Ever Heard About Young & Rubicam ?

It’s an adverting agency which has done work for the military.

Way back in September 1981 I co-wrote a
Greenpeace ( London ) factsheet upon the advertising agencies
which were then being used by the British military.

‘SOME BACKGROUND TO THE LAUNCHING OF A CAMPAIGN
AGAINST ADVERTISING AGENCIES
PROMOTING THE MILITARY AND THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY.’

Thing change and so have some of the contracts.

Here is an example of just how things have changed:

British Army seeks digital agency

Now here is where Young & Rubicam yet again come in to the
picture.

I’m thinking that it’s now about time that some more attention
was paid to what some of these adverting agencies,
are doing for the military in both Britain and the USA.

That might involve me in a little more research in to just what
they are all up to these days.

Just watch this space . . . . .

Just How Many Animal Lives Can This One Person Save?

If you look at the statistics for the average annual
consumption of meat per person world wide,
then the numbers are rather grim.

On average a German will eat more than 1,000 animals in their lifetime.

That is some
4 cows,
4 calves,
4 sheep,
46 pigs,
37 ducks,
46 turkeys,
12 geese,
&
945 chickens.

So if I were a German then I would of saved over 500 craetures from
being slaughtered since I became Vegetarian in January 1970.

This says nothing about the number of fish which are killed
and eaten by an individual over a lifetime.

I mention these statistics not so much as a personal boast,
but as an example of what we can all do in order to make this a
much better world.

It also shows just how much we can all achieve by taking up a
vegetarian diet.

Dumbing Down Equates to Less Information for the Well Informed.

At school I was taught how to read an ordinance survey map.

The maps I was bought up on showed all the railway lines,
and shipping routes.

We would refer to the Great North Road,
or where a road started or ended.

Road maps were not a mess of meaningless numbers,
but were descriptive of the places marked upon them.

It was also a time in which weather maps showed millibar lines
upon then.

If I looked at the contour numbers upon a map I see just how
steep the landscape might be.

If I looked at the millibar numbers then I can judge just what the
weather might be doing.

My how things have changed!

We have satellite navigation for those who can not read
ordinance survey maps,
&
Weather maps which remind me of children’s picture books.

I keep reading about the dumbing down of education in terms
of grammar, spelling, and numeracy,
but that’s only a part of the problem.

This kind of dumbing down would also seem to extend to the
fact that people are being given statistical information in a
very simplistic form.

Now I do understand that some people are unable to read a lot
of information from any form of statistical data,
and that they might not be able to understand a complex
weather map.

Yet that is no reason for dumbing down the information which
is presented to us in the media.

Is it any wonder that the newspaper industry is in decline,
when all they can do is present news stories in such a very
simplistic form?

Call me an intellectual snob if you will,
but I want to read information that is information,
and not a very simplistic version of the truth.

Naming and Renaming.

Over the years there have been many efforts to develop
better descriptive signage within libraries.

In the old days this was so simple to achieve,
as there were only a few departments within each library:
Fiction,
Non Fiction,
Reference,
&
Children’s library.

Things change. . . .

Now what really confuses a lot of library uses is that there
would seem to be less and less of a distinction between the
reference and lending areas within most modern library
building.

This is especially true as we often find reference periodicals
with the lending areas,
while in many libraries there are very often no distinct music
or AV ( Audio Vision ) departments.

Is it any wonder that people are both unable to distinguish
between what are the Fiction or Nonfiction areas within most
libraries.*1

This also says nothing about the problems which they might
experience in trying to work out just what are the quiet study
areas.

So here is a quick and useful guide as to just how library areas
might be marketed*2
within the libraries of the future.

– The Reality Zone.
Instead of Nonfiction.

– Pure Fiction.
For all works of fiction.

– The Twilight Zone.
This being a playful reference to any teenage area.

– Kiddies Corner.
or where the children are to be found.

&

– Shhhhooooooooosh !!!!!!!!!!
The quiet zone or study area.

Now what other ideas do you have upon what might be added to
this list?

………….

*1
I have also noted that many people are unable to distinguish
between what is Fiction and Nonfiction.
Thus they will refer to Crime Fiction and True Crime.

*2
‘Marketed’ being both a descriptive and marketing term within
this context.

Being Vegie – 2/3rds of My Life In July

I spent part of last night looking through my diary,
and doing some sums.

This was in order to work out the exact date at which I will
reach 2/3rds of my life as a vegetarian.

It works out that it will be on July 29th.

The next thing to do is work out just how I’m gonna celebrate
this day.

I’m also thinking that I should look into just how many animals
and fish lives I’ve managed to save over this period.

Once I have this number then I’ll go and produce a pic which
will show all of these creatures together in one place.

Magic!

A Warming to All Pensioners.

The True and Very Shocking History of Ebenezer Scrooge.

Ebebezer Scrooge was a hard working man.

An elderly gentleman who had to work well beyond what is now the state retirement age.

His only pleasure was to go home to his none centrally heated flat,
eat a simple but healthy meal,
and read a library book about economics.

He cared nothing for consumerism,
but was a strong supporter of
Buy Nothing Day.

He would pass the legalised beggars such as the UCKG* during the season of Gloom & Despondency, which some perverse individuals call Xmas,
and tell them that what they were selling was all humbug.

One night three con men turned up at his door,
and persuaded him to give away all of his money.

As a result of this he had no savings to live on,
and died in penury within a run down council flat.

Let this be a warning to all you pensioners.

Be very careful when your next asked to give your money away,
and always avoid being taken in by the
*Universal Church of the Kingdom of God.

The Season of Gloom and Despondency.

I think that in most ways I’m a happy bunny,
but……….

If there is one thing which really leaves me feeling very
depressed, then it is everything which surrounds the xmas
period.

This is in part because of the way in which the jesus myth is
propagandised,
and in part because of the way in which the unbridled feast of
consumerism is celebrated.

What makes this even worse is to see those who can least
afford it go on an xmas spending spree, and then find that they
land up with enormous personal debts.

What people need to remember is that there is a major
difference between I need and I want.

If I want to give my friends presents,
then I’ll do it when I want to do so though out the year.
and not just because we have reached some speculative
anniversary date.

It’s all about wanting to do something,
rather that feeling a social pressure to do so.

The other thing which gets me is the way in which a lot of
public transport services close down for anything up to 56
hours.

Like great !

– Here we are forced to take some time off work,
and we can not get away from our homes.

– So much for the excuse that we are all having time off work
in order to see ones family and friends.

If only …….. !

The only good thing about the whole situation is that it gives
me some time to catch up with my various projects,
and do some spring cleaning at home.

Oh happy days!

We talk about living within a 24/7 society,
but this only extends to 365 days minus one week in the year.

I look forward to the time when the whole xmas holiday
season is something which is confined to the history books.

Roll on !

Assumptions, or Ask A Silly Question.

I’m always amazed at the way in which people will poss a
question to one, and add a set of unsaid assumptions to the
asking.

Here is an example of just what I mean:-
Did you see ( such & such television program ) last night?

The assumption being that one would have a television
machine.

– I don’t own one.
– I don’t want to own one.

Just throw in the line that you don’t have a television,
or a television licence,
and just listen to the kind of nonsense I have had to endure
for many years back.

Ditto the assumption that one should have an extensive
knowledge about so called celebs.

What needs to be kept in mind by those who make such
assumptions,
is that being famous is no indication as to whether they have
might have anything interesting to say,
or have done anything that might be of real social worth.

Another assumption I keep hearing is that I should buy rather
than rent a flat.
Yet the very same people will tell me just difficult it is to pay
their mortgage, even though they may be earning a lot more
than anyone in libraries will ever be able to earn. Continue reading Assumptions, or Ask A Silly Question.

The Sharpness Action – July 1979.

For many years I have told the story about going up a dock
yard crane.

This is the first time that I have ever written about just what
went wrong upon the action, and just how it effected me.

Of necessity this is very much a personal account.

To my knowledge there has never been any academic account
of the action.

Summary.

July 4th 1979.

This was a direct action that took place in a dock yard where
low level nukiller waste was being loaded on to a ship to be
dumped at sea.

It was one of those actions upon where every part of the
planning went wrong.

Some of us on the action had never meet before, and there was
no attempt to do any NVDA training before we set out for the
action.

Most of us on the action were stopped and held by the police
on the way to the docks.
& thus no one landed up in the place they were supposed to be.

It also involved going up a dock yard crane,
and the unplanned action of various people sitting in front of
a dock side train.

Needless to say,
& whatever the intention ,
the whole concept of support people and affinity groups did
not come in to play.

Various people who had never intended to climb up the cranes
were on them when the police started to carry away everyone
else who was in the area,
and then the real fun bit kicked in to place….

What Went Wrong.

The action was part of a campaign by the Seven Side Alliance
to stop drums of low Level nukiller waste being loaded upon a
ship at Sharpness Docks and then dumped at sea.

The Seven Side alliance was made up of Anti-nukiller groups.
The largest of which were from Stroud & Bristol.

A small demonstration had taken place at docks during the
loading of the boat during 1978,
but only by people from Stroud and the immediate area.

I had meet some of the people who were going to take place on
the action before, but many of us on the action had only meet
for the first time the night before.

Of necessity the group in Stroud undertook a coordinating
roll on the action,
and so most of the planning for the meeting was as much of a
briefing about what had been done so far in preparation for
the action as anything else.

Thus we had to rely very heavily upon the local knowledge of
those who lived within the Stroud area.

There was no Nonviolent training for the action,
and no thoughts were given about any contingency planning.

As an aside:
It might also noted that such NVDA (Nonviolent Direct Action)
training which had taken place in the UK during the 1970s,
was aimed towards running demonstrations,
rather than this kind of more dramatic action.

It was the people who were supposed to be doing some of the
support rolls that could not get away from Stroud:
because the vehicle they were in started to malfunction.

None of us from outside of the area were provided with a maps
of the area,
though I do recall been shown a sketch map of the docks.

We only ever managed to get something like an hour & half
sleep upon the floor before setting out for the action.

Being stopped by the police and held for 1hour & 40 minutes
on the way to the docks was something that had never built in
to the planning scenario.

Neither had we ever dreamed that we would have to push a
police vehicle along the road after we were released.
This was due to the police vehicle having run down its
batteries while we being held in the middle of a very narrow
country lane.

Once released and overlooking the docks we expected the
place to be full of the police,
but the first of them only turned up some 20 minutes after we
entered the docks.

It had also been decided that a press release would be put out
at the time we were scheduled to arrive at the docks, but no
one had thought about what would happen if this action was
delayed.

Thus one of the group had to make a phone call to make sure
that this call was not made until we had entered the docks.

It was at that stage that things seemed to take on their own
momentum.

No one had though about checking out if anyone who planned
to go on the action might just happen to suffer from vertigo.

When we entered the docks it was still early dawn,
and everyone who was with me just wanted to go run for a
crane and climb up it.

At that stage I just froze.

It must of been some sort of self preservation instinct that
kicked in. Though in retrospect that seems like it being very
sensible indeed.

No one had any hard hats, slip proof footwear, life jackets, or
any kind of safety harnesses with them.

These were the days before anyone ever really gave much
consideration to health and safety issues.

Later on others arrived everyone at the docks and went up on
to the cranes, and then down to the dockside again:
– Myself included.

Thus when the docks was cleared by the police: –
No one was in the position that they had planned to at.

The dockyard train turning up hauling the drums of nukiller
waste was an unexpected occurrence.

No one had given any thought as to what might be done if this
might happen, and thus the sit down in front of the dockside
railway train was a totally spontaneous action.

After this happened those on the sit down were carried on by
the police & dumped down the road.

At this stage there was one on the action who had any list
names of who was were still in the docks,
or any contact addresses for them if things went wrong.

We had all left our bags in a house in Stroud, as a just in case,
and the only really useful phone number I had was that of a
lawyer.

This being in the era before mobile phones, it was only the
public phone near to the docks that was available for us to
use.

There was also no local contacts that we could call upon for
help within the Sharpness village.

When the police cleared the docks and carried away those
who did the sit down there was only one guy from Stroud and
myself to do any contact work with others.

When the guy from Stroud went off to chase the police car
that had driven off with those who had sat in front of the
dockyard train, it left me as the only person to observe what
was going on at the dock yard gate.

It might also be noted that no real thought had been given
about how we might record the action. I had the only camera
on the dockside, and thus I took the only photos which exist of
this event.
( The photos are now with my archive at the IISH in Amsterdam. )

Within the next couple of hours a lot of local supporters
turned up, as did some of the press.

While the docks were closed to us outsiders,
and people were on the cranes,
there was a lot of people milling in front of the dock gates.

As vehicle went in or out of the dock gates people were sitting
down in the road,
but the police would just pick them up and dump them on to the
grass verge.

It happened so many times that those of us who were by the
gate became very blase about the whole thing.

Yet again this was an unplanned for action.

Something else which had not been planned for,
was a small boat which got in docks and was apprehended.

As luck would have it no one was arrested that day,
but those on the cranes were held by the police before being
released.

Getting back from the action.

How we might all get back from the action to pick up our bags
was something else which had been overlooked,
Thus it was just a matter of luck who was around and able to
give us a lift back to Stroud.

To this day I have no idea just how one would make the Journey
from Sharpness to Stroud by bus.

In the evening I went back on the bus with the group who were
from Bristol.

I was staying at Bristol at the time.

You can imagine just how tired we all were by that stage.

What happened on the Friday.

The demonstration on the Friday involved just a small number
of people.

While one group of people held a symbolic protest at one side
of the docks,
another small group went in to the docks from the other end.

The intention was that the group who got in to the docks
would chain themselves on to the lock gate which gave the
ships access to the River Seven.

If the idea of people chaining them selves to the dockyard lock
gate had taken place, then we may of had some of the same kind
of logistical problems to face as a few days earlier.

Yet again no one who had volunteer to undertake this action
was wearing a hard hat, life jacket, life jacket, or safety
harness.

I didn’t volunteer to take part in this action as I’m not a
swimmer.

After that week there was no follow up meetings for those of
us who were upon the action,
&
No follow on support too .

With just 3 exceptions,
I never meet any one else who was on the action from that
week on.

When I got back to London on the weekend there was no real
immediate emotional support awaiting me,
and no one who was near me with whom I should share this as a
common experience with.

What I did find that helped me was to write a long account of
the action which appeared in the Anarchist Periodical
Freedom – July 28th 1979 .

1980

The next year there was another action just outside of
Sharpness.

A scaffolding tower was placed upon the small railway line
just outside of the docks. This held up the transportation of
the nukiller waste drums to the ship.

In 1981 the dumping of nukiller waste was suspended,
and has never been resumed.

My own take upon being involved within any NVDA as a result
of being on the Sharpness Action.

While this account might be a good one to show just was might
go wrong on an action,
and thus show the need for some proper contingency
planning:
there is also something else which needs to be said.

It is not just the need for proper planning,
and NVDA training for an action which needs to be considered.

It is the follow up,
and follow up support for those who take part in actions
which really needs to be worked upon by those who engage
upon NVDA.

Pugalism.

Pugalism is a brutal activity.

Pugalism is a health and safety Issue.

We have known for decades that boxing can result in brain
damage.

You wouldn’t go on to a building site without a hard hat,
just in case you might be hit on the head.

Yet why do we still allow people to be hit around the head in
the name of sport?

For years people have been campaigning to end this so called
sport.

Is it not about time that boxing became declassified as an
official activity at all future Olympic events?