You have nothing to fear but fear itself, said JFK ? but then he didn't know the EDL
? Not the best weekend for the fighty types in the English Defence League, damned by apparent association with the Norwegian mass murderer. I know them, we've been friends on Facebook, said Anders Behring Breivik. Mayday, mayday, shout the leading lights in the EDL. Yes, the PR does need a bit of work. For while the group says it eschews violence, there are claims that some of its people may have been taking a less than constructive approach to two former members who were poised to lift the lid on the group in association with the counter-extremism thinktank, Quilliam. Harry Burns and Leighton Evans were billed as "former senior members of the EDL who have renounced the group and are willing to speak out against it publicly ... to answer questions about the organisation and their time inside it". But they didn't. Both pulled out, apparently citing threats. Not from us, insists the man from the EDL. In good faith we accept that. A simple solution. If in doubt, blame the Muslims.
? Everyone hopes to make a buck from the Olympics, and the Royal Mail is bidding to strike gold with its "countdown collection" of stamps, stamp booklets, presentation packs and the like as "the nation counts down to this once in a lifetime event". We have been here before, of course. Those older than 64, for whom the Olympics is a twice in a lifetime event, may recall the Royal Mail's commemoration of the 1948 Olympics. Reader Philip Hutchinson remembers four special stamps, costing just a halfpenny less than two shillings. Enough in those days, he says, to buy a few pints to toast the Olympians, but not a fortune. By contrast the countdown collection for 2012 ? and this is without whatever new Olympics stamps come out next year ? tops the podium at a mighty �901.59p. It's not just sportsmen going for gold.
? The government's voyage to the land of greater openness and transparency needs great minds. Tom Loosemore, master of the new media universe, is steering. Just weeks into the job, the Diary can report a promising start. Minutes from a government "e-comms working group" report that Loosemore gave an introduction and took questions about the single domain for government. The exact proposal is being developed, but some things are clear. "A single domain is not a single website ? it is a consistent and excellent user experience based on a global user experience language implemented across everything that the user experiences." Sadly, some of the other stuff he said was gibberish.
? As we said last week, sanity has prevailed and it now seems unlikely that Pat Arrowsmith, the 81?year?old activist who has been to jail 11 times, will have to go there again. She was threatened with arrest last week for non-payment of a fine imposed eight years ago, for a public order offence long forgotten. Pat, being Pat, didn't immediately balk at the idea of returning to prison. All in a lifetime's work. But still we must do something to thank the reader who came forward willing to erase her obligation by paying the fine of �120. Under the "big society", one assumes, payments of such fines will become a collective responsibility. But we are not there yet. So in the meantime, take a bow: you're very kind.
? Finally, he doesn't feature in the Con-Lib coalition but he could feature in a Lab-Lib coalition, should Ed Miliband get lucky. Little wonder that people are still talking about Charles Kennedy. But not everything they say is good. Public Servant magazine tells of the former Lib Dem leader's appearance at a corporate event in Birmingham. Things were fine, it says, until he asked for a drink. "What sort would you like," said a host, mindful of the headlines and seeking to be diplomatic. "What sort have you got," asked Charlie. "We have everything, so you tell me what you'd like and I'll get it," said the host, concerned but keen to be polite. A glass of white wine appeared. Kennedy drank it. His speech was very dull. "He was much more entertaining the last time I heard him speak," said one guest later. On that occasion, he was "absolutely mashed", he said.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/jul/25/hugh-muir-diary-english-defence-league
Prince William Charles Mountbatten-Windsor Prince Charles Camilla Mountbatten-Windsor Duchess of Cornwall
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