Even more media

Helpfully a friend has pointed out an ommision in the paragraph about how difficult it is to write for the Sun.

Are you aware that the sun has a vocab list of something like 10,000 words so as to not confuse its readers? - Caz

It doesn't surprise me.

Another friend pleads:

Which current UK drama series have been running for
more than ten years?

We've already got Coronation Street, Emmerdale, Eastenders, Casualty, Grange Hill, Heartbeat (are they on the 70s now?), Byker Grove and The Bill.

And I'm bound to have missed something.

We think the longest running current TV comedy series is Last of the Summer wine. Yes I was surprised to find it is still going with yet another season in the pipeline.

Any hints please use the box on your right.


On my travels I found This article in the Guardian that suggests that despite all the governments best efforts over the Gilligan issue, the BBC is still the most trusted source of information. (Thanks to Nick Barlow for bringing it to my attention.)

I also note that I'm possibly being a bit of a political bantamweight by picking on the obvious deficiencies of the Sun rather than the pit of evil that is (dan dan der-) The Daily Mail.

Site of the day

Welcome to the White House. As recommended by Forceful and Moderate.

Sorry it is political satire again, but it is funny. Honest.

More media

As you may have read earlier I am not a fan of The Sun newspaper. In fact it depresses me (slightly: I do have a life, see the post below for details) that there is a need or demand for a publication of this nature. This morning’s front page consists of a Yellow Card being shown to Tony Blair, earlier editions have had similarly sophisticated messages for the people of France and the manager of the English football team.

I do have more time for the Mirror, which seems to have principles. Those principles being clearly signposts as being a complete and utter alternative to what the other tabloids are saying. And even on the few occasions that opposing view to that espoused by the rest of the tabloid press is plainly stupid, the Mirror sticks to its principles. Unlike the Sun which pretends to change its spots at a moments notice.

You may not believe this, but writing for the Sun takes a lot of skill. Not in tailoring your prose to include the particular poison your proprietor has demanded this week. But in toning down the reading level of your English to be clear and interesting enough to your typical Sun reader. A poor writer would write lousy English, and average writer would instinctively use words that are too long and boring for Sun fans. It takes a good writer to write what a Sun reader wants to read (without vomiting), in words a Sun reader can understand.

Of course most readers want a newspaper that is sympathetic to their own beliefs; even the Guardian and Independent have a mild left wing slant. (Not that I as a Lib Dem believe in Left and Right wing any more :-) ). Sympathy for your reader's values one thing, telling them what to think is another thing altogether. The level to which the Sun pushes its agenda is distasteful. Add that to hypocrisies like those over the Bruno story, and you have in the nutshell why many people dislike this publication.

Given the people I know read this blog, or who are likely to, I fear I am probably preaching to the choir. So as my friend Andy says you could make your views plain to the editor, if it makes you feel better.

A long day

The Explorer team did really well. Although some members retired at Lofthouse due to injuries the rest of the team went on to attempt to reach the presentation venue at West Tanfield. Unfortunately this was not to be, they were far too tired and had to be picked up and minibussed to the finish. As they are now older they were eligible for the male 14-19 trophy, for which there was a lot stiffer competition. So no award for Headingley Explorer Scouts this year.

The two 19th North Leeds (St Chad’s) Scouts teams won their classes, but they were the only entrants. This is damning by faint praise. I think the St Chad’s teams could have done with some competition; although their classes by default, the ten kids had put in such a good performance that given the same amount of competition the Explorers had they would still have easily won.

My job was to assist with the time keeping at Checkpoint 1, which we had down to a fine art, me signing the cards, another leader filling in the logs, a third the radio communications, and a fourth as a runner. I am getting to know so many people from Scouting locally, but my memory for names isn’t good.

Annother good event, I need to encourage more people to participate next year.

I managed to get the parents of two of my explorers to take the rest home (actually they offered and I accepted). So there was only me and James (from 19th North Leeds Scouts and SAGGA) to get home. It had been a long day and was not a pleasant journey. James and I discussed SSAGO-SAGGA relations which was probably not a good idea given how tired we were.

I got in finally at 10pm. Nicola wanted me to put her QSA project on disk, so she could edit it at her parents; however I was so tired it took me 15 minutes to operate the computer properly. Hopefully she should have her Queen’s Scout Award signed off by the end of the week.

The House

Nicola has suddently learned she will be presented with her Gold DoE on Tuesday night. So today we've been taking stuff to the council tip, clearing the front room, doing the washing up, making the futon accessible.

Because soon Nicola's parents will be visiting.

Ulp.

He's back- again

The BBC have announced that they're bringing back Doctor Who. While I'm beyond getting too excited about this, the series is being written by Russell T. Davies. So it should be good and fill the gap Strange failed to.

And it's being produced by BBC Wales, which sounds good too!

Amina Lawal

...wins her appeal.

Nicola

Nicola is back home, and taking a few days to get her Queen's Scout in order. Very exciting stuff. He guide meeting went OK last night.

Friends often ask how Nicola is getting on finding experience in her chosen field of Architechure. Well, even though I feel she should be more proactive, I don't push because Nicola will do what she feels she wants to. And in the end I'm not bothered whether I'm going out with a Young British Architecht, a Guide Leader, or a Lifeguard.

Nicola... has her own priorities. And sometimes they don't seem to include me. She tends to get consumed by her current pet project, and then close to the deadline. But then I wouldn't have asked her to marry me if I didn't know what she was like, or find some of her hobbies, energy and enthusiasm endearing in some way.

BBC Comedy banned

This article tells us how two members of the NBC network are refusing to show US version of Coupling. This is because they 'strongly feel that the premiere episode is little more than a succession of crude sex jokes.'

I can hear Steven Moffat saying "Yes... and?"

Turn over that new leaf

It’s gratifying to hear that The Sun is changing its ways. Stricken by the unfortunate things that have happened to Frank Bruno it has become compassionate for those suffering mental health problems and has set up an appeal.
And not a moment too soon… yesterdays early front page had the headline "Bonkers Bruno Locked Up".

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

As it says in the sidebar the Stephen Fry reading of this cultural phenomenon is released today. Go to Guardian Unlimited Books to hear a preview and maybe enter a competition to win your own copy on CD.

Things to do

• Clear back log of GaSCiT and SAGGA paperwork.


• Sort out DoE stuff for Explorers and Tim Ware.


• Write Thailand write-up for Church


• Contact Val or Barry about getting married at St Chads


• Look into wedding reception options

Life is not going to move on unless I do something about it.

Today Nicola and I have been attending the baptism of my niece Emily, over at St John’s Dukinfield. It was a joint service and party, with the child of Anna and Darren’s friend. Tim the vicar was his usual self and dressed up for the occasion in his best shirt.

Tim is someone who is not afraid to laugh and joke in Church, but is also someone who can get deeper and more serious than other vicars. For the lesson we had an introduction from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. This was the scene with the bridge of doom and the three questions, and the beginning of the lesson was getting to heaven is not just a question of learning the right answers to the right questions. No that wasn’t the lesson but the introduction.

Then it was over to Romily Forum for a buffet meal. The management of the forum has been taken over by NKTheatre arts (Formerly Northern Kids Theatre Company), which Darren and Anna are involved with, and Darren and Lee are licensees of the bar. We left just before 3 as Nicola is working the bar at Pudsey Leisure centre tonight.

Streetwise?

Streetwise is a new fun spin on the Rover 200/Rover 25/MG ZR. You've probably seen one on an advertising hoarding near you. I can't decide whether its cool or daft.

One thing, with all that rubber trim it should be more durable than my own little Rover 214.

Soy Sauce drive and late term abortion

The Brains Trust's 5th September edition is particularly good.

Railway snobbery

Being as a "Scout makes good use of his time and is careful of posessions and property" ("A Scout is thrifty" in old money) I have never paid for a first class train ticket in my life. I did once travel in the first class carriage on the way back from the Rally just after the Manchester bomb, as there were no seats in standard. We ended up sitting opposite Una Stubbs, previously of Worzel Gummidge fame. The guard didn't challenge us.

Where is this leading? Oh yes todays fascinating fact.
In the Nineteenth Century, Sir Edward Watkin (Chairman of the South Eastern Railway) didn't think gentlemen should be allowed to travel second or third class. To his mind, someone who was able to afford First but chose not to was guilty of a personal affront and of defrauding the railway.

Explorers

A reasonably successful night. We had four new Scouts turn up, three of whom are in the six dales team. One was his usual loudmoth self trying to undermine everything in order to show off to the new ones, who may have been slightly daunted by the organised chaos that is an Explorer meeting. We even had some sensible thoughts in the brainstorm. Sorry not brainstorm as one Explorer pointed out this is no longer PC.

I'll have to see how it goes, but I'm feeling a lot better about things now.

Competitiveness amoungst couples

Incidentally, Nicola reminded me yesterday that if my Elephant hadn't been entered on Sunday, she'd have got points for 3rd place and won the cup.

Still she has her prize for "Best exhibit in the novice vegetables classes" We really have no-where to display all these trophies.

Reminds me- must give the 6 dales trophy back to whoever.

Nicola's choice of Worms 2 has been endorsed as cool by blog readership. We're still playing it; it's funny to think how you can be brought closer together as a couple by blasting each others armys of cartoon invertebrates to smithereens.

The six dales team is sorted out, and it seems most Scout & Guide leaders have the same start of term nightmares I do.

Explorers is up to 10, lets see how many turn up on Wednesday.

What I fear most

I wrote this commentary some time before I started this blog. Recent stories about media distorting health fears have made a revised version relevant again.

What has been worrying me recently is the undercurrent of hate, bigotry and fear in society. We all know it is far easier to react against something, than to stand up for something you agree with. However this does not fully explain why I feel so worried about the stress and anger in modern living.

The term "Asylum seeker" has been made to be a synonym for "potential illegal immigrant". People are now convinced we're being over run, and while the asylum system is may be in a mess, the situation is not anything like the alarmist coverage claims it is.

Children are safer now than they ever have been, but the increasingly shrill news coverage has convinced parents that cases like the Soham murders, are on the increase, and it is not safe to let your kids out. What is on the increase is sensitivity to and fear of danger; not the dangers themselves.

Earlier this year skewed coverage led people to believe the scientific community was divided over the safety of the MMR vaccine, to the point some people think it is riskier than not having it.

Distorted perceptions of risks are dangerous as people will also take actions to make their lives safer that have the opposite effect; running their kids to school, avoiding vaccines, not letting them play out and develop social skills and street sense. My main worry though is that driven by hate and fear, people will run to those who pander to those fears and exacerbate them, rather than those who will actually do something about them.

Tonight

We have been mostly playing worms 2. This is an excellent game that we picked up at a car boot for £2.
Oh and I've been pulling out my hair over the six dales teams.

It’s been an odd weekend, spent mostly at home, or at least close by. How weird is that staying at home of a weekend?

Anyway, Saturday I did baking including a shortbread round, ginger biscuits and making the marmalade set. I think the marmalade is now overdone and does not taste as nice as it did in its runny form. All this seemed to take all day- no idea why.

Sunday was the Crosshills show- a very friendly one. Nicola entered nearly everything except for the Flour and Vegetable classes. I entered novice potatoes, Shortbread, ginger biscuits, marmalade, soft toy, and photography and came first in potatoes (out of 1) second in Soft Toys (out of many, beating Nicola) and third in Shortbread (out of 6 or 7).
Nicola got lots of prizes and in terms of points came joint top in home craft. The other woman got the trophy as the tie breaker is then on number of first places.

In the evening Nicola was working at Pudsey so I went to have tea with Mum & Dad and Anna, Darren and Emily. Emily can now say Teddy (a word meaning soft toy or cat) and gets very excited when she has one to play with. She can now walk the length of the room on her walker, which plays music while she walks.

Nicola's on her way home now- yay!

I'm listening to music- mainly the Who.

Not quite gelling

Made marmalade last night. It tastes nice, but is a bit too runny. Hope I can rescue tonight with a reheat and rejar.

More Money

We tend to spend most of our money on pay day. Of course we do. I schedule most of my important purchases for when I have the money leaving the frivlous for the cash left over the other 3 weeks of the month. Others may not be so sensible.

Global Rich List

The Global Rich List helps you put your money worries in perspective. There's a link to care international should you wish to donate some of your riches to charity. Try it, you may be surprised.

Six Dales Walking Competition

It seems we will have a team for the Six Dales.
Click here for more details of this competition.

Explorers

Tonight is first night back for explorers. I intend it to be a short meeting, brainstorming and letting them know what opportunities they have this year.

Wish me luck!

Reciple of the day

From the BBC database.

NB This was a recipe for a cheese sandwich. I.e. take some cheese, and some bread, make sandwich. The humourless so and sos in charge of BBCi have since ordered it be removed. Ho Hum!

Fact for today

A duck’s quack actually does produce an echo. Sophisticated scientific measurements have proved it. Although it seems the natural decay of the noise causes much of the echo to be masked, which is where the myth comes from.

So- now you know.

Ha ha ha!

The weekend was excellent. Came back feeling invigorated, motivated, refreshed.

On the way home in the car came to the conclusion that life may be improved by taking up amateur stand up comedy. I am prevented from going ahead with this silly idea by not having any material. I think I may have worked out why looking for my nearest "open mike" session is a bad idea before I've written any.

Factsheets, Friends and Flares

I didn’t go to the Tav in the end; decided that it would have been too much of a rush for an hour or so in the pub. In the end I packed Thursday night, and headed off to help the Lib Dems with the by-election leaflets in Brent East on Friday morning.

I made the mistake of venturing into London with just a printed out fragment of A-Z for my guide. Anyway I eventually found Willesden, and the office and spent a few hours pushing leaflets through the letterboxes around the North Circular in Neasden. It’s very different to anywhere I know in Leeds.

Did this until about 6:30 when I headed off to Gilwell, finding very little difficulty in navigating out of London! Ate in the on-site canteen for £2.50, as the IST were assumed to be eating en route on Friday.

I treated Gilwell Reunion as just that- a Reunion. I camped with 50 or so former members of the 20th World Jamboree IST. I was presented with my “Random IST” T-Shirt (a natty affair in Bright orange) and wore it in rotation with my GaSCiT 2003 T-Shirt. There could have been a mini GaSCiT reunion; I counted at least 3 other GaSCiT T-Shirts plus several more staff and participating leaders.
Ann Haseler was on the Adult Scout & Guide Alliance stand, and was wondering why SAGGA weren’t represented, as were a few people. Well I would have helped with that but I don’t feel we’re quite there yet with the publicity material- next year they won’t know what’s hit them!

In the morning I went round the bases, and was recognised by more people that I expected. In the afternoon I went out and bought some trimmings for the suit and some red hair spray- because I couldn’t find a wig. I must have looked like a cross between Ziggy Stardust and a game show host.
It has been said the Randomists were noticeable in their fancy dress- we weren’t the only ones were we? Anyway it was a storming evening in the bar, the disco, and then the Karaoke tent.

I was pulled out of the hat for the “last song of the night”. I’d chosen “Twist and Shout” but not expected to be rounding off the evening. But I just got on stage and went for it. The verdicts range from “You did all right” (some one off the CoC) to “That was brave” (Raff).

Sunday was a quiet time, looking round various potential activities. The training field was dominated by a huge hot air balloon, and elsewhere on site were hovercraft. The queues were long so I didn’t go in any of these. I gave Raff a lift to the station after the Scouts own.

All in all a great weekend. Credits for Happy Bunny & Southern Stars for the food, and all the ISTers for just being there and being a laugh.

The News will Never be the Same

It seems that Radio 4 listeners will be soon hearing less of two of its most distinctive announcers Brian Perkins and Peter Donaldson are leaving. While I'm pleased as a North Westerener that the BBC is sounding less plumy, I paradoxically also feel presenters like Perkins and Donaldson give Radio 4 a nice distinctive sound making it stand out from the commercial crowd.

My word for today

-is Telephony. Not that much used now the concept is commonplace.

I really should have gone home by now

I've not done any work for half an hour, and I have to pack because I'm going to London tomorrow. I'm hoping to be organised enough to leave work at 4:30pm and drive to "the Tav" to meet some old friends from my days in Cambridge who I still correspond with. On Friday I plan to assist activity over in Brent East before joining various friends from the IST of the last world Jamboree at the Gilwell Reunion. I'm with a bunch of 50 odd people camping round a recreation of Chesters Grill- a Thai cafe chain who had branches in the IST area of the Jamboree site.

I have to come up with a costume for Saturday Night. The theme is 60s, 70s and 80s which should give me some scope. However I'm not much cop at fancy dress. What I have done is picked up a cheap suit which I'm going to spray silver and hope to find a joke shop to sell me a 70s style afro wig. Not prize winning exactly but making an effort.

Between the Christians and the Lions

The big item in the news to day is the Floridian anti-abortion campaigner who murdered abortionists in order to save “Babies” from being killed. He is currently sitting on death row, while campaigners of all persuasions try and get his death sentence commuted, some who fundamentally disagree with the death penalty, others who don't want to see this person become a martyr and an encouragement to others.
Listening to some of this man’s rhetoric makes me ill. The place for this man is not on death row, nor in prison, but locked safely away in a secure psychiatric unit.

I do consider myself to be a Christian; I irregularly attend the place of worship where my Explorer Unit is based. I do sometimes feel reluctant to admit this, as Christians get a bad press. This is mostly due to an un-Christian minority who twist portions of scripture in order to persecute those who don’t conform to their prejudices.

Christianity is a moral code to live your own life by. It is not a stick to beat up other people with. It is about love, compassion, forgiveness, caring about your fellow human being, being part of your community rather than standing apart or on the sidelines lecturing. I feel Christianity, like Scouting and Guiding, is a fundamentally socialist concept in this respect.
That’s not to say I don’t acknowledge that it is right and proper that Christians should share their faith; just that the operative word is share, not shove down peoples throats. The task was to spread the word, not set up some sort of moral police force.

There is a place for moral indignation. Where people (and I mean people not foetuses) are being hurt, tortured, repressed, mistreated or generally not given a fair deal by those with power over them, there is a place for outrage or protest.

Some “Christians” seek to terrorise, through violence or abuse, those who do not conform to their view of Christian moral codes, be it abortionists, homosexuals, or simply kids just going out for a fun night out being a bit drunk and leary. I feel these people are breaking a much more fundamental and important facet of Christian teaching than the aspects they are seeking to defend.

The Highwayman

OK core hours finished. I’m reminded of an ace TV series of the late 80s The Highwayman. It was a bit like Knight Rider, only the Highwayman drove an 18 wheel truck with integral helicopter. It was ace in a way that mere ordinary people aren’t able to appreciate, so it was on ITV late at night in a slot similar to Highlander the Series.

They'll go far

This story brought a smile to my face. All about two policemen who plan to drive all the way across Europe in a £40 Scoda. Something I'd love to do, but probably wouldn't get away with on a time or resources level. The insurance and petrol must be costing far more than the car itself!

What are the chances of that happening?

Apparently there is a bigger chance of the Earth being hit by an asteroid in 2014 than you or I winning the National Lottery well on any given ticket anyway. But statistically speaking, if indeed I have my sums right, you could increase your chances of winning to greater than Earth being hit by this asteroid by playing just twice a year before the asteroid is due to hit. And if you play every week you are therefore reducing the significance of the potential impact of this asteroid… no that can’t be right.

I’ve just given myself a headache.

All by myself

Well I have lots to do, various stresses and strains at work, annd... Nicola is not here. She is down in Birmingham helping her parents do up the house.

From the news

This article says what I've been told for some time by friends and relatives at the sharp end. The reaction from parents groups does beggar belief- its almost the same sort of self-righteous denial displayed by the woman at the Sandwell Show.