sparrow chat

Just as I was complaining the US political conventions were a total bore, along comes John McCain with the biggest joke since Tony Blair embraced popery. It’s not enough that McCain’s chosen a woman as his VP nominee, an obvious attempt to rub Hillary Clinton’s nose in the dirt, but he’s also managed to choose a woman no-one’s ever heard of.

Perhaps the only conclusion that can be drawn from McCain’s decision to pick (hang on while I look her up), oh, yes, Sarah Palin, is that here is a deliberate, even blatant, ploy to hook the Hillary Clinton supporters sufficiently brassed by Obama’s nomination they are capable of switching party allegiance solely to display their inane malice. (See previous post: “A Load Of Sticky Meringue” Sparrow Chat, August 26th 2008)

The choice of Ms Palin is a bolt from the blue; a complete secret even from the Republican party hierarchy. Apparently, only John McCain knew – oh, and Maria Bartiromo of NBC, who happened to interview her last week.

How these coincidences just fall from the sky.

Sarah Palin is reputed to be an ex Alaska beauty queen and ‘Miss Congeniality’. While risking the accusation of sexism from some of my readers, having seen Ms Palin one surely has to question whether the other contestants were selected from the local Alaskan grizzly bear and moose community.

More importantly, while her qualification for beauty queen is entirely subjective, the ideals inside her head lend themselves to a somewhat more objective approach. A passion for firearms, coupled with total loyalty to the National Rifle Association; determination to increase oil and gas drilling in the, as yet, pristine Alaska wilderness; an obsessive approach to abortion causing her to birth a Down’s Syndrome child, even though tests revealed the condition while termination was still a practical possibility, and a passion for the death-penalty, all give cause for concern.

In a free country, the preceding list provides acceptable beliefs for any individual. Sarah Palin, though, makes it quite clear she is prepared to work her butt off to ensure we all comply with her ideals. Suddenly, the governor from Alaska turns into a bitch from Hell.

Those Americans considering voting for the McCain/Palin ticket may wish to pause a moment and ponder the following: today is McCains 72nd birthday. He’s not in the best of health. If he were to die while in office, he would bequeath to the nation a successor with virtually no experience of political office, no foreign policy experience, and a bevy of ill-thought-out ideals. Exactly the kind of person he’s spent many months attempting to have us believe is Barack Obama.

If this is an example of McCain’s decision-making, then I for one would prefer neither he, nor his vice-presidential choice, was the one answering the White House telephone at 3.00am.

Obama/Biden or McCain/Palin: Oh, please, America, is there really a choice?

Filed under: No, I haven’t

Posted under Sparrow Chat

There’s not a lot to write about this week. Oh, sure, the Democratic Convention has attracted journalists and bloggers like drug pushers buzzing round Amy Winehouse – but that’s part of the problem. You see, no-one’s really interested in anything else going on the world right now.

For instance, if I were to tell almost any American that 2.5 million Indians had been displaced from their homes by flooding this week, they’d likely respond with, “Oh, that’s sad. Did you hear what Barack Obama had to say about……..” and it wouldn’t be anything to do with flooded Indians.^[1]

Americans are suffering from an acute bout of self-obsession at the moment. I know the chronic form is endemic at the best of times, but right now this disease has taken on a whole new meaning, with back-to-back Conventions for both political parties.

Still, one shouldn’t be too critical. After all, with the previous eight year reign of terror drawing to a close, Americans have a right to celebrate.

At least for a while, until they vote the next war-mongering, gun-loving, freedom-stifling, half-witted old gasbag into office.

^{[1] “India flood evacuations continue” BBC, August 29th 2008}

Filed under: Sick of Conventions

Posted under Sparrow Chat

The US election campaign becomes more grotesque with each passing day. Like some great sticky-meringue celebration cake, it beckons one to probe through the fluffy topping and find substance beneath, only to discover there isn’t any.

That’s hardly surprising, for American culture is nothing more than sticky-meringue, with no solid base. Peer behind the thin veneer of razzmatazz and, like a Hollywood film set, all that’s discovered are a few bits of precarious scaffolding desperately attempting to support the structure.

The presidential election has degenerated into nothing more serious than a baseball grand-final. Two teams cheer on their favorites and jeer the opposition. Although the campaign has dragged on for the best part of twelve months, neither candidate hints at how he will run the country, if elected, preferring to cast aspersions at the opponent than display any leadership ability.

Iraq no longer features as an issue. Skillful manipulation by a controlled media has sidelined a war now considered done and dusted. The troops will be home in 2011. George Bush says they will. It must be true, even though he’s never before uttered one sincere word in the past eight years.

Vice President Dick Cheney is off this week to visit NATO’s fledgling, Georgia, on an errand of mercy to support its rapidly flagging Saakashvili. Apparently, so is the wife of John McCain. One Australian newspaper called her a ‘philanthropist’ with a mission to assess the human suffering caused by Russia’s military incursion.^[1] Philanthropy must be difficult with only a hundred million in the bank, but then, one can purchase a lot of sticky-meringue with all that money.

Peer behind the thin veneer of these visits and the scaffolding is revealed as yet another opportunity to flutter the Stars & Stripes at the folks back home. One can be certain the media cameras will be in attendance. What could be more appealing to warmongering political waverers from either party, than the sight and sound of Cheney denouncing the Russians to the Georgian parliament, while sweet, demure, Cindy tours the Caucasian peasantry handing out dollar bills and US flag pins.

Apparently, there are no plans for either Cheney or Cindy to visit South Osettia, to view the suffering inflicted on its population by Saakashvili’s invasion; you’ll remember, of course, his aggression that resulted in hundreds of dead Russian citizens, and provoked Putin’s military response?

No, if you’re an average American, you probably won’t.

Meanwhile, back in the homeland, Republican campaign workers are out netting female ex-Hillary Clinton supporters. Embittered by Clinton’s failure to secure the nomination, and ready to stand before a camera – forty pieces of silver already jingling in their purses – they denounce Barack Obama and kneel to lick the boots of John McCain. It’s a neat slice of sticky-meringuery designed to draw even more of their ilk to the Republican fold. As yet, no-one has bothered to point out the insult to Hillary Clinton perpetrated by such action. To suggest her policies would parallel those of the neo-con advisors relied on by John McCain – who, to be honest, has clearly demonstrated he doesn’t know his Shiite ass from his Sunni elbow – rather than those of her Democratic rival Barack Obama, merely serves to underline their contempt for future US policy; proof, if needed, that the sole purpose of these Democratic Jezebels was to secure a white female in the White House.

Nevertheless, many ex-Hillary Clinton supporters are fully justified to claim that Barack Obama is ‘not yet ready’ to be president. After all, he still hasn’t changed color.

Not to be outdone for sticky-meringuery, the Democratic convention began this week with a huge splodge of razzmatazz and self-adulation. Then, proving the Republicans have an upper hand, the Democrats launched into full defensive mode with much talk of revealing just who was Barack Obama – as if we didn’t already know. Probably more has been written about this presidential candidate than any other in the history of the United States, yet the main speech of the opening day came not from him, or his vice presidential nominee, but from his wife.

It leaves one wondering who will be running the country for the next four years: Cindy McCain or Michelle Obama?

As the weeks tick away and November 4th looms ever closer, the race card in this presidential campaign becomes more glaringly obvious. Any idea that racial issues have been maturely dealt with by America may prove one of the victims of this election. Others include world peace, attempts to reverse global warming, and formulation of a real US foreign policy, rather than a domestic policy that reaches way beyond America’s boundaries and tries to encompass the world.

These are real political issues and therefore have no place in a US election campaign. After all, Americans are about to determine their new Pop Idol.

The rest of the world will have to wait. This sticky-meringue celebration cake is solely for US consumption.

^{[1] “McCain’s wife to visit Georgia” The Australian, August 26th 2008}

Filed under: Where’s the fruit and nuts?

Posted under Sparrow Chat

There are occasions when one nation’s foreign policy can look more like a toddler’s tantrum over toy privileges, rather than a mature response to the actions of another country. Using US naval destroyers to deliver aid to Georgia is a perfect example.

The USS McFaul is the first of three naval vessels to arrive off the port of Batumi, on the Georgian coast, supposedly carrying blankets, hygiene kits and baby food.

While aid agencies are working in the area, the need for aid shipments isn’t quite clear. During the conflict, around 30,000 South Ossetian refugees fled to North Ossetia, part of Russia and presumably beyond the domain of western agencies, and it’s estimated 128,000 were displaced within Georgia. This is not, however, sub-Saharan Africa. Georgia is a European nation. A minor skirmish with its larger neighbor, that lasted two weeks, can hardly have depleted stocks of merchandise sufficient to require an operation more suited to Ethiopia or Sudan.

It begs the question whether three US warships laden with babymilk are really answering a desperate plea for assistance from the Georgian people, or if their response has more to do with the need of the US government to wave its flag off the Georgian coast, in the hope Russia’s military will notice and flee in fear and trembling, back to their homeland.

Neither is the case. The purpose of the USS McFaul, and its sister ships, is to wave the flag towards the folks back home in America. It says to Americans, “Look at us. We’re here to stand up to those nasty Russians and sort the problems they caused by invading poor, defenseless, little Georgia.”

Unfortunately, the US warships presently lying off Batumi can’t get into that port to unload, because the water’s too shallow. There’s a much bigger port up the coast at Poti, with good depth of water, but the US warships dare not go there.

It’s still occupied by the Russians.

Filed under: Georgia on my mind

Posted under Sparrow Chat

Now that the Beijing Olympics are running their final course – the Olympic Village a sea of hastily stuffed suitcases and used sneakers; athletes packing to catch their flights home, and the famous Bird’s Nest stadium about to be demoted to just another execution site for Chinese political prisoners – I have a few words to say to the American sports commentators, flown at great expense from the United States to double our delight and pluralize our pleasure, during this momentous, quadrennial event:

“FOR GOD’S SAKE, SHUT UP!”

I’m no great sports fan. I don’t savor the weekend ballgame or rush off to the golf course at every opportunity. I don’t even know what ESPN stands for. Just once in a while, however, my interest in matters physical raises itself above the level of a female body beautiful and attaches me to the cathode ray tube for a week, or a fortnight, of sport spectacular.

The British Lawn Tennis Championships at Wimbledon; the soccer World Cup; the Olympics. Throughout my life these events have held a certain fascination. Then, sadly, I moved to the United States of America.

Yes, I can still view these events, albeit through a constant barrage of Pepsi Cola, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Viagra marketing, but the enjoyment is sucked away as surely as a Texas teen demolishing a Coke in the heat of a Dallas summer, by the inane chattering of certain employees of the US corporate media who misrepresent themselves as, “commentators”.

In truth, their aim is to distract the viewer from the current event by disclosing lurid details of their past life, latest acquisitions from Christian Dior, or in the case of one female broadcaster at the Olympics, a lecture on the architecture of the stadium roof during a particularly engrossing performance of a Russian rhythmic gymnast who needed no commentary, other than the most delicate of vocal punctuation, to transport one to a blissful state of nirvana by her beauty, poise, and ballet-like dexterity.

The woman responsible for this rape of art and physical flawlessness is no exception to the rule. Rather, she is the norm. Wimbledon is ruined annually by the vocal floodgates of ex-US tennis stars-cum-media reporters who have about as much idea how to conduct a commentary on play as the Roman Emperor Nero had of Christian forgiveness.

Last year’s World Cup soccer tournament suffered similar inanity.

There’s a good reason for such lack of professionalism brazenly displayed by those employed by US corporate media outlets like NBC, (who, incidentally, have somehow secured the contract to exclusively cover both the Vancouver winter Olympics of 2010, and the London Olympics of 2012). It’s an automatic assumption that ex-players make good commentators. Nothing is further from the truth. While a sports commentator benefits from a thorough grounding in his particular field, the art of commentary has nothing to do with physical expertise in any particular sport.

Those of us mature enough to remember great BBC radio commentators like John Motson, Kenneth Wolstenholme, and Eddie Waring know that sports stars don’t necessarily make good commentators – something the US media has yet to fathom.

This supplanting of vocal expertise by pointless prattle is a necessary part of televised American sport. With the possible exception of basketball, other activities – baseball and American football – involve short periods of involvement interspersed with long, grotesquely boring, eons of inactivity that necessitate some form of vocal interlocution to prevent the viewer lapsing into somnolence. For this, the American ‘commentator’ is indispensable.

Fortunately, in the rest of the world sport partakes of sufficient activity to render such vacuous verbiage unnecessary to the point of distraction. Not to make too fine a point, it’s bloody annoying.

If US commentators have nothing better to say during a sporting event than to comment on such matters as the stadium roof, we’d all be much better off if they stayed at home and left the grace and skill of the competitors to speak for itself.

Filed under: Undesirable vocal proliferation

Posted under Sparrow Chat

Hearty congratulations must be in order for Condoleeza Rice and the US administration, headed by the worst US president in history, for successfully concluding an agreement with the Polish government that will allow American missile bases in that country.

This one act signals the beginning of another Cold War-style standoff between Russia and the West. Just as we citizens of Earth were beginning to hope the thawing of relations through the late nineties would result in a peaceful world for our children, along comes Bush and his belligerent cohorts to kidnap America, set fire to the Middle East, and threaten Russia with nuclear annihilation by placing warheads in her own backyard.

To fan the flames more strongly, Bush then proceeds to huff and puff because Russia isn’t as quick as he’d like in getting out of Georgia. As if it were any of his business.

The American public, meanwhile, slumbers more peacefully in its bed trusting in the knowledge Mister Bush and Co are defending the homeland from attack by ‘rogue’ states, when in fact America’s badly-named ‘missile defense system’ is about as much use as a fart in a colander, and likely to remain so for the next fifty years. During that time, billion of dollars will be poured into defense contracts, supposedly to make it work. It’s unlikely that it will.

George Monbiot reports more fully on this aspect of the Pentagon’s financial benevolence to private industry in his Guardian report entitled,”The Magic Pudding”. It’s Sparrow Chat’s ‘Hot Link’ of the week, and can be found in the sidebar. For those who won’t get around to reading this before Thanksgiving, by which time the Hot Link will probably have changed, it’s also reproduced at the bottom of this post.^[1]

In conclusion, this week’s grand announcement of Polish/US entente cordiale has nothing whatever to do with defending the West against ‘rogue states’ or crazed Russians. Instead, it ensures a goodly supply of American taxpayers’ dollars to the private defense industry for the next two generations.

To achieve this, the White House is prepared to risk plunging the world into another Cold War.

^{[1] “The Magic Pudding” ~ Monbiot.com August 19th 2008}

^{NOTE: Monbiot.com has been down for some time, so the above link has been switched to the original Guardian article.}

Filed under: Warmongering

Posted under Sparrow Chat

I really don’t want them, but it appears I have no choice. Who’s bright idea was it, and why weren’t we, the consumer, consulted?

How do I know they’re not damaging my health?

Suddenly, it’s become impossible to purchase disposable garbage bags that don’t smell like they’ve spent the last few weeks in Heidi Fleiss’s boudoir. If the manufacturers must insist on impregnating their products with the odor of a whore’s bed chamber, I believe I have a right to know which chemicals are involved and if there’s any possibility they may be carcinogenic, because frankly, this being America, I can’t trust the manufacturer to put my welfare above his profit margin.

Presumably, this ‘essence de Mata Hari’ is meant to disguise the stench of garbage left too long in the kitchen trash can. I have news for the unsophisticated American executive whose idea led to this unwarranted intrusion of my olfactory organs: the collectors come twice a week and remove my rubbish before it reaches a peak of putrescence demanding the addition of your noxious chemicals. Garishly scented garbage bags may suit Americans content to hoard their rubbish for months to save a few dollars on trash removal, but this particular resident would prefer a standard, preferably bio-degradable (as if!) non-nasally insulting container designed solely for the purpose for which it is used.

I am, of course, overlooking the possibility that the inventor of these products intends they replace the bald eagle as a gloriously apt symbol of America and its way of life. The concept of a huge, scent-emitting, garbage bag capable of enclosing those many aspects of US culture rapidly decomposing in the great trash can of American political and socio-economic ideology, while disguising the resultant miasmic stench continually permeating the rest of the planet, may yet prove an excellent idea.

Just not in my kitchen, thank you.

Filed under: Wha’ d’yer think of it so far?

Posted under Sparrow Chat

……. and here’s the proof: New York Times, August 12th 2008.

Filed under: Caring societies

Posted under Sparrow Chat