Two wrongs don't make a magazine

'Total Politics' magazine is a groundbreaking publication. With feature articles such as 'Why are female MPs so dowdy?', it achieves the astonishing feat of making the New Statesman look like an interesting and well written current affairs magazine.

It does have one idea for a column which was quite entertaining, though. Each month, they pick an issue and then find two people from diametrically opposite perspectives who are both wrong to write about it. This month, for example, Oliver Marc Hartwich from Policy Exchange and Tristram Hunt went head to head discussing the Green Belt. The resulting nonsense can be read here. It would arguably be a better feature if followed up with some analysis from anyone who actually knew what they were talking about on the same subject, but we can't have everything.

In any case, I think this is a much better use for Lord Ashcroft's money than buying up marginal seats for the Tory Party, and I would encourage the editorial team to spend lavishly on securing other commentators to debate in mutual wrongness. I note approvingly that Denis MacShane is already on the editorial board, and feel that he could play a much greater role in the future.