so when's it going to happen, and where?

i got to thinking today what with all the talk of global warming, if sea levels rise, what would be the first officially recognised island to be 'lost' to global warming, and when?

surprisingly, i have read of nothing of this. surely one particular island land mass is going to be the first to go.

i have no idea, but somewhere like indonesia, or the arctic must rank fairly highly.

Racehorse Barbaro put down

i was on the exercise bike at the gym yesterday, and the woman in front of me is reading the paper (why do people read at the gym...? the ones that read, are the ones that never break a sweat, seem to just go through through the motions, and are only only half committed in their workouts) tanc, victor, & maro, are you guys reading 'wuthering heights' during your workouts?

so anyway, the headline on the sports page reads 'a racehorse that made us care'. barbaro has been put down. sorry, euthanised...this is d.c.

a racehorse that made us care? why, because he won?....

a racehorse that loses and becomes injured isn't euthanised, we don't care, because we're never going to hear about it, and the poor animal is shot in the head and becomes dogmeat. yeah, sure: "made us care...."

cards, flowers? tears? but not for the losers, just the winners...

iraq

why does america's 'king' think he can 'fix' everything?

i think it's the movies.

except this isn't fucking hollywood!

there aren't any good-looking american heroes, overcoming impossible odds. no cheesy divorced husband-wife scientist/military couple working get-togethers, to save the world from destruction.

it doesn't matter if you send another 20,000 soldiers shouting "we're the best, of the best, of the best, sir!" because where they're going, they're not the best (because you're not fighting a war on your terms).

3 years on and 3,000+ highly trained american personnel later, might have taught you what the russians already knew from afghanistan.

if you kick a ball, it moves (yes landon donovan, and the us soccer team)

if you get thrown against a brick wall, some 30ft through the air, nobody's getting up, looking all tough, wiping a trickle of blood from the corner of their mouth, and saying "is that all you got "mother fucker!"

if you start a war, all hell breaks loose. people actually die horrible painful deaths. they do, honestly. the american news media isn't going to show any bodies coming back home, or any graphic images of dead us personnel.. how 'real' is that coverage?

and speaking of real. unlike hollywood, real-life doesn't have happy endings for everyone. just because george says we can't do this and we can't do that, doesn't make any difference to the actual outcome. THERE IS NO HAPPY ENDING FOR IRAQ, GEORGE!

his use of rhetoric is that of a 12 year-old, practicing for a school play; and a poorly written one, at that.

his command of language is also that of a 12 year old, but one who hasn't paid attention in class. if he were a dog, i'd bark myself.

it's hard not to recall h. g. wells' famous opening lines to 'war of the worlds':

'No-one would have believed in the early years of the twenty-first century...'

what does he do after 9/11? 'Bush urges Americans to spend'

He tried to set an example for Americans by taking Washington DC Mayor Anthony Williams out for a high-profile steak dinner in Washington. (i'm sure he got to shake hands with the mayor (i know something you don't george, unless your reading this...ha, ha!) see below george:

http://ablokesblog.blogspot.com/search?q=mayor+

you can't turn back the arrow of time, george. you just don't get it, do you?

watch 'control room'...

hey: how's your knowledge of nursery rhymes, george?

how 'bout this one?

'...and all the king's horses and all the king's men, couldn't put humpty together again!'

Great Barrier Reef could soon die

From the bbc:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6312147.stm

Great Barrier Reef could soon die

The reef is Australa's greatest tourist attraction

Australia's famous Great Barrier Reef could be dead within decades because of the effects of global warming, according to a leaked report.

The study warns that the organisms which make up the reef's coral could be bleached, because of warmer seas.

The report was compiled by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and published by The Age newspaper.

The Great Barrier Reef is regarded as the world's largest living organism.

It is Australia's number one tourist destination, attracting a million visitors a year, and is home to sharks, turtles and numerous brightly coloured fish.

that should make james m. inhofe just smile and shake his head

need a reminder who james inhofe is? it’s a good read. this man is supposed to be educated…


Climate Change Update
Senate Floor Statement by
U.S. Sen. James M. Inhofe(R-Okla)

January 4, 2005
As I said on the Senate floor on July 28, 2003, "much of the debate over global warming is predicated on fear, rather than science." I called the threat of catastrophic global warming the "greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people," a statement that, to put it mildly, was not viewed kindly by environmental extremists and their elitist organizations. I also pointed out, in a lengthy committee report, that those same environmental extremists exploit the issue for fundraising purposes, raking in millions of dollars, even using federal taxpayer dollars to finance their campaigns.

For these groups, the issue of catastrophic global warming is not just a favored fundraising tool. In truth, it's more fundamental than that. Put simply, man-induced global warming is an article of religious faith. Therefore contending that its central tenets are flawed is, to them, heresy of the most despicable kind.

Furthermore, scientists who challenge its tenets are attacked, sometimes personally, for blindly ignoring the so-called "scientific consensus." But that's not all: because of their skeptical views, they are contemptuously dismissed for being "out of the mainstream." This is, it seems to me, highly ironic: aren't scientists supposed to be non-conforming and question consensus? Nevertheless, it's not hard to read between the lines: "skeptic" and "out of the mainstream" are thinly veiled code phrases, meaning anyone who doubts alarmist orthodoxy is, in short, a quack.

I have insisted all along that the climate change debate should be based on fundamental principles of science, not religion. Ultimately, I hope, it will be decided by hard facts and data-and by serious scientists committed to the principles of sound science. Instead of censoring skeptical viewpoints, as my alarmist friends favor, these scientists must be heard, and I will do my part to make sure that they are heard.

…In addition, last month, popular author Dr. Michael Crichton, who has questioned the wisdom of those who trumpet a "scientific consensus," released a new book called "State of Fear," which is premised on the global warming debate. I'm happy to report that Dr. Crichton's new book reached #3 on the New York Times bestseller list.

I highly recommend the book to all of my colleagues. Dr. Crichton, a medical doctor and scientist, very cleverly weaves a compelling presentation of the scientific facts of climate change-with ample footnotes and documentation throughout-into a gripping plot. From what I can gather, Dr. Crichton's book is designed to bring some sanity to the global warming debate.

…Dr. Crichton states that, "Nobody knows how much of the present warming trend might be a natural phenomenon," and, "Nobody knows how much of the present trend might be man-made." And for those who see impending disaster in the coming century, Dr. Crichton urges calm: "I suspect that people of 2100 will be much richer than we are, consume more energy, have a smaller global population, and enjoy more wilderness than we have today. I don't think we have to worry about them."

For those who do worry, or induce such worry in others, "State of Fear" has a very simple message: stop worrying and stop spreading fear. Throughout the book, "fictional" environmental organizations are more focused on raising money, principally by scaring potential contributors with bogus scientific claims and predictions of a global apocalypse, than with "saving the environment."

no doubt about it. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) should have just asked dr. michael crichton. he’d have said there’s nothing to worry about, australians shouldn’t panic just because a bunch of silly so-called scientists are scare-mongering the good people of the outback, and everyone should remain calm, because coral is a fact, and it is here to stay. period.

Duck comes back from dead, again

from the bbc:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6309159.stm


Perky the duck has had a difficult couple of weeks

A duck which survived being shot before spending two days in a refrigerator has now overcome major surgery - despite briefly dying on the operating table.

Florida vets working to repair the gunshot damage to Perky's wing panicked when the duck's heart failed.

But they managed to resuscitate the bird, who shot to fame when she was found alive in the hunter's fridge two days after being shot.

Perky now has a pin in her wing, but is expected to make a good recovery.

'She's alive!'

The duck entered surgery with vets confident that she would survive the procedure despite serious injuries to her wing, leg and beak.

But her heart failed during the operation, prompting senior vet David Hale to declare her officially dead.

"We lost her. You know, the bird's dead and it's over. I'm sorry," he said, recalling the operation.

"And then, you know, up comes that head and the wings start flapping and, honestly, what, 20 seconds later, I mean the bird was, like, up."

Few details have been made public about how the medical team brought Perky back to life, but the Associated Press said she was revived using CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

There were scenes of high emotion in the operating theatre, said Noni Beck, of the Goose Creek Wildlife Sanctuary.

"I started crying: 'She's alive!'"

Perky made international headlines when she shocked a hunter's wife who found her alive after being stored inside a refrigerator for two days.

Mr Hale said the duck's slow metabolism helped her survive the low temperatures for so long.

…just makes you want to rush out to virginia, buy a gun, shoot an animal who has done nothing to you, and is just trying to survive, and join the NRA…

well, that's a relief!

'team nutty' is somewhat extremely pleased to discover that 'team hardsoft' is a long, long, long way behind...

The ducati 1098, weight: america's love affair with it, and the price of gas.

about 15 years ago, i had just finished the first year of a 3 year degree in economics, and my university had offered 7 students a chance to take the second year in brescia, in italy. i jumped at the chance. i took in a couple of itailian foreign language students at my house in cambridge beforehand to give me a chance learn some of the lingo.

instead of flying on the cheap, i thought it would be a great adventure to drive across northern europe instead, and arrive in italy courtesy of a 6 month-old vw golf.

had i tried to pick a longer route, i’d have probably have failed (1,500 miles...) i first went to visit my brother who was working in holland (totally featureless landscape, save for canals, fields of flowers, and windmills) and living in noordvijk, a beach town.

next stop, switzerland. first of all, there’s mountains everywhere, and you’re greeted by guards at the border carrying machine guns, who force you to buy a motorway pass good for a year. next: that was nothing prepared to the shock of looking at the petrol pump as I tried to try and work out in swiss francs what the cost was of filling the tank. this was 15 years ago, and i reckoned it was the equivalent of 7 quid a gallon…that’s $14.. (then).

then on to italy. crazy, mad, impossible, expensive, in otherways inexpensive (decent wine being one of them).. yet always wonderful. took me 6 months to adjust to living there, and 6 months actually enjoying being there. anyone going to live in italy better had not go with any expectations of what they want from italy. this is italy. you will learn…

what does this have to do with the ducati 1098? well, in america, carroll shelby showed those italians a thing or two, that by stuffing a big engine into a small AC (british) car, you could make it go faster. a lot faster. he beat ferrari at it’s own game. that’s something the tifosi don’t particularly worry about too much, as they will only be too happy to tell you that the only manufacturer to have competed in every single season of formula one isn’t the ford motor company. and besides, i doubt many 6-year old boys and 80-year olds alike in america, can describe accurately the sound of a ford engine…in italy, it’s a very different story with the scream of the flat 12 boxer of the hallowed name of the italian marque.

very high (relative to the united states) prices of petrol have resulted in some small, very interesting cars (that perform) and high taxation of larger engined vehicles across europe. in the united states, vehicles have grown dimensionally larger and heavier, gas prices have been (still are) absurdly cheap ($3 isn’t expensive…) and a government that has basically repeatedly driven it’s knee into the balls of public transportation can’t pretend otherwise when there’s been no real capital investment in anything other than continued road-building projects to speak of in the past 20 years or so.

so now we have a situation where detroit is hemorrhaging like leech’s are back in business, at fords and general motors, and all the while these industry bosses are very busy indeed laying off tens of thousands of long-time employees, and shutting down entire factories. yet amazingly these giants of industry continue to market their same, tired line of gas-guzzling pick-up trucks during every commercial break on nfl sunday. bill ford’s ‘bold innovations’, my arse! i’m not seeing any of them on my flat screen…is anybody else? does anyone in the united states know that ford actually produce a car called the ford focus? it's a small, fuel-efficient passenger vehicle...

instead, here’s what everyone saw every single commercial break during the 2006 fox nfl football sunday, sponsored by ford.

Ford F-150 Pick up Truck: Built-Ford-Tough:

this vehicle's specs: 202hp, and it weighs 3,159 kg. that's nearly 35 lbs of weight 'per horsepower'

‘bold innovations’? compared to what! a rock? oh, sorry, that’s a chevy silverado…

so carroll shelby kind of rewrote the book on car performance. but not for long, and only really in america. while nascar (snzzzzzzzz) goes round and round and round, in ovals, touring car championships and rallys, show the auto industry a very different solution, as does indy car racing. it is no surprise (except maybe to americans) that nearly all indy cars are manufactured and engineered in northamptonshire, england. a culture that forces adaptation is the one best placed to extract the most out of limitation (kind of like evolution…)

in america, it’s just the opposite, cheap and plentiful gasoline supply hasn’t created the conditions or market or competition necessary at these very highest levels of racing. good old economics…..(kind of like evolution…)

ask anyone in europe who has been on a racetrack and they will almost universally answer the question “how do you make a vehice go faster?” with “make it lighter”, then “make it more powerful”. this obsession with weight is so well respected, yet so little understood across the pond, it seems, until only of late.

skiing offers a perfect analogy: anyone can go fast downhill in a straight line, but try and make a few quick turns, and all of a sudden, mass works viciously against you. a quick search of all the world cup men’s downhill slalom championship winner’s weights will show that there hasn’t been a single one of nfl offensive tackle proportions…it’s the same for a vehicle on the road or on a track. weight is the enemy of performance, handling, braking, and fuel econmy. period. but you'd never know that living in america...

and so to ducati’s 1098. by the numbers, it puts out 160 bhp and it weighs 173kg…
that's 2.4 lbs of weight 'per horsepower'....!!!!!!!!

this remarkable saturation of pure motorcycling purpose and intent, is an expression of passion as much as it is of design and technical ability. if i were ever able to cock my leg over it, i’m quite sure my hands would be clammy as i grip the ‘bars, my mouth would be dry, my mind racing, my nerves a wreck, and my stomach muscles would be in knots. and this is before i've even started the engine!

when you can speak thus of a member of your stable, bill ford; that is what i would call 'bold innovation'!

until then, it's a pick-up truck...

Lorry driver rains cash on crowd

from the bbc:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6304943.stm

A German lorry driver has thrown away tens of thousands of euros after winning a radio competition by promising to do precisely that.

Marko Hilgert pledged to give away three-quarters of the 100,000 euros (£65,800; $129,000) prize money.

He was as good as his word and threw notes onto the town square of Kaiserslautern, in western Germany, as he was suspended above it in a crane.

Some 3,000 people scrambled to collect the notes as they rained down.

Mr Hilgert kept the rest of the prize money to pay off part of his mortgage.

"If I threw three quarters of it out of the window, I would obviously still profit," he said.

"But the people also profit from this, and that's what people realised when they voted for me as the winner of the competition."

could you see this happening anywhere in america...?

e-mail to the Economist : Rich man, poor man

Rich man, poor man

in reference to the article 'Globalisation and the rise of inequality'

http://www.economist.com/printedition/

letters@economist.com

Dear Sirs,

I read your article ‘Rich man, poor man’, thinking perhaps the author, James Fryer, had made a mistake. Surely this piece should have been titled 'Rich man, poor people'.

For every Chief executive there are nearly always hundreds, possibly thousands, or more that often meet the same unfortunate news as those sawyers and gluers of Galax, Virginia. in your article. To say these are the glory days of global capitalism is to ‘tip your cap’ and place your publication’s ‘feet’ firmly in the trenches of the Mr. Nardelli’s of this world, and to only nod a passing respect to the sawyers and gluers, for I ask, Is it not their capital economy as well? You say they are not happy. I say, go to Galax!. Maybe ‘happy’ isn’t the appropriate word. Something that more accurately reflects the small town’s true gloom and despair, might have served them better, and fairer.

I quote: ‘The first rule is to avoid harming the very miracle that generates so much wealth. Take for instance the arguments about high executive pay’. Really?, Miracle?, For the executives like Mr. Nardelli, perhaps. I’m sure the gluers and sawyers, and all those on the receiving end of similar bad news don’t see it as a miracle, so how true can that statement really be? Wealth creation is a wonderful thing, but left unchecked, it can hardly be said to be a miracle.

No better example can be offered than here in the United States. I live just a few short blocks away from the Whitehouse. From this building, policy has been written, decisions made, actions taken that not only affect people here in Washington, D.C., but the rest of the country, and the rest of the world as well.

This richest nation on earth, (let’s not forget; built on the back of free, slave-labour) cannot presently manage to send its children to school and college for free, cannot provide free health care for its citizens, and has homeless people wandering and sleeping on the streets in plain view of the Whitehouse. Not only that, but people who are obviously in very real need of care have been forced out onto the streets from institutions, because of repeated cuts in government spending, all while the richest sectors in society enjoy increasingly fabulous wealth. I invite James Fyrer to spend a day with me, here in the nation’s capital, where I will take him on a tour of some very uncomfortable sights. It won’t take very long…

Nobody can argue too strongly that wealth creation is not the way out of poverty, but as for a ‘miracle’, I don’t think the sawyers and gluers of Galax, Virginia, or anyone unfortunate enough to be living on the streets are on their hands and knees right now, giving thanks to the Lord; but there again, I guess not too many of them are subscribers to the Economist…

Mark Solomon
Washington, D.C.

the Dakar Rally

Stephane Peterhansel earned his third Dakar Rally driving title on Sunday despite not winning a single stage. However, French motorcycle rider Eric Aubijoux became the second fatality in this year's race. The 42-year-old died near the end of the 14th stage between Tambacounda and Dakar in Senegal on Saturday.

South African motorcyclist Elmer Symons, 29, competing in his first Dakar Rally, died after an accident during the fourth stage on 9 January.

Last year, 41-year-old Australian motorcyclist Andy Caldecott died.

Two children were also killed in Guinea and Senegal after being hit by vehicles passing through their villages.

Two years ago, 2001 and 2002 champion Fabrizio Meoni of Italy and Juan Manuel Perez of Spain, both motorcyclists with KTM, were killed.

the dakar rally is the world's toughest rally...

Bush Insists U.S. Must Not Fail in Iraq

that's some pretty big talk, george, considering you've had three years to bollocks everything up and push iraq to the point of collapse, with mounting weekly, deadly attacks (currently 900 or so) from the warring factions. but there again, talk is cheap, unlike lives lost. you'll be out of office in two years, while everyone else will be very busy still dealing with carnage and nightmare you've created, and still unbelievably, think you can manage. (that's probably because the whitehouse, or his ranch in texas, isn't anywhere near baghdad...)

you're an idiot; it's a pity you're the world's most powerful idiot.

in case you didn't know, george, britain created iraq, a 'manufactured' country, some decades ago, from a land that didn't want to become one, and america now seems to think that because it wants a democracy there, it can somehow miraculously engineer one.

and let's be quite frank, bushy; you're no churchill...

somebody had better lend you a few history books...,

or any book on the middle east that wasn't written by an american.

oh, and how's new orlean's doing, george? the poorest half that hasn't been rebuilt, i mean....i only ask, because amazingly, you didn't even mention the devasted gulf state of louisiana in your state of the union address...or have you already so quickly forgotten?

Bush asks for 'a chance' on Iraq

i hope all the tens of thousands of families that have had mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters blown up into parts of limbs and unrecognisable fragments of skulls, and bloody pieces of meat, strewn about their capital by countless car bombs, were watching in baghdad...

they must have really appreciated that smile, george...

state of the union address

whilst most of the country watched the president's national address last night, we chose instead to watch 'the party' with peter sellers.

mayor anthony williams, richard III, and steve teague's birthday

so it's just before the performance starts of the opening night of the shakespeare theatre company's production of richard III at the lansburgh theatre, in d.c. my friend saleem, has very generously got rebecca and i tickets to join him as guests, as our christmas present.

so i go to the bathroom and am standing, taking care of number one. there is only one other bloke in the men's bathroom, and he is standing in the next stall. as you do, you perform the cursory sideways ' face glance', to my surprise, i recognise that the guy next to me is none other than the ex-mayor of d.c, anthony williams. "hmm. well, i'm not going to be a twat and say anything. let the bloke take a wazz in peace", i think. and so he finishes, walks to the paper towels, takes a very quick one-two drying rub, deposits the barely touched paper towel in the trash, and exits.

"hang on a minute!" i think. "he hasn't washed his hands!" this is the ex-mayor of d.c., and i imagine that this man is going to be shaking a lot of hands this evening...he just wiped them a couple of seconds with a paper towel and that was it. (bet he didn't think the bloke that he was standing next to would be writing all this...or perhaps he would have made sure he washed his hands)

i wash my hands (sufficiently) and take my seat and immediately inform saleem, rebecca, and saleem's friend, may. the following opening night production of richard III somehow already seems 'special'.

as for the production itself, i'd rate as a 6 out of 10. i think it's incredibly difficult for an english person to really enjoy any foreign production of shakespeare having been 'brought up' on the royal shakespeare company. the guy portraying richard is excellent, as are a couple of others, but the two children are simply terrible. prince edward being less of a nightmare than the younger brother, who is not only unable to act, but as soon as he opens his mouth, it seems he has a bowl of plums wedged in it. the only thing being murdered on stage at that moment is the queen's english. it's impossible not to want to harpoon them both from where i'm sitting.

shakespeare is undoubtedly very difficult, even at 'home' so perhaps it's too easy to be critical, and richard III is probably one of the harder plays.

afterwards, we went to rosa mexicano, for some rockin' guacamole dip. suddenly, a mexican waiter inserts a margarita into my hand and insists on telling me about a british comedy tv series of fifteen years ago entitled 'only fools and horses'. this comedy show is completely and utterly inappropriate to the environment i'm in...

the guacamole and finger foods are delicious, and there's the expected fawning on the so-so actors. my hatred for the youngest child only deepens when he enters the restaurant wearing some sweatshirt zipper with a union jack design. i inform my friends that at this point in elizabethan history, there is no union between scotland and england, and no child acting this part in britain would have ever worn such an offensive item. i think this part of english history is completely lost on americans. they simply think of england as the same as britain! i bet 95 out of 100 americans are unable to even describe an english flag...

then, it was jump in a cab and head to science club and celebrate steve teague's birthday. happy birthday, steve. we love you lots! great to see a lot of faces we hadn't seen for too long.

lovely evening. great to end it at science club with a lot of friends. shame the ex-mayor doesn't have the common decency to wash his hands after using the bathroom. you know, people don't change their personal hygiene habits, especially so at an opening night at the theater, which makes me shudder to think of all the people that have touched their mouths and faces after shaking hands with mayor anthony williams...

comet mcnaught from australia!

only thanking the lord when you win, or something good happens.

after watching the two thrilling games today between chicago and new orleans, and indianapolis and new england, i was dismayed to hear the owner of the indianapolis colts giving "glory to god for this victory", and then tony dungy, the head coach, for "thanking the lord for this victory".

you know what? i have never, ever, once heard tony dungy thanking the lord every time new england, or any other team, for that matter, has beaten his team previously. or is it the case that you only thank the lord when you win, and everything goes the way you want, tony? that doesn't sound very humble, christian, or much like the teachings of the bible...

or how about a natural disaster when hundreds, or thousands of innocent people get killed, and a few people are discovered alive, and their respective families say "it's a miracle; the lord must have been watching over them" er, what exactly was he doing while all the other people were getting killed? again, i never, ever, heard any members of any family that held devoutly religious beliefs heap praise and thanks upon the kind lord because he had just 'allowed' a member of their family to die, only when he'd actually saved one. how very strange, given that only in death, can the true believer actually meet god. you'd think it would be other way around, wouldn't you?

i call this extremely selective praise and worship.

i mean, think how refreshing it would be to hear coaches say: "i would just like to thank the lord for.. the terrible way we played the game, for the humiliating loss we suffered today, all our season-ending injuries, the loss of our dear friend, the division title-game, the future's out of reach... thank you lord, for making the other team better than us! you know what? i thank you so much, lord, i'm gonna' get down on my hands and knees right now, and pray they beat us again next year as well! hallelujah!"

after all, isn't the lord deserving of praise all the time?

Arsenal 2-1 Man Utd

great victory, arsenal.

even better was jens lehmann's grab of his ankle right at the very end. brilliantly funny.

7 days, redha...

it's urlacher's & manning's sunday.

as much as i like the new orleans saints, and it's impossible not to like sean payton, or admire what what he's done for this sports franchise (whatever happened to the word 'team', in america?), i'm still rooting for chicago.

i think it has a lot to do with the cold weather, and nothing to do with rex grossman. brian urlacher is the ultimate defensive back (sorry ray lewis, but you need to stop dancing like an ice skater, you're not on amphetamines (or are you...), and those pesky murder charges didn't exactly help your sporting claim to true greatness. i don't care how quick he is , ravens fans. the measure of a man is taken by more than a stopwatch. pretend there isn't a camera on you and just play your position.

payton manning. please, please, please, beat the #@!*&^!%.. new england patriots!

i'm off to meet victor to show some blokey support (at 11am!) at fado, in chinatown, as arsenal take on manchester united.

"up the ....!"

Hope You Saved Your Glow Stick

from the new york times: (i previously mistakenly said the bbc)

TO most people in Britain, rave is a memory, and a blurry one at that. For four years at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s, Britain’s youth took to the fields, forests and warehouses, took Ecstasy, wore some of the silliest outfits ever devised — like cricket hats, white gloves and gas masks — and ushered out Thatcherism in a strobe-lighted haze of electronic music that shook the ground they danced on.

Then Parliament passed the Criminal Justice Act of 1994, which humorlessly characterized rave music as “the emission of a succession of repetitive beats,” and gave police the power to shut raves down. That swiftly put an end to the scene’s drug-induced violence — and to the scene itself.

But if you happen to be in London these days, there are signs that something like rave is stirring again.

“The first time around, rave really seeped into the mainstream,” said Carri Mundane, 26, a designer who was a child during the first rave scene but kept the fliers amassed by her older brother. “The music was in the charts, and everything just became a little bit more psychedelic.”

This time, it’s more insular. And it’s different in other ways, too: some of the music is rock, not electronica, and the scene is no longer as defined by the twin illegalities of drugs and trespassing.
Ms. Mundane, the designer, who wears brightly colored clothing that has made her an arbiter of rave fashion, said, “What I like about rave is the positivity of it, the fact that it is so utopian.”

… yeah, that’s exactly it, love…no way was it about doing stacks of drugs and just rollin’ yer tits off all night long, dancin’ to thumpin’, bangin’ beats with sweaty strangers, everyone smiling, cos’ they're all havin’ a fuckin great time, nobody caring, or giving a toss, an’ never any trouble, except for the wanker police.

"so utopian".....oh, and "the positivity" (hey!, do you think you could make mine a diet rave-light, please?...) positivity! that word didn't even exist then.

e-mail to the discovery channel's 'the military channel'

i have just watched your program 'iraq: the untold story'

i take great umbridge with not only the title of your program, but the content of the program.

what hypocrisy!

perhaps the discovery channel might have done a little, or any research outside of american biased interests, and watched ‘control room’. of course, i didn’t expect a fair, or unbiased representation, but to call this program ‘the untold story’ is beyond belief. i didn’t recall too many references to the al jazeera news network, or the iraqis point of view of the invasion…nicely unbalanced approach wouldn’t you say? untold story? whose? not theirs!

tell me, did any researchers of the discovery team actually watch ‘control room’ in the making of this program?

i await your expected generic response, and am posting this e-mail to my blog for anyone to read.