Friday, 23 October 2009

Busy Bear Berkshire Bound

Blogging hasn't exactly been top notch in the last few days and is only going to get worse as TB is off to Berkshire for the sixth annual
Young Britons' Foundation
Conference. He will be a busy bear for a couple of days, but fingers crossed he will find some time to keep the stories coming. Imagine there will be some gossip too. Oh and wish him luck for tonight.

Ta-ra for now.

Very Sound Video

CFTV
is really warming up:



Also that music is very familier. Any clues?

Quote of the Day

"He was nervous, trembling, acting with exaggerated gestures, grinning at inappropriate moments and at times incoherent."

-
Iain Dale
discussing Nick Griffin.

Errrh remind you of
anyone
?


Thursday, 22 October 2009

#bbcqt Live Chat - Nick Griffin Edition



TB is not responsible for any views expressed here other than his own contributions.

Oh and Mods are Gods.

A Scene You Will Never See


You are selecting a candidate...

Imagine for a moment if you will, that you are on the selction panel to choose a PPC for your local seat. You are down to the final three:

Candidate A associates with crooked politicians, and consults with astrologists, had two mistresses, he also chain smokes and drinks eight to ten martinis a day.

Candidate B has been kicked out of office twice, rises from bed at 11am, used opium in college and drinks champagne, brandy, and whiskey to excess every day.

Candidate C is a decorated war hero, vegetarian, doesn't smoke or drink, and hasn't had any extramarital affairs.

Which would you choose? TB will expand in the comments later.

Today and Tonight

TB is all over the place today sorting out his life, he will however be back tonight and hosting a Live Question Time Chat from 10.30. Come join for the shouting, the hysteria, the laughter, the tears, the fascists and the BNP.

Prediction: Griffin is going to look like the utter plank he is and the "Anti" Fascist authoritarian thugs will do their cause no favour. Also money says we will see this man.

Looking forward to hosting the fun and games tonight. You will be able to sync your twitter account to the chat room, if TB can make that work. Also email him if you fancy moderating.

Bring some beers.


He Was the Future Once



Via the excellent

Tory Politico


Wednesday, 21 October 2009

Quote of the Day

"It seemed incredible that the prime minister should use parliamentary time to congratulate a disgraced home secretary for founding kindergartens when most of us believe this smug professional nag should be in court charged with £100,000 worth of fraud."

-Lloyd Evans in the
Speccie


Donny Bear?

TB isn't sure whether to

laugh or cry
?

Textbook BBC Bias

You would think that a story starting with "Conservative chairman Eric Pickles will apologise..." is going to be a embarrassing, negative situation. But no, it's just

appalling negative framing
by the beeb of what is actually are very positive story.

Not surprised, but come on, try be a little subtle.

+++Student Life Meeting Postponed+++

The question time panel for London Universities that was scheduled to take place tonight has been postponed due to diary clashes.

Guess you'll just have to wait to hear TB's pearls of wisdom.

Chuffed!

TB is very chuffed to have been nominated for the

Eric Forth Award for Activism
:

"Eric Forth was one of the true characters of British politics. A House of Commons man to his core, Eric not only knew parliamentary procedure inside out but he knew how – and when- to use the rules to maximum advantage. Eric was a committed Thatcherite and an admirer of Ronald Reagan. As Chairman of Conservative Way Forward and an advisor and friend of The Young Britons’ Foundation, Eric championed limited government, traditional values, freedom and the Trans-Atlantic Special Relationship. A man of principle, determination and courage, Eric Forth knew how important it was to be an effective activist and advocate for radical change.

On Eric’s premature death in 2006, The Young Britons’ Foundation inaugurated an annual award to be given to the young conservative activist whose attitude, ethos and effectiveness best mirrors the values, beliefs and achievements of Eric – The Eric Forth Award for Activism"


There is
stiff competition
too.

TB's money is on a certain northern rose.

Those heading down to
YBF6
will also get to hear TB speaking after dinner on the Saturday night at the 6th Annual Margaret Thatcher Banquet. One liners and anecdotes in the comments please.

#PMQs

Blogging and tweeting will be light given TB is there this week.

Well exciting.

Dictators, Murderers and Labour

Labour’s online sheep certainly didn’t like it when their line of attack over who the Tories sit with in Europe was fired straight back at them on Sunday.

Dan Hamilton over at CentreRight
has exposed even more scum who Labour choose to sit with in the Party of European Socialists. Once again how can they dare attack the Conservatives when they are in bed with this lot:

The first is the Social Democratic Party of Croatia, a party which enthusiastically endorsed the Presidential campaign of Stjepan "Stipe" Mesic - a man who in many former eastern-blok EU member states would be constitutionally banned from holding office as a result of the positions he held during Yugoslavia's communist dictatorship. A former Secretary General of the Non-Aligned Movement of the United Nations, Mesic's predecessors in this role include Fidel Castro, Josip Broz Tito, Robert Mugabe and General Suharto.

Secondly, the Labour Party enjoys formal links with the Social Democratic Parties of Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Both parties were formed in 1991 from the remnants of the two country's Communist Leagues which ruled with an iron-fist under the centralised leadership of Yugoslav "President for life" Josip Broz Tito from 1936 to 1980. At one point, Tito's favourite method of suppressing political enemies (there were, at one point, some 7,000 of them) was to exile them to the island of Goli Otok. Nobody will ever know how many thousands of malnutritioned and exhausted political prisoners died on Goli Otok, battered by the island's chilling winter winds and summer temperatures of more than forty degrees.

Inside the Party of the European Socialists, Labour is also tied to the Socialist Party of Albania. The party was formed in 1991 following the establishment of democracy in the country, yet is viewed as the successor party to Enver Halil Hoxha's Party of Labour. As First Secretary of the party, Hoxha presided over one of the bloodiest regimes in modern history and enforced the closure of each of Albania's 2,000 places of worship. On a lighter note, Hoxha also appeared to share eccentric former Turkmen dictator Saparmurat "Turkmenbashi" Niyazov's irrational hatred of beards, banning them outright.

Last but not least, we come to the Viktor Yanukovych's Party of the Regions (yes, he of vote-rigging, pro-Krelmin, anti-Orange Revolution fame). I do not need to remind ConHome readers that the tactics of Yanukovych's party during the disputed Presidential election were widely criticised by the British government with then Labour Foreign Secretary Jack Straw heaping criticism on their attempts to subvert the "democratic will of the Ukrainian people".


The line that “Oh it’s fine because we didn’t leave one moderate grouping to sit with extremists” is bullshit and frankly not good enough. Firstly the grouping that the Tories left were no saints and secondly Labour have very much choosen to sit with PES and continue to strengthen their relationships with it’s various unsavoury members. Spin and mud.

Obviously there is a simple solution to this problem. How do we avoid having to deal with fringe movements and unwanted European alliances? What can we all agree on?

Yep you guessed it correctly. We’d be better off out.

National Union of Labour

When David Lammy, the government's hilarious Higher Education spokesman, opens an envelope the NUS send out a press release congratulating him with Pyongyang style praise for his most excellent of ideas. They are also dangerously quick to bash the Tories for being meanies and drowning kittens in wells. Given that this chaotic and semi-redundant Labour controlled organisation could potentially be cut adrift under an incoming Conservative government that will have bigger things to worry about than pacifying their training corp, some might suggest it could be wise if they start strengthening their relationship with the blue team.

David Willets yesterday put out some fantastic ideas about

university access
:

"Shadow Universities Secretary David Willetts wants to see a government-sponsored website which will enable current students to help inform prospective students making decisions about university applications."

And yet last time TB checked the
NUS website
:

Yep. Not a squeak. Just dustballs and crickets.

Don't let anyone ever tell you the NUS is a non-partisan organisation.

Reshuffle Day Strikes Again

They all deny it is accurate in public, but the Labour triumvirate of former Cabinet ladies must have found the Westminster village screening of the first episode of the new series of The Thick of It brutal watching. Would recently dismissed/disgraced Hazel "the mortgage"Blears, Jacqui "porno film" Smith and Caroline "window dressing" Flint have turned up if they had known the episode showing was based around over promoted women on reshuffle day? Whoever sent the invites out definitely has a sense of humour.

Cast your mind back to that heady summer day! Smith made a hasty exit having sat through what must have been uncomfortable watching. Flint who quit in spectacular style, mid a Brown press conference apparently over the government's views on women, at least stuck around long enough to dismiss the show as inaccurate on the basis that "it's not really like that, there is a big board with postit notes getting moved around on reshuffle day, not that I was in No10, and when you speak to the PM there a three other people listening". Take note script writers!

In fairness there was a poignant moment, when the spinmeister general breaks the news to the new Minister that she is owned by the state, a mere puppet in a grander plan, at the mercy of the watchful press, none of the threesome were laughing.

The event was quite the who's who of closet Thick of It fans. A particularly strong showing from the CCHQ press office. TB's favourite Mr-Rent-a-Quote Parmjit Dhanda succeeded admirably at strengthening his well earned nick name by declaring the real reshuffle day was "much worse!" to the assembled crowd.

The new season of the show looks fantastic. TB was in stitches and it seems the new Saturday night slot is going to make for compelling viewing. Get use to seeing these guys a lot:

We have the Tory Flatmate, then Sam - who is really in the thick of it rather than.. oh you get what TB means. The new Minister of State, and of course good old Glen.

TB managed to have a quick natter with Armando Iannucci, the director and a long-term hero, who thankfully assured the bear that there was a blog/twitter related episode coming up and in true Thick of It style was conceived months before anyone had ever heard of loving the NHS or Kerry McCarthy.

Was a cracking night and TB is eternally grateful to
TV's Shane Greer
for the ticket. Sadly Jacqui politely declined the chance of a photo with the bear, but Mr Ianncci, despite pulling is best politically neutral face, was much more obliging.
Funnily enough given the last line of the episode, Nick Robinson was otherwise engaged!

Tuesday, 20 October 2009

The Thick of It

Apologies for the radio silence today. After Sister Bear's book launch last night it was a full on day of filming. Nearly getting arrested outside Blair's house was a particular highlight.

TB, thanks to the legend that is Shane Greer is at the Westminster screening of The Thick of It. Ah so excited.

Amusingly he is also right this very second sitting metres from Jacqui Smith.

Teehee.

Monday, 19 October 2009

Bear on Tour

After a successful event on Friday night in Cambridge, it's London's turn. The next
CF Student Life Tour stop
takes place this Wednesday evening at the Old Bank of England at 7pm.

Come along.


Tweet O'the Day

TB has a busy afternoon but will leave you with this fantastic tweet from The Telegraph's Bryony "The Breasts" Gordon (ⓒPrivate Eye):

Think someone is a little too excited about the new season of The Thick of It. Tweet O'the Day might have to become a regular feature. Back later.