Another weekend approaches and more dull and miserable weather appears to be in the pipeline. At least the nights are getting lighter and today the sun is supposed to set at around 5.15pm.
Back in the days when my mother was still at work she used to finish at 5.00pm prompt and the journey home would take 20 minutes or less. She always paid great stall by the first day of the year during which she could complete the drive home without the need to put the car’s side lights on. As far as she was concerned that day ended the winter period and signalled the start of brighter times. Twenty years on that same journey would take a least 10 minutes longer, however I suspect that the University of Leeds (her then employer) still sees a mass exodus at exactly 5.00pm. They are either very efficient or very lazy, take your pick!
About a year ago we bought a new Ford Fiesta, which I would add has been a grave disappointment. Yesterday, after about 10 months of ownership, I took it back to the dealer with some warranty problems. (Just parts of the car falling off – only what you expect from a car with 7,000 miles on the clock.) The up side to this was that the dealer was “surprisingly” very good. They fixed the problems while I waited and when I mentioned (in passing) about some rattles in the dashboard they pretty much insisted that I book the car in for a full investigation and repair. Perhaps this is motivated by the desire to retain customers, but even so I was fairly impressed.
I gather that the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has been in Leeds today to promote proportional representation. It is, according to him, a “fairer system”.
I have never failed to be shocked and infuriated at how politicians will lie and distort the truth for their own furtherment and political ambition and this is a classic case in point.
Taking a situation where you have a fictitious political hamlet with 10 wards, each appointing an MP based on a majority vote in that ward, here is how things currently are and here is how Clegg wants them to be.
If all ten wards had two parties and party A got 70% of the vote whilst party B got 30% of the vote, this is how things would pan out. (Remember that more than 2 out of every 3 people wanted party A in all 10 wards.)
As things stand party A would get 10 MP’s whilst party B would get none.
However, under Clegg the overall 30% vote for party B would see party A getting 7 MP’s and party B getting 3. Sounds fair!
OK, which wards should have the MP’s from party B imposed upon them. Remember, all 10 wards had a 2 to 1 vote in favour of party A, i.e. they all wanted party A to represent them - none of them wanted party B.
I am still waiting for someone to explain the fairness of this system, or should I say how it is fair to voters rather than to minority political parties. But then again all aspects of our political system (and its respective parties) are beyond explanation to me.
Some overseas friends visited London a few weeks back and took in many of its more famous sights. They mentioned to me prior to the visit that they wanted to see a performance at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, however I gather that they were here at the wrong time of year. Apparently it has an open roof and does not offer performances during the winter months – so be warned.
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