David Davies and the DVD book of West Ham United

PARSLEY'S COMMLOCK

Hero of the week: David Davies
In the immortal words of Peter Cook 'I think a pointless sacrifice is called for'.

The unwritten constitution of the United Kingdom had let the country slide into populist posturing that actually made little difference to terrorism or crime, but gave local authorities powers to spy on people and enabled government to exercise its power in more arbitrary ways than ever before.

Instead of being a beacon of common sense, I had a slight feeling that Liberty, the civil liberties organisation, was just another pressure group with another opinion, and certainly was not preventing the tide of measures that was bizarrely fulfilling all the '1984' prophesies.

The Liberal Democrats had a policy that proposed reversing all the unnecessary acts. This was the nearest thing to a focus for individual freedom I had come across, were it not for the fact that it was apparently quite far down the agenda, and the Liberals themselves were a long way from exercising power.

Terry Gilliam's 'Brazil' had a world where it was better to confess quickly, as you would be liable for the bill if they had to torture you for weeks before you confessed. The UK government was proposing that the under equipped, under staffed police force should have 42 days to find no scrap of evidence before they had to return you to the community. In such a way you would be freshly endowed with bitterness and anger and every reason to despise the stupidity of a system that claims to protect you.

As the decision to introduce 42 days was a major display of the machismo and egotism of a political leadership that pays no heed to rational argument, it was obviously extremely important that the government won the day. The 'boot stamping on a face' of 1984 was gloriously upheld amongst threats and grubby deals that were a testament to the guiding moral principles of Gordon Brown.

Then David Davies resigned, and just for a moment someone was saying that this God-awful tide of throwing away all the principles that give legitimacy to our government was wrong.

Seconds later his decision was bewailed as an egotistical stunt, evidence that he was being 'frozen out' of the shadow cabinet, and a horrible mistake that would not get him anywhere. Also, the issue wasn't important to people and for those who it was there was active disagreement with Davies. The majority of people were said to want 42 days detention because 'strong' acts that allegedly assist in the 'war against terrorism' have majority public support.

Well personally I say 'up yours' to alleged support for the 42 days, and 'wake up' to people that say they don't mind cos they trust the police and they've got nothing to hide. As I've said before don't tell me you've got nothing to hide, tell the identity theft criminals. They'll be delighted.

Finally I say 'thank you' to David Davies. Those who are sickened at the contempt new laws hold for individual liberty salute you. The fact that there isn't a straightforward conventional way of registering concerns just makes it all the more important to raise them. I hope the issue will get all the oxygen of publicity it richly deserves.

Book Review : The DVD book of West Ham United - Martin Godleman
Let me immediately say, if you're not aware, that the writer is my brother. Like any author that loves their subject matter, he has pulled out all the stops to jam pack this book with interesting titbits. It's lavishly illustrated with some corking colour and black and white photos, and is done as an A to Z, with one or two pages on each item. This means you can pick up and put down as you have time.

It's also a disk size book because it comes with a 2-hour DVD of 250 West Ham goals, narrated by Phil Jupitus, a massive West Ham fan in every sense, with script by the author.

Even a relative football pleb like myself can enjoy the history behind the team that provided the core of the England World Cup Squad of 1966. Beyond that the 'Academy of Football' as West Ham are sometimes known, has provided the training for many of the best English footballers and managers. Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard are both former 'Hammers' for example.

There is also a real amazing East End soap opera of public and 'behind the scenes' stories. An item entitled 'When Harry Met Billy' sets out how former players and lifelong friends Billy Bonds and Harry Redknapp fell out, never to speak again, after Redknapp took over as manager from Bonds. The film 'Green Street' was based on a gritty gang of West Ham hooligans known as the 'Inter City Firm'.

At only £6.99 on Amazon for a hardback copy, I feel absolutely no shame whatsoever in saying how proud I am of my brother and his ability to turn his enthusiasm into a cracking book. It makes a great holiday read or a top present for anyone interested in the history of the game. It's published by Green Umbrella Publishing, ISBN 978-1-905828-98-2

parsley@gardenrecords.com [www.gardenrecords.com]