Hurdlers of the Iconoclastic Clarification,

With temperature at -7 degree Celsius, I departed for my own safety. My car windows were frozen on both sides of the glass. As I waited for my car to defrost, I cleared the windows of my colleague's car, but I knew those would probably freeze over again before they gave up on work. The lovely thing about snowy weather is that it concentrates the eye and it's possible to see rarer birds as they search for sustenance. Of course, I don't rejoice in their plight. I'm just remarking upon the large flocks of blackbirds, fieldfares, redwings and thrushes that I see notice on these winter mornings.

The modest me was depressed by the bookstore. The modest me was depressed by the post office. I wonder if a generation of brains will be lost. One man sang, 'I stopped and waited for progress but I can't accept it all.'

A kettle was stolen/removed. I couldn't believe it. I can't handle the concept and I'd prefer the idea of a ghost.

Bacon discussed capital punishment. He was right, the only way to avoid mistakes is to continue its proscription. I wondered if there was a middle ground deterrent, but I doubt it. Putting someone in the stocks and lobbing moulding lettuces at them is medieval and hardly fitting of the crimes discussed.

The televised leadership debate is not a franchise that should have been agreed to. I think politicians should have been given more exposure before now. Continued communication with our representative and potential replacements rather than ignorance before a televised showpiece would inform the public better and allow them to make smarter choices. Celebrity culture has forced politics into a seedy background where they can't be seen so they can't be trusted. Celebrity culture has killed transparency by cloaking politics in a veil of ignorance.

Alan Johnson said that the force with which home owners fend off burglars has to be proportional. I wonder what 'proportional' is. A home owner surely wouldn't want to engage in unarmed combat, if they lost, they lose everything and endanger themselves. If they fought hand-to-hand and won, the burglar might run and they would preserve their possessions. If they fought hand to hand and only left the burglar stunned or injured in their house, that is surely a dangerous situation - the police would have to arrive before a recovery, it's a risk people might not take, finishing them off in a Streets of Rage-stylee would legally be 'excessive force'. The house owner is apparently protected by the current laws and making a false issue of this is a waste of our time and attention. I'm sure many people have imagined what they'd do in this situation, I guess I'd instinctively arm myself with a deskchair, a table lamp or a racquet.

I am always struck by Zorbing by Stornoway. When it begins, I immediately anticipate One Horse Town by The Thrills, a good record but nowhere near as pure as Zorbing.