"Research"

I have been spending a few days in Somerset. I'm having a "research" week and spending it in Taunton Public library. The idea was to catch up with my reading - the biography of PL Travers, the Markov papers, etc under the pretence of looking stuff up for a lecture I probably won't give in September on umbrellas. However, in keeping with the modern approach to libararies they don't actually bother stocking many books now. So I have just spent the week surfing the internet and dicking about on Twitter at one of the 484 PC stations they have here.

Found out loads of fascinating stuff. None of it work related but still. Plenty happening in the world, especially as this Coalition government lurches from one policy pratfall to another, all with the vague nonsense of Bogg Society lurking in the background

For instance Dave Cameron has backed minimum alcohol pricing. "Pimms has to be at least £25 a pitcher to stop oiks drinking it".

And he wants to boost tourism, though I can tell him for nothing (and I will next time I see him in Lidl) that if you want more tourists to come to the UK you have to make alcohol even cheaper not more expensive.

In a speech that was almost satire-proof he called for people to take more British holidays as it will be safer than "travelling to all the countries I'm going piss off".

He invited foreigners to Britain to look at all the treasures "we nicked from you in the first place" and told Capello to retire Beckham so he can become a heritage attraction for this tourism drive.

"It is OK to encourage foreigners to flock to the UK as long as they look at a castle, buy a fridge magnet then fuck off again" he thundered.

In terms of Bogg Society, Cameron has empowered foreign citizens to come to UK and prop up the economy so the government doesn't have to. He has also empowered UK citizens to holiday in their local communities.

Finally, health experts have confirmed the presence of a dangerous new risk to hospitals.