Interview with William Reid [bigwilliamstyle]

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Interview with:

William Reid [bigwilliamstyle]
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SPORTS

What is your sport, and what level of commitment do you have to it?

I play football. Captain my Saturday morning football team and also play for the university on a Wednesday afternoon. I think I am a very committed player, always eager to to and improve. Mainly my physical skills such as movement, fitness, speed and strength. Never been the best footballer - got my good and bad points - but out of all my close friends I got the furthest (played Under 18s level for a professional Scottish Club). Many friends I know have more ability than me, but I just wanted it more, annoys me a bit really, how far these guys could take themselves if the applied themselves properly.

Can you provide a link to a site where we can get to know more about you or your sports activity?

http://www.clubwebsite.co.uk/victoriaparkafc/

BLOGGING

What is your blog address? What subjects do you deal with?

I'm just a novice, but I up to get much more involved. http://bigwilliamstyle.blogspot.com/ I just describe my academic interests.... there's more to follow Watch that space (above)!

PERSONALITY

	Which actor would you like to be? Samuel L Jackson - oozes coolness!
	A simple pleasure that for you is quite big or important. Eating a plate of a full cucumber cut up in slices before bed every night.
	Something in which you are completely incompetent. Singing. I've been banned from at least two places from singing karaoke. One was a club in Santaponca where I was asked to leave for being too drunk - I hadn't even started drinking yet!
	You have nine wins in a row in a game of roulette: do you continue because you are on a good run, or abandon the game because statistically, it is your turn to lose? I take my money and run!
	How did you meet your current boy/girlfriend? Known Alison since primary school - I woo'ed her during the summer between 5th and 6th year. Then we shyly avoided each other until school started back, until we strangley both ended up editing the school year book together (nothing to do with me!) Been together over 7 years now.....
	Your New Year resolutions. Do 50 press-ups without struggling. Was well on my way to achieving it last year (was at around 40), then I broke my shoulder playing football. I'm at around 40 again just now, see if I can make it to 50.
	A word or expression that you love. Boosh! Watch Frisky Dingo and find out why!
	If you were to return reincarnated, which real-life person would you like to be? It would have to a talented footballer. Someone I think that has the ability but still has to prove themself - cause I'd want a challenge! John Fleck from Rangers for example - only 17/18, he can either be a Rangers great or just become your usual average Scottish player. Good to be at that crossroads.

IDEAS

	Did God create the world in seven days, or do you believe in the theory of evolution? I believe in the theory of evolution. The stories told in the Bible and any other religious doctrine are meant to be symbolic, and you should try to apply these messages to your lives according to your religion. You can interpret God created the world in seven days in any way you want. I think it refers to seven stages in the evolution in life. "And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made." In my opinion this refers to how the Earth has evolved. Day 1 - Big Bang "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth had become without form and void" Day 2 - The surface cooled down and Earth's gravity was established (some crash with a planet which meant the moon come into our gravitational pull) and asteroids brought water and other types of natural elements we have. Day 3 - Living organisms were established Day 4 - Dinosaurs and other living creatures (monkeys, apes, gorillas etc.- our cousins...) Day 5 - Ice Age Day 6 - Growth of our society to the present day from the Aztecs, Ancient Egypt, Olympiad in Greece Day 7 - Rest.....
	To what percentage do you believe in statistics? 60 per cent of the time, it works every time.......
	Do you believe many illnesses can be caused by the mind? So many people convince themselves they are ill. It does annoy me a little where people appear to be using illness as an excuse and holding themselves back when they should be getting on with their lives and realise their full potentials. These 'illnesses' is just an mechanism to taking the easy way out and not giving the some things a go. Therefore, will never reap the rewards if they don't make the effort.
	Do extraterrestrials exist? I don't know - but I believe they do. "The Truth is Out There"

CULTURE

	What do you currently have in your MP3 player? Over 2000 songs - listening to the Red Hot Chili's just now though.... Podcasts such as: The Bugle http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/the_bugle/ Start the Week with Andrew Marr http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/stw/
	What books are you currently reading? The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama
	Places in the world that you have visited recently. London, Lyon and Rome
	What is that special film you never tire of watching? Blade
	What do you use: Mac or PC and why? PC - never used a Mac (might try it sometime)
	What is to come after consumist society? Basically society will end up having to be less reliant on some aspects that are part of the foundation consumerist society, and people will have to adapt. This has been discussed in detail by theorists such as: Jürgen Habermas (discusses widespread changes that will occur in the public sphere) and Noam Chomsky (libertarian socialist - discusses how power (in many forms) is used in society, and more importantly how it should be applied properly) Scott Lash and John Urry (1987) discuss things that Habermas and Chomsky critique in 'The End of Organised Capitalism' and highlighted these important issues: 1) De-regulation resulting in a more vulnerable labour force. 2) Polarisation – secure core jobs and an increasing number of insecure, lower paid peripheral labour 3) More powerful transnational capital – difficult to control 4) Community disruption with demise of old industrial areas 5) Lack of ‘stable’ cultural/moral standards. But this also produces variety and tolerance of diversity. For example to save wide-scale unemployment alot of small to medium level occupations will have to be reduced to 3-4 working days a week, where three people cover two administrative positions in a law firm for example. What is important is what people do with the extra time they have got? They haven't got as much disposible income (unless they get a 2nd job?) This is model critiqued by Andre Gorz, which he describes in detail in 'Reclaiming Work' (1999). Basically we are left with the choice of “ either a socially controlled, emancipating abolition of work or its oppressive, anti-social abolition.”. Volunteering in their local community, utilising whatever skills they have to the benefit of others in their community and vice-versa - something as simple as giving someone golfing lessons and then that person for is then helped by someone else who has the skills in some joinery work he/she needs done in the home. In France, the 4 day working week is common, working only a 35 hours week but the main problem is in Paris for example, that most people work Mon - Thu, then travel to the south of France and return for work on Monday - therefore not really interacting with their community, not utilising the spare time they have through their working hours. US economist Jeremy Rifkin writings on The End of Work (1995) called for work to be shared, with everyone working a maximum 30 hours a week and those not in the public or private sector to work in non profit organisations with a guaranteed income, meaning the unemployed getting paid for doing voluntary work. These models to a certain degree could be applied once the capitalist society we live in fails on us.
	Do you find the saturation of advertising in the media excessive? The main result of the saturation of advertising in the media is that now, people don't want to pay anything to receive their information now. The problem marketing people have now is that people don't want to pay to watch films, listen to music, watch live sports over the Internet - they've been to used to get it for free. This is due to Advertisers paying for ads on the Internet means people can access any information/entertainment they want, without buying a cd, dvd, a newspaper or magazine to get what they want. Adverts can be plugged just like the are during TV adverts - on websites. It's a big market and very good to target particular audiences. For example I used to use Bebo alot when I was an undergraduate - then it evolved as it got more popular, it didn't feel like my personal page anymore - a big strech advert at the top of the page (it is usually a good cause like domestic violence or something) but I didn't put it there. Then AOL or MSN start to get linked also. The saturation of advertising has allowed people more access to information (everyone can read a Metro every morning for free in most cities in the UK). On the otherhand, it is and will continue to change the style of media. Amatuer jounalists Bloggers online and easier access to information means less professional journalists and newsreaders, there's more news being made out that that the media can use without paying an employee to find/write it. The media has tried to adapt, but they have shot themselves in the foot. Letting advertising congest alot of aspects of them means that continuing the rely on advertising, as the consumer doesn't want to pay anymore.....
	Do you believe there is excessive sex and violence in the media? No. In contrast to how society is easily provoked with issues surrounding sex in general but in particular sex and children, it seems to have an opposing opinion to other things children can be exposed to in society. Referring to the terms ‘child’ and ‘adult’ in relation to sex and sexuality can prove to be a sensitive subject: "to write about children and sex is to bring together two sets of issues that are highly emotive, that readily provoke moral outrage and righteous indignation," (Jackson, 1982; 1). Society has commonly accepted the fact that violence and crime is a common occurrence and will not avoid informing and educating their youth on the dangers of it and also will not be as scrupulous in regulating their exposure to it through the media. But if you add a sexual nature to these issues it brings us straight back to Jackson’s view of it provoking ‘moral outrage and righteous indignation’. Jackson is baffled by this, why do parents feel unable to discuss sexual matters with their children even at an adolescent pubescent stage? She suggests this could be to avoid harming them or having difficulty discussing sex but most importantly she thinks it may be "they are unable to accept their children’s emerging sexuality... it is still considered our duty to protect them from sex and our right to impose our own morality on them in the process" (Jackson, 1982; 49/50). Looking at how the media portrays violence and sex, children are far more likely to be exposed to violence than sex, in what is offered to them on our TV or cinema screens "Violent death on a large scale is not seen as a threat to their supposedly delicate psyches. Only a few parents worry about their children watching old westerns or war movies". However, watching clean sex on screen is out of bounds, with assassinations, stabbings and strangling being preferred over acts of passion and romance. "It seems absurd that genocide is a fit subject for family entertainment while even the sight of animals mating has been known to prevent a film being granted a U certificate," (Jackson, 1982; 50/51). Comparing how the UK governs the certificates films are awarded on it sexual content, films like 'The Bone Collector' and 'Basic Instinct' have similar degrees of violence in them however, the first is a certificate 15 the second an 18, the only difference being the sexual content. Another comparison is 'Cruel Intentions', certificate 15 and 'The Others', a 12. 'The Others' is known as a chilling, even frightening film, which would have given a lot of people a scare (children and adults alike). However, 'Cruel Intentions' is given a stricter age certificate, not any significant violence, nudity or horror evident; however there are scenes with direct references to things of a sexual nature. (For synopses of these films go to the IMDb Website) "People fear that explicit portrayals of eroticism might mar healthy sexual development, and at the same time they worry that it might lead to too healthy an interest in sex and thus threaten the established morality" (Jackson, 1982; 51).
	What were your favourite subjects when you were in primary/secondary school? Physical Education (Can a Higher 'A' for it). Also enjoyed Computing, thought I had the skills the be a computer programmer, but tried at uni and didn't enjoy it, and was competent but knew it wasn't my thing.
	Do you think video games, chat rooms, etc. have a dangerous addictive effect on teenagers? Its the parents responsibility that teenagers don't go overboard on Video Games. But Chat rooms and social networking sites can be highly addictive, and teenagers are very prone to being taken advantage of and even bullied. Regulation on the Internet is a big issue, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) forever debates the issue of regulation on the Internet in contrast the people's privacy.
	Has there been a personal-growth book that has transformed your life? Adrian Mole - The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾ (Sue Townsend) For any pre-adolescent/early teenager, hits the button on loads of things going through your head at the time. Good series of Adrian Mole books also to keep you going.
	Piracy continues to grow: What will happen to the music and film industries and culture in general? As I mentioned, regulation on the Internet is a big issue, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has a big problem juggling regulation and people's privacy. The Internet has no borders so it cannot come under any one country's jurisdiction, so it's hard to clamp down on file-sharing, illegal downloads etc. The problem is though, the prices they ask for legal downloads are not in proportion to what you would pay to have the physical copy of a cd or dvd for example. An cd album that would cost maybe £9.99 on the high street could be bought on iTunes for maybe £7.49. To be honest I would rather pay the extra £1.50 and get the CD physically in my hands. It's unrealistic that the cost of making that physical CD along with, the shipping, paying staff at the music store etc. only amounts to £1.50 a difference. If the CD was for example available for £4 or less I would download it legally instead of buying it in the shop or going onto Limewire and illegally downloading. Music and film need to be realistic with legal downloads and what they charge for that market to grow. PS3 are releasing a new rental service, however I don't see it being successful if it ends up it is more expensive or the same price to use LoveFilm and get the physcial dvd sent to your home, it won't take off. I get 6 dvds a month off Lovefilm costing £10, that's under £2 a film - can online rental download service match that? They'll will have to if they want to have any success.
	What sports do you play and how often? I play football all the time! I captain my Saturday morning football team where 3 of my best pals since we've been around 10 are all playing together, and we're a not bad team at times! Been there for going on five years now - great bunch of guys. Also play for the university on a Wednesday afternoon. Just started so looking forward to getting into that and showing the freshers a thing or two. Dabble in golf in the summer sometimes and also play summer field hockey with my pal and my girlfriend (she doesn't want me to play anymore as I'm getting better than her!)
	In which city do you live? What are your favourite and least favourite things about it? I live in Glasgow. My favourite thing about Glasgow is how big a city it is. "Second city of the empire" it was called up until the 1st World War. Recently voted 'Best City in Scotland for Clubbing', has three all rather established universities, brilliant shopping in the city centre and 3 very good shopping malls scattered around the edges. There's so much to Glasgow - Edinburgh is so dull, it's all about it's history - Glasgow is very much a metropolitan city. Least favourite thing is the idiots that Glasgow also spawns. Had close contact with many as I am a die-hard Rangers fan, so many times it depresses me seeing these idiots let the club down (most recent thing was our own fans (two to be exact) racially abusing two black American players - from our own team!). So many people in Glasgow are so institutionally bigoted it's unbelievable, both of these idiots on both sides of Rangers and Celtic fail to recognise they are ruining the reputation of their clubs, they think they are defending their "heritage". Rangers were fined by UEFA for singing the song "Hello, Hello" which has a line in it "up to your knees in Fenian Blood". This song is now banned, and it's not the most offensive song we have, but we're allowed to sing the rest? One thing I cannot understand is that these daft Rangers fans don't realise is we cannot say the 'F' word - if we didn't say that then it's fine - the PC police won't come out to get us! We have loads of songs where we still say the word 'Fenian' it it. For example we sign "We hate celtic... Fenian Bastards... and we'll chase them everywhere" yet no-one has ever tried to ban this song? When I sing that song I say "Mhanky Bastards" - at least that is not sectarian, still offensive, but they have just as offensive songs. I have only ranted about Rangers fans here, but Celtic are just as bad - I just don't know the words to their songs! I have to mention though that these people are only in the large minority, the majority of Rangers and Celtic fans do their club proud, just need to find a way to weed the idiots out and make both these clubs great and fully respected like they deserve. Then see if the football improves!
	Where have you thought of going for your next holiday? Vegas baby!