Saturday 26 December 2020

TELEVISION EVEN WORSE THAN USUAL

Am I alone in believing that television offerings over the Christmas period have been even worse than usual ?

The usual repeats of classical favourites from Morecambe and Wise to Ben Hur may appeal to those few who have never before seen them but to anyone old enough to have seen the originals, now several dozen times, they are no longer the attraction they once were. Indeed, that such programmes continue to be re-broadcast year after year surely only serves to demonstrate how poor more modern programming has become.

This year, the Queen's Christmas Message has been the most watched programme in the UK with a little over 8 million reported viewers; long gone are the days when Her Majesty commanded at least twice that number of adherents, while Morecambe and Wise came close to 3 times as many. While it has to be admitted that times have changed along with viewing habits, does no one at the now hundreds of television channels not realise that their diet of cheap thrills, 'reality shows' and repeats appeals to a smaller audience every year ? Do none of them consider that there might be an alternative ?

Much of modern television seems to be aimed at children - is this an attempt to use the old Jesuit approach of "give me a child until he is seven and I will give you the man" - while modern comedy is almost entirely aimed at an audience of children and others of a puerile mind set, with an emphasis on crudity and bodily functions. Modern drama is aimed at those who favour crudity, nudity, overt displays of sexual activity and foul language in preference to solid storylines, real acting and proper scripts. Modern documentaries are top heavy with the most recent left wing fad, be it issues of supposed equality, discrimination, racial injustice. gender, or God knows what else. Is it any surprise that the majority of the population have turned away from mainstream television ?

I find myself hunting through hundreds of channels in search of something to watch and almost inevitably end up watching something I recorded previously, often weeks, months or even years ago. As someone who has paid his television licence dutifully and without fail for many decades, I find it galling that my likes are now superceded by vast quantities of animated tripe served up to satisfy hordes of children whose parents should be taking the trouble to entertain them rather than dumping them in front of a television and telling them to watch and shut up.

This year's offerings seem to have been even more limited. Yes, we've had the usual 'great' films - Ben Hur, Spartacus, It's a Wonderful Life (all of which I love but have seen many times), etc., but what else has there been? The simple answer is "Very little". With so many of us effectively housebound and isolated, could those to whom we pay licence fees and subscriptions not have come up with something better, at least for this most difficult of years ? Could Sky and the like not have foregone some small part of their massive profits to provide something more attractive and greater appeal ? Could not the BBC have done something to advance the cause of real television rather than broadcasting nothing but their usual offering of repeats of Morecambe and Wise, the same old films, assorted cookery programmes and the drivel that is claimed to be 'reality' ? Have I watched the BBC over the last 2 days ? I think not, at all, which is a shocking indictment when I would once have watched nothing else.

Some modern 'progressives' love to refer to things and services as being 'broken'; they will tell us minions that the immigration system, Home Office, benefits system or whatever else is broken or 'not fit for purpose'; how about adding that the BBC and overall broadcasting services in this country are on that list and even lead it ?

Sunday 13 December 2020

LEWIS HAMILTON - GREAT CHAMPION OR JUST A CAR DRIVER ?

 To be clear.

When Lewis Hamilton first appeared on the scene, I was a great supporter. He was a breath of fresh air and a tremendous talent, promising to be an attraction for years to come. Sadly, his subsequent behaviour has turned me away from him.

Yes, he has now won multiple world championships but then he has been driving what has undoubtedly been the best car of the last 6 or 7 years; the way in which George Russell, a reserve driver who has never before even led a race, so easily led and kept his lead until misfortune overtook him in Bahrain, came so close to winning suggests that Hamilton's achievements may be at least as due to car as to man. 

Today, Hamilton was a distant third in Abu Dhabi, the last race of a disjointed 2020 season in which he has again been crowned champion, as has his team. However, rather than be magnanimous in defeat, Hamilton has preferred to dwell upon his lack of full fitness, due to his experience with the COVID-19 virus, than acknowledge that he was well and truly beaten. Would Fangio or Moss, Senna or Prost, ever have blamed defeat on illness ? Instead, Hamilton parades his success and wealth in an almost offensive manor, while feigning humility; neither Michael Schumacher nor Sebastian Vettel, his most recent and closest rivals for accolades, has behaved in such a way.

Wouldn't it be great to see a race with Hamilton in a Williams and Russell in a Mercedes. then we would see whether Hamilton really is the superstar that he believes himself to be, or whether he's just a good driver in an exceptional car. One wonders what a Fangio, Moss, Clark or Senna would have done in this generation and where Hamilton would have fitted in. I suspect he would have been well down the grid from the true dare-devils of the track. 

Nonetheless, 'Arise Sir Lewis' is inevitable, as is a further devaluing of the honours' system.

DOES BORIS HAVE THE BALLS TO SAY "NO DEAL" ?

The evidence suggests that the UK and EU will eventually cobble together some sort of 'deal', with both sides claiming 'victory'. The truth will be that whatever is agreed will be to the satisfaction of neither party and will be so full of holes as to be open to infinite future challenges.

When Boris Johnson first set a 'final deadline' it seemed an unlikely target. The 'absolutely final deadline' of today (Sunday 13th December) was clearly nothing but yet another political gambit that both sides have now ignored.

It is equally clear that unless the UK agrees, in some way or other, to abiding by EU regulations and accepting that EU trawlers will continue to have unfettered access to British waters, there will be no deal. Given that these are 2 red lines on which the EU will not give way, the outcome seems clear.

Despite all of the rhetoric, the Johnson government will most probably find a fudge that is an effective surrender. Oh yes, it will be dressed up in such a way as to be presented as a victory but it will, in truth, be an agreement which gives everlasting power to the EU and reduces the UK to the level of a client state. Forget the claimed notions of sovereignty, we will be in hock to the EU, really meaning Germany and France, forever.

Of course, Boris may surprise us all and finally tell the EU that it is 'No Deal', but does anyone really believe that is going to happen ? My vote in future elections hangs in the balance - will Boris prove that he has the balls to earn it or will he cave in, just as so many of the liberal elite have done so often in the past ?

How many millions will be having similar thoughts ? How many millions might be looking for a new standard bearer in January ? Oh, unless of course the 'negotiations' are somehow carried on for a further indeterminate period, which is the obvious third option, God help us. The EU would like nothing more than to drag this issue out for another 3 or 4 years in the hope that either the British will become so fed up that they give up, or that a new government in 2024 calls a halt to the whole Brexit idea.

Anyone who thought that the 2016 referendum was the end of this saga was sadly mistaken. This is a true 'make or break' moment for those who truly believe in the democratic process. To make it personal, my last 2 cars have been German and I've recently been under pressure from a dealer to buy another; quite simply, unless there is a realistic deal that truly recognizes UK sovereignty, my next car will not be German, French, Italian or even Swedish. It will be Japanese, Korean, Malaysian or even American. That will be a good £30k plus that will not go to an EU nation or its UK outlets. Yes, that means that UK employees could miss out but then perhaps they should be considering for whom they work. 

Boris, show some true mettle, otherwise you and your party are history.