DON'T LEAVE US AGAIN EDDIE!

*
While Eddie's away the Quinns will play! Yesterday's PM, presented by leftie lassie Carolyn Quinn, was one of the worst I've heard for ages.
*
It featured an extremely soft interview by BBC economics 'guru' Nils Blythe of Peter Mandelson in the wake of Brown's right-wing-bashing speech at the Policy Network conference. Three easy questions and no interruptions from Nils, lots of Brown-nosing and attacks on the Tories from Mandy.
*
A report by Andrew Harding from Argentina on that country's posturing over the Falkland Islands saw Andy neglect to mention that Argentina's posturing (but beautiful) president is a socialist. Had the fair Cristina (pictured with all the inevitability of a Paxman sneer) been a right-winger you can bet your bottom peso he'd have thought it worth mentioning - especially as there was criticism of her from various Argentinians.
*
The programme then mounted the green platform and spent what seemed like an eternity discussing a row between the government (represented by Lord Hunt) and an electricity generator that wants subsidies to transfer from coal to renewable 'biomass' energy. Green Party London Assembly member Darren Johnson stuck his oar in here. Carolyn's questions tended towards Darren's position while she was interviewing the Labour lord.
*
The programme stayed on the same platform for a report by BBC science correspondent Palab Gosh on electric cars in America, and how they could save us from our gas-guzzling cars, which are "pouring carbon dioxide into the planet's atmosphere." He talked to a broccoli-juice drinking (no, honestly!) Californian couple who believe their solar-panel fitted sports car points the way to the future.
*

GOSH, WHAT A TURNIP!

Palab Gosh, one of the BBC environment correspondents, reported on today's 'PM' about the Food Standards Agency's large-scale study into organic foods, which found that there was no evidence of greater health benefits from eating 'organic' foods than from eating conventional foods. Gosh interviewed one of the report's authors before talking to Lord Peter Melchett of the pro-'organic' Soil Association. Melchie wasn't impressed, unsurprisingly. The scientists may have comprehensively reviewed 55 previous studies but this doesn't add up to a row of beans for him. He wants more studies, and if they show no evidence in favour of the health benefits of organic foods you can bet your bottom euro that his lordship will want even more studies, and so on and so on and so on...

My main grouse about Gosh's interview with Lord Melchett was the standard of his questions:

"Their research didn't take into account the impact of pesticides and herbicides. Is that something that concerns you about their study?"

Can you guess what happened next? Melchie said, "Yes it does." Well blow me down with a feather! Who would have expected that?!

If you thought that was a no-brainer, try this one:

"What would your advice be to people who are thinking about buying organic food, whether for nutritional value or otherwise?"

Feathers at the ready, because Lord Melchett of the pro-organic Soil Association's advice was that people should certainly buy organic food because it's better than conventional food...and gave a little list of these alleged benefits.

*******

If you thought that suggests bias in favour of organic farming, you should click on the BBC news weblink to this story and listen to the featured vox-pops. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8174482.stm
Every single one of these ignoramuses is in favour of organic foods.