Once again a muslim community in Britain is feeling divided by arrests in its midst. I have two feelings on this matter based on what I've seen of the news coverage.
Firstly, the protestations of relatives and neighbours that the men are absolutely innocent. Cast your mind back to when the arrests of the attempted London bombers took place. The exact same happened there. Outrage in the community. Although they're innocent until proven guilty the evidence looks absolutely damning on these poor excuses for human beings. We'll see what happens from the current arrests, however. We should resist the urge to follow in the footsteps of the media and jump to conclusions before being aware of the facts. If the men are freed without charge, then perhaps there's room for complaint. If the men are arrested, however, the local community should look at the police's track record. It's not unblemished, certainly, but the police don't generally act in this manner unless they've amassed a fair amount of evidence and are expecting the 'cell' (or whatever the group is in this instance) to act imminently.
As for the reasons of elements of the muslim community getting so worked up as to plan such acts, I would say this: do you really feel that you're the only group opposed to the situation in Iraq? I would put to them that a majority of the British population is now opposed to Blair's war, and a great many always have been. (Remember the marches past Westminster?) However the population of this country as a whole believe in making their feelings known in a democratic manner; through lobbying and at the ballot box. If there are people in this country who believe that violence and death is the route they have to take to be heard they are not only wrong but they forfeit their part in our community and country. Shout from the pulpits, or rather the minarets if that's more appropriate. Write to your MP, protest - peacefully - against the failing foreign policy of the Blair government. Lobby, shout, do what you can, but remain within the democratic and lawful system that we enjoy and that keeps our country stable and prosperous. Don't believe you are being marginalised, as on the topic of foreign policy you will find yourselves in good and plentiful company. Peace. (at home and abroad.)
20070131
20070130
Farewell Blackpool
The super-casino decision came in today and to the surprise of everyone; the media and winning council included; Manchester took the prize. There have been congratulations all round of course but underlying this has been disquiet that Blackpool would have made the more sensible choice for location being a failing seaside town in desperate need for a big pull. The super-casino could have been it, but now, short of an overturning decision in Westminster, it seems Blackpool will be left out in the cold. Not only that but with the relative close proximity of the Manchester super-casino, Blackpool's chances of securing its own licence seem dead in the water.
Manchester may well have better infrastructure but having already been at the receiving end of no shortage of investment in recent years it wouldn't have done any harm to see this particular awarding go to another. Blackpool was built on entertainment and could have well used the casino as grounds to fund extensive infrastructure upgrades. It seems the government is happy for the formerly prestigious seaside resorts to die. After all, when Blair is happy to discard any consideration of holidaying at home in favour of grand vacances abroad with a mighty big carbon footprint to match, should we be in the slightest bit surprised?
Manchester may well have better infrastructure but having already been at the receiving end of no shortage of investment in recent years it wouldn't have done any harm to see this particular awarding go to another. Blackpool was built on entertainment and could have well used the casino as grounds to fund extensive infrastructure upgrades. It seems the government is happy for the formerly prestigious seaside resorts to die. After all, when Blair is happy to discard any consideration of holidaying at home in favour of grand vacances abroad with a mighty big carbon footprint to match, should we be in the slightest bit surprised?
Dodgy domain dealings
The internet is strewn with potential pitfalls and scams for the unwarey, but this week I discovered one that was new even to me.
I've been spending the past week or two racking my brains for a good website address. I've generally used the website bb-online.co.uk as this shows the availability of all domains on a page at once. What I began to realise, however, is that a day or so after I'd looked at a domain the .com version of that domain would magically become registered, meaning that if I'd really wanted that domain I would have had to stump up a not inconsiderable amount of cash, and certainly many times more than the standard domain registration fee, to secure it. Even more sneaky was the fact that the registration date wasn't today's or yesterday's date but a much earlier date, which clearly it couldn't have been and must have been faked or forged somehow.
I didn't quite deduce whether this was due to the particular website I used for the search or whether someone was intercepting the searches upstream and automatically registering. In any case it's another instance of 'buyer beware' and that if you do see what you're looking for it might be best securing it quickly. Fortunately for me when I did finally come across the right domain I new it and bought it without delay and at least I must have racked up some domain registration costs for the company that was trying to fiddle me out of a domain.
I've been spending the past week or two racking my brains for a good website address. I've generally used the website bb-online.co.uk as this shows the availability of all domains on a page at once. What I began to realise, however, is that a day or so after I'd looked at a domain the .com version of that domain would magically become registered, meaning that if I'd really wanted that domain I would have had to stump up a not inconsiderable amount of cash, and certainly many times more than the standard domain registration fee, to secure it. Even more sneaky was the fact that the registration date wasn't today's or yesterday's date but a much earlier date, which clearly it couldn't have been and must have been faked or forged somehow.
I didn't quite deduce whether this was due to the particular website I used for the search or whether someone was intercepting the searches upstream and automatically registering. In any case it's another instance of 'buyer beware' and that if you do see what you're looking for it might be best securing it quickly. Fortunately for me when I did finally come across the right domain I new it and bought it without delay and at least I must have racked up some domain registration costs for the company that was trying to fiddle me out of a domain.
20070129
Quiet on the blogging front
I've not been doing a good job of maintaining my daily posts to the blog. For one thing my writing energies have been channelled elsewhere and in many ways there's not been a great deal that's leapt out at me to write about. However let's have a quick scan of the day's news....
I'm undecided whether I should be concerned about so many British Muslims in favour of having Shariah law in this country. I feel some background reading is in order first to understand what it's all about before taking a definite stance, although I'm generally uneasy at hearing talk of any religious movement active in the UK. During my travels last year I saw several examples of religious belief taken to (what are to me) extreme levels and I find it's something I can't relate to in the slightest. Is this really the 21st century? In spite of all our advancements so many are actively laying down years of their lives in the worship or any manner of pointless ends. If it makes them happy to believe in these things, fine, but I'll fight tooth and nail to ensure they have no bearing over my daily life and similarly I make no demands upon others.
The British Airways strike has been called off at not quite the last minute but sufficiently late that many passengers will have found themselves seriously inconvenienced for the third time in a year. Fair enough the other occasions weren't the airline's fault directly, but the handling thereof commencing with the erection of a large white marque outside Terminal 4 and quickly descending into chaos hasn't done the company and favours at all. I flew back from Australia with BA which was my first flight from them in some years. Although fine enough the standards couldn't compare with a modern Qantas airbus and the superb customer service by the Aussie national airline.
The sites of the super-casinos will be announced tomorrow. I'm rather hoping that Blackpool will come out favourite as although I have no interest in gambling the place could do with some investment and job creation and I suspect it'll have a positive effect on the region's economy as a whole. The BBC did focus on the increase in homeless in Australia following their boom in casinos but I suspect no-one would notice in the likes of Blackpool. I suppose I'm hoping that the investment will bring associated developments to the resort. A nice multiplex within fairly easy reach of here wouldn't go amiss for instance.
I'm undecided whether I should be concerned about so many British Muslims in favour of having Shariah law in this country. I feel some background reading is in order first to understand what it's all about before taking a definite stance, although I'm generally uneasy at hearing talk of any religious movement active in the UK. During my travels last year I saw several examples of religious belief taken to (what are to me) extreme levels and I find it's something I can't relate to in the slightest. Is this really the 21st century? In spite of all our advancements so many are actively laying down years of their lives in the worship or any manner of pointless ends. If it makes them happy to believe in these things, fine, but I'll fight tooth and nail to ensure they have no bearing over my daily life and similarly I make no demands upon others.
The British Airways strike has been called off at not quite the last minute but sufficiently late that many passengers will have found themselves seriously inconvenienced for the third time in a year. Fair enough the other occasions weren't the airline's fault directly, but the handling thereof commencing with the erection of a large white marque outside Terminal 4 and quickly descending into chaos hasn't done the company and favours at all. I flew back from Australia with BA which was my first flight from them in some years. Although fine enough the standards couldn't compare with a modern Qantas airbus and the superb customer service by the Aussie national airline.
The sites of the super-casinos will be announced tomorrow. I'm rather hoping that Blackpool will come out favourite as although I have no interest in gambling the place could do with some investment and job creation and I suspect it'll have a positive effect on the region's economy as a whole. The BBC did focus on the increase in homeless in Australia following their boom in casinos but I suspect no-one would notice in the likes of Blackpool. I suppose I'm hoping that the investment will bring associated developments to the resort. A nice multiplex within fairly easy reach of here wouldn't go amiss for instance.
20070125
Heat ray
A new weapon devised by the US military was on the news this evening. As far as I can tell it fires microwaves at targets - like a microwave oven. "Coming soon! Al dente evil doing Al Qaeda terrorists!"
20070123
Work in progress on the website
It's been yonks since I last posted a website update to the blog, so here we are. I'm in the midst of a major update to the travel section of the site which is certainly due since my return from the big trip. Although it'll take more time before I get the trip written up itself I'll be featuring guides to selected journey on the site plus a new big feature. The travel section's also going to be getting a makeover to provide a rather more flashy look. More on this when it's complete and online.
20070122
For Sale
I'm currently selling several bundles of magazines on ebay.
First off, finishing on Friday are issues of the Dalesman magazine grouped by year for 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961 respectively. Each is complete set from that year (12 issues) except for 1960 for which is August edition is missing.
The Dalesman covers life in the Yorkshire Dales and these issues cover changing times with the introduction of new technologies but also the closure of many local railway services.
Also going under the ebay hammer are 49 issues of Shortwave Magazine. This cover issues from March 1994 until February 1998 completely plus there's also the December 1998 issue plus a binder from 1995. Shortwave Magazine covers a great many radio related hobbies. This auction finishes next Monday.
First off, finishing on Friday are issues of the Dalesman magazine grouped by year for 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961 respectively. Each is complete set from that year (12 issues) except for 1960 for which is August edition is missing.
The Dalesman covers life in the Yorkshire Dales and these issues cover changing times with the introduction of new technologies but also the closure of many local railway services.
Also going under the ebay hammer are 49 issues of Shortwave Magazine. This cover issues from March 1994 until February 1998 completely plus there's also the December 1998 issue plus a binder from 1995. Shortwave Magazine covers a great many radio related hobbies. This auction finishes next Monday.
20070121
Sunday
Today's been a quiet day spent writing on the whole interspersed only with a walk into town where we managed to encounter to end of familiar faces. Here are a couple of images from the walk by the river:
20070120
The wind it doth not abate
Although no longer at damaging speeds the wind continues unabated, seen here lashing the promenade at Morecambe today:
20070119
Ye three phones of Orient are
For a limited period only I'm the proud owner of three (count 'em) mobile phones. Somewhat excessive you might criticise, and indeed you'd be right. Due to various shenanigans with Carphone Warehouse I was offer a good deal to change my network to Orange and then an event better deal to stay put with O2. This does provide the opportunity to compare three Sony Ericsson phones.
K800i (left), W810i (centre), K750i (right)
The phone being replaced in the K750i. It's done fine service for what is well over a year, maybe getting up towards two I can't be sure. It's 2 Megapixel camera and MP3 capability combined with memory stick duo slot for expandability of memory made it tick all the right boxes and proved a big step from my previous phones. Lugging it around the world has taken its toll on the poor thing, however, and it's looking tatty and the joystick is wearing out.
I bombed straight into a Carphone Warehouse in London last weekend and asked what they could offer me. I should in hindsight have examined the options a little more thoroughly but I'd briefly seen a couple of phones which replaced my K750i and decided I'd be happy with either. As it is I've now got both. Let me explain.
I was offered an Orange tariff and with it the W810i which is a specific Walkman model. I was happy to stick with this phone and network until I called O2 who promptly offered me a far superior deal and a better phone which would have cost me an extra £70 or so with Orange. I'm now the owner instead of the K800i and the W810i will soon be returned. Until it is though, I've the chance for some comparison.
Size-wise the W810i is all but identical to my existing phone using essentially the same case. There are improvement of course. As a walkman it comes complete with a gig memory stick duo and the mp3 playing software, not to mention the funky Sony Walkman branding. Although I've not used it extensively, there are clearly extra features for listening to music and grouping tracks. The most significant improvement in features over the K750i is the quality of the speakers. The K750i always sounded slightly tinny and with limited volume. In stark contrast the W810i gives off a good sound at even the lowest volumes and turned up the full richness of the audio can be appreciated; quite some feat from a small mobile phone speaker. The earphones provided are clearly for the music lover as they're quality 'in-ear' type that gives excellent bass and range overall. The other models offer the standard Sony Ericsson earphones which suffice but are by no means special. Navigation-wise this model opts for 4 buttons for navigation around a central button which was a joystick on the K750i but here is a basic select or play button.
Onto the latest phone which, as I'll be keeping it I've been getting to know rather more intimately. This is a completely different kettle of fish from the other two models being somewhat larger, offering a longer LCD screen and featuring a second camera for 3G purposes. I haven't yet delved any depth into its features such as the 3G which I do want to look into more before potentially running up a significant bill. However as regards other features, the real selling point here is the 3.2 megapixel camera. This is the same resolution as the first compact digital camera I bought not so many years ago. So proud are Sony with the camera that they've given it the Cybershot branding. But how does it fair in practice? The first think to note well above and beyond that of the K750i is the speed of operation. The focus is faster and the processing speed, that lag from pressing the shutter button to the camera taking the photo is reduced from near eternity to a fraction of a second. The picture quality isn't comparable. An extra megapixel and a bit it may be, but the benefits of the resolution and more advanced features are immediate. The pictures look crisp on the camera's LCD and don't fair badly on a full-sized PC screen either. It also features a sliding lens cover which I noticed that W810i lacked. For keeping the lens clean and in good shape, even on such a small device I think a cover is a must. The general build quality is good. It's solid and made of a hard rubber/soft plastic material which gives off a feeling of quality that's superior to the standard plastic finish of the other models.
It's early days still but I think I'll be happy with the camera I've ended up with. I would have probably been happy with either but as having a decent camera takes priority over better MP3 playback it's the right choice. I'll get around to reviewing the new phone in more detail at a later date.
K800i (left), W810i (centre), K750i (right)
The phone being replaced in the K750i. It's done fine service for what is well over a year, maybe getting up towards two I can't be sure. It's 2 Megapixel camera and MP3 capability combined with memory stick duo slot for expandability of memory made it tick all the right boxes and proved a big step from my previous phones. Lugging it around the world has taken its toll on the poor thing, however, and it's looking tatty and the joystick is wearing out.
I bombed straight into a Carphone Warehouse in London last weekend and asked what they could offer me. I should in hindsight have examined the options a little more thoroughly but I'd briefly seen a couple of phones which replaced my K750i and decided I'd be happy with either. As it is I've now got both. Let me explain.
I was offered an Orange tariff and with it the W810i which is a specific Walkman model. I was happy to stick with this phone and network until I called O2 who promptly offered me a far superior deal and a better phone which would have cost me an extra £70 or so with Orange. I'm now the owner instead of the K800i and the W810i will soon be returned. Until it is though, I've the chance for some comparison.
Size-wise the W810i is all but identical to my existing phone using essentially the same case. There are improvement of course. As a walkman it comes complete with a gig memory stick duo and the mp3 playing software, not to mention the funky Sony Walkman branding. Although I've not used it extensively, there are clearly extra features for listening to music and grouping tracks. The most significant improvement in features over the K750i is the quality of the speakers. The K750i always sounded slightly tinny and with limited volume. In stark contrast the W810i gives off a good sound at even the lowest volumes and turned up the full richness of the audio can be appreciated; quite some feat from a small mobile phone speaker. The earphones provided are clearly for the music lover as they're quality 'in-ear' type that gives excellent bass and range overall. The other models offer the standard Sony Ericsson earphones which suffice but are by no means special. Navigation-wise this model opts for 4 buttons for navigation around a central button which was a joystick on the K750i but here is a basic select or play button.
Onto the latest phone which, as I'll be keeping it I've been getting to know rather more intimately. This is a completely different kettle of fish from the other two models being somewhat larger, offering a longer LCD screen and featuring a second camera for 3G purposes. I haven't yet delved any depth into its features such as the 3G which I do want to look into more before potentially running up a significant bill. However as regards other features, the real selling point here is the 3.2 megapixel camera. This is the same resolution as the first compact digital camera I bought not so many years ago. So proud are Sony with the camera that they've given it the Cybershot branding. But how does it fair in practice? The first think to note well above and beyond that of the K750i is the speed of operation. The focus is faster and the processing speed, that lag from pressing the shutter button to the camera taking the photo is reduced from near eternity to a fraction of a second. The picture quality isn't comparable. An extra megapixel and a bit it may be, but the benefits of the resolution and more advanced features are immediate. The pictures look crisp on the camera's LCD and don't fair badly on a full-sized PC screen either. It also features a sliding lens cover which I noticed that W810i lacked. For keeping the lens clean and in good shape, even on such a small device I think a cover is a must. The general build quality is good. It's solid and made of a hard rubber/soft plastic material which gives off a feeling of quality that's superior to the standard plastic finish of the other models.
It's early days still but I think I'll be happy with the camera I've ended up with. I would have probably been happy with either but as having a decent camera takes priority over better MP3 playback it's the right choice. I'll get around to reviewing the new phone in more detail at a later date.
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