"You dirty thieves! You dirty thieves! You dirty thieves!"
How things have changed since Obama's election over a year ago. A public, which, then, could never be more together, has slowly turned into a public that could never be more apart. An electorate which, then, voted Obama in for healthcare reform, has silently been wishing to impeach him on the same issue. A country, which, then, was proud to be making history, has become a country of regret.
Obama, to Americans, was an inspiration, a whirlwind, and a star. But recently, views have changed. Rather unfairly, in my opinion, Americans are turning their back on the president, and- even more importantly- the health care reform that was a key point in the election. Even in Texas, where many children are unprotected by the existing health insurance scheme, as well as the rest of the country, where insurance companies are well renowned for turning down claims, there is high opposition for a universal healthcare system, which could, potentially, save the lives of millions.
There are various points that those in denial of the proposal are using to back up their staunch opposition. One of these, is the fact that they see the NHS (which has been used as a big example) as a shambolic excuse for a healthcare system. Although we Brits do complain about the National Health Service, I think we can all admit that we are extremely lucky to have it; instead of being in a position of having to pay extra, and letting capitalism decide our health. I'll admit that it's not perfect- but what is? Even those with private healthcare have a lot to complain about, and there are various NHS sucess stories.
Americans (as you may see from the quote at the start of the post) do not want to have their money taken from their wages. Although this is extremely understandable in the current economic climate, I'm going to end this post with one question to you:
If you're so opposed to paying for a service that'd help millions; why are you not so concerned about paying for an illegal war that kills millions?
Sunday, 24 January 2010
Friday, 22 January 2010
CoCo go BangBang
It's Saturday 23rd of January. It may be a dark day for many; but nothing haunts more than the clouds at NBC. Bodies lay strewn across studio floors, producers cry in anguish, and there is an eerie silence. Conan has been defeated.
... Okay, maybe not, but tomorrow (tonight in the US) really WILL see the end of the late night war that has plagued and pleasured our TV screens for the past couple of weeks. We've seen it all- bad imitations, ruthless slagging matches, and even the odd protest.
Despite the support that Conan O'Brien managed to rally up (including Letterman, Kimmel, and the odd million people here and there), Jay "NotOnMyChinnyChinChin" Leno has wrestled back the tonight show. If we were to carry on the war metaphor of above, I think we'd see that Leno has a few bulletholes in his armour. CBS' David Letterman has been particularly (and in my opinion rightly) ruthless; having been involved in a ruckus over the Tonight Show in 1993, with Leno (who won the show with a few backroom-deals). Leno, in riposte, has reused the same lame material night after night. Yes, you guessed it, the "omg, Letterman used to shag interns at his show and everyone's forgotten, but I'll try (and fail) at making it funny!" Comebacks.
In that itself we see the cruel irony of this situation. Conan, even before this mess, was revered as the better entertainer, a showman, and a crowdpleaser, who along with Andy, his announcer, brought a bit of zing to the 11.30pm timeslot. With the ammunition of the recent events, he, along with Letterman (and his quick jibes), Kimmel (who did a whole show as Jay Leno), and Ferguson (who was brilliant before he vowed to concentrate on more pressing matters- again, rightly so in my eyes), have excelled themselves, providing truly awesome comedic comentary to this dramatic debacle. Leno, on the other hand, seems to have got worse; his bad, and needlessly harsh jokes even inciting boos from the audience at stages.
Believe it or not, Jay Leno has even tried to make himself look like the victim of the situation. Although there may be truth to this (this was Jeff Zucker's idea after all (... Oops, sorry, did I say Zucker? I meant Sucker.)), it is hard to see how Leno is the one bawling his eyes out. Even if put in a headline of simple words (I dunno... Maybe: "Man With Thousands of Supercars Gains Old Job. Better Entertainer Left Jobless"), it's impossible for this headline to show Mr Bigchin as the victim.
Although there will be a few out there screaming: "what the hell!? This isn't his fault! Blame NBC!", surely Leno needs to take some of the blame- he's done this for the Tonight Show before; and he hasn't exactly told NBC to give Conan more time to settle in (despite saying "it's yours, Conan" on the show five years ago).
The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien has been going for just seven months. SEVEN months. The flop show "Joey" was given a longer run. In the time the show was on, NO-ONE was able to go through the full birth process (conception to labour). I managed to get my own job, and lose it in about an eighth of the time.
Jimmy Fallon, who has been quite silent about the NBC civil war, spoke out about the network and Leno, stating that he, like O'Brien, and Letterman, would never be able to progress from "Late Night" to the "Tonight Show". From an outsider's perspective, you can only assume that Jay Leno is going to invest in the latest "immortality technology", and keep hold of the show forever.
This has been a long, enthralling, but tragic war. It'll be a shame to see Conan go.
Ratings:
Letterman: 7/10
O'Brien: 9/10
Ferguson: 6/10
Kimmel: 7/10
Leno: 3/10
Fallon: 2/10
Carson Daly: ... I'm sorry... Who?
... Okay, maybe not, but tomorrow (tonight in the US) really WILL see the end of the late night war that has plagued and pleasured our TV screens for the past couple of weeks. We've seen it all- bad imitations, ruthless slagging matches, and even the odd protest.
Despite the support that Conan O'Brien managed to rally up (including Letterman, Kimmel, and the odd million people here and there), Jay "NotOnMyChinnyChinChin" Leno has wrestled back the tonight show. If we were to carry on the war metaphor of above, I think we'd see that Leno has a few bulletholes in his armour. CBS' David Letterman has been particularly (and in my opinion rightly) ruthless; having been involved in a ruckus over the Tonight Show in 1993, with Leno (who won the show with a few backroom-deals). Leno, in riposte, has reused the same lame material night after night. Yes, you guessed it, the "omg, Letterman used to shag interns at his show and everyone's forgotten, but I'll try (and fail) at making it funny!" Comebacks.
In that itself we see the cruel irony of this situation. Conan, even before this mess, was revered as the better entertainer, a showman, and a crowdpleaser, who along with Andy, his announcer, brought a bit of zing to the 11.30pm timeslot. With the ammunition of the recent events, he, along with Letterman (and his quick jibes), Kimmel (who did a whole show as Jay Leno), and Ferguson (who was brilliant before he vowed to concentrate on more pressing matters- again, rightly so in my eyes), have excelled themselves, providing truly awesome comedic comentary to this dramatic debacle. Leno, on the other hand, seems to have got worse; his bad, and needlessly harsh jokes even inciting boos from the audience at stages.
Believe it or not, Jay Leno has even tried to make himself look like the victim of the situation. Although there may be truth to this (this was Jeff Zucker's idea after all (... Oops, sorry, did I say Zucker? I meant Sucker.)), it is hard to see how Leno is the one bawling his eyes out. Even if put in a headline of simple words (I dunno... Maybe: "Man With Thousands of Supercars Gains Old Job. Better Entertainer Left Jobless"), it's impossible for this headline to show Mr Bigchin as the victim.
Although there will be a few out there screaming: "what the hell!? This isn't his fault! Blame NBC!", surely Leno needs to take some of the blame- he's done this for the Tonight Show before; and he hasn't exactly told NBC to give Conan more time to settle in (despite saying "it's yours, Conan" on the show five years ago).
The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien has been going for just seven months. SEVEN months. The flop show "Joey" was given a longer run. In the time the show was on, NO-ONE was able to go through the full birth process (conception to labour). I managed to get my own job, and lose it in about an eighth of the time.
Jimmy Fallon, who has been quite silent about the NBC civil war, spoke out about the network and Leno, stating that he, like O'Brien, and Letterman, would never be able to progress from "Late Night" to the "Tonight Show". From an outsider's perspective, you can only assume that Jay Leno is going to invest in the latest "immortality technology", and keep hold of the show forever.
This has been a long, enthralling, but tragic war. It'll be a shame to see Conan go.
Ratings:
Letterman: 7/10
O'Brien: 9/10
Ferguson: 6/10
Kimmel: 7/10
Leno: 3/10
Fallon: 2/10
Carson Daly: ... I'm sorry... Who?
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
Blasphemy Laws!? Christ on a bike!
Last Friday, as we all know, beckoned in the new year for us all. A new year, a new decade- but more importantly, in Ireland- a new law.
Of course, laws are made all the time, and a government can never please everyone. However, this law has caused substantial unrest, and I for one, feel that opposition is justified.
It has now been made illegal to blaspheme in Ireland. Illegal to the tone of a €23,562 fine, in fact.
As a fan of comedy, it's impossible to not see the irony in this case. If I'm frank, even someone with the sense of humour of a boiled gnat would see the funny side of this. Atheist Ireland, who (rightfully, in my opinion) challenged the law, decided to publish 25 quotes, that would contravene the new law. One of the quotes was from that oh-so-racially-intolerant, god-hating SWINE...
... Jesus Christ. Yes, you read that correctly. Apparently Jesus Christ (who may or may not have featured a tiny bit in the bible- I forget), was a blasphemous figure. Surely, the Irish Government must have realised that SOMETHING was going wrong when they (potentially) had to arrest someone for a BLASPHEMY law for quoting JESUS.
Obviously, though, the largest ironic part of this, is the fact that the Irish government wants to control what the public say, when their own MP's have recently become internationally infamous for using "unparliamentary language" while parliament's in session.
Blasphemy laws? To hell with 'em!
Of course, laws are made all the time, and a government can never please everyone. However, this law has caused substantial unrest, and I for one, feel that opposition is justified.
It has now been made illegal to blaspheme in Ireland. Illegal to the tone of a €23,562 fine, in fact.
As a fan of comedy, it's impossible to not see the irony in this case. If I'm frank, even someone with the sense of humour of a boiled gnat would see the funny side of this. Atheist Ireland, who (rightfully, in my opinion) challenged the law, decided to publish 25 quotes, that would contravene the new law. One of the quotes was from that oh-so-racially-intolerant, god-hating SWINE...
... Jesus Christ. Yes, you read that correctly. Apparently Jesus Christ (who may or may not have featured a tiny bit in the bible- I forget), was a blasphemous figure. Surely, the Irish Government must have realised that SOMETHING was going wrong when they (potentially) had to arrest someone for a BLASPHEMY law for quoting JESUS.
Obviously, though, the largest ironic part of this, is the fact that the Irish government wants to control what the public say, when their own MP's have recently become internationally infamous for using "unparliamentary language" while parliament's in session.
Blasphemy laws? To hell with 'em!
Sunday, 3 January 2010
The final Celebrity Big Brother Series!
Yep, that's right. The latest retard convention is upon us!
Here we are again, sitting on our butts, watching people who are APPARENTLY famous try and live together in a heavily controlled environment.
In the flock this year, we have one whore, and 10 people who have slept WITH a whore. Namely Katie Price.
There is only one REAL famous person inhabiting the house, and that's Vinnie Jones. And I think all of us, in harmony, feel that this is too low for Vinnie Jones. Even someone of his standards can do better than this.
So now we've found out who the housemates are, there's only ONE question that we're ALL asking. "When will this year's annual race row happen?"
Here we are again, sitting on our butts, watching people who are APPARENTLY famous try and live together in a heavily controlled environment.
In the flock this year, we have one whore, and 10 people who have slept WITH a whore. Namely Katie Price.
There is only one REAL famous person inhabiting the house, and that's Vinnie Jones. And I think all of us, in harmony, feel that this is too low for Vinnie Jones. Even someone of his standards can do better than this.
So now we've found out who the housemates are, there's only ONE question that we're ALL asking. "When will this year's annual race row happen?"
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