David Cameron: 'no more TV license fee for the BBC'

The leader of the opposition - the right-wing Conservative party - David Cameron, has declared yesterday that he would freeze the BBC-TV license fee for a year to set a good and strong example to the British people in these times of economic crisis, the Independent reported yesterday.

According to the Independent, Mr. Cameron also declared that the BBC is one of the most important British institutions and that it has been for years.

Mr. Cameron has accused many Labour leaders for the plans made to increase the BBC-TV license fee from £139.50 to £142.50.

This is, without a doubt, a very interesting and rare move for a Tory leader to make in times of economic crisis. First of all, the BBC is the best broadcasting network in the world and it needs the license fee to survive.

Taking into consideration that the BBC does not broadcast commercial ads and that the only income it has at the moment is the license fee, it needs the money collected by the license fee payers to keep broadcasting those interesting high-quality documentaries and programmes.

However strange it might sound, in times of economic crisis and economic recession the best thing to do in order to help the country's economy is to spend money. Money that at same time must stay in Britain.

Reducing or freezing the license fee, even for a year, does not help the economy at all. On the contrary, it will make things harder for the BBC and most of the very-well-made, high-quality programmes that the BBC makes, will decline in quality.

It is also fair to mention that the the license fee does not only go to the BBC-TV programmes, but it supports all the BBC-radios across the country, the fantastic BBC website, and everything that has to do with the BBC in the UK.

The picture used for this article used taken from http://www.guardian.co.uk/

Independent article used to write this story:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/cameron-would-freeze-bbc-fee-1646289.html

David Cameron's profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cameron

The BBC's profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC

The BBC website:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/

BBC-TV Licence fee:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/info/licencefee/

Gordon Brown: 'cheap alcohol is killing us'

British PM Gordon Brown declared his views towards the new price of alcohol in the UK, the BBC News website has reported today.

In a press conference held yesterday Mr Brown expressed that he will not interfere with the new law that has been considered by the Chief Medical Officer for England, Sir Liam Donaldson, who wants to increase the price of alcohol by 50p per every unit of alcohol.

This new law would make a regular bottle of wine of a minimum price of £3.00 a £4.50 bottle of wine. According to the BBC News website, England, unlike other European countries that have decreased the amount of alcohol consumed in a year, has increased it by 40%.

Although Mr. Brown has no intentions to stop the price of alcohol from being risen, he did show some concern about the ‘moderate’ drinkers. The BBC News website reported today: “He (Mr. Brown) said: I think these strong actions in public health are always controversial.”

BBC Radio 4 has broadcasted today that Mr. Brown does not think it is fair to penalize those who do not drink too much, for the fault of those who drink more.

The purpose of increasing the price of every alcohol unit sold in England is to stop heavy drinkers from becoming more addicted to alcohol. According to the BBC News website “the NHS bill for alcohol abuse is an estimated £2.7bn a year”

It is not a secret to anyone that many English people have drinking problems, and that every year more and more under-aged teenagers are starting to drink heavier types of alcohol more frequently.

Plus, after having seen that the measures towards smoking in public places taken more than two years ago worked - because it has been proved that since the law of non-smoking in public places made many people stop smoking - the government is now trying to apply the same strategy on alcohol laws.

Which – if you look at it this way – is a good thing, because in times of economic crisis and recession, it is better not to spend money on unnecessary things such as alcohol.

Instead of spending money on alcohol, we could spend that money on more useful things such as food, mortgage or invest it on saving. Plus, it is a fact that this new alcohol regulation will stop many people from getting violent in the streets every time they drink.

I agree with what the government is trying to do, and I believe it is one of the most reasonable ideas they have had in a long time.

The picture used for this article was taken from: http://www.virginmedia.com/ and http://www.timesonline.co.uk/

BBC News article used to write this story:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7945357.stm

Independent related article:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/pm-rejects-minimum-alcohol-price-idea-1646077.html

Times Online related article:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article5916887.ece

Gordon Brown's profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Brown

Osama Bin Landen talks again but he wouldn't show up

Osama Bin Laden, the most wanted criminal of all times released a voice recorded document today where he accuses muslim countries for not taking action against Israel when it was needed - during the latest attacks on Gaza - the Daily Telegraph has reported today.

Bin Laden reveals that he considers the muslim countries that are not taking actions against Israel as "hypocrites" and calls upon the muslims of the world to take action against Israel for what they have done to Gaza.

In the last two months Bin Laden has released 2 voice recorded documents, and before this, the last video recorded by him was released more than two years ago. To me, there is something that isn't right.

First of all, Israel was just trying to finish with Hamas - a terrorist group that uses children was human shelter, and oppresses its own people. Unfortunately, because of the 'humanitarian's actions' Israel had to stop their operations and now Hamas can easily get ready to stricken again.

Bin Landen is well-known for releasing videos where he - around gun machines and other heavy arsenal - shows his face and reads his speech. After a while of not doing this, he suddenly releases two voice recorded documents one after the other in two months. What is stopping me from thinking that this terrorist is dead and that someone is trying to take his place secretly?

Osama Bin Laden is just the biggest coward the world has ever seen. If he was really a hero - as some people do consider him - why doesn't he show his face, instead of hiding behind other people's suicide actions?

The world criticizes the American government for having troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, but at the same time they seem to forget that there is a war out there against terrorists who hate everything and everyone, people who think the world would be better of without the western world.

The picture used for this article was taken from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

Daily Telegraph article used to write this story:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/qatar/4991580/Osama-bin-Laden-attacks-crooked-Arab-leaders.html

Osama Bin Laden's profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osama_bin_Laden

Evo Morales eats coca leaf in the UN - has he gone mad?

Bolivia's president Evo Morales took a coca leaf out of his pocket and ate it in front of many other important political figures in the UN today, the Independent reported today.

Mr. Morales made a statement saying that coca leafs are not drugs and that they don't do any harm to the human bodies.

He claims that coca leafs can be used as medicine, as the native Bolivians have been using them for decades.

The Independent reported today: "President Morales, a former peasant coca farmer, brandished the leaf during an impassioned speech, saying: This is coca leaf, this is not cocaine, this is part and parcel of a culture."

President Morales of Bolivia is in a long-term campaign to legalize coca leaf importation to the US and Europe.

His scope is to show the world that with the right treatment, the medical power of coca leafs can be used to cure some light and fatal illnesses.

However, the reality is more complex than what it seems. Why hasn't Mr. Morales been given the opportunity to export coca leafs if the scope of this action is to make medicines that, at the end of the day, will be used to help human lives?

Because unfortunately, if anyone were given the opportunity to export coca leafs there will always be a group of people who will always find their way to use the leaf for other purposes (drug making and drug dealing).

I believe that the US, Britain and Europe have already got too many drug problems and making one 'drug' legal will not do any good to us.

The picture used for this article was taken from http://vivirlatino.com/

Independent article used to write this story:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/this-is-a-coca-leaf-not-cocaine-insists-morales-1643098.html

Evo Morales' profile (Wikipedia):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evo_Morales

Bolivia's Profile (Wikipedia):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolivia

Madoff apologises but still goes to prison

Bernard Madoff revealed that he was "sorry" for all the damage he made when he stole one of the largest quantities of money in the history of the Wall Street, the Independent reported today.

According to the Independent, the 70-year-old businessman - Bernard Madoff - is believed to have stolen as much as $65 billion in what is believed by the American authorities a long-term operation.

The Independent reported today: "His (Madoff's) investors included hedge funds, banks, Jewish charities, the wealthy, and small individual investors in North and South America and Europe."

Mr. Madoff could face up to 150 years in prison for the 11 charges he is accused of. Mr. Madoff pleaded guilty today after saying he was sorry.

This is history in the making. I believe that this case is one of the most remarkable cases of our times because of the economic situations we're passing through, and the fact that someone who stole such an amount of money is going to prison is a total inspiration for those who still don't believe in justice.

No other businessman with Madoff's records had been officially charged in a court of law before.

I believe that even if we apologise for the "mistakes" we make - which in this case, no mistakes were made because the whole operation was well-planned - we still have to pay the consequences of our actions. For this businessman, the consequences are 150 years in prison.

The picture was for this article was taken from www.bbc.co.uk/news

Independent article used to write this story:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/madoff-admits-blockbuster-fraud-1643525.html

Bernard Madoff's profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Madoff

Does the tabloid press need limits? Is it too abusive? Do the tabloid press offer what the public wants, or what the public needs?

Gerry McCann; father of the missing girl Madeline McCann; faced MPs today and accused the media 'specially the press' of miss-leading general information about Madeline's case.

Mr. McCann also accused the press of focusing their articles too much on the private lives of those close to Madeline - specially Mr and Mrs McCann - instead of giving the public information about the missing girl, the BBC News Website and BBC News Channel have reported today.

Mr. McCann described some of the actions of the press as not helpful at all.

The BBC News Website reported: "Mr McCann told the MPs: Although elements of the media coverage have undoubtedly been helpful in the ongoing search for Madeline, out family have been the focus of some of the most sensationalist, untruthful, irresponsible and damaging reporting in the history of the press."

Madeline McCann disappeared while on holiday with her parents in Praia da Luz, Portugal, on night of the 3rd of May 2007 while her parents went for dinner and left her (Madeline) in the hotel alone.

The investigation against her parents - Madeline's parents were accused of murdering Madeline by the Portuguese police - was closed just before Mr and Mrs McCann headed to their home in Leicestershire, England in September 2007.

However Mr. McCann wasn't the only one to give accusations against the press. Max Mosley, another victim of the destructive articles of the tabloid press referred to the stories that the press wrote about him as (the BBC News Channel reported) if you went to your home and found your front door opened and your things stolen. Only worse because you can get your things back but your "dignity" can never be recovered.

Mr. Mosley; the leader of the FIA (Federation Internationale de L'Automobile) was secretly filmed by the News of the World (British Sunday Newspaper) having - what was called by the press - a Nazi orgy with five prostitutes who were all wearing Nazi uniforms while Mr. Mosley wore a concentration camp prisoner's uniform. The tabloid press accused Mr. Mosley of being a nazi because of the whole orgy scene.

It also brought up that Mosley's father was involved in nazi movements during the Second World War.

It is not a secret that the tabloid press would do anything against anyone just to get a story that sells newspapers. Tabloids such as the Sun, the Daily Star, the Daily Mirror and many others do not worry about the damaging the private lives of those who the tabloids target.

I as a journalism student and as a blogger disagree with the tabloid press because it does not educate nor does it inform the public of the important issues they're supposed to know. All the tabloid press does is provide the public with poisonous stories that only damage the private lives of many important people and celebrities.

I believe private lives - even the private lives of celebrities - should never be shown to the public and that the authorities should make harder rules for those newspapers that focused their pages to disrespect people.

And although both the McCann family and Mr. Mosley were given apologies and a large amount of money in compensation by those newspapers that exploded their images, no amount of money nor apologies can take back the embarrassing situations that these press-victims went through.

The picture of Madeline McCann was taken from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/ and the picture of Max Mosley was taken from http://www.topnews.in/

BBC News article used to write this story:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7935156.stm

Guardian related article:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/mar/10/madeleine-mccann-father-press-regulation

Madeline McCann's profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Madeleine_McCann

Madeline McCann's disappearance facts by the BBC News Website:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7548108.stm

Max Mosley's profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Mosley

Northern Ireland attack - the IRA is back

Two British soldiers were yesterday night (Saturday night) shot dead in a British military base in Northern Ireland. The more-than-one-decade term of peace was all the sudden interrupted when (according to Sky News TV Channel) three men took advantage of a pizza delivery and shot with automatic guns four soldiers as they approached the door to pick up the pizzas. The names of the soldiers have not yet been publicized.

The soldiers were not the only people to get hurt by the attack. According to the Guardian, two other military men and two pizza delivery guys were badly injured. Among the pizza delivery guys was a 32-year-old Polish citizen, who worked as a pizza delivery guy. He was badly hurt and was last night in a critical condition. According to authorities, the mercenaries were well-armed and prepared to commit a massacre.

According to the Guardian, the motive for this attack was the accusations that the new police service's chief of Northern Ireland, Sir Hugh Orde directed to the Republican party of Northern Ireland. The Guardian reported today: "Sir Hugh Orde said: there was a growing threat of violence from dissident republicans. A huge police manhunt is now under way."

This attack was not believed to be an act of the IRA until a phone call made by an anonymous caller - claiming to be an IRA soldier - to the Sunday Tribune newspaper's offices in Dublin declared that the total responsibility belongs to the IRA. The call was made by a unidentified person who used code language - such as the code language that the original IRA used.

The Guardian also reported: "A journalist at the Dublin-based Sunday Tribune's office in Belfast said that the newspaper took a call claiming responsibility for the attack by the Real IRA's Antrim brigade."

There is no doubt that this is the a terrorist attack, and taking into consideration all that happened in Northern Ireland during the 80s - as many in the streets believe - this could be the beginning of a serious of attacks from a new and stronger IRA. However, why would the IRA come back after more than a decade of peace? And what are they after now?

I believe with no doubt that this could be a start of a new era of battles against a new IRA, but I also believe that the government and the British people are more prepared to fight against a new IRA.

It must be taken into consideration that the IRA has weakened after more than 10 years of not being active and I believe that this attack is an alert from a minor group of people who want to start something that has been over for more than a decade.

The picture used for this article was taken from www.bbc.co.uk/news

Guardian article used to write this story:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/mar/08/northern-ireland-soldiers-killed-antrim

Northern Ireland profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Ireland

Northern Ireland related articles (Guardian):

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/northernireland

IRA profile (Wikipedia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Republican_Army