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Costa Concordia sinking and Francesco Schettino: Symbols of magnificent, but malfunctioning Italy

18 View comments House arrest: Captain Francesco Schettino told magistrates his actions saved 'thousands of lives' In the aftermath of the Costa Concordia disaster, the Italians themselves are getting in on the act. They’ve christened the Costa Concordia’s lifeboat-hogging skipper Francesco Schettino ‘Captain Coward’ and are selling t-shirts printed with the words shouted at him by the coast guard official Gregorio de Falco: ‘Vada a bordo, cazzo!’ or, ‘Get back on board, for ****’ sake!’ You can even buy parodies of the classic WWII British government poster: ‘Keep Calm and Vada A Bordo Cazzo.’ Of course, as those same Italians are painfully aware, the whole disaster is a terrible confirmation of every negative stereotype the world has ever had about Italy and its people. Capt. Schettino is the Berlusconi of the seas and his ship is less like the Costa Concordia than the SS Bunga-Bunga. This is a captain who crashed his ship because he veered off course to show

Why do the English need to speak a foreign language when foreigners all speak English?

19 View comments My roots read like a World Cup draw. My half-Welsh father was born and spent his boyhood in Argentina and thus speaks Spanish almost as naturally as English. My mother’s family are Norwegian. Because Dad was a diplomat, I spent the first five years of my life in Moscow and Lisbon, so my baby-talk was Russian (in which I later got an O-Level) and I then spoke kindergarten Portuguese. I was sent to boarding school in the days when they still provided a classical education, so I learned Latin and Ancient Greek to what was then O-Level standard, but would now be A-Level, at least. I also got an A in A-Level French, which is the one foreign language I can claim to speak with reasonable fluency. Global reach: English is the second language of 85 per cent of Europeans, and the default tongue of the European Union While I was growing up, my family also lived in Peru and Cuba, but I only went out there on holidays, so my Spanish is rudimentary at best. Having sp

Scottish independence debate: I'm glad I'll be staying in England

36 View comments Alex Salmond's Scotland will never have the bracing cold shower of common sense Well, Alex Salmond is half right. England will indeed, as he suggested this week be much, much better off without Scotland. We’ll get back the billions of extra pounds, raised by English tax-payers that ensure that Scots get some 20% more state-funding per head than the rest of us. We’ll finally be freed from the grotesque, anti-democratic distortion whereby Scottish MPs can vote on parliamentary bills that only affect English and Welsh constituencies, while we have no say on similar bills that pass through the Scottish parliament. And maybe, just maybe we’ll all stop moaning about one another and just agree to be friendly neighbours instead. But in another respect Alex Salmond is gloriously, blissfully, hilariously wrong. For he also said that an independent Scotland, presumably under his rule, would be transformed into a ‘progressive beacon’ for the rest of the UK

Charles Dickens: Why he would not have a chance of making it today...

9 View comments Prodigy: But would Charles Dickens have succeeded in today's publishing industry? Imagine the scene: a brilliant young writer, whose father has spent time in jail for debt becomes a newspaper’s political columnist at just 21 years of age. His work is astonishing; from parliamentary sketches, to reports from election campaigns, to witty snapshots of the scenes and people he encounters on his travels. When he comes up with the idea for a collection of comic adventures involving Samuel Pickwick and his friends Winkle, Snodgrass and Tupman, the book is a sensation. That is what happened to Charles Dickens, when he burst onto the literary scene in the 1830s, first as a journalist on the Morning Chronicle and then as the author of The Pickwick Papers. And up to this point, one could imagine a young media prodigy having a similar success story today. But only up to this point, because here is what would happen next. The modern, classless Charlie Dickens and

As plans are revealed for a Jubilee pop concert, try our quiz

1 View comments The Jubilee concert which will be held outside Buckingham Palace on June 4 will feature some of music’s biggest names, from all six decades of the Queen’s reign. Organiser Gary Barlow has already signed up four pop Sirs — Paul McCartney, Elton John, Cliff Richard and Tom Jones — as well as Dame Shirley Bassey. Which star singing for the Queen checks into hotels as Sir Humphrey Handbag? Other confirmed stars include Jools  Holland, Madness, Annie Lennox, younger acts such as Jessie J, Ed Sheeran and JLS, opera star Alfie Boe and Chinese star  Lang Lang. Meanwhile, rumours have suggested that the Spice Girls, Adele and Kylie Minogue will all appear, and — since Prince Harry and Prince William are said to have asked for rap stars to be included — Jay-Z and Kanye West. But how much do you know about the Palace pop icons? PICK OF THE POPS What did rapper Kanye West's mother do for a living? 1. What prestigious award, for setting an inspirational exa

Tax-deductible servants could free working women...

9 View comments Tax-deductible servants could free working women, create jobs for the unemployed … and bring us 21st century Downton Abbeys. If I hired a researcher to help me with a book or an article I could deduct their pay from my taxes, because that’s a business cost. If I hired cleaners for my office, I could probably deduct their pay from my taxes, too, just as any other business can deduct the cost of maintaining its premises. But if I hired someone to clean my house, or mow my lawn I couldn’t deduct their pay from my taxes, because that would have nothing to do with my business. It seems like a pretty straightforward distinction. But this week David Cameron has indicated that it’s one he’s thinking of abolishing. He’s been to Scandinavia and among the many ideas he’s picked up on his trip – including quotas for women on company boards – is that the cost of domestic staff should be tax-deductible to the people who hire them. At the moment, many women - particula

If it's 'discrimination' for companies to hire the best job candidates then this country really is doomed (and that's a polite word for it)

19 View comments According to a government review, the practice of top firms hiring applicants with good degrees from top universities, instead of those who have poorer qualifications from lesser institutions may ‘militate against a widening access agenda’ and is ‘not necessarily consistent with a diversity agenda that a company may promote’. In other words, it will soon be necessary for companies to hire job-applicants who aren’t as good as the rest – just as universities will have to select students who haven’t got top grades – because ‘access’ and ‘diversity’ are now more important than quality. Kings College, Cambridge: A Government review warns firms that hiring candidates from Britain's top universities might be inconsistent with 'diversity' It’s sheer madness ... A certain path to making British business, and therefore the British economy less successful, less globally competitive and less able to support the lunatic excesses of the equality-crazed B

London Mayor race: Boris and Ken can fight all they like, but they're really just two of a not-very-nice kind

0 shares 15 View comments So, Boris Johnson had a furious row with Ken Livingstone in a lift… Well, I suppose it beats looking at the floor, and the wall, and the ceiling and anywhere else you can think of it an attempt to avoid eye-contact with any of the other people squeezed into the same little box, which is how I spend most lift journeys. Of course, sticklers for etiquette may think Boris was taking matters a tad too far by calling Red Ken ‘a f***ing liar’. ‘Hypocrite’ would surely have sufficed. War of words: An outraged Boris Johnson branded Ken Livingstone a 'liar' while discussing their taxes during the live radio session Livingstone, after all, is a dyed-in-the-wool socialist who uses a limited company to shelter his media income and minimize his tax exposure. Indeed, the argument began when, in an attempt to deflect criticism of his blatant double standards, Ken claimed (wrongly, as it transpires)that Johnson did the same thing. Livingstone’s c

Goldie Hawn at 67: Fit and fab at Her age-defying diet and workout secrets

Actress Goldie Hawn is fit and fabulous at 67, thanks to a healthy diet and regular exercise. "I do try to do some form of exercise four days a week," Hawn told the January 2013 issue of Prevention . "At home in California, I'll bike up the mountain, or I'll do Pilates or spin. And I do eat a lot of greens. I eat healthy, but I'm not a vegetarian." Like other attractive older women , Goldie says a proper diet, regular workouts and a positive attitude are the secrets to looking and feeling great. Hawn says daily meditation is one of her anti-aging beauty secrets. "You'll see the benefits of meditation aren't just in your head," says Goldie, whose gorgeous daughter, actress Kate Hudson , is equally fit and healthy. "They're as physiological as the benefits of exercise on your muscles." Hawn, who has practicing meditation since the 1970s, says everyone can benefit from daily meditation, even for short blocks of two to five m

Grand National 2012: Race has no future if it's Russian Roulette for horses

0 shares 26 View comments With a few fences to go in the Grand National the runners and riders unexpectedly swerved and ran round the side of a fence instead of jumping over it. For a second or two I couldn’t work out why on earth they had taken this unlikely detour … And then I saw the black screens that had been erected on the racetrack just in front of the by-passed fence and realized that they concealed an injured, or more likely dead horse. Suddenly, I wasn’t half so interested in the race. Nor will anyone be interested in the Grand National, or any other steeplechase, come to that, if things keep going the way they are. Five horses killed at Cheltenham last month, now three more at the Aintree meeting. As a friend of mine observed today: we call bullfighting a barbaric sport – why is racing any better? Fatal fall: AP McCoy and Synchronised fall after the sixth fence. The horse had to be put down on the course Well, I’m no fan of bullfighting. But actually,

Jumper kills 5-year-old after falling from apartment buidling (Video)

Suicide jumper kills a 5-year-old girl after he fell to his death in South Korean. Yahoo News reports May 23 that police confirmed a suicidal man killed a young girl who was walking with her parents outside an apartment building Wednesday. The jumper died immediately after falling from the eleventh floor of the building. The girl was left with severe brain damage and broken bones then died soon thereafter. Details of the tragedy are scant due to an investigation being conducted. It's unclear why the man jumped to his death. No suicide note was left behind. The 5-year-old girl was tragically killed while someone else made the decision to end his life. The report went on to note that South Korea has the world's highest suicide rate.

St George - patron saint of a country that seems to be dying of shame

0 shares 17 View comments Saints day: St George's Day is celebrated on 23rd April, but to seemingly little fanfare Dear St George, Happy saint’s day - hope you have a good one! True, you won’t get a proper celebration like your pals Andrew, David and Patrick. I mean, you’re probably not too jealous of Andy being toasted by a bunch of belligerently nationalistic Scots, or Dave being commemorated by Welshmen with daffodils and leeks pinned to their rugby shirts. But Paddy’s another matter. He’s got the whole world holding marches, dyeing their beer green and pretending that they’re Irish. You’d have to be a saint not to be, well, green with envy at that. Oh, yes, of course, you ARE a saint. But still, you know what I mean. It’s just your rotten luck that you’re the patron saint of a country that’s dying of self-hatred and shame. Actually, let me rephrase that … You’re the patron saint of a country whose governing elite are dying of self-hatred and shame. I don’t

Flynn Robinson 'Instant Offense' Former Laker dies at 72

Former Laker dies at 72 : Flynn Robinson, also known as “Instant Offense” on the 1971-72 served Lakers team that brought Los Angeles its first NBA title, died Thursday. He was 72. Flynn’s wife, Nancy Pitts-Robinson, told the Lakers he died Thursday at Keck Hospital in Los Angeles. Called “Mr. Instant Point” by late Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn, the 6-foot-1 Robinson averaged 9.9 points and 2.2 assists in 64 games in 1971-72, helping the Lakers win an NBA-record 33 consecutive games and the franchise’s first title in Los Angeles. “We are very sad to hear of the passing of Flynn Robinson,” said Jeanie Buss, the Lakers’ executive vice president of business operations. “Flynn played an important role on the 1971-72 Lakers team.” Robinson averaged 14 points per game during his professional career. He was an All-Star with the Milwaukee Bucks during the 1969-1970 season and during his eight years in the NBA also played for the Cincinnati Royals, Chicago Bulls and Baltimore Bull

Dwain Chambers is no dope: Why reformed drug cheats have the right to be Olympians

30 View comments Proven drugs cheats Dwain Chambers and David Millar are free to compete for Great Britain at London 2012. The Court of Arbitration in Sport has found against the British Olympic Association, who wanted to bar them from the Olympic Games for life. Good. I’m delighted by the verdict. It’s the only fair, legal and above all moral decision the court could possibly have made. And it’s simply self-righteous nonsense to argue that the ban against the two men should have been allowed to stand. Winner: The Court of Arbitration for Sport has overturned the BOA's ban on sprinter Dwain Chambers competing for team GB Consider the facts. Consider, above all, the BOA’s opponents in court. For this wasn’t a case of a sporting body waging a brave fight against unscrupulous sportsmen or their greedy agents. No, the BOA were taking on the World Anti-Doping Agency, the body whose sole mission is to rid sport of illegal, performance-enhancing drugs.   More... British

Goldie Hawn at 67 still looking simply amazing beauty

Goldie Hawn at 67 :  Goldie Hawn looks are hard to believe that she looks simply amazing beauty and  her daughter Kate Hudson turned 34 recently. But Goldie Hawn showed that she's a sprightly 67 years young as she went on a rigorous bike ride through the Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood on earlier Sunday. The effervescent Laugh-In star looked alive as she carried on with her ride, smiling as she pushed her mountain bike around some tight curves. Staying in shape: Goldie showed off her toned arms and thin legs while riding her bicycle in Brentwood, Los Angeles on Sunday. She put her hard-worked body on display in a psychedelic tie-dyed black and white vest top and coordinated leggings and trainers. And of course Goldie took all safety precautions on her invigorating ride, gripping her brakes with a pair of open-fingered gloves. She also tucked her hair away from her face under a cool helmet. Not tagging along was her 62-year-old beau Kurt Russell. Working up a sweat: The Pri

The anti-fat campaign is just fat-headed

7 View comments Contradictory: Either we're all going to turn into great fat, cancerous, diabetic slugs or we're all going to live for longer and longer Help! Help! Half of all British men are going to be obese by 2040! They’re all going to have heart attacks, diabetes and cancer! !t’s going to cost the NHS £320bn … And we’re all DOOMED!! That, in a nutshell is a summary of the latest bout of health hysteria to be launched in our direction. Tim Marsh of the National Heart Forum has just revealed these terrifying (he hopes) statistics at a European Congress on Obesity. And it’s nonsense. Now, I’m not disputing that there are a lot of fat blokes around, and fat women, too, come to that. They waddle round supermarkets, dragging their chubby children behind them. They sit in airport departure lounges,  overflowing the skimpy plastic chairs, while other, thinner passengers utter a silent prayer: ‘Dear Lord, don’t give me the seat next to the man-mountain over there.’

Memo to cyclists: the rules apply to you, too

0 shares 39 View comments Cyclists are the LibDems of the road: self-righteous, irritating, appallingly dressed and loathed by everyone else. Now the car versus bike hate-a-thon is about to take yet another turn for the worse. For it has just been revealed that six out of ten cyclists admit to jumping red lights. Not coincidentally, road rage incidents involving cyclists are also on the rise. So it’s an odds-on bet that even as I write these words, pro-cycle lobbyists are frantically pedalling to TV and radio studios to argue the case for bikes and against those evil, smelly, CO2-producing cars. Now, before we go any further let me say that I’ve got nothing against bicycles. When I was younger, fitter and didn’t have a driving license, I used to zoom round London on the battered black bike that had seen me through university. Then I took one stupid risk too many, came off it in the middle of Fulham Broadway and ended up under the wheels of a double-decker bus. The dri

Say what you like about the French, but they have the world's finest political crumpet

14 View comments It’s not easy being French. Steeped as they are in the myth of La Belle France’s effortless superiority, they have to cope with the fact that one of their near-neighbours conquered them and the other liberated them. And they’ve never quite got over either experience. The fact that the world speaks English, for example, gnaws at the French soul like a plague of rats. On Saturday, every other nation in the Eurovision Song Contest will return its votes in English, to Azerbaijani hosts who will also be speaking our mother tongue. The French, however, would rather die than submit to such indignity and so will insist both on speaking French and being addressed in it, too. That will not of course alter the fact that English is the global language of politics, business, science, aviation and popular culture. But it will, just for a moment ease the pain. Sophisticated: Christine Lagarde cuts an elegant figure next to Germany's Angela Merkel Then there are th

BBC Diamond Jubilee coverage: Why I hate the snobbery and elitism of the 'anti-elitist' BBC

37 View comments Do you think you’re thick? Are you so completely incapable of having a single serious thought in your head that you switch off the TV the moment someone says something intelligent, knowledgeable or genuinely informative? Come to think of it, are these sentences, y’know, just a little bit too complicated to handle? No, I didn’t think so. But then, I don’t work for the BBC. So I’ve spent the past thirty years believing that if I write in clear, straightforward, grown-up English prose then readers of all ages, classes, genders and races will have no trouble understanding me. They may not agree. They may not be remotely interested. But they’ll get it. Criticism: Fearne Cotton addressed a war veteran called John as Jim during one interview on Sunday during the BBC's Jubilee coverage Repercussions: BBC veteran Peter Sissons said the number of complaints was 'very serious' and bosses should have a 'serious rethink' about the presentin