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It may have escaped News Night that we are the UK, not America.
Americans like these head to heads on television, of course they also tend to choose the leader with the best TV presentation and we can see where that leads, good-old boy Bush.
Let us keep the British way, it's called Parliament. There are plenty of sharp minds to ask those searching questions, so leave them to do what we elected them to do.

never mind Brown's not so new politics, when did Newsnight turn into a playground?

In tonight's show (Sept 4), we had some 20 year old Paxman footage ("whatever became of him?" ho ho), then a comment on Thatcher's refusal to take part in a "Mass Debate". Oh please, my aching sides. Really 成人论坛; grow up.

Can I ask what such an arrogant, self-opinionated, multi-millionaire's views have on a woman he clearly doesn't know from Adam. Why is he on the programme at all if it's not just jobs for the boys and slip him a few bob for expenses. Why didn't we speak to fellow athletes who had raised similar amounts of money for charity instead of these ' z ' status so called celebrities. If I had a couple of mill in the bank my best friend would be my personal trainer.

Surely Jane Tomlinson deserves better than to have Alistair Campbell to analyse her motivation and achievements. Not a fitting way to pay tribute.

The problem with televised debates is that they can turn into a contest of who performs the best and who is the better actor, rather than who has the best policy.

I watch Newsnight to get a flavour of the day's events and affairs, and I've always regarded it as a 'grown up' programme for adults. Why then did David Grossman feel the need to make such an off-colour, schoolboy joke of the words 'mass debate'? The speaker in the clip carefully separated the two words to avoid any immature sniggering, but it seems the overgrown children at Newsnight simply had to shoe-horn it in somehow. Come on Newsnight, grow up and stop pandering to your 'yoof' audience.

Not one but two uplifting items! Seeing Geoffrey Donaldson advising on peace talks and A. Campbell and Aric Sigman talking about the benefits of good works and co-operation was heady stuff indeed. We humans need less hubris and impatience and a bit of consideration of our common humanity and shared existence with other species. If it adds health and longer life it may explain why individualism is such hard work and why families that work are based on respect of members for each other. Not just pious sentiment but of practical benefit. Fancy feeling bloody cheerful after Newsnight. Super!

Dear Newsnight

I think you left the most meaningful feature to last tonight but thank you for covering the story about Jane Tomlinson in the way you did, there is a lot for all of us to learn from her inspiring courage in the way we lead our lives, I hesitate to say any more but perhaps as you discussed it is sometimes possible to find peace and freedom, maybe some relief from pain perhaps by looking out for others, even in the bleakest and most frightening of situations

best wishes

Bob

surely jane tomlinson deserve all the positive glory for the years she fought to raise funds for her charity, even when she was so ill, and really wanted to stay in bed, my prayers and praise for her fight, are for her husbnd and children, c.l.k

Gordon Brown's NEW approach to politics doesn't include television debates twixt PM & leaders of the opposition as he(GB) was promoting in the eighties... doesn't want to risk a plunge in the polls & maybe...just maybe ,if he opts for an Autumn/ Spring Election being the shortest serving PM on record...

Sir, Why do we elect (or in Brown's case not elect) people who seem to admire Margaret Thatcher? What is it about this woman that attracts people like Blair and Brown who then describe her as a 'conviction politician' What does that mean? Does it mean they are strong? Well, I suppose you could decribe Hitler and Stalin in the strength catagory, but would you want them as PM? Deep down Brown wishes he had complete control over the back-benchers within his ranks, the one's that nitpick over the EU constitution, militant public sector workers, and their suspicion over PFI deals. I mean, why won't these people behave? Afew weeks in Siberia might change a few minds not a party conference with a few militant party policy resolutions waiting in the wings. Sincerely, Steve (L'pool)

So Brian J Dickenson believes there are "plenty of sharp minds" to ask questions of our would-be leaders. Well perhaps we, the voting public, would like the opportunity to pose some of those 'sharp questions' ourselves. And perhaps we would like to judge the abilities of those would-be leaders based on their performance in a live, public debate rather than leave everything to the usual suspects of the political cronies croud.

Bring on the mass debate says I!

Now I'm no fan of Alastair Campbell but some of the very negative comments posted above seem way out of line. The fact is the man has done a lot of work in raising large amounts of money for cancer charities himself - just like Jane Tomlinson. The fact that he doesn't happen to have terminal cancer himself should not preclude him from doing good deeds are being acknowledged for such.

TV head to head debates are old style politics, aren't they? Doesn't mean that they don't still have a place though. I suspect that the Tories would like one because they think Cameron is a better performer - he has the flair of Blair, in that department, along with the shallow intellectual grasp. Brown could shine if he managed to highlight the latter without looking too cruel!

As for the new style politics, I have noticed, however, that things are happening locally where I live, and there have been more public meetings with our Labour MP, more follow-up, more being kept informed. (Letters written and replies received on issues raised, and copied to all those attending). It's been going on for a while now.

If there is a complete withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and the new style of local involvement is sustained, I will certainly vote Labour again, for the first time since 1997!

Altruism

Ask a philosopher? Well...

[According to the divided line analogy of the neoplatonists] if the highest thing in the visible world is the sun so the highest thing in the mind is that which is called the Good or the One.

When one turns the focus away from the images of the senses [the world of the sun] to the world of the mind and the 'idea' [greek for vision] of the Good or the One then the world of images becomes like an illuminated manuscript and the belief of separate 'others' [the images] falls away so then one can see the interdependence of all things and the unity behind them.

If altruism is considered as working for the interest of others you must believe there is a category called 'others' either [depending which way you are looking] as separate unconnected images or as expressions of the One.

So two people can be doing exactly the same thing; one believes in others as separate from oneself [image thinking and conjecture] and the other [focus turned to the Good or the One] see 'others' as no different from oneself. So altruism is a quality of action based on love.

So the real or higher understanding of 'self love' is to help 'others' because they are seen as no other than yourself. If 'others' are in ignorance you are in ignorance if 'others' are in pain then you are in pain etc.

For those interested on learning about the divided line there is an excellent video on google. search for:

Platonism and Alchemy (full video)

and find out what the university system didn't want you to know. :)

For the first time I saw Alistair Campbell as a human being instead of a pathological self-adulator. It was a most interesting discussion about the consequences of reacting bravely and positively to a diagnosis of terminal illness and I hope Newsnight will follow the item up by giving us more about the research in progress.