Time to count the UK
March 27th, 2011 by Roger Darlington
Here in the UK, we conduct a census every 10 years and today is census day.
I don’t know why some people make a fuss about the census – it’s not intrusive and it is important for the planning of public services.
Also it will give us accurate information on the population of the UK as a whole and each city, town and village. Most countries have only a rough idea of the size of their population.
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (1)
March for the Alternative
March 26th, 2011 by Roger Darlington
Today Vee and I went on the March For The Alternative in central London, an event organised by the Trades Union Congress to protest at the scale and speed of the cuts in public expenditure being implemented by the Coalition Government. It was a huge and noisy demonstration that was attended by an estimated 250,000.
We joined our son Richard, daughter-in-law Emily, and their 10-week old daughter Catrin. To be honest, we only walked from Blackfriars Bridge to Trafalgar Square – three hours was enough for us.
I signed up for text messages from the police which told an interesting story:
11.45 am The march has moved off early
12.51 pm The head of the march is now in Hyde Park
4.47 pm The rear of the march is in Piccadilly
5.25 pm Speeches at Hyde Park have now ended
Vee & Roger with Richard & Catrin
Richard & Emily with daughter Catrin
No cuts – or too far and too fast?
Cuts to the National Health Service the most painful
Giant scissors below Big Ben
Posted in British current affairs, My life & thoughts | Comments (1)
Now it’s the turn of Syria
March 25th, 2011 by Roger Darlington
The revolts in the Arab world over the last couple of months have been truly astonishing and the full implications have yet to be seen. We are witnessing changes as profound as the revolutions in central & eastern Europe in 1989.
When I travelled to Syria three weeks ago, there was no evidence of unrest in this totalitarian state. In the two weeks since I returned, events have moved dramatically and have yet to run their course. It is particularly moving to read about demonstrations in places like Damascus and Hama when I was actually there so recently.
You can read the latest news on the unrest here and the account of my visit here.
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
Baby Catrin: progress report (6)
March 23rd, 2011 by Roger Darlington
The last time I saw my new granddaughter Catrin she was just over five weeks old. Since I’ve been away and her parents have been busy, I haven’t seen her again until today. She is now just over nine weeks old and a very bonny 13 lb. I changed a nappy and later helped with bath time which she absolutely loves.
Brighter than ever
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
How democratic is the UK and the USA?
March 23rd, 2011 by Roger Darlington
I’ve just had an e-mail thanking me for my web site examination of the differences between the British and American political systems. The writer, from Norway, asks my opinion on whether one is more democratic than the other.
This is such a difficult question to answer. It depends on how one measures the notion of ‘democratic’. I might write an essay for my web site on this theme one day but, in the meanwhile, the sort of questions one would have to pose are:
- What proportion of the population is eligible to vote? – that is, has the legal right to vote and is on the electoral register
- What proportion of the population actually votes? – one could look at both national and local elections
- How often does the citizen have the right to vote? – again one could distinguish national and local elections
- Does the citizen have a credible choice between a variety of political parties? – do one or two parties dominate elections?
- How easy is it to be a credible candidate in elections? – particularly does it take a lot of money to run a credible campaign?
- How free are elections of financial influence? – can powerful corporations or lobby groups influence outcomes?
- How free are elections of media influence? – is there a diversity of political opinion in the press, radio, television and other media?
- How transparent and accountable is the exercise of power in the three arms of government?
- What is the dispersal of power between the executive, the legislature and the judiciary?
- How easy is it to challenge and correct abuse of power?
- How strong and vital is civil society? – that is, trade unions, pressure groups, campaign organisations, think tanks
So, what do you think? Is the UK or the USA the more democratic nation?
Posted in American current affairs, British current affairs | Comments (2)
How often do you make a personal phone call?
March 23rd, 2011 by Roger Darlington
Basically, outside of my family, I don’t make personal phone calls. I prefer to e-mail or text. It seems from this article that I’m not alone.
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
I came, I saw, IKEA
March 21st, 2011 by Roger Darlington
I must be the only man in Britain who has never been to IKEA in six decades – until now, that is. This morning, my wife dragged me off to the IKEA store on the North Circular Road in London because we need a bookcase for my newly redecorated study.
I really didn’t like the place at all – too cavernous and disorientating for me. Indeed I’ll swear that I saw several skeletons in corners of customers who had totally lost their way.
Have you ever wondered about the origin of the name IKEA?
IKEA was founded in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad in Sweden and it was named as an acronym comprising the initials of the founder’s name (Ingvar Kamprad), the farm where he grew up (Elmtaryd), and his home parish (Agunnaryd, in Småland, South Sweden).
So now you know.
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
How to manage your online persona
March 21st, 2011 by Roger Darlington
There’s more about you on the Net than you realise. So should you be worried? This is the subject of my latest column on Internet issues. You can check out the article here.
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
Past and present in the Levant
March 20th, 2011 by Roger Darlington
One week after Vee and I returned from a holiday in Syria and Lebanon, I’ve written up a full account of the trip for my web site and you can read it here.
The was not our first visit to the Middle East because we have previously been to:
So, lots for you to read if you’re interested in the region.
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
March for the Alternative
March 19th, 2011 by Roger Darlington
If you live in the UK and you’re angry about the scale and speed of the cuts proposed by the Coalition Government, you should be marching in London a week today (Saturday). You’ll find all the details here.
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)