{Drum Roll} Tony Wilson speaks: On The Libertines & More

[marky]

My intent here is not to pass judgement on the Libertines, I haven't heard the second album yet, so as far as I'm concerned the jury's out. My intent here is not to alienate anyone who might not recall from their viewing of the film 24 Hour Party People that Tony Wilson was the head of Factory Records, one of the most amazing record labels of all time etc. etc.

Someone posted this little essay by Tony Wilson on the music freak message board and here is another reason to be upset at the fact that I don't live in the UK. Then I could be SURE I had ALREADY read this, instead of relying on people zillions of miles away to fill me in. Anyway, when Tony speaks I am just enthralled. I don't care if he's just reading a fucking shopping list. Yes sometimes he's over the top, probably fucks with the truth a little. But can you ignore him?? Christ, I can't. And here he is on the Libertines, drugs, the Mondays, and more:

http://www.sundayherald.com/44360

[Sloth]

Tony Wilson thinks the first album is shite. He's wrong. It's not that bad. It's just not GREAT.

Well the second album is better than the first. And that is a good sign indeed.

[mccutcheon]

Tony never liked the Stone Roses either. He went to Cambridge, you know.

[Tommy Martyn]

Hey Mc,

don't think I don't know what you are up to.



Marky,

you might want to remember that standards of living in England (as a whole, not poorer northern cities) are comparable to those of Alabama/Mississippi. On top of this, house prices would make you fucking weep. It might be the case that, if you lived in the sceptered isle, you couldn't read the work of our Tony, because you might not be able to shell out the price of a newspaper. Thank the lord that you live in the US, where your computer and the power to run it and the room to look at in are all significantly more affordable.

[marky]

Well you may have a point, Tommy. However even the poorest of the poor over there have health insurance, don't they? I mean conceivably they can get some kind of medical care and without going into debt for the rest of their lives, right?

Also, I wanted to share this Wilson essay more because the style of it seemed very Paxacidan to me than because of any other reason, really.

[Brett]

Having a National Healthcare system is nice, but you do pay for it regadless of what you believe. Up here I pay over 60% of my earnings in taxes, which is utter bullshit. In a Socialist country like Canada everyone wants something for nothing, free drugs, free money, free housing and I have to pay for it. I absolutely despise knowing money that should be going to MY family goes to idiotic programs like safe inhalation sites for crack users and free heroin for weak willed assholes. When these fools finally OD they are treated to free healthcare, lucky them. On top of all this every effort that is made to set up a two tier system where people can pay to have surgery is met by fierce oppostion by those takers. They call it que jumping while I call it alleviating an already broken system.

[marky]

Well I never said people wouldn't pay for it. I am well aware that many Canadians are not happy with their system. It's possible that you guys are too far one way and we are too far in the other direction. But there's something like 40 million people uninsured here, and it's fast rising, along with the cost of health care, which is rising much faster than inflation. If we continue down this road, the only people who will be able to afford to see a doctor will be the very rich.

[Tommy Martyn]

Marky,

hope you can tell that I'm not too serious on this one.

Brett,

I know exactly where you are coming from on this one. I suspect you have more than a passing aquaintance with The Economist. A month or so ago they ran a twenty page feature that was a cross comparative review of various national health care systems. It was good reading. I don't know if you can access this stuff online but it was well worth having a look at.

The NHS at home is great for some things and not so good for others. The system here though, is broke. I can't remember the exact percentage of money spent that stays with the service providers/insurers, but any is too much. It is like having a whole layer of bureaucracy that serves no other purpose than it's own.

I'm sure you are familiar with all the costs and benefits associated with drug programmes. I waver back and forth on the support I give them. The one thing that I do steam up about is the reformed addict, who, having benefited from a level of resources that roughly cost the price of a house then decides to give nothing back to the community at large.

Just before I left Seattle, King County revealed that the top spender in terms of city time and resources was a chronic drunk who was running a tab of just under a quarter of a million dollars a year. Those numbers measured in uninsured sick children had me thinking about the cost of a bullet.

[mccutcheon]

huh, I didn't understand that last bit. was the guy in government? I hope it wasn't Hiedi Willis.

[marky]

So how are chronic drunks/addicts dealt with in other countries, I wonder? I mean I can't pretend to know what the solution is. I do recall hearing about Vancouver's safe injection site for heroin addicts. Tommy did you hear about the housing project they had for drunks here in town? I think it might have passed after all. They were going to allow alcohol there, but give them a place to live to take them off the streets, save on hospital vists, etc. maybe offer counseling, whatever. I do know that when I was in Belgium I don't remember seeing any homeless people. What about you guys who have been to other places in Europe?

[mccutcheon]

In Belgium they round up the homeless and turn them into waffles.

[TragicPixie]

hmm yeah... we need a nationalised healthcare system. My health insurance coverage ran out despite my being a full time student

[Eman Resu]

I wouldn't mind so much a policy of homeless waffle conversion, so long as this country had a national syrup-care system.

[Tommy Martyn]

Isn't it Heidi Wills. Isn't she currently unemployed and hopefully unhappily married, with those large, pouting lips forming a sad melon slice. She fills her days driving to and fro past my old house on Capitol Hill.

[mccutcheon]

do you miss Seattle?