European Political News

I wasn't sure where to advertise these, so I thought I would start with the Wardman Wire (being the gaffer has it's privileges).

My parents are downsizing, and we have some Guy Rogers furniture for sale.

So, introducing the Matt Wardman small ads service...

Does anyone want any Guy Rogers Manhattan furniture?

Today has been a little quiet for blogging - I have been working on this, which turns into a public beta test at 11.00pm. There are a couple of glitches, but comments are welcome. I will be writing an explanation of what is what and how it all fits together during the day tomorrow. Tags: wardman wire, politics [...]

Via Bob Piper's post "Never Mind the Width" I (memo to self: spend an hour a week "wasting time" surfing new blog), I found a new and interesting blog from my area (Dronfield), Three Score Years and Ten - with the excellent tag-line:

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards" - Søren Kierkegaard

Harry Barnes was Labour MP for North-East Derbyshire for the years 1987-2005. He writes about local life (especially Sheffield Football Club - the world's oldest club founded in 1857), Iraqi and Iranian events. Here are some posts that I enjoyed reading from the last couple of months. You have to navigate the blog via the archives or search facility, as Harry does not use labels or categories.

This morning Charlotte Green totally lost it on Today on Radio 4, after reading out a short piece about an 1860 recording of a human voice on smoky paper (which sounded like Just William playing his comb). Unfortunately she giggled through an obituary of Abby Mann. Here's the clip.

“Scots Tory Boy” (who is only two of those - I think - and I’m not telling you which) has been a few months away from blog reading. As a follow-on from last week’s Free For All Friday question from Mike Rouse, he has kindly contributed an article about finding the rhythm again. A walk in the wilderness Last year I was without a computer and internet access for six months so when I was back online it was great to start catching up with favourite blogs, see which ones were still going/gone and find new ones to ponder on. A return on the wild side They’ve all had six months of continuity. By which I mean (I feel a Rumsfeld coming on: ‘There is ongoing continuity which you live, there is continuity by the victors, and there is continuity that has not yet been written and of which we know nought’) that most blogs have running themes and, whilst posts may be tagged, three or more different topics can justifiably be under the same tags. A La Recherche du posts Perdu Then you try to catch up with six months of posts. No chance, short of taking another six months to do it. And sometimes the well can become poisoned Some posts are riveting, others not - but for me it is the overall feel of the blog that keeps me there or loses me, e.g. one particular blogger whose output I supported unconditionally, wrote a post which struck me as outright bigotry (ed: hope it wasn’t me about Bonnie Prince Alex). I have been back twice but I now have such a biased view of him that despite his otherwise common-sensical views I find him difficult to take seriously because I have no idea where or when he will revert to type. But what is his type - therein is the problem - we can think about anything I post before I publish but in vino veritas I may publish and regret a post. Was the dodgy one posted “having drink taken” or is he usually tipsy and a bigot when sober? In a moment of wishful thinking did the blogger say where exactly they wish their beliefs will lead. Either way, this guy lost me at that point - and he is trying to start a serious political party. (more…)

The Wardman Wire has just celebrated it’s first anniversary (the first post was about the noise caused by English Heritage concerts on Hampstead Heath on March 6th 2007). I’ve spent most of the last year building the blog to this point, and working on various short projects professionally. Now, I’m looking for gainful employment, while continuing to edit and build the blog further in my spare time and at weekends. I am available for short or medium term contracts, full time employment or one-off projects of all kinds. If you like the work that you have seen me doing on the Wardman Wire over the year, and have an opportunity that may be suitable for me, please email me on mattwardman AT gmail DOT com - and I will be pleased to talk to you. I’m based on the Notts/Derbyshire borders, and am happy to travel or work from home. Over the Easter Weekend I will post a more detailed cv on the site here. For the record, there have been 1350 posts on mattwardman.com, and we now have around 10 writers contributing to the blog. The combined February statistics for this blog and mattwardman.co.uk were roughly 60,000 unique visitors (and around 30,000 “absolutely unique visitors”), and 140,000 page views after filtering of robots, crawlers etc; our growth rate has averaged around 30% per month in unique users since September 2007. The other political sites I have developed over the year draw a similar amount of traffic in various niches. Tags: matt wardman, employment, hire-me

Arthur C Clarke, the science-fiction author, has died at 90. One of my favourite Sci-Fi authors - I liked his work because he never lost the human dimension. Clarke’s books were about fallible human beings learning to adapt to changed circumstances created by logic and his imagination. For me, that was always deeper than the approach taken by other authors trying to imagine technology developing far enough to become proto-human. Others will comment on his other achievements - such as the invention of geostationary satellites, and the scope of his contacts and writing. I’ll leave it there. Another writer who was formative for me gone. Tags: arthur c clarke, 1999 a space odyssey, obituary

Arthur C Clarke, the science-fiction author, has died at 90. One of my favourite Sci-Fi authors - I liked his work because he never lost the human dimension. Clarke’s books were about fallible human beings learning to adapt to changed circumstances created by logic and his imagination. For me, that was always deeper than the approach taken by other authors trying to imagine technology developing far enough to become proto-human. Others will comment on his other achievements - such as the invention of geostationary satellites, and the scope of his contacts and writing. I’ll leave it there. Another writer who was formative for me gone. Tags: arthur c clarke, 1999 a space odyssey, obituary

It seems to me that Steve Job’s application of Ockham’s Razor will continue. The keyboard will be abolished and we will all have to communicate with our Macs in morse code using the single mouse button. Hmmm. Tags: steve jobs, ockham’s razor, mouse button, macintosh, mac

I have been re-reading a book by Alistair Cooke: Memories of the Great and the Good (aff), a set of essays about figures in US life and culture from the 1930s to the 1990s. George Abbott was a Broadway Theatre Producer, was involved in his first broadway production in 1926, and his last in 1989. This is Cooke on George Abbott and his pacemaker, writing in 1995: “He lost his second wife in 1951, and for thirty-two years he was mostly alone. But twelve years ago, when he was ninety-six, he decided to marry again, a youngster in her early fifties. Last year he came into New York from his house up the river and pattered down the aisle at a revival of his Damn Yankees, just to be sure they were pronouncing the final t’s. Last week, he was busy at this favourite occupation, tinkering with, rewriting and revising a revival of Pyjama Game. This week, he died in his sleep at a hundred and seven. A dozen years ago, he had to have a pacemaker. He had a lifelong suspicion of doctors and their wizardry, and he wanted to know if “there was any snag to this thing”. Only, replied the doctor with well-rehearsed facetiousness, “that you’ll have to have a new battery after ten years”. “Hot damn!” said Mr Abbott. Ten years later, when he was a hundred and five, sure enough he had to have a new battery. “Hot damn!” said Mr Abbott, his chronic suspicion of doctors confirmed yet again. One day, in his late nineties, he was playing golf with his wife and for the first time, and who knows, perhaps the last, fell down on the fairway. In alarm his wife ran over to him, saw the long lean figure still prostrate and shouted: “George! George! Get up, please. Don’t just lay there.” He opened an eye. “Lie there!” he said.” (*) aff indicates an affiliate link. Tags: pen portraits, george abbott, damn yankees, pyjama game, alistair cooke

Freeform Fridays are a new experiment on the Wardman Wire: Im wondering about inventing Freeform Fridays, where I will give a platform to anyone with something interesting to say - a sort of virtual Speakers Corner. In my mind there needs to be somewhere on the blog which is relatively unstructured, to be a total change from the quite tightly timetabled nature of the rest of the week. Id see that as an opportunity for young or new bloggers to address a slightly wider audience - one of my priorities for asking people to write columns has been to look for good new writers, who would like the opportunity to write for a different audience or in a different style. Id like to see articles about eclectic political subjects on Fridays - for example how the mistresses of Charles II have an impact on life today, or a piece about the history of Hogarth, or even something about how political eras and movements can be studied by the distinctive hats they wore. Friday also needs to be more relaxed, partly because that is the feel of most of our workplaces and homes, but also to move the blog into the weekend mode. Id welcome any suggestions you have in the comments box below. As it happens, I am away on short notice (10pm last night) at the Jeecamp today, so as an experiment I have a few “lighter” postings myself today - and I have emailed the regular writers inviting any contributions. I wonder if anything will happen? Tags: freeform friday

Today I’m planning to attend the Jeecamp in Birmingham, which I only spotted (via Martin Stabe) last night. This is an unconference (i.e., a self-organising workshop - an intellectual Potluck Supper, if you will) around the theme of: JEEcamp is an opportunity for a range of people to get together to talk about how on earth journalists and publishers can make a living from journalism in the era of free information, what the challenges are, and what we’ve learned so far. It is also an opportunity for people with different skills and experiences to network, share those experiences, and perhaps suggest partnerships or new projects. The plan is that 2 and 2 will make more than 4. I’ll report back during the day, or at the weekend. Tags: jeecamp, martin stabe, unconference

This is the current front page at the Sun: The site is currently undergoing maintenance. Sorry for any inconvenience, please come back in a little while. Tags: the sun, under construction, site upgrade

This is the current front page at the Times Online: Times Online has got the builders in. We’ve closed for a couple of hours to make some improvements to the site. I wonder what is afoot? More later. Tags: times online, under construction, site upgrade

Every so often a sequence of as few as 3 words grates like a screwdriver on a blackboard. From the Independent’s “computer games” column this week, by Rebecca Armstrong the “Games Mistress” in a review of “Patapon“: …you’re the ruler of a bunch of winsome little warriors who can be manoeuvred through the beat of a tribal drum - but if you don’t have pitch perfect rhythm… Pitch perfect rhythm !!!! Aaaaarrrrgggghhh ! Presumably her lingerie is perfectly aerodynamic, her cold tap is perfectly articulate, the cornflakes she had for breakfast are an excellent building material, and the tyres on her car are ideally flavoured to the correct degree of orangey tastiness. This Games Mistress needs to be gently taught not to make category errors by the Belles of St Trinians (old and new versions below), if necessary by torture on the wallbars of the gym (sorry - I couldn’t find a picture of that scene). (more…)

I’m a life member of the National Trust. A highly recommended investment. But there are three of us who are members in the household, so we get three sets of everything: Handbook. Magazine. Regional Newsletter. Puffs for Appeals. Puffs for Third Parties allowed to use the list. Puffs for god-knows-what-else. Renewal reminders (does not apply to me). And all the rest. This morning I called them up and was able to opt out of everything, except for the things that matter such as the AGM mailing and Handbook. They have a system where you can opt out of individual items. And I still get to see everything. I reckon that will save a good chunk of tree each year. The phone number you want is 0844 800 1895. You will also need your Membership Number or Post Code, and will need to satisfy them that you are you (not too difficult). You know it makes sense. Tags: national trust, mailshot opt-out, gumf

Over at Poliblog Perspective I’ve put up a demonstration of the process that I go through when editing an article. Using Sadie Smith’s new Westminster Watch report, I have posted “before” and “after” examples. I have done the pair of articles as a tutorial demonstration for new people joining the blog, it may be of wider interest. Guidelines There are only a few guidelines I give to people writing for the blog, and I try to keep editing as light as possible: Nothing actionable (i.e., dont get me sued). Write as if for an intelligent tabloid publication or at the level of the Economist. Unless there is a good reason not to do so, use regular Subheads such that they convey the sense and flow of your argument or article. A good test is to delete the text, and see if the headings and subheadnings still give the gist of the article. Tags: wardman wire editing process, subheads, headingsm style guide, editorial guidelines

From Miss Wagstaffe observing Westminster (”Things you don’t see in the Senedd“) Checklist: Warm coat, scarf, hat, thermal underwear, whisky-filled hipflask, sandwiches, tea-filled vacuum flask, tissues, a reliable friend or companion, a large banner of your choice, and a speech prepared for the media. They get far more formidable man-eating creatures in the Senedd. Dig the crazy black leather coat. I’m sure there’s a Member of the Senedd who wears one like that, but I’m blowed if I can find them. And as for Holyrood… Tags: senedd, torchwood, welsh wagstaffe. welsh assembly, weevil

I note in passing that Guido has reached 666 on Technorati. If I post this to … say … Daily Tech Tips, I think that will put him back with the angels, as I don’t think I’ve linked to him from there before. Iain Paisley may consider himself vindicated. [Update 8pm. That’s better.] Tags: guido fawkes, tech tips

This is the second of three extra Blog Platform columns to outline the current writers and features on the Wardman Wire , and to look at future developments. This article talks about the “occasional columns”. Currently we have 3 of these. Not a Number Mike Rouse stopped writing regularly for the blog when he left 18 Doughty Street. The column covered the important area of the interaction of technology and new media, and how this would effect politics and political communication. This is a column I’d like to restart - as it is an area of rapid change and high interest. Free Speech I’m expecting Free Speech to be one of the main themes in UK politics over the next 5 years - especially as there have been increasing circumscribing of many different freedoms in the UK over the last decade. We gave extensive coverage to the Usmanov case, and will continue to do our bit to campaign for the right to freedom of expression in the UK - and in particular reform of the UK Libel Laws. Any politician who will commit themselves to reversing many of the repressive laws we have seen introduced - from the restrictions on demonstrations to the centralisation of personal information will be in a strong position to ask me for my vote at the next election. If there is a writer out there willing to contribute a weekly (or more occasional) article around Civil Liberties to the blog, this column is waiting for you. I should add that I am always willing to back good writers or bloggers who do not yet have much experience or a high profile. Hot Issue This is a column we wheel out when there is a currently contentious issue - it consists of a summary of different viewpoints, and some analysis from the writer. Wrapping Up I will add further occasional columns as and when seems necessary. There will be one more article in this series on Monday morning. I will put up a few indicators as to where I hope to take the blog over the next 3-4 months. Tags: hot issue, not a number, free speech, wardman wire

Back in early December I posted a run-down of the list of weekly columns on the Wardman Wire, using the excuse that the site “has been a bit of a building site recently with a lot of changes”. I’m pleased to say that the move from a personal political blog to a site with a wider team of writers is nearly complete - so there may be a bit more stability round here for the next few months (at least in terms of who is writing). This is an extra Blog Platform column to map out where we are and where we may be going. What Happens each Week I’m doing a rundown by day this time. There’s more to say, but I’ll keep this post as short as I can manage. Now that the rate of change on the blog is slowing down (at least in terms of new and guest writers), I’ll see if I can be more reliable at making sure that things appear on the right day. Our practice is - with one or two exceptions - to publish the column each day at 11:00am, to give time for the article to hit the RSS feed in time for the lunch break. Then nothing else appears until perhaps 4pm. As ever, the best way not to miss anything is to subscribe to our RSS feed. Nearly Every day “The Daily Roundup” is currently a roundup of 10 or a dozen newspaper stories designed to provide “blog fodder” for our readers. It focuses on interesting and occasionally unusual stories. On good days it is published around 1am; on not quite so good days with breakfast or a little later. As you can see from the podcast player in the sidebar, we experimented with a daily podcast - I hope to take that forward, but I’m thinking about a practical approach. The “Morning Funny” (which needs a better name) is a cartoon or joke which appears at the start of the day - usually at around 9:00am. There are agreements in place with 5 or 6 different cartoonists to reproduce their work, and I sometimes re-recycle a joke from the Adam Smith Institute Jokester; make that “used to re-recycle” - he has retired. Monday “The Day Job” is about what bloggers do when they are not blogging. I have only done one of these, and intend to increase the frequency. Tuesday “Politics Decoded” is Garbos weekly political comment column - running for 6 months now. Garbo publishes his “bon mots” before lunch on a Tuesday with the reliability of Mr Gordon asking Mr Cameron questions at PMQs instead of answering them. (more…)

I felt the first earthquake of my life this morning, at just before 1am. According to The Times, it was actually 12:56: Britain was shaken by a huge earth tremor at 12.56am this morning which was felt by people from Yorkshire to the South Coast. Thousands of people reported their homes being shaken violently and furniture moving and hundreds more took to the streets for safety and to check for damage. The epicentre of the tremor, which measured 5.3 on the Richter scale according to the British Geological Survey, was centred on the village of Holton cum Beckering, about 15 miles northeast of Lincoln. According to the US Geological Survey, the epicentre was 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) from the Earths surface. The tremor is the biggest in Britain since 1984 when north Wales was hit by a quake which registered at 5.4 on the Richter scale. I live in a very solid old stone house, and the feel was as of a sideways shake for perhaps 20-30 seconds coming up from the ground through my office chair. I am maybe 70 miles from the reported epicentre of Market Rasen. A long enough time period for the cats to look very worried. Police in the Midlands received more than 5,000 calls in hour and in Dudley 12 people walked into the police station in their pyjamas. People reported buildings as large as blocks of flats shaking for up to 30 seconds when the quake struck at 12:56:45. There was damage to property and localised power cuts but no reported deaths or serious injuries. An interesting experience, that will doubtless have been a boost to those couples at the crucial moment at the crucial time for whom the earth moved. Tags: earthquake, report of earthquake, earthquake in english midlands, leeds earthquake, 5.3 magnitude richter scale