'Occupy' Protest at St. Paul's Cathedral in London Splits Anglican Church

At New York Times:

LONDON — In a city where demonstrations of every kind are part of the daily syncopation, there has rarely been any with quite the same potential for amplifying the protesters’ cause as the one that has settled in recently on the historic forecourt of St. Paul’s Cathedral, setting off a painful crisis of conscience for the Church of England .

For the last 15 days, St. Paul’s has been the backdrop for London’s counterpart to the Occupy Wall Street tent city in Zuccotti Square in New York. Here, the protest has taken on aspects of a medieval carnival, a jumbled tent city with buskers and rappers and clothing stalls and a panoply of banners and a makeshift cafeteria. There have been pet dogs, and a man dressed as Jesus declaiming against the usurers in the temple.

Where Princess Diana appeared to pealing bells after her marriage to Prince Charles, where a nation grateful for deliverance in war watched the caissons arrive for the funerals of Lord Nelson and Winston Churchill, beneath Christopher Wren’s great dome that stood defiant amid the smoke and fire of the Luftwaffe’s blitz, Britain’s anticapitalist battalions have pitched camp.

Scores of similar encampments have sprung up in cities around the world, echoing the continuing protest in Wall Street’s heart against the bankers and corporate barons and complicit politicians the protesters hold responsible for global financial distress.

But few, if any, of the protests outside New York have had the resonance the St. Paul’s campers have achieved in Britain by choosing as their venue what many regard as the country’s most iconic religious landmark.

Continue reading.

Britney's Femme Fatale Tour, London

Lots of pics, at Daily Mail: "Britney bares a whole lot of skin in risqué stage outfits as the Femme Fatale tour hits London."

Europe Needs Economic Growth

At Los Angeles Times, "Europe debt crisis plan hinges on economic growth":

Reporting from London — The latest plan to save Europe from its debt crisis was greeted with a burst of self-congratulation from the bleary-eyed leaders who negotiated it and a respite from the months of pounding by the continent's financial markets.

But the politicians who struck an early-morning deal in Brussels to avert financial collapse still face another ominous threat: a slide back into recession for their economies that could undermine the debt agreement as well as bring even greater social disorder to their streets.

The realization appears to be taking hold in some capitals that any "grand plan" to restore confidence in the Eurozone will fail without accompanying economic growth. Cuts in government spending that have been prescribed to get budget deficits under control also lead to job losses, along with the hardship and fear that foment social unrest.

Evidence is already coming in. From riots in Britain to peaceful protests by thousands of youths in Spain, from the angry unions marching through tear gas in Greece's streets to the far-right populist parties surging in popularity in the Netherlands and Scandinavia, the consequences of a hard economic squeeze are creating a backlash on the streets and making governments nervous.

More at that top link.

European Leaders Debate Severe Options for Accord

At WSJ (via Google):

BRUSSELS — European leaders took their first steps toward a new plan to stem the euro crisis, admitting that their last grand plan, agreed to only three months ago, has failed.

The new effort, which leaders hope to finalize at another summit on Wednesday, involves a sweeping recapitalization of European banks, a substantial restructuring of Greece's debts, a bigger bailout fund, and even possibly fresh efforts to entice sovereign-wealth funds in China and elsewhere to come to Europe's aid.

Continue reading at that link.

Banks are writing off some of their Greek loans, and lots more capitalization is needed. See also Der Spiegel, "German Parliament Slows Euro Rescue Decisions," and Telegraph UK, "David Cameron vows to reclaim EU powers amid looming rebellion."

Occupy London Protests Close Down St. Paul's Cathedral for First Time Since World War II

At Telegraph UK, "St Paul's Cathedral announces closure due to 'Occupy' protesters":

It seemed a gesture of Christian tolerance when a clergyman at St Paul’s Cathedral told police to allow anti-capitalist protesters camped outside to continue their demonstration.

But the alliance appeared to be faltering yesterday as St Paul’s closed for the first time since the Blitz, claiming it had no choice because of the dangers posed by the growing numbers on its doorstep.

Britain's Royal Navy Unearths 61 Bombs After Two-Day Sweep of Nudist Beach

Amazing news.

At Telegraph UK, "Royal Navy finds 61 bombs in two day sweep at nudist beach."

Paul McCartney Married Nancy Shevell on John Lennon's Birthday

I guess I'm not that big of a Beatles fan, because I didn't realize that McCartney remarried on Lennon's birthday. I was listening to Larry Morgan at The Sound during yesterday's drive time and he was celebrating McCartney's wedding and mentioned Lennon's birthday.

Speaking of Lennon, there's a review of Tim Riley's, John Lennon: the Man, the Myth, the Music — The Definitive Life, at New York Times: "John Lennon’s Primal Screams."

Paul McCartney Marries Nancy Shevell

This is great.

At London's Daily Mail, "Introducing Lady McCartney! Nancy and Sir Paul can't stop smiling as they emerge as husband and wife."

Childhood Being Eroded by Modern Life

At Telegraph UK, "Childhood is being eroded by a “relentless diet” of advertising, addictive computer games, test-driven education and poor childcare, a powerful lobby of more than 200 experts warns today."

In a letter to The Daily Telegraph, the group of academics, teachers, authors and charity leaders says children’s wellbeing and mental health is being undermined by the pressures of modern life. They urge the Government to address a culture of “too much, too soon” in Britain.

This includes a ban on all forms of advertising aimed at the youngest children, the establishment of a play-based curriculum for infants and a public information campaign warning of the dangers of screen-based entertainment.

The comments came five years after many of the same experts sent similar letter to the Telegraph that criticised politicians and the public for failing to allow children to develop properly at a young age. It led to a debate on the state of childhood in Britain and coincided with the publication of Labour’s Children’s Plan — a policy document covering all aspects of young people’s lives.

But the group, which includes Philip Pullman, the children’s author, Baroness Greenfield, the Oxford University neuroscientist, Lord Layard, emeritus professor of economics at the London School of Economics, and the Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Rev Tim Stevens, claims that the “erosion of childhood in Britain has continued apace since 2006”.

I'll take the consumerism over this decrepit nanny statism. Kids should spend more time with their families, or, well, if they have families, and I mean in the traditional sense of a mother and father, with regular employment and good values. Given what we saw with the London riots earlier this year, it can't be said that those prerequisites are firmly in place in Britain.

Libyan Rebels Enter Bani Walid in Final Push

At Telegraph UK.

9/11: Radical Islamists Burn U.S. Flag in London Protest (VIDEO)

From Telegraph UK:

And from London's Daily Mail, "100 protesters burn American flag outside U.S. embassy in London during minute's silence for 9/11."

RELATED: "Progressives Shame the Country on the 10th Anniversary of 9/11."

'Time'

Heard this on the way home from "The Undefeated" the other night. And come to think of it, The Sound has been playing a lot of Pink Floyd:

P.S. I'll try to post my thoughts on The Undefeated later today.

The Return of Elitism?

An interesting piece, at Telegraph UK, "David Cameron: we need elitism in schools":

David Cameron will signal a return to “elitism” in schools in an attempt to mend Britain’s “broken” society and secure the economic future.

The Prime Minister will attack the “prizes for all” culture in which competitiveness is frowned upon and winners are shunned.

In a significant speech, he will outline Coalition plans to ensure teaching is based on “excellence”, saying that controversial reforms are needed to “bring back the values of a good education”.

Failure to do so would be “fatal to prosperity”, he will say.

The comments mark the latest in a series of attempts to focus on education in response to the riots that shocked London and other English cities last month.

Actually, we could use less elitism on this side of the Atlantic, and more back to basics, common sense, values-based instruction.

Bob Iritano and the Politics of Health Care

An excellent set of letters to the editor yesterday, at Los Angeles Times, "On health insurers rationing care...." And the last one:

Please. Everyone who hasn't lived under a rock all their lives knows the bad stories about national health coverage.

We have a friend who lived in Britain for many years. It took her two years to get a hysterectomy that would have taken her two weeks at an HMO here — two days if her condition were life-threatening. The numbers don't coincide with your version of reality.

This death is a sad thing. But his extra year and a half of life was won by a successful struggle that he and his family could not have waged against the bureaucracy of, say, Britain's healthcare system.

Your argument is driven by political hope, not reality.

Joan Moon

Burbank

And the initial article to which readers were responding: "Putting a price on prolonging a doomed life."

Unseen Photographs Throw Light on First World War

At Independent UK, "Exclusive: The unseen photographs that throw new light on the First World War."

A treasure trove of First World War photographs was discovered recently in France. Published here for the first time, they show British soldiers on their way to the Somme. But who took them? And who were these Tommies marching off to die?

The slideshow display works pretty well. Scroll forward to picture #46 to see a black artillery soldier flanked by two white comrades. That's gotta be trippy for 1915.

Woman's Breast Implant Explodes After Being Hit By Paintball

I wonder if anyone got that on video.



At LAT, "Woman's breast implant explodes during paintball: New high-impact sports risk?":

Here's an unusual risk of playing paintball: A British woman's breast implant reportedly exploded after she was hit in the chest by a paintball, which can travel at 190 mph.



UK Paintball has now adjusted its policies accordingly. "We respectfully ask that any ladies with surgical breast implants notify our team at the time of booking," according to a statement on its website. "You will be given special information on the dangers of paintballing with enhanced boobs and asked to sign a disclaimer."



Just wait, it gets better: "You will also be issued with extra padding to protect your implants while paintballing," the statement says.



This, of course, happened within days of an FDA official reaffirming that silicone breast implants on the market were safe to use.



But then again, when they talk about the dangers of breast augmentation, paintball is not usually one that comes to mind.

The Desperation-of-Deprivation Myth

From Mark Steyn, at National Review, "The West has incentivized non-productivity on an industrial scale" (via Glenn Reynolds).



Just go read it all.

New Issues Emerge for News Corporation in Britain

At Wall Street Journal, "New Evidence Adds Pressure to News Corp."

And at Telegraph UK, "Phone hacking: 'orchestrated cover-up' of hacking at News of the World."

More at Mediagazer.

Pat Condell on the London Riots

Via Blazing Cat Fur:

The New Britannia

From Mark Steyn, at National Review:

The trick in this business is not to be right too early. A week ago I released my new book — the usual doom’n’gloom stuff — and, just as the sensible prudent moderate chaps were about to dismiss it as hysterical and alarmist, Standard & Poor’s went and downgraded the United States from its AAA rating for the first time in history. Obligingly enough they downgraded it to AA+, which happens to be the initials of my book: After America. Okay, there’s not a lot of “+” in that, but you can’t have everything.



But the news cycle moves on, and a day or two later, the news shows were filled with scenes of London ablaze, as gangs of feral youths trashed and looted their own neighborhoods. Several readers wrote to taunt me for not having anything to say on the London riots. As it happens, Chapter Five of my book is called “The New Britannia: The Depraved City.” You have to get up pretty early in the morning to beat me to Western civilization’s descent into barbarism. Anyone who’s read it will fully understand what’s happening on the streets of London. The downgrade and the riots are part of the same story: Big Government debauches not only a nation’s finances but its human capital, too.

Keep reading.



It's really astounding, the prophecy in that book. Don't miss it.