Blog: Mel's Muse - Related to Current Affairs
EBOOK PRICE-FIXING: Who Gets Hurt in the End?
Posted: Thursday, 18th February 2010
I'm delighted, today, to include an article by Angela Hoy, on the topic of price-fixing the unit cost of e-books - a practice which will, ultimately, lead to a monopoly and, therefore, destroy choice for the end-user - readers!
Do let me know what your views are. Comments are moderated, and your contact details will never be revealed to any third party.
By Angela Hoy, Publisher, BookLocker printable version | Share on Facebook
----- This article can be reprinted/redistributed freely, as long as the entire article and bio are included. -----
price fixing (n.
Articles on related themes:
Current Affairs; Writing & Publishing A Book
UV Readers' Group & ONLINE BOOK CLUB: The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Discussion Summary
Posted: Friday, 29th January 2010
My UV Readers’ Group met last Thursday, 21st January, to discuss The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid and, as always, we had plenty to say! First and foremost that we had found the book an enjoyable and compelling read, with the sinister elements evident from the start and building to a climactic conclusion.
A LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP
The narrative threw up some interesting and topical points and, because one of the aims of the group is to examine life applications for ourselves, we began by looking at the way in which a love/hate relationship might affect each one of us – just as it did the protagonist, Changez.
Articles on related themes: Book Reviews; Book Club / Readers Group; Online Book Group; Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
British Law Undermines Parental Authority: Novel Shows How
Posted: Tuesday, 10th November 2009
I wrote, last week, about the sad story of Kate Walsh who, at the tender age of sixteen, became a heroin addict and died, alone in a dirty squat. Her parents had asked, repeatedly, for help from various authorities and received none. They had, as the Coroner described it at Kate’s Inquest, fallen into a ‘grey area’.
Since it highlights that grey area, I thought it might be
helpful, this week, to reproduce part of the interview at the end
of my book, A Painful Post Mortem.
Articles on related themes:
Books, Reading & Words; Family & Parenting; Current Affairs
Mel Menzies On BBC Radio WM: Should Cannabis Be Downgraded Per David Nutt's Advice?
Posted: Friday, 6th November 2009
The resignation of David Nutt, the UK government's drugs adviser, sparked controversy over the classification and downgrading of cannabis. Mel Menzies comments on BBC Radio WM on Sunday 8th November at 08.50, in the light of her daughter's teenage drug abuse, and ultimate death.
Read the story here: Addicts Like Kate Walsh Show That The Grey Areas Of British Law Need A Black & White Reform.
And make sure to tune in at 08.50 on Sunday 8th November!
Articles on related themes: Speaking Engagements; Family & Parenting; Current Affairs
Heroin Addicts Like Kate Walsh Show That The Grey Areas Of British Law Need A Black & White Reform
Posted: Wednesday, 4th November 2009
We read, this week, of a situation which has complied with British law but which is, nevertheless, a grave miscarriage of justice. Kate Walsh’s parents, when their sixteen year old daughter died of heroin in a dirty squat, were denied the protection that the law is supposed to provide. They are not alone. British law in the area of adolescents is a mess.
“I have lost faith in the police, in doctors, in the Government; they have shown a shocking level of incompetence,” Kate’s father, Anthony Walsh, is reported as saying.
A "GREY AREA" IN BRITISH LAW
He’s right! And the sad thing about it is that there’s nothing new in this.
Articles on related themes: Bereavement; Family & Parenting; Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
Sex Education And Teenage Pregnancy
Posted: Sunday, 15th February 2009
“Do cats get married, Daddy?”
The question came from my four-year old granddaughter. She’s one of twins, and is obsessed by cats.
“Nope,” Daddy replied.
“Then how do they have babies?” asked Millie.
With the news of a thirteen year-old fathering a child fresh in his mind, and wanting to foster a sense of relationship, my son-in-law quickly revised his denial.
“Well - perhaps cats do get married after all.”
SEX EDUCATION REVIEW
It’s a tricky topic. Not how cats make babies, but how children shouldn’t. Much is made, nowadays, of educating the young.
Articles on related themes: Family & Parenting; Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
Golliwog Banned: And TV Presenter Carol Thatcher With Him
Posted: Thursday, 5th February 2009
As a little girl, I owned a much loved golliwog. I have no idea who gave it to me, nor what their motive was in doing so. I can only conclude that it was a toy of its era, and that the gift was intended to please and delight me. And so it did! As did the enamelled golliwog badge I received from a well-known marmalade manufacturer, who, for decades, offered them as a free gift in exchange for tokens collected from the label on the jar.
Years later, one of my parents’ favourite TV shows was The Black and White Minstrel Show.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
Proof That God Does Not Exist? Look No Further Than A Bendy Bus!
Posted: Sunday, 11th January 2009
There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life. So says the 800 or so advertisements that now adorn London’s bendy-buses, as the result of a campaign by The British Humanist Society (BHA), funded by Prof. Richard Dawkins.
Really? Now what do you say to that?
Much has been made of that word ‘probably’. As Tony McNulty (Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform at the Department for Work and Pensions) joked on the radio, that’s so wishy-washy a declaration, it can only have been made by the Lib-Dem party.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff; Occasional Silliness
Overcoming Shame: Are We Guilty Of A Guilty Conscience?
Posted: Tuesday, 6th January 2009
I was reading about a man – Jeff Lucas – who described himself, in his younger years, as a “shame addict”. The term resonated with me and sparked a sitting-up in bed, early morning debate – though, sadly, without a cuppa to accompany it.
“That describes me years ago,” I said.
“Yes!” my husband agreed. “But what did you feel ashamed about?”
“Everything,” I replied.
It made me think.
Articles on related themes: Family & Parenting; Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
Animal Rights Stuff
Posted: Saturday, 8th November 2008
This surely has to be the stuff of comedy? I mean I know we, in Britain, are a nation of animal lovers, but do we need a whacking great document telling us how we should look after them, with a threat of a £20,000 fine if we stray from the guidelines? What are these people at Whitehall thinking about? And why are we paying them to do it?
I have loved all my pets and wept at their demise. There was the thrill of finding kittens born in my bed when I was a schoolgirl.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff; Occasional Silliness
Bank Of England Bail Out Versus House Repossessions 2008
Posted: Monday, 20th October 2008
Now I’m not an economist, and neither do I read economist reports. But I am a human being! And it seems to me that it’s not difficult to see a great injustice going on in today’s troubled times. What’s even more galling is that wherever you come across it, there’s always someone benefiting from injustice. With apologies to Matthew 18: 23-35 in the New Testament – see what you think:
THE PARABLE OF THE UNMERCIFUL BANK
There was once a Prime Minister who wanted to settle accounts with his banks. As he began the settlement, a bank which was several billion pounds adrift was brought to his attention.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Debt; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
Cool Brittania: The Good, The Bad - And the Utterly Sublime!
Posted: Sunday, 28th September 2008
THE GOOD
The Good News is that we have a National Health Service at all! Even better are the advances made in medical science, which mean that conditions like Age Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) can be treated.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
Credit Crunch: The Personal Pain And Gain
Posted: Wednesday, 24th September 2008
Related Posts: Ten Tips to Stay Free From Debt; Ten Tips To Get Rid of Debt
EFFECTS OF THE CREDIT CRUNCH
Watching the UK’s Channel 4 TV programme Dispatches on the human cost of the credit crunch was heartbreaking. First there was the man (Jamaican, I think) who’d worked all his life on the buses. Masking his emotion with a big, beaming smile, he told us that he had never imagined that retirement would be so frightening. He indicated his gas and electrical bills. They terrified him, he said.
Then there was the single mother, wanting to do what all mothers want – to give the best to her children.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Debt; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
How We Little People Can Change Big Bank Pay-outs - Open Letter to Lloyds TSB
Posted: Friday, 19th September 2008
Mr Eric Daniels, Lloyds TSB Chief
Dear Mr Daniels,
PLEASE CLOSE MY LLOYDS TSB ACCOUNT WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT
I see, from my Daily Telegraph today (and trust that this is accurate) that subsequent to your takeover of the failed bank HBOS, you are planning to give Mr Andy Hornby, the failed CEO of HBOS a £2 million stake in Lloyds TSB. I had no objection to the former before the event, but I write now to tell you that I strenuously object to the latter.
May I remind you, Mr Daniels, that I have banked with you for the past twenty-six years.
Articles on related themes: Debt; Current Affairs
Divorce & Family Law - Does It Affect Us All?
Posted: Wednesday, 17th September 2008
Other Posts on Books & Reading: The Isolation of Being Unable to Read
STATISTICS OF SINGLE PARENTS
What do you think of when you read of mothers raising children without fathers? Does it incite you to indignation? Rage? And if so, against whom? The mothers who so ruthlessly exploit the benefits system with serial offspring by multiple fathers? The feckless fathers who abandon them? Or the systematic onslaught of successive governments who have dismantled the best-known building block for the stability of society: marriage and the family unit?
Whilst we are (rightly) concerned with such matters, we appear to have allowed the other end of the spectrum to have slipped from our sight.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Current Affairs; Family & Parenting
Memories of 9.11.2001
Posted: Thursday, 11th September 2008
Other Posts on Current Affairs: Rick Warren
I thought that in memory of all who lost their lives, and those who lost loved ones, I would reproduce the comment I left on The New York Times online.
COMMENT
I expect, like me, you've been thinking about the terrible events of seven years ago. But can you remember where you were? I'm old enough to remember the assassination of John F Kennedy and still recall exactly where I was when the news came through. But 9/11 was worse. So much worse!
I was at home (in the UK) when my eldest daughter rang to ask me where my niece was.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
The Isolation of Being Unable to Read
Posted: Monday, 8th September 2008
Related topics: 59 Million Keywords to PublicationReading Between The Lines
EFFECTS OF ILLITERACY
Have you ever thought what it would be like if you were unable to read or understand a word of this blog? Doubtless you would be feeling the same shame and isolation as the people I wrote about in my post: Reading Between the Lines last month. Tears were aplenty as they shared their stories in the TV series Can’t Read; Can’t Write – and they weren’t solely those of the participants! There we learned that in Britain, alone, over five million adults have a reading age of 12 or less, or are unable to read at all.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Current Affairs; Family & Parenting
Paedophiles Offered Castration, Daily Telegraph Reports
Posted: Wednesday, 27th August 2008
Other Posts on Current Affairs: Rick Warren
Paedophiles are to be offered a chemical castration following completion of their sentence, in order to prevent re-offending, so we’re told. The report reminded me of a story I heard recently, when we were dining with friends. Ted (not his real name) is a retired Headmaster and a Lay Preacher. At some point during his working career, he was asked if he would take a Sunday Service at the local prison. He readily agreed.
On arrival inside the gates, he followed the Prison Warden towards the Chapel at the centre of the grounds.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs
New York Times Comments On Rick Warren's Forum
Posted: Thursday, 21st August 2008
SHOULD POLITICS AND RELIGION MIX?
Should politics and religion mix? This is the question which is vexing the readers of the New York Times – and probably many more of the population.
REV RICK WARREN’S FORUM
An article by the columnist William Kristol, titled Showdown at Saddleback, was what prompted the dispute. It seems that Rev. Rick Warren staged a question and answer session with Barack Obama and John McCain, the two main US presidential candidates, at the large, evangelical church over which he presides. His method of probing was, according to Mr Kristol, equally fair to both candidates and allowed viewers to hear ‘revealingly different’ answers to the same questions.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
Reading Between The Lines
Posted: Friday, 15th August 2008
Related topics: Books & Reading The Isolation Of Being Unable To Read
CAN’T READ, CAN’T WRITE
Did anybody watch the UK’s Channel 4’s Can’t Read, Can’t Write series? It focused on people from different backgrounds and ages: the young mother who was unable to help with her children’s homework, the labourer who longed to improve his job prospects, the middle-aged woman whose intellect and culture relied solely on audio tapes, and the grandmother whose own mother had spent a lifetime denouncing her as a failure. As the title suggests, what each had in common was an inability to read or write.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Current Affairs
Does my bum look big in this? (Or that wretched F-word again)
Posted: Monday, 4th August 2008
A fortnight ago I wrote that legislation against the use of certain words (like Chav) is ludicrous and went on to quote from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet: What's in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. “It’s not the word that’s at fault,” I said. “What’s needed is a change of attitude. And that, sadly, can’t be dealt with by the law.”
I read this to my husband, and he totally disagreed with me!
“Look at the way attitudes have changed towards homosexuality because of changes in the law,” he said.
CAN THE LAW GAG DISSENTERS?
Yes, he has a point.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Current Affairs; Family & Parenting
Drugs & Human Rights - the god of the era
Posted: Friday, 1st August 2008
Click for related post: Parent Power = Kids' Confidence
I wonder how this generation of policy-makers will go down in history? Human Rights, it seems, is the god of the era. It certainly takes precedence over any sort of morality. And common sense? Well that’s out of the window.
I refer to the statistics showing that Britain now has an estimated 1% of the population taking illegal drugs, and somewhere in the region of 300,000 children growing up in homes where one or both parents is an addict, in a trade estimated to be worth more than £5.3billion.
Articles on related themes: Books, Reading & Words; Current Affairs; Family & Parenting
Is The F-word Foul?
Posted: Monday, 21st July 2008
Whatever happened to the old saying, 'Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me'? They can, of course. But only if we let them. Have we become a nation of wimps that we have to talk of legislation to prevent the use of certain words? Words like Chav, for instance.
I say they can hurt, but is that entirely accurate? I once had a debate with a friend, a well-known author, about the use of the F-word. It’s not a word I would use: it would shock my friends and family if I were to do so.
Articles on related themes: Current Affairs; Books, Reading & Words; Life, Faith & Other Stuff
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