Cleared AM demands Hain apology

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4372072.stm

well I totally agree with Leanne Wood.

Hain you got your headline, you fabricated the image of inappropriate use of public funds, now apologise!

Honestly this is worse than I was in primary school - "no name calling, its naughty"

Ironically this is all happening when the electoral commission has said that Hain is trying to change the assembly election rules for partisan purposes.
http://peterblack.blogspot.com/2005/10/labour-are-gerrymandering-says.html#links

Perhaps if he apologises he feels he will be unable to fiddle the ballots!

  ¶ 9:07 PM 1 comments links to this post

  Filibuster Hoon

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4363406.stm

What does it say about our government, when they send out the Leader of the House of Commons to prevent parliament limiting the executives' power.

I believe (i’m not sure that this is what Mrs Short is promoting) that the executive should only have the right to launch defensive military action. The right to other military action being held by Parliament.

However, will even this idea change events? If we recall, the war against Iraq (reason 1) was that Iraq could launch an attack on us in under 45 minutes. Therefore, it could be argued, that this war was defensive.

So what is defensive action in the age of the ICBM? Any country around the world can launch an attack on us in under 30 minutes - providing they had the right technology. Gone are the days of a defensive war being trying to stop an Armada landing at our shores.

I believe an aggressive war (and therefore subject to parliament approval) should be considered to be when troops are sent outside our realm to intervene without invitation or previous commitment in military action. If you disagree your more than welcome to post your own in the comments.

This is really beside the point.

The fact that Labour - Blair in particular are seeking to rule by the individual is disturbing and damaging for parliamentary control. I would prefer all aggressive military action to have to be passed by elected representative in a double majority fashion - making sure you need the support of people who you can't bully through the whips office, to encourage debate and to secure our parliamentary democracy.

Blair’s addiction to power is truly frightening.

  ¶ 9:46 PM 0 comments links to this post

  Avian Flu http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4365956.stm

I dont know whether is good that it was found, or bad that it arrived.

Probably both, im already down for a flu jab (have CF so i have one annually) but i cant help being aprehencive about it still. If H5N1 gets into the population then its the likes of me that it will die first.

Worrying  ¶ 8:07 PM 0 comments links to this post

  And the award for stating the bloody obvious goes to… And the award for stating the bloody obvious goes to…

Jack McConnell, First Minister of the Scottish Parliament. For his remark accusing the SNP for “playing politics” with people lives.

Story http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4362988.stm

Is it just me or isn’t that what elected representative do?  ¶ 2:42 PM 0 comments links to this post

  when is a lie not a lie? when is a lie not a lie?

- when its "factually inaccurate"

no i dont buy it either.

Byers, just say i lied, inentvertantly / accidentally / oh hell, qualify if in any way you like just say you lied to parliament!  ¶ 7:35 PM 1 comments links to this post

  Hain backs one Welsh police force http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4335812.stm
commenting on the above.

now i know im hard on labour but lets face it they deserve it 99.9% of the time.

but once in a while, they can at least show glimps of promise.
i suppose it equates to having a million monkeys in front of a million typewriters and waiting for the novel.

but here peter hain is said to be leaning towards having a single wales police force. you hopefully would have all read my previous posts and i think you'll agree that this is what i was supporting - although i claim no credit for influencing mr hain, probably doesnt even know taffia don exists.

i know from a nationalist point of view its dissapointing that no policing powers would be given to the assembly but lets face it we werent expecting any, the fact that the will be no cross border durisdiction means that the possibility for devolution of these powers at a later date, an idea that a anglo welsh force would have prevented from ever happening. (in peaceful devolution practice).  ¶ 7:03 PM 0 comments links to this post

  estonian e-voting http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4343374.stm

commenting on the above

estonia is starting the biggest online voting experiment in the european union,

sounds great, opening up the franchise enabling more people to vote increases democratic legitimacy of a government correct?

but i cant get over the fact they have to use there ID cards to access it. surley this infringes of private ballot, there would surley be some electronic tag somewhere that said "citizen 12345678, clicked option a"

i remember when studing nazism there was testomony about ballot marking in austria, now im not saying the current estonian government is fascist but decent governments must make sure with all there powers that they do not install systems that can be abused by later governments.

and as i say im not convinced this has been done in this instance.  ¶ 5:10 PM 0 comments links to this post

  the bravest person http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4342928.stm

how many of us, truthfully, would have the corage to do what this lady has done?  ¶ 5:07 PM 0 comments links to this post

  Mr Morgan! im fast loosing faith, well to be fair i lost it a long time ago, with new labour

but in all branches of the party (westminster and cardiff - dont know about scotland) they seem to be having an increased intollerence of proper parliamentary / assembly proceedure.

this is illustrated by rhrodri morgans comments which are reported on the beeb
link http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4340280.stm

First Minister Rhodri Morgan says all Welsh assembly politicians face "disgrace
and humiliation" if they fail to agree a budget.
He sounded his warning
after opposition Assembly Members united to force Labour to re-think its
financial plans.

now i believe that the budget doesnt have to be approved until december (i think) and i know it was introduced earlier to the plenary because they were expecting a fight. but why does he now portray it as disgracefull that the budge is not passed immediatly.

is the opposition there soley to capitulate to the governments demands? NO they are there to do the best for their constituents which are more numerous than labours since labour is a minority. they cannot portray themselves to have a mandate, the majority of people in wales voted against them (40% voted for labour in 2003 election i believe).

anyway even if they did have majority it would still be wrong to say proper debate and scrutiny is disgraceful, even though labour would like it this country does not yet run a politburo (definition http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politburo) and that the way we like it.

if labour want there budget passed then they've got to convince the assembly that its the right thing for wales and not just try to bully them into capitulating!  ¶ 4:43 PM 0 comments links to this post

  Ive been linked. http://www.blogcymru.com/

ive just found out that ive been listed in the above directory of welsh blogs (english language)

im over the moon about it  ¶ 5:35 PM 2 comments links to this post

  heddlu cymru now with the plans for removal of smaller police forces there were plenty of ideas articulated about what could happen. merger of north wales police with liverpool, etc...

in my opinion (as all things on this blog are) there is only one option with regard to wales and welsh nationalism that can be acceptable.

all the welsh police forces must combine to form one single force, we must not allow cross border police forces for the reasons i shall disclose now.

1) if north wales police and liverpool force merge what will be the significance for welsh language officers and people in that area. i can hardly envisage the possibilty of all officers in the force speaking welsh especially those in england. and therefore the working language of the force is likely to be english erroding welsh speaking heartlands in the north

2) what will happen to bilingualism - again i cant really imagin police in liverpool walking around with "police heddlu" on their uniform.

3) getting to my interests now devolution - a cross border police force will limit or end any asperation of having policing responcibilities devolved to the assembly or any future welsh parliament.

therefore for these reasons if police forces are forced to amalgamate then there is only one option that is satisfactory to welsh nationalism that is the creation of a single unified police force.  ¶ 5:49 PM 0 comments links to this post

  CYMRU AM BYTH Assembly fears attack by language activists
Oct 10 2005
Martin Shipton, Western Mail

SECURITY officials at the National Assembly have warned staff they expect Welsh language activists will try to paint slogans inside government buildings in Wales.
Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg, the Welsh Language Society, has had leaked to it an e-mail sent to Assembly managers.
The e-mail says, "We have received information from South Wales Police instructing the Welsh Assembly Government of a substantial threat from Welsh language protesters.
Story continues

"They have already daubed graffiti at Cathays Park.
"They have issued a statement of intent to enter Welsh Assembly Government buildings and daub paint once inside.
"You need to make staff aware of this and the need for vigilance is paramount. If you suspect anyone is about to behave in this manner, lock the entrance and inform the police on 999."
Cymdeithas yr Iaith has recently stepped up its campaign for a new Welsh Language Act that would extend language rights into the private sector.
The idea of such an extension is not supported by the Assembly Government and there seems little prospect of legislation along the lines suggested.
Cymdeithas spokesman Hedd Gwynfor said, "Not only have they sent this 'warning' out to Assembly employees, but older members of our society tell me that there was more police surveillance during the rally we held in Cardiff last week than has been witnessed since the investiture of Prince Charles in the Sixties.
"Video cameras were widely used, and the police had images of most of the Cymdeithas leaders on file. This shows a total lack of understanding of Cymdeithas yr Iaith's long tradition of non-violent direct action."
___________________________

well its exciting first of all lets disclose my language capabilities - english primary language with a few basic plesentries that ive picked up

i was educated in england no further than 100 meters from the welsh border and welsh language was considered irrelevant so it was not taught, it was more important to learn french or german (neither countries i have ever visited). so they were more useful to me!

but this email is exhasberating firstly i thought that the welsh assembly government had brought inhouse the functions of the welsh language board so how can they just arbitarily refuse to meet with the pressure group and go even further to state no legislation on this matter is likely.

the welsh assembly government is turing into the british high commission, representing english interests in its last colony. the high commissioner is showing blatent indifference to the prosperity and furtherence of the welsh langauge and therefore we have to assume that he has the same indifference to welsh culture as a whole!

moreover this makes a mockery of the new welsh assembly chamber, glass to promote open and transparent government ... so long as you unlock the doors.

the english high commissioner rhodri morgan must realise that one persons terrorist is anothers freedom fighter, if the police act contemtuously towards these peacefull protests then that could inspire harder line welsh freedom fighters along the line of the Free Wales Army (it always amuses me that that name is in english).

let wales and the welsh be what they want to be, were not english and therefore we shouldnt have to conform to their sencibilities.
___________________________

mentioning the free wales army and terrorists in the same post - whats the bet this is being picked up by gchq?  ¶ 2:16 PM 0 comments links to this post

  New Orleans well this city seems to be in the doll drums recently

first of all the hurricane exposed the racial split in america, then there were claims that the bush administration was slow to inact a relief operation because it was mainly poor black americans in need rather than his constituency of middle class americans.

and now this http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4325574.stm

three police men punching kicking etc... a 64 year old man they were trying to arrest for being drunk in public.

and before someone said it might be appropriate violence, he was drunk and would have been lashing out, he was grabbing a litter bin for support from what i can make out and offered no defence to repeated punches.

the video goes on to show the police officer abusing and intimidating the associated press reporter who was watching / videoing the incident.

first of all im glad that criminal proceedings have been brought, secondly the implication for british race relations

i remember a few weeks or months ago that the government wanted to follow the the american example of hyphernated names e.g. afro-american and impose them in this country. well if this is the result of the names or a symptom of those labels then they can keep them i have no interest in singeling out anybody for anything other than their achievements or criminality.  ¶ 2:05 PM 0 comments links to this post

  word verification just to let you know i've switched on word verification to stop these automated marketing comments, please dont let this put you off commenting as i love a good arguement.  ¶ 10:37 PM 0 comments links to this post

  very interesting indeed http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4311686.stm

ill have to write about it tomorrow, but have a read.  ¶ 9:23 PM 2 comments links to this post

  brighton terrorist attacks sorry if my post are a bit sporadic but im in third year of university and well this is bottom of the to do list.

any way it appears that an army of terrorists decended on brighton to try and destoy the government.

police special units and the army acted on mi5 information to stop this decapitation of the government at its annual conference, terrorists from all over britain converged on the sea side town but were foiled in their aims by the combined force of our security forces.

- i missed that news story too

but a story that was brought to my attention by a fury friend www.bsscworld.blogspot.com and brother in arm against stupidity of governments suggests that it is not so bizar an idea.

http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=2028602005

the scotsman (link above) reports that 600 people, or a small terrorist task force, were arrested or detained under the anti-terrorism laws.

call me old fashion but i believe that terrorism laws should be used against terrorists and not just against those people who may embarrass the government, you have to wonder how a pensioner with a non-party-line opinion managed to get into the conference hall in the first place, not just wonder how they can bundle him out!

the government promised us that anti-terror legislation will be used in exceptional curcumstances to protect us against terrorism, now it appears that this legislation is soley being used to terrorise the citizens of this country into being good citizens and not asking awkward questions of our elected representatives, about the policies that they are imposing on our country.  ¶ 9:06 PM 2 comments links to this post