WorldWideWebisphere

Armistice Day

2011-11-08T18:54:00.000-08:00

Very soon, it will be November 11th. Armistice Day. A day of remembrance, for those who have fallen in conflict defending those that they loved.

A day during which people wear a poppy to honour their actions, honour their memories, and honour those who continue to serve today, carrying on their legacy.

The poppy came about from the red flowers found growing on the fields of Flanders. An area soaked in the blood of the fallen during World War 1. During a time of remembrance, the public wear then on lapels. Also, many sports organisations get them stitched onto shirts.

They have featured on football shirts of teams in Englands Premier League, as well as on England and Australia national team rugby shirts (amongst others).

They have also been stitched on to England's national football teams shirt, and sold to raise money for The Royal British Legion. A charity that raises money to pay for the care of wounded soldiers, as well as helping the families for those soldiers who dont return.

So, last weekend, the FA allowed teams playing in England the right to stitch a poppy on to their shirts.

And England asked for permission to place a poppy on the England shirt for the friendly game against Spain played on November 11, Armistice Day.

FIFA declined to allow England to do so. It is part of their rules that teams cannot place symbols which are commercial (sponsorship), religious, or political in nature. They said that to allow England would open the doors to further such demands, and end up with symbols on all sorts of shirts, representing all sorts of events.

Whilst FIFA can protest about protecting the neutrality of Football, they are on a hiding to nothing over this. Whatever happens, FIFA looks bad (Not that they do that themselves anyway!).

Lets look at the rules. So, we cannot place commercial logo's on a shirt (other than kit manufacturer). Well, the Royal British Legion is a charity. Religious logos. Royal British Legion looks after injured soldiers and their families, no matter what religion. Political logos. Well, they will take donations from any political hue! And politicians of all colours wear poppies. So, it aint political.

Is it England specific? No. The Scots and Welsh also wear poppies (its a British thing). The poppy is not exclusive to The UK, either. Poppies play a (small) part in Veterans day in the US. Poppies are also worn in New Zealand, Australia, as well as many other Commonwealth nations. The Poppy factory in London exports all over the world.

I understand FIFA's fear, that this could open the door to all sorts of claims, but surely, given that Armistice day (and related) is a multi-national thing, there is space to allow it. Maybe even allow every nation to have 1 day to honour something. Just one.

Besides, FIFA place patches on shirts to promote their own campaigns. Such as the "Fair Play" campaign, as well as UEFA's "Respect" campaign.

Why not allow nations to Respect those who gave their all for the rest of us?

Gaddafi

2011-10-21T18:04:00.000-07:00

Warning: Some images are not that pleasant.

OK. So, after bitter fighting since February, Libya is now finally free of Gaddafi and his tyrannical rule. How? Well, he is dead. The NTC forces finally found him in his home city of Sirte, and now the guy has met a very ignoble end. Dragged from a drain pipe, rambling, and probably close to insane.

There is a lot of confusion over how he met his end. Was he executed? Was he killed in a crossfire? Or was he "mercifully" killed by his bodyguard to spare him the humility of being captured? The truth may very well never come out.

After all, history is written by the victors.

So, the man who wanted to lead the Arab world, and failed. The man who became an international pariah, and managed to fashion himself as a leader of Africa. And was named as "King of Kings" by African tribal leaders.

The man who famously hated flying, and pitched his tent rather than stay in a hotel. The man who had an amazingly flamboyant style. Switching between multicultural tribal robes, and ever more flamboyant military garb he designed.

A man who said he was not the leader of Libya, despite concentrating power in his hands. A man surrounded by a personal bodyguard of hand-picked beautiful ladies (who WHERE his bodyguard, not eye candy!)

A man who, with his family, raped and pillaged his nation.

The debate now rages on about whether he should have stood trial for his crimes. Well, for me, it is a pointless argument. He was arrested, with blood pouring from his head, and in the confusion he later died. How he died should be the matter of an investigation.

How he died will probably never be revealed.

Should he have stood trial? In my view, yes. He should. However, if he where to be put on trial in Libya it would have been nothing more than a show-trial. Libya after all has NO judicial system to speak of, since the previous system was designed to be subservient to Gaddafi himself!

In reality, he should have been sent to the ICC (International Criminal Court). A venue where he would have been tried in relative impartiality. However, the ICC process would have ground on and taken YEARS for any resolution. And given Gaddafi's predilection for rambling, it could have taken EVEN longer!

As it is, given his 42 year rule, and the preponderance of evidence against the guy, he would have ended up guilty at the ICC. He DEFINITELY would have ended up guilty if tried in Libya, and most likely dead. What has happened to him has essentially circumvented the process that would have ended in the same outcome.

Big machines that go fast!

2011-08-14T09:54:00.000-07:00

OK, so Britain is looking at building the High Speed 2 line initially to run from London to Birmingham. But what about the rolling stock that is to go ON the line? Well, that is going to be the next big debate. Britain really does not have the ability to build these trains itself. Indeed, with the awarding of a contract to Siemens for the expansion of British rail rolling stock, Britain's last main train building factory is being significantly downsized!

So, where are we going to get the new stuff from, if we cant do it ourselves? Well, there are basically 4 countries touting their services in order to win the bid. France, Germany, Japan, and China. So, which one should Britain go for?

Well, lets have a look at the railways involved. However, this is going to be totally un-scientific!

Lets start with China. Its first alphabetically.

China has nearly 10,000 km of high speed line, with 3,500 being rated for services in excess of 330kph. A lot of this has sprung up within the last 10 years of construction, with the first line being opened in 2007. China enjoys ridership 290,540,000 people a year.

However, this year was the year of the Crash.China's breakneck charge into high speed rail has cast a dim light on the network itself, with worries of sub-standard quality control, corruption, and poor design. Indeed, most of the technology involved is essentially re-engineered German or Japanese technology. Some might say, re-engineered poorly.

With only 4 years of operation, China has already had a deadly smash up.

Should Britain buy Chinese? Well, it would probably work out cheaper, but we are dealing with massive machines travelling at stupid speeds. Somewhat different from a kids plastic toy. China's railways are unproven, and this smash casts a pall over it. I'd put them well down the list.

Next up, France.

The French introduced its first high speed rail way back in the 60's, not long after Japan. And, like Japan, runs its TGV on dedicated lines. France's network is nearly 2000km long, and has 93 million people a year.

Now, The TGV does enjoy an excellent record, 3 derailments, with no major incidents, and no fatalities.

Should Britain buy French? Well, they are our neighbours, and we already use French built rolling stock, with the Eurostar services running from London through the Channel Tunnel. It is a tried technology, and France has had a lot of success exporting it round the world, with TGV based rolling stock in use in Spain and Korea, to name but 2.

However, they ARE French.

Next up, Germany.

They kind of got in to the game a bit late, with the first services running in the early 90's. Also, the ICE network is not totally dedicated to ICE services. It is in some cases, mixed. The network enjoys a ridership of just over 77 million, and has seen 10 incidents. None resulting in fatalities, and caused by things on the line. Ranging from cars and trucks, to sheep.

However, Germany did have the Eschede disaster, when an ICE service derailed resulting in significant loss of life, caused by a wheel suffering from fatigue and cracking. All ICE wheels have since been re-designed, and replaced.

So, should we buy German? Why not? It is tried and tested, with only the one incident. The Germans also got on with finding the fault, and re-designing that part that failed. Also, the trains have enjoyed success overseas, in use in Spain, Russia, and China.

Finally, Japan.

The home of the high speed rail service. The first service running from Tokyo to Osaka way back in the early 1960's. Japan has a network of about 2,400km of track, and just over 353,000,000 people riding the Shinkansen services. As for safety, Japan has the best record. 1 incident which resulted in a derailment, with the Chuetsu earthquake tipping a train off the rails. No fatalities. Otherwise, that's it.

So, what about Japanese? I'd say this has to be the favourite. Best safety record, excellent reliability (puncuality is measured in seconds!), AND most importantly for the NIMBY's in Britain, the Japanese have spent ages researching tunnel design and train design to get their trains as quiet as possible. Something that is as important in Japan as it is in the UK, given that both are island nations with dense populations. Granted, it would mean buying Japanese ducks, rather than the more sleek-looking French and German counterparts, but given that most people will only get a fleeting glimpse as it whistles past, or are sat inside, its not such a big deal!

Are we proud to be British?

2011-07-04T22:22:00.000-07:00

Canadians can let their hair down, and go nuts during Canada Day. Their nations birthday. People dress up largely in red, with a bit of white thrown in. something Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge took to heart and selected a lovely white dress with a red maple leaf inspired hat during her outings during the Canada Day celebrations she and her husband where involved in during their visit to Canada.

America shuts down and dresses up in red white and blue for Americas birthday on the 4th of July. Independence Day. Parades, fireworks, and flag waving galore.

The French also have their Bastille Day, a day to be proud to be French (not that they need an excuse!)

But what about Britain? There is no national day for Britain. It is a very difficult thing to define. For me, as an Englishman, Britishness is hard to define. England is the largest constituent nation in the UK, and has often seen Englishness confused with Britishness. Rightly, this has seen a lot of resentment in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

This has seen a rise in the Celtic nations in their search for their own identities. Now, the Welsh get their Leeks and dress up on St Davids Day.

The Irish have St Patricks Day. Though a lot of it has been driven by the fact that the Americans very nearly stole it from the Irish!

And the Scots deep fry the proverbials out of everything on St Andrews Day! OK, a bit of a stereotype! But again, there is active encouragement to push Scottishness.

In England, St Georges Day is popular...

But is NOT actively encouraged. Many councils refuse to fund parades for fear of "extremism." Indeed, the TUC according to someone I heard on the BBC, really dont want any mention of "England" at their main conference.

Gordon Brown, as PM, wanted to have a British Day. And I agree. But can we HAVE a British day?

I think we can, but the problem is, we need to work out what it means to be British. To be British is confused and amorphous. It is my belief that the only way to sort it all out is to sort out the current imbalances that are existent already in the UK.

You have macro imbalances which the Celtic home nations bang on about, with England being the dominant nation. And you have micro imbalances, which piss off the English, with the Barnet Formula granting Scots far more in council funding, and Welsh and Scots being able to impact on English only matters.

How can we sort all this. For one, we need the government to actually allow people in England ENJOY St Georges Day without being made to feel like it is some dirty thing (Jack Straw suggested that there is something inherently dark about "Englishness."). Allowing England to be English in a proud AND positive way would allow people to reclaim it from the nutters. This would make it positive, and begin to ease a little of the resentment.

On a macro level, we need to sort out the imbalances. By REALLY sorting out devolution it allows each home nation the chance to sort out their own topics and work together on UK-wide issues. I have talked about this sort of thing here. Also, the high speed line would allow areas outside London to be able to push for companies to relocate outside London whilst having easy access to the rest of the nation.

On a micro level, we need devolution across ALL home nations. This would then stop the farcical situation of the vote for tuition fees. This was an issue under Tony Blairs Labour government where it was essentially an English only issue. Labours English MP's mostly voted for it after being whipped (not literally! It means that Labours "heavies" instructed their MP's which way to vote "or else.")

However, the opposition voted against it, many English Labour MP's rebelled and voted against, and in the end, the motion was carried after Labour got its Scottish MP's to vote in favour. This proved hugely controversial because this law was in no way going to impact on their constituents. With education being a devolved topic.

It is my belief that we need to scrap the current system. Get rid of the vast numbers of MP's and replace it with a 2 tier system. At 1 level we need each nation to have its own parliament. This would allow each nation to control its own specific areas and prevent dominance by one or another of the home nations.

On top of that, a smaller British parliament This would debate purely British issues. It would also allow you to get rid of the over representation that exists in the current system. As it stands, for the English, 1 English vote counts for far less given that each of the other home nations are over - represented with MP's for their population size. Also, the imbalance exists because a Scot has the right to vote on MSP's who debate on purely Scottish topics, as well as voting for an MP, who can impact (only in a small way, but the fact is they CAN) on English only topics. This means that the English are under represented. I know that if the English MP's band together, the other home nations dont get a look in, but democracy is about the right of the individual to choose, and I have less choice, and less of a voice!

Also, my idea would be for the British parliament would be for the constituencies to ignore national boundaries. This would allow the boundaries to be drawn to be perfectly equal. There is no need for the constituents to worry about whether their MBP (Member of British Parliament) was born in Scotland or England, as they would only be able to work on British matters. The constituents "English" or "Scottish" or "Welsh" concerns would be dealt with by their "English" or "Scottish" MSP/MEP.

If there was a proper balancing of the parliamentary system and of powers across the UK, with all nations being equal, then it would allow each nations people to settle on their own national identity. It would also help England sort out its own identity. If England was allowed to forge its own identity in the UK, then that would then give the home nations the chance to work together and forge a new idea of what it means to be British.

It works in sports, we have England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland in the rugby, who band together to form the British Lions who tour every 4 years.

Also, in the Commonwealth games we compete as the home nations, which works OK for us.

But at the Olympics, we combine as Team GB. To great success, indeed, in the cycling Britain is one of the top nations, and at the Beijing Olympics, Britain basically kicked everyone else. The team is made up of mostly English riders (there ARE more of us!) but it also includes exceptional talents from Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Indeed, the number one rider is Sir Chris Hoy, from Scotland, and during the team pursuit, the team was made up of 2 English, 1 Welsh, and 1 Belgian (OK, Bradley Wiggins was born there, but raised in London!).

the problem we have in the UK is that we just dont have a national day to be proud to be British. also, we are a little uncomfortable with it as there is no real description of what it is to be British. This has allowed the extremists a chance to create their own definition of what it is to be British, and the rest of us are not comfortable with it.

Without a national day, it leaves us with the Olympics, and the occasional big day such as the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. But these days are sporadic, and not fixtures on the calendar.

If there was true equality between the home nations it would ease a lot of the tensions that exist. If we could be comfortable with what it is to be uniquely Scottish, English, Welsh and Northern Irish (though that could be tricky!), then we would be able to seek out those things that combine us together to make us British.

THEN we could be uniquely proud to be British.

Radiation Update

2011-07-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

I have been tracking the radiation in Japan, but for the last month, it has been tracking largely without any major changes. The occasional spike, but nothing dramatic. So, I have decided to stop tracking it like I have. But should it change, then I will continue. If you want to seek the info, then I have been taking the information from the Japan times.

Go and have a look at their stuff. It is good!

Radiation Update - Japan 6/20

2011-06-19T18:03:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/19

2011-06-19T05:48:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/18

2011-06-17T16:41:00.001-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/16

2011-06-15T18:07:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/15

2011-06-15T07:57:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/11

2011-06-10T16:48:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/10

2011-06-09T17:44:00.001-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/9

2011-06-09T07:44:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/8

2011-06-07T19:20:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/6

2011-06-05T16:43:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/5

2011-06-04T16:40:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/4

2011-06-03T16:25:00.001-07:00

Chavtastic Chavdom!

2011-06-03T07:01:00.000-07:00

So, the world (well, the UK) is being riven in two by that most heinous of words. A word that is a dark stain on our soul. A word so vile it has been deemed to be worthy of total erasure from the English language. That word is...

CHAV

Yes. A vile word indeed.

The word itself first really appeared back in 2001 in the media, and by 2004 had entered common everyday use. A word that is linked to the growth of anti-social behaviour.

Many social (usually left-leaning) commentators link the rise in the use of the word "chav" with a rise in a new "class war" or a kind of neo-snobbery. Almost an attack on the working class. It has been often linked with youths who wear certain fashion styles, and embody a certain type of attitude. The fashion of choice was Burberry. Especially the Burberry cap. Burberry has since scaled back the amount of Burberry check they use on their fashions, and have pulled their signature "chav" item, the cap.

Burberry then...

Burberry now

I cannot be bothered detailing the ins and outs of the social issues, mainly because I am not a social scientist and I dont have the time to wade through all the material. I will leave you to read into it. I am just going to point my view.

In my opinion, "chav" is more a state of mind than a social grouping. Granted the largest group is a sort of young under class who DO engage in socially questionable activities. However, it is not exclusively linked to them. Though Michael Carroll is an excellent example of a chav. After winning the lottery, he blew all his money on pointless bling, parties, and drugs. Had a stretch in jail, got declared bankrupt, and is now back as a binman (nothing wrong with the profession!)

He just makes me cringe!

I cant see the word "chav" as being exclusively working class. To say it is a "working class" word would be to tarnish those who are supposedly "working class" as they work really, really hard. Working to deliver services to people, living within their means, not running out to buy fashion stuff just because...

Shock! Working class guy actually working! Deserves a medal, for hauling milk through the snow, this guy!

Likewise those in the "upper classes" are not all elegant paragons of society. For example, Paris Hilton.

I REALLY dont understand why some people say she is stunning! I know plenty of girls here in Japan far prettier than her!

Here is a lady that is not working class, not ever really having had to work a day in her life! However, her attitude is quite selfish, she goes out to party for herself, and to my mind, does not really deliver social benefits to the US. She also spent time in jail for various misdemeanors, been arrested for bad driving,,, AND Her TV shows have been quite vapid and shallow. I would level the charge of "chav" at her!

So, to me, the word "chav" is not an attack on the working class, more an attack on the work-shy socially stunted class!

Radiation Update - Japan 6/3

2011-06-02T16:42:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 6/2

2011-06-01T16:52:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 5/29

2011-05-29T05:53:00.000-07:00

Check for Obama! Update

2011-05-26T15:38:00.000-07:00

Well, Obama has been to the UK on an official state visit (I will pass comment on that later. Dont have time now. Got to get ready for work!) and he did meet London's Mayor, Boris Johnson, and Johnson did raise the issue of the US Embassy's non-payment of the congestion charge.

Also, because roads where not closed for him like they where for when the Pope visited (closed roads allow spectators to stand on the road and gaze at the Pope as he drives by slowly. Obama didnt do anything like that). Even though Obama's motorcade was huge, it was all part of the normal flow of traffic.

Therefore, the Beast got hit with a £10 congestion charge. And if he does not pay, it means that the next time The Beast turns up, it can be impounded!

I know it is a tough nut to crack, run flat tyres, bullet proof glass, etc, but if London wanted to impound it, dont need to look further than Ireland for advice on stopping the thing...

Radiation Update - Japan 5/27

2011-05-26T15:30:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 5/26

2011-05-26T08:37:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 5/25

2011-05-24T18:56:00.001-07:00

Check for Obama!

2011-05-20T17:12:00.000-07:00

You owe us money!

With the upcoming state visit of Obama to Britain, another story has raised its head. That of the non-payment of the London congestion charge by several embassies in London. And the fact that at the state dinner, which will also see Londons mayor, Boris "Whats a comb?" Johnson will quietly slip a bill for £5,290,000 on Obama's plate somewhere between dessert and coffee. This is the amount that the US embassy owes for its cars entering the congestion charge zone in the centre of London, and refusing to pay. So this also includes the fines.

Boris on a congestion charge free mode of transport. And getting a workout!

Just to give you a bit of background, London suffered from horrendous traffic. The average speed was about walking speed, it was pretty bad. I know. I tried driving in London it was not an experience I want to repeat! However, after the introduction of the congestion charge in the centre of London (and later being spread west) has seen a sustained fall in traffic of 10-20% as well as an increase in journey times of 0.7 minutes per kilometre. May not sound a lot, but on London's tiny streets, thats massive!

The charge itself consists of a bunch of number plate recognition cameras in a ring round London.

A very slightly scary "parking meter."

These track you as you arrive, and issue a charge.

You can pay by phone, by text, by going to some shops, the day before, the day of your trip, and day after. The charge is £10 per car. £9 if you set up an automatic account on a credit or debit card which the system will charge automatically on each day you are spotted in the congestion zone.

The Congestion zone in the centre of London.

There are exemptions to the charge. For example, the regular London buses, taxis, minibuses, motorcycles, emergency vehicles, and now, low carbon vehicles. So, hybrids, fuel cell, battery, and high efficiency cars are all exempt. So, if you drive a Nissan Leaf, congestion free driving!

No excuse for the Japanese, with all their car manufacturers churning out hybrids, as well as Nissan bringing out the new all electric Leaf.

Also, I know the US embassy wants to stick with American cars, well, Tesla's sportscars are also exempt! The congestion beating charge also covers the likes of VW's Bluemotion range Polo and Golf, Seats Ecomotive, Fiats 500 TwinAir, and Volvos S40 DRIVEe. Essentially as long as the CO2 output is under a certain level, you are exempt.

A charge-beating "boring" eco car! The US made Tesla.

Should the US Embassy choose, they can take Tesla's 'S' which does look sharp...

Also, the congestion charge can be suspended in all sorts of circumstances, should a a group apply for it, or the emergency services instruct London to do so on the back of an emergency, such as the London bombings. Or extreme conditions. For example, in 2009 it was suspended due to the very bad snow that battered London.

Now, many embassies do pay, some do not.

Here is the "Roll of Shame!" of top non-paying embassies.

1) USA £5.29m

2) Russia £ 4.41m

3) Japan £3.65m

4) Germany £3.49m

5) Nigeria £2.7m

6) India £1.88m

7) Sudan £1.6m

8) Ghana £1.54m

9) Poland £1.49m

10) Spain £1.25m

American Embassy

Now, these embassies all claim they are exempt from the charge since under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1960) that states no Diplomatic mission will be subject to direct local taxation.

Now, the problem here is the fact that the majority of embassies in London DO pay, so they believe that it is not a direct tax, and the second point is, what is direct tax?

Well, by definition, a tax is a fee levied on you by a government which is unavoidable. you have to pay. There is no choice. We all pay tax on our salaries. You work, you pay tax. There is tax like VAT. You buy something, and some of that is this value added tax to the government.

Now, is the London congestion charge a tax? On the face of it, it looks like it. You want to drive in the centre of London, you have to pay. But if it is a tax, then it is built with so many get out clauses that it almost appears to be a tax that is cuddly! I kind of see the congestion charge as something like a car parking fee. Just covering a very large car park (the centre of London). Embassies would not think twice about dropping a few coins in a meter to pay for 30 minutes of on-street parking, or parking on someones private property.

And given that with the congestion charge there are ways of avoiding it, such as riding a bicycle, using public transport, or renewing your fleet with low-emission vehicles, I am not so sure I would class it as a "direct tax."

If it truly was a direct tax, then surely all embassies would refuse to pay? As it is, most do. Therefore, the US, Russia, Japan and the rest who dont pay are in a minority. And in a democracy, that makes them wrong.

Japanese Embassy

So, going Boris, slip Obama the bill, he can afford it! And more seriously, it would be interesting to see if this could be a test case in a court of law. I would laugh SO hard if the floppy haired Boris took on the embassies, and won!

Radiation Update - Japan 5/21

2011-05-20T16:11:00.000-07:00

Devolution in the UK

2011-05-19T19:49:00.000-07:00

So, with the SNP gaining a working majority in the Scottish parliament, it means that Scotland will get to go to the polls in a referendum on Scottish independence. Though that is likely to happen in about 3 to 4 years time, towards the end of this current Scottish parliaments term of office. Giving the SNP time to try to swing the polling figures their way, given that at the moment, the majority of Scots are not in favour of independence (they like the extra subsidies.)

But what does all this mean for the UK? Well, we are going to end up with a bizarre mishmash of political establishments. Northern Ireland has its Assembly, and it looks like they could well be given the ability to make changes to the rate of corporation tax.

In Wales, the Welsh Assembly is in the process of gaining more power, and with the rise of the SNP, it looks like Scotland is going to be pushing for "devolution max."

And England? Nothing.

The argument goes that if England sneezes, the other home nations catch a cold. Whatever happens in England has an impact on the rest of the UK, therefore, the rest of the UK should have a say. Problem here is that it treats people in England almost as second-class citizens. Of course, the British parliament make the argument that if England has its own setup, what do they do?

Well, my argument is simple.

Full and proper devolution across the whole of the UK.

We can have devolved Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish an English parliaments. They can look after regional issues, and UK-wide topics can remain with a UK parliament.

Each devolved parliament will have the same responsibilities. In my opinion these would be:

> Delivery of welfare

> Health

> Culture

> Some taxation, such as land tax, property tax and the like.

>Regional transportation

> Education

> Agriculture

> Environment

> Recreation (In part)

> Employment

> Business (tactical level)

And the UK parliament would be responsible for:

> Corporation tax

> Business (Strategic level)

> Defence

> Foreign policy

> Recreation (oversight. some sports are home nation based, others are not)

> Core infrastructure such as power, water, gas, and trans-national transportation. Such as the motorways, and intercity railway corridors/future high speed rail network.

In essence, I want to see the UK parliament slimmed down and representative of the UK properly, so we stop seeing Scots votes being of "more value" than English votes. After all, in the US, with a population of 300,000,000, the House of Representatives has 435, and the Senate only has 100 members. together, that is less than the UK's House of Commons!

It would mean that the UK constituencies would be dramatically expanded, but a UK MP's responsibilities to their constituents will be vastly altered, with many of their functions being handed to an English parliament. Therefore, they have more time to serve a larger area.

With regards money. The UK government is going to be collecting a lot in tax. A portion of that will be set aside for its own functions, and then the rest of it is then divided PROPORTIONALLY to each devolved parliament. No more of this rubbish where in Scotland they enjoy over £1000 more per annum in council spending. If the devolved parliaments want more money, it has to come from their own taxation.

I feel that the UK parliament should be the ultimate arbiter in all things, even devolved issues. This would then stop disparities becoming too large between the home nations. But it would also have to work alongside the devolved parliaments with regards business. Competition is good, but the UK parliament would have to step in to keep a relatively even playing field.

For example, with corporation tax, should each home nation have total control, then Scotland could drop it a little, but England, thanks to the squillions flowing through London could drop it a lot and bury Edinburghs hopes of becoming a financial centre. After all, why go to Edinburgh, when in London you have a potentially similar (or lower) tax rate, a lot more financial institutions to meet and do deals with, the infrastructure to support large companies, the London Stock Exchange, and 3 major airports. 1 of which is the biggest international airport in the world, and Stanstead as the smallest, is still many factors larger than Edinburgh.

Stanstead Airport

Edinburgh Airport

I know the SNP has said that Scotlands finances would be helped by being in control of oil revenues. Problem is, if Scotland where to be independent, the oil will run out a long time before Scotland got itself properly on its feet. The oil is already running down, and searching for more oil is getting more and more expensive. It is the law of diminishing returns at play.

Thats my idea, anyway.

Radiation Update - Japan 5/20

2011-05-19T16:45:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 5/19

2011-05-18T16:45:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 5/18

2011-05-17T16:50:00.001-07:00

OK, back from a minor op! Gradually getting my strength back, and here we are with an updated radiation doodad!

Radiation Update - Japan 5/14

2011-05-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

This is going to be my last post for a few days, as I have to go to hospital tomorrow for a minor bout of treatment. Ultrasounding a kidney stone. Painful, but a simple op. I like the painkillers they have given me...

Radiation Update - Japan 5/12

2011-05-11T17:15:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 5/11

2011-05-10T22:30:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the delay, not been too well.

Nothing to do with radiation though!

Radiation Update - Japan 5/8

2011-05-07T16:58:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 5/7

2011-05-06T17:11:00.000-07:00

My apologies! My usual source of info for this chart seemed to go walkabout on the 6th, meaning I have had to skip from the 5th to the 7th. Should my usual source of info insert the May 6th information, then I will add that in at a later date.

Bin Laden

2011-05-05T05:39:00.000-07:00

"Listen very carefully, I will say this only once!"

To take a line from a popular BBC tv series about occupied France, and a cowardly cafe owner.

So. The US has finally got its man. Apparently. Osama Bin Laden was finally tracked to a compound located close to Islamabad in Pakistan. However, the US did not give Pakistan prior warning, for fear that the Pakistani intelligence services would leak the threat to Bin Laden, giving him time to break out.

The US finally tracked him on the back of his fear of technology. mobile phones and the internet can easily be tracked and turned against you, so Bin Laden had to switch to using couriers to carry his message to the outside world.

Unfortunately, the US finally managed to find one of these, and slowly followed him through the web built by Al Quaida to hide Bin Laden, until they finally pinpointed him. Another giveaway was the fact that here was a well-protected $1,000,000 compound that was well lived in, but with no telephone or internet lines running into it. Unlike all the other similar properties in the area.

So, President Obama then had a choice to make. Send in the missiles, or send in the Seals. He wisely opted for the latter. Sending in the missiles means that there is no chance of American lives being lost, but the massive chance of massive collateral damage with Pakistani homes being destroyed by American force, within 100km of the capital city! If anything, that would only have made things worse!

So, Obama went with the politically riskier, but potentially higher rewarding option of the Navy Seals. By sending in troops, he ran the risk of having American forces being captured either by Al Quaida, or the Pakistani forces, and paraded for the worlds media. However, by sending them in, they could eyeball Bin Laden, and make sure it was him, and either capture or kill him.

As it turns out, they ended up with the latter.

Bin Laden is now dead.

I am not going to cry over it. Neither am I going to celebrate. The man has the blood of thousands on his hands, all in the name of his warped brand of Islam. And whilst I would have preferred him to face a court of law, that is fraught with problems. At least this way, he has to answer to a much higher power for his crimes.

If Bin Laden was arrested an put on trial, he just becomes a cause celebre for lunatics around the world. Putting him on trial would just give him a platform to denounce the west, and spout of on his theories on life, etc. Also, for the duration of his natural life, his supporters will try anything to attack the US and spring him from jail. It is another thing for the US to have to watch out for with its watchlists, and other defensive measures.

By killing him, we dont get any of that.

Also, the sea burial is a nice touch. One thing that the US gets slated for is mistreating Muslims, and disrespecting Islam. Yet here they are, performing all the correct Islamic rituals, and burying him about a day after his death. All within Islams tenets. Especially about the speedy burial.

Even more shrewd, was the choice of a sea burial. By burying him at sea, there is no grave for his supporters to rally to. There is no grave to act as a fulcrum for pilgrims to come to and pray, and more importantly, no grave for people to rally round and become even more radicalized.

Also, with the Americans following Islamic writ with regards his burial, hopefully it takes some of the fuel away from the fire under those who are susceptible to Bin Ladens message. Hopefully by respecting Bin Laden in death, the US has proven to be above Bin Laden, and even after the atrocities visited on the US and other nations by Bin Laden, the US can still act in a civil and respectful manner. This will, I hope, lessen the negativity aimed toward the US.

Is it a good thing he is dead? I dont care. Come judgement day, he is in a world of trouble. There is nothing we can do to match that.

To make it worse for Bin Laden, we have to proceed to erase him from history. That is something even more insulting than his death. He would not have worried too much about becoming a martyr because then his name would then resonate through the ages as a beacon for Muslims all over!

Just to make it even worse for him, we need to proceed to ignore the man. Erase him as much as we can from history.

And therefore, I will proceed to do so. I have had my comment, and will proceed to say no more. He is dead, and gone.

So, isnt the weather lovely today?

Radiation Update - Japan 5/5

2011-05-04T17:04:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have missed a few days! Been having a little vacation of doing absolutely nothing! It was nice...

Radiation Update - Japan 5/1

2011-05-01T05:02:00.001-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/30

2011-04-29T17:02:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/28

2011-04-27T16:19:00.000-07:00

1900

2011-04-26T22:22:00.000-07:00

1900 is an important number. It is the number of invitations being handed out for Prince William's wedding to Kate Middleton.And the wedding list is quirking a few eyebrows. Not least across the pond. The list of those included does on occasion raise an eyebrow, as well as who was NOT.

Included are the likes of the Sultan of Bunei, the Crown Prince of Bahrain (who has backed out), and various other royals. Such as the King of Tonga, and the Crown Prince of Japan (he has also backed out because of the earthquake). Also, the King and Queen of Norway, and other royal families. Many Kings and Queens, as well as Crown Prince and Princesses.

We also have many other Prime Ministers and heads of territories from round the world. There is also the Cabinet of the British Government, and devolved governments within the UK. Many of these Ministers come from nations that have the Queen as their head of state, such as Australia and New Zealand. The others are leaders of British overseas dependencies.

However, off the list are many names that could be a surprise. First of all, the previous 2 Prime Ministers are not invited. Tony Blair, and Gordon Brown have not been given invites, whilst the PM's before them, have been. John Major, and Margaret Thatcher. Many people say it is a snub.

It is. Maybe. But it is also Royal Protocol. Even though it is not a full state occasion, William is still directly in line to the throne, and Royal protocol is important. Gordon Brown is no longer Prime Minister, and is only a sitting MP. Tony Blair is not even part of the British Parliamentary system any more. Since this is a "private" wedding, former PM's do not have to be invited. However, Mrs Thatcher, and Mr Major get their invitations through the fact that they are both Knights of the Garter.

It is Britain's oldest honour, and to which, only a very limited number of people can be admitted. And it is through this that they got their invites. Along with the other Knights of the Garter.

Also not invited is the US President. Barack Obama. And to many in America, this is an outrage. After all, the US is Britain's most important ally. And the most powerful nation on earth. If anyone gets an invite, its him. After all, Sarkozy as the French President got one.

Thing is, France is our neighbour, the US is a long way away. France is our gateway to Europe, which is where we do most of our trade. The US is a long way away. Also, some of the invited dignitaries have been described as "dictators." This is true. But they are members of Royal families. Not "commoners" which means that Royal protocol dictates they get an invite. Now, the invite goes to the heads of state, but quite often it gets passed down to the next in line.

That follows William's status in the line to the British throne. Many of those coming from various Royal families are Crown Prince and Princesses. For example, the Emperor of Japan was invited, but the invitation was taken up by the Crown Prince. He is next in line to the throne in Japan, and was educated in Oxford, so he has strong links to the UK (However, he has since pulled out because of the earthquake).

Obama does not get an invite because he is a "commoner" (not Royal lineage), and I am afraid the US does not rank high enough to force its way on to the wedding list. I know it sounds tough, but the EU is more important day to day to the UK than the US. But dont worry Americans! China, as the second biggest economy, and major trading parter with the UK and EU, well, they dont get an invite either. Japan as the third biggest economy does not get an invite, that went to the Japanese Royal Family.

The rest of the people invited are those who have played a role in British life. Such as as David Beckham, and Guy Ritchie, and Joss Stone. Unfortunately, Obama has not had the same impact in British life as the Beckham's. He also probably did not endear himself with the British establishment after giving Brown a box set of DVD's after being given a pen case made from the timbers of one of Britain's anti-slavery ships. A very exclusive gift, made to order, and all that! To make it worse, the DVD's where region 1. Which means they dont work in the UK! You would have thought that someone in his staff would have thought about it!

There has been a lot of controversy over the list of invitees. Some people are on because of Royal protocol that are less than cuddly leaders of their home nations. Others are on due to links to the family, or friendship with the to-be-married couple.

It does promise to be quite a shindig!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/27

2011-04-26T19:34:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/25

2011-04-25T09:04:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/24

2011-04-24T06:35:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/23

2011-04-22T15:52:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/22

2011-04-22T08:06:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/21

2011-04-21T09:37:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/20

2011-04-19T19:20:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/19

2011-04-19T01:17:00.000-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/18

2011-04-17T22:30:00.001-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/16

2011-04-15T16:33:00.001-07:00

Radiation Update - Japan 4/15

2011-04-15T09:20:00.000-07:00

Sorry for missing the 14th! However, I am uploading a pic which covers the missed day! Things are still heading down!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/13

2011-04-12T19:59:00.000-07:00

Well, Japan has now risen the level of the Fukushima to level 7. The same level as Chernobyl. Problem is, the Fukushima barely scrapes into level 7, whilst Chernobyl blasted WAY over the standards needed to be catagorised as a level 7 disaster. It could easily have created its own level 8, or 9! And another issue is that the graphite core in the Chernobyl reactor burst into flames, and carried particles of core high into the sky on the updraft, that was then carried all over Europe. Here in fukushima, we have seen a couple of explosions which have lifted some radioactive material into the sky, but without any resultant fire, that was basically scattered in the local area, and is already decaying quickly.

Outside the evacuation zone, Japan is still safe! And with the Cherry Blossom season approaching, I encourage you to visit!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/12

2011-04-12T09:11:00.000-07:00

So, on the 12th, the general trend is still down, and all those regions that saw a slight increase over the last couple of days has seen those increases reversed. Indeed, Niigata is pretty much back to where it was!

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have now included Ibaraki, as the radiation has now dropped below 0.16, which marks the top of my graph!

Just to put it into perspective.

All this radiation is measured in microsieverts per hour. Just to put it into perspective, a chest X-ray will see you get blasted by 50 microsieverts, a flight from tokyo to New York and back, will see you subjected to 190 microsieverts, and should you require a serious stomach X-ray, thats 600 microsieverts.

Also, the average person per year, through using the microwave and other objects will receive 2400 microsieverts. A CAT scan will see you walloped with 6900 microsieverts, and the maximum a nuclear power worker is allowed is 50,000 microsieverts.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/11

2011-04-11T07:53:00.000-07:00

So, on the 11th, the general trend is still down, but we have seen a slight uptick in Miyagi, Nagano has seen a rise, and the bounce has continued here in Niigata. But that is still inside the high end of the "average" range in Niigata anyway...

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have now included Ibaraki, as the radiation has now dropped below 0.16, which marks the top of my graph!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/10

2011-04-10T05:19:00.000-07:00

So, on the 10th, the general trend is still down, but we have seen a slight uptick in Miyagi, a minor sniffle up in Nagano, and a bit of a bounce here in Niigata. But that is still inside the high end of the "average" range in Niigata anyway...

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have now included Ibaraki, as the radiation has now dropped below 0.16, which marks the top of my graph!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/9

2011-04-09T03:33:00.000-07:00

Here we go again, on the 9th, and things look fairly steady! Ibaraki is dropping quickly, and now it is low enough to be added to the graph! Yay! Please note, I am NOT a nuclear expert. I do not profess to be so. This chart is me, tracking radiation levels based on numbers those smarter in the field have issued. Good thing is that the trend is still basically down. Despite all the news about Fukushima having to ditch radioactive water, and cracks, and leaks, etc.

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have now included Ibaraki, as the radiation has now dropped below 0.16, which marks the top of my graph!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/8

2011-04-07T16:52:00.000-07:00

Here we go again, on the 8th, and things look fairly steady! Ibaraki is dropping quickly, soon it will be low enough to be added to the graph! Yay! Please note, I am NOT a nuclear expert. I do not profess to be so. This chart is me, tracking radiation levels based on numbers those smarter in the field have issued. Good thing is that the trend is still basically down. Despite all the news about Fukushima having to ditch radioactive water, and cracks, and leaks, etc.

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/7

2011-04-06T19:40:00.000-07:00

Here we go again, on the 7th, and things look fairly steady! I will try to add in some information later as I find it to put all this into perspective, based on background radiation. Please note, I am NOT a nuclear expert. I do not profess to be so. This chart is me, tracking radiation levels based on numbers those smarter in the field have issued. Good thing is that the trend is still basically down. Despite all the news about Fukushima having to ditch radioactive water, and cracks, and leaks, etc.

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/6

2011-04-05T17:25:00.000-07:00

Back to regular service for the next few days. I will try to add in some information later as I find it to put all this into perspective, based on background radiation. Please note, I am NOT a nuclear expert. I do not profess to be so. This chart is me, tracking radiation levels based on numbers those smarter in the field have issued. Good thing is that the trend is still basically down. Despite all the news about Fukushima having to ditch radioactive water, and cracks, and leaks, etc.

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/5

2011-04-05T01:43:00.000-07:00

After a couple of days away, now back in front of the computer, I can give you an updated chart with the last couple of days added. Radiation is slowly creeping down. Despite all the news about Fukushima having to ditch radioactive water, and cracks, and leaks, etc.

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Hong Kong is more dangerous than Tokyo! + Radiation update - vacation

2011-04-03T06:32:00.000-07:00

Right, I am signing off for a couple of days as I head round to my girlfriends place. Once I get back to mine, I will track back on do a complete chart then.

Also, interesting point to note. Apparently, even with the nuclear crisis in Fukushima, the levels of radiation in Tokyo is STILL lower than the levels recorded in hong Kong! And the Chinese are scanning all those who get off flights from Narita!...

Radiation Update - Japan 4/3

2011-04-03T06:27:00.000-07:00

I have decided to keep a track on the levels of radiation, taking the figures from the Japan times which takes readings at about 5pm every day. I do not profess to understand how everything works, but I felt it a good idea to put this up. Japan is still open! And this is the second day of such a graph.

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/2

2011-04-01T16:51:00.000-07:00

have decided to keep a track on the levels of radiation, taking the figures from the Japan times which takes readings at about 5pm every day. I do not profess to understand how everything works, but I felt it a good idea to put this up. Japan is still open! And this is the second day of such a graph.

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 4/1

2011-03-31T17:09:00.000-07:00

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Radiation Update - Japan 3/31

2011-03-30T18:37:00.000-07:00

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Champions

2011-03-30T11:14:00.000-07:00

Well, it has finally happened. For those of you who read this from beyond the shores of England, or outside Kashiwazaki, then you may not have heard the Big Exciting news emanating from 1 small corner of England! Yes! Manchester are the Premier League Champions!

Though it is not quite the Manchester you would expect...

No, not that one...

Its THIS one!

The Manchester Phoenix! Representing the most exciting team in the city! Especially since United have climbed to the top on the back of a lot of lame performances, and City, despite all the money, flatter to deceive! And unfortunately, the EPIHL trophy does not quite have the grandeur of its more illustrious Football cousin, but, its OURS!

The Phoenix rose from the ashes of the Manchester Storm.

The Storm played out of the massive and impressive MEN Arena in Manchester (As it was for a while, the NYNEX). And for approaching 10 years, supplied plenty of exciting Hockey for the fans of the Storm. Culminating with the club gaining its first silverware by lifting the Superleague crown at the end of the 1998-99 season

A further trophy was lifted the following year with the lifting of the B&H Cup, but after that, hockey fans in Manchester began to suffer. The downward spiral had begun, and costs began to hurt the team. Ogden sold its entertainments arm, and AMG took over, and after 1 year subsidizing the team, sold it off. New ownership took over, and ran the club for a year and half, until costs became too crippling and he had to fold the club.

Up stepped the Friends of Manchester Ice Hockey, and Neil Morris. And after many meetings and much thinking, Manchester came back into the Ice Hockey world, resurrected as the Phoenix.

Still playing out of the MEN Arena meant the clubs costs where high, and that weighed on the budget, and the club could not attain the same level of success, despite being led by the legendary Rick Brebant, and later that year by Paul Heavey. The costs became unbearable for Neil Morris who after a public meeting, took the decision to mothball the team as he continued to hunt for land for a smaller, lower cost arena.

This meant that the Phoenix did not take part in the 2004-5 EIHL season, and due to overruns, could not enter the 2005-6 season. Finally, with the building nearing completion, the Phoenix got its new home (though late) and finally re-started for the 2006-7 season.

3 seasons saw the club under the leadership of (Sir) Tony Hand MBE (The Sir is unofficial. He has not got there, but he should be!) in the EIHL. Even though he built pretty useful teams, and in spite of the EIHL having a "wagecap," (hah!) the Phoenix struggled to really make a great deal of headway against the bigger teams in the EIHL.

Again, costs came in, and saw the Phoenix make the drop from the EIHL to the English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPL from now).

The drop, whilst not universally welcomed, saw the Phoenix find a happier home. In its first year, the club duked it out at the top of the table. Running first for a while, but finally having to settle for third. You can point to a very, very tough Christmas period for the club, with 4 of their squad being selected for Great Britain duty, and a serious injury to the top keeper, Steve Fone.

During the summer, Tony and Neil rebuilt the squad, learning from the lessons of the previous year. In came several new players, Curtis Huppe, Marcus Kristoffersson, Pavel Gomenyuk, and Ladislav Harabin filled the teams 4 import slots, and the team was strengthened further with the addition of the likes of James Archer and Ben Morgan.

This new grittier squad took to the ice and looked to improve on the previous season, and hit the ground running winning their first 4 games to keep up with Guildford at the top. The Phoenix did relinquish a little ground when they slipped a little in game 5, by being taken to extra time by Swindon, and ending up losing on penalties.

The Phoenix then proceeded to go on a 9 game winning streak which saw them defeat Guildford 3-1 at the Spectrum. Unfortunately, in the double header, the Flames made their way up to Manchester and handed the Phoenix their second defeat of the season.

The Phoenix relinquished top slot in November, with a mini slump, losing twice to the Bison, and once more to the Flames. However, from the end of November to the end of the year, the Phoenix clawed back to the top, a position they would not relinquish for the rest of the season. They went on a run of 8 wins and 1 loss on penalties.

The first half of January saw the Phoenix keep the momentum going, only for it come to a grinding halt against Milton Keynes, and Guildford (again). Also, at the end of January, saw the Phoenix begin to suffer from injury and illness. Now, the players where beginning to carry knocks and ailments. Indeed, They where to lose Andrew Sharp to a cut artery, and just as he returns, their star defenceman, Harabin, also went out with a slash to the arm. That saw him out for a month.

After a 6-1 victory over the Bees in the first game in February, the Phoenix went on a rumble. Finally picking up some momentum, the Phoenix set their shoulders, and set off for the finishing line. And as always, the mark of a championship team is to grind out results, and this the Phoenix did. The Phoenix went on a long run (marred only by being dumped from the EPL Cup by the Bison at the semi-final stage) punctuated by Slough, who where also gearing up for their own run. With the excellent Calder, the Jets proved too much for the Phoenix.

The Phoenix however, just had to keep going. The Flames where keeping the pressure on the Phoenix all the way, and it finally went to the last weekend of the season. A point would seal it for the Phoenix.

By all accounts, about a million went down (going by the number of "I was there's!") to Peterborough. A team the Phoenix had beaten 5 out of 5 times so far in the season. Unfortunately, with pressure on, the Phoenix could not nick the point they needed. Peterborough where determined not to let the Phoenix win it in their barn, and stepped it up, and the Phoenix just could not deliver. You can hear accounts of the game from the official podcast from the game here.

Further comments are available on various controversies over which I cannot comment because I was not there, are available from the latest Phoenix TV episode here.

So, it all boils down to the final game of the season. With an Ice Dome either at, or very close to capacity, the Phoenix took on the Swindon Wildcats at home. The fans themselves where all amazingly nervous! To quote several, "Its squeaky bum time!"

I, being stuck in Japan, was not in a position to join them. However, having watched from afar, I have, in my own way, been willing the team on. However, thanks to the beauty of modern technology, I had regular updates from a fellow fan who was forwarding texts on to me from a friend of hers, whilst she was stuck at work!

Courtesy of me! My ancient phone!

So, the game began. Would the Phoenix buckle under the pressure? Would the Phoenix run away with it?

Well, I am not going to mince around with this! The Phoenix won. Though it was not easy. (Highlights available from Phoenix TV!) First period saw them take a slightly nervy 2-1 lead into the second period. They also lost the talismanic player/coach/god Tony Hand to an accidental high sticks call. A rule that has infuriated many. Whilst I understand the theory behind the call, I really do think it has lost a lot in practice!

Courtesy of Mr Richard Allan

which then proceeded to be goalless, and then eased to victory in the third. 3 further goals, topped off with an empty-netter and Swindon picking up a consolation.

Cue manic celebrations from fans and players alike! The players had battled all season with the bigger budget Guildford Flames, and managed to haul themselves over the line in first place. Whilst it was not a roar over the line as many would have hoped, the Phoenix, with a manic final heave, lunged over the line.

Courtesy of Mr Richard Allan

One thing that has marked out this season has been the bond between the team, and the fans. The fans are close to the players, forming one of the largest (if not THE largest) travelling block of fans which I know the players do deeply appreciate.

Courtesy of Mr Richard Allan

Also, the players themselves are a very tight-knit unit. Tony built this years squad on the back of last years, adding some grit, and picking up characters along the way who have added to the squad.

Another mark of the team, is the lack of dead wood. This is my impression only! I will put that in. In previous years, there has been a couple who you do wonder about. For the Phoenix, in the first year, the undoubted skills of Ed Courteney led to lots of goals, but his work ethic on the ice was questioned regularly. In the end, he left the squad, to take up a job with Pepsi. This years squad has pulled together, and fought for each other. The squad was weakened when the Phoenix lost players to injury. However, the squad pulled together and closed ranks. Together, the squad heaved, and kept things rolling.

Courtesy for Mr Richard Allan

All this backed by the most amazing fans in the league! A vociferous bunch who travel anywhere at the drop of a hat, and back the team to the hilt, and go for a drink after!

Courtesy of Mr Richard Allan

Of course, a final mention has to go to Neil Morris. He stepped up so long ago when Manchester hockey was on the verge of dying. He has been the driving force behind the rebirth. I could keep going and detail what this guy has done. Suffice to say, he is a top bloke. Cant say fairer than that.

Courtesy of Mr Richard Allan

And to me. What was I doing with all this going on? Well, as the celebrations got into full swing in Manchester, the Manchester Phoenix Supporters Club (Japan) was sat at my girlfriends place at 4 in the morning with a massive grin softly giggling to myself. Whilst I was not wrapped up in the euphoria of the moment, given all the bad news I have been deluged with here in Japan, it was fantastic to see my team win!

And we get to keep this shiny pot for a year! Oooh! Shiny!

Borrowed from Manchester Phoenix. Simply because its the best picture of the cup I can find. Dont hate me!

Anyway, I cant join the celebrations back in Manchester, but I can relax, forget all the negative stuff, and enjoy a nice local sake. All the while basking in the reflected glow of what has happened back in the Ice Dome.

Note. Most of the pics on here come from the delightful Richard Allan, more examples of his wonderful work can be viewed here. I advise you to go and ogle.

Radiation Update!

2011-03-29T22:46:00.000-07:00

I have selected several prefectures, including my own, which are round Fukushima.

I have not included Ibaraki, as that just stretches the graph up a lot, and trying to add Fukushima will just be silly!

Just to put it into perspective.

Finally, at 100,000 microsieverts, your risk of cancer will increase! By a massive 0.5%!

So, I have my iodine tablets, but I am not unduly worried!

Please help! The call is being answered!

2011-03-19T04:30:00.000-07:00

Well, Japan is still suffering massively with rolling blackouts in Tokyo, and other areas are scaling back mightily in power usage to save from suffering the same fate. Aid is ramping up and getting through in larger quantities to the afflicted areas, and the rescue and clean-up operations are settling down.

Shows of solidarity are being carried out round the world. Caroline Wozniacki dispatched her manager to buy a Japanese flag, which she signed along with her opponent, Victoria Azarenka, at the BNP Barabas Open. They then displayed the flag on court during a minutes silence. Whilst hard cash would be welcome, pictures like this keep the crisis in the publics eye, and hopefully encourages wider support.

Unfortunately, these shows of solidarity have been marred with some celebrities seeking to regain the spotlight by making light of the tsunami. Gilbert Gottfried was fired by Aflac (who do a lot of business in Japan) after he posted several jokes about the tsunami on Twitter. 3 days after. I know comedians are supposed to make jokes, but there is a time and a place, and method in making jokes about such things. Tasteless jokes 3 days after is tantamount to career suicide.

He has not been the only one. The always attention-seeking 50-cent got in on the act. Obviously feeling left out because he was not in the spotlight, also ventured on to Twitter to pass his own comments, making light of the whole thing.

Thankfully, in sports, the vast majority are nothing like these idiots.

The Formula 1 team, Sauber, which features the Japanese driver Kamui Kobayashi, will display a message of support as part of the livery on their cars once the Formula 1 season kicks off with the Australian Grand Prix.

Before their game with Juventus, Italian club Cesena wore t-shirts in honour of those suffering from the disaster. After the first half, Cesena found themselves 2-0 down, but then took inspiration from the people trying to re-build their lives in Japan, and battled back to draw the game!

Many Japanese players now plying their trade overseas have also been suffering, being so far from their homeland. This has not stopped them from displaying messages of support. One example being Atsuto Uchida, playing for Schalke, wore a t-shirt in Japanese and German declaring "Dear friends in Japan, in the hope that many lives can be saved, lets stand together!"

At Inter Milan, Yuto Nagatomo did not write on his shirt, but displayed his message of support for his homeland on a Japanese flag, along with the apt line, "You'll never walk alone!"

Indeed, throughout the Football world, before games, a minutes silence has been observed. Also, before Champions League games, banners of support in Japanese have also been displayed.

The support is not just limited to Football. Baseball is getting in on the act. With many Japanese players now plying their trade in the MLB, many of the MLB's clubs are stepping up efforts to raise funds for disaster relief.

Seattle are offering to match the value of donations made by fans during their opening game, with a guaranteed minimum of $100,000.

San Fransisco has made an immediate donation, are organizing collections, and all monies from their Japanese Heritage Night will go towards disaster relief.

The Yankees made an immediate donation of $100,000, and altered their pre-season game with the Boston Red Sox into a fundraiser, raising yet more money.

However, I think the biggest sporting donation, which speaks volumes about the man, comes from Ichiro Suzuki. As a gesture, he donated 10,000,000 yen to the relief fund in the wake of the volcano in Miyazaki. However, his donation of 100,000,000 yen ($1,230,000 at todays rates) dwarfs this. Not only that, but he has just donated the money. No attention-seeking, no press blitz. He has just done it.

Can you imagine 50-cent doing something similar? I cant. Not the amount, and nor the lack of publicity. 50-cent craves the spotlight. He would donate a bit of cash, then go on a press bender bigging himself up.

50-cent may be one of the biggest musical stars at the moment, but "Fiddy," Ichiro is a far bigger man than you.

Ichiro, I salute you.

Please help.

2011-03-15T19:23:00.000-07:00

Before, and after

The earthquake and following tsunami has devastated large swathes of north east Japan. The quake has leveled many towns, and the following tsunami rolled in, and literally scoured the land free of any remnant of those towns.

Basically, nothing left

Many of these towns are unlikely to be rebuilt, ever. Indeed, one town had a population of 17,000. 7,000 people where safely evacuated. That means that more than half the population is missing. Many towns will probably never be re-populated. Everything that makes a town, a town, is gone. Homes, schools, shops, businesses, restaurants, bars, everything. It is almost as if the town was never there.

Mother nature, despite kicking lumps out of Japan, does have a sense of humour

This has devastated many lives, and hammered Japan hard. My area was not affected by the quake. But the impact is so great that we now have fuel rationing, and rolling blackouts to reduce demand so as much power as possible can be directed to the relief effort. Simply because there is no power generating capacity in the northeast of Japan.

Dead fish? No, dead boats.

So, please, dig deep, and help. The disaster side of this is going to take months to stabilize. The clean-up will take longer, and the rebuilding will take years. The people will take years and years to recover.

Dont think I need to say anything about this.

So, please, here is a list of charities that are looking to help out with this disaster. To steal Tesco's strapline:

"Every little helps!"

Save the Children

Doctors without borders

Oxfam

ShelterBox

British Red Cross

Please be careful! The Red Cross has announced scam e-mails going round purporting to come from them asking for donations! Ignore it! Go direct to their website!

Nuclear Power - Is it safe?

2011-03-15T18:29:00.000-07:00

With the world rushing headlong into a need for a carbon-free future due to global warming, we are looking at having to do a balancing act between the lifestyle we want, and the lifestyle we can afford with regards pollution.

Now, if we want to keep the lifestyle we enjoy, then we need to be able to produce a LOT of energy, even though we are looking at being more efficient and using less electricity. And green energy will be part of the mix. However, until it becomes more efficient, then to replace the current nuclear power stations, we would need to blanket the nation with wind turbines, and ring the coast in wave technology.

Is nuclear power the answer? It is not the perfect answer, but definitely emotive. Indeed, the BBC Radio 5 Live phone in on Monday morning saw people call in, some keeping cool heads, and others taking parts of what happened at the Fukushima Daiichi station, and use it improperly to further their argument.

Because the nuclear plant has suffered explosions, and released radiation, this obviously proves that nuclear power is inherently dangerous/fragile...

My argument to this is several-fold.

1) No power source is safe. Coal power is seriously dirty, and the Kingston plant in the US caused a spill far more serious than Exxon Valdez. Nuclear power generates massive amounts of energy, and the potential disaster is correspondingly large.

2) Nuclear power is dirty! Hang on, Fukushima has nothing to do with that! Besides, nuclear waste whilst being highly radioactive, is low carbon...

3) Nuclear power is unsafe. Well, Chernobyl blew up. But that was a totally different style of reactor to Fukushima. Fukushima has been shut down, and wont go critical. The explosions have been linked to hydrogen, not the fuel.

4) Fukushima is dangerous. well, the radiation leaking out has been leaking out. But at levels below dangerous levels.

5) My final point. This is totally unprecedented. Whilst the odds where high on a big quake in that area, it was expected within the next 30 years. Fukushima got nobbled by a magnitude 9.0, and a monster tsunami in quick succession, and this 40 year old plant has not collapsed. It is wobbling, but there has not been a proper nuclear incident at the plant.

Yet.

A re-balancing of power

2011-03-05T16:41:00.000-08:00

Warning! I am about to get political here!

In the UK, the Government is seeking to cut the costs of politics, and 1 way to do so is to cut the number of MP's that sit in the House of Commons. The government is also using it to try to rebalance some historical inbalances in the system. For a long time, Wales and Scotland where over represented in Parliament with more MP's per head of population than England. England actually enjoys better representation than Northern Ireland, but Northern Ireland is a different political animal with the sectarian divisions and a history of a high degree of autonomy making the case for more MP's tough.

With the advent of devolution, with Scotlands devolved parliament getting authority over a wide range of domestic issues ranging from education to health. But not defence. That is still held by the UK government. Northern Ireland has its assembly which has a wide range of powers (when it is working) and Wales assembly has just started the move to take full control over many areas of Welsh policy from central government.

But what about England?

Well, Labour did make noise about regional assemblies, but that died a death. As it stands, all England-only issues are debated by the full Parliament. With Welsh, Northern Irish, and Scottish MP's able to vote on matters that does not directly impact on their constituencies. The area which elected them to represent them in the British Parliament. Many of these policy areas are devolved, meaning that whilst the Scottish, Welsh, and Northern Irish can, through the ballot box, can influence decisions in England, this is not reciprocated.

Now, the government is looking to cut the number of MP's, and Plaid Cymru, the SNP, and Labour are bleating about the unfairness of it all. That the reduction of MP's will lessen their regions voice in the UK parliament. Lets not forget folks, the total number of MP's being cut is across the whole UK, with England losing MP's too!

But let us take a look at the situation right now.

In the UK parliament there is 1 MP for:

96,510 people

87,627 people

74,750 people

Northern Ireland is higher than England, but due to government being slightly different in Northern Ireland, and the complexities of sectarianism means that it is difficult for opposing areas to "share" an MP.

Using these figures, it means that 1 Welsh vote about 1.4 English votes. Which strikes me as kind of unfair. Now, I understand, there have been arguments, that a Welsh MP sitting in the British Parliament has the right to vote on things that are debated by the British Parliament. This does, of course, cover all things in England. And, as an MP, if they are limited to only British things, then there is nothing for them to do.

Also, with the reduction of MP's, there is a reduction in the "voice" of the Welsh, and Scots in the British Parliament.

My argument here is simple. Reducing the voice of the MP's is neither here nor there. MP's are paid to sit in the Houses of Parliament on our behalf, the citizens of the United Kingdom. The MP is not important here. What is important is the voter. The schlub in the street.

And, as it stands, the Welsh have a direct impact on Welsh only matters, and the Scots have a direct impact on Scots only matters, and same in Northern Ireland. This is through the right to vote in their own devolved parliaments. Through their ability to vote in national elections, the Welsh and Scots, and Northern Irish also can have an impact on UK-wide matters, such as tax, immigration and defence. AND finally, because there is no power devolved in England, leaving purely English matters in the hands of the British parliament, Welsh, Scottish, and Northern Irish voters still have an impact on English only issues.

Case in point, in 2004, Labour introduced a new round of top-up fees for universities in England. A deeply unpopular policy, and suffered a revolt on their own back benches. The Conservatives voted against, as did many other parties. The policy passed thanks to the Labour party's contingent of Scottish MP's voting for it. The Conservatives Scots MP abstained. On the simple ground that it would not affect his constituents.

As it stands, right now, a Welsh vote is worth 1.4 English votes (per head of population. I did not find electoral roll numbers), and not only that, but a Welsh vote has more impact on the fabric of the country.

This reduction will see this over representation whittled away (It will, however, still exist. It will see 1 MP per 100,000 in England, and 1 per 99,000 in Wales and Scotland). There is no longer any need in Scots and Welsh MP's enjoying this over representation, as Welsh and Scots only related issues are no longer debated in the House of Commons, but in their own devolved parliaments. Therefore, there should be parity between the home nations, as they will now, only debate British only matters. As well as English only. A reduction in the number of Welsh and Scots MP's means that their ability to meddle is lessened.

And this will be the next round that people want fixing. The ability for Scots and Welsh MP's to be stopped form getting involved in English only matters. I know that England is by far the largest constituent nation of the UK, and anything done in England will have some impact in the other nations.

BUT democracy is 1 person, 1 vote. As it stands, a person in England has a vote of less value in comparison to a person in Wales, or Scotland.Given that Scots and Welsh issues are back in the hands of their respective parliaments, this means that on British matters, the value of a vote should be the same.

With regards English only matters, fine leave it in the hands of the British parliament. I am not too keen on yet another parliament. But I DO understand, and would support one if it was offered. At the very least, allow Scots and Welsh MP's the ability to debate, vote on issues at committee level, but any final vote on English issues at least should be limited to English MP's.

I suppose the best answer would be to totally slash the number of MP's, tidy up devolution properly, so each home nation is responsible for the same areas of policy that only affect their own nation, and each home nation has its own parliament. Including England.

High Speed Rail moves a step closer

2011-03-01T21:10:00.000-08:00

Well, the public consultation phase has arrived for the initial phase of the UK's proposed High Speed 2 line from Birmingham to London. And the outcry is massive!

Plenty of groups are up in arms over it. The environmental cost, economic cost when the UK is in massive debt, disruption, and the basic level of NIMBYism.

The environmental cost is obvious. A strip of steel will be laid across some of Britains beautiful countryside from London to Birmingham, all the way, eventually to Scotland. It will destroy a lot of land. It will be noisy. However, there are mitigating consequences. The railway will be better in the long run for the environment, than the equivalent number of cars, or plane flights. also, by using cuttings, and barriers, a lot of the sound problems can be mitigated. And unlike a motorway, the noise is intermittent. And using modern technology, a high speed train is not as loud as it could be.

Look at Japan's E700 Shinkansen, currently running hell for leather from Tokyo to Osaka. It looks like a duck. That "beak" is designed to be aerodynamic, as well as reduce the shockwave as the train pushes through the air. This lessens its audio signature, and really reduces its "boom" as it enters and exits tunnels.

A concept taken to a more extreme level with the introduction of the newest E5, with a stupidly long nose. Again, designed not just to allow the train to push through the air more quickly, but also to reduce its noise footprint.

Economically, will it make sense. Er, yes. Reducing the time from the north to London, will allow companies better access to the London financial market, as well as allowing international companies to locate outside London (cheaper), but still be a player in the big money markets.

Right now, the country is in hock, but with the Government slashing spending to reduce the debt, it should be in a position to be able to shoulder the financing required to pay for it. Also, governments are the only option to be able to shoulder such debt for massive infrastructure development. Infrastructure development like this is always front loaded. Massive investment in the front, and the benefits to be felt later. Looking at Japan (I live here, OK!) again, the estimate is that while the line from Tokyo to Niigata has been phenomenally expensive, it has allowed Niigata to develop 10% a year faster than if there was no line. And along the line's corridor. '

A lot of people have said that the West Coast line should be upgraded. Problem is, the West Coast line is full! Expanding it will only delay the inevitable by a decade or so, and still result in the destruction of property. With HS 2, the line can be routed to avoid built up areas as much as possible. Such a development of the West Coast line would result in more disruption than HS 2 will be (not that HS 2 will be disruption-free!)

The other thing with the West Coast line, it is a mixed service line, with high speed trains running alongside freight! That is not sustainable in the long term!

At the end of the day, HS 2 will free up capacity on the West Coast line. It is far better for the environment than the alternatives of car or bus, or plane. It is quite efficient. A high speed train sucks up a lot of electricity, but through regenerative braking, it dumps a lot of energy BACK into the network for the next train!

Also, it will bring Britain up to date with the rest of the world. Pretty much every nation that is "advanced" has one. Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Spain. The Dutch, in such a small nation, they have a high speed train! The Koreans have one, Taiwan, heck, China has more lines than anyone else! Brazil is bringing in a line, as is Argentina. India is also looking at it. Even the US has more line than the UK! And the US is not a rail nation. A new line would allow the UK to prove it can deliver on big engineering projects!

I travel from Niigata to Tokyo, which is more than Manchester to London. I do the journey in less time than from London to Manchester, in the worlds biggest trainset.

That is cool.

London 2012 is anti Islamic!

2011-03-01T20:10:00.000-08:00

Well, who would have thunk it! But the organiser's, apparently, racist! First, we had Massoud Sharjareh from the Islamic Human Rights Commission spout off that because Ramadan follows the Lunar calendar, and this time round, clashes with the London Olympics, the scheduling of the Olympics was deliberately placed there in an attack on Islam. (Blog post here.) Like I say in that post, to say that they would never schedule it on Christmas is a dumb comparison, given Christmas is 1 day, and in the depths of winter...

Still, before I wind myself up over that story, there is a new one that really proves the organiser's of the London games have it in for Islam.

According to the Iranian Olympic Association, the logo is racist. It spells out the word "Zion" which is an old term for Jerusalem, and now synonymous with hardline Judaism, and regularly used as an attack by Iran on Israel.

According to the letter from the Iranian OA, this proves that London is racist, and that the Olympics are complicit by association and their lack of action. Mohammed Aliabadi goes on to threaten the London Olympics with a boycott, and urges other Islamic nations to follow Irans lead. Do I need to point out how dumb this is!

Now, with regards logos, the London one really is not great. Past logo's have all had some kind of significance. The Manchester Commonwealth Games logo took 3 people standing on a podium linking arms to form an "M".

Glasgow have come up with a series of rings, each one standing for something. the outer ring stands for the fact that it will be the 20th games, the next ring stands for the 17 events, and the final ring for the 11 days. And a great big "G."

Athens was a great logo. Using a historic style of art in Greece, and a laurel wreath. A symbol of the old Olympics, of triumph, and symbolic of Greece's place as the birth of the Olympics so long ago.

London? Well, that has been heavily criticized for just being a naff jumble of jagged numbers spelling out 2012. I am not a fan. London could have done so much more.

Still, when it is overlaid with the Union Jack, it looks OK...

But to say it spells out "Zion" is quite a stretch. To do so needs you to make a few jumps of logic. If you follow standard English patterns, and read right to left, it is a 20, and underneath, a 12. Making 2012. If you read vertically right to left (which you dont really do in English, given how few books are printed this way!) then it still reads 2102.

To get to "Zion" what we need to do is to read it vertically from left to right (left to right being the standard format for reading in English) and need to twist the final character (a "2") 90 degrees anti-clockwise, like this...

Or, if we where to follow standard English layout, we need to switch the "0" and "1" around as well, kind of like this...

Which as can you see, really takes a naff mess of a logo, and butchers it!

By using the logic displayed here, then we can say that the Iranian flag is obviously sexual. The sword in the centre of the logo is clearly phallic, and the outer shapes clearly represent female genitalia! Though, of course, it does not. The 5 shapes representing the 5 pillars of Islam, the 4 crescents representing a highly stylised form of the word "Allah" in Arabic. I had a whole blog thing on the Iranian flag here.

Lets face it, if you squint hard enough, you can say everything has a hidden meaning. For example, in China, they refer to the Union Jack as the "Rice Flag" due to its similarity to the Chinese character for rice. Was this deliberate? No. It just happened.

And to further point out the absurdity of this allegation. The logo was unveiled after market testing, analysis, being studied by a number of focus groups, in 2007! Apart from the absurdity of the allegation, the timing of this is just silly. The logo was unveiled in 2007. This allegation has been sent to the IOC 4 YEARS after the logo was revealed. They have had time to look at it and voice concern. But 1 year before the Olympics, 4 years AFTER the logo came out!?

Also, do they not realise that this logo would have been studied by focus groups, some of whom would have been Islamic? Surely they would have spotted this, too, and voiced their concern!

Ah well, it is all insane. I do believe that this is just some rabble rousing by Iran, against the "Little Satan." All I can say is, please, boycott London. You will be the only ones who do. Talk about MASSIVE quantities of eggs on faces!

What does the Foreign Office do?

2011-02-25T16:26:00.000-08:00

After listening to BBC Radio 5 over the last couple of days, I have found myself getting more and more angry about the British Government and its failure to help British nationals. The story of Claire and her husband is something I can relate to! She is in touch with her husband, barely, as he tries to leave Libya. Only problem is, he is really struggling to leave, and would like some help from the British Embassy. And they have not been in touch. At all. Ever. Even though they know he is there.

I have had a similar experience. Kashiwazaki suffered a very large earthquake (6.8) just over 3 years ago.

I was very lucky, that my apartment suffered no damage. Also, my girlfriend at the time was with me, so her experience and training kicked in, and she had me packing a bag and out the door! If left to myself, rather than leave for fear of aftershocks, I would have been puttering round my apartment trying to clean! Which apparently you dont do.

Also, my students where wonderful. All of them where very concerned about my welfare, and brought boxes of bottled water, packs of food, and other essentials whenever they came back to Geos for class!

Overall, my apartment suffered only very minor damage. My girlfriend, understanding that coming from England means I have no idea what to do, looked after me, my students where wonderful and brought all sorts of stuff, and gave me useful advice. I was fine.

However, it would have been nice for the Embassy in Tokyo to just contact me to make sure I am OK! After all, I am a British national! The Embassy is there, in part, to assist British nationals in Japan! Did I hear anything? Not a thing. Zero. Nada. OK, it is up to the Japanese government to make sure everyone is OK in the aftermath of an earthquake.

BUT it is listed as one of the Embassy's functions that they will try to make contact to make sure any British national is OK, and pass on information to family back in the UK.

Did I get any kind of contact? No. Did they know I was in Kashiwazaki? Yes. I am registered at the Embassy on this LOCATE database which is precisely for this reason.(You can see the information here) In the end, I had to struggle through a screwed up phone network to contact my family myself, running up a MASSIVE phone bill, when it would have been a lot easier for the Embassy to contact me, and pas the information back to London, who could then make an easy call to my family.

I am proud to be British. I like being British.

I just have no faith in my own Government.

QI Controversy

2011-02-02T08:00:00.000-08:00

It may not have received much air-time in the UK, but QI has landed me in the unenviable position of trying to defend the BBC. QI recently aired an episode which listed Tsutomu Yamaguchi as the "Unluckiest man in the world." Yamaguchi's "claim to fame" being that he survived both the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

This has, not surprisingly, upset a lot of Japanese, even to the point where the mayor of Nagasaki has sent a documentary to the BBC to air about Yamaguchi. With many Japanese feeling victimized since they where the only victims of a nuclear attack.

I have to defend the BBC here.

Whilst I wish they had not covered this, I feel that the Japanese are also not whiter than white in this. They have shown no understanding for the British sense of humour which is quite dark at the best of times, and have not understood the whole clip. The premise is that he is EITHER the unluckiest, or luckiest. And the even more amazing thing is that the trains where still working! Given the state of British railways, that is quite impressive!

It is not at all disrespectful (from a British point of view) to Yamaguchi, but almost respectful. He survived, then went on to have a long and active life! Good for him! In the middle of all this devastation! Celebrate that fact that whilst thousands died needlessly, and painfully, he survived.

Twice.

Tough as old boots he is.

And that is a good thing.

And for any Japanese who reads this.

You want to talk about pain and suffering? What about the thousands victims of the Japanese military who had to spend months and years in pain, and where deemed to be less than human for that unforgivable crime of not being Japanese, and surrendering? Or the "medical" experiments carried out in the name of "research?"

"Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

War is bad. On both sides. Japan cannot play the victim card all the time. When it comes to war, we are ALL victims.