tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post7766633647192859973..comments2024-03-04T17:54:32.559+00:00Comments on Iain Dale's Diary: Guide to Blogging 2007: Top 100 Left of Centre BlogsIain Dalehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03270146219458384372noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-30897494996419521572007-10-01T22:21:00.000+01:002007-10-01T22:21:00.000+01:00I don't care how the list was compiled, I am immen...I don't care how the list was compiled, I am immensely chuffed to be number 65.<BR/><BR/>Is it a good thing? It certainly isn't a bad thing!peter bowlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18273004269523440799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-63663766682535435572007-09-27T22:02:00.000+01:002007-09-27T22:02:00.000+01:00I did think that I should ask why anyone on the ce...I did think that I should ask why anyone on the centre left should be bothered about Iain's views on this matter? <BR/><BR/>But last night, I meet Quentin Davies at the Co-operative Movement “do” at Labour Party conference. <BR/><BR/>Maybe there is hope for you Iain after all?John Grayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14269161145575667147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-15004979197242433052007-09-25T14:55:00.000+01:002007-09-25T14:55:00.000+01:00Iain responded to my long comment above via email....Iain responded to my long comment above via email. Anyone interested can view our exchange <A HREF="http://complexsystemofpipes.wordpress.com/2007/09/24/at-the-risk-of-sounding-ungrateful/" REL="nofollow">here</A>.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-41456561179021812232007-09-25T12:56:00.000+01:002007-09-25T12:56:00.000+01:00I am curious about who the email was circulated to...I am curious about who the email was circulated to. Not me for a start, and I was in the 50s last year. Apart from all the obvious sites, I would have wanted to vote for ChorltonParkLabour as one of my choices. <BR/><BR/>I suspect that those of us who also blog about our lives, hobbies and interests outside of politics wont make it to a political blogging index. We are a bit too diverse.Louise Baldockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08430662342062143143noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-59065375299535492542007-09-25T10:51:00.000+01:002007-09-25T10:51:00.000+01:00The list has some decent left blogs on it but its ...The list has some decent left blogs on it but its not a UK blog list nor a British blog list. It is an English blog list of English bloggers and English blogs.<BR/><BR/>If someone was genuinely left of centre they would know the difference between British and English. Every Scot is fully aware of the difference so I dont see why the English left cant wise up.<BR/><BR/>I sometimes despair at the lack of political understanding on the English left. Its no wonder theyre in such an ideological and organisational mess.Kevin Williamsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07423526547848670736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-18080965360237817742007-09-25T01:00:00.000+01:002007-09-25T01:00:00.000+01:00Socialist Unity Blog should be in the top 100 for ...Socialist Unity Blog should be in the top 100 for sheer readibility alone but, alongside Mac Cuid Blog, it broke the story about the recent shakedown between Galloway and the SWP in Respect.Imposs1904https://www.blogger.com/profile/04043116442576404667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-86918710447720481172007-09-25T00:01:00.000+01:002007-09-25T00:01:00.000+01:00When reading any survey, we need to know a bit abo...When reading any survey, we need to know a bit about the methodology behind its compilation; otherwise, I suspect everyone present will agree, it may as well have been plucked out of thin air.<BR/><BR/>Based on comments from Iain, Bob and John, it seems clear that the group of bloggers who compiled the list were unclear as to whether they were choosing the best blogs on the Left or the best blogs associated with/originating from within the Labour party - and that despite the title of this post, "Labour" was the predominant interpretation. If so, I would suggest that this confusion alone puts this closer to the Iraq Body Count than to the Lancet.<BR/><BR/>Some other things could do with clearing up, such as, were the list compilers given specific criteria and if so, what? More importantly, how was this group selected?<BR/><BR/>If the group was selected by Iain Dale from among his "leftie" acquaintances, then he has been able to greatly influence the results simply by filtering (unintentionally, one would imagine) the participants along the lines of his own prejudices.<BR/><BR/>If, on the other hand, the group was self-selecting, then it still cannot be said to be neutral. From where were these volunteers canvassed? On this blog? In the pages of the Telegraph? It seems likely, in any case, that most of the participants came from among those who regularly follow and engage with the Westminster punditry.<BR/><BR/>The views of this group are certainly valid, but it excludes a significant plurality (perhaps even a majority) of those who consider themselves left of centre: those who, be it from revolutionary ideology or from a cynicism born of recent political experience, give very little credibility (and, consequently, pay little attention) to anything that comes out of Westminster.<BR/><BR/>No study is perfect, and I recognise that if this one is presented with no pretence at being comprehensive or conclusive, with its methodology (and any consequent systematic biases) made clear, then perhaps we can still draw some meaningful conclusions. However, when the list is presented with no such qualifiers then we can't really infer very much.<BR/><BR/>For example, it's now pretty clear why <I>Lenin's Tomb</I> was excluded from the list. Rather than an anomaly, it seems that blogs like the Tomb - unaffiliated with the Labour Party, distant from the Westminster punditry nexus - will have been systematically discriminated against. With such bias excluding at least one of the most popular and lively blogs on the Left, one can't really infer an overall weakness of the blogging British Left from the list.<BR/><BR/>Still, it's nice to be noticed. I look forward to any clarifications you can provide.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-66631510245641707452007-09-24T23:34:00.000+01:002007-09-24T23:34:00.000+01:00Strange selection e.g. Antonia Bance with half a d...Strange selection e.g. Antonia Bance with half a dozen comments per article at 15, versus Harry’s Place at 18 but then they, and many other of these blogs, are firmly centre or right, not Left. <BR/><BR/>I’d be surprised if there are 10 blogs on the list written by someone not in Labour, and so not digestable by any decent socialist. <BR/><BR/>Southpawpunch - The most Left wing blog in Britain.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-25203688550580386842007-09-24T19:47:00.000+01:002007-09-24T19:47:00.000+01:00Lenin's Tomb probably should be on the list due to...Lenin's Tomb probably should be on the list due to its popularity. Even though most of it is utterly unreadable Trotskyist student bollocks.Spirit of 1976https://www.blogger.com/profile/10314554889217669727noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-69392672814691193302007-09-24T15:36:00.000+01:002007-09-24T15:36:00.000+01:00PS Dave Osler is NOT on the extreme left. He is a ...<I>PS Dave Osler is NOT on the extreme left. He is a Labour party member for goodness sake. There are places to the left of even the most lefty of our number I'd have said.</I><BR/><BR/>EVERYONE on the left is a political extremist. Socialism is a mental illness y'know.Sir-C4'https://www.blogger.com/profile/03917709983378003032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-18020528333277656842007-09-24T15:34:00.000+01:002007-09-24T15:34:00.000+01:00Shouldn't it be "Worst 100 Blogs" Herr Dale?P.S. P...Shouldn't it be "Worst 100 Blogs" Herr Dale?<BR/><BR/>P.S. Platform 10 and WebCameron are missing from the list.Sir-C4'https://www.blogger.com/profile/03917709983378003032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-8772945501975983652007-09-24T15:00:00.000+01:002007-09-24T15:00:00.000+01:00John is correct. I e-mailed Iain to check whether ...John is correct. I e-mailed Iain to check whether it was limited to Labour blogs and he replied to say that it wasn't, it was for left of centre.<BR/><BR/>A lesson learnt for next year I suspect.<BR/><BR/>As for Newmania it is nice to see he is still rambling along after Cassilis carved him up, chewed him into little pieces and spat him out (intellectually speaking, of course) last week. If ever there was a blogger who deserved our sympathy... this was it. He has been sadly awry since his fellow pet PragueTory decided to spend more time with his family.Bob Piperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13792439016502695274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-33228750825534330172007-09-24T14:59:00.000+01:002007-09-24T14:59:00.000+01:0074th best left of centre blog eh? Now there's som...74th best left of centre blog eh? Now there's something to wave at the teachers who said I'd amount to nothing eh?<BR/><BR/>That was irony.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, the link to the 74th best blog points to number 73. Would it be possible to fix it so the inevitable queue of nubile groupies know where to go?<BR/><BR/>Cheers.Five Chinese Crackershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09395982651352498540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-79289831935652938372007-09-24T10:54:00.000+01:002007-09-24T10:54:00.000+01:00Did I miss the English list?Did I miss the English list?Furrowed Browhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08774558776209455808noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-48317383683794065242007-09-24T10:35:00.000+01:002007-09-24T10:35:00.000+01:00If this is a result of the e-mail you sent out ent...If this is a result of the e-mail you sent out entitled "Top 50 Labour Blogs", then there's no wonder that Lenin's Tomb wasn't included. Many of the best left bloggers are outside Labour... "Left" didn't appear in the email once, whilst "Labour" appeared three times, so I assumed this was merely confined to Labour bloggers. Apologies to those who got missed out because of my mistake.John Ahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17497399766612758001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-39124936514984787372007-09-24T09:40:00.000+01:002007-09-24T09:40:00.000+01:0043? Still in the top 50, at least.43? Still in the top 50, at least.PoliticalHackUKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415484385177871124noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-39613518600961167602007-09-24T05:06:00.000+01:002007-09-24T05:06:00.000+01:00Thousands of years from now people will look back ...Thousands of years from now people will look back on Chris Paul`s Blog in the way they do the Pyramids today.Large pointless blocks of impenetrable repetition.<BR/>Incidentally it is not true that the Pyramids were built unwilling slaves .They were a voluntary labour of religious devotion.Puritans wrote vast paranoid excavations of minute detail , Mr. Badman ( Bunyan)is another good point of comparison.<BR/>Fascinating for students of the fractured mind<BR/><BR/>Piper is a curious individual I detect an endearing vulnerability. like a lost child you want to guide back to its parents.You sense he is looking around this open free space certain that somewhere there wil be an official to provide him with rules.This mental agraphobia is the real reason the left don`t blog.<BR/><BR/><BR/>There is much we can learn from both of these poor frightened souls and I am resolved to be sympathetic in the futureNewmaniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11922161971821380803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-89097131125210021972007-09-24T01:30:00.000+01:002007-09-24T01:30:00.000+01:00your venomous bile-ridden tory comrades do make me...your venomous bile-ridden tory comrades do make me laugh.<BR/><BR/>In all seriousness im humbled considering i didnt even make the top one hundred last year<BR/><BR/>yes my apostophe is brokenRecess Monkeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07647864169757614359noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-8363601625236452082007-09-23T23:58:00.000+01:002007-09-23T23:58:00.000+01:00Septiscile? Never heard of him!Imbecile? Chris Pau...Septiscile? Never heard of him!<BR/><BR/>Imbecile? Chris Paul, yes heard of him. For the sheer volume of his blogging he deserves a special category. Something like:<BR/><BR/>"Most blogs with the least comments"<BR/><BR/>or "Most pointless blog with the most coments from the Hitch or Chris Paul himself"<BR/><BR/>or "Most unintelligible language used in a blog".<BR/><BR/>This would give him a chance of No.1 spot in all three.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-45299489018214590582007-09-23T23:51:00.000+01:002007-09-23T23:51:00.000+01:00Interesting list Iain- I'm glad to see Dave Cole's...Interesting list Iain- I'm glad to see Dave Cole's unoriginal name up at 90 some, Dave's blog is only sporadically updated but its really good adn well worth reading.Gracchihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06344262838391424797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-50923120092391399512007-09-23T23:47:00.000+01:002007-09-23T23:47:00.000+01:00I agree with scepticisle, the absence of Lenin's T...I agree with scepticisle, the absence of Lenin's Tomb seems to make this list a bizzare curiosity at best. I'm also eager to know more about the criteria used in compiling this list, and the mysterious group of bloggers behind it; you refer to them variously as "leftie bloggers" and "labour bloggers", although I'm not sure many people genuinely consider the Labour party to be left wing anymore.<BR/><BR/>(not that I'm not immensely flattered at being included, at number 88)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-27599355784777472172007-09-23T23:15:00.000+01:002007-09-23T23:15:00.000+01:00Septiscile, I agree and disagree. I would have inc...Septiscile, I agree and disagree. I would have included it, but I didn;t compile the list. Some leftie bloggers did. <BR/><BR/>Anyway, it features at Number 206 in the main list which will be published next week.Iain Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03270146219458384372noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-48315520980945164522007-09-23T23:12:00.000+01:002007-09-23T23:12:00.000+01:00Second year in a row that Lenin's Tomb (http://len...Second year in a row that Lenin's Tomb (http://leninology.blogspot.com/)hasn't appeared on this list - rather an oversight, don't you think Iain?<BR/><BR/>I'm not sure if there's anything more meaningless than being the 72nd best left-wing blog in the country, but thanks anyway.septicislehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03369157723084834549noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-14990460303977232732007-09-23T20:35:00.000+01:002007-09-23T20:35:00.000+01:00Bob, but you did decide to take the post down and ...Bob, but you did decide to take the post down and have a break from blogging only after previously saying it would make you look stupid if you did so and directly after you council leader intervened. <BR/><BR/>As for Recess Monkey being the number one Labour blogger... I presume people weren't judging on style, intelligence or accuracy. <BR/><BR/>Mind you I liked the idea of a monkey with egg on his face. If I had to summarise the left-wing blogs on your list I'd probably describe them as a chimps' tea party.Praguetoryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16520923731691837948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-75140608471650188922007-09-23T20:15:00.000+01:002007-09-23T20:15:00.000+01:00Thanks Iain. Can't resist the snide remarks we kno...Thanks Iain. Can't resist the snide remarks we know and love!! I suppose I may be at Number 8 and highest new entry BECAUSE I spend a bit of time correcting or challenging some of what passes for news and facts on your blog, and Fawkes' too for that matter - before he gave up - RATHER than despite that? Doncha think?<BR/><BR/>Many thanks to those comrades who boosted me to this position. I am not worthy etc etc. Many of the other blogs in this list deserve to be higher than mine.<BR/><BR/>Aw shucks.<BR/><BR/>By the way Iain have you acknowledged your mistake on the Greer story coverage yet? You can say what you want about LOL but I do try to correct any mistakes and update views as soon as corrections and new information come to hand.<BR/><BR/>Even your friend Prague Tory is correcting your inaccuracies and impressionisms!!<BR/><BR/>PS Dave Osler is NOT on the extreme left. He is a Labour party member for goodness sake. There are places to the left of even the most lefty of our number I'd have said.Chris Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15679067503215414300noreply@blogger.com