steeznson

This is spectator so they are taking the most extreme right wing viewpoint on Labour's recent policies to improve the nation's health. I disagree with how they characterise it for the most part but they do seem to put their finger on the kind of authoritarian impulses inside the party. Definitely think the author misses the mark with their badly thought out/unsupported angle about it being patronising class politics.

I was too young to take in much when John Major was in power but remember New Labour with Blair/Brown very well. They were also keen to make similar kind of policies that were - for lack of a better phrase - nanny state-ish. I found it interesting thinking about that legacy.

Should also mention that both parties tend towards these types of policies. I suspect the civil service are keen on them and they test well in focus groups.

Article is paywalled so will post it in comments.

Let's hope for the return of the sausages

If Digital Underground were able to make more consistent albums then they'd be my favourite group ever. The best tracks are unreal but then the skits, etc. drag the whole thing down on repeated listens.

This could have major repercussions for the game as we know it. The RFU has already reduced the amount of contact allowed in the grassroots of the game. Will the product we all love survive a legal tsunami if this ends in a court ruling?

I always wonder if you could get players to sign away their rights to sue but I'm pretty certain that would not be legally enforceable, alongside being totally exploitative.

I find The National frequently embarassing as a Scottish person. Enjoying seeing them squirm here.

This is upsetting to see. I've got a friend with MS and I hope she is not prevented from claiming assistance if (or when) she needs it due to this case causing more stringent checks on claimants.

At least this lady got the jail.

I think Wes might be right here but this is going to cause consternation amongst groups who were hoping that Labour might take a more liberal approach to LGBT issues than the tories.

Apologies for the slightly skewed picture. I actually own this artwork. A close family friend has been collecting 19th Century Japanese woodcuts his entire life, and he gifted this one of a wedding scene to my wife and I when we got married.

More details about the work. The artist Kunisada lived from 1786 to 1864 and he shared a studio / teacher with the (perhaps more famous) artist Kuniyoshi. This work was published by Hayashiya Shogoro in 1850.

The work depicts a Kabuki theatre scene; traditional Japanese theatre. Actors are playing the roles of Aburu-ya Oshin and Fukuoka Mitsugi in the play Ise Ondo. In this scene the couple are getting married.