Birmingham city 1-1 Manchester United

Even before McLeish became the Birmingham manager we always seem to have struggled to have put on a show at St. Andrews. The games have always been tight, and though they don't beat us, we seem to come away with a point as often as we win.
So i was expecting the kind of game that we got, but just hoping that it would be one of our tight wins to give us a bit of a cushion at the top of the table as we head into the new year. When Berbatov produced the one moment of magic of the game, it looked like we were going to get the job done as the home team had threatened our rearguard less and less as the game went on. Which made the last ten minutes hard to understand, i could see certain players starting to feel the pace, but why then did we start to drop so deep and continually give the ball away.
I know their equaliser could have been disallowed for at least three different things, but it wasn't a total surprise when it came, as someone said on one of the messageborads, we had started defending like a non league team against a premier league team holding onto the one goal lead.
The game was nothing to write home about, but for all of the improvement in Anderson, we still miss Scholes on nights like last night. Even if we had just had him to come on for the last half an hour i'm sure we would have walked away with all three points last night.
Still we end the year top of the league, imagine the giddyometer at the boo camp if their brave new world had entered 2010 at the top of the table.

Fergie can't believe that the ref missed the last minute hand ball, foul and offside that led to the home teams equaliser. At least we still made a bit of history last night, becoming only the seventh side ever to enter the new year unbeaten. I can't say that is a record that does anything for me, it doesn't win you anything and it doesn't neccessarily mean you have watched great football, which by and large we haven't.

Anderson is backed to start puttiing the ball in the onion bag, well Carrick hopes that he starts to put them away anyway. He still doesn't look like a natural goalscorer to me. Roberto Martinez praises Tom Cleverley and predicts he will be a massive player at United and can go as far as he wants in the game. That's all great and i thinkhe may well be right, but are we gettin him back in the new year, last night showed me, anyway we can't have enough midfield players in the squad. He would surely start in front of Gibson, who whilst not having a bad game last night, didn't add much to our game either.

After the ashes were retained last night with England completing their Melbourne rout of the Aussies, what now for the Australian cricket authorities, and what now for Ponting.
Boycott salutes England's mental toughness and togetherness and praises the backroom staff and selctors, he is feeling generous. Mind you, Duncan Fletcher isn't there anymore.

Jackie Ashley predicts Lansley's NHS reforms will leave Cameron feeling sick if he doesn't put a halt to them.

Have the Ruskies been up to their games again as Germany launches an inquiry into the poisoning of an ex KGB agent and his wife now resident in the country. The victim doesn't seem to have much doubt, it must be serious for the Germans to take it seriously with their closeish relationship with Russia.

George Monibot describes the scandal of fuel poverty in the UK. We are all in together you know.

The great Rory Gallagher

Manchester United 2-0 Sunderland

For the first twenty minutes of this game United threatened to repeat their massacre of Blackburn. But a combination of bad luck, good goalkeeping and a Sunderland team that reorganised itself half way through the first half made sure they did not go the way of the Lancashire outfit.
With no Scholes and no Fletcher, Carrick and Anderson continued with their impressive resurgence in the middle of the park. Giggs started his first premier league game for a while coming in for the injured Nani. And it was Giggs quality that led to United's first goal after his mazy run released Rooney who sweetly chipped to the back post for Berbatov to power his header past mackems goalie Gordon after just five minutes. Since Rooney has come back from his contractual rumpus, his link up play with his strike partner has gone from strength to strength. Maybe i will be proved wrong and Berbatov won't be released in the summer.
For the first twenty minutes United were on fire, with Rooney and Berbatov combining brilliantly, Giggs showing all the experience and quality he can bring to the party and Anderson bursting forward from midfield. Berbatov hit the post with a superb run and shot, Anderson was unlucky with an excellent shot that hit the underside of the bar and Gigg was denied by the feet of Gordon.
It was a pity the way the performance fizzled out after the brilliance of the first twenty minutes, but once the second goal went in, United settled for the result and saved their legs for what could prove a far harder game at St. Andrews tomorrow night. The fact that their game at Everton was postponed will mean that they will be fresh and i don't expect the walkover we saw yesterday at Birmingham.
It was good to see Rafael get up after the horror challenge on him in the second half as he was excellent yet again yesterday. He has well and truly sown up the right back spot for himself for the forseeable future. Ferguson seems to have given him his head playing him as part of a settled back four and he has repaid Fergie's faith in him. Will his brother be able to follow in his footsteps, that would save us a few quid if he can.

Fergie is happy with Berbatov's form, but wants the Bulgarian striker to target 25 goals for the season. He was magnificent yesterday, that is for sure. I would just be happy for him to keep that standard of play up as if he does that, the goals will surely come. Whilst Phelan was very happy with the contribution of midfielder Anderson. Sam wallace writes that Fergie is where he has been so many times before, top of the league at christmas.

The BBC's world affairs editor John Simpson looks at the state of affairs as the year comes to an end and at least sees some encouraging noises coming out of China. He sees a new generation next in line to take over the reigns of power who will be more liberal and more inclined to see the wrold as the west sees it.
Mick Hume quotes Italian marxist Gramsci, " pessimism on the intellect, optimism ofthe will" to explain why he sees a positive future for the world. That broadly sums up the way i always see the world. We will make progress to a more liberal world, but progress happens in fits and starts and it can and probably will be one step forward and two steps back. But the one step forward will be permanent whilst the two steps back will be temporary.
It's hard to expect any kind of progress in Russia any time soon. Khodorkovsky is almost certainly no saint, how could any oligarch who has amassed their fortune since the transition from communsim. But the sham justice he has been subjected to for daring to satnd up to the present ruling elite shows why the the yanks suspect them of being a mafia state according to the latest round of wikileaks.

Julian Glover explains why he thinks it is in the long term interests of Europhiles to reform the monstrosity that is the common agricultural policy.

John Naughton asks if this is the end of net neutrality

Park is confident

Park is confident that United will still be top of the pile when he returns form the Asian cup in Qatar. I didn't realise that he could be away for all of January, I hope he is right. I wonder whewther Cleverley will be coming back from Wigan to cover his place in the squad. I have a feeling that if Park hadn't have been lost to us for the month Cleverley would probably have stayed at Wigan for the season.

The postponement of the Chelsea game was never ideal but the news that it has now been rearranged for the beginning of March meaning we have four straight away games in a couple of weeks. And besides Chelsea we face trips to Anfield and Marseille, that could turn out to be a big couple of weeks.

Andy Hunter of the guardian reports that United will not be caught out when Van Der Sar retires as the memory of finding Schmeichel's replacement resurfaces. I think i'll believe the big Dutchman is retiring when he actually announces it. One of the fanzines, i can't remember which reckons United are seriously interested in Reina. I have never been that sold on him but he is tried and tested in the premier league, so he has that in his favour.
The tabloids and the MEN are still coming out with the same old names with Neuer supposedly still in the frame. With Lindegaard already here will Kuszczak be allowed to leave in the chritmas break.

Jonathon Wilson uses his guardian column to look at the world of football tactics in the year 2010. It's as fascinating as usual and he is spot on about the world cup, it is bobbins and has been getting steadily worse. It's totally amazing that people could label the Spaniards boring, there was only them and Germany worth watching. He always thinks United are at the forefront of tactical innovation in this country which is ironic when most United fans thinks that is Fergies achilles heel.

Proof that the private sector isn't the last word in efficiency as Manchester airport, yes the one not privatised and still owned by Greater Manchester's nine councils shows the rest of the country how to beat the winter blitz.
The imperial war museum north has a new exhibit with rare footage of Manchester after a second world war bomb raid. It's fascinating trying to locate where those places are, the city has changed so much.

Manchester is to get its own music festival as friends of mine have organised one for Capesthorne hall in May of next year. I miss the move festival, , i saw some shit groups at those, i have aboslutley no idea where Capeshtorne hall is , obviously Lancy was just down the road, another plus for the move festival.

Manchester confidential argue that granada's move to the quays that the name Media city has started to get more realistic. Let's hope it means that they get the media city tram stop sorted out because after having to use it the Eccles line last week, it needs it. Will there be any more moves, channel four or five, MTV who knows. The BBC report that the rumours that Coronation street was to be rebuilt next door the IWMN were true. The building looks dross, the Liebeskind building will have an ugly neighbour if that model is how it is going to look. Crap building for a crap show, how apt.

Robert Peston asks if the chancellor George Osborne will rue the day he set up the banking commission as the only thing that is certain is that the outcome will upset the city and his loony tune free market back benchers. And will Cable's tenure in a coalition government he doesn't really like prove worthwhile becasue reading Will Hutton's column last week this seems to be where Cable wants to leave his footprints on history.

Gavyn Davies asks whether the Germans are actually acting in their own interest with its actions over soveriegn debt and its harsh treatmentof Greece, Ireland and whoever will be next. A keynesian answer would have to be yes.
Simon Schama uses his FT column to argue that an America lost in a fantasy world must recover its dream. The existance of the tea party and its influence over the GOP would suggest more of a nightmare at the moment. I'm sure common sense will prevail, it's just how long it takes to get there that's the worry, for the rest of the world  as well as for the US.

The NME lists its 75 best albums of the year, of which i haven't heard as many as i would have liked. I'll get there eventually, it's just there be another best of year list to get through y then.
Mojo gives it's top 50, i loved the John Grant album, it was brilliant. I don't rate the Arcade fire as highly as most of the years music critics seem to do, either the band or the album. They are good but not "that good" in my eyes. The Joanna Newsom album is a good shout. I would give a best of but i'm always catching up either on this and last year or on old sixties acts that i had never heard of before.
Drowned in sound gives its best of 2010 list, the top 10 is a pretty decent list, i haven't heard The National's latest yet though. I have only listened to one of their albums which i liked but didn't think was quite the gem it had been described as. Will their latest help change my mind.
Piccadilly records best of is always worth watching as there will be stuff on their i won't have heard of.
Uncut delivers its greatest albums of the decade, i have heard almost verything on that list and they are all class album and the White Stripes white blood cells album is more than a fair shout as album of the decade, it's easily their best album to date for me. It's one of "the" classic rock albums.
Last week saw the news that Elbow will be releasing a new album, i can't wait for that. Bassist Pete Turner talks to Uncut about their debut album Asleep in the back. Again that was one of the stand out albums of the decade, i have loved all their albums but that is my favourite so far, if they make a better album than that, it will be one hell of an album. You just know they have it in them though, they are no Oasis, two cracking albums and then it all dries up, won't be the Elbow way.

One of my favourite songs of all time from the said album, I have seen them three times and it has always been done brilliantly but my favourite would have to be watching them right at the front when they were one of the first acts on at the Move festival of 2003, i think, the power of it when you are close up is something to behold. With New order headlining and hot sun, what a day that was. Press the DivX for better quality.

United, no issue with called of game

The BBC says it understands that Manchester United have no issue with the postponement of Sundays game with the rent boys. I can't quite believe that, it seemed to far to early for the game to have been called off, and it was no geat surprise to see that the game would probably have gone ahead if the decision had been left until Sunday morning.

Paul Hayard looks at Fergie's reign at United and concludes that unlike all the rest of the great managers Fergie has kept total control of the club. He thinks that more than that, having seen off each and every threat to himself and United he has gained more control of the club each time. He may be indispensable to the Glazer's but does he really think that the next manager will enjoy the same working reltionship that he has with them. I think not.
Viv Anderson looks back at his time at the club under Ferguson and writes that he is hard but fair. He also thinks that the only way that Fergie will relinquish his control of the club is when they put the lid down on the box.

Fergie warns that the rise of agent power is a serious threat to the way that English football is run. The warning would sound better from a more credible source. Although in the case of Blakburn he is surely right.

United communications director responds to all the qatari rumours by rubbishing them.

Tevez changes his mind and withdraws his transfer request one day after his agent , i presume, put out stories of the player wanting to come back to United. Another strange day on planet football. He'll be gone in the summer.

The Telegraph's US editor argues that Obama's head ruled his heart in allowing Bill Clinton back onto the centre stage of American politics at a recent whitehouse pres conference, but it was a good move way anyway. And despite all his problems he is in with a good shout of regaining the presidency in 2012 due to Republican disarray
Alexander Cockburn looks at history repeating itself in Afghanistan as however unpopular the Taliban may have been or are they are not as hated and despised as the US and the coalition.

Matthew Norman looks at Julian Assange and comes to the conclusion that whatever you think of him, the reaction of the USA and its establishment is in danger of cdeing him so much importance they are in danger of hurtin their own cause.

Will Hutton argues that Britain must wean itself of big finance or its economy will never recover, i live in hope but not expectation. Whilst fellow Observer economics columnist William Keegan argues that a mild dose of inflation is a sign of catastrophe averted.

Badly drawn boy gets tired and emotional in LA, well either that or he is going ga ga. I saw him live a few years ago and i was underwhelmed, it has to be said. His first album was a belter but he has never come close to matching it never mind bettering it.

Music
Delta spirit - History from below: A reasonable slice of US indie folk rock, though nowhere near the Fleet foxes of this world. The best tracks are the ones where they let their hair down and switch the volume up.

Isobel Campbell and Mark Lannegan - Hawk: Their third album together, and the quality hasn't dipped, with another excellent album. With a couple of heavier electric based numbers possibly their most varied to date. Their voices still complement each other brilliantly.

Kong - Snake magnet: Manchester isn't really known for heavy rock , but this lot are out to change that. It aint my cup of tea, it doesn't start out too badly, but eventually the vocals just start to get on my tits as they always do with this sort of music. Th first two tracks see a decent attempt at fusing musicianship with the volume but it melds into a sameness for me eventually. This is the best track and i do like this, it sounds like pre Nevermind Nirvana.

Oceansize - Frames: The second album from a Manchester group, more to my taste. It's another good, not great effort. The more you listen the better it gets. 

Richard Thompson - Dream Attic: I have heard bits of pieces of Richard Thopmson and heard from different parts of his career, but never fully got into him. This has changed all that, it's excellent, i knew he was brilliant guitarist, but the band is superb and the tunes showcase it to the hilt.

Steve Reid ensemble - Spirit walk: An excellent fusion of Africa, jazz and some electronica from Kieran Hebden of four tet, this is excellent. With his musical career of playing with some " the " greats of 20th century music influencing this collaboration it is out there, but especially when you can hear the influence of Miles Davis, magnificent. There isn't much of a collection of videos to coose form though,

No Scholes at the bridge

Fergie thinks that Chelsea are suffering for allowing experienced players to go in the summer and relying on too small a squad. That may be partly the case, but one of their biggest problems for me when i have watched them this season is that their defence isn't good enough. If their midfeild doesn't dominate in games their defensive deficiencies can be exploited. We have as good a chance as we have had in recent years to come away with the three points from stamford bridge.
I would have fancied us more with Paul Scholes in the team though, he is obviously a big miss. We saw the other night that our midfield largely got the better of Arsenal's but where was the creativity and control of the ball. We still don't have that when the ginger prince is missing. If we are going to go 4-3-3 again on Sunday i would like Giggs to in the middle to start the game to give Rooney a bit more quality service. Whether Giggs has played enough football recently to be up to that is the question. I'm just hoping this isn't one of those injuries that Scholes can't shrug off.
Paul Parker reckons United fans wouldn't swap Vidic for any other defender in world football and reckons his duel with Drogba on Sunday could be one of the deciding factors in the game. He isn't wrong on either count, in fact with Rio back to something like his best, fingers crossed, i wouldn't swap our back four for anybody else.

 Keano thought that Monday night was crap, it wasn't the greatest but it wasn't crap. How many times do the big games turn out to be a let down, there has always for these games to not deliver, in his time and before. Where United are at the present time it was probably as much as we could have hoped for. Of course neutrals would have hoped for a much better game, as would most reds, but when you aren't a neutral, the three points are the most important thing. And looking at the players reactions after the game they were well aware of that.
As i was  watching the game i couldn't help but think that the United team of a couple of seasons ago would have battered that Arsenal team. But as we all know, we aren't the United of a couple of seasons ago, we are still a work in progress.
Ian Wright is honest enough to admit that Monday night proved that Evra was right with his pre match comments about Arsenal and their title aspirations. I wonder what Fabregas is thinking after the Champions league draw paired the gooners with Barca once more in the first round of the knockout stages. I can't see past Barca to come through that tie. With the catalans new sponsorship deal just announced will the summer see another Barca attempt to prise the local boy back home and how will Wenger persuade him to stay this time.
Gill was pleased that the Chilean miners enjoyed their old trafford experience. It's a pity it wasn't that much of a game, but at least they saw the place on one of the nights when the atmosphere wasn't as dead as usual.

A couple of good games from Anderson and he gets a new extended contract. He has done well recently, but shouldn't an extension like that be awarded after a season of improved performance or at least a few months. It's to be hoped now that he has that in his back pocket that he doesn't revert to type.

Fergie warns last sixteen champions league opponents Marseille will be a handful. He is right, we could have had a worse draw but it could have been easier, look at the rent boys draw. We didn't do well at their ground last time we drew them if my memory serves me right.

The cabinet secretary has supposedly told Osborne that he will need a plan B according to a confidential circular that the FT has got it's hands on. Larry Elliott can't see him taking the civil servants advise, it's the modern British way to wait for catastrophe to strike first.
The BBC's Stephanie Flanders looks at the inflation wars being waged by MPC members Adam Posen and arch inflation hawk Andrew Sentence. Th weight of evidence and history would suggest Posen will be proved to be correct, but i would take a mild dose of inflation over a lurch back into recession anyway. Laryy Elliott looks at the banks less than sterling record at predicting our recent inflation rate.

A batch of reviews of Gordon Brown's new tome, it has received a better press from economists than political journalists though even the economists wonder where this Brown that saved the world in 2008 was in the years before that when he actually ran the economy.

The poison within the labour movement keeps on sneaking or even bursting out sporadically to remind us just what a job Miliband has on his hands. John Reid, a man far too pleased with his own rcord i have always thought, laid into Gordon Brown on the daily politics show. He is the type of Labour man who reminds me of why i am a Liberal.
The Economist's Bagehot seems to be giving Ed Miliband a better press than many of the Westminster pack.

James Forsyth's prediction for the forthcoming political year, expect the unexpected, who could have forseen the year just ending.
Alistair warns the Labour party that their schadenfreude over Clegg's troubles is blinding them to the fact that the tories are escaping the blame for any of the coalitions unpopularity. The party needs to start to attach the blame on Cameron and co. Peter Oborne thinks that the worst of Cleggs woes are behind him and this is now the time when Cameron's metal will be truly tested. He hasn't proved to be great when under strain so it will be interesting to see how he deals with Carke and his right wing critics.

Westminster MP talks sense shocker, and gets shot down as usual for pointing out the emperor has no clothes. Political bettings Mike Smithson asks why all political parties are scared of the Ainsworth plan, it's obvious why the tories and labour parties but this is the type of thing where the Lib dems are supposed to be liberal. There is no reason for them to be scared of the Daily mail, they will always be detested by that rag.

Michael day of the Indie reports that one of his own ministerial colleagues predicts that Berlusconi will still be gone by April despite winning the vote that kept him in power and set the stage for the riots seen later that night in Rome.

John Pilger explains why Julian Assange should be supported. 

Patrick West salutes the BBC 4 German season. It was quite good, i haven't watched Christopher Clarke's Frederick the great yet but the rest of it was pretty good.
It was quite timely having just finished Francis Wheen's biography of Marx and Tristran Hunt's biography of Engels, my head was already full of German history.




One of the greats

Manchester United 1-0 Arsenal

I was quietly confident before this match, party because we had been coming into a bit of form and partly because of our excellent recent record against Wenger's men. After the three points had been won, even though we never really played as well as we can, i think my confidence was reasonably well placed. Alan Hansen had predicted how United would approach the game, get men behind the ball and catch them on the counter attack. He was spot on, Ferguson didn't deviate from the tried and trusted method of playing Arsenal and beating Arsenal.
We had to rely on our defence more than we have had to before though, as our attack never really caught fire last night. It was still good enough to get the all important winner and create four or five more opportunities that would have put Arsenal completely out of reach. As much possession as the gooners had and as much as they pressed they hardly created a thing. But our back four and midfield had to work very hard to keep it that way.
The whole back four was magnificent last night with Vidic and Ferdinand almost back to their 2006-2008 best. A big pat on the back has to go to Rafel at right back as well, that was possibly his best game in a United shirt last night. The right back slot is his for years to come if he can keep that kind of form going consistently. The most impressive thing about his game last night was the fact that he was getting stronger the longer the game went on. With Nani also showing what a top player he is becoming we looked very strong on the right hand side.
There were mixed opinions on Nani last night, some thought he was too greedy and messed a couple of things up, which was maybe true to an extent. But there were others which i count myself amongst, who thought he was our most dangerous forward and who absolutley scared Arsenal to death. On the night he should have scored at least once and when he lost and then regained the ball to Clichy i thought he was bound to score as he doesn't miss too many chances like that. But it was one of those nights for us in front of goal.
I wasn't that thrilled when i saw the game commence and saw that Anderson was given the role of getting forward to support Rooney from midfield. He has been given that responsibilty before and has never given a performance that has shown he can do the role. But he gave another excellent performance last night continuing his good form. He was another to be given a great chance to score in the second half and another who spurned the opportunity though. For all his excellent form he still doesn't convince me in front of goal.
Fletcher and Carrick both had decent games doing the less glamorous role of stifling Arsenal's midfield. Carrick gave the ball away a bit too much near the death of the game, but at that stage of the game it was that fast that both sides were guitly of giving possession away.
Rooney wasn't quite at his best but he wasn't that far away, i can't explain that penalty miss though. After seeing it again on the TV after the game in the Tollgate it looked like he was too hyped up. He ran so hard and fast at the ball it was always a danger he might miss the target altogether. Taking penalties calls for a cool head and i'm afraid he didn't really have one whilst taking that and it could have come back to haunt us.
So we have come out of the first of big four double headers with all three points and now it's to Stamford bridge where it's our record that isn't so great. If we play like we did last night we will have a great chance, but i would like to see us play 4-4-2 against the rent boys with Berbatov coming back into the frame. A lot of Chelsea's problems recently have been down to a dodgy defence and we need to get at it. Will Fergie go for it though?

Herny Winter uses his match report to describe the ominous warning that United handed out to their title rivals last night, as United won relatively easily without really hitting top gear. Ian Hebert reports on another dominating midfield peformance from Darren Fletcher against the Arsenal. It was nice to see Flecther somewhere back near his best form after his indifferent season so far. Daniel Taylor reports on the Guardian's five things we learned from last night's column and wonders whether Anderson is at last living up to the billing and looks at Nani and sees a potential footballer of the year. I can't say i had thought of Nani as a candidate for player of the year, but thinking about it, it's got to be a fair shout. He has been our most consistent and dangerous player so far this season. As for competitors for the title, i suppose Gareth Bale will be in the mix, but i'm not sure who else really stands out so far this season.

The Telegraph report on the maturing Tweeter man Ferdinand, who sees this a transitional phase for United but not as bigger a transition as happened after the 2003 title was won and the side was broken up.

Has Tom Cleverley played his last game for Wigan as he suffered a rib injury against Everton at the weekend. The update on that is the injury is not as bad as first thought, whether that means he has played his last game for them, who knows. But the news that we will lose Park for 7 games due to the Asian cup may well mean he will be coming back to old trafford in January. It would be a definite strengthning of our squad for the second half of the season

Chris Blackhurst of the London evening standard thinks United fans deserve an answer as to where the Glazer's found the money to pay off the PIK loan. Pigs might fly, but the one thing that seems certain is that they have not used their own money.

Martin Samuel looks at the Carlos Tevez affair and comes to the conclusuion that there is only Chelsea left for Tevez to play for. Hansen reckons that City can ill afford to lose the little Argentine if they harbour serious hopes of lifting the premier league title this season.

Andrew Rawnsley looks at last weeks events and comes to the conclusion that Cameron should really be sharing Clegg's pain. I suppose he should but if he and Osborne see their coalition partners as the useful idiots that others see them as then Clegg will receive just enough support to keep the coalition alive but not enough to do anything to salvage the libe dem leaders reputation.

Two differing views on the difficulties and possible outcomes on the potential future of the Lib dems. Mary Ann Sieghart uses her Indie column to proclaim a rosier future for the party tham almost any other commentator i have read. She claims that as most of the protesting students don't vote the party will not be as badly hurt as current thinking suugests. Steve Richards is right at the other end of the spectrum. With the party split down the middle ideologically, he thinks that some sort of schism is almost inevitable before the four years of this coalition are up.
Richard Grayson exposes the truism, i would hope anyway, that the parties grassroots are nearer to the labour party and to the green party than they are to their own leadership.

Peter Oborne looks at the inside workings of team Cameron and wonders whose vision of the future of conservatism prevails, the Google world of Steve Hilton or the Murdoch world of Andy Coulson. That's easily answered, whose views are nearer the grassroots of British toryism, it has to be the Coulson world of Rupert Murdoch.

Steve Richards last New Statesman column looked at the labour party and the re-entry of Gordon Brown into the political arena last week. He thinks that the party are still defined by Gordon Brown and argues that if Brown's economic policies come to be seen as a success in three years time that would be good news for the party. If on the other hand the cuts are largely accepted and the economy recovers it will be curtains for the party at the next election.
John Harris looked at the recent criticism of Miliband and argued that this was not the way to keep on treating party leaders.

The most interesting although not unexpected Wikileak revelations of th last few days were the news that Tricky Dicky stereotyped America's melting pot of ethnic identities and the news that the US are totally aware of how revoltingly corrupt Karimov's Uzbekistan really is. I had expected Craig Murray to blog on this little expose but he hasn't done yet.

The Pixies perform Here comes your man at the 2004 move festival at LCCC. I was there and it was one of the best gigs i have ever been to, they completely blew away the Stereophonics, not that hard i know.

United at full strength?

It looks like Fergie is going to have a full squad to choose from with the news that Scholes and Rio are both back in training and in contention for tomorrow nights match. Ala Hansen uses his BBC column to argue that tomorrow nights fixture is a big test for Arsenal. He thinks that they have the creativity going forward to win any match but suggests that their achiles heel as always is at the back and between the sticks.
Anderson's improved from has encouraged the club to reopen negotiations with a view to extending his contract. Fuck me, he should be given until the end of the season to prove that he has improved and has improved consistently. I do hope that is not an ecuse for not signing a top midfield player in the summer, because we are still short of top quality in midfield.
Unfortunately it looks like that top quality midfield player won't be the German Schweinsteiger who revealed that he had signerd a new contract with the Bavarian giants yesterday. Paul Scholes had better not be announcing plans to retire any time soon then.

Nasri claims that Arsenal are no longer scared of United, they don't have the aura they had when Ronaldo and Tevez were at the club. Fair enough, i don't think many reds would disagree, though that does rather let the cat out of the the bag that they have been intimidated by us, which i would have thought they would rather the world hadn't have known. And of course another mauling tomorrow night, which is always possible, and they will be back to square one. I'm confident about tomorrow, though not as confident as i usually are when we play this lot at home. With Rooney almost back to his best i can't see the north Londoners defence being able to contain our attack. We have just got to hope our midfiled holds its own to protect our defence.
Nasri.
Sagna warns his team mates that Evra likes to stir things up before the game and that they should just concentrate on the game and not seeking retribution. He does have form i have to admit, every time we play Arsenal or Chelsea he seems to pop up in the press with a litle dig.

Fletcher insists he is not a dirty player as he responds to Wenger's dig at him from last season. It's not just United who play the mind games, is it. I'll be interested to see whether the Scot plays tomorrow, he hasn't had a good campaign so far and i'd even go as far as to say he has been involved in most of our worst displays. Tomorrow would be the perfect game to bounce back and recapture the form that has made him a thorn in Arsenal's side for most of his career.

Paul Wilson reports on the maturing of the talent that is Nani. He has had an excellent seasonm so far it has to be said, i don't know where we would be without his assists. He was especially vital to our campaign earlier on in the season when we weren't clicking as he was the one player that actually came up with the goods from time to time. It does have to be said for all of his brilliant displays and we have seen a few this season, he can still make you tear your hair out at times. He does tend to really strut his stuff when the game opens up in the last twenty minutes, which is no bad thing. It's a pity that Anderson doesn't share the same trait.
I'm always worried that Nani will start to let the good headlines and the praise from the press go to his head. But to be fair, we haven't had any sign of that, yet.

So if has finally happened, Tevez's representative has put in a transfer request on behalf of his client, which City have turned down. It was only a matter of time, it's interesting to see City blame the agent for all of this. Of course he is an out and out wanker, but they don't expect us to think all is sweetness and light between Mancini and the little Argentinian do they. There are still shit loads of rumours about how the players don't get on or rate their Italian manager and Tevez hasn't even hid it showing the world what he thought last week. Welcome to Manchester indeed Carlos, just when everything seemed to go be going swimmingly for them.

Gordon Brown has risen from his political graveyard with the publication of his new book and has been giving interviews to publicise it. In an interview with the BBC's Robert Peston he argues that we have a major crisis in the Eurozone with the laibilities of the banking zone being an accident waiting to happen. No arguments there, though it's a western phenomenon that's hitting Europe first because of the unstable nature of the Euro. It could spread back to the States if it really blows up.
Martin Wolf uses his FT column to ask if there is the will to save the Euro. Should that be have the Germans the will or even the inclination to save it. He doesn't know the answer but is pretty certain that we will be given one in the not too distant future. Sean O'Grady compares the situation of the Euro with that of the ex Soviet Union, not a happy comparison.
Adrian Hamilton warns us not to give up on the Euro yet and argues that though the citizens of Europe are up arms over the austere cuts being prescribed by their national governments there have been no call from anywhere to blame all their ill on the Euro. He also points to the will of Europe's countries to try and find a way through this together.. I suppose the question is will they be able to, it's one thing to have the will, but have they the means to get through this intact.
William Keegan looks at the way the coalition have got away with their approach for now but looks at how ex chancellor Alistair Darling has also now entered the debate on the future of the Euro and the future of the financial sector. Has Osborne ever uttered a thing about the future of anything except that whatever it is it must be cut. Or does he leave thr grown up thinking to King and co. 

Europe's regulators are set to link banking bonuses to X times basic salaries. That's the kind of thing that will get the population onside and will help individual countries to tackle the financial interests that are refusing to live in the real world. Earlier in the week Robert Peston had warned that the governments banking commision would be powerless to enforce the reforms it believed would be needed to shake this countries financial sector without the support of the EU. Let's hope that this is the start of that help.

David Blanchflower takes aim at the record of Bank of England governor Mervyn King's record again. Polly Toynbee applauds the tax dodging protesters and argues that there is nothing scarily left wing about fair tax collection, it's the price we pay for living in a civillised society. And so say all of us.
Which makes it all the more risible to read this from the paymaster general and tax dodger in chief of the tory party. Read some of the comments.

"Training ground Arsenal"

Evra has a pop at Arsenal, claiming for all their nice football they never win anything and claiming they are a "crisis club". I'm not really a fan of laying into the opposition in the media just before you play them and describing them as crisis club is way over the top. The way this season is going our French left back may well be wrong about our rivals being Chelsea anyway. At home to Sunderland they gave a performance that made some of our shockers this season look like mere hiccups. And the second half against Everton wasn't much better, with a little more luck the blue scouse would have come away with all three points.
Evra does have a bit of form for indulging in this kind of thing, he has certainly had a pop at all the big clubs. I can't help loving that phrase " the training centre" though, that does have a ring of truth about it.
Wenger is outraged and implies Evra has shown a lack of respect, obviously he but he could admit that is his team talk taken care off, well it would be at United anyway. Fergie tries to soothe rufled feathers claiming that Arsenal have found a new tougher edge to their game and are ready to emulate the Vierra and Adams era. Nice try but West Brom and Newcastle didn't exactly find themselves getting roughed up did they.
United are desperate to get Ferdinad fit for monday nights game against the gooners. He is trying to speed his recovery with ice baths, not nice. Not a vote of confidence in Evans is it.
The 33 Chilean miners who survived their ordeal of being trapped underground will be the guests of honour at Old trafford on Monday night at the suggestion of Bobby Charlton.


In the week that Ashley got rid of Hughton Ferguson lauds the football clubs who understand tradition and stick with their managers. Next week against the rent boys he will become Manchester United's longest serving manager overtaking the great Sir Matt. He admits he would never have believed that he would be beating that record when he took over the club.

The fantasy FC United FA cup run came to juddering half earlier this week with a reality check as Brighton finally showed the gulf in class to run out 4-0 winners at Gigg lane. They did well to get it on and full marks to everyone involved in going ahead with the game in conditions where it would have been easy to call it off. 

Ben Amos has enjoyed his big nights this season but realises now we are out of the league cup and we are now into the knockout stages of the champions league that they have probably ended. He would be happy to go out on loan to further his career, he knows he needs games to improve as a player. He is showing a good attitude as well as giving impressive performances when called upon.

Tevez thinks that City fans should concentrate their focus on City winning trophies rather than baiting United. Wise words i suppose, but apart from the debt, how exactly are they baiting us, the ticker was still up and running last time i looked.

Well one Lib dem MP did something useful last week, as Don Foster tabled a private members bill for clubs seeking to rintroduce standing areas within their stadiums at all levels of the game. It's a bit like prohibition this isn't it, it's a law will just go on being ignored until it is eventually repealed, it may be a long time in coming, but i think it will happen.

More internal politics at Barcelona as Barca lose the unicef from the front of their shirts and take the £125 million on offer from Qatar to replace it. I'm not sure how popular this will make Rossell, whilst Laporta is now campaigning for a seperatist Catalonia, Rossell has been doing deals trying to help the Spanish 2018 world cup bid. Maybe they will swallow the politicking if it gets rid of the financial problems left over from the Laporta era. They have lost a bit of the not just another football club now though.

Geoff Boycott reckons that Chris Tremlett should be the man to replace Stuart Broad for the forthcoming test in Perth. His height is made for the waca wicket which whilst it may not be as pacy as it was still provides more bounce than most wickets in the world.
Meanwhile Duncan Fletcher has revised his opinion of the outcome of this series. If England carry on in the same ruthless manner he reckons they could rack up a 3-0 series victory. He see no chance of Australia coming back to square the series never mind regain the ashes. Their selectors are sending out all the wrong messages with the bowling changes from test to test.
Matthew Norman is glad to see the Botham and Ian Chappell are trying their best to make this a meaningful contest, a pity it's not out on the pitch though. Well for Australia it is. I have never quite known what to make of Ian Chappell, he was a good cricketer and an excellent captain and is one of the better Aussie comentators. Is he an out an out pommie hater though or is it just Botham.

Craig Murray is more than a little scceptical of the charges that have been laid against Wikileaks editor and spokesman Julian Assange and doesn't care who he upsets in explaing why. I don't think he needs to get into the sexual politics to prove his point, it's all more than a little fishy.
Christopher Hitchens attacks Assange as an unsrupulous megalomaniac with a political agenda. That's as maybe but does that justify the US establishment aping the totalitarian Chinese or Russian and trying to stitch up it's enemy. I can't believe Hitchens can actually go along with that, neocon apoligist or not.
Where will the latest bout of Wikileaks cyber warfare lead us after this week saw one major corporation after another bow down to the US government, asks John Naughton. Your obviously free to say what you want as long as it doesn't upset the US government and doesn't upset profits. This is another component of the current crisis of capitalism to me.
Anne Applebaum argues that whilst the leaks are embarrassing for the targets of the diplomatic cables as much as much as they are for the US government ultimately they will not bring down any governments. I can't help thinking that that is just a little too complascent, it may not bring down the US government but the ramifications are still to reverberate fully and who knows what the consequences might be.

Paul Krugman lays into the Obama administration and asks if he understands who his frinds really are. As Krugman has alluded to before, Obama is no Liberal, he is a continuation of the Clintonomics centre. These are the people who he has surrounded himself with and who are currently on the road to nowhere.
Fellow Liberal Tomasky thinks that the tax deal actually won useful concessions and wasn't the disaster the critics such as Krugman suggest. Democary in America, the economist column goes along with Tomasky but does wonder what long term good it does the US or Obama's administration. I love that last paragraph that basically says the GOP is living in a economic fantasy land.
Greg Eastbrook takes a centrist Clintonomics line arguing that tax cuts and giveaways will not solve the long term woes of the USA.

Iain Martin looks at the coalition's travails and notices that many tories are enjoying the growing discomfort of their Lib dem partners. And those around Cameron who have enjoyed working with the Lib dems and want to make the coalition permanent are losing ground within the party. Michael White has also noticed the restlessness of the tory right and looks at the grudges buiding up within the party at their leadership.
Bennedict Brogan takes a look at the long term vision of the Cameroons and their hopes of making the coalition permanent. He aslo sees a looming crisis in the conservative as a debate opens up on just what it means to be a 21st century tory.

Andrew Grice and Nigel Morris ask just what price has been paid for the victory in the tuition fees vote. Well it's been a total and utter disaster for the lib dems and i would argue the begiining of the end for Nick Clegg's leadership of the lib dems. Will it mark the beginning of Clegg's and Laws eventual defection to the tories, who knows. I'll predict a revival of the left wing of the party, but what state the party will be in to inherit, who knows. I don't see it splitting in two, but i see a handful of orange bookers defecting to the tories led by Laws.
Martin Kettle perdicts that for the coalition things will never be the same again. This was the end of the beginning to quote Churchill, Clegg is severley damaged goods as is the Lib dem brand and the tories warm relationship with the party is cooling at a rate of knots. Contrary to Clegg's asertion the Lib dems do need the votes of left wingers, and for the obvious reason, that it is a centre left party.
Eduard Reyes reports on the ongoing turmoil going on within the inner reaches of the party as the grassroots are up in arms at where their leadership and parliamentary party is taking them.

Just to complicate and even poison the waters even more there are serious voices being heard who think that the policy may not find its way through the house of Lords without being savaged. And even more bizarre, other voices predict the policy won't even work within its own remit. Some predict that all universities will end charging the whole £9000 fee which would make a mockery of the whole act.
Bagehot looks at the vote, the riots and the politics of the aftermouth and sees danger for the coalition and especially the tories in a narrative where they are seen as out of touch.

Manchester United 1-1- Valencia

Whilst it wasn't a performance to remember, the game itself was quite exciting, finshing off an end to end game as Valencia went all out for the win that would have seen them end up with top spot in the group.On a bitterly cold night like last night, i was thankful for that, could you have imagined watching the last two home champions league games in last nights temperature.
Ferguson had said he was going to pick a strong team and for the most part it was. Rooney and Berbatov were up front, there was no Scholes again, unfortunately, so Carrick and Anderson continued in the middle of the park. Evra was given a rest and Fabio made another appearance playing at left back with Rafael playing at right back. It was a suprise to see Amos in goal, but i didn't have a problem with it as he has looked promising to me in the games he has been given a go in. And by and large he gave another decent display last night, his kicking wasn't great, but we are probably going to have to get used to that, because we won't be seeing a goalie as good as Van Der Sar with his feet any time soon i fear.
Rooney continued his impressive return to form, but unfortunately Berbatov had one of those nights. The Bulgarian was not on top form and wasted a number of opportunities, one of the first a one on one with the goalie where he virtually advertised to the goalie which side he was going to try and get past him by and duly saw the ball snatched from his feet. I'm not sure what to make of their number one Guaita, he made some good saves but especially in the second half he wanted to punch everything which eventually led to the goal.
Valencia  were a different proposition from the team that we had played in the first leg. Whilst in that game they had been very cautious not committing men forward until late in the game, here they were pressing United high up the pitch and sending men forward in numbers when they had the chance.
Anderson was continuing his improved form surging forward when he had the chance and he should have done better in finishing off one of the best moves of the first half, but his right footed shot was hit tamely straight at the goalie. Valencia were creating chances at the other end, though they were mostly long range shots. But when Carrick reminded us of his Bayern nightmare of last season by losing the ball in the middle of the park Valencia sprung forward and they created the space to put Hernandez in at the back post and he made no mistake beating Amos with a well struck shot.
United surged back at the other end and United had a double chance where both efforts went agonisingly close. Rooney's magnificent curling effort from outside the box hit the bar and the ball fell to Nani whose first time effort went inches wide. But we went in at half time a goal down with things not going to plan.
Ferdinand came on for the second half but was took off after a few minutes to be replaced by Smalling. United were playing reasonably well, striving for the equaliser that would put them back on top of the group.
I thought Nani and Park both had fair games, not perfect but threatning the opposition. The equaliser followed on from a good move which saw Park cut in and hit a fierce shot which the goalie could only beat into the path of Anderson, of all people, who duly scored his first goal at Old trafford.
Rafael seems to be finding the consistency that United have been hoping for, the more games he is getting, the better his game seems to be. Maybe he will be the long term replacement to Gary Neville after all. I'm still not totally sold on his brother but it could be that he needs games as well, the trouble is he isn't going to get a consistent run of games whilst Evra is still at the club. Smalling's game was mixed when he came on, good at times, panicky at others, especially in his passing. Last night was the kind of game we need to see more of him in, if we are really going to be able to judge whether he has the temperament to eventually replace Ferdinand. United had chances to win the game, the best falling to Berbatov whose shot was brilliantly saved by the goalie with the ball falling to Nani who then proceeded to blast the ball over the ball from tight angle. Valencia ended the game trying to find a winner but United held out to top the group.
So United did what they had to and top the group ensuring we will not face any of the big guns in the last sixteen. I'm still not sure we are good enough to be getting to the final this season, but i thought that last year, and with the draw we had, we had great chance and but for some calamitous errors over the two legs against Bayern probably would have, so who knows.



Ferguson is happy with Rooney's form, it's coing back and coming back quickly he says. The news on Rio Ferdinands substitution is encouraging as Fergie says he expects him to be fit for next Mondays biggie against Arsenal. Less good news about the ginger prince though, he has had a recurrence of the groin injury picked up against Rangers. That is bad news, you need your best players playing against the best sides and for all Anderson's improved form and Carrick's gradual rehabilitation to something like his old form, Scholes is still head and shoulders above both of them.
The latest on the Hargreaves saga is that he has gone to Bavaria to see a specialist to try and help him get over his latest hamstring problem. Why you should have to leave Manchester to reslove a hamstring problem is beyond me. There's probably a bit more to that than is being let on.

Mark Ogden asks if the penny has finally dropped for Anderson. Although he seems to be fitter, he still struggles to see out ninety minutes, he was walking around last night just before he was brought off for Flecher near the last minute. I have to hold my hands up and admit he has looked like a United player during the last couple of home games. I can't say i am convinced his he will ever be a nailed on first choice central midfield starter for United in the future though.

The Independent's Jason Mellor tries to give reasons for Ashley's latest bizarre move as Newcastle prove once again that the crown for comedy club of the premier league isn't a one horse race, the boo camp still has competition. If it's true that Pardew is going to be the man to replace him, that just makes it even more difficult to comprehend. It's not as if Pardew has the greatest track record, it's not the C.V of a someone it easy to see taking the geordies to next level, that's for sure.

The aspect of this story that hasn't really been specualted on, as far as i have read, was would the Burmese junta have passed the fit an proper persons test.

Benitez is doing a sterling job at Internazionale, described by La Stampa, the Italian paper as a man walking with a pistol at his temple after Sunday's 3-1 defeat at Lazio. That was before last nights mauling in Bremen . He is still trying to talk a good game it seems, insisting his job is safe.

Paul Elliott a member of the world cup bid team admits that Panorama were right to broadcast their expose of FIFA and all its grubby little world. It's interesting to see the statement declaring the programme an embarrassment to the BBC was not cleared with all the board members. Whose grubby hands were all over that then, i can't see past Dein or Anson. The Dein that was happy to deal with Uzbekistan's Usmanov, what a fucking creep.
David Conn lists five questions which he believes England's 2018 world cup bid should answer.

It was great to see England so totally outplay the Aussies in Adelaide and it is very hard to see the Aussies coming back from this. I always thought if England went one test up they would at the very least regain the ashes, but after watching the first session of each day and the highlights the next day, it's hard to see Australia finding a bowling attack to give themselves the chance to win one never mind two tests.
Vic Marks reports the Australians in total disarray, whilst our Geoffrey reminds us not to shed any tears for them, it was our turn four years ago.
Shane Warne is impressed with England and agrees that the poms have totally turned the tables on Australia in all aspects of the game. Still he warns England not to think it's all over. He argues that Australia shouldn't panic yet, but if they end up taking a real hammering in this series, it may be time to look to youth and rebuild even if this means losing more tests than winning. James Lawton has a laugh at the Aussies urging the great Shane Warne to make a comeback.
Steve James asks if the Aussies can cope with being losers, as he sees a slight change in national characteristics. A bit early for that, they have had piss poor national sides before and bounced back eventually.

Even the tories have got a student vote rebel now in David Davies but Steve Richards that the tories are the only party that will be the winners in the current saga. He thinks the issue could wipe the lib dems out in the south west of England at the next election.
New labourite Hopi Sen takes an ironic look at the current state of British party politics with all parties in flux and not quite knowing where they are.
Sam Knight looks at the future of the NHS and Andrew Lansley's plans for it. It seems to have broad support in principle but observers don't believe that this is the right time to be reforming the system and think that he is going to be trying too much too soon.

Russia's foreign ministry are not happy at the treatment of Lib dem MP Mike Hancock's assistant after being arrested and accused of being a spy. I can barely a believe that a member of the Lib dems can be a fully paid up member of the Putin fan club. Surely the Russian administration represents everything any kind of Liberal  believes is wrong with the world. Nick Cohen thinks the whip should be withdrawn from him. I'm not sure what you can do really, every party has individual embarrassments, and this is a monumental embarrassment for a Liberal party.
Mark Leonard looks at the internal politics of Russia and tries to find out where the country is heading and if it can be successful.

Peter Popham predicts we are in the final days of the reign of Silvio Berlusconi as his one time ally Gianfranco Fini pepares to plunge the dagger in. It's coming to something when it a one time fascist who is the man to do the decent thing and rid Italy of it's international embarrassment. If this really does happen, the politics of his denouement will be fscinating to watch.

John Naughton looks the fate of Julian Assange and argues that the wikileaks culture is here to stay, it's either live with it or shut the internet down. He isn't the first to notice the hypocrisy of the west as they think we have forgotten them attacking the Chinese for their attacks on the freedom of the net. And yet when they are on the receiving end their gut instincts are almost the same. Wikileaks and its editor and spokesman may very well be, less than pefect, but the world is a far better place with them around than without. It's nice to know than you were right to never take anything they say at face value and the leaks definitely enhances our democracy.

Manchester's museums are having a tough time of it as the museum of science and industry saw the numbers visitng decline last year and it chief admits that it must improve. The Halle is another Manchester institution struggling as we enter the post credit crunch world as cuts start to bite next year. I don't think too many of the "Cheshire set" and their wags will be dipping into their pockets to help out this part of Manchester's culutural history.


Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon and Michael Winterbottom have done their bit for the tourist board of the lakes by the looks of it. It had more than one or two bad reviews but i loved it, the interplay between Coogan and Brydon was hilarious.

Tori Amos

United squad talk

The Mail report that Gary Neville will retire at the end of the season. I had almost forgot about him as far as the first team has gone, he seems to have fallen of the radar. I haven't read what tha injury is, whether it's one of the niggles he has been prone to since his injury problems first started or a more serious one. Will he be the man to take over running the reserves from Ole?

Numerous reports are suggesting that Owen Hargreaves will be allowed to leave at the of the season with United deciding not to offer the player a new contract. I'll be honest i always thought he would announce his retirement at this club., with United picking up some insurance. I'm not sure who will be brave enough to take the chance and offer him another contract. Will the full story of his injury and even the state of it before United actually bought him from Bayern come out then, i wonder.

Berbatov's agent claims that his client wants to and expects to see out his career at ManchesterUnited. He has one more year on his contract so you would be expecting United to opening negotiations if they were wanting to extend it. I think this will be a summer where a few go out and a few come in so he will have to be consistent for the rest of the season. Mind you when i say that a few will be coming in Welbeck and Clevrley will be two coming in so i am not saying the Glazer's are going to be getting the chequebook out.
Fergie is happy with Welbeck's form and confirmed that he will be coming back to United at the end of his loan. No suprises as he lauds the young Mancunian as a "fantastic talent".

The Mail link us with a bid for Shawcross as his signature for the potteries club had a buy back clause in it. I'm not sure there is much in this other than the press know Evans isn't playing well and so they are going to link us with any available centre half going. I don't particularly think he is United quality myself, he is a good solid defender but i'm not too sure he would be good enough with the ball at his feet for United. He certainly won't be gaining a football education in the United way at the Britannia, that's for sure. It has to be said that Stoke probably play the ugliest football in the division. 

More on the fall out of England's world cup bid. Alisatair Campbell writes that if FIFA were a country the counrty it would be would be Russia. Openess and democracy are an anathema to both outfits. Paul Hayward looks at England's options post failed world cup bid and suggests revenge and retreat. He was as sceptical as me about everything to do with the bid.
Why the fuck do the BBC stll need to justify the airing of last Monday's programme when they should be applaudeda nd encouraged to get to the bottom of the rotten core of that corrupt organisation FIFA and take down Blatter at the same time.

Kevin Davies brands City as embarrassing, well i can't add anything to that.

Peter Oborne fears for Miliband, as he wonders whether his leadership has been holed under the waterline before it's before it's barely begun. 
The Economist's Bagehot column has picked up on the rumblings, the Economist view sems to be that he too left wing for the British public. That may or may not be the case, but surely they have not been given the chance to form a view yet. This is an internal Labour party problem at the moment.

The latest revelations show the US mocking Britain's paranoia about the special relationship. The standout paragraph in that report must be Liam Fox telling the yanks that the tories promising to follow a much more pro-American profile in procurement. How much more pro-American could actually get than new Labour. These British establishment, tory and new labour together are truly ridiculous in their failiure to see that Britain's national interest does not and should not mean being an American sister, whatever the hell that means. The US should be an ally where it's in our national interest, not when it's the establishment's interests and that is definitely the same thing.
The Chinese government was behind the hacking of Google that led to the US firm withdrawing from the Chinese market, according to the latest batch of Wikileaks. Now this is an area where the US are definitely an ally, that's a pretty worrying piece of news.

Andrew Rawnsley reports on the mess that the lib dems have got into over their student fees policy. He is right that they would look pathetic with a party abstension , better to split two ways than three. But they totally deserve the opprobrium that they are currently receiving and whilst Clegg may not deserve shit through his letterbox he deserevs the shredding his reputation is taking. Regardless of the policy being right or wrong, to sign a pledge and make a promise before an election and for it to then come out that you never believed in it anyway and to being a party to breaking it in government is the kind of thing that gives politicians a bad name.
John Rentoul argues that Clegg has been a lucky politician so far in his career, but it lucks like his luck has run out and his misjudgements have come back to haunt him.  Matthew D'ancona tells Clegg to stop wobbling and to get his troops whipped, but he isn't leading the tories is he.

William Keegan raises a good point in his Observer column, who is governing the country, the governor of bank of England or our elected politicians. Recent events does make you wonder. Roger Bootle looks at the problems in the Eurozone nad notes that the bank failures of 2008 are poised to become the sovereign failures of 2011 as the toxic debt has still not found it's way out of the system. The problem is who is going to take the hit.
Stephen King warns that what the US economy needs most to beat its present slump is a good dollop of realism. Is that really possible when , what is it a third of the population gets its information from Fox news. Martin Wolf of the FT saw that as one of the reasons why he thought Murdoch's plan to take control of BSkyB should be rebuffed.
Paul Krugman argues that Obama should decline to do a deal with the Republicans, he should let taxes go up and put the blame where it belongs with GOP. 
Thomas I Palley argues that Obama is wasting his and American progressives golden chance to rebuild the system that the collapse of the Neo Liberal paradigm. The problem to me though, is what Democrats actually believe in progressive economic policies anymore. Hilary Clinton would probably have hand picked exactly the same economic team, she was a fully paid up member of that third way claptrap.
Gavyn Davies thinks that the EU has the means to save the Euro but has it the willingness, or should that be will the Germans go along with it.

Is the Chinese economy heading for an almighy cold shower? If this theory holds true what does it mean for their strategy of using state owned firms to go on a shopping spree buying up strategic assets.

Madhusree Mukerhjee's new book Churchill's secret war: The British empire and the forgotten Indian famine of world war 11is given a Spiked review by James Woudhuysen. I wouldn't mind reading this book, i am no stranger to Churchill's antipathy, even hatred towards the hindu people's of India, but this book seems to go into far more detail than anybody has before into a very dark side of the great war leader's character. With our decline and India's rise will this prove to be an embarrassment to us in the future?

Music
Calibro 35 - Calibro 35: An excellent debut album from this Italian band with bits of all sorts of styles thrown. Some great funk and prog come psychedelic rock thrown in.
Kings of Leon - Come around sundown: The US act carry on with their stadium rock sound that brought them so much commercial success on their last album even though for some of us they abandoned the rougher edges of the first thre albums that we had enjoyed so much. I notice that the critics weren't too keen on this, which loses me as it sounds pretty similar to me. As with that album it's ok but formulaic.

R.L. Burnside - A ass pocket of whisky:  The bluesman teamed up with Jon Spencer to record this loud elecrtic blues in the mid nineties just after he eventually found recognition. I like it.

Reboot - Shunyata: More excellent electronica form Deutschland, the dance end of techno it certainly would get you off your feet.
Smoke fairies - Through light and trees: Another excellent debut album this time from this British female duo who mix folk blues and leftfield rock to produce some great sounds. I can't wait to hear the follow up.
These new puritans - Hidden: I haven't heard their debut before, but know it was well received. Apparently this is a totally different beast, whereas their first was totally guitar based this isn't. Brass opens the album and electronics and brass would be the two dominant sounds thereafter. The NME have made it their album of the year which may or may not be a good thing. But it is the album of a group who have total confidence in themselves and this is an excellent album.