Archive for October, 2007
What is so different about Britain?
October 19th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
In the week that Britain yet again insists on taking a different position on a key European Union proposal – this time a new Treaty to replace the failed proposal for a constitution – in this column, “Guardian” reporter Michael White puts his finger on why this country has not just an insular geographical position […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (3)
How high can inflation go?
October 19th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
I was a Special Adviser with the Labour Government in the mid 1970s when inflation briefly reached around 25%. We were told by the media that a society could not survive an inflation level of this order. I remembered this as I read a report on the current rate of inflation in Zimbabwe. Currently the […]
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
Back from Inverness
October 17th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
I’ve returned from a couple of days in Inverness where I was attending an out-of-London meeting of the Ofcom Consumer Panel. This is the furtherest north that I’ve ever been in the United Kingdom. The local constituency goes by the catchy name of Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey and we met the constituency MP, Liberal […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
Who will be China’s Gorbachev?
October 15th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
On my return from my first visit to China seven years ago, I concluded my web site account as follows: “The 19th century was essentially the century of Britain; the 20th century was unquestionably the century of the United States; the 21st century might become the century of China. It depends on many factors. It […]
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (1)
Remembering the great storm
October 15th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
Twenty years ago this morning, Britain suffered the most ferocious storm since 1703. In the South-East of England, 19 people were killed and 15 million trees were uprooted and damage ran to £1.5 billion. I always sleep soundly and we had new double glazing, so I slept throughout the entire storm. However, when I rose, […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (1)
How many kisses?
October 13th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
Most people who know me will confirm that I love travelling and I’m a pretty friendly sort of guy. This combination causes a major dilemma which was taken up this week on the BBC’s web site, namely this: when a man meets or leaves a woman, does he simply shake hands, give her one kiss, […]
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Keeping you posted (2)
October 13th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
Wow – hours after I go on radio and television urging Royal Mail and the CWU to settle the postal dispute (see previous posting), they reach a settlement. I’m now thinking of going on the media and calling on the Israelis and the Palestinians to agree a solution to the Middle East conflict …
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)
Keeping you posted (1)
October 12th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
In the year and a half that I’ve been at Postwatch, the consumer watchdog for postal services, I’ve done almost 50 radio and television interviews for the organisation, but I’ve managed to stay clear of industrial relations issues. After all, I worked for the Communication Workers Union and its predecessor unions for a total of […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (1)
Is this a test or a trick?
October 12th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
However hard I look at this image, I can only see a clockwise movement – which apparently makes me totally right-brain. What about you? AFTER you’ve tried it, read this explanation.
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (6)
Predicting the future of the past tense
October 12th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
“Although fewer than 3 percent of modern English verbs are irregular, this number includes the 10 most common verbs: be, have, do, go, say, can, will, see, take, and get. Lieberman, Michel, and colleagues expect that some 15 of the 98 modern irregular verbs they studied — although likely none of these top 10 — […]
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)