BRITISH TELLY, ANYONE?

The quality of British television can be extremely high, but they have their fair share of dogs. For example:

During the day and often at night, they show a number of real estate shows, especially for second homes. One or two I understand --but four daily?

Antique shows are interesting---but four or more daily?

They love cooking shows and contests. they can be great---but, again, four or five?

Believe me, I don't watch all these, but I see them in the program (spelled "programme") listing.

British "telly" also is a vast repository of old American sitcoms. For years they've been running "Murder, She Wrote". "Jag", "Dynasty", "Friends", "Falconcrest" as daily or multi-weekly fare. American producers must rub their hands with glee---not to mention the actors---at the residuals they receive for these old chestnuts.

No holds are barred in smut or four-letter words. You never hear a bleep on British TV. My daughter is visiting, and the other night an old American police movie was showing, and she was astounded by mother---- issuing from the screen. I told her that's standard fare. The talk shows are pretty free and loose, as well.

I was having terrible reception problems as our house is near hills and lots of trees which block digital signals--as well as French signals from across ther channel. I solved this problem with a satellite box and dish. Now I can even get CNN, Bloomberg, European and Asian news services, even El Jazeera, the Arab network (in English). I miss ESPN which is only shown on Sky, a satellite network owned by that old charmer, Rupert Murdoch, for which I would have to sign up for a year. Since we're here only three months, it's not worth it. I get most of my American sports news from the web.

Several of the BBC channels are commercial-free, which is a real blessing, but the independent channels, like ours, bury you with ads.

All in all, I would call it a dead heat between the Brits and our TV. They do more interesting specials, but they have more dogs.

THOUGHTS FROM ABROAD

I thought you might be interested in viewing the oil mess from another perspective, as seen from the U.K.

The British have taken the American reaction as anti-British. Some of the vitriolic rhetoric they have taken personally; in particular, President Obama’s statement a few weeks ago that British petroleum needs a real ass kicking. I think one problem is the President using the name British Petroleum instead of its actual name of B.P. (Yes, it does stand for British Petroleum, but the initials have become accepted usage and the actual corporate name for a long time, much as KFC is the actual name of the corporation even if it was originally derived from Kentucky Fried Chicken.) So, referring to British Petroleum becomes a bit too personal for the Brits.

I also think they did not appreciate the President of the United States using the term "ass kicking" As a matter of fact, I don’t like it either, not, God knows, because I’m a prude but simply because I don’t find it is appropriate from the President of our country. Obama is pretty good at keeping his cool, but I think he was under a lot of pressure at that time to show he was in charge, and tough language seemed the thing to do at the time, a kind of macho knee jerk reaction to show he was really pissed and was taking charge.

In discussing this whole ugly mess with my British friends, I mention the blog I wrote a few weeks ago when I put the shoe on the other foot and asked how they would feel if a rig exploded in the North Sea and spread oil south to the English Channel and then into the Irish Sea, probably comparable area to what is now covered in the Gulf of Mexico. They agree they would not like it one damn bit.

They also point out---and they are dead right on this---we are not exactly free from corporate negligence endangering the environment. In addition to the Exxon Valdez spill, where Exxon acted promptly to clean up the mess, they go back thirty or more years to the infamous Union Carbide chemical catastrophe at Bopal in India where the environment is still poisoned today. No argument on that one…

B.P. is a major British corporation and has been one of the linch pins for dividends and growth to support pensions and investors. It provides a ton of jobs in the U.K. And don’t forget, it’s also a major player in the American economy where 40% of the stockholders are American and B.P. is a major employer in the oil industry and provides a lot of jobs in our economy. David Cameron, the Prime Minister, was quite right in emphasizing while visiting America that it is to our mutual benefit for B.P. to survive, not only for pensioners and stockholders but so that they can pay for the damages they have caused.

I have stressed that I think most Americans like the British and our "special relationship" (except for some of the extreme right wing nut cases who don’t like anybody, including Americans who don’t buy their politics). We don’t think U.K. is the villain---just B.P.

I think another common interest we will share is when the British people discover, as we will, what kind of shenanigans were played by the Labour government formerly in power, B.P., Colonel Kadaffi, the Libyan leader,and the Scottish National party in the Oil-for-Hostage deal where the convicted Lockerbie bomber was freed "for compassionate reasons" due to his terminal cancer (which, we now learn, was not terminal and the son-of-a-bitch will probably be around for another ten years). I have a feeling this deal is going to turn out to be very messy for those involved, especially B.P. and the politicians involved. I think our shared "special relationship" will have a common bond in this imbroglio.

Emotions are high; tempers are hot; feelings are touchy. The economy in both countries is still suspect with a lot of belt tightening on both sides of the Atlantic in store. I still think we need each other and need to work together. Understanding each other is necessary.
　
　

THE WALLFLOWER AT THE BALL

I feel like a wallflower at the grand ball, all alone and unloved. Here are all the couples dancing the night away and, poor me, I’m just sitting with no partner.

I could have joined Facebook and had the potential of 500,000,000 friends all over the world. In addition to the almost 129,000,000 in America, I could have known 27,000,000 in U.K., 26,000,000 in Indonesia, 22,000,000 in Turkey, 19,000,000 in France, 16,000,000 in Italy, 15,000,000 in the Phillippines and 15,000,000 in Canada---to name a few.

I once said in an earlier blog that I had not joined a social network because I really didn’t need 500 new friends. But 500,000,00---wow! I really screwed up, bigtime.

Seriously, it is an amazing phenomenon. A Harvard student started this four years ago for his buddies at Harvard---and now look. I bet the Harvard Alumni Association are after him for a huge gift. Colleges just love billionaires in their twenties: think of the long-term giving potential.

I think it’s too late for me. I just can’t handle such astronomical numbers, so I’ll just keep sitting on the sidelines watching the dancers go by

THE U.S.A. DOESN'T HAVE ALL THE KOOKS

I used to think that in the U.S.A we almost had an exclusive on non-thinking weirdos, but spending time in England has caused me to alter that opinion. This isn’t a recent revelation---I’ve noticed this for several years---but a recent event has really convinced me that U.K. has more than its share.

You probably have read about Raul Mott, a lowlife scumbag whose high point in life was being a bouncer in a night club in northern England, who recently, after shooting a cop and probably blinding him and killing the new boyfriend of his former girl, threatened to kill any police who came after him. He was subject to a massive manhunt lasting almost a week, was located in woods near his home and finally Mott shot and killed himself after being stunned temporarily by taser shots.

This wonderful man who had accomplished nothing in life but scaring and hurting people has now become a cult hero to a group of non-believers, idiots who have convinced themselves that he has been a victim of police brutality. These non-thinkers have showered the site of his last stand with bouquets of flowers, masses of them, and messages, bewailing his loss and extolling his martyrdom, a symbol of police brutality.

Even the new Prime Minister, David Cameron, in a speech before the members of the House of Parliament, felt called upon to denounce this misplaced and idiotic display of false and misplaced sentiment.

No longer will I say, Only in America…”. The cult of non-think is thriving and prospering here, as well.

BACK FROM THE DEAD

I feel like I have been reincarnated or born gain. My wife and I arrived in England nine days ago, and I have been unable to use my ancient laptop computer until yesterday. I did check my mail on my sister-in-law’s and brother-in-law’s computer a few days ago and found 140 messages, of which 4 were of any interest---par for the course. Then yesterday, when I was able to use my laptop, I found 190 messages, of which 9 were of interest. I got busy deleting and cleaning up this garbage and now I’m in good shape.

Internet is expensive here, as is phone service. My best deal was with a U.K. provider called O2, which, fortunately, has the best reception in the hilly area of Meads, a section of our town, Eastbourne , where we live. I am using a dongle, which, I found out, is not a male appendage to the body but an appendage plugging into my laptop, which connects me via mobile broadband to that great nether world of cyberspace.

I have also purchased for under ten pounds (under $15.00) a pay-as-you-go cell phone which will be a lot cheaper than using BT (British Telecom), with whom I would have to sign up for a year---or pay a steep cancellation fee. B.T. charge by the second, and the last time I used them two years ago for telephone and dial-up internet service it cost me for three months about $700.00. Now I have broadband and cellular phone, and it will be a lot more reasonable.

Without my computer, I felt like a druggie needing a fix. I had not realized how dependent I have become on the computer or how isolated I felt from the world. For example, I found out this morning that my beloved Cincinnati Reds are in first place by three games. (No, they do not show American baseball scores in the newspapers. They used to, but no longer.)

So, I have returned to the world of the living, my friends, and will stay in touch more regularly.