Catching up....

Eurovision last week. The weakest contest for a long time and certainly the worst winner in history - nothing more than a simplistic kids song. Horrible.

The risible hypocrisy-fest regarding the MP's and their piffling expenses continues. I sometimes think I have absolutely nothing in common with the British. I must have been born here by mistake. The pursed-up, 'definitely-disgusting' morons regularly venting their made-up 'anger' on the TV make me want to vomit. As much as I think Anthony Steen MP is a bit of an old duffer, he talked a lot of sense. It IS envy, it is largely because people haven't had the opportunity to do the same, and I think most people in the same position would have done the same.

After all, the thought of being governed by moralistic know-alls like Frank Field, who looks as if he is allergic to fun, should be enough to tell us that this is yet another British over-reaction displaying their preference for the puritanical

Just sent to Guardian.....

Dear Sirs

The current hysteria surrounding the issue of MP's expenses has highlighted the petty, small-minded prurience of the British public. As ever they have responded to what are, frankly, issues of little real importance, with the usual puritanical 'outrage'.

There are far more vital issues and problems, and this minor matter does not merit the over-reaction of either media or public

Yours sincerely.....

Having said that, I thought this was apt

Eurovision semi 1

Generally good results. My favourites - Malta, Portugal both qualified. Switzerland, a very lacklustre performance, and wasn't too surprised it didn't make it. No rock music through at all. Israel sounded better than on CD, and deserved to get through. Iceland sang very well but there's still something missing for me. Armenia also better than anticipated.

Barmy nut-job Christians rise again

You just couldn't make it up

FINDLAY, Ohio – A student at a fundamentalist Baptist school that forbids dancing, rock music, hand-holding and kissing will be suspended if he takes his girlfriend to her public high school prom, his principal said.

Despite the warning, 17-year-old Tyler Frost, who has never been to a dance before, said he plans to attend Findlay High School's prom Saturday.

Frost, a senior at Heritage Christian School in northwest Ohio, agreed to the school's rules when he signed a statement of cooperation at the beginning of the year, principal Tim England said.

The teen, who is scheduled to receive his diploma May 24, would be suspended from classes and receive an "incomplete" on remaining assignments, England said. Frost also would not be permitted to attend graduation but would get a diploma once he completes final exams. If Frost is involved with alcohol or sex at the prom, he will be expelled, England said.

Frost's stepfather Stephan Johnson said the school's rules should not apply outside the classroom.

"He deserves to wear that cap and gown," Johnson said.

Frost said he thought he had handled the situation properly. Findlay requires students from other schools attending the prom to get a signature from their principal, which Frost did.

"I expected a short lecture about making the right decisions and not doing something stupid," Frost said. "I thought I would get his signature and that would be the end."

England acknowledged signing the form but warned Frost there would be consequences if he attended the dance. England then took the issue to a school committee made up of church members, who decided to threaten Frost with suspension.

"In life, we constantly make decisions whether we are going to please self or please God. (Frost) chose one path, and the school committee chose the other," England said.

The handbook for the 84-student Christian school says rock music "is part of the counterculture which seeks to implant seeds of rebellion in young people's hearts and minds."

England said Frost's family should not be surprised by the school's position.

"For the parents to claim any injustice regarding this issue is at best forgetful and at worst disingenuous," he said. "It is our hope that the student and his parents will abide by the policies they have already agreed to."

The principal at Findlay High School, whose graduates include Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, said he respects, but does not agree with, Heritage Christian School's view of prom.

"I don't see (dancing and rock music) as immoral acts," Craig Kupferberg said.

___

Information from: The Courier, http://www.thecourier.com

Politicians and priorities

The British public sometimes give the impression of being less than bright. And hypocritical.
Its well known that tax avoidance is rife. As is taking a sickie.
Yet when it comes to MP's we have all the current hysteria. Not that I agree with false claims, but the only sensible solution - a higher salary to enable two homes to be maintained - wouldn;t win public support either.

I find it sad and am not in the least surprised that so much interest is created in something so ultimately unimportant, leaving key issues by the wayside.

As for the 'holier than thou' stance of London Tory (sorry, she's supposedly Labour)MP Kate Hoey, its a bit easier when you are single and have a central London seat

This years pre-ESC review

Montenegro – Very 80’s throwback, its one of those songs which sounds OK on first listen but there really isn’t much to it, and it soon palls. Average at best

Czech Republic – This years Borat out-take. Pretty horrible all told. The shouty rapping definitely doesn’t work and this will be near the bottom of the pile

Belgium – Well, the Copycat name is obvious enough, although this is rather more Alvin Stardust than Elvis Pressup. Having the two novelty-ish entries at the beginning may not do them a lot of good. This is what you expect it to be.

Belarus – Very loud intro. Substandard stadium rock, and I don’t like the singing

Sweden – This years popera effort. I think its essentially a schlager song with an overblown opera chorus and it just screams ‘Swedish eurovision entry’. Which is fine if that’s your thing, but this isn’t mine....

Armenia – And the dross goes on.....this is one of those ‘ethnic but contemporary’ efforts which doesn’t go anywhere very much and isn’t particularly remarkable whilst dping so. It also requires a tune.

Andorra – I don’t rate this very highly, it’s an average pop song, But after the preceding bilge, it doesn’t sound too bad. Entirely forgettable, nonetheless

Switzerland – I have a reputation for not being a rock fan, but whatever category one places this in, it should sail through if there’s any justice. Musically its spot-on, interesting instrumentation, and the overall feel is somewhere between the Pet Shop Boys and New Order. Actually reminds me of ‘Disappointed’. What it has going for it is a good melody and a haunting atmosphere..

Turkey – So, so predictable. Unfortunately, there are always votes for this sort of thing, no matter how dull and unremarkable. You couldn’t get much more routine than this one. Ethnic kebab-shop-by-numbers. Boring, boring

Israel – Good singers who sound professional and harmonious. I don’t think it’s a great song, but after all the noise so far it comes over as quite different and refreshing

Bulgaria – This is straight out of the Communards/Jimi Somerville songbook, but to be able to get away with this sort of thing, you have to be able to do it very well. Sung well, this could win. But all the live performances so far have been excruciating

Iceland – This is a sweet little ballad, nicely sung, but somehow it misses something. I’m not sure what.

Macedonia – Even louder than Belarus. More stadium rock, and I’m not the person to be able to give an unbiased view....not for me

Romania – Another very dull song which doesn’t really do anything or get anywhere. Dullsville

Finland – very, very bad rapping, and usually rapping does badly in the contest. The chorus is pretty predictable Steps-style pop. No thanks

Portugal – And so to the class. This is delightful, it’s uplifting and cute. If Urban Trad can do well, why not this?

Malta – I’m a great Chiara fan and she can certainly sell a song. This isn’t as strong a song as either of the previous entries. But the chorus is very memorable. I think it will qualify and may do much better than some predict

Bosnia – This is a serious contender. It’s a dramatic song, well sung, I don’t like it as much on a few listens as the first time round but it will be a definite qualifier

Croatia – This year’s slice of Balkan doom. Its not one of the best examples, but he looks good and it may be remembered enough to qualify.

Ireland – I’d hoped for a really good Irish en try this year, but they really have lost the plot. This is a very weak Americanised song which classes as their worst effort to date

Latvia – In the ‘Bizarre’ corner comes this messy and tuneless cacophony. He’s a good singer, but this isn’t a good vehicle for a voice with lots of range

Serbia – There seems to be a surfeit of music claiming to be ‘folk’. This is the second Borat outtake only they have borrowed the lead singer of Right said Fred, fattened him up , and given him a wig. Its silly but then its meant to be. I think,

Poland – The response to this has been quite underwhelming so far, but I think it’s a good ballad – certainly much better than Iceland. Good melody, well sung on CD though I gather the live performances lack something. But it’s one of my favourites

Norway – Every so often, rationality disappears and something turns up which you love – or in this case, hate, hate , hate. Its not only that the song is a clichéd, derivative, irritant, nor that he has a face just waiting to be punched. Nor that something so cynically pitching for eastern votes is supposedly ‘traditional’. Its everything wrong with European pop in three loathsome minutes.

Cyprus – The performance in both the semi and final was in the Sophie Carle ‘little-girl-lost-with-out-of-key-voice’, which to an extent works, but not the out of tune bit. Song-wise this is really nice but whether such a huge improvement will be possible before the contest, I’m not sure.

Slovakia – Dramatic stuff, this. May all depend on the performance, but this sort of thing can do better than early predictions suggest – Tell Me Why being the obvious example. It isn’t the most tuneful song around, but it does stand out.

Denmark – What a cute boy! This is the sort of thing Ireland ought to be entering – and yes, it does sound like Ronan Keating. A million times better than Norway, it’s a grower, but can he do the song justice, particularly those high notes. If so, it’s a contender.

Slovenia – This must be the surprise selection of the year. It’s quite creative stuff but there’s just something a bit daft about watching what is effectively an instrumental being mimed on stage. I think it might qualify

Hungary – This is a bit gay. Actually, it’s very gay. But it’s not very good. Really predictable . It does what it says on the tin but this is one for recycling

Azerbaijan – Of the songs in this vein, this one is the strongest. I don’t actually like it, but it sounds fresher than the others and the voices work well.

Greece- The absolutely heterosexual Mr. Rouvas returns. He’s not much of a singer but then this doesn’t require a lot of singing. He’s fit and he can move, and like Chiara, he can sell a song. There’s a certain charisma there. Shake It sounds just great speeding to Athens airport in the back of a Greek taxi and this may do as well but it really doesn’t do much for me

Lithuania- This years ‘quiet song’ is pleasant enough but I think it needs a ‘lift’ melodically. It lacks light and shade.

Moldova- This year’s ultra-ethnic outing. I loved the jazz ballad last year but knew it wouldn’t get many votes. This really does sound like something you would stagger around drunkenly to but i have a feeling it could amass a few votes.

Albania- This sounds very Scandinavian to me. It’s nice enough but a bit unremarkable

Ukraine- There had to be one. Musical merit nil, heavy on the gimmicks. Tuneless and clichéd. Just horrible

Estonia – On first hearing I thought this was a bit ‘cold’, but it’s now one of my favourites. Haunting and ethereal, and a bit different....

Netherlands- Sometimes a joke entry works, but its important that everyone is in on the joke. To an outsider, this looks like three old blokes dressed as Liberace singing a schlager show tune

France- This is really classy, sleazy, jazzy stuff. It does stand out from the crowd – I can imagine it behind the credits on a film noir. Its also thoroughly French. Excellent

Spain- They do seem to have got into a rut of entering very predictable upbeat songs which scream ‘Spanish Eurovision entry’. This is another in the sequence, and its utterly forgettable

Germany- Conversely, Germany often enter interesting songs but they don’t always do well. This is very smooth and professional, I fancy the singer, and it’s a grower. But somehow I don’t think it is going to do very well. I hope I’m wrong.

UK- I’m not a fan of our entries on the whole, and actually having the UK on or near the top of the pile at this stage in the contest is almost unheard of. But this is the best ballad in the contest. It’s a memorable tune, and the ALW factor may help it along

Russia – Playing to the home crowd gallery I think. I don’t like it

Anyone else find our current political choices depressing?

We have a Labour government which is tired and has run out of steam. Considering the size of their majority, they could have done so much to enforce real change - but they actually didn't want to. Some good things, yes, but on the whole, disappointing. I'm not amongst those who criticise Brown for not being a charismatic leader. Vision seems to matter little when it comes to actually making real change, and messianic zeal can be somewhat concerning.

The Liberal Democrats appear to be all things to all people. But I can't work out what they really stand for. They appear to be travelling down the same neo-liberal path as the current government and the official opposition. They appear to have trimmed their pro-EU stance. Clegg makes my flesh creep. All in all, I can't really distinguish them a lot from moderate Tories. And I have no interest in voting for moderate Tories.

Which is why for me, no conservative party will ever be a choice I will opt for, because I am not conservative.

So, three main parties, none of who have anything very much to offer. Anyone here from any other party willing to sell me a reason for voting for them?

The right to commit suicide and treating adults as infants

http://www.exitinternational.net/

This is the website of Exit International, a pro-euthanasia society founded by Dr Philip Nitschke, who the Home office attempted to prevent from entering the UK.

Ludicrous. People should be treated as adults and there is nothing illegal about committing suicide. Nitschke appears to have worried the nannies because they wish to prevent people from making up their own minds. It really is about time that people stopped being protected from themselves. It is also the fact that once again, it is religionists who are trying to enforce their will upon others. Just like they try and make us live out our dying days in their revolting hospices, utterly unable to remove suffering without huge doses of morphine - I would never want to go into any of those vile places, filled with simpering religiosity and utterly immoral in their view that life is 'sacred' and people unable to make up their own minds.

What are these people so scraed of? Why do they wish to continue to infantilise the whole of life? Treat people as grown ups and let them have the choice - and if they make the decision you don't like - tough. Its not yours to make.