With recess now on us, blogs have predictably got odder. Which given some of their usual levels, is odder than a cat flavoured boomerang. Not sure that analogy works. Too lazy to come up with a better one.
This week David Cameron swore on the radio and the media had a spasm. We have to remember something, swearing is neither big nor clever, but it is funny. Aneurin Glyndwr sums up what happened, with what could be seen as a personal attack, which of course it isn’t because the author doesn’t believe in them.
Both the BMA and Bevan Foundation can see what has the potential to become a major problem for the Welsh NHS. It is no secret that Wales has had a problem bringing the necessary talent to staff our healthcare service. Some of these problems are the fault of the government, such as funding to attract new recruits and training, whist others, such as people simply not wanting to live in the middle of nowhere, are not. But the recent changes to the immigration rules, set by a UK government which thinks pleasing Daily Mail voters is more important than attracting doctors to the UK, is leading to a serious shortage in some areas. With 62 posts now vacant in one NHS Trust, and surgical units having to move from Swansea to Cardiff due to staff shortages, we have to think how much reorganisation is staff shortages going to create? The NHS in Wales is meant to be undergoing a complex reorganisation anyway, to have other changes having to take place inside at the same time because of staffing problems could lead to some serious confusion for both staff and patients.
Ol Townsend of Cardiff Student Liberal Democrats has got angry, for a change. Like Ol, I’m a victim of Labour’s tuition fees policy. I’m not happy that Clegg has announced it isn’t a priority, but I understand why he has done that. I would much rather be a member of a party that says we will do things if we can, than promise to do them and then just not. A point that Welsh Ramblings just doesn’t seem to understand.
The Cynical Dragon says “fuck you Paul Flynn”. I kinda agree with Cynical Dragon’s point (the whole piece, not the fuck you Paul Flynn part), cause I’m one of those who is still amused by “foul-mouthed, witless blogs”.
Glyn Davies had decided to tell us all at great length about his ‘Candidates World Tour’, which seems to essentially be a description of some golf trips. I don’t have the stamina to read them. I did find his post on assisted suicide of far greater interest. A couple of weeks ago Carwyn Jones AM blogged on the same issue, reaching a different conclusion, one also reached by Paul Flynn MP. Aside from his thought that the Mail on Sunday is “crap”, which I could have told him without even reading, I have to disagree. At this point I was going to write why I believe in allowing assisted suicide, but Terry Prachett does it far better than I could. For the sake of balance you can find the opposing view from William Rees-Mogg’s response here. The bad news is that you’ll have to go to the Daily Mail’s website to read them. Sorry about that.
Val Lloyd has promised to ‘give her all’ over the next two years according to Disgusted of Llandrindod Wales. As a former constituent of hers, I could make a joke here.
Rene Kinzett and Peter Black are both twitter users. You’ll notice that I’m probably the only pissing person left in the world who doesn’t think it’s hilarious to use the word ‘twit’ to describe someone who uses twitter. There are many other more apt words, but still, that isn’t the point. They recently caused a stir for both twitting (or whatever the bloody term is) during council. It isn’t something new, Peter regularly posts his thought on Senedd proceedings as well. Surely no-one can think this is a problem? Most of the AMs in the chamber are barely paying any attention to each other and I doubt Swansea Council is any different. At least this shows they are listening. But there is something more important. Each speaker gets only minutes to give their opinion, and no chance to respond to what the following speakers say later in the debate. Surely any technology that allows politicians a chance to communicate actively during debate and express further arguments as it continues gives the public a better insight as to the opinions of their elected members?
On the other hand, all twitter users should be shot. And I’ve just realised I’ve reached that point of life where I’m naturally suspicious of all new technology and don’t really understand it, preferring to lash out, claiming that it’s the technology’s fault and not my own ignorance. But yeah, fucking twitter.
According to Tomos Livingstone, the Tories hold regular cheese eating sessions. I can exclusively reveal that the Welsh Liberal Democrat staff have been known to partake in cake, swapping fancy cheeses for cherry bakewells. Although I have to say I would rather have cheese. Do you think that would count as the worst possible reason for changing a political allegiance?
Strangest post of the week has to be David Williamson on the press’s method for predicting who will be the next Labour leader. I am of the opinion that this is a standard press tactic, often used by the weather department who conducted a similar test to determine that this would be a BBQ summer. In that instance the experiment involved throwing garden gnomes at three different old people.
Right, that is it this week. My prediction for the main article on next weeks blogs will have to do with the revelation that Gordon Brown is actually a pair of twins both doing the role of Prime Minister.
Both were crap at it.
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