Our reliance on the net

Tonight I arrive home to find that l have no Broadband. lt made me realise how much we all rely the internet. l can't do my online banking, find telephone numbers, look for holidays, play games, chat to friends, get the news, catch up with tv the list goes on. How did l ever live without it? Still at least l can still blog! Thank god for my new phone!

The ludicrous situation of censorship

There's nothing quite so irritating as censorship. Censorship has no place in a truly free society. Whilst we berate the Iraqis, North Koreans, Chinese and so on, we're just as bad in the West. How irritating is it to see car number plates pixelated out in the news? But even more irritating is the censorship of bad language in music. Why is it that I can hear the 'F' word on my TV after 9 in the evening, but I can't hear it on the radio at any time? Even on 'adult' radio stations such as Absolute mild expletives are replaced, silenced or even bleeped out. However, what is even more irritating in inconsistent application of the rules. Whilst watching the BBC's coverage of Glastonbury, I noticed that in Lily Allen's "Not Fair" ditty, that the lines "I lie here in the wet patch in the middle of the bed" and "I've spent ages giving head" were obliterated as usual. I'm not sure which of those words count as swear words, but that's a discussion for another day. Now, Ms Allen, being one of those creative types, went on to perform a different version of the this song from the one recorded on her "It's not me" album. This meant that she returned to the aforementioned lyrics, twice, and both times the lines were heard in full! I mean, come on, either you censor it, or you don't! Once again, I can see good use of the licence fee! NOT.

MP's and BBC expenses

If there's anything that made my blood boil recently it's the scandal of MP's, and now the BBC's expenses. As an employee of a public sector organisation I find my own expenses (usually for travel) are rigorously scrutinised, and studied before any hint of passing them for payment is made. So how does this high degree of control elude those at the very top of our public sector organisations? It is the ultimate act of hypocrisy that these people expect me to spend the tax payers money though it was my own, and I agree this is appropriate, but why is it one rule for us and one for them? The latest BBC revelations have however given me some cause for hope. As one departing employee had a gift that was claimed for through the expenses system, I thought that perhaps the endless stream of collections that circulate around the office could now be met with an expenses claim! Brilliant! Thank you Mr BBC, at last, something positive comes from the outrageous tax that is the Licence Fee!

Conspiracy Junkies

It seems to be that there must be something in built in the human psyche that loves conspiracies. From fake moon landings, Elvis, to Diana and so on, Michael Jackson's untimely demise has brought them out in their droves. Without going into too much detail, if you actually look to the facts of the matter, it's clear that this is simply a tragic event; he's not still alive, he wasn't murdered, he didn't commit suicide. His personal physician is not a murder suspect. He has not absonded. He was in this country a few days ago making preparation for what those who saw it said was going to be an amazing show. Yes, Jackson was in debt, but one of the purposes of the "This is it" tour was to sort out his finances once and for all. He was, without doubt, frail for a man of his years. He was working out with Lou (Hulk) Ferrigno who said he was in incredible shape. The series of gigs at the O2 were well spaced out, and he was going to live over here for the duration. The insurers were happy that Jackson was fit enough, and the schedule was not gruelling. The sad fact of the matter was that his addiction to analgesics following on the Pepsi ad had taken a toll on a body ravaged by other health issues. Ironically, the very painkillers he was taking probably masked him from realising the poor state of his health. He was weak, and the level of fitness he was working to was probably just too much for his ailing heart. Time of course will tell if this was the case, but whatever the official verdict, it won't stop those who choose to believe their own version of events, continuing to beleive otherwise. Mr Jackson is dead, let all this nonsense rest along with him.

Michael Jackson

I'll try to give a different perspective, a personal perspective. As a child growing up in the 1970's my original memories are of Michael Jackson the child star. This was in an era when child stars were de rigeur, Jimmy Osmond, David Cassidy, Lena Zavaroni to name but a few, so it all seemed so normal. He clearly stood out from his brothers in the Jackson 5, and it was no surprise when "Off the Wall" was released that it was such a good album. In 1979, this album was very far being off the wall, it was very very at the centre of the disco and pop that was around then. To be frank, it seemed that would be the pinnacle of his musical output, but it wasn't to be. A few years later he released Thriller, which contained such variety and quality that it is no surprise that it remains, over 25 years later, the biggest selling album of all time. Anyone of my era will recall staying up late to watch the first screening of the Thriller video, a great coo for fledgling Channel 4. We were all amazed and talked about it for weeks. I recently had to remind my 12 year old son, when watching the video, that there were no CGI effects in play, and that blew him away! How many times have you heard the "I'm not like other guys" line being trotted out in parody or homage? Bad followed, which for me was the end of the road for his high quality output. However, some years later, when I'd long since written him off, he released Earth Song, which still sends shivers down my spine, and it was accompanied by a stunning video. Yes he was dogged by controversy, and allegations, but given his well documented childhood, and the fact the he would have been surrounded by sycophantic advisers (as was Elvis) it's no surprise that he was desperate to maintain a Peter Pan like existence. Whatever the truth of these matters, he remains a prolific performer the like of whom will never be seen again.
Darkness falls across the land... indeed it does, RIP, Michael Jackson

British Tennis

Every year at this time we get the same old tired discussions of why don't the Brits do very well at Wimbledon, and I hear the LTA saying the same thing, which is usually that they have a plan and more talent will come through. I think we have to accept a few basic premises. To make it to the top of any sport you need a combination of, raw talent, single minded determination to succeed, a supportive infrastructure around you, and often luck as you need to be spotted by someone who can recognise your talent. Let me take each element. Raw Talent: It doesn't matter how much money the LTA or government throw at a tennis, if the raw talent doesn't exist you're not going to create it. Determination. These days there are many distractions for kids, so only the very focused are going to want to play tennis at the level required. But in addition, if you compare tennis to say, football, football has a much more glamorous profile so kids are far more likely to want to be footballers than tennis players. There's also the numbers game. There are far more opportunities to make a living from being a professional footballer that there are a professional tennis player so this may discourage some. Tennis is also less accessible as kids grow up. You can play football anywhere, you just need a ball. To play tennis you need facilities, and these are few and far between, so the opportunity for a casual game of tennis are fewer. Infrastructure. If we want to make tennis one of our top sport sports, it has to be played in schools in the same way other sports are. Many schools don't offer tennis, and those that do don't play enough competitive tennis for the talent scouts to come and see what is out there. Assuming you are lucky enough to go to a tennis playing school, and you are then lucky enough to be spotted, are there enough local programs of training and sponsorship to nurture that young precocious talent? So I think when you layer all this together with a sprinkling of fair fortune of fowl, it seems like however much money you throw at tennis you are not going to start producing Wimbledon champions. So, it's easy to be critical, but how to you change this situation? Well, if you look at sports that are successful, they have a number of things in common. They have a high public profile, they are played at schools, they have large commercial funding, and are ingrained into the British culture. If tennis is to be a sport that churns out British winners consistently it needs to look to the examples of other sports. It needs to be played more at schools, it needs to have a higher profile that just the 2 weeks of Wimbledon, and here's the controversial bit. It needs commercial organisations to be involved. Much as I hate the over commercialisation of football, you can't knock the success it has bought to the Premier League. There's also a bit of a oxymoron here too, tennis is a successful and popular sport in the UK, but the UK rarely produces top players. Could we drive up the commercial nature of tennis by diverting the players away from the level 3 tournaments to partaking in some form of team event, with franchised regional teams? Mmmm, ponder that thought over your strawberries and cream!

My first random thoughts

Hello world.

This is my first blog. Over the coming months I shall publish my random thoughts on whatever catches my eye on the day. From popular culture to politics, sport to current events, or whatever makes my blood boil, or even laugh!

So keep watching for more of my random thoughts.

Fire Horse