Rick's b.log - entry 2022/08/31

Right wing obsessions - a peek at the Daily Mail

Yesterday morning, one thing was clear. The knives were honed, sharpened, and being thrown in the direction of Meghan Markle.

Here's a list of all of the headlines on the Mail's site on Tuesday morning, the 30th of August. Meghan stories are italicised, and her name (or referring to her as the Duchess) is in bold just so it stands out.

• 'He loves both his sons': Prince Charles would be 'saddened' if relationship with Prince Harry was lost - amid fears Sussexes' rift with Royal Family could deepen after Meghan's latest interview in which she said 'doesn't want' Harry to 'lose' his father
• Bizarre, often unintentionally hilarious, but her warblings also have an unmistakable undertone of cool menace: It's hard to know where to begin to unpick Meghan's extraordinary statements, writes REBECCA ENGLISH
• DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Eco-mob's shameful attack on the Press
• Pair arrested following murder of Olivia Pratt-Korbel are being 'held in isolation' in prison over fears crime bosses will order a hit on them - as police in Liverpool arrest 202 people in gang crackdown
• Twitter is DOWN: Millions unable to access the social media network after website crashes
• Why drinking TEA could help you live longer: People who enjoy two cuppas a day have 13% lower odds of an early grave
• Father-of-two living in a one-bed council flat on £66-a-week is reduced to tears by self-made millionaire, 24, who offers him work after being touched by his story when they swapped homes on Rich House, Poor House
• Partygate probe risks making governing impossible if Boris Johnson is suspended from Parliament for misleading MPs, former minister claims
• It's carry on, Dorries! Liz Truss backs Culture Secretary to stay in her post under next Tory leader... if she wants it
• End of the family doctor? Patients are hit as 474 GPs' surgeries close their doors in a decade
• Paul Pogba is labelled a 'coward, traitor and a hypocrite' by his brother Mathias after the former Manchester United star accused his sibling of being involved in an £11million extortion plot
• Britain's five-year-old £3billion aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales faces 'long spell' in a dry dock after breaking down with a 'mechanical fault' hours into its 'landmark mission' to the US
• Death toll in Pakistan floods rises to 1,136 people as nearly 500,000 people crowd into camps after losing their homes amid fears a THIRD of the country could be flooded - but experts say water levels in some areas are now receding
• 'They were destined to get on well': Ghislaine Maxwell 'is best friends with infamous double killer Narcy Novack in low-security Florida prison and spend hours talking, laughing and joking'
• Time for the big clean-up! First Notting Hill Carnival in three years comes to a close after a weekend of music, dancing, and flamboyant outfits - but now cleaners face the daunting task of tackling the piles of rubbish left on the streets
• PICTURED: Met Police horse who died after collapsing at Notting Hill Carnival is named as 14-year-old chestnut gelding with 'impeccable' career who 'loved nuzzling in pockets for treats' - as force says it is 'too early' to determine cause of death
• Alexandra Burke wears a breast pump beneath her plunging costume as she supports breastfeeding campaign at Notting Hill Carnival - weeks after welcoming her first child
• Nadhim Zahawi jets to US for crunch talks over energy prices and keeping up sanctions against Russia
• Time at the bar? Pub landlords in last orders warning amid fears they will go bust over high energy bills
• Common virus can contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes, study suggests
• Is bird flu the next pandemic? Experts say a human outbreak is 'on the horizon' after record numbers of deadly strain in animals
• 'Every time she opens her mouth it is to badmouth them': Americans slam Meghan Markle after her 'latest vanity PR' saying she needs to 'move on' from the royals - as she is branded a 'fantasist' after 'comparing herself' to Nelson Mandela
• From the Sussexes... to SEXpertise! Writer behind Meghan Markle's latest bombshell interview is also sex expert who chatted orgasms with Gwyneth Paltrow, candidly shared her Tinder experiences - and is now penning a book all about 'being horny'
• Duke of romance! Prince Harry's VERY soppy sentimental side is revealed in Meghan's latest interview - as he 'earns points' by calling her a 'model' and she recalls how he compared the couple to a pair of intertwined palm trees
• Archie is growing up! Meghan reveals her son, three, does full days at pre-school, likes snacking on quesadilla and pretend plays as a doctor - while Harry entertains his children with beatboxing
• 'My marriage was likened to the release of Nelson Mandela': From royal jibes to new N-word claims, the Duchess of Sussex lifts the lid on her gilded life with Prince Harry
• New York Magazine deletes then reposts Meghan Markle tweet to add Duchess of Sussex title despite publication stating she 'left the Firm'
• Inside Harry and Meghan's Montecito home: The Cut interview reveals how the Sussexes' $14.65million mansion is decorated with Soho House candles, a piano from Tyler Perry - and two plush chairs 'like thrones' in the office
• What is so striking about the hardline green movement is the complete absence of any accountability... Too often police seem to care about the thugs not the victims, writes LEO MCKINSTRY
• Sarah Beeny, 50, reveals she's been diagnosed with breast cancer after her mother died of same disease:'I've waited 40 years to hear those words. I knew I was going to hear it one day'
• DAN WOOTTON: Meghan's latest comments about the Royal Family and Britain should be the final straw for Prince Harry. Charles and William must now intervene
• 'It's breath taking, her arrogance': Royal biographer Angela Levin accuses Meghan Markle of having a 'taking everything for granted and not giving back attitude' after her interview with The Cut
• Lilibet has inherited Harry's hair too! The Cut confirms the toddler is 'ginger' just like her father and brother Archie - and was 'unsmiling with bright-blue eyes' as her family frolicked during the interview
• The night I confronted Camilla... to Charles's utter horror: When Princess Diana realised her husband had resumed his relationship with Mrs Parker Bowles, she had it out with the older woman - at her sister's 40th birthday party, writes ANDREW MORTON
• Public school is rocked by sex claims storm as THREE governors quit over handling of allegation by former pupil
• Chilling Ring doorbell video shows man shoot and kill his daughter's ex-boyfriend, 22, after he tried to break into their Ohio home through the front door
• The dutiful citizens left feeling like criminals: Fined £100 for visiting her husband's grave with the family dog and slapped with a £150 penalty for feeding the birds - councils are now raking in millions by hiring private firms to enforce petty by-laws
• EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Cousin of the Queen banks £6m, thanks to 'tramp' ancestor
• Carnage at Reading and Leeds Festival: Armed police carrying assault rifles swoop on suspect as video shows yobs torching tents, thugs looting campsite and sea of tents left behind after revellers 'told not to sleep because it's not safe'
• Meghan's unofficial mouthpiece Omid Scobie DENIES she said Harry had 'lost' Charles after Megxit - insisting the Duchess actually meant she had lost HER OWN father in backtrack just hours after bombshell article was published
• Notting Hill Carnival ends in tragedy: Man, 21, dies after 'serious stabbings' and 'incidents of violence' following two-day festival - as police launch murder probe and reveal they have made 209 arrests
• Is this the end for working from home? Britons who shun the office could pay an extra £2,500-a-year in energy costs, warn experts, who say rising bills could drive people back to their desks
• Millions of families are just 19 days from the breadline and would struggle to afford bare essentials within three weeks of losing their income, study shows
• Police pay out tens of thousands to families of serial killer Stephen Port's victims: Scotland Yard bosses agree compensation deals after string of fatal blunders by detectives were revealed
• Back to reality! Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck return to LA in private jet after lavish five-day honeymoon in Italy
• Is a fast-acting pill for depression the Holy Grail that patients have been waiting for?
• Whodunnit? Agatha Christie's estate threatens mystery writer Val McDermid with legal action over rights to the title 'Queen of Crime'
• Black teaching assistant wins £17,000 after she was banned from working from home in Covid lockdown to care for her cancer-stricken son - while her white colleague was allowed to work remotely
• Iran's president threatens to DESTROY Israel if the Jewish state carries out military strikes on Tehran's nuclear program
• HUGH OSMOND: The temporary necessity to work from home during the pandemic has become an ingrained habit... There's now 60 City skyscrapers' worth of empty office space in London - we MUST get back to work
• British woman arrested in Mexico after 'trying to smuggle ten kilos of cocaine' stuffed in bottles and bags through Cancun airport
• Last chance! Shoppers call this Simba Hybrid Pillow 'the BEST pillow in the world' - and it's 25% off until midnight tonight
• Our Place just slashed 25% off almost everything - including the Instagram-famous Always Pan (and there are nine different colours to choose from)
• Michael Jackson's tragic death was 'inevitable' and there are MULTIPLE people to blame for his drug-induced cardiac arrest, LAPD detective reveals in new bombshell documentary
• Liz Truss vows to give green light to oil and gas drilling licences if she is elected as next Tory leader

Do they really need that many stories about one person? Or rather, one person that didn't cure cancer or be reincarnated to heaven?

Now, let's remove all the tedious royal crap and fawning over celebrities and super-great-don't-miss-it bargains and...

• DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Eco-mob's shameful attack on the Press
• Pair arrested following murder of Olivia Pratt-Korbel are being 'held in isolation' in prison over fears crime bosses will order a hit on them - as police in Liverpool arrest 202 people in gang crackdown
• Twitter is DOWN: Millions unable to access the social media network after website crashes
• Why drinking TEA could help you live longer: People who enjoy two cuppas a day have 13% lower odds of an early grave
• Father-of-two living in a one-bed council flat on £66-a-week is reduced to tears by self-made millionaire, 24, who offers him work after being touched by his story when they swapped homes on Rich House, Poor House
• Partygate probe risks making governing impossible if Boris Johnson is suspended from Parliament for misleading MPs, former minister claims
• It's carry on, Dorries! Liz Truss backs Culture Secretary to stay in her post under next Tory leader... if she wants it
• End of the family doctor? Patients are hit as 474 GPs' surgeries close their doors in a decade
• Britain's five-year-old £3billion aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales faces 'long spell' in a dry dock after breaking down with a 'mechanical fault' hours into its 'landmark mission' to the US
• Death toll in Pakistan floods rises to 1,136 people as nearly 500,000 people crowd into camps after losing their homes amid fears a THIRD of the country could be flooded - but experts say water levels in some areas are now receding
• Time for the big clean-up! First Notting Hill Carnival in three years comes to a close after a weekend of music, dancing, and flamboyant outfits - but now cleaners face the daunting task of tackling the piles of rubbish left on the streets
• PICTURED: Met Police horse who died after collapsing at Notting Hill Carnival is named as 14-year-old chestnut gelding with 'impeccable' career who 'loved nuzzling in pockets for treats' - as force says it is 'too early' to determine cause of death
• Nadhim Zahawi jets to US for crunch talks over energy prices and keeping up sanctions against Russia
• Time at the bar? Pub landlords in last orders warning amid fears they will go bust over high energy bills
• Common virus can contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes, study suggests
• Is bird flu the next pandemic? Experts say a human outbreak is 'on the horizon' after record numbers of deadly strain in animals
• What is so striking about the hardline green movement is the complete absence of any accountability... Too often police seem to care about the thugs not the victims, writes LEO MCKINSTRY
• Public school is rocked by sex claims storm as THREE governors quit over handling of allegation by former pupil
• Chilling Ring doorbell video shows man shoot and kill his daughter's ex-boyfriend, 22, after he tried to break into their Ohio home through the front door
• The dutiful citizens left feeling like criminals: Fined £100 for visiting her husband's grave with the family dog and slapped with a £150 penalty for feeding the birds - councils are now raking in millions by hiring private firms to enforce petty by-laws
• EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Cousin of the Queen banks £6m, thanks to 'tramp' ancestor
• Carnage at Reading and Leeds Festival: Armed police carrying assault rifles swoop on suspect as video shows yobs torching tents, thugs looting campsite and sea of tents left behind after revellers 'told not to sleep because it's not safe'
• Notting Hill Carnival ends in tragedy: Man, 21, dies after 'serious stabbings' and 'incidents of violence' following two-day festival - as police launch murder probe and reveal they have made 209 arrests
• Is this the end for working from home? Britons who shun the office could pay an extra £2,500-a-year in energy costs, warn experts, who say rising bills could drive people back to their desks
• Millions of families are just 19 days from the breadline and would struggle to afford bare essentials within three weeks of losing their income, study shows
• Police pay out tens of thousands to families of serial killer Stephen Port's victims: Scotland Yard bosses agree compensation deals after string of fatal blunders by detectives were revealed
• Is a fast-acting pill for depression the Holy Grail that patients have been waiting for?
• Whodunnit? Agatha Christie's estate threatens mystery writer Val McDermid with legal action over rights to the title 'Queen of Crime'
• Black teaching assistant wins £17,000 after she was banned from working from home in Covid lockdown to care for her cancer-stricken son - while her white colleague was allowed to work remotely
• Iran's president threatens to DESTROY Israel if the Jewish state carries out military strikes on Tehran's nuclear program
• HUGH OSMOND: The temporary necessity to work from home during the pandemic has become an ingrained habit... There's now 60 City skyscrapers' worth of empty office space in London - we MUST get back to work
• British woman arrested in Mexico after 'trying to smuggle ten kilos of cocaine' stuffed in bottles and bags through Cancun airport
• Michael Jackson's tragic death was 'inevitable' and there are MULTIPLE people to blame for his drug-induced cardiac arrest, LAPD detective reveals in new bombshell documentary
• Liz Truss vows to give green light to oil and gas drilling licences if she is elected as next Tory leader

That's a much shorter list of "news", isn't it?

Let's see what they have about the devastating floods in Pakistan, as that's a pretty important issue right now.

• Death toll in Pakistan floods rises to 1,136 people as nearly 500,000 people crowd into camps after losing their homes amid fears a THIRD of the country could be flooded - but experts say water levels in some areas are now receding

Which is like "it's pretty awful, but it's getting better". Other news sources beg to differ. Other sources have more than one single article.

Okay, then, how about the cost of living/inflation/economy crisis?

• Nadhim Zahawi jets to US for crunch talks over energy prices and keeping up sanctions against Russia
• Time at the bar? Pub landlords in last orders warning amid fears they will go bust over high energy bills
• Is this the end for working from home? Britons who shun the office could pay an extra £2,500-a-year in energy costs, warn experts, who say rising bills could drive people back to their desks
• Millions of families are just 19 days from the breadline and would struggle to afford bare essentials within three weeks of losing their income, study shows

Well, there's a sort of acknowledgement that pubs may close and working from home will be too expensive. But it's not exactly the doom that is predicted elsewhere, and more specifically, the doom that is being felt by people right now.
I think the Mail has to make some sort of reference to the economic catastrophe, but doesn't want to say too much as it would pretty much come down to having to acknowledge a decade or so of Tory mismanagement and incompetence.
Granted, today there's an article about how much more expensive some things are. After all, if there's a giant pink elephant in the room trampling the furniture and crapping on the floor, there's only so long that can continue before, well, before one must make reference to said giant pink elephant.

How about the environment? Well, we all know that the right wing don't give a crap about the environment, so this shouldn't be a surprise...

• DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Eco-mob's shameful attack on the Press
• What is so striking about the hardline green movement is the complete absence of any accountability... Too often police seem to care about the thugs not the victims, writes LEO MCKINSTRY

Yup, that's pretty much exactly what is to be expected. Greenies are cowards, thugs, and should be stamped upon.
Note, by the way, that "COMMENT" and named authors implies that these are opinion pieces. Not actual news, but what some hot-under-the-collar hack is being paid to rant about this time.

Okay, how about the current situation with the potential next PM?

• It's carry on, Dorries! Liz Truss backs Culture Secretary to stay in her post under next Tory leader... if she wants it
• Liz Truss vows to give green light to oil and gas drilling licences if she is elected as next Tory leader

I think the problem here is that the Mail couldn't rally support for Sunak as he's, well, brown, and they can't rally around Truss either because it's pretty clear to anybody with a functioning brain that the country has managed to find somebody that will be an even bigger fail than Johnson... and is about to elect her into a seat of power.
Must be hard to be pro-Tory when you can see the car, and the tight bend, and you know full well that the crash is coming with an impending inevitability.

So, how about the illigitimate war in Ukraine being waged by a psychotic tosspot with KGB/Soviet delusions?

• Nadhim Zahawi jets to US for crunch talks over energy prices and keeping up sanctions against Russia

No, no, not sanctions against Russia, the war in Ukraine...

Alright, then how about the situation with Trump, Mar-a-Lago, and those files?

Oh, what a massive surprise. There is, I should point out, an article about this today, but that's likely only there because it's Trump bragging about having documents on Macron's sex life. Also today: Meghan, Meghan, Meghan, Meghan... and (as mentioned above) a little more on how the prices of everything is going up. Yes, Mail, it's going to be really really hard to avoid noticing that.
I will, however, patiently wait for you to articulate how things would have been so much worse under Labour, rather than pointing the finger of blame squarely where it belongs.

Also in the news:

• Partygate probe risks making governing impossible if Boris Johnson is suspended from Parliament for misleading MPs, former minister claims

I get that you're very pro-Johnson, but if he misled MPs he needs to be out. Potentially facing judicial proceedings. Otherwise? Otherwise what are you implying? That the country is ungovernable if action is taken against a habitual liar?

• Is bird flu the next pandemic? Experts say a human outbreak is 'on the horizon' after record numbers of deadly strain in animals

Trust me - if it's medical and scientific information you're after, then the Mail is pretty much your last port of call. Put more faith in Wikipedia articles with no sources cited than anything you might read in this august publication.

Then there's the work-from-home issue. You can see there's a clear bias with these articles:

• Is this the end for working from home? Britons who shun the office could pay an extra £2,500-a-year in energy costs, warn experts, who say rising bills could drive people back to their desks
• HUGH OSMOND: The temporary necessity to work from home during the pandemic has become an ingrained habit... There's now 60 City skyscrapers' worth of empty office space in London - we MUST get back to work

In the first case, firstly you could try asking your employer if they can contribute anything towards the additional costs of working from home. Also, remember, there is the lack of putting fuel into the car for the commute, or taking public transport.

In the second case, it's quite clear here that the Mail is on the side of management rather than employees. Because the whole work from home thing... okay, it did have some people doss off. That's to be expected. But interestingly productivity went up, and is now coming down as people go to work.
Why is this? Perhaps because the majority of middle-management are simply parasites? Demanding better pay, holding endless pointless meetings, and generally getting in the way of people doing their jobs? Not only that, but all too often they can be spiteful and vindictive towards anybody who might show up their incompetence, and unless you have connections above their pay grade, your only choice is to roll your eyes and attend a stupid forty five minute long "productivity meeting" which, contrary to what the name might imply, is forty five minutes where you aren't being at all productive, only to leave and find the same set of problems that you had before. Essentially, it's an exercise in self-agrandissment and spaffing over the wall, because if they didn't do that, if they didn't insert themselves into everything constantly, people might realise that they serve no actual purpose and are more a hindrance than a help.
That's what the pandemic made clear. If you have good capable employees, leave them alone to get stuff done. If they need help, they'll ask. Forcing everybody back to the office (those who would actually even go) means a loss of the ability to get stuff done coupled with a heavy dose of playground politics. Who's up for that crap, really?
So no, Hugh, getting back to work is supporting employees in order that they may best perform their functions. That there are sixty empty skyscrapers is neither here nor there, and is certainly not a reason. The pandemic showed people that there's a better alternative than trudging to the orifice every day.

Anyway, it's useful to see how the right wing media views the world. To step out of my comfort zone in The Guardian (liberal lefty) and take a look at what is sometimes a fantasy world where the ubiquitous baddie "Agent Smith" is not white enough, is not male enough, and can't even spell Megan correctly.

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J.G.Harston, 1st September 2022, 03:16

"Meghan Markle" What, so she's divorced *already*?

VinceH, 1st September 2022, 12:22

Perhaps that 'newspaper' should consider a rebrand and become The Daily Meghan.

VinceH, 1st September 2022, 12:24

Or actually The Daily Markle - keeps the last word closer to Mail.

Rick, 1st September 2022, 14:19

Remember part of Meghan's complaint is the subtle bullying?  I rather imagine that the paper's continued use of her pre-marital name, rather than Meghan Mountbatten-Windsor (or whatever it actually is now) is their comment on the legitimacy of her marrying into the royal family.    Well, fair enough. I guess if it's okay to refer to Meghan *Markle*, then we can talk about Elizabeth Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, right? None of this Windsor crap...

Rob, 1st September 2022, 17:55

I've got the Mail blocked on my Google News app feed. Thanks for verifying that this is still a good idea.

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