So after a long slow climb, the £ has, for the first time in 15 years, broken through the $2 exchange rate barrier. Which is great for importing stuff from the States (or going on holiday there).
But if you're looking for an alternative destination, of course the UAE dirham is pegged to the US$, so whatever happens to the dollar happens to the dirham too.
Which means that those of us who get paid in dirhams are increasingly being paid less in £ equivalent.
(He pauses, listening intently for the sound of distant sympathetic sobbing………).
Anyway, you get my point? The UAE is now cheaper to visit than at any time in the last 15 years (if you discount inflation).
So when are you all (both?) coming?!!
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
In the Navy
Predictably, following the release of the 15 Navy personnel from Iran last week, a row has erupted over the selling of stories. In every way, the media gains because by publishing the "exclusive" stories it both ignites the row, and then it gets to fan the flames further by reporting on the row which has followed.
Without wanting to belittle what was almost certainly an unpleasant ordeal, is it insensitive to say that while I am really not interested personally in the "stories" being sold, I am equally not surprised to hear that the media is? In a week when, to be honest, there seemed little other news about, papers such as The Sun were probably glad to have something to cover. To be frank though, this was not the same as being captured by Iraqi terrorists and held in a place unknown under constant threat of death. These navy personnel were captured by the Iranian government. Everyone knew who the captors were, and consequently there was surely never any doubt that they would eventually be released. That being the case, it is churlish to make comparisons with the predicament of hostages held in Iraq.
Furthermore, they were held only for 2 weeks, during which time they did... well, apparently not very much. Kept in unpleasant surroundings yes, but where is the story worth covering?
The issue of whether, and how, they ended up in 'unauthorised' waters seems to have now fallen away in favour of discussion on whether they should be entitled to sell their stories for profit. But ultimately, does it really matter? If they weren't speaking to the papers or appearing with Trevor Macdonald, there would surely be books released soon enough (and this may still happen, though I say again that with only 2 weeks in captivity would there be enough material to make a book interesting?).
My own view is that the press coverage this week is simply par for the course, and the closest thing that the narrowminded tabloid media have been able to come in recent years to being able to interview a hostage held in the Middle East during a period of war (Iran, Iraq, what's the difference?) who has come out of the experience alive. But they have failed to make the distinction that the experience of these Navy personnel is far less of a story than would be the case for an Iraqi hostage who had been released after weeks of captivity. If Ken Bigley had been released, would he have been criticised for selling his story to the newspapers? I suspect not.
Maybe the personnel involved get some financial gain out of it (not unreasonable if they were in fact in unauthorised waters and captured as the result of someone else's mistaken orders). Let them have their 5 mins of fame. But I wonder whether those who bought the papers and read the 'stories' actually found much worth reading.
Without wanting to belittle what was almost certainly an unpleasant ordeal, is it insensitive to say that while I am really not interested personally in the "stories" being sold, I am equally not surprised to hear that the media is? In a week when, to be honest, there seemed little other news about, papers such as The Sun were probably glad to have something to cover. To be frank though, this was not the same as being captured by Iraqi terrorists and held in a place unknown under constant threat of death. These navy personnel were captured by the Iranian government. Everyone knew who the captors were, and consequently there was surely never any doubt that they would eventually be released. That being the case, it is churlish to make comparisons with the predicament of hostages held in Iraq.
Furthermore, they were held only for 2 weeks, during which time they did... well, apparently not very much. Kept in unpleasant surroundings yes, but where is the story worth covering?
The issue of whether, and how, they ended up in 'unauthorised' waters seems to have now fallen away in favour of discussion on whether they should be entitled to sell their stories for profit. But ultimately, does it really matter? If they weren't speaking to the papers or appearing with Trevor Macdonald, there would surely be books released soon enough (and this may still happen, though I say again that with only 2 weeks in captivity would there be enough material to make a book interesting?).
My own view is that the press coverage this week is simply par for the course, and the closest thing that the narrowminded tabloid media have been able to come in recent years to being able to interview a hostage held in the Middle East during a period of war (Iran, Iraq, what's the difference?) who has come out of the experience alive. But they have failed to make the distinction that the experience of these Navy personnel is far less of a story than would be the case for an Iraqi hostage who had been released after weeks of captivity. If Ken Bigley had been released, would he have been criticised for selling his story to the newspapers? I suspect not.
Maybe the personnel involved get some financial gain out of it (not unreasonable if they were in fact in unauthorised waters and captured as the result of someone else's mistaken orders). Let them have their 5 mins of fame. But I wonder whether those who bought the papers and read the 'stories' actually found much worth reading.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Quietly confident
Southampton are back up to 6th in the Championship - 6 points from our last two games, plus 8 goals for and none against. 5 games left to play in the season. It's going to be close.
I haven't felt this confident about Southampton doing anything right in a long time.
I definitely now subscribe to the theory that it is more interesting to support a team that is lower down the tables. That way, it really means something when they do something right (like making the FA Cup final in 2003). If you support Man U or Chelsea by comparison, do you feel the same amount of elation whenever they win? Probably not. Instead, you feel like every win is the very least you expected and anything less just won't do.
To Southampton fans, winning something is a prize only rarely within our grasp. To Chelsea, Man U and Arsenal fans it seems to be treated as a right, with failure to achieve not just one, but several big wins (cups, leagues, European campaigns) in one season seen as a major disappointment and cause to start thinking about ousting the manager. Where's the enjoyment in that?
I haven't felt this confident about Southampton doing anything right in a long time.
I definitely now subscribe to the theory that it is more interesting to support a team that is lower down the tables. That way, it really means something when they do something right (like making the FA Cup final in 2003). If you support Man U or Chelsea by comparison, do you feel the same amount of elation whenever they win? Probably not. Instead, you feel like every win is the very least you expected and anything less just won't do.
To Southampton fans, winning something is a prize only rarely within our grasp. To Chelsea, Man U and Arsenal fans it seems to be treated as a right, with failure to achieve not just one, but several big wins (cups, leagues, European campaigns) in one season seen as a major disappointment and cause to start thinking about ousting the manager. Where's the enjoyment in that?
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Starting in Dubai
Apologies, dear reader(s) for the prolonged period of absence, but we've been busy moving and holidaying. We are now fully relocated to Dubai, I have started work again (find me here (no comments on the photo please) or mail me on twatkins@reedsmith.com) and so far all is going well. Not sure about the (albeit temporary) open plan set up - a bit like working in a library - but that is only until August when we move to more a permanent base.
Meantime, we spent a very enjoyable 10 days in Thailand - 4 days in Bangkok (grim and poverty stricken by day, quite an adventure at night) and Khao Lak near Phuket (very peaceful and beautiful beach resort, recovering well post tsunami). Shame about the 36 hour return home where a small delay to our departure from Phuket airport snowballed into the kind of day where you just want to give up and not interact with anyone or anything for fear of what else may go wrong. Needless to say, we don't plan ever to fly Thai Airways again (the only airline left in the world, I am convinced, that does long haul flights with just one TV screen at the front of the cabin to entertain everyone (no, we didn't fly business class).
In other news… Jack's speech is developing well, particularly his ability to mimic everything we say. So, during the course of our holiday we had "oh, bloody hell", a few "sh*ts" and countless other gems (including what I am convinced is a deliberate mispronunciation of the word "bucket" by altering the first letter… you get the idea.
And finally, an indication that we may have been in the Middle East too long. Two sentences that I never thought Michele would ever be comfortable saying, both uttered this week:
1. (In relation to my search for a new car) "But I though you said that you weren't that keen on the Porsche."
2. (A rare example of a woman attuned to the need for men to fill their lives with 'boy toys') "Do you want to buy a large LCD TV?"
I have to say life is pretty great at the moment...
Meantime, we spent a very enjoyable 10 days in Thailand - 4 days in Bangkok (grim and poverty stricken by day, quite an adventure at night) and Khao Lak near Phuket (very peaceful and beautiful beach resort, recovering well post tsunami). Shame about the 36 hour return home where a small delay to our departure from Phuket airport snowballed into the kind of day where you just want to give up and not interact with anyone or anything for fear of what else may go wrong. Needless to say, we don't plan ever to fly Thai Airways again (the only airline left in the world, I am convinced, that does long haul flights with just one TV screen at the front of the cabin to entertain everyone (no, we didn't fly business class).
In other news… Jack's speech is developing well, particularly his ability to mimic everything we say. So, during the course of our holiday we had "oh, bloody hell", a few "sh*ts" and countless other gems (including what I am convinced is a deliberate mispronunciation of the word "bucket" by altering the first letter… you get the idea.
And finally, an indication that we may have been in the Middle East too long. Two sentences that I never thought Michele would ever be comfortable saying, both uttered this week:
1. (In relation to my search for a new car) "But I though you said that you weren't that keen on the Porsche."
2. (A rare example of a woman attuned to the need for men to fill their lives with 'boy toys') "Do you want to buy a large LCD TV?"
I have to say life is pretty great at the moment...
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