iblog

Lottie: I know this has been discussed to death already but I thought I would contribute another standard rant about Kate Moss’s Top Shop line. For one, it’s completely unoriginal, mismatched and kind of tacky (That ‘wet look’ halter dress…), for another, Kate’s not a designer and this proves it. However, she is still a fashion icon with amazing personal taste. Why didn’t Top Shop bosses get Kate to pick her favourite pieces from the current season and put together a range from that, more like a style consultation? Still, this doesn’t change the fact that crazed consumers are trampling over each other to buy the stuff and you can’t argue with that from a business point of view, shame Top Shop had to sacrifice its style to do so.  

Lottie: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is one of the latest 'cool new people' to join up to the MySpace network. In his details he lists that he is here for 'friends' and 'networking'. Well, I would be surprised if he were looking for a relationship or someone to go to gigs with... This is clearly an attempt to reach the yoof of America and, well, as uncomfortable and out of place as all politicians seem in youthful forums, I was still tempted to take a look and judging by the encouraging posts on his wall (with excessive use of exclamation marks) I wasn't the only one.

Lottie: I was chatting to a friend today who had recently been to Palestine to cover a story and he told me how peaceful some parts of the country were. I started wondering if the same were true in Iraq. It's difficult to move beyond the devastation of war there and today saw one of the worst single attacks on civilians since conflict began, leaving over 200 dead in Baghdad. However, in Iraqi Kurdistan, an autonomous province in the North of the country, there is little conflict. One of the region's main economic staples is tourism. You won't hear many stories of people travelling there, but this journalist writing for Vanity Fair took his son there over Christmas and found it to be a safer and inspiring region.    I don't mean to detract from the severity of the conflict in Iraq but it's important to acknowledge that the country is continually striving to move forward. Even though Kurdistan is a separate region with its own government, both the President and Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq are Kurdish, Erbil's streets are still patrolled by the same American soldiers and one day this region will hopefully play a part in the regeneration of the whole country. You can fly from Vienna to Erbil with Austrian Airlines. For up to date information check out iraqupdates.com