What a difference a day makes ..........

Je suis bête

It's been a heavy few days. Unprecedented scenes of camaraderie and solidarity. Funny that it takes a shock,like the events of last week,  to unite us. Why can't the EU continue in this vein?
Doubt it. We're a funny mob capable of all sorts of things . Side by side with the throngs that crowded Paris streets , we have anti-islamisation demonstrations in Germany.

The Human Rights Watch reports that in six months of 2014  Boko Haram have killed , in Nigeria, more than 2000 innocent men,women and children , the annual figure ir reported to be nearer 10000; recently, too, in Pakistan more than 130 school children were gunned down in cold blood in the name of belief.

We are convinced our democratic ideals are true and are shocked to find those who don't agree. It's like the old Guru, smugly secure, in splendid isolation , atop a high mountain who,  when told that the meaning of life was not a deep well , replied thunderstruck, "It isn't?"

People can get killed for their convictions but  their beliefs and faith live on. Time is the sole evidence and proof of validity.

Alas, stupidity too, lives on. This is an ideal time for those arguing the case for bigotry to emerge from the shadows.

Bigotry is worse than stoopid.

He was told to stick the bomb in a jumbo jet's hold

Japan's food dilemma

Slowing down fast foods

It seems that Japan has a bit of a crisis on its hands. Its cuisine is being bypassed by schoolkids who prefer the faster but more fat laden Western fast food. Purchases of rice and miso , a seasoned soup, are down from the levels of 25 years ago.

Japanese cuisine is world renowned and Tokyo has more Michelin star restaurants than London and Paris combined. Japanese chef Murata who runs three such eating houses is known for his elaborate and simple 12 course meals but has  diverted some of his passion  to making simple traditional food with school children in mind.

"Japanese people are the longest living in the world and we want to keep it that way," he says.

Low in fat content Japan's cuisine is judged to be responsible for less obesity in its  population compared to the West.

The chefs say that it will take at least a generation to halt the shift from traditional food to the Western style diet.

Their aim is to save the health and traditions of Japan.