Roland Boer's Blog, page 90

Winnie the Pooh and swine flu

Thanks to Stephanie Fisher for this one.
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Ukrainian colleagues

I've recently met some lovely Ukrainian colleagues - Natalie and Evgeniya - from the Social Sciences section of the Academy of Sciences and Taurida National University in the Crimea (Yuri is in the background to the left). Tatiana from Taurida is behind the camera. So soon it will be Yalta for a conference, some lectures in Simferopol and Kiev, before the Transiberian from Moscow to Beijing.[image error]

For all those aviophobics - a must read article

Here is a great article by the historian Ian Mortimer called 'Why I do not fly'. It debunks all those fictions such as 'it's much safer to fly than drive a car' and 'flying is the safest form of transport'. Just when you thought it was safe to fly ... Thank God for drugs.[image error]

What counts as a (swine flu) epidemic?

Now that I've managed to piggy-back off some silly hotel's free internet service, I have managed to catch up with the world.

Having finally figured out what swine flu is, I began looking for stories of tens of thousands of people suffering excruciating deaths. The thing is, all I could find was that maybe ten people have died from it, maybe a few more. More people die when the Newcastle Knights lose a home game! For those who are worried, let me suggest the following: given the fact that country

Why are all the best things so bad for you?

It must be one aspect of intelligent design - the fact that what makes you feel good is bad for you. I remember reading a science-fiction novel (obviously written by a smoker) in which tobacco had been genetically modified to be anti-carcinogenic. The catch is that no-one would want to smoke.

The same applies to the only way I can even think about flying. After much research, discussion and stern warnings about how addictive it is, my doctor wrote out a script for a pretty powerful drug. In fact,

Pig flu ... and how to sleep for 21 hours on international flights

Actually the 'how to sleep' guide is coming when I get a chance.

But I love the way things happen when you're out to the world for a few days. Now it's pig flu! The best theory I heard was that it was concocted in a laboratory in order to assassinate Barack Obama...[image error]

May Day Wedding

No, no , not me ...

I would love to be there: 1 May in Sardinia for the wedding of Peter Thomas and Sara Farris. Sara's from Sardinia and Peter is from North Queensland, but they've been living in Amsterdam for a while now. I first met Pater back in 2000 in Melbourne at a conference on Raymond Williams, but got to meet Sara more recently. I spent a great month in an apartment upstairs from them in 2007 in Amsterdam. We talked, drank, swore, tore apart a bicycle, rode out into the polders of Water

New blog: Left Turn, A Communist Perspective

Actually, it's not that new, but I received an email out of the blue from a former fellow postgrad student at McGill back in the late 80s and early 90s. Andrew Taylor blogs at Left Turn, with all the stuff that I should have but don't since people like Andrew do a far better job.[image error]

Why ANZAC Day sucks

The day just passed, 25 April, was ANZAC Day - celebrating the role of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps in the First World War.

A few facts: Australian and New Zealand troops were sent off to defend 'king and empire' in WWI. One of their first engagements was to attack the Turks at Gallipoli. Using atrocious 'intelligence' and under the able 'leadership' of none other than a youthful Winston Churchill, they landed at the wrong beach (it had cliffs) and the Turks were waiting. The Aussies

The smells of travel

Some years ago I used to catch the overnight between Melbourne and Sydney (900 km) twice per week. As we embarked, cigarette smoke would blow in the door as a few passengers took their last drag before the ride. It met and mingled with the thick, rich smell of a fart, someone’s rotting running shoes, and mould from the months of rain.[image error]