Dean Whitbread http://deanwhitbread.co.uk usefully imaginative since 1984 posterous.com Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:54:32 -0700 North European Summer 2010 http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/north-european-summer-2010 http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/north-european-summer-2010

Nuclear Sky, Belgium (Wallonia)

Near Horizon Late Day, Norway

Scarlet Japanese Dusk

Gold Sky, Norway

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Sat, 17 Jul 2010 11:57:27 -0700 Cuts http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/cuts-0 http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/cuts-0

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Fri, 16 Jul 2010 02:14:00 -0700 News, Death and Gallows Humour http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/news-death-and-gallows-humour http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/news-death-and-gallows-humour Yesterday, according to Channel 4 News, after a phone call from Downing Street, the Raoul Moat Facebook fan page was taken down. We're told Facebook didn't remove it, but that it was done by the people who started to focus on sympathy for the gunman. Questions were raised in Parliament.
 
It's interesting that days after the tragic dénouement, some feel shocked that there can be any empathy for this crazed fugitive. But, why should our reactions be proscribed? Isn't it natural to have some feeling for the poor wretch, who it turns out,  asked for psychiatric help months before he died?
 
What of our other "inappropriate" responses, such as the many jokes and archly bleak comments which flew around while he was still on the run?
 
I've been thinking a lot about our responses, and in particular, the kind of gallows humour which surrounds these news media-generated public dramas.
 
Did everyone catch the Raoul Moat Twitter parody account? It's now deleted but still in Google's cache:
 
 
 It's sick, but we laugh. I tweeted:
 
So soon after the Derrick Bird massacre our glorious news media was saturated with the unfolding tragedy of Raoul Moat, and having some days to get into position gave rise to a massive circus built around the death of one person, the shooting of two more, and the suicide of the perpetrator.
 
The modern news media are as much a part of the death response in our culture as we are. In the past, many chose to attend the public hangings of evil doers. It was a public gathering, a social event. From serfdom to republic, for thousands of years, there has been a trade around the prurient drama of public death.
 
The news media doesn't regulate its demand on our attention. They want to justify their wages, they want bums on seats. There are ways to avoid the draining anxiety generated by following life and death news dramas. The best solution I've found is simply to avoid rolling news. But it's difficult, practically impossible - you have to avoid public spaces, bars, shops. It's everywhere.
 
What I find problematic are not the gallows cracks which serve as some defense to our common humanity, and not even the perhaps misguided, or perhaps enlightened sympathy for the cornered madman, but that my environment becomes saturated with these fleeting tragedies. It's becoming progressively more difficult to avoid this kind of news, indeed, this kind of news coverage is expected by everyone. Like a public hanging, it is entertainment. It doesn't help justice, and it doesn't help my peace of mind. The presence of cameras and reporters amplifies the drama, and often negatively affects the chances of there being a peaceful resolution.
 
As far as the reporting goes, a madman on the loose and a massive manhunt has to be worth covering. But what does "cover" actually mean in this context? What is the cover doing that benefits anyone aside from the news vendors? Do we really need this kind of news?
 
So, do not decry the outbreaks of "poor taste". These are natural human reactions. When these appalling breakdowns burst into the public arena, no matter the tragedy, many joke exactly like people have done in the past when attending public executions, with bleak humour, making dark and frequently tasteless jests in the face of of uncontrollable pain, chaos, and mystifying evil.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:12:24 -0700 Egyptian Taxi Disco Heaven http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/egyptian-taxi-disco-heaven-0 http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/egyptian-taxi-disco-heaven-0

The cab driver played a marvellous music selection as we sped to Dahab - a true DJ of the roads.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:25:55 -0700 Seth in London http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/seth-in-london http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/seth-in-london

Hmm

Seth, East London Behind

You wot, mate??

Christopher Wren, Seth Eagelfeld

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Mon, 12 Jul 2010 07:14:24 -0700 The King of Ink http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/the-king-of-ink http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/the-king-of-ink

Unio and Petitio delight with this summer rockist peculiar boogie bit.ly/kingofink

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Fri, 09 Jul 2010 00:38:13 -0700 The Ballad of Jogging Butcher http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/the-ballad-of-jogging-butcher http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/the-ballad-of-jogging-butcher "Thank God I'm fit as a butcher's dog
Or that would have had me pegged"
His oily sweat like liquid lard
Drips from a roast beef leg

A half-moon stain beneath his chin
Spreads like a messy baby
The darker reek of two rank pits
Unadulterated for the ladies

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Wed, 07 Jul 2010 14:17:23 -0700 Dean's Blue Hole http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/deans-blue-hole http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/deans-blue-hole

I have a blue hole. It's very deep. Enough said.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Mon, 05 Jul 2010 05:50:10 -0700 Fate of the Amazon hangs in the balance | Siân Herbert http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/fate-of-the-amazon-hangs-in-the-balance-sian http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/fate-of-the-amazon-hangs-in-the-balance-sian
since inception, the forestry code has not even been successfully enforced. Landowners often fall foul of the regulations and levels of illegal deforestation are high. According to some estimates, one-quarter of the Brazilian Amazon has already been subjected to deforestation or damage.
via guardian.co.uk

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Wed, 30 Jun 2010 08:52:37 -0700 Bobby Goldsboro - Summer The First Time http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/bobby-goldsboro-summer-the-first-time http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/bobby-goldsboro-summer-the-first-time

I listened to this as a teenager. Oh, to be seventeen! I thought as a 12 year old. What endless vistas of sexual promise lay ahead of me... and today being the last day of June, like every year, it comes back around.

The arrangement is striking, strings and piano combining to evoke an otherworldly, sultry heat haze in this song about sensuality, teenage longing and lust, yet despite this dangerous subject matter, the artist and producers kept it well within the mainstream of the day.

"It was a hot afternoon, the last day of June, the sun was a demon..."

Indeed, it was, and is.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Sat, 26 Jun 2010 02:34:00 -0700 Scientists Confirm: Tea Goes Well With Toast http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/scientists-confirm-tea-goes-well-with-toast http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/scientists-confirm-tea-goes-well-with-toast Scientists working at the Large Hadron Collider near Geneva, Switzerland confirmed today that tea goes well with toast.
 
 
The research follows on from work carried out in 2008 in which it was calculated that it would take the Large Hadron Collider a mere  30 nanoseconds to defrost a pizza.
 
"We all love a cup of tea," said Professor Schubert Sherbert "and we've often wondered what the optimum time-efficient snack would be with tea. It only took us a week to discover this remarkable and potentially hugely beneficial link between tea and toast - work which we would previously had to have carried out in canteens."
 
Scientists will now push on to formulate the optimum covering for toast in relation to tea, Professor Sherbert said, and it is hoped that this will reveal more about the fundamental nature of cosmological snacking. Results from the next phase are expected by 4pm on Tuesday.
 

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Thu, 24 Jun 2010 01:15:00 -0700 Don't Mention the World Cup Ever Again http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/dont-mention-the-world-cup-ever-again http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/dont-mention-the-world-cup-ever-again
 
Four years ago in 2006 I wrote this song and made this video for Mr John Otto Cleese to coincide with the World Cup.

You know - THE World Cup - the FIFA World Cup. Football. The game played with the feet. By the whole world.

Didn't do too badly. Astonishingly, now England are playing Germany, we're even shifting some more copies of this neatly non-xenophobic number. iTunes: http://bit.ly/dontmentionthewar
 
Song written by Dean Whitbread, Ashley Slater. Oh yes, and John Cleese nabbed himself a credit too.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Sun, 20 Jun 2010 21:51:36 -0700 The First Dance http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/the-first-dance-7 http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/the-first-dance-7

An important part of a wedding is the bride and groom's first dance together as man and wife. This is the realtime recording of making that precious moment happen.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Fri, 18 Jun 2010 18:06:29 -0700 Ten O'Clock Midsummer Sky, London http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/ten-oclock-midsummer-sky-london http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/ten-oclock-midsummer-sky-london

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Fri, 18 Jun 2010 02:27:51 -0700 Europe's Finances Explained in 3 Minutes http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/europes-finances-explained-in-3-minutes http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/europes-finances-explained-in-3-minutes

Trust the Australians to tell it as it is. Without mentioning their massive and even more difficult to fix ecological problems, of course...

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Thu, 17 Jun 2010 01:21:06 -0700 WTF? English Swearing for Koreans http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/wtf-english-swearing-for-koreans http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/wtf-english-swearing-for-koreans

Language is power. Using the wrong language can be very dangerous, as we know. But, using the right language at the right moment can save your life, or your liberty.

This calm and thorough explanation of common profanity is exactly the kind of teaching western schools need.

Please join the Campaign for Real Swearing: http://realswearing.org (Facebook)

(Via Eric Rice)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Tue, 15 Jun 2010 06:33:00 -0700 Lessons in Vuvuzela http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/lessons-in-vuvuzela http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/lessons-in-vuvuzela

Download now or watch on posterous
vuvuzela_1.mp4 (36999 KB)

There are more notes to the stadium-filling vuvuzela than just the drone, and more ways to play it than the full-volume blast which all sane-minded adults dread, and children of all ages love.

Tip: Radio commentary has much less vuvuzela - television audio contains a higher proportion of ambient noise. Choice of audio is a red button option in the UK.

(via Guardian)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Wed, 09 Jun 2010 10:22:04 -0700 I Like http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/i-like-2123 http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/i-like-2123

I like this tune by The Divine Comedy. I like it a lot. I like the repetition. I like the wit. I like the melody. I like the rhymes. I like the use of the word "sexy". I like the unashamed romanticism.

Well done, Mr Hannon!

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Sat, 05 Jun 2010 04:16:42 -0700 Please Come http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/please-come-26 http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/please-come-26 Please come to my party
The one that's in my head
Where lovelet waves are lapping
And everyone is fed

Please come to my disco
The one that's in my feet
Where shimmies, grinds and pirhouettes
Spill out onto the street

Please come to my picnic, we'll eat
Falafels in the park
Champagne, liqueur and strawberries
Play frisbies in the dark

Please come to my private view
A major retrospective
Where critics rush to fawn and gush
Irrational perspectives

Please come to my screening
The movie of my life
Where girlfriends past remember me
Fondly to my wife

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread Fri, 04 Jun 2010 01:57:13 -0700 No Humanitarian Crisis? Israel's PR Machine http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/no-humanitarian-crisis-israels-pr-machine http://deanwhitbread.co.uk/no-humanitarian-crisis-israels-pr-machine

While boats battle to get through the siege of Gaza, Gazans can eat out in fancy restaurants and have no need of aid. That's what Israel has been telling journalists, at least.

Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros picks apart the media campaign.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/394274/me_in_egyptland_sm.jpg http://posterous.com/people/15T7vTYtQDn Dean Whitbread Dean Dean Whitbread