Wages obscene

sports minister brands John Terry's wages obscene
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/article2786375.ece
he is right of course, although it's not really fair picking one player out to be honest, however much of a tosser he is.

Met found guilty over De Menzes shooting
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/article3119228.ece
and rightly so, but will anyone actually take responsibility for such a shambolic operation. I know you have to have some sympathy for them as at the time, it was a chaotic situation in London, but you had to follow the trial in the papers to know this was a mistake that should never have happened.

UAE Sheik to stand trial
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,2202437,00.html
i know he wasn't a Saudi prince, but we all know that is the type of life that some of them lead. Not the gay aspect of the story, more the jet set lifestyle, champagne, rich hotels and call girls on the side, not exactly Wahhabi.

Having read a fair few books about Spanish and Italian history over the last couple of years, the difference the church has played in the politics and history of the Latin countries and i would probably include France in that, compared to the part played by the church in northern europe, or should i say religion is pretty striking. The catholic church was violently reactionary in Spain during the last century, Italy was used as a bulwark by the Americans along with the mafia to counter the communists and socialists after the second world war, and Vichy France was a continuum of the anti Dreyfus catholic military establishment. In other words the church has always been conservative and on the side of reaction.
Yet in the north of Europe, it has been in the main apolitical or slightly left of centre. Think of the nonconformists who started out as the bulwark of the Liberal party but then mainly transferred allegiance to the Labour party in the UK. Germany , the low countries and Scandinavia have all benefited from having churches that in the main have stayed out of the political arena. This is a tremendous article that shows that the Vatican never seems to learn in Spain.
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/ac_grayling/2007/11/rome_playing_politics.html
Thankfully the Spanish left is up for the challenge, and reason will always eventually triumph over tradition and superstition.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/spain/article/0,,2202877,00.html

The Chinese aim for space
http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,2202402,00.html
The era of American hegemony is going to come to an end over the next twenty years or so. As much as we all slag them off, we may wish it back again in the future, although not the neocon version of it. Actually the era of the neocons has almost certainly shortened their period of dominance, ironic really, the whole point of their ideology was to continue it for as long as they could. George W. Bush will surely go down in American history as one of the worst presidents they have ever had.