London’s Station Above the Thames
Blackfriars station is being rebuilt to give extra capacity to Thameslink and entrances on both banks of the River Thames.
It is going to be an impressive station, when it is completed next year.
Thefts From the Police
Can we really trust the police, when they can’t even stop thefts from themselves?
According to this report on the BBC, it would appear very little has not been stolen by someone.
Articles nicked include.
- A packet of crumpets in Hull.
- A mannequin from police dog kennels in Epping.
- Coffee from Newcastle and milk from Huntingdon.
- A terrier and a lurcher from Blackburn.
- Some pit bulls on Merseyside.
Rumour has it that the Met have lost a few woodentops.
More On Those French Breast Implants
The phone-in on Radio 5, this morning was all about the failing French breast implants. I’ve made my views clear before and my views haven’t changed.
As the phone-in proceeded, two thoughts occurred to me.
In the first place, if I do something that is dangerous, like driving a car or flying in an aeroplane, it is prudent to insure myself in case anything goes wrong.
Having an operation is a dangerous business, especially in a non A&E Hospital. A friend had a hip transplant privately in a good private clinic, but it all went wrong and he died. The general feeling is that if he’d had the same operation in the local hospital with A&E, he would have survived.
So before you have an operation, you should have insurance in case it all goes wrong! For most operations done by the NHS, this is the case. Another friend had a hip transplant that failed in I think Addenbrooke’s, so it was replaced and the second one is much better.
Judging by many of the women who spoke this morning, many had their implants inserted in clinics, where profit was the motive, not good care. Some can’t even have been that good, as they have now folded. But where is the insurance? Obviously, the patients didn’t check what would happen if all went wrong. But I suppose proper insurance, would have meant that the operation would have been too expensive.
The other thought occurred to me, when a doctor on the programme, said that implants of any sort, only rarely rupture.
C never had any form of plastic surgery, but she did have breast cancer.
It is interesting to note, how she might have got breast cancer. She had a Mercedes coupe, which could not be described as anything but a quality car. She was hit by another vehicle and the air-bag deployed as it should.
It left her with a large and deep bruise on her left breast.
And where did she get the cancer? In the same place as the bruise. She mentioned this to her oncologist and he said that he’d seen this sort of thing before. I also searched the Internet and found women who claimed their breast cancer occurred, where they had been hit hard by a tennis ball.
So when a doctor claims that a breast implant can’t rupture, I’m dubious!
What Do You Do With Six Million Tonnes Of Earth?
Crossrail will produce six million tonnes of earth and spoil, from where they are digging the tunnels, shafts and stations in London. Three-quarters of this are being used to create a new wetland habitat for the RSPB at Wallasea Island, north of Southend in Essex. Read all about it here.
Crossrail’s Tunneling Machines
The BBC has been showing a story with video about Crossrail‘s giant tunneling machines which will start work in the near future.
Crossrail has more on the boring of 42 km. of tunnels under London using eight tunnel boring machines here.
They also have more on the Tunneling and Underground Construction Academy, which will be a unique legacy of Crossrail and will continue to provide trained staff for tunnel projects all over the world.
We really are entering the Golden Age of Tunneling.
How To Recycle A Tunnel
Crossrail is Europe’s largest construction project and they are really upping their publicity this year, as the work begins in earnest.
I found this story with a video about the reusing of the Connaught Tunnel on the BBC’s web site. I wrote about this earlier.
It’s a fine piece of engineering and the associated project management.
Eating Healthily On The Cheap
The Government has got together with Ainsley Harriott to promote healthy eating on the cheap.
Where I live in Hackney my letter box is stuffed full of money off vouchers for kebab and burger houses.
This campaign will fail, unless the problem of junk food is addressed.
Perhaps the rates on all unhealthy eating places should be increased.
The Anonymous Widower 