Elementary

Conditions: Cloudy and cool

Fighting Oil with Oil

In a move designed essentially to try and get some leverage, the Iranian parliament is considering a bill that will penalise any European companies that are owed Oil by the Iranian Oil industry through having the agreements canceled. If you recall, about a week ago countries in the EU zone voted to stop importing any more oil from Iran by July to try and force the Iranians back to the negotiation table over their nuclear plans.

Iran's parliament is due to debate a bill on Sunday that would cut off oil supplies to the EU in a matter of days, in revenge for a decision last Monday by the 27 EU member states to stop importing crude from Iran as of July 1.
[...]

By turning the sanctions back on the EU, Iranian lawmakers hope to deny Europe the six-month window it had planned to give those countries most dependent on Iranian oil - including some of the most economically fragile - time to adapt.

The EU banned imports of oil from Iran on Monday and imposed a number of other economic sanctions, joining the United States in a new round of measures aimed at deflecting Tehran's nuclear development programme.

- reuters.com/article/

This is continuing to get stupider and stupider. "We won't buy your oil". "Well we won't sell you our oil". “Oh yeah?" “Yes yeah.” “Oh yeah?" “Yes, yeah.” In the face of the looming massive European recession we’re now facing, forcing the oil prices up at gunpoint is almost tantamount to cutting your own throat. With oil. Sigh.


Film Review: Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows

Unlike the first outing of director Guy Ritchie's Holmes, a film that took it's time to explore the fragility of Sherlock's nature as well as his brilliance at detection, the second film is in more of a rush. It has already set up it's bad guy, Moriarty, in the first film, and has a lot for him and Holmes to do, so we are quickly off and away. An exciting train ride brings us to Paris, and a failed attempt to prevent a bombing, then we're off again to Germany to dabble ineffectively in a munitions factory, then finally to Switzerland to try and stop an assassination that could trigger a world war. It's exciting stuff, and Watson and Holmes seem quite at ease with each other and their rather rough and tumble life style. It's been a while since I read the books, but I seem to remember rather more deductions, and rather less fistfights, gunfights, and explosions, in a typical Holmes story.

Still, it's the twenty first century now, and we want our heroes to be at least as tough as they are cerebral. Hence the increased usage of howitzers, I suspect. But while there is less in the way of mystery solving, we are still treated to a fairly good puzzle of sorts as we untangle Moriarty's scheme. And while eventually that scheme ends up making Game of Shadows read very similar to the League of Extraordinary Gentleman (very, very similar when you'll recall that was also run by Moriarty), Holmes at least is more prepared to engage his opponent with wits as well as fists.

Featuring an enjoyable appearance by Stephen Fry as Holmes' brother, Game of Shadows is fun, fast paced and stylish while still holding on to that more gritty and careful manner ensuring you pay attention to the ins and outs of the plot as it unfolds. I must say I did enjoy how they worked out the finale, having Holmes and Moriarty confront each other over a chessboard while their respective plans are carried out in the other room was pretty good. So while we may have lost a bit of the measured and odd from the first film we have picked up more speed and style, while not making things too dumbed down, I hope. Three disguises out of Five.


- Peace out