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TOPICS:boxingcensorshipDonald TrumpstupidityTyson Fury
Posted By: David Waywell 9th December 2015
I was waiting at a bus stop in Manchester the other day when a gleaming new Range Rover worth more than my entire existence drove up and parked just in front of me. The driver was on the down-slope side of orcish; his bald head perched upon a tattooed neck the width of an elephant's shin. As he pulled up, he shouted out the window to an old lady standing at the head of the queue. What followed was a steroid-pumping tirade that was remarkable for being racist, misogynistic, and homophobic all at the same time. He quickly made it clear that he was very unhappy with the woman's son and he threatening a fair amount of GBH on the same the next time he saw him. Yet the woman didn't seem fazed. She shrugged and agreed to pass on the message, leaving the driver to scream one last four letter obscenity before he sped back to whatever life it is that has made him one of the city's success stories.
That such men exist is no surprise to anybody who struggles to live out here in real Britain. That such men thrive should also be no surprise. One such local man has recently become the unified world boxing champion. He believes that women sometimes deserve a slap and that they belong in the kitchen making him cups of tea. He also believes that gay rights and legalized abortions took us two steps closer to the Apocalypse, whilst only our prohibition against pedophilia is currently saving us from the End of Days. He also claims that Jesus Christ is his savior in the very same Youtube interview that he threatened sports journalist, Oliver Holt, through one of his bull-brained proxies:
See Big Shane there… Have a look at Big Shane. Six foot six and twenty five stone. He's going to break his jaw completely with one straight right hand. I won't do it because I'll get in trouble but the big fella there, he'll annihilate him. So, Oliver, take a good look at him. That's the face you'll see before you hit the deck. [Turns to another goon in his party] And that's the face you're going to see when he's jumping on your head.
By late Sunday night, over 75,000 people had signed the petition demanding that the BBC remove Tyson Fury from the Sports Personality of the Year shortlist (for those of you not in the UK: our most prestigious end-of-year sporting accolade). It was the standard pattern of social media leading the way. People want to turn Fury into a pariah, as though the reality of Fury and men like him could be erased so long as we collectively cover our eyes and ears.
Yet, the uncomfortable truth is that men like Fury are commonplace and emerge from a culture of ignorance and worse. Fury's father, John, recently left prison after serving five years of an eleven year sentence for gouging out another man's eye. Consider, if you could, the psychology required to place your fingers deep into another person's eye socket and to squeeze out the jelly. Do you think such a man might feel mildly concerned by a Twitter campaign, a stinging retort in a newspaper, or a taunting cartoon? Or do you think the only thing to upset him would be his omission from the next series of Britain's Hardest Man?
It is laughable to see the reaction of people learning for the first time that our new World Heavyweight Champion is no modern, liberal, secular, or, indeed, entirely rational human being. Being a throwback to the Paleolithic period is legally permitted in this country and long may it continue to be so because silencing men like Tyson Fury is the last thing we should ever do.
One of the perennial problems of defending free speech is that it often puts us on the side of the debate where we feel least comfortable. Everything I know about Tyson Fury makes me wish I was seven foot tall with a head like a Glaswegian wrecking ball. I wish I could take Fury up on his open offer to debate with his detractors inside the ring. I wish I could beat some sense into that Cro-Magnon skull of his. Instead, I find myself writing a defense of his stupidity.
The same happened this week after Donald Trump suggested that Muslims should be banned from travelling to the United States. Some well-meaning individual started a petition to ban Trump from the UK and many others took up the cause by signing their name. At the time of my writing this, the petition has 102,949 signatures. Yet I put it to you that we've only really established is that at least 102,949 people fail to understand the concept of free speech. 102,949 people are casually trying to impose censorship for nothing more than a man expressing an opinion shared by a group of like-minded individuals. Almost incidentally, those 102,949 people have also demonstrated the frightening ease with which dictatorships can form.
I suppose these 102,949 would, in their defence, cite 'decency' and the 'human rights' of the people affected by Trump's words. Yet that is usually how censorship of any kind is usually framed: it is done for our good or the good our community. In fact, in Saudi Arabia, that's exactly how it is written into law:
Mass media and all other vehicles of expression shall employ civil and polite language, contribute towards the education of the nation and strengthen unity. It is prohibited to commit acts leading to disorder and division, affecting the security of the state and its public relations, or undermining human dignity and rights.
Perhaps those 102,949 people would like to add their names to that kind of petition, so reasonable in its ambition to 'strengthen unity'.
The unity of voice is perhaps one of the most worrying aspects of the current campaign to vilify Trump. We are in a very bad place when our understand is no more sophisticated than J.K. Rowling explaining Donald Trump in Hogwartian terms: 'Voldemort was nowhere near as bad'. It is bad not just because it is wrong (Voldermort was a fictional sadistic mass murderer, whilst Trump is merely a right-wing demagogue) but because it quickly becomes ubiquitous and unchallenged.
Personally, I'd rather welcome Trump into the UK and perhaps set up a meeting with our boxing champ so the two can talk nonsense. It's such freedom that defines the greatest of our disagreements with the thugs of Daesh. If what the two men say offends a great many people, then those many people have the right to counter with reason, insults, or ridicule. We have a rich heritage of satire to draw upon, political campaigners who use language to change hearts and minds. We have the right to peaceful protest and we can withdraw our patronage from their businesses. What we do not have is a tradition by which a small but vocal group have the right to censor another person's right to talk or believe nonsense. Words, however offensive, must be protected because, otherwise, the limits of our freedom will be decided by governments. That is not to say it's not without difficulties. We face challenges ensuring that hateful words don't become hateful actions, which is where the defense of 'free speech' becomes a defense of an individual's right not to feel threatened. Beyond that, however, we should be very mindful about censoring words and mindful too of pushing dissent into the fringes of our debates.
That is my greatest fear. The intentions of a mob motivated by moral goodness leads us to a type of censorship that is self-defeating. Whatever we ban today will emerge tomorrow in viler forms that are harder to constrain. The more we force people to limit what they say today, we also restrict our understanding of what they might think tomorrow. The fascist open about their fascism is far less dangerous than the fascist who keeps their prejudices a secret. Censorship aids tyrants. It rarely helps people to become more free.
That is the ultimate challenge. We might think that there's no place for sexism, misogyny, or racism in our society but both Fury and Trump are healthy reminders that ignorance has already found its place and will always have a place in one form or another. Freedom of speech isn't defined by what the majority say. It is defined by the babbling rubbish spewed by men like Fury and Trump and we should be thankful that they do because alongside the things we would shame ourselves for thinking or saying are the words, arguments, poetry, ideas and intellectual revolutions of the future.
Stupidity really is the last thing we should ever censor because it also happens to be the point at which better things begin to be said.
David Waywell writes and cartoons at The Spine.
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43 Comments on "Stupidity is the last thing we should ever censor"
A good article David. I was aghast to see that Fury was being investigated by the police for a possible hate crime, next stop the Thought Crime Act 2016. If holding the view that homosexuality is wrong is a crime, where does that leave the many millions of people in Britain who grew up during a time when the British state considered it to be a criminal act, whose parents brought them up to believe it was wrong and who watched the national broadcaster mercilessly lampooning gay people on it's programs. Now I personally believe that Fury's views are wrong, but that is only my opinion, it is no more valid than his. What would make people like myself who hold it right?, the law?, the moral zeitgeist?, homosexuality is found acceptable today in the eyes of the law and probably in the minds of the majority of people in our country, 50 years ago it wasn't, in another 50 years who knows, in many other places around the world it is frowned upon, why are those people wrong and us in the right?. Generation outrage seems to have no use for the saying 'sticks and stones' instead they turn the very hate they profess to be against upon anyone who doesn't see eye to eye with them.
Thanks Rob. To be honest, I was beginning to wonder if I'm in the wrong concerning these two issues. The hatred directed towards both Fury and Trump are without compare. Terrorists haven't received as bad a press as these two chumps in the past week. Yet more worrying is how people seem to find it difficult to understand my point that you cannot pick and choose which free speech you'll accept. People love freedom of speech as long as it's something they agree with. Today I even received an email from somebody who took offence that they thought I was criticizing her right to criticize Trump.
You're right, of course, about the laws surrounding homosexuality but it only takes a brief course in British history to understand how our morality has changed, along with our taboos. Having taught literature to intelligent undergrads, I know how difficult even they find it when you ask them to stop imposing their modern values on, say, John Donne or Joseph Conrad. Even when you look back at a period as recent as the 1970s, the sexual politics were so different that it's hard to discuss it now without imposing some higher moral standard.
I guess the only thing we can do it keep making these points until some of it sticks. I started the day at 6am with Stacey calling me a liberal and it's now 4pm having alientated every liberal I know and feeling pretty jaded about liberals in general.
If you are getting flack from both sides then you must be doing something right David.
I think it was Mark Twain who said that "Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority it is time to pause and reflect."
So very true and (just between you and me) I quite like getting the flack from both sides.
I've read quite a bit of Twain but I don't remember that quote. I can see that I'll have to go and find it.
[Edit: Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform (or pause and reflect).' From his Notebooks which I'll now have to see if I can find cheap somewhere!]
I can overdo the quotes at times I'm afraid David, problem is that often I have picked them up second hand so if I manage to overcome the first hurdle of remembering who to attribute them to, I then find they were paraphrased,like the Viscount Melbourne one I used the other day. Twain of course is fantastically quotable.
No need to apolgise. I've never had a mind that works that way so I admire people that can remember quotes. I think it's probably a healthy way of structuring thoughts, like a commonplace book but entirely in the mind. Reminds me of Hannibal Lecter in one of the later novels who spent the entire novel walking around a memory palace containing all his knowledge. Always wished I could do that myself but I can't even keep my office tidy…
Thanks David for a hilarious piece that made me laugh. Witty stuff indeed.
Free speech is a tricky area. Some years ago a tabloid described a Coronation Street actor as boring. It ended up paying him a large amount of money after he sued. Nobody protested in defence of the tabloid. Trump's speech may be considered as incitement against a particular race or group of people. How many people ended up in court for saying the right thing but to the wrong audience or in the wrong place and time? To be honest the entire thing is a minefield.
Thanks, as always, Nehad. I'd completely forgot about Bill Roache, who I believe it was who sued The Sun. Not sure that he won because of the 'boring' bit as much as the larger defamation but I take your point.
As to 'incitement', you're right: a minefield. Yet I'm pretty certain Trump was well within the letter of the law. I suppose it goes back to the piece you wrote about Steve the other day. I imagine Trump's idea would appeal to Steve. Perhaps you could ask him and report back with his answer.
Thanks David. I am sure Steve can understand how Trump feels. It occurred to me that should Trump visit London, I would be happy to introduce him to Steve assuming Donald T would be happy to have a fish and chips lunch at a Pub.
Wouldn't bet on it, Nehad. The campaign has passed 200,000 votes so Trump might not get out of the airport.
David, interesting to see the numbers adding up on that petition to ban Trump from the UK. As you rightly say, terrorists haven't had such a bad press as Trump and that boxer. I wonder how many sigs we'd get for a .gov.uk petition to ban Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi? Abu who?
David Waywell | 9th December 2015 at 11:06 pm | Reply
To be honest, I find it pretty shocking that the British public are so quick and willing to impose bans and censorship. The woman who started the petition is being hailed as some kind of hero when I can't help but think 'thought police'. I also wonder why this particular fact has not been highlighted.
Radical Rodent | 9th December 2015 at 10:09 pm | Reply
Ah, the "I believe in free speech but…" brigade. In other words, the "but" indicates that they do NOT believe in free speech. The irony is totally missed on them that a lot of what they might have to say may upset other people, so those others might wish to silence them, too. This is most visible in Paris, where those AGW Believers wish to invade the meetings of sceptics to silence their heretical ideas; would it be that they wished to listen to the meetings, to hear the arguments so that they may formulate reasonable answers. It is a shame that that novel idea never seems to cross their mind. (Yes, the singular is deliberate – I will not concede that they have individual thoughts.)
It is sad that for you to write such a common-sense article like this is for others to commend you for having a backbone (see what I did, there?). Personally, while I cannot be bothered voting, I would now like Fury to win the award, just to give the PC brigade a good poke in the eye.
Thank you, RR. I usually don't like new words but I keep thinking of one I heard recently which is 'sheeple'. It's so apt for the current situation. As you say, Paris is the perfect example. People were so quick to claim 'Je suis Charlie' without understanding the meaning. Now here we are, a few months later, with many of those same people forgetting everything they then thought about Freedom of Speech. It's been an utterly depressing day looking at Twitter and only the sanity of commentators here have kept my spirits up.
Lyn Hollings | 9th December 2015 at 11:18 pm | Reply
As one of the 102,000 (and rapidly rising) mob, I find this article patronising. I'm sure many of my fellow 'mob' members are as equally committed to the principle of free speech as I am. In the case of Fury, the petition is not wanting to stop him speaking, but is simply trying to prevent any chance of him being given an accolade (for 'Personality', not just sporting prowess) that potentially makes him a role model. Stupidity breeds stupidity….. In the case of Trump, I have no doubt he will continue to speak his ugly mind, and be reported here accordingly. I just don't see why he should be afforded the privilege of coming to the UK again whilst we refuse entry to many thousands of others whose values/religious beliefs far more closely align with what we consider to be 'British'.
Thank you for your comment, Lyn. I'm sorry you find my article patronising or, perhaps, I'm delighted that you find it patronising. You see, I find the existence of this misguided petition to be an infringement upon my rights as British citizen to hear debate by a person who has done nothing other than express an opinion that some people find offensive. I am no fan of Trump, as I believe my cartoons and articles here will prove. I think America's politics are far worse with him involved. However, excuse me for putting it so bluntly: what right do these people have in speaking for the rest of us regarding who we can or cannot invite into our country? Stopping Trump from entering the UK is but a short step away from banning others that a moralizing minority might wish to ban. Though I don't care a damn about Trump, there are people about whom the petition writers could easily take offence and demand their exclusion. Robert Crumb, the greatest comic book illustrator of our day, draws things that most people would consider grossly obscene. Given the right conditions, a petition could easily be drawn up to ban him from entering Britain. The same is true of many writers, artists, musicians, and comedians whose work I admire.
You are right to say 'stupidity breed stupidity' but that's only true in a closed system. Forcing bigots underground perpetuates their hate. Exposing it to intelligent argument and debate will defeat it. The Chancellor, George Osborne, was absolutely right today when he said 'The best way to defeat nonsense like this is to engage in robust democratic debate and make it very clear that his views are not welcome.' That is what we've always done and, by doing so, it sets us apart from the intellectual bigots of ISIS.
I have no objection to the petition had it demanded that our parliament debate the issue. I do, however, strongly object to people launching into a project that erodes liberties that have been hard won. We suddenly seem so far away from the spirit of 'Je suis Charlie' that it is frightening.
As to Fury, I will concede that there is a case for his not being given a platform but, again, since when did we make a law that our sports stars should be intellectual giants? Ali, considered the greatest boxer, famously gave an interview to Parkinson (around 1971, if my memory serves) in which he defended racial segregation. However, my argument isn't really about the Sports Personality of the Year, which is a trivial issue, but the habit we have developed of pushing non-orthodox views into the margins of the national debate. You only defeat extremism of any kind by debating it and challenging it in an open forum. What the Twitter police constantly seek to do is close debate down. That is not healthy and will, in the long term, produce yet more intolerance.
David Walter | 10th December 2015 at 12:06 am | Reply
RR — I believe in free speech 'but…' We don't have complete freedom to say what we like. I don't think we've ever have had freedom to lie? The Jewish, Roman and Protestant laws have observed the 9th (or 8th) Commandment from KJV Exodus 20:16 "Thou shalt not bear false witness…". The Koran has much the same in 2:42. When does an unjustified opinion become a 'lie'?
A line needs to be drawn but where, by whom and how should it be policed? Completely 'free speech' has not been tolerated at least from the beginning of historical times.
English law has a position on this under the Inchoate Offences where the offence is to assist, encourage or anticipate a crime. Defamation is another case, but civil, not criminal.
David Waywell | 10th December 2015 at 12:23 am | Reply
Thanks, David. That's a really good point which I should probably have addressed in my (already too long) piece, though I think it really only applies at the extremes where, despite people's perceptions of his 'crime', Trump didn't actually stray.
I did a bit of reading up on free speech before writing this piece and noticed that American's First Amendment has a few interesting exceptions, which I found quite reassuring in the sense that the grey area is already well policed, at least in the US.
Do you know what the situation is in this country? I know we have the Racial and Religious Hatred Act but beyond that, I assume the limits are not too different to America. I know we have a rule about not causing a 'breach of the peace', which seems rather vague and open to misinterpretion.
Radical Rodent | 11th December 2015 at 12:15 am | Reply
DW: okay, we do not have the "freedom" to lie… but has that stopped people lying? Ask yourself that question – and give yourself an honest reply. Even I, who likes to think holds the truth dear, am prone to lying by concealment, or even minor fibbing: "How do you like my hair?" "Oh, a lovely change!" (aack!)
You seem to be of the opinion that expressing an opinion, if it is not based on fact, is a "crime", and should be banned. That would make a lot of political debate quite interesting (or not).
As to "freedom to defame", well, another wrong that has repercussions under Law; you really do have every right to utter the most derogatory remarks about anyone, and they have every right to take you to court for it. There, the truth will out (hopefully – though I have personally found that it is not necessarily a guarantee).
David Walter | 10th December 2015 at 8:40 am | Reply
David, There's a similar Wiki piece for the UK at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censorship_in_the_United_Kingdom Since 1998 the UK has been under EU umbrella legislation that looks similar to the US legislation. I think the boxer and Trump fall foul of EU legislation.
However, I suspect that taking action against well-publicised cases probably does more harm than good; you can't 'un-say' these things. Trump is Trump. He's a special case because of his notoriety and status as candidate in the US Primaries. The boxer is merely a nasty piece of flotsam. Does anyone care one way or another what he thinks? He can crawl back under the slab from which he came, the sooner the better.
Public outrage is the oxygen of hate. It's better to starve it than feed it.
David Waywell | 10th December 2015 at 12:19 pm | Reply
Many thanks, David. I'd seen the Wiki thing but your analysis is really far more helpful. In fact, if I find time today, I might try to write a postscript to my piece to take in these points. Absolutely agree with you about the oxygen of hate. It's almost laughable how easily Trump is managing to control the debate by deliberately provoking his opponents. The more liberals hate him, the more solid he is with the Republican base.
All that said, I'm going to have to think about your view that Fury and Trump do fall foul of our laws. I don't think they should but, if they do, then perhaps I should adjust my position.
Rob Walker | 10th December 2015 at 2:14 pm | Reply
There was a time when the intolerant fled the intolerance of their intolerance by getting on a ship to America, where can they go now?, presumably they will be the founders of a new colony in outer space?
If Fury and Trump fall foul of the law then surely so does every idiot who shouts Oi fatty/baldy/ginger etc out of a van window. Honestly this all makes me feel like someone has spiked my drink with some kind of psychedelic reality altering drug
David Waywell | 10th December 2015 at 2:20 pm | Reply
Well, I've just finished writing a postscript to this piece which I hope Tim will allow me to publish later today. I'm still pretty sure of what I wrote but having now gathered together the relevant articles, I've started to suspect that our freedom of speech is founded upon some pretty contradictory laws and that idiots that do should 'Oi fatty/baldy/ginger' could actually be done under current legislation.
David Walter | 10th December 2015 at 2:27 pm | Reply
David, from that UK Wiki link there is this: "However, there is a broad sweep of exceptions including threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour intending or likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress or cause a breach of the peace (which has been used to prohibit racist speech targeted at individuals),[2][3][4] " Ref [5] in the same article is from the Guardian: http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/nov/12/kent-man-arrested-burning-poppy This article is very informative and gives further avenues for research. In particular it's worth looking at https://www.indexoncensorship.org/ which has a considerable amount of material. Perhaps it would be worth pointing Mr Padraig Reidy to this discussion so he can share his views?
For myself, I would add that every right carries a responsibility. In the case of free speech, our right to it ought to be balanced by our responsibility to be truthful, accurate, and not be the cause of gratuitous harm, upset, or distress. Any person who demands 'free speech' should be required to account for what he says.
Thanks for the link, David. I'll go and look now. As I mentioned to Rob, I've just finished writing a postscript where I address your point from last night that Fury and Trump might actually run foul of EU laws. Obviously, I'm no lawyer and don't have expertise in the law. However, doing the best I can having read the relevant articles, I'm still unconvinced. The law is subtle, nuanced, and/or a mess, depending on how you view it. You cannot look to provoke hatred but have a right to say things that might cause offence. Such a fine balance but I think both are in the clear, though somebody should be looking into Fury's comments about Oliver Holt.
"…every right carries a responsibility."
A very good comment, and one that should be spread further. Generally, all we tend to hear is people demanding their rights, and utterly ignoring that they do have responsibilities.
Lesley Lubert | 10th December 2015 at 8:37 pm | Reply
Where would we be without stupidity? Just when you think you have seen and heard it all, people come along to prove you wrong! Life is a journey, you might even say an assault course. Some people are better than others at getting to the finishing line in one piece.
What is wonderful and amazing is the facility we have to still be hopeful of a better tomorrow! Happy Christmas (not holiday that is what we call a vacation) to one and all!
Paul Corrick | 11th December 2015 at 11:58 am | Reply
Fascinating article David. I was watching Question time last night and the final question asked was whether Tyson Fury should be banned from Sports Personality of the year in which he has been nominated. The views were split. But I would agree to let people like him and Trump voice their opinions so others can shoot them down and expose how ridiculous they are. Would you agree that if someone say a hate Preacher breaks the law i.e. through incitement to violence the full weight of the law should be invoked? Thanks for such a thought provoking article.
Thanks Paul. So glad you raised the question about hate preachers. I probably have an odd, unpopular, and dare I say naive opinion. I wouldn't ban them. That argument has never sat right with me. I would actually ban very little except on grounds of obscenity and incitement to commit a crime. I know the hatemongers do edge towards the latter and that's where we could 'have' them, so to speak. But I really do think that it's better to have this rubbish out in the open where it can be destroyed through reason. Certainly, it worries me that 'words' are banned. Banning a word doesn't change the idea behind it. Isn't that how totalitarian regimes work? Incidentally, does anybody really believe that banning hate preachers stops them preaching? Or does it just make them preach elsewhere where we can't track them?
I don't know if you saw the clip of Borat on Jimmy Kimmel last night. That, to me, was the very reason why you don't ban Trump. Sacha Baron Cohen just demolished him and his arguments. It's why satire is so vital to our freedom. Banning opinions is merely our admitting that we haven't the intellectual strength to defeat them. It's lazy and self-defeating.
Paul Corrick | 11th December 2015 at 2:24 pm | Reply
I missed that clip of Borat but will search for it and thanks for letting me know David. Yes I take your point on Hate Preachers . My worry would be they can through words influence others who may be a bit unstable to carry out extremist acts.There have been reports of this happening with those exposed to some of their "Teachings" becoming radicalised and attempting to carry out acts of Terror. Do we let someone into the country who is as they say "not conducive to the public good" ? I agree we need to challenge them but is there a danger a few will act on their words? We may destroy their words through reason but maybe some have no reason? But there again even if we banned them they would still get their message out so not clear to me how it is best tackled. I see pit falls either way.
I take your point and concede that 'hate preaching' usually does cross that line into actively promoting crime. It's why I said that (and obscenity) are the points where the line must be drawn. Perhaps that's already where the line is drawn and that we are simplifying as soon as we say 'hate preachers'. Obviously, 'hate preachers' must be stopped. Merely banning extremism of any kind brings dangers. Prohibitions too broadly defined can then be used against us to limit freedoms. As I said in my reply to Lyn, who thought I was patronising, banning Trump would aid the moral mob in banning people who I do want visiting this country.
The second point I concede (and, to be blunt, perhaps I hadn't considered fully enough) is that there might be no 'reason' that can defeat unreason. This probably moves into the arguments I made piece about Paris, religion and atheism but our struggle isn't against Islam but against superstition and ignorance. I put my faith in education but that will be a long process, possibly of a century or more. It might even be linked to environmental issues, as reliance on Middle East oil dwindles, perhaps we can be less willing to support brutal states, whilst those states will have to face the real choice of moving into a modern world or staying rooted in medieval ideas of intolerance and state control.
What matters is that we don't allow our liberal values corrupt our liberal values. We should be very wary of becoming a censorious as the people who wish to censor us.
Thanks David . I only came across this site today as I recently started following Tim Marshall whose writings I enjoy . Thanks for all your comments.I will keep following this page as it has some excellent material and thought provoking ideas. I hope you do not mind but I am now stalking, sorry following you on Twitter too. Best Wishes and keep up the good work .
Bookmarking the site and following us on Twitter is the whole reason we exist. Thanks for dropping by.
Paul (Corrick), you say: "Question Time…final question asked was whether Tyson Fury should be banned from Sports Personality of the year in which he has been nominated. The views were split." I presume they were talking about the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award? The winner is chosen after a public vote from a pre-determines shortlist. So the question should be a) Would you add TF to the shortlist? b) If TF is on the shortlist, would you select him?
I don't see where 'banning' comes into it. A case of "Ask a silly question?"
Though isn't 'ban' is a broad enough term to cover what people are demanding? Some people want him removed from the shortlist whilst others argue that his opinions have nothing to do with his sporting achievement. In fact, if we couldn't call it a 'ban', I'm not sure what we could call it. A disqualification? A forfeit? Expulsion from the competition?
David, what are the 'antis' against? If they don't want him to win the award then no doubt the pre-selection committee will consider that viewpoint and if he still goes on the list, the public will have an opportunity to decide through the ballot box. I suspect that TF just 'not winning' the award is not going to satisfy some. Never does.
When the public finds a cause and folk start to foam at the mouth the media whip it up into a the massive issue that it isn't. Still, it's good for the media, good for politicians who would like to deflect from more serious issues and fun for those members of the public who enjoy that sort of thing. The boxer sounds like a total arsehole so his feelings are probably not worth losing sleep over but sometimes ordinary folk get this sort of treatment and can't cope with it so I don't condone it.
Good question. I think what they're after is affirmation that they are 'good people'. Censorious types, I think, have that in them. It's more about their sense of self-worth than the person that's done the offending. I tend to share Rob's view, as he stated earlier, that no matter how many people vote for this kind of thing, there's always around 63.5 million who didn't. It shows how it's pretty meaningless but sells newspapers. I agree with you. Stick him in the shortlist and see what the public decide. As far as I'm concerned, if LFC aren't in the running for an award, I won't be watching anyway. 😉
Hi David . yes in relation to the Question time story I was referring to the BBC Sports Personality of the year award. I agree a silly question and as someone has said people can vote with their feet. Five live had a debate about he is fit to be a role model ? Not sure why we should view every sportsman as a role model anyway.Should they not have to earn that sort of status? Are sports people role models just because they are in the public eye? I think those who want him "banned" or "disqualified" Caroline Flint the Labour MP was one on the panel who did want him banned . I have just gone to BBC I player to view again . The question was "should Tyson Fury compete in BBC Sports Personality of the year" Vince cable said he would not have him on as he has failed the test of being a personality. The link is here to the podcast and the question is a quick final one after 55 minutes. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06s5rww/question-time-10122015
The odd point here is where I disagree with Vince Cable. Fury is a personality. He's just not a personality that many people like. He talks about it in one of the interviews he's done on Youtube, disparaging the other nominees for their lack of personality. He is, of course, right. Which is why the award is so badly named. For best sporting achievement of the year he has a questionable claim. Beating an sub-prime Klitschko in a points decision does not match anything that Andy Murray has achieved, nor Chris Froome, nor (to a lesser extent due to the involvement of technology) Lewis Hamilton. Yet as the most chatty sportsman with bonkers opinions, he most certainly should win. As a 'personality', he's hard to ignore.
Yes I am not a boxing fan but I heard he had the belt removed after two weeks because he refused to fight Klitschko again which broke an agreement. For many years I think a lot of people have said the award should be renamed from Sports Personality to something that shows its more about the achievement itself rather than the person. Maybe there should be an award for most outrageous sports personality of the year .I agree people like Andy Murray, Hamilton are much more worthy winners and would expect Murray to win it again after Britain winning the Davis cup fopr the first time since 1936
It was the other way around. The belt was removed because he *had* agreed to fight Klitschko. As part of his contract was a mandatory rematch if Klitschko wanted it. He does and therefore Fury is committed to that being his next fight. The IBF (I think) wanted Fury to fight their next challenger. To be honest, it's all crazy. Never really into the sport but I used to love the mythology of boxing. One of my favourite writers was/is Norman Mailer and reading his journalism around Ali means that I always have a partiality to the sport and its journalism. However, since the Don King era, I've lost all interest. It's about the money, the TV contracts, and so much more than has nothing to do with the sport as it was in its heyday. In a way, I'd prefer it is Klitschko won it back. Much more interesting figure given his role in the politics of the Ukraine.
Paul Corrick | 14th December 2015 at 12:22 pm | Reply
Ah ok thanks for clearing that up David!!! Yes all very odd. I feel much the same as you about my favourite sport Football. Dominated too much by Money, TV, Contracts, agents.I guess it's the way most sports have gone and there is no turning back.
I used to say the same about football myself. And then Klopp became LFC manager and I love it again…
Which part of the First Amendment do liberals not understand?
Sri Lanka, the 'Caliphate', and UN Folly
Science funding disaster on both sides of the pond?
Sex, lies & Bill and other dirty words
North Korea Crisis: Neither Gone nor Forgotten
2016 – The Year Ahead


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Los mendigos o Los lisiados es una pintura al óleo sobre tabla del artista holandés del Renacimiento Pieter Brueghel el Viejo, pintado en 1568. Se conserva en el Museo del Louvre de París.

Historia
Este trabajo es la única pintura de Bruegel en el Louvre, recibida como regalo en 1892.

Se han hecho intentos por interpretar el cuadro con cinco mendigos lisiados y una mujer pasando detrás como una alusión a un acontecimiento histórico: las colas de tejón, o colas de zorro, en su ropa podrían referirse a los Gueux, un partido rebelde formado contra el gobierno de Felipe II de España y Granvela; pero estos también aparecen en la obra de Bruegel El combate entre don Carnal y doña Cuaresma  conservado en Viena, datada en 1559. Aun así, los mendigos no son mendigos comunes, ya que llevan sombreros de carnaval representando las varias clases sociales: una corona de papel (el rey), un birrete shako (el soldado), una boina (el burgués), una gorra (el campesino), y una mitra (el obispo). El trabajo claramente tiene un significado satírico, aunque de difícil interpretación. Quizás las imperfecciones físicas simbolicen la decrepitud moral, que puede afectar a todos los hombres independientemente de su clase.

Por detrás de la pintura hay dos inscripciones que parecen datar del mismo siglo XVI. Una está en flamenco, y en muy mal estado; la otra en latín testimonia la admiración que algún humanista sentía por Brueghel, cuyo arte según él supera la Naturaleza.

La pintura data de finales de la carrera de Bruegel, cuando muestra un interés más entusiasta en el mundo natural. Aunque minúsculo, el paisaje visto a través de la abertura en el muro está bañado en una delicada luz que hierve a fuego lento como el rocío entre el follaje.

Descripción
Por detrás de la pintura aparece escrito:
Lo que le falta a la naturaleza, carece de nuestro arte,
tan grande fue la gracia otorgada a nuestro pintor.
Aquí la naturaleza, expresada en formas pintadas, se asombra
al ver a través de estos tullidos que Bruegel es su igual.

Análisis
Los ojos modernos pueden inducir a concluir que Bruegel pretendía invocar la compasión hacia estas figuras lisiadas, pero desde una perspectiva histórica esto es poco probable. Los europeos de la época de Bruegel tenían poca consideración hacia los mendigos, y la pintura da a entender que Bruegel compartía esta denigración: las figuras se encuentran fuera de los muros de la ciudad y posando de forma que provoquen desprecio y diversión. Las colas de zorro sobre algunas de las figuras eran un objeto en la época para ridiculizar en la caricatura política y en la vida real. La mujer de detrás de ellos lleva un cuenco vacío y parece que está ignorando a los mendigos.

Referencias

Enlaces externos

 Los Mendigos en el Louvre
 99 works of Pieter Bruegel the Elder
 Lista completa de pinturas que incluye los 100 proverbios de la pintura, con explicación (en francés).
 Creatividad Brueghel puso la fundación del Netherlands Escuela
 Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Dibujos e Impresiones, una exposición catalogada del Museo Metropolitano de Arte, el cual incluye material de Los Mendigos

Cuadros de 1568
Cuadros de Pieter Brueghel el Viejo

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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A Kansas Education
This is a grim joke, I admit: Closing schools early in order to underwrite tax breaks for the wealthy is an exercise in building character.
I have a daughter; it is unclear if "character building" has any significance to her generation beyond a Calvin & Hobbes punch line.
Controversial Republican economist Arthur Laffer was recently asked about his handiwork in Kansas. It was Laffer who crafted Gov. Sam Brownback's (R) radical – and radically unsuccessful – economic experiment, which has failed to deliver on its promises and which has ruined Kansas' finances.
"Kansas," Laffer said two weeks ago, "is doing fine."
"Fine" is a subjective word, though when a state finds that some of its schools don't have enough money to keep the doors open, it's safe to say everything isn't "fine."
Six school districts in Kansas will close early this year, following budget cuts signed in March by Republican Gov. Sam Brownback.
Two school districts, Concordia Unified School District and Twin Valley Unified School District, announced earlier this month that they would end the year early because they lacked the funds to keep the schools open. This week, four more districts confirmed they would also shorten their calendars, according to the Topeka Capital-Journal.
One superintendent told the Topeka Capital-Journal he doesn't want to permanently change the school calendar, but at least for this year, budget concerns made it necessary to wrap up early.
Posted in Business, Capitalism, Conservative, Culture, Education, Family, Middle America, Parenthood, People, Politics, Republicans, Stupid and tagged Arthur Laffer, Bloomberg View, bread bags, character building, deprivation, exploitation, Heritage Foundation, Kansas, Laffer curve, Megan McArdle, MSNBC, poverty, romanticizing deprivation, Sam Brownback, state finances, Stephen Moore, Steve Benen, tax cuts, training wage, trickle-down on 2015.04.23 by bd. 1 Comment

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Book Sholingur to Coorg & Wayanad 4 Days - Sightseeing Tour
Sholingur to Coorg & Wayanad Cabs and Vans
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About Kodagu
Kodagu is an administrative district in Karnataka, India. Before 1956 it was an administratively separate Coorg State, at which point it was merged into an enlarged Mysore State. It occupies an area of 4,102 square kilometres (1,584 sq mi) in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. In 2001 its population was 548,561, 13.74% of which resided in the district's urban centres, making it the least populous of the 30 districts in Karnataka.
The district is bordered by Dakshina Kannada district to the northwest, Kasargod district of Kerala to the west, Hassan district to the north, Mysore district to the east, Kannur district of Kerala to the southwest, and the Wayanad district of Kerala to the south. Agriculture is the most important factor that upholds the economy of Kodagu and the main crops cultivated in this region are rice and coffee. Coorg is rich in natural resources which included timber and spices. Madikeri (English: Mercara) is the headquarters of Kodagu.
Kodagu is known for its coffee and its people. The people include indigenous (Kodavas) and other ethnic groups (Arebashe Gowdas and Kodava subgroups). The chief languages presently spoken in Kodagu are Kodava, Are Bhashe, Tulu and Malayalam. Kodagu is home to the native speakers of the Kodava language.
List of Sightseeing Places in Kodagu
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Abbey Falls
About Abbey Falls
Abbey Falls (also spelled Abbi Falls and Abbe Falls) is in Kodagu, in the Western Ghats in Karnataka. It is located 8 km from the Madikeri, 122 km from Mysore, 144 km from Mangalore and 268 km from Bangalore.
The river is part of the early reaches of the river Kaveri. Flow is much higher during the monsoon season.
The waterfall is located between private coffee plantations with stocky coffee bushes and spice estates with trees entwined with pepper vines. A hanging bridge constructed just opposite the falls.
The falls was earlier called Jessi falls, named after a British officer's wife. However, the place was a thick jungle area back then. Years later, the waterfall was discovered by Mr. Neravanda B.Nanaiah who bought the place from the government and converted it into a coffee and spices plantation that surrounds the waterfall today.
Raja's Seat
About Raja's Seat
Raja's Seat (Seat of the King) is a seasonal garden of flowers and artificial fountains. It is one of the most important tourist spots in Madikeri of Coorg District. It is 270 km away from Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka.
A pleasant spectacle of refreshing layers of greenery, chain of high and low-rise-mountains attired with mist, the Raja Garden was a one-time-favorite of the kings of Kodagu who used to watch the setting sun, and spend time with their queens here. It is shaped like a small square in brick and mortar, with four pillars bridged by arches, enhanced by beautiful surroundings. This lovely spot was a favorite place of recreation for the Rajas and hence was permanently associated with them. It is built on a high level ground with a commanding view of the cliffs and valleys to the west. Early in the morning as the sun is just rising in the east, the mist shrouded valley below offers a rare sight. The golden light of the setting sun is a splendor to watch. There is also a Toy Train for children.
Madikeri Fort
About Madikeri Fort
This 19th century fort, in the centre of Madikeri, houses a Ganesha temple, a chapel, a district prison and a small museum. The fort offers a beautiful view of Madikeri. This fort is one of the most beautiful places to visit during the trip to Coorg. Initially this fort was built by mud and later on mud was replaced by the concrete stone, by the great king Tipu Sultan.
According to an official explanation board at the site, Mercara, the headquarters of Coorg or Kodagu district, was founded by Prince Mudduraja of the Haleri Dynasty in 1681 CE, and was named after him as Muddurajanakeri -- which became "Muddukayray" and Madikeri over time. The British termed the place Mercara.
Bagamandala
About Bagamandala
At a distance of 39 kms from Madikeri, 8 kms before reaching TalaKaveri, Bhagamandala is on the banks of the confluence of three rivers, Cauvery, Kannike and the sub terranian Sujyoti, popularly known as "Triveni Sangama". The famous Sri Bhagandeswara temple is located on the bank of the river over here. Pilgrims visiting Bhagamandala bathe (or sprinkle water on your head) in the Triveni Sangama, confluence of rivers and worship at the temple complex. Watch out for the wooden carvings in the temple. The subrahmanya idol in the temple is a swayambu and the temple was established by a rishi named Bhagamandala. The temple serves free lunch - you get rice, sambar and buttermilk. Not a lavish lunch, but a clean,simple vegetarian option instead of the poorly maintained restaurants in the neighbourhood
Talacauvery
About Talacauvery
River Kaveri which is one of the 7 sacred rivers of Sapta Sindhus of the Hindu scriptures, originated at a place is called Talakaveri (head of Cauvery) in the Brahmagiri hills, at about 4,500 ft above sea level. This place is marked by a tirtha kundike or Brahma kundike (small spring/pond) from where the river emerges as a small perennial spring, but flows underground again to emerge a short distance away. It is about 48 km from Madikeri.
There is a shrine near the kundike and a big tank in front of it where devotees baths before offering prayers. There are 2 temples, a Shiva temple and with a rare and ancient Shiva Linga, and another temple dedicated to Lord Ganesha. This temple has a holy Ashwantha tree where, according to legend, the Trimurtis - Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh gave darshan to sage Agastya
List of Sightseeing Places in Wayanad
Katpadi to Coorg & Wayanad
VIT to Coorg & Wayanad
CMC to Coorg & Wayanad
Arcot to Coorg & Wayanad
Ranipet to Coorg & Wayanad
Sholingur to Coorg & Wayanad
Arni to Coorg & Wayanad
Polur to Coorg & Wayanad
Ambur to Coorg & Wayanad
Gudiyatham to Coorg & Wayanad
Vaniyambadi to Coorg & Wayanad
Tirupattur to Coorg & Wayanad
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text:
gastronomy & winehighlightshistory
Within a short drive of Cognac is one of France's most fascinating and beautiful towns. Saintes, the former Gallo-Roman capital of Aquitaine, boasts a population of just under 27,000. Romantically situated on the river Charentes, Saintes is a treasure. Its remarkable history, gorgeous location, charming old town – a maze of cobblestone lanes, squares, markets, and cafes – all adds up to something very special indeed.
For centuries, the area known today as Charente-Maritime was occupied by a tribe known as the Santones. Living as hunter-gatherers, they thrived on this land until the Roman invasion of Gaul (France) in the last century BC. After Julius Caesar started his conquest in 58 BC, the Romans established a capital in Lyon. The Romans brought their infrastructure and technological advancements with them, including roads. A road that crossed the river Charentes was built to connect Lyon with Bordeaux, leading to the establishment of a settlement known as Mediolanum Santonum in approximately 25 BC.
Under the reign of Emperor Augustus, the ancient city of Mediolanum Saintonium played a role of increasing importance as the Gallo-Roman capital of the Aquitaine province. As a vital strategic outpost in Gaul, the settlement was endowed with many elegant buildings, including a double arch that served as the town gate, an amazing overgrown amphitheater built during the reign of Claudius, and an archeology museum with unearthed statues and even a chariot and harness.
Arch of Germanicus
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Saintes fell under the control of the Frankish Merovingian and Carolingian families. During the Middle Ages, Saintes coasted along as a rather unremarkable town, certainly when compared to its heyday as a Roman capital. The medieval center more or less corresponded to the settlement that thrived in the Roman Empire, without any new additions. Its fortified wall, built above the ancient ramparts, helped to protect the city from attack throughout the Middle Ages.
However, a massive political earthquake occurred in the 12th century, when Henry of Anjou married Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1154. Subsequently, over a third of France became the property of the English crown. This led to the Hundred Years' War between the French forces and the English, allied with the Dukes of Burgundy. Many fierce battles were fought before the end of the conflict in 1453.
The Wars of Religion between the Huguenots (French Protestants) and the Catholic League in the 16th century also left deep scars on the face of Saintes. Many buildings were damaged or destroyed during the conflict, which threatened to tear the nation apart. The town's Catholic Saint-Pierre Cathedral, dating from the 15th century, was severely damaged by the Huguenots in 1568.
Henry IV kicked off the Bourbon dynasty, issuing the controversial Edict of Nantes (1598), which guaranteed the Huguenots civil and political rights, which of course, incensed the Catholic traditionalists. However, the Edict was subsequently revoked in 1685 by King Louis XIV.
The reign of his grandson Louis XV was to mark the beginning of the end for the French monarchy. An oafish buffoon, he embroiled France in several senseless and costly wars that did little to endear him to the nation's increasingly angry citizens. But before too long, patriotism, widespread discontent, and nationalism culminated in the French Revolution. In September 1792, France's First Republic was declared, and Louis XV's son, Louis 16th, was guillotined. The head of his wife, Marie-Antoinette, rolled several months later. As a major religious center, Saintes was an easy target for the radical Jacobins, who suppressed religious activity and the power of the church during the reign of terror. Saintes was made the administrative center of the Charente-Maritime region in 1791; La Rochelle supplanted it in 1810.
However, this foray into democracy was not fated to last. Napoleon Bonaparte seized power in 1799 – his rule over France endured until 1814 when he was exiled to Elba. But in 1815, Napoleon escaped from the Mediterranean island-kingdom, landed in Golfe Juan in southern France, and marched north, triumphantly entering Paris on 20 May. His glorious 'Hundred Days' back in power ended with the battle of Waterloo and his return to exile (to the South Atlantic island of St Helena, where he died in 1821). His nephew Louis Napoleon proclaimed himself emperor of the Second Empire in 1851.
France enjoyed significant economic growth at this time – the arrival of the railroad in the 1860s expanded Saintes' trading links with other French regions. The town prospered as an important river port and as a center of masonry and forestry. The Third Republic, which was declared in 1870, ushered in an unprecedented age of artistic and scientific achievement across France.
Saintes survived the horrors of Two World Wars to prosper into the thriving modern-day center of commerce and trade that one finds today. Renowned for the production of Cognac and its productive agriculture, Saintes' industries include machinery and electronic manufacturing. It is not just a pretty face, but a lively, thriving working town of real charm and character. Enjoying its pedestrianized old town, which spills over with fantastic places to eat and drink, is a proposition few could, or should, resist.
Charente River
Gastronomy & Wine
The prime treasure of the Charentes region is Cognac, a brandy produced from barrel-aged distillate – known as eau de vie – that is both magnificent and very long-lived. Yet one must not neglect the region's incredible gastronomy, which reflects both the proximity to the sea and the expanse of flat plains, where the pace of life is as slow-moving as the cattle that graze on summer pastures. Local specialties include the oysters of Marennes, Oleron and La Rochelle; mouclade, a dish of mussels with cream, white wine, and shallots; gigourit charentais, a stew of pork offal, cooked with the blood; daube, or beef stew, and finally the wealth of fresh produce from the market gardens. Lumas are another traditional dish – snails cooked in red wine.
Charentais butter is also reputed to be the finest in France. It appears in every dish, but more particularly in celebrated sweet treats that manage to seduce every visitor to Saintes. Witness: almond-flavored tarte a la frangipane, the biscottes of Pons, the brioches of Taillebourg, and all the Charentais cakes flavored with either pineau or Cognac. The former is offered as an aperitif in Saintes. A blend of Cognac and grape must; the best examples are both refreshing and delightfully luxurious.
Of course, any meal in Saintes will probably conclude with the offer of a Cognac, the local firewater on which the neighboring town stakes its global renown. However, Cognac is much more than just a variety of Brandy. Produced for hundreds of years in France, there are almost 200 producers in the business today, cultivating over 80,000 hectares of vineyards and presiding over five superior crus or vineyard sites. The local regulatory body classifies Cognac into various categories, including V.S, a minimum of two years aging for the youngest eau-de-vie in the blend, V.S.O.P, a minimum of four years aging and Extra – requiring a minimum of 6 years of age.
Vintage cognacs are rare; most Cognac is blends of different, barrel-aged eau-de-vies produced from several stipulated grape varieties from the six sub-regions: namely Ugni Blanc, Colombard and Folle Blanche. The best Cognacs are the most expensive, revered, and memorizing brandies in the world.
Mussels with cream, white wine
Arguably, Saintes' most famous landmark, the Arch of Germanicus, is an ancient Roman arch built by a wealthy citizen of the town, C. Julius Rufus. It is dedicated to Emperor Tiberius, his son Drusus Julius Caesar, and his adoptive son Germanicus.
St.Pierre Cathedral
Saintes' beautiful cathedral has known some good, and not so good times. At the end of the Hundred Years' War, the bishops of Saintes built a lavish Gothic building on the site of the original cathedral that had been destroyed centuries earlier. Then in 1568, Protestants ransacked the church and destroyed the nave and vaults. Nevertheless, it remains a beautiful piece of architecture, despite its troubled history.
Also straddling the Charente is Jarnac, a beautiful town that was the birthplace of former president Francois Mitterrand. The house where he was born has been transformed into a lovely museum.


"In the fall of 1971 the Imperial Sovereign Rose Court of Portland, Oregon, having just elected their first Rose Empress, invested the late ted northe with the title Empress of Canada. Upon his return to Vancouver that year, ted began the formulation of Vancouver's own court system: The Dogwood Empire. In March of 1972 Vancouver held its first Coronation at the Commodore Ballroom and crowned its first elected Empress, the late Charity I. In the following years Vancouver mentored other Canadian courts into fruition and as a result holds the honorary title of The Mother Court of Canada.
On January 6th, 1976 The Dogwood Monarchist Society was constituted under the Provincial Societies Act as a not-for profit organization tasked with providing social interaction within Vancouver's LGBTQ2+ community and upholding the principles of a democratic monarchy. The constitution was presented as a gift from Emperor III Little Ray to his Empress Bobbi Blake IV at their step down in March of 1976. Although not mandated to do so, the DMS has, from its earliest days, displayed a charitable leaning by providing funds in times of disaster or hardship for community members. By the early 1980's, with the advent of the HIV crisis, the DMS became, for all intents and purposes, a charitable organization. The bylaws of the Society were eventually amended to mandate the support of three local charities, to be chosen by the reigning monarchs, one of which must be dedicated to the support of people living with HIV.
Over the past decades the DMS has streamlined its operating costs, focusing on profit driven functions and proudly funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars into the community through their Majesties' chosen charities.


text:
The Garden of Allah – romanzo del 1904 di Robert Smythe Hichens

 The Garden of Allah – compagnia di effetti speciali

Cinema
The Garden of Allah – film muto statunitense del 1916 diretto da Colin Campbell
Il giardino di Allah (The Garden of Allah) – film muto statunitense del 1927 diretto da Rex Ingram
Il giardino di Allah (The Garden of Allah) – film statunitense del 1936 diretto da Richard Boleslawski


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text:
41	"aKeep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; bthe spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Mt 26:38
Mk 14:38
Matthew 26:41 — The New International Version (NIV)
41 "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Matthew 26:41 — English Standard Version (ESV)
41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Matthew 26:41 — King James Version (KJV 1900)
41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Matthew 26:41 — New Living Translation (NLT)
41 Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!"
Matthew 26:41 — The New King James Version (NKJV)
41 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Matthew 26:41 — New Century Version (NCV)
41 Stay awake and pray for strength against temptation. The spirit wants to do what is right, but the body is weak."
Matthew 26:41 — American Standard Version (ASV 1901)
Matthew 26:41 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)
41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is ready, but the flesh weak.
Matthew 26:41 — GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
41 Stay awake, and pray that you won't be tempted. You want to do what's right, but you're weak."
Matthew 26:41 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
41 Stay awake and pray, so that you won't enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Matthew 26:41 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
41 Stay awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Matthew 26:41 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)
41 Stay awake and pray that you will not enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak!"
Matthew 26:41 — New International Reader's Version (NIrV)
41 "Watch and pray. Then you won't fall into sin when you are tempted. The spirit is willing. But the body is weak."


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MPs criticise progress on LEP accountability
Markets unenthusiastic for Greek bailout
by James Bevan
in Blogs · James Bevan · Recent Posts
Markets have greeted the announcement of the intended 'bailout' for Greece with relatively little enthusiasm, perhaps because they fear a domino effect of debt write downs elsewhere or perhaps because they already know that the policy prescriptions will not be enough to save the Greek economy from a long and protracted slump that could yet force a political backlash against the Euro. Deep austerity, economic depression, social unrest and the suspension of democracy have been features of the Greek state for some months now but the terms of the Greek bailout suggest that the economy will shrink by at least another 5% this year (perhaps nearer 10%?), which will likely lead to more tensions within Greece's social and political fabric.
While Hong Kong experienced deflation following the Asian Crisis of 1997, and the Baltic Region has also experienced an internal depreciation, no established country with a unionised workforce and democracy have faced the more than 50% deflation of disposable incomes that is being demanded of Greece. Proponents of the internal depreciation route point to Ireland as being a 'successful example' of such a policy but this is not in fact true: headline unit labour costs have fallen, but this is in a sense a fictitious number caused by the arithmetic impact of a fall in construction activity on the average productivity data. On a sector specific basis, there is little or no evidence of wage deflation or a productivity boom in Ireland over recent years. With this in mind, it looks as if Greece is being asked or required to achieve the impossible.
There are also issues for capital raising. Since in effect official sector holdings of Greek bonds will be largely exempt from any write downs, the cost of the write downs will fall disproportionately on the private sector holders of the debt and this will affect the Euroland peripherals generally.
However, before we become too concerned over the costs to Greece's existing private sector creditors, we should also note that the bailout plan calls for a public sector sponsored capital inflow into Greece.
Throughout the early to mid 2000s, Greece was able to attract very high levels of private sector capital principally but not exclusively, from German banks. It looks as if over the 30 months which followed the start of the global financial crisis, Greece attracted some €130bn alone and on top of the €150bn they had already attracted in the previous three to four years. These flows may be seen as misguided, but were nevertheless discretionary flows, organised and sponsored by the private sector. Perhaps the Greeks were 'wrong' to use these flows to fund a drop in their own national savings rates (not that they were alone in this practice) but the 'investors' were also demonstrably wrong to send so much money in the first place. In contrast, the latest inflows into Greece will be exclusively public sector in nature. This makes Greece in effect, the 'ward' of the troika and implies that taxpayers are being compelled to finance Greece and to some extent protect the interests of Greece's former investors.
Overall, the key attraction of the Greek plan is that like the LTROs and TARGET2, it prevents a systemic financial collapse in the near term and therefore buys time to build more firewalls and contingency reserves in case politics forces the Euro to split in the future – and maintaining it is costing taxpayers a fortune and social misery in parts of its area. But to dismantle it now would not be a safe prospect for the global financial system. The bailout for Greece was and is necessary , but could have been done without the excessive conditionality, ostensibly required to avoid "letting the Greeks off", but now threatening a political backlash that may well yet sweep Greece from the Euro later this year or next.
James Bevan is chief investment officer of CCLA, specialist fund manager for charities and the public sector. CCLA launched The Public Sector Deposit Fund in 2011 to meet the needs of local authorities and other public sector organisations. You can follow James on twitter @jamesbevan_ccla
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Source Title:
Semiotica
Volume 2019: Issue 230
Playing peripatos: Creativity and abductive inference in religion, art and war
Katya Mandoki 1
1 Department is Sciences and Arts for Design – Xochimilco, Calz del Hueso 1100, Mexico City, Mexico
Katya Mandoki
Department is Sciences and Arts for Design – Xochimilco, Calz del Hueso 1100, Mexico City, Mexico
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Peirce proposed the concept of abductive inference to inquire into the generation of new hypotheses and defined it as another term for pragmatism, no less (Admitting, then, that the question of Pragmatism is the question of Abduction, let us consider it under that form. What is good abduction? What should an explanatory hypothesis be to be worthy to rank as a hypothesis? Of course, it must explain the facts. But what other conditions ought it to fulfill to be good? The question of the goodness of anything is whether that thing fulfills its end. What, then, is the end of an explanatory hypothesis? Its end is, through subjection to the test of experiment, to lead to the avoidance of all surprise and to the establishment of a habit of positive expectation that shall not be disappointed (Peirce. 1931–1966. The collected papers of Charles S. Peirce, 8 vols., C. Hartshorne, P. Weiss & A. W. Burks (eds.). Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 5.197)). Apart from being linked to the vague idea of the play of musement as an almost dreamlike process of epiphany or inspiration or as an inverted minor premise from a syllogism, we are far from understanding the dynamics and specificity of this kind of inference. Among authors dealing with this problem I could trace three factors at work in processes of abduction, i.e. combination, resemblance, and dialetics or questioning. In this paper I attempt to look a bit further into this enigma by a category of play I defined as "peripatos" or games of invention, riddles, and puzzles, hoping it could shed some light on the process of creativity in several social activities such as science, art, war, and religion. The approach will take on Huizinga's idea of the play of culture, Lakoff and Johnson's conception of cross-domain correlations, Kant's view of "aesthetic ideas," and my proposal of the play of peripatos through a "what if-as if" coupling into this very common yet little understood, and thus mystified, process of the generation of innovative ideas.
Peirce; play; Huizinga; Kant; abduction; peripatos
Berleant, Arnold. 1993. Art and engagement. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Burghardt, Gordon M. 1998. The evolutionary origins of play revisited: Lessons from turtles. In Marc Bekoff & John Alexander Byers (eds.), Animal play: Evolutionary, comparative, and ecological perspectives, 1–23. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Burke, Edmund. 1756. On the sublime and beautiful. Adelaide: University of Adelaide eBooks@Adelaide.
Caillois, Roger. 1994. Los juegos y los hombres; La máscara y el vértigo. México D.F.: Fondo de Cultura Económica.
Darwin, Charles. 1882. Descent of man, and selection in relation to sex, 2nd edn. London: John Murray.
Frazer, Sir & James George. 1922. The golden bough. New York: Macmillan.
Griffths, Hugh. 2015. The D-Day deception operations TAXABLE and GLIMMER. IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Magazine 30(3). 12–20.
Griffths, Hugh. 2015. The D-Day deception operations TAXABLE and GLIMMER. IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Magazine 30(3). 12–20.10.1109/MAES.2014.140193)| false
Hoffmann, Michael. 1999. Problems with Peirce's concept of abduction. Foundations of Science 4(3). 271–305.
Hoffmann, Michael. 1999. Problems with Peirce's concept of abduction. Foundations of Science 4(3). 271–305.10.1023/A:1009675824079)| false
Huizinga, Johan. 1949. Homo ludens: A study of the play-element in culture. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Husserl, Edmund. 1990 [1948]. Experience and judgment: Investigations in a genealogy of logic, J. S. Churchill and K. Ameriks. Evanston: Northwestern University Press.
Kant, Immanuel. 1969 [1790]. The critique of judgement, James Creed Meredith (trans.). Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Kedrov, B. M. 1957. On the question of the psychology of scientific creativity (on the occasion of the discovery by D. I. Mendeleev of the periodic law). Soviet Psychology 2. 18–37.
Koestler, Arthur. 1976. The act of creation. London: Hutchinson.
Lakoff, George & Mark Johnson. 1980. Metaphors we live by. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Mandoki, Katya. 2007. Everyday aesthetics: Prosaics, the play of culture and social identities. Aldershot: Ashgate.
Peirce, Charles S. 1931–1966. The collected papers of Charles S. Peirce, 8 vols., C. Hartshorne, P. Weiss & A. W. Burks (eds.). Cambridge: Harvard University Press. [Reference to Peirce's papers will be designated CP followed by volume and paragraph number.].
Peirce, Charles S. 1967. Manuscripts in the Houghton Library of Harvard University, as identified by Richard Robin. Annotated catalogue of the papers of Charles S. Peirce. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press. [Reference to Peirce's manuscripts will be designated MS or L.].
Petrilli, Susan. 2005. The semiotic universe of abduction. Semiotica 153(1/4). 23–51.
Schiller, Friederich von. 1795. Letters upon the aesthetic education of man. http://public-library.uk/ebooks/55/76.pdf (accessed 25 May 2019).
Sebeok, Thomas A. 1981. The play of musement. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Welby, Victoria. 1983 [1903]. What is meaning? Studies in the development of significance (Foundations of Semiotics 2). Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
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Semiotica, Volume 2019, Issue 230, Pages 369–387, eISSN 1613-3692, ISSN 0037-1998, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/sem-2017-0161.
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The term structure of interest rates – known as the yield curve – is the relationship between interest rates or bond yields that differ in their length of time to maturity. The term structure reflects investor expectations about future changes in interest rates and their assessment of monetary policy conditions. The term structure of interest rates is constructed by graphing the YTM and respective maturity dates of benchmark fixed-income securities. Because U.S. Treasuries are considered risk-free, their yields are often used as the benchmark.
The term structure of interest rates is graphed as though each coupon payment of a noncallable fixed-income security were a zero-coupon bond that matured on the coupon payment date. If the normal yield curve changes shapes, it can be a signal to investors that it's time to update their economic outlook.
A normal yield curve forms during normal market conditions, when investors believe there won't be any significant changes to the economy (e.g., interest rates) and the economy will continue to grow at a normal rate. During these conditions, investors expect higher yields for bonds with long-term maturities than those with short-term maturities. This is a normal expectation since short-term instruments generally carry less risk. The further out a bond's maturity, the more time and uncertainty investors face before being paid back the principal. As current interest rates increase, a bond's price will decrease and its yield will increase.
A flat yield curve indicates that the market is sending mixed signals to investors, who are interpreting interest rate movements in various ways. In these situations, it's hard for the market to determine whether interest rates will move significantly in either direction. A flat yield curve generally happens when the market is making a transition between normal and inverted curves. When the yield curve is flat, you can maximize your risk/return tradeoff by choosing fixed-income securities with the least risk, or highest credit quality.
Inverted yield curves are uncommon; they form when long-term debt instruments have a lower yield than short-term debt instruments of the same credit quality. Bonds with maturity dates further into the future are expected to offer lower yields than bonds with shorter maturities. Some investors interpret an inverted curve as an indication that the economy will experience a slowdown, leading to even lower yields. The idea is that before a slowdown, it's better to lock money into long-term investments at present prevailing yields because future yields will be even lower.
Another type of yield curve is the theoretical spot rate curve, which is constructed using Treasury spots instead of yields. This curve accounts for the fact that many Treasuries offer varying coupons and would, as a result, not accurately represent similar noncallable fixed-income securities.
If you compare a 10-year bond paying a 7% coupon with a 10-year Treasury bond paying a coupon of 4%, your evaluation wouldn't mean much: While both bonds have the same 10-year maturity, the 4% Treasury coupon would not be an appropriate benchmark for the bond paying 7%. The spot rate curve offers a more accurate measure since it adjusts the curve to reflect variations in the interest rate of the plotted benchmark. The interest rate taken from the plot is known as the spot rate.
The credit spread (or quality spread) is the difference in yield between a U.S. Treasury bond and a debt security with the same maturity, but lesser quality. Credit spreads between U.S. Treasuries and other bonds are measured in basis points, with a 1% difference in yield equal to a spread of 100 basis points. For example, assume a 10-year Treasury note has a yield of 2.54%. If a 10-year corporate bond has a yield of 4.6%, then the corporate bond offers a spread of 206 basis points over the Treasury note.
Credit spreads vary based on the credit rating of the bond issuer. Debt issued by the U.S. Treasury is used as the benchmark (because it's risk-free). As the default risk of the issuer increases, its spread widens. In general, when interest rates are declining, the credit spread narrows. The spread is demonstrated as the yield curve of the corporate bond and is plotted with the term structure of interest rates.
Treasury yield curves are a leading indicator for the future state of the economy and interest rates.
Learn about the types of bonds you should consider investing in, when you should be buying them and how to compare yields against their time to maturity.


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15January 2020
TextJessica Heron-Langton
via Instagram (@openingceremony)
Opening Ceremony is shutting up shop after 18 years
Closing ceremony, you might say
After 18-years, Opening Ceremony, the American clothing brand and retailer, has decided to close its doors. Starting off as a brick and mortar shop in Lower Manhattan in 2002, the company has gone to gain a cult following. Supporting young designers, collaborating with the likes of Chloë Sevigny, and creating collections of its own, the decision to shut up shop was announced on the label's Instagram last night.
"It's incredibly emotional for us to announce today that we will be closing our Opening Ceremony retail locations sometime in 2020," the brand's founders, Carol Lim and Humberto Leon wrote. "We've made a decision to focus on growing Opening Ceremony collection and brand… (which) takes the beautiful spirit of experimentation, fun and collaboration embodied in our stores and imbues this energy into the clothing we make."
This news follows the acquisition of Opening Ceremony by Italian fashion company New Guards Group, owned by Farfetch. Announced yesterday, the group, which also owns Off-White, went onto state its plans to relocate Opening Ceremony's in-house production line to Milan and move the retailer's website to Farfetch.
Opening Ceremony has gained a legion of fans for its fresh take on the fashion retail experience, but Lim and Leon cited that the changing fashion landscape, which has affected how people shop, as part of their decision to close its four shops in LA, Japan, and New York.
"In this time of immense change in the way that people shop, we still believe in the power of passionate unique retail. But we also believe in the necessity for change, reflection, and an opportunity to refresh," they said.
However, the post did allude that this decision may only be temporary, with the brand hoping to "come back with an experience that is just as inspiring, filled with love and relevant for the years ahead as Opening Ceremony has been."
Going on to thank their collaborators, friends, family, and employees, Lim and Leon said, "as children of immigrants who grew up in the suburbs… we feel incredibly lucky to have been able to even start this company. It is a thank you to you and to everyone who has stepped foot in our stores, offices, (and) fashion shows."
FashionNewsopening ceremonyCarol Limhumberto leon
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Teen missing from Minto located
New research reveals resilience of Scots pine trees to drought
Don't follow herd: How governments' tough Covid restrictions can help limit economic damage
New resource helps parents bring stories to life in lockdown
Ancient DNA shines light on Caribbean prehistory
Why some people report 'hearing dead'
Snap-freezing reveals a truer structure of brain connections
May 19, 2020 11:02 pm AESTDate Time
Researchers are developing methods to monitor COVID-19 virus through community's wastewater
Researchers are developing methods to monitor the COVID-19 virus through the community's wastewater
By Harrison Tasoff
Unlike many of the viruses we routinely encounter, SARS-CoV-2 has a long incubation period. People can be infectious for nearly a week before symptoms appear and prompt them to get tested. Others don't develop symptoms at all.
But these silent infections may still leave a telltale signal whenever we flush our toilets. Researchers working in Patricia Holden's lab at UC Santa Barbara are working on techniques to use wastewater to monitor infection rates in the local community.
"There's a lot of information in wastewater," said Laurie Van De Werfhorst, a senior staff scientist in the Holden lab. "What we eat, any drugs we take, these things get excreted through your body and enter the wastewater stream." That means a sample of the wastewater flowing into a treatment plant can provide scientists with a snapshot of what's happening in the population served by that facility.
The idea of sewage surveillance has gained traction among researchers and public health officials worldwide. In fact, scientists across the globe are discussing their methodologies in an effort to develop a set of best practices.
Van De Werfhorst and her colleagues are looking for the genetic signature of the virus, SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater. The team specializes in environmental water quality, focusing on the Santa Barbara area, especially in surveying water for signs of pathogens. The only difference in this case is that coronaviruses use RNA, rather than DNA, as their genetic code.
In mid-April, the researchers began collecting and processing samples weekly from
El Estero Water Resource Center in Santa Barbara and the Montecito Sanitary District wastewater treatment plant. Due to the nature of their work, the campus's Office of Research has allowed them to continue during the campus-wide research shutdown.
The team plans to begin analyzing samples soon. "We hope to have data in hand this summer," Van De Werfhorst said.
The researchers have two main goals for this stage of the project. First, they want to develop an understanding now of how this virus is circulating in the community. Second, they want to build capacity for the future. Ideally, they'd like to be able to quantify changes in the wastewater's viral load over time and see how this change relates to the number of people testing positive for COVID-19.
In theory, wastewater monitoring should be able to detect trends before hospitals can because people will shed viruses during the incubation period, before they think to go to the hospital and get tested. "Hopefully, if everything works this can be used as a tool to inform local agencies so that they can make decisions," said Van De Werfhorst.
This is only the first part of a two-project effort that Holden and her colleagues have planned. The initial phase is supported by the Associated Students' Coastal Fund, and will continue through June. The team is working on securing funding to expand their research into a monitoring project that spans other regional wastewater treatment plants and facilities.
"We want to have processes in place and understand how to do this before the predicted second wave of COVID-19 hits this fall," Van De Werfhorst said.
Tags:community, covid-19, DNA, hospital, infection, project, public health, quality, research, Scientists, students, surveillance, testing, UC Santa Barbara, university, viruses, wastewater treatment, water quality
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Deepa Shah wins Asian Women of Achievement Award for Business
Hall & Partners is a strategic brand consultancy, powered by data and insight
The Asian Women of Achievement [AWA] Awards, in association with NatWest, announced the winners of the 2016 Awards at an event in London last night. The Awards, now in their 17th year, celebrate the contributions made by Asian women both professionally and in their communities, cutting across a broad range of sectors in British life from business and media to sport, culture and public service.
Deepa serves as one of the youngest CFOs within the DAS Group of Companies. Since 2011, Deepa has led the development of the businesses in Dubai, South Africa, Asia and Australia. She is responsible for M&A and the overall finance function of each of the European and Asian businesses. She also serves as a strategic partner to the Global CEO and leadership teams. With a career at Hall & Partners spanning almost 17 years, Deepa is always "tenacious, perceptive, and diligent" says Global CEO, Vanella Jackson.
The diversity of this year's winners highlights that Asian women in Britain are bucking stereotypes while making an enormous contribution to British life.
Pinky Lilani CBE DL, Founder, Asian Women of Achievement Awards said, "We are thrilled for all the winners, who are united by their passion and inspirational achievements. The diversity of this year's winners highlights that Asian women in Britain are bucking stereotypes while making an enormous contribution to British life. I am immensely proud to stand alongside this inspiring group of women."
Les Matheson, CEO, Personal & Business Banking, NatWest said: "NatWest is proud to be a part of Asian Women of Achievement for the 5th year running. Once again, the awards have demonstrated the talent and determination of a remarkable group of British Asian women. My congratulations to the winners and all those shortlisted, who I'm sure will continue to achieve great success."
2018 EphMRA award win: Business Impact through Innovation
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Dr. Chung is a pediatrician practicing in Palisades Park, NJ. He was educated at Hanyang University College of Medicine in 1981.
Dr. Kim is a family practitioner practicing in Elmhurst, NY. He was educated at Universidade do Oeste Paulista (UNOESTE) Faculdade de Medicina in 1989.
Dr. Macias is a internal medicine doctor practicing in New York, NY. She was educated at State University of New York Upstate Medical University in 1998.
Dr. Lam is a pediatrician practicing in Brooklyn, NY. She was educated at New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2007.
Dr. Zeng is a pediatrician practicing in Flushing, NY. She was educated at Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-Sen University in 1988.


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BBC Programme Colin Jackson
Athletics - 2010 - British Grand Prix
Live coverage from the British Grand Prix at Gateshead's International Stadium.
Athletics - 2010 - Brussels Diamond League
Live coverage from the Brussels Grand Prix, the final Diamond League meeting of the year.
Athletics - 2010 - Paris Diamond League
Coverage from the Stade de France as Paris plays host to its first Diamond League meeting.
Athletics: European Team Championships - 2011 - Day 1
Coverage of the annual European Team Championships from Stockholm.
Celebrity MasterChef - Series 5 - Episode 2
Celebrities including Colin Jackson and Tricia Penrose face gruelling cookery challenges.
Commonwealth Games - 2010 - Day 3, Part 4
The men's 5000m final and 100m round 2, and the women's 100m and 400m round 1 in athletics
John Inverdale and the team present track and field action, including the men's 100m final
John Inverdale hosts athletics action, including the women's 1,500m and 10,000m finals.
Coverage of the women's 5000m final and the women's and men's 4x400m finals.


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Oak Park Heights seeks more information before deciding on Sunnyside no-wake zone
City Council holds hearing, decides to gather data about boating enforcement before moving ahead.
By Greg Seitz | October 2, 2018 | 1 minute read
Sunnyside Marine on the St. Croix River (Photo by Greg Schulz, Pictures Over Stillwater)
At a public hearing attended by about 50 people last week, the Oak Park Heights city council decided to defer action on a request by Sunnyside Marina to seek a no-wake zone on the St. Croix River in front of the marina.
Sunnyside says large wakes are creating unsafe conditions for employees and boaters at the marina.
The Stillwater Gazette reported that concerns emerged at the meeting that there is too little enforcement of existing wake rules:
The council ultimately took no stance, voting instead to send letters to the agencies in charge of patrolling the St. Croix River detailing community concerns and requesting data on the number of boaters ticketed for wake violations near Sunnyside Marina. The council voted unanimously.
The National Park Service, U.S. Coast Guard, Minnesota and Wisconsin DNRs, and the St. Croix and Washington County Sheriff's Offices are responsible for patrolling river waters, said Oak Park Heights Police Chief Brian DeRosier.
The council may consider a resolution on the matter at its next meeting, on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 6 p.m.


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