Month: March 2005

Wolfowitz

Bush has put forward arch-hawk Paul Wolfowitz as the next head of the World Bank !

The Washington hawks have now secured a couple of key international appointments. Neo-con John Bolton was recently chosen as US ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton has been an outspoken critic of the UN and it will be interesting to see how he adapts to the politics and diplomacy of the United Nations.

Wolfowitz has been Rumsfeld’s Deputy at the Pentagon since 2001 and was a key player in the Iraq invasion and occupation. The US military know how to blow things up, but haven’t a clue when it comes to putting things back together. Iraq is a case in point. The World Bank is all about construction, not destruction.

The World Bank’s Mission is to, “fight poverty and improve the living standards of people in the developing world“. The rebuilding of Iraq, managed by the Pentagon, has been a disaster. Why put a key player in this failed process in charge of the World Bank ? What experience does Wolfowitz have of international development and the fight against poverty… none ?

Is Bush trying to wind us up, or is Condy Rice failing to get her way at the top table ?

Eros, Piccadilly Circus, London

I’ve never been on the London Eye and thought it about time !!

We headed over to South Bank for a turn on the famous wheel.

It was a bit of a grey day, but WOW were the views fabulous.

You can see for miles in every direction – spectacular. Amazing how quickly the ride flies by. With feet firmly on the ground, we wandered over to Neds to refuel.

The afternoon was devoted to Tate Modern. The museum is fantastic – I’m a huge fan. The exhibits are thoughtful, and beautifully presented. The size and space are awesome.

We wandered through endless galleries, gazing at strangely intense paintings, sculpture and artwork. Rodin’s The Kiss was perfect; Gillian Wearing’s film In Sacha and Mum was disturbing and Michael Landy’s Scrapheap Services was eerie, but compelling. It’s a fantastic place.

We went on to Oxford Street for a spot of retail therapy and strolled through Piccadilly Circus and Soho before ending up at the Loon Fung Chinese Supermarket to stock up on essentials – rice, noodles, sesame oil, Chinese pork dumplings and sweet chilli sauce.

industrial processes… ?!

I’m not wild about industrial processes or big machinery, but…

Here’s a strangely compelling ‘movie gallery of actual shredding‘ from a company that specialises in tackling the euphemistically titled “toughest size reduction jobs in the world“. SSI Shredding Systems have “a corporate culture motivated by one recurring question: What needs shredding ?“. Enjoy…!

This one’s a bit disturbing. Chickens are notoriously tricky to catch. Right ? So, how do you catch a warehouse full of hens and put them in cages without all the running around ? Well, you hoover them up with a E-Z Catch Harvester ! Check this rather worrying video out. *shudders*

mmmmm… ice cream

Ice CreamJust made me some fantastic Ben & Jerry’s Cappuccino Ice Cream… mmmmm, delicious ! Got me an ice cream maker a while ago – kitchen gadgets are good !!

For anyone interested, here’s how… (via joycesfinecooking.com)

Ben & Jerry’s Cappuccino Ice Cream

2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream, or whipping cream
1 cup milk
3 1/2 tablespoons instant coffee, good quality, freeze-dried
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more.

Pour in the cream and milk, and whisk to blend. Add 2-1/2 tablespoons of the coffee and cinnamon, and whisk to blend again. Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer’s directions.

After the ice cream stiffens (about 2 minutes before it is done), add the remaining 1 tablespoon coffee, then continue freezing until done. Makes 1 quart. (I added broken up bits of dark chocolate for that little bit extra!)

Operation Iraqi Liberation

Pentagon planners originally titled the American invasion of Iraq, ‘Operation Iraqi Liberation’. Some bright spark soon pointed out that this abbreviated to OIL !!!! A slip of the tongue by the Bush administration perhaps… Made me chuckle… !!