John Peel 1939-2004

John Peel was the best. He introduced me and millions of others to The Fall, The Undertones and also quite a lot of shit drum 'n' bass. His show was like a long bus journey around the world of music (and drum'n'bass).

He also presented Home Truths, the classic start to Saturday mornings ever since I first had a hangover.

I'm very sad now, and will probably not get any work done this afternoon.

October 26, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment 

Operation Guardian

In response to The Guardian's curious project in reaching-out to US voters (which legally provided the contact details of voters in one small county in Ohio, the hope being that readers could get in touch with them and discuss the election), the message boards of Bush supporting websites have gone into overdrive, pouring out lashings of bile, wild claims and ill-considered arguments.
The best I've seen so far is Tim Blair's Operation Guardian, a huge page of diatribes and smug stupidity – albeit with a sprinkling of sensible questioning (e.g. what was the Guardian really expecting? and didn't they worry that this could damage either Kerry's chances of winning, or Americans' feelings about the UK?).
Yet again, it has been shown that when the right wing get angry, they get silly.

It's silly to say that the British shouldn't express any opinions about the US because Americans died in the second world war: they died in the defence of freedom, but so did the British and French soldiers. As did the thousands of European citizens who were murdered by Fascist bombs and gas. These criminal wars were started not by Europeans but by men: it is folly to pretend that given the right circumstances, thugs like Mussolini or Hitler could not be born Americans.

It's silly to say that just because some of the ancestors of Americans came from Britain, it must be an awful place: Britain has changed a lot in two hundred years, as has America. The Americans are no longer exterminating the native peoples of their continent… they pretty much completed that job. But we don't want to dwell on the past. Never mind that the land of the free – the home of democracy and free speech – only allowed blacks the vote in the 1960s. You see, in Europe, we are prepared to accept that you have moved on from such abominations. We don't continually draw attention to your previous failings because we feel that you learnt the lesson, and nothing would be gained for any reasonable argument by harping on about them. But this is the key: we don't think that we in Europe are essentially any different from you. Sadly, it seems that the bulk of correspondents on Tim Blair's site genuinely believe that they are different to – and immeasurably better than – European citizens. It's just not true.

It's silly to make wild claims like "If the president isn't re-elected, you and the rest of the eurotrash will be living under Islamic law within the decade". It would be easy to say that 'Erp' (mailto:erp617@yahoo.com) was probably joking with this bizarre assertion. But honestly, I don't think he or she was. Clearly a stupid thing to say, but on closer inspection this is very revealing. Europe's recent history is one of increasing secularity. Not only have we succeeded in separating Church and State, but larger and larger numbers of Europeans no longer subscribe to the faiths which were previously institutional. The only western democracy actually drifting towards religious fundamentalism is the USA, where the electorate now demand unseemly evangelism from their commander-in-chief, not sober, consciencious, thought.

It's silly to say that all British people have bad teeth. Most British people I've met have benefited from years of open, free, public health – a system only now being ruined (in the American model!). Personally, I couldn't care less. If, as a response to a reasoned argument, you are faced with this:, "if you insist I could make fun of how only one out of ten britons has straight teeth. i could do that. i could make fun of how pasty and pale their skin tends to be to where i might actually be taken for a black man by mistake if i stood next to a guy from wales. i could make fun of how a briton got his head knocked around so bad at the last soccer game (that's football for my limey buddies our there) it gave him permanent brain damage and so he went to the pub and drank himself into more brain damage and then went on a twenty minute rant about how violent and idiotic americans are." – then what are you supposed to think?

This theme, which I have mentioned in these pages several times before, is present throughout the right-wing. It can be summed up thus:
Dissent is inherently illogical. IE any argument that disagrees with or attacks my system of values or my political standpoint is, by virtue of its opposition, wrong.
This rhetorical position is quite obviously untenable when faced with continued enquiry and logical argument. As we have seen, the natural progression from a viewpoint of blind ignorance is to insult and eventually physically attack the reasonable thinker. This is what happened to Miguel de Unamuno, one of Spain's most eminent thinkers, when he voiced his opposition to exactly the same viewpoint held by the current US administration:
"At times to be silent is to lie. You will win because you have enough brute force. But you will not convince. For to convince you need to persuade. And in order to persuade you would need what you lack: Reason and Right.".

Using the immaculate (and politically uninterested) tools of logic, it is not hard to show right-wing political ideas for what they really are: hate, anti-intelligence and physical aggression. But be careful: these guys are dangerous.

October 19, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment 

US Presidential Elections

***this message will be repeated from time to time before the Nov 20 elections***
understand this: we Europeans are not trying to subvert your democracy… Bush did that for you well enough. All we want is that you all make a wise, informed decision: go with lies for another four years, or opt for a change.

Americans – Please do not vote for George Bush.
This election affects everyone, but unfortunately only US citizens can vote. Therefore, if you are an American citizen, I urge you to use your vote.
But PLEASE do not vote for George Bush!

October 18, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment 

oh well, ok

yes I bought an iPod the other day. Managed to not go crazy on here about it. Don't actually have it yet (this could well be the reason for my not having gone crazy about it yet).
I AM GETTING AN IPOD!!!!!!! IT'S ALL PAID FOR!!!!!!!! YEEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!!
craziness done.

Incidentally, I watched Anger Management with Adam Sandler (who I don't like much) and it was surprisingly funny. Prejudice gets you nowhere.

October 16, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment 

old picture

taken from the terrace with the new camera. I really like the fake sepia mode:

October 15, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment 

Presidential debates

If you're like me and haven't had a chance to watch the debates between Bush and Kerry because you live in a country where all foreign languages are dubbed and besides, politics isn't very important, then you will be happy to know that you can watch them online. But you probably knew that. But just in case you didin't:
Click here to watch the most recent TV debate. (needs realplayer).

"Freedom is on the march" – Bush once again links freedom with war. What about love and hate, George… your doublethink is really coming along well.

October 14, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment 

Anger Management

After my previous post, I felt I should make some effot to control myself a little more.
Click here for the video which will show you how to manage your anger properly.
***PROBABLY NOT OFFICE SAFE***

October 10, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment 

Why hunting with dogs is cruel, stupid and full of posh sods.

I didn't mention it at the time, but I am very very happy that the Commons voted to ban hunting with dogs the other day. This barbaric anachronism is well worth getting rid of, especially if we are to see ourselves as a modern society.

The way I see it, hunting with dogs should be banned for these reasons:
1 Cruelty. This 'sport' has only one goal – the violent killing of a small wild animal. This is very cruel.

2 Uselessness. Hunters occasionally claim that they kill foxes to protect farmed animals – that the fox is a dangerous predator and verminous chicken destroyer. Which is partly true. Then other hunters turn round and say 'Anyway we don't catch that many'. So what's the point? If you don't catch many of these creatures (just enough to slake your caveman lust for blood), then it's clearly a stupid and inefficient method of pest control. How many people take part in a hunt? 20 or more usually. And there are usually plenty of hounds around. What a colossal waste of time!!

3 Hounds. Another argument used by the hunters is that if we ban hunting with dogs then all the dogs will have to be put down and that's not very nice now is it? Firstly that's bollocks. If they love the hounds so much then they should look after them at their homes instead of these horrible kennels where they're kept (and starved, mark you). Secondly, they kill all the doggies anyway at around the age of two (but certainly before they reach 5). So the hunting liars claim that they only care about the dogs when they're planning to kill them anyway. Bastards.

4 Workers. The hunters go on to claim that if hunting is banned then the huge number of (working class) people who depend on 'the industry' will be unemployed and no longer able to support their country families which you town people don't understand because we're just all so different, and think of the workers. Firstly, that's bollocks. There are not very many people at all who depend on hunting to support their families. Most people who help with hunts have other jobs. Hunting is a kind of hobby really, and it shouldn't be treated as a sport or an 'industry'. Secondly, this argument about workers is one of the most sickening ones that all these fat Tory slobs could come up with, and I'll tell you why: these fat Tory slobs are the very same fat Tory slobs who laughed and cheered when all the miners finally lost their battle to keep working in the 1980s. They are the same fat Tory slobs who succeeded in destroying whole communities – villages and towns – with their destruction of British industry. Hundreds of people died as a direct result of this radical capitalism, and they have the nerve to complain about a few farmhands losing their Saturday jobs? They don't even care for the farmhands – mark my words, if they could find a machine or foreigner to do the things that a labourer does then they'd get it , sack the labourer and damn his family. Which leads us neatly to my final point:

5 Fat Tory slobs. The hunters have been very keen to make it look as if it's not just wealthy right-wing pricks who enjoy hunting: they claim that there are loads of poor right-wing pricks who love to join in (serving drinks, grooming horses, driving landrovers etc). Clearly, this argument is of key importance because they want to make it look like grubby industrial city socialists like Tony Blair and Peter Mandelson are hell-bent on destroying the countryside because they're not from there, could never understand it, are socialists, hate rich people, loath Olde Englande and don't care about anything further west than Reading. Hunters like to make it look like everyone who is against hunting is either some kind of loony militant vegetarian or a city dwelling metrosexual hair-do type who thinks that horse can only ever refer to smack. This is, of course, bollocks. I'm from the countryside. So are lots of my friends. Our teenage years genuinely were spent wondering around fields and woods after dark, taking tea with the vicar and making butter. I worked in our local delicatessen (a village of 1000 inhabitants that has a splendid delicatessen and 7 antiques shops, including one junk shop which is called – seriously – Ye Olde Shoppe, perhaps this will tell you how country folk look after the country) – and I remember one hunt day very clearly. A family (very wealthy they are) who I knew came into the shop in their stupid hunting clothes and pretended they didn't know me at all. The husband is an old comrade of my father's. I went to school with two of the sons. But that day I was a shop-boy and they were hunters, so they had to pretend that they didn't know me.
You see, most intelligent people from the country are well aware that it is these sorts of people who hunt. Snobs, jaded gentry and pseudo-aristos are the main protagonists of this stupid waste of time hobby. No one would be happier than me to see the smug grins wiped of the smug fat faces of the people who enjoy this vile atrocity. Yes, I take this personally. I make no apologies for that. I hate that these people can claim to love the countryside which I grew up with and which I adore, when all they've ever loved the country for was making cash off the work of the locals, showing off to their friends, and somewhere quiet to take a break from the relentless work of ruining peoples lives.
The fat Tory scum who enjoy hunting can fuck right off as far as I'm concerned. Your time has passed, and whatever you may bluster and burble in your clubs, it may just be that Tony Blair has managed to pass at least one decent class-based piece of legislation aimed at giving the toffs a great big Up Yours!

October 10, 2004 | Filed Under Rants, UK | 2 Comments 

Derrida

To pretend, I actually do the thing: I have therefore only pretended to pretend.
He was so influential that last year a film was made about his life – a biographical documentary.
At one point, wandering through Derrida's library, one of the filmmakers asks him: "Have you read all the books in here?" "No," he replies impishly, "only four of them. But I read those very, very carefully".

Deconstructed?*

(*apologies to all for a weak and childish joke, but perhaps Jacques would have enjoyed it?)

October 9, 2004 | Filed Under General | Leave a Comment