tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32786139094985699922024-02-19T07:01:02.829+00:00Wayside SignalsThe witless meanderings of an atheistic Leyton Orient supporter.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.comBlogger113125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-71837126418708773502011-01-24T19:23:00.001+00:002011-01-24T19:27:32.085+00:00Cancer is a fungus. And can be cured by baking soda. Barmy<a href="http://www.davidicke.com/articles/medicalhealth-mainmenu-37/29121">So claims the notoriously accurate David Icke.</a> I was alerted to this nonsense by a conspiracy-obsessed friend on Facebook.<br />
<blockquote style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">One such case is the Italian doctor, Tullio Simoncini, a brilliant and courageous man who has refused to bow to the enormous pressure he has faced, and continues to face, after he realised what cancer is and how it can be dealt with. <br />
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Simoncini's 'crime' has been to discover that cancer is a fungus caused by Candida, a yeast-like organism that lives in the body in small amounts even in healthy people. The immune system keeps it under control normally, but when the Candida morphs into a powerful fungus some serious health problems can follow - including cancer. </span></blockquote>Naturally, Icke has an explanation for why Big Pharma is trying to silence Simoncini (I can't bring myself to give him the title "Doctor").<br />
<blockquote><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;">But look at what has been happening as cancer numbers worldwide have soared and soared. There has been a calculated war on the human immune system that has got more vociferous with every decade.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> The immune system is weakened and attacked by food and drink additives, chemical farming, vaccinations, electromagnetic and microwave technology and frequencies, pharmaceutical drugs, the stress of modern 'life', and so much more.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> What defences are today's children going to have when they are given 25 vaccinations and combinations of them, before the age of two - while their immune system is still forming for goodness sake? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> This is how the Illuminati families are seeking to instigate a mass cull of the population. By dismantling the body's natural defence to disease.</span></blockquote>Yes, of course it's all a dastardly plan by those blood-sucking lizards to keep the human population down. How could we ever have doubted otherwise?<br />
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We can leave aside Icke's deluded ravings, but cancer is a serious business. Cancerous cells reproduce uncontrollably inside the body, invading and destroying healthy tissue. Generally, the only treatment is to remove the cancerous cells, and then follow up with courses of radiation or chemotherapy, to ensure all the cells are destroyed. This also damages healthy tissue, and unfortunately doesn't always succeed. The prognosis for some cancer survivors, even after surgery, may be less than 50/50.<br />
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Given such an unpromising diagnosis, it's understandable, I suppose, that many turn to alternative (or as I like to call them, untested and dangerous) treatments. And this is where quacks like Simoncini enter the picture. According to Icke:<br />
<blockquote><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;">Instead, Simoncini found something much, much simpler - sodium bicarbonate. Yes, the main ingredient in good old <i>baking soda</i> (but I stress not the same as baking soda, which has other ingredients). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> He used this because it is a powerful destroyer of fungus and, unlike the drugs, the Candida cannot 'adapt' to it. The patient is given sodium bicarbonate orally and through internal means like an endoscope, a long thin tube that doctors use to see inside the body without surgery. This allows the sodium bicarbonate to be placed directly on the cancer - the fungus. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> </span></blockquote>Baking soda. <br />
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<a href="http://www.icke-exposed.co.uk/latest-news/dr-death/">A quick bio of Simoncini:</a><br />
<blockquote>Tullio Simoncini lost his offcial license to practice medicine in 2003 in Italy. On May 2006 he was convicted to 3 y. for manslaughter of the first patient and 16 months for having charged 7.500 EUR each to the other 2 patients.</blockquote>Even a prison sentence didn't stop him. In 2010, a Scottish man suffering from cancer turned to Simoncini after refusing chemotherapy on the NHS.<br />
<blockquote>"I've always refused chemotherapy because it just kills your immune system. I think if I'd gone through it I'd maybe even be dead by now.</blockquote>Of course, Simoncini's baking soda doesn't come for free.<br />
<blockquote>He has agreed to treat Mr Fyvie, from Musselburgh, but they must come up with £10,000 by 21 March to make the procedure happen.</blockquote><blockquote>He has the full backing of his children, one of whom ran a sponsored ten miles on Friday to add to the £1,200 they have already collected.</blockquote>£10,000. One pound of baking soda costs <a href="http://www.americansoda.co.uk/uk/American-Soda/Home/Food/American-Groceries/Arm-+-Hammer-Pure-Baking-Soda-%28454g%29-16OZ.aspx">£1.47 from American Soda.</a> By my calculation, that money could have bought 6,802 pounds of baking soda. That's one big shopping trolley.<br />
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In any case, it did Fyvie little good, because <a href="http://www.eastlothiancourier.com/news/roundup/articles/2010/08/12/403514-well-miss-you-dad/">within six months, he was dead.</a><br />
<blockquote>The family of Robert Fyvie has been left devastated after he passed away last Friday morning, with his 10-year-old son, Marc, distraught his dad will not be there to see his first boxing match. <br />
<div class="features-text"></div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="features-text">Mr Fyvie, 54, of Eskview Terrace, died peacefully beside his wife Angie as they slept, five months after he travelled to Rome in the hope that a cutting-edge treatment would help him overcome his illness. Sadly, it was not to be. </div></blockquote>Still, presumably Simoncini put the money to good use.<br />
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I do think Fyvie's actions were fundamentally irresponsible towards himself and his family - he also travelled to Thailand for herbal treatments for cancer, and refused chemo, so he was dicing with death anyway. But Simoncini deserves nothing but shame for taking an obscene amount of money from a dying man and his desperate family for his sham treatments. People like that are wasting perfectly good oxygen for the rest of us.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-66090762426470980022011-01-24T14:56:00.001+00:002011-01-24T14:56:58.470+00:00The Sun are campaigning for better mental health care for armed forces veteransOf course, the best way to avoid mental health problems is to keep away from unnecessarily stressful situations in the first place.<br /><br />In which case, shouldn't the Sun be campaigning to end the conflict in Afghanistan and bring all the soldiers back home? I mean, if you really want to save public money...<br /><br /><br /><br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-87759728812909790572011-01-21T22:04:00.000+00:002011-01-21T22:04:56.475+00:00An exquisitely beautiful return to bloggingHaven't posted for what seems like ages. What a pathetic excuse for a blogger I am. In mitigation, I've been busy clambering onto the bottom rung of the property ladder, and I've still got a lot of sorting out in my new house to do, so it'll probably be a little while til I get back to proper blogging.<br />
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Meanwhile, I'll post this exquisite and lovely video by the Mummers, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/jan/20/mummers-mink-hollow-road?INTCMP=SRCH">whose album and sad backstory I acquired from the Guardian.</a><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="youtube-player" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_UMMu_KBRy8" title="YouTube video player" type="text/html" width="480"></iframe>Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-45218186987772401762011-01-07T14:30:00.000+00:002011-01-07T14:30:55.380+00:00Proof that Power Balance bands work!<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-12135402">Or not.</a> I suspect that England's <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/jan/07/the-ashes-2010-11-england-australia">marvellous, historic Ashes victory</a> (which I've already <a href="http://waysidesignals.blogspot.com/2011/01/no-gloating-please-were-english.html">promised not to gloat over</a>) is more to do with superior skill, preparation and execution over an unusually aimless Australian team, than a silly, rather expensive rubber band that has been shown not to have any magic properties whatsoever, whose manufacturer has been <a href="http://www.metro.co.uk/lifestyle/851787-no-science-to-power-balance-bracelets-admits-manufacturer">forced to issue a statement</a> retracting its claims.<br />
<blockquote>Power Balance Australia said: ‘In our advertising, we stated that Power Balance wristbands improved your strength, balance and flexibility. <br />
</blockquote><blockquote>‘We admit that there is no credible scientific evidence that supports our claims and therefore we engaged in misleading conduct in breach of s52 of the trade practices act 1974.’</blockquote><div style="background-color: transparent; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">Perhaps if Ricky Ponting had bought a <a href="http://skepticbros.com/placebo-bands/">Placebo Band</a>, things might have worked out very differently.</div>Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-77034220759336230982011-01-06T19:18:00.000+00:002011-01-06T19:18:52.411+00:00No gloating please, we're English<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/jan/06/the-ashes-2010-11-england-tremlett">In anticipation of England's third innings victory of the Ashes series</a> (well, at least a comprehensive win, now that Australia's challenge in the final test has been all but extinguished) I do not want to gloat over the triumph.<br />
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That wouldn't be cricket.<br />
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No, I'll just post, from 2002, <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/no-sympathy-for-battered-foes-609529.html">a reminder of how not to behave in victory</a>.<br />
<blockquote>After Nasser Hussain's men sealed their fate in Perth, Matt Price wrote in <i>The Australian</i>: "There have been numerous excuses put forward for England's poor showing during the Ashes series: a collective lack of skill, nous, courage, coordination, commitment, knowledge, fitness, resilience, imagination, talent, <i>esprit de corps</i>, energy, nerve and I could keep going but I'll run out of space."</blockquote><blockquote>The triumphant march of Steve Waugh's team through the series prompted renewed calls for the Ashes to be sent to Australia. <i>The Daily Telegraph</i>, a Sydney tabloid, ran three separate pieces demanding that the trophy – which resides at the MCC – be looked after by whichever nation wins the tournament. <br />
<div class="font-null"></div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="font-null">The <i>Telegraph</i> invited its readers to telephone a hotline to express their views on the subject. One columnist, John Pierik, wrote: "Hand it over now. The time has come for the stuffy-nosed Marylebone Cricket Club at Lord's to hand over cricket's most famous prize to Steve Waugh and his world champion Australians.</div><div class="font-null">"It's ridiculous that the original urn... remains housed in England when the Old Dart hasn't won a series against us in 14 years."</div></blockquote><blockquote>Writing in the <i>Herald </i>the day before England's collapse in Perth, Peter FitzSimons bemoaned the disappearance of England's once-vaunted fighting spirit. Under the headline "No sign of the old bulldog, only poodles", he said: "The most perplexing thing about the whole English débâcle that they are pleased to call their Ashes 'campaign' is that these blokes come from the same country that produced the likes of Boadicea, the Duke of Wellington, Ian Botham, Darren Gough and Michael Atherton. <br />
<div class="font-null"></div></blockquote><blockquote>"Where is their manhood? Where is their fury at their fate and determination to fight their way out, come what may? Are these blokes really the toughest, hardest, best cricketers that England can produce?" <br />
<div class="font-null"></div></blockquote><blockquote>Some cricket writers said the series boded ill for the future of the Ashes. Mike Coward, writing in <i>The Australian</i>, described the win as a hollow victory. "England's breathtaking ineptitude is bringing Test cricket to the brink," he said. "The traditional game is so fragile it cannot afford a pitifully weak England and rarely can England have been so pitifully weak." <br />
<div class="font-null"></div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="font-null">Other commentators were more restrained. "If anyone still has anything bad to say about the Poms, let them speak now or forever hold their peace," said Peter Roebuck in the <i>Herald</i>. "There is no fun to be had in driving staves into a corpse." </div></blockquote>Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-54049175049869969482011-01-05T23:36:00.000+00:002011-01-05T23:48:42.577+00:00Christians want liberty, and by God they're going to fight for itSam Webster, in Christian Today, kicks off his New Year by <a href="http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christians.on.trial.in.2010/27296.htm">whining about the "persecution" of Christians in the UK.</a><br /><blockquote>As Christians living in modern Britain we enjoy precious freedoms that our fellow believers in less open nations could only dream of. These freedoms didn’t fall out of the clear blue sky, they were won for us in past generations by courageous Christians who wrestled for them and passed them on to us.</blockquote>Now, I was under the impression that the head of state of the United Kingdom was also the head of the Church of England. How much, do you think, have Christians in this country had to fight, over the centuries, to practice their faith? Not a lot, I suspect.<br /><br />On the other hand, it wasn't until 1753 that the Christian rulers of this country would actually allow <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_Naturalization_Act_1753">Jews to become citizens of the UK</a>. Even then, <br /><blockquote>on being brought down to the <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_House_of_Commons" title="British House of Commons">House of Commons</a>, the <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tories" title="Tories">Tories</a> made a great outcry against this "abandonment of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity" title="Christianity">Christianity</a>", as they called it. </blockquote>When Webster claims<br /><blockquote>There is not one inch of liberty that isn’t worth fighting for</blockquote>I wonder how far he intends to go.<br /><br />He backs up his moaning by providing examples of harassed Christians, such as <br /><blockquote>Lillian Ladele, the Christian registrar from Islington who was threatened with dismissal unless she performed homosexual civil partnership registrations. The Supreme Court said the case “does not raise an arguable point of law of general public importance”. Miss Ladele is now taking her case to the European Court of Human Rights, arguing that the UK has unlawfully infringed her rights to religious liberty.</blockquote>Liberty in this case meaning, the right to bring your prejudices against homosexuals to work, and refuse to carry out the job you're paid to do. If Miss Ladele was a bus driver, and refused to allow homosexuals onto her bus, would people like Webster be making a song and dance about it? It's exactly the same principle.<br /><blockquote>There was good news in April when a case involving a Christian mother and part-time school receptionist was settled without going to court. Jennie Cain had been disciplined by her employers following a dispute about a private prayer email.<br />Mrs Cain took legal action against her employers for religious discrimination and the matter was settled out of court. Her employers paid out an undisclosed sum of money and agreed that Christians should be treated with “sensitivity and respect” at the school.</blockquote>What isn't mentioned is that Cain's daughter had been going around informing her classmates that they would go to hell if they didn't believe in Jesus. <a href="http://www.thisisexeter.co.uk/news/Girl-5-told-school-talking-God/article-695071-detail/article.html">After the headteacher admonished her daughter</a>, and then reprimanded Cain (since, after all, the child didn't pluck notions of original sin and eternal damnation out of thin air), Cain sent around an email whining about her treatment.<br /><blockquote>Mr Read defended the school's treatment of the matter and said they encouraged all children to "think independently", but would not condone one child "frightening" another.<br />He said: "We have 271 children in our school from a diversity of backgrounds.<br />"We encourage all our children to think independently and discuss their beliefs with their teachers and classmates when it is appropriate to do so.<br />"What we do not condone is one child frightening a six-year-old with the prospect of 'going to hell' if she does not believe in God.<br />"We conveyed to her mother, in a perfectly respectful manner, that we do not expect it to happen again."</blockquote>Webster then cites the case of the homophobic B&B operators, who presumably have no problem with a husband raping his wife in one of their double beds, but can't abide the thought of two gay men having a good night's kip in one.<br /><blockquote>In the same month, the Christian owners of a Guesthouse appeared in Bristol County Court to defend themselves against a claim of discrimination brought by a homosexual couple. Peter and Hazelmary Bull’s guesthouse restricts double bed accommodation to married couples. The guesthouse is also their home. But civil partners Steven Preddy and Martyn Hall say the policy is unlawful and are suing the Christians for £5,000, including for injuring their feelings. The trial lasted two days and the judge has reserved his decision until after Christmas.</blockquote>More pathetic whimpering. If you want to provide a service which is open to the public, why do you feel that your beliefs earn you a right to opt out of whatever equality provision you choose?<br /><br />To sum up, then, Christians want their place in society while taking none of the responsibility. As their book states, they deem themselves special, and demand their prejudices be taken seriously. They want the right to discriminate against whoever they choose, and not to be discriminated against themselves.<br /> <br />It's time they started to stop complaining about their lot in life, and start accepting that in a modern secular society, which is what it is, there's going to be a lot of people who disagree with you.<br /><br />Anyway, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redemptive_suffering">isn't it supposed to be good for you to suffer?</a> And aren't you going to have the last laugh on Judgement Day anyway?<br /><br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-1204926292922550962011-01-05T20:41:00.001+00:002011-01-05T20:41:07.902+00:00This is an example of a militant Muslim<a target="_blank" href="http://m.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/05/pakistan-religious-organisations-salman-taseer?cat=world&type=article">Mumtaz Qadri</a> assassinated Pakistani provincial governor Salman Taseer because of Taseer's assault on Pakistan's draconian blasphemy laws. By Qadri's twisted logic, Taseer's support for free speech and the rule of law meant he had to die.<br /><br />And the response from the religious parties in Pakistan?<br /><br /><blockquote>Qadri appeared in court, unrepentant, where waiting lawyers threw handfuls of rose petals over him and others in the crowd slapped his back and kissed his cheek as he was led in and out amid heavy security.<br /><br />The internet had already been hosting fan pages for Qadri, with one Facebook page attracting over 2,000 followers before being taken down, while there were small demonstrations in favour of the killer in north-west Pakistan.<br /></blockquote><br /><br />That's a militant Muslim, someone prepared to kill because someone might say something they don't like.<br /><br />I hope that people now think twice about using the term <a target="_blank" href="http://richarddawkins.net/discussions/467003-militant-atheism-why-the-gloves-came-off">"militant atheist"</a> pejoratively for thinkers like Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens etc.<br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-18084312300114423002011-01-05T04:10:00.001+00:002011-01-05T04:10:19.300+00:00Nescafe coffee - "bursting with antioxidants"Been reading <a target="_blank" href="http://www.badscience.net/">Ben Goldacre's</a> frabjous book "Bad Science". Excellent stuff - he goes after quacks, homeopaths, big pharma, Gillian McKeith et al in a big way, sparing no-one from his sharply critical eye, and taught me a lot about scientific procedure, and how to interpret science and health reporting in particular.<br /><br />I was reminded of "Bad Science" driving home from work this morning, when I spotted a bus (N26 to Chingford Station, for the saddoes out there) with a large ad for Nescafe coffee on the side, dominated by the words "Bursting With Antioxidants".<br /><br />Hmm. Clearly, as such prominence is given to their inclusion, antioxidants must be a prime selling point for Nescafe. But why? Ben Goldacre explains.<br /><br /><blockquote>The antioxidant story is one of the most ubiquitous health claims of the nutritionists. Antioxidants mop up free radicals, so in theory, looking at metabolism flow charts in biochemistry textbooks, having more of them might be beneficial to health. High blood levels of antioxidants were associated, in the 1980s, with longer life. Fruit and vegetables have lots of antioxidants, and fruit and veg really are good for you. So it all made sense.<br /><br />But when you do compare people taking antioxidant supplement tablets with people on placebo, there's no benefit; if anything, the antioxidant pills are harmful. Fruit and veg are still good for you, but as you can see, it looks as if it's complicated and it might not just be about the extra antioxidants. It's a surprising finding, but that's science all over: the results are often counterintuitive. And that's exactly why you do scientific research, to check your assumptions. Otherwise it wouldn't be called "science", it would be called "assuming", or "guessing", or "making it up as you go along".</blockquote><br /><br />Now, as Ben suggests, the science behind the benefits to health from antioxidants may not be entirely wrong - eating fruit and veg as part of a balanced diet is good for general health, and fruit and veg is rich in antioxidants - but there may be more going on than just "antioxidants are good for you". Antioxidant supplements don't appear to be enough for you to reap health benefits.<br /><br />But you don't take that message away from that Nescafe ad, do you? No. "Bursting With Antioxidants". Fairly unambiguous, wouldn't you say? In fact, the Nescafe ads could be construed as saying "antioxidants are good for you, they help prevent disease, our coffee has lots of them, please buy our coffee".<br /><br />Although cleverly enough - "Bursting With Antioxidants" is the entire message. They induce you to make the connection between antioxidants and health in your own mind, while avoiding making any claims for antioxidants themselves. These advertising people are good.<br /><br />Well, not this Supertec. I'm off to buy some Carte Noir tomorrow - first checking the label to make sure it's not trying to poison me with those darned antioxidants.<br /><br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-71455122176089576172011-01-04T22:17:00.000+00:002011-01-04T22:17:29.437+00:00Thoughts on the Millennium TrilogyStieg Larsson's books seem to be like Marmite - you either love them or hate them, but they're bloody awkward to spread on toast. Having just finished listening to the whole trilogy in audiobook format, and seeing as the publicity machine shows no sign of relenting with the English-language film adaptationout soon, I thought I'd offer my own thoughts on the books.<br />
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<ul><li><b>Lisbeth Salander is one kick-ass heroine, and easily the best thing in the books. </b>As she takes her revenge on people like the perverted lawyer Bjurman, I found myself almost cheering her on. Her complexities aren't quite fully explored - it's occasionally suggested that she's somewhere on the autism/Asperger's spectrum, but nothing much is ever made of this. Likewise, her 'special abilities', her photographic memory and almost savant-like computer skills, have to be accepted at face value, and hint at Larsson having watched "Rain Man" once, but didn't really do all that much research afterwards. Her punk/emo/goth stylings, though, are a refreshing break from the usual crime thriller cliches, and the descriptions of her bisexual relationships feel natural, rather than something that was chucked in for shock value. Salander's attitude towards authority, and indeed people in general, is probably what kept me most interested.</li>
</ul><ul><li><b>Mikael Blomkvist is an annoying, sanctimonious prick. </b>It didn't take long for me to realise that Blomkvist is Larsson's idealised version of himself - women jump into bed with him at the drop of a hat, and he always ends up with his enemies crushed and himself vindicated. Just imagine The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo without Salander, and you'll see what I mean - I don't think I could stomach more than a few chapters in the company of Blomkvist alone. A little less shagging, Stieg, and less triumphalism when Blomkvist saves the day yet again, and we might have had a flawed anti-hero on our hands. As it is, he's just an annoyingly self-important journalist.</li>
</ul><ul><li><b>I'm amazed Sweden hasn't drowned in coffee. </b>The drink is everywhere - when a character walks into a room, first they turn on the light, then they switch on the coffee machine. Yet they never visit the bathroom. Weird. The coffee obsession eventually becomes almost parodic - the meticulous detailing of Salander's high-end coffee machine in her apartment verges on coffee porn, and it's barely believable that, in the final chapter, she detects Niedermann's presence by the warmth of the coffee machine. In a derelict brickworks.</li>
</ul><ul><li><b>The films are better than the books. </b>For the simple reason that the books try to do too much. Dragon Tattoo would have been better without the tedious, drawn-out financial journalism angle, which is obviously Larsson getting one over on all the people he hated in his own life. Condensing the plot into a two-hour movie requires the excising of a good part of this, and although Blomkvist's rattling off his issue of Millennium in prison seems rushed after reading the books, in hindsight it could have done away with it altogether and lost nothing. I haven't seen the last two movies, but as the focus is much more on Salander herself, I imagine the problem of how much guff to leave out was not as pressing.</li>
</ul><ul><li><b>It's better having Larsson at the top of the bestseller list than Dan Brown, or JK Rowling. </b>Brown's novels are about clunking plotlines, nonsensical religious imagery and dreadful writing. The Harry Potter series is about a bloody boy wizard, for God's sake, and is written for children - adults who are caught reading them should have their voting privileges removed. In this context, Larsson is on a par with Shakespeare. The Salander books will never win any prizes for their florid prose, but skewering prejudice against women, and attacking Neo-Nazis, is always going to be more welcome in a bookstore than wizards and Bible codes.</li>
</ul>Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-51725428790134419172011-01-04T21:08:00.000+00:002011-01-04T21:08:21.844+00:00The Republican plan for healthcare, exclusively revealed by Alan GraysonHaving sung the praises of Rory Stewart, I would still trade him in for an MP like Representative Alan Grayson, a Democrat from Florida. Grayson recently lost his seat in Congress, which means we'll lose scenes like this classic from September 2009 in the House of Representatives.<br />
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We need more standups in the House of Commons, the comedians in there just aren't funny anymore.<br />
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H/T to <a href="http://www.dangerousminds.net/">Dangerous Minds</a>.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-7344760222941177512011-01-04T16:12:00.000+00:002011-01-04T16:12:51.005+00:00Faith healing, or faith killing?Susan M. Grady, who tried to heal her son from diabetes with prayer, and paid for her ignorance wih her son's life, <a href="http://www.religionnewsblog.com/25545/woman-who-relied-on-faith-healing-charged-with-neglect-after-son-dies">has been charged, rightly, with neglect</a>.<br />
<blockquote>Susan M. Grady, 42, formerly of Broken Arrow, prayed with others over her son, Aaron Gregory Grady, when he became ill on June 2, 2009, according to an affidavit filed Tuesday in Tulsa County District Court. His condition worsened, and he died June 5, according to the affidavit.</blockquote>Apparently, she never even thought about taking him to the doctor.<br />
<blockquote>Susan Grady told detectives that she did not consider taking Aaron to the doctor. She told them that “I was trying to live by faith and I felt like God would heal him,” according to the affidavit.</blockquote>What surprised me was that it seems that her deluded beliefs are accommodated, to an extent, by the law.<br />
<blockquote>Oklahoma statutes allow parents to rely on prayer to try to heal their children up to the point that the child’s life is in danger or may face “permanent physical damage.” <br />
</blockquote><blockquote>According to the law, it is a misdemeanor if parents refuse to obtain care and a felony if the child dies. </blockquote><blockquote>If parents refuse to seek medical help for their children, the courts can intervene on the child’s behalf.</blockquote>Meanwhile, her pastor remains unrepentant that leading Grady to ignore medicine resulted in the death of a child.<br />
<blockquote>“We just preach faith,” said church leader Earl Weir. “It (the Bible) says to give your all. The whole church believes that way.” <br />
</blockquote><blockquote>Asked why that teaching requires a total denial of medical help even when an illness becomes serious or fatal, Weir said, “That’s everybody’s opinion. We’ve had the doctors kill people.”</blockquote>In this case, clearly, it was OK that God decided to kill the boy himself. Can't this sham of a preacher be charged too?Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-15674559908694242102011-01-04T14:47:00.000+00:002011-01-04T14:47:05.580+00:00Rory Stewart - the Tory it's OK to like?I'm not a right-winger. That might be obvious to you if you've ever read one of my posts. I don't really describe myself as occupying any particular position on the political spectrum, not any more - in my younger days I would have called myself a socialist, but there's bits of all political philosphies that I like or dislike - perhaps I could call myself an anarcho-liberal-socialist-democrat, but I prefer to avoid labels. Fortunately, because that wouldn't fit well on a badge.<br />
<br />
By and large, then, I tend to dislike politicians of the right. Just take a look - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Thatcher">Margaret Thatcher</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Osborne">George Osborne</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silvio_Berlusconi">Silvio Berlusconi</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush">George Bush</a>, powermongers all, obsessed with attacking the state, the poor, the workers, anyone who stands in the way of the rich elite and obstructs their path to unadulterated wealth and power.<br />
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Try as I might, though, I can find nothing to dislike about <a href="http://www.rorystewart.co.uk/">Rory Stewart</a>.<br />
<br />
Who, I hear you cry? Potted history alert - Eton, Oxford, British Diplomatic Service, Montenegro, Kosovo, walked across Afghanistan and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Places-Between-Rory-Stewart/dp/0330486330">wrote a book about it</a>, became province governor in Iraq and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Prince-Marshes-Other-Occupational-Hazards/dp/0156032791">wrote a book about it</a>, founded a charity in Afghanistan, professor at Harvard, elected MP for Penrith in Cumbria in 2010.<br />
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Phew. That's some CV. This isn't your standard policy wonk MP, like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Miliband">Ed Miliband</a>, or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cameron">David Cameron</a>. This guy's actually achieved something in his life.<br />
<br />
It was <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/jan/02/rory-stewart-lakeland-broadband-revolution?INTCMP=SRCH">this article in the Observer</a> that alerted me to Rory Stewart. Not only is it intelligently written, by someone who clearly has taken the time to get to know his constituency, but he actually puts into practice a form of localism, the kind that Cameron and his cronies espouse without ever really convincing you that they mean it.<br />
<blockquote>But our Eden communities may have the solution. In Great Asby, one volunteer discovered there was already fibre, paid for by the taxpayer, for the school. The school let him splice off the fibre to a cabinet that he calls a "parish pump". From that he ran a wireless network, with transmitters in the church tower and one, powered by solar panels, on a dead tree to reach the outlying farms. He has persuaded 70% of the village to sign up and is making enough money (as an unpaid volunteer) to upgrade the network. Local farmers have agreed to lay the fibre, at a fraction of the commercial cost. This is not a just impressive technology, it's astonishing community action.</blockquote>I got to the end of the article without realising that this was a Conservative MP writing - it's never apparent. Party lines don't seem to count with Stewart.<br />
<br />
On his website, Stewart addresses Afghanistan, clearly a place that looms large in his life, and again writes with eloquence, intelligence and insight, not to mention an understanding of history that's alien to most politicians.<br />
<blockquote> No politician wants to be perceived to have underestimated, or failed to address, a terrorist threat; or to write off the ‘blood and treasure’ that we have sunk into Afghanistan; or to admit defeat. Americans are particularly unwilling to believe that problems are insoluble; Obama’s motto is not ‘no we can’t’; soldiers are not trained to admit defeat or to say a mission is impossible. And to suggest that what worked in Iraq won’t work in Afghanistan (or that what worked in postwar West Germany or 1950s Souh Korea won’t work in Afghanistan) requires a detailed knowledge of each country’s past, a bold analysis of the causes of development and a rigorous exposition of the differences, for which few have patience.</blockquote>He goes on to expound on civil service opinions of Afghanistan in the 19th century.<br />
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I'm sure there must be some point of principle that I'd disagree with him on - for one thing, his embrace of local empowerment might work well in Cumbria, where independence and self-sufficiency is forced upon you by the environment, but I doubt it would translate to a council estate in Peckham, for example. But I find it admirable that someone of obvious intelligence and experience wants to represent people, and actually seems to care about the people he represents, without apparently having any ambition towards higher office. <a href="http://www.publicservice.co.uk/feature_story.asp?id=14560">From publicservice</a>:<br />
<blockquote>"Without being too pompous about it you are trying to be useful. It might be I could do something useful being a backbencher. My suspicion is I like managing things and getting things done. I am very interested in the civil service, so if I was lucky enough to become a junior Foreign Office minister I would be fascinated to go back to a department where I had worked.<br />
<br />
"The Department for International Development, for example, was the most extraordinary department under Clare Short – she managed to really give it energy. But the idea of being an MP is a wonderful thing as well and I wouldn't like to live in a world where that is just a stepping stone to being a minister."</blockquote>Scary. I've found a Conservative politician I actually like. Whatever next?Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-60118100328561789832011-01-03T21:14:00.001+00:002011-01-03T21:14:40.179+00:00Stewart Lee's mum is an Orient supporterFor fans of <a target="_blank" href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d.html/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/278-1032807-7590912?a=B0019ROEQ4">Stewart Lee: 41st Best Standup Comedian Ever,</a> in the Leyton Orient store today, I found proof that his mum follows the mighty O's.<br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://blogpress.w18.net/photos/11/01/03/2637.jpg'><img src='http://blogpress.w18.net/photos/11/01/03/s_2637.jpg' border='0' width='210' height='281' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-38272298321644691272011-01-03T21:05:00.001+00:002011-01-03T21:05:56.986+00:00Leyton Orient 4 Colchester United 2Sometime in the early 90's, I was an 11-year-old mascot for Leyton Orient in an FA Cup replay against Colchester United (I got photos taken with John Sitton, the then captain, and "Ooh" Terry Howard, terrace favourite, and also, incongruously, the autograph of Frank Carson, the comedian, who was a director of Colchester at the time).<br /><br />Orient won 4-1, I recall, and today they also got four against the same opponents, although they didn't ask me to be mascot this time. It's understandable, I'm probably too old now.<br /><br />After the 5-0 mauling Brighton dished out to us at the weekend, we needed to bounce back, and I thought Orient gave arguably their best home performance of the season. Coxy found acres of space on the left wing, Chorley was dominant in central defence and showed some clever distribution, and Jones made some good saves, although it could be argued that the two Colchester goals were softly conceded.<br /><br />Highlight of the match was undoubtedly Paul-Jose Mpoku's 30-yard screamer near the end of the second half - well, it looked like 30 yards from the other end of the ground, anyway. In all honesty, we deserved the win - Colchester played OK and took their chances well, but Orient played the ball around well and created too much pressure and too many openings for the Essex Boys to handle.<br /><br />Norwich up next for us in the FA Cup on Saturday, and I'm not expecting us to repeat the Colchester score in that match. Hope springs eternal, though.<br /><br /><br /><br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-91060231476805580402011-01-02T20:42:00.001+00:002011-01-02T20:52:49.942+00:00The oldest dentist in town<a target="_blank" href="http://rss.feedsportal.com/c/32752/f/517092/s/110d9906/l/0L0Schristiantoday0N0Carticle0C30Carchaeologists0Bthink0Bthey0Bmay0Bhave0Bdiscovered0Boldest0Bhuman0Bremains0Bin0Bisrael0C2730A0A0Bhtm/story01.htm">An Israeli archaeologist claims to have found a 400,000 year old human tooth</a>, in a cave in Israel - and, fairly predictably, wild conclusions are now being drawn from the erstwhile molar.<br /><br /><blockquote>Archaeologists from Tel Aviv University found eight teeth in Qesem Cave. The team said the discovery challenges theories of the origin of humans.<br /><br />Avi Gopher, who led the team, told Agence France-Presse that it calls into question the widely held view that modern humans originated in Africa.</blockquote><br /><br />But <a target="_blank" href="http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101231/full/news.2010.700.html">in an interview with Nature.com</a>, Gopher appeared to row back a little from the conclusions being drawn from his paper.<br /><br /><blockquote>Do the teeth that you found in Qesem Cave really provide evidence that Homo sapiens did not evolve in Africa?<br /><br />We don't know. What I can say is that they definitely leave all options open...<br /><br />There is a range of variation and no single unique trait that identifies a tooth unambiguously as modern or archaic or Neanderthal.</blockquote><br /><br />So, there's not really any definite evidence that this tooth does come from a human population hundreds of thousands of years older than we would normally expect. <br /><br />There's always new findings in archaeology ready to jump up and throw our preconceptions in the fire. This, I have the feeling, isn't one of them. For one thing, a population of early humans very close to Africa hardly begins to disprove the "out of Africa" theory.<br /><br />For another, the Denisovan population, <a target="_blank" href="http://pandasthumb.org/archives/2010/12/denisova-genome.html">described only last week,</a> shows just how much variation there is in ancient hominid populations, and that our ancestry may not be as homogeneous as we may have previously thought, given that the Denisovans appear to have contributed a significant proportion of DNA to present day Melanesian populations.<br /><br />The tooth may well be homo sapiens, or not, but it seems that Gopher and his team, while content to take the plaudits for the discovery, don't want to state it unambiguously. Instead, they've left just enough room for their findings to be liberally interpreted, while still sitting on the fence.<br /><br />Of course, it doesn't take much searching on teh interwebz to find those who will claim, given the historical significance of Israel, that it's all evidence of god's master plan, although it's been oddly ignored by the YECs.<br /><br />I do notice that no DNA testing appears to have been done on the tooth. I think judgement will have to await those findings.<br /><br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br /><br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-89167247748207480422011-01-01T23:19:00.001+00:002011-01-02T20:09:33.683+00:00The tabloids get the suspect they wantedThe disappearance and murder of landscape architect Joanna Yeates has been front page news for the last couple of weeks in the UK. Just a few days ago, her landlord was arrested on suspicion of her murder ( he's now been released on bail, <a target="_blank" href="http://m.guardian.co.uk/ms/p/gnm/op/s2xJz7sctzFZ0XkxrBkdEvQ/view.m?id=15&gid=uk/2011/jan/01/chris-jefferies-released-on-bail&cat=top-stories">I've just read.</a>)<br /><br />Of course, the fact that he's a little eccentric to say the least has delighted our tabloid press. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3326240/Joanna-Yeates-suspect-Chris-Jefferies-obsessed-with-death-ex-pupil-claims.html">The Sun has jumped in with both feet as usual</a>, digging up as much dirt as has been possible in the short space of time available to them.<br /><br />It occurs to me that this is exactly the suspect papers like the Sun and the Mail could have wanted. An oddball older man, with a surfeit of apparently strange stories around him - it's easy to paint the picture of a murderer with such a helpful canvas.<br /><br />In such a context, I admire the bravery of Yeates' family and partner, in <a target="_blank" href="http://m.guardian.co.uk/ms/p/gnm/op/sTM_zagqkdR3rrz3VgWirMw/view.m?id=15&gid=uk/2011/jan/01/joanna-yeates-family-release-statement&cat=uk">releasing the statement that they have today.</a> Apart from the obvious sorrow they are feeling, they managed to spare a thought for Chris Jefferies as well.<br /><br /><blockquote>"Jo's life was cut short tragically but the finger-pointing and character assassination by social and news media of as yet innocent men has been shameful.<br />"It has made me lose a lot of faith in the morality of the British Press and those that spend their time fixed to the internet in this modern age.<br /></blockquote><br /><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://www.andcabbagesandkings.com/2010/12/30/trial-by-media-why-criminal-defendants-should-be-granted-anonymity/">David Walton makes the case for the anonymity of suspects</a> as eloquently as ever, but I feel that the rush to blame someone, anyone, for a tragedy like this, and the tabloid hysteria that rises like scum to the surface at every opportunity, means there's little chance of that ever happening. The media frenzy needs feeding, and Jefferies, who may or may not be innocent, is easy prey.<br /><br />Hopefully, for the sake of all involved, the whole affair will come to a swift resolution.<br /><br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br /><br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-54583610023888137732011-01-01T22:49:00.001+00:002011-01-02T20:10:09.927+00:00Yew Hear Nappy!!!Or Happy New Year, for those of you who bothersomely insist on putting letters into the correct order.<br /><br />In time honoured tradition, I saw in New Year at work, grimacing at the celebratory messages flying back and forth on Twitter and Facebook, while failing to console myself with the prospect of double bubble for my loyal 12-hour shifts over the holiday period. Ah well.<br /><br />To alleviate the boredom, I did find a couple of lovely apps for my iPhone:<br /><br />•<a target="_blank" href="itunes.apple.com/../id289892007">Fstream</a>, which streams radio feeds off teh interwebz, and allowed me to listen to England's fantastic victory in the Fourth Test, not to mention the Barmy Army playing every song in their repertoire, from Coronation Street to Live and Let Die.<br /><br />•And <a target="_blank" href="http://reederapp.com/2/">Reeder</a>, which has revolutionised my blog following. Much easier than bookmarking stuff on Safari.<br /><br />•Not to mention that, through trial and error, and also clicking buttons to see what happens, I've found an easy way of inserting hyperlinks into blogposts on the Blogpress app. How technologically challenged I am.<br /><br />Tentative thoughts for the New Year include investigating the music of Laura Marling, and hoping that a 5-0 defeat away to Brighton isn't some kind of omen for the rest of Leyton Orient's season.<br /><br />Happy New Year, people.<br /><br /><br />- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone<br /><br />Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-9519481613052429992010-12-30T20:29:00.000+00:002010-12-30T20:29:17.069+00:00New Year, New WongaThe London Underground stops at around 1 in the morning for about four hours every night, to allow essential maintenance to be carried out to the network. The exception to this is <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/3191370.stm">New Year's Eve since 2003</a>, when trains run throughout the night for free, to enable inebriated Londoners to travel home on a creaking, mostly-out-of-date transport system at a time of their choosing.<br />
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This year, in a spirit of free enterprise, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-12052454">Boris Johnson has announced</a> that the free New Year's Eve travel will be sponsored by <a href="http://wonga.com/">Wonga.com</a>, a company specialising in short term loans at extortionate rates of APR, typically 2689%.<br />
<br />
Fortunately, as they explain on their website, although they're legally obliged to print this in large letters on their adverts, it's nothing to worry about:<br />
<blockquote>The larger the APR the more expensive a loan, right? Wrong. It’s a common perception, but with Wonga’s super-flexible approach to short term credit the <i>opposite</i> applies. This is a good indication of the potential for APR to mislead when trying to judge the cost of a short term loan. </blockquote><blockquote></blockquote><blockquote>The cost of a Wonga cash advance is determined by the amount of money borrowed and the number of days you need it for - the shorter the term, the less you’ll pay in interest and fees. Yet APR actually increases as the term and cost of a Wonga loan decreases. Confused? Well, as the loan period gets shorter, the more times you have to multiply and compound interest to make it into a theoretical annual figure!</blockquote>Ah, so it's actually cheaper. How stupid of me.<br />
<br />
There's a lot of instances on their website where Wonga soothes potential customers after asking them if they feel confused by all this financial speak. <br />
<blockquote>With such short term credit APR has the potential to confuse, because it creates incomprehensible numbers compared to the norm. That’s why we also show the total amount repayable (TAR) before you apply. </blockquote>And not because you're obliged to by government legislation? <br />
<br />
It's easy to imagine that the kind of people who'd use a short term loan service might not be particularly au fait with the ins and outs of financial terminology. It's also easy to imagine that such people would be easily convinced by a flash website which spends a lot of time authoritatively calming their fears about a subject they might be understandably concerned about.<br />
<br />
Wonga state on their site:<br />
<blockquote>We have a consumer credit licence from the <a href="http://www.oft.gov.uk/" target="_blank">Office of Fair Trading</a> and are members of the <a href="http://www.fla.org.uk/fla/" target="_blank">Finance and Leasing Association</a>.</blockquote>A consumer credit licence isn't that hard to come by. But what's the Finance and Leasing Association? Sounds impressive.<br />
<blockquote><span><span><span><span><div class="MsoNormal">The Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) is the UK’s leading trade association for the consumer credit, motor finance and asset finance sectors, and the largest organisation of its type in Europe. </div></span></span></span></span></blockquote><blockquote><span><span><span><span><div class="MsoNormal">Our members are banks, subsidiaries of banks and building societies, the finance arms of leading retailers and manufacturing companies and a range of independent firms.</div></span></span></span></span></blockquote>It's a lobbying organisation for the financial industry.<br />
<blockquote><span><span><span><span>Our mission is to represent our members’ interests to government, regulators, the European institutions, the media and the general public so as to improve the working environment in which our members do business. </span></span></span></span><br />
<span><span><span></span></span></span></blockquote>What they do is to push the interests of what is an already vastly powerful section of industry, the financial sector, and do their best to reduce the costs on this sector. This is nothing to do with the <a href="http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/index.shtml">Financial Services Authority</a>, which has a slightly different purpose.<br />
<blockquote><div class="Lead-text" style="margin-top: 0pt;"> The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA) gives us four statutory objectives: </div><ul><li>market confidence - maintaining confidence in the financial system; </li>
<li class="library-search">financial stability - contributing to the protection and enhancement of the UK financial system</li>
<li>consumer protection - securing the appropriate degree of protection for consumers; and </li>
<li>the reduction of financial crime - reducing the extent to which it is possible for a business to be used for a purpose connected with financial crime. </li>
</ul></blockquote>It's not surprising, then, that <a href="http://www.financialadvice.co.uk/news/investments/89006-george-osborne-to-abolish-the-financial-services-authority.html">the Conservatives want to get rid of it.</a> <br />
<br />
See what Wonga did there? They stated their membership of an association called the FLA, which sounds similar to the FSA, but has entirely different objectives. It would be very cynical to conclude that Wonga touted their membership of the FLA in the knowledge that most people visiting their site will be impressed by the big words and financey language. <br />
<br />
Ultimately, while companies like this manage to avoid the tag "loan shark", mostly because their operations are legit, they share a target group in the part of society that is underpaid, undereducated, and unable to do anything about it, while all the time being bombarded with the messages from the consumer culture we all live in.<br />
<br />
These companies have no interest in changing the structure of society. Why would they? It suits them for their customers to remain in poverty, with just enough income to justify the short term loans that companies like Wonga use to prey on them, but not enough to escape the grim cycle of loan-repayment-loan that keeps the loan companies in business.<br />
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It does London Underground and Boris Johnson no favours to be associated with these despicable people.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-64507427876351220122010-12-30T15:44:00.000+00:002010-12-30T15:44:43.540+00:00Hello, Vera<a href="http://www.canceractive.com/cancer-active-page-link.aspx?n=537">Bet you didn't know aloe vera could cure cancer.</a><br />
<blockquote>Aloe Vera is a natural plant. The form you buy may be nearly 100 per cent natural. This natural compound was used in Egyptian times to fight skin problems and as a cancer treatment particularly for skin cancer, and one of its major benefits is its ability to soothe. It contains at least 6 natural ingredients which act as ´anti-inflammatory agents´, reducing inflammation, one of the important precursors to cancer. </blockquote><blockquote>Aloe vera can fight cancer.</blockquote>What criteria is used for "100% natural"? What devilishe moderne practice has been used to defile the pure aloe vera, so it's not quite there? Never mind.<br />
<br />
I wait with bated breath for the stunning evidence of aloe's amazing cancer-fighting properties, but none seem to appear. How strange. Just lots and lots of sciencey-sounding waffle.<br />
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It doesn't help, either, when the official Cancer Research site publishes <a href="http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/about-cancer/treatment/complementary-alternative/therapies/aloe-vera">stuff like this:</a><br />
<blockquote>Some people claim that aloe vera can balance the <a href="http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/about-cancer/treatment/complementary-alternative/therapies/ssLINK/the-immune-system">immune system</a>, or even treat and cure cancer. Studies have been carried out into this and some laboratory studies and early studies on animals seem to show that extracts from aloe may be helpful in boosting the immune system to attack cancer cells.</blockquote>It goes on to cite, fairly credulously, a study that claims to show aloe vera shrinking cancer cells:<br />
<blockquote>One study in Italy of 240 patients reported in 2009. It tested aloe vera alongside chemotherapy for people with metastatic lung cancer, bowel cancer, and stomach cancer...</blockquote><blockquote>...In this study the cancer was controlled or shrank for a time in 67% of patients who had the combined aloe and chemotherapy treatment and in 50% of patients who had chemotherapy alone. In this study the researchers said that patients taking the aloe vera had a better quality of life and that they had fewer chemotherapy side effects such as numb fingers and fatigue. They also said that there were no ill effects from the aloe vera. More patients who had the aloe vera survived for 3 years than patients who just had chemotherapy.</blockquote>Now, I'll give Cancer Research its due. It also points out that<br />
<blockquote>Although this research seems positive the researchers said that there are some concerns about the study. The researchers knew which patients were receiving aloe vera and they may have influenced the results. </blockquote>Admittedly, they're only showing the criticisms the researchers themselves apparently brought up, and seem to have no thoughts on the study. But they also state:<br />
<blockquote>But there is no evidence that aloe can treat cancer in humans. Some types of aloe can cause severe side effects when used as a cancer treatment and should only be used under medical supervision. It should never be used instead of conventional cancer treatment.</blockquote><blockquote>We don't recommend alternative therapies in place of <a href="http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/about-cancer/treatment/complementary-alternative/about/the-difference-between-complementary-and-alternative-therapies#conventional">conventional treatment</a> because there is often little (if any) scientific or medical evidence to back up the claims made for these therapies. If you have cancer, using methods such as aloe vera instead of conventional medical treatment can be very harmful to your health.</blockquote>The trouble is, the damage is already done by the earlier statements that show some lukewarm support for at least the idea of aloe vera as a cure for cancer. You end up with sites like thealoeverasite.com able to spew up garbage like this:<br />
<blockquote>So popular is the idea that Aloe Vera may be able to treat Cancer that Cancer Research UK have devoted an internet page to it in which they generally state that there is no scientific proof but that it can do no halm (sic).</blockquote>This is dodging the truth by any standards, as Cancer Research make it quite plain that very serious "halm" can come from trying to treat cancer with aloe vera. <br />
<br />
I can quite understand that the possibility of aloe vera being a miracle cure for cancer would be of great interest to Cancer Research, for very legitimate and understandable reasons. Hell, I'd probably shout it from the rooftops. But the science shows nothing of the sort. In fact, a <a href="http://westminsterresearch.wmin.ac.uk/1611/">literature review from the University of Westminster</a> concluded that<br />
<blockquote>There is no evidence from clinical trials to suggest that topical Aloe vera is effective in preventing or minimising radiation-induced skin reactions in cancer patients.</blockquote>But this doesn't stop hundreds of altie sites heaving up their unfounded claims for aloe's alleged properties for treating and preventing cancer itself - and of course, selling you their crank remedies.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-12901518061903248242010-12-27T08:42:00.000+00:002010-12-27T08:42:56.095+00:00Peter Serafinowicz, jokes, fairies and GodHave just woken up, and, after wallowing in the smug pleasure of <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/dec/27/ashes-2010-australia-england-ponting">England's 346-run lead over Australia</a>, I notice there has been something of a storm over an alleged Peter Serafinowicz joke on Twitter.<br />
<br />
Some of Peter's RTs:<br />
<blockquote>They are just words. RT @<a class=" twitter-atreply" data-screen-name="FoleyIsGood" href="http://twitter.com/FoleyIsGood" rel="nofollow">FoleyIsGood</a>: Just seen the deleted @<a class=" twitter-atreply" data-screen-name="serafinowicz" href="http://twitter.com/serafinowicz" rel="nofollow">serafinowicz</a> tweet. Disgraceful. Lost all respect for the guy. </blockquote><blockquote>:( RT@<a class=" twitter-atreply" data-screen-name="tom_trevorrow" href="http://twitter.com/tom_trevorrow" rel="nofollow">tom_trevorrow</a>: @<a class=" twitter-atreply" data-screen-name="serafinowicz" href="http://twitter.com/serafinowicz" rel="nofollow">serafinowicz</a> Really disappointed man. I used to really like you but that joke was just disgusting.</blockquote><blockquote>Wow incitement RT @<a class=" twitter-atreply" data-screen-name="Rogerborg" href="http://twitter.com/Rogerborg" rel="nofollow">Rogerborg</a>: Re. deleted joke, I hope you get the help you deserve. Or are burned by a mob. Either is good.</blockquote>Huh? I can't find sight nor sound of this joke. Anywhere. I'd have thought that someone would have reposted it somewhere, at least. But nothing.<br />
<br />
However, there are some people who have suggested it's some kind of a hoax. This tweet from @simonpegg backs up that theory:<br />
<blockquote><a href="http://twitter.com/serafinowicz" target="_blank">serafinowicz</a> Mate, it will never blow over. You have fucked things up for all of us. Thanks a bunch. </blockquote>I'm now waiting with interest to see what reaction we get from the Sun, the Mail and the like. There's going to be a lot of people with egg on their faces if it turns out this "joke" never existed in the first places, like fairies, or God.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-43023340092532839572010-12-23T21:42:00.000+00:002010-12-23T21:42:03.928+00:00Man fined for insulting muliticoloured rectangle of fabricI knew France was insecure, after <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10611398">the saga of the veil</a>, but this is ridiculous.<br />
<blockquote>A court in the south of France has fined an Algerian man 750 euros (£637; $984) for insulting the national flag - the first penalty under a new decree. </blockquote><blockquote>Abderrahmane Saidi, 26, was at a local government office on Tuesday when he grabbed a flag and snapped the pole in two during a row with a clerk. </blockquote><blockquote>A July decree made insulting the tricolour an offence punishable by a fine of up to 1,500 euros. </blockquote><blockquote>The rule was triggered by a photo of a man wiping his bottom with the flag.</blockquote>Free speech. Unfortunately, it means that sometimes, people are going to say and do things that you don't like. Like the now infamous Islamic <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1340794/Christmas-evil-Muslim-group-launch-poster-campaign-festive-period.html?ito=feeds-newsxml">poster against Christmas. </a><br />
<blockquote>On the 1st day of christmas my true love gave to me an S....T....D.<br />
On the 2nd day debt<br />
On the 3rd rape<br />
On the 4th tennage pregnancy<br />
<ul><li>Followed by an abortion</li>
<li>raves</li>
<li>claiming god has a son</li>
<li>blasphemy</li>
<li>exploitation</li>
<li>promiscuity</li>
<li>night clubs </li>
<li>crime</li>
<li>paedophilia</li>
<li>paganism</li>
<li>domestic violence</li>
<li>homelessness</li>
<li>alcohol</li>
<li>drugs...</li>
</ul><h4>xmasisevil.com</h4></blockquote>Well, fair enough, you can't really get away from the god having a son bit. After all you Christians brought that on yourself.<br />
<br />
But aren't all these Muslims supposed to be going to hell anyway? They're the ones who believe in a false god, and all that. Why don't Christians just sit back, smile and think of Judgement Day when something like this happens?<br />
<br />
The last word on flags goes, as so many of them do, to Bill Hicks.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/aBCkm9-LvRg?fs=1&hl=en_GB"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/aBCkm9-LvRg?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Case... Fucking... Closed.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-90503957695621756752010-12-22T22:58:00.000+00:002010-12-22T22:58:32.640+00:00Give your loved ones an extra-special prezzy: the HPV vaccine<h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/martha-rosenberg/hpv-vaccine-would-you-give-your-kids_b_799111.html" id="title_permalink" title="Permalink">HPV Vaccine: Would You Give Your Kids Gardasil and Cervarix Vaccines?</a></span></h1><h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Martha Rosenberg's clearly heard of the idea that any question in the headline of an article should be answered "no". In this case, however, it's a resounding "yes".</span></h1><blockquote>Even though Merck's Gardasil and GSK's Cervarix are highly advertised to doctors and patients, many women are just saying no to the vaccines, according to research presented at the <a href="http://www.aacr.org/home/public--media/aacr-in-the-news.aspx?d=2191" target="_hplink">American Association for Cancer Research</a> in Philadelphia last month. <br />
</blockquote><blockquote>The vaccines protect against the Human papillomavirus (HPV), the virus which causes cervical cancer. </blockquote><blockquote>In 2007, 12,280 women in the U.S. were diagnosed with <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/cervical/statistics/" target="_hplink">cervical cancer</a> and 4,021 died.</blockquote>So vaccinating against this danger would be a good thing, right? Wrong.<br />
<blockquote>And then there's the morality issue.</blockquote><blockquote>"I was greatly offended that Merck suggest I vaccinate my nine-year-old daughter against an STD," says Kelley Watson, a mother of two in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park. "Especially insulting to me was that there was never any mention of HPV as being a sexually transmitted disease. It was presented as something women can contract through tampons or nylon stockings -- as if men played no part."</blockquote>Hmm. Hate to be the one to break it to you, but one day soon, sooner than you think, your nine-year-old is likely going to be experimenting with boys, and possibly men. Why is it considered against morality to recognise that possibility, that your daughter's innocent fumblings might result in a death sentence, remote as that possibility might be?<br />
<br />
And after the patronising morality plea, here come the health risks:<br />
<blockquote>In addition to causing fainting, allergic reactions, <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/Vaccines/HPV/gardasil.html" target="_hplink">Guillain-Barré Syndrome</a> and blood clots, 56 girls have died from the vaccine as of September says the CDC. 14-year-old Natalie Morton died last year, soon after being vaccinated for HPV at her school in Coventry, UK though authorities now say she died of a tumor.</blockquote>Nice. Even though you admit that <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article6856774.ece">Natalie Morton's death had nothing to do with the HPV vaccine</a>, you still think it's fine to stick the link in your article anyway. Classy, Martha.<br />
<br />
And you don't provide a link to back up your claim that the CDC says 56 girls have died from the vaccine. Why's that? Here, I'll help you. <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/Vaccines/HPV/gardasil.html">This is the page on the CDC website which, presumably, you took your figures from.</a> And here's a quote. <br />
<blockquote>As of September 30, 2010, there have been 56 U.S. reports of death among females who have received Gardasil. Thirty of these reports have been confirmed and 26 remain unconfirmed due to no identifiable patient information in the report such as a name and contact information to confirm the report. Confirmed reports are those that scientists have followed up on and have verified the claim. In the 30 reports confirmed, there was no unusual pattern or clustering to the deaths that would suggest that they were caused by the vaccine.</blockquote>Whoa. Hold it a minute. Did you just say<br />
<blockquote> there was no unusual pattern or clustering to the deaths that would suggest that they were caused by the vaccine.</blockquote>Yes, it did say that. But... that would mean... Martha, you're a dishonest, lying cheat, who takes a figure from a credible health information site, and deliberately leaves out the important bits, like<br />
<blockquote>there was no unusual pattern or clustering to the deaths that would suggest that they were caused by the vaccine</blockquote>in order to pretend that it's supporting your own fanatically anti-vax views.<br />
<br />
Fortunately, <a href="http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/HPV-vaccination/Pages/Side-effects.aspx">among the anti-vaxers and altie fanatics</a>, there are a few savvy teens who have their head screwed on.<br />
<blockquote><h4>School girl said on 21 January 2010</h4>I'm a fifteen year old girl and today i had my second HPV injection. To all those that are passing this up is rediculous. The bad side affects are really rare. All i get is a slight headache and soreness around the injected area fo 24 hours. I would much rather deal with that then actually get cervical cancer. Your daughters are at the age where they can make up their own mind about things and this is definately one of them! I highly recommend! The injection doesn't even hurt. So i think your putting your daughter more at risk from it by not letting her have it because she may not be old enough for screening but doesn't mean she won't get it at her age.</blockquote><h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></h1>Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-63305267936348505002010-12-21T22:46:00.000+00:002010-12-21T22:46:51.087+00:00Somewhere in the world, the wrinkled face of a media baron cracks into a cruel smileVince, Vince, Vince. <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/liberaldemocrats/8218006/Vince-Cable-stripped-of-responsibility-for-media-competition-after-Rupert-Murdoch-comments.html">What were you thinking?</a><br />
<br />
You were absolutely bloody right, of course. Someone's got to resist Murdoch, and it might as well be the Lib Dems. After all, it's not as if any part of his evil empire was ever going to publish a favourable opinion of you lot, was it? And let's face it, the Tories and Labour are too busy forelock-tugging to keep an eye on him.<br />
<br />
Now there's very little to stop Murdoch taking over the rest of Sky (like he didn't dictate its line anyway) and turning it into the UK equivalent of Fox News.<br />
<br />
One slip of the tongue, and you've lost a huge chunk of your department, and responsibility. A bit knee-jerk, I think, transferring 70 civil servants essentially in the interest of not pissing Murdoch off too much, but there you go, that's how the Tories work.<br />
<br />
Well, maybe Jeremy "Rhymes With" Hunt might grow a backbone, and actually <a href="http://www.jeremyhunt.org/newsshow.aspx?ref=452">stand up to the gnarled old Aussie.</a><br />
<blockquote>But would it matter if Rupert Murdoch owned two TV news channels in Britain? "The important thing is not whether a particular owner owns another TV channel but to make sure you have a variety of owners with a variety of TV channels so that no one owner has a dominant position both commercially and politically. </blockquote><blockquote>"Rather than worry about Rupert Murdoch owning another TV channel, what we should recognise is that he has probably done more to create variety and choice in British TV than any other single person because of his huge investment in setting up Sky TV which, at one point, was losing several million pounds a day. </blockquote><blockquote>"We would be the poorer and wouldn't be saying that British TV is the envy of the world if it hadn't been for him being prepared to take that commercial risk. We need to encourage that kind of investment."</blockquote>Ok, maybe not.<br />
<br />
Vince, Vince, Vince. Thanks a bunch.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-69512346522549377922010-12-20T23:08:00.001+00:002010-12-20T23:11:49.900+00:00Lights on at Temple Of DoomSpeaking of the Olympics, David Cameron has <a href="http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/20122010/58/london-2012-lights-olympic-stadium.html">switched on the floodlights</a> for the first time at the Olympic Stadium in Stratford. Or, as it shall become known after whichever of <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/dec/12/west-ham-spurs-olympic-stadium">Tottenham or West Ham (or both) take up occupation</a>, the Temple of Doom.<br />
<br />
Few people, <a href="http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/news/Leyton-Orient-chairman-Barry-Hearn-issues-warning-to-West-Ham-over-Olympic-Stadium-article320875.html">apart from Barry Hearn</a>, seem to have noticed that there's already a professional football club in the area. To fill a stadium that's nearly three times as large as their own, West Ham will undoubtably have to cut prices, and that could be disastrous for Leyton Orient, as the Hammers will be targeting fans in our own catchment area.<br />
<br />
Let's face it, the way things are going, if West Ham move in it's going to be Championship football being played there - hardly the best advert. And Tottenham need to keep their noses out and stay in North London. They didn't like it when <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/history/laying-the-foundations/norris-negotiates-top-flight-return">Arsenal did it to them</a>, after all.<br />
<br />
No, we don't want Spurs or Hammers as next door neighbours, thank you very much.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3278613909498569992.post-40731283024513198112010-12-20T18:59:00.000+00:002010-12-20T18:59:47.762+00:00Gove executes Cruyff turn (poorly) on school sportsIn the face of the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-11935179">massive cuts planned for school sports in the UK</a>, it was looking very much that the legacy of the 2012 Olympics was going to be sporting mediocrity for a generation.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/dec/20/u-turn-michael-gove-school-sport-partnership?INTCMP=SRCH">Now it appears that there's been some kind of reprieve</a>.<br />
<blockquote>Today Gove said he would pay £47m to keep the SSPs going until summer 2011. They were originally due to lose all their funding from the end of next March. <br />
</blockquote><blockquote>A further £65m will also guarantee that all schools can release one PE teacher for one day a week from 2011 to 2013, to promote pupils' participation in a range of PE and sporting activities – a key feature of the current system.</blockquote>Actually, it doesn't look particularly generous, does it? Another couple of months, and they still lose all their funding.<br />
<br />
What worries me is Gove's "new approach for school sports".<br />
<blockquote>Gove sought to portray today's announcement as the beginning of the new system of school sport that he had previously said he wanted, putting extra emphasis on competitive, inter-school sport, but without specifying how that would happen.</blockquote>It's only in this country, as far as I know, that we put so much into competition at a young age in sport, as opposed to actually teaching skills, and allowing children to enjoy themselves. It's exemplified by picking the biggest, not necessarily best, kids for the school football team, in the hope of physically overpowering the opposition.<br />
<br />
It's an approach that isn't copied elsewhere. <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/article2957535.ece">Holland, in particular, has for many years blazed its own trail</a> in teaching kids about the fundamentals of football, rather than insisting on winning at all costs.<br />
<blockquote>In the mid-1980s, the father of total football, Rinus Michels, penned his thoughts on youth football. One key belief was that kids’ football should not replicate the adult game. Another was that it should be enjoyable, with everyone involved and lots of chances to score. Now, across the Netherlands, his ideas are used. At the age of 5, games are four-a-side. At 9 they progress to seven-a-side on half-sized pitches. Finally, at 13, they play 11-a-side on regulation pitches. “If you have kids playing football then give them a ball,” Rob de Leede, of the KNVB, the Dutch FA, said. “We don’t want people doing drills and waiting for 15 minutes for their turn.” </blockquote>And that goes a big way towards explaining why Holland have qualified for three World Cup Finals, and one European Championship Final, in the last 44 years, where England have qualified for none. Michael Gove isn't going to start turning that about any time soon.Supertechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07040870818691415764noreply@blogger.com0