I always used to be a great supporter of ID cards, on the basis that if you didn't do anything wrong, you wouldn't haven't anything to fear. I thought that they would go someway towards reducing crime and illegal immigration, and maybe even help restore a sense of national pride.
But ID cards would mean extra storage of personal data. With sensitive data lost on a weekly basis, how can anyone be confident that personal information doesn't fall into the wrong hands? The latest missing list don't just contain the names of a few local Weight-Watchers. No, it contains the personal information of 600,000 people who had expressed an interest in joining the armed forces. Passport numbers, National Insurance numbers and bank details. A terrorist hit list.
Other data lost recently includes details of child benefit recipients. (I'm not too concerned about this one as, although the principle remains the same, I still don't understand why we should pay people money just for having kids).
Personal data is like the male reproductive organ. It's a wonderful thing, with many possibilities, but it should never be released into the hands of someone stupid.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Don't blame the parents
Watching the interview with the widow of Gary Newlove, the father of three brutality kicked to death outside his own house, I was pleased with the sense of outrage I felt.
Our society has crumbled so much over the past few years it's easy to pass this sort of event off with a shrug, but watch the emotional statement of a grieving widow and reality hits.
Cheap booze and bad parenting is being blamed for the decline. Personally I like cheap booze. I enjoy it fairly responsibly and it doesn't result in the need to go out and commit criminal damage and act violently. Increasing the age of legal purchase of alcohol to 21 would be a better idea than increasing the price.
As for poor parenting I know from bitter experience that a teenager will do whatever he wants to do. Instilling core social values into your children as they grow up is essential - but once they reach their formative teenage years hormones, peer pressure and the need to socialise take over, and there's not much you can do about it. Try telling a 16 year old towering above you that he can't go out.
But once a delinquent kid turns 18 there is a simple solution. Sever the umbilical cord and throw them out. Remove the comforts of a bed, a fully stocked refrigerator and hot and cold running water. It's harsh. It goes against all parental instincts, but for some it could give them enough of a shock to make them look at themselves and grow up. And hopefully it would go someway to shutting up the 'I blame the parents' brigade, who know nothing about the social pressures of 2008.
Our society has crumbled so much over the past few years it's easy to pass this sort of event off with a shrug, but watch the emotional statement of a grieving widow and reality hits.
Cheap booze and bad parenting is being blamed for the decline. Personally I like cheap booze. I enjoy it fairly responsibly and it doesn't result in the need to go out and commit criminal damage and act violently. Increasing the age of legal purchase of alcohol to 21 would be a better idea than increasing the price.
As for poor parenting I know from bitter experience that a teenager will do whatever he wants to do. Instilling core social values into your children as they grow up is essential - but once they reach their formative teenage years hormones, peer pressure and the need to socialise take over, and there's not much you can do about it. Try telling a 16 year old towering above you that he can't go out.
But once a delinquent kid turns 18 there is a simple solution. Sever the umbilical cord and throw them out. Remove the comforts of a bed, a fully stocked refrigerator and hot and cold running water. It's harsh. It goes against all parental instincts, but for some it could give them enough of a shock to make them look at themselves and grow up. And hopefully it would go someway to shutting up the 'I blame the parents' brigade, who know nothing about the social pressures of 2008.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Scary across the Mersey
So Liverpool begins its year of being 'European City of Culture'. It's an easy target for critics, the endless tyre theft jokes and the 'self-pity city' jibes.
But Liverpool asks for it. Their fantastic sense of humour apparently comes from having it tough in the war. Ask Cilla Black or Stan Boardman. No other city experienced hardship during the war.
The arrogance of the people, believing that coming from Liverpool makes them special, is obvious in every interview. They claim to have a community spirit second to none. The same community spirit that created the wall of silence when the police were trying to catch the killer of 11 year old Ryhs Jones last year.
And it's catching. Soccer manager Sam Allardyce was sacked as Newcastle manager last week. Various people, from ex-pros to the men on the street, have said that his failure was due to not understanding Newcastle culture. So, it was more important for Sam to understand a grown man drinking 10 pints of strong lager, removing his shirt and throwing up over his girlfriend (I've seen it happen), than to be a knowledgeable and experienced football manager?
Two more men were shot last night in Liverpool, but I'm sure that the gunman can't be blamed. He obviously did it as a reaction to his terrible wartime experiences.
But Liverpool asks for it. Their fantastic sense of humour apparently comes from having it tough in the war. Ask Cilla Black or Stan Boardman. No other city experienced hardship during the war.
The arrogance of the people, believing that coming from Liverpool makes them special, is obvious in every interview. They claim to have a community spirit second to none. The same community spirit that created the wall of silence when the police were trying to catch the killer of 11 year old Ryhs Jones last year.
And it's catching. Soccer manager Sam Allardyce was sacked as Newcastle manager last week. Various people, from ex-pros to the men on the street, have said that his failure was due to not understanding Newcastle culture. So, it was more important for Sam to understand a grown man drinking 10 pints of strong lager, removing his shirt and throwing up over his girlfriend (I've seen it happen), than to be a knowledgeable and experienced football manager?
Two more men were shot last night in Liverpool, but I'm sure that the gunman can't be blamed. He obviously did it as a reaction to his terrible wartime experiences.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Didn't mean it really......
Former MP Matthew Parris caused outrage in his Times column last week by suggesting that cyclists should be beheaded. Under a headline reading "What's smug and deserves to be decapitated?", he wrote "A festive custom we could do worse than foster would be stringing piano wire across country lanes to decapitate cyclists". He commented that cyclists have "brutish disregard for all other road users".
After cyclist organisations had complained he later printed an apology, saying that he meant it humorously, but had made a misjudgement.
I too find it outrageous. Outrageous that he has decided to apologise for offending the obviously frail sensibilities of this arrogant bunch. There's a sort of sense of self fulfilling prophecy about the number of complaints received from this unsocial group, and I find it disgusting that Parris has backed down over an article which was so obviously designed to be humorous.
What's the point of The Times giving column inches to someone who runs for cover when one of the most basic of journalistic duties is challenged - that of creating outrage through humour.
After cyclist organisations had complained he later printed an apology, saying that he meant it humorously, but had made a misjudgement.
I too find it outrageous. Outrageous that he has decided to apologise for offending the obviously frail sensibilities of this arrogant bunch. There's a sort of sense of self fulfilling prophecy about the number of complaints received from this unsocial group, and I find it disgusting that Parris has backed down over an article which was so obviously designed to be humorous.
What's the point of The Times giving column inches to someone who runs for cover when one of the most basic of journalistic duties is challenged - that of creating outrage through humour.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
