"Angela Merkel declares death of German multiculturalism - Angela Merkel said it had been an illusion to think Germans and foreign workers could live happily side by side" was announced on the BBC News Channel right before one of their Radio 4 promotional break items extolling the delights of British multiculturalism.
Interesting times ahead. Will austerity reduce the scope for luxuries like self delusion?
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Not inspired
The Party conferences came and went. The BBC's institutionalised left leaning staffing continues to shine through despite a growing awareness from above that this has become even more painfully obvious since the election. The left's focus on Nick Robinson as the token closet Tory is as tedious as it is pointless, he's outnumbered about 100:1 and he's not exactly rabid in the same terms that his colleagues cannot help stop themselves fawning over all people and things "leftie". The personal histories of 90% of front line BBC management and front people places them firmly in the conservatory with Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, with the lead piping, dagger, gun and anything else you could think of, at the time of the economic catastrophe. It's a serious problem that will have to be dealt with.
At least David Cameron took the opportunity during his main speech at the conference to remind everyone that the mess is the result of Gordon Brown 's mismanagement over 13 years, ending with Liam Byrne's classic "prawn sandwich" moment for the new boys, with his letter pointing out that there was no money. Alan Johnson's remark about needing to read "Teach yourself Economics" to help him tackle his new role as Shadow Chancellor, apparently for absolutely no better reasons than his background is the antithesis of his Eton educated opposite. What with all the fellow travelling siblings and spouses, the Labour Party seems more dynastic than Brenda and the Windsor Firm.
So it's politics as usual, and the best interests of the UK, as usual, will continue to suffer as a result - just as the country suffered hugely during Blair's reign from the total absence of a plausible opposition, so the Coalition faces a collection of amateurs and incompetents without any idea of policy; albeit that doesn't actually stop the enthusiasm of the BBC to provide airtime to the has-beens. There aren't even any flighty Libdems to flit about and make outrageous promises that they would never need to back up.
Maybe David Milliband will be persuaded to resurrect SDP2010 by the Blairites and the malcontents of the LibDems. Would Cameron feel obliged to "go to the country" and seek a further mandate, or would the next step be a crisis "government of national unity" where all the parties had to become involved, simply because the shambles and mess is so completely gargantuan that there is no option?
We're getting fed up with living in "interesting times". Bring on the boredom, please.
At least David Cameron took the opportunity during his main speech at the conference to remind everyone that the mess is the result of Gordon Brown 's mismanagement over 13 years, ending with Liam Byrne's classic "prawn sandwich" moment for the new boys, with his letter pointing out that there was no money. Alan Johnson's remark about needing to read "Teach yourself Economics" to help him tackle his new role as Shadow Chancellor, apparently for absolutely no better reasons than his background is the antithesis of his Eton educated opposite. What with all the fellow travelling siblings and spouses, the Labour Party seems more dynastic than Brenda and the Windsor Firm.
So it's politics as usual, and the best interests of the UK, as usual, will continue to suffer as a result - just as the country suffered hugely during Blair's reign from the total absence of a plausible opposition, so the Coalition faces a collection of amateurs and incompetents without any idea of policy; albeit that doesn't actually stop the enthusiasm of the BBC to provide airtime to the has-beens. There aren't even any flighty Libdems to flit about and make outrageous promises that they would never need to back up.
Maybe David Milliband will be persuaded to resurrect SDP2010 by the Blairites and the malcontents of the LibDems. Would Cameron feel obliged to "go to the country" and seek a further mandate, or would the next step be a crisis "government of national unity" where all the parties had to become involved, simply because the shambles and mess is so completely gargantuan that there is no option?
We're getting fed up with living in "interesting times". Bring on the boredom, please.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
We're still here...
Please excuse the lack of noise from TMP, but we're still waiting for something significant to emerge from the maelstrom of presumption and guesswork that results from a coalition where the blending of two manifestos remains wonderfully conflicted and unclear.
The Labour leadership election is - as widely predicted - another big yawn, despite the BBC's efforts to award it an importance it does not warrant. Who ever wins it will have little option but to be doing the Trade Union's bidding because they ain't getting funded from anywhere else.
The Liberal democrat conference reminds us all once more that the LibDems are mostly only concerned to be regarded as the "thinking Trot's Labour Party", with more visceral socialism on parade than has been seen at any recent Labour Party conference.
Cheery things to look forward to include Cameron's promised bonfire of Quangos and reduction of the bonkers excesses of H&S. Other than that, it looks like all pain.
So overall, the world is in a very awkward place. The "private sector" is still overwhelmed by the usual behemoths like banks, telcos and "globalised businesses", who continue to get away with operating cartels and monopolies that are clearly not in the interests of consumers. Less crucially, but still significantly, US media companies are desperate to redefine their roles in a world where there is more media accessible to more people than ever. Efforts like http://bit.ly/dxOsOc to turn a TV show into an immersive lifestyle experience seems to be trying to adapt the sort addictive environment that is apparent amongst the followings of cult computer games. You only have to mention the word "addictive" within earshot of a marketing person and a campaign is born. Please God, grant the human race the ability to resist this sort of mind-numbing claptrap.
Just in case the summer doldrums have lulled us into a false sense of calm, we learn that August produced the UK's biggest ever PSBR and the worst ever trade imbalance. It's still desperate out there. And it is still pretty much entirely the fault of Gordon Brown's 13 years of fumbled fiscal misdirection where the national assets were frittered away to buy 3 elections.
So it's a good time to sit back and observe.
The Labour leadership election is - as widely predicted - another big yawn, despite the BBC's efforts to award it an importance it does not warrant. Who ever wins it will have little option but to be doing the Trade Union's bidding because they ain't getting funded from anywhere else.
The Liberal democrat conference reminds us all once more that the LibDems are mostly only concerned to be regarded as the "thinking Trot's Labour Party", with more visceral socialism on parade than has been seen at any recent Labour Party conference.
Cheery things to look forward to include Cameron's promised bonfire of Quangos and reduction of the bonkers excesses of H&S. Other than that, it looks like all pain.
So overall, the world is in a very awkward place. The "private sector" is still overwhelmed by the usual behemoths like banks, telcos and "globalised businesses", who continue to get away with operating cartels and monopolies that are clearly not in the interests of consumers. Less crucially, but still significantly, US media companies are desperate to redefine their roles in a world where there is more media accessible to more people than ever. Efforts like http://bit.ly/dxOsOc to turn a TV show into an immersive lifestyle experience seems to be trying to adapt the sort addictive environment that is apparent amongst the followings of cult computer games. You only have to mention the word "addictive" within earshot of a marketing person and a campaign is born. Please God, grant the human race the ability to resist this sort of mind-numbing claptrap.
Just in case the summer doldrums have lulled us into a false sense of calm, we learn that August produced the UK's biggest ever PSBR and the worst ever trade imbalance. It's still desperate out there. And it is still pretty much entirely the fault of Gordon Brown's 13 years of fumbled fiscal misdirection where the national assets were frittered away to buy 3 elections.
So it's a good time to sit back and observe.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Bean counters an endangered species?
Great reforming news: the Audit Commission gets dumped- completely!
We are spared more inane claptrap such as:
"This draft strategic plan aligns with the Commission's diversity scheme Value for all, which focuses on the relationship between equality and diversity and achieving more for less. Well-designed, efficient, value-for-money services recognise that, while everyone has the same basic needs, if services are to be effective, some people need them to be delivered differently. They may also need help to locate and use them. Failure to understand and address this issue can lead to poorly designed services that are ineffective, often costing taxpayers more in the long run."
We searched their site with the phrase "cost of audit commission" and didn't get one direct response. But who on earth will want to hire 2000 institutionalised jobsworths?
Maybe Alex Salmond's Socialist People's Republic of Scotland ?
We bet this has put the wind up a lot of Brown's old fiefdoms; send for the next sacred socialist cow, please!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Down the emergeny escape
Hats off to the airline steward who quit in such a grand manner after getting hassle from the public..
Too bad the public don't have a similar option to arbitrarily escape the clutches of bad service at the hands of the millions of jobsworths that modern business practises have created in collusion with governments that have permitted mostly unaccountable cartels to take over - because they are easier to regulate and tax than thousands of smaller and more diverse businesses that would have to try harder to survive.
Too bad the public don't have a similar option to arbitrarily escape the clutches of bad service at the hands of the millions of jobsworths that modern business practises have created in collusion with governments that have permitted mostly unaccountable cartels to take over - because they are easier to regulate and tax than thousands of smaller and more diverse businesses that would have to try harder to survive.
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