Just a Little bit

Below is an extract from a sort of novel I have been working on. Feedback and comments will be appreciated 

 

The ideas of travel and exploration come hand in hand with some significant amount of money. And I have a universally known amount of money. None. None in which to do what I wish. The point being that, ideals cost money, most of all for the active and curious mind. Keen for such worn-out phrases as “new horizons.”
I out-grew my hometown long before out-growing dreams of leaving. Ideas of leaving have worn thin and below the deteriorating weave of these ideas lies the power and motivation to plant my feet to new and foreign ground. Yet the means to do so are still unclear. I have the maybe naïve notion that the quest for new lands can be achieved purely without money, relying on the land, the people and perhaps most important of all – the feeling.
A “feeling” is not all a man can carry himself on, even one as intense as this one would be.” For me, dreams have only taken me to a long-awaited departure, not a destination. The medium in which to arrive at this unknown destination is still unclear.

Kidding a Kidder: Kidding Itself

Maybe four or five hours sleep last night with a head full of coffee, alcohol and a stomach full of fine Italian cuisine.

The Times had fallen over my face during the night. Now part of Gordon Brown’s Labour speech was directly in view. I was trying not to look at the one and worst paragraph that was in my focus. But I couldn’t stop myself.

“The fighters and believers – we have changed the world before and we are going to do it again.”

After reading this, I couldn’t help but read the entire article.

The piece was on Gordon Brown setting his agenda for the General Election. I suppose Brown doesn’t realise that being underdog to the Tories in the upcoming General Elections makes his newly outlined policies impossible.

There was talk of Tax, scrapage, child and elderly care in Brown’s feebly announcements. Must know Labour Power is lost, it seems he’s just throwing out desperate ideas that might just get the public’s attention. And maybe some people’s pity votes, for which Labour sorely need.

In recent months Labour has borne the resemblance of a wounded deer, hunted down by Conservatives, holding onto to its last bits of energy and life.

Kidding itself.

Kidding a Kidder: Riding a Collision Course

After sleeping through this Monday afternoon I found myself, again, scouring the Internet for information on the current situations in Iran. I drafted an article weeks ago on similar subjects concerning Iran’s Nuclear power and the paranoia it had brought to the West. Thinking this kind of subject would quickly pass, as news does considering Middle-Eastern relations with the West, I abruptly put the commentary aside. But after reading numerous articles it seems this could quickly turn into Iraq: The Sequel.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has mocked the United Nations and sworn to push forward with Iran’s Nuclear Programme, bringing yet more Western suspicions upon the country.

At a recent Democratic Presidential Debate in Las Vegas, a women in the audience came forward, stating her son had served three tours in Iraq and did not wish for him to become involved in another, “unnecessary war.” And I think she spoke the voice of most of the Western public, and with our current economic situations I doubt British financials and the US tax payer can afford yet more losses and cuts towards Military needs in the Middle East to have Politicians begin new and exciting wars for, “young men to die in.”

Vice President Cheney, in Washington, has declared that they, “will allow Iran to have nuclear weapons.”

Now imagine Iran as a child that has had their eye on a brand new toy of some kind. And now imagine you say that the child cannot have it. Isn’t that going to make them want it more? If Iran is told this by the US Iran is going to want to flex its nuclear muscle, bringing yet more suits to conference rooms to discuss the possibility of war over coffee and ear pieces.

If the US was to use Military Power against Iran it would come in the form of air strikes not the prolonged use of ground troops like that of Iraq and Afghanistan. Images of the surprise bombings in Baghdad come to mind. With the idea of air strikes over Iran, the whole operation could turn into a tit-for-tat escalating into international warfare, which is almost guaranteed considering Iran’s development of long-range missiles. Though it was thought that given Iran’s air defences an air-born attack would be unsuccessful and also taking into account Iran’s buried and dispersed nuclear facilities.

The US has always been interested in the Middle East whether it was the booming oil companies or the idea of showing off Military might. I’ve always said that Britain, especially ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair, was the shaking fist over the shoulder of a bully when it comes to the conflicts in the Middle East.

If Washington decides in some way or another to invade, over-throw or wipe foreign nuclear power of the face of the world hopefully Gordon Brown will not be in power because, I can see the next ten years unfolding already:

　War on Nuclear Power in Iran, the Predictable Timeline 

• Obama announces invasion after brutal bombings of major cities and facilities all over Iran.
• Breaking news of mass civilian casualties
• Obama calls for Britain to back US operations
• Six months later British troops land in Iran
• British and US troops slaughtered
• US and British economy breaks down due to financial cuts to aid troops
• Troops continue tours around Iran for years on end.

Paranoia can be extremely predictable when it comes to Middle Eastern Military power. And with Iran’s strenuous past relations with the US, maybe some kind of conflict is inevitable. Cheney’s earlier quote seemed full of false encouragement, old memories and frightfully familiar over-tones of Iraq.

Claiming that their nuclear development is for Iranian civilian purposes only, paranoia has injected itself into the minds of US Politicians everywhere, overdosing every one of them with fears of death, destruction and threats of terrorism.

Kidding a Kidder

Kidding a Kidder is a upcoming series of  commentary articles by me based around a personal, journalistic view on Politics and International affairs.

“Divine Revelation”

Bolivian born Jose Flores Pereira, claiming to be on a divine mission, hijacked a plane heading from Cancun to Mexico City along with over 100 passengers onboard. Threatening to blow up the plane, with what was to be believed to be a bomb inside a canned drink, Jose wished to warn President Felipe Calderon of an impending earthquake. Allegedly after having “a revelation that Mexico was in great danger.”

According to officials the passengers did not know what was happening until the plane had landed in Mexico City where police stormed the aircraft on live television, where women and children were allowed off.

When arrested Flores claimed to have multiple accomplices in which several suspects were arrested and taken away, but later the police announced that there was only one hijacker and no bombs aboard. The bomb was put under a controlled explosion on the run-way tarmac.

After his arrest he was displayed in front of reporters where he told them that he had used “a juice can with some little lights I attached” to seize control of the aircraft. The passengers, being of multiple nationalities, said they “were not initially aware of what was happening.” Flores was, in the past, reportedly arrested for armed robbery while also a previously known, unstable drug addict.

 While Flores was hijacking the plane as it came into land, President Calderon was on his way to the very same airport.

Brown at the Noose

As most Britons are against our mission in Afghanistan, it comes as no surprise that Gordon Brown is, yet again, in the public eye for all the wrong reasons.

Negotiations began almost immediatly after the kidnapping of journalist, Stephen Farrell, working for the New York Times in Afghanistan. Farrell’s Afghan translator, Sultan Munadi, was also taken captive. Seeking a peaceful means to an end, negotiators were angered by Gordon Brown’s decision to send in British Special Forces, Afghan troops and NATO Forces to end negotiations in a bloody firefight.

Stephen Farrell

 Troops were dropped into the Kunduz province of Northern Afghanistan, at the location of Farrell and Munadi, sometime around midnight on Tuesday. In the mists of gunfire Farrell ran from his captors shouting, “British Hostage!” Hunadi quickly followed suit. Farrell was soon rescued by British Special Forces, yet his translator, Munadi, was killed in the crossfire. The death of a British paratrooper was also a blow to the Special Forces, probably even more so for Mr Downing Street.

According to officials numerous civilians were also either injured or killed during the extraction. One Taliban official also claimed that around 48 guerillas were lost in the firefight, along with the house owners sister-in-law, who was killed when British Troops used explosives to blow the door open. The house owner, Mohammed Nabi, said that the Taliban had forced him to shelter them and their captives in their guest house.

These recent decisions made by Gordon Brown have been intensely scrutenised by multiple negotiators, believing that a peaceful release was at hand. One Afghan who spoke with the local commander said that, “I think we could have got them out peacefully, maybe in a few days.” Brown, attempting to justify his decision said, “Hostage-taking is never justified, and the UK does not make substantive concessions, including paying ransoms.”

I agree that ransoms should never be given to the swine of hostage takers, yet if Gordon Brown had more respect for the situation numerous lives could have been spared, instead of reaching for the panic button.

Film review – District 9

As the Sci-Fi genre claws its way back into our cinemas in this year, 2009, it seemed only too obvious to expect a film rivalling that of the most recent, poorly welcomed Transformers film.

Perveiws of the film, District 9, have shown us little but have opened a door of imagination in our minds. This kind of suspention in previews and trailers is similar to that of the 2008 film Cloverfield.

District 9is set to be an extremely impressive debut for Sounth-African born Neill Blomkamp, as trailers give the impression of original and innovative ideas of direction and visual features. Peter Jackson being the mentor of this unknown 29-year-old gives you a good idea of what to expect with regards to visual effects within the movie. Intense atmospheric moments can also almost be guaranteed from the help of Jackson and also the nature of the movie.

Using a documentary style of filming District 9tells the story of the stresses within society resulting from a Warsaw style slum town set just outside Johannesburg containing scores of alien refugees. Kept inside the slums the aliens are denied basic rights, sanitation and power. The neighbouring city, being disgusted by their unwelcome guests and the kind of squalor in which they live, see the apartheid as unavoidable. The plot cleverly takes into account the reality of all human prejudices.

As the story unfolds the expertise of first-timer Blomkamp can be clearly seen through the balance of physcological effects, social issues and intense action sequences. This is a film not to be missed this year.

Latest in music this week

Australian Born band, Jet released their third album this week in the UK.
Walking away from their last album “Shine On” with multiple hits, the band’s first album since 2006 entitled “Shaka Rock” hopefully is a return to their roots of memorable hooks and raw vocals.

Jet are set to play at Rock City, Nottingham on September 9th 2009 and also The Ritz in Manchester on the 10th, among other dates including sets in Glasgow.

 

Nicola Benedetti, being no stranger to the music industry, released her thrid album this week, entitled Fantasie. Invited by the London Symphony Orchestra as a soloist in 2004, Nicola has had an extremely inpressive music career. After being named by the BBC as Best Young Musician of the year in 2004 she released her debut album in April 2005 on the Deutsche Grammophon label.
After her second studio release in May 2006 with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Benedetti began performing throughout Europe for most of 2006-2007.

And now with continuous dates set in the 100 club in London, Nicola Benedetti’s latest album could rocket to the top.

The Kick of a Dream

I sat sipping on a glass of Pina Colada, instantly recognizing the small kick at the back of my throat. It was in trying to piece together the demise of our British Government and our hopeless Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, that I began to consider the meaning of The American Dream.

As Gordon Brown doesn’t know how to act as Prime Minister within my own country, my mind slipped west towards what has become a constant phrase in my mind. The American Dream. A beacon of hope across the pond while my own homeland lets Gordon Brown and his yes-men club it to death.

Brown seems a delinquent in a Government of tall suits and tied up files. He gives the same impression as a child on a bicycle without stabilizers. The tunnel-visioned mind-set of most politiciansand that constant grab to be number one, has allowed Brown to slip threw the fingers of his advisers and past the help of others. Help that could save his position as Prime Minister.

The American Dream. A term first used by James Truslow Adams in the 30′s. It gave every class of people hope, security and a chance to achieve in what is a wealthy, thriving country.
But as the decade of the 90′s lumbered on, the American people began to lose hope in the American Dream, as George W Bush made a joke of everything the American people stand for. Constantly thinking up more wars for young Americans to die in. Now in this, a new age of Presidency can the power of The American Dream still inspire the American people? Can Barack Obama become “the people’s man?”

Tom Wolfe once said that, “to every man, regardless of his birth, his shining, golden opportunity…the right to live, to work, to be himself and to become whatever thing his manhood and his vision can combine to make him.” I consider this statement the idealistic after birth of James Adam’s idea of every thing that is right and true in the US and can be once more.
This quote, being one of the most inspiring things I have ever read, seems to root down the essential ideals and mind-set a man needs to be able to thrive in an already bustling country.

“Bush makes Nixon Look Like a Liberal”

Thinking back on the war in Iraq, it now no longer feels like our war, as it never was. It was George w. Bush’s war. Within two years of being voted into Presidency and the leader of the United States he managed to turn America from a thriving nation of peaceful to a nation trapped by war and government fear. As Bush’s corrupt ways were always every time comical, it made you think what the Iraqi war was being fuelled with…Bush’s clear misunderstanding and utter stupidity.

Yet the American people kept voting him in. He had brought the Untied States into a state of paralysis, pumping the fear of attack and terror into the peoples of the US. The “threat” of chemical and biological weapons from Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden, seemed very unlikely, from the perspective over this side of the pond, as surely if both this clearly evil men were as evil as Bush made out to be and as threatening as Bush made out to be to the American people, wouldn’t Bin Laden or Saddam already have blown a hole in the States?

If George Bush was aware of terrorist activity home and abroad, why fund the Iraqi’s with military and economical power? Even after the Russians left the Middle East, weren’t the US Government still feeding them military supplies? Though with Bush’s tunnel visioned approach to politics, Iraq and the American people its easy to see why his Federal yes-men agreed to every one of his right-wing ramblings. And as he kept the nation jumpy over the Middle East, Bush could pull out any tricks and keep the US people unaware, afraid and still have them agree and see sense with everything he raped, pillaged and spat at in what can only be descirbed as Vietnam the sequel.