What is wrong with this country? Now that's a question we could discuss, debate, and fight about for a week and never get to the end of.
Of course its not just this country that's in trouble economically or socially, but i live here, I'm British or English or whatever, so I'm worried about Great Britain, the UK, England.
Where to start? Well there is recession. There is the corrupt, money grabbing democratically elected members of parliament who are stealing from us. There is the rise of the BNP (these last two not mutually exclusive). There is the issue of political correctness, health and safety morons stopping everyone doing anything that could have the remotest chance of being possibly, slightly dangerous, maybe. There is the problem with youth and gang culture. There is the threat of swine flu and MRSA and dirty hospitals. The list is plausibly endless.
For the sake of my rant, i shall pick a few specimens that have grabbed my attention and pricked my interest in leaving this isle and never returning.
The recession isn't one of them. There has been plenty of social comment on that. Some of it is beyond my comprehension, safe to say it must be the bankers fault, nothing to do with us as a nations reckless borrowing for the past decade. Fair enough its there to be borrowed and its obviously not all our fault, but capitalism works like thus. Supply and demand, we want it, they supply it. A bank isn't going to not lend just because it should have a moral conscience. If there is money to be made, they will make it, and we haven't been saying no, have we.
Anyway i said that wouldn't be one of the specimens. However, part of the issue is of course the government and parliament. Those banks that suddenly found themselves on the brink of the abyss, were bailed out by Gordon and Alistair. With our money. Throwing our money at a problem created by screwing up with our money. Well not mine, i bank with someone who hasn't needed propping up. Although of course it's my tax pennies that are propping the other banks up. Does that mean i have shares in these?
Of course Gordon and his chums in the cabinet, and also those two swords breadths away from the Labour benches (It was you Tories too, David), have been using our money for other things as well. Like, renovating a kitchen, or paying for a miniature duck house (they live OUTSIDE), or a digital camera. Or even paying for a mortgage that didn't exist. Also claiming twice as much rent than that was paid on a central office and second home in the capital.
I would love to have been there when the white paper was issued by some poor back seat MP to make transparent all expenses claims. They must have had a fit. Is he still alive do we know?
What was going through their minds when they were diddling us? Granted some were genuine mistakes, however they were clearly in the minority. They cannot seriously want us to believe that they didn't realise they were claiming for a mortgage they didn't pay anymore? They don't earn that much that they didn't notice when the expenses came through for x, y and z and they had twice as much as they did before when they paid their mortgage. Is anyone really fooled that they are sorry they did it, or just sorry they got caught? At anytime this year would they have noticed and stopped?
No, they wouldn't, because they were on to one seriously cushy number.
This leads nicely onto the issue with the BNP. Lets be categorically clear about this. They are not the answer. They are racist, bigoted fascists who haven't a faintest clue what they are on about. There is a genuine concern about immigration but their policy for dealing with it is not the way to go. Although lets not kid ourselves into thinking that is why they garnered so many votes in the European elections. This was a protest vote. A stupid protest vote. Not that Nick Griffin would admit it, but it was. Those interviewed in the wake of the results, who were asked why they voted British National Party, the majority answered that it was because they didn't want to vote for the "Big Three". Pandering to a proportion of the population who have lost their jobs in the recession by stating that the immigrants and foreign nationals have stolen their jobs only allows a wafer thin excuse for the disenfranchised to vote for these morons. Those who know no better have shown up at the polls and ticked the box as they don't trust MPs. And lets face it, the BNP can't boast many of them.
The problem is of course, who do you vote for? I haven't a clue! So i won't discuss that today.
The second part of my rant will be focused on political correctness and health and safety regulations that need the perpetrators of such guidelines sectioning. I'm talking banning Ba Ba Black Sheep and banning toilet rolls! Banning toilet rolls! What, in heavens name, will happen to you if you use a toilet roll? Of course theoretically you could scrunch it up and ram it into your eye, but you'd think even the most educationally challenged 5 year old may know not to do that, and even if they did, this would be an exception to the rule.
Teachers have been sent a 5-page dossier about the use of bluetac, its dangers and the need to wear goggles whilst using it. The only thing that might happen to a teacher whilst using bluetac is that a particularly naughty child might push them off the chair or stool they were using to put up a poster or such like. What do they think will happen that requires goggles? I haven't had the misfortune to read the document, and quite frankly I'm not sure it would help.
Also on the list of banned items are: Pritstick, egg boxes and conkers. I suppose banning pritstick will prevent any new form of solvent abuse, if that's even possible with pritstick. Egg boxes run the risk of having salmonella on them. Conkers run the risk of taking a small child's eye out. Maybe I'll give them that one, although that is still being generous.
I'm beginning to despair of this country. I could go on about other issues, but i fear I'd send you to sleep, if you haven't already.
The problem is, I haven't got any answers, but I'm afraid i don't think any of the people sat in the House of Commons do either.
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