Modern relationships have evolved far beyond what was once considered traditional. Boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love, get married and live happily ever after. Maybe it has never really been this way, but since good old Henry set the trend for divorce, it seems marriage and relationships in general, are never forever.
As a biologist, it makes perfect sense to me that man and woman should desire more than just one partner with which to procreate. There is a much better chance of ensuring the longevity of your genetic footprint if you mix it up a little. Yet we (mostly) chose to settle with just one partner and it’s socially unacceptable to have more than one partner, or to cheat. But we all know it happens... a lot ! Guys cheat on their girlfriends; husbands and wives have extramarital affairs; women frequently and knowingly enter into relationships with married men.
When discovered, infidelity causes great emotional fallout, but why are we always so surprised when we know it happens so often. If you weren’t getting everything you hoped for from a relationship, would you be able to resist the temptation of a more desirable prospect. Would it mean you loved your partner any less if you sought temporary physical relief ? No probably not. But does that justify the act. Would you expect to be forgiven ?
Most women, and probably men, can usually sense when their partner is up to no good. And when the matter is considered rationally, many would say they would forgive their partner. Yet there is still apparently an urge to, I don’t know, attack your husband with a golf club, when you find out. So it’s not ok, it’s not acceptable to cheat on your partner. But compared with the prospect of losing the partner you love and going it alone, it’s easy to see why many people forgive.
In Elin’s (wife of Tiger Woods) case, the multimillion dollar mansions, extensive staff and leisurely lifestyle will probably ease the pain, but even without all that, she’d probably still forgive him. For better, for worse right ?
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Daytime beauties
So Belle de Jour, the anonymous author of online blog and books ‘Secret diary of a London call girl’ revealed her true identity last week, bringing to the news the topic of prostitution: whether it’s irresponsible to glamorise the industry as Belle and the TV spin-offs did; should prostitution be legalised?; should society do more to help those forced into the trade?
Obviously, I’m no expert in the trade, although many were quick to draw parallels between me and my new found enjoyment of blogging, my not always subtle expression of my sexuality, and the fact that Belle turned out to be a scientist from Bristol ! Having read her story, I can appreciate how she found herself to be exploiting the desires of men to fund her PhD. There may be more to her background than we are lead to believe, but should her call-girl past really be so taboo? The fact that her life turned out this way says more about the increasing cost of higher education and the desperate situations that many students face having accumulated so much debt, than it does about her character. I confess, on realising at the end of my degree I owed over 20k, I once seriously entertained the prospect of working as an escort myself. Fate, and perhaps self respect intervened, but the reality is, most women who turn to prostitution don’t have a choice.
The sad truth of the majority of cases of prostitution is that the men and women who find themselves resorting to such measures, have limited options. Society should not just ignore prostitution, but address the reasons why it happens. It is well said that prostitution is the oldest profession in the world. Men and women have sold sex for centuries and will do so for centuries more. Criminalising the act will not stop it happening. So legalise prostitution. Take the victims off the streets and provide regulated accommodation where those that are likely to benefit from support can be offered help. Maybe the five young women from Suffolk, murdered a few years ago, might still be alive if this approach had been taken.
Legalising prostitution would most certainly rid the trade would of much of the stigma that is currently attached to selling sex, and possibly to sex in general. Who knows, there might even be a knock on effect of reducing the ridiculous teenage pregnancy rate we have in this country; Holland is a good example of this. So long as sex is kept it clean, consensual, and with good contraception where necessary, what exactly is the problem? It is, after all, a well documented medical fact that regular good sex improves ones health.
With a legal and regulated vocation of ‘tantric training’, daytimes beauties might become as commonplace as women of the night. I, therefore, applaud Belle de Jour’s confidence to monetise her sexuality and admire her determination to succeed.
Obviously, I’m no expert in the trade, although many were quick to draw parallels between me and my new found enjoyment of blogging, my not always subtle expression of my sexuality, and the fact that Belle turned out to be a scientist from Bristol ! Having read her story, I can appreciate how she found herself to be exploiting the desires of men to fund her PhD. There may be more to her background than we are lead to believe, but should her call-girl past really be so taboo? The fact that her life turned out this way says more about the increasing cost of higher education and the desperate situations that many students face having accumulated so much debt, than it does about her character. I confess, on realising at the end of my degree I owed over 20k, I once seriously entertained the prospect of working as an escort myself. Fate, and perhaps self respect intervened, but the reality is, most women who turn to prostitution don’t have a choice.
The sad truth of the majority of cases of prostitution is that the men and women who find themselves resorting to such measures, have limited options. Society should not just ignore prostitution, but address the reasons why it happens. It is well said that prostitution is the oldest profession in the world. Men and women have sold sex for centuries and will do so for centuries more. Criminalising the act will not stop it happening. So legalise prostitution. Take the victims off the streets and provide regulated accommodation where those that are likely to benefit from support can be offered help. Maybe the five young women from Suffolk, murdered a few years ago, might still be alive if this approach had been taken.
Legalising prostitution would most certainly rid the trade would of much of the stigma that is currently attached to selling sex, and possibly to sex in general. Who knows, there might even be a knock on effect of reducing the ridiculous teenage pregnancy rate we have in this country; Holland is a good example of this. So long as sex is kept it clean, consensual, and with good contraception where necessary, what exactly is the problem? It is, after all, a well documented medical fact that regular good sex improves ones health.
With a legal and regulated vocation of ‘tantric training’, daytimes beauties might become as commonplace as women of the night. I, therefore, applaud Belle de Jour’s confidence to monetise her sexuality and admire her determination to succeed.
Tuesday, 10 November 2009
The Poppy wars
I am wondering why no-one has commented on the irony of the Poppy symbol for Armistice Day and its links with Afghanistan. Perhaps it’s not politically correct to do so, but given the increasing gravity of the situation in Afghanistan and the wish of the majority of Britons to support their troops, it seems a little ignorant not to point out the obvious.
With the devastating loss of so many young soldiers recently and the current intensification of British military activity in Afghanistan, what was dubbed the ‘war on terror’ is at the forefront of public concerns. Families of those who have been killed want to know what we are fighting for.
The US and British governments, and state controlled news media would have us believe that continued military presence is necessary to secure safe and fair elections, and maintain political stability. There was little attempt, at least, to deny that both governments supported an outcome favourable to the western world.
The truth is probably less savoury. The so called ‘war on terror’ is now predominantly led by counter-narcotics initiatives. The control of thousands of acres of poppy fields by the Taliban for the production of heroin and generation of cash continues to ensure their survival. The cash is put back into weapons and the war continues. On the face of it then, should one country’s political activities be of such concern to the British government? No-one seems quite as bothered by events in the Democratic Republic of Congo or Zimbabwe. When you consider the underlying reasons, however, there appears to be much stronger justification for continuing war efforts in Afghanistan. So why doesn’t the government just tell the truth?
Should eradication of Afghan poppy fields be one of Britain’s primary military objectives? I don’t have a better answer for how to control worldwide demand for narcotics and continued fuelling of terrorism. So until I do, I will trust current military objectives and offer my full support to every man and woman, young and old who has risked his life in the name of protecting his country. To me the poppy is a symbol representing the possibility of peace, and the duty for all of us to find a way.
With the devastating loss of so many young soldiers recently and the current intensification of British military activity in Afghanistan, what was dubbed the ‘war on terror’ is at the forefront of public concerns. Families of those who have been killed want to know what we are fighting for.
The US and British governments, and state controlled news media would have us believe that continued military presence is necessary to secure safe and fair elections, and maintain political stability. There was little attempt, at least, to deny that both governments supported an outcome favourable to the western world.
The truth is probably less savoury. The so called ‘war on terror’ is now predominantly led by counter-narcotics initiatives. The control of thousands of acres of poppy fields by the Taliban for the production of heroin and generation of cash continues to ensure their survival. The cash is put back into weapons and the war continues. On the face of it then, should one country’s political activities be of such concern to the British government? No-one seems quite as bothered by events in the Democratic Republic of Congo or Zimbabwe. When you consider the underlying reasons, however, there appears to be much stronger justification for continuing war efforts in Afghanistan. So why doesn’t the government just tell the truth?
Should eradication of Afghan poppy fields be one of Britain’s primary military objectives? I don’t have a better answer for how to control worldwide demand for narcotics and continued fuelling of terrorism. So until I do, I will trust current military objectives and offer my full support to every man and woman, young and old who has risked his life in the name of protecting his country. To me the poppy is a symbol representing the possibility of peace, and the duty for all of us to find a way.
Sunday, 25 October 2009
That evil BNP leader
I refuse to give him credit by naming him, however, I believe the BBC had a duty to invite the BNP leader onto Question Time last week. It is unfortunate that sufficient people in this country have given the BNP enough support to mean that they are now a political party of significance. The editors were, therefore, right to invite the party’s leader onto the show in the interests of inviting political debate. I, however, deliberately chose, as I have the freedom to do, not to watch. I have seen and read enough to know that there is nothing that man could possibly say to justify the party’s ridiculous stance to me. So I cannot comment on the programme, but of course have views on the party and situation as a whole.
The party trades mainly on its argument that immigration in Britain is out of control, and that ‘non-white’ immigrants are taking jobs and benefits away from ‘indigenous white Britons’. It gets me heated up just to repeat these ridiculous nonsense phrases; however, there is some strength in the immigration argument. Britain has long given the impression to immigrants that they can come here and live and eat for free as long as they wish. One way to tackle over immigration is not to stop those in need from seeking asylum here, but as I have commented before, by tightening up the welfare system. By removing the incentive to migrate to Britain from countries without such a generous welfare system, less people would be inclined to take the risk of being jobless and homeless.
There should not be the right for immigrants to arrive in Britain and automatically receive access to the healthcare and welfare system that British citizens work hard to pay for, without the expectation that any immigrant will make a significant contribution to the state. I would not consider it right to go to China, the Philippines or anywhere else and live off their welfare system (if they had one). I would expect to have to work for a living and, if offered free education, repay the country with the skills I had been provided with. I consider myself fortunate to have received a (reasonable) quality education from the British state and believe I have a duty to repay my debt to society.
The argument that jobs are taken from British citizens has little credibility. British workers aren’t willing to lower themselves to picking fruit or colleting cockles because they know they can just spend an hour at the job centre picking up their welfare cheque, then stopping off to buy cigarettes and alcohol on their way home to watch Trisha. The jobs market should always be a free market and if immigrants are prepared to work hard at both the lower and higher end of the jobs market where others wouldn’t or couldn’t, that is not a bad thing.
For the BNP to claim that they are not a racist party is simple not true. The party has rules that do not permit certain people from becoming members; this is arguably illegal never mind racist. A quick search of the party leader’s political history will reveal that he is an extremely rightwing, fascist, racist. It is frightening that those who have not sought or not been given accurate information on the party’s fundamental roots have been duped into voting for the BNP. Labour, the Conservatives, Lib dems, even the Greens must up their game to win back the support of voters and stop a BNP vote by default.
I am also disgusted at the BNP’s hijacking of certain symbols and phrases. You will notice the poppy on my picture today in support of the hundreds of thousands of brave servicemen and women that have fought to protect our country. This includes men and women of all races and creeds, remembering also our Ghurkha friends who have leant their support to Britain for many decades. The BNP party’s misuse of the British flag and questionably motivated support of British forces creates a misleading image of what it means to be British. I consider myself a British National and proud (if a little embarrassed sometimes due to weak government efforts). But it makes me very angry that this phrase also has other implications. I have worked and paid tax and NI in this country for over a decade and intend to do so for the rest of my working life, in addition to making a significant contribution to public services. So I am of course, a model example of a second generation immigrant! And proof that it is not immigration in itself that is the problem, but the invitation of a welfare system open to abuse.
The party trades mainly on its argument that immigration in Britain is out of control, and that ‘non-white’ immigrants are taking jobs and benefits away from ‘indigenous white Britons’. It gets me heated up just to repeat these ridiculous nonsense phrases; however, there is some strength in the immigration argument. Britain has long given the impression to immigrants that they can come here and live and eat for free as long as they wish. One way to tackle over immigration is not to stop those in need from seeking asylum here, but as I have commented before, by tightening up the welfare system. By removing the incentive to migrate to Britain from countries without such a generous welfare system, less people would be inclined to take the risk of being jobless and homeless.
There should not be the right for immigrants to arrive in Britain and automatically receive access to the healthcare and welfare system that British citizens work hard to pay for, without the expectation that any immigrant will make a significant contribution to the state. I would not consider it right to go to China, the Philippines or anywhere else and live off their welfare system (if they had one). I would expect to have to work for a living and, if offered free education, repay the country with the skills I had been provided with. I consider myself fortunate to have received a (reasonable) quality education from the British state and believe I have a duty to repay my debt to society.
The argument that jobs are taken from British citizens has little credibility. British workers aren’t willing to lower themselves to picking fruit or colleting cockles because they know they can just spend an hour at the job centre picking up their welfare cheque, then stopping off to buy cigarettes and alcohol on their way home to watch Trisha. The jobs market should always be a free market and if immigrants are prepared to work hard at both the lower and higher end of the jobs market where others wouldn’t or couldn’t, that is not a bad thing.
For the BNP to claim that they are not a racist party is simple not true. The party has rules that do not permit certain people from becoming members; this is arguably illegal never mind racist. A quick search of the party leader’s political history will reveal that he is an extremely rightwing, fascist, racist. It is frightening that those who have not sought or not been given accurate information on the party’s fundamental roots have been duped into voting for the BNP. Labour, the Conservatives, Lib dems, even the Greens must up their game to win back the support of voters and stop a BNP vote by default.
I am also disgusted at the BNP’s hijacking of certain symbols and phrases. You will notice the poppy on my picture today in support of the hundreds of thousands of brave servicemen and women that have fought to protect our country. This includes men and women of all races and creeds, remembering also our Ghurkha friends who have leant their support to Britain for many decades. The BNP party’s misuse of the British flag and questionably motivated support of British forces creates a misleading image of what it means to be British. I consider myself a British National and proud (if a little embarrassed sometimes due to weak government efforts). But it makes me very angry that this phrase also has other implications. I have worked and paid tax and NI in this country for over a decade and intend to do so for the rest of my working life, in addition to making a significant contribution to public services. So I am of course, a model example of a second generation immigrant! And proof that it is not immigration in itself that is the problem, but the invitation of a welfare system open to abuse.
Monday, 19 October 2009
Congrats to Jenson Button on F1 championship
Well, I couldn’t call myself a real F1 fan if I didn’t blog about Jenson’s fantastic championship win! He is an awesome driver and really deserves it. Was excellent to see him carve up the new boys on the track with some brilliant overtaking moves and drive his heart out to win the championship in Brazil last night. A quick mention to the other drivers in yesterday's race, Webber who won, Hamilton's brilliant drive through the field, and Kimi Raikkonen who was really 'on fire' !
Anyone who knows me will know I have been a fan of Jenson Button ever since his first drive in 2000 with Williams. This was probably more to do with his being from Somerset, not all that far from where I grew up, and me harbouring secret fantasies of bumping into him one day and him asking me out... ok, I said it was a fantasy! But he got me hooked on F1 and Grand Prix racing and I’ve been a dedicated follower ever since.
Watching Jenson struggle through his days at Renault and Honda, it was always clear he was an extremely talented driver and, with the right team and car, would have won an F1 race much sooner than he eventually did after nearly six years of trying. And thanks to the brilliance that is Ross Brawn, he finally got the break he absolutely deserved. He had a great team and car, but you still have to be an instinctively skilled, experienced and determined driver to win grands prix. And everything came together beautifully for Jenson this season.
The fact that Britain has two current world champions in F1 is awesome. Of course I support Lewis Hamilton, but I’m afraid if it came down to a head to head between the two, I would be cheering for Jenson every time! So bring on 2010. If McClaren can get their gear sorted out, which they probably will, and Lewis is still hungry to show everyone who is really the best (drop the pussy cat doll, she’s distracting you!)... then Jenson and Brawn won’t have an easy time defending their championship. And we will be loving watching every second !
Anyone who knows me will know I have been a fan of Jenson Button ever since his first drive in 2000 with Williams. This was probably more to do with his being from Somerset, not all that far from where I grew up, and me harbouring secret fantasies of bumping into him one day and him asking me out... ok, I said it was a fantasy! But he got me hooked on F1 and Grand Prix racing and I’ve been a dedicated follower ever since.
Watching Jenson struggle through his days at Renault and Honda, it was always clear he was an extremely talented driver and, with the right team and car, would have won an F1 race much sooner than he eventually did after nearly six years of trying. And thanks to the brilliance that is Ross Brawn, he finally got the break he absolutely deserved. He had a great team and car, but you still have to be an instinctively skilled, experienced and determined driver to win grands prix. And everything came together beautifully for Jenson this season.
The fact that Britain has two current world champions in F1 is awesome. Of course I support Lewis Hamilton, but I’m afraid if it came down to a head to head between the two, I would be cheering for Jenson every time! So bring on 2010. If McClaren can get their gear sorted out, which they probably will, and Lewis is still hungry to show everyone who is really the best (drop the pussy cat doll, she’s distracting you!)... then Jenson and Brawn won’t have an easy time defending their championship. And we will be loving watching every second !
Friday, 9 October 2009
Life under DC
Oh how I wish by DC I meant the delightful David Coulthard, wouldn’t that be a treat.
Unfortunately the DC I refer to is David Cameron. And, due to Labour and Gordon Brown’s lacklustre performance of late, I think we all know that, come next summer, Cameron will be running the country. I’m not normally a defeatist, but this is pretty much a foregone conclusion.
So how will the country change. I’m not normally a pessimist either, nor do I pretend to be a political historian of any authority, but what happened the last time the conservatives went into government ? Utilities, railways, and many other national industries were privatised; Financial services were deregulated; interest rates were the highest on record. So that all worked out really well then didn’t it?
To be fair, the conservatives do have a reputation of willingness to be ruthless with welfare, something I would support them in if it weren’t for the appearance of most conservatives that as long as they’re alright, who cares about the poor. And I admit, I have been genuinely impressed with Cameron himself. He seems to care. But this is the problem, he SEEMS to care. Cameron is just the pretty face the party are using to front them. He’s just the PR guy. It will still be the old Etonian boys that will be making all the decisions.
The only positive thing I can see coming our way at the moment is that the conservatives realise they will be picking up the keys to number 10 next May, and are actually making some solid plans. So they should be well prepared...but I think I’ll be fixing my mortgage rate before May!
Unfortunately the DC I refer to is David Cameron. And, due to Labour and Gordon Brown’s lacklustre performance of late, I think we all know that, come next summer, Cameron will be running the country. I’m not normally a defeatist, but this is pretty much a foregone conclusion.
So how will the country change. I’m not normally a pessimist either, nor do I pretend to be a political historian of any authority, but what happened the last time the conservatives went into government ? Utilities, railways, and many other national industries were privatised; Financial services were deregulated; interest rates were the highest on record. So that all worked out really well then didn’t it?
To be fair, the conservatives do have a reputation of willingness to be ruthless with welfare, something I would support them in if it weren’t for the appearance of most conservatives that as long as they’re alright, who cares about the poor. And I admit, I have been genuinely impressed with Cameron himself. He seems to care. But this is the problem, he SEEMS to care. Cameron is just the pretty face the party are using to front them. He’s just the PR guy. It will still be the old Etonian boys that will be making all the decisions.
The only positive thing I can see coming our way at the moment is that the conservatives realise they will be picking up the keys to number 10 next May, and are actually making some solid plans. So they should be well prepared...but I think I’ll be fixing my mortgage rate before May!
Tuesday, 29 September 2009
Wipe out Welfare
Well ok, maybe not completely. But we could easy knock a few billion of the benefits bill by getting tough on the lazy ‘can’t work, won’t work’.
Now, I don’t pretend to understand the intricacies of the UK’s liberal welfare system...its way too complicated, but maybe this is part of the problem. Who, for example, understands how tax credits work ? Anyone ? Anyone at all. No, thought not, and that apparently includes most of Her Majesty’s revenue and customs officers. The founding principles of welfare are basically positive – to provide assistance to the deserving poor. But our generous welfare system has resulted in this deserving minority becoming vastly outnumbered by the undeserved.
So it’s time to get tough. 10% cuts on public spending ?.. .Welfare should be the first place to drop the axe. It’s an unfortunate time to be saying this, but I just don’t believe there aren’t enough jobs out there. McDonalds are recruiting ! Seriously though, society would be much better off if public sector jobs were created for the unemployed instead of just paying them to sit at home watching Kilroy (or whichever other useless person hosts daytime TV shows these days). Our schools and hospitals need cleaners, they along with most other public buildings are filthy, the streets need sweeping...pay people to scrape chewing gum off the pavements if you have to. As long as the government pays the lazy to do nothing, they will do nothing. Continuing to do so goes against the principles of the state welfare system.
Another place to get tough is single teenage mothers. Have children young by all means, but do not expect the state to raise you and your kids. Partners, families, friends should be turned to for support, but the young and uneducated seem to believe that a pregnancy and a baby are a ticket to your own home and a weekly cheque courtesy of the state. How did this happen? It’s absolutely right that every child in this country should receive a guaranteed sum to prevent that child ever going hungry, many deserving single mothers are grateful for this lifeline. But these are usually the ones that also work full time and claim no other benefits. Young single mothers should remain in the care of their own family, or be housed in a similar manner to other children in care, ensuring that education continues.
Well, would you look at that, it’s happening as we speak...Gord announces young teenage mothers will no longer get their own homes paid for by the state. The talk doesn’t work unless you do what you say you’re going to though Labour.
Now, I don’t pretend to understand the intricacies of the UK’s liberal welfare system...its way too complicated, but maybe this is part of the problem. Who, for example, understands how tax credits work ? Anyone ? Anyone at all. No, thought not, and that apparently includes most of Her Majesty’s revenue and customs officers. The founding principles of welfare are basically positive – to provide assistance to the deserving poor. But our generous welfare system has resulted in this deserving minority becoming vastly outnumbered by the undeserved.
So it’s time to get tough. 10% cuts on public spending ?.. .Welfare should be the first place to drop the axe. It’s an unfortunate time to be saying this, but I just don’t believe there aren’t enough jobs out there. McDonalds are recruiting ! Seriously though, society would be much better off if public sector jobs were created for the unemployed instead of just paying them to sit at home watching Kilroy (or whichever other useless person hosts daytime TV shows these days). Our schools and hospitals need cleaners, they along with most other public buildings are filthy, the streets need sweeping...pay people to scrape chewing gum off the pavements if you have to. As long as the government pays the lazy to do nothing, they will do nothing. Continuing to do so goes against the principles of the state welfare system.
Another place to get tough is single teenage mothers. Have children young by all means, but do not expect the state to raise you and your kids. Partners, families, friends should be turned to for support, but the young and uneducated seem to believe that a pregnancy and a baby are a ticket to your own home and a weekly cheque courtesy of the state. How did this happen? It’s absolutely right that every child in this country should receive a guaranteed sum to prevent that child ever going hungry, many deserving single mothers are grateful for this lifeline. But these are usually the ones that also work full time and claim no other benefits. Young single mothers should remain in the care of their own family, or be housed in a similar manner to other children in care, ensuring that education continues.
Well, would you look at that, it’s happening as we speak...Gord announces young teenage mothers will no longer get their own homes paid for by the state. The talk doesn’t work unless you do what you say you’re going to though Labour.
Monday, 21 September 2009
The debt disaster
Finance, the economy, money, up there as one of my favoured discussion topics, expect much much more. So where to start ? This really could go on for quite some time, its getting late, and I have a TV date with...no, sorry not ready to confess my guilty TV secrets yet ! So just briefly...
I am no expert, but this has been concerning me for years, ever since I first learned whilst at uni that the amount of interest paid annually on UK national debt was well into the billions, and that was just the interest. I remember thinking that just the interest on the debt was almost as much as the higher education budget. The actual amount of debt eclipsed pretty much everything else.
And this week we learn that the country is 800 billion quid in the red ? Doesn’t that scare you just a little bit. And we are now paying 24 billion annually just to have that debt. To put this into perspective, that’s about half the total MOD budget or the schools budget. There’s a whole lot more productive things we could be spending that money on if we didn’t have so many billions of debt to pay interest on.
So pay down the debt, right ? This is just basic budgeting surely. Something I realised a decade ago... I’d be a lot better off if I wasn’t paying 100’s of pounds every month in debt interest. This had to be my priority. So why isn’t it the government or the nation’s top priority ? I know we’re (still) in a recession, but hello, maybe this is part of the reason why. Economists (hi bro) will tell you debt is a good thing; I am not convinced. Not at this level anyway.
And why is national debt always hidden by quoting it as a percentage of GDP ? Just give us the hard figures. Tbc.
I am no expert, but this has been concerning me for years, ever since I first learned whilst at uni that the amount of interest paid annually on UK national debt was well into the billions, and that was just the interest. I remember thinking that just the interest on the debt was almost as much as the higher education budget. The actual amount of debt eclipsed pretty much everything else.
And this week we learn that the country is 800 billion quid in the red ? Doesn’t that scare you just a little bit. And we are now paying 24 billion annually just to have that debt. To put this into perspective, that’s about half the total MOD budget or the schools budget. There’s a whole lot more productive things we could be spending that money on if we didn’t have so many billions of debt to pay interest on.
So pay down the debt, right ? This is just basic budgeting surely. Something I realised a decade ago... I’d be a lot better off if I wasn’t paying 100’s of pounds every month in debt interest. This had to be my priority. So why isn’t it the government or the nation’s top priority ? I know we’re (still) in a recession, but hello, maybe this is part of the reason why. Economists (hi bro) will tell you debt is a good thing; I am not convinced. Not at this level anyway.
And why is national debt always hidden by quoting it as a percentage of GDP ? Just give us the hard figures. Tbc.
Spell checker
So, as has been extensively pointed out to me, the spelling in my first blog was appalling ! This is made doubly worse as bad spelling is one of my biggest pet hates. (Disclaimer to a guy I was dating recently: it wasn’t your dyslexia that put me off !)
I therefore apologise profusely for my disrespectful use of the beautiful English language. In my defence though, I did knock up my first post in about four minutes ! I now have a dilemma though. Do I, as was suggested, use a spell checker, thus becoming lazy in my attention to proper English and probably ending up with worse spelling, or attempt to make do without one, try harder to improve my writing (I have a written exam in a few months and I am concerned I may have forgotten how to use a pen and paper and write an essay !), but risk looking a bit dumb because I mis-spelled ? (Long sentences are another of my bad habits !)
Well I’ve decided, I am going to go it alone. So here is my plea, I am not dense, I have a bachelors degree, am a practising scientist and able mathematician. But in commitment to good English, am currently experimenting with not using a spell checker. So I will be re-reading my blogs as often as you !
I therefore apologise profusely for my disrespectful use of the beautiful English language. In my defence though, I did knock up my first post in about four minutes ! I now have a dilemma though. Do I, as was suggested, use a spell checker, thus becoming lazy in my attention to proper English and probably ending up with worse spelling, or attempt to make do without one, try harder to improve my writing (I have a written exam in a few months and I am concerned I may have forgotten how to use a pen and paper and write an essay !), but risk looking a bit dumb because I mis-spelled ? (Long sentences are another of my bad habits !)
Well I’ve decided, I am going to go it alone. So here is my plea, I am not dense, I have a bachelors degree, am a practising scientist and able mathematician. But in commitment to good English, am currently experimenting with not using a spell checker. So I will be re-reading my blogs as often as you !
Monday, 14 September 2009
Public transport
OK, I confess, I took the car. It looked like it was about to rain, and I had cyled into the city and back already this morning.
There was no real need for me to drive. But my options, based on the public transport services in Bristol are limited. A bus journey cost close to a fiver (one-way), takes ages and teh bus is usually fiflthy. And there was no train / tuve / tram option, but if there were, I can guarntee it would cost more.
Public transport in Bristol could be so much better. There has been talk for years about bringing back trams, but all thet really needs to happen is gto open up the train lines again. The infrastructure is already there. Brunel did a fanatastic jub, and society today just ignores this. Virtually every hamlet around the city has an old train station - Redland, Clifton, Montpellier, Severn Beach, Ashley Down. And most of the old platforms are still there and beautiful.
There was no real need for me to drive. But my options, based on the public transport services in Bristol are limited. A bus journey cost close to a fiver (one-way), takes ages and teh bus is usually fiflthy. And there was no train / tuve / tram option, but if there were, I can guarntee it would cost more.
Public transport in Bristol could be so much better. There has been talk for years about bringing back trams, but all thet really needs to happen is gto open up the train lines again. The infrastructure is already there. Brunel did a fanatastic jub, and society today just ignores this. Virtually every hamlet around the city has an old train station - Redland, Clifton, Montpellier, Severn Beach, Ashley Down. And most of the old platforms are still there and beautiful.
- Introduce a congestion charge, approx £8. I would be happy to cycle, get the bus / train of price was reasonable, but there is no deterrant to me driving so I often do
- Add a subsidy to coucil tax, say £100 - £200
- Use money from above to subsidise bus / train service.
- A £2 day rider ticket should enable all residents and visitors to travel anywhere around the city - look at the New York subway, Paris metro, both are a zillion times better than anything in the UK
- Residents should be able to purchase a £500 annual public transport pass.
- There should be a bus or train available within a 10 minute walk and 10 minute wait from anywhere in the city.
New blog
Afternoon.
Have just created my blog page, have some stuff to do now, so will begin later. First up, public transport. The services in Britain suck and we could really learn alot from the examples elsewhere in the world. I am about to cycle a 20 mile round journey to pick up some glassess so back later.
Have just created my blog page, have some stuff to do now, so will begin later. First up, public transport. The services in Britain suck and we could really learn alot from the examples elsewhere in the world. I am about to cycle a 20 mile round journey to pick up some glassess so back later.
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