I have decided that we in England live in a Nanny State.

Nanny State Definition

patronizing government: a government that brings in legislation that it considers is in the people’s best interests but that is regarded by some as interfering and patronizing

(From http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_561505575/nanny_state.html, Last Accessed: 28th November 09)

I say England because I am aware that Scotland and Wales have their own parliment and I can’t really comment as I have only lived in England.

I’ve thought this for a while, but it’s become more apparent to me after digesting the recent Queen’s Speech a few weeks ago. The government decides what is acceptable and not acceptable in society by legislation, which is ever increasing. This legislation is usually around capitalism and helping capitalists make money.

If we look at the Banks as a recent example following the capitalism model. They’ve become vast money-making machines making billions of pounds doing dodgy deals. When they messed up, individual bankers who’ve made millions of pounds in bonuses aren’t bothered. They simply came cap-in-hand to government, knowing they’d have to bail them out. And somehow they’ve got away with it, how did that happen? If you or I as individuals had messed up our own finances, would the government of bailed us out? Probably not, we’ve have had to go to court and potentially prision.

While we are on this topic – does anybody remember bailing out National Rail a few years back? The private train companies had been making millions of pounds in profit and then all of a sudden didn’t have the money to pay for maintance to the rail network. We the tax payers bailed them out too, but I’ve never heard that they paid any of the money back? But I have heard that they are making millions of pounds of profit again recently in the news. Everybody just seems to have forgotton about that.

The common denominator seems to be that the few people in power politicians (who usually have stakes in big businesses, if not own them) can bend, change or ignore legislation to suit them. Giving them the power to do what they like with no accountability. Indeed they’ve set up systems and processes that work for them. The regularatory bodies (such as the Financial Services Authority for banks) have no power. And in the political system in order for an MP to advance their career they have to vote for legislation that may not be in the best interests of the people they supposedly work for (the tax payer). They have these “chief whips” people who state that they will let MP’s sit on certain committee’s (to advance their carrer) if they vote for certain legislation. These systems and processes need to be changed, but this isn’t going to happen when it suits the capitalists and the pro nanny state politicans.

All these systems and processes seem to disempower the average person from making a difference and making changes for the better to their local community. They also seem to have created a culture of as long as I’m ok. The legislation also helps to supress freedom of speech and our option to voice our honest thoughts about things. We are less likely than ever to stand up and say: Hey I think that’s wrong.

Of course we can’t blame it all on the government and legislation. The mainstream media plays it’s part too. Always negative and with it’s own slant. How come we never see anything positive in the media? Is it perhaps another way of trying to control or suppress expression of our opinions? Over the last few years several people have been branded racists, homophobic, etc. for using a politically incorrect term. I often feel sorry for these people. Usually they have used the wrong words to make their point (a thing we can all be guilty of at times?), but their intention was not in anyway to be racist, homophobic, etc. Surely we need to look at their intention rather than the word they have used that might of offended a minority?

In summary two phrases come to mind:
“Devide and Conquer” and “Power to the few”

Is it just me who feels this way? Perhaps if we all get together we can make a positive change?

Thinking Politically,

Antony

There was once a man named Alan Turning. He is now seen as a hero for helping to break German Enigma code in World War two. However this wasn’t always the case.

As a gay man living in these times he was convicted of homosexuality in the hetrosexual world he lived in. He had a choice to under go chemical castration or go to prision. He choose to under go the chemical castration and later commited suicide.

Looking back now he is seen as a brilliant and intellegant man. Think what he could have achieved in his life, if he hadn’t cut it short as a result of british law at the time.

Gordon Brown according to Pink News apologised for his treatment after a petition signed by over thirty thousand people. There has been some debate on Gordon Brown’s apology amoungst the gay community. Peter Tatchell said to Pink News:

Peter Tatchell called the apology “welcome and commendable” but said an apology was also due to the estimated 100,000 British men convicted of similar offences.

He said: “Singling out Turing just because he is famous is wrong. Unlike Turing, many thousands of ordinary gay and bisexual men were never given the option of hormone treatment. They were sent to prison.

“All these men were criminalised for behaviour that was not a crime between heterosexual men and women.”
(Pink News, last accessed: 12th September 09)

However Zefrog said:

And this brings the next question, that of the worth of an apology. This is not a new debate. It is a particularly heated one, for example, in the black community around the issue of slavery, where it is complicated by the question of financial reparations.

An apology is, of course, a potent symbol…
(Zefrog, Last accessed: 12th September 09)

My opinion is that Gordon Brown could of better used his time and political influence to change the laws against homosexuality that still exist in the world. There are still places in the world were gay men (and sometimes lesbian women) are hung, shot or killed in some other way because of their sexuality. Because they have relationships and or sex with the same sex. You only need to look this world map below (provided by Wikipedia) to see how far spread homophobia still is in terms of governments laws against it.

(Click on the map for full size readable version)

Blog politically again soon,

Antony x

Hi All,

Petrol & disel prices are set to rise by another 2p a litre according to PetrolPrices.com. I heard on one report that it was to raise funds for public services. We already pay more than most other countries and the majority of the price paid at the pump is due to tax. Do we simply not pay enough tax to cover these public services? Council tax, road tax, VAT. I am sure we could redistribute funds we have rather than add to the tax payers burden.

Buy your petrol before Tuesday 1st September 09, as that’s when the 2p tax is being added. Fill up before they raise the cost of petrol and disel even more.

Earlier this week I heard reports on Radio 1 that some people are really struggling with the cost of living and the economic resession at the moment. I have noticed the sharp rise in prices on essentials and am really starting to see the considerably less miles I get for the same amount of petrol as I did a year ago.

It seems that Gordon Brown and his MP’s can manage financially on the £65, 000 (plus expenses) they get. Well Gordon and your friends – that is NOT the average wage. Most people are not fortunate to be on this amount of money. So don’t be supprised if the media are reporting that people are struggling financially, and don’t stratch your head and ask why. Or be prepared (which is likely to happen anyway) to give No. 10 to David Cameron.

This effects us all, not just the car drivers as the papers have reported. If you get a bus to work – there ticket prices will have to reflect this increase in petrol and disel. You may think the only people it doesn’t effect is thosse who can walk or cycle to work. Wrong! Your goods that you buy in the supermarket all have to be transported there on trucks, trucks that use petrol or disel. So it is likely that ALL of our cost of living is set to rise.

Blog politically soon,

Antony

Hi All,

My postal voting papers have arrived for the proposed Manchester congestion charge.

I would encourage you to visit stopthecharge.co.uk. and vote NO against the proposals.

They have cleaverly set a very short deadline for voting. So do it now with out delay!

Warm Regards,

Antony

Health wise, every few years I get a terrible migraine. One of those were your eyes are sensitive to light, your ears sensitive to sound and it ends in you vomiting. I have had one of these nightmare migraines yesterday and it has only just started to clear today.

In my earlier blog (Financial Blues) I spoke about my wealth, or lack of it. However I have got my ticket for £100 million euro millions jackpot. I don’t want the jackpot, just a few thousand to pay off the debts I owe and see the black once again.

However one does have to think about what one would do if the jackpot was his. Let’s see, where to start? Well David said I should give 10% of any winnings to charity. So I would probably set up my own charity with £10 million. Then as interest was earned on the remaining £90 million, 10% of the money made on interest would on an annual basis go in to the charity.

Next I would want to clear my debts and see the black. Once I’d done that I would turn my attention to my family and ensure that they where financially comfortable. I would more than likely do it in different ways as apposed to giving them cash. The reason for this is because recently I read an article one of the sunday news papers about a guy who won the lottery. In his life the money caused more, bigger problems than the ones he had before.

Third thing I would do: go on a holiday! Ha ha, I’d take David with me.

While I’ve been off today recovering from my migrane I caught up on this weeks Question Time. There were some interesting discussions around a variety of topics. Inparticular the costs of I.D cards which should total £6 billion and not really make a difference in terms of proving I.D or combating terrism / immigration problems. I’m sure I heard a few years ago that it would cost £3 billion. How the costs sprial, eh? And at a time where the cash could be better spent on dealing with the difficult finanacial situation the country is in. Something for Gordon Brown to consider?

Interestingly a few jokes where made about a female MP Hazel Blears who was on the panel about her becoming the Prime Minister. She had some good opinions / views on directions the country should go and is a local MP from Salford. She seemed very down to earth and I think she would make an excellent PM. Hopefully sooner, rather than later.

Have a nice weekend,

Antony