At the doors of the BBC

By way of a bonus post, here’s the speech I made outside the BBC offices and studios on Leeds on Wednesday night at a protest over the BBC’s failure to show the Gaza appeal.

Welcome and thanks to all who’ve made it here today. These last few weeks have seen an exciting rise in protests around Britain. Hundreds of thousands have marched in dozens of cities around Britain, whilst over 15 Universities, plus many shops and supermarkets, banks and broadcasting centres have been occupied in response to this latest outrage. It’s been both heartening to see so much activity, and at the same time, very tiring.

There she stands at Liverpool Street

Either I’ve forgotten it, or I’ve simply never gotten round to writing about one place in London that really inspires me. Outside Liverpool Street station stands a bronze statue of a small girl, passed by hundreds of thousands each day, and yet I as I stand by her, I wonder at how few must even realise she’s there. She is memorial to the Kindertransport, and she always reminds me of the amazing things humans can achieve.

Temperatures Down, Disasters Up

I recently read an article in the Telegraph by some Climate Change denier, insistent on using the term “Global Warming” despite its being somewhat defunct, trying to claim that, because we’ve just seen a dip in temperatures over the last two years, we should think talk of Climate Change is mere opportunistic twaddle. Well, temperatures might be down, but one industry is still convinced its in trouble…

BBC Refuses Gaza Aid Appeals (Monday Action)

The Disasters and Emergencies Committee of the leading International Aid charities in Britain have announced an appeal to get aid into Gaza. The BBC, who have shown videos for such appeals when connected with African conflicts on many occaisions, have refused. Put simply, I find this unacceptable.

Please write to/phone the BBC to complain. This isn’t about Hamas, this isn’t about Zionism, this is about finding food, medical supplies and shelter for the thousands of innocent victims in the recent invasion.

Green New Deal: Deal or No Deal?

Couldn’t resist that rather terrible invocation of one of TV’s most bizarre characters. Its definitely quite a topical idea, this Green New Deal, and everyone seems to be talking about it. In fact, its quite disconcerting to hear both those in government and in parts of the Climate Change movement talking the same language suddenly. But what are the dangers of this approach, and what should we be cautious of.

Out of a bad beginning…

I got home yesterday just in time to see all but the first few words of the speech Obama made to a crowd so vast it has only once been matched in British history. It wasn’t exuberant. It wasn’t overly optimistic. But it did display the kind of grinding courage needed to think there might one day be light at the end of the tunnel. It is a speech many radicals, and probably many of my friends, would only have watched to sneer at, but I think I saw in it a glimpse of just what Obama might be up to, something exciting, if not totally satisfying.

Pick n Mix Week 3

So, as its a Friday, its time for some silliness. Purple Tomatoes, Wonky Carrots, Presidential Pooches, and a new way of mass-fliering in Korea. Somethings just can’t be made up…

Silence broken…

World ‘needs radical cuts’ on CO2

My goodness, its only take most of three weeks to get us to our first reiteration of this classic headline since before Christmas. I guess this is  a record for the last two years, and also, of course, quite largely a result of the Israel-Gaza conflict shoving things out of the news, and with it, out of people’s minds. I’d like to claim I’m not including myself in that instance of the word “people”, but it must be said, desperate as both situations are, the one (Palestine) has utterly distracted me from the other.

Pick n Mix Week 2

And so for another, shorter, instalment of news stories that caught my eye a while ago and which I wish to post. Its Somali Pirates, Penitent Police and Transgender Genetics today!

Pick n Mix Week 1

Decided to have a Pick n Mix week, as I’ve currently got 74 BBC news stories saved on my RSS feeder, and at least this way that number could come down swiftly. Today, Wednesday and Friday, I’ll be picking on a number of stories to relate which probably won’t have much common theme running between them, but we’ll see.