More Global Warming

The quality of environmental news reporting has reached an all time low. Not only is it incomplete, it appears that the media, specifically newspapers, are attempting to scaremonger us into driving around in lentil powered cars are a result of their inaccurate postulations of doom.

The catalyst for my rage is an article published last Sunday November 20, 2005 by the newly compacted Independent on Sunday. In the article the journalist (Geoffrey Lean) suggested that sea levels were set to rise by 20-feet in the next ten minutes or so due to a recorded increase in the velocity of a specific Arctic ice mass.
Cue a mass of gay wale saving hysteria. What the esteemed Mr Lean, undoubtedly a student of paranoia, neglected to mention is that the glacier in question is in fact the fastest moving on record and prone to bouts of surging. Anybody with even an A-Level in geography would know that some glaciers do this as part of their dynamic equilibrium.

Secondly, thermal expansion of the oceans is responsible for a greater amount of sea level rise than melting ice.

Why are such unqualified people allowed to write about key issues and mislead the public?

Su Doku - A new evil

Do you remember asking your maths teacher why you had to study the subject as it would be of no use to you in the real world?

Alas, the time has finally come when those of us who spent their time discussing the four-four-two system and the merits of skirts in favour of simultaneous equations and other such rubbish are to be ousted from polite society.

Su Doku not only sounds like an evil enemy of the Jedi and the Galactic Republic, it is actually affecting our chances of winning the next World Cup. No longer do young men run free in the park dreaming of scoring the winning goal in collaboration with a Russian linesman. Now the nation is gripped by the adult version of Pokemon, designed to narrow the range of thought and bring the geek to the top of the food chain.

If the Su Doku tsunami is not stopped, last summers ashes memories will die away and be replaced by dreams of counting to 9 in the wrong order quicker than our Australasian cousins.

I am making a personal plea on behalf of Duncan Fletcher, Sven and Andy Robinson to stop the publication of the grids of death. Our national pride depends upon it.

The editor of telegraph.co.uk was the bearer of good news in Cardiff today.

Richard Burton, a hack of thirty years, declared that you do not need to be a geek to succeed in online journalism. This is great news. For weeks we have been hearing that journalists will be replaced by robots or by those pesky blogger types, armed with a fancy phone and unsubstantiated opinions.

Burton may be a journalist in the traditional sense, but he is way ahead of his time in terms of his embracement of new media and his ability to exploit it for financial gain. His dealings with BP, Morgan Stanley and Google are examples of a great lateral thinker, however dubious they may appear morally.

The most compelling aspect of Burton’s talk, and indeed his character, is the fact that he gets a real enjoyment from his job and furthermore, can articulate this to an audience. His tales of regularly defeating his online rivals with speed and innovation were compelling for their sheer enthusiasm. “When I stop having fun (with his ‘toy’) I will give up, write a book and let you guys take over,” he said. I Couldn’t agree more Rich.