Oh dear

It appears that the BBC2 drama I plugged here, has dropped something of a bollock with a Guidoesque mock-up of a blog pretending to be a sort of PopBitch for Westminster copulation. Quite a good idea you may think, but the problem is in the execution. It’s rubbish.

Via: Ministry of Truth

The irregular photo of the day

Simple view - Spisz region, originally uploaded by Jarek Majcher.

I understand this region is in Slovakia and Poland. Maybe one of my European based readers can help?

Coming to a store near you

Hat-Tip: GU Newsblog

A This Life for the Westminster crowd?

I’m sure it’s entirely exaggerated and trashy, but Party Animals, the new BBC2 political drama should be worth a watch.

Tonight BBC2 9pm.

I can’t imagine it’ll be as cutting or as good as Armando Iannucci’s The Thick of It, but at least it promises more shagging.

The Bolívarian revolution is on the march

The Venezuelan parliament has handed President Hugo Chávez sweeping new powers that will empower him to reverse the neo-liberal privatisations of previous governments. He also plans to use the new powers to devolve power back to the grass roots by creating communal councils.

Bush’s intelligence Tzar, John Negroponte, claimed Chávez poses a threat to democracy by promoting “radical populism,” which, we can only assume, is contrary to Bush’s preferred “radical un-populism.” Ha!

The GP contract balls-up

I’m struggling to find time to blog at the moment (although I hope to get something written tonight), however, if indeed you required further evidence of ministerial incompetence - check this out. In his third term Blair has gone for loyalty over competence (understandable when you consider the TB-GBie infighting).

Brown needs to have a serious clearout. There is a lot of dead wood in the Blair cabinet. Even Paul Burgin over on Mars Hill has had enough. Tick tock, tick…

Super Blunder

So Manchester is going to be the home of the Government’s Super Casino.

The Casino Advisory Panel has decided, much we assume to the chagrin of Precott’s buddy Philip Anschutz, that Manchester is a more worthy locale for the leviathan entertainment complex than Blackpool or The Dome.

This is a decision as surprising as London gazumping of Paris for the 2012 Olympics, and equally as misguided. I’m not suggesting that The Dome or Blackpool would make a better home for a huge casino-town, no I would argue that the whole idea of a super-casino is a tragic move for a supposedly progressive government.

Businesses should be free to operate freely in as unregulated a market as reasonably feasible, and if that means casinos and tittie-bars, then so be it (let local residents worry about that, let them control developments locally). But for a government of left, or any government for that matter, to be actively encouraging and promoting a gambling culture is incredibly reckless.

In Russia gambling is a major social ill. Even small suburbs have casinos. The Orthodox Church does a great deal of good work in helping those who are addicted to gambling. Such is the extent of the problem in Russia; new laws have been passed to outlaw gambling in the towns and cities by 2009 (itself moving all gambling operations to four super-casino sites far from the major towns and cities). But here in Britain we are encouraging more casinos in our towns (there are three classes of casino being proposed: Super, Large, and Small).

This ‘progressive’ government is planning on actively encouraging its people to become enslaved to the curse that is gambling. Who could have dreamt that a party that was founded in part by the temperance movement would bring such a plague on the homes of so many? They should be ashamed of themselves.

tyger’s bookshop

In search of a good political read?

Then why not visit my bookshop.*

*Shopping at tyger’s bookshop and clicking on the advertiser links helps him maintain the site, and could possibly contribute to the site going full-time, so please, help out a friendly tyger.

The veil of anonymity

When I first started blogging I wrote under the pseudonym ‘tyger’ – hence the name of the blog. Obviously anonymity has its advantages on the web, especially when debating emotive subjects like politics, but with me being so despicably egotistic, it was never going to last. Being anonymous also makes no sense when you have ambitions to be a writer, so I now openly blog as Aaron Heath. However many bloggers maintain the guise of anonymity ad nauseam.

Unity, of the brilliant Ministry of Truth blog, and PragueTory are but two, although of course PragueTory’s own brand of subterfuge is less successful. As Guido has found, maintaining anonymity can be difficult as your star ascends. Blog readers are - almost by definition - informed and tooled to dredge up clues and facts to decipher any cyber-mask. Bloggerhead’s Tim Ireland has gone to town exposing Guido in his mock-up blog Guido 2.0, and Guido has retaliated by framing Ireland as an ‘obsessed’ voyeur. Tim, being Tim, revels in the bitterness in Guido’s reaction. It’s very entertaining to watch.

A lot of people have cried foul when some bloggers have been exposed by other bloggers (usually the right claiming ‘blog honour,’ just before they slip a knife into Bob Piper’s back), and obviously for some bloggers, maintaining the veil of secrecy is very important (NHS staff, civil servants etc), but in Guido’s case I’ll defend Ireland and Unity. Paul Staines’ identity has never really been much of a secret, because if we’re honest, the whole Guido guise has always been more of a brand to Staines rather than a defence mechanism.

Guido claims to be a conspirator and a dissident, but he is using the blogosphere to build a brand, and there is little radical about that. Sources tell me he desperately wants to be the MTV of the blogosphere, and in this he’s a doing a fine job, because the Guido brand is aping MTV perfectly. Both MTV and Guido try so desperately to be cool (in a way only things run by rotund middle-aged men can), and yet still remain firmly part of the establishment. Anyway, what’s so great about MTV? They even bleep out the word ‘fuck’ on South Park. That’s so lame.

Get a Mac - UK Styleee

Brilliant!

Apple have revamped the ‘Get a Mac’ ads using Brit comedy duo Mitchell & Webb (previously they starred a couple of American dudes). The ads are currently doing the rounds on CiF (Ms Henry will be happy), and they’re far more sardonic than the saccharine yank versions.

Some classic Mitchell & Webb…

Wigan to sign Nigerian whippet

I don’t comment on football very often, but I know a little bit about Wigan’s latest obscure target having seen him play several times. Wigan have had money burning a hole in their pocket for a while, and it looks like they’ll finally get to splash the cash. From the BBC: -

Wigan are set to sign Nigerian World Cup striker Julius Agahowa in a £2m deal from Shakhtar Donetsk. (Daily Mirror)

This guy is quick, very quick.

It’s as if Gandhi never existed

Let’s get one thing straight, blowing up civilians is never a ‘natural reaction.’

The irregular photo of the day

llibreria, originally uploaded by Mor (bcnbits).

Just a few more mintutes…

Coffee dreams

Everyone loves a dig at a huge American conglomerate (and I’m no exception).

Starbucks has become much more than just a coffeeshop, it’s a lifestyle choice, and thousands of willing Brits have signed up to an existence defined by over-priced coffee, blueberry muffins, and tapping their feet to the latest Nora Jones record. This is the Starbucks life, and to be honest, it’s a damn site better than the reality for most people. Maybe us lefties should just let them have their caffeine-fuelled dreams, and stop bitching?

The irregular photo of the day

Christmas Day On San Francisco Beach, originally uploaded by flopper.

Now that is a sky.

Always wanted to go to San Fran.