Well, it’s at least semi-official and not just my rather jaundiced perception of things: June has seriously let us down so far. According to this article:
“Temperatures this month in celsius terms have been around half those reached in the record-breaking heatwave of last June, and 3C-4C cooler than average for the time of year. It has been an exceptionally wet year, too.” The flimsy, floaty summer dresses and the strappy sandals can stay in the wardrobe a while longer. However, we must be ready to whip them out at the drop of a hat on those increasingly rare days when the sun stays out and it’s pleasantly warm.
After all, as the article concludes, “Summer is usually quite difficult to predict”.
In places where the sun shines more reliably, like the tiny island of Budelli, off the coast of Sardinia, they have pink sand. Nobody is allowed to go swimming or walking at Spiaggia Rosa. The ban came into force in the 1990s when they had a lot of people, too many people, going off with bags of attractive pink sand. There’s a path behind the beach where tourists can walk and admire the sand. The island is uninhabited since 2021. For 30 or so years there was one inhabitant, a certain Mauro Morandi who found the little island when his catamaran broke down on the way to the south Pacific. He was allowed to stay as a kind of island caretaker but in 2021 he was 84 and the authorities insisted he move out. He now lives in a flat in another Sardinian island and is consulted by media people who want to write about Budelli. Here’s a link to his story.
Anyway, it seems that an influencer, Brazilian-born but living in Dubai, has trespassed on the pink sand and, of course, published photos of her visit to Spiaggia Rosa on social media. After all, that’s what influencers do, isn’t it? And they’ve imposed a fine of €1,800 on her. I wonder how they intend to go about extracting the money from her!
Thinking of media influence, here’s a link to an article about the Guardian newspaper not accepting advertisements for betting. Hurray for the Guardian! say I. Watching various series on More Four, I am struck, indeed horror-struck, by how many advertisements there are for various kinds of betting, largely accessible via a smart phone. The little afterthought comments, the equivalent of the small print in documents, reminding betters to know and set their limits, to gamble responsibly, seem to me to be of little use.
As the electioneering progresses in the UK and a YouGov poll puts the Reform party ahead of the Conservatives (the only poll to do so at the moment apparently) David Cameron says Nigel Farage is ‘trying to destroy’ Tory party.
“In an interview with the Times, the foreign secretary, David Cameron, has said that Nigel Farage is trying to destroy the Conservatives and has criticised his “inflammatory language” on migration.
Cameron told the Times:
He [Farage] is currently trying to destroy the Conservative party by standing for Reform. I want to be as sure as we can that we get no Reform members of parliament and the Conservative party can move forward.”
In the interview, published on Friday, Cameron objected to Farage’s “inflammatory” rhetoric on migration. While immigration is an “important issue”, Cameron said the Conservatives don’t want the “incredibly divisive” approach Farage brings to the topic.
“I think with these populists what you get is inflammatory language and hopeless policy,” Cameron told the Times. He also warned that a vote for Reform or any other party would make “Britain less safe”.”
Personally, I think Farage is not so much trying to destroy the party as to take it over, following an increasing trend for the far right to do well in elections in Europe. We shall see!
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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