<< Feb 2010 Public Forum at 6 p.m. tomorrow Sunday, January 31st, 2010 - 8:05 am
Tomorrow Nader Fekri and the other parliamentary candidates for Keighley will be taking part in a public forum at the Bangladeshi Community Association at Kesington Street. It starts at 6:00 p.m. Tory and Labour approaches Saturday, January 30th, 2010 - 8:24 am
Recently I've been approached from both Conservative and Labour directions to the effect of, "Wouldn't you Liberal Democrats in Keighley rather do the sensible thing and give us a free run?"
Absolutely not!!
If I actually believed either of them were better I could have had a much easier life, been a district councillor without making any real effort and not have had to put up with snide comments from other parties. I don't. It may make my life harder but I simply don't believe that the country would be better off without the Liberal Democrats.
It was from Liberal and Liberal Democrat ideas that Old Age Pensions and the National Health Service came into being. It was from Liberal Democrats that devolution for Scotland and Wales came about (Roy Jenkins and Paddy Ashdown persuaded Tony Blair to go ahead with it.) It has been the Liberals and the Liberal Democrats who have fought for personal liberty and freedom of information. We didn't just join in when it had become fashionable. We were the ones who kept them on the agenda year in, year out until they became law.
We are not a party who simply thinks up a policy on a whim or because it seems fashionable. Our policies may change as circumstances change. But they are always based on the same principles.
This is what we are for:
"The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a free, fair and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community and in which no-one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity."
(Preamble to the Liberal Democrat Federal Constitution - repeated, you may notice, on every page of this website.)
In a nutshell, we fight for what is fair.
Do I want to give that up? No way! MPs' Expenses - some claims were OK Friday, January 29th, 2010 - 2:10 pm
From the BBC News online website:
"Meanwhile, Lib Dem MP Jeremy Browne, and Labour's Ann Cryer and Patrick Hall have had their appeals against demands to pay back expenses upheld."
"My name has been cleared and my reputation restored", Lib Dem Jeremy Browne.
Keighley MP Ann Cryer, after she had been cleared of the main charges, said,
"It wasn't just a question of the amount, it was a question of a slur made against me." However she will be repaying £1,600 for three household items.
For the full BBC article see: BBC online news: MPs' expenses Building Pyramids in the Sand Tuesday, January 26th, 2010 - 11:15 am
Today we have news that the UK economy has come out of recession. But hold on a minute, how much "funny money" has our government printed? How much growth has there really been? Do the figures add up? Well no, actually, not according to this interesting blog by Greg Pytel:
And with acknowledgements to today's Liberal Democrat Voice here is a comment from our own Vince Cable:
“The economy remains dependent on artificial money creation and a Government running a massive deficit, but with growth of just 0.1%, Tory proposals to immediately slash government spending would be disastrous.
“Our economy is too reliant on consumer spending and debt and a failing financial services industry. A lasting and sustainable recovery can only be achieved if we correct these fundamental imbalances.” Eric Pickles confused? Monday, January 25th, 2010 - 12:49 pm
Way back in the 70s Eric Pickles (Tory local government spokesman) and I occupied the same car when we briefly campaigned on the same side as each other in the EU referendum campaign. At the time he was an elected Bradford Conservative councillor. I mentioned that Kennedy House, a large block of flats that we should call at, was a short distance ahead of us and he replied in a patronising tone, "Liberals! Wrong again!" just before Kennedy House came into sight. It seems a block of council flats just wasn't on his radar. Or maybe he was confused ; ) Paddy says Ministry of Defence must listen to service personnel Saturday, January 23rd, 2010 - 5:36 pm
In an article in The Times today Paddy Ashdown says if the Ministry of Defence wants to win wars they must listen to service personnel.
I recently told someone that Paddy had been a member of the SAS. Of course I was wrong; he was a captain in the SBS - the Special Boat Service of the Royal Marine Commandos of the navy.
I'm copying an email I've received with news from the front line in Afghanistan concerning a certain chain of coffee shops and its products:-
"For your information:
Recently, British Royal Marines in Iraq wrote to Starbucks because they wanted to let them know how much they liked their coffees, and to request that they send some of it to the troops there.
"Starbucks replied, telling the Royal Marines thank you for their support of their business, but that Starbucks does not support the war, nor anyone in it, and that they would not send the troops their brand of coffee.
"So as not to offend Starbucks, maybe we should support them by NOT buying any of their products!
"I feel we should get this out in the open. I know this war might not be very popular with some folks, but that doesn't mean we don't support the boys on the ground, fighting street-to-street and, house-to-house.
"If you feel the same as I do then pass this along.
"Thanks very much for your support. I know you'll all be there again when I deploy once more."
Sgt. Howard Wright,
1 Platoon, Recon Company, Royal Marines says,
"PLEASE DON'T DELETE THIS... PLEASE PASS ON IN MEMORY OF ALL THE TROOPS WHO HAVE BEEN WOUNDED, LOST LIMBS AND EVEN DIED, SO THAT WE MAY HAVE THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE !
AN ADDED NOTE TO THIS: STARBUCKS HAD STORES ON SEVERAL MILITARY
BASES IN THE UNITED STATES. THEY ARE NOW BEING REMOVED BECAUSE OF THIS.
There are 227 Starbucks stores across the UK , and there's no doubt that our soldiers would get the same response from this company, so let us do our bit and boycott Starbucks to show them how despicable their actions are.
This is my informant's comment: "Can only pass this on, words fail me."
The Nose that Grew Saturday, January 16th, 2010 - 12:00 pm
There was once a boy whose name was Pinocchio. He longed to be a real boy who could one day become Prime Minister of his country. But try as he might poor little Pinocchio could not help but say - well, things that were not quite right!
Every day the kind man who had made Pinocchio asked him a question on behalf of all the good folk who lived in that land.
Every day the good folk and the kind man hoped that the little wooden boy would be truthful and good.
And every day little Pinocchio wished with all his heart to be a good boy and be loved by all the people.
But one day he pretended he had more hair than he really did have. And do you think that was completely truthful?
He said he would be fair about tax. But he forgot he had already tried to please the rich boys and girls by saying he would allow them to keep all their toys. But they had a lot more toys than the other boys and girls. And do you think that was fair?
Then he pretended his nose was a little bit longer than it really was.
Then the nice man who had made the little wooden puppet said,
"Oh dear, Pinocchio! Every time you say something that is not quite true or not quite fair your nose is going to get longer until you learn to be good."
And so poor little Pinocchio's nose got longer and longer and his hair got longer and longer until he could learn to tell the truth and be kind to all the boys and girls. And how did it end? Ah, that, dear reader, is for you to decide. I heard Dr Martin Luther King in person Friday, January 15th, 2010 - 10:21 am
The birthday of Martin Luther King today and Nader's post on it reminds me of the day when I heard Dr King make a speech in person. I was in the audience when he was awarded an honorary degree at my university, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
We listened with bated breath when he uttered the immortal words which had become his "signature" as it were, "I have a dream ..."
We were truly in the prescence of greatness.
Only a few months later he was killed in his campaign for equal rights for all American citizens. But his legacy lives on. At that time I hardly believed it possible that a black man would become president of the United States in my lifetime, but I dared to hope.
You know what? After a year Obama's tenure of the presidency seems the most normal thing in the world. What a difference they have made to world politics! Airedale Hospital parking, kerbs - and possible passes? Thursday, January 14th, 2010 - 8:01 am
I'm pleased to have got an email from Airedale Hospital saying they are going to look at the issue of dropped kerbs once the weather makes it possible. That's good, my broken bone won't have been in vain then.
They are also going to keep more of an eye on vehicles parked along the road next to Accident and Emergency because it is only meant to be a dropping off point for patients and cars should not be there for more than ten minutes at a time. If they are there for too long others can't park there.
I've had the idea that they could let patients with a temporary disability have passes, along with their appointment cards, with a "use by" date. This would give permission to be regarded as disabled for a limited period to enable them to get to their appointments. I've asked the hospital to consider this possibility. Bonkers Bonuses Wednesday, January 13th, 2010 - 12:14 pm
You and I own most of Britain's banks. Our employees have done an appallingly bad job and we've had to help them out with our money. Far from being ashamed they now seem to think they are entitled to millions of pounds worth of bonuses. I don't agree!!!!!
Do you? Fairness is all. Wednesday, January 13th, 2010 - 12:07 pm
Here are the main points that Lib Dems will be campaigning on at the next general election:
1 Fair taxes for all
2 A fair start for children
3 Fair and transparent politics
4 A fair and sustainable economy, including local enterprise, green technology and lasting jobs. Been doing some work on the Town Plan Tuesday, January 12th, 2010 - 1:50 pm
I've been doing some work on helping to write the Keighley Town Plan this morning; that's "plan" in the sense of blueprint, not in the sense of map. I'm a member of the steering group.
I've been putting together things that Keighley people said (in the Town Council Survey) they wanted for the environment, with ideas to solve some of the problems. Some of the problem solving ideas were suggested by residents in the survey, some were my own ideas and some were helpful suggestions by Nader Fekri, our Lib Dem parliamentary candidate. Nader and I had a discussion about it last Autumn, then I discussed ideas with a member of the Town Council staff who is working on the Town Plan.
A great idea by a resident was for schools to have recycling collection points. This would enable materials to be recycled by school dinner staff, teachers and pupils, and in the case of primary schools for parents to add items for recycling too. Excellent idea. Ashdown Anniversary Friday, January 8th, 2010 - 11:05 am
Thanks to Helen Duffet of Liberal Democrat Voice for pointing out that today is the 1,139th anniversary of the Battle of Ashdown in which Alfred the Great, then a prince aged twenty-one won a battle against the invading Danes.
As it happens I'm reading my copy of Lord Ashdown's autobiography, A Fortunate Life, at present. Paddy signed our copy with the inscription, "Best wishes and thanks for all you do for us". There are some laugh out loud moments, such as a story he heard as a little boy near the Ulster/Eire border.
Customs officials watched a man crossing the border over and over again, wheeling his bicycle. They stopped and searched him and his bike many times but never found anything. Some time later they met up with him at the pub and asked if he really had been smuggling.
"I was," he answered. "But what were you smuggling?" they asked.
"Bicycles." Islam4UK and the BNP - Spot the difference! Thursday, January 7th, 2010 - 9:00 am
As Islam4UK carries on its recruitment campaign for the BNP it is difficult to spot the difference. Could it be the colour of the skin?
It's enough to give religion and politics a bad name..... Happy Christmas! Wednesday, January 6th, 2010 - 8:58 am
Christmas greetings to my Ukrainian readers and to all who follow the Eastern Orthodox Christian calendar on this Christmas Eve!
Here is a picture of kolach, Ukrainian Christmas bread, with thanks to
http://www.ukrainianclassickitchen.ca/images/photos/Kolach-1.jpg
Letter in Keighley News, What I'll vote for Tuesday, January 5th, 2010 - 12:18 pm
This letter in the Keighley news is a great summary of the reasons why the writer is voting Lib Dem:
In spite of worries that Keighley's very own Christmas Day bus service might not be able to run because of the heavy snow the Bus Museum Trust volunteers kept the show on the road for the fifteenth year. They checked out the routes for safety before the bus service began for the day and managed to run the full service using their wonderful vintage buses.
Congratulations to all concerned - and a big thank you on behalf of Keighley. This morning was beautiful Friday, January 1st, 2010 - 5:57 pm
A dusting of snow with glinting sunshine; here is a picture I took at half past eight this morning:
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"The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a free, fair
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values of liberty, equality and community and in which no-one
shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity." Preamble to the Liberal Democrat Federal Constitution, first sentence.
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