Author Archives: Natalie Bennett

The mind metaphor?

July 14, 2006 – 7:02 am

Over on My London Your London I’ve got a review of the BAC show A Lie of the Mind, by Sam Shepherd. Is it a metaphor for the state of America in the word? If not, why not?

Permalink | Comment (0)

Greek comedy as you didn’t know it

July 13, 2006 – 8:42 am

Interesting piece on In Our Time this morning on Greek comedy – described as being most like seeing Oh! What a Lovely War. I also liked the news that agone (sp?), from which we get agony, was the ancient Greek for competition. (And they were very keen on competitions, even having them for ploughing.)

You can listen on a computer or by podcast. Well worth it.

Permalink | Comment (0)

£20/day congestion charge. Excellent

July 13, 2006 – 8:28 am

Still only talk, buy London’s mayor is talking about a £20 congestion charge for Chelsea tractors. Even people with more money than sense like their owners are, I suspect, going to notice £100 a week. On some things we are, however, glacially, heading in the right direction.

And even the talk will hopefully make people think before they buy one.

Permalink | Comment (0)

An editor’s dream Australian story

July 13, 2006 – 8:25 am

What editors really want out of Australia are stories about sharks, crocodiles and other dangerous beasts (despite the fact such things are rare) devouring humans – preferably young, blonde female humans. Failing that, a pretty child cuddling a cut marsupial will do. (If you’re an Australian editor, you want these stories out of the Northern Territory.)

Thus, the perfect Australian story: KILLER KANGAROO. That it lived abour 10 million years ago is a mere technical detail, although that it is accompanied by “the demon duck of doom” doesn’t do any harm.

“There were meat-eating kangaroos with long fangs, and galloping kangaroos with long forearms, which could not hop,” he told The Australian newspaper.
Palaeontologist Sue Hand, who also participated in the dig, told Australian radio that other potentially frightening creatures were unearthed.
“Very big birds… More like ducks, earned the name demon ducks of doom, some at least may have been carnivorous,” she said.

Permalink | Comment (0)

Taking a pot shot at estate agents

July 12, 2006 – 4:58 pm

Over on Comment is Free I’m saying why I think the new house seller’s packs in the UK are a good idea. Sorry if it is a bit middle-class dinner table, but who can resist taking a pot shot at estate agents?

Permalink | Comment (0)

One father’s rights issue I do agree with

July 12, 2006 – 8:10 am

This story illustrates another legal barbarity (see below), but also that some sanity has finally prevailed. Here a baby born on June 30 was technically left stateless because his parents were unmarried. From July 1, however, the father’s status as a parent is recognised.

Under Section 9 of the Nationality Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, which came into force this month, children born to unmarried parents can take their nationality from their father.
Mr Poole said: “You don’t have to get permission to be in any EU country any more, but all the old laws to do with your child’s nationality still applied until now.
“Fathers had no status or rights unless they were husbands too, so it’s good they have changed the law, but they should take consideration of people like Leo who have already been caught out. It’s outrageous.”

The next step must surely be to make this retrospective. I know some people affected by this, and they might be forced at some stage, against their principles, to marry, which is ludicrous. There surely must be the possibility of a human rights case in this.

Permalink | Comment (0)

« Previous Page — Next Page »

« Previous Page — Next Page »