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Ilavabeer

Listed below are comments made by Ilavabeer between Wednesday, 29th October 2008 and Thursday, 4th June 2009.

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Today's generation of young people 4:52pm on 04 Jun 2009 I'm impressed by the He Weifang's courage.

No nation has the monopoly on human frailty but it is in all of our interests to let our failings as human beings be discussed openly: if we who are not Chinese bring anything constructive to this problem it is surely that simple fact.
Brown's real "British jobs" quote 2:50pm on 02 Feb 2009 Ok - "British jobs for British workers" does not preclude "British jobs for other nationalities as well", now does it? We're going to have to have "British jobs" (i.e. jobs, whether at home or abroad, originating in the activities of British taxpayers) in order to allocate them to anyone at all. Therefore the apellation "British" can be seen as merely shorthand for that. Nothing in Brown's speech need be construed in such a mean spirited way as to suppose he had exclusion in mind. On the contrary, it seems to me to be very much in the interests of all of us to take a step back from this narrow, fear-inspired way of looking at things. However, it is in the nature of fear to produce panic and muddled thinking. The best politicians can do for us is to stand against the current of our own foolishness, in both good times and bad. But who will listen? After all, there were not many people who were ready to pay attention to the warning signs when the supposed "good times" were rolling on the way up, were there? The worst that can be said of Brown is that he was willing to let things go just as long as he thought it "prudent" to do so: any politician should be measured by the degree to which they are prepared to educate and enlighten. If they can be entertaining too then so much the better.
Doesn't leave many to choose from, does it?
Least of all, Brown, who is easily seen as a pusillanimous populist after all, though it is still up to us as to how we ourselves behave. We don't show our moral superiority by jumping on a bandwagon of our own negativity.
A national tragedy. 1:00pm on 20 Nov 2008 I expect this "home-grown talent" has just succumbed to all those offers from other broadcasters that must have been flooding in when they found out that he hadn't been offered even the bare minimum of £18,000,000 over three years.
BBC Resignation 7:36pm on 30 Oct 2008 TrishenFrance (8) -
"So our tabloids win again. What a shame they don't bring their moral outrage to their own dubious practices."
Surely you can bring your own moral outrage to bear in that direction, the same as evey one of us can. Then, when we eventually do that and stop buying the wretched things (I don't and I don't read them either), we'll have rid ourselves not only of substandard entertainment, not to mention education and information, on the tele and radio but also on the newsstands.
We're worth it!
BBC Resignation 7:02pm on 30 Oct 2008 melblogger (6) -
I agree with you entirely.
I've just heard on Radio 4 that Jonathan Ross is suspended for three months without pay.
If he accepts that, then presumably his career will be on borrowed time if he eventually reappears on the BBC. What level of moral interest will he be willing to pay on this magnanimity I wonder?
Forget all the hand-wringing over the fact that the story came to the attention of a wider audience via the Mail on Sunday: so many voices have been raised against him and so very few in support that the writing on the wall must surely be apparent even to someone - supposedly a "popular" entertainer - who is capable of hiding from the consequences of their actions behind their friends and colleagues. Just to spell it out for you, Jonathan, it says "You've come to the end of the line."
There is still time (just) to do the decent thing.
Russell Brand resigns from the BBC. 09:27am on 30 Oct 2008 Once I get a peek behind the mask I'm not going to laugh again if the character revealed is pretty loathsome.
In my view, Brand has redeemed himself over his treatment of Andrew Sachs and his granddaughter by resigning.
Ross, on the other hand, seems to think he'll miraculously escape if only he hides long enough.
Russell Brand resigns from the BBC. 6:43pm on 29 Oct 2008 Good on yer, Russ.
Hare Krishna.
BBC Statement: Brand and Ross suspended. 3:57pm on 29 Oct 2008 JOEL-C (69) -

They could show the Lenny Bruce biopic for a start to show what real cutting edge comedy - and its persecution - look like.
Brand and Ross are nowhere near the cutting edge. They are in fact in exactly the same territory as all of those tired old shows you list.
Now's the time for some creative thinking. For example, someone has suggested that Mark Kermode would be infinitely preferable to Jonathan Ross as the presenter of a film programme. Someone else has suggested "Friday Night With Mair" (that wasn't you was it, Eddie?). There's lots of great stuff just waiting to happen on our screens.
Defenders of Brand and Ross just seem to me to be willing to settle for so much less than they should.
Simply put - we're worth more than they (Ross, Brand, and the BBC) seem to think we will put up with.
I want to be entertained, but not at the expense of selling out my conscience for a cheap laugh.
The Glass Box. 2:12pm on 29 Oct 2008 Come on, Moderators (25 and/or 26) - that's long enough for a toilet break.
You're not the same ones that Ross and Brand were kicking against are you?
Now that's what I call hubris!
You do see what I'm getting at here, don't you?
When I use the word "culture" in relation to what goes on at the BBC, I do so in the widest *possible* (thank you Kenny Everett) taste.
In support of whoever it was who suggested it somewhere else (it wasn't you was it, Eddie?) - I'd vote for Late Night with Mair.
What do you think of how the BBC has responded SINCE the Brand/Ross story broke? 11:10am on 29 Oct 2008 Frances_O
Re your summing up (28):
There is at least another way to look at it:
1. The Mail on Sunday piece brought behaviour to the attention of a lot of people who are already sick of Ross in particular and who are unlikely to seek out more exposure to him. (But tolerate his presence in far too long-suffering a way if you want my own opinion.) It was just the snowball that started an avalanche waiting to happen.
2. If the BBC has been skiing off piste then it ought to have realised that sometimes the consequences of doing that are sufficiently serious to make it
a good idea to choose one's skiing companions with greater care and certainly not to take advice from fools.
3. To say that there is somehow something wrong with criticizing the BBC because there may be those with ulterior motives who do likewise is to miss point that so many people care passionately and want to see the BBC flourish (which is my own stance), not bury itself. As Blake said "Opposition is true friendship."
So -
I want someone to stand up and be counted. If this is the DG's Mark Antony moment, well, let's hear it.

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