Bush hails Blair as "visionary leader". Which must be quite a curse, really.
Debate-o – will be being closely allied to Bush be the final nail in Blair’s coffin? Or will it be domestic politics that finally does him in?
Month: November 2004
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Cursed
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Seagulls sign Claridge
Blimey, things are getting desperate. Frankly, I expect Mark McGhee to be on the phone any day now, offering me a rôle in midfield.
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and a half
It’s my half birthday today – six months from May 12th, six months to May 12th. Send all your half birthday cards to the usual address.
Which means I missed out on my thirty-three-and-a-thirdth birthday. Bah! -
Splashing cash
Having just received a letter from Chichester District Council telling me that they owe me a council tax rebate of nearly £200, I thought I’d treat my gorgeous wife to a light lunch in order to cheer her up, then would explore the bookshop for some new reading matter. Purchased in a 3 for 2 deal:
Francis Wheen – How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered The World. "Hilarious" says Jeremy Paxman!
Tobias Jones – The Dark Heart Of Italy. "Excellent" says Andrew Marr!
Noam Chomsky – Hegemony or Survival: America’s Quest for Global Dominance. "Devastating" says Tim Adams!
I’ll try to report back on the levels of hilarity, excellence and devastation in each case. And I really must update that current reading, current listening and current mood thing in the sidebar, as it’s not-at-all current.UPDATE: sidebar updated.
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Long day…
…for both of us for different reasons. For me, a trip to the New Forest to see two clients, then back via Chichester for a haircut, then home for vin avec Lu et Kev. For H, coworkers – nuff said.
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For pity’s sake…
…when will our government and the rest of the international community get together and do something about this?
It is really hard to convey what it is like, when in the dark hours of the early morning, jeeps come in with searchlights, knowing that these people have absolutely no protection.I’ve been covering Africa for 21 years and I thought I’d seen everything, but to watch the officials and the police of a state like Sudan – which has just signed a peace agreement – demolishing people’s shacks under the eyes of international observer and breaching international law, is quite extraordinary and unique.
The population is terrorised and bewildered, with little faith in the power of the international community.
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No smoke without
Scottish Executive unanimously decides to ban smoking in public enclosed places. Scotland’s First Minister, Jack McConnell, said there would be an international marketing campaign whereby “tourists can enjoy smoke free environment and the sick man of Europe image becomes a thing of the past”. To which I can only say four words: Deep. Fried. Mars. Bars.
Seriously, though, what’s the betting that there’ll be similar legislation in the rest of the UK within three to five years? And what impact will it have on pubs, particularly those more rural pubs that are important to their community but already struggling? -
Picture double bill
From the honeymoon – Mount Etna erupting.
We decided that close inspection of the crater probably wasn’t called for.From the wedding – Lord Percy and Peet ham it up.
The full effect of the red wine was setting in by this point. (Photo courtesy of Mrs Peet). -
WP-hack
The great thing with WP is that hacks and plug-ins are encouraged. I’ve just implemented a nice little WP hack by Wellard that seems to leave normal functioning intact, but should stop the comment spams, at least for a while. There are other plug-ins and hacks that I can deploy, so if this doesn’t work, I’ll try them.
Honestly, you’d think that running a site would be easier than this. If only people wouldn’t keep trying to butt in on my space.