Israeli/Palestinian Conflict

Haroon makes some really good and interesting points about the current situation in Israel. I also never thought that I’d be worried that Ariel Sharon might not be prime minister for much longer.

 

But how things change. Now I’m more concerned about the alternatives.

Are we ever going to see any meaingful and lasting peace in the Middle East?

Finally, REAL News Again!

One of the things that I miss most about living in the UK is the BBC – especially the news and current affairs programmes such as Newsnight and Question Time. The BBC’s news coverage is world-class and quality journalism at its finest and the current affairs programmes offer intelligent and insightful perspectives and debates. After living in the USA for nearly 9 months, I suddenly realized that I’ve lost touch with what’s happening in the rest of the world. Why? Well mainly because I’ve always relied on getting my news from watching television (rather than reading newspapers or web sites). And as Russ Baker will tell you about the news networks in the USA:

In general, for the Brits, war coverage offers an opportunity to corral facts and to ask tough questions about hugely consequential events. For the Americans, it is a chance to present an “exciting” story within narrow limits. Compared with the BBC’s studied neutrality, Fox (broadcasting globally its original stateside programming, complete with Brit Hume, Mort Kondracke et al.) comes across as a kind of Gong Show of propaganda.

And it’s not just about the coverage of the Iraq war or a “ding” at Fox News – the other news networks here aren’t much better. CNN seems to run Larry King shows most of the time and is mediocre compared to CNN International (which itself is medicre compared to the BBC). And don’t even get me started on MSNBC – that isn’t journalism, it’s more like a bunch of Hollywood “wanna be’s” trying to create exciting stories, adding their own myopic opinions and frankly asking some really dumb questions. We did sign up for BBC America, but it’s pretty disappointing and shows little news/current affairs and more entertainment programmes such as Benny Hill (that was funny when I was 12 years old, but nobody in the UK watches that stuff anymore).

I’d tried watching the BBC’s video news on the web, but it’s pretty low quality video and disappointing – but then again, it’s free. And recently I came across the BBC’s new Broadband Service, which is also free but restricted to UK residents (they block out non UK IP addresses). So when I discovered a subscription service for people who live outside of the UK, I jumped at the chance. Basically, it’s in partnership with Real (and you need to download RealPlayer 10) but it’s only $5 a month and it rocks!

Now each day, I can (on high quality video streams) get a 3 minute live news update and watch the top news stories on demand. Not only that - i can also watch the full Newsnight programme each night (great to see you again Jeremy) and Question Time every week. I feel in touch again with the rest of the world and am enjoying some high quality journalism and intelligent debate. It feels so good…it’s like I left the planet Earth and just arrived back! Thank you BBC. I will never complain again about the TV licence fee (although I don’t have to pay it anymore). At just over $15 a month, it’s an absolute bargain for the quality of programming that you get.  

World Series

“world” (n) (wûrld): the earth with its inhabitants and all things upon it

First of all, congratulations to the Chicago White Sox for winning the Baseball World Series after 88 years. It’s only now, since I’ve been living in the US for a few months, that I realize how big baseball is and what a huge deal the World Series is. In the UK, people “know” about baseball, but nobody really knows how to play it or even really understand it. I guess the US has the same problem with cricket, but we’ll leave that discussion for another day.

Now I’m familar with a lot of “world” competitions and tournaments. The Footbal World Cup (soccer), where 32 countries with the best teams come to compete. Or the Cricket World Cup where 16 countries from around the world compete. Or the World Athletics Championship where over 40 countries compete for medals. I think you get the point! So what I just don’t understand about the Baseball World Series, is how can a competition involving just two countries (USA and Canada) be called a “world” series?