I forgive you but I have to tell you a story.

Music is - None Too Soon - Allan Holdsworth

Call me fickle, but I skipped Seven Industrial Wonders to watch the BBCs updated version of The Pardoner's Tale. For some reason, a review of this made me watch and although lacking in any real character, the story bounced along begging resolution. The lack of character is actually something from the original anyway. Not a nice ending and I sometimes feel that there have been too many dramas with missing children or teenagers; this just raises every parent's fear when the risk of children being killed on the roads is far higher. We are back to our reverse obsession with the news. A parent who loses a child in a road accident is as devastated at the loss just as anyone would be. I never see the papers starting huge front-page campaigns to Name and Shame bad drivers when they kill far more children than any low-life. In fact some of the papers seem to spend as much energy on criticising police traffic campaigns as they do on screaming headlines about missing children. Drunk driving, Bad driving, Phone use while driving are all bad and they all kill people but somehow people think that because the culprits don't mean to kill, it is somehow less of a crime. Dead is dead!

Bus drivers! They are the worst. How can you control a bus and use a mobile phone? They not only want to kill themselves, they want to kill me and the 30 or so other poor creatures crammed into the seats with just about a Femur's length between them.

Obviously in best Nick Ross fashion, none of this is terribly likely. Don't have nightmares but then again the screaming headlines raise fear levels anyway. I admit that I spend a good percentage of the time worrying about my daughter and I will carry on worrying until she starts having to shout at me to overcome my deafness as I sit groaning and complaining about daytime TV not being as good as it was when that Young Richard and Judy started out.

I was really depressed when I heard the BJR Bloomer Personal Injury Solicitors radio ad for about the 90th time this week. I am loath to link to them as it gives them free advertising but hopefully reading the page will give you some idea of the yucky "I am here for you" style of their radio adverts. My wife tells me that daytime TV is infected with this sort of advert along with the "get out of debt free" ones. You do not get something for free despite what BJR Bloomer say. You may not pay them anything but Insurance rates go up so you pay more. And companies cannot afford the insurance and go out of business or start trading illegally so the economy suffers. Yes I do sound like I walked out of "Brief Encounter" but I really do hate the way society is all down to money and not general awareness of what is right and what makes people feel happy. I used to see the odd blank-eyed manager who made me think there is a person with no character but now they are everywhere, mind on money-making mode and with no account taken of people's feelings. It infects everyone. "Good morning. How can I help you? Glad to be of service" (© Douglas Adams). I am annoyed about it. I love everybody. Goodnight!

Oh dear! Ranty Friday. I do have a Clash CD in today but I think I ought to listen to Jah Wobble's The Inspiration of William Blake instead. Poetry and Bass lines. Wonderful indeed.