Tempting Fate 270


This is the third time I have posted that there is a temporary hiatus in blogging but nothing to worry about, and subsequently ended up in hospital. Just discharged from Edinburgh Royal Infirmary after losing an unexpected argument with a piece of agricultural machinery. Between Eden Festival and that, I have missed the most fascinating fortnight in politics this year. Next time I have a break I shall put up a post asking you to worry a lot, then hopefully nothing will happen.


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270 thoughts on “Tempting Fate

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  • John Spencer-Davis

    Sorry to hear of your difficulties and wishing you well.

    I do not know if you are aware that Philip Cross has now been referred to the Wikipedia Arbitration Committee, so this is an opportunity for you to bring your evidence.

    If you are a Wikipedia editor, you can present evidence in the Philip Cross arbitration by going here:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Arbitration/Requests/Case/BLP_issues_on_British_politics_articles/Evidence

    If you wish to present off-wiki evidence, mail it to: [email protected]

    Best, John

    • John Spencer-Davis

      Also, George Galloway now has his address if you require it to begin legal proceedings.

      • Jon

        Interesting, thanks John. Do you sense that Galloway is going to take legal action? I wonder what basis he would use – harassment or libel maybe? Being rude on Twitter is still legal, as is journalistic bias and corruption.

        • John Spencer-Davis

          I have no idea what George Galloway would be suing for. Harassment, possibly, since Cross has been tweeting at him for ages, but it seems pretty thin. He could hardly sue for defamation, since he has said himself that he never looks at his Wikipedia page, so he cannot know whether Cross is putting inappropriate material on it, or not (and the evidence I have seen suggests otherwise: it is possibly more about keeping favourable material off than putting defamatory material on.)

          No, my sense is that there will be no lawsuit: George Galloway has a tendency to threaten lawsuits at the drop of a hat that do not materialize.

    • bj

      Re. Ahed Tamimi in the previous thread:

      It’s less funny to see the dexterous editing by one Philip Cross of Ahed’s wikipedia page.

      As a citation to her date of birth, he removed a reference to a petition(* to replace it with a reference to a court order for her detention.

      The former mentioned her date of birth (as 30 march 2001), the latter does not mention a date of birth at all.

      A man with finesse, but a vandal nevertheless.

      *)
      The petition, the reference to which our courageous keyboard warrior Philip Cross removed, is here:
      https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1122556/international-petition-seeks-1-million-signatures-plead-release-palestine%E2%80%99s

      • Dave Price

        Sad but not surprised to hear of this latest piece of Cross work. However if the reference is supposed to authenticate Ahed Tamimi’s date of birth then Cross was wrong to replace the document with a date of birth with one that doesn’t have a date of birth. So anyone can just put the previous reference back, with an explanatory comment. Philip Cross is not some kind of criminal mastermind – he does make mistakes, most often by overreaching. I’ve reverted and adjusted several of his edits and got the changes to stick.

        • bj

          That’s exactly what Philip Cross did — replace a reference to a news article about a petition for Ahed’s release (containing her date of birth) with a reference to an article on an Australian website containing no date of birth at all.

          To me this is also a first where Philip Cross has edited a page on a political subject that is outside the realm of strictly UK politics.

          Did I state anything about ‘a mastermind’?

          • Dave Price

            Well you did say ‘dexterous editing’ and ‘a man with finesse’ 🙂

            He is, as you say, a vandal and, as you imply, a coward hiding behind his keyboard.

  • Sal Newton

    Glad you are on the mend and back at the computer Craig. Looking forward to reading your views on recent events.
    ?

  • Republicofscotland

    I’m sure you’ll recover and “plough” on, your de-“tractors” have been somewhat missing you.

    As UK politics I hope we’ve reached a tipping point, towards Scotland leaving the union.

    • Muscleguy

      I’m with those who think the Union died this week. To cap it off Mundell has admitted, on Hansard and on YouTube that we are not partners in the Union, just a part of it.

      The masks are slipping, the urbane insouciance is draining away under the strain of leaving one Union while trying to keep another intact. They took their eyes off Scotland, have been paying us no mind thinking 2014 is the last word. The SNP at Westminster unexpectedly threw a strop, seized the front pages, made themselves Scotland’s champions again in the public mind.

      The scrambling produced Mundell’s bon mot. The man is incompetent, we all know that, not even in cabinet and obviously not on top of his brief. Forced with little preparation to answer hostile questions on the floor of the house he was not up to it and misspoke in response to a jibe. But the damage is done, it’s on Youtube. I might bookmark that on my phone to play doubtful folk on the doorsteps.

      The Union is dead, the corpse is still warm and the date of funeral is yet to be determined. As a biologist I know death is a process not an event so parts of it might still twitch but as a functioning whole organism going forward it is absolutely, beyond resuscitation deid.

      • Republicofscotland

        Muscleguy.

        Yes I’m inclined to agree with you, eyes have been opened, especially with Mundell admitting that the Tories will go on and legislate without consent.

        Also the lovely Conservative MP Ian Liddell-Grainger yelling out suicide in the HoC, when SNP MP Ian Blackford asked the Speaker of the House, what other recourse was open to him. The alway effervescent Mr Liddell-Graingerwas later quoted saying that the SNP MP’s were a bunch of petty wankers.

        • reel guid

          Ros

          Liddell-Grainger is a real hardcore Tory yobbo. In February 2014 the Evening Standard reported Liddell-Grainger saying the Environment Agency chairman Chris Smith was “a little git” and that he’d “like to shove his head down the loo and flush”.

          During floods Smith had been visiting Somerset where the Tory MP’s constituency is. The Standard also quoted a message from Liddell-Grainger that “I’ve got all my farmers, we’re waiting for him, I want to get this ruddy man”.

          But obviously Bercow likes to indulge him nevertheless.

  • Node

    …. after losing an unexpected argument with a piece of agricultural machinery

    Sounds like it gave you a good threshing! Nice meeting you at Eden, Craig. Get well soon.

  • Lea

    Happy to see you are back in one piece, and also that you brought back your sense of humour with you.

    One day, I witnessed a funny conversation between two Muslim people. It went something like, “See you tomorrow, inshallah”, “yes, Ok, inshallah. Will you come with you mother?”. “Of course, inshallah. Right here where we are today, in front of this booth, Ok?”. “As you say, Ok, inshallah”.

    Turns out there was a point to all these “inshallah”.

  • Michael Strubell

    I dread to think in what mangled shape you left that piece of agricultural machinery. Glad you’ve rrecovered, and are a wiser man.

  • Garth Carthy

    Glad you’re back in one piece, Craig and I hope you are making a quick recovery.
    Take care – the world needs people like you.

  • bj

    Just discharged from Edinburgh Royal Infirmary after losing an unexpected argument with a piece of agricultural machinery

    Better than to be discharged from Salisbury Hospital after losing an unexpected argument with a piece of door fittings.

  • MJ

    It’s never advisable to use a combine harvester to trim your fingernails. My grandfather taught me that.

  • Carl

    Good to hear you’re engaging with the soil, Craig, very good for the spirit. Just be more careful with yourself. Yours is an important voice.

  • J

    That made me laugh. But please, be careful! The Rakes having been spoiling for a fight here too, they’ve been a Forking pain, so don’t throw in the Trowel just yet. Sometimes an event like this is a good Rotavator to get back in Strim, Hoe, Hoe, Hoe.

  • doug scorgie

    “Upskirting to be made criminal offence with two-year prison sentence under proposed law.”
    (Telegraph)
    ………………………………………………………………

    I wonder if upkilting will be included in the bill?

    • Sharp Ears

      No. Blocked by Chope. Why was that? He doesn’t like ‘Friday afternoon flabby legislation’!

      New upskirting law blocked by Tory MP
      “Shame” is shouted in the Commons as MP Christopher Chope blocks the new bill.
      16 minutes ago
      From the section UK Politics
      https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-44496427

      Related content
      Video Victim’s fight to change the law
      ‘Upskirting’: It happened to me
      I was a victim of ‘upskirting’ – but I’m fighting back
      https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics

  • J

    Very rum doings here, paedophiles with impunity. Our local loudmouths are welcome to weigh in:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAMcVquIe2o&feature=youtu.be

    Also for our resident Social Justice Warriors, they know who they are, I sincerely hope they’ll find this case as worthy as that of Tommy Robinson:

    https://www.ukcolumn.org/article/abuse-witness-melanie-shaw-remanded-no-evidence-presented

    https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@markwhittam/whistelblower-melanie-shaw-imprisoned-for-exposing-abuse

  • Bettino Craxi de cuius in Tunis since early 90s

    Hope all the prosthetics are bedding down nicely.

    • reel guid

      Ros

      Others 11%. That can only mean a large vote for the SNP. Still, it’s indyref2 we require. Not another Westminster GE.

      • Republicofscotland

        Yes reel guid, however I doubt we’ll see a second indyref before the conclusion of Brexit. The proposed Brexit date is the 29th of March 2019, though the way things are going, even that might change.

        I have read that, unofficially, that if the PM refuses to give her consent to a second indy ref vote. That the next Holyrood elections to be held on the 6th of May 2021, might also act as a vote on independence.

        Hopefully they’ll be a vote on the conclusion of Brexit.

        This is rather interesting.

        “Per capita, the SNP’s 7,526 membership increase in under 48 hours would be around a 93,296 increase for a UK-wide political party.”

        https://mobile.twitter.com/rosscolquhoun?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwingsoverscotland.com%2Fthe-bonehead-parade%2F

  • Marc Meyer

    Sorry to hear about your misfortune! I hope that particular argument is all you lost in the process. The last time I did a similar thing (and not even with proper agricultural machinery) I ended up with an odd number of toes…

    Wishing you all the best and looking forward to your forthcoming thoughts…

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