Generated by All in One SEO v4.9.10, this is an llms.txt file, used by LLMs to index the site.

# sparrow chat

R J Adams -Musings And Meanderings

## Sitemaps

- [XML Sitemap](https://sparrowchat.com/sitemap.xml): Contains all public & indexable URLs for this website.

## Posts

- [BLOG POSTS](https://sparrowchat.com/posts/)
- [It's Too Bloody Hot, Mes Amis !](https://sparrowchat.com/its-too-bloody-hot-mes-amis/) - There's so much happening in the world right now and everybody's writing about it. I've decided that at least for this post I'm not going to be drawn into it...
- [No-one Watches Football Here Anymore](https://sparrowchat.com/no-one-watches-football-here-anymore/) - In case you hadn't noticed there's a major world event taking place. It's all about football. I've never hidden my feelings towards football, or every other...
- [Corporate Authoritarianism](https://sparrowchat.com/corporate-authoritarianism/) - As if it's not bad enough to have authoritarian governments rising to power all around us, there's a new problem beginning to rear it's very ugly head...
- [Talk Religion? Let's Not Bother.](https://sparrowchat.com/talk-religion-lets-not-bother/) - I know I've not posted for a long time. I've lost track of the number of times I've sat down to Wordpress determined to write something, only to remember ...
- [Who Needs The Doomsday Clock?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-needs-the-doomsday-clock/) - As the likes of Polymarket and Kalshi have recently discovered, the idea of betting on nuclear Armageddon hasn't gone down well with the populace. After all...
- [How The Internet Fell To Pirates](https://sparrowchat.com/how-the-internet-fell-to-pirates/) - I remember when the internet was free; free the way Tim Berners-Lee envisaged it. The service provider had to be paid but all the content on the net was free...
- [Homo Aqua v Homo Sapiens, Was It Just Me?](https://sparrowchat.com/homo-aqua-v-homo-sapiens-was-it-just-me/) - Was it just me? There was a recent series on BBC TV called, "The War Between The Land And The Sea." Basically, an ancient civilization of undersea dwellers...
- [Why Do We Pay Them To Kill Us?](https://sparrowchat.com/why-do-we-pay-them-to-kill-us/) - One reason I don't write often on Sparrow Chat is I'm too busy doing other things. Yet, when I stop to think what I've been doing, I can't really remember. ...
- [Is It A Game: Greenland, Europe v. The U.S.?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-it-a-game-greenland-europe-v-the-u-s/) - Okay, I've opened Wordpress at the post page determined to write something. My last post was on New Year's Day and that's long gone. Well, to be accurate....
- [Old Age: The Demeaning Of Experience](https://sparrowchat.com/old-age-the-demeaning-of-experience/) - One reason why I don't post as much as I once did is because, hovering on the verge of eighty years on this planet, one tends to feel 'out of the loop'...
- [Populism: A Metastasizing Carcinoma](https://sparrowchat.com/populism-a-metastasizing-carcinoma/) - In my last post I considered the possibility of closing Sparrow Chat for good. It's been a part of my life from when I moved to America in 2002 and still is even though I 've not been writing very much for a long time. The death of my beloved wife in 2021, while she
- [The World Lapses Into Chaos; WW3 Waits In The Wings](https://sparrowchat.com/the-world-lapses-into-chaos-ww3-waits-in-the-wings/) - It's been a long time since I've written a post on Sparrow Chat. The last time was back in March and that was only a rehash of a short story for the anniversary
- [MH370 - Flight To Armageddon](https://sparrowchat.com/mh370-flight-to-armageddon-2/) - March 8th 2014 at 12.41am Malaysia Airways flight MH370 left Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing, China with 239 passengers and crew on board. Forty minutes late ...
- [Doomsday: 89 Seconds To Midnight](https://sparrowchat.com/doomsday-89-seconds-to-midnight/) - "2025 Doomsday Clock AnnouncementJanuary 28, 2025In setting the Clock one second closer to midnight, the Science and Security Board sends a stark signal...
- [Little Boys Desperate To Be Men](https://sparrowchat.com/little-boys-desperate-to-be-men/) - I wonder if there's a way of measuring the world's depression scientifically, because after yesterday's fiasco in Washington, I believe depression throughout...
- [Moneyed  Bums, Celeb Chocs, And An Earthquake](https://sparrowchat.com/moneyed-bums-celeb-chocs-and-an-earthquake/) - In keeping with the tone of this article there will be no images of anyone mentioned therein. I'm sick to death of seeing their smug countenances plastered....
- [A Christmas Message For All](https://sparrowchat.com/a-christmas-message-for-all/) - Here is a Christmas message for all those folk out there who think that climate change isn't happening or is just some freak of nature that's going to disappear on its own. Get your head out of your asses and look around you. Here is a Christmas message for all those Americans who are appalled
- [God Or Santa, The One Just As Real As The Other](https://sparrowchat.com/god-or-santa-the-one-just-as-real-as-the-other/) - "The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, went to the Trades Union Congress to denounce Amazon for avoiding taxes and to brand zero-hours contracts ...
- [Climate Change, It's Just A Scam, Isn't It?](https://sparrowchat.com/climate-change-its-just-a-scam-isnt-it/) - There's been much speculation in the media as to why the far-right is gaining so much power in national elections. The general opinion is that the rise in ...
- [44,000 Dead: Netanyahu's "Stay Out Of Jail Free" Card](https://sparrowchat.com/44000-dead-netanyahus-stay-out-of-jail-free-card/) - Perhaps the most frustrating news to come out of Europe this week is the announcement by France that Benjamin Netanyahu cannot be arrested on French soil...
- [An Article By James Nixey On Ukraine And Putin](https://sparrowchat.com/an-article-by-james-nixey-on-ukraine-and-putin/) - It needs to be said. It's unfortunate our lily-livered politicians don't have the balls to have said it, and acted on it, long ago. It's always been my contention that back in late 2021/early 2022 had NATO thrown everything it had, (none nuclear,) at the Black Sea : warships, planes, tanks and infantry, missiles, then
- [Another Unreality Of Life - Or A Work Of Art?](https://sparrowchat.com/another-unreality-of-life-or-a-work-of-art/) - As I've grown older I've become more aware of what I can best describe as the 'unrealities of life'. These are the things that we kid ourselves have some ...
- [Up and Running; Locked and Loaded!](https://sparrowchat.com/up-and-running-locked-and-loaded/) - It's been five days of grind and search to find the problem that caused Sparrow Chat to crash, but finally we're back up and running, hopefully better than ...
- [It's Time To Tell America The Truth.](https://sparrowchat.com/its-time-to-tell-america-the-truth/) - I would like to offer my congratulations to all those stupid, ignorant Americans who voted for Donald Trump. The arrogance and selfishness of many Americans....
- [Religion: The Ego's Curse On Homo Sapiens.](https://sparrowchat.com/religion-the-egos-curse-on-homo-sapiens/) - For those familiar with my writing on Sparrow Chat what I am about to write here today may seem rather strange. Suffice to say, life is a journey...
- [War, Famine, Pestilence](https://sparrowchat.com/war-famine-pestilence/) - War, Famine, Pestilence in pictures...
- [Use Of The Whip, Not Uncommon At Horse Shows](https://sparrowchat.com/use-of-the-whip-not-uncommon-at-horse-shows/) - I'm sure many young girls and boys have read, "The Girl On The Dancing Horse," an autobiographical account by equestrian, Charlotte Dujardin. It ranks...
- [Ex-President Seeks Gold Ear-Ring For Pierced Ear.](https://sparrowchat.com/ex-president-seeks-gold-ear-ring-for-pierced-ear/) - Okay, now we're headed into the murky world of retributions, conspiracy theories and wild distortions. Were there failings by Trump's security team, was the...
- [Don't Call Me Anti-Semitic, I'm Anti-All Religion.](https://sparrowchat.com/dont-call-me-anti-semitic-im-anti-all-religion/) - The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance adopted its working definition of antisemitism in 2016. The definition is, as follows:“Antisemitism is...
- [Not Just Another Documentary About Gaza](https://sparrowchat.com/not-just-another-documentary-about-gaza/) - Last night I sat through the UK's Channel Four 'Dispatches' program, entitled "Kill Zone: Inside Gaza." Could anyone sit through this hour long documentary...
- [Ghassan Abu-Sitta: EU Victim Of German Guilt](https://sparrowchat.com/ghassan-abu-sitta-eu-victim-of-german-guilt/) - There are times one reads of things online or in the media that are upsetting or disturbing. Occasionally, one reads things that cause the blood to boil...
- [No Such Thing As Healthy Competition?](https://sparrowchat.com/no-such-thing-as-healthy-competition/) - Competition. How we love our competitions. They pervade every aspect of our lives. We're brought up to be competitive. The biggest, the strongest, the fastest..
- [A Mole? No, A Pleomorphic Cutaneous Sarcoma.](https://sparrowchat.com/a-mole-no-a-pleomorphic-cutaneous-sarcoma/) - There is so much going on in our world, most of it splashed daily across the headlines of the planet's media outlets. There seems little point in adding to it..
- [The Dogs Of War Are Fickle And People Forget](https://sparrowchat.com/the-dogs-of-war-are-fickle-and-people-forget/) - One war in our faces, the other one forgotten. Have you wondered recently why major nations like the US have suddenly found the means to supply Israel weaponry
- [The British Planes Of Shame.](https://sparrowchat.com/the-british-planes-of-shame/) - "UK passes law allowing deportation of asylum seekers in Rwanda A moral bankruptcy into which other European countries are ready to sink"
- [Hind Rajab, Alexei Navalny, Where Did We Go Wrong?](https://sparrowchat.com/hind-rajab-alexei-navalny-where-did-we-go-wrong/) - It's hard to even write about the devastatingly sad case of Hind Rajab, the little girl aged just six years, desperately pleading for help on a mobile phone...
- [One French Château May Be One Too Many](https://sparrowchat.com/one-french-chateau-may-be-one-too-many/) - There are many beautiful châteaux in France. They were built in an era when the country was a kingdom and folk were either filthy rich and could afford...
- [Eyes On The Border But Deaf To The Message](https://sparrowchat.com/eyes-on-the-border-but-deaf-to-the-message/) - Perhaps one of the most horrific accounts in all the many to come out of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict has come today from the BBC journalist Alice Cuddy...
- [Soon There'll Be No Sand Left...](https://sparrowchat.com/soon-therell-be-no-sand-left/) - I wonder just how many of the eight billion humans presently on the planet are as sick to death as I am of the people in charge? Isn't it time...
- [Homo influentia, A Subspecies Of Homo sapiens](https://sparrowchat.com/homo-influentia-a-subspecies-of-homo-sapiens/) - They've discovered a new species of human beings, the latest evolution of Homo sapiens. Homo influentia is breeding rapidly in social media.
- [1946: A Birth, A Marriage And A Motor Car](https://sparrowchat.com/1946-a-birth-a-marriage-and-a-motor-car/) - I'm not given to reminiscing. Life goes forward, not backward. I suppose it was reading of the sad death of Roselynn Carter, US President Jimmy Carter's wife..
- [Antisemitism - An Easy Way To End It.](https://sparrowchat.com/antisemitism-an-easy-way-to-end-it/) - Occasionally, there appears a word or phrase that is so overused it becomes virtually obnoxious. At present, for this writer, the latest word is "antisemitism."
- [Two Wrongs Can Never Make It Right](https://sparrowchat.com/two-wrongs-can-never-make-it-right/) - This is a world map of the support of governments for Israel in the present war against Hamas and the Palestinian people....
- [How Many More "Somewhere Else's?"](https://sparrowchat.com/how-many-more-somewhere-elses/) - It seems strange to come back to Sparrow Chat after such a long break. In a sense I never really went away, just never published my thoughts...
- [Remember The Dot? That's Us, That's Home!](https://sparrowchat.com/remember-the-dot-thats-us-thats-home/) - Planet Venus taken by a Russian Veneras Lander in the 1970's. It shows a dead planet. It may have been once like Earth, but suffered catastrophic climate change
- [One Mammoth Global Advertising Hoarding](https://sparrowchat.com/one-mammoth-global-advertising-hoarding/) - I remember travelling with my parents on the newly opened M6 motorway in 1959. My father's Austin Ten motor car hurtled along this magnificent new road at...
- [MH370 - A Tragedy Not To Be Forgotten](https://sparrowchat.com/mh370-a-tragedy-not-to-be-forgotten/) - On the 8th March 2014 a Malaysian Boeing 777 airliner code-named MH370 took off from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing, China. The aircraft carried...
- [And Then There Was One - Fetch Her Home!](https://sparrowchat.com/and-then-there-was-one-fetch-her-home/) - This week the UK Special Immigration Appeals Commission ruled that the government was right to strip a British citizen of their citizenship...
- [Sometimes It's Good To Get Angry](https://sparrowchat.com/sometimes-its-good-to-get-angry/) - I find myself growing more angry as I get older. Maybe it's because I've been retired a while and I have more time to observe the world around me...
- [World War III Is Already Upon Us](https://sparrowchat.com/world-war-iii-is-already-upon-us/) - An Illegal Waste Tip In Hartlepool, UK The war in Ukraine is still holding the headlines, at least in Europe, and rightly so, but there's another, much bigger war being fought throughout the world. It's a World War. It's the war to save the planet and those who inhabit it. It 's being fought by
- [A Happy New Year - For Whom?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-happy-new-year-for-whom/) - No doubt I risk being called a kill-joy, or possibly worse, but to see images of New Year firework displays from around the world brings two thoughts to mind...
- [Memories Of A Sister](https://sparrowchat.com/memories-of-a-sister/) - I try to walk every day, whatever the weather. Today was no exception. I live in the wilds of Brittany so it's rare to meet anyone on my ambulatory excursions...
- [No Prophecy For The Chimney Sweep](https://sparrowchat.com/no-prophecy-for-the-chimney-sweep/) - My chimney sweep came today to clean out the stovepipe of the pellet stove in the kitchen. He's not just a chimney sweep, but a plumber and a heating engineer...
- [Single-Use Plastic Just Another Human Crazy](https://sparrowchat.com/single-use-plastic-just-another-human-crazy/) - 2.5 BILLION single-use coffee cups thrown away every year - in the UK alone! As the world becomes even more awash with plastic and the ocean creatures...
- [Earth Goddess Or Idolatrous Intruder?](https://sparrowchat.com/earth-goddess-or-idolatrous-intruder/) - If there's one thing that can be relied on never to change in this somewhat dubious and uncertain world , it's the arrogant and supercilious attitude of...
- [Brexit Is Working. The Hell It Is!](https://sparrowchat.com/brexit-is-working-the-hell-it-is/) - Prime Minister Boris Johnson is dragged out of office still swearing Brexit is working for the UK despite the economy tanking out of control. Liz Truss, who looks likely to succeed him, has her own crackpot ideas how to fix it. Sunak is too busy with his new oversized swimming pool... ... to be concerned
- [Annihilation: Nuclear Or Climatic? Take Your Pick!](https://sparrowchat.com/annihilation-nuclear-or-climatic-take-your-pick/) - The war in Ukraine rumbles on. The imminent threat of another war between Taiwan and China is building to a climax. In Brazil there's a real fear Jair Bolsonaro is planning to disrupt the upcoming elections and retain power, and in the Philippines the son of Ferdinand Marcos (Ferdinand Jnr) has brought the disgraced family
- [UK Government: Ukrainians Not Wanted!](https://sparrowchat.com/uk-government-ukrainians-not-wanted/) - I never thought when I left the UK for America in 2002, that I would ever be ashamed of my country. I was proud to be British, proud of my EU passport. Not any more. I am deeply ashamed of what my country has become. As if the Brexit vote, engineered through brainwashing and outright I never thought when I left the UK for America in 2002, that I would ever be ashamed of my country. I was proud to be British, proud of my EU passport...
- [Another Madman, Another World War?](https://sparrowchat.com/another-madman-another-world-war/) - Alive one minute, dead the next. Can there ever be a valid reason or excuse for this barbarity? Why should Putin be alive when this little girl is dead?
- [Dating The Scammers: Mingle2 And The PCS Card](https://sparrowchat.com/dating-the-scammers-mingle2-and-the-pcs-card/) - It's been a long time since a post was written on Sparrow Chat. On April 11th 2021 I wrote an article entitled, "When The Tears Have Dried," following the loss of my wife to cancer. I did try to keep the blog going, but when grief is paramount everything I would normally consider writing about
- [No Fuel? No Food? Whose Fault Mr & Mrs Brit?](https://sparrowchat.com/no-fuel-no-food-whose-fault-mr-mrs-brit/) - (With acknowledgement to the New Yorker Magazine) No fuel at the pumps, Mister Brit? No food on the supermarket shelves, Mrs Brit? Who is to blame for this catastrophe? Apparently not your government, Mr and Mrs Brit. It can't all be because of Brexit, can it? No, of course not, that nice Mister Johnson is
- [Definitely Not About Climate Change](https://sparrowchat.com/definitely-not-about-climate-change/) - What's the point of writing about climate change? So much has already been written on the subject (4,000 pages) that the world should by now be embroiled in a major shift in everyone's way of living, governments steering us through the maze of alterations necessary to reverse our planet's steadily increasing plunge into chaos and
- [Will No-one Rid Us Of The 'Anti' Brigade?](https://sparrowchat.com/will-no-one-rid-us-of-the-anti-brigade/) - It's been a while. Three months, probably closer to four. My last but one post was entitled, "When The Tears Have Dried." That hasn't yet happened, but life goes on, or so we are told. The isolation hasn't helped. Covid-19 hasn't helped. I'm fully vaccinated now but then along comes Delta, and we're told even
- [Cancer, It's Not A War - It's An Illness!](https://sparrowchat.com/cancer-its-not-a-war-its-an-illness/) - Grief and writing make bad bedfellows. Part of being a writer is to put down on paper an expression of one's feelings, either directly, or in some form of fictitious novel or short story. The only way I find to carry on with life is by keeping busy and not allowing the thoughts that cause
- [When The Tears Have Dried...](https://sparrowchat.com/when-the-tears-have-dried/) - My last post here was on March 15th. On March 18th my dear and much loved wife, Trish, was taken from us by cancer. She was in America at the time and I was denied access to that country by the US government due to Covid-19 regulations, so was unable to be with her in
- [Language? Who'd Believe It?](https://sparrowchat.com/language-whod-believe-it/) - Moving to another country can be stressful, particularly if it means learning a new language. When I moved to America back in 2002, I didn't expect to have that problem. Ha! I should have known better. Brits and Americans do speak a different language? I'll give you two examples, both absolutely truthful, that happened to
- [Greed: The Downfall Of Mankind](https://sparrowchat.com/greed-the-downfall-of-mankind/) - We all know what it is. We all consider it bad. Religions condemn it, while fostering it, and corporations have just stopped concerning themselves with it...We all know what it is. We all consider it bad. Religions condemn it, while fostering it, and corporations have just stopped concerning themselves with it. Greed they say, is merely competition at work. But what effect does it really have within our societies? Is it not the one thing we all suffer from, yet
- [The Great Vaccine British Fake News Story](https://sparrowchat.com/the-great-vaccine-british-fake-news-story/) - "This is what Brexit was all about," roared the ring-wing British press as vaccinations of Brits continued apace, while EU residents lagged behind due to the likes of AstraZeneca and other companies unable to fulfill EU orders even though they were legally contracted to do so. It's a simple question: why? AstraZeneca, one of the "This is what Brexit was all about," roared the ring-wing British press as vaccinations of Brits continued apace, while EU residents lagged behind...
- [Crony-Capitalism And A Clapped Out Boris](https://sparrowchat.com/crony-capitalism-and-a-clapped-out-boris/) - There is something seriously wrong with the British Prime Minister. A few months back a woman called Annemarie Plas, a Dutch national living in south London...There is something seriously amiss with the British Prime Minister. A few months back a woman called Annemarie Plas, a Dutch national living in south London, had the idea that all Brits should head out into the street on a Thursday evening at a prearranged time and either clap for an indeterminate length of time,
- [Joe Biden: The XL Keystone Cop](https://sparrowchat.com/joe-biden-the-xl-keystone-cop/) - Joe Biden's been in office only a few days but already he's picked a fight with his nearest neighbour. The XL pipeline, designed to carry oil from the Alberta Tar Sands to Oklahoma and beyond, has been a bone of contention for years. In March 2012, then US President Barack Obama gave the go-ahead for Joe Biden's been in office only a few days but already he's picked a fight with his nearest neighbour. The XL pipeline, designed to carry oil from...
- [The 'Fuck You, I'm Alright, Jack' Phenomenon](https://sparrowchat.com/the-fuck-you-im-alright-jack-phenomenon/) - One of the most noticeable things to appear as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic is just how many of us even now are not taking it seriously. Only today we read in the Guardian of riots in the Netherlands, as over 150 people are arrested following violent disturbances in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and many smaller One of the most noticeable things to appear as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic is just how many of us even now are not taking it seriously.
- [Peace In Our Time?](https://sparrowchat.com/peace-in-our-time/) - "I hold in my hand this piece of paper - oh, no, it's just my head."
- [Brexit: Another Step Over 'Atlantic Bridge'.](https://sparrowchat.com/brexit-another-step-over-atlantic-bridge/) - An essay by Tom Kibasi, former director of the Institute for Public Policy Research, in Monday's Guardian newspaper pulled no punches in laying the blame...
- [Time Aplenty For Dithering](https://sparrowchat.com/time-aplenty-for-dithering/) - Four years of Trump is enough, according to slightly more than half the American population. The other half are happy to disagree. Well, maybe 'happy' isn't quite the right adjective. While the world is cheering the apparent demise of Trump, or at least some of the world is, it's easy to believe that with his
- [And On The Third Day I Rose Again!](https://sparrowchat.com/and-on-the-third-day-i-rose-again/) - When are we going to take this dangerous idiot seriously? Today we learn that the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, is attempting to bring in a bill invoking the 25th Amendment of the US Constitution, whereby an incumbent president can be removed from office if found to be mentally unfit. It will be about as successful
- [The Passing Of 'Twilight Annie'](https://sparrowchat.com/the-passing-of-twilight-annie/) - There's probably not many around today who'll know of Twilight Annie. She was a lass from Yorkshire, England, and she married quite late in life her American husband and moved to Oklahoma in 2004. I'd arrived in the States two years before and had also married an American, so we had that in common. Back
- [Planet: 'Earth'-T. Ademara UST Report To UHC](https://sparrowchat.com/planet-earth-t-ademara-ust-report-to-uhc/) - My name is Tamashe. I have been sent here to the Earth Moon, to study the behaviour of the largest species on the planet...
- [Bloody Lock-Down 2 - The Escape!](https://sparrowchat.com/bloody-lock-down-2-the-escape/) - Dammit! I'm sick of being told I'm over seventy and must stay confined while the young pups are soon to be allowed out to play. Why, in this day and age...
- [Pagbag Anyone? Fresh From The Dumpster.](https://sparrowchat.com/pagbag-anyone-fresh-from-the-dumpster/) - In Philippine slums, meat scavenged from dumpsters feeds those short of meals and hope. Consuming pagpag, as it's called, leads to stunted growth in children, and heightens the risk of acquiring hepatitis A, cholera and typhoid. Do you ever get the feeling we're losing? Here we are nearly six months into possibly the most deadly pandemic
- [What Do You Call Entertainment?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-do-you-call-entertainment/) - No, you're quite right. There's not been much action on Sparrow Chat for quite sometime now. To be honest I'm so sick of what's going on in the world...
- [We Could Learn From The Cows](https://sparrowchat.com/we-could-learn-from-the-cows/) - Last week our local farmer released his cows into a field across the lane from where I live. They'd been enclosed in the barn all winter. What a commotion!
- [Not OUR President!](https://sparrowchat.com/not-our-president/) - This morning we learn that the moron in charge of America, and as a consequence leading the rest of us to disaster, has admitted he takes an unauthorised...
- [Only A Bird In A Gilded Cage](https://sparrowchat.com/only-a-bird-in-a-gilded-cage/) - "She was only a bird in a gilded cage, a beautiful sight to see.." so sang Florrie Forde (and numerous others) as the timepiece of the centuries clicked over...
- [200 Jacinda Arderns Could Replace All The World Leaders](https://sparrowchat.com/200-jacinda-arderns-could-replace-all-the-world-leaders/) - Take a moment to listen to Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand's Prime Minister who, unlike every other national leader at Easter, didn't forget the little children who are also suffering from coronavirus lockdown. How about if scientists everywhere got together and worked on how to create a couple of hundred clones of Jacinda to replace all
- [Bloody Lock-Down!](https://sparrowchat.com/bloody-lock-down/) - Don't you just hate that coronavirus? I mean, come on, three million of them will fit on a pinhead yet there's seven and a half billion of us and even just one...
- ["NHS Unable To Save PM" - A Fitting Headline](https://sparrowchat.com/nhs-unable-to-save-pm-a-fitting-headline/) - Sometimes the inadequacy, hypocrisy, and general sense of sheer childish irresponsibility displayed by the politicians of today is too much to swallow...
- [Andrea Bocelli Sings To An Empty World](https://sparrowchat.com/andrea-bocelli-sings-to-an-empty-world/) - Just occasionally one particular moment, or series of moments, can touch the heart in such a way it releases an avalanche of mixed emotions: joy, sadness...
- [5G And Mrs Jones](https://sparrowchat.com/5g-and-mrs-jones/) - Mrs Jones was seventy-one and a little frail, though otherwise healthy. She was standing at a bus stop in East London yesterday morning waiting...
- [The Chaos Of A Lying US President](https://sparrowchat.com/the-chaos-of-a-lying-us-president/) - Today we hear how Donald Trump has called forth his sociopathic son-in-law, Jared Kushner to the daily 'coronavirus taskforce briefing,' with the brief to...
- [Covid-19: The Next Global Health Crisis Has Now Arrived](https://sparrowchat.com/18871-2/) - Covid-19 - described by many in authority as the greatest threat to mankind since the second world war. Almost one million human beings infected...
- [A Double Self-Isolation](https://sparrowchat.com/a-double-self-isolation/) - Self-isolation: it used to be what hermits did, or eccentric millionaires like Howard Hughes, hide themselves away in caves or isolated mansions...
- [Tax-Free Tampons And Papist Hypocrisy](https://sparrowchat.com/tax-free-tampons-and-papist-hypocrisy/) - It's here at last! The great Tory giveaway has arrived. Headline news today as it's announced that the tax on tampons is to be abolished...
- [Heaven? Not If I Can Help It!](https://sparrowchat.com/heaven-not-if-i-can-help-it/) - Surprise, surprise! The Church of England is once more attempting to be the arbiter of morals for the human race...
- [Whatever Happened To 'Mens Rea'?](https://sparrowchat.com/whatever-happened-to-mens-rea/) - There have been two particular cases in the news of late. Both have set social media aflame, with the modern equivalent of barrack-room lawyers spouting...
- [Emmanuel Macron: Thoughts On NATO](https://sparrowchat.com/emmanuel-macron-thoughts-on-nato/) - Flag of North Atlantic Treaty Organization There are occasions when the French President, Emmanuel Macron, appears to overstep himself and say or do certain things that give cause for concern. His attachment to big business, the violent manner in which he attempted to quell the Gilet Jaune protests, are just two examples. He's not a
- [Goodbye UK's Super Rich? We Can Hope!](https://sparrowchat.com/goodbye-uks-super-rich-we-can-hope/) - According to the Guardian recently, the super-rich are preparing to leave Britain 'within minutes' if Labour wins the forthcoming election...
- [Out Of Love With The United Kingdom](https://sparrowchat.com/out-of-love-with-the-united-kingdom/) - Once again apologies for the lack of posting of late. I've been back to Britain visiting my 104-year-old father after his bad fall a few weeks back...
- [Too Quick To Condemn](https://sparrowchat.com/too-quick-to-condemn/) - There's been much written both in the press and social media of late concerning an accident involving a young motorcyclist, Harry Dunn, who was killed by a car...
- [Personal Hygiene Education - Is It Right For You?](https://sparrowchat.com/personal-hygiene-education-is-it-right-for-you/) - I'm a regular reader of the Guardian online as it's the only British-based 'newspaper' that I have any faith will provide me with relatively unbiased news. But I was appalled this morning to discover a headline which read, "How often should you wash your gym kit?" Now, admittedly, it was in the 'Lifestyle' section and not
- [Family Problems At Sparrow Chat](https://sparrowchat.com/family-problems-at-sparrow-chat/) - Posting is light at present. I've had to rush to the UK as my 104-year-old father has suffered a bad fall and is in hospital at Colwyn Bay in North Wales. No broken bones, but serious cuts and bruises and of course a massive shock to his already frail body. He has lived alone for
- [Populist Politicians Feast Off Our Dark Inner Feelings](https://sparrowchat.com/populist-politicians-feast-off-our-dark-inner-feelings/) - Have you ever stopped to wonder why so many Trump-esque figures are dominating the world political scene these days?
- [The Unasked Question Of Brexit](https://sparrowchat.com/the-unasked-question-of-brexit/) - There's one question concerning Brexit that is seldom asked of those vehement in their opposition to the UK remaining a member of the European Union...
- [The Tools In The Hands Of The Bad Guys](https://sparrowchat.com/the-tools-in-the-hands-of-the-bad-guys/) - I’ve been using Twitter and Facebook for almost a month. I’ve always had strong reservations about both platforms and my experiences over the last few weeks...
- [Two Shootings Is Not A Mass Extinction](https://sparrowchat.com/two-shootings-is-not-a-mass-extinction/) - I am so, so, tired of writing posts about the latest slaughter of innocent people by maniac shooters in America. Two within twenty-four hours is probably not...
- [John Oliver On Boris Johnson](https://sparrowchat.com/john-oliver-on-boris-johnson/) - It's sad that an entertainer as talented as John Oliver should feel the need to lower his sights to the level of crude penis references and vulgar sexual images...
- [Gun Disease - A Terminal Illness](https://sparrowchat.com/gun-disease-a-terminal-illness/) - The gun situation in America has always been a source of contention between those who believe the Second Amendment sacred, and the rest who see it as it is...
- [The "Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything?”](https://sparrowchat.com/the-ultimate-question-of-life-the-universe-and-everything/) - Am I the only one to be amazed by the revelation from Tom Clark, the editor of Prospect magazine that the biggest brains in the world today are obsessed by one, three word question: who are we?
- [The Billionaire Takeover](https://sparrowchat.com/the-billionaire-takeover/) - In the Guardian this week Nathan Robinson, the editor of ‘Current Affairs’ asks, “Why do billionaires keep presenting themselves as America’s great new hope?
- [Carola Rackete - An Example For Us All](https://sparrowchat.com/carola-rackete-an-example-for-us-all/) - https://www.facebook.com/notes/robert-j-adams/the-good-ship-sea-watch-is-still-afloat-but-how-low-has-the-human-race-sunk/153476892459928/
- [Anyone For Mars? No, No, Not YOU!](https://sparrowchat.com/anyone-for-mars-no-no-not-you/) - "This is the BBC World Service. Here is a Public Service Announcement. At a gathering of world leaders yesterday in Washington it was agreed that the time had come to inform all citizens that, despite the best efforts of scientists, politicians and religious leaders, the planet on which we all live has now only a
- [In The Beginning Was The Name...(From 'Bits & Bobs')](https://sparrowchat.com/in-the-beginning-was-the-name-from-bits-bobs/) - Ask any United States citizen when America began, and those who regularly attended grade school will eagerly respond: “1776!”. Ask them where it started...
- [Brits, Kiss Your NHS Goodbye](https://sparrowchat.com/18557-2/) - The cat is finally out of the bag. As Sparrow Chat has been opining for the last decade and more, Britain's National Health Service will be privatised...
- ["Land Of The Free And Home Of The Brave."](https://sparrowchat.com/land-of-the-free-and-home-of-the-brave/) - "New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has expressed her bafflement at the United State’s inability to change their gun laws after so many mass shootings...
- [U.K. Citizens Disenfranchised By Their Own Government](https://sparrowchat.com/u-k-citizens-disenfranchised-by-their-own-government/) - It's difficult to obtain statistics on just how many UK citizens live abroad, but 2017 figures estimated around 4.6 million throughout the world. Of these, 1.3 million reside in the European Union. Under UK law any citizen who has resided outside the country more than fifteen years loses their right to vote in UK
- [Calling Out Zuckerberg & Co...](https://sparrowchat.com/calling-out-zuckerberg-co/) - For more than a year now I've been following the devious and tangled web of criminality and dark money that's been at the heart of this monster...
- [The Centre Of Messier 87...](https://sparrowchat.com/the-centre-of-messier-87/) - ...Or, a very hot doughnut photographed by someone who couldn't get the focus right.
- ['Led By Donkeys' Does Great Donkey Work](https://sparrowchat.com/led-by-donkeys-does-great-donkey-work/) - Back in February Sparrow Chat highlighted the work of a small group of volunteers hellbent on exposing the lies told by British politicians about Brexit...
- [Tech Company Updates Don't Yeh Just Love 'Em!](https://sparrowchat.com/tech-company-updates-dont-yeh-just-love-em/) - Are you one of those people who can't wait for the latest upgrade to smartphone or tablet or, God forbid, Windows 10?
- [Egomania](https://sparrowchat.com/egomania/) - Browsing through old posts recently I came across a near-perfect example of media/political inanity from February 2015. The news items may be old-hat, but the madness continues...
- [Exposing The Lies...](https://sparrowchat.com/exposing-the-lies/) - Four ordinary British men doing their best to fight the lies and deceit that have festered at the heart of the UK Tory Party over BREXIT...
- [I Confess I Sexually Assaulted Wendy Plummer](https://sparrowchat.com/i-confess-i-sexually-assaulted-wendy-plummer/) - Writing recently of pressure groups in general, and the #MeToo social networking group in particular, I began to consider whether I had, at some time in my life...
- [Christopher Grayling - The Ultimate Incompetent Politician?](https://sparrowchat.com/christopher-grayling-the-ultimate-incompetent-politician/) - His name is Christopher Grayling. He's a British Tory Member of Parliament and presently Theresa May's Secretary of State for Transport...
- [Is The BBC Out To Destroy The Good Friday Agreement?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-the-bbc-out-to-destroy-the-good-friday-agreement/) - If there's anyone out there who still considers the BBC to be an impartial media corporation, then the latest interview by John Humphries, a veteran BBC...
- [Pressure Groups - Who Loves Them!](https://sparrowchat.com/pressure-groups-who-loves-them/) - Arwa Mahdawi wrote a piece in the Guardian today that got my aging grey cells jingling. I enjoy reading Arwa's stuff, she's an interesting writer and ...
- [Yellow Vests - Not All What They Seem](https://sparrowchat.com/yellow-vests-not-all-what-they-seem/) - Media throughout the world have been broadcasting their own versions of the French 'Les Gilets jaunes' protest marches over the last two months...
- [Big Fish Grow Fat From Eating Smaller Fish...](https://sparrowchat.com/big-fish-grow-fat-from-eating-smaller-fish/) - ...but what happens when the small fish are all gone? ANSWER: the big fish begin eating each other, until only one huge monster is left. They call it "MONOPOLY"
- [T'is The Night Before (Possibly The Last) Christmas](https://sparrowchat.com/tis-the-night-before-possibly-the-last-christmas/) - T'is the night before Christmas, all over the earth Terrorists are plotting for all they are worth. The Donald sits musing, which country to strike...
- [Christina Holsapple Doesn't Ride The Bus Anymore](https://sparrowchat.com/christina-holsapple-doesnt-ride-the-bus-anymore/) - This last 'school bus' essay, and the one previous, concerns a place called Hope Estates. There are a plethora of 'Hope Estates' in America..
- [Hope Estates](https://sparrowchat.com/hope-estates/) - I interrupted the saga of School Bus 13 with a couple of rants I needed to get off my chest. Now that's done, we return to the kids of Bus 13...
- [Keep Your Hands Off Our Classic Music Standards](https://sparrowchat.com/keep-your-hands-off-our-classic-music-standards/) - The last post was labelled, "The Plain Speaking Truth," so here's a bit more plain speaking because I'm frankly angry...
- [The Plain Speaking Truth About G. H. W. B.](https://sparrowchat.com/the-plain-speaking-truth-about-g-h-w-b/) - We interrupt this series of shorts on the antics of School Bus 13 to bring you a news bulletin: GEORGE H.W. BUSH IS DEAD...
- [All For The Want Of A Handkerchief](https://sparrowchat.com/all-for-the-want-of-a-handkerchief/) - With winter rapidly approaching - at least in the Northern Hemisphere - I was reminded of a certain time some years back when driving a school bus could be...
- [Misplaced Loyalties](https://sparrowchat.com/misplaced-loyalties-2/) - I'm happy to report that updates to Mrs R J's condition can now be accessed via the menu at the top of each page, both on home/laptop computers...
- [The Saga Of School Bus 13](https://sparrowchat.com/the-saga-of-school-bus-13/) - Some readers are already aware that Mrs R J has been diagnosed with cancer and is undergoing treatment. Chemotherapy is never pleasant...
- [If Only We Never Grew Up](https://sparrowchat.com/if-only-we-never-grew-up/) - Remember this song by John Denver? It's called Rhymes and Reasons: And you wonder where we're going Where's the rhyme and where's the reason...
- [On Living With Anguish](https://sparrowchat.com/on-living-with-anguish/) - It's hard to write anything when the one you love is suffering a potentially terminal disease...
- [How A Pigeon's Feather Changed My Life](https://sparrowchat.com/how-a-pigeon-feather-changed-my-life/) - My good blogging pal 'Wise Web Woman' recently posted a strange tale concerning Ansa, her beloved dog who sadly passed away some time ago, and a feather.
- [Now They're Coming For Our Text Speak](https://sparrowchat.com/now-theyre-coming-for-our-text-speak/) - The BBC told us recently that Procter & Gamble has applied to trademark certain terms commonly used in text speak and on social media and the internet generally
- [Goodbye Europe, We Must Leave You...](https://sparrowchat.com/goodbye-europe-we-must-leave-you/) - Says it all, really
- [60-quid Fine For Taking Your Kid On Holiday!? What The F.....!](https://sparrowchat.com/60-quid-fine-for-taking-your-kid-on-holiday-what-the-f/) - What's the ****'s going on in Britain these days? Parents take their kid on a five day holiday to Spain in May and are fined 60-quid...
- [One Stupid Girl FromTexas - And An Alligator](https://sparrowchat.com/one-stupid-girl-fromtexas-and-an-alligator/) - Who does she think she is - the next Doctor Dolittle![1] Or, perhaps, John "Grizzly" Adams, reincarnated. Only last year I wrote a post entitled, ""Heaven Preserve Us From Animal Lovers" about an image of a very stupid girl standing neck deep in water while kissing a crocodile/alligator. It was a smaller reptile than this
- [Antisemitism - Or A Block On Freedom Of Speech?](https://sparrowchat.com/antisemitism-or-a-block-on-freedom-of-speech/) - Who are the Jews? They're a religious group, a minority section of the world's population, a bunch of folk consisting of good and bad...
- [Blackmail: A Dirty Word For A Dirty Government](https://sparrowchat.com/blackmail-a-dirty-word-for-a-dirty-government/) - The British government has finally sunk to its lowest level in the latest bid to force the European Union into giving in to its demands...
- [I'm British, Embarrassed And Ashamed!](https://sparrowchat.com/im-british-embarrassed-and-ashamed/) - News today that John Cleese, that great comedian and star of Monty Python, Fawlty Towers, and other glorious offerings, is relocating...
- [Only A Six-Spot Burnet](https://sparrowchat.com/only-a-six-spot-burnet/) - George Monbiot wrote an interesting article in the Guardian recently, entitled "In Memorium", and available on his blog1. It concerned how we can so easily forget the names of creatures that have grown less common over the years, as consequently we come across them much less frequently. In his case it was the name of
- [TRUMPED!](https://sparrowchat.com/trumped/) - “WHEN DID YOU LAST SEE YOUR PORN STAR?"
- [What's Your Belief System Telling You?](https://sparrowchat.com/whats-your-belief-system-telling-you/) - Have you ever stopped to consider the question: what is religion? I don't mean is it Christianity, or Judaism, or, Buddhism, or even New Age spiritualism. Those usually form part of another question: which is the true religion? But what exactly is 'religion' itself when you strip away its many forms...
- [We've Been Forcibly Migrated!](https://sparrowchat.com/weve-been-forcibly-migrated/) - It's somewhat alarming to click on your own website, only to have a sinister-looking statement stare you in the face stating the site could be dangerous, insecure, porn-laden, and poised to make off with all your personal data, credit cards, bank details, etc., etc., etc..
- [Neo-fascist USA: The Most Dangerous Nation On The Planet](https://sparrowchat.com/neo-fascist-usa-the-most-dangerous-nation-on-the-planet/) - You may have noticed there's not much going on at Sparrow Chat lately. It's not that I've died, been bereaved, or suffered any other major life catastrophe, it's just that I find the world situation so utterly dire that I can't be bothered to write about it anymore...
- ["BREXIT" - You Brits Want Your Arses Kicking](https://sparrowchat.com/brexit-you-brits-want-your-arses-kicking/) - Sometimes I despair of my countrymen. Since the advent of "Brexit" I've felt ashamed to admit I'm British, preferring to say that as I lived in the United States for near-on fifteen years I consider myself American. At least that way I'm only regarded with sympathy, given that the idiot Trump is my president..
- [Is The West's Hacking Self-Righteousness Really Justified?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-the-wests-hacking-self-righteousness-really-justified/) - Iran's been hacking into the emails of university professors in various countries on the planet, including the U.K., Israel, Germany, and Japan - and (of course) the United States. It's the U.S. who've made this known...
- [NHS: The Great British Give-Away](https://sparrowchat.com/nhs-the-great-british-give-away/) - Britain's prime minister, Theresa May, has consistently emphasized her political party's commitment to ensuring the nation's National Health Service is never privatized. It is, of course, a lie. The Tory Party has long been conspiring with American medical corporations...
- [Instructions To A Child On How To Die](https://sparrowchat.com/instructions-to-a-child-on-how-to-die/) - This verified tweet reveals one result of America’s addiction to guns and violence: a society no longer caring for kid’s minds (the effect of such instructions on a small child must be traumatic), just making dubious and pathetic efforts to spare a few more young lives in the event of an all too common school shooting.
- [America's Drug Of Choice - Violence](https://sparrowchat.com/americas-drug-of-choice-violence/) - There's little more to be said about the latest massacre of schoolkids in the United States, but much more to be noted of the hypocrisy and emotional blackmail pouring from the mouths of those on whom the responsibility for these outrages lie...
- [Not Another Statistic!](https://sparrowchat.com/not-another-statistic/) - Don’tcha just love statistics! Here’s a beauty today from the BBC: “Vegetarian and vegan: A quarter of UK dinners have no meat or fish”. More than a quarter of all evening meals in the UK are vegan or vegetarian, research shows...
- [Demise Of The Waiting Room Glossies](https://sparrowchat.com/demise-of-the-waiting-room-glossies/) - I have occasion to be sitting in the radiography waiting room of our local French hospital. As one would expect there’s a fairly average cross-section of the populace patiently awaiting their turn...
- [How Bad Can It Get?](https://sparrowchat.com/how-bad-can-it-get/) - Just when we thought it couldn't get any worse: "OPRAH WINFREY FOR PRESIDENT!" What the F***!!!? Americans are TRULY losing their minds. This is the woman...
- [The First Day Of January ~ A Sparrow Chat View](https://sparrowchat.com/the-first-day-of-january-a-sparrow-chat-view/) - Welcome to 2018. After a night filled with joy and revelry that saw me in bed for ten-thirty and asleep by eleven, a glance at the papers this New Year's morn..
- [Britain At Play: Spy Games](https://sparrowchat.com/britain-at-play-spy-games/) - When we were little kids we used to play a game whereby one of us would shadow an unsuspecting adult along the street, pretending we were following a spy...
- [Forget Santa We Need A New Wat Tyler This Christmas](https://sparrowchat.com/forget-santa-we-need-a-new-wat-tyler-this-christmas/) - In 1381 the poor people of England rose up against a tyrannical regime of wealthy lords and landowners who passed laws that kept the general populace...
- [Brexit Is Broken - But No-One's Going To Mend It](https://sparrowchat.com/brexit-is-broken-but-no-ones-going-to-mend-it/) - "BREXIT" ~ the act of leaving the European Union by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, has been a major topic on U.K. news channels...
- [Sexual Harassment: The Latest Media Bandwagon?](https://sparrowchat.com/sexual-harassment-the-latest-media-bandwagon/) - For weeks now the media has been full of sordid tales, initially connected to the billionaire film producer, Harvey Weinstein...
- [Of Two Men - And One Short Story](https://sparrowchat.com/of-two-men-and-one-short-story/) - This is a tale of two men. The first of these men was brutally murdered. He was a good man who helped people. The second man cares nothing for others...
- [NRA Leader Feigns Sympathy While Demanding LESS Gun Control](https://sparrowchat.com/nra-leader-feigns-sympathy-while-demanding-less-gun-control/) - In the wake of the slaughter in Las Vegas this week, the U.S. National Rifle Association is urging Congress to outlaw 'bump-stocks'. A bump-stock basically...
- [Who Needs Islamic Terrorists...](https://sparrowchat.com/who-needs-islamic-terrorists/) - ...when you have home-grown American nutcases with access to an arsenal of high-powered weaponry?
- [Heaven Preserve Us From Animal Lovers!](https://sparrowchat.com/heaven-preserve-us-from-animal-lovers/) - After working as an Inspector for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals for well over a decade I came to dread the phrase "animal lover"...
- [Are Western Leaders Scared To Defy Donald Trump?](https://sparrowchat.com/are-western-leaders-scared-to-defy-donald-trump/) - Americans hate to be disliked. There's a section of American society that cannot comprehend why when their military invades another country...
- [Roll Up! Roll Up! "Houston, Texas": The Great Reality TV Show!](https://sparrowchat.com/roll-up-roll-up-houston-texas-the-great-reality-tv-show/) - Hurricane Harvey has captured the West’s attention, mainly due to blanket coverage by the news media. It’s been hard to escape this drowning of a city...
- [Apocalypse Now - Or Maybe Next Week?](https://sparrowchat.com/apocalypse-now-or-maybe-next-week/) - No, I've not been away on vacation, though with the atrocious August weather in northern France one is almost envious of those further south...
- [It's Your Move - Mister President!](https://sparrowchat.com/its-your-move-mister-president/) - Two men sit at a chess board. Player One is quiet and scheming; player Two, brash, given to occasional ill-thought-out moves...
- [Our Fairytale View Of The Natural World Can Often Backfire](https://sparrowchat.com/our-fairytale-view-of-the-natural-world-can-often-backfire/) - One of the more unusual headlines last week was this from the BBC (and many other news outlets): "Firefighters kill snake ‘stuck to woman’s face'"
- [Of Babies, Comedians, & The More Foolish Aspects Of Mankind](https://sparrowchat.com/of-babies-comedians-the-more-foolish-aspects-of-mankind/) - Yes, let’s begin with the image of three healthy, bouncing, babies. Sadly, there are occasions when such delightful little human beings are neither healthy...
- [America - Enough Is Enough!](https://sparrowchat.com/america-enough-is-enough/) - It's a madhouse. Once considered the greatest nation on earth, the United States of America is descending into total disarray, its government in tatters...
- [There's No Trump-ing Bastille Day For The French](https://sparrowchat.com/theres-no-trump-ing-bastille-day-for-the-french/) - There's a certain unease in the French air. On the surface everything appears normal: the birds are singing, the sun is shining...
- [Saudi Arabia - The Chief Promoter Of Terrorism In The U.K.](https://sparrowchat.com/saudi-arabia-the-chief-promoter-of-terrorism-in-the-u-k/) - I've been saying it for years. I've been writing about it for years. In fact, I've been doing so until I'm as blue in the face as that darned budgie...
- [Donald Trump: An Addiction We Need To Overcome](https://sparrowchat.com/donald-trump-an-addiction-we-need-to-overcome/) - The world is obsessed with Donald Trump. It's impossible to open a newspaper, news website, or tune to a media channel, without Trump leaping out at you...
- [Pakistan Tanker Fire And Devil-Possessed Frenchmen -Is There A Connection?](https://sparrowchat.com/pakistan-tanker-fire-and-devil-possessed-frenchmen-is-there-a-connection/) - What have exorcisms in France got to do with an overturned oil lorry in Pakistan? Not a lot, is the immediate response, but maybe there is a connection...
- [The 'USS Fitzgerald' And The 'ACX Crystal' - Maritime Mystery Or A Terrorist Attack?](https://sparrowchat.com/the-uss-fitzgerald-and-the-acx-crystal-maritime-mystery-or-a-terrorist-attack/) - The East China Sea can be a busy place, even at 2.30 in the morning. Nevertheless, a US warship has technological eyes and ears that can operate miles...
- [Grenfell Tower: A Fancy Name May Make It Appear More Respectable](https://sparrowchat.com/grenfell-tower-a-fancy-name-may-make-it-appear-more-respectable/) - A rabbit warren is still a rabbit warren no matter what fancy name you give it.
- ['Freedom' Can Be An Ugly Word In The Wrong Mouths](https://sparrowchat.com/freedom-can-be-an-ugly-word-in-the-wrong-mouths/) - Fifteen years in America taught me a lot about the people, the country, and how it was governed. What I learned from the people was...
- [A Sinking Theresa May - Are Tory Rats About To Leave?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-sinking-theresa-may-are-tory-rats-are-about-to-leave/) - It's fun to watch the Tory parliamentary rats scurrying around desperately attempting to plug holes in the fabric of their morale...
- [Brexit, Trump, Can Theresa May Make It Three Disasters In A Row?](https://sparrowchat.com/brexit-trump-can-theresa-may-make-it-three-disasters-in-a-row/) - Today, the British go to the polls. Their vote will decide whether their future lies in the rather bleak, isolationist, world prepared for them by Theresa May..
- [Who's First For The Funny Farm - May Or Trump?](https://sparrowchat.com/whos-first-for-the-funny-farm-may-or-trump/) - Three terrorist attacks in three months have proved a breaking point for Theresa May, Britain's prime minister. How dare they create mayhem during HER election...
- [The Middle-East: A Potential Israeli-Sunni Arab Alliance?](https://sparrowchat.com/the-middle-east-a-potential-israeli-sunni-arab-alliance/) - Congratulations are in order for the man voted into power by a minority of the U.S. electorate as President of the United States...
- [Spare A Thought For Those Who Drive These...](https://sparrowchat.com/spare-a-thought-for-those-who-drive-these/) - If every second car that passed you on a motorway was a BMW, or a Mercedes, where would you assume you were? Germany, perhaps? Or, maybe, even France?
- [Gone Sailing...Or Something...](https://sparrowchat.com/gone-sailing-or-something/) - Sparrow Chat's taking a vacation. We'll be back! Always assuming Mister Trump doesn't annihilate us all in the meantime. RJ
- ["No General Election Before 2020"](https://sparrowchat.com/no-general-election-before-2020/) - "The Lady's not for turning," once quoted Theresa May's doppelganger, Margaret Thatcher. It seems the present UK PM is grasping a leaf from the Trump book.
- [A World Divided](https://sparrowchat.com/a-world-divided/) - In June last year the people of the U.K. voted by 51.9% to 48.1% to leave the European Union. 'Brexit' had triumphed, but only just...
- [U.S. Missile Strike: Trump's Latest "Up Yours!" To The World](https://sparrowchat.com/u-s-missile-strike-trumps-latest-up-yours-to-the-world/) - The airstrike by U.S. missiles on a Syrian airbase today is an act of war, not just against Syria, but also its ally, Russia.
- [Consign Flags And Other Nationalistic Symbols To Room 101](https://sparrowchat.com/consign-flags-and-other-nationalistic-symbols-to-room-101/) - Why do we as a species continually insist on displaying these symbols of nationalistic pride as though we were still uncivilised tribes hellbent on raping...
- [Goodbye Europe - Hello American Corporate Healthcare](https://sparrowchat.com/goodbye-europe-hello-american-corporate-healthcare/) - A recent Channel 4 'Dispatches' documentary revealed that applications from European nurses to work in Britain has dropped by 92% since Brexit...
- [Spring Is In The Air, But It's Still Bleak Winter In Politics](https://sparrowchat.com/spring-is-in-the-air-but-its-still-bleak-winter-in-politics/) - These pages have been somewhat barren of late - and, no, it's not because Theresa May has come for me - nor Donald Trump for that matter...
- [Who Will Theresa May Come For Next?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-will-theresa-may-come-for-next/) - The answer appeared the very next day when a young Latino man, Daniel Ramirez Medina, was arrested by officials of ICE.
- [Has Trump Finally Made A Sane Decision?](https://sparrowchat.com/has-trump-finally-made-a-sane-decision/) - By the sheer laws of chance even a madman can occasionally make a sane decision. Donald Trump's choice of Lt Gen H R McMaster as his National Security Advisor..
- [Wikipedia And The Secret Life Of The Hedge Fund](https://sparrowchat.com/wikipedia-and-the-secret-life-of-the-hedge-fund/) - One should really spend more time perusing Wikipedia. Written as they are by almost anybody, Wikipedia's entries have often suffered criticism...
- [Who Will Trump Come For Next?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-will-trump-come-for-next/) - Guadalupe Garcia de Rayos is 36 years old. She isn't an American citizen, but she lived in the U.S. for more than twenty years, since the age of fourteen...
- [How One Man, Jeremy Corbyn, May Have Doomed The U.K. National Health Service](https://sparrowchat.com/how-one-man-jeremy-corbyn-may-have-doomed-the-u-k-national-health-service/) - It's hard to know what to make of the man pictured above. In case anyone has doubts it's the leader of the British Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn.
- [A Personal Sense Of 'Saudade', Laced With A Topping Of Bitterness](https://sparrowchat.com/a-personal-sense-of-saudade-laced-with-a-topping-of-bitterness/) - Twilight tells us that Saudade is a deep emotional state of nostalgic or profound melancholic longing for an absent something or someone that one loves...
- [The Lunatics Have Charge Of The Asylum](https://sparrowchat.com/the-lunatics-have-charge-of-the-asylum/) - To anyone who has access to the internet, TV, or radio, it must surely be obvious by now that the lunatics have taken over the asylum...
- [Question: How Many Total Prats Can You Get In A Government?](https://sparrowchat.com/question-how-many-total-prats-can-you-get-in-a-government/) - How do we manage to get such total prats into our governments? I'm referring in this instance to the pathetic Michael Fallon, who landed the job of Defence...
- [Yanukovich Makes My Day](https://sparrowchat.com/yanukovich-makes-my-day/) - Viktor Yanukovich spent much of his early life in prison for robbery and assault. As late as 2005 he was implicated in fraud. Now, he is president of Ukraine. Recently, he and Russian president Medvedev attended a ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Viktor-Yanukovich-17-05-2010.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Viktor-Yanukovich-17-05-2010.jpg 400 268] Perhaps the unknown soldiers didn't take
- [Supreme Court - Heart Of Corruption?](https://sparrowchat.com/supreme-court-heart-of-corruption/) - Yesterday, the Supreme Court of the United States of America hammered what is likely the final nail into the coffin lid of a long-ailing social system known colloquially as 'Democracy' in this country. It's been slowly, but systematically, poisoned over many years. Now, we can be sure it's finally dead. In a 5-4 decision, the
- [Imagine For A Moment.....](https://sparrowchat.com/imagine-for-a-moment/) - .....if Christine O'Donnell and those of her persuasion were to gain the power of government in this country. This was her on 'Scarborough Country' in 2003: [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/2010-09-23-MSNBC-Scarborough-Country-Christine-ODonnell-Stop-the-Whole-Country-From-Having-Sex.mpg.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/ODonnell-on-Scarborough-2003.png 380 258"] We are told to fear the Iranian regime, and the Taliban. Would a US government run by people like her not be similar to that
- [It's A Big Club And You Ain't In It](https://sparrowchat.com/its-a-big-club-and-you-aint-in-it/) - [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/George-Carlin-Who-Really-Controls-America-.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/who_controls_America.png 420 290] It's hardly the way to run a banana republic. If some sleazy South American or African nation had politicians hold their government to ransom, it would be all over the western media, and we'd shake our heads and thank our god it couldn't happen here. The United States of America is
- [Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead](https://sparrowchat.com/ding-dong-the-witch-is-dead/) - The demise of Margaret Thatcher, as mentioned in the last post, was not a subject to be pursued further by this author. There is, however, another matter far more serious that's arisen as a result of her recent death. Since the 1960s, the BBC has broadcast a weekly "Top of the Pops" program, featuring bands
- [Religion - 1, Atheism - 0 (But Only Thanks To Pope Francis)](https://sparrowchat.com/religion-1-atheism-0-but-only-thanks-to-pope-francis/) - Two items hit the headlines this week in America. The first was a message from the new Pope Francis: [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Pope-Francis-homily.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Pope-Francis.png 420 290] Basically, the Pope is saying that it matters not whether one is Roman Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Buddhist, atheist, or whatever. All that matters is we do good towards others - without distinction.
- [Still Unsure Whether Or Not To Attack Syria?](https://sparrowchat.com/still-unsure-whether-or-not-to-attack-syria/) - Last night, September 10th 2013, I suffered six minutes of the US President, Barack Obama, attempting to make his case for waging war on Syria. After six minutes had passed I could stand to watch and listen no more. What he said in the remainder of his fifteen minute speech became irrelevant. The phrase "supercilious
- [The TPP - A Pathway To World Oligarchy](https://sparrowchat.com/the-tpp-a-pathway-to-world-oligarchy/) - Have you heard of the Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal? If you have, it won't have been from any channel of the US news media. The whole deal is taking place behind closed doors; doors firmly barred to the media, public, and even many politicians. [flv:https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/TPP-TV-Blackout-FAIR.mp4] To sign petition see link at bottom of page
- [Elizabeth Warren - One Of Four Defying TPP](https://sparrowchat.com/elizabeth-warren-one-of-four-defying-tpp/) - On June 19th 2013, the US Congress confirmed Michael Froman... ...as the latest US Trade Representative. Thus, making him the front man in the secret negotiations taking place under the guise of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)[1]. The vote was 93 in favor; 4 against. Senators Carl Levin (D., Mich.), Joe Manchin (D., W.V.), Bernie
- [DST - or, Damned Stupid Tinkering!](https://sparrowchat.com/dst-or-damned-stupid-tinkering/) - Excuse me while I yawn, and attempt to stay awake long enough to write this post. Yes, it's that time of year (at least, in the great USofA) when the idiot politicians decree the clocks shall be wound forward an hour, so we'll all lose sleep and arrive in work on Monday morning with matchsticks
- [The US Versus North Korea - Round 2?](https://sparrowchat.com/the-us-versus-north-korea-round-2/) - Hang on to yer hats. We're off to war with North Korea. Kim Jong-un is yet another lunatic leader threatening the peace-loving United States, and likely to invade our dear allies in the South at any moment. America's Seventh Cavalry, in line with the best traditions of the 'Old West', will come riding out of
- [Gentle Words For The Hard And Ruthless](https://sparrowchat.com/gentle-words-for-the-hard-and-ruthless/) - https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Ena.mp4 Those were the words of Ena Sharples, during an episode of, "Coronation Street", back in November 1978. Ena was an old woman then, grown wise with age. She lamented the way folk were hungry for money and material things, with little time for helping others, or displaying sensitivity for those worse off than themselves.
- [They're Trying To Take Our Internet Away](https://sparrowchat.com/theyre-trying-to-take-our-internet-away/) - There's a lot going on right now to thwart attempts by the government and corporate interests to take control of the internet. We're all aware, thanks to Edward Snowden, of the NSA's surveillance of the American public's use of cellphones and internet access. FFTF (Fight for the Future) and other organizations are currently sponsoring efforts
- [Will Theresa May's Flowers Bloom In The Spring?](https://sparrowchat.com/will-theresa-mays-flowers-bloom-in-the-spring/) - Springtime has come early to Britain. No, the birds haven't started nest-building, but for Prime Minister Theresa it's truly May in January...
- [Inauguration Day](https://sparrowchat.com/inauguration-day/) - Frankly, I'm not a great one for spectacle. At the tender age of six I found Queen Liz II's coronation a total bore. Mind, it was in black and white...
- [Fool Britannia - No Longer Rules The Waves](https://sparrowchat.com/fool-britannia-no-longer-rules-the-waves/) - With only days to go to the inauguration of Donald Trump as the next President of the United States, it's now painfully obvious the man is severely flawed...
- [Thirsty For Technology - Or Maybe Drowning In It!](https://sparrowchat.com/thirsty-for-technology-or-maybe-drowning-in-it/) - Where would we be without today's technology? It's a wonderful thing this digital age. Everything's going digital...
- [A Short Musing On Disappointment](https://sparrowchat.com/a-short-musing-on-disappointment/) - I've just finished breakfast. I enjoy breakfast. All that lovely tea, and toast dripping with butter...
- [Bernie's Out - Long Live Bernie!](https://sparrowchat.com/bernies-out-long-live-bernie/) - With Democratic contender, Hilary Clinton, now set to become the party's nominee for president, many outside America are left wondering why Bernie Sander's hopes have been dashed so decisively, and the 'Establishment' contender allowed to gain outright victory. Throughout the primary season, Republican voters have made a clear statement of their views towards the Washington
- [Time To End The Pathetic "Russian Hacking" Story](https://sparrowchat.com/time-to-end-the-pathetic-russian-hacking-story/) - Russia says it's tired of America's 'hacking witch-hunt.' Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov told reporters Moscow was tired of the accusations.
- [Time For A New Kind Of Politician?](https://sparrowchat.com/time-for-a-new-kind-of-politician/) - I would like to propose a new law. Preferably a law that would take effect internationally and apply to every nation on earth...
- [Echoes Of The Mafiosi - Corporate Style!](https://sparrowchat.com/echoes-of-the-mafiosi-corporate-style/) - Has there ever been a greater gathering of gangsters, corrupt business tycoons, and failed politicians gathered together in one place...
- [From Sparrow Chat: A Peaceful And Happy Christmas To All.](https://sparrowchat.com/from-sparrow-chat-a-peaceful-and-happy-christmas-to-all/) - T'was the night before Christmas and all round the earth, terrorists were plotting for all they were worth...
- [Theresa May: The Thatcher Nightmare Returns.](https://sparrowchat.com/theresa-may-the-thatcher-nightmare-returns/) - There were many in Britain who breathed a deep sigh of relief when, on 28th November 1990, Margaret Thatcher was finally ousted...
- [Iran: Response To A Democratic U.S. Senator](https://sparrowchat.com/iran-response-to-a-democratic-u-s-senator/) - Today I received an email from Debbie Stabenow, the Democratic senator for Michigan. I've reproduced it below, together with my response...
- [Kill The Crazed Greed-Fest Of Black Friday](https://sparrowchat.com/kill-the-crazed-greed-fest-of-black-friday/) - Fifteen years ago, when I left the U.K. to live in America, no-one in Britain had ever heard of ‘Black Friday’...
- [Love In A New York High Rise](https://sparrowchat.com/love-in-a-new-york-high-rise/) - It was the saddest of partings. Catching a few brief moments alone in Donny's sumptuous bedchamber the two embraced longingly, a tear quickly brushed aside...
- [Goodbye Obama - Merkel Will Miss You](https://sparrowchat.com/goodbye-obama-merkel-will-miss-you/) - This latest US-German collaboration is an obvious thrust at Donald J Trump whose objections to trade agreements he's never failed to - eh, Trump-et...
- [Who The Hell IS Nigel Farage?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-the-hells-nigel-farage/) - Nigel Farage was amusing for a time. He was the clown on the fringe of British politics until, like so many clowns, he became wearing and slightly sinister...
- ["Yes, We Can!" But No, You Didn't!](https://sparrowchat.com/yes-we-can-but-no-you-didnt/) - You never kept your promises, Obama. You let your country down. You didn't close Gitmo; you failed to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan...
- [Election USA, Brexit Britain, And A Possible Scottish Saviour](https://sparrowchat.com/election-usa-brexit-britain-and-a-possible-scottish-saviour/) - The next occupant of the White House will merely be a mirror of the declining democratic society in the USA and the upsurge of corporate/military control...
- [Brexit, Twitter, And The Hate-Peddlers Who Swung The Vote](https://sparrowchat.com/brexit-twitter-and-the-hate-peddlers-who-swung-the-vote/) - If there's one thing we can thank Twitter for it's how well it highlights just how many morons, loonies, and general hatemongers are out there waiting to...
- [Refuting The Great Dental Floss Slander](https://sparrowchat.com/refuting-the-great-dental-floss-slander/) - The Associated Press recently decided to wage war against tooth flossing. There's no evidence it does any good, they decided...
- [Free Trade At Any Price](https://sparrowchat.com/free-trade-at-any-price/) - Belgium opposition has collapsed. The 'Comprehensive and Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) is to passed after all.
- [Chrystia Freeland: Mental Retard Or Political Turncoat?](https://sparrowchat.com/chrystia-freeland-mental-retard-or-political-turncoat/) - Chrystia Freeland doesn't just live in Canada. She also inhabits Cloud Cuckoo Land.
- [CETA: More Corporate Poison In A Fancier Bottle](https://sparrowchat.com/ceta-more-corporate-poison-in-a-fancier-bottle/) - Media outlets that represent the people, rather than big business, are lauding the efforts of the Belgium region of Walloon...
- [It's Much Too Easy To Forget](https://sparrowchat.com/its-much-too-easy-to-forget/) - There was really no reason to remember August 6th 1945. It was seventy-one years ago - hardly an anniversary.
- [Climate Change: Are We Fifty Years Too Late?](https://sparrowchat.com/climate-change-are-we-fifty-years-too-late/) - Climate change: is it a matter for complacency due to over-exposure?
- [The Absurdities Of Modern Life Grow Greater By The Day](https://sparrowchat.com/the-absurdities-of-modern-life-grow-greater-by-the-day/) - Jaw-dropping examples of the crassness of the human species when elevated to any form of authority...
- [America's Medical Mafia.](https://sparrowchat.com/americas-medical-mafia/) - The full retail price of this drug in France was less than the co-pay demanded by our insurance company for the exact same drug in the United States...
- [G20, Brexit, And The Villa D'Este](https://sparrowchat.com/g20-brexit-and-the-villa-deste/) - The chief topic was Britain's stab-in-the-European-back, known colloquially as 'Brexit'...
- [Atlantic Bridge - Dead Or Merely Undercover?](https://sparrowchat.com/atlantic-bridge-dead-or-merely-undercover/) - It would seem that Theresa May's government is in some disarray following her appointments of Boris Johnson, Liam Fox, and David Davies...
- [Ryan Lochte: An Ugly American Or A Sad Product Of U.S. Policymakers?](https://sparrowchat.com/ryan-lochte-an-ugly-american-or-a-sad-product-of-u-s-policymakers/) - The Rio Olympics are now over. The competitors have arrived back in their own countries and TV companies worldwide have returned to screening their mediocre programming of old movies, half-baked sitcoms, and third-rate 'reality TV' shows. The Olympics were a success. At least, they were portrayed that way, and for most viewers there wasn't too
- [Libya: "David Cameron Ultimately Responsible For Failures," Says U.K. Govt Report](https://sparrowchat.com/libya-david-cameron-ultimately-responsible-for-failures-says-u-k-govt-report/) - The report...goes to on to lay much of the blame for the present situation in Libya on Cameron, and the French president of the time, Nicolas Sarkozy...
- [Zeynab Alshelh Blames The French For Finding The Burkini Unwelcome](https://sparrowchat.com/zeynab-alshelh-blames-the-french-for-finding-the-burkini-unwelcome/) - It seems that Ms Alshelh is perplexed by the reaction of the French beachgoers...
- [The Burkini: A Religious Symbol Or A Woman's Right?](https://sparrowchat.com/the-burkini-a-religious-symbol-or-a-womans-right/) - For years it was considered the height of indecency for a woman to display more than her ankles when at the beach. The Victorians were particularly fussy that way. Gradually, fashions and morals changed. Full swimsuits became the norm, then bikinis. Over the last few decades the dangers of skin cancer, from exposure to the
- [Who Sabotaged The Syrian Ceasefire?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-sabotaged-the-syrian-ceasefire/) - After the attacks of 9/11 powerful elements within the Bush administration set out to destabilize the Syrian government ...
- [Jeremy Corbyn: A Man Too Long After His Time?](https://sparrowchat.com/jeremy-corbyn-a-man-too-long-after-his-time/) - Despite all their efforts to oust him, Jeremy Corbyn was re-elected as leader of the Labour Party...
- [Political Chaos In A Broken Britain](https://sparrowchat.com/political-chaos-in-a-broken-britain/) - Theresa May's broken promises and how UKIP celebrates victory in the Brussels Parliament building...
- [Trump Talks 'Dirty' - Where's The Surprise?](https://sparrowchat.com/trump-talks-dirty-wheres-the-surprise/) - Donald Trump is a coarse, brash, chauvinist who likes to talk 'dirty' when he's in the company of other men.
- [Donald Trump Could Never Be Another Lyndon Johnson](https://sparrowchat.com/donald-trump-could-never-be-another-lyndon-johnson/) - Donald Trump’s not the first lewd, brash, chauvinist with a foul mouth, slavering after the top job in the White House.
- [Pride And Racism Alive And Well And Living In Britain](https://sparrowchat.com/pride-and-racism-alive-and-well-and-living-in-britain/) - It’s truly difficult to comprehend the sheer arrogance of the present British government. They treat a very closely run referendum result as though...
- [Could The Kettle Be Less Grimy Than The Pot?](https://sparrowchat.com/could-the-kettle-be-less-grimy/) - An Iraqi child shrieking in fear and loss, bathed in the blood of her dead parents ~ Lest We Forget.
- [The TPP Is A Vital Part Of The President Clinton Doctrine](https://sparrowchat.com/the-tpp-is-a-vital-part-of-the-president-clinton-doctrine/) - Is anyone fooled by Hillary Clinton's about-turn on the Trans Pacific Partnership? Don't be.
- [Some Folk Just Don't Deserve Sympathy](https://sparrowchat.com/some-folk-just-dont-deserve-sympathy/) - Kardashian, Stumpf, and May - three names undeserving of any sympathy this week
- [Owen Smith Wants A Chat With Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi](https://sparrowchat.com/owen-smith-wants-a-chat-with-abu-bakr-al-baghdadi/) - The British Labour Party is suffering a crisis of leadership. It's present front man, Jeremy Corbyn, has lost a vote of confidence by his members of parliament and a new man, Owen Smith, is garnering support to oust him. The convoluted shenanigans of British politics are likely lost on anyone not familiar with the U.K.'s
- [It's Time To Draw A Line Under Political Correctness](https://sparrowchat.com/its-time-to-draw-a-line-under-political-correctness/) - One of the problems with 'social media' is it gives the deadheads opportunities to spout their nonsense all over the internet. To call this tweet racist is to admit to being a racist. If the fastest guy in the Olympics was a white man and Degeneres had Photoshopped herself on his back no-one would have
- [Donald's Trumped-Up Foreign Policy Disaster](https://sparrowchat.com/donalds-trumped-up-foreign-policy-disaster/) - The actions of the United States of America in the Middle East over the last four decades have revealed the effects of its 'nation-building' policies for just what they truly are. Ideals of 'exporting freedom', and, 'bringing democracy to dictatorships' (when it suits) are no more than propaganda slogans to cover the truth of global
- [R.I.P Geoffrey Jones of Bridgend, South Wales](https://sparrowchat.com/r-i-p-geoffrey-jones-of-bridgend-south-wales/) - Today, we are informed by the BBC that the billionaire landowner, Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, 6th Duke of Westminster, has died aged 64. In fairness to the BBC, this sudden loss to us all (apparently) was not featured as a major headline on its Home page, but as a 'sub' further down, below the threat of
- [Climate Change: Fifteen Years To Save Humanity](https://sparrowchat.com/climate-change-fifteen-years-to-save-humanity/) - In 2015, politicians met in Paris and agreed to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The meeting was hailed as a breakthrough. Now, one year later, that limit seems almost impossible to achieve. When the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change meets in Geneva this month it will discuss research that shows global temperatures
- [A Penny For 'Em?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-penny-for-em/) - We can all breathe a sigh of relief now that the U.S. political conventions are over. In Europe, there wasn't as much coverage as that shown by the American media, but as the Daily Show is transmitted in the U.K., (albeit a day or two late) and it covered both conventions in detail over six
- [Clinton Magic, Or Plain Old Glib And Glitz?](https://sparrowchat.com/clinton-magic-or-plain-old-glib-and-glitz/)
- [Wasserman Schultz: Another One Bites The Dust](https://sparrowchat.com/wasserman-schultz-another-one-bites-the-dust/) - For once in her political life Debbie Wasserman Schultz has done the decent thing and resigned her position as chairwoman of the U.S. Democratic Party's Democratic National Committee (DNC). The exposure by Wikileaks of emails clearly proving her staff worked to prevent Bernie Sanders from achieving the Democratic nomination, has only served to highlight what
- [Neoliberalism - A Definition In Under 2,000 Words](https://sparrowchat.com/neoliberalism-a-definition-in-under-2000-words/) - It would seem to be stating the obvious to suggest that words are important to a writer. They are the means of clarifying, understanding, and communicating thoughts and ideas both to ourselves, within the mind, and hopefully to others, also. Although English is the most commonly used language in the Western world, there are certain
- [If Brexit Was Bad - This Is Worse!](https://sparrowchat.com/if-brexit-was-bad-this-is-worse/) - If Theresa May wanted to begin her prime ministership by giving the rest of the world a good laugh at the U.K.'s expense then she's certainly succeeded. One could have hoped that - following her predecessor's debacle over Europe, which resulted in the country being jerked back fifty years based mostly on the antics and
- [Why Can't A Woman Be More Like - A Woman?](https://sparrowchat.com/why-cant-a-woman-be-more-like-a-woman/) - "Why can't a woman be more like a man?" bemoaned Henry Higgins in the musical, "My Fair Lady." It seems he may have got his way, judging by the women we find in politics today. One could, perhaps, wish he hadn't. Once again Britain finds itself with a female prime minister. Most Tory supporters will
- [The World Is Better Off Today Because Of Me - Tony Blair](https://sparrowchat.com/the-world-is-better-off-today-because-of-me-tony-blair/) - The Chilcot report ran to two million six hundred thousand words. That's the equivalent of three and a third Bibles, or nearly four and a half volumes of War and Peace. If we're brutally honest all 2.6 million words were about Tony Blair. In practice, that's probably not quite true, but so far as the
- [After Chilcot](https://sparrowchat.com/after-chilcot/) - There's been nothing particularly new so far in the Chilcot report into the Iraq War, just confirmation of what was already known to anyone who's been following the war's history. Tony Blair spent two hours on live television telling everyone how dreadfully sorry he was for being right - which surely fooled nobody - and
- [Iraq: The Chilcot Report Tomorrow](https://sparrowchat.com/iraq-the-chilcot-report-tomorrow/) - Tomorrow the Chilcot report will finally be published. It only took seven years to complete. The report is the final outcome of the Chilcot Inquiry, which determined whether the decision for Britain to go to war in Iraq in 2003 was right, or not, and if not, who was to blame for the decision. Tony
- [July 1st 1916 - The Day 20,000 Died For Nothing.](https://sparrowchat.com/july-1st-1916-the-day-20000-died-for-nothing/) - Which one is your grandfather? Today is a day for the British to take stock of just what they've done by voting to leave the European Union. Today is July 1st 2016. By the end of this day, one hundred years ago, 20,000 men of the British Empire would be lying dead in the mud
- [What The Hell Is Happening To British Politics?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-the-hell-is-happening-to-british-politics/) - Britain's Next Prime Minister? God Forbid!NOPE! HE'S GONE! What is happening to British politics? Watching the BBC News one could be forgiven for thinking the nation was going to hell in a parliamentary meltdown: the Tory vultures are gathering around the not-yet-quite-deceased body of David Cameron, and Labour's birds of prey (front-runner, the aptly named
- [Will The Rout Of The England Football Team Ruin Boris Johnson's Chances Of Becoming Prime Minister?](https://sparrowchat.com/will-the-rout-of-the-england-football-team-ruin-boris-johnsons-chances-of-becoming-prime-minister/) - Ray Of Hope It's sad state of affairs, but the demise of the England football team from Euro 2016, losing 2-1 to Iceland, and coming so soon on the heels of the referendum's disastrous result on Thursday, is just too much to bear for many English people. While British Tory newspapers are still desperately clinging
- [Suddenly, The Victorious Aren't Smiling...](https://sparrowchat.com/suddenly-the-victorious-arent-smiling/) - These are the victors. Why so morose? Perhaps, they're just now realising the enormity of what they've done? As this image from the Guardian newspaper reveals, at their press conference immediately following the referendum result on Thursday, Johnson and Gove looked rather less than victorious. Maybe they were hoping David Cameron would stay on just
- [Britain, You'll Get What You Deserve](https://sparrowchat.com/britain-youll-get-what-you-deserve/) - A deep-seated reminiscence of Empire, dismay at the way the country is being run, fear of foreigners, a strong desire for change at home, are just some of the reasons the British voted by a narrow majority to leave the European Union. These, and others, may be legitimate feelings of discontent, but none of them
- [Go Away, America! Come Back When You've Grown Up.](https://sparrowchat.com/go-away-america-come-back-when-youve-grown-up/) - Once again the U.S. Senate fails to pass legislation restricting gun ownership in America, despite the worst mass shooting in U.S. history last week, in Orlando Florida, when fifty people were killed and large numbers wounded.[1] The U.S. government is a disgrace to the country it's supposed to serve, but let's be frank the American
- [Jo Cox: Victim Of The 'American Disease'.](https://sparrowchat.com/jo-cox-victim-of-the-american-disease/)
- [Orlando: City Of Disney And Violent Death](https://sparrowchat.com/orlando-city-of-disney-and-violent-death/) - Once again the U.S. media switches rapidly to 'hysteria mode' as yet another mass shooting occurs. This time it's in Orlando, Florida. For a moment, there almost seemed a hint of celebration from some, as the total killed becomes a new record for America - the most ever slaughtered in a single mass shooting, possibly
- [Ali Was A Successful Boxer, But He Wasn't A God](https://sparrowchat.com/ali-was-a-successful-boxer-but-he-wasnt-a-god/) - It may be risking an accusation of churlishness, but isn't "going somewhat over the top" a reasonable criticism of the world's media in its reaction to the death of Mohammed Ali? He was, after all, a man who made his fame and money from pummeling the senses out of his opponents, in what is probably
- [Gorilla, Or Child? It's Really Not A Contest So Why Make It One?](https://sparrowchat.com/gorilla-or-child-its-really-not-a-contest-so-why-make-it-one/) - If there's one thing the internet's really good for it's highlighting the human species at its worst. The lack of coherent thought, sanity, or rationalization, abundant in our fellows is difficult to condone when thrust at us through the pages of Facebook or Twitter, and picked up by the gutter press to spread the gospels
- [Beware! A Virulent Organism Has Reappeared](https://sparrowchat.com/beware-a-virulent-organism-has-reappeared/) - Occasionally, society is faced with a disease that threatens humanity. Usually vaccinations are manufactured that control the organism and all is well. Then, surreptitiously, the disease reappears under a different guise and new vaccinations need to be discovered to deal with it. Unfortunately, society appears to have no effective vaccine to permanently overcome the virulent
- [Of Moaning Brits And Outdated Yanks...](https://sparrowchat.com/of-moaning-brits-and-outdated-yanks/) - There are times I wish the British would just shut up and give others a chance. One can't watch the BBC news, or peruse its website (or that of any other U.K. media outlet) without being forced to listen to opinions on the European Union spouted by folk who really don't know what they're talking
- [Only The Ghosts Still Linger...](https://sparrowchat.com/only-the-ghosts-still-linger/) - With the EU referendum in Britain now less than a month away, one of the strongest arguments of the "Out" campaign is the 'loss of sovereignty' resulting from the U.K. being a part of Europe. Given the decision taken by the North Yorkshire County Council yesterday, this argument is laughable. Sparrow Chat has long espoused
- [Life Moves On...](https://sparrowchat.com/life-moves-on/) - So much has been written in the last twenty-four hours on the demise of Flight MS804 that there is little more to impart. It now seems likely the aircraft developed a catastrophic technical fault, causing it to crash into the Mediterranean Sea. Information received from the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (see above) suggests
- [EgyptAir Flight MS804: What We <u>Don't</u> Know](https://sparrowchat.com/egyptair-flight-ms804-what-we-dont-know/) - The EgyptAir A320 Airbus designated Flight MS804 left Paris at 21.09 GMT. It was due to land in Cairo at 01.15 GMT. Twenty minutes prior to landing the plane made a series of abrupt course changes and disappeared from the Greek air traffic control radar that was tracking it. General speculation suggests either a bomb,
- [Excusez-Moi, Où Sont Les Toilettes?](https://sparrowchat.com/excusez-moi-ou-sont-les-toilettes/) - There's a battle going on in the U.K.'s northern town of Hull. It's all about toilets. A fast food chain, 'Greggs', regards itself as primarily a takeaway food establishment, but has a limited number of tables inside the premises for customers wishing to eat their purchases on site. Hull City Council has determined that 'Greggs'
- [Who Needs Doctors Anyway?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-needs-doctors-anyway/) - In February this year, the Guardian carried a story entitled, "NHS nurse shortages 'to last another four years'," which outlined the severe lack of qualified nursing staff within the U.K. National Health Service: Ian Cumming, chief executive of Health Education England, said there would be a shortfall in nurses until at least 2020."[1] Today, three
- [Trump, Duterte...Whoever Next?](https://sparrowchat.com/trump-duterte-whoever-next/) - 2016 is rapidly proving the year that we, the human species, elect the most inappropriate, and in some cases the most dangerous of individuals, to be our leaders. As Donald Trump bullies and lies his way towards the U.S. White House, an even more repulsive member of our species is about to become the next
- [Heil Johnson!](https://sparrowchat.com/heil-johnson/) - Has the general populace become less intelligent over the years? Are we so shallow and ignorant that we'll believe anything we're told, without question? It seems that politicians today firmly believe we have. They're in competition to see who can tell the most blatant lies, and distortions of the truth, and get away with it.
- [Why Is George Zimmerman Still Alive?](https://sparrowchat.com/why-is-george-zimmerman-still-alive/) - The human race has produced many unsavoury individuals since it became, supposedly, 'civilized'. The list could fill an overly large tome. There's one name, of a person very much alive today, which should certainly be included - that of George Zimmerman. In 2012 Zimmerman shot and killed a fourteen-year-old boy, Trayvon Martin, in cold blood.
- [On The Turning Of Three Score And Ten](https://sparrowchat.com/on-the-turning-of-three-score-and-ten/) - Psalm 90:10 (Another of those really happy-go-lucky psalms!) Who'd have thought it? Seventy years old. But why do I still feel, oh, I don't know - young? In my head, that is. I can't put an age to it. I don't feel forty, or twenty, I just feel - young. At least, it's how I
- [Dr. Jeremiah Wright - A Vindication](https://sparrowchat.com/dr-jeremiah-wright-a-vindication/) - In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers that has become known simply as "9/11", few Americans apart from the congregation of a church in downtown Chicago, had heard the name Jeremiah Wright. By 2008 and the height of the nomination process preceding the Presidential election campaign, he had become - at
- [The Best Reason EVER For Staying In The European Union!](https://sparrowchat.com/the-best-reason-ever-for-staying-in-the-european-union/) - Could there possibly be any better reason than this for the British electorate to vote overwhelmingly on June 23rd to remain part of the European Union: The UK would be "better off without" the European Union, US presidential hopeful Donald Trump has said. He told Fox News the migration crisis had been a "horrible thing
- [Please Put Your Hands In Your Wallets For The U.S. National Day Of Prayer](https://sparrowchat.com/please-put-your-hands-in-your-wallets-for-the-u-s-national-day-of-prayer/) - Oh dear! It's 'National Day of Prayer' time again in the United States of America. The Holy Rollers will be out in their multitudes. There's even a National Day of Prayer "task force". It has its own logo. And, its own trademark. Well, actually the logo is the trademark, complete with a little TM[1]. If
- [In Memoriam: Ted Cruz](https://sparrowchat.com/in-memoriam-ted-cruz/) - Oh, Mister Cruz, you sank your last hope this week. You torpedoed your own ship. And here's the warhead you used to do it: This woman should never be allowed within viewing distance of the White House, least of all, inside as Vice- President. Still, let's look on the bright side. If there has to
- [Political Storm In A Religious Teacup](https://sparrowchat.com/political-storm-in-a-religious-teacup/) - Click to enlarge Any clear-thinking individual abhors racism. We are, after all, members of the same species and deserve similar respect, but one can't help thinking that British politics is taking on the same dirty tactics as its counterpart across the Atlantic, i.e. utilizing every minor faux pas of a political opponent to crucify them
- [We're Finally Back Up...!](https://sparrowchat.com/were-finally-back-up/) - On behalf of our hosting server (who shall remain nameless!) Sparrow Chat apologises for the 36 hour downtime recently imposed by said hosting server due to their inefficiency and antiquated equipment. Those of you attempting to access the website and receiving only an, illness "Unable to access database", response were, hopefully, not too inconvenienced.
- [A Solution To The Statin Problem?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-solution-to-the-statin-problem/) - Millions of people worldwide take statins for heart and artery problems caused, we're told, by high cholesterol. The side effects of these drugs can be alarming. Nevertheless, it's a huge market for Big Pharma, and anything that might cause a drop in the sales of statins would not be welcome to Pzifer, Merck, and AstraZeneca,
- [But We Didn't Mean That To Happen!](https://sparrowchat.com/but-we-didnt-mean-that-to-happen/) - It's thirty years since Reactor 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear plant blew up, spreading its poisonous radiation over much of the western hemisphere. One unintended consequence of that disaster is that the site now attracts the morbid fascination of tourists from all over the world. Much of the dangerous radioactive material is still inside Reactor
- [Jeremy Hunt Couldn't Even Sell Marmalade - What Chance The NHS?](https://sparrowchat.com/jeremy-hunt-couldnt-even-sell-marmalade-what-chance-the-nhs/) - Politicians are amazing people. They are born with an innate ability to lay the blame for their failures on others. It's never them, it's the unions, or the workers, or the 'other political party', or possibly 'Mrs Jones down at number 37'. Health minister Jeremy Hunt tops them all. His attacks on the junior doctors
- [Too Many Forked Tongues...](https://sparrowchat.com/too-many-forked-tongues/) - This week saw US President Barack Obama in the UK supporting the official British government view that that nation should vote to remain within the European Union. Readers of Sparrow Chat will be aware that the writer also supports that view, though perhaps for somewhat differing reasons from either the UK government, or Barack Obama.
- [I'm Ashamed To Be British](https://sparrowchat.com/im-ashamed-to-be-british/) - On his visit to the UK, US President Obama has stated his opinion that Britain is stronger within the EU than outside it. Opponents of EU membership, notably Boris Johnson and Iain Duncan Smith, call him a hypocrite: ... Vote Leave's Boris Johnson said President Obama's view was "a breathtaking example of the principle do-as-I-say-but-not-as-I-do"...[and]
- [Happy New Year - 2017?](https://sparrowchat.com/happy-new-year-2017/) - Every year, just prior to midnight on December 31st, the world gathers to welcome in a new beginning - a New Year. For most it's just a grand excuse for a knees-up, the opportunity to drink the night away, and forget troubles. December 31st 2015 was no exception. Unfortunately, reality has to return at some
- [Stop Your Dog Crapping On My Lawn - Or Else!](https://sparrowchat.com/stop-your-dog-crapping-on-my-lawn-or-else/) - It's a regular occurrence that's become way more regular in recent times. It's dangerous, not just because of the perpetrators, but also by the reaction of those to whom it occurs. Earlier this week Russian jets over the Baltic Sea flew close by US warships: The US military would have been within its rights to
- [Are You A Tweeter?](https://sparrowchat.com/are-you-a-tweeter/) - Do you have a Twitter account? Is Facebook your way of making your mark in the world? Get a life! This writer is happy to state he's neither a Facebook-er, nor a Tweeter. What's more, he never will be. So why, you ask, the antipathy towards these social media sites? Isn't it good that people
- [Trump's Law - And The Battle Of The Brexit](https://sparrowchat.com/trumps-law-and-the-battle-of-the-brexit/) - The battle for the Republican nomination in America grows ever more heated with the unscripted announcement from front runner, Donald Trump, that abortion should be illegal and women who break the law punished severely.[1] It's just the sort of remark that sends establishment Republicans into a spin, and manages to upset even the Pro-Life brigade
- [Two Worlds Poles Apart](https://sparrowchat.com/two-worlds-poles-apart/) - Yesterday was a beautiful day. Indications abounded of spring finally upon us. Early morning sunshine warmed the backs of contented cattle in the field across the lane; mist drifted benignly from the valley floor far below. The call of rooks in distant trees, the chatter of thrushes, blackbirds, and fieldfares busily collecting debris for nest
- ["United We Stand..."](https://sparrowchat.com/united-we-stand/) - Living in France isolates one from much that is happening in the world. It's not that the news is less bleak, though it's true that very little of it appertains to the country itself, but it seems more impersonal, less involving, than in America or even Britain. Despite the appallingly tragic terrorist crimes in Paris
- [It Must Be About Here Somewhere!](https://sparrowchat.com/it-must-be-about-here-somewhere/) - Err, excuse me, have you seen Christmas? No, really, is it around here anywhere? The Adam's household appears to have mislaid it. They only caught New Year at the last moment. One minute to midnight and Mrs Adams suddenly looks up from scrubbing the kitchen cooker, to say, "I think it's nearly 2016." They've been
- [A Shining French Knight versus The Duke Of Plaza-Toro](https://sparrowchat.com/a-shining-french-knight-versus-the-duke-of-plaza-toro/) - Any regular reader of Sparrow Chat will be well aware of the contempt in which I hold most politicians. Corrupt, self-obsessed, wealth and power-grabbing, utterly unconcerned with the welfare of those who elected them to office, the average politician today is unworthy of his/her position; sad imitations of those few great men of history worthy
- [Much Head-Scratching But Where's The Action?](https://sparrowchat.com/much-head-scratching-but-wheres-the-action/) - Yesterday's post, regarding ISIS and the Paris atrocities, noted that the American President Barack Obama had emphasized, in an interview on ABC, the 'containment' of ISIS, viz: “I don’t think they’re gaining strength,” Obama responded. “What is true is that from the start, our goal has been first to contain and we have contained them…"
- [Today Paris, Tomorrow...?](https://sparrowchat.com/today-paris-tomorrow/) - The images of Paris displayed throughout the world in the last twelve hours have been horrific and disturbing. Let's take a moment to remember how Paris is, and always will be, despite the crazed antics of certain of our fellow human beings... Despite assurances from our political leaders that all is being done to keep
- [Why I So Miss The United States](https://sparrowchat.com/why-i-so-miss-the-united-states/) - Ah, la belle France! We've been in Europe for almost a month now and, yes, I can say with all honesty, I have missed the United States. Guns are non-existent here. The news is full of stories that actually matter. I can drive for miles without grotesque yellow arches rearing up on every street corner.
- [Not In A Hundred Years....](https://sparrowchat.com/not-in-a-hundred-years/) - How many more innocents are going to be gunned down by maniacs and lunatics before the people of this country realize common sense and end their ridiculous obsession with firearms? The answer to the above question is - probably not in the next hundred years. It's a frightening fact that having spent many years in
- [Why Can't They Look Their Guilt In The Face?](https://sparrowchat.com/why-cant-they-look-their-guilt-in-the-face/) - This will be a short post. I've written on this subject many times over the years, and still it appears, like an annual carcinoma. Two days ago, on August 6th, the world - or, at least, parts of it - 'celebrated' the 70th anniversary of the United States (with the full support of its major
- [Why I'm Leaving](https://sparrowchat.com/why-im-leaving/) - This post began life as a response to a comment on the previous post from my good blogging friend, WiseWebWoman. It grew too long, so instead I decided to post it here. I’ve lived in the US for thirteen years – came here exactly one year after 9/11 – and for a time believed I’d
- [On FATCA, FatCats, And Eritrea - Er, Where?](https://sparrowchat.com/on-fatca-fatcats-and-eritrea-er-where/) - After all the bad things I've written about America you'd think they'd be only too glad to see me go. "Have you heard, Adams is leaving?" "No! Well, good riddance. He's hardly been an asset to our fine Capitalist society, now has he?" I mean, I don't expect the red carpet, or a marching band
- [Hey! Did I Mention Money?](https://sparrowchat.com/hey-did-i-mention-money/) - In the previous post mention was made of how the Senate changed its mind, almost overnight, and decided to assist the US President by voting to fast-track the TPP through Congress. There was even a vague suggestion that money may have assisted certain of our representatives to 'alter their opinions' with regard to the "Trans
- [Back In The Madhouse!](https://sparrowchat.com/back-in-the-madhouse/) - We've landed back in the asylum, though hopefully not for long. After three peaceful weeks in Brittany, France, disembarking at Detroit airport was truly like returning to a madhouse. Whoever designed that tunnel between concourses at Detroit must have been out of their minds. Garishly-colored sheets of ever-shifting light covering the walls and ceiling... ...coupled
- [Fleeing The Asylum](https://sparrowchat.com/fleeing-the-asylum/) - I have escaped. Well, in truth, not quite. I'm hopeful of winging my way out of this madhouse they call America in a matter of hours. We've made it to Detroit airport without being apprehended. Our flight leaves for London, England at 2218 hours. From there, a car to France - and sanity! Sadly, it'll
- [Going Clear...Out Of Our Minds](https://sparrowchat.com/going-clear-out-of-our-minds/) - The recent expose of Scientology by HBO (based on Lawrence Wright's book) leaves many unanswered questions concerning human society and the way it is organised and regulated. Perhaps a more appropriate phrase might be, "...how it is disorganized and unregulated". The marketing of snake oil has never been an entirely American invention. Conmen and tricksters
- [Loving America - A Prerequisite Of Citizenship?](https://sparrowchat.com/loving-america-a-prerequisite-of-citizenship/) - “I do not believe, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president [Obama] loves America. He doesn’t love you. And he doesn’t love me. He wasn’t brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country.” This
- [American Culture, Or Just Gun Culture?](https://sparrowchat.com/american-culture-or-just-gun-culture/) - There was a time when the term 'sniper' was synonymous with cowardice. Today, there's no such thing as honor on the battlefield, and an American who can kill hundreds of fellow human beings, one by one at great distance, is awarded a medal. One has to query whether the killer of "American Sniper" subject, Chris
- [One Human Trait Too Many?](https://sparrowchat.com/one-human-trait-too-many/) - There's a problem with the human species. It affects us all, and for most of us it sits simmering under the surface of our characters like a quietly bubbling volcano. There are those, however, from whom it will inevitably break free and erupt with disastrous consequences. The catalyst for this reaction is money, power, and
- [MH370 - Flight To Armageddon](https://sparrowchat.com/mh370-flight-to-armageddon/) - The Southern Indian Ocean is one of the most fearsome seas in the world. Searching for a vessel on the surface is difficult enough. At depths close to three miles, with canyons and crevices that make the Grand Canyon look puny, trying to locate anything on the bed of the Southern Indian Ocean resembles searching
- [Je Suis Charlie Hebdo?](https://sparrowchat.com/je-suis-charlie-hebdo/) - It's been a fortnight since the appalling attacks and assassinations in Paris, France. Much has been said and written on the subject during that time and it might seem there was nothing left to add that was relevant. It was with some degree of dismay I read, or listened to, the comments of certain media
- [The Long Road Home - A Personal Viewpoint](https://sparrowchat.com/the-long-road-home-a-personal-viewpoint/) - If there are two subjects that bore me to death these days, it's politics and religion. I've lived sixty-eight years and during that time my political opinions have never changed. I grew up believing governments and churches were there to help people, that true socialism - a fair taxation system distributing health and welfare to
- [Isn't It Time America Cared For Those Other Than Themselves?](https://sparrowchat.com/isnt-it-time-america-cared-for-those-other-than-themselves/) - Yet again America displays a total disregard for the rest of the world. For the third time in less than six months US forces have led failed rescue missions to liberate hostages held by al Qaeda. Yesterday (Saturday) was the latest attempt, aimed at freeing American journalist Luke Somers. It failed when the US Special
- [Culling The Herd?](https://sparrowchat.com/culling-the-herd/) - The events in Ferguson, Missouri over the last three months have gripped the media by the throat. The shooting to death of Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson is one of the best known news stories of the period, not just in America, but throughout the world. Wilson's account is now common knowledge. Asked
- [Where Have All The Gunboats Gone?](https://sparrowchat.com/where-have-all-the-gunboats-gone/) - I was proud to be British. When I was a mere gossoon of five years or so, I remember my father telling me that to be British was to be safe. Wherever I was in the world, if I was in trouble the British government would ensure I was not harmed. If necessary, he said,
- [Welcome To The Asylum!](https://sparrowchat.com/welcome-to-the-asylum/) - "Hi! Have you just arrived from Britain? Really? You're hoping to stay permanently? Well, let me tell you a bit about the place. Oh, and by the way - welcome to the asylum! It's been more than twelve years since I emulated Columbus and stepped onto American soil for the first time. As a Brit
- [In Answer To George...](https://sparrowchat.com/in-answer-to-george/) - George, from "George Says", who is one of the very few true English gentlemen left in Great Britain today, made a comment on the last post asking for clarification of the term, 'co-pay', as it relates to medical insurance, so for the sake of all Her Britannic Majesty’s citizenry, who have the advantage of socialized
- [Our Future Healthcare System - The Capitalist Way](https://sparrowchat.com/our-future-healthcare-system-the-capitalist-way/) - When I first arrived in America from Britain, back in 2002, I could see a doctor. Once my health insurance was sorted out and I'd 'signed up' with a family doctor I had only to pick up the phone and I'd have an appointment that day, or possibly the day after, or, at the very
- [Are Bruised NFL Wives More Important To AmericansThan Crucified Iraqis?](https://sparrowchat.com/are-bruised-nfl-wives-more-important-to-americansthan-crucified-iraqis/) - If you wish to familiarize yourself with the social characteristics of a nation then study their media. Since the advent of mass media communications (TV, internet, etc.), media organizations have striven to reflect the characteristics of their audiences. Indeed, some would argue they now do much more than that, they actually control and alter those
- [ISIS, IS, Or ICME?](https://sparrowchat.com/isis-is-or-icme/) - It's been a while. Frankly, with the onset of maturity it becomes more difficult to associate oneself with the madness of the human species. Its lust for power over its fellows can surely only end in its downfall. With the advent of ISIS in the Middle East, the West is once more in a state
- [There Are Atheists - And Then There Are Atheists](https://sparrowchat.com/there-are-atheists-and-then-there-are-atheists/) - People like Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris really bother me. In case you're not familiar with the names, Dawkins is an espouser of atheism, and has authored a number of books including, "The God Delusion," and, "The Selfish Gene." He's an ethologist, an evolutionary biologist, and a professor (probably of both subjects, for all I
- ["Hey...](https://sparrowchat.com/hey/) - ...we tortured some folks. But I understand how it happened."
- [If Only They'd Crooned "The Indian Love Call"](https://sparrowchat.com/if-only-theyd-crooned-the-indian-love-call/) - As yet the facts are unclear, but when a Canadian airliner left Toronto bound for Panama today, a disruptive passenger - probably either mentally ill, or drunk - made threats that he was going to "blow up Canada". In their usual haste to be first with the news, the US media carried varying accounts, but
- [When Will We Stop Accepting This Shit?](https://sparrowchat.com/when-will-we-stop-accepting-this-shit/) - If there's one thing that should reduce everyone of us to impotent fury, it's the platitudes and hypocritical pronouncements of politicians and world leaders responding to a catastrophe. The BBC recently announced that British prime minister, David Cameron, just tweeted: I've just called UN Secretary General underlining the need for a strong commitment to an
- [Operation Yewtree: A Three Million Pound Cover-Up?](https://sparrowchat.com/operation-yewtree-a-three-million-pound-cover-up/) - Is anyone else concerned by the recent trend in British policing that involves hauling national celebrities into court on charges of sexual misconduct dating back forty or fifty years? It all began with accusations against the late, admittedly weird and not particularly lamented disc jockey, Jimmy Savile. Savile, it seems, led a life of pedophilia
- [The Good, The Bad, And Occasionally, The Ugly](https://sparrowchat.com/the-good-the-bad-and-occasionally-the-ugly/) - To an immigrant, one noticeable aspect of American life is the commonly utilized phrase: "The good guys versus the bad guys". It's no longer just another mediocre plot-line in one of those Hollywood Western films, it crops up in the news media and on political chat shows with depressing regularity. Depressing, because Americans always portray
- [CBS, NBC, ABC - Or, Sparrow News!](https://sparrowchat.com/cbs-nbc-abc-or-sparrow-news/) - How the media loves to split this country in two. Take the case of Bowe Bergdahl, who's recently exchanged his Taliban prison in Afghanistan for a US military prison (sorry, that should have read 'hospital') in Germany. It's interesting to note Bergdahl was a lowly private first class when he disappeared from his platoon, apparently
- [Money, Money, Money - It's So Funny...In The Rich Man's World!](https://sparrowchat.com/money-money-money-its-so-funny-in-the-rich-mans-world/) - Is anyone else out there perturbed by the latest fad employed by the wealthy to amuse themselves? I'm referring to certain, well-healed, individuals hiding sums of money in various parts of the country, then using social media to present the common plebs with clues where to find it. This little game began in the US,
- [Snowden Should 'Trust American Justice' Says Kerry](https://sparrowchat.com/snowden-should-trust-american-justice-says-kerry/) - The big furore of the moment is NBC's 'scoop' obtaining an interview with Edward Snowden. If ever Snowden made a big mistake it was in agreeing to speak with "Mr Establishment' himself, Brian Williams. Tonight, Williams was quick to tell viewers of NBC News how many 'ordinary' Americans had emailed the program to declare Snowden
- [Murdering The British National Health Service](https://sparrowchat.com/murdering-the-british-national-health-service/) - Anyone who's been observing the politically orchestrated crises in the UK's National Health Service over the last few years would be aware it was just a matter of time before the vexed question of 'charges' began to raise its capitalistic head in a service that was once free at point of need, and the pride
- [What's To Be Done About Texas?](https://sparrowchat.com/whats-to-be-done-about-texas/) - What can be done about Texas? Suffering it's greatest drought in history, the majority of Texans still believe God's in charge of the weather, and eventually 'things'll get better'. Bridgeport Lake, Texas - 30 feet below normal levels Here's a statement from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), in charge of guarding the state’s
- [Vive John Oliver](https://sparrowchat.com/vive-john-oliver/) - If there's one thing truly pleasing about John Oliver's show, "Last Week Tonight", it's his gentle way of easing Americans down to size (and I don't mean by warning them off Big Macs). Oliver admits to loving America, and why shouldn't he? Just because this writer finds much of it overbearing, arrogant, self-obsessive, given to
- [Net Neutrality Is Under Threat - Be Warned!](https://sparrowchat.com/net-neutrality-is-under-threat-be-warned/) - [cvg-video videoId='5' width='420' height='250' mode='playlist' /] Tell the FCC to reclassify broadband internet as a "common carrier telecommunications service" by using this link: FCC Electronic Comment Filing System. Nuf said?
- [Where Have All The Comics Gone - Long Time Passing?](https://sparrowchat.com/where-have-all-the-comics-gone-long-time-passing/) - It used to be Jon Stewart's Daily Show, until the penis jokes and lurid references to bowel movements drove us away. Does he think his audience is comprised of twelve year olds? We tried Stephen Colbert, but all we got was a headache. In desperation, HBO was purchased. Bill Maher used to be good for
- [Gullibility - The Weak Link In Homo Sapiens' Survival?](https://sparrowchat.com/gullibility-the-weak-link-in-homo-sapiens-survival/) - There comes a time one has to consider whether the human race truly deserves to survive, if only for the sheer gullibility of the species. This week has seen some prime examples. Only today the email quoted below landed in the Sparrow Chat 'inbox'. It's no fun when there's an evangelical Christian in the distant
- [Welcome To The Machine](https://sparrowchat.com/welcome-to-the-machine-2/) - It’s been fairly obvious for sometime that the ability of the average US citizen to effect policy change within his/her own government has become increasingly difficult. Despite such developments as the internet site, stuff ‘Change.org’, search and the apparent ease with which Joe Public can contact their Congressional representatives since the development of the World
- [The Paintings Of George W Bush May Help Save The Planet](https://sparrowchat.com/the-paintings-of-george-w-bush-may-help-save-the-planet/) - The future truly does bode ill for us all. As though to mock our disregard for climate change, fate this week delivered us - the paintings of George W Bush. Most ex-world leaders cash in on their status by donning a tuxedo and smoking fat cigars in the company of similar, well-heeled, and usually well-oiled,
- [Tweeting Is Most Popular Among Bird Brains](https://sparrowchat.com/tweeting-is-most-popular-among-bird-brains/) - I don't 'tweet'. I don't do 'Facebook'. Wild horses wouldn't drag me into either. Frankly, I believe Twitter is one of the most obscene forms of communication ever invented. It serves very little purpose other than as an ideal medium for cyber-bullying and a platform for that more commonly virulent of low-lifes, the cyber-critic. These
- [Stop Press: Does Bill Maher Clone His Right-Wing Female Panelists?](https://sparrowchat.com/stop-press-does-bill-maher-clone-his-right-wing-female-panelists/) - I really will have to stop watching Bill Maher if he continues to insist on booking women for his panel with voices that can only be described as resembling a recently castrated parrot choking on a walnut. I have no idea who Carrie Sheffield is, but she's yet another clone of last week's, and the
- [Climate Change: Majority Of US Public Still Have Heads Up Backsides](https://sparrowchat.com/climate-change-majority-of-us-public-still-have-heads-up-backsides/) - It was last Monday - March 31st - that the BBC ran a report quoting the US Secretary of State John Kerry: "Unless we act dramatically and quickly, science tells us our climate and our way of life are literally in jeopardy. Denial of the science is malpractice. "There are those who say we can't
- [Musings On A Sunday Afternoon](https://sparrowchat.com/musings-on-a-sunday-afternoon/) - If there's one time I'd rather not be out in my yard (and I mean anywhere on our forty acres) it's on a Sunday afternoon - particularly in the summertime. I live in a rural, forested, area with a scant population with even scantier employment prospects. There's a Christian church just half a mile down
- [What The Hell Is The Matter With Bill Maher?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-the-hell-is-the-matter-with-bill-maher/) - This one-time satirical comedian, always happy to have a go at the US Establishment, prepared to stand up and fight for the ordinary Joe, appears to be slowly moving into the very circles he once lambasted. Of course, despite his irreligious protestations, we all know he's Jewish. Consequently, criticism of Israel is verboten in his
- [It Kind-a Makes One Proud...](https://sparrowchat.com/it-kinda-makes-one-proud/) - [cvg-video videoId='4' width='400' height='300' mode='playlist' /] ...to be born a European! I've met many Americans since I came over here eleven years ago. Not one of them bears the slightest character resemblance to the arrogant, smug, prat featured in the above commercial. I'm sure there's many like him, who revel in this sort of overbearing
- [A Narcissus: Is It Only A Daffodil?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-narcissus-is-only-a-daffodil/) - Time and again I have tried to write posts for this blog, only to give up in disgust after a paragraph, or two, or three... Writing is no art for me, but merely a means to speak the thoughts that pervade my mind when accosted by the glaring imperfections of this human species, of which
- [Pass The Toilet Paper, Google](https://sparrowchat.com/pass-the-toilet-paper-google-microsoft/) - RSS feeds are a wonderful invention of the computer age. They let us know when our favorite blogs have a new post available, saving the drudgery of constantly harking back, only to find the same old drivel from six months ago that we've already read half a dozen times before. I do hope regular readers
- [How A US Journalist And A British Politician Have Much In Common](https://sparrowchat.com/how-a-us-journalist-and-a-british-politician-have-much-in-common/) - Last night, ABC News pointed out there was a dearth of Americans attending the Sochi Winter Olympics. They should be congratulated. After all, considering the hatchet-job accomplished by the US media in denouncing the games and its Russian hosts, I'm surprised even American athletes attended. Ever since Edward Snowden ran off with the state secrets,
- [I Get Asked A Lot: "How Do I Like America?"](https://sparrowchat.com/i-get-asked-a-lot-how-do-i-like-america/) - Try as I might, I cannot feel empathy with America, or Americans. It's true that when I return to Britain for a vacation it feels good to return to the US. I have no home in Britain anymore, so being back in my own house gives a certain feeling of security; belonging. I expected to
- [The 'Bloody Code': A Peculiar Interpretation Of Justice](https://sparrowchat.com/the-bloody-code-a-peculiar-interpretation-of-justice/) - It was called the "Bloody Code", and between 1688 and 1815 it was responsible for the deaths of thousands, for no more dastardly crime than stealing an article valued at twelve pence or more. In Britain, by the end of the 17th century, there were 220 offences on the statute book punishable by death. Thankfully,
- [Lessons In Hypocrisy By Her Majesty's Government](https://sparrowchat.com/lessons-in-hypocrisy-by-her-majestys-government/) - There's a time for debate. There's a time for well-researched, deliberate, reflection. There's a time for pure, unadulterated anger. Today is undoubtedly a time for the latter. The spotlight is not on the US, but across the Atlantic. Yet again that shower of pompous, wealth-laden, arseholes, known collectively as "Her Britannic Majesty's government", are displaying
- [A Happy New Year To All Spammers, And The Hope They'll All Get A Proper Job In 2014.](https://sparrowchat.com/a-happy-new-year-to-all-spammers-and-the-hope-theyll-all-get-a-proper-job-in-2014/) - Sparrow Chat appears free of any further spammer intrusions. There were no viruses involved, so contamination of other blogs and websites is not a concern. Their purpose, apart from to cause disruption to others, was only to publicize shady web-links possibly for sex-enhancing Rx drugs, or more likely as a cover for other sites harboring
- [Scumbags At Work](https://sparrowchat.com/scumbags-at-work/) - This is a test post to ascertain if certain scum who take a sick pleasure in trying to destroy or deface the work of others are still active on feed readers such as NetVibes and Feedly. The Sparrow Chat website is unaffected, but if you use a feed reader for the latest post you'll have
- [Why Fracking And Clorox Are 'Making A Difference'](https://sparrowchat.com/why-fracking-and-clorox-are-making-a-difference/) - Sometimes there just seems nothing worth writing about. Oh, sure, hell an' all is going on, but the internet is awash with the stuff and what's the point of one more blogger weighing in on dross that's done to death, anyway? Then, on the other hand, there's too darn much to write about. Everyone knows
- [The Collateral Damage Of Typhoon Haiyan ](https://sparrowchat.com/the-collateral-damage-of-typhoon-haiyan/) - Typhoon Haiyan is now officially the most severe weather system of its type ever to make landfall. A major nation has been virtually wiped off the map. It will take years, decades, for the Philippines to recover. Wild fires, drought, floods, tornadoes, so severe they create new records of intensity with every year that passes,
- ["Oooo! 'E's Ever Such A Kind Man, Really"](https://sparrowchat.com/oooo-es-ever-such-a-kind-man-really/) - Have you noticed it's the time for sanitizing one's legacy. Two decrepit old political has-beens have just published books designed to make us all go, "Ah, bless 'im, he really is a nice man, after all." I am, of course, referring to that evil mastermind of the George W Bush years, Dick Cheney: the true
- [It's Only A Planet](https://sparrowchat.com/its-only-a-planet/) - General Electric is the 26th largest firm in the US and the 14th most profitable. So why can't they make light bulbs that work? In May this year I purchased six double packs of their ninety watt outdoor halogen bulbs for use in my security lights. According to the pack, these bulbs will last 1.4
- [The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Bears Favorable Comparison To The Great War - According To The British Prime Minister.](https://sparrowchat.com/the-queens-diamond-jubilee-bears-favorable-comparison-to-the-great-war-according-to-the-british-prime-minister/) - Yes, I know, this is supposed to be a blog by a foreigner living in America and I'm not supposed to comment on British subjects that Americans know nothing about. But the only reason they know nothing about anything outside their own borders is because the bloody US media ignore it - unless, in some
- [Hospital Bed? Certainly. The Credit Card Reader's Built Into The Headboard...](https://sparrowchat.com/hospital-bed-certainly-the-credit-card-readers-built-into-the-headboard/) - Since I came to America ten years ago the cost of healthcare has appalled me. Every doctor visit, every hospital outpatient appointment, not to leave out the horrendous bills for in-patient procedures, results in insurance co-pays amounting to thousands of dollars a year, even for those "well insured". You wait with dread for the insurance
- [There Are No Children In The US Government](https://sparrowchat.com/there-are-no-children-in-the-us-government/) - In the councils of government we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for
- [Ted Cruz - All The Makings Of An Irresponsible Five Year Old?](https://sparrowchat.com/ted-cruz-all-the-makings-of-an-irresponsible-five-year-old/) - Rafael Edward Cruz is, undoubtedly, an idiot. But, as idiots go, he's not particularly outstanding among members of the US Congress. Like many of his colleagues, he's more enamored of the sound of his own voice, than the quality of his words. He may well hold his nose. Much of the guff he spouted during
- [Putin v McCain - No Contest!](https://sparrowchat.com/putin-v-mccain-no-contest/) - When Vladimir Putin wrote his op-ed to the American people in the New York Times recently the US media rose up as one to mock, taunt, vilify, and generally overstate their disgust of Putin for daring to criticize American exceptionalism. After all, if the US media is to be believed, America is the greatest nation
- [They Don't Know What They're Doing](https://sparrowchat.com/they-dont-know-what-theyre-doing/) - January 1961, three days after John F Kennedy's inauguration as President of the United States, a US B-52 bomber carrying two, 4-megaton, nuclear bombs broke up over Goldsboro, North Carolina. One of the bombs fell harmlessly to earth. The other, assuming it was over target and being released, began its detonation process. There were four
- [Diplomacy, Mister Putin? Eh...What's That Again?](https://sparrowchat.com/diplomacy-mister-putin-eh-whats-that-again/) - Click image to enlarge This image (courtesy of "Twilight") really needs no interpretation. In an interview with ABC this Sunday morning, US President Barack Obama, after discussing the Syrian situation, turned his attention back to Iran, saying: "What they [Iran] should draw from this lesson is that there is the potential of resolving these issues
- [A Sober Reminder](https://sparrowchat.com/a-sober-reminder/) - At a time when top US politicians, including the President, are yet again engaged in warmongering, it may pay American citizens to once more heed the story of James Blount. The story's not new. The BBC report quoted below is from 2010, but it is, perhaps, worth repeating. Blount is better known today as the
- [Time To Out The "Daily" Dose OF Penis Jokes?](https://sparrowchat.com/time-to-out-the-daily-dose-of-penis-jokes/) - The so-called 'case' for the US attacking Syria has been so miserably and off-handedly put forward by our latest apology for a secretary of state, that my original intention was to confine this article to the fairly simple task of negating his most nebulous 'evidence' that the regime of Bashar al-Assad was culpable in the
- [America Switches Its 'Special Relationship' To Suit](https://sparrowchat.com/america-switches-its-special-relationship-to-suit/) - Mr John Kerry appears more than a little put out with a decision by the British Parliament not to support the US in what is likely to prove a premature decision to use military might against the Syrian regime. In a speech today, the US Secretary of State made much of François Hollande's decision to
- [Syria: There Is No Military Solution](https://sparrowchat.com/syria-there-is-no-military-solution/) - John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, says there is no doubt the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons against their own people. President Obama has made similar comments through his press secretary. David Cameron, British Prime Minister, has echoed the words of both men, as has President Francois Hollande of France. Vice President Joe
- [10 Year Old Houston Girl Charged With Aggravated Rape](https://sparrowchat.com/10-year-old-houston-girl-charged-with-aggravated-rape/) - It happened back in April...in the courtyard of this apartment complex. Quanell X, who has been working with the family, says [nine year old] Ashley was among a group of children playing. That's when a neighbor saw something and called the mother of a 4 year old boy who was also playing in the group.
- [It's Their World Now](https://sparrowchat.com/its-their-world-now/) - It's your world now Use well the time Be part of something good Leave something good behind The curtain falls I take my bow That's how it's meant to be It's your world now. (Glenn Frey & Jack Tempchin) Remember the 'Eagles', one of the greatest American rock bands of all time? Formed in 1971,
- [The Great American Finance Scam (Well, One Of Them!)](https://sparrowchat.com/the-great-american-finance-scam-well-one-of-them/) - I wonder how many Americans, as they pick up their burger and fries from the drive-thru of the local McDonalds, realize they are contributing to poverty in America. No doubt, many are now suspicious of the "financial sector", Wall Street, and bankers in general. J P Morgan Chase is not a name to conjure confidence
- [Tonight, A Selection Of Matters Absorbing To The Species Homo Sapiens](https://sparrowchat.com/tonight-a-selection-of-matters-absorbing-to-the-species-homo-sapiens/) - The latest headline tonight from the BBC declares that Nelson Mandela is 'critically ill' in a Pretoria hospital. Let us hope, this time, he'll be allowed to die in peace. Mandela has been shuttled back and forth to doctors for months now. Video has shown him glassy-eyed and not in full control, whether from large
- [Afghanistan: The West Has Decided It's Won](https://sparrowchat.com/afghanistan-the-west-has-decided-its-won/) - Twelve years of bloodshed in Afghanistan: 2,235 US troops killed; 444 UK troops; 158 French troops; 54 Germans; 53 Italians, and over 300 others slaughtered on the NATO side; 23,500 military wounded; 1,143 contractors killed and over 15,000 wounded; over 10,000 Afghanistan security forces killed and 200 of the Northern Alliance. Afghan civilian casualties number
- [Yet Another G8 - Utopia Is Just Around The Corner](https://sparrowchat.com/yet-another-g8-utopia-is-just-around-the-corner/) - It's G8 summit time again. All our Dear-Leaders are gathered together for another round of inept bargaining under the guise of, "What shall we do about Syria?" Top class hotels have aired out their finest bed linen, checked their supplies of vintage champagne, and ordered the most chic of Irish 'colleens of the night' to
- [Canada, Anyone?](https://sparrowchat.com/canada-anyone/) - We've been away for a few days to Canada. Not too far, just a couple of hundred miles across the border into Ontario. It was our first time in Canada. Initially, I was disappointed. I suppose, with it being a Commonwealth country, I expected it to be a rather larger version of England. Sadly, it
- [Will You Be Next?](https://sparrowchat.com/will-you-be-next/) - In Cyprus, they stole the savings of private citizens to cover their own bad debts.[1] In Britain, they are stealing the pensions of the wives and widows of expat UK citizens, under the guise of 'austerity measures'.[2] In America, they are stealing from the pension funds of government retirees, to stave off their own self-induced
- [Govt Health Warning! Retirement Can Seriously Damage Your Health](https://sparrowchat.com/govt-health-warning-retirement-can-seriously-damage-your-health/) - Take a look at this latest news item from the BBC. The headline reads: "RETIREMENT 'HARMFUL TO HEALTH', STUDY SAYS". According to this latest 'British study', we all need to go on working till we drop, because if we don't, we'll become sick, depressed, and in the long term there'll be a 'drastic decline in
- [The Party's Over...](https://sparrowchat.com/the-partys-over/) - It's time to call it a day They've burst your pretty balloon And taken the moon away It's time to wind up the masquerade Just make your mind up - the piper must be paid... The ongoing squabble about climate change has become so immature and simplistic that it's truly hard to find anything worth
- [Party Games - For Kiddies Or Politicians](https://sparrowchat.com/party-games-for-kiddies-or-politicians/) - It's a Friday night. The world is in turmoil. America is on the rocks. Millions of US citizens are out of work. What's the headline that leads virtually every news media outlet this evening? Was the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi carried out by terrorists, or not? And, did the Obama administration cover
- [Insanity's Just Another Name For Freedom In The USA](https://sparrowchat.com/insanitys-just-another-name-for-freedom-in-the-usa/) - The NRA annual get-together this week appeared like a Who's Who of the top idiots in America. Topping the bill was the United States's second favorite, right-wing, nutty talk-radio host, Glenn Beck.[1] Hasn't the, "From my cold, dead, hands..." bit, been done already? It might have passed off like most other NRA conventions - that
- [Time To Stem The Tide?](https://sparrowchat.com/time-to-stem-the-tide/) - Corporate control: we see it everywhere. Can any of us be blind to the 'take it or leave it' attitude that passes for customer service these days? It's not just technological advancement that's resulted in every large corporation greeting our telephoned requests for attention with some digital menu that spins us round in ever decreasing
- [Yet More Reasons America's Become Embarrassing To The Rest Of The World](https://sparrowchat.com/yet-more-reasons-americas-become-embarrassing-to-the-rest-of-the-world/) - Tonight, it was my intention to discuss the Boston bombings, but I've just sat through God-knows how many hours of Brian Williams and NBC News putting on free entertainment for the American masses; a show so packed with inaction and supposition it, no doubt, held the US public mesmerized, as nine thousand law enforcement officers
- [She's Dead. Do We Really Care?](https://sparrowchat.com/shes-dead-do-we-really-care/) - There's still a strong taboo about speaking ill of the dead. Quite why we should refrain from expressing our opinions when the person involved has had a detrimental effect, not only on our own lives but those of possibly millions of people, is not too clear. But, it's not considered the 'done thing'. As a
- [Is This Nation Still In Junior High?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-this-nation-still-in-junior-high/) - This is madness. What the hell are we becoming? In many walks of life, and in all parts of the world, women are frequently treated abominably. The regularity of gang-rape in India, the violence towards women in certain African nations, these and many other instances are abominations every sane, balanced, individual - whether male or
- [Happy Easter!](https://sparrowchat.com/happy-easter/) - Is there anyone else out there having problems with this Pistorius guy? Six weeks ago he shot and killed his girlfriend. Apparently, she was the love of his life. He broke down and wept in court. We were all told he was bereft. Now, he says he may well compete in Russia, at the World
- [The Late Boris Berezovsky - May He Rot In Hell!](https://sparrowchat.com/the-late-boris-berezovsky-may-he-rot-in-hell/) - The Godfather of the Kremlin is dead[1]. I first wrote about Boris Berezovsky in July 2007. He'd been making headlines in Britain and I'd recently finished reading Paul Klebnikov's book, exposing this Russian gangster-oligarch for the monster he was. The book, "Godfather of the Kremlin" cost Krebnikov his life. Four years after it was published
- [The Bulldog, Bear, And Boris Berezovsky - An Update](https://sparrowchat.com/the-bulldog-bear-and-boris-berezovski-an-update/) - Today it is the turn of the Times of London to hurl verbal rocks at the Russian government and defend that most noble of Soviet dissidents, Boris Berezovsky, though in a more muted tone than that of yesterday's Sun newspaper. Of course, this comes as no surprise considering both newspapers are owned by the same
- [A British Stiff Upper Lip - Above A Weak Flabby Chin?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-british-stiff-upper-lip-above-a-weak-flabby-chin/) - The recent expulsion of four Russian diplomats from the UK by Gordon Brown, may well be seen as an indicator of strength and integrity in Britain's new prime minister. After all, it's hardly cricket for ex-Soviet spies to go around London poisoning other ex-Soviet spies at will, and Russia's refusal to turn Andrei Lugovoi over
- [Reagan's Mountain](https://sparrowchat.com/reagans-mountain/) - There's a man called Chuck Muth in Arizona who's determined to name a mountain after Ronald Reagan. Chuck Muth. It's an odd sort of name. Hardly one to trip off the tongue; more like a character from the Simpsons than your upright, all-American, God-fearing, citizen on a crusade. Yet, Mister Muth is undoubtedly on a
- [Thanks Be To God!](https://sparrowchat.com/thanks-be-to-god/) - Now, perhaps, the media can get back to broadcasting news that's actually important. I'd personally like to thank all those cardinals who voted. I'm so grateful they chose a guy who wasn't from the United States. Otherwise, the US media circus would be permanently ensconced in Vatican Square.
- [The Great Papist Non-Event](https://sparrowchat.com/the-great-papist-non-event/) - Why do the rest of us have to suffer it? No matter which news media one tunes to the damn thing is there, in your face, headline news. It's certainly not worthy of headline news. It might have been two or three weeks ago, but now it's just a bunch of sad old men in
- [The Weather Channel - Or, NBC, Bain Capital, And The Blackstone Group.](https://sparrowchat.com/the-weather-channel-or-nbc-bain-capital-and-the-blackstone-group/) - This morning, by chance, the TV was set on the Weather Channel. Turning it on, I noted the phrase highlighted on the set behind the anchor was, "Climate Change". Interested, I upped the volume, just in time to hear the anchor state that some US university had just reported that 2012 was the warmest on
- [More Non-News From The US News Media](https://sparrowchat.com/more-non-news-from-the-us-news-media/) - Yet again we find the American media gripped by a non-event. Every day thousands of old people collapse and die. While it may appear strange to CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN and Fox, old people dying is actually incredibly natural. So when 87 year-old Lorraine Bayless keeled over at the independent living community of Glenwood Gardens
- [There's A Very Nasty Smell Emanating From Parliament These Days](https://sparrowchat.com/theres-a-very-nasty-smell-emanating-from-parliament-these-days/) - One of my great concerns as an ex-pat is watching from afar as the structures and standards that prevailed for so long in my home country are systematically dismantled by a load of privately educated, frock-coated, shits with no more desire to run the country for the benefit of its people than has a school
- [A Skunk By Any Other Name...](https://sparrowchat.com/a-skunk-by-any-other-name/) - We've heard a lot about 'austerity measures' of late - both in the US, and in Europe. Nation's are in financial trouble and the only way out of the mess - we're told - is for everyone to tighten their belts and make do with less. If you lose your job through no fault of
- [Yawn Of The Year - And It's Only January!](https://sparrowchat.com/yawn-of-the-year-and-its-only-january/) - Even though it's still only January, surely the prize for, "Yawn of the Year", must already be firmly in the hands of this man... ...Lance Armstrong. It's difficult for those of us unused to the media assailment that accompanies the fall of American celebrities, to comprehend the US public's reaction to such matters. One could
- [Dish-ing The Crap](https://sparrowchat.com/dish-ing-the-crap/) - There was a time, far back in the annals of history, when customer service was just that. We, as consumers, played a vital role in the Capitalist society. Manufacturers, service providers, worked hard to ensure we received the best possible product because, to be sure, if they didn't their competitors would. They were the glory
- [Let's All Go To The Asylum - Oh, No, We're In It Already!](https://sparrowchat.com/lets-all-go-to-the-asylum-oh-no-were-in-it-already/) - In these days of economic depression, high unemployment, and battles within Congress over spending cuts, it may come as some surprise to a few - those of us with something still working between our ears - that 34,000 of our US fellows have signed a White House petition demanding America build a 'Death Star'.[1] Not
- [Rizana - Who?](https://sparrowchat.com/rizana-who/) - It's a source of constant amazement how Western nations, desperate to sow democracy throughout the world, happily trample that aim underfoot when dollar bills rear their ugly heads. Democracy, it seems, is far less important than Capitalism. You didn't really think they were one and the same, did you? Silly! Take the latest atrocity perpetrated
- [A Happy New Year - But Only To Those Who <i>Truly</i> Care.](https://sparrowchat.com/a-happy-new-year-but-only-to-those-who-truly-care/) - On this eve of the New Year, America should turn its attentions outward, for a change, towards that part of the United Kingdom known as Scotland. A land of rather good whiskey, weird men in skirts with a barely understandable brogue, and a habit of dancing around swords crisscrossed on the floor for the delight
- [The Night Before Christmas](https://sparrowchat.com/the-night-before-christmas/) - Despite the vivid imaginings of thousands, the Mayan calendar failed to predict the end of the world on December 21st. Hopefully, I can now safely wish all friends and readers of Sparrow Chat a very merry Christmas. Whether Muslim or Jew, Christian or Atheist, Hindu or Buddhist, or none of those things, may you revel
- [As Common As Dirt? Or, As Common As An American School Massacre?](https://sparrowchat.com/as-common-as-dirt-or-as-common-as-an-american-school-massacre/) - I've deliberately neglected to join the debate over the massacre at Sandy Hook Grade School, partly because I imagined others more competent than I (like the US President) would make the obvious case for gun control (which he hasn't), but mainly because I'm tired of telling Americans what utter prats they are for indulging in
- [So, When Is It A Good Time?](https://sparrowchat.com/so-when-is-it-a-good-time/) - "We're going to have to come together to meaningful action on this, regardless of the politics..." ~ President Barack Obama, following the shootings this morning at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. "There is, I am sure -- will be, rather -- a day for discussion of the usual Washington [gun control] policy debates,
- [Arma-Bloody-Geddon? Oh, No, Not Again?](https://sparrowchat.com/arma-bloody-geddon-oh-no-not-again/) - The world is going to end in seven days. How do we know? Because, in 1966, a rather dubious American anthropologist, Michael Coe, stated in one of his sensationalist publications: "...there is a suggestion ... that Armageddon would overtake the degenerate peoples of the world and all creation on the final day of the 13th
- [An 'Alien' In America - And Probably Elsewhere](https://sparrowchat.com/an-alien-in-america-and-probably-elsewhere/) - I've been an alien for ten years. Ever since I came to America. I used to hate the description, found it demeaning. Now, I wouldn't change it for the world. The lack of posting on Sparrow Chat of late has been due partly to pressure of responsibilities elsewhere, but mainly out of frustration -and, it
- [Have We Got Four More Years?](https://sparrowchat.com/have-we-got-four-more-years/) - It's been exactly a week since President Obama was re-elected for another four years, and already it's started. The will of the majority no longer holds any meaning for American politicians. Tweedledum and Tweedledee, otherwise Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, have been shouting their mouths off about President Obama's possible nomination of Susan Rice
- [Remember Reefer Madness?](https://sparrowchat.com/remember-reefer-madness/) - It seems long ago, now. Yet, I remember it vividly. I was sitting in the early summer sunshine, on a hard bench outside Rick's coffee shop, just off the 'Dam', watching some of the most stunningly beautiful girls on the planet walk by, on their way to - only they knew where. The 'Dam' is
- [And Still...](https://sparrowchat.com/and-still/) - ...THEY DENY CLIMATE CHANGE!
- [Nobel - Anything But Noble?](https://sparrowchat.com/nobel-anything-but-noble/) - It used to be prestigious - an award to be treasured. It made you a person of great standing and respect in the world community. Some of the most revered names in recent history have been recipients: Theodore Roosevelt Albert Schweitzer Dag Hammarskjöld Martin Luther King, Jr. Desmond Tutu Tenzin Gyatso (The Dalai Lama) Nelson
- [A Temporary Shutdown](https://sparrowchat.com/a-temporary-shutdown/) - Apologies for the lack of postings. Sparrow Chat's on hold right now due to pressure of work elsewhere. Winter's almost on us and there's much to do around the '100-Acre'. Back soon.
- [Musings On A US Presidential Election Year](https://sparrowchat.com/musings-on-a-us-presidential-election-year/) - In 2005, when Hurricane Katrina smashed through the New Orleans' levees and killed over 1,800 inhabitants, certain right-wing religious types were heard to mutter that it was a punishment from God for the sins of that Louisiana city. Exactly seven years later, as Tropical Storm Isaac creates havoc in Tampa, Florida, setting back the Republican
- [Just Another Idiot In Office](https://sparrowchat.com/just-another-idiot-in-office/) - The embodiment of everything that's sick about America. US Republican Congressman Todd Akin, was asked recently if abortion should be permissible for women victims of rape. Well you know, people always want to try to make that as one of those things, well how do you, how do you slice this particularly tough sort of
- [Copy Of A Self-Explanatory Letter re: NBC's Latest Repugnant Offering "Stars Earn Stripes"](https://sparrowchat.com/copy-of-a-self-explanatory-letter-re-nbcs-latest-repugnant-offering-stars-earn-stripes/) - "WAR ISN’T ENTERTAINMENT — AND SHOULDN’T BE TREATED LIKE IT IS August 13, 2012 An Open Letter to Mr. Robert Greenblatt, Chairman of NBC Entertainment, General Wesley Clark (ret.), Producer Mark Burnett and others involved in “Stars Earn Stripes”: During the Olympics, touted as a time for comity and peace among nations, millions first learned
- [War Criminal of the Century?](https://sparrowchat.com/war-criminal-of-the-century/) - CBS Evening News temporary anchor, Bob Schieffer tonight expressed outrage that an estimated two and a half million Syrians have so far been displaced, wounded, or killed as a result of the civil war raging in that country. Bob Schieffer He laid the blame squarely on Syria's president, Bashar al-Assad. That figure is fractionally more
- [Are Middle East Terrorists The Real Enemy Of America?](https://sparrowchat.com/are-middle-east-terrorists-the-real-enemy-of-america/) - One of the most fascinating facets to emerge from the images beamed back from Mars is the striking resemblance to areas of our own planet. For some strange reason, possibly due to the sci-fi movies prevalent when we were younger, the expectation is of garish, unearthly, landscapes. It comes as something of a shock to
- [Corporate Media Blind, Deaf, And Dumb - When It Suits](https://sparrowchat.com/corporate-media-blind-deaf-and-dumb-when-it-suits/) - "Thousands Converge in Washington to Launch National Movement Against Fracking"[1] Yet the US media TOTALLY ignored it. NBC, thumb CBS, ABC, CNN, FOX - Do you still believe anything they tell you? [1] "Thousands Converge in Washington to Launch National Movement Against Fracking" AlterNet, July 30th 2012
- [Olympic Opener Postscript - To A Big Mouth](https://sparrowchat.com/olympic-opener-postscript-to-a-big-mouth/) - Possibly out to win the title, 'Big-Mouth of the 2012 Olympics' is the NBC commentator, Bob Costas. First, he created a rumpus because the IOC refused to add a minute's silence to honor the Israeli athletes who were killed at the Munich games in 1972, causing NBC to cut away from a tribute to those
- [Olympic Hypocrisy Courtesy Of Her Britannic Majesty's Government](https://sparrowchat.com/olympic-hypocrisy-courtesy-of-her-britannic-majestys-government/) - The opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics in London last night was nothing if not spectacular. Among the many scenarios portrayed was a celebration of the British National Health Service. It brought a lump to the throat of every Brit who's ever needed medical care - and that's most of us - knowing we could
- [Another Outbreak Of The 'American Disease'](https://sparrowchat.com/another-outbreak-of-the-american-disease/) - Yet another gun-nutter headline: "Colorado Movie Massacre" I've grown sick of writing about the great American disease. Everytime there's another massacre in the United States the media gushes forth its well-rehearsed hypocritical torrent of emotional shit, and once again pretends not to know the reason why it's happened. There's a very simple equation to provide
- ['Man-Made' - It's US Official (Well, Maybe!)](https://sparrowchat.com/man-made-its-us-official-well-maybe/) - This week the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) managed to pull its head out of the sand long enough to finally conclude there's an eighty percent chance the extreme weather patterns noted over the last few years result from man-made climate change. Below are some significant facts contributing to this shift in official
- [A Handy Sign](https://sparrowchat.com/a-handy-sign/) - Sign in a Mississippi Wal-Mart:* "No Child Left Behind," was obviously a great success! *Thanks to "Vineyard Views' for the story.
- ['Drugs War' Not Confined To Mexico](https://sparrowchat.com/drugs-war-not-confined-to-mexico/) - Tonight, the US media is awash with the story of pharmaceutical giant, GlaxoSmithKline, fined three billion dollars for illegally promoting prescription drugs, failing to report safety data, bribing doctors (what's new!), and pushing medicines for unlicensed purposes. The US news media stressed that GlaxoSmithKline was a 'British' company, presumably in some weak attempt to take
- [Quote Of The Week?](https://sparrowchat.com/quote-of-the-week-3/) - Given the ruling of the US Supreme Court this week on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), otherwise referred to as "Obamacare", it would seem US President Barack Obama got his way. However, his way as president is at variance with his way as a presidential hopeful: Both of us want to provide
- [An Ounce Of Prevention...](https://sparrowchat.com/an-ounce-of-prevention/) - Only the most hard-hearted could fail to feel sympathy for the citizens of Colorado Springs, evacuated from their homes as forest fires engulf the area. It's not exactly the poorest area of America. A quick glance at local realtor sites reveals a plethora of homes with price tags in the $millions. The problem of wildfires
- [The Wonderful World Of A Convicted War Criminal](https://sparrowchat.com/the-wonderful-world-of-a-convicted-war-criminal/) - There's arrogance, and then there's the arrogance of British ex-prime minister, Tony Blair. Asked recently by a UK newspaper if he'd like to be prime minister again, Blair eagerly conceded he'd love to be back in 10, Downing Street. He even dared to suggest he might be better suited for the office now, after being
- [Behind America's Closed Doors](https://sparrowchat.com/behind-americas-closed-doors/) - Every TEN days in America, this number of children die, or are killed, by child abuse. click to enlarge In case you can't count, there are FIFTY children in that image. One child dies from abuse every FIVE HOURS within the borders of this 'superpower' nation. That is the worst record of child abuse in
- [Nation Of Madness](https://sparrowchat.com/nation-of-madness/) - There are no Christians at Sparrow Chat. There is, however, a working knowledge of that accruement of old tales from a variety of sources, known collectively as the 'Bible'; the 'Holy Bible'; the 'Book', and even more mythologically, the 'Word of God'. Whatever one's position on the accuracy, or otherwise, of this accretion it seems
- [Go, Go, Jose!](https://sparrowchat.com/go-go-jose/) - The American media has been making hay out of the financial problems faced by Europe, stressing - no doubt, at the behest of their corporate masters - that the crisis in Europe is responsible for the ongoing problems with the US economy. As always, the American media is afflicted by serious short-term memory loss, a
- [No Executive Order For Yasmin, Elizabeth, And Vicente.](https://sparrowchat.com/no-executive-order-for-yasmin-elizabeth-and-vincente/) - For 12-year-old Yasmin, 10-year-old Elizabeth, and 8-year-old Vicente Herrara, US President Barack Obama's latest attempt to secure the Latino vote will make no difference whatever.[1] Along with approximately two thousand other children - all US citizens - the president's latest 'executive order', allowing illegal immigrants between the age of 16 and 30 to remain in
- [Which Team Do You Support?](https://sparrowchat.com/which-team-do-you-support/) - I'm tired of reading the same old drivel from left-leaning websites. Take "Common Dreams', for instance, or 'FAIR'. Every week a synopsis of their latest articles appears in my email inbox. I open them up, and what do I find? The exact same stuff I got last week, and the week before, and the week
- [Al-Nusra, Or, Al-Qaeda?](https://sparrowchat.com/al-nusra-or-al-qaeda/) - The last post on Sparrow Chat dealt with the present unhappy situation in Syria. Western news media - particularly in the United States, and to a lesser extent the UK - seems hellbent on presenting a black-white image of the conflict: yet another uprising of the people against a brutal dictator. "Bashar al-Assad must go,"
- [Let's Bomb Syria](https://sparrowchat.com/lets-bomb-syria/) - Here, at Sparrow Chat, if there's one thing we don't do it's suffer fools gladly. Yesterday, in the US Congress, one of the biggest fools in the land once again proved the extent of his idiocy. The senator from Arizona, John McCain, stood up and demanded the US bomb Syria. No doubt there are plenty
- [A Day For Remembering](https://sparrowchat.com/a-day-for-remembering/) - Today is Memorial Day in America; a day to remember those who have suffered and died because of war. Today, I will pause and remember. I will remember the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of innocent Iraqi citizens killed, maimed, tortured, and bereaved, because of the immoral and illegal invasion of that country by
- [The Clowns Are Already On](https://sparrowchat.com/the-clowns-are-already-on/) - If ever there were evidence needed of the irresponsibility of our politicians, the latest round of climate talks in Bonn, Germany, must surely provide it. Apparently, unable to work together, leaders of nations have split into three separate camps: rich nations like the United States; industrializing nations like China and India, and those most impacted
- [America - Something Is Sadly Lacking.](https://sparrowchat.com/america-something-is-sadly-lacking/) - For me, September of this year marks a decade of life in the United States of America. It's not been a very comfortable experience. For ten long years I've been unable to precisely pin down what it is about this country that makes me nervous and uneasy. On Sparrow Chat, I've written much about what
- [Bien Fait, Les Français!](https://sparrowchat.com/bien-fait-les-francais/) - It may well be that the presidential election in France holds little interest for the self-absorbed American public. It is, however, of immense importance to all the people of the Western world, for the ousting of Sarkozy by Francois Hollande marks a turning point that will set the right-wing, capitalist, establishments shuddering. Like the Egyptians
- [The Great American Wallpaper Scam.](https://sparrowchat.com/the-great-american-wallpaper-scam/) - How long is a roll of wallpaper? As one who owned a professional painting and decorating business in the UK for a number of years, I can tell you the answer. It's thirty-three feet, or 10.05 meters. It always was thirty-three feet, or 10.05 meters, and there's no reason not to believe it always will
- [Rejoice! All Is Right In The World Again.](https://sparrowchat.com/rejoice-everythings-alright-in-the-world-again/) - At last, Americans have the reassurances they've waited for. We can all come out onto the streets and dance in celebration after today's speech at the Woodrow Wilson International Center, by John Brennan, Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, and Assistant to the President. I swear these titles become more absurd with
- [Once Again The Catholic Church Lives Up To Its Sordid Reputation](https://sparrowchat.com/once-again-the-catholic-church-lives-up-to-its-sordid-reputation/) - It's not often that Sparrow Chat lends its support to a religious organization. Regular readers will be aware of the distaste this publication has for hierarchical, organized, religion. As a means of controlling large groups of the populace, and making vast sums of money into the bargain, religion is one of the greatest marketing, and
- [Here Is A Round-Up Of The Bullshit That Passed For 'News' In The U.S. Tonight](https://sparrowchat.com/here-is-a-round-up-of-the-bullshit-that-passed-for-news-in-the-u-s-tonight/) - You gotta laugh! What a farce! US Secret Service agents getting their hands smacked for dallying with prostitutes? Give me a break. This is the CIA we're talking about. And all over $47.[1] Apparently, one of the floosies didn't give value for money and rather than cough up an additional $47, the disgruntled guy raised
- [Ozzie Guillen And I Admire Fidel Castro](https://sparrowchat.com/ozzie-guillen-and-i-admire-fidel-castro/) - I'm no great sports fan. I'd never heard of Ozzie Guillen until today, and frankly, it doesn't bother me if I never hear of him again. I understand he has a passion for bullfighting. Those who take pleasure from cruelty to animals deserve no respect from me. Yet today, I found myself sympathizing with Ozzie
- [Forget 'Pink' - Food Marketing Is The Real Slime.](https://sparrowchat.com/forget-pink-food-marketing-is-the-real-slime/) - Twenty years ago it would only have been used for dog-food. Since the 1990s it's been in 70% of all processed beef products on the store shelf. 'Pink Slime' is the one that leaped off the production belt of secrecy and out into the limelight of public knowledge, thanks in no small part to TV
- [Guns Kill - That's All They Do.](https://sparrowchat.com/guns-kill-thats-all-they-do/) - Two weeks ago, a seventeen year old black youth, Shawn Tyson, was sent to prison for life, with no possibility of parole, for the brutal, cold-blooded, murder of two young men from the UK, James Cooper and James Kouzaris. Both men were in their mid-twenties.[1] The killer, Tyson, is on the left in this image
- [SCOTUS:The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.](https://sparrowchat.com/scotusthe-patient-protection-and-affordable-care-act/) - The latest revelation to spew forth from the Supreme Court of the United States is further evidence of how much this once august and independent establishment has become affiliated to corporate influence. The question under debate is whether the federal government has the power to make medical insurance mandatory on every individual. Is it 'unconstitutional';
- [George Zimmerman Innocent Of Racist Hate Crime](https://sparrowchat.com/george-zimmerman-innocent-of-racist-hate-crime/) - The killing of teenager, Trayvon Martin, in Florida last month has been hyped by many in the media as a racial hate crime. It's hard to understand how the gunman, George Zimmerman, could commit such a crime given that he's of Cuban origin and brought up in a mixed race household, if news reports are
- [An Open Letter To Those Who Call Themselves 'Christian'.](https://sparrowchat.com/an-open-letter-to-those-who-call-themselves-christian/) - Dear US Christian Person I would like to reassure you that your religious faith is not under fire from those of us who do not care to share it with you. We who have no religion don't give a tinker's cuss what you do, say, or practice, just so long as it doesn't affect us.
- [There's One Honest Man At Goldman Sachs - At Least, There Used To Be...](https://sparrowchat.com/theres-one-honest-man-at-goldman-sachs-at-least-there-used-to-be/) - Greg Smith is a Goldman Sachs executive director and head of the firm’s United States equity derivatives business in Europe, ask the Middle East and Africa. At least, sovaldi sale he was until today. He just resigned. He explained why to the New York Times: Today is my last day at Goldman Sachs. After almost
- [US Capitalism & Christianity: The Love-Match Of Unlikely Bedfellows](https://sparrowchat.com/us-capitalism-christianity-the-love-match-of-unlikely-bedfellows/) - It takes real talent to meld the atheistic philosophy of Ayn Rand with that of evangelical Christianity, but over the last thirty years or so it's exactly what the capitalist moguls of the United States have managed to do. A BBC interviewer once asked the head man of an evangelical Christian organization, who had just
- [Haditha Revisited](https://sparrowchat.com/haditha-revisited/) - US soldier kills 16 Afghan civilians in shooting spree Nine children and three women dead. President Hamid Karzai condemns 'intentional murders'. And they talk of going to war with Iran. If it weren't so grotesque, it would be laughable.
- [Ayn Rand: Thirty Years Dead, Still Very Much Alive](https://sparrowchat.com/ayn-rand-thirty-years-dead-still-very-much-alive/) - It was my intention to utilize the 30th anniversary of the death of Ayn Rand to vent my opinion of her philosophy and its continuing impact on the modern world. Today, reading George Monbiot's column in the 'Guardian', I realized he had already done what I had intended, and much better. I therefore refer you
- [Killed By A Tornado? How Did You Feel About That?](https://sparrowchat.com/killed-by-a-tornado-how-did-you-feel-about-that/) - The US media seizes its opportunity to wring the last vestiges of emotion out of every unfortunate happening, and the recent spate of tornadoes has proved no exception. Close-up camera shots of survivors, who've lost everything except the clothes they're wearing, linger as inane questions are forced on these unfortunate people, in funereal tones supposedly
- [Rush Limbaugh - A Rent Boy Of The Far Right?](https://sparrowchat.com/rush-limbaugh-a-rent-boy-of-the-far-right/) - It seems Rush Limbaugh doesn't believe in contraception. As a stooge of the far right political wing of the Republican Party that's hardly surprising. Perhaps, though, one of his four wives might disagree. Four wives and no children?[1] Surely, they weren't all infertile? Or, maybe the problem didn't lie with his wives. Well, now, let
- [The Sole Purpose Of A Gun Is To Kill](https://sparrowchat.com/the-sole-purpose-of-a-gun-is-to-kill/) - The previous post cited the example of Moises Zambrana, who negligently left a bullet in his gun while showing it off to two other men in a Florida church. The gun went off, killing the pastor's daughter. Today, in Washington state, a nine year old boy was 'shaking and weeping' in a Seattle courtroom as
- [Oh, Lord, It's Hard To Be Humble...](https://sparrowchat.com/oh-lord-its-hard-to-be-humble/) - He's either a stooge funded by the powers-that-be to satiate the evangelicals and Tea Party movement, or, he's presently the most dangerous man in America. John F Kennedy's speech on the separation of church and state made him 'nearly throw up'. Santorum is an evangelical's dream come true. Probably his first act on becoming president
- [To Hell In A Handbasket](https://sparrowchat.com/to-hell-in-a-handbasket/) - The human species is doomed to extinction. It cannot possibly survive the ongoing deterioration imposed on its societal structures. Proliferation of the species will not be its undoing; neither will outside influences such as climate change, though both will undoubtedly prove catalytic to its downfall. The species Homo sapiens has evolved with one serious defect.
- [Lay Blame Where It's Deserved](https://sparrowchat.com/lay-blame-where-its-deserved/) - The horror and indignation spouted by media, politicians, and those who consider themselves of higher-than-average moral caliber, at the sight of US soldiers urinating on their dead Taliban enemies[1], is yet another smokescreen cast to hide the real truth of life and death on the battleground. Politicians and others, who require we lesser mortals carry
- [Mind Your Own Business, Cardinal-designate Dolan of New York](https://sparrowchat.com/mind-your-own-business-cardinal-designate-dolan-of-new-york/) - The Catholic Church, in the form of Cardinal-designate Dolan of New York (what the hell is a 'cardinal-designate, anyway?), is upset that some of its members may now have access to insurance that covers birth control. Despite President Obama changing the law to ensure Catholic institutions, like certain hospitals and universities, aren't financially penalized, the
- [You're Wise Not To Vote Republican](https://sparrowchat.com/youre-wise-not-to-vote-republican/) - The ongoing Republican primary elections, if they've achieved nothing more, have gloriously highlighted the dizzy heights candidates will scale to fool and deceive prospective voters. The use of clever 'spin' tactics, the bamboozling of simple folk with so-called 'facts' they have no way of verifying, the promise of better times ahead, the rubbishing of an
- [In Memoriam: Incandescence](https://sparrowchat.com/in-memoriam-incandescence/) - When I was a young boy, many years ago, the lamps in our street were run on gas. I would enjoy staring out the front window of our house at dusk, watching as the old lamplighter arrived on his bicycle at the street lamp outside our front gate. I don't know how old he was,
- [Haditha - A Symbol Of U.S. Justice?](https://sparrowchat.com/haditha-a-symbol-of-u-s-justice/) - Recently I wrote of the media indignation when images came to light of US marines urinating on Taliban corpses. US television news channels were aghast at the very idea that this nation's 'heroes' could be capable of such behavior. Back in 2005, when the horrors of the massacre in the Iraqi town of Haditha finally
- [Republican Primaries Or A Gathering Of Skunks?](https://sparrowchat.com/republican-primaries-or-a-gathering-of-skunks/) - You'd not know it from watching the US media, but there's a presidential election later this year. Excuse the sarcasm. The US media is, of course, obsessed by the process. It has been for the last six months. To watch any of the news channels one could be forgiven for assuming US politics has only
- [A Magical Christmas To All ](https://sparrowchat.com/a-magical-christmas-to-all/) - The US 'War on Christmas' is rumbling on for yet another year. As in bygone Christmases it's fueled largely by the media, as though they haven't enough bad news to bring us in this so-called 'festive season', without resorting to the defamation of a great human festival. Perhaps if everyone accepted that Christmas, despite its
- [Let It Snow!](https://sparrowchat.com/let-it-snow/) - Pay a visit to the '100-Acre Wood House' and savor some more titbits of rural life on Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It's only a 'click' away. The 100-Acre Wood House Winter comes early on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. This year, ‘early’ meant November 9th! The snow started on Wednesday morning and continued all day. In
- [Give Them Sport And Sex To Keep Them Happy](https://sparrowchat.com/give-them-sport-and-sex-to-keep-them-happy/) - For the bureaucrat, the world is a mere object to be manipulated by him. ~ Karl Marx The US media really loves to hype up a non-story and milk it for all it's worth. Take the latest sordid little escapade to hit the headlines this week - some guy working as a college football coach
- [The Welsh Have Seven, Miami Needs Hardly Any](https://sparrowchat.com/the-welsh-have-seven-miami-needs-none-at-all/) - THIS POST HAS BEEN DELETED BY THE AUTHOR FOLLOWING ABSURD COMPLAINTS FROM A SMALL, cure PETTY-MINDED, tadalafil INDIVIDUAL WHO MIGHT DO BETTER TO GET A LIFE, sovaldi OR PERHAPS VISIT A PSYCHIATRIST. IT IS NOT THE INTENTION OF SPARROW CHAT TO CAUSE DISTRESS TO ANY, OTHER THAN THOSE WHO DESERVE IT, BUT OCCASIONALLY ONE COMES
- [What<i>They</i> Want](https://sparrowchat.com/whatthey-want/) - Take a tour round the NBC Nightly News website, or suffer thirty minutes of their evening program, and you'll be left with more questions than answers. For twenty minutes of the show Brian Williams will display to you all the nasty things currently occurring in or around America. But the last short segment always praises
- [A Tale Of Two Generators](https://sparrowchat.com/a-tale-of-two-generators/) - Pay a visit to the '100-Acre Wood House' and savor some more titbits of rural life on Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It's only a 'click' away. The 100-Acre Wood House I'd love to meet the Chinese gentleman whose only identity, to those of us in the West, is 'L22'. I'd love to kick his sorry butt
- [Let Them Eat Cake](https://sparrowchat.com/let-them-eat-cake/) - The protesters who make up "Occupy Wall Street" are 'scum', a 'mob', 'the great unwashed' ...and similar, according to many right-wing politicians and media companies. The 'Tea Party' has called comparisons between itself and 'Occupy Wall Street', "...insulting". Perhaps, it's just a question of perspective? New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, was quoted recently in the
- [Who Paid For Your American Dream?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-paid-for-your-american-dream/) - I have to smile at the antics of some US politicians as they mutter the despised "S" word into their microphone. Only last week Rick Perry declared it was "a downward spiral to disaster", and last night on the Daily Show Ron Paul casually linked Socialism and "Authoritarianism" like they were one and the same.
- [America - Air Disaster Or Train Wreck?](https://sparrowchat.com/america-air-disaster-or-train-wreck/) - On September 7th the Russian ice hockey team, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, was all but wiped out when the aircraft they were traveling in burst into flames and crashed shortly after take-off. Twenty-seven of the team died in the crash. There were only two survivors: a member of the crew and one of the players.[1] Despite eleven
- [A Busy Time](https://sparrowchat.com/a-busy-time/) - I'm sorry posting is still sparse. It's a busy time. Find out more at the "100-Acre Wood House" blog. Filed under: Tote that barge, etc
- [Guns Save Lives - Number 'God Knows How Many'](https://sparrowchat.com/guns-save-lives-number-god-knows-how-many/) - For a number of years I wrote frequently on Sparrow Chat about the farce that is the National Rifle Association, and its inept and wantonly untruthful slogan: "Guns Save Lives". From the website of WAND TV, a local station serving the town of Decatur in Central Illinois: DECATUR, IL- A Decatur couple arrested in connection
- [Come The Revolution, Brothers!](https://sparrowchat.com/come-the-revolution-brothers/) - Living in one of the more remote regions of the United States, as I do, it would be so easy to turn one's back on the whole polito/corporate scene and pretend it no longer existed. After all, waking up in the morning to soft sunshine and gentle birdsong, taking a stroll through woodland, or whittling
- [I May Buy My Satellite Dish An Umbrella](https://sparrowchat.com/i-may-buy-my-satellite-dish-an-umbrella/) - As a long term fan of the 1980's BBC series, 'Red Dwarf', one of my favorite moments was when the crew were marooned on a planetoid inhabited by brain-sucking psirens. Lister went outside and was immediately accosted by a psiren masquerading as a long-lusted-after, voluptuous beauty, from Dave's youth. "How long has it been since
- [America: Adrift On A Stormy Ocean](https://sparrowchat.com/america-adrift-on-a-stormy-ocean/) - The US employment rate takes a nosedive this month with only 54,000 new jobs, rather than the 150,000 that was expected. Which begs the question: who expected 150,000? Perhaps there's a think tank somewhere composed of seriously optimistic economists. Or, maybe those employed to advise the US president on such matters just tell him what
- [On The Move](https://sparrowchat.com/on-the-move/) - I'm afraid blog posts will be scarce or non-existent for a while, as we're in process of moving house from Illinois to Marquette, on Michigan's Upper Peninsula. We're traveling up for a few days tomorrow (Saturday), but the main move is taking place on June 9th. On arrival, the vexed question of Broadband access has
- [Israeli & US Politicians - All From The Same Cardboard Box](https://sparrowchat.com/israeli-us-politicians-all-from-the-same-cardboard-box/) - If ever there were a more convincing demonstration of the arrogance and intransigence of the US Senate, then it would be hard to find. The almost humiliating fawning of politicians, from both sides of the fabled 'political divide', over Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as he addressed the Senate this week, was sickening in its
- [Anyone For Camping?](https://sparrowchat.com/anyone-for-camping/) - Harold Camping, the man who predicted the end of the world would occur today, got it wrong. It came as no surprise to most us, but as something of a shock to those who'd sold all their possessions and spent all their savings in anticipation of the grand event. Is it right, though, that we
- [The Dubious Virtues Of Infidelity, Egotism, And Cannibalism](https://sparrowchat.com/the-dubious-virtues-of-infidelity-egotism-and-cannibalism/) - The story fast capturing headlines this week is all about the infidelity of ex-terminator and ex-governor of California, and now, soon to be ex-husband of Maria Shriver, Arnold Schwarzenegger. Questions over the breakup of Schwarzenegger and Shriver were answered when the ex-bodybuilder... ...announced to the world that a female member of the couple's house staff
- [So, You Think You're Badly Off?](https://sparrowchat.com/so-you-think-youre-badly-off/) - There's not a lot for Americans or Brits to be jovial about these days. Trolling through the news sites is a somewhat depressing business. Gasoline prices are out of control on both sides of the Atlantic; we read today that George Mitchell, the US envoy to the Middle East, is to resign after failing to
- [A Weekend Ramble Through 'Right' And 'Wrong'](https://sparrowchat.com/a-ramble-through-right-and-wrong/) - There are times I just feel like writing. You know the mood; there're questions inside that aren't properly resolved. Sure, you can sit down in an armchair and mull them over, but it never seems to produce a tangible answer to what's puzzling you. So, you make yourself comfortable at the keyboard, pour a glass
- [OBL Has Gone To Hell...Maybe](https://sparrowchat.com/obl-has-gone-to-hell-maybe/) - It's celebration time in America, but what is it they're partying about? President Obama called it 'justice'. It's not that. One BBC reporter said it was a classic case of 'the good guys killing the bad guys'. It's not that, either. On the surface, you might find it hard to find any similarity between the
- [SuperHero, Or Capitalist Pawn?](https://sparrowchat.com/superhero-or-capitalist-pawn/) - It's good to know that Superman and I have something in common. When Americans I meet realize I'm from Britain, and have been living in the US for nine years, they automatically assume I've taken US citizenship. My response to their question induces an immediate glazing of the eyes as they struggle to comprehend my
- [If You're <i>Really</i> God, Show Us Your US Birth Certificate](https://sparrowchat.com/if-youre-really-god-show-us-your-us-birth-certificate/) - As a European living in a foreign land, the differences between cultures provide an interesting study. How people respond to politicians can vary remarkably. Italy, for example, has put up with Silvio Berlusconi's antics for a long time, in a manner that probably wouldn't be tolerated in, say, Britain. The British still like to regard
- [A Thought For Easter](https://sparrowchat.com/a-thought-for-easter/) - The birds are back from their winter migration. For the last week or so, a female robin has been assiduously attempting to build a nest on top of an outside light fastened to the back wall of our house, overlooking the deck. She's doomed to failure, but appears impervious to that fact. The light has
- [Why Doesn't Obama Mind His Own Business?](https://sparrowchat.com/why-doesnt-obama-mind-his-own-business/) - What is it about the US government that causes it to insist on interfering in the affairs of other nations, when it has proved itself incapable of humanely managing its own internal affairs? Today, yet another headline: Syria crisis: Obama condemns 'outrageous' use of force."[1] Does anyone truly believe that events like these... ...could never
- [Get Down On Your Knees, Sonny Boy (with apologies to Al Jolson)](https://sparrowchat.com/get-down-on-your-knees-sonny-boy-with-apologies-to-al-jolson/) - The state of Texas is in a state. They're running out of water. It hasn't rained for three months. Wildfires have destroyed 1.8 million acres of land. The Texas state governor is evangelical Christian Republican, Rick Perry. Good old Rick can always be relied on to save the day. He's found an answer to the
- [The Debate On 'Nuclear' - Twenty-Five Years On...](https://sparrowchat.com/the-debate-on-nuclear-twenty-five-years-on/) - With the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor catastrophe looming, an appeal has been set up to pay for a huge new sarcophagus to cover the site. So far, the fund is still twenty-five percent short of its goal.[1] As Japan struggles with its own nuclear crisis at Fukushima, the world is once more
- [Lawrence O'Donnell Has A Problem](https://sparrowchat.com/lawrence-odonnell-has-a-problem/) - I've struggled for sometime with whether to bother responding to the views expressed by Lawrence O'Donnell (presenter of the 'The Last Word' on MSNBC) in the video below. O'Donnell took over the time slot recently vacated by Olbermann's 'Countdown', and follows similar format, though O'Donnell, an ex-White House staffer, is less succinct than Olbermann and
- [How Low Can Politicians Sink? Wisconsin Has The Answer](https://sparrowchat.com/how-low-can-politicians-sink-wisconsin-has-the-answer/) - No doubt we all remember the weeks of turmoil in Madison, Wisconsin, when the governor, Scott Walker, tried to take away the bargaining rights of teachers, firefighters, police officers, and other public sector workers, ostensibly to save money for the state. Finally, Scott Walker admits what we all knew already: taking away bargaining rights doesn't
- [Remember Iraq?](https://sparrowchat.com/remember-iraq/) - Some of you out there in the blogosphere may possibly remember a certain country just to the west of Iran, called Iraq. It was in the news quite a lot, until about a year or so back, because the Americans and British were busy bringing democracy to the place. Job done, the lads came home
- [About Raising That Debt Ceiling](https://sparrowchat.com/about-raising-that-debt-ceiling/) - Question: What happens to a country when the education system is left to rot for a few decades? Answer: The population grows ever more ignorant of matters it should really be cognizant of. Take America's so-called 'national debt', as an example. For years, both Democrats and Republicans have played politics with the education of America's
- [Lethal Weapon](https://sparrowchat.com/lethal-weapon/) - Wouldn't it be wonderful to live in a land where freedom reigned supreme and rules and regulations were minimal, leaving us free to enjoy ourselves as we wished, without fear of repercussions? Nineteen year-old, Keisha Wall, probably thinks so... ......She's presently serving two and a half years in a British prison. Sixty-three year-old, Christine Lyon,
- [Egomania For President?](https://sparrowchat.com/egomania-for-president/) - Donald Trump is still trumping on about President Obama's birth certificate.[1] He says he has investigators in Hawaii searching for it. If Trump thinks Obama was born in Kenya, shouldn't his investigators be searching for it there? [1] "The TODAY Show 'fact checks' Donald Trump about 911, President Obama's birth certificate" NBC, April 8th 2011
- [Ideology, Not Savings](https://sparrowchat.com/ideology-not-savings/) - The last US government shutdown was in 1995, and lasted 21 days. That one was also instigated by the Republican Party, against the then President Bill Clinton. It's become the Republican style of opposition. The last shutdown cost the country $1.4 billion. According to sources, the latest discussions have focused, not on money, but on
- [Advertising Can Be Art - At Least, In Japan.](https://sparrowchat.com/advertising-can-be-art-at-least-in-japan/) - [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Air.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/touch-wood-ad.jpg 420 290] Just once every blue moon, cialis advertisers take the trouble to produce a product worthy of capturing our attention. No background music was added to the video above. Kenjiro Matsuo was responsible for the amazing woodland xylophone used in this advert for a Sharp cellphone. I think J.S. Bach would have
- [Keep It In The Family](https://sparrowchat.com/keep-it-in-the-family/) - We all remember Israel's 2008-2009 military offensive in Gaza. It was on every news broadcast for a week. We remember the atrocities, as reported to us by TV newsmen in the field. We remember the vile images of burned children, schools bombed, civilian houses obliterated. We also remember the report of South African judge Richard
- [The Meanness Plague Spreads Throughout America](https://sparrowchat.com/the-meanness-plague-spreads-throughout-america/) - There is a meanness spreading like a plague throughout America. It is a meanness fed by cold-hearted, uncaring, American people who allow their twisted, out-of-step, principles to take precedence over the most basic forms of humanity. Examples abound, from the lunatic right-wing who would completely remove that most inadequate of safety nets in this country,
- [Among Those Souvenirs](https://sparrowchat.com/among-those-souvenirs/) - The upcoming wedding of the UK's Prince William and Kate Middleton is not only a chance for Brits to let their hair down and party, it's also a wonderful business opportunity for entrepreneurs with sufficient flair to make a quick buck out of the occasion. There will, of course, be the usual array of royal
- [Americans Need Guidance Over Libya](https://sparrowchat.com/americans-need-guidance-over-libya/) - There appears to be confusion in America with regard to Libya. Some US citizens are blaming President Obama for dragging the nation into another Middle East war. Then, there are those who criticize President Obama for passing the leadership of said war over to NATO. After all, if we're going to have another war it's
- [Don't The RAF Know There's A Recession?](https://sparrowchat.com/dont-the-raf-know-theres-a-recession/) - Yesterday afternoon, an unknown number of RAF Tornado jet fighter/bombers left RAF Marham in the south-east of England, and flew to Libya on a specific mission. That mission was aborted because, when the planes arrived over the target, civilians were spotted in the area. It's admirable that the mission was aborted and no civilians were
- [And They Said King George Was Mad](https://sparrowchat.com/and-they-said-king-george-was-mad/) - The 'madness of America' is well-interpreted by much of the rest of the world. 'Only in America', is a slogan commonly used throughout Europe. The likes of Glenn Beck or Limbaugh would never be tolerated in the UK, France, or Germany - not because of any restrictive political regime, but simply that European folks demand
- [Give Us Your Dirty Washing, Mister Arab](https://sparrowchat.com/give-us-your-dirty-washing-mister-arab/) - Here we go again. Once more the Western world is interfering militarily in the Middle East, as the UK, France, and the US, fire dozens of missiles into Libya. It's a conundrum: on the one hand, criticism for allowing a brutal dictator to wreak revenge on his own people for daring to stand up to
- [Pakistani Elders Vow Revenge Against America After Drones Kill Forty](https://sparrowchat.com/pakistani-elders-vow-revenge-against-america-after-drones-kill-forty/) - The 'war on terror', a phrase coined to good propaganda effect here in the United States by George W Bush, is not, of course, a war at all. The Iraq invasion of 2003 was a war, as is the occupation of Afghanistan. The 'war on terror' consists of a series of covert operations often based
- [More Than A Japanese Catastrophe](https://sparrowchat.com/more-than-a-japanese-catastrophe/) - We can all sympathize with the Japanese people in this, their darkest hour since Nagasaki and Hiroshima. No amount of technological expertise could prevent the devastation and enormous loss of life that occurred over the last few days, following the huge earthquake and accompanying tsunami, sweeping all before it like matchwood in a mill race.
- [A Chinese Puzzle](https://sparrowchat.com/a-chinese-puzzle/) - Many Americans will remember the Corningware brand of kitchen cookware, a top quality range of products that withstood quite intense heat without cracking. It was first produced in 1958. Not being American, I wasn't familiar with the product until about two years ago. It was just prior to Christmas. My wife being rather partial to
- [Defying The Laws Of Nature At Our Peril](https://sparrowchat.com/defying-the-laws-of-nature-at-our-peril/) - The protests in Wisconsin and other US states will continue to escalate, so long as the desires of the wealthy take precedence over the needs of the poor. Since man came down from the trees, he has been in competition with his fellows for survival and comfort. That is as it should be; nature's laws
- [Union Busting, Or Something Much More Sinister?](https://sparrowchat.com/union-busting-or-something-much-more-sinister/) - The thousands of workers presently demonstrating in Wisconsin over the blatant efforts of that state's governor to suppress the unions, have more in common with the Arabs on the streets of Tripoli and Cairo and Amman, than may be obvious to a casual observer. Egyptians, Libyans, Jordanians, and other Arab populations, have long been under
- [It's Turned Decidedly Chilly In Cleveland](https://sparrowchat.com/its-turned-decidedly-chilly-in-cleveland/) - It will come as no great revelation to most of us when I write that television programs are fast becoming worthless, inept, and utterly banal vehicles designed merely to market the products of the corporations that own the TV companies making such crap. And, what's more, they expect us to be entranced by them. But,
- [Is There Such A Thing As An Honest Removal Company?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-there-such-a-thing-as-an-honest-removal-company/) - Posting has been light of late as I've been involved with other projects. Not the least of which was attempting to sort out a reputable removal company, to shift all our belongings north to the Michigan Upper Peninsula, this coming June. Surely, not a difficult task, I hear you say? Don't believe it. It appears
- [A Message To Americans About 'Socialist' Medicine](https://sparrowchat.com/a-message-to-americans-about-socialist-medicine/) - I was browsing blogs recently and one I hadn't seen before attracted my attention. It belonged to a British doctor, a general practitioner (known in America as a 'family doctor'). One particular post caught my eye. It was a short, yet definitive, statement on Britain's National Health Service, entitled - "Why The NHS Works": I
- [Addendum To Previous Post: "Too Politically Correct For Our Own Good"](https://sparrowchat.com/addendum-to-previous-post-too-politically-correct-for-our-own-good/) - The previous post, "Too Politically Correct For Our Own Good", detailed absurd situations that form part of what is ludicrously termed by society today, 'political correctness'. The term was, no doubt, originally coined for the well-meaning purpose of curtailing the verbal persecution of certain minority groups, but like most societal trends the pendulum has now
- [Super Bowl - The Great Game Of Corporate Advertising](https://sparrowchat.com/super-bowl-the-great-game-of-corporate-advertising/) - I will admit to having no interest in American football. Neither do I delight in the bombardment of corporate advertising aimed at me via the US TV media. Consequently, I guess I'm something of a non-starter where matters relating to this year's Super Bowl are concerned. Normally, this strangely hallowed event would pass unnoticed in
- [Too Politically Correct For Our Own Good](https://sparrowchat.com/too-politically-correct-for-our-own-good/) - There seems little doubt the ego of the human race will eventually over-inflate, like a toy balloon attached to a runaway air compressor line at the local gas station, until it bursts with a loud popping noise and we all disappear up our own anuses. Why do we take ourselves so seriously? We've turned into
- [Drug War, Or Class War?](https://sparrowchat.com/drug-war-or-class-war/) - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has told Mexicans she backs President Felipe Calderon's battle with the drug cartels. Apparently, according to Clinton, there's 'no alternative' to the 15,273 Mexican citizens gunned down in drug-related incidents on Mexico's streets last year; slaughtered by American guns purchased with American dollars. And it's all so El Presidente
- [It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World!](https://sparrowchat.com/it-a-mad-mad-mad-mad-world/) - My wife has just emailed me a report in the British Daily Mail newspaper concerning a US pilot jailed in Britain. A pilot who turned up so drunk at Heathrow that he didn’t know where he was supposed to fly his transatlantic passenger plane has been jailed for six months. George La Perle was stopped
- [Is It Me?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-it-me/) - Well, is it? Or is there anyone else out there sick to death of buying inferior quality products that fall apart, or cease to work, after a very short time. Household items are often the most obvious culprits. Take these three, for example: I'm not suggesting there's anything wrong with the contents of these plastic
- [No Fairy Godmother](https://sparrowchat.com/no-fairy-godmother/) - The schism in American politics, that has divided left and right, had never been wider than it was on the afternoon of Friday January 7th. Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh were hollering into their microphones for all they were worth, damning the president, castigating the Democrats, rousing their fan base to fury at the 'horrors
- [No Change At The Top](https://sparrowchat.com/no-change-at-the-top/) - We hear today that Republican National Committee chairman, Michael Steele, has been ousted from his position by Reince Priebus, seen here on the left: According to Wikipedia: He [Priebus] said he believes the RNC is "part of" the Tea Party movement, he believes in the Christian God and stated that if he were elected as
- [Sarah Palin In Her Own Crosshairs](https://sparrowchat.com/sarah-palin-in-her-own-crosshairs/) - The subject of Sarah Palin's 'cross-hairs' map has been much written, spoken, or gesticulated about over the past few days, since the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords and others in Arizona last weekend. Palin, like others in the public eye who hint at violence as a means to a political end, cannot wash her hands completely
- [Will Obama Run In 2012 - For The Republicans?](https://sparrowchat.com/will-obama-run-in-2012-for-the-republicans/) - Barack Obama, whom some may remember as the president of the United States, has just signed into law a bill that will prevent suspects from the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center from being brought to the US for trial. According to the Yahoo News Service: ......Obama said he was left with no choice but to sign
- [It Could've Happened To A Nicer Guy](https://sparrowchat.com/it-couldve-happened-to-a-nicer-guy/) - Tom DeLay gets three years in prison for money laundering. That's justice. He'll be eligible for parole in four months and eight days. That isn't. Filed under: Two-tier justice system
- ["Guns Save Lives" - Yet Again](https://sparrowchat.com/guns-save-lives-yet-again/) - Six dead, a dozen more injured. The target of the attack - Democratic congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, shot in the head. Giffords was one of twenty Democratic politicians targeted by Sarah Palin on her website, using an image with rifle crosshairs. It could, of course, be coincidence that this image - - with Cliffords' name on
- [What Can One Say?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-can-one-say/) - You may have noticed Sparrow Chat has been unusually quiet over Christmas/New Year. The reason is quite simple: I've had very little to say. The holiday period provided a measure of relief from the ongoing political farce being played out in Washington. Any swing towards the right displayed by this nation in November was nothing
- [Nine Years For Failing To Snatch A Handbag](https://sparrowchat.com/nine-years-for-failing-to-snatch-a-handbag/) - The American news media ends its evening bulletins with the inevitable 'do-gooder' report, designed to assist US citizens in believing how wonderfully selfless they all are. The BBC chose a slightly different slant on America this Christmas. One that more aptly describes what this country is truly like, particularly if you're black and living in
- [Happy Christmas, Mister President](https://sparrowchat.com/happy-christmas-mister-president/) - In these days of economic gloom and dark political intrigue, Sparrow Chat would like to take this opportunity to wish Barack Obama, the President of the United States of America, a very happy Christmas. The White House Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, D.C. Sir, On behalf of me and mine, I would like to wish you and
- [Why Sparrow Chat Supports Wikileaks](https://sparrowchat.com/why-sparrow-chat-supports-wikileaks/) - "I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts." ~ Abraham Lincoln I support the whistleblower website, Wikileaks, and I believe Abraham Lincoln would have done so, too. In any democratic process,
- [Boycott PayPal](https://sparrowchat.com/boycott-paypal/) - (From the Paypal Blog) PayPal statement regarding WikiLeaks December 3, 2010 PayPal has permanently restricted the account used by WikiLeaks due to a violation of the PayPal Acceptable Use Policy, which states that our payment service cannot be used for any activities that encourage, promote, facilitate or instruct others to engage in illegal activity. We’ve
- ['Ra 'Ra, Rudd!](https://sparrowchat.com/ra-ra-rudd/) - Finally, a politician has had the courage to raise his index finger to the all high and mighty American government, and tell it as it is. From the BBC: Australia's foreign minister has said the US is to blame for the release of thousands of diplomatic cables on Wikileaks, not its Australian founder, Julian Assange.
- [The Politicians' Cognitive Response: Kill Assange!](https://sparrowchat.com/the-politicians-cognitive-response-kill-assange/) - Take the kindest, gentlest, pet dog, stamp on its foot with all your might, and it'll turn round and try to bite you. It's a reaction. The animal doesn't think - it reacts. It's what animals do when they're subjected to pain, or fear. A dog that develops a sudden belly ache may well try
- [Tell Us Something We Don't Know](https://sparrowchat.com/tell-us-something-we-dont-know/) - "The fact is governments deal with the United States because it's in their interest, not because they like us, not because they trust us and not because they think we can keep secrets." ~ US Defence Secretary Robert Gates, November 29th 2010. If the publication of 'secret' cables by Wikileaks this week proves anything at
- [Who'd Be Middle Class These Days?](https://sparrowchat.com/whod-be-middle-class-these-days/) - My family doctor's office now charges $500 an hour. Regular readers may remember a visit I made there in September. I related how it's now controlled by a Catholic company, the 'Holy Shit Holy Shit Medical Group'.[1] This morning I received a bill for the visit. I now know how the company got its name.
- [The King of Kings Is Returning - He Must Be It's On The Calendar](https://sparrowchat.com/the-king-of-kings-is-returning-he-must-be-its-on-the-calendar/) - It's the time of year for buying calendars. I went to the store and browsed the selection in the rack. At least fifty percent of them were overly-sugary, hypocritical, "Christian-based" offerings. Another forty percent were advertising pop singers I'd never heard of. Eventually, I selected one with nice pictures of mountains. I like mountains. I
- [Nothing Better To Do?](https://sparrowchat.com/nothing-better-to-do/) - Browsing the BBC website this morning, I was struck by two items of widely differing subject, but with one obvious factor in common. They were both, it appeared, a complete waste of time and money. I have the greatest respect for science; without it we'd still be living in mud huts and foraging berries, but
- [Confessions Of A War Criminal - On Bookshelves Now!](https://sparrowchat.com/confessions-of-a-war-criminal-on-bookshelves-now/) - George W Bush has the gall to write publish a book about his presidency that he, no doubt, expects the American people to buy and read. Does he believe that two years of obscurity is sufficient to dull the memory of Abu Ghraib, Fallujah, and the torture of US prisoners at his (admitted) command? Not
- [Texas Governor Rick Perry 'Doesn't Corner Good'](https://sparrowchat.com/texas-governor-rick-perry-doesnt-corner-well/) - Darling of the Tea Party, Texas governor Rick Perry, says the states should decide whether to opt out of Social Security. From the CNN ParkerSpitzer Show: Texas Governor Rick Perry says the idea of letting states opt out of Social Security is worthy of discussion. Here's a transcript of the exchange: Rick Perry: Let’s talk
- [If They Were Told To Stick Their Fingers In The Fire, They'd Do It](https://sparrowchat.com/if-they-were-told-to-stick-their-fingers-in-the-fire-theyd-do-it/) - The only winner from yesterday's mid-term election was Capitalism. A fact that will, no doubt, please many who voted Republican. How sad is someone who desperately needs affordable healthcare, yet votes to deny it? I read recently of one "tea-party" supporter who said he wanted the healthcare bill repealed as he "thought it would create
- [Do They Expect Us To Treat Them With Any Respect?](https://sparrowchat.com/do-they-expect-us-to-treat-them-with-any-respect/) - The British government convenes a scientific committee to advise them on illegal drugs, and then sacks the head man for not telling them what they want to hear. That seems to be par for the course with governments these days. It was the former Labour Home Secretary, Alan Johnson, who sacked Professor David Nutt from
- [Some Dis-enchanted Evening](https://sparrowchat.com/some-dis-enchanted-evening/) - It wasn't exactly a romantic dinner, though Friday evening's meal has become something of a specialty. After all, we hardly see each other all week. She works long hours, we're up at five each weekday morning, and there's scarcely time in the evenings to rush down a freezer meal, watch half an hour of television,
- [A Word To The Wise (The Ignorant Never Listen)](https://sparrowchat.com/a-word-to-the-wise-the-ignorant-never-listen/) - I'm not Mister Keith Olbermann's number one fan by any means, but the American people are facing a choice on November 2nd like they've never faced a choice before. This time it's not just about voting Democrat or Republican. Once, it didn't make that much difference to the way this country is governed. Next Tuesday,
- [Had Any Good Junk Mail Lately?](https://sparrowchat.com/had-any-good-junk-mail-lately/) - What's been arriving in your mailbox lately? Have you recently noticed an increase in the amount of junk dumped on your property by the US mail person? Here's what the US mail delivered to my address today. (Click image to enlarge) Yes, that was just today's mail. I laid it out on the floor of
- [Stop This Senseless Killing!](https://sparrowchat.com/stop-this-senseless-killing/) - Those now in control in Iraq seem hellbent on exterminating all of their old enemies. The BBC reports today that Iraq's deputy prime minister under Saddam Hussein, Tariq Aziz, has been sentenced by an Iraqi court to hang, for indeterminate crimes primarily against the Islamic Dawa party of Nouri al-Maliki. Few can fail to remember
- [Vive La France!](https://sparrowchat.com/vive-la-france/) - There's a war going on across the pond. It's a war that should be waged all over the Western world. Sadly, every nation - bar one - chooses to sit on the sidelines and watch. The US media spends little time on matters outside of its borders, unless Americans are directly involved in some foreign
- [If You Want A Job Doing Properly.......](https://sparrowchat.com/if-you-want-a-job-doing-properly/) - If you've heard the name, Linda Norgrove, this week you'll be one of few in America that has. The US media, usually so quick to report its military's successes, hasn't rushed to bring us this particular headline. Those that did labeled it as a US troop operation to rescue a British female aid worker kidnapped
- [The Madness Of America](https://sparrowchat.com/the-madness-of-america/) - There was a time when America was known for neighborliness and a good-hearted attitude towards others. I'm not sure when that time was, but I've heard it was so. It may still be true in some areas of the United States, but for sure, not in Obion County, Tennessee. Only in today's America would a
- [Old Mum's Tales](https://sparrowchat.com/old-mums-tales/) - I remember my old Mum telling me more than once that 'folks always get what they deserve'. In fact, it was a favorite saying of hers. That one, and the one about .....'some folks never learn'. She usually voiced these quotations following some apparent failing on my part. The response she got was invariably along
- [Getting Healed By Jesus](https://sparrowchat.com/getting-healed-by-jesus/) - It's been a couple of years since I last visited our family doctor's surgery. At first glance nothing much had changed. The crucified Jesus still hung above the reception desk, right over your head as you wait to be seen. I swear the discreet Christian music emanating from speakers in the waiting room ceiling, like
- [You Can Die In Three Weeks](https://sparrowchat.com/you-can-die-in-three-weeks/) - American healthcare may be exorbitantly expensive, but it is the best in the world. Isn't it? I've just been on the telephone to my family doctor's office. I wanted to make an appointment. I was told the earliest I can see a "nurse practitioner" is in two days time. I said I didn't want a
- [The Scavengers Are Circling Overhead](https://sparrowchat.com/the-scavengers-are-circling-overhead/) - Like vultures, they gather. They circle over a carcass as yet barely visible through receding ice. Today they've landed in Moscow, squawking and arguing with each other over who'll have what part. No-one wants to fight over it, they say. But they will. One way or another, they'll fight. Because that's the way of vultures.
- [HFCS - By Any Other Name                   ](https://sparrowchat.com/hfcs-by-any-other-name/) - They're out to change its name. Those poor old members of the Corn Refiners Association, who've been finding it hard to make their dollar billions of late, are "requesting" the Food & Drug Administration change the name of High Fructose Corn Syrup, that nasty insidious sweetener that's been pervading processed foods in the US since
- [Oh Yes, It Can.....](https://sparrowchat.com/oh-yes-it-can/) - Finally, as we bring to a close our celebration of Popey Benedict's four day visit to Britain last week, I give you the ultimate, the complete, the definitive evaluation of His Holiness, and all others like him: [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Christianity-a-sick-religion-John-Cleese-Terry-Jones-Terry-Gilliam.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/vlcsnap-2010-09-20-11h05m25s3.png 360 248] The Pope has gone back home to his gold and jewels and finery. No
- [Can It Get More Ridiculous Than This?](https://sparrowchat.com/can-it-get-more-ridiculous-than-this/) - Continuing our brief celebration of Popey Benedict's four day visit to Britain last week, which incidentally, cost the UK taxpayer around $6,000,000 (whatever their belief system!), I give you a five-way precis of the religious establishment by acknowledged experts on the subject: [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/religion-Bill-Maher-Billy-Connolly-Bill-HicksDavid-CrossEddie-Izzard.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/vlcsnap-2010-09-20-10h31m12s65.png 320 240] My thanks to T.M.Carter, whoever he may be. Filed
- [It's A Lie That Republicans Are Humorless](https://sparrowchat.com/its-a-lie-that-republicans-are-humorless/) - I shamelessly stole this joke from a Republican blog, because I thought it was funny. And there's not much that's funny about most Republican blogs these days: President Obama got off the helicopter in front of the White House, carrying a baby piglet under each arm. The squared away Marine guard snaps to attention, salutes
- [It's Crap, It's Juju!](https://sparrowchat.com/its-crap-its-juju/) - As Popey Benedict's visit to the UK draws to a close, and Christine O'Donnell, the political spawn of Sarah Palin, upsets Republican hopes for the November elections, now seems a good time to revisit Billy Connolly's views on such matters. [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Billy-Connolly-on-Catholicism-and-Sarah-Palin.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/vlcsnap-2010-09-19-21h01m40s66.png 320 184] That just about sums it up, Bill. Filed under: Plain speaking
- [British Catholics Don't Feel Valued](https://sparrowchat.com/british-catholics-dont-feel-valued/) - In to a recent opinion poll of Roman Catholics in Britain, 60% say their faith is not "generally valued" in British society.[1] I would like to know why they think it should be? According to a Daily Telegraph article from 2007, the Catholics had recently overtaken Anglicans as the dominant religion in the UK, with
- [No More Masturbation In Delaware](https://sparrowchat.com/no-more-masturbation-in-delaware/) - It's a sad day for the men (and women) of Delaware as anti-masturbation queen, Christine O'Donnell wins the GOP primary in that State. [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Christine-ODonnells-90s-MTV-Anti-Masturbation-Campaign.flv https://sparrowchat.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/No-More-Honking-In-Delaware.jpg 360 268] There'll be no more 'honking for Christine' in Delaware, lads, she expressly forbids it - outside of marriage, that is. As Rachel Maddow's video shows, O'Donnell founded S.A.L.T
- [Guns Save Lives - But Not In Kentucky](https://sparrowchat.com/guns-save-lives-but-not-in-kentucky/) - I lost track of the times I've posted articles on the theme of gun ownership in America, and the immature and irresponsible laxity of those responsible for gun regulations. Anyone who cares to type the phrase 'guns save lives' - the motto of the infamous National Rifle Association - into Sparrow Chat's search box will
- [9/11](https://sparrowchat.com/911/) - It should be one of the saddest days of the year. It should be a day for nations everywhere to reach out their arms, enfolding them around America in an embrace of comfort, mercy, understanding, and deep love. It should be a day for joining with America in remembering the horror, sharing the grief, uniting
- [Will He, Or Won't He? - Episode Three](https://sparrowchat.com/will-he-or-wont-he-episode-three/) - Pastor Terry Jones says he'll call off his Koran burning party on 9/11. According to a BBC report, he made this statement: This has been for us a very, very difficult, trying time. We have been in much thought and prayer over this whole period. A lot of times we were asked what would it
- [Addendum To The Previous Post](https://sparrowchat.com/addendum-to-the-previous-post/) - While Pastor Jones of Florida raves about burning copies of the Koran, US General David Petraeus publicly denounces him, saying such an act would put the lives of American soldiers at risk. The intervention of such a high-ranking military official as Petraeus only serves to further highlight Jones's brain-dead scheme, providing the US media with
- [If You Ignore Him, He'll Go Away](https://sparrowchat.com/if-you-ignore-him-hell-go-away/) - If there's one thing I despise about America, it's the ability of a small minority here to whip up a national fervor. The Dove World Outreach Center in Florida has a congregation of only fifty members, yet its pastor's decision to burn copies of the Koran on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks has induced
- [So Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Hadley, Feith & Co Want Credit For The Iraq War?](https://sparrowchat.com/so-rumsfeld-wolfowitz-hadley-feith-co-want-credit-for-the-iraq-war/) - Following US President Obama's lackluster address to the nation on the 'ending of hostilities' and withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, it seems the original architects of that debacle are now emerging from their cubbyholes in an attempt to claim - credit?[1] If Western news media took the trouble to ascertain the truth of the
- [It Must Have Been A Good Day](https://sparrowchat.com/it-must-have-been-a-good-day/) - Only nine people died in Iraq from insurgent violence yesterday[1]. [1] "Iraq Today" September 2nd 2010 Filed under: Bread basket of the Middle East
- [At Last A Mainstream Journalist Speaks Out](https://sparrowchat.com/at-last-a-mainstream-journalist-speaks-out/) - Richard Engel, NBC's Chief Foreign Correspondent, airs his views on the state of Iraq today, with reference to President Obama's speech last night. He says nothing that those who have taken the trouble to access the truth on the Iraq War don't already know. What's surprising, perhaps, is that he said it at all, given
- [Lord Sacks Sucks](https://sparrowchat.com/lord-sacks-sucks/) - It was a quiet weekend. I found myself browsing the archives of British newspapers for interesting items missed first time around. The Daily Telegraph supplied one from November 2009. An article about this man. His name is Jonathan Henry Sacks, or Lord Sacks, since his buddies upped him to the British House of Lords. He
- [Probably The Most Relevent Questions Asked This Week](https://sparrowchat.com/probably-the-most-accurate-quote-of-the-week/) - It seems we are once again walking into the same trap, the same nonsensical assumptions of wars won, missions accomplished, troops withdrawn, and jolly soldiers carrying cardboard signs of heart-warming messages like "Lindsay & Austin … Dad's coming home." . . . So what if the US army downgrades its military presence in Iraq and
- [Will They Ever Learn?](https://sparrowchat.com/will-they-ever-learn/) - I've often written that, as an expat Brit in America, arrival here was like stepping back through a half century of time warp. The start of the new school year reminded me yet again when, on driving the school bus towards the next stop I had to brake sharply and pull over, to avoid a
- [Back To Reality](https://sparrowchat.com/back-to-reality/) - I wouldn't necessarily recommend becoming a hermit, but after spending over a week in an empty house on forty acres of very private Michigan woodland, the craziness of so-called 'normal' life can hit you between the eyes, when you eventually return to it. Redecorating the main living room of our eventual retirement home was akin
- [Out Of The Loop](https://sparrowchat.com/out-of-the-loop/) - I'm sorry for the lack of posting, but I'm totally out of the loop right now. The 550 miles between primary home and secondary home have been covered so often I've long ago thrown the maps away. I try to keep up with other blogs as and when, but I'll be back up north next
- [The U.S. Has Lost Its Credibility](https://sparrowchat.com/the-u-s-has-lost-its-credibility/) - There's an old Aesop fable about a little shepherd boy who cried, "Wolf!" He grew bored out on the hillside watching his sheep, so to amuse himself he cried, "Wolf, wolf!" and the villagers ran out of their houses to chase the wolf away, only to discover there was no wolf and the little shepherd
- [Don't Wake Me Up, Just Leave The Bottle](https://sparrowchat.com/dont-wake-me-up-just-leave-the-bottle/) - There's little that incenses me anymore about the world situation. What we do to the planet, and ourselves as a species, was once sufficiently ire-inducing as to provoke angry responses on Sparrow Chat's pages, that left little doubt as to the opinion of this writer for his fellow human beings. Or, at least, a certain
- [Bloody Death And Oily Waters](https://sparrowchat.com/bloody-death-and-oily-waters/) - Posting has been almost non-existent of late due to other priorities. During our recent trip to Michigan's Upper Peninsular we entered into negotiations to purchase a retirement property. The resultant paperwork - to-ing and fro-ing of emails - has occupied much of my time, coupled with a need to smarten up our present house before
- [Ultimatum!](https://sparrowchat.com/ultimatum-2/) - The Obama administration has told BP that it has until Sunday night to come up with better plans to contain the leak in the Gulf oil spill......[1] "Now look here, Mister BP, you've got till Sunday night, and if you don't come up with a better plan I'll......I'll......well, darnnit you just better......that's all!" [1] "Obama's
- [So Much For Free Speech](https://sparrowchat.com/so-much-for-free-speech/) - "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, find or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, purchase or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, ed and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." The nation that makes so much of
- [On Our Hols](https://sparrowchat.com/on-our-hols/) - Posting will be light for a while as we're on vacation in Marquette, on Michigan's wonderful Upper Peninsular. While here, we're busy viewing properties and hoping to find somewhere suitable to purchase for our retirement in twelve months time. Meanwhile, here's a postcard. (Click image to enlarge) Filed under: Vacation time
- [Bring Back That Ole Dog And Bone](https://sparrowchat.com/bring-back-that-ole-dog-and-bone/) - Modern technology is being driven by Capitalism. Some may consider that a good thing. After all, it brings us new drugs to combat diseases, more fuel-efficient motor vehicles, better ways to communicate over long distances. That's why, three months ago, I purchased the latest cordless telephone system from Panasonic. DECT 6.0 technology is supposed to
- [What A Farce!](https://sparrowchat.com/what-a-farce/) - Glenn Beck has a one man comedy show that tours the country, but there was no more spectacular comedy than the one performed recently at the biggest Madrassa on planet Earth - the inaptly named, 'Liberty University'. Glenn Beck was presented with an honorary doctorate in something religious, while hundreds of young, heavily-brainwashed, students and
- [In The Beginning](https://sparrowchat.com/in-the-beginning/) - In the beginning was the tribe. And the tribe flourished and became great. In times of trouble, or concern, the tribe turned to the old men for advice, for the old men had lived long and were wise. They had experienced all the great world had to offer, both good and bad, and knew best
- [And Americans Wonder Why They're Getting Bombed](https://sparrowchat.com/and-americans-wonder-why-theyre-getting-bombed/) - Barack Obama, like many other presidents before him, members of Congress, and most of the American people, just don't get it. Everytime there's an attempt to bomb this country, however vague and amateurish it might be, they run around like headless chickens, panicking, wondering why on earth this is happening to them. The media hurtles
- [From 'Woombie' To 'Restra2' In Gentle Stages](https://sparrowchat.com/from-woombie-to-restra2-in-gentle-stages/) - Allow me to introduce you to the 'Woombie': As the manufacturers of this cosy little number tell us: "From Womb to Woombie... ...because you both deserve a better nights sleep![1] The Woombie is a proud winner of the PTPA (Parent Tested Parent Approved), Moms Best and Creative Child Awards. We have been seen on television,
- [Another Week In Capitalist Paradise](https://sparrowchat.com/another-week-in-capitalist-paradise/) - Europeans may not be able to pronounce, Eyjafjallajokull, but those stranded on foreign shores this week and unable to fly home, will undoubtedly remember it for the rest of their lives. The eruption of this Icelandic volcano may not have been huge by volcanological standards, but it managed to ground most of the continent's aircraft
- [A Last Word On The British General Election - At Least, Till May 8th.](https://sparrowchat.com/a-last-word-on-the-british-general-election-at-least-till-may-8th/) - To the British electorate: Congratulations! Well done! You must go down in history as the greatest bunch of ditheringly inept plonkers since Zafar the ditherer, and he was the last Mughal emperor of India. Faced with two of the most corrupt and incompetent political parties ever to soil the chambers of Parliament; disillusioned with a
- [Too Fat To Fight](https://sparrowchat.com/too-fat-to-fight/) - This country is fast becoming as goofy as the cartoons it produces in Hollywood. Hardly a day goes by without yet another ludicrous statement or action, by those one would expect to know better, tipping the balance of national sanity sharply towards stark, staring, madness. According to the BBC website today, two former chairmen of
- [America's Shame......](https://sparrowchat.com/americas-shame/) - ......that images like this are being viewed around the world. "In pictures: American's largest free health clinic" - courtesy of the BBC, May 1st 2010. Healthcare in the US is the privilege of the well-to-do or well-insured." Stan Brock, founder of RAM - the Remote Area Volunteer Corps. Only there's nothing remote about Los Angeles,
- [Drill, Baby..... Or, Don't Drill?](https://sparrowchat.com/drill-baby-or-dont-drill/) - Two-thirds of Americans approve of off-shore oil drilling. That wasn't the case before gasoline hit four dollars a gallon, but like most other capitalist populations used to a relatively easy life, Americans can change their minds like the wind, or more likely the thickness of their wallets. "Don't worry," promised Tony Haywood, the latest big
- [Chinese Lanterns?](https://sparrowchat.com/chinese-lanterns/) - About nine months ago the Adam's household decided it was time to go green and replace all those old, high-energy, incandescent light bulbs with the new curly-wurly type. Two boxes were purchased from Wal-Mart. One contained 60-watt equivalents, the other, 75-watt equivalents. According to the blurb on the box, each bulb would last, "up to
- [Every Nation Has Its Fucking Idiots - America Has More Than Most](https://sparrowchat.com/every-nation-has-its-fucking-idiots-america-has-more-than-most/) - There are a load of fucking idiots in America. I make no apology for the adjective. There's really no other way to describe them. Of course, there are fucking idiots in every country on Earth - including Great Britain. In fact, Britain has more than its fair share. It's one of the reasons it can
- [Only My Second Comment Ever On The UK General Election (At Least, Until May 7th)](https://sparrowchat.com/only-my-second-comment-ever-on-the-uk-general-election-at-least-until-may-7th/) - It's finally happened. It was only a matter of time. According to Alistair Burnett, who chaired last night's farce - laughingly called a 'debate' - "we've been trying for years to get the party leaders on television to debate the issues prior to a general election." Yes, we have. But not in the glitzy, glamor-way,
- [What Have We Become?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-have-we-become-2/) - My wife recently brought to my attention the two items below. The first asks the question, "What kind of planet are we on?" Take four minutes of your time to view it. [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/What-Kind-of-Planet-Are-We-On-.mp4.flv 400 268] The second is a link to a story about a 61 year-old British man, find Roy Amor. It appeared in
- [Have You Had Your 'National Referendum' Yet?](https://sparrowchat.com/have-you-had-your-national-referendum-yet/) - I received a letter yesterday from Republican Congressman John Boehner, the House Republican Leader. Well, in truth, it was sent to my wife. She's an American citizen. I'm not, so I don't count. As my wife is certainly 'left of center', she made to throw it in the garbage, but I stopped her. After all,
- [My Only Comment <u>Ever</u> On The UK General Election (At Least Until May 7th)](https://sparrowchat.com/my-only-comment-ever-on-the-uk-general-election-at-least-until-may-7th/) - The forthcoming British general election is such a non-event that it hardly merits discussion. Gordon Brown's revelation that May 6th would, indeed, be election day surprised no-one, as the date had been leaked to the public domain over a month ago. The UK media is doing its best to pump up public enthusiasm, but Brits
- [A Sickening Tale Of Government Deception](https://sparrowchat.com/a-sickening-tale-of-government-deception/) - Today, the British government announced its intention to turn 210,000 square miles of the Indian Ocean archipelago into the world's largest marine reserve. According to the BBC, the British Foreign Secretary David Milliband, said of the project: Its creation is a major step forward for protecting the oceans, not just around BIOT [British Indian Ocean
- [More Bumper Sticker Musings](https://sparrowchat.com/more-bumper-sticker-musings/) - I stopped at the red light this morning, and there it was in front of me: a Honda Civic, black, the driver - murky behind misted glass, but - obviously female. Neither the person, nor the car, attracted my attention. It was the stickers on the trunk lid that caught my eye. On the left
- [America Still Has Its Neanderthals](https://sparrowchat.com/america-still-has-its-neanderthals/) - The state of America today is aptly represented by the foul-mouthed, ignorant, knuckle-dragging, Neanderthals so heavily indoctrinated by the Limbaugh's and Beck's of this country, who see fit to make abusive telephone threats to politicians not prepared to do their evil bidding. Whatever one's opinion of Bart Stupak (and the writer has an extremely low
- [It's That Old 'Head-In-The-Sand' Syndrome](https://sparrowchat.com/its-that-old-head-in-the-sand-syndrome/) - The media today is full of the spat between America and Israel; the falling out of two close friends who can't quite agree on what's right and what's wrong. In Britain, Finance Supremo Darling (yes, that truly is his name) sweats profusely over a budget that must grip the present economic crisis by the short
- [Hurrah! It's AIPAC Week](https://sparrowchat.com/hurrah-its-aipac-week/) - The arrival in the US of that latest King of the Jews, Benyamin Netanyahu, has sent a thrill of anticipation through the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). He's come all this way to address them and offer his support. It's AIPAC Week in America, folks! Beginning this morning, 7,000 or so members will be
- [Much Ado About......Hardly Anything!](https://sparrowchat.com/much-ado-about-hardly-anything/) - While many Americans will consider the passing of the healthcare bill yesterday a great step forward, and others wring their hands with dismay at the death of democracy (as they see it), the overall effect of this legislation is likely to be minimal for the vast majority of US citizens, and yet another profit-spinner for
- [Definition](https://sparrowchat.com/definition/) - OPTIMIST: someone who looks at their tub of spread at the breakfast table and thinks, "Wow! 46% pure vegetable oil." PESSIMIST: someone who looks at their tub of spread at the breakfast table and thinks, "What's in the other 36%?" Filed under: Additives
- [It's The Little Things That Get You Down ](https://sparrowchat.com/its-the-little-things-about-america-that-get-you-down/) - It looks like Spring may finally have arrived in Illinois; the ladybugs are crawling everywhere, squirrels are randy, and the lilac in the yard is beginning to bud. Time for a spot of spring cleaning, perhaps, but - oh, dear - a glance around the old homestead reveals a bit more than a scrubber and
- [Matters We're Not Supposed To Know About](https://sparrowchat.com/matters-were-not-supposed-to-know-about/) - If you plan to start the week with a smile on your lips and optimism in your heart, then don't read this article. On the other hand, if you'd prefer to be realistic, and know when the time is right to bend over, put your head between your legs, and kiss your arse goodbye -
- [The Curse Of The Uninformed Opinion Writer](https://sparrowchat.com/the-curse-of-the-uninformed-opinion-writer/) - My pet hates today are politicians and Howard Jacobson. Okay, we all hate politicians; I'll just find the end of the queue. But what, you may ask, has Howard Jacobson done to incur my wrath? The answer is, he spent a week watching American television, then had the nerve to write an article in the
- [The Devil's A Pedophile](https://sparrowchat.com/the-devils-a-pedophile/) - Regular readers of Sparrow Chat will be aware of the contempt and disgust frequently leveled, via these pages, at those who - whether through weak-minded self-delusion or sheer malicious greed - attempt to gain power and control over others in order to manipulate their lives. The use of religious dogma as a means of political
- [Book Learning?](https://sparrowchat.com/book-learning/) - According to a report in today's Independent newspaper: A female deputy head of a special school had sex with one of her pupils four times in the toilets of the British Library, a court heard today."[1] The lady told police she was 'trying to support the teenager' who was 'a very troubled young man'. My
- [Now, Children, Would You Like To Wear Your Seat Belts, Or Not?](https://sparrowchat.com/now-children-would-you-like-to-wear-your-seat-belt-or-not/) - If there's anyone out there left with even a vestige of belief that sanity still exists somewhere in America, let me disillusion you yet again. Illinois is an average sort of State, not considered extremist, mainly Democrat voters. Like every other State of the Union, it enforces a seat belt law. Every adult traveling in
- [British Intelligence Didn't Know Anything](https://sparrowchat.com/british-intelligence-didnt-know-anything/) - According to Baroness Eliza Manningham-Buller, the former head of the British Intelligence Agency, MI5, the United States concealed from the agency the fact that it was torturing terror suspects.[1] Isn't the whole point of an intelligence service to find out things others are trying to conceal from them? [1] "Ex-MI5 chief says US 'concealed suspect
- [Only In Tennessee, Or Nebraska, Or Omaha, Or......](https://sparrowchat.com/only-in-tennessee-or-nebraska-or-omaha-or/) - ......Illinois, or Louisiana, or Virginia, or any one of the fifty states of the USA, could this appalling tragedy occur. A U.S. toddler accidentally killed herself after mistaking her stepfather's handgun for a Nintendo Wii control. Cheyenne Alexis McKeehan, three, shot herself in the stomach with the .380 caliber, semi-automatic weapon after finding it lying
- [Spring Has Sprung!](https://sparrowchat.com/spring-has-sprung/) - Winter's finally over. Spring madness is in the air. Yet again a high ranking official of the USA is in Israel, proclaiming another 'moment of real opportunity' for Jews and Palestinians to kiss and make up, forget their differences, and live together as brothers and sisters for ever and ever, amen. Do these idiots truly
- [Is Fallujah Finally Coming Home To Roost?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-fallujah-finally-coming-home-to-roost/) - The Iraqi press has been proclaiming it for years. Independent journalists have shouted it from the rooftops. The Western press has barely mentioned it, while the American media has been prominent amongst the silent. Today, however, the BBC in the guise of its World Editor, John Simpson, has blown the top off a story that
- [Birthright Israel: Further Down The Slippery Slope](https://sparrowchat.com/birthright-israel-further-down-the-slippery-slope/) - A few days ago I wrote of a problem bothering the Israeli government, viz: the Gentile population of Israel and its surrounding neighbors was swelling, rapidly gaining ground over the Jewish populace.[1] In an effort to combat that worrying prospect, the Israelis were marketing their nation to young Jewish people around the world, in an
- [Birthright Israel? But Only If You're A Jew](https://sparrowchat.com/birthright-israel-but-only-if-youre-a-jew/) - There's a problem in Israel right now. It's been getting worse for some time. The Israeli government is desperate to do something about it. The problem: not enough Jews and too many Gentiles. The influx of Jewish immigrants into Israel has been declining year on year. Non-Jewish foreign workers have increased, particularly since the last
- [How Would You Feel?](https://sparrowchat.com/how-would-you-feel/) - How would you feel if you knew that your actions had caused the layoffs of over 2,000 construction workers? How would you feel if your actions prevented millions of your fellow citizens from obtaining much needed unemployment benefits? How would you feel if your actions had cut the funding to doctors who treated the poor?
- [And The Chicks Are Free](https://sparrowchat.com/and-the-chicks-are-free/) - Coming from another country, as I did in 2002, it's easy to discern certain factors that most Americans never stop to consider. They're just too close to them - can't see the wood for the trees, you might say. I've had occasion to visit the local hospital recently. Nothing serious, you understand. My wife needed
- [With Apologies To Don McLean......](https://sparrowchat.com/with-apologies-to-don-mclean/) - It must have taken a lot of beer to compose and record this song. [flv:/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Evan-Bayh.flv 425 344] Filed under: Greatest hits
- [Who Makes The Justice?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-makes-the-justice/) - A nation state can assassinate a human being with impunity, and on a whim, yet when a man chooses to end the unbearable suffering of one he loves, he is arrested for murder. The brutal killing of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, a Hamas leader, in Dubai last month was undoubtedly carried out by Mossad, the Israeli 'secret
- ["As Ye Sow, So Shall Ye Reap"](https://sparrowchat.com/as-ye-sow-so-shall-ye-reap/) - There's a saying somewhere in the Bible, "As ye sow, so shall ye reap." I'm sure there's plenty of holy bods out there who could quote me chapter and verse. I was reminded of it yesterday when I read two articles, one by a professional journalist whom I have no compunction about naming and shaming,
- [And In The Red Corner.....Or, Is It The Blue?](https://sparrowchat.com/and-in-the-red-corner-or-is-it-the-blue/) - "Ladies and gentlemen......announcing the boxing match of the decade......the fight of the century......a bout to not be missed. Our two contenders for the heavyweight boxing title of the U-nited States are Joe 'Basher' Bandylegs and Dick 'the Dynamo' Dunderhead. Joe Bangylegs will fight in the St Louis Stadium, Missouri, at 9.00pm, and simultaneously Dick Dunderhead
- [Ah Don't Think So......](https://sparrowchat.com/ah-dont-think-so/) - If you've ever stood in the queue at a Walgreens' pharmacy, waiting to pick up a prescription, you'll inevitably have noticed the anguish, frustration, or sheer bad temper of some in front of you as they are told their drugs are not covered by a particular insurance company, and the amount they have to find
- [Sparrow Chat's RSS Feeds Are Working Fine](https://sparrowchat.com/sparrow-chats-rss-feeds-are-working-fine/) - There is nothing wrong with the Sparrow Chat rss feeds. The problem lies with Bloglines. I've used Bloglines as my rss reader for years, ever since it became available. In all that time it has never been updated, changed format, or added extra facilities. I've been waiting a week for Bloglines to respond to my
- [Back Online - Hopefully.](https://sparrowchat.com/back-online-hopefully/) - It looks as though, finally, the nasty viruses have been vanquished. While it was relatively easy to wipe the gobbledygook from the core files, today's hackers invariably leave themselves a 'back door' security hole in the website structure, through which they can reinfect at their leisure. Attempting to locate and plug that hole has been
- [Mummy, Can I Be An Adult When I Grow Up?](https://sparrowchat.com/mummy-can-i-be-an-adult-when-i-grow-up/) - Remember, as a small child, how one looked up to adults? They appeared so mature, completely sure of themselves, involved in matters way too important and mystical for a mere child to comprehend. One day the child will be like them: no longer an infant, but a different person with a whole new set of
- [Damned Virus Hackers!](https://sparrowchat.com/damned-virus-hackers/) - Apologies to those who've tried to access Sparrow Chat in the last few days. Some members of the loathsome scum club of the internet, "Hackers Anonymous", with nothing better to do with their time than research new ways to infect websites, managed to penetrate the blog's defenses causing some downtime while I located and removed
- [Quote Of The Week?](https://sparrowchat.com/quote-of-the-week-2/) - My grandmother was not a highly educated woman, but she told me as a small child to quit feeding stray animals. You know why? Because they breed. You're facilitating the problem if you give an animal or a person ample food supply. They will reproduce, especially ones that don't think too much further than that.
- ["Couldn't Organize A Piss-Up In A Brewery"](https://sparrowchat.com/couldnt-organize-a-piss-up-in-a-brewery/) - Massachusetts' Latest Senator. It's truly difficult to believe, and only serves to reinforce the general viewpoint held by the rest of the world, but the evidence is irrefutable: Americans are, by and large, selfish, self-centered, bigoted, and above all, totally stupid. Now, it has to be said, such generalizations are open to criticism. There are
- [Is There Anybody There?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-there-anybody-there/) - It's perplexed man almost since the dawn of Homo sapiens. The vexed question: is there a God, has, despite those who choose to believe by virtue of blind faith, always evaded a definitive answer. Throughout our evolution as a species, the sheer inability to answer that question with any degree of certainty has led to
- [Welcome To The Machine](https://sparrowchat.com/welcome-to-the-machine/) - They're old men now, but some of the songs that helped make the rock band, Pink Floyd, famous were all about the Establishment Machine that churns out human beings like clones to do its bidding, whether slaving in its factories or dying in its wars. Today, thirty years on from Pink Floyd's heyday, the Establishment
- [Winter: Proof Global Warming Is Rubbish?](https://sparrowchat.com/winter-proof-global-warming-is-rubbish/) - "Baby, it's cold outside," crooned Dean Martin, in a desperate attempt to persuade his girlfriend to stay the night. Whether he succeeded is hardly clear from the song (though, it's certainly implied). It's incredibly cold in Illinois right now. Temperatures have plummeted to below zero degrees Fahrenheit and snow is moving relentlessly in this direction.
- [Thoughts On The Decade](https://sparrowchat.com/thoughts-on-the-decade/) - There's little to inspire about the first decade of the 21st century. Those worldwide celebrations to mark the beginning of a new millennium filled everyone with hope and optimism, but just as every New Year's party provides the impetus for short-lived resolutions, the decade was only a little over a year old before those hopes
- [Die Soon, Limbaugh.](https://sparrowchat.com/die-soon-limbaugh/) - Right wing radio broadcaster, Rush Limbaugh, was recently rushed to hospital in Hawaii with severe chest pains. The blogosphere was rife with comment and speculation. One female commentator caught my attention. She wrote that, while she disagreed vehemently with his views, she still hoped he'd make a full recovery from the affliction that ailed him.
- [Best Wishes From Sparrow Chat](https://sparrowchat.com/best-wishes-from-sparrow-chat/) - Rather belatedly, I wish all Sparrow Chat readers a very merry Christmas, and a happy and prosperous New Year. It's a busy time in most households and 'chez Adams' is no exception. I hope to be back at the keyboard before too long. Until then, eat, drink, and be merry as befits the season, and
- [Liebe Macht Frei](https://sparrowchat.com/liebe-macht-frei/) - "Arbeit macht frei" is a physical symbol of the atrocities committed by the Nazis during WW2. The sign bearing those words, recently stolen from its position above the main gate of the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp, translates as, "Work sets you free".[1] It's significance goes much further than its innocuous meaning. This camp was the
- [Wonderful, Wonderful, Copenhagen?](https://sparrowchat.com/wonderful-wonderful-copenhagen/) - Barack Obama has sunk the Copenhagen climate summit. His speech to delegates was eloquent, but empty. They expected him to lead the world into a new era, but all he really did was inform them what America was doing about climate change, and how everyone else could follow suit, or sink, or swim. "America is
- [Continuing In The Spirit Of The Season...](https://sparrowchat.com/continuing-in-the-spirit-of-the-season/) - Courtesy of St Matthew-in-the-City Anglican church in Auckland, decease New Zealand.........and the Daily Mail Filed under: Big Yin
- [Happy <del>Hanukkah</del> <del>Christmas</del> <del>Yuletide</del> Well, Something!](https://sparrowchat.com/happy-hanukkah-christmas-yuletide-well-something/) - The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c Eight Is Enough www.thedailyshow.com Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis Great fun! Had anyone else done this, apart from Jewish Jon Stewart, would they have been labeled, "Antisemitic!" Filed under: Festival of Slight
- [One For You, And One For Me](https://sparrowchat.com/one-for-you-and-one-for-me/) - More and more frequently of late we find instances of the political elite working alongside each other to cover up illegalities and injustices. Perhaps the most blatant of these 'all boys together' tactics is taking place right now in Britain. Recently, an arrest warrant was issued in London by a British judge. The warrant was
- [Have A Truly Absurd Christmas](https://sparrowchat.com/have-a-truly-absurd-christmas/) - With the advent of Christmas upon us, or, as our American cousins prefer to call it, the "Holiday Season", absurdity shines all around, much as did the "glory" in that well known Christmas carol. Nowhere is this more evident than outside the multitude of churches dotted all over the American heartlands. Two, that I pass
- [Cloud Cuckoo Land?](https://sparrowchat.com/cloud-cuckoo-land/) - The belief systems of Western leaders, in particular those of the United States, are difficult to fathom. Any semblance of commonsense is masked behind indoctrinated arrogance, totally blinding the owners to obvious flaws in their thinking. It's as though they've drawn all their reasoning from re-runs of Mickey Mouse cartoons, or the early animated feature
- [No Way To Make It Right, Ohio](https://sparrowchat.com/no-way-to-make-it-right-ohio/) - You have to hand it to the state of Ohio. They've finally come into modernity. No longer any nasty triple-injection executions for them. Ohio is now using Sodium Thiopental (otherwise known as Sodium Pentobarbitone, trade names - Nembutal, Euthatal) to see off their unwanted criminals. I used Euthatal for years. Not personally, on myself, you'll
- [Excuse Me, What Time's The Next Train To Kabul?](https://sparrowchat.com/excuse-me-what-times-the-next-train-to-kabul/) - The new U.S. strategy in Afghanistan involves sending another 30,000 troops up against highly trained and motivated Taliban insurgents in some of the most difficult fighting terrain on the planet. The success of this misguided enterprise, already entering its ninth year without serious gains by either side, is dependent on the U.S. military's new counter
- [Canada, Oh Canada!](https://sparrowchat.com/canada-oh-canada/) - We all know the United States is looking a bit rocky these days - what with the recession, those fatcat bankers bailed out by the taxpayer, only to continue paying themselves obscene bonuses; two foreign wars draining the US Treasury of the few cents the bankers left behind; Sarah Palin likely to become president in
- [What Have We Become?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-have-we-become/) - John Demjanjuk is 89 years old and in frail health. Today he was wheeled into court on a gurney to stand trial in Munich for crimes committed sixty years ago. The evidence is circumstantial. About as circumstantial as the evidence presented to an Israeli court on the last occasion John DemJanjuk was extradited from the
- [It's For Their Own Good, Really](https://sparrowchat.com/its-for-their-own-good-really/) - One of my regular reads, Vineyard Views, recently drew attention to an article by Stephen Walt in 'Foreign Policy'. It was entitled, "Why They Hate Us", and addressed the concept of military occupation. Walt begins the piece thus: One of the many barriers to developing a saner U.S. foreign policy is our collective failure to
- [The Church Of The "Loving" God](https://sparrowchat.com/the-church-of-the-loving-god/) - Patrick Kennedy, son of the late Senator Edward Kennedy, has been ostracized by the Catholic Church and told not to partake of communion, due to his views on abortion rights.[1] Patrick Kennedy has never been ostracized by his church for binge drinking, drug addiction, driving under the influence, or any of the other 'sins' to
- [Remembering The Beltway Sniper](https://sparrowchat.com/remembering-the-beltway-sniper/) - I arrived in America on September 18th 2002. Two weeks later, on October 2nd, John Allen Muhammad - the Beltway Sniper, as he quickly became known - murdered his first Washington victim. The following day, October 3rd, Muhammad's killing spree peaked, with the shooting dead of five more innocent people. Over the next nineteen days
- [Terrorism Is Alive And Well And Living In Joe Lieberman's Head](https://sparrowchat.com/terrorism-is-alive-and-well-and-living-in-joe-liebermans-head/) - Take one devout Muslim of first generation Palestinian descent, clad him in a U.S. soldier uniform, and pretend he's a full-blooded American hero who'll fight for his country against all comers. Subject him to harassment from his fellow soldiers because of his religion, then tell him he's being sent to kill his relatives in the
- [Moss, Anyone?](https://sparrowchat.com/moss-anyone/) - It's often not easy being what is colloquially known as an 'ex-pat'. After seven years in America I'm no nearer being 'an American', but neither can I honestly say I'm still totally British. I occasionally joke with my lovely American wife that I belong somewhere round about the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. 'Twilight'
- [Rocking The Indoctrinal Boat](https://sparrowchat.com/rocking-the-indoctrinal-boat/) - I recently underwent a routine medical examination as required by my work. The technician who did the initial tests was a boy about seventeen or eighteen years old. He told me he was studying medicine and doing his "pre-med" at the clinic. He was a pleasant, intelligent, young man eager to hear about Britain and
- [Almost Hallelujah](https://sparrowchat.com/almost-hallelujah/) - Joyful news! I believe I've finally found a church that suits me. I just love the Amazing Grace Baptist Church of Canton, North Carolina. They have all the best ideas, and the greatest of all is planned to take place this very Halloween. They're having an enormous bonfire and they're going to burn - Bibles.
- [Some Get What They Deserve, Others Don't](https://sparrowchat.com/some-get-what-they-deserve-others-dont/) - Two totally different news stories caught my eye this week. The first illustrates the total lunacy of America's obsession with guns. Readers will, no doubt, remember the furore created when mother-of-three, Meleanie Hain, from Pennsylvania turned up at her kids' football game toting a 9mm Glock handgun in a holster strapped to her waist. Quite
- [Just Another Day In America](https://sparrowchat.com/just-another-day-in-america/) - It not easy to find anything worth writing about these days. If the US citizenry are unable to comprehend the dubious caliber of those they vote into office, even when political corruption jumps out in front of them with the violence of an asteroid striking the planet, then there's little point wasting my time writing
- [Making No Difference](https://sparrowchat.com/making-no-difference/) - Over-sentimentality is no substitute for a properly governed welfare state. If you listen to many Americans, though, and if you're not careful to hang on to your thought processes, you'll come to believe it is. They certainly do. It's all about this thing they call 'neighborliness'. Listen to them talk, and it's as though no-one
- [Bring "Creation" To America!](https://sparrowchat.com/bring-creation-to-america/) - There's a new film being released in the UK.[1] It will soon be distributed throughout the rest of the world. Except, that is, in the United States of America. Why not in America? Because 39% 61% of Americans - the most controlling 61%, that is - are utter morons who belong in the Dark Ages.
- [Oh, Golly](https://sparrowchat.com/oh-golly-2/) - It was probably the sign - at the front, on the inside of the bus - that started me thinking about it. Even at six years of age I couldn't comprehend why it was needed. Surely, no-one would do such a thing, would they? Not that I ever did see anyone do it on a
- [Victory, Or Defeat?](https://sparrowchat.com/victory-or-defeat/) - War is sickening. I'm not sure at what point in my life I came to that conclusion, but it was probably around the time I realized that blowing someone else to bits was really no different from someone else blowing me to bits, and I didn't fancy that one little bit. War is all about
- [There <i>Is</i> No Healthcare Debate](https://sparrowchat.com/there-is-no-healthcare-debate/) - There is no 'healthcare debate'. The arguments against reform don't exist. My part-time work is merely to get me out the house for a few hours each day. Money's always useful, but it's not the primary reason I do what I do. Recently, the company I worked for was taken over by another. The new
- [Health Care Reform? Don't Let The Wealthy Suffer](https://sparrowchat.com/health-care-reform-dont-let-the-wealthy-suffer/) - We don't need health care reform. At least, that's what Republican senators like Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Tom Coburn of Oklahoma would have us believe. Of course, McConnell was paid $2,000,000 by the health industry to say exactly that, as part of his campaign financing.[1] Coburn was paid $193,000. The health industry was, by
- [I'm Just Nipping Across The Road To Take Out My Neighbor's Appendix](https://sparrowchat.com/im-just-nipping-across-the-road-to-take-out-my-neighbors-appendix/) - Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn says we don't need healthcare reform - just a little more 'neighborliness'. I guess we have to hope this woman has a brain surgeon living on her left, and a speech therapist across the street. And, maybe, a couple of trained nurses with nothing better to do, just down the road.
- [Lockerbie: The Hypocrisy Of Governments](https://sparrowchat.com/lockerbie-the-hypocrisy-of-governments/) - America is up in arms; it stammers with indignation, screams for its own brand of "justice" while threatening economic embargo against its closest ally. Why? Because a man with a terminal disease, who will be dead within three months, has been allowed to leave prison in Scotland and return to spend his last moments with
- [Don't Stop The Decay - It Might Spell C-H-A-N-G-E](https://sparrowchat.com/dont-stop-the-decay-it-might-spell-c-h-a-n-g-e/) - We sneaked away for four days - back to Lake Superior. It was a last chance before term started and I returned to ferrying little kids to and from school. Marquette is such a pleasant town. It was good to smell the fresh air and once again wander streets studded with fine examples of Victorian
- [Why CNN Can't Be Trusted](https://sparrowchat.com/why-cnn-cant-be-trusted/) - The last week has seen me laid low with a stomach bug. Happily, I'm on the mend, but the accompanying lethargy resulted in an unusual pastime for me - TV watching, and in particular, CNN. I was keen to see if TV news has changed at all since I gave up viewing a few months
- [Dead Taliban And Flaming Genitals](https://sparrowchat.com/dead-taliban-and-flaming-genitals/) - A major headline this morning, both on the TV and the BBC website, proclaimed the [probable] death of Baitullah Mehsud.[1] At the announcement, it was not hard to imagine twenty million people worldwide staring perplexedly at each other, and asking, "Who?" So, the Americans may have got lucky and assassinated a Taliban leader on the
- [The Inevitable Course](https://sparrowchat.com/the-inevitable-course/) - The ugly face of America is once more in evidence as politicians head off for their summer break and the traditional 'Town Hall' meetings prevalent at this time of year. Already reports are coming in of organized intimidation by far right activists who, at the behest of corporate lobbying companies and the health industry, are
- [A Crucible Of The Human Condition](https://sparrowchat.com/a-crucible-of-the-human-condition/) - Justin Webb, the BBC's "North America editor", has long been an irritant to me. His reports, as featured on BBC News America, were fawning, establishment-toadying, and left one with an unpleasant after-taste reminiscent of the morning after a heavy bout of absinthe assimilation. Listen to Webb, without the necessary knowledge only obtainable from permanent residence
- [The God Of American Weaponry](https://sparrowchat.com/the-god-of-american-weaponry/) - Just one month ago, Kentucky Pastor Ken Pagano opened his church to gun-toting parishioners in a 'celebration of the Second Amendment'.[1] In defense of this grossly irreligious act (in most other Christian countries of the world he'd be unfrocked for such behavior) he said: If it were not for a deep-seated belief in the right
- [Back To Insanity](https://sparrowchat.com/back-to-insanity/) - It's been a week since we returned home from Marquette. Our time on the Michigan Upper Peninsular was spent walking, sightseeing, and enjoying the blissfully fresh coolness of a Lake Superior summer. Wonders were sighed over, the clean air and friendliness of the natives enjoyed, and plans to move there with haste, as soon as
- [Stranded On Lake Superior In Blisteringly Wonderful Seventy Degree Heat](https://sparrowchat.com/stranded-on-lake-superior-in-blisteringly-wonderful-seventy-degree-heat/) - I'm in Marquette, on the Upper Peninsular of Michigan. It's wonderful. If you don't turn on the TV it's possible to get through a whole day without hearing the name, Michael Jackson. Bliss! The weather is terrific. While central Illinois steams in ninety degree heat, here the sun beams down generating a balmy seventy Fahrenheit,
- [Your Money Or Your Life?](https://sparrowchat.com/your-money-or-your-life/) - No-one would suggest Bernie Madoff's crime wasn't serious. It was stealing, pure and simple. Probably the greatest 'heist' of all time. It was hardly on par with the crimes of a serial killer, though. Or, was it? There was a time when human life was the most precious thing. To take it away warranted the
- [A Touch Of Amnesia](https://sparrowchat.com/a-touch-of-amnesia/) - In America today, it would seem that any semblance of humility, acquired as a result of the disastrous George W Bush era, has evaporated away. The one thing we can rely on about this nation is its infamous short-term memory loss. Interference in Iraq brought about a world disaster of catastrophic proportions. The effects will
- [Sharing A Personal Birthday Memory](https://sparrowchat.com/sharing-a-personal-birthday-memory/) - I was saddened recently to discover that the blog of a dear friend had been taken down. Xristi Megas was a very special person, her blog, "Gadflying", a treasure trove of wit and wisdom, interspersed with her own special brand of poetry. Xristi died in December 2006. Sadly, much of what we had of her
- [A Waiting Game](https://sparrowchat.com/a-waiting-game/) - Do you get the impression the whole world is waiting? It's as though the planet itself is holding its breath, hoping against hope that the end of the Bush era, coupled with the rise of Obama, may restore a measure of sanity and reconciliation to this grief-torn world. There's not been much happening at Sparrow
- [Let Us Ensure They Remember](https://sparrowchat.com/let-us-ensure-they-remember/) - The Chinese communist government is refusing to allow any commemoration of the protests that took place twenty years ago, beginning on April 15th 1989 following the death of a pro-democracy worker, Hu Yaobang,[1] and lasting until tanks finally cleared Tiananmen Square during the days of June 4th and 5th, 1989. A heavy police presence on
- [Kim Jong-il Quakes In His Boots](https://sparrowchat.com/kim-jong-il-quakes-in-his-boots/) - It's at times like these that politicians are truly at their most amusing. Internationally, they love to squabble among themselves, hold heated debates within the safety of the United Nations, and appear to us lowly masses as important and all-powerful beings. Suddenly, along comes a scruffy, half-beat, little nation like North Korea. It sticks its
- [Has George W Bush Just Changed His Skin Color?](https://sparrowchat.com/has-george-w-bush-just-changed-his-skin-color/) - "These are bad men who would hurt America. We can't afford to let them loose." I've been taking a break from watching the news, particularly anything to do with politics. It was quite by chance the channel tuned to the TV was showing a clip from, "Meet the Press", or some similar program, as I
- [The Great Global Con-Trick](https://sparrowchat.com/the-great-global-con-trick/) - How long can democracy survive in the present world climate? Is the fusing of political parties really a positive move, of lasting benefit to those nations classified as 'democratic'? Today, it was announced that Jon Huntsman, the Republican governor of Utah, would be US President Obama's new Ambassador to China. He is just another of
- [Noblesse Oblige? Only In Blogland It Seems.](https://sparrowchat.com/noblesse-oblige-only-in-blogland-it-seems/) - It's been sometime since there was a post on Sparrow Chat. As reported in the previous missive, priorities have lain elsewhere due to the season, and frankly there's not been much on the news or political scene to wet one's interest and inspire composition. Nevertheless, that Sparrow Chat must remain an ongoing project was brought
- [Doing The Chores](https://sparrowchat.com/doing-the-chores/) - I apologize for the lightness of the posting of late, but this is the time of year in Central Illinois when, within in a few weeks, one has to undertake all those jobs that those who are fortunate and inhabit a 'normal' climate can spread over a whole summer of outdoor activity. Already we've touched
- [Being The Victor Is No Defence](https://sparrowchat.com/being-the-victor-is-no-defence/) - Jon Stewart of the Daily Show recently battled verbally with Cliff May over the question of whether America's use of waterboarding, and other interrogation techniques defined as torture under the Geneva Conventions, could or could not be excused as acceptable, given the terrorist threat to America. Resulting from that exchange, Stewart last night apologized on
- [A British Prime Minister With No Manners](https://sparrowchat.com/a-british-prime-minister-with-no-manners/) - Frankly, I find this video both embarrassing and disgusting. Many will have already viewed it, as it relates to Barack Obama's visit to Britain last month. It's good to see a world leader so in touch with the ordinary people - even to the London bobby at his post. Unfortunately, the man accompanying the US
- [What A Quacker!](https://sparrowchat.com/what-a-quacker/) - Apparently, malady my good blogging pal, drugs WiseWebWoman, has recently splashed out on a wonderfully outrageous makeover. A neighbor of hers, who wisely wishes to remain anonymous, sent me a photograph: You can read all about it HERE Filed under: Fine feathered friends
- [Giving Your All - And A Whole Lot More!](https://sparrowchat.com/giving-your-all-and-more/) - BBC Radio Four's, 'More or Less', discusses numbers. I pricked up my ears at this week's program as one of the subjects was close to my heart. While I was an Inspector for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in the English Midlands, among the people I found most irksome was
- [Les Miserables Gutter Press](https://sparrowchat.com/les-miserables-gutter-press/) - Surely no-one could deny the acclaim meted out to British singer Susan Boyle was rightly earned. Her rendition of 'I Dreamed A Dream' from the hit musical, Les Miserables, on the British talent show, 'Got Talent', was memorable, to say the least.[1] Why then do we have to suffer the deplorable guff pouring forth from
- [Time For A British Change](https://sparrowchat.com/time-for-a-british-change/) - There comes a time in everyone's life when old prejudices need putting aside, life-long loyalties rigorously examined, and the beliefs of years cast to the wind. Most Americans have no interest in British politics. Indeed, it's safe to say that Americans in general have little concern for any politics outside the USA, unless of course
- [A Modestly Wealthy Obscurity](https://sparrowchat.com/a-modestly-wealthy-obscurity/) - Much of the American world will have forgotten Tony Blair. The puppy-dog prime minister of Britain, most often seen tagging along at the heels of ex-President George W Bush, long ago faded into obscurity once the Iraq war was pronounced well and truly "over" - all bar the shouting, that is. Following his demise as
- [Hardly On The Up And Up?](https://sparrowchat.com/hardly-on-the-up-and-up/) - America has changed over the last few months. George W Bush had a sobering effect on the American people, subduing the arrogance of many who once strutted their stuff like prize cockerels around the world's farmyard. Eight years of neocon rule, as well as running the country into the ground economically and politically, caused many
- [Sorry For The Downtime](https://sparrowchat.com/sorry-for-the-downtime/) - Sparrow Chat has been out of commission for a short while due to hackers. Thankfully, this particular scum wasn't too brilliant and used an iframe code, which is relatively easy to detect and remove. Anyone perusing Sparrow Chat over the last week may wish to run a virus scan on their hard drive to check
- [Muntadar al-Zaidi Has His Sentence Reduced](https://sparrowchat.com/muntadar-al-zaidi-has-his-sentence-reduced/) - There's still little good news emanating from Iraq, despite the efforts of western politicians, and their lackey media, to stress how wonderful life has become there of late. One small piece of welcome news is that Muntadar al-Zaidi, the man who threw his shoes at George W Bush - and sadly missed - has had
- [Every Gun Crime Has A Silver Lining](https://sparrowchat.com/every-gun-crime-has-a-silver-lining/) - You almost know what's coming, even before they speak. It's most likely the slight air of incomprehension that precedes those first few words of the announcement, as though the anchor is totally bewildered that such a thing could happen in America. It matters not the channel. ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, they always begin the same
- [On The Sexual Abuse Of Young Girls](https://sparrowchat.com/on-the-sexual-abuse-of-young-girls/) - Recently, a blogger friend bared her soul and wrote of sexual abuses she endured at various stages of her life, most occurring before she reached the age of consent. Comments to the article came thick and fast - all, bar two, from women. General consensus was that a majority of young girls endure some degree
- [British Troops Leave Basra](https://sparrowchat.com/british-troops-leave-basra/) - Courtesy of "Gorilla's Guides" Filed under: National shame
- [A Snip At Two Hundred And Fifty Dollars?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-snip-at-two-hundred-and-fifty-dollars/) - "Despite the obviously irrational cruelty of circumcision, the profit incentive in American medical practice is unlikely to allow science or human rights principles to interrupt the highly lucrative American circumcision industry. It is now time for European medical associations loudly to condemn the North American medical community for participating in and profiting from what is
- [O Man, How Wondrous Thou Art](https://sparrowchat.com/o-man-how-wondrous-thou-art/) - Will there ever come a time when we stop attempting to turn ourselves into gods? Whenever a crisis looms, whether it be on a relatively small scale as in, for example, a war, or a global catastrophe like climate change, the human race looks for home-grown miracles. Last week it was dumping tons of iron
- [Misplaced Loyalties](https://sparrowchat.com/misplaced-loyalties/) - The journey home from school today was not a bus driver's success story. All four of the younger Roberts kids were back after a three day detention for misbehaving in school. Jethro, the eldest, and Izaiah - suffering anger management problems - sit opposite the driver; Treanna, their sister, sits behind the driver, and little
- [Erosion Of Freedom - Canadian Fashion](https://sparrowchat.com/erosion-of-freedoms-canadian-fashion/) - Recently I wrote of a British Member of Parliament, George Galloway, who was hauled before a US Congressional committee back in 2005 over allegations under the Iraqi Oil for Food program, and who magnificently wiped the floor with them.[1] Today, the press is reporting that the Canadian government has barred George Galloway from entering Canada
- [Don't <i>React</i> ; Instead, <i>Respond</i>](https://sparrowchat.com/dont-react-instead-respond/) - It may not have happened to you yet, but if not, it probably will before long. You're at your computer, happily browsing known and reputable websites, when suddenly - as if from nowhere - your screen becomes a mass of warning flashes and exclamation marks telling you your precious machine is infected with all sorts
- [And So Ad Infinitum](https://sparrowchat.com/and-so-ad-infinitum/) - Are you filled with confidence? Does the handling of the economic crisis cause your heart to swell with pride, as our political leaders and financial gurus flaunt their total inability to comprehend what's been going on, and how to cure it? These people have had the best education money can buy; they've been earning salaries
- [Too Clever By 'Arf](https://sparrowchat.com/too-clever-by-arf/) - The pope's advisors should do more to protect him from controversy, says the British archbishop of Cardiff, Peter Smith. He said the recent rows over the pope's remarks on condoms when issued as an HIV/AIDS preventative, showed how the pontiff's message was being misunderstood: One of the difficulties we all have as bishops is to
- [Pee And Blow (Not Necessarily At The Same Time)](https://sparrowchat.com/pee-and-blow-not-necessarily-at-the-same-time/) - A discussion of US healthcare as a business
- [Are Jewish Blackshirts On The March?](https://sparrowchat.com/are-jewish-blackshirts-on-the-march/) - The British MP George Galloway has been banned from entering Canada. The decision was at the behest of the Canadian Jewish Defence League, headed by one Meir Weinstein. Sparrow Chat helped to highlight the controversy in an article on March 20th 2009[1] On that date, the UK's Channel 4 News arranged an interview with George
- [Valentine's Day Massacre](https://sparrowchat.com/valentines-day-massacre/) - Only the four younger members of the Roberts' family still ride School Bus 13. Cordell Roberts and his three older brothers were banned by the school principal a few weeks ago, after a fight erupted between them while on the way home one afternoon, causing the bus driver to turn his vehicle around and return
- [A Saga Of School Bus 13](https://sparrowchat.com/the-yellow-school-bus/) - School's back on Monday. The Thanksgiving holiday is almost over and the family Roberts will be returning once more to their educational facility. The Roberts's had an extended vacation, at least from the school bus. Seven out of nine Robert's kids were barred from riding the bus for the week prior to Thanksgiving, due to
- [All For The Want Of A Child's Handkerchief](https://sparrowchat.com/all-for-the-want-of-a-childs-handkerchief/) - Regular readers of Sparrow Chat may have been perplexed of late by the lack of posts. It's the holiday season in America, and that means it's also the season of viruses. When Sparrow Chat's files succumbed recently to a digitized type of germ, so did its only contributor - though, to the more conventional form
- [From The Horse's Mouth](https://sparrowchat.com/from-the-horses-mouths/) - Every nation has the finest, most moral, army on Earth. Even Adolf Hitler praised his troops for the honorable manner in which they fought in France and Poland. The US military in Afghanistan, we are constantly told by the media, consists of a fine bunch of brave men and women doing their duty for their
- [A Load More Papist Balls](https://sparrowchat.com/a-load-more-papist-balls/) - Despite the possibility of Sparrow Chat being labeled an anti-religious tome, the Pope's visit to Africa cannot be allowed to pass without comment, given his deliberately false proclamation to journalists before he landed on the continent. In fact, Sparrow Chat is in no way anti-religious. It just condemns the papery, pestilence, and perpetually lying proclamations
- [Lest We Forget](https://sparrowchat.com/lest-we-forget/) - In May 2005, when the US/UK invasion of Iraq was going badly, the US government attempted to divert public opinion from the atrocities of the war by holding a series of Congressional hearings relating to the earlier Western sanctions against Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq, in particular the "Oil-for Food" program. Certain companies and individuals
- [Dear God, Please Don't Kill Us All](https://sparrowchat.com/dear-god-please-dont-kill-us-all/) - At the risk of appearing a doom-monger - we're all doomed. That disclosure is based on the opinion of the world's leading climatologists, all 2,500 of them, who've been holding an emergency meeting in Copenhagen. Condemning political leaders for their utter inability to grasp the inevitable effects of doing nothing, Nicholas Stern, the man commissioned
- [Insult My God, I'll Blow Your Head Off!](https://sparrowchat.com/insult-my-god-ill-blow-your-head-off/) - Two programs with strong religious connotations served as entertainment for the Adams household this weekend. The first was Bill Maher's documentary, "Religulous", (available for rental download from Amazon.com), and the second was "Bill Moyers Journal", which this week was devoted to the religious expert and copious writer, Karen Armstrong. These two offerings were as different
- [My Father's House: From A Den Of Thieves To A Shooting Gallery](https://sparrowchat.com/my-fathers-house-from-a-den-of-thieves-to-a-shooting-gallery/) - Following the shooting of a pastor in an Alabama church on March 8th, the Associated Baptist Press reports that State Rep. Beverly Pyle (R) is to reintroduce a bill in the state senate that will allow guns to be carried into churches. I have received numerous e-mails and phone calls concerning this wanting me to
- [It's Hard Being A Teenager, Say Scientists](https://sparrowchat.com/its-hard-being-a-teenager-say-scientists/) - I remember a time when Britain was, perhaps, no longer "Great", but at least it was sane and sensible. Then I left, to live in America. Now, I'm not suggesting the old country went downhill just because it lost one of its favorite sons to the colonies, but there's no doubt sanity and commonsense have
- [Some Folks Never Seem Able To Learn](https://sparrowchat.com/some-folks-never-seem-able-to-learn/) - The world is plunging into possibly the greatest financial depression it has ever seen; both the United States and China are suffering badly, with millions thrown out of work in both countries, homes foreclosed, soup kitchens once again operating in major cities. Meanwhile, how are these two nations behaving towards each other? In the China
- [Israel Declares Open Season On Palestinian Farmers](https://sparrowchat.com/israel-declares-open-season-on-palestinian-farmers/) - Whose side are you on in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict? Perhaps you feel that Israel has every right to defend itself against the homemade rockets Hamas and other Palestinian freedom fighters (terrorists?) have been firing across the Gaza/Israel border, or maybe you consider both sides equally to blame - that's it's time they all grew up
- [US Government Grants - Supporting The Scam Industry](https://sparrowchat.com/us-government-grants-supporting-the-scam-industry/) - Yesterday, I wrote that America makes me uncomfortable because, while a great deal happens here, much of what goes on is undesirable. America would be a much better country without it. Remember the "American Dream?" That phrase was originally coined by James Truslow Adams in his 1931 work, "The Epic of America." He defined it
- [Omar al-Bashir: Was The ICC Right Or Wrong?](https://sparrowchat.com/omar-al-bashir-was-the-icc-right-or-wrong/) - It was announced recently that the International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for the Sudanese president, Omar al-Bashir. The communication came as no great surprise, though much discussion has taken place, both in the media and in political circles, as to whether it was a wise decision, given the circumstances. Aid agencies, in
- [Message To An Archbishop](https://sparrowchat.com/message-to-an-archbishop/) - Many would question the existence of good and evil, certainly in a Biblical sense. The human ability to fail, while attempting the perfection demanded by Biblical 'goodness', needs no clarification here. If, however, evil exists and can take on material form - - then you're looking at it now. In Pernambuco, Brazil, lives a little
- [A Head Full Of Pizza Dough](https://sparrowchat.com/a-head-full-of-pizza-dough/) - For some, the problem of writer's block may be down to a lack of ideas, an empty head refusing to materialize any pertinent thought that can be caught, held, worked, and finally displayed, like pizza dough transformed from a lifeless mound to a gloriously shaped pastry tray resplendent with glorious topping and ready for the
- [Seriously?](https://sparrowchat.com/seriously/) - There are so many idiots in the society we live in that it's difficult to take anything seriously anymore. I'm not talking about the average thick-head shouting his mouth off down the boozer after a few drinks, or even the religious nutters demanding we all beg forgiveness and wait for Armageddon. I'm talking about the
- [Mister Kettle, You're Black! Oh, Mister Pot, You Are Too.](https://sparrowchat.com/mister-kettle-youre-black-oh-mister-pot-you-are-too/) - The United States of America is to be congratulated. Its annual report on worldwide human rights violations, released in February, is very comprehensive. Perusing the lengthy document, it's difficult to find a nation on Earth that isn't listed among the six geographical sub-headings. The amount of time, money, and work spent compiling this report has
- ["Antisemitism!" - A Form Of Modern Day Repression?](https://sparrowchat.com/antisemitism-a-form-of-modern-day-repression/) - I began today writing an article in defense of Roman Catholic Bishop Richard Williamson, who was foolish, or brave, enough to express misgivings on Swedish television over the extent of the Jewish Holocaust. His apology has been churlishly rejected by Jewish authority, on the grounds it wasn't sufficiently abject.[1] That article is no more. I
- [The Tale Of Too Many Joes](https://sparrowchat.com/the-tale-of-too-many-joes/) - Joe Lieberman is the Flying Dutchman of American politics. Having upset his original party, the Democrats, poor Joe is cursed - forced to wander the corridors of power for eternity, unless he can find the true love of a good woman -or man - to release him from his political damnation. He began his career
- [Can Obama Afford Not To Upset The Israelis?](https://sparrowchat.com/can-obama-afford-not-to-upset-the-israelis/) - It's doubtful if any sane individual could successfully argue Hamas's rocket attacks on Israeli civilians are legitimate warfare. Amnesty International describes them, rightly, as a war crime. Any deliberate targeting of civilians by a military force is illegal under International Law. Hamas can argue its case indefinitely without convincing anyone, least of all an International
- [What Would Change Everything?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-would-change-everything/) - "What would change everything?" That was the Edge World Question Center's 2009 annual question put to 151 scientists and other intellectuals. It resulted in responses that totaled 107,000 words. Nobel laureate James Watson, who discovered the DNA double helix, and genomics pioneer J. Craig Venter, recently were awarded Double Helix Awards from Cold Spring Harbor
- [Apportioning The American Dream](https://sparrowchat.com/apportioning-the-american-dream/) - Referencing the last post, a reader ("WWW") asked in her comment if I had viewed a certain video on YouTube. I hadn't, but I have now. As the video has a direct bearing on the subject matter discussed in the last post, I am reproducing it below: This state of affairs, which is of course
- [Sorry Seems To Be The Easiest Word](https://sparrowchat.com/sorry-seems-to-be-the-easiest-word/) - "I'm sorry, so sorry, that I was such a fool........." warbled country singer Brenda Lee, way back in those good old fifties and sixties when Saturday night was "boppin' night" down the local church hall or youth club. That little five letter word appears to have made something of a comeback of late, though hardly
- [Just One Of Those Corn-y Tales](https://sparrowchat.com/just-one-of-those-corn-y-tales/) - Remember how ethanol was going to save America? Less than two years ago, US grain farmers were rubbing their hands with glee at the thought of all the ethanol dollars soon to be pouring into their bank accounts, as a surge in demand for corn meant that, once again, it was fun to be a
- [The American Dream, Or, Taking Care Of Number One](https://sparrowchat.com/the-american-dream-or-taking-care-of-number-one/) - If you want to know what's really wrong with America (and many Americans) the disgraceful behavior of some loud-mouthed, bellicose, third-rate journalist on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange today should make it abundantly clear. Mister Rick Santelli, who is I believe an employee of CNBC (would that be the Children's National Broadcasting Company?)
- [A Bit Of Anglo-French Entente Cordiale?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-bit-of-anglo-french-entente-cordiale/) - This is the Atlantic Ocean: It's large. In fact, it's very, very, large. The Atlantic Ocean covers over 41 million square miles of the Earth's surface. This is the Atlantic Ocean with a nuclear-armed submarine highlighted. Even though it may be on the surface, cruising at about eighteen knots, unfortunately, you won't actually be able
- [Lonesome George And The Race To Space](https://sparrowchat.com/lonesome-george-and-the-race-to-space/) - Two rather depressing news items burst onto our screens recently. Initially, neither one appeared to bear any relationship to the other. The first concerned two man-made satellites in earth orbit that collided, spreading space debris over a a wide area.[1] Even that doesn't seem too great a disaster. No lives were lost; one satellite (Russian)
- [Israel Does It Again](https://sparrowchat.com/israel-does-it-again/) - Now that the Israeli elections are just about over, it seems congratulations are in order for Tzipi Livni and her Kadima party......... Now that the Israeli elections are just about over, it seems congratulations are in order for Benyamin Netanyahu and his Likud party......... Now that the Israeli elections are just about over, it seems
- [Changing The System](https://sparrowchat.com/changing-the-system/) - One of the frequent threads that run through emails found in my inbox, is the expressed desire to "change the system". Capitalism isn't working, so why can't we find something better? For many years this was my own view. The idea of a relative few, privileged, people holding all the wealth and power is anathema
- [Let Them Eat Spam](https://sparrowchat.com/let-them-eat-spam/) - Do you ever get the feeling Republicans are still in control of this country? While President Obama is running his socks off trying to persuade the party that lost the election to vote for his stimulus package, members of that party are busy ensuring their wealthy constituents aren't going to be too financially inconvenienced by
- [Beware The Ego Convinced Of Its Divine Righteousness](https://sparrowchat.com/beware-the-ego-convinced-of-its-divine-righteousness/) - The perpetrators of 9/11 believed what they were doing on that day was right, because they were absolutely certain they were dispensing the will of God. In Volume One, Chapter Two, of his book, Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler wrote: I believe today that my conduct is in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator."
- [A Whole New Meaning To 'Food Additives'](https://sparrowchat.com/a-whole-new-meaning-to-food-additives/) - "Care for a nice portion o' dry-roasted rat, guv'nor, wiv a drop of freshly crushed roach sauce? Luvly wiv a few peanuts on the side." I do the cooking in our house. It's not that my wife can't cook, but she can only cook American. Fortunately, she likes European, which is what I cook, because
- [Shock Your Loved One This Valentine's Day](https://sparrowchat.com/shock-your-loved-one-this-valentines-day/) - Noted on Sparrow Chat's sidebar this morning: TASER® & Stun Guns Sale For special Valentines monthly deal use 14% Discount Code TFVAL09. www.taserforce.com Honey, do I have a surprise for you! Filed under: Stunned
- [Oh, Golly!](https://sparrowchat.com/oh-golly/) - Hear we go again. The BBC has fired presenter Carol Thatcher for referring to a tennis player as a 'golliwog'. Apparently, the remark was made 'off-air', but other presenters took exception and reported her for the comment. I guess the first lesson is: make sure you know who your friends are. So far as I'm
- [Snowflakes On London](https://sparrowchat.com/snowflakes-on-london/) - There are times the British are a pain in the ass. Despite being one of them, I often find it difficult to tolerate their bleaty attitude whenever they're slightly inconvenienced. Take the recent heavy snow falls in southern England as an example. All we hear on the BBC News are commuters complaining - "there's not
- [PLease Let Us Manage Your Disease](https://sparrowchat.com/please-let-us-manage-your-disease/) - The mailman left ten letters today, all from our medical insurance company. Each contained a breakdown of payments for recent medical and dental work on my wife and me. Last week, he left six more. In one week we've received sixteen individual envelopes from the same company containing information relating to the same, very minor,
- [Turn Off The Cameras - A Footnote](https://sparrowchat.com/turn-off-the-cameras-a-footnote/) - Further to a post yesterday (see here) regarding the Israeli Ambassador to Australia and his comments on Iran, it was suggested by one commentator that the story was a hoax: Jewish officials rarely work on Friday mornings; there were no events of this nature listed on the Jewish embassy's website for that day, and the
- [Here's A Riddle:](https://sparrowchat.com/heres-a-riddle/) - What does this guy...... ......have in common with this guy? The answer is - this: President Barack Obama's half brother, George, was arrested in his hometown of Nairobi recently for possessing one joint of marijuana.[1] Hardly news material designed to set the world alight, but thanks to the news media, it did exactly that. Meanwhile,
- [Lock 'Em Up And Throw Away The Key](https://sparrowchat.com/lock-em-up-and-throw-away-the-key/) - The G20 summit at Davos, that resort of the wealthy and powerful in the Swiss mountains, has come to an end with no solutions to the global economic crisis threatening the world. One thing not in short supply, however, was words: If you believe that the world economy will turn the corner at the end
- [Turn Off The Cameras While I Talk Nuclear War](https://sparrowchat.com/turn-off-the-cameras-while-i-talk-nuclear-war/) - If there's one thing politicians seem especially good at, its saying something totally different on camera, than they would say, off. The Pakistan Daily is today reporting that Yuval Rotem, the Israeli ambassador to Australia told a meeting of Sydney's Jewish Community that his country's military offensives in Gaza were a "pre-introduction" to tackling the
- [A Soupçon Of Humanity](https://sparrowchat.com/a-soupcon-of-humanity/) - Medal of the week must be awarded to Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan...... ......as the only member of the prestigious Davos Economic Forum with the courage to stand up and tell Israeli president, Shimon Peres, exactly what he thought of the recent Israeli butchery in Gaza. Turkey has long been a supporter of Israel,
- [Don't Pamper The Parasites](https://sparrowchat.com/dont-pamper-the-parasites/) - US President Barack Obama was successful yesterday in getting the House of Representatives to support his economic stimulus package; a package that was watered down solely to obtain the approval of House Republicans. Despite this, and the dire straits in which the economy flounders, the hundreds of thousands being thrown out of work, mature and
- [They Even Shot The Zoo Animals](https://sparrowchat.com/they-even-shot-the-zoo-animals/) - There are virtually no animals left alive in Gaza zoo. It wasn't much of a place before the Israeli soldiers came, but it was somewhere for the kids to go on a Sunday. God knows, there was little else for them to do, even before the war. Apart from the zoo, the complex housed a
- [Tick - Tock](https://sparrowchat.com/tick-tock/) - America, as with the rest of the world, continues to swing along towards its uncertain future with all the regularity of a finally honed pendulum. Yesterday, the Vatican once more reared its ugly, clerical, head high enough to condemn the Obama administration for restoring government funding to family planning clinics that perform, or give advice
- [British Society Today](https://sparrowchat.com/british-society-today/) - A recent report from the New Economics Foundation, a European think-tank, has highlighted the British as "more bored, tired and less likely to know their neighbours than other Europeans".[1] Is it any wonder, given the boring, tired, old fart they have to lead them? According to a spokesman for the New Economics Foundation: "Governments have
- [Iraq: We Won The War. Eh, What War?](https://sparrowchat.com/iraq-we-won-the-war-eh-what-war/) - This morning gunmen raided a home in the small Shiite area of Baldrouz, north of Baghdad. A poor Sunni family who’d moved to the area to work in the local brick factory were slaughtered. Two men, six women and a little girl were killed. The last two men were taken and the family is gone.
- [The Worms Are Not For Turning](https://sparrowchat.com/the-worms-are-not-for-turning/) - Ninety-eight percent of all animal species are invertebrates, and the majority are to be found on the North American continent. Three days in and it's started already. The vampires of Fox News, the rabid dogs of Republican talk radio, are already joining forces in a desperate attempt to bring the Obama presidency into disrepute. According
- [The Future's Bright; The Future's Obama?](https://sparrowchat.com/the-futures-bright-the-futures-obama/) - "Goodbye; Good Riddance, George W Bush." That headline has graced Sparrow Chat for the whole of today, January 20th 2009, the day Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America. George W Bush has gone. He left office, vacated the White House, and if anyone cares where he
- [Will The Chickens Come Home To Roost?](https://sparrowchat.com/when-will-the-chickens-come-home-to-roost/) - US President Barack Obama today signed the order that will see the demise of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center within one year. It's an order that should never have needed to be signed; a relic of the Bush administration's policies of torture and imprisonment without trial, once only the political playthings of South American banana
- [At Last!](https://sparrowchat.com/at-last/) - GOOD-BYE GOOD RIDDANCE George W. Bush Filed under: Historical failures
- [TOUGH](https://sparrowchat.com/tough/) - My name is Glot. Yes, I know it's a silly name, but then it's no worse than Elspeth Hogglethwight, or Damion Hogsnipple, now is it. Those are just two of many strange appellations I culled from your local telephone directories. I have to say, I find your moon a most unwelcoming planetoid. It's not my
- [People of Peace Or Children Of Israel?](https://sparrowchat.com/people-of-peace-or-children-of-israel/) - It's a touching moment. Two friends embrace warmly before signing a declaration to end the war in Gaza. The only problem is that Hamas is absent, and one of the parties is not at war - at least, not in Gaza. So, one must ask, why is the US Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice, signing
- [A Role Model For The Chosen People?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-role-model-for-the-chosen-people/) - While the subject of the previous post (see below) can be forgiven his basic stupidity, there is another who revels in exhibiting a cold and calculating attitude towards anyone remotely critical of the Israeli state. He is Australian, intelligent, obviously ambitious, was once a prominent member of the Socialist-Zionist youth movement, Ichud Habonim,[1] and is
- [Outside The Window](https://sparrowchat.com/outside-the-window/) - With temperatures so low the mercury fell out the bottom of the thermometer, and wind chills sufficiently sharp to slice a steak, if held outside the door for more than a few seconds, Illinois has been a most inhospitable place this last week. Winter metes out a raw and terrible punishment on any without adequate
- [An All-American Moron](https://sparrowchat.com/an-all-american-moron/) - There are idiots in this world, and then there are total morons: The man who added more than a soupcon of embarrassment to the presidential election, and probably did as much as Sarah Palin to wreck John McCain's chances, still seems hellbent on making an utter fool of himself, this time in Israel. Samuel Wurzelbacher,
- [Here Lies Collateral Damage](https://sparrowchat.com/here-lies-collateral-damage/) - The war in Gaza is over. At least, it would seem that way to anyone tuning in to the BBC World News or NBC Nightly News tonight, hoping for some uptodate coverage. Headlines were all George W Bush, and him daring to admit the "Mission Impossible" banner on the USS Abraham Lincoln was perhaps a
- [Don't Call Me "Brit", It's A Racist Slur](https://sparrowchat.com/dont-call-me-brit-its-a-racist-slur/) - Tonight, the NBC Nightly devoted three minutes to the Gaza crisis, and three and a half minutes to the shocking news that, three years ago, Prince Harry addressed his Asian army pal by the indelicate title of "Little Paki". What followed was a discussion on whether anyone capable of such gross behavior could ever be
- [That's Entertainment](https://sparrowchat.com/thats-entertainment/) - News today that John McCain's greatest ally in the fight to conquer Obama Democracy, Joe the Plumber, has vacated his position as an unskilled bathroom drain unblocker, to become an ace reporter for Pyjama TV. Joe is headed to the Middle East on assignment, where he intends to interview Israeli soldiers and uncover the shocking
- [On Blair, Bush, And Avi Shlaim](https://sparrowchat.com/on-blair-bush-and-avi-shlaim/) - In the midst of all the bloodshed and suffering in Gaza this week comes news that Britain's quisling ex-prime minister, Tony Blair, is to receive the highest civilian award offered by the United States - the Presidential Medal of Freedom.[1] It will be presented by George W Bush as he leaves office, presumably in recognition
- [New Year Doom And Gloom](https://sparrowchat.com/new-year-doom-and-gloom/) - "The party's over.....it's time to call it a day....." warbled Judy Holliday in the 1956 musical comedy, "The Bells Are Ringing." I know just how she felt. Christmas merriment has come and gone, shuffled off into the void along with the rest of 2008. Suddenly the long, cold, dark days of winter loom into the
- [City On A Hill, Or Nation On A Dung Heap?](https://sparrowchat.com/city-on-a-hill-or-nation-on-a-dung-heap/) - People often ask me why I never have anything good to say about America, despite living here for six years. My answer is, "I keep looking," but with the exception of a relatively few human beings whom I've found to be charming, witty, intelligent, and caring of others who aren't necessarily of their nationality, little
- [Gaza](https://sparrowchat.com/gaza-2/) - Given the many protesters who turned out in Europe to demonstrate against the latest Israeli aggression in Gaza, the support in America was dismal by comparison. While the Washington Post was describing 'thousands'[1] throughout Europe, it dwindled to just 'hundreds'[2] in the United States. This is hardly a surprise, given the enormous pressures on Congress,
- [Our Environmentally-Friendly US President](https://sparrowchat.com/our-environmentally-friendly-us-president/) - God luv 'im, he cares after all! Today, George W Bush will (attempt to) leave his mark on environmental history by signing declarations under the 1906 Antiquities Act, that will create three large marine sanctuaries where fishing will be banned and divers require a permit.[1] These sanctuaries take in Pacific waters at the northern end
- [Never Mind, There's Always 2010](https://sparrowchat.com/never-mind-theres-always-2010/) - As is so often the case with Brian Williams of NBC Nightly News, he failed tonight to grasp the true meaning behind his own opening remarks: "Good evening, we are eleven days into the first war of the new year......." This, on the sixth day of January. What a sad indictment of the human race.
- [Note To "Christian Chat City"](https://sparrowchat.com/note-to-christian-chat-city/) - I would like to make a personal plea to the person from the above organization who recently left a comment (now deleted) on Sparrow Chat. If you wish to enter into meaningful discussions on the value of your religious beliefs, healing as opposed to my spiritual beliefs, patient I am more than happy to do
- [Especially For Gaye](https://sparrowchat.com/especially-for-gaye/) - Following the Sparrow Chat "Happy New Year" post, a lady complained it was too biased towards the male subscribers, and could I not have found a suitable image for Sparrow Chat's female readers? Sadly, while not wishing to appear in any way sexually biased, this proved difficult. Not wishing to disappoint, I was left with
- [Bottoms Up!](https://sparrowchat.com/bottoms-up/) - To all Sparrow Chat readers. Filed under: Cheeky
- [A-Headin' On Over The Hills](https://sparrowchat.com/a-headin-on-over-the-hills/) - My thanks to Al DeVito of Vineyard Views for sending me an article from the WSJ describing the Aspirnaut Initiative. [1] The Aspirnaut Initiative was developed by Bill Hudson, Director of the Center for Matrix Biology at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee. On a journey back to his home town of Grapevines, Arkansas, he was alarmed
- [Gaza - Just Another Step To Nuclear Holocaust](https://sparrowchat.com/gaza-just-another-step-to-nuclear-holocaust/) - No-one, other than a fanatical Hamas supporter, would argue that all in Gaza are innocents. There is fault on both sides in this latest violent clash between the people of Gaza and the state of Israel. The cease fire of the previous six months neither prevented rocket attacks by the Palestinians on Israeli towns in
- [Blog Update](https://sparrowchat.com/blog-update/) - The ability to preview comments is now a feature of Sparrow Chat (eat your heart out Blogger!). It's still somewhat in the 'beta' stage, so if anyone suffers any problems please let me know at once. So far as I can tell all is working fine, but I need you guys and gals out there
- [Tornado Warning](https://sparrowchat.com/tornado-warning/) - Two hours ago the tornado sirens sounded. It's mid-winter, but central Illinois was apparently threatened with annihilation by destructive atmospheric vortices. Immediately, fifty thousands residents rushed to the TV and their local weather station: ground radar displays a huge line of storms heading straight for our town; tornado warnings and watches are in force over
- [Happy Boxing Day, America!](https://sparrowchat.com/happy-boxing-day-america/) - Boxing Day is the most wonderful day ever. After all the tensions and craziness of the lead up to Christmas -you know, the shopping, cooking, preparing for visiting relatives (if you're unfortunate enough to have any), the hassle of rising early on Christmas morn, opening presents, stuffing oneself silly with turkey and Chateau de Chasselas,
- [Sparrow Chat's Christmas Message](https://sparrowchat.com/sparrow-chats-christmas-message/) - It's Christmas time once again. It's that period of the year when all the idiots and warmongers get together to fight about whether it's politically correct to call it "Christmas", or "Holidays", or "Holy Hannukah", or maybe just invent a completely new name that won't satisfy anyone? These arguments have nothing to do with Christmas,
- [The Pope's Christmas Message](https://sparrowchat.com/the-popes-christmas-message/) - If there's one thing you can rely on from the Pope, it's to spread the message of Christmas throughout the world at this time of year. Of all the clerics, surely this so-called 'shepherd of his flock' is the worst Christian ever to don a holy robe? In a speech to senior Vatican staff yesterday,
- [It's Not The Money, But How You Spend It](https://sparrowchat.com/its-not-the-money-but-how-you-spend-it/) - Two items merited attention on the NBC Nightly News tonight, due entirely to the contrast between them. The first was a last ditch attempt by that wealthy scumbag presently occupying the White House, at salvaging something of his presidential legacy by offering a financial carrot worth around $17.5 billion to a terminally sick donkey, long
- [Deader Than Your Cellphone](https://sparrowchat.com/deader-than-your-cellphone/) - Have you ever thought about dying? No, really, it's not that I don't like you, but we do tend to shy away from dwelling on the inevitable, ignoring the fact that it's practical to make early arrangements for when one's demise eventually transpires, and much easier for our loved ones to cope with. Of course,
- [No Christmas Box For This Paperboy](https://sparrowchat.com/no-christmas-box-for-this-paperboy/) - Some people can prove most irritating, even when you've never met them. Take, as an example, the boy who delivers the local papers. I'm talking the advertising rag here, not the proper local newspaper. I don't subscribe to that. Well, there's no point; I don't have any hogs and I'm not a farmer growing corn,
- [Official: Christmas Hero Of 2008](https://sparrowchat.com/official-christmas-hero-of-2008/) - Muntadar al-Zeidi threw his shoes at George W Bush as a gesture of contempt for the US president. Al-Zeidi has now disappeared, imprisoned by the Iraqi government, and no-one knows where. Despite mass rallies in Baghdad and calls for his release from around the Arab world, to date the Iraqi government is remaining quiet about
- [The 'Sole' Protester ](https://sparrowchat.com/the-sole-protester/) - George W Bush, on an unannounced visit to Iraq today, finally received the ultimate insult when an Iraqi reporter threw his shoes at the US president during a press conference. All that can be said of this incident is that it's long overdue. The man in stockinged feet deserves a medal. Filed under: Bush's comeuppence
- [Christmas In June? Humbug!](https://sparrowchat.com/christmas-in-june-humbug/) - With Christmas looming over the horizon, the news that astronomers have recently calculated the birth of Jesus as June 17th creates something of a wet blanket on all those festivities arranged for December 25th.[1] Complex computer software has been used to verify that a bright star really did appear over Bethlehem around 2000 years ago.
- [Four Oxen And A Lion](https://sparrowchat.com/four-oxen-and-a-lion/) - A recession occurs when the management and top executives of industry, in conjunction with politicians, run their companies and their nation's economy into the ground, usually while siphoning off funds to guarantee their own, individual, future security. This latest global recession has illuminated so many glaring examples of such ineptitude that further clarification is surely
- [Is The USPS Ripping Us Off?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-the-usps-ripping-us-off/) - With the run-up to Christmas one would expect the US Post Office to be busy. For sometime now their website, though never brilliant, has helped to cut queuing times at the counter by providing basic services, including the ability to print postage labels and arrange shipment pick-up. For those of us with schedules to keep
- [Stop Press: Illinois Governor and Associate Arrested.](https://sparrowchat.com/stop-press-illinois-governor-and-associate-arrested/) - Governor Rod Blagojevich and his Chief of Staff, John Harris, were arrested earlier today by the FBI on federal corruption charges. Patrick J Fitzgerald, United States Attorney for the Northern District 2 of Illinois, stated: The breadth of corruption laid out in these charges is staggering. They allege that Blagojevich put a ‘for sale' sign
- [The Great Finale](https://sparrowchat.com/the-great-finale/) - As 2008 lies expiring on the terminal gurney of history, we can pause a moment to enjoy the spectacle that is the closing act of a political opera in which the star castrato, George W Bush, warbles through his final aria before the curtain descends to thunderous applause from the most wealthy and powerful of
- [Sparrow Chat Update - Update](https://sparrowchat.com/sparrow-chat-update/) - To all those who suffered problems recently with Sparrow Chat: the server files have been deleted and replaced with new files - virus free. This should prevent any further problems. Also, certain security additions have been put in place at the server end. Hopefully, this will prevent further infections. However, we're all aware there are
- [Problems With Sparrow Chat?](https://sparrowchat.com/problems-with-sparrow-chat/) - A regular reader contacted me recently about a problem accessing Sparrow Chat on her home computer. Apparently, the anti-virus kept rejecting the page due (it said) to an iFrame virus in the HTML. Sparrow Chat's servers have been checked thoroughly and the webhost assures me all files are clean, but the problem is persisting for
- [George W Bush Awarded Christian 'Peace Medal'](https://sparrowchat.com/george-w-bush-awarded-christian-peace-medal/) - I've almost given up wasting my time writing about the crackpot pseudo-ecclesiastics of America, who make fortunes from the simplistic and easily led. Suffice to say, like much in this country, Christianity is no more than another business venture, to be exploited for the purpose of acquiring wealth and power. The only difference between it
- [Mumbai: How Many More 9/11's?](https://sparrowchat.com/mumbai-how-many-more-911s/) - With the Mumbai hostage siege finally drawing to its conclusion, the majority of terrorists (if that is what we must call them) either dead or under lock and key, it comes time to take stock and consider exactly what happened in this great Indian city most of us still remember as Bombay. NBC Nightly News
- [Two Reasons To Be Thankful](https://sparrowchat.com/two-reasons-to-be-thankful/) - Reports today that Ann Coulter, the big-mouthed Barbie doll of the Republican party, has had her jaw wired in the shut position, after she broke it recently (or, maybe someone broke it for her?)[1] Ms Coulter is one of those Americans, of which both parties have their share, who've discovered a way to become infamous,
- [Thoughts On A Thanksgiving Day](https://sparrowchat.com/thoughts-on-a-thanksgiving-day/) - I can think of nothing worse than spending a whole day eating and drinking in the company of in-laws and relatives. I mean, just the thought of having my relations, and those of any of my ex-wives, (my present wife's parents are no longer with us) in the same room, is reminiscent of a day
- [A Happy Thanksgiving - At Least For Some Of Us](https://sparrowchat.com/a-happy-thanksgiving-at-least-for-some-of-us/) - As the eve of Thanksgiving is upon us, we pause a moment to think of the wealthy people of Mumbai, India, enduring the horrors of terrorism as armed thugs invade their five-star hotels and lay waste to the foie gras and Château de Chasselas.[1] How comforting for them, and for us, to be assured our
- [“Nudge, nudge, wink, wink. Know what I mean?”](https://sparrowchat.com/“nudge-nudge-wink-wink-know-what-i-mean”/) - If there's one thing that could be relied on about Monty Python and its ilk, it was good, clean, honest-to-goodness, humor. Where's it all gone? Television today provides the most appalling service of any industry in the history of mankind. It's not just American television, though this nation leads the field in cheap, nasty, unrelentingly
- [Observations On The BBC, And A US National Intelligence Report](https://sparrowchat.com/observations-on-the-bbc-and-a-us-national-intelligence-report/) - Today, the BBC asked the question: has the world lost faith in the USA?[1] Surely, before asking that question, one or two others should be considered, like: has the world ever had any faith in the USA; is the world seriously concerned about the USA; or, is it all just a load of political guff
- [Better A Bee Than A Dairyman](https://sparrowchat.com/better-a-bee-than-a-dairyman/) - Many in this world consider the human species way too important to have evolved from a primitive form in the distant past. They believe our intelligence and mental dexterity are so far above even the most advanced of animals, that any suggestion of a connection between the two is absurd. Though relatively primitive creatures are
- [The Pillaging Of A Continent](https://sparrowchat.com/the-pillaging-of-a-continent/) - Daewoo is best known for its automobiles, though GM bought them out and has been rebadging Daewoo cars as low-end Chevrolets and other brands ever since. GM held a stake in Daewoo cars since 1972. Automobiles only played a minor part in Daewoo's fortunes, and misfortunes, over the years, for Daewoo is a South Korean
- [Postscript To: The African Coastguards](https://sparrowchat.com/postscript-to-the-african-coastguards/) - Tonight, the BBC World News reported on an Indian warship, the INS Tabar, that blew an alleged pirate dhow out of the water, after the dhow's crew "threatened to sink the warship." The Tabar is 400 feet long and carries cruise missiles, surface-to-air missiles, and six-barreled 30-mm machine guns for close combat: No information is
- [The African Coastguards](https://sparrowchat.com/the-african-coastguards/) - Everyone loves the story of Robin Hood and his merry band of outlaws, plundering the rich to give to the poor. Well, everyone that is apart from the tyrants: King John, the Sheriff of Nottingham, and those of the wealthy who were being plundered. Absolutely no-one, outside of those mentioned above, took the side of
- [A Quiet Treachery](https://sparrowchat.com/a-quiet-treachery/) - Earlier this year, the world was shocked by pictures out of Tibet, of Buddhist monks and members of the Tibetan people being brutally assaulted by Chinese military forces, for daring to protest the sixty year occupation of their country. The response from western governments was, to say the least, cowardly. Beijing was preparing to host
- [Ah, But Can She Use A Bayonet?](https://sparrowchat.com/ah-but-can-she-use-a-bayonet/) - News today of Ann Dunwoody, who has become a four-star US general, the first four-star female general in the US military.[1] Sparrow Chat is a champion of equality between all human beings of either sex, and all points in between, but I found the story of Ann Dunwoody vaguely disturbing. It's not the first time
- [Keeping A Divine Sense Of Proportion](https://sparrowchat.com/keeping-a-divine-sense-of-proportion/) - This week three planets were photographed in another solar system approximately 300 light years away from Earth - - and Sarah Palin said she "hopes God will show her the way"[1] in any future bid for the White House. Isn't it time we stopped listening to such drivel, and treated those who spout it with
- [We Will Remember](https://sparrowchat.com/we-will-remember/) - We've just suffered through another interminably dull and boring series of hypocritical antics involving pious prayers, poppies, and pomposity, from the so-called politicals and pundits, pontificating ever more profoundly and perversely than is their usual pleasure. Yes, it was Remembrance Day, or Veteran's Day, depending on whether you're buried to the east or west of
- [Africa: The Shame Of The World Manifested](https://sparrowchat.com/africa-the-shame-of-the-world-manifested/) - Africa always has been a magnet for the power-crazed politician, the militant madman, the diabolical dictator. In the last fifty or so years, among many has stood out Ugandan Idi Amin, a former British army lieutenant who seized power and styled himself, "His Excellency President for Life Field Marshal Al Hadji Dr. Idi Amin, VC,
- [I Can Dream, Can't I?](https://sparrowchat.com/i-can-dream-cant-i/) - The news media has swamped us all today with pictures of Barack Obama at the White House meeting with George W Bush. We saw the Obama's arriving, watched as they were greeted by Laura and George on the front porch, dozed quietly on the sofa as they toured the inside of the house, then laboriously
- [Thou <i>Shalt</i> Fly American Airlines - No, I Bloody Won't!](https://sparrowchat.com/thou-shalt-fly-american-airlines-no-i-bloody-wont/) - The airline, British Midland (BMI), has just announced it is curtailing all long-haul flights out of Manchester, England, from January 2009. This will include transatlantic flights to and from Chicago's O'Hare airport. Since 2001, BMI has operated one Manchester flight a day into, and from, Chicago. The loss of this route means the only service
- [They've Dug Up Granny's Grave To Build A - What?](https://sparrowchat.com/theyve-dug-up-grannys-grave-to-build-a-what/) - Risking accusations of anti-semitism (and, let's face it, there are times when someone has to) it's little wonder the Jewish people face constant criticism for their arrogant, high-handed attitudes. Let me make it crystal clear, I'm not talking the ordinary Jewish man or woman in the street, whether that street be in America, Israel, or
- [It's A Dog's Life](https://sparrowchat.com/its-a-dogs-life/) - I've never been a fan of Scottie dogs, or Scottish terriers as they're known in America. In fact, I wasn't the least surprised to see George W Bush trotting along with one under his arm soon after he first moved into the White House. I've always considered it's possible to ascertain the character of a
- [The Scapegoaters Versus The Bashers](https://sparrowchat.com/the-scapegoaters-and-the-bashers/) - The election's finally over, and now we're into that good old American tradition of scapegoating and minority-bashing; in fact, anything that shifts blame, cuts through embarrassment, and makes us feel more comfortable at the expense of someone else. The two prime targets right now are Sarah Palin and Ralph Nader. Most will have read of
- [Monet Couldn't Hit A Barn Door At Ten Paces, Either](https://sparrowchat.com/monet-couldnt-hit-a-barn-door-at-ten-paces-either/) - One of the less likely consequences of Barack Obama's ascendance to the presidency has been a sharp rise in gun sales.[1] There's no suggestion that irate Republicans are out to shoot him, it's simply that the weirdly warped gun lobby has somehow concocted the idea that firearms will be going up in value with Obama
- [Dog-ged Journalism](https://sparrowchat.com/dog-ged-journalism/) - There's a serious recession looming for most countries on the planet. Major auto manufacturers in the US are on the verge of bankruptcy, possibly with the loss of tens of thousands of jobs. The IMF has said Britain's economy is in such dreadful shape it is likely to suffer more than other European nations from
- [A Despicable, Last-Ditch, Attempt?](https://sparrowchat.com/a-despicable-last-ditch-attempt/) - "Vineyard Views"[1] is highlighting a report in today's Sunday Times[2] suggesting that Utah Republican senator, Chris Cannon, (he's the one who landed on a list of corrupt members of Congress back in 2006, for alleged disreputable dealing with his lobbyist brother, Joe[3]) has contacted an Oxford don, Dr Peter Millican, the inventor of a software
- [Iraq Doesn't Stop For A US Election](https://sparrowchat.com/iraq-doesnt-stop-for-a-us-election/) - At a time when most Americans are self-absorbed and desperately concerned with electing a new president, the subject of Iraq is far from the forefront of their thinking, or for that matter, of the media's. Only last week, the present US incumbent announced he was confident of reaching agreement with the Iraqi government over the
- [A Soupçon Of Lamb Cassoulet](https://sparrowchat.com/a-soupcon-of-lamb-cassoulet/) - Viewing the media of late, their oh-so-knowledgeable 'experts' waxing lyrical over "America's Finest Hour", I found it hard not to dwell awhile on what finally brought the United States to the point of electing a black man to the presidency. Not for one single moment would I endeavor to detract from the joys and emotions
- [Sanity Returns](https://sparrowchat.com/sanity-returns/) - If the trees in your backyard are bending in the wind just a little more than usual; if the smoke from your chimney is being whipped up into the ether without a chance to linger; if the clouds are scudding across the heavens the merest bit faster than yesterday, don't worry. It has nothing to
- [Is There Anything To Miss?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-there-anything-to-miss/) - The British newspaper, Daily Mail, today suggested we'd all miss George W Bush.[1] With images like this: And this: And this: The paper is suggesting that a world without Bush's clowning and immature antics will be somewhat lacking; that somehow his tomfoolery brought a little sunshine into our lives. They could be right, if we
- [The Demise Of The BBC](https://sparrowchat.com/the-demise-of-the-bbc/) - I have long championed the BBC as a bastion of balanced news broadcasting. Since arriving on these shores six years ago, and discovering the bias inherent in every news media outlet in America, with the possible exception of PBS, the BBC has been my one source for fair and balanced news coverage, albeit with limited
- [Wha's 'At Say, Taffy Bach?](https://sparrowchat.com/whas-at-say-taffy-bach/) - In my native Wales, it's long been government policy for all roadsigns to be written in English and Welsh. Usually, that's not a problem, until the sign maker cuts back on Welsh-speaking employees in an effort to reduce costs. The above sign is fine in English, but the Welsh translation actually reads: "I am not
- [Evil Thought Of The Day](https://sparrowchat.com/evil-thought-of-the-day/) - While all effort is made to substantiate facts before writing anything on Sparrow Chat, the occasional evil thought can creep in, which, though totally unsubstantiated, is truly devilish enough to warrant inclusion on these pages. During an interview last week on NBC Nightly News, Sarah Palin, while previously reluctant to release her medical records, promised
- [A Brief Study Of Human Behavior](https://sparrowchat.com/a-brief-study-of-human-behavior/) - I was recently directed, by a post on "Vineyard Views", to an article in the New York Times by David Brooks. I'm not a fan of David Brooks, his views tend to congregate at the opposite end of the pole to mine, and this particular piece, entitled, "The Behavioral Revolution", went all round the houses
- [The Rose-Colored Spectacles Fell Off](https://sparrowchat.com/the-rose-colored-spectacles-fell-off/) - There was a time when the world observed the United States from a great distance. Fathers and grandfathers remembered old soldiers from the New World they had once fought with against the Germans and the Japanese in two world wars; sons and daughters watched great Hollywood epics, or imported US sitcoms and variety shows, that
- [Drosophila melanogaster - Wasting Your Tax Dollars?](https://sparrowchat.com/drosophila-melanogaster-wasting-your-tax-dollars/) - Here we have a fly. Its name is Drosophila melanogaster. It's only a little fly; the female is about 2.5mm long, the male even smaller. Drosophila melanogaster has one great asset for us human beings: around 75% of known human disease genes have a recognizable match in Drosophila's genetic code, and scientists managed to sequence
- [I Hope This Only Applies In Britain](https://sparrowchat.com/i-hope-this-only-applies-in-britain/) - "The [UK] Food Standards Agency has today issued a food alert about novelty food products from China, including chocolate-flavoured 'willy spread', containing melamine. Melamine is an industrial chemical that should not be present in food. Milk products containing melamine have been at the centre of a major food incident in China. An Agency spokesperson said:
- [Which "Freedom" Do You Prefer?](https://sparrowchat.com/which-freedom-do-you-prefer/) - Sarah Palin recently told a rally of Republican supporters Obama would "bring socialism to America". She gave graphic, if inaccurate, descriptions of the effect of 'big' government on people's lives. She said that there were countries with governments like that, and the populace were to be pitied, because they were "not free". Over the last
- [Labeling As "In-Human" Is A Get-Out](https://sparrowchat.com/labeling-as-in-human-is-a-get-out/) - The horrifying case of baby-killer, James Howson, was highlighted today by TOB. To read more details of this case, click on the link. Killing one's own baby in such a hideous, apparently cold-blooded, fashion is guaranteed to diminish to minute levels any questioning of the societal causes behind Howson's crime. It's difficult to feel other
- [Tired Of The 'F' Word?](https://sparrowchat.com/tired-of-the-f-word/) - One of the great freedoms unleashed by the internet has been the lack of censorship. While most would agree that the prerogative to write what one feels, is sacrosanct in a modern democracy, it behooves the writer to undertake a degree of maturity for which censorship was once the alternative. Pick up any quality book,
- [There's Probably No God......](https://sparrowchat.com/theres-probably-no-god/) - In my opinion, Richard Dawkins's passion for atheism just categorizes him as yet another high priest, but I have to agree with his views on the latest advertising campaign by the British Humanist Association:[1] The advertising banner reads: There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life" Which seems excellent advice to me.
- [Suddenly......](https://sparrowchat.com/suddenly/) - ....secession becomes a more attractive possibility...... ......just one quick push, and Alaska would be in Russia. Filed under: Alaski, comrade?
- [NBC Nightly, Sarah Palin, And Middle Earth](https://sparrowchat.com/nbc-nightly-sarah-palin-and-middle-earth/) - Unlike a certain 'other' television news station, NBC Nightly news has never intimated it is 'fair and balanced'. Nevertheless, the ever-immaculate Brian Williams would probably feign hurt if anyone suggested otherwise. Unfortunately for Mister Williams, here's one who is quite willing to hurt his feelings. NBC's coverage of the presidential election is anything but fair,
- ["Of The People, By The People, For The People."](https://sparrowchat.com/of-the-people-by-the-people-for-the-people/) - "SOCIALISM" - the very word spreads fear into the hearts of many Americans. Sarah Palin recently accused Barack Obama of practicing socialism with his tax reform plans. The crowd booed and hissed in alarm.[1] Quite obviously, neither Palin nor her supporters have the faintest idea what the word means. To them, it's linked to communism;
- [Is McCain Already The Next President?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-mccain-already-the-next-president/) - There's a story in Rolling Stone this month. It's one every American should read. Award-winning investigative journalist, Greg Palast, and voting rights lawyer, Robert F Kennedy Jr, reveal the shocking tale of how the 2008 presidential election may already have been stolen by the GOP. Impossible? Watch this fifteen minute video before you decide. You
- [WILL-TV To Air Documentary](https://sparrowchat.com/will-tv-to-air-documentary/) - On October 16th Sparrow Chat published an article entitled, "Are The Government Gagging PBS?" According to the New York Times, PBS had made a decision not to broadcast a controversial documentary, "Torturing Democracy", until after a new president was installed in the White House.[1] In response to an email on the subject from Sparrow Chat
- [Oh, Those After Dinner Speeches](https://sparrowchat.com/oh-those-after-dinner-speeches/) - If Barack Obama fails to win the US presidency, stuff he can probably make good money doing stand-up in a New York nightclub. Filed under: All pals together
- [Toppling The False Financial Gods](https://sparrowchat.com/toppling-the-false-financial-gods/) - In America, and in the UK, the 1980's heralded an era that produced two gods and a goddess of monetarism. Right-wing Republicans and Tories have worshiped them ever since. The political leaderships of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher spanned the decade, just at the time Milton Friedman was espousing his theories of monetarism. Indeed, he
- ["Listen Now"](https://sparrowchat.com/listen-now/) - You may notice a new icon on the Sparrow Chat posts, just below the title. It says simply 'Listen Now', and is an audio file of the post allowing users to hear, rather than read, the relevant article. This 'plug-in' was discovered while visiting the blog of Lodro Rigdzin at "augmented illusions". Lodro recently commented
- [Daniel James - R.I.P.](https://sparrowchat.com/daniel-james-rip/) - The name Daniel James will not be known to many on this side of the Atlantic, or, indeed in his home country of the UK. Nevertheless, in his own way Daniel James represents the perfect example of a victim. He's the victim of a social system that has become endemic in the western world; a
- [Are The Government Gagging PBS?](https://sparrowchat.com/are-the-government-gagging-pbs/) - "This will go into the record books for historians and teachers and others who look back to ask, 'What did we do?'" ~ Bill Moyers. There's a documentary waiting to be aired on PBS. It's called, "Torturing Democracy", and has been heavily sponsored and advertised by Bill Moyers on his show, "Bill Moyers Journal". Only
- [God's A Hobo, Says US Judge](https://sparrowchat.com/gods-a-hobo-says-us-judge/) - If ever evidence were required to prove US senators basically insane, it would come from Nebraska state senator Ernie Chambers, who for reasons only he is certain of, recently tried to sue God in the Nebraska courts.[1] The image is of Ernie Chambers, not God THIS is God Apparently, he was attempting to make the
- [Weapon Of Choice?](https://sparrowchat.com/weapon-of-choice/) - Having just slated the American nation for its ridiculous and deadly obsession with firearms, I'm now about to attack them once more over their second favorite deadly pastime. A British report by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), today states that in 2007, on British roads, 25 fatal, 64 serious, and 259
- [Not Only The Banks Need To Change](https://sparrowchat.com/not-only-the-banks-need-to-change/) - I've written on this subject many times, but it's one that bears repeating over and over, if only in the vague hope some of the thick numb-skulls out there will eventually allow the sense of it to penetrate their Tyrannosaurus-type brains. If there's one thing gets me mad enough to shoot somebody, it's the neanderthal,
- [Scenes From An Iraki Childhood](https://sparrowchat.com/scenes-from-an-iraki-childhood/) - From their series, "Scenes From An Iraki Childhood", this photograph of a Christian boy whose family are fleeing the campaign of persecution being waged against Christians in Mosul.[1] Photographed at Qaraqosh checkpoint about 18 Kilometers east of Mosul. "The surge is working." [1] "Gorilla's Guides" October 14th 2008 Filed under: Dissection of a nation
- [It's Become A Qualification For Greatness](https://sparrowchat.com/its-become-a-qualification-for-greatness/) - The world is populated by a large proportion of idiots. It has nothing to do with lack of education, poverty, or any of the usual reasons advocated for mental instability. The richest and most powerful among us are prone to idiocy just as easily as the local village clown, or jester. Take the Italian prime
- [Lost On The Sixteenth Tee](https://sparrowchat.com/lost-on-the-sixteenth-tee/) - Personally, I can think of nothing worse than ending up as a 105 year old virgin. Clara Meadmore, now from Cornwall in the UK, says it doesn't bother her. She attributes her long life and good health to total sexual abstinence.[1] I've always had lots of platonic friendships with men but never felt the need
- [Lizard Dung - The New Drug Of Choice?](https://sparrowchat.com/lizard-dung-the-new-drug-of-choice/) - "American Renaissance" is not my idea of a relaxing read, and neither is it a regular at my inbox, but while researching the previous post on the late, unlamented, Jorg Haider, I came across this titbit further down the page: .....further north in Kano, [Nigeria] there are fewer Christians and less violence, but health authorities
- [Do We Mourn, Or Celebrate?](https://sparrowchat.com/do-we-mourn-or-celebrate/) - The name Jorg Haider probably means very little to most Americans. In Europe, it may well bring a chill to many. The report of his death in a car crash earlier today, at the age of 58, will have few in the western world mourning unduly. Born of Nazi parents, he grew up cherishing the
- [What Killed Sergeant Gray?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-killed-sergeant-gray/) - I'm grateful to my friend, Flimsy Sanity,[1] for introducing me to Sergeant Gray. Sergeant Gray was the subject of a program on American RadioWorks recently, entitled, "What Killed Sergeant Gray."[2] Sergeant Gray was a young man who grew up wanting only to be in the military. He eventually joined up and was sent to Iraq
- [If This Is Putin's Russia......?](https://sparrowchat.com/if-this-is-putins-russia/) - Not to be outdone by my old blogging pal over at TOB's Place who recently graced his front page with the image of a nude lady from Portland, Colorado, here's one I unearthed earlier: If you're still of the opinion Russia is inhabited with gruff, overweight, female crane-drivers in bearskin coats and smoking cheroots, this
- [There's Nothing Worse Than A Badly Painted Door](https://sparrowchat.com/theres-nothing-worse-than-a-badly-painted-door/) - Many years ago, longer than I care to remember, I took up painting and decorating. It was desperation, really. Out of work, and with a young family to support, I lashed out on an advert in the local newspaper and waited for the work to roll in. It did, quite a lot, in fact. I'd
- [Chalk And Cheese](https://sparrowchat.com/chalk-and-cheese/) - Or why, despite the best efforts of UK politicians, Britain will never become the 51st state of the Union: My thanks to Gia's Blog and WaterKula for the image. Filed under: Currency converter
- [Stanislav Yevgrafovich Petrov ](https://sparrowchat.com/stanislav-yevgrafovich-petrov/) - Read how, ampoule exactly twenty-five years ago, this man...... ......saved your life. Filed under: Unsung heroes
- [Look What You've Done To My Child, George...](https://sparrowchat.com/look-what-youve-done-to-my-child-george/) - "Look what they've done to my child, George Look what they've done to my child. He was born near blind and with a deformed leg, and I think he's half insane, George, Look what you've done to my child." Click on the screenshot to discover what George and his pals have done to the children
- [Spiegal Spills The Beans](https://sparrowchat.com/spiegal-spills-the-beans/) - Blogging pal, Al Devito, at "Vineyard Views" is right to consider a subscription to the German magazine, Der Spiegal, a worthwhile investment. It's standard of journalism is usually excellent, and hits hard at the heart of matters the US media are often loathe to touch. Two recent articles are particularly worthy of note. The first,
- [There's Nothing Like Good Service](https://sparrowchat.com/theres-nothing-like-good-service/) - On behalf of a half-baked company called "ixwebhosting", Sparrow Chat would like to apologize for the almighty balls-up that caused said website to disappear from your monitors over the last forty-eight hours. Normal service is not quite resumed, as certain images and other icons still need to be resurrected, but hopefully all will be back
- [Ugliness Will Always Find A Way Out](https://sparrowchat.com/ugliness-will-always-find-a-way-out/) - From Today's Washington Post: Palin's routine attacks on the media have begun to spill into ugliness. In Clearwater, arriving reporters were greeted with shouts and taunts by the crowd of about 3,000. Palin then went on to blame Katie Couric's questions for her "less-than-successful interview with kinda mainstream media." At that, Palin supporters turned on
- [An Unreserved Apology To 'WILL-TV'](https://sparrowchat.com/an-unreserved-apology-to-will-tv/) - It's not often Sparrow Chat gets it wrong. Research is the key to factuality and before writing any article it behooves the writer to ascertain facts, as opposed to rumor. Nevertheless, to err is human and no-one is above making the occasional mistake. In the case of a recent article entitled, "Why I Won’t Support
- [Where Skunk Meets Slime](https://sparrowchat.com/where-skunk-meets-slime/) - There a vile, pungent odor drifting across the globe. It begins somewhere up in the far reaches of Alaska. It's nauseating stench permeates around the Golan Heights, across the West Bank, and finds its way into every Palestinian home that borders onto territory Israel claims to be its own. Israel has a new secret weapon.
- [Sarah Palin: Sparrow Chat's Choice For Vice President](https://sparrowchat.com/sarah-palin-sparrow-chats-choice-for-vice-president/) - Okay, so I finally watched "The Debate". It was a trial, but I forced myself to sit through a full re-run. Actually, in places it wasn't too bad. Well, the Joe Biden places, that is. What a cure for insomnia that guy is. He should be bottled and marketed by Pfizer. Sadly, my somnolence was
- [What's In A Name?](https://sparrowchat.com/whats-in-a-name/) - George Bush's lot apparently got it wrong again. It's no wonder Congress ditched his "bail-out" bill, say advertising execs, he named it inappropriately. It should have been called a "rescue" package, not a "bail-out", which carries implications of failure; the antithesis of the American Dream. Alternatively, it called have been sold as an "act of
- [Three Strikes, America, And You're Out](https://sparrowchat.com/three-strikes-america-and-youre-out/) - It's eight o'clock on Thursday evening. Throughout America, millions are completing their final preparations before sitting down to watch the sports event of the year, billed as the fight of the decade. In the red corner will be Sarah "Pit Bull" Palin, a relative newcomer from Alaska; in the blue corner, Joe "Jabber" Biden, veteran
- [Why I Won't Support Our Local PBS](https://sparrowchat.com/why-i-wont-support-our-local-pbs/) - This morning started badly. So did yesterday morning. I'm never at my best prior to midday, and certainly not before I've had my daily dose of morning 'Britishness', in the form of thirty minutes of sanity delivered via the BBC World News from London. Unfortunately, it's something of a hit and miss affair. Our local
- [Did You Know?](https://sparrowchat.com/did-you-know/) - Every US Federal employee, whatever their department, is required by law (Section 111 of Title I, Division J, of the Fiscal Year 2005 Consolidated Appropriations Act (Pub. L. 108-447)) to be provided with "educational and training materials concerning the US Constitution" on initial appointment, and henceforth annually on September 17th of each year. Also, every
- [America Only Ever Weeps For Itself](https://sparrowchat.com/america-only-ever-weeps-for-itself/) - If there was ever a show of evidence to demonstrate the ineptitude and disrepair into which the US Congress has collapsed, it must surely be the abortive attempt to pass this latest finance bill. While no-one can say with certainty how effective an injection of $700billion into the financial markets would be, all those with
- [Mister George W Bush, Corporate Leaders, Sceptics Everywhere......](https://sparrowchat.com/mister-george-w-bush-corporate-leaders-sceptics-everywhere/) - NOW WILL YOU BELIEVE IN GLOBAL WARMING? Picture courtesy of The Daily Mail September 15th 2008 Filed under: Then there was one
- [Quote Of The Day......](https://sparrowchat.com/quote-of-the-day-2/) - ...... from the British Foreign Secretary David Milliband, ailment on the Russia/Georgia conflict: "I think that the most important message that needs to go out.....is a simple one: force is not the basis for resolving difficult issues and is not the basis for international relations in the 21st century." British War Tank - Basra, case
- [What Would The "Mother Of The Believers" Say?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-would-the-mother-of-the-believers-say/) - The Guardian newspaper is reporting today that the London home of Martin Rynja, owner of the independent publishing house, Gibson Square, was firebombed last night. Rynja was uninjured in the attack.[1] In a recent article entitled, "Another Indication Bin Laden Is Winning", Sparrow Chat recently wrote of the cowardly decision taken by publishing giant, Random
- [Smart Car - But No Smart Gas Mileage In U.S.](https://sparrowchat.com/smart-car-but-no-smart-gas-mileage-in-us/) - NBC Nightly News tonight lauded the new (to America) Smart car from Mercedes Benz.[1] Smarts have been around for a number of years in Europe and have proved relatively popular both in Britain and on the continental mainland. Given a choice of eleven different models, ranging from the basic "Fortwo Pure" at 61 bhp to
- [What Does A Blind Moose Think?](https://sparrowchat.com/what-does-a-blind-moose-think/) - I'm writing this as the presidential debate is about to begin. That's assuming John McCain deigns to turn up, of course. No, I won't be watching. What's the point? Obama will be measured, polite, and respectful to McCain, who in turn will pull the 'experience' card and the, 'I'm older and therefore must know better',
- [Too Many Question Marks](https://sparrowchat.com/too-many-question-marks/) - Am I the only one to feel the hands of the powerful at work, deliberately manipulating this latest financial 'crisis' to their benefit - and the detriment of everyone else? Since 9/11, the Bush administration has created one crisis after another and they've all paid huge dividends to the wealthy few, while impoverishing the rest
- [Did You Notice?](https://sparrowchat.com/did-you-notice/) - Last Sunday, September 21st, was International Peace Day.[1] Did anybody stop fighting long enough to notice? [1] "United Nations' International Day of Peace" U.N.special website. Filed under: Mind-boggling facts
- [Say "NO!" To Section 8](https://sparrowchat.com/say-no-to-section-8/) - Read the following quote carefully. Then, read it again, and if necessary, again. "Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency." This one sentence makes up Section 8 of the financial
- [It's All Our Fault](https://sparrowchat.com/it-all-our-fault/) - Finally, on NBC News last night, the question of who's to blame for the financial meltdown was addressed by CNBC's Dylan Ratigan.[1] I waited for the final condemnation of government departments hand-in-glove with corporate commerce; the greedy CEO's gorging themselves fat on the sub-prime mortgage market, while those they conned live in homeless shelters, or
- [Give Us Facts Not Distortions](https://sparrowchat.com/give-us-facts-not-distortions/) - Given the state of the world today: conflagrations and uprising in various parts of the globe; the recent hotel bombing in Pakistan proving al Qaeda is still alive and flourishing, despite woefully inadequate measures by western governments to kill them off; the economic crisis threatening to further destabilize the planet; global warming wreaking its own
- [Hardly A Comedy Of Errors](https://sparrowchat.com/hardly-a-comedy-of-errors/) - What's the difference between Gatwick Airport in London, England, and the US financial markets? The answer is - quite a lot. Britain's Competition Commission (formerly the Monopolies and Mergers Commission until 1998) has forced Gatwick Airport to put itself up for sale.[1] The owners, BAA, have got too big and powerful (they own seven major
- [The People? Or, The Government? You Decide....](https://sparrowchat.com/the-people-or-the-government-you-decide/) - The wreckage of Galveston,Texas, lies strewn over many square miles after Hurricane Ike sauntered through the low-lying township, whipping up seas and tearing apart houses. Thankfully, mandatory evacuation orders meant everyone got out alive before the storm broke. Except, that we hear today of twenty-three thousand residents who didn't go anywhere. They stayed behind, put
- [Smart Car, But No Smart Gas Mileage - 2](https://sparrowchat.com/smart-car-but-no-smart-gas-mileage-2/) - Sparrow Chat receives on average around 500 - 750 hits each week. That's not a bad statistic, until one realizes that Sparrow Chat's popularity is down to one post written in January 2008. The post was entitled "Smart Car, But No Smart Gas Mileage", and was an attack on the US motor industry for producing
- [Looks Like The Queen Has Abdicated](https://sparrowchat.com/looks-like-the-queen-has-abdicated/) - If ever any political party deserved to lose an election, it has to be the Democrats in 2008. If ever any Democratic politician needed to prove their worthiness to the party, it's Hillary Clinton now her race for the presidential nomination has ended. Where is Hillary Clinton? At a time when her party needs her
- [A Thought........](https://sparrowchat.com/a-thought/) - .......on hearing Sarah Palin's interview on ABC: If Hillary Clinton had won the Democratic nomination, which black governor would the Republican party have chosen to run on the Vice President's ticket? Filed under: Political musings
- [9/11 - What Will You Remember?](https://sparrowchat.com/911-what-will-you-remember/) - Set out below are the words of George W Bush as he announced that henceforth September 11th would be known as 'Patriot Day': A Proclamation by the President on Patriot Day 2008: "September 11, 2001, was etched into America's memory when 19 terrorists attacked us with barbarity unequaled in our history. On Patriot Day, we
- [A Tale Of Well Being](https://sparrowchat.com/a-tale-of-well-being/) - Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live at the bottom of a deep well? You'd be aware of a multitude of minor happenings going on around you, movements in the water and tiny creatures moving around the shaft, but the distant circle of light that marks the real world above is
- [Only A King, After All](https://sparrowchat.com/only-a-king-after-all/) - Mswati III is not a name to cause Americans, or for that matter Europeans, to prick up their ears in recognition. He's hardly an international figure. Nevertheless, today is his birthday and in his nation of Swaziland he's determined to have a whopping great party. That's fine for King Mswati III, for a king is
- [Sarah Palin: Illegal In The UK](https://sparrowchat.com/sarah-palin-illegal-in-the-uk/) - Sarah Palin compared America's hockey-moms to pit bull terriers. I wonder how many found it complimentary? Apparently, it's fine for her to make cheap, jokey, gender-laden remarks designed to raise the crowd to hysterical frenzy at St Paul's Republican convention, but everyone else must remain silent for fear of the dreaded 'sexism' accusation. Well, why
- [American News - A Bumpy Ride](https://sparrowchat.com/american-news-a-bumpy-ride/) - I'm getting a seat belt fitted to our sofa. It's either that or stop watching American news altogether. No matter how much I try to compose myself for the 5.30 CBS bulletin, it's guaranteed some headline will floor me. Usually, its the 'medical' segment, and tonight was no exception. "An influential doctors group is recommending
- [Dubya - With A British Accent?](https://sparrowchat.com/dubya-with-a-british-accent/) - Motives are at the root of most actions. Often they are well-intentioned. Usually they are easy to figure out, blatant in some instances. Sometimes, though, human beings can take actions that defy logic, astound common sense, and leave the rest of us wondering just what the hell that person thinks they are playing at. In
- [Plumbing The Depths](https://sparrowchat.com/plumbing-the-depths/) - ""There is a huge gap between us [the Jews] and our enemies [the Palestinians] not just in ability but in morality, culture, sanctity of life, and conscience. They are our neighbors here, but it seems as if at a distance of a few hundred meters away there are people who do not belong to our
- [Down 'The Tubes'](https://sparrowchat.com/down-the-tubes/) - I've had an old Queen song going round in my head all day, but blowed if I can remember the words. Now, what are they? Da da dee da dee da...... .....oh, yes, I remember..... "Another One Bites The Dust." [1] [1] "Ted Stevens charged with failing to disclose gifts" McClatchy, July 29th 2008 Filed
- [Method In The Madness?](https://sparrowchat.com/method-in-the-madness/) - Okay, I'm confused. For the last six years the justice system at Guantanamo Bay has been taking a pasting. Guys have been locked up for years without trial, tortured, generally treated badly. Finally, they get round to trying one of these 'terrorists'; he's found guilty but only sentenced to serve an additional six months -
- [Another Indication Bin Laden Is Winning](https://sparrowchat.com/another-indication-bin-laden-is-winning/) - Yet more evidence has come to light of the success of terrorism. Fear is the objective. The deaths and suffering of a few can instill horror, revulsion, and dread in the minds of many. How governments and corporate bodies react has huge impact on the response felt by the rest of us. Corporate publishing block,
- [The Great Chess Game](https://sparrowchat.com/the-great-chess-game/) - Does this look like a man with a problem? Or, is he just badly in need of a tailor? Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili has to be either a man of immense courage and vision to take on the might of the Russian military and expect to win, or a downright bloody fool. My money's on
- [The High Price Of Garbage](https://sparrowchat.com/the-high-price-of-garbage/) - I haven't had time to write very much on Sparrow Chat of late as I've been busy on other projects. That will soon be rectified. I have managed to keep track of your comments and other writing. One of my good blogging pals today sent me an article from a British newspaper.[1] It concerned a
- [Baby Milk For Georgia, Or Snake Oil?](https://sparrowchat.com/baby-milk-for-georgia-or-snake-oil/) - 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
- [A Touch Of Renovation](https://sparrowchat.com/a-touch-of-renovation/) - Over the course of the next few days Sparrow Chat will be changing. The old pad has been redesigned and its new look will, hopefully, last well into the future. It is expected to complete the changeover within a very short timescale - half an hour, if all goes well. If it doesn't, any glitches
- [Annie Oakley Or Mahatma Ghandi?](https://sparrowchat.com/annie-oakley-or-mahatma-ghandi/) - The BBC World News broadcast its 5.00 am summary to the world this morning, and the news anchor described her as, ".... a gun-toting, church-going, mother-of-five...". Many Americans will not view the portrayal as particularly grotesque, but the antithesis it conjures will be obvious outside of the US. The very next news segment concerned a
- [I Think I've Finally Stopped Laughing.......](https://sparrowchat.com/i-think-ive-finally-stopped-laughing/) - 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
- [Death By Convention](https://sparrowchat.com/death-by-convention/) - 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
- [A Load Of Sticky Meringue](https://sparrowchat.com/a-load-of-sticky-meringue/) - 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
- [On The Art Of Keeping Shtum](https://sparrowchat.com/on-the-art-of-keeping-shtum/) - 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
- [Defence Pays](https://sparrowchat.com/defence-pays/) - 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.
- [The Madness Of President George](https://sparrowchat.com/the-madness-of-president-bush/) - Two items depicting the madness of America hit the headlines today. The first involved the White House and its administration, which in response to Russia's deployment in Georgia, pulled out all the stops by offering Poland whatever sweeteners were necessary to persuade its government to site US missiles on its territory.[1] The Poles had been
- [No Metaphors In My Kitchen, Thank You](https://sparrowchat.com/not-in-my-kitchen/) - 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
- [America - Home Of The Brave, Land Of The Free......](https://sparrowchat.com/america-home-of-the-brave-land-of-the-free/) - ....... and here's the proof: New York Times, August 12th 2008. Filed under: Caring societies
- [The Hypocrisy Continues](https://sparrowchat.com/the-hypocrisy-continues/) - There are times the arrogance of the United States leaves one speechless. While still in the aftermath of a preemptive invasion of a sovereign nation, the occupation of its capital city, and having overthrown its government, US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice stands in front of the world's press and, while condemning the recent actions
- [We Will NOT Let Them Forget](https://sparrowchat.com/we-will-not-let-them-forget-2/) - HIROSHIMA - AUGUST 6TH 1945NAGASAKI AUGUST 9TH 1945more here..... Filed under: Crimes against humanity
- [We Will <b>Not</b> Let Them Forget](https://sparrowchat.com/we-will-not-let-them-forget/) - HIROSHIMA - AUGUST 6TH 1945NAGASAKI AUGUST 9TH 1945 The crimes against humanity committed by the American government on the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War Two, and with full support of its allies, are perhaps the two most appalling war crimes in the history of the world. Greater than any
- [The Disturbing Case Of Vince Weiguang Li](https://sparrowchat.com/the-disturbing-case-of-vince-weiguang-li/) - Recent headlines proclaiming the orgy of death and suffering witnessed by passengers aboard a Greyhound bus traveling through Canada from Edmonton to Winnipeg, cannot have failed to shock all but the most callous among us.[1] The tale unfolded of a young man hacked to death, his head cut from his shoulders. Finally, and most gruesomely,
- [Is The Glass Half Empty - Or Brimming Over?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-the-glass-half-empty-or-brimming-over/) - It's truly fascinating the differences encountered between the various news media reporting on Iraq these days. Mainstream media videos show Iraqis wandering happily around the various markets; normal life, as though no war had ever been encountered. BBC World America recently made much of a Baghdad park full of picnickers, small children happily playing on
- [Let's All Drown Ourselves In American Oil](https://sparrowchat.com/lets-all-drown-ourselves-in-american-oil/) - George W Bush is in favor of drilling for oil on the continental shelf. John McCain has flip-flopped in favor of a similar policy. Barack Obama is in process of flip-flopping towards the same goal. Why? Because, we are told, the vast majority of Americans are also in favor, thus making it an election issue.
- [Why I'll Not Take The Pledge](https://sparrowchat.com/why-ill-not-take-the-pledge/) - There's always a lot of chatter on the internet about government policies: the manner in which it's handling the credit crisis, rising gas prices, and even stuff as far back as the initial invasion of Iraq and Hurricane Katrina. Most of the criticism is justified. God knows, there's been a fair bit of it on
- [A Visual Update](https://sparrowchat.com/a-visual-update/) - Sparrow Chat is a 'work in progress' in more ways than one. Not only is it a place to vent my spleen at the dastardly doings of this world, but it's also a vehicle for my own education, slowly and painfully advancing my knowledge of how a load of weird code transforms into those pages
- [To The Greater Glory Of.......Something](https://sparrowchat.com/to-the-greater-glory-ofsomething/) - Where did we go wrong? Why have our core values of morality, like honesty, integrity, honor, justice, and respect for our fellow man, been - like the proverbial baby - washed away with the bathwater down the drain of materialism and consumer greed? It could be the beginning of one of those really boring Sunday
- [Still, Bloody Good Party, Chaps, Eh What?](https://sparrowchat.com/never-mind-bloody-good-party-chaps-eh-what/) - Was there ever a clearer manifestation of the greed controlling this planet, than the so-called "World Trade Talks" bi-annually argued out to no conclusion in Doha*. Every two years, well paid representatives from the major trading nations meet to discuss, and hopefully reach agreement, on fair and balanced trade relationships, supposedly with emphasis on assisting
- [The Battle For America](https://sparrowchat.com/the-battle-for-america/) - Will The Democratic Struggle Be Lost Due To A Clash Of Rascist/Gender Ideals? Punting around American blogs of late, I've been dismayed - and not a little alarmed - by the weight of vehemence displayed towards the Democratic candidate, Barack Obama. Were this antipathy confined to the rantings of red-neck Republican tomes, it would be
- [God Bless The 'Special Relationship'](https://sparrowchat.com/god-bless-the-special-relationship/) - Few in America will have heard the name, Baha Mousa. That's a pity, because Baha Mousa was living proof the 'special relationship' between Britain and the United States is as strong and endurable as ever. Baha Mousa is no longer 'living proof'. He's been dead five years: tortured to death by British troops in Basra,
- [Quote Of The Day](https://sparrowchat.com/quote-of-the-day/) - US President George W Bush addressing the crisis in the world's financial sector: "Wall Street got drunk. It got drunk and now it's got a hangover. The question is, how long will it sober up and not try to do all these fancy financial instruments?" Later, an interpretation by the White House press secretary: "He
- [Another Gaza?](https://sparrowchat.com/another-gaza/) - One of the most frustrating aspects of the US presidential election campaign of late has been the lies of both candidates with regard to the situation in Iraq. McCain smirks as he repeatedly affirms "the surge has worked. Violence in Baghdad is down....." Conversely, Obama doesn't accept the surge has been a success, but still
- [Constipation, Perhaps?](https://sparrowchat.com/constipation-perhaps/) - Way back in March of this year, in a small town in Kansas, it was discovered that a woman had been sitting on her boyfriend's toilet seat for two years, without ever getting off.[1] I mention it because it's a story I've only just noticed, and while reading the facts one thought that recurred was,
- [British Government Calls George W Bush A Liar](https://sparrowchat.com/british-government-calls-george-w-bush-a-liar/) - The British prime minister, Gordon Brown, has reached a new low in opinion polls. Instead of leading his country, he seems more inclined to follow slavishly the route of his predecessor, Tony Blair, in attempting international fame and recognition at the expense of the needs of his voters at home. Brown has just been handed
- [Buggering Up Arnold](https://sparrowchat.com/buggering-arnold/) - "Thank you for calling the Power Company. Your custom is extremely important to us. Please listen carefully to the following menu......" We've all had it happen to us. A sudden emergency; we reach for the phone, only to by stymied by an automated message that presents us with a menu we can't remember full of
- [Another Savior Or Another Crank?](https://sparrowchat.com/another-savior-or-another-crank/) - Throughout history the human species has, at fairly regular intervals, produced individuals who believed they were on a mission to change mankind and/or the world, or their followers have dubbed them with that dubious honor after they were gone. Long before one of the better "masters", Siddhartha Gautama is purported to have achieved Enlightenment five
- [Fact, Fiction, Or Something In-Between?](https://sparrowchat.com/fact-fiction-or-something-in-between/) - It's difficult not to cringe at the mass of views and opinions circulating throughout the news media, both here and in Europe, specifically with regard to the 'United States/Israel versus Iran' argument and the possibility of war between these nations. So much 'tuppenny wisdom' is circulating that it really does depend on whose views you
- [All About Domin<i>ation</i> (2)](https://sparrowchat.com/all-about-domination-2/) - From: R J Adams - Sparrow Chat To: Matt Marshall, Communications Director, BBC America. Sir Re: BBC NEWS AMERICA As an ex-pat living six years in the States, it didn't take long to realise the US television news media drew a fine line between news and indoctrination. For most of those six years, my lifeline
- [Jackass Of The World](https://sparrowchat.com/jackass-of-the-world/) - "George Bush surprised world leaders with a joke about his poor record on the environment as he left the G8 summit in Japan......" reports the British Daily Telegraph newspaper. Continuing: "The American leader, who has been condemned throughout his presidency for failing to tackle climate change, ended a private meeting with the words: "Goodbye from
- [All About Domin-<i>ation</i>](https://sparrowchat.com/all-about-domin-ation/) - Both the US and UK media are making much of Iran's recent missile tests, with much huffing and puffing from politicians, adroit whipping up of fervor from news anchors, and mutterings of 'provocation', 'retaliation', 'determination', and many other words ending in 'ation', all uttered with grim indign-ation. Sadly, what's missing from all this hot air
- [JonBenet Ramsey: How Many Are Guilty?](https://sparrowchat.com/jonbenet-ramsey-how-many-are-guilty/) - How kind of the Boulder County District Attorney's office in Colorado to issue a statement today officially clearing the Ramsey family of involvement in the horrific murder of six year old JonBenet Ramsey at her home - in 1996![1] According to the family lawyer, JonBenet's father, John Ramsey, was "grateful" for the statement. Personally, I
- [Who Will Save Us Now?*](https://sparrowchat.com/who-will-save-us-now/) - Today sees the end of a four year term as UN Commissioner for Human Rights for Louise Arbour.[1] She stated, as far back as March, that she would not seek a second term. It's doubtful her retirement will be noticed, or remarked upon, by the world in general. That will be a pity for she
- [Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?](https://sparrowchat.com/who-wants-to-be-a-millionaire/) - Have you ever wanted to be one of the stinking rich? While the immediate response of many to that question would be, "Ooh, yes, please," taking a moment to consider the implications might well have some changing their minds. After all, it's not all champagne suppers and high class prostitutes - though they're probably two
- [Slaves To The Corporates](https://sparrowchat.com/slaves-to-the-corporates/) - Consider the case of 84-year-old, British war veteran, Walter Bargate, who attempted suicide by swallowing a hundred sleeping pills and pain killers, after spending three winter days and nights in the freezing cold after a power company broke into his house and disconnected his supply.[1] It turned out the power company had been grossly overcharging
- [Good Riddance, Jesse Helms](https://sparrowchat.com/good-riddance-jesse-helms/) - So Jesse Helms is dead. The media is pouring forth its usual pious platitudes and intimating I should weep for this man and respect his views, even though they're in total contradiction to my own, just because he's kicked the bucket, shuffled off this mortal coil, gone to that great home for bigots in the
- [Wolf-Nipple Chips, Anyone? *](https://sparrowchat.com/wolf-nipple-chips-anyone/) - There's been a G8 summit. Has anyone noticed? It was billed as the most important G8 ever, which is hardly surprising when a global recession means the rich and powerful have to tighten their belts and cut back on the caviar. That's bad news, especially for their personal cardiologists. Still, hard times just around the
- [Observations From The Littlest Room](https://sparrowchat.com/observations-from-the-littlest-room/) - Whatever happened to bars of soap? You know, those solid blocks that sat happily on one's washbasin and could be lathered up with hot water and a swift rub between the hands? All we seem to get today are plastic containers with a silly nozzle on top that squirt liquid gunge all over the worktop
- [Smart Car - Update No 3](https://sparrowchat.com/smart-car-update-no-3/) - Ongoing from my original post on the poor gas mileage of American Smart cars (see "Smart Car - But No Smart Gas Mileage In US") the comments continue to arrive. Here is just one, from Jeff: "I got one of the first ones in the States. I live in SF (hills), and I am averaging
- [Resting Place Worthy Of The Bard](https://sparrowchat.com/resting-place-worthy-of-the-bard/) - During our recent British vacation, my wife and I visited Stratford-on-Avon and spent time rediscovering the town's many associations with the poet and playwright, William Shakespeare. Below is a photograph detailing the magnificent chancel of Stratford's Church of the Holy Trinity, with it's superb stained glass windows. The Bard's final resting place is just below
- ["It's Called The American Dream......](https://sparrowchat.com/its-called-the-american-dream/) - ......'cos you have to be asleep to believe it." ~ George Carlin They all laughed at your comedy, George, but no-one ever listened. R.I.P. Filed under: George Carlin 1937 - 2008
- [Warning! May Contain Pornography.](https://sparrowchat.com/warning-contains-possible-pornography/) - I would ask that you examine the picture below. Does it arouse strong sexual urges? Do you feel the need to scream hysterically for the censor? Is this naked child an embarrassment to you? Perhaps, for the sake of James Dobson's apoplexy, its posterior could be hidden by a judiciously placed silver star? I happen
- [Is It Time To Judge The Judges?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-it-time-to-judge-the-judges/) - America took a step back into the Dark Ages yesterday when the Supreme Court decided every citizen had a right to own a handgun. Courts are supposed to issue judgments, ask but by no stretch could this be considered more than the personal opinions of nine individuals. Many books have been written debating the meaning
- [No Game Without Players](https://sparrowchat.com/no-game-without-players/) - Sports commentators are renowned for their 'one offs', often spoken in the heat of the moment. Today, a pearler at the end of the European Cup Soccer Final in Austria. Spain beat Germany by one goal to nil. During the bedlam following the match, while teams were waiting to ascend the podium and receive their
- [Holy Un-Newsworthy](https://sparrowchat.com/holy-un-newsworthy/) - I finally decided Brian Williams had to go. NBC Nightly has evolved into a collection of old Tim Russert memorabilia, followed by an infusion of weirdos doing strange things while occupying NBC's regular nightly segment, "Making a Difference'. Quite how, and for whom, any difference is being made always remains open to the viewers' speculation.
- [The Forty-Eight Contiguous States Of - Israel?](https://sparrowchat.com/the-forty-eight-contiguous-states-of-israel/) - News today that the Israelis have been rehearsing an attack on Iran raises serious questions.[1] Until recently, the US/Israel alliance could be considered merely that - an alliance of nations with vested interests in the region. The news that Israel carried out maneuvers in early June, obviously in anticipation of a strike on Iran's nuclear
- [Petroleum, Or Snake Oil?](https://sparrowchat.com/petroleum-or-snake-oil/) - I read recently that "A minority of Americans are against allowing inshore oil drilling." My reaction: the ignorance displayed by a majority of US citizens is truly difficult to comprehend. Inshore oil drilling has long been a no-no in this country because of the potential environmental impact of an oil spillage on coastlines. George W
- [Vacation 2008](https://sparrowchat.com/vacation-2008/) - Our 2008 British vacation included a visit to the wonderful Bodnant Gardens at Conwy in North Wales. Below is a photograph of the Hall, home to Lord Aberconway, though the gardens are now owned and administered by the British National Trust. An excellent website displaying stunning photographs of these gardens is available HERE Filed under:
- [Truth Will Out](https://sparrowchat.com/truth-will-out/) - "If I were to watch the American news that you hear in the US I would blow my brains out because it would drive me nuts." ~ CBS News Chief Foreign Correspondent Lara Logan speaking of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan on the Daily Show. Filed under: Bean spilling
- [Consider The Ostrich](https://sparrowchat.com/consider-the-ostrich/) - It was the Roman writer Pliny the Elder, in his great thirty-seven volume work, Naturalis Historia, who suggested the ostrich buried its head in the sand at the first sign of danger. Pliny was wrong. No-one has ever observed this phenomenon. Nevertheless, the poor old ostrich has ever since been accused of this unfortunate behavior,
- [Still Alive And Kicking](https://sparrowchat.com/still-alive-and-kicking/) - Civilization, for sale at last! Arriving in Britain, we stayed first in a Welsh cottage miles from anything remotely broadband, then a Norfolk Broads sailing cruiser boasting a double bed less than five feet ten inches in length atop, I later learned, the forty gallon tank containing effluent from the toilet. Despite aching muscles from
- [This Body's On Vacation](https://sparrowchat.com/this-bodys-on-vacation/) - Sometimes officialdom can be just too official. For the last few weeks police and rescuers have been combing a local wooded area searching for a missing 18 year-old youth last seen alive while camping with some friends. There's no suggestion of foul play, but a river heavily swollen from months of rains, flows through the
- [Attempted Arrest Of Bush Neo-Con John Bolton](https://sparrowchat.com/attempted-arrest-of-bush-neo-con-john-bolton/) - Earlier today, at the Hay festival in Britain, journalist and environmental campaigner George Monbiot made an unsuccessful attempt to arrest the ex-Bush administration official, John Bolton, who was speaking at the event.[1] Monbiot is a terrific journalist and thorough researcher. His work is often linked by Sparrow Chat. On his website, he explains the reason
- [Catch 'Em Young, Keep 'Em For Life](https://sparrowchat.com/catch-em-young-keep-em-for-life/) - While driving home from a shopping expedition this Memorial Day we passed a stone church displaying a huge banner, demanding: "Come to Vacation Bible School" I said to my wife, "The poor kids wait all year for summer vacation, and are no sooner let out than they're whisked off to bloody Bible school. What are
- [Grow Up, America](https://sparrowchat.com/grow-up-america/) - Only yesterday I wrote a long article on the political circus that was the US presidential election. Today, we hear a sound-bite of Hillary Clinton talking to some provincial newspaper, making vague reference to the assassination of Robert Kennedy, and immediately whipping up a frenzy guaranteed to keep the cable networks humming for infinity, or
- [Sanity Finally Reigns](https://sparrowchat.com/sanity-finally-reigns/) - On April 16th 2008 I wrote an article in Sparrow Chat entitled, "Self-Righteousness Only Creates Wrongness". It concerned the seizing of over four hundred children by Texas officials from the Yearn for Zion ranch, a sect whose members had broken away from the traditional Mormon church. The children were seized following an anonymous tip-off purported
- [Momentary Lapse Of Memory?](https://sparrowchat.com/momentary-lapse-of-memory/) - Speaking to the BBC recently about the situation in Burma after the typhoon, Condoleeza Rice, the US Secretary of State said: ""It's a quite unusual situation actually that you have a country in these desperate straits with its population in the circumstances that this population is in - and you get a kind of stone
- [Holy Gunslingers!](https://sparrowchat.com/holy-gunslingers/) - Is there, I wonder, a sadder individual in the whole world than Mister Mark Muller of Butler, Missouri? Mister Muller owns Max Motors, a car dealership presently offering a handgun with every vehicle sold.[1] It's possible Mark Muller's customers are even sadder individuals than he is. According to this automobile dealer, sales have quadrupled since
- [Bring On The Clowns](https://sparrowchat.com/bring-on-the-clowns/) - It's hard following an election campaign when all three candidates are openly dishonest and hypocritical. The recent spat between McCain and Obama over 'talking to Hamas' proves the point, though Clinton deliberately walks a similar path. Yet again, America's political system is degenerating into a circus. All three have, at some point in their careers,
- [The Dreadful Price Of Gasolene](https://sparrowchat.com/the-dreadful-price-of-gasolene/) - NBC Nightly News last night displayed the price of gasoline at the pump in a small number of countries around the world. They were all priced in American dollars. Whenever such comparisons are made in America, the assumption is always that everyone in the world pays for their gasoline in US dollars. It holds true
- [Smart Car Gas Mileage - Update No 2](https://sparrowchat.com/smart-car-update-no-2/) - Back in January 2008, Sparrow Chat featured an article on the new (to America) Smart Car from Mercedes Benz. This feature has received a large number of hits in recent months, due to the increasing cost of gasoline, but as yet no-one has been able to provide a concrete answer as to why the the
- [Diplomacy, Or Appeasement?](https://sparrowchat.com/diplomacy-or-appeasement/) - George W Bush recently told the Israeli Knesset (and the rest of the world) that those who wanted to talk diplomacy with Iran were out to appease the terrorists: "Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all
- [What's In A Greeting?](https://sparrowchat.com/whats-in-a-greeting/) - "A'right, luv, how yer doin'?" is a fairly standard greeting in the streets of my native Liverpool, even to strangers. That is, so long as they're female. Anyone old enough to remember the Beatles in their heyday will recognize the well-known accent, and the use of "luv" to greet any member of the opposite sex,
- [Who's To Blame Then?](https://sparrowchat.com/whos-to-blame-then/) - Two weeks ago a deadly cyclone hit Southern Burma, devastating the region. Around the same time, in the worst tornado season for umpteen years, whole towns in the mid-western United States were destroyed with little or no warning. This week, a horrendous earthquake has flattened much of central China and killed upward of 15,000 people.
- [Truly An Unanswerable Question](https://sparrowchat.com/truly-an-unanswerable-question/) - The leader of Britain's Roman Catholics, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor has appealed to his flock to treat atheists and agnostics with "deep esteem", according to a recent BBC report.[1] He then goes on to accuse believers of being: "...partly responsible for the decline in faith by losing sense of the mystery and treating God as a
- [Reefer Madness](https://sparrowchat.com/reefer-madness/) - "Up and down like a whore's knickers" could be the phrase used to describe the British government's pathetic attempts to regulate cannabis use, or 'abuse', as some prefer to call it. Originally a "Class B" drug, in 2004 the government of Tony Blair downgraded it to "Class C", at the behest of most experts and
- [Orwell Just Got The Date Wrong](https://sparrowchat.com/orwell-just-got-the-date-wrong/) - Has your boss become more demanding of late? Have you noticed how business management tries to wring every last ounce from its employees? Perhaps, you may ponder, it's because of the slowing economy, the need to squeeze more productivity? Not a bit of it. It's been going on for much longer than the dwindling economy.
- [Burma: Another Example Of US Hypocrisy](https://sparrowchat.com/burma-another-example-of-us-hypocrisy/) - At a press conference in the White House today, Laura Bush denounced the Burmese junta for not doing enough to help its citizens devastated by Cyclone Nargis.[1] With their usual simpering manners, and a fear that asking the wrong question might see them barred from future presidential events, the White House "press corps" demurred to
- [Yer Gotta Larf, Okay?](https://sparrowchat.com/yer-gotta-larf-okay/) - NBC Nightly News ran a heartrending piece tonight on the suffering of seniors and those on fixed incomes, desperate to make ends meet as food and gas prices skyrocket. One unfortunate old Californian couple had to live in a van when the rent on their house was raised beyond their means to pay. Immediately following
- [A Divine Entertainment](https://sparrowchat.com/a-divine-entertainment/) - Some may see little to compare between the recent launch of a violent video game and the wars in the Middle East. After all, the bloodthirsty slaying and criminal activities indulged by gaming fans around the world, as Grand Theft Auto Four hits the computer scene, are ethereal and unreal. It can surely have little
- [Where Have All The Leaders Gone?](https://sparrowchat.com/where-have-all-the-leaders-gone/) - Eighty-two year old, legendary auto executive Lee Iacocca has a question for every American: Where have all the leaders gone? Here's an excerpt from his book, courtesy of Al Devito at "Vineyard Views". Iacocca's opinion of George W Bush concurs with Sparrow Chat's: "Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up
- [Reid And Wright - Two Greats From PBS](https://sparrowchat.com/reid-and-wright-two-greats-from-pbs/) - Two great current affairs programs aired interesting shows this week. The first, from Frontline, explored the lessons America could learn from other health systems around the world, and compared them to the ailing service provided - for a price - in the US.[1] The film is delivered by T.R. Reid, described by the Washington Post
- [Is It Them, Or Is It Just Us?](https://sparrowchat.com/is-it-them-or-is-it-just-us/) - The world seems to be sinking ever deeper into a desperate state. Iraq and Afghanistan are adrift in the doldrums of death and suffering, poorer nations cry out for food, Robert Mugabe rules his evil empire in Zimbabwe beating and imprisoning all who stand in his way, and over all hangs the specter of global
- [Before And After](https://sparrowchat.com/before-and-after/) - Thank you George Walker Bush. Thank you, Anthony Charles Lynton Blair. For making your sins our sins, thank you. Below is the narrative that accompanies this short video: "The women of Iraq have disappeared. Five years after the US-led invasion of Iraq, women's secular freedoms - once the envy of women across the Middle East
- [Oil - Three Dollars A Shot?](https://sparrowchat.com/oil-three-dollars-a-shot/) - One of the primary causes of rising food prices throughout the world is the cost of crude oil. Neo-con World Bank president Robert Zoellick - hastily transplanted to the position by George W Bush when Wolfowitz crept away in shame - says it's all down to Third World countries suddenly eating too much. But he's
- [On A Personal Note.....](https://sparrowchat.com/on-a-personal-note/) - It's always been a policy at Sparrow Chat to answer individual comments, where time allows. With regard to the comments relating to the post below, I would like to take this opportunity, on the main page, to whole-heartedly (no pun intended) thank all of you who have left comments, and those who have emailed, sympathizing
- [Wrestling With Life](https://sparrowchat.com/wrestling-with-life/) - With the possible exception of the cemetery, almost any place would be a welcome escape if it prevented the viewing - the humiliation - of the United State's three presidential candidates, as portrayed on a popular wrestling program last Monday evening.[1] Presumably, there must be many Americans who find this kind of thing amusing, enlightening,
- [God Save Us From This Stinking US Media....](https://sparrowchat.com/god-save-us-from-this-stinking-us-media/) - It could be suggested that the US media is nothing more than a pig trough, or possibly the heap of dung that surrounds one, but to do so would insult the hogs. Pigs have better manners, and a cleaner aspect than the miry, preening, egocentric, swamp rats that infest the public face of American television
- [Tremors......](https://sparrowchat.com/tremors/) - There are probably far worse situations than sitting stark naked on the toilet just at the moment the earth decides to move, but if so I have yet to encounter them. Some may say that, given the likely bodily reaction to being suddenly shaken out of one's wits by an earthquake, it's probably the best
- [Another Load Of False Information](https://sparrowchat.com/another-load-of-false-information/) - Most will remember the incident in March 2007, when fifteen UK Marines were seized by Iranian forces from, troche so we were told, Iraqi territorial waters.[1] This now turns out not to be the case. The particular stretch of water where this incident occurred has been in contention for over four hundred years. The United
- [What Could America Do With $400,000,000,000](https://sparrowchat.com/what-could-america-do-with-400000000000/) - The major problem with America today is its militarism. No-one stops to ask why the Pentagon needs to spend four hundred billion dollars a year, when other nation's defense budgets are only a fraction of that amount. Of course, we all know the reason. The US struggles to maintain its superpower status, still viewing China
- [Self-Righteousness Only Creates Wrongness](https://sparrowchat.com/self-righteousness-creates-wrongness/) - America, with its moralistic media and strong churchism, is a vast, efficient, powerhouse of self-righteous hysteria. Perhaps, that's the reason there's been little apparent comment around the blogs, concerning the recent assault by SWAT teams and police on the Texas community known as the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Whatever one's
- [Prevent Prostate Cancer](https://sparrowchat.com/help-prevent-prostate-cancer/) - From This Old Brit comes a plea for all bloggers to spread the word and help alleviate this dreadful disease. According to a BBC report, research suggests men can cut their prostate cancer risk by masturbating more frequently.[1] Anthony Smith, deputy director of the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society at La Trobe
- [Now THIS Is Elitism.....](https://sparrowchat.com/now-this-is-elitism/) - ......and sexism......and racism...... At the recent Northern Kentucky's 4th Congressional District Lincoln Day Dinner, Senator Mitch McConnell (Republican leader in the Senate) said of Hillary Clinton:[1] "[She] seems to be 'teetering on the brink.' 'I hear she hasn't been this worried since a new Hooters opened near her home with former President Bill Clinton,' McConnell
- [What The US Citizen Doesn't See](https://sparrowchat.com/what-the-us-citizen-doesnt-see/) - One of the children wounded in the American airstrikes on Sadr City, April 11th, 2008: From: "Gorilla's Guides" Filed under: Bush's war
- [America Runs From The Truth](https://sparrowchat.com/america-runs-from-the-truth/) - If ever proof were needed that many in this country live in a world detached from reality, it is evidenced by the response of certain individuals and mainline media outlets to the remarks made recently by Barack Obama. That a few simple truths were seized upon as a "political tempest"[1] surely is a backlash from
- [The Price Of Savagery](https://sparrowchat.com/the-price-of-savagery/) - From "Gorilla's Guides": " The number of children who have been handicapped or disabled due to massive U.S. offensives to subdue the restive city of Falluja has reached 500, according to a private aid group. Alaa Hamed of the Society for the Welfare of Children said the U.S-led military operations in the city have left
- [Dead In The Water? Hardly.....](https://sparrowchat.com/dead-in-the-water-hardly/) - On June 13th 2006, CommonDreams.org ran an article entitled, "New American Century Project Ends With A Whimper".[1] The thrust was that the neo-con policy group responsible for the Project for the New American Century, was dead in the water. The Iraq war had gone horribly wrong, Rumsfeld (one of its 'members') was out of favor,
- [Bush's Legacy Worse Than Iraq War?](https://sparrowchat.com/bushs-legacy-worse-than-iraq-war/) - Ask most people what is likely to be George Bush's legacy after two terms as president of the United States, and they will almost certainly respond, "The Iraq war." After all, there may be much he failed to do as president, like dealing efficiently with the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, achieving a measure of peace
- ["From My Cold Dead Hands."](https://sparrowchat.com/from-my-cold-dead-hands/) - Now they are. Charlton Heston - dead at eighty-four. Filed under: Gun control
- [Conflict Of Truth](https://sparrowchat.com/conflict-of-truth/) - One of the greatest failings of any politician is an inability to tell the truth. The usual reason politicians lie, apart from egotism, is to cover up a conflict of interest. Conflicts of interest abound in political circles today because lobbyists and corporate sponsors bombard politicians with pressures, usually in the form of expensive perks,
- [Smart Car - Update](https://sparrowchat.com/smart-car-update/) - Back on January 27th, 2008, I wrote an article[1] on the new (to America) Smart Car from the German company, Mercedes Benz. The post spurred a certain amount of comment, but no-one really attempted to answer the leading question behind the article: why does the Smart obtain a combined town/highway gas consumption of 60 mpg
- [One Legged Woman Not Disabled - SSA.](https://sparrowchat.com/one-legged-woman-not-disabled-ssa/) - From WTOL11, Toledo:[1] "WEST TOLEDO -- She can't walk. She can't drive. She says she can't even work. Now her only source of income has been taken away, and she can't afford to live. In desperate need of help, this west Toledo woman is turning to Call 11 for Action Problem Solver Mika Highsmith. Janice
- [China: Enough Is Enough](https://sparrowchat.com/china-enough-is-enough/) - There's a lot of hot air spouted, usually among politicians, about not mixing sport and politics. Much is said of the sportsmen and women losing out to political dog-fighting, particularly over such events as the Olympics. Frankly, the hypocrisy is hard to stomach. Can it truly not be argued that the IOC made a political
- [Do We Really Love America More?](https://sparrowchat.com/do-we-really-love-america-more/) - American news anchors have been virtually purring over the results of a BBC World Service poll that suggests love for the US has increased throughout the rest of the planet.[1] The poll shows those with a positive view of America have risen by a full 4% - from 31% to 35%. Looked at another way,
- [The Hard, Hard, Road Of Socialism](https://sparrowchat.com/the-hard-hard-road-of-socialism/) - From my old blogging pal, TOB, in Liverpool, England, comes two fine examples of the suffering imposed by socialist governments on the people of that country. Reading the two links below will assure those of us living in nations with private healthcare systems, and stolid right-wing governments, (not mentioning any in particular) that we are
- [Yer Gotta Lawf, Aven't Yer?](https://sparrowchat.com/yer-gotta-lawf-avent-yer/) - If there's one thing you cannot say about Republican presidential nominee John McCain, it's that he's a bundle of laughs. Let's be honest, if this guy ever gave up politics he could don a black suit and make a fortune working at Forest Lawns. Yet the joke he came out with today was the funniest
- [How Long Has It Taken?](https://sparrowchat.com/how-long-has-it-taken/) - Historians reckon it's around 2,600 years since the guy we now refer to simply as "the Buddha" sat under his Bodhi tree and refused to budge until he attained Enlightenment. According to legend, it only took him forty-nine days. The ancient practice of meditation pre-dates the Buddha by at least a couple of thousand years
- [And So It Goes On......](https://sparrowchat.com/and-so-it-goes-on/) - Iraq descends further into chaos today as a round-the-clock curfew in Baghdad, due to end at sunrise Sunday, is extended indefinitely. The flaunted assault by the Iraqi military on Sections of al Sadr's Mahdi army in Basra has reached a stalemate. Despite the US media's broadcasting of erroneous statements to its citizens, suggesting the Iraqis
- [We're Back!](https://sparrowchat.com/were-back/) - It's good to be back online. My thanks to those of you who emailed your sympathy at this time of blog "cold turkey". Unfortunately, as both emails and blog are routed through the same server, they were only received this morning, just as Sparrow Chat came back online. Consequently, there hasn't yet been time to

## Pages

- [BONJOUR AND WELCOME!](https://sparrowchat.com/) - sparrow chat R J Adams -Musings And Meanderings R J Adams - Musing And Meanderings
- [About The Author](https://sparrowchat.com/about-the-author/) - R. J. Adams grew up in the north-west of England close to the busy port of Liverpool. He spent his leisure time sailing small boats on the River Mersey. His interest in animals grew as he matured and resulted in a position as animal technician at the Veterinary Faculty of Liverpool University, where he worked
- [The Room.](https://sparrowchat.com/the-room/) - NOTE: This story contains descriptions of very violent acts carried out by members of al Qaeda in Iraq at the time of the Iraq War of 2002. It is not recommended for children, or those of a nervous disposition. The room was dingy; morning sunlight failed to infiltrate the narrow, dirt-smeared windows. It never did,
- [The Red Bandanna.](https://sparrowchat.com/the-red-bandanna/) - It was dark beneath the tree-trunk. Charlotte momentarily panicked and pushed open the old trapdoor slightly, relieved to see the familiar garden still there with its lush grass and swaying red roses; sunlight dancing through the serrated leaves of the ancient oak. Enough light filtered in for her to glimpse steps disappearing, seemingly down into
- [Privacy Policy](https://sparrowchat.com/privacy-policy/) - Who we are Our website address is: https://sparrowchat.com. What personal data we collect and why we collect it Comments When visitors leave comments on the site we collect the data shown in the comments form, and also the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string to help spam detection. An anonymized string created from
- [Patience Was Her Only Virtue.](https://sparrowchat.com/patience-was-her-only-virtue/) - He stood out on the sundeck contently watching the river flow past inches below his feet. It had been raining in the mountains. The water was deep, fast and treacherous. He admired the raw, uncontrolled power that could sweep a man to certain death, and think nothing of it. A quick glance down the garden
- [MH370 – Flight To Armageddon](https://sparrowchat.com/mh370-flight-to-armageddon/) - In March 2014 Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 disappeared without trace somewhere, it was thought, in the Indian Ocean. After covering 46,000 square miles of seabed over nearly three years, the search was finally abandoned after no trace of the aircraft was found. But suppose it wasn't in the Indian Ocean? Suppose it was somewhere else...completely....?
- [Growing Orbits](https://sparrowchat.com/growing-orbits/) - I live my life in growing orbits That move out over the things of this world. Perhaps I can never achieve the last, But that will be my intent. I am circling around God, around the ancient tower, And still I do not know if I am a falcon, Or a storm, Or a great
- [Bits & Bobs - 4](https://sparrowchat.com/in-the-beginning-was-the-name/) - A Compilation of Musings and Notes Forever Increasing and With Nowhere Else To Go.... "IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE NAME" Ask any United States citizen when America began, and those who regularly attended grade school will eagerly respond: “1776”. Ask them where it started, and their eyes will glaze over. “Um, it started in America.....didn't
- [Bits & Bobs - 3](https://sparrowchat.com/bits-new/) - A Compilation of Musings and Notes Forever Increasing and With Nowhere Else To Go.... "REMEMBERING JAMES" He wasn't a bad lad. In fact, as lads go he was probably better than most. The trouble was I hadn't seen him for ten years and didn't quite know what to expect. To make matters worse my second
- [Bits & Bobs - 2](https://sparrowchat.com/bits-bobs-page-2/) - A Compilation of Musings and Notes Forever Increasing and With Nowhere Else To Go.... "THE ROPE WAS BELFAST LINEN...." My grandmother swore by Irish linen. She wouldn’t have any other bed linen in her house. She used to say, “You only ever have to buy your Irish linen once, it’ll last you a lifetime.” She
- [Bits & Bobs - 1](https://sparrowchat.com/bits-bobs-page-1/) - A Compilation of Musings and Notes Forever Increasing and With Nowhere Else To Go.... "CATERWAULING PAYS" Okay, so I’m bored. Here I am on the first day of a four day break from work with nothing to do, except play around on the computer. But, I’ve been playing around on the computer all day, and

## Categories

- [Sparrow Chat](https://sparrowchat.com/category/1/)

## Tags

- [School Bus](https://sparrowchat.com/tag/schbus/)