11 Jul 2011
Posted in News, People at 10:49 am by alby
I’ve been following the whole death of the News of the World thing with a little bit of interest. I’m not going to witter about why Murdoch is a hideous and malign influence on anything that is good or decent. Nor am I going to witter about why the death of that paper doesn’t mean the death of gutter journalism. Plenty of folk have done that to death.
However the aspect that surprised me was the massive support that Rupert is giving to his chief exec. There’s loads of shots of them off out to eat together; him saying that she’s his greatest priority at the moment etc.. But why can this be?
I can only think of 3 reasons. I think number 3 is most likely:
- She has embarrassing photos or information of him and his family.
- They have a “fruity” relationship where she manages to give him more than he’s had elsewhere.
- They are both David Icke’s shape shifting alien lizard people who are in charge of everything that happens anywhere in the world.
I can think of no other possibility.
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05 Jun 2011
Posted in News, Rants at 9:18 pm by alby
I was in a local shop today and whilst waiting to be served I saw the newspaper stand with all its blaring headlines. One stuck out as it was a story that wasn’t about a footballer getting a valuable away goal or some geordie lass whose accent would never have played in America. It was the Mail on Sunday’s headline in fact.
No in fact it was the entire front page as far as I could see. There was a story about the BBC (filth-ridden, tax burdenous scum the lot of them) and how they scandalised the nation by broadcasting a rude word, no THE rudest word, at 6.30pm on a Friday a few months back.
I don’t know how we all missed the story when it happened as it was obviously a massive thing to be deserving of a whole front page of a national newspaper. Clearly there can be no other things of national and international importance ongoing that deserve precedence over this outrage.
I wasn’t about to buy the rag so I looked online when I got home again.
Once into the detail of the story it turns out that they didn’t broadcast the word at all, merely hinting at it in a scripted link between questions on an episode of the News Quiz. So could this be right? A national front page story about a swear word that wasn’t even uttered? Apparently so.
Brace yourselves, I am about to repeat the joke:
“The tories, putting the n into cuts”
A little risque but hardly deserving of moral outrage. Despite the not-at-all feigned outrage, of this utter non-story the paper even then re-prints the joke in full without any censorship. So not even a slight bit hypocritical then?
The BBC has had a long history of risque comedy on the radio from the Goon Show’s “Hugh Jampton” through Round the Horne’s beautifully disgraceful pushing of the boundaries to near breaking point to ISIHAC (“brushing the dust and wax off in the dark”) and more. So what’s special about this incident?
And isn’t radio 4 supposed to be a grown-ups channel? I hardly think there’ll be a million bored and impressionable teens sat listening to the News Quiz of a Friday evening.
Was it a cavalcade of complaints that set this off? No? In fact there was a startling total of 1 complaint. Yes, 1. Against one of radio 4′s most listened to shows. Thankfully the complaint was thrown out. This was what kicked off the news story.
But what’s the actual story here? Could it be the Mail’s relentless campaign to use any ammo whatsoever to try and kill the BBC? The most respected broadcaster anywhere in the world? Probably. What a depressing world it would be if the piece of vile nastiness that is the Mail manages to impoverish the culture of this country yet further.
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21 Jan 2011
Posted in News at 3:16 pm by alby
Just seen an advert for a loan shark company on tv. You know that bit on ads for lending wot says what the APR is? Well the ad I’ve just seen quoted an “equivalent APR of”
2278%
Just wow!
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13 Jan 2011
Posted in News at 2:26 pm by alby
Whoot!
The wonderful deal offered to me by the government re pay and conditions is in the news again. (see about 3 posts ago)
Seems the RCN are to vote against. Can’t imagine Unison voting for it either and I imagine the BMA are likely to be not in favour.
Seems like a long shot but I don’t think I’m too out there in suggesting we’re going to be looking at a lot of NHS strikes and action in the next year.
So pleased I voted for the Lib Dems, and so pleased to see so much of their “moderating influence” over the loathsome filth (sorry Tory party).
A fun year ahead.
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05 Jan 2011
Posted in News at 2:18 pm by alby
You remember that open prison wot got burned down by its inmates? Well apparently it’s all because the governer is a lesbian?
Or at least that’s all I can read into this story. Otherwise why is there any interest in this?
Another marvellous leap of logic for the Mail.
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Posted in News, Work at 12:46 pm by alby
It seems that the government have put forward a nice and fair plan to save the UK some money by cutting down on wage costs in the NHS.
Staff are to be asked if we wish to have no pay rise (despite one already being negotiated, albeit a rather poor deal at best), no increments (we’re on a system where, assuming you’re doing well in the job you go up within a pay band every year until you hit the top of that pay band) and with compulsory increased pension contributions from our wages. And all this is return for a “no compulsory redundancies” promise.
So less take-home money year on year, no incentive to do well and in return they won’t sack us. Nice.
(aside – I quite like the idea of higher pension contributions – but I bet those will be to get our existing benefits not anything better)
Which government was it who said that frontline services wouldn’t be hit? I can’t quite remember.
So this was fun reading and then I hit the pay off. This amazing once in a lifetime deal is for pay band 1-6 staff only. Guess what band I’m in? Could it be 7? Why yes I believe it is.
So less take-home pay (and furthermore reducing cf the cost of living over a couple of years) and I would still be at risk of compulsory redundancy? Not sure the incentives are quite there yet for me to vote for this.
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09 Jun 2010
Posted in News at 9:52 am by alby
Nice to see football fans baiting each other in such a polite way.
I do wish all discourse could be conducted in the same manner.
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14 May 2010
Posted in Life, News, Work at 7:57 am by alby
Well things have taken a turn.
Out in the world we now have a bizarre mix of Tory and Lib Dem in charge of everything. I was never so keen on the Cons manifesto but the joint document (here) actually hits quite a few of my buttons.
Away from politics things are also in quite a bit of flux.
I’ve just asked at work to go part-time. And they’ve agreed. This’ll leave me free 2 days a week to work on “other projects”.
One of these projects is an MSc wot I’ve just been accepted on. Many colleagues are looking at MSc Physio courses but I’ve always felt that they’re pretty limited in their scope. So I’ve gone for an OU course in “Advancing Healthcare Practice“. It starts in October, work are keen on me doing it and, hopefully, it gives me plenty more options than a straight physio course.
In addition I’ve had a couple of fruitful chats with private practices in and around Derby. Fingers crossed for those.
Anything else?
I’ll get back to you.
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06 May 2010
Posted in News at 10:06 pm by alby
NHS management is appalling, don’t vote for anyone who wants to extend NHS closures and privatising.
…Ah damn…
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26 Feb 2010
Posted in Life, News, Rants at 5:23 pm by alby
I’ve just sent off for my first DAB radio.
This is the one wot I ordered: here. To replace the ancient midi system I have had in my middle room for years which only seems to work with AM radio now.
Nice features, great reviews, swanky bit of kit. Thank you very much.
But then the problems start:
First of all I get a delivery card through my door (from “Home Delivery Network”). Not too surprising seeing as I “work” n’all. The delivery co say go their website and pick a different day for delivery. OK no problem.
Oh but they only do Mon-Fri delivery. So that’s useful then what with me, you know, “working”.
No matter I am at home for at least an afternoon a week. Ah that’s not helpful their delivery slots are “7am -7pm”. In other words if I want them to do their job (IE deliver me something they’ve been paid to deliver to me) I must take a day off work.
I wouldn’t trust any of the neighbours round here and there’s no “safe place” for the driver to leave it.
I have another option which is to pick it up from their depot. In Nottingham. Thanks very much. I may as well have just bloody driven down to Amazon’s warehouse in Milton Keynes and not bothered with the delivery.
Doesn’t all of this screw around with the whole bloody point of mail order service? You know, the whole “not having to go and pick it up” thing?
I wrote a very grumpy email to Amazon who, to be fair, did respond quickly but then used the line
“Currently, we do not have the ability to assign certain carriers to a specific customer or address”
What? I find this astonishing if true. They’re the ones who pay the carrying company. But they can’t specify which carrier takes which order? I’m nearly speechless.
I’ve ordered plenty of things from them before and have had to pick orders up which have been unable to be delivered but these items end up in the central post office in the centre of town. So why the hell does this one have to be a: given to a company that is unable to do the job they’ve been employed to do, b: unable to be given to a carrier that actually IS able to do the job or at least will get it to within a couple of miles of my house and c: this snazzy wotsit I’m actually really looking forward to playing with and getting use out of?
Bloody hell!
And just to cap this annoying little episode one of the main reasons I bought a DAB radio was to listen to 6music which looks like it may well be being got rid of in the next round of BBC cuts. Yes that’s right one of few stations on the BBC that actually looks after their public service remit is being cut whilst BBC3 isn’t, BBC1 remains appalling, BBC2 is a pale shadow of what it once was and only BBC4 is showing much of what they should be producing and showing us (and isn’t safe from the chop either).
Bad mood day today.
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