Santa robbing King's guard of machine gun

Not even two weeks after the terrorist attack, that could have killed hundreds in central Stockholm, two men dressed in santa costumes stole a machine gun from a shocked guard outside the royal palace.

It was just before 2 AM, the night before Christmas Eve, when a quiet and peaceful Stockholm embedded in deep snow, was the target of yet another vicious attack.

This time it was one of the two guards outside the royal palace that was severely beaten and robbed of his AK5 machine gun.

The guards are fully eligible to use whatever force needed to protect the palace gates, but still, getting their hands on the automatic weapon was like a walk in the park for these two thiefs disguised as Father Christmas.

 Need to face the reality

Although Swedish police takes the crime very seriously since these kind of weapons are said to often be stolen by criminal gangs for use in armed robberies, the question remains; how could this happen?

A source from within the military told me about suspicions that this could have been planned from the inside.

It simply seems very odd that two armed guards, that apparently also have easy access to an alarm button, so easily could have been disarmed and did very little to defend themselves.

But regardless of this being an insider job, or a robbery of ill trained soldiers - it should have been avoided.

The terrorist attack that took place in Stockholm 11 December, where suicide bomber Taimour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly was minutes away from a mass killing, should have been enough of a wake-up call.

Sad but true - to keep the ciizens safe, it’s time to realize that the days of innocence are a distant memory, even for what used to be an idyllic, safe, open and model democracy like Sweden.

Wikileaks - our friend or foe?

WikiLeaks, the international new media non-profit organisation launched in 2006, consitently causes hot debates over the good or bad of an open and transparent society at all costs.

Within a year of its launch, the site's database had published over 1.2 million documents of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources.

The organisation has described itself as having been founded by Chinese dissidents, as well as journalists, mathematicians, and start-up company technologists from all over the world. 

Julian Assange, generally described as its director, and Wikileaks have won a number of awards The Economist's 2008 New Media Award and Amnesty International's UK Media Award in 2009 to name a few.

But the critique is as common as the praise.

The good or evil of total transparency

The thought of a medium that reveals crime, corruption and breaches of human rights is very attractive.

In July 2007, the public could for example see the disturbing images from a secret video showing US air crew falsely claiming to have encountered a firefight in Baghdad.

After launching an air strike that killed a dozen people, including two Iraqis working for Reuters news agency, the US soldiers were laughing at the dead.

But where do we draw the line between providing citizens with their rightful information and letting out in the open what could be used by terrorists to serve their purposes?

Some information has after all been classified as secret for a purpose, and sometimes even to save lives. For example hiding the identity of threatened people and organisations.


Assisting the enemy

About a week ago, WikiLeaks released a secret list of infrastructure-related facilities and topics, from pipelines to smallpox vaccine suppliers.  

The list had been developed for the purpose of protecting the most vulnarable parts of  infrastructure worldwide. Now, with public access the information provides a goldmine for terrorist networks.

One might wonder if publishing this really can be defended, and regarded as relevant information for us all, especially when in the wrong hands it could lead to devestating effects.


Walking the talk?

And the important question remains who within Wikileaks ultimately decides what information to publish, and what the structure of power and responsibility is within the organisation.

How can rest assure that this power will not be cunningly misused by the wrong people with a hidden agenda to leak certain information at the right time - causing devastating effects that could put us all at great danger?

The Wikileaks people strongly speak for transparency in society, but do they really live up to this in terms of their own organisation?

The consequenses of the launch and widespread attention of Wikleaks remains to be seen in the future to come.

Journalists and conflict reporting

Award winning journalist Ross Howard argues in his handbook Conflict Sensitive Journalism that it's through good reporting that conflict is reduced. But what is the role and responsibilities of journalists in conflict reporting?

Even if the primary goal of conflict reporting shouldn't be to solve the actual dilemma, Ross Howard says it's "through neutral and impartial reporting, journalists make the public far more well-informed about the conflict beneath the violence, and can assist in resolving it".

Although not all conflicts are violent, when we speak of conflict, we usually refer to violent disagreements where people fear for their safety and survival.

Howard believes that there are several elements of conflict resolution that good journalists can deliver, automatically, and as part of their daily work; channelling communication, educating, correcting misperceptions, identifying underlying interests and acting as an emotional outlet are some of them.

The challenges of good journalism

Good, professional and impartial journalism is difficult work at the best of times.

The relevant information can be very hard to access, and the constant time pressure and deadlines are imminent.

A violent conflict challenges neutral and constructive journalism even more. Censorship, limited access, propaganda and of course personal risk, can make the job incredibly difficult, but also even more important.

There’s always a tough balancing act knowing when to report on a conflict and when not to. The report itself might put innocent people at risk. But the biggest danger of all is lack of information.

With sufficient information, the public and victims of the conflict can withstand propaganda and misperception in a much stronger way.

And the fact that the conflict is being reported on to the outside world, might create invaluable confidence-building support that can play a crucial role in solving it.

The Social Network

It looks like such a simple idea and the obvious step in modern, social technology. But behind the Facebook phenomenon we find a ground breaking genius who changed the way of modern networking and communication forever.  

Directed by David Fincher, The Social Network tells the story of the founders behind Facebook, and its fairy tale success, reaching 500 million active users in less than six years.

The cast includes Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Brenda Song, Armie Hammer, Max Minghella and Rooney Mara.

Having just been dumped by his girlfriend, Harvard freshman Mark Zuckerberg, spends the following night hacking in to the university intra-net, and creates the website Facemash, comparable to "Hot or not".

The site invites fellow students to grade the looks of female sophomores, and during its first four hours on-line it attracted a staggering 450 visitors and 22,000 photo-views.

Zuckerberg is charged with breach of security and violating copyrights, but even though he face expulsion, the charges are soon dropped.

Spurred by his success, and baffled by the attention the site received, Zuckerberg soon started taking the first steps towards developing the social networking site - today known as Facebook. 

Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest billionaire in history, but his success have lead to vast legal complications. And the lawsuits by three Harvard students claiming he stole their idea, has a central part of the plot.

The geek who became a billionaire

It's a cleverly portrayed success story about the geek that became a billionaire, and compellingly shows how Facebook satisfied, and perhaps also created, the need of global networking. 

Although skilfully acted, Jesse Eisenburg's portraial of Mar Zuckerburg sometimes feels slightly too "geeky" and even close to autistic.

Justin Timberlake, playing Napster founder Sean Parker, who joined the Facebook team at an early stage, proves that he's far more than a talented singer.

The film feels highly relevant to most of us, as many could easily confess to finding it hard to even imagine an every-day life without Facebook.

Or as Entertainment Weekly put it: "How on earth did we stalk our exes, remember our co-workers' birthdays, bug our friends, and play a rousing game of Scrabulous before Facebook?"

The numbers of beauty

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, the saying goes. But actually beauty has been proved to depend on ratio, and is based on mathematical formulas. Scientists have even shown that rather than learnt, the idea of beauty is innate in a newborn infant.

The ideal proportions and the length and width of our nose, mouth, chin, the position of the eyes etc. all form what scientists call the Golden Ratio.

This is the same ratio that has been used by architects and artists throughout history to create famous objects of beauty like Michelangelo's "David" and the Greek temples.

In experiments UK researchers have interestingly shown that newborn babies as young as one day old appears to prefer to look at attractive faces. 

Face recognition and attraction to beauty and proportions, researchers at the University of Exeter say, is hardwired at birth, and not learned.

By showing paired images, that had been graded 1-5 in beauty by a broad group of people, they noticed that most babies spent far more time fixated on the more attractive face.

Beauty based on statistical average

Research has found that by melding together hundreds of different images of faces, a statistical average of facial characteristics is reached that is very attractive.

To the baby, pretty faces can therefore be seen as representing the stereotypical human face, which they have evolved to recognise.

The eyes of the beholder may have varied preferences in terms of what is attractive and not, and luckily we don't all look the same.

But even if this research should be taken with a pinch of salt, it looks like we can actually talk of such a thing as beauty as a norm.

English winter challenges

Thermometers show minus 1 celcius, and the ground is just about dusted with snow. Yet, we already have traffic chaos, huge delays on public transport, cancelled flights and closed schools across the UK.

Having grown up in Sweden I'm again surprised by the vast problems a little bit of snow seems to cause in England every winter.

I can’t remember being blessed with a single day off from school due to snowy or cold weather - not even when the snow lay meter high and temperatures plummeted to 40 below zero.

Eurostar beaten by fluffy snow

Last winter was indeed the coldest in almost thirty years with temperatures as low as minus 20. And most northern European countries experience a day or two of chaos when the first winter snow falls.

But the snowy conditions of 2009-2010 cost the UK economy a staggering £2bn. We ran out of road salt early on, and the lack of snow-clearing equipment forced people to stay at home from work, costing society additional millions in lost business.

Over 100.000 Eurostar passengers were stuck at St. Pancras and Gar du Nord the days before Christmas last year, when train after train broke down. The problems were blamed on the "fluffy” consistency of the snow…

If we will continue to experience the same disasters this winter remains to be seen, but the long trend of mid winters definitely seems to have changed for colder ones.

Maybe it’s time to learn from the grim lessons of previous winters, invest in some snow ploughs, and introduce the Brits to winter tyres.

A fishy pedi

I'm a firm believer in stretching your boundaries and try everything (almost), at least once. So, when I heard of the new hit on the spa and beauty scene called "fish pedicure", I couldn't wait to see what it was all about.

By placing your feet in a tank full of mini carps your feet are said to become smoother and softer as the fish nibble away on your skin.

The secret is believed to have to do with the fish saliva, that contains an enzyme called diathanol, which apparently improves the skin regeneration process.

Fish pedicures are already common in Asia, and in Japan, people even take it one step further and go for whole-body fish spas.

Cold camden stall

After selecting carefully, I decided to try Zola Fish in Camden, who promises its customers that the pedicure feels like "very fine vibrations all over your feet".

Bracing the cold, a brave victim and friend and I set off to Camden Lock Market. 

After asking a number of stall owners, and putting up with rather suspicious and confused looks when we asked for the fish pedicurist Zola, we finally found their outside stall. 

Excited, giggling people sat on white cubes, water up to their knees, while the fish in the tanks flocked around their feet. 

It looked really inviting and exotic indeed, and soon our fish baths were ready. 

Frozen fish

However, it soon became clear that the water had not been heated and given the minus 1 degree temperature outside, the bath was anything but pleasant to put your already frozen feet in.

The fish in the tank appeared to be rather chilly as well, or maybe just completely full from feasting on many a feet before us, because they didn't seem to keen.

A couple of them tickled our toes slightly, but the rest seemed to prefer hanging out amongst themselves in the corner of the tank.

Fifteen long, and painully cold minutes later, and £10 pounds poorer, the result didn't exactly wow us as we tried to rub some life into our numbed legs. 

But we did leave being one highly unusual experience richer.  

Darwin, genesis and dinosaurs

 

Creationists firmly believe that life on earth is solely created by a supernatural being and that it all happened in six days, literally.

Charles Darwin, who published the ground breaking "On the origin of species" in 1859, is probably turning in his grave as the creationist debate gets increasingly loader.

In the US over 66 of the population believe that the world is less than 10,000 years old. Sara Palin is one of the many firm believers. A staggering 16 percent of biology teachers in America are creationists

Here in the UK, Phil Robinson recently claimed on the last BBC Sunday Morning Live show, that "Genesis is the true historic account".

He also said that "Evolution is based on the fact that cells develop through natural selection. But you can only select from what is already there – where did the rest of the information come from?"

His statement shows that he's missing the very core of Darwin's theory; that the traits that give individuals a reproductive advantage are heritable and passed from parent to child.

Dinosaurs spotted in Africa

The young earth creation club tries to convince us on their website that humans and dinosaurs lived, and still live together. Creatures resembling dinosaurs have been spotted in Africa, they claim... So beware! 

And they refer to "The evolutionism myth" as being used to "promote the erroneous belief that humans and dinosaurs lived millions of years apart from each other". 

They are very concerned that children and adults are "indoctrinated with this 'belief' starting from early childhood with books that teach it", and that it's "reinforced in the public school system, the media and the entertainment industry". 

Don't listen

At the Berkely Art and Letters conference 2009, British ethnologist and evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins was asked how he would convince creationists that their theories don't hold water.

He explained that if comparing the genes, using modern DNA technique, of any pair of animals or plants, they form a perfect hierarchy - a family tree.

He said, "The only alternative to this family tree would be 'the intelligent designer' deliberately set out to deceive us in the most underhand devious manner.”

The problem, Richard Dawkins said, is that "they don’t bother to listen".

As an example he tells of Kurt Wise, holding a PHD in geology from Harvard, once saying that: "If all the evidence in the universe pointed to an old earth, I would be the first to admit it, but I would still be a young earth creationist, because that’s what the holy bible has taught me."

Like Mr. Dawkins so well put it: "You can't argue with a mind like that."

What would you do for a Gerhard Richter?

"This is the tenth time I'm doing this, and I love it!", says a slender man in his mid seventies, one of many campers queuing up since 6am for the sale at the Royal College of Art (RCA) last Saturday.

It was two degrees cold and still dark when I turned up at the RCA in London to film the art enthusiasts eager to by a piece from The Secret exhibit.

Around the tents still up, a queue stretched over 100 meters, and continued around the block of the college building. Bundled up people were patiently waiting in the bitter November cold and spirits were high.

"I got hold of a Gerhard Richter piece last year." A smiling middle aged lady tells me as smoke from the cold streams out of her mouth. "I might not be as lucky this time, but it's just fun being part of this! My son has been camping here since Wednesday."

Worth the wait

At eight o’clock the doors to the exhibit open, and people quickly tumble inside.

A few minutes later the first buyers come back out, holding their little white envelopes containing their art piece.

Some obviously very happy with what they bought, and who the artist turned out to be; some more serious, but it’s hard to tell whether they are disappointed, or simply put on a poker face for the crowds.   

I leave inspired and full of admiration of these patient art lovers. I will definitely be here next year for the raffle which might win you access to the 50 first entries – no queuing required!

Even for an art fan as me, camping for days in Kensington in close to zero degree cold wouldn’t even be worth a Gerhard Richter.

UK tax payers to save dying Celtic Tiger

Ireland used to be known as the “The Celtic Tiger”, and ranked the best place to live according to a "quality of life" assessment by The Economist magazine in 2005. The country now depends on the UK and the whole of the EU to rise from the deepest recession in history. But is it up to us tax payers to solve the economic mess?

The UK might depend on Ireland as much as Ireland on the UK right now, according to the BBC. A Dublin commentator likened it to “two drunks staggering out of a pub and doing their best to keep each other upright”.

With Ireland being the UK’s fifth biggest export market, and with the average Irish citizen spending an annual average of £3,607 on British goods, it is in many ways in our own interest to save the staggering economy of Ireland.

But is it fair that while the UK is going through the most severe recessions in modern time, its taxpayers are expected to reach deep in their pockets for up to £300 per houshold to help Ireland.

On BBC Radio 4's Today program, Chancellor George Osborne said: "Our two economies are connected, and our two banking systems are interconnected".

Yet another Greece 

Mr. Osborne's statement might be true, but Ireland is now beginning to look more and more like another Greece. 


Greece was recently rescued by the EU, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a staggering 110bn Euros rescue package. After Ireland, who is next up?

Not only are the tax payers getting increasingly tired of fixing nation’s financial break-downs, often caused by irresponsible governmental decisions, but it might even cause more harm than good.

The stock markets took a leap of joy when the bail-out plan was released. But the euphoria of the European financial market quickly subsided to be replaced by a huge worry for the growing political instability.

Protests and re-elections

The emergency bail-out debate has already caused protests and trade unions have warned of “civil unrest”. 


And it has resulted in a call for re-election by the Green Party (a partner in the Government).

There’s a fine line between helping a suffering nation in rough economic times and making sure countries take responsibility for their own actions.

Relaying on being bailed out by EU’s tax payers doesn’t promise for a prosperous and responsible handling of national finances.

Scandinavians - the world's happiest people

Every year surveys are carried out to produce lists of the happiest nations in the world. What do the countries topping the polls have in common?

Happiness has been described as a "state of mind or feeling characterized by contentment, love, satisfaction, pleasure, or joy".

Meassuring the degree of happiness is of course challenging. One of the tools developed by researchers is The Oxford Happiness Questionnaire.

The Gallup World Poll recently presented a survey based on thousands of respondents in 155 countries, between 2005 and 2009.

They first asked people questions about their overall satisfaction with their lives. They also asked how they had felt the previous day. Those answers allowed researchers to score their "daily experiences", and found whether they felt rested, respected, free of pain and intellectually engaged.

The Nordic remedy

Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden are the top four countries in Forbes poll -killing the myth that long, dark, and cold winters make us less happy.

Iceland has previously scored very high in similar surveys but the recent recession might explain why they are now only in 23rd place.

Italy and France, countries we often think of as having life indulging and happy people, are found as low down as 40 and 44 on the list.

Modern and developed democracies such as Switzerland (8th), The United states (14th) and The UK (17th) are also surprisingly far down. And thriving economies like Japan and Hong Kong share the 83rd place.

Eastern European nations, with Russia in 73rd and Estonia in 90th place, tend to score low. So do many poor nations in Africa and Asia.

A well developed and free education and health system, pleasant working conditions, equality, generous benefits, and an open political environment that encourages a free debate, appears to be the key ingredients for happiness according to this poll.

Should we feel sorry for squatters?

 

Imagine you come home from holiday only to find your home occupied by strangers. As if this wasn't bad enough - the intruders might have a legal right to stay.

Squatters is the term for people occupying an abandoned or unoccupied space that they don't own or rent. According to author Robert Neuwirth, there are one billion squatters around the world, and the UK alone is estimated to have around 25,000 squatters.

Squatting is regarded as a civil law, and only if forced entry can be proved will it be viewed as a criminal matter. And only then do the police have the authority to remove the occupants.

If the squatters legally occupies the house it's up to the owner to prove in court that they have a right to live in the property and that the squatters don't.

In addition, the squatters can claim there is not sufficient proof or that the proper legal steps have not been taken.

Dedicated to help squatters

In London, a group called the Advisory Service for Squatters (ASS) runs a volunteer service helping squatters and publishes The Squatters' Handbook.

In the handbook's chapter Getting in you can read the following: "Many empty properties can be walked into as they have become insecure through vandalism. You do not want to commit criminal damage and the police may try to accuse you of this, but they would only be able to do anything if there were witnesses". 

It also gives the advice: "Once you are in, you should change the locks or secure every door and other way in so that you control entry and are physically, as well as legally, protected. 

If the police turns up The Squatters Handbooks calms you by saying: "The police should know that squatting is a civil matter and that squatters have the same rights to protection as anyone else. Don't open the door to them".


Necessity or mockery

Do we have a serious loop hole in the law or should we help people in need of a home when the space of empty buildings are being wasted? 

Squatting can often be a result of necessity, but it’s sometimes carried out as political statement.

Desperate homeless people that occupy deserted office buildings is one thing.

However, anarchists that cunningly take over an apartment when the owners are temporary away and laugh in their face when they return, knowing their legal rights, don't deserve the same sympathy.


 

Art lovers' gamble at The Secret exhibition

Campers have already put their tents up outside the Royal College of Art (RCA) - anything to secure a good place in the queue when art of The Secret exhibition will be up for sale this Saturday. All pieces cost £45, but could be worth a hundred times more...

More than 1,000 artists have donated work to the RCA Secret exhibition this year.

Artists include Tracey Emin, Grayson Perry, Yoko Ono, Olafur Eliasson, Sir Peter Blake, and fashion designers Manolo Blahnik and Mary Quant, photographer David Bailey, film maker Mike Leigh as well as students and graduates from the Royal College of Art.

The 2,800 postcards are displayed anonymously and are signed on the back. The name of the artist remains a secret until after the cards are purchased.

You find the widest range from traditional portraits and landscapes to contemporary and abstract art - a black woollen glove pasted on the white background and paper sculptures.  

Everyone is allowed to buy up to four pieces each, and lucky raffle winners can secure a place among the 50 first people to enter when the sale opens.

The event is the brain child of a student of the University of London in 1994. It has been running every year since, raising money for the RCA's Fine Art Student Award Fund.


Democratic

Professor Glynn Williams, head of fine art at the RCA, said: "The Secret exhibition is about securing the future of the next generation of artists and when the public buy postcards at the event they are helping to make this possible".

What attracts many visitors is that it's one of the most democratic art sales in the world, where everyone has an equal chance of getting a big name.

On Saturday, people will queue up from the early morning hours, hoping to get their hands on one of the hidden treasures, or simply buy what they believe would look nice on their wall.

 

Documentaries that make a difference

'Tell the truth and get the message across' is Eamonn Mathew's advice for aspiring war and conflict documentary makers. 

Eamonn Matthews is the Managing Director of Quicksilver Media. He's a world famous program maker, and the 2010 BAFTA winner for his work as Executive Producer on the Emmy-nominated documentary Terror in Mumbai.

Students of the University of Westminster were invited to an inspiring lecture with clips from some of the most spoken of documentaries on wars and conflicts worldwide.

The key ingredients

There are four main criteria for a successful documentary, according to Mr. Mathews: Good pictures, engaging characters, transgression and a creative narrative.

‘Good TV needs pictures’, Mr. Mathews says. ‘Pictures that make you think and show real events’.

The element of engaging characters in a documentary is crucial, according to Mr. Mathews. He says: ‘A good documentary makes you feel that you are put in someone else's shoes’.

We see clips from 'Children of the inferno' and 'Orphans of Burma's Cyclone', which both leave a lasting impression thanks to real and unforgettable characters.

We learn that the best documentaries are created through transgression. Mathews believes it’s crucial that documentary journalists go where people don't want to go, and where governments don't want them to be.

 'Secret Iraq' and 'Terror in Mumbai' contain all the ingredients above and the ground breaking narrative of the later, won it a BAFTA award.


Gruesome realities

After seeing the severe suffering of characters in the documentary clips, one wonders how the film makers can keep from stepping in to help.

Eamonn Mathews explains: 'We try not to interfere - we are not aid workers, but if we see something appalling, we will obviously step in'.

He gives an example of when a member of a movie team saved a bleeding victim's life by applying a pressure bandage.

'Documentary journalists often have very robust characters - it goes with the job', Mathews tells us, but he also says that sometimes members of the film crew do request therapy, and then it's always provided. 

One might think the biggest risks in war- and conflict filming involve bombings and cross fire, but we learn that it's car accidents, diseases, de-hydration and kidnapping that stand for the biggest life threatening risks.

It's clear that the makers of these movies have put themselves under extreme danger, but the rewards are world class documentaries that really can make a difference.   

The Grange Pub - a London gem

Beautifully located by Ealing Common, this Victorian pub offers a range of top-class food, ales and wines.

As soon as you enter The Grange you can feel the warm and welcoming atmosphere. Originating from Victorian times, the pub has been nicely done-up, still keeping its old feel.

The beer garden looks so inviting that it's used even in cold November days like these. There is a "Summer house" in the garden, and a common room on the first floor for private functions.

The restaurant part of the pub is the perfect size, and not too quite - yet not too loud. The shared Ploughman’s platter or smoked haddock is warmly recommended. For dessert - try the banoffee pie or their selection of home made ice-cream.

With a voucher from their website, you can even dine for two including a bottle of wine for £20.

The friendly staff, the cosy interior and excellent food definitely makes this pub worth a visit. 

Is a King's private affairs really our business?

A hot debate has been sparked over the Swedish King's alleged infidelity. Once again the role of the monarchy is under scrutiny. But is a King's or a President's private life really relevant as long as they're carrying out their profession to satisfaction?

The biography - The reluctant monarch, was released a couple of weeks ago and has already sold in 20,000 copies in Sweden.

The book claims that King Carl XVI Gustaf has had affairs with several women since he married in 1976. It also describes him as a frequent guest of "wild sex parties".

The King has neither denied nor admitted to the claims, and said he hasn't read the book but understands the incidents described relate to events taking place long ago.

He said in a recent press conference that he and his family have decided to turn a page and look ahead.


Sad statistics

As we know, the Swedish King is far from he only monarch, prime minister or president being accused of infidelity.

Who doesn't remember President Clinton's falling popularity when "Monicagate" revealed embarrassment upon embarrassment.

Other American Presidents claimed to have definitely been unfaithful to their wives during term of presidency are Lyndon Johnson, JFK, and Roosevelt.

In Europe we're all familiar with Berlusconi's escapades - nowadays so common hardly an eyebrow is raised when we see the headlines.

In a survey taken by MSNBC 50% of men admit to being unfaithful at some point in their life. Thus, how sad it might be - unfaithful men are all around.

Women are not much better at all according to the statistics, but due to the overrepresentation of men in power we seldom hear of female leaders cheating.

The question is: should the private life of our national leaders and representatives really be in the public's interest? Do they not deserve to be judged on how they carry out their profession?


A dedicated monarch

The Swedish royal family is doing an extraordinary job in representing their country. The King, not having even chosen his profession, is working around the clock, and travelling all over the world in what he feels is his duty.

If anything they say or do as representatives of the Swedish state is considered inappropriate - then an open and critical debate should be welcomed.

Infidelity affairs however, no matter how wrong we consider them, should only concern the involved and their families.

When they become part of a public debate it's simply because it's feeding into the need of gossiping and should only be recognised as primitive behaviour - feeling satisfaction bringing some-one powerful down.   

Terrorists keep being one step ahead

It’s now clear that the bomb recently found in a printer cartridge on a plane at a UK airport, might have been timed to detonate over the US.

Passengers spend hours in queues for various scanning procedures to avoid terrorist attacks on flights.

We patiently take our shoes off and limit our hygiene and beauty products to a maximum of 100 ml in clear plastic bags.

Yet cargo such as machinery and office equipment are leaving un-scanned on flights from the Middle East.

It was only when a second search was insisted at West Midland Airport in the UK 29 October that the printer cartridge containing the explosives was found.

Once again, we were very close to learning another gruesome lesson too late.

Actions and reactions


Before 9/11, no-one had even in their wildest imagination thought that jet-planes would be used to bomb national landmarks.

And before August 2006, when a terrorist plot was revealed last minute, planning to blow up seven Trans-Atlantic flights, the risk of liquid bombs had not been taken into consideration.

Last Christmas the 23-year old Nigerian "crotch bomber" boarded a North Western Airline Flight to Detroit, hiding explosives in his underwear. In the air, his attempt to detonate the explosives was unsuccessful.

Now, cockpits are no longer accessible without security codes, gels and liquids are heavily restricted, body scanners are becoming more frequent and presumably – new scanning procedures for cargo flights will now be a priority.    

But even with all these lessons learned since 9/11, the terrorists keep being one step ahead. They act, while we react.


I'ts proven that no security measures can be too rigorous to keep us safe, and hopefully eventually, ahead of the game.

A chinese journlist student with an unusual hobby

Elsie has a put a potential Olympic shooting career on hold

to study journalism in London.

Elsie is a petite and sweet 22-year old from southern China. But don’t let the timid façade fool you. Elsie is one of very few Chinese girls to be a professional athlete in shooting.

"My father was a policeman and I lived near a shooting stadium all my life", she says. "I practically grew up with gun noise and it was a natural choice for me to learn how to shoot", she says with a smile.

Elsie has successfully reached the second of three levels. On the third – you compete on an Olympic level.

Apart from being an active athlete, Elsie has a BA in Chinese, and only a year ago she was offered a job teaching Chinese as a second language.

But, being curious and adventurous, she chose to try her wings and embark on a post-graduate journalism degree in London.

She laughs and says: "My father pushing me, and telling me how important it is to challenge yourself probably helped me decide".


Challenging foreign experience

It hasn’t always been easy for Elsie living and studying in a completely different culture, far away from home.

“The way people think and act here is completely different from China”. One thing she finds stands out is that it’s much more focused on individuals here.

“In China we almost always do things in groups and here you’re more left to yourself”

Elsie becomes serious for a second, and talks about how she has found it challenging to start expressing her free mind and being more outspoken.

“In China one is normally told what to do and think. Here I have to force myself continuously to be more outspoken and opinionated".

Elsie’s goal with the journalism course is to work as a free-lance for a lifestyle magazine.

She smiles cunningly, and says that working for a magazine and write a column within lifestyle can be a clever way for Chinese journalists to express themselves more freely in an otherwise restricted society.

“I would also be able to enjoy my passion for culture and travel". And she adds with a smile: “When I don’t practice my shooting of course”.

Borough Market – a gourmet’s paradise

Borough market is the perfect place to indulge in delicatessens and find culinary inspirations for the weekend.

Located right by the southern end of London Bridge, the market is one of the country’s most renowned, and has provided fresh food and vegetables for over 300 years.

Over 70 stalls ooze aromas of newly baked bread, barbecued meet, fresh fish, cheeses, hot sugar and chocolate.

The market is not the least a feast for the eyes; flowers and vegetables of the brightest colours, beautifully decorated cakes and pastries and exotic seafood.

The buzz from people; enthusiastic customers, eager salesmen, children laughing and the overall vibrant atmosphere make a visit to Borough market a true experience for all senses.

What's truly fascinating about this place is that it brings together people from all communities in London, and visitors from near and afar. People exchange cooking and food preparation tips as well as recipes from all around the world.   

Indulge and enjoy

You can find the most delicious food and drinks offered to try for free, so you will not worry about coming home with an empty wallet, although it’s difficult to resist the many exquisite and mouth watering delicatessens presented to you.

Rain or shine, the perfect ending is to have a meal at the market, either among the outside stalls or under the beautiful glass ceiling in the indoor part.

While enjoying your fresh meal you can just sit back and absorb the boiling atmosphere of indulgent enjoyment and enthusiams while every fiber of your body fills with the lovely smells of this culinary paradise.