When will we have a balanced assessment of the premiership of Tony Blair?
March 13th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
“Broken Vows: Tony Blair – The Tragedy of Power” by Tom Bower is a newly-published hatchet job on Blair’s record in office that has rightly been criticised by many reviewers. The political editor of the “Observer”, Andrew Rawnsley, opens his review of the book by pointing out:
“History, so it is often said, is written by the victors. There seems to be an exception to that rule in the case of Tony Blair. Three consecutive election victories, two of them by landslides, ought to give him a place in the history books as Labour’s most successful leader. He is one of only two prime ministers since the Napoleonic wars to secure an unbroken decade at No 10.
The economy grew in every single quarter of his premiership, a record unrivalled by any other major developed country. Sharply higher levels of investment went into health and education, the school and hospital building stock was renewed, child poverty went down and even the Tory party eventually embraced much of a legacy that includes the minimum wage, more spending on international aid, gender equality and gay rights.
When he left office, pollsters reported that a majority of voters thought he had done a good job as prime minister, all in all, and even that he was still “likable”. That’s not bad after a decade at the top. Yet it is now a commonplace of much public discourse that he was one of the most despicable characters ever to inhabit No 10, even the “most hated man in Britain”.”
Of course, Blair himself is the last person to provide a balanced assessment of his premiership, but his memoirs, called simply “A Journey”, are a useful starting point and you can read my review of the book here.
In fact, no full judgement on Blair’s time in office can be written until we see the Chilcot Report on the decision to invade Iraq. Even then, whatever Chilcot states and whatever one thinks of the invasion, we should remember that this was not a decision by Blair alone – he had the support of the Cabinet and a majority vote in the House of Commons.
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (4)
The world’s oldest man: a survivor of Auschwitz who is 112
March 12th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
The human body and the human spirit are amazing things. I regularly marvel at how some people who have suffered so much can live so long.
A case in point is Israel Kristal, a citizen of Haifa in Israel. He has just been confirmed as the world’s oldest documented living man, but he is a an Auschwitz survivor who was rescued from the brink of death by the allies in May 1945, weighing only 37 kg.
Israel Kristal, aged 112 and 178 days on 11 March, was handed a certificate at his home by a representative of the Guinness World Records confirming him as the oldest known man on the planet.
Kristal succeeded 112-year-old Yasutaro Koide of Japan, who died earlier this month.
You can read more about this remarkable man here.
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
U.S. presidential election (23): should the Democrats choose Hillary or Bernie?
March 11th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Some of my closest American friends are working their hearts out for Bernie Sanders and he is doing far, far better than almost anyone expected in his quest to win the Democratic nomination for the US presidential election in November rather than the presumptive candidate Hillary Clinton.
But for me, while my heart says Bernie, my head states Hillary. I just feel that her policy positions are more credible and that her experience would make her a better president both nationally and internationally. I was impressed by her memoir as Secretary of State “Hard Choices” which I’ve reviewed here.
Bernie has attracted massive support from young voters and Paul Galtris sent an e-mail – which he has turned into an online essay – to one of these young people explaining why he supports Clinton rather than Sanders. The analysis reflects some of my own thinking on the primary race and concludes as follows:
“Of course, most people don’t have the time or inclination to learn the nuances of complicated policy questions. If you’re a young person who leans left, you’re probably engaged in a simpler thought process: establishment politics has left me with high student debts and diminished job prospects; Hillary Clinton is the ultimate example of establishment politics; Bernie Sanders has fought establishment politics for years on behalf of progressive goals I believe in; why the hell shouldn’t I vote for Bernie?
I get it. The simplest response I can offer is this: on policy, Bernie doesn’t know what he’s talking about; the policies that most damaged your life came overwhelmingly from the Republicans, not the Democrats; and the Democrat most likely to beat the Republican in November is not Bernie Sanders.”
You can read the full essay here.
Posted in American current affairs | Comments (0)
How to make a good presentation
March 11th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Almost every week, I attend a conference or meeting at which speakers make PowerPoint presentations.
On almost every occasion, a speaker uses slides that contain so much text that those present cannot read it, mainly because the words are so small but also because there is so little time devoted to that particular slide. In my view, this is the biggest single mistake made in giving presentations.
I have produced a guide to “How To Make A Good Presentation” which you can read here.
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
How to cover “War And Peace” in six hours
March 10th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Two months ago, I did a posting explaining that I was never going to read Leo Tolstoy’s mammoth novel “War And Peace”, but that I was looking forward to watching the BBC television adaptation of the book.
The adaptation was in the form of six one-hour episodes broadcast a week at a time, but this week – at last – I watched the whole series over just three consecutive evenings which was a good way to comprehend the many characters and story lines.
I cannot be sure how faithful and fair an adaptation this was, but I was very impressed by the acting and cinematography and admired the costumes and locations. As a guide to the characters and the actors playing them, I found useful this guide.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Are you a healthy weight?
March 10th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
To determine if you are a healthy weight, you need to calculate your body mass index (BMI) which takes account of your gender, age, height and weight. You can check out your BMI here:
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (0)
Do you know the price of a postage stamp?
March 9th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
The price of stamps for a standard letter up to 100g will rise by 1p on 29 March. The cost of a first class stamp will increase to 64p, and the cost of second class will rise to 55p.
In addition, Royal Mail will increase the price of sending small and medium parcels by 5p and 6p respectively. The price increases for parcels will apply only to people using post offices; customers purchasing online will see no price rise.
Previously there has been no price difference between purchasing Royal Mail postage in a post office and online. The differential in price is currently small and only affects a limited proportion of Royal Mail services; but it sets a new precedent which is an issue of concern. Many consumer organisations are worried about the impact of online and offline price differentials on consumers who are unable or less able to access online services.
The price differential may also impact on post offices, as any increased use of the online channel could lead to a drop in mail services purchased in post offices, reducing post offices’ income and footfall. Citizens Advice will monitor these wider impacts on consumers.
Citizens Advice has raised concerns with Royal Mail about the complexity of Royal Mail prices. It will be continuing to press for a simpler tariff structure for consumers.
Posted in Consumer matters | Comments (0)
Word of the day: millennial
March 8th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
In today’s “Guardian” newspaper, there is a major feature on so-called millennials. But what exactly is a millennial?
Wikipedia states:
“Millennials (also known as the Millennial Generation or Generation Y) are the demographic cohort following Generation X. There are no precise dates for when the generation starts and ends; most researchers and commentators use birth years ranging from the early 1980s to the early 2000s.”
The Guardian” article itself begins as follows:
“They are Generation Curling in Sweden, Generation Serious in Norway, and even Generation John Paul II in Poland. The Chinese call them ken lao zu, or “the generation that eats the old”, and the Japanese have a term scolding them for not giving undivided attention to anything: nagara-zoku, “the people who are always doing two things at once”.
More prosaically, in the US they are called millennials and in the UK and Australia they go by Generation Y. Around the world there is no shortage of descriptive epithets for those born between 1980 and the mid-1990s.”
Posted in Cultural issues, World current affairs | Comments (0)
Word of the day: susurrus
March 7th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
I am currently reading a novel titled “The Book Of Strange New things” by Michel Faber and came across the unfamiliar word ‘susurrus’. I checked it out – it means a soft murmuring or rustling sound or a kind of whisper.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
U.S. presidential election (22): how did it come to this?
March 6th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
In an article in today’s “Observer” newspaper, the prospect of Donald Trump as the Republican candidate against Democrat Hillary Clinton causes sheer amazement:
“The bombastic, swaggering, sometimes vulgar billionaire has stunned the political world, plunged the Republican party into civil war and, among the pundit class, relegated the prospect of the 240-year-old republic’s first female president to a footnote. His success has also unmasked a Disunited States wracked by fear and anger and fractured by class, culture, race and educational attainment. The outside world, overjoyed by the election of America’s first black president just eight years ago, is asking: how did it come to this?”
Trump vs Clinton ought to be a slam-dunk – as the Americans would put it – for the Democrats, but the “Observer” piece contains a warning:
“One chilling statistic for Clinton stands out: more than 8 million voters took part in the Republican Super Tuesday contests, while the Democratic turnout was around 5.5 million. This is an almost exact reversal of the figures in 2008. Obama and Trump have absolutely nothing in common except their power to enthuse. What Clinton and Trump share is a power to inspire hatred and mobilise votes not for themselves but against each other. “Hope and change, not so much,” former Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said, referring to the coming Clinton campaign. “More like hate and castrate.” “
Posted in American current affairs | Comments (0)