Does Sheffield Hallam MP, Clegg, wear clogs or does he prefer Ferragamo, is he one of the peeps?

"Claig, I'm astonished that you claim the right wing press aren't in charge. Quite the reverse of the truth. Look at the readership figures - the best-selling paper is the Sun, and the Mail is close behind. "

Isn't this sour grapes though, the papers were all supporting Labour until this election.

"Oh, Atlantis, are you sure you aren't mixing up David Davis and David Davies, btw? Think the one who lost out in the leadership contest is not the civil libertarian from Haltemprice and Howden (the one who stood down to force a bye-election over detention without charge)."

What?

I'm not so sure Claig. I don't think BBC is a lefty institution actually - that there Nick Robinson, most certainly not.

Nor that the Guardian and Independent have wider circulation or more readers and influence than the Mail or the London Standard etc.

Take your point re Murdoch. Mind you, Fox are keeping on at Obama aren't they?

I was thinking last night. You know how Obama followers went around saying 'Yes, We Can'

We should all follow Clegg shouting,

"I'm not scared!'

Claig, I'm astonished that you claim the right wing press aren't in charge. Quite the reverse of the truth. Look at the readership figures - the best-selling paper is the Sun, and the Mail is close behind.

Yes, good point about Coulson (it is the same Davis though)

Surely somebody else must be outraged by Orlando Figes this morning?

... and to continue the Welsh theme for Policy's benefit, David Davis and David Davies sound very Welsh. The Tories are clearly a Welsh conspiracy!

Must admit, I tend to think, perhaps optimistically, that people aren't as thick or as susceptible as the press would like to believe - and that they're essentially decent too.

I'm loving it too PW. The cat got out the bag, and nobody can get it back in again.

Btw, difference between Alastair Campbell and Andy Coulson is that Campbell, AFAIK, didn't run a newspaper that repeatedly and deliberately broke the law by tapping mobile phones.

Please don't bring up the Welsh again, I've only just got my cortisol levels back down

(lol 'he's one of them (not an MP)')

100x - I don't know whether they think people are thick (to be fair, there is some empirical evidence for that ) or whether they're just absolutely terrified. I do know that I'm enjoying it enormously, whatever it is.

Oh, Atlantis, are you sure you aren't mixing up David Davis and David Davies, btw? Think the one who lost out in the leadership contest is not the civil libertarian from Haltemprice and Howden (the one who stood down to force a bye-election over detention without charge).

Not only is Nigel Evans (shock, horror) Welsh, he went to university in Swansea University. Evans is famously the only MP to come out of the politics department there as a Tory. He gets ribbed about it every time the old Swansea crowd meet up (my Dad's one of them - not an MP, a politics graduate from Swansea).

lol.

What did make me laugh was immediately after the last TV debate the You Gov /Sun poll giving it to Cameron.

I mean millions of us had been watching that with our own two eyes.

It was quite clear that really there wasn't a winner. Nobody won. Brown did better, Clegg maintained, Cameron did better but not as well as he needed to do.

They think we're thick don't they?

Tory press, December 2007-April 2010: apparently some fella called Phil Legg is in charge of the Loiberal Dermocruts. He believes in muesli.

Tory press, April 15 2010-present: Nick Clegg, whom we have been warning you about for literally days, is Satan Incarnate! How is it possible that you did not know this, you pustulous fools? See pages 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 etc etc

Readership: eh?

and it was all in the papers when he became leader (although not in as much detail).

Clegg has never hidden his background, end of. If he says "my city of Sheffield" (and often adds "where I'm an MP") it's because he likes it, spends a lot of time in his constituency and is hoping the Lib Dems will win Sheffield Central. He's mentioned the house in France in interviews in the past, too, when asked where he goes on holiday.

lemonmuffin - yes, but odd to point it out to the Mail readers no? That's not smearing - that's saying, look he's okay, he's a bit like Cameron actually.

Yes to you both! That's the piece I read. I found it quite interesting.

x-posted with the exact same link, never mind

was it something like this 100x?

Exactly herbietea. The left have been loving the fact that Cameron has a posh background and have promoted the fact endlessly and gleefully.

The mail are just pointing out that actually Clegg has a pretty similar background in terms of wealth and privilege.

Which is a reasonable point imo.

100x - did you se Johann Hari's piece yesterday? I love him.

Yes that's an interesting point Claig.

Though I kind of think they've been genuinely surprised at how it has gone? I really thought this election was theirs for the taking. But I do think they've misjudged how people think nowadays too.

I read an interesting blog on Huff Post the other day - about how Britain essentially a highly liberal (with a small l) society and how that vein has been tapped via the public debates - that actually it reflects a general truth not the truth the right wing media would have you believe. Did have the slight whiff of 'conspiracy' about it, but I thought it was interesting too.

I'm not sure TB hid it, did he? Everyone went on about it all the time - from both sides.

I don't understand the charge that Clegg has been 'hiding' anything (apart from that nine-month stint with a lobbyist - fair enough to point that out).

The electorate knew nothing about Clegg until ten days ago, partly because the British electorate is pretty ignorant, politically speaking, and partly because the papers (with usual lefty exceptions) never mentioned him.

Now they know a bit more. If anyone has been looking at Clegg for the last ten days and has been under the impression that he's the third member of Cannon and Ball, they are too fucking stupid to have the vote.