What happened to all the Professors?

Telegraph - Cancun summit

This is, without a doubt, one of the most hilarious, pseudo scientific pieces of nonsense I have ever had the pleasure of reading, from the mouth of a Professor no less.  I strongly suggest you take a look for yourself!

“The world is getting hotter and the world is getting fatter. Fundamentally fossil fuel energy is the cause of both."

Whilst I understand the "link" between lack of activity and fossil fuel powered modes of transport or sitting on your ass in front of a computer, these are far from a new phenomenon to the human species.  If "Professor" Roberts had the intuition usually required of academics and actually done some research he may have realised that there were plenty of outdated technologies in use well before the development of fossil fuels, which required no more effort than today’s modern equivalents.  Take a horse drawn carriage or the typewriter, probably the two most fitting substitutes, neither of which requires fossil fuels and neither of which are any more physically demanding on the user than the modern car or computer.

In fact I would very much like to argue the contrary to Ian’s view, fossil fuels have had a profoundly positive impact on our health.  For a start fossil fuel aided manufacturing processes have lead to superior quality, cheaper gym equipment, it also powers our gyms air conditioning systems, allowing us to workout for longer.  Fossil fuel aided manufacturing systems have enabled mass production of health orientated products, canned Slim Fast, bottled water, vitamin supplements, etc.  Finally, the very transport technology which Ian criticises has allowed for superior trade in fresh, healthy produce.  Fruit from across the globe now reaches us in days rather than weeks.

To summarise, I think Professor Roberts should take is theory back to the drawing board.  I doubt very many people would argue that the typewriter, telephone or humble pen and paper was a leading cause of obesity, or that fossil fuels have not benefited mankind in phenomenal way. However it seems that as long as the big evil CO² is in thrown in these "scientists" can claim whatever they like, what ever happened to the scientific method?

A Beurocratic Education

Today has been a struggle, trying to fight my way through a mess of red tape in an attempt to earn a decent mark for an assignment.  It is times like this that I can almost sympathise with the student protests, why the fuck am I paying so much for such a waist of time?  Whilst most establishments would consider assessing a students work a straight forward part of the education process, my university (which shall remain nameless for now) seems to struggle with this most essential of academic tasks.

It would seem pretty stupid to ask a student to do one thing, whilst on the other hand mark him for another.  A clear definition of expectations is essential in achieving a desired outcome, punishing a student for failing to achieve an outcome which was never specified is just fucking moronic.

However, today I became a victim of such idiotic thinking, my work did not match the undisclosed expectations of my tutor and in an attempt to defend myself I have no doubt done myself even more of a disservice.  I won't bore anyone with the details of the assessment, but this whole experience has made me wonder why the fuck am I accumulating £22,000 worth of debt just for tutors to hinder my progress?

This leads me on to a seldom mentioned benefit of a market based university system, varying prices for differing qualities of education.  If I went shopping for a Tv, car or even a mortgage, I could think about how much I wanted to spend, compare the pros and cons of everything in my price range and purchase the good which best suited my needs.  The same should apply for university education; with varying prices based upon the quality of teaching, demand for the course and the job prospects as a graduate.  Under the current system I pay the same price as an Oxford or Cambridge student yet receive a substantially poorer quality of education.  Does it make any sense that some universities are charging £3200 a year for almost one on one mentoring, yet the same cost is applied to me for a class of 30?  The protesting student should be more concerned as to whether their education is actually worth the cost and whether there should be varying prices for different qualities of education.

The Daily Politics - P.J. O'Rourke

Although the Daily Politics is usually a frustrating affair, where political opponents attempt to one up each other and bicker over poorly conceived policies, it's always reassuring to hear some sane political common sense every now and again, this time courtesy of political satirist P.J. O'Rourke.

03:14 is an especially fascinating observation, 

"In Europe, the idea that government benefits and government expense and the size and score of government needs to be scaled back is coming from the top down." where as in America it's "coming from the bottom up."

This highlights the point I've made a couple of times previously, that the British electorate are no where near a proactive and willing to tackling important issues, compared to our American friends.  He also makes an interesting point about our over dependency on politics to fix our problems.  Essentially Rourke is right on the money with this interview, cheered me up no end.

Colcannon, Good Shark Bait?

I do not profess to being an economic genius, I do however have enough common sense to realise that the cure for debt does not involve building up a bigger list of creditors.  However this is exactly what George Osbourne and his fellow EU loan shark counter-parts have dreamt up, extra credit to bail-out the Irish.

Whilst it may be bad news for the Irish when the EU comes rapping on their door looking for interest payments, its going to be even worse for the EU taxpayer when Ireland cannot repay the debt.

I'm sure we all understand the principle of the loan, give Ireland some money now and when they get back on track they can pay us back.  But its pretty bold to assume that the Irish economy will recover and remain stable long enough to pay back the loan, all before they need bailing out again.  Should governments even be taking this kind of risk with their tax payers money?

The main problem with this economic placebo is that it is not addressing the fundamental problem, EU interest rates.  So long as Ireland remains within the Euro their economy will be at the mercy of European interest rates, if they are too low then Ireland can borrow and "grow" its way back into another readjustment (debt/recession) or if the rates are too high (not very likely) then the Irish economy will be strangled with an inability to borrow.  Either way this is bad news for Ireland and will lead to further problems with their economy, affecting their ability to generate tax revenue and therefore pay back the EU/IMF loan.

The Eurozone nations are really backing themselves into a corner with this, its just a shame the British tax payer (through the IMF) is being dragged along for a ride.  But wait, the Eurocrats are even more determined to shoot themselves in the foot, proposing that Ireland drops its low corporate tax rates at part of the deal!

Any real economist will inform you that low taxation is an excellent condition for economic growth, with higher levels of growth there is a bigger pot of gold to tax, which will help Ireland pay off this loan in years to come.  Whilst the EU are unashamedly trying to blackmail Ireland in their own self interest, arguing that low tax gives the country too much of an advantage in attracting overseas investment (yes you read it!), they are also actively trying to hinder Ireland's ability to repay them.

I'd quickly like to highlight the stupidly of such a policy, just because you remove a competing low tax rate does not result in businesses setting up in your country.  More likely the companies will move to another nation with a low rate.  Pursuing such a policy only damages your neighbour, weakening their ability to trade with you and in turn damaging your own economy.  This is surely insanity!  Fortunately for both the Irish and mainland Europeans Mary Coughlan is currently unwilling to submit to this demand <Link>.

I'm really not sure what the EU masterminds intended to gain from this proposal, weakening an allies economy, costing their own taxpayers more money or attempting to improve their own economic prospects through sabotaging their competitor?  Most likely this is just another in a series of power grabs, forcing the Irish to become dependant on EU money and regulation, attempting to remove the threat of another independent, sovereign nation.

Whilst this is a dismal display of economic and political ineptitude, one can't help but feel sorry for the Irish people, having been duped into the Euro and the Lisbon treaty they are now being bitten in the arse by the very people they helped support.  Unfortunately this is only going to get worse until they pluck up the courage to address the real problem.

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-11787126

How this officer, Sgt Mark Andrews, has escape the prison sentence he so thoroughly deserves completely eludes me.  For those unfamiliar with the back story; Ms Somerville was arrested after she was found asleep in her car, she was detained after failing to provide a sample for a breath test.  So firstly she had not injured anyone by drink driving (no victim), she was exercising self ownership by refusing to allow the officer to take breath samples from her (again no victim) and was not even prosecuted for any crime following this event (so clearly not a criminal).

How can anyone justify this treatment of an innocent person, especially considering the above?  The woman had not committed a crime and never once assaulted the officer, therefore we should not care for Mr Andrews' excuses. Whether Ms Somerville was "unpredictable", "abusive" (despite no evidence to substantiate these claims) or needed to be forced into her cell, the injuries she received were without warrant.

It seems absurd to me that someone can be arrested and beaten for sleeping in their own car, yet a police officer can be witnessed assaulting an individual and receive no reprimand.  Should we not judge all members of society by their actions rather than their motives?  Why should the law enforcers abide by their own privileged set of rules?

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

The Dormant Democracy

Considering the substandard quality of the majority of our MPs, constant discontent in the electorate and a high quality of political observers, why on earth are we not making the most of our democracy, by putting decent politicians in charge?  As we do not have the benefit of open primaries to aid party candidate selection, why do we not see more independent candidates on UK ballot papers?

At the last general election I received the usual assorted leaflets from the usual candidates, but not once had a chance to meet with them. There was no campaigning in my constituency, bar the cardboard banners strapped to lampposts.  How difficult is it to really beat these amateurs and why isn't anybody trying to take them on?  What restraints are preventing our democracy from living up to its full potential and what can we do about it?

1 - Funding and Time Constrains

This is probably the best starting place, money.  Running a campaign is an expensive business, even before you get yourself on the street.  £500 just to get your name on the ballot and a further £150 if you care to register a party.  Then you'll want printed flyer's, badges, basically anything to get your name and ideas out there, perhaps a little TV air time, the costs just mount up.  Then there's the time required to visit local people, kiss the babies and maybe even debate your opponents if they feel up for it, not something particularly practical with a 9-5 job.

However all is not lost, for a start elections are only held every 4 years, so you could easily spend 3 years earning and saving, in order to spend the election year campaigning full time.  This is a pretty heavy sacrifice to make, but is certainly possible.  Charity will also play a big part in fund raising, friends and sympathisers to your cause can be corralled in to providing financial support, move back in with your parents to save money on rent, see if local businesses are interested, especially if you are campaigning for lower taxes.

2 - Actually Securing Votes
This is really the hard part, even once you have the money to campaign how do you actually get people to vote for an independent candidate?  It is probably quite easy to convince people you are better than the opposition, most people never see their local candidate before voting and many don't know who their MP is post election.  By getting out there and talking to people you can probably convince them to your point of view, but inside the voting booth most people will be looking at the big issues from the main party leaders.  I have found myself in the voting booth wanting to vote for one party but voted tactically for another.  This is a shame, but is non the less the reality of British politics.

So how is it possible to overcome this voting gap?  The first point to address is 'wasted vote syndrome', people need convincing that by voting for you they will not be allowing a worse candidate to win.  An easy way to do this would be a survey, count up the number of people who want to vote for you and make the data available for others to see, a website poll is a simple solution.  Getting voters together is another good idea, look at the Tea-Party rallies and speeches in the USA, the security of a collective helps secure the ideology.

The second point to address is how to draw the focus away from the party leaders and bring the spotlight towards the candidates in your constituency.  A big, loud, embellished campaign is a start, the public need to hear more about you than they do about the Labour or Tory leaders.  Furthermore people need to understand that if you win that they will be better represented than they would be by voting for anybody else.  It needs to be clear that you are not a compromise, but a real voice for your voters, this can only be accomplished by a unique campaign strategy.

The power of the individual local candidate is a source not yet tapped in British politics, but it may just be the key to opening up our democracy.  Perhaps I will attempt to outline a decent independent candidate campaign strategy a little later.

A Pecuniary Obituary

There is a great sadistic pleasure to be had watching the EU swines squirm over their precious failing currency.  The icing on the cake came from my man of the hour, Herman Van Rompuy, when he claimed that if the euro failed, the EU would too.  Splendid!

As much as I wish this to be true I expect that the kleptomaniacal euro-crats will attempt to artificially prop up their beloved project, even in the face of complete bankruptcy.

Regardless of what happens to the EU there are (at least) two important economic lessons to be learnt from the euro.  Many half intelligent people will have probably figured these out for themselves, but let me just reiterate for our academically challenged EU contemporaries.

1 - Do not attempt to artificially grow your economy through the use of government controlled interest rates, or allow your country to become locked into a foreign, uncontrollable interest rate.

This is probably the most important lesson to heed and the leading contributor to the current EU mess.  Across the Eurozone nations (even within specific nations) there are differing levels of growth and wealth.  These are essential factors in determining how risky an investment is in that area, in other words how much of a return can I expect on my investment and how much collateral do they have to pay me back with if something goes wrong.  The interest rates on any loan will be determined by these factors (along with past payment considerations, etc), therefore these rates will vary largely across the EU.

Exerting control over these rates may allow for a better flow of credit, by artificially adjusting the rates down debtors who may not have been able to initially afford a loan now can.  However the creditors are not being adequately compensated for the risk they are taking, therefore if the debt cannot be repaid then not only will the debtor go bust, but potentially the creditor too.  This has knock-on effects to other debtors who may see interest repayments rise to cover the cost of the defaulted debt.

Tying your country into a foreign interest rate is an even worse idea, as the rate are being set by a non related economy, which do not reflect your level of growth or wealth.  Take Greece for example, who could borrow at low EU (German) rates, so they borrowed huge sums of money and then could not pay back the debt.  So to prevent the creditors (German banks) from losing out and refusing to loan to anyone else the EU bailed out Greece.  However if Greece had more realistic interest rates (reflecting their own economy) to begin with then their creditors would not have allowed them to borrow so much so cheaply.

2 - Do not bail out failing economies/banks, especially if you are also in debt

For a start transferring money from one place to another does not solve a debt problem, if you are £20 out of pocket and your friend gives you £20 then your friend now has the debt instead of you.  Whilst this may be OK if your friend has £20 to spare, our debt riddled home nations are not so affluent, in actuality borrowing more to bail out your buddy will result in you owing even more money.

Easy example;

If you owe £10 and pay 5% interest a year and you pay back the debt at a rate of £2.50 a year. You will owe £8.00 after year 1, £5.90 Yr2, £3.70 Yr3, £1.38 Yr4, finally paying off the debt in Yr5 costing £1.45.  The total cost of paying off this debt is £11.45, £1.45 in interest.

If you owe £10 and borrow an extra £20 to bail out your friend at 5% interest a year whilst paying back £2.50 a year it takes 19 years to pay back the debt.  Costing a total of £51.96 to pay back, £21.96 in interest payments.  Even if your friend repaid you the £20 at a later date you would still be substantially out of pocket compared to your initial £10 debt.

Whilst this is a rather severe example, tripling your current debt level, it highlights the extra expense in taking on more debt in order to cover other bankrupt debtors.  If this extra bill causes you to go bankrupt who bails you out?

Not to mention that bail outs encourage the very practises that caused the debtor to go bust.  For example if you know that someone else will pay off your gambling debts there is no incentive to stop taking risks.

I expect these warnings to fall on deaf ears, as the pursuit of generating pseudo economic growth and attempting to defeat the inevitable recession (re-adjustment) are too much of an entertaining challenge for some.  The fact that the "Bank of England" continues to fiddle with interest rates in a vain attempt to improve the British economy shows a complete lack of willingness to learn.  But as a long term opponent of the Euro; from an ignorant favouring of  familiarity in youth, to a better understanding of global economics in adult hood, the looming 'I told you so' speech is becoming too much to contain.

Britain’s Trillion Pound Horror Story

Just for those who did not see it and a link for myself if I ever need it.

UK Libertarian - Britains Trillion Pound Horror Story

An excellent piece of journalism (I know rare huh?) from Channel 4, who have actually had a couple of interesting and accurate programmes on lately.  This is now my imediate rebuttle to anyone complaining about government spending cuts.

Rompuy, noun, [au·thor·i·tar·i·an]

Herman Van Rompuy is no doubt a familiar name to the politically savvy, being the knife at freedoms throat since he took office as our "Council President".

In his honour I am attempting to coin a new phrase; since calling someone an authoritarian is a bit out a mouthful, and often fails to connect with the less educated man, I propose we introduce the word Rompuy instead. It's accurate, concise and will forever engrave our dear Herman, deservedly so, in history.

After all he earned it during the lecture he gave us "delusional" common folk last Tuesday;

"We have together to fight the danger of a new Euroscepticism. This is no longer the monopoly of a few countries," ... "In every member state, there are people who believe their country can survive alone in the globalised world. It is more than an illusion: it is a lie." 

As the more astute reader will have noticed, Switzerland and Norway seem to be doing pretty well for themselves outside of the EU.  Not to mention that most of the counties in the EU had their economic revolutions well before the EU even existed, or that the British Empire, that unrivaled period of economic growth, all went ahead just fine without the European Union.  Not only that, but he offered us a second little piece of golden Rompuy philosophy;

"The biggest enemy of Europe today is fear. Fear leads to egoism, egoism leads to nationalism, and nationalism leads to war." 

I'm not sure how he made the mammoth leap from fear to egoism, but even more perplexing is the conclusion that egoism leads to nationalism!  Nationalism, in the truest definition of the word, simply means to take pride and identify with your fellow countrymen, seeking advancement along the lines of your own countries interests.  Nationalism requires common interests amongst a community, so it's quite a stretch to call Nationalism egotistical.

Authoritarianism (doing a Rompuy), on the other hand, is the exertion of control over the economy and populace by the state, in order to advance a nation in a particular direction.  Becoming a Rompuy is a far more likely outcome from an egotistical ideology than becoming a Nationalist.  Take a look at the so called "eco-friendly" policies, forcing people to comply to specific conditions courtesy of some high and mighty principle.  Poor Herman seems a bit confused.

 

It would seem that Herman has also unintentionally given us a perfect Freudian profile of himself. A man scared of losing his grip on his beloved EU project, who seeks more and more dangerous powers in an attempt to get his egotistical opinions forced onto the rest of us?  The very fact that Rompuy has taken it upon himself to lecture other nations about their patriotism shows just how egoistical his agenda is, he blindly believes that he is right and the rest of us are wrong.

So, Rompuy a pretty suitable synonym for authoritarian?

Quick History Lesson

Daniel Hannan - what history should all children be taught

On my usual trawl through the morning blogs I came across this little article, something I briefly mentioned back in my post on the US Tea Party a week ago (Glimpse of Freedom). He's summarised a pretty good reading list for anyone interesting in English history, I even see a couple of my suggestions (The Acts of Union & The English Civil War) made the list.  If I can anticipate the writings of Daniel Hannan perhaps I'm on the right track?

The Ugly Face of Socialism

Although a nice protest march is a fair way to make a point with your fellow human beings, I can't help but feel that the students marching through London today failed do themselves any favours.

Even before we look at the violence and frankly moronic behaviour of the students, the fact that "free" NUS coaches to this rally have subsidised a student night out in London doesn’t really speak much for the "seriousness" of their cause.

The outpouring of comments made by students attending the march really summed up the protest for me; "you didn't pay, why should I" is one of my favourite ignorant plaques, or the justification that other people should pay for my education because "I want to get a better job and support my children" seems particularly self-serving. However Anna Tennant-Siren, a student at the University of Ulster in Coleraine, takes first prize for summing up the ethos of the march.

"I am here because it is important that students stand up and shout about what is going on." A fair point, but; "Politicians don't seem to care. They should be taking money from people who earn seven-figure salaries, not from students who don't have any money."

And this is where I disagree with everyone at the protest and every NUS member for that matter.  I think the key word from that quote is "taking",  I don't care how you try to spin this, under the guise of equality or support for the hard done-by "poor" members of society, the simple fact of the matter is that this is a use of force to rob one man of his earning to pay for the wants of another.  Simply unjustifiable, you would call me a criminal if I robbed a man to pay for a newspaper.

I guess we can briefly mention the violent events of today’s protest too, although the footage and pictures speak for themselves.  Anger and resentment towards those seeking to remove your luxuries is far from unpredictable, even children have tantrums if you take away their toys, but today’s display highlights exactly how immature and ill thought-out the socialist position is. They have demonstrated exactly how disgusting their believes are; the use of force against others to get what you want, regardless of the rights or safety of those who oppose you.

In all honesty I'm quite glad the ugly colours of socialism have blossomed in full view of the public.  It's just a shame that this came at such a high cost to the thinking student.

A Glimpse of Freedom

The American people never cease to amaze me, after just two years of a socialist administration they have already rallied together and given Obama a swift kick in the arse.   Although the mid-term elections didn't quite swing as strongly as I had hoped, this feat has impressed me to no end.

In my country we have endured more than a decade of tax hikes, erosion of liberties and bewildering political incompetence without a peep from my fellow countrymen. Meanwhile our cousins across the pond have stolen more than 60 seats in the House of Representatives and 6 seats in the Senate; this took them just two years!

So why is it that US citizens have become so outraged in such a short space of time? Why have the British endured far worse and for so much longer, yet are still unwilling to make a change? After all England was the ideological birthplace which the United States was founded upon, is it really possible that we exported all our courage as well as our liberty on the Mayflower?

It is thanks to yesterdays midterms that I finally understand American patriotism.  At first I was bemused by the seemingly obnoxious flag waving, but it perfectly demonstrates the awareness of the American people; all that they have accomplished in their countries short history.  They have fought tooth and nail for their liberty, from the American Revolution, two World Wars and even as recently as the Cold War.   Although their history has not been perfect, the American people are fully aware of the founding principles of their country, what liberty is and why it is worth fighting for.

It is a great shame that the same cannot be said for my country of birth, where school history lessons are more concerned with the Roman Empire and Henry VIII than the Magna Carta, Treaty of Union or even the English Civil War.  Where political discussion is limited to how and who to tax, who to redistribute to, rather than whether the government even has a right to private wealth!  This is a country where questioning socialised healthcare is seen as political extremism, a nation where bleeding the successful to support the poor is not only acceptable but enforced by law and where government intervention is a first rather than last resort.

We have completely forgotten how long and hard fought our liberty and independence from authoritarian control was to obtain.   We have become so complacent with government that it is no longer our servant, but is now our master once more.  The attitude, education and awareness of politics in our two countries are polar opposites.  Whether or not these obstacles can be overcome, at least in my lifetime, is doubtful, however these midterm results should serve as an example to the British people; the tyranny of authoritarian government does not have to be a permanent scar on our country.

Students Against the NUS

I really wish Aaron Porter would shut his trap, I am sick of being spoken for by this socialist douchebag.  Yet again he has reared his ugly head in a further attempt to ruin the intellectual reputation of students, this time completely failing to understand the issues surrounding poor graduate employment rates.

Whilst he was quick to blame government for a lack of growth planning and again attempted to highlight the "problems" with higher tuition fees, he seemed to completely miss the fact that our higher education system is a failing system.  Aaron seemed to imply that it was solely the government’s fault that our education system is falling behind other nations and that the tax payer is responsible for creating graduate jobs.

Firstly whilst the government is currently in control of university budgets they are in no way in control of the quality of the education delivered (I could easily make the case for a market based system here but its a bit easy).  One reason many of our students are not employed is because they are unemployable, I am witnessing, first hand, the capabilities of the average student, and am constantly complaining about the lack of real educational content on my course.  It seems pretty obvious to me that students taking crap degrees will not be employable; hence perhaps we should start addressing this issue first and foremost.  Not to mention the complete over subscription and subsidisation of higher education places, which has left the job marked saturated and now there simply aren't enough jobs to go around.  Is this the fault of the government, yes, can this be fixed by further government intervention, no.

Secondly as for a lack of a "growth plan" I do not for a second believe that having the government attempt to craft a job market is in the slightest bit desirable.  I was highlighting this point to a fellow student the other day, markets are very good at allocating resources, ideas/products which are unwanted fail to find financial support, where as ideas/products which are sought after succeed thanks to consumers/investors.  In other words markets mean that good ideas float and bad ones sink.  Government allocation of resources results in support for ideas which they think there is demand for, not necessarily in line with actual requirements (the market); therefore they end up keeping bad ideas afloat at huge expense to the taxpayer (see the NHS).

How does this apply to student employability?  Easy, when governments meddle with the jobs markets (through tax adjustments or financial incentives) they are creating a job market fallacy, supporting jobs which would not naturally survive in a competitive market (i.e jobs the market does not want).  Eventually this will become unsustainable, costing the taxpayer a fortune and costing students their jobs.

The solution is simple, let consumers to purchase goods they want (lower taxes), enable companies to employ students to create the desired goods (lower taxes & no job market tinkering) and allow universities to take on students which these companies require & charge varying rates for education depending upon the employability and quality of the degree (market for degrees).  If there are not enough jobs do not attempt to force students through universitiy just for the sake of bragging rights, if there are not enough graduates allow market forces (supply & demand) to adjust the system.  There is no need for the hideous level of government intervention suggested by the NUS President.

Halloween in London Town

London, the crowning jewel of British capitalism.  Not since my young teenage years have I had the pleasure of visiting the capital, and what better time to revisit England’s greatest city than Halloween weekend.

The first thing which struck me about the city was the sheer size of the centre, living in Birmingham (England’s second city?) New Street and the Bullring pretty much sum up everything my hometown has to offer. 
 
Having strolled up and down Oxford Street I was amazed at the splendours of our capitalist society, within a few hundred meters you could stroll into a Primark and pick up a bargain, or take a trip into Selfridges, passing burley security guards and velvet ropes just to browse the designer handbags.

Once the spectacle of window shopping wore off I had a chance to explore the side streets and slightly less tourist bound locations, where the real city lurks.  It was while sitting in the "Crowbar" (a small metal bar near Chinatown) that I finally figure out what makes many of the other big European cities I've visited so great; the small businesses, bars and restaurants catering to every little niche and taste generates this amazing co-mingling of cultures.  Conversely Birmingham’s "culture" consists of Weatherspoon style pubs, branded restaurants and the standard array of cheesy clubs competing for the custom of youth and students; nothing close to the scale and diversity found in a single corner of Zone 1.

But there’s not just the obvious stuff, I could type at length about the joys of the underground, the hilarious London Dungeon or the number of weird and wonderful Halloween costumers I bore witness too over the weekend.  But I think my entire visit can be summed up by my closing experience; sitting under the Statue of Eros in a bustling Piccadilly Circus, licking a delicious Haagen-dazs ice-cream as waves of zombies, ghouls and movie heroes flocked by, brilliant!

To set the tone....

I am in need of an outlet, a place to jot down my thoughts, concerns and revelations; a blog seems as good a place as any.  Although I am writing primarily for my own pleasure I am more than welcoming to anyone else willing to converse on the matters of life.

I guess it would be fitting of an introduction to share a little about myself.  As a final year BSc student I am currently indulging in the far from unique pleasure of attending a not so renowned university, witnessing first hand the lack of academia festering in middle Britain.  Whilst this situation is entirely of my own making (a result of an unproductive young adulthood), I have found myself with a renewed passion for education, unfortunately this is not a trait shared amongst my contemporaries.

Away from my studies would consider myself a politically interested individual and as such the tone of many of my posts will no doubt reflect this.  A point worthy of note; I am far from the stereotypical socialist student, veering rather "radically" towards Libertarianism, combined with a little splash of anarchy.  As a firm believer in Capitalism, free trade and private property I find myself constantly disgusted with the state of British politics and cannot help but wonder about my future in a nation run by imbeciles.

Whilst I will certainly not be imparting any brilliant new philosophy onto the world and the topics in this blog will most likely have been covered to death, perhaps some of you may find an interest in the opinions and thoughts of a fellow human being.