The English Blog

Video: The Sun Says Labour's Lost It

Following Gordon Brown's speech at the Labour Party Conference, The Sun says Labour has failed the country and has thrown its weight behind the Conservatives. Charlotte Hawkins has the details.

LANGUAGE NOTES
The Sun's headline 'Labour's Lost It' can be interpreted in a number of ways:

• Labour has lost the support of The Sun.
• Labour has lost its way.
• Labour has lost the election.

There's also an idiom. If someone loses it, they stop being able to control their emotions and suddenly start to shout, cry or laugh. In Labour's case it's definitely 'cry'.

Super Scooby is UK's 'biggest burger'

This Metro.co.uk story shows that the UK is right up there with the US when it comes to pigging out.

It's made up of four beefburgers, eight rashers of bacon, eight slices of cheese, 12 onion rings and three types of relish.

Containing an artery-busting 2,645 calories, the 'Super Scooby' has been dubbed Britain's largest and most fattening burger.

Its creator, cafe owner Nick Lomvardos, is convinced it is impossible to consume the meal in one sitting.

In fact he's so sure he's offering a free can of diet cola to anyone who can 'beat the beast'. Full article >>

COMMENT
The Super Scooby should come with a government health warning. Still, it's great publicity for the cafe. Perhaps they'll be encouraged to update their distinctly Web 1.0 website.

READ MORE
• Burger Beast: Could You Finish Super Scooby? (Sky News)

Cartoon: The Naughty Restless Child

This cartoon by Garland from The Daily Telegraph is based on an illustrated poem written in 1845 by a German psychiatrist, Dr. Heinrich Hoffman. Unable to find any suitable books to read to his four-year-old son, he wrote and illustrated a series of poems for children, entitled Struwwelpeter. You can see the original illustration and read the poem here . 

COMMENTARY
In Garland's version of the story, the father is President Obama and the naughty child pulling the table cloth and everything on it off the table is President Ahmadinejad of Iran. The mother, looking on in dismay, personifies Europe.

BACKGROUND
Iran is seen by many as the 'naughty child' of international politics. June's presidential election was widely regarded as fraudulent and was followed by a violent crackdown on opposition protesters. Iran is also involved in a long-running dispute with the west over its nuclear programme, and relations deteriorated further last week when the existence of a secret nuclear plant was revealed by western intelligence agencies.

Words in the News: Migrant

The Daily Express says France has admitted it is fighting a losing battle against illegal migrants - and demanded Britain should open its doors to them. Full story >>

VOCABULARY
A migrant is a person who moves from one place to another, especially in order to find work. • The government divides asylum-seekers into economic migrants and genuine refugees. 

CNN Student News: Wednesday 30 September

Here is the CNN Student News for Wednesday 30 September. Click on the links to see a transcript.

• Public Option Debate - Discover how a public health care option fared in a Senate committee vote.
• NATO Meeting - Learn about the mission of NATO and its role in the conflict in Afghanistan.
• Simulated Skies - Consider a controversy involving a training tool for air traffic controllers.

Daily Discussion

Sign Language: Codfathers

I took this photo of a fish & chip shop called Codfathers in Saltash, Cornwall, over the summer. Codfathers is a play on the word 'godfather', which can be a male godparent (if you are the godparent of a younger person, you promise to help bring them up in the Christian faith), or the head of a criminal organization (think Marlon Brando). Cod are a type of large edible fish. Battered cod is a popular item on fish & chip shop menus. I don't think there's any connection intended between the two—it's just an amusing pun.

Video: Bottled Water Banned In Australian Town

Sky's Ian Woods reports on the Australian town which has taken a step back in time and banned bottled water, in favour of a greener alternative.

 

ARTICLE
• Australian town bans bottled water (The Guardian)

COMMENT
I'm surprised they haven't got the beer on tap—this is Australia after all! 

Words in the News: Crackdown

The Guardian says British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will try to reconnect with middle Britain by directing his speech to Labour's conference at irresponsible parenting. Full story >> 

VOCABULARY
A crackdown is strong official action that is taken to punish people who break laws. • A state police crackdown on faulty commercial brakes resulted in 504 vehicles being taken off the road last week. There is also a verb to crack down on. • State Troopers are looking to crack down on drunk driving, regardless of who you may be.

CNN Student News: Tuesday 29 September

Here is the CNN Student News for Tuesday 29 September. Click on the links to see a transcript.

• Chicago Beating - Hear how a massive fight among teens in Chicago ended in tragedy.
• Global Headlines - Take in global headlines from Asia to Central America to the U.S.
• Hispanic Heritage - See how thousands of Georgians celebrate their Hispanic heritage.

Daily Discussion

Video: Information Addiction

A new study has suggested that people's obsession with modern technology is seriously affecting their productivity and could be harmful to health. Mark Stone reports.

READ MORE
• Tech addiction 'harms learning' (BBC News)
• Techno Addicts Warned Of Information Overload (Sky News)

Paul McCartney School Essay Found

From BBC News:

An essay written by Sir Paul McCartney as a 10-year-old has been found after lying undiscovered in Liverpool's Central Library for more than 50 years.
 
Years before the Beatles received their MBEs, he beat hundreds of other school children to win a prize for his 1953 essay marking the Queen's coronation.
 
In neat handwriting, he refers to "the lovely young Queen Elizabeth". Full story >>

ALSO READ
• Paul McCartney's schoolboy essay discovered (The Sunday Times)

COMMENT
I wonder how many of today's ten-year-olds would be capable of writing such a neat, well-constructed essay. By the way, the 'B' of 'But' was circled by the teacher because the rule used to be that you mustn't start a sentence with a conjunction like 'and' or 'but'. But the thinking on this has changed. 

Cartoon: Dead Man Walking

Commentators and polls suggest that Gordon Brown is a 'dead man walking', politically speaking. This wonderful cartoon by Martin Rowson from The Guardian provides a graphic representation of that image, containing as it does a number of euphemisms and expressions relating to death and dying. How many can you spot? Here's what I came up with:

• pushing up the daisies
• to croak
• food for the worms
• snuff out the candle
• swansong
• to pop one's clogs
• for whom the bell tolls
• to be toast
• ashes
• gravestone/headstone
• the sands of time running out
• to kick the bucket
• one foot in the grave
• it's curtains for Brown
• breathe one's last breath
• to buy the farm
• the sun going down

Of course, the title 'Onwards to Victory!' is ironic. Gordon Brown along with some senior members of his cabinet must be the only people left who think that he can win the forthcoming general election.

FOOTNOTE
See here and here for more on euphemisms for death.

Words in the News: Bid

Gordon Brown today moved to lift Labour's depressed morale on the first day of its pre-election conference by mounting a populist warning to reckless banks that he will use new laws, and unprecedented ministerial pressure, to demand they rein in bonuses. Full story >>

VOCABULARY
A bid for something or a bid to do something is an attempt to obtain it or do it. • Fugitive director Roman Polanski has lost his bid to quash a decades-old rape conviction.

CNN Student News: Monday 28 September

Here is the CNN Student News for Monday 28 September. Click on the links to see a transcript.

• Iranian Nuclear Fears - Assess the international community's options regarding Iran's nuclear program.
• Germany Elections - Identify a European leader, and hear how her party did in a recent election.
• Golan Heights - Discuss how the address of the Golan Heights is causing a conundrum for Facebook.

Daily Discussion

Video: The Future of Online News

This CNN report looks at the future of online news amid predictions most sites will soon charge to view material.

COMMENTS
This is a topic I'm following with keen interest since a lot of material on this blog comes from free online news sites. I'm just hoping that it doesn't end up behind a paywall.