Sunday 20 October 2013

WHATEVER HAPPED TO MANNERS AND DECENCY ?

A couple of days ago, MP Jo Swinson was allowed to stand during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons. This may not sound a particularly noteworthy issue until one learns that Ms Swinson is 7 months pregnant and was surrounded by a gaggle of other members, many of them seated. 
 
That she was made to stand for over half and hour and that no one offered her their seat demonstrates only too clearly just how far general standards of decency have fallen in recent years. When I was a child and for many years thereafter, I would have automatically given up my seat for a pregnant woman or an elderly person; I would have automatically held a door open for others, indeed, I still do the latter though the former is less necessary these days as I'm now one of the 'elderly' myself.
 
The decline in good manners and common decency has been stark. Today's children demonstrate almost no concern for others and rarely if ever hold a door or give up a seat; their personal interests and 'rights' outweigh everything else. What a horrible world we have produced.

GRAYSON PERRY POINTS WAY TO END OF LICENCE FEE.

Last night, I was unfortunate enough to tune into 'Radio 4' at about 10:30 and was confronted by a right old load of drivel.
 
There was a time when the annual 'Reith Lectures' were something to look forward to, being delivered on serious subjects by highly respected and erudite speakers. A vast variety of topics were covered and they were always of interest; sadly, this is no longer the case. Today's 'Reith Lectures' have been 'jazzed up' to include 'modern' subjects and speakers and include globe-trotting journeys, all, of course, at public expense.
 
This year, the lectures are being delivered by Grayson Perry, a person admired by a few as an artist of sorts but either ignored or laughed at by most. Whether or not anyone would have taken any notice of Perry but for his highly publicised habit of dressing in women's clothing is a moot point; what can't be denied is that his selection as the 'Reith Lecturer' was horribly misguided.
 
Perry drivelled away with occasional puerile anecdotes but, as far as I could tell from a brief hearing,
he said almost nothing of any note; indeed, I suspect that most half-educated art students could have done better. If Perry does have anything significant to say about art, he certainly wasn't saying it last night and one has to wonder what the BBC was thinking when they chose him to deliver this auspicious lecture series; presumably, some young arty-crafty type had the final say.
 
With their increasing determination to attract mass audiences by playing to the lowest common denominator, desire to be 'with it', adherence to consistently left-wing attitudes and rejection of anything deemed to be 'old fashioned', the BBC has surely built a damning case against the continuation of the licence fee. Today, there is very little on the BBC that I choose to watch or listen to, most of its output being awful; the licence fee is simply an annual tax on my television.
 
Once upon a time, I was a strong advocate of the BBC but no more; apart from a handful of programmes and presenters, it is a shocking mess. It is, I fear, time for the licence fee to end and for the BBC to stand, or fall, on its own two feet.

Saturday 12 October 2013

CAN I "PRE-BOOK" MY "PRE-ORDERED" "RE-SHUFFLE" PLEASE ?!

Who on earth was it that invented the ridiculous modern trend to put the prefix "pre-" in front of certain words ?
 
The academic Sarah Churchwell made a very valid point on 'Question Time' last Thursday when the panel was discussing government and opposition 're-shuffles'. As a Professor of American Literature, she quite rightly complained that the "re-" was a wholly redundant addition; what the party leaders were doing was to 'shuffle' their packs and to say 're-shuffle' was pointless and meaningless twaddle.
 
The same clearly applies to "pre-booking" and "pre-ordering". If I order goods, I order them; I don't "pre-order"; what, in fact, does "pre-order" actually mean ? Does it have any validity as an English word ? The same can be said of the equally stupid "pre-book" though, to be fair, the horrible "pre-owned" may have some meaning even if it is a little cumbersome and simply an advertisers' ploy to avoid the less attractive "second hand".
 
Why is it that some people feel the need to mangle our perfectly good language in these ways ? No wonder our children have such problems with literacy.
 
 

Thursday 10 October 2013

'SKY AT NIGHT' TO BE AXED ?

True to it's modernist values, the BBC is apparently on the point of doing away with one of the longest running and best television programmes in the world - 'The Sky at Night'. It would seem that while the programme's creator and star, Sir Patrick Moore, was alive, it was untouchable but now he's gone it's fair game.
 
The Beeb will probably claim that audiences have dropped since Sir Patrick's departure from this earthly realm, but that may be as much to do with its scheduling - viewers now have to scour the schedules to find it at midnight or midday, plus its only regular slot on the minority channel, BBC4.
 
'The Sky at Night' is not only an institution, it is an inspiration; it has been an inspiration to generations of potential young scientists for decades and has been lauded by many, including the Astronomer Royal, Sir Martin Rees. While they produce dumbed-down audience-grabbing tripe such as 'Eastenders', 'Strictly Come Dancing', and assorted other programmes for the illiterate masses, 'The Sky at Night' is an oasis of brilliance in this sea of mediocrity; sadly, the Beeb has no interest in brilliance, only in celebrity.
 
Perhaps if Professor Brian Cox volunteered to take over the presentation of the programme, it would have a better chance of survival; he is, after all, a celebrity scientist which neither of the current presenters are. Chris Lintott and Lucie Green are both experts and fine presenters but they are not, yet, celebrities and don't pretend to be such; nonetheless, the programme remains every bit as good as it ever was under their care and it would be a shocking act of vandalism if the BBC were to carry through its plan.
 
The ghost of Sir Patrick Moore must be screaming with anguish. Anyone who feels the need to scream with him may do well to sign the 'Sky at Night' petition set up by 'Change.org'.