The present British Government is citing massive debt run up by the last labour government as a basis for dismantling society. Frighteningly a significant proportion of the UK population seem to subscribe to the view "its tougher but necassary". It's inevitable etc. Well before we close the hospitals, shut the libraries, cut back on the police and start excluding all but the very wealthy from higher education lets look at some actual facts about our defecit.
1. As a function of GDP (thats how much money the country makes) our current debt is lower than it has been in 200 of the last 250 years (see here). Yes that was lower!
2. It was higher when:
a) we pionered the industrial revolution,
b) built a very large empire across half the known world
c) beat the Nazi's
d) built the NHS and social welfare system that is currently being desimated
3. As a function of GDP our national debt is 47%; which is lower than Canada (62%), Germany (63%), Japan (170%), India (70%), Italy (103%) France (67%) and the USA (61%). In debt terms we are doing better than the rest of the G8 except Russia. (see here)
Even if we did have a catastrophic debt, reducing it rapidly is a bad idea. In 1929, following the Great Depression Herbert Hoover cut back just like Cameron/Clegg are trying to do now and the US sank deeper into depression. It wasn't until FDRs New Deal when significant money was spent on public works which created roads, bridges and hospitals etc and stimulated the economy that the US clawed its way out of depression.
Two of our European neighbours (Ireland and Greece) have bankrupted their economies by invoking rapid cuts which have lead to collapse as their economy slowed down and then choked themselves. Why are we blindly following suit? Its got nothing to do with saving the economy and everything to do with an extreme idealogical policy.
So next time somebody says that the cuts are "hard but fair" or that they are "inevtiable" you can now point at that they are nothing to do with prudent managment of the economy and everything to do with an oppertunistic ultra right wing political agenda.
(this post was inspired by and draws heavily from, a much longer piece by Johann Hari which can be found here).
29 March 2011
Wednesday Movie - Crazy things that happen in Norway
The first is from Gareth - its utterly bonkers
And the second is doing the rounds at the moment - insane.
And the second is doing the rounds at the moment - insane.
27 March 2011
Tips for new parents
We have a 7 week old baby and we are on a steep learning curve. We are fortunate enough to be a bit older than most parents and have benefited from advice given by friends who have already been through it. Here are a few of the more unusual tips that have proved very useful both practically and in keeping us sane.
1. Any friends that visit in the first two weeks should come with take-away food
2. Consider that human babies are born 6 weeks too early. Once you make it through the first 6 weeks it becomes much easier
3. Brest is best - especially if you are the Dad ;-)
4. Buy a large bed
5. When they are young they are not developed enough to be interested in your attention or love. Harsh but true. The good part of this is that if they are crying its because they are either hungry, in need of a nappy change, too hot or too cold or tired. Working from that position it shouldn’t be hard to figure it out.
6. Look after each other. It's very easy when you are tired and stressed to take it out on your partner. But remember the other person is probably equally or even more tired and stressed. The way to get through it is to look after them and then between you look after the small person. A bit of consideration goes a long way.
7. Start training them to like your music early!
8. Get a structured routine - it makes life so much easier
9. There is a great iphone app that helps mum record all the feeds and sleeps - makes it easy to be at least a bit structured
10. Have lots of linen clothes around the house for catching vomit. Much better than tissues
11. Try not to let having a baby stop you doing everything you used to. Its not (quite) the end of the world.
12. Have low expectations of what you will be able to achieve and then be happy when it happens
13. Remember that lots of poor people with way less facilites and stuff than you manage to raise children in way tougher conditions
14. Remember that lots of dumber people than you also somehow manage to raise kids - how hard can it really be?
And finally try and remember how amazing it is have fun
1. Any friends that visit in the first two weeks should come with take-away food
2. Consider that human babies are born 6 weeks too early. Once you make it through the first 6 weeks it becomes much easier
3. Brest is best - especially if you are the Dad ;-)
4. Buy a large bed
5. When they are young they are not developed enough to be interested in your attention or love. Harsh but true. The good part of this is that if they are crying its because they are either hungry, in need of a nappy change, too hot or too cold or tired. Working from that position it shouldn’t be hard to figure it out.
6. Look after each other. It's very easy when you are tired and stressed to take it out on your partner. But remember the other person is probably equally or even more tired and stressed. The way to get through it is to look after them and then between you look after the small person. A bit of consideration goes a long way.
7. Start training them to like your music early!
8. Get a structured routine - it makes life so much easier
9. There is a great iphone app that helps mum record all the feeds and sleeps - makes it easy to be at least a bit structured
10. Have lots of linen clothes around the house for catching vomit. Much better than tissues
11. Try not to let having a baby stop you doing everything you used to. Its not (quite) the end of the world.
12. Have low expectations of what you will be able to achieve and then be happy when it happens
13. Remember that lots of poor people with way less facilites and stuff than you manage to raise children in way tougher conditions
14. Remember that lots of dumber people than you also somehow manage to raise kids - how hard can it really be?
And finally try and remember how amazing it is have fun
24 March 2011
Thursday Fashion
Thursday fashion is back (just for Laura)
While I embrace alternative lifestyles and I think it's great that not everyone aspires to look like a cheerleader or a golf pro, sometimes it can be taken a bit far.
I think this guy may have got a bit carried away
While I embrace alternative lifestyles and I think it's great that not everyone aspires to look like a cheerleader or a golf pro, sometimes it can be taken a bit far.
I think this guy may have got a bit carried away
22 March 2011
Wednesday Movie extra
Not getting out so much at weekends at the moment. This had some advantages such as getting to watch pretty much all of the 6 nations rugby this year. I really enjoyed it.
The Irish played a totally blinding game to deny England the Grandslam. It is pretty funny that this video celebrating England's grandslam victory (which didn't happen) has been leaked to the internet.
And who ever said that the English RFU were arrogant? Ha ha ha
The Irish played a totally blinding game to deny England the Grandslam. It is pretty funny that this video celebrating England's grandslam victory (which didn't happen) has been leaked to the internet.
And who ever said that the English RFU were arrogant? Ha ha ha
Wednesday Movie
Back in Bergen mid week and having the joys of being woken at 6am but the fat furball. That made me wonder if there was any new movies of Simon's cat
And yes there are! These are the best
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOHvZjiDANg&feature=relmfu
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9EYkdFsP2w&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKvNqe8cKU4&feature=related
Which also gives me a chance to publish these photos which Ben sent me a while ago. They make me realise that Lola is not as mad as she could be...
And yes there are! These are the best
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOHvZjiDANg&feature=relmfu
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9EYkdFsP2w&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKvNqe8cKU4&feature=related
Which also gives me a chance to publish these photos which Ben sent me a while ago. They make me realise that Lola is not as mad as she could be...
21 March 2011
A deal is a deal
Twenty plus years ago my brother and some of my friends looked around at possible careers and thought "hmm joing the the Police is an option. It sounds ok, it will certainly be interesting, the pay is crap but once you have worked for 30 years you get to retire with a good pension. On the balance of things that seems like a fair deal". Other people looked around at the same time and said “the police, that looks dangerous with shitty hours and crap pay. I think I will go and become a lawyer or an accountant or maybe even a politician, where the pay is much better and I'll be safe".
Twenty years on and the people who became politicians are now enviously, eyeing up the policemen’s impending long retirement and nice pensions and saying “ooh I am not sure the country can afford to pay that now! Since people are living longer and we have blown the money we invested to pay for your retirement bailing out useless bankers we will have to change your deal so you should work until you are 60 or maybe even longer”.
And for some reason normal people seem to think that it’s ok.
Is it fuck! You made a deal and now you should stick to it, irrespective of whether the conditions have changed. A deal is a deal! They have done their part of the bargain; they have been stabbed, shot at, attacked, spat on and worse. They have worked long, anti-social hours and kept your pathetic arse safe while you worked 9-5 and put 3 or more times their salary in the bank. Well now its time for us to repay them not and not try an weasel out of our commitments.
When I suggested this last week in a discussion, somebody quoted "Force Majeure" and said that the circumstances had changed, therefore the contract was invalid. That is utter bullshit, nothing has really cahnged except people live a bit longer than they used to and if you can't predict that you shouldn't be in power.
When the flawed economic policies of the Bitch Thatcher meant that the interest rates on peoples mortgages went from 6 to 17% in a couple of months and hundreds of thousands of people lost their homes there was no option to go to the building society and say “Force Majuere - that was not predicted, I think I will just pay you 7% and you will be happy”. No, the concept of renegotiating a deal when conditions change only seems to work one way and as usual it’s the people down the ladder who suffer.
I have no problem with them setting different terms and conditions for people who join the force today. That is fine. They can look at the deal and decide if they like it. If they don’t they can go and do something else (most of them probably will and then we are buggard!), but to go back on a deal that is already in place is just low – it’s so low it could only come from a Tory government with a idealogical agenda that would see the rich living in secure gated communities and sod the rest of us.
Twenty years on and the people who became politicians are now enviously, eyeing up the policemen’s impending long retirement and nice pensions and saying “ooh I am not sure the country can afford to pay that now! Since people are living longer and we have blown the money we invested to pay for your retirement bailing out useless bankers we will have to change your deal so you should work until you are 60 or maybe even longer”.
And for some reason normal people seem to think that it’s ok.
Is it fuck! You made a deal and now you should stick to it, irrespective of whether the conditions have changed. A deal is a deal! They have done their part of the bargain; they have been stabbed, shot at, attacked, spat on and worse. They have worked long, anti-social hours and kept your pathetic arse safe while you worked 9-5 and put 3 or more times their salary in the bank. Well now its time for us to repay them not and not try an weasel out of our commitments.
When I suggested this last week in a discussion, somebody quoted "Force Majeure" and said that the circumstances had changed, therefore the contract was invalid. That is utter bullshit, nothing has really cahnged except people live a bit longer than they used to and if you can't predict that you shouldn't be in power.
When the flawed economic policies of the Bitch Thatcher meant that the interest rates on peoples mortgages went from 6 to 17% in a couple of months and hundreds of thousands of people lost their homes there was no option to go to the building society and say “Force Majuere - that was not predicted, I think I will just pay you 7% and you will be happy”. No, the concept of renegotiating a deal when conditions change only seems to work one way and as usual it’s the people down the ladder who suffer.
I have no problem with them setting different terms and conditions for people who join the force today. That is fine. They can look at the deal and decide if they like it. If they don’t they can go and do something else (most of them probably will and then we are buggard!), but to go back on a deal that is already in place is just low – it’s so low it could only come from a Tory government with a idealogical agenda that would see the rich living in secure gated communities and sod the rest of us.
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