Blair, a must read, not
 

Tony Blair's memoirs 'The Journey' to be published in September | Mail Online
Just to let you know you can place advance order for Tony's book at Amazon:D the only thing missing on the cover picture is a set of number across the bottom:)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I hope that when the book becomes available to libraries, it will be located in the Fiction section.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

So you won't be rushing out for a copy then Jays ?? :D As to the title, very prophetic "The Journey" he certainly took the Country for a ride & off to end station Gordon !! nice :(

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Surely Fantasy Marg ?? :)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Fiction or Fantasy........doesn't really fit under much else does it?

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I think I'd agree with your reasoning, but with a tendency to lean more to Fantasy. Lets look at the Characters & Story line, set in a strange Land that bears no resemblance to our own fair Isle , a land of contented folk ? :rolleyes: but away with the fairies we have a Wicked Witch wanting to control & dominate & supporting an evil King ! with dubious plans for the innocents of the Land, then the Kings minions, wicked hobgoblins & trolls all fighting amongst themselves to gain superiority over the other. :up2someth

J.R.R. Tolkien eat your heart out ! Yep, definitely in the realms of Fantasy I think. :D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Instead of coming up with his own bs title, he could have used the one that Cardinal Newman used: "Apologia Pro Vita Sua"; which would loosely translate as "An Apology for My Life."

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Blair is my favourite leader and I'll be buying his book.

And if you believe that would you be interested in buying the London Eye? I know this Nigerian General who - :D!!!

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Had me going for a minute there Hiddlebit:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

tony blairs memories?

if they are in print he shoulda taken them with him to the iraq enquiery where he could have looked back at his memories and told the bloody truth instead of the cack he spouted.

hopefully there will be a sequel book with one page which will have a small list of the top 3 or 4 crimes he commited against teh british public and a final scentence delaring he was hung by his bloody neck.

i suppose both books could fall under fiction,

unless he walks past my house and i have a rope handy :D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

what do you mean could fall under fiction:rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

i would quite gleefully make the latter book fact but would be requiring an alabi if your intersted please register at www.hangblairbyhisneck.com :)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Broken link:mad:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

thanx for teh show of interest though ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Where's Pierpoint hen you want him

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I'd have thought this would have been a must read for you, and that you'd be interested in the musings of a fellow Catholic, and Conservative.

:rolleyes::D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I don't like two faced people either political or religious;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Whatever side of the fence you're on, these political memoirs are usually quite an interesting read but £25 is surely an exercise in micturation extraction?

When it's £3 in The Works I'll give it a go.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

...and yet you've managed a keen, lifelong interest in all things political, despite your dislike.

How odd.

:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Not all politicians are two faced only your opposition:p

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I agree.

My opposition usually are.

;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I sincerely hope that the publication will be posthumous!

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

That would only make is money grabbing awful wife more money:rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

With a mush like hers, she could always make a career in horror films.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Bride of Dracula, remember demon eyes:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

If this were listed in a different thread, then I would have suggested that she wore a muzzle (or a burkha) before being allowed out a leash in public.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

think we had a thread going at one time about a periodical called "billys weekly liar" maybe this is the best place for this thread

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Looks like the Irish gave Blair the reception he deserved when he had the audacity to turn up for a book signing today (4.9.2010). Pity they didn't pelt him with something a little more 'explosive' than eggs, tomatoes and plastic bottles. The spokesman for the demonstrators on the national news was spot on when he intimated that the creep should be indicted for war-crimes alongside his buddy, george W Bush. Should enough people emphasise this point, then maybe - just maybe - the message might just sink in the the powers that be! I continue to live in hope.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Have to disagree Stumped, as none of the missiles hit him.:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Pity the IRA lot didn't throw something at him - a few ounces of plastique would have done the job. Pay him back for all that he did, allowing the the B that really screwed us, to become the PM even though he felt that GB was going to be a disaster, allowing him to sell off the gold reserves when he didn't need to and totally screwing our economy without a thought for the people - just intent on screwing the next government, knowing it could not possibly be a Labour government.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

My wife pointed it out for £11 in Asda yesterday and, intrigued though I am, I can't justify that amount on a curio right now.

I love political memoirs as they give a good view of the other side of the fence to those of us living in the real world. I'm currently reading The Alan Clark Diaries (and there are a lot of them) which are actually pretty good for anyone interested in politics but he did a lot of whinging even in the 1970s about being in debt but blowing £100 a week on backgammon.

£100 a week in the 70s! Oh, to be a Tory.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Sometimes I scratch my head when I read some of the things you put on here Ken, you certainly don't come close to a socialist standard barer by a million miles :rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

If you want to know How I feel about the book...then read my blog

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I actually haven't seen the book(thank goodness), but someone told me that the paper is of a good quality.....not too rough on the botty!:)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Haven't read it and like the thread starter don't intend to read it, but unlike him, I can't pass an opinion as to if it is a good read or not because I haven't read it.

It may be a good read even if it is completely lacking in truth, I will never know.
;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I too like a good read Less, but my forte is mystery and fiction, written by believable authors, not the rantings of a madman who lied and cheated through 10 years as this countries leader, and I use the word leader in the loosest terms, how anybody can buy this unadulterated crap is quite beyond me, as Margaret as said you can get a hell of a lot of Andrex for £12 ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I note that the obnoxious creep cancelled his book signing in London today. Wonder why?

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Seems he picked up enough old shoes in Dublin, Stumped;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Should think thats obvious! he aint in a position to send the troops in now.:rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Poor little boy, he will cry himself to sleep tonight knowing that there are some folk walkign around who don't like him......he still doesn't get it does he?

I really like the idea that there are a band of people out there who are going into bookshops and quietly picking up a copy of his book and then placing it in the crime section.....though fiction and fantasy would be appropriate too(but perhaps not as pointed).

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Oh i reckon he does get it Margaret, think hes that arrogant n full of himself, it will "Go Away" given time, cos most of the public are more concerned wi what happens in "X-Factor"/ Big Brother" n the like.:rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Unfortunately that's so very true cashy :(

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Memoirs are a great read and I must admit I've been looking forward to this one. Biographies don't really do it for me, they're always tainted by the rose-tinted spectacles of the fan who's written it so a warts-and-all autobiography is always the better bet. I want a better insight into the Iraq War and was hoping to gain some understanding of why he did it.

I don't know how pinning a 'socialist' badge to myself helps me be a better councillor for Rishton but my primary concern is for the here and now so the memoirs of an ex-Prime Minister are of little consequence in the grand scheme of things.

When you strip away all the party trappings you have 35 members of the public who were elected because they promised to try and make things better for their ward. I am priveliged to be in that select few and it seems that I am doing the things that people want me to do.

Labelling me as 'socialist' won't make me any better or worse.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

You are joking, aren't you, Ken? You really expected "a warts-and-all autobiography" from this slippery customer? This vainglorious self-publicist who proved himself to be the ultimate master of spin, a skilled practioner in the illusionist's art of smoke and mirrors?

As for biographies being "tainted by the rose-tinted spectacles of the fan who's written it", that's exactly the trap that this book will fall into because it's been written by Blair's biggest fan of all! ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I'm reserving judgement until I've actually read it.

I don't think we're going to learn anything new in terms of history but it will be interesting to hear his side of things.

There's got to be some attempt at justification for being America's little puppet?

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

[quote=Ken Moss;843269]Memoirs are a great read and I must admit I've been looking forward to this one. Biographies don't really do it for me, they're always tainted by the rose-tinted spectacles of the fan who's written it so a warts-and-all autobiography is always the better bet. I want a better insight into the Iraq War and was hoping to gain some understanding of why he did it.

You are joking arn't you

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

And Britcliffe has been doing exactly the same thing for 27 years, yet you slag him off at very opportunity, as you say you seem to do things that people want you to do, so Peter must also be doing exactly the same thing, aka what people want him to do. As I've said many times on here, I admire councillors regardless of party for the work they do, my disagreement is on policy not commitment. Having met you I have no doubt that you will do a great job for Rishton, because you are doing it for entirely the right reasons, when you've been there 27 years you'll know the people of Rishton think so too ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Ya Wyn, as Kojak used to say who loves me baby:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I slag Peter off because he spends vast amounts of public money on pet projects to try and make himself look good, he attempts to jury-rig votes and council meetings at every opportunity (as he is doing this week with both the full council and an extraordinary meeting in November), he speaks to council officials in an appalling way and is wildly egotistical.

No one voted for him to be council leader beyond his whipped flock of sheep and the only reason he keeps being voted back into Oswaldtwistle is through the vast sums of money he can spend on improvements. It's a real catch-22 situation and the only way to remove that crutch is for control to move to another group.

I'm sorry John, I know he is a friend of yours but he is absolutely atrocious for Hyndburn as a whole. There are any number of decent Conservative councillors who would do a far better job as Leader.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I remember when we were controlled by another group, was the start of Hyndburn's demise, on the first of May 1997 on a 47 seat council Labour had a 44 seat majority, by the May elections 1999 (two elections) Labour were gone.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

He has engineered a situation where his decision is final on everything and the Tories, whilst being openly critical of him in committee meetings, are so financially reliant on him to grant them chairmanships that they vote his way every time.

I was in a private meeting last week with the legal team and as soon as he found out he simply burst in and demanded to know what it was about. That sort of rudeness and arrogance has no place in the council offices and I will be glad to see him out of office when the time comes.

I'm not necessarily talking about Labour vs Conservative, I'm talking about right and wrong and he is certainly not the best man to lead Hyndburn Council.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

no matter where ya stand politically, that is INDEFENSIBLE.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

The words of a man with many many years council experience;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Under normal circumstances I would comfortably concede that as a fair point but how is it that I can have decent political conversations with councillors such as Lynn Wilson, Doug Hayes, John Griffiths, Janet Storey and Judith Addison without them being rude, condescending, barging in to rooms without knocking or acting in any way as if they are 'The Great I Am'?

Britcliffe's only get out clause is the previous Labour administration and/or that evil Graham Jones, most of the other Tory councillors actually have a reasoned argument in their heads.

We've just had a wonderful draft copy of a celebratory booklet on Area Councils which serves no practical purpose, cost heaven knows how much in man hours to produce and is riddled with very simple mistakes.

That is a prime example of 'look what I've done' without actually having any merit whatsoever. Area Councils cost this borough in the region of a quarter of a million pounds each year before a single stroke of work is done. Are you telling me that this is a good thing? Would that money not be better divvied up between the wards, allowing the councillors to simply get on with improving their area?

It's one of many fine examples of a collossal waste of money brought about by Britcliffe, one man obsessed with ultimate control.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Most of the present Tory Councillors weren't around under the last admin, and not one Tory had any time for Graham Jones

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

John Griffiths? Doug Hayes? Janet Storey?

I imagine that many of the Tories didn't have time for Graham, he is outspoken and openly critical of Peter Britcliffe but he always has time for anyone who comes to speak to him. I have never known him be ignorant or rude with anyone - difference of opinion maybe, but never rude.

My view of being a councillor is that we are here as the voice of the public and to pull residents together in the name of a common cause, ie. to make each ward actually function properly.

Peter Britcliffe's apparent motive for being a councillor is to get his name associated with as many projects as possible and make out that he is somehow responsible for them, spending thousands of pounds of public money along the way.

Another example is the 10 year celebration of Area Councils. He has never set foot in Rishton as long as I've lived here and yet insisted on being on the group photo of ours and every other ward in the borough. I don't know how much the little backslapping party cost either but I bet that cake wasn't cheap.

'Look what I've done, aren't I brilliant?'

This is public money, not yours.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

I actually think you have a lot to learn Ken, especially in this day and age, It was quite different when I packed up politics in 2001, for a start there was no accy web. Just one tip take it or not, but everything you post on here is for open digestion, you only have to see how many guests are on line every day, sometimes its better to keep your powder dry;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Advice noted and I appreciate the sentiment that goes with it but as someone's signature on here states, the opinions expressed are mine and mine alone.

It bothers me that public money is being wasted. I see it as my function to serve the borough of Hyndburn (with specific reference to Rishton) but as tax revenue from all wards goes towards Area Councils I see no benefit in allowing spending of that money to go unchecked by residents.

There is much that is not public knowledge and freely available if people know where to look but the sad fact is that most people don't know where to look.

We're in an age where everyone is feeling the pinch and yet money is being needlessly frittered away on our own doorstep. I am simply trying to curb this and get the best value for our money.

I'm in opposition, I'm expected to question the merit of the controlling group's policies!

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

It will surely gladden you to know then, that while visiting several Waterstones' across England's green & pleasant land, perusing various bookshelves, this "GRIMoire" was prominently displayed within the sections of "Dark fantasy" & "Horror". Now either the staff are under orders (or have a sense of humour) equally there is a not so secret movement out & about appropriately repositioning this moribund tome.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

It does please me. However, it pleases me more that members of the general public can recognise this man as a charlatan, and are willing to do their bit to convey their disenchantment with his literary (and I use that word in its most loose sense) effort.
I hope it flies like a brick budgie.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Sooner or later it will appear on the web as a free ebook download - even then it won't be worth reading.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

The thing about this tome is that Tony Blair wouldn't recognise the truth if it hit him in the gob...so how can we believe what he tells us is the truth on the events which he scribbles about.
You know what they say about the man who has a clear conscience.....he has a very foggy memory!

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Unfortunately, your sentiments are not reflected in those of the book-buying public. Copies are fling off the shelves faster than a Harry Potter:

Amazon.co.uk Books Bestsellers: The most popular items on Amazon.co.uk (Updated hourly)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Doesn't it go to prove that a fool and his money are soon parted?

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

They deserve flinging off....straight into the skip! ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Whatever anyone may think of Tony Blair or his book, he has given all the proceeds from the book sales to an Arm Forces Charity. Something in the region of £4million I believe.Just maybe he deserves just a little bit of credit for doing that.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Credit, credit, that's nothing but blood money, shows his conscience is catching up with him, but he hardly needs the money does he, hes milking his premiership for all it will make:mad::mad::mad:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

There is a likelyhood that (being so filthy rich) his income is assigned to a 'company' or a 'sole trader',
which means he will get some tax relief for the (indirect) donations to the British Legion

Claiming tax relief for donations to charity | Business Link

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

No credit whatsoever, it's a cheesy Google Page Ranking stunt. The man's the lowest of the low and fully deserves his present status as an international pariah.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Nope, I don't subscribe to that at all. Methinks this money that is pledged to the Forces Charity is not only to salve his conscience, but also to show him in good light, when really he should be standing trial with his friend George Bush for putting the forces in danger in the first place.
I think he is a duplicitous, greedy, egomaniac......and I wouldn't wee on him if he were on fire. It would be a waste of water.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

A bit strong for you, Margaret...mind you, I totally agree.

I think you may be on your own on this one, Bernard!

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

i think he may be on his own, i could put things much stronger than Margaret, but being the diplomat i am, will pass.:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Wether it is "blood money" or not .. it's £4million more than the present government will be donating to the British Legion!

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

...and how much did the last government give to the British Legion?

:rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

You took the words right out of my mouth.......I was just going to ask that question.

We should get away from the ideas that governments have bottomless pockets full of money to give away......in any case the money that governments usually have access to is actually ours......the tax payer.
And Yes I am one of those.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

A very good point, Margaret.

It's just a pity that in this time of economic thriftiness the current government is cutting back on police officers and PCSOs whilst at the same time ringfencing the £8bn per year for foreign aid.

Look after your own first.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

A worthy cause.

However, all this was hastily arranged in mid August.

The same time the planned protests for his promotional tour were made public.

Still the King of Spin.

:rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

And you honestly believe a Labour Government would have cut back on Foreign aid Ken:rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Would largely agree with you, Ken. It's laughable that we're giving money to India - a country which has enough money to fund its own space programme, not to mention its nuclear arsenal.

However, I would like you to point me to ONE Labour party politician, either national or local, who is talking about cutting foreign aid. Not quite the done thing for good little Socialists to talk about things like that. Tell you what - tomorrow, ask Claytonender if she thinks we should cut foreign aid. She'll choke on her Fairtrade coffee! :D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Ya Wyn this politics thing ain't quite as simplistic as Ken would make it out to be;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

No it isn't, Jay, but let's face it, Cameron and Osborne don't come out of this very well. Making a big song and dance about letting the public make suggestions on where the axe should fall...as long as it's not foreign aid. :rolleyes:

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Never mind Foreign Aid. I wouldn't even spend money in Ossy.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

You know as well as I do Wyn foreign aid is a nono when it comes to cuts irrespective of the colour of the rosette

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

nout new here then, ya never did when you were last in office;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

"...and how much did the last government give to the British Legion?"

Totally agree with both your comments - must be some sort of a record:D:D:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

That's because we're not talking football! ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

The problem is that you seem to take everything I say as being an attack on the Conservatives. What I actually have a go at more often than not is a lack of common sense.

My personal view is that, regardless of political persuasion, we should look after ourselves first. Not everyone within the Labour party will agree with me but I'm fortunate to be part of a group of people who are allowed different viewpoints without risk of a serious dressing down. It doesn't make any sense to keep handing out cash when the natives are being told to save it due to things being a bit tight at the moment, I don't care who is in government.

Governments evolve however, and what may be good practice today probably won't be in a few years time. What disappoints me is that we have a government which still hasn't realised yet that ringfencing overseas aid is not that important to the people who actually live here.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

common sense view is fine ken, but ya should never expect a tory to have one.:rolleyes::D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Common sense cashy, I've never met a socialist with sense, except thee:D

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Ex-Socalist mate, i learned years ago they all suck,:( i'm in the "Sod Em All Brigade" now.;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Ken, Ken, Ken I totally agree, but the games a boggy mate, of course we should look after our own, of course there are lots of cases were we could spend that money, but it WILL NEVER HAPPEN, any shade of government daren't even think about cutting overseas aid, you know all the countries who wanted free of British rule and have never been away with the begging bowl since :(

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

We'll have to form a new party cashy the SOD UM ALL ALLIANCE seems about reght:D :hehetable

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Name me one person at either national or local councillor level who does.

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

lol

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Steve, I'm far too busy at a local level to really worry about national politics....

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Not too busy to comment on the foreign aid budget though. I'm surprised that Bernard and Claytonender haven't attempted to purge you of your reactionary tendencies! ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Can you do that with Ex-Lax?

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Margaret, I hope you're not implying that our Ken is full of a certain substance? :D ;)

Re: Blair, a must read, not
 

Would I ?????:)

No of course not.....it is just that purging means different things to different people......Califig, Ex-lax, brimstone and treacle....they are what purging means to me.:)