The current economic and social system in which we live, at least here in the anglo-american parts of the globe, is coming to an end. News of its demise may be a little premature yet I can hear its rattle. It is simply unsustainable. Inequality in wealth is growing both in absolute and relative terms. … Continue reading Milton Friedman is out of time
Free press
A free press cannot be free. A press that is given away to its readers for nothing cannot be impartial and free from undue influence. We pride ourselves in this country that we have a free press and that it fulfills the important role of holding governments and other institutions to account. We convince ourselves … Continue reading Free press
Don’t buy a bitcoin
Don’t buy a bitcoin. In fact don’t buy any cryptocurrency. They are not really worth anything, at least that is what the financial institutions are telling us. They are not like gold, or any other commodity, that is tangible. You can’t hold a bitcoin in your hand or feel it rattle in your pocket as … Continue reading Don’t buy a bitcoin
Pro Bull Riding
I feel that I shouldn’t but I have enjoyed watching the Pro Bull Riding on the television. It is back on the Free Sports channel. It is something that I never thought I would get into. It is all a bit redneck and cowboy for me and I have no history in any of these … Continue reading Pro Bull Riding
The best of talent
‘We need to be competitive, we need to attract the best’ is the clarion call of many of the leading tech organisations. In order to stay at the top of their game they need to pick the cream of the crop, the students with first class honours from the leading universities. I understand this yet … Continue reading The best of talent
Bitcoin babble
Bitcoin is in a bubble. That is obvious to anyone who has even the passing interest in cryptocurrencies. Money is pouring into the currency faster than Noah’s flood. Cyberspace is filled with commentary on every fluctuation and stutter yet the majority of what is said is babble, fill or rubbish. My interest in cryptocurrencies is … Continue reading Bitcoin babble
Diversity of truths
The truth is something that has fascinated me for a long time. I search for it in vain yet it is an elusive creature. The truth is a unicorn, a chimera or an amalgam of everyone’s beliefs. It is a figment of our imagination. I have been convinced for some time that there is no … Continue reading Diversity of truths
Is there no news?
Is it me or is the news becoming dumbed down? The evening news broadcasts used to be sombre and stately affairs that would let you know of the important comings and goings around the world. Now they seem to be little more than tittle tattle and heart-tugging stories. The bulletins have become little more than … Continue reading Is there no news?
Who runs the North East now
In October, Northumbria and Durham universities updated their 2000 report ‘Who Runs the North East Now? Governance and Governing in an English Region’. It looks at the way that the public sector is lead throughout the region and, at times, makes grim reading. It seems that little has changed since the turn of the millennium, … Continue reading Who runs the North East now
Sufferings of the world
‘You can hold yourself back from the sufferings of the world, this is something you are free to do and is in accord with your nature, but perhaps precisely this holding back is the only suffering that you may be able to avoid.’ I have always liked Kafka. His work describes the frustrations of being … Continue reading Sufferings of the world
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 