Playing Scrabble with Augustus John

Kepler

This is a cracking image from NASA's APOD by Ben Cooper of the recent launch of the Kepler telescope. Kepler will be looking for changes in the brightness of more than a million stars every five hours, searching for "winks" in light that happen when a planet passes in front of its star.

Planet spotting outside the solar system is still in its infancy with only three hundred odd Jupiter sized gas giants on record. What Kepler will do is look for Earth-like planets in the habitable zone around stars where liquid water may exist.

Exciting times indeed.

The only rule of Tennis Club....

Well, well, well, tempers boiled over during the Australian Open third round match between Novak Djokovic and Amer Dilic. Bosnian and Serbian fans clashed in scenes usually reserved for international football matches and police were forced to make a number of arrests.

What gets me, is that I find it hard enough to stay awake if tennis is on the TV - let alone get heated enough to start fisticuffs. What on Earth is so exciting about two blokes knocking a ball back and forth that drives people to behave like this? Next thing you know, you'll have flares being set off at the snooker, or shots being fired at the bowls. Some people eh?

The world's coming down around our ears

Here I was, thinking things couldn't get worse and I see news today suggesting that playing golf is bad for your hearing. Apparently the sound of the club hitting the ball is such, that it damages the sensitive parts of the ear. Well, let me tell you, all parts of my ears are sensitive and let's face it, golfers deserve everything they get. Elsewhere, we read that Morris Dancing could become extinct in twenty years, because young people are too embarrassed to take part. Just when you thought the fabric of society was coming apart at its seams, it's reassuring to hear that the youth of today still have some common sense, well you wouldn't hear it if you've been playing golf I suppose. Anyway, with the Morris dancers gone, Saturday shopping in Bury St Edmunds town centre should become more tolerable. Maybe we could also do something about toddlers in Starbucks. Ahhhh...... who said January was boring?

Election Night Special

Today sees the Haltempice and Howden byelection caused by the resignation of David Davis. After the House of Commons voted to be able to detain terror suspects for up to 42 days, he resigned from both his seat and a senior role in the shadow cabinet to fight re-election on a civil liberties agenda. David Cameron, his leader called the decision "courageous" - Westminster speak for barmy and though the Tories voted against the law, it is something that the country at large seem to want. In another time, it is probably legislation that would have garnered their support, but with a chance to give the government a bloody nose, you can't blame them for voting against it.

Davis' hope was that he could turn the by-election into a mini-referendum on the perceived erosion of civil liberties by government legislation. He doesn't have the biggest majority in parliament, but with his main competition in his constituency; the Lib Dems pulling out, all bets are off him being re-elected. The Labour party also declined to field a candidate, because after all, a Davis win would somehow gives his claims legitimacy. All this now means a rather empty byelection with a record field of candidates, but rather than fighting the election against the government, he's now up against (amongst others) Mad Cow Girl from the Monster Raving Loony Party, a candidate from the Church of the Militant Elvis Party, oh and of course David Icke. That's the same David Icke who wore turquoise and thinks the world is being run by Zionist Space Lizards. Not that I think Davis' libertarian credentials stand up to scrutiny, having consistently being against gay rights and the fox hunting ban, but I do think this is Karma in action. Do you think he's glad he resigned?.

They really should have done a Question Time special though.

(David Dimbleby - a night off from Question Time, on his way to the Sex in the City premiere)

I didn't even know there vas a var on!

..... Vee lived in zee back... near Svitzerland! All vee ever heard vas yodeling! (Franz Liebkind)

It has been reported by the BBC today that a 500lb unexploded bomb has been found on Felixstowe sea front. There has been a half mile exclusion zone set up, schools evacuated and there is a possibility that the Port of Felixstowe will need to be closed until the Royal Navy Bomb Squad officers have dealt with it. To complicate matters, the bomb is only visible at low tide and is currently under water. Unexploded ordinance is often found in this part of the world because of the importance of the area during WWII, so it isn't always too much of a surprise.

It was later reported that the bomb wasn't German, but in fact American. Apparently it is routine for planes to jettison undelivered bomb loads before returning to their airbases in Suffolk and Norfolk. Now, I would be the first to admit that Felixstowe is a bit of a hole, but surely, any dumping of bombs should be done way out at sea!?

There is no indication as to the age of the bomb, but if it turns out to be modern, is this some sort of first strike, or just gormlessness of the highest order? I mean, I've heard of friendly fire in Iraq, but this is just plain ridiculous. 

Double standards...

The Olympic Torch is being carried through London tomorrow. Apparently £1m is being spent on security as protesters against China's human rights record in Tibet, descend on the UK's capital urging a boycott of the Olympics. Even the Liberal Democrat leader; Nick Clegg, has backed an Olympic boycott.

What I want to know is, where are these same protesters when it comes to Chinese imports? Has Nick Clegg dumped his Chinese made mobile phone, his Chinese made TV or his computer built from Chinese made components? Will these same protesters be binning their cheap clothing and shoes? Somehow I doubt it. Sure, there are the principled minority who will, but ultimately the Olympics are too easy a easy target. Folks still expect to be able to buy their £5 jeans and their throwaway electronic goods. When it comes to human rights, people can conveniently overlook tanks in Tiananmen Square and riot police on the streets of Lhasa when the choice is to take a hit in their pockets.

So, if you're going to give abuse to those taking the torch through London tomorrow, I hope you take time to fervently apply the same ethical principles to yourselves when you get home.

Whatever...

According to the BBC, the Children's Commissioner for England has called for a ban on so called "Mosquito devices" that emit unbearable high pitched buzzing frequencies that only the under 25s can hear. He feels that communities would be better served by engaging disaffected youths rather than steering them away from hot spots of anti-social behaviour. Given that most of these devices are positioned outside off licences and convenience stores that suffer from often alcohol fuelled youths causing a nuisance, we have to ask ourselves a question. Is this a case of protecting the rights of those innocent teenagers who are merely nipping to the local store for half a pound of cheddar for their grandmother, or is it just a cry of "S'not fair!" from a bunch of louts who've had their fun spoiled?

Leather shoes

One of the worst kept secrets in Westminster was revealed today when Tony Blair our former PM was announced as having converted to Roman Catholicism. Those close to the man spoke of his deep religious faith and convictions and how this was always something he would do. Elsewhere, former political opponents seem to be hell bent on using this as fuel in criticising him for decisions made while he was in office. The likes of Menzies Campbell and Anne Widdecombe (herself a Catholic) have emerged from the woodwork to emphasise the inconsistencies between decisions made whilst in office and central beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church. I'm not Blair's biggest fan, but it does seem like political gainsaying of the lowest order; a bit like deriding a vegetarian for wearing leather shoes.

Ultimately belief and faith are a personal choice. There hasn't been a Roman Catholic prime minister since the Reformation, but that has more to do with established paranoia that goes back to the 16th century (and may have influenced the timing), but when  Alistair Campbell said of the Labour administration that they "don't do God", I don't think the public at large were that upset. In our multi-faithed secular society I think politics have to be based on debate rather than a particular faith. I'm all for principled politicians who have a faith, but I don't want us to go down the same road as the US where Christianity and politics are intertwined. A bit like the act of kissing babies, a potential President doesn't get elected unless he shows a definite commitment to faith.

Maybe Anne Widdecombe and co would prefer that sort of approach where religion is the ultimate political arbiter. Personally I just want someone who can make the right decisions whether they are difficult or easy or whether they fit nicely within a Christian or other faith remit or not. Yes, our political system has its faults and politicians eventually disappoint us, but at least it doesn't have an overt religious bias.

Belief?

Brazilian striker and former World Cup winner Romario is the latest in a long line of sportsmen and women who have either failed a drugs test or failed to turn up for one. In Romario's case he has blamed it on a baldness cure. Historically, excuses have also ranged from contaminated sausages, STD medication being transferred during sex to too much exercise and cold cures. Elsewhere athletes miss drugs tests:  Christine Ohuruogu missed three tests apparently because it's easy to forget and was banned from Olympic competition by the BOC. Following a win at the World Championships and a vague threat to run for another country, the ban was overturned by a medal hungry governing body. Rio Ferdinand was banned from football for several months after missing a test while any number of world class sprinters appear to fail tests each year. Elsewhere guys like Barry Bonds just issue denials and appear to be flame proof. The point is; we know that drugs are endemic throughout sports, but when it comes down to it, you never see an athlete hold their hands up and admit they've done something wrong. You never see someone saying "It's a fair cop", you just get denials and excuses. Are sport and sportspeople all that corrupt? In a business where money is king and morals are left at the door, is it any wonder that kids shun sports in favour of games consoles, or that dishonesty just becomes a way of life for them?

Surely not!?!

 

Just a thought…. Apparently scientists have discovered that young chimpanzees have better memory recall than adult humans. Impressive you might think until you realise the study was carried out with students representing "adult humans". Now, knowing the amount of crap students eat, the drugs they smoke and the alcohol they drink, I can imagine there are any number of salad ingredients out there with better memory recall than your average student. I wonder how much they spent on that "research"?