October 13, 2008

Photo of the Day

Autumn. Mists and mellow fruitfulness and all that. The River Ettrick, as seen from the bridge at Selkirk. P1030985

13 Oct 2008 17:18:40 | Photo

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They Haven't Gone Away You Know The issue of whether the state can lock-you up indefinitely for up to 42 days without even the courtesy of telling you why is back. Happily, the House of Lords seems certain to reject the government's plans, sending them back to the Commons where, again hopefully, they will finally die. Here's Labour MP Tom Harris, however, explaining that if you opposed giving the state these powers you're a "civil liberties" (feel the sneer with which he writes these words!) nutcase and if there's another terrorist attack on Britain, it will be your fault... It’s no secret that, along with the great, wise majority of our nation, I support a radical extension of the length of time the police can detain terrorist suspects without trial. I don’t see it as a civil liberties issue at all - more of a civil protection issue. I won’t rehearse all the issues now because, unfortunately, most people have made up their minds about where they stand, and aren’t going to change their minds now. Not yet, at least. So the Lords will knock it back to us in the Commons, and we’ll have another vote on it, which I hope we will win. However,...
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Hats off to Gordon Brown? Commenting on this post, a reader asks: What does this do to Gordon Brown's political future? He sure looks like a world leader as the rest of the world falls in behind his bailout plan. Neither McCain nor Obama seem to have a clue what to do for the financial crisis, so I'm wondering if I should write in Brown's name for President in here in the U.S. Your opinion? This is a good question, not least because it permits one to escape from economics. My answer hunch, I guess, is that this will improve Gordon's position in the short-term but that he is still extremely vulnerable in the long-term. Yes, he's showing action right now. Yes, there are plenty of people who will like this renewed stamp of leadership. And yes, some voters will believe - or believe right now - that this is a "global problem" sent our way by the Americans and that, consequently, none of it is Brown's fault or responsibility. Certainly, Gordon is enjoying himself (a natural reaction to crisis, but one some voters may find somewhat unseemly). So, it's not absurd to think that, unlikely as it seemed just a couple of weeks ago,...

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