Inna lillahi wa inna ilahi raji’un.

We never know, of course, when our chances will cease. I have just seen the CCTV footage showing the moment when a car driven by a drunken driver sped through red lights at a junction and ploughed into the car in which my brother-in-law was travelling the Sunday before last. The speeding car hit the rear passenger door and killed my brother-in-law’s best friend, who happened to have swapped sides with him on this one occaison. Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we return.

Alcohol-linked NHS admissions double in 10 years

Britain is on a dangerous drinking binge which is claiming lives and causing increasing damage to adults and children. Hospital admissions related to excessive drinking have more than doubled in the past 10 years and those involving under-16s have risen by a third.

http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article2714171.ece

UK browsers lose themselves in aimless surfing

“Two-thirds of UK surfers lose significant portions of their time to irrelevant net browsing, according to a study published this week. Workers confronted with the almost unlimited pool of online information become distracted and begin – according to the report’s authors – ‘wilfing’. This is short for ‘What Was I Looking For?’”

PC-PRO, News, Wednesday 11 April 2007

Nothing changes…

Years ago a friend of my brother was subjected to racist harassment which led him to call the Police. When the Police arrived they pursued him. It seems like nothing has changed in the fifteen years since. This from The Guardian today…

‘Don’t you want to know why I’m bleeding?’

An assault by a white neighbour on a Muslim woman in London has shown just how difficult it can be for victims of alleged racist attacks to prise open the doors of justice. Laura Smith reports
http://society.guardian.co.uk/societyguardian/story/0,,1834819,00.html

Climate Change

So frequently do I find myself throwing in alternative viewpoints whenever Global Warming is discussed in conversation that yesterday I thought I really had to find out what the current research indicates. And so I sent an email off to one of my former university lecturers, based at another college, seeking enlightenment…

A curious email from a former student… When I was studying Geography at SOAS 1996-9, the majority of our lecturers took a very cautious approach regarding the link between Carbon Emissions and Climate Change/Global Warming. There were concerns about the paucity of evidence, period of data collection and lack of research in tropical environments.

I was just wondering what the current take on the situation is. Much to my regret I have not really used my degree since graduation, becoming an office dog’s body instead of a geographer, but I am often found rehearsing the arguments of my degree whenever the subject of Global Warming comes up in conversation. I keep wondering if there is still any substance to this or if I am just making a fool of myself.

Perhaps you could point me in the direction of current research, before I lose my marbles.

Best wishes,

This afternoon I received the following response…

Dear Tim,

Thank you for your email. Not being a physical geographer, I am not best qualified to answer your question. I am therefore forwarding your email to Professor Glenn McGregor who, I am sure will reply most ably (and who, I hope will copy me in on his reply so that I am properly informed!)

All good wishes and do keep in touch,

And this evening this…

Best place to read about the latest is the IPCC web site
http://www.ipcc.ch/

So for all concerned, lets scoot over there and have a look. Tootle-pip!

The erosion of British identity

I found this article interesting:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/5012300.stm

Much is being made these days about British Identity – or the erosion of it. Predicatably the finger is being pointed at “Multi-culturalism”, but I don’t believe this is correct. Much more pervasive is the influence of advertising, marketing, publishing and broadcasting. The times, they are a changing.

Also interesting:

http://islameetsworld.blogspot.com/2006/02/punch-drunk-on-british-islamic.html