Vox Pop *

Summary:

In the 1940’s there was the accordion, in the 60’s Rock ‘n Roll came to Europe. Guitars need amplifiers. The owner of a small music company in Dartford, Tom Jennings, started making them. He started with the AC15. The Shadows seized upon this sound and wanted a bigger and louder amplifier. Later the manager of an unknown band, The Beatles, came and he and he asked for free speakers with the promise that this band would never use anything else. The Beatles got the speakers and within a year VOX found itself promoted by the biggest band of all time. The early shows of the Rolling stones also were a showcase of VOX equipment. This is how Dartford became the powerhouse of British rock and roll. After a bad decision, VOX came into trouble. VOX is still alive now and owned by Korg.

Words: 143

Own opinion:

I thought this was a very interesting program. I love music and everything around it. It was cool to see all the old footage and to see how certain bands became big and how this brand of amplifiers grew and became super popular. I did not know anything about amplifiers and now I know you can even throw them of the stairs. I just had a quick look on Marktplaats and I saw that the original amplifiers (the bigger ones The Shadows wanted), the AC30 are sold for over one thousand euro’s. That is pretty impressive I think, for a fifty year old amplifier.

Words: 104

Source:

Lain Lee. (27 December 2012). BBC Four. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54s3386KZVI

50 people, 1 question *

Summary:

Fifty people in the streets in Galway are asked the same question. They first introduce themselves and then they hear the question: ‘What is your biggest life regret?’ You see them shy a bit at first, because it is a rather personal question and then they think.. and think. The answers vary from people that have no regrets, who wanted to be an opera singer to having spent more time with certain people. Most people say they regret nót doing something. In the other episode they are asked ‘when are they most Irish’, answers vary here as well, but the answer most heard is ‘when they are abroad’.

Words: 108

Own opinion:

I thought especially the first question was very inspiring! As said above, most people regret not to have done something, or having it done sooner, it makes you think. One of the people said in the end: “I try not to regret anything and take life the way it comes.”. I guess that it actually the best way to live, although sometimes you should look back and think about things you did and did not do, because you might still be able to change something. If I have to think about when I feel most Dutch, my answer would be during the international soccer matches, although I do not even like soccer, I still roar like a lion ;) .

Words: 120

Source:

Kamil Krolak. (14 May 2011). Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LP7pdAn3foE

Kamil Krolak (16 March 2013). Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_959383&feature=iv&src_vid=LP7pdAn3foE&v=YWbYuZW8L48

Stuck in nowhere *

Summary:

In the UK there are tens-of-thousands of asylum seekers who had to flee their own country, but end up with nothing because their request has been denied. Therefore they do not have a house nor a job in England, but they cannot go home, because it is not safe. But the UK home office says it is safe and that the failed asylum seekers have no right to remain in the UK and no need for protection. Therefore these people are in limbo and they do not even have five dollars a day to spend. The Glasgow council wants to treat the people with compassion but the UK government won’t let them do that and is standing in their way.

Words: 121

Own opinion:

I really feel for these people. I know what it feels like to leave your hearth and home for a year and I did it for fun. These people are forced to, because otherwise they could be imprisoned or even killed. So they give up everything, leaving everything behind, hoping for a better life and then ‘we’ in the Western world actually just say they are overreacting and send them back. If they had a good life there, they would not just leave and live in poverty here. But I do believe it is hard as well to filter out who is honest and who is not.

Words: 107

Source:

(2 May 2013). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1xaaFemqgM. Retrieved from http://rt.com/on-air/

British state spies on Muslims *

Summary:

After 9-11 and the 2005 bombings in the Britain metro, the government came up with a anti-terrorist strategy in 2007, called Prevent. This consisted of funding Muslim organizations to turn the community away from radicalization. Now, it is focused on countering ideas of ‘the enemy’, Muslims, who believe in a political form of Islam. This more or less gives the state a carte blanche approach to go around intercepting or investigating anybody they wish, based on a series of indicators that the state has created themselves. Because of this, British Muslims have been kept under surveillance by the British police and MI6 agents. An example of this way of working is people going undercover in families, resulting in the arrest of alleged terrorists.  

Words: 123

Own opinion:

I find it hard to have a clear opinion on this subject. It is perfectly understandable that, after several terrorists attacks, any state or any country, will do anything to keep their civilians safe. I believe that is their core duty. It somehow feels wrong if this is solely pointed at one religious group. But when they have real suspicions and feel they have to infiltrate in a community, in a family, to keep the rest of the people safe, they should. I do believe this should be done with the utmost care, because you can ruin lives in so many ways. Families can be torn apart and trust cannot be rebuild easily.

Words: 113

Source:

(11 February 2013). Press TV. Infiltration. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOOWPFfyyiU

Suicidal men left alone with noose

Summary:

In Leeds, two health workers did not remove a noose which a man, Mr Johnson, had made himself and had already hung in his house for obvious reasons. Mr Johnson was found dead a day later. The coroner accuses the two health workers of negligence for they should have taken away the rope, contacted family and sectioned Mr Johnson under the Mental Health Act, besides that, they should not have left him alone when he was obviously depressed. After a disciplinary investigation into this incident, the two men have been sacked.

Words: 91

Own opinion:

I think the coroner is quite firm with his accusations. He also said that they could have prevented Mr Johnson’s death if they had taken away the noose. I am not sure whether this is the case. When somebody wants to die that badly, he will find a way. They could have taken away the rope, and he could have made another one the minute after they were gone. Nevertheless, I also believe that they should have removed the noose, regardless of the state of mind somebody is, you never know what can go wrong..

Words: 95

Source:

(1 May 2012). BBC. ‘Suicidal’ man left alone with noose in Leeds. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-22366969

Bullied children using 'wrong jokes'

Summary:

A study from the University of Keele has examined links between bullying and different styles of playground humor. It found how humor can influence the social status of a child. There are four types of humor, of which the self-defeating type plays an important role in being bullied. Using this type, children disparage themselves excessively and make themselves the butt of their own jokes. This is answered with another type of humor, the aggressive one. Hereby, children use jokes as a way of attacking other people. The negative use of humor is a nurtured behavior, so maybe it is possible to teach children how to use humor to their advantage.  

Words: 110

Own opinion:

I am not sure whether I am surprised by the outcome of this study. Logically thinking, children who are being bullied, have less self-esteem. Therefore, they would sooner make jokes to ridicule themselves instead of feeling self-confident and ‘bragging’ about that. On the other hand, this kind of is the chicken-and-egg debate, because what happened first, the bullying or the low self-esteem? I can see why the children make those jokes about themselves though, just as a lot of grown-ups do, if you say it first, it seems you are cool about your flaws and people cannot tease you with them anymore… or at least, that’s what you hope…

Words: 109

Source:
Sean Coughlan (1 May 2013). BBC. Bullied children using 'wrong jokes'. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-22354326