Gary McKinnon Case Is Dropped
This is reported on the BBC.
All I can say, is this is about time too!
Richard Morrison On The Overground
Richard Morrison in The Times today has an interesting article on the London Overground. He did a complete circle and wrote about it. I particularly liked this bit.
It’s now possible to make a complete orbit of Outer London by rail. And I have rarely spent a more magical 80 minutes. Well, not on a train, anyway. In sleek air-conditioned carriages, you glide over wharfs and warehouses, dodge between highrises and shimmy past Victorian terraces, trendy penthouses, suburban semis, chic lofts, overgrown gardens and neat allotments. It’s like looking at the capital through the back door.
So if you can get hold of a copy of the Times 2 section today, have a good look at what he says.
You might decide to take a trip to Peckham! A doctor told me that the views from the multi-story car park by Peckham Rye station are spectacular.
Speaking English
Ed Milliband is reported as going to be making a speech saying that every Briton should speak English. It’s reported here in the Guardian
I think Milliband is being rather hypocritical. I assume, that when his parents arrived in the UK, their English skills were not a hundred percent.
Certainly, when my ancestors arrived in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, I suspect they’d have had difficulty taking to each other. Just as I do now, talking to some with English, Scottish and Northern Irish regional accents.
I think the episode shows that Milliband will pull any cheap trick to get votes.
Berlusconi’s New Girlfriend
Silvio Berlusconi has apparently got a new girlfriend according to this article in the Daily Telegraph and quite a few others.
The man’s rather a joke and let’s hope the Italian people see sense and keep him away from office. But they do seem to keep electing him!
How Not To Run A Prison System
This story from the United States is terrible.
I’m not saying, rape of women prisoners doesn’t go on in other countries, but you rarely here of it in Europe. I seem to vaguely remember, that when C used to visit HMP Holloway in the 1960s and 70s, that she told a story of a prisoner, who got pregnant.
I also think there are some countries in Europe, where few women are incarcerated.
The United States should bring its Justice and Prison up to the standards of the civilised world.
Fracking In The Times
The Times yesterday also had an article in favour of fracking from Alice Thomson.
As an engineer and a scientist, I tend to dismiss emotional arguments about anything, when the science and technology says otherwise. In this article, I outlined a few thoughts on the subject. I stated this in the article.
The technologies employed are still very much under development and have been used mainly in the very underpopulated parts of the United States and Canada. The extraction is now moving towards more populous states, like Pennsylvania, and only when it is totally accepted by the inhabitants there, will it be time to use it in Europe.
My views haven’t changed and as I said we should keep a watching brief.
We should also do more research, as I said here.
One point that we forget about onshore energy extraction, is that in Wytch Farm, we have one of the largest onshore oil fields in Europe. It’s also slap bang in beautiful countryside. Do we here a massive movement to close it? To me, it proves that in the UK, the oil and gas industry can be good neighbours.
If we can use fracking safely, I believe that the economics say that our energy bills will drop.
The Most Read News Item On The Crossrail Web Site
This article is the most read article on the Crossrail site.
It’s about property prices rising because of the new railway line!
It was always thus and with any sniff that their house might be worth more, people will always check.
After all, government know that the best way to get re-elected is to make sure property prices rise.
This is also why most people object to new housing developments in their area. The law of supply and demand might cause the value of their house to fall, so it’s better to be safe and sure and stop more being built.
The Cost Of Christmas
I suppose I can afford the cost of Christmas, but others can’t. This article speculates that in London about half a million will turn to short term lenders.
Hopefully, people will start to see sense, especially after the government limits the charges in a couple of years time.
My worry, is that any legislation will push the really needy into the arms of illegal loan sharks.
A Sikh On Guard At The Palace
This story, of a Sikh in the Scots Guards, who wears a turban instead of a bearskin is reported in the Daily Mail. I think what is extraordinary about this story is not the story itself, but the comments from readers. Not one is anything but approving and supportive. Something that doesn’t seem to fit the stereotype given to the average reader of that newspaper.
One could also argue that these days, his headgear may be the more ethical.
Zopa And Funding Circle Get Government Funding
The Daily Telegraph is reporting that Zopa and Funding Circle are going to get tranches of funds to invest from the Government.
I very much applaud this move as although the sums are quite small at ten and twenty million pounds respectively for each, the government’s seal of approval can only help the growth of this form of lending. To put these sums in context, Zopa has lent over a quarter of a billion pounds and currently around thirty million is available to borrowers.
But surely the biggest boost is that with this extra funding, the publicity will drive more credit-worthy borrowers into the arms of Zopa and Funding Circle.
My only worry is a selfish one, that the interest rates available will drop because of the extra funds.
I certainly wouldn’t like to be holding any shares in a traditional bank.
I shall also be watching the return, that I’m getting on my money in Zopa.
The Anonymous Widower 