Support Oxfam’s campaign to “Even it up!”
November 3rd, 2014 by Roger Darlington
Oxfam has launched a new report and a new campaign on the explosion in inequality around the globe. You can view a three-minute video here. You can see the excetive summary of the report here.
The campaign has the following nine objectives.
1) Make governments work for citizens and tackle extreme inequality
Public interest and tackling extreme inequality should be the guiding principle of all global agreements and national policies and strategies. It must go hand in hand with effective governance that represents the will of the people rather than the interests of big business.
Specific commitments must include: agreement of a post-2015 goal to eradicate extreme inequality by 2030; national inequality commissions; public disclosure of lobbying activities; freedom of expression and a free press.
2) Promote women’s economic equality and women’s rights Economic policy must tackle economic inequality and gender discrimination together.
Specific commitments must include: compensation for unpaid care; an end to the gender pay gap; equal inheritance and land rights for women; data collection to assess how women and girls are affected by economic policy.
3) Pay workers a living wage and close the gap with skyrocketing
executive reward
Corporations are earning record profits worldwide and executive rewards are skyrocketing, whilst too many people lack a living wage and decent working conditions. This must change.
Specific commitments must include: increasing minimum wages towards living wages; moving towards a highest-to-median pay ratio of 20:1; transparency on pay ratios; protection of worker’s rights to unionise and strike.
4) Share the tax burden fairly to level the playing field
Too much wealth is concentrated in the hands of the few. The tax burden is falling on ordinary people, while the richest companies and individuals pay too little. Governments must act together to correct this imbalance.
Specific commitments must include: shifting the tax burden away from labour and consumption and towards wealth, capital and income from these assets; transparency on tax incentives; national wealth taxes and exploration of
a global wealth tax.
5) Close international tax loopholes and fill holes in tax governance
Today’s economic system is set up to facilitate tax dodging by multinationals and wealthy individuals. Until the rules are changed and there is a fairer global governance of tax matters, tax dodging will continue to drain public budgets and undermine the ability of governments to tackle inequality.
Specific commitments must include: a reform process where developing countries participate on an equal footing, and a new global governance
body for tax matters; public country-by-country reporting; public registries
of beneficial ownership; multilateral automatic exchange of tax information including with developing countries that can’t reciprocate; stopping the use of tax havens, including through a black list and sanctions; making companies pay based on their real economic activity.
6) Achieve universal free public services by 2020
Health and education can help to close the gap between the haves and have nots, but under spending, privatisation and user fees as well as international rules are standing in the way of this progress and must be tackled.
Specific commitments must include: removal of user fees; meeting spending commitments; stopping new and reviewing existing public subsidies for health and education provision by private for-profit companies; excluding public services and medicines from trade and investment agreements.
7) Change the global system for research and development (R&D) and pricing of medicines so everyone has access to appropriate and affordable medicines Relying on intellectual property as the only stimulus for R&D gives big pharmaceutical companies a monopoly on making and pricing of medicines. This increases the gap between rich and poor and puts lives on the line.
The rules must change.
Specific commitments must include: a new global R&D treaty; increased investment in medicines, including in affordable generics; excluding intellectual property rules from trade agreements.
8) Implement a universal social protection floor
Social protection reduces inequality and ensures that there is a safety net for the poorest and most vulnerable people. Such safety nets must be universal and permanent.
Specific commitments must include: universal child and elderly care services; basic income security through universal child benefits, unemployment benefits and pensions.
9) Target development finance at reducing inequality and poverty,
and strengthening the compact between citizens and their government Development finance can help reduce inequality when it is targeted to support government spending on public goods, and can also improve the accountability of governments to their citizens.
Specific commitments must include: increased investment from donors in free public services and domestic resources mobilisation; assessing the effectiveness of programmes in terms of how they support citizens to challenge inequality and promote democratic participation.
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
A review of “Would They Lie To You?” and a guide on “How To Think Critically”
November 2nd, 2014 by Roger Darlington
I’ve just finished a short book called “Would They Lie To You?” by Robert Hutton – an amusing and insightful guide to how authority tries to bamboozle us. You can read my review here.
I have used this book as one of several sources to revise and expand my guide to “How To Think Critically”. You can check out the advice here.
Posted in Cultural issues, My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
Britain’s greatest pilot: the extraordinary story of Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown
November 1st, 2014 by Roger Darlington
One of my many interests is aviation which is why on my web site I have a section on aviation and a section on aviation films.
I recently watched a rebroadcasting of a BBC 2 television documentary with the intriguing title “Britain’s Greatest Pilot”. Who, on earth (OK, in the skies), could this be?
It turned out to be a character with the wonderful nickname of ‘Winkle’, a reference to his small stature which he believes was a help in enabling him to survive as a test pilot.
It is believed that ‘Winkle’ – proper name Eric Brown – has flown more aircraft types than any other pilot in history – an astonishing 487 (a record which will probably never be surpassed).
You can read his story here.
Posted in History | Comments (0)
This Halloween breaks two records
October 31st, 2014 by Roger Darlington
1) A temperature of 23.6C (74.3F) was recorded in Gravesend, Kent and Kew Gardens, Greater London, surpassing the previous record of 20.0C.
Other parts of the south of England and the north coasts of Wales and Norfolk also broke the 20C mark.
It was warm enough for us to have lunch on our terrace.
2) This evening, we had a record number of visits to our house. The doorbell went 16 times and no less than 70 kids came trick or treating.
This year broke the previous record set two years ago of 14 visits involving 51 children.
Fortunately we had lots of Quality Street sweets in a special bucket, but I fear that next year “We’re gonna need a bigger bucket!”
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
How well do people know the basic facts on immigration?
October 31st, 2014 by Roger Darlington
A new survey by Ipsos MORI has checked public understanding of the numbers behind some key news stories in 14 countries. Let’s just look at two issues in two countries.
When asked: out of 100 people, how many do you think are immigrants in this country?
- In the UK, the average guess was 24%, but the reality is only 13%
- In the USA, the average guess was 32%, but the reality is again 13%
When asked: out of 100 people, how many do you think are Muslim in this country?
- In the UK, the average guess was 21%, but the reality is a mere 5%
- In the USA, the average guess was 15%, but the reality is a minuscule 1%
You can find more data on more issues in more countries in this piece.
Bobby Duffy, managing director of the Ipsos MORI social research institute, said:
“The real peril of these misperceptions is how politicians and policymakers react. Do they try to challenge people and correct their view of reality or do they take them as a signal of concern, the result of a more emotional reaction and design policy around them?
Clearly the ideal is to do a bit of both – politicians shouldn’t misread these misperceptions as people simply needing to be re-educated and then their views will change – but they also need to avoid policy responses that just reinforce unfounded fears.”
Posted in American current affairs, British current affairs, Social policy, World current affairs | Comments (0)
Two days with my special young friend Joshua
October 30th, 2014 by Roger Darlington
In the last few months, Vee and I have hosted stays from a number of youngsters. We’ve had our granddaughter Catrin (three and three-quarters) – see account here; we’ve had Vee’s great niece Yasmin (8) and great nephew Lucas (almost 6) – see account here; and this week – half term in the south of England – we looked after Joshua (seven and a half ) for a couple of days and nights.
Vee and I have known Joshua’s Chinese parents for almost a decade and half and we are as close as family. Indeed, a few years ago, all five of us went to China for three weeks together – see account here.
Joshua & Roger ready to hit London town
Joshua with his Lego purchase
“Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red”
Joshua was a joy to have with us – so well-behaved and no trouble at all. We are so blessed to have such little ones in our lives to keep us young at heart.
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (2)
18 weird German words you won’t believe exist
October 29th, 2014 by Roger Darlington
The Germans certainly have a way with words – a weird way – as you’ll see from these examples.
Ist Wunderbar, ja?
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Are there really multiple universes out there?
October 28th, 2014 by Roger Darlington
Vee and I are currently watching the new BBC 2 series titled “Human Universe” which is written and presented by Professor Brian Cox. In the second programme in the series, entitled “Why Are We Here?”, Cox concludes that our universe is simply one of an infinite number of universes making up the multiverse.
I confess that I find this notion mind-blowing. Among the many questions it raises in my mind are the following:
Will we ever be able to prove the validity of such a theory? Is it simply like the medieval debate about the number of angels than could dance on the head of a pin? If the theory is correct, does it have any practical consequences for us in our universe? Or will it just be subject matter for works of fiction like the three novels by Philip Pullman that make up “His Dark Materials”.
You can read a brief article on five reasons why there may be multiple universes here.
Posted in Science & technology | Comments (3)
Britain’s intervention in Afghanistan – the cold facts
October 27th, 2014 by Roger Darlington
As Britain’s combat role in Afghanistan comes to an end, some facts to ponder on concerning our involvement:
- Length of intervention: 13 years
- Maximum troop deployment: 10,000
- Total number who served: 140,000
- Number of British troops killed: 453
- Number of British troops wounded: 2,188
- Financial cost: £37 billion
During this period:
- Number of US military deaths: 2,210
- Number of Taliban killed: up to 35,000
- Number of Afghan civilians killed: estimated 21,000
Let is hope that it was worth it and that the Afghan army can beat or at least contain the Taliban and that the Afghan government can offer political stability and economic growth.
Posted in History | Comments (0)
As we turn the clocks back in the UK, around the world who does and who does not practice daylight saving time?
October 26th, 2014 by Roger Darlington
If you look at the world map on this web page, you’ll see that almost 80 nations – notably those of Europe and North America – practice daylight saving, but most of the rest of the world manages without this practice. The same web page provides some interesting facts on the practice:
- The USA has daylight saving but not Arizona or Hawaii
- Canada has daylight saving but not Saskatchewan
- Half of Australia practices daylight saving but half does not
- In Brazil, only the southern states practice daylight saving
The time arrangement of countries is often a varied and controversial matter. For instance, continental United States has four time zones but China manages with one.
Here in the UK, one suggestion – which I support – is that England, Wales and Northern Ireland adopt double summer time, leaving Scotland on its own time. You can read the case for this here.
In the USA, one suggestion – which is worth debating – is that the continental United States should move to just two time zones. You can read the case for this here.
What do you think about daylight saving?
Posted in British current affairs, World current affairs | Comments (6)