Random thoughts of Nowun Till

Lunakid – Little Great Nothing – Audio

Lunakid – Little Great Nothing – Audio: Lunakid

Boom Child – The Super Edible EP – EP Review

Boom Child – The Super Edible EP – EP Review: Boom Child

The loop of disaster

Well this is a webinar I would go to - if only I had the time between reading my emails -

Webinar: How to escape email purgatory and transform management of your marketing

Wednesday 13 March | 3.30-4.30 pm GMT

http://b2bmarketing.net/events/webinar-how-escape-email-purgatory-and-transform-management-your-marketing?utm_campaign=Huddle

The good news is that instead of attending it - I will get an email to let me know I missed it - along with a link to the video for the webinar recording.

Lost the plot

It is a quiet Saturday afternoon. I have lost many friends through violence, drugs and climbing accidents over the years. But Julie was in a different space.

Every day since she died I have spoken to Julie. As an atheist I know it is just to appease my head and yet it makes some sense to me.

I wish her the world of the after-life - stars and angels - were true and I feel comforted keeping her hopes alive.

I understand why 'believers' get in to the head-space of 'it is true'. I too can hear Julie replying to every question, re-looping conversations. Questions I posed when she was alive and conversations I can extrapolate. I hear Julie blowing a kiss as I walk out of the door, saying hello as I come home again, but none of it is real.

Try it believers - ask a genuine question to which you don't know an answer and there is a deafening silence.

Yet, today I felt a scowl, as I knew Julie would not have approved, but I don't know what it is I actually did that she would have disapproved of.

Lost the plot, but happy doing so.

Julie Norbury.

Building collapse, blasts spark worries about Rio

Building collapse, blasts spark worries about Rio: RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) -- Enormous buildings suddenly collapse in this seaside Olympic city's center, killing 17. A manhole explodes near Copacabana Beach, severely burning a pair of American tourists....

Poland slaps fine on singer for bashing Bible

Poland slaps fine on singer for bashing Bible: WARSAW, Poland (AP) -- A Polish court slapped a fine on a popular singer who bad-mouthed the Bible - the latest episode in which authorities grapple with religious defamation in a traditionally Catholic country that is growing increasingly secular....

Iran warns Gulf Arabs on oil

Iran warns Gulf Arabs on oil: CAIRO (AP) -- Iran warned Gulf Arab oil producers against boosting production to offset any potential drop in Tehran's crude exports in the event of an embargo affecting its oil sales, the latest salvo in the dispute between the West and the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program....

HK protesters demand D&G apologize for photo ban

HK protesters demand D&G apologize for photo ban: HONG KONG (AP) -- Occupy Dolce & Gabbana? A Hong Kong outlet of the Italian fashion label has been the target of repeated protests because residents claim the store's staff have discriminated against them....

Laugh I could have died

called by an off-shore call centre telling me they were part of microsoft and would help me clear all the viruses off my computer....

caller ...Hello, are you the owner of the computer

me.. err, err, yes
......
caller.... crap about microsoft and viruses. followed by ... Is your computer turned on, do you own it and are you by the keyboard.

Me... yes, ooooh what is happening I am scared.

caller... no need to worry I am here to help.

An attempt to take over control of my computer.

Me.... I have something strange on my screen

caller... what does it say?

Me. F for foxtrot, U for uncle C for Charlie K for king I for indigo N nor nobody G for goose W for whisky

Caller... hold on a moment. (He must hang up)

I was transferred to a supervisor.

Supervisor... That looks like a bad virus, new attempt to take over my computer.

Me. Oh no this looks horrible lots of stuff on my screen, please help.

Supervisor.... What do you have.

Me... W for whisky... did you get that

Supervisor... yes (Every letter afterwards, same question, same response).

Me... A for alphabet

N for nobody

K for King

E for Egg

Me...new line and lots of spaces, do you want that too (surely I must be found out by now)

Supervisor... No this is a bad virus we will sort it out in a moment, what else is on the screen.

R for Romeo

S for Stereo

C for Charlie

A for Apple

M for mother

M for mother

E for Egg

and now a big gap

R for red

S for erm.. Sock

That is all I dont know what it means, what does it say.....

Supervisor... (gets the conversation with him in one)

Me... no you missed the first word...

Supervisor... Oh shit.

Made me smile and now I digress

Laugh I could have died I have not laughed so much since auntie mabel caught her left tit in the mangle... Peter Cook and Dudley Moore Ad Nauseum (Sick Bag) a brilliant peice of satire

http://eil.com/shop/moreinfo.asp?catalogid=453919

Womb for hire

Is there nothing that the UK won't follow the US in doing?

In a recent case a High Court Family Judge gave a ruling giving the green light to the commoditisation of the womb.

A couple paid an American Woman to give birth to their child and the Judge decided that the fee they had paid this woman was acceptable.

I can see the adverts and websites springing up -

Healthy womb, good pelvic bone, available for hire in March. £25,000. Successful delivery of 18 babies. Will also consider Caesarean for that perfect Christmas Present.

Womb for rent, slightly uncertain pedigree, has managed 5 live births with 2 still births, reduced rate £10,000

Wanted - healthy womb - Couple wanting to celebrate their anniversary in style require the baby to be delivered on 27th May. Prepared to pay up to £35,000 for the right applicant.

Want a womb to rent but strapped for cash. Wombs for hire loans are available at a competitive rate.

I am desperate for cash to pay my mortgage and prepared to offer a reduced rate for my womb, highest deposit secures.

Need a baby in a hurry? Safe Caesareans - We are a specialist clinic working with our womb renters to ensure the fastest delivery possible. See our website for endorsements by satisfied customers.

What a sick country this is becoming.

Net Neutrality blown out of the water

Over the past few weeks there are increasingly ominous signs that net-neutrality and an open internet is a thing of the past.

For years countries such as China and Iraq have been pilloried by politicians and journalists in the West over their control and censorship of the internet. No longer can this continue.

This notice is appearing across websites in America, as their Department of Homeland Security makes a land grab for websites. Websites, they claim are offering or pointing to illegal download sites.

There are sites, which have nothing to do with downloads, that are being seized and closed.

The USA has a legal process to follow, in fact a choice of two:

DMCA, whereby a website is informed of infringements and have the opportunity to respond.

The more recently introduced COICA requires that the attorney general ask a court to place that website on a blacklist.

The Department of Homeland Security has however taken it upon themselves to by-pass this legislation and summarily executed court-ordered seizure warrants against a number of domain names, with little evidence, other than a complaint.

This pre-emption would be bad enough on its own, but this is compounded with the

WikiLeaks saga, which has seen the USA chase the domain and business around the world, putting pressure on hosts and even going so far as to introducing new legislation, the SHIELD Act, which is an amendment to a section of the Espionage Act, extending it to include:

publishing information concerning the identity of a classified source or informant of an element of the intelligence community of the United States, or concerning the human intelligence activities of the United States or any foreign government.

A piece of legislation which by its very hurry to be implemented indicates how quickly Governments in the West will aim to close down any website with which it has an issue.

In the UK, there has been the pre-emptive closing down on Fitwatch under the say so of a junior ranking police officer. Who decided he was going to act as investigator, prosecutor, barrister, judge and jury coercing a hosting company to remove the site. The site has now been re-instated with another host and as of now, no charges have been made against the domain owner.

A Government Minister in the UK has openly backed the end of net-neutrality with a call for a multi speed internet, with ISPs being able to charge either the website owner, or the consumer a fee, for internet access speed based on the site being visited.

The minister involved, Ed Vaizey, is either extremely thick, or duplicitous, as he continues to claim he is all in favour of net neutrality and on the same page as Berners-Lee and all other net neutrality advocates. He even goes so far as to suggest that because a consumer can choose which speed internet access he purchases from his ISP, is already indicative of a multi-speed internet. I posit, Vaizey isn't as thick as he pretends and has some ulterior motive in wanting to destroy net-neutrality and introduce a multi-speed internet.

This erosion has come about quickly and with little warning, who knows where it will lead.

The President Carter 1980 Rescue mission in Iran still haunts the USA

American Paranoia continues to sweep over their servants in Europe.

America, determined to create an Empire, keep up their relentless drive to world domination and are currently sashaying to the mood music of Iran and their threat to the West.

Having failed so far, but do watch this space, to convince the poodles in London to support an invasion of Iran, nothing to do with the Carter rescue debacle of 1980 still bruising their egos?

The upright and decent US of A are putting pressure on NATO to accept their demands for a European Missile Shield. The reality being that the European Missile Shield against the immediate and highly dangerous threat of an Iranian missile launch in to Europe will plug in to their missile defences in Israel and the Gulf, which technically are separate and in different stages of development. But they are all designed to plug into command-and-control systems operated by, or with, the U.S. military. Providing the USA with absolute military power and control across Europe and the Middle East.

While the UK has just undertaken a range of financial cuts, they did have the unedifying sight of having their supposed Government asking for permission from the Americans to undertake their defence review and ensure it met with Americas requirement of their little puppy.

Evidently the American demanded and received a slobbering agreement that the UK stump up with their part of the US$200million cost for this oh so necessary project.

That bastion of freedom, Turkey are less easily manipulated by the USA and their bullying tactics have so far failed to make Turkey to acquiesce, or to put it more prosaically, Defence Secretary Robert M. Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with their Turkish counterparts, as Gates put it - '..I would say that we are not putting pressure on the Turks, but we are having continuing conversations with them as one of our allies...'

Lisbon, in November 2010 will undoubtedly see the freedom fighters of the USA, win their argument for a European Defence Shield in one way or another.

This is the same free USA which still argues that Gay military service personnel should be hung drawn and quartered. Oh for the Land of the free.

Time for a break

The slimebags have been elected and now we have waffle of urgent work that needs to be undertaken.

But there is the slight issue of a holiday.

These rip-off merchants will be away in just 28 days of sittings before heading off for three months holiday.

Urgent... Decisions.... Hard working families....

Sod the lot of them

Local Government Ombudsman

I am hugely impressed with the LGO, who have a staffing budget of over £10 000 000 a year but when calling them this morning was advised by an automated response that lines were closed due to staff training and wouldn't re-open until 10:30.

What a hugely efficient organisation this is. Payroll costs of over £10m and they manage to send everyoen on training at the same time.

No Idon't believe it either.

Crass incompetence. In addition to raising my initial complaint I will be adding a further complaint about a QUango that so happily wastes money.

read more “Local Government Ombudsman”

The election

We had an election in the UK.

You may have voted, you may have had faith, good for you.

Who actually was on marches to get rid of corrupt politicians, that was the whole 650 of them. Were you?

You voted for Conservative, why? The leader of this party thought it was fine to claim from you his wisteria clippings.

You voted Labour, why? The leader of this party claimed Sky Sports as an expense, but still demands it is kept as a secret as this is a 'security risk'.

You voted Clegg, why? This man admitted taking expenses for business-class air travel while actually flying economy

Shoot the lot of them.

My wish for 2010

It is a great shame that in many countries, puppets are deemed far more relevant than real people.

It is an absolute abhorrence that an Actor/Actress is paid more to pretend to be someone than the real person doing a real job.

Why are puppets paid more to pretend than real people to actually do something useful?

Does an actor/actress really believe them pretending to save someones life, is worth more than someone actually saving a real life? Does a pretend soldier really think they are of greater value to society than a real soldier being shot in the battle field, screaming an real agony and actually bleeding to death?

Does a pretend fireman in all honesty think they are worthy of an accolade for following a directors direction and getting in to no harms way, when a real fireman really does save people, risk their life and all with nothing more than a pittance in relative salary.

It is a sad state of affairs when as a society the pretenders are valued more highly than the realists, but this is our Society.

I have many wishes for the new decade, but of relevance to this post:

I wish people would stop shelling out vast sums of money to watch plastic people play out pretend roles, whilst begrudging paying more tax to financially support real people doing real jobs.

Do we really live in a Society in which serial murderers can't sell their story but a pretend person can be paid millions of dollars for pretending to be that murderer?

Lest MPs forget - Remembrance Sunday - No expenses for wreaths

Image via Wikipedia

MPs are quick with their Public Service Announcements, so I thought it may be helpful to make an announcement for MPs as we begin November.

Remembrance Sunday Wreaths are not reclaimable expenses.

The excuses of 'claimed in error' don't wash and never have. Amongst others Ed Balls and Boris Johnson have managed to try and slip this expense past the tax payer.

Remembrance Sunday is not a day to go out and buy a wreath then bill it back to the tax payer.

So just to re-iterate, if you wish to make a donation, or purchase a Remembrance Sunday Wreath, pay it out of your own salary, not out of the taxpayers.

Enough of their pathetic excuses, claiming this type of expense is perhaps as morally low as any of the excessive claims have been.

Lest We forget - in the case of Balls and Johnson, I won't.

Is the FSA for real?

The FSA, that long discredited regulator is coming up with farcical ideas as they reach the end of their lifespan.

We have had a suggestion that bankers bonuses should be regulated, which is highly fashionable at present, but based on little reality. We have the FSA championed by the Darling, suggesting that if the banks went back to pre-1985 Big Bang, then there would never be another bail-out needed and we have the FSA once

Image via Wikipedia

again supported by Brown, supporting loan regulation.

I am no fan of bankers, but it would be nice to have a little reality.

Bankers bonuses: The bonuses are approved by shareholders. If the shareholders do not wish to take the risk profile suggested by the Directors, there is a simple way to achieve change. Vote against the Directors resolutions at theAGM . But of course the Shareholders have historically been the pension fund managers who sit as non-execs of the banks. However there have been numerous proposals put forward regarding shareholder revisions, but theFSA choose to ignore this reality. In today's climate, the banks who are causing the greatest concern are the banks in which the tax-payer holds a significant shareholding, so the answer is to ensure the tax-payers vote No. But dear old Darling doesn't like simple answers as it clears the decks to easily and the mainstream media just love to hate anyone, so tarnish all bankers with the same brush. The banks who took no funding do not deserve any cut back on bonuses, but that doesn't suit the climate.

Dividing the banks, so that there will be no further bail-out: What trite rubbish, where do Governments and the largest businesses secure complex financing? Funnily enough it isn't from a retail bank. However Darling, Brown and Myners would have us all myopically walk in to a situation that the banks are split as per pre-1985 and all is hunky dory. Let's run that one again, A.N. Investment bank fails, on which the US Government, China, the UK Government and Unilever are reliant on a syndicated finance agreement and the Government would just let it fall like a ton of bricks? How stupid is Darling, or how stupid does he think the population is? Failing retail banks are a problem for the general public, but failing Investment banks are the death knell to capitalism.

Tightening credit, there are a myriad of examples here, but let's take a simple one:

Joe Bloggs earns £100 000 a year and wishes to purchase a property, which is a little run down for £250 000 but he also want to spend £50 000 on refurbishment. Under the proposed FSA rules he could borrow a loan for a house valued at £300 000 on his salary, but borrowing £250 000 plus £50 000 to refurbish the place is an unacceptable Loan to Value, so is a no go: absolute madness. He therefore needs to borrow the additional £50 000 as a personal loan over perhaps 10 years at a far higher rate of interest and monthly repayment than borrowing that money as part of his mortgage.

One more example: Jane Smith has a house valued at £140 000 which is mortgaged at 100%, she also has credit card debts of £10 000 and a personal loan for £5 000. Is the FSA suggesting that LTV is the absolute measure of credit worthiness? What about Andy Pandy, who has no house but want to borrow £2 000, should his personal loan be asset backed?

It is all good knock about media stuff, but the crew running the regulators really need to join up their thinking a little.

The FTC endorsement guidelines

It has been a while, since I was here, life has been a little busy.

I thought it may help readers of this blog and other bloggers, to put up the ftc guidelines on advertising and endorsement. Unfortunately they are yet another example of yet more red tape in a world full of red tape.

Each video is different

Here is the link for the pdf of the text to the guidelines in detail

happy reading.

Oh and by the way, I get a small commission if adverts on this site are clicked, but I was not paid by the ftc, or even sent a thank you note or any sort of acknowledgement. No coffee was offered, Green card, free flights, visitors visa, luxury hotel, or even dingy hotel stay. No meetings with any individual, corporate or governmental agency were promised as a result of posting this article. I was offered no inducement, no pork barrel legislation or even primary legislation was discussed, promised or offered. In fact I have had no contact with the FTC in relation to this article and have received nor been promised anything at all in fact in return for this public service announcement. (I think that just about covers it).

Come to think of it, why haven't I been paid for writing about an alien Governments legislation?

Has google become too clever?

Less an irritation than my usual posts, rather a simple question. Has google lost sight of the user?

Personally I am a google fan and welcome areas such as Wave, Android, Squared, Analytics, [show options], gmail, pages, wheel, blogger, maps, earth, etc. etc, etc. but there is a not so glamorous side, which includes the cookie which sits on your computer unless you opt-out, the new google 'wiki'. Neither the glamour nor the darkness are really the purpose of the post. Who uses al

Image via CrunchBase

l this stuff and why is Google constantly releasing more and more?

While I don't consider myself a geek (well perhaps I am a bit geeky as I live on the computer and am an alpha tester by 'index finger reflex' - that well known medical condition) I like to try out all this stuff, I work with most of it and I use a lot of it, which is great for me as a user of google services. Google docs, makes my life easy, igoogle makes my home page useful, google reader keeps me up to date, but really who uses this.

In conversation with 'normal' users of the web, there is little comprehension or interest that a google search can be in "" with a +, with a -, with a square 10 page view 100 page view, news, blogs etc. etc. etc.

Google works because it retrieves what people want easily, their little 'darkside' moves are hidden, their added value is hidden. I am of the opinion that those who support Google are those of a Geek disposition, each process adds revenue to Google for sure, as we the geeks find ways to optimise, utilise, advertise the medium of communication we select, but does the average user really know that Google Earth and Google Maps are different products showing different things? The answer is by a short straw poll, absolutely not. I had a recent conversation with someone who constantly talked of google earrth, but was referring to google maps.

Does that confusion matter? No, of course it doesn't, Google was mentioned and from the Google perspective, that is all that mattered.

Who actually subscribes to the Google blog? Lonely hand raised over here.

I am not whinging about google as I like much of what they do, but on speaking to casual internet users, google remains the box you type in your search term and perhaps a gmail account, but not much else. Google marketing needs to get its ass in gear, there is a whole world aside from the geeks.

Nowun Till, brought to you by another Google product - Blogspot