What To Do About The Census ?

I just caught the end of a story on the radio last night about the 2011 Census.

I must have been asleep when the list of questions was first published back in the autumn. Apparently this "questionnaire" runs to 32 pages, asks about your religion (only God knows what that's got to do with the government) your nationality, whether you're in a same-sex relationship, how your house is heated and, get this, the "address, the first name, last name, sex, date of birth, connection to the household or accommodation and usual address or country of usual residence if outside the UK" of every overnight visitor on census night on 27 March 2011.

The Conservatives, having (when in Opposition) talked a good game about the Census being too big and in need of being scaled back are now (in Government) muttering meekly about the expense having already been committed and it being too late to stop the juggernaut.

Which appears to leave us with a few decisions of our own to take. I'm really not sure if I can bring myself to claim to be a Jedi but there must be some pretty decent other potential answers out there.

I can't quite work out why there isn't more noise on the blogosphere about this; perhaps the talk of mass civil disobedience is still to come.

Incidentally, in these days when the government is supposed to be scaling back its Internet presence in order to cut costs, it's good to see, that more than half of the top 20 returns to a Google search for "Census 2011" reveals links to various (and different) government propaganda sites or web pages, including this one, excruciatingly named "My Census", which has the brass front to proclaim "This is your chance to make a difference." Give me strength.

UPDATE: Just found out that there are 54 bloody questions in this Census.
Dizzy's on the case.

Womble On Tour....On Tour

The womble family is going away for a few days. Blogging will be even lighter than usual.

Here's to sun, sea and...whatever else I'm supposed to enjoy on holiday at my age.

I May Be Gone Some Time...

The Womble feels the need to take in some sea air, and has booked a nice little place by the coast.


Oh to be able to claim it on one's Second Home Allowance !

Serving Many Masters

The Womble is currently running around like a fly with a blue bottom; working, spending time with the family and trying to keep in some sort of physical shape. Blogging in consequently on the light side.

Please keep checking back; I will be sharing infinite wisdom (!) again very soon.

Working Womble

Blogging is light at the moment, for Womble On Tour is going through a busy period at work. Shouldn't last too long, but it does restrict output somewhat.

It's not just the fact that long days at work leave less time for the act of blogging; more to the point they leave less time for thinking about blogging - and yes, you may not have thought it, but the Womble does like to think before he writes !

Wombles aren't very good at multi-tasking, you see...and generally can only think about one thing at once.

Will be back soon.

Darling's Eyebrows "On Strike"

With a huge round of applause, I direct you to the Dungeekin - a.k.a The Oxfordshire Geek. This is wonderful.

UPDATE: Spelling corrected !

See You Next Year

This is the last of my 193 posts for 2008. It’s been quite a year.

I’m out of commission until Sunday at the earliest, catching up with family. And certain friends (see left for a clue).

The excellent Wilted Rose suggested in the burning cauldron of debate that is the Womble On Tour comments section that I come up with some New Year's resolutions which I think the Shadow Cabinet should make. It’s a great idea, and one I shall give some thought to. And write about, when I get back.

In the meantime, binge drink, smoke plenty, and avoid exercise. Enjoy.

Service Annoucement

This is my last post for a couple of days.

Today is looking very busy and obviously if the Womble were to get caught blogging tomorrow he would be shot.

It only leaves me to wish my readers / reader / don't kid yourself, Womble, it's only you who ever comes here* a very merry Christmas.

Enjoy !

* Delete as appropriate

Hell Have No Fury...

....like a womble insulted.

There may not be a lot of blogging here today. Something has happened in Womble On Tour's life which has made him very, very angry.

I like my blog posts to have some sort of coherence and creativity about them (stop bloody sniggering).

When the Womble is cross, coherence and creativity go out of the window.

And the Womble is livid. Absolutely fucking furious.

UPDATE: There ensued an extremely sharp exchange of views. What might be described in Civil Service circles as "frank, bordering on direct". Tops were blown. The insulter in turn felt insulted (tough). Grudging apologies were received (not much comfort, actually).

Anger has slowly given way to abject despondency.

Do any of those involved feel any better ? I doubt it. I certainly don't. Damn. And double damn.

From Greek Philosopher To High-Class Blogger

I simply MUST congratulate Prodicus on his truly excellent post this morning, effectively calling for the cloning of Mark Serwotka on the basis that it would hasten the demise of this government.

Blog article of the week, before we even start.

I didn't actually hear the interview, and I'm glad I missed it. But for anyone who has, at any point, got completely fed up with union leaders proclaiming that the financial comfort of public sector workers should be prioritised ahead of anything and everything, this post if for you. It made me laugh and it made me angry - simultaneously.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, that man is class (Prodicus, not Serwotka).

Lots To Do....

....and too little time to do it in.

Blogging today will be on the non-existent side of light.

Mucho Busyo

I’m trying to write something every day on this blog, but today I’m going to struggle – got a lot on.

All I can manage right now is a very brief piece of news on my current correspondence with The State, the status of which is as follows.
...I will be writing to my children’s school to complain about their failure to show up yesterday (and I'm not going to be alone, judging by a quick straw poll on local feeling).
...I haven’t heard from my MP following my email to her, asking about her commitment to privacy and the Data Protection Act. As Basil Fawlty once put it..."Not a word; not a single bloody word".

All Quiet On The Womble Front

Just to let you know that blogging will probably be non-existent today because I am....
..going to the bank to see if they've still got my money;
..running in the snow;
..helping what Guido would term a "co-conspirator";
..oh, and working.

Which is a good job, really. Because if I was blogging I might launch a major tirade against a system under which the police can kill a wholly innocent man and then the jury is not even allowed to consider the idea that the killing might have been unlawful.

WTF is that all about ?

Some You Win, Some You Lose

Spent a few minutes this morning updating my list of recommended blogs (sorry, I really can’t bring myself to call it a “blogroll”). It’s been a couple of months since I gave it any attention so I knew I’d be making the odd update and blogs come and go.

Mrs Smallprint and Political Umpire have gone by the wayside. The latter’s a real shame, because PU was a fine writer, put a lot of thought into his work and showed his passion for the (second ?) greatest game in the world – cricket.

PU has had to give in to the pressures of time, and we all understand that. I’ve been struggling with it myself over the last couple of months. It’s a real battle to balance work, being a dad, attempting to keep fit and - most recently – running an under 12s boys’ football team, which is proving trying to put it very mildly.

I’ve added one link, which I came across via Old Holburn, namely Leg Iron. He helped to publicise the State-terminated walk on Wednesday, and keeps a really excellent blog. His most recent entry about the state of this nation is an intriguing mixture of despondency, determination and defiance. He says elsewhere that his entry into political discussion came via blogging. He absolutely nails the lie told by Hazel Blears earlier in the week. The truth is that there is a mountain of high-quality and thought-provoking writing in the political blogosphere. To dismiss it as she did as negative and cynical illustrates the government’s intolerance of opposition far better than it does any understanding of what’s actually out there. Many of us think it utterly wonderful that we’re able to express a point of view for all to see; actually the fact that the government doesn’t like us doing it makes it all the more delicious.

I’m in denial about Grendel. I’m hoping he’ll be back at some point.

Watch It Guys, We're On Hazel's Hit-List !

Thought we were safe now that the EU seems to have back-pedalled (for now) from blog regulation ? Wrong. ZaNu Lavbour are keeping their eye on us, and Hazel Blears doesn't like what she sees.

In a speech to the Hansard Society yesterday she said:

"...mostly, political blogs are written by people with disdain for the political system and politicians, who see their function as unearthing scandals, conspiracies and perceived hypocrisy. Until political blogging 'adds value' to our political culture, by allowing new voices, ideas and legitimate protest and challenge, and until the mainstream media reports politics in a calmer, more responsible manner, it will continue to fuel a culture of cynicism and despair."

Christ Almighty, I've heard some twaddle in my time but this really does take the trophy.

Blears talks as if bloggers owe the government something, as if we have a duty to be postive and to put a nice spin on what they do. She clearly resents our opposition and expects our meek compliance instead. She exemplifies ZaNu Labour's attitude to free speech; it's fine, as long as it's supportive of us.

Hers is an outrageous generalisation which illustrates just how intolerant this government has become of those who oppose it. Sure, there are blogs out there which like to unearth scandal among politicians, and a jolly good thing too. God knows politicians are watching us closely enough so why shouldn't we watch them ? But in the main blogs are written by people who care a great deal about what is happening in this country and who would warm to politicians if only they stopped telling us what to do the whole time.

Wakey, wakey, Hazel - blogging does allow "new voices, ideas and legitimate protest and challenge". Through technology, anyone can now put their opinions into the public domain, we are raising new ideas, we do protest and, too right, we challenge too. And that's just why she doesn't like us.

Clearly on Planet ZaNuLabour we're all supposed to sit around like zombies nodding sagely at the wonder and wisdom of our fabulous leaders. Those that don't can expect the wrath of those in office.

To those who find her strangely attractive, let's be clear; this woman is dangerous.

The Womble Branches Out

I've created a new blog, called Womble Ontological.

It's intended to allow me to write longer, more thoughtful posts than I usually manage on here, and to allow me to experiment with a more considered style of writing. I don't want this blog to look like a solid wall of narrative which might put people off reading it, but at the same time I do want to write something of better quality at times. Probably won't be updated very often !

I've just put my first post on, about the Labour leadership, and you can read it here.

There May Be Trouble Ahead...

There is increasing concern amongst bloggers that the European Union is out to get us. Those with their ear to the ground can hear the unmistakable sound of the EU jackboot marching towards us. People like MEP Daniel Hannan, for instance. Since he - the great freedom-loving spy in the enemy camp - wrote his article, Iain Dale, Dizzy and the truly refreshing Old Holborn (among others) have been warning us that we may be about to have a battle on our hands.

The EU sees blogs as "a new challenge" and the European Parliament's Committee on Culture and Education has adopted a report which laments that the "status" of blog authors and publishers "is neither determined nor made clear to the readers of the weblogs, causing uncertainties regarding impartiality, reliability, source protection, applicability of ethical codes and the assignment of liability in the event of lawsuits". It goes onto recommend that the "status" (that word again) of blogs should be "clarified", and blogs should "voluntarily" (yeah, right) be labelled "according to the professional and financial responsibilities and interests of their authors and publishers". The end result would be to "encourage" the disclosure of ownership of media outlets to help to understand the aims and background of the publisher.

Which seems to be saying that anyone who has a blog should be forced to say who they are and to declare any interests they have, such that the powers that be know who we are and where we come from, and can track us down should the want to.

The EU have got a cob on with the blogosphere because they think it helped to sway the vote in Ireland on the Lisburn Treaty; a separate report notes that the Internet is a magnet for "anti-establishment opinion formers", and says that material in blogs tends to be overwhelmingly negative and is difficult to rebut because of its volume and disperate nature.

As Dan Hannan notes, it's difficult to write about this sort of thing without sounding paranoid and alarmist, but we should beware that this is how States (and let's be clear, the EU sees itself as a State) operate; one moment you get a seemingly irrelevant back-room committee using taxpayers' money to bemoan the extent of their subjects' freedom, and then before you know it people are being arrested at the Cenotaph for reading out the names of war dead, habeas corpus is being abolished and greengrocers are being forced to destroy their stocks of kiwi fruit.

So let's draw a few lines in the sand and see how long it takes for the EU to cross them: I should not have to declare who I am, what I do or what my interests are before I state my opinion on the Internet; there is already plenty of case law defining who is responsible for breach of copyright or for the publication of libellous or deflamatory material on the Web, so we don't need any more legislation; and if the Internet is providing an opportunity for previously dis-enfranchised, voiceless people to express their point of view then that's a very good thing - it's called freedom and it doesn't require State monitoring, legislation or regulation.

Man the barricades, people.

I Didn't Know This...

...and was pretty staggered when I found out. It appeared while I was on holiday, so I missed it.

Womble On Tour has been voted as one of the 20 top Liberatarian blogs by blog readers ! OK, there are only 33 to choose from, but this honour is still great enough to merit a link on a post from the great Iain Dale !

Hey, thanks guys, to anyone who voted for me. I never thought anyone actually read this site apart from Nutty Cow and the occasional bored person at work, so to get votes has shaken me up a bit. I've been trying to make the tone of this blog a bit more cheerful recently - less ranting and a bit more positive - but this has reminded me that there's a fight out there to be had with an utterly appalling government, so expect some posts in the near future about the police state, the ZaNuLabour Party etc..

Now all I've got to do is remind myself how to put the geeky logo and geeky linky thing into the geeky sidebar. This may take some time. Just because I work in IT doesn't mean I'm any good at it.

Anyone For Suicide ?

Interesting piece here from the excellent Mike Smithson of Political Betting suggesting it might be in Labour's long-term interest to hold a General Election now.

The argument goes that so bad is Labour's predicament, and so bad is the short-term future for the economy, that Labour might be forgiven more quickly it it hands over the reigns of power to the Conservatives now rather than limp on with a spent Prime Minister and be associated with ever growing doom, gloom and despondency till 2010. Using this logic you could conclude that had John Major gone to the polls in say, 2005, the outcome, though a Tory defeat, would not have been as bad as it was in 1997; and it's probably right.

There isn't a chance of it happening of course. There is no way Brown has the guts to call an election now. Actually I'd be hard-pressed to think of any politician capable of taking such a long-term, self-sacrifical view.

One of two things will happen. Either Brown will soldier on, hoping for some sort of minor miracle (and perhaps even getting one - Cameron is not invincible, and things can change very quickly) or he'll be forced to stand aside for another leader. I'll be fascinated to watch what happens at the Labour Conference (and I don't think I've ever said that before !) to see the manoeuvring of those who aspire to the Labour leadership. My bet is that Brown will cling on, but by the ned of this month I think we'll have a better idea of who the runners and riders are for a leadership contest.

By the way, Political Betting is a fabulous site for those wanting a regular fix of political discussion. The articles are usually interesting, challenging and neutral, and the comments surprisingly free of partisan bickering or point-scoring.

Not That I've Been Doing Much Blogging Recently...

...Womble On Tour is going, err...on tour for a few days. Will use the time to recharge the blogging batteries and come back refereshed....he hopes.

Toodle pip.