The Voice Box

US CONGRESS 2011 Next year there will be a new look in the US Congress. Not only will the Republicans have a majority, but there will also be a brand new Speaker, John Boehner. There are already lots of speculation about what's to come. Here is a candid and very detailed article which I came across on the CBS website. Get Ready for the Congressional `Terrorama` - CBSNewsURL: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/12/15/opinion/main7152648.shtml

Hello Here is an interesting article which I thoroughly enjoyed. GIVE IT A READ. Brazil: The World's Next Economic Superpower? - CBSNewsURL: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/12/09/60minutes/main7134185.shtml As the U.S. and most of the world's countries limp along after the crippling recession, Brazil is off and running with jobs, industry, and resources. Steve Kroft reports.CNET: The source for computers and technology http://www.cnet.com

The Continuing Story of the Wikileaks Saga .... Courtesy The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/29/wikileaks-embassy-cables-key-points http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/06/wikileaks-cables-poland-russia-shield?intcmp=239 http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/dec/07/wikileaks-nato-russia-bewilderment http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/30/wikileaks-cables-day-2-key-points

LAST WEEK IN FRANCE : 25.10.10 October 19 was a national day of protest by the French people against their government. They were protesting against the government's intention to reform their pension, and to raise the retirement age. all over France, there were demonstrations and marches.

OUTSIDE TOKYO These are some of the first photos which I took when I visited Japan last year. They were images from my hotel window, a short distance from Narita airport. OUTSIDE TOKYO

RHS: Photos from Wisley

COMMENTS PLEASE Usually I write about my issues, and sometimes there is almost no feedback. Today, I simply want to offer three topics, and hope for comments from the readers. The Gaza Blockade UN Sanctions against Iran BP Oil Disaster in the Gulf Please select a topic and post a comment. Be daring.

THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY MUSEUM In spite of my many visits to Los Angeles, this was my first visit to the Los Angeles County Museum. With a collection of over 100,000 art objects, it was much larger than I imagined. Another surprise was that it covered the full gamut of art history; it included European Art and Sculpture, Japanese Art, Middle Eastern Art to all that is Modern and Contemporary, and all elements of Photography. I shall be featuring some of the artwork in future postings. Today, I want to salute one of the largest sculpture I had ever seen. It was so large that it was difficult to take a photo encompassing the total object. Smoke was conceived by Tony Smith, and its structure reflects his explorations of patterns found in organic life. It is composed of hexagons, each supported by a triad of columns. Despite its geometric structure and logic, it is meant to capture a sense of openness, and expansive growth. We are told that the structure was only erected once before, and be

The Election is Over It is two weeks since the UK election. And after the consultation and and somewhat contrary negotions between the political parties caused by 'a hung election' , we have a new Prime Minister. The idea of a coalition government is not so radical even for the UK. But what is different is the form which the coalition takes. For a start, we now have the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister from two separate parties. Already, there are dire predictions about its survival. But I am prepared to wait and see; I have this strange predilection that it will probably last much longer than many assume. With the resignation of Gordon Brown, and the upcoming contest to elect the new Labour leader, the new coalition will have months to organise themselves and get their programme running. The electorate has spoken; and although the results are somewhat indecisive, the collated numbers do offer a mandate to govern the country for the moment. It will be truly interes

LOS ANGELES 22 APRIL 2010 'I should be getting ready to fly to Los Angeles on Thursday. But I am not. That does not mean I am not going. It will depend on how much ash is spewing from that volcano in Iceland. The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull has thought us all a lesson, and we will take a long time to recover from it.' Let the truth be known. I did fly. I was on the first American Airline flight to leave Heathrow airport, and heading to Los Angeles. I was extremely lucky, as AA chose to exercise its regular schedules starting April 22nd. The backlog was put on hold temporarily. Not only was the journey across successful, but the fallout of the ash was quite noticeable on my arrival at LA airport. Most of the international carriers were missing. The usual overlong queues were conspicuouly absent. Even the immigration experience, for once, was notably brief. I was able to clear immigration in five minutes, unheard of in years gone by. A walk through customs, and bravo I was on

THE POWER OF A VOLCANO I should be getting ready to fly to Los Angeles on Thursday. But I am not. That does not mean I am not going. It will depend on how much ash is spewing from that volcano in Iceland. The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull has thought us all a lesson, and we will take a long time to recover from it. Although the restrictions begun more than a week ago, I was certain by this time it would all be over. I was wrong. One of the most baffling part of the week was getting information. The American Airlines website urged me to call customer services. But the airlines were certainly out of your reach, no matter how many calls you made. I made the mistake of heading to the airport's Terminal 3, and was absolutely amazed to find the entire building closed off, and with serious custodians blocking your paths. Their answers were all the same ... use the phone ... contact your friendly airline, as if you could. About the volcano itself, I depended on the newspapers. And even they

WATERLOO STATION Since the main photo for the blog was taken at this station, I thought it would be the right time to say something about it. I use it about a few times a week usually on my way to Richmond, and simply as a shortcut to visiting Kew Gardens. There was a time when I used it on my way to Paris, but that was years ago when the Eurostar operated from here to the Gare du Nord. The Eurostar has since left, and now operates from St. Pancras International. Today, Waterloo station is owned and operated by Network Rail. The first trains started here around 1848, and it got its name around 1886. It is the largest and busiest station in the UK, covering approximately twenty-five acres. And in Europe it is second only to the Gare du Nord with passenger traffic. Its trains generally serves The South West UK including all the surburbans areas. It also connects with the Underground via the Jubilee, Bakerloo and Northern Line; and Waterloo East station..

A COLD DAY IN BERLIN Berlin is one my favourite cities in Europe. And yet unlike Nice and Barcelona, it belongs to the colder end of the spectrum. Every now and then, I head that way in the middle of the winter to examine the life . A few weeks ago I did just that. But this time, my main intention was to view the recently reopened main glasshouse of the Berlin Botanical Garden. And yes, it was impressive. As a plant lover, I am always curious about the way Botanical Gardens in Europe present themselves. Faced with the limitations of the four seasons in their zone, it is an unenvious task to design an indoor garden to impress, and yet survive. Somehow, they always do. This time I noticed the weather, but only on the way in, revealing the day temperature of minus 3 Centigrade falling to a minus 6 degrees in the late evening. This made it much colder than the London that I had left behind. Also noticeable was the presence of snow everywhere. And yet I mannaged to do all my inten

KEW GARDENS: A Sense of the Tropics

Election Time! LONDON, UK. A small leaflet came through my door recently, stating very dramatically that this year we will be having three votes at election time. It definitely sounded unusual, and therefore it was something to celebrate. But I did not feel that way, and I saw no reason to be particularly excited by the prospect. This is the UK, and national elections are held approcimately every four years. I say approximately, because the nature of the system allows the government in power to move the goal posts a bit as to when the elections are held. We are assuming that the election will be held in May, 2010. Whatever your feelings, elections have reached the stage, even in so-called democracies like ours, of being rather dull affairs. The parties go through their motions, finally we are left to make our choice. It does not help when details of the event, and the candidates are left to being disclosed at the last moment. The three votes, discussed, which offer an option to select

IT'S CARNIVAL TIME It is that time of the year to celebrate the Pre-Lenten festival. Whether you are in Rio, New Orleans, Venice or Trinidad and Tobago, The parties are in full swing. This is just the excuse for me to dig into my collections of photos, and bring back some practical memories of the action. This is still another day to go. You have plenty of time.