ANYONE that carries a knife in public should be immediately locked up behind bars. Britain is experiencing a terrifying rise in knife crime as the Government fails to get a grip on the epidemic and more and more young people are being killed.

A shocking 28 teenagers have been stabbed to death in the UK just this year and now police fear that the escalating rise could see more than 100 teenage murders in 2008 if Labour doesn’t get their act together. Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has been blasted for not doing enough and last week through much public pressure, she announced a £5million push against gang crime. But it is too little, too late.

The chilling truth is that we now live in times were children are killing children – but more crucially, those that kill are getting away with it and for the small number that are caught and jailed, most of them are out in a few years due to prison over-crowding, etc. Some of which, may then do community service so it gets a tick in the box somewhere in the administration department of Downing Street. That’s right - in between watering plants or lifting rubbish, these murderers are ready if necessary, to kill again. Everything about this is disgusting. How would you feel, if your child was one of the victims? Exactly. Why should we all live in fear of crime on our doorsteps?

Figures obtained under the freedom of information act show that there is a knife crime committed in the UK every 24 minutes. In fact the figures show that in 2007, 5,500 serious knife crimes took place in the UK in just 3 months. Here in Northern Ireland, approximately 1,200 knife-related crimes occur in the province every year, while in the Republic knife crime has risen 300% in four years.

If the Government and police were as stringent on knife crime as they are on speeding, parking and smoking, the problem would soon go away. They have failed to implement zero-tolerance on knife crime and it needs introduced pronto.

There is a knife-wielding, gun-toting, violent gang culture thrashing humanity and it’s making Britain just as dangerous as New York, and that’s not even including the threat of terrorism. The scumbags that murder others should be locked up for a very, very long time and left to suffer, not freed soon after.

Metal detectors should be in schools, regular police searches need set up and curfews for wayward yobs that ruin small communities need to be enforced. Another knife amnesty is needed too (In 2006, Northern Ireland held a knife amnesty and 886 knives were handed in; 28 of which, were from Fermanagh). There’s no reason why anyone should be carrying a knife in public, especially children – it’s ridiculous.

There is also the notion that tackling these problems requires a bout of political-correctness – you know, one must be careful not to upset folk. We need to ditch this PC nonsense because at the end of the day, why beat around the bush. Tell things straight. Most of society, no matter the colour or faith, could do with a good ticking-off and reminded how to live their lives. If you do the crime, you’ll do the time. And if that doesn’t work, bring back Capital Punishment.

Rodney Edwards presents the Bigger Breakfast Show 7-11am, Mon-Fri on Vibe FM 105.3FM.

Taken from the Impartial Reporter, 29th May 2008

Less public eyesores, more public art

e-mail: rodney@rodneyedwards.co.uk

Waterways Ireland’s new Headquarters in Enniskillen is a bit of an eyesore. There’s something slightly hypocritical about an organisation that’s very much up for the nurturing of water, nature and the environment; ripping up the ground along Lough Erne’s edge and replacing it with a pile of bricks. The colossal waste of space on the Sligo road looks big and bulky; a multitude of construction overlooking the busy road blocks out the rather nice view of the town and lake behind it. (If of course, you ignore the back of the Lakeland Forum which isn’t exactly postcard material). It’s a similar obstruction on the opposite end of the river too.

But Waterways Ireland’s HQ isn’t the only building that infringes on Enniskillen’s picturesque landscape; the recently built Fermanagh House commanded quite a large chunk of the much liked Broadmeadow - previously home to dog walkers or thugs drinking cider. It may just be a plot of grass but it, like a lot of the County’s prominent areas are the real local gems and slowly but surely, getting torn apart and replaced with unsightly buildings. Remember the Clinton Centre row anyone? The controversial design was panned by locals and has still yet to be endeared to by most.

I like the idea of innovative buildings, just not when they are at the cost of something more valuable to Fermanagh – like its lakes, which are part of our global success. Without them, Fermanagh would be one big traffic jam, sandwiched in between fast food restaurants and dozens of money-grabbing apartment blocks. So, shame on Waterways Ireland for forcing tourists to walk further to find that perfect holiday snap.

What Enniskillen needs more than suitably placed revolutionary structures is imaginative and original public art. I like art a lot and the scope with displaying art in the public domain is far greater than the constraints you get with other forms of the subject. With public art, you can site, stage or exhibit any works to be accessible to all – monuments, statutes, lighting, seating, fountains and even graffiti – although I quite duly, “draw” a line at offensive scrawls across public buildings.

Typically ingenious, public art can say more about a place than anything else and there are many places in Enniskillen that art in some form would, benefit, refresh and brighten up the area – it just needs a bit of thought, planning and of course, permission. Bear that in mind, before you grab your paper, paints and sticky-back plastic, eager to follow in the illustrious brushstrokes of Michelangelo, Picasso and modern day public artist; Banksy.

Although, I can’t help thinking that through the artistic trend of “surrealism” in capturing the element of surprise and liberated imagination, creating a 20ft papier-mâché Siamese-cow in purple wellington boots and placing it on the Diamond would look more appealing than some of the ridiculous offerings currently cluttering up Fermanagh. Any public art suggestions on the back of a quaint Waterways Ireland postcard please. Incidentally, they don’t actually “do” postcards to my knowledge, but there’s nothing like concluding an opinionated piece with a cheap cynical dig…

Rodney Edwards presents the Bigger Breakfast Show 7-11am, Mon-Fri on Vibe FM 105.3FM

Taken from the Impartial Reporter, 7th May 2008

Why bypass the need for a bypass in Enniskillen?

e-mail: rodney@rodneyedwards.co.uk

The roads around Enniskillen are really starting to irritate me, to the point I’d much rather down ten pints of broken glass than waste another second of my life sitting in ANOTHER mind-numbingly tedious queue. And it’s getting more and more unbearable.

Work at adding another lane along Henry Street / Sligo Road is underway, much to the aggravation of us motorists that now have a daily ringside view of lorries, diggers and yellow high-visibility vests. As I write this, I’m resisting the urge to use one of the traffic cones on the individual that dreamt up the whole sorry thing.

Am I the only one that’s realised that the only thing an extra lane does is fill up with even more traffic, resulting in more, er, traffic? Without an actual bypass in Enniskillen, no extra lane anywhere is going to solve the immense traffic congestion in the town – take note Fermanagh Council. Certainly not on the Sligo bloomin’ road that’s for sure. If I had a pound for every text I’ve received from a listener stuck on that road in the mornings, I’d have enough money to buy a hovercraft for commuting. And don’t get me started on those lumps of tar they call “speed bumps” – an appropriate name, because once you’ve passed them all, you have to speed up a bit after spending half the day going over them. However, I digress.

Dublin Road to Town Centre to Queen Street to Henry Street to the Queen Elizabeth Road – you name the area, and these days, a usual short journey has turned into a 30min + nightmare. I should know, I’ve just had one whole week of sitting in my car every day, going nowhere. I was even able to eat an entire sandwich one morning, while waiting and waiting on the Wellington Road and not moving an inch for 20 long maddening minutes.

An unpleasant undertaking, only made worse by those that barge into your lane without asking you or change lanes without there being room for their vehicle, so they sit diagonally across the road, waiting to move and blocking you in the process. Before changing back into your lane once the traffic flow has moved up a bit and then flashing their hazard lights to thank you for allowing them to ruin your life even further by making you even more late.

Some say, public transport is the answer to stress-free roads, and that we should ditch our cars for the bus or even a taxi. I’ve spent years taking buses and taxis. They can be unreliable, noisy and grubby. It would take a substantial increase at running my car or a substantial decrease in cost of public transport to force me out of using the comfort of my motor. Others think the government should limit the number of vehicles per family, to about two or make neighbours “car share” trips, like the school run. And the most common cry from friends of the earth is that we should all cycle or walk everywhere instead - which is about as useful as my car without any fuel.

Surely the only answer is a big ‘ole bypass. So come on, when are we going to have one? Your thoughts please.

Rodney Edwards presents the Bigger Breakfast Show 7-11am, Mon-Fri on Vibe FM 105.3FM.

Taken from the Impartial Reporter, 1st May 2008

Money is only funny, in a rich man’s world

e-mail: rodney@rodneyedwards.co.uk

For the majority of us not lucky enough to have millions in the bank; money is something that we must borrow. And for the last ten years, more and more of us have notched up a sickening amount of debt.

Last week, the Archbishop of Canterbury slammed schools and colleges for their lack of financial education – which is a fare point. For years, many student loans have been handed out left, right and centre to teenage layabouts that end up spending the cash; drinking their body weight in Barcardi Breezers of an evening. It never seems logic to hand out thousands to those that can barely work a calculator, but it’s all, apparently, in a bid to boost their education as they go of and study something prolific. Before coming back six months later with debt coming out of their ears, a massive hangover and an application form for the local supermarket. It’s the same old story, year in, year out.

Some students make a go of it and the loans are a lifeline, a helpful hand to furthering their career. But the majority mess it up and borrow more and more, with no regard for the real cost of meeting their aspirations. It’s not just teenagers or twenty-somethings that have money worries; between the rise in fuel, food and home prices; everyone, it would appear, is in the same boat. Add credit card bills, overdrafts and mortgage repayments to that mix, and you have a recipe for a mighty lasting headache.

Take the ever publicised “rise in property prices” for example. It turns the notion of buying a home into nothing more than a childhood dream. Well, for those of us who aren’t multi-millionaires or gangsters, anyway. It’s a somewhat difficult process for everyone else and means years of sleepless nights and microwavable dinners. A colleague of mine recently told me that he heard Fermanagh house prices have been compared to house prices in Dublin. It’s quite flattering to think, that us local folk are situated in such a property goldmine but quite daunting that for most of us, it means if it’s not a shed, then it’s probably out of our price range.

When Labour came into power 11 years ago, they promised to eradicate child poverty but the gap between the rich and the poor has never been so wide. Thousands are claiming child benefit, the dole and disability allowance. Most of them are entitled to it – but let’s not beat around the bush, a lot of these people are sponging off the tax-paying public and sitting on their backsides. How many times have you spotted a good-for-nothing slacker in Enniskillen and ridiculed that person, mentally, for making you work so they can be kept clothed in traky bottoms and medallions? It’s absurd.

Britain now owes over one and a half trillion pounds; making it one of the most debt-ridden countries on the face of the earth, a shocking fact. And sooner or later, we could be preparing for a complete financial meltdown. Before that happens, perhaps I could use this opportunity to ask the great Sean Quinn if he’d be kind enough to give me a few quid? A million should do, I’m not fussy. There’s a caravan in Portrush with my name on it.

Rodney Edwards presents the Bigger Breakfast Show 7-11am, Mon-Fri on Vibe FM 105.3FM.

Taken from the Impartial Reporter, 24th April 2008.

Rodney Edwards
e-mail: rodney@rodneyedwards.co.uk

We’re always being told that the world is about to end, yet, it never does. We’re constantly being asked to use less plastic bags, drive electric cars and ensure our apple cores and bean tins are separated from the green and blue bin – all in “our bit” to save the planet from being boiled and the polar bears from sinking. And don’t forget how we must “cut back” on the spraying of deodorant or polish before the sun, according to those in the know; falls out of the sky.

Yet somehow, surrounded by a haze of Lynx Africa and Mr Muscle, we’re still here. And the government, hippies and Bono are still pondering on how to save the world from this so-called “meltdown”. Now the World Meteorological Organisation has waded in to calm the whole thing down a bit, by admitting; that the world will actually cool down a bit this year. The news will certainly throw scientists into a spin after scaremongering the public about global warming for many, many years. But let’s face it; the threat of the end of time will always be gravely inflated and we will constantly be reminded that we’re all going to die. If not from global warming, then from Bird Flu or just from watching too much reality TV.

Furthermore, hoards and hoards of nauseating so-called celebrities will continue to jump onboard the latest “save the world” band wagon – and for many of the fame-seekers, they’ll do it in the hope, that it’ll make them look good and sell whatever it is they’re plugging. After the much publicised Live Earth (the cheap-imitation of Live Aid and Live eight) one very famous rock band front man is quoted as saying; “I don’t know much about the cause but it did wonders for our album sales”. I rest my case.

It only gets more and more ridiculous when the whole “saving” process goes local and rural places like Fermanagh are asked do their bit. How a small area such as this county can single-handily prevent the world from going bang is anyone’s guess. But fair play, they do try. Although, I’ve yet to see a local farmer, barefoot, peddling a battery powered tractor and cutting the silage with a pair of hedge clippers. And I wait, with baited breath, for the day that Fermanagh councillors rollerblade into work, wearing a solar powered helmet and munching on a piece of organic rhubarb for breakfast.

Here’s a mad idea. How about we individuals focus on the matters in hand, instead of worrying about something that might never happen - serious issues that should be addressed are the issues that affect us right now. World poverty, the war in Iraq and around the globe, terrorism, racism, sectarianism, bullying, corruption, debt, eating disorders and terminal illnesses- and that list is just of the top of my head. There are far more serious problems with society to consider. Think about that the next time you worry about what bin to put your yogurt pot in or whether or not your potato skin sandals go with your daffodil-encrusted sunhat.

Rodney Edwards presents the Bigger Breakfast Show 7-11am, Mon-Fri on Vibe FM 105.3FM.

Taken from the Impartial Reporter, 3rd April 2008.

Rodney Edwards

e-mail: rodney@rodneyedwards.co.uk

Everyday hoards of media outlets descend on social networking sites or video sharing sites to bump up their coverage of a particular news story or issue. Be it local or national newspapers, magazines, radio or TV stations or various websites – they all have one thing in mind, and that’s bringing its punters closer to the big story.

This particular practice has been widely condemned as ‘lazy journalism’ or indeed, praised as ‘embracing web 2.0 interfaces’ by the Theodore and Abigail’s of management meetings. Websites like YouTube, Bebo, MySpace and Facebook have become an essential journalistic tool for story fodder. Videos, photographs and blogs are now setting the editorial agenda. I’ve written many stories for various British tabloids and broadsheets that have been sourced using the internet following the commands of a barking editor – it’s a practice that has become well acknowledged in the media.

Pick up any paper today and I guarantee you’ll find yet another story based on an internet indignity by a celeb, a footballer or a group of asbo teenagers in Liverpool. Flick on the News at Ten with Trev, and the chances are, he’ll run a story that uses a user-generated video clip to back it up. Regionally, more and more news organisations are feasting on social-networking sites, such as MySpace or Bebo profiles to illustrate a story and maintain their ‘local angle’ remit. Profiles that feature a local that has died or the misdemeanours of another are all used, with the focus heavily on that particular person’s biography or “friend’s comments”. It’s all bizarre and in some respect; infringing on an individual’s privacy; - especially when it concerns a bereavement. I don’t really believe presenting the profile of someone who has died or the messages of condolences as a “story” is beneficial to anyone; in fact, it shows when a story really isn’t a story. But that’s the nature of the beast and how we consumers have started to expect our news – up-close and personal. The internet will continue to alter the delivery of news to the consumer whether you agree with it or not.

Keeping on the subject of local content online, a quick search for ‘Fermanagh’ on video sharing site YouTube.com finds you … absolute tosh. In fact, Fermanagh has such a dreadful “online” presence that the only videos you’ll find worthy of a mention are of a drunk dressed up as Batman, a mini being reversed into a trolley shelter at Asda and a hairy fella vomiting into a shoe. It’s somewhat reassuring that Vibe FM, the new Enniskillen radio station will be launching an online TV service for purely local content soon then. In addition to soon-to-be-launched Fermanagh TV which will also cover local news, entertainment, music and sport much like Vibe. Quality and informative local programmes for local people by local people.

Well, it was only a matter of time before some level-headed folk got their finger out and brought Fermanagh up to speed with the rest of the world. Much hilarity is to be had, of course, at those folk in suits, the individuals that have never been too bothered about taking an interest in the media business – and now, those “old dinosaurs” have all been proved wrong. The change in technology and the introduction of these new media platforms is upon us, as the county’s media business gears up for a thriving future. In fact, it could easily be Fermanagh’s saving grace – pumping a bit of life back into the county. A window of opportunity has been opened, a chance for literally, everyone (of all ages, young and old) to get out and embrace changing times and contribute their talent. We’ve been lurking around in the dark ages for far too long and it’s about time that people, especially those in power (and outside the county), realised, that Fermanagh isn’t all about its lakes, farming or according to the internet; inebriated Goths being sick.

Rodney Edwards presents the Bigger Breakfast Show 7-10am, Mon-Fri on Vibe FM 105.3FM.

Taken from the Impartial Reporter, 27th March 2008.

Rodney Edwards

e-mail: rodney@rodneyedwards.co.uk

We as individuals are naturally programmed to severely loathe traffic wardens; it’s just the thing to do. It’s Fermanagh’s new bandwagon, and everyone it appears, is jumping on board to have a moan and a growl at the dreaded ‘Red Coats’. Ironically, even if you don’t actually own a vehicle or understand the whole legalities of parking, you feel the need to go and scowl them. Before I started driving, I used to pass the wardens in Enniskillen and quietly and quickly ‘boo’ to myself, before walking away very fast. I don’t know why I did it, but it felt good at the time. This newspaper, my radio show, could easily run on, literally, weeks and weeks of material on the subject – but it all boils down to a couple of much asked questions; who’s to blame? And; does anyone actually understand the system?

You see, some people who receive parking fines are stupid, because a vast majority of them only get them because they couldn’t have been bothered to pay 30p for a parking ticket. Now c’mon, I’m no Sherlock but seriously, it’s a no-brainer. I’m in no way, sticking up for the red coats, like I said, you’re not suppose to like them, but some people – mostly, it looks as if it’s older folk and little boy racers, whom have only themselves to blame and at the end of the day, the red coats are only doing their job. And if I was on their money, I wouldn’t give two hoots about booking a Fiat Punto on a double yellow. But that’s not the point.

I found myself, at the hands of a red coat and its poison pen, only last week. I returned to my car, after my radio show, to find a horrible looking fine attached to my windscreen. It turned out my parking ticket blew upside down on the dashboard when I shut my door earlier that morning, the ticket had three hours left on it but because it has been accidently turned upside down, it wasn’t correctly displayed. And no, I don’t like sticking the ticket to the window because it marks the window and doesn’t stick right half the time. But I am refusing to pay the fine and will be writing to the roads service saying as much.

And a few weeks ago, I parked my car and went over to the ticket machine, a mere 30 seconds away. During that short walk and subsequent transaction, with my back to the car, I met an oncoming traffic warden whom, when I turned around, I found, was actually on way to my car and was gearing up to fine me. It was only on my return to the vehicle, some seconds later, and with a ticket at the ready that the red coat realised this was one chap he wasn’t going to book. I pity those drivers in need. Those with disabilities, those who aren’t as able to manoeuvre as quickly as others, from vehicle to ticket machine to vehicle again. It’s those people that, it would unfortunately appear from past accounts, red coats, seem only too willing to prey on. Shame on you. It’s difficult, really difficult, not to imagine that these red coats aren’t working towards some sort of quota - when you look at the evidence.

Like the ‘Pied Piper of Hamelin’, we townspeople are keen on collectively joining in unison in an attempt to [figuratively] wipe out the red coated ‘rodents’. But it’s the red coats who are trying to eradicate the town of illegitimate parkers. I’d like to say that Enniskillen’s roads and car parks are now clutter free of idiotic drivers who park all over the show, clog up the town and cause major disruption. But it’s not. Enniskillen still has a massive problem in the car parks and on the roads and sooner or later, like the pied piper, we might have to reluctantly call on the urgent help of the red coats to whistle an even stronger tune. But until then of course, and to keep up with the joneses, it’s another boo to the red coats from me.

Rodney Edwards presents the Bigger Breakfast Show 7-10am, Mon-Fri on Vibe FM 105.3FM.

From Media Guardian

“Virgin Radio has signed JK and Joel to present a weekend morning show to go up against Radio 1’s Vernon Kay and Jonathan Ross on Radio 2.

The former Radio 1 DJs will join Virgin at the beginning of next year, part of a refreshed weekend line-up under new programme director David Lloyd that also sees the arrival of former LBC presenter Iain Lee.

JK and Joel - real names Jason King and Joel Ross - hosted the Sunday afternoon chart show and the early breakfast slot on Radio 1 until September this year.

They will take over the Saturday and Sunday morning slots on Virgin between 10am and 1pm.”

This is excellent news, the boys will be a refreshing change to the terrible programming we have to put up with on weekend radio.

They obviously weren’t too pleased with their placing on the Radio 1 schedule either, saying; “No longer are we hauling our arses out of bed at 3am looking like crap, instead we are really looking forward to doing weekends.”

And they also hit out at their ex Radio 1 colleague Vernon Kay; “”It’ll be great to go up against our old mate Vernon at 10am. That’s if he can be bothered to turn up - his random game show schedule is demanding don’t you know!”

Are JK and Joel a little bitter at their axe from Radio 1?!