Britblog Round Up: Scumbags And Faggots
BRITBLOG Roundup – the Scumbag / Faggot Edition, by Mr Eugenides:
Greetings one and all from Sunny Greece, from where I have been casting my eye over the finest in the week’s British blogging. I asked for seasonal misanthropy and I’m glad to say that you have delivered in spades, dear readers. So without further ado, let’s get to it.
You can’t get much more misanthropic than our first story. Over at Amused Cynicism, Cabalamat flags up a shocking tale from Nigeria, where Christian preachers are naming children as witches and then demanding money from their families in order to ‘deliver’ them from the evil spirits. Truly disgusting.
Children also feature in two other nominated posts this week. First of all, the Ministry of Truth looks at the GMC’s decision to strike off Professor David Southall for serious professional misconduct. A typically long but thoughtful post, that. Second, over at Liberal England, the evil under the spotlight is that of cases where the state brings up kids, and some of the misfortunes that follow. Add that to the list of things the state just isn’t very good at, I guess.
Sticking with the Liberals for a moment, apparently they have a new leader. The Whiskey Priest is unimpressed. And, in conjunction with a fellow bloger, he also has a podcast for you to listen to – apparently you download it or something, I don’t understand how these things work.
BendyGirl has a rather affecting post up where she reproduces the answer she gave on a benefits form under “any other pertinent information”. Sadly, it’s an impersonal and dehumanising business relying on others in the way she does.
Jamie K at Blood and Treasure has a look at the election of Jacob Zuma as ANC leader, and gives us my favourite line of the week:
Pretty much all political or national anthems translate as “you’re goin’ home in a fuckin ambulance”.
Nicely put.
A former prime minister converted to Catholicism on Friday, which makes me very glad not to be a member of that flock this Christmastide. Anyway, Paul Linford ponders whether politicians’ faith makes them better leaders, and whether it should be any of our business anyway.
My own flock has also welcomed a new convert now that the mighty Tin Drummer has joined the Church of Stella Artois. The young slip of a lad had barely started to sip before he heard the angels singing:
Stella taps into the recesses of the human mind, gives us access to areas of our life we had forgotten, and brings us towards harmony with painful or difficult pasts. Such, as I have said, is our birthright as human beings. Just like those pioneers, a mere 25 years ago who walked into pubs and had the courage, the sheer audacity, to ask for “a pint of Stella, please”. Well done to them. We all raise our glasses. We are all Stella drinkers now.
Still on religion, it being that time of year, it appears the Archbishop of Canterbury believes the story of the Three Kings to be rubbish. Which is fair enough, but once you start to pick and choose…
Moving over the water, and Alex Massie had a number of posts nominated this week (which either means he’s a quality blogger or he’s writing a lot of cheques to willing accomplices). Anyway, I plump for this one, in which Alex considers the ghastliness of the US Presidential candidates through the prism of Wodehouse.
And finally, I had a few thoughts on the big story of last week – the Fairytale of New York controversy. Censoring art is more offensive to me, frankly, than the word “faggot”. Good to see Radio 1 stepping back from the brink of total lunacy.
That, for this week at least, is all she wrote. A merry Christmas to all and here’s hoping you’re still awake and speaking to the rest of the family when Her Majesty comes on. Toodle-pip!
Posted: 24th, December 2007 | In: Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
