27 January 2010

The execution of Ali Hassan al-Majeed

From the news BBC radio reports that I have heard, and the BBC website reports I have read, Ali Hassan al-Majeed, popularly known in the West as 'Chemical Ali', was a man with brutal values who acted on those values, resulting in the death of many thousands of people. In particular, he directed the persecution of Kurdish population in northern Iraq, the most celebrated attack being at Halabja in which 5,000 people died from the mustard gas attack he ordered. He also organised the crushing of Shi'ite communities after Iraq's war with Iran, and again after the First Gulf War (George Bush senior). For these war crimes he was sentenced to death on four counts. In addition, he co-ordinated the killing of less-than-loyal members of Saddam Husein's immediate family, of which he was also a member. It is difficult to imagine a man who, in the eyes of the world, more deserved to be executed for his crimes. Ali Hassan al-Majeed was executed by Iraqi authorities on Monday 25 January 2010.

I remain resolute in my belief that killing is wrong. The execution of this man not only enacts the belief that some people do not deserve to live, but also that I have - someone has - the moral right to determine the ending of a person's life. I do not have that right, and no-one should have that right other than the person themselves. I believe that, in its pre-meditation, execution is a morally worse act than accidental killing, say, in the commission of a robbery.

22 January 2010

War: skillful tactic or utter disaster?

War destroys. War destroys people, communities, culture and infrastructure. War only ever destroys. It is the process of rebuilding that picks up the pieces and rebuilds. Warfare always represents failure.

In her fascinating article, Diana Francis debunks the popular myth that war can be for good.

http://www.opendemocracy.net/5050/diana-francis/war-justifiable-or-simply-catastrophic

If death and destruction are to be reduced, warfare must stop. No exceptions. No excuses.
...

21 January 2010

Eric Blair: 25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950


From what I have read about him, Eric Blair was not an easy person to get along with, and enjoyed challenging the status quo. He had strongly-held political opinions and was reluctant to be silenced. He resigned from his job with the BBC because he opposed censorship. His family supported the British establishment, but he came to oppose it. Blair was a proponent of a federal socialist Europe, a position outlined in his 1947 essay Toward European Unity. He was left-wing in his politics, but was also highly critical of the left. He hated anything politically authoritarian, which is how he came to write Nineteen Eighty Four. In Why I Write (1946) he wrote "Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand it."

19 January 2010

Ranking the movies I have watched

I suspect that this is the start of a long posting that will take me an indefinite time to complete.

I joined criticker.com. This was in response to several Facebook Friends using a disappointingly shallow movie compatibility Facebook widget. Whilst I found Criticker through Facebook, I registered independently, and then created a link from my Criticker profile to my Facebook profile.

To date, I have ranked 208 movies, and listed them clumsily here below.

My Score
Film Name
Date Ranked
Comments
100
Amélie
Mar 08 2008, 20:00
100
Stalker
Mar 08 2008, 13:52
99
Rashomon
Mar 08 2008, 19:58
99
Shakespeare in Love
Mar 08 2008, 08:31
98
Drowning by Numbers
Mar 08 2008, 13:55
98
Much Ado About Nothing
Mar 13 2008, 00:25
98
Shirley Valentine
Mar 08 2008, 13:53
98
Solaris
Mar 08 2008, 13:54
97
The Lives of Others
Mar 13 2008, 00:21
97
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Mar 08 2008, 08:27
97
Spirited Away
Mar 08 2008, 13:57
96
12 Monkeys
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
96
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Mar 08 2008, 00:10
96
Delicatessen
Jul 06 2009, 21:47
96
Princess Mononoke
Mar 08 2008, 12:25
96
Ran
Mar 08 2008, 08:24
95
Cinema Paradiso
Mar 08 2008, 14:04
95
I Heart Huckabees
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
95
Jurassic Park
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
95
Jurassic Park III
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
95
Memento
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
95
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring
Mar 08 2008, 08:33
95
Witness
Mar 13 2008, 00:27
94
Contact
Mar 08 2008, 00:14
94
Grave of the Fireflies
Mar 08 2008, 13:58
94
Howl's Moving Castle
Jul 12 2008, 08:20
This anime is Miyazaki on top form. It is creative and imaginative. It moves along at a fast pace. The way that the character of Howl is only slowly revealed is masterful. Equally, we are left wondering throughout the movie whether Sophie is able to break the spell. It is wonderful to see a movie that really detests warfare.
94
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
94
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
94
Lost in Translation
Mar 08 2008, 12:30
94
Pan's Labyrinth
Jul 12 2008, 08:15
Although dark in subject matter, tone and lighting, this remains a magical movie. It feels to me to have a gritty existential feel to it, despite its exploration of magical realism. The military tension of just-post-Civil War Spain is well captured (also see El Espiritu de la Colmena). The acting of the central characters is good.
94
Whisper of the Heart
Mar 08 2008, 14:00
93
The English Patient
Mar 08 2008, 12:26
93
Manon of the Spring
Mar 08 2008, 13:50
93
Trainspotting
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
93
Twister
Mar 08 2008, 08:27
92
2001: A Space Odyssey
Mar 08 2008, 12:28
92
Blood Simple
Mar 08 2008, 09:25
92
Chicken Run
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
92
Death In Venice
Aug 16 2009, 16:08
92
Pitch Black
Mar 08 2008, 12:30
91
The Abyss
Mar 08 2008, 09:23
91
Bringing Out the Dead
Mar 08 2008, 09:22
91
Fargo
Jul 12 2008, 08:28
91
Fiddler on the Roof
Mar 08 2008, 20:02
91
The Lion in Winter
Aug 16 2009, 15:53
91
Smoke
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
90
The Bourne Identity
Mar 08 2008, 08:19
90
The Bourne Supremacy
Mar 08 2008, 12:31
90
The Fifth Element
Mar 08 2008, 20:03
90
Independence Day
Jul 06 2009, 21:46
90
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
Mar 08 2008, 12:33
90
Minority Report
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
90
Sideways
Mar 07 2008, 17:34
90
Stargate
Mar 08 2008, 12:27
89
The African Queen
Aug 16 2009, 15:55
89
The Chronicles of Riddick
Mar 08 2008, 14:05
89
Dune
Mar 08 2008, 08:23
89
Enemy of the State
Mar 08 2008, 09:25
89
Pulp Fiction
Mar 08 2008, 00:20
89
Sneakers
Mar 13 2008, 00:32
88
The Blues Brothers
Mar 08 2008, 00:16
88
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Jul 06 2009, 21:48
88
The Thomas Crown Affair
Mar 08 2008, 08:34
88
Titanic
Mar 08 2008, 00:18
88
Working Girl
Mar 08 2008, 14:02
87
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Mar 08 2008, 00:12
87
Groundhog Day
Mar 08 2008, 09:24
87
Lost in Space
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
87
Mission to Mars
Mar 08 2008, 12:34
87
Phone Booth
Mar 08 2008, 08:25
87
Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back
Mar 08 2008, 12:26
86
American Beauty
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
86
Educating Rita
Mar 08 2008, 14:01
86
The Full Monty
Mar 08 2008, 00:19
86
Mercury Rising
Mar 08 2008, 12:32
86
The Thomas Crown Affair
Aug 16 2009, 16:10
85
War of the Worlds
Mar 08 2008, 00:10
84
Cast Away
Mar 08 2008, 12:29
84
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
84
The Sixth Sense
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
83
Die Hard
Mar 08 2008, 00:11
83
Die Hard 2
Mar 08 2008, 12:25
83
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope
Mar 08 2008, 00:08
83
The Transporter
Mar 08 2008, 00:13
83
Wasabi
Jul 12 2008, 08:29
82
Gone in 60 Seconds
Mar 08 2008, 08:35
82
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Aug 16 2009, 15:54
82
Jean de Florette
Mar 09 2008, 00:12
81
Beverly Hills Cop II
Mar 08 2008, 12:32
81
Event Horizon
Mar 08 2008, 08:25
81
The Hours
Mar 08 2008, 00:21
81
I, Robot
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
81
Resident Evil
Mar 08 2008, 08:24
81
Sleepy Hollow
Mar 08 2008, 08:37
80
Citizen Kane
Mar 08 2008, 12:28
80
The Day After Tomorrow
Jul 06 2009, 21:44
80
Grosse Pointe Blank
Mar 08 2008, 00:08
80
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning
Jul 15 2008, 21:15
80
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Mar 08 2008, 08:20
80
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
Mar 08 2008, 00:11
80
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Mar 08 2008, 00:09
80
Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
79
Alfie
Jul 15 2008, 21:16
79
The Big Lebowski
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
79
The Castle in the Sky
May 02 2009, 21:58
79
Kundun
Mar 08 2008, 08:36
79
Manhattan
Mar 08 2008, 12:33
79
Psycho
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
78
K-PAX
Mar 08 2008, 00:18
78
Patriot Games
Mar 08 2008, 12:26
78
The Philadelphia Story
Aug 16 2009, 15:56
78
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
77
Deep Impact
Mar 08 2008, 08:27
77
Gladiator
Mar 08 2008, 08:34
76
An American Werewolf in London
Mar 08 2008, 08:31
76
Beetlejuice
Mar 08 2008, 12:29
76
One Hour Photo
Mar 08 2008, 12:30
76
When the Wind Blows
Mar 08 2008, 14:00
75
Being John Malkovich
Mar 08 2008, 08:26
74
The French Connection
Mar 08 2008, 08:36
74
Mad Max
Mar 08 2008, 08:27
74
Ocean's Eleven
Mar 08 2008, 08:32
74
Speed
Mar 08 2008, 08:22
73
The Hunt for Red October
Mar 08 2008, 00:13
73
Training Day
Mar 08 2008, 12:29
72
Ghostbusters
Jul 06 2009, 21:42
72
K-19: The Widowmaker
Mar 08 2008, 19:57
72
Signs
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
72
The Terminator
Mar 08 2008, 08:37
71
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Mar 08 2008, 08:37
71
Midnight Run
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
70
Tron
Jul 06 2009, 21:42
69
Kill Bill: Volume 1
Mar 08 2008, 09:25
68
Casino Royale
Mar 08 2008, 09:22
67
Analyze This
Mar 08 2008, 08:33
67
A Beautiful Mind
Mar 08 2008, 08:36
66
Murder by Numbers
Mar 08 2008, 08:18
66
Pleasantville
Mar 08 2008, 12:34
66
Radio Days
Mar 09 2008, 00:07
66
Speed 2: Cruise Control
Mar 08 2008, 12:34
65
Crocodile Dundee
Mar 08 2008, 12:30
65
Van Helsing
Mar 08 2008, 00:10
64
Jaws
Mar 08 2008, 08:32
64
The Mask of Zorro
Mar 08 2008, 08:31
63
Hudson Hawk
Mar 08 2008, 12:27
62
Grease
Mar 08 2008, 08:32
61
Notting Hill
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
60
Armageddon
Mar 08 2008, 12:25
60
Duel
Mar 08 2008, 00:15
60
The Matrix
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
60
North by Northwest
Mar 08 2008, 12:27
58
The Wicker Man
May 02 2009, 21:55
57
The Da Vinci Code
Jul 12 2008, 08:10
This movie is pulp with little style, although much of that is down to Dan Brown's pulp novel: the conspiracy is simply not much of a deal (cf. Enemy of the State). Was Tom Hanks on holiday when he acted in this movie - he remained unbelievable throughout. Audrey Tautou seemed out-of-genre. The only role I enjoyed was Ian McKellen when he was camping it up on his first appearance. Few of the sets are especially attractive, but I do not know whether this was due to the dark, muddy palette.
57
Men in Black II
Jul 06 2009, 21:46
56
Mary Reilly
Mar 08 2008, 09:24
55
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
May 02 2009, 21:57
54
The Terminal
Mar 08 2008, 00:15
53
Kill Bill: Volume 2
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
52
Maid in Manhattan
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
51
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
Mar 08 2008, 09:24
51
Fahrenheit 451
Jul 06 2009, 21:44
51
Firefox
Mar 08 2008, 08:30
51
Men in Black
Mar 07 2008, 17:34
51
Robocop
Mar 08 2008, 08:38
50
Demolition Man
Mar 08 2008, 08:19
50
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Mar 08 2008, 00:17
50
Saving Private Ryan
Mar 08 2008, 00:17
50
Ten
Mar 08 2008, 12:29
49
Lethal Weapon
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
49
Look Who's Talking
Mar 08 2008, 12:27
49
Mrs. Doubtfire
Mar 08 2008, 08:22
49
The Sting
Mar 08 2008, 08:37
49
Thunderball
Mar 08 2008, 12:32
48
Analyze That
Mar 08 2008, 00:16
48
Flight of the Navigator
Jul 06 2009, 21:43
48
Young Frankenstein
Mar 08 2008, 08:22
46
Singin' in the Rain
Mar 08 2008, 08:35
45
Back to the Future
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
45
Back to the Future Part III
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
45
The Breakfast Club
Mar 08 2008, 08:21
44
The Railway Children
Mar 09 2008, 00:10
42
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Mar 08 2008, 12:32
42
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Aug 16 2009, 16:06
42
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
Mar 08 2008, 09:23
41
As Good As It Gets
Mar 08 2008, 00:18
39
Predator
Mar 08 2008, 00:21
38
Goldfinger
Mar 08 2008, 00:16
37
Babe
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
36
Finding Nemo
Aug 16 2009, 16:06
36
Ice Age
Mar 08 2008, 08:23
36
Monsters, Inc.
Mar 08 2008, 08:20
36
Shrek
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
36
Toy Story
Mar 08 2008, 08:21
35
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Mar 08 2008, 00:20
35
Stuart Little
Mar 08 2008, 12:31
34
101 Dalmatians
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
34
The Lion King
Mar 08 2008, 08:22
34
Pinocchio
Mar 08 2008, 08:26
33
The Golden Child
Mar 08 2008, 08:36
33
The Neverending Story
Mar 08 2008, 08:31
32
Babe: Pig in the City
Mar 08 2008, 08:23
30
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
May 02 2009, 22:08
25
Bridget Jones's Diary
Mar 07 2008, 01:13
20
Dr. Dolittle
Mar 08 2008, 00:07
18
Robin Hood
Mar 08 2008, 08:33
12
All Dogs Go to Heaven
Mar 08 2008, 00:12
9
Scooby-Doo
Mar 08 2008, 08:19
1
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
Mar 07 2008, 01:13

16 January 2010

Halcyon day

Trudging once again the footpath that follows the icy riverbanks into Durham City this morning, approaching the Maiden Castle footbridge, I was blessed with the electric-turquoise streak of a kingfisher.

10 January 2010

Misdirection

I remember with some affection an old Quaker man named Bill. We served together on a committee, and talked on many occasions. In particular, I have never forgotten him telling me that for the first forty years of his life his mind was incredibly active, "like a steam train", but then he slowed down - as though he had run out of steam. He died some years ago, I think in his 80s, having been unwell for a short time. He died because he was old and tired, and his body found a way for him to let go. The focus of attention in the talk around his death, however, was directed towards the possibly-hospital-acquired-infection that killed him. Such talk was innocent, and understandable in the context of someone precious whose presence was missed.

An online article published on the BBC news website: http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8448000/8448807.stm
discusses a recently published report of research undertaken concerning the impact of grey squirrels on UK bird populations. The premise for the research was that various rarer species of bird are in decline because of predation by grey squirrels. The research, however, demonstrated that despite both red and grey squirrels helping themselves to the occasional nest egg, and snacking on unfortunate fledgelings, there is little if any evidence even to suggest, never mind show, that grey squirrels adversely affect any species of bird. Interestingly, the two bird species that suffer the greatest squirrel (both red and grey) predation are blackbirds and collared doves. Interesting, because those are the two bird species that are most in evidence in the village where I live, and there are letters in the local newspaper bemoaning the amount of noise made by the collared doves. It seems that, in line with the national population of collared doves, the number of local collared doves has increased. Significantly, this increase has been at a time when my sightings of grey squirrels, which were barely in evidence at all in Durham when I arrived in 1976, have become more frequent. It is not grey squirrels that are the predation threat to local avian life, it is domestic cats (including my own). Other research some years ago showed that domestic cat populations represent a significant threat to local populations of garden birds.

So why was this research on the impact of grey squirrels considered necessary? Supported by Charles Windsor, an outspoken voice for conservatism and rural autonomy, there have for a number of years been loud calls for the slaughter of grey squirrels 'to protect populations of indigenous red squirrels'. I remember in my childhood there were stories about the invasive North American grey squirrel driving Tufty to the edge of extinction. There was anecdotal evidence that grey squirrels, being larger, would beat up the red squirrels. (Would this have anything to do with the Second World War?) Squirrels fight, whether red or grey; I know because I have watched them. However, again, research undertaken thirty years ago showed that the decline in red squirrel populations tended to precede contact between the two populations: where Tufty had moved out leaving an ecological vacuum, the grey squirrel moved in. The anti-grey squirrel lobby countered with evidence showing that the red squirrel has no immunity to a virus (the parapox virus) to which the grey squirrel is immune. However, because the two squirrel populations have little contact, it is not principally the virus that has the red squirrel population in decline.

The main reason for the steady decline in the number of red squirrels in the British Isles is habitat degradation: the impact of people, industry and agricultural practices. Whilst grey squirrels are happy to live in Regent's Park, London, red squirrels cannot cope with people. Every area of the UK where red squirrel populations are hanging on is an area with a low human population density - this can been most clearly seen in Scotland where there are red squirrel populations either side of the Forth-Clyde corridor. There are few red squirrels in England.

It may be too late to preserve any natural populations of red squirrels in England. Their only chance may be managed reserves from which all environmental pressures have been removed. However, Tufty's fate is like that of the caged canary taken down a coal mine. The red squirrel lives or dies according to the ecological appropriateness of their habitat. The industrialisation of agriculture, including the use of herbicides, pesticides and genetically-modified crops; the 'management' of forests; the encroachment of industrial estates, trading estates and housing estates; the transformation of wildernesses into playgrounds for quad-biking, paint-balling, shooting hand-reared game birds (which seems all-pervasive around Durham): have together devoured the barely-touched and the out-of-the-way places. Wilderness has become urban hinterland, suburb, or an agribusiness resource. That is why the red squirrel has all-but-vanished from England. Yet, rather than challenge our own understanding of British society, and give thought to how it could and should be, well-resourced vested interest groups instead shout noisily about the cast of usual suspects, once again directing our attention to the grey squirrel.