open Democracy News Analysis - Uncategorized - Comments

HeartBrokenDad on "Matt O'Connor and English Democrats part ways"

HeartBrokenDad — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:57:25 +0100

I have now experienced how Matt O'Connor operates first hand.

Unfortunately for him, I do not react well to threats, being bullied or lied to.

This blog has all the evidence - make up your own minds........

http://www.mattoconnorf4j.blogspot.com

Dave Hill on "The other London winner"

Dave Hill — Sat, 31 May 2008 09:28:17 +0100

Oh yes: Thank you Anthony and Sunder (forgot my manners for a moment there).

Dave Hill on "The other London winner"

Dave Hill — Sat, 31 May 2008 09:26:37 +0100

No mighty oaks of insight sprouting from you, Acorn dear. Not too clever with your spelling either.

Little Englander on "Arthur Aughey on Real England"

Little Englander — Wed, 07 May 2008 16:19:20 +0100

Gareth,

Let's not forget that a player will take part who has had a ban overturned by a foreign FA after a red card given in an English league game played in an English stadium and that potentially England may loose a UEFA cup place to a foreign team due to the spinelessnes of the organisation who supposedly look after the interests of English football!

Anax on "Arthur Aughey on Real England"

Anax — Wed, 07 May 2008 15:01:06 +0100

When has any quest for authenticity ever ended well?

Caspar Henderson on "Arthur Aughey on Real England"

Caspar Henderson — Wed, 07 May 2008 14:36:20 +0100

I have not yet read 'Real England', but am looking forward to it. This review strengthens my interest. If Paul Kingsnorth leaves some things out, such as the church (and maybe the Nonconformist tradition for all I know), that is to likely be because he is selecting from the past to help shore up his aspirations for the future. Almost all of us do this to some degree.

My impression is that from not long after the Act of Union with Scotland until well into the early 20th century, many English people talked boldly about England and Englishness to refer to all the inhabitants and customs of the islands that they liked. This kind of chauvinism is not surprising since the English, significantly in the majority, had already had a high regard for themselves for several centuries, but it is well lost.

Going back further, in Shakespeare's Henry V, Scots, Welsh and Irish 'mechanicals' serve cameo roles in a quintessentially 'English' drama about a band of brothers, made universal through the power of Shakespeare's poetry. That Henry confesses to actually being Welsh is one of the less subtle ironies in the play.

A friend tells me he read a medieval Italian description of the English as "drunken, godless and violent" . Not much has changed, he says (as a consultant in accident and emergency medicine, he should know).

I heard from someone of my grandfather's generation (i.e. born first decade of the C20) that Mohandas Gandhi's favourite English hymn was 'Abide With Me'. Is this anecdote true?

Gareth Young (Brighton) on "Arthur Aughey on Real England"

Gareth Young (Brighton) — Wed, 07 May 2008 12:30:41 +0100

I understand what Maria is saying - Britain was the vehicle through which the English were exceptional, as were the Scots and Welsh. But the English invested more of themselve into the project, and consequently are finding disengagement more complicated.

There is no necessary relationship between Kingsnorth's objectives, but killing two birds with one stone isn't beyond the realms of possibility. An English parliament isn't just about democracy - it could give the English a stronger sense of our-selves and prompt the debate about what really is England and what we want it to be.

As a point of interest, Abide with Me will be sung at this year's English FA Cup Final, along with the British national anthem and the Welsh national anthem.

Maria Scott on "Arthur Aughey on Real England"

Maria Scott — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:30:32 +0100

The English have always discussed themselves? When I was at school in the 60s and early 70s Englishness was always submerged under Britishness. It was as though England was to bear the shame for all the years of the British Empire - of which Ireland, Wales and Scotland were also willing participants.

There are faint anti-English twangs in statements like: "The English used to believe that what was particular to them was of universal significance, that they were both exemplary as well as exceptional."

No, Mr Aughey, if the English believed that anything was exceptional it was the "British" thing. England was subsumed by Britain many years ago and is now fighting to break free.

This is a country which faces a range of discriminations from "its" Government - like health apartheid, discriminations never seen in the so-called UK before. The health outrage alone would have the Left screaming if it was levelled against any other country.

Hopefully some exemplary and exceptional characteristics will be soon be allowed to shine again in England again as we shrug off the outdated yokes of "Britain" - just as they do in nations elsewhere.

After all, when it comes to regarding themselves as examplary and exceptional, Scotland and Wales have plenty to say about themselves. I dare say Ireland does too.

Thinking UK: Northern Ireland and the Calman Commis on "Scottish Parliament Commission meets"

Thinking UK: Northern Ireland and the Calman Commis — Tue, 06 May 2008 22:50:46 +0100

[...] Scotland Tories debate a Scottish independence referendumBilly Bragg returns to the frayScottish Parliament Commission meetsEngland and EuropeCEP [...]

Ray Bell on "A Gentle Reminder..."

Ray Bell — Mon, 05 May 2008 15:15:31 +0100

I think the loyalty in Scotland is to Labour. There is no particular affection for Brown.

Scott on "A Gentle Reminder..."

Scott — Mon, 05 May 2008 14:27:31 +0100

Much appreciated bringing the Scottish dimension into this, although the swing was 10% not 15%! Anyway the proverbial bomb exploded under Scottish society, media and politics yesterday as Wendy Alexander appeared to 'bring it on' to an independence referendum. I hope someone manages to prepare a piece on in on OK.

Dougthedug on "A Gentle Reminder..."

Dougthedug — Mon, 05 May 2008 13:27:53 +0100

Wendy Alexander, the Labour Parliamentary Group Leader in Scotland, has just called for a referendum on Scottish independence.

http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.2246882.0.Alexander_backs_independence_referendum_in_shock_Uturn.php

http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/latestnews/Wendy-39Bring-it-on39.4049804.jp

We’re still trying to work out whether this has been backed by Brown, (most probably as Wendy is his glove puppet in Scotland), whether the rest of the Labour party in Scotland thinks this way and how this fits in with any Labour strategies. It looks like a panic measure as SNP support grows and the implications of the debacle in the English local elections sink in.

Since Labour has always been vehemently against an independence referendum and as they’ve just set up the Calman Commission with the Lib-Dems and the Conservatives to look at all aspects of improving devolution except independence we’re all delighted but puzzled in the nationalist camp.

David on "A Gentle Reminder..."

David — Mon, 05 May 2008 12:48:41 +0100

Under a Cameron UK government, which now seems the most likely outcome (subject to Labour dumping Brown - also unlikely), while UK constitutional reform would be put on hold Westminster-side, the growth in demands for an independence referendum in Scotland would surely only accelerate: the increasingly SNP and Labour-dominated Scotland would not take too kindly to being dependent on a Tory UK government, whether or not it decided to 'appease' English-nationalist sentiment (which it wouldn't, anyway) through the sops of reducing the Barnett differentials and excluding Scottish and Welsh MPs from the committee stage of English bills.

Voting Tory could then ironically be the quickest route to breaking up the UK completely: via the independence route rather than the alternative federal model. One reason, perhaps, why English people will swing to the Tories at the next election! Prediction: either Scottish Labour will do a sneaky deal to get an independence referendum through before the next UK general election in the hope - from Labour's point of view - that it would be rejected; or - worst-case scenario - the Scots vote for it and the whole English Question and calls for UK-English parliamentary / electoral reform can be defused before a (rump) UK general election. Or Prime Minister Cameron does a deal with the SNP to hold a referendum after the 2012 Olympics, as he wouldn't want what would now be his showcase, not New Labour's, being ruined by a humiliating, 'Tibet-like' secession of Scotland from Team-GB. Either way, government for the English people by the English people could be on its way!

David, aka Britology Watch

Bebedora on "London's vote"

Bebedora — Sat, 03 May 2008 13:43:29 +0100

'A warning for the coming general election, the Conservatives spent their money well in the suburbs and this suggests that their targeting of the marginals will have a big impact on the House of Commons whenever the election is called.'

I doubt it - Tory voters are more likely than Labour voters to turn out already. There aren't that many additional voters to get to the polling stations. London-wide elections were anomalous in this, as apparently (and I don't have the figures, so correct me if I'm wrong) suburban voters perceived that the mayor and assembly concentrated only on central London, and were therefore irrelevant to them, so they didn't vote. 'Correcting' this might well have granted Boris victory, but I don't see how it could be repeated in a general election.

ourkingdom on "London's vote"

ourkingdom — Sat, 03 May 2008 11:50:40 +0100

Ray: little brokering was needed. Boris's overall majority was 140,000 with first and second votes combined. In "gin and jag" Bexley and Bromley Boris got a first vote majority of over 80,000, ie more than half his majority, thanks to Tory focus on the suburban turnout. See Boulton's analysis: http://adamboulton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2008/05/joke-boris-has.html