Happy 2011 - fantastic data visualization shows things are getting better

Not for everyone, and not all the time, but *overall*. This fantastic data visualization from Hans Rosling (thanks for sending Steve!) shows how:



Let us not rest, but find more and better ways to increase equality without losing the gains we've already made.

Happy New Year.

Don't sell out, Nick.

Extraordinary few days here in pommyland. We had an election, in case you missed it. Nobody won. It's what the Brits call a "hung parliament" and several other countries call "normal".

Won't go into detail about it here - the british press is rife with explanations, theories and speculations. As I write this, we're all waiting to see the outcome of the discussions between the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives. Opinions on the strength of the Lib Dem negotiating position vary, but there's no doubt it's a wonderful opportunity to push the case for proportional representation.

To that end, I went to only my second ever political rally yesterday. Takebackparliament.com had organised one in Trafalgar Square. At first there was a bit of half-arsed chanting, a non-working megaphone and general disorganisation. It looked like going really wrong when some Morris dancers showed up with a better sound system (well done @JasonBStanding!). But then the wonderful Billy Bragg showed up and gave a great speech. Shortly after, he invited us all down to Smith Square, where the Liberal Democrats were meeting to discuss their options.

The journey down there was rather surreal, with outside broadcasts, tourists and morris dancers mingling freely. We passed Downing Street where Brown was holed up. We passed the 'democracy village' where we cheerily debated our demand for fair votes with the anarchists' demand for no votes. Finally, we took up position in Smith Square and demanded to see Nick. To his great credit - he is after all, in the middle of the busiest weekend of his life - he came out and gave a short speech to the assembled throng. He didn't say anything of real substance but he did mention (not captured in most of the videos) how pleased he was to see 1000 people out calling for proportional representation.

Things don't look great if you believe the rumour mill today. Don't sell out, Nick.

Wow, imagine being able to sit down and shoot the breeze with Kim Jong-il!

Seems Bubba is over there now on a mission to win the release of two journalists. I wonder if Kim is as batshit insane as he seems? I'm fascinated by North Korea's isolation. It strikes me as the most isolated place on earth. Even primitive tribal cultures have regular contact with the outside world now, but it seems North Korea's general population may have no idea what's happening in the world. Perhaps Michael Jackson not only never died over there: he never even lived.