Oh Hell ! The media circus is in action again, making an absolute meal out of something that has yet to happen, which seems to be their favourite pastime these days, and the expected 'Royal Baby' is no exception.
The BBC has reporters reporting, en masse, and experts of all sorts being dragged in to give their opinions, views and comments, most of which are trivial, banal and utterly pointless to say the least, on every aspect of the anticipated birth. That arch photo-opportunist, Cameroon, has even been seen telling us how excited the whole nation is - well, here's one member of the population who is certainly not excited, so Cameroon is telling fibs yet again. Vague interest, yes; excitement, no.
Why-oh-why does the media insist on such over-the-top reporting ? The expected child, male or female, may eventually succeed to the throne, but not until after the current Queen and 2 Kings have had their turns; given the ways of science and the longevity of the Royal Family, this could mean a wait of 70 or 80 years, or even more. By then, who knows what the state of the country will be; we may even have dispensed with the Royals and become a republic.
In Cameroon's case, things are a little different. He will grab at anything to divert attention from his government's, and his party's, failings and peccadilloes. Today, for instance, he's announcing plans to censor the internet, while his chief strategist, Lynton Crosby, has managed to drag him into yet another murky mess, this time over Crosby's possible involvement in matters to do with the NHS. Then there's also a lovely little story about the unbelievable pay-outs being made to former employees of the 'Olympic Delivery Authority', a body which existed for a handful of years and yet has managed to make 'exit payments' totalling almost £3m, of public money, to a load of people who were given permanent contracts; why on earth were they not given time-limited agreements ?
Years ago, a fairly senior civil servant was sacked, or forced to resign, I forget which, for making a comment about it being 'a good day to bury bad news'. Today, and probably the next 2 or 3, will be great days for Cameroon and his cronies to bury a whole tanker-full of bad news; the stories above will be brushed under the carpet in the wake of Royal Baby mania and so will a load of other, far more important, things. Watch out for the stories that only make it to the 'round-up' columns on the inside pages over the next few days, 'cos they'll be the ones we should be reading, rather than the trivial tripe that will make up almost all of the headlines.
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