Happy New Year

Happy New Year to you all. As Imshin points out, I and all other Anglos have never heard of Sylvester.

Sufferin’ succotash, it’s Sylvester!

Imshin has a great image of Sylvester and Tweety Bird. So why not just lose the guilt and angst about this day being named after some saint who lived a long time ago and reclaim Sylvester as a time to celebrate some fab classic Loony Tooons along with the obligatory messibah (party).

A horrific picture from the disaster in Asia sent by a friend. 

To avoid confusion, or any misunderstandings, logrolling highlights have changed from “*” to outward pointing angle brackets. They are not there to denote ordered n-tuples either. They just mean blogs that have been updated in the last twelve hours and do not indicate approval or disapproval. . Cathy and I will be making major changes to the blog after the New Year. This is the “De Gaulle “ method of announcing things. Now we have to do it at some point.

Work

The guy who ran into me does have contacts. Regretfully, the last one was from EDS which would be rather hard as I've always been critical of their performance for government contracts.

Asia, travel and thoughts

Eldest daughter is back from India suffering from a stomach problem. Nothing to do with the Tsuanami just bad timing. I had an interview yesterday near Bat Shean which went well. Then the long drive to Ben Gurion and back. Daughter offered an entire plane load of Israelis a lift to anywhere they wanted to go in relief at being back and seeing us. I'm tired.

No danger, non-flammable gas

Happy anniversary helium. Or more precisely, it’s the 100 year anniversary of the Nobel prize for discovering helium (and the other inert gases - argon, neon, krypton, xenon). Don’t just visualise off-their-heads medical students inhaling then talking in high-pitched voices or kids crying whilst pointing at a balloon-on-a-string rapidly floating up up and away. Helium is used widely, eg: as a coolant in MRI scanners, in arc welding, pressurising the fuel tanks of liquid-propelled rockets, filling airships, mixed with oxygen as a breathing mixture for divers and people with breathing difficulties and mixed with neon in barcode scanning lasers. Although helium is the second most abundant element in the universe after hydrogen, scientists are forecasting a shortage of the amount of helium easily and cost-effectively available. Guess where 80% of the world’s helium supplies are located?

No worries really

Whilst dismantling our very large bookcase and cursing the men who assembled it I've been watching the news. My troubles seem so small compared to the people is S.E. Asia. So many dead and missing, homeless and injured.

Large cardboard things

Cardboard is never attractive especially when it comes in quantities in your house. We will be homeless starting from the New Year until the house is ready. In the meantime, daughter is seriously ill in India and has to fly home. No, nothing to do with water, just bad timing. It will be good to have her home. Even the gentleman who backed into the side of my car last night was wonderful. He's tried to find me a job. I have an interview tomorrow but it's in a religious Kibbutz. Do they know I'm not Jewish I wonder. Workplace is all done and they even agreed to me helping myself to some of the hardware. Local computer now has a UPS to keep it going. The other five will have to wait.

As Nuclear Secrets Emerge, More Are Suspected

But It's ok for Pakisatn to sell nukes to rogue states. They're on our side. Saddam never had a nuke and never sold any. Pakistan sells lots and gets a pat on the back.

Britain prepares to send 3,000 troops into Darfur

Then stop cutting the size of the Army and invest in more heavy lift planes damnit if that's what you want to do.

Bush and Blair may one day be seen as akin to Roosevelt and Churchill

No, no. Don't laugh. This is Martin Gilbert after all. He is Churchill's official biographer. Interestingly he states:

A final parallel is most telling. Churchill planned a peace conference after the war, at which he and Roosevelt could persuade the king of Saudi Arabia to agree to the creation of a Jewish sovereign state in Palestine. Roosevelt died and Churchill was thrown out of office before the conference could take place. Instead of a Jewish state being created with Arab approval, the United Nations proposed two states, one Jewish, one Arab, with Jerusalem under international control. The Jews accepted. The Arabs did not, and launched five armies against the Jewish state, a failure of Arab leadership that has led to six decades of conflict.

I never knew the bit about the conference. So that's where our Tony gets it from.

Labor MK Ophir Pines-Paz chose the Interior Ministry portfolio

I still have a lot to learn about Israel. The concept of someone choosing his or her ministry in a Government makes me think of revolution and barricades in the street. I may approve of Labor MK Ophir Pines-Paz who came first in Labor elections for ministerial positions but I do not approve of the concept of party based ministerial elections.

Still, I was moved enough to write my first Wikipedia entry on him. See here for more details. As a distraction I will try and add alll the current Knesset members. It should be there whatever their politics.

Happy Yuletide

A happy Yule to all our readers. An even happier Saturnalia if you prefer.

Winding up the Hanumas (or Chrismukah) season

Hannukah is well over and it’s nearly the 26th but I couldn’t resist sharing this flash that I’ve just been sent. I’ll try to post it at the start next year’s season.

Syria behaving badly.

US marines in Fallujah found a hand-held global-positioning system receiver with waypoints originating in western Syria and the names of four Syrians in a list of 27 fighters contained in a ledger. So what comes next? Invade Syria? Probably not.

Blair conference gets low-key press

All but dead then. Nobody expects much and it won't produce very much. Save some money on the travel and hotels. Just have a collective blog instead.

Gaza settlers to end orange Star of David protest against pullout

Speaking on behalf of a rather aged Holocaust survivor who does not use the Internet, she actually spat at the misuse of that symbol. I don't see any gas chambers being built for the settlers.

From millennium dome to millennium home

Remember the embarrassing millennium dome? Five years on it still stands empty and derelict on the Greenwich peninsula, home only to the occasional event, club night or youth hostel. The promised massive regeneration of the area with housing, shops, work places, transport and infrastructure has not yet materialised and the taxpayer is still picking up the bill for the dome to just sit there. The latest PR is that the dome will be converted into a casino or it will be a sporting venue if the 2012 Olympics are held in London.

This holiday season it is being used – for one week only - by the charity Crisis to look after homeless people and their dogs. On offer besides the usual food, medical care and wash (for humans and dogs alike) are courses in plumbing and IT to activities like yoga and circus skills.

Why not just keep using the dome for this admirable purpose until it is otherwise needed? I wonder if the homeless people feel similar to the non-visitors back in 2000 about having to travel all that way to sarf-east London just for a day (or a week).

Unemployed- official

I signed on as unemployed for the first time in my life. It wasn't too bad. I didn't even have to fill out a form. Ex Workplace still owes me money though.

Blair defends Middle East peace efforts

A straight bat, clean strokes, but his team loses yet again. Another mindless conference allowed by the minders.

Dread

Some years ago, I was being given a lift home by a friend. He was an amateur rally driver. As we approached my Bedfordshire bedsit over narrow winding country roads, we neared a bridge I knew, orginally built by the Romans and set in a cunning Z bend.

I froze. As we hurtled towards our doom, I could not speak or move even to scream. We hit the very strong stone walls several times and bounced out of the end leaving several bits of car behind.

Thats how I feel about our forth coming house move at the New Year.

Tony Blair flew into Baghdad

Nice touch. A pointed reminder to Israelis about an unspoken debt. Let's see what he gets from it. Personally , I see the ID card as his Achille's heel, similar to Thatcher's poll tax.

UK IDea not yet well thought out

To run with Adrian’s point on foreign IDs: I haven't yet been able to find any mention by the government of the London effect in particular - there always has and always will be a dynamic influx and outflow of significant numbers of 'foreigners' of all persuasions of differing degrees of legality. And they can unilaterally 'change status' once they're in the country. The ability to ‘disappear’ will not lessen with ID cards and the state will achieve no greater success rate in rooting out illegal residents from the dawn raids on kitchens and farms -- which do not happen that often because we know that if we got rid of all illegal residents or people here legally but working illegally, much of London would come to a halt.

And it is not simply a matter of drawing a line between 'tourists' and 'citizens' as I well know. There are for example students who can stay for the duration of a course, self-employed as long as they work, Aussie 3-year backpackers, permanent residents, EU citizens, people of independent means...etc. Which group of these groups will be required to have a UK ID card? More costs whatever happens.

The government seems to be promoting ID cards more as yet another attempt to out-Tory the Tories by being seen to be fighting terrorism (subtext: immigration) -- as we saw with the national unity government-type support by the Tories in yesterday's second reading vote. The good news is that nearly 100 MPs of all political persuasions voted against the measure.

The jury is still out for me because ID cards seem a good idea in principle but the ‘in practice issues’ of the UK scheme as outlined seem too heavy at the moment including – as Adrian has already mentioned: extremely high cost, demonstrated inability to implement a complex IT scheme, increased opportunities for fraud, ID cards are simply not the most effective way to achieve protection from terrorism: better to invest the money in more effective border controls and anti-terrorist activities. That’s aside from the human rights and civil liberties issues.

Hopefully 2008 will recede into the distance as the practical difficulties of implementation come into focus.

Packing

She Who Must be Obeyed has a part time cleaner. She's here now helping with the kitchen packing, something I am not allowed to help with due to a tendency to throw ten year old empty jam jars away. Their only common language is Hungarian with a smattering of German.

Clarke toughs out assault on ID card plans from all sides of the Commons

Let's see. 5.5 Billion to implement with 85 million a year running costs. Nothing better to do with the money? According to our new Home Secretary one third of potential terrorists use false ID. He failed to point out that a majority of those use foreign IDs which won't change with this bill.

Rumsfeld doesn’t personally sign all letters shock

With all due respect to the US soldiers who died in Iraq and their grieving loved ones, have I missed something here? All that will probably happen is that at odd moments of free time Rumsfeld will sign the bottom of pieces of blank official stationery on which subsequently will be printed the pre-formatted condolence letter. Second-oldest trick in the busy executive’s or politician’s repertoire where a ‘real’ signature really matters. I wouldn’t dream of suggesting that an original signature may be worth more on e-bay…

House and work

Slow blogging these days. Work and house. I'm sure you all understand.

Clarke faces first test over ID card vote

I hope he loses. Rather than add to the ever swelling coffers of EDS how about spending the money on more Special Branch officers and equipment? Israel has a fully functional ID card system. It does not prevent terrorism, illegal immigrants, workers claiming unemployment benefit or any of the other problems society has.

Getting colder...

Amazing. -10 Deg C last night in the Golan. -2 in the Jordan valley and the bananna crop is ruined. I'm back at workplace for another futile attempt to persuade my ex fellow workers to sign on the dotted line. This time I won't.

General

I've been reading Sarah's Shabotton Chronicles with a fascinated feeling of horror.
Here is the North it is cold. Very cold. Around 4-5 Deg C and a lazy 20 klick wind as well. To those in Europe and the USA this may seem like nothing. In Israel, my thoughts turn to hot water bottles, draught excluders and the joys of double glazing with a topping of central heating. Houses here are built for cooling, not for heat. Our front door, made from steel and six frame bolts is certain to keep all intruders out. Alas, the wind seems to have no problems.

Israel supports U.K. peace summit, but won't participate

I don;t see any point to it then. Both sides are disagreeing even before it's started. What does Tony have in mind I wonder and why is he heading over here next week.

Clarke: no ID cards rethink

No doubt Cathy will fill us in on the new Home Secretary, Charles Clark. Having been out of the the UK for so long I know little about him other than what Google tells me.

Mr Clarke, who will lead a Commons debate on the ID cards issue on Monday, said: "Identity cards are a means of trying to create a more secure society."

He may like to read a little bit more history before he expounds. I would argue the exact opposite. Especially when EDS designs and runs the system.

He’s outa here

Re my post a few weeks back, it turns out the David Blunkett was no exception after all. The “every confidence” BS count reached fever pitch the past week - including a government minister uttering it just this morning on Radio 4. So indeed this evening David Blunkett has resigned as Home Secretary. Yet again it’s an email that helped bring about the correct result; and demonstrates the principle of “press ‘send’ in haste, repent at leisure”.

Christmas

I never liked canned, wall-to-wall Christmas carols when I lived in England. I like the Arabic version even less. Jingle Bells in Arabic sounds all wrong. Away in a Manger sounds even worse. Just my childhood being changed yet again not any great belief system being challenged.

Blog exhaustion

Child number one has checked in via email from India much to our relief. What with the house and lack of job, I have nothing inspiring me right now worthy of a post. If I hear the word 'windows' ever again I shall scream. If fact, add 'blockim', and several other words associated with renovating a house.

Vote for Edwards an electoral shock

Very few people share my concern over the electoral college system that elects the Presdent and Vice President of the USA. The various left pondians that I have spoken to on this subject are horrified when they learn that the electors can vote for anybody they like. There is nothing on the staute books to stop them apart from a few untested State laws imposing a small fine. The two purposes of the electoral college was to create a buffer between population and the selection of a President and to give extra powers to the smaller states.
One day it will al go pear shaped and the system will change to direct elections. Not just yet though.

Using arms in intifada was mistake, 'has got to stop'

Now this is interesting. Abbas presumably wants a return to the previous, more people driven intifada without bombs. Sit-in's perhaps? Mass demos at check posts? Ghandi style resistance? Might work especially if the TV is there.

We were there then , now we're here.

Like the title, Labour's proposed inclusion to the existing Government makes little sense. If the disengagement was worthy of support it could have been done outside. If the Government is so weak it needs new partners, better to let it fall and try again. Why there should be such a gap between needing elections and having one remains a mystery to me.

Hampstead Heath swimming under threat

One of the many reasons I live in Highgate is to be close to Hampstead Heath in general and to be able conveniently to swim in the unique and magical Women’s Pond (or more quaintly, the Ladies’ Pond). Where else could you be virtually in town yet feel like you are in the country: swimming and sunbathing in peaceful, lush secluded surroundings with coots, ducks and even swans. The bird life is also stunning.

The Heath also has the Men’s Pond and the Mixed Pond for swimming and the Model Boating Pond and several other beautiful non-swimming ponds.

These ponds are unique in London. They are natural living ponds fed with water rising from springs that are the source of the Fleet River (now sadly trapped in underground conduits) which flows from the Heath to the Thames. The only other places in Britain where you’re likely to get a chance to swim for free in clean spring-fed natural water is a small peat pond up the top of an unmarked path in bleak treeless surroundings somewhere in the Lake district, Snowdonia or other high places. Rather inconvenient if you just want a swim after work in the summer.

The Heath ponds have been used for swimming for more than a century with over 200,000 people swimming in them each year. Some hardy souls (not including me) swim every day rain, shine, snow or ice. Considering many of these people are healthily into their 80s, even 90s - including a large contingent of AKs of both genders - it must have some benefit.

Now, the Corporation of London (aka The City of London or the City; a square mile that is London’s financial district; not to be confused with London itself) which has managed Hampstead Heath for the past 15 years or so, has said that it does not have enough funds to keep these wonderful ponds open for swimming.

Rubbish.

The Corporation of London is the oldest and wealthiest local authority in the world. Assets in its private fund alone are worth an estimated £1 billion. Other assets include many historic buildings and a gold horse-drawn carriage which sits in the Museum of London when it is not being used once a year at the Lord Mayor’s parade (not to be confused with Ken Livingstone, the duly elected Mayor of London). The City hosts numerous grand banquets and receptions.

It is ludicrous to think that that the City cannot find a couple of hundred thousand pounds, directly or through sponsorship (less than a tenth of the salary of a large number of top City directors, partners and chairs). Especially as it is charged by Parliament with managing the entire Heath for the good of the people of London as a whole.

This seems sweet revenge for London's mayor Ken Livingstone, who has challenged the Corporation to put up or pass control of the Heath back to the Mayor and GLA, the democratically accountable London body. Prior to being abolished by Thatcher in the late ‘80s, the Greater London Council (GLC - K. Livingstone, leader) looked after Hampstead Heath. Control was for some reason handed over to the City even though NW3 is not within the City or contiguous with it.

A decision is due to be announced next month. In the meantime the Corporation’s strategy seems to be to soften people up for something along the lines of even more restricted opening hours or admission charges. The NW3 and N6 chattering classes are already building their battalions and war chests and are unlikely to accept any closures. Indeed a group of pond swimmers is currently taking legal action against the Corporation to allow them to swim early mornings without lifeguards.

Labour party doesn't like elections

Not never and probably not ever. Shimon Peres has used every excuse under the sun not to have primaries for party leader. Now they'll be in June next year and probably postponed beyond thjat until Shimon is mummified and past death forever.

Weather

I still feel somewhat incredulous when I read that the local weather will be cloudy, wet, with strong winds, hail, thunderstorms and snow in the next few days. Not a good time to remove the roof from our new house.

Israelis behaving badly.

Which comes first? They hate us, they attack us, we fight back they hate us more and we get nasty? Hearts and minds seem to have long since gone.

English world language forecast

More bad news for the French and their silly language. Yet another report just out points to the inexorable rise of English as THE world language. This growth will see French declining internationally. Aside from the huge numbers of existing English speakers, the report forecasts that in the next decade the number of people learning English will double from one billion to two billion (eg a third of everyone on the planet), including 120 million Chinese primary school children. Speaking of which, Chinese is also forecast as a key international language. No doubt the report, sponsored by the British Council, is objective in a way that any French equivalent could not possibly hope to achieve…

Majority of Palestinians, some 52%, oppose violence against Israel.

Amazing and very welcome. Now for the really hard bit.

Second breakfast please

I managed two impossible things yesterday. Our ex bosses made us an offer in writing and I persuaded everyone to come to work this morning to discuss it. Getting 9 Israelis round a table at the same time and place is not easy.

Iraq faces descent into chaos, says CIA chief

The USA suffered it's 1,000th combat death yesterday. It's going to get worse before it gets better.

The Israeli Bubble

I never thought it would happen to me but what the the job, house and other things, I feel the Israeli Bubble slowly sinking down over me. This is when only family, friends and work have any meaning at all and the rest of the planet seems like a image seen in a reversed telescope. I can't even raise any interest in local politics. It will return.

Take your pick

Zvi Bar'el says:

Israel made clear to Cairo that if Azzam was not released, Egypt would not be part of the process. Egypt was prepared to accept this condition, but then events intervened that disrupted things.

Ze'ev Schiff wrote:

Sharon, like his predecessors, sought Azzam's release. He did not present it as a condition for talks with the Egyptians on disengagement, but he did let the Egyptians understand that such a step was important to him and would make things easier for him in terms of domestic politics.

It was a swap, it wasn't a swap, Israel doesn't do deal over terrorists, Israel regularly does deals with terrorists. Take your pick. All opinions are true.

Inspector Clouseau is back

The French have taken over the Pink Panther franchise.

Scene 53 from the new film: Inspector Clouseau is training ‘behm’-sniffing dogs at the airport. He distracts a passenger and puts a behm in their ‘bahghahge’ for the dogs to sniff. Clouseau and dogs are distracted by a Sophia Loren-type and her canine companion FiFi and sniff them instead (Dressed-up poodle you know the type. The dog is also a poodle.). Whoopsseee the bag with the plastic explosive gets onto the conveyor and is loaded into the cargo hold of one of any 90 planes departing from the airport at that time. Clouseau looks around. Where’s the behm? Could be anywhere in the world by now. Don’t worry, Clouseau says to his boss (who promtly has one of his attacks): the behm doesn’t have a detonator and is no more dangerous than a bar of chocolate. Cue bar of chocolate being thrown from mezzanine level which explodes as it hits Kato.

Come home now

Here's a message from former chief Rabbi Lau. All European Jews should come to Israel right now before the bogeymen get you. Please bring plenty of water.

See you in Court(s)

So ANO crappy British furniture chain bites the (saw)dust leaving angry customers without their goods and suppliers unpaid. How very prescient in hindsight was their advertising jingle some years ago which ended something like "we hope to see you all in Courts".

Speed-flatmating

After speed-dating comes speed-flatmating. If you’re looking for a room or have a room to let in London you’re led to believe you can meet potential gems and weed out undesirables in a very short time without even having to have them in your home or trek all over town. Instead of paying for ads, you pay entry fees to the organisers. What next, flatmating in the dark?

Galloway victory 'a bad day for journalism

Veteran readers of this blog will know that Cathy and I have no place for Gorgeous George, he of the Oil for Food scandal and late of the Labour party. It is interesting that yet more documents from Iraq appear to be bogus. Rather than focus on the names in the documents, perhaps the authors might be able to shed some light on who did get what and when rather than chase the 'usual suspects'?


I note also that the Daily GetsMuchWorseThanAnyoneThoughtPossible based its defence on ' It's untrue but public interest'. World War II bombers on the moon come next I suppose.

I was asked what I would like for our new House. It didn't seem to make 'She Who Must be Obeyed' very happy. I do have a lot of fence posts to drive in. 

A day in Israel

As my ex company slowly dissolves into the death of a thousand lawyers, I had a pleasant day driving down to Ben Gurion airport to pick up some stuff my globe trotting daughter left in England the last time she was there. I'd never done this before in Israel and I was full of a slight feeling of anticipation. It went very well. Everyone was very helpful. I got to go to lots of interesting offices, admire the local architecture (especially by the water cooler), collect interesting bits of paper. The customs lady even told me off for my poor command of Hebrew. I expected her to recommend someone for remedial teaching but all I got was another bit of paper.
It wasn't very expensive either. The next time you have 50 kilos of stuff you don't feel like lugging around, go for it. I'll even tell you how to collect it all.

Jewish only communities are illegal

About time too. No more ghettoes thank you.

Labour behaving badly.

Shimon Peres is the curent leader of the Labout Party in Israel and likes the job. He also doesn't want any irritating things like leadership elections which he would lose. Hence the shenanigans behind the central comittee meeting where Ehud Barak tries to put things back on the rails again.