Noel Bell's Blog

One - Johnny Cash

2012-01-15T02:17:00.001Z

Haunting.
RIP Johnny Cash.

The rise of ‘no win-no fee’ lawyers are to blame for increased compensation claims

2012-01-01T18:00:00.001Z

The increasing popularity of ‘no win-no fee’ lawyers has produced a situation whereby criminals are making compensation claims against the Government. These are claims for injuries which were sustained whilst committing offences in the community or while in prison. Indeed every year year offenders actually claim an amount near £5 million from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.

It seems strange that criminals can often claim huge sums in compensation. Official figures show that three prisoners got pay-outs of more than £100,000 while one inmate received £500,000.

Previous related posts:
http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2011/05/compensation-lawyers-pocket-as-victims.html
http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2011/06/governments-personal-injury-proposals.html
http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2011/06/jack-straw-motor-insurance-companies.html

The things you pick up

2011-12-23T13:58:00.000Z

It’s not about “being in the know” but being “in the mystery”. I like this. I came across the quote whilst watching the film “What the Bleep Do We Know” which someone mentioned in a lecture, telling that all students should see the film. The plot follows the story of a deaf photographer; as she encounters emotional and existential obstacles in her life, she comes to consider the idea that individual and group consciousness can influence the material world.

I like what Mark Twain said. “I’ve been through some terrible things in my life and some of them actually happened”.

Who did England get in the Euro 2012 draw?

2011-12-02T17:54:00.002Z

The draw for the group stages of UEFA Euro 2012 took place today in Kiev for the games in Poland and Ukraine next summer. Poland v Greece will be the opening game of the tournament.

England have secured a dream draw with Ukraine, Sweden and France.

The Republic of Ireland have been teamed with world champions Spain (ouch), Croatia and Italy.

http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2011/10/dream-draw-for-republic-of-ireland-when.html

http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2009/10/rep-of-ireland-play-off-with-france.html
http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2009/11/france-v-ireland.html
http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2009/11/gallic-hand.htm

Euro 2012 draw in Kiev: would England want the fighting Irish again?

2011-12-02T17:10:00.001Z

It was a dream draw for the Republic of Ireland when they got Estonia as opponents for a place in the Euro 2012 finals play off. But what about progressing in 2012 in the tournament itself? The draw takes place in Kiev tonight and I would have thought that they would prefer one of the co-hosts, either Poland or the Ukraine, when the other option could be one of the World Cup finalists, Spain or Russia, from the highest seeds (although Ireland will have a score to settle with the Russians following their drubbing at Aviva Stadium). A meeting with Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo could be mouth watering especially for Richard Dunne and company.

I was watching from a bedsit in Crouch End, North London to witness the Ray Houghton goal that gave Ireland victory over an England side managed by the late Bobby Robson in Stuttgart. Watch the footage of that goal and I still think that the cameraman thought John Aldridge had scored that goal. That was the opening game of their group in Euro 88. They then played in the qualifying group for Euro 92, and two draws followed (both 1-1 in 1990 and 1991) and you have to wonder whether England would want the fighting Irish again.

http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2009/10/rep-of-ireland-play-off-with-france.html
http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2009/11/france-v-ireland.html
http://wwwnoelbell.blogspot.com/2009/11/gallic-hand.htm

My interview with Eugene Forde Counsellor for Economic Affairs from the Irish Embassy in London

2011-11-21T14:49:00.000Z

My interview with Eugene Forde (pictured) the Counsellor for Economic Affairs from the Irish Embassy in London, at the pre launch of the Northern Ireland chapter of IIBN hosted by Ambassador of Ireland H.E Mr Bobby McDonagh at the Irish Embassy. 26 October 2011.

Click here to listen again.

Check out the the Irish Presidential debate hosted at Google European HQ in Dublin

2011-10-28T22:14:00.000+01:00

The Irish Presidential debate hosted at Google European HQ in Dublin and broadcast on Youtube represented interesting viewing. There are plenty of interesting issues discussed but just a few minor points made for some reflective thought:

People under 35 years of age can't enter the Presidential contest. It is amazing that such an age restriction applies in such a young country.
Irish citizens in the 6 counties (Northern Ireland) cannot vote in the elections. There are many demands for the Irish diaspora to secure the vote in London, New York and Sydney ... but what about Belfast?
Martin McGuinness was planning to hand over the Presidential salary to fund young unemployed people in jobs.
How mad Dana sounds.
What a gaff from Sean Gallagher.

Michael D Higgins, who I met at the Irish Writers Festival in Hammersmith in February, appears to be the favourite but we shall have to wait on the count to see who wins. It will be good to have an intellectual as President. We shall see.

"Site Owners Guide To SEO for Content Writing” on the Kindle platform

2011-10-23T18:56:00.000+01:00

Alan Bleiweiss, an authorative search industry figure, has recently released his highly acclaimed “Site Owners Guide To SEO for Content Writing” on the Kindle platform. The eBook has been available in PDF format for a few months already. However, the fact that it is now available on Kindle means that site owners, content writers, marketing professionals and bloggers can now download the guide and put its actionable recommendations to use on their sites and blogs. They could have done this already, you will say, with the PDF version but I suspect the electronic version will facilitate greater usage.

See more
http://www.givemecontent.com/

A dream draw for the Republic of Ireland when they got Estonia as opponents for a place in the Euro 2012 finals

2011-10-13T12:21:00.002+01:00

It was a dream draw for the Republic of Ireland when they got Estonia as opponents for a place in the Euro 2012 finals following today's play-off draw in Krakow. The first leg will be in Estonia so the draw was extra sweet. If Ireland don't come through given this draw then they don't deserve to be in the finals. Final. Just think, it could have been Turkey at home in the first leg. St Patrick was smiling down on this draw today.

The team managed by Italian Giovanni Trapattoni (pictured) will be away in the first leg on Friday, 11 November, with the return tie at the Aviva Stadium, Dublin on Tuesday, 15 November. The other pairings see Turkey take on Croatia; the Czech Republic will play Montenegro, while Portugal will face Bosnia & Herzegovina.

What to do with Google?

2011-10-12T12:45:00.000+01:00

I am planning to attend the LSE lecture tonight on what to do about Google. Martin Cave is BP Centennial Professor at LSE and has authored numerous works on regulation. The talk is part of the Department of Law series of lectures. Google has been running into trouble with competition authorities in Europe, the US and elsewhere. Should its wings be clipped or will that stifle innovation?

Anyone got any views?

The use of email marketing templates

2011-10-08T00:20:00.000+01:00

The use of email marketing templates can be a highly effective and useful technique in B2B sales
The use of email marketing templates can be a highly effective and useful technique in devising a Business to Business (B2B) sales strategy. The most significant advantage of email marketing is that it is affordable when compared to other forms of advertising channels such as television and print media.
In spite of what you may think email marketing templates are not about getting in touch with as many people as possible with your message but it is about conversion to sales. A well designed template is critical for businesses to secure a high conversion rate.
Many professionals in B2B sectors have been struck by the possibilities of email
marketing as soon as it appeared. Although email marketing is not exactly new, there are some best practice guidelines that some organisations fail to apply.
To help you with your email marketing campaign that will engage your prospects and build your brand, here are a few simple do’s and don’ts for email marketing templates:
DO
Do create distinct email marketing campaigns for different audiences aimed at their specific needs.
Do include a small icon that asks users to click for additional information or further details. Your logo could be the icon that users click as a call to action.
Do run checks to ensure that your template is compatibility with a range of different service providers and applications such as Microsoft Outlook. A bad scenario would be if your customers cannot read your template.
Do use email marketing to highlight upcoming events, new product launches or even just general news about you, your firm and your strategic business partners.
Do use a professional product or service like Constant Contact to despatch your emails and keep track of your statistics.
Do ensure that your email campaign complies with the CAN-SPAM act.
Do be clear about who your email originates from.
Do be sure that the people receiving the mail have consented to receive your correspondence (it would be better to have have them sign up themselves or affirmatively confirm they're opting-in).
Do provide an unsubscribe link.
DON’T
Don’t depend on images to portray your key message and don’t insert text in images as images can be slow to load. Indeed images may even fail to load completely. It is far better to use text to sell your products and services.
Don’t use a visual display that deviates from the look and feel of your landing page. This will help to avoid the chances of users becoming confused when they reach your site.
Including your logo is a good way of doing this.
Don’t send emails from your personal email account (This may sound obvious but it has been known to happen).
Don’t circulate every email message to everyone on your contact list, regardless of whether the content is appropriate for them or their business.
Don’t send emails haphazardly or so infrequently that your audience forgets who you are.
Implementing these subtle changes in your templates will add impetus to your sales
growth.

Festival of Life in Red Lion Square

2011-09-25T13:21:00.000+01:00

The Festival of Life in Red Lion Square yesterday turned out to be an amazing experience. There was music, massage, food stalls, workshops and lectures and a real relaxed vibe. I heard Ian R Crane speak about the financial crisis and was inspired to further research areas such as the Tony Farrell affair and Codex Alimentarius. I also caught up with Tanya Moore and we spoke about the Mikhail Petrovich Shchetinin kin’s school in Tekos, Russia. A podcast will be available shortly. The interview ranged from Michael Gove, Hong Kong schooling, The British Experience, right side of brain, emotional freedom technique, brain gym, left side of brain, education teaching and learning, new media, Web 2.0, podcasts, being conscious, community, to the Federal Reserve, planetary alignment, creative development, permission to play, horizontal 8, creation of positive habits, Mindmaps, Doodles and Tony Buzan. To name just a few…..

Muslims Against Crusades

2011-09-23T16:49:00.001+01:00

I was passing the French Embassy today in Knightsbridge and came across a protest by the Muslims Against Crusades Group. They were protesting following the prosecution of two Muslim women in France for wearing the Burkha. I captured some video which I will post later.

The Faith Machine at the Royal Court

2011-09-23T09:33:00.003+01:00

I went to see The Faith Machine last night at the Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square. When the usher said the play lasted all of 2 hours and 40 minutes with two breaks I initially thought that it might seem long. It wasn't that I had compelling pressing engagements elsewhere, it was rather nervousness that I would remain still for that long in the Royal Court chairs. However, I never once felt that it was long. A three-act play about the conflict between faith and the free market in the modern world, this is writer Alexi Kaye Campbell following up Pride and Apologia. Jamie Lloyd's production starts in New York in 2001 and yes we hear the sound of planes crashing but this is almost incidental as the play does not really engage with the 9-11 issues. An idealistic Englishwoman, Sophie (Hayley Atwell), presents her American lover, Tom (Kyle Soller), a Pince Harry lookalike, with a moral choice: she will terminate the relationship if he doesn't dump a massive advertising account he has secured with a pharmaceutical company. The trouble for Tom is that Sophie has found out that that the company has used Ugandan children as a laboratory experiment. The play keeps things lively by jumping back and forth. 1998 Tom and Sophie are visiting her father on the Greek island of Patmos and another moral drama is being played out. The father, an Anglican bishop, is under pressure from a visiting Kenyan cleric (Jude Akuwudike) not to quit the church over its inflexible attitude to homosexuality.

What occurred to me is how draining it must be to deliver this level of performance every night. Ian McDiarmid in particular was superb as the father Edward and the intensity of his performance made me wonder about the hard work involved.Bronagh Gallagher, who played Trudi in Pulp Fiction, played Tatyana to great effect and I never once thought wait a minute she is Irish. Ultimately, the play entertained and made me think. The one line which Edward articulated has made a lasting impression: in this time of nihilism we need new storytellers like the old shaman tradition.

Jude Akuwudike Lawrence/Patrick

Hayley Atwell Sophie
Bronagh Gallagher Tatyana
Kezrena James Agatha
Ian McDiarmid Edward
Kyle Soller Tom
Maya Wasowicz Annie
Alan Westaway Sebastian

Creative Team

Director Jamie Lloyd
Designer Mark Thompson
Lighting Neil Austin
Music and Sound Alex Baranowski
Video Lorna Heavey

For further information please contact Anna Evans in the Royal Court Press Office on
020 7565 5063 or e-mail annaevans@royalcourttheatre.com.

The first public API for Google+ released

2011-09-18T14:19:00.000+01:00

The biggest online search provider, Google, has decided to release the first public Application Programming Interface (API) for third-party developers who might wish to build apps for Google+, the company’s social networking project. Google has stated that the latest development would pre-empt the creation of a more capable developer platform, which the company believes is critial to the success of all social networks. By contrast Twitter has made over one million apps from more than 750,000 people who are members of its developer community. I wonder what Google will do with its OpenSocial API for Google+. Since its development in 2007, Google said it was the able-bodied substitute to copyrighted tools for multiple platforms like Facebook.

Related blog post
Google launches new social network project

Soldiers from 2nd Royal Tank Regiment march through Putney

2011-09-15T15:16:00.000+01:00

London Mayor Boris Johnson receiving star treatment in Putney

2011-09-15T15:15:00.000+01:00

International gay rights pressure group is being endorsed by David Cameron, yes the Tory Leader

2011-09-13T09:56:00.000+01:00

An international pressure group is launched today to tackle the rise in homophobic violence around the world, and the focus is on Africa and the Middle East. The group is being endorsed by David Cameron, yes the Tory Leader, wow how times have changed. Remember the days of clause 28 anyone? I’m not very excited about the name – Kaleidoscope and it has got a lot of work to do – bearing in mind that homosexuality is a crime in about 70 countries. However, forget about marriage equality, equal age of consent and et, in these countries homosexuality is illegal! That’s how far behind a large chunk of the world is. It is a remarkable and welcome step for the UK to be taking a proactive stance (supported by govt – Tory govt at that) in promoting LGBT rights and equality. In Australia, Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition cannot even manage to verbalise the existence of LGBT people and are always worried about losing votes to the Christian oppressors!

related blog posts
Gay girl in Damascas

News stories
Guardian news story - Kaleidoscope takles homophobic violence
Peter Tatchell
News Matrix - Kaleidoscope
David Cameron supports new gay rights charity

Summer in London

2011-08-28T12:26:00.001+01:00

Don't you just love the summer living in London? I guess London doesn't compete with other destinations for sunshine and heat but you do have to feel for anyone who did come expecting sunshine. Thank my days for Easyjet and Ryanair :)

Gerard Depardieu urinated in the passenger aisle of an aeroplane

2011-08-18T01:36:00.001+01:00

Gerard Depardieu urinated in the passenger aisle of an City Jet aeroplane whilst he waited for take off on a flight between Paris and Dublin. The plane was delayed for two hours. "Mr Depardieu got up saying 'je veux pisser, je veux pisser' – in those exact terms," the passenger, identified only as Danièle, told the French radio station Europe 1. The air hostess reportedly told Depardieu that he would have to wait 15 minutes, until the plane had taken off. But, it seems, he was not prepared to wait. Apparently Flight AF5010 eventually left Charles de Gaulle airport for Dublin at 8.35pm, nearly two hours later. When ya gotta go ya gotta go I guess. It made me think of the times when I used creativity to help with the call of nature. We have have done it at some point.

Is this a dead cat bounce in a longer term bear market?

2011-08-13T12:37:00.002+01:00

With the ECB set to act over the debt crisis (the French and Germans have finally hauled themselves off the beach to meet in order to try and seek a solution to the economic crisis) the equity markets have rallied. It appears that the markets stabilised on Friday and held onto the massive gains made on Thursday which witnessed 4-5% rallies. The short coverers would have been squeezed by the rally. The question now is what should investors do with the DOW Jones at about 11200 and the FTSE 100 at 5300. Could these levels represent a bottom from the recent falls? Or is this a dead cat bounce in a longer term bear market? The market commentators appear split. Playing the markets is glorified gambling but hedging your long positions with a short cover at these levels could be the way to go. French growth rates released on Friday were very poor. There could be more bad news on the way and in any event traders may well chose to sell into the good news rally when the Germans and French meet on Tuesday.

News stories
ECB in debt crisis
Central banking and debt crisis
Dumb and dumber Gold run and debt crisis
Economists perspective on ECB debt crisis
Precious metals in response to debt crisis

Related blog posts
Stock market correction
Hayek v Keynes
CNBC and Bloomberg TV channels: Wow they are surreal
Will US default ruin global economic recovery
Peripheral countries in the Eurozone
How can the Irish economy grow in order to repay the IMF loans
Fintan O'Toole interview at the LONDON Irish Writers Cultural Festival
I suspect that Ireland will never be able to repay the IMF loans

Aftermath of Clapham Junction riot

2011-08-10T00:19:00.001+01:00

As I passed through Clapham Junction tonight on my bike I took the following pictures. The most sad one was of a charity shop which had been attacked following the Clapham leg of the London riots. It begs the question where will it all end? Earlier local residents got together to clean up their neighbourhood. There are also reports that vigilante groups have emerged in areas such as Enfield. Could this be the real Big Society?

European debt crisis: some quotes

2011-08-07T19:53:00.000+01:00

"When a government is dependent upon bankers for money, they and not the leaders of the government control the situation, since the hand that gives is above the hand that takes… Money has no motherland; financiers are without patriotism and without decency; their sole object is gain."

Napoleon Bonaparte

" I sincerely believe the banking institutions having the issuing power of money are more dangerous to liberty than standing armies".

Thomas Jefferson

"Let me issue and control a nation's money, and I care not who writes its laws"

Banker Mayer Amschel Rothschild

Stock market correction: Bull or bear?

2011-08-06T00:03:00.002+01:00

What do you do now that the stock market has witnessed a massive correction this week? This will be a question every investor will have to ask themselves as their share account portfolios have nursed loses of between 10-20% in 5 days of stock market turbulence. Some will have been clever or lucky to have sat in the wings as the US debt ceiling deadline extension approached. Well done them (although even for them the question remains when do they re-enter the market and at what level)? All the finance gurus will be commentating on the TV to tell us what to do next. Its amazing how some of these clowns love telling us one day that the market is set to boom and the next day that's its time to run for cover.

The questions for the ordinary investor seems to narrow to these:

Do you hold your investments, accept recent loses and hope that the stock market is not about to fall further. Stay in the market for the uplift when it comes

Do you sell now in the expectation that recent price drops are merely the start of something more severe. Prices could be headed back to circa 2009/09 stock market levels as all the technical resistance points have been smashed

Remember as ISA holders you can sell your underlying investment and keep the ISA wrapper entitlement intact. All you would do then is await a better time to reinvest your lump sum of cash again in more favourable market conditions. Timing that market re-entry will be hard though. Often it is best to just stay in the market.

Of course these volatile markets are a trader's wet dream. Traders tend to merely track movements and ride the coat tales for a profit, selling or buying. Volatile markets with huge swings all over the place help high frequency traders to make cash and lots of it. Often it is computers buying and selling to each other.

If Germany bails out the Euro partners we could be headed for more stable waters. Company earnings are good and there is a case that p/e ratios are showing buy signals (however that can be argued against). One thing needs to happen for sure. Fear needs to stop being so prevalent in the market as otherwise indices may very well plunge in the coming weeks. The ECB could help by providing the funds for Italian and Spanish bonds. Sell or hold? Whatever you do don't bury your head in the sand. Be an active participant.

Related blog posts
Hayek v Keynes
CNBC and Bloomberg TV chanels: Wow they are surreal
Will US default ruin global economic recovery
Peripheral countries in the Eurozone
How can the Irish economy grow in order to repay the IMF loans
Fintan O'Toole interview at the LONDON Irish Writers Cultural Festival
I suspect that Ireland will never be able to repay the IMF loans

Related news

FTSE 100 Tumbles
DOW Jones index drops
Top 5 paying stocks on the DOW Jones
Wild swings on the DOW

The CNBC and Bloomberg TV channels. Wow they are surreal.

2011-07-30T00:14:00.001+01:00

With the political dead log ongoing in Washington DC over the US debt ceiling it is interesting to note the almost obsessional coverage that the US media is giving to the story. Due to the recent installation of Virgin Media TV I now have the CNBC and Bloomberg TV channels. Wow they are surreal. I am trying to work out are they just compulsive gamblers churning over their positions all day on live TV or is it a professional network of business coverage dressed up as trader obsession? The women presenters tend to be dollybirds and the guys a strange mixture of loud A types and they all seem like they swim in pools of high energy reload. The coverage on Sky News and BBC seems so sedate in contrast. What is peculiarly seductive, however, is the fast moving coverage of the news events and the very senior financial representatives from the finance houses that appear on the shows. All this fear in the markets about a US downgrade in credit ratings from the agencies makes me laugh. These are the same credit ratings agencies that were still sucking up to the companies that subsequently went bust in 2008. Markets will rally on earnings news from next week onwards.