The Sharpener crew are organising a march: http://www.pledgebank.com/solidarity.

I can’t be there, but encourage anyone who stumbles
across this to join in. Show ’em who’s boss!

“Across-the-pond” update: Switched on the news when I (finally) got in to hear LA’s new mayor describing how LAX and other major bodies in LA are on alert (along with all the major cities in the US).

First thought: didn’t see any signs of it myself. Second thought: wouldn’t notice it anyway, the police here carry guns all the time. scaring the hell out of me (also still not used to seeing London police with projectile weapons). Third thought: anything to keep the populace scared and under control, eh? (TinFoil hat™ ^{(curious hamster)}.) Fourth thought: I wish I hadn’t moved here. abc has opportunistically scheduled an entire evening of “prime-time live” continuously showing footage of the seriously injured and bringing on “security consultants” who kept saying “I told you so” and generally trying to pour scorn on what I think was an excellent response by London’s emergency services and its hardy population. I’m very uneasy about the response over here. I’m convinced there is a clear-thinking majority here, however the mainstream media is just full of scare-mongering propaganda presented as “analysis”. I don’t like the spin, nor the packaging. Nor the “selling” of news as stories, and not facts.

I was very impressed by the way New Yorkers carried on living their lives after the bombing of the towers. Just as I’m convinced Londoners will pull through, sticking two fingers at those who wish them unwarranted harm. Which makes me mad (as predicted earlier) that such suffering is being exploited by the TV networks here. I have no objections to seeing images of victims of the bombings, but only with their permission, g’dammit. And I sure as hell don’t like the way some are calling this a good “wake-up call”. Piss off to whatever windowless hole you live in, creeps.

Robin Grant has started/picked up on (not sure which yet, and I’m too tired to check) a meme (via curious hamster).

From BBC news: More than 30 die in London blasts.

See europhobia for updates. And also going underground. And Robin Grant for photos of the aftermath. And Tim Worstall has a running log of responses on other blogs. More photos.

My first response was to check the date. My brother is still on holiday at home. So that’s good on the family front. Then it hit home that 30 or more people have probably died. I can’t describe how relieved yet saddened I am. It feels insufficient to say that I have the greatest sympathy for those who have lost their loved ones. I get this disjointed feeling when I hear about things like that (and not just in the western world, but also when the multiple reports of bombs in Iraq come through). I keep hoping I’ve heard wrongly, that estimates of the dead are wrong, that somehow, these innocents have survived. It’s not happened yet, and I’m not inured to the shock either. Soon, the anger will come, but not all directed at the bombers.

I’m with chicken yoghurt on this. First, let’s not jump to conclusions. Second, whatever the findings are, we cannot tar entire racial, national or religious groups with the same inhumane brush. It makes me mad that people will use bombings like this to justify their deep-held prejudices about people not like themselves.

uknae of Mischief to Data has uploaded loads of photos of the march in Edinburgh, which I was very sorry to miss, although I sent P as my representative. Since I have the digital camera, he had to use a disposable film snapper, which means he won’t be uploading those photos anytime soon. In the meantime, get a feel of the day at uknae’s Poverty march photoset.

Meanwhile, Chris of qwghlm has a very rational rant on the very reason I am currently hating Bob Geldof’s guts. The idiot (Geldof, not Applegate…) has given free publicity to lots of music acts that don’t need it, and given himself yet another chance to sing his one hit song. He has also insulted an entire generation of young people who care about affairs of the world, try to do their bit by volunteering or donating what little money they have, and don’t need bribery with banal pop concerts to get them interested or talking about how we, or rather our governments and theirs, have [bad word]ed over Africa. Instead of rational discussion and positive suggestions, he’s just given the media and official voices leeway first to gasp in horror at his ludicrous suggestions and now to repeat his banal soundbites.

Instead of patting themselves on the back for turning the world’s attention to Africa, they should be giving themselves a great big kick for taking the attention away from WHY talking about Africa and its debt is important. I don’t like over-simplification, but sometimes, an idiot’s guide is a good start. Have a look at the BBC’s attempt to give some background to the various obstacles to African success.

We cannot lump all of Africa together. There are nations rich in natural resources who will prosper, given time and better trade agreements. There are others with ridiculously corrupt governments, which must be encouraged (or forced) to give greater care to their own citizens before lining their pockets. And then there are some which don’t have much to call their own, yet owe the World Bank sums of money I cannot even comprehend in my tiny head. I think what I’m trying to say is that every country needs its own solution, and we’re probably doing the poorer nations a disservice by speaking of Africa as a homogeneous place.

So, if you enjoyed the concerts (live or on TV), and want to know more, ignore Bob and friends. Instead, why not read some opinions by people who know what they’re talking about?

“This is the right gesture – but certainly it is not enough. What Tony Blair is offering Africa is a leaking bucket. Such policies create the very poverty which they are now trying to address.”

–Trevor Ngwane (anti-privatisation campaigner from South Africa)

I like the imagery. It puts in mind a song, to which I know some of the lyrics, but not the title:

There’s a hole in the bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza,
There’s a hole in the bucket, dear Liza, there’s a hole.

Then mend it, dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry,
Then mend it dear Henry, dear Henry, mend it.

It goes on for a bit, but essentially, it comes back to Henry requiring some water with which to wet a stone that he needs to sharpen an axe, which for some stupid reason he needs to cut a straw with. Why he didn’t just stick some gaffer tape over the hole, I could never understand. But there is some similarity to the situation at hand. To stop money leaking away via corrupt or inefficient channels (come on, not all the officials can be corrupt… law of probability and all), there needs to exist a certain level of affluence or financial security. For that to happen, there must be infrastructure (either government-provided or sold to the lowest bidder). For infrastructure to be put in place (or remain there for any length of time), there must be political stability and an absence of civil war. And for that to happen, yadda-yadda…

People are people all over the world. There is no such thing as an altruistic politician or CEO. The nature of our world dictates that only the strong rise to the top, and the strong have historically maintained their grip by using/abusing their power. All the belly-aching in the world by our well-meaning pop stars won’t change that. Live8 must have been fantastic for all the people who attended it. Good for them. Now let’s concentrate on the task at hand.

Edit: Silly me. The white band’s been right in front of me for months, and I don’t even remember to plug it. Go here and here.

Update:No point retracing the steps when someone else has done the legwork. See curious hamster for a round-up.