Saturday 1 November 2008

The Lunatics have taken over the Asylum

Yesterday I had been expecting a succession of Trick or Treat kids coming to the door. But as it had been raining and sleeting off and on all day, I never had a single one call. Probably just as well or could have ended up getting sued for giving out all the additive saturated sweets that I got. It was a last minute realisation that I needed something or else I would have been tricked all night. However, as it was there were no callers. Well I say no callers, my milkman came to collect his payment, and is now convinced that I am certifiable as I answered the door wearing a glove puppet. Who handed him his money mind you, but I got the change.

It is one thing that I am grateful for about living in the village, its the first place that I have ever lived where residents are not plagued by kids playing with or incessantly letting off fireworks. Now personally I don't thing that the general public should be allowed to buy fireworks, and that people should only go to organised displays. Fortunately none of the local shops in the village are allowed to sell fireworks, because of the woodlands around the area, and what fireworks parties there are, are conducted in a safe manner. Thus there are not the problems that I have experienced elsewhere.

Now just to explain to my overseas reader, on November the fifth we let off fireworks and one a bonfire we burn the effigy of one of the people who tried to blow up parliament. One thing though that has always perplexed me is, are we celebrating that it failed? Or that they tried? Incidentally the bonfire dates to long before this and was part of a pagan festival where the cattle that could not be feed over winter were slaughtered, the majority of the meat dried, think Jurkey, and the bones were cremated in the Bone-Fire.

Though it became a seriously anti catholic ritual, and was all part of the religious persecution that lead to the pilgrim fathers leaving for the Americas.

It is more than unfortunate, just how easy it is to induce people to start hating others. Again for the benefit of my reader overseas, here the news for the last week has been dominated by the story of two radio presenters that made an abusive phone call. Now my personal feeling about the story was that I don't give a flying short term relationship about it. I did actually hear the content of the call, as it was played on the news, and it was in bad taste, offensive and the level that I would expect of one of the presenters. But was it worth all the coverage?

In the real news were stories about car booms in Somalia, America has attacked Syria, An Earthquake in Pakistan, that to me are much more important than the antics of a couple of idiots that need to grow up. However, the story grew and developed out of all proportion, stoked by a tabloid frenzy, they were baying for metaphorical blood.

Now having heard the offending part of the programme, the real offender was Jonathan Ross. He is and always has been a “Potty Mouth”. And like a four year old that is not checked when they swear, he has continued to utter a stream of obscenities and to ask the most inappropriate questions in all that he does. I personally do not find him funny, nor is he as clever as he thinks he is. But I exercise the ultimate censorship on him by turning him off. As for Russell Brand, while I have seen him as amusing, I also think he is full of his own importance. Therefore while not great fans, I was horrified by the way the media turned them in to figures of hate.

Well I am sorry to my readers who actually have a life, that I have had to mention this at all, but while I personally think that Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand should have been sacked, after all making abusive phone calls is a criminal offence in Britain. Anyone would have thought that they had committed a murder the way the trashy tabloids were going on.

I know that there are many much more important issues going on in the world, and the antics of a couple of self promoting B list celebrates is not news. I am aware of the irony here, a Blogger talking about self promotion. I keep on having visions of black pots as I write, but in a world where we are facing an economic depression, environmental meltdown and numerous wars across the planet, why are the media wasting all this time on such a non story.


1 comment:

Nancy said...

Hi Woodmouse,

I should tell you that I lived in London for two years, and traveled there often before; so I'm aware of Guy Fawkes' day. But I didn't know the meaning of the word 'bonfire' before.
I laugh out loud thinking of you paying the milkman while wearing a glove puppet.
I used to walk around on Halloween with my six foot long snake puppet (a very nice cloth python with button eyes.) I once gave a woman a near-seizure when I lifted some aspirin off a drugstore shelf with the puppet's mouth, which of course was on my hand.