David Cameron had better be able to perform miracles

If not he really needs to read Bert Weedon’s “Water into Wine in a Day” sometime soon if he is going to avoid the fate of his predecessors John Major, William Hague, Iain Duncan-Smith and Michael Howard (not that I want him to avoid that fate of course). Today’s Observer has a poll which shows Labour 7 points ahead of the Tories. This figure is of less interest to some of the other findings:

• nearly 40 per cent of those polled want an election within weeks; 70% of people want an election by spring.
• Brown is regarded as best able to handle a crisis by 60% of voters, compared with 13% for Cameron. Brown leads Cameron on this issue even among Tory voters.
• Cameron even trails Brown on one of his key issues, the environment (34% Brown, 22% Cameron)
• Voters believe that Labour will win the next general election: 71% believe Labour will win a majority; just 12% believe the Tories will win; Only 29% of Tories think they will win the next election.

This must have made grim reading for Cameron. The Tory party conference should be the ideal place for him to gain back some lost ground. On the other hand if the party rank and file are in a fractious mood then next week could be the kiss of death for him.

Can Hamilton do it?

Lewis Hamilton took a big step towards becoming the first person to win the Formula one title in their rookie year by winning today’s Japanese Grand Prix in appalling conditions. Hamilton leads team mate Alonso by 12 points with two remaining races in China and Brazil. Kimi Raikkonnen is 17 points behind Hamilton in third place

Hamilton's performance was as controlled and impressive and it means he will win the championship in China next weekend if he beats Alonso, or loses no more than a point to him. The 22-year-old survived a spin following a collision with Robert Kubica. "It was awful conditions and, in the end, I was fortunate I was able to finish the race after my collision with Robert," said Hamilton "When you're behind, and especially in those conditions, it is the responsibility of the car behind to be extra careful and I felt that it was a risk Robert needn't have taken. Still, I got through it and was able to see it home. It felt like the longest race of my life, what with the safety car coming on twice and the conditions being so difficult, but I'm ecstatic to get the victory."

Yet another version of Emergency

by Girlschool. Features Kim McAuliffe on rhythm guitar, Denise Dufort on drums, Enid Williams back after near 20 years on bass, and Jackie Chambers on lead guitar.

And now for something completely different....

The Bad Touch - The Bloodhound Gang

Scumbag Irving is still a liar

Warning strong language ahead

David Irving: anti-semite and Holocaust denier

The Guardian reports that Irving is back in the UK. A stint in an Austrian prison does not seem to have softened him. He is still a piece of anti-semitic shit.

Irving who was described by a high court judge as a Holocaust denier and a racist, says he is launching a comeback with a speaking tour of British cities and a series of new books. "I have kept a low profile for several months because I have had to sort out where to live and to address my financial situation. But now I am ready to start again."

In 2005 Irving was sentenced to three years in jail in Austria after a judge ruled that two speeches he made in 1989, dismissing the Auschwitz gas chambers as a "fairy tale" and questioning the existence of extermination camps, breached Austrian law. His appeal was upheld, with the judge saying the crimes were a long time ago and that Mr Irving had undergone an "impeccable conversion" (???????????????????????????????????????????) . However, Irving says that his views on the Holocaust have crystallised rather than changed. He says that he believes the Jews were responsible for what happened to them during the second world war and that the "Jewish problem" was responsible for nearly all the wars of the past 100 years: "The Jews are the architects of their own misfortune, but that is the short version A-Z. Between A-Z there are then 24 other characters in intervening steps." (My emphasis to underline what a piece of slime this man is)

Lord Foulkes, of the Labour Friends of Israel, said: "It is a frightening thought that he is still pursuing his agenda." Jon Benjamin, chief executive of the Board of Deputies, said Mr Irving no longer had any legitimate claim to be a serious historian.

Irving still insists he is a respected academic. (HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!) He says that a document, which he is 80% sure is genuine, suggests that 2.4 million Jews were killed in Poland, but goes on to claim that the gas chamber at Auschwitz was fake. "It was not the centre of the killing operations - it has only become a focus because it is the site that is best preserved. Much of what is shown the tourists there is faked postwar - watchtowers, even the famous gas chamber."

"In my opinion now the real killing operations took place at the Reinhardt camps west of the Bug river. In the three camps here [Sobibor, Belzec, and Treblinka] Heinrich Himmler's men (mostly Ukrainian mercenaries) killed possibly as many as 2.4 million in the two years up to October 1943. Asked if he now accepts there had been a Holocaust against the Jewish people he said he was "not going to use their trade name". He added: "I do accept that the Nazis quite definitely, that Heinrich Himmler, organised and directed a programme, a clandestine programme, for the liquidation of European Jews ... and that in 1942-43 alone over 2.5 million Jews were killed in those three camps." He added that Hitler was "completely in the dark" about the programme.

Oh please. So what about Wannsee? Was that a fake too? Does he really believe that Hitler was utterly unaware of the Holocaust (unlike that vermin Irving I will use the word). Is he calling the survivors of Auschwitz liars? It is clear that Irving has not changed. He was a lying piece of shit who got his just desserts when he went up against Deborah Lipstadt and failed. He remains a lying piece of shit now.

Given that I have been posting quite a lot on free speech recently I would not suggest that his views be suppressed. Irving has a right to say what he says, even if it is utter bullshit. I, on the other hand, have the right to call him a liar and an evil bastard

Tom Wise sticking the boot into Usmanov - the transcript

A few days ago I (and many others) posted a link to an audio clip of MEP Tom Wise laying into Usmanov in a European Parlliament debate on a common energy policy. Parliamentary privilege meant that he could have accused Usmanov of performing any sexual deviance or being the murderer of Cock Robin with impunity.

The European Parliament website has a transcript of the debate here (Thanks to Bloggerheads: the Alisher Usmanov Affair for the link). To save you a search here is what Mr Wise said:

Thomas Wise (IND/DEM). – Madam President, when the EU talks of a common foreign policy on energy, you need to be very aware of exactly who you propose to do business with. President Putin is on record as saying ‘The Commission should be under no illusions. If it wants to buy Russian gas, it has to deal with the Russian state.’

Gazprom is not a private company. It is a state-controlled tool of Russian foreign policy. It is, moreover, in the hands of President Putin’s political henchmen and, allegedly, organised crime. Take, for example, Alisher Usmanov. This gentleman, the son of a Communist apparatchik, is Chairman of Gazprom Invest Holdings, the group that handles Gazprom’s business activities outside Russia. He is the man we are doing business with. He is the man who cuts off gas supplies if client states dare to question Gazprom’s demands. Allegedly a gangster and racketeer, he served a six-year jail sentence in the Soviet Union in the 1980s, his eventual pardon coming at the behest of Uzbek mafia chief and heroin overlord Gafur Rakhimov, described as Usmanov’s mentor.

Usmanov bought the newspaper Kommersant. Three months later the journalist Ivan Safronov, a critic of the Putin regime who just weeks earlier had been vigorously interrogated by the FSB, as the KGB is now called, mysteriously fell to his death from his apartment window, still clutching a recently purchased bag of shopping.

According to Craig Murray, the former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan, it was Usmanov who ordered the cutting off of supplies to Georgia earlier this year. Please take note, Madam President, the Kremlin has now refused to sanction the construction of a pipeline to the EU over Georgian territory. These are the people you want to do business with. These are the people around whom you want to mould your foreign policy on energy. Commissioner, good luck. You will need it.

Schadenfreude can be a wonderful thing! It's nice to see a fat, criminal scumbag and his pack of legal vultures get screwed when they mess with free speech!

Up yours Usmanov!

Photo Hunt - Original

The theme for this week's PhotoHunt is original. This one had me stumped so I thought why not publish a photo where I haven't done any retoucing. I don't usually do a lot of work on my photos except to crop and play around with brightness and contrast levels, but this one of a sleeping Mimi is as taken except to compress the image.

Your country has gone down the crapper:

Unemployment is 80%, inflation is in four figures, what do you do turn your economy around? If you’re Zimbabwe you approve legislation that will force white business owners to hand over 51% of their business interests to black people.

Paul Mangwana, the minister in charge of black empowerment, said only white people "disadvantaged by the colonial system" before independence in 1980 were defined as "indigenous" Zimbabweans who would be allowed to keep majority control of businesses. "The bill is not about economics, but politics. It is about the total liberation of Zimbabwe. The legislation has yet to be approved by the senate and signed into law by President Robert Mugabe, although I would imagine these are formalities.

Like the farm takeovers, the purpose of the bill is to correct colonial-era imbalances. The farm takeover was of course a triumph... (if the colour of the sky in your world is pink with purple spots). It is a pathetic attempt by a vile thug to divert attention away from the disaster that is the country’s economy.

Japanese photographer, Kenji Nagai, was among at least nine people killed by Burmese security forces as thousands of protesters continued to defy tea rgas, baton charges and bullets. The true death toll is probably higher.

To keep up to date with developments in Burma I would strongly recommend Ko htike's prosaic collection

I don't care if it's a veggie sausage, it's mine now

This week's entry for the Friday Ark and Carnival of the Cats.

God is not on the side of the big battalions....

Anyone who has visited the Shills, sorry Schillings website will know they have a list of case studies which show how they have successfully acted on behalf of their clients. Usually the “defendant” apologises unreservedly, withdraws the allegations, and is then is excoriated (and not in the verbal sense), his home is razed and the land salted; his wife is sold off to a Bangkok brothel to defray legal expenses. Well not quite, but I am sure that many people on the receiving end of a Schillings attack feel that way.

Tim Ireland new blog Bloggerheads: The Alisher Usmanov Affair has a link to Earthquake Cove which has a very funny and quite appropriate suggested addition to the Schillings case study list:

The problem
Our client was a lardy foreign oligarch looking to take over a leading British football club. The former British Ambassador to his country had published allegations about him which he considered to be false and defamatory.

The solution
We put the frighteners on the former Ambassador's webhost to such an extent that it shut down not only his blog, but also other high profile blogs which had nothing to do with it, including that of the Conservative candidate for London mayor, and others in elected office. The allegations then spread around the internet and the mainstream media like wildfire.

When I see how the blogosphere has made a premier and very aggressive law firm look utterly stupid and amateurish I think Voltaire was spot on when he said “God is not on the side of the big battalions, but on the side of those who shoot best”

Archbishop claims condoms infected with HIV

This is another one of those news stories which I thought must be a joke when I first saw it but according to the BBC Archbishop Francisco Chimoio ,the head of the Catholic Church in Mozambique, has stated a belief that some European-made condoms are deliberately infected with the HIV virus "in order to finish quickly the African people".

Archbishop Chimoio told the BBC reporter that abstention, not condoms, was the best way to fight HIV/Aids. "Condoms are not sure because I know that there are two countries in Europe, they are making condoms with the virus on purpose," he alleged, refusing to name the countries. They want to finish with the African people. This is the programme. They want to colonise until up to now. If we are not careful we will finish in one century's time”

Aids activists have been angered by the remarks: "We've been using condoms for years now, and we still find them safe," Mozambican Aids activist Marcella Mahanjane told the BBC. it is estimated that 16.2% of Mozambique's 19m inhabitants are HIV positive with an additional 500 infections every day.

The archbishop's assertion on infected condoms is preposterous and ranks alongside that of Gambia's president, Yahya Jammeh, who has claimed to be able to cure the disease by rubbing a green herbal potion into people's bodies. Creating scare stories about condoms is counter productive and will do nothing to prevent another 500 people becoming infected in Mozambique today.

Tories choose Boris

Unsurprisingly, Boris Johnson has been chosen as the Tory candidate in next year's mayoral election. He gained three-quarters of the votes cast as he saw off the challenge of relative unknowns Victoria Borwick, Andrew Boff and Warwick Lightfoot.

Burmese junta reverts to brutal type

Having killed up to five people breaking up protests yesterday, Burmese security forces have raided six monasteries and arrested hundreds of monks. A UN Security Council call for restraint on the part of the Burmese military junta went unheeded (no big surprise there) as soldiers smashed windows and doors and beat the sleeping monks, according to witnesses. This has not stopped thousands of protesters taking to the streets again.

Two members of the National League for Democracy, the party led by pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, were also arrested. In Rangoon, security forces have been setting up barbed wire barricades around Shwedagon Pagoda and Rangoon city hall, two of the focal points for the demonstrations. The British ambassador in Rangoon, Mark Canning, told the BBC "There are truckloads of troops in a number of locations - more than there seemed to be yesterday..."There are fire trucks, water canons positioned in a number of places - there are about three of them outside city hall. There are a number of prison vans also to be seen in certain places."

More demonstrations are expected - leaflets have been circulated throughout Rangoon urging people to come out and show solidarity with the monks. It is likely that these protests will be met with brutality on the part of the Burmese junta -- there are no indications that the military government is likely to listen to calls for restraint. Yesterday the UN Security Council held an emergency meeting. Showing its usual spinelessness a call to consider imposing sanctions was rejected by China (as not "helpful") and Russia. Instead, council members "expressed their concern vis-a-vis the situation, and have urged restraint, especially from the government of Myanmar," China and Russia have argued the situation in Burma is a purely internal matter (just like, say. Tibet or Chechnya are simply “internal” matters....)

Analysts fear a repeat of the violence in 1988, when troops opened fire on unarmed protesters, killing thousands. This fear is justified given the vicious behaviour of the junta.

MEP sticks the boot into Usmanov

England Expects reported yesterday that UKIP MEP Tom Wise would use parliamentary privilege to spell out the allegations against Alisher Tarakanovich Usmanov during a debate on the Saryusz-Wolski report "Towards a common European foreign policy on energy".


The purpose of the debate was to discuss the creation of a single energy policy for Europe controlled by an European Energy Minister . According to Craig Murray, Usmanov "ordered the cutting off of supplies to Georgia earlier this year". The allegations are thus relevant to the debate.


The Wardman Wire has a recording of Tom Wise’s speech. It is also available at Blip.tv


The rules governing parliamentary privilege, allow any news organisation to repeat what has been said in the European Parliament. I suppose Wise could have said that Usmanov buggers chickens and fellates donkeys and there would be absolutely nothing his shysters, Schillings, could do about it.


Oh yes, I was amused to see that Skuds points out that Alisher Usmanov is an anagram of "Harass in volume" and "Evil sour shaman". Nice one Skuds!



Update: According to the Guardian Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood has said he opposes Usmanov's involvement in the club because it is not sufficiently clear how the businessman amassed his multibillion-pound fortune in Uzbekistan and Russia.

"He's certainly not an open book," the Arsenal chairman said. "Business is murky in Uzbekistan, and that in itself is an argument against him being involved in Arsenal. I wouldn't want him to be the owner of the club."

Intyerestingly the same article features a quote from Laura Tyler, of shysters Schillings, which stated that they did not intend to sue Murray directly over his statements because "they did not want to give him a platform to express his views". Murray says he stands by the allegations. "I was the ambassador in Uzbekistan. Usmanov is the country's most prominent businessman and it was my job to know about him."


So it is clear. Alisher Tarakanovich and his battalion of Bedford Square bastards (aka Schillings) were not interrested in anything in anything but gagging this story. If they had an ounce of integrity they should have insitgated libel proceedings.


The number of bloggers reported as commenting on the affair remains at 251. I would imagine the number is rather higher now.

Curious Hamster, Pickled Politics, Harry’s Place, Tim Worstall, Dizzy, Iain Dale, Ten Percent, Blairwatch, Davide Simonetti, Earthquake Cove, Turbulent Cleric (who suggests dropping a line to the FA about Mr Usmanov), Mike Power, Jailhouse Lawyer, Suesam, Devil’s Kitchen, The Cartoonist, Falco, Casualty Monitor, Forever Expat, Arseblog, Drink-soaked Trots (and another), Pitch Invasion, Wonko’s World, Roll A Monkey, Caroline Hunt, Westminster Wisdom, Chris K, Anorak, Mediawatchwatch, Norfolk Blogger, Chris Paul, Indymedia (with a list of Craig Murray’s articles that are currently unavailable), Obsolete, Tom Watson, Cynical Chatter, Reactionary Snob, Mr Eugenides, Matthew Sinclair, The Select Society, Liberal England, Davblog, Peter Gasston Pitch Perfect, Adelaide Green Porridge Cafe, Lunartalks, Tygerland, The Crossed Pond, Our Kingdom, Big Daddy Merk, Daily Mail Watch, Graeme’s, Random Thoughts, Nosemonkey, Matt Wardman, Politics in the Zeros, Love and Garbage, The Huntsman, Conservative Party Reptile, Ellee Seymour, Sabretache, Not A Sheep, Bartholomew’s Notes on Religion, The People’s Republic Of Newport, Life, the Universe & Everything, Arsenal Transfer Rumour Mill, The Green Ribbon, Blood & Treasure, The Last Ditch, Areopagitica, Football in Finland, An Englishman’s Castle, Freeborn John, Eursoc, The Back Four, Rebellion Suck!, Ministry of Truth, ModernityBlog, Beau Bo D’Or, Scots and Independent, The Splund, Bill Cameron, Podnosh, Dodgeblogium, Moving Target, Serious Golmal, Goonerholic, The Spine, Zero Point Nine, Lenin’s Tomb, The Durruti Column, The Bristol Blogger, ArseNews, David Lindsay, Quaequam Blog!, On A Quiet Day…, Kathz’s Blog, England Expects, Theo Spark, Duncan Borrowman, Senn’s Blog, Katykins, Jewcy, Kevin Maguire, Stumbling and Mumbling, Famous for 15 megapixels, Ordovicius, Tom Morris, AOL Fanhouse, Doctor Vee, The Curmudgeonly, The Poor Mouth, 1820, Hangbitch, Crooked Timber, ArseNole, Identity Unknown, Liberty Alone, Amused Cynicism, Clairwil, The Lone Voice, Tampon Teabag, Unoriginalname38, Special/Blown It, The Remittance Man, 18 Doughty Street, Laban Tall, Martin Bright, Spy Blog The Exile, poons, Jangliss, Who Knows Where Thoughts Come From?, Imagined Community, A Pint of Unionist Lite, Poldraw, Disillusioned And Bored, Error Gorilla, Indigo Jo, Swiss Metablog, Kate Garnwen Truemors, Asn14, D-Notice, The Judge, Political Penguin, Miserable Old Fart, Jottings, fridgemagnet, Blah Blah Flowers, J. Arthur MacNumpty, Tony Hatfield, Grendel, Charlie Whitaker, Matt Buck, The Waendel Journal, Marginalized Action Dinosaur, SoccerLens, Toblog, John Brissenden East Lower, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Peter Black AM, Boing Boing, BLTP, Gunnerblog, LFB UK, Liberal Revolution, Wombles, Focus on Sodbury…, Follow The Money, Freedom and Whisky, Melting Man, PoliticalHackUK, Simon Says…, Daily EM, From The Barrel of a Gun, The Fourth Place, The Armchair News Blog, Journalist und Optimist, Bristol Indymedia, Dave Weeden, Up North John, Gizmonaut, Spin and Spinners, Marginalia, Arnique, Heather Yaxley, The Whiskey Priest, On The Beat, Paul Canning, Martin Stabe, Mat Bowles, Pigdogfucker, Rachel North, B3TA board, Naqniq, Yorkshire Ranter, The Home Of Football, UFO Breakfast Recipients, Moninski , Kerching, e-clectig, Mediocracy, Sicily Scene, Samizdata, I blog, they blog, weblog, Colcam, Some Random Thoughts, Bel is thinking, Vino S, Simply Jews, Atlantic Free Press, Registan, Filasteen, Britblog Roundup #136, Scientific Misconduct Blog, Adam Bowie, Duncan at Abcol, Camera Anguish, A Very British Dude, Whatever, Central News, Green Gathering, Leighton Cooke (224), , Skuds’ Sister’s Brother, Contrast News, Poliblog Perspective, Parish Pump, El Gales, Noodle, Curly’s Corner Shop, Freunde der offenen Gesellschaft, otromundoesposible, Richard Stacy, Looking For A Voice, News Dissector, Kateshomeblog, Writes Like She Talks, Extra! Extra!, Committee To Protect Bloggers, Liberty’s Requiem, American Samizdat, The Thunder Dragon, Cybersoc, Achievable Life, Paperholic, Creative-i, Raedwald, Nobody’s Friend, Lobster Blogster, Panchromatica (251).


Football in Finland

Wordless Wednesday - Geranium versicolor

This week's Wordless Wednesday is the flower of a species geranium, Geranium versicolor. The flower is round 1 inch or so in diameter.

Image courtesy of Beau Bo D'Or

Burmese protests continue in face of threats

Protests in Burma triggered by a government decision last month to double fuel prices of fuel last month continue, despite warnings from the military. Chanting "we want dialogue" and "democracy, democracy" tens of thousands of monks and civilians staged new anti-government protests .

The protestors marched from Shwedagon pagoda into the commercial centre of Rangoon, where they gathered around Sule pagoda and nearby city hall."National reconciliation is very important for us... The monks are standing up for the people," proclaimed poet Aung Way. One monk told the Associated Press: "People do not tolerate the military government any longer."

The monks - who have been spearheading the protests - have been handing out pictures of Burmese independence hero Aung San, the deceased father of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. They are also carrying flags, including some bearing the image of a fighting peacock used by students during the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, witnesses told Reuters news agency. Students were also openly marching yesterday. The junta, which violently repressed the 1988 protests killing some 3,000 people, finally broke its silence over the mounting protests late on Monday, saying that it was ready to "take action" against the monks. It repeated its warning in state media on Tuesday, ordering monks not to get involved in politics and accusing them of allowing themselves to be manipulated by the foreign media.

The Dalai Lama, has given his backing to the monks' call for freedom and democracy.

Usmanov's bully boy antics discussed on Radio 5

The Wardman Wire has a recording of yesterday's Radio 5 discussion about the action taken by Alisher Usmanov (who may or may not be a corrupt, criminal scumbag) and Shillings (who probably don't eat babies for lunch but who may well sacrifice the odd virgin to Satan) against Craig Murray and Tim Ireland.

The discussion, which included input from Clive Summerfield, Bob Piper, Mr Eugenides and a libel expert, covered a wide range of topics, including the sequence of events that led to the removal of Craig Murray's site and the other sites, including the one for the London Bach Choir and British libel law in general.

It is very well worth a listen

John Cale - I Keep a Close Watch

Suburban genocidaires in extradition hearings.

My earlier posts Genocidaires in Suburbia, Genocidaires Still in Suburbia and Genocidaires no Longer in Suburbia? also refer. Today’s Guardian reports that the four Rwandans Charles Munyaneza, Celestin Ugirashebuja, Emmanuel Nteziryayo and Dr Vincent Bajinya, are currently contesting extradition to Rwanda.

Of the four, the charges against Bayinja appear to be the most serious. Yesterday Westminster Magistrate court head that Bajinya was a member of the governing MRND party, and present at a key 1993 meeting in a stadium in Kigali at which the anti-Tutsi "Hutu Power" movement was said to have been born. "He played a high-profile role in that meeting, being the master of ceremonies," said James Lewis, representing the Rwandan government. "The primary purpose of that meeting was to encourage Hutus to dissociate themselves from the enemy."

Bayinja is then alleged to have attended a series of "genocide meetings" in Kigali and become a leader in the Interahamwe militia. He set up roadblocks in the Rugenge area of Kigali, ordering the militia to kill anyone they suspected of being a Tutsi. Court papers allege that in one incident a man called Leandre, suspected of being a Tutsi, was brought to a roadblock where Bajinya was allegedly giving orders. Bajinya is accused of ordering the militia to "cut Leandre into pieces so that he would not recover". Bajinya also, allegedly, led a party to a house where a Tutsi woman was taking refuge with her two-month-old baby, the papers show. After the baby was killed, Dr Bajinya is accused of personally interrogating the woman about where her fellow inyenzi (cockroaches) were before a militia man shot her dead.

Charles Munyaneza was bourgmestre (mayor) of the Kinyamakara commune, the court heard. Mr Lewis said: "He organised the training of the Interahamwe militias, he instituted and supervised road blocks established to identify Tutsis from the identity cards which separated ethnic groups. "Once the Tutsis were identified they were killed by the Interahamwe." Emmanuel Nteziryayo,was bourgmestre of the Mudasomwa commune, and allegedly handed out weapons, oversaw roadblocks and once drove Tutsis to a police station to be killed. Ugirashebuja, was bourgmestre of the Kigoma commune. He is also accused of organising road blocks, urging Hutus to kill Tutsis and distributing guns.

Schillings surveying the wreckage

A little while ago I got a visitor from Sheffield. “Well big wow!”, say both my readers The visitor (IP address is 217.33.207.164) was Schillings “Shysters to the rich and famous – corpulent Uzbek oligarchs, a speciality”


Presumably, some minion has been tasked with performing Google searches to see how their bully boy tactics against Craig Murray have fared. The search that brought Schillings to the Poor Mouth was “Usmanov criminal”. The Poor Mouth was just one of nearly 43,000 results and what they saw on my post Alisher Usmanov and the "Streisand Effect" was mild to what came before and after.


Rather than gag Murray’s allegations dozens of websites blogs and fora now carry links to the allegations or the allegations in full. In addition, I am sure they will not be pleased to see their client described as a “c*nt-faced criminal” and “big fat lying cheating criminal c*nt”

Why can’t I stop laughing?

On the other hand

If there is a snap election then I will have to get off my fat arse and do some party work....not that we stand a chance of unseating Andrew Rosindell. Then again, nobody thought Eileen Gordon would beat Neubert in 1997.

Marginal MPs say “Go”

Err, perhaps that should read "MPs in Labour marginals say Go".....According to today’s Guardian Labour MPs in some marginal seats would support a decision to go for a snap autumn poll, and a surprisingly large number believe he should now take the plunge. The Guardian contacted more than 30 Labour MPs in marginal constituencies yesterday and found support for an early poll from those in the Pennines, Oxford, the West Midlands, the south-west, Edinburgh and the south coast. Mr Brown has been polling in marginals and has a clear and sustained lead. Nigel Griffiths, who represents Edinburgh South with a majority of just 405, said: "He should go for it. If we have the election now, my majority will go up from 400 to 3,000. It is a gamble, but he should take it."

Other figures such as Stephen Ladyman, chairman of the south-east group of Labour MPs, have suggested that they have a slight preference to wait until May, but they accept Mr Brown cannot be sure his standing would be so high in six months.

There has been a run of polls over the summer which indicate that Labour has a clear lead over the Tories. A poll in today’s Sun is no different - itgives Labour with an eight point lead. The Sun reports that Labour's lead rose to 17 points in the unlikely event of Mr Brown conceding a referendum on the EU's draft treaty. (Hmm I think pigs will fly on that one)

For what my view is worth, the course is clear: if the coffers can stand it then go to the country. Although our elections are not presidential (we vote for the party, not fpr a Prime Minister) , an election victory would give Brown a clear mandate in the eyes of the electorate.

Cats with Cerebellar Hypoplasia

There are a number of videos on Youtube that show the effect of Cerebellar Hypolpasia in cats. Mimi has this condition but has adapted (as they all do) and is a loving and active cat (although she can't jump and does have balance problems). Cats with CH will have a natural lifespan.



This is Charley. It could be Mimi - just imagine a little grey cat with amber eyes and a pot belly!

Robyn Hitchcock - Viva! Sea Tac

173... 192... 224... 251...292...302 and rising.....

It's amazing what the crass bully boy tactics of a corpulent Uzbek oligarch and his team of legal vultures (my sincere apologies to the birds of the genus Gyps) can do. At the moment over 300 bloggers from all across the political spectrum have expressed their outrage at Usmanov's antics.

Kudos to Chicken Yoghurt who is keeping the following list up to date.

Curious Hamster, Pickled Politics, Harry’s Place, Tim Worstall, Dizzy, Iain Dale, Ten Percent, Blairwatch, Davide Simonetti, Earthquake Cove, Turbulent Cleric (who suggests dropping a line to the FA about Mr Usmanov), Mike Power, Jailhouse Lawyer, Suesam, Devil’s Kitchen, The Cartoonist, Falco, Casualty Monitor, Forever Expat, Arseblog, Drink-soaked Trots (and another), Pitch Invasion, Wonko’s World, Roll A Monkey, Caroline Hunt, Westminster Wisdom, Chris K, Anorak, Mediawatchwatch, Norfolk Blogger, Chris Paul, Indymedia (with a list of Craig Murray’s articles that are currently unavailable), Obsolete, Tom Watson, Cynical Chatter, Reactionary Snob, Mr Eugenides, Matthew Sinclair, The Select Society, Liberal England, Davblog, Peter Gasston Pitch Perfect, Adelaide Green Porridge Cafe, Lunartalks, Tygerland, The Crossed Pond, Our Kingdom, Big Daddy Merk, Daily Mail Watch, Graeme’s, Random Thoughts, Nosemonkey, Matt Wardman, Politics in the Zeros, Love and Garbage, The Huntsman, Conservative Party Reptile, Ellee Seymour, Sabretache, Not A Sheep, Bartholomew’s Notes on Religion, The People’s Republic Of Newport, Life, the Universe & Everything, Arsenal Transfer Rumour Mill, The Green Ribbon, Blood & Treasure, The Last Ditch, Areopagitica, Football in Finland, An Englishman’s Castle, Freeborn John, Eursoc, The Back Four, Rebellion Suck!, Ministry of Truth, ModernityBlog, Beau Bo D’Or, Scots and Independent, The Splund, Bill Cameron, Podnosh, Dodgeblogium, Moving Target, Serious Golmal, Goonerholic, The Spine, Zero Point Nine, Lenin’s Tomb, The Durruti Column, The Bristol Blogger, ArseNews, David Lindsay, Quaequam Blog!, On A Quiet Day…, Kathz’s Blog, England Expects, Theo Spark, Duncan Borrowman, Senn’s Blog, Katykins, Jewcy, Kevin Maguire, Stumbling and Mumbling, Famous for 15 megapixels, Ordovicius, Tom Morris, AOL Fanhouse, Doctor Vee, The Curmudgeonly, The Poor Mouth, 1820, Hangbitch, Crooked Timber, ArseNole, Identity Unknown, Liberty Alone, Amused Cynicism, Clairwil, The Lone Voice, Tampon Teabag, Unoriginalname38, Special/Blown It, The Remittance Man, 18 Doughty Street, Laban Tall, Martin Bright, Spy Blog The Exile, poons, Jangliss, Who Knows Where Thoughts Come From?, Imagined Community, A Pint of Unionist Lite, Poldraw, Disillusioned And Bored, Error Gorilla, Indigo Jo, Swiss Metablog, Kate Garnwen Truemors, Asn14, D-Notice, The Judge, Political Penguin, Miserable Old Fart, Jottings, fridgemagnet, Blah Blah Flowers, J. Arthur MacNumpty, Tony Hatfield, Grendel, Charlie Whitaker, Matt Buck, The Waendel Journal, Marginalized Action Dinosaur, SoccerLens, Toblog, John Brissenden East Lower, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Peter Black AM, Boing Boing, BLTP, Gunnerblog, LFB UK, Liberal Revolution, Wombles, Focus on Sodbury…, Follow The Money, Freedom and Whisky, Melting Man, PoliticalHackUK, Simon Says…, Daily EM, From The Barrel of a Gun, The Fourth Place, The Armchair News Blog, Journalist und Optimist, Bristol Indymedia, Dave Weeden, Up North John, Gizmonaut, Spin and Spinners, Marginalia, Arnique, Heather Yaxley, The Whiskey Priest, On The Beat, Paul Canning, Martin Stabe, Mat Bowles, Pigdogfucker, Rachel North, B3TA board, Naqniq, Yorkshire Ranter, The Home Of Football, UFO Breakfast Recipients, Moninski , Kerching, e-clectig, Mediocracy, Sicily Scene, Samizdata, I blog, they blog, weblog, Colcam, Some Random Thoughts, Bel is thinking, Vino S, Simply Jews, Atlantic Free Press, Registan, Filasteen, Britblog Roundup #136, Scientific Misconduct Blog, Adam Bowie, Duncan at Abcol, Camera Anguish, A Very British Dude, Whatever, Central News, Green Gathering, Leighton Cooke (224), , Skuds’ Sister’s Brother, Contrast News, Poliblog Perspective, Parish Pump, El Gales, Noodle, Curly’s Corner Shop, Freunde der offenen Gesellschaft, otromundoesposible, Richard Stacy, Looking For A Voice, News Dissector, Kateshomeblog, Writes Like She Talks, Extra! Extra!, Committee To Protect Bloggers, Liberty’s Requiem, American Samizdat, The Thunder Dragon, Cybersoc, Achievable Life, Paperholic, Creative-i, Raedwald, Nobody’s Friend, Lobster Blogster, Panchromatica (251), Back off, man…, Dan Hardie, Krusenstern, Brendadada, Freace, Boriswatch, Fork Handles, Chris Applegate, Christopher Glamorgan, West Virginia Rebel’s Blog, Instapundit, Powerpymes, iDiligence Forum, Gizmotastic, Demos, Gary Andrews, Neweurasia , Never Trust a Hippy, sub specie aeternitatis, Bananas in the Falklands, The Sharpener, Virtual Light, Stu News, Scraps of Moscow, Danivon, As A Dodo, La Russophobe, PJC Journal, Mick Fealty’s Brassneck, dead brains don’t dance, A Comfortable Place, Bamblog, Robert Amsterdam, The Customer, No Longer at Ease, Rachel-Catherine, Humaniform, Mike Rouse, Chesus Yuste, anticapitalista, Aderyn Cân, Ulla’s Amazing Wee Blog (294), Ross200, Disruptive, Internazionale.it, The Obscurer, A Lefty Down Under, Things I Learned or Made Up, Pickled Bushman, Persons Unknown (302).

Football in Finland

I daresay the list will continue to grow.