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Posts Tagged “Politics”

Sipping Socialism (via Podcast)

Posted on April 9th, 2009 by Rich

As a five year old in 1977, punks scared me. In the village where I grew up there were only two bits of graffiti that I can recall, one was the anarchy symbol, daubed large by the shoe shop, and the other was the word “sex pistols” enhancing the wall near the public toilets, [...]

United States of Emergency

Posted on September 30th, 2008 by Rich

In March, the US federal reserve made a 29 billion dollar investment bailing out the collapsing Bear-Stearns bank. Last month the behemoth mortgage lenders Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac were underwritten to the tune of 200 billion dollars. Yesterday the seven hundred billion dollar bail-out bill on federal intervention in financial markets was [...]

One million road petitioners can’t be wrong, can they?

Posted on February 11th, 2007 by Rich

The experimental petition system that Downing Street is running has generated it’s first 1,000,000 signature petition: it asks the PM to “scrap the planned vehicle tracking and road pricing policy” and it’s a great example of how public opinion is not necessarily good for the public.

The Gift of Reason?

Posted on January 26th, 2007 by Rich

There’s an interesting pledge underway at pledgebank which aims to find 646 people (one for every UK constituency) who are willing to purchase and send their local Member of Parliament a copy of The God Delusion, the latest book by Oxford University Professor for the Public Understanding of Science, Richard Dawkins.

Jedi/Sith unite over adoption row

Posted on January 24th, 2007 by Rich

The Empire has backed the Jedi Council in its bid to be exempt from laws on adoption by families of fewer than three genders.
Jedi leaders from Coruscant to Endor say its teachings prevent its masters placing children with lifeform collectives that only comprise one or two genders and have threatened to close their adoption centres [...]

British President / Retire the Monarchy

Posted on November 15th, 2006 by Rich

When re-reading the International Declaration of Human Rights the other day, I found myself mulling Article 1 repeatedly: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
Shortly after, I found myself thinking the unthinkable. I found myself thinking Republican thoughts.

Petiton the PM

Posted on November 15th, 2006 by Rich

The British Government has never been more accessible and the DirectGov website now boasts over three million unique visitors per month, a figure that’s rising by 10% each month.
Those users are primarily discovering public service information and not having an active say in government, but something is changing in a small but significant way: you [...]

Sentencing Saddam Hussein to Death Seems Misguided

Posted on November 5th, 2006 by Rich

BBC news have been extensively reporting that former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein has been sentenced to death, following his conviction for crimes against humanity. This sentence shows that a respect for human rights is not a part of the freedom that has been offered to the Iraq people by “the coalition of the willing”.

Essex council turns off the lights

Posted on July 14th, 2006 by Rich

Q: How many Essex girls does it take to change a lightbulb?
A: The same number as before, but the lightbulb lasts longer because its used less.

Two Nuclear Fallacies

Posted on January 23rd, 2006 by Rich

Nuclear Energy is neither carbon-free, nor is it a secure energy, yet our government representatives appear to be drinking in everthing the Nuclear Industry offers them.
This morning on the BBC’s Breakfast Television programme we were treated to an interview with Alan Johnson MP, the Trade and Industry Secretary. The interview follows coverage of the [...]