Who watches the........................

Watchmen?

The film is coming out next month and I urge everybody who reads this to go and watch it and then buy the book.

I'll obviously report on the film when I see it, but the reviews are very positive.

*and yes - I am a nerd.

waste of time

Today Hazel Bleurgh, sorry that’s Blears has had a story published about the fact she is going to do a speech about the problems of being too PC.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/feb/24/hazelblears
Save it pet. This is a vain attempt to appeal to the readers of the Sun and Mirror and hope that they vote to keep her and the Neo-Fascist Nu-Labour party in power.

The only way I'll ever vote Labour again is if Blair, Borwn, Mandelson, Straw and Blunkett all get executed for crimes against humanity for their role in the Iraq war.

D

Total Crap

Was looking at the Guardian comment is free website this afternoon and stumbled upon this gem of an article by David Blunkett, MP for Sheffield.

As articles go it is breathtaking in it's arrogance.

I was going to post a reply but you can guarantee that Blunkett won't have the replies read to him by a flunky.

Idiot.

There are a few things making me a bit pissed at the mo.

Let's start with an easy one.
Jade Goody.
Firstly, it's an unfortunate occurance that a young woman is dying before her children are fully grown.
However - why is her wedding on the national news? - THIS ISN'T NEWS. The BBC don't devote even a tenth of the coverage to UK soldiers dying in Afghanistan (for example), but because she's famous(for being on a crap reality show no less!) she merits a mention on the 5 live national news bulletin. Utter bollocks (and don't even get me started on Big Brother).
I did spend several seconds ranting at the radio over this.
I can honestly say that I think this is the start of the new generation of reality TV. "People dying while you watch right here on Channel 4" (the pioneers of reality telly). There is a videogame in which you have to murder people live on camera and you get better points for the more gruesome execution you perform for the cameras. It's called Manhunt. It's not a great game and the interface was particularly shonky. The game got a load of abuse when it came out and was banned in several countries. I can see TV getting like this soon.

Another one.
Abu Qatada.
Came to this country with a forged passport, was described by various intelligence agencies as "Bin Laden's Right-Hand man in Europe". Wanted by lots of countries on lots of charges. Now, he's come from a country with whose government he doesn't agree with and wants to change his orignal government and ours to match his extremist lifestyle. Comes here and starts to preach hatred of non-muslims. I don't agree that he should have been locked up without charge, he should have been put on trial and the evidence heard at a public hearing. But, last week the European Court of Anti-British rulings has given him some cash to spend on explosives (for being locked up without charge) and will be shortly telling the UK Government that they can't deport him. Liberty and Amnesty keep sending mouthpieces to media outlets to try and say "this shouldn't happen" - So just for me, when the bombs are being readied can the terrorists please send the bombs to the families of people who work for Liberty and Amnesty so they can defend the rights of the terrorists and ignore what happended to their families? Tossers.
Dear Mr. Qataba - just sod off - go anywhere but don't stay here.
Here's a quick one for the people of Britain.
Why are we in the EU if they constantly vote against UK interests? No clue.
Would the EU change their tune if we sent Qatada to brussels and let him abuse his freedom there? Probably.

Another one.
The financial state of the country.
We're in a mess.
No manufacturing base, no real money being generated. Not a good time to be around, unless you work for a bank or the stock market (you guys will always get your money).
Dear Prime Minister - You want to raise some funds for the country and government? Try taxing religious institutions. It's not the 14th century anymore and you don't need to bribe a local charlatan/priest to guarantee you entry into Heaven/Kingdom of the dead/Eleysium/Valhalla/Jannah, etc etc*(substitute any fictional afterlife created by religions for gullible idiots here). The government would get loads of cash, and the religions who don't like it can dismantle their temples and sod off abroad - and that then solves the problem of religious extremists coming to Britain. Easy.

Transport.
In order for me to get the Newcastle this Friday for a funeral I may have to pay £93 to the train companies for the comfort of not having a seat, getting grief from surly staff and having random people come up to me and say "that's my seat".
British Rail - Ripoff Rail more like.
The cheapest Airfare I can get is £84 - and that's only if I leave at reallyfuckingearly AM and return on the day I am due to get back to work (and consequently be late).
Even the coaches are going to cost me £60+ (plus a 60 minute wait in Milton Keynes for my money) for a 8 hour journey.
The government can bleat all they want about climate change, but until they start making public transport more affordable everybody will still take their cars.

Rant over for the morning (this morning at least).

bereavement

To lose one relative might be considered unfortunate.

To lose two within a month might be considered careless.


bye grandma.

800 years and all that

1209 - Groups of scholars congregate at the ancient Roman trading post of Cambridge for the purpose of study, the earliest record of the University.

1381 - The Peasant’s Revolt. A mob led by the city's mayor stormed Corpus Christi College, burning records and books, in protest against its rigid exaction of "candle rents", or rent charges assessed upon houses in its ownership, according to the number of wax-tapers found. A wage freeze and a new poll tax ignites the Peasant's Revolt. Led by Wat Tyler, the peasants march on London to protest, but King Richard's forces behead Tyler and the uprising is swiftly crushed.

1446 - Henry VI, founder of Eton and of King's College, Cambridge, lays the first stone of King's College Chapel. The founding charter of King's was written by John Broke (documented 1443-1450) clerk of the chancery, and illuminated by the London artist William Abell (documented 1450-d.1474).

1584 - The Cambridge University Press, the world's oldest-established press, begins its unbroken record of publishing every year until the present.

1687 - Isaac Newton publishes 'Principia Mathematica', establishing the fundamental principles of modern physics.

1787 - Wordsworth enters St John's, and publishes his first poem. He later became Poet Laureate.

1859 - Charles Darwin's 'On the Origin of Species' is published. This was followed by The Descent of Man (1871) which argued that humans and apes shared a common ancestor - a theory which revolutionised our understanding of life.

1988 - Professor Stephen Hawking, Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, publishes his book, 'A Brief History of Time' one of the best selling scientific books of all time. He is already eminent for his work on black holes and the Big Bang theory of the origin of the universe.

2009 - The University of Cambridge celebrates its 800th anniversary.


The University is 800 years old this year and the University is celebrating this by doing a load of events and things all year in the city. They've created and erected a load of banners celebrating the various anniversaries going on this year.
http://www.800.cam.ac.uk/page/36/streetlight-banners.htm

All of this is quite interesting and for a history buff like me it's a brilliant time to be around.

Q and A

well, I'm in the north east until tomorrow after attending my aunts funeral - it was a lovely service, no religious crap (it was a humanist service) and I cried through most of it. I really lost it with the song "inch by inch", as I can remember singing that with my family when I was a nipper.

I watched the England v Wales game today and do have a couple of questions.
1 - why the hell do the BBC allow Eddie Butler to spout such Anti-English crap during his commentaries?
2 - Have the IRB decided that England will get pinged for every offence in the book, yet told the referees to allow every other team to infringe all the time because England being successful isn't good for the game? Another case of biased reffing - although at least it wasn't that cheating scumbag Alain Rolland.

what todays post is on is the Derek Liambas interview in the local rag.

below are the list of the questions.


I've just got one question Mike - Do you think that the protests will cease if only 10000 people actually come to watch the team when they play in the championship?



COMMUNICATION
Can you offer any explanation as to why there has been a lack of communication from the club and owner. But particularly during the time when Kevin Keegan departed the club?
Why was there no press conference/ statement from the club when Keegan left the club?
Why did you never follow the example set by Chris Mort who communicated with the fans?
Why can’t Mike Ashley talk to the fans in a fans forum (such as the NUSC) or speak directly to the local press regarding his plans for the club?
Will you be improving the PR with the fans by communicating regularly through the local media?
Can you explain why Mr Ashley completely ignored a request from NUSC to meet in a location of his choice to liase with fans?
Does this interview signal a change in management style which will keep the fans informed as to which direction the club is heading?
MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE
What exactly does Dennis Wise do and will he be staying?
If Mike Ashley cares about the club and listens to the fans why didn’t he reinstate Keegan and get rid of Wise?
Was employing Wise the biggest mistake you made? - a manager should never have players forced upon him.
Are there any plans to abolish the two-tier continental style management structure - as Spurs have - as it is not working?
Would Mike consider re-appointing Chris Mort as chairman?
How can you justify running a company from London when the company’s head office and entire operation is based in Newcastle?
Can you please detail the current management structure at NUFC and the job descriptions of Dennis Wise, Mike Ashley and yourself?
You are always sat on your own at matches. Do you not have any friends?
Given your background in the entertainment industry, Derek, how do you think this makes you qualified to run one of the biggest clubs in the world?
TRANSFERS
Do you think the lack of money spent in the transfer window will cost you in the long run with relegation a real possibility?
Is it true the entire first team squad was available for transfer during the summer window?
Why bring in Keegan and then not back him with transfer funds?
How can Mike Ashley claim to care about the club when he refuses to invest in players. His net spend is just £2.1million?
How do you account for making a profit in the last transfer window of nearly £8m when it was blatantly obvious the squad needed to be strengthened?
During the transfer window why didn’t the Shay Given deal proceed on the condition Michael Johnson came the other way? And did you honestly believe Sunderland would sell Kieran Richardson?
It was clear to everyone you needed to increase the squad size during the transfer window to avoid relegation, why was everything left until the last minute?
With Mark Viduka and Michael Owen looking likely to leave in the summer why have we not purchased a striker during the transfer window?
Who signed Xisco and why?
What happened to the James Milner cash?
Geordies can handle the truth. Is there any money for transfers or not?
Who has the final say on transfers, ingoing or outgoing, Wise or Keegan/Kinnear?
At this moment in time is the club self-sustainable or is there pressure to sell players to bring money in?
Sebastien Bassong and Jonas Gutierrez have been good signings to be fair, but will they still be at Newcastle next season given the current trend of selling our best players?
VISION FOR THE FUTURE
Many fans believe you are destroying NUFC. Discuss
How do you respond to Shay Given’s criticism?
What are the long-term plans for NUFC – if there are any?
What is your current vision for NUFC and how do you plan to achieve this?
Where do you see Newcastle United in five years time and how are we going to get there?
Why are Newcastle fans treated with such contempt by you and Mike?
How confident are you about escaping relegation and is there a plan in place if that disaster happens?
When you were trying to sell the club did anyone get as far as due diligence?
Is it true you and Mike were drinking in a bar in Dubai instead of meeting with a potential buyer?
Has there been any interest in the club since Mike took it off the market?
Do you accept you have made mistakes in how the club has been run?
Do you apologise for the upset you have caused with your actions and decisions?
SEASON TICKETS
I’ve paid for my season ticket for three years after being sold the Keegan dream. Can I get a refund on the remaining two years?
What would you say to anybody who is considering giving up their season ticket and what are the incentives to come back in August?
Given the fact attendances are down are you still looking at expanding the stadium?
Why were senior and disabled season tickets raised by 20%?
In recent games, such as the Hull City FA Cup replay, there have been yet more complaints about heavy handed stewarding for incidents as trivial as standing up when the team gets near the goal. Is this something you are looking into because it is bad customer service?
JOE KINNEAR
Now the club is off the market is it not time to look for a good, young manager?
It was made clear to fans at the time of Joe Kinnear’s appointment that he was only here to steady the ship so why have you offered him a two-year contract?
Has Joe been offered a two year contract? If so why when the majority of fans do no think he is the man to take us forward?


after the interview (not really hard-hitting) I have to say one thing - it was exceptionally bad PR waffle.

Monbiot the hero

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/feb/10/hazel-blears-george-monbiot

I have to say that it’s a very good idea to read the above link. George Monbiot’s column is an excellent reposte to a power-hungry leech who isn’t interested in serving her country – she’s only interested in making sure she’s got enough money in the bank and slavishly following the whims of the power-mad NuLabour government.

I read a book once (fiction) which had a system of government which I like the idea of.

It went something like this.

“When you accede to the role of minister, prime minister, etc all of your assets and bank accounts are placed in a central governmental account. If you do well and the country makes money then you get a profit on your deposit – if the country did badly, then you’ve only got your self to blame.

Not sure it would work in the real world but the idea of David “just call me Dave” Cameron being homeless because he couldn’t get the country running well strikes me as funny