Usually I have a lot of time for Sam Harris. But in his opinion piece in today’s LA Times, he does really seem to have made a mountain out of a molehill. Luckily, Steven Poole brings it back to a more manageable chunk.
Year: 2006
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Drinking With The Inbetween People In The Last Chance Saloon
An excellent article by Timothy Garton Ash looking at Europe through the eyes of Ian Buruma and Ayaan Hirsi Ali. I have Hirsi Ali’s book on my bookshelves, I await that of Buruma with anticipation. -
Great Balls Of Stone
While the trigger-happy among us might point to Intelligent Design or Alien Interference, these stone balls in Costa Rica are apparently a totally natural occurence. Ain’t Nature amazing? -
Soapbox
I see that Microsoft is gearing up to introduce its answer to YouTube – and it’s called Soapbox. The introductory video is suitably bizarre. God bless all who sail in her. -
The Mind Boggles…
…That this advertisement ever escaped from the ad agency (M&C Saatchi) that dreamed it up. My instant reaction was eeuwww… -
Talent
Gelert complimented me on the photos I took at the Hippisch Festijn. I replied that photography is a hobby of mine, but it’s more by luck than judgement when a picture turns out really well. I don’t have a talent for it, but bump along as best I can… Contrast that with this photo from Miukiutada, a student living in Tokyo. Her photos are amazing – she has an eye for pictures and a real talent. I stand in awe. -
Varsseveld Hippisch Festijn
I spent an hour this morning watching the cross-country event of the Varsseveld Hippisch Festijn. The course crossed the path I take when walking the dog in the woods, so I positioned myself there and took some shots of the horses and their riders. A couple of examples are shown below, the rest can be seen here on Flickr.
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La, La, La,
… I can’t hear you… The US National Association of Manufacturers appears to have fingers stuck in its collective ears… -
The Wine Cellar
One thing that we do not have here in our new farmhouse home is a cellar. And that’s a pity, since it would be useful to have a nice cool cellar in order to store our wine. We’ve toyed with getting a temperature-controlled wine cabinet, but then the spiral wine cellar seems eminently more sexy. If the Premium Bonds come up, then the spiral gets sunk… -
God Moves In Mysterious Ways
If that’s a "gift from God", then I’m rather thankful that I’m an atheist. -
Time Fountain
Ben Goldacre, over at Bad Science, draws our attention to the latest incarnation of strobe lighting illuminating a fall of water droplets. I remember seeing an example of this forty years ago using ordinary lighting, but I think the UV LEDS and the fluorescent water is a nice modern touch. -
Dance, Monkey, Dance
This video is a small voice of sanity in an insane world. Go and watch it, now. -
Accidents Waiting To Happen
I agree that these ads by the Red Cross in Canada are striking and thought-provoking. I just can’t help feeling, though, that one day they are going to cause an accident by themselves. Some poor schmuk is going to be at the top of the stairs and rush down, thinking about helping the "person" lying spreadeagled at the bottom. Halfway down, they will trip, fall headlong, and break their necks… -
Wang Qingsong
Extraordinary photographs. I’d like to see them full size, spread out on a gallery wall. Watch the video of the shooting of the Archeologist – it’s almost a work of art in its own right… -
My Beautiful Restaurant
The Queen was directed by Stephen Frears, who also made My Beautiful Laundrette over 20 years ago. The film, with its story of a gay love affair between a British Pakistani and a white racist, raised a frisson or two, not to say outrage, in the British Asian communities. Now comes Nina’s Heavenly Delights, directed by Pratibha Parmar. It too contains a gay relationship, a lesbian one this time, and one that is less angst-ridden than that between Omar and Johnny. Times they may be a-changing. This article in today’s Guardian about the film and the reality for some gay British Asians gives me hope for the future. -
The Queen
I’m no monarchist, but I do want to see The Queen, and reading this review makes me want to see it even more.
Geoff Coupe's Blog 