Horrified!!

I just looked at my profile and it said I was in accounting!! Thought someone was taking the piss but it was the first option in the list surely it's not the default setting I maybe just carelessly clicked on that when I first set this up. I'm truly horrified that I might have been mistaken for a accountant. Believe I have fixed it now.

Bladerunner: The Final Cut

I do thoroughly reccomend you go see this film should you have the chance, I went to see it at the weekend and was stunned by how good it was. I was expecting to enjoy it rather a lot but I must have seen it half a dozen times before now and have the Directors Cut edition on DVD so wasn't expecting to feel so much of a difference.

The cinema itself isn't a huge multiplex so while at first the screen seemed a little small compared to modern standards once you get into it was still light years ahead of even a nice big LCD or plasma. When combined with the sound(Which unlike my local Vue in hamilton is set nerve shreddingly loud) it adds to an incredibly powerful viewing experience that only cinema can provide. That said I haven't tried turning up the volume on my telly really loud and just sitting right close up.

Twenty five years on and Sean Youngs characters big shoulderpadded jacket aside and you wouldn't think it had dated at all. It still looks stunning, dark and wet and grim but stunning. It's a film both beautiful and disturbing, a haunting music score fits it all perfectly and if you want to know what it's about there is a great deal of room for interpretation. For my money it's essentially about the value of life, which might sound a bit vague but I don't really feel upto a full on review.

I'm very tempted to go see it again lest they not release on it's 30th anniversary in 5 years time.

Freedom of Speech

Should we take the example of Voltaire, "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it," or should we sometimes have to draw the line?

I have my doubts, in principle I can't help but think that in order for freedom of speech to mean anything you should be able to say whatever you like and that the power of argument should leave racists and holocaust deniers and their ilk in a small and ridiculed minority. That certainly sounds simple enough in the relative comfort of the democratic(flawed badly though it is) UK. The confines of Oxford Union being very different of the example of harm in Rwanda.

Still whatever side you come down on it's good to see people willing to demonstrate against these people, the Griffins and Irvings. Was this a publicity stunt by the Oxford Union, maybe maybe not given the potential for unwanted publicity.

Oh yeah and whilst this probably deserves a post of it's own, ID cards how much of a bad idea are they given the calamitous way the government has been shown to handle peoples personal details. The grandest folly outside of the Iraq war!

This puzzles me somewhat

It seems to suggest that a lot of people are fed up with strike action in France. Fair enough there is a real cost and the inconvience probably gets right annoying and if the route of the problem is a group of people who have it better than you by being able to retire earlier than what you can I imagine that irks people and probably doesn't lend itself to sympathy.

It seems that yon Sarkozy fellow thinks the fact that the average French person works less is a bad thing, hurting their economy. I can't say I'm all that knowledgeable about the French or indeed world economic affairs but it sounds to me like lower average working hours and earlier retirement are good things and aspired to. Now far be it from me to say early retirement should be mandatory either if you enjoy your job and are good at it you should be entitled to work as logn as you like. I think that the base logic behind the increasing workings hours to equal increased economic vitality for the French is fundamentally flawed.

Well maybe not entirely but are there no unemployed people in France just now? It semes to me whether economies boom or bust there is always unemployment, homelessness and all myriad forms of social problems but surely essentially punishing the average working citizen by trying to increase how much they work is a dreadful idea. I can't say I have the solutions but the basic answer to increasing your economic output should surely rather than make people in work work more get more people into work?

I appreciate it probably gets more complex but how many people just now in Britain wouldn't kill to reduce their working hours to somethign like the French average?

Glorious failure, it's been a while...

..since last we met. Having towards the end of the Craigie Broon era and almost the entirety of the Berti Voghts era been used to plain old failure the events of last saturday followed in the best traditions of Scottish football. We threw away a cheap goal, fought back level had the Italians on the ropes and then to rub salt in the wound a nonsense refereeing decision gave them the free kick from which they scored and undeserved winning goal.

It was only when I saw the highlights later that on that it dawned on me just how good a chance McFadden had to put us in front, in fairness he was havingto slide in on a stretch in soaking wet conditions but coming onto his stronger foot I'd have put my house on him turning it home. As it was a draw probably wouldn't have been enough but you can't help but think France might have buckled in Ukraine, Ukraine are a good team albeit with not a lot to play for against a team of Frances undoubted class only needing a point. Though if that late goal had been an Italian equaliser rather than a winner it would be infinitely more frustrating and the sense of injustice doesn't bare thinking about.

As for injustice I try to resist the forces of paranoia but some of the decisions that didn't go our way over the last three qualifiers beggar belief. Forgetting the ukraine game as we won anyway and we also got a bit lucky with a decision ourselves the stonewall penalty we were denied in Georgia looks to have proven the most costly. Though we didn't really merit much from that game and you can't argue that the best two teams haven't went through.

Where did it go wrong. I think away games in Ukraine and Georgia are the ones we can't entirely say no regrets, or we did our best. I think in the Ukraine we were far to negative, now maybe they just outplayed us on the day they are as I said a good team but their biggest weakness is a slightly dodgy defence. We needed to show more ambition, from what I remember we started on the back foot and played for the draw. Ukraine are good but no Italy or France and in Italy we had a go and were unlucky to an extent.

As for the Georgia game alhough not helped by injury and suspension problems we got suckered into believing they were going to be a soft touch, they did field two 17 year olds and one 16 year old and trumpeted this fact in the build up. We went 4-4-2 and flung in an unfit Darren Fletcher who toiled noticeably, in hindsight we should stuck with the 4-5-1 formation with couple of the midfielders given licence to get forward and said you come on and break us down and we'll try and nick one. As even now one more gleaned point would still give us that fraction of hope for Ukraine doing us a favour. As it was all three Georgian youngsters played well, the striker and creative mid very well and we despite the stonewall pen denied and a couple other decent chances missed were largely frustrated and outplayed on the night.

Still no point getting to down in the mouth, relatively speaking we are still resurgent, most of the squad has their best years in front of them and we'll be in pot 2 for the forthcoming World Cup qualifying draw. Only downside is I think only group winners go through but it should make a play off a reasonable target rather than a hopeful dream and least an outside chance of winning group.

Writing difficulties

I'm finding it easy to find and write down the ideas of what I want to happen, how I want it structured but committing it to actual writing is like pulling teeth at the minute. Had a spell like this whilst writing book, I just started and it came easily, then I stopped to think about it and it was like I was walking a high wire fine without noticing and then having become aware of what I was doing I find myself nervously tip toeing very slowly.

As for the book, well got about 3 weeks before the suggested deadline that one should expect to hear within will be passed. No great surprise, the rejection long anticipated isn't a huge bother it's the irritation that I know I have to at least try and punt it elsewhere, involving a more complicated process initial letter, a synopsis, a sample and so on rather than an in one simple submission procedure.

I need to kick myslef up the arse really, I'm going to tidy up my working space this afternoon and try and get a wriggle on. I've only got about 10 pages of what should be about 100 pages worth, I want it complete early in the new year, had hoped for it to be completed by end of this but nil chance of that now. If I can get a wee spurt before the end of the year that will be encouragement enough.

Scotland

Come 5pm on saturday it'll be a cup final atmosphere, after months of triumph and occasional tribulation it is all coming down to one game. If we win we go through if don't then we well probably don't but like England qualification for the Euro 2008 finals would be out of our hands.

Needless to say even getting this far is some achivement and if our slightly over arrogant neighbours down south had down so well in such circumstances they wouldn't be getting half the stick they will get should they fail to qualify themselves. If we don't make it then it is because we've been pipped at the last by two of Europe's and the worlds best footballing teams in France and Italy.

We have just to beat Italy on our own patch to upset the odds and knock out the current World Cup holders. A team expert at digging out results when it needs them we can but hope we play out of our skins and they fall short of their best and with luck histroy will repeat itself as the previous time Italy won the World Cup in 1982 they then failed to qualify for the European Championship finals in 1984.

We haven't been at a major finals since 1998, having prior to that not missed a WC finals between 1974 and 1990 and making the Europeans also in 1992 and 1996. Ok we haven't ever done all that well when we got there but this time more than any just getting there will be as great an achievement for the Scottish National team as anything in it's history. I've everything crossed we can do it, we have a no bad team that are playing with believe and with guts. One more push and they can look forward to lifting Scottish football right out the doldrums and finally putting to rest the fact that we've never gotten past a group stage at a major finals.

Just so long as we get there though everyone will be happy.

Hattrick

No not the number of goals I scored playing 5's last night(scored much much more :-) ), but a online foootball management game I've been playing lately. It is a far cry from the detail of Football Manager but has it's own challenge. At a glance it does seem a bit simplisitc and lacking in depth but on the plus side it isn't time consuming at all and there is more to it than initially meets the eye. Although you need a bit of patience as to start with your team is shite to such a degree that even Paddy Kenny's Dunfermline could probably take them just now. Well maybe.

I'm just starting my second full season, still locked in the lowest tier of Scottish football and no realistic chance of promotion this season. Still things are ticking along nicely and depending on who gets relegated down into my division next season I might have a shot then.

The basis of the game involves signing young players and training them and selling them on to make money to build a more rounded team. You can only train in one skill area at a time, so if you choose to train playmaking then whoever you have in goals, up front and in defence won't get the benefit. Winning games is also helpful as it gets the fans interested and as more join you find the money starts to come in and allow you to go from strength to strength.

Well worth a look if you want to kill a few moments here and there at work or wherever.