Nick Cohen on British libel laws in Standpoint

Excellent article by the ever-fantastic Nick Cohen on the British libel laws in Standpoint Magazine.

Writing about the courts presents many difficulties. The largest among them is not the risk of being sued yourself but the widespread notion in Britain that if you tell the truth, you have nothing to worry about. The enormous costs of freedom of speech actions make a nonsense of such naivety. Newspapers which are telling the truth prefer to surrender to the risk of receiving crippling bills. A legal director of a chain of regional newspapers told a recent meeting organised by Index on Censorship that this meant his editors never printed anything that might provoke a libel action, settling any claim regardless of the merits of the case.

Via Harry's Place.

I would also recommend, from the same issue of Standpoint Magazine, an article by Clive James on honour killings.

How to improve Victoria Line journeys from King's Cross St Pancras in Central London

There are many things that annoy me about using King's Cross St Pancras Underground station, not least the majority of my fellow passengers as they storm from platform to platform.

It is probably one of the most unpleasent stations to interchange at in London. I think it is up there with the long tunnels at Green Park, which sounds far more pleasant than it is.

One thing Transport for London could do to improve northbound journeys on the Victoria Line is to install another display board near the entrances.

The current one, near the end of the platform, is partly obscured by a fire exit notice, and one has to either march very quickly through hordes of passengers on the platform or hope the station staff will tell you whether the train is to Walthamstow Central or Seven Sisters.

Some form of railing in the middle of the tunnel from the Victoria Line might also help regulate the free for all between passengers entering and exiting the southbound platform to Brixton and the northbound platform to Walthamstow Central, .

Then again, a railing might be dangerous. Hard to say but worth Transport for London looking into.

In related news, the new London Overground station Imperial Wharf near Chelsea Harbour has now opened.

According to the Londonist, the station was named after a nearby block of upmarket flats.

German and Portuguese election results

The centre-right Christian Democrat-Christian Democratic Union block has won the German election.

Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel will now be holding talks with the pro-business Free Democrats with the intention of forming a coalition, according to the BBC.

According to Market Watch's Polya Lesova, this has caused stocks in German nuclear power plant operators to rise, while shares in solar-related companies have fallen, due to belief that the coalition will cut the feed-in tariffs that the industry benefits from.

In Portugal, the ruling Socialist Party were also re-elected, but with a reduced majority.

Unlike with Germany, Portugal does not seem to be drifting to the right, with large-scale public projects promised by Prime Minister Jose Socrates.

Concerns grow over abduction of Yemeni journalist Mohammed al Maqaleh

It has now been over a week since Yemeni journalist Mohammed al Maqaleh, who edits the the Yemeni Socialist Party website Aleshteraki, was abducted while checking the tyre pressure of his car

Journalists and activists in Yemen have staged several demonstrations and sit-ins at the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate demanding his release.

It is believed that National Security officials (al-Amna Qawmi) are holding him.

According to his relatives and colleagues, Maqaleh was accused by the Yemeni government of collaborating with Houthis rebels fighting government troops in Sa’adh, northwest Yemen.

Amnesty International USA have asked the Yemeni authorities to clarify the whereabouts of al-Maqalih

"He is in real danger" fellow journalist Abdel Karim Khaiwani told human rights organisation Article 19.

"Human rights activists across the globe should stand by Maqaleh’s cause and seek his release without delay."

The Sa'dah conflict:

The Yemeni government accuses Houthi rebels, led by dissident cleric Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi of trying to install an Islamic Imamate government as well as being terrorists. The Houthis claim they are defending themselves and only seek to establish reforms as well as respect for their version of Islam.

Iran has been accused by the Yemeni government of financing the Houthi rebels, while President Ali Abdullah Saleh has told the BBC that the government is ready to fight the rebels for years if needed.

A recent ceasefire failed to end the fighting, which the BBC claims has displaced 150,000 people.

Oxfam has accused the world of "standing by", with few donations made for a UN emergency appeal for $23.7 million.

El Tayeb Musa, Oxfam Yemen Country Director, says "An estimated 100,000 people have fled their homes and villages in the last month alone. The remaining internally displaced people in Yemen fled their homes and villages in previous flare-ups in fighting between government and rebel forces over the course of the past five years. In recent days, worrying signs of a dangerous escalation of this latest outbreak in fighting, have been multiplying."

Read more about Yemen.

Royal Family says "I'm alright, Jack" as civil list won't face cuts for ten years

Well done the Guardian for exposing the disturbing news that, unlike health or education or law enforcement, the Royal Family's civil list will not be facing any cuts next year, or for the next ten years.

A little-known and frankly stupid deal struck between the Treasury and Downing Street in 1972, the 1972 Civil List Act, means that MP's can only vote to increase the civil list, not decrease it.

It is true that the Civil List is intended to compensate the Royal Family for the revenues from the Crown Estate.

Fair enough - although I would argue that the Royal Family don't exactly need the money - but why should the Civil List be free from cuts when health and education will not be?

For those concerned that any potential cuts to the Civil List might have meant that the Queen could not afford to employ her staff, the palace built up a huge surplus of £35m by the time the decision was taken to freeze the payment at £7.9 million a year by Tony Blair.

And as for those who highlight that the bailing out of banks cost more, so what? The little things should be highlighted as well as the big things.

Why have republican groups not created a website showing what £7.9 million of public money could be spent on during a recession?

Graham Smith of Republic, which campaigns for an elected head of state, comments on the Guardian article: "The full annual cost of the monarchy is equivalent to 10,726 new nurses 9,241 new police officers, 9,089 new teachers, 3,660 new GPs, 563 new hospital beds or 18 new schools.

Are we really being told that schools and hospitals can be cut but palaces and helicopter flights for the Windsor family can't?"

The comments on the Guardian article form an interesting debate between monarchists and republicans, although no monarchists have commented on the most worrying aspect of the story, the undemocratic 1972 Civil List Act.

It seems the only other media outlet to have picked up this story is the Sydney Morning Herald.

Daily Mail run spending cuts poll:

Over on the Daily Mail website, by the way, you can vote where you want to see spending cuts.

The choices the Daily Mail give are BBC, Culture Media and Sport, International Aid, Benefits and tax credits, and Courts and legal services.

It seems that four of the five have been picked as the most likely choices of Daily Mail readers. The Civil List, of course, is not on the poll.

Leading the poll are International aid (36%) and Benefits and tax credits (34%). Only 16% want to see BBC funding cut.

Victoria Line strike on October 5th from 9:30pm for 24 hours

Update: This strike has now been called off.

If, like me, you use London Underground's Victoria Line to travel into Central London, you will need to find an alternate route between 9:30pm October 5th and 9:30pm October 6th.

A twenty four hour strike has been called by Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members over allegations that management have gone back on an agreement to reduce the number of return journeys a driver has to make in one day, according to Going Underground, since the 2003 agreement.

Transport for London claim that, while some drivers will do five round trips (from Walthamstow Central to Brixton and back) during a weekday shift as opposed to the current four, no staff will work longer hours.

London Underground Chief Operating Officer Howard Collins said: "Victoria line drivers already operate five round trips per shift on the Victoria line at weekends, an arrangement which has never caused any problems for staff...these new arrangements have already been accepted by ASLEF."

They also claim that drivers work a maximum eight and a half hour shift, including breaks.

While the BBC report that the 2003 agreement was made due to the lack of air cooling systems in the drivers' cabs, which the RMT highlight, Tfl claim that air cooling is now "acceptable".

Given that each round trip takes around an hour and a quarter, I cannot see the problem here, unless air cooling is still a problem.

Staff will also refuse to drive more than four round trips from 30th September.

For those Walthamstow residents considering using the National Express East Anglia service instead, I'd recommend getting up earlier if possible and taking the 48 bus to Liverpool Street or London Bridge instead, as the National Express trains will be crowded that day.

In related news, Eurostar cleaners are on strike over alleged low pay and bullying.

"Somalia: Al-Qaeda's New Haven" at the Frontline Club

To the Frontline Club in Paddington on Thursday for "Somalia: Al-Qaeda's New Haven" a short film covering Islamic extremism in Eastern Africa, made in 2005.

Reporter Aidan Hartley, who has covered Africa extensively since the 1990's, including the Rwandan genocide, described the problems Somalia has faced since the civil war began in 1991, which has killed over 500,000 people.

Checking into the Shamo Hotel with his armed guards and fixer Dugof, Hartley informed us "If we walk the streets, we'll be killed."

Despite an arms embargo, guns are easy to get hold of. One can pay $200 (£125.37) for an AK47 machine gun and $10 (£6.27) for a grenade.

There has been a rise in Islamic schooling due to the poor secular school infrastructure, many of which were destroyed in the civil war and not rebuilt due to the lack of enough Western aid.

Islamic militias have been given a boost due to anti-American feeling caused by the Battle of Mogadishu, called The Day of the Rangers (Maalintii Rangers), which caused the deaths of at least 200 Somali civilians, according to the International Red Cross figures.

During the showing of the film Black Hawn Down in Somalia, based on the events of the Battle of Mogadishu, one Somali fired an AK 47 at the screen.

The West's resources, including a French fleet, are now needed to prevent Islamic extremism spreading, while Ethiopian fighters are helping Somalis fight Islamic militias.

Hartley tells us that Somalia shows that the international community "can't leave a country to its own devices."

After the film, which was shown on Channel Four, ended, its director James Brabazon answered some questions, and explained that the frequent pieces to camera and the film's short length was due to the difficulty of filming.

Frontline: A Broadsheet:

I managed to pick up a rather interesting publication, Frontline: A Broadsheet, which is a quarterly publication.

The current issue has an excellent feature on Ciudad Juárez in Mexico by resident Julian Cardona, who describes the violence and terror of day to day life: "A self-imposed curfew now empties the streets before nightfall...up to 20 narco-executions a day...platoons of foot soliders stand around banks, supermarkets and shopping malls."

Cardona, a photographer, has also taken a handful of powerful photographs showing the deaths and senseless sadness in Ciudad Juárez.

Other interesting features include Pakistan's battle against militants,by Muzamil Jaleel, and Martin Bell on parlimentary sleaze.

Frontline Club location:

The Frontline Club is at 13 Norfolk Place, London W2 1QJ. Closest tube is Paddington, and a number of buses stop nearby.

Visit the Transport for London Journey Planner for more information.

Films usually cost between £8 and £10, depending on how early you book, while talks cost between £10 and £12.

Future Frontline Club Events.

Ben Goldacre on libel law reform

Excellent science correspondant Ben Goldacre on why there is little chance that those in power will want to change the laws on libel, as well as the effects of the libel laws on free speech.

Goldacre, who writes the Bad Science column in the Guardian, recently spoke at a fringe event at the 2009 Liberal Democrat conference called "Defending free speech – keep libel laws out of science."

Epping Forest Liberal Democrat member Prateek Buch, who organised the event, tabelled an amendment at the conference calling for the following to be debated:

"A review of Britain’s libel laws in order to safeguard the free exchange of information and ideas and, in particular, to promote the unhampered dissemination of evidence-based science that relates to our well-being and that of the planet."

Let us hope the Liberal Democrats do make libel law reform an important priority.

Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art refuses to show artwork due to nudity and drug references

The Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art, run by Culture and Sport Glasgow, has been accused of censorship after refusing to show three exhibits by Dani Marti about HIV positive gay men as part of the shOUT exhibition.

According to the Herald, the work will now be shown over a weekend at the Tramway in Albert Drive,Glasgow G41 2PE.

Omar Kholeif in the Guardian claims that Glasgow is betraying the very minorities it claims to represent, and says:

As Dani Marti argues, "art should be a protected forum. If we don't protect it as an independent platform, where transgression and the questioning of ethics, morals, politics and sexuality is allowed, then society won't be given the permission to grow". Critics who disagree with public funds being used for such an exhibition are missing a vital point. Art (unlike a mass, publicly funded medium such as television) is more often than not maintained in a physical capsule (the venue), and subsequently is one of the few forums that enable minorities to display the divergent aspects of their existence without censorship.

Culture and Sport Glasgow (CSG) have complained about this Guardian piece, and one wonders whether they will write a letter or opinion piece explaining why.

A CSG spokesperson told the Herald:

The shOUT programme is the fourth in our acclaimed series focusing on Contemporary Art and Human Rights at GoMA. It's purpose has always been to raise awareness and open debate through art. The nature of some of the exhibits, and more specifically, certain elements of the outreach programme have provoked a response that has negated both the artistic and societal endeavour.

In order to reframe the debate, a weekend of film and discussion at Tramway will be held and Dani Marti's work will be included. We respect his decision to withdraw his installation at GoMA and understand his disappointment, but out first priority must be to protect the integrity of the entire programme, 99% of which is unchanged.

It seems some people would go further than Culture and Sport Glasgow. On the Glasgow Guide forums, where you can read pro and anti views, auldbutcher writes:

i think filth like this should be placed where it belongs,either in ah garbage can or in an incinerator. our children have been bombarded with stuff like this whether it be in magazines or the media. over the last 20 years there has been ah sharp decline in the moralistic outlook of our young, not helped by blairs policies i.e the money given to the one parent familys hence the feral young people that now infest our streets.

Unlike auldbutcher, I think that Dan Marti's art is important in telling the stories of gay men with HIV, and that people can make up their own mind whether they want to see it.

The words of the CSG spokesman seem to me to be bland corporate speak that means very little. Art is often controversial, and I for one would like to see the exhibit, although it's unlikely I'll be in Glasgow this year.

I urge all those in the area to view Dan Marti's work at the Tramway.

Europe's dairy industry in crisis

Alarming Observer report on the effect of low prices on the dairy industry, including potential milk shortages:

In a globalised market, where dairy farmers from the US to Russia are currently making losses, there remains severe deflationary pressure on milk prices. Groups representing European milk farmers claim that world prices have sunk so much they are now having to sell milk at half their production costs, leaving more and more of their members unable to pay their bills.

The mood is turning sour. Last week 300 tractors dragged milk containers over fields in southern Belgium, dumping a day's worth of production. Similar protests were made in Germany, France, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. The crisis has driven many EU farmers into a "milk strike", with thousands refusing to deliver to the industrial dairy conglomerates that produce everything from skimmed milk to processed cheese

.

According to the Observer, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has promised it will look into the issues facing UK dairy farmers.

Still time to save Walthamstow's cinema: Not another British clone town

I urge all those opposed to the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG)'s plans for the development of the former Granada cinema at 186 Hoe Street, Walthamstow, London, to make their objections before 25th September.

I have nothing against the UCKG, although it has been accused of money laundering in Brazil, and normally would welcome another church opening in Waltham Forest.

However, I believe that culture is an important part of any area, and that the reopening of the Grade II listed Cinema, cherished by the McGuffin Film and Television Society, which has a keen interest in the works of former Leytonstone resident Alfred Hitchcock, would be of huge benefit to residents and visitors to Walthamstow.

It is important to have an antidote to the drivel that mainstream culture churns out, as well as places for people to enjoy themselves and unwind that don't involve the cult of shopping. Currently, the 225,000 residents of Waltham Forest have no cinema.

The cinema could make a huge contribution to the economy of one of the poorest boroughs of London, as well as promote the delights of Waltham Forest nationwide.

Without a cinema, Walthamstow will take one more step towards being a clone town. It is not very Christian to allow this to happen.

Although UCKG say they will allow community events, this is not the same as having a building dedicated to daily community activites.

It should be simple for UCKG to find another building in Walthamstow which they can use for worship.

I would have thought that a building off a main road would be welcomed by the church as well, as it would be less noisy, less polluted and parking would be easier (although too many people use cars in Walthamstow).

Find out how to object to UCKG's proposal for Walthamstow's cinema.

Waltham Forest residents can also contact their local councillor.

Incidentaly, Walthamstow has a number of local arts projects.

If you are interested in stories like this, Private Eye cover them in their Rotten Boroughs and Nooks and Corners columns.

The latest issue, 1245, has some interesting stories on the proposed sale of Plymouth's Citybus and the proposed closure of peaceful oasis Triangle Adventure Playground by Lambeth Council (South London).

Amazon.com email scam

Just recieved an email claiming to be from verifyATamazon.com asking me to click on a link to confirm my identity.

Holding my mouse over the link, the site is a subdomain of the 2006 site of Spanish company Apli Paper (2009 site linked).

There are four different combinations of text size and fonts in the email as well.

Finally, there are a number of random letters both in the bottom of the email body and in the subject line.

Look for signes like these which tell if an email from a company is false or genuine.

Ministry of Justice consultation on libel laws

The Ministry of Justice has begun a two-month online consultation on the libel laws, according to paidcontent:UK.

Defamation laws orginate (at least partly) from the 1840's, and the changes that the internet has brought means that the law as it stands, claimants must sue within 12 months of an article’s publication, no longer holds.

As publishers are potentially liable for any defamatory material published by them and accessed via their online archive, however long after the initial publication, according to the consultation, publishers could sue at any time if the article continues to be published online.

paidcontent reports that there are three options:

"...a single publication rule within the existing 12-month period; a single publication rule but with a time limit extended to three or even 10 years, or a system where the 12-month limit stays if publishers agree to update archived stories with a clarifying note or even remove them at the request of claimants."

The Ministry of Justice also notes:

"The internet now allows content to be updated, cached, linked, archived and, some might argue, republished every time a web page is requested. So should each publication of defamatory material still justify a separate claim ('multiple publication' rule) or should only one claim be allowed ('single publication' rule) – and how might that work?"

Consultation papers (PDF).

Via Martin Stabe.

Warning over BT scam

The BBC warns of a scam where people ring up British Telecom customers and warn them that they owe the company money.

They then ask for bank or card details in order to "settle the account."

If the person refuses or asks for more details, they offer to disconnect the victim's phone to prove this.

When the victim puts their phone down, they do not hear a dial tone when they lift it again. However, this is because the scammer has not put their phone down.

Andrew West, who recieved a call from a scammer pretending to be from BT, notes that "...if he didn’t put the phone down and silenced his end, I’d have a ‘dead line’ no matter what I did.

"Anyone who’s been accidentally called from a pocket knows the recipient of a call can’t force a disconnect. It also didn’t sound like a dead line, it sounded…roomy – just no noise, rather than a null signal."

Ask for account number and verify the caller with BT:

Andrew recommends that you ask the person contacting you for your account number to make sure he is genuine.

BT told The Register: "If there is any doubt at all, a BT employee will be able to give the customer their employee ID number and an 0800 number to call, where the customer can check that they are who they say they are. The customer can also check their identity by calling 0800 800 150."

Graham Preston, the lead officer for scams at Trading Standards, told the BBC: "Particularly if they are asking for money, if they want your credit card details don't be afraid to say no."

Home security scam:

In related news, North Lanarkshire residents have been warned to avoid companies offering to install "free" home security systems, which then have high maintaince costs.

Shiona Campbell, of Scottish Scambusters, told the BBC:"I would advise consumers not to buy anything based on a cold call.

"If the product or price you are being offered sounds too good to be true then it probably is.

"If you are making a major purchase, try to get at least three quotes from reputable companies."

Vermin destory Leicestershire family: Disablist hate crimes must be stopped

The terrible story of the deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francesca Hardwick, hounded to their deaths by vile local youths two years ago in Bardon Road,Barwell,Leicestershire, is currently making national headlines while the inquest takes place.

Leicestershire Constabulary laughably describes itself as "Providing a second to none police service." Given the pathetic response to Ms Pilkington's torment, I would suggest "Providing a next to useless police service" instead.

While I am sure that the majority of police officers in Leicestershire are hardworking, I am confused why the incidents, which took place outside their home in Barwell, were never linked, and why officers did not even visit the house on some of the 33 times that they were called.

I hope that there is an inquirey into the conduct of Leicestershire Constabulary. Two of the beat officers for the village of Barwell were posted there before the deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francesca Hardwick. Why has the conduct of these two officers not been investigated?

You can see a log of the harrasment that Fiona Pilkington and her family suffered between February and October 2007 in The Times.

Three of these incidents that were reported to police did not result in an officer attending, and one only resulted in a Police Community Support Officer talking to youths vandalising part of the house.

Local residents interested in discussing policing in Barwell and the menance of local youths may want to attend the next beat surgrey at Byron Street, Barwell, on September 23rd at 5:30pm.

Was any offer made by Barwell Parish Council to move the family, whose tormentors lived in the same street? Even though it seems like giving in to bullies, it would have been better than this outcome.

Does Barwell have a Neighbourhood Watch, and if so why did it not do more? Is there a problem in Barwell schools that has led to them turning out bigoted youths who bully the disabled and the shy?

Does Leicestershire have a particular problem with twisted teenagers? A report from thisisleicestershire.co.uk on the shooting of young children with an air rifle in Melton by two teenagers suggests that this may be true.

Abuse of the disabled and vulnerable needs to be ended:

British society needs to deal harshly with those who abuse the disabled and the vulnerable.

The Daily Mail reports on evil Bournemouth care workers Josephine Apalisok and Abel Romel Bellary, who mocked and taped up the mouth of an 89 year old dementia suffer to prevent him shouting. Poetic justice if the same happens to Apalisok and Bellary when they are older.

Long sentences and a ban on working as care workers for life are called for.

Two years ago, Andy Rickell wrote in the Guardian about the growing number of disabled hate crimes.

Rickell highlighted the case of Steven Hoskin, who was murdered by Darren Stewart, 29, and Sarah Bullock, 16. Along with Martin Pollard, 21, the pair brutally treated Hoskin, dragging him around his Cornwall bedsit by a dog collar and burning his hands with cigarettes, before forcing him off a railway viaduct.

Cornish adult social care services did not manage to help Hoskin, with "a lack of time and resources" blamed, according to Maria Ahmed writing on Communitycare.co.uk

Government plans to tackle disabled hate crime

The charity Mencap, which supports those with a learning disability, reports on the Hate Crime Action Plan, published by the Government.

Mencap's report "Living in fear" has found that 9 out of 10 disabled people have been the victim of a hate crime.

Already, as Andy Rickell mentions, ection 143 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 allows for sentences to be increased for disablist hate crimes.

The charity has also called on the police and the Crown Prosecution Service to collect data specifically on incidents against people with a learning disability.

Schools also need to teach children about disabled people in order to make sure that they do not regard them as people to laugh at or to fear, while popular culture needs to treat disabled and vulnerable people with respect.

One county that has seemingly done rather better than Leicestershire in treating disabled people property is Derbyshire.

Last year, Derby held a Hate Crime Information Day for Disabled People as part of the International Day of Disabled People (3 December), where a new police helpline for hate crime was promoted and staff from the Crown Prosecution Service explained the process of taking cases to court.

Let's hope that the vermin -and using that word actually insults rats - who destroyed the lives of two people will recieve decades in prison. I doubt it, though.

Maybe local people will have the courage to show their anger by shunning them and show their opposition to hate crime. That might make clear how disgusted the public are by such terrible actions.

European Broadcasting Union to punish broadcasters who disclose Eurovision voting information

Good news from the European Broadcasting Union, which has threatened to ban countries whose organisers disclose information about voters' identities from the Eurovision Song Contest.

This follows the recent reports on Azerbaijan authorities interrogating citizens who voted for Armenia in the 2009 Eurovision song contest.

I think Azerbaijan should be banned from next year's Eurovision song contest anyway, although perhaps people are concerned about alienating a potential alternative to Russia when it comes to supplying gas.

EU Business reports that Azerbaijan, already a major supplier of gas, is seen as a strong potential provider for the Nabucco pipeline between Erzurum,Turkey and Baumgarten an der March,Austria when it is completed in 2014.

The country's Shah Deniz gas field can bring gas to Europewithout crossing Russia or Iran.

Improving the Transport for London website

Wonderful as it is, the Transport for London website poorly serves those who travel by Docklands Light Railway (DLR), London Overground or Croyden Tramlink.

I would like to see Service Updates displayed below the tube lines for these three methods of transport. There is enough white space below the page for a line for DLR, a line for Croyden Tramlink and a line for London Overground.

The Live Travel News page could then display a map of the Underground with the Tramlink marked on it, with sections highlit where there is disruption.

The "This weekend" link could then display DLR, Tramlink and Overground weekend closures (and at the moment the Gospel Oak to Barking Line (GOBLIN), which has its own user group, seems to be down most weekends).

Yesterday me and some friends went for a walk from North Greenwich to King George V via the Woolwich Free Ferry (good fun to ride on), and had to get a rail replacement bus from London City Airport as the DLR was down from there to Canning Town.

Although I should have checked the DLR link on the This Weekend Page, and joined the DLR mailing list, putting the information on the map displayed when you click on This Weekend is more userfriendly (change the title on the tab from Tube to Tube/ Tramlink/DLR.)

DLR closure information.

Replacement bus service information for the East London line.

The Tramlink works page, which is a PDF linked on the Tramlink improvement page, has not been updated since August, so I presume no works will take place in the near future. Better to have a webpage than a PDF on this, as PDF's take time to open and not everyone who does not have Acrobat Reader wants to download this software.

Never seen you looking so gormless as you did tonight: Chris De Burgh overreacts to Irish Times critic

The musician Chris De Burgh has taken exception to a review in the Irish Times by Peter Crawley, and has written a bitter and personal letter to the critic.

The original review seems rather mild, aside from a reference to the "cringe factor" and a comment that de Burgh's catalogue may seem rather dated. It's something every performer should learn to take in his stride, a negative review.

Chris De Burgh clearly hasn't. He makes unpleasent references to Irish Times staff: "yes, they were all there, as used by many of your colleagues before, such as Joe Breen (who, I note, has been put out to pasture in the wine section..." and personal remarks "We were wondering by way of explanation and as you seem to portray yourself as a bitter and unfulfilled man, were you much teased by your school chums in the schoolyard and called “Creepy Crawley”? I think we should be told!".

The implication that bullied people become bitter is also a rather negative and unfounded stereotype.

LF Barfe on Cheeseford mentions that:

This blog has a new crusade. It is to get every right-thinking person with an Internet connection to pass critical comment on the strange-looking, dull-sounding Chris de Burgh. This isn't unpleasantness for unpleasantness' sake. The idea is to get the multi-talentless cousin of Roly Mo writing so many letters and emails accusing people of being 'bitter and unfulfilled' that he never sings a single hemi-demi-semi-quaver again in his life. Go on, you know it makes sense.

And, as with Baron Sugar's bullying on Quentin Letts, all De Burgh's words have done is made sure more people have read the original review

Homophobia in Jamaica and the murder of John Terry

John Terry, the British Honoury Counsel in Jamaica, was murdered on Wednesday. He was beaten to death outside his home.

The motive for the killing has not been confirmed by Jamaican police, but there are reports that a note was left next to the body saying "This is what will happen to ALL gays" and signed by "Gay-Man", although the police are now trying to deny this.

David Miliband, Britain's Foreign Secretary, told the BBC: "John Terry was a key member of our team in Jamaica and had been an honorary consul for 13 years, but with many years of other service to the British community in Jamaica before then.

"Honorary consuls like John play a valuable role in our work overseas and this was especially true of John who helped many, many British visitors to Jamaica over the years.

"My thoughts are with his wife and children.

"He will be greatly missed too by colleagues and all those who knew him."

Jamaica's homophobia is well documented in this Time article from 2006.

In 2004, a teen was almost killed when his father learned his son was gay and invited a group to lynch the boy at his school. Months later, witnesses say, police egged on another mob that stabbed and stoned a gay man to death in Montego Bay. And this year a Kingston man, Nokia Cowan, drowned after a crowd shouting "batty boy" (a Jamaican epithet for homosexual) chased him off a pier.

Amnesty International USA also highlights police oppression of homosexuals:

In 2003, three men were detained and searched by the police in Half-Way Tree. When asked by the police why they had condoms on them, they reportedly stated that they were promoting safe sex to both men and women. Police told the men that they were to be locked up for promoting "battybusiness". The men were crowded into the back of a police car as none of the officers wanted to sit next to them. They were not allowed to let their bodies touch the policeman who was also sitting in the back of the vehicle. At the police station, other officers told them that they should be dead and that policemen should have killed them rather than bringing them into the station. Police pointed them out as "battymen" to everyone who came into the station. The men were released after three hours.

The excellent Stephen K.Amos has made the documentary "Batty Man" for Channel Four about homophobia in the black community, travelling to Tooting and Brixton in South London as well as Jamaica. Watch "Batty Man" on 40D.


Boycott homophobic reggae stars:
One way to oppose the promotion of homophobia both in Jamaica and globally is to not buy CD's and download albums by stars such as Elephant Man, TOK, Bounty Killa, Vybz Kartel and Buju Banton, who have written rather unpleasant lyrics about the murder of gay people, which read like the rantings of a Skrewdriver hate song.

For example, Beenie Man's song "Bad Man Chi Chi Man" asks people who are not gay or lesbian to wave their hands and seems to imply that people going to jail for murder will turn gay:

If yuh nuh chi chi man wave yuh right hand and (NO!!!)
If yuh nuh lesbian wave yuh right hand and (NO!!!)
Some bwoy will go a jail fi kill man tun bad man chi chi man!!!

Reggae singer Elephant Man's contribution include this charming ditty, as quoted by Amnesty International USA:

When yuh hear a Sodomite get raped...
But a fi wi fault...
It's wrong
Two women gonna hock up inna bed
That's two Sodomites dat fi dead

The Black Music Council, which seems to regard homophobic reggae lyrics as part of black culture, attacks the wonderful Peter Tatchell and Outrage for campaigning against homophobic music.

Firstly, I don't believe that the music of individual reggae stars is a sacred part of black culture. Besides, there are many great reggae stars, such as Jimmy Cliff and Desmond Dekker, who never released homophobic songs.

Secondly, white culture in America during the 1950's was pretty racist. Would criticism of Odis Cochran and the Three Bigots or Hatenanny Records have been oppressive of white American culture at the time?

It is worth noting that reggae stars Beenie Man, Sizzla and Capleton signed a deal in 2007 renouncing homophobic reggae.

As long as we remain silent on homophobia, the violence will continue. However, Jamaican LGBT activists have highlighted some progress and have asked for a boycott of Red Stripe, a Jamaican lager-style beer, to be lifed.

They say that opposing homophobia "requires the painstaking effort of confronting the society and talking to social actors who can bring change in the way society sees LGBT people. We have been doing this through a small but growing group of increasingly aware opinion leaders who are concerned about the damage homophobia does to our society. We need those ears to continue being open to us and we need the relative safety that some of us have been given to speak to them.

Hey Mr Taliban, tally me some family values:

In related news, English Democrat mayor of Doncaster Peter Davies, who tried to cut funding for Gay Pride despite the money and tourism it brough in for the town, has described the despotic Taliban as having caused Afghanistan to have an "ordered system of family life."

National Express East Anglia strike from 21st-26th September

UPDATE: This strike has now been called off.

National Express East Anglia train drivers, who are represented by ASLEF, have announced a strike from Monday 21st September until Saturday 26th September inclusive.

A recent new deal put forward, which ended strikes taking place in August, was rejected according to the BBC.

An alternative timetable will be published on the National Express East Anglia website on Tuesday 15 September.

Managing Director of National Express East Anglia Andrew Chivers said: "I am extremely disappointed that the ASLEF train drivers' union has rejected our pay offer which amounts to a salary increase of at least 4% within a year, and announced a resumption of strike action from 21 September on National Express East Anglia services.

"Even though our offer has been accepted by the RMT and TSSA unions by over 80% votes in their ballots, ASLEF is planning to cause further unnecessary and totally unjustified disruption to our customers who have already suffered enough through the earlier series of strikes. We will be asking the ASLEF union for urgent talks to avert any further strike action"

ASLEF National Express East Anglia members commented in an August newsletter: "We are all very much aware of current market conditions, but it is a fact that NXEA Drivers are now fast becoming one of the poorest paid in the industry and a major reason for this is the companies failure to address harmonisation in the past with the expectation of worsening our conditions."

Looking at the salaries for National Express East Anglia drivers on the ASLEF site, they seem reasonable, but of course the strike is also over working conditions.

I also found a rather useful website with a diagram of which platform of (London)Liverpool Street station each National Express East Anglia service leaves from.

Censorship of art in Nice by "Cultural Commission"

Hadleigh Roberts, who has an excellent blog covering politics and society in France and Britain while working for Le Parti Socialiste, reports on the censorship of street art in Nice, southern France.

According to Roberts, Nice's City Hall, under mayor Christian Estrosi, will form a "Cultural Commission" to create rules for artists.

This means that all artists will have to pass an exam. This fundamentally opposes the entire nature of art; under what criteria will they be judged? Who will make up the panel of Judges? Art is subjective enough, and to try to compare a Michael Jackson impersonator to a living-statue of Johnny Depp to a xylophonist is the classic apples-versus-oranges test.

What of the artists who fail this sham-trial? Surprisingly, most performers come from other countries and spend the summer holidays in Nice performing, it will not be worth their while if they have to go through the stages of obtaining a license. The consequence: empty streets.

You can join the Facebook group to oppose this regulation of street art, which seems to me stifiling and a waste of council time.

On Tuesday 8th September, a number of people protested about the rules outside the Place du Palais de Justice.

Barnet Mayor Brian Coleman abuses blogger

Remember Brian Coleman, the Mayor of Barnet in North London, who is pioneering a budget-airline style council and who believes he is the victim of a "poisionous" blog campaign?

Coleman has been found guilty of breaching Para 3(1) of the London Borough of Barnet Members Code of Conduct after describing Roger Titchbourne of The Barnet Eye as "an obsessive, poisonous individual and Labour party member whose blog is full of lies, half truths and misinformation".

However, no sanction will be taken against Brian Coleman. Barnet Council have told the London Daily News: "We unanimously concur with Councillor Coleman’s legal representative that this is a case where our finding of a breach of Para 3(1) of the London Borough of Barnet Members Code of Conduct is sufficient and therefore we do not propose to apply any sanction."

I like the way Coleman makes "Labour party member" sound like an insult.

London Midland's Sunday gamble is a disservice to passengers

I've only used London Midland a few times when travelling from Euston to Harrow and Wealdstone in North London, but I've been impressed by their trains and the general levels of service, given how rubbish the Virgin Trains service is from Birmingham New Street to Euston, which runs along the same track for part of the way.

I was therefore surprised to read that London Midland relies on staff volunteering to provide a Sunday service.

The following sentence may anger some London readers who resent the number of Tube strikes, but Bob Crow is absolutly right.

The fault here is with London Midland, not with its staff. Perhaps they should ask other train operators how they get people to work on a Sunday, as this is the first time I've heard of a major transport company not having enough staff to run services.

London Midland told The Times: "Most Sundays we have more volunteers than we need to operate the service."

If staff want to be paid double to work on a Sunday than they should be, rather than this gamble by London Midland which last week failed to pay off.

Maybe a fare strike should be held on Sundays by London Midland passengers until this situation is resolved.

Why I blog

So the past few days have seen an unusually large number of posts on this blog, given that I only really have time to blog at weekends and on Friday nights if I'm not socialising then (I find more and more I'm meeting friends during the day or evening rather than at night).

While people may wonder why I have so much time to blog, it only takes an hour out of my (often busy) day, given my well-stocked Google Reader and large number of e-mail subscriptions to my brenny_babyAThotmail.com email address.

I blog because it is a creative outlet.

I blog because it informs other people.

I blog to releave frustration when I see something that annoys me in the news.

I blog because I'm still trying to figure things out.

I blog to become noticed by other people.

I blog because I enjoy it.

I blog because I am a journalist at heart, or, as someone described me on Friday, "nosy". To someone who has studied journalism, that is a compliment.

And I promised myself I was going to blog about myself as little as possible.

Why not start a blog to?

No platform for fascists? The British National Party and Question Time

The decision by the BBC to invite the far-right British National Party (BNP) leader Nick Griffin onto Question Time is controversial.

I can understand the views of those who believe in a no platform policy, especially during a time of economic hardship when extremism flourishes.

If you and your partner have lost your job, your local council has cut services and the tabloid you read reports on "immigrants taking British jobs" on a daily basis, that man in the cheap suit with slicked-back hair who tells you who to blame becomes more inviting.

However, I believe that the British National Party should be allowed on to Question Time.

Firstly, the British National Party revel in not being allowed to appear on or in national media.

They claim that this is because the establishment is frightened of what they have got to say, creating the impression that the British National Party are speaking the truth and the mainstream parties do not want ordinary voters to be aware of this.

As I remarked in 2007 when the British National Party were invited to speak at the Oxford Union, "Now however abhorrent someone is, debate is the best way to dispower them"

Secondly, keeping the British National Party off Question Time will not prevent their voice from being heard. The BNP are experts at using new media to put forward their revolting and simplistic views.

This includes a large number of blogs, once of which was abandoned by the Epping Forest BNP and then reclaimed by anti-BNP activists in Epping Forest, north-east London.

The great thing about British National Party blogs is that they also reveal the weaknesses and divisions within the party, for example BNP Councillor Colin Auty's blog (NOT SAFE FOR WORK, BNP LINK*) is mainly made up of attacks on Nick Griffin.

A hilarious posting on the Lancaster and Morcambe BNP blog, amongst the tedious bigoted dross, says "Democracy in Britain is a sham, in fact the only real difference between Mugabe's Rhodesia, Brown's UK, and Griffin's BNP is that Mugabe leads the way in coming up with new ideas to fix elections, while the other two only follow."

Note the nostalgia among the BNP for white minority rule in Zimbabwe, a bit hypocritical given their wailing about "ethnic minority domination" in Britain.

Youtube is also very popular with both the British National Party and other far-right groups such as the National Front. The Lancaster and Morcambe BNP blog, for example, has a large number of posts with youtube videos.

Thirdly, the British National Party have a habit of shooting themselves in the proverbial foot when appearing on or in the media. I doubt they will gain support from their Question Time appearances

For example, Epping Forest BNP councillor Pat Richardson has been reported by the Guardian as saying that:

"Firebombing is not a British method. A brick through the window is a British method, but firebombing is not a way of showing displeasure."

Socialist Resistance editor Liam Mac Uaid says, "What is genuinely bewildering about Richardson’s remarks is her idea of an acceptable scale of British racist violence."

Perhaps this vile attack on a young couple's home in Edinburgh is an example of the "British way", as if there is anything British about criminal acts.

When I watched Nick Griffin interviewed on BBC News just after the airing of the BBC documentary The Secret Agent, he came across as incoherent and unable to justify his comments. I have no doubt he will come across the same way on Question Time, an antidote to all those young men and women in suits handing out leaflets with a happy smile.

While Labour ministers refuse to appear with the British National Party under the No Platform for Fascists action, the Conservatives say "We have seen the BNP do well in areas where people haven't been prepared to tackle them and now they are elected we have got to face up to that reality. We will take them on in argument and debate."

Good for them, and it's not often I agree with the Tories.

It's not just the British National Party I want to see on Question Time. It's the Socialist Workers Party, the Christian Party, Mebyon Kernow, and all other minor parties who get little airtime.

I think people should have a good idea of what all political parties in Britain stand for, even if, like Mebyon Kernow, they may not be standing in their area.

While the views of the British National Party, like the views of David Irving recently published in Spanish newspaper El Mundo, are vile and simplistic, I have the confidence that other Question Time panelists will be able to counter them.

Question Time returns on 24th September to mark its 30th anniversary.

Carol Vorderman, who has promoted the debt consolitation company First Plus,which lent one couple £47,000 against the value of their home to consolidate over £20,000 of debt, despite their joint income of just £18,000, will be on the panal.

Seems that the British National Party aren't the only unpleasent people scheduled to appear on Question Time.

*I linked to this, unlike the other BNP blog mentioned, as it wasn't too full of bigoted ramblings. Should I have linked to both or linked to neither?

Gabon presidential election won by Ali Bongo

Former defence minister Ali Bongo has won the Gabon presidential election.

Ali's father Omar Bongo, who died in June aged 73, ruled the central African country for almost 42 years, which ironically was the same amount as the percentage of the votes that Ali recieved.

CNN reports that violent protests have been occuring in some parts of Gabon since the result was announced three days ago.

The Angola Press Agency reports that troops have been deployed outside the football stadium in Gabon while the World Cup qualifier takes place, while protestors have accused France of fixing the result.

Gabon was a French colony and part of French Equatorial Africa from 1885 until 1960, when the first president Léon M'ba was elected. M'ba was succeeded by Omar Bongo in 1967.

Both Léon M'ba and Omar Bongo have been accused of doing more to help France than the Gabonese people.

For example, brilliant former anti-corruption magistrate and current special adviser to the Icelandic government Eva Joly highlighted Gabon's poor road infrastructure and high infant mortaility rate in June.

Azerbaijani bloggers facing up to five years in prison for spoof news conference video

Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli, two Azerbaijan bloggers who created the spoof news conference below, are facing five years in prison.

The pair were arrested on hooliganism charges in July after reporting their assualt by two men at a Baku resturant, which sounds like a Daily Mail editor's dream story.

According to News Blaze, Hajizade is cofounder of the opposition group OL while Milli is a member of the youth opposition group Alumni Network

The Youtube video has an English translation in the speech bubbles.



Last week a rally protesting the arrests took place in front of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Washington D.C., as blogged by Thoughts on the Road.



Jennifer Windsor, executive director of Freedom House, says: "This case fits a disturbing pattern under which independent journalists and others seeking to express themselves end up in the criminal justice system."

The country seems to have a history of oppression towards its citizens, with an attempted protest earlier this year over the closure of foreign radio stations resulting in police detaining members of the opposition party Musavat’s youth organization.

Imprisoned journalists in Azerbaijan include Eynulla Fatullayev, editor of Realny Azerbaijan and Gündalik Azarbaycan and Nazim Guliyev, editor and founder of Ideal. Freedom House says: "The government has no tolerance for criticism and uses libel suits, unfair trials, physical attacks, and financial pressure to clamp down on opposition media."

Last month, Azerbaijan citizens who voted for the Armenian Eurovison Song Contest entry Jan Jan were questioned by police.

In a rather Orwellian echo, the BBC quotes the Azerbaijan authorities as saying that people "had merely been invited to explain why they voted for Armenia."

Rovshan Nasirli, one of 43 Azeris who voted for the song "Jan Jan" told Radio Free Europe: "They wanted an explanation for why I voted for Armenia. They said it was a matter of national security,” Nasirli said. “They were trying to put psychological pressure on me, saying things like, 'You have no sense of ethnic pride. How come you voted for Armenia?' They made me write out an explanation, and then they let me go."

The European Broadcasting Union has promised to examine the matter further this month at an Oslo meeting.

In a rather amusing and arrogant statement, the state broadcasting company Ictimai asserted that it had been assured that "no one was invited to or interrogated at the Ministry of National Security with regard to the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest" and therefore "all reports on this issue in the media are groundless".

A document hosted by the excellent Wikileaks also describes oppression of Muslims in Azerbaijan, including beards being shaved off due to "orders from the top" and seemingly random arrests near mosques.

Pressure both from the international community and from ordinary people, such as those at the Washington D.C. protest, needs to be put on President Ilham Aliyev and the Azerbaijani government to end the oppression.

Browser addons for online research

Great article from Help Me Investigate on browser add-ons for online research.

All work with Firefox, and some are avaible for Safari and Explorer.

Via Martin Stabe.

I can think of something that Help Me Investigate should be looking into, in fact I put in a Freedom of Information request about it last week. Will write more on this soon.

Chaos on Manchester Metrolink's Altrincham line

I thought today's problems on the National Express East Anglia lines were bad enough, but the excellent Manchester Evening News reports on a series of problems on the Manchester Metrolink's Altrincham line a few days after it reopened after a month-long closure for upgrades.

A problem with overhead power lines has caused the service to be disrupted since its proposed re-opening three days ago, which was cancelled without telling passengers until midnight on August 31st.

Communters turned up to Metrolink stations along the line the next morning only to discover that no trains were running.

Services began running on the line on September 2nd, but stopped again at midday, when the arms connecting to the power line on a tram heading towards Altrincham suddenly flipped backwards.

On Thursday, part of the line was still closed, and today the Metrolink website reports that trams are not operating between Timperley and Altrincham and between St Peter's Square and Manchester Picadilly.

Rail replacement services during the Altrincham disruption:

The X5 replacement service operates every 10 minutes during peak times from Altrincham to Piccadilly. Off peak the service runs every 20mins and after 7pm it runs every 30 mins.

A Stagecoach shuttle bus will also run between Altrincham and Timperley every 5mins during peak times, and every 10mins offpeak.

First Bus strike across Greater Manchester:

As if that wasn't enough for Manchester residents, bus drivers at First will be striking on four seperate days for twenty four hours later this September after no pay rises were awarded despite First recieving annual profits of £134 in 2008.

Bobby Morton, the union Unite's regional organiser, told the Manchester Evening News: "Usually we have an annual increase. It should have been on July 1. We attempted to negotiate an increase but they told us that there would be none."

Britain's public transport is a disgrace. It is good that Manchester Blackley MP Graham Stringer is taking Stagecoach Metrolink, which has the contract for running the tram system, to task, and that Withington MP John Leech has demanded an investigation. Let us hope results are seen.

Although posts on transport may be seen by some as less important than posts on international news or political sleaze, I feel that public transport is an essential part of modern life, and when it breaks down, such as this week's disruption on the Manchester Metrolink, it should be commented on.

Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE) are currently overseeing a £600 million expansion of the network to build four new lines, according to the BBC. Let us hope that these lines are free from problems, like the Eccles line which reopened on time on September 1.

UK animal cruelty sentences still pathetic: Flintshire horse abuser recieves suspended sentence and short ban

The idea that someone who starved sixty nine horses almost to death is only banned for keeping horses for ten years, not for life, and who recieves a suspended jail sentence of three months and 100 hours community service is revolting.

If it is all about money, why not refuse to pay prisoners convicted of serious crimes for the work they do in prison, which after all is supposed to be a punishment.

Dawn Elizabeth Rose, who starved horses near Chirk, Flintshire,Wales should have been sentenced to a lengthy prison term and banned from keeping any animal for life.

The idea that she is walking around free and able to keep horses within ten years sickens me. She can of course keep any other animal in the meantime.

These are living, breathing creatures who are much more decent and friendly to the world around them than many humans, especially the vile Dawn Elizabeth Rose.

Our justice system is a joke. David Cameron, who I expect to win the 2010 British general election, has been silent on this issue.

The reason why the brutal treatment of animals is not on the political agenda is that animals don't vote.

Only the RSPCA, which recieves no government funding, is left to fight for animals.

People need to stand up for animal rights to change this. Let's make sure that people like Dawn Elizabeth Rose don't get away with animal abuse.

Protest over supermarkets wasting food outside DEFRA and Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Activists opposing supermarkets throwing away perfectly edible food protested today outside the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in Central London, according to UK Indymedia.

In each case, a hamper of edible food that had been thrown away by supermarket giants Tesco and Sainsburys was left for a government minister.

Peter Mandelson recieved a hamper and a letter calling for a supermarket ombudsman to be established, while Hilary Benn recieved a hamper and a letter calling for measures to curb supermarket food waste.

Earlier that day, the group protested outside the Westminster Tesco with skipped (binned) food, banners and leaflets.

Max Wakefield, who posted the report on Indymedia, wrote: "As it stands, there is no financial incentive for supermarkets to order correct amounts of food, instead over-ordering to present bursting shelves and drive down unit costs. Using their purchasing dominance, supermarkets force suppliers and producers to bear the cost of returned food, which is then tipped into landfillI

"In total, according to estimates by Tristram Stuart author of Waste: The Global Food Scandal, between one third and one half of food produced for the UK is wasted. One seventh of the food waste produced in the developed world could feed the billion hungry who currently co-habit our world. According to BAPEN the UK is home to three million malnourished people. Over 20% of the UK's per capita carbon emissions are the result of the production and transportation of food, meaning up to 10% of UK emissions result from the production of food never eaten."

I think it is fantastic that people are confronting supermarket waste, and hope that this group releases details on how others can get involved. Those interested could try emailing maxwakATgooglemail.com (replace the AT with @) for more information.

Youtube:Al-Jazeera on the Falklands war

Was watching this while eating my dinner, excellent documentary on the 1982 Falklands war from Al-Jazeera, a news channel I strongly recommend if you are interested in international news.

Part 1:


Part 2:


Argentina and Britain are still debating their rights to the Falklands:


Al Jazeera is on Sky channel 514, and you can watch more documentaries and news reports at the AlJazeeraEnglish Youtube site.