Semiotics, Britain, Norway, Helly Hansen, Poetry and Greenygrey

Hi, it’s Grey Greyvara, social conscience at the Greenygrey. The image of my human parallel Che Guevara became a cultural icon, so I’ve been chosen to present today’s blog on semiotics. My subject for the blog is Dr. Marc Latham, who studied semiotics for his PhD around 2000-2002, before adapting it to framing for his media analysis. Marc was a critical theorist, supporting more media freedom and social liberation. The Islamisation of the left sent him to the Greenygrey centre.

New Brands Theory, Brand New Poetry

Towards the end of Marc’s studies in 2005, branding became the new buzzword in Communications.

Many industries are still discovering branding,
five to seven years behind the Greenygrey.
Not because we searched words to say,
the theories just passed our way.

In 2012 Marc bought a Karrimor coat,
it had a British flag on its front.
In 2013 he wrapped it around a Norwegian tree,
reminding him of another Communications theory.

Helly Hansen, Karrimor and Greenygrey

Helly Hansen is a Norwegian clothing company with a HH logo, as the Greenygrey is GG.

Helly Hansen is proud to fly the Norwegian colours.

Helly Hansen (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Karrimor is a British clothing company with a Union Jack logo.

While that may seem racist-nationalistic to multicultural fascists trying to eradicate any historical Britishness from Britain, the logo is black and white, as the Greenygrey is greenygrey.

When Helly Met Greeny, in Cultural Neutrality

In 2012 Marc Latham bought a new jacket. Having seen a greenygrey one in a store he thought about buying it, but when he looked online he found a Karrimor one much cheaper.

So the decision to buy Karrimor was based on greenygrey colours and price rather than its logo.

Travelling to Norway Marc had no qualms about wearing it, knowing that Norway and Britain have a good relationship, and especially since they were strong allies in World War Two.

Social Consciousness (Photo credit: Marisa | Food in Jars)

Cultural Meaning

So while to some people in the world, and increasingly in Britain (non-sporting Britain anyway, with British sportspeople of all races and colours proud to represent Britain) the British flag might symbolise nationalism and colonialism, in Norway it should represent the fight against Fascism and oppression.

Returning to semiotics and branding, that is how names and images start from human creation, and then grow to mean something in human culture; that meaning is dependent on the culture and individual.

Che Guevara and Winston Churchill are both heroes and villains depending on your political viewpoint, and what issues you focus on.

Communist Che Guevara helped topple an island’s corrupt dictatorship, but executed many people afterwards.

Conservative Winston Churchill helped save an island from corrupt dictatorship, but had presided over the shooting of demonstrating miners.

While their politics might have been different, they both became heroic historical icons to the majority of the people they represented.

Winston Churchill in Downing Street giving his famous ‘V’ sign. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Che Guevara t-shirt (Photo credit: Paul Stainthorp)

Mental Time Trap, Under Tree Top 

So what happened when Helly met Greeny? There are a lot of ways to interpret the tree and Karrimor jacket photo.

It could look like it was all planned, if Marc hadn’t seen Eidfjord trees wrapped in colourful knitting beforehand.

Marc might have thought nothing more,
but with time to spare,
in the Eidfjord forest,
he thought he’d copy
the knitted-kitted trees,
and create a greenygrey display.

Bringing us back to that other theory,
highlighted by Derren Brown cleverly,
of time-delay traps advertisers like to lay.

To show that we’re not rabid anti-capitalists and anti-advertising, and in line with the communist world’s embracing of some capitalism; and to try and sell some books (we’d much rather be working on a grant and giving them away for free, but might have to give up some of our freedom!) which have lots more information like that above, they’re available at Smashwords and Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/author/marclatham).

Eidfjord Forest and Waterfall Natural Escape Photo Article

Hi, it’s Jack Wolfpac, poetic travel correspondent at the Greenygrey. With the WWW three-week spectacular having taken precedence here, we’ve fallen behind with Marc Latham’s travel25years.wordpress.com website, which ended its Scandinavian journey on the same day as the WWW-3-week; by the way, we’d like a three-week working month at the Greenygrey; including a great greenygrey Stockholm fountain. My human parallel, Jack Kerouac, got a mention as well as Abba‘s Agnetha.

Eidfjord Greenygrey Journey

With a few hours to spare in the small town of Eidfjord, whose spectacular mountains were under thick cloud at the time, Marc walked a little up the mountain on a forest path.

Agnetha Fältskog, ABBA, Ekeberghallen, Oslo, Norway (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Leaving humanity behind, and unable to see the spectacular, Marc had time to appreciate the beauty of the natural world that is often overlooked; a natural world that is often greenygrey.

Marc said that in a land dominated by awesome natural beauty, it was a time of quiet contemplation and reflection amongst nature that is often passed without being noticed.

However, once the outside world was forgotten, and the mind absorbed into the quiet surroundings; hearing only rushing water, and seeing only nature, time passed quickly, and there was not time to see it all, or to go farther into the greenygrey void.

Here’s some photos; you can enlarge them by clicking on them. There’ll be a more human discussion deriving from Eidfjord tomorrow:

Women’s European Championships Round-Up: Germany v Norway Final

Hi, it’s Martin ‘Werewolfie’ Adams, comedy satire sports correspondent at the Greenygrey with a not so funny round-up from the women’s European Championships (not reflecting a lack of humour in women). Congratulations to the Norway women, who qualified for Sunday’s European Championships final last night with a penalty-kicks win over the plucky Danes.

Eidfjord war memorial

Eidfjord Norway Photos 

It is now left to the Norwegians to provide resistance to German domination of the competition.

Maybe they can take inspiration from the World War Two Norwegian resistance, who are remembered in one of Marc Latham’s Eidfjord photos from the t25y.wordpress.com website.

Not that the German women are like the World War Two German men who invaded Scandinavia. And a lot of them were just normal people really; just caught up in the whirlwind that had gripped their political system.

German Confidence Helps them Win 

Heidi Klum modeling at The Heart Truth Fashion Show 2008 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Although the German women have dominated the competition by winning the last five championships, and seven of the last eight, with only a Norway victory interrupting the sequence, the Germans were under strength in this competition, with several players out injured.

So the Germans did well to defeat the Swedish hosts 1-0 in the other semi-final, with the occasion seeming to get to the Swedish players; along with a dubious refereeing decision disallowing their goal when they did get the ball in the German net.

To try and avoid a John Inverdalism, in the perilous territory of men reporting women’s sports, we have used a photo of German model Heidi Klum above, rather than any of the German women’s football team; that’s not to say there aren’t any ‘lookers’ on the German team, it’s just to avoid allegations of ‘sexism’ or ‘favouritism’.

We Love Scandinavian Women  

English: Map showing two of the common definitions of “Scandinavia”; a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe: the most common usage: the three monarchies; Denmark, Norway and Sweden an extended usage: including Finland, Iceland and the Faroe Islands (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Sweden has provided an excellent championships, with the crowd support reflecting their position as one of the top gender equality countries in the world.

Norway is just ahead of Sweden in the 2012 rankings (third and fourth), while Germany is surprisingly down in thirteenth. Iceland and Finland are the top two. Ireland and New Zealand are fifth and sixth, before the other Scandinavia country, Denmark.

The U.K. is down in 18th, surprisingly one place above Cuba, which I thought would be higher with their socialist system. Another surprise to me is that the U.S.A. is down in 22nd.