Our attention was recently drawn to a couple of very interesting links.The first link is to a blog that asks of Mebyon Kernow why it has a view on anything more than the internal affairs of Cornwall:“…the MK manifesto is littered with ‘policies’ relating to national and global issues over which the party will neverContinue reading "New Wessex, New World"
Give Fair Play A Chance
The Electoral Commission could be a small, well-managed organisation that looks after that tiny number of things that may, perhaps, best be done centrally if we're to have something approaching democratic elections. An organisation that lets local administrators get on with their jobs and doesn't try to micro-manage processes that constitutionally don't belong to it.Instead, it's a bloatedContinue reading "Give Fair Play A Chance"
London and the English
The place and the people are the subject of a recent on-line article by Professor Eric Kaufmann analysing what the 2011 Census says about national identity. It reveals wide variation in identification across England, with Englishness concentrated, perhaps paradoxically, in the Danelaw (and some additional coastal retirement zones, mainly in Wessex). Areas around the Humber and Thames estuariesContinue reading "London and the English"
Regrets: A Few
In Pakistan, the Supreme Court has ordered the arrest of the Prime Minister on corruption charges. Our own top politicians could do with being arrested, to face far more serious allegations of disturbing the peace of the world.And not just the politicians. One of the questions we continue to pose is ‘do we or doContinue reading "Regrets: A Few"
The Year of the Wyvern?
In Chinese astrology, 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, 2013 the Year of the Snake. A wyvern is something in between, so as we look back over last year’s achievements, we should also be looking forward to what still needs to be done.It’s in the nature of the status quo to be triumphalist, toContinue reading "The Year of the Wyvern?"
Five Winning Ways
“We need to be the change we wish to see in the world.”attributed to Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948)Radical parties write their own rules. That is how they eventually succeed. The tide of history will always flow with those who have the greatest, least compromising passion on their side. And the fewest doubts. So the wayContinue reading "Five Winning Ways"
English Is Not Enough
“What we think of when we talk of English traits really narrows itself to a small district. It excludes Ireland and Scotland and Wales, and reduces itself at last to London, that is, to those who come and go thither.”Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)Identity today is in flux: so the Census results tell us. There areContinue reading "English Is Not Enough"
Working for Wessex
Frank Field is the Labour MP for Birkenhead, in Cheshire. Though Labour is his label, he is no mere mouthpiece. The unique depth of his knowledge of matters relating to welfare reform is widely respected across party lines. So when he joined the panel for BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions? on Friday night, interesting thingsContinue reading "Working for Wessex"
Understanding New Labour
The Labour Party can be puzzling. It’s fanatical about change, indifferent to whether the result is an improvement. It applies, or attempts to apply, ill-considered policies, whose failure is then enjoyed as a ‘learning experience’ rather than acknowledged as proof of incompetence. It revels in ‘growth’, deaf to those who point out the damage, environmentalContinue reading "Understanding New Labour"
Eric the Ostrich
The Communities Secretary, Eric Pickles, has an assured place in history as the man who oversaw the first regulations to officially recognise the flag of Wessex. Although the Wyvern has a long pedigree, the current design of the flag dates from 1974, meaning that it took just 38 years to go from an idea toContinue reading "Eric the Ostrich"
Wessex Regionalists 