The Swan and Knee-Jerking

The last post I wrote on here started with a tribute to famous people who I admired who had passed away. This time it is a quick note to say that I am appalled about what occurred in Cumbria this week. I am thankful in this country, tragedies such as these are very rare. My thoughts and best wishes go out to the families and friends of all those affected.

There has, of course, been suggestions the gun laws need to be reformed and restrictions on ownership needs to be tightened. There is a strong case for this now. I feel, however, this could be a mistake. As is stands (and if anything I'm about to say is wrong, then I am sorry), ownership of guns is strictly on a licence basis and can only be owned if people have a need for them (I don't have a need so I couldn't legally buy one). Making the rules on gun ownership stricter just criminalises more people needlessly. The law doesn't need changing in my view because, as I said earlier, this sort of event is very rare. The truth of the situation is simply this: if people want guns, they will get them; Legal or not. I used to believe that all gun ownership should be legal, like in the USA. However this sort of thing isn't so rare there, and after a recent spat of shootings there - I changed my mind. People I have argued with in the past compare legalising guns to legalising drugs. That view is foolish in my opinion. If drugs were legalised, they could be controlled much better than firearms for a start!

Anyway, I never intended this to be a long post. I'll close with a quick thought about a show bought to my attention via You Have Been Watching. Reality TV has long been something I've never cared for, in any form. Dancing, singing, talent shows, morons stuck in a house or any other form they can think of. Don't care. However I saw this one about The Swan. Basically they take people who are unhappy about the way they look, transform them with plastic surgery (having had "experts" sit round a table and discuss every reason why this person looks wrong), therapy and exercise and at the end of the 3 month period - allow them to see themselves in a mirror. Then the winners of the weekly shows go to a beauty pageant to be judged further! If I may, I'll just quote Charlie Brooker on this one:

The makers of this show are cunts!

That is up there in terms of awful shows with four weddings (come dine with me, but with weddings, not food).

That's all