Prediction or Predicament?

We've been doing this recession thing for a while now (a whole year). During that time everyone has obviously been wondering when it'll all be over. This has led to a whole series of predictions, ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous:

• At the beginning of the end of the world (recession) fear-mongering was the word of the day, and only the bravest of forecasters tentatively cast out dates usually within the 2012 range
• However, when things started getting a whole lot better (I'm thinking March of this year) some commentators started loudly declaring that 'it could all be over by Christmas' - sound familiar much?!
• Most recently the figure 2010 has been chucked around although not without warning; there will be a high risk of relapse, or so they say

But now this man has joined in:

The country's most popular/most hated current chancellor. Oh what fun a monopoly is! Jumping on the bandwagon he has predicted we will be out of the sorry mess "round the turn of the year" (oh the accuracy is so reassuring btw). This is a dangerous move for a number of reasons. First off, despite being Chancellor, Darling doesn't really have the creds to make such a seismic prediction under his own name Secondly, the tide of events during this series of predictions have shown that if you get it wrong (and in some cases badly wrong) you'll be drawn to the slaughter. Tick 'General Election - it's been 4 years' Tock. So, a bit of advice Darling. Leave it to those without an election to lose to forecast such controversial things.

RIP

On August 25 2009 a death shook America. For many this was vastly more important than the death a few months earlier of Charlie's Angel Farrah Fawcett. For some it even overshadowed that of King of Pop Michael Jackson. It was the end of a legacy that made waves in American politics. A man who was, according to Obama, "the greatest Senator of our time". It was, of course, the passing of Edward "Teddy" Kennedy. Named the 'Liberal Lion' Kennedy was a Liberal heavyweight for more than 4 decades, with great involvement in democratic presidencies, particularly those of Clinton and the election of Obama. With the short term affects being the nomination of a intermittent MA Senator, Kennedy's legacy is likely to last.

RIP

Inspiraton

I have two words for you in this moment: Sonia Sotomayor

She's the third female Supreme Court Justice and she represents the first Hispanic justice (a big step for American Democracy) in history. She even represents a much needed victory for Obama in this moment. But it is not these landmark facts that make Sotomayor an inspiration for me. Sotomayor grew up in the Bronx, a borough of New York City now known for it's poverty and primarily black and Hispanic population. Her father did not even speak English and both parents worked largely vocational jobs. Sotamayor herself has type 1 diabetes. However, in 1976 she graduated Princeton with a major in history and then graduated Yale law in 1979. She was admitted to the New York Bar in 1980 from which she rose through the ranks, being nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit by Bill Clinton in 1997. Finally, earlier this year President Barack Obama nominated her for a seat in the Supreme Court, to which she was promoted almost entirely uninhibited.

For me, Sotomayor truly proves the point of never giving up or letting where you started off stand in your way. It was beyond unlikely that a Latino woman from the Bronx would attend Princeton and yet she got there. The fact she followed this with Yale Law is even more incredible. But to end up making history in the Supreme Court is a true achievement that Maria fought her whole life for. If there was ever a simple and ideal representation of the American Dream, for me, this would be it.

En Vogue

Twats. Tweets. Twits. Whatever you wanna call them Twitter is obviously big news these days, particularly with the slightly older generation (and celebrities). Obama, ever the trendsetter, started using the service for his election campaign in '08, although he notably failed to use it for several months following election. However, it is in UK politics where, over the last few weeks, Twitter has become a bit of a trend. David Cameron (now notoriously) commented on it. It became the centre of the we love the NHS campaign. And most absurdly of all, Gordy just appointed his very own Twitter Tsar in the form of Labour MP Kerry McCarthy.

First of all I'm gonna have to mention that Tsar seems to be Gordy's favourite word and that if you're an MP on the hunt for a job.... But on a more serious note I respect that our Government is using new media to access us. However, Obama doesn't have a chief adviser for Twitter affairs. Do we really need an appointed official to handle this job? Especially one with Kerry's CV. Here are some highlights:

"A qualified solicitor, she began her legal career in the late 1980s working at a magistrates’ court and a Legal Aid firm, but then moved to work in the corporate/banking sector and became a specialist in financial markets law"

She's a lawyer. She's probably a very good lawyer. And she's probably a great specialist in financial markets law as mentioned. Financial Markets and Technology go hand in hand right? Nope I don't see it either.

" In the June 2009 reshuffle she was made a Junior Whip"

Aha. She is clearly popular in the party as she is climbing up the ranks. And, ok, popularity is a useful tool. But still, no mention of technology. And finally:

"Kerry's main policy areas of interest are: the economy; tackling poverty; international aid and trade; transport; and crime and justice."

Technology? Nope. Computer Science? Nope. Development of our information infrastructure? Not even that. And twitter? Most certainly not. So we have a Twitter Tsar without any seeming qualifications. But no! There is but one - that she tweets at the most annoying rate known to man. Great, my faith is so totally restored. I'll stick to good old fashioned ministers myself.

The Patriot

So I'm back on the whole subject of criticising, 'cept this time it's the government as a whole. I know, it's getting old, but they just keep on doing it!

We all love to criticise Gordy and co. in fact, it's pretty much a daily activity for most of us, and one of our most favouritest things to moan on about is the NHS. According to most Brits our healthcare system is useless, GP's are fat, untrained pigs and MRSA has spread beyond control. The majority of us fail to recognise that the thousands of immigrants into our country (something we also like to harp on about) seem to find this 'useless' system really rather appealing.

Now, excuse me if we hop across the pond for a minute. One of Obama's key selling points since the very beginning of his campaign for office (way back in 2006!) has been his promise to radically reform the increasingly flawed US healthcare system. This, however has yet to happen. Since us Brits are considered experts on universal healthcare many have been asked to comment, so as to *ahem* assist the Americans. This is where this man comes in:

This is Daniel Hannan MEP, a tory who has now been described by CamCam as "eccentric" due to derogatory comments he made about the NHS on US television. He has since been described as "unpatriotic" and it's been suggested he should be punished for his comments. But it's here that we come to the issue; namely if Hannan had said what he had said on UK television he may well have been applauded. Because, however, he chose American media as his forum he is an embarrassment to our country. It's a dreadfully British concept that you can criticise all you want in the privacy of your own country but as soon as you venture elsewhere then you are being jolly uncivil (particularly when you embarrass us in front of those damned Yanks). And so this is the full circle which we have formed. We communicate openly with the Americans, as long as communication involves smiles and a pat on the back. But talking about failure? Now that is not an option. A very 'special' relationship indeed.