Error in law saves parliament protester

It's things like this that give me no confidence that legislation like the proposed bill on religious hatred will actually do what the government say it will 'on the packet'. Especially as lots of people are concerned it will end up as a charter for exressing religious intolerance through prosecution.
"'It is clearly embarrassing for the government if they intended to catch Brian's demonstration, and that was their position in court. Clearly they drafted the legislation very badly. We are very happy that the court has upheld the very important principle that, if you are legislating for a criminal offence, you have to be absolutely clear about what you are doing.'"

Guardian Unlimited Politics | Special Reports | Error in law saves parliament protester:

Producing Printer Ink From Car Tires?

One future scenario talks about mining landfill, perhaps the future is here: "Printer ink can cost as much as vintage champagne, so finding an inexpensive and eco-effective way to make it would be great. Now three inventors from Derbyshire, UK, think they have just the solution: extract the carbon from unwanted tires to generate a cheap and plentiful supply."

Treehugger: Producing Printer Ink From Car Tires?:

Britain's Royal Windsor Castle to get hydro-electric power plant - Wikinews

"The GBP1 million project will consist of a series of under-water turbines to be installed at Romney Weir in the nearby River Thames. The system will generate 200kW, enough to meet approximately one third of the castle's electricity needs."

That sounds like a lot of leccy, just wish I could keep in my head the figures for average household consumption for comparison.

Britain's Royal Windsor Castle to get hydro-electric power plant - Wikinews:

Spirituality for All the Wrong Reasons [2]

Lots of brilliant quotes, like,

"If intimacy means being open and honest and authentic, so I don't have veils, or I don't have to be defensive or in denial of who I am, that's wonderful. But in our culture, intimacy usually has sexual connotations, with some kind of completion. So I want intimacy because I want more out of life. Very seldom does it have the sense of sacrifice or giving or being vulnerable. Those are two different ways of being intimate. And in our American vocabulary intimacy usually has to do with getting something from the other. That just screws the whole thing up."Spirituality for All the Wrong Reasons - Christianity Today Magazine:

Cyberaction: Transfiguration /Hiroshima day

"Your message will be printed on a feather-shaped card and put on wings of dove balloons. Dove balloons will be flown on August 5th at 8 AM, in front of the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima city to commemorate the 60th anniversary. Your messages will also be sent to Prime Minister of Japan, Koizumi Junichiro and Governor of Aomori prefecture, Mimura Shingo."
Greenpeace Japan Cyberaction::

The UK in 2040: Predictions for the Future

I can't get the link site to show up on my screen which is a great pity as the site looks just my kind of site. Is it my network or is the site down?

Treehugger: The UK in 2040: Predictions for the Future

IRA orders end to armed campaign

I hope that this will mean not only armed struggle but also the kind of criminality that had them involved in gangsterism. Good news indeed and an encouragement that terrorist groupings can change ...
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | IRA orders end to armed campaign: "The IRA said its members had been ordered to pursue peaceful means and not to 'engage in any other activities whatsoever' - a reference to the low-level paramilitary activities which have angered not just unionists, but the London and Dublin governments."

One to watch: Seattle

The city of Seattle is talking trash. Moving beyond recycling to preventing garbage itself as the next generation of social and civic responsibility, Seattle Public Utilities is launching an initiative called Wasteless in Seattle.

Reckon that this is something British cities need to get onto; we have less space for landfill.

'Zero waste' is Seattle's new garbage mantra

Intimacy with God

A helpful insight from Eugene Peterson: "Intimacy isn't primarily a mystical emotion. It's a way of life, a life of openness, honesty, a certain transparency."

I find that liberating and holistic. It's in line with the suggestion I make in Praying the Pattern, where I suggest that prayer is about lifestyle and a rule of life is a kind of praying - or at least the groundwork for praying our life and living our prayer (an Iona community phrase).

Spirituality for All the Wrong Reasons - Christianity Today Magazine:

Geoethical Principles

To consider:

Interconnectedness -- planetary systems do not exist in isolation, and changes made to one system will have implications for other systems.

Diversity -- on balance, a diverse ecosystem is more resilient and flexible, better able to adapt to natural changes.

Foresight -- consideration of effects of changes should embrace the planetary pace, not the human pace.

Integration -- as human societies are part of the Earth's systems, changes made should take into consideration effects on human communities, and the needs of human communities should not be discounted or dismissed when considering overall impacts.

Expansion of Options -- on balance, choices made should increase the number of options and opportunities for future generations, not reduce them.

Reversibility -- changes made to planetary systems should be done in a way that allows for reconsideration if unintended and unexpected consequences arise."



WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Terraforming Earth, Part III: Geoethical Principles: "roposed core principles: [:geoethics:]

Note on Jihad

Phil Johnson with more good stuff on things Islamic, this time 'jihad'. Some helpful references which I for one want to be able to find again, so I've blogged 'em! Nice and largely helpful analogy with Christian concepts of spiritual warfare.
circle of pneuma: UK Fatwa/Note on Jihad

War of the Worlds

I went to see War of the World last night. I enjoyed the suspense and the 'meditation' on civilisation. There were a few things that I found less good though...
The intro voiceover was a bit last century; "man's mastery of nature" or somesuch? It really did sound kind of overblown from this side of the post-modern watershed. Though to be fair the story is a sort of call to humility, it just seemed that if the words were meant to include the audience, then I and other cultural post-moderns were being missed.

I thought that doing the street scenes in the initial part of the invasion as if editted together from lots of camera-phone recordings would have been a great idea. That's an idea begging for exploration after the London bombings.

The ending voiceover was not great: too moralistic and cosy ... It's crying out for the Martians Strike back: their viri infect the humans and some of them develop an immunity to ours. Perhaps someone should write a sequel along those lines? Me? Maybe ... or not.

Aarghhh! Grammar schools!

"Most 16-year-olds today would not be able to get good grades in the old O-Levels, which were replaced 20 years ago by GCSEs, he said."
Hmmmm! An incomplete statement that misleads: the other half should be that most 16-year olds of 20 years ago would be hard pressed to do well in GCSE's today. The curricula are different. Take languages; my daughter has just done her Spanish GCSE a year early. I've been overseeing her learning as she changed school a year ago and the new one doesn't do Spanish. I was disturbed at first because the curriculum had less grammar than my 'O' level 30 years ago. Then I realised that she was far more able to hold everyday 'essential' conversation in Spanish than I was at the same stage: the focus is now on conversational competancy rather than preparation for literary study.

I imagine similar tales could be told in other subjects. We need also to realise what the political leaning of the PAT is; let's say ... they are the kind of people who were happy to consign students from my background to achieving far less than I actually have on the basis of there being only one grammar school place for kids from my primary school.
EducationGuardian.co.uk | Special Reports | Call to bring back grammar schools:

Fair Trade coffee growth

"While the general coffee market has been static for a number of years, fair trade alternatives have shown considerable growth, almost doubling between 2001 and 2003.
Coffee with the trademark of the Fairtrade Foundation - the UK's leading ethical certification body - accounts for 4% of all coffee drunk in the UK, and 20% of the premium roast and ground sector.
Some of the giants in the coffee sector, such as Kraft Foods in the US, Lavazza, Italy's biggest coffee-maker, and the 100-year-old Lyons Original Coffee brand have responded to fair trade coffee's growing popularity.
These three big players, however, have chosen not to go to go down the fair trade route, preferring instead to work with the Rainforest Alliance, a New York-based international conservation organisation"
This may not be the whole answer but it's a huge step in the right direction. The growth must surely represent an increase in awareness that ethical trading is important. The hope is that this will spill over into other areas too.
Guardian Unlimited | Economic dispatch | Full of beans:

On Earth as in Heaven

New blog from my friend Steve Hollinghurst. I'm anticipating good stuff about the interface between following Christ, mission and new spiritualities....
On Earth as in Heaven

I agree with the MCB

I don't know how often it may happen, but I agree with the Muslim Council of Britain on the shooting of an innocent Brazilian for the 'crime' of running away in fear (and given a Brazilian background he might be less secure about the police). "'We of course understand the police are under a great deal of pressure and it's a race against time to capture these four suspected bombers. But it is absolutely vital that their rules of engagement are very, very stringent and that this terrible mistake does not occur again.'"
I was chilled by the news reports as they first came out; it sounded like an impromptu execution from the eyewitness accounts; we will not beat terrorism by becoming like them. That said, not only does my heart go out to the family and friends of Jean Charles de Menezes but also to the police officer who believed that he had to do this and now has to live with the horror of the mistake. May s/he find rest and forgiveness.

The possible implications for the state of alert and operational standing orders of the police are very disquieting:
">Massoud Shadjareh, of the Islamic Human Rights Commission, also called for a public inquiry. 'How can you shoot someone on mere suspicion?' he asked. 'You can't even put someone in prison on suspicion.'
Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn said yesterday said the shooting suggested that a 'shoot-to-kill' policy was in operation, and suggested it would increase the threat of further attacks. 'I cannot believe that this degree of violence is going to do anything but encourage more violence.'

Some other links: Straw defends police over shooting
Flashy tactics won't defeat the terrorists
'Bombers, racists, the law: they're all out to get Muslims'
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Man shot in terror hunt was innocent young Brazilian: [:Islam:human rights:terrorism:]

'I will actively support those people who... refuse to register for an ID card...

UKers may be interested to consider supporting those who actively resist the imposition of ID cards in Blighty. No money will be asked for until and if the bill is enacted and acted upon.
'I will actively support those people who, on behalf of all of us*, refuse to register for an ID card, and I pledge to pay at least �20 into a fighting fund for them' - PledgeBank

From Mass to liquid church

If there is an argement for liquid church, the supporting documentation has just been supplied by the RC bishops of England and Wales: "It seems that church involvement is either becoming one choice among many or simply less of a viable option. We heard in some dioceses that Mass times have changed and the number of Masses reduced. This makes it more difficult for some families to continue to attend regularly. Families who do go to Mass regularly are making tremendous sacrifices to do so"
Telegraph | News | Pressure of modern life keeps the faithful from Mass:

Chess960

I used to play chess a lot, I was even good when I was concentrating. I'w also a neophile so this got my attention: a new version of chess. "The rules of Chess960 are mostly the same as orthodox chess -- but the setup incorporates something once considered anathema to the game: chance. Pawns begin where they always do. However, the pieces behind them on the white side are arranged at random, with the proviso that bishops must end up on opposite colors, and the king dwell somewhere between the two rooks. The black pieces are lined up to mirror the white."
Wired News: Unorthodox Chess From an Odd Mind:

Transfiguration

I've recently written a Lord's Prayer Office to be used on and around the feast of the Transfiguration. It uses the imagery of the event in the gospels and theologically uses the insight of the passages context in following the promise of Christ that 'some standing here will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God'. I take it that this is fufilled in some of the apostles being with Jesus for the transfiguration. Therefore the meaning of the event can be understood as a showing forth of the Kingdom...

So, the Kingdom is seen to be a gathering up of creation, a fulfilment of the Law and the Prophets, centred on Christ on whom the Father bestows His glory and whose words God endorses.

[:liturgy:Lord's Prayer:]

abbeynous.schtuff.com - Transfiguration

abbeynous.schtuff.com - Transfiguration

Transfiguration

I've recently written a Lord's Prayer Office to be used on and around the feast of the Transfiguration. It uses the imagery of the event in the gospels and theologically uses the insight of the passages context in following the promise of Christ that 'some standing here will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God'. I take it that this is fufilled in some of the apostles being with Jesus for the transfiguration. Therefore the meaning of the event can be understood as a showing forth of the Kingdom...
[:liturgy:Lord's Prayer:]
abbeynous.schtuff.com - Transfiguration

Sorry but the Qu'ran does contain support for terror

CHURCH TIMES 22 July2005
Professor Peter G. Riddell* in yesterday's Church Times writes:
".... broad array of British Muslim leaders gathered in crisis session at Regent's Park Mosque last Friday and issued a fatwa, or judicial opinion. The fatwa asserted: ''The Qu'ran clearly declared that killing an innocent person was tantamount to killing all mankind, and likewise saving I single life was as if one had saved the life of all mankind (Q5.32). . . This is both a principle and a command. . . [The bombers] should in no sense be regarded as martyrs”
... I've been waiting for this fatwa for a long time (since 11 September 2001)."
Me too; be even better if they were endorsed by people like at Al Azhar.

"... But here's the rub. British Muslim leaders need also to take a step they have avoided thus far. That is, to ask questions of the verses in the Qur'an and Hadith which are continually quoted by radicals, and which provide sustenance to radical ideologues. A perusal of press statements issued by radical groups turns up a finite set of verses that they use to justify confrontation in the present-day: Q2.11, 2.190, 9.14, 9.38, 9.4I, 60.1.
It is not good enough for main-stream leaders to produce verses from early in Muhammad's life which talk of there being no compulsion in religion (Q2.256); or to tear verses' out of their context, such as is now regularly done with Q5.32, cited in the recent fatwa; and then to dismiss those radical Muslims who disagree as ''heretics'. Muslim leaders need to undertake a new, comprehensive hermeneutic of the verses that come from later in Muhammad's life - and which radicals therefore see as having greater authority that talk of fighting and slaying the pagans wherever Muslims find them (Q9.5); not taking Christians and Jews as friends of Muslims (Q3.I18, 5.5I); and so forth. "

As Kenneth Cragg in 'The Secular Experience of God' says, "The significance of naksh, or "abrogation", needs careful exposition both for Islam's sake today and because it is germane to all religious expression. Central to an understanding of the Qur'an, abrogation means that what is later in the revelation abrogates what was earlier, if they do not tally. The effect is to have what obtains to politics override what obtains to preaching- if one wants to see the issues that way. Abrogation is undoubtedly present. How far may it extend? The logic now used by some proposes abrogation in reverse. Let what was earlier abrogate what is later. This has the effect of restoring the essentials of Islam to their pre-Hijrah quality."
Which is a very interesting proposal and seems in actual fact to be what many Muslims actually believe (against -unknowingly I suspect- the official canons of historic Islam), that the Meccan surahs express better the heart of what they hope Islam to be than those after Hijrah.

And it does seem of more than passing interest to note
"... the question asked by Charles Moore in The Daily telegraph immediately after the bombings: ''Where is the Gandhi of Islam?'' "
I hope that will be more than a rhetorical question.

The Church Times has a policy of not making these articles publically available for two weeks. I hope that these extracts are fair use.

*Professor Peter G. Riddell is Director of the Centre for Islamic Studies and Muslim-Christian Relations at London School of theology He is the author of Christians and Muslims: Pressures and potential in a Post- 9/11 world (IVP, 2004).

DEFRA foodmiles docs

If you're interested in the food miles report, it's there.

DEFRA Economics & Statistics - Agricultural Economic Report

USA better than England

A note to USA readers; this is a big deal becauses this is a world sport that really does include most of the world! Unlike some rather pretentiously named North American sporting tournaments. "England have been overtaken by the United States in the FIFA Coca-Cola world rankings after dropping one place to eighth."
Perhaps you guys will wake up and take the beautiful game more seriously over there?
ESPNSoccernet.com: Global: It's official: USA better than England:

Cheap Plastic Solar

It's not [yet] very efficient but that could change and, well; read for yourself...

"the tremendous price reduction changes the equation a bit. At $15/square meter, it becomes much more economically feasible to add a solar boost to otherwise unused external spaces. 50 watts for $15 (assuming the high end of the efficiency scale) isn't too bad; I could imagine homeowners wanting to put this material on south-facing walls, rooftops, even patio umbrellas. (As I think about it, it seems to me that this material as part of a beach umbrella would be great -- the power production from the typical 2m-diameter umbrella would be about 150-170 watts, enough to keep a phone or radio charged.) You're not going to power your entire house with this stuff, at least not at this level of efficiency, but even low-efficiency solar can be helpful. Get it to 10% or 20% and keep the same price and durability, though, and you have the makings of a revolution."

The further thing to note is that it is plastic and therefore oil-based: can it be made from a bio-oil?

WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Cheap Plastic Solar:

Digital Prayer Carpet

Hmmm; an interesting idea. I'm surprised no-one has done it before. My question now is whether there is some kind of equivalent for Christians? Not because I'm into me-too-ism, but because it's the kind of thing that I would expect entrepreneurial north American Christians to have come up with, but since we have no similar kind of need for such an artefact, I'm wondering what may be equivalent. "Artist Soner Ozenc has created a prayer rug for Muslims with an embedded digital compass and electroluminescent wiring. The image on the rug glows brighter as the rug is turned towards Mecca, dimmer as it turns away. "
WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Digital Prayer Carpet

Here comes the matrix -or why we're in it already!

"A small number of philosophers argue that, if you accept the premise that a sufficiently advanced human society will inevitably run incredibly sophisticated simulations of history and societal evolution, with functionally independent computer agents interacting, learning and evolving, then it is infinitely more likely that we -- you and I and everything around us -- are actually living in one of those simulations instead of being the first 'real' human society. After all, for those on the inside of the sim, there would be no way to tell."
WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Simulating Culture and the Ethics of the Off Switch:

H2 Nanostorage

This is just another 'watch this space sort of note. But potentially pretty imortant; here are the downsides and a couple of upsides which let you infer what the thing is about. "researchers still need to figure out the optimal graphite structure for H2 storage, and (moreover) figure out how to actually get graphite into that structure. But still, it's good news, and for a couple of reasons. Although one could consider batteries a better option for post-gasoline vehicles, hydrogen fuel cells have some advantages, too; even if we eventually decide to devote our attention to battery-electrics, progress on fuel cells means that we have options. Moreover, graphite is inexpensive, commonplace and environmentally benign -- and carbon nanotubes, at least, seem to be none of those three. This means that it will be that much easier for fuel cell automobile manufacturers to be able to hit target prices."

WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: H2 Nanostorage: [:hydrogen:]

Journal of Design and Nature

Another new journal this one on matters to do with design and I supect that biomimicry is high on the agenda...

WIT Journals Homepage

new journal on ecodynamics

Not sure whether I will be the target audience for this but I suspect that it may be useful to some readers ...

WIT Journals Homepage

Bendable Color Electronic Paper

There are things not said about this: the kind of cost involved and the refresh rates, but if it's cheap enough then there are lots of uses just waiting for it, if it's fast even more. Expect to see wearable and mobile-able apps...
Fujitsu Develops World's First Film Substrate-based Bendable Color Electronic Paper featuring Image Memory Function : FUJITSU

Iraqi Christians free to Syria

It looks like the effect of the intervetion in Iraq is to further de-Christanise the country. Unsurprisingly perhaps. If there were Christias hoping for the result to be openings for the gospel, now might be the time to note the counter-effects of the association of USAmerican abuses at Abu Ghraib with Christian faith. I am horrified at this misrepresentition of our faith and deeply saddened that the conditions were created to make it more likely and to endanger lives and livilihoods of Christians in Iraq.
Christianity :: Iraqi Christians find safety in Syria

normal service will be resumed asap

Just thought regular-er readers may want to know that I'm away in my role as a summer school tutor few a few days (since Saturday). It's pretty busy and I don't get a lot of time to blog ... Check out the link under the title of this post to find out where I've gone.

New way to make hydrogen

This is potentially important and my question about cost is answered in the article: "'The material is not expensive, but it is not as cheap as gasoline.'".

Start-up zeros in on hydrogen fuel cells | CNET News.com: [:hydrogen:]

Islamic Crises

Phil Johnson has some helpful things to say if you want more orientation [pun intended] on contempory Islam.
"...all is not well inside various Islamic countries. There is great disparity between those who rule and live luxuriantly, and those denied access to power and wealth. The need to have renewal inside Islam is not something new. Movements for spiritual renewal and socio-political renovation go back to the days of the Caliphs. ... Those who feel that Islamic tradition has been compromised have often begun to agitate inside a given state seeking to preach for renewal and reform and justice. Some have headed off in what is tagged as a fundamentalist reaction to modernity; others have sought to accomodate Islamic culture with not only industrialisation and technology, but also the global matrices we all now experience. But it would be simplistic to think of this as simply fundamentalism and liberalism at work inside Islam. There are crucial issues at stake."
He gives us a good way into the politico-religious issues.
"circle of pneuma: Foreign Policy & Islamic Crises:[:Islam:]

Food study reveals hidden �9bn costs of transport

Looks like official recognition of food miles and transport externalities.

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Food study reveals hidden �9bn costs of transport

In a warmed world, even food won't be as good for you

Even what little you have shall be taken away. "A small but growing body of research is finding that elevated levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, while increasing crop yield, decrease the nutritional value of plants. More than a hundred studies, for example, have found that when CO2 from fossil-fuel burning builds up in plant tissues, nitrogen (essential for making protein) declines. A smaller number of studies hint at another troubling impact: As atmospheric CO2 levels go up, trace elements in plants (such as zinc and iron, which are vital to animal and human life) go down, potentially malnourishing all those that subsist on the plants."
Oh-oh.
In a warmed world, even food won't be as good for you | By Glenn Scherer | Grist Magazine | Main Dish | 12 Jul 2005:[:food:]

Nuclear power: The shape of things to come?

You have to go about two-thirds of the way through this article to get the good stuff, like this:
"Taking into account the uncertainties, most studies done on nuclear economics (including the most authoritative ones, done by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and by Britain's Royal Institute of International Affairs) conclude that new plants built by the private sector, with investors bearing the full brunt of risks, are not economic without subsidy."
Oh and this

Clue: look at the maintenance costs in dark blue.

The really disturbing omission, however, is that of security costs... guess which form of power gen looks worst on that cost-benefit analysis?
Nuclear power | The shape of things to come? | Economist.com:

Rooftop Solar Revolution

"The challenge for Energy Innovations' engineers was to keep a grid of 25 mirrors focused on a single point as the sun travels across the sky - and to do it cheaply. The goal: control each mirror independently without requiring separate motors for each mirror."

And they appear to have succeeded, which could mean a cheaper way of doing rooftop solar.

Wired 13.07: The Dotcom King & the Rooftop Solar Revolution [:tech:]

Blogging and job prospects

There've been a few times when I've wondered if my blogging may have had an impact (negatively) on some of the interviews I have passed through in the last year. I have tended to mention in 'interests' that blogging is one. However I'm reviewing that in the light of this article. "I know of at least one fellow grad student who failed the final round of a job search thanks to comments of his a on hot-button social issue that were published in the house organ of his denomination. Apparently, he came down on the opposite side of that issue from some influential faculty on the job search committee, and his candidacy was sunk."
One member of an interview panel did say he'd looked at my blog. At the time I felt that to be a positive, now I'm not so sure. Admittedly this is a piece on academe, but still ... maybe the closing words go for me too, for good or ill, weal or woe.
"So what about my own academic job prospects? Heh, it's too late for me now, so I might as well keep going..."
However, I am also reflecting that it may be time for the reading of a blog to be acknowledged as a declaration of interest and the ethics of a blog's admission as evidence concerning a candidate be discussed. It would need to take in issues of equal opp's (esp. if some candidates have and others don't), the place of such 'unsolicited background info, the value of perhaps skewed or deliberately promotional material, the notion of a 'fair trial'.
Blogging and job prospects: from the academy to the SCOTUS:

BBC gets into OpenSource

"For the BBC, open source software development is an extension of our Public Service remit. Releasing open source software helps our audience get additional value from the work they've funded, and also get tools for free that they couldn't get any other way. It also allows people outside the BBC to extend projects in such a way that may in future be used in the BBC."
At the moment at least, it's a bit more techie than I am but I want to applaud the convergence of public service and open source.
BBC - OpenSource:

Cruelty-Free Diet

Okay, so not everyone thinks that being vegetarian [or mostly so] is in their power (check out other articles on this blog for reasons to take it seriously). Well, in that case, at least have a look at Andrew Jones's thoughts on why and how Christians should be more concerned about their meat.
TallSkinnyKiwi: The Skinny On Our Cruelty-Free Diet

Food & Missions

If you come here often, you'll know that I seem to be 'into' the politics of food. And so I am pleased to commend this articlette by Phil Johnson. "For all the discussion about spirituality in our nebulous techno-cultures, why do we not hear more from Christians into missions exploring proper gastronomy, and intersecting the meals with transcendence?"
circle of pneuma: Food & Missions:

Faced With This Crisis

George Monbiot: "People are already mobilising for demonstrations planned by the Campaign against Climate Change on December 3. I saw a resolve to make this the biggest issue in British politics. If we succeed, the new campaign will crash head-on into the totalitarian system. But as more people wake up to what the science says, it is not entirely certain that the system will win."

George Monbiot � Faced With This Crisis:

Dancing Rabbit

Kind of thing I'd like to have a go at ... an off-grid village.

Dancing Rabbit: 30 Days

Africa’s New Best Friends?

A warning that Africa's best interests are still not being served by the G8 deal; George Monbiot suggests that those who have been "immiserating" Africa are being given charge of sorting out the mess ... lunatics ... asylum ... ?
George Monbiot � Africa’s New Best Friends

The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race

I've been meaning to share this for a week or more. It's a retrospective of human civilisation /history. It's quite provocative as it concludes;
"Hunter-gatherers practiced the most successful and logest-lasting life style in human history. In contrast, we’re still struggling with the mess into which agriculture has tumbled us, and it’s unclear whether we can solve it."
Wonder what you think, if there are any good sites that take a different view of this kind of evidence, I'd love to know. Meanwhile, I'm adding this in my head to my recent reading of "The Mind in the Cave" and remembering an interesting series of conversations with a member of academic staff at Bradford university. He was supervising a doctoral thesis proposing that the reason behind the shift from hunter-gatherer lifestyles to agriculture was religious ...
The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race: "Forced to choose between limiting population or trying to increase food production, we chose the latter and ended up with starvation, warfare, and tyranny.

The 100 Miles Diet

This would be an interesting challenge. I note that the winter veggies pretty much turned out to be a medieval European diet.

Treehugger: Living On The 100 Miles Diet

Eat Your Curry

I used to live in Bradford, so it's no surprise that I have a bit of a taste for a good curry. Good news then that "curcumin, the yellow spice found in tumeric and curry powders, can block the development of a variety of cancers." However, before you go on a lifetime curry binge, it is worth recalling that the tongue and throat cancer rates among the most habitual curry-eaters is reputed to be significantly higher than the rest of us. I was told that by an Indian and I've not checked it out ...
WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Eat Your Curry:

[Footprint] Sustainable Maintenance

This morning I decided to try and rescue our clothes drying rack from going to the dump. It is steel with a plastic coating which is rapidly falling off and, if you aren't careful, causing rust stains to appear on clothes!

The obvious course of action is to get the plastic off and paint a Hammerite coating over the whole thing. As usual this made me think about what the ideal situation was with regards to repairing things. I don't think that Hammerite can be called sustainable!

Many things can't be sustainably repaired, or even sustainably maintained (what kinds of greases and oils are you going to need for maintenance?). Yesterday I was spray painting a bit of our old car - I happened to have some paint hanging around from before I got so concerned about sustainability and the environment. I'm not sure that a car can be considered in any way sustainable and the same goes for repairs to the thing too!

So if I cast my mind around I think about olde worlde methods of manufacture - carpentry being the most obvious potentially sustainable method of manufacture. Carpentry lends itself well to sustainable repairs too. I guess ceramics are a next stop - clay for example - but probably only necessary where water resistance is needed (wood isn't terribly water resistant - although it can be treated with natural oils).

Unfortunately I don't think that I'm going to come up with any real answers here, just a challenge to myself and to you regarding taking maintenance for granted and not giving it any thought. We really need to re-engineer our lifestyles quite completely with a view to manufacture and maintenance. I guess that I'm going to have a look at the bamboo options due to my potential supply of the stuff (thanks Dad!).

Fatwas and the Code Napoleon

Isn't this an interesting comment on the symbiosis of Islamic and Western civilisations? "And in Islam, a fatwa used to be a nonbinding wisdom judgment of elders limited by the greater wisdom and judgment of God. It only became a lethal injunction when Muslims started to copy Napoleonic models of authority and legitimization."
The source article is worth reading, imo.
Why the West gets religion wrong - Editorials & Commentary - International Herald Tribune: [:Islam:]

If It's a Muslim Problem, It Needs a Muslim Solution

I found that I'm not the only one suggesting that the lack of an eminent fatwa against Osama bin Laden is a significant issue, Thomas Friedman in the NYT says: "The Muslim village has been derelict in condemning the madness of jihadist attacks. When Salman Rushdie wrote a controversial novel involving the prophet Muhammad, he was sentenced to death by the leader of Iran. To this day - to this day - no major Muslim cleric or religious body has ever issued a fatwa condemning Osama bin Laden."
Terrorism :: If It's a Muslim Problem, It Needs a Muslim Solution:[:Islam:]

consume(r)evolution

New mag launched in NYC. Looks good; shame it is US only at the mo [not often you'll hear me say that!]. Nice quote from the website:
"Wal-Mart has lulled shoppers into ignoring the difference between the price of something and the cost."
consumerevolution.com

'I pray for the victims, here and in Iraq'

The Guardian article the title references is well worth reading for the vox pops of ordinary Muslims, giving evidence of the distance between the jihadis and ordinary Muslims.

One of the quotes is really helpful in articulating the theological challenges that Islam is in denial about.
Ehsan Masood: "There's an uncomfortable question that we in the British Muslim community need to face up to - a theological one. Every time a group linked to al-Qaida commits an act of terrorism, it justifies this by whipping out a verse from the Qur'an. This is dishonest use of religion; and at the same time it is a gift to groups like the BNP*. Why? Because they, like al-Qaida, also like to draw out isolated verses of the Qur'an to 'prove' that Muslims can never be trusted to live as true citizens of western countries. So far community organisations such as the Muslim Council of Britain have been reluctant to promote a debate on Islamic theology because of a fear that it could harm the fragile consensus on which the MCB operates. This debate needs to happen. I, for my part, will strongly argue that it isn't good enough for Muslims to merely condemn terrorism: we need to clamp down hard on the shoddy theology that people like al-Qaida use to justify what they do."

I think that there are parallels between Islam now and western Christendom just before the Reformation. The growing interest in vernacular scripture, power moving away from clerical elites, a growing awareness of a gap between the teachings of the clergy and the actual content of scripture and between the inhumanity of traditional teachings and the humanity aspired to.
Suggestive...

* For non-Brits: the BNP is the British Nationalist Party, a right-wing neo-fascist group seeking political legitimacy by attempting to represent the interests -or change the consciousness- of 'oppressed white Britons'.
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | 'I pray for the victims, here and in Iraq':

Cut Global Warming by Becoming Vegetarian

"British physicist Alan Calvert calculates that animals we eat generate 21% of all the carbon dioxide that can be attributed to human activity. 'We could therefore slash man-made emissions of carbon dioxide simply by abolishing all livestock.' he continues: 'Worldwide reduction of meat production in the pursuit of the targets set in the Kyoto treaty seems to carry fewer political unknowns than cutting our consumption of fossil fuels' "

Treehugger: Cut Global Warming by Becoming Vegetarian: [:vegetarianism:]

ID could not have stopped attacks

"Charles Clarke, admitted today that his controversial plan to introduce ID cards for British residents would not have prevented the bomb attacks on London, but insisted the cards would 'help rather than hinder' anti-terrorism efforts."
Sounds more like blind faith than reasoned consideration. What would have helped -at a fration of the financial and civil liberties cost- is passive scanning of large numbers of people for explosives.
The technology exists, has been demonstrated, and could be deployed in less than two years unlike the ID card scheme which, we are now being told, might not happen until 2014 - the previous official target date was 2013.
Guardian Unlimited Politics | Special Reports | Clarke: Nothing could have stopped attacks:

Writing off the debt

"economist Adam Lerrick, who teaches at the Carnegie-Mellon University in the US, argued recently in his testimony before the US Congress: 'For decades, the multilateral agencies have played a shell game with what they privately acknowledged were worthless developing-nation loans by recirculating funding on fantasy balance-sheets. The money is long gone, the debt is uncollectable, and rich lenders and international financial institutions must move on from denial to a new life as donors.'"

And then there is this to consider:
there is little reason why poor farmers and nurses should pay taxes to reward international institutions that lent recklessly to a government mired in corruption or at war.
Guardian Unlimited | Economic dispatch | Writing off the debt:[debt]

First Hydrogen-Fired Electrical Generator Planned for Scotland.

This is a scheme to reform natural gas into hydrogen and carbon dioxide and use the latter to help empty nearly-exhausted oil wells whilst sequestering the CO2...

"introduction of this reformer technology diverts C02 emissions from the stacks and shoves it down a hole in the ocean floor. That's a win win plan as it is; but it also proves the worth of innovation around hydrogen in the broadest sense.

Treehugger: First Hydrogen-Fired Electrical Generator Planned for Scotland.

Praying the Pattern

My book is now printed; my first[fruits arrived this morning. Just click on the title and you can order a copy. Or find out a bit more at the book's wiki. It's not yet been picked up by Amazon, but I'm told it's only a matter of time. I'm posting the news on this blog as the book may interest readers in its weaving together of prayer and lifestyle in relation to being a world Christian on a globalised planet. This is particularly in the parts about God's will and daily bread.



Books on the Lord's prayer tend to be one or other of two kinds. On the one hand there are scholarly books which explore the texts, backgrounds and usages of the prayer critically. On the other hand there are more devotional books which offer meditations and reflections on the meaning of the prayer. What there appears not to be are books that take the insights about meanings and structure and the template-nature of the prayer and attempt to turn them into practical strategies for praying. Until that happens, people have other models and patterns of praying which, by virtue of history and present usage, tend to predominate. In order to use the Lord's prayer in the kind of way that scholarship broadly indicates, we need also to provide models and means to do so.



Praying the Pattern attempts to fill that gap: the gap between observing that the 'Our Father' is supposed to be a structuring framework for prayer and the practice that simply uses the prayer as a recitation and uses other schemas to shape prayer.

Publish and be Damned | Praying the Pattern

Praying the Pattern

My book is now printed; my first[fruits arrived this morning. Just click on the title and you can order a copy. Or find out a bit more at the book's wiki. It's not yet been picked up by Amazon, but I'm told it's only a matter of time.



Books on the Lord's prayer tend to be one or other of two kinds. On the one hand there are scholarly books which explore the texts, backgrounds and usages of the prayer critically. On the other hand there are more devotional books which offer meditations and reflections on the meaning of the prayer. What there appears not to be are books that take the insights about meanings and structure and the template-nature of the prayer and attempt to turn them into practical strategies for praying. Until that happens, people have other models and patterns of praying which, by virtue of history and present usage, tend to predominate. In order to use the Lord's prayer in the kind of way that scholarship broadly indicates, we need also to provide models and means to do so.



Praying the Pattern attempts to fill that gap: the gap between observing that the 'Our Father' is supposed to be a structuring framework for prayer and the practice that simply uses the prayer as a recitation and uses other schemas to shape prayer.

Publish and be Damned | Praying the Pattern

Praying the Pattern

My book is now printed; my first[fruits arrived this morning. Just click on the title and you can order a copy. Or find out a bit more at the book's wiki. It's not yet been picked up by Amazon, but I'm told it's only a matter of time.

Books on the Lord's prayer tend to be one or other of two kinds. On the one hand there are scholarly books which explore the texts, backgrounds and usages of the prayer critically. On the other hand there are more devotional books which offer meditations and reflections on the meaning of the prayer. What there appears not to be are books that take the insights about meanings and structure and the template-nature of the prayer and attempt to turn them into practical strategies for praying. Until that happens, people have other models and patterns of praying which, by virtue of history and present usage, tend to predominate. In order to use the Lord's prayer in the kind of way that scholarship broadly indicates, we need also to provide models and means to do so.

Praying the Pattern attempts to fill that gap: the gap between observing that the 'Our Father' is supposed to be a structuring framework for prayer and the practice that simply uses the prayer as a recitation and uses other schemas to shape prayer.
Publish and be Damned | Praying the Pattern

'The evil people who planned and carried out this want to divide us as a people'

One London Muslim had a phone call from his parents in Algeria, and he commented, "I think like me they are embarrassed as Muslims about what has happened because we are associated with these people. But this has nothing at all to do with Islam in any form. I do not understand what these people feel or think. All I know is that they are not following the teachings of the Qur'an and are not Muslims.'"

There are a number of things to note here. First and most importantly, as for most Muslims interviewed in this Guardian report, the revulsion of 'everyday' Muslims for the bombings and the genuine perplexity at how this could be construed as Islamic. And then the consequent outrage that they are being associated with it. In the west, we must be careful to act and speak in such a way as not to alienate those who see these acts rightly as heinous crimes. If we react by identifying them with the terrorists and treating them accordingly, then we will play into the hands of Al Qaida by giving cause for radicalisation of the general Muslim population and further separatism. We need to be strengthening the hands of those of good will in the Muslim communities for the common good.

But let's note too the last bit of what was said; "But this has nothing at all to do with Islam in any form. I do not understand what these people feel or think. All I know is that they are not following the teachings of the Qur'an and are not Muslims.'"
Now this is very interesting. First, note the incomprehension; the militant expression of Islam is felt as being very much at odds with their everyday version which they understand as being about prayer, certain issues of morality and lifestyle and responsible citizenship [I think that's broadly fair].

And yet the jihadists maintain that their interpretation of Islam is authentic and that these 'mainstream' Muslims are little bettter than apostates. The jihadist approach is grounded in appeals to the Qur'an, Sunna and Hadith and as such proves persuasive to many converts who want to be authentic Muslims. - A dynamic familiar to Christians also. We westerners are accustomed to religion that 'knows its place' and is normally about loving ones neighbour. So we get scared when it claims to be about government and matters of public morality. Lots of Muslims are a part of traditions that harmonise better with the western mindset in this respect, but it is by no means the only approach. Up until recently, the rulers of Saudi Arabia were funding the Wahhabi approach to Islam which has been the context that produced Bin Laden and is best understood in Christian terms, perhaps, as analogous to the kind of rather fierce and dour Evangelicalism of groups like Reform. Hear me aright here; I'm not saying that Reform are terrorists! Just that the textual earnestness is similar. The terrorist impetus comes from the fact that the Medinan period of Muhammed's ministry is marked by the needs of statecraft and he seems to have made some rather 'bold' [read 'cruel'] decisions at this time which have become canonised as scripture and are rather contradictory to his earlier and eirenic Meccan teachings.

This is Islam's dilemma, the best of their traditions are what is known but the majority are in ignorance of some of the more warlike teachings that the Jihadists draw on.

If you are interested in going a bit further with this, try here.

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | 'The evil people who planned and carried out this want to divide us as a people':

Fingernails store personal information

I could see this catching on if the means to en/decrypt is cheap enough; I'd certainly consider carrying some of my data around on a fingernail. Must say, though, that I have questions about the robustness of the fingernail as a storage medium; how prone to corruption? Would nail varnish help or hinder? Etc....
Fingernails store personal information (July 2005) - News - optics.org

Muslims urged to stay indoors

Now you'd expect that Al Qaida would not be happy that their actions could have the effect of putting Muslims at risk. However, I suspect that they follow the logic of the Baader-Meinhoff gang and the Red Brigades: force repressive measures and harvest the resulting discontent in the form of recruitment and radicalisation of your oppressed masses. It's a pity that current responses are playing right into the terrorists' hands and I suspect are likely to continue to do so.

On another tack, we should note that several Muslim leaders have already condemned the bombings, eg. "the Islamic Human Rights Commission, appealed for calm and condemned the bombings."
However, I would still have to say that we are waiting for major Ulema to issue fatwas to that effect...
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Muslims urged to stay indoors:

Subsidies to the U.S. oil industry

Beart this in mind when talking about the costs of renewables. "Should governments stand back, letting the 'invisible hand' of the 'free' market do its job? Up to a point, but today’s energy playing field is far from level. Subsidies to the U.S. oil industry alone run into the tens of billions of dollars annually, aside from Iraq and the costs of keeping other oil-rich regions vaguely stable."

Chevron - Will You Join Us - Issues in Brief - Alternatives:

Chevron - the era of easy oil is over

When yet another major oil co says this; "Energy will be one of the defining issues of this century, and one thing is clear: the era of easy oil is over.", you know the game's up. Time to begin lifestyle changes, folks...
Chevron - Will You Join Us - Why Now?:

Bush: Time to move beyond Kyoto

"Mr Bush has softened his line ahead of the talks" I'm cautiously optimistic after hearing Bush stumble through a press conference on this morning's news. By that I mean that I think I heard him accept the reality of climate change and the need for human action to mitigate it. I'm quite willing to acknowledge that the Kyoto accord is not enough ...

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Bush: Time to move beyond Kyoto:

Many hurt as blasts rock London

I have 3 relatives and sundry friends in London ...
Looks like a return to the bad old days, this time with Al Qaida rather than the IRA [I presume].
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Many hurt as blasts rock London

EU: "no" to software patents

Hurrah! A brief moment of rejoicing and here's why."'We buried a bad law and did so without flowers,' said Eva Lichtenberger, an Austrian member of the parliament's Green group. 'The legislation would have hindered the development of small companies and helped big businesses because they are the only ones that can afford patent lawyers and litigation costs.'
Not surprisingly, supporters of patents saw the defeat in a different light. Microsoft, Nokia, Siemens, and a number of other companies had been pushing hard for EU adoption, saying that it would encourage research and development while lowering costs for them. The trade-off comes when smaller companies and individuals find themselves embroiled in costly legal battles over what can be questionable patents. As proposed, the patent system in EU would have put small businesses and the open source community at a competitive disadvantage and ultimately would hinder--rather than encourage--innovation. "
European Union says "no" to software patents:

George Monbiot � Save us from Ourselves

"If we want to change the world, we must force governments to force us to change our behaviour."

Read the article to find out why.

George Monbiot � Save us from Ourselves:

London wins 2012 Olympics

I'm actually not a huge fan of London; aka Babylon! However, and more seriously, I am pleased at this; the plans were such that regeneration of poorer areas and the increase of capacity is likely. No doubt there are all sorts of not-so-good things but now is the time to rejoice for the good.
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | London wins 2012 Olympics

A New Kenyan Currency

This is potentially very significant, given the ways in which currency is usually tied to debt and trade ... "What Michael Joseph has actually done is to create a new currency --a cyber currency that can be sent anywhere in the country at the press of a button, without needing a bank account or incurring high bank charges. You see what's happened: the mobile phone is multiplying its revolutionary impact on the lives of the poor, giving them facilities once available only to the rich. "
WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: A New Kenyan Currency:

More on Micro-Wind for the Home

Looks like this is really starting to take off [sorry!].

WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Micro-Wind for the Home

FOSS, and the preservation of Gaelic

You may have picked up that I am keen on minority languages and also Free and Open Source Software. So this was bound to get my attention. "'People should not be placed in a situation where they cannot use software in their own language. If open source projects mean that users can themselves contribute to preventing this situation and ... to reversing it, then I think the outlook for smaller (or what are often rather pejoratively called 'minority') languages is improved in an important way.'"
In this case it was the release of OpenOffice.org for Scots Gaelic that was of interest. It being a very minority language, it is under the threshold of commercial interest for M$. And as proprietary software is not meant to be hacked to make the necessary modifications, it shows how handy an open source approach can be: the code is there to be worked on, so community groups can do so.
NewsForge | OpenOffice.org, FOSS, and the preservation of Gaelic:

[Footprint] How Renewable are Renewables?

Now there's a weird question!

How renewable are renewables?

OK - so the energy produced from renewable sources is renewable BUT is the method of production of that energy sustainable?

Let's reframe that point to try and understand it:
We have little doubt that the electricity produced by the rotation of a wind turbine is thanks to the renewable source of energy that we know as 'the wind'. However, how are we going about extracting that wind energy? Well, we are manufacturing wind turbines, installing them and maintaining them. So how are we doing that? Are we using entirely renewable sources of energy to power that entire process?

1. Is the mining of the raw materials powered by renewables?
2. Is the transportation of the raw materials powered by renewables?
3. Is the processing of the raw materials powered by renewables?
4. Is the assembly of the components powered by renewables?
5. Are the sales procedures of the wind turbines powered by renewables?
6. Is the transportation of the wind turbines powered by renewables?
7. Is the installation of the wind turbines powered by renewables?
8. Is the maintenance of the wind turbines powered by renewables?
9. Are the lives of all the people involved with every stage of that process entirely powered by renewables?
10. Am I riding on a flying pig powered by renewables?

So perhaps renewable production, especially on a mass production scale (where market competitiveness matters) is not as renewable as we thought?

Aaaargh!

[Footprint] Alternatives to Buying ROCs

So you've perhaps wondered if you are better off spending your hard earned wonga on something other than ROCs? However, your aim is the same - to reduce your non-renewable energy use to an minimum.

So you invest in:

1. Insulation for your home.
2. Solar water heating panels for your roof.
3. Willow coppicing or bamboo growing for heating.
4. A wood stove.
5. Simple charcoal production.
6. A bicycle!
7. A wind turbine.

You stop:

1. Driving a car.
2. Flying in planes.
3. Taking buses.
4. Buying as much 'stuff' as you used to.

Now would you have been better of to have powered your (limited) lifestyle using 'mass production' of renewable energy by a combination of consumption reduction and buying ROCs? Probably. Let's face it mass production is virtually always more efficient than small scale production.

Environmental Peacemaking

We are aware of the potential for conflict in ecological issues such as resource use. We should also consider that there is potential for building peace, here's how ...Worldwatch Institute: Global Security: Worldwatch Global Security Brief #6

Fed-up Christian families moving toward 'secession'

I find this disturbing.
"a group of Christians fed up with American laws they believe are at odds with the Bible is beginning to move to its target state of South Carolina."
Good thing the early church didn't think and act in this way: how would the gospel have been shared? Shows that we're witnessing a mainly political ideology rather than something based in the New Testament.
WorldNetDaily: Fed-up Christian families moving toward 'secession':

First steps in hydrogen motoring

"among the first individuals to begin utilizing the first of California's Hydrogen Highway refueling stations, a statewide infrastructure build out underway to offer hydrogen refueling station access to private individuals"

Treehugger: Honda Leases First Fuel Cell Car:

Greenwiki

Something to bookmark ...

Main Page - Greenwiki

Poo-Powered Prison in Rwanda

Another encouraging project showing the potential of leapfrog development.

"The digester is fed human waste generated by 1500 prisoners and it produces 50% of the energy needed to cook for the 6000 to 10,000 inmates"



Treehugger: Biogas: Poo-Powered Prison in Rwanda:

Make A Simple Savonius Wind Turbine

This looks interesting and goes down as a possible resource for future use.

Treehugger: Make A Simple Savonius Wind Turbine

Book on the way

Just a quick update, the process is well underway and my book should be published very soon. I will be publishing details of how to get hold of it just as soon as the means to order it become available. If you want a book that advocates a spirituality of the Lord's prayer, explores lifestyle implications, offers creative ideas for praying it and even daily office liturgies ...

STOP PRESS
an order should now be place-able here

Normal service will be resumed

Just thought I ought to mention that I am having major problems with my internet connection -this is being posted from my wife's university account- and so I am working on getting back online properly. Looks like, having had the telephone engineer in, that here is some kind of problem with the router, I'm hoping that a call to customer support may avoid having to buy a new one. It appears to make a connection but to quickly give up on passing the information on to the network.
Perhaps laying on of hands is called for -it's worked beofre with electrical equipment!