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Monday, May 29, 2006
Yet another reason to boycott the National Lottery

Ken Loach's love letter to the "Bold Fenian Men", The Wind that Shakes the Barley turns out to have been part financed by the National Lottery. How does he find the nerve to accept money from it?

This is the delightful man I saw quoted in a French magazine (I've translated from the original) thus: "I don't know why is it called Great Britain, it is just a small island off the coast of *France*". I wonder if the French would care to fund his next venture, or better still take him off our hands completely.

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posted by Croydonian

Sunday, May 28, 2006
Geoffrey Robinson

Spotted in Godalming on Friday circa 6.30 PM with a suitcase on wheels. Babysitting your constituency in Coventry, eh?

posted by Croydonian

Anyone But Ken

I have been invited - and have of course accepted - an invitation from Dizzy to help out on his excellent Anyone But Ken blog. Given the horrors that Livingstone is inflicting even on we unfortunates out in the deep 'burbs, Dizzy is doing an outstanding job of publicising what is being done to the denizens of Londongrad, ably assisted by EU-Serf. I hope that I can help to maintain the high standards already set.

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posted by Croydonian

Tuesday, May 23, 2006
BBC coverage of Israel

"BBC correspondent Caroline Hawley in Jerusalem says it is not clear why the army moved against Hamad."

So, being the architect of mass murder is insufficient reason to seek his capture? Maybe the Israeli government won't go along with the BBC's agenda that it is in the way of all of those nice moderate Arabs and allow itself to be homicide bombed out of existence in order to please 'anti-Zionists'?

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posted by Croydonian

Monday, May 22, 2006
A new job for Brown?

Mike Smithson has stuck his neck out and has argued that Broon may yet fail to secure the leadership of the Labour Party as and when Blair resigns / is 'assassinated' etc. Now this would give me at least as much pleasure as left leaners derived from the decapitation of Grocer Heath and his resultant 30 year sulk. So, if Broon stumbles, would he take on the Heath option and stay on in Parliament, or might he chance his hand at Scottish domestic politics?

However, there may well be more amusing options: Governor of South Georgia, Ambassador to Iraq etc. Anyone care to make a suggestion or two?

Clearly inspired by this, New Woman has asked Mrs Broon the same question, and she reckons a football manager. I could see Brown making Alec Ferguson look like Emlyn Hughes.... Anyway, Clooney to play Brown is clearly absurd. I suggest Dan Hedaya (who normally looks even angrier):

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posted by Croydonian

Friday, May 19, 2006
Thatcher a heroine to New Statesman readers..

One would need a heart of stone not to snigger at the magazine's discomfiture. Doubtless Geoffrey Roberston must be terribly disappointed that would be Lord Protector Gordon doesn't feature.

posted by Croydonian

Thursday, May 18, 2006


Buy it now - you know it makes sense.

19/5 Hmm - so much for it being available in one's nearest Waterstone's. It certainly isn't to be found in Croydon as yet. Bah, but at least they had the latest Orianna Falacci.

17/6 Finally got my greasy little mitts on a copy. Now to avoid the 'eating a whole box of chocolates in one sitting' sydrome....

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posted by Croydonian

Monday, May 15, 2006
The Sandalistas all over again

Ah, the metropolitan left - aren't they amusing in their own silly way. Before even asking the basic questions about a packed judiciary and all sorts of other blatant abuses of power, I just wonder if the Pinters / Abbotts / Bianca Jaggers of this world would be happy to share a space with someone who commented about another group of people in these terms: "minorities, the descendants of those who crucified Christ, have taken over the riches of the world". Somehow I doubt that they would find similar comments about other ethnic groups gave them quite such a frisson of excitement. I expect this "If you are going to compare me to the worst criminal in humanity - the president of the US; He is an assassin. He is a criminal responsible for genocide, completely immoral" transported them to an unparalleled ecstacy. Especially Livingstone: "I sometimes have views on George Bush - not too dissimilar from yours". Ken Leninspart, as Private Eye calls him, makes the Hartlepool monkey look a model of civic rectitude and dignity.

Meanwhile, Chavez looks like a typical Latin American populist strongman, only with quasi-situationist tendencies, and one might note that Tom Wolfe skewered the precursors of Chavez's fan club to very good effect in 'Radical Chic'.

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posted by Croydonian

Sunday, May 14, 2006
Brushed with greatness dept.

I've been linked by Iain Dale, which is nice.

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posted by Croydonian

Monday, May 08, 2006
Mark Oaten, what were you thinking?


Given that anyone can read this, I'll steer clear of any exposition of Oaten's predilection for Belgian vices, but the idea that losing one's hair pushes one to seek ritual humiliation is to say the least, curious. It is almost a truism that those who seek such extreme forms of, erm, entertainment tend to be the rich and the powerful, so if MO was feeling low because of his alopecia, why would he want to be punished still more? Surely it would make more psychosexual sense for him to want to give rather than receive?

Meanwhile, time for a gratuitous literary reference, courtesy of Doctor Donne:

Thy sins and hairs may no man equal call ;
For, as thy sins increase, thy hairs do fall.

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posted by Croydonian

Mr Thumbs Up gets his comeuppance

Absolutely nothing to do with either politics or Croydon, but there is much jubilating at Croydonian Towers that Apple Computer has triumphed in the lawsuit brought by Apple Corps. Not only should this mean that the biennial shakedown by a company owned by multi-millionaires that has produced nothing of any value in living memory comes to an end, but also that Apple Computer has been awarded costs is the icing on the cake. Suh-weet - unless one of the world's most tedious, muse-less musicians seeks to put out another compliation of his saccharine music. Honourable exception for George Harrison's estate, as he bankrolled Handmade Films.

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posted by Croydonian

Friday, May 05, 2006
The Red Terror ends in Croydon

Hurrah, some good news for once. And the first time in living memory I've had a non-socialist council.

Fortunately the BNP failed to get seats in either Fieldway or New Addington, where there had been some rumbles to the effect of that being possible. The tireless John Cartwright of the Loonies again failed to get elected. Given that much of what he says is eminently sensible, quite why he persists in the MRLP approach is a bit of a mystery.

Peering more closely at the results, the old having a name early in the alphabet seems to have paid off for some. Other oddities include the Tory Asian candidate in Fairfield outpolling the 'anglo' Tories, but the reverse happening in South Norwood. Would this be due to Asian folk being more willing to vote for Asian candidates and likewise with anglos? Curious.

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posted by Croydonian