Anyway, very prescient Rav.

…Jacqui Smith, a breath of fresh air when she arrived at the Home Office two years ago…

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/jun/05/mps-expenses-women-politicians-westminster

Now, as this terrible column points out, the only thing we know for certain - or at least the only thing openly discussed in the political world - is that blacks are convicted of more crime, and go to jail at a higher rate, than whites. And there are those who believe that this is purely because of racism in the justice system. And perhaps that’s true. But I think it’s fair to assume the black offending rate in street crime (as opposed to, for example, white-collar crime) is higher. So it may seem that greater fear of blacks than whites is a rational response.

But given how low the rate of crime is, the difference must be minimal - bluntly, your statistical chances of being mugged by a black person may be one in 10,000, as opposed to one in 20,000 for a white assailant. The invisible factors that control whether the person on the other side of the street plans to mug you - their upbringing, their psychology, their circumstances - are infinitely more influential over the likelihood of them mugging you than their race. How, then, can it be a rational response to fear them more because of their race?

Racist instincts don’t have to be based on a complete myth, like blacks being stupid or lazy. They can be based on an underlying truth, but blow it out of proportion. And, of course, to judge anyone by the statistical proclivities of their demographic group is, inherently, prejudice.

what is it that they ‘far more nervous’ about happening?

interesting to consider the arrival of the ‘blockbuster game’ in this context. The fourth Grand Theft Auto game on the Playstation 3 seems to have introduced new levels of multi-narrative complexity, characterisation, scale and style. And its budget, media campaign and launch were akin to the Hollywood blockbusters of yore.

Also, worth mentioning that the recent popularity of American TV dramas probably owes quite alot to the internet, filesharing, online communities, etc… in the same way that during cinema’s zenith the spread of television helped cement and disperse the hollywood myth. like most things, it about accessability, really.

Given the rising popularity of user-driven content in mainstream media (broadsheet newspapers quoting blogs —-> channel 4 teen dramas allowing chatroom members to decide the fate of a character) i wonder how long creative industries can rely on people’s acceptance and enjoyment of the strict linear narrative schemes that underpinned all traditional mainstream visual artforms up till now…

also, in response to your last point i’d say the answer is mercifully yes.

i wonder if the arrival of creative equilibrium (”reconciled their artistic and commercial concerns” is another way of saying “sold enough of their stuff to live well off it”) doesn’t in some way or other render an artform inert. i aspire to be, therefore i create. to put it another way, POP is the celebration of a bubble bursting, etc… :-]

You’re right “we’ve got badly behind on discussion of what to actually do about it”.

Personally, I’m not taking any chances, there’s too much at stake, that’s why I am actively promoting solutions to fix the problem.
ClimateCleanup.com.

Best, Peter Grififths

What if you want to listen to something that Napster doesn’t have?

Rumours persist of an eventual iTunes subscription service, which I suppose would sort that problem out.

I love the way you end this post like a radio commercial with the line - “Napster to Go is £14.99 a month, with a free 1GB music player when you join for six months.”.

Thanks for leaving the comments about Jools over on ‘the face of today’. I’m not sure I can agree with you though. He just makes me angry. Although you might be right that Jack is scared of him. I imagine Jools barking at a cowering Jack behind the scenes. Ouch.

Anyway … I was wondering if you would like to take part in the group podcast I compile? I’ve put it as my website link if you want a listen.

Cheers, Tim

Very exciting to hear your thoughts on this. You have reminded me of a recent article by G. Monbiot entitled “Giving Up On Two Degrees”, and also his book “Heat”. 91.7% reduction (ie. down to a twelfth of current) in emissions sounds about right and I like your division of this target into sectors.

I think there’s a slight disharmony between your assertions that, a) radical lifestyle changes are not a sound platform for Govt policy, but that, b) the problem needs to be dealt with holistically rather than by piecemeal approach. For me, any solution that addresses all of the issues you raise is going to look very much like a radical change to people’s lifestyles. Perhaps “fundamental” lifestyle change sounds more attractive!?

Don’t drive, don’t fly (gulp), don’t eat kiwifruit!

Xp

p.s. EF Schumacher’s “Small is Beautiful” for a cogent, if socialist, description of sustainable development - it’s a classic.

Anyway, here’s a good gig for further pondering:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7780450

http://www.nme.com/images/84_TheGoodtheBad_L211206.jpg

Chief.

what does everyone think of The Good, The Bad & The Queen?

But having listened again today to Parklife, Blur and 13, I still maintain there’s a consistency of inventiveness on Parklife that later albums can’t match. Seen in the context of the obvious immediate creative crash of The Great Escape and the eventual low point of Think Tank - neither of which are bad albums, but equally neither of which represent anything like the band’s full creative capability - I think it’s legitimate to describe the post-Parklife period as one of artistic decline, albeit a slower and shallower one than that undergone by Oasis, and one not without its high points.

To say that the clash of Oasis and Blur in the charts marked their ‘artistic declines’ is a stretch of facts in any way you look at it. For a start, the singles clash has nothing to do with either band, but more to do with band management and record company marketeers - Not something that would impact on their music tendencies for some time. Come to think of it, Blur would have been way down the line with their next tunes before audiences got their mits on the ‘Country House’ single.

Secondly, Blur as a band went from being labelled britpop, to indie rock, through lo-fi and into african-inspired-electronica! Maybe your ‘artistic decline’ could be more explained as a movement away from the Smash-Hits oriented target market to new areas of experimentation and musicianship? Combined with the world tours, acclaim on both sides of the pond (4 x #1 album in UK alone) and the unit sales that followed the ‘95 Oasis incident, I refuse to see how this could be labelled as any form of ‘decline’, artistic or not. And I know many bands that would take the result, no matter what you want call it…

The only decline (of a sense) that Blur unfortunately encountered was one of personalities when poor Coxon and Albarn had a barney and the latter asked the former to leave. That’s

I feel better now. Crikey, I wasn’t even a big Blur fan, and I hated Oasis. Who would’ve known?

Kate doesn’t think much of Lindt. I think it’s pretty tasty, in the scheme of things.

Not sure why I mentioned that.

You’re not the first to have picked up on this, natch.

Thanks!

This guy’ll back you up:

http://www.chriskahl.com/music.html

But I haven’t looked around properly yet; I might conclude it’s a shithole

Holloway Road is probably the most average zone 2 trunk artery in London, in all the best ways. And its obviously a bit nicer than most.

But most people reading the list of these things that Rav and Josh have posted will simply shrug. Surely?

Its just like a perfectly nice, average well-equipped town placed in the middle of North London. But, the strangeness of that aside, so what?

Why not spend a day somewhere you’ve never properly explored, somewhere south of the river maybe? Or Bath? or, for different reasons, Beeston, or Berkhampstead? I’ll join you.

Sorry to be the contrarian again, but this was a true contrarian’s post if ever there was one.

And yet, I love it. From the logo of Holloway Cycles showing the evolution of humans from reptile to man to man-on-bike, to the Coronet, to the tackily opulent Odeon complete with permanently empty bar, to the ‘Mexican’, to the Swimmer, to El Molino to, hell, even the frickin’ Big Red. Only two people got murdered during my three year tenure (not including Archway and that one on a bus), and in return we get the best transport links you could ask for in zone 2, Waitrose, Marks & Spencer and Safeway/Morrisons within spitting distance, and just about enough dodgy offies to keep you happy. Swimming Pool at Highbury Corner end, Islington’s Central Library part way up, Nambucca (which seems to be ‘good’ these days) further up, and Laser Quest at Archway, plus another swimming pool WITH A SLIDE. Your day trip should definitely start and conclude with a quick dip.

To be honest, I can’t believe you didn’t notice any of this before Rav. Holloway Road has many features, but subtlety is not one of them.

And I cannot believe I’m writing this at 11.50 on Christmas Eve.

Will you never forgive us? :p

enjoy

sorry. You can delete these, right?

What would an internet sniffer dog look like?