Ireland may be the league leaders when it comes to Eurovision song titles but they won't be adding to their seven wins this year because the European public blew them a big fat raspberry and kicked their bland offering out at the semi-final stage.
Hosts and last years winners Sweden are second in the league with six wins and then comes the UK, France and Luxembourg with five wins each although Luxembourg seem to have given up and have refused the invite to come to the party since 1994.
The Netherlands have won four times and then Israel, Norway and Denmark have three wins each but if the bookies are correct then it will be Russia notching up their first win this year and having heard all the songs they will be up there amongst the leaders.
After coming a respectable fifth place in last year’s contest, pretend Europeans Australia are back again and represented by Australian X-Factor winner Dami Im and they are second favourites with Ukraine, France and then Sweden expected to take up the top five positions on the scoreboard.
The UK's entry is a long 80/1 shot and as our recent record includes only finishing in the top 10 twice since 1999 we are more likely to be sat on the sidelines with the other fat, wheezy countries when the results come in which is a disgraceful way for our Euro cousins to treat the country that gave the World the Spice Girls, S Club 7, Steps, Susan Boyle, ok..point taken.
Friday, 13 May 2016
Wednesday, 11 May 2016
Welcoming USA To Eurovision
The Eurovision Song Contest is called the 'Biggest Party in the World' but not being ones to hog all the fun to ourselves, we often send out special invites to other nations not under the European Flag.
Australia was invited to the Party last year and although there was initial worries that it would down too many tinnies and either make a drunken grope at Malta or leave our front room filled with vomit, they were so well behaved that we have asked them if they want to come back this year, an invite they have readily accepted.
Israel is another country that we have invited to come on over to join our party and i am happy to say that although there was an episode when they tried to take over the neighbours garden and another when it tried to build a wall out of lego around Luxembourg, it has generally been on its best behaviour even if it does tend to avoid the ham sandwiches and crabsticks.
This year we have asked America to the Party although not to participate, just to watch, don't want any of that 'My-pick-up-truck-ran-over-my-dog' style Country & Western here thank you very much.
We have ordered more hot dogs and burgers, have set up rooms at the borders to check your guns and have put you at the other end of the table from Russia so welcome to our party USA but be warned, you start up that 'USA-USA' chant thing and you are out.
PS..you may want to use the toilet at home before you get here, European toilets are open to boys, girls and anyone in between.
Australia was invited to the Party last year and although there was initial worries that it would down too many tinnies and either make a drunken grope at Malta or leave our front room filled with vomit, they were so well behaved that we have asked them if they want to come back this year, an invite they have readily accepted.
Israel is another country that we have invited to come on over to join our party and i am happy to say that although there was an episode when they tried to take over the neighbours garden and another when it tried to build a wall out of lego around Luxembourg, it has generally been on its best behaviour even if it does tend to avoid the ham sandwiches and crabsticks.
This year we have asked America to the Party although not to participate, just to watch, don't want any of that 'My-pick-up-truck-ran-over-my-dog' style Country & Western here thank you very much.
We have ordered more hot dogs and burgers, have set up rooms at the borders to check your guns and have put you at the other end of the table from Russia so welcome to our party USA but be warned, you start up that 'USA-USA' chant thing and you are out.
PS..you may want to use the toilet at home before you get here, European toilets are open to boys, girls and anyone in between.
Surviving The Global Warming Devastation
'We’re going into very new territory' explained the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration as they report that the world is hurtling towards global concentrations of carbon dioxide tipping over the 400 parts per million milestone.
The Southern Hemisphere atmospheric measuring station in Australia is poised at 399.9ppm while the station in the Northern Hemisphere went above 400ppm in 2013.
'We wouldn’t have expected to reach the 400ppm mark so early' said David Etheridge, an atmospheric scientist from the CSIRO, which runs the Australian measuring station, 'CO2 Concentrations are growing fast as warmer land areas release carbon. So we would have otherwise expected it to happen later in the year. No matter what the world’s emissions are now, we can decrease growth but we can’t decrease the concentration'.
This year has seen record hot global ocean temperatures, air surface temperatures has been breaking annual and monthly temperature records and in a great bit of understatement, the NOAA signed of with a sigh of 'It’s pretty ugly when you look at it'.
Decades of warnings have gone unheeded so it may be that we have carelessly crossed a tipping point so it's a case of it may be too late and our own foolishness has bought natures cataclysm upon us so time to limit the effects of devastating runaway global warming with lessons on how to survive it.
If that includes constructing huge biospheres or shifting our cities underground then we should make the move towards investigating the options we have so that the population of the Earth can survive our own absurdity.
The Southern Hemisphere atmospheric measuring station in Australia is poised at 399.9ppm while the station in the Northern Hemisphere went above 400ppm in 2013.
'We wouldn’t have expected to reach the 400ppm mark so early' said David Etheridge, an atmospheric scientist from the CSIRO, which runs the Australian measuring station, 'CO2 Concentrations are growing fast as warmer land areas release carbon. So we would have otherwise expected it to happen later in the year. No matter what the world’s emissions are now, we can decrease growth but we can’t decrease the concentration'.
This year has seen record hot global ocean temperatures, air surface temperatures has been breaking annual and monthly temperature records and in a great bit of understatement, the NOAA signed of with a sigh of 'It’s pretty ugly when you look at it'.
Decades of warnings have gone unheeded so it may be that we have carelessly crossed a tipping point so it's a case of it may be too late and our own foolishness has bought natures cataclysm upon us so time to limit the effects of devastating runaway global warming with lessons on how to survive it.
If that includes constructing huge biospheres or shifting our cities underground then we should make the move towards investigating the options we have so that the population of the Earth can survive our own absurdity.
Damn You EU!!
The European commission has blocked Three’s £10.25bn takeover of O2 on competition grounds, saying the takeover would probably increase prices and reduce choice for consumers.
It would have given Three over 40% of UK mobile phone users with in excess of 30 million customers and reduced the number of network owners from four to three.
The EU Commission explained: 'Our investigation revealed significant competition concerns with this deal. It would very likely have led to higher prices and less choice for UK consumers' which has seen the Brexit crowd stepping in to condemn EU meddling.
They of course have a point, the bloody EU. Protecting our consumer rights, looking after our best interests and encouraging competition to keep prices down. Who the hell do they think they are??
Boo hiss@EU etc etc!
It would have given Three over 40% of UK mobile phone users with in excess of 30 million customers and reduced the number of network owners from four to three.
The EU Commission explained: 'Our investigation revealed significant competition concerns with this deal. It would very likely have led to higher prices and less choice for UK consumers' which has seen the Brexit crowd stepping in to condemn EU meddling.
They of course have a point, the bloody EU. Protecting our consumer rights, looking after our best interests and encouraging competition to keep prices down. Who the hell do they think they are??
Boo hiss@EU etc etc!
How Can Nigeria Be Corrupt?
The Prime Minister has been overheard claiming Nigeria and Afghanistan are 'two of the most corrupt countries in the world', but is he right?
Not according to Transparency International (TI) who have Nigeria 30th in their corruption league table although Afghanistan is proudly sat in second place.
The TI top ten most corrupt countries countdown is North Korea as most corrupt followed by Somalia, Afghanistan, Sudan, Angola, South Sudan, Iraq, Libya, Haiti and Guinea-Bissau.
Some may be surprised that Britain is 158 out of the 168 countries listed which makes us almost so clean we practically squeak especially in light of all the recent dodgy expenses claims and Tax evasion revelations.
What some more sharp eyed readers may notice is that the top ten contains three countries where we have overthrown the ruling regime recently and installed our own guys to run things. How's that working out then?
Besides, Nigeria cant be that corrupt, only recently i received an email telling me that i was the recipient of a couple of million pounds left to me by a relative i didn't even realise i had and all i had to do was to send them my bank details and they would transfer it into my account.
Okay, so it may be taking longer than expected but how can a country be corrupt when they are going out of their way to contact people and hand over millions when they could have kept quiet and kept it to themselves.
Expecting it in my account any day now, thanks Nigeria!
Not according to Transparency International (TI) who have Nigeria 30th in their corruption league table although Afghanistan is proudly sat in second place.
The TI top ten most corrupt countries countdown is North Korea as most corrupt followed by Somalia, Afghanistan, Sudan, Angola, South Sudan, Iraq, Libya, Haiti and Guinea-Bissau.
Some may be surprised that Britain is 158 out of the 168 countries listed which makes us almost so clean we practically squeak especially in light of all the recent dodgy expenses claims and Tax evasion revelations.
What some more sharp eyed readers may notice is that the top ten contains three countries where we have overthrown the ruling regime recently and installed our own guys to run things. How's that working out then?
Besides, Nigeria cant be that corrupt, only recently i received an email telling me that i was the recipient of a couple of million pounds left to me by a relative i didn't even realise i had and all i had to do was to send them my bank details and they would transfer it into my account.
Okay, so it may be taking longer than expected but how can a country be corrupt when they are going out of their way to contact people and hand over millions when they could have kept quiet and kept it to themselves.
Expecting it in my account any day now, thanks Nigeria!
Tuesday, 10 May 2016
Over To You Scully
The X-Files told us the truth is out there but if it is then the latest place is India.
In January Indian Air Force (IAF) radar controllers identified a strange shaped object near the border of India and Pakistan and scrambled a fighter jet to intercept it.
The pilot shot down the object and wreckage of the unidentified object fell nearby where IAF officials quickly moved to recover the parts.
The IAF only revealed that they have found five triangular pieces of metal that are undergoing further
examination and put out the 'official explanation' that the object was that old faithful, a weather balloon.
However, villagers in the area offer more details to this story, saying that during the chase by the fighter pilot they heard a serious of loud explosions which reverberated through the area and damaged buildings.
Eerie parallels with the famous 1947 Roswell incident in the United States with the same explanation of a 'weather balloon'.
Another one to put in the files marked 'Nothing to see here', especially as it is currently being held out of sight under high security in an Indian laboratory.
In January Indian Air Force (IAF) radar controllers identified a strange shaped object near the border of India and Pakistan and scrambled a fighter jet to intercept it.
The pilot shot down the object and wreckage of the unidentified object fell nearby where IAF officials quickly moved to recover the parts.
The IAF only revealed that they have found five triangular pieces of metal that are undergoing further
examination and put out the 'official explanation' that the object was that old faithful, a weather balloon.
However, villagers in the area offer more details to this story, saying that during the chase by the fighter pilot they heard a serious of loud explosions which reverberated through the area and damaged buildings.
Eerie parallels with the famous 1947 Roswell incident in the United States with the same explanation of a 'weather balloon'.
Another one to put in the files marked 'Nothing to see here', especially as it is currently being held out of sight under high security in an Indian laboratory.
Monday, 9 May 2016
Invictus Games Doesn't Sit Right
Not that i ever give George W Bush any credit for anything but at least i thought he had the decency to keep his head down after what he did in Iraq and Afghanistan but that has been blown out of the water as he turned up at the Invictus Games, the games which he did so much to create the participants for in the first place.
Bush clearly he has no shame or conscience and what were the veterans thinking applauding him when he dragged his carcass onto the stage, clapping for the man who was directly responsible for sending them to get their limbs forcibly removed by IED's and rocket propelled rockets.
The Invictus Games does leave me with an uneasy feeling of whitewashing over the recent wars of Great Britain and the USA, accepting the wars that wounded these men and women in the first place so we sympathise with our boys rather than the million plus dead, wounded and permanently disabled we left behind in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Seeing George Bush up on the stage being treated like he was some kind of hero by the very same people he sent to war under false pretences really doesn't sit right with me, especially as he would be better suited to a stage in the Hague rather than 'celebrating' with the military who got injured causing so much pain and misery to other people.
I will go out of my way to avoid it, feels too much like a celebration and acceptance of what we did.
Yes it is terrible to see injured veterans but they were there in the terms of their employment, they got paid to do what they did while a million dead Iraqis and Afghans had no choice, they were trapped between the tanks and fighter jets dropping bombs on them from on high.
Bush clearly he has no shame or conscience and what were the veterans thinking applauding him when he dragged his carcass onto the stage, clapping for the man who was directly responsible for sending them to get their limbs forcibly removed by IED's and rocket propelled rockets.
The Invictus Games does leave me with an uneasy feeling of whitewashing over the recent wars of Great Britain and the USA, accepting the wars that wounded these men and women in the first place so we sympathise with our boys rather than the million plus dead, wounded and permanently disabled we left behind in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Seeing George Bush up on the stage being treated like he was some kind of hero by the very same people he sent to war under false pretences really doesn't sit right with me, especially as he would be better suited to a stage in the Hague rather than 'celebrating' with the military who got injured causing so much pain and misery to other people.
I will go out of my way to avoid it, feels too much like a celebration and acceptance of what we did.
Yes it is terrible to see injured veterans but they were there in the terms of their employment, they got paid to do what they did while a million dead Iraqis and Afghans had no choice, they were trapped between the tanks and fighter jets dropping bombs on them from on high.
Transit Of Mercury
In the great scheme of things the Earth is but a minute speck in the infinite massiveness of space, the
equivalent of a grain of sand on a far flung beach off the beaten track.
You can talk and read about the planets all you like but it isn't until you actually see them that they become real and today we had the opportunity to see the smallest planet in our Solar System, the one that sits closest to the Sun as it made its way in it's orbit across the face of the Sun.
You could fit approximately 21 million Planet Mercuries inside the Sun but that is again just something you can only imagine, the sheer size of things is just an idea in your head until you actually visualise events such as today when the Planet a little larger than our moon was dwarfed by the star at the center of our solar system.
That said, the solar filter stayed in the bag today as 100% cloud cover here put paid to any notion of seeing the transit but i know many schools and colleges were successful at gazing at the wonder and hopefully seeing the actual Universe in motion will fire the imagination of many students to look up and question just what is above their heads in the wondrous night sky.
equivalent of a grain of sand on a far flung beach off the beaten track.
You can talk and read about the planets all you like but it isn't until you actually see them that they become real and today we had the opportunity to see the smallest planet in our Solar System, the one that sits closest to the Sun as it made its way in it's orbit across the face of the Sun.
You could fit approximately 21 million Planet Mercuries inside the Sun but that is again just something you can only imagine, the sheer size of things is just an idea in your head until you actually visualise events such as today when the Planet a little larger than our moon was dwarfed by the star at the center of our solar system.
That said, the solar filter stayed in the bag today as 100% cloud cover here put paid to any notion of seeing the transit but i know many schools and colleges were successful at gazing at the wonder and hopefully seeing the actual Universe in motion will fire the imagination of many students to look up and question just what is above their heads in the wondrous night sky.
What UK Steel Crisis?
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) have said that they were: 'determined to see as many MOD projects designed, built and manufactured here in the UK' with the British steel industry appearing to be in a state of collapse and a number of firms and tens of thousands of jobs at risk.
The UK Government therefore has ordered 100 tanks be built, problem is they are to be built in Spain using steel from Sweden.
Next week's Government aim to boost the alcohol trade by organising a piss up in a brewery has also been postponed.
The UK Government therefore has ordered 100 tanks be built, problem is they are to be built in Spain using steel from Sweden.
Next week's Government aim to boost the alcohol trade by organising a piss up in a brewery has also been postponed.
Sunday, 8 May 2016
Could Clinton Be Worse Than Trump?
Unless either gets run over by their tour bus in the next few weeks we can safely assume that the next American President will be either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump.Of course what either, if elected, does in America is no concern of us Europeans' but what will affect us is the course their foreign policy will take.
Donald Trump has come across as a xenophobic racist who should be kept well away from the corridors of power but we can only guess what he would do if in charge, Hillary Clinton on the other hand has a record of Secretary of State we can look back at and try and judge what way the wind blows with her.
She famously voted for the Iraq War, making a speech that included the now notorious intelligence failure that Saddam Hussein: 'has given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists'.
A lot of people were unwittingly sucked into the Blair and Bush lies used to justify the Iraq invasion but her record shows that she has backed every conflict America has been involved in since Afghanistan.
She was a key player in pushing an unenthusiastic President Obama into establishing a humanitarian no-fly zone in Libya. The bombing of Libya and the removal of Colonel Gaddafi was trumpeted as a success even after Libya descended into chaos, a situation she denied with the defence that Gaddafi's removal was followed up by two successful elections and any current problems are due to insufficient U.S. involvement since.
Drone strikes in Pakistan and Afghanistan surged under her command and the messes in Ukraine and Syria are due to her departments meddling.
In 2011, as Arab regimes were toppled in the Arab Spring, Hillary’s state department decided to withdraw diplomatic recognition from Syria. As Secretary of State, she stated that Syrian President Bashar Assad had lost his legitimacy and had to go and decided to actively arm the 'moderate opposition'.
Despite plenty of warnings, it soon became clear that the 'moderate opposition' forces the U.S. were assisting were Islamist's aligned with a branch of al-Qaeda who took the American weapons being offered, renamed themselves Islamic State and used them to wreak carnage in the region.
Now she is advocating a no-fly zone in Syria along the lines of the one that worked so awfully in Libya.
In the Ukraine, more meddling as the uprising saw Clinton's office pour $5 billion dollars into opposition factions to affect regime change which led to a coup against the elected government in 2014 and that infamous telephone call where it was decided who the post-coup leader should be.
Hillary Clinton is also an eager advocate of further expansion of NATO, Finland and Sweden are currently being discussed along with Georgia and Ukraine, who sit worryingly on an already irate Russia's borders.
An unashamed apologist for Israeli aggression against Palestine, Hillary's past record seems to show a choice between a man who exudes racism and Islamophobia who caters to the anti-immigrant right or a hawkish woman who has supported armed conflict at every single opportunity and done so much in such a short time to make multiple bad situations a whole lot worse.
If one is concerned about world peace it is a tough choice between the two but one thing we do know about Hillary is that as she is currently promoting upping the ante in Syria and the continuation of prodding Russia with a stick, she has not learned any lessons from the Syrian, Iraqi or Libyan conflicts she was involved in.
That could make her a far worse prospect then Donald Trump with regards to who is more likely to pour petrol on an already out of control fire.
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