Wednesday, 29 March 2006
Saturday, 25 March 2006
Friday, 24 March 2006
The water is up to my chest. The bosses got the time wrong. I can’t get back in time.
- the last words of Guo Binglong to his wife.
Guo spoke with his wife, who was in China, on a mobile phone. Guo was one of perhaps 23 people (21 bodies were recovered) who died in Morecambe Bay when they drowned in rising tides in 2004.
It was all over the press shortly after the tragedy, that the MP for Morecambe and Lunesdale, Geraldine Smith, had written to the Immigration Service in June of 2003 alerting ministers to the dangers that illegal cockle pickers in the Bay faced.
A letter she sent to London had urged the Immigration Service to become involved; saying one of her constituents was on the Bay when police swept the area for tax evaders.
Smith wrote that Unable to speak English and under the control of a gangmaster, these people were being paid one-fifth of the standard rate for their work. They were also being transported 20 to a boat in waters renowned for their currents and quicksands, where an experienced local fisherman would not consider carrying more than six.
Fiona MacTaggart – Home Office Minister – cited a lack of resources as why Smith’s letter would not be acted on.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) confirmed that Morecambe Bay was to be regarded as a place of work, and therefore under their jurisdiction. Telling an inquisitive journalist they were familiar with a “near-miss” that occurred in December 2003, involving Chinese workers, they assured the journalist they had offered “advice”. The deaths of these cockle pickers, regarded as an “industrial accident”, might have been prevented had the HSE served a prohibition notice. That, incidentally, would have been a statutory duty with any other business (in the days following the tragedy, able local policing was extremely effective in preventing anyone from getting out on to the sands).
P.S.
During the summer of 2003, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) shut the activities of the cockle beds on the Thames (The notoriously dangerous Morecambe Bay cockle beds are being intensively harvested because tests by the Food Standards Agency, which may have produced false results, have closed the best cockle beds elsewhere, as the Guardian noted), in the Wash and at Craner’s beloved South Wales.
Immediately at stake were the position of many workers and the future of much of the UK’s (worth £20 million to the economy annually) cockle trade.
The FSA took the decision to shut down beds at these places due to what it said was the discovery of an unidentified toxin in the cockles (to protect human health, we would do the same thing again, Dr Andrew Wodge of the agency later told the BBC’s John Humphrys). FSA scientists had been experimenting on mice, injecting them with cockle-meat. The meat was being made to adhere together due, basically, to toxic glue. The lab-mice were dying as a result.
That November, FSA researchers began to get rid of what they termed “solvent carry-over.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, after the elimination of this factor, other mice who were undergoing the experiments did not die.
With science this flawed, you might have thought that the FSA would perhaps rethink their approach and maybe even be a little contrite, but their Dr Wodge continued to insist to Radio Four that the agency had done nothing wrong.
The select committee for environmental, food and rural affairs – whose chairperson (at the original time of this post) is Labour man Austin Mitchell – was less friendly to the FSA than the Today programme. Citing a very real and unnecessary damage to cockling, the committee suggested the industry must be compensated, and ways should be found to do that.
Tuesday, 14 March 2006
Saturday, 11 March 2006
Friday, 10 March 2006
earlier this year the Syrian daily Al-Thawra - a regime newspaper - appeared to suggest that Israel was responsible for the construction and spread of avian flu.
"The question being asked today is whether the virus chosen by the Zionist for their 'ethnic bomb' is bird flu?"
the mouthpiece recalled that Arafat was assassinated by the Zionists using a biologically engineered virus, warning that all the planet will suffer the effects of a flu pandemic, even though it seems likely the Israelis had designed their flu to target Arab genes specifically.
(An Israeli decision to bury infected birds in the West Bank was pointed to.)
It was lamented the flu was bound to spread beyond the Arab world (well they got that right).
if the Israelis were that good, surely they could do something about those pesky Lebanese on behalf of Damascus?
the mouthpiece recalled that Arafat was assassinated by the Zionists using a biologically engineered virus, warning that all the planet will suffer the effects of a flu pandemic, even though it seems likely the Israelis had designed their flu to target Arab genes specifically.
(An Israeli decision to bury infected birds in the West Bank was pointed to.)
It was lamented the flu was bound to spread beyond the Arab world (well they got that right).
if the Israelis were that good, surely they could do something about those pesky Lebanese on behalf of Damascus?
Thursday, 9 March 2006
putting the fox in charge of the henhouse
- Anonymous New York and New Jersey port authority board member, February 2006
The reaction in the United States has occurred in no other country in the world
- Ted Bilkey, COO of Dubai Ports World, February 2006
Hillary Clinton may have a bit of an axe to grind.
An issue that's been engulfing talking heads in the USA for some time now concerns Dubai Ports World, a Dubai state-run company.
DPW are buying august UK firm P&O, in a £3.9 billion take-over, something which means – amongst their new portfolio of locations worldwide – DPW gaining control of the majority of the operating of six ports (including Baltimore and Philadelphia) across the lower 48, from the hands of P&O. The Port of Singapore had been sniffing around P&O too, but DPW won out.
Opponents duly grumble; Iran has moved uranium through the UAE in the past, Libya has previously used its territory as a staging post, some banks in the Emirates have demonstrably not hindered the passage of dirty money before now. Oh, and two of the 9/11 hijackers were local lads.
There's also the matter of a 2002 letter - its authors claimed to represent al-Qaeda - in which the writers said they'd infiltrated various sections of the UAE govt (that has actually been flagged up in the USA maybe more than it might deserve, which could indicate a bit about the mindset of some commentators. Or perhaps it's not been flagged up enough. Jury out?).
Bipartisan lawmakers (including a vociferous Clinton and Bill Frist, Republican Senate majority leader) have been lining up to take pot-shots at POTUSA, following from Dubya not realising this bidder was Arab-owned until after his own treasury's foreign investment committee had agreed to the transfer.
They'd concluded there were no security problems here; Justice Nicholas Warren, for the High Court in this country, has also approved, waiving aside objections from American firm Eller & Co, the Miami partner of P&O (Eller & Co fear a loss of trade after the fall-out, for starters).
The New York and New Jersey Port Authority had also formally protested.
The President, firmly behind the deal, has, as usual, been his typically media-unwise self in trying to deflect heat over the take-over, not publicly acknowledging the key truth in the matter for a crucial week whilst mouthing useless platitudes at his many detractors, stubbornly refusing to climb down. He's even said he'll veto any law attempting to block the move (such a law now a distinct possibility).
Interest among the press – fear of jihadist terror striking again has understandably stoked urgent conversation – is high, to the extent that a quick google will reveal acres of bellicose newsprint [including this quite thorough Media Matters rebuttal], fiercely critical of the move.
The pig's ear the administration has made of its PR is just another galling factor to opponents.
It's certainly a fairly complex issue in which reasonable people with concerns are being unfairly lumped in with those just possessing ugly reflexes (see Media Matters for the former who are a group dedicated to correcting conservative bias in the American press; so, er, no biases in itself there then...).
Some of the most serious objections are potentially sustainable, but eventually the actual argument centring on port operating security boils down to one set of claims (Media Matters are a little disingenuous on this issue themselves when they target mainstream competitors who wave aside objections on these grounds; their own counter claims are partial) that shows up opponents – whether with the correct sort of intentions fuelling their unease or just parochial populists – as perhaps a little quick to judge.
The heart of the matter is outlined neatly by Irwin Stelzer.
An LA Times writer nimbly pointed out how Bush has brought this on himself; burden of proof and an expectation that democracies should not engage in the politics of panic for short-term gain rather going out of the window in the rush to denounce Iraq's WMD.
Extremist Islamists wandering around the New Orleans docks? Just isn't on, Jon Corzine (New Jersey governor) rightly reckons.
Charles Krauthammer: Democrats who might be upset if an Emirates citizen in an American airport, full burnoose and flowing robes, speaking only Arabic was subjected to more scrutiny than his sweet 84-year-old mother in the same situation, are not quite in the same corner here (it should be said Krauthammer was ambivalent about the deal and wanted it to go ahead only when the advanced stage was reached, but would have preferred if it hadn't got anywhere in the first place. It should also be said Krauthammer is, frequently, a buffoon).
Sure, there are enough holes to drive through in that newspaper column example, but even still, none as breathtakingly wide as Corzine's illogical double standards in flagging up that two known terrorists came from the UAE.
Provocatively, Bush observed he was struck by the lack of protest when a British outfit was running the ports.
In this climate, dismally insular voices are making themselves heard, while some on the right discuss if their President really is a conservative. Those arranged against DPW have widespread public support [a poll for USA Today found respondents against the move by 4 to 1] whilst Duncan Hunter, chair of the House Armed Services Committee, says he is prepared to legislate against such transfers.
Jerry Lewis, House Appropriations Committee chair, has also vowed to scuttle the deal (the Committee has recently voted 62 to 2 to halt the take-over’s American side).
It is DPW boss Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem who has bought some fine New York real estate for the Dubai royals (they own two of that city's most notable buildings), a regime that has given enough help to the Americans tracking terrorists. Support for a Qatari base of American forces is another service the UAE provides, whilst since the autumn of 2001 the details of transactions carried out by those suspected of terror links within its secretive banks have been discreetly passed on to Washington all the while.
DPW, if the take-over were allowed, would carry on with the same American staff as P&O uses.
Actually controlling these ports is not quite the same as fully controlling security, which is instead directed by various levels of domestic officialdom alongside the operator: Customs, the Department of Homeland Security, police, ports police, and the US Coast Guard all have roles.
A second, 45 day review of DPW's security arrangements - tougher than the initial 30 day assessment, we're promised (some carped an individual intelligence agency should have had responsibility for the first review, not a treasury-led body) - is now on.
If this review raises compelling objections, fair enough.
If not, then frankly it seems doubtful that some vocal critics would be ready to eat humble pie.
Meanwhile a second London court has dismissed Eller's arguments, this time the Court of Appeal.
Lords Justices Lloyd, Neuberger and Moore-Bick shooed away their objections on Monday, clearing a path for the deal to complete yesterday. P&O shares were due to be delisted today; their shareholders will be receiving cheques in about a week or so.
Though the deal cannot now be blocked on that side of things, with debate still raging in the USA, there are legs in this spectacle yet, with DPW agreeing to stop the American part of their take-over.
The US ports that P&O ran have been ringfenced as everything has ground to a halt - a bit like the DPW website at the moment: 'Sorry, this site is temporarily unavailable. Please check back later' - so it's all eyes on Congress.
(Also watch out for the private Dubai Investment Capital Group who are preparing to acquire British engineers Doncasters; those Brits also work in the USA, making military parts.)
As it is, Clinton – an impressive voice during the unveiling of the Abu Ghraib outrages – appears to have cheapened herself during this intrigue (not that she's alone), which may embolden isolationist perspectives; this, in the short term, is unwelcome, and could well turn out bad in the long run [some fairly recent literature the Dems were sending out to the faithful and activists asked – among a raft of other questions – were supporters concerned that what could be termed isolationist causes weren't getting enough attention from the party].
Alas, as Nicholas Wapshott noted in the Telegraph a week or two ago, it appears that Senator Clinton, possibly scenting pollsters, is taking the view that "no amount of good character references from Dubai will persuade her to abandon an issue that is doing her so much good".
- Anonymous New York and New Jersey port authority board member, February 2006
The reaction in the United States has occurred in no other country in the world
- Ted Bilkey, COO of Dubai Ports World, February 2006
Hillary Clinton may have a bit of an axe to grind.
An issue that's been engulfing talking heads in the USA for some time now concerns Dubai Ports World, a Dubai state-run company.
DPW are buying august UK firm P&O, in a £3.9 billion take-over, something which means – amongst their new portfolio of locations worldwide – DPW gaining control of the majority of the operating of six ports (including Baltimore and Philadelphia) across the lower 48, from the hands of P&O. The Port of Singapore had been sniffing around P&O too, but DPW won out.
Opponents duly grumble; Iran has moved uranium through the UAE in the past, Libya has previously used its territory as a staging post, some banks in the Emirates have demonstrably not hindered the passage of dirty money before now. Oh, and two of the 9/11 hijackers were local lads.
There's also the matter of a 2002 letter - its authors claimed to represent al-Qaeda - in which the writers said they'd infiltrated various sections of the UAE govt (that has actually been flagged up in the USA maybe more than it might deserve, which could indicate a bit about the mindset of some commentators. Or perhaps it's not been flagged up enough. Jury out?).
Bipartisan lawmakers (including a vociferous Clinton and Bill Frist, Republican Senate majority leader) have been lining up to take pot-shots at POTUSA, following from Dubya not realising this bidder was Arab-owned until after his own treasury's foreign investment committee had agreed to the transfer.
They'd concluded there were no security problems here; Justice Nicholas Warren, for the High Court in this country, has also approved, waiving aside objections from American firm Eller & Co, the Miami partner of P&O (Eller & Co fear a loss of trade after the fall-out, for starters).
The New York and New Jersey Port Authority had also formally protested.
The President, firmly behind the deal, has, as usual, been his typically media-unwise self in trying to deflect heat over the take-over, not publicly acknowledging the key truth in the matter for a crucial week whilst mouthing useless platitudes at his many detractors, stubbornly refusing to climb down. He's even said he'll veto any law attempting to block the move (such a law now a distinct possibility).
Interest among the press – fear of jihadist terror striking again has understandably stoked urgent conversation – is high, to the extent that a quick google will reveal acres of bellicose newsprint [including this quite thorough Media Matters rebuttal], fiercely critical of the move.
The pig's ear the administration has made of its PR is just another galling factor to opponents.
It's certainly a fairly complex issue in which reasonable people with concerns are being unfairly lumped in with those just possessing ugly reflexes (see Media Matters for the former who are a group dedicated to correcting conservative bias in the American press; so, er, no biases in itself there then...).
Some of the most serious objections are potentially sustainable, but eventually the actual argument centring on port operating security boils down to one set of claims (Media Matters are a little disingenuous on this issue themselves when they target mainstream competitors who wave aside objections on these grounds; their own counter claims are partial) that shows up opponents – whether with the correct sort of intentions fuelling their unease or just parochial populists – as perhaps a little quick to judge.
The heart of the matter is outlined neatly by Irwin Stelzer.
An LA Times writer nimbly pointed out how Bush has brought this on himself; burden of proof and an expectation that democracies should not engage in the politics of panic for short-term gain rather going out of the window in the rush to denounce Iraq's WMD.
Extremist Islamists wandering around the New Orleans docks? Just isn't on, Jon Corzine (New Jersey governor) rightly reckons.
Charles Krauthammer: Democrats who might be upset if an Emirates citizen in an American airport, full burnoose and flowing robes, speaking only Arabic was subjected to more scrutiny than his sweet 84-year-old mother in the same situation, are not quite in the same corner here (it should be said Krauthammer was ambivalent about the deal and wanted it to go ahead only when the advanced stage was reached, but would have preferred if it hadn't got anywhere in the first place. It should also be said Krauthammer is, frequently, a buffoon).
Sure, there are enough holes to drive through in that newspaper column example, but even still, none as breathtakingly wide as Corzine's illogical double standards in flagging up that two known terrorists came from the UAE.
Provocatively, Bush observed he was struck by the lack of protest when a British outfit was running the ports.
In this climate, dismally insular voices are making themselves heard, while some on the right discuss if their President really is a conservative. Those arranged against DPW have widespread public support [a poll for USA Today found respondents against the move by 4 to 1] whilst Duncan Hunter, chair of the House Armed Services Committee, says he is prepared to legislate against such transfers.
Jerry Lewis, House Appropriations Committee chair, has also vowed to scuttle the deal (the Committee has recently voted 62 to 2 to halt the take-over’s American side).
It is DPW boss Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem who has bought some fine New York real estate for the Dubai royals (they own two of that city's most notable buildings), a regime that has given enough help to the Americans tracking terrorists. Support for a Qatari base of American forces is another service the UAE provides, whilst since the autumn of 2001 the details of transactions carried out by those suspected of terror links within its secretive banks have been discreetly passed on to Washington all the while.
DPW, if the take-over were allowed, would carry on with the same American staff as P&O uses.
Actually controlling these ports is not quite the same as fully controlling security, which is instead directed by various levels of domestic officialdom alongside the operator: Customs, the Department of Homeland Security, police, ports police, and the US Coast Guard all have roles.
A second, 45 day review of DPW's security arrangements - tougher than the initial 30 day assessment, we're promised (some carped an individual intelligence agency should have had responsibility for the first review, not a treasury-led body) - is now on.
If this review raises compelling objections, fair enough.
If not, then frankly it seems doubtful that some vocal critics would be ready to eat humble pie.
Meanwhile a second London court has dismissed Eller's arguments, this time the Court of Appeal.
Lords Justices Lloyd, Neuberger and Moore-Bick shooed away their objections on Monday, clearing a path for the deal to complete yesterday. P&O shares were due to be delisted today; their shareholders will be receiving cheques in about a week or so.
Though the deal cannot now be blocked on that side of things, with debate still raging in the USA, there are legs in this spectacle yet, with DPW agreeing to stop the American part of their take-over.
The US ports that P&O ran have been ringfenced as everything has ground to a halt - a bit like the DPW website at the moment: 'Sorry, this site is temporarily unavailable. Please check back later' - so it's all eyes on Congress.
(Also watch out for the private Dubai Investment Capital Group who are preparing to acquire British engineers Doncasters; those Brits also work in the USA, making military parts.)
As it is, Clinton – an impressive voice during the unveiling of the Abu Ghraib outrages – appears to have cheapened herself during this intrigue (not that she's alone), which may embolden isolationist perspectives; this, in the short term, is unwelcome, and could well turn out bad in the long run [some fairly recent literature the Dems were sending out to the faithful and activists asked – among a raft of other questions – were supporters concerned that what could be termed isolationist causes weren't getting enough attention from the party].
Alas, as Nicholas Wapshott noted in the Telegraph a week or two ago, it appears that Senator Clinton, possibly scenting pollsters, is taking the view that "no amount of good character references from Dubai will persuade her to abandon an issue that is doing her so much good".
Wednesday, 8 March 2006
it was only reading the guardian obit of Ivor Cutler that made me realise just how many things he did, and what an incredibly full life he led. i was ignorant of so many passages of his fabulously rich time.
i've been finding it difficult to come to terms with Lynden David Hall's passing in the last couple of weeks. it's not like i ever even met the man and i realise the sadness of a fan might be a bit indulgent compared to the grief of those people who loved and knew him as an individual (i don't really know about grief though know enough that someone is allowed to react how they want), but just thinking about how awesomely sweet his voice was keeps pushing me back to some strange stage.
i wrote in my diary [a diary! hark at him] on the day something along the lines of 'i refuse to believe this'. that unacceptance a common reaction, i know, and now something i seem to have adopted.
what with people like Gordon Parks and Dana Reeve also leaving us, this week feels like a particularly packed period for celebrity deaths.
there was a death in the family yesterday morning of a very storied someone who i wished i'd spent far more time with, although the time i did was incomparably valuable, which is something to cherish i suppose.
but it was nowhere near enough, and it really was late in life; too late.
i really want to be paying my respects and to be with people right now.
i remember this beautiful smile, saintly really and so strong in its radiance. he smiled and it sort of expanded outward, cocooning everyone in a happy contentment.
plus a weakness for plain cheeseburgers.
in one of her last interviews, Linda Smith said that 'you watch Laurel and Hardy - they're long dead but there's something more than just watching an old film. You are seeing these really joyous inspired moments. And that lives on. People's work lives on. And people's qualities live on....as long as there's someone to talk about it. As long as there's someone to remember what they were like'.
After it has been prov[en] on the basis of Shari’ah, they should seize him [or her]…they should keep him standing, they should split him in two with a sword, they should either cut off his neck or they should split him from the head. He will fall down.
another nail in the coffin of Dutch liberalism
another nail in the coffin of Dutch liberalism
Monday, 6 March 2006
Friday, 3 March 2006
Thursday, 2 March 2006
lor knows David Holmes has had enough mud slung his way down the years (i'm certainly guilty) but i must admit to finding the piece that closes Ocean's Eleven - in that scene as Pitt, Clooney, and Roberts drive off - simply wonderful.
it just seems so full of hope and pointing to so many possibilities; joyous stuff.
it just seems so full of hope and pointing to so many possibilities; joyous stuff.
ANOTHER PLUG FOR OUR DISCUS BUDS
available mainly mail order via www.discus-music.co.uk
Martin Archer - Ten studies for organ - Audiolaceration AL005
Vinyl only release
I've now acquired remaining stocks of this item originally recorded at the
end of 2001. As the title says, this is a series of ten short pieces for
solo organ plus editing and effects, with each piece dedicated to a number
of my favourite organists / soundsmiths from Oliver Messiaen to Markus Popp
to Vincent Crane. Simple and gritty, it's a good release I think.
Packaged in delightfully pre - worn plastic sleeves and custom printed
artwork. I just spent most of today assembling these, so I hope y'all want
to buy one!
available mainly mail order via www.discus-music.co.uk
Martin Archer - Ten studies for organ - Audiolaceration AL005
Vinyl only release
I've now acquired remaining stocks of this item originally recorded at the
end of 2001. As the title says, this is a series of ten short pieces for
solo organ plus editing and effects, with each piece dedicated to a number
of my favourite organists / soundsmiths from Oliver Messiaen to Markus Popp
to Vincent Crane. Simple and gritty, it's a good release I think.
Packaged in delightfully pre - worn plastic sleeves and custom printed
artwork. I just spent most of today assembling these, so I hope y'all want
to buy one!
earlier i noticed the way that the light fell across a usually opaque bottle of a facial scrub exposed its contents entirely.
the sun is not normally my source for looking at the scrub, rather dull electrical.
for a split-second this seemed to really transport me - quite powerfully so - to some place famed for the quality of its natural light, like the High Atlas or the Pilbara or somewhere dusty and small in Andalucia.
a luminous moment.
oh, and by the way, there's now three weeks left to read Joe T's archives before little dog's day - another absolute and original great - bites the dust.
the sun is not normally my source for looking at the scrub, rather dull electrical.
for a split-second this seemed to really transport me - quite powerfully so - to some place famed for the quality of its natural light, like the High Atlas or the Pilbara or somewhere dusty and small in Andalucia.
a luminous moment.
oh, and by the way, there's now three weeks left to read Joe T's archives before little dog's day - another absolute and original great - bites the dust.
Wednesday, 1 March 2006
Yesterday was possibly the best away day with the Rs. Even the wonderfully anagramed Colin Wanker had to admit that the best team won and didn't even complain about the ref. In truth we should have scored 7. Highlight was Paddy Kenny who has had a history with our fans. He had his back turned for their penalty and was celebrating like a twat before he realised that they had missed. The look on his face was priceless when he realised. Our 1200 easily outsung their 24,000 with the bizarre chant of "Arctic Monkeys are overrated".
Tuesday, 28 February 2006
TRIO * OF QUESTION MARK PENITENTS
that was a mean shot against the telegraph the other day wasn't it? i just feel cheap and bad now.
i tell you one thing that is truly random, do you want to know what that is?
it's that, that Taylor Parkes wrote a very entertaining piece on the Football League basement-battle match between Stockport County and Rushden & Diamonds for a recent edition of When Saturday Comes.
left of the field indeed.
-
"seconds after Spencer's gaffe, three middle aged men behind me start whistling the theme tune from Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, in perfect unison, as though they've done it before"
-
* {technically a quartet}
that was a mean shot against the telegraph the other day wasn't it? i just feel cheap and bad now.
i tell you one thing that is truly random, do you want to know what that is?
it's that, that Taylor Parkes wrote a very entertaining piece on the Football League basement-battle match between Stockport County and Rushden & Diamonds for a recent edition of When Saturday Comes.
left of the field indeed.
-
"seconds after Spencer's gaffe, three middle aged men behind me start whistling the theme tune from Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, in perfect unison, as though they've done it before"
-
* {technically a quartet}
Friday, 24 February 2006
British experts said last night that the spread of the deadly virus to France could now have "major implications" for the shooting industry.
Simon Clarke, from the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, said that up to 50 per cent of pheasants reared for shooting in Britain were bought in France.
The potential spread of the H5N1 virus across the Channel could halt the import of chicks to Britain, forcing estates to rely on limited numbers of locally-reared birds.
The Sunday Telegraph gets to the heart of the matter
Simon Clarke, from the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, said that up to 50 per cent of pheasants reared for shooting in Britain were bought in France.
The potential spread of the H5N1 virus across the Channel could halt the import of chicks to Britain, forcing estates to rely on limited numbers of locally-reared birds.
The Sunday Telegraph gets to the heart of the matter
Thursday, 23 February 2006
Tuesday, 21 February 2006
proxies of the Sudanese govt - a regime set to take on presidency of the African Union next year - are causing mayhem over the Chadian border.
-
i knew Austria had this bad, bad law, but wz so ignorant about some of the other countries that shackle similar freedoms
-
i knew Austria had this bad, bad law, but wz so ignorant about some of the other countries that shackle similar freedoms
Monday, 20 February 2006
a very dear friend of mine has started up a blog again.
alas i am indeed the person referred to here re. the vodka [though i didn't get a hangover].
the crumpets thing is not me - agreed it's hardcore - although for brunch yesterday i did fry an egg and put it in a sesame bagel that was toasted and spread with cream cheese {light mind you, light!}
alas i am indeed the person referred to here re. the vodka [though i didn't get a hangover].
the crumpets thing is not me - agreed it's hardcore - although for brunch yesterday i did fry an egg and put it in a sesame bagel that was toasted and spread with cream cheese {light mind you, light!}
Friday, 17 February 2006
please do consider going here to read Oliver, wise as ever.
Norm Geras is also right, regarding Tony Blair's disgraceful, stupid, and wrong Terrorism Bill.
LENIN with questions that deserve answers.
+
It sounded like the mountain exploded, and the whole thing crumbled.
Norm Geras is also right, regarding Tony Blair's disgraceful, stupid, and wrong Terrorism Bill.
LENIN with questions that deserve answers.
+
It sounded like the mountain exploded, and the whole thing crumbled.
Monday, 13 February 2006
working in a school has recently provided two moments of unexpected pleasure.
in an office hangs a watercolour – by a 12 year old pupil – of a large detached house throbbing with life, less mannered than a neighbour, purple stone and framed by a big bank of dark green. there’s a bit of action in the sky, enough to prevent it looking listless, and the moorland palette seems to want to break out of the confines of the house walls. the colours pulse and shimmer just outside the edges of lines that seek to box them in, but the lines don’t quite have it.
in an echoing corridor – blasted cold tiles and a creaky disabled toilet – well used to banter and noise a young girl sang a scrap of a song, some scratchy fragment of an r’n’b effort, or so. she was probably trying to get off along to class, surrounded by mates all screeching, unenthusiastic about that first lesson bell.
for that moment she was a proper pro, a star, and transporting.
in an office hangs a watercolour – by a 12 year old pupil – of a large detached house throbbing with life, less mannered than a neighbour, purple stone and framed by a big bank of dark green. there’s a bit of action in the sky, enough to prevent it looking listless, and the moorland palette seems to want to break out of the confines of the house walls. the colours pulse and shimmer just outside the edges of lines that seek to box them in, but the lines don’t quite have it.
in an echoing corridor – blasted cold tiles and a creaky disabled toilet – well used to banter and noise a young girl sang a scrap of a song, some scratchy fragment of an r’n’b effort, or so. she was probably trying to get off along to class, surrounded by mates all screeching, unenthusiastic about that first lesson bell.
for that moment she was a proper pro, a star, and transporting.
here's Oliver Kamm on Neil Clark.
incidentally, two words worth remembering whenever you see an article anywhere by the likes of Mick Hume or Brendan O'Neill are Frank Furedi
incidentally, two words worth remembering whenever you see an article anywhere by the likes of Mick Hume or Brendan O'Neill are Frank Furedi
Thursday, 9 February 2006
Wednesday, 8 February 2006
Thursday, 2 February 2006
the USA congress has finally decided to shelve the major cotton export subsidy in a move that is both scandalously overdue and worth recognising (the Step 2 scheme should now end in August).
over, in part, to Peter Mandelson, who - for all his rhetoric - is often almost as parochially protectionist as a Michigan or Lille union leader.
you shouldn't be running policy on the basis of 'yah-boo' tantrums about how you compare with the Americans (who's the most hypocritical and self-serving bunch of rich cunts, that sort of thing), but for some reason Mandy seems to think that's a reasonable way to conduct business.
over, in part, to Peter Mandelson, who - for all his rhetoric - is often almost as parochially protectionist as a Michigan or Lille union leader.
you shouldn't be running policy on the basis of 'yah-boo' tantrums about how you compare with the Americans (who's the most hypocritical and self-serving bunch of rich cunts, that sort of thing), but for some reason Mandy seems to think that's a reasonable way to conduct business.
Wednesday, 1 February 2006
just luxuriating of late in Jon furiously tearing himself a new one. it's astonishing.
oldskool Astronauts notepad-activity levels rewind in full effect!
particularly enjoyable were the lush Tropicalia visuals on display here [there were a few words jotted down too like].
my tuppence [well, alright, old penny] on Jon positioning the new Soul Jazz comp as the third wave of this in return to hipster favour centres on Jon's second wave: "then the mid 1990s obsession with Os Mutantes spearheaded by Stereolab" [he's damn right though there, isn't he].
do you remember Isle of Wight sunny-pop outfit the Bees?
(a gouty-history-man's Beta Band.)
well they covered 'A Minha Menina' on that debut LP, 2001/2-ish, and in the provinces the amount of newsprint spilled on this alone was a dam's worth.
course i don't suppose that's hipster is it, more snakebite in the Rugeley Red Rose.
+
actually last year a Sao Paulo/New York/Chicago show {Tropicália: A Revolution in Brazilian Culture} was on in the Bronx and Chicago's River North - it's coming to the Barbican later this month actually.
an exhibition of Tropicalia arts it placed the music in its wider context, design, film, etc.
that was a big hipster driver i'm sure [well for a twat like me].
i saw it here.
fwiw, the Barbican show will only spur more interest, perhaps Soul Jazz should flog their cute little record bags outside, guerrilla marketing style, with a copy of their cd. on the pavements.
yeah!
i don't know why i don't work in business innit.
does anyone know, btw, why Hibs players refused to join in the applause for Mercer at last weekend's Edinburgh derby, is there a backstory?
The Sunday Post was quick to condemn.
if you do please mail scottdisco@gmail.com
oldskool Astronauts notepad-activity levels rewind in full effect!
particularly enjoyable were the lush Tropicalia visuals on display here [there were a few words jotted down too like].
my tuppence [well, alright, old penny] on Jon positioning the new Soul Jazz comp as the third wave of this in return to hipster favour centres on Jon's second wave: "then the mid 1990s obsession with Os Mutantes spearheaded by Stereolab" [he's damn right though there, isn't he].
do you remember Isle of Wight sunny-pop outfit the Bees?
(a gouty-history-man's Beta Band.)
well they covered 'A Minha Menina' on that debut LP, 2001/2-ish, and in the provinces the amount of newsprint spilled on this alone was a dam's worth.
course i don't suppose that's hipster is it, more snakebite in the Rugeley Red Rose.
+
actually last year a Sao Paulo/New York/Chicago show {Tropicália: A Revolution in Brazilian Culture} was on in the Bronx and Chicago's River North - it's coming to the Barbican later this month actually.
an exhibition of Tropicalia arts it placed the music in its wider context, design, film, etc.
that was a big hipster driver i'm sure [well for a twat like me].
i saw it here.
fwiw, the Barbican show will only spur more interest, perhaps Soul Jazz should flog their cute little record bags outside, guerrilla marketing style, with a copy of their cd. on the pavements.
yeah!
i don't know why i don't work in business innit.
does anyone know, btw, why Hibs players refused to join in the applause for Mercer at last weekend's Edinburgh derby, is there a backstory?
The Sunday Post was quick to condemn.
if you do please mail scottdisco@gmail.com
Monday, 30 January 2006
Hughes, Bermondsey, Tatchell's orientation an issue, shame on Hughes, shame on Hughes
by far the sharpest cookie yet on Munich is Zadie Smith,
thus
"If the reviewer is 'pro-Israeli', the review and the film can be dismissed by the reader who feels differently. If the reviewer is 'pro-Palestinian', the same can be done. As it happens, the film itself is neither, and as such, in the opinion of many American reviewers, is inherently aggressive towards Israel....
the nature of the argument - how it dehumanises and destroys those involved in it - and not the argument itself that Munich is interested in....
This film is about confusion and it comes at the right time. How many of us know what to do with these two competing, equally true facts we hear exchanged between Ephraim and Avner: 'Israelis will die if these men live. You know this is true!' says Ephraim. Avner replies, 'There is no peace at the end of this. You know this is true!'"
by far the sharpest cookie yet on Munich is Zadie Smith,
thus
"If the reviewer is 'pro-Israeli', the review and the film can be dismissed by the reader who feels differently. If the reviewer is 'pro-Palestinian', the same can be done. As it happens, the film itself is neither, and as such, in the opinion of many American reviewers, is inherently aggressive towards Israel....
the nature of the argument - how it dehumanises and destroys those involved in it - and not the argument itself that Munich is interested in....
This film is about confusion and it comes at the right time. How many of us know what to do with these two competing, equally true facts we hear exchanged between Ephraim and Avner: 'Israelis will die if these men live. You know this is true!' says Ephraim. Avner replies, 'There is no peace at the end of this. You know this is true!'"
Sunday, 29 January 2006
Michael Wharton, dead aged 92, had his satire praised to the highest in that morning’s Telegraph.
the columnist, it was pointed out, did not suffer anyone directly biting his style, although with Bron Waugh and arguably Chris Morris there are echoes.
Howse wrote that “he learned useless languages such as Irish”, and in a similarly distasteful vein it’s true that Wharton both supported the white Rhodesians and Franco, then applauded Slobodan Milosevic’s refusal, at trial, to recognise the Hague.
in the final analysis he was called a genius.
i may demur.
the columnist, it was pointed out, did not suffer anyone directly biting his style, although with Bron Waugh and arguably Chris Morris there are echoes.
Howse wrote that “he learned useless languages such as Irish”, and in a similarly distasteful vein it’s true that Wharton both supported the white Rhodesians and Franco, then applauded Slobodan Milosevic’s refusal, at trial, to recognise the Hague.
in the final analysis he was called a genius.
i may demur.
Saturday, 28 January 2006
Friday, 27 January 2006
Thursday, 26 January 2006
Friday, 20 January 2006
get well soon isaac
-down on yr luck, walking thru a dingy bus station, scrubby free papers and crap French/Polish restaurant adverts, mind on caffeine and Mexican food
fierce PA salvation in the form of a glorious blast of Steve Miller's 'The Joker'
yes that's right
this is quality
thanks to OC, we can now see -> Joan Didion = THIS
also just wanted to share this, it's rather tardy but a correspondent of the Sheffield label Discus had said
The first time I saw Derek Bailey was at Company Week at The Roundhouse in Camden maybe back in 1977; I remember an all-star big band of improvisers leaving the stage one by one until there remained only Bailey & the unsung (but equally significant) Terry Day, to whom Bailey called in his sonorous South Yorkshire brogue: 'There's only thee an' me!'
[their Martin Archer also reckons Chora are "a This Heat for the new century"]
my mother sang a basically perfect In The Midnight Hour this morning
later-
things with the Thames whale might be going distinctly unquality.
ah.
-down on yr luck, walking thru a dingy bus station, scrubby free papers and crap French/Polish restaurant adverts, mind on caffeine and Mexican food
fierce PA salvation in the form of a glorious blast of Steve Miller's 'The Joker'
yes that's right
this is quality
thanks to OC, we can now see -> Joan Didion = THIS
also just wanted to share this, it's rather tardy but a correspondent of the Sheffield label Discus had said
The first time I saw Derek Bailey was at Company Week at The Roundhouse in Camden maybe back in 1977; I remember an all-star big band of improvisers leaving the stage one by one until there remained only Bailey & the unsung (but equally significant) Terry Day, to whom Bailey called in his sonorous South Yorkshire brogue: 'There's only thee an' me!'
[their Martin Archer also reckons Chora are "a This Heat for the new century"]
my mother sang a basically perfect In The Midnight Hour this morning
later-
things with the Thames whale might be going distinctly unquality.
ah.
Monday, 16 January 2006
this is not the genocidal campaign of a government at the height of its ideological hubris, as the 1992 jihad against the Nuba was, or coldly determined to secure natural resources, as when it sought to clear the oilfields of southern Sudan of their troublesome inhabitants. This is the routine cruelty of a security cabal, its humanity withered by years in power: it is genocide by force of habit.
Alex de Waal, August 2004
Alex de Waal, August 2004
Sunday, 1 January 2006
Wednesday, 28 December 2005
Wednesday, 21 December 2005
yes it’s the [typically idiosyncratic if that’s not too arsey to note, and – this year – gruel-thin] 05 listing from this gaff
MUSIC
it’d be pretty absurd and cheeky to catalogue anything, part of me thinks, given the disgracefully anaemic mode into which this weblog has fallen in its sophomore years.
so let’s just give thanks for all the dancers, ravers, popists, jazzists, folkists, grimeists {& grimmists}, furrow-ploughers, and general loons out there, and the rockists too [tongue in cheek: i know how the lovely Jon feels about this word].
FILM
‘Moolaade’ was a satire that just seemed to eclipse everything else, in what has clearly been a decent year in most categories [there’ve certainly been plenty of good blockbusters, and as pure cinema].
not the biggest advertising budget to play with, but Ousmane Sembene is probably someone who we can describe as still being near the top of what he’s attempting to do.
EXHIBITIONS
Beauty and the Beast: New Swedish Design, at the Whitworth, Manchester (in association with the Swedish Institute, the Crafts Council and Swedish Embassy).
an awesome survey of just the diverse above, with lots of shade and thrilling spaces filled with fascinating textures, the straightforward and the fantastic.
the lips of glassworks that were suffused with coloured lights were exquisite.
the programmed breakdown into beauty areas, and beast areas, seemed to work.
Dan Flavin: A Retrospective, at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (also at the NGA, Washington, D.C., and in Fort Worth iirc).
biggest retrospective to date of this minimal poet, a large scale look at prints and sketches and the like, but mainly filled with the wonderful fluorescents that people must have on the whole come for.
the very generous size of the space was a huge plus, and although it’s clear i’ve not the wit to paint a picture it seems that if James Joyce were still around and carrying his notebook for epiphanies, he’d have had cause for an entry in that afternoon we spent rapt at the MCA.
BOOKS ABOUT MUSIC {etc.}
Nik Cohn’s New Orleans rap tome started well, and carried on.
unfortunately i haven’t yet had the chance to read a certain chap on post-punk but am working on it…
DVDS WHAT HAD MUSIC-MAKERS IN THEM
two items here: that quality, quality short documentary that came with Roll Deep’s debut album. i especially love the bit where they’re in the studio, all messing about. Riko is magnetic. it’s excellent. i watch it endlessly on repeat, delighting, thrilling.
another big city though a different shaped ball was the New York that someone shot Ryan Adams and his Cardinals band in as they plugged away at their rootsy Jacksonville album. there’s one particularly great shot of a skyline but the most exciting bit for me is probably a scene with Adams in front of what looks like the most awesome wine shelf in Manhattan.
all plonk shops are created equal but some are more equal than others.
big up all the bloggers - i.e. pompous fannying about mates and assorted lovelies
the superb (eat your heart out Guardian arts coverage) and always fabulously attention-holding silverdollarcircle went bust [RIP] but then again the amazing WOEBOT came back, as did the very special worlds of possibility. hurei &c!
Penman too...
and Luka!!
Geeta’s final sentences here = floored the reader.
OBITUARY
not to get all Christopher Howse on you but to note Craner’s OTM conclusions while discussing Fahd.
AND FINALLY
- have your NYE, just have it.
P.S.
a personal beery year in passing at the tap here
MUSIC
it’d be pretty absurd and cheeky to catalogue anything, part of me thinks, given the disgracefully anaemic mode into which this weblog has fallen in its sophomore years.
so let’s just give thanks for all the dancers, ravers, popists, jazzists, folkists, grimeists {& grimmists}, furrow-ploughers, and general loons out there, and the rockists too [tongue in cheek: i know how the lovely Jon feels about this word].
FILM
‘Moolaade’ was a satire that just seemed to eclipse everything else, in what has clearly been a decent year in most categories [there’ve certainly been plenty of good blockbusters, and as pure cinema].
not the biggest advertising budget to play with, but Ousmane Sembene is probably someone who we can describe as still being near the top of what he’s attempting to do.
EXHIBITIONS
Beauty and the Beast: New Swedish Design, at the Whitworth, Manchester (in association with the Swedish Institute, the Crafts Council and Swedish Embassy).
an awesome survey of just the diverse above, with lots of shade and thrilling spaces filled with fascinating textures, the straightforward and the fantastic.
the lips of glassworks that were suffused with coloured lights were exquisite.
the programmed breakdown into beauty areas, and beast areas, seemed to work.
Dan Flavin: A Retrospective, at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (also at the NGA, Washington, D.C., and in Fort Worth iirc).
biggest retrospective to date of this minimal poet, a large scale look at prints and sketches and the like, but mainly filled with the wonderful fluorescents that people must have on the whole come for.
the very generous size of the space was a huge plus, and although it’s clear i’ve not the wit to paint a picture it seems that if James Joyce were still around and carrying his notebook for epiphanies, he’d have had cause for an entry in that afternoon we spent rapt at the MCA.
BOOKS ABOUT MUSIC {etc.}
Nik Cohn’s New Orleans rap tome started well, and carried on.
unfortunately i haven’t yet had the chance to read a certain chap on post-punk but am working on it…
DVDS WHAT HAD MUSIC-MAKERS IN THEM
two items here: that quality, quality short documentary that came with Roll Deep’s debut album. i especially love the bit where they’re in the studio, all messing about. Riko is magnetic. it’s excellent. i watch it endlessly on repeat, delighting, thrilling.
another big city though a different shaped ball was the New York that someone shot Ryan Adams and his Cardinals band in as they plugged away at their rootsy Jacksonville album. there’s one particularly great shot of a skyline but the most exciting bit for me is probably a scene with Adams in front of what looks like the most awesome wine shelf in Manhattan.
all plonk shops are created equal but some are more equal than others.
big up all the bloggers - i.e. pompous fannying about mates and assorted lovelies
the superb (eat your heart out Guardian arts coverage) and always fabulously attention-holding silverdollarcircle went bust [RIP] but then again the amazing WOEBOT came back, as did the very special worlds of possibility. hurei &c!
Penman too...
and Luka!!
Geeta’s final sentences here = floored the reader.
OBITUARY
not to get all Christopher Howse on you but to note Craner’s OTM conclusions while discussing Fahd.
AND FINALLY
- have your NYE, just have it.
P.S.
a personal beery year in passing at the tap here
Monday, 19 December 2005
Wednesday, 14 December 2005
finally got to the end of the bonfire of the vanities for the first time. had had it on the go for ages, at least a good year or so and whilst finishing reading other books during this period never somehow managed to complete this one.
first impressions (a bit late, eh) are that this seems one of my favourite contemporary American novels.
Wolfe writes with a remarkable focus when describing acts of violence, all the little scuffles and shoves that mark his narrative that occur at political meetings, outside courthouses, inside holding pens, anywhere.
at the beginning someone from the mayor’s office drives his elbow into an unruly protestor’s solar plexus. near the end a chapter has the words “solar plexus” in its title.
the eye for detail, and capacity for insight, and appetite for (frequently outsized) satire is certainly astonishing.
his sketch of an aeroplane tycoon at the dinner table comes straight from Hogarth, really.
the most repellent major characters seem to be the hypocritical, buffoonish and vain ADA Larry Kramer, and the self-serving Maria.
in the Picador paperback here Wolfe writes a ferocious, well-researched, thrilling – but also wrong –
introductory editorial calling for novels of the city, literature as bearing witness to society, and a fiction of real life.
citing such quality as Dickens, Balzac, Zola, Sinclair Lewis, and Thackeray he pours a sort of mild scorn on fancy-schmancy “Neo-Fabulists” such as Kafka and Borges (whilst recognising their talents) and laments what he sees as a current problem: the best literature coming out of his own land each year as he writes most recently is non-fiction reportage, not any novel.
unfortunately, Wolfe’s principled attack comes off as a bit bollocks and falls apart under its own weight by its conclusion (whilst making plenty of reasonable points and ending with an admittedly rallying war cry), but good novel like.
first impressions (a bit late, eh) are that this seems one of my favourite contemporary American novels.
Wolfe writes with a remarkable focus when describing acts of violence, all the little scuffles and shoves that mark his narrative that occur at political meetings, outside courthouses, inside holding pens, anywhere.
at the beginning someone from the mayor’s office drives his elbow into an unruly protestor’s solar plexus. near the end a chapter has the words “solar plexus” in its title.
the eye for detail, and capacity for insight, and appetite for (frequently outsized) satire is certainly astonishing.
his sketch of an aeroplane tycoon at the dinner table comes straight from Hogarth, really.
the most repellent major characters seem to be the hypocritical, buffoonish and vain ADA Larry Kramer, and the self-serving Maria.
in the Picador paperback here Wolfe writes a ferocious, well-researched, thrilling – but also wrong –
introductory editorial calling for novels of the city, literature as bearing witness to society, and a fiction of real life.
citing such quality as Dickens, Balzac, Zola, Sinclair Lewis, and Thackeray he pours a sort of mild scorn on fancy-schmancy “Neo-Fabulists” such as Kafka and Borges (whilst recognising their talents) and laments what he sees as a current problem: the best literature coming out of his own land each year as he writes most recently is non-fiction reportage, not any novel.
unfortunately, Wolfe’s principled attack comes off as a bit bollocks and falls apart under its own weight by its conclusion (whilst making plenty of reasonable points and ending with an admittedly rallying war cry), but good novel like.
Monday, 12 December 2005
Saturday, 10 December 2005
there’s this one busker who sets up a big keyboard on a couple of those big yellow buckets you drum up a dime on.
he’s blind as in he literally doesn’t appear to have eyes: like they’ve been plucked out, as if whisked away and drawn out on a wire. the set seared shut with hot poker treatment.
he sits in the subway and conjures up a storm of toasty standards, the occasional shout and a lot of soul.
he stops and sometimes he doesn’t, but there’s always this incredible holler.
he’s blind as in he literally doesn’t appear to have eyes: like they’ve been plucked out, as if whisked away and drawn out on a wire. the set seared shut with hot poker treatment.
he sits in the subway and conjures up a storm of toasty standards, the occasional shout and a lot of soul.
he stops and sometimes he doesn’t, but there’s always this incredible holler.
Thursday, 8 December 2005
Wednesday, 7 December 2005
Sunday, 27 November 2005
Monday, 21 November 2005
Saturday, 19 November 2005
K-PUNK, THE RAMBLER AND THE mind BOYS KNOW THIS FEELING
utter utter panic grips my entire soul as i sit watching the bbc football live text to see the Alty (at Gravesend) and City games reciting 'shit shit we're gonna lose, we're gonna lose/we're not gonna beat blackburn, we're not gonna beat blackburn'
utter utter panic grips my entire soul as i sit watching the bbc football live text to see the Alty (at Gravesend) and City games reciting 'shit shit we're gonna lose, we're gonna lose/we're not gonna beat blackburn, we're not gonna beat blackburn'
Friday, 18 November 2005
Thursday, 17 November 2005
Wednesday, 16 November 2005
Monday, 14 November 2005
Thursday, 10 November 2005
--
Geeta on packing up her records
+
keep re-reading Joe M on The Late Registration his asides on the skits and Nas are pure genius
-
The Rambler responds to clap clap
Thursday, 3 November 2005
Olly boy might be in Baku and Luka is back - news to me
+
Faust:...who are you, then?
Mephistopheles: I am part of that power which eternally wills evil and eternally works good
[goethe]
Nay, then, I fear he has fallen into that damned art
[marlowe]
+
Faust:...who are you, then?
Mephistopheles: I am part of that power which eternally wills evil and eternally works good
[goethe]
Nay, then, I fear he has fallen into that damned art
[marlowe]
Tuesday, 1 November 2005
Monday, 31 October 2005
espied a moth - a dull yellow, silvery afternoon butter tureen, or drab cream soda perhaps - in the subway, flitting about
just then two buskers (very good buskers) started up a Ben E. King and the moth carried flitting up to an artform too and as the low rumble of an approaching train became the crashing roar of an onrushing train the buskers carried on playing
all through the train and out the other side, without missing a beat
many buskers i do not fully comprehend having only English fluency
the other day someone had drums and was banging them out, knocking about
and someone with a white Master P wool hat was whistling on a train too, loud and clean
makes one think of Randy and her Crusaders
just then two buskers (very good buskers) started up a Ben E. King and the moth carried flitting up to an artform too and as the low rumble of an approaching train became the crashing roar of an onrushing train the buskers carried on playing
all through the train and out the other side, without missing a beat
many buskers i do not fully comprehend having only English fluency
the other day someone had drums and was banging them out, knocking about
and someone with a white Master P wool hat was whistling on a train too, loud and clean
makes one think of Randy and her Crusaders
Saturday, 29 October 2005
Friday, 28 October 2005
Wednesday, 26 October 2005
ITES GREEN AND GOLD
[fig. a] well, anyway, Johnny Clarke break out left hook on covering Tosh's 'Top Ranking' perfectly well segue
into
Mos telling himself to knock em out the box Mos.
think the lineage is there.
[fig. b] cold skimmed milk in a glass is really proving its worth today
[fig. c] Reynolds on the Village Voice seems very good.
it's a struggle to think of an overarching listing magazine for the arts in English.
music, art and lit. ones - some great outlets still, but overall, well?
what do the likes of the TLS and LRB and NYRB come into {obvs not hip young gunslinger mags}?
in fact it's gotten to the stage that what with the likes of sympathetic treatments of, say, the latest Anne Carson anthology, you look to the Economist.
a tale of two regional cities:
Time Out Chicago recently launched. certainly great for food and drink and the arts and all the socialising listings you'd expect and even the movie reviews are pretty good {although a recent look at the Onion A/V club and reading Andy Battaglia and Nathan Rabin's well judged reviews really did show TOC's crits up}
but
still not as good as the boho free weekly Chicago Reader, with its in-depth articles [+ w' the lovable and pretentious J. Rosenbaum as in-house crit the Reader isn't doing too badly for movies - actually i'd argue that with Ebert here too, Chicago is the single best city in the Anglophone world for cinema criticism] and superior restaurant section.
plus cartoons, and good ones.
City Life is the Manchester listings magazine, which produces local guides too - the annual food and drink guide is a must and for my beads the best of its kind in the UK. it's certainly got people that can still investigate - a small piece early this year by Jonathan Schofield making uncomplimentary noises about the Hoegaarden Urban Oasis outside beer-bar that graced sites in London and Mcr this summer was notable, for example.
its club, visual art {visa columnist Tim Birch is very good, occasional missteps such as a recent foolish whinge about dancehall notwithstanding}, theatre and family day out listings are still very good, and the anonymous United and City columns are a hoot. in the "gay" section Wayne Clews is a very funny man. plus they do send people overseas, to Israel for political pieces for instance.
BUT
it started off years ago with good intentions and whatnot but with the targeting of those young ABC1 professionals that live in the Didsburys and Chorlton (-cum-Hardy more so, less -on-Medlock) they've had to up the sheen quotient.
that's progress for you i suppose.
also, the very occasional anti-metropolitan twinge from some writers is of course pathetic and to be resisted [pace Carmody, i could stomach that from, say, a Yorkshire or west midlands or south Wales listing magazine somehow - and on my count that's any of the at least six great Yorkshire towns including Beverly].
finally the film and music reviews are pretty bobbins frankly, although club reviewer Danny McFadden is a gem.
so there is nowhere to look to, i suppose.
[fig. d] Reynolds on Richie Hawtin's haircut right and true - a recent issue of URB had some great grime photos and i turned the page and there's the new look Hawtin.
now having outed myself just now as an unlikely cultural conservative (i suppose) i have to say my response which still endures was
WHAT THE FUCK HAWTIN WHAT THE FUCK
some people look good as slapheads and there was one
[fig. e] Sergei Lavrov: why don't you JUST FUCK OFF
+
reading this shite?
you could be reading Baal
[fig. a] well, anyway, Johnny Clarke break out left hook on covering Tosh's 'Top Ranking' perfectly well segue
into
Mos telling himself to knock em out the box Mos.
think the lineage is there.
[fig. b] cold skimmed milk in a glass is really proving its worth today
[fig. c] Reynolds on the Village Voice seems very good.
it's a struggle to think of an overarching listing magazine for the arts in English.
music, art and lit. ones - some great outlets still, but overall, well?
what do the likes of the TLS and LRB and NYRB come into {obvs not hip young gunslinger mags}?
in fact it's gotten to the stage that what with the likes of sympathetic treatments of, say, the latest Anne Carson anthology, you look to the Economist.
a tale of two regional cities:
Time Out Chicago recently launched. certainly great for food and drink and the arts and all the socialising listings you'd expect and even the movie reviews are pretty good {although a recent look at the Onion A/V club and reading Andy Battaglia and Nathan Rabin's well judged reviews really did show TOC's crits up}
but
still not as good as the boho free weekly Chicago Reader, with its in-depth articles [+ w' the lovable and pretentious J. Rosenbaum as in-house crit the Reader isn't doing too badly for movies - actually i'd argue that with Ebert here too, Chicago is the single best city in the Anglophone world for cinema criticism] and superior restaurant section.
plus cartoons, and good ones.
City Life is the Manchester listings magazine, which produces local guides too - the annual food and drink guide is a must and for my beads the best of its kind in the UK. it's certainly got people that can still investigate - a small piece early this year by Jonathan Schofield making uncomplimentary noises about the Hoegaarden Urban Oasis outside beer-bar that graced sites in London and Mcr this summer was notable, for example.
its club, visual art {visa columnist Tim Birch is very good, occasional missteps such as a recent foolish whinge about dancehall notwithstanding}, theatre and family day out listings are still very good, and the anonymous United and City columns are a hoot. in the "gay" section Wayne Clews is a very funny man. plus they do send people overseas, to Israel for political pieces for instance.
BUT
it started off years ago with good intentions and whatnot but with the targeting of those young ABC1 professionals that live in the Didsburys and Chorlton (-cum-Hardy more so, less -on-Medlock) they've had to up the sheen quotient.
that's progress for you i suppose.
also, the very occasional anti-metropolitan twinge from some writers is of course pathetic and to be resisted [pace Carmody, i could stomach that from, say, a Yorkshire or west midlands or south Wales listing magazine somehow - and on my count that's any of the at least six great Yorkshire towns including Beverly].
finally the film and music reviews are pretty bobbins frankly, although club reviewer Danny McFadden is a gem.
so there is nowhere to look to, i suppose.
[fig. d] Reynolds on Richie Hawtin's haircut right and true - a recent issue of URB had some great grime photos and i turned the page and there's the new look Hawtin.
now having outed myself just now as an unlikely cultural conservative (i suppose) i have to say my response which still endures was
WHAT THE FUCK HAWTIN WHAT THE FUCK
some people look good as slapheads and there was one
[fig. e] Sergei Lavrov: why don't you JUST FUCK OFF
+
reading this shite?
you could be reading Baal
Friday, 21 October 2005
nowt linguistic here
Shalom Lappin of King's London discusses the politics of Noam Chomsky over at normblog.
Lappin should probably read this (a defence of Chomsky politically), this (criticisms) and this (a debate between the two people above who wrote the pro- and anti- Chomsky pieces), if he hasn't already. they open up what he discusses a bit more {i had said it might temper his analysis and that the Reagan analogy might not be needed but i'm not so sure}.
mind you, Oliver's gentlemanly archives get to the point [plus contain Frank Gardner laughs]
Shalom Lappin of King's London discusses the politics of Noam Chomsky over at normblog.
Lappin should probably read this (a defence of Chomsky politically), this (criticisms) and this (a debate between the two people above who wrote the pro- and anti- Chomsky pieces), if he hasn't already. they open up what he discusses a bit more {i had said it might temper his analysis and that the Reagan analogy might not be needed but i'm not so sure}.
mind you, Oliver's gentlemanly archives get to the point [plus contain Frank Gardner laughs]
Monday, 17 October 2005
if you can't be arsed to revisit de Tocqueville take it from someone who's been in the USA for a good month now (i.e., me) that the major observation a visitor will inevitably come to make about American society and politics is that in the US press restaurant reviewers would be proper fucked were it not for the word 'flavorful' {sic}
Sunday, 16 October 2005
If the Chinese government wants to monitor Internet users, that's their business.
Cisco spokesman to Newsweek magazine, 2002
The Epoch Times
Cisco spokesman to Newsweek magazine, 2002
The Epoch Times
Thursday, 13 October 2005
Wednesday, 12 October 2005
Tuesday, 11 October 2005
just sighted: a sparrow flitting under a black iron barred fence.
plumage many different shades of brown, duns, you could say symphonies in a murky forest
+
sugababes and TaTu on Stylus Singles Juker
well for the former of course must applaud Joe & Tom {tho' Hillary's phrasing is funny and clever} and for the latter most ppl.
[also Dom Passantino on LCD Soundsystem not only amusing and hard but, frankly, a v v good beatdown whatever you think; i have heard that particular choon enough to not know what i think either way which is a good Jerry Dammers speaking to the MM style i suppose]
why then last week's Petridis piece on the new sugababes album?
a RULE: the last thing anyone wants is alas yet more drear British r'n'b (sez you).
it's a sympathetic enough review but Sadly, Sugababes' version sands off the edges rather than amps up the lunacy why is this? why should that be sir? why sadly? maybe their vision is just right etc.
a bit more imagination and imagination used consistently and maybe, maybe, maybe we could start thinking about giving the bloke the respect we accord to better and more intelligent and more supple music-writers, e.g., the man's very own bete noire i.e. you know who [Will Oldham lyrics and philosophical considerations if yr don't know].
[also of the Frodsham Massive, Ian's asides on Bloc Party and the Kaiser Chiefs - i saw the latter in an enormodome plastered avec large Canadian flags t'other week with a surprisingly balls-out rockers Weezer and Foo Fighters - are proving endlessly re-readable]
speaking of old-skool blogging, Mark Sinker's wiki entry is grate and ludicrously fun to see up there and he speculates maybe Robin Carmody started it??
this piece on The Day Today by Robin C. {presumably the Robin...} may be over five years old but it's very good and his follow up on Jam too.
i wonder what Robin made of the Brass Eye paedo special.
what sort of wiki entry you could do for yourself i don't know.
a sample one for this place as imagined by the suspect Sinker thought might be responsible for his initial entry might run
[ahem]
General bloke associated early in his career of generalness with the noxious Manchester School, now widely discredited as a corrosive intellectual influence on many thinkers, he rehabilitated himself to a degree with a move to the Umbrella of the Newcastle School which posited Blyth as the centre of a mystical energy-centred "Second Universe" and that everything could be understood through Jurgen Habermas & optics.
Hobbies include slurping pho bo and whining about not having the money for a haircut.
[ahem]
(disclaimer: of course i love RC, genuine truth)
plumage many different shades of brown, duns, you could say symphonies in a murky forest
+
sugababes and TaTu on Stylus Singles Juker
well for the former of course must applaud Joe & Tom {tho' Hillary's phrasing is funny and clever} and for the latter most ppl.
[also Dom Passantino on LCD Soundsystem not only amusing and hard but, frankly, a v v good beatdown whatever you think; i have heard that particular choon enough to not know what i think either way which is a good Jerry Dammers speaking to the MM style i suppose]
why then last week's Petridis piece on the new sugababes album?
a RULE: the last thing anyone wants is alas yet more drear British r'n'b (sez you).
it's a sympathetic enough review but Sadly, Sugababes' version sands off the edges rather than amps up the lunacy why is this? why should that be sir? why sadly? maybe their vision is just right etc.
a bit more imagination and imagination used consistently and maybe, maybe, maybe we could start thinking about giving the bloke the respect we accord to better and more intelligent and more supple music-writers, e.g., the man's very own bete noire i.e. you know who [Will Oldham lyrics and philosophical considerations if yr don't know].
[also of the Frodsham Massive, Ian's asides on Bloc Party and the Kaiser Chiefs - i saw the latter in an enormodome plastered avec large Canadian flags t'other week with a surprisingly balls-out rockers Weezer and Foo Fighters - are proving endlessly re-readable]
speaking of old-skool blogging, Mark Sinker's wiki entry is grate and ludicrously fun to see up there and he speculates maybe Robin Carmody started it??
this piece on The Day Today by Robin C. {presumably the Robin...} may be over five years old but it's very good and his follow up on Jam too.
i wonder what Robin made of the Brass Eye paedo special.
what sort of wiki entry you could do for yourself i don't know.
a sample one for this place as imagined by the suspect Sinker thought might be responsible for his initial entry might run
[ahem]
General bloke associated early in his career of generalness with the noxious Manchester School, now widely discredited as a corrosive intellectual influence on many thinkers, he rehabilitated himself to a degree with a move to the Umbrella of the Newcastle School which posited Blyth as the centre of a mystical energy-centred "Second Universe" and that everything could be understood through Jurgen Habermas & optics.
Hobbies include slurping pho bo and whining about not having the money for a haircut.
[ahem]
(disclaimer: of course i love RC, genuine truth)
Monday, 10 October 2005
unnecessary to post maybe but hey some help
Kashmir International Relief Fund
Unicef
Oxfam
Red Cross Red Crescent (.pdf link)
+
the likes of Unicef are not asking for specific help from the public in the wake of Tropical Storm Stan but here are details of Oxfam's general fund
[cross-posted to my LJ]
Kashmir International Relief Fund
Unicef
Oxfam
Red Cross Red Crescent (.pdf link)
+
the likes of Unicef are not asking for specific help from the public in the wake of Tropical Storm Stan but here are details of Oxfam's general fund
[cross-posted to my LJ]
Friday, 7 October 2005
Thursday, 6 October 2005
Wednesday, 5 October 2005
Tom Wolfe might be amused: this chap seems something of a real-life Reverend Bacon [his story is even more damning than that article would suggest but the juicy stuff is in the log-in Tribune]
+
i like this one -
Have you heard the one about the retired general who said he had not had sex since 1956? His friend said, 'That's a long time ago.' 'I don't know,' the general replied. 'It's only 20.27 now.'
--
It may be a sign of the end of the world or some other great disaster. This is what we believe. I don't know what you members of the new generation say about it. We will keep praying to survive the danger that will come after it.
Tebared Tsegahun, on Monday's annular eclipse that he witnessed in Addis Ababa
=
the other day Janusz Onyszkiewicz observed that the EU should not "have a country like Belarus on its doorstep".
he's probably a bit worried about some countries inside, too.
+
i like this one -
Have you heard the one about the retired general who said he had not had sex since 1956? His friend said, 'That's a long time ago.' 'I don't know,' the general replied. 'It's only 20.27 now.'
--
It may be a sign of the end of the world or some other great disaster. This is what we believe. I don't know what you members of the new generation say about it. We will keep praying to survive the danger that will come after it.
Tebared Tsegahun, on Monday's annular eclipse that he witnessed in Addis Ababa
=
the other day Janusz Onyszkiewicz observed that the EU should not "have a country like Belarus on its doorstep".
he's probably a bit worried about some countries inside, too.
Friday, 30 September 2005
techno techno techno techno
OK so i am not a Motor City fetishist or owt like that, re-processing arid history, immersed in dry debates (heck i read Simon R's best of 90's list as a little kid and was like "Belgium"!! gotta get me some of that!! tho' in truth i remain a Hawtin fan - and Pole too, incidentally) but how ace does this Carl Craig nite in the Chi later today sound
Demon Days is conceived as "dark music for dark ages"....DJ Gamall, who has teamed up with Craig for the launch, touts sinister sonics of vintage Cabaret Voltaire tracks and guests - the Pop Group's Mark Stewart...Chris Ofili - as evidence of a weirder tint in the event's future programming....Craig's a big fan of...Michigan's Spectral imprint and Chicago label Still Music, digs minimal German stuff...and listens to hip-hop for its production.
OK, so that last bit is a bit shooting hoops 'Vitor watches La Liga because he likes football'-styling but hey.
apparently Craig's favourite places to shop are Barca and London and his favourite jazzer is Miles Davis [hey, Jeremy Clarkson's is Max Roach, did ja know...].
i will not be attending as my numpty pills are again on high, but i will be at a tiki bar {OK there may be karaoke} which is something. and a good one to boot.
at least over here they have proper tiki bars, not just that Trader Vic shit like back in the UK...
+
btw, Norm Geras on form eh
P.S.
'Mr. Habré was once supported by the United States, which provided him with considerable military aid because it found him useful as a bulwark against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi in Libya'
wonderful understatement from the NYT this morning
(still many Yank newspapers this morning appeared to rely on a Paul Ames wire from AP, so the USA paper of record can rest easy; i don't think the GUMG will be calling about this)
OK so i am not a Motor City fetishist or owt like that, re-processing arid history, immersed in dry debates (heck i read Simon R's best of 90's list as a little kid and was like "Belgium"!! gotta get me some of that!! tho' in truth i remain a Hawtin fan - and Pole too, incidentally) but how ace does this Carl Craig nite in the Chi later today sound
Demon Days is conceived as "dark music for dark ages"....DJ Gamall, who has teamed up with Craig for the launch, touts sinister sonics of vintage Cabaret Voltaire tracks and guests - the Pop Group's Mark Stewart...Chris Ofili - as evidence of a weirder tint in the event's future programming....Craig's a big fan of...Michigan's Spectral imprint and Chicago label Still Music, digs minimal German stuff...and listens to hip-hop for its production.
OK, so that last bit is a bit shooting hoops 'Vitor watches La Liga because he likes football'-styling but hey.
apparently Craig's favourite places to shop are Barca and London and his favourite jazzer is Miles Davis [hey, Jeremy Clarkson's is Max Roach, did ja know...].
i will not be attending as my numpty pills are again on high, but i will be at a tiki bar {OK there may be karaoke} which is something. and a good one to boot.
at least over here they have proper tiki bars, not just that Trader Vic shit like back in the UK...
+
btw, Norm Geras on form eh
P.S.
'Mr. Habré was once supported by the United States, which provided him with considerable military aid because it found him useful as a bulwark against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi in Libya'
wonderful understatement from the NYT this morning
(still many Yank newspapers this morning appeared to rely on a Paul Ames wire from AP, so the USA paper of record can rest easy; i don't think the GUMG will be calling about this)
Thursday, 29 September 2005
the lovely companion was in the line for autographs after a MIA instore last night and asked MIA who her current fave grime emcee is.
MIA gave the question some thought and said that it's D Double, "still" [MIA was given some anti-racism badges because the organisation my woman works for has a motto of toward the elimination of racism and empowerment of women and MIA said something we took to mean that she thought racism was more subtle in England than the USA].
so there we have it.
incidentally as perusing various Ocora and Folkways things [in the world section was a Sainkho Namtchylak CD case that had a startling front and back design] there was this little beauty.
MIA gave the question some thought and said that it's D Double, "still" [MIA was given some anti-racism badges because the organisation my woman works for has a motto of toward the elimination of racism and empowerment of women and MIA said something we took to mean that she thought racism was more subtle in England than the USA].
so there we have it.
incidentally as perusing various Ocora and Folkways things [in the world section was a Sainkho Namtchylak CD case that had a startling front and back design] there was this little beauty.
Wednesday, 28 September 2005
where music/intense spirituality and alcohol may meet
if you drink a pint of Adnams fisherman (just look at that pump clip!) whilst listening to 'Fisherman' from Heart of the Congos [preferably in some sort of bricabrac-addled gaff that resembles the old Black Ark replete with Jah mystick articles, old Pocomania notes of service and a familiarity with this essay about a rasta reading of Psalm 137] and maybe even wearing a reddish Don't Look Now pacamac
then music/intense spirituality and alcohol may well meet for you
if you drink a pint of Adnams fisherman (just look at that pump clip!) whilst listening to 'Fisherman' from Heart of the Congos [preferably in some sort of bricabrac-addled gaff that resembles the old Black Ark replete with Jah mystick articles, old Pocomania notes of service and a familiarity with this essay about a rasta reading of Psalm 137] and maybe even wearing a reddish Don't Look Now pacamac
then music/intense spirituality and alcohol may well meet for you
Friday, 23 September 2005
Monday, 19 September 2005
a disastrous weekend of football with some good in the rugby (still, 5 down at York and blatantly not caring yielded COME ON CHRIS YOU CAN GO GET PISSED AFTER THIS) interspersed with maths.
maths, that's right (and not just that i recently rewatched Pi), because all the churches in Indiana seem to have the sweep and the shape of Eero Saarinen.
beautiful.
the tall cornfields line off into the distance, perfect geometry, and the Frank Lloyd Wright Prairie Style commingles with the buzz of the cicadas, the hum of feedback and the brutal sun baking down hot.
well then
oh, i must admit i don't download but i always pay attention to Tom [&, well, do get to know].
ETA:
fuck me, Stelfox in the Telegraph.
awesome
{via The Rambler}.
maths, that's right (and not just that i recently rewatched Pi), because all the churches in Indiana seem to have the sweep and the shape of Eero Saarinen.
beautiful.
the tall cornfields line off into the distance, perfect geometry, and the Frank Lloyd Wright Prairie Style commingles with the buzz of the cicadas, the hum of feedback and the brutal sun baking down hot.
well then
oh, i must admit i don't download but i always pay attention to Tom [&, well, do get to know].
ETA:
fuck me, Stelfox in the Telegraph.
awesome
{via The Rambler}.
Friday, 16 September 2005
so i was browsing the soul and funk and jazz and techno and oddities and polka (man, you should have seen some of those) and comedy and indie sections of this record store the other day, and eventually found the rap.
i was lingering over some Jedi Mind Tricks singles i'd never seen before when the girl behind the counter started chatting to me about them.
eventually we got onto the subject of how i appreciate 'Vexed' is a track on the American release of Dizzee's debut album (this is in Chicago).
she was saying how small he was and how little he looks when she's seen him, and i started proselytising about Roll Deep. she told me how when she'd seen Mike Skinner he was so wasted he just collapsed on stage and was fucking about. good lad.
but the punchline is that she'd recently seen Lady Sovereign over here in the Windy City.
i asked her what she thought of that gig.
her reply?
fucking awesome.
+
re. this top thread started by Ingram about '24' (Dennis Hopper accent king) i am now wuvving Pearsall even more than usual because he says The best American tv show of recent years has been 'The Wire'.
how i heart Bawlmer' 'tec shows, how i do!!
-
to end on a deadly serious note, Nick Paton Walsh's Chechen dispatch here ends with the utterly chilling "Basayev is like a dog on a leash. Eventually he will get agitated and bite".
i bet i'm not the only reader to be stopped in their tracks by that today.
i was lingering over some Jedi Mind Tricks singles i'd never seen before when the girl behind the counter started chatting to me about them.
eventually we got onto the subject of how i appreciate 'Vexed' is a track on the American release of Dizzee's debut album (this is in Chicago).
she was saying how small he was and how little he looks when she's seen him, and i started proselytising about Roll Deep. she told me how when she'd seen Mike Skinner he was so wasted he just collapsed on stage and was fucking about. good lad.
but the punchline is that she'd recently seen Lady Sovereign over here in the Windy City.
i asked her what she thought of that gig.
her reply?
fucking awesome.
+
re. this top thread started by Ingram about '24' (Dennis Hopper accent king) i am now wuvving Pearsall even more than usual because he says The best American tv show of recent years has been 'The Wire'.
how i heart Bawlmer' 'tec shows, how i do!!
-
to end on a deadly serious note, Nick Paton Walsh's Chechen dispatch here ends with the utterly chilling "Basayev is like a dog on a leash. Eventually he will get agitated and bite".
i bet i'm not the only reader to be stopped in their tracks by that today.
Thursday, 15 September 2005
about a year ago, my dad found his cousin, dead, at his home. cousin John lived with another chap, but he was on holiday in France at the time.
anyway, one thing the old man got out of all this was a watch that John used to wear.
apparently it's been keeping perfect time, doing very nicely (the old fella is a delivery driver of parts for the Ford motor company, so he certainly needs a watch).
on the morning of the 7th of this month the other week (the day John's body was found in 2004) my father's wristwatch started going haywire. it kept keeping really bad time and going forward two hours. my dad would keep resetting it but it kept going forward two hours and whizzing about. ma and pa decided they would take it to a H Samuels, the watch and bling people, and ask someone who knows about watches to fix it.
well, on the morning of the 8th the other week, my father gets up and the watch is back to keeping perfect time.
and it's been fine since then again.
weird huh.
anyway, one thing the old man got out of all this was a watch that John used to wear.
apparently it's been keeping perfect time, doing very nicely (the old fella is a delivery driver of parts for the Ford motor company, so he certainly needs a watch).
on the morning of the 7th of this month the other week (the day John's body was found in 2004) my father's wristwatch started going haywire. it kept keeping really bad time and going forward two hours. my dad would keep resetting it but it kept going forward two hours and whizzing about. ma and pa decided they would take it to a H Samuels, the watch and bling people, and ask someone who knows about watches to fix it.
well, on the morning of the 8th the other week, my father gets up and the watch is back to keeping perfect time.
and it's been fine since then again.
weird huh.
Friday, 9 September 2005
the following club listing from a very recent edition of Time Out Chicago (issue number twenty six: bless!!)
"...explores that shady territory between soul...and Broken Beat that sounds a bit like what's hot in West London right about now."
[my emphasis]
am i being ignorant here or is the dating of this piece not, uh, about two or so years outta it??
"...explores that shady territory between soul...and Broken Beat that sounds a bit like what's hot in West London right about now."
[my emphasis]
am i being ignorant here or is the dating of this piece not, uh, about two or so years outta it??
Wednesday, 7 September 2005
me personally, i've only been to New Orleans once. i spent a couple of nights there, in late December 2002 (and one morning breakfasting on incredible biscuits and gravy and grits in Jackson, Miss. en-route).
the river was big and brown, and looked like chocolate. it was magnificent.
i spent a lot of time walking around the French Quarter and admiring everything. there were some interesting street artists. music was in the air all around, and it was like all great cities in that life was being lived on the street, and people were noisily dancing and hollering and the like. it was so hot.
it was the first time i ate catfish po'boys. i ate catfish a few days running, from a little sandwich shop near downtown, from some booth near the aquarium, from some place. that was awesome.
here's a recipe.
the river was big and brown, and looked like chocolate. it was magnificent.
i spent a lot of time walking around the French Quarter and admiring everything. there were some interesting street artists. music was in the air all around, and it was like all great cities in that life was being lived on the street, and people were noisily dancing and hollering and the like. it was so hot.
it was the first time i ate catfish po'boys. i ate catfish a few days running, from a little sandwich shop near downtown, from some booth near the aquarium, from some place. that was awesome.
here's a recipe.
Wednesday, 24 August 2005
didn't see any pictures from Stadium of Light {Wearside edition} last night - was watching the collection of acrobatic set pieces that is Blade II with friends instead [and feasting on rainbow-paper wrapped chicken, prawn dumplings and a sliced pork ruby]; vampiric Luke Goss leading an army of Richard O'Brien clones through the sewers of a dystopian central European city = must be a joke there somewhere - so unsure if that lump Sinclair could possibly celebrate like Andy Cole did on Saturday in Birmingham, but anyway, did you see Cole?
gurning, like a tic or a leap of the mouth, just whooping it up = COOL AS FUCK
gurning, like a tic or a leap of the mouth, just whooping it up = COOL AS FUCK
Monday, 22 August 2005
Thursday, 18 August 2005
reviewing some compilation of regional-specific tunes in a local magazine there was the phrase "think braindance on a budget".
is it just me or is that lame [much like the New Brand Flex ripping of Westwood once Si SDC mentioned, where one DJ is denying any responsibility for calling Tim, whilst the other slags him off to high heaven]?
not perhaps as lame as a rather dumb whinge about dancehall, of which possibly more on that later here...
is it just me or is that lame [much like the New Brand Flex ripping of Westwood once Si SDC mentioned, where one DJ is denying any responsibility for calling Tim, whilst the other slags him off to high heaven]?
not perhaps as lame as a rather dumb whinge about dancehall, of which possibly more on that later here...
Wednesday, 17 August 2005
Reynolds mentioned this the other day but i saw an advert, right, for some August bankholiday weekend bash in town (Mcr city centre) at the admirable Sankeys club - or it was affiliated to them, it's one of these warehouse parties {Carl Cox etc} - and i'm sure James Zabiela was a flagged-up name.
i know what he means, it's a functional death of imagination thing in the regional dance press, anything that comes along gets clapped at uncritically in my experience, which is not an ideal starting point for a forum.
i know what he means, it's a functional death of imagination thing in the regional dance press, anything that comes along gets clapped at uncritically in my experience, which is not an ideal starting point for a forum.
Thursday, 11 August 2005
Wednesday, 10 August 2005
Tuesday, 2 August 2005
i'll piss off my mate Steyn (sorry Mark! P.S. the cannoli was excellent, thanks) saying this, but Robert Fisk has a good article today in his Indy about the passing of King Fahd.
the first few lines, free, here.
i only skimread it, but nice touch in again calling Iran [& Saudi Arabia] a necrocracy.
elsewhere, although Dick Bentley is trying to make a good point, he ends up reading - truth? - like a, frankly, blase twat: this particularly due to his second bracketed aside and what comes immediately before those brackets.
D +
the first few lines, free, here.
i only skimread it, but nice touch in again calling Iran [& Saudi Arabia] a necrocracy.
elsewhere, although Dick Bentley is trying to make a good point, he ends up reading - truth? - like a, frankly, blase twat: this particularly due to his second bracketed aside and what comes immediately before those brackets.
D +
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