Winning Britain's Cities: A Liberal Vision for Urban BritainThe Liberal Democrats have achieved something remarkable in recent years. The strategy that delivered 72 MPs in 2024 demonstrated once again the extraordinary power of community politics, strong local candidates, and disciplined targeting. The mood at the last two conferences have been of celebration, but there's a growing disquiet amongst many following the May local elections: what comes next? In Britain's cities, liberal values ought to have enormous resonance. These are places shaped by diversity, mobility, economic opportunity, civil liberties, and the daily negotiation of how people with very different lives live alongside one another. Yet despite pockets of success ... (more) |
Etran de L'Aïr: ImouhaGershom Shahid once explained The Review: Tishoumaren (known as Desert blues outside of Africa) is a genre that consists of traditional hymns from nomadic Berber tribes infused with Western blues and rock music. The genre's roots are primarily found in the Maghreb (North Africa) and Sub-Saharan regions of Africa, mainly in the countries of Mali, Niger, Libya, Western Sahara, Algeria and Burkina Faso. Although this genre has been around since the mid-20th century, it has recently garnered some international attention. The band Etran de L'Aïr ("stars of the Aïr") was formed in 1995 by brothers and cousins raised in Abalane ... (more) |
Tom Arms' World ReviewCIA Why did CIA Director John Ratcliffe fly to Moscow? It definitely was not the "semi-routine" visit that Donald Trump claims. The last time the head of the Central Intelligence Agency visited the Russian capital was in November 2021 – and that was hardly routine. A study of the available reporting and surrounding circumstances point to a similar reason—with a few additional twists. The first reason is that American and British intelligence are reported to have picked up indications that Putin is considering testing NATO's Article 5 commitment by taking some sort of action against a NATO country. The most ... (more) |
DNA Methylation Clocks - what utility do they have?I have written about DNA Methylation itself on my 2026 poster page here. In short it is an indication of what genes are being transcribed and links to histone acetylation, methylation and many other post translational modifications. It was found that there is a weak link between ageing and DNA methylation and also a weak link between DNA methylation and the pace of biological ageing. A lot of (more) |
Farage channelling Trump againIf there is any doubt that Reform UK are just a poor-man's Donald Trump fan club then their latest proposals to change the way we vote should confirm it. The party's plan to bring in draconian new laws which could exclude millions from voting and would make it hard for non-English speakers to take part in elections are not just racist but also reflect the voter suppression tactics adopted by the Republican party in the USA> The Independent reports that Nigel Farage's party has published its "Election Integrity Bill" and has demanded that the government take its proposals as amendments ... (more) |
Dunston fairThis morning I took two of our goats to Dunston fair. Dandelion and Basil spent the morning and afternoon being given lots of apples and attention. My colleagues Peter Maughan, Marilynn Ord, Jason Meecham and Peter and Susan Craig were there as well. Particular mention is made of Emma from Dunston who took over the running of the fair some weeks ago. It probably wouldn't have gone ahead (more) |
Lloyd George, Liberals and Blue PlaquesRecently, our Chair was walking around Cowbridge in South Wales, a place he's been to many times, and noticed something new – a Lloyd George Blue Plaque. This got us thinking: have you, dear reader, noticed any blue plaques to Lloyd George or to historical Liberals? I'll be looking into this and I plan to make a list from the available databases. You can then follow the list and inundate me with your photos. Watch this space! The post Lloyd George, Liberals and Blue Plaques appeared first on Cymdeithas Lloyd George / The Lloyd George Society. (more) |
Cormorant released after being found wandering around Market HarboroughImagine my pride when the judges decided to award Headline of the Day to the Harborough Mail. I took this photo of a cormorant on the Nene in the centre of Northampton a few years ago. (more) |
The UK must stand up to the orange faced man-child as strongly as CanadaSo, the latest piece of stupidity comes out of the mouth of Donald Trump. Changing the name of a lake called Ontario and which has been called that for more than 400 years to Lake America. Even if this was a lone incident, we would have to say it is inane and stupid, but of course it is not a lone incident. He has also tried to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, he wants to incorporate Canada as the 51st state, he is laying claim to Greenland, and he claims that the Strait of Hormuz ... (more) |
The passenger ferry across the River Soar near LoughboroughHere's something I didn't know. There's a chain ferry that takes foot passengers across the River Soar at Normanton on Soar, where the river forms the boundary between Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire. The ferry operates on Saturdays and Sundays from the beginning of April until the end of September. A crossing costs £1 per person, with an additional charge of 50p for bicycles and dogs. A report on West Bridgford Wire says: The ferry, which is believed to be the last chain-operated passenger ferry of its kind in the UK, dates back to at least 1770. Estimates suggest a crossing may ... (more) |