Gray's Monotony

Four reasons why I'm asking everyone I know to vote Yes on 3 March

2011-02-26T07:31:00.013Z

Reason number one

If the current devolution process was in place in any other area of Welsh life there would be uproar.

Imagine: Warren Gatland picks his team and makes a gameplan for the opening game of the World Cup but Martin Johnson and the suits at Twickenham refuse to let the Welsh players play an expansive game in the second half. Instead, they have to keep the ball up their jumpers in their own 22 until thirty seconds before the end, when Johnson will tell Gatland whether or not Wales are allowed to score.

That wouldn't be acceptable and neither is the current system of political devolution. A Yes vote means that Wales will be in control of our political tactics and gameplan. (And we'll still be part of the Lions squad when it comes to things like defence and foreign affairs.)

Reason number two

It's a vote about Wales, our country. It's not about politicians, government or the Assembly.

We need to have the courage and self-respect to run things that are already devolved to us by ourselves - just like Scotland and Northern Ireland have been doing over the last decade. A Yes vote reaffirms that Wales is as much of a country as these two places.

If you don't like the politicians we've got then vote in some new ones in the May election. Or stand for election yourself.

Reason number three

The Assembly's not perfect. But neither is Parliament (Iraq, cash for questions...).

At least the Assembly is full of people from our communities, working for Wales. The Welsh voice at Westminster is tiny and gets swallowed up by the 600 other MPs each looking out for their own part of the UK. Only the Assembly puts Wales first.

A Yes vote lets the Assembly run things that are already devolved exactly according to who we elect. A No vote keeps Wales at the mercy of civil servants in Whitehall and unelected peers in the House of Lords who have a veto over many things that the Assembly may want to do in areas that are already devolved, like health and education.

Reason number four

The vote is not about:

1. more tax - a Yes vote would not increase taxes or give the Assembly the power to raise taxes.

2. more politicians - a Yes vote would not increase the number of Assembly Members.

3. politicians 'grabbing power' for themselves - the power already exists at Westminster. The vote is about whether Wales should have a bit more of that power. Even most MPs think that we should and will themselves vote Yes.

Keogh K.O.

2010-09-26T19:04:00.004+01:00

Sgoriodd Andy Keogh ei gol gyntaf am yr Adar Glas un munud cyn diwedd y gem ddoe, yn helpu'r tim osgoi ei trydydd curfa yn olynol. Wnaeth y canlyniad sicrhau bod Caerydd yn dringo i ail lle yn y tabl. Gyda'r ymweliad o Crystal Palace nos Fawrth nesa mae pathau'n edrych yn dda achos mae Crystal Palace wedi colli pob gem oddi cartref y tymor hwn heb sgorio.

Cymerodd Millwall dim ond deg munud i sgorio - gol rhy hawdd diolch i Lee Naylor. Cafodd yr amddiffynwr gem i anghofio, rhododd e'r bel i ffwrdd gormod o amser ac wnaeth Millwall ymosod e ar bob cyfle. Yn y pen arall o'r maes, cafodd Bothroyd gem i gofio. Sgoriodd e'r gol gyntaf Caerdydd a chreuodd e'r gol Keogh. Rhwng y dau gol, cafodd Trotter ei cerdyn coch, fe gollodd Peter Whittingham cic gosb a doedd Caerdydd ddim yn chwarae yn dda - roedd gyda nhw diffyg o brys yn erbyn deg dyn.

Mae rhaid iddyn nhw dysgu sut i ladd timau; mae gyda nhw talent anhygoel (o leiaf ymysg y chwaraewyr canol cae a'r ymosodwyr) felly mae rhaid iddyn nhw credu yn eu hunain a goruchafu gwrthwynebwyr.

Flynn to win!

2010-09-14T18:56:00.002+01:00

Wnaeth Brian Flynn cais i fod rheolwr Cymru pum mlynedd yn ol pan cafodd y swydd ei roi i John Toshack. Ar ol ei apwyntiad, rhododd Toshack rheolaeth o'r timau Cymry ifanc i Flynn. Mae Flynn wedi gwneud pethau arbennig gyda'r tim o dan 21 - dwywaith mae fe wedi'u cymryd nhw yn agos at pencampwriaeth mawr. A mae nifer o'i chwaraewyr wedi dechrau chwarae yn nhim 'A' Toshack.

Unwaith bod Toshack wedi mynd yr wythnos diwetha, Flynn oedd y dewis call. Roedd eraill yn cynnig eu gwasanaethau (fel John Hartson) ond roedd Flynn y rheolwr yn fwyaf profiadol. Mae e'n haeddu ei gyfle i ddangos beth mae fe'n gallu gwneud - a mae fe'n deall y rhythm o'r byd pel droed rhwngwladol. Mwy 'na hynny, mae fe'n nabod y rhan mwyaf o'r chwaraewyr a gwybod sut i'u defnyddio nhw mewn system.

Fi'n falch dros ben bod yr FAW wedi penderfynu newid rheolwr cyn y gem nesaf yn erbyn Bwlgaria. Beth fyddai wedi bod yn digwydd tasai Toshack wedi bod yn aros fel rheolwr a mae'r tim Cymru wedi bod yn ennill y dau gem nesa? Fyddai Toshack wedi bod yn aros tan diwedd yr ymgyrch? Doeddwn i ddim yn galw am ben Toshack cyn yr wythnos diwethaf ond unwaith bod pobl wedi dechrau siarad am ei ymadawiad, unwaith dechreuodd y son - cadarnhau gan Toshack ei hun - roedd rhaid i'r FAW gweithredu yn gyflym. Mae'n syndod mawr bod nhw wedi!

Roedd 'I' yn 'tim' o Gymru neithiwr

2010-09-04T07:40:00.005+01:00

Roedd llawer o gobaith gyda fi cyn yr ymgyrch hwn felly mae'r canlyniad neithiwr yn erbyn Montenegro yn siomedig dros ben. Ro'n i'n meddwl bod Cymru yn mynd i ennill, oedd y gorchfygiad yn yr un lle un flywyddyn yn ol yn mynd i helpu ni.

Dechreuodd Cymru'n dda - ond roedd 'na troeon pan roeddet ti'n gallu gweld gwendidau yn yr amddiffyn Cymru. Ar ol y gol Montenegro, fe gollodd Cymru pob credinaeth a roedden ni'n chwarae fel un ar ddeg chwaraewr yn lle tim.

Gwastraffodd Craig Bellamy cwpl o siawns pan dylai fe fod wedi pasio'r bel i gyd-chwaraewr. Roedd Gareth Bale yn gorau chwaraewr Cymru ond weithiau triodd e rhy galed i greu pethau a wnaeth e golli'r bel. Doedd dim teimlad o undod o gwbl - a pan mae gyda chi carfan sy'n rhif 84 yn y rhestr FIFA, mae'r undod yn bwysig iawn!

Ar ol colli, mae rhaid i ni godi pedwar o bwyntiau yn erbyn Bwlgaria a'r Swistir ym mis Hydref a mae rhaid i'r chwaraewyr edrych fel tim. Heb hynny, mae ofn arna i bydd yr ymgyrch yn gorffen cyn dechrau.

Ail ail-lawnsio

2010-09-04T07:22:00.004+01:00

Bron blywddyn ers fy cofnod diwetha - beth i'w dweud? Dw i wedi symud ty, symud swydd, dechrau dysgu Cymraeg o ddifrif. Awn ni weld os fi'n gallu sgwennu unrhyw pethau rhwng heddiw a Nadolig. Gobeithio bydd rhai ohonnyn nhw yng Gymraeg am Pethau Bychain (fi'n gwybod fy mod i'n ddiwrnod yn hwyr!).

Cardiff changes but The Vulcan remains

2009-10-15T22:28:00.006+01:00

Cardiff has seen its fair share of changes in the past decade. The Millennium Stadium, the Senedd, the Cardiff Bay Barrage, the Wales Millennium Centre and most recently St David's 2 have all emerged onto the Cardiff landscape. These are all fine examples of architecture and engineering, and all are playing a significant part in the development of Cardiff as a vibrant European capital.

Yet there is a feeling among many Cardiffians that this development has come at too high a price. Huge swathes of the Docklands have been condemned to history in order to build uniform soulless flats and a tacky retail and restaurant quarter by the name of Mermaid Quay. Closer to the city centre the Reformation-savaged ruins of a 13^th Century Franciscan friary were demolished decades ago to make way for a tower block.

At the heart of the latest battle between developers and Cardiffians sits The Vulcan Hotel. The Vulcan was built in 1853 and has served the people of Cardiff and the world ever since. The glazed tiles to the exterior were added in 1906 while in 1914 significant alterations were made to the interior – the smoke room was removed from the front bar and the unique brown terracotta urinals were installed.

The current décor came with landlord Brian Smart and wife Liz when they took over in 1993. A ship's wheel and numerous images of ships, the Docks and other local landmarks give The Vulcan a genuine character that chain pubs can only attempt to manufacture.

Despite its history and its popularity The Vulcan has been under threat of demolition for years. Owners Brains Brewery were issued with a Compulsory Purchase Order several years ago as the land was wanted for the St Davids 2 development.

In August 2008 the Save The Vulcan campaign began with the aim of saving this gem from the bulldozers. Support quickly grew with the petition reaching one thousand before Christmas and currently standing at more than six thousand. Famous names were among them: James Dean Bradfield, Lord Kinnock and Rhys Ifans among others. A public meeting drew a crowd of more than one hundred.

But the developer wasn't listening and the closing date remained fixed for late June. Then a text from the landlady: an extension to the lease was on the table. Three more years. Three more years of good beer, three more years of interesting company and, above all, three more years of Cardiff as it was.

The latest news is that the landlady is moving on. Doubt surrounds the developer's next move since the extension was offered to her and to her alone. We have worked so hard and fought so well that to lose The Vulcan now would be devastating.

We need everyone in Cardiff to experience the atmosphere of The Vulcan. On an international day when six women wedge themselves behind the bar to serve beer to hundreds or on a Tuesday lunchtime when the only soul in the place is you. Once you've been there you'll understand the pub's popularity and you'll understand why the campaign has put so much effort into preserving it.

A Vulcan visitor is a Vulcan supporter is a weapon against needless demolition of Cardiff heritage.

How to beat Cardiff City

2009-10-03T09:12:00.003+01:00

Score first. The Bluebirds have lost four games this season and have conceded first in each of them.

Last season, City lost only 50% of the games in which they went a goal down. City came from behind to win a league game just once last season - on 18 March 2009 against Watford. That required a Ross McCormack penalty in the seventh minute of injury time. Nine times last season City rescued a point after conceding first.

The last ten times City have conceded first, only twice have they avoided defeat. This suggests that when City are hot they are scorching (see the 6-1 demolition of Derby County, 3-0 victory over Bristol City, 4-0 triumph against Scunthorpe United ...) but that when they are slow out of the blocks, concede and are forced to break down a team they struggle.

What's the Welsh for "the sums don't add up"*?

2009-09-22T20:27:00.003+01:00

There's been a lot of bluster recently surrounding the Assembly Commission's decision to stop translating Plenary debates from English into Welsh. The motive behind the Commission's proposal was to save £250,000. In the face of vocal opposition, a compromise of sorts has been proposed: all debates will be translated but within 3-10 days of Plenary rather than the 24-hour deadline that currently exists.

The first thing that bothered me was the idea that the home of Welsh democracy, one of whose self-declared main ambitions is to promote and protect the Welsh language, would consider reducing its own bilingualism. Since when has "do as I say not as I do" been a successful mantra? Then I read the story again. £250,000?!

Plenary takes place every Tuesday and Wednesday, from 1.30pm until anywhere between 5pm and 7pm. So the job consists of transcribing 3.5-5.5 hours of debate and then translating it. Assuming there are two transcribers - allowing them 30 minute mini-shifts to save their wrists and their sanity - and two translators writing up the Welsh the following day (7.5 hours), the total manhours for each Plenary translation should be around 26 hours (11 transcribing plus 15 translating).

Plenary sat 66 times in 2008-09. Using the above calculation gives a total of 1716 manhours. If the Commission's £250,000 figure is correct, then those transcribing and translating the Plenary Record are being paid somewhere in the region of £150 per hour. This equates to an annual salary of around £60,000.

Either the Commission pays transcribers and translators huge sums or *"dydy e ddim yn taro deuddeg".

Discard d'Estaing

2009-09-22T20:07:00.004+01:00

Former President of France Valery Giscard d'Estaing has released a romantic novel "whose thinly-disguised plot focuses on himself and Diana", according to the Telegraph.

Obviously someone of Giscard's distinguished nature - studying at ENA and being a member of l'Academie Francaise - would have the imagination to take (possibly) real-life events and to develop characters and a plot that would retain the drama but not descend into god-awful tackiness.

Not a chance. What did he choose to call the 'Diana, Princess of Wales' character? Princess Patricia of Cardiff. With such a cheap tactic, I only hope that the book is as poorly-received as his first effort 15 years ago. Maybe if enough people discard d'Estaing he might put down his pen for good.

Is professional sport corrupt?

2009-09-17T20:22:00.007+01:00

According to the Cambridge English Dictionary, sport is "a game, competition or activity needing physical effort and skill that is played or done according to rules, for enjoyment and/or as a job". There is no doubt that professional sportspeople exert terrific physical effort (that's why Andy Fordham isn't a sportsman) and display expert skill. It's what comes next that needs to be examined: "According to rules".

At the top level of professional sport are athletes whose sole purpose is to beat the rest and be the best. Recent news from Formula One and rugby union, coupled with longstanding issues in soccer, athletics and cycling, suggests that contempt for the rules is perhaps more widespread than assumed.

In Formula One this week, the Renault team has been exposed asking one of their drivers to deliberately crash his car in order to help his team-mate. Over the summer, Harlequins rugby union club came under the spotlight for faking blood injuries and therefore enabling substitutions.

Cycling has long had a problem with drugs, as has Athletics. Diving has come out of the pool and onto the football pitch, most notably and recently at the Emirates Stadium.

These examples are more than rule-breaking, they raise serious questions about the morality of those at the top of professional sport. I'm tempted to propose that it is professionalisation - and the monetary concerns that it implies - that has led us to this point.

Paul Rees makes the case that amateur rugby was full of 'cheating': nicking a few yards on the touchline, for example. He also says that 'A difference then was that the game was for the players' and that 'Professionalism has acted as a disinfectant'. In some ways maybe, but likewise I'm not so sure.

The amateur game was indeed for players; the professional game is for money. Whether due to pressure from a club owner or manager, or whether it stems from a misplaced perception of what it means to succeed, that induces a 'win at all costs' mentality that has surely contributed to an erosion of the ethics of sport.

'I won't get a fair trial because I'm a tosser', court hears

2009-09-11T21:06:00.003+01:00

A defendant who claims to be a 'tosser' does not want his case to be heard because he believes the jury are prejudiced towards tossers. The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, but who has been nicknamed Mr Tosser by the clerk, thinks that his case should be heard by a single judge - preferably a tosser like himself.

In an irate outburst, Mr Tosser shouted across the court that he had been aware of his "growing propensity to tosserdom" for years and that it had become fully-fledged ever since he started watching Top Gear last month. It was following the programme that Tosser stole an Audi Quattro and sat for fifty minutes outside his ex-wife's house playing 'The Sign' by Ace of Base ten times over at a loud volume with the windows down. When District Judge Llew Williams asked why he did this, Tosser replied "because I could".

Williams eventually agreed to Tosser's request, saying that there would be "no difficulty" in finding a tosser judge. The case was adjourned until Monday.

Tasty Stock but lack of key ingredients hands it to Russia on a plate

2009-09-09T22:07:00.008+01:00

Given the reputation that he has built up at Arsenal and in the under 21s, being mistaken for Aaron Ramsey is one of the highest accolades in Welsh football at the moment. That Brian Stock played for 25 minutes before I realised that he was, in fact, Brian Stock of Doncaster Rovers and not Aaron Ramsey, shows how well he played against Russia tonight. (It also shows that I need my glasses back from the optician more urgently than I thought.)

Stock was outstanding in an opening half an hour that saw Wales dominate one of the best teams in Europe. With Ricketts pushing forward down the right and Ramsey supporting the returning Craig Bellamy up front, Wales created more chances in 30 minutes than in the 180 minutes of home qualifiers against Finland and Germany.

And yet. One moment of brilliance from Ramsey's Arsenal team-mate Andrei Arshavin ten minutes before the break brought Toshack's side down to earth. He picked out Igor Semshov's intelligent run, who went on to shoot past Wayne Hennessey into the far corner. The goal flattered Russia who had not seriously threatened the Welsh goal until that point.

Wales were slow to start after the break and I started to fear the worst. But my faith in the future of Welsh football was reinforced when James Collins met Ramsey's corner at the near post and flicked it past Akinfeev. For ten minutes Wales pushed on, encouraged by Collins's second international goal and by the 14,000 crowd who finally had something to sing about.

Having again failed to convert pressure into goals, Wales succumbed once more. Gabbidon gave away a soft free-kick on the edge of the penalty area that Ignashevich drilled past Hennessey, who was misplaced standing behind the wall. Wales never reached the same level of performance in the second half as they had reached in the first and it seemed that the only team to score again would be Russia.

And so it was. Substitute Roman Pavlyuchenko had smashed a shot against the crossbar before taking advantage of a Collins mistake and firing a fine finish across Hennessey.

Wales were unable to capitalise on their good build-up play; nor did they have a Pavlyuchenko to make a goal out of nothing. Currently they are missing a striker who threatens to score each time he plays. Bellamy looked lively and made some good runs down the flanks but never looked like scoring. As I pointed out on Monday, Ched Evans was the only striker in the squad to have scored this season. He watched the whole game from the bench.

Wales lacked ambition when it was needed most. They clearly started the better and after ten minutes should have really grabbed the opportunity that was there to take the lead. After the equaliser Wales didn't capitalise on their momentum, although they weren't helped by some strange refereeing decisions.

Further, Toshack should have made a change at half-time rather than waiting for Wales to go 2-1 down before introducing Sam Vokes. If he'd backed them and their first-half performance, which included the best half hour I've seen Wales play for at least six years, then a half-time change would have taken the game to Russia and given his players the belief that they could go and win. As it was, it didn't look like Wales ever believed that they could win - neither during their opening spell nor at 1-1.

The game also clearly lacked atmosphere due to the Millennium Stadium being only one-fifth full. The FA of Wales's meeting next week to discuss taking the qualifiers to smaller stadia around the country cannot come too soon. It might be that the hotter atmosphere generated by a crowd of that size in the Liberty Stadium or even the Racecourse would have pushed Wales into the lead.

Toshack's goals

2009-09-07T20:55:00.008+01:00

Wales face Russia at the Millennium Stadium on Wednesday night knowing that they will not be qualifying for the World Cup next year. Their aim is to finish third in the group, thereby improving their seeding for the next round of qualifying games and, so the theory goes, placing them in an easier qualification group for Euro 2012.

This would mean finishing above Finland - the team who embarassed Wales 2-0 in Cardiff in March. The return leg in Helsinki comes next month and given that Wales are four points adrift of Finland that would appear to be a must-win game for Toshack's side. In addition, both teams have a difficult game - Wales play Russia on Wednesday and Finland travel to Germany in October - and a trip to Liechtenstein to negotiate.

But first comes Russia and Wales's lack of goals. Wales haven't scored more than one goal in a game for almost a year - that came against Liechtenstein and was a struggle. Wales have managed just 12 goals in the last 15 games, and 4 in the last 8.

Within the World Cup qualifying groups, only Albania, Malta, Luxembourg, Moldova, San Marino, Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein, Armenia, Andorra, Faroe Islands, Georgia and Macedonia have scored fewer than Wales. At the other end of the pitch, Wales have conceded 7 goals in 7 games - the same number as Croatia and France.

The defence isn't perfect but with Gabbidon alongside Collins it starts to look solid again. The young midfield grows with every game and there can be no doubt as to the potential of a Ramsey, Ledley, Edwards, Collison combination. The issue really is one of goals.

Toshack needs to start with Ched Evans, who has two goals this season, alongside Bellamy, who has none. Earnshaw, Church and Vokes are also yet to score this term but Bellamy's experience puts him ahead of the pack.

Toshack also needs to give Ramsey licence to break forward in support and shoot on sight. Ramsey's goal against Italy for the U21s shows the threat he carries. David Edwards chipped in with the winner in Azerbaijan and should be encouraged to join the front two at every opportunity.

Even if Wales beat Finland next month, and assuming that both teams get three points in Liechtenstein, the difference between the two sides will come down to how Wales fare against Russia and how Finland get on in Germany. Finland did push Germany all the way in a 3-3 draw earlier in the campaign but with Germany potentially needing a win to secure top place in the group, victory should be within Germany's grasp.

All this makes the Russia game crucial for Toshack's stated aim of finishing third in the group. Russia will score in Cardiff; the question is how many will Wales manage?

Estate Agents: Taylors

2009-08-20T07:00:00.004+01:00

"Christians?"
"Er, no."
"Just interested in ethical banking and stuff?"
"Er, yeah."
"That's cool."

Having come into contact with several estate agents in recent months, I've become aware of the huge variety in their hairstyles and dress sense, as well as their approach to what they do. Taylors are the worst I've encountered.

1) They are based in a supermarket. In Morrisons in what they like to call Cardiff Bay. Only it's not Cardiff Bay, it's a shopping estate on the no-man's land between Cardiff Bay and Penarth. A box of twelve Stella stubbies was on the man's desk.

2) We had an appointment at 5pm and had left work early to be there. The mortgage man nipped outside on his mobile just as we arrived so we had to wait with his colleague - who said nothing useful or interesting - for the next ten minutes. Eventually he went to fetch mortgage man from his private phone call.

3) The mortgage man wasn't very good with customers. He told us we needed an Agreement in Principle. We said that the Co-op wouldn't do one of those until we had applied for a mortgage, which we couldn't do until we'd had an offer on a house accepted. But every estate agent will ask you for one of these, he replied. (No-one else has.)

We repeated what we had said, adding that the Britannia Building Society had said the same thing as the Co-op - no agreement until you apply. Seemingly unable to move on, mortgage man pulled a sheet of A4 paper with the header 'Mortgage Agreement' from one of his drawers. This is what you need, he said, holding it up for us to see. He called his colleague over and asked whether that was what all estate agents need. After this onslaught, he told us not to be defensive.

Staggering on with the conversation, he asked whether we had received mortgage advice.

"Yes, we've arranged things with the Co-op."
"Ah, but I'm independent. [What are you doing sitting in a Taylors branch in Morrisons then?] The Co-op will only show you Co-op products. What if I show you some deals here that could save you £90 a month?"
"It depends who they're with."
"Oh, like ethical banking?"
"Yeah."
"Christians?"

4) They either lied or broke the law. When I rang to book a viewing I was told that as it was a "repo" (repossession) legally they had to make sure that we could afford it before they showed it to us. I agreed to visit said branch - travelling far across Cardiff in rush hour. The mortgage guy in the branch asked if we'd arranged finance, we said yes thank you and he gave us his blessing to see the property.

"But you haven't seen any proof - it's just us saying we can afford it", I protested.
"It's ok - I've asked if you can afford it. If you put an offer in and can't afford it then we'll know."

Either they just wanted us to go there so they could flog us a mortgage, in which case they lied about it being a legal requirement for them to check our finances as this was a "repo", or they broke the law as they let us see it without checking our finances beyond us saying what we could afford.

Climate Camp Cymru 2009: Ffos-y-Fran

2009-08-16T08:54:00.005+01:00

I attended my first Climate Camp yesterday, catching the train to Merthyr Tudful and walking to the camp near the Ffos-y-Fran opencast mine.

I had been invited months ago but had let the invitation sit in Facebook without a response. Friends have been to previous UK Climate Camps at Heathrow and Kingsnorth. They sounded like interesting places where ideas were hatched and debated. They were places where action was planned and taken to highlight the Governments' contradictory decisions regarding climate change: "we'll cut emissions by 80% but we're also going to increase airport capacity". But I didn't sign up straight away, probably because I was still quite dubious about the nature of these camps (what could they achieve?) and the people attending them (just how hard-core were they?).

Talk in the pub a couple of weeks ago reminded me about the Ffos-y-Fran camp and I decided to go. Not to camp overnight, mind you, but to go and see for myself one Saturday afternoon. On the train I asked myself why I was going. The urgency of climate change: one. Two: support the locals in Merthyr who I know have been fighting the mine hard. Three: take myself out of my comfort zone and experience something new. Four: see this mine that I'd read about.

First impressions were good. The camp looked organised, there were plenty of people milling around and ducking into one large tent I heard a few minutes of informed, impassioned debate about credit unions and the current banking mess. Things got even better when I found the kitchen tent and, parched from the slog up the hill from the train station, was able to procure a cup of Rosy Lea.

I wandered around, into and between the Bicycology tent (free repairs!), the face-painting tent, the Toilets: Poo Only, Gwagle Gweithdy 2, the Toilets: Wee Only. I noticed in the Handbook that had been given to me at the Welcome tent that Gwagle Gweithdy 3 would, at 2.15pm, see a discussion on the effectiveness of internet-based activism. As I'd only be around for one workshop before catching the train back to Cardiff, this looked like the one.

When I got to Gwagle Gweithdy 3, which was next to/part of Gwagle Gweithdy 2, the chalk on the small blackboard outside had been drizzle-smudged. I stuck my head in. Another similarly novice-looking guy came in behind me. A few people were applying clown face-paint. "Have you got mobile phones?" we were asked. I fumbled in my pocket while my novice friend said "I've turned it off." "You need to take the battery out." Stupidly, I did this without asking why. Having complied with the clown's request, I asked if this was where the internet activism workshop would be. "Dunno. But if you find it, mate, will you come back and tell me about it cos I'm interested in that." "Err, yeah, if I find it." I left the tent.

Feeling as though I really shouldn't have come I began wandering around the camp again. "Site meeting!" someone suddenly shouted through a loud-hailer. "Everyone meet!"

A circle of about 80 people gathered in the drizzle. Apparently there was some confusion over just what had been decided on Friday regarding a march on Saturday afternoon. Could someone clarify what they thought had been agreed upon?, a lady asked. Someone did. Could I take any points on that?, the lady asked. Lots of people did. 45 minutes of points simple, technical and directly-relevant. Lots of frustration.

It seemed the issue was that locals (and some protestors) were not happy with "breaking the law direct action" as compared with going on a march up the hill to the mine. If we all went together, so it appeared, then the police would not be able to distinguish between who was marching and who was more intent on mischief. Fair enough. But this was talked over, under, around and through for 45 minutes in an attempt to reach consensus and we didn't get anywhere.

After about 20 minutes, someone pointed out that we had arranged to meet local residents for the march at 2.30pm and if we didn't leave now then the locals might get annoyed waiting. Not even that shook people out of the discussion. Someone proposed that the Affinity Groups (small groups of people willing to take direct action) should leave 2-3 minutes later than the march to show the police that they were separate. 2-3 minutes wasn't enough time to make that distinction, someone countered. Does anyone have a proposal to make that distinction more obvious, asked the lady. Ummm, I pondered, how about more minutes? Bonkers.

I had gone from being impressed by the organisation - erecting a squatted camp and sustaining themselves for days is a truly impressive achievement, to being utterly disengaged. The principle of consensus decision-making is a valid one but I couldn't help thinking that people with even less experience of it than I have would not stick around for the action that it might produce.

I wandered off again, not sure whether I'd go on this march. I didn't know whether it was illegal, whether I'd be arrested, the route we were taking even. I spoke to a nice woman weaving baskets. When I looked back at the meeting the meeting had dissipated. Had the march actually started? I walked over, thinking about whether I should join, and saw another meeting circle. The people who were staying behind to protect the camp were talking tactics. Bloody hell. I ran to catch up with the marchers.

Over the stile and up the hill. A woman applauded out of the window of her car in support of the protest, others beeped. The mine was further than I had hoped. Near the top of the hill, the police had erected a human wall and informed us that the road was closed. People milled about. I had no idea what was happening; no-one had talked about this eventuality at the meeting. What were we doing?

Some people drifted onto the common land at the roadside to circumnavigate the police roadblock. I, too, walked up the hillside as there was no view of the mine from the road. What I saw from the top was truly upsetting and I didn't see half of it. This mine is huge. The plan is to extract 11 million tons of coal over the next 15 years, burn it to produce electricity and pump as much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as Mozambique over the same period. Despite having been live for more than two years, the 'Environment' pages of the official website are conveniently and unbelievably still 'under construction'.

This mine is also ridiculously close to people, just 37 metres in some places. Looking down from the hilltop it was easy to see (and hear) the nuisance caused by this proximity. Merthyr has been shat on.

While clowns and protesters dressed as penguins spread across the common land to avoid the police, I came down off the hill and caught my train back to Cardiff. I feel I have achieved what I wanted to achieve. In marching up the hill I demonstrated support for the people of Merthyr and their campaign. In being at the camp I took myself out of my comfort zone. In being frustrated at the site meeting's circular arguments, seemingly without urgency, I experienced something new. And in climbing the hill I saw the mine. I saw the mine and I was ashamed.

A pregnant pause

2009-08-16T08:45:00.003+01:00

Nine months since my last post. Why?

I started a new job in November that left me less free time, December brought Christmas and fun and games, January...well since January I've been particularly busy with the campaign to save The Vulcan, one of Cardiff's oldest pubs, from demolition.

I'm glad to say that we succeeded, at least temporarily. The developer Rapport has offered a three-year extension to the lease. He has now submitted plans to build the multi-storey car park at the back of the site off Adam Street; the original plans would have built it where The Vulcan currently stands.

Lewis Shamilton

2008-11-06T18:56:00.003Z

Lewis Hamilton visited McLaren HQ near Woking yesterday to say thanks to the 1800 workers who design and build the car he races and are therefore behind his World Championship success. As residents of the UK they use public roads, libraries, and the emergency services. The vast majority of them will use the NHS and send their children to state schools. They pay their taxes. Lewis Hamilton doesn't.

Hamilton grew up in Britain. He received a state education and treatment from NHS doctors, nurses and dentists when he needed it. He was brought up on a council estate in Stevenage. Now, with an annual income estimated at £18 million, he lives in Switzerland to avoid paying tax. One might think this makes him a greedy, selfish shit. He owes this country for what he received as he was growing up. He owes the workers that put him on the podium. "I love this team", he said. Evidently not enough to pay his way like the rest of his team-mates.

500 places to see before they disappear

2008-10-26T12:25:00.005Z

There's a new book out that lists 500 places to see before they disappear because of climate change or aggressive developers. According to Holly Hughes, co-author, "this book is a carefully chosen list of last-chance destinations that eco-conscious travellers can enjoy - if they move sharpish". Eco-conscious?! How best to move sharpish? By plane I'd wager.

Travelling to see somewhere before it disappears because of climate change simply hastens its departure date. You get to see it, admittedly, but you reduce the number of other people that will be able to enjoy it. You'd have to be pretty selfish to say, "I think I'm important enough to fly to the Everglades/the Dead Sea/Peru/The Falklands/New York before they disappear/change forever. Other people might not get to see them but I should because I'm me."

There are some British entries that you might be able to get to in a relatively sustainable way such as the Jurassic Coast in Dorset and Roundstone Bog in County Galway but here the authors remain oblivious to the idiocy inherent in their work. Also included are Hadrian's Wall, whose biggest threat is identified by The Guardian as being the "tourists who walk [its footpath]", and The Burren, County Clare, where "more hikers are trampling over it to marvel at the stone relics of its ancient inhabitants."

Hughes's co-author Larry West states that "The planet is poorer every time we allow something beautiful to die." The planet is also poorer every time some idiots bring out a book urging us to be selfish.

One in ten British prisoners are ex-Forces

2008-10-25T18:28:00.004+01:00

Research carried out by the National Association of Probation Officers (NAPO) shows that roughly 10% of those incarcerated are ex-services. Elfyn Llwyd brought attention to this fact by hosting a parliamentary debate last Tuesday. He talked of receiving communication from one ex-serviceman:

"...on the conclusion of his tour of duty he was flown to Cyprus with his comrades for three days’ R and R. There was alcohol day and night. On the concluding day, they were all put together in a hall and an officer asked them, “Any problems, anybody? No? Fine.” Tick the box, and that was it. Obviously, in the macho culture that exists in the services, those men would not admit problems in the presence of their friends and comrades."

Joseph Stiglitz and Linda Bilmes have calculated that as of late 2007, the UK had spent some £7bn on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. While this may compare favourably to the $3tn that the USA has spent, why hasn't more of that £7bn been spent on post-combat care?

Llwyd went on to quote an article from the Independent on Sunday that sets out some MoD expenditure: "£86.8 million was spent on private education for officers’ children, and in the Royal Air Force £1 million was spent on chauffeurs, £3.4 million was spent on waiters in officers’ messes, £800,000 was spent on bar staff and £2.8 million was spent on paying chefs."

Not only does the government send them to fight an unjust war and is failing them in combat, it does not care enough what happens to them when they return.

150 years of Cardiff history or 50 parking spaces?

2008-10-23T12:14:00.008+01:00

One of the oldest buildings in Cardiff is set to be demolished next summer. The Council plan to pull down The Vulcan pub on Adam Street to make way for a car park that will serve the St David's 2 shopping centre.

The situation is made worse by the fact that, according to the developers' own leaflet, the demolition of The Vulcan will add a mere 50 parking spaces to the 450 that are already available on that site. There will in addition be 2000 spaces on top of the shopping complex and 550 underneath John Lewis.

The Vulcan was opened in 1853 and has retained its original frontage. Three years ago owners Brain's were adamant that they would not sell. However, despite the landlords making good money, the brewery have since been served with a compulsory purchase order. It is institutions like The Vulcan that make a place that bit different and provide some relief from the ubiquitous everytown high rise flats, Starbucks and Walkabouts.

There is a Facebook campaign group and a campaign blog with petition. If you live in Cardiff contact your local Councillor about this atrociously short-sighted, profit-driven decision. We've got about six months to change their minds!

Could Welsh rugby organise a piss-up in a brewery?

2008-10-22T16:03:00.006+01:00

The Guardian reports that Wales wonder coach Warren Gatland is questionning his position. The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) and Gatland want the regions to release their international players thirteen days ahead of the opening Autumn fixture against South Africa. They argue that this is in line with the existing participation agreement between the WRU and the regions, signed in 2004.

However the regions are refusing and claim that Gatland did not approach the regions with his requirements for the whole year as the agreement requires. Asking for players to be released at this stage in the season is not allowed for in the agreement. Such a move would also leave the regions' squads depleted for the final group round of the Anglo-Welsh Cup. The resulting stand-off has led to the WRU asking the International Rugby Board for a ruling to resolve the matter.

In the meantime the regions have formed a group - Regional Rugby Wales (RRW) - that will speak with a united voice when dealing with the union. Former WRU Chief Executive and author of the 2004 agreement David Moffett has been recruited to head RRW and says that the regions want a new participation agreement, presumably along the lines of that negotiated in England earlier this year. That left the clubs in a much stronger position than before, receiving healthy sums for releasing international players and bypassing the union when striking sponsorship and television deals.

Wales's previous Grand Slam-winning coach Mike Ruddock prophesised back in March that the only thing that could stop Wales from conquering the world was internal discontent. Ruddock lost out in a power game with the WRU and Welsh rugby was in the doldrums for more than a year. Gatland has the WRU under control but the creation of RRW means that the regions could well prove to be his bete noire.

McCain fries French

2008-10-17T16:12:00.006+01:00

Speaking on the Late Show with David Letterman earlier this week, John McCain blamed the French for several high profile inappropriate comments heard at electoral rallies. [At 8m56s into the video.]

Letterman asked the Senator from Arizona about the Republican supporters who have been heard to shout 'Traitor' or 'Terrorist' when he or Sarah Palin ask 'Who is the real Barack Obama?'. McCain responded by saying 'There are always a few French people who will abuse their constitutional rights.' Blaming the French for these outbursts represents a new low in Republican attacks on Europe and its alleged elitism.

This allegation has not been well received in Paris where the Quai d'Orsay released this statement:

"Nous sommes completement etonnes par les mots de Senateur McCain. Il devrait s'en tenir a produire des frites."

Alexis de Tocqueville was unavailable for comment last night.

Cwmniau Cleantech clodfawr

2008-10-16T17:44:00.006+01:00

Two of the top ten hottest clean technology companies in Europe are based in Wales. According to Cleantech 100, produced by The Guardian and Library House, Deep Stream Technologies in Bangor and Atraverda of Abertillery are worthy of a place in the higher echelons.

Deep Stream Technologies are reshaping electronic circuits to monitor, measure and manage energy at the point of use. Sensors within the circuits help to control the use of power.

Atraverda work with conductive ceramic that stores power better than conventional lead-acid methods. This allows for smaller, lighter, more powerful and longer-lasting batteries. The bipolar batteries developed by Atraverda can be 40% smaller, 30% lighter, and use approximately 50% less lead than normal batteries.

Other Welsh companies to make the list are Inetec, Bridgend, generating energy from food waste, Pelikon, Caerphilly, developing next generation liquid crystal displays, and G24i, Cardiff, creating new solar cells that operate in low-light conditions.

Jimmy of Wales

2008-10-16T17:22:00.003+01:00

When both First Minister and Deputy First Minister were in Kentucky for the handover of the Ryder Cup, much was made of Wales needing to boost its image abroad, especially in the States and especially among businesspeople.

Step forward Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia. He should be signed up to record a TV commercial exploring Wales. The guy's got the perfect name and the perfect profile to penetrate the USA psyche with tales of Wales. With a name like that I can only assume that there's some Welsh link somewhere in his ancestry; even if there's not, if it were me I'd still be interested in learning about the country I had for a surname.

Boo-nisia

2008-10-15T17:14:00.003+01:00

The French Sports Minister has declared that booing the French national anthem prior to an international friendly match will result in the cancellation of the fixture. Her decision follows Tunisian attempts to drown out the singer of the Marsaillaise at the Stade de France last night, herself of Tunisian origin.

Liechtenstein got off lightly last Saturday, then, as their anthem sounds suspiciously like that of our near neighbours.

Miliband of Brothers

2008-10-15T16:13:00.005+01:00

Foreign Secretary David Miliband has claimed that climate change is a 'low impact risk'. Interviewed in the October edition of Prospect, the former Environment Secretary compares climate change and terrorism in terms of their probability and the risk they pose to the UK (his second answer under ' On British politics, the future of Labour and the left'). He says that terrorism is low probability but high risk, while climate change is the opposite.

On the risk that climate change poses to the UK Miliband has got it wrong. It is true that we might not suffer most from changes in our immediate climate - although the floods will most likely get worse and more frequent, and the summers might disappear as they did this year - but the mistake that Miliband makes is to consider climate change solely from an environmental perspective. It is much more than that. It will create huge movements of peoples, seeking land safe from rising sea levels, floods, droughts, and hurricanes, and suitable for agriculture to sustain them. It will create conflict where these migrations inflame tensions between the nations of the world. There is in reality no limit to the impact that climate change will have, particularly for a nation like the UK that will be seen as a haven due to its relatively unaffected climate and its wealth.

One can only hope that his brother at the newly created Department for Energy and Climate Change has a different view. Although seeing the government's recent approval of a new runway at Stansted, it doesn't look like Miliband Jr has much clout at the Cabinet table.

The absence of love is the most abject pain

2008-10-15T15:39:00.014+01:00

Herr Lipp and Icelandic PM Geir Haarde share more than a passing resemblance; both are denied the love they crave. Justin resists Herr Lipp's amourous advances and Gordon certainly doesn't love Geir.

US National Debt clock "too small"

2008-10-09T13:17:00.002+01:00

A couple of days ago the display that records US National Debt became too small to accommodate the new $10 trillion figure.

Re-thinking recycling

2008-10-09T12:25:00.007+01:00

First we learn that Wales is recycling more than ever before. Then we hear that the amount of harmful gases Wales releases into the atmosphere continues to increase. This is reminiscent of a story earlier this week about a couple who had recycled enough tins, bottles and cans at their local supermarket to earn thousands of loyalty points that they then spent on two return flights to the US. (Point, the, missed, they).

Recycling is commendable in as much as it develops understanding that many resources are finite, and it is an easy way for people to engage with the climate change agenda. People and politicians alike have latched onto recycling precisely because it is easy, but it is only one aspect of a familiar refrain: 'Reduce, re-use, recycle'. It is obvious that even recycling double what we do now will not prevent the disastrous consequences of climate chaos - especially if that means twice as many loyalty points and twice as many transatlantic flights.

WWF have calculated that if everyone on earth lived as we do in Wales, we would need three planets to sustain that lifestyle. We simply have to reduce our levels of consumption; the way we are living now literally cannot last.

The world has recently been caught out living beyond its financial means and is suffering a massive 'correction'. The WWF research shows that an environmental 'correction' is inevitable, and it would be more devastating in the long term than any financial collapse. Reducing drastically our environmental footprint now will make that environmental 'correction' less painful.

In one way Wales is lucky. Power stations account for over a third of Wales's carbon dioxide emissions and Wales has wind, waves and tides in abundance that could replace dirty coal. If we are going to cut emissions, leadership needs to be evident and big decisions taken about the de-carbonisation of our energy supply.

Price misses the mane target

2008-10-08T16:36:00.003+01:00

Sport and politics do not mix. This mantra was heard for months leading up to the Beijing Olympics as justification for attending the games in a country whose human rights record is second-last to none. Is Adam Price not familiar with it?

He wrote an article recently, referring to it on his blog, that questionned the future of the British and Irish Lions. The Lions, he said, should be "superseded by a standing European team which would play a series every two years, alternately home and away, against a Southern Hemisphere XV: a sort of Ryder Cup for rugby." The reasoning behind this idea was "half sporting, half identity-politics". It looks more like 100% identity-politics to me.

Even were this European team to exist alongside the Lions - highly unlikely given the already full fixture calendar - such a move would serve to dilute the Lions project. Rugby fans rightly love the Lions: the heritage, the all-too-rare series wins; one simply can't argue for an attack on the Lions from a sporting point of view. In making his case, Price says that the world has changed. Indeed it has; 'British' no longer necessarily means empire.

Plaid made good ground in several south Wales councils in May. They gained six seats in Caerffili, three in Torfaen, seven in Rhondda Cynon Taf and now lead the Council in Caerffili. Price's comments on the Lions will no doubt have been heard and discussed in one of the rugby heartlands. He must hope that his comments, sacreligious to many in the rugby world, do not alienate these new-found voters. As Director of Elections, he should concentrate instead on communicating Plaid's vision for Wales in terms of jobs, education, health and housing.

David Cameron: odd one out

2008-10-08T13:27:00.004+01:00

Of the four most senior members in the Conservative Shadow Cabinet, only David Cameron did not go to Magdalen College, Oxford. Shadow Chancellor George Osborne, Shadow Home Secretary Dominic Grieve, and Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague were all privileged enough to have a deer park outside their bedroom window at university. Cameron had to make do with Brasenose.

Grieve for Davis

2008-10-08T12:41:00.004+01:00

A combination of reading Nick Robinson's blog telling how 42-day detention is now dead and coming across a Guardian interview with Shadow Home Secretary Dominic Grieve made me think, how did David Davis get on in his by-election?

It was back in June that Grieve's predecessor resigned over the government's proposal to extend the period of detention without charge from 28 to 42 days (or, in his words, over the government's 'strangulation' of British freedoms). He triggered what was to all intents and purposes a single issue by-election in Haltemprice and Howden, causing masses of media coverage for a few days, but I have absolutely no idea what the outcome was.

It transpires that Davis won with over 17,000 votes, almost 6,000 fewer than he received in 2005 yet tripling his majority. The Green Party came second with over 1,700 votes. Turnout was 34%. In the event, there were 26 candidates including David Icke and those representing 'Church of Militant Elvis Party', 'Make Politicians History', and 'Miss Great Britain Party'. Labour did not field a candidate, calling Davis's resignation a 'farce' and a 'stunt'. The Lib Dems also decided not to contest the election.

So was it worth it? Are Davis's by-election and the Lords' reported inclination to hammer 42 days linked? Davis says that before his resignation polls showed that 69% of people supported the government on 42 days, but afterwards this figure had fallen to 39%. Davis certainly gained himself and the issue a great deal of publicity by resigning. However the story quickly disappeared and Davis lost the trust of David Cameron and a seat on the front bench in the process. Moreover, given the conservative nature of the Lords, they are somewhat unlikely to have been moved by the extraordinary actions of a member of the Shadow Cabinet. 42 days would have failed without David Davis's resignation.

The mind boggles Part One

2008-10-07T21:46:00.006+01:00

From BBC News 24...

Presenter: Could we see something approaching the Depression of the 1920s [sic]?
Will Hutton (via telephone): ...[it's possible that the crisis] could wipe 5-10% off UK GDP - this country's biggest ever fall, not as bad as the USA in the 1930s but still...
Presenter: Will Hutton, thank you. And now Entertainment 24.

[Very short Entertainment 24 title sequence]

Presenter: I am so excited right now.
Ent 24 presenter: So am I.
Presenter: I love High School Musical.
Ent 24 presenter: Yup, and number three's coming out. Have you seen one and two?
Presenter: Like, ten times.

Me: Like, who gives a fuck about High School Musical in the midst of what could be the country's biggest ever economic crisis?

I bet on a horse at ten-to-one and it came in at half-past five

2008-10-07T17:24:00.013+01:00

The Western Mail reports today on the unnoticed success that Wales is enjoying in the world of horse racing. Wales currently provides four of the top ten National Hunt trainers. Surprising though this is, the piece fails to mention Sam Thomas winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup this year, Carl Llewelyn's successful move into training or the amazing return from injury of Christian Williams.

The article does draw attention to the importance of the horse racing industry to rural communities. South west Wales, home of two of the four trainers, is fast becoming a horsey hub. Alongside Wales's first horse hospital at Narberth, the new racecourse at Ffos Las, near Trimsaran, will be completed next August - the first new National Hunt racecourse to be built in the UK for 80 years.

While horse racing may help rural communities, the betting industry that it spawns is turning some urban areas into pockets of uniformity, feeding on the dreams of those who live there. On a recent half-hour walk through Grangetown, I passed at least six betting shops.

About a year ago the applications process for new betting shops was relaxed. Previously, the bookmaker had to prove that demand in the area was not already fulfilled; last September this requirement was removed. As a result, councils can turn down an application only if they are able to prove the bookmaker is not "fit and proper", unfair to punters, a source of disorder and putting children or other vulnerable people at risk.

It is not only horse racing that draws in the punters, of course. Each betting shop is allowed four 'fixed odds betting terminals' - electronic touch-screen roulette and blackjack machines. The Guardian estimates that they produce £2000-2500 of profit per week and notes that they have been dubbed 'the crack cocaine of gambling addicts'.

The Gambling Commission survey of 2007 found that most people in the UK (68%) take part in some form of betting. If we remove the National Lottery from the results and examine all other forms of gambling - casinos, bingo, horse racing, etc. - around 1,000,000 more people placed a bet in 2007 than in 1999. Indeed betting on horse racing jumped from 13% of all betting to 17% over the same period and was the only form of betting that both men and women did more of. There are over 250,000 problem gamblers in the UK, mostly from low-income backgrounds.

The rash of betting shops spreading across our towns and cities not only removes a little more of their individuality, it also facilitates the proliferation of poverty in what are often already deprived areas.

[I should point out that I like a bet (and was gutted when Thomas won on Denman as I was on Kauto Star). Unsurprisingly there are no betting shops in Pontcanna.]

PFI: People Filched Indiscreetly

2008-10-02T08:36:00.006+01:00

Politicians' lack of foresight never ceases to amaze. On climate change, even when a former Chief Economist of the World Bank advises to "spend 1% of global GDP to address climate change now or global GDP will be 20% lower than it otherwise would be", still the wheels of change are turning so slowly, if at all.

On Public Finance Initiative (PFI), New Labour has since 1997 enthusiastically embraced John Major's idea to open up the public sector to private competition. This is in spite of the fact that schemes run under PFI tie the tax-payers of tomorrow into decades of payback and end up costing far more than they would had they been directly paid for by government in the first place. As things stand today PFI contracts in the NHS alone will provide private companies with £23bn profit over the next thirty years.

In Wales there are 42 PFI projects with a capital value of over £1bn. Neath Port Talbot Hospital was built under PFI at a cost of £66m. The tax-payer will end up paying the private company £300m, nearly five times the original cost. St David's Community Hospital in Cardiff will cost nearly eight times as much to the tax-payer as the private company spent on its development.

It seemed that the One Wales government had seen the iceberg as it ruled out the use of PFI in the Welsh health service during the third term. (It is unclear why One Wales rules out PFI in the NHS and says nothing about its drawbacks when it comes to building roads or schools.) Now, sadly, Captain Morgan might be tempted to steer the good ship Cymru onto the rocks. The National Assembly's Finance Committee has produced a report stating that Wales "needs to develop partnerships with the private sector" in order to deliver "the investment and modern public services that Wales needs."

Government both local and national has long contracted private companies to build roads, prisons, hospitals, schools, etc., paying for them directly out of taxation. PFI works by getting private companies to build roads, prisons, hospitals, schools, etc. and then renting them to the government, which pays the rent with taxation. As any property developer knows, over time renting will bring in much more cash than selling.

Registered private companies have a legal duty to their shareholders to maximise profit. In other words, profit comes before everything else, including people. Profit comes before not only the people who use these services but also those who work there - the teachers, nurses and doctors. In the public sector, which is historically where most schools and hospitals have been, people come first.

Government, elected by the people, also should put people first. One might argue that it is concern for people that leads to PFI being used to construct new roads, prisons, schools and hostpitals. Yet ultimately the people will pay more - far more - than these things are worth. As with life under the credit boom, we are told that we can have it all: put it on the card! Eventually though we'll have to pay for it, most likely through higher taxes. Yet higher taxes now could have meant paying £66m for Neath Port Talbot Hospital directly in the first place rather than £3oom a few decades down the line.

It's short-sighted, it's irresponsible, and it sucks.

Eid livestock plans 'folly' says Dolly

2008-09-30T10:23:00.008+01:00

Welsh farmers have met with Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones to express their opposition to EU plans to introduce Eid for Muslim sheep and goats. The EU believes that creating a three day holiday at the end of Ramadan would go some way to show Muslims that it is serious about building a mature relationship with Islam. It is also seen as helping to pave the way for Turkish accession into the EU.

However, NFU Cymru vice-president Ed Bailey does not agree. "It is just another example of Brussels bureaucrats having pie in the sky ideas without any understanding of the practical realities of commercial sheep farming...Sheep farmers throughout Wales are horrified at the prospect of having to cope with Eid which would serve no purpose."

It is thought that giving Muslim sheep and goats three days off milking would reduce farmers' incomes, as well as create tensions between Muslim livestock and those that follow an alternative religion, who would not necessarily understand why their Muslim colleagues were getting three days paid leave.

Dolly, spokewoman for Atheist Livestock Association (ALA), pointed out the particular frustrations felt by the atheist community: "Personally I find it difficult to believe in any sort of deity since my own creation showed that mature differentiated somatic cells in an adult animal's body could under some circumstances revert back to an undifferentiated pluripotent form and then develop into any part of an animal. The idea of introducing a three day holiday just for one section of the livestock community is really baad. It's pure folly."

Following the meeting with farmers the Minister visited Mynachdy Farm, at Ynysbwl, near Pontypridd, to see a live demonstration of sheep Eid. Sheep there have been taught Welsh from a young age and were able to recite Takbir bilingually for the benefit of Ms Jones, who doesn't speak Arabic. The sheep then celebrated the end of fasting with lots of grass.

Welsh Affairs Select Committee

2008-09-29T08:11:00.004+01:00

Back in July the Welsh Affairs Select Committee complained that AMs were sending too much work their way. As the Committee is the group of MPs that debate and process Legislative Competency Orders, they are a vital cog in the new machine of 'Welsh law'.

Of the forty MPs Wales returns to Westminster, Plaid has as many as the Tories (three) and the Lib Dems have four. I was therefore surprised to learn that there are in fact three times as many Conservatives on the Committee as either Plaid or Lib Dems.

The clerk of the committee told me that "The appointment of Members to serve on select committees is made by the House of Commons, on a recommendation from the Committee of Selection (itself a select committee). Membership of select committees is intended to reflect, so far as is possible, the balance of the political parties as returned to Parliament at the last general election." In other words, the Conservatives' strength in parts of England means that they are awarded a greater number of positions on the Welsh Affairs Select Committee than parties performing as well, if not better, in Wales alone.

More intriguingly, Mark Pritchard, one of the Conservatives on the committee, represents The Wrekin, near Telford, Shropshire. Apparently, MPs serving on the Welsh Affairs Select Committee do not have to represent constituents most affected by 'Welsh Affairs'. I'd have thought the clue was in the name.

Oriental bird gives pleasure to Powys man

2008-09-26T10:35:00.000+01:00

A Lady Amherst pheasant has been regularly sampling Pete Bryan's nuts since January.

An Inconvenient Youth

2008-09-25T19:16:00.001+01:00

Al Gore told the Clinton Global Initiative in New York yesterday, "If you're a young person looking at the future of this planet and looking at what is being done right now, and not done, I believe we have reached the stage where it is time for civil disobedience to prevent the construction of new coal plants that do not have carbon capture and sequestration."

This comes on the back of Greenpeace activists being found not guilty of causing criminal damage at Kingsnorth Power Station in Kent earlier this month. Their defence was 'lawful excuse'; they argued that the emissions produced from burning coal at Kingsnorth put property around "in immediate need of protection". As one of the Greenpeace activists Ben Stewart asked, "If jurors from the heart of Middle England say it's legitimate for a direct action group to shut down a coal-fired power station because of the harm it does to our planet, then where does that leave government energy policy?"

Criced Cymru

2008-09-24T12:13:00.001+01:00

In light of Cardiff hosting a one-day international between England and South Africa a few weeks ago, Mohammad Ashgar AM called for Wales to establish a full national cricket side. How would this happen?

It is important to note at the outset that Wales does have a history of competing in international cricket. The first match was against Scotland in Perth in 1923 and Wales beat the West Indies in 1928. Half a century later Wales competed in the first ICC Trophy, a tournament for non-Test playing nations, won by Sri Lanka. More recently Wales have played England in 50-over games, winning handsomely in 2002 (admittedly with the distinctly non-Welsh Jacques Kallis on board).

Many Welshmen have been of Test match standard over the years, not all of whom were selected by England. The most notable and recent is Simon Jones who played such a big part in the 2005 Ashes success. Others include Simon's father Jeff, who won fifteen caps for England in the 1960s, and Robert Croft, who played twenty-one times for England between 1996 and 2001.

Glamorgan of course are the only first-class County side in Wales and so any Welsh line-up would inevitably be made up of many Glamorgan players. At the beginning at least, it could be that Welsh-born cricketers play for Wales in one-dayers, including the World Cup, but for England in Test matches. Ed Joyce played one-dayers for Ireland before winning Test caps for England.

A Wales Minor Counties team has existed since 1988 and competes in the Minor Counties Championship. Glamorgan themselves used to play in this competition until they were awarded first-class status in 1921. Wales Minor Counties also played in what was the NatWest or C&G Trophy - 'the FA Cup of cricket'. However, the format was altered in 2006, leaving no place for a Wales side.

So how might Wales get their own national cricket team?

Scotland have shown us the way. Scotland resigned from the UK Cricket Council (then superseded by the England and Wales Cricket Board, or ECB) in 1992 and two years later were elected to Associate membership of the International Cricket Committee. They qualified for the 1999 and 2007 World Cups and have since played in several other international tournaments, winning the inaugural ICC Intercontinental Cup. Capturing the ICC Trophy in 2005 meant that Scotland gained temporary first-class One-Day International Status in January 2006.

Currently it is the Welsh Cricket Association that looks after the amateur game in Wales. The Association is a member of the England and Wales Cricket Board, commonly referred to as the ECB with the W conveniently dropped. (Even the website is ecb.co.uk). Wales would have to break from the ECB and become an Associate or Affiliate member of the ICC to be able to enter the ICC World Cup Qualifier (formerly ICC Trophy). It is performing well in this competition that confers qualification for the World Cup.

There are many Welshmen at the top of the game. David Morgan, former Glamorgan and ECB Chairman, is now President of the International Cricket Committee, Tony Lewis - nine times capped by England - is Chairman of the MCC, and Hugh Morris (three caps) has worked for the ECB for many years and is currently Managing Director of England Cricket.

Ashgar's Plaid colleague Adam Price tabled an Early Day Motion in 2002 that expressed the desire for a Welsh national team to compete in the World Cup. Now that Ashgar has raised the issue once again, maybe the Assembly can put pressure on the top brass to give serious consideration to the proposal.

From Leader of the Knights who say 'Ni' to Leader of the Free World!

2008-09-18T08:00:00.000+01:00

Michael Palin's Secretary of State could well be Roger the Shrubber. Perhaps Michael's campaign might then do a little better than Sarah's on foreign policy, and could provide a more coherent answer to Charlie Gibson's questionning (see the video below for Sarah's response and then decide which is better).

Charlie Gibson: Do you agree with the Bush Doctrine?

Roger the Shrubber: In what respect Charlie?

Charlie Gibson: What do you interpret it to be?

Roger the Shrubber: His horticultural view?

Charlie Gibson: No, no, the Bush Doctrine. He enunciated it in September 2002 before the Iraq War.

Roger the Shrubber: I agree with the principle but not with the name. I think every garden in America needs a 'bush', as you call it, or what I'd call a shrub. I'd like to see the new President, whoever he may be, redefine it as the Shrub Doctrine.

Putting semantics aside for the moment, even those who arrange and design shrubberies are under considerable economic stress at this period in history. Like I said earlier, I think a shrub in every American garden can only be good for those of us who design, arrange and sell shrubberies.

Convincing, huh? Then compare that with this:

Bale=Giggs Mk II? Let's hope not

2008-09-16T17:35:00.000+01:00

Bale=Giggs Mk II

Born in Cardiff, having a left foot touched by magic and with a knack of lighting up Wales's World Cup Qualifying Campaigns, Gareth Bale and Ryan Giggs have much in common. Bale has been far and away Wales's brightest light in the campaign to date, generating excitement reminiscent of that surrounding Giggs during the early nineties.

There is certainly much similarity between their early careers. Giggs made his League debut at 17 and was named the PFA Young Player of the Year at the end of his first full season (1991-92). At sixteen years of age, Bale became the second youngest player to appear for Southampton, behind Theo Walcott, and his first full season saw him named the Football League Young Player of the Year. Giggs became Wales's youngest international in 1991; Bale did the same in 2006.

Walcott has since moved to Spurs' North London rivals Arsenal and has generated a great deal of coverage in the English press after his hat-trick against Croatia. Bale's contribution to Wales's qualifying campaign could yet be the bigger story. That depends on whether or not he can inspire Wales to go one better than they did with Giggs in 1993. The early signs are promising; despite missing a penalty in Moscow, Bale then set up Ledley's equaliser with a superb break into the Russian box.

The USA '94 campaign started with a 5-1 defeat in Romania and finished with a crossbar ending Welsh dreams. What appears to have opened the window of opportunity for Wales in 1992/93 is the fact that the top four teams in Group 4 all took points off each other. In 2008/09 Finland have already pushed Germany all the way in a 3-3 draw.

The great shame with Giggs wasn't so much the fact that he didn't get to play on the world stage but that he didn't play for Wales as many times as he ought to have done. He won just 64 caps in sixteen years; by comparison, Manchester United team-mate Paul Scholes won 66 caps in just seven years. Yes, Scholes played for England at France 98 (4 games), Euro 2000 (4), World Cup 2002 (5), and Euro 2004 (4) but even without these tournament appearances he still averaged seven caps per year. This compares favourably to Giggs's four. Hopefully Bale will show more commitment to the Welsh cause than Giggs did during the last decade of his international career.

The bigger question, of course, is whether Gareth Bale's chest is anything like as hairy as that of Ryan Giggs and whether he'll ever get name-dropped in The Simpsons.

Dear Jeffrey Lewis

2008-09-15T17:18:00.000+01:00

Having listened heavily to a couple of Jeffrey Lewis albums ever since my girlfriend introduced me to them a couple of years ago, the frankness of his song-writing meant that going to Clwb Ifor Bach last Wednesday to see him play live was like the first meeting with a pen friend you've never replied to.

I can't play guitar but the music seems simple enough for the most part; it's his lyrics that get you. Personal and speaking directly to the audience, Jeffrey Lewis lays his life out on stage. He was visible throughout the supporting acts, either at the merchandise stall or among the punters. We were joined for the last song of The Wave Pictures by Lewis standing next to us making a sketch of the scene. I'm hoping that he works it into his next distinctive interview or failing that the next in his series of comics.

A couple of songs that I hadn't heard before have stuck in my head ever since the gig: Roll bus roll and Broken. Listen yourself and see what I mean about the lyrics. Then go and see him live.

Parry 'just made up the numbers'

2008-09-09T14:37:00.000+01:00

Reading between the lines of a BBC article, and taking the headline far too literally, it would appear that Wales manager John Toshack had to ask Paul Parry to leave the Wales squad on Sunday night for fabricating the ages of fellow squad members.

Having no idea what the players' real ages were, the 28-year old made them up in an attempt to look like a big man. It is rumoured that he referred to Arsenal starlet Aaron Ramsey as 'the three year-old with the weak left foot', in reference to Parry's own strength on that particular side of his relatively middle-aged body, and ridiculed Saturday's matchwinner Sam Vokes by calling him 'a twelve-year old boy with size 18 shoes' - apparently unaware of how close he was to the truth (Vokes is in fact 18 and has size 12 feet).

Toshack said, 'It's a shame that Paul has so little knowledge of his fellow team-mates that he doesn't know their ages. We're supposed to be a group, you know. I mean I know for a fact that I'm 59 but Paul said I was 73. It's unacceptable behaviour from a Welsh international to make these sorts of figures up. I had a quiet word with him, away from the toddlers so as not to upset them, and we both decided that he would leave the squad.'

Parry has got previous making up the numbers, most notably in his Maths GCSE and again when his friends had a spare place going on a package holiday to Majorca in 2001.

[This post is pure fiction and bears no resemblance to 'the truth'.]

Vokes stokes Welsh hopes

2008-09-08T22:26:00.000+01:00

Wales worked hard to overcome Azerbaijan in front of a sparse 17,000 crowd at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday. The roof had been closed to protect the surface from the heavy downpours that have been such a feature of this summer, and despite some concerns aired before the game about the state of the pitch due to hosting the opening leg of Madonna's world tour the turf played well.

Yet the decision taken by the FAW to hold this game, along with the Liechtenstein and Finland fixtures, at the Cardiff venue looks particularly ill-judged. Several hundred fans queued in the rain for tickets in the hours before the game, adding considerably to the 8,000 sold in the preceding weeks, yet this still left the cavernous Stadiwm y Mileniwm merely a quarter full. The atmosphere was poor and was reduced to the drone created by the ubiquitous plastic horns flogged to SDHD (SunnyDelight-Hooked Delinquent) children.

Much more sensible would have been to take these first three home fixtures to the excellent Liberty Stadium, as Toshack himself argued back in June and Carl Fletcher has done in the aftermath of the Azerbaijan game. Saturday's crowd transferred to the home of Swansea City FC would have created a much better atmosphere for the Welsh players, possibly intimidated the Azeris and taken senior international football to a West Wales audience. Many, possibly including myself, would not have made the trip to Swansea for such a fixture but that difference would have been made up by a similar number being drawn to the Liberty Stadium from the local area and further west.

The FAW talked of having to consider what would happen in the case of Toshack's squad putting together a decent run of results and attracting far bigger crowds for the games later in the programme; all five venues needed to be decided far in advance. Fair enough, but this overlooked the fact that the first three games are against teams that are likely to attract fewer spectators and the final two games are against Germany and Russia; take them to the Millennium Stadium by all means, we'll need the full force of 72,500 voices behind Wales if we are to take anything from two of the best teams in Europe.

This was Berti Vogts's first meaningful game as Azerbaijan manager and he was hoping to add to their only victory of 2008 – a 2-1 win in Andorra. That they have recorded two draws and lost all four of their other games this year by a single goal suggested that this would be a more difficult challenge for Wales than the 4-0 thrashing handed out in 2003, or the Giggs-inspired 2-0 victory two years later. On both of these previous occasions, Wales had opened the scoring in the first few minutes of the game and the desire for a similar settling influence was clear on Saturday with this young and untried starting eleven. Simon Davies was the only survivor from the ill-fated Euro 2004 campaign and was captain for Saturday's clash.

The back five had only forty caps between them and five of the team that Toshack selected in Cardiff are members of the Under-21 squad that is so close to qualifying for the UEFA Championships playoffs. Despite this inexperience and new defensive line-up with Ashley Williams partnering Craig Morgan at centre-half, Wales started brightly and played good passing football during the first half without really troubling Agayev in the Azerbaijan goal. Wayne Hennessey, on the other hand, had to be at his best to keep out an effort that took a deflection off Williams. Wales clearly dominated to the break but in spite of the best efforts of Bale and Gunter to get forward from full-back and create, genuine chances were few and far between. It really was Bale and Koumas – who had three injections prior to the game to allow him to take the field – who provided the Welsh fans with their best hope.

The second half started slowly and the desperation of the crowd seemed to reach the players as their efforts became less and less coherent and increasingly forced. It was a Gunter surge into the box that induced a foul tackle and brought Wales their best opportunity to put clear water between them and the Azerbaijan team who by this time had decided that taking a point back to Baku would be cause for celebration. Koumas failed to convert the spot kick, however, and vented his frustration moments later when smacking the ball into the stand after being found guilty of fouling an opponent. The necessary yellow card followed and added to a peculiar booking for Bale minutes earlier, meaning that Wales's two best players from Saturday are both one booking away from suspension in this round of qualifying. A minor point, maybe, but one that might become more significant when the bigger games come around.

Soon after the penalty miss Azerbaijan were reduced to ten men when Ramim was dismissed for a second bookable offence, the referee having to be reminded by the crowd and Welsh players that the number seventeen had already received one yellow card. Toshack then made the decisive substitution that was to win the game. Sam Vokes replaced Wolves team-mate David Edwards to join fellow Under-21 striker Ched Evans up front for the final twenty minutes. Urged forward by a newly interested crowd, Wales pushed for the killer blow and put the visiting team under sustained pressure. Finally a Bale corner caused enough confusion in the Azerbaijan six-yard box for Vokes to sweep home the loose ball and give Wales the three points.

A daunting trip to Moscow follows on Wednesday where the Welsh defence can be assured of a far sterner test from the likes of Arshavin and Pavlyuchenko. The deserved three points gained from the Azerbaijan encounter should offer some confidence for the trip to the Russian captial and Welsh fans ought to be hopeful given that the average age of the finishing eleven on Saturday was a mere twenty-two. This is a Welsh squad that will only improve; whether this campaign is too much, too soon remains to be seen but the Welsh international scene over the next four to eight years looks as promising as it has in decades.

Gray's Monotony gets off the mark

2008-09-08T22:18:00.000+01:00

This is a blog for sport, politics and whatever 'culture' implies.

(My girlfriend told me to write this first post so that both she and the world know what this is all about.)