Attached is a video I found on You Tube from the riots that took place in the UK last week. This clip was filmed in Manchester. I've stripped down the original soundtrack and replaced it with a track from a Plastikman album called 'Consumed' which I felt was quite fitting to the content. I ask that you watch it and then consider your own thoughts and feelings immediately after watching it. I would appreciate any comments you may have.
What follows are my feelings on this particular video and not on the riots in general which I think are too complicated to digest here in a single blog entry.
This clip of Manchester shows kids, youngsters, the type I see whenever I leave home, all getting in on the action... "gegging in" as we like to call it in certain parts of the North West of England. This particular clip, of all the clips I've seen from the riots,upset me. Not because it shows graphic violence or destruction but because it shows people like those I see on a daily basis behaving like animals, somehow infected, like something out of a horror movie. Having watched this clip I later found myself shopping in my local Tesco supermarket and it wasnt long untill I witnessed the usual cluster of young lads debating which drinks would get them most wasted for their money. However where as normally I may even be tempted to give them some advice, this time I found I couldn't even look them in the face. I felt that these somehow the guys in the You Tube clip and the guys in Tesco had become part of the same group, part of the same "Zombie Nation" that had ravaged our streets days earlier. In my mind all that separated them was their current proximity to the events because it seemed that somhow their mentality appeared no different from those capable of such things. To me they were guilty as where the majority of people I saw in and around town the following day regardless of if it was fact. It seemed everywhere I looked I suddenly saw potential rioters, much in the same way that when I was growing up I remember my Dad had always seen potential drug dealers and burglars on every street corner regardless of any basis to form such a conclusion.I questioned why i felt this way and I concluded that it was because in my opinion these kids didnt stand a chance. Its a case that their mentality has been cultivated for them over the past decade within a society that has officially become both financially and morally bankrupt.It seems more and more Kids are bringing themselves up with no real role models to focus on just each other and fantasy realities that are being sold by those who see fit to exploit whatever misery they can uncover. These realities have been crafted by merchants of escape who seem to see society more like a farm yard in which they can harvest cash from and not a place that contains real actual people. The lies they pedal are pushed out through the media reiterating a mantra that tells these kids telling they can have it all."Whats that... you're not happy with your looks, have plastic surgery... what you have no money... here have a loan... it's like saving... but backwards"...."What your happy with your looks, how about a TV, an ipad, a flat, a car.. you can have just about anything you want, have it all... you deserve it...your special".It's all wrong and I have been as much a victim as the next person. One things for sure I dont have any answers but I do feel that the problem was let out of Pandoras box a long time ago, and it gets worse with every next wave of individuals who reach an age of lost inocence. If we are to close the box (if thats possible) I think we all need to take responsibility for our own actions and work out how we can fix ourselves after years of being programmed by the great farmers in the sky.Fix the parents and the rolemodels and the icons each look up too and restablish the realities they subscribe too. I dont belive for one second we cant fix these kids or the system overnight but I do feel that one thing thats apparent is that these green fields of England have been abused for way too long; if what we saw last week tells us anything its that our society has toxins within it and that some of these people in our nation are obviously mutating. All the natural goodness has been withdrawn by big buisness and now as the crop stops growing people are freaking out. Like farming big buisness is looking else where and is currently in the process of rotated to pastures new. The next harvest is planned in places like China, India, Brazil, Russia.One things is for sure, England needs to get back to its grass roots and replenish its soils with the goodness that was once there. If it doesnt it stands no chance of avoiding becoming part of the emerging moral wasteland that is the back end of a failed capatalist system.
Monday, 15 August 2011
My thoughts on this clip taken during the Manchester riots last week!
Sunday, 14 August 2011
My thoughts on this clip taken during the Manchester riots last week!
Attached is a video I found on You Tube from the riots that took place in the UK last week. This clip was filmed in Manchester. I've stripped down the original soundtrack and replaced it with a track from a Plastikman album called 'Consumed' which I felt was quite fitting to the content. I ask that you watch it and then consider your own thoughts and feelings immediately after watching it. I would appreciate any comments you may have.
What follows are my feelings on this particular video and not on the riots in general which I think are too complicated to digest here in a single blog entry.
This clip of Manchester shows kids, youngsters, the type I see whenever I leave home, all getting in on the action... "gegging in". In particular, of all the clips I've seen, the attached clip upset me. Not because it shows graphic violence or destruction but because it shows people like those I see on a daily basis, somehow they seem to be infected, like something out of a horror movie. Having watched this clip I was later in Tesco and saw the usual cluster of young lads debating which drinks would get them most wasted for their money and I couldn't look them in the face, to me these where part of the same "Zombie Nation" that had ravaged our streets days earlier. All that separated them was their proximity to events as their mentality appeared no different from those capable of such things. To me they were guilty as where the majority of people I saw in and around town the following day. It seemed everywhere I looked I suddenly saw potential rioters, much in the same way that when I was growing up I remember my Dad had always seen potential drug dealers and burglars on every street corner regardless of any basis to form such a conclusion.These people have had their mentality crafted for them over the past decade within a society that has officially become both financially and morally bankrupt. Kids are bringing themselves up with no role models just each other, and fantasy realities that are being sold by those who see fit to exploit whatever misery they can uncover. These merchants of escape see society more like a farm on which they can harvest, not a place with actual people. They push their lies through the media telling them that they can have it all... "Whats that... you're not happy with your looks, have plastic surgery... what no money... here have a loan... it's like saving... but backwards"...."Need a TV... You can have just about anything you want, have it all... you deserve it".Pandoras box was opened a long time ago and before we can close it (if thats possible) we all need to take responsibility for our own actions and work out how we can fix ourselves after years of being programmed by the great farmers in the sky. I feel these green fields of England have been abused for too long; the people are obviously mutating. All the natural goodness has been withdrawn and the crop is currently in the process of being rotated to pastures new (China, India, Brazil, Russia). We need to replenish our soils with the goodness that was once there if we want to avoid becoming part of an emerging moral wasteland.
My thoughts on this clip taken during the Manchester riots last week!
Attached is a video I found on You Tube from the riots that took place in the UK last week. This clip was filmed in Manchester. I've stripped down the original soundtrack and replaced it with a track from a Plastikman album called 'Consumed' which I felt was quite fitting to the content. I ask that you watch it and then consider your own thoughts and feelings immediately after watching it. I would appreciate any comments you may have.
What follows are my feelings on this particular video and not on the riots in general which I think are too complicated to digest here in a single blog entry.
This clip of Manchester shows kids, youngsters, the type I see whenever I leave home, all getting in on the action... "gegging in". In particular, of all the clips I've seen, the attached clip upset me. Not because it shows graphic violence or destruction but because it shows people like those I see on a daily basis, somehow they seem to be infected, like something out of a horror movie. Having watched this clip I was later in Tesco and saw the usual cluster of young lads debating which drinks would get them most wasted for their money and I couldn't look them in the face, to me these where part of the same "Zombie Nation" that had ravaged our streets days earlier. All that separated them was their proximity to events as their mentality appeared no different from those capable of such things. To me they were guilty as where the majority of people I saw in and around town the following day. It seemed everywhere I looked I suddenly saw potential rioters, much in the same way that when I was growing up I remember my Dad had always seen potential drug dealers and burglars on every street corner regardless of any basis to form such a conclusion.These people have had their mentality crafted for them over the past decade within a society that has officially become both financially and morally bankrupt. Kids are bringing themselves up with no role models just each other, and fantasy realities that are being sold by those who see fit to exploit whatever misery they can uncover. These merchants of escape see society more like a farm on which they can harvest, not a place with actual people. They push their lies through the media telling them that they can have it all... "Whats that... you're not happy with your looks, have plastic surgery... what no money... here have a loan... it's like saving... but backwards"...."Need a TV... You can have just about anything you want, have it all... you deserve it".Pandoras box was opened a long time ago and before we can close it (if thats possible) we all need to take responsibility for our own actions and work out how we can fix ourselves after years of being programmed by the great farmers in the sky. I feel these green fields of England have been abused for too long; the people are obviously mutating. All the natural goodness has been withdrawn and the crop is currently in the process of being rotated to pastures new (China, India, Brazil, Russia). We need to replenish our soils with the goodness that was once there if we want to avoid becoming part of an emerging moral wasteland.
Friday, 24 June 2011
Halley V - Antarctica by Sunset
Just been tidying up my desktop and opened a folder of Powerpoint presentations which Ive collected over the last year. My attention was drawn to this little slideshow produced by Simon Coggins. The pictures where taken whilst he was head of science for the British Antarctic Survey down on the Halley V site.
Some of the pictures are stunning and as I looked at them I wondered if Posterous would be able to handle a Powerpoint (PPT) file...I guess theres only one way to find out! (If this doesn't work please accept my apologies....but if it does I hope you like the pics :)
Friday, 10 June 2011
San Francisco
With one thing or another I haven't been able to catch up where I left off and have therefore fallen behind with posting to my Posterous blog....it's a long story and something which at the moment can wait.
Anyway where was I ...I was leaving LA!
&REWIND to March 29th 2011: In fact rewind further to when I was originally booking my trip home. I was originally going to fly straight from LA to NYC but then noticed the flight went via San Francisco. The first thing that struck me was how cheap the Virgin flight was from LA to NYC it was only $86. I then had a brain wave if I tweaked my flight to include a stop over ,it might not be that much more expensive, it turned out to be next to nothing... $40 for a day in SF. So I booked it and I was now leaving to head for my childhood Mecca.
San Francisco is a place I have always wanted to visit from way back when I was into skateboarding. When I was young it seemed to be the centre of the skateboarding world and since becoming an adult it has maintained my attention but now as the centre of the Technology world. I was therefore very excited to be finally visiting the place especially as it had always been too far from home to visit just out of curiosity.
My flight was with Virgin and it seemed to be very much what I would expect from a flight to San Francisco. The plane felt more like a bar with it's Chill Out music playing as you boarded and mood lighting adding to the effect. Once I sat down the Girl next to me showed me how to order drinks on the console and also pointed out that the plane had Wi-Fi something that impressed me much and made me wish I had charged my battery before leaving the hotel. The flight was only short but long enough to get a good deal of information from my co- passengers with regards to what I should do on my short visit. It was explained to me that my first Mission objective was to get the BART ( Bay Area Rapid Transit) from the Airport to my Hotel near Union Square then head out towards the mission district to an Irish Bar that I was promised would not disappoint.
The BART transfer took about 30mins and I departed the system in the centre of town. I was greeted by an array of Crazy people as I left the station, drummers , clowns , beggars and other buskers and so called entertainers. It was very surreal and took me a bit by surprise. I then had my first encounter with one of San Francisco's legendary Hills, after several months in Antarctic I found these to be quite a challenge especially trying to avoid just bursting into a pool of sweat. After about 10 mins of hiking I found my hotel a super boutique affair called the "Hotel des Arts" with rooms individually decorated by local artists, Ironicly my room was painted Blue and white and reminded me a lot of Antarctica in its design.
After having a quick wash I headed back out and onto the BART to the Mission district away from the main city. I'am so glad I heeded the advice because I had a brilliant night in the Bar and met some brilliant people. Two encounters in particular made the night a guy called Rush and a guy called Clint.
Rush was brilliant he came over and introduced himself to me as Rush he then kept on putting songs on the jukebox playing Air Guitar and asking me what I thought of Jane Addiction, Pink Floyd and so the night went on. He gave me the full run down on what I should plan to do the next day and even tried to make plans to meet me and take me for the best Clam Chowder in Town however unfortunately this didn't happen but I did manage to do all the things on Rushes Rush round SF which I will come to in a moment. Ok the other guy I met was called Clinton Golden who was in a band called "Carlton Melton". It turned out that this band was going on a European tour and would be playing in Liverpool in May...I have since seen them perform and had the chance to meet them on my home turf. They were brilliant..and at some pointbi will do a blog post just on them.
Anyway back to SF and I had a full day to kill. I took the advise of Rush and hired a Bike I then had the freedom of the coast. I head out from Pier 39 having indulged in some clam chowder and cycled the 8 miles to the Golden Gate bridge and up to Hoppers Hands. I then took in the view and made the journey over the bridge ready to get the ferry back to the pier. I loved every second of it and found myself very jealous of the Californians I saw running up and down the coast. I can't think of more sociable running experience and felt apart of it even though I was on a bike :-) It looked like great fun and something which one day I wish to participate in on foot.
My route back to the pier was on the ferry and then across the bay past Alcatraz. Which in itself was an fantastic to see, the place looked so haunting and I promised myself that if I ever got the chance to return to Sf then I would make a point of visiting the old prison.
Once off the ferry I hopped on to the tram to scoot back across to Union Square. stopped to watch the skateboarders and buy some cheap Holister clothing before grabbing my bags to head to the BART for a trip back to the Airport ready for the Redeye to NYC. oh what a day :-)
Monday, 18 April 2011
Man Food -a short clip about Antarctic Cooking!
This post is out of context with my most recent, but its relevant with regards to the season thats just past at the Halley VI site.
Re-Wind back to Feb and in I am still in Antarctica, the guys at the Halley VI remote site are enjoying good food cooked by a great chef (Shaggy). In appreciation for his hard work we decided to make a film in his honour.... this video is the trailer for that movie...which I must add we abandoned after making only the trailer, for reasons that will become clear if you decide to watch the trailer.(By The way just for your information "Man Food" is the slang name for survival food in Antarctica).
Thursday, 14 April 2011
LA LA LAND, California USA
Los Angeles has never been somewhere I would consider going too on Holiday. It's not even somewhere I would have considered going to for a quick visit. The stereotype of LA LA LAND with it's plastic surgery and it's cult of celebrity is actually so undesirable, as to actually be off putting. So when it was suggested to me to make the place the hub for my trip to the states, I wasn't too enthusiastic.
The truth is to get from Rio to America isn't that easy. To fly from Rio you are limited to very few options and it can be quite expensive,that's if your not on one of the main routes. I read that there are only six destination that you can fly direct to Rio and after that you have to make connections. To get to LA I had to make two connections one in Peru and one in El Salvador. Though this was a nuisance it did allow me to get out of South America for a very budget price and by flying to LA it was significantly cheaper to go there than fly to most of the other states I had considered. I had made it my priority to go to the Grand Canyon and California is well placed to do this so Los Angeles seemed like a good option. What I hadn't anticipated was to fall in love with the place..I really did.
A lot had to do with finding a brilliant hostel in the centre of Hollywood which had once been the home of Marilyn Monroe. It had lots of character and history that added another dimension to my stay. That said i found Hollywood on the whole to be brilliant. I had heard a lot of bad stuff about Hollywood , people had said it's a dump...it's not what you expect, and that's sort of true...but what is there is so cool that it doesn't matter. If like me you like the movies then the place seduces you almost as soon as you see the Hollywood sign. The walk of fame is strangely fun to walk down, the Chinese Treater has it's own gravity that draws you in. Rather than ramble on and on the following is a list of things which I loved about my stay. 1. Staying in a brilliant Hostel 2. Searching out a good place to get a photo of the Hollywood sign. 3. Saying Iam not bothered about the walk of fame then spending half a morning trying to find Marilyn Monroes star. 4. Stumbling upon Elizabeth Taylors Star and watching all the tributes mount up. 5.Seeing Penelope Cruzes star being made and missing her by two days! 6. Watching a slightly average movie called "Paul" in the Chinese Theater which I might add boasts a HD experience like no other and renders the movie even more average! 7. Seeing the Premier for Sucker Punch. 8. Walking past Hellen Miren doing her foot and handprints and not realising what was happening! 10. Getting lost in the Hollywood hills when trying to walk back from Universal City. 11.Watching live music at howl to the moon and really bad comedy at another bar in Universal City. 12. Gong to see Bill Maher for free. Check this site out for free tickets. 13. Union Station 14. Feeling safe on the tube. 15. Visiting Compton 16. Seeing Superheroes on the blvd. The list goes on and on... And considering I wasn't fussed about going there there was so much I didn't do, I didn't go on a tour of homes, never visited Bel Air or Beverly Hills, didn't go Santa Monica or any of the beaches, Disneyland or Universal Studios. The place is packed with things that seduce you and I was gutted to leave but that said the places I went to after LA I felt the same about both San Francisco and New York play the same trick on me of trying to me a resident!
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