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Pure Opinion

Britain: A Nation Living In Fear?

Thu, 2011-03-31 12:06
Milton Johanides
Last night, BBCTVs Panorama painted a bleak picture of a Britain living in fear. With real incomes falling at the rate of 2 to 3% a year, food and fuel costs going up at an unprecedented rate and with many facing the prospect of closing businesses or redundancy, the prevailing mood in middle England is one of growing despair and uncertainty. Meanwhile billionaires and venture capitalists are celebrating Osborne?s budget proposals to help them avoid paying even more tax than ever.

Minor Celebs and How They Affect Us

Wed, 2011-03-30 16:18
Milton Johanides
With so much air time to fill and the ubiquity of the Internet and phone video at our disposal, we have all the necessary conditions in place for generating instant fame. As the earthquake hit Japan, we witnessed the attempts of ordinary people trying to escape the horror just hours or even minutes later on our TV screens and computer monitors. The chap dancing away from half a ton of masonry as it collapsed literally inches behind him became an iconic image within hours. Other equally amazing scenes swamp YouTube and other social network sites daily and the "stars" of the show can be seen by millions. We live in a candid camera world where entertainment can be easily manufactured or accidentally captured. One of the earliest and best exponents of this genre is the "Charlie Bit Me" video which by now has been viewed an incredible 300,000,000 times.

Depressing, Unimaginative and Lacking In Vision: Osborne's Dream of a Better Britain

Mon, 2011-03-28 11:17
Milton Johanides
What does the UK Budget announced by the Chancellor Osborne say about the nation's state of health? Financially, we know, it's not so good. But more importantly, the Brits seem to be lacking something at the core. Where was the vision? Where was the inspiration? Where was the hope for a brighter, greener, fairer, more pleasant society? Completely lacking in new ideas, we were presented with a mishmash of rehashed Tory stratagems which tinker at the edges of a hundred different initiatives without any intention of making the slightest difference to the quality of people's lives.

UK Chancellor Osborne's Budget For Billionaires 2011

Mon, 2011-03-28 11:05
Milton Johanides
The champagne corks will be popping again tonight as big business gets yet another boost from the UK government. As unemployment is scheduled to rise dramatically, GDP growth forecasts are reduced and inflation now running at double previous estimates, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has made sure that none of his pals at the top of the food chain will suffer. By allowing charitable gifts to be offset against inheritance tax and doubling the planned reduction in corporation tax, companies and their accountants can look forward to a year of even more tax avoidance.

A Simple Statement To End The Science V Faith Debate

Fri, 2011-03-25 15:29
Milton Johanides
For too long science and faith have competed for prominence over people?s beliefs, but there really is no need for any love lost between the two. Increasingly scientists are amazed by the world they discover under the microscope and through the telescope, so amazed that they can come to only one conclusion - our universe could not have been an accident. Meanwhile believers stand rigidly beside the creation story told in ancient scripture. Some people of faith, so swayed by the progress of science, adopt a position of compromise. It seems that we all have to be in one camp or the other, or else at some kind of unsatisfactory point between the two.

Is It Right and Proper for a Man in Such a Position of Leadership to Broadcast So Irresponsibly?

Fri, 2011-03-25 11:05
Sandy Shaw
Is it right and proper for a man in a position of leadership to act in such a manner without the possibility of being challenged? Certain leaders in certain national situations are able to get off with appalling activities. Can you say that sort of irresponsible thing today, when so many people are concerned about being 'politically correct'? Is it in order to challenge someone's beliefs, and not offer an opportunity to reply? And this very well known broadcaster did so in such an off-hand and derogatory manner. There has been an alarming increase in those committing suicide over these past fifteen years or so and I really wonder if this is not part of the reason when pressures and circumstances pile in upon people. Departing from the Word of God has immense and profound spiritual, moral, economic, and financial consequences.

The Difficulty Of Achieving Real Democratic Change And How To Resolve It

Mon, 2011-03-14 17:02
Milton Johanides
Political change comes about when populations A) realize they are being taken for a ride, B) see that there is a better way of doing things, and C) mobilize their latent power en masse. The changes going on in the Middle East today represent the culmination of such a process, ordinary people taking it upon themselves to alter the political landscape which for so long has been weighed against their personal interests. It requires an expansion of consciousness and dauntless courage. We in the west might applaud their actions and may even wonder why it has taken them so long to get there, but the three catalysts (A + B + C) are not so easily arrived at as it may seem.

Billionaire Priorities Means Society Will Fail Ordinary People

Mon, 2011-03-14 16:56
Milton Johanides
A recent survey (ref Bloomberg TV) showed that 56% of people would prefer to see jobs created than have cuts to deal with the deficit. What this shows is that ordinary people are more in tune with what is good for the economy than those making the decisions on our behalf.

Twenty Years On, A Bankrupt Britain?

Thu, 2011-02-24 17:40
Milton Johanides
Before governments begin making cutbacks they should check with the electorate that there are no sacrosanct areas where cuts would not be tolerated. David Cameron himself, writing recently in the Telegraph, said that the only areas he would not consider handing over to private management were Defence and National Security. Beyond that, it seems, everything is up for grabs. But though these are Cameron's values, they do not represent the values of the nation he represents. Many people would rather see a national bank close down than their local library. There are those who rely on their weekly group activities which till now have been government funded, and which to them are more important than Trident. Others need regular care from public bodies; still others depend on affordable public transport.

The Kings Speech Is A Useful Lesson For Brits In General

Mon, 2011-02-14 17:26
Milton Johanides
The Kings Speech is a great film and fully deserved its success at the BAFTAS. It's taken a while but I am finally a Colin Firth fan; he just seems to grow in stature with every new project. Of course the film acts as a brilliant metaphor, not only for the UK's stuttering economic recovery, but for the lack of self-confidence which the Brits seem to be suffering from at the moment. Before George VI could accept his destiny he had to believe he could be king and the way the film portrays this transformation is part of its charm. If only the British people could see themselves in this light, as heirs to a great heritage which should be grasped with graciousness and generosity.
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by Dr. Radut.