Formula One to Iran
I never thought I hear these words together, but then some of those who work in Formula One have a different set of morals to those that I do!
I doubt it will happen, but read this piece in the Telegraph. Here is the update at the end.
UPDATE on 08/09: Bernie Ecclestone, F1’s chief executive, has now played down the possibility of a race in Tehran. “It’s not a question of politics,” Ecclestone said. “I’m not political. If a country is peaceful and safe then that is fine with me. But we have three or four countries waiting their turn. I don’t think Iran is top of our list at the moment.” Of course, Bernie has never been known to perform a U-turn.
If you could read Bernie’s mind, you’d make a fortune.
Is Rick Perry Running To Be President of Iran?
They are made for each other, if The Times is to believed, as they are both convinced that the death penalty is the cure to all evils. I’m told it’s very good at stopping innocent peple becoming criminals.
The Iranians are using buses as scaffolds, which is a severe misuse of a noble piece of transport. Let’s make sure that none of London’s redundant bendy buses go to Iran, as they could be used to execute dozens at a time.
It’s about time, the British government and in fact the governments of all countries opposed to the death penalty, put some meaningful pressure on countries that still use this horrendous punishment.
An Eye for an Eye And We All Go Blind
There is this horrific story from Iran today.
That’s not justice, that’s vengeance. Iran’s justice sentence may be worse than the United States in that they execute more people, but surely this is a new low?
Iran Threatens to Boycott the London Olympics
If they didn’t come, will they be missed? I suppose they are favourites to win one of the special putty metals for being undemocratic along with North Korea, Zimbabwe and Libya.
Howard Flight States the Obvious
Howard Flight has been quoted on the BBC as saying this.
We’re going to have a system where the middle classes are discouraged from breeding because it’s jolly expensive.
“But for those on benefits, there is every incentive. Well, that’s not very sensible.
I could also add to the first part of his statement, that young children stop you going on those long-haul holidays, as every one needs a ticket. As to the second part, it may or may not be true, but I think it probably isn’t.
On that issue though I refer you to Peoplequake. which shows that unless there is adequate provision for flexible working and a female-friendly society, the birth rate falls drammatically. Just look at Italy, Russia and Iran for a start.
Explosive Power
I’ve just watched an interesting program on BBC4 called Explosions: How we shook the world. It was interesting and reminds me of something I was involved in, in the early 1970s.
The British government had done a deal with Iran to sell them a factory to make Chieftain tanks. I would have been involved in providing the project mangement software. All I can find on the Internet is this extract from the piece in Wikipedia about the Chieftain tank.
The largest foreign sale was to Iran, which took delivery of 707 Mk-3P and Mk-5P, 125–189 FV-4030-1, 41 ARV and 14 AVLB before the 1979 revolution.[4] Further planned deliveries of the more capable 4030 series were cancelled at that point. The tank’s main combat experience was in the Iran–Iraq War of 1980-88.
But the thing I remember most about the project is a Scot telling me that the Russians had done a lot of experiments on explosives and found that the reason Scottish explosive was so good, was exactly the same reason as the whisky is best. It’s all down to the water!
I’ll go along with that!
Justice – Virginia Style
We have all protested about the proposed stoning of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani in Iran, but why is it the European governments are absolutely silent and not protesting about the execution of Teresa Lewis in Virginia, especially as she is just a point on the IQ scale above the legal minimum for execution in the United States.
The least we should do is to suspend fast track extradition to the United States. By not protesting we are actually condoning the horrific sentence.
But then the United States doesn’t believe in justice but vengeance!
Did You Know That If You Get Angry Your Buttocks Catch Fire?
Well according to that distributor of the truth, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, they do. He is quoted in this piece in the Guardian.
The president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, urged Americans to “pour water where it burns”, a reference to a phrase about people who are so angry that their buttocks catch fire.
So there you have it! It must be true, as it’s in a reputable newspaper.
More Iranian Injustice
Iran must be the most inhuman regime in the world and goodness knows there are quite a few about. They are now going to lash poor Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani because a picture of her appeared in The Times without a headscarf. But according to the BBC, the picture wasn’t even her.
How long should we go on having diplomatic relations with people like this?
Iranian Football Rules
Ali Karimi has been called the Maradona of Asian football. However, he has now upset the regime for various reasons according to this article.
It would appear that he broke the rules on fasting during Ramadan by drinking in a training session, but the BBC reckons the real reason is politics not religion as he showed open support for those that felt they had been cheated of victory in the elections.
The Anonymous Widower 