Wot No Bins
I bought a drink in Marks and Spencer at Brixton and it wasn’t until I got back to Waterloo on a train from Clapham Junction did I find anywhere tro put it, as South West Trains, don’t seem tom believe in rubbish bins either on the stations or the trains.
In the end, I put it in a cart, which was being used by a cleaner.
I hope that when they finish Waterloo, they at least put in somewhere to discard your rubbish.
The EU’s Effect On Executions in the United States
This is a piece I found on the Internet. It shows how the EU’s stand against the death penalty and their reluctance to sell needed drugs to states like Oklahoma and California is stopping executions.
Oklahoma, which executes more prisoners per capita than any other state, said on Wednesday it has only 1 remaining dose of pentobarbital, a key drug used to kill condemned prisoners.
One reason the state is running out is because of a ban on the sale of drugs for such purposes by the European Union, which opposes the death penalty.
Oklahoma has a single vial of pentobarbital left after the execution on Tuesday night of 57-year-old Michael B. Selsor, prison spokesman Jerry Massie said.
Oklahoma is the 1st state to publicly admit it has nearly exhausted supplies of the drug but other states may follow because of the EU clamp down, said Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, D.C.
Pentobarbital is a sedative that is the first of a 3-drug cocktail administered by Oklahoma. It is followed by vecuronium bromide, which stops breathing, and potassium chloride, which stops the heart.
Oklahoma was the 1st state in the country to use pentobarbital in 2010 after a shortage of another anesthetic, sodium thiopental, caused penal officials in death penalty states to look for an alternative.
11 other states also use it. Arizona and Ohio use a single injection of pentobarbital for executions while nine states use the multi-drug protocol, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
Lundbeck Inc, the only manufacturer of pentobarbital, is located in Denmark and forbids its U.S.-based wholesalers from selling the drug for lethal injections, while the European Union forbids its member countries from exporting drugs for executions.
Oklahoma could resort to another anesthetic never used before in executions, Massie said, or it could try to tap existing supplies of pentobarbital.
A 3rd option, he said, would entail going back to sodium thiopental. “It’s available but you run into the same kind of problem. Companies don’t want to use it for executions,” Massie said.
The only manufacturer of sodium thiopental in the United States, Hospira Inc, halted production last year.
Dieter said even if states have stockpiled a large supply of pentobarbital, expiration dates eventually will require new orders, he said.
Any change in death penalty procedures typically are met with legal challenges and sometimes lengthy administrative reviews, Dieter added, noting that California has not had an execution since 2006 because of exhaustive review procedures. A measure has qualified for the ballot in November in California calling for repeal of the death penalty.
Oklahoma has executed 3 men so far this year but has no more executions scheduled. There are 60 people on death row in the state, Massie said.
The state has the highest number of executions per capita since the death penalty was restored in the United States in 1976. Texas has executed more people but has a far larger population.
If the Americans are serious about executing people, they could surely manufacture the drugs they need themselves. Of course they should always use the Iranian method and hang people in public from a crane. I’m certain that the American public would like that. It might even be good for the tourist trade!
The New London Overground Platform at Clapham Junction
The new platform 1 at Clapham Junction station to accomodate both ends of the main circular London Overground route is nearing completion, as these pictures show.
The train in the picture will use the West London Line to get to Stratford.
It would also appear, that when the extension to the East London Line opens in December this year, that there will be a new station entrance.
Could the London Overground Call at Brixton?
The London Overground extension of the East London Line to Clapham Junction station goes on a viaduct across a lot of South London and before flying right over the top of Brixton tube station to reach its destination by way of Clapham High Street and Wandsworth Road stations. This picture show the two bridges that cross Brixton Road to the north of the tube station.
The Two Rail Bridges Over Brixton Road
The high bridge in the foreground will carry the London Overground, whereas the one just visible behind takes the main line trains to and from Victoria. The picture was actually taken from the entrance tro the tube station and you can see how difficult it would be to get passengers between the two levels.
Turn the corner into Atlantic Road and you see how difficult the problem is.
The Overground Flies Over Brixton Station
The track that will take the Overground extension, now flies over Brixton railway station. It is almost as if, the designer of the rail lines in the area, went out of his way to make connecting them difficult, To further complicate matters, there used to be an East Brixton railway station on the line that the Overground will use. This was closed in 1976 and demolished soon afterwards.
If the East Brixton station was to be rebuilt, it does give some interesting connection options, albeit with a bit of a walk.
I tend to think that the only solution would be to spend millions to create a proper interchange station, that connects all of the three lines; Victoria, East London and main line together. But in the present financial climate that is impossible.
One point is that today, after seeing Brixton, I took a 35 bus to Clapham Junction station. It is obvious, that one of the UK’s busiest stations needs a proper connection to the Underground network. It is possible the Northern Line extension will eventually deliver this. At present the best you can do is to take a train to either Waterloo or Vauxhall stations and get the Underground from there.
It’s Swimwear Buying Time Again
Judging by this picture of a London bus, it’s time to buy swimwear again.
H&M Swimwear Advert on a London Bus
Not me, as I don’t swim. And the advert wouldn’t apply to me personally, as I’m a man.
My late wife, C, was a manic and enthusiastic swimmer to say the least and every day before work, she’d swim umpteen lengths in the pool at Bedford Lodge Hotel in Newmarket. She used to wear out Speedo Endurance swimsuits regularly, and I used to watch eBay for when last year’s models were sold off for here. Do professional swimmers have suits and trunks made out of something more long-lasting, or does the sponsor just pay?
I remember in 2007, which was the year she died, that C decided she needed some summer clothes and that of course meant swimwear. Since her breast cancer a few years before, she always felt that she must look the best fifty-year-old on the beach, not out of vanity, but more to stick two fingers up to the cancer. Although, she was probably two polite to do that other than metaphorically.
So she bought tickets on easyJet and one Friday in April we took the plane to Nice and checked in at the Hotel Windsor, which is much recommended. We had a marvellous weekend in the sun.
It was the first of seven holidays that we took in that fateful year before she died in December of a cancer totally unrelated to that in her breast.
My biggest memory of that holiday, is that C decided to buy a couple of bikinis for the summer. So we headed to Gallerie Lafayette and for a couple of hours, she tried on most that were suitable in the shop, whilst I passed what I thought might be suitable or a different size over the door of the changing room. It was a difficult job, but someone had to do it. They got hard work that last summer she was alive.
The picture shows C on the beach on the island of Panarea. I think you can just see that she was wearing nail polish, something she rarely did except on holiday.
It’s Not Just Customers That Hate Banks
I found this article entitled Why Investors hate banks. It is a fascinating read, with the main point being that if you invest in utility shares over the past year, your return will be six times that of investing in banks.
Iranian Faces Death Penalty For Watching Satellite TV
This may seem rather extreme, but it’s true.
An Iranian political prisoner, following 2 years of detention in various solitary prisons, has received a death sentence from a criminal court in Tehran for having watched and contacted an Iranian dissident television program, Simay-e Azadi, says HRDIA.net which is a Persian language website with a focus on human rights situation in Iran.
Simay-e Azadi is a program in Farsi language that is broadcast from abroad presenting the views of the Iranian opposition, the Mujahedin-e Khalq or MEK.
Mullahs consider the MEK to be their arch foe enemy.
Gholamreza Khosravi, 47, is said to support the MEK. He was previously jailed for his political activities during the 80s.
He had earlier received a much lighter sentence in his hometown but when his case was transferred to a court in Tehran, he received the death sentence. A review court later turned down the sentence but another court immediately reinstated it.
Khosravi told reporters that he will not ask for a pardon and that his death sentence is illegal and he did not commit any crime to deserve such punishment.
The Iranian people are, more than ever, using externally produced satellite television programs as their main source of information, news and entertainment. But the mullahs’ regime, on the other hand, considers the free flow of information to be a growing threat to its authoritarian rule. Along with internet and the new mobile phone technology, satellite TV leaves no room for control of information and censorship the way a dictatorial regime prefers to have.
Iranian police attacks houses and neighborhoods at nights, collecting satellite dishes from atop buildings and apartments. Those arrested receive harsh punishments. But this may be the first instance of a death sentence being handed down for charges related to satellite TV.
Has there ever been a regime as cruel and bonkers as Iran.
The Flags Are Up In Oxford Street
Because of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Oxford Street has put up the flags, as these pictures show.
At the launch they even had some corgies there.
There Are Now Guard Whippets On London Buses
Because of the Olympics and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, specially trained whippets like this one, are now being carried on London’s buses.
A Guard Whippet on a London Bus
I spotted this rather smart grey one on a 141 bus this afternoon.
I had a brief chat with the handler and they said, they were a bit short of whippets, so they’re going to have to use beagles and coney dogs as well!
Rupert Murdoch Drops Himself In It
Rupert Murdoch “is not a fit person to exercise the stewardship of a major international company”, MPs have said. I’m not going to argue with that, as I don’t have the detailed evidence. However, I do know from the personal recollection of a friend of mine, who did a bit of business with Rupert, that he very much takes all the decisions.
So the buck stops with Mr. Murdoch! Unfortunately, there was no system of checks and balances to make sure he took the right decision!
Perhaps we need a rule, that all senior people in public companies are not above a certain age.
The Anonymous Widower 