Article	Synopsis
Impoverished Learning?	In February 2009 Cambridge University’s Primary Review issued an interim report claiming that too much emphasis on testing the basics could impoverish learning and lead to a deficient education. Isn’t it about time these non-practicing academics kept their noses where nature intended?
Letter to Prince Charles	Prince Charles did not have the happiest beginning to his life, and the past three decades have also not been good to him or his family. This item is a simple open letter to the Prince, his sons and wife expressing the wish that the next three decades will be kinder.
What Mid-Life Crisis?	I am middle aged and been married to the same woman for over three decades. So why aren't I experiencing a mid-life crisis, wearing a diminutive ponytail scraped together from a failing crop of grey flecked hair? Or driving a recently acquired shiny over-powered sports car unsuited to the ability of my middle aged bones to extract themselves from a tiny ground level cockpit?
Juries and Politicians	The principles of democracy are similar to those applied to the jury system. However, whilst a jury is bound by laws of perjury and contempt, a politician is only governed by the rules that his colleagues deem fit to impose.
Royal Garden Party	Every year Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh invite over 30,000 people to Buckingham Palace and Holyrood House in a series of four garden parties.
Adolescent Voters	Not content with being liable to pay taxes and bear arms for their country, the sixteen year olds of the United Kingdom are now demanding the right to vote.
Web Site Literatures	Although I have been successful writing articles for magazines, I have never tried to publish my poetry or my 85,000 word thesis. So I created this web site and proved that whilst publishers may vote with rejection slips, web readers vote with page hits.
A Useful Interactive Whiteboard Seminar	This is not my usual style of article, but it is rare to attend a presentation from a supplier without having one's ears battered from coffee to biscuits about how fantastic their product is. So I was delighted to find that a seminar presented by Promethean was actually worth the drive to deepest Oxfordshire.
Las Vegas, Hell On Earth	A colleague once described Las Vegas as the incarnation of hell on earth. After spending a week amongst the flashing lights and brain busting bells of the slot machines I beg to differ - it's worse.
I Am Normal Not Phobic!	Let me get one thing clear before we go any further - I do not have any phobias and homosexuality is not normal. There, I've said it, come out of the hetero closet and declared my orientation as a man who likes women who quite often like me as well.
Nobel Peace Prize for Blair and Bush?	If Blair and Bush think that they are going to get a Nobel Peace Prize for their failed attempt to bring peace to Northern Ireland and Iraq they are living in a world even further from reality than anyone could have possibly imagined.
What Fox Hunting Is Really About	Britain is famous for maintaining its traditions whether outmoded or not. So it is not surprising that we had to use an emergency parliamentary procedure to outlaw fox hunting, an activity that started in the 16th century, was formalised in the 18th century, and carried on as a countryside pursuit right through to the 21st century.
Why IT Customers Have Their Tummies Tickled	In spite of the exponential advances in technology the IT industry is still getting away with murder, and instead of creating an outcry its customers meekly roll over to have their financial tummies tickled at each new update or revision.
Puppets In The Classroom	Whilst an adult can sometimes present a daunting authority figure to a young child, a puppet is seen as a neutral entity, non-threatening, a colourful friend. So for teachers and assistants working at Key Stage 1 puppets represent an invaluable resource to overcome barriers and encourage participation in class activities.
Gender Equality Revolution In Indian ICT	In India, where women have traditionally taken a back seat in daily life, information technology (ICT) is bringing about a revolution in gender equality.
A Concerned Traveller and Security Against Terrorism	As a regular traveller to the United States I am as concerned, if not more concerned, about security as the average American citizen. So during my latest visit I was both amused and concerned that the American public is being lulled into what I believe is a false sense of security by scenes of heavily armed soldiers strutting their stuff around potential high profile terrorist targets.
Hello Tony, Have You Got A Minute?	We need to talk about the European Constitution. Don't forget that the British public have already had one myth to contend with - remember, those so called weapons of mass destruction - we certainly don't want to tempt them with another.
Pondering The Moral Basis Of My Work	As an eCommerce Consultant I have often pondered the moral basis of my work. When I go into a company to analyse their electronic business requirements I am in effect being asked to help the Company to do the same business with fewer people, and in eCommerce that can mean laying off around 80% or more of the administrative staff.
The British Phenomenon of Binge Drinking	Alcohol is a major issue in Britain, losing employers an estimated £6.4 billion and 17 million working days per year according to the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit. A total of around £20 billion per year if you also factor in the cost of mopping up the social and crime related problems. Not forgetting the 22,000 people who die prematurely each year from alcohol related causes.
The Mystery of Glenn Miller's Death	Isn't it about time that somebody revealed the truth surrounding the death of Glenn Miller in December 1944? The myth of his demise over the English Channel has been around too long, and questioned too many times for it to continue.
Experiences of Working On A Web Project With A School In China	With nearly thirty years international experience under my belt you would think that I should have learned about the vast cultural differences that make our world so interesting. My subsequent experience of working on a web project with a Middle School near Beijing, and visiting China itself, taught me that old dogs still have many new tricks to learn.
Has America Learned Its Lessons Yet?	Has America at last learned from Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq that Uncle Sam does not always know best, and that 5% of the world's population does not have the patriarchal right to interfere in the governance of the remaining 95%? Will it now stop trying to be the world's nanny and concentrate instead on more important domestic issues such as pollution control, energy consumption and medical care?
China, Children and Calligraphy	When one travels to a country formed over two thousand years ago, that opened its doors to the western world without restriction a mere two decades ago, one should expect to find a few differences. So on a recent holiday to China we decided to take the opportunity to learn more about how the Chinese raise and educate their children; we came away with much more than we anticipated.
China, A Case Of National Schizophrenia	In its frantic desire to become a world economic power, China has become a country where  the 'haves' clearly do in their shiny air conditioned cars, and the 'have nots', crowded into tiny tower block apartments, must hang their wet clothes out of the window on bamboo poles to dry. So whilst China's economy growth may be the envy of the western world, the serious fragmentation of their social infrastructure needs to be corrected now before the schism between rich and poor creates yet another devastating cultural revolution.
George, I Think We Need To Talk	On Wednesday 14th April 2004, President George Bush met with Ariel Sharon and unilaterally recognised Israel's right to keep a number of West Bank settlements as part of any future peace accord with the Palestinians. The Palestinians were not amused by this apparent breach of the road map.
Dear Senator Kerry	This article seeks to give Senator John Kerry, a Democrat from Massachussetts USA, some advice about the qualities he will need to become a winning Presidential candidate in the 2004 elections against the Republican encumbent George W Bush.
Noblesse Oblige	When NBC decided to broadcast the Diana tapes, and CBS its documentary, the one element they would not be able to show or explain is the peculiarly English upper class concept of noblesse oblige - that is the obligation of the upper classes to honour the responsibilities bestowed upon them by their privileged status.
Diplomats Lose Stiff Upper Lip To Iraq	When a long list of distinguished British ex-Diplomats and Envoys decide to send a letter of concern to the UK government about Blair's Iraq policy, and copy that letter to the national press, we know that somebody is in deep trouble.
Smell The Coffee	An ex-Employee of GCHQ has walked free even though she breached the Official Secrets Act, and ex-Cabinet Minister Clare Short has alleged that British Intelligence Services bugged Kofi Annan's phone. How has this affected the UK Government, and will America smell the coffee before it is too late?
London's 9/11	Whilst the 11th September 2001 holds an indescribable place in the psyche of New Yorkers, the 20th July 1982 is similarly stamped on the hearts of thousands of Londoners.
What Will The Airlines Do Next?	I began my travelling career in 1976 when jumbo jets were still something of a novelty and mention of a transatlantic trip turned one's friends a satisfying shade of envy green. Things have changed a touch since then!
It's All Relative Meteorologically Speaking	The effects of weather and temperature are relative. One person's heatwave is another person's ice age. This article relates my experiences of the extreme ends of the meteorological spectrum.
BBC - Bruised Battered and Cowed	The initials BBC now stand for Bruised Battered and Cowed as the Corporation struggles to recover from the unprecedented pounding it received from Lord Hutton and triumphant Labour politicians.
The American Election Process	NASA spent millions of dollars on the Spirit progamme to explore an alien world, but in Britain we only needed to spend a few pence to become immersed in an environment far stranger than anything that Mars can offer - the American election process.
A Laughing Stock	As I drove into work one morning, along a rain swept motorway in the heartland of British suburbia, I wondered what it must feel like to be the citizen of a country whose administration is rapidly becoming an international laughing stock.
A Sound Property	John Peel - real name John Ravenscroft, born in Heswall near Liverpool - is a well known disk jockey and presenter in the UK who hosts an excellent BBC radio show called Home Truths. In September 2003 he also appeared in a TV programme that asked viewers to decide which one of a number of diplapidated properties they would like to see renovated. That inspired me to write this short description of John Peel as though he were one of the properties in that programme; it was broadcast on 4th and 6th October 2003.
The Lissear Story	An every day story of intrusion, bias, and the sad bad outcome that results from nobody wanting to anything to upset the big, over blown leader of the Council.
Before the Hutton Enquiry	The Hutton Enquiry has showed our politicians to be a bunch of teflon shouldered, duplicitous individuals who are not beyond selective amnesia in the cause of mutual tail covering. This article highlights some of the more outrageous practices that have been demonstrated during phase one of the enquiry.
What Special Relationship?	Given the impending destruction of the UK Government at home and the problems mounting for the USA administration abroad, plus the worsening situation in Iraq - a conflict that was instigated on highly dubious pretexts - how is our so called special relationship with the USA fairing now?
IT Fashion	Have you ever wondered why it is that technology changes so fast? Some of it is down to the incredibly clever scientists who seem to be able to disapear up their own miniaturisation. But much of the architectural change that has happened over the past twenty years or so has been partly based on shifts in fashion rather than need. This article explores that proposition and produces evidence to back its claims.
Brits Abroad	Something happens to Brits when they cross the English Channel. They become gormless, brainless, stubborn and totally incapable of even the most basic of communication. They discover that the food, drink and language that they take for granted back home suddenly take on a whole new dimension of perfection and nostalgia. This article was written whilst on holiday in France one rainy summer and I thank all those Brits we saw who provided the inspiration for this piece.
Join the Club	I have read several holy books and a number of publications on the various religions that compete with each other for the hearts, minds and souls of the world's population. All of them promise the world, and most of them give you an advance booking for the best seat in the house in the after life. Having read so much on the subject I took a step back and made an objective assessment of where each of them was coming from and how I would view them if they were a local social club.
Pig In A Poke	This article is based upon a rather uncomfortable bus ride I took one morning in London. I suggest that you do not read this one until you are at least one hour after and one hour before your next meal.
A Rhode Island Education	My wife and I support and promote the interchange of ideas and project work between schools in disparate countries to help improve international understanding of other cultures from an early age. This article describes a trip we made to Rhode Island, USA to visit one of the schools that my wife's school exchanges project work with. Although I wrote the article it was voiced and commissioned to describe our findings from her point of view.
International Outsourcing	The question of international outsourcing of application software development has bothered me for a long time. Do the lower costs of using eastern software houses for greater competitiveness really justify the damage to the local, domestic economy caused by the loss of jobs to so called foreigners? Or should we be glad that the resulting second and third world economic benefits are worth the sacrifice in the cause of international citizenship. This article seeks to explore these issues and come to some kind of conclusion that does not sit too comfortably on the fence.
Blair in the Bush	It is not often that I dig into the realms of international politics, but the hypocrisy and deception that has been promulgated by these two has raised my literary blood pressure to the point where my keyboard took on a life of its own. They seem to me to be more concerned with their place in history than their position amongst the six billion people with whom they share this world.
Craft Husbands	This is a warning to all husbands who have yet to be sucked into the mire of crafts and craft exhibitions. Read it now before it's too late!