Alan Rusbridger

www.theguardian.co.uk

Alan Charles Rusbridger was born in Northern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1953.In 1973, after attending public school in Surrey, he studied at Magdalene College in Cambridge graduating with an MA in English. Starting out as a reporter with the Cambridge Evening News, Rusbridger moved to the Manchester Guardian in 1979 where he wrote a gossip column.

Following time as a feature writer and a stint at The Observer as a television critic, he moved to America (1986), for a year, to report for The London Daily News (now defunct). Returning to the UK, in 1987, Rusbridger spent four years as features editor with The Guardian’s G2 daily supplement. In 1993 he became deputy editor at The Guardian and, in 1995, was elevated to the role of editor, where he remains to this day.

Piers Morgan interviewing Rusbridger, in The Independent newspaper (2nd April 2007), says that: “…I am very fond of Rusbridger and his paper. The Guardian plays an important role in our society, and acts as an effective foil to right-wing papers such as The Daily Mail.”

Morgan says editing The Guardian is a “moral maze.” However Rusbridger defends his newspaper: “The Guardian is a liberal, progressive, intelligent, internationalist paper which operates to certain ethical standards.”

In Morgan’s interview, The Guardian editor admits that he has annual earnings of roughly half a million pounds. The author of three books for children, Rusbridger also reveals his purchasing of a £30,000 piano, “the most extravagant thing I’ve ever bought.”

When asked, by Morgan, of his proudest moment as editor, Rusbridger replies: “Building the Guardian Unlimited website has been one of the best things I’ve been involved with. And relaunching the paper in its Berliner shape.” He also mentions the failure of the MP, Jonathan Aitken’s court case against The Guardian as a highlight.

Morgan, in the course of the interview, asks about some of The Guardian’s competitors. Rusbridger describes The Daily Mail style of journalism as: “…cruel. And sometimes a bit aggressive”. Of The Independent he says: “The emphasis on views, not news, means that the reporting is rather thin, and loses impact on the front page the more you do that.”

As well as the children’s books mentioned above, Rusbridger has also written ‘A Concise History of the Sex Manual 1886-1986”. His interests outside of journalism include music (he’s chairman of the National Youth Orchestra), painting and golf. Married for 17 years with two daughters, he shows no sign of wanting to abandon a job that has seen him rise to the top of one of the world’s leading English language newspapers.

Bruno

This is the latest serving of lard from Sacha Baron-Cohen, who previously brought us Borat, and, at one point in history, was the man behind Ali G from Channel Four’s ‘The 11 O’clock Show’. Like the Borat movie, Bruno sets out to ridicule the many serious (on appearance) people who feature in it. Bono, Elton John, Sting and Paula Abdul are also given cameo roles.

Looking around the cinema I estimate the age group of viewers to be between 15 and 40. Is the movie getting belly laughs? No. There are only a few brief chortles when Bruno goes to the Middle East to try, in vain (surprise, surprise), to get agreement between the Arabs and Israelis and confuses Hamas with hummus – this causes mild laughter, definitely no howling.

However this movie undoubtedly has its humorous moments: it runs on the basis of exposing the lack of irony of Americans. But this line of comedy only goes so far. It is interesting to note that Bruno is of Germanic extraction and Germans and Americans are two peoples where ironic comedy is in short supply. Overall the reaction from my fellow viewers is fairly mute. Despite its silliness, Bruno has been banned by the authorities in Ukraine and Kazakhstan – someone obviously takes it seriously.

On a trip to Africa Bruno, like Madonna, picks up a child and makes the boy his ‘son’. Returning to an airport in LA, he is shown, disgracefully, taking the tot from a cardboard box on the baggage conveyor belt. This occurs in the full presence of everyone in the arrival hall! On a US chat show Bruno causes anger when telling the audience of naming his ‘son’, OJ. The livid audience go bananas when Bruno tells them he got his baby by swapping him for an I Pod.

Another part of this movie sees Bruno in the company of hard-line, ultra- masculine bear hunters. When he tells them that there’s a similarity between them and the ‘Sex & the City’ girls he earns glaring looks. If this was a real documentary I suspect Baron-Cohen would have been lucky to have got away unscathed. Indeed the journalist John Waters, on Pat Kenny’s radio show, last week, said he thought the participants in Bruno were all “in” on the joke. In other words a fake. He’s probably not far off the mark. As this crazy caper continues we are brought to a Swingers club, with Bruno of course. The gay Austrian character succeeds in aggravating some of the Swingers who don’t appreciate his homosexual innuendo.

“Achingly funny”, is how the Irish Times describe this novelty trash and there’s a big push to promote it on a global scale, even though it has been given a controversial reaction in many quarters. Offending the conservatives is the objective here and that’s as exciting as it gets. However, with Colm McCarthy’s ‘An Bord Snip’ proposals slicing the nation to ribbons, and depressing us all, this movie has one virtue at least – it’s a good diversion and isn’t boring, despite its many weakness’. That’s the maximum credit I can pay to this slop. Definitely not Oscar material.

Donald Mac Cormick R I P

Disclaimer:
This posting was NOT written by me and in no way am I trying to pass it off as my own work. You will notice that my copyright is not on the bottom.

I respected Mr Mac Cormick as a top current affairs journalist with the BBC,in the late 1980s, when I started to watch Newsnight. He was a regular presenter. As a mark of respect here is his obituary taken from the The Guardian newspaper (14th July 2009).


by Brian Wilson


Donald MacCormick, who has died of a heart attack aged 70, was a broadcaster of both style and substance whose calm commentaries illuminated the tumultuous political events of the late 1970s and 80s. He was a highly regarded BBC presenter of both the revived Tonight programme from 1975 and its successor, Newsnight. MacCormick became an essential centerpiece of party conference coverage where he commanded respect for both his knowledge of the political scene and his calm professionalism.

The post-Thatcher era and the advent of John Birt as the BBC's director general did not augur well for MacCormick's courteous though penetrating style of interviewing. Part of the "Lime Grove crowd" who were viewed as an expensive hangover from a less accountancy-driven age, he departed for London Weekend Television to present their flagship political programmes. When LWT's commitment to politics proved shortlived after the 1992 election, MacCormick went back to working for the BBC, though there was no open door for a returning freelance, however distinguished, and his subsequent role, mainly with the fledgling BBC World, scarcely did justice to his abilities.

MacCormick's father was a Glasgow teacher who died when Donald was six. This resulted in him being extremely close to the family of his lawyer uncle, John, a partner in the firm of MacCormick and Neil. Coincidentally, this partnership, in name at least, would be revived in later years by Donald as Newsnight presenter and Ron Neil, whose father had been the other lawyer in the firm, as his editor in the early 1980s.

Aside from his legal work, "King John" MacCormick, Donald's uncle, was a Liberal and devolutionist who was also arguably the father of popular Scottish Nationalism through the Scottish Covenant, a petition for devolved home rule which gained widespread support in the early 1950s. Donald was therefore steeped in Scottish politics from an early age.

Educated at King's Park secondary school in Glasgow, he then became part of a famous generation of gifted and political Glasgow University students, which included John Smith, Donald Dewar, Derry Irvine and Menzies Campbell. MacCormick was chairman of the Labour Club. However, while he retained a lifelong fascination with politics, his interests were diverse and he never sought a political career. Having edited the university's literary magazine, he taught English at the High School of Glasgow for five years, but broadcasting was his natural calling. He started by presenting a books programme for STV and then, in 1967, moved to Grampian in Aberdeen as a news reporter.

His next step was to join BBC Scotland in Glasgow as a current affairs presenter. The early 1970s was something of a golden age for BBC Scotland, which made serious programmes on which MacCormick worked alongside Magnus Magnusson, the fine industrial journalist Hugh Cochrane and latterly Andrew Neil, who became a close friend. MacCormick's role was not restricted to politics and he probably came to London's attention by presenting programmes from the Edinburgh festival.

When Michael Bunce was in the process of reviving the Tonight programme in a late-night slot, he selected a Scotsman, an Irishman and an Englishwoman as his presenters: MacCormick, Denis Tuohy and Sue Lawley. Non-Oxbridge accents were not common in the mid-70s. However, even the most fastidious defender of received pronunciation could scarcely object to Donald's gentle west of Scotland cadence. When Tonight evolved into Newsnight, MacCormick became one of the regular presenters, along with Peter Snow and John Tusa. He was liked and admired by all who worked with him.

His Newsnight role lasted throughout the Thatcher years, but by the end of it, MacCormick was ready for another challenge and welcomed an approach from LWT. One of his great supporters within the Corporation had been Robin Day, who saw an interviewer in the same mould as himself - non-confrontational but a skilful cross-examiner.

Donald was devoted to the cousins with whom he and his brother had grown up in Glasgow: Iain, who was first a Scottish Nationalist MP and then a founder member of the SDP, and Sir Neil MacCormick, the regius professor of law at Edinburgh University and former Nationalist MEP who died earlier this year; an event that affected Donald deeply.

Married first to Lis MacKinlay, a Glasgow University contemporary with whom he had three children, Donald married the BBC producer Liz Elton in 1978 and they had two children. They all survive him.

• Donald MacCormick, broadcaster, born 16 April 1939; died 12 July 2009

guardian.co.uk © Guardian

NEET People

NEET stands for people (usually the young) who are Not currently in Employment Education or Training. It is a British government term that is an effort to lift people out of the benefit system and to give them an opportunity to gain a career or job. In England and Wales, in 2007, 9.4 per cent of 16 to 18 year olds were classified as NEET (Department Children, Schools and Families).

The individual, by engaging in a course or training, can leave the dole behind and, theoretically, move forward into a position where they are contributing both to their own development as well as paying tax – to help others. When a person is no longer in the NEET zone they cease to be unemployed and this can have a positive effect on self esteem as well as having more money in the pocket.

As part of my research I looked up NEET on Wikipedia and it says that in Japan “the classification comprises people aged between 15 and 34 who are unemployed, unmarried, not enrolled in school or engaged in housework and not seeking work or the technical training for work.” In Japan those that fit the NEET category are regarded as unwilling to involve themselves in meaningful employment. A Japanese Professor, Michiko Miyamoto, describes the situation in Japan as a “breakdown of the social framework forged in an industrial society, by which young people become adults.”

In the UK, James Purnell (the former Work & Pensions Secretary), was the chief advocate for tackling NEET’s . Many saw the proposed measures he wanted to introduce as a punishment for those on the dole. This was because their Jobseekers allowance would be cut off if NEET’s didn’t get training or join a course. But Purnell, a Labour MP, felt it was important to stress the benefits to society. On BBC Radio Four, recently, he defended his government’s policy on NEET’s by stating that it was part of Socialist philosophy to get people into mainstream employment.

Those taking up the option of completing a course or training cease to be NEET. This can lead to greater confidence as well as an increasing likelihood of getting on the employment ladder. A larger social circle becomes a reality, whereas a person stuck in the NEET category will just stagnate. For whatever motives, a government drive to eliminate those classified as NEET should be welcomed. It could have a profoundly positive effect on society: less crime and happier, more productive lives.

Peter Kingston, in The Guardian (7th May 2008), writes: ‘the Association of Learning Providers (ALP) believes the (British) government is overly concerned with getting people qualifications first before they get jobs when the reverse should be the priority.’ The article goes on: ‘Last year (2007) the proportion of young people in the NEET group began to increase again giving the UK one of the highest drop-out rates for 16-and 17-year-olds in Europe.’ It seems that young people are finding the NEET tag irresistible.

The article continues: ‘Launching the ALP’s annual conference in Nottingham, today, the ALP chief executive, Graham Hoyle, said: “What is now urgently required is a comprehensive, skill-focused strategy, encouraging young people on to a range of government supported pathways that will flexibly balance the need for qualifications, skills and, critically, sustainable employment.”’

But there are lessons for Ireland too. The Irish government, in the last budget, decided to try its own version of eliminating NEETs. This, according to the minister for Social Welfare, was to reduce the amount of unemployment benefit paid to young people, many of whom were school leavers. This was, Mary Hannifin said, to encourage those in that bracket to access training. But, with jobs rarer than hen’s teeth at the moment, where are young people to go? Who will they turn to?

The Irish government needs to clarify greatly its plans and people mustn’t be allowed onto a conveyor belt constantly going aimlessly round and round from course to course and not finding meaningful employment at the end of the process.

In my own case I have had little experience of a working life, but I was never a NEET for long. The courses and voluntary work I have done have been to my advantage and, although I have been in paid employment for less than ten years of my life, I can look back with a certain amount of pride and say that I have gained immensely from not being a NEET. If I can stay free from that four lettered acronym anyone can. Everyone should try and better themselves whatever the level they find themselves at in life. Eliminating NEETs should be a priority.

Tackling nuclear proliferation

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORgfAIylcwE


In the early 1960’s the world was nearly plunged into Armageddon. We were heading for a nuclear war as a consequence of the Cuban missile crisis. Thankfully the two super powers (USA and USSR) pulled back from the brink. However there was no real progress, no thaw in the ‘Cold War’ until the mid 1980s when Mikhail Gorbachev became Russian leader. Mrs Thatcher (British PM), I always thought it outrageous, has been cheered for this change in relations between east and west. Rubbish! It was Gorbachev that opened a period of ‘Glasnost’. Not the British prime minister. Ronald Reagan, the then US president, welcomed the Russian president and, for a couple of years at the end of the 1980s, it seemed that the ‘Cold War’ was melting.

Ever since the end of Reagan and Thatcher’s time in office the east and west have had, at least, a calm relationship. However the hard-line approach returned when George W Bush and Vladimir Putin became leaders of their respective nations. It was lamentable that a chill had returned: the conflict in Georgia and the proposed US missile bases in Poland and Ukraine being just two examples. The arrogant attitude of both Bush and Putin conspired to damage relations - a potentially disastrous state of affairs.

Could we be returning to Armageddon? If anyone wanted a better relationship it’s clear these two leaders weren’t listening. Indeed Bush’s administration, as I wrote here last year, seemed to be doing everything possible to provoke a reaction by Russia. Putin’s attitude was equally appalling and it seemed that an escalation in tension was developing. An escalation that would be a convenient reason for nuclear re-armament – a step backward for the world. How can countries like Israel, Iran, North Korea and India end their desire to stock up nuclear warheads if the parents (US and Russia) are also stocking up. This is a perilous state of affairs. Perhaps deadly.

The installing of a new administration in the White House has, to an extent, changed the relationship between the two world powers. However Luke Harding, in the Guardian (7th July 2009), says “Though the Obama effect has worked for the new president elsewhere in the world, Russia is a tough nut to crack. Just 15 per cent of Russians say the US is playing a positive role in the world……according to the University of Maryland’s WorldPublicOpinion.org ”

There is no doubt that Mr Obama wants to improve relations. Something that the previous US president never wanted. In yesterday’s Guardian (7th July 2009), it was reported:
Pledging to reverse a ‘sense of drift’ in Washington’s relations with Moscow, the US president said he hoped a new nuclear arms reduction treaty to replace the Start-1 pact, which expires this December, would be ready by the end of the year. “We must lead by the example and that is what we are doing here today”, he said in Moscow.

These are hardly the words of a warmonger. Clearly Obama is a proud American, so proud that he wants to improve the image of his homeland abroad. He isn’t interested in provoking a negative reaction from Russia, only a positive response. One thing is certain, US diplomacy is now working the way it should: to heal and not to harm. This path should be followed by all other countries that have nuclear armaments. The world will be a better place without the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and ending of the world’s reliance on nuclear arms should be encouraged. The recent summit between the American and Russian leaders is a step in the right direction.

Diabetes – What we need to know

www.diabetes.ie


The World Health Organisation (WHO) describes the condition known as Diabetes as:

A chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin, or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces…overtime it leads to serious damage to many of the body’s systems, especially the nerves and blood vessels.

About five years ago one of my best friends told me he was getting out of bed several times a night, to urinate. Understandably this caused my pal considerable distress. I urged him to get this checked out; he suspected it may be kidney damage. Eventually a diagnosis was confirmed – he had diabetes and his over-active bladder was a symptom of this increasingly common problem.

I have two cousins who are diabetic and daily injections are required to keep them healthy. However they are two of the brightest people you could meet and their diabetes has done little to affect, adversely, their lives. More and more of the population are becoming diabetic. The WHO say that five per cent of all deaths, each year, globally are caused by diabetes. Furthermore they say that deaths from diabetes could grow by over 50 per cent in the next 10 years.

None of us can live completely healthy lives – at some point we will experience illness. However could we avoid diabetes? What we consume will have a strong bearing on our health. The Hindu online (www.hinduonnet.com), in relation to diabetes, says: “there is more stress, less physical activity, faulty dietary habits, leading to…diabetes – a lifelong, lifestyle disorder.” In the same article the chilling truth of this condition is highlighted to us: “People with pre-diabetes don’t often have symptoms and diagnosis can only be made on the basis of 75g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).”

We are sleepwalking our way to an epidemic of diabetes and food producers should be compelled, by law, to educate consumers of the risks of developing diabetes, or other conditions, from food products. Commercial gain should not get in the way of explaining these dangers to the public.


There are two types of diabetes:

Type 1: More persistent among the under 35 age group. Needs injections of Insulin to stay well.

Type 2: People with this type are non-insulin dependent and are usually over 40 years of age. This type responds well to weight loss, by having a better diet.

Early screening, experts tell us, is vital in tackling diabetes. Lifestyle changes, it is said, can provide the key to unlock this growing health problem.

Symptoms that may indicate you have diabetes are:

Lack of energy

Tiredness

Extreme thirst

Frequent passing of urine

Unexplained weight loss

Blurred sight

An infection that persists


If you think you might have diabetes you should make a visit to your GP where a brief blood sample will clarify matters. Or if you are worried talk to a friend/acquaintance that is diabetic. A dietician can offer you advice on what food you eat (or should be eating) and pharmacies may also be able to provide information. But nothing can replace a consultation with your doctor. Remember: It is ne

Questions and Answers (RIP) , Steven Wells (RIP)

Questions and Answers
Originally presented by Olivia O'Leary, it had been under the fist of John Bowman for over 20 years. Indeed after the Late Late Show it was the longest running RTE production. Every Monday night, for over two decades,it was the focal point for debate and discussion and many famous faces, usually politicians, were guests. The BBC's Questiontime was possibly the template and, at times Q&A could be rivetting television.

I attended, as an audience member, in the summer of 2004 when Mary Lou McDonald and Richard Bruton were two of the panellists that evening. I can remember that the studio was quite warm and there was a considerable amount of clapping involved. A week earlier I had secured an audience ticket. On arrival at the Donnybrook TV centre I, along with about 50 others, were ushered into the 'hospitality' lounge. We were all welcomed by John Bowman and the then producer, Betty Purcell. We were encouraged to devise questions to ask when the show was underway. In approximately two hours!!!

Even though it is a distant memory, being able to say one was on Q&A is something I'll treasure for a long time ahead. But why is it going from our screens? I don't know, but RTE will definitely have to replace it with something at least as engaging for viewers to switch to the dominant Irish television channel. There is a great urgency for this type of programming to be broadcast here. Debate and discussion are vital for the viewers and public at large. I'll miss the buzz that Q&A brought to me and, I'm sure, many others.

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STEVEN WELLS RIP
In the 1980's the music press was thriving. My choice of weekly pop news came via the New Musical Express (NME) and one of its most prolific writers was a scribe by the name of Steven Wells. I am guessing but I think he contributed for nearly 30 years. I cannot recall his articles in detail (haven't read him in years)but I was well aware of his eccentric (apparently using more expletives than any other journalist at the NME!)style.

From the time I first bought the NME (1987) to my last purchase of the rag (2000), Wells was a fixture. The paper had declined in circulation and it's doubtful that it will remain for the future. However to my mind Wells (also known as Susan Williams, Seething Wells and Swells) will always be associated with music journalism and in particular the NME.

He started his career in journalism as a 'Punk Poet' with the likes of Attila The Stockbroker and Porky The Poet (aka Phill Jupitus). Latterly he had been living in the US with his wife and apparently had turned to sports journalism. Diagnosed with cancer of the liver,he died on 24th June last aged only 49. A light has gone out for journalism everywhere. God bless you Swells.