Damn, I’m no longer in the top 50 largest libraries catalogued in LibraryThing. I’m currently at joint 51st with junglemom (waves). I wish Amazon would hurry up and deliver the books I ordered before Christmas, then I might have a chance of clawing my way back into the top 50 again…
Year: 2006
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Transgenic Pigs That Glow
Fascinating story, although doubtless ammunition for those who think that scientists are either a) mad, b) have far too much time on their hands to be able to think up bizarre experiments or c) both of the above.(hat tip to Mike, over at CoffeeCorner, who, naturally, is worried about the culinary implications) -
Another Book Review
But clearly, not a recommendation. Just to be sure, I used Amazon’s nifty "Look Inside" feature to read an excerpt. Yep, it’s every bit as bad as the recommendation says. Thanks for the tip, I won’t be adding Moral Armor to the reading list. -
Noel’s Book Reviews
There’s a chap called Noel Hurley who is writing pithy reviews of items on Amazon. His tongue must be pushed so firmly into his cheek that it is in mortal danger of bursting through. Laugh-out loud stuff.(hat tip to Goosing the Antithesis) -
Hassan’s Postcards
Rachel, over at her blog, publishes Postcards From Tavistock Square, a meditative piece written by Hassan, a young British Muslim. It’s a wonderful piece of writing. Go and read it. -
The Hairy Bikers
Last month, I mentioned that The Hairy Bikers were starting a food series on TV this year. I’ve just learned (from the designer of their web site) that the series begins on BBC2 on January 17 (my birthday!). Can’t wait! Hey, they’re going to visit the Isle of Man as well! Bliss. -
Who’s Arrogant Here?
I would love to be able to watch Richard Dawkins’ new TV series on Channel 4: The God Delusion. Alas, I can’t receive the broadcasts here. So I’ll just have to content myself with snippets. Here’s one – an extract of an exchange (I wouldn’t really call it a conversation) between Dawkins and Ted Haggard, a US evangelical who apparently has regular talks with George Bush. Scary stuff. -
A Delicious Irony
The trial of Leo O’Connor, accused of breaking the Official Secrets Act, has started. The document at the centre of the trial, you may recall, is the record of a meeting between Bush and Blair in which the former is alleged to have suggested the bombing of the al-Jazeera TV station, while the latter is alleged to have suggested that this would not be a good idea.The Guardian reports today that O’Connor’s lawyer has now read the document and says that "I don’t think there was anything in it that could embarrass the British government". Brilliant. If the alleged contents of the document are true, then he is perfectly accurate. The fact that it confirms that Bush is a few marbles short is not the British government’s fault and is merely a delicious irony. -
Not Worthy Of Respect
Whatever happened to "Respect"? No, I don’t mean it in the way Tony Blair means it, I mean whatever happened to that perfectly innocent little word? How come it’s been appropriated by New Labour’s army of management consultants and spin doctors, and turned into some kind of Frankenstein’s monster?The latest example is the publication of Labour’s Respect Action Plan, an appalling piece of management-speak from beginning to end. What makes it worse is that all the ridiculous verbiage ("Everyone is part of everyone else") has successfully driven out any useful content that might actually be part of a plan of action.Justin McKeating, over at the Chicken Yoghurt blog, gives the document a fine old fossicking* and fails to come up with any nuggets of value in its 44 pages. Simon Jenkins, in the Guardian today, also blows the plan a well-deserved raspberry. His opening paragraph is a model of well-aimed derision at the mindset of the people that seem to have infiltrated New Labour.I’ve been watching The Thick of It on TV recently. It’s painfully funny and, judging by the antics of New Labour, painfully accurate.* To fossick – to search for gold in abandoned claims, or to rummage around for anything of value. -
Google Earth
Google Earth is out of beta status as of yesterday. What’s more, there is now a version for the Macintosh. So those of you who are Mac users can download this amazing free program and find out what you’ve been missing out on. Frank Taylor, over at the Google Earth Blog has some navigational tips for new users. -
More Is More
I see that Hasselblad has just announced a new digital SLR camera and camera backs. These things have an incredible 39 megapixel resolution. Well, I’ll just have to carry on with my trusty Canon 300D with its 6 megapixel resolution. I’m a happy snapper, not a professional photographer. But give it another 10 years, and we’ll probably see this scale of resolution in consumer cameras. -
Maggie The Musical
Coming to the stage soon: Thatcher – the Musical. Sounds as though it’s going to be another "Springtime for Hitler" – so awful in concept that it works against all the odds… I look forward to the staging of the Poll Tax riots. -
Brand Evolution
Kodak has announced a new version of its logo. I suppose that I’ll get used to it, but it looks a bit odd to me. The effect of the new font on me is to make the whole word seem unfamiliar. At a stroke, all the ancillary brand associations have been lost to me. Surely this isn’t the intention? -
Service Interruption
Sorry about the slow blogging – we’re moving up a gear ready for the house move. I’m currently dismantling the library. All the books are in boxes, and now the bookshelves are coming down ready for the movers. So the library no longer looks like the picture below, but is an empty shell.
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Enid Was Never Like This
The Religious Policeman posts a Saudi version of Enid Blyton’s Noddy over at his blog. Go and read it. And while you’re there, check out his other writings. They are not all as innocent as this. He often makes me smile because otherwise I would weep at the tales he tells. -
How Suggestible Are You?
I didn’t see the TV programme in question, but today’s review in the Guardian makes me wish I had. The programme was Derren Brown: The Heist. Derren Brown has made a name for himself as a mentalist, and in this programme he demonstrated that ‘normal’ people can be persuaded to act in deviant, crinimal or irrational ways. It’s really quite a worrying thought. -
The Riot of Nature
A striking phrase from a thought-provoking piece by Olivia Judson in the New York Times. She moves aside the stone of faith to reveal the wonder of life.(hat tip to Tara C. Smith over at the Aetiology blog) -
Philip Pullman
A lovely article in the New Yorker that explores the piece of magic that is known as Philip Pullman. Wonderful.(hat tip to Ophelia over at ButterfliesAndWheels) -
Pot, Meet Kettle
I see Sir Iqbal Sacranie is in the same mental cesspit as Cardinal Keith O’Brien. Depressing, but not unexpected. I’m sure they will enjoy each other’s company as they swirl around. It is of their own making, after all*.*With acknowledgements to another example of their ilk, Sir James Anderton.Update: Ophelia, over at ButterfliesAndWheels is even more exasperated at the tosh spouted by these people than I am. She says it so much more satisfyingly though…
Geoff Coupe's Blog 