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Archive for the 'Miscellaneous Musings' Category
A New Year, A New Mission
Posted in Miscellaneous Musings, tagged 2017, blogging, experiment, family on January 19, 2017| 1 Comment »
It's almost unimaginable to me that seven years, nearly to the day, have passed since I started this blog. What began as writing practice morphed into a passion (some would say, an obsession) for British TV and pop culture. The unexpected bonus of interacting with fellow bloggers, telly addicts and Anglophiles has made this exercise an even more rewarding pleasure.
For those who have been around for awhile, you may have noticed that the blog has been quiet recently. For over three months to be exact! There are several reasons for this extended absence.
One is that I've been dedicating more time and energy to my freelancing for PBS affiliate WETA's Telly Visions blog. Gotta pay those bills. I'm sure you understand. This is in addition to my part-time reference duties at a local library.
I also made choices during this period to allocate more of my attention to family commitments. The holidays, obviously, but my children are also in different places in their lives than when I started this endeavor. And so I've been making time to help plan a wedding and arrange visits with one who has flown rather far from the nest.
But the main explanation for my truancy has been a change in mission, I suppose. When I began this blog, my main purpose was to share things I had learned about the UK by watching their TV programs. I considered myself a cultural explorer; seeking out traditions, vocabulary, and regional attitudes of the British public based almost solely on how they portrayed themselves in the television medium.
The more I watched, the more I learned. But inevitably, unfamiliar experiences – be they slang words, public institutions or historical references – became fewer and farther between. Indeed, sometimes a tweets-worth of information was all I had to share about an episode of any given show.
At this point I struggled with how to proceed. I had never wanted this to be a conventional review site. There are plenty of places where you can go to read recaps or opinions about the popular series of the day. And there are loads of people who do it better anyway.
Rest assured, I never stopped watching British telly. I was just struggling with a new direction that would be unique for readers and would make me want to write again. As many of you out there can attest, there is nothing worse than feeling the pressure to turn something out while simultaneously lacking any enthusiasm for the process.
With that in mind, I have been mulling over this idea for some time now and it seems 2017 may be the time to implement it. I'm inviting my son Ross to join me in an experiment. We will watch an agreed upon TV series or film and then compare our impressions. Just a 50-something woman and a 20-something man who share some DNA, employment in the library field and a few character traits, but live in different states and have widely varied tastes otherwise.
Our first joint venture will be a discussion of the 2004 costume drama North & South which stars Richard Armitage, Daniela Denby-Ashe and Brendan Coyle. Watch this space as we anticipate our inaugural post will be ready soon.
Thank you for your readership in the past and I hope you'll join us as we undertake this new approach!
A Rap Song for National Tea Day
Posted in Miscellaneous Musings, tagged Doc Brown, National Tea Day, Proper Tea, rap on April 21, 2016| Leave a Comment »
Forget the Queen's birthday. It's National Tea Day, an occasion to celebrate a hot beverage that inspires very strong feelings across the United Kingdom!
My Brushes with Greatness in the Twitterverse
Posted in Lists and Compilations, Miscellaneous Musings, tagged Brenda Blethyn, celebrities, Chetna Makan, Chris O'Dowd, Count Arthur Strong, Eddie Marsan, Greg McHugh, metaphysical autograph book, Miranda Hart, Noel Fielding, Reece Shearsmith, Russell Tovey, Twitter on April 20, 2016| 5 Comments »
Twitter UK logo
It's been five years and a few months since I started my Twitter account. A slow and frustrating process, I've learned by trial and error what and how to tweet. I like to think I've got a handle on this social media medium by now despite the fact I've only amassed 328 followers thus far. It's definitely a two steps forward one step back sort of proposition. I don't know if being on Twitter has driven previously unreachable readers to my blogs, but I have found it to be rewarding as means of communication with all sorts of people.
I've had the opportunity to talk to published authors about their books. I found @LissaKEvans to be particularly gracious and approachable.
I was sent movie stills for a library screening of Tell Them of Us (@ww1Film) though Twitter contact.
I have voted to rescue talented young people from being eliminated from TV singing competitions. (#VoiceSaveOwen)
Mostly I can discuss British telly and culture in instantaneous and verbally economical exchanges with a subset of people who know who and what I'm talking about. They're my witty, supportive virtual friends and they include bloggers such as @FrivolousMonsta and @LukeCustardtv.
But if the fan girl in me is honest, I have to admit the possibility of celebrity contact is what brings me back to check my feed time and again. I follow mostly British comedians and other creative types because, above all, I want my Twitter life to be more sparkling and clever than my real one. While one can never be certain, it's painfully obvious in some cases that the feed isn't maintained by the actual celebrity. Some like the tweets of Noel Fielding (@noelfielding11) are obviously being generated by the man himself. Besides all the photos he's sharing from his North American tour, who else would say something like this?
So excited I've just done a forward roll off my roof into an old ladies hand bag ! ( it's full of cakes ) x https://t.co/UJUKSdnjqJ
— noel fielding (@noelfielding11) February 12, 2016
In a way, Twitter has become, for me, a sort of metaphysical autograph book if you will. What follows are examples of some of my close encounters with luminaries across the sea.
Chris O'Dowd aka @BigBoyler – Mr. O'Dowd follows me on Twitter which, in my universe anyhow, is a huge deal. I'm not sure how it happened, but my best explanation is that I was reading a tweet by Chris followed by the resulting replies when I came upon a spoiler for a movie O'Dowd was featured in called Calvary. I called the guy out for ruining the ending before people in the US had seen it and next thing I know, I get notified that Chris is following me! I like to think he liked my chutzpah, but he probably was trying to make up for the rogue tweeter's faux pas. No matter, since then I've had no interactions with the lanky Irishman whatsoever, but at least he's stayed around silently in the shadows, reading my tweets and smiling.
Brenda Blethyn aka @BrendaBlethyn – More exciting than having this amazing actress follow me on Twitter (which she does) is the fact that I got to conduct a phone interview with her last year. When I tweeted about my experience, she kindly acknowledged our meeting. A classy lady and a judging by her tweets, an avid theater and arts supporter to boot.
@Brittellyaddict haaaa! Great to talk to you today. So glad VERA series 5 is to be shown soon. Best wishes brenda
— Brenda Blethyn (@BrendaBlethyn) July 9, 2015
Count Arthur Strong aka @Arthur_Strong – I've had the great fortune to have several exchanges with Arthur (or the actor who created him, Steve Delaney). His tweets make and his sitcom make me laugh like nothing else. We've discussed trouser fires, show rankings and his aversion to Game of Thrones. But my favorite was the very Arthurian answer he came up with below.
@Brittellyaddict that's funny, I don't care what the rest of your family says neither!
— Count Arthur Strong (@Arthur_Strong) April 13, 2015
Miranda Hart aka @mermhart- I never could have imagined I'd ever achieve Twitter communion with one of my British comedy idols, but it finally happened about a year ago. And just so you know, I kept my promise and went to see Spy in the theater. No lie, Miranda was in it quite a lot.
@Brittellyaddict I am in it, just not famous enough to be in the trailer!
— Miranda Hart (@mermhart) May 21, 2015
Chetna Makan aka @chetnamakan- I have had likes and brief replies from several GBBO contestants including Richard Burr, Iain Watters and Luis Troyano. But I've found Chetna to be the most responsive of the former TV baking show contestants. She responds promptly and her appreciation of your interest and support feels so genuine.
@Brittellyaddict sadly I still have to 🙂
— Chetna Makan (@chetnamakan) July 13, 2015
Reece Shearsmith aka @ReeceShearsmith- Now with Mr. Shearsmith I had to work a bit harder. I'd been tweeting complimentary remarks about his work in hopes of getting him to acknowledge my presence. Finally I pestered him for info about the upcoming series of Inside No. 9…and he took the bait!
@Brittellyaddict That's right. Have it spoilt before it even exists.
— Reece Shearsmith (@ReeceShearsmith) November 29, 2015
Others have retweeted and liked some of my input, most recently the two fine gentlemen you see pictured below. Each notification brings with it a little thrill that someone whose work I value has taken a moment to affirm my wish to connect with them.
Eddie Marsan @eddiemarsan
Greg McHugh @gregjmchugh
In fact my very first celebrity "favorite" (now designated as "likes") came from Russell Tovey aka @russelltovey. At that time I thanked him for his small but meaningful gesture which he then proceeded to "like" as well.
Thanks @russelltovey! "Favoriting" may take just a second, but it made my day:)
— British Telly Addict (@Brittellyaddict) September 6, 2014
I still have others in my sights including the aforementioned Noel Fielding, Richard Ayoade, David Mitchell and Sarah Millican to name a few. Just to clarify, I will not resort to the out and out plea for them to follow me because it's my birthday or something. It's annoying and requires no real thought. I will earn my tweets the hard way – with ingenuity, perseverance and maybe just a bit of old fashioned flattery. I can only imagine those hard earned tweets will be the sweetest of them all.
I'd really enjoy hearing who is in your Twitter "autograph book" or about your experiences in general. If you don't follow me currently and would like to, you can remedy that by clicking the Follow button to your right under Telly Quotes and Other Tweetables!
British Christmas Specials Revisited: Vicar of Dibley
Posted in Holidays, Miscellaneous Musings, tagged Alice Tinker, Christmas comedy, Dawn French, Geraldine Granger, Mel Giedroyc, Peter Capaldi, sprouts, The Christmas Lunch Incident, The Vicar of Dibley on December 6, 2015| Leave a Comment »
Vicar of Dibley's Geraldine and Jim
image credit BBC and Tiger Aspect Productions
The Christmas season which has been looming at the back of our consciousness for months is now suddenly and insistently in full swing. Christmas songs and adverts are in constant rotation, parties are underway and, while most of my halls are decked (thanks to my husband), we still have yet to finish trimming our tree.
For me the jarring effect of all things jolly and bright has somehow caught me off guard as it always seems to do each year. Therefore, I have concluded that the best way to join in with the spirit of the season is to immerse myself in the hilarious and often heartfelt genre of telly Christmas specials. As always my intention is to share as many as possible with you over the course of the next few weeks.
Let's begin with an old favorite from 1986, Vicar of Dibley's 'The Christmas Lunch Incident.'
As the trailer explains, St. Barnabas' beloved vicar Geraldine Granger (Dawn French) has been invited to share Christmas lunch at the homes of three different parishioners in very quick succession. After happily accepting the initial invitation from Frank (John Bluthal) and Jim (Trevor Peacock), Geraldine attempts to gently decline the others. However, soothing fragile egos and averting Alice's threat of suicide end in the vicar agreeing to be the guest of honor at a trio of Christmas repasts.
Some highlights of this episode include:
After suffering a bit of writer's block, it turns out that an off-the-wall gift of a Spice Girls biography, Zig-a-zig-ah, was the inspiration for Geraldine's last ditch effort at her Christmas sermon. In her oration, she compared the girl group to Mary – virgins thrust into the public eye at a young age. And as Hugo noted, "Just like the Spice Girls, Jesus wants us to tell Him what we want!"
An already stuffed vicar engages in a sprout eating challenge with David (Gary Waldhorn). She does this in order to help Hugo (James Fleet) win this first ever bet against his overly competitive father.
Settling a long standing Horton family sprout wager image credit BBC and Tiger Aspect Productions
Alice (Emma Chambers) dressed for Christmas dinner in a ballerina ensemble complete with fairy wings.
Christmas Fairy Alice
Two guest appearances stand out; that of Peter Capaldi as Songs of Praise producer Tristan Campbell who shows up at the vicar's door on Christmas evening with an unexpected proposal. Earlier in the episode, Jim tells a predictable Doctor Who knock- knock joke. Coincidence? I think no, no, no. not.
A possibly less obvious cameo was Mel Giedroyc (of GBBO fame) in one of her earliest TV appearances as Alice's even battier sister, Mary Tinker. Both sisters have an obvious penchant for festive attire but Mary has apparently confused Christmas with Easter seeing as she chose to wear a bunny jumper to Christmas dinner.
The episode concludes with poor Rev. Granger gastrically uncomfortable and alone until all her village friends arrive at her doorstep to cheer and thank her for how her presence has improved Dibley for the good. Alas she must receive their compliments and thanks from the loo where she plans to be until the New Year.
My only disappointment? The episode didn't end with Geraldine telling Alice a joke to which the dim verger never gets the punch line. I guess for this special the running Christmas cracker joke, "What do you do when you see a spaceman?" Answer: "Park your car, man" will have to do. I much prefer "How does Good King Wenceslas like his pizzas?" "Deep pan. crisp and even." Bah-dum-bum-ching!
Next time we'll explore the joy and stresses of Christmas with the Shipmans and the Wests of Gavin & Stacey.
Last Tango in Halifax: The Aftermath of Series Three
Posted in Miscellaneous Musings, So-So Telly, tagged criticisms, Kate's death, Last Tango in Halifax, series 3, US editing on August 12, 2015| 5 Comments »
Last Tango in Halifax cast series 3
image credit Red Production Co/BBC Photographer – Ben Blackall
Don't let the happy family photo above fool you. Last Tango in Halifax: Series Three was laden with tragedy, family clashes and secrets kept hidden away for years.
As you may or may not know, I wrote recaps for all the episodes from the most recent series for a PBS affiliate. According to comments we received on social media and the website for the channel, series three was notably polarizing. Some viewers felt it was the best series yet specifically praising the performance of Sarah Lancashire who plays Caroline.
However, complaints were many and varied. Therefore, I wanted to look at why this latest series rubbed folks the wrong way. In a nutshell, some of the main criticisms and pet peeves people expressed were as follows…
Editing of the British version by (or for) PBS: Some who have seen both the UK and US broadcasts were not pleased about what the American edits left out. Sexually suggestive scenes and shots of texts and notes that might have contained profanity were the most common things cut from episodes. Was PBS trying to be more family friendly (Last Tango did air in the 8 pm ET time slot) or were episodes just being trimmed for time? I don't have the answer to that question, but some felt the network should be more forthcoming about the fact the installments were edited for US television and why.
Caroline (SARAH LANCASHIRE), Kate (NINA SOSANYA)
image credit Red Productions, BBC
Kate's death – The mother-to-be's demise eliminated two of the few diverse elements of the show. Kate was the only person of color who was a cast regular. It also ended the only same sex relationship of the series.
Celia Buttershaw (ANNE REID) image credit Red Productions, Photographer: Rachel Joseph
Celia emerging unscathed after her bad behavior: Whether she was making snide remarks about her daughter's sexual orientation and life partner or behaving like a spoiled child when she found out her new husband had had a one night stand decades before he married her, the first half of the series was punctuated with Celia's brooding and self-pity. After the sudden loss of Kate, Celia's unkindness is forgiven which is understandable in the circumstances perhaps, but we don't really see her grow from the experience. She continues to assert she is broadminded, an example to her family and "the bigger person" but we know that's never going to be the case.
Alan (DEREK JACOBI), Gary (RUPERT GRAVES)
image credit Red Production Co., BBC
Gary's paranoia and insecurity got on a lot of people's nerves: Alan's new-found son Gary seems perfect at first – handsome, wealthy, successful. But the family is soon concerned with his fixation on them. Gary throws his money and influence around to impress and win them over and sulks when they politely reject his excessive overtures. He's easily agitated when things don't go his way and has the bad habit of pestering his new family until they surrender to his will. How else do you think he got so far in business?
GILLIAN (Nicola Walker) and JOHN (Tony Gardner)
Gillian's slutty ways: In the course of this series, Gillian slept with three men that I can recall and she was only engaged to one of them at the time. An abusive marriage has made her cautious but economic factors have made a new union a virtual life-line. Gillian's constant attempts to sabotage her own happiness as punishment for what she did to her first husband, however, were getting a bit stale by the end of the series.
Tipping over the edge from drama into melodrama: This sentiment was repeated again and again. Last Tango in Halifax used to be a good quality drama/romance about an adorable old couple who found one another after fifty years and now it's become a soap opera.
As I wrote up my recaps for this series, I too felt some of the same frustrations. My biggest complaint concerned what I felt was excessive repetition. Must we hear the same bit of news or gossip passed on from one character to another three or four times per episode? This is the way we pass information among our friends and family in real life, but it makes for boring television.
I think the problem many fans had with series three was actually the degree to which the characters' behaved in realistic ways. People say petty, thoughtless things to one another. They can have racist or other prejudicial attitudes. They don't think they are deserving of happiness so they do things to prove their unworthiness. In the middle of chaos and grief, people forgive their loved ones when in normal conditions they might hold a grudge much longer.
Show creator Sally Wainwright has given viewers a world that is simultaneously authentic in its human interactions, but rather extreme in the number of tumultuous situations in which the characters find themselves. I surmise that the people who really enjoyed this past series prefer their characters flawed and their lives full of uncertainty. Those who don't, probably gave up on the show already or will not tune in when it returns for series four next year. I'm still not sure which camp I'm in at the moment, but I know I wish these characters well no matter whether I decide to return to Halifax or not.
A Day Just for Snogging
Posted in Miscellaneous Musings, tagged Doctor Who, Green Wing, Miranda, National Kissing Day, Peep Show, The Office on June 19, 2015| Leave a Comment »
image credit BBC
The internet tells me it's National Kissing Day. This senselessly manufactured day of swapping spit prompted me to devise a list of cheer worthy TV smooches. You know, the kind that take forever to actually happen and warm your heart when you finally witness them. For example, any kiss that ever transpired between the constantly on again off again Miranda and Gary.
So without further ado, here are a few more telly kisses you might remember fondly…
Caroline and Mac proposal kiss – Green Wing
2. Mark and Sophie first kiss at a wake – Peep Show
3. Tim and Dawn Christmas party soulmate kiss – The Office
4. The Doctor and River Song first and last kiss – Doctor Who
Which kiss will you try out on your loved one today?
My BAFTA TV Picks for 2015
Posted in Miscellaneous Musings, tagged BAFTAs on May 10, 2015| 2 Comments »
Tonight Britain's TV industry will honor its own at the House of Fraser BAFTA Television Awards. Seeing as telly is my bag, I've decided to offer my picks on the categories – at least the ones where I've been able to watch the programs and have an opinion. My choices are based on my personal taste and not on who should or probably will win so don't place any bets based on this post please!
So without further ado, the envelopes please!
The Lost Honour of Christopher Jeffries
I only had the opportunity to watch Cilla and Prey. I tried to find a way to see the Christopher Jeffries biopic, but to no avail so. I enjoyed learning about Cilla Black and if Aneurin Barnard had been nominated for supporting actor I probably would have given him the nod.
However, Prey stood out as a Fugitive-esque thriller about a policeman framed for the murder of this family and on the run while trying to prove his innocence. The twists were well-placed and the betrayal was surprising but not from out of nowhere. John Simm delivers as usual especially when playing the maligned man with a wrong to make right.
John Simm in Prey
image credit Red Production Company, ITV
I saw all four of these nominees and enjoyed each one except Peaky Blinders. They all deal with crime and they all had great writing. Happy Valley and The Missing had the most masterful performances. In the end, I chose The Missing because of its plot twists, back and forth storytelling and James Nesbitt's portrayal of a guilt and grief-stricken father.
James Nesbitt in The Missing
image credit New Pictures, Two Brothers Pictures, BBC
Scripted Comedy
Detectorists
Harry and Paul's Story of the Twos
Moone Boy
I'm not even sure what H & P's Story of Twos is, but I have seen the other three contenders. Being such a huge fan of Chris O'Dowd (I traveled to NYC to see him on Broadway last summer if you'll recall) you might expect me to choose Moone Boy. But I had to follow my heart and go with the gentle, quirky comedy about two friends who happen to be metal detecting hobbyists. It's hard to explain, but the characters and stories stuck with me long after the jokes faded.
Mackenzie Crook and Toby Jones
image credit Channel X and BBC
Female Performance in a Comedy
Olivia Colman -Rev.
Tamsin Greig – Episodes
Jessica Hynes – W1A
Catherine Tate – Catherine Tate's Nan
All these ladies are talented comediennes, but I'm going to cast my vote for Olivia Colman every time, even if she was just doing a advert voiceover.
Olivia Colman in Rev.
image credit Big Talk Productions, Ingenious, BBC
Leading Actor
Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock
Toby Jones – Marvellous
James Nesbitt- The Missing
Jason Watkins – The Lost Honour of Christopher Jeffries
I respect and enjoy watching every one of these actors in whatever roles they undertake. It might be wishful thinking to believe Nesbitt could beat the red hot Cumberbatch, but Sherlock is no longer the new buzz worthy show so I'd like to think the luck of the Irish could be with him tonight.
image credit New Pictures Ltd.
Leading Actress
Georgina Campbell –Murdered by My Boyfriend
Keeley Hawes – Line of Duty
Sarah Lancashire – Happy Valley
Sheridan Smith – Cilla
Sarah wins this one hands down in my book. Lancashire's Catherine Cawood was the heart and soul of Happy Valley and I can't wait to see what she gets up to in the next series. There is going to a next series, right?
Sarah Lancashire in Happy Valley
image credit Red Production Co. and BBC
Male Performance in a Comedy
Matt Berry – Toast of London
Hugh Bonneville – W1A
Tom Hollander – Rev.
Brendan O'Carroll – Mrs. Brown's Boys – Christmas Special
This one was a toss up between Bonneville and Hollander since I actively dislike Mrs. Brown's Boys. And while Matt Berry makes me laugh, I prefer him as a supporting character. I leaned in favor of Bonneville because his Ian Fletcher who works at the BBC is even better than Ian Fletcher who worked on the Olympic Deliverance committee in Twenty Twelve.
Hugh Bonneville from W1A
Adeel Akhtar – Utopia
James Norton – Happy Valley
Stephen Rea – The Honourable Woman
Ken Stott –The Missing
Another tough category filled with some very convincing baddies, but Stephen Rea's complex portrayal of a soon-to-retire MI-6 agent had nuance and sensitivity that the others lacked.
Stephen Rea from The Honourable Woman
credit image Drama Republic
Gemma Jones – Marvellous
Vicky McClure -Line of Duty
Amanda Redman – Tommy Cooper: Not Like That, Like This
Charlotte Spencer –Glue
On this one I wavered between Gemma Jones as a dying mother trying to ready her son to care for himself and Vicky McClure's undercover cop on the corruption squad. In the end I went for McClure since Line of Duty is an ongoing series and Marvellous was limited to the length of a TV movie.
Vicky McClure from Line of Duty
image credit BBC Drama and World Productions
Just wanted the opportunity to say – "You know nothing, Jon Snow."
News presenter Jon Snow
image credit Channel 4
Thanks to writer Jeff Pope for teaching me about serial murderers, train robbers, pop singers and just about any other British person of note through his compelling biopics. You make my British Celebrities I Still Don't Know list much shorter.
Screenwriter Jeff Pope
Image credit The Guardian
General Election 2015 – What I Learned from TV debates, Coalition and Ballot Monkeys
Posted in Lessons, Miscellaneous Musings, tagged Ballot Monkeys, Coalition, Conservatives, David Cameron, debate, Ed Miliband, Labour, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, Nigel Farage, UKIP on May 7, 2015| 1 Comment »
As I write this, the British public are voting for their new government. I hear it could possibly be the closest election in UK history and another coalition will probably have to be created.
I have watched this election cycle with some interest. While today's polling outcome will not affect me directly which I admit is part of the attraction, I believe it has held my attention mainly because the campaigning hasn't gone on so long that I've become numb to the main players and their party messages. It may not feel like it to UK citizens but your democratic process is a sprint compared to our grueling marathon of a system.
I mean in the US, our next presidential election is eighteen months off and already we have half a dozen Republican candidates who've thrown their hats in the ring with who knows how many more on the horizon. Forgive us if our eyes glaze over because the American public will soon be enduring infuriatingly negative TV ads, incessant campaign phone calls (for those still possessing a land line) and a whole lot of mud-raking, fact twisting and pseudo-patriotic rhetoric being thrown about for the next year and a half. Not to mention the caucuses, primaries and conventions that predict, eliminate and finally anoint the official candidates for the actual general election. The UK's twenty-five day campaign period sounds like an impossible dream that could never be achieved matter how desperately we wish it to be so.
So how have I been following this more imminent election, you may ask? Well, I did watch a portion of the Leaders' Debate on YouTube.
Seven party leaders on one stage – debate or game show
image credit ITV
It was a bit overwhelming, but I got the gist of it. Farage is a xenophobe. Cameron, as you would expect, is defensive. Miliband is being mistaken for Tony Blair and Nick Clegg is still in the doghouse for breaking his no-tuition fees promise from the last election.
I realize I have no right to suggest what's best for another country's people, but based on that debate performance perhaps your best option is to allow the ladies to form a coalition and let them get on with running things. Though with the SNP and Plaid Cymru as two-thirds of equation, you might not have much of United Kingdom left in the end.
Apart from the aforementioned debate the rest of my political research comes from my telly viewing (of course). I have the background of shows like Yes, Minister, The Thick of It and House of Cards. That's not to insinuate that any of the current leaders would go to the cold-blooded extremes of Francis Urquhart.
I also watched the TV movie Coalition for more understanding on how the current government was negotiated.
I was taken with Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg's dilemma between joining the Tories or Labour and his idealistic desire to finally put his party in a position to make a difference in government. Alas I didn't know about Tuition-gate nor the fact that Clegg had the option to pull out of the coalition when it was obvious the Tories weren't going to play nice. I understand this would have forced another election, but he apparently chose to go with the status quo which turned him into an ineffectual deputy prime minister instead.
There has been one series, however, that has really given me the clearest picture of this highly-contested national campaign and that is the satirical sitcom, Ballot Monkeys. In it we follow the campaign teams of the four major parties as they travel up and down the country trying to inspire the British public to vote for them. There is nothing more revealing than seeing things from the point of view of a politician's staff.
Desperate for the women's vote and trying hard not to come across as posh toffs, the Tories seem to be sending a mixed message about who their leader really is – David or Boris.
Ed Miliband has the loyalty and trust of his party staff. Nevertheless, their campaign strategy is to focus on the team rather than their leader who they perceive as having some public appeal issues.
Having your leader be seen as a failure has put a lot of pressure on Lib Dem coordinator Kevin Sturridge (Ben Miller) in particular. He carries on his shoulders the stress of supporter apathy and the virtual shunning of his entire party in the media. It's bound to take a toll on such a committed supporter.
And finally we come to UKIP. Not to put too fine a point on it, but Farage's Army are portrayed as ultra-nationalistic, anti-immigrant and homophobic as well as violent. Poor Gerry Stagg (Andy Nyman) seems to be the only level head in the entire party, but he's wasted by constantly having to stamp out fires created by supporters, candidates and the party leader himself.
I realize Ballot Monkeys is deliberately exaggerating the foibles of the candidates and the character of their voter base. That being said, no party gets preferential treatment and everyone gets roasted equally. Another aspect of this show is that they waited until the last minute to film each episode so national events and the inevitable campaign trail gaffes could be included in a timely fashion. If that's not a commitment to accuracy, I don't know what is.
Since I'm not a UK citizen (and under a UKIP government, I never will be), I obviously don't have a vote. Nor do I have the perspective of one who lives under the unique conditions and problems of that country. However, I did take a 25 question on-line quiz which identified the party with which I most agree philosophically. Let's just say my coalition's color would be orange…
As my British readers go to the polls today I bid you to vote your conscience whatever your political views might be. It's the way democracy works and if you don't like the outcome you only have to wait five years at the most to change it!
Happy Pi(e) Day!
Posted in Holidays, Miscellaneous Musings, tagged House of Fools, Numberphile, Pi Day, pie poll on March 14, 2015| Leave a Comment »
I've been told that math-minded people get very excited for Pi Day because the first sequence of digits of a mathematical constant which expresses the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter corresponds with the numbers in today's date. Coincidence or one of those mysterious laws of nature that binds our world together? I'm not really bothered either way. What is more interesting to me is a sciencey man resembling Michael Palin (in profile only) who sets out to solve for pi using actual pies as visual aids.
More fascinating still is trying to guess who the winner of my Favorite Pie Poll will be. Please vote below and if your preferred pie isn't on the list, simply tick "other" and type in your choice. Vic and Bob clearly favor a pork pie but don't let those fools sway you.
House of Fools Vic, Bob and gigantic pie
Historical Sitcoms Are a Real Thing in the UK
Posted in Miscellaneous Musings, Reviews and Recommendations, tagged Chickens, Dad's Army, Dinosaurs, historical sitcoms, Horrible Histories, Hunderby, Plebs, Up the Women on February 20, 2015| 5 Comments »
When I say "historical" in relation to television programming, what comes to mind? Drama, right? Human rights campaigns, wars, ancient civilizations; these are serious subjects which must be treated with solemnity and reverence.
Apparently not in the UK where history has been the backdrop for many a comedic series. Look at the WWII era alone- It Ain't Half Hot Mum, 'Allo 'Allo and Dad's Army. All three of these series are consistently named at the top of British sitcom polls.
The Home Guard volunteers of Dad's Army
Blackadder famously visited the Middle Ages, Elizabethan and Regency periods as well as WWI. Monty Python often set their sketches and films in olden times to very humorous effect. And while technically considered a children's program, the BAFTA-winning Horrible Histories is full of fun and "100% accu-rat" facts.
Not that historical settings have never been employed with American comedies. In the 60's and 70's, there were a number of WWII sitcoms on network television from McHale's Navy and Operation Petticoat to the classic POW camp series Hogan's Heroes. Though to be fair, these shows might have been considered more nostalgic than historic since the war had ended only 20-30 years earlier.
In what seems like an entertainment anomaly now, we even had a very silly Civil War era sitcom, F Troop set during the most painful and divisive period in our history. Watching it today would probably be rather cringe-inducing particularly the cartoonish portrayals of Native Americans in characters such as Chief Wild Eagle and his sidekick Crazy Cat.
That being said, the aforementioned programs were from a different era in American TV history, 40 to 50 years ago to be exact. The point is that the Brits are still setting sitcoms in historical contexts and being rather entertaining the process.
In fact in the past three or four years several such comedies have been produced in the UK. Plebs is a prime example of this trend. Three young men (or more specifically two young men and their slave) are trying to make it in the big city of 27 BC era Rome. Despite the classical setting, viewers are meant to understand that boys will be boys no matter the time period they find themselves in.
Plebs stars Joel Fry, Tom Rosenthal and Ryan Sampson
image credit Rise Films
Move forward 1800 years or so and we find ourselves in the English coastal village of Hunderby. This is a dark and sexually fueled period sitcom about Helene (Alexandra Roach) who is saved from a shipwreck as she attempts to escape her horribly shameful and unfortunate past. The young woman catches the eye of several men in the village including Edmund (Alex McQueen) a widowed vicar and Dr. Foggerty (Rufus Jones) who is burdened with a invalid wife.
The darkly funny cast of Hunderby
image credit Baby Cow Productions
This award winning series is available in the US on Hulu and it has recently been reported that Hunderby will return for a two-part special later in the year.
Set in WWI England, 2011's Chickens is a sitcom about three young men who stay home. Cecil (Simon Bird) has flat feet, George (Joe Thomas) is a conscientious objector and Bert (Jonny Sweet) is a clueless womanizer who keeps forgetting there's a war going on. Ostracized by the women of the village, the trio must band together to weather the abuse and hardship of their situation.
The one and only series of Chickens is available to stream on Hulu.
One of my favorite shows at the moment is a sitcom that would never get made in the US. Putting the slightly quirky title aside, Up the Women is a series that follows a group of hapless suffragette wannabes led by the very earnest but ineffectual Margaret (Jessica Hynes).
If you want to find this one, I've had to resort to YouTube since series 2 is currently airing on BBC2.
The question is, for those of you who care, why do historical sitcoms get commissioned and find an audience in the UK and not in the States? In part, I believe the British are much more aware of history and their place in it. British audiences are raised on costume dramas so why couldn't programs set in the past be funny as well? Though attitudes are changing in the US, corsets, togas and ridiculously manicured facial hair used to be code for the hoity toity types of shows you could only find on Masterpiece Theater.
Let's just hope that if Hollywood TV execs finally do pick up on the historical sitcom, they don't go back this far again…


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When most people hear the name "Fosse" images of Broadway come to mind, of the 1970s, of Chicago, Cabaret, and All That Jazz. But the story of Bob Fosse, who won a record eight Tony Awards for choreography during his lifetime, is far more complicated. In 1954, he choreographed his first Broadway musical, The Pajama Game, followed by 1955's Damn Yankees. The latter starred Gwen Verdon, the woman who would go on to be his wife and muse until his death in 1987. The newest biopic series focuses on their relationship. When does Fosse/Verdon premiere? FX plans to start the eight-episode limited series run in April.
Fosse/Vernon stars Sam Rockwell as the legendary choreographer and director and Michelle Williams as Verdon, his partner in what was a violate marriage. The two married in 1960, and spent a decade together, including having a daughter, Nicole. But by 1971 they could no longer make it work, and the two separated.
But their's was not a love story that ended when they moved to their own apartments. Unlike most breakups, Fosse and Verdon never divorced. Even after his death in '87, Verdon never remarried either. She passed away in 2009.
But while Fosse and Verdon's story has more to it than people think, the trailer has what you would expect: Spotlights, high kicks, chair dancing, and lots and lots of snapping.
The new series is one blessed by the family, Nicole Fosse is counted among the show's numerous executive producers, along with both Rockwell and Williams, as well as Lin-Manuel Miranda and Steven Levenson, of Dear Evan Hansen fame.
Fosse/Verdon will tell the story of these two brilliant, complicated individuals – the love they shared, the art they created, and the price they paid in the pursuit of greatness.
Fosse's legend is significant enough this is not the first time a biopic has been made of him. It speaks volumes his third biggest film hit, All That Jazz, was actually an autobiopic, cementing Fosse's vision of how he wanted the world to see him and his career. Made in 1979, it doesn't star Verdon but instead features Ann Reinking, his 1970s era collaborator, who was also the woman he carried on a years-long extramarital affair with after he and Verdon separated.
As with any story based on real people and events, one of the shows selling points will be casting roles of the famous people who Fosse and Verdon found themselves working with. To that end, FX has announced Norbert Leo Butz (My Fair Lady) will play Broadway legend Paddy Chayefsky, Nate Corddry (Mindhunter) will be legendary playwright Neil Simon, and Margaret Qualley (The Leftovers) will play Ann Reinking.
Also cast: Laura Osnes (Cinderella) will be actress Shirley MacLaine, who starred in Fosse's The Pajama Game, Bianca Marroquin (In the Heights) will play Chita Rivera who starred in Fosse's Chicago, and Kelli Barrett (Rock of Ages) will play Liza Minnelli, who starred in Fosse's Cabaret.
Fosse/Verdon premieres on FX on Tuesday, April 9 at 10:00 p.m. ET.


text:
Fred Pearce
Fred Pearce is a freelance author and journalist based in London. He has reported on environment, science and development issues from 64 countries over the past 20 years. Trained as a geographer, he has been environment consultant of New Scientist magazine since 1992.
He writes regularly for the Guardian, and was author of the newspaper's 12-part investigation into the 'climategate' email controversy at the University of East Anglia. His book on this controversy, The Climate Files: The Battle for the Truth About Global Warming, was published in 2010.
Fred is a frequent lecturer, having spoken on all six continents in the past four years, and is a contributor to US newspapers and magazines. His books have been translated into 16 languages, and include Peoplequake: Mass Migration, Ageing Nations and the Coming Population Crash; Confessions of an Eco Sinner: Travels to Find Where My Stuff Comes From; The Last Generation: How Nature Will Take Her Revenge for Climate Change; When the Rivers Run Dry: What Happens When Our Water Runs Out?; Earth Then and Now: Amazing Images of Our Changing World; and Deep Jungle: Travel to the Heart of the Rainforest.
Sunday 31 October 2010, 12.30pm Lecture Theatre 1
Can we trust the evidence? The IPCC - a case study
Sunday 31 October 2010, 3.45pm Lecture Theatre 1
End of the peer revue: has the peer review process lost credibility?
The Climate Files: The Battle for the Truth About Global Warming (Guardian Books, 2010)
Peoplequake: Mass Migration, Ageing Nations and the Coming Population Crash (Eden Project Books, 2010)
Stealing Picasso? Copyright and art
"Of all the political and cultural festivals, none beats the Battle of Ideas for its eclecticism and willingness to invite controversial and absorbing debate."
John Kampfner, Chief executive, Index on Censorship; former editor, New Statesman


ISLAMABAD: Advisor to PM Nawaz on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz said that dialogues are underway with US administration over the matter of F-16 jets while matter would be resolved soon.
As per details, Senate session was held here at today under the chairmanship of Raza Rabbani. While addressing in Senate Sartaj Aziz elaborated that US administration has agreed to provide F-16 jets to Pakistan however negotiations are underway in this regard.
He revealed that an Indian lobby wanted to end F-16 deal between Pakistan and USA but they would have to face disappointment in their nefarious designs.
Sartaj pointed out that it was decided that $700 crore expenses would be made over the purchase of 8 F-16 jets and Pakistan would pay $270 crore in this regard while remaining amount $430 crore would be paid by military foreign funds but now US Congress has refused to give remaining amount.
While expressing his hope for early resolution of this issue, Sarjat stated that dialogues are underway so positive outcomes are being expected of this matter.
USA has admitted that Pakistan needs F-16 jets in order to counter the scourge of terrorism , Sartaj added saying that Pakistan has rejected allegations of India that F-16 aircrafts to be used against India by Pakistan.


text:
John A. Tirpak
The Waverider hypersonic Scramjet just before its second test flight, in June 2011. Photo: Boeing
A PEEK AT THE NEW WORLD ORDER
A new era of "great power competition" is underway, and the US will have to come to terms with the fact that it's no longer the world's sole superpower, but one of several. Accommodating that reality—and the likelihood of only modest increases in defense spending—means the US should fully train and equip the military it has and focus tightly on being able to "win our nation's wars" without any warning time.
This assessment, delivered by former Deputy Defense Secretary Robert O. Work at the US Naval Institute in December, may be as close as the public gets to a glimpse of the new National Military Strategy, reportedly in its final stages of coordination in December. Work served as the No. 2 man at the Pentagon from April 2014 to July 2017, under both the Obama and Trump administrations. He directed all the Pentagon's strategy reviews and weapons programs and was privy to the most classified assessments of US and adversary capabilities. More than perhaps anyone else, he knows how the US stacks up against its competition.
Work said the US will have to "unlearn the lessons" of the last 26 years when the post-Cold War world offered no existential military challenges to the US. This was a "period so strategically favorable to the US," which had "uncontested ... supremacy" in all things military, leading to complacency in many areas.
That era ended in 2014 when China felt confident enough in its power—both "soft" economic and diplomatic power and "hard" military power—to embark on its South China Sea island-building campaign, directly challenging the US. Russia, in the same year, invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea, apparently unconcerned about a US response.
These events were a clear sign of great powers trying to "secure their near-abroads" and challenge the US for power and influence, Work observed. The era might even have ended sooner, in 2008, when Russia threatened military consequences if NATO continued expanding, he allowed.
Today, US "hard power is declining ... with a vengeance" relative to its challengers, Work asserted.
"Don't rule out the ideological component, either," he added. While the US has not been as aggressive recently in its campaign to spread democracy, its challengers are vigorously trying to "make the world safe for authoritarianism." Accompanying that is a "general intensification of world disorder," with political and technological disruptions and a "pronounced uncertainty about the willingness and staying power of Western democracy." For at least the next 25 years, the world will be in a "very, very chaotic period," Work assessed.
During this era, the most important technologies will be in automation and artificial intelligence (AI), he predicted. These will enable militaries to function much faster, from the strategic and operational levels down to the tactical, and that will be the key to victory. For example, great strides are being made in "cognitive" electronic warfare, in which machine intelligence figures out what the enemy is doing, second by second, and counters it.
CHINA HAS THE LEAD
In recent defense white papers, China has boldly declared that it will pull even with the West in automation and AI by 2020, be better than anyone else in those disciplines by 2025, and be dominant in such technologies by 2030. China's rapid rise in other technology pursuits suggests these aren't idle boasts, Work added.
China is pursuing asymmetric strategies to counter US advantages and one of those is to exploit "near-space," by taking a lead in hypersonics.
"China has said, 'We're going to compete and dominate in hypersonics,' " Work pointed out—flatly acknowledging that China is already the world leader in this area. "Our geo-strategic rivals ... are competing with us, hard."
Work offered a checklist of challenges that must be addressed if the US is to remain militarily competitive in the coming decades; a period in which technological advantage will again seesaw between the great powers and in which there will be more of them.
First, the US must somehow both "compete with the other great powers while avoiding great power war," he said.
Second, this will require the ability to deter and respond to "old and new means of strategic attack," including nuclear as well as cyber warfare. The latter can be practically as devastating as a nuclear attack if an enemy chose, for example, to crash the US electrical grid.
The third challenge will be to manage the "destabilization, disintegration, and re-integration" of various alliances, nations, and regions of the world, Work said, specifically urging a focus on the potential rearrangement of alliances in the Middle East.
Fourth, the US needs to develop a new and credible concept for deterring and dealing with "nuclear-armed minor powers" such as North Korea and potentially Iran.
Fifth will be a push to "restore conventional overmatch" with competitors. Work said the US no longer enjoys a lopsided conventional advantage. "We are at parity now," he warned.
Rather than try to build more Air Force fighter squadrons, Army brigades, or Navy ships, Work said it will be more effective to "hone the force we have" and make sure the existing force structure is thoroughly manned, trained, and equipped. The US is, and will remain, "very, very good" militarily, and if it is well prepared—Work specifically urged that forces be "over-provisioned" and weapons inventories more than fully stocked—it will present a formidable deterrent to any adversary.
Organizationally, Work said the US has overindulged in training deployments. American power has been dissipated by sending an endless stream of ships, aircraft, and troops to war games around the world, pulling them away from other missions. Better to send "training teams" that can observe and offer guidance, Work said, because these deployments actually degrade readiness.
Work also urged a reorientation of assets toward more existential conflicts and competitions. He related that former NSA chief, USAF Gen. Michael V. Hayden, complained that when Russia invaded Ukraine, the US was practically blind in that area because "everything was tuned to ... low-frequency radio" transmissions in Afghanistan.
You can read this story in our print issue:
STICK WITH "THIRD OFFSET"
Work pushed the "Third Offset" initiative he championed while in office, insisting the US must press hard to achieve leap-ahead technology advances just to keep up with its competition. As part of this, the US must move deliberately to be able to fight in space and have the resilience to "fight through" losses of satellite systems.
The Budget Control Act will persist until 2021, and he sees little sign of it being repealed, meaning a probable series of continuing resolutions or two-year budget deals. What the military urgently needs is a five-year assured plan to function properly, he asserted.
One option—and the one which Congress has resorted to for several years—is to fund essential needs with the Overseas Contingency Operations [OCO] account. One of Work's slides listed this option as "OCO the s#!t out of it."
Under the defense budget proposed a year ago, Work said it's likely the services will wind up, practically, with about $30 billion more in usable funds. That's far from what's needed, but, "You can do a lot—a lot—with $30 billion" to fix readiness problems.
Rather than attempt to grow the military, the Pentagon should fill empty billets and "empty missile holes," Work said. Any adversary must look at well-stocked, well-trained US forces and conclude that "if they go after [us], it will be the worst day of their lives." US forces will be far more credible if they are viewed as having the capability to fight all-out without notice. Work said it's unfortunate the entire nuclear enterprise has atrophied so much that every element of it must be modernized all at once, but it must be done.
"We are way, way behind on recapitalization," he said, adding "all the margin is gone." Every new nuclear program—from the Ohio-class ballistic submarine, to new B-21 bombers and missiles for the Air Force, to land-based ICBMs—has to be replaced, he insisted.
"About three percent" of the defense budget goes to nuclear forces, Work said, and modernization will double that figure to six percent. It's unlikely there will be "any extra money to do it," so that additional three percent will be "a decrement to the conventional forces;" another reason to resist trying to build a larger military.
DUMPING JSTARS?
Once touted as the Air Force's fourth-highest modernization priority—after the F-35 strike fighter, the KC-46 tanker, and B-21 bomber—a replacement of the E-8 JSTARS ground moving target radar platform seemed headed toward cancellation in December.
Senior Air Force leaders acknowledged in September they were reconsidering the JSTARS Recap program, worried that a big intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance platform would be too lucrative a target for enemies in a future war. USAF Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein and Secretary Heather Wilson told reporters at AFA's Air, Space & Cyber Conference they were thinking instead about a disaggregated network of sensors on platforms already in the battlespace, which would be hard to knock out.
Air Combat Command chief Gen. James "Mike" Holmes told an AFA Mitchell Institute gathering in late November that, as envisioned, JSTARS Recap can't do the job originally anticipated.
"We don't think that a JSTARS Recap will give us the capability we need" in contested airspace, he said. At the time, the Air Force had not yet decided whether to simply dump the program—on the eve of selecting a contractor to build it—or go ahead, but with the proviso that it would only be used in more benign environments. In either case, USAF will need "a global capability that could do that [mission] on any battlefield," Holmes said. The service is reviewing with sister services and allies other ways it could do the less-demanding mission. Two alternatives might be the RQ-4 Global Hawk remotely piloted aircraft or the Navy's P-8 Poseidon patrol aircraft, Holmes said.
As originally envisioned, JSTARS reveals large enemy vehicle formations and their movements, but there are other ways of defining that information now, Holmes said. In recent years, JSTARS has been used increasingly to watch individual vehicles and "dismounted" people and is "frankly ... too expensive" to be used in such a way, he asserted.
In late November, the Air Force picked Northrop Grumman over Raytheon to develop the large radar that would be the core JSTARS sensor; a contract separate from that of outfitting and integrating a small fleet of airplanes for the mission. Raytheon, in a brief statement, said it believed "the evaluation process had significant flaws, and we have filed a protest accordingly." The Air Force said the Government Accountability Office has 100 days from the date of the protest to render a decision.
Three companies were in the running for the JSTARS contract, expected to be awarded in the spring of 2018: Boeing, with a version of its 737, in a configuration similar to that of the P-8; Lockheed Martin, with a solution hosted on a Global Express business jet; and Northrop Grumman, offering a system mounted on a Gulfstream G550 business jet. The new aircraft was to be in service by 2024.


Everyone deserves an equal chance to shine. Every company benefits from a diverse workforce.
It's the law to put reasonable adjustments in place in order that your employees and job applicants have an equal opportunity to shine. The challenge facing most employers is knowing what steps to take to be compliant, effective and confident in managing those adjustments in recruitment and the workplace.
What do we need to ask and when?
How do we ask in the right way?
Are there things we're not allowed to ask?
Will we know what to do when people tell us their needs?
How will we know if it's a reasonable request?
Will we manage it well if things go wrong?
Most employers are aware that they are non-compliant, reactive and at risk, but aren't sure how to bridge the gap to a best-practice approach.
A bridge to compliance exists.
An effective diversity management solution is available and straightforward to implement.
A judging panel including senior representatives from E.ON, Eversheds, the Civil Service and HMRC, selected ClearTalents for Awards at the RIDI Awards 2015. ClearTalents won in three categories; the Employers Choice Award, the Reasonable Adjustments in Recruitment Award and the Technology for Inclusion Award.
The judges felt that ClearTalents represented a new approach to making adjustments in recruitment and were particularly impressed with results that showed disclosure levels going from less than 5% to 65% and sickness absence rates dropping by nearly 50% in a single year.
Embracing diversity means you're able to get the right person for the role and bring breadth to your workforce.
Protected by the Equality Act, these people together represent over 70% of the available workforce of UK PLC.
You are undoubtedly employing many of them at all levels of your organisation today, with applications from many more talented candidates arriving tomorrow.
ClearTalents integrates with your recruitment processes. Find the right person for the job and reduce legal risks.
Unlock the potential of every employee across your organisation.
Integrate ClearTalents into existing HR processes. Empower managers, improve productivity and ensure compliance.
Create a quick diversity profile and let work know what changes you need.
Sheila cares for Sam, her young disabled son. ClearTalents helped her say which times are best for calls or interviews.
Maryam used ClearTalents to discuss her cultural and religious requirements with her employers. She now feels more comfortable, better accommodated and understood.
Using the information Katy had provided through ClearTalents, simple adjustments such as a headset and quiet environment were provided when she came in for an assessment.
ClearTalents made it easy for Dan to request an accessible parking bay at his different working locations.
Claire used ClearTalents whilst applying for jobs; "I think it made all the difference for me. Employers knew about my needs and exactly how they could help me perform at my best."
With the arrival of a new baby, Stuart used ClearTalents to arrange flexible hours and paternity leave.


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text:
New Report Sheds Light On Life In Solitary Confinement
Published October 2, 2012 at 12:40 PM PDT
NYACLU
A typical special housing unit (SHU) cell for two prisoners, in use at Upstate Correctional Facility and SHU 20.0.s in New York.
A year-long study released today is providing insight into the effects of solitary confinement in New York state prisons.
The American Civil Liberties Union of New York talked to more than 100 people who spent time in "extreme isolation." In many cases, they received letters from those people.
As The New York Times reports, the men described the experience of losing their minds in "flawed but poignant language."
The Times reports:
"Having been held captive to their imaginations for weeks, months or, occasionally, years on end, the men — many already struggling with mental illness — brought their paranoia, rage, anxiety and hope to life on the page, with descriptions that were sometimes literary and other times nearly impossible to decipher. More than anything, they conveyed a grisly awareness that their identities were unraveling, a feeling so disconcerting for some that they tried to take their own lives. ...
"The letters may add fuel to the national debate over whether holding prisoners in extreme isolation amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. Many states have recently shifted away from the practice, which was the subject of federal hearings this summer, but it remains widespread in New York."
As NPR's Carrie Johnson tells our Newscast unit, the ACLU found that 8 percent of the New York prison population is in extreme isolation at any one time. Sixty percent of those are black and the vast majority of them are in prison for non-violent crimes.
"The ACLU wants New York state to identify people who don't belong in solitary confinement and do more to protect vulnerable prisoners," Carrie reports.
One of the more interesting pieces of the report is section IV, called "Life in the Box."
"Prisoners in extreme isolation live in a world of unrelenting monotony, marked by isolation and idleness, where all extrinsic purpose and structure slowly unravels," the report found.
One prisoner, Kevin, said the experience left him feeling "isolated, forgotten, like you don't matter."
"Nobody likes to be alone," he said. "It's not human nature. We're social. When you take that away from a person it's standing still, with nothing. Nothing forward, backward, sideways. You just have you."


Don and Phil Everly were one of the top acts in rock 'n roll history, responsible for bringing the close-harmony singing tradition into the pop genre. Their 1957 hit Bye Bye Love started an avalanche of hits including Wake Up Little Susie, Cathy's Clown and Crying In the Rain. After an acrimonious split in 1973, the duo reformed a decade later, and were eventually inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. Phil Everly passed away in January 2014 at the age of 74.


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than could be shared in the space of a workshop.
protest and practical alternative social institutions.
Cheques should be made payable to Toronto Action for Social Change.
Especially welcome are handbooks, guides for trainers and directories.
What was said about Resources for Radicals?
"The Radical Nonviolent Kitchen Sink"
"An inexpensive, essential compilation of crucial information. A Must Have."
religious publications---more than perhaps many humanists will appreciate.
individuals involved with social change."


This hat is a one size fits all and has custom embroidery on the front and an embroidery on the back.
Front: "1Nation1Day" and all the 1N1D countries around the border, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Peru.
Back: "All Creation Waits" on the back.
Where you can change the world.


Follow the road to Monroe City RV, your most complete RV dealer in the area. We can help you fix your current RV or make you a great deal on travel trailers or 5th wheels. Monroe City RV is family owned and operated and has been doing business at the same location for 24 years.
Community calls to action/charity donations.


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Manchester United Target Eriksen Transfer Listed by Inter Milan
By Kiran Rai
Midfield Maestro Christian Eriksen transfer-listed by Antonio Conte's Inter Milan. He is no longer part of the plans in motion, Arsenal and Manchester United hoping to bring back Eriksen to England.
The once highly sought after midfielder now sits on the bench for the Italian Giants. Christian Eriksen has only played 373 minutes in all competitions this season and has zero goal contribution.
The 28-year-old Christian Eriksen played for Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League. He played for the Lilywhites for almost 7 years before leaving for Inter Milan to "try something new". This deal should've been amazing, however, hindsight is 20/20.
Christian Eriksen scored 51 goals and assisted 62 in 226 appearances in the Premier League. He can still return to the PL to revive his career.
Inter Milan CEO Giuseppe Marotta confirmed this news and also agreed Eriksen will leave in January.
"Yes, I can confirm that Christian Eriksen is on the transfer list. He's going to leave in January. He's not functional to our plans and he had difficulty here at Inter. I think it's right that Christian goes away to find more space."
– Giuseppe Marotta on Christian Eriksen' future in Inter Milan
CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN A GOONER?
The once Spurs man can join arch-rivals Arsenal in the January transfer window. However, this won't be the first time a player left Spurs to join Arsenal. The most notable one being Sol Campbell who left Spurs to join Arsenal. He went on to become an integral part of the Invincible side who won the PL without losing a single game.
Christian Eriksen joining Arsenal would be a solid move for all parties involved. Inter Milan get money. Eriksen gets playing time. And Arsenal finally get a creative midfielder after they pushed Mesut Ozil out of the squad for "footballing reasons".
Mikel Arteta could do with an experienced playmaker like Eriksen. His side has struggled to create chances this season scoring a mere 8 goals in the PL.
ERIKSEN, ANOTHER MIDFIELDER FOR MANCHESTER UNITED?
Manchester United already have a fully stacked midfield. The addition of Donny Van De Beek has eliminated any available space for another midfielder. The Dutchman himself has barely played for The Red Devils due to Bruno Fernandes' form.
It is very difficult to see where Eriksen would fit in at Manchester United. However, if a deal were to go through it would mean Eriksen is happy with a bench position.
Follow our Twitter page for the latest updates on English Premier League and Indian Football.
Related Items:Arsenal, Christian Eriksen, Inter Milan, Latest, Latest News, latest transfer news, Manchester United, Premier League, serie a
Manchester United and Barcelona to Battle for Yusuf Demir
Liverpool Beat Manchester United to Sign 16-Year-Old Wonderkid


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Germania
 Grünberg – città dell'Assia
 Grünberg – frazione della città di Brüssow nel Brandeburgo

Polonia
 Grünberg i. Schlesien, oggi Zielona Góra – città del voivodato di Lubusz
 Grünberg in den Karpaten, oggi Grybów – città del voivodato della Piccola Polonia (distretto di Nowy Sącz)

Repubblica Ceca
 Grünberg, oggi Zelená Hora – comune della Moravia Meridionale (distretto di Vyškov)

Pagine correlate
Gruenberg

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Gjaerumia ossifragi är en svampart som först beskrevs av Emil Rostrup, och fick sitt nu gällande namn av R. Bauer, M. Lutz & Oberw. 2005. Gjaerumia ossifragi ingår i släktet Gjaerumia och familjen Gjaerumiaceae.   Inga underarter finns listade i Catalogue of Life.

Källor

Basidiesvampar
ossifragi


The exclusive Vila Vita Parc offers timeless elegance and style coupled with luxurious facilities, all set in a stunning cliff top setting above the Atlantic Ocean amidst lush sub-tropical gardens. This five star resort celebrates the best of Portugal, immersing each guest in pampered, personalised pleasures, imbued with Portuguese culture and hospitality.
Situated in 54 acres of sub-tropical gardens on a clifftop above the Atlantic Ocean in Portugal's Algarve.
The 11 seasonal restaurants, serving a variety of casual and gourmet cuisines are complemented by Portugal's best wine cellar and six bars.
An array of off-property options from tee times on nearby championship courses to horseback riding, deep-sea fishing to visits to Sevilla and Lisbon, typical Portuguese bullfights to paragliding or excursions by typical fishing boat to explore the coastal rock formations and grottos.


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Witalij Fiedorczuk  Виталий Васильевич Федорчук (ur. 27 grudnia 1918 w Ohijówce w guberni kijowskiej, zm. 29 lutego 2008 w Moskwie) – radziecki działacz państwowy, funkcjonariusz służb specjalnych, generał armii.

Życiorys
W 1938 ukończył wojskową szkołę łączności. Od 1940 był członkiem WKP(b). Od 1939 pełnił służbę w radzieckim kontrwywiadzie wojskowym, pełnomocnik operacyjny Wydziału Specjalnego NKWD Uralskiego Okręgu Wojskowego, uczestnik bitwy nad Chałchin-Goł. Podczas wojny z Niemcami funkcjonariusz Wydziałów Specjalnych NKWD jednostek frontowych Armii Czerwonej, 1943 szef Wydziału Specjalnego NKWD/Wydziału Kontrwywiadu Smiersz 92 Samodzielnej Brygady Czołgowej, od października 1943 zastępca szefa Wydziału Kontrwywiadu Smiersz Garnizonu w Jarosławiu, a od maja 1944 garnizonu w Tule. Od 1955 był zastępcą szefa, a następnie szefem Wydziału Specjalnego Komitetu Bezpieczeństwa Państwowego (KGB) Moskiewskiego Okręgu Wojskowego. Od 1963 na stanowisku zastępcy szefa, a od 1966 szefa Zarządu Kontrwywiadu KGB Grupy Wojsk Radzieckich w Niemczech. Od 1967 był szefem Zarządu III KGB ZSRR (kontrwywiadu). Od 16 lipca 1970 do 26 maja 1982 był przewodniczącym KGB Ukraińskiej SRR, po czym w maju 1982 zmienił Jurija Andropowa na stanowisku przewodniczącego Komitetu Bezpieczeństwa Państwowego ZSRR. Został mianowany generałem armii. Od 17 grudnia 1982 do 24 stycznia 1986 był ministrem spraw wewnętrznych ZSRR, a od 1986 do 1991 pracował w aparacie centralnym ministerstwa obrony ZSRR.

Odznaczenia
 Order Lenina (1977)
 Order Rewolucji Październikowej (1971)
 Order Czerwonego Sztandaru Pracy (dwukrotnie, 1973 i 1980)
 Order Wojny Ojczyźnianej I klasy
 Order Czerwonej Gwiazdy (trzykrotnie, w tym w 1943)
 Order Zasługi dla Ojczyzny (NRD, dwukrotnie w 1970 i 1975)
 Order 9 września 1944 I klasy (Ludowa Republika Bułgarii, 1974)
 Order Czerwonego Sztandaru (Czechosłowacja, 1970)
 Krzyż Oficerski Orderu Odrodzenia Polski (Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, 1972)

Przypisy

Radzieccy generałowie armii
Przewodniczący KGB
Funkcjonariusze Smiersza
Funkcjonariusze NKWD
Cudzoziemcy odznaczeni Krzyżem Oficerskim Orderu Odrodzenia Polski (1944–1989)
Odznaczeni Orderem Czerwonego Sztandaru Pracy
Odznaczeni Orderem Czerwonej Gwiazdy
Odznaczeni Orderem 9 września 1944
Odznaczeni Orderem Lenina
Odznaczeni Orderem Rewolucji Październikowej
Odznaczeni Orderem Wojny Ojczyźnianej I klasy
Odznaczeni Orderem Zasługi dla Ojczyzny (NRD)
Rosyjscy politycy
Urodzeni w 1918
Zmarli w 2008


Wholesale Dispensing Tools that make dispensing your soap and cosmetic ingredients easy and efficient. One of our favorites is the Soap Making Squeeze Bottle that makes creating designs in soaps easy!
Our pail opener is ideal for opening 3.5 and 5 gallon buckets. Constructed of aluminum. Can be used to open any of our 5 gallon lotion bases and shampoo bases.
One set includes one bottle and one powder spray top. Mica not included. Fill this bottle with dry powders, glitter and mica to spray onto soap or bath fizzies. Powder disperses in a fine mist. Not recommended for use with pigments and oxides.
The Rotary Drum Pump can be used to pump oils, lotions and shower gels from 50-55 gallon drums! Pump stays attached to drum so that you can pump product as needed. As long as cross contamination does not occur and safe practices are used, pump can be reused. This tool is vital for big batch cosmetic makers.
This easy to squeeze, wide-mouth bottle is perfect for adding details in cold process soap making. Ideal tool for creating swirls, straight lines and intricate designs. If you are a Cold Process Soap maker looking to make easy, creative designs, you need this soap making squeeze bottle! 1 set = 2 bottles & 2 tops.


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HOME / NEWS / Start Reading NEMESIS by Brendan Reichs!
Start Reading NEMESIS by Brendan Reichs!
We're in the business of bringing you unique, unforgettable stories that you won't soon forget. That's why we're bringing you an excerpt from Nemesis by Brendan Reichs. Nemesis tells the story of Min, who, since her eighth birthday, has gotten murdered every two years by a man she can't identify. Intrigued yet? Read on for a synopsis and a glimpse at the first three chapters!
It's been happening since Min was eight. Every two years, on her birthday, a strange man finds her and murders her in cold blood. But hours later, she wakes up in a clearing just outside her tiny Idaho hometown—alone, unhurt, and with all evidence of the horrifying crime erased.
Across the valley, Noah just wants to be like everyone else. But he's not. Nightmares of murder and death plague him, though he does his best to hide the signs. But when the world around him begins to spiral toward panic and destruction, Noah discovers that people have been lying to him his whole life. Everything changes in an eye blink.
For the planet has a bigger problem. The Anvil, an enormous asteroid threatening all life on Earth, leaves little room for two troubled teens. Yet on her sixteenth birthday, as she cowers in her bedroom, hoping not to die for the fifth time, Min has had enough. She vows to discover what is happening in Fire Lake and uncovers a lifetime of lies: a vast conspiracy involving the sixty-four students of her sophomore class, one that may be even more sinister than the murders.
Can't wait to keep reading? Pre-order your copy of Nemesis here!


Healthy eating enthusiast Kirsty Gillmore (@live.love.balance) fancied a little morning bake-off in the week, so made these paleo peanut butter + cacao muffins. All RSF, GF + DF. If you love some baking action and have 30min you can spare, then these muffins are your answer!


Institute of Banking Personnel Selection has released Online Exam Call letter for the Post of IBPS SO 2017. Login for IBPS SO Admit Card 2017 candidates requires roll number / registration number and date of birth / password. Candidates can download their Exam Call Letter through the link mentioned below.


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Slope Houses
2-Tiered 60s House, Studio and Cottage Ruin Get Modern Upgrade
Nestled into an undulating and steep wooded slope on the Dorset/Wiltshire border in the historic, rural Wiltshire village of Ansty, UK, and overlooking a collection of 12th century buildings, Ansty Plum House was originally designed by David Levitt in the 60s but has been most recently redesigned by Coppin Dockray with a modern upgrade and expansion of the 2-tiered house, a studio and a cottage ruin, all in separate buildings stepped down the slope.
Peter and Alison Smithson originally designed the studio in the 70s for the original owner. The studio had suffered structural failure, water damage and decay and was in need of much TLC.
Aside from upgrading the original structures, original landscaping was restored and extensive native planting has begun using mostly ferns, foxgloves, bluebells and wild garlic.
A historic and incomplete cottage ruin located below the house and between a garden and the studio was originally built by a man named Mr. Tucker in what was his plum orchard. The cottage ruin is now the location of a natural swimming and wildlife pond tucked behind the exterior wall portions and open to the sky thanks to the lack of roof on the ruin.
The failed roof of the studio was replaced with a new insulated zinc roof and cast concrete copings. The building was underpinned, tanked and insulated and services and heating where added.
The studio was extended and hedged into the hill and on the side closest to the outdoor pond is the garage, accessed by a gravel lane. The stonewall of the garage connects to the cottage ruins, hiding the pond and the studio garden creating in effect the appearance of a relic rather than a lively, lived in family library and work space complete with washroom.
The walls and ceiling of the studio are covered in Douglas-fir millwork while the floors are large format tiles with underfloor heating. The original fireplace has been fitted with a heat efficient wood stove and the natural stone surround absorbs the heat before slowly releasing it back into the room.
The studio is even fitted with a skylight and the Douglas-fir millwork on the wall has a uncharacteristic niche built into it.
A simple closet continues the wood theme as do the window and door frameworks.
The room furthest from the outdoor pond is the studio bathroom and this is one room that, except for the ceiling and vanity shelf, leaves the wood look behind.
The bathroom walls are either the original stone or a continuation of the large format tiles and is open to a mossy fern bank that glows green at night with the outdoor lighting that has been strategically positioned within the mossy fern bank.
Both the studio and the family home where redesigned with extensive, meticulous repairs, keeping as much of the original volumes as possible to preserver the structure's heritage while at the same time including 21st century improvements for thermal performance, with a final result in approximately 80% reduction in the annual carbon emissions.
The final design for Ansty Plum House is a brick and timber house with walls of glazing overlooking the garden, the cottage ruin with pond and the studio structure. The new open floor plan has had both central and underfloor heating systems added and the whole ambiance is one of warmth and charm, like a cabin in the woods only better.
The stairwell to the upper tier of the house separates the living and dining room from the kitchen which is located under a loft style bedroom.
The kitchen is a large space with Stainless Steel counters and open wood shelving above. The millwork on the cabinets is book matched horizontal grain for a contemporary aesthetic that does not seem out of place in a home that proudly showcases many of its original details.
The chairs used in the dining area have a mid century throw back aesthetic and the exposed brick that is used for bench seating on one side is original to the 60s house.
Also original to the structure is the brick fireplace, although a more efficient wood burner has been fitted into the firebox.
Coppin Dockray combined the look of the authentic natural brick with painted brick on the stairwell that leads to the upper tier.
The bricks where also painted in the bedrooms. This is the bedroom over the kitchen, it is the master bedroom and has a hallway that leads to a bathroom on the left, a closet on the right and a child's bedroom at the end of the hall.
The child's bedroom is large and includes a loft area above the bed for sleepovers. It also has built in storage underneath the bed via a large pull out drawer.
The far side of the child's bedroom is a private play space that overlooks the side garden.
Coppin Dockray had access to some of the original working drawings and this allowed them to reinterpret some of the original zinc, stone and timber details, keeping the spirit of the structures alive while updating them for modern day lifestyles.
Coppin Dockray.
Photography by Brotherton Lock and Rachael Smith.
Ansty Plum House was terraced onto two tiers, with the pond and studio on two more additional levels. It is not unusual to terrace a steep site home but what makes this home unique is the incorporation of the various structures pre-existing on the site and connecting them via the meandering stonewalls. Incorporating original structures or not, stepped home architecture is always a fantastic way to take advantage of sloped site.
Tree Pierces Roof and other Daring Details within Brick Home
Tiered U Shaped Slope Home features Exposed Steel Elements
Custom Houses
Romantic Guest House Cantilevers Spa over Lilly Pond
Home Embraces Indoor-Outdoor Lifestyle as it Steps Down Slope
Quebec Countryside Slope House with Upper and Lower Walkouts
Steep Slope and Solar Orientation determine Shape of House
Underground Homes
Grass Roofed Home Built into Slope uses Hillside for Cooling
One thought on "2-Tiered 60s House, Studio and Cottage Ruin Get Modern Upgrade"
Annabel says:
Amazing job done! Knowing how much harm water damage can do to a home, can imagine how satisfying it was to see the reconstruction. I had a similar problem with my Chicago home, but thankfully was able to find one of the best companies who helped me with cleanup and restoration. And also how gorgeous is the dining table setup dining table setup ?! Love the view as well.


if anyone has any legitimate experience in making logos for a team, please shoot me a message. We're a TO4 heading to St Louis. We all have competitive gaming experience both online and LAN from the Halo 3 days. If you can design/create a great logo for us, please give it a shot.
Please message me for for more information on our team and what kind of compensation we can donate for your time on the project.
Maybe Trout can help you! Best of luck in St Louis!
Myself, and a longtime friend of mine, have recently founded an esports team and gaming community. We are planning to recruit players from multiple games in the competitive scene. Since we are most familiar with Halo, we decided that we would start in this series first.
If that sounds interesting to you and the To4, then please let me know so we can discuss further. We have a team name, logo, colors and etc. already decided.


As an employer, you are required by section 2(3) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 to prepare and maintain a written statement of your general policy with respect to the health and safety of your employees. You must set out the organisation and arrangements that you have in place for carrying out that policy and for bringing the statement, along with any subsequent revisions, to the attention of all concerned.
If you employ fewer than 5 employees, then you are not legally obliged to have a statement of your general policy on health and safety in writing. However, in the event of an incident, you might find it difficult to prove that you do communicate health and safety matters and you could still be asked by your clients / customers or prospective clients / customers to produce one in order for you to demonstrate that you are satisfactorily managing health and safety and that you qualify for inclusion in their approved suppliers lists.
A good policy statement is an essential component of any safety management system. It should clearly state the organisation's ongoing commitment to health and safety, identify key roles and responsibilities of everybody in the company and detail the various arrangements and systems for putting the policy into actual day-to-day working practices.
Subject to the type of organisation you own or manage and the extent of risk involved, your policy may need to be supplemented by more detailed arrangements, such as manuals, booklets, written procedures, written instructions and signs or notices.
Ambeck Associates Ltd has extensive and practical experience in designing, implementing and maintaining effective health and safety policies. Following an initial visit to establish the structure of your organisation, the working activities that take place and the control measures that you have implemented, we can create and supply to you bespoke policies and associated documentation that meet your health and safety needs and align with and support your business strategies.
We will present the documents in a user-friendly format to enable you to effectively communicate your safety arrangements to ALL employees and key stakeholders.
Since appointing Ambeck Associates as our advisors both our health and safety systems and our management of those systems have improved considerably.
Reproduction of this material without written permission is strictly prohibited. Copyright © 2015 Ambeck Associates Ltd. All Right Reserved.


In September, 2016, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") announced that Peter Alcure of Locust Valley, NY a registered representative with Petersen Investments of Locust Valley, NY submitted an acceptance, waiver and consent letter whereby he was suspended from association with any FINRA for thirty days and fined $30,000. The FINRA complaint alleged that Peter Alcure settled a customer complaint without informing his member firm. Alcure's client had complained about losses to him, and rater than involve the firm in the process, which is required under FINRA rules, Allure privately settled the claim by sending the client 21 separate checks.
In order to lawfully sell investments to the public, a registered rep must either be registered or exempt from registration. Peter Alcure has been registered with Petersen Investments, Inc. since October, 2009.
According to FINRA's CRD disclosure report, Peter Alcure has been the subject of two customer complaints and two regulatory investigations.


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Wordsmith.org Forums (Old) Weekly themes. (have been consolidated into a single forum above) English as a global language Words from newspapers of the world
Words from newspapers of the world
#8 03/13/00 09:31 PM
Wordsmith OP
English is a global language. With the rise of electronic communication,
worldwide trade and international travel, its status has far surpassed
that of a link language. English is equated with success. Wherever you go--
from the luxuriant rain-forests of Costa Rica to the untamed wilds of
Serengeti to the hodgepodge of Eastern bazaars--you're sure to find someone
who speaks English albeit in an accent far different from yours. If nothing
else, English makes a disguised appearance in hybrids such as Franglais,
Spanglish, Hindlish, etc.
Of course, this rise in popularity of English is not without a downside.
Talk with someone for whom English is not a first language and you sense
a feeling of loss. Reactions vary the gamut--from the trace of helplessness
of parents whose children can't appreciate a poem in their native language,
to lawmakers making it mandatory for a company to also have a Web site in
the language of their country before the company can do business there.
What do you think? I'd love to hear from you about this subject whether
English is your first language or not. Post your messages in this bulletin
board and this week taste some words taken from newspapers of the world.
Re: Words from newspapers of the world
#9 03/14/00 12:45 AM
rbowen
Growing up in Kenya, it was interesting to see the reaction when people
found out that English was my first language. Some folks thought that it
was rather sad not to have a "mother tongue", because the mother tongue
is what gives you identity, and defined what "home" means. "I speak
English with you, but when I am home, I speak Kipsigis." To know only
English is to not have any heart language - you have to speak work-talk
and market-talk when you are with your loved ones. How impersonal.
It is deeply sad, I think, when parents don't teach their children their
mother tongue. It may seem unnecessary, and even impractical to them.
However, when a culture is lost, there's no way to regain it. And when a
language is extinct, there's no way to bring it back.
By telling the world that they have to know English to succeed, we've
killed many languages, and cultures, and changed others irretrievably.
It's very sad. And when I hear people refer to their own language, and
culture, disparagingly, that's very sad also. And, I find it sad that I
lost my distinct culture and language 6 or 8 generations ago. I would
love to speak Welsh, and know all about the Clan Bowen, but, alas, we
know almost nothing about the clan, and don't speak the language.
#10 03/14/00 11:57 PM
Austri
I am from the Philippines. English is our 2nd language since the American came in 1896. I would like to know what you mean by Thread View 64 in the message index? I thought it was the number of threads or the number of words use.
Austri G. Basinillo
Your words ring very true. In my culture, our Ancestral tongue was Yiddish. By the generation of my grandparents, it was used only to keep the children from understanding. By my Mother's generation she knows only some of the common expressions. I know even fewer of the expressions.
Parents, please expose your children to other languages and to your own native tongue. They will never be more open to learning languages than when they are really young and it will enrich their lives forever.
#12 03/16/00 10:42 AM
My background includes having grown up in India, exposed to about four languages (besides English) on a regular basis: my 'mother' tongue - Malayalam; the 'national' language - Hindi; the state language - Marathi; and the language of the trustees who set up our school - Gujarati. I can only claim any literacy in Hindi, however, since I received the most formal training in that language.
Since my first language is English, I suppose I slip into the English arrogance/imperialistic attitude from time to time, and my opinions may well be coloured by that fact. I believe, however, that while the ongoing loss of linguistic diversity is sad, we would be ill advised to reject English on the basis of the need to retain identity or diversity.
The problem with cultural identity (and perhaps this is a wider subject than this forum may allow) appears to me to be identical (depending upon one's stance on this) with that of xenophobia: you cannot distinguish a cultural identity unless you show how some (or the majority) are excluded from that group. This, in my opinion, is one of the leading causes of the xenophobia that has resulted in the internecine conflicts that we still seem to see only too often (Yugoslavia, Sri Lanka, Northern Ireland etc).
I do not believe we can eliminate this 'exclusiveness' all together, nor that it would necessarily be a good thing. But I think it would be worth our while to mitigate its effects as much as we reasonably can. Unfortunately, the 'our mother tongue must thrive' brigade often seem to me to miss this point. Yes I regret, to a certain extent, the fact that I am not fluent in, nor literate in, Malayalam. But if I were offered that fluency and literacy as an alternative to the fluency and literacy have in English, then I would reject the offer. I am all for expanded horizons - but not when so many of these promises appear to be at the cost of actually limiting the horizons of those who 'should be native speakers' of a particular tongue.
My apologies if all this sounds a touch convoluted or disjointed. I suppose I might have summarised it as: keep English, but learn other languages by all means.
the sunshine warrior
Italy - Perugia is a town with...
I am Italian, and Iearned my (poor) English mostly during a funny love with an American man.
This has been an interesting experience: there are things which can be explained easily in another language - "ocean", for example, but we had a problem with "groundhog".
Differences in languages often show cultural differences: for example, in Italian there is not an immediate translation of " I care", but there is one for "I absolutely don't care"!
I am enjoing now the quotes in the AWAD- archives, but in those translated from latin languages I feel sometimes that something is lost...
Even I like languages and words, I think that the language is not a perfect tool to understand and to communicate. Let me add a quote (Zen)
"The way which can be spoken is not the Way"
It is my observation,that an accent is considered the equivalent of a handicap.For the same reason that an American does not inquire about a person's limp,that individual will not ask about the origin of an accent.
Is it a lack of interest,a measure of ignorance,or is it out of fear for stepping on unsollicited turf? After having spent many years in different countries,I still am pleasantly surprised,when somebody candidly acknowledges my accent.I wonder if my observation is a shared one?
Pooh-Bah
Regarding accents - I find them fascinating and often ask about an unusual accent. Am I politically incorrect?
In the UK the BBC, for example, has made a real effort to bring regional accents onto the radio and television. In these times of inverted snobbery I always consider my vaguely northen accent an asset and those born with a plum in their mouths find their offspring trading down to what is known as "Estuary English" - Sarf London and lots of glottal stops. Is there the same trend elsewhere?
aumflower
Jeanne,
I'm in exactly the same situation. Yiddish was the native tongue of my Great-Grandparents. My Grandparents spoke it fluently, as a second language, but crucially, 'NOT IN FRONT OF THE CHILDREN'. My parents only picked up a few common phrases, and I only know a few words.
This is a very sad situation and it is even sadder if other languages go the same way as Yiddish.
Incidentally, I don't know if you're aware of an excellent book: 'The Joys of Yiddish' by Leo Rosten.
I often inquire as to someone's accent. I really enjoy following up on finding out more about that person and the area he/she comes from, and this is a perfect way to get in to it. I never thought of it as politically incorrect, but I must say, I did cringe when Jimmy Carter used to pronounce "nuclear" nucular. Of course, this could have been plain old mispronunciation. Bill Clinton has his moments too. I think some accents change the language more than others, and a southern accent in the U.S. certainly tops the list.