Author

Barry

Agile Human Factors in the Defence Industry

by Barry September 11, 2019

written by Barry

In realising that I will be away from my computers next week, I recognised that I would already be failing in my personally set, unofficial, schedule of putting out a podcast every two weeks. So that is why this one is a bit earlier than anticipated.

In this podcast I talk about the use of Agile in Human Factors (HF), the way HF in defence differs from other environments and a bit of the crossover of HF and UX.

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September 11, 2019 0 comment

Politics

Is Boris being Clever?

by Barry September 8, 2019

written by Barry

Boris has had a memorable first week in politics, but for all the wrong reasons. However, is it an exceedingly clever strategy, or has it all gone south very quickly and he is scrabbling around? I think many politicians are thinking that “Bumbling Boris” is just screwing it up, and Jeremy Corbyn should be grasping for any squeak of an election, but I think that Corbyn is doing the right thing in wanting the no deal legislation to gain royal assent, but also I think that lefty politicos (me included) forget that the general public don’t watch the minutiae that goes on in Westminster and Boris is actually placing himself exceedingly well, and ironically, its out of the Corbyn playbook.

Boris is playing a hardball game, where the clown mask is off and he has shown he will lead with a rod of iron. In Westminster, his MPs have tested him, and he has shown he is willing to do what is necessary. After sacking a bunch of his MPs for not following the line, then he has sent a very strong message, not only to his own party, but to the public.

He will, at the next election, get a whole lot of fresh young Conservatives to fill those seats, there is not a shortage. He is then able to shape what his new team will look like. More importantly he has shown the public that he is serious about what he says, and that he will not be held back by parliament. A lot of people who do not follow politics (like nearly everyone) will admire and appreciate that he is “putting the people first” and I would suspect they will vote for him in their droves, especially in leave areas.

So why do I say that this is out of the Corbyn playbook – well Corbyn and his team have been pushing the deselection agenda and trigger ballots (Diana Johnson is the first on that agenda) so he can shape his parliamentary team the way he wants. His is just a longer route, I suspect he is somewhat jealous of what Boris has got away with (or at least, got away with so far). Jess Phillips gave a fab speech in support of the Tories who have been sacked and asked why they were not doing the same thing, however it was slightly diminished by the fact she didn’t do the same in support of Luciana etc, but hey ho.

So, whats next, I think its a race to the ballot box, whilst Labour say they want to go to the polls, I think they are worried, on a number of fronts. First, Boris is popular and will win a lot of personal vote. Secondly, Jo Swinson is doing a good Job in the Lib Dems, and the whole Lib Dem movement is getting stronger, and they will take votes from centrists both left and right, which lowers the Bar for any party to win.

Fundamentally, we do need to close the Brexit box, the uncertainly is now just as damaging as leaving. And we need to remember that this whole farce is not even about getting the trade deal, its only the pre-conditions to starting to get the deal, not to mention the other trade deals we need to get. The pain of this is only going to get worse.

But, on the flip side, Politics can not be accused of being boring anymore…..

September 8, 2019 0 comment

1202 Podcast

Why 1202 – Episode 1 reveals all

by Barry September 3, 2019

written by Barry

The new podcast is called 1202, this was inspired by the Apollo 11 mission, in this podcast I explain why.

*Disclaimer (getting my excuses in first) – This is the first recording/editing of a podcast. 20 minutes feels about right, but will play with it all going forward.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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September 3, 2019 0 comment

1202 Podcast

1202 – The Human Factors Podcast – Trailer

by Barry September 2, 2019

written by Barry

Trying new things. In theory, I have recorded a trailer for a podcast I am putting together, it has a (cheesy) intro and outro and me burbling in between. Have saved it and uploaded it here. Now it is supposed to become available on ITunes and your other favourite podcast hosts.

This is a learning journey, so my quality bar is pretty low right now, but always happy receive (constructive) criticism. Fundamentally it should be enjoyable as well as informative, but we will see how that pans out.

But as the trailer says, the first proper episode will look at the namesake of this podcast, 1202, and why I think that is important.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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September 2, 2019 0 comment

Random

Lib Dem Leadership – the start of something new?

by Barry July 22, 2019

written by Barry

Firstly, congratulations to Jo Swinson, the new and shiny leader of the Liberal Democrats. What she said clearly struck a cord with the Lib Dem membership because not only did she win, nearly 2:1 against Ed Davey, but the turn out for the vote was above 70%, which on any platform is great.

(On turnout Stats – Jeremy Corbyn initially won on 76.3%, then 77.6%. Teresa May didn’t, because they had a coronation, but Cameron was around 66% turnout.)

But lets look at the way this leadership campaign was conducted. For the most part, from the outside, it looked clean and fair, largely on the issues and mostly built on positive messaging. Compare that with the Tory leadership election and they are poles apart. Contrast them both with the last 2 Labour Leadership elections, and you are in a whole different world. She might just inherent a party that isn’t divided and isn’t tearing itself apart. They are united on the biggest issue of the day, and I guess any members who have stuck with the party for this long, can be counted as pretty committed.

I think both parties (Lab and Tory) should be worried. The local elections could be written off (as I did) as bounce on the Euros, the Euros could be written off because its a single issue campaign and to be fair, they are on the right side of history on it. But now, they are positive looking, positive messages and a dynamic new leader. Where they were looking for forgiveness from the electorate over the coalition, then it seems they may just have it.

And lets not forget, the Lib Dems are low in Westminster at the moment, but they are strong in local communities, their best game (and biggest persistent threat) is community campaigning, especially if they can get a press release out of it.

So, tomorrow we should find out that Boris will become Prime Minister (assuming the Queen doesn’t suggest they try again…). What will Jo bring to the table to unseat the Tories that Labour hasn’t. Would her election give pause for thought if Boris was thinking of a GE?

More fundamentally, will she visit Gloucester on Thursday and help Seb get elected to Podsmead????

July 22, 2019 0 comment

Politics

#Tory Leadership – Bus or Train?

by Barry July 13, 2019

written by Barry

Seeing many Conservative friends pondering over which choice to make on the leadership is quite a sad experience really. Though, like any political leadership vote, it seems to bring out the worst in people.

I keep being asked how I would vote if I had one, but its like being asked “How you would like being run over, by a bus or a train?

The choice is woeful and normally you would want to push hard for a GE, but then, the choice is woeful.

July 13, 2019 0 comment

Labour Politics

‘That’ programme – #Panorama

by Barry July 11, 2019

written by Barry

So I didn’t watch the Panorama programme on exposing the Antisemitism within Labour until early this morning, having seen some of the reaction on Social Media last night, then I was bracing myself, but really it was much worse than I feared. But not just because of the antisemitism, but of the reaction, both within the documentary and outside of it.

The programme was damning. Its one of these things that when its laid out in front of you, with so much of it coming directly from those involved, that first hand experience. But also a lot of it straight from actual footage and emails.

The reaction from the Leader and the inner circle was as expected – deflection, whataboutary, and blaming everyone else. Most significantly is the assertion that this is a direct attack on Jeremy himself, therefore it can’t be true. Two things really came to light about this, firstly is the lack of reflection that there might be a problem, and secondly the rather clever move that this is a direct attack on Jeremy. I am still in two minds if Jeremy himself is actually antisemitic (either deliberately or through unconscious bias) or if he is just a figurehead with no actual ability to change the direction of the party. But one thing is very clear, that by focusing it as an attack on Jeremy, then everyone else who is actually leading from the back seats is delivering their own agenda through the figurehead and ensuring they don’t take the heat.

What is more distressing really is the hand wringing from members, MPs, and councillors. I kinda lost it with Darren Jones MP this morning, when I simply replied to his tweet of outrage with “So what are you going to do about it Darren”. I then followed up with a retraction of sorts, because its not just Darren. When you see tweets from Tom Watson and others, the deputy leader, saying how awful it is, then you have to ask :

WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN DOING FOR THE PAST 4 YEARS

This is not new news, this problem has been talked about as its escalated.

But all of that aside (that’s a lot to put aside), but for me its about how the staff have been treated, and glibly blamed/framed/scapegoated for this. For Labour staff members to have resigned and had mental breakdowns, to contemplate suicide because of their working conditions, and then to try to hush it up with NDAs. The party of the workers, who have staff that have been threatening to strike, who have been called all sorts of names and pushing them to the edge. Well WTAF!

Now, I’m not a member anymore, I resigned in protest, partially about this, the general and personal bullying and Brexit. But it still breaks my heart, because fundamentally Labour Values are still my values, I hope that one day this will all end and I can get back on board with a decent lefty party that cares more about communities and people. But whilst this shit is happening, and is still supported by decent people who do nothing more than tweet their anguish, then there is a point where the party will not recover, indeed, that might have already happened.

The Labour Party is supposed to be about helping those who need it. If you are a member and still paying to support this bullying and racism, then what are you going to do about it, are you going to tweet your anguish, or do something to actually make a difference? If you are staying to fight from the inside, then I can only suggest, taking cover until it all blows over isn’t working!

July 11, 2019 0 comment

Gloucester Politics

Podsmead, Gloucester By-Election – An interesting race

by Barry June 29, 2019

written by Barry

Even though its around 18 months since we moved away from Gloucester, I still keep a fond eye on what goes on politically, not only because of my own involvement, but because it is a bit of an indicator of what could happen nationally. There are council by-elections in Podsmead and Barnwood wards. One caused by a resignation and the other by the passing Lisa Noakes, a lovely lady who I was very sad to hear of her passing. I’m not going to comment on the Barnwood challengers, mainly because I fully expect it to remain Tory – but with a month to go, the runners and riders for Podsmead have been announced, and I can’t help but wryly smile over the stories behind some of the main contenders.

So Podsmead should be a hardcore Labour Ward, but it isn’t. It has had its share of some great councillors and candidates but it is a very personality driven area too, where I have seen some amazing candidates not get the seat (its a single councillor ward). Whilst it somewhat sticks in the craw to admit it, the last good proactive councillor they had was Jeannie Watkins. This was irritating as she is a Tory, but she did get stuck into the community stuff, and really brought some funding and spotlight to the area, which is exactly what Podsmead needed at the time. But what it needs now is someone who will hold the council to account, to ensure Podsmead gets its fair share and the attention that it deserves.

Its interesting to see the current Tory Candidate, Byron Davies. I say interesting because he was a strong Labour Supporter and was my right hand man in Podsmead when I was campaigning for the GE in 2017, and he did a lot of work there in 2015 too. He left Labour not long after the 2017 election because he saw the change in the local party, and whilst he was a strong Corbyn supporter, he seemed to become very disillusioned there too – I can’t blame him for that, after-all I have left and was never “illusioned” with Corbyn in the first place. But I don’t understand how he could jump from Labour to the Tories. He wants to campaign for the least well off, yet it is the Tories who have caused most of it with their ideological austerity. I think as a young man he has a lot of potential in Gloucester Politics, but I think he will struggle in the Conservative Party, he will find it very ideologically challenging when the gloss wears off.

I would love to comment on the Labour Candidate, Lisa Jevins, but I don’t think I have ever met her. I know she is active in one of the Podsmead groups, and has been for a number of years. She might have been a member for years, and I’ve just never seen her, but I suspect she might be a newer member, or a member who has been motivated by Corbyn to get involved. I guess to get a flavour, I would ask her opinion on the Chris Williamson debacle, and then you might get an idea of where she stands.

The Brexit Party is running candidates in both wards, as are UKIP and it will be interesting to see their results, particularly as this is the first local elections that the Brexit party has run in. I suspect they will take more votes from the Tories that people would be willing to admit, and Labour will suffer too, we have to remember Gloucester is a Leave city. Its this that could set the ground for some shocks in both wards, but particularly Podsmead.

The Greens are not standing aside in this fight either which will annoy the Liberal Democrats somewhat I should think. The LD’s are running Seb Field, an experienced Councillor from when he lived in that end of the city, and now he is living the other end of the City, he is clearly hoping to put some of that knowledge and experience to good use. At any other time I would suggest that the Liberals wouldn’t have a hope, but when you have a good community campaigner as a candidate, and the Tories and Labour bleeding candidates to Brexit parties then the Lib Dems may just do the business.

I have to admit to hoping Seb does well here. I have known him for a long time, and whilst we have differing political opinions and we have had some really good political debates (and the odd spat) over the years, I really respect the fact he has not only the good of his ward at heart, but the good of the city too. He thinks in the bigger picture and has lots of experience in working with the council to get results. I think he could help the Liberal Democrats redefine themselves to be more than just the protest vote.

A strong Voice….. because he is a singer….. geddit….

So its Corbyn Labour vs Ex-Labour Vs Lib-Dem with some Brexit spoilers thrown in.

For the first time ever, I am endorsing a Liberal Democrat candidate in Gloucester. These are strange times indeed.

June 29, 2019 1 comment

Politics

Tory Sandpaper – Choose your grade

by Barry June 18, 2019

written by Barry

The Tories are running through the motions of selecting a new leader. But its already a farce, with the competition seeming to be about who is going to come second and have their future leadership run started. Boris is a clear favourite, not only with the MPs, but from hearing news coverage, with Tory Members too, therefore, unless something amazing happening, he is going to be our next prime minister. Yes, that gaff laden buffoon is going to represent us on a National Stage.

London, UK, 1st Sep 2015: Boris Johnson
Mayor of London seen arriving at Global House in London

But scarily, the Boris tactic of not screwing up seems to be not to turn up. Not deploying a gaff on TV is solved by not even being there. And yet, the Tories still think he is fit to address our country in times of crisis, to show compassion and feeling, and to improve our international reputation and respect. Lord help us.

The other candidates are all very nicely falling by the wayside for him, pretty much with the exception of Rory Stewart. He seems to be the only candidate who is challenging the Status Quo, the only one who seems to be vaguely moderate and trying to do things differently. If I had to choose, then I would choose him.

But that choice is still the least worst option, its like choosing what grade of sandpaper to use instead of toilet roll.

Fundamentally, right now there is no inspiration within Westminster – we need someone who will not just see us through the Brexit farce, but will be able to deal with the aftermath. There is currently no-one on the Green Beeches who could deliver community cohesion, many of them can’t even keep their own party together.

June 18, 2019 0 comment

Politics

Change is Changing? What next for the fledgling party – or is this it?

by Barry June 4, 2019

written by Barry

Guido Fawkes had an “exclusive” last night that suggested the Change UK MPs were getting cold feet and already talking about a split. With some, seemingly corroborative, comments in the Independent and New Statesman then it would seem that, if nothing else, the honeymoon period is over.

Lets start by recognising that the grouping, the Tiggers, did an incredibly bold thing, they stepped up and said “not in my name” and that has to be applauded. They gave people a reason to get excited about politics again, especially with the talk of challenging the status quo and doing things differently.

They did some rather cool things, like getting an Amendment for Peoples Vote on the table (granted, only for Labour to stab it in the back), they did make me reflect on my own actions and what I was doing with myself.

But that is kinda where the fairy-tale ends. They inspired a lot of people, an independent group supporters network organised itself as well as other social media groupings. But none of this was really linked or even influential within the main group.

The EU elections were probably the biggest mistake so far. They acted as a catalyst for rushed ideas and silly decisions. The fact they contested the elections was pretty dumb really. Lots of people put themselves up, but vetting such a list and getting selections done was clearly never going to go well. And within days of announcement, a number of candidates has their social media delved into and things were coming out which led to candidates standing down quite quickly.

But even before that, the registration with the Electoral commission was an interesting episode too. The name is ridiculous, as was the hamburger logo. As someone who works in usability and design stuff, it was just way too close to the menu icon we are all used to seeing on mobile websites.

****************************

Breaking News,

As I have been dipping into writing this, there has been confirmation of the split. Only 5 MPs are left, with Anna Soubry as leader, with followers Chris Leslie, Joan Ryan, Mike Gapes and Ann Coffey.

******************************

So, this really looks like the end of the road for Change as far as I see it. I thought it had potential, but never really broke out of the Westminster bubble. No doubt the party itself will continue, but quite frankly it will be more as the dinner party joke than a serious concern.

What is the more interesting question is what will Heidi, Chuka, Sarah, Luciana, Gavin and Angela do now – They are the more prominent and dominant force out of the group, you could argue they had the most to lose, have they lost it, or will the Lib Dems suddenly gain some dynamic people?

June 4, 2019 0 comment

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