Archive for April, 2009
Union recognition in the USA
April 24th, 2009 by Roger Darlington
The election of Barack Obama to the United States Presidency has changed so much in world politics, but non-Americans may not appreciate how transformational his administration is for domestic politics. Obviously the world’s media reports the new policies aimed at overcoming the economic recession, but you probably haven’t been aware that a proposed change to […]
Posted in American current affairs | Comments (5)
Czechoslovaks and the First World War
April 22nd, 2009 by Roger Darlington
Regular readers of NightHawk will know that I was in Prague for Easter. During my visit, I viewed a photographic exhibition in Prague Castle of Czechoslovak soldiers in the First World War. Now here’s a quiz question: on whose side did Czechoslovaks fight in the Great War? In a way, it’s a trick question because […]
Posted in History | Comments (0)
40 years in the Labour Party
April 22nd, 2009 by Roger Darlington
Forty years ago today, I joined the British Labour Party. At the time I was aged 20 and a university student. I wrote in my diary on 22 April 1969: “”Today, after about 18 months of slowly drifting Leftwards, I joined the Labour Party at a time when ‘In Place Of Strife’ is causing just […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
The Darlington Spitfire
April 21st, 2009 by Roger Darlington
I am not a materialistic person so I want for very few possessions. However, if I had the money and it was for sale, I’d love to own a Supermarine Spitfire and, if it was a two-seater so that I could be flown around in it, then that would be absolutely fantastic. But, besides not […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
The 12 Internet enemies
April 20th, 2009 by Roger Darlington
The organisation Reporters Without Borders has named 12 “Internet Enemies”: Saudi Arabia, Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. According to the organisation: “All of these countries mark themselves out not just for their capacity to censor news and information online but also for their almost systematic repression of […]
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
Thought For The Week 500
April 19th, 2009 by Roger Darlington
It all began a decade ago when, on 18 April 1999, I read this sentence in the middle of an article in the “Observer Business Section”: “There appears to be a positive correlation between an atmosphere of ‘human playfulness’ (otherwise known as humour) in the workplace and the improvement of ‘innovative activity and creativity’.” At […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (1)
How to be good
April 18th, 2009 by Roger Darlington
The Life Skills section of my web site has, over the years, expanded to no less than 29 short offerings of advice on “How to ..” do various things. Today I add my boldest endeavour in this section. It’s called “How To Be Good” and it’s inspired by a conversation I had with an Anglican […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (1)
How to win someone’s heart
April 18th, 2009 by Roger Darlington
I recently received the following e-mail about my web site: “Thank you for your collection of ‘Good mornings’. I have been dating this teacher and every morning I send her a ‘Good morning’ text in a different language. Hopefully I will be able to send her ‘I love you’ texts before I run out of […]
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (0)
Ever been in seventh heaven?
April 17th, 2009 by Roger Darlington
We all know that “seventh heaven” is an expression for being blissfully happy and I hope that you frequently inhabit the space – but what is the origin of the term? Both Judaism and islam promulgate the notion of there being seven level of heaven. The seventh heaven in Judaism is where ofanim, the seraphim, […]
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Ever been on cloud nine?
April 17th, 2009 by Roger Darlington
We all know that “cloud nine” is an expression for being blissfully happy and I hope that you frequently inhabit the space – but what is the origin of the term? One explanation is that, when the World Meteorological Organisation amended the system of cloud classification originally developed by the British Luke Howard ( 1772-1864), […]
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (0)