UN risk expert warns we are heading for catastrophe over natural disasters
April 25th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Last year, earthquakes, floods, heatwaves and landslides left 22,773 people dead, affected 98.6 million others, and caused $66.5bn (£47bn) of economic damage.
Yet, according to UN figures, in 2014 just 0.4% of the global aid budget of $135.2bn – roughly $540m – was spent on efforts concerning disaster risk reduction (DRR) – things like infrastructure, storm shelters and early warning systems.
Robert Glasser, the special representative of the UN secretary general for disaster risk reduction, has warned that the world’s failure to prepare for natural disasters will have “inconceivably bad” consequences as climate change fuels a huge increase in catastrophic droughts and floods and the humanitarian crises that follow.
More information here.
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
U.S. presidential election (25): if it’s really going to be Clinton against Trump, who are going to be their running mates?
April 24th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Of course, it’s not certain, but it looks increasingly likely that Hillary Clinton will win the nomination to be the Democratic candidate for the Presidency and that her opponent will probably be Donald Trump in the Republican camp. So thoughts are already turning to who might be their running mates for Vice-President on the general election ticket.
Traditionally Presidential candidates have chosen a running mate ‘to balance the ticket’, especially geographically or demographically. But a lot of American politics is about turnout and it is often seen as important ‘to energise the base’ – that is, enthuse those who would naturally support you to actually turn out and vote (think John McCain’s surprise selection of Sarah Palin).
Hillary Clinton is seen as an immensely experienced candidate, but a divisive one who attracts bile from many Republican voters and who generates lukewarm enthusiasm from a lot of Democratic supporters (hence the astonishing performance of Bernie Sanders).
In this article, it is speculated that maybe she could choose Senator Elizabeth Warren as her running mate even though Warren has not yet endorsed Clinton. Warren would support many of the themes of the Sanders’ campaign and excite Democrats to vote.
Of course, she’s a woman – is that problem? We’ve never had a female President or Vice-President. Why not smash two glass ceilings at once?
Turning to the Republican side, as this article explains, Trump is now furiously trying to moderate his image so that he can pick up extra delegates at the party’s Convention and limp over the winning number. If he wins the nomination, then who will he choose as his running mate?
Trump has infuriated the Republican establishment who never expected him to be a serious candidate. Trump has absolutely no experience of elective office – at city, state or federal level. So, if he wants to win over the Republican establishment, maybe he’ll chose a a senior figure in the party. And, if he wants to get things done, he’ll need to work with Congress. So maybe he’ll select as his Vice-Presidential partner Speaker of the House Paul Ryan.
A contest between Clinton & Warren and Trump & Ryan – now that would be a choice.
Posted in American current affairs | Comments (3)
Word of the day: bund
April 23rd, 2016 by Roger Darlington
This week, my responsibilities as Chair of the South East Water Customer Panel have dominated my work schedule with no less than four meetings concerning the water sector.
At one of these meetings, I heard an unfamiliar word: bund. It refers to an embankment, often providing a promenade. Apparently the origin of the word is a Hindi term for embankment.
Then I remembered that I had come across the term in the context of The Bund – a stretch of promenade by the Huangpu River in the Chinese metropolis of Shanghai. I’ve visited the city and walked the promenaded twice as recorded here and here.
Posted in Cultural issues, My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
The wonder of Palmyra – revisited
April 22nd, 2016 by Roger Darlington
This week, a monumental recreation of the Arch of Triumph in Palmyra, Syria, which was destroyed by ISIS, has been unveiled in London’s Trafalgar Square.
The 1,800-year-old arch was destroyed by Islamic State militants last October and the 6-metre (20ft) model, made in Italy from Egyptian marble, is intended as an act of defiance: to show that restoration of the ancient site is possible if the will is there.
I went to Trafalgar Square to view the recreation.
The arch in Trafalgar Square
Posted in British current affairs, My life & thoughts, World current affairs | Comments (0)
How to have a good meeting
April 22nd, 2016 by Roger Darlington
In my life, I have attended so very many meetings – a good many of them poorly run. I chair lots of bodies these days and try to make the meetings enjoyable and worthwhile.
You can find my advice on how to have a good meeting here.
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
Do you or someone you know need help with your water bills?
April 21st, 2016 by Roger Darlington
For the past four years, I’ve chaired a customer body which provides an independent challenge to South East Water, so I’ve been very active in the water sector especially around issues of affordability and vulnerability.
Almost all water companies in England & Wales now have a social tariff in place to help customers who are genuinely struggling to pay their water & sewerage bills. You can find links to all the schemes here.
Posted in Consumer matters | Comments (0)
A review of “Eye In The Sky”
April 20th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
It’s a rare kind of film that raises moral issues and forces you to think while doing so in a manner which is not boring or leaden. “Eye In The Sky” is that kind of work that explores the complicated decisions that have to be made when deploying drones to combat terrorism.
You can read my review here.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Where now for Iraqi Kurdistan?
April 19th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Broadly speaking, there are three main groups in Iraq: the Shia Arabs, the Sunni Arabs and the Iraqi Kurds. We hear a lot about the first two groupings – especially the conflicts between them – but less about the Kurds who have created a near-autonomous territory in the north of the state and fought successfully against ISIS.
I recently visited the House of Commons to speak with a good friend, Gary Kent who is Director of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Kurdistan. He told me about his latest visit to Iraqi Kurdistan as part of a Parliamentary fact-finding delegation in November 2015.
This week, the delegation has published its report of the visit. The report is titled “The Land Between two Anniversaries” – the two events in question being the 25th anniversary of the Kurdish Uprising in March and the 100th anniversary of the Sykes-Picot Treaty in May.
Some key quotes from the report are as follows:
“The failure of Iraqi federalism, the obstructive and insouciant approach of leaders in Baghdad, and what increasingly looks like the de facto partition of Iraq are driving moves to the independence of the Kurdistan Region. There may be a referendum of the people of the Kurdistan Region on the principle of independence later this year. We support the right of the people of Iraqi Kurdistan to make that determination before its leaders negotiate with the federal government in Baghdad, and win support for it from its neighbours and the great powers.”
“Iraqi Kurds will probably endorse independence but this is not a prelude to a Greater Kurdistan. Kurdistani leaders are clear there are four separate Kurdistans [the other three being in Turkey, Iraq and Syria], each at a different stage of development. The time for a Greater Kurdistan has been overtaken by history and there is no merit in hankering after the impossible.”
“It is increasingly difficult to believe that Iraq will be put back together given ever sharper differences between its constituent parts. But nor can the Kurdistan Region attain statehood without reforming its unproductive and state dominated economy, whose defects are now more evident thanks to the dramatic reduction in oil prices upon which the economies of the Kurdistan Region and of Iraq have long been far too dependent.”
You can read the full report here.
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
Couples are healthier, wealthier… and less trim
April 18th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Vee and I have now been married for 34 years and it works for us. But does marriage – or at least a stable relationship – have benefits generally?
“They say that marriage isn’t a word, but a sentence. For the most part however, it seems to be a cushy one. Quite aside from the massive party, shiny ring and tax breaks, science has revealed numerous other benefits to getting hitched.
For instance, just last week a study was published suggesting that being married boosts your chances of surviving cancer. “Generally speaking, people who are in stable marriages have better health compared to those who have never been married, but it’s not so much about being legally married as the benefits of being in a stable, long-term relationship,” says George Ploubidis, reader in population health and statistics at University College London.”
So what else is good about being paired off? Here’s a guide to the upside of settling down.
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (0)
A “Frozen River” that will melt your heart
April 17th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
As regular readers of NightHawk will know, I love a commercial blockbuster of a movie (I’ve just seen “Batman v Superman”). But I also enjoy seeing films that are a bit different – more realistic, more thoughtful.
A friend recommended to me a small, independent film that was released in 2008. It’s called “Frozen River” and you’ll have to search it out, but it’ll be worth it. I’ve reviewed it here.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)