If the right honourable gentleman will yield for a moment, whilst I preen, snort and exclaim: The British press seems positively befuddled by the move recently by some members of the House of Lords to start a single group blog. The Yorkshire Post provides a generally positive review:
The idea, met with bemusement from some members, was to increase public awareness of what actually goes on in the hallowed corridors of power and hopefully show that the upper house has its finger firmly on a fully beating pulse. Yesterday, Labour's Lord Solely, one of the site's 10 committed and enthusiastic contributors, claimed an early victory, announcing the postings had already attracted 30,000 visitors and 600 comments.
These wacky lords love to blog about What It All Really Means:
"With all due respect," he says, can normally be translated as "That was rubbish" and when a peer responds to a colleague with "The noble lord makes an interesting point" apparently what they really mean is "I have no idea what the answer is."
This from one Baroness Murphy:
There is also a distinct lack of what I call “evidence based” statements. I have heard colleagues quote so-called research which sets any academic’s teeth on edge. I have an urge to stand up and shout ‘lot of tosh’ but the only way to challenge in a formal debate is to rise decorously and ask: "Could the Noble Lord/Lady point us to the source of this information?” which is invariably ignored.
This organization made the Lords Blog happen. Here in Washington, with hundreds of think tanks stacked up block by block, where is a similar effort? The pathetic blogging efforts of Congress surpassed by the House of Lords. For God's sake!
The Guardian also is impressed, awarding the Lords Blog its "Website of the Month." The Hansard Society links here to an audio interview of one Lord Soley, who calls the effort "a meeting room without walls."
[One teensy point to consider in handing out kudos for blogging: Members of the House of Lords are not elected.]