Saturday, January 31st, 2009
OK, this is the 280th blog entry. It never had a plan or structure and it doesn't have one now. At times, I am conscious of expanding on issues I have talked about earlier. No probs there.
However, there may be times when I have unwittingly repeated myself for I do that when I natter and relate anecdotes. So if I have, then let me know - gently!
Saturday 31 January 2009
Homosexual men and women
Saturday, January 31st, 2009
I discovered today that Yves St. Laurent was a queer. I should not be surprised given his success in the world of female fashion. I am quite jealous really.
Had a homosexual boss once, not that he ever tried it on or I would have hit him where it hurts most. He really had a way with women. Like 'Oh my dear Barbara, you look utterly wonderful today,' and the Barbara's of this world would feign a blush , pout their lips and say something like, 'You are too kind.' If a hetero like me tried any of that crap, they'd immediately think I wanted their knickers down (which I might) and give me a grimace.
Women, in my acquaintance at least, seem to be comfortable in the company of homosexual men. I suspect that is because they feel no threat. Me, if I dropped a sixpence, I'd kick it home rather than bend over to pick it up.
So maybe, this is the secret of St. Laurent's success. He could dress them, strip them and make adjustments with impunity. Mind you I must say that the 'haute couture' outcomes were largely crap.
I discovered today that Yves St. Laurent was a queer. I should not be surprised given his success in the world of female fashion. I am quite jealous really.
Had a homosexual boss once, not that he ever tried it on or I would have hit him where it hurts most. He really had a way with women. Like 'Oh my dear Barbara, you look utterly wonderful today,' and the Barbara's of this world would feign a blush , pout their lips and say something like, 'You are too kind.' If a hetero like me tried any of that crap, they'd immediately think I wanted their knickers down (which I might) and give me a grimace.
Women, in my acquaintance at least, seem to be comfortable in the company of homosexual men. I suspect that is because they feel no threat. Me, if I dropped a sixpence, I'd kick it home rather than bend over to pick it up.
So maybe, this is the secret of St. Laurent's success. He could dress them, strip them and make adjustments with impunity. Mind you I must say that the 'haute couture' outcomes were largely crap.
Wednesday 28 January 2009
Northern Ireland again
Wednesday, January 28th, 2009
The Commission for the Past Group has today published its conclusions (192 pages) on what are euphemistically called 'The Troubles' in Northern Ireland. Inter alia, it recommends that a Legacy Commission be set up to investigate further.
The Group proposes the establishment of a Legacy Commission, which would deal with the past by combining processes of reconciliation, justice and information recovery. Its overarching (what the hell does that word mean - basic, overall, fundamental or what?) objective would be to promote peace and stability in Northern Ireland, and its activities and decisions would be guided by that perspective. It would address both society issues, on which it would work closely with CVSNI, and legal processes.
You will not be surprised by the following:
The Group estimates that the recognition payments to be made to the closest relative of those who died during the conflict would amount to approximately £40 million. The costs of the Commission over five years would amount to approximately £170 million. The cost of paying for historical investigation through the existing HET and Police Ombudsman alone would be, over the next five years, in the region of £100 million.
In addition the Commission would be able to look at wider themes and more cases than a single public inquiry. A single public inquiry into one set of linked cases could cost between £60 million and £140 million. For that same money the Group believes that the Commission could examine wider perspectives of the past.
In addition the Group recommends that a bursary of £100m should be made available to the Legacy Commission to address the society issues identified.
The Group considers that the costs of the proposals should be met by the British Government and that, in light of their special interest, the Irish Government should make an appropriate contribution.
So the victims get £40 m and the fat cats, QC's and the great and the good get all the rest (£270m or have I read this wrong?). And for what? A 3,000 page report which will be history in a week but maybe will spawn other review bodies, think tanks etc.
Me, I'd just tell them - Look there was sin and wickedness on both sides but all the debate in the world will never bring the dead back. If you really feel like raking over the coals, have a go at Germany for WWII.
Yes of course I saw Bloody Sunday on TV and film but I also saw the picture of that girl in the Tavern in the Town, Birmingham with a chair leg through her calf. She wasn't even throwing bricks but no one is reviewing her case.
(Oh and don't ask me what has gone wrong with the colours and the fonts here cus I can't be arsed to find out.)
Tuesday 27 January 2009
Pleasing the greens
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009
You can't. Whatever you do, there will be some segment of the 'green' community having a moan.
I live near the Severn Estuary which I am led to believe has the 2nd highest tidal range in the world. So today the Government has published ideas on how to harness this source of beloved sustainable energy through barrages and inshore lagoons which could generate 5% of the UK's electricity needs. Earth Cymru says it prefers to have offshore lagoons but says nothing more.
And of course, there are in the inevitable moans about the destruction of the wetlands on which birds survive. No mention that there will be a rise in sea levels if we carry on with fossil burning and that would swamp them anyway.
This mob has protested against nuclear energy for 50 years despite the fact that the only really serious failure was Chernobyl. Yes I know there were others like Three Mile Island etc. And now we are in the dicky dirt and facing up to the fact and winds and tides alone will not give us the carbon free energy we need in years to come. So we are going to go nuclear anyawy.
I don't have an answer to this complex subject but I do realise that a knee-jerk moan to every new initiative will get us nowhere. For those that worry about birds and other wild life (and I have some empathy here), the big question is - Which is worse for them? Global warming or new ideas on energy generation.
You can't. Whatever you do, there will be some segment of the 'green' community having a moan.
I live near the Severn Estuary which I am led to believe has the 2nd highest tidal range in the world. So today the Government has published ideas on how to harness this source of beloved sustainable energy through barrages and inshore lagoons which could generate 5% of the UK's electricity needs. Earth Cymru says it prefers to have offshore lagoons but says nothing more.
And of course, there are in the inevitable moans about the destruction of the wetlands on which birds survive. No mention that there will be a rise in sea levels if we carry on with fossil burning and that would swamp them anyway.
This mob has protested against nuclear energy for 50 years despite the fact that the only really serious failure was Chernobyl. Yes I know there were others like Three Mile Island etc. And now we are in the dicky dirt and facing up to the fact and winds and tides alone will not give us the carbon free energy we need in years to come. So we are going to go nuclear anyawy.
I don't have an answer to this complex subject but I do realise that a knee-jerk moan to every new initiative will get us nowhere. For those that worry about birds and other wild life (and I have some empathy here), the big question is - Which is worse for them? Global warming or new ideas on energy generation.
Airports and ravines
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009
Every now and then, we get an aircraft that veers of the runway, be it the side or the end, and plunges down some embankment. The Spanair crash in Madrid was a good example but there many others. Why?
Why separate runways with a ravine or put a bloody great drop at the end of the runway? Or in the case of Heathrow, we plonk a whole 8-lane motorway at the end. Is is too much to ask if airports can be flat overall? Most aircraft accidents happen on take-off or landing so let's give them some space.
Yes, this may consume more land and it may not be feasible with established airports. However, even with them, the very least we could do is to cover the ditches and fill in the ravines.
Every now and then, we get an aircraft that veers of the runway, be it the side or the end, and plunges down some embankment. The Spanair crash in Madrid was a good example but there many others. Why?
Why separate runways with a ravine or put a bloody great drop at the end of the runway? Or in the case of Heathrow, we plonk a whole 8-lane motorway at the end. Is is too much to ask if airports can be flat overall? Most aircraft accidents happen on take-off or landing so let's give them some space.
Yes, this may consume more land and it may not be feasible with established airports. However, even with them, the very least we could do is to cover the ditches and fill in the ravines.
Our House of Lords
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009
This is our upper house of government, a sort of Senate, which was supposed to check and modify the laws that the House of Commons wanted to put in place. In the past, it was made up of hereditary Lords and Ladies whose families went back centuries and got their titles from doing little or much or even sleeping with the King of the time. You get the bishops in there too. Very undemocratic, we all thought but although these peers sided with the Right, it wasn't all that bad. After all, when you are comfortably off, you can say what you bloody well like.
Enter Life Peers, people who got a peerage for life which could not be passed on to their kids. Now this lot were nominated by the Prime Minister of the day who told the Sovereign to get on with it. The only shred of democracy in this charade was at least the Prime Minister had been elected but after that, he could appoint anybody on a whim.
But this was not good enough for this Labour Government so they reduced the number of hereditary peers to 92 and bulked the place out with peers of their own making. No doubt the Tories would have done the same. This of course was carried out in the name of democracy ignoring the fact that none of these life peers had been elected.
So now we have four Labour life peers being accused of discussing taking money from private enterprise in exchange for influencing legislation to their advantage. Am I surprised? No! When you populate a government with people who want/need more money, corruption inevitably follows. Is the Senate any better because it has been elected? I doubt it for they have to curry favour from the voters.
Do we need an upper house? I am not sure but I do think that Government needs to be kept in check by a bunch of financially independent people beholden to no one. Maybe the heredity peers, coventional old fuddy duddies were not so bad after all.
P.S. Since I wrote the above, The Times has done a feature on this lot. It is even worse than I thought. It seems that the House of Lords cost us £305 million in 2007 in 2007-8 or £500k a head whilst the Commons cost £364 million over the same period. Not a huge difference on a per capita basis but remember the Commons are 'authors' whilst the Lords are just 'editors' and critics.
Apparently the cost of the Lords has soared since we got rid of the hereditary peers while the number of days of attendance has fallen over 5 years from 174 days per year to 148. I think they are there for the beer.
I rest my case.
This is our upper house of government, a sort of Senate, which was supposed to check and modify the laws that the House of Commons wanted to put in place. In the past, it was made up of hereditary Lords and Ladies whose families went back centuries and got their titles from doing little or much or even sleeping with the King of the time. You get the bishops in there too. Very undemocratic, we all thought but although these peers sided with the Right, it wasn't all that bad. After all, when you are comfortably off, you can say what you bloody well like.
Enter Life Peers, people who got a peerage for life which could not be passed on to their kids. Now this lot were nominated by the Prime Minister of the day who told the Sovereign to get on with it. The only shred of democracy in this charade was at least the Prime Minister had been elected but after that, he could appoint anybody on a whim.
But this was not good enough for this Labour Government so they reduced the number of hereditary peers to 92 and bulked the place out with peers of their own making. No doubt the Tories would have done the same. This of course was carried out in the name of democracy ignoring the fact that none of these life peers had been elected.
So now we have four Labour life peers being accused of discussing taking money from private enterprise in exchange for influencing legislation to their advantage. Am I surprised? No! When you populate a government with people who want/need more money, corruption inevitably follows. Is the Senate any better because it has been elected? I doubt it for they have to curry favour from the voters.
Do we need an upper house? I am not sure but I do think that Government needs to be kept in check by a bunch of financially independent people beholden to no one. Maybe the heredity peers, coventional old fuddy duddies were not so bad after all.
P.S. Since I wrote the above, The Times has done a feature on this lot. It is even worse than I thought. It seems that the House of Lords cost us £305 million in 2007 in 2007-8 or £500k a head whilst the Commons cost £364 million over the same period. Not a huge difference on a per capita basis but remember the Commons are 'authors' whilst the Lords are just 'editors' and critics.
Apparently the cost of the Lords has soared since we got rid of the hereditary peers while the number of days of attendance has fallen over 5 years from 174 days per year to 148. I think they are there for the beer.
I rest my case.
Monday 26 January 2009
Buachaille Etive Mor
Monday, January 26th, 2009
If you have never seen it, then you won’t have a clue what I am talking about. So look at the picture.
It is a mountain in Scotland and it guards the entrance to Glencoe. Only 3,352 ft high and therefore miniscule by global standards but it has a beautiful shape and is full of crags and gullies and provides many a hard climb, especially in winter.
Never climbed it myself but I wish I had. However, time did not permit that so I did the Aonach Eagach ridge which is further down the valley instead. We had snow in the middle of June which is pretty unusual and enlivens the experience. Likewise stepping across a 3 foot gap with a gale up your ass and a 300 ft drop below makes you concentrate a little. On the descent, I wrenched my knee and have lived with that problem ever since – like 39 years.
Well, there were 3 deaths on Buchaille Etive Mor in an avalanche last weekend. Shame about that but if you are going to play with matches, then you should expect a bit of fire.
The experiences of this life are not given to the faint hearted.
Saturday 24 January 2009
How do I know?
Saturday, January 24th, 2009
Because I have read much and watched this world and am innately curious, the latter being the most important.
Because I have read much and watched this world and am innately curious, the latter being the most important.
Thursday 22 January 2009
Nokia 6301i mobile phone
Thursday, January 22nd, 2009
Every now and then, you get a product in your life which is simply great. This phone fits that and I see and hear so many others who agree with me. Even today, the young Vodafone lass says that they get continuous requests to buy them and if you surf around, you will find many refurbished ones on sale.
What makes it great? Well, it works for a start. Battery life is excellent. And it is not cluttered by the useless crap which I do not want. It is simple to use and it does just what I want it to do.
On the truck through Africa, it worked almost everywhere except out in the bush and in Zimbabwe. The latter may be due to Mr. Mugabe. The kids phones were forever cutting in and out. Same down the Beagle Channel out of Ushuaia and around Svalbard.
I have four batteries now, having been given the spares by people who changed their phones.
This phone is an icon in its field.
Every now and then, you get a product in your life which is simply great. This phone fits that and I see and hear so many others who agree with me. Even today, the young Vodafone lass says that they get continuous requests to buy them and if you surf around, you will find many refurbished ones on sale.
What makes it great? Well, it works for a start. Battery life is excellent. And it is not cluttered by the useless crap which I do not want. It is simple to use and it does just what I want it to do.
On the truck through Africa, it worked almost everywhere except out in the bush and in Zimbabwe. The latter may be due to Mr. Mugabe. The kids phones were forever cutting in and out. Same down the Beagle Channel out of Ushuaia and around Svalbard.
I have four batteries now, having been given the spares by people who changed their phones.
This phone is an icon in its field.
Reason or excuse?
We have a lot of people in this world who confuse these two words and even think them synonomous. They are not. A reason is just an explanation for events: an excuse is also a reason but it explains why things could not have been different and that they were no fault of the perpetrator. So we have:
Why were you late for work yesterday? I overslept. A reason.
Why were you late for work yesterday? My house caught fire and I had to wait for the fire brigade. An excuse.
The problem for many people is the confusion. If they perceive a reason to be an excuse, they feel no guilt.
Why were you late for work yesterday? I overslept. A reason.
Why were you late for work yesterday? My house caught fire and I had to wait for the fire brigade. An excuse.
The problem for many people is the confusion. If they perceive a reason to be an excuse, they feel no guilt.
Wednesday 21 January 2009
Islamic think-tank
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009
You'd think the British Government was short of money given that the level of our bank's threatened debt is twice the GDP. But no, it always has the money for daft causes even when we still have the homeless, abused kids and God knows what else..
Right now, the Government is planning to give £1 million to an outfit called the Quilliam Foundation. It is described as a think-tank which means that it will say a lot and possibly grab media attention but will achieve absolutely bugger all. If I am wrong here about think-tanks, then please put me right.
This one has been set up by a couple of young reformed Islamic extremists now photographed in suits rather than tea towels and without the ubiquitous AK-47. It is said to be a counter-terrorism think-tank and these two are going to travel the world to lecture (business class, no doubt) on 'the threat of Islamic ideology.' Crikey, is there anybody left who hasn't noticed this? Maybe we should alert New York.
Of course, they will be on around £85,000 a year each which ain't bad for guys of 34 and 31 for doing nothing else than saying the bloody obvious.
This could be a serious lesson to the drunken yobs who pervade our towns and cities at night. Get pissed out of you mind, smash up a few pubs and then set up a think-tank to talk about it at great expense. There are no limits to this. We could set up think-tanks for drug addicts, unmarried mothers, schoool bullies, shop assistants and even bouncy castle makers.
Apparently the key Government minister in all this has said that if you want a Muslim to say pro-government things the Quilliam is the answer. Well I'd be perfectly happy to say pro-government things for a grant of £500k and £85,000 a year. Who wouldn't?
You'd think the British Government was short of money given that the level of our bank's threatened debt is twice the GDP. But no, it always has the money for daft causes even when we still have the homeless, abused kids and God knows what else..
Right now, the Government is planning to give £1 million to an outfit called the Quilliam Foundation. It is described as a think-tank which means that it will say a lot and possibly grab media attention but will achieve absolutely bugger all. If I am wrong here about think-tanks, then please put me right.
This one has been set up by a couple of young reformed Islamic extremists now photographed in suits rather than tea towels and without the ubiquitous AK-47. It is said to be a counter-terrorism think-tank and these two are going to travel the world to lecture (business class, no doubt) on 'the threat of Islamic ideology.' Crikey, is there anybody left who hasn't noticed this? Maybe we should alert New York.
Of course, they will be on around £85,000 a year each which ain't bad for guys of 34 and 31 for doing nothing else than saying the bloody obvious.
This could be a serious lesson to the drunken yobs who pervade our towns and cities at night. Get pissed out of you mind, smash up a few pubs and then set up a think-tank to talk about it at great expense. There are no limits to this. We could set up think-tanks for drug addicts, unmarried mothers, schoool bullies, shop assistants and even bouncy castle makers.
Apparently the key Government minister in all this has said that if you want a Muslim to say pro-government things the Quilliam is the answer. Well I'd be perfectly happy to say pro-government things for a grant of £500k and £85,000 a year. Who wouldn't?
Obama and the Caesars
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009
A classicist in the Times yesterday compared Obama and several politicians with each of the Caesars. Well not the whole 12 that Suetonius wrote about for she missed out the first, Julius and the last Domitian.
She started with Titus (no. 11) and linked him to Barack Obama and speaks of how well they were both thought of. My worry is that Titus only reigned for 2 years and I hope that Obama gets a longer term.
Then to the first emperor, Augustus and here she links him with Tony Blair on the grounds of spin and survival. Well Augustus reigned 45 years and was the George Washington of Rome so the comparison is a bit thin. Mind you the lady writer observed that Augustus was frequently outmanoeuvred by his scheming wife, Livia. Yeah I always wondered if Cherie was pulling the strings.
On then to Tiberius and Gordon Brown, both miserable gits. Tiberius had a ruthless advisor, Sejanus - Peter Mandelson maybe? Sejanus was eventually murdered so I'll say no more. But then our Gordie hasn't spent his time on the Isle of Capri chasing little boys around in the swimming pool - good for him.
We get Caligula and Richard Nixon next. Thought that was unfair. Caligula was a complete raving loony and a pervert to boot. Nixon was naughty but nothing like that. I think she struggled to find anyone like Caligula and so would I.
She put Claudius with Ronald Reagan on the grounds that both appeared stupid but were actually quite smart. She may well be right. And there is no doubting the affection that America held for Reagan even though he stoked the fires of the Cold War. (Did I write an oxymoron there?)
She moved on to Nero and linked him with David Cameron, our Tory opposition leader. However, she confessed that the only link was that they both came to power on the back of a powerful woman, in Nero's case, his mom who poisoned her husband Claudius and in Cameron's case, Margaret Thatcher. Crap, Cameron and Thatcher are generations apart.
The next 3, Galba, Otho and Vitellius survived for only weeks or months are are totally forgettable. They were linked to equally forgettable Liberal Democrat luminaries so the link is completely apposite.
Finally, cus she missed out Domitian and nattered about Titus first (if you are still following this), we get Vespasian and George W. Bush, the links apparently being having a folksy charm and waging war in the Middle East. Well Vespasian certainly whacked the Jews at Masada which is more than Hamas or Hezbollah have managed but I do not recall he made any impression on Iraq or anywhere else further East. But then if you weigh it all up, neither has Dubya if you discount the destruction.
So there you have it. A light hearted article I am sure but flawed nonetheless.
Incidentally, if you are so inclined, you can see a nice collection of busts of all 12 Caesars in the Ufizzi gallery in Florence and what is more, they are all in order. Are they not, Vanessa?
A classicist in the Times yesterday compared Obama and several politicians with each of the Caesars. Well not the whole 12 that Suetonius wrote about for she missed out the first, Julius and the last Domitian.
She started with Titus (no. 11) and linked him to Barack Obama and speaks of how well they were both thought of. My worry is that Titus only reigned for 2 years and I hope that Obama gets a longer term.
Then to the first emperor, Augustus and here she links him with Tony Blair on the grounds of spin and survival. Well Augustus reigned 45 years and was the George Washington of Rome so the comparison is a bit thin. Mind you the lady writer observed that Augustus was frequently outmanoeuvred by his scheming wife, Livia. Yeah I always wondered if Cherie was pulling the strings.
On then to Tiberius and Gordon Brown, both miserable gits. Tiberius had a ruthless advisor, Sejanus - Peter Mandelson maybe? Sejanus was eventually murdered so I'll say no more. But then our Gordie hasn't spent his time on the Isle of Capri chasing little boys around in the swimming pool - good for him.
We get Caligula and Richard Nixon next. Thought that was unfair. Caligula was a complete raving loony and a pervert to boot. Nixon was naughty but nothing like that. I think she struggled to find anyone like Caligula and so would I.
She put Claudius with Ronald Reagan on the grounds that both appeared stupid but were actually quite smart. She may well be right. And there is no doubting the affection that America held for Reagan even though he stoked the fires of the Cold War. (Did I write an oxymoron there?)
She moved on to Nero and linked him with David Cameron, our Tory opposition leader. However, she confessed that the only link was that they both came to power on the back of a powerful woman, in Nero's case, his mom who poisoned her husband Claudius and in Cameron's case, Margaret Thatcher. Crap, Cameron and Thatcher are generations apart.
The next 3, Galba, Otho and Vitellius survived for only weeks or months are are totally forgettable. They were linked to equally forgettable Liberal Democrat luminaries so the link is completely apposite.
Finally, cus she missed out Domitian and nattered about Titus first (if you are still following this), we get Vespasian and George W. Bush, the links apparently being having a folksy charm and waging war in the Middle East. Well Vespasian certainly whacked the Jews at Masada which is more than Hamas or Hezbollah have managed but I do not recall he made any impression on Iraq or anywhere else further East. But then if you weigh it all up, neither has Dubya if you discount the destruction.
So there you have it. A light hearted article I am sure but flawed nonetheless.
Incidentally, if you are so inclined, you can see a nice collection of busts of all 12 Caesars in the Ufizzi gallery in Florence and what is more, they are all in order. Are they not, Vanessa?
Gladiator
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009
I love this movie for it does not tax my brain. A great adventure with plenty of action and the good guy wins in the end. Great musical score but I still have no idea what language Lisa Gerrard is singing in 'Now we are free.' Some say Hebrew: I wouldn't know. Others say Latin but I doubt that.
Still, it doesn't matter. Many people enjoy music with singers in languages we don't understand and I am one of them. People criticised Beethoven heavily for using choral singing in the final movement of his 9th Symphony. Me I just see the human voice as yet another musical instrument and a wonderful one at that.
Historically, the movie varied in terms of accuracy. Commodus was a bastard but he did not die in the arena although he was fond of fighting there. Lucius Verus, the lad's dad, co-ruled briefly with Marcus Aurelius although Verus was said to have only a daughter. There were Felix legions of Spanish origin. Of Maximus - nothing.
Still a damn good bash and the opening battle was better than most of this WWII stuff. And for once, the Italians beat the Germans.
I love this movie for it does not tax my brain. A great adventure with plenty of action and the good guy wins in the end. Great musical score but I still have no idea what language Lisa Gerrard is singing in 'Now we are free.' Some say Hebrew: I wouldn't know. Others say Latin but I doubt that.
Still, it doesn't matter. Many people enjoy music with singers in languages we don't understand and I am one of them. People criticised Beethoven heavily for using choral singing in the final movement of his 9th Symphony. Me I just see the human voice as yet another musical instrument and a wonderful one at that.
Historically, the movie varied in terms of accuracy. Commodus was a bastard but he did not die in the arena although he was fond of fighting there. Lucius Verus, the lad's dad, co-ruled briefly with Marcus Aurelius although Verus was said to have only a daughter. There were Felix legions of Spanish origin. Of Maximus - nothing.
Still a damn good bash and the opening battle was better than most of this WWII stuff. And for once, the Italians beat the Germans.
Sunday 18 January 2009
George W Bush
Sunday, January 18th, 2009
Well, he's off on Tuesday and few will be sorry to see the back of him, the most lampooned American President in history.
I'm not sorry to see him go but I will miss him for his linguisitic gaffes. Some have speculated that he might be dyslexic and they may be right. In my acquaintance, I know one very intelligent person who is dyslexic and avoids writing and public speaking as much as possble.
Interestingly, Africa will miss him according to CNN and many others. CNN showed a little video of his visit to Africa in 2007 and the crowds greeted him with jubilation. Well he did kick off a massive programme to attack AIDS and later malaria. Some say that millions would have died without that aid and that is of course a damn sight more than have died in his misguided adventures in the Middle East.
I just wonder if history will be kinder to him than we have been. And anyway, Laura is gorgeous.
Oh and don't forget Richard Nixon. So wrong on so many counts and yet he initiated the rapprochement with China and that was long overdue.
Well, he's off on Tuesday and few will be sorry to see the back of him, the most lampooned American President in history.
I'm not sorry to see him go but I will miss him for his linguisitic gaffes. Some have speculated that he might be dyslexic and they may be right. In my acquaintance, I know one very intelligent person who is dyslexic and avoids writing and public speaking as much as possble.
Interestingly, Africa will miss him according to CNN and many others. CNN showed a little video of his visit to Africa in 2007 and the crowds greeted him with jubilation. Well he did kick off a massive programme to attack AIDS and later malaria. Some say that millions would have died without that aid and that is of course a damn sight more than have died in his misguided adventures in the Middle East.
I just wonder if history will be kinder to him than we have been. And anyway, Laura is gorgeous.
Oh and don't forget Richard Nixon. So wrong on so many counts and yet he initiated the rapprochement with China and that was long overdue.
Speaking your mind
Sunday, September 18th, 2009
I cannot say that I always do this but I suppose I do it more than most: it's in my genes or upbringing - probably both. One of my bosses repeatedly called me a cynic to which my response was something like, 'Yeah but never forget that a cynic is often a realist who speaks his mind.'
It's not just about mouthing opinions, it can be about facts. At the age of 12, a teacher at school that an Egyptian pharoah, Amenophis (or Amenhotep if you wish) III changed his name to Akhenaten, the heretic king. So I put my hand up and told him that it was Amenophis IV for I'd been reading the Egyptology books in the school library. He graciously said thank you and carried on. Glad I didn't get smacked.
Not so when I got to 6th form where the headmaster taught us about English Literature. We read one of C S Forester's swashbuckling books on the adventures of Horatio Hornblower, a fictional British sailor who rose to be Admiral of the Fleet in the early 19th century. Our Head was a snob, intellectually and socially, and after we had read the book, he asked us to comment on its literary merit. A fellow pupil condemned it as superficial and flimsy and the head agreed. So I put my hand up and said that you couldn't judge it like that; it was an adventure yarn and that is how it should be judged. I got a very stern look and it was plain that he thought I was an idiot.
Many years later, I sat in a country mansion with those 12 feet tall windows and a gloriously beautiful view over the Mendip Hills of Somerset. I had gone there with a mate and his girlfriend; her father owned the house. Well her father was yattering on about his socialist ideals and I was politely arguing some points. Finally, I had had enough of his blather so I said something like 'Socialism is fine for those who have plenty of money and those who have none. It's the folks in the middle who get worried about it.' I never got invited back but what I said is true to this day. I was just ungracious.
Many years later, at work, we used to have those Team briefing meetings at which our Marketing Director would brief us on the state of the business and at which we would ask questions about toilet paper, worn carpets and the canteen food. Nice man though he was, he, one day, said he could see no point to these meetings if we all just talked about trivialities. Silence until I pointed out to him that his department, i.e. us, was well aware of the state of the company but we felt that insufficient attention was being paid to the issues of our daily working lives. I cannot remember his reaction but he never complained again, not that anything was ever done about our grieveances. But then Donald Anderson had never heard of Herzburg's hygeine-needs.
At some other such meeting, one guy asked why the women had super soft toilet paper but guys had to put up with the 'Bronco' brand which is like sandpaper. I just turned and said, 'Well, if you don't know, I ain't gonna tell you.'
And then of course, maybe the one that caused most offence, at least to my partner at the time. I think it was the day after 9/11 when I said, 'Well maybe that will make the buggers think about their contributions to NORAID.' I was condemned for being insensitive but it came to pass.
I could go on and on but I won't. You cannot always speak out for you might get killed or certainly abused. But, at least, you should try.
I cannot say that I always do this but I suppose I do it more than most: it's in my genes or upbringing - probably both. One of my bosses repeatedly called me a cynic to which my response was something like, 'Yeah but never forget that a cynic is often a realist who speaks his mind.'
It's not just about mouthing opinions, it can be about facts. At the age of 12, a teacher at school that an Egyptian pharoah, Amenophis (or Amenhotep if you wish) III changed his name to Akhenaten, the heretic king. So I put my hand up and told him that it was Amenophis IV for I'd been reading the Egyptology books in the school library. He graciously said thank you and carried on. Glad I didn't get smacked.
Not so when I got to 6th form where the headmaster taught us about English Literature. We read one of C S Forester's swashbuckling books on the adventures of Horatio Hornblower, a fictional British sailor who rose to be Admiral of the Fleet in the early 19th century. Our Head was a snob, intellectually and socially, and after we had read the book, he asked us to comment on its literary merit. A fellow pupil condemned it as superficial and flimsy and the head agreed. So I put my hand up and said that you couldn't judge it like that; it was an adventure yarn and that is how it should be judged. I got a very stern look and it was plain that he thought I was an idiot.
Many years later, I sat in a country mansion with those 12 feet tall windows and a gloriously beautiful view over the Mendip Hills of Somerset. I had gone there with a mate and his girlfriend; her father owned the house. Well her father was yattering on about his socialist ideals and I was politely arguing some points. Finally, I had had enough of his blather so I said something like 'Socialism is fine for those who have plenty of money and those who have none. It's the folks in the middle who get worried about it.' I never got invited back but what I said is true to this day. I was just ungracious.
Many years later, at work, we used to have those Team briefing meetings at which our Marketing Director would brief us on the state of the business and at which we would ask questions about toilet paper, worn carpets and the canteen food. Nice man though he was, he, one day, said he could see no point to these meetings if we all just talked about trivialities. Silence until I pointed out to him that his department, i.e. us, was well aware of the state of the company but we felt that insufficient attention was being paid to the issues of our daily working lives. I cannot remember his reaction but he never complained again, not that anything was ever done about our grieveances. But then Donald Anderson had never heard of Herzburg's hygeine-needs.
At some other such meeting, one guy asked why the women had super soft toilet paper but guys had to put up with the 'Bronco' brand which is like sandpaper. I just turned and said, 'Well, if you don't know, I ain't gonna tell you.'
And then of course, maybe the one that caused most offence, at least to my partner at the time. I think it was the day after 9/11 when I said, 'Well maybe that will make the buggers think about their contributions to NORAID.' I was condemned for being insensitive but it came to pass.
I could go on and on but I won't. You cannot always speak out for you might get killed or certainly abused. But, at least, you should try.
From The Sunday Times today
Sunday, January 18th, 2009
I make no apologies for the fact that this note is not based on my own original thoughts. It's just that I saw a number of commentaries in the Sunday Times today and I thought they would be worth repeating, albeit in my own words.
First take Ron Liddle. He was once a member of the far left Socialist Workers Party but he's moved on and is now just a rebel like me. It seems that some of our ATM's have been doling out double the money that people asked for. Naturally, folks used their mobiles to text their friends to join in the bonanza. Brings a whole meaning to the term 'a run on the banks' doesn't it.?
Should they hand the money back? Technically it's robbery but then as Liddle says. 'We behave with honesty largely for reasons of reciprocity. The most unjust societies are generally the most corrupt, where individuals cheat and extort because it has been the norm.' These banks have been bailed out with billions of our money and there is more to come. Meanwhile, the bosses keep their jobs and at salaries that the rest of us can only dream of.
He moves on with the tale of a Cambridgeshire council planning to spen £500,000 on a large steel noise barrier around a gypsy site. Most of the locals are against although a few approve so long as it is electrified. It seems that passing motorists on the nearby dual carriageway have been shouting at the camp and the inhabitants don't like the noise of cars. They cannot discern what is actually being shouted at them but the council says that they know it's negative. Liddle suggests that it may not be negative at all and the motorists may have been saying things like, 'Good luck to you wonderful people, with your carefree, peripatetic lifestyles and reputation for honesty and cleanliness!'
If they don't like the noise, 'Why then do they not invoke their traditional right to clear off.'
Moving on, we have Dominic Lawson. He's the son of Nigel Lawson, one time Chancellor of Exchequer, and the sister of Nigella Lawson, the cookery writer whose recipes are almost as appealing as her breasts. But enough of that, in my dreams.
Lawson was commenting on two Government moves to increase social mobility, which is to say the movement between class/income levels. Needless to say that stupid Harriet Harman is involved - the privately educated niece of the Earl and Countess of Longford - who sent one of her kids to a private school and another to a grammar school. Lawson quotes a lot of figures from a recent report. Interestingly, they demonstrate that movement between the bottom and top income quartiles was higher for kids born in 1958 than those born in 1970. On the other hand, there has been a huge movement between individual quartiles - in both directions. So we are moving around, even if not always for the better. (As an aside, I have commented on statistics before. There will always be a bottom and always be a top. At times, it's the absolute values that matter. If you move people from the current bottom quartile, then that quartile will have to be redefined and most will still end up there.)
He attributes 'the real destruction of the aspirations of what used to called the working class was by those who claimed to be its saviours, within the comprehensive (school) system.' 'A Marxist-influenced teaching profession that regarded academic rigour as a bourgeois imposition, based on an outmoded social order, betrayed an entire generation.' Bit OTT, I thought, but he's on the right lines. The guy who founded the Trust that wrote the report grew up on a council estate (like me), passed the 11-plus (like me), went to grammar school (like me), went to University (like me) and then had a successful career in business (well I suppose I did in a way). Of course in those days teachers went to work in suits and the like, only to be followed in the 70's by a bunch of scruffs in sandals and kaftans who thought that spelling didn't matter and that learning by rote was an abomination. I am pleased to say that, at least for the primary school of which I am a governor, that things have reversed for the better.
The letters page has a majority blaming Hamas for the Gaza debacle just like me last week. That may be down to selection by the Letters Editor but I noticed that after Israel called a cease fire this weekend, Hamas banged another 6 rockets into Israel. And wasn't there some UN declaration against siting military installations in civilian areas? No wonder there was collateral damage as it is euphemistically put.
Finally, there was a nice article by a guy called Dominic Roub who talked about the British state's increasing curb on freedoms, largely in the cause of improved security. There are far more surveillance powers (elsewhere I read that we are the most CCTV'd nation on Earth), the police's ability to detain without charge is being proposed and the universal right to trial by jury is being questioned. We have health & safety legislation that will soon prescribe how to go the toilet or at least what paper must be provided. And of course much of this goes through on the nod in Parliament if indeed it ever gets to Parliament.
I ignored all the football crap.
I make no apologies for the fact that this note is not based on my own original thoughts. It's just that I saw a number of commentaries in the Sunday Times today and I thought they would be worth repeating, albeit in my own words.
First take Ron Liddle. He was once a member of the far left Socialist Workers Party but he's moved on and is now just a rebel like me. It seems that some of our ATM's have been doling out double the money that people asked for. Naturally, folks used their mobiles to text their friends to join in the bonanza. Brings a whole meaning to the term 'a run on the banks' doesn't it.?
Should they hand the money back? Technically it's robbery but then as Liddle says. 'We behave with honesty largely for reasons of reciprocity. The most unjust societies are generally the most corrupt, where individuals cheat and extort because it has been the norm.' These banks have been bailed out with billions of our money and there is more to come. Meanwhile, the bosses keep their jobs and at salaries that the rest of us can only dream of.
He moves on with the tale of a Cambridgeshire council planning to spen £500,000 on a large steel noise barrier around a gypsy site. Most of the locals are against although a few approve so long as it is electrified. It seems that passing motorists on the nearby dual carriageway have been shouting at the camp and the inhabitants don't like the noise of cars. They cannot discern what is actually being shouted at them but the council says that they know it's negative. Liddle suggests that it may not be negative at all and the motorists may have been saying things like, 'Good luck to you wonderful people, with your carefree, peripatetic lifestyles and reputation for honesty and cleanliness!'
If they don't like the noise, 'Why then do they not invoke their traditional right to clear off.'
Moving on, we have Dominic Lawson. He's the son of Nigel Lawson, one time Chancellor of Exchequer, and the sister of Nigella Lawson, the cookery writer whose recipes are almost as appealing as her breasts. But enough of that, in my dreams.
Lawson was commenting on two Government moves to increase social mobility, which is to say the movement between class/income levels. Needless to say that stupid Harriet Harman is involved - the privately educated niece of the Earl and Countess of Longford - who sent one of her kids to a private school and another to a grammar school. Lawson quotes a lot of figures from a recent report. Interestingly, they demonstrate that movement between the bottom and top income quartiles was higher for kids born in 1958 than those born in 1970. On the other hand, there has been a huge movement between individual quartiles - in both directions. So we are moving around, even if not always for the better. (As an aside, I have commented on statistics before. There will always be a bottom and always be a top. At times, it's the absolute values that matter. If you move people from the current bottom quartile, then that quartile will have to be redefined and most will still end up there.)
He attributes 'the real destruction of the aspirations of what used to called the working class was by those who claimed to be its saviours, within the comprehensive (school) system.' 'A Marxist-influenced teaching profession that regarded academic rigour as a bourgeois imposition, based on an outmoded social order, betrayed an entire generation.' Bit OTT, I thought, but he's on the right lines. The guy who founded the Trust that wrote the report grew up on a council estate (like me), passed the 11-plus (like me), went to grammar school (like me), went to University (like me) and then had a successful career in business (well I suppose I did in a way). Of course in those days teachers went to work in suits and the like, only to be followed in the 70's by a bunch of scruffs in sandals and kaftans who thought that spelling didn't matter and that learning by rote was an abomination. I am pleased to say that, at least for the primary school of which I am a governor, that things have reversed for the better.
The letters page has a majority blaming Hamas for the Gaza debacle just like me last week. That may be down to selection by the Letters Editor but I noticed that after Israel called a cease fire this weekend, Hamas banged another 6 rockets into Israel. And wasn't there some UN declaration against siting military installations in civilian areas? No wonder there was collateral damage as it is euphemistically put.
Finally, there was a nice article by a guy called Dominic Roub who talked about the British state's increasing curb on freedoms, largely in the cause of improved security. There are far more surveillance powers (elsewhere I read that we are the most CCTV'd nation on Earth), the police's ability to detain without charge is being proposed and the universal right to trial by jury is being questioned. We have health & safety legislation that will soon prescribe how to go the toilet or at least what paper must be provided. And of course much of this goes through on the nod in Parliament if indeed it ever gets to Parliament.
I ignored all the football crap.
Saturday 17 January 2009
Food I could do without
Saturday, January 17th 2009
Yes I know, 'one man's meat is another man's poison,' so this is a personal view of food I can't be arsed with:
- eggs
- snow peas or mange tout - awful
- aubergines - pretty and tasteless
- pasta - the plain variety, they are tolerable when stuffed
- sea cucumber - quite disgusting
- French toast - ditto and it contains eggs
- cereals - every one of them. Now you know why Americans put so much crap on them.
- American bacon - grilled to a crisp and smothered in oil
- Yorkshire pudding. Stodgy and tasteless
- cinnamon in cakes and coffee. OK in Indian recipes
- cabbage apart from sauerkraut
- Brussels Sprouts. The smell alone is vile.
- lettuce. Tasteless, useless, salad bowl filling garbage
- Rocket leaves. Fashionable crap
- chicken's feet. never tried them but the sight puts me off
- pork belly. I like pork but this is too fatty
- sheep's testicles. Tasteless and slimy.
- swedes, parsnips and turnips. Nasty stodge
- farmed salmon. Far too oily
No doubt, if I put in some time to this I could think of many more.
Yes I know, 'one man's meat is another man's poison,' so this is a personal view of food I can't be arsed with:
- eggs
- snow peas or mange tout - awful
- aubergines - pretty and tasteless
- pasta - the plain variety, they are tolerable when stuffed
- sea cucumber - quite disgusting
- French toast - ditto and it contains eggs
- cereals - every one of them. Now you know why Americans put so much crap on them.
- American bacon - grilled to a crisp and smothered in oil
- Yorkshire pudding. Stodgy and tasteless
- cinnamon in cakes and coffee. OK in Indian recipes
- cabbage apart from sauerkraut
- Brussels Sprouts. The smell alone is vile.
- lettuce. Tasteless, useless, salad bowl filling garbage
- Rocket leaves. Fashionable crap
- chicken's feet. never tried them but the sight puts me off
- pork belly. I like pork but this is too fatty
- sheep's testicles. Tasteless and slimy.
- swedes, parsnips and turnips. Nasty stodge
- farmed salmon. Far too oily
No doubt, if I put in some time to this I could think of many more.
Unnecessary outside broadcasts
Saturday, January 17th, 2009
The BBC is always pleading poverty and asking for more taxpayey's money from the British Government. The independent channels are said to be damn near bankrupt through the loss of advertising revenue. Yet they all continue to throw money away on unnecessary outside broadcasts.
I am not speaking about reporters commenting from the hot news spots of this world. I am talking about some bloke or woman standing in front of the House of Commons at 11 o'clock at night nattering on about some trivial issue discussed there that day. You know what I mean, 'And here we go over to Daisy McAndrew live at the House of Commons.' There she stands as the traffic passes by, with a House of Commons backdrop, her hair blowing in the wind , and maybe under an umbrella if it's pissing down - and saying just the same things that she could have said in the studio.
What you can't see of course are the lights, the cameras, the technicians and the 20 or so people surrounding her to produce this 30 second clip. And no doubt, at 11 pm, they are all on overtime. Complete waste of money.
The BBC is always pleading poverty and asking for more taxpayey's money from the British Government. The independent channels are said to be damn near bankrupt through the loss of advertising revenue. Yet they all continue to throw money away on unnecessary outside broadcasts.
I am not speaking about reporters commenting from the hot news spots of this world. I am talking about some bloke or woman standing in front of the House of Commons at 11 o'clock at night nattering on about some trivial issue discussed there that day. You know what I mean, 'And here we go over to Daisy McAndrew live at the House of Commons.' There she stands as the traffic passes by, with a House of Commons backdrop, her hair blowing in the wind , and maybe under an umbrella if it's pissing down - and saying just the same things that she could have said in the studio.
What you can't see of course are the lights, the cameras, the technicians and the 20 or so people surrounding her to produce this 30 second clip. And no doubt, at 11 pm, they are all on overtime. Complete waste of money.
Gardner Engines
Saturday, January 17th, 2009
I joined the motor industry on January 7th, 1970 and then I worked for a company called CAV, part of Lucas Industries. CAV made fuel injection pumps for diesel engines, well for road going engines, tractors and light boats.
None were finer than those of Gardner. Ancient but hand crafted, they were wonderful examples of engineering. They went on forever if you looked after them and although, they are no longer made, you can still buy parts to this day. They were used in trucks, the London Routemaster bus and in small boats.
I remember walking the waterside in Aberdeen, Hong Kong in 1974 (small village then) and seeing the little sheds that were refurbishing them for use in junks. The Chinese bought them when London Transport retired them.
Like my old cameras, lovely pieces of engineering.
I joined the motor industry on January 7th, 1970 and then I worked for a company called CAV, part of Lucas Industries. CAV made fuel injection pumps for diesel engines, well for road going engines, tractors and light boats.None were finer than those of Gardner. Ancient but hand crafted, they were wonderful examples of engineering. They went on forever if you looked after them and although, they are no longer made, you can still buy parts to this day. They were used in trucks, the London Routemaster bus and in small boats.
I remember walking the waterside in Aberdeen, Hong Kong in 1974 (small village then) and seeing the little sheds that were refurbishing them for use in junks. The Chinese bought them when London Transport retired them.
Like my old cameras, lovely pieces of engineering.
Cameras
Saturday, January 17th, 2009
I have had 4 single lens reflex cameras in my life. The first, a Minolta SRT-101, I bought in Hong Kong and stupidly left behind on the London Underground. Next came two Canons in the late 70's and I had 4 lenses for these. Each was heavy, beautifully crafted in metal and glass. Lovely to hold and lovely to use. The metal shone and you had to admire the tiny screws that held them together. The glass had multi coatings and reflected the colours of the rainbow depending on the angle at which you held them. Gorgeous as they were, they were so heavy to lug around.
In the 21st century, I moved on to digital and bought a gorgeous Fuji with a magnesium/aluminium body - always felt cool even in the hottest weather. Trouble was that all the digitals of the time, it had a poor zoom - no more than 105 mm. So then I bought a new Canon SLR with two lenses. Oh dear, how had engineering changed in the effort to keep costs down. It was all plastic and lightweight. It took good pictures if the light was right for the maximum apertures were way down on the two previous Canons.
Somewhere in all this I bought a Canon Ixus because it was the size of a pack of 20 cigarettes. Gave that away .
Moving on, I bought a Panasonic FZ-7 super zoom and a pocket Canon Ixus but that was pickpocketed in Cape Town. I replaced it with something more bulky but more versatile, the A720 IS.
I just love cameras and the beauty of digital is that I can delete much of the rubbish I take.
I have had 4 single lens reflex cameras in my life. The first, a Minolta SRT-101, I bought in Hong Kong and stupidly left behind on the London Underground. Next came two Canons in the late 70's and I had 4 lenses for these. Each was heavy, beautifully crafted in metal and glass. Lovely to hold and lovely to use. The metal shone and you had to admire the tiny screws that held them together. The glass had multi coatings and reflected the colours of the rainbow depending on the angle at which you held them. Gorgeous as they were, they were so heavy to lug around.
In the 21st century, I moved on to digital and bought a gorgeous Fuji with a magnesium/aluminium body - always felt cool even in the hottest weather. Trouble was that all the digitals of the time, it had a poor zoom - no more than 105 mm. So then I bought a new Canon SLR with two lenses. Oh dear, how had engineering changed in the effort to keep costs down. It was all plastic and lightweight. It took good pictures if the light was right for the maximum apertures were way down on the two previous Canons.
Somewhere in all this I bought a Canon Ixus because it was the size of a pack of 20 cigarettes. Gave that away .
Moving on, I bought a Panasonic FZ-7 super zoom and a pocket Canon Ixus but that was pickpocketed in Cape Town. I replaced it with something more bulky but more versatile, the A720 IS.
I just love cameras and the beauty of digital is that I can delete much of the rubbish I take.
Thursday 15 January 2009
Gordon Brown
Thursday, January 15th, 2009
This is our charismatic Prime Minister, well if you think that a miserable git can be charismatic. It is said that after a brief rise, his popularity is again falling because the 'great' British public do not think he is solving the present economic crisis. You have to grin at this.
First, what do most of us know about economics anyway and second, how much impact have his VAT and interest rates had? Bugger all for the most of us, I suspect. As I said before, VAT down 2.5% is meaningless to we consumers. And the lowest interest rate in 315 years ain't going to get us house buying. Third, he dithers about handing out cash to the motor industry while I'd tell them to sod off. Fourth, he is now contemplating more help to the banks who have completely failed to behave any differently after the last handout.
If this bloke wishes to recapture public adoration, he needs to do something different. Putting a few bankers in the town hall stocks and pelting them with rotten fruit and veg would be a start - and that would be cheap. Or maybe he could start wearing a kilt.
This is our charismatic Prime Minister, well if you think that a miserable git can be charismatic. It is said that after a brief rise, his popularity is again falling because the 'great' British public do not think he is solving the present economic crisis. You have to grin at this.
First, what do most of us know about economics anyway and second, how much impact have his VAT and interest rates had? Bugger all for the most of us, I suspect. As I said before, VAT down 2.5% is meaningless to we consumers. And the lowest interest rate in 315 years ain't going to get us house buying. Third, he dithers about handing out cash to the motor industry while I'd tell them to sod off. Fourth, he is now contemplating more help to the banks who have completely failed to behave any differently after the last handout.
If this bloke wishes to recapture public adoration, he needs to do something different. Putting a few bankers in the town hall stocks and pelting them with rotten fruit and veg would be a start - and that would be cheap. Or maybe he could start wearing a kilt.
Prince Harry & Pakis
Thursday, January 15th, 2009
OK so Prince Harry has been caught addressing one of his fellow soldiers as 'Paki'. To read and listen to media commentary, you think he'd ravished those four and twenty virgins coming down from Inverness. (And, if you don't know the song, look it up.)
Well, I get called 'English' and sometimes much worse since I live in Wales. When I worked in Australia, I naturally got called a 'Pommie.' Can't say any of this have ever bothered me. But then as Oscar Wilde said, 'To be an Englishman is to belong to the most exclusive club in the world.' Damn right it is!
To have one's origins identified by a single word, be it in short or in full, does not seem to be an offensive crime, well at least to me. It's what people go on to say that may well cause offence. So if Harry had called his mate a 'Paki bastard' that might have been reprehensible. And so on and so on.
A load of fuss about nothing and it still gets us no further from quitting Afghanistan.
OK so Prince Harry has been caught addressing one of his fellow soldiers as 'Paki'. To read and listen to media commentary, you think he'd ravished those four and twenty virgins coming down from Inverness. (And, if you don't know the song, look it up.)
Well, I get called 'English' and sometimes much worse since I live in Wales. When I worked in Australia, I naturally got called a 'Pommie.' Can't say any of this have ever bothered me. But then as Oscar Wilde said, 'To be an Englishman is to belong to the most exclusive club in the world.' Damn right it is!
To have one's origins identified by a single word, be it in short or in full, does not seem to be an offensive crime, well at least to me. It's what people go on to say that may well cause offence. So if Harry had called his mate a 'Paki bastard' that might have been reprehensible. And so on and so on.
A load of fuss about nothing and it still gets us no further from quitting Afghanistan.
Wednesday 14 January 2009
Doors
Wednesday, January 14th, 2009
Then you get double doors and times without number, one of them is locked. Why? What's the frigging purpose of having double doors if one of them is always locked? One of my very first acts when I became an MD was to tell the Facilities Manager to unlock the 2nd door.
Rotating doors? Yeah ok from a heat conservation point of view but a pain in the butt for the rest of us. And, of course, no bloody use if you want to take in a fair size package. Hate them.
Lift or elevator doors? Amusing I think cus it's always a lottery to see how well the sensors react to trapping you.
I like big doors and big keys. The doors to Tamworth Parish Church must have been three times my height and the key was almost a foot long so you felt really important when opening that.
Yes, I know that doors are prosaic but as usual there is more to them than meets the eye. And I have only scratched the surface.
Pity I did not buy those oils in Montmartre.
Why the hell would you want to talk about doors? You may well ask. It just a thought that came to me today when I was in a supermarket and noticed that a former entrance/exit was shut. Fact is, it’s been closed for ages. Why I wonder? What’s the point of having a bloody door if it is never open?
So let's just think about doors for a min for we take them for granted. In the USA, shop doors open outwards onto the sidewalk - great news if you are escaping from a fire, bad news if you are a pedestrian straying too close to the windows. In the UK, we do the opposite so that's fine for pedestrians but bad for inferno escapes.Then you get double doors and times without number, one of them is locked. Why? What's the frigging purpose of having double doors if one of them is always locked? One of my very first acts when I became an MD was to tell the Facilities Manager to unlock the 2nd door.
Rotating doors? Yeah ok from a heat conservation point of view but a pain in the butt for the rest of us. And, of course, no bloody use if you want to take in a fair size package. Hate them.
Lift or elevator doors? Amusing I think cus it's always a lottery to see how well the sensors react to trapping you.
I like big doors and big keys. The doors to Tamworth Parish Church must have been three times my height and the key was almost a foot long so you felt really important when opening that.
Yes, I know that doors are prosaic but as usual there is more to them than meets the eye. And I have only scratched the surface.
Pity I did not buy those oils in Montmartre.
The English Art of Change Ringing
Wednesday, January 14th, 2009
Bells have been made and used for centuries; it’s not clear when the first one was made or how the idea came about. What is certain is that for much of history they were made to sound their notes either by striking them with some sort of hammer or swinging them back and forth and letting an internal hammer ( a clapper) strike the inside of the bell. The problem in the latter case is that you cannot control it. The bell swings to the left like a pendulum and then gravity makes it swing to the right and sound again. And that is why a lot of church bells, sound like a jumble of sound, especially on the Continent of Europe.
But in London in the 17th century, we came up with a new idea. We found that if we could rotate the bells full circle, that is through 360 degrees, we could balance them upside down and then we could make them sound when we liked. Mechanisms were developed so that the balancing was made easier and then we could change the sequence in which the bells sounded. And this was the birth of what we call ‘change ringing.’ It’s an English art but today, it is practised all over the British Isles and to a smaller extent in Australia, New Zealand and the USA as well.
At first, bells were just rung in sequence 123456, 123456 etc where the number 1 bell was the smallest and the number 6 bell was the heaviest – much the same as musical scale on a piano. Then people realised that you could change the sequence and so began ‘change ringing.’ At its most basic, the sequences or changes may go something like this: 123456, 214365, 241635, 426153 etc. Bell ringers prefer to write out these changes vertically so that they can see more easily the path of the single bell that they are ringing. So you get:
123456
214365
241635
426153
462513
645231
654321 and so on
Note that each bell either stays in the same position or moves just one place at a time. There is a very good reason for this. Your average bell takes around 2 seconds to rotate so if you wanted to jump from 123456 to 654321, everyone else would have to wait for quite a while for the 6th to do its job and that would cause large gaps in the sound. Not the smooth ripple of sound that you hear coming out of your church on a Sunday morning.
There are many, many different patterns by which these changes are made and these are called ‘methods’ and are given names. The one above is called ‘Plain Bob’ and all these patterns add variety to the sound. This is ‘Little Bob’ – can you see the difference?
123456
214365
241635
426153
462135
641253
614523
Because ringing bells rotate and are meant to be rung by people, they do not get as big as clock bells. Big Ben, for example, weighs 13.5 tons and it would be impossible for one person to ring it through a full circle. Furthermore, a rotating bell of that weight would probably tear the Houses of Parliament tower apart.. The heaviest ringing bell in the world is ‘Emmanuel’ which sits in Liverpool Anglican Cathedral along with 12 other brothers and sisters. Emmanuel weighs 4.2 tons and strikes the note of A flat. I’ve rung it and his no. 11, James who weighs in at a little less than 3 tons.
Bellringers are a friendly lot and always welcome ringers who visit them from other churches. They are also happy to teach newcomers the art. Mind you, even a little bell takes a little effort so if you wish to learn, you will probably have to wait until you are at least 10 years old or more before starting.
Are there ringing bells near you? Try this website:
http://dove.cccbr.org.uk/home.php
Here you can search for ringing bells and get information on their condition in some cases. You will also see the number of ringing bells and the weight of the heaviest one, known as the Tenor.
Monday 12 January 2009
The greatest gift
Monday, January 12th, 2009
You will give many things in this life. Many you will be obliged to give by the conventions of society and if you don't follow those then you will be condemned.
Religions say that the greatest gift is to lay down one's life for another and it's a hard one to argue against but I am talking here about everyday life rather than war or throwing yourself in front of a bullet intended for someone else.
Presents and money you can give freely if you have the cash. Compliments cost nothing but I suspect we don't give them enough: I know I haven't. Advice? Well, I just dish that out even when it isn't wanted: it's just my way and it is well intentioned. Knowledge can be imparted freely if you have it and the recipient is listening.
However, the most precious thing, in my opinion, that you can give to your family and your friends, is your TIME.
You will give many things in this life. Many you will be obliged to give by the conventions of society and if you don't follow those then you will be condemned.
Religions say that the greatest gift is to lay down one's life for another and it's a hard one to argue against but I am talking here about everyday life rather than war or throwing yourself in front of a bullet intended for someone else.
Presents and money you can give freely if you have the cash. Compliments cost nothing but I suspect we don't give them enough: I know I haven't. Advice? Well, I just dish that out even when it isn't wanted: it's just my way and it is well intentioned. Knowledge can be imparted freely if you have it and the recipient is listening.
However, the most precious thing, in my opinion, that you can give to your family and your friends, is your TIME.
Sunday 11 January 2009
Tackling elitism
Sunday, December 11th, 2009
It would seem that our Government has just noticed that our professions, legal, medical, journalists, top army officers and the like, are dominated by middle or upper class people many of whom have been privately educated. It is said that some of these professions put barriers in the way of the lower ranks like the dining rituals of the Inns of Court. I smiled at this for I know the chavs could show those barristers a thing or two about how to handle a knife.
Quite honestly none of this ever bothered me even though my Brummie accent was not universally acceptable nor my lack of an Oxbridge degree but then I did not seek employment in the professions as they are called. I really couldn't give a damn if these professions were dominated by pygmies, robots, dykes or anything else as long as they did their jobs properly. (As an aside, I observe that it really doesn't matter how well or how badly they do their jobs for they are somehow protected. As my mom said about doctors, 'they bury their mistakes, literally.') But this state of affairs is not of course acceptable to a 'caring' Government which seeks to compensate a world for any misfortune it may suffer - well as long as it is near the bottom on the social scale.
So we have a former Minister to chair a commision to address this 'problem'. I do not doubt for one second that he will bitch on and on about prejudice and he may be right in part. But you know where he will keep his gob shut, don't you? He will say nothing about the superior education offered in private schools and Oxbridge and the fact that this may have something to do with the success of these people.
I am a product of the Labour Party's original attack on elitism which originated back in the 1940's but that was then they tried to lift people from the bottom without taking anything away from those at the top. I do wonder if this initiative will be different.
It would seem that our Government has just noticed that our professions, legal, medical, journalists, top army officers and the like, are dominated by middle or upper class people many of whom have been privately educated. It is said that some of these professions put barriers in the way of the lower ranks like the dining rituals of the Inns of Court. I smiled at this for I know the chavs could show those barristers a thing or two about how to handle a knife.
Quite honestly none of this ever bothered me even though my Brummie accent was not universally acceptable nor my lack of an Oxbridge degree but then I did not seek employment in the professions as they are called. I really couldn't give a damn if these professions were dominated by pygmies, robots, dykes or anything else as long as they did their jobs properly. (As an aside, I observe that it really doesn't matter how well or how badly they do their jobs for they are somehow protected. As my mom said about doctors, 'they bury their mistakes, literally.') But this state of affairs is not of course acceptable to a 'caring' Government which seeks to compensate a world for any misfortune it may suffer - well as long as it is near the bottom on the social scale.
So we have a former Minister to chair a commision to address this 'problem'. I do not doubt for one second that he will bitch on and on about prejudice and he may be right in part. But you know where he will keep his gob shut, don't you? He will say nothing about the superior education offered in private schools and Oxbridge and the fact that this may have something to do with the success of these people.
I am a product of the Labour Party's original attack on elitism which originated back in the 1940's but that was then they tried to lift people from the bottom without taking anything away from those at the top. I do wonder if this initiative will be different.
Scotland? Fuck 'em
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
Well, I have always known that people in Scotland are more heavily subsidised than the English but then you have to take account of the wealth made in the South East which distorts all British statistics. However, that is only part of the story.
It seems that the public sector wage bill in Scotland has risen by 55% in the 10 years since the Scottish parliament was formed and state funding per head has doubled. They rank 20th in the world league table of %age public spending per head by GDP and the forecast is that they will be no. 3 by 2012 after Havana and Baghdad.
We had a programme on TV last night, entitled 'History of Scotland.' History? My arse! All the usual stuff about William Wallace and the Battle of Stirling Bridge like 700 years ago. No mention of the truly great people who have come out of Scotland since then nor the Pictish rabble that caused Hadrian to build his wall. Scotland's memories seem to be fixed in events long past.
But am I weary of their lamentations. Time we said to Alex Salmond, 'Piss Off, you can go.' I go back to Henry I and Becket, 'Will no one rid me of these troublesome Scots?'
Well, I have always known that people in Scotland are more heavily subsidised than the English but then you have to take account of the wealth made in the South East which distorts all British statistics. However, that is only part of the story.
It seems that the public sector wage bill in Scotland has risen by 55% in the 10 years since the Scottish parliament was formed and state funding per head has doubled. They rank 20th in the world league table of %age public spending per head by GDP and the forecast is that they will be no. 3 by 2012 after Havana and Baghdad.
We had a programme on TV last night, entitled 'History of Scotland.' History? My arse! All the usual stuff about William Wallace and the Battle of Stirling Bridge like 700 years ago. No mention of the truly great people who have come out of Scotland since then nor the Pictish rabble that caused Hadrian to build his wall. Scotland's memories seem to be fixed in events long past.
But am I weary of their lamentations. Time we said to Alex Salmond, 'Piss Off, you can go.' I go back to Henry I and Becket, 'Will no one rid me of these troublesome Scots?'
Yobs and chavs
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
When it comes to bad behaviour, we Brits are simply world champions. This first came to me back in 1970 when I went to Amsterdam. Walking the streets I saw those glass topped canal cruisers parked up for the night and I thought, no chance back home, they'd be bricked.
So in 39 years, what's changed? Nothing! Given that the average chav breeds at the age of 14 or so, we are talking of almost 3 generations. And why should things change with a Government which is continually telling everyone that 'it's not your fault' and a bunch of middle-class chatterers + The Guardian saying pretty much the same.
So today, I read of a Caribbean cruise ship which, failing to fill up with full priced tourists, sold off the remainder at bargain prices. And then we had fighting , booing the captain on New Year's Eve, kids pissed out of their minds, food and ciggie butts thrown around and an attempt to set light to the Christmas tree.
This lot will never learn without a bloody good smack.
When it comes to bad behaviour, we Brits are simply world champions. This first came to me back in 1970 when I went to Amsterdam. Walking the streets I saw those glass topped canal cruisers parked up for the night and I thought, no chance back home, they'd be bricked.
So in 39 years, what's changed? Nothing! Given that the average chav breeds at the age of 14 or so, we are talking of almost 3 generations. And why should things change with a Government which is continually telling everyone that 'it's not your fault' and a bunch of middle-class chatterers + The Guardian saying pretty much the same.
So today, I read of a Caribbean cruise ship which, failing to fill up with full priced tourists, sold off the remainder at bargain prices. And then we had fighting , booing the captain on New Year's Eve, kids pissed out of their minds, food and ciggie butts thrown around and an attempt to set light to the Christmas tree.
This lot will never learn without a bloody good smack.
Departures
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
I do think that one of the saddest things you can do in this life is leave somewhere or someone and know you will never see them again.
I do think that one of the saddest things you can do in this life is leave somewhere or someone and know you will never see them again.
Haggis
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
I am having haggis, mashed potatoes and peas for dinner tonight with some gravy. Scottish tradition says you need to have 'neeps and tatties' which are mashed potatoes and turnips but I care little for the latter.
Haggis is one of those dishes for which you do not really want to understand the ingredients. It is made of offal from several animals as far as I know. However, I have not explored it. I just think it tastes great and that is good enough for me.
I am having haggis, mashed potatoes and peas for dinner tonight with some gravy. Scottish tradition says you need to have 'neeps and tatties' which are mashed potatoes and turnips but I care little for the latter.
Haggis is one of those dishes for which you do not really want to understand the ingredients. It is made of offal from several animals as far as I know. However, I have not explored it. I just think it tastes great and that is good enough for me.
Coursework and exams
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
When I was a kid, we had homework and schoolwork of course but you only got your state qualifications by passing examinations at 16 and at 18, the latter being the route to university. Some time later, they came up with the idea that a child's future should not hinge on a 3 hour exam or whatever but that their performance over the whole school year should be taken into account. Thereby, their success or otherwise at state examinations would depend on their coursework and their exam performance.
Not a bad idea I thought, in concept, although I recognised that exams were a reflection of the real world - ie think on your feet with no time to look things up.
Oh but then I overlooked the behavioural angle. Kids, their parents and their teachers want to win and an added incentment to all this was the increasing emphasis on school performance stats. So the kids plagiarised the internet to do their homework and the teachers encouraged them. And now we have graduates who have no idea how to solve a quadratic equation or any awareness of how to calculate the depth of a toilet drop in Africa.
Today, the Tory Party has said it wants to scrap the coursework as a qualification and give state qualifications based on exams alone. I recognise that this will favour those that have good memories but is that so bad? In much of daily life, we must make decisions without resource to the internet or our teachers and that is what an exam tests. Thinking on your feet is what so much of life is all about.
Same with learning by rote. Fine, you may be smart enough to understand the fundamentals of mathematics. But if you are not, I see no harm in chanting - 1 seven is seven, 2 seven's are 14 and so on. It will get you by in the shops.
When I was a kid, we had homework and schoolwork of course but you only got your state qualifications by passing examinations at 16 and at 18, the latter being the route to university. Some time later, they came up with the idea that a child's future should not hinge on a 3 hour exam or whatever but that their performance over the whole school year should be taken into account. Thereby, their success or otherwise at state examinations would depend on their coursework and their exam performance.
Not a bad idea I thought, in concept, although I recognised that exams were a reflection of the real world - ie think on your feet with no time to look things up.
Oh but then I overlooked the behavioural angle. Kids, their parents and their teachers want to win and an added incentment to all this was the increasing emphasis on school performance stats. So the kids plagiarised the internet to do their homework and the teachers encouraged them. And now we have graduates who have no idea how to solve a quadratic equation or any awareness of how to calculate the depth of a toilet drop in Africa.
Today, the Tory Party has said it wants to scrap the coursework as a qualification and give state qualifications based on exams alone. I recognise that this will favour those that have good memories but is that so bad? In much of daily life, we must make decisions without resource to the internet or our teachers and that is what an exam tests. Thinking on your feet is what so much of life is all about.
Same with learning by rote. Fine, you may be smart enough to understand the fundamentals of mathematics. But if you are not, I see no harm in chanting - 1 seven is seven, 2 seven's are 14 and so on. It will get you by in the shops.
Can be arsed
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
Ok but here are some things I would wish to do or rather I would have wished to do if I was younger:
- make pottery for I think this would be very satisfying.
- climb K2 for as I have said before, it is simply the most beautiful mountain in the world.
Ok but here are some things I would wish to do or rather I would have wished to do if I was younger:
- make pottery for I think this would be very satisfying.
- climb K2 for as I have said before, it is simply the most beautiful mountain in the world.
- learned to play a musical instrument. Not sure what but the guitar, piano and a keyboard would be good.
- conducted an orchestra. Like Gilbert Kaplan, it would have to be Mahler.
- die on the Moon. This may seem strange or morbid even but then I remember reading a book by Heinlein called 'The Man who sold the Moon.' They just sat him on a rock and left him gazing upon the Earth until his oxygen ran out. A decent way to go I thought.
- take up archery. Think this must be a super sport whether it be the longbow or the crossbow.
- go to Tibet and gaze upon the Potala Palace. Fascinated by that place since I was a kid.
- learn to paint
-
- seen the launch of a Saturn V
Gaza 2
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
It just goes on, doesn't it? Innocent civilians slaughtered every day and there are protestations and marches against Israel all over the place. Why don't we have marches against Hamas? Think we had one in London but that was by Jews so given the hypocrisy of this world, that wouldn't count. Need a large collection of Gentiles in there to make it respectable.
This organisation is commited to destroying the Israeli state and denies the holocaust. It seems to have no interest is establishing a Palestinian homeland and plainly doesn't give a shit for Palestinian Arabs. The rockets continue to fly each day into Israel with a careless disregard for the consequences on Gaza people.
And don't forget that this crew's forbears sided with Hitler.
I think it was Bob Dylan in his song 'Masters of war' who said that 'I hope that you die and I hope you die soon.' He was talking about arms traders but the sentiment remains the same.
It just goes on, doesn't it? Innocent civilians slaughtered every day and there are protestations and marches against Israel all over the place. Why don't we have marches against Hamas? Think we had one in London but that was by Jews so given the hypocrisy of this world, that wouldn't count. Need a large collection of Gentiles in there to make it respectable.
This organisation is commited to destroying the Israeli state and denies the holocaust. It seems to have no interest is establishing a Palestinian homeland and plainly doesn't give a shit for Palestinian Arabs. The rockets continue to fly each day into Israel with a careless disregard for the consequences on Gaza people.
And don't forget that this crew's forbears sided with Hitler.
I think it was Bob Dylan in his song 'Masters of war' who said that 'I hope that you die and I hope you die soon.' He was talking about arms traders but the sentiment remains the same.
Centaur
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
No I am not talking about mythical creatures who were half man and half horse: I am talking about a rocket, a great rocket.
Centaur was conceived in the late 50’s when the Americans were awoken by the Soviet success in putting satellites into space and they also realised that something was needed to put heavy satellites into space. Centaur is not a booster which is to say that it is not the rocket that gets things off the ground: Centaur is a second or third stage rocket which is the gizmo that thumps its payload into space – and it has done that bloody well.
Centaur was the first proper rocket to use liquid hydrogen with liquid oxygen as a fuel and that brought its own unique problems which were overcome.
Atop boosters like Atlas and Titan, Centaur has sent exploring probes all over the solar system. Surveyor to the Moon, Mariner, Pioneer, Viking and Voyager to all the planets out to Neptune and finally Pluto New Horizons, which still has 2374 days, 16 hours and 2 minutes to its closest encounter.
It launched so many other satellites including Cassini which to this day still orbits Saturn.
Centaur is coming on 50 years old and remains a towering engineering achievement.
Wednesday 7 January 2009
Can't be arsed
Wednesday, January 7th, 2009
I've written before on those 'things to do before you die' books - dreadful ideas by psychological blackmailers. My lifelong problem has always been to resist being told what I must do and I confess that this attitude has both delayed my enjoyment of some things in this life or put me off them altogether. Coax me, walk me and I may just follow: tell me and you'll get 2 fingers.
But now I have read about a book that I would just love to have written - 'Can't be arsed:101 things not to do before you die'. What a concept, love it to bits. Well I am not going to give you 101 right now for it is late but let's put a few things down that I must not do:
- meet Gordon Ramsay, the Queen and Sarkozy's wife
- visit Majorca
- queue for pretty much anything
- go to Minnesota ever again in winter
- go on a roundabout ride
- see Detroit ever again
- listen to Metallica
- read anything by Margaret Drabble
- buy a timeshare
- eat fried eggs
- drink Bailey's Irish Cream
- drive another Volvo
- read War & Peace
- listen to Mervyn Bragg's catarrh ridden voice
- iron shirts except for a wedding or a funeral
- apologise for my country's history. Those that attack it should look at their own.
- listen to fisherman or golfers talk about their success
- watch soccer on TV
- use cheap ball point pens
- cook gravadlax, it is best eaten as it is
- attend any pop festival in a muddy field with unwashed hippies
- bugger a sheep even though I know you all think we do so in Wales
- drink cider
- learn another language
- carry a bottle of water with me in the UK
- look at any Henry Moore sculpture
- fly economy long haul (although I guess I may have too as my money diminishes)
- fly with Aerolineas Argentinas
- listen or even read about jazz
- be nice to the French - they appreciate English abuse - it reinforces their prejudices
- watch kids begging (another I suspect that I may have to get used to)
- read about child abuse
- go for a pee without having washed my hands after chopping chilli peppers
- wear a suit
- eat Vegemite or Promite. Marmite is the best!!!!!!
- shit in the bush
- get married again
- suffer pain or become blind
- eat sea cucumber
- try to understand the Middle East - there are days I'd nuke the fucking lot
- visit another concentration camp or watch another Holocaust movie
- take up knitting or sewing or even finger painting
- go to Merthyr Tydfil
- drink Martini Bianco
- get up for work
- wear boxer shorts
- ever, ever, ever watch something with Robin Williams in it
And never, never be told what I MUST do.
I've written before on those 'things to do before you die' books - dreadful ideas by psychological blackmailers. My lifelong problem has always been to resist being told what I must do and I confess that this attitude has both delayed my enjoyment of some things in this life or put me off them altogether. Coax me, walk me and I may just follow: tell me and you'll get 2 fingers.
But now I have read about a book that I would just love to have written - 'Can't be arsed:101 things not to do before you die'. What a concept, love it to bits. Well I am not going to give you 101 right now for it is late but let's put a few things down that I must not do:
- meet Gordon Ramsay, the Queen and Sarkozy's wife
- visit Majorca
- queue for pretty much anything
- go to Minnesota ever again in winter
- go on a roundabout ride
- see Detroit ever again
- listen to Metallica
- read anything by Margaret Drabble
- buy a timeshare
- eat fried eggs
- drink Bailey's Irish Cream
- drive another Volvo
- read War & Peace
- listen to Mervyn Bragg's catarrh ridden voice
- iron shirts except for a wedding or a funeral
- apologise for my country's history. Those that attack it should look at their own.
- listen to fisherman or golfers talk about their success
- watch soccer on TV
- use cheap ball point pens
- cook gravadlax, it is best eaten as it is
- attend any pop festival in a muddy field with unwashed hippies
- bugger a sheep even though I know you all think we do so in Wales
- drink cider
- learn another language
- carry a bottle of water with me in the UK
- look at any Henry Moore sculpture
- fly economy long haul (although I guess I may have too as my money diminishes)
- fly with Aerolineas Argentinas
- listen or even read about jazz
- be nice to the French - they appreciate English abuse - it reinforces their prejudices
- watch kids begging (another I suspect that I may have to get used to)
- read about child abuse
- go for a pee without having washed my hands after chopping chilli peppers
- wear a suit
- eat Vegemite or Promite. Marmite is the best!!!!!!
- shit in the bush
- get married again
- suffer pain or become blind
- eat sea cucumber
- try to understand the Middle East - there are days I'd nuke the fucking lot
- visit another concentration camp or watch another Holocaust movie
- take up knitting or sewing or even finger painting
- go to Merthyr Tydfil
- drink Martini Bianco
- get up for work
- wear boxer shorts
- ever, ever, ever watch something with Robin Williams in it
And never, never be told what I MUST do.
Mobile phone usage
Wednesday, January 7th, 2008
Common sense at last! It seems that we are on our way to allowing the use of mobile phones in hospitals. Like so many prohibitions on mobile phones, I always questioned the ban on the basis that no one ever showed that the phones shared the frequencies of other equipment or their harmonics. It's all basic physics and a drone could work it out.
I suspect commercial factors came into play here. Bedside pay phones and aircraft phones are bloody expensive and we could only be persuaded to use them by depriving us of other means of communication. I never saw any science in all this.
Same with the explosions in gas stations which I referred to in an earlier blog. Lighting petrol requires thermal energy and phones ain't got enough and for that matter, neither do cigarettes although I concede that the match or lighter may have.
I have always believed that mobile phones posed little threat to other equipment given that frequencies are allocated internationally. Their biggest threat is annoyance and that is something we have to live with.
Common sense at last! It seems that we are on our way to allowing the use of mobile phones in hospitals. Like so many prohibitions on mobile phones, I always questioned the ban on the basis that no one ever showed that the phones shared the frequencies of other equipment or their harmonics. It's all basic physics and a drone could work it out.
I suspect commercial factors came into play here. Bedside pay phones and aircraft phones are bloody expensive and we could only be persuaded to use them by depriving us of other means of communication. I never saw any science in all this.
Same with the explosions in gas stations which I referred to in an earlier blog. Lighting petrol requires thermal energy and phones ain't got enough and for that matter, neither do cigarettes although I concede that the match or lighter may have.
I have always believed that mobile phones posed little threat to other equipment given that frequencies are allocated internationally. Their biggest threat is annoyance and that is something we have to live with.
Gordon Ramsay on foreign food
Wednesday, January 7th, 2009
Gordon Ramsay is one of Britain's best known chefs, largely for his TV appearances and his incessant profanity which is even worse than mine and that is saying something. Back in May, when I was in Africa, he apparently launched a polemic against the use of foreign food in the UK. He went so far as to say that restaurants using foreign food should be fined or even put out of business.
I have found, when surfing the net, that he has received considerable criticism on this, largely for his xenophobic attitude. Honestly, I cannot give a damn about that. If he wishes to hate foreigners, more fool him.
My objection to his stupid attitude is that his position would deny the third world the opportunity of exporting food to the UK. The poor countries have a difficult job already given the subsidies and protectionism which the EU and the USA offers local producers. Ramsay's ideas would cut them off altogther.
Oh sure, flying in fresh veg from Tanzania produces CO2 but does not the very same veg mop up CO2? The people growing these veg could not afford a single carrot in one of Ramsay's restaurants whilst he goes home every night to Tana and no doubt drinks La Tache.
Gordon Ramsay is one of Britain's best known chefs, largely for his TV appearances and his incessant profanity which is even worse than mine and that is saying something. Back in May, when I was in Africa, he apparently launched a polemic against the use of foreign food in the UK. He went so far as to say that restaurants using foreign food should be fined or even put out of business.
I have found, when surfing the net, that he has received considerable criticism on this, largely for his xenophobic attitude. Honestly, I cannot give a damn about that. If he wishes to hate foreigners, more fool him.
My objection to his stupid attitude is that his position would deny the third world the opportunity of exporting food to the UK. The poor countries have a difficult job already given the subsidies and protectionism which the EU and the USA offers local producers. Ramsay's ideas would cut them off altogther.
Oh sure, flying in fresh veg from Tanzania produces CO2 but does not the very same veg mop up CO2? The people growing these veg could not afford a single carrot in one of Ramsay's restaurants whilst he goes home every night to Tana and no doubt drinks La Tache.
Tuesday 6 January 2009
Proportionality
Tuesday, January 6th, 2009
I am not sure if this word is in the dictionary and I cannot be arsed to look it up. I've got a handle on it though. It has been used by the media and commentators for a while now regarding the response that one party may make to another. Basically it seems to founded on the flawed logic that when responding to the attack of another (verbal or physical), the response should be no greater in strength nor venom than that of the original assault. It's not a new idea: Moses came up with it but that does not make it better.
How bloody stupid can you get?
If you are minding your own business and you are attacked, then I see no reason why retaliation should not be swift and total. If you get a slap in the face and give one back, then you may well get another. No, if you get a slap in the face, then smack the assailant down to the point where he will not attempt an assault again. See my earlier post on bullying.
Neither von Clausewitz nor Sun Tzu called for total war, Goebbels coined that phrase, but the message was the same. If you are going to fight, then fight to win. Wars have changed in the past 200 years. In ancient times, it was army against army and civilian casualities were an unfortunate by-product. These days, it is culture against culture and everyone is involved, regrettably.
The world's media have been largely equivocal on Gaza as I have said before but there is an undercurrent of opinion to what is seen as Israel's 'disproportinate' attack on Gaza. So what is Israel to do? Count the rockets fired by Hamas and send an equal number back? Hamas is committed to establishing an Islamic state across Palestine so that ain't gonna work. Hamas needs a bloody good smack to discourage it from trying again and if they cared one little bit about their own or anybody else's civilians, they should quit firing missiles today.
Proportionality is just another absurd doctrine dreamed up by cosy people far away from the front line. It is the stuff of politicians and the chattering classes. And of course for many of them the death toll of 2,752 on 9/11 is but a faded memory.
I am not sure if this word is in the dictionary and I cannot be arsed to look it up. I've got a handle on it though. It has been used by the media and commentators for a while now regarding the response that one party may make to another. Basically it seems to founded on the flawed logic that when responding to the attack of another (verbal or physical), the response should be no greater in strength nor venom than that of the original assault. It's not a new idea: Moses came up with it but that does not make it better.
How bloody stupid can you get?
If you are minding your own business and you are attacked, then I see no reason why retaliation should not be swift and total. If you get a slap in the face and give one back, then you may well get another. No, if you get a slap in the face, then smack the assailant down to the point where he will not attempt an assault again. See my earlier post on bullying.
Neither von Clausewitz nor Sun Tzu called for total war, Goebbels coined that phrase, but the message was the same. If you are going to fight, then fight to win. Wars have changed in the past 200 years. In ancient times, it was army against army and civilian casualities were an unfortunate by-product. These days, it is culture against culture and everyone is involved, regrettably.
The world's media have been largely equivocal on Gaza as I have said before but there is an undercurrent of opinion to what is seen as Israel's 'disproportinate' attack on Gaza. So what is Israel to do? Count the rockets fired by Hamas and send an equal number back? Hamas is committed to establishing an Islamic state across Palestine so that ain't gonna work. Hamas needs a bloody good smack to discourage it from trying again and if they cared one little bit about their own or anybody else's civilians, they should quit firing missiles today.
Proportionality is just another absurd doctrine dreamed up by cosy people far away from the front line. It is the stuff of politicians and the chattering classes. And of course for many of them the death toll of 2,752 on 9/11 is but a faded memory.
Recipes
Tuesday, January 6th, 2009
I like cooking, I really do. It can be peaceful when you do it for yourself or hectic when you are cooking for a party. Either way, it is creative and that can be satisfying.
I suppose I have about a yard of cookery books and I shall never cook all the recipes within them in this world or the next. Same goes for the friends' houses that I have visited. You seem to buy recipe books for the few meals that attract you.
But then there is the internet and the recipes on there are often amazing. The BBC TV food is simply brilliant.
Cooking should be simple and many achieve it. However, Madhur Jaffrey seems to want loads of various spices to make her dishes. I have always wondered if the dish would be much different if I left two or three out.
But then you move on to sauces and these can be wonderful. However, you do have to question the meal where the main body consists of 2 or 3 main ingredients and the sauce requires 17 or more combined together over the course of two hours. I reckon this sauce business, divine as it can be, is simply self-indulgence.
Yeah the simplest recipes are the best.
I like cooking, I really do. It can be peaceful when you do it for yourself or hectic when you are cooking for a party. Either way, it is creative and that can be satisfying.
I suppose I have about a yard of cookery books and I shall never cook all the recipes within them in this world or the next. Same goes for the friends' houses that I have visited. You seem to buy recipe books for the few meals that attract you.
But then there is the internet and the recipes on there are often amazing. The BBC TV food is simply brilliant.
Cooking should be simple and many achieve it. However, Madhur Jaffrey seems to want loads of various spices to make her dishes. I have always wondered if the dish would be much different if I left two or three out.
But then you move on to sauces and these can be wonderful. However, you do have to question the meal where the main body consists of 2 or 3 main ingredients and the sauce requires 17 or more combined together over the course of two hours. I reckon this sauce business, divine as it can be, is simply self-indulgence.
Yeah the simplest recipes are the best.
UFO sighting
Tuesday, January 6th, 2009
I believe in UFO's in the sense that we may see things flying which we cannot identify but I do not believe in flying saucers or alien spacecraft. However this experience is interesting, so read on.
P.S. Update January 7th. They were Thai or Chinese sky lanterns, sort of mini hot air balloons and have puzzled people around the world. Thanks Vanessa.
I believe in UFO's in the sense that we may see things flying which we cannot identify but I do not believe in flying saucers or alien spacecraft. However this experience is interesting, so read on.
In the evening of January 1st, around 7 pm, I parked my car outside my sister’s house in Two Gates, Tamworth, Staffordshire. As I reached the door, I saw two bright orange lights rise above the northern horizon. They moved swiftly and silently across the sky without flickering and disappeared when they were high and roughly north west. The disappearance was not instantaneous, more like a quick fade. The transit took no more than two minutes.
Before they disappeared, another pair rose and followed much the same track, disappearing in the same position. Finally, a group of 3 objects followed the same track. These started as a V formation but as they moved, they spread apart.
My sister and her husband watched this with me.
The disappearance pattern was similar to those Echo satellite balloons which quickly faded as they entered the moon’s shadow. However, the sky that night was cloudy.
Thoughts?
Aircraft? – Unlikely for aircraft do not emerge from the horizon unless they are taking off, Further, they were totally silent and did not carry red and green beacons.
Hot air balloons? – Too fast to be these. And what would hot air balloons be doing at that time of night.
Ball lightning? I don’t know enough about this phenomenon to comment.
Satellites? Maybe but the sky was cloudy.
The following is from the BBC Coventry website:
on Friday evening we saw 4/5 lights in the sky nr whitestone Nuneaton nr coventry they were in a row and were there for a while then went behind cloud we went back next day to see if they could have been on the top of anything but it was just open fields At first I thought it was a block of flats but when we turned the corner there was nothing there just these dull lights in a row what do you think they could have been ?many thanks jean
richard kane
03-01-2008 at 5.15 I saw 4 bright orange lights over earlsdon moving slowly accross the sky they were all quite close to each other and moving in unison, in a triangular formation.did you see them too
Paule Clarke
My husband and I were on our way back from a funeral at 5.00 pm 2nd Jan 2009 when we spotted at least 5 orange orbs in circular formation in the night sky. They drifted off towards Coventry like a flight of birds in slow-motion. They seemed to be silent and moved out of sight within three minutes. We are not fanciful people but could not explain what it could be - if it were aircraft they were flying too close and their shape was not consistent with normal aeroplanes.
P.S. Update January 7th. They were Thai or Chinese sky lanterns, sort of mini hot air balloons and have puzzled people around the world. Thanks Vanessa.
Sorting a school bully
Tuesday, January 6th, 2009
Many years ago, in the early 80's I think, my son was being bullied at school. Kids don't want to talk about this but I eventually got it out of him and the perpetrator was some kid down the road.
I resolved the matter very simply. A few days later, I caught the bully alone walking past my house. I grabbed him and pushed him against a garden fence. It wasn't a conversation rather a monologue on my part. Basically, it was something like - 'Look you little shit, if you touch my son again, I am going to break your fucking leg. And yeah you may well go home and send your dad round to beat me up. But if you do then I surely will break your fucking leg the next time I catch you.'
I was deliberately profane to scare him and I don't apologise for my son was never bullied again.
Interestingly, the nanny in the movie 'The hand that rocks the cradle' used the same tactics many years later.
As I have said before, appeasment never works and you have to get down to their level.
Many years ago, in the early 80's I think, my son was being bullied at school. Kids don't want to talk about this but I eventually got it out of him and the perpetrator was some kid down the road.
I resolved the matter very simply. A few days later, I caught the bully alone walking past my house. I grabbed him and pushed him against a garden fence. It wasn't a conversation rather a monologue on my part. Basically, it was something like - 'Look you little shit, if you touch my son again, I am going to break your fucking leg. And yeah you may well go home and send your dad round to beat me up. But if you do then I surely will break your fucking leg the next time I catch you.'
I was deliberately profane to scare him and I don't apologise for my son was never bullied again.
Interestingly, the nanny in the movie 'The hand that rocks the cradle' used the same tactics many years later.
As I have said before, appeasment never works and you have to get down to their level.
Sunday 4 January 2009
Electric blankets
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
I avoided these things, think that they were sissy things for wusses. But as my arthritis in my back progressed, my secretary, Linda suggested that one might help. To be honest, I don't know if it has.
However, I do use one and it is wonderful to hit that bed and sink into the warm cloak that it provides. Only problem is that I just want to lie there and drift off. It has ruined my bedtime reading.
I avoided these things, think that they were sissy things for wusses. But as my arthritis in my back progressed, my secretary, Linda suggested that one might help. To be honest, I don't know if it has.
However, I do use one and it is wonderful to hit that bed and sink into the warm cloak that it provides. Only problem is that I just want to lie there and drift off. It has ruined my bedtime reading.
Unification through sport
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
By their very nature, all sports are adversarial in that one team or individual has to beat the opposition. Team sports seem to bring out the worst in people arousing tribal emotions akin to war. In my distant memory, I recall that El Salvador and Guatemala once went to war over a soccer match. Sheer bloody stupidity.
Individual competitions command a deep loyalty but they never seem to arouse people to fight like team sports do. And of all of these, horse races seem to arouse less rancour. OK so you have bet on the 2nd but you still marvel at the winner especially if it is a recognised champion and you are unified in the glory of its success.
By their very nature, all sports are adversarial in that one team or individual has to beat the opposition. Team sports seem to bring out the worst in people arousing tribal emotions akin to war. In my distant memory, I recall that El Salvador and Guatemala once went to war over a soccer match. Sheer bloody stupidity.
Individual competitions command a deep loyalty but they never seem to arouse people to fight like team sports do. And of all of these, horse races seem to arouse less rancour. OK so you have bet on the 2nd but you still marvel at the winner especially if it is a recognised champion and you are unified in the glory of its success.
Smoking and fatties
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
Read a piece in the paper yesterday where a Liverpool councillor said that smoking litterers were 'disgusting'. So I looked her up and saw that she was fat. Emailed her and pointed out that while smoking is banned on aircraft, lard arses are free to occupy 1.5 seats and squash their neighbours against the bulkhead. Think there was a Supreme Court decision on that - something about violation of rights, no doubt, fatties rights not mine.
She replied and told me that her size was due to a medical condition. I had a twinge of guilt then but just a twinge. She is responsible for the environment in Liverpool and I am certain that Liverpool is not dying of a surfeit of cigarette butts.
Read a piece in the paper yesterday where a Liverpool councillor said that smoking litterers were 'disgusting'. So I looked her up and saw that she was fat. Emailed her and pointed out that while smoking is banned on aircraft, lard arses are free to occupy 1.5 seats and squash their neighbours against the bulkhead. Think there was a Supreme Court decision on that - something about violation of rights, no doubt, fatties rights not mine.
She replied and told me that her size was due to a medical condition. I had a twinge of guilt then but just a twinge. She is responsible for the environment in Liverpool and I am certain that Liverpool is not dying of a surfeit of cigarette butts.
My worst dream
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
Generally, I have good dreams and they are in colour. Some are vivid and bizarre so I guess my brain is mulling things over. But in the past, I had one really bad dream that recurred until I told people about it:
Basically the alarm clock goes off and after 2 snooze pauses, you get up. Downstairs and make the coffee. Then wash, shave and shower and get dressed for work.
AND THEN - the alarm clock really does go off and you awake and realise that you have got to do the whole damn thing all over again.
I hated it but my mom told me that if you ever told someone about a dream, you would never have that dream again. So I broadcast that bloody dream near and far.
Generally, I have good dreams and they are in colour. Some are vivid and bizarre so I guess my brain is mulling things over. But in the past, I had one really bad dream that recurred until I told people about it:
Basically the alarm clock goes off and after 2 snooze pauses, you get up. Downstairs and make the coffee. Then wash, shave and shower and get dressed for work.
AND THEN - the alarm clock really does go off and you awake and realise that you have got to do the whole damn thing all over again.
I hated it but my mom told me that if you ever told someone about a dream, you would never have that dream again. So I broadcast that bloody dream near and far.
Cicadas
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
Oh sure, I have heard about these creatures for years but I met them for the first time in Baltimore in Whitsun 2004. There were zillions of them around and it was difficult not to tread on them. This is one on Ebony's hand.
Now this lot, the northern USA cicada spends 17 years underground before hatching. Then they come out, mate and die. In the south, they are dormant for 13 years and that's really interesting for both 13 and 17 are prime numbers. Think about it. If their life cycle was not a prime number, for example 8 years, then their predators who may have life cycles of 2, 4 or 8 years would have a lot of opportunities to have a go at them. So the 2 yo predators only get to attack the 17 yo every 34 years. Neat I thought.
Oh sure, I have heard about these creatures for years but I met them for the first time in Baltimore in Whitsun 2004. There were zillions of them around and it was difficult not to tread on them. This is one on Ebony's hand.
Now this lot, the northern USA cicada spends 17 years underground before hatching. Then they come out, mate and die. In the south, they are dormant for 13 years and that's really interesting for both 13 and 17 are prime numbers. Think about it. If their life cycle was not a prime number, for example 8 years, then their predators who may have life cycles of 2, 4 or 8 years would have a lot of opportunities to have a go at them. So the 2 yo predators only get to attack the 17 yo every 34 years. Neat I thought.
Storm drains of Los Angeles
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
You see these occasionally in movies and they seem to be wonderful structures - concrete canyons with flying bridges. I think they are splendid and I wish I had seen them when I was in LA.
They seem vast although the movie shots only show a trickle of water flowing through, if any. So why so big? Well I looked it up and it seems they have to be big for those occasions when the rainfall run-off from the nearby mountains is enormous.
You see these occasionally in movies and they seem to be wonderful structures - concrete canyons with flying bridges. I think they are splendid and I wish I had seen them when I was in LA.
They seem vast although the movie shots only show a trickle of water flowing through, if any. So why so big? Well I looked it up and it seems they have to be big for those occasions when the rainfall run-off from the nearby mountains is enormous.
Gaza
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
People have been out on the streets around the world protesting at Israel's bombing and now invasion of Gaza. Yes the killing of innocent civilians is terrible but all this could be stopped tomorrow.
If Hamas stopped firing rockets into Israel, the Israelis wouldn't have a leg to stand on in justifying their actions.
Most world leaders have been equivocal over this condemning both sides but not Barack Obama. His spokesman said, 'The president-elect is closely monitoring global events, including the situation in Gaza.' Well great, I am delighted to know that he's in touch. I did warn you that he may be the next Jimmy Carter.
People have been out on the streets around the world protesting at Israel's bombing and now invasion of Gaza. Yes the killing of innocent civilians is terrible but all this could be stopped tomorrow.
If Hamas stopped firing rockets into Israel, the Israelis wouldn't have a leg to stand on in justifying their actions.
Most world leaders have been equivocal over this condemning both sides but not Barack Obama. His spokesman said, 'The president-elect is closely monitoring global events, including the situation in Gaza.' Well great, I am delighted to know that he's in touch. I did warn you that he may be the next Jimmy Carter.
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