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        All I can say is, “WOW”.         “Avatar” is a 3-D feast for the eye which should propel James Cameron to the status of legend. In fact, after a decade or two of perspective, I fully expect that this groundbreaking work will be studied in the best film schools, right about the time they are covering Riefenstahl.         Seldom has a film been made which combines cutting edge technology, the highest standards of quality, and a deep, self-indulgent loathing of all things which The Left despises about America. I honestly don't remember the last time I found myself booing and hissing at...

Absent from the big screen for over a decade now, Oscar-winning director James Cameron returns armed with a reported half-billion dollars, a story he’s been desperate to tell for 15 years, and the very latest in cutting-edge visual technology. The result is “Avatar,” a sanctimonious thud of a movie so infested with one-dimensional characters and PC clichés that not a single plot turn – small or large – surprises. I call it the “liberal tell,” where the early and obvious politics of the film gives away the entire story before the second act begins, and “Avatar” might be the sorriest...

The story of Avatar - the new film from Titanic director James Cameron, and reputedly the most expensive ever made - will ring true to anyone who has ever felt so much as a twinge of guilt about their own carbon footprint. It is the 22nd century and Earth has run out of its natural resources. It is now little more than a desert, without vegetation, wildlife or minerals. But a newly discovered planet, Pandora, is a lush, exotic world which possesses everything we need, so a ruthless mining corporation hatches a plan to strip it bare and save the...

Britain's special relationship 'just a myth' Toby Harnden in Washington A senior American official has spoken of "the myth of the special relationship" between the United States and Britain, arguing that Tony Blair got "nothing, no payback" for supporting President George W Bush in Iraq. Kendall Myers, a leading State Department adviser, suggested that Mr Blair should have been ditched by Labour but the party had lacked the "courage or audacity" to remove him. David Cameron, the Conservative leader, was "shrewd, astute" to have distanced himself from America. In candid comments that will embarrass Mr Bush and Mr Blair, the...

Federal officials say a Washington, D.C.-area couple has been arrested and accused of spying for Cuba. Officials say both are former U.S. government employees -- he from the State Department, she as a Congressional aide. One official says the spying went on for more than two decades. We expect to learn more details later today when a federal indictment is unsealed. For now, officials will not disclose the names or any other details....

Image via Wikipedia As trailers for James Cameron’s new epic blockbuster, Avatar, hit television and theaters, critics are becoming increasingly alarmed that the movie may not accurately portray corporations and the military as being evil enough.“I have some concerns about what I’ve seen so far,� said film critic Cindy Mattson. “The previews I’ve seen appear to show that a corporation has invaded another planet with the military’s help in order to mine a valuable resource, and they need to kill indigenous people to do so. That starts out promising enough, but this movie was really supposed to push the envelope....

Conservative government will not give a referendum on the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty. The Tory party leader’s admission, which could come as early as Tuesday, will bring accusations that he has broken clear promises to grant a popular vote on the treaty. Mr Cameron gave voters an “iron-clad” promise in 2007 that a Conservative government would hold a popular vote on Lisbon. And, in May this year, he said: "A progressive reform agenda demands that we redistribute power from the EU to Britain and from judges to the people. We will therefore hold a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty." But...

No thread but has the video of the new Avatar trailer.

BUSAN, South Korea (AFP) – Hollywood producer Jon Landau said Friday he had no doubt that his latest feature with "Titanic" director James Cameron would live up to its billing as the year's most-anticipated film. The 300-million-dollar "Avatar", packed with computer-generated imagery and 3-D effects, is the pair's first project together since scooping 11 Oscars with "Titanic" in 1998.

David Cameron was fighting last night to prevent the Tories again being labelled the 'nasty party' after one of his Euro MPs denounced the National Health Service. The Tory leader slapped down Daniel Hannan after he went on U.S. television to brand the NHS a '60-year failure' that he 'wouldn't wish on anybody'. Hannan joined forces with U.S. critics opposed to Barack Obama's healthcare reforms. They have described the British system as evil, Orwellian and a breeding ground for terrorists. Mr Hannan said: 'I find it incredible that a free people living in a country dedicated and founded in the...

Cameron Apologises To Gays For Section 28: Law To Ban Promotion Of Homosexuality In Schools Was Wrong, Says Tory Leader By JAMES CHAPMAN 02nd July 2009 David Cameron has issued an extraordinary apology on behalf of the Conservative Party for legislation banning the promotion of homosexuality in schools. He said the party had 'got it wrong' when it introduced Section 28 in the late 1980s. It is one of a series of apologies Mr Cameron has made for his party's actions in government. The Scots received one in 2006 for having the poll tax imposed on them a year before...

...A new anti-federalist group, made up of David Cameron's British Conservatives, the Czech Civic Democratic Party... led by former Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek and the Law and Justice Party (PiS) of former Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczyński, was constituted on 30 May ...The decision by Conservative leader David Cameron to establish the new group was criticised by the mainstream British press. Cameron leads opinion polls in Britain, where he is widely seen as the future prime minister, but he was blamed for fraternising with the PiS, which is seen as ultra-conservative and homophobic.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana -- A Jamaican man collapsed and died on a nonstop flight from Guyana to New York on Tuesday, airline officials said. Rupert Cameron, 33, was pronounced dead when North American Airlines Flight 92 from Georgetown arrived at John F. Kennedy International Airport just before 2 p.m. EDT, said Jenny DeBarros, a spokeswoman for the Queens-based airline. Cameron had complained of feeling unwell and repeatedly asked for water. Several passengers, including a Guyanese doctor, administered CPR when he stopped breathing, DeBarros said. It was unclear when an autopsy would be performed. Authorities detained a Jamaican friend traveling with Cameron....

The decision to meet with the Conservative Party leader is an unusually smart foreign policy move by the new U.S. administration after a series of poor decisions by the White House with regard to the Anglo-American alliance. .... Obama’s advisers are well aware that the Conservatives have gained a commanding lead over the Labour Party in the polls, and short of a dramatic turnaround in political fortunes, they predict Cameron will be in Downing Street by June next year. .... It is on the question of European policy that a clear transatlantic divide may emerge between the United States and...

David Cameron has apologised for mistakes his party made on the economy, among them not warning about the extent of the UK's debt crisis. In a speech, the Tory leader said he was "sorry" he had got some things wrong and opposition members as well as ministers should admit failings. "It's that that needs to take place in order to build trust with the public so that we can get this economy out of recession and into recovery," he said.

Cameron's 'beautiful boy' dies David Cameron and his wife Samantha have passed on their thanks for the messages of support after the death of son Ivan, their "beautiful boy". William Hague, standing in for the Conservative leader as PM's questions was suspended, said Ivan had brought "joy and love to those around him". Gordon Brown said everyone's thoughts and prayers were with the family. Six-year-old Ivan, who had cerebral palsy and epilepsy, died at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London. Mr Brown, who suggested suspending the weekly Commons clash as a mark of respect, said every child was "precious and...

The disabled 6-year-old son of Britain's top opposition leader David Cameron died Wednesday, the Conservative Party said.Ivan Cameron had cerebral palsy and Ohtahara syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy. He was the eldest of three children of Cameron and his wife Samantha.Cameron, 42, is widely expected to become Britain's next prime minister. His party consistently leads Prime Minister Gordon Brown's Labour Party in opinion polls.The Conservative Party said in a statement that Ivan became ill overnight and died early Wednesday in a London hospital.

NEW YORK, (AP) -- MSNBC was the victim of a hoax when it reported that an adviser to John McCain had identified himself as the source of an embarrassing story about former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, the network said Wednesday. David Shuster, an anchor for the cable news network, said on air Monday that Martin Eisenstadt, a McCain policy adviser, had come forth and identified himself as the source of a Fox News Channel story saying Palin had mistakenly believed Africa was a country instead of a continent. Eisenstadt identifies himself on a blog as a senior fellow at...

I propose that we punish the FOX Network for its hatchet job on Sarah Palin. For one week beginning at 3:00 PM today no one tunes them in. We will demonstrate the power of conservatives when their ratings plummet dramatically. Will you join me?

Put a fork in it. That’s what two Texas politicians recently said about the controversial Trans-Texas Corridor. “Everybody in Austin knows it’s dead. Everybody across the state knows it’s dead. It’s just something to be talking about,” House Speaker Tom Craddick, R-Midland, said at a debate in Midland on Oct. 19, according to a published report. But folks fighting the corridor here in Central Texas call it election season bluster. “Yes, they are still planning to do it,” said Mae Smith, Holland mayor. “That’s nothing but political talk. I don’t believe anything Mr. Craddick says, or any politician says prior...

Speaking to Fox News' Carl Cameron, Gov. Sarah Palin said that some of the things Barack Obama has said about U.S. Forces in Afghanistan "air-raiding villages and killing civilians," would - where she is from - "disqualify" Obama from being Commander-in-Chief. She also talked about her frustration with "gotcha" interviews, such as the one she did with CBS News' Katie Couric. . . . . . (Watch Video)

Here is video of Sen. John McCain's interview with Fox News' Carl Cameron today as they discussed the campaign and major issues facing America. . . . . (Watch Video)

Kirk Cameron, child star, actor and composer is now blogging for Regular Folks United. He writes about choosing to do his latest movie “Fireproof”.” The producers were looking for an actor who not only could play the part, they said, but someone genuinely walking with the Lord”.

Gordon Brown is to call on Barack Obama's aides to help fight the Conservative challenge at the next election, it has been claimed. Members of the Democratic presidential candidate's team are said to have been contacted to sound out the possibilty of work with the Labour Party. It is thought former advertising executive David Muir, who was hired by the Prime Minister earlier this year to revive his political fortunes, has come up with the plan. Mr Muir was said to be behind an article in which Mr Brown paid tribute to Mr Obama without mentioning John McCain, the Republican...

Suddenly we have a very different picture of the sort of political leader that we need. The world is not the same place that it was when the four main players on the Anglo-American political scene came on to the field. Barack Obama and John McCain began their contest in an atmosphere of relative security and prosperity. David Cameron emerged at a time of such general contentment that work-life balance seemed like the most urgent question facing the nation. (Remember that?) When Gordon Brown took office he was immediately presented with a series of what seemed at the time to...

At British Parliament today, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, met with Tory Leader David Cameron. "Do you haveSeemingly unaware of an enormous fuzzy boom mike held by ABC News' Eric Kerchner, the two chatted casually -- and privately. "You should be on the beach," Cameron told Obama. "You need a break. Well, you need to be able to keep your head together." "You've got to refresh yourself," agreed Obama. < a break at all?" asked Cameron. "I have not," said Obama. "I am going to take a week in August. But I agree with you that somebody, somebody who had worked...

At British Parliament today, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, met with Tory Leader David Cameron. Seemingly unaware of an enormous fuzzy boom mike held by ABC News' Eric Kerchner, the two chatted casually -- and privately. "You should be on the beach," Cameron told Obama. "You need a break. Well, you need to be able to keep your head together."

David Cameron is to launch the biggest shake-up of the Conservative Party for decades as part of a bold plan to win support across the whole of the United Kingdom. The Tories are to forge a new party with the Ulster Unionists to try to secure broader backing for Mr Cameron before the next election. The move to restore a link severed more than 30 years ago forms a central plank in a new Conservative strategy to broaden the party's appeal outside England.

Private companies would be allowed to take over state schools under radical Conservative plans. David Cameron, emboldened by a runaway lead in the opinion polls, will copy elements of the much-vaunted "free schools" policy in Sweden under which companies now run more than 900 primary and secondary schools, making healthy profits in the process. Under the plans, companies would be invited to set up new schools or take over failing institutions. The Tories insisted that any profits would be ploughed back into the classroom but their willingness to hand over the running of schools to businesses will be seized on...

Celebs: Brown Accused Of SmoozingDavid Cameron has used Prime Minister's Questions to accuse Gordon Brown of preferring celebrities and style over substance. Mr Brown retorted that Labour was the party of action and the Conservatives had nothing to offer.

The Labor Party was headed for a third-place finish in local elections in Britain in early results Friday morning. The big winner was the Conservative Party, The Telegraph reported. The party's campaign headquarters said it expected to top its goal of picking up 200 seats on local councils. The big loser was Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the newspaper said. The local elections were his first big test with voters since he succeeded Prime Minister Tony Blair last year. "Gordon Brown has had his 'Life on Mars' moment," a Conservative spokesman said. "He went to sleep in 2008 and today he's...

Election latest: David Cameron inflicts worst drubbing in 40 years The Conservatives made sweeping gains across the country early today as voters gave Gordon Brown a huge rebuff in his first electoral test as Prime Minister. David Cameron chalked up important successes in the North, the Midlands and the South, securing his top target of Bury in Greater Manchester and taking control of Nuneaton and Bedworth, and Southampton. The Conservatives also took seats in Labour strongholds of Sunderland and Wigan. Labour suffered one of its worst electoral humiliations, with its national share of the vote dropping to 24 or 25...

Cam: This is IvanDOTING dad David Cameron was seen for the first time by voters last night playing with his disabled son. The Tory leader was filmed feeding Ivan, five — who has a rare form of cerebral palsy. A TV crew was allowed in as the family had breakfast at home. Mr Cameron’s daughter Nancy, four, and son Arthur, two, sat on either side of him. See David Cameron at home in our slideshow, below. He admitted the move would spark accusations he was exploiting his kids for political gain. But he insisted he was a family man with...

Muslim extremists should be banned from handing out literature and prevented from sitting on public bodies, David Cameron has said. The Conservative leader has also accused ministers and councils of allowing fanatics to benefit from public grants to Muslim bodies. "The Government has allowed hundreds of thousands of pounds to local authorities to improve community cohesion, but there are worrying signs that ministers have taken their eye off the ball," he said. "I will be making proposals to isolate extremists and make certain they cannot obtain public grants or get invited to sit on public bodies. "That won't just apply...

Cameron: Ken Livingstone has dismissed and insulted Britain's JewsLast night speaking to the Community Security Trust, David Cameron launched a very strong attack on Ken Livingstone: "In the 1980s he invited IRA apologists to County Hall. Today he not only plays host to Qaradawi but publicly embraces him. And through all of this his attitude to British Jews has bordered on the dismissive and insulting. He’s not a minor politician. In fact, he is a rather powerful one. He is the mayor of this great city. And I hope that on May 1st people of all parties and none. Of...

Margaret Thatcher named as 'Great Briton' By Andrew Porter, Political Editor Last Updated: 12:51am GMT 01/02/2008 Margaret Thatcher has been hailed as a Great Briton who transformed the country and left an indelible and lasting mark on politics. David Cameron said Margaret Thatcher 'made the landscape we live in today' Conservative leader David Cameron heaped praise on the former Prime Minister in a sign that he is determined to be seen as her heir. At a prestigious dinner in her honour she was awarded the Morgan Stanley Great Britons Lifetime Achievement Award at the Guildhall in London. The awards are...

Cameron makes 'progressive alliance' offer to Lib Dems - David Cameron today launches an audacious attempt to realign the centre ground of British politics when he offers to join forces with the new leader of the Liberal Democrats and forge a 'new progressive alliance' to challenge Gordon Brown.

Cameron's pint-sized Rasputin - by the blonde from Tory HQDavid Cameron is not the nice guy he appears to be - and rarely does or says anything in public without taking advice from a shadowy aide who is described as a "pint-sized Rasputin". That is the picture that is painted of the Conservative leader in a BBC documentary made by Britain's leading political film-maker, Michael Cockerell. Mr Cameron refused to let Mr Cockerell and his team film what goes on in his inner circle but the crew managed to ambush them on several occasions and caught his senior political adviser,...

LABOUR GOVERNMENT 'FALLING APART' SAYS CAMERONDAVID Cameron mounted a scathing attack on the Labour administration today as he warned that the Government is "falling apart". Mr Cameron’s assault on the Prime Minister during today's lively Question Time covered party donations, defence spending and prison places. Taking a swipe at Gordon Brown the Tory leader said: "It took Tony Blair 10 years before confidence in his administration collapsed. You’ve managed it in six months.” To the delight of lively Tory backbenchers Mr Cameron even drew comparisons between the Prime Minister and missing canoeist John Darwin. "I know he wants us to...

David Cameron: Army must halt Russia threatWestern forces, which could include British troops, must be sent into the Balkans to prevent Russia sparking a new European war, according to David Cameron. Speaking in Washington, the Conservative leader will issue a stark warning that Russia's increasingly assertive foreign policy is jeopardising Britain's national security. Mr Cameron fears a diplomatic and military crisis could arise over Kosovo, the province of Serbia which has effectively been a United Nations protectorate since Nato invaded to stop ethnic cleansing by Serb forces in 1999. The ethnic Albanian government of Kosovo is threatening to declare independence...

ERRORS IN DATA LOSS APOLOGY LETTERS HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has made a series of mistakes as it tries to apologise to parents for the loss of their personal details in the post, the Tories disclosed. Conservative MPs have been contacted by parents concerned that HMRC - already reeling from the lost benefits discs fiasco - has been sending them the details of other parents. It is the latest embarrassing revelation for the Government following the loss of the entire child benefit database of 25 million people. It was contained on two computer discs which went missing in transit...

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/26758/Tories-Government-are-monkeys-THE Tories branded members of the Labour Government 'three wise monkeys' today in the wake of the secret donations scandal. Theresa May, the Shadow Leader of the Commons, blasted Harriet Harman, the Prime Minister and the Labour Party treasurer in a stormy Commons row. Ms May said: “You, the Prime Minister and the Labour Party treasurer are like the three wise monkeys. "You see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil.” The 44-year-old warned Mrs Harman that the “dodgy donations” scandal could result in a further boost for the Conservatives in the opinion polls. She said: “Quite simply...

David Cameron's low-key meetingDavid Cameron will tomorrow slip into the White House without fanfare for a low-key behind-closed-doors meeting with President Bush, his first since becoming Tory leader. Yesterday aides were still insisting - in public at least - that they did not know if Mr Bush would have time to see him. The White House itself, apparently irritated by what they see as “pre-trip spin” coming from the Conservative Party, has steadfastedly declined to comment. However, it is understood that Mr Cameron will be granted a short meeting with Mr Bush, probably without a photo-call or joint press statement....

RUTHLESS CAMERON TAUNTS BROWNDAVID Cameron accused the Prime Minister of “incompetence and complacency” today during a furious row at the House of Commons. Mr Cameron said the Brown Government had seen "disaster after disaster" and asked voters to consider whether he was "cut out for the job". Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable said Mr Brown had made a “remarkable transformation” from “Stalin to Mr Bean”. During furious exchanges Mr Cameron said the latest funding affair raised questions about the integrity of Mr Brown. This week it emerged that property developer David Abrahams gave the Labour party £650,000 under other people's...

TORIES VOW TO END THE SCANDAL OF JAIL SYSTEM THE Tories yesterday promised to provide at least 1,200 extra prison places so they can scrap the Government’s controversial early release scheme. In a major review of prisons and sentencing, they further signalled that judges would be given the power to set minimum terms with no possibility of early parole. Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Herbert also set out proposals to flatten and sell off some of the crumbling Victorian jails and build smaller ones to provide hundreds of extra cells. At the same time, Mr Herbert launched a scathing attack on...

GOVERNMENT ON ROCKS, SAYS CAMERONConservative leader David Cameron accused the Government of being "on the rocks" as he launched a fresh attack on its economic record. He told a conference of business leaders that the UK needs a "big change" to cut regulations and help firms prosper. Mr Cameron told the annual conference of the CBI that the Government has created centralised bureaucracies which have become incompetent and cannot be trusted. He referred to recent scandals, including the Northern Rock crisis and money being "wasted" in departments such as the NHS. "What we have learnt over the last few days...

CAMERON SLAMS 'ENEMIES OF FREEDOM'David Cameron has branded the Labour Government "enemies of freedom" and claimed the force of history was now on his party's side. The Conservative leader said Labour shared with EU bureaucrats a belief that officials know better than ordinary people, and accused both of trying to involve the state ever deeper in day-to-day life. In a speech in the Czech capital, Prague, Mr Cameron cited the loss of personal data by HM Revenue and Customs, the tax credit system and the proposed national identity register as examples of the Government's "bureaucratic over-reach". And he accused ministers...

Brown grilled over detail leakGordon Brown faced tough questions over the personal details lost by the government during Prime Minister's Questions

Tory branch refuse to ditch Enoch 'was right' candidate in snub to CameronTory leader David Cameron faced fresh embarrassment after rebel Tory activists snubbed calls to ditch a Parliamentary candidate who said Enoch Powell "was right" on immigration. The Halesowen and Rowley Regis constituency association refused to accept the resignation of would-be MP Nigel Hastilow and instead demanded crisis talks with the Conservative Party Board, the organisation's top decision-making body. Senior Tories had hoped the local party would drop Hastilow, 51, who quit on November 4 after refusing to apologise for comments he made in a newspaper column in support...

CAMERON VOWS TOUGHER RAPE SENTENCESTory leader David Cameron has pledged extra help for rape victims and stronger punishments for their attackers as part of a bid to see more men jailed for the offence. Unveiling figures showing England and Wales had the lowest rape conviction rate of any leading European country, he warned offenders now thought they could "get away with it". And he said pupils should be taught that "no means no" in sex education lessons to help reverse a "moral collapse" fuelled by a growing sexualisation of society. The party's figures showed the number of complaints leading to...