Just in case you thought I was one of those people that simply lives to bad mouth the current government, here is a posting I didn't know that I was going to be able to make any time soon. Yes, my name is Lee Griffin, and I have some praise for Jacqui Smith and Gordon Brown when it comes to tackling knife crime.

And you know, while we're at it with the praise, I think it's about time that the armed forces were able to get free education, enabling those that either find themselves no longer able to serve, or wish to rethink their occupation (no pun intended), the chance to smoothly make that transition from soldier to business person...or indeed whatever they wish.

Labour have pulled a u-turn today with the announcement from everyone's favourite housing overlord, Caroline Flint, that they are now going to try and tackle the "problem" of "studentification". This is an issue that manages to branch all of the main parties as reprehensible with even supposedly student friendly MP for Bristol West, Stephen Williams, signing an EDM to tackle "studentification" through excessive planning regulations that would see local residents able to put a stop to student housing being created, certainly affordably so.

I have a bit of a backlog on news that I wish to write about, though some will probably be kept for a rainy day...but it does mean that there are a few stories here that are small enough to warrant small mention but that I'd like to talk briefly about. The issues are about just who is going to University now and the potential re-emergence of the rich/poor gap in higher education, an update on the idea of ISPs monitoring our internet usage for illegal downloading, and Labour actually making a positive announcement for once. I know, the last bit is actually scarily unreal.

I'm trying something new here, not sure if it's going to work as well as intended but here it is. Read more for the transcript of this movie.

At least this is what he might have well said when extending the following comment...

Britain technically is a Christian country with many secular features. It’s those two things. It’s not anything else. If you expect that you would have the same response to your faith needs in Britain as would happen within a Muslim or Islamic country, [you] would be disappointed

This is in reference, I assume, to the idea that universities that allow Muslim students to attend religious meetings and prayer should be reporting suspicious activity and keeping checks on them. Effectively we have moved no further away from spying on our students than we were one year ago.