Buses on Bastille Day

I got the bus to work the other day in Strasbourg. I sat at the bus stop and noticed something - despite being a weekday, there was virtually no traffic on the roads, and the buses, usually there every 10 minutes, were nowhere to be seen. After 45 minutes, I began to wonder if the population of Strasbourg had been taken out by some viral weapon that only people from England with names beginning with M have immunity to.

Then, it occurred to me - it was Bastille Day, the day the French overthrew their corrupt political class, and stormed the Bastille prison. May interest you to learn that the site of the Bastille was where the victorious French "Non" campaigners against the EU Constitution gathered to celebrate their victory.

Anyhows, after 45 minutes, I saw a tractor roar past, with a live cow in a horse box being pulled behind it. Turns out there was a protest at the Strasbourg parliament against milk producers subsidies. It appears the French appetite for protest is still alive and well, in keeping with the Bastille spirit.

In the end I had to walk to work...

Five continents in a week

This blog has had visitors from five continents in just a week. Not bad!

The incredible exploding swimming costume

There is something about the phrase "Italian female swimmers costume bursts open" that just grabs the attention isn't there? Apparently, 22 year old athlete Flavia Zoccari was about to compete in a swimming event at the Mediterranean Games when her swimming costume split open. For this, she was disqualified. At a time athletes are being caught doping and cheating, it seems mean spirited to disqualify someone because their costume split.

Sympathy with the postal workers

When I was out campaigning at the Euro elections back in the UK, I noticed something. Every house in Britain seems to have a dog. Some dog owners seem to take a real pleasure in placing menacing pictures in the windows of their houses of the pooch in question. When I was leafletting in Manchester, one front gate had a picture of an attack dog on it, and the following message : "I can reach the gate in 3 seconds - how fast can YOU run?". Clearly someone who doesn't like either visitors or receiving post. Having belted it down more than a few front gardens during the campaign, with a pooch in hot pursuit, I began to feel sympathy for our postal workers.

Now it looks like parliament has decided its time to offer postal workers protection. The Dangerous Dogs Act doesn't cover attacks on private property, and they are looking to extend it. I must admit, the posties do have my sympathy on this one.