We will all have witnessed the spectacular events of the 30th Olympic Games, over the past 17 days, from the outrageously lavish and theatrical opening event, to the jumble of imagery (from amazing to banal) in last night’s closing ceremony. No-one can deny the outstanding success of this Olympics, on almost every level. I believe...
“Do you know what I mean? D’ya get me? Know what I’m saying?” Confidence comes from knowing that others understand us. So much so that we use countless phrases every day to check that we are being properly understood, and not misinterpreted. Even those with a vast command of English, and the ability to employ...
As an instinctive pedant, I often find myself on the wrong side of an argument, simply because the “right side” hasn’t argued their case properly and logically. As any lawyer might say, it’s not for me to argue their case for them, even though I am open to persuasion. The topic of same-sex marriage doesn’t...
I agree that Jimmy Carr hasn’t done anything wrong, morally or otherwise, and should not be castigated for keeping within the law. It was outrageous that the Prime Minister should choose one person to name in this way. As with any tax system, there are a myriad of allowances, incentives, penalties and pitfalls. HMRC are...
I don’t have a qualification to my name (past high school anyway). I am capable of a great many things, but just don’t have the paperwork to prove it. But who do I need to prove it to, myself, or everyone else? Is it the education or the certificates that I regret not attaining (because...
Throughout the ages, there has been a long history of segregation of the people we share a planet with. In most instances there is an accompanying ”plausible” explanation, where we are told that certain people, of differing cultures, sex, ethnicity, race or religion need to be kept apart. We are all aware of the effects...
You may have noticed the shitstorm of controversy sparked yesterday by an online article in the Daily Mail, entitled “Why women hate me for being beautiful”. Samantha Brick, for it is she, contended that ordinary and ugly looking women discriminate against her because of her looks. A separate article in The Economist last week, takes...
I don’t believe them for a second. Politicians perpetually tell you one thing, when they mean another. What they are implementing may well be the exact right thing to do, but because they are steered by think-tanks, focus groups and PR arseholes, they feel compelled to spin illogical drivel, when the truth should already be...
Some 28 years ago (when I was 18), and in the same building as my current office, I experienced my very first job in sales. This telesales role was selling advertising in the in-house magazines and diaries of police and fire federations and associations. This was all very new to me, and the office had...
OK, so it seems like the English FA are embarking upon an extensive and far-reaching search for a successor to Fabio Capello (hat in Italian), before offering the job to Harry Rednapp. Almost everyone agrees that the outcome is a foregone conclusion, so why bother going to extraordinary lengths, and expense, to arrive at the...
