Awards, this is simply because if I honesty cared less I would be arrested for political negligence, my blog would be taken from me by social workers and I would imprisoned following psychological assessment. Yet I post on this subject now as it's chance to explain why I blog and to also take pride in my edgy outsider status.

My first post on this blog was about John Prescott's campaign to stop bankers bonuses or "greed culture". I had been debating with the idea of starting a blog for while, yet writing isn't the way I naturally express myself, so self doubt kept me lurking. Yet I read Prescott's post and filled with outrage at the audacity that Prescott, John Prescott of all people could even suggest the bankers were being "greedy". I set-up this blog and wrote my post, linked multiple times to his post and sat there clicking on the links with vigor for a good 10 minutes.

A sense of outrage started this blog and is partly the motive for continuing to post, why? Because I look around me when I go out and I wonder will it get better? I read the news and think am I crazy? This blog allows me gather my thoughts and feelings in order to make sense of them, it's my pressure valve so to speak. If it can also be a blog that other people can relate to that's wonderful, if not I would be still blogging away.

Anonymous Blogging - NightJack

Clive Davies has a post with some useful links about anonymous blogging and articles on the NightJack case. My thoughts on this have been echoed throughout the Blogosphere. It was not in the greater public interest, NightJack should have remained just that. I value the blogs written by police, doctors, nurses and judges, they shed light on an inner world that would be closed off otherwise.

Anonymity is of course also used for reasons outside of professional conflict or safety concerns. From insults to persona's to escapism to honesty, these are what makes the internet so wonderful, it's freedom, the Times has taken a little of that way for reasons purely clouded.

"SmearGate" Regret - Cost To Brown

Brown has written letters of "regret" to David Cameron and the other Conservative MPs involved in "SmearGate". He of course isn't capable of using the word sorry in any capacity. I don't even think if he tripped and fell onto 'the red button' killing millions he would use the word sorry - "It's regretful this happened" - will be the comment.

There's been much speculation with regard to what "SmearGate" will cost Brown. Looking around the main news sites this story has lost it's traction with the public, only on the Guardian site is it in the top3 most read. It is obviously still holding it's own with political sites and blogs.

For this story alone to have lasting damage it needs to strike a cord with the public at large, not just people who are interested in politics. The details surrounding this story are very political, more so than most people would be interested by. Combined with no tax payers money being lost yet, there isn't really anything to get the burning torches and pitch forks out for.

The Labour party supporters won't be happy with the Tory "nasty" Party parallels it creates. Will it be enough to stop them voting? I'm not so sure, there are still 30% willing to vote Labour after all that has happened so far.

In essence the damage from this will be political, not so much voter based. For the public, Brown burying his head in the sand just reinforced what people have come to expect, Labour voters stand to be the disappointed ones. The main problem it presents though is limiting Labours ability to attack the Tories. Brown can hardly point the finger and call them the "nasty party", while Cameron maintains the moral high ground.

"SmearGate"

This "SmearGate" story all over the Blogosphere and news, has just left me perplexed. Is the story here that Labour no longer have morals and are delusional, they crossed a line into personal untrue attacks, they used taxpayers money for they own gain. Am I missing something here, as how is that different from what is continuously reported in the papers?

Granted I enjoyed the incredible irony of Derek Draper whining about "how wrong hacking into private email accounts is"- Labour would know all about that wouldn't they.

Perhaps I should be jumping on the bandwagon, anything that makes Brown uncomfortable and shows the Labour party for what it is, can't be bad. Yet I have the nagging thought of, why is this the "thing" to get Labour on when there are far worst stories. There's a party tribal feel to this and maybe that's where I fall short, I'm not party aligned. I'm left just finding it really difficult to relate to, particularly since the emails are posted among the tits, bums and gossip of the News of the World.