Politics and the media

Predictably, election fever has gripped the UK in the last few weeks, which will no doubt continue until we know the outcome of the December 12th election. It is a time where you get political propaganda emerging everywhere. Through the door in leaflets, on signs outside houses, on social media platforms, the list is endless.  I was apathetic before campaigning for this general election began. In fact, I had been for a long time. Party politics is corrupting our nation, our leaders are lying through their teeth and, no matter what they will claim on each side, care very little about the people. To an extent, the chasm between politicians and people appeared irreversible.  Yet now that an election has come to town, suddenly party identification is at the centre of discussion. Suddenly, everyone leans towards a party one way or another. Whether that is driven by the belief that they genuinely can change things, or attempting to choose the least worst option, the pub...

Five years ago, if you'd told me I'd dye my hair blonde for charity, I'd have thought you were crazy. Surely I'll be judged for looking stupid? Ridiculed as I walk round the street? Lose all my self-confidence as a result of the two?  Yet here we are, those three perfectly natural doubts dispelled as myths, and conversely, all three have had the opposite effect. In a sort of crazy nihilist yet positive way, I don't really care anymore. Time is an odd thing. As I have probably painstakingly reiterated in almost all of my blogs over the last year and a half or so, I am a deep-thinking person. I'm apathetic about the superficial things in life - what brand of clothing to wear, in what state it is acceptable for me to leave the house, if people are making implicit judgements about me. That is not to put myself on a pedestal; nor suggest a moral superiority complex, I'll continually do my best to make that clear. In contrast, what concerns me most i...

The fall of tyranny in Athens in 510 BC, prompting the first recorded "democratic" political system, is regarded as a landmark moment in ancient history. Led by a prominent law-maker Cleisthenes and an orator Pericles, they guided Athens through its Golden Age, when the thriving city initially became a centre for literature and art. How the product of democracy has changed.  Boris Johnson's decision to prorogue parliament for five weeks in September and October, effectively curtailing any opposition plans to stop a no-deal Brexit occurring on  31st  October, caused widespread disbelief amongst Britain as the country gears up for a crunch few weeks before crashing out of the EU. The move raises more questions about what we call "democracy" and its operation in this country than it provides answers as to how Britain will leave the EU.  Suspending parliament, whilst rightfully legal, is a bold move from Johnson. Proroguing parliament to establish a new gover...

The idea of distributing free money is enough to cause confusion and perhaps even outrage in even the most level-headed of offices, such is the value of capital to us all. For why should, in a monetarily driven society, we give money unconditionally?  Now granted, put it like that, and any resulting hysteria is completely understandable. Yet when you delve a little deeper, the suggestion isn't as mad as it first sounds. The problem of inequality is unquestionably as prevalent issue today.  The World Bank estimates  that 736 million people, the equivalent to 10% of the world’s population, were living on under $1.90 per day in 2015. No matter which way you look at it, that is a startling number of people. Enter a form of universal basic income (UBI), possibly one of the most liberal economic ideas currently existing in the 21st century.  Principally, the concept gives every person (we will ignore international borders and currencies for the sake of...

Sunday 14th July 2019 was billed as a sporting blockbuster, destined to go down in the history books of British sport. Lewis Hamilton the favourite to win his home grand prix. Two all-time greats of tennis contesting the final on the greens of Wimbledon. And just a few miles down the road, England taking on New Zealand in the Cricket World Cup final. It was made to be spectacular. Yet you'd have scoffed at even the most convincing of psychics if they'd told you what would unfold in the eight hours subsequent to Chris Woakes' first ball at Lord's.  I need not explain. For an avid lover of two of those sports, tennis and cricket - and a previous childhood fascination with F1 too - the day was an emotional rollercoaster for me. Supporting the defeated Roger Federer in a topsy-turvy Wimbledon final, and all the whilst supporting England, victorious by the skin of their teeth.  One success of that magnitude was more than satisfying. But the tension drained my em...

A few nights ago, I was tearing up before bed at the pure complexities and intricacies of life. Except this year, unlike those days that I'll never stop banging on about , those of last spring, they were tears of happiness. An indication of what's changed in the space of just a year, an indication that I can function normally, an indication that for the first time I can reflect and feel genuinely happy with my life. It's worth a moment to reflect on though. Even now, there are times when emotion overwhelms me and I'll burst into tears not because I want to end it but instead because, well, I don't really know. I suppose it is the trigger of certain moments, feelings and events that take me back to last year and the impact its had on me. But equally I feel a pang of irrational selfishness for being overly open about my experience and emphasising it at every possible opportunity. And then again, those could both be explained by the sadness I feel when thinki...

I said to myself recently "blogging once every month is manageable and also something I'd enjoy". But the truth is, in April I completely forgot and lost track of time. This in itself isn't a bad thing, it shows I'm feeling good, but it poses some other problems. A little reflection is always good. For me, this blog allows me to sit down, listen to some relaxing music and put simply, just ramble! In fact, I think reflecting and taking a few moments away is something that many of us could do with. Surely it makes sense to give your brain a conscious rest as you do with your body following periods of exercise? The speed of society nowadays is electric. We can see news and communicate with others halfway around the world instantly with the invention and rapid development and entrenchment of social media into our society. I won't delve too deeply into it, as I have previously,  it has benefits and also its drawbacks, but one thing it does do is increase the am...