(1) The end (of civilisation) is nigh: Selfies at Funerals, the compilation.
(2) But the past had its ups and downs too. I liked the baby cage and the first morning after Sweden switched to driving on the right.
(3) Very small things. Very very small in some cases.
Wednesday, 30 October 2013
Second languages in London
Tuesday, 29 October 2013
AC Grayling and the New College of the Humanities
Like most sensible people (and anyone who has seen his hairstyle), I normally have very little time for AC Grayling. But this article in the Guardian about his New College of the Humanities gave me some sympathy for him.
It seems that Grayling has found that setting up a new business involves grappling with the "labyrinthine, byzantine complexity of ... regulations" and then, because it is an education business, facing what sounds like a tediously repetitive attack on his charging structure by the Guardian's journalist, who refuses to see past the £18,000 price tag to the more interesting issues involved. Even having self-described left-wing politics does not spare him receiving clearly irritating questions: by the end of the interview we have "becomes cross", "he snaps" and "With a sigh, he suppresses his annoyance". Poor chap.
By the by, Amelia Gentleman, the journalist in question, went to St Paul's and then to Oxford, where she met her husband, Jo Johnson (the MP and brother of Boris). Such is the wide talent pool from which the social conscience of our country is drawn. Gentleman has not cut her ties to her old school: here she is on the rota for their Friday lectures, along with Alexandra Shulman (another Paulina), Patrick Grant (not a Paulina) and, I'm very pleased to see, Revd Dr Andrew Davison, tutor in doctrine at Westcott House. Andrew is a charming chap and I'm glad that the girls don't just get glamorous lecturers from the fashion industry.
It seems that Grayling has found that setting up a new business involves grappling with the "labyrinthine, byzantine complexity of ... regulations" and then, because it is an education business, facing what sounds like a tediously repetitive attack on his charging structure by the Guardian's journalist, who refuses to see past the £18,000 price tag to the more interesting issues involved. Even having self-described left-wing politics does not spare him receiving clearly irritating questions: by the end of the interview we have "becomes cross", "he snaps" and "With a sigh, he suppresses his annoyance". Poor chap.
By the by, Amelia Gentleman, the journalist in question, went to St Paul's and then to Oxford, where she met her husband, Jo Johnson (the MP and brother of Boris). Such is the wide talent pool from which the social conscience of our country is drawn. Gentleman has not cut her ties to her old school: here she is on the rota for their Friday lectures, along with Alexandra Shulman (another Paulina), Patrick Grant (not a Paulina) and, I'm very pleased to see, Revd Dr Andrew Davison, tutor in doctrine at Westcott House. Andrew is a charming chap and I'm glad that the girls don't just get glamorous lecturers from the fashion industry.
Inspiring story - updated
In 1996, a black teenager protected a white man from an angry mob who thought he supported the racist Ku Klux Klan. That's the story - and it's a good one, with good pictures, here.
UPDATE: I should have coupled the story above with this one. The headline is "In which a black man hires a member of the KKK as his lawyer", and that's the story.
It raises some interesting issues. How do you feel about this bit, for example:
"“If he doesn’t like blacks, that’s on him,” Willie says. “But I’m not going to go in there, harass him and not hire him because I’m black. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. If you know someone has a racial bias, why would you want to agitate that person? I’m not a troublemaker. As long as you don’t assault me, I couldn’t care less. You’re entitled to speak your opinion. That’s your right.""
That is the attitude of someone who thoroughly agrees with the US First Amendment approach to freedom of speech. Jeremy Waldron, the philosopher, disagrees. He recounts the story (here, but I've seen it from him elsewhere) of watching the conviction and sentencing of a man, in Oxford Crown Court, who had distributed "posters depicting Britons of African ancestry as apes". Waldron's American colleagues are appalled that a man was sent to prison for doing that. Presumably Willie from the New Statesman story would be too.
UPDATE: I should have coupled the story above with this one. The headline is "In which a black man hires a member of the KKK as his lawyer", and that's the story.
It raises some interesting issues. How do you feel about this bit, for example:
"“If he doesn’t like blacks, that’s on him,” Willie says. “But I’m not going to go in there, harass him and not hire him because I’m black. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. If you know someone has a racial bias, why would you want to agitate that person? I’m not a troublemaker. As long as you don’t assault me, I couldn’t care less. You’re entitled to speak your opinion. That’s your right.""
That is the attitude of someone who thoroughly agrees with the US First Amendment approach to freedom of speech. Jeremy Waldron, the philosopher, disagrees. He recounts the story (here, but I've seen it from him elsewhere) of watching the conviction and sentencing of a man, in Oxford Crown Court, who had distributed "posters depicting Britons of African ancestry as apes". Waldron's American colleagues are appalled that a man was sent to prison for doing that. Presumably Willie from the New Statesman story would be too.
Takeaway food
Yes, it's Zadie Smith again, doggedly confirming my thesis that she relentlessly mines her own life for material. This time it's the New Yorker that receives the benefit of her wisdom. I feel justified in a bit of sarcasm. The voice of our generation really should not be wasting her time with telling us that people who deliver food in London can be quite slow. It wouldn't pass for observational comedy - indeed, it would hardly pass for acceptable conversation at a dinner party.
Moreover, it's rather oddly worded. The most striking example is this "Another treasurable thing about London’s delivery service is its frankly metaphysical attitude toward time". Is "treasurable" a word? Should it be? Did she mean "endearing"? I can't think of a good excuse for that "metaphysical". I suppose the idea is that people who deliver food take a view of time which treats it as an illusion or purely a matter of subjective perception. For the sake of argument, let us assume that this could be a humorous idea: one can imagine a pretentious comedian trying it (or, more likely, that his local takeaway is located in a warped part of the space-time continuum where time runs completely differently). But that is just not what "metaphysical" means. Just think how much better it would have been to have said "philosophical", which its added connotations of being resigned to fate.
As ever, I should say that the only reason I write about Smith is because I am a big fan and it irks me that she is so close to being so much better.
Moreover, it's rather oddly worded. The most striking example is this "Another treasurable thing about London’s delivery service is its frankly metaphysical attitude toward time". Is "treasurable" a word? Should it be? Did she mean "endearing"? I can't think of a good excuse for that "metaphysical". I suppose the idea is that people who deliver food take a view of time which treats it as an illusion or purely a matter of subjective perception. For the sake of argument, let us assume that this could be a humorous idea: one can imagine a pretentious comedian trying it (or, more likely, that his local takeaway is located in a warped part of the space-time continuum where time runs completely differently). But that is just not what "metaphysical" means. Just think how much better it would have been to have said "philosophical", which its added connotations of being resigned to fate.
As ever, I should say that the only reason I write about Smith is because I am a big fan and it irks me that she is so close to being so much better.
Friday, 25 October 2013
Woman charged after police find man in a dinosaur onesie joyriding on bonnet
That's the headline and the story lives up to it. In fact, it's better than the headline:
"Police stopped the car, with the man still lying on the bonnet facing the driver, smoking a cigarette, dressed in a dinosaur onesie and wearing a snorkel."
It's an Australian story, which explains why the car was seized "under hoon legislation". But the cigarette? Don't worry, there's an explanation for that too: "Both the male and female are French nationals".
"Police stopped the car, with the man still lying on the bonnet facing the driver, smoking a cigarette, dressed in a dinosaur onesie and wearing a snorkel."
It's an Australian story, which explains why the car was seized "under hoon legislation". But the cigarette? Don't worry, there's an explanation for that too: "Both the male and female are French nationals".
Thursday, 24 October 2013
Degrees for dogs
The BBC has procured an MBA for a dog called Pete. But the best ever degree for a dog has surely got to be that of Lulu Barnes, who a took a degree during the trial in the case of BSKyB v HP Enterprise Services UK Ltd [2010] EWHC 86 (TCC).
The story of Lulu Barnes' MBA is revealed in the judgment (below). As you will see, while Lulu did very well (better than the Managing Director of the relevant part of EDS, in fact), things did not work out so well for other graduates of that court. I saw the transcripts of the cross-examination of the witness at the time and only wish I'd seen the whole thing happen in Court.
The story of Lulu Barnes' MBA is revealed in the judgment (below). As you will see, while Lulu did very well (better than the Managing Director of the relevant part of EDS, in fact), things did not work out so well for other graduates of that court. I saw the transcripts of the cross-examination of the witness at the time and only wish I'd seen the whole thing happen in Court.
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