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Monday, November 14, 2005  

That's it, this is war

I'm fed up. I've had enough. I can tolerate no more. I have a new enemy.

I admit, I was truly in love with them for the time that my iPod worked, but no. Firstly about four months ago, my battery on my first 3G iPod started to die, so I paid the $160 to have it replaced out of warranty, by a week. Now, 13 days out of the warranty of my replacement iPod, it too has lost it. Whenever I go to play a song, the iPod stuggles to try and find the file for a while, before giving up and returning to the menu.

This is the logo that comes up after struggling to find a couple of songs:

So what did I do? I rang Apple's technical support and asked what options I had. Telling me that I wasn't under warranty, they said nothing, and if I had any complaints, to call Customer Service. What did they say? Can't do a thing. Silence. I said "That's excellent", and proceeded to hang up the phone.

I HATE APPLE. (love them when their stuff works tho)

   [ posted by Tom @ 8:35 pm ]

Steinbeck's Monster in Reality

For starters, those of you thinking, Tom, you should be in bed at 11:30pm the night before your English Paper 2, I agree, but I have been unsuccessful in getting to sleep.

The title is a reference the my thoughts on Economic Rationalism, and how many of us today, consider 'economic progress' to translate to improvement in lifestyle for the country. I am aware that my knowledge is limited, but from what I DO know, this is what I think.

Last year, when I studied the very basic Anticipated Economics, I thought much the same way as these people I am talking about. I learnt about figures and theories to do with economics without considering what they actually translate to in real terms. Although I'll admit that economci reform benefits the majority of society, I think that all reform should consider those at the extremes of the spectrum. We cannot operate our country from a utilitarian perspective. We must consider the needs of all in our society, even if the majority benefits, they must ensure that the minority aren't left out in the cold.

I don't understand how people could study economics and deal with things like MER and aid without learning about the human side to it. In a society that values maths and sciences over languages and arts, it's easy to see why people are being transformed into cold, thoughtless individuals who prefer material gain for the majority, instead of considering the effect on the wider community.

Since last year, mainly through my own learning and school, particularly English, I have begun to consider the other side to the facts and figures. Because of this, I now become confused and frustrated when others try to proclaim economic reform as essential for the good of the country. Personally, I would prefer Australia's Social welfare system, where we provide an allowance to the elderly, disabled and unemployed, as opposed to that, as an example, of Singapore, where the elderly are shoved into poorly funded accomodation.

A country that values economic reform and growth over the good over its people is not worth living for.

   [ posted by Tom @ 11:23 pm ]

Breaking News

I've decided to break my silence over one of the most alarming issues in current affairs. I hadn't heard about it until my cousin, Melissa who is living in the UK, sent me a newspaper clipping and a letter, informing me of the whole controversy. Rupert the Bear has been given a makeover by Entertainment Rights, a cartoon firm who also owns the rights to Postman pat.

For those of you who don't know, Rupert Bear was drawn first by Mary Tourtel in the Daily Express as a comic on November 8 1920.

This is Mary Tourtel's original Rupert.

From 1935-1973, Albert Bestall took over the comic and the popularity of Rupert took off.

As you can see, Albert's version of Rupert wasn't all that different from Mary's, apart from the colour.

When Bestall retied in 1973, John Harolld took over.

As you can see, none of the three illustrators have really differed a great deal. Wait until you see the newest Rupert tho, it's a travesty.

I first came across Rupert as the cartoon which began in 1993, the series running for 39 episodes. But Rupert's significance comes from the argument that My cousin and I had eleven years ago when we were staying in Alexandra Headlands in Queensland. Neither of us can recall exactly what the argument was about, but it always seems to come up again. So when an article about rupert came up in a British tabloid, Missy cut it out and sent it over, feeling it was pretty important to inform me of what Entertainment Rights have done to poor Rupert.

The article, which was on the front page of the newspaper, and the letter from Missy.

The New Rupert

In the makeover, Rupert has had his ears moved, eyebrows added, a nose and mouth replaced, two fingers amputated and 'trendy trainers' added. I feel that the 'commercialisation' of Rupert costs him his charm.

On a happier note, my HL Chem and SL Maths exams are over, leaving me with HL English and HL Physics. I will be all done by Friday week. Looking forward to that!

Good luck to everyone with their exams and I look forward to seeing you at the Grad Ball!

   [ posted by Tom @ 5:09 pm ]