News / no news
I am not typically much for finding delight over other people's misfortune (or "Schadenfreude" as the Germans call it). However, I do so much enjoy reading about the legal problems the evil empire known as News Corporation and its evil overlord Rupert Murdoch is suffering from right now, along with the attendant damages to its reputation and finances. To make things even better, members of the Tory party who is currently destroying the UK have also been dragged into it. I do however feel a bit sorry for the innocent or mainly innocent people that get pushed in front of the train - like the people who happened to work for NOTW whose only mistake was not picking a better employer.
Unfortunately, Rupert Murdoch himself (it is a curious coincidence that another newspaper baron who was a crook had the same initials - Robert Maxwell) is unlikely to end up in jail. It appears that he like many others have set up the organisation so that various henchmen (and henchwomen) are the ones who will end up getting the formal blame. Speaking of which, I'm a bit bothered by the role of Rebekah Brooks in this mess - a redheaded women who is a) evil and b) not hot? Whenever I think of her, I need to think of Karen Gillian or Kari Byron for a while to help me avoid damaging that particular prejudice which I do hold so dear.
I'm guessing most Australians are getting more pleased by the day that Murdoch insists he is actually an American.
There is one thing about the US presidential election that puzzles me. The US in general, and the Republicans in particular, are regarded as being obsessed about Christianity - people who believe in the wrong fairytales, or worse, no fairytales, are apparently bad. And yet, the republicans are about to pick a non-Christian presidential nominee. I was about to ask if the other candidates where really that bad, then I remembered that they where. (Jon Huntsman is also a non-Christian, but he also had the distinct handicap for a republican candidate that he in some cases believed in reality). I'm hoping that Obama will get re-elected. Although certainly not perfect, I'd prefer him over Romney. I just hope that the lesser of two evils (or "the democrats" as they prefer to be called) manage to take over congress, since the republicans who currently rule there seem far more interested in what is bad for the democrats than what is good for the country. Unfortunately, the US is unlikely to get a decent healthcare system for at least several more decades. Clinton tried and failed. Obama tried and failed - he managed to push through changes, but not surprisingly they ended up more aimed at what is good for the insurance companies than what is good for the population. A number of years ago, a WHO report showed that among industrialised countries, the US had the worst health care per capita, at an expense twice as high per capita than the second most expensive. Apparently, this is a good thing... Granted, I had major problems in my country when I got ill, but that was to a large extent because I was in the tiny minority of people in my home town who didn't know that our health care centre was atrocious. My life now would be very different if I had gone to a different centre, even though that would have meant travelling. The centre was later privatized and at the time I thought that even though privatization usually makes things worse, things couldn't really get worse in this case! Turned out I was not sufficiently cynical. At least I'm still alive, unlike a woman I used to know who had the misfortune of ending up with the same alleged doctor as me. When living in England I did get ill once, and injured once and contacted the local NHS surgery in the places I lived on those two occasions and was impressed by the reception I got there. Alas, NHS seems to be high on the list of things the Tories want to destroy, but due to NHS popularity it seems they have to resort to salami slicing tactics.
I wonder what will happen during the next UK general election. The Tories seem to be becoming increasingly unpopular - they have managed to become something extraordinary, a conservative government which has been harmful not merely to the unimportant poorest 95% of the population, but also to the rich! The Lib dems have been damaged by being the Tories coalition party - their share of the blame seems to have been so far much greater than their share of influence. Although Labour in their "new labour" guise, led by Tony Bliar and Gordon Brown was bad, but what little I've heard of the current (Milliband) led bunch seems vaguely promising.
And then there is the Union, but for how long? Alex Salmond has been dragged into the Murdoch mess (I'm trying hard not to refer to their relationship as "fishy"). Apparently the main complaint from those Scots who want to separate is that the rest of the UK is a parasite on Scotland; while those from other parts of the UK who want Scotland to leave mainly seem to do think so because they consider Scotland a parasite on the rest of the UK. This, incidentally, is an argument I recognise from my own country, with the southern half and the northern half both referring to the other half being parasitical. Personally, I've gotten more partial towards Scotland ever since I found out about Karen Gillian.
If Scotland would leave, what would happen to the rest of the union? Although I can't be bothered to look it up, I seem to recall the England makes up around 90% of the population, which would increase to around 95% if Scotland leaves. In Norn Iron, the protestant/unionist/loyalist/prod population, as far as I understand, are most connected to Scotland, which is where most of their ancestors come from - and I doubt very much an independent Scotland would want Northern Ireland to tag along, and England+Wales would presumably prefer being rid of it as well, which could lead to a 26+6=1 situation on that island since an independent NI seems unlikely to work. Unfortunately, it would also quite possibly lead to the protestant/unionist/loyalist/prod and catholic/republican/taig sides deciding that it is time to kill each other again. As for Wales and England, they're more tightly integrated than the other parts of the union. Although there isn't much support for independence in Wales, perhaps that would grow if the English, as a result of Scotland leaving, and NI possibly leaving (or getting thrown out!) become even more dominant. If so, there is an extremely important matter I'd like to find out how it would be resolved: What would happen to Welsh-produced (BBC Cymru) Dr. Who? Will all us fans have to learn Welsh to watch it?
Unfortunately, Rupert Murdoch himself (it is a curious coincidence that another newspaper baron who was a crook had the same initials - Robert Maxwell) is unlikely to end up in jail. It appears that he like many others have set up the organisation so that various henchmen (and henchwomen) are the ones who will end up getting the formal blame. Speaking of which, I'm a bit bothered by the role of Rebekah Brooks in this mess - a redheaded women who is a) evil and b) not hot? Whenever I think of her, I need to think of Karen Gillian or Kari Byron for a while to help me avoid damaging that particular prejudice which I do hold so dear.
I'm guessing most Australians are getting more pleased by the day that Murdoch insists he is actually an American.
There is one thing about the US presidential election that puzzles me. The US in general, and the Republicans in particular, are regarded as being obsessed about Christianity - people who believe in the wrong fairytales, or worse, no fairytales, are apparently bad. And yet, the republicans are about to pick a non-Christian presidential nominee. I was about to ask if the other candidates where really that bad, then I remembered that they where. (Jon Huntsman is also a non-Christian, but he also had the distinct handicap for a republican candidate that he in some cases believed in reality). I'm hoping that Obama will get re-elected. Although certainly not perfect, I'd prefer him over Romney. I just hope that the lesser of two evils (or "the democrats" as they prefer to be called) manage to take over congress, since the republicans who currently rule there seem far more interested in what is bad for the democrats than what is good for the country. Unfortunately, the US is unlikely to get a decent healthcare system for at least several more decades. Clinton tried and failed. Obama tried and failed - he managed to push through changes, but not surprisingly they ended up more aimed at what is good for the insurance companies than what is good for the population. A number of years ago, a WHO report showed that among industrialised countries, the US had the worst health care per capita, at an expense twice as high per capita than the second most expensive. Apparently, this is a good thing... Granted, I had major problems in my country when I got ill, but that was to a large extent because I was in the tiny minority of people in my home town who didn't know that our health care centre was atrocious. My life now would be very different if I had gone to a different centre, even though that would have meant travelling. The centre was later privatized and at the time I thought that even though privatization usually makes things worse, things couldn't really get worse in this case! Turned out I was not sufficiently cynical. At least I'm still alive, unlike a woman I used to know who had the misfortune of ending up with the same alleged doctor as me. When living in England I did get ill once, and injured once and contacted the local NHS surgery in the places I lived on those two occasions and was impressed by the reception I got there. Alas, NHS seems to be high on the list of things the Tories want to destroy, but due to NHS popularity it seems they have to resort to salami slicing tactics.
I wonder what will happen during the next UK general election. The Tories seem to be becoming increasingly unpopular - they have managed to become something extraordinary, a conservative government which has been harmful not merely to the unimportant poorest 95% of the population, but also to the rich! The Lib dems have been damaged by being the Tories coalition party - their share of the blame seems to have been so far much greater than their share of influence. Although Labour in their "new labour" guise, led by Tony Bliar and Gordon Brown was bad, but what little I've heard of the current (Milliband) led bunch seems vaguely promising.
And then there is the Union, but for how long? Alex Salmond has been dragged into the Murdoch mess (I'm trying hard not to refer to their relationship as "fishy"). Apparently the main complaint from those Scots who want to separate is that the rest of the UK is a parasite on Scotland; while those from other parts of the UK who want Scotland to leave mainly seem to do think so because they consider Scotland a parasite on the rest of the UK. This, incidentally, is an argument I recognise from my own country, with the southern half and the northern half both referring to the other half being parasitical. Personally, I've gotten more partial towards Scotland ever since I found out about Karen Gillian.
If Scotland would leave, what would happen to the rest of the union? Although I can't be bothered to look it up, I seem to recall the England makes up around 90% of the population, which would increase to around 95% if Scotland leaves. In Norn Iron, the protestant/unionist/loyalist/prod population, as far as I understand, are most connected to Scotland, which is where most of their ancestors come from - and I doubt very much an independent Scotland would want Northern Ireland to tag along, and England+Wales would presumably prefer being rid of it as well, which could lead to a 26+6=1 situation on that island since an independent NI seems unlikely to work. Unfortunately, it would also quite possibly lead to the protestant/unionist/loyalist/prod and catholic/republican/taig sides deciding that it is time to kill each other again. As for Wales and England, they're more tightly integrated than the other parts of the union. Although there isn't much support for independence in Wales, perhaps that would grow if the English, as a result of Scotland leaving, and NI possibly leaving (or getting thrown out!) become even more dominant. If so, there is an extremely important matter I'd like to find out how it would be resolved: What would happen to Welsh-produced (BBC Cymru) Dr. Who? Will all us fans have to learn Welsh to watch it?