Alastair Campbell: He's feeling a bit bullied, y'know...

A "tearful" (surely proof of some sort of karma) Alastair Campbell defending the "honourable" (pah!) Tony Blair:

"I've been through a lot on this Andrew. And I've been through a lot of that inquiry... and... Tony Blair, I think, is a totally honourable man."

Hmm. Those who deceive millions of people and then have to go through an inquiry tend to feel like they have been through a lot. Difficult to feel a lot of sympathy for them, though. It's a bit like being expected to pity Richard Nixon for being put through the mill over Watergate - next to impossible to actually achieve.

Oh, and using the word "totally honourable" in connection with Tony Blair without a "not" is basically saying "I am talking total shite."

But the shamelessness of the inspiration for Malcolm Tucker is startling:

Mr Campbell said the media was obsessed with "settling your scores and setting your own agenda".

"You did it again this morning, which is probably why I'm a bit upset, this constant sort of vilification.

"You compared the novel to the dossier, and it's all fiction and all the rest of it. It's not. And I just think the way that this whole issue has developed now where I don't think people are interested in the truth anymore, Andrew."

That's right, we've got Alastair Campbell - who helped to hound a man to his grave - complaining of vilification from others. At the same time as complaining that other people aren't interesting in the truth while discussing his part in constructing a dossier that lead this nation to war on an utterly false premise. I suppose the scope of his ambition could be admired - although I really can't think of any men less likely to achieve the aura of "put-upon truth-seeker" than the ever atrocious moral desert that is Alastair Campbell.

Bribing The Voters

Good news! Some railway stations are going to be improved. But take a look at this list and see whether you can clock the link:

Manchester Victoria – Tony Lloyd LAB
Clapham Junction – Martin Linton LAB
Barking – Margaret Hodge LAB
Warrington Bank Quay – Helen Southworth LAB
Preston – Mark Hendrick LAB
Wigan North Western – Neil Turner LAB
Luton - Margaret Moran LAB
Liverpool Central – Louise Ellman LAB
Stockport – Ann Coffey LAB
Crewe – Edward Timpson CON

Yes! They are all in Labour constituencies, except Crewe which is a key Labour target seat! What a crazy co-incidence, especially this close to the election!

Of course, politicians always try to bribe voters. Thatcher did so magnificently with the sale of council houses, for example. But it is seldom that we such a blatant example. It is insulting the intelligence of the British populace. Assuming, of course, that they don't fall for it. However this stands as yet another testament to ideological redundancy and sheer desperation of the Labour party. And what a slogan it could be - Your country's fucked but some train stations look a little better...