Cardiff Blogger

Hat-tip: @OldHolborn

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Location:Tresillian Way,Butetown,United Kingdom

Popularity: 1% [?]

Why do newspapers listen and report what Sally Bercow, the speaker’s wife tweets? Don’t get me wrong, as a person I like Sally Bercow, shes one of the few Labour women on Twitter that has a sense of humour but does her view on William Hague’s statement really require the Daily Mail to print it as a top story on their website? She’s hardly a minister, she lost out at the recent council elections and her husband is the politically neutral speaker of the House of Commons.

Come on people, her views are not news!

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Location:Tresillian Way,Butetown,United Kingdom

Popularity: 1% [?]

From Blair’s biography:

That night she cradled me in her arms and soothed me; told me what I needed to be told; strengthened me; made me feel what I was about to do was right. On that night I needed that love Cherie gave me, selfishly. I devoured it. I was an animal following my instinct, knowing I would need every ounce of emotional power to cope with what lay ahead. I was exhilarated, afraid and determined in roughly equal quantities.

Bet you won’t be able to sleep now.

Hat-Tip: Dan Hannan

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Location:Cardiff,United Kingdom

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I’m quite shocked that certain high profile people in Pakistan are claiming the three players involved in the match-fixing scandal are innocent. Of course people are innocent until proven guilty but how on earth can they explain this? They were seen on camera taking large sums of money in exchange for telling the go-between when no balls would occur. Then in the following match this happened!

How on earth could this be excused? Set up with lookalikes and the no balls were chance? The players set it up as a joke? They’d contacted Paul McKenna? It’s inexcusable and when high ranking officials claim they’ve done nothing wrong they do nothing for their own reputation.

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Location:W Canal Wharf,Butetown,United Kingdom

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I should be blogging a lot more now that I have an iPad but unfortunately it’s quite hard to manage pictures and HTML so do please forgive the aesthetically displeasing blogposts in future.

Oh well that worked. Anyway, if you see the message below on any post you know where it’s published from and will hopefully excuse any image or HTML mistakes.

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Location:Cardiff,United Kingdom

Popularity: 1% [?]

It’s been a while since I’ve done a TottyWatch so feast your eyes on this

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Popularity: 1% [?]

I’ll hold my hands up and say I’ve favoured Israel on occasions when I shouldn’t for no reason other than I’d like to visit it on holiday and I have some Jewish friends. However, I like to think I’m a little less biased when it comes to the topic nowadays, unlike some other bloggers. Understandably, Iain Dale has some close ties with the Conservative Friends of Israel group and wouldn’t want to piss them off by taking the side of Gaza when it’s a ‘he said this, she said this’ debate so he understandably keeps quiet. What I don’t understand is those who come out with the most ludicrous of blogposts that make you laugh out loud. My favourite of the year is this by Guido, making out that people in Gaza are having one giant party: http://order-order.com/2010/07/27/camerons-camp-confusion/

It’s blinkered and unashamedly biased articles like this that he, Tory Bear and co embarrass themselves with. People will trust you more if you give your honest opinions and not the same old ‘anti-Gaza’ tripe that makes Kim Jong Il look like the editor of the Independent.

Popularity: 1% [?]

William Hague’s statement:

‘I feel it is necessary to issue this personal statement in response to press and internet speculation over the last ten days.

‘Earlier this year a Sunday newspaper began questioning whether my marriage to Ffion was in trouble, and last week another media outlet asked whether there was a statement about our supposed separation. This seemed to be linked to equally untrue speculation surrounding the appointment of Christopher Myers as a Special Adviser.

‘Christopher Myers has demonstrated commitment and political talent over the last eighteen months. He is easily qualified for the job he holds. Any suggestion that his appointment was due to an improper relationship between us is utterly false, as is any suggestion that I have ever been involved in a relationship with any man.

‘We feel it necessary to give some background to our marriage because we have had enough of this continued and hurtful speculation about us…’

‘This speculation seems to stem from the fact that whilst campaigning before the election we occasionally shared twin hotel rooms. Neither of us would have done so if we had thought that it in any way meant or implied something else. In hindsight, I should have given greater consideration to what might have been made of that, but this is in itself no justification for allegations of this kind, which are untrue and deeply distressing to me, to Ffion and to Christopher.

‘He has now told me that, as a result of the pressure on his family from the untrue and malicious allegations made about him, he does not wish to continue in his position. It is a pity that a talented individual should feel that he needs to leave his job in this way.

‘Ffion and I believe that everyone has a right to a private life. However, we now feel it necessary to give some background to our marriage because we have had enough of this continued and hurtful speculation about us.

‘I have made no secret of the fact that Ffion and I would love to start a family. For many years this has been our goal. Sadly this has proved more difficult for us than for most couples. We have encountered many difficulties and suffered multiple miscarriages, and indeed are still grieving for the loss of a pregnancy this summer. We are aware that the stress of infertility can often strain a marriage, but in our case, thankfully, it has only brought us closer together.

‘It has been an immensely traumatic and painful experience but our marriage is strong and we will face whatever the future brings together.

‘Ffion and I would love to start a family. For many years this has been our goal. Sadly this has proved more difficult for us than for most couples’

‘Several years ago, one Sunday paper reported that Ffion was three months pregnant, without ever checking the story with us. This made even more difficult the fact that we had only just experienced another disappointment.

‘We have never made this information public because of the distress it would cause to our families and would not do so now were it not for the untrue rumours circulating which repeatedly call our marriage into question. We wish everyone to know that we are very happily married.

‘It is very regrettable to have to make this personal statement, but we have often said to each other “if only they knew the truth…” Well, this is the straightforward truth.

How depressing that a married man has to announce he has no children because of multiple miscarriages and not that he’s gay. Since when did sharing a twin room mean someone is gay? I’ve shared one with @ArnieEtc and I can guarantee that thankfully nothing happened. Whether the SpAd hired was under-qualified or not is up to William Hague, he must have seen something in Mr Myers that caused him to hire him. I hope Guido and his conspirators are ashamed that Hague had to make a statement explaining the miscarriages and the comments in his blog prove that gutter journalism brings out the gutter rats.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Wow, I’m shocked! I’ve climbed from 11th most popular blog in Wales to 7th! Thank you to everyone who voted, I also kept the honour of being the top Tory blogger in Wales for a second year running and I couldn’t be happier.
This time next year I won’t be living in Wales so this is my final standing in the Welsh blogging league. Hopefully I’ll keep all my readers when I move to the capital and blog on London life.

But for now I’ll revel in my current stance as top Tory blogger in Wales and 7th cross-party. You’ve made an ex-pat Yorkshireman very happy. Thank you.

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The latest edition of the Ben and Arnie Show is now available to download. We have a chat about all sorts of random things so do have a listen and I hope you enjoy.

Click here to download.

Click here to visit @BenandArnie on iTunes. (Leave a review to be entered in the draw for a Ben and Arnie mug!)

Click here to visit Ben & Arnie’s Political Podcast on Facebook.

Click here to visit Ben & Arnie’s Political Podcast on Twitter.

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