Sir: The "VIP" area in front of the Live8 stage told you everything you need to know about humanity, its innate behaviour and the reasons why Africa is in such a bad way. The hundreds of thousands of people who had democratically won tickets for the event were a quarter of a mile from the stage, whilst a small number of "VIPs" had their own area at the front, with room to dance, stretch their legs and pose for the cameras. If it was for security reasons, surely they would have been safer backstage? I find this at best, distasteful, and at worst, deeply saddening. Simply put, it was a privileged minority enjoying an ascendancy over everyday people. No change there then. - ASHLEY TYAS, LONDON SE14

Sir: While infertility may contribute to Britain's low birth rate, it is also low because of an increasing number of people of all ages and backgrounds deciding that they don't want children.

Parents receive increased tax credits, benefits and assorted rights that are not extended to those who are childfree or infertile. So the burden of taxation is shifting away from people with children and towards people without them.

The Government uses complaints to the EOC to track discomfort among the child-free and childless (or so it claims). So, Britain is faced with more people choosing not to have kids and more people physically unable to have kids and the Government's response is to increase taxation on all of them.

And what of the public body that we are supposed to complain to? Its Chief Executive seems to want us eradicated through pro-natalist politics. Is it any wonder that we are unhappy? - JONATHAN MCCALMONT, CHAIRMAN, KIDDING ASIDE: THE BRITISH CHILDFREE ASSOCIATION, LONDON SW3

Sir: If ID cards are to be foisted upon us whether we want them or not, I can suggest a simple way for those "conscientious objectors" such as myself to make life hell for the Government, that would avoid falling foul of the law. Before going in for your ID card sign up, change your name by deed poll to John or Jane Citizen. - BRENT MARTIN, LONDON N5

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posted 04 Jul 2005, 19.05 +0100

Geoffrey Hoon, the disgraced former defence minister who was responsible for the death of David Kelly, has still not been sacked from the government. His current position is leader of the Commons and secretary of state for Scotland. It's in the former role that he's called to-day for compulsory voting as a method of ending the national apathy. In the general election two months ago, just six people in ten could be bothered to turn out to vote; turnout in some wards fell as low as one person in ten. At this rate of decline, the election will be decided by a single voter in each constituency by 2043.

Yet compulsory voting is not the answer. People are alienated from the political process because they see no point in the political process. Far too often over the past decade, governments have been elected pledging to do one thing, but when they've got their hands on the wheels of power, they've done something completely different. Perhaps if governments were prepared to live up to their own promises, they'd be rewarded by higher turnouts at the polls.

Another reason for people remaining away from the ballot box is because they don't believe their vote will have any effect. The May election was concentrated in barely 100 marginal seats; even in this seat, which the Conservatives would need to win in order to have an overall majority, there was no serious attempt to campaign hard. The current electoral system has too many safe seats, too many places where people are effectively disenfranchised because of their postcode. Any reform that increases the volatility of an individual seat - even if it's the Add RON To Every Ballot Paper campaign - will surely help to increase turnout.

I'd be in favour of giving people carrots like these. It's no surprise that Labour is threatening people, as the party has always been in favour of hitting people over the heads with big sticks.

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posted 04 Jul 2005, 19.05 +0100

Hydra 5½ Michael Adams ½. Mr Adams, about the twentieth best player in the world, has been taken to pieces by the multiple-headed monster of the chess computing world. Chessbase has more, and spoke with Michael Adams afterwards.

Hydra doesn't feature in the new FIDE rankings, partly because it's only played these six competitive games, but mainly because it's a computer. Amongst those who do, Veselin Topalov joins Vishy Anand in second place, behind the now-retired Garry Kasparov. The top British player, Mr Adams, drops from ninth to thirteenth, and now has a lower rating than the leading woman, still Judit Polgar of Hungary. The leading Brit, Harriet Hunt, ranks 35th.

And some of you will be interested in John Nunn's plan for the world championship, an eight-player double-round-robin, held every second year. It doesn't have a clear final, though, and some of the viewer feedback proposes a sixteen-player knockout. Interesting stuff.

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posted 05 Jul 2005, 19.10 +0100

Identity register messiness, and the Register has a nice long round-up of recent events. They don't include how Charles In Charge has made academic freedom respectable again

Anyway. Show your opposition here, if you're so minded.

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posted 05 Jul 2005, 19.15 +0100

International relief, and "Make Poverty History", the paramilitary wing of Comic Relief, has criticised the British government. The mass movement, previously identified closely with the Brownite global policies, has accused the British finance minister of "over-selling" his proposals for medium-scale debt relief. "What is being discussed is emphatically not 100% debt cancellation for the world's poorest countries, but government spokespeople continue to state or imply that it is."

Lest we forget, the MPH squad requests nothing more than the enactment of the UN's Millennium Development Goals. These were presented at the time as a step towards a better world, and not the end of the story. They would halve the number of people living on less than USD1 (then €1.15) per day, still leaving 500 million people below the mark. They would halve the number of people going hungry, make primary education available to all, and slow down malaria.

These are, of course, laudable goals. If they're realised, they will have a major effect on the lives of millions of people. The goals were only ever a step, some ideas to concentrate the mind and allow other thoughts to flourish, not the end of the story. For instance, how's about a complete bar on arms exports to the developing world? The biggest enemy facing people isn't drought, but armed rebellion. Cut off the sources of the arms, prosecute a few fall guys, and see the change in prosperity.

On their own, these goals are necessary, but insufficient, to bring poverty to an end forever. Can we conclude that Bob Geldof, Bono Vox, Chris Martin, Joss Stone, Pink Floyd, and all the rest of the publicity-hungry people are selling a false prospectus? Er, yes.

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posted 05 Jul 2005, 19.15 +0100

News on one of the people who inflicted a deadly pneumonic plague on Liverpool last year. Sahar Hashemi, who rather botched up her appearance on BBC-4's Crisis Command: Could You Ruin The Country?, has sold out her stake in Coffee Republic. She's moving into fresh fields.

"I'm about to bring out a range of sugarless sweets called Skinny Candy," she tells the Daily Torygraph. "It's going to be a bunch of stuff like fizzy cola bottles and jelly beans." Hashemi hopes to see the products in the shops later this year. "I suspect Coffee Republic will be one of them," she adds.

How those damned Yankees failed to kill the Swiss army knife.

Piece O'Fluff tipped to head Rover inquiry. Less than six months after splatting himself with creamy muck-muck, the MP for Worcestershire Mid will investigate how the car maker managed to lose zillions of pounds every day.

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posted 05 Jul 2005, 19.26 +0100

As I reported last week, the isolation between the south-east and the rest of the country grew a little bit further. A landslip at Gerrard's Cross broke the main railway line between London and Birmingham. The nation's political capital is even more cut off from its industrial heartland than before.

One of my correspondents says of to-day's announcement that the summer olympics will be staged in London, and not (as most people had been expecting) Leipzig,
this is great for London ...
That's a completely accurate statement. It is a great day. For London.

Not for Manchester, which is reminded of her perfectly credible bid for 00 (and even its outline bid for 96 was superior to the winning Atlanta one), yet received minimal support from the government. Or Birmingham, which had almost no central support for her 92 bid.

The infrastructure improvements will mostly benefit east London, and won't really have a huge effect on the rest of the south-east, never mind the rest of the country. Similarly, the events will only be taking place in the enhanced London area.

From this side of Watford Gap, it feels like this whole event is going to be in a foreign country, and won't really affect our everyday lives. It's not going to be a national event, but a London event. There is a difference.

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posted 06 Jul 2005, 18.56 +0100

Former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet has been stripped of legal immunity. It's the culmination of a fifteen-year campaign to bring the murderer to account, one that was brought to a head by his detention in the UK between 1998 and 2000.

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posted 06 Jul 2005, 20.08 +0100

A listing of selected television and radio broadcasts, with a deliberate emphasis on culture and intellectual programmes.

Highlights of the week REM and Zappa give Saturday concerts, it's War Day on the BBC, another chance to see BBC-4's Animation Nation, George Galloway appears on Any Questions, and it's the last ever TOTP on BBC-1.

Regulars
Composer of the Week (Radio 3, noon): Cole Porter
Book of the Week (Radio 4, 9.45am and 12.30am): Olga's Story, by Stephanie Williams. Telling the life of her grandmother Olga Yunter, born in Siberia at the dawn of the Revolution. Read by Sara Kestelman.
Woman's Hour Play (Radio 4, 10.45am and 7.45pm): Animal Show, by Katie Hims. How humans relate to animals.
Book at Bedtime (Radio 4, 10.45): Minaret, by Leila Abouela. From Sudan to London. Read by Adjoa Andoh. (First of two weeks).

Saturday

9.55am Channel 5 (TV) The Tribe

Ah, that's what they're doing. The twenty-six part series is chopped into thirteen episodes, by cutting out about 45% of the plot. The new series will therefore begin in October. Even better..

10.30 Radio 4 Luton Streets to Jersey Shores

Sarfraz Mansoor visits Noo Joiysey, guided by the lyrics of resident poet Bruce "Bruce" Springsteen.

6pm BBC7 Journey Into Space

The World In Peril (part eight). While investigating the remains of Freighter One, Jet is being buzzed by spheres.

7pm Discovery (TV) The Real da Vinci Code

Tony Robinson puts Dan Brown's claims to the test. Are they even less clever than Guy of Gisbourne?

9pm BBC-4 (TV) Animation Nation

Cartoons as propaganda, selling the second world war and the welfare state, then household goods. An entertaining series, but the "AN Shorts" were better.

9.30 Radio 2 REM In Concert

From a title like that, what were you expecting?

9.50 Channel 4 (TV) The Child Star Jinx

Remember, Channel 4 does not do entertainment programmes on a Saturday night. See: Boys and Girls.

10.40 Radio 3 Between the Ears

Doing The To-Do List. People talking about how they impose order on their lives. Followed by two hours of Frank Zappa

Sunday

All day BBC-1 and Radio 4 World War II remembered

The official services of rememberance for the war dead.

3.30pm Radio 3 Peak Performance

Edward Smith (Middlesex and England) talks to Natalie Clein (cellist). We're hoping they use Zack Lawrence's theme.

8pm Channel 4 (TV) The British Working Class

Michael Collins looks at the class structure. How long will it be before "I look up to him"..?

9pm BBC-4 (TV) Animation Nation

Part two, "irreverent" animation. The weakest of the episodes by far, because it has no central idea.

9pm BBC-2 (TV) Car Nation

If there's one thing to come out of last week's show, it's that we need zero tolerance to people who use hand-held mobile phones. And zero tolerance to smug gits.

10pm BBC-2 (TV) Mock the Week

Last in the series.

10.40 ITV (TV) The People's Channel

The commercials are not the bits between the programmes.

Monday

3.45pm Radio 4 The Real Just-So Stories

Alistair McGowan goes in search of the truth behind the Kipling stories. How did the elephant get its trunk?

6.30 Radio 4 Just A Minute

Rob Brydon, Chris Neil, Paul Merton, and Clement Food.

7pm BBC-1 (TV) Top of the Pops

So it's come to this, the last ever episode on BBC-1; the show resumes on BBC-2 next Sunday. Except for all the TOTP Saturdays from September.

7.30 Radio 3 Proms Preview Night

This year's themes are the sea and fairy tales.

9pm BBC-4 (TV) Animation Nation

In the final part, it's children's animation.

Tuesday

11am Radio 4 When the Future was Green

Tony Blair promised to put the environment at the heart of government.

11.30 Radio 4 I Have a Cunning Plan

John Lloyd tells the story of the Blackadder series.

9pm BBC-2 (TV) Bad Medicine

Stopping fake drugs in Nigeria.

Wednesday

8.30 BBC-4 (TV) The Sky at Night

An update on the Hit The Comet event last week.

8.45 Radio 4 Whatever Happened to Anarchism?

Wayne Brittenden asks. Abolished by its ruling committee, if I remember correctly.

9pm Radio 4 Can't Take Won't Take

Why do people never finish their NHS prescriptions?

Thursday

6.30 Radio 4 The Hudson and Pepperdine Show

Mel and Vicky are at the centre of an anti-celeb backlash.

7.30 Radio 3 Cheltenham Music Festival

The premiere of John Pickard's Gaia Symphony, the earth as living being.

10.30 BBC-4 (TV) Look Around You

Another chance to see the live final, with the Invention of the Year award presented by HRH Sir Prince Charles.

10.50 Channel 4 (TV) Jarvis Cocker's TV Pop Rules!

From when pop on television meant more than Simon Amstell asking Pete Doherty about gaffa tape.

11pm Radio 4 Radio9

"Then the fox did something dastardly clever: it turned into the congestion charge zone."

11.50pm BBC-2 (TV) The Late Edition

Highlights of Marcus Brigstocke's late night show from earlier this year.

Friday

4pm UK Living (TV) Joan of Arcadia

Series 1, episodes 16-20, each week-day at this time.

6.30 Radio 4 The Now Show

Punt and Dennis overload!

7pm BBC-1 (TV) First Night of the Proms

So they're taking off Crazy Frog and putting this on? Result!

8pm Radio 4 Any Questions?

George Galloway and a visiting Republican. Jonathan Dimbleby and Harry Carpenter present.

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posted 07 Jul 2005, 18.46 +0100

I'm not going to be addressing the repercussions of to-day's bombings in London at this time. Not until I've got something sensible, cogent, and constructive to say.

One thing I do want to record, more for my own future reference than anything else, is a few of to-night's television and radio schedule changes. News specials replace a number of programmes, including Radio 4's documentary on the awarding of the summer Olympics, and an ITV programme looking into the spiritual lessons one can draw from last December's tsunami. Also off the agenda is George and Zippy's Puppets, a ninety-minute special on Kerry from Atomic Kitten, and the surreal Radio 4 comedy Radio 9. I doubt there will be an edition of It's Been a Bad Week, for purely practical reasons.

In news you may have missed: the government's unveiled plans to reform NHS dentistry, amid rumours that the BBC will shortly be running a documentary about unlicensed backstreet dentists... Elderly women fined £60 per day after feeding ducks with their stale bread... the Bank of England has left base rates unchanged at 4¾%, but the economic data strongly suggests the next move will be down, and possibly as soon as next month...

England completely whopped the Aussies in to-day's one-dayer, Aggers reckons it's ironic that the game was so one-sided, but the Aussies have only been able to pull off one victory in their first five matches against England, and been soundly beaten twice.
The 20-20 cup draw: Surrey v Warwickshire; Lancashire v Derbyshire; Leicestershire v Middlesex; Northants v Somerset. Matches to be played 18 July. In the World Cup, the four automatic qualifiers from the competition are Canada, Scotland, Ireland, and Bermuda. The final place will be decided on Saturday and Monday between the UAE, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Namibia.

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posted 07 Jul 2005, 20.19 +0100

21 months, suspended is the sentence for the prick responsible for the Sasser virus. Does this ruling open him up for a civil claim based on the extra work I had to do to clean up after him? Do hope so...

Get well wishes to Daryl Hall, laid low by Lyme Disease (see the last episode of Joan of Arcane Scheduling series 1.)

The War On Terror was misguided from the start, says David Clark. His piece - welcome as it is - has one major flaw: it's predicated on the untested assumption that Thursday's attacks were done by people who would call themselves "islamic". This point is further explored by Faisal Bodi in the same paper.

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posted 09 Jul 2005, 17.13 +0100

So, here's the final offer from the world's largest industrial economies.

• Double development aid to USD48bn (€38md) by 2010.
• Write off debt initially for 18 African countries.
• Provide "as close as possible" universal access to treatment for HIV/Aids; tackle malaria, TB and polio; education; and train a further 20,000 peacekeeping troops.
• Open dialogue between the G8 and emerging countries on climate change, with the first meeting in London in November, but no targets for cutting carbon emissions.
• Provide USD3bn (€2.4md) a year for the next three years for the Palestinian Authority to help build up institutions.
• Establish a "credible end date" for a trade agreement to eliminate export subsidies.

Does it meet the UN Millennium Commission's minimal goals? It's a step on the right path, but it's not as big a step as Mister Blair seemed to be promising just a few days ago. The aid budget is still short of that mythical 0.7% of GNP that's been floating about since the seventies. More immediately, the UK proposal - to front-load the aid by borrowing the money on the international markets - has been lost. The full figure won't be available until 2010, five years hence. Debt relief is welcome, the trade talks are more a signal of things to come than anything actually concrete. There's no date to concentrate minds.

A separate press release pretended to talk about climate change, but it did so on terms acceptable to the military junta unlawfully occupying the White House. The leaders failed to offer any leadership on a reduction of greenhouse gases, preferring the faith-based approach of "some new technology will come along to save us."

Overall, it looks like Gleneagles has failed to meet the nebulous demands put on it by the "Make Poverty History" campaign. The proposed package falls short of the requested commitment to meet the UNMC targets, and should be condemned as such. Leading media spokeys Mr St Bob Geldof and Mr St Bono Vox are claiming this as a victory; this is clear nonsense, and is dangerous, as it will allow the public in the developed world to assume that poverty will become a thing of the past within ten years.

Bob, you're worse than nothing. Shut up and get lost.

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posted 09 Jul 2005, 17.14 +0100

The government has called for a two-minute silence at 12 noon on Thursday, to remember those killed in last Thursday's incidents in London.

For completeness, here is an update to the entry "A brief history of silence" I originally wrote in January.

I believe the list below to be a complete list of silences observed by a sizable portion of the British public since the start of 1995; do write in if you have further information. In particular, I'm seeking confirmation of the length of the British Legion's armistice day silences in 1995-7, whether the Legion officially called for a silence on D-day + 60 last year, and if I've missed a silence entirely. In the list, ? denotes a time believed to be correct; "circa" is an approximate time, as sources differ.

08.05.95, 20:08, 2m, VE-day + 50
13.08.95, 21:28?, 2m, VJ-day + 50
11.11.95, 11:00, 1m, Armistice
12.11.95, 11:00, 2m, Rememberance
17.03.96, 09:30?, 1m, Dunblane
10 and 11.11.96, Rememberance and Armistice
06.09.97, circa 11:47, 2m, Diana Windsor
09 and 11.11.97, Rememberance and Armistice
08 and 11.11.98, Rememberance and Armistice (both 2m)
11 and 14.11.99, Armistice and Rememberance (both 2m)
11 and 12.11.00, Armistice and Rememberance
14.09.01, 11:00, 3m, Septembereleven
11.11.01, 11:00, 2m, Rememberance and Armistice (combined)
15.02.02, 14:00?, 1m, Margaret Windsor (not widely observed)
09.04.02, 11:30, 2m, Liz Bowes-Lyon
24.08.02, 15:00, 1m, Soham (unofficial)
11.09.02, 13:46, 1m, Septembereleven +1
10 and 11.11.02, 11:00, 2m, Rememberance and Armistice
15.02.03, circa 15:30, 2m, Anti-war march (unofficial)
09 and 11.11.03, 11:00, 2m, Rememberance and Armistice
15.03.04, 11:00, 3m, Madrid bombings
06.06.04, 21:30, 1m, D-day +60 (?, not widely observed)
08 and 11.11.04, 11:00, 2m, Rememberance and Armistice
05.01.05, 12:00, 3m, Tsunami
14.07.05, 12:00, 2m, London bombings
09 and 11.11.05, 11:00, 2m, Rememberance and Armistice

I note, in passing, that no-one has proposed a silence during to-morrow's services to mark 60 years since the end of World War II.

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posted 09 Jul 2005, 20.46 +0100

Niall Ferguson tries to link the London bombings to poverty and global warming. And succeeds. For those of you who don't have a Torygraph sub, and can't be bothered to fiddle about with access via web searches, the nub of his theory is this.

The terrorists' unstated goal is to create or widen divisions between Muslims and non-Muslims. The Middle East is too economically important to be abandoned so long as the world's consumption of fossil fuels continues to grow. The International Energy Authority predicts that almost 90 per cent of increased world demand for energy will be met with fossil fuels, and a 62% increase in CO₂ emissions between now and 2030. This will cause more losses due to hurricanes and other freak weather - such catastrophic losses are already seven times more expensive than terrorism.

The principal source of funding for Islamist extremists comes from the oil exporting countries of the Middle East. With oil at $60 a barrel, the amounts of money that the Saudis and Iranians can channel to fronts for terrorism has more than doubled in the space of just a few years. It also becomes profitable for African countries to sell their oil. The more oil money flows to the governments of countries like Nigeria and Sudan, the higher the stakes rise in the religious conflicts within those countries between Christians and Muslims.

Long-term readers will recall that I argued along these lines, though without Mr Ferguson's eloquence, in 2001. Every litre of petrol is putting a little money into the pockets of extremists.

I must add a non-trivial caveat to the argument above: it is only speculation that last week's bombs were planted by people claiming to act in the name of islam. We cannot rule out the possibility that it was done by other agents who would wish to be confused with such extremists, or that it's the work of an anti-globalisation group. Whoever is responsible for this incident does not affect the underlying hypothesis.

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posted 10 Jul 2005, 12.31 +0100

You know it's a quiet week when Gavin de Graw (now number one in Norway, fact fans) is the most interesting thing happening. OK, with the possible exception of the Great Mister Mister Return - Wonderland is into the Swedish top 20, and I'm idly wondering if it's the same band as had a hit or two in the mid-80s.

In the UK, Akon holds on to the best-seller spot, but Mariah Cantsing is just behind. She's only had the one top single in a career that's far longer than her actual talent. Kelly Clarkson's in the top five, Rachel Stevens just scrapes the top ten, Joss Stone lands at 20, and spare a thought for Beck, whose rather good Girl gets stuck at 45.

On the albums listing, performances at Geldof's Ego Aid last week were good news for Keane, Razorlight, Joss Stone, REM, the Kaiser Chiefs, Pink Floyd, Bert Bills, and Snoop "D***y" Dogg. The Subways and Missy Elliott rather got trampled in the rush, Hard-Fi didn't, and James Blunt takes the top-seller from a "bored now" Coldplay.

North Europe's Top Twenty?

 20 19 Joana Zimmer - I believe
 19 14 Jean Dujardin - Le casse du brice
*18 NE Charlotte Church - Crazy chick
*17 NE Kelly Clarkson - Since you've been gone
 16 re Banaroo - Dubi dam dam
 15 12 Rob Thomas - Lonely no more
 14 12 Raphael - Caravanne
*13 NE Gwen Stefani - Hollaback girl
*12 15 James Blunt - You're beautiful
 11 10 Natalie Imbruglia - Shiver
 10  7 Black Eyed Peas - Don't funk with my heart
* 9 13 Backstreet Boys - Incomplete
  8  6 Shakira - La tortura
* 7  8 Daniel Powter - Bad day
  6  5 Akon - Lonely
  5  2 Gorillas - Feelgood inc
  4  9 Ilona Mitrecey - Un monde parfait
* 3  4 U2 - City of blinding lights
  2  3 Coldplay - Speed of sound
* 1  1 Crazy Frog - Axel f

Very pleased indeed to hear Daniel Powter all over Radio 2 this week.

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posted 10 Jul 2005, 19.15 +0100

Pretty much in line with expectations - a cool wind brought showers, but an incursion from the Azores high led to much warmer weather over the week-end.

04 Mo cloud, rain         12/16,  3.3
05 Tu showers              9/14,  4.3
06 We rain to sun         13/17, 11.5
07 Th cloud, showers late 12/19,  0.0
08 Fr sunny spells        12/21,  0.0
09 Sa sun                 13/25,  0.0
10 Su sun, humid          16/28,  0.0

This week saw 14 degree cooling days, taking the summer's total to 91. This time last year, the figure was 60. 19.1mm of rain, the second week in a row we've peaked in the mid-teens.

Next week's general pattern is clear: the high pressure area will spill back towards the Atlantic, and cooler, more showery weather will come down from the north. The only question is timing, and whether there will be any thunderstorms associated with the transition. Pushed for an answer for Birmingham, I'd say the change will come during Thursday, and as the main approach is northerly air, there won't be significant thunder.

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posted 10 Jul 2005, 19.22 +0100

older writing... write to