14, 28, 42, 90, and the bonus ball is...

From BBC news: How your MP voted.

Of the Edinburgh MPs:

• John Barret (Edinburgh West, Lib Dem): against
• Alistair Darling (Edinburgh South West, Labour): for
• Nigel Griffiths (Edinburgh South, Labour): for
• Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh North and Leith, Labour): against
• Gavin Strang (Edinburgh East, Labour): did not vote

If Rifkind had remained to contest the Pentlands seat (oh, sorry, Edinburgh South West), that would have been a 3:1 against (what was Gavin Strang's reason for not voting?). I wonder what the population of Edinburgh thinks of their representation; I suspect it's closer to 50:50 than we care to admit. Looking outside Edinburgh for a moment, Jim Devine, the current MP for Livingston, voted for the 90-day bill; not really something his predecessor would have done.

And while I can't articulate my unease, my feeling that the number of days is a red herring. I still cannot understand how the government/Home Office intends to a) determine who counts as a friend-of-terrorists, b) ensure their countries of origin do not torture them on deportation from the UK, c) rein in the police from unjust/unwarranted/misjudged detentions.

Elsewhere, doctorvee asks how bloggers across the political spectrum could have such a different reaction to the terror bill from the real public.