Britblog Roundup # 33

Once again we step up to the plate (or as we’re rather this side of the Atlantic about it, step up to the crease?) to bring out the Britblog Roundup, your picks of the best pieces from the British and Irish blogs this week.

As ever, you can make your nominations for next week to britblog AT gmail DOT com. Your picks of author, subject, view, just those great pieces that we should see but don’t. Probably because we don’t have enough blogs loaded into our RSS readers (which is a new word I’ve just learnt. Hope I’m using it properly).

Just in case there is someone out there that doesn’t know this already there is a book coming up which has grown out of this little exercise. Called "2005 Blogged" you can read all about it here, and if you should so wish link to Amazon, publicise it, sell vast quantities and so on.

First up is my pick of the week from Natalie Solent. The last line is the killer.

Charlie over at Perfect has a two parter (which we don’t normally do here but this is important) on the way in which the use of the DNA database presages what joys lie ahead with the National Identity Register. No, we’re not happy bunnies over this.

Adloyada (a blog new to me and very much worth reading) has some advice for Ken Livingstone. You know, try serving the people of the city, as you were elected to do.

Stephen Tall compares Diet Labour to Mr. Creosote....simply gorging on every opportunity to stuff the body politic. A fun piece even if he is a politician (Stephen, have you not read the handbook? Saying what you mean is not the way to get ahead these days-Ed).

Mike’s Books on the coming relaunch of the Labour Party under a new banner.

Alfie the OK points to just what was obscene on that young lady’s t-shirt. After all, bollocks is fairly humdrum and to a vital part of the language.

Charlie(also at Perfect but as this is the second of my nominations I’m allowed to break the rules) is quite wonderfully offensive about Blair’s speech to Conference. Masterly historical research.

AI Dodge buddy Jon P is up for more Davis and less Fox. Not sure personally, I think we need politicians who have dated Natalie Imbruglia. (Not sure if that’s a small or a large group actually).

Bloggerheads is, as you might imagine, all over the Labour Conference story and the use of the (whichever we now have) Terrorism Act.

Chicken Yoghurt is similarly outraged. With added extra prose style, of course.

Make My Vote Count fobs us off with some old tatty rubbish as he says. Ask any antique dealer, some things get better with age.

Chris at Mr. S&M provides the statistical shocker of the week. Certainly surprised me and I’m supposed to know about these things.

The Pooter of that Geek has the top ten list of products that are always used contrary to law and warnings. I might add alcohol (to be taken in moderation?).

The Filter shows us just how different the youth of today are. Imagine, a student who actually wishes to learn?

Plasticbag.org has a truly outrageous tale (and some exceptionally good detective work) of comment spamming. No, not by some pimply 12 year old trying to sell the Viagra he doesn’t yet know how to use. No, main stream, big league advertising companies. They actually used a rather strongly emotional post about meeting his long estranged father to advertise cleaning products!

 Dragnet (I think this may be our first transgendered entry to the Britblog) provides the full before and after set for the makeup routine. There is indeed something of a transformation.

Becky provides us with a new game to play with Wikipedia. Additions to the game over there I think.

Curious Hamster has an update on Sir Ian Blair. Not only did he take some dodgy decisions over the De Menezes shooting he knew, when he took them, that they were illegal. The proof is in his own letters.

The Sharpener has a new slot, the Open Mic Rant. It’s DK this time, on the ineffable superiority of bureaucratic systems in taking care of our tax money.

Philobiblion with an excellent book review. A young girl hoicked out of her homeland and what happens then. As the review points out the book is both honest and one sided....as it will be when looking from the inside out to the world.

Liberal England picks up on the cooing at babies nonsense. Not, as he notes, a Liberal (although it might be liberal) sort of thing really.

The Liberal Dissenter points up the reasons why you would want to avoid Party Conferences. No, not just the Lib Dem ones, all the ones held in Blackpool.

Tom Fuller makes a bold prediction. The pound returning as the world’s reserve currency?

Pickled Politics has a lovely piece on the Simpsons. As so often with that show there are layers of meaning, not just the cutesy cartoon frontage.

Norm of that Blog manages to get two of the main obsessions of his life into one post. A cricket XI as selected by Karl Marx. I really do wish I understood either of the subjects so as to be able to appreciate it.

Finally, if this isn’t enough reading foryou you can go and look at The Witangemot at the CEP. That’s English blogging rather than our British and Irish (and yes, we would like some more Irish entries please!)

And that’s it, this week’s Britblog Roundup. Buy the book, send in your entries for next week to britblog AT gmail DOT com and see ya then!

Toodle Pip!.