• Idea: A re-usable framework for “Who Should I Vote For?” tests

    Those “Who Should I Vote For?” sites are, I think, a great idea. Many of them fail though. They; often miss out huge policy areas (e.g. Europe) often just copy/paste from manifestos making it easy to see which party is which over simplify questions or provide limited answer choices that don’t always match views become…

  • UK may have no say on EU top job, frontrunner warns

    Re: UK may have no say on EU top job, frontrunner warns European Commission President hopeful Jean-Claude Juncker suggests British people aren’t getting a vote on who becomes President but ignores one fundamental problem: the British people never get a vote and neither do the rest of Europe’s citizens. Ridiculously, this is the first time that the Commission…

  • Open source rules, and it’ll kill Apple

    “Both [Microsoft’s] C# and [Apple’s] Objective-C are unsurprisingly almost invisible [on GitHub], because they’re both ecosystems that either don’t encourage or actively discourage open-source code.” From ReadWrite Most people who know me know that I’m not exactly an Apple fan. I am a big open source fan though, and the two are connected. As a…

  • I think I’m going to join The Pirate Party

    I’ve spent some of today reading through all of The Pirate Party policies. With only two exceptions I find myself agreeing with the whole thing. It’s a great feeling, and I reckon a lot of the people I know will feel the same. Time to join then? Update: I did it.

  • Isn’t owning your own home a neoliberal ideal?

    Why is the UK so obsessed with home ownership? I’ve yet to hear anyone outline benefits to home ownership that aren’t subjective. So why this desire to make sure people can ‘get on the property ladder’? Is it because the rental sector is risky? Then subject it to stricter regulation. Does it provide more stability? Possibly, but…

  • UKIP are going to have a spectacular victory, and that’s a good thing.

    MAYBE! Look, most people don’t really like UKIP’s policies, whether or not the actual party members are racist, homophobic, xenophobic, misogynistic morons or not (they are, by the way). What many people are seeing is a party being brutally honest (for the most part) and the political establishment trying to discredit them. It’s that very…

  • The internet killed religion, politics, and neighbours

    No, not the TV show. Got the theme tune in your head though, didn’t it? You’re welcome. I’m talking about neighbours – those people that live next door, ‘across the way’ and nearby. This is probably perception, and I’ve yet to bother searching for any actual research (if there is any), but there does seem to be…

  • It’s right that UKIP are given air time

    It’s right that UKIP are given air time

    Like many I despise UKIP for their right wing misogyny, homophobia, racism and xenophobia. Some have suggested they shouldn’t be on the TV so much*. But when they are consistently matching or beating a governing party in polls, they deserve a place at the debating table. Since November 2012 UKIP have consistently matched closely or…

  • It’s my birthday and I want NOTHING

    It’s my birthday and I want NOTHING

    Clarification: my birthday is on Wednesday, not today. Well actually, I do want something… Read on. In the run up to Christmas last year there was much consternation generated by the Trussell Trust setting up stalls in branches of Tesco. Many people, myself included, were dismayed at the idea that the world’s 8th richest country…