Policing the world, again

I think maybe I need a news break.

The news is filled with ‘air strikes on Libya’.  Now that the UN has voted to enforce a no fly zone, once again, it is Britain, America and, this time, France, who are spearheading the enforcement.  That apparently means we have to bomb people (because let’s face it, all targets, military or otherwise always involve people).  Despot leaders are also not averse to using human shields.  It’s all going to end badly and yet more people will end up hating us. 

I don’t want us to be the policemen of the world and anyway – who pays for all this?  How does this work?  Will other nations of the UN be chipping in to refill our coffers from this expense? (I’m guessing not).  And aren’t we setting a precedent here?  Why are we meddling in Libya, yet we have been happy to ignore Zimbabwe and the Sudan?  Well we’ve got the ball rolling now, so what’s next?  Bahrain?  The Yemen?  Why not have a little tinker around there whilst we’re at it?

A YouGov survey this morning showed that the majority of people asked support these strikes.  Why am I always in the exact opposite camp to everyone else?  When we were going in to bomb Iraq, I believed what I was told – that they had weapons of mass destruction that could wipe us out in 45 minutes.  In my mind there was an absolute imperative to do something, and quickly.  It felt at the time as though almost everyone else (with some kind of freaky inside knowledge) was dead against the war and there were mass demonstrations in the street to illustrate the point.  (Ultimately fruitless demonstrations).  Of course, history now tells us that they were right.  Are they right again?  I don’t know, but recent history tells me that military intervention in the Middle East has a tendency to end in tears.

My daughter asked me at the weekend why I feel the need to watch the news each day.  It’s something I feel passionately about, I have no time for those who say it’s all too depressing, so I told her:

‘Because it’s the duty of all of us to know what’s going on in the world.  To leave it up to someone else is a dangerous strategy.  What if something was happening that you knew in your heart just shouldn’t be happening?’

‘What?  You mean like all those people who marched against the war in Iraq?’

She has a very valid point. 

It seems that I am on the other side of the fence again, disagreeing with the majority. Oh well, for me it’s situation normal and in any case, as I now realise, what can I do to change things?  

Yes, I actually think I need a little news break.

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World graphic from iStock photos

What a Palaver

I’ve just been reading this article:

“Mother sparks child welfare debate after posting picture of her ‘gay’ five-year-old in drag on the internet”

 ~ (Headline from the Daily Mail newspaper, UK)

Have you read about this?  To precis:  Blogger ‘Nerdy Apple Bottom’ posted a photo of her young son dressed in a girls’ Halloween costume on her blog.  The little boy, who is a fan of Scooby Doo wanted to dress as character Daphne, so that’s what he went to school as.

Cue the sticky-beak mothers who simply have to make everyone else’s business their business.  (There was confrontation and criticism over Mum’s judgement in allowing this).

Cut to the chase: Mum’s angry at the small-minded and meddling intolerance shown and vents by posting son’s photo on her blog, with the heading: ‘My son is gay’.

End result: A nice, quiet little blog gets oodles of attention, leading to 20,000 hits and negative commentary from people like Kidscape.

I understand Nerdy Apple Bottom’s anger, I myself have been known to fight like a tigress for my children and to a certain extent I can even see both sides of the argument (although I’m far more in agreement with Mum on this) but oh dear, in venting on the net and posting that photo?  Now we all know about it – all 20,000+ of us …and right in the middle of it all is a sweet young boy who only wanted to play dress-up for a party.  Talk about something exploding in your face…and what a palaver this has turned into.

Moral of story: This reminds us yet again that what we put out there on the net has the ability to be shared with many more than we might like, be misrepresented, misconstrued and come back to haunt us (and maybe our children).  In other words – be careful what you post. 

Feel Free

Canon 400D    85 mm    f/10    1/320 sec    ISO 100

Thinking of the Chilean miners who have now been trapped underground for 2+ months, the question was posed yesterday: 

What’s the thing you’d want to do first on being rescued?  (I think we had already precluded the very obvious – kiss/hug families and thank rescuers). 

The rather predictable answer from too many was ‘sex’.  For me it would be: a bath, a soft bed, silence and enjoy days sitting in the sun just thinking.  The equally obvious answer of big parties and celebrations with all and sundry would honestly also be the furthest thing from my mind – what more people?…to replace the last lot of people?!  Can you imagine being stuck, underground, with the same [now stinky] people for 2+ months?  Well for me that would be torture, since (! news alert !) I’m not a people person.  Nope, I’d want my space. 

What about you?  What would be top of your wish list?

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Hoping that all goes well with the rescue today/tomorrow and that all will be safely reunited with their loved ones.

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Posted for: The Creative Exchange – hosted by Lisa at White Cotton Tee. (New contributions are listed from late afternoon GMT, 10.00 a.m. EST US).

Oil, Environment and Us

NASA image of the Gulf of Mexico oil slick off the Mississippi delta, gathered on 24th May. 

 

(This image is from the NASA Goddard photo and video photostream at Flickr.  Please visit to see the image at full size and full resolution). 

I do hope President Obama has now stopped referring to BP as ‘British Petroleum’?  We have become a little sensitive about this over on this side of The Pond.  If not, can someone please remind him that British Petroleum merged with American company Amoco in 1998.  The rig in question was leased from Transocean (a predominantly Swiss-owned company, who allegedly have a less than stellar safety record) and the workers on the rig were mostly Americans who presumably worked to American standards and followed American law.   

Let’s stop the finger-pointing.  We’re all to blame for this and I do mean all.  It is our collective need for this precious resource that has led to this.  And precious it is.  Those of us around, awake and actually paying attention in the 1970s clearly remember being told that ‘oil reserves will run out before the end of the century’.  So what did we do?  Invest heavily in alternative forms of energy?  Certainly not that I’ve witnessed.  It is only on the back of  the recent evangelical Johnny-Come-Lately environmental bandwagon that we, and therefore our governments, have begun to look seriously at this and other environmental issues. 

Image: National Geographic

As BP desperately try to cap the well and do what they can with a clean up operation, I just wonder why it was that no one had a plan for this worst case scenario.  In my imaginary Utopian world, to be truly environmentally attuned you need to think the unthinkable and plan ahead.   Again, we can’t let BP stand alone in the stocks however, as no other company, with similar deep drilling rigs has come forward with the technology they designed to deal with just such a nightmare scenario.  

So, I’m letting BP off the hook to some extent here and spreading the blame to us all and I’m hoping that this will make us reassess our dependance on this ‘black gold’.   (Although being a realist, I sadly somehow doubt that will happen).   

What I can’t forgive are the ill-advised words of BP’s Chief Executive.  When under pressure we all say and do stupid things but this must rank as one of the stupidest things I’ve heard in a long, long time: 

“The Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean. The amount of volume of oil and dispersant we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume.” 

~  Tony Heyward, Chief Executive, BP, 14 May 2010 

Tell that to the birds, fish and other wildlife now coated and suffocating in oil and to all those who will lose their livelihood from this. 

Image: National Geographic

Wildlife images shown here are from National Geographic

Stickin’ It Here!

After many months in The Wilderness I have returned to the task of putting up my photos and graphics for sale at Red Bubble.  For anyone similarly interested in selling their photos - and I know there are a lot of us out there – I can recommend RB.  They’re a young, vibrant company and most importantly, having checked the quality of their work, generally what you see is what you get.  A word of advice to those who are similarly peddling their wares at sites that say they will handle production: order something.  In my experience quality varies and can be downright underwhelming.  Having stuck a toe in the water, I went ahead and ordered a re-usable frame and a few matted prints from RB.  For me, the frame was a worthwhile outlay as it means that I can easily change the artwork on my wall here whenever the mood takes me. 

RB are bringing more and more products on-line and if they’re the quality of their photographic work then it’s exciting stuff.  This morning I read that any tee-shirt design is now available as stickers. 

So I’m just saying….it doesn’t have to be my artwork (although that would be nice!) …there are a lot of talented photographers and designers showcasing their work at Red Bubble and if you wanted to take a look at what’s available, then the invitation has been extended here.

By the way, I need to stress that I’m not getting any kind of kick-back to say all this.  There are lots of sites out there that will handle production and despatch of artwork but I just thought it worth saying how pleased I am with this one and, of course, it’s a little self-promotion. (Ahem, you can visit my shiny-pretty RB site by clicking here, or my RB photostream here)  :p 

And here is the news…sort of

Snippets that caught my eye today, and my sage-like thoughts thereon:

A Very British Protest:  Whilst hot-blooded southern Mediterraneans set up road blockades and arm themselves with sledgehammers in Greece, a very British protest is taking place on our more northerly shores.  A Dorset pensioner, fed up at the ever-increasing traffic rumbling through his village, and frustrated at the lack of response from his local Council has taken the law into his own hands. 

Tony Fuller and a few like-minded supporters are continually bringing traffic to a standstill by endlessly pressing the button at the automated pedestrian crossing that is situated in his village.  The resulting traffic tailbacks can be as much as four miles long and Tony says the reaction of motorists ranges from beeping in support to a one fingered salute. 

Oh how I love this country!

Madonna – ‘au naturel’:  A new set of photos has been released of Madonna, taken by Mert Atlas and Marcus Piggot for the June edition of ‘Interview‘ magazine.  Said to be non-airbrushed, they show Madonna with a body many 21 year olds would be happy with. 

Completely free of the airbrush? Well, I have my doubts but, if you say so….  Good lighting?  Yes definitely – the photographers have done a great job.  Does she look good?  Oh absolutely!  Madonna can, and has looked a bit rough on occasion (don’t we all?) but you’ve got to admit that she looks just great in these shots.  There is no doubt that her tremendous self-discipline and steely will is keeping that bod looking pretty darned fine.

Cinco de Mayo:  Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone! 

I know this isn’t a public holiday as such but it brings back another constant thought of mine: Oh how we need more public holidays and more reasons to celebrate in this country.  If I ruled the world England would celebrate St George’s Day (April 23rd), and I’d throw in a couple more public holidays just for good measure.  Ages ago I came across a league table that showed the UK and Ireland were bottom of the European chart for Public Holidays, with substantially fewer public holidays than countries like Greece.  I know what you’re going to say: Look at the mess Greece is in.   (But then that’s you just being a smartie pants).  Seriously, we all work so hard now – I think we deserve at least two more public holidays.  Now…who do I write to? …

Now *those* are ears!

Seen over at the REUTERS site – Look at those ears!  Look at those ‘fingers’!  Look at those claws!

A girl in face paint holds her cat during an international cat exhibition in Ljubljana February 14, 2010.  Credit: Srdjan Zivulovic REUTERS

Photos with a wow factor

I know I’m no Annie Leibowitz (more’s the pity) but I plug away at my love of photography, gradually learning more and slowly seeing improvements in my art.  It’s hard not to compare yourself to others however and there are those even on Flickr whose work I just find totally enchanting (here ) or that simply blows me away (here and here) .  Best keep your head down and plug on for fear of being totally discouraged, I think.

Sometimes however, I come across a photo that has such a wow factor that it makes me think ‘that’s it’.  Pack away all the gear because that is incredible and probably, for me, totally unattainable.

Jose Luis Rodriguez has just won first prize in this year’s Veolia Environment Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.  This was a shot that apparently took him years to plan and that he had even sketched out on paper beforehand.  The planning shows.  If I attempted this I’d get a blur of fur as the wolf disappeared out of shot.  Jose’s shot is so crystal clear, well lit and well timed that it looks just like a storybook illustration brought to life.  Hats off to Sr. Rodriguez, he’s a worthy winner.

You can read more about the competition and the winners in other categories by visiting here.

Mafia ‘sank ships of toxic waste’

I’m not one of those people who pays no attention to the news because it’s all so depressing.  If you’re one of them, in my view you’re playing with fire and are likely to get burned.  Apart from anything else, while you’re skippididoodahing along and paying no attention, leaving everyone else to get on with it, your freedoms and rights could well be rapidly eroding.  It’s too late to wake up and complain after the fact.

There are, however, undoubtedly times when I wish I hadn’t read the news, especially when it pertains to things over which I really do have no control.  Take today.  The title of this post is taken from a headline on the BBC website, and with dread in my heart I started to read.  To precis what it says: A Calabrian mafia informant says that the mafia have gone into the highly lucrative business of toxic waste disposal, but in order to cut corners and save money have been sinking ships containing toxic waste, including ‘nuclear’ material, in the Med.  The Italian authorities are currently investigating a shipwreck off Italy’s SW coast in order to try and corroborate this claim.  They have already found yellow barrels lying close to the wreck which have labels saying that they contain toxic waste.  If proven, shipwrecks of 30 other sunken vessels off the coast of Italy and Greece would need to be investigated.

Please tell me it isn’t so.

…And now I need to go and bury my head in housework, shopping, photo editing and if there are any around, the odd little fluffy kitten or two.

Mafia 'sank ships of toxic waste'

I’m not one of those people who pays no attention to the news because it’s all so depressing.  If you’re one of them, in my view you’re playing with fire and are likely to get burned.  Apart from anything else, while you’re skippididoodahing along and paying no attention, leaving everyone else to get on with it, your freedoms and rights could well be rapidly eroding.  It’s too late to wake up and complain after the fact.

There are, however, undoubtedly times when I wish I hadn’t read the news, especially when it pertains to things over which I really do have no control.  Take today.  The title of this post is taken from a headline on the BBC website, and with dread in my heart I started to read.  To precis what it says: A Calabrian mafia informant says that the mafia have gone into the highly lucrative business of toxic waste disposal, but in order to cut corners and save money have been sinking ships containing toxic waste, including ‘nuclear’ material, in the Med.  The Italian authorities are currently investigating a shipwreck off Italy’s SW coast in order to try and corroborate this claim.  They have already found yellow barrels lying close to the wreck which have labels saying that they contain toxic waste.  If proven, shipwrecks of 30 other sunken vessels off the coast of Italy and Greece would need to be investigated.

Please tell me it isn’t so.

…And now I need to go and bury my head in housework, shopping, photo editing and if there are any around, the odd little fluffy kitten or two.