London: On Moats, Ducks and Spelling

LONDON - I’m interning — or, more accurately, completing a term of indentured servitude without pay — in London over the summer. It’s great, of course; my work actually interests me and, more importantly, London is the world’s best city. I’ll be telling you more about why over the next few weeks.

But first, there are some classic blunders going on right now across the pond.

The British Government (so trustworthy at the moment; more on that in a bit) has declared the end of teaching the “i before e, except after c” rule in schools.  Apparently there are too many exceptions, which, sure, makes sense. But they don’t seem to be mourning just how snazzy the saying is. What a shame. It definitely made my life easier, but I guess with spell check, who needs a snappy phrase?

Then there’s the delightful expenses scandal. About 20 members of parliament and ministers have quit over the past few weeks due to extremely embarrassing revelations about monetary claims they made. A choice sampling includes taxpayers footing the bill for moat cleaning, a duck island and porn.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to say public trust in the government is not at a high point.

[Image Courtesy of Fir0002 under Creative Commons]

One Response to “London: On Moats, Ducks and Spelling”

1. Blaise Vanderhorst says:

   June 28, 2009 at 5:27 pm

   Duckies!