Random thoughts of a Random man

You couldn't make it up

2012-02-01T08:31:00.000Z

Haven't had one of these in a while, but how about this? Things may be about to change, but at present you can take a course at school which leads to a Certificate which is treated as the equivalent of a GCSE, and the subjects covered include - wait for it - discovering what benefits you may be entitled to if you are unemployed, and how to claim them. Now I've no particular problem with kids being taught such things - indeed for some of them it may well turn out to be a necessary life skill, but what I find unbelievable is that knowing what benefits to claim and how to claim them is seen as an academic qualification!

A load of noughts.

2012-01-31T09:03:00.000Z

So what about this business of RBS Chief Stephen Hester and his £1m (well nearly) bonus. The public - well the press really - have effectively forced him to give it up. Right or wrong? I would just make two points - firstly "bonus" has become a dirty word, but essentially what we are talking about here is performance related pay. You meet these targets and we will pay you such-and-such over and above your basic salary - and this is a fairly common arrangement between employers and employees at all levels. Which leads us on to my second point - if his bonus had been £50,000 say, it's very unlikely that it would even have been commented on. It's only the fact that we are dealing with what for most people are fairy-tale figures that makes it newsworthy. Which I am afraid raises the uncomfortable question as to whether this is all really about envy.

Woof, woof.

2012-01-30T09:07:00.000Z

Can't believe there are calls for Staffordshire bull terriers to be added to the breeds banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act. Like any breed, Staffies can be trained to be vicious, but their basic nature is playful, friendly, loveable and particularly good with children. They are chunky and muscular and if they jump up at you - which being friendly and playful they are wont to do - when you're not ready for it they can easily knock you over, but that's about the only way in which they can be considered a danger.

Back to the drawing-board

2012-01-29T09:28:00.000Z

So we've all be misled all these years, have we? We've always been told that aircraft fly because the air flowing over the top of wing has to travel further than the air flowing under the wing, and hence travels faster, and therefore the air pressure on top of the wing is less than that under the wing - and this produces lift which keeps the thing in the air. It now appears that we have been confusing cause and effect. The air pressure on top of the wing is indeed lower than that under the wing, but this has nothing to do with how far the air has to travel - it's simply that the shape of the wing - the so-called aerofoil shape - creates this pressure difference. Air at a lower pressure moves faster, so the fact that the air on top of the wing moves faster is an effect, not a cause.

A trivial question

2012-01-28T09:29:00.000Z

What do you call those little tokens that you get in Trivial Pursuit for answering a major question and which you then put in your circular playing piece. We call them "cheeses" but I'm not quite sure why - perhaps because they look something like those Dairylea processed cheese triangles? What do you call them?

The square on the hypotenuse...

2012-01-27T09:18:00.000Z

On a recent family holiday, I spent a lot of time teaching one of my granddaughters how to solve quadratic equations (I had to mug up on it first!). And I thought to myself - what's the point? In my long life I have never, outside the schoolroom, had cause to solve a quadratic equation - nor have I ever needed to use Pythagoras's theorem or trigonometry. So why on earth do we bother to teach children these things? Unless they specifically want to specialise in maths, or some science subject which will require advanced calculation, all a child needs to know to get by in life is the ability to add, subtract, divide and multiply, and perhaps, just perhaps how to set up and manipulate a basic algebraic equation. Are we wasting our time - and theirs?

Ripples on a pond

2012-01-26T09:11:00.000Z

This proposed legislation in the US (see post of 18th Jan) has ramifications going well beyond file sharing. If websites are going to be held legally responsible for the content of files stored on them then this could scupper the idea of the cloud (see post of 7/11/08) which is generally seen to be the future of home computing. Also it would mean that if I were to say something defamatory on this blog, the defamed person could not only take action against me, but also take action against Yahoo which is the website which hosts Blogger. This may well not be what the proponents of the legislation intend, but we've spoken before about the Law of Unforeseen Consequences.

Where's me dole?

2012-01-25T13:52:00.000Z

Where do you stand on this question of a benefit cap? Some LibDems don't like it, some bishops don't like it, and Labour is doing its usual job of facing both ways - saying they approve in principle but would do it differently. For me, the situation is quite clear - it is unacceptable that those on benefit (which let's be clear, means that their money is coming from you and me) should find themselves in a better position financially than those who are not. It's that simple. William Beveridge the "father" of the welfare state, was clear that benefits should be set at subsistence level. You shouldn't starve, but you should "struggle to get by" on benefit - else where is the incentive to get off benefit? And there are plenty of people not on benefit who are are struggling to get by. The fact that there are some tens of thousands of people on benefit who are living a comfortable life is a disgrace. The problem, as mentioned in previous posts is that successive governments have been unwilling to do anything about it, with the result that reform is now having to be introduced on a crash-bang-wallop basis which is not the ideal way of going about it.

That woman.

2012-01-24T08:27:00.000Z

Madonna's film about Wallis Simpson does not seem to have gone down too well with the critics. Titled "W.E." (an in-joke - it's a sort of monogram of Wallis and Edward and they were often referred to as "the royal we") it seeks to tell the story of their relationship from her point of view. She is often held solely responsible for the Abdication Crisis, and Edward is seen as just a weak man under her spell, but every indication is that that outcome was not what she sought at all. When Edward abdicated, few people gave their relationship more than a few months, but the fact that they married and stayed together - often in somewhat socially demeaning circumstances - for the rest of their lives, seems to indicate that they had some genuine long-lasting feeling for each other. The general consensus today seems to be that she did this country a huge favour by ridding us of a very personable but potentially disastrous King. Our house was split - my Dad was scathing about Edward and Wallis - particularly Edward, whom he saw as in complete dereliction of his duty. I think my Mum on the other hand thought the whole thing rather romantic.

Headline fodder.

2012-01-23T09:12:00.000Z

Anybody else feel uncomfortable about the way the captain of this cruise-liner which has capsized off the Italian coast is being tried and convicted in the media? He may of course be guilty of all the things which are being said about him, but the proper forum for all this to be investigated is either some form of official inquiry, or possibly (probably even) in court. The press on the other hand have their own agenda which doesn't necessarily have anything to do with truth or justice.

The mighty dollar rules...

2012-01-22T10:09:00.000Z

I've posted before about the way sponsors of big events are allowed to dictate what can and cannot be consumed, sold or displayed at those events, but this surely takes the biscuit? The 2014 World Cup is to be held in Brazil. Several years ago, in a move designed to curb violence at football matches, Brazil banned the sale of alcohol at football grounds. Very sensible. BUT... Budweiser are one of FIFA's big sponsors and as a result FIFA are demanding (demanding mind you) that beer (guess whose?) is on sale at all World Cup match venues. So they consider they have the right to override Brazilian law then? The mind boggles!

R.I.P.

2012-01-21T14:00:00.000Z

Etta James - always a bit too strident for my taste - I was more of an Ella Fitzgerald/Carmen McRae man myself, but there was no doubt about her prodigious talent or the influence she had on the world of female jazz singing.

Pick a number

2012-01-20T09:13:00.000Z

Do these politicians and government officials live on the same planet as me? Apparently inflation is at four-point-something percent and falling. Really? Then how come my standard weekly shop, which - boring person that I am - varies little from week to week, and which a year ago used to come in regularly at just under £40, now struggles not to exceed £50? And whichever way you slice it, that's a increase of something like 20% or more. Four-point-something - don't make me laugh!

Ha ha

2012-01-19T09:22:00.001Z

It was autumn, and the American Indians on a remote reservation asked their new Chief if the winter was going to be cold or mild.

Since he was a modern Indian Chief he had never been taught the old secrets, so when he looked at the sky he couldn't tell what the weather was going to be.

Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he replied to his tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect wood to be prepared.

But also being a practical man, a few days later he 'phoned the National Weather Service (US equivalent of the Met Office) and asked, "Is the coming winter going to be cold?"

"It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold indeed," the Meteorologist at the Weather Service responded. So the Chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more wood in order to be prepared.

One week later he called the National Weather Service again. "Is it going to be a very cold winter?"

"Yes," the man at National Weather Service again replied, "it's going to be a very cold winter."

The Chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of wood they could find.

Two weeks later he called the National Weather Service again. "Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?"

"Absolutely," the man replied. "It's going to be one of the coldest winters ever."

"How can you be so sure?" the Chief asked.

The weatherman replied, "The Indians are collecting wood like crazy."

The wheel turns...

2012-01-18T08:47:00.000Z

I'm old enough to remember when audio cassette recorders made their first appearance, and the music industry were up in arms because people could now borrow the latest hit record from a mate and make a copy of it for their own use (OK, reel to reel tape recorders had been around for some years, but they weren't commonplace). Shock horror!! Then it happened again with the advent of video recorders - you could now record a film off the telly and watch it again and again. The film industry couldn't see beyond the money they would be losing. Of course in time both the music and film people saw that these innovations were in fact business opportunities and that there was the potential for them to make far more than they might lose by any so-called "piracy". And now it's all happening again with the internet and its ability to "stream" content to users, and you'd think that people would have learned from the past - but no, apparently. The vested interests are trying to get legislation passed in the US which would allow them to dictate just who is allowed to see what on the net - and its affects would be felt well beyond the States. Plenty of opposition but also plenty of money behind those seeking such a law. Let's hope common sense prevails.

Erratum

2012-01-17T09:05:00.000Z

I said that John Barrowman (Captain Jack in Torchwood, among many other things) is American. Well it seems that he isn't - he was born in Glasgow and despite having moved to America when he was a young lad, remains a Scot. Happy to put the record straight.

Here we go again.

2012-01-16T09:17:00.001Z

First it was Gary McKinnon (see post dated 4/9/08) and now our extradition treaty with the US comes under more scrutiny and criticism following a ruling that a young man who has never been to the States and who almost certainly has committed no offence in this country (and certainly has not been charged with one) can be extradited to face trial over there. There has to be something wrong with an arrangement that produces such a result, surely? Let's hope it is overturned on appeal.

Please Miss.....

2012-01-15T10:30:00.000Z

I'm sure you know the old adage "those who can, do; those who can't, teach". Bit unflattering but like many of these old sayings, there's more than a grain of truth in there. A lot of teachers are where they are not out of any sense of vocation, but simply for want of anything better. Not surprisingly, many such teachers tend to be not very good, and as they have no passion for the job, the children they teach are not inspired and don't learn much. The Education Secretary has plans to make it easier to get rid of such underperforming teachers, and despite the understandable opposition of the unions, this is clearly a right move. The welfare of the child should be paramount, and kids only get one shot at school, so if that means more bad teachers find themselves out of a job, I'm sure most parents would go along with that.

Madame from Armentières??

2012-01-14T09:40:00.000Z

I'm obviously behind the times, because apparently "fräulein" as a form of address for an unmarried woman in German has now more or less gone out of use, and it seems that "mademoiselle" in French may be going the same way. As a mere man I don't quite understand this, although the thrust of most of the comments (from women) I have read are along the lines of "my marital status is nobody's business but mine". Typically in English we seem to have gone for a compromise solution by introducing the new neutral title "Ms" for those who do not wish to declare themselves as "Miss" or "Mrs". At least it solves the problem of how you address a reply to someone who has signed a letter simply "Jane Smith" or whatever. Mrs and Miss by the way are both diminutives of the same word - mistress.

Yum, yum.

2012-01-13T09:13:00.000Z

When the going gets tough, do we look for comfort food? Greggs, who specialise in takeaway pies and pasties has apparently seen sales rise significantly towards the back-end of last year. Is there a connection?

It's my life, damn it!

2012-01-12T09:34:00.000Z

Happy or healthy - it seems you have to make a choice. Over the last few years there have been a series of reports linking something or other to an increased risk of an illness or a reduction in life expectancy - and it's invariably something nice that you would not willingly give up. Of course, you can take a lot of no notice, but the problem is that others do and it may - probably will - affect what you can buy. Crisps have become like cardboard these days, as they've reduced and reduced the amount of fat in them. I used to love my supermarket's cajun chicken ready meal because it was made with chicken breast with the skin on, but guess what - the skin has disappeared. They also used to do a very tasty sweet chili pork noodle dish which is no longer to be found, and when I enquired about it I was told it had been taken off sale as it no longer complied with the store's "healthy eating" policy. So - happy or healthy? I know which I would choose - if only I were given the choice!

Och aye??

2012-01-11T08:47:00.000Z

I've been down this road before, but the question of a referendum on Scottish Independence has raised its head once more, so once more I ask - why should the decision be restricted to the Scots (however you choose to define them)? Surely it is a matter on which we are all entitled to have our say? If you are seeking to break up the United Kingdom, that is a matter which affects all members of the UK and on which we should all have a vote. The current Scottish approach smacks of nationalistic arrogance.

Beware colourful language!

2012-01-10T09:02:00.000Z

I've been tempted on quite a few occasions recently to post about racism and racist comments, which are much in the news at present, but I've held back for fear that my observations might be seen as - well, racist. But I am struggling to come to terms with the Diane Abbott business. In the course of a Twitter conversation she tweeted "White people love playing divide and rule. We should not play their game", and this apparently was considered so offensive that she was forced by the Leader of the Opposition to make a public apology. So how was that a racist comment? I can only presume because she used the words "white people". So stereotypical perhaps, but racist? Do you get it - because I sure don't?

HS2

2012-01-09T09:02:00.000Z

I have no particular axe to grind about the idea of creating a new high speed line between London and Birmingham. I do not travel by train, and the proposed line runs nowhere near my home. So perhaps I can look at the proposal with an open mind. And I find it difficult to believe that cutting some 20 minutes off the travelling time between those two cities will in any way repay within any meaningful time frame the enormous cost of constructing the new line, not to mention the disruption which will be caused. So personally I don't think the case has been made.

Pride must have its pinch

2012-01-08T09:40:00.000Z

I'm not sure about the idea that the NHS should foot the bill for those who have had non-essential cosmetic surgery and are now for whatever reason regretting it and seeking to have it reversed. I suppose if the NHS paid to have it done, then they have a case, but if they had it done privately, then surely their first (and perhaps only) port of call should be the private provider.

Where is the real problem?

2012-01-07T09:04:00.000Z

So now even the PM and his deputy are at it - pledging to do more to stop tax avoidance by large companies. I am totally fed up with making the point that tax avoidance is perfectly legal, but I think what Cameron and Clegg are saying goes further than that and raises more questions. Cameron in particular is having a go at the use by large companies of "fancy corporate lawyers" - in other words the case he is seeking to make is not a legal but a moral one, that it is unfair that large companies can afford to employ said "fancy lawyers" to find loopholes in tax legislation for their clients, whereas Joe Bloggs cannot. Of course what underpins his comments is an unspoken acceptance of the fact that tax law is so hopelessly esoteric and complex that there are bound to be loopholes for those clever enough to find them. Perhaps he should direct his efforts more to making tax law simple enough that we can all understand it and the fancy lawyers become surplus to requirements, and then the moral problem he perceives would cease to exist.

Meeow!

2012-01-06T09:02:00.000Z

Are cats intelligent? Well all I can say is that my moggy has been giving me some very strange looks since I left the daily paper open on the table at the story about a Chinese businessman who died of suspected poisoning after eating slow-cooked cat stew at a restaurant in Beijing.

R.I.P.

2012-01-05T09:21:00.000Z

Ronald Searle - surely one of the greatest cartoonists of our age. One of those people who could, with a few strokes of pencil or pen, create an unforgettable image. Although known mainly for St.Trinians, some of his most powerful images come from his time in a Japanese POW camp in the Second World War. What a talent!

Gun control

2012-01-04T08:34:00.000Z

Once again we have a situation where apparently the owner of a licenced firearm has used it to kill people. I am ever minded of the TV comedy series "The Thin Blue Line" where Inspector Fowler (Rowan Atkinson) explains why he has never approved an application for a gun licence. I can't remember the exact quote, but it goes something like "The first question on the form is - do you wish to own a gun? And anybody who answers 'yes' to that is clearly someone who should not be allowed to have one". Many a true word is spoken in jest!

Food, glorious food.

2012-01-03T08:31:00.000Z

So the Government is to send out leaflets to us all to try and persuade us that we can eat healthily on a budget, and the thrust is that you can cook a healthy meal for four for under a fiver. There seems to be an unstated assumption here that people want to cook. I can only speak for myself, but I buy ready meals because they are just that - ready to eat with minimal effort. As you will know from my occasional posts under the title "The Lazy Cook" I am not averse to cooking, but it's not something I want to do regularly - just now and then when I feel like it. I imagine there are many more of you who feel the same. Those who like cooking will doubtless read the leaflet and maybe take inspiration from it - those who don't will simply bin it. It would perhaps be more sensible to try and persuade the manufacturers of ready meals to offer cheaper and healthier products?

Great Expectations

2012-01-02T10:02:00.000Z

Did you watch the BBC adaptation over Christmas? What did you think? I thought it was good, even though I've always had problems with the story - mainly because we're obviously supposed to empathise with Pip (aren't we?) and I find him a generally unsympathetic character. The story is all about manipulation - he is manipulated throughout by Miss Havisham and, unknowingly for most of the time, by Magwitch. It is only in the last few pages of the book, and in the last few moments of the adaptation, that he becomes his own man - or does he? I've always had the feeling that Estella would be pulling his strings for the rest of his life - whether or not they got married. Dickens himself apparently had doubts as to how the story should end - his original ending was completely downbeat, but he then wrote a second ending which at least allowed for the possibility that things would turn out well, and that is the version in general use. And although for me, Miss Havisham will always be Martita Hunt, I thought Gillian Anderson was superb.

First footing

2012-01-01T11:10:00.002Z

Although mainly associated with Scotland and Hogmanay (and the origin of that word is really obscure) the tradition of first footing was certainly alive and well in the West Midlands when I was a kid. To be done properly, the first footer had to be the first person to enter a house once the clock had struck midnight on New Year's Eve. They should be a "stranger" - that is not a member of the household, and they must bring with them a loaf of bread and a piece of coal - thus providing the house with the two main essentials of life, food and warmth. They must say as they enter "Peace be upon this house and all within" and the response from those in the house should be "Amen to that". I was never allowed to be a first footer myself because back then I was fair-haired, and tradition required that the first footer had dark hair. The practice gradually died out with the advent of television and access to a more structured celebration of New Year - Jimmy Shand and all that.

Obvious really.

2011-12-31T09:39:00.000Z

Concern being expressed at the fact that charges for providing care in the home to the elderly vary considerably between local authorities, with some providing such care free, and others charging up to around £20 an hour for it. But this is just another example of the fact that there are two sides to every coin - all the major political parties are to a greater or lesser extent committed to reducing centralised control, and to more decisions being made at a local level, but if you're going down that line, you have to accept that different local authorities may well see things differently and have different priorities. So there will inevitably be what has been termed a "post code lottery". You can't have the penny and the bun, as my Gran was fond of saying.

Pull the other one!

2011-12-30T08:42:00.000Z

I always find it satisfactory when a mask slips and you catch a glimpse of what you always suspected was hidden behind it. My local council has always put it about that the parking charges they impose are for the necessary regulation and upkeep of the parking facilities they provide, and not a money-making exercise. Well, recently one of the major supermarkets has opened a "superstore" in a local town centre with free parking for all, and the council is screaming blue murder because, not unnaturally, motorists are choosing to park there rather than in the council carparks. There's talk of them taking legal action to force the supermarket to change its policy. So then - not a money-making exercise? Sounds of hollow laughter!

That name again

2011-12-29T09:20:00.000Z

I didn't think things could get any sillier but (see my post of 20th December) the EU have apparently "relented" and said that the village of Stilton can produce the cheese for which they are famous, BUT they can't call it Stilton, so it will be marketed as Bell Blue. What the....? They can hardly stop them making cheese, can they, and if it can't be called Stilton, then it's not Stilton is it? What planet are these EU bureaucrats on?

Have you got it in another colour?

2011-12-28T11:17:00.000Z

Much discussion on the telly as to what your rights are when you wish to go back to the shop and exchange presents you have received. Am I alone in thinking that anyone who is even considering such a course of action should be put in the stocks and pelted with rotten fruit? These are PRESENTS for heaven's sake - you haven't paid for them, and even if they turn out to be not what you wanted or expected, you should accept them with good grace. What ever happened to the idea that "it's the thought that counts"?

Same difference?

2011-12-27T09:46:00.000Z

I think all this fuss about companies imposing a surcharge for paying by plastic is aiming at the wrong target. The manufacturer of an article or the provider of a service has settled on the price they need for the manufacture of that article, or the provision of that service and that is the price they will charge. It is for the consumer to decide whether that is a price they are prepared to pay. How that price is made up is really neither here nor there. If companies are not allowed to factor into that price a premium for paying by plastic, they will simply adjust their tariff in some other way so that the overall total remains the same. What the Government should be aiming their fire at is the way the public are willfully misled by the way certain things are advertised. The price is the price and if it is a fair one, people will pay it - the problem arises when you think you are going to pay one price, only to find further down the line that the actual price is very different. So it's not a price problem, it's an advertising problem.

Today is...

2011-12-26T10:26:00.000Z

Well we've done Boxing Day and St. Stephen's Day, but what about Wren Day? Back in medieval times, young boys would go out today to capture a wren, which they would then tie to the top of a pole and parade it round the town, singing songs and begging for money. It was just a today thing - it was considered spectacularly unlucky to harm a wren on any other day of the year. The origin of the custom is lost in the mists of time, but is probably connected to the pagan idea of making sacrifices to the gods at this time of year in the hope of ensuring the return of the longer, warmer days. The tradition is still kept alive today in some parts of Ireland and Wales - thus lending credence to the suggestion that it was originally a Celtic practice - although today a fake wren is used rather than the real thing.

A traditional family Christmas wish.

2011-12-25T08:14:00.000Z

May the spirit of Christmas bring you peace,
The gladness of Christmas give you hope,
And the warmth of Christmas grant you love.

The Big Question.

2011-12-24T09:40:00.004Z

So let's get right to it - how does Santa Claus get round all the houses to deliver the presents in one night? Can't be done- right? Yet it happens. So - ideas? Well, there's the Artemis Fowl solution - Santa Claus is actually an elf called San D'Klaus and as everybody knows, elves can stop time, so it actually takes as long as it takes, but for us humans time stops so it appears to happen in the space of one night. Then there's the parallel universes theory - that there are an infinite number of Santas in an infinite numbers of universes, each delivering just a few presents to just a few houses - easy-peasy. And my personal theory - Santa is a quantum entity. Quantum theory says that if that were so, Santa would be able to be everywhere all at the same time, which again makes the apparently impossible simple. What do you think? Of course you could stay up tonight and try to catch him at it - but then, as we all know, if you don't go to sleep, he won't come!

Christmas trivia.

2011-12-23T08:59:00.000Z

As has been mentioned in previous years, whatever was the date of Jesus's birth, it almost certainly was not December 25th. So why do we celebrate it then? It's all part of a cunning plan by the early Christian church not to alienate people by imposing new ideas on them, but instead to integrate Christian concepts into existing activities. The point where the days start getting longer again had always traditionally been marked with feasting, prayers and sacrifices to the gods, and the early Christian church simply took this over and gradually associated it with the birth of Jesus. The Romans called this time Saturnalia, and the Germanic peoples gave it the name Yule. But whereas Saturnalia has more or less disappeared from public consciousness, Yule has stuck and we still refer to Yuletide, and Yule logs and the like.

Music Man

2011-12-22T09:23:00.000Z

Best Christmas song? Guaranteed to cause dissension. My view is that the criteria should be that the song can stand independent of its original performer. Which I'm afraid rules out songs like "Last Christmas" (great song, but can you imagine it being done by anybody other than Wham, or at the very least in the style of Wham?). Same goes for "I wish it could be Christmas every day", "Merry Christmas everybody" and such like. So we're thrown back on the "standards", and for what it's worth, here in the traditional reverse order, are my top five. At number five "Winter wonderland", at four "Let it snow", number three "Have yourself a merry little Christmas", the runner-up "The Christmas song" and the winner - what else could it be but "White Christmas".

Been there, seen it, done it...

2011-12-21T07:54:00.000Z

There's a story that scientists in China are working on a cotton fabric which will clean itself. Perhaps they should be sent a copy of the 1950's film "The Man in the White Suit".

What's in a name - again.

2011-12-20T08:39:00.000Z

I've commented before on what I see as the essential silliness of these EU rulings saying that a product can only be called by a certain geographical name if in fact it comes from that particular place - Melton Mowbray pork pie being a case in point. But how about this - a recent ruling means that Stilton cheese can now only be called such if it is made in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire or Leicestershire. So?? Well the village of Stilton, where the cheese originated, is in Cambridgeshire, which means that cheese made in Stilton cannot be called Stilton! How absurd - and just to compound the absurdity, you can have Stilton cheese made in Melton Mowbray, 'cause that's in Leicestershire!

Ha ha

2011-12-19T08:33:00.000Z

Topical joke - courtesy of my daily paper -
A Higgs Boson walks into a Catholic church.
The priest comes up and says "I'm sorry, my son, we don't allow your sort in here"
"But you must let me in" says the Higgs Boson "How else are you going to have Mass?"

Ha ha

2011-12-18T09:49:00.000Z

Seasonal joke -
Good King Wenceslas fancied a pizza, so he rang up his local Domino's
"Certainly, your Majesty" said the assistant, "What sort of pizza would you like?"
"Oh just my usual" said Wenceslas, "Deep pan, crisp and even".

Give 'em what they want, and they will come?

2011-12-17T10:00:00.000Z

So the Government has finally woken up to the fact that town centres are failing - and have been failing for years - as places to go to shop. They have commissioned a report to come up with ideas as to how this can be rectified. I think in many cases we are too far down the road to have any realistic chance of turning back, but here's an idea - replace local business rates with a local business tax based upon turnover. This would give local councils a vested interest in seeing that local businesses prosper. At present, they get the business rate irrespective of how well or badly the business is doing. It might make them think more about their responsibility to provide things like adequate parking facilities at reasonable charges - the lack of which in my opinion is one of the major factors in people not going into town to shop.

You what??!

2011-12-16T09:27:00.000Z

Pace President Obama, if Iraq is a "stable" state, I'd hate to see an unstable one!

The phoenix rises?

2011-12-15T09:03:00.000Z

So it now seems probable that the News of the World did not in fact delete voice mail messages from Milly Dowler's mobile 'phone after all. As it was this allegation, more than any other, that so disgusted the general population that the Murdochs felt they had no alternative but to close the paper down, where does that now leave things? It doesn't alter the fact that they did hack into her 'phone, as they did into many other peoples', but this sort of behaviour is now being seen as no more than common practice among the red tops - however abhorrent it may be. If I were Rupert Murdoch, I think I would at least be mulling over the possibility of resurrecting the paper, in view of these latest revelations.

Stock up on the bamboo.

2011-12-14T10:50:00.000Z

Is the giant panda the modern equivalent of the white elephant? Like the historical white elephant which the Kings of Siam were wont to give to someone they wished to ruin, the panda is useless, cannot be got rid of, and costs a fortune to maintain. I'm sure Edinburgh Zoo has it's reasons, but I can't see it myself.

Turn your papers over now...

2011-12-13T08:32:00.000Z

What's all this fuss about teachers knowing what questions are going to come up in the exams? Perhaps it's a bit more blatant and more motivated by league tables and such these days, but surely it was ever so? When you're teaching a wide-ranging subject like history, for example, you absolutely have to know which areas are going to crop up in the exam. I remember for "O" level history, we studied, among other things, Italian unification (Garibaldi and all that) and that's such an esoteric little area of the overall syllabus that it was clear that our history teacher must have known that there would be a question on that. I've commented before on the way students these days are taught to pass the exam rather than taught the subject, and I'm not in favour of that, but teachers have always been aware of the particular areas which would be tested.

Cod and two penn'orth, please

2011-12-12T09:11:00.000Z

I've no connection with Yorkshire, but say "fish and chips" and the name that pops automatically into my mind is Harry Ramsden. So it was a bit of a shock to find that the original shop of that name in Leeds is to close as no longer being economically viable. Mind you, fish and chips is no longer the cheap meal it used to be - these days basic fish and chips is around a fiver. Which puts it in direct competition with McDonalds, KFC and the like. So it's as yummy as ever, but for me just an occasional treat now and then I'm afraid.

Morris dancers and a few sparklers?

2011-12-11T10:07:00.000Z

Do you watch - or care about - the opening ceremony at the Olympic games? Apparently the budget for the opening ceremony at next year's games in London has been doubled, and many people - myself included - are questioning whether this is a sensible and proper use of money. The Olympics after all is a sporting event and not just an excuse for the host city to show off. Unfortunately, that's what has tended to happen, with each host city trying to outdo the previous one, and the hope was that - particularly in the present economic climate - London would buck the trend, and put on a more low-key show. And can there be anything more boring than the parade of athletes, which goes on forever and is the best cure for insomnia ever invented? There's no way we could outdo Beijing, so why bother to try?

Snap - the real deal.

2011-12-10T10:44:00.000Z

So what is the Prisoner's Dilemma? It goes like this - you and an accomplice have committed a serious offence. You have both been arrested, and are being held in separate police stations, with no way of contacting each other. You are approached by a detective who has a proposition for you, and who makes it clear that the same proposition is being put to your accomplice. The proposition is this - if you are willing to confess and give evidence against your accomplice, you will go free and your accomplice, thanks to your evidence, will be convicted of the full offence, and will go to prison for 15 years. If you both confess, you will both go on trial for the full offence, but consideration will be given to the fact that you have confessed, and you will both get a reduced sentence of 5 years. If neither of you confess, there will not be enough evidence to put you on trial for the full offence, so you will both be charged with a lesser offence for which the authorities have ample evidence against you and you will go to prison for one year. What should you do? You will see the similarity with the card game - the "safe" option for you is to confess - that way the worst that can happen is you go away for 5 years, and there's always the possibility you will go free. On the other hand, if you both refuse to confess, that is the best option for both of you, as you both end up with just a year inside, but can you trust your accomplice? If you refuse to confess, and he (or she) confesses, you end up with 15 years in the slammer!

Sexist? - not really.

2011-12-09T10:11:00.000Z

The BBC are being roundly condemned for the fact that the short list for the Sports Personality of the Year contains no women. Bit unfair really, as the make-up of the short list was not compiled by the BBC, but by an independent panel of sports writers. But why no women? Well, I think in great part it is for the same reason that League 2 football matches do not get the same attendance figures as the Premiership - when it comes to sports, people want to see the best, and with the greatest respect to women, as most sports contain a significant physical element, women are always going to be outclassed by men. I have mentioned before how surprising I find it that women do not feature more in non-physical competitions like snooker, darts, ten-pin bowling and the like but with the possible exception of gymnastics, when it comes to watching sport, I will choose a male competition over a female one just about every time. This isn't anti-women, it's just pro-top class sport.

Snap - continued.

2011-12-08T09:32:00.000Z

Well the obvious strategy is to play red - that way you are guaranteed to win £1 every hand, and you could win £10. Problem is of course that your opponent is equally capable of working that out and so the likelihood is that you will both play red every time - boring. Of course, if you both play black you could triple your winnings, and this is where it becomes interesting. After five hands you are allowed to talk to each other, and you could both agree to play black. But now the question is - can you trust your opponent, and equally can they trust you? Because if you know, or think you know that your opponent is going to play black, you can play red and potentially win £10. This is in fact a variation on what is known as "The Prisoner's Dilemma" - a situation where co-operation is more beneficial, but leaves you open to treachery. There's no right answer - it's just an interesting conundrum.

Snap?

2011-12-07T08:43:00.000Z

Here's a simple card game for two players - you each have two cards, one red, one black. You choose which card you intend to play, and put the other card away from you face down on the table. You then each show the card you have elected to play. If you both show red cards, you each win £1. If one of you shows a red card and the other a black, the one who shows the red card wins £10 and the one who shows black wins nothing. If you both show black cards, you both win £3. The money comes from some philanthropic third party, so neither of you loses anything. The game can only be played ten times, and you are not allowed to speak to each other until five hands have been played. What should be your strategy?

The Lazy Cook

2011-12-06T09:01:00.001Z

Poor man's kedgeree
Tinned kippers
2 eggs
Packet microwaveable rice
Teaspoon curry powder (optional)
Melt a knob of butter in a frying pan or wok. Mash up the kippers and add to the pan. Add the rice and (optional) curry powder and fry for a couple of minutes. Beat up the eggs with a drop of milk and add to the pan, stirring continuously to scramble. Serve on its own or on toast.

Rien ne va plus

2011-12-05T09:17:00.000Z

Suggestion that schoolchildren should be taught how to "gamble responsibly" - very good idea, although I can't see it sitting comfortably with the churches or Daily Mail readers. One aspect of betting which can confuse even those experienced in the art is our use in this country of "fractional" odds rather than the method favoured in most of the rest of the world of "decimal" odds. Decimal odds are quoted to show you how much you will get back if your bet wins. So if team A are quoted at 2.4 to beat team B and you put £1 on them to win and they do, you will get £2.40 back - a profit of £1.40. So it's easy enough to compare bets and see which has the potential to win you the most, but which will win you more - a bet quoted at 7/4 or one quoted at 6/5? To convert fractional odds into decimal, simply divide the first figure by the second and add one. So 7/4 becomes 7 divided by 4 which is 1.75 and add 1 to make it 2.75, and 6/5 becomes 6 divided by 5 which is 1.2 which with one added is 2.2, so the 7/4 shot will win you more - assuming of course that you do win. Mind you, whether the odds you are being quoted are value for money is another matter altogether.

Push the button, Max.

2011-12-04T10:02:00.000Z

So what do you think? The Schools' Minister is proposing to limit the use of calculators in primary schools. He says that it is important that kids are able to solve simple sums without resorting to an electronic gadget. We certainly seem to have stopped teaching the "times tables" which underpin so much of mathematics. On the other hand, I find myself automatically reaching for my little machine when I have to do a calculation, even though I am well capable of working it out for myself - if the facility exists to make life easier, why not use it? So what do you think?

Ha ha

2011-12-03T09:28:00.000Z

I had amnesia once - - or was it twice?

Upsy-daisy

2011-12-02T10:19:00.000Z

I don't know why, but recently the question has resurfaced as to whether it is treason to stick a postage stamp on an envelope upside down - well, it's not. I think the idea probably originated because way back the basic common law definition of treason was simply disloyalty to the Crown, and if they'd had postage stamps back then probably affixing one upside down might well have been seen as an expression of disloyalty. Today treason is a statutory offence and there's no mention of postage stamps, and unlike some other countries we do not have an offence of lèse majesté which essentially means offending the dignity of the Monarch. In America the tradition has arisen of using the positioning of the stamp as a means of sending a message - as I understand it, upside down means "I love you".

Fair do's

2011-12-01T09:42:00.000Z

Having re-read my last two posts, I have to accept that I seem to be having a go at Vettel - damning him with faint praise over his championship and taking the gloss off his new record of the number of pole positions in a season. And that would be really unfair because he can only drive the race that's put before him - if he finds himself (as he so often did) on pole in the fastest car and therefore able to simply drive away from the opposition, that's simply the way things are. I just wish I could feel more confident that he could cut the mustard if the chips were really down (and how's that for a mixed metaphor?). And until McLaren or Ferrari or whoever come up with a competitive car I'm never going to know, am I?

There are statistics, and then...

2011-11-30T07:41:00.000Z

Further to yesterday's post, much has been made of the fact that Sebastian Vettel set a new record for pole positions of 15 this season, thus beating Nigel Mansell's previous record of 14, set back in 1992. Well certainly 15 beats 14, but this overlooks the fact that when Mansell set his record there were only 16 races in a season, whereas this season there were 19. So a truer comparison would be to compare where Vettel was in terms of pole positions after 16 races, and at that point he only had 12. Indeed, on that basis he actually comes in 4th position, behind not only Mansell, but Senna and Prost as well, who each had 13 out of 16.

Formula One.

2011-11-29T08:56:00.000Z

My usual look back at the season -
Vettel - well, what is there to say? Back to back championships, and this one pretty well sewn up before the season was half over. A fast driver in the fastest car. Couldn't really go wrong, could he?
Button - probably his best season, in my opinion - yes, better even than when he won the championship. The car was never really competitive and yet he was nearly always there or thereabouts. Proved what a good driver (as opposed to a fast driver) he is.
Webber - Once again had to play second fiddle to Vettel, but was consistently in the first half-a-dozen. Only negative point is that, given he was driving essentially the same car as Vettel, why couldn't he do better?
Alonso - Won't go so far as to say that I'm warming to the bloke, but he too showed what a good driver can do in an underperforming car.

What the **** ?

2011-11-28T09:20:00.000Z

I hope I didn't give the impression in last Wednesday's post that I think swearing at the police is acceptable. My post was not about swearing per se but about the absurdity (as I see it) of that particular section of the Public Order Act 1986 which on the face of it puts the decision as to whether or not an offence has been committed in the hands of the "victim" rather than, as it should be, in the hands of the judge or jury. The case in question simply affirmed that it is a matter for the court to decide.

A futile exercise.

2011-11-27T09:56:00.000Z

Well it's been on my mind since I posted about it in June and I've come to a decision - if I were still a working Civil Servant I wouldn't be coming out on strike next Wednesday, and I'll tell you why - because I cannot see that it will achieve anything other than inconveniencing a lot of ordinary men and women trying to go about their everyday lives. It's just an exercise of power for power's sake - in effect the unions are sticking two fingers up to the public and saying "We're doing this because we can and there's nothing you can do about it". The Government are well aware that there is considerable bad feeling among public sector workers about changes to their pension schemes - the strike isn't going to tell them anything they don't already know, and if anything, it is likely to harden the Government's stance in the continuing negotiations. It's only effect will be to cause disruption, and probably expense, to Joe Bloggs and his family, who are in no way responsible for the situation.

Hard decision.

2011-11-26T09:30:00.000Z

Rob Andrew faces the classic dilemma of the head of an organisation (in this case the Rugby Football Union) when things have gone badly wrong - do you fall on your sword, or do you take the line that if you're going to be held responsible for the failure, then it's your responsibility to put matters right? If I found myself in that position, and assuming I could look at the situation objectively, I think my approach would be - is there anybody who would be better than me at sorting things out? If so, I go - if not, I stay.

Music Man

2011-11-25T09:11:00.000Z

My other abiding memory of Amsterdam all those years ago (see yesterday's post) is that every eating place had live music. One restaurant we went to was obviously a converted cinema. We sat upstairs in the balcony, and on the stage was a full "big band" - some 25 strong. Even the little cafés would have a small combo playing up the corner. Those were the days.

The Lazy Cook

2011-11-24T09:17:00.000Z

I think it's called "serendipity" when disparate ideas come together to produce a novel thought. There was an article in last weekend's paper about open sandwiches (or "tartines" as the paper would have it) and then a few pages further on, an advertisement for holidays in Amsterdam. And out of nowhere into my head popped the word Uitsmijter (pronounced sort of "outs-my-ter) which was our staple fare when a couple of the lads and I went to Amsterdam on a weekend pass from RAF Goch back in 1957 I think it must have been. It's just a chunky slice of bread with a slice of cheese and a slice of ham on top and then a fried egg on top of that. Simple but delicious. I just had to make myself one.

Score one for sagacity.

2011-11-23T11:04:00.000Z

I've had occasion before to comment on Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 which essentially makes it an offence to use language which someone else finds insulting - and the inference is that it's a matter for them as to whether they do or not. Well a recent case has somewhat redressed the balance. A young man repeatedly swore at the police while they were searching him for drugs and, finding none, they arrested him under the provisions of the said section. In a decision of startling common sense, the Court of Appeal upheld the young man's assertion that the police must be so used to being sworn at that they could not realistically claim to be offended by it. So hopefully the test in the future will not depend simply on a bald assertion by the person concerned that they were offended, but will be subject to an examination as to whether it was realistic and reasonable that they should have felt that way.

Well said!

2011-11-22T08:36:00.000Z

Thank the Lord for Prince Philip for saying what a lot of us are thinking - and have been for some time. Wind turbines are not only an eyesore, they are also, to borrow his phrase, "absolutely useless". Someone, somewhere is making a fortune out of conning us all into believing that these monstrosities are the answer to all our prayers, whereas they are about as inefficient a method of creating electricity as it is possible to imagine. They depend on an unreliable source of energy (if the wind doesn't blow, they don't work, and if the wind blows too hard, they don't work) and they cost the taxpayer a small fortune in subsidies. Unfortunately they are the darlings of the "green lobby" who the politicians seem hell-bent on appeasing, so we're probably stuck with them.

R.I.P.

2011-11-21T09:37:00.000Z

Dolly - Basil D'Oliveira - who played for Worcestershire and England and who, unwittingly perhaps, was significantly instrumental in the fall of apartheid in South Africa.
And on a different sporting tack, did you watch the Rugby League match between England and Australia on Saturday? Twenty-six men knocking seven bells out of each other for eighty minutes and then embracing with obvious respect and affection at the final whistle. That's the way to do it - see last Friday's post.

Natalie Wood

2011-11-20T09:25:00.000Z

I remember at the time, there were mutterings that there was something suspicious about her death - her body was found floating in the water some way away from the boat on which she, her husband Robert Wagner and her co-star at the time Christopher Walken had been partying. She was somewhat the worse for drink and the coroner decided she had fallen into the water, probably while trying to get into a dingy tied up alongside, and ruled it as accidental death. The captain of the boat wrote a book about the incident a couple of years ago - nearly 30 years after the event - making various allegations and it appears that the "additional information" which has led the LA County Sheriff's Office to re-examine the case has come from him. Rather spookily reminiscent of the death of Marilyn Monroe, the question is not so much about whether the death itself was accidental, but more about whether sufficient - or indeed any - attempts were made to save her. I will always remember her as Maria in "West Side Story" - a lovely lady.

We shall not be moved??

2011-11-19T09:25:00.000Z

So the Pauline Prats have ripped up the eviction notices and insist they will stay put. Of course they will - as has been said before, this is not about protest, this is about publicity, and they would like nothing more than to be dragged away kicking and screaming with the cameras looking on. The scandal is that it has taken so long for the authorities to screw up the courage to take action against them, and the Church it would seem are still unwilling to do so. "What would Jesus do?" is the constant refrain of the "activists" - well, my recollection is that the Man was always careful to preach obedience to the law. Remember the "Render unto Caesar..." speech?

Misunderstood?

2011-11-18T09:08:00.000Z

Seems a bit strange to be coming to the defence of Sepp Blatter, for whom I generally have little sympathy but I think he is being pilloried somewhat unfairly for his latest remarks. It may be a language thing, but what I think he was seeking to put over is that, in any sporting contest, things may be done and said in the heat of battle as it were which should be treated as just that - things done and said in the heat of battle - and at the final whistle we should all shake hands and get on with our lives. We seem to have reached a situation where soon players will need to think about taking a lawyer or a PR advisor onto the pitch with them, and I'm with Mr Blatter in thinking that this is not how sport should operate.

Book Post

2011-11-17T09:35:00.000Z

(see post 18/11/06)

Hugh Laurie - The Gun Seller - 6
John Connolly - The Whisperers - 7
Harlan Coben - Miracle Cure - 7
Janet Evanovich - Two for the Dough - 7
Thomas Greanias - The Atlantis Revelation - 6.5
David Baldacci - Hell's Corner - 8
Scott Mariani - The Fulcanelli Manuscript - 7.5
James Patterson - Cross Fire - 7
Jack Higgins - Thunder Point - 7.5
Eoin Colfer - Artemis Fowl - 9

Who?

2011-11-16T08:23:00.000Z

Bit concerned about the news that there is to be a blockbuster Doctor Who film. Putting the Doctor on the big screen has of course been tried before, and therein lies my concern. Peter Cushing made a good Doctor, and the plots stayed true to the original TV series, whereas Paul McGann was an equally good Doctor, but the plot suffered badly from being "Hollywood-ised" and I fear that this is what is likely to happen to the coming film which inevitably will depend on American money and will therefore look to the American market. Doctor Who is quintessentially British and if you do away with that Britishness, what you have got is no longer Doctor Who.

What a good idea!

2011-11-15T08:55:00.000Z

With all the fuss about recycling and dire warnings about the amount of plastic going into landfill, why haven't we heard more about "paper" bottles. I have put paper in inverted commas, because they're not really made just out of paper - the idea is that the outer shell is paper - well more like cardboard really - and then there's a very thin layer of plastic inside to stop the liquid coming in contact with the paper/card. The idea has been around for a couple of years or so now both here and in the US and by all accounts has been very successful, so like I say, why isn't it getting the same sort of promotional treatment that energy-saving light bulbs have been given?

Ha ha

2011-11-14T10:08:00.000Z

A woman took her dog to the vet. She said, "I think my dog is dead". The vet laid the dog on the table and reached down and took a cat out of a box. The cat walked all over the dog and the dog didn't move. "Yes, your dog is dead," says the vet.
"How much do I owe you?" the lady asks.
"£230," says the vet.
"£230 !!?" the lady exclaims

"Yes" says the vet "£30 for the visit and £200 for the cat scan."

Toot toot!

2011-11-13T10:12:00.000Z

How nice to know that Hornby are still in business and doing well, apparently. Like most of my generation, I had a Hornby train set as a kid and it gave me hours of fun. And although their stuff is now manufactured in China, the company is still British. Very heart-warming.

Crisis - what crisis?

2011-11-12T11:57:00.000Z

So what exactly is the crisis over the channel? We keep hearing that it's a "euro crisis" but as far as I can see the euro remains a stable currency and if it was in crisis the exchange rate would be going through the roof whereas it's stayed reasonably consistent against both the pound and the dollar. So is there any significance in the fact that those countries in big debt difficulty all use the euro? Is the problem really the EU itself rather than its currency?

We will remember them

2011-11-11T11:00:00.008Z

Here dead we lie because we did not choose
To live and shame the land from which we sprung.
Life, to be sure, is nothing much to lose;
But young men think it is, and we were young.

 A.E.Housman

Papaver rhoeas.

2011-11-10T09:17:00.000Z

Despite a last-minute fudge, there is still annoyance, or even anger in some circles, at FIFA's decision not to allow England to display remembrance poppies on their shirts for the forthcoming friendly match against Spain. You can (or at least I can) see FIFA's point - if we allow this, we will be besieged by other organisations saying "Me too, me too". It's worth remembering that the poppy tradition is essentially just a British and Commonwealth one - the rest of the world don't observe it, and indeed some of them don't understand it (remember all the fuss in China this time last year?). What is difficult to understand is how the poppy offends against FIFA's rule that "shirts should not carry political, religious or commercial messages". Apparently they categorise the poppy as "political", though as political means relating to (state) policy, I can't see how they justify that. And as FIFA's rule appears to apply only to shirts, does that mean you can put what you like on shorts, or socks?

Would have expected better?

2011-11-09T08:18:00.000Z

You would think that charities would act charitably, wouldn't you? Well, it appears not so. A Birmingham man was the main beneficiary in the will of his long-time partner. She specified what she was leaving him, with any balance to go to two charities. In the event, there was no balance, but shortly before she died she made a payment to him of a fairly substantial amount. Given the history of their relationship there seems little doubt that she intended this as a gift, but the charities claimed it was a loan and therefore should be treated as part of her estate. They took the matter to court and won, with the result that the man now faces legal costs which will wipe out the inheritance she left him. Whatever the legal position (which rather surprisingly considering today's attitudes depends heavily on the fact that they were not married) the actions of these charities have left the man destitute. Not very charitable, I would suggest.

Not a lot of people know that.

2011-11-08T08:15:00.000Z

Although the thwarting of the Gunpowder Plot is celebrated by bonfires and fireworks on November 5th, Guy Fawkes was actually discovered and arrested late on the evening of the 4th. The 5th was the date of the State Opening of Parliament when the explosion was supposed to happen.

Unison.

2011-11-07T09:20:00.000Z

According to the General Secretary of the above union, the recent ballot resulted in a "decisive" vote in favour of a strike. Around 75% voted for taking strike action on a 30% turnout. Do the maths - that's less than a quarter of the membership. How decisive can you get? I refer back to my post of 7th June.

The Lazy Cook

2011-11-06T10:11:00.001Z

Well yesterday was Bonfire Night and also on a cookery programme on TV in the morning was a rerun of Keith Floyd (of beloved memory) making groaty pudding which apparently is a traditional Black Country dish. So?? Well, I'm from the Black Country and I have never heard of groaty pudding, but the fact that it was Bonfire Night reminded me of another traditional dish from round here - grey peas and bacon (grey pays 'n bercun). Grey peas are also known as pigeon peas and you get them from pet shops or health food shops. You soak them overnight and put them in a saucepan with some chopped onion, pearl barley and bacon which has been cut into small pieces and browned off in the frying pan. Add some stock to cover and simmer for about four hours. Although the peas are brown, the liquid from them is grey - hence the name. Delish!

Sensationalism?

2011-11-05T09:52:00.000Z

Papers full of headlines like "Fathers denied right to see children" following the publication of a report into family justice. So what's the story? The report was generally expected to say that, following divorce, the child or children of the marriage should have the legal right to a "meaningful relationship with both parents", but in the event, the report does not include that recommendation. So what about that headline? Firstly, you can hardly be said to be"denied" a right which you've never had, and secondly, as regards custody and access matters, the report simply leaves things as they are. Fathers - or for that matter any other family members - are no better or worse off than they were before. The welfare of the child remains paramount, as it was and should be.

O Leerie, I’ll go round at night and light the lamps with you.

2011-11-04T09:27:00.000Z

Did you know that there are still some 1600 gas lights in London? And probably more scattered around the country. So the lamplighter still exists does he? I wonder if he still goes round tapping on people's bedroom windows with his pole to wake them up in the mornings as he's on his rounds to turn them off?

A little OTT I fear.

2011-11-03T09:15:00.000Z

A convenience store in Essex has come under fire for refusing to sell a bottle of whisky to a 92-year-old lady because she couldn't produce satisfactory ID to prove she was over 18. The shop says that it is a condition of their licence that they must see photo ID before selling alcohol. So what is the situation? The Home Office does indeed require any premises selling alcohol to have an "age verification policy" but the important point here - which the shop seem to have overlooked - is that this only kicks in where the would-be purchaser "appears to be under the age of 18". Of course no shop is obliged to sell anything to anyone, and can specify what requirements they like - most supermarkets require those apparently under 25 wishing to buy alcohol to prove their age for instance. So the shop was within its rights not to sell her the whisky, but not for the reason they gave. And this does raise the question of where this leaves those fancying buying a drink who do not have photo ID - not everybody has a passport or drives a car.

Succession.

2011-11-02T10:18:00.001Z

Primogeniture is in the news as a result of an apparent agreement between the various "realms" of the British monarchy to change the rules to allow the first-born child of the monarch to succeed to the throne, irrespective of gender. Strictly speaking, primogeniture itself simply means first-born, but custom going back to the time of the Normans - and indeed beyond - held that males took precedence over females, and so that concept became part of the common law. I don't think there can be much argument that it has no place in modern society and is long overdue for reform. I am far more concerned about the proposal that the restriction on the monarch marrying a Roman Catholic should also be abolished - not because I have anything against Roman Catholics (some of my best friends etc....), but because, as I mentioned in a previous post, it would raise the possibility of a future Catholic monarch being head of the Church of England which would be a constitutional nonsense.

R.I.P.

2011-11-01T09:04:00.000Z

Jimmy Saville - flamboyant showman who did a tremendous amount of good and charitable work behind the scenes. Well done mate - you will be missed.

Hard going.

2011-10-31T09:16:00.000Z

Away for the weekend with the family in a kooky little cottage in Devon. A good time was had by all - there was a hot tub which was a big hit, and I spent most of the time catching up on reading "Jane Eyre" which is one of my granddaughter's set books for her "A" levels and I promised I would read so we could discuss it together. Wished I hadn't though - it's hard going - did people really talk and behave like that back then? It's a wonder anything ever got done - the pace is so slow and the conversation so opaque. It's a reasonably good story, but oh, the writing!

R. I. P.

2011-10-28T09:04:00.000+01:00

Michael Bukht, perhaps better known as Michael Barry. Who, you may say? Well, he was one of my personal heroes, because he was mainly responsible for Classic FM, which I personally think is the best thing to have happened to the popularisation of classical music in my lifetime. But he was also the "crafty cook" who gave me much pleasure all those years ago on BBC's Food and Drink programme. I am ashamed to say that he died unnoticed (by me at least) back in August. He deserved better than that.

We knock 'em down....

2011-10-27T09:08:00.000+01:00

Am I alone in feeling somewhat uncomfortable that, having been instrumental in the destruction of Libya, we are now seeking to profit from helping to rebuild it?

Pay attention!

2011-10-26T08:15:00.000+01:00

On a route I regularly travel by car they've put one of those LED message boards high up by the side of the road, and it goes through a sequence of changing messages like "Don't drive when you are tired" and "Maintain a safe distance from the car in front" and suchlike. And what was it showing when I passed it yesterday - "Concentrate on the road ahead"!

Go home and grow up.

2011-10-25T08:48:00.000+01:00

Just what is this protest outside St. Paul's in London all about? All I've come across are vague pretty meaningless phrases like "corporate greed" and "economic injustice". Like most protests, it seems its main purpose is to garner publicity by inconveniencing ordinary members of the public - in this case church-goers who wish to worship in St. Paul's and are unable to do so. Pathetic!

Rugby World Cup

2011-10-24T08:59:00.000+01:00

Well, what irony! After (in many people's opinion) unjustifiably beating Wales by a single point in the semi-final, France now, perhaps equally unjustifiably, go down by a single point to New Zealand in the final. Bloody good match though.

You what...?

2011-10-23T09:00:00.000+01:00

Have you heard of "fracking"? Sounds rude, doesn't it? But in fact it's a process by which natural gas is extracted from shale, and it appears that there are substantial resources of it in the north-west, in the Blackpool area. So what are we doing about it? Not a lot it seems. Why not? Because we are committed to these hideous wind-farms, and shale-gas would be a much cheaper source of energy which would make wind-farms economically unsustainable. Of course it would mean that we, as consumers, would benefit from lower prices, but then when did our needs ever count for anything?