I remember it well, as if it was yesterday,
The day that I played John Lennon's guitar ..
The day that I played John Lennon's guitar ..
Just thought I'd throw out some thoughts on recent happenings. I've become so encapsulated in dealing with all-things Germany related, I forget that things happen outside the bubble.
1. Will and Kate
Yep, we'll kick off with the upcoming marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton. To echo the words of a friend, credit where it's due to young Will - she is quite a bit hotter than he is. I don't think he's a particularly bad-looking guy; he's certainly doing better than his father, yet his face still reminds me of a paralysed person, or someone with lockjaw. But, he can fly a helicopter.
Current estimates for the wedding put it between 30 and 40 million pounds, something that can only be beneficial for a country recovering from economic breakdown and suffering major cuts. Under the tuition fees proposal, you could send 5 or 6 people to university for the same price as this wedding.
2. World Cup country nominations
This one confused me initially. All of a sudden there were 1000 facebook status updates confessing a sudden hatred for Russia, followed by a swath of people asking where Qatar was. Amid hopes of "Russia has launched unprovoked nuclear attack on middle east", I was sorely disappointed to hear that it was football related.
Yep, Russia is apparently hosting World Cup 2018, followed by Qatar in 2022. The poor choice of country is just beyond me. Yeah, South Africa might have been pulled off without a hitch, but seriously, Russia? If Britain pulls any of its usual "british tourist abroad" stuff, there's gonna be a marked rise in the number of polonium 210 related deaths. Try a vuvezela there and you'll be shot.
To be followed by Qatar. The terrorists are gonna have a field day. But Western governments don't mind this, because Qatar, along with Saudi Arabia, are generally considered 'the good arabs'. Scores of British, American and European tourists in the middle east? I can hardly see a safety issue there. It's only a stones throw from Iran anyway, I'm sure they'll be happy to have us if things get nasty.
3. Korea
Ohh, we've had this one coming since the mid-50's. As a general rule, states that end prolonged, angry wars without any formal end make a habit of stoking the fire every few years. So in March, the Cheonan was sunk, and last week North Korea lobbed some artillery shells onto a South Korean island.
No-one can really work out why; some have speculated that its the first move of Kim Jong-Il's successor, to show how tough his country is, the fact notwithstanding that without Chinese aid, North Korea hasn't a leg to stand on. The tenseness of 2 countries braced for war is cut by a blast from a star-spangled bugle and a cry of "Quick! Overreact!" from the USA. Nothing says 'we are committed to peace and diplomacy' quite like the biggest motherfucking aircraft carrier in the entire world with its 200-strong fleet of fighter jets. Yeah, they're definitely all about peaceful discussion.
Truthfully I reckon that North Korea will almost definitely carry out further attacks of some sort, but they're probably aware that any reciprocal military response would cripple them beyond recovery. They so crazy.
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They're all the major things I guess. The other story is that Britain is having some snow, which is being compared by most people and news agencies as the sign of a coming apocalypse. And curiously, this year is one of the worst years on record! Weather of this calibre has never been seen before! Which has now become meaningless, as they say that every fucking year.
