Category Archives: media - Page 2

News International, not just a question of phones.

Posted by on July 12, 2011 No comments

The News International scandal has been rumbling along for a few days here in the UK, it’s spreading outside our borders as well, this one really does have wings.

It’s quite rightly provoked a storm of massive proportions, one that will leave things forever changed in the UK.  The whole subject of the relationship between the media, the police and those in power is now being opened and there will be many hard questions to be answered in the days and weeks that follow.

One question I have is relating to the scale of corporate power, more specifically multinationals.  As anyone who’s watched the film “The Corporation” will know, they are hardly moral, no matter what they claim.  They are arguably described as psychotic, fixated on one goal and regarding anyone and anything as disposable in the pursuit of that goal.  These corporate behemoths straddle the globe and carry a lot of weight and wield a lot of influence.  In short, they have an awful lot of power, but no democratic accountability; nobody elected them.

So, does the News International storm raise questions about the role of multinational corporations in national politics?  Does it raise worrying questions about the amount of power they wield?  Most definitely in my opinion.  These are questions that we have put to the back of our minds, but the News International situation gives us the chance to turn these questions over and ponder them.  It gives more power to the elbows of those who would raise these concerns and then push for a resolution to them.  I think that’s no bad thing.

Growth fixation

Posted by on January 25, 2011 4 comments

I’ve been watching the news in the last day or so with a sense of foreboding.

It seems our economy has missed its growth target, cue various politicians and media pundits talking earnestly about growth.  This is the mantra that has underscored the last few decades, and I recommend Annie Leonard’s “The Story of Stuff” if you want a little background to our fixations with growth and consumerism.  It’s 20 minutes long, and I highly recommend it.

There is a lot of talk of getting back to growth and not much mind room being given to the question “What if we can’t?”  I’ve talked about this before, but let’s make one statement: “Within a finite system, infinite growth is not possible.  Sooner or later, you will hit the edges of the system and stop”.  That’s not politics, it’s not economics, it’s basic unalterable mathematical fact.  We have finite space and resources on Earth, and we have to make do with what we have.  We must live within our means.

Given that the rest of the world is growing, what happens then?  Well, we in the west will inevitably see a lowering of our living standards.  Though that’s a very negative way of looking at things, it is maybe fairer to say that living standards will begin to balance out globally.

This isn’t optional long term, and will not only mean less plastic junk to buy and fewer expensive luxuries.  It will mean a return to mending and making do, we might even see the return of television repair shops, we certainly won’t be throwing the old sets away!  Speaking as someone who is refurbishing an old laptop and installing Debian Linux, rather than buying a new one, this sort of thing is deeply satisfying to do!

This will, ultimately, see the dawn of the Steady State Economy, I can’t see much of an alternative no matter how much I look.

One final thought that occurs to me comes from a time when I expressed the above opinions in a forum.  I was quickly met with the comment “It’s funny how everyone wants to force people to do things”.  I feel I should preemptively clear up a possible misunderstanding here.  The above isn’t about what anyone “wants”, we can argue and protest; shout and rage; scream and fume; reality simply is.  You can’t beat the maths, but if accepted in good grace, things could still be pretty good.

Student Fees, a few thoughts

Posted by on December 14, 2010 1 comment

Along with the rest of the country, I’ve been watching the student protests unfold across the UK.

As can be seen from both the mainstream media and the Twitter coverage, although in the main peaceful in nature and intent, both protests were marred by a violent minority.  The exact identity of this minority is beyond the remit I will give myself here today, so I must beg the reader’s forgiveness as I dwell no further on this.  I recommend Twitter as well as the mainstream media. Twitter brings a living immediacy to its coverage and imparts facts and information that the 24 hours news doesn’t.  The mainstream coverage is complemented by Twitter, if only because Twitter highlights what’s not being said or shown on TV, this raises consciousness and is of great importance.

I admit to being torn. As someone who’s been through higher education, I sympathise with the students.  As a taxpayer, watching the saga of government spending cuts; and the lengths our officials are going to to disguise the fact we’re on thin ice, I sympathise with the government.  I will also say I’m not sure raising taxes on corporations is workable, they have too many ways to evade it.  If they fled abroad, we could stand lose more than we would gain.

So, it seems we have the dilemma presented by the Government, which horn of the bull do we choose?  Do we raise fees or do we cut elsewhere?  Or do we realise that the range of options on the table were chosen by someone else and we can explore other options.

Let’s try a couple of suggestions.  Perhaps we could seek to reduce the cost of higher education?  That’s not mentioned.  Or realise that a degree isn’t necessary for some jobs, an A Level (or equivalent) will do. Thus potentially reducing the costs to the student and state.  Again, no mention.

I think the most important thing we can do is see and explore, taking to the streets conveys a message, but it’s the tired scripted response.  Riots; more people hurt; more police powers; lots of opportunities for politicians to talk tough on TV;  but no actual progress.

The students have been to University, education and intelligence are the strengths of that path, maybe it’s time to try changing the script and play to those strengths?

As per usual, I only try to provoke the process of questioning, I don’t try to dictate answers.  But I will finish with a quote that sums up my thinking nicely.

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. (Albert Einstein)

The Music of Life

Posted by on August 29, 2010 3 comments

I got my hands on the DVD set of the old TV series “Cosmos” and was able to start watching it recently.  I’m amazed at how well it’s aged and also at how well Carl Sagan gets his points across.  One idea I particularly liked was in the second episode.  It deals with evolution and the origins of life on Earth,  he described life on Earth as one lonely theme in a cosmic fugue.

The idea of life on Earth as a musical theme is an attractive one, with each species as an instrument in that theme.  Imagine it,  life starts as a simple refrain, just a simple tune.  As time goes by the simple tune on a single instrument becomes a little more complex, more notes are added.

Then different species start to appear, more instruments join the melody.  Maybe they seem at odds, like hunter and prey; but there is always a pattern, a symmetry there.

The point is also made that the vast majority of species to have appeared on the Earth are now extinct, many of those instruments will never be heard again.

John Cleese on Creativity

Posted by on August 23, 2010 No comments

I found this video the other day and though it was so valuable I had to share it.  In it, John Cleese gives his views on creativity and it seems he agrees that there are two components to the mind!

An apology for Alan Turing, good!

Posted by on September 10, 2009 No comments

I’ve just heard in the last few minutes that the Prime Minister has issued an apology for the awful treatment of Alan Turing.

I’m very pleased as this just underlines the fact that treating someone like this is utterly unacceptable in any society that claims to be civilised.

The link to Number 10 website is here.

The Life of The Buddha

Posted by on March 23, 2009 No comments

Well, I had an interesting experience in Secondlife last night, at a sim called “The Buddha Center” they showed a BBC video on the life of the Buddha.  As aide from the odd technical hiccup it was an enjoyable experience and when I found the video on YouTube, I thought I’d share it with everybody!

It’s 50 minutes in length, so be sure you have a cup of Tea when you click play, and the DVD purchase notice will vanish after the first 30 seconds or so.  :-)