Entries from August 2005 ↓

Another one from a very ingenious person. Thanks all for your support in the last few days. We’re making progress.

Thanks to Sara for this latest offering. I’ve been getting some unconfirmed reports about this mast. No doubt Kevin Hull will be writing to me in due course. Until then, I think we will have to continue.

Thanks to Dave L. for this simple but effective logo. He’s done another one in gold and black but I think I prefer the simple shame on you O2 in blue.

First off the starting line is good old Bob Tidmarsh who has completed his first ever campaign logo. Not bad for such a distinguished pensioner is it? Give him a round of applause.

I’ve been thinking more about the way O2 are treating my constituents. Frankly, they’re refusing to mend their bridges. One of their operatives phoned me on Tuesday suggesting we meet. I said that there was little point. They know exactly what the situation is and the only way they are going to put things right is by removing the mast that is casting a shadow over the home of my poor constituent.

Why on earth are they doing this? That’s a question, I’ve been asking myself over the last week. I think they know they’ve made a huge mess of this one and they’re desperately looking for another site. They have to do this within six months anyway. My only conclusion is that they’re playing for time.

This is still not good enough. The mast they put up is wrongly sited. At this point I can hear you asking yourself why I am so angry about this particular mast. All I can say is that you would be too. I’m going to get more photos of the site to show you later this week.

My thinking is this. The only way we’re going to get this company (and Mr Kevin Hull) to get a move on is to give them more press exposure.

So I’m asking for your help with the “Shame on you O2″ campaign. I have a plan that will mean that O2 mobile phones have more publicity than they have ever had before over a mast.

I could do with:

1. A logo – preferably with the words “shame on you O2″ but I’ll leave it up to you. I have to be able to put it on letterheads and stickers.
2. Images that I can reproduce and put on placards.
3. A blog skin.

We’ll make this a competition. If you can do one of the above I’ll empty the parliamentary goody box and award some prizes to the best ones.

The strangest thing about some organisations is that they spend all that money on advertising,PR,branding and sales and then they go and mess it all up by being rude, indolent and ignorant.

After writing to the Chief Executive of O2 about their outrageous disregard for the family life of my constituents, I get a letter from a man called Mr Kevin Hull of telephone company O2 Acquisition Developments (whatever that is). Here’s what he says:

“Thank you for your letter concerning the telecommunications installation reference above. Your views have been noted. We will respond in due course”

Not good enough Kevin Hull. Not good enough at all, Kevin.

My constituent wakes each morning to look 20 feet out of his window to see the monstrosity that you have erected without having the decency to consult him about it.

So here’s my response to your non-response:

1. My visit to the 02 site yesterday
2. I have been invited to meet the Chief Executive of 02 when he visits my party conference next month. The first thing I will be demanding is that he answers my letter, the second will be “why is Kevin Hull of 02 acquisition developments so rude?”
3. I’m asking people to give you a little encouragement to get a move on by letting you know their views at your kevin.hull@02.com email address.

In the heady, feverish days of 1995, an incredible 10 years ago, I used to take occasional orders from Mo. It was a joy. She was in charge of getting our message out and about to a generation of first time voters. I had the word “youth” in my job title which at the time meant that I got to do all gooey jobs that none of the youth superstars wanted to do. Mo picked up on this straight away.

If it was a Channel 4, fly on the wall team doing a revelatory analysis of New Labour’s appeal to a lost generation, then she talked to Derek Draper. If it was to book the disco on the Sunday night of Labour Party conference, that was Tommy. Actually, I ended up getting sacked from that job too. Anyway, that’s another story and another year. In 1995 we were motoring at breakneck speed.

Labour’s youth conference voted to scrap Clause IV which generated the headline in Tribune, ‘Old hands twist young arms’. Nothing could have been further from the truth, of course. This was a generation that thought a mixed economy was a Utopia after the catastrophe of the Tories. Young Labour was growing at an unbelievable rate. I look back now with great pride on that time. I moved the resolution at the conference to establish Young Labour in 1993 (or was it 92). In one year, youth membership had tripled, from an admittedly low base. It was growing so quickly that a few real old hands began to get worried.

Barely 10 years before this, Labour’s youth section spent every minute of the day doing its best to screw it up for Neil Kinnock and his team. Anyway, Mo calmed all the nerves and convinced people that these young members were different. She didn’t have to work on Tony Blair or Gordon Brown though. At the time Young Labour members were clambering to help them get their message out.

Mo managed to straddle a number of worlds. From the industrial wing, to the then-named modernisers. She was held in regard by the Smithites, the Kinnockites, the Tribunites and the Old Rights. That was quite a feat. She deployed a disarming practicality in her dealings with people. The one thing we all understood in those days and Mo articulated it more than most, was that politics is the art of the possible. That’s why I’m sure she was able to break a deadlock in Northern Ireland.

Later, when I was working for the AEEU, my mum mentioned that she was immensely proud of the work that Mo was doing to bring about peace but was worried for her having watched her struggle on the telly. It really struck me that others must be thinking this. I dropped Mo a note to say my family were thinking of her. Weeks later a little card arrived back in the post.

At a time when everyone at Labour’s head office was either too important or too busy to give you the time of day, she always had time to give you a friendly smile. That meant a lot.

Yup, the site has been under sustained attack again. Clive, the legend that is, tells me that at one point there were more than 90 servers trying to hit this site at the same time. Drastic, and expensive action is called for on my part.

There were a number of issues I wanted to talk about that I’ll pick up on in the next few days.

1. Mo. My own recollections to follow.
2. Why West Bromwich is at the epicentre of the rock industry and how we should celebrate this fact.
3. A rather important consultation on the configuration of health provision in Sandwell that I want all local residents to reply to. Lots on that when I have enough time to write something serious, probably at the end of the week.
4. A plug for a great geeky music site I’ve found.
5. A great idea I’ve got to give greater ownership of this site to you, the patient and tolerant reader.

First though, I need to get to my meeting with the Chief of Police. Can’t be late.

Report in the Guardian that shows babies have rythmn and start life with an open mind for different types of music. Tell me about it. Junior Watson has amzazed me with his musical tastes (or lack of them). At 11 weeks and a day, I’m embarrassed to say his favourite artist is Bruce Springstein. He also likes Little Barrie and TheThe. He’s not good with Billy Bragg and is indifferent to The Clash. Rebellious child. I hope he doesn’t grow up to vote liberal democrat.

The ultimate in spiritual chic. Podcast from the Catholic Insider. This priest is going far.

Lib dem leader of the European parliament calls for legalisation of all drugs including crack and heroin. This is not lib dem policy of course. Their policy is to allow posession of class ‘A’ drugs like crack and heroin without any criminal sanction. To me that is de facto legalisation but they say it is just de-criminalisation. Chris Davies goes one step further to say the state should regulate the drugs market. I’m not sure you can regulate a heroin market. You certainly can’t regulate a crack cocaine market that leads to such erratic and violent behaviour amongst users.

Some months ago I linked to the new site for David Davis MP – Conservative party leadership hopeful Now, to make that chasmic leap to the blog role of Bloggers for Davis in a kind of mock endorsement is either a;an act of opportunism over sense b;desperate c; a crude attempt for traffic and google juice or most likely, all of the above.

But as I’ve been added to the blog roll of Bloggers for Davis it does give an opportunity to open up a discussion about the Tory leadership race. Other than Boris Johnson (hero to the blogosphere), who would you most like to lead the Tory party after Michael Howard hangs up his boots and more importantly, why?

I promise to forward your comments to the editor of the Bloggers for David Davis.