The Anonymous Widower

What’s The Opposite Of Mushroom Management?

Mushroom management is an old concept, that is a big joke in the dictionary of bad project management. It even has a Wikipedia article, which gives this short description.

keep them in the dark, feed them bullshit, watch them grow

I have on the whole not really suffered from this type of management, as I’ve been managed by some good people.

So it was with great interest that I found this document on the Transport for London web site.

It is a progress report on the various capacity improvements on the London Overground.

It certainly isn’t a document to keep everybody in the dark.

It even gives the phone number and e-mail address of the guy who is in charge of the projects.

We need more fully accessible documents like this one for public projects.

 

August 26, 2014 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , | Leave a comment

How Did The Rotherham Child Abuse Scandal Get So Big?

I suspect nearly everybody feels like I do, about the size of the  child abuse scandal that has been revealed in the report by Professor Alexis Jay. This BBC article fully reports on the scandal.

C was always sweeping up the mess from child abuse, but she never dealt with anything on this scale. However, she would have her views on what needed to be done and like me would be questioning, why the abuse was allowed to get so large and carried on for so long, when it appears it had been reported to the authorities.

The BBC report publishes this.

The report found: “Several staff described their nervousness about identifying the ethnic origins of perpetrators for fear of being thought as racist; others remembered clear direction from their managers not to do so.”

If a particular group of men are thought to be responsible, surely they should be restricted in their movements. Or perhaps they should only be allowed on the street, if accompanied by a responsible female.

We’d probably get called racist, but somehow we must stop child abuse on what is an industrial scale.

I also feel that a lot of social workers, council employees and police should be given the sack.

August 26, 2014 Posted by | News | , | 2 Comments

There Are Some Honest People In This World

A couple of months ago, I lost my little ticket folder, which contains a credit card, my Freedom Pass and Senior Railcard on a 38 bus.

Imagine my surprise today when I got an e-mail from someone claiming to be at the Transport for London, that they had found it and would I go to Baker Street to collect something.

Could this be my little folder?

It was and it cost me just four pounds to get it back.

I only actually need the folder, as I’ve replaced all the cards.

August 26, 2014 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , | 2 Comments

What Is Natural Oak?

I found this advert rather strange.

What Is Natural Oak?

What Is Natural Oak?

I suppose unnatural oak would be veneered chipboard or MDF.

August 26, 2014 Posted by | World | | 1 Comment

They’ve Given Hugh A Voice!

Islington is unusual in that the most prominent statue in the main commercial and shopping area of the town is not of royalty, a politician or a military figure, who is probably best forgotten.

Statue Of Sir Hugh Myddelton On Islington Green

Statue Of Sir Hugh Myddelton On Islington Green

Their main statue on Islington Green is of Sir Hugh Myddelton, who is described like this in Wikipedia.

Sir Hugh Myddelton (or Middleton), 1st Baronet (1560 – 10 December 1631) was a Welsh clothmaker, entrepreneur, mine-owner, goldsmith, banker and self-taught engineer

The statue stands where his main creation; the New River, ended its journey to bring fresh water into London. I suppose a modern equivalent would be to put a statue of Lord Coe in the Olympic Park.

They’ve now given Sir Hugh a voice, which you can listen to on your mobile phone.

Listen To Sir Hugh

Listen To Sir Hugh

This picture shows a close-up of the plaque, which details how you listen. This link takes you there.

 

 

August 26, 2014 Posted by | World | , | Leave a comment