The Current State of Great British TV

We are in the process of moving to digital TV in the UK. Whilst this gives the costumer (how I hate the word consumer) better quality and more choice it also helps big business make more money out of our debt ridden population. To upgrade requires extra hardware (a freeview box or cable subscription) and in many cases a new TV. Also some aerials need replacing. Then there are the expensive widescreen options and HDTV. All pricey but optional. Then there are the VCR recording problems meaning you cannot record another channel when watching a programme (and maybe multiple programmes on different channels when away). This makes VCRs all but obselete. More sales for expensive digital recording solutions.

Now lets jump on the environment bandwagon. How are we going to deal with millions upon millions of old TVs and VCRs hitting the landfill sites at the same time?

There is a great solution called TV on demand available via PC. Channel 4 and channel 5 are doing this. Then there is the TV license. Why continue this when the BBC can create a TV on demand service where people pay for premium TV they use and stop taxing everyone for TV they do not always use? TVOD could get the BBC a lot more money than the license ever did.

A great marketing ploy is to get people to buy new things as upgrades and then make these appear obselete within a few years. Computers, mobile phones and cars are particular victims of this. We should have less bits and pieces. An integrated and fully upgradable integrated PC/TV/Stereo solution would cater for most needs. Then when more powerful chips and modules come out all we should have to do is replace a small circuitboard or parts that have broken down.

Education and police systems

I do not understand the government and society letting children get harrassed by police. Apparently previous young offenders are getting stopped by police several times a day when they have done nothing wrong. There are too many arrests for very minor offences because of government targets (in a similar vain to dentists, doctors, teachers and most jobs). We do not want a police/nanny state. This causes children to rebel and relations to become frayed. Also serious offences are often overlooked because of bonuses to arrests (although this is changing due to severity of crimes).

So why are there so things that rip off people or restrict freedom in the benefit of bureaucracy and capitalism? No one cares that people are happy. You cannot get most jobs without waiting weeks for agencies and security checks. You cannot go to university and get an even education. I propose a system where universities give a level of education that is the same as other universities in the country. You do not learn important thigs about the real world in many courses and companies are biased towards some institutions over others. This bigotry has to stop. A link between careers and study has to be developed where a student can get a placement / experience regardless of course or institution.

Also we need to be aware of student debt and encourage more young adults to look at other options in shortage areas when they leave school. There are too many unregulated degrees and private training courses out there that generate money for the instituations by taking advantage of large numbers of individuals. More direction and empowerment is needed at all levels and less confusion and capitalist crap.

Chasing My Own Tail

An idea for an illustration of a comic man chasing his own tail around in circles. An animation (or series of stills) where a man is running around in a circle and a tail grows. His face turns into a TV set with an aerial and mouth changes to dollar signs/religious signs/sitcoms/politics etc. He catches up his own tail and its needle sharp point skewers him. Then a baby crawling in a circle...

Around all this is words and voices from popular media, capitalism and consumerism. Would this be a metaphor for the world or for how we waste our lives?