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Letter: Favorite principal
Editor: I love Kathleen Crookham, our county supervisor. She was my favorite principal in junior high school.
2008-11-21 03:09:56
BBC under fire over hip-hop slant on Barack Obama's election win
Pitting hip-hop star Dizzee Rascal against Jeremy Paxman in a Newsnight special was probably designed to up the "yoof" factor in the heavyweight debate about the consequences of Barack Obama's election victory.But rather than receiving plaudits for making the programme less stuffy, the BBC has been criticised for its unorthodox choice of guest, with Paxman accused of conducting a "patronising" and "crass" interview with the London-born rapper.Critics say the 58-year-old journalist asked questions that he would not have put to a young white musician - such as "Mr Rascal, do you feel yourself to be British"Dizzee Rascal, real name Dylan Mills, is a leading proponent of UK hip-hop and grime, and won the Mercury Music prize in 2003.Lee Billingham of the charity Love Music Hate Racism said yesterday: "Why does a leading BBC news journalist deem it necessary to ask a black British person 'do you feel yourself to be British' Would he have asked Barack Obama 'do you feel yourself to be American', of course not."He added: "A better line of inquiry would be to explore if racism is affecting whether non-whites 'feel British' in 2008. From Norman Tebbit's 'cricket test' to the government's 'citizenship test' to Paxman's ridiculous question last night, it seems that even if you're third or fourth generation British, if you have black or brown skin then your nationality can be brought into question, where your white counterpart's would not."Meanwhile the musician has come under fire from some sections of the black community for fuelling "negative stereotypes of young inner city people, especially black people", by using slang such as "innit" and "wassappenin" during the interview, and for joking about running for prime minister.The BBC has not escaped criticism either. Around 50 people have called the corporation to complain about Wednesday's programme, all of whom questioned Dizzee Rascal's suitability as a guest on the special which the BBC said was watched by 1.4 million people.Facebook groups have also been set up urging users to add their voices to the debate. One message doing the rounds on Facebook said: "Why is it that Britain's minorities are always depicted in this negative light, making our positive achievements seem somewhat belittled. The BBC creates a false impression of what we are. They promote one side of the spectrum, which is usually the negative side.But DJ Semtex, a presenter on BBC 1Xtra, said on his blog: "Dizzee was sincere, accurate, unfazed by the political process, and entertaining, which is why they put him on primetime TV." It was nonsense, said DJ Semtex, to suggest that the Newsnight slot misrepresented black people because the senior black politician, Lady Amos, appeared alongside Dizzee Rascal.Bashy, a north London MC wrote on his blog: "Dizzee is a mad talented platinum selling artist, but in a time of change TV channels should be way more responsible & carefully choose who represents our community, in order to build a relationship of trust.On the Threadless blog, commentators criticised Paxman's technique. One said: "I mean ... asking Dizzee Rascal... if he considers himself British I think that's more than a bit patronising." Another said Paxman was "especially crass".A spokeswoman for the BBC said: "Jeremy Paxman's question to Dizzee Rascal about whether he felt himself to be British was a direct response to the preceding comments from Baroness Amos who was saying that in the UK, as opposed to the US, we don't talk about the nature of Britishness and what it means to be British. The topics being discussed were race, nationality and identity and this question was a natural part of that discussion."Dizzee Rascal could not be reached for comment.When Paxo met Mr RascalJeremy Paxman: How does it seem to youDizzee Rascal: It's positive. It's positive because he is mixed race as well, so he is an immediate, immediate symbol of unity. And I think, know what, hip-hop played a big part in this as well. I don't think he could have done it without hip-hop. Hip-hop is what encouraged the youth to, um, get involved in voting and making the place better and he is the first president to embrace it.JP: Sorry to interrupt you, but ... could you see this happening in BritainDR: Yeah. In time.JP: You're rather positive!DR: Yeah, man. Why not, man There's a first time for everything, isn't there ... if you believe you can achieve, innitJP: Dizzee Rascal, do you believe in political parties in BritainDR: Yeah, they exist. I believe in 'em ... I don't know if it makes a difference. But you know what I mean. It is what it is. Politicians ... say what they say - you might get every now and again a genuine one, innit But I think people, like, as a whole make the difference ...JP: But in the end you've already told us how excited you feel about the election of a black president, clearly an individual does make a difference ...DR: Yeah, to help boost the morale. But change comes from everybody coming together and making a difference.Baroness Amos: Here in the UK, we don't talk too much about the nature of Britishness ... the way it has changed ...JP: Dizzee Rascal, Mr Rascal, do you feel yourself to be BritishDR: Of course I'm British, man! You know me! ... what's good. I think it don't matter what colour you are, it matters what colour your heart is and your intentions. I think a black man, purple man, Martian man can run the country ... as long as he does right by the people. JP: Well why don't you run for officeDR: See, that's a very good idea. I might have to do that one day. Dizzee Rascal for prime minister, yeah! Wassappenin'! Barack Obama embraced hip-hop, man. That's the way he got through to kids. There was a more young vote ever. And it was through hip-hop!BBCUS elections 2008TelevisionUrban musicguardian.co.uk &ampcopy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
2008-11-08 02:23:40
Obituary: Sir John Hermon
The longest-serving chief constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary during Northern Ireland's Troubles, Sir John Hermon, who has died aged 79, led the force through the 1980s - a decade of unrelenting terrorist violence. His time in the UK's toughest policing post was dominated by controversies over the supergrass system of informers, "shoot to kill" operations and the fury of loyalists denouncing the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement.Protestations by Hermon that he was an impartial upholder of law and order did not prevent republicans and civil rights campaigners from portraying him as the embodiment of the establishment, selectively bending security rules. Unionist leaders turned on him following the Hillsborough Accord as they attempted to suborn the police service.But Hermon was a forthright defender of his officers, having been steeped in the constabulary's embattled culture since his earliest professional life. In the ranks, he was known simply as "Jack" or "JC".Born in Larne, County Antrim, and educated locally, Hermon trained and worked as an accountant for four years until he joined the RUC in 1950. In 1963 he became the first RUC officer to attend what is now the Police Staff College, Bramshill in Hampshire. On his return, promotion was rapid. He was appointed district inspector and, in 1967, deputy commandant of the RUC training station in Enniskillen.By 1976, he had risen to deputy chief constable. Attachment to Scotland Yard in 1979 was a further sign of approval and he became chief constable the following year. His era opened with a sharp escalation in the level of IRA violence as H-Block hunger strikes further polarised the divided province.Hermon had little love for politicians, whom he blamed for tearing society apart. That distrust dated back to a critical incident in 1964 when the Rev Ian Paisley inflamed opinion over the presence of an Irish tricolour flag in republican west Belfast. The ensuing riot embittered relations between the police and nationalist community.Perceived by critics as an abrasive disciplinarian, Hermon fell out at times with both the Northern Ireland police authority and the Police Federation, which passed a motion of no confidence in him after he upbraided them for discussing revival of the disbanded B Specials. He was knighted in 1982.His reform of the RUC, which transformed it into a more independent force, shorn of its worst sectarian sympathies, enabled it to resist the onslaught of loyalist violence against officers and their homes in the aftermath of the Anglo-Irish Agreement. That resilience protected the developing political process.But it was the row over police "shoot-to-kill" operations in County Armagh during 1982 and the subsequent inquiry by the deputy chief constable of Manchester, John Stalker, that overshadowed his period in office. The two senior policemen clashed repeatedly. Stalker later claimed that during their first meeting Hermon sketched out Stalker's family tree on the back of a cigarette packet, highlighting the Irish Catholic ancestry on his mother's side - some of whom Stalker himself did not know.The Stalker Affair, which fuelled allegations of official cover-ups and conspiracies, degenerated into a vendetta between the chief constable and the media. Despite efforts to dissuade him, Hermon privately pursued three legal actions to clear his name.In 1984, Stalker had been appointed to investigate the shooting by police of six men - five of them republican suspects. He had striven to obtain access to a secret MI5 tape recording of one of the shootings. But he was abruptly removed from the inquiry and suspended for supposedly consorting with criminals - only to be reinstated three months later.Hermon was said to have tossed Stalker's report across the room in fury when he read the document. Stalker later revealed that, for five months, Hermon had refused to allow him to send a report, recommending the prosecution of a number of officers, to the director of public prosecutions.But he did not believe Hermon had been entirely responsible for the obstructions. "I think the architects of my removal were on this side of the water," he told a court in 1995.Hermon's well-publicised views on the work of the murdered Belfast lawyer Patrick Finucane, shot dead by loyalists in 1989, added to his unpopularity with the civil rights lobby. The chief constable later insisted: "Pat Finucane was associated with the IRA and he used his position as a lawyer to act as a contact between suspects in custody and republicans on the outside."Hermon was ahead of his time in calling for the police to renounce their powers to adjudicate on parades during the annual marching season. In 1986, following violence in Portadown, he reported: "Unless parading organisations face the reality that population changes can result in areas once receptive becoming hostile, then the public order tasks of the RUC will become increasingly difficult."According to his autobiography, Holding the Line 1997, he left his bomb-proof office in east Belfast disillusioned. The appointment of his successor, Sir Hugh Annesley, commended as a team player, was seen as a reproach to his style of leadership.On retirement in June 1989, he became a consultant to Securicor. His first wife, Jean, had died from cancer, but he subsequently married Sylvia Paisley, a law lecturer at Queen's University. They had met after she wrote a paper criticising his refusal to allow women officers to carry firearms.In 2001, she was persuaded to stand as the Ulster Unionist Party candidate for North Down. She held the seat again in 2005, becoming the sole UUP representative at Westminster. Lady Hermon declined, however, to lead the party because her husband was suffering from Alzheimer's disease: she felt she could not "let him down in his hour of need". She survives her husband, as do two sons from their marriage, and a son and a daughter from Hermon's first marriage.Northern IrelandPoliceNorthern Irish politicsguardian.co.uk &ampcopy; Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
2008-11-08 02:21:40
3 Day Facelift: The Surgical Mini Facelift
Best Syndication NewsThe 3 day face lift has certainly gotten a great deal of attention lately. After all who doesnÃ¢Â€Â™t want to have radiant skin This 3 day lift can be done without anyone knowing you did it. Of course if you start it Friday...
2008-11-08 02:20:32
Path of universal love
CHENNAI: Faith is essential for those who seek the Lordâ€™s feet. Faith and devotion are emotional states that are nurtured when the feeling...
2008-11-08 01:48:24
Ronnie Wood's happy wife
Ronnie Wood's estranged wife Jo says she loves being single after the Rolling Stones rocker left her for a 20-year-old Russian beauty...
2008-11-08 01:39:32
Why cycling has finally gone from geek to chic
Agyness Deyn has an Electra, Chloe Sevigny loves her folding Royce Union and Jennifer Aniston is thrilled with her Chanel, a present from close friend...
2008-10-26 21:27:22
Fern Britton: Drink-driving, a suicide attempt and my love for a married man...
In our latest extract from her enthralling new autobiography, Fern Britton lays bare her turbulent past and picks up the story at the start of her career in TV.
2008-10-26 21:26:22
Eva Mendes: Love is sexiest thing in the world
.S. actress Eva ...
2008-10-26 21:00:00
Ask Hadley: Hadley Freeman on retro cool T-shirts and fashion storylines
I've recently noticed a lot of young women wearing T-shirts for bands that broke up before they were born. What's that aboutMalcolm Store, by emailBut don't you get it, Malcolm Where once listening to old bands...
2008-10-26 20:48:19