My day off didn’t go too well really as most of my commitments were after lunch, although more importantly after it stopped raining. Having got the children to school the rain came, so I sat at the computer answering correspondence, only about 100 unanswered emails left to go now, sorry if you are on the list.
I did manage to take a few pictures, pretty wacky sky today so what you see is what you get, some shot out of the car window, well the rest are at http://www.michaelsbookshop.com/laptop112/id8.htm
Lunch in the garden centre and it was really very good, they have an offer of two lunches off the specials board for £10 at the moment, one to remember especially if you have young children as they have a large soft play area.
I am not really sure what to make of the latest in the John Worrow saga, I guess there may be something behind it in terms of real discrimination, although frankly when someone who is reasonably articulate and appears to be reasonably well educated engages in some sort of discriminatory behaviour, one tends to assume they have mental health issues, so I suppose the sympathy goes as much to wards the discriminator as the discriminated. That said I was taught to box by a Welshman and still have a tendency to duck when I hear the accent, particularly when associated with the word boyo. Pavlovian maybe but defiantly a toy lose in the attic.
I guess most of you will have read http://birchington.blogspot.com/2012/01/on-pulse.html and http://bignewsmargate.blogspot.com/2012/01/blogging-hell.html
I did email John Worrow thus:
“From: michaelchild to: *****@******
John I have to say I am not happy about this idea of policing local blogs with Thanet blog wardens and it is my intention to write a post about it.
I though I would ask you if there is any extra information I ought to know before I do so.
Frankly the notion that the Thanet blogs are spreading Racial and Religious Hatred is preposterous.
Anyway any thoughts from you before I write my post?
Best regards Michael”
But haven’t had a reply. I am also a bit uncertain where John falls in the council now, Labour, Independent, on his own, anyone know?
The latest Turner Contemporary project seems to be about doing something other than reading them with books see http://www.turnercontemporary.org/blog/learning/blank-canvas-by-lucy-steggals-lead-artist-6
I guess Fahrenheit 451 was a bit before it’s time, but now in the age of the Kindle, what are we going to do with all the books?
I am trying to draw Albert Einstein this is the beginning of the sketch, his must be one of the most recognisable faces in the world but trying to extract what it is that makes him look like he does is proving remarkably difficult.
If John actually answered questions & encouraged discussions for his posts I'd have more respect for him, but they almost all seem to be very poorly thought out (with this one more so than any of them).
ReplyDeleteCan I be a blog warden, can I, please. I want to get all those nasty people who disagree with me. I am just a little man and if you let me be a blog warden then I can become a really big man and everyone would be frightened of me.
ReplyDeleteI guess Peter if you comment on someone’s blog post, find it has the irritating word verification thing to prevent spam, and then they have moderation set too, which make the already pointless word verification even more stupid and then when you go back to find if the bothered to reply to you, the post or in this case the whole blog has gone, it is a bit irritating.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if blog wardens will have a little van and a net, Snoopy and no dogs allowed comes to mind.
John, the answer is, no
I must say I respected him resigning but disagree with his views on live exports and that didnt appear on his blog
ReplyDeleteHe doesn't publish comments that disagree with him (no matter how polite), nor those that ask questions he can't answer. That's why he had so few comments.
ReplyDeleteThis blog wardens idea is one Im not entirely comfortable with but I know John believes in it pretty strongly, so unusually Im going to wait to see his full proposals.
ReplyDeleteI would urge a rethinking of the name though. The initials spell DBW which is also the initials for the German Armed Forces...
Don while I don’t like the idea of live animal exports, I do rely on animal products, so find myself in a bit of a difficult position on that one.
ReplyDeleteJames the thing that concerns me the most is that there are only about ten at the most local bloggers that this could possibly apply to and being selected as one of ten people in Thanet needing some sort control above and beyond the law of the land, doesn’t appeal to me.
Even if John goes ahead with this (which is doubtful), it's going to be unworkable.
ReplyDeleteThe Racial and Religious Hatred Act is barely a concern here since none of us have gone anywhere near being racist or religiously offensive on the blogs, none of us would allow it, and in any case, the law is pretty toothless with wide freedom of speech defences.
ReplyDeleteJohn can believe in it strongly or otherwise. But his soppy idea remains unworkable and unnecessary.
ReplyDeletePicking up on James Maskell's German point: a suitable name for John's proposed prowlers of the blog would be 'Blockwarts'. This word described those that spied and informed on their neighbours. It came into use during the time of the Gestapo. It is still in use in modern German albeit in a milder form. Fast immer so.
If John wants to take on the blog then I helpfully suggest that he starts with the political and topical 'Guy News' and see where that gets him.
ReplyDeletewww.order-order.com