Geoff Coupe's Blog

Reflections on life at “De Witte Wand”…

Category: News and politics

  • Greedy and Gormless

    I suppose I shouldn’t be gobsmacked at the story that Marina Bai is suing NASA for $300 million. However, I’m intrigued about the claim reported by several news agencies that "her grandfather pointed out the Tempel-1 comet to her grandmother", and that this is what led to their marriage. Some stories use the phrase "showed the comet" while others use the phrase "pointed out the comet". To me, the latter phrase conjures up the image of the grandfather pointing into the sky and saying to the grandmother: "see, it’s there!" – or, I assume, probably something more romantic if this event did actually kickstart their relationship. 
     
    Now, the trouble with this version of the event is that you can’t actually see the Tempel-1 comet with the naked eye. You need a telescope. So if in fact Bai is claiming that her grandfather "pointed out" the comet, she’s either mistaken or lying. But let us suppose that she did claim that her grandfather "showed" the comet to her grandmother – then he must have used a telescope. Presumably then he must have been at least an amateur astronomer, and perhaps even an astronomer by profession. In which case, he must now be spinning in his grave, since his granddaughter clearly hasn’t inherited any scientific thinking – she’s an amateur astrologer – and a particularly greedy one at that. 

  • The Silly Season – Starting Early This Year

    The Silly Season is defined as the period starting mid to late summer when the media report on frivolous news items for want of anything better to do.
     
    It must be starting early this year, judging by this prime example of a silly season story in The Guardian today.

  • The President’s Brain Is Missing…

    Many years ago, when a Hollywood B-list actor somehow became president of the USA, there was a satirical programme on British TV called Spitting Image. One of the running jokes of the show revolved around the catchphrase: "The president’s brain is missing".
     
    Fast-forward to the noughties. Now we have Bush who seems determined to prove that he never had a brain in the first place.
     
    I despair.

  • Live8

    I’m watching Live8 at the moment and alternately cringing and weeping at the people taking part. High on the cringe list come people such as Robbie Williams. I mean, what a fucking twat he is. But, thank the gods there are people such as Annie Lennox to restore my faith in humanity. She shone, she brought the message across, I wept.

  • Charles Clarke: Newspeak Supremo

    I see the UK government had less than a stunning success in the debate in the Commons over ID cards last night. Although they won the debate to continue with the proposals, their majority was halved.
     
    But the highlight in the debate was Charles Clarke saying: "I argue the ID card system is a bulwark against the surveillance society, the Big Brother society, and not a further contribution to it".
     
    Er, say what? That is as perfect expression of Orwellian Newspeak as I think I’ve heard in recent times. And in case you think it was a slip of the tongue, Clarke has obviously been saving this up, as reported by Chicken Yoghurt.

  • Freedom From Torture – Bush’s Empty Rhetoric

     
    "On a couple of occasions, I entered interview rooms to find a detainee chained hand and foot in a fetal position to the floor, with no chair, food or water. Most times they urinated or defecated on themselves, and had been left there for 18-24 hours or more. On one occasion, the air conditioning had been turned down so far and the temperature was so cold in the room, that the barefooted detainee was shaking with cold….On another occasion, the [air conditioner] had been turned off, making the temperature in the unventilated room well over 100 degrees. The detainee was almost unconscious on the floor, with a pile of hair next to him. He had apparently been literally pulling his hair out throughout the night. On another occasion, not only was the temperature unbearably hot, but extremely loud rap music was being played in the room, and had been since the day before, with the detainee chained hand and foot in the fetal position on the tile floor."
    Pot – Kettle – Black.
     
    Bush is beyond contempt.

  • UK Proposal For ID Cards

    Great fun in the UK at the moment over the government’s attempts to introduce ID cards. Particularly with the LSE (London School of Economics) having published a report that warns on the first page:
    "There was an overwhelming view expressed by stakeholders involved in this Report that the proposals are too complex, technically unsafe, overly prescriptive and lack a foundation of public trust and confidence."
    Pretty damning stuff – and it gets worse from there on. It will be interesting to see if these proposals turn out to be Blair’s equivalent of Thatcher’s Poll Tax.
    I particularly liked Steve Bell’s cartoon commenting on the proposals…

  • News From Iraq

    Steeph, over at his blog, has a truly disturbing entry: News about Iraq the mainstream media won’t give you. The third link in particular is simply mind-numbing. I want it not to be true, but it probably is. Either way, this is powerful propaganda – and one that pushes towards an even worse situation. A story in today’s Guardian about a CIA report seems only to confirm that.

  • Don’t Pretend You Were Surprised…

    …about this story in today’s Observer? Really it’s not about the Bush administration against Blair’s administration, it’s about the Bush administration against the rest of the world… So, with a few removals of UK-feelgood spin, quotes from the story become that much starker:

    The documents obtained by The Observer represent an attempt by the Bush administration to undermine completely the science of climate change and show that the US position has hardened during the G8 negotiations. They also reveal that the White House has withdrawn from a crucial United Nations commitment to stabilise greenhouse gas emissions.

    The documents show that Washington officials:

    • Removed all reference to the fact that climate change is a ‘serious threat to human health and to ecosystems’;
    • Deleted any suggestion that global warming has already started;
    • Expunged any suggestion that human activity was to blame for climate change.

    Among the sentences removed was the following: ‘Unless urgent action is taken, there will be a growing risk of adverse effects on economic development, human health and the natural environment, and of irreversible long-term changes to our climate and oceans.’

    Another section erased by the White House adds: ‘Our world is warming. Climate change is a serious threat that has the potential to affect every part of the globe. And we know that … mankind’s activities are contributing to this warming. This is an issue we must address urgently.’

    Earlier this month, the senior science academies of the G8 nations, including the US National Academy of Science, issued a statement saying that evidence of climate change was clear enough to compel their leaders to take action. ‘There is now strong evidence that significant global warming is occurring,’ they said.

    It is now clear that this advice has been completely ignored by Bush and his advisers. ‘Every year, it (local air pollution) causes millions of premature deaths, and suffering to millions more through respiratory disease,’ reads another statement removed by Washington.

    Bush = The Emperor Nero?

  • Another Story

    A fairy story this time: the tale of Princess Tony and the Ugly Face Man. Like all good fairytales, there’s a serious point being made in it. In this case that the liberties of UK citizens seem to be more often eroded than strengthened by Blair’s government.

  • Margot Wallström Again

    I mentioned Margot Wallström a couple of weeks ago (pay attention at the back!). She’s just added a new entry on her blog that also mentions the EU Consitution post-referendum survey in The Netherlands – something I need to download and digest – so I will. Thanks, Margot!

  • Let Them Eat Cake

    This is the sort of thing that I mean when I say that Blair’s New Labour has lost it… Margaret Hodge, Minister for Work and Pensions in Blair’s government, said later that she didn’t mean to say that the skilled workers from the closed Rover plant could work in Tesco’s supermarket. Well, sorry, Mags, but that’s how it came across. Of course, she’s no stranger to controversy. Clearly not a person I would ever choose to have as a friend, he said, knitting furiously.

  • The Art of the Rant

    As you may have noticed, every now and then I have a little rant, to get something off my chest. I do enjoy having a rant, there can be something quite orgasmically satisfying about doing it well. However, it’s not often that I can reach the heights achieved by No More Mr. Nice Guy in this little gem.

  • Another Sexed-up Dossier

    Taking a leaf out of Blair’s book, now it’s the White House who re-write reports to make them align with their politics. It’s emerged that a White House official edited government reports in ways that played down links between global warming and emissions. More information available from the BBC news site and the Guardian today.

    Why am I not surprised?

  • Balkenende: The New Dr. Pangloss?

    If you’re not familiar with the reference, Dr. Pangloss is a character in Voltaire’s novel Candide, who is a hopeless optimist. "All is for the best, in this, the best of all possible worlds".

    I was reminded of this when I read the Dutch press reports on the debate in the Dutch Parliament over the outcome of the referendum on the EU Constitution. The Prime Minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, was quoted as saying that he even saw a "ray of light" in the outcome: he told MPs that people are finally "thinking and talking about Europe." Well I suppose that’s one way of looking at the situation – immediately after the Dutch electorate have delivered a metaphorical punch to your face leaving you with a very bloody and broken nose…

  • Margot Wallström Is Blogging

    Chances are, you’re asking: "who is Margot Wallström?" Well, if you’re from outside Europe, then you’re forgiven – but if you’re European, then you should know that she is one of the EU Commissioners. (Confession time, I didn’t know that either until today)

    Whatever, I think it is significant that she has her own blog, and one that is integrated into her official web pages within the EU Commission web site. She also appears to read the comments pages on her blog as well.

    I found the link via the Europhobia blog which has a random roundup of reactions to the EU referenda so far.

  • The Dutch Referendum

    Over at A Fistful of Euros is a good summary of the background to the Dutch Referendum on the EU Constitution.

  • Baroness Blatch

    I see that Emily May Blatch, Baroness Blatch of Hinchingbrooke has died. I know I’m being uncharitable, but I can’t say I’m sorry to see her go. She willingly took up the torch of homophobia and anti-gay prejudice from Baroness Young following her death in 2002.

    Reading the words of these Baronesses in the records of House of Lords in debates over, for example, Section 28, is a salutary experience. However, bit by bit we move into the 21st Century, and hopefully towards more enlightened views. Though I fear the process is slow and easily reversed.

  • The EU Constitution – Part Two

    So the French have given a resounding thumbs-down to the Constitution. I suppose it was only to be expected. I have a feeling that it got caught in the crossfire of at least two opposing groups: those patriotic French who thought that it was anti-France, and those who thought that it did not go far enough.

    I expect also that we’ll get a repeat performance this week in The Netherlands, and probably for much the same reasons. Although I said last week that I would vote Yes! (that is if I were to be allowed to vote), on reflection, perhaps it’s not as straightforward as I made it appear. I’ve been reading the full text (available as a PDF from this page). The first thing to say is that it is clearly a camel (i.e. a horse designed by a committee) and overlong (probably because it’s a camel). There are good things in it, but there are some things in it that prickle the socialist hairs on the back of my neck – e.g. the uncritical extent to which privatisation is believed to be a "good thing".

    I came across this entry on Steeph’s Blog about the constitution, and I agree with his list of "good things" and "bad things". His conclusion was that the constitution doesn’t go far enough, and hence he will vote No. I suppose I’m more of a "let’s take what we can and work further on it afterwards" sort of person, but I can see where he’s coming from. 

    Who knows, a resounding "No" vote may indeed make the politicians wake up and address the shortcomings, but somehow, I’m cynical enough to think that they ain’t going to do any radical surgery.

  • The EU Constitution

    If you’ve read my profile, you will know that, while I hold a British Passport, I have lived in The Netherlands since 1983. I dutifully pay my taxes, I contribute to the society, I’ve even married a Dutchman. But, in return, does the Dutch Government give me a say in the running of the country?

    No way, José.

    In the forthcoming vote of the EU constitution, I don’t have the right to vote. Never mind that I believe in Europe and would gladly vote yes! if given the opportunity. Never mind that prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende would like us all to vote yes!

    Earth to Jan Peter: your stupid bloody system has prevented me from giving you my vote, so you can go down the toilet for all I care.