It is raining again and i am waiting for a student to arrive. This is the last week for them as their exams begin in earnest next week and I will miss them. I will miss them for a number of reasons, but mainly because they are young and they remind me of times when I felt worthwhile and had a useful role in the world. Nowadays I am to all intents and purposes rudderless and adrift with no aims, ambitions and aspirations. That is not to say that I am miserable; I am not, and there are a number of things in life that I look forward to and some things even make me smile now and then.
Having no students will leave a big hole in my week however, and I will have to find something to take their place. Ok i can blog more often, but then I need to have things to talk about. I cannot forever ramble on about my feelings, after all, who cares about those?
I have put in an application to become a volunteer photographer for the National Trust. Whether my efforts will be considered good enough is another matter, but if i am successful, it will get me out and about and will give me free access to Trust Properties all over Britain. All I need now is a free bus pass and the world is my oyster, or at least part of it will be.
So anyway, today i am filling in time, and have nothing controversial to say. It has been good to get a response from Canada, especially as I was quite nice to them. So far my dig at the Kiwis has not produced a response, but then, it is unlikely that any New Zealanders will have read my blog. Readership is very limited and i have only given direct access to people I know and trust.
Wednesday, 28 May 2008
Tuesday, 27 May 2008
Nostalgia ain't what it used to be
I feel completely drained.
I have had an interesting weekend, with visitors from the past descending one after the other, and as a result I am talked out and numb with nostalgia.
It is always risky to go back, and to spend time with people with whom you grew up but lost touch with years ago, has elements of risk, especially when they come to stay in your house. any trepidation I may have felt evaporated when Martin and his wife appeared. Talking to Martin seemed as natural as it did all those years ago when I was alive. It was as if we had picked up a conversation that abruptly ended in 1970. Ok we both look old and past it, but inside we are still the same people and the weekend was a timely reminder of the good times that we had as late teens. He was able to remind me of so many events and people that i have long since forgotten, and some that I have no recollection of even now and that is pretty scary. I always maintain that I don't ever forget people that come into my life, but clearly there are those who lacked the ability to stay in my head.
We talked almost without stopping for three days, interspersing with food and liquid refreshments, but the time went very quickly and now they have gone again and I am winding down after what has clearly been a stressful time albeit a pleasant one. I seem to have lost the habit of talking to real people and spend too much time alone. Hence the overwhelming sense of fatigue that has washed over me.
Now that the ball has been set in motion, it is possible that more contacts may be established, and who know? maybe a reunion of the lads may come to pass. It is more likely however that we may never meet again and that this weekend was more like the final twitches of something that has taken a long time to die.
I have had an interesting weekend, with visitors from the past descending one after the other, and as a result I am talked out and numb with nostalgia.
It is always risky to go back, and to spend time with people with whom you grew up but lost touch with years ago, has elements of risk, especially when they come to stay in your house. any trepidation I may have felt evaporated when Martin and his wife appeared. Talking to Martin seemed as natural as it did all those years ago when I was alive. It was as if we had picked up a conversation that abruptly ended in 1970. Ok we both look old and past it, but inside we are still the same people and the weekend was a timely reminder of the good times that we had as late teens. He was able to remind me of so many events and people that i have long since forgotten, and some that I have no recollection of even now and that is pretty scary. I always maintain that I don't ever forget people that come into my life, but clearly there are those who lacked the ability to stay in my head.
We talked almost without stopping for three days, interspersing with food and liquid refreshments, but the time went very quickly and now they have gone again and I am winding down after what has clearly been a stressful time albeit a pleasant one. I seem to have lost the habit of talking to real people and spend too much time alone. Hence the overwhelming sense of fatigue that has washed over me.
Now that the ball has been set in motion, it is possible that more contacts may be established, and who know? maybe a reunion of the lads may come to pass. It is more likely however that we may never meet again and that this weekend was more like the final twitches of something that has taken a long time to die.
Monday, 26 May 2008
More stereotypes - Oh Canada!
The best way to upset a Canadian, in fact the only way that I know that CAN upset a Canadian, is to mistake them for Americans. (OK there are other ways too!)
Now, please, I do not set out to be offensive to anyone, and if any of my readers take umbrage at this then i am sincerely apologetic. I am not talking about ALL Canadians but more so of the stereotype. Canada is a huge country, much of which is unpopulated and some of which is unihabitable. It has a harsh climate, with hot short summers and bitterly cold long winters. Centres of populations are few and far between and between them good roads wrecked by pathetically low speed limits. There are parts of Canada that are utterly beautiful and parts that are, in the words of Marge Simpson, so very bland.
The Maple leaf flag is on display wherever there are people; i have never seen a country where there are so many flags reminding you of where you are. Maybe they are there to remind Canadians of there THEY are, or is it just a statement of - I am not American.
Some Canadians are afraid that they may become yet another American state and see a risk of being subsumed into that culture, and yet there seems little difference to the outsider between the American and Canadian ways of life. Canadians often drive American cars, the towns and cities are very much like those in the US, and they talk alike ............ Oh there is a way of distinguishing a Canook from a Yank - Listen carefully to the way they say "out".
Ok the pace of life in Canada may be slower, but that may have something to do with the long winters and the need to thaw out slowly. I cannot speak with any authority on this (or much else I know!) but I'd guess that the first flowers of spring will be the Maple leaves sprouting on the flagpoles.
I wonder what percentage of Canadians have Maple leaf logos on their underwear, just in case they get run over by a bus?
Canadian travellers all over the world are festooned with the flags, ranging in size from the tiny buttonhole variety to the full size jobs draped around shoulders or stitched carefully and lovingly to rucksacks. They are shouting to the world that they are Canadians and NOT Americans and yet maybe deep down they know that they are a part of North America and that by and large the rest of the world doesn't make much distinction and that few actually care.
Even though I will never visit again, I like Canada and most of the Canadians that I have met. They are open and warm (once they have thawed out!) and i hope that should any of them read this, that they will not take my words as a personal affront. They are just words after all and from such an inconsequential source too.
Now, please, I do not set out to be offensive to anyone, and if any of my readers take umbrage at this then i am sincerely apologetic. I am not talking about ALL Canadians but more so of the stereotype. Canada is a huge country, much of which is unpopulated and some of which is unihabitable. It has a harsh climate, with hot short summers and bitterly cold long winters. Centres of populations are few and far between and between them good roads wrecked by pathetically low speed limits. There are parts of Canada that are utterly beautiful and parts that are, in the words of Marge Simpson, so very bland.
The Maple leaf flag is on display wherever there are people; i have never seen a country where there are so many flags reminding you of where you are. Maybe they are there to remind Canadians of there THEY are, or is it just a statement of - I am not American.
Some Canadians are afraid that they may become yet another American state and see a risk of being subsumed into that culture, and yet there seems little difference to the outsider between the American and Canadian ways of life. Canadians often drive American cars, the towns and cities are very much like those in the US, and they talk alike ............ Oh there is a way of distinguishing a Canook from a Yank - Listen carefully to the way they say "out".
Ok the pace of life in Canada may be slower, but that may have something to do with the long winters and the need to thaw out slowly. I cannot speak with any authority on this (or much else I know!) but I'd guess that the first flowers of spring will be the Maple leaves sprouting on the flagpoles.
I wonder what percentage of Canadians have Maple leaf logos on their underwear, just in case they get run over by a bus?
Canadian travellers all over the world are festooned with the flags, ranging in size from the tiny buttonhole variety to the full size jobs draped around shoulders or stitched carefully and lovingly to rucksacks. They are shouting to the world that they are Canadians and NOT Americans and yet maybe deep down they know that they are a part of North America and that by and large the rest of the world doesn't make much distinction and that few actually care.
Even though I will never visit again, I like Canada and most of the Canadians that I have met. They are open and warm (once they have thawed out!) and i hope that should any of them read this, that they will not take my words as a personal affront. They are just words after all and from such an inconsequential source too.
Friday, 23 May 2008
Stereotypes
A while ago I wrote about the English. I claim no expertise in anything, and all i can do is speak from my mind, which some might say is not necessarily a good thing. I have been thinking about Nationality and national characteristics, and the more I do so, the more I realise where these stereotypes come from.
I have a niece, who, though born in this country, lived in New Zealand for much of her life. She cam back here a number of years ago however, and has lived and worked in London along with most of the rest of new Zealand youth, for years. She is a lovely girl but, there is always a but is there not?........... she has become a New Zealander, and by that I mean that she is arrogant and utterly insensitive to the feelings of people from other countries. Most New Zealanders consider themselves to be superior in every way to the rest of us, and i wonder why that is the case? They come from a small, remote, beautiful and utterly insignificant country, where nothing much happens that doesn't involve a rugby ball, and their participation in world events goes unrecorded, largely because there is little to record.
It is a country that lives in the past, it is a country with huge racial issues, few roads, less railways, lots of scenery, and an aging population because all the intelligent youth leave to come to London, New York, Paris etc. They call it God's own country, and yet they seem only too eager to leave it in their droves and then sit around in London pubs in the winter saying how awful London is and how wonderful it is back home. They go on ad nauseam about how they really want to go back but they never do. The temptation of the big money that they can earn here seems more powerful than the lure of the unmade road and the culture of 1950s Britain.
Their TV is appalling, radio stations not much better, and the Cultural scene is pretty backward. I attended a performance of a Midsummer Night's Dream in the National Theatre in Wellington, expecting something quite special. It wasn't, it was dire and probably the worst production of a Shakespeare play that I have ever seen.
Why am I slating New Zealand? I guess i am trying to establish the cause of the arrogance. Is it that underneath it all, they know that they come from the ass end of the world and rather than try to defend the indefensible, they feel the need to impress? For goodness sake, all they have is scenery- Oh and sheep, i forgot the sheep.
So whenever you hear a Kiwi, whining about how bad things are here, and that they would rather live anywhere else, ask them, why they are here and why indeed they are not sitting around in pubs over there whining about something else.
ps I forgot that they once had a good Rugby team, but they spent so much time telling everyone how wonderful New Zealand was, that they didn't notice the other sides scoring!
I have a niece, who, though born in this country, lived in New Zealand for much of her life. She cam back here a number of years ago however, and has lived and worked in London along with most of the rest of new Zealand youth, for years. She is a lovely girl but, there is always a but is there not?........... she has become a New Zealander, and by that I mean that she is arrogant and utterly insensitive to the feelings of people from other countries. Most New Zealanders consider themselves to be superior in every way to the rest of us, and i wonder why that is the case? They come from a small, remote, beautiful and utterly insignificant country, where nothing much happens that doesn't involve a rugby ball, and their participation in world events goes unrecorded, largely because there is little to record.
It is a country that lives in the past, it is a country with huge racial issues, few roads, less railways, lots of scenery, and an aging population because all the intelligent youth leave to come to London, New York, Paris etc. They call it God's own country, and yet they seem only too eager to leave it in their droves and then sit around in London pubs in the winter saying how awful London is and how wonderful it is back home. They go on ad nauseam about how they really want to go back but they never do. The temptation of the big money that they can earn here seems more powerful than the lure of the unmade road and the culture of 1950s Britain.
Their TV is appalling, radio stations not much better, and the Cultural scene is pretty backward. I attended a performance of a Midsummer Night's Dream in the National Theatre in Wellington, expecting something quite special. It wasn't, it was dire and probably the worst production of a Shakespeare play that I have ever seen.
Why am I slating New Zealand? I guess i am trying to establish the cause of the arrogance. Is it that underneath it all, they know that they come from the ass end of the world and rather than try to defend the indefensible, they feel the need to impress? For goodness sake, all they have is scenery- Oh and sheep, i forgot the sheep.
So whenever you hear a Kiwi, whining about how bad things are here, and that they would rather live anywhere else, ask them, why they are here and why indeed they are not sitting around in pubs over there whining about something else.
ps I forgot that they once had a good Rugby team, but they spent so much time telling everyone how wonderful New Zealand was, that they didn't notice the other sides scoring!
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
Bloody politics
I am getting tired of so many things. I know that it is largely my current state of mind, and i am aware of some of the triggers, but it doesn't really help to have that awareness. There are some things which I can write about and others that I can't, and not being able to vent is very frustrating.
So I will stick to what is safe and empty at least a part of my spleen through this vehicle.
One thing that I am really tired of right now is Party Politics. We are looking at the last throes of a weary government, who, battered by the media and savaged by virtually everyone have fallen to rock bottom in the opinion polls. The opposition, are of course in the ascendant, and that is of course because the press are demanding change. As soon as things begin to turn sour, regardless of world events that have created the problems, the media bay for the heads of those in charge, and so we continue the swinging backwards and forwards between the only two political parties that make any difference. The minor parties have no voice at all and they may as well not exist. The liberal democrats only chance of power lies in a hung parliament and maybe, just maybe that could happen in an election one day. Until that time, they will carry on collecting their salaries and murmering their complaints about a system that never sees their party elected to government. How cosy they must be to know that they will never be accountable for anything.
The public are stupid! No I will not listen to the MPs who say that the voters are intelligent. I have worked with the public long enough to know that the vast majority out there are extremely thick. The best selling tabloid newspapers that cater to the majority are little more than comics with content aimed at low reading ages. The editors of these rags, have power, they can tell their readers what to think, and that makes it so much easier than getting them to think for themselves. And so it is the time to hang the current leaders out to dry, and the press has already begun the process. They rely on the fact that the electorate has the attention span and memory of a mayfly, so they forget what the last lot were like, and they imagine that a turn around will be a step towards Utopia, when everyone will be so much better off.
What people fail to realise is that in a Capitalist system, there is no way that everyone can be better off. Sure, some will be better off in any system, but if some gain then others will lose. The wealthy always gain because they have the power, and so the poor and weak will always be the ones to pay. It would be so refreshing if a politician of any persuasion, would for once tell the truth about how it all works. I suspect that if they did, then their career would also be very short. People don't want the truth, in the words of Jack Nicholson - They can't handle the truth!
The system stinks and is built on lies and skulduggery. All parties are bad and some worse than others. Whatever happens in the next election is of little consequence to anyone but the rich lists, so why do we even bother to vote? I guess we are brainwashed into thinking that we can make a difference - we can't.
So I will stick to what is safe and empty at least a part of my spleen through this vehicle.
One thing that I am really tired of right now is Party Politics. We are looking at the last throes of a weary government, who, battered by the media and savaged by virtually everyone have fallen to rock bottom in the opinion polls. The opposition, are of course in the ascendant, and that is of course because the press are demanding change. As soon as things begin to turn sour, regardless of world events that have created the problems, the media bay for the heads of those in charge, and so we continue the swinging backwards and forwards between the only two political parties that make any difference. The minor parties have no voice at all and they may as well not exist. The liberal democrats only chance of power lies in a hung parliament and maybe, just maybe that could happen in an election one day. Until that time, they will carry on collecting their salaries and murmering their complaints about a system that never sees their party elected to government. How cosy they must be to know that they will never be accountable for anything.
The public are stupid! No I will not listen to the MPs who say that the voters are intelligent. I have worked with the public long enough to know that the vast majority out there are extremely thick. The best selling tabloid newspapers that cater to the majority are little more than comics with content aimed at low reading ages. The editors of these rags, have power, they can tell their readers what to think, and that makes it so much easier than getting them to think for themselves. And so it is the time to hang the current leaders out to dry, and the press has already begun the process. They rely on the fact that the electorate has the attention span and memory of a mayfly, so they forget what the last lot were like, and they imagine that a turn around will be a step towards Utopia, when everyone will be so much better off.
What people fail to realise is that in a Capitalist system, there is no way that everyone can be better off. Sure, some will be better off in any system, but if some gain then others will lose. The wealthy always gain because they have the power, and so the poor and weak will always be the ones to pay. It would be so refreshing if a politician of any persuasion, would for once tell the truth about how it all works. I suspect that if they did, then their career would also be very short. People don't want the truth, in the words of Jack Nicholson - They can't handle the truth!
The system stinks and is built on lies and skulduggery. All parties are bad and some worse than others. Whatever happens in the next election is of little consequence to anyone but the rich lists, so why do we even bother to vote? I guess we are brainwashed into thinking that we can make a difference - we can't.
Tuesday, 20 May 2008
Embryology
The government seem to have made a sensible decision in supporting the new human embryological bill, that will allow a possible surge in our knowledge of stem cells, their production and application. There is of course considerable opposition to the whole notion of embryo research, the least convincing has come from the Roman Catholic lobby who have described it as immoral. Coming from Rome, accusations of immorality smacks of people living in glass houses throwing stones!
Monday, 19 May 2008
blank
For a while now I have been feeling low. Not actually in a black hole but sort of detached from the world and in a little microcosm of my own. I find that it is a safe place to be and although it is not exciting, I keep coming back and have to force myself to leave.
I have been making a conscious effort of late to leave the past behind me and try to live for the present. I don't look to the future much either, as that way lies disappointment.
I was reading about the art of predicting the other day. Predictions are so hard to make much of the time, because nothing exists in isolation, everything is connected and so dependent upon an almost incalculable number of variables. We try to predict all sorts of things, and our efforts are based on observations or maybe just whims of faith. Mostly though we base predictions on extrapolations of known behaviours and sometimes we get things right, and of course we also get things wrong too. I have got all sorts wrong in my life and no doubt will continue so to do.
I predict that i will soon emerge from this slump and will begin to write again. I hope so, I miss it like so many good things.
I have been making a conscious effort of late to leave the past behind me and try to live for the present. I don't look to the future much either, as that way lies disappointment.
I was reading about the art of predicting the other day. Predictions are so hard to make much of the time, because nothing exists in isolation, everything is connected and so dependent upon an almost incalculable number of variables. We try to predict all sorts of things, and our efforts are based on observations or maybe just whims of faith. Mostly though we base predictions on extrapolations of known behaviours and sometimes we get things right, and of course we also get things wrong too. I have got all sorts wrong in my life and no doubt will continue so to do.
I predict that i will soon emerge from this slump and will begin to write again. I hope so, I miss it like so many good things.
Saturday, 17 May 2008
Sent to me by a friend
What is a friend? I will tell you.
It is a person with whom you dare to be yourself. Your soul can be naked with him. He seems to ask of you to put on nothing, only to be what you are. He does not ant you to be better or worse. When you are with him you feel as a prisoner feels who has been declared innocent. You do not have to be on your guard. You can say what you think, so long as it is genuinely you. He understands those contradictions in your nature that lead others to misjudge you. With him you breathe freely. You can avow your little vanities and envies and hates and vicious sparks, your meannesses and absurdities and, in opening them up to him, they are lost, dissolved on the white ocean of his loyalty. He understands. You do not have to be careful. You can abuse him, neglect him, tolerate him. Best of all, you can keep still with him. It makes no matter. He likes you - he is like the fire that purges to the bone. He understands, he understands. You can weep with him, sin with him, laugh with him, pray with him. Through it all - and underneath - he sees, knows, and loves you. A friend? What is a friend? Just one, I repeat, with whom you dare to be yourself.
C Raymand Beran
It is a person with whom you dare to be yourself. Your soul can be naked with him. He seems to ask of you to put on nothing, only to be what you are. He does not ant you to be better or worse. When you are with him you feel as a prisoner feels who has been declared innocent. You do not have to be on your guard. You can say what you think, so long as it is genuinely you. He understands those contradictions in your nature that lead others to misjudge you. With him you breathe freely. You can avow your little vanities and envies and hates and vicious sparks, your meannesses and absurdities and, in opening them up to him, they are lost, dissolved on the white ocean of his loyalty. He understands. You do not have to be careful. You can abuse him, neglect him, tolerate him. Best of all, you can keep still with him. It makes no matter. He likes you - he is like the fire that purges to the bone. He understands, he understands. You can weep with him, sin with him, laugh with him, pray with him. Through it all - and underneath - he sees, knows, and loves you. A friend? What is a friend? Just one, I repeat, with whom you dare to be yourself.
C Raymand Beran
Monday, 12 May 2008
Led Zeppelin on Horlicks
I just got back from a weekend away, essentially to attend a concert in Cardiff. We got tickets to see Robert Plant and Alison Krauss and decided to make a long weekend of it.
The hotel was a stone's throw from the Millenium Stadium and apart from the fact that the room overlooked a railway yard, it was perfectly satisfactory for a single night stopover. The drive to Cardiff was fine and the city itself really very nice indeed. An afternoon in the sunshine was followed by a late afternoon in a "New Orleans" bar with a pleasant light meal and several pints of Welsh Bitter Beer. We could see the stadium from the bar so there was no urgency about getting there, and so fully sated and less than fully sober, we headed for the venue. Five minutes later we were outside the gates, and they were closed. The whole place was empty and tumbleweed rolled past us in the ominous silence.
A quick check on the tickets told us that the date was right, and then the truth dawned. Printed clearly on the tickets, which I had not actually seen up to this point, were the words - International Centre! It should have added in brackets, "not to be confused with the Millenium Stadium," however it didn't and we were in the wrong place. Fortunately Cardiff is not a huge place, and equally fortunate was the fact that the International centre was only a half mile away, and so we did make it with ample time to spare.
The several pints did take their toll however, and you know how it is, once the seal has broken, visits to the toilets before more and more frequent. At big events like this the toilets are always busy and a full bladder has a way of distracting one from anything else, so in the run up to the off, the route to the watering hole became quite familiar. Not to self - before next gig, no drinking. That one IS at the Millenium Stadium and we could be miles from relief!
Anyway, the warm up band, were i am sure very good, but unknown and no-one seemed to pay them much attention. In fact the bars seemed pretty full throughout their performance. Eventually - much much later, bladder nicely empty, the concert started.
A word first about Alison Krauss. She has an amazing voice and is very talented on the violin. She commands the stage through her music, but seems to have no stage presence. I am sure that she has personality, but it does not shine through and she seemed to have no real connection to the audience. That was left to Robert Plant. The old Rocker has lost nothing apart from his mobility. It was a little like Led Zeppelin on Horlicks. He had the moves, but they were a little slow and tentative, while his voice was maintained in 2nd gear most of the evening. He seemed very restrained and I felt that he was itching to burst out. No I am not referring to his trousers, though they were of course as tight as ever. Glad to say that his shirt was ample and loose.
The performance was wonderful, and the band exceptional and the standing ovation was well deserved.
We emerged, lifted and inspired, into the night and were immediately soaked by the predictable Welsh downpour. However, it was worth it and i look forward to next month and Bruce Springsteen.
Wednesday, 7 May 2008
Bleakness
The balance of life is very fragile. One minute, someone that you know well is here and next minute they are gone. We have all loved and lost and watched the mortal remains go through the rigmarole of funerals and interment or cremation. Human life in total hangs in the balance of an enormously complex structure that we call society.
The trouble is that the complexity is exponentially increasing and the biggest enemy of the machine is greed. There are those in society who are creaming off what they need regardless of the effect on the mechanism as a whole. Few people give real regard for the good of the whole and most are content to grab what they can while they can with scant thought for anything else.
Stock market crashes are artificial disasters brought about by extreme wealth wanting to become more extreme, the effects on their fiddling and tweaking can have consequences that are far reaching and devastating on the rest of the popluation, who have no control over the finances in their lives. Major financial crises could easily derail society as a whole; look at Zimbabwe with its galloping inflation; that country hovers on the edge of anarchy and unless something is done, catastophe is almost a certainty.
So many aspects of the modern world can easily break down and any one of them could precipitate the end of civilization. The electronic revolution has made us dependent upon computer technology and networks that are all so vulnerable to deliberate and/or accidental damage. Food supply is stretched to breaking point and while we now take for granted fully stocked supermarket shelves, that may not always be there. All it takes is a small climate change or a new virus to change all that in a very short space of time. HIV is not an infectious disease. What happens if it mutates into one that is? What happens if Ebola escapes from Zaire, and reaches a population centre?
Fuel is becoming very expensive and one day will run out. Who can imagine the powerful western states, sitting back and letting the OPEC countries hold them to ransom over the last drops?
We are living in a house of cards that is growing faster and faster, spreading in all directions. Sooner or later the wind will blow.
The trouble is that the complexity is exponentially increasing and the biggest enemy of the machine is greed. There are those in society who are creaming off what they need regardless of the effect on the mechanism as a whole. Few people give real regard for the good of the whole and most are content to grab what they can while they can with scant thought for anything else.
Stock market crashes are artificial disasters brought about by extreme wealth wanting to become more extreme, the effects on their fiddling and tweaking can have consequences that are far reaching and devastating on the rest of the popluation, who have no control over the finances in their lives. Major financial crises could easily derail society as a whole; look at Zimbabwe with its galloping inflation; that country hovers on the edge of anarchy and unless something is done, catastophe is almost a certainty.
So many aspects of the modern world can easily break down and any one of them could precipitate the end of civilization. The electronic revolution has made us dependent upon computer technology and networks that are all so vulnerable to deliberate and/or accidental damage. Food supply is stretched to breaking point and while we now take for granted fully stocked supermarket shelves, that may not always be there. All it takes is a small climate change or a new virus to change all that in a very short space of time. HIV is not an infectious disease. What happens if it mutates into one that is? What happens if Ebola escapes from Zaire, and reaches a population centre?
Fuel is becoming very expensive and one day will run out. Who can imagine the powerful western states, sitting back and letting the OPEC countries hold them to ransom over the last drops?
We are living in a house of cards that is growing faster and faster, spreading in all directions. Sooner or later the wind will blow.
Thursday, 1 May 2008
The English
We English, probably have much to be proud of, but we also have more in our history that we should be ashamed of. There are few nations that look up to the Brits anymore, if ever they did in the first place, and many nations despise us and for good reason.
Robert Mugabe is one example of a man who has a real hatred for Britain. We are seen as a nation who wish to return Zimbabwe to British rule, to suppress his people and turn back the clock to a time when the country was at least stable.
Africa has for centuries been colonised, recolonised, fought over, and intrinsically ruined by non Africans. It has become a huge and desperate money pit with aid pouring in from all over the world to try to support a desperate and impoverished people. Nothing ever changes, and the probably reason for that is the inherent corruption that enables those in power to syphon off the wealth of their people in order to fill their own bank accounts. Africans want to govern themselves, quite rightly, but so few of the countries seem able to do that.
Paul Theroux in one of his books, describes his return journey from Cairo to Capetown, and in that he makes the point that giving money to Africa has been a total failure, and that all that it achieves is providing arms to the many tribes that still make up that Nation, so that they can kill each other with increasing efficiency. Hospitals and schools that were built using aid have declined and crumbled because the people fail to maintain them properly, or because the educated minorities move away in order to escape the burgeoning chaos of a country that is trying to grow, but lacks the direction to do so. He infers that aid should be stopped, and that the hand out expectations of many Africans should no longer be met.
Africa has been forced through western exploitation, to attempt to grow up too fast. It is still a tribal society and if the west were to withdraw totally, which it won't because of vested interests, the whole country would probably revert to what it is at heart. Maybe then the countries would support themselves and the land would be able to sustain a more realistic population.
Robert Mugabe is at best a thug who has no interest in his own people. The country is a mess, their inflation rate is like that of pre-war Germany, he has been defeated in an election and refuses to budge. I wonder why the Americans are keeping out of this one?
I guess that we can hold our hands up and admit that many of Africa's problems date back to colonial times when the world map was mainly pink. We tried to exploit the Africans, through slavery and by stealing their land, and then we try to suppress their people, the way that the British people were suppressed, by indoctrination with Christianity, and then we wonder why nothing seems to have worked.
I must confess that all that I say is opinion and that I have never been to Africa, nor do i want to.
Robert Mugabe is one example of a man who has a real hatred for Britain. We are seen as a nation who wish to return Zimbabwe to British rule, to suppress his people and turn back the clock to a time when the country was at least stable.
Africa has for centuries been colonised, recolonised, fought over, and intrinsically ruined by non Africans. It has become a huge and desperate money pit with aid pouring in from all over the world to try to support a desperate and impoverished people. Nothing ever changes, and the probably reason for that is the inherent corruption that enables those in power to syphon off the wealth of their people in order to fill their own bank accounts. Africans want to govern themselves, quite rightly, but so few of the countries seem able to do that.
Paul Theroux in one of his books, describes his return journey from Cairo to Capetown, and in that he makes the point that giving money to Africa has been a total failure, and that all that it achieves is providing arms to the many tribes that still make up that Nation, so that they can kill each other with increasing efficiency. Hospitals and schools that were built using aid have declined and crumbled because the people fail to maintain them properly, or because the educated minorities move away in order to escape the burgeoning chaos of a country that is trying to grow, but lacks the direction to do so. He infers that aid should be stopped, and that the hand out expectations of many Africans should no longer be met.
Africa has been forced through western exploitation, to attempt to grow up too fast. It is still a tribal society and if the west were to withdraw totally, which it won't because of vested interests, the whole country would probably revert to what it is at heart. Maybe then the countries would support themselves and the land would be able to sustain a more realistic population.
Robert Mugabe is at best a thug who has no interest in his own people. The country is a mess, their inflation rate is like that of pre-war Germany, he has been defeated in an election and refuses to budge. I wonder why the Americans are keeping out of this one?
I guess that we can hold our hands up and admit that many of Africa's problems date back to colonial times when the world map was mainly pink. We tried to exploit the Africans, through slavery and by stealing their land, and then we try to suppress their people, the way that the British people were suppressed, by indoctrination with Christianity, and then we wonder why nothing seems to have worked.
I must confess that all that I say is opinion and that I have never been to Africa, nor do i want to.
Wednesday, 30 April 2008
Friends
I have been spending time this weekend gone, with some old and dear friends, one of which i have known longer than anyone outside my own family. It got me to thinking about friendship and what it is all about. Friends are not easily come by and far to easy to lose, and over the years, many people have come and gone. Friendships, like plants, often need to be maintained, and it is so easy to forget to keep in touch. Yes it takes two to tango as the saying goes, but our lives are busy and it is simple to find excuses as to why we have failed to maintain contact.
I have never been good at keeping in contact with people by remote means. I was never a writer of letters when that was all there was, and the telephone is anathema to me. I always preferred face to face contact and without that, my own grasp on friendship seems to wither somewhat.
That doesn't mean that I ever forget anyone that has been important to me. I still have fond and lasting memories and feelings for so many people that I no longer see or hear from. Their voices are still in my head as are their faces clearly visible to me. They, however have moved on to pastures new and i have done the same. To go the distance really does require something special and that is something to be proud of and something to hold onto.
Some friends come and go very quickly when it becomes obvious that their lives can never really be entwined. An i guess that is where the real crux lies. In order to be real friends, there has to be a way of making sure that each lives at least in part, within the life of the other. It is about sharing and confiding, it is about loyalty and trust and it is about making sacrifices and giving to the other as well as receiving what they have to offer.
In a couple of weeks, by sheer coincidence, three of my oldest friends are descending within a two week window. Two of them will be here at the same time while the other is coming down the following week. They all know each other and none of us has met since we left school all those years ago. Then we were the closest of friends and did everything together. Well not quite everything - there were girls too! We have all moved on so much in all those years and I look forward to seeing them all, though it is with some trepidation that I do. We are not the same, we can never be. We lost touch, and probably for a reason, and so when we link up again, it will not be as close buddies but as strangers who once met on a train and who all got off at different stops.
For those who consider me a friend, thank you for being there and if i have neglected you in any way, then I am sorry. I do not do these things on purpose and I recognise this as a major flaw in a very flawed person. I hope that one day I may be forgiven
I have never been good at keeping in contact with people by remote means. I was never a writer of letters when that was all there was, and the telephone is anathema to me. I always preferred face to face contact and without that, my own grasp on friendship seems to wither somewhat.
That doesn't mean that I ever forget anyone that has been important to me. I still have fond and lasting memories and feelings for so many people that I no longer see or hear from. Their voices are still in my head as are their faces clearly visible to me. They, however have moved on to pastures new and i have done the same. To go the distance really does require something special and that is something to be proud of and something to hold onto.
Some friends come and go very quickly when it becomes obvious that their lives can never really be entwined. An i guess that is where the real crux lies. In order to be real friends, there has to be a way of making sure that each lives at least in part, within the life of the other. It is about sharing and confiding, it is about loyalty and trust and it is about making sacrifices and giving to the other as well as receiving what they have to offer.
In a couple of weeks, by sheer coincidence, three of my oldest friends are descending within a two week window. Two of them will be here at the same time while the other is coming down the following week. They all know each other and none of us has met since we left school all those years ago. Then we were the closest of friends and did everything together. Well not quite everything - there were girls too! We have all moved on so much in all those years and I look forward to seeing them all, though it is with some trepidation that I do. We are not the same, we can never be. We lost touch, and probably for a reason, and so when we link up again, it will not be as close buddies but as strangers who once met on a train and who all got off at different stops.
For those who consider me a friend, thank you for being there and if i have neglected you in any way, then I am sorry. I do not do these things on purpose and I recognise this as a major flaw in a very flawed person. I hope that one day I may be forgiven
Wednesday, 23 April 2008
Ars gratia artis
I have a friend who insists that I am an artist.
I never ever considered myself to be so for any number of reasons, and today i thought I'd say a few words about that.
I have heard many definitions of "Art" and i guess that my current favourites are, and in no particular order, "An Artist is one who knows where to draw the line." "Art is what you can get away with." and "Art is the ability to move people."
Now let me examine those three statements critically. I never know where to draw the line. Oh I can draw lines and make the occasional pretty picture, but those images that I produce bear no resemblance to anything in particular, and to me are random doodles that emerge from somewhere deep inside my troubled brain.
Do I get away with my work? Well maybe i do. Some people, the very few who have ever seen my stuff, say that they like it. But friends always say that. That is what friends are for, to boost your ego and give you confidence in yourself.
Moving people?? now there is a serious issue. I have heard it argued that if something can produce an emotional response of any kind then it can be called art! Well i make no claims to have ever produced an emotional response in anyone from any painting that I have ever produced. Some paintings and sculptures that I have seen make me angry, so I guess that makes them valid. One such painter is Mark Rothko. Now i know that this is a very subjective viewpoint, but I have seen a number of Rothko paintings in the flesh and frankly, to me they are just large canvases covered in blocks of colour that are not even well painted. I have seen others standing in awe in front of Rothko's works and I just find it amazing that so many people are conned by what they have been told is good art.
I enjoy the paintings of many artists, ranging from Leonardo and Botticelli, to the Pre Rapahelites, Dali, Magritte and many others. I can see the skills and the brilliance of the pictures that they paint, but to say that they move me emotionally would be stretching a point. Maybe it is a fault in me, and maybe that is why I always fail to produce on canvas what I see in my head, but I cannot get emotional about a painting.
What does touch me deeply however is music, and I am very subject to the minor key particularly. Music has the power to lift my spirits to amazing heights, and also to take me into the depths of despair. To me the ultimate art has to be Opera, where so many "arts" are brought together into a package that stimulates our senses and probes every aspect of our emotions.
Even a simple song can move me to tears. The other day, Holly sent me a song that she had recorded. She moves through the fair is an old traditional song, and like everything she does, she made it her own. I listened, spellbound by her interpretation, and although that song has no particular connotation, she brought tears to my eyes. That is art.
I never ever considered myself to be so for any number of reasons, and today i thought I'd say a few words about that.
I have heard many definitions of "Art" and i guess that my current favourites are, and in no particular order, "An Artist is one who knows where to draw the line." "Art is what you can get away with." and "Art is the ability to move people."
Now let me examine those three statements critically. I never know where to draw the line. Oh I can draw lines and make the occasional pretty picture, but those images that I produce bear no resemblance to anything in particular, and to me are random doodles that emerge from somewhere deep inside my troubled brain.
Do I get away with my work? Well maybe i do. Some people, the very few who have ever seen my stuff, say that they like it. But friends always say that. That is what friends are for, to boost your ego and give you confidence in yourself.
Moving people?? now there is a serious issue. I have heard it argued that if something can produce an emotional response of any kind then it can be called art! Well i make no claims to have ever produced an emotional response in anyone from any painting that I have ever produced. Some paintings and sculptures that I have seen make me angry, so I guess that makes them valid. One such painter is Mark Rothko. Now i know that this is a very subjective viewpoint, but I have seen a number of Rothko paintings in the flesh and frankly, to me they are just large canvases covered in blocks of colour that are not even well painted. I have seen others standing in awe in front of Rothko's works and I just find it amazing that so many people are conned by what they have been told is good art.
I enjoy the paintings of many artists, ranging from Leonardo and Botticelli, to the Pre Rapahelites, Dali, Magritte and many others. I can see the skills and the brilliance of the pictures that they paint, but to say that they move me emotionally would be stretching a point. Maybe it is a fault in me, and maybe that is why I always fail to produce on canvas what I see in my head, but I cannot get emotional about a painting.
What does touch me deeply however is music, and I am very subject to the minor key particularly. Music has the power to lift my spirits to amazing heights, and also to take me into the depths of despair. To me the ultimate art has to be Opera, where so many "arts" are brought together into a package that stimulates our senses and probes every aspect of our emotions.
Even a simple song can move me to tears. The other day, Holly sent me a song that she had recorded. She moves through the fair is an old traditional song, and like everything she does, she made it her own. I listened, spellbound by her interpretation, and although that song has no particular connotation, she brought tears to my eyes. That is art.
Monday, 21 April 2008
Liz
Today i visited my old friend Liz. We were neighbours until lifetime changes meant a move of house. I have kept in touch with her however because I like her a great deal and she is so interesting to talk to.
Liz was an Art Teacher and was born before World War 2, in times of strife and deprivation. She, like so many children at the time was taken away from home and sent to live with temporary parents to avoid the horrors of the blitz, and she always has interesting tales to tell. She has produced a wealth of work in her time and now lives alon in a big house full of fading treasures. The sad thing is that when she dies, it is likely that her work will be destroyed, and like her memories and experiences, they will vanish as if nothing was ever there.
I am photographing her work as well as i can in the poor light and hope to keep my own record, but I guess that when i go that will be the last.
I am posting some of her images today so that more can share in her work. She cannot even giver her stuff away as most of the paintings are too large for today's small houses. This is just a small tribute to a lovely lady that i am honoured to know.
Wednesday, 16 April 2008
A truly bigotted rant
One of the problems of holidays abroad is that one loses touch with what is going on in the world. That can be a blessing in some ways but frankly I always seem to take a while to get back into the routine of checking up on current events. After all if i fail to absorb what is going on, how can I possibly rant? Ok I know, I can rant about anything at all and need no triggers.
I had no idea for example that the two most dangerous men in the world had come together to celebrate the birthday of one of them. Now what the Pope could hope to gain from a visit to the Whitehouse is anyone's guess. Is the Vatican Bank trying to bail out the US economy? or is the Republican Party trying to regain the Catholic vote?
Mr Bush quoted St Augustine in greeting the Pope with the words "peace be with you".
He said the US was honoured that the Pope was spending his "special day" with Americans.
Mr Bush said the US was "fully modern but guided by ancient and eternal truths".
Mr Bush added: "In a world where some evoke the name of God to justify acts of terror and murder and hate, we need your message that God is love."
Such a message would "save man from falling prey to the teaching of fanaticism and terrorism," he said.
And so it goes on...... Is it just me or do those words seem empty and meaningless? After all George and Mr Pope both represent organisations that can be described as fanatical, and the Catholic church is no stranger to terrorism.
God is not love! God is Man's excuse to murder and torture and exterminate those whose politics are different. God is a way to salve consciences and a justification for acts of horrific cruelty. Both Bush and his new friend must know this, and the ancient truths that they refer to are the superstitions that have kept people repressed throughout history.
Bush and his buddies love wealth and so does the Vatican, the wealthiest organisation in the world. Wouldn't it be refreshing to hear the real truth for a change. They both depend on the poor, after all, it is only the poor that make the rest of us seem rich.
Well that should provoke a response -I await a visit from the Inquisition!
I had no idea for example that the two most dangerous men in the world had come together to celebrate the birthday of one of them. Now what the Pope could hope to gain from a visit to the Whitehouse is anyone's guess. Is the Vatican Bank trying to bail out the US economy? or is the Republican Party trying to regain the Catholic vote?
Mr Bush quoted St Augustine in greeting the Pope with the words "peace be with you".
He said the US was honoured that the Pope was spending his "special day" with Americans.
Mr Bush said the US was "fully modern but guided by ancient and eternal truths".
Mr Bush added: "In a world where some evoke the name of God to justify acts of terror and murder and hate, we need your message that God is love."
Such a message would "save man from falling prey to the teaching of fanaticism and terrorism," he said.
And so it goes on...... Is it just me or do those words seem empty and meaningless? After all George and Mr Pope both represent organisations that can be described as fanatical, and the Catholic church is no stranger to terrorism.
God is not love! God is Man's excuse to murder and torture and exterminate those whose politics are different. God is a way to salve consciences and a justification for acts of horrific cruelty. Both Bush and his new friend must know this, and the ancient truths that they refer to are the superstitions that have kept people repressed throughout history.
Bush and his buddies love wealth and so does the Vatican, the wealthiest organisation in the world. Wouldn't it be refreshing to hear the real truth for a change. They both depend on the poor, after all, it is only the poor that make the rest of us seem rich.
Well that should provoke a response -I await a visit from the Inquisition!
Tuesday, 15 April 2008
holiday pics
I don't normally like to put holiday photos on here but what the heck- let's break out a little eh?
Monday, 14 April 2008
Awaydays
I just came back from a trip to the south of France. I won't bore you with details of the holiday, that would be like showing holiday photos to dinner guests, suffice it to say that it was a very long journey. i am not sure of the actual kilometrage but the drive from here to the very southerly tip is a journey and a half, and even on French roads it is hard going.
I am a Francophile I confess and love most things about being in France. There are some exceptions though, and I still find it hard to remember that in France on a Sunday, everything is closed. Between 2 and 4pm everyday, the people just vanish without a trace, and unless you want a restaurant meal, you might as well have a sleep, which is of course what the sensible French are probably doing.
It strikes me that France has so much going for it. They enjoy a lovely climate, have a huge landmass that is underpopulated and a wonderfully laid back attitude to the world and everything that goes on. They have a modern well equipped armed service, and yet, like the Canadians, keep a low profile when it comes to international affairs. It seems like the French, like to assess a situation for a long while over a glass or two of wine and then make sure that they join the winning side. How sensible is that?
Having said all that, I am glad to be back and hope to maintain my usual stream of drivel as soon as possible.
I am a Francophile I confess and love most things about being in France. There are some exceptions though, and I still find it hard to remember that in France on a Sunday, everything is closed. Between 2 and 4pm everyday, the people just vanish without a trace, and unless you want a restaurant meal, you might as well have a sleep, which is of course what the sensible French are probably doing.
It strikes me that France has so much going for it. They enjoy a lovely climate, have a huge landmass that is underpopulated and a wonderfully laid back attitude to the world and everything that goes on. They have a modern well equipped armed service, and yet, like the Canadians, keep a low profile when it comes to international affairs. It seems like the French, like to assess a situation for a long while over a glass or two of wine and then make sure that they join the winning side. How sensible is that?
Having said all that, I am glad to be back and hope to maintain my usual stream of drivel as soon as possible.
Friday, 28 March 2008
Free speech
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7d9_1206624103
I have just been watching Geert Wilders film about Islam. There is nothing there that is new or even shocking, thought the whole thing does pack a very powerful message. Holland clearly has a big problem, with the Muslim population growing exponentially, and of course with numbers come powers and that it seems is the way in which the world is being taken over. Islam is a culture as much as a religion and as in all cultures, those with the loudest voices are the ones that make things happen.
It is all very well for moderate Muslims to claim that Islam is about love and forgiveness and tolerance, but this is indeed not the case and unless the Islamic community is prepared to become more tolerant of non Muslims, then i fear that we are entering a new and dangerous age where the rest of society will no longer tolerate Islam. Such things have happened in the past and will no doubt happen again and again.
Mr Wilder has stuck out his neck again and for that I admire him. Someone has to make a stand and say things that need to be said. Islam may not like free speech, and that is understandable when you have such shaky ground to stand on, but civilizations where people are free to speak their minds are more preferable to those where one is totally controlled by the interpretation of a book.
I have just been watching Geert Wilders film about Islam. There is nothing there that is new or even shocking, thought the whole thing does pack a very powerful message. Holland clearly has a big problem, with the Muslim population growing exponentially, and of course with numbers come powers and that it seems is the way in which the world is being taken over. Islam is a culture as much as a religion and as in all cultures, those with the loudest voices are the ones that make things happen.
It is all very well for moderate Muslims to claim that Islam is about love and forgiveness and tolerance, but this is indeed not the case and unless the Islamic community is prepared to become more tolerant of non Muslims, then i fear that we are entering a new and dangerous age where the rest of society will no longer tolerate Islam. Such things have happened in the past and will no doubt happen again and again.
Mr Wilder has stuck out his neck again and for that I admire him. Someone has to make a stand and say things that need to be said. Islam may not like free speech, and that is understandable when you have such shaky ground to stand on, but civilizations where people are free to speak their minds are more preferable to those where one is totally controlled by the interpretation of a book.
Wednesday, 26 March 2008
Opining
I have never felt that my opinions count for much and maybe that is why I have no problem with expressing them. At the end of the day it really doesn't matter what I think about anything, except of course to me. My opinions matter to me a great deal, otherwise there would be little point in having them. I know that I have a contrary nature and am not easily swayed by the opinions of others, in fact if someone has a strong opinion on an issue, I am likely to take an opposing standpoint just for the hell of it.
Some of my opinions I always keep to myself, on the grounds that some things are best left unsaid and I do try hard not to let things slip out. The only time that I am likely to let loose of my feelings is when I drink too much. As they say - In Vino Veritas.
Today nothing has really pulled my chain and I feel rather flat and uninspired. I could choose a subject at random I guess but honestly i can't be bothered. I have days like this when my mind is occupied by a large black mist that seem to permeate through my entire consciousness. It won't last, they seldom do these days, but while it lies there I have little creativity. To do anything really requires an effort and I am not prepared to do that.
I wonder what is the trigger? Today is like any other really and it is raining yet again. I am not unhappy, that is a thing of the past. I long ago ceased to have expectations of other people and as a result I am never disappointed by them. Hence my life coninues on a level plain by and large.
I think that as I get older, it becomes harder to find stimulation of any sort. New experiences are few and far between and new people are not likely to come into my life. I look around at people not too much older than myself and they seem to have given up on life and i am not ready for that yet. I can see how it happens though and that can be a scary thought.
I was hoping to come up with something really controversial today but I can't seem to raise the energy somehow. maybe tomorrow i will be more successful.
Oh while I am here, allow me to give Holly a Plug. If you haven't heard her sing then please do - She is a wonderful girl with a huge future in front of her. I am honoured to know her and to have watched her career germinate.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=b29l6W0YsO4#GU5U2spHI_4
Some of my opinions I always keep to myself, on the grounds that some things are best left unsaid and I do try hard not to let things slip out. The only time that I am likely to let loose of my feelings is when I drink too much. As they say - In Vino Veritas.
Today nothing has really pulled my chain and I feel rather flat and uninspired. I could choose a subject at random I guess but honestly i can't be bothered. I have days like this when my mind is occupied by a large black mist that seem to permeate through my entire consciousness. It won't last, they seldom do these days, but while it lies there I have little creativity. To do anything really requires an effort and I am not prepared to do that.
I wonder what is the trigger? Today is like any other really and it is raining yet again. I am not unhappy, that is a thing of the past. I long ago ceased to have expectations of other people and as a result I am never disappointed by them. Hence my life coninues on a level plain by and large.
I think that as I get older, it becomes harder to find stimulation of any sort. New experiences are few and far between and new people are not likely to come into my life. I look around at people not too much older than myself and they seem to have given up on life and i am not ready for that yet. I can see how it happens though and that can be a scary thought.
I was hoping to come up with something really controversial today but I can't seem to raise the energy somehow. maybe tomorrow i will be more successful.
Oh while I am here, allow me to give Holly a Plug. If you haven't heard her sing then please do - She is a wonderful girl with a huge future in front of her. I am honoured to know her and to have watched her career germinate.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=b29l6W0YsO4#GU5U2spHI_4
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)