Gosport, England – Choosing a name for your baby can be one of the hardest tasks a parent faces, but a new survey from a leading personalised baby gift supplier may be able to help you on your way.

The study by Born Gifted, which surveyed almost 3000 baby names during the first half of 2012, revealed that the number one spot for girls was Amelia (7.2%) and the top boy’s name was Thomas (7.7%).

Interestingly the study found that Olivia and Oliver were the tenth most popular names which is in stark contrast to official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) which disclosed that Oliver and Olivia were the most popular names in 2010 (most recent data).

The shift in naming trends has continued and whereas Sophie was the second most popular name two years ago, it is now in ninth position, with many parents choosing the slightly adapted versions Sophia or Sofia.

Names that were popular in the 2010 ONS survey such as Jessica, Ruby, Chloe and Grace have been replaced by Isla, Eva and Phoebe. Further names that have proved popular in the first half of 2012 were Charlotte/Lottie (5.6%), Isabella/Bella (5.2%), Lily/Lilly (4.7%) and Emily, Holly and Olivia (3.4%).

In terms of boy’s names, the recent study found many contrasting name choices compared to previous results compiled. The popular names this year (after Thomas) included Sam/Samuel (5%), Freddie (4.8%), Liam (4%), and Henry (4%); with classic names such as Jack, William and George not even making the list.

The top ten lists for 2012 revealed by the Born Gifted study are as follows (showing the most popular first)

Girls: Amelia (7.2%); Charlotte/Lottie (5.6%); Isabella/Bella (5.2%); Lily/Lilly (4.7%); Isla (4.3%); Eva (4.3%); Phoebe (3.9%); Sophia/Sofia (3.6%); Emily, Holly & Olivia (3.4%)

Boys: Thomas (7.7%); Harry (6.2%); Joshua (5.3%); Sam/Samuel (5%); Freddie (4.8%); Charlie (4.4%); James (4.2%); Liam & Henry (4%); Alfie & Oliver (3.5%).

The study also produced a few slightly unusual names including Rudy Blue, Wynter, Huxley, August, Bleu, Dixon, Jaxon, Tulip and Westly!

If you are struggling to find an appropriate name for your child, why not use one of the names highlighted in the study. Remember that naming a child is an important task because they will live with it for the rest of their lifetimes.

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Toronto, Canada — Mayor Rob Ford and City of Toronto staff congratulated 12 youth selected for the CIMA Mayor’s Cricket Team that will participate in the fifth annual Cricket Across the Pond program.”Congratulations to the members of the team selected to represent Toronto in England,” said Mayor Rob Ford. “You have trained hard and are promoting good sportsmanship through the sport of cricket. I hope to someday see many of you playing in the Mayor’s Trophy tournament here in Toronto.”

Also in attendance at City Hall today were Gulzari Babber, President of Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA); Amal Ratnayake, Chair of CIMA Canada; Zanita DiSalle, Regional Vice President, RBC Royal Bank; Tom Mihalik, owner of Tom’s Place, and Jonathan Dart, United Kingdom Consul General. The City of Toronto is CIMA’s partner in promoting the Cricket Across the Pond (CAP) scholarship program. CAP uses cricket as a vehicle to reach out to youth from Toronto’s diverse neighbourhoods, by giving them a sense of hope, increased self esteem and opportunities to become positive role models in their communities.

“Now in its fifth year, Cricket Across the Pond scholarships have touched the lives of over 60 young Torontonians, leading them toward positive pursuits in life” said Ratnayake of CIMA Canada. “We are truly appreciative of the support from our partners RBC Royal Bank, Tom’s Place and the City of Toronto in this unique Toronto youth initiative.” Working in partnership with the British Consulate General in Toronto and the Borough of Kingston upon Thames in the United Kingdom, CAP provides young Toronto cricketers with the opportunity to travel to the UK, represent Toronto and learn leadership skills as ambassadors. The aim of the annual UK tour of the CIMA Mayor’s Team is to help these young Toronto ambassadors develop into positive role models in their communities.

“We’re proud to be part of helping send these young cricketers to the birthplace of the sport,” said RBC’s DiSalle. “It’s part of our commitment to build healthy and vibrant communities, where we can pass along cherished traditions to our children.”

The 2012 tour itinerary includes the inaugural Toronto Mayor’s Team versus London Mayor’s Team cricket match, scheduled to take place in London on July 17. The Royal Bank of Canada leads a group of corporate and media partners brought together by CIMA in this unique public-private community initiative. CIMA has been successful in arranging a partnership between the City of Toronto and the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, UK, in supporting the scholarship program.

The lead organizer, CIMA, offers an internationally recognized professional qualification in management accountancy with over 183,000 students and members in 168 countries. CIMA members and students the world over are involved in community activities. A significant majority of CIMA members in Toronto have roots in cricket playing nations around the world.

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If England needed any more motivation for their quarter-final against Italy, the knowledge that a victory would set up a semi-final with arch-rivals Germany certainly would.

Italy came close to taking the lead early on when Daniele De Rossi hit a curling volley from outside the penalty box, which had goalkeeper Joe Hart beaten. Fortunately for England, the shot cannoned back off the post before being cleared from the danger zone.

Another golden opportunity presented itself just a minute later; this time it was England’s turn to come close, with a low cross falling to Glen Johnson in the penalty area. The England defenders’ shot was saved expertly by Gianluigi Buffon to keep the scores level.

Although the game quieted down from its frenetic opening minutes, both teams were still playing a brand of attacking football unexpected by most coming into the game. Many pundits had predicted a cagey, defensively dominated affair between the two teams, but with twenty minutes played, the game seemed anything but that.

With half an hour gone the Italians seemed to be gaining the upper hand, controlling the pace of the game and shading the possession battle. This spell of dominance presented two clear chances for controversial striker Mario Balotelli, but the Italian was denied firstly by a last ditch John Terry tackle and secondly by a good low save from Hart.

Despite their dominance, and further chances for both Balotelli and Antonio Cassano, Italy was unable to take a lead before the interval, although there were no doubts that Cesare Prandelli was the happier of the two managers as both teams left the field for half-time.

If De Rossi was cursing his luck following his shot which hit the post in the first half, his self-berating was a little early. In the second half, after England cleared their lines from a corner, the ball was knocked back into the penalty area and reached De Rossi who scuffed his shot when one on one with Hart.

Things went from bad to worse for England as Italy enjoyed a succession of chances from Balotelli and Ricardo Montolivo. They seemed to beat England’s offside trap time after time, only to be denied by a combination of poor finishing and the goalkeeping heroics of Hart.

The double substitution of Andy Carroll and Theo Walcott on for Danny Welbeck and James Milner respectively seemed to breathe some life into England, who began to show signs of the attacking intent with which they started the game. England nearly capitalized on this pressure when Steven Gerrard’s free kick was agonizingly close to Wayne Rooney’s attempted header, when any kind of contact would likely have taken the ball beyond the reaches of Buffon.

An attempted overhead kick from Rooney almost gave England their fairytale ending, but the Manchester United striker could not keep his shot down, sending the game into extra time.

The first half of extra time from England was much more encouraging than much of their play in the opening 90 minutes; it still failed to yield a break in the deadlock for either side, setting up a very tense final 15 minutes.

The second half played out in similar fashion and brought the conclusion to the game that all England fans were dreading, the penalty shootout.

Opening penalties were slotted home by Balotelli and Gerrard respectively, only for England to then gain the advantage after Rooney scored, following a miss from Montolivo. England’s advantage was short lived however as Ashley Young’s missed penalty – after Pirlo’s successful spot kick – leveled the scores at 2-2. Another miss from England, this time from Ashley Cole, proved to be England’s final undoing. Alessandro Diamanti stepped up to convert and sent Italy through to face the Germans in the semi-finals.

Image Courtesy of  Julian Finney

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While England knew that a draw in their game against Ukraine at Donbass Arena in Donetsk, Ukraine, would be enough to achieve qualification from Group D, the return of Wayne Rooney from suspension and the resulting confidence from the victory over Sweden will have the England team eager to try and secure the top spot with a win.

Although they entered the game as favorites, England had to be alert defensively early on with the Ukraine seemingly intent on putting them on the back foot from the start, dominating both possession and territory in the first 15 minutes.

Despite enjoying the lion’s share of possession, Ukraine was unable convert this into meaningful attempts on goal, and most of their chances failed to test Joe Hart in the England goal. The best chance of the first half hour actually went against the run of play and fell to England, with Wayne Rooney, evidently rusty from his lack of game time, headed wide just yards out from goal.

The rest of the first half played out fairly unspectacularly and although Rooney’s solitary chance for England proved to be the best opportunity to break the deadlock, there was no doubting that Ukraine was in control of the game and Roy Hodgson had quite a task on his hands if he was to reverse England’s fortunes and push for the top spot in the group.

Hodgson’s team talk seemed to work instantly, with England taking the lead just two minutes into the second half. Steven Gerrard, who had already supplied two assists so far in this tournament, whipped in a dangerous cross, which Ukrainian goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov could not deal with and the ball fell for Rooney to head into an empty net.

With Ukraine looking desperate to equalize and hopefully take a much needed lead, much-maligned centre back, John Terry, came to England’s rescue, acrobatically clearing a ball off of the line after it had beaten Hart. Instant replays seemed to show that the ball had actually completely crossed the line and the Ukrainian team and fans will feel very aggrieved that the scores were not leveled.

The goal certainly seemed to spur on England and Gerrard’s passing began to open up the Ukrainian defense, releasing the likes of Rooney and Ashley Young into space as England looked to double their lead and confirm their position at the top of the group.

The best efforts of the Ukrainians in the dying minutes were unfortunately not enough to bring their team back into the game and they will have to settle for watching the rest of the tournament in their home nation. England, meanwhile, will be thrilled to have topped the group and, as a result, will face Italy in the quarter-finals rather than the more daunting prospect of Spain, who will be the prize for Group D runner-up, France.

Image Courtesy of  radiokafka / Shutterstock.com

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France and England shared the points in Ukraine as the two Group D rivals cancelled each other out in a rather dull affair. Joleon Lescott’s header in the first half gave England the lead before Samir Nasri equalized almost immediately for France. Laurent Blanc’s men had most of the pressure in the second half, but Roy Hodgson’s new look side-defended solidly and was probably pleased with the end result.

It was a slow start to a previously classic encounter, England met France for the last time the Three Lions were in the Euro’s but despite scoring in the opening five minutes of their last two major tournaments, Roy Hodgson’s men were happy enough to sit back and counter in the early exchanges. Samir Nasri was seeing the most of the ball and he had the first real chance when he shot wide of Joe Hart’s near post from the edge of the area.

But it was England who probably should have opened the scoring, a thrusting run from the midfield saw James Milner get on the end of Ashley Young’s pass but the Manchester City midfielder slid the ball wide after rounding Hugo Lloris. Yohan Cabaye immediately tested Hart again at the other end but the early exchanges had been fairly even.

But despite the game being played at a slow pace England made the breakthrough on the half-hour mark as Joleon Lescott headed in his first goal for his country from Steven Gerrard’s free-kick. France had perhaps shaded the opening thirty minutes but England’s opener gave them the impetus to attack a French side whose defense looked shaky. But it was the team in blue who almost equalized from their own free-kick, Alou Diarra got on the end of Nasri’s cross and made Hart make a save, before heading the re-bound just wide of the post.

It was a warning sign for England of what the French could do given the chance, the goal stretching the game more and more as France tried to find a response. They soon found it after some neat passing through midfield and it was Samir Nasri who finally beat his City team-mate Joe Hart at the near post. Nasri had looked the biggest threat to England’s defense, time and time again finding space between the midfield and defence.

England managed to get to half-time at 1-1 as France were very much in the ascendancy after the equalizer. It was more of the same after the break as France dominated possession and England was once again happy to sit back and use the likes of Oxlade-Chamberlain and Young to counter the pressure. England did get forward eventually and the referee denied them a free-kick in a good position when Steven Gerrard was clearly brought down on the edge of the French penalty area.

There wasn’t a lot to shout about as the game reached the final 25 minutes, England were still happy to allow France to come at them, but Les Blues couldn’t do anything to break down the water-tight England defense. The French passing game was easy on the eye but wasn’t producing any productivity in the penalty area, Joe Hart only being tested from set-pieces and long range efforts.

England was growing frustrated at France’s possession game, and more so at the referee who seemed reluctant to give England any sort of decision. Roy Hodgson was the first to mix things up with just over ten minutes remaining, Jordan Henderson and Jermain Defoe replacing Scott Parker and Oxlade-Chamberlain respectively.

But it was still France on top, Nasri saw a shot deflected wide before Cabaye also had an effort deflected out from the resulting corner. The game was becoming very stretched and as France looked for a winner, England’s counter attacking tactics came more into play. Laurent Blanc responded to Hodgson’s changes and introduced Hatem Ben Arfa and Marvin Martin to add some more energy with five minutes remaining in Donestk.

But the final few minutes passed by without any real drama, England held off France’s final spell of pressure as the two favourites to progress from Group D sharing a point each.

Image Courtesey of Continental AG | Image.Net | Scott Heavey 2012 Getty Images

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The descendant of a survivor of the Titanic will travel from England to America to share letters and photographs of her great-grandmother, who was a women’s rights advocate and journalist and wrote an account of her rescue.

As part of the centennial observance of the sinking of the Titanic, Rosemary Gillham of Hertfordshire, will visit Norwalk for an exhibit at Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum titled Epic Voyage: The Extraordinary Life of Titanic Survivor Helen Churchill Candee, and will bring her great-grandmother’s papers. The exhibit runs from April 25 to October 14,2012.

“My great-grandmother has always been an inspiration for me,” said Gillham. “She was 53 when she traveled on the Titanic, and that tragic evening was just one night in a long and very full life. She had already achieved a huge amount and went on to travel and write extensively.”

Candee was in Europe when a family crisis forced her to return to America aboard the Titanic on its inaugural voyage to New York, when it struck an iceberg on April 14, 1912, and sank, resulting in the death of 1,517 people.

She fractured her ankle as she boarded Lifeboat 6 with the ‘Unsinkable’ Molly Brown. Afterwards, she recuperated at Lockwood-Mathews Mansion, where she received get-well letters from friends, including First Lady Helen Taft. She was interviewed by the Washington Herald and wrote an account of her rescue for Collier’s Weekly.

Candee, who attended school in Norwalk and published her first book, How Women May Earn a Living, in 1900, wrote for National Geographic, Atlantic Monthly and the Ladies’ Home Journal. She was an organizer in the “Votes for Women” rally in Washington. She became one of the first interior decorators and worked for President Theodore Roosevelt.

During World War I, she volunteered with the Red Cross in Italy and continued to write. Her work, Angkor the Magnificent, is considered the first study of the Khmer temple.

To kick off the exhibit April 21, Dr. Stephen Coan, President and CEO of Sea Research Foundation, will talk about the legacy of the Titanic and be joined on video by ocean explorer Dr. Robert Ballard, who discovered the Titanic in 1985. Portions of Mystic Aquarium’s new exhibit, “Titanic – 12,450 Feet Below,” will be displayed at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum.

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DreamWorks Pictures’ “War Horse”, directed by Steven Spielberg, has earned American Humane Association’s highest certification rating: Monitored: Outstanding, No Animals Were Harmed. The production complied with American Humane Association’s ‘Guidelines for the Safe Use of Animals in Filmed Media’ to ensure the safety of the horses and fully cooperated with American Humane Association’s Film and TV Unit,  which logged 1,100 hours on ‘War Horse’ sets in England and California and safeguarded more than 100 horses.

Since 1940, American Humane Association has been safeguarding animals in film. On the ‘War Horse’ production sets, American Humane Association representative Barbara Carr was present to make sure that the many horses used in the making of the film were both safe and treated humanely. Says Director Spielberg, “I gave Barbara [Carr] the complete, final cut so to speak, to pull the plug if she felt any of the horses were not up to the challenge or any of the horses were in any way in harm’s way.”

Spielberg gave Carr input on set in the planning of the stunt or the action the horse had to perform and also gave her opportunities to watch rehearsals in slow motion, done one step at a time, so she could determine whether it would be safe for the horse.

The film, which opens in theatres in the U.S. on December 25th, is an epic tale of loyalty, hope and tenacity set against a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War. Based on the best-selling book by Michael Morpurgo and the Tony Award-winning stage play by Nick Stafford, ‘War Horse’ is one of the great stories of bravery and friendship, brought to the screen by one of the greatest directors in film history.

‘War Horse’ begins with the remarkable friendship between a horse named Joey and a young man called Albert, who tames and trains him. When they are forcefully parted, the film follows the extraordinary journey of the horse as he moves through the war, changing and inspiring the lives of all those he meets—British cavalry, German soldiers, and a French farmer and his granddaughter—before the story reaches its emotional climax in the heart of No Man’s Land. The First World War is experienced through the journey of this horse—an odyssey of joy and sorrow, passionate friendship and high adventure.

Directed by Steven Spielberg, DreamWorks Pictures’ ‘War Horse’ stars Emily Watson, David Thewlis, Peter Mullan, Niels Arestrup, Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Irvine, Benedict Cumberbatch and Toby Kebbell. It is produced by Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, and executive producers are Frank Marshall and Revel Guest. The screenplay was written by Lee Hall and Richard Curtis and is based on the book by Michael Morpurgo and the international hit stage play by Nick Stafford, originally produced by the National Theatre of Great Britain and directed by Tom Morris and Marianne Elliot.

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A ban on donations of blood made by gay men, which was established during the AIDS crisis 25 years ago, is to be dropped by England, Scotland and Wales. Blood banks in England, Scotland and Wales will allow gay men to give blood, beginning November 7. The UK Department of Health made this announcement Thursday.

On their website, UK National Health Services Blood and Transport (NHSBT), included the criterion that must be met in order for a gay man to donate blood. “The change means that in future only men who have had anal or oral sex with another man in the past 12 months, with or without a condom, will be asked not to donate blood.”

This also includes men who have sex with anyone whose been injected with drugs, whose been with a prostitute, or who has had a sexual encounter with a man who has slept with another man. Men whose last sexual contact with another man was more than 12 months ago will now be approved to donate blood.

According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the ban was put into place in the 1980’s in an effort to avoid the risk of HIV contamination. The new guidelines came after a review conducted by the UK Department of Health reported that “evidence no longer supported the permanent exclusion of men who have had sex with men.

The Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs (SaBTO) studied the latest details on relevant sexual contact in relation to the safety of donating blood. The Committee’s review examined the risk of infection being transmitted through blood and the ability to test donated blood for diseases before reaching their conclusion that new guidelines could safety been instituted.

Dr. Lorna Williamson, the Medical and Research Direct of NHS Blood and Transplant, said in a statement that “We welcome this review and its conclusions.  It gives us an opportunity to broaden our donor acceptance on the basis of the latest scientific evidence. “

In 2010, a federal committee recommended maintaining the policy preventing gay men from donating blood in the U.S. Acccording to CNN, this decision provoked “disappointment and anger from gay activist groups.”

“The committee’s decision today not only leaves a discriminatory practice in place, it also puts lives at risk,” said Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, in a statement responding to the 2010 ruling. Meanwhile, some groups continue to use the ban to justify their demonization of gays.

Just a month ago, Bryan Fishcher, Director of Issues Analysis for the American Family Association (AFA), commented about the blood ban on the AFA website. “I think this is one of the reasons where our argument is infallible…is the danger that homosexual contact imposes to human health.

I gave blood here several weeks ago and I was asked three times…have you as a male ever had sex with another male one time since 1977. If I had answered yes, I would not have been able to give blood.

The risk to the nation’s blood supply is so severe that the risk that active homosexuals pose to the nation’s health, to the nation’s blood supply is so severe that if a man has had sex even one solitary time since 1977 – cannot donate blood. That, ladies and gentleman, tells you all you need to know.”

North Ireland is also considering the new policies adopted by England, Scotland, and Wales and the recent findings of the NHSBT. It is expected that North Ireland will make a decision on the guidelines of gay men donating blood soon.

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Rioters in London and other cities around England over the past week have caused senseless violence and criminality on a scale that hasn’t been seen for decades.

Causing millions of pounds worth of damage, rioters have turned a number of English cities upside down, showing complete disregard for the safety of citizens.

The trigger
It began as a peaceful demonstration following the death of the 29-year old Mark Duggan from Tottenham who was shot death by police on Thursday August 4. Around 300 people gathered outside Tottenham police station on Saturday August 6 in their quest for justice for Duggan and his family. Later the same evening the violence broke out.

The scale
Gradually going completely out of control, the predominantly teenage part of the population of England set buildings on fire, smashed and looted shops, attacked policemen and caused chaos on the streets of English cities. The looters seemed to be always one step ahead of the stretched police forces, taking full advantage of the disorder.

Some of the cities outside London affected by the riots include Manchester, Salford, Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Liverpool, Nottingham, Gloucester, Leicester, Bristol and Leeds. Turning those cities into war zone, the rioters left people without homes and businesses.

Some of the most shocking disturbances included:

• Malaysian student Asyraf Haziq was attacked and injured by rioters in London and then mugged by a group of young men who at first appeared to try to help him.
• Haroon Jahan, 21, Shahzad Ali, 30, and Abdul Musavir, 31 died having been hit by a car in Birmingham after they tried to protect their neighbourhood.
• An estimated 60 people who were made homeless in London as a direct result of homes and businesses being burnt down.

These represent just a small portion of the consequences from the volatile acts of the looters. Eventually, it became clear that it was not about protesting – it was about robbery and pointless vandalism.

The clean-up action
During this week of distressing events, people have seen the worst of Britain – the angry and rather greedy youngsters destroying their own community — buildings being burned down, businesses being wrecked, property being stolen, innocent people being injured.

Nonetheless, following these disturbances, onlookers now see the best of Britain: the volunteers who gather on the streets of London and other affected cities to clean up the mess left by rioters.

“Bring gloves, heavy duty sacks, brooms, brushes and marker pens,” instructed a Twitter account, @RiotCleanUp. For just more than an hour, the Twitter account attracted more than 70,000 followers and brought together the people of England who got together to pick up the pieces and restore the order in their cities.

‘The fightback’
With regards to the rioters themselves, they will pay for their acts. Having seen “the most sickening scenes of his career,” Greater Manchester Police’s Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan made the following statement:

“Hundreds and hundreds of people, we have your image, we have your face, we have your acts of wanton criminality on film. We are coming for you, from today, and no matter how long it takes, we will arrest those people responsible.”

Prime Minister David Cameron also gave a speech warning the rioters that they “will feel the full force of the law” and if they are “old enough to commit these crimes” they are “old enough to face the punishment.” He further urged the country to pull together and promised to compensate anyone whose life has been affected by violence.

In fact, almost 2000 people have been arrested across the country using CCTV images. More than 600 have been charged. The offenses range from violent disorder (including robbery, assault, carrying a weapon and obstructing a police officer) to burglary and related offenses (including handling stolen goods), arson and drug-related offenses.

The events of the past week have been extremely overwhelming. Now that the cities are being cleaned up and offenders are being punished, a question arises as to why it happened in the first place. Cameron admits that the riots were caused mainly by social and cultural problems.

He blamed it on “children without fathers; schools without discipline; reward without effort; crime without punishment; rights without responsibilities; communities without control.” Seeing the riots as a “wake-up call for the nation,” Cameron gives a promise to “mend our broken society” by reviewing all aspects of policy, including education, welfare, parenting and drug addiction.

Padmayogini / Shutterstock.com

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Two weekends ago, a riot in Tottenham followed a peaceful protest over the police shooting of Mark Duggan. The violence escalated in the streets of London and soon spread to other cities around the British country. The spectators looked in shock as young British people acted out in complete anarchy.

As England deals with the aftermath of the worst street riots in decades, musicians react on London riots on Twitter. Musicians M.I.A., Franz Ferdinand’s Alex Kapranos, Example and many others, made statements about the situation on their personal Twitter accounts.

Kapranos, the lead singer and the guitarist of the Glasgow band Franz Ferdinand, asked the Prime Minister to do something about all these riots and widespread looting. He said, “Where the fuck are the Bullingdon boys? What’s wrong you cunts? Would you only end your holidays if it were Fortnum & Mason being looted?”

M.I.A brewed contention with a riot-sympathizing tweet “I’m going down to the riots to hand out tea and mars bars.”

Example, with humor and frustration said, “All these Nandos on fire? That’s some over cooked chicken wings. Pull the army of Afghanistan and stop all this bullshit now please,” before adding, “If you’re gonna set fire to any house in London please make it the Big Brother house.”

Moreover, as Spinner previously reported, a Sony warehouse where thousands of records were stored for many indie labels was burned to the ground (on Tuesday 9 Aug), undoubtedly affecting independent music throughout Europe.

“What music fans can do to show their support for the indie label community, and help them survive this disaster is to buy a digital download of an album from any one of the digital retailers in the UK, as well as going to their local record store while stocks last,” the Association of Independent Music has stated in a press release (via NME).

In the face of continuing violence several artists have now taken to the streets in an effort to help clean up London. ”At the Bethnal Green clean up, nice to see so many people ready to help in the community!” pop songstress Kate Nash tweeted about helping out.

Scroobius Pip, poet and musician, simply posted, “This is Britain punching itself in the face. Repeatedly”

The fact is that many theories have been posited about the underlying causes of the riots in England — from moral decay to excessive consumerism. According to criminologists, the reasons for the riots are many, including social exclusion, welfare dependence, spending cuts, weak policing, racism and opportunism.

The situation in England has been reflected in foreign publications, from Europe, Asia, Middle East, U.S. to Africa, all of which try to explain what exactly happened in the streets of London and other cities, and why. Anthony Daniels in the New York Daily News said:

“The riots in London and elsewhere in England have confirmed what I long knew and have long preached to my disbelieving but totally unobservant countrymen: that young British people are among the most unpleasant and potentially violent young people in the world.”

Rovenko Design / Shutterstock.com

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This past weekend was one of anticipation and excitement as fans came out to see the popular English rock band Coldplay perform at Glastonbury, England’s renowned music festival. The presence of this Grammy award winning band made this spectacular event even more amazing, it was their 1st headlined Glastonbury appearance since 2005.

The festive city was filled with bright lights and a screaming crowd as the band got down and performed a number of the fans favorite hits on the legendary pyramid stage. Keeping that excitement alive, they surprised fans with not only one or two news songs, but a total of four unreleased tracks. Right before giving fans a taste of their upcoming album, lead singer Chris Martin warned the crowd “Please forgive us for playing new songs, one day they’ll be your favourites, but now it’s OK to be thinking, ‘What the fuck?’”

And judging by their reaction, the fans loved each one. The new tracks include: ‘Hurts Like Heaven’, ‘Major Minus’, ‘Us Against The World’, and ‘Charlie Brown.’ This performance marked the very first time these songs were played live in the UK. It’s been quite some time since their last album Viva La Vida which sold nearly seven million copies back in 2008, but after three years they’re back to give fans more great music.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.flickr.com/photos/oxfamamerica/156668492/sizes/o/in/photostream/

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Who can forget the goal heard around the world that introduced us to the most famous sports bra ever? Brandi Chastain became an instant celebrity and so did her bra when she ripped off her jersey in dramatic fashion after clinching the World cup title in 1999. Chastain’s stripping goal act did not only win the United States the World Cup, but she brought attention to Women’s sports; an improbable task. 40 million Americans tuned in to watch Chastain and the US girls step into world soccer immortality that day; more viewers than the NBA finals. That was twelve years and three world cups ago. Today, the United States is the world’s number one team and has a good shot at winning this year’s World Cup; who knew?

The sixth ever, Women’s World Cup kicked off last week in Germany on June 26^th. An astronomical 18 million viewers in Germany tuned in to watch their beloved German women take on Canada in the Cups opening game. With all the success in host country Germany; maybe there would be improved interest in the United States right? Wrong. The US viewership of the opening game came in at just under one million viewers; pathetic. Women’s soccer has been unable to catch the eyes of American viewers since 1999. Clearly, we need more sports bra cameos.

Where is the allure of the Women’s World Cup? Where’s the American pride? It doesn’t make sense that that 15^th and average at best, men’s squad receives nationwide support. Yet, the US women, the world’s number one team, are treated as if they’re irrelevant. Something’s not right here.

Maybe it’s the slower speed of play from the Men’s game. Or maybe it’s the myth that women soccer players are less aggressive and intense. Either way, the last two World Cups (2003 and 2007) have been rating nightmares causing ESPN to swallow some pride. In search of a change (miracle), ESPN hired popular former US stars, Brandi Chastain, Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy and Brianna Scurry to commentate the cup. Every cup game will be aired on ESPN and broadcasted live on ESPN3.com. 2011 is supposed to be the year US women’s soccer relives its glory days of 1999; we’ll see about that.

Why you should watch:

• America.
  • It’s a world-wide phenomenon displaying if our country is better than theirs. If you’re a true American you’ll throw on the red, white and blue, eat some wings, and watch some soccer babes win one for the US of A. Go America

• The United States is the world’s number one team.
  • Listen, we actually have a shot at winning this thing. We’re number one because we’re really good and we have come in at least third the last three world cups. We can do this.

• The girls
  • Guys, in what men’s sport can you commentate on who has the nicer butt? Well in the World Cup you can do that in every single game. Did I mention US goalie, Hope Solo, is single?

• Women’s soccer is on the rise
  • This world cup is going to be extremely competitive. Hosting the tournament is reining back to back World Cup champions, Germany. The US is looking promising to win it all, while England has its deepest squad ever. Don’t look past Brazil, who has the world’s best player in Marta.

• What else is on TV?
  • Nothing interest is going on in sports right now besides the World Cup. The NFL and NBA are in a lockout, baseball is in its boring mid-season stage, and tennis, well who really watches tennis?

Cyril Hou / Shutterstock.com

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Bownessie, the mythical creature of Britain’s Lake Windermere, made an appearance in February that was caught on camera by a couple of kayakers.  Bownessie, not as famous as her northern cousin—the Loch Ness monster, is still well-known, especially to locals.

Tom Pickles, 24, and Sarah Harrington, 23, said they stared at the shape, terrified as it moved through the water at about 10 miles per hour. “I thought it was a dog,” Pickles said. “Then I realized it was much bigger and moving really quickly. Each hump was moving in a rippling motion and it was swimming fast. I could tell it was much bigger underneath from the huge shadow around it.”

“Its skin was like a seal’s, but its shape was abnormal — it’s not like any animal I’ve ever seen before. We saw it for about 20 seconds. It was petrifying. We paddled back to the shore straight away,” Harrington said.

The couple was able to take a picture of the creature with their cell phone camera before it disappeared.  Experts who have examined the fuzzy photograph have said that the image is authentic, but that the file size is too small to tell if it was altered.  This is the eighth sighting in the past two years.

There are also the skeptics who say the monster, whether in Loch Ness or Windermere, is just a myth. “I have a whole lot of doubt that it could be a Loch Ness monster. I don’t think a monster can exist biologically,” said Ian Winfield, a scientist at the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology at the Lancaster, England, Environment Centre. “It’s a bit of fun, it adds a bit of spice to life,” he said. “It would be wonderful if it was true. I mean if we had some kind of creature alive in the British Isles it would be fantastic but I really don’t think it can be so.”

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Recently, a group called U.S. Uncut has been organizing protests at Bank of America and other corporations for the past month.  The movement began with U.K. Uncut, which was formed by British workers angry at the draconian austerity measures targeted at the middle class.  U.S. Uncut was formed and quickly followed suit.

On March 26, U.S. Uncut joined in an international day of protest “targeting corporate tax cheats connected to cuts in valuable public services.”  The primary target of the group has been local Bank of America branches although there were some protests at other so-called tax dodgers like Verizon and FedEx.

“Bank of America is bankrupting America,” said US Uncut DC organizer and spokesperson Armand Biroonak, “When they don’t pay their fair share, just like the rest of us, then we are forced to cut $1.7 billion in early childhood education (Head Start & Title I). In America, do we want tax cheats or teachers?”

U.S. Uncut has used primarily social networking sites to get their message out.  They have not received much press, but already has over 16,000 fans on their Facebook page.  “Big corporations in our country dodge up to $100 billion every year,” said US Uncut Seattle organizer and self-described populist Laurie Dunivant-Larsen, “If they paid their taxes this year like the rest of us do, we could also stop the $100 billion in cuts to college loans. With all these tropical tax havens, US corporations make profits in America but barely pay any taxes here. That’s cheating – it’s immoral and un-American.”

The protests have also spread to other parts of the world.  Netherlands, Canada, Portugal, France, Ireland, and Australia all have branches of the group.  The U.K. group is still the largest.  On Saturday, during the international day of protests, demonstrators in London brought the city to a halt.  The Guardian estimates that over 250,000 people were at the protests however some activists suggest the number was closer to 500,000.  In the U.S., one of the largest protests was held outside a local Bank of America branch in Washington, D.C.  The demonstrators carried a large banner that read “Tax Dodger,” and screamed, “Pay your Taxes.”  The group handed out fact sheets on how Bank of America does not pay taxes and was successfully able to shut down the branch.  One member of the protests attempted to get into the bank in order to close his account.  Although, he showed his Bank of America card to security, he was denied entry.

“The government say there is no alternative to the cuts,” said Laura Carpenter of UK Uncut, “The government is making a political choice to cut and privatize public services whilst there are clear alternatives, like making the banks pay for the crisis that they caused or clamping down on tax dodging by corporations and rich individuals.”

“Maybe there isn’t a spending problem. Maybe it is a revenue problem,” said Carl Gibson, Co-Founder of US Uncut from Mississippi, “We The People just have to make sure that corporate tax cheats pay up.”

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The British National Archives recently released a series of 8,500 previously classified documents that discuss sightings of unidentified flying objects dating back to the 1950’s.  The 35 large files, available online , primarily cover the time period between 1997-2005.

The files contain photographs, sketches and detailed accounts of supposed flying saucers and other unidentified flying objects.  The files also hold correspondence between the U.K. Ministry of Defense and witnesses.  The eyewitness accounts include descriptions from policemen, a soldier, and a Royal Air Force officer, among other members of the public.  Some descriptions contain sightings of objects including a “chewy mint shaped solid craft” and aerial objects resembling a “ring,” a “jellyfish” and a “silver voile spin top.”

In one description, a man said he believed he had been “abducted” by aliens in October 1998 after seeing a UFO hover over his London home and finding that he had gained an hour of time in the process.

“It was a large cigar-shaped vehicle with big projectiles on each side like wings,” he told the ministry. “It seemed to have two very bright lights at the front and a white light flashing round and round underneath. … As you can imagine, I felt quite shaken.”  The Ministry of Defense responded to the man.  He wrote back and told the Londoner that what he saw was probably an aircraft and that he gained an hour because of daylight savings time.

In another file, it is revealed how many British residents believed that they were being invaded by aliens in 1967.  Royal Air Force was flooded with calls after citizens in southern England found six small beeping UFOs lined up perfectly from the Isle of Sheppey to the Bristol Channel.  Both the army and the defense ministry’s intelligence unit were mobilized for the “alien invasion.”  The beeping UFOs turned out to be a project by engineering students at Farnborough Technical College in a bid to raise money for charity.

One of the files documents the experiences of a retired RAF officer who said he saw a UFO while on holiday in Sri Lanka in April 2004 and sent the Ministry of Defense supporting photographs.  “I noticed a partial aura in the sky, a minute or so later there was a clap of thunder, then a short while later a ring like a doughnut appeared,” he told the ministry, adding that he thought it was an “air burst.”

The Ministry of Defense said it investigated every UFO sighting report it received to determine “whether there is any evidence that the United Kingdom’s airspace might have been compromised by hostile or unauthorized air activity.”

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