A Real Advantage Of Not Having A Car
A friend of mine had their car stolen yesterday.
The day before the battery went flat and they had to call the AA to get moving. So when they got back home yesterday, they left the engine running so that their partner could drive the car to the garage to get a new battery fitted.
But when their partner went back outside, they found that the car had disappeared.
What I find so funny about this story, is not the fact that the engine had been left running on the street, but that the car is one of the oldest Homda Civics on London’s streets. But then it is difficult to understand the mind of the criminal. Perhaps they wanted it for cover for a ram raid on an old peoples’ home or to con someone out of a Zimmer frame.
And to make matters worse, I don’t suspect it had been properly cleaned for some time. So it probably wouldn’t impress the girl-friend. That is assuming it was stolen by a man! on the other hand it could have been stolen by a man with a sense of humour to get rid of his girl-friend!
You have to ask various question. Was it full of petrol, as this would give a motive for this serious crime? Did my friend, a non-smoker, keep pound coins for the meter in the ash tray? Both facts would have at least doubled the value of the vehicle.
My friend is seriously questioning the need to replace this car. Perhaps, it is a message from some supreme being, who feels that another non-driver is a good thing!
I shall keep laughing as this is possibly the biggest advantage of not having a car.
Metro Gets On The Crossrail Bandwagon
If you have a freesheet like the Metro or the Standard or even a newspaper like the Sun, you need good pictures and stories to fill the pages.
A week or so ago, it was the Sun and today Metro gets in on the act, with this set of underground pictures of Crossrail.
Crossrail is proving to be an excellent page filler for popular newspapers.
Do You Get As Much Free Bamboo As You Can Eat?
This story from the Sun is about testing the new panda-cams at Edinburgh Zoo.
I suppose it’s one of those jobs, that is in that category of tough ones, that someone has to do.
You can actually see the pandas using this link.
If Lloyds Can Do It Why Can’t RBS?
Lloyds Banking Group’s figures these days as reported by the BBC contrast strongly with those reported yesterday by the Royal Bank of UK Taxpayers.
How can Lloyds make a loss of only £570 million, whereas the state-owned dead parrot loses £5.2 billion?
It strikes me there are three reasons.
The first is the quality of the management in the two banks. I suspect, if you were one of the stars of RBS ten years ago, you have taken the money and ran. so all the bank is probably left with is dross and the world’s best collection of neck-enders.
Secondly, when did you ever here a financial commentator you trust, last recommend that you buy a financial product from RBS. Yesterday, the guy from MoneySaving Expert was recommending which credit card to use abroad. One of Lloyd’s products was mentioned, but RBS were only notable by their absence.
But I also think, that most of their customers, or at least the ones who can have moved their accounts elsewhere. After all, I’d never bank with a state-owned bank and I suspect many others wouldn’t either. You just can’t stop politicians from fiddling! It has been some time, since I’ve noticed anybody with an RBS bank account or credit card. I suspect, the only thing in their favour is that if you want to keep money in a bank deposit account, then RBS is as safe as any, as no government would let you lose your money. But you wouldn’t get paid much interest.
So all of today’s news just says that the sooner we liquidate the Royal Bank of UK Taxpayers, the better for all.
The Anonymous Widower 