Hero
Kamala Harris, whose gaffes make even her boss Joe Biden look good. On a trip to the Korean demilitarised zone in September, the US Vice President asserted forcefully: “The United States shares a very important relationship, which is an alliance with the Republic of North Korea.” Earlier this year, on internet access, she said: “I’m talking about the significance of the passage of time. Right? The significance of the passage of time. So when you think about it, there is great significance to the passage of time.” And on transport policy: “You need to get to go. You need to be able to get where you need to go. To do the work. And to get home.”
Hero
Jeff Bezos, who is giving Dolly Parton $100m to donate to charities of her choosing. The Guardian’s Marina Hyde was unimpressed. The Amazon founder gets richer by an estimated $205m a day – the equivalent of someone on the median UK salary donating £34.56. “Have YOU ever donated thirty-four quid to charity? Do you pay your taxes? If so, you’re actually being more generous than Jeff Bezos, who, famously, avoids almost all of his. And yet, where’s YOUR splashy news write-up?”
Villain
Franglais, which is creeping perniciously into all aspects of French life. Defenders of France’s fair tongue have recently filed complaints about tourist adverts riddled with English words: The city of Nice’s slogan is “I Love Nice”, for example, and another resort town uses “Happy days à La Ciotat”. The ever-vigilant language stewards at the Académie Française have set up a committee to make sure there are appropriate French translations for obscure sports featuring in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Hero
Aldi, which makes a very tasty and very cheap mince pie. This year’s blind taste test by the Which? consumer guide ranked Aldi’s 29p pies as the second best of the supermarket chains, ahead of its upmarket rivals. Only Waitrose’s offerings, twice the price at 58p, were ranked higher. By one percentage point.