Miliband talks sense

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/david-miliband-interview-on-the-future-of-the-uk-in-the-eu-a-881974.html

"The EU costs the British people £1 (€1.15) per person per week." Ed Miliband said in an interview with Der Spiegel this week. Sensible man to actually look at the facts rather than stirring up public xenophobia and paranoia for political gain.

"You can be a good European without being in the euro." also gives a battering to Cameron's recent rhetoric.  Labour did not move the country towards sharing a currency with Europe and his ever more shrill accusations that they did so merely represent the scaremongering nature of his own policy.

Sunspots will not kill us all (but may destroy Canada)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21357909

Phew, how reassuring!

Frankly Orwellian

So Parliament will be making one of their most important decisions in the next few hours. Obviously the economy and European policy are important and vital to our collective future but the decision on gay marriage will have a profound effect on thousands of ordinary people's lives.

The oft repeated claim of some Conservatives and church figures that such a re-definition of marriage is 'Orwellian' shows a twisting of the term that really is characteristic of Orwell's big brother. How can a move towards greater equality for people of all sexualities be seen as in any way underhand or unnatural? Marriage is a social construct and, while opposition to such an idea does not make you a bigot unless it goes along with genuine homophobia, it is up to our Parliament and our society to define who can marry and what such a commitment means.

Latest attack on Cameron's Referendum

I don't usually side with the British aerospace firms in their global initiative to push weapons on any country that they can get away with bribing.

However, Robin Southwell (head of ADS) is the latest high profile critic of Cameron's pandering to the Europhile fringe of the Conservative party. Like many before him, Southwell points to the economic consequences of antagonising Europe.

"If you look at both exports and imports, the eurozone does more business with the UK than with any other trading bloc", he pointed out whilst noting that we are also now Germany's biggest trading partner.

Cameron talks a lot about his support for industry and defence but apparently short term political gains can be pursued to the detriment of both.

British troops to intervene in Mali

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21240676

Interesting - Cameron may be posturing over his independence from our European partners but apparently he is still willing to pragmatically assist their foreign engagements.

Whether or not this will be a short intervention or not depends largely on the reaction of the Tuareg rebels. They have now been expelled from all of the main Mali cities but have not put up much of a fight and seem to have withdrawn intact with weapons, vehicles and supplies. The future of Mali depends on their commitment and whether or not they see the international intervention as an invitation to guerilla war.

New Discworld game from Wallace

http://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/16453/wallace-returns-to-discworld-with-the-witches

***ing called it (to quote Mr Tulip).

Not many details yet but they are pushing to release in September of this year. I'm pretty optimistic about how good it will be. While others criticised Ankh Morpork, I found it a fun and chaotic little game that appealed to non-gaming family and to the more experienced alike.

Martin Wallace wisely left many areas of the Discworld mythos untouched. The Witches was the obvious expansion but if this one goes well we could certainly see games set around Cohen the Barbarian, Rincewind or the Assassin's Guild.

Cooperative play also sounds intriguing and suggests a definite change in direction from the cut throat style of Ankh Morpork.

Thoughts on Dollhouse after four episodes

So I'm an avid fan of Joss Whedon's 'Firefly' and have acquired a grudging acceptance that, while 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' isn't my cup of tea, it is well made television that appeals to lots of people with decent taste. Therefore, I've often considered viewing 'Dollhouse' and have even dipped my toe in before and watched the pilot.

Having taken the plunge, I have to say that it has certain weaknesses. Character development is too often sacrificed for sexy actresses in skimpy outfits. While the central premise is interesting it is not entirely original to anyone with any experience of science fiction and lacks an intriguing and cohesive universe to engage with.

However, this doesn't mean it is a total wipe out. The idea of the Dollhouse allows them to keep each episode fresh and to make use of a wide roster of, generally compelling, characters. Further there are certain themes that ooze with promise and intrigue. The Doctor is a supremely effective character despite her tendency towards introversion, which limits her dialogue. Her scarring encounter with Alpha reminds me strongly of Aumonier in Alastair Reynold's 'The Prefect'. Let's just hope that this central storyline resolves in an equally shocking and original manner.

So what do I expect from the rest of the series? My current hair-brained idea is that the apparent 'director' of Dollhouse is another active. In such works of fiction we are often presented with the idea that the copy can only be distinguished from the original by creativeness and character. While Adelle DeWitt exhibits the clinical precision of an imprinted personality, it is lowly Topher who quotes Hamlet and develops the infastructure on which the project depends. Further he has the human weaknesses and foibles that are rarely selected for by those seeking to create a truly effective tool or weapon.

…. and of course we all know how convenient it is to have a controllable figurehead when running a secret and potentially illegal operation ;)