Shameless Self Congratulation

Got some nice news last night. The video I shot and directed for The Lorelei won the Fudge for Best Video 2012 last night. I am very chuffed. The band also won Best Punk Band ( I know, me neither) so congratulations to them too.


Here's the video (and the punks) in question. Be lovely if you shared it, folks. Thanks!





Here's the video
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Worried Of Aberdeen

 "What me, worried?"* A bit, yes, if I'm honest.

I am worried about my city. And I am worried about my country because of what has happened in my city. Sometimes I think we in the Scotland get complacent because we expect democracy to work. And when it is being undermined we tend not to notice or we shrug and think it must be some kind of mistake.  But as with most things the clues are in the little things.

In the last few years I have been watching as one of our city centre parks is being wrangled over. One camp wants to develop it, the other wants it to be left alone. I am in the latter camp. I think that a Victorian park with mature trees should at most need some cleaning up, some more lighting put in and the toilets restored and re-opened to revitalise a park that used to be able to host events before the council decided to neglect it.  Others believe that the whole structure of the park should be changed at a cost over potentially over £100million. Each side is entitled to their view. That’s democracy.

 Union Terrace Gardens as it is now.

Next month we get to vote on whether the proposed design for the park goes ahead. A referendum is being held. Yes or No.  Simple as that. The problem is that the last time a consultation with the public was held on this issue, of those that voted 55% said no. But this result was then ignored and the plans kept going anyway. Hmmm, that’s not democracy.

So some designs were put forward and the public were asked which ones they preferred. That’s democracy.

But there was no option on the voting form that said something along the lines of “I don’t want any of these developments, I wan the park to remain as it is”. So as soon as you voted for any of the designs it meant you were putting your support to developing the park. Even if you went for any of the designs that you deemed “the least worst option”. Hmmm, that’s not really democracy.

Turns out the design most people wanted wasn't even chosen anyway. This one was.

The proposed design for new development. 

Known as The Granite Web by Buro Happold. 
(notice the cars going in the wrong direction...)

It gets even more interesting as of last week. One of the companies whose design was chosen as the winner of the design competition, Buro Happold, announce on their website their joy at being awarded the contract for the redevelopment of Union Terrace Gardens. Oh, hang on a minute. What about that referendum in March? Surely no-one will be awarded any contract until the voters have decided in that fair and transparent referendum? Hmmm, I’m getting a bad feeling about this so called democracy.

 The announcement on Buro Happold's website last week.

Someone from Aberdeen City Council gets a call after someone on twitter points this out. And Buro Happold promptly takes the announcement down and someone probably gets a bollocking for letting the cat out of the bag. I’m still waiting on Chief Executive Valerie Watts reply to my email on why this happened. However the radio media are on it like wasps on a donut. Now a free press- that’s democracy!

The Aberdeen Journals, Press and Journal and Evening Express instead carry no mention of the gaffe at all in the next day’s editions deciding instead to focus solely on former Aberdeen resident of thirty years ago, football manager Alex Ferguson, who has on that day lent his support to the Yes Campaign. Free and fair press? Hmmm, you decide if that’s democracy, folks.

My last little paragraph concerns today’s little exercise in democracy or the lack of, and that is freedom of speech. Something I really happen to like. Fellow blogger, Fraser Denholm, who is far more eloquent on matters concerning the Union Terrace question than I, wakes up to discover his blog has been flagged as spam and that Google have temporarily taken in down whilst they investigate. As they must. This happens on the day that ACSEF, the body responsible for economic development in the City and Shire and huge campaigners for the Yes vote go on “a massive myth busting drive”. Their words. Stopping everyone having a chance to have their say on a subject? Democracy? Hmmm.

Google have since reinstated Fraser’s blog after deciding that it is not indeed spam and that someone was merely trying to make his life a little bit more difficult in the realm of opinion expression. Now, that’s democracy.

***

*Update 1:  09/02/2012: Press and Journal reports that the results of public consultation on the gardens designs will stay a secret. Click here to read the report.


*Update 2 09/02/12: Stars of the film One Day Removals Patrick Wight and Scott Ironside will be making a short film in support of the Save Union Terrace Gardens campaign in the gardens on 10th of February from 1pm. All welcome.


*Alfred E Neuman appears courtesy of Mad Magazine.


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