Monthly Archives: July 2013

Sport, Wimbledon

Andy Murray wins Wimbledon…

Andy Murray wins at Wimbledon: Britain's 77-year wait for a SW19 men's champion ends in straight sets. The Scot became the first British man since Fred Perry in 1936 to take the singles men’s title.

Andy Murray wins at Wimbledon: Britain’s 77-year wait for a SW19 men’s champion ends in straight sets. The Scot became the first British man since Fred Perry in 1936 to take the singles men’s title.

WIMBLEDON 2013

ANDY MURRAY, the Scot from Dunblane, produced the performance of his career today to power past Novak Djokovic 6-4 7-5 6-4 to triumph on Centre Court at Wimbledon. Murray produced the performance of his life with some breath-taking tennis against Djokovic – the world No 1 – which saw several rallies in excess of 20 shots.

On a sultry day with temperatures approaching 30C Murray played smart, courageous and seemingly nerveless tennis to go one better than 12 months ago, when he was beaten by Roger Federer.

The Scot sank to his knees as he became the first British man since Fred Perry in 1936 to take the singles men’s title after an electrifying final. The Scot threw his hands in the air, smiling broadly before embracing his Serbian opponent. An explosion of cheers rang out minutes later as Murray claimed the title that has eluded him for so long, following the three hour and ten minute battle.

Wimbledon1The 26-year-old was superb in the searing heat of Centre Court, winning in 3 sets and ending Britain’s 77-year wait for a men’s winner at the All England Club.

Having broken Djokovic’s serve in the third set to go 5-4 ahead, Murray triumphed in an epic tenth game to win a superb final.

The opening moments of this match set the tone for an incredible tussle and proved why Murray and Djokovic are ranked No 1 and 2 in the world.

As the sun beat down on Centre Court, Murray quickly put pressure on Djokovic’s serve immediately and had three break points.

The Serb fought back hard, but it wasn’t to last for long.

Murray’s opponent broke back to level things at 2-2, before Murray broke Djokovic’s serve for a second time. That was enough to take the first set 6-4 as Centre Court – which hosted Wayne Rooney, David Cameron, Ed Miliband and First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond – roared with approval.

But hopes of a Murray win were put in check early in the second set as Djokovic broke to go 4-1 ahead.

Murray, however, donned a cap as the sun beat down and put the heat on the Serb by winning an amazing three games in a row.

A break of serve at 5-5 – one that even brought the usually calm Ivan Lendl, Andy Murray’s coach, to his feet –helped Murray into a two-set lead.

Incredibly, the charge continued apace. The Scot, undeterred by the searing heat, broke Djokovic early in the third.

Yet the Serb didn’t give up hope and broke Murray’s serve again to level the third set at 2-2 before winning the next two games to go 4-2 up.

Murray was again undeterred and immediately broke back, before producing one of the shots of the match to hold serve in a tense eighth game of the set.

Murray left fans with their mouths wide open as he broke Djokovic to serve for the match and the championship.

After faltering a few times at championship point Murray eventually held serve and secured a straight sets victory in one of the great British sporting moments.

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Egypt, Foreign Affairs, Government, Middle East, Politics, United States

Egypt’s revolution and the ballot box…

EGYPT MUST COMPLETE ITS REVOLUTION

The events in Egypt led the British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, to say that ‘Democratic change is a process, not an event.’ Mr Hague, addressing a Conservative Middle East Council, last week, following the removal of Mohammed Morsi as Egypt’s prime minister, is supported by history with his argument. The revolution that deposed the dictator Hosni Mubarak in 2011 has taken many surprising turns.

Egypt’s election of a president was designed to bring democracy to a country that has been missing for more than 80 years. The democratic legitimacy granted to Mr Morsi, a popular vote of more than 50 per cent at the ballot box just 12 months ago, was a mandate in reshaping the country as an Islamic Republic.

The revolution in Egypt continues following the removal of Mohammed Morsi by the military. But with tensions rising and the Muslim Brotherhood discontent with the democratic process, the revolution that stemmed from the Arab Spring of 2011 is putting democracy in danger.

The revolution in Egypt continues following the removal of Mohammed Morsi by the military. But with tensions rising and the Muslim Brotherhood discontent with the democratic process, the revolution that stemmed from the Arab Spring of 2011 is putting democracy in danger.

But rather than heal the economy or build up secular, civil institutions – a necessary prerequisite given the mix of Secularists, Christians and Muslims in the country – Morsi used his fragile mandate to push through a fundamentalist constitution, while overseeing the country’s descent into anarchy, chaos and economic crisis. The result was that the military stepped in on the pretext of reclaiming the revolution from the country’s democratically elected leader. Whilst its intervention was celebrated by millions who took to the streets, and tens of thousands of people gathered in Tahrir Square, the army’s subsequent actions have been a mix of progressive action and of being troubling. The choice of a civilian judge as interim president suggests that the military’s intentions are good, but it has also started to arrest members of the Muslim Brotherhood, a reflection of the dictatorial authoritarianism of the old Mubarak regime.

President Barack Obama said the new government should ‘avoid any arbitrary arrests of President Morsi and his supporters’. That is surely right, for there should always be a space for Islamists in a country on the road to reform and democracy. Exclusion would only lead to sectarian violence.

Yet, some analysts have commented that part of the febrile situation in Egypt rests with President Obama, who has sent convoluted and mixed signals: first supporting the 2011 revolution and then remaining neutral. Mirthfully, or as ironic as the situation has become, the lack of US involvement convinced some in the Egyptian opposition that Mr Obama supported President Morsi. In May, the US Secretary of State, John Kerry, expressed dissatisfaction with Egypt’s commitment to democracy, but, just a month later, the United States agreed to give the Egyptian army $1.3 billion in aid.

American law is clear on restricting assistance to any country whose elected head of government has been deposed by a military coup or decree – a legal provision in U.S. statute which has given Mr Obama an opportunity to show some leadership.

Washington has stated that it will withhold the $1.3 billion if the generals are judged to have staged a coup, and it is difficult to draw any other conclusion. But this threat should be used by Mr Obama as leverage to compel the military to commit to elections as soon as possible, preferably with a clear itinerary and timetable attached. That would be the best outcome and a necessary condition if Egypt is to complete its revolution.

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Britain, European Union, Google, Government, Technology

Google told its privacy rules are illegal…

Britain’s data protection watchdog has said that Google’s privacy rules are illegal and leave internet users in the dark about how their personal details will be used.

Google’s latest guidelines, published last year, are ‘baffling’ and must be overhauled, the Information Commissioner’s Office has ruled.

The online search giant will face ‘formal enforcement’ such as a fine of up to £500,000 or a court order if it does not change its privacy rules by September 20.

The company has already received similar warnings from data protection authorities in France and Spain.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said Google’s updated privacy policy raises serious questions about its compliance with the UK Data Protection Act. In particular, it believes that the updated policy does not provide sufficient information to enable UK users of Google’s services to understand how their data will be used across all of the company’s products. The ICO says that Google must now amend their privacy policy to make it more informative for individual service users.

This is not the first time Google has been castigated by the ICO. The company was told just last month to delete snooping data it illegally harvested from British families or face criminal action.

Last year Google sought to make its privacy policies across its various internet interfaces, including YouTube and G-Mail, simpler.

Separate documents on how it would use data collected from each of its websites were condensed into a single file. But the ICO said the details were watered down, and ordinary people would have no idea after reading the file how their personal details, such as email addresses or website viewing history, would be used by Google.

The Data Protection Act, which the ICO says is breached by Google’s current policy, seeks to safeguard the personal information of internet users.

The Act rules that personal information gathered must be stored securely, must not be kept for longer than is necessary, and must not be transferred to an organisation in another country.

Google’s privacy policy states: ‘We collect information to provide better services to all of our users – from figuring out basic stuff like which language you speak, to more complex things like which ads you’ll find most useful or the people who matter most to you online.’

Google says that its privacy policy respects European law and allows the company to create simpler, more effective services. It also says it is fully engaged with the authorities on this issue.

Previously, the company had been branded ‘immoral’ by MPs for avoiding the payment of British taxes and funnelling profits to an offshore tax haven in Bermuda.

Privacy campaigners have also expressed concerns. Big Brother Watch, a privacy campaign group, said that this is the latest confirmation that consumers are being kept in the dark about what data on us Google collects and how that data is used.

A statement issued by Big Brother Watch, said:

… The main issue is that sanctions must be strong enough to make Google take real action, rather than the previous meagre penalties that are seen as a cost of doing business.

… Regulators around the world must ensure that concrete steps are taken to uphold rights and stop Google routinely trampling on our privacy.

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