Skip introduction & navigation

Web Design | Views & Rants | Reviews | Contact | Links | About

Welcome to the weblog, which gets updated whenever I have time to do it.

Wednesday 27th February

Only one thing to say about today: a genius has died. If only some of the reports of his death and funeral would reflect his anarchic and surreal humour; but probably there will just be a lot of "grovelling bastards". RIP.

Monday 25th February

Blair and Bush are going to meet in April to decide when they’re going to stomp on Iraq. The Observer reports:

Blair will travel to Washington in six weeks’ time in a clear signal that Downing Street fully backs Bush’s plans to launch a war against Iraq if Saddam does not agree to deadlines to destroy his arsenal of weapons of mass destruction.

This is not because of any connection between the Iraqi regime and the September attacks: Although there is no evidence of any link between Iraq and the attacks of 11 September, both leaders will make it clear that weapons of mass destruction are a legitimate target for military action.

The article also notes that action is not likely to be immediate:

Intelligence officials in Britain have told The Observer that there is concern about over-committing in Iraq and of making military promises that cannot be kept.

They have advised Number 10 that the only ‘window’ for action is in the autumn and winter of this year, when the fierce heat in the region abates slightly.

The Washington Post, though, reports that it could take longer than that before the USA is up to taking on Iraq:

Bush administration rhetoric has fueled speculation that a military move against Iraq could be imminent. But the military reality is that it could take up to a year before the United States is ready to launch a coordinated assault likely to achieve the administration’s goals of destroying Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction capability and replacing Hussein’s regime.

According to testimony and interviews with senior administration and Pentagon officials, foreign diplomats and nongovernment analysts, depleted arms stocks, demands on ships and aircraft in the Afghan campaign, severe strains on active duty and reserve forces over the last five months, and the need to obtain regional basing and command center agreements have imposed an unavoidably lengthy timeline on U.S. action.

President Carter gave a commitment in 1978 that the USA would not use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear country. That’s a commitment President Bush II is dropping.

Washington is "not looking for occasions to use" its nuclear arsenal, John Bolton, undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, said in an interview…

In case of an attack on the United States, "we would have to do what is appropriate under the circumstances, and the classic formulation of that is, we are not ruling anything in and we are not ruling anything out," Mr. Bolton said.

"We are just not into theoretical assertions that other administrations have made," he said…

One of the striking things about the World Trade Centre attacks was that the South Tower was struck by an aeroplane second but collapsed first, well before the North Tower which had suffered the first impact. One important factor may have been that the aircraft which hit the South Tower was travelling much faster — maybe 160kph faster — than the one which struck the North Tower.

You would have thought that the resignation of Jo Moore and Martin Sixsmith would have made Stephen Byers’s life a little easier. Apparently not, particularly as Martin Sixsmith is claiming he hasn’t resigned.

Stephen Byers had backed the resignations of his department’s press chief Martin Sixsmith and transport special adviser Jo Moore, saying they had "done the right thing" by quitting.

Mr Sixsmith has now said he did not resign over the row about "burying" bad news, and insists he remains in the post.

But the government has again insisted that both he and Ms Moore had quit.

Am I alone in having the words piss-up and brewery running (again) through my head?

It gets better. Sir Richard Mottram, Permanent Secretary at the Department of Transport, has stepped in to support his minister, insisting that Sixsmith did agree to resign. However, it’s clear from what Mottram says that at the time Byers was telling the world Sixsmith had resigned he had in fact not done so, and the premature publicity caused him to withdraw his agreement to resign. So he is technically still employed at the DTLR! [More…]

It’s nice to see that someone has a grasp of priorities. Well done the people of Barra!

During one of the big football competitions of the Nineties — either the World Cup in ‘98 or Euro 96, I think — there were three German visitors to Edinburgh who went out for a drink. This coincided with the England v. Germany match, and the match was on the TV in the pub. The German visitors decided to keep their heads down: if England scored, they wouldn’t groan, if Germany scored they would keep quiet and not cheer.

Germany scored, of course.

The three Germans kept their satisfaction to themselves — but were astonished at the reaction of everyone else in the pub, leaping to their feet cheering the German goal.

Stunned, one of the Germans asked a local why the German team was being cheered and not the English. The local then explained one of the long-established truths of Scottish sporting life: "We’re Scottish, no English; if England’s playing Germany, we support Germany."

So it is quite bizarre that an SNP politician has tried to suggest that the Tartan Army (Scottish football supporters to those who don’t know this) should support England in the coming World Cup.

Andrew Wilson, shadow economy minister, admits the suggestion is unlikely to make him "the most popular man in town" but insists Scotland has to cast aside its prejudices.

He said: "I cannot wait for the day when we are so confident in ourselves as a nation that we can bring ourselves to support the so- called Auld Enemy."

According to the BBC, he has also said that none of Scotland’s problems are England’s fault. None? Ask the people of Rosyth about that.

It’s safe to say that Mr. Wilson’s call to support England has not exactly been welcomed, except by some tourism bosses who think it would make Scotland more "English-friendly". The Scotsman gives this quote:

Hamish Husband, from the West of Scotland branch of the Tartan Army, added: "What he seems to be suggesting is for Scotland fans to grow up. But Scotland and England is the oldest international rivalry in the world and nothing will change that."