Posts by dervheid 1194 publicly visible posts • joined 12 Dec 2007
Nicely put.
This would appear to be the same argument Boris must have used recently against the 'Bendy-Bus' and in favour of the good ol' Routemaster.
IE Routemaster = more passengers/foot than 'Bendy-Bus', therefore Routemaster generates less congestion. Not to mention greater manoeuvrability in London's streets.
The really scary thing is that BJ seems to have a grip on reality!
the total lack of balance between 'rights' and 'responsibilities', or 'actions' and 'consequences'.
The whole system in this country has been skewed by 20+ years of 'political correctness' and we are now reaping the harvest.
It's not only teachers who are bearing the brunt of the "Sir/Miss tried to 'touch' me" approach used by the semi feral brats, but anyone in a position of authority or responsibility. Fuck me, you even have gangs of these juvenile scum stoning fire crews while they're fighting a fire, most likely started by said scum for the purpose of getting the fire-fighters out to be used for target practice. And they have no fear of any consequence of their actions.
Why?
Because all the 'consequences' have either been removed or are now utterly devalued.
The balance needs to be restored. Unfortunately, the politicians we now have 'at the helm' have been exposed to all of this PC lunacy for so long, and are so afraid of changing course, (a course being largely dictated by the tabloid media), that I don't see any improvement likely.
Let's not get into a frenzy of "So, there's more ice than there was, rather than less, which isn't what YOU predicted, you doom-mongering, tree-hugging AGW enviro-nazis"
Let's make that attack in a calm, yet derisive manner.
Much more dignified.
Bugger that!
More ICE!
get it RIGHT up ye!
Throw another shovel-full of coal on that fire!
that these 'twittering' in-duh-viduals (appropriate term, coined by Scott 'Dilbert' Adams) might actually have to develop Real Social Skills.
Like talking using actual vocally produced language.
never happen!
(twittering is what the birds do. appropriate, given the average twitterer's likely brain capacity)
The UK offshore industry were always rumoured to have operated a 'similar' thing, (always denied, never proven). Workers purportedly categorised under the term 'NRB' would (apparently) find it nigh on impossible to find work in the industry thereafter. (NRB - Not Required Back)
Schemes like this are bad news all round.
True.
Government ministers & the ICO may not 'fully understand' the implications of this technology.
But you can bet your sweet ass that there ARE people in the (un)Civil Service and security services who DO 'fully understand' not only the implications, but the possibilities of this technology.
Hence the large dose of official disregard being given to the subject.
Spot on.
Going back to my point, the truly intelligent customer will actually already have cancelled the direct debit upon receipt of the "3 Grand Bill" and prior to the "rings customer service".
I'd rather run the risk of being cut-off by the phone company whilst we argue over the bill, with the 3K still in MY account than let be in the position of trying to get it back from THEM.
The point of the article was an attempt to REDUCE enteric methane emissions.
I'd venture to suggest that if we ALL go on a vegetarian "lentils and beans" type diet, then the current levels of global enteric methane emissions will rise considerably. And, as we all know, methane is a far more effective greenhouse gas than CO2, by a double-figure factor (around 20x, I believe).
So, there we have the answer. It's not the fossil fuel burners, its the lentil-munching, vegetarian THH's that are causing "Global Warming"
Oh, the irony.
That'll need one BIG mutha of an oven!
Not so sure about the appeal of "Roo Tail Soup", although I imagine you'd get much more out of your average 'Roo tail than your average Ox tail.
And you'd need a new name for "OXO" cubes. Should make the "OXO" family a bit jumpy too.
Would clothing made from 'Roo skin automatically qualify to be called a 'jump-suit' or 'jumper?
The one with the built-in tail.
(Dear god, I need to get out more!)
A reasonable argument.
However, this (populist) proposition is intended to address the symptom of the scenario, not the root cause:
Symptom:
"They often come round the corner at full pelt to find a stationary queue of traffic and plough into the rearmost car (seven such fatal incidents in the last three years!), mainly by drivers driving inside the speed limit."
Solution; "A local politician has suggested a drop in the limit to 40mph for the bend and a camera to enforce it,"
Root Cause:
"The problem is that this bend in particular has a thick wedge of woodland right up to the kerb, and drivers cannot see more than twenty yards ahead."
REAL Solution;
Cut The Fucking Trees Back so that;
a) Visibility is improved.
b) The tree hazard is removed from the vicinity of the roadside. (As any foole knowe, roadside trees are a major contributor to accident fatalities, especially on rural roads.
Where there are more trees, unsurprisingly.)
But since this is proposed by a 'local politician', he's not likely to want to be seen advocating the removal of the THH's Raison D'etre, is he now.
Besides the by now Statement of the Bleeding Obvious", ergo that this, and any, government will lie it's tits off to justify any revenue raising when it feels like it, the one thing I notice (again), is the number of people ranting away whilst hiding behind the "Anonymous Coward" posting.
Yes, I use a nom-de-plume, but at least the thread of my postings are traceable, unlike yours, you weasels.
Right, that's that off me chest, to business.
Speed cameras are, in the vast majority of their current useage, fixed or mobile, a pox on society and a bare-faced tax on the (otherwise law-abiding) motorist.(at this point I expect a reaction from the *if you don't speed you don't get fined* brigade, but I'm willing to bet that there ain't any saints out there, really, and any driver who says "I don't speed" is suffering from delusional tendencies, and will have, at some time, albeit unintentionally or even unconsciously, exceeded the speed limit, even slightly).
Driving at 80mph on a near-deserted, dry motorway, at 4am is only likely to present a danger to the driver & occupants of said vehicle. the Gatso/mobile camera operator, unlike your average Traffic Plod, takes no account of this, nor any extenuating circumstances there may be involved. This is not good policing, in anyone's book. It's arbitrary, dispassionate and without any sense of mercy or balance, which is what is required of good lawmaking, and good law enforcement. a sense of proportionality needs to be returned to our roads.
On the other side of the argument, there ARE places for non-discriminatory speed enforcement. Busy urban/suburban areas, where there ARE higher numbers of more 'vulnerable' people, where excess vehicle speed DOES contribute to fatality/serious injury levels. These are the places that speed cameras (and the like) should, IMHO, be being deployed, not the major arterial routes. They need to be policed properly, with highly trained, dedicated, passionate HUMAN BEINGS, not automated systems.
Rant over. Thank fuck it's Friday!!
"coal is a fraction of the cost of other fuels, and there's enough of it right underneath us to supply the UK's generation needs for the next century"
True.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of the mines we used to operate were closed down by a certain Mr. Ian MacGregor, at the behest of one Margaret Thatcher, and are, for want of a better expression, fucked. It would take a MASSIVE amount of money to get them re-started.
Oh, and since all these pits have been closed for so long, this country no longer has the vast numbers of skilled, qualified miners that would be needed to work these pits, were they ever to be reopened, so that'd need even more money to train miners, or bring them in from other countries.
We must be the only country in the world that would shit on one of our biggest natural resources in this manner.
No, that isn't a typo.
just about EVERYONE had gotten it through their heads that all the speeds advertised were, in reality, theoretical maximums.
And, until (don't hold your breath folks) we get a MASSIVE investment in the comms infrastructure in the UK, it ain't gonna change.
Neither is 'throttling' or 'traffic shaping' or whateverthefuck you care to call it. It's just a tool (that's not perfect) the ISP's are using to try and give everyone a reasonably fair share of the bandwidth available.
I don't like it any more than anyone else, but as there will always be a few greedy fuckers out there who feel that they have some sort of right to hog all the bandwidth, so be it.
"Only works against cars once. The second time you break, they don't care if its real or not."
That really depends on just how hard you stamp on the 'Stop' pedal.
As for the other trick, been there, done that.
And yes, "Muhahahahaha." does rather sum up that little sense of satisfaction at seeing said trucker's ickle face turn purple with apoplectic rage!
"anti-tailgating flares"
Now THERE'S an IDEA!
"Now libraries etc. are a different matter..."
You really think so?
You don't think that local councils have a similar obligation to ensure that *their* equipment isn't being *misused*?
I'm pretty sure you'd be fairly pissed if the local kiddie-fiddler was free to use a public library's equipment / internet connection to access his sick little fix.
Or if (insert generic joke terrorist name of your choice) was using it to access anything *useful* as the authorities put it.
Or, perhaps you're trying to use the Libraries facilities , but you can't get the site you want to load because some selfish bastard's hogging all the available bandwidth streaming Westlife's latest video. or watching all the fuckwits hurting themselves on youtube!
There are, and have to be, limits.
The real problem is DEFINING those limits, legality notwithstanding, because we all have different opinions where they lie.
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