DM Andy's Bits and Pieces

From the News Of the World: "The discussion then turned to the manager of Club One. We cannot identity him or the club for legal reasons. We will call him Coach X.

Reporter: 'There's a chap who comes on television, I always think he looks like a stereotypical dodgy manager, X. You see the way he comes across, he really does...'

Sven: 'He's the worst.'

Still: 'He's the worst?'

Reporter: 'He's the most corrupt?'

Sven: 'Yeah.'"

I haven't got a clue who he might be talking about.

Meanwhile Pompey lost 5-0 to Birmingham.

Really, Judge John Deed is a pile of tosh. This week, a baby being allowed to die because a hospital wants to save money? I work in NHS finance and nothing like that could happen, I'm disgusted that the BBC wants to smear my profession so regularly.

World Cup ticket orders heavily oversubscribed

"Orders for 250,000 tickets for this year's World Cup in Germany on offer in the final sales window are set to be oversubscribed about 18 times, organisers said on Friday, two days before applications close."

And in other breaking news, sun rose in the east, astronomers report.

Hat tip to Iain Dale who pointed to yesterday's Inverness Courier article about Charlie Kennedy, The I'm no alcoholic, says Charles, the bit that caught my eye was this bit in a rambling explanation of why he should still be leader.

"...the week before Christmas, in a council by-election, we won a safe conservative ward with a 70 per cent swing in our favour - after David Cameron has taken over as leader of the Tory Party."

I've been doing some checking on the ALDC site and I can't find any LD win with 70% swing at all. This is the FULL list of all elections in December with the LD-Con swing. I assume he means the Forest Heath DC by-election in Red Lodge which was a gain with a swing of 37.8% which is superficially impressive unless you realise that the previous election was Conservative 56%, Independent 44% and the Lib Dems didn't stand.

Also it would be ignoring the Bournemouth by-election in Littledown & Ilford on the same day where this in 2003

Liberal Democrats 50.9%
Conservatives 30.9%
Independent 11.9%
Labour 6.2%

into this a week before Christmas

Conservatives 67.8%
Liberal Democrats 20.0%
Labour 8.3%
BNP 3.8%

That's a 34% swing LD to Con

If he's going to take individual council by-elections as a vindication of his performance, Kennedy ought to make sure the facts match the spin.

Weebl and Bob reach number 100 (warning very big file)

Alito, at Hearing Pledges an Open Mind on Abortion

Hang on, a nominee for the highest court in the US reckons that he doesn't have a view on abortion rights. Has the man been living under a rock since Roe vs Wade? Assuming that Judge Alito is an intelligent and well-read man, which surely he is to be on the verge of the Supreme Court, he has surely lied to the Senate Judicary Committee.

But I don't blame Alito, I blame the system that has produced it. To be confirmed as a Supreme Court Justice, you have to pretend to you have never thought about abortion rights. Alito's lying, the Senate knows he's lying, but if he had spoken his true mind in either direction his nomination would be dead.

It's getting like that here, the public say they prefer politicians who speak their mind but actually elect the wishy-washy, can't say anything that might make anyone less likely to vote for me type politico.

Just watched Life on Mars and I was blown away. Is it all imagination? I think it so, but because it's obvious might mean it's not. With Lost finishing this week, I think I've found another reason to own a TV.

If I were a Tory, my head would be spinning. A week after shelving the patient's passport, Cameron has ended the Tories opposition to university tuition fees.

I love this quote

"You want to go to universities that are well-funded, [with] good tutors, good facilities and I want as many people who think they're going to benefit from university to be able to go.

"If you want those things - and as you also know we've also got to keep taxes down in this country - the money's got to come from somewhere."

Welcome to the real world, Dave.

Posted this in response to Iain Dale's plea for big government to protect middle-class investments So Your House is About to go Over the Cliff

I'm sorry Iain but that sob story just doesn't cut it with me.

Di has been unlucky in that she's the one in possession of that property when it disappeared but she cannot be considered blameless.

Di probably got the property for cheaper than the going rate. In the article there are the examples of the Isle of Wight properties going for £65k when similar properties not threatened by erosion are worth 5 times that price. She was told at the time that it was safe for 100 years, but you can't predict the weather for 100 years. All it was and all it should have been treated as was an estimate.

If it had been really 100 years and in the 26 years since only a quarter of the garden had gone, then Di would have been happy. But she took a gamble against the weather and now the weather's won, she wants the state - me and you to pay out as if she'd won. As she herself says "Even then we thought someone would stop it before it got to us... I thought I'd be able to sell up and enjoy a nice retirement." Well, she can have a nice retirement, she can have a little council flat and a state pension like millions of other people have no choice but to do.

Also I have difficulty believing Di's account - David Will says that he's been concerned about Happisburgh since the 70s - that is during the time when Di lived in Happisburgh but before she bought the doomed houses. Note two houses - I would have more sympathy if it was just a home, but it was an investment.

And despite his concern David Will's still selling bungalows near the cliffedge. They are safe for 25 years he says, but as we both know, a bad storm this winter could cut that time in half. Will you be campaigning for state money for those new buyers too ten years down the road?

This is sadly typical of you, Iain. Antipathy against poor people but if middle class property owners might lose a bit of money then you want the state to step in. What about all the people who will never be able to buy property - near a cliff edge or not?

I saw on BBC George Galloway repeating that old chestnut defending his decision to enter the Celebrity Big Brother house.

"More young people vote during Big Brother than in the general election. I hope they'll all be voting for me over the next few weeks."

I've blogged about it before and that myth was demolished by the BBC last May. Closing paragraph:

"But next time a politician appears on television claiming Big Brother is more popular than the general election among young voters, it is worth bearing in mind that they are almost certainly wrong."

Incidentally, if they vote for you this week, they'll be voting to evict. Don't you mean "I hope they'll all be voting for me, but not yet"

Well, he's gone and no surprise, but I feel immensely sorry for him. Living in Yeovil for the past nine years I have come to despise the two-faced character of many Lib Dem politicans (though I do respect a couple of them). Today Kennedy has fallen victim to the gutless cowards in his own ranks.

I think that after the next election, there will be many Lib Dems who will have that nagging doubt in their mind that they will have done better with Kennedy at the helm.