links for 2008-12-18

I couldn't agree more. This 'state army' of lazy workshy nurses, teachers, ambulance drivers, prison officers, firemen and the armed forces have been taking the rest of us for a ride for far too long. I bet they don't even pay taxes or national insurance themselves, the spongers.

"There also seems to be a glaring disconnect between the version of events being offered on much of [Greek] national TV and that being seen in the rest of the world. For much of the foreign press the events in Greece are being seen as a form of rebellion against the present political establishment and the deep rooted ills in Greek society whereas the local media is offering their own interpretations based on pre-existing ideological formulas. For the supporters of the conservative New Democracy party the violence and protests are simply the actions of a criminal minority hell bent on mayhem and theft. For others such as the Greek Communist Party (KKE) the violence is part of an orchestrated plan to distract people's attention from the government's economic woes. Others see the hand of foreign intelligence agencies guiding the protesters, who are seeking to undermine the independence of the government."

Stephen Abram is producing too much good stuff at the moment - I feel like I am linking to every post. This one is a nice take on what bloggers could learn from journalist professionalism, instead of just chanting "We are the future la la la"...

"Apple must immediately cease its exclusive relationship with France Telecom's Orange and allow other local carriers to offer the iPhone to its subscribers". Us British would be mind-boggled at what happens on the continent. You know, in Belgium, it is against competition law to bundle a handset with a contract, even if it isn't exclusive.