Billions
1,000,000,000,000. I was taught that this number is a billion. Twelve zeros. One million million. Now over in the good old US of A they have a habit of changing things. Over there a billion is three zeros short so it is only 0.1% of a true billion. This is, as you all know, a milliard (you didn’t know that at all did you really?). Now I’m not moaning about what happens over in America but I have noticed that the false billion has been creeping into everyday English life. It is creeping in through it’s constant use by politicians. Mainly New Labour politicians. It has been steadily increasing in usage since this current government lot came to power.
This is spin. You may not think it is but it is probably the oldest, most widely used bit of spin around. When these cretinous politicians who ought to know better (and do) talk about the billions of pounds they are about to spend on something vital they are cheating you. They are spinning a lie. In their own minds these politicians are safe in the knowledge that when they say billion they are not lying because they are using it in the American sense but they also know that you think it is a larger amount than they are actually talking about. There’s something a little Orwellian about that.
It doesn’t seem to have spread yet to politicians from other parties but if something isn’t done it soon will.
What is really annoying is that I have noticed lately that the BBC seem to have taken this false number on board so that now, when politicians are being interviewed, they don’t get quizzed about exactly what they mean by a billion. They used to be corrected or, at the very least, they would be asked how many millions they were talking about. This doesn’t happen any more and it is allowing this false use of a milliard to mean a billion to become accepted as the norm.
Except at The Bomb Site. I’m English. No don’t call me British and never even think that I might be European. I’m not. I’m English. Remember that. If I were Scottish or Irish you would call me so but because I’m English I get lumped in with all the dross and called British. I am not British. There is no such thing. I am English and I want my politicians, radio and TV companies to remember that and remember which country they are in and talk to me in English not American. AND STOP LYING.
Comments ( 20 )
Anyway, I have a huge problem over at my site: My data base is full???? It seems that I cannot gain access to my site regardless because the without it, the PHP will not work. I believes that is my be my server because I have all kinds of room there and my average hits per day have be-
well-average. Any thoughts Stuart?Nice layout you have here. Are you going to add a side-bar?
Oh, I’m still waiting to hear back from my server: It’s only being 24 hours since I started complaining! It is 4:30pm in the afternoon my time right now so I figure I’ll hear back from them later tonight or somthing around 7:00pm. Gerrrrrrrrrrr =(
So, I have to ask… if 1012 is billion (our trillion)... is 1015 your trillion?? or is there a billiard in the middle of those two as well??
we’re supposed to use the english billion too
i just don’t trust the media and the gov’t … meaning i’m not sure which one they’re using
grrr
Hi Lily. Where have you been? You ought to poke your nose and ask around. Politicians love it when a plan comes together, that is, they don’t get caught. This is simply a convenient way of lying to you whilst their own conscience is clear because they don’t think it’s lying. As I said it is somewhat Orwellian. In the mean time yet another tradition is being swept aside for the sake of good publicity, puerile politics and, I feel, not a little laziness too.
But 1 to the 12 power was the number of times I was cursing at my computer!
Hey Stuart, I got the problem fixed: it appears that FireFox has got some problems with it’s new 1.0.2 browser: It doesn’t like certian types of PHP files! Everything seems to be working, just can’t use FireFox to do it with. Hummmmmmmmm =)
But yes, you got it, that is the PHP file that Firfox realy hates on my machine!
=)