Banned
Posted: Sat 13 August, 2005 Filed under: News, Thoughts 1 Comment »Earlier this week there was a story about whether an Islamic preacher can be kept out of the UK despite his avowed intention to return. As part of the surrounding coverage, there was talk about the UK government “banning” certain Islamic/Islamist groups.
When will governments learn that banning something doesn’t make it go away? Instead, it just goes underground (Oooh, sorry, connecting “Islamic radicals” and “underground” isn’t the wisest move, is it?) and becomes even more removed and secretive.
Banning anything makes it more glamourous and attractive, a sign of “rebellion” etc. etc. Whether it’s a chart single (think “Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, for a perfect example), a “sport” (cock-fighting, dog-fighting, badger-baiting, the list is endless), firearms (now an increasing problem – and yes, I did nearly say “exploding” problem – since the banning of handguns after Dunblane) or anything else – as soon as its banned, it becomes impossible to police.
In this case, any savvy “radical Islamic priest” is also going to be able to say “look how dangerous we are, the government tries to silence us, and yet we’re still here”. Being banned just adds “glamour” to the group, and then the longer they continue unabated, the more it looks like they’re the ones who are winning in this supposed War against Terror.
Eventually
Posted: Thu 11 August, 2005 Filed under: News, Resolutions 7 Comments »Well, that’s one success that was well and truly deferred.
Test One was back in ’98, down in Dorchester in Dorset. I failed horrifically, having stalled the car on a hairpin hill curve while on the way back from Weymouth to Dorchester. And rolled back bigtime. Not an auspsicious start.
Test Two came three months later, and put me off driving for a very long time, by the forty-five minutes I’d spent with every other road user trying to kill me. It was market-day, and (among other things) I was nearly side-onned by an idiot coming out of a side-road, rear-ended by a speeding coach, and narrowly avoided a slow-moving (OK, Stationary) skip on a blind corner.
Test Three was in 2003 in Manchester. Another failure for “failing to do proper observations”. I still argue the toss on that one, but well, it’s all in the past now. Bizarrely it again involved a skip, but this time on a junction so I couldn’t see round the fucker. I pulled out to see round it, and then went. The examiner said I should’ve stopped at the line. The response “Could you see round that fucking great skip? Because I bloody couldn’t.” didn’t go down well.
Test Four was in April this year and failed due to fucking up my clutch control at a junction. Unimpressed, but fair to fail me on it.
Test Five was taken in June, and failed for exactly the same reason as Test Four, bizarrely. Not the same junction, but exactly the same fault.
Test Six was today. And yes, at fucking last, I’ve passed. Halle-sodding-lujah!
Abandonment pt. 2
Posted: Tue 9 August, 2005 Filed under: News, Thoughts, Travel Leave a comment »Following on from last week’s post about the 15year old girl who was left alone in the UK when her mother decided to move to Turkey after a holiday romance, I see that the mother has now put in an appearance.
No, not in the UK to answer any form of enquiry about why she did it, but instead on Turkish TV, telling how she’s so in love.
“We really liked each other and saw each other every day and when I went back to England I promised I would come back because I want to be with Ali.
“I did everything I could and got back within three weeks. I came back to stay with Ali because I love him.”
No expression of guilt about her daughter, nothing – just self-centred selfish behaviour. Grrr.
Barking
Posted: Tue 9 August, 2005 Filed under: News, Weirdness Leave a comment »In a fit of “Mad as a bath-full of hippos” insanity comes this effort, letters sent by the stadd of an American sex-toy store along with a shipment of vibrators to some women in Iraq.
…I hope that when you use this vibrator you realize that Americans do not hate you or your country. We are a kind and loving people who just want everyone to live freely and without oppression….
Utterly, totally, 100% barking.
Not really a shock
Posted: Mon 8 August, 2005 Filed under: News, Thoughts Leave a comment »The BBC today has a story saying that one in four applicants for jobs in the financial industries have lied on their CVs. Having worked with a bunch of financial types over the years, I really can’t say I’m surprised – most of them seem to have a “can-do” attitude to bullshit that’s second only to that of advertising and marketing execs.
Based on a study of 3,000 CVs, the group found the biggest lies involved academic qualifications, previous jobs, gaps in employment and directorships.
Then again, I don’t think that kind of attitude is limited to just financial applications. But I do wonder what percentage of estate agents have lied on their CVs. And with estate agents, is it to be expected?
35mm
Posted: Mon 8 August, 2005 Filed under: News, Photography, Thoughts 1 Comment »I’m going to be slightly hypocritical on this, as I don’t use a 35mm camera myself, but I do think it’s pretty sad that Dixons has announced it is to stop stocking 35mm cameras once their current supplies run out. A lot of new photographers go straight to digital cameras now (I know, because that’s what I did) but that doesn’t mean there’s not still a large demand for 35mm cameras.
Many camera companies are having trouble at the moment with continuing to manufacture their 35mm range, and are all heading towards making only digital cameras. Maybe this is progress, the gradual removal of a film standard in favour of digital. Maybe it’ll just make 35mm cameras a more “professional” choice – but I know I’d hate to see them die out altogether.
Purchasing
Posted: Sun 7 August, 2005 Filed under: General, News, Thoughts 4 Comments »You know, we really shouldn’t go out sometimes. Yesterday’s plan was “a couple of plants for the new office” and “possibly a new bed for the Hound”. Oh dear, a plant-shop and a pet-shop. Cue lots of other things.
We ended up with :
New Hound bed, food bowl, collar, two toys, and a 30kg bag of food. Oh, and dog-shit bags. Lovely.
The office has a trio of passion-flowers in one pot, two spider plants (although they were an in-house transfer) a begonia, a polka-dot plant, and a leafy thing whose leaves turn all flame-coloured round the edges. There’s also a “rude plant”, (where the stamen just looks rude – photo to follow at some point) another polka-dot plant, a couple of leafy things with no name as yet, a money plant, and a gardenia that’s gone a little bit mental.
However, I’ve come to the conclusion (yet again) that I really shouldn’t be let out with a wallet sometimes.