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Chris McKie

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About Chris McKie

  • Birthday 02/12/1972

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  • Location
    Wirral, England
  • Interests
    Current affairs and good old fashioned political debate, football (especially Queen of the South and Scotland) and cricket.

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  1. This is the first time I've tried to get on to the forum for quite some time due to the recent problems. My PC froze and became infected with viruses so I steered clear for a while. Hopefully, the new measures will keep the forum safe from any future attacks. Keep up the good work John and Andy.
  2. It appears that we may now have the answer to your question. Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian shot in error, was in the UK on an out-of-date student visa. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4713651.stm This may indicate why he chose to run away from his pursuers. The officers in question have been trained to deal with such situations. It will now be up to the independent inquiry to determine whether they acted appropriately. I can only assume these officers fired five shots into the man's head because they thought Menezes was a potential danger to the public. Given the circumstances, it is very easy to see why such as dreadful mistake was made.
  3. This is a very strange turn of events, but I hope all parties concerned are eventually able to put this episode to one side, thus enabling normal 'hostilities' to resume on the History Teachers' Discussion Forum. I have also posted the following on that forum: http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/forum/index...indpost&p=43218
  4. Nicholas Hytner summed up why Miller will never be universally popular in the USA: "America felt rebuked by him. Many Americans have felt insulted... his refusal to meet them halfway was the magnificent stubbornness of the great artist." In short, he exposed the emptiness of the American Dream. Perhaps, it should not be a matter for surprise that he took this line having lived and suffered through the Great Crash of 1929. This certainly helped to fix his mind not only on social and economic injustice, but also the impact of such tumultuous events on the family unit. He was rightly famous for the manner in which he drew attention to social and political injustice, but for me Miller offered an insightful commentary on how people struggle to cope and survive in terrible circumstances. Some people cope better than others. Miller was one of those people.
  5. Another very accessible reader has been written by Richard J. Evans entitled 'In Defence of History'. In the book, Evans offers his defence of history as a discipline from the attacks of post-modernists. It is now in its second edition (below).
  6. Good to hear from you again! The future of the Middle East is far from certain and I can't say I am much more hopeful than I was ten months ago. I certainly don't think the re-election of George Bush in November has helped the situation. There was yet more violence in Gaza and the West Bank yesterday, with seven people killed, including five Palestinian militants. These incidents have come on the back of Mahmoud Abbas's victory in the recent presidential election, an event which seemed to herald a new era of hope for the Middle East. It is, of course, far too early to determine the importance of his electoral victory. It must be encouraging, though, that he gained 62% of the vote, albeit in a low turnout. Surely this suggests that the majority of the Palestinian people support peace. It is not all down to Mahmoud Abbas though. Israel has responsibilities more than in the past. Ariel Sharon has stated his desire to meet with Abbas as soon as possible. This is encouraging particularly since Abbas said he is ready to get together with Sharon anytime. Sharon must give his active support to Abbas thus strengthening his Palestinian counterpart in his quest to persuade Hamas to support a ceasefire. Will Sharon do this? However, above all else, as I have stated in previous posts, the onus is on George Bush (with some input from European countries as well) to take a more even-handed approach to the crisis. This, for me, is the crux of the issue and the main reason why I am generally no more hopeful now than I was some ten or so months ago. Do you now think, Dalibor, that the invasion of Iraq has had a detrimental effect on the Middle East peace process?
  7. It would matter if you were having an affair with a junior member of staff. In cases like these, there is always the possibility that the senior member of staff has abused his position. I was working at a school where the head of sixth form was having an affair with a sixth form tutor. The head disapproved of this and thought it might affect his judgement about sixth form issues. He was also concerned about the sixth form students finding out about this (he thought it was setting a bad example). The head told the man he would be unable to give him a good reference (at the time he was seeking a deputy head post). The man resigned and became an insurance agent. He also left his wife and children and eventually married the younger woman. Was the head right? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I agree with Derek on this one. The Head in question had no business treating the Head of Sixth Form in that way. As long as the affair did not effect his ability to do his job, then the Head should not have interfered. Two consenting adults who work together having a relationship is not grounds for preventing a promotion of a colleague. If, on the other hand, the couple in question were openly parading their relationship in front of the students then they should have been reprimanded by the Head. As for David Blunkett, I maintain that as long as the current situation does not imapct on his ability to do his job, there is no reason for Blair to dismiss him. If, on the other hand, Blunkett is found to have abused his position as Home Secretary by fast-tracking a visa application for his ex-girlfriend's nanny then that is a sackable offence.
  8. The Dead (The Brothered Dead Lain Cheek to Cheek) by Rene Arcos In the wind that blows The veils of widows All float on one side And the mingeld tears Of a thousand sorrows In one stream glide. Pressing each other close the dead Who own no hatred and no flag, Their hair veneered with clotted blood, The dead are all on the same side. In the one clay where endlessly Beginnings blend with the world that dies The brothered dead lain cheek to cheek Today atone for the same defeat. Divided sons, fight on, fight on, You lacerate humanity And tear the earth apart in vain, The dead are all on the same side; Under the earth no more than one, One field, one single hope, abide, As for the universe can only be One combat and one victory.
  9. After a similar incident at the U21 match the previous night, I can't say the racist chanting came as a complete surprise. Incidents like this have sadly been commonplace in some countries in eastern Europe during recent matches involving England and Arsenal. I seem to recall Ashely Cole and Emile Heskey being on the receiving end of some abuse when England played Slovakia recently. As an interesting aside, Ashley Cole was recently asked what his favourite country was. His reply was: "I'd have to say Spain. That was one of the first holidays that I could afford. Plus it is always really hot every time I've been. I've been with my family and my mum and my brother - we've always gone back to the same place." I wonder if he now regards Spain in such a good light. I for one could not blame him if he does not given the sickening chants from sections of the Spanish support last night. Fining offending countries has been tried in the past, but it does not seem to be having much impact at a European level. Perhaps the England team should have marched off in protest. That would certainly have aroused some media opinion.
  10. This is rather reminiscent of what happened to me only a matter of hours ago. Today was my Games afternoon with Year 7s and due to the inclement weather, it was held in the sports hall. The students were instructed to do some circuits, involving sit ups, press ups and other such activities. One of these other activities involved them jumping over a small plastic hurdle. One of the less able athletes was finding this activity quite a challenge, so of course I proceeded to demonstrate to him what was required. I did so three or four times, but then I made the fateful decision to show my prowess one last time. Unfortunately, I landed on the hurdle, fell awkwardly and twisted my ankle badly. Credit to the boy who witnessed this sorry episode, instead of laughing he appeared to be in a state of shock. I'm sure I'll see the funny side of this episode given time, but at the moment I'm just trying to bear the pain of having a bag of frozen peas attached to the side of my foot. I can hardly walk but I'm sure I'll get lots of sympathy tomorrow!
  11. William Noel Hodgson, Before Action (1916) By all the glories of the day And the cool evening's benison, By the last sunset touch that lay Upon the hills when day was done, By beauty lavishly outpoured And blessings carelessly received, By all the days that I have lived Make me a soldier, Lord. By all of all man's hopes and fears, And all the wonders poets sing, The laughter of unclouded years, And every sad and lovely thing; By the romantic ages stored With high endeavour that was his By all his mad catastrophes Make me a man, O Lord. I, that on my familiar hill Saw with uncomprehending eyes A hundred of They sunsets spill Their fresh and sanguine sacrifice, Ere the sun swings his noonday sword Must say good-bye to all of this;-- By all delights that I shall miss, Help me to die, O Lord. You can read my comments on another post why I find this particular poem so powerful.
  12. Siegfried Sassoon, Aftermath (1920) HAVE you forgotten yet?... For the world's events have rumbled on since those gagged days, Like traffic checked while at the crossing of city-ways: And the haunted gap in your mind has filled with thoughts that flow Like clouds in the lit heaven of life; and you're a man reprieved to go, Taking your peaceful share of Time, with joy to spare. But the past is just the same--and War's a bloody game... Have you forgotten yet?... Look down, and swear by the slain of the War that you'll never forget. Do you remember the dark months you held the sector at Mametz-- The nights you watched and wired and dug and piled sandbags on parapets? Do you remember the rats; and the stench Of corpses rotting in front of the front-line trench-- And dawn coming, dirty-white, and chill with a hopeless rain? Do you ever stop and ask, 'Is it all going to happen again?' Do you remember that hour of din before the attack-- And the anger, the blind compassion that seized and shook you then As you peered at the doomed and haggard faces of your men? Do you remember the stretcher-cases lurching back With dying eyes and lolling heads--those ashen-grey Masks of the lads who once were keen and kind and gay? Have you forgotten yet?... Look up, and swear by the green of the spring that you'll never forget.
  13. John Simkin has some information on this topic on Spartacus.
  14. Those weapons must be in here somewhere!
  15. I certainly don't regard you as a liberal, Derek! The forum guidelines are simple and straightforward. John is right not to give in to the demands for censorship.
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