What is wrong with people?

When I think about the people I share this country with, I feel two emotions: shame at being British and a massive desire to leave Britain permanently.

I believe Holland is nice.

Yesterday, I was listening to a conversation between two people I respect and admire. They were discussing the Carol Thatcher/golliwog thing, laughing and reminiscing about things that we, as Brits, used to do that were appallingly racist. The comments were along the lines of "things were different then" and an underlying sentiment that is was excusable because "we didn't know any better".

No it wasn't.

Did we really need people to come along and tell us that it is wrong to call people names and that the colour of your skin doesn't make you a lesser person? Did people not feel that within themselves? Were the Crusades fine, because it was a) long ago and b) Christian? What about the acquiring of the British Empire, and the way it was run? Slavery? Was that ok... because we didn't know any different, times were different then? Nonsense. It was just not popular to actually have a shred of humanity. Some people did and had the gumption to speak out and thank god they did or we'd still be living in a nasty racist society...

Hang on. This is 21st Century Britain. We'd be appalled at using terms to describe people by colour. Nasty nasty words are stamped out. Huzzah! Thank goodness everyone was so pleased by the Eastern Europeans arriving! Imagine if we'd been prejudiced against them. Even though they weren't from the "nice" new countries, you know, the ones that used to be British.

I read responses to an article from the Daily Mail some months ago. There was the initial article, then there was the reader responses (as you'd expect) and then comments on the forum I was reading it on, responding to the whole lot.

The story: a number of Eastern Europeans (I'm not being deliberately generic, I can't remember where they came from) had come to Britain looking for work, believing that this was the best thing for them. These were people who genuinely wanted to work, who wanted to make a better lives for themselves. Yet when they arrived here, there was none of the promised work or life for them and as a result they had ended up living on a roundabout.

The overall response to this?

"Ugh, it really does make the roundabout look nasty". "I'm so glad that's not in MY town". "Who do these people think they are, coming to our country and spoiling our roundabouts?"

Hello???????????????????????????

The story there is "look how our country let these people down". Not "ugh, nasty dirty foreigners".

Yet it was OK to say these things? No one felt embarrassed?

Back to Carol Thatcher. Freedom of speech? Excuse me?
How about "I'm sorry I caused offence, I didn't mean it offensively"?
No. that's too hard. "We" can't apologise. "We" have the right to be offensive if "we" didn't mean it offensively. "We" don't need to explain. "We" don't need to retract our comments if other people are offended, clearly that's their ignorance or political beliefs clouding their judgement.

The Sachs debacle: with the vastly overhyped nonsense, at least Russell Brand used the little exercised thing called "an apology". He could still be arguing the "it was a joke, we didn't meaan any offence, I feel my freedom of speech has been compromised by the whole furore" and taken the usual stance. But he didn't, he gave a dignified, and seemingly sincere, resignation speech and, I feel, did the right thing. I believe Wossy also apologised, I must be fair, but I am a little sickened by the return of the prodigal son effort that's been going on since his return.

It never hurts to say "sorry, I didn't mean it". That doesn't necessarily excuse what you said, but it helps.

******

We're living in a nanny state now, it seems.
Evidence for this?

The government recommended that we should dance for exercise, presumably based on the slightly mystifying obsession with Strictly Come Dancing et al.

and

The government advisers, having been asked to study the effects, recommended that children should not be given any alcohol at all even at home until they are 15 because their bodies can't deal with it.

Recommendations. Not "this is how you must live your life" or "we are telling you how to bring up your children".

For God's sake!!!!!

And there's the MMR thing. Does anyone still believe that? Oh yes, they do. Thank you, hype. Thank you for directly causing the death of children to a disease that had all but been wiped out. I think I mentioned that before...

I'm done now. Please note the sarcasm and don't shoot me for being literal. Thanks.

This year in ponders

At some point earlier this evening I had a momentary panic about the date, for I was quite sure it was next year. Wishful thinking perhaps, but I can only assume that the whole thing about time slowing down when you're busy is true, for this week is incredibly long and I've done more this week than I've done in the last 6 months!

I do believe time does literally slow down but that's something my brain doesn't understand.

So I got to thinking back over this year and what it's been. According to the bible, the year 2008, or 8 to make things simpler, is a year of new beginnings and rebirth. 8 being the number after 7, which is how long everything's supposed to take to complete a cycle, based on the 7 days in a week thing and an awful lot of excitement about the number 7. So, 2007 saw the end of the cycle begun in 2000 and 2008 was the beginning of the next cycle.

Brilliant.

So we can look forward to another 6 years of economic downturn and the media being idiotic. Myself, I think I'd like to opt out of life until 2015 and live in a commune somewhere, eating carrots and seeing if I suit dreadlocks.

The economy:

not that great, really. I don't fully understand it all because it's imaginary money. Somebody somewhere said "actually, I'm not going to give you any more "money" because you might not pay it back" and the whole world ground to a halt. Prior to this, everyone just lent pretend money happily in the belief that it would be virtually returned to them later and all was happy, then suddenly they didn't. And everything collapsed. Why they couldn't say "only joking, of course I'll transfer some not-there money to you and look, we'll say you owe me it and they owe you that and we'll all get some new cars".

Now everything's shutting down. Except it's not. It's not the good stuff. It's the kind of rubbish companies that have been winging along on the happy economy. It's not stuff we want or need. It's the dregs. It's the shops that exist purely because they always have. Nostalgia is not a reason to keep something. This here blog post says some of what I want to say, I shall link it instead of badly paraphrasing.

And banks, I don't care. We don't need a million of them. They're all greedy and provide a non-service. Even Nationwide want all their cash back. Standard Life aren't passing on much of the interest rate cut, because hey, the customer can subsidise them.

The loss of jobs is indeed sad, and terrible for those it is happening to, but, erm, that's what happens in a recession. Never mind, only 6 more years!

The Media:

Well, the biggest story of the year has to be the Russell Brand/Jonathan Ross/Andrew Sachs debacle. Whataloadofnonsense. Yes, it was cruel and I don't consider what they did to be funny, but Andrew Sachs had agreed the broadcast could go ahead. So he wasn't that offended. Who are the Daily Mail to be offended on his behalf? Utter nonsense.

The other piece of utter stupidity was the fraca about the turning on of the LHC. Not that many people understood it but the media focussed on the whole idea that this was the end of the world and ignored the actual science. Noone got excited about the implications, apart from that guy from D:Ream who everyone fancied for a day (Brian Cox, remember? no?). It was really important. It could have answered the fundamental questions about life. But it got turned on, we didn't die, it got broken and everyone thought it was quite amusing. It's still exciting and will still be mega when it gets turned on again next year? the year after? sometime? And we still won't die.

People have died, they always do. I'm not even going to try to suggest which deaths were significant, every death is important to someone. Other people were born: 2 little girls and 1 little boy arrived in my little circle, all perfect, all gorgeous and all most welcome.

Myself:

My own year hasn't been all that eventful although I have mostly been a rather rubbish friend. 2009 is going to be the year I stop saying sorry: no more apologising for things I haven't done, and no more doing things I have to apologise for.
The nicest thing that I do appreciate this year knows it.

The other stuff that mattered this year: I proudly and exhaustedly watched my two little guys grow from toddling babies into competent little boys, I turned vegetarian, and I got an iPhone. And I've been 33.

Fots for today

The title of Jonathan Ross' new book, "Why Do I Say These Things?", makes me smile. I checked to see if it had been published a while ago and been wheeled out to capitalise on the furore, but it was just published a couple of weeks ago. 9 days prior to "that" broadcast in fact, a possible unfortunate choice for the title, or maybe sales will rocket if people think a book can actually be published instanteously and it will be all about the aforementioned furore. People are that stupid, lucky they can't actually read so they won't know they've got the wrong thing. Ho hum.

Unlike Russell Brand's new book though, published the same day incidentally, but NOT on display in every single shop in the whole of Britain (Kirkcaldy being a representative sample), I don't feel like I'd want to read it. A sincere apology goes a very long way. NOTHING to do with the way he looks, nuh uh. I did actually quite enjoy "My Booky Wook", it was a good read even though he wasn't very likeable in it. That, I got given for Christmas last year on account of the way he looks and possible mentions of said fact. Nice cover.

Fawlty Towers has been my ringtone for several years, now it's too topical and it needs to be interrupted periodically with a disclaimer that I didn't just install it. I need a new ringtone. I've only ever had 3: The Professionals, which was ace as a midi file, but as phones improved, it sounded worse and worse, then Blackadder which was good till a colleague said "that's a nice march", then Fawlty Towers (since 2003, dammit, that's the longest time I've remained committed to anything!) which I was infinitely satisfied with, until now. I'm going to have to dust off Dangermouse for the time being, till I think of something else. Luckily I very rarely get calls so it's not an issue, but that's beside the point.

I definitely had other thoughts today. Oh simple thoughts, where have you gone? I'm getting old and I need something to rely on.

Good god. I need help. Help me, help me, I'm drowning in a pool of unformed and entirely inappropriate thoughts.

What's going on, or not

Due to the fact that they sneak it on after Spooks, I watched the News.

The joys.

Russell Brand/Jonathan Ross/Andrew Sachs. Idiots. Cruel. Why is everyone talking about it? The House of Lords? David Cameron? Me? Why? I don't get it. I don't get why some things get mega'd and others just ignored.

The American election is worrying. Obama says something that makes sense:
We need to invest in infrastructure.

The American public go:
Oh, we don't really want to SPEND money

McCain says:
Yeah, we need the infrastructure, but we're not going to pay for it
(which is illogical)

The American public go:
Yes! That's what we want to hear!


Uh huh. Brains connected anyone? No? Hello?



Then I spoilt myself and read the Scotsman headlines to see what happened in Scotland yesterday (it takes me a while to build up the tolerance to read these). Nothing, as usual. There's a big hooha about independent schools and charitable status, and then the inevitable comments after. Of course, this leads to the "private education is ethical and immoral" (I exaggerate nor paraphrase not) comments, which rouses a LOT of rantage from me.

I went to a private school. It was nice. I won't be sending my children to one.

I have never in my life thought that my school makes me one iota better than the next person, but since the day I started there, it has been assumed that I do. Why?

(Exception to this being when I lived in Lesser England and spoke to small minded people - which I am prepared to concede in my old age is not actually the norm for English people, some of them are remarkably nice, but y'know, I'm Scottish, I have to say "English" with a slightly bad taste - who did not believe I could have gone to a private school or surely I would have lost my common Scottish accent)

As a parent, schooling is kind of an important thing to think of, and so I tend to talk about it to other parents. Some have chosen to send their children to private school, and they're not being elitist about it, in the slightest, they simply want their children to get the best possible education. Listening to their reasoning, they sound perfectly sensible. There are those, and they shout loudest, who do it so they say their precious lovelies are at St Snots and so the lovelies can meet lovely snotty friends and marry into some lovely snotty family. But most people aren't like that and they do genuinely want their children to get the best from their education. That's the whole point of paying for something, is it not? Is private healthcare also elitist?

I won't be sending my boys to private school. Main reason: it costs about £9000 a year, per child. That's a whole salary. A big salary after tax. The other reason is that I ended up a dilettante, so it didn't do me a whole lot of good in the long run. Oh, and their semi-anarchist father would never allow it in a million years, he has almost forgiven me.

Years of conditioning make me reluctant to post this because I don't want to be considered elitist and unethical. Maybe it explains it all. Maybe it doesn't. Maybe it doesn't matter.

Today's brain seepage

CNPS is going well, I'm on 19 now. Only 981 to go. It takes up a spectacularly large amount of my consciousness at the moment, I wonder how long this will last. At the moment I have fond memories of spotting most of the numbers, I can't see that I'll end up with 999 distinct memories. 17 was good, as it belongs to a neighbour and I knew that all I had to do was to return home and I'd see it. 18 I saw today and this evening, I am ashamed to say, I drove to a friend's house as her registration is a 19. However, she lives on a cul de sac and as I drove in, I realised that I would have to virtually drive up her driveway to see her car and that could potentially be really embarrassing. So, no 19 and I have a 20 lined up at a garage ready to be seen in its time. Grr. When I get to 51, I want it to be my car, so if I see a 50, I'll have to immediately stop and get out to look at mine before I see another one, being as how they're rather common. Or does it count that I can see the interior of the car?

Yes, ok, I am doing most of my spotting while driving. Stand by for some idiotic crash soon...

I am about to colour my hair. I have spent vast amounts of time and money trying to replicate my own colour because I am distinctly grey and I don't like it. I like it even less because my 41 year old brother has little or no grey, and my 68 year old mother has but a handful. I have been disguising mine since I was 23. After not dying it for a year or so whilst pregnant I had decided to leave it and just accept it, but I got fed up with everyone asking me if I'd had highlights. Yes, of course, white highlights are cool, are they not? The trouble with having dark brown hair is that is impossible to mimic. Just brown gives the impression of having coated your hair with brown shoe polish, yet anything with a non-flat colour is either virtually black, or reddish. I look anaemic with the black option, so I have no choice but to be kind of auburn. Cappuccino, I think it's called, by Garnier Nutrisse, is the closest I can find. Davina McCall uses it, so they lead me to believe, but they also tell me she uses the multi highlights, until you read the small print that says her hair is styled with natural extensions. Which I'm guessing is where the highlights are... I tried the highlights, I looked like a tiger. Not a good look.

The reason for the diaryesque nature at present is that I am reading Richard Herring's blog, dating back to the start in Nov 2002, which makes me think in a bloggy sort of manner. I am now in Jan 2003, not very far in, and it's really interesting. Like an autobiography but including the everyday thoughts that would never make it in a book. It's astonishing to read how someone as clever, funny and well liked as he can be so self doubting sometimes and it does also make the mind boggle when thinking of people that have such fame and attention when they are neither clever nor funny (or indeed talented). It does also hit home the vast differences between people that are in the public eye and people who aren't. Day to day, life may seem the same, but it's not. A blog is a classic example, I am writing this for me and for a handful of friends who may or may not read it, I can pretty much say anything and not worry much about who reads it. Someone who is famous doesn't have that luxury. And I don't think that really is a remotely good example of the differences at all, but it's an example and I'm sticking with it.

I have recently read autobiographies of Russell Brand, Jason Donovan and Richard Hammond (hmm, can you spot the criteria for my reading? *blush*) and the first two both strike home the fragility of fame and the fickleness of being adored. Different for each as Jason Donovan was a heart throb in the 80s, while Russell Brand was at the height of his adoration at the time of writing his book. Interestingly, Jason's book shows an entirely likeable side to him, whereas it's difficult to like Russell in his book. Richard Hammond on the other hand is entirely refreshing on the "I'm just me, I have a cool job" front and he does seem to be entirely unaffected by the fact that half the population of the world think he's gorgeous.

Final rambling thought: I must add David Mitchell to my list of great people. He's brilliant, I think I love him. Really.

Fickle, moi?