Gillian Devine

Scottish Island For Sale

The isle of Tanera Mor, just off the north-west coast of Scotland, is going on the open market for sale, for the price of £2.5million.

It is the only inhabited island in the Summer Isles archipelago and provides a rare opportunity for anyone willing to enjoy a unique lifestyle. It comes with nine other residences, a thriving bird colony, a post office, and a ready-made tourism industry. It also inspired a book written by someone who once lived there, and is rumored to have inspired the setting for The Wicker Man.

The current owners have greatly appreciated living on the island, having relocated from an English dairy farm in 1996, but now they are preparing to move on and hand their home to someone else, saying that “it is time for someone else to have the privilege of looking after this amazing place.”

After a meeting with the local community of Coigach, who turned down the chance to take over responsibility for the island due to current environmental projects, it was decided that Tanera Mor should be owned independently, considering that there would potentially be great interest, and the island would be able to fetch a healthy price. Furthermore, the new owners would have to be environmentally responsible, caring for an ecosystem that houses a colony of rare bird life, and would ideally be willing to be part of a small and close community, if not mostly living on their own. For those who enjoy almost total isolation, and living in harmony with nature – and with enough money – it would be the perfect home.

Despite its relative isolation, the island has in fact been inhabited since Viking times, and the name derives from the words “harbor island” in Norse, so its habitable nature should further appeal to those looking to buy.

A property consultant overseeing the purchase has encouraged anyone who fits the bill to come forward and claim a unique opportunity for an island lifestyle, where they could enjoy continuing “support and commitment from the local Coigach community”, and particularly those who would make the island’s sustainability a priority.

First Mars Colony On The Horizon

The search for potential astronauts to help create the first Mars colony is well underway.

On Monday, Dutch company Mars One officially launched a reality-show type bid on Twitter and YouTube to recruit volunteers to be part of the pioneering space missing, and so far they have been contacted by up to 10,000 people.

The trip will leave Earth in 2022, with a view to reaching Mars in 2023. It will involve four people spending seven months in a small capsule during the journey, and the trip will be one way, with no reasonable expectation of return. But the sheer popularity of this mission upon its launch shows that there is no shortage of people willing to be the first ambassadors in the next step of space exploration.

It will be a unique test to see if humans really are capable of living and even populating outside Earth, but another key motive for sending people to live there is to determine, more accurately, is Mars is capable of sustaining other forms of life.

Executive director of Explore Mars, an organisation devoted to exploring life on Mars, said that “there is a strong, growing body of evidence that there could be subsurface life on Mars. However, we may not be able to confirm that unless we send people.” Simply, there are limits to what current robots can achieve physically compared to humans, in terms of drilling and digging, and humans could most likely undertake in a few minutes what a current make of man-made robot can do in an entire day.

However, for the advantage of sending human explorers to Mars, there is a disadvantage. People will inevitably bring with them billions of microbes and bacteria which will potentially compromise the eco-balance of Mars and any life that may be found there. This is a risk of which the Mars pioneers are well aware, and the general consensus is that every precaution will be undertaken to minimise the biological impact of the primary Mars colony.

Certainly, the mission will not be without risk to either the human colony or to existing life on Mars, but now that the limits to current robot exploration are drawing close, to send people to Mars as a next step makes sense.

Vintage Book Review: “Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka (1913)

Metamorphosis (1913) is most likely the best known short story by Franz Kafka (1883-1924), which explores the possibilities of a physical transformation. Its stark narrative style is what makes this particular story all the more striking.

The story begins, innocuously, with the statement that Gregor Samsa has been transformed overnight into a giant insect (as can happen, of course). What immediately follows this revelation is simply an inner monologue of someone becoming accustomed to such a transformation. Describing how his new limbs “waved feebly” in his helpless state, his thoughts turn almost immediately to his job, and how he will manage to get there today.

Before long, the people in his life begin to show up, demanding to know why he is not making an appearance. His family demand to know why he is not awake and fulfilling his duty of going to work and bringing in an income (he is the sole breadwinner for the whole family). More bizarrely, soon his boss turns up, also demanding to know why he hasn’t shown up on time. Soon, we gain an impression of just how “put upon” Samsa really is in his everyday life, in which he is, apparently, merely a cog in the societal machine, chained to a home, and to a workplace, “where the smallest lapse was greeted with the gravest suspicion”.

Although he dreams of telling his superiors where to go and quitting his job altogether, Samsa accepts that this is not an option, and that his main priority should be to get out of his “present fanciful state” and return to normal as soon as possible – but mostly to appease his boss and his family.

When, eventually, his “state” is made known to them, their reaction is, of course, one of horror and revulsion – but not at all of concern for the young man. They now treat him as if he is merely the creature that he has become, but do concede to feeding him and rearranging his room to suit his condition out of a reluctant obligation. However he is essentially banished from participation in the family and is shooed away. Succumbing to his unfortunate condition, he becomes ill and dies, which with a cruel twist of irony, becomes the only way he, and his family, are able to gain any respite from the situation.

Although surreal in its premise, Kafka’s narrative style, combining realism with marked nonchalance, manages to explore the probable aftermath, in “real life”, of such a transformation; in narrating the quiet reflections of Samsa in his state, more is revealed about the “rat race” of working life, and the extent of the depersonalisation it can cause.

Metamorphosis certainly manages to epitomise, in a relatively short space of time, the definition of “Kafkaesque”.

Kent Airport Development Causes Concern

The proposal to expand a small Kent airport into a “regional hub”, which has just been approved by the government, has caused great concern for environmental campaigners.

LyddAirport in Romney Marsh has now been granted permission to expand its runway and to build a new terminal building, and about half a million more passengers could potentially be accommodated by this new development. However, although there is a prevailing optimism about the new airport, as it would certainly give the area a higher profile, there is growing anger that the local area – where there is an abundance of wildlife – will be endangered by the encroachment of a much bigger airport. For many species, the “Garden of England” is a natural refuge.

Green Party MEP, Keith Taylor, has commented on the new development, saying that there are “huge concerns about the impact these proposals would have in terms of the increase in pollution for local residents and the threat to important wildlife.”

This development has emerged amid worldwide concerns that the progression of low-carbon energy is not happening quickly enough to offset global warming. The International Energy Agency has reported that there has only been a 25% growth in non-fossil fuel generation, compared to 45% of fossil fuel generation.

New developments that would help offset the still-excessive CO2 emissions, such as carbon capture and storage, while still being developed and built, are simply not appearing fast enough to counteract the growing worldwide damage.

While countries such as the US are pioneering ways to generate environmentally friendly energy (such as shale gas technology), the majority of Europe is still, allegedly, falling far short of targets which need to be met to see a maximum rise in global temperature of 2 degrees celsius by the end of the century.

The new airport development at Romney Marsh will certainly be an economic asset for the region, and will create much-needed jobs, however it is important that it tries to remain environmentally responsible, so that it can help the region to uphold the reputation of being an ecological haven.

Modern Book Review: The Year of Open Doors (2011)

The Year of Open Doors (2011) is an anthology of modern Scottish writing, with the input of writers from various social and cultural backgrounds, all of who make up the nation that Scotland is becoming. Each story offers a personal glimpse into the life of a modern Scottish person, although since there are so many stories, I will highlight some in particular which stand out in a unique way.

The anthology begins with a story with an open door “theme” built in – “One Year The Door Will Open” by Ryan Van Winkle – in which the narrator compares himself to a door, with which he has certain things in common. The door, he says, is painted and repainted constantly throughout its “life”, in ways that often reflect the mood of the people dwelling within, such as “argument red, family yellow, divorce brown”.

In “Omu Prin & Me” by Daibhidh Martin, a young man visiting a remote area of Scotland encounters an older man with a tragedy in his past, his wife having been swept away by a rip-tide, but who still manages to find joy in life (“I was enchanted, watching a sixty-year-old man dance so carefree. The older man has tried to come to terms with it by building a gate from pieces of debris he has found washed up on the shore – a poignant symbol of trying to bring back the spirit of his wife, and also a reflection of how things from far away places can eventually find their way to one’s home.

“Playground Rules” by Doug Johnstone (who has already become a prolific writer in Scotland) is another story tainted by tragedy; a young father takes his son to his first day at school, while coming to terms with causing the death of his wife in a car accident shortly after the son was born. Until this point he and his son had been coping, as he says that “We were in our own unburstable bubble back then”, before this day. Before long, the harsh re-integration into “society” proves too much for the father, as he realises that he can no longer shield his son from “real life”.

A clash of cultures is portrayed to provocative effect in “Colin’s Nation” by Anneliese Mackintosh, in which a white Scottish mother routinely takes her daughter to be looked after by Indian immigrants after school, with the father of the family repaying the girl’s parents with samples of their national cuisine. This time, the mother invites the Indian family over in a gesture of hospitality, only to make the faux-pas of preparing an elaborate feast for them during Ramadan. Some underlying tensions, however, emerge during the interaction between the young girl and the family’s young boy, who end up – during their innocent play – bringing up their ancestors’ shared history. Most tellingly, the topic of “Colin’s Nation” (meaning “colonisation”) serves to draw a sharp divide between children, who might have gotten along perfectly fine otherwise.

The last story in the anthology, “A Snake Drinks Water And Makes Poison, A Cow Drinks Water And Makes Milk”, by Kevin MacNeil, is a heavily impacting account of a Scot on holiday in Indonesia; incidentally, in the area which would be worst affected by the 2004 tsunami which swept right across the areas in the Indian Ocean.

This story reveals how people from any social or cultural background can find themselves in a life-or-death situation in a strange country, and the use of powerful language -“Write injuries in sand… kindnesses in marble” – shows that superficial differences between nationalities are just that, and similarities are far more common.

There are many more stories in this anthology; some from unknown writers, others from more established authors, but all of them show promise, in that if this anthology, collectively, reflects an ever-evolving nation, then it is quite certain that there will be more thought-provoking new writing to come.

The Grand National – A Losing Game?

When it comes to horses, Brits seem to have quite a mixed opinion. The “mighty stallion” may be a creature worthy of respect and admiration, and a significant cut above the mere underlings which are intensively reared for the purpose of reaching the dinner plate as quickly as possible.

Horses are, apparently, meant for something more, and are most certainly not for human consumption; this was reflected in the recent scandal which bred the notion that horses may have gotten closer to the dinner plate than one would like to believe.

Yet while we condemn the atrocious notion of horses ending up in the British food chain, apparently it is a free-for-all when it comes to racing them for human profit; out the window with our respect and in with whatever it takes to push the horses far beyond their physical capability. Then they become mere vehicles on the path to human glory.

The Grand National 2013 is now underway. So far, no lives have been claimed, nor serious injuries sustained, by any horses – that is, in the official competition.

The “warm-up” races in Aintree claimed two equine victims – Battlefront, who was “withdrawn from the competition”, later to collapse and die, and Little Josh, who was “destroyed” after sustaining a serious injury. This is by no means a rare occurrence, indeed quite the contrary. Anyone taking a look at the Animal Aid Horse “Death Watch” campaign can see these horses drop away, one by one, with disturbing regularity.

These deaths occurred on a brand-new race-course which claimed to be far easier for horses to navigate safely, and kinder to them should they fall during the race. According to the Telegraph’s coverage of the new course design, this race was to be “the first competitive test of significant course changes and new fence frames designed to improve safety.”

When considering the way that horses are built, they were never meant to run at top speed and jump such great heights at the same time, and to try to make them will almost certainly result in serious injury or fatality. Essentially, the races force them to go against their physical nature; furthermore, their “herd mentality”, which causes them to run in the first place, is exploited for maximum gain.

Despite the horse fatalities at Aintree, the RSPCA – who have had inspectors monitoring the welfare of the horses more closely this year – seem to be pleased with the condition of the horses during the Grand National 2013. One spokesman said that “We are delighted that the changes seem to have contributed to a safe yet competitive race.”

Furthermore, with changes including “more forgiving” fencing, restrictions on whip use and “run-out areas”, which allow stray horses to escape the racecourse, it seems as if the safety of horses is being taken more seriously.

The real question is, however, if these changes will be enough, and if it is even right to continue to manipulate horses – allowing even moderate risks to their safety – just so that someone, somewhere, can have a “big win”.

With so many supporters continuing to back the Grand National, and with it being so much of a “British institution”, perhaps it will be difficult to convince everyone that it is something that should be consigned to history.

Perhaps all that can be done, at least for the foreseeable future, is to keep a close watch on the horses’ welfare, and never to deem the death or serious injury of any horse as acceptable, or simply “all part of the game”.