Monthly Archives: September 2008

A taste of canon law

Posted on September 30, 2008 by acb

This morning I was reading the Code of Canon Law at breakfast — there is a reason — and found my way to the rules for absolving whomsoever the priest may have screwed. This is a big no no, as … Continue reading →

Posted in God | 4 Comments

La Chute

Posted on September 30, 2008 by acb

Last night I went to bed rereading Galbraith’s The Great Crash and felt for the first time that I understood the financial manipulations behind it all. This morning I looked at the papers, briefly. The two policy wonks I quoted … Continue reading →

Posted in the crash | Tagged | Comments Off on La Chute

In which Stephen Glover …

Posted on September 29, 2008 by acb

Is forced to swallow the contents of his sickbag in his column for the, erm, Independent:So what do I think of last week’s re-vamp, as well as other changes introduced by The Independent’s new editor, Roger Alton, over the past … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism | Comments Off on In which Stephen Glover …

Funhouse mirror on the wall

Posted on September 29, 2008 by acb

via Razib, I just stumbled on this global obesity chart. No prizes for guessing that the fattest people on earth are Americans, at 30% obese, and it’s reasonable that Britain, at 23% shoud be in third place. But—except that it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Blather, Science without worms, Sweden | 6 Comments

A sad reality

Posted on September 26, 2008 by acb

The Country Vicar wants me to be apocalyptic. Here’s apocalyptic for you: not only is the vice presidential cadidate prayed over by a Kenyan exorcists who boasts of driving “witchcraft” out of towns there, but his boast is defended by … Continue reading →

Posted in God, USA | 6 Comments

Goodbye to Swiss banks?

Posted on September 24, 2008 by acb

There is yet more from the FT about the crash: an article suggesting that while the US government had to nationalise the finance system to save it, no European government is big enough to do the same, if that proves … Continue reading →

Posted in British politics | 12 Comments

Rowan Williams and responsibility

Posted on September 22, 2008 by acb

In ordinary language, “to take responsibility” for someone or something means to tell them what to do and then take the blame when it goes wrong. This is not at all what Rowan Williams means by the phrase — at … Continue reading →

Posted in God | 1 Comment

A short Q&A with Melanie Phillips

Posted on September 22, 2008 by acb

In this morning’s Mail she has a pop at Baroness Warnock: Q: Has there ever been anyone who has displayed more inhumanity towards her fellow human beings, and yet had more influence over British society, than the noble Baroness Warnock? … Continue reading →

Posted in British politics, Journalism | 4 Comments

Improbable statistics

Posted on September 22, 2008 by acb

According to Spiegel, there are between 8,000 and 10,000 wild boars living in and around Berlin today; according to the Guardian, the Independent currently sells, at full price, 131,566 copies. That’s before they put the price up 25% to £1.00. … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Travel notes | 4 Comments

Silly mapping fun

Posted on September 20, 2008 by acb

I have been playing with the GPS on my new phone — let’s face it: you can’t do more than play — and found a wonderful site here, which offers a split screen view, with a large scale Ordnance Survey … Continue reading →

Posted in Blather, nördig | 1 Comment