tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61389722011-04-22T06:02:48.944+02:00And the rest I squanderedElegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comBlogger1541100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1151712478697279562006-07-01T02:02:00.000+02:002006-07-01T02:41:45.476+02:00

My first professional article has been posted today on The Local. It's about how in Sweden undocumented migrants, ie. failed asylum seekers or others living in hiding, should try very hard not to get ill.Bit of a step up from blogging: you need quotes and you have to make sure it's accurate - not just rant!It's been a long time.

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1139661144296652262006-02-11T12:52:00.000+01:002006-02-12T21:18:50.276+01:00

Shocked to see the worst of the Mohammed cartoons with my name next to it yesterday, I asked the editor of the Stockholm Spectator Stambord blog to do something about it: remove either my name or the cartoon from the front page; or let me explain my opinion. My name and all my previous articles are now gone from the site. But he has promised to let people read my explanation.I have spent the past

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1133605332081454772005-12-03T11:22:00.000+01:002005-12-03T12:02:24.446+01:00

George Best "performs brilliantly on a mudheap with a ball that won't bend while being kicked to perdition with official acquiescence".As David Lacey said in today's Guardian when trying to compare modern players with the legend.I'm sitting here listening to live coverage of his funeral on Five Live. I've definitely been affected by his death, as have so many others. Quite amazing really. Has

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1132273458955702302005-11-18T00:59:00.000+01:002005-11-19T22:46:10.650+01:00

All this talk of late about the US using white phosphorous as a weapon in Iraq. Admittedly, I've been out of the office in terms of the old angry political blogging I once dabbled in, but it isn't new.As a desperate attempt to reinstate myself in the blogosphere, I will mention that I referred to WP in the Stockholm Spectator last November; after reading Daily Kos. It seems Boing Boing also wrote

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1129761366891927422005-10-20T00:04:00.000+02:002005-10-20T00:42:29.313+02:00

This article by Johann Hari, first published in yesterday's Independent, reminded me of a line from an old Clash song:In a war-torn swamp stop any mercenary,And check the British bullets in his armouryJohann Hari confines his comments to British-made and -sold weapons being used in 10 out of the 14 current war zones in Africa. Whereas Joe Strummer was primarily talking about "Washington bullets"

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1128640823840349772005-10-07T01:14:00.000+02:002005-10-08T02:01:52.393+02:00

While disaffected British citizens planned suicide bomb carnage, were the government already planning policy on the back of beer mats? Or did they start afterwards? At least today they scrapped the preposterous "glorifying terror" proposal and will now re-word it to something more practical about "inciting terror".Meanwhile, is it the same intelligence service that scared us with WMDs in 45

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1128116877319709202005-09-30T23:39:00.000+02:002005-09-30T23:52:39.200+02:00

Couldn't submit comment to Manchester paper yeserday. Then I couldn't post on Blogger later. I'll try again now.--------------------------------------------------------------------Lost in the translationOr so went today's Manchester Evening News report on the "Queiroz calls Utd fans stupid" story. Being a United fan who should really have a job hanging out with Ronaldo and Queiroz for vast sums

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1127774715767768192005-09-27T00:45:00.000+02:002005-09-27T01:18:21.126+02:00

Won't say if I am in one of the buildings above as I write, just in case... But the theatre of local football dreams is clear, for any celestial talent scouts out there.Swedish rag Dagens Nyheter suggested Google Earth was addictive the other day. Mmm, I'm certainly getting into exploring it - and the world with it. What fun! And it's definitely better than getting addicted to Ladbrokes.com, or

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1126825658568549842005-09-16T00:38:00.000+02:002005-09-16T01:07:38.596+02:00

A chubby ten-year-old. Eyes darting around the floor. Carrying unhappiness in the heartbreaking way that a ten-year-old would. Because ten-year-olds should radiate the very essence, the fusion, of joie-de-vivre and carpe diem.Still, he's lovely, really nice; but tragically torn of self-confidence and empty of hope. He responds so kindly to encouragement that you'd imagine his appreciation of time

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1126392846626933482005-09-11T00:47:00.000+02:002005-09-11T01:02:12.563+02:00

Bush has called for his nation to respond to Katrina like they did to 9/11. Well, much of that response was, as we know, both awesome and shocking. I seem to recall the paper-thin dodginess of the evidence that Iraq might have had some sort of link to the people responsible for 9/11. Just how much firmer than say, the meeting of an Iraqi agent with a some-time al-Qaeda associate in Prague, is the

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1125588673636355162005-09-01T17:21:00.000+02:002005-09-01T17:32:29.000+02:00

1. I agree with what a Tory leadership contender says about a Labour leader: Blair made a catastrophic error about invading Iraq. Ken Clarke goes on to say Blair must be the only one who thinks Britain's involvement has nothing to do with the London bombings; American presidents aren't always right; and you should not rush into making dramatic changes to the law of the land.Don't remember hearing

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1125136721247706352005-08-27T11:53:00.000+02:002005-08-27T12:00:10.850+02:00

Fuse Radio is now online. Perfect start to the weekend here with Scotty's soulful mix.Getting me in a party mood as I begin cooking vegan food for 200 people, believe it or not. It'll be served alongside Peruvian chicken though, at today's street party in my neighbourhood in Stockholm.Great to have local non-profit initiatives happening. Just wish I'd gone to bed earlier last night!

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1124837797636274272005-08-24T00:56:00.000+02:002005-08-24T01:12:34.853+02:00

Femman is kind of kids' Swedish for the 5 metre board. And, as you might be able to see from the photo, the board is on a platform that is probably a metre above sea level too. May not seem much, but jumping off this was a pretty uplifting and satisfying moment for me this weekend. Jumping off it a second time was pure therapy.The board is on Barnens Ŗ or "Children's Island" a seemingly

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1124326949509981772005-08-18T02:23:00.000+02:002005-08-18T10:43:31.920+02:00

So, you land, from Stansted, at Zaragoza, get the half-hour train to Tudela de Navarra to meet your old friend. He's not there to meet you. OK, a mix-up. Get a taxi to his house. Nobody there. Now it's strange, but still, surely he'll have left a message, or he'll arrive any minute.No. Luckily, his friendly neighbours help you out: they tell you what happened and provide a bit of suddenly

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1124149304360099952005-08-16T01:30:00.000+02:002005-08-16T01:43:15.430+02:00

Danish symmetryIn the same way I always glance back at a new car I've just parked (even when it's old), I now find myself looking over my shoulder on the way out of the kitchen. It's so clean, yet a pan-and-dish-heavy meal was finished mere minutes ago. The dishwasher.I found myself wondering when I'll find stacking it a chore. It reminded me of, as a boy, pushing pedals uphill and imagining the

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1123719130658995602005-08-11T02:07:00.000+02:002005-08-11T02:15:17.920+02:00

Thoughts from a kickabout with Långholmen FCHe was gesturing determinedly that they should pass to him. I was right up against him. I had little choice as he was pushing his shoulders back into me. He had his left arm out, as if he wanted the pass to come to that side. Is he going to try and turn round that way, I wondered. Fair enough, he can't get far.He got the pass he wanted, leant further

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1123343374084989132005-08-06T17:49:00.000+02:002005-08-06T17:58:18.300+02:00

Home improvement?The campaigning has been relentless, and finally it has happened. A dishwasher has been installed and suddenly all will benefit from new time and harmony. Or so the theory goes.I felt a tear trying to ooze its way out this morning, as I did what may have been my final hand washing-up for ever. Then I read that wooden and plastic things can't go in... Will that be enough to stop

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1120263127935202932005-07-02T02:12:00.000+02:002005-07-02T03:17:23.530+02:00

Another way to liveA phone call about holiday plans shook me awake this evening. Like a suddenly forced door throwing a beam of sunlight into a distractingly-cluttered unlit room, one comment showed me the light.It feels like I've been planning flights and trains, preparing car trips and co-ordinating travelling companions for months now. Then finally, this evening I spoke to one of our imminent

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1120088440536007822005-06-30T01:40:00.000+02:002005-06-30T11:15:39.593+02:00

.So FC United will be gracing the Barton Stadium home of Winsford United next season. Wow!This article explains how the club formed by Man U fans who decided to set up their own fans' club and to hell with the big business, have just been allowed into North West Counties Two, where Winsford Utd play. Wow!Ah, climbing over the wobbling corrugated iron fence. Watching a match for free, like most

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1120002594255238462005-06-29T01:49:00.000+02:002005-06-29T02:05:54.693+02:00

Double rainbow gives orange glowSurprising sky line over south Stockholm gets man out of armchair to capture it for ever.Yeah, a lovely double rainbow, perhaps seen more authentically below, livened up a, to be honest, already charged summer hols evening.Something happening in the sky

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1119734531906479152005-06-25T23:22:00.000+02:002005-06-26T02:51:30.310+02:00

A small town 20 kms north of UppsalaTraditional midsummer celebrations in a rare old town with wooden houses still standing. All very quaint and comforting, though the beer tent and sign explaining the dance band played until 2 a.m. suggested all would be much messier later.Was it? Well, eight people died in assorted accidents -- par for the course, I presume. You see, they like a drink of a

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1119310894482104312005-06-21T01:15:00.000+02:002005-06-21T02:04:20.820+02:00

This morning I read about Carne Ross, a heroic British diplomat who wouldn't take it anymore, and gave up.This evening I read a piece by Tom Engelhardt that illustrates the world Ross left and how the mainstream media holds it in place by, for instance, redefining the term scandal.Engelhardt describes his shock at the American media's failure to cover the Downing Street memo scandal. For anyone,

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1119217514453654462005-06-19T23:45:00.000+02:002005-06-20T01:27:04.853+02:00

Midsummer sunrise at Stonehenge (2003)On Tuesday morning, 21 June, at 04.58 the sun will rise on the solstice. It will rise over the heelstone and shine straight through the gap to the central trilithon. Solstice is from Latin and means sun stands still. And it does: " During the year, the position of the sun seen from earth moves North and South. When it changes direction it stands still

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1118960330355970142005-06-17T00:18:00.000+02:002005-06-17T02:01:27.583+02:00

Personnebadet, June 16 2005While privatization creeps into healthcare and waiting lists grow at private schools in Stockholm, some things are still free. Like a cracked and faded Christmas bauble that's still hanging in a corner of the living room in February, this free municipal pool offers recreation to the residents of the Hägersten area of south Stockholm.But unlike that overlooked Christmas

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1118442866023910492005-06-11T00:31:00.000+02:002005-06-20T01:44:54.963+02:00

The joy of remembering you have no idea what goes on in the mind of someone you love. Boy switches off Game Boy Advance. "What time are you picking me up today mom?"Her eyes shine and her smile grows, just a little: "But I'm not dropping you off today. I'm staying with you the whole time."Boy raises eyebrows, looks puzzled.Her smile broadens more, her eyes glow: "Did you forget? Today is the last

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1118275369130871042005-06-09T02:02:00.000+02:002005-06-11T00:31:04.683+02:00

If anyone has seen something looking a bit like this and lying around, please let me know. Much to my surprise yesterday, I noticed a gaping hole where the grill (or is it grille?) of my old Saab used to be. What an odd thing to steal, or gouge off for fun.I'll be off down to the garage to look for salvation tomorrow."South Stockholm, xxxx, wish I was back in the jungle."

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1117925605812461292005-06-05T00:53:00.000+02:002005-06-05T01:44:39.210+02:00

Saturday's Independent reports "Lack of respect for MPs is blamed on first-past-the-post". A slightly scurrilous title, as when one looks at the article more closely, there are different reasons given for the lack of public respect for MPs and just one argument is that the unrepresentative British system is the main issue. The Government or New Labour representative blames media coverage for

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1117317617021122292005-05-29T00:00:00.000+02:002005-05-29T12:41:51.100+02:00

This is an on-going investigation. So far, all we know is there is a connection, but we cannot be certain how close the connection is.The faded photo on the right has been extracted from the group photo below: taken in O'Brien's pub , Haarlem, Holland, in March, 2005.It was only a day after this less athletic 21st C snap was taken, that a latter-day Irish seer noticed a connection between the

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1116367216004291472005-05-18T00:00:00.000+02:002005-05-18T00:24:14.263+02:00

I'll see you at -- your place!I've just watched the full 47-minute video of Galloway's testimony to the US Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations; via the BBC's website. What can you say? He went to the lions' den, and, to quote one "disconsolate" right-wing American blogger, "absolutely mopped the floor with Norm Coleman [the Senate Committee's Republican chairman]".Cojones, I think they say

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1115682349167730532005-05-10T01:45:00.000+02:002005-05-11T22:59:11.043+02:00

Seven-year-old gets autograph from very big man, at Harlem Globetrotters show in Stockholm, May 2005. I was uneasy before this afternoon's football training session. For a child to have seen grown (fully grown!) men slapping the referee on the bum, teasing their losing opponents, throwing buckets of water over spectators and generally being irreverent, must surely lead to the glamourization of

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1114852793976294072005-04-30T11:19:00.000+02:002005-04-30T11:37:47.600+02:00

Walpurgis NightSo what exactly is the story of the Swedish Valborg? Fires are lit, like the one above that burned semi-wildly about four Valborg's ago. Adolescents get bladdered on medium-strength lager; adults do too, but mainly get nostalgic for this festival that seems to remind them of something older pertaining to the land. Even more than the English 5th November, it has resisted any attempt

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1114033515835308312005-04-20T23:45:00.000+02:002005-04-21T00:53:16.983+02:00

I was down in a dark place this afternoon. An underground garage; of both sorts and on a few levels -- all dingy. You could park your car there, or get it fixed. I was getting mine fixed.Down there, I spoke to the man doing the dirty work, as we waited for a van to let in some light and create a way out. Unlike a Portuguese workman, who will offer you the sleeve on his forearm to shake in

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1113780794515431562005-04-18T01:27:00.000+02:002005-04-18T01:35:14.360+02:00

If anyone fancies a challenge, try watching All The President's Men with a seven year-old who wants you to help him understand and follow the whole story. Perhaps my most successful communication was a Scooby Doo analogy -- they (Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman, as the Washington Post journalists Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward) were just trying to solve a mystery, or work out who the baddies

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1112047786995721362005-03-29T00:08:00.000+02:002005-03-29T00:17:44.756+02:00

José Mourinho, the manager of English league leaders Chelsea FC, has made lots of headlines lately-- for sullying the sport's reputation, setting a bad example for youngsters and sowing conflict wherever he goes. A lot of it is true, but the full picture is often neglected in the hunt for a good story. Likewise, we don't get the full picture of daily life as experienced by Palestinians and

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1111623976973557622005-03-24T01:26:00.000+01:002005-03-24T01:43:06.076+01:00

C'mon there's room for one moreI realise now that I haven't checked that Docker, on the left, has got home safely yet. And I begun to write this out of concern for Charles, on the right, who I know got home safely. But I fear he has been feeling down. Why?He lives in Lisbon. It's warm. I live in Sweden, it's bloody freezing -- yet picking up now. It's the friendship of course, stupid.We all had

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1111191352780974052005-03-19T01:15:00.000+01:002005-03-19T01:38:33.496+01:00

Porto FC 1994Should be in bed by now. Just done the first evening of the introductory football coaching course. Two full, and early days to go. Was delighted to discover it is part of the official UEFA plan, so i will dream well tonight.Who knows, maybe one day I will nurture a team with the collective spirit, flair and outlandish style the above group used to demonstrate in the bars of Porto in

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1111098402329436072005-03-17T23:26:00.000+01:002005-03-17T23:37:28.320+01:00

I'd better get this one up before midnight. Well, I certainly wouldn't mind catching the gig tonight, but at least I caught last week's rarer event. This post is dedicated to Joe, godfather of my son, still sharing the joys of life. Lucky Haarlem.

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1110419114143769282005-03-10T02:45:00.000+01:002005-03-10T02:53:34.330+01:00

It will not end in tears. It will not end in tears. (repeat)Very cold lately, but I sense a warming in the air. Especially as tomorrow I'm leaving the country. Going to Haarlem in Holland. A very good and old friend's 40th birthday party. He lives there.I'm getting a KLM (real plane with food and drink) flight in the evening. All meeting in the Irish pub, O'Brien's I believe. Another friend over

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1109982705249105992005-03-05T01:31:00.000+01:002005-03-05T02:48:16.920+01:00

A friend of mine sent me an email and photo the other day. In it she quickly described her first day as a fully-fledged lifeboat crew member. Picture late February on the north-east coast of England.Here's me and me [fellow] crew member after my first call out on Monday morning. Fishing boat lost power — listing and drifting. [Our] lifeboat stood by in case of casualties, whilst [the other larger

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1109467022266162262005-02-27T02:14:00.000+01:002005-02-27T02:17:02.273+01:00

Worth checking out the Reporters Without Borders (RWB) site for up-to-date info on journalists, and yes bloggers, under heavy manners around the world. I came across the site by reading a good news tale of how a group of journalists escaped Zimbabwe this week -- after they realised Mugabe's secret police were circling for the kill. Then I noticed the terrible plight of Arash Sigarchi, who I knew

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1109379969220808602005-02-26T02:06:00.000+01:002005-02-26T02:21:26.006+01:00

Here is an example of historic photo restoration. From an old slide, a digital vision of the dreams of a seven-year-old in 1970.Just got my hands on this picture this week and it seemed to tie in well with the James Bond car below. I don't seem quite as high off the ground as I remember, and I'm not sure where the ball ended up. Top corner followed by a thunderous roar, no doubt. Not much has

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1109037403369494852005-02-22T02:56:00.000+01:002005-02-27T02:31:52.636+01:00

It's the number plate...The time has almost come then. When, aged 27 and sometimes worried about approaching 30, my new landlady cheered me up. "It's easy to remember my phone number she said: 007 and 42 the age James Bond always was." 42. I'd never even contemplated such an age before, let alone that it could be one to aspire to.Could it be that 42 was the optimum point in time? When physical

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1108174893845021982005-02-12T03:18:00.000+01:002005-02-12T03:33:59.576+01:00

This evening in the south Stockholm suburb of Fruängen a little bit of something special took place. In the ground floor of a neighbouring block, the blossoming of an initiative for local teenagers was enjoyed by all ages -- though the age spread was a bit of a sore point for some of the original target group. A shared area in the block of flats has been done out impressively to act as a café for

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1107994718433688202005-02-10T01:18:00.000+01:002005-02-10T01:47:33.840+01:00

I took this picture yesterday morning on the way to work. I'm always captured by the colours on this church in Gamla Stan, Stockholm. On a sunny day, and looking up to the tower, it takes me somewhere else. It is unlike the rest of Stockholm, and i can't emphasize that enough. Yesterday was a particularly appropriate day to capture what I see, as yesterday was Carnival, Shrove Tuesday, Mardi

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1107736270581795492005-02-07T01:52:00.000+01:002005-02-07T01:37:07.840+01:00

The trance room This whirling zylo ball* is in Stockholm's Ethnographic Museum. Since the recent scrapping of entrance fees for most museums in Stockholm, anyone who finds themselves on the long Strandvägen road past Fort US Embassy, and just before the more aesthetically pleasing Chinese Embassy, can pop in and unwind. I haven't been able to work out exactly what the whirly ball is; I was

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1107569151252267132005-02-05T03:05:00.000+01:002005-02-05T03:34:24.040+01:00

Slussen, one of my favourite places in Stockholm. This could admittedly be because it looks least like Sweden. It is not uniform, it seems haphazard and yet has a more organic natural quality to it than the better planned areas. It's a mess of roads, bus stops, rail terminals, quayside ferry ports, treacherous pedestrian crossings and it's built upon a still functioning sluice-cum-lock. The rest

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1106910715320200662005-01-28T13:07:00.000+01:002005-01-29T01:33:21.400+01:00

Right click on the cartoon below and select View image - if you haven't got magnifying glass eyes. It's worth it. First spotted at Hurry up Harry

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1106606852456294452005-01-25T23:47:00.000+01:002005-01-25T12:11:16.780+01:00

Due to hiccups when trying to show these logos on the Långholmen football club forum, I'm putting them here for a while. Långholmen members, comment on the logos and vote on the forum. Andrew's first offering Andrew's 2nd for the vote

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1106616593566800792005-01-25T02:23:00.000+01:002005-01-25T02:32:01.296+01:00

The Stockholm Spectator, where I do the odd cheeky post, is very critical of the Swedish media's negative coverage of the US. But this week, Swedish highbrow daily DN's Sunday supplement, Söndag, quietly opened up an entirely different United States that puts a lot of Old Europe to shame. Independent writer Ingela Bendt asked why nobody had so far told the story she had discovered. "Why has

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1106003918826946902005-01-17T23:18:00.000+01:002005-01-18T00:30:00.430+01:00

I'm not sure quite how heavy it makes my heart, but it certainly makes me think. Twenty years ago today, on Thursday 17 January, 1985, I stopped at the top of the old-style aeroplane steps and looked out at Lisbon airport. The film camera in my mind picked me out from the rooftop viewing gallery, just like The Beatles waving at the top of their steps in America. The captain had told us it was a

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1105391713023822202005-01-10T22:15:00.000+01:002005-01-10T23:23:23.653+01:00

You can always find calm if you try hard enough. Looking vaguely west sou' west from the Sätra cliffs over Lake Mälaren, to the west of Stockholm. Playing with Christmas camera. A short scramble can still get the nerves on edge and the adrenalin going -- when done near steepish drops, with two six-year-olds and an over-active imagination. The view of a daily event belonging to more than just

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1103334409693861602004-12-18T02:46:00.000+01:002004-12-18T03:51:30.356+01:00

Being a white EU citizen, it's easy to forget that according to UN definitions I too am a migrant worker. 18 December is International Migrants Day. As a white EU citizen I am up at the cushy end of the migrants' scale, but that should not stop me having solidarity with those towards the bottom. Read this letter outlining why EU members should sign the convention. (Post is dated earlier so it

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1102636028541915512004-12-10T01:47:00.000+01:002004-12-10T01:19:30.896+01:00

Haven't had a friend in the top 30 since Mick Hucknell, in the days when he would still recognise me anyway. I'm very pleased for Mark. The hard slog of troubadour-ing in Swedish Irish pubs would have broken many a non-Cork man, but he didn't give up on his dreams of making his own music. Well it's a few years since he had to sing The Wild Rover now. I've seen it played live in clubs and at

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1101859959300857882004-12-01T01:02:00.000+01:002004-12-01T01:37:47.426+01:00

Today I will be thinking of a very good friend who has seen far too many of his close friends die from HIV/AIDS. He is very bravely testing living with the virus without drugs. He has regular check-ups, but so far his immune system seems to be able to resist the virus — to an extent. He has been doing this for maybe two years now, following several years suffering the debilitating side-effects of

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1101517648649855862004-11-27T02:07:00.000+01:002004-11-27T02:36:00.996+01:00

"No fault!" screamed the fierce player from Cork, after another of my passes had gone very wrong. "Is that how it's spelt?", I wondered. "Is it encouraging or brutally scathing?" Not until Morty started putting the finishing touches to his book on Cork slang, did I find out I needn't have worried. A friend of mine has just had his first book published. Called Dowtcha Boy!,it's a dictionary of

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1101255034068283812004-11-24T01:55:00.000+01:002004-11-24T01:39:27.043+01:00

Watch the first few shots of the Danish political thriller series, Ørnen. It's a location shot in Gamla Stan, Stockholm. Just behind the clearly outclassed Danish detective, Hallgrim, loiters a poised, alert-looking, dark-haired English man in a denim jacket. Keeping a cautious lookout by his side, his young fair-haired son strides confidently, in blue T-shirt, into his first international

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1100824336923592742004-11-19T01:27:00.000+01:002004-11-19T01:32:16.923+01:00

Michael Koubi was chief interrogator for Shin Bat, the Israeli interrogation service. In an interview in New Scientist, he gives little away, but leaves an impression.

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1100739162095782562004-11-18T01:37:00.000+01:002004-11-18T01:52:42.096+01:00

This year's first snow is falling in Stockholm. Collective punishment for the mild autumn, as is the way in Sweden. Bush, the lame-duck president, who now can solve the Palestinian issue and be himself 'cos he doesn't need to be elected. Isn't that the message that Blair was trying to get across? Now is pay back time for all the loyalty. Well, out goes "loyal trooper" Powell. We'll have to wait

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1100387755177793242004-11-14T01:01:00.000+01:002004-11-14T00:48:51.096+01:00

Erm, I'm sure we can get along... One night in a bullring in Aragon Imagine you hadn't been working for a while after accepting voluntary redundancy, the money was running out and you were about to start looking for a job in IT again. Then you got a phone call from an old mate from younger, rockier years. He asked if you fancied holding your return to the 9-5 for a while and having a little

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1098829707568707932004-10-27T01:28:00.000+02:002004-10-27T23:11:02.110+02:00

A friend for all seasons John Peel died earlier today; on holiday in Cuzco, aged 65 - probably yarning away evenings with backpackers too. In the summer of 1978 I was having a first holiday in a hotel (due to caravanning rather than poverty). It was built on the side of a cliff that cut out the southerly side of a small bay. By day, I thrilled to the sights of surfers looking like adolescent

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1098136694633004102004-10-18T23:49:00.000+02:002004-10-19T00:24:46.970+02:00

Boris Johnson, Shadow Arts Minister, Conservative MP and editor of The Spectator (London, not Stockholm) helped remind people in Britain last week just what Tories really feel about the regions. In a leader criticising the amount of attention given to the holding and beheading of Ken Bigley, he, or his understudy, went into overkill. He succeeded in showing the contempt and arrogance with which

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1097444874525541752004-10-10T23:47:00.000+02:002004-10-11T00:00:10.970+02:00

A new gorilla? An incredible discovery was reported in the north of the Democratic Republic of Congo today. Scientists think they have found a new gorilla. They are not certain yet, but think there are three possibilities. a) "They are a new species of ape b) They are giant chimpanzees, much larger than any so far recorded, but behave like gorillas c) They could be hybrids, the product of

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1097191556365058802004-10-08T01:25:00.000+02:002004-10-08T01:35:20.430+02:00

United in belief If you'll excuse me for a moment, I'm from England, I voted Blair into power, this is personal. In March 2003, Tony Blair's government said "The prime objective [of military operations in Iraq] remains to rid Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction and their associated programmes and means of delivery, including prohibited ballistic missiles" was completely wrong on that

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1096588506177460992004-10-01T01:55:00.000+02:002004-10-01T01:59:58.296+02:00

"Did a lesser death come", Ted Hughes. The one line from a poem that I remember from school. I weep for that father and his child whose death will not be officially counted. A victim of one of yesterday's car bombs in Baghdad. Was she running to catch sweets?

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1095721775330290852004-09-21T01:09:00.000+02:002004-09-21T01:21:29.790+02:00

Ung utan pung give it the big send-off in Rågsved Imagine a miniature railway taking you around the paths, alleyways, apartment blocks and little shopping centres of a suburb in south Stockholm. Then, every couple of minutes it stops and the cast of Fame jump out and dazzle you with song, dance and a bit of slapstick. Imagine Fame made up of kids from five to sixteen, a handful of slightly

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1095371279458052602004-09-16T23:30:00.000+02:002004-09-17T00:37:16.173+02:00

This is only the beginning I am now doing most of my writing on the Stockholm Spectator blog, Stambord. Along with my pretty-busy-at-the-moment day job, this is keeping me from doing much here. Do have a look at Stambord. I'll warn you now though that it includes a mixture of views, with me kind of alone in the leftfield. But it's growing and getting read, so it's a challenge. It's more of a

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1093304535347947112004-08-24T01:41:00.000+02:002004-08-24T01:42:15.346+02:00

Crouched on the ground holding his head, blotting out the world. Digging deep, going all the way in; he probably got as close to his own soul as anyone ever has. Getting that far in allowed him to see absolutely clearly. He saw the years of struggle and he saw the faces and felt the hearts of those closest to him who believed in him most. He saw who he was. Now it was time to come back, into the

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1092180646572612802004-08-11T01:20:00.000+02:002004-08-11T01:30:46.573+02:00

Empathise with your enemy. R McNamara, former US Secretary of State for Defense gave this as one of the key lessons he had learnt through mistakes made during his life. Empathise, now what does that mean exactly? Ecstasy has been described as the empathy drug - does McNamara suggest people should hug, rub and really warm to their enemy? Perhaps eventually drop their weapons and love and respect

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1091573041489117212004-08-04T00:25:00.000+02:002004-08-04T00:54:45.306+02:00

Apropos of absolutely nothing, I have just been reading a site where some Monty Python fans compare their favourite sketches and scenes. Seemed silly, but became compelling. It was in fact apropos of something, if I'm honest. I've been thinking about ways to react, in an inclusive and welcoming way of course, to a couple of articles written by a new American contributor to the Stockholm

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1091488975566605322004-08-03T01:13:00.000+02:002004-08-03T01:22:55.566+02:00

TT-Reuters today report a worsening of the humanitarian situation in Darfur. SvD joins in the criticism of the Swedish government's struggle to choose the right label. Meanwhile, the first signs of more complex circumstances are beginning to emerge. Why was the US Congress vote so clear-cut? Where have the dissenting British voices been since Blair hinted at his sixth overseas military

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1091276133090345762004-07-31T14:09:00.000+02:002004-07-31T14:15:33.090+02:00

How can the US Congress vote 422-0 to label events in Sudan as genocide, when the Swedish government, as Paul O'Mahoney, my colleague on the Stambord blog pointed out, describes them as "nearly genocide" and the UN can't make up its mind either. Well, problems arise with diplomatic discussions on any matters, particularly life or death ones. For instance, it could be argued that, looking at the

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1091017131794901312004-07-28T14:17:00.000+02:002004-07-28T14:22:11.553+02:00

Stockholm Pride opens today and over the next five days at least 30,000 people will bring music, colour and joy to the city centre as they: celebrate their sexuality; demand equal rights; and keep a worried eye over their shoulders for those twisted faces of hate belonging to attacking neo-Nazis. Aftonbladet today chose to republish an article from April that suggests the threat of the far right

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1090253794710703522004-07-19T18:15:00.000+02:002004-07-28T14:25:44.070+02:00

Two days ago Media Lens sent me an article that began with a quote from Soren Kierkegaard. How curiously apt, I thought, as I’m staying in a house on the north coast of the Danish island of Zealand, where there is a large stone dedicated to the 19th Century Danish philospher – situated on a cliff overlooking the southern Swedish coast where he used to do some of his thinking. Today, the quote in

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1089506530758241092004-07-11T02:29:00.000+02:002004-07-12T00:33:36.230+02:00

The Ashton Flight: 18 locks along a short canal rising from central Manchester to Ashton-under-Lyne. It is with hindsight that I now read the advice on the above seemingly official site. Here is an extract: "it is hemmed in by the northern suburbs of England's second city. Consequently, boaters must pay special attention to security on this stretch - even when actually in transit. Never give

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1087021328691233042004-06-12T08:22:00.000+02:002004-06-12T08:37:00.756+02:00

I will be down in Languedoc, taking time out for the next week or two. Slower, hotter, more for the eyes. Watching a bit of football, but listening to cigalles. No broadband, but ooh, I'll survive...

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1086824042288652492004-06-10T01:34:00.000+02:002004-06-10T01:44:37.010+02:00

The Respect Coalition offering a refreshing alternative for disillusioned old Labour voters. To think, my exile in Sweden meant that I only came across this new UK political party today. The main candidate for them in this weekend's European election is George Galloway, the MP kicked out of the Labour party for his anti-war stance. He is standing in London. All seems good news to me,

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1086736594403217872004-06-09T00:52:00.000+02:002004-06-09T01:34:08.043+02:00

Yesterday in Stockholm Metro, columnist Jan Kallberg raged at the Swedish left for their ignorance in denouncing Ronald Reagan so vehemently during his period in office. He rounded on the petty condescending rhetoric of the left who are free to behave as they do because of the freedom they have been allowed by, above all it seems, Ronald Reagan. For Ronald Reagan ended the cold war, by

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1086299575097396172004-06-03T23:48:00.000+02:002004-06-03T23:58:28.583+02:00

I will be making some contributions to a new site Stambord, the weblog of the Stockholm Spectator newspaper. Not all the views expressed on the site will be close to mine, but that should keep things interesting.

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1086012529815279412004-05-31T16:02:00.000+02:002004-05-31T17:15:40.180+02:00

Casa Alianza, an organisation that serves Central American street children, reported the deaths of 104 youths in a prison fire in San Pedro Sula jail in Honduras, on 17 May 2004. All the 104 dead inmates were members of the "Salvatrucha" street gang. They had only recently been arrested under new ant-gang legislation, which considers a tattoo as sufficient evidence of gang membership, and had

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1085786754873797632004-05-29T00:32:00.000+02:002004-05-29T01:50:12.733+02:00

I first mentioned Memorial, the Russian human rights organisation, in a post about one of their members, Lida Yusupova, receiving the Martin Ennals Human Rights Defender of the Year Award back in December 2003 for her work in Grozny. They made the news again last week. This time for presenting an award on behalf of another organisation. On May 21 the Association of World Citizens asked Memorial

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1085441583941976082004-05-25T00:44:00.000+02:002004-05-25T01:33:03.940+02:00

I was interested to read A uterus is no substitute for a conscience by Barbara Ehrenreich yesterday. As a woman and a feminist she has a lot more clout than I do when talking to women. She put into words something I've have often skirted around and tried gently to touch upon when feminist goals have been discussed. That is, and I hope I'm not misinterpreting her, that it is power that corrupts.

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1085099695138011822004-05-21T02:15:00.000+02:002004-05-21T02:38:12.953+02:00

Rafah, the place where American peace activist Rachel Corrie was crushed to death by a bulldozer. Rafah, the town where people demonstrating for peace and against the Israeli invasion (incursion, doesn't quite describe events) were killed by missiles and sniper bullets. Rafah, the refugee camp. Not of the tented variety; the residents have had time to build firmer foundations, many of which are

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1084919007626347682004-05-19T00:23:00.000+02:002004-06-01T12:09:11.816+02:00

The Sintra coastline stands up to the Atlantic. Photo by Conor O'Gilin, O'Gilin's bar, Lisbon. I'm standing facing the Atlantic Ocean. The salt spray is in my face, up my nose and in my hair. The waves are rolling, pushing and dragging back. Close my eyes and I still: taste the salt; hear the wind and the waves, and the cries of the gulls and the rolling of the stones; smell the air that's

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1084748615587118942004-05-17T01:00:00.000+02:002004-05-17T01:03:35.586+02:00

Well I've temporarily spring-cleaned away all the old comments as that is the cost of trying a new, slicker format. A slightly tidier sidebar is one reward. I must look up the feng shui guide to weblogs to make sure I'm not still breaking the rules on clutter.

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1084228440772368042004-05-10T23:55:00.000+02:002004-05-11T00:44:26.896+02:00

Photos taken by British and American soldiers in Iraq have been making news in the most awful way over the past few days. I found a photograph that shows another way to communicate and share with people. The photo shows a boy with a large wooden object pushed into the side of his head. The gorgeous, glorious smile of joy, of a nine-year-old boy at the moment he emerges from a tunnel he didn't

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1083629779060856952004-05-04T02:16:00.000+02:002004-05-04T02:21:37.860+02:00

Last week the Swedish government lost its vote to impose transitional rules on migrant workers from the new central and eastern European states. One of the main reasons they lost was that the further-left and right-wing parties joined in condemnation of the government's xenophobic case for the rules. The day after, Metro newspaper barged happily along on page six, reporting a police warning about

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1083464395648877252004-05-02T04:19:00.000+02:002004-05-02T04:32:04.983+02:00

A few terms and phrases are blocking the airwaves in my head this evening. Saab 9000 is the main one. 1990 means 14 years old is another. Did you get it checked out before buying it is a growing one. Not many taxis are Saabs intertwines with the latter, on a rapidly increasing basis. There's hardly any room left for the image of me cruising along a California coast road. And then I suddenly

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1083021831731739952004-04-27T01:23:00.000+02:002004-04-27T01:41:05.296+02:00

To the people of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia; Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia; the Czech Republic, Malta and Cyprus, welcome to the European Union. All 68 or 69 million of you, come on in. Come and take a look around, have a drink and a bite to eat. It's been a long time. Well it's been ages in fact. You've been through a lot, we know, we've heard. We don't really know what it was like

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1082858707489138132004-04-25T04:05:00.000+02:002004-04-25T04:26:01.653+02:00

In the name of greater understanding, I thought I'd put in a few links to writing that will broaden the mind and deepen the insight of anyone who feels they've not quite got access to the full picture. Did you know that chaos and desctruction in the Middle East are a necessary step on the way to the second coming of Christ, in the view of Christian fundamentalists in the United States?. George

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1082504317348626322004-04-21T01:38:00.000+02:002004-04-21T01:45:37.826+02:00

I really, really hope the feeling that grabbed me this afternoon and clenched my stomach, tensed my legs and froze my head, was not an awful premonition of much worse feelings to come. It came when I saw a news alert saying the ten suspected terrorists arrested in Manchester were planning to blow themselves, and those around them, up during a match at Old Trafford, Manchester United's ground.

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1082249330302112082004-04-18T02:48:00.000+02:002004-04-18T03:51:39.700+02:00

On his weblog Iraqi Blog Count, which must be one of the most comprehensive sources of links to Iraqi weblogs, Émigré yesterday discussed the the value of blogging, in terms of what it may add to journalism. He referred to Rebecca Blood who had talked about the subject on a radio show. She gives a nice definition of the press as being "our trusted proxies" in situations we can't otherwise get to

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1081804200849963862004-04-12T23:10:00.000+02:002004-04-13T01:15:58.233+02:00

Russian train mysteriously disappears reads a breaking story in Pravda this evening. All communication has been lost. I recently hailed the Russian masters of calmness in a crisis in a report on the Russian scientists adrift on an ice floe. Now I don't want to take this story light-heartedly, as there is presumably an uncomfortable situation out there, at the very least. The train is thought

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1081733333938111172004-04-12T03:28:00.000+02:002004-04-12T03:37:20.263+02:00

The British defence minister, Geoff Hoon, said yesterday that life is "immeasurably better" for people in Iraq. British prime minister and assistant leader of the invasion and occupation of Iraq, Tony Blair, talked about Britain's "historic struggle". He promised to fully support current US military tactics and swiped at the anti-war contingent in Britain, who are "half-hoping" things go wrong

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1081471936929549192004-04-09T02:52:00.000+02:002004-04-09T10:24:47.403+02:00

Some of you may have tried listening to BBC World Service on short wave. You have to treat the dial like you're cracking a safe and without any idea how close you are to success. And when you strike gold, it could disappear any minute. Now, especially if you have broadband, you can get perfect reception at will. For a few years in 1940s Denmark, under German occupation, success could mean a

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1081117859588670542004-04-05T00:30:00.000+02:002004-04-05T00:45:50.513+02:00

I had a rare bit of free time on a weekday last Friday and took the opportunity to go all-day drinking. That last bit isn't true, in fact I slipped into an art gallery in Stockholm called Index. I had come across reports of an exhibition called Cricket, by Jesper Nordahl. It runs until April 18. What was someone from Sweden doing working on cricket? The report said it was to do with cricket and

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1080950400980405952004-04-03T02:00:00.000+02:002004-04-03T15:13:57.326+02:00

Anyone who needs to send or receive money fast to friends and relatives living in a foreign country. That's who uses Western Union according to their own FAQs. They are promoting their services in Stockholm. I don't know the technical terms, but they have limited-colour, yellow-and-black-themed posters on the underground trains. The posters are divided. The smaller half, not geometrically by the

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1080899953613262182004-04-02T13:58:00.000+02:002004-04-03T02:22:29.840+02:00

The brutal and barbaric celebrations after the killing of the four American workers in Fallujah two days ago, didn't make me think of Somalia. It reminded me of the undercover British soldiers that were dragged from their car and killed in Belfast in March 1988. You can read what Robert Fisk said yesterday. You can even watch it. Whatever, the historic parallels to me, show that anyone can end

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1080683012554682102004-03-30T23:40:00.000+02:002004-03-30T23:47:08.403+02:00

Apologies to any regular visitors. My day job is really getting in the way this week. I will be back by the weekend, by which time the future diplomats of Sweden will hopefully be able to sweet talk anyone who asks them awkward questions. But dare I ask them how they would respond if they were working at their embassy in Spain at the moment? How do you explain that there are other ways to

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1080173983989608722004-03-25T01:19:00.000+01:002004-03-25T01:23:12.140+01:00

I just saw the footage of the 14-year-old boy carrying the suicide belt on BBC World news. His eyes. What was going on in his mind? How sad. How terribly, terribly sad. What has happened that it comes to this? The Israeli soldiers didn't kill him. Is this a sign of hope? According to the story above, there was a similar case recently and they let a boy free at a checkpoint. He had a bomb in

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138972.post-1079881179202678222004-03-21T15:59:00.000+01:002004-03-21T21:15:12.090+01:00

Yesterday there were demonstrations across the globe to mark the anniversary of the beginning of the invasion of Iraq. This time I didn't go. My overriding memory of the marches of February 15 2003 is of the feeling of hope I had. The feeling of optimism that this was something special. I think they said there were about 35,000 on the march in Stockholm that day; small compared to London, New

Elegantehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10455564464370299299noreply@blogger.com