Ugh, what a horrible article.
Quote:
Britain is slipping down the world rankings for quality of life, a survey suggests.
A cursory glance at this opening comment fills anyone with the idea that Britain's quality of life is declining, but a second look would have you realise that it's the
world ranking that is declining - an important distinction.
So I did some research and whaddya know: the HDI has indeed been
improving each time a report comes out.
Classic spin.
Quote:
[Britain] has 9,767 recorded crimes per 100,000 population [..] South Africa, for all its lawless reputation, is in eighth place with 7,967 crimes recorded.
More spin: anyone would think Britain has more crime than SA having read this little gem. But it doesn't say crime, it says
recorded crime. Fewer crimes recorded? In a state with a 'lawlessness' reputation? Who's the fucking Einstein that discovered that?
Quote:
One area where the UK beats everyone else is in spending on music CDs and downloads, at £18 per person - although many will feel this is because CDs cost more here than elsewhere.
A pitiful throwaway jab. There's probably loads of areas that Britain beats everyone else on, but they cherry-picked this item to make their tried-and-tested 'rip-off britain' dig.
Quote:
Britain is also one of the world leaders in house prices, up 196 per cent in the decade to 2006 to become the third highest on the planet. Only South Africa, up 351 per cent, and Ireland, up 253 per cent, have outstripped us.
HOUSE PRICES
Quote:
Despite our national obsession with television, Britain is only joint 13th in TV ownership with 98.3 sets per 100 households. But mobile phones outnumber people - there are 109.8 for every 100 people.
I'm not sure what this comment might be for except provoking outrage at MOBILE PHONE CULTURE
(i.e. YOBS
and TECHNOLOGY
)
Quote:
Out of the industrial countries, Britain has the third highest number of asylum applications at 30,800, beaten only by France and the U.S.
IMMIGRANTS
Quote:
In terms of life expectancy, by 2010 the average Briton will live to 79.4 years, only the 22nd highest in the world.
DECLINE IN OUR READERSHIP
Quote:
For a place that coined the term "lager lout", the UK does not feature among the top 23 countries for sales of beer per head - led by the Czech Republic - or for cigarette smoking, which is headed by Greece.
Good grief, a positive
Quote:
But the UK's population is the world's 12th biggest for drinking wine, consuming an average of 17.5 litres per person per year, or 23.3 bottles.
ALCOHOL CULTURE
Quote:
"In other categories we are not as badly off as people think. Despite concerns over binge drinking, we are not, per head, among the world's biggest beer-drinking nations, and our carbon emissions per person are less than half those of Americans."
And that was the last paragraph. How many daily mail readers do you think would reach it before exploding with rage and foaming at the mouth?
There's enough spin on that article to give you a headache
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