"all we have is iPlayer, which is a bit of a joke as far as most of its content is concerned"

Would disagree - think it's pretty fantastic...I VPN in from the US specifically for it and 4od....but then I am an expat who needs my Brit TV dose :-)

1. Oops. I was forgetting the subtle differences in the rankings of high ranking government officials.

2. Um...was Enron at the time a larger energy company than Exxon Mobil ? And anyway, I don't know if they talked to Ronald McDonald - Dickey C won't tell us.

3. Interesting. Define price controls. Politicians of all spectrums fix prices...it's just as far as I can see the term "price control" is a political no-no in the USA. E.g. the minimum wage and steel and farm tarriffs are effectively price controls, but are not called that.

Sorry...from my point of view, if money influences politics it's corruption. Decisions should be made on their merits, not on who pays for the best access to politicians.