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| Image: Thor |
I think one of the best albums to listen to on a Friday morning on the way to work is Shed Seven’s 1994 album, Change Giver. It’s a work of art. It’s the kind of album that uplifts one’s heart—you can feel it beating faster as the guitar kicks in—and it injects adrenalin into the system.
Walking down Dundas Street in Edinburgh this morning I had just that sensation; iPod on at full blast, I recommend you do what I did and begin with track number 7: Dolphin, and as you listen, imagine yourself jumping up and down in a mosh pit, beer soaked through your hair (sic), and a thousand appreciators around you who also know that maybe, just maybe, Shed Seven top Oasis with ease. The last song to listen to before you arrive at your destination is Chasing Rainbows. A titan of a song, it will stir passion in you that will make you want to scream.
On the theme of chasing rainbows, last night saw the first ever live televised ministerial debate in the United Kingdom. It was history in the making and the event caught the nation’s attention.
Nick Clegg, leader of the Liberal Democrats, looked nervous from the outset, his big chance at being able to challenge the two main party leaders in front of the public having finally arrived. He repeated himself several times in the early stages, which lost him some interest I felt but he eventually settled to deliver some good blows against Cameron and Brown.
Conservative leader, David Cameron, looked solid and confident from the get-go, although I felt he was perhaps lacking in answers of substance to some key questions. He came across as passionate and compassionate, but what will always affect his party, in Scotland particularly, is Thatcher’s legacy so he still has a lot to do.
Gordon Brown, Labour party leader and Prime Minister, gave a poor performance. He came across as having rehearsed way too much, delivering obvious sound bites to try and come across as spontaneous and witty—it didn’t work. As expected, he relied on his record in office but he seemed oblivious to the fact that this is what is driving down his popularity in the first place, so I think it back-fired on him big style.
The debate was lame at first until Alastair Stewart forced Cameron and Brown into more concentrated debate by interrupting them after each question to get the others direct response. It worked, and some mild sparring between the two kicked off. Meanwhile Clegg did what he came to do and take advantage of their arguments, his best line being: “when these two argue it’s hard to tell the differences between them.”
The outcome of polling conducted by various outlets has been largely the same: Clegg won the overall debate by a mile, with Cameron coming a healthy second and Brown languishing behind on almost all topics.
However, I am more convinced now that the general election will go to Cameron’s Conservative party. He’s young, fresh and has ideas, but more importantly, he comes across as a potential leader with energy and passion. He looks the part. Brown on the other hand seems worn down, jaded and empty of new ideas. And Nick Clegg, while performing admirably and outstripping his two opponents at times, just isn’t ready to be PM.
Finally, what that heck was going on with Gordon Brown’s tie? Where Clegg and Cameron wore party-coloured ties—gold and blue—Brown wore bright pink! I thought my television was on the blink at first, but now I think it was strategic to take attention away from his shifting eyes and worn down exterior. It certainly worked, because I for one could hardly take my eyes away from it as he delivered his rhetoric.
Briefly, some other stuff. I think I went a touch overboard at lunchtime yesterday because I knew I wasn’t going to have a dinner in the evening, so I opted for my main meal of the day to be a subsidised one from the staff canteen. For a little over £2 I enjoyed a healthy plateful of cheese macaroni and chips, which I then followed up with, purely because I couldn’t walk past it without tasting it, a bowl containing a sugared donut smothered with custard.
I could hardly move.
What with the TV debate in the evening the rest of time outside the day job was spent reading. Albert Camus is doing it to me again. Oh, and the country is covered in ash thanks to an Icelandic volcano. Go figure.
My Friday vid this week is an absolute classic if you are into the weird and wonderfully insane. It’s called Morgan Freeman’s Big Sneeze—enjoy, and until tomorrow, peace and out!
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Freedom from the Mundane 
Observing the electoral process after the television leaders debates I can’t help but think if a Liberal Conservative powersharing government will leave us with a ungovernable system similar to Early 1970s Britain.