For those who still have to do the speaker's corner, good luck and see you there ;)
Sunday, 12 June 2011
Done!
Well, that was my last official post for this blog! I hope you enjoyed reading it, even if none of you actually commented on my blog..
Week 7, article #2 (SPEAKER'S CORNER)
Title: Thousands of elderly people are in substandard care homes
* * *
Summary of article
There are a lot of care homes for old and disabled people in
“The figures, which cover the nine months ending last month, show that 1668 homes did not meet standards for respecting and involving people who use services, while 1625 did not meet their nutritional needs, 1819 did not safeguard service users from abuse, and 1,800 did not manage medicines safely.”
* * *
My opinion
It's horrible to know that supposed care homes for the elderly aren't caring for old people at all. All they seem to be doing is making the elderly die sooner than they would, had they had good care. And this isn't about a few hundred care homes either, it's about roughly 2000 homes! This is very shocking and I believe that regulators and inspectors should do something about this. Maybe fine the care homes or install a star rating system for care homes, same as we currently have with restaurants and hotels.
Week 7, article #1
Title: Tom Daley: Father dies at 40 following battle with brain cancer
* * *
Summary of article
Robert Daley died last night while with his family, as confirmed by a statement from British Swimming. "Tom Daley's father, Rob Daley lost his battle with cancer yesterday 27th May at 21.35hours," the statement read. "Rob Daley, who was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2006 passed away peacefully with his family at his side.” Robert Daley is Tom Daley’s father, who’s a famous swimmer. Robert’s cancer didn’t stop him from following his son around the world, to follow his son’s career.
* * *
My opinion
It's very saddening to read an article like this... and I feel like these situations should be private, if this happened to me, I wouldn't want the whole world to know. Though I am very touched by the dedication Robert had for his son. I believe they had a very good bond and it is unfortunate that Robert died.
Tuesday, 7 June 2011
Very annoyed.
I had drafts for 4 blogs, all containing an outline, titles etc... and blogger.com just deleted them. So much for saving drafts..they don't stay saved. Thank you so much, blogger.com!
Week 6, article #2
Title: Two Royal Marines killed in bomb blast in Afghanistan
* * *
Summary of article
In the last 24 hours, four coalition soldiers have been killed during separate attacks in
* * *
My opinion
I HATE WAR AND DEATH. I don't like reading about this, it makes me wonder why people want to go in the army, if all they do is end up dead. And why can't people just talk things out? Why can't some people accept freedom of speech and why are there extremist? Sometimes I wish the world and life would be simple.
I do appreciate it that the Western countries try to help, but all they do now is destroy lives...
Week 6, article #1
Title: the other Malaria
* * *
Summary of article
There are two kinds of malaria: Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax. They are both transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes. The ways to kill these mosquitoes are the same and the two malaria are treated with the same drugs.. But vivax ad falciparum are very different. Falciparum is the one that is fought against worldwide, while vivax is less known, as vivax doesn’t kill the same way falciparum does. Because there wasn’t enough money, only the fight against the falciparum malaria was funded. Even though vivax doesn’t kill a lot of people, still a lot of people suffer from illnesses. It is time people are informed about vivax and that research offers better treatment for this type of malaria.
* * *
My opinion
I think it's good that people in Britain are told of this less known type of malaria and I think it's high time that someone funds the research for vivax. I hope the people in Britain will realize the same thing and will help fund the research. Because the countries where there is malaria, there often isn't enough money to fund research and I think the western countries should aid in the research. And thus Britain as well.
Monday, 23 May 2011
6:59am
"I’ve been told
that people in the army
do more by 7:00 am
than I do
in an entire day
but if I wake
at 6:59 am
and turn to you
to trace the outline of your lips
with mine
I will have done enough
and killed no one
in the process."
that people in the army
do more by 7:00 am
than I do
in an entire day
but if I wake
at 6:59 am
and turn to you
to trace the outline of your lips
with mine
I will have done enough
and killed no one
in the process."
Week 5, article #2
Title: Fake security software catches out Apple owners
* * *
Summary of article
A fake security program was launched in the beginning of May, called MACDefender. It is a program for Apple computers and when installed it covers the computer's screens with pornographic images from the internet. The program was downloaded a lot because it appeared high in search results. Many people have looked for help and there are 200 discussions about the program on Apple's official forums.
MACDefender is a kind of scareware program. Usually scareware programs pretend to scan your computer for viruses and the like. It makes up a lits of probles and asks for money before fixing the fake problems. There aren't as many viruses for Apple as for Windows, but this virus reminds us that there aren't none.
* * *
My opinion
People can still be very naive when it comes to the internet. I wish something would burst their bubble and let them realize that internet is NOT a utopia, where everyone is friendly and no one is mean. Scams are everywhere, viruses lurking and a lot of people are falling into a fatal trap where there are empty memory drives and evil hackers.
Week 5, article #1
Title: Barack Obama to back Middle East democracy with billions in aid
* * *
Summary of article
The
The president is wanting to look at the Middle East anew and he compares the situation with helping Western and
Obama’s speech will partly concern the democracy in the Arab countries. He is willing to establish relationships and help countries if they turn to democracy. For a full summary, click the link.
* * *
My opinion
Mr. Barack Obama is a very different man compared to Bush. The man who was all for a war with Iraq is now replaced with a man who wants peace and democracy. Whether the USA is lucky to have Obama remains to be seen. I hope Obama is not an attention seeker but a real man who has an honest opinion on how to something good for the world.
Thursday, 19 May 2011
So what?!
Your car is Japanese. Your pizza is Italian. Your beer is German. Your wine is Spanish. Your democracy is Greek. Your coffee is Brazilian. Your tea is Chinese. Your watch is Swiss. Your fashion is French. Your shirt is Indian. Your shoes are Thai. Your radio is Korean. Your vodka is Russian. And then complain: your neighbour...an immigrant? So what?!
**Not mine, rights owned by whoever wrote this**
Week 4, article #2
Title: Government rail fares review announced
* * *
Summary of article
The rail fares will be reviewed, to simplify a complex system. Also the demand is at is high at the travel peak and the review will help the management of it. The review will lead to fares decreasing and fares increasing, to create a stable system. E.g. fares just off peak (just after the rush-hours) might increase. Passenger Focus said doing this is like doing a leap in the dark and that there’ll probably be more losers than winners.
In the review, Sir Roy said that there could be savings of between £700 million and £1 billion annually by 2019, if the rail costs will be lowered. After research, it became clear that there were a lot of inefficient practices concerning the railways.
However there are some people who are apprehensive of change, thinking people might face new problems, like service going down by staff having been cut or less carriages being available.
* * *
My opinion
I think it's a good thing that they are trying to change the system for the good. Of course there are always people who dislike change because they are afraid changes might not do good. But if they guess you could save that much money, I think everyone should benefit from it.
Furthermore, if those inefficient practices disappear, that should be saving money already! Then people needn't worry about less carriages or bad service.
Week 4, article #1
Title: The Queen acknowledges 'sad and regrettable' mistakes of Britain's troubled relationship with Ireland
* * *
Summary of article
The Queen of England visited Ireland and when there she acknowledged the mistakes of the past, in one of her most important speeches. The Queen gave an encouraging speech, in which she said to keep the past in mind but that one shouldn't live by the past.
It's time to look to the present and the future and the Queen wants to re-forge the friendship between the neighbouring countries. She even started her speech in Gaelic to help mend the relationship. The state visit was a start in the peace process, even though there were anti-British protests during it.
* * *
My opinion
It's very honorable of the Queen to try to get the two countries cooperating again! I agree with her too, the past is in the past and nothing can be done without it anymore. They should look back at the past, learn from it and start on building a future. The Queen and the President are well on their way, now for the Irish population... They were protesting against the Queen, I understand their point of view but I think they are hanging on to the past too much. We Dutch people aren't still having such an attitude towards the Germans, right?
Tuesday, 26 April 2011
Random
Continuously nagging
at the back of your mind.
Continuously present,
wherever you go.
Forever following you,
flooding you with guilt.
You try to ignore it,
hide from it,
deny it from existence...
But it always gets back at you
and you end up working on it.
Last minute.
Joy.
Unfinished homework.
Week 3, article #2
Title: Not the royal wedding: how else might you spend the day?
by Alexandra Topping
* * *
Summary of article
There are some people who don't fancy following the royal wedding. But if they aren't going to follow it, what else can they do? The black sheep can ride the London Eye, taking advantage of the crowds being at Westminster, or they can take in a West End show, as it seems there are plenty to go to. There there is Legoland, great for children or Lego fanatics, and Knowsley Safari Park is open to visitors too. Last, but not least, people van take road trips through the English Countryside.
* * *
My opinion
How kind of this person to give information about things you can do in London when you aren't interested in the Royal Wedding! It must have been very one sided to always read articles about the Royal Wedding, its guests and all the other happenings around it. I also think it's refreshing to read about the other side of such an event.
Week 3, article #1
Title: Mum jailed for killing her 3 kids
* * *
Summary of article
Theresa Riggi murdered her three children, having stabbed them to death last August. Today she was jailed for sixteen years. Her boy twins were eight years old and her daughter was age five. The bodies had been found after people went to investigate a gas explosion at their house. Riggi had apparently tried to kill herself afterwards. She had jumped from the balcony and had seemed to have stabbed herself too. The court had heard that Riggi had been in a legal battle with her ex-husband over the children's custody. Lord Bracadale said in the verdict that Riggi had a genuine but abnormal and possessive love for her children.
* * *
My opinion
I find this article horrifying. It is unbelievable that parents who are divorcing could be so possessive of their children that one parent would kill their children to make sure they would not go to the other parent. I believe that the woman's sentence might have been a bit too little. I would giver her way more years to rot in prison! Furthermore I feel for the father and the rest of the family, it must have been horrible to lose the children this way.
Monday, 18 April 2011
INSTALLING SPRING
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Install delayed....please wait....
Installation failed. Please try again.
404 error: Season not found. Season "Spring" cannot be located.
The season you are looking for might have been removed, had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable
Week 2, article #2
Title: No. 10 tries to buy off doctors of NHS forms
by Nigel Morris, Deputy Political Editor
* * *
Summary of article
David Cameron said that the National Health Service’s overhaul will be delayed, because doctors and nurses resist the plans. He went on saying that there would be prober and substantive changes to the planned reforms. Also, the hospital doctors and GPs would be involved with making these reforms. Meanwhile the Government has paused the passage of the Health and Social Care Bill to listen to people’s worries. Mr. Cameron also said that the plans wouldn’t change, despite all the objections. He will take it easy making them though, telling the Sky news: “It’s much more important to get this right than to stick to your original timetable in every way.” Furthermore he insists it’s not a PR stunt.
* * *
My opinion
The article is a bit vague and it's repetitive. It made it difficult to read. But what I get from this is that the NHS is going to be changed. Change is supposed to be made for the good cause, but it's unclear whether this will be a good change. Further reading (of other articles) is needed for this. I can't give a real opinion on this, because it's unclear in what way the NHS will be reformed.
Week 2, article #1
Title: Assembly for Tomintoul gun death pair Sophie and Calum
* * *
Summary of article
During an accident, trainee gamekeeper Calum Murray accidentally shot Sophie Taylor. Afterwards he shot himself. This week a special school assembly is being held for the two teenagers, to give classmates of Sophie a chance to come together and reflect. The teenagers will also be offered counseling, they can do this one-to-one or in groups. Furthermore, the police don’t think there is anyone else involved with the tragedy.
* * *
My opinion
I think it's wonderful that the students are given the opportunity to reflect on the tragedy together and that they can close this chapter together. The situation of the tragedy is a bit strange to me, why would you kill yourself after accidentally killing someone else? I wonder why the police is not going to investigate any further.
Monday, 11 April 2011
Week 1, article #2
Title: Cameron drums up support for royal wedding street parties as figures show north-south divide
By Gordon Rayner and Nigel Bunyan
* * *
Summary of article
When Lady Diana Spencer was going to marry the Prince of Wales in 1981 there had been tens of thousands applications for street parties. The people wanted to celebrate the wedding. However, now there are only 4000 applications for street parties for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. Prime Minister Cameron wants to increas the amount of parties.
Mr. Cameron says that there aren’t any rules to having a street party and that everyone can celebrate if they want to. By saying this he wants to promote the street parties in
* * *
My opinion
I think it's wonderful that there are people who want to celebrate the wedding of the Prince. Of course not everyone wants to do this with a street party. Even though there haven't been a terrible lot of applications for street parties, this doesn't mean no one is celebrating! When we look at our society today, I think these parties might not be a part of it anymore. Not as big a part as it was in 1981 when the Prince of Wales married. This would explain the big difference between tens of thousands street parties in 1981 and the 4000 in 2011.
Oops
I keep forgetting to verify my comments and it's very annoying to have to type them all over again.. Hope you guys do a better job than me lol.
Week 1, article #1
Title: Government's doomed £6bn plan to dispose of nuclear waste
By Steve Connor, Science Editor
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/governments-doomed-6bn-plan-to-dispose-of-nuclear-waste-2266047.html
By Steve Connor, Science Editor
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/governments-doomed-6bn-plan-to-dispose-of-nuclear-waste-2266047.html
* * *
Summary of article
The UK Government had made a plan to tackle
“Other Japanese power companies have indicated that – they will not be taking any reprocessed fuel from
* * *
My opinion
What I understand from this article is that Japan refuses all international trade because of one power plant failing, while all the others are still working perfectly. England processes plutonium waste into nuclear energy but because the trade between Japan has been frozen they cannot do anything with the nuclear energy. Alas, it's very expensive to store plutonium. I think Japan is being a bit too nervous about the nuclear energy and that because one power plant failed, that doesn't mean they need to shut off the other plants from trade too.
Hello everyone!
This is my first post on this blog. I already have another one but I totally forgot how this works... I think it might be wise to start learning how to do this, again. :D
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