Having watched two episodes of The Killing on BBC4, I think the phrase 'may actually be as good as the Wire' might not be too far off the mark. What is it about Scandanavians and crime thrillers?
Like Prime Suspect channelling the first series of 24 through the lens of State of Play. And yes I think I did steal all that the Guardian's hype piece......
Saturday 29 January 2011
Wednesday 19 January 2011
The public's use of public spaces
OK so this puts me firmly in the realm of grumpy old gitdom, and I'm note even sure that buses count as public space, really, but still .....
Perhaps it's just me, but the habit of standing on the bottom floor of double-deckers - rather than walking up the stairs to find a seat there - seems to be spreading. I've counted at least three buses this week that didn't open the front doors at stops because the bottom floor was packed, so no one else could fit, but on which there were clearly spaces upstairs. While some people obviously can't make the stairs, or are only going one to two stops, it's also obvious that some simply can't be arsed to climb them.
A minor problem of urban life, clearly, but it set me thinking about the way people use public spaces, whether this be walking down the road, in parks, or on public transport. On the one hand, even in London people remain generally fairly thoughtful, or at least careful to keep out of the way of others. But it would be a miracle if the privatisation and commoditisation of almost every other aspect of life had no impact on the way public spaces are negotiated. Encouraging people to be selfish in so many other aspects of life must surely mean greater selfishness when using scarce resources such as urban space in London?
But is this really what's happened? The bus thing winds me up, but perhaps one reason why it does so is that things like that are actually pretty unusual. Perhaps people aren't, in general, any more selfish in their use of public space than they were before? And if they aren't, does this tell us anything about other aspects of social life? It the selfishness of modern life exaggerrated?
Just a thought. I suspect if I drove regularly I might have a different opinion.
Perhaps it's just me, but the habit of standing on the bottom floor of double-deckers - rather than walking up the stairs to find a seat there - seems to be spreading. I've counted at least three buses this week that didn't open the front doors at stops because the bottom floor was packed, so no one else could fit, but on which there were clearly spaces upstairs. While some people obviously can't make the stairs, or are only going one to two stops, it's also obvious that some simply can't be arsed to climb them.
A minor problem of urban life, clearly, but it set me thinking about the way people use public spaces, whether this be walking down the road, in parks, or on public transport. On the one hand, even in London people remain generally fairly thoughtful, or at least careful to keep out of the way of others. But it would be a miracle if the privatisation and commoditisation of almost every other aspect of life had no impact on the way public spaces are negotiated. Encouraging people to be selfish in so many other aspects of life must surely mean greater selfishness when using scarce resources such as urban space in London?
But is this really what's happened? The bus thing winds me up, but perhaps one reason why it does so is that things like that are actually pretty unusual. Perhaps people aren't, in general, any more selfish in their use of public space than they were before? And if they aren't, does this tell us anything about other aspects of social life? It the selfishness of modern life exaggerrated?
Just a thought. I suspect if I drove regularly I might have a different opinion.
Monday 17 January 2011
David Cameron is being interviewed on Today
Talking about the imminent NHS reform: "we are now close to EU average levels of spending on health in this country, but we are far from having the best health outcomes".
Perhaps, you know, if we have just below average levels of spending we have just below average outcomes. Oh look, it seems we do.
Perhaps, you know, if we have just below average levels of spending we have just below average outcomes. Oh look, it seems we do.
Monday 10 January 2011
Further to the last post .....
An interesting - and different angle - on the 'Asian gangs targeting white girls' story here. It seems the gang itself was ethnically mixed (albeit largely 'Asian'), while the ethnic background of the victims almost exactly matched the ethnic composition of Derby itself (victims, 81 per cent white; Derby, 85 per cent white).
Sunday 9 January 2011
Jack Straw should probably keep his mouth shut
As has been pointed out here and here (or go straight to the source of the data used in these posts). Just to add the data for Derbyshire, where the case that started the furore occurred: of the 666 people arrested for sexual offences in 2007/08, 2.9 per cent defined their own ethnicity as Pakistani, compared with 85.3 per cent who self-defined as White British. So very similar to Straw's Lancashire, then, and broadly in line with the ethnic composition of the area, I should think.
Naturally we have to be careful with the stats. Police arrests do not necessarily provide a good estimate of the extent of criminal activity in an area. But the MoJ report does at least provide some evidence, in marked contrast to the not-so-considered remarks of Straw et al. who seem to seem so ready to extrapolate from this one (very nasty) case to the views, and indeed actions, of large numbers of British Pakistani men.
It seems to me that the self-justifications of these two scumbags are essentially identical to those always used by men who abuse women - 'she was asking for it', 'she wanted it', 'she was wearing a short skirt' etc. etc. That in this case the excuses may have been given a cultural gloss is in no a sense a reason to tar a whole community with the brush of 'potential rapists'. As others have pointed out the similarities with the Black rapist moral panic of the 1970s and 80s are striking.
I very much doubt that Jack Straw is racist. But his comments will provide succour to those who either are, or are so concerned with selling newspapers that they'll whip up any story, no matter how ill-founded, in an attempt to shift a few more copies. Wouldn't it be nice if politicians looked at the data (in this case produced by the department they themselves used to head) before making public pronouncements. You know, thought a little before opening their mouths.
Hopelessly idealistic, I know.
Naturally we have to be careful with the stats. Police arrests do not necessarily provide a good estimate of the extent of criminal activity in an area. But the MoJ report does at least provide some evidence, in marked contrast to the not-so-considered remarks of Straw et al. who seem to seem so ready to extrapolate from this one (very nasty) case to the views, and indeed actions, of large numbers of British Pakistani men.
It seems to me that the self-justifications of these two scumbags are essentially identical to those always used by men who abuse women - 'she was asking for it', 'she wanted it', 'she was wearing a short skirt' etc. etc. That in this case the excuses may have been given a cultural gloss is in no a sense a reason to tar a whole community with the brush of 'potential rapists'. As others have pointed out the similarities with the Black rapist moral panic of the 1970s and 80s are striking.
I very much doubt that Jack Straw is racist. But his comments will provide succour to those who either are, or are so concerned with selling newspapers that they'll whip up any story, no matter how ill-founded, in an attempt to shift a few more copies. Wouldn't it be nice if politicians looked at the data (in this case produced by the department they themselves used to head) before making public pronouncements. You know, thought a little before opening their mouths.
Hopelessly idealistic, I know.
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