Seemingly there’s one reason for these extraordinary economic upsets

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4008761.stm

-         The Genocide in Rwanda

 01 Oct 05 - More than ten years ago, the most horrendous genocide was witnessed in Rwanda. Now the then Commander of the UN troops Romeo Dellaire has been on television talking about his book, and how world powers were aware of the situation and yet did not take action. There is nothing that can be done now about history, but at least General Dellair has set about telling the truth. It also reminds me of an often-forgotten fact – that soldiers are human and get nightmares too.

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3224176.stm

-         Global Warming

14 Jul 05 - It appears that there has not been the hoped-for progress on Global Warming, one of the biggest threats confronting our planet. Emissions are causing the earth to heat around the earth to be trapped – in the future, sea levels are likely to rise and land covered; as well as destroying settlements, crops and vegetation will suffer and change. But the USA, hooked on big cars and cheap petrol, is still the major obstruction to an agreement on global  action. Even the less industrialised countries which are not guilty of burning off fuels will suffer because of their action. See below for more information:

What is global warming?

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/features/global_warming1.shtml

 What can be done?

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/features/global_warming2.shtml

 It could make a difference if we act now:

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/1202726.stm

 The ‘result’ at G8:

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4665993.stm

 We are already seeing the effects of global warming, possibly one of them being an increase in hurricanes.

We have to act now to save the planet – so the fact that this matter did not receive its due attention at G8 is a huge disappointment from the politicians.

Most evenings, gun-toting Dog Control Officers stalk Cairo’s crowded streets, randomly targeting stray dogs for death. Problem is, they aren’t always good shots. Many animals, wounded and yelping in pain, are thrown into trucks and left to bleed slowly to death. Others stagger off into the darkness to endure their agonising fate.

Shooting, drowning, hanging and electrocution are just some of the ways countries, particularly those ravaged by war, famine or political upheaval, use to control stray dog populations.

Unfortunately, these barbaric methods are totally ineffective. In Cairo alone, it’s thought that over 90% of the 1.5 million dogs are strays.

Son and Daughter

-        The Unteachables

 27 Dec 05   I  followed the Channel 4 series in the autumn about children with behavioural problems who couldn’t settle in the classroom had usually been truanting from school. They were on a study camp with a teacher who enabled them to learn in an unconventional way. The regime, however, gave little leeway for tolerance and some of them had to be sent home anyway, but those who completed the camp found it a big boost for their self-esteem. Most interesting was the last episode, where the teenagers who completed the camp were put in charge of primary school classes. An educational psychologist gave her views as well as the teaching staff. The conclusion is that there are many children whose needs are being neglected in mainstream schools. However, it’s hard to see how, most of the time, the schools can accommodate them with the resources available at the moment. But the series does prove that, given the right conditions, such children can be taught. Here’s the relevant link:

 http://www.channel4.com/life/microsites/U/unteachables/unteach1.html

 The sort of misbehaviour displayed by the children shown in this series amounted to noisiness, disruption and non-attendance. But there are signs of more disturbed behaviour patterns on the part of some children, who are bullying others, not only verbally and psychologically, but have also been physically violent with sharp objects such as scissors and pencil sharpeners. There are recommendations that teachers search pupils with a view to confiscating dangerous items. More work for teachers, who should actually be spending their time teaching…

Source: Metro, Nov 15

-   Beslan One Year On

 01 Oct 05 -  The scars still remain, and will do so for many years. So many died, mainly children, that the incident and its results have become part of everyday life. Some children have travelled abroad and therapy has also helped; there are some positive results. Others are still suffering badly with severe anger, fear or even envy (see second item below).  There are also unanswered questions about the handling of the siege. The Beslan Mothers' Committee has been doing a great job with their questioning, according to an article in this month's 'Marie Claire'.

 See the following relevant links:

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4204246.stm  

- Today in Beslan

We Must Find a Way

(a poem I wrote after spending this afternoon at North Fulham carnival, against the background of the news: killings in a school in Beslan, Russia, after a terrorist siege).

It's carnival time

What a wonderful day

It's set me to thinking

We must find a way

Will humanity linger

In an evil age

In hatred of others

Not turning the page?

 I look about me now

And see it's so fine

People enjoying themselves

In the summer sunshine

People diverse in culture

Of many a colour and creed

Sharing life with each other

We've a good future indeed

 I can do so little

But a lot when I pray

For the sake of our children

We must find a way.

5 September 2004: So while we think about the triumph of the human spirit (see 'We are the Champions', we also turn our attention to Russia (letter to  Brian dated yesterday). All we can do is pray - so many children.  Georgia and I will be setting out for church in an hour or so - up to the Russian church in London - with  many Russians there, we'll have the chance to stand with them and their fellow countrymen. We have continued to live the reality of one church, despite social, cultural and linguistic differences. Blinkered nationalism and killing in the name of religion - in the words of Archbishop Trevor Huddlestone* - 'must die before I do!'

Listen - what people do to other souls
They take their lives - destroy their goals
Their basic pride and dignity
Is stripped and torn and shown no pity  -  Roger Taylor  (Heaven for Everyone)

Headlong

-         Into Live 8 and the BBC’s ‘Africa Lives’

People have gotta put their fists in the air

                                                                                                Bono

Now is the time for the tables to be turned…

                                                                                                Michael Stipe

 Music is the first language…

                                                                                                Youssou N’Dour

I stepped on the stage

At Live 8

The people gave

The poor got paid

                                                                                                Snoop Dogg

 14 July 05 -  Well, Sir Bob did it again! A great event to spread the message, even if it wasn’t as emotive as Live Aid. Debt cancellation is a big step to making poverty history. The African artists looked as though they were putting on a great show at the Eden Project in Cornwall, and their participation has been one of the things which has ensured a more positive media image of Africa, which I’ve been hoping for for some time.

 Another great advance in promoting a more balanced view of Africa has been achieved through the BBC’s ‘Africa Lives’ series. The other day, I saw a documentary by newsman George Alagiah, who returned to the land of his childhood, Ghana and also visited South Africa. The significance of choosing these two countries is that Ghana was the first in Sub-Saharan Africa to gain its independence (1957) and South Africa the last (1994). The programme was refreshingly upbeat, not failing to admit that there were problems, but suggesting positive solutions to them, eg ‘trade’, not ‘aid’ – to teach a person to fish rather than give them fish.

 Alagiah, who has had to cover many negative events in Africa in his career as a reporter,  returned to his old school, and many of the scenes of Accra were familiar to me, having been there twice – my daughter is half-Ghanaian, so it is half of her culture too. He started off by saying that he wanted to talk about Africa’s beauty, vastness and potential – he remembers the promise of independence and knows that there was violence in the years that followed,  but happy times as well. He actually started the programme driving to the school in a Mercedes (the way he travelled there as a child) to the musical background of ‘All Right Now’!

 In South Africa, his report concentrated on the harmony between black, white and coloured, and focused on a vineyard where the white owner was using his capital to educate black people to work in the business – how profit and principle were going hand in hand to help, teach, provide hope and spiritual development. A great example, indeed, of what can be achieved! 

You Don't Fool Me

-         More on Cloned High Streets: Seeing Double..Triple..

 27 Jun 05 – There has recently been more in the press on this subject – the absence of choice, and the blandness of British high streets. Particularly low on the list for diversity, it is stated, is Exeter, with only one remaining independent retailer. Only one in three high streets retain their individual character – no wonder one gets the feeling when in Rochester that one is on holiday! Lewes in East Sussex is another high street which retains its original character – I also know it quite well for its market renowned for cheeses as well as its small clothing retailers.

 In the Daily Mail on June 7, Max Hastings extended the description of the erosion of regional identity to housing and accents. Small businesses cannot compete with giants – they cannot remain, although somehow the French and the Germans, among other Europeans, appear to be able to retain small local retail outlets.

 Another thing which Max Hastings refers to is another trend – with cheap parking at large suburban outlets, the high street may have an uncertain future anyway. I was in Asda in Gravesend the other day – it appears that you could spend almost the entire day there and have nearly all your needs met – eatery, post office, as well as a massive superstore…

 Max Hastings mentions the demise of the small electrical retailer, leading to part of the difficulty in getting items repaired. Personally, I am sad about the passing of the fishmonger. There is little fresh fish on offer in the supermarkets, otherwise, in general, the best you can find a weekend mobile kiosk parked on a set site.

  As it turns out, a town local to me, Sittingbourne, has been named among the worst ‘clone towns’ in the country, along with Maidstone, which is also nearby. I was in Sittingbourne on Saturday and would say that the outlets are mostly chainstores, although there are some small independent retailers and pubs. According to the East Kent Gazzette (June 8), the independently owned stores number as high as forty, but I have my doubts about that. I leave the last word with Andrew Simms, Policy Director for the New Economics Foundation: ‘Clone stores have a triple whammy on communities.  They bleed the local economy of money, destroy the social glue provided by real local shops that holds communities together and they steal the identity of our towns and cities. Then we are left with soulless clone towns’.

 - It's Not Just About the High Street

05 Feb 05

This recent article from the 'New Statesman' proves that 'cloning' is not restricted to the High Street. The author is Andrew Simms, policy director of the New Economics Foundation, which is mentioned in the item 'Cloned' High Streets' below. 'We Will Rock You' the musical carries a serious message - is the 'future' depicted in it already happening now?

http://www.newstatesman.com/Economy/200501240020

- 'Cloned' High Streets

August 2004 - No,  because I  know I'm  in Guildford - but it could be  Gloucester?  I've just heard that UK towns are being talked about in terms of being 'clone towns', all containing the same shops, chains rather than small shops. It seems to have been like this for ages.  The New Economics Foundation (NEF) says that towns are losing their character as small businesses disappear at the rate of fifty a week. Homogenisation of the high street means that your town looks like every other! People are going for convenience rather than choice. It appears that there are very few individual-looking high streets left, which genuinely provide a sense of community. Down where I live we still have one - Rochester - and I'm so glad about that!                                                                                                                                    

  Picture:  Rochester High Street 

In The Lap Of The Gods

Relevant link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4606759.stm

 For more on Burma, see the item on Aung San Suu Kyi: 

Rain Must Fall

Vicki Moore page and Schoolday Memories page

‘39  

-         VJ Day

 18 Aug 05 History records that the real end of the Second World War was on 15 August 1945 when the then Japanese Emperor surrendered. There was a ‘forgotten army’ of allies still fighting in the Far East, yet it is clear that many people bear scars they will never forget. Among them are the Korean ‘Comfort Women’, who were forced to have sex with dozens of Japanese soldiers every day, and still hope for recognition by holding a vigil every Wednesday outside the Japanese Embassy in Seoul. There are the Chinese civilian victims of the Nanjing Massacre* and the Japanese civilian victims of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  Finally, there are the Japanese soldiers themselves who were also victims of a regime which de-humanised them. As one veteran stated, ‘Nobody dies crying “Long Live the Emperor!” People die crying for their mother’.

 *See ‘You and I’ – China and Japan

Source: CNN News

14 May 05 - Well, the year should really be ’45, but it’s as well to remember that, 60 years ago, people were celebrating the end of six years of hostilities in Europe. Last Sunday I visited the Historic Dockyard in Chatham for the ‘VE Day’ celebrations. Here are some pictures: 

I also went on board the submarine ‘Ocelot’ – being cramped at Wembley was luxury compared to what life must have been like inside one of those vessels!

16 Apr 05 - I was in a local  country park the other day and took these pictures of God's creation.

25 Feb 05 - There has been a letter sent to Brian recently about the arrogance 

displayed by some people in having sex without protection. AIDS is not the only 

risk here, but it’s certainly the most serious one. It’s so ignorant to think that 

people who aren’t homosexual or drug takers would not be carrying the virus. 

In fact, it’s insane. Two people may have it in their head that they want to sleep 

with each other, but should take precautions, whether they know each other 

or not. 

 -        More of Oliver’s Offerings – Episode 1 - 37p for a School Dinner

 25 Feb 05 – On Channel 4, Wednesday evening. It was quite an eye-opener – very 

funny at times but posing serious questions – to see Jamie Oliver starting out on 

his attempts to get children to eat healthier school dinners (see Oliver’s Offerings, below). 

Jamie got to learn some home truths about the current system. At Kidbrooke School, 

the head cook, Nora, a feisty, bossy Irishwoman, and her staff have a budget of 37p for 

each dinner, so have to dish out fatty, salty and unhealthy food  - like burgers and chips - 

which contains additives. 

‘Give me a dog’s arse’ said Jamie. ‘A dog’s arse’ll be nicer than school dinners’. 

An analysis of the food showed that there was no fruit or vegetables, so there was no 

vitamin C to provide immunity. The food contained only half to a third of the iron requirement,

 so this would have an adverse effect on concentration and therefore detract from learning. 

Foods which can reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis are absent. 

The children had got used to the food and had developed an aversion to eating vegetables – 

the base of Jamie’s focaccia would be eaten, for example, but not the courgettes on top.

Jamie had to plan his menus in a diametrically opposed way to the one he was used to. 

In his restaurant, he decides on a dish, costs it, and adds a 65% mark-up. Here he had no 

idea how to fit his ideas into the school budget. Not surprising then, that he said he felt 

as if he was David Beckham, having had his Adidas trainers taken away and given a pair 

of Jesus sandals instead!

While Nora is working in Jamie’s restaurant, he takes over management of the kitchen. 

He remarks that he would sack his staff if they took cigarette breaks like these ladies! 

Meanwhile, in the restaurant, Nora is trying to get a smoking break without success. 

Jamie has difficulty in getting his food ready for the start of 'dishing up' time. He's later 

told by the headteacher that all of his dishes that day, apart from the pizza, 

were over budget – the Thai curry, £1.10 a head, vegetable cannelloni 70p, chick pea 

and leak soup 62p. The pizza he made had a wholemeal base with the vegetables wrapped

 inside the tomato base so that the children wouldn’t see them.

He also hasn’t persuaded many of the children to take his offerings by choice yet, 

especially the meals with vegetables…

The series continues next week. 


 – Oliver’s Offerings
 

Love of My Life

- More on Aung San Suu Kyi

 The Hitman  

28 Oct 04: Saw ‘Fahrenheit 9/11’ – the film by Michael Moore. We Brits have a situation where the Prime Minister will do what the US President tells them, so at a time when British soldiers are becoming ever more embedded in the quagmire, we can only rely on a US ‘regime change’. I see Jon Bon Jovi is supporting Kerry; –‘Keep the Faith’, Jon, ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’! The second thing to come out of Pandora’s Box was hope. Let’s live with that right now. For and on behalf of The Coalition of the Unwilling. Dump Bush!

- Pact with Pandora

12 Oct 04

…I'm just it man
You might get fried
Gun in my pocket
Don't get me wrong
I'll be your hitman - I'm a fool for your love
I'm a head shredder…

Yeah - trouble in the east, troubled in the west
Struggle with the beast - what a thief, what a pest
Come back mother, nuke that sucker
Yeah - yeah - yeah
Who's that man talking about ?
Waste that brother
Alright…

I'm the hitman, I'm your prize
But this hitman
Can cut you down to size
Love me baby
Don't be so cool
Love me love me baby
I've been to the hitman school
Yeah – yeah…

 Queen –  (The Hitman – Innuendo) 

The Greek myth of Pandora’s box, which was opened and released all manner of evil into the world. The current reality of how our Prime Minister became a hitman for W. No WMD found – there weren’t any. The British government acted as a poodle for the president. Back to all that later. 

First, more from the ancient Greeks – this time the philosopher Heraclitus. ‘You cannot step twice into the same river’ he said. ‘It will not be the same river the second time’. But this is just what has been done – in 1991, and now. We’re still wading.

So what do I know about the history of this? In the beginning, some western countries armed Saddam because they thought he was a better bet than Iran. So, the capability first came from the west. After the first Gulf War, sanctions were imposed which, as we now know, were proving effective in putting a stop to his weapons programmes. During that first war, Iraq fired some scud missiles into Israel and that’s as far as they got.

As for the dossiers – this unintelligent intelligence – some of it British – in them was suggested a threat to Cyprus, and therefore to the UK. Now it seems that Saddam’s main desire was to defend himself against Iran. In short, he had nowhere near the capability that he had in the first Gulf War.  The fact that he may have wanted to re-start his programme, the straw now being grasped at, was not the reason we went to war. The Weapons Inspectors had not finished their job. Saddam was hedgy, but he apparently wanted to convince Iran that he could answer their capabilities. In retrospect, many of the statements made by the Coalition prior to hostilities concerning WMD are now proved meaningless. At that time, I think it was the Lebanese foreign minister who said something about the different reasons for declaring war which might have been served up in turn for breakfast, lunch and dinner – regime change, stability of the region, WMD.

So the British became the Hitman, under contract to follow instructions from you-know-who. I still don’t know why we had to do this when almost all of our EU partners – and the UN – were against it. 

The prologues are over. It is a question, now,

 Of final belief. So, say that final belief

Must be in a fiction. It is time to choose. . . .

 Wallace Stevens,  Asides on the Oboe. 

(appears at the start of ‘All the President’s Men’ by Bernstein/Woodward, about the Watergate Scandal).

So we went to war over belief in a fiction. The government was obliged to us to ensure the facts were straight before taking the country to war. No doubt it was desirable to get rid of Saddam but that was not the ultimate remit. We now know he was a severely weakened leader. Who knows what would have happened if the Inspectors had been allowed to stay on? And the UN continued to keep a tight grip?

If we speak out against the action we are not only unpatriotic but also patronised (eg by the First Lady) – told that we have the freedom to speak – Iraqis under Saddam didn’t. Yes, we know that; we need to speak if others can’t. Has she, or Blair, ever lived in a country which is not a democracy? I have. Twice. So I know what democracy should be and I don’t need to be patronised. If they don’t like my opinion, I’ve the poem of Bertolt Brecht to offer – written after the East German uprising of 1953 which was quoshed by Soviet tanks:  

- South Africa: Ten Years of Freedom

31 Dec 04:

 ‘Music is at the heart of the people of South Africa, and at the height of the struggle, it was the thing that gave us hope. We have songs for everything, songs for when a baby is born, songs for our everyday struggles. Other people have weapons; we’ve always had our music’

Vusi Mahlasela, (South African Musician)

This year, in April, saw the tenth anniversary of the first free elections in South Africa. It’s been an extraordinary journey, starting with the presidency of Nelson Mandela up to 1999 after so many years of incarceration as an enemy of the state. The Truth and Reconciliation Commissions were a lesson to the rest of humanity to show how things can be done; people facing up to the wrongs with honesty and forgiveness – none of this could have come easy. There are other problems for the country to face now; lingering poverty and the massive scale of the AIDS epidemic.*  Freedom from an oppressive and racist system, however, and a willingness to pull together despite previous pain, have been the main achievements. People will continue to move on.

3 Oct 04 - (Anniversary of German Unification, 1990). The world was 'the loser in the end' in Nena's 1983 anti-war song, 'Neunundneunzig Luftballons'  - in English 'Ninety Nine Red Balloons'. The latter version was one of the videos I saw at the Hard Rock café last weekend  - although I agree with the writer of this article (showing the US release date) that the English was a poor substitute for the original German. Both sets of lyrics are reproduced underneath the article. People don't think so much about songs being translated from a European language into English - it appears to be thought of as a necessity. I suppose there was the consideration that there was an important message to get across in this case. The English version was a hit in the UK. But I have the original German version on a CD at home celebrating that never-to-be-forgotten era of 'Neue Deutsche Welle' (German New Wave) music!

Another song on the CD is Udo Lindenberg's 'Sonderzug nach Pankow' also released in 1983:

Ich weiss genau, ich habe furchtbar viele Freunde,
in der DDR und stündlich werden es mehr.
"Oh, Erich eh, bist du dann wirklich so ein sturer Schrat?
Warum lässt du mich nicht singen im Arbeiter-und Bauernstaat."

Ist das der Sonderzug nach Pankow?
Ist das der Sonderzug nach Pankow?
Entschuldigung, der Sonderzug nach Pankow?

Chorus

Honney ich glaub, du bist doch eigentlich auch ganz locker.
Ich weiss tief in dir drin, bist du eigentlich auch n' Rocker.
Du ziehst dir doch heimlich auch gerne mal die Lederjacke an
Und schliesst Dich ein auf'n Klo und
hoerst West-Radio.
Hallo Erich kannst mich hörr'n, hallo hallolöchen hallo!
Hallo Honney kannst mich hörr'n, hallo halli, halli, hallo!

Joddelido

Towarischtsch Erich!
Meshdu protschem, werchownij sowjet ne imjeet nitschewo protiw
gastrole Gospodina Lindenberga w GDR!

 It's an ironic attack on the GDR (East German) leader Erich Honecker and was heard and enjoyed - cautiously - in East Germany at the time I was there. Honecker who was also a 'loser in the end' - despite allowing Lindenberg to perform there later on that year, he failed to adapt to changes later on and finished up resigning before the unification started to happen in November 1989.

See also Goodbye Lenin, The Day That Changed Germany

Freddie has always lived on, having believed from very early on that he was a star.  At the start, the music press was quite scathing - but he carried on:

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