A student from my university was arrested (and now is being deported) in Beijing for protesting about the situation in Tibet. Breaking the law yes, but if you don’t agree with the law, and you have a host of global support, then I don’t understand people’s criticisms of thier efforts. Any awareness, regardless of your possible opposition to the effective dictatorship through cult and religious faith the Dalai Lama held on Tibet, and holds on Tibetans, of the issues of an a dictator-aggressor like China persecuting and denying the requests of an entire people and religion is for the benefit of humanity. It’s simple. One BBC journalist has criticised these young Britons for being middle class, snotty nosed and probably heading to the city as soon as they get back. All I can say is, some cliches are true. Suited men that live in London and read The Daily Telegraph religiously are usually arseholes. I’m ashamed to say that background and assumptions overrule much reporting. Journalism, afterall, is a product one has to sell. And if the majority of people share the same opinions as this guy, we are all fucked. I’m fairly sure the majority aren’t such wankers.
*The Telegraph reports well, it’s just you have to take it as one part of a large spectrum of editorial opinion. This is just a bit of a rant
Many have assumed that the first candidate to pick would have an advantage. Not so, argue the economists. This strategy could give McCain a boost. Obama has to announce by the Democratic Convention, which comes a week before the Republicans. Or, in Freakonomics lingo:
Obama and McCain are engaged in a game, with each choosing a strategy based on beliefs about payoffs and the other’s strategy. The first mover in this game, Obama, is at a disadvantage
So what does Daniel Hamermesh suggest for Obama?
If I were he, I would pick the least controversial, most solid running mate — the one whose choice would least affect what McCain does. This would mitigate McCain’s advantage in moving second and seems a sensible game-theoretic strategy for Obama — a seemingly risk minimizing strategy.
Not sure about all this personality-focussed stuff. Personality is important, but unimportant if it is the only thing focussed upon.
The BBC reporting that William Hague thinks the public want Cameron, and PoliticsHome (with YouGov) are saying that Brown is down, Milliband is up, but people who don’t know who the PM should be are in the majority. Cameron could certainly fill that place… thing is, who actually knows who has what it takes? We can never tell if we trust them, nor know what it really takes. A problem of information really. And with everyone always scrutinising, no one is left without a blemish. I hope we all bore ourselves with such minutiae and politics becomes real again. In the mean time, let’s find some meaning in the minutiae above.
I don’t support a boycott and I want the Beijing Olympics to be a success.
But the Games are a chance, while the world is watching, to press China for change.
Without change China will carry on executing more of its citizens than any other country in the world, it will continue censoring the media and the Internet and it will continue locking up and torturing those who try to stand up for their rights and the rights of others.
It isn’t political. To stand up for human rights is to stand up for the values enshrined in the Olympic Charter.
Recommended by a good friend, I’ve been reading with anticipation Lyall Watson’s ‘Supernature’… which squares science with the supernatural. It is worth a read, and goes some way in explaining energy and phenomenon which are on the fringes of the science/supernatural realm. For instance, the ability for the blind to be able to ’see’ colour changes around them. You can buy it from second hand from Amazon here.
He actually died recently, June 25th 2008, and his obituary in The Guardian is here.
There’s a section which I thought worth repeating here, as it partcularly struck me:
… I cannot agree with those who would place man outside the order of nature.
To me… none of man’s qualities is new. No component of our brain or behaviour has been added by supernatural means to make us what we are. Not one of our abilities can be denied to some other animal somewhere, but what we have done is to arrange everything in an entirely new way. Man is a unique pattern, a new and powerful combination of old talents.
The celebrated Russian writer, moral thinker and Soviet-Gulag exposer, Solzhenitsyn, has died. In relation to the Iranian dissident, on ‘Coming up for Air…’ here, his exposures are still very relevant today.
This was on Guido Fawkes’ Blog’s comments on articles, and thought, if true, is damning. Waiting for it to be verfied. As ’sitondafence’ comments, it’s very telling. Some of the stats are understandable (e.g. lawsuits). But drink driving? Come on… we can do better than this. Not saying that once people commit what most of us consider as moral misdemeanours or ‘crimes’, are usually punished and afterward have a clean slate, but the Government? Then again, we could say that in some respects, at least, Parliament represents its people.
I recieved the item below in what I thought was a joke email,,, can it actually be fact?
This is unbelievable, but true!
Can you imagine working for a company has a little more than 600 employees and has the following employee statistics
29 have been accused of spouse abuse
7 have been arrested for fraud
9 have been accused of writing bad cheques
17 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses
3 have done time for assault
71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit
14 have been arrested on drug-related charges
8 have been arrested for shoplifting
21 are currently defendants in lawsuits
84 have been arrested for drink driving in the last year
Which organization is this ?
It’s the 635 members of the House of Commons, the same group that cranks out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us inline. What a bunch we have running our country - it says it all. And just to top all that they have tax free expenses and the best ‘corporate’ pension scheme in the country!!
New dinner party game - - Name 4 honest MPs !!
News is not all bad. A new injection of vitamin C treatment in mice could be adapted for humans, that is the hope. UK Cancer research sceptical. Story here.
