Whats have Leeds United and Shahid Malik got in common?

Two things, both have had a good time without paying for it, and now the chickens have come home to roost.

In both cases a well deserved roosting too IMHO 🙂

And thats also the answer to the two questions why do people “hate” Leeds?and not trust Politician’s?

Oh, so he’s not all bad then? 😉

The reality of this whole situation is that our democracy is actually under threat through it. There are a number of major issues, but top of the list is news manipulation for political reasons by the Telegraph. For example read headline that says “Brown pays brother £6000 for cleaner ” and rewrite it more honestly to “Brown pays £53 a week for flat cleaning in Central London by sharing resources with his brother” and you’ll get my point. Exactly the same infromation just presented differently.

No excuses for wrong behaviour, but lets be honest about it and deal with it above board and truthfully, otherwise its just repeating the corruption.

So unsupportable and clearly fiddled expenses, perhaps like Camerons assistant, call in the Old Bill and nail the bugger. You know the one? Husband and Wife MP’s both claiming seperately for the same second home?

The unpleasantitutde of that idea really does take some beating.

What is the term for banging one out over visualising something nasty??

What I totally fail to understand is how, when so many things are self evidently crap, that nobody seems to care or have the will to do anything about it. The MP’s expenses situation has been shite for a long time, and we all knew that.

thats what this meant

Failure to do that will actually lead to more centralised bureacracy not less.

Was riding a part of that weekend ???

Memory : Fail

Toy / Pram interface shocker?

Yep, I’ll fourth that.

Road through the area on the C2C a while back and made note to self to go back and explore. Went back last year and did a course with Stu, which was absolutely top class, at that time he was working on getting the centre sorted, so another note made to go back and give it a go once he got it open.

All I can add is it a bike place by bike people. All bases covered.
Good accomodation at a low price
Good cafe with great coffee and great cakes
Good Workshop facilities and shop on site
Good Bikewash
Great riding all over the place
Good booozer up the road in Reeth

Well done Stu and Brenda, I know how much effort has gone in and the results reflect that. Definitely will be coming back (I know, I know every silver lining has its cloud!), and hope I can get the Flatlanders up there for some top level soft southern bedwetting.

Well worth the trip and actually took me less driving time than Coedy does, which I didn’t expect.

Mind you the weekend was marred by Tanky and Zokes riding up things like flaming mountain goats trailing me in their wake and when you throw in Greedy and his mate, well all I can say is you’re all boozy barstewards and a disgrace to mankind 😯

Mercedes – Chardonnay

I’m with mogrim, I like the federal idea. Why not come up with our version of the American political model? Several things I would change, but in essence two tier government with the state level retaining a considerable wedge of legislative freedom. Makes total sense to me. Failure to do that will actually lead to more centralised bureacracy not less.

I remember watching it unravel on live TV at the time. The image that sticks in my mind is a copper who was probably 20 metres from the stand and the radiated heat made the guys hair burst into flames without warning.

Strange really, as in its way this had as much impact on the changes made to football stadia as Hillsboro, but it rarely seems to get a mention.

Horrible Horrible event, and I really feel for everyone effected by it.

The bottom line with the EU was that it was set up to foster economic interdependancy so that we stopped fighting each other. In that it has been singularly successful.

My take on it is that if I have to pay a wee bit more in tax or whatever and it stops my son dying in a soggy trench then thats great with me.

Being inmy 50’s I can remember how things were pre EU and there is no way whatsoever that we were better off then, than we are now. The reality is that we’re in it for better or worse and pulling out isn’t really a viable option. So lets just get on with it and work at making it better.

Regarding UKIP: A group of insular xenaphobic twunts IMHO. They have no realistic policies, no positive message and they almost had that dayglo orange twunt as a leader. Says all I need to know about it frankly.

Absolute arse. Diclophenic is definately a better painkiller for the ribs than Asprin/Codine/Ibruprofen.

The Codine/A.N. Other is not bad advice, but having done all of these I would still recommend a visit to your GP to ask for something stronger.

Regarding pain being Gods way of telling you to slow down. Fair point, but don’t take it too literally. If it hurts get some help with it, otherwise in 6 weeks time you’ll be walking round with huge bags under your eyes completely shot to bits through lack of sleep and so on.

At the end of the day though, no-one has a right to pass judgement on the value of a particular culture unless it in some way relates to them. I mean an English person can’t really understand what it’s like to be part of a threatened minority community/culture, can they?

So does that mean that I and the millions of other Ex pat Scots aren’t entitled to an opinion? When does Scottishness wear off and Englishness begin?

You conferred with your father in relation to this thread? You must both be right then if you’re so obsessed by the topic…I apologise

I’ll take that as your argument on this point then?

Ditto what Bigdummy just said. I think you will find that your opinion on the percentage of Welsh speakers in Wales is slighty awry molgrips

The 2004 Welsh Language Use Survey shows 21.7% of the population of Wales are Welsh speakers. This is an increase from 20.5% in the 2001 census, and from 18.5% in 1991. The 2001 census also shows that about 25% of Welsh residents were born outside Wales.

Admittedly only Wikipedia, but it does seem to be reflected in other stats thats I’ve seen.

I suspect that the increase may well be due to the compulsary teaching of it in schools. So all airy fairy ideas about the return to Eden apart, it doesn’t really stack up does it? I still reckon that if asked a considerable percentage of the population would prefer the money it costs to go in some more meaningful direction for them personally. Most Welsh people I know personally are at best ambivalent about it, many more couldn’t care less.

There you go then thats where we disagree.

My father had to come south due to a lack of opportunity. He and I both would think you insane to spend money on irrelevant road signs as opposed to some serious effort to provide employment and economic well being for the millions of people who are displaced and/or disadvantaged through lack of investment in their futures. Same goes for Wales. I absolutely guarantee you its in the way the question is asked. Would you like Gaelic Road Signs? is one question, but if the question is are Gaelic Road signs top of your personal list of priorities? then thats another. For my money, while there are so many of us everywhere else, displaced and so forth, frankly you can stick your Gaelic up your proverbial derriere!

Think about it

PS: Oh yeah and the thread was about stopping it. I don’t think it causes accidents, but I would stop it, not reverse it. And I can assure you its not going to be small change to carry the work out. You are talking £100’s of millions for the whole of Scotland.

Re Rob Roy post.

Nope, but just for the record its just referring to a point in time, and the convention is the past is back and the future is forward.

Besides arguably Rob Roy was a Jacobean cattle rustler and not in any way Gaelic. 😉

Anyway, easy to see why I really don’t like nationalism. Such angst over things that have no more relevance to most Scots than Charles the First or Second has to most English people, (if in fact there is such a thing anymore!)

Re Murdochs post. Personally I’d leave well alone, and frankly your argument would have considerably more substance if you had taken your passion off and focussed it on learning the flaming language rather than ponitificating about it here.
So how about answering mine ? Road signs against spending money on Gaelic language tuition, OR Road signs against investment in long term permanaent Scottish jobs?

Which makes more sense a) to you and b) to the majority of the Scottish people?

Do you know what?

I don’t, but the fact that you can’t discuss these things without being bullied if you don’t tow the “party” line does.

Murdoch, Do you need it in Gaelic? Read the post

&

My blinkered opinions FFS ??

No Englishman can step in and say what should or shouldn’t be done with them. Arrogance like that shown by G above belongs south of the Tweed (mind you, I’d become like him if I lived in Ipswich for long enough too).

With the greatest of respect, I know enough to know that you have burst a blood vessel by not reading what I have posted. I repeat it here for you. What is the point in spending millions on signs that only 1.2% of the population can read? If you feel strongly about it surely the money is better spelt elsewhere, even if that is on teaching Gaelic to more people.

konabunny : as above to murdcoch Read my posts. I am Scottish by birth, although due to the reasons stated I have as Murdoch has rightly pointed out spent most of my life in and around Ipswich. I view myself as British, Scottish and European and not necessarily in that order. Absolutely correct re reasons why so many people have left. That is why pissing money away on something that has little relevance to most modern Scots is a waste of money. Surely to Christ that money is better spent reversing that very lack of investment, or is the intention to take the nation back to Rob Roys time before starting to move it forward????

Diclophenic. The food of champions!

Won’t make it better, but does ease the pain greatly. In my experience its a 6 weeker before a tentative return to the saddle. With Diclophenic I’ve done it in 2.5 weeks. Mark you best try not to have another fall for a while, as you will be risking a punctured lung!

Righto, try this one, and you’ll get a better idea of where I’m comiong from on it.

As I said originally I have no problem with Gaelic, just the concept of spending millions on dual language signs which will cost even more millions to implement in a situation where no more than 1.2% of the population, and the majority of that only in the islands can read them. Totally pointless in my view.

Surely if Gaelic is that important the money would be better spent on something like free lessons for those who wish to take them? Not only that surely that would give a true picture of what proportion of the population want it, which after all is the important issue.

Regarding my comments to Murdoch. If you throw stones at people you should expect a response. Twas he not I who was giving it the big “yer wee sasanach bastard” thing. Frankly that chip on the shoulder aggresive and arrogant jock stereotype where no one else is allowed to have an opinion really boils my piss. Sorry if anyone else took offence. No intent on my part.

Oh yeah and konabunny, I don’t suppose shipbuilding and the oil industry are heavy industry then? Did you not notice the loss of heavy industry every where else in the UK at the same time or is the chip on the shoulder that massive as to get in front of your eyes too?

If until relatively recently you had your own language and national identity, and these had been hidden, bastardised and suppressed

No real argument with that point, except that its no more relevant to most Scots or Welsh for that matter than Middle English is to most English.

Its the nationalistic and aggressive thing which I do have issue with, especially when it costs me money for no good reason.

surely you already know the answer to your question

Yep, place is full of xenophobic cocks!

The modern world being what it is, unless some intervention happens then languages die out

So where do you draw the line? Norse? French? Latin? Middle English?

Surely, the idea is to pay due respect to the past, but to look to the future at the same time. Or should we be rushing about banning acronyms and insisting that every mobile phone message is correctly punctuated. Language is a living moving thing, and develops as part of a culture. It should never restrict it or move it backwards.

Put another way, I would love to see the world using one language (English obviously 😉 alongside retaining the local language where it is desirable to the locals. Minfd you bet there would be a war over that one.

It would be a great idea to read what I said before criticising it. At no point have I said burn anything or stop anything, except spending our money on what is a fairly pointless exercise when less than 1.2% of the population of Scotland, let alone the rest of this country (NB: We are one country BTW) can read it.

Regarding Welsh, please do explain to me the benefits of literally forcing kids to learn it, as opposed to one of the other languages I mentioned. For example my sons girlfriend is Welsh and training to be a teacher. She has to learn Welsh if she ever wants to teach in her home country, but she is very likely to spend a good percentage of her career elsewhere, so the welsh bit is forcing her to do her teaching course in Wales, and is frankly completely useless to her, unless she at some point chooses to teach there. This at a time when everyone else in the world is looking outwards and trying to expand their horizons.

Presumably wode is the next thing to bring back eh?

Arrogance like that shown by G above belongs south of the Tweed (mind you, I’d become like him if I lived in Ipswich for long enough too).

Speaking as a Scot I find that a bit rich frankly. (Incidentally I’ve always wondered and perhaps you can answer this question murdoch, if its so **** great up there, how come there are so many of us everywhere else?

The bottom line on it IMHO is as stated above. There are plenty of other things we should be worrying about well before we start wasting money on resurrecting a dead language, or perhaps, down here we ought to be reverting to latin, or any of the other languages that once were spoken here, surrendering as we do it one of the few genuine advantages that we have in the greater world.

Regarding Wales, Welsh was not a first choice language for the vast majority of the population until the teaching of it became compulsary in schools. Since it has been what real difference has it made to the average kid in the street? Please enlighten me, as I’m beggared if I can figure it out.

The reaction of one guy at work to cycling on this road pretty much sums up a lot of drivers attitude

Exactly, thus the whole debate about the sense or otherwise of riding on the road at all. Its absolutely not right that we should be in fear in this way, and there is no question whatsoever that the drivers are in the wrong. However, that makes no difference at all when you’re in a box and they are feeling a bit sheepish about what they’ve done.

The only way that things will improve is if cyclists collectively bring pressure to bear for justice and a change in attitudes from drivers, the courts and the Police.

Utterly pointless waste of money IMHO much as Welsh is. Surely to God it would make more sense in the modern world to teach the kids English/French/Spanish and more relevantly Mandarin Chinese than a “dead” language which nobody else knows, understands or gives a toss about. All this does in a world where everyone else is getting more cosmoplitan, is to make already insular communities more so.

No issues about people choosing to keep it going, but definately not if it’s at the cost of imposing it on the populace, (which incidentally includes us non Gaelic/Welsh speakers).

lots of people have these issues and you’re not alone in this

Ditto what Chela said.

It was a huge thing for me to realise that, through a similar thread to this one on STW some time back. Simply put if everyone suffering as we are had as a symptom a large green dot on their forehead, the government would not be delivering leaflets about swineflu. Depression is absolutely an epidemic, and that is only now starting to be realised. Large amounts of funding are being put into the treatment and diagnosis of it. So things are going to get easier and better.

Personally I talk about it honestly and openly whenever its appropriate, and I never fail to be amazed how many people perk up and relate to what you are saying through their own experience.

So no aloneness for you my lad. Lots of support everywhere though.

Ask for another GP. Im my experience a supportive GP is essential in sorting yourself out. My original fella was a utter twonk and approached it with what is it? Sex?? Money?? Relationship?? Then gave me a inappropriate prescription and crap advice all of which actually made me worse. When he retired his replacement expressed incredulity at the actions taken, immediately reversed most of what had been done and started me along a long path which has slowly but surely taken me in the right direction at long last.

Personally, I would exercise as regularly and as much as you can. Try to avoid things that do you in, and most of all persevere at getting good help. It is out there and you can feel better.

It is illegal to race on a public highway. That is I believe why they hold Time Trials and not “races” as it is a way of getting around the legislation. I’m not sure how they deal with it in respect of things like the Tour stages, but as I recall it used to require an act of parliament to change that fact. Anyone expert in this field and able to update me on this point?

Duplicate deleted 🙄

No issues re where the ride was or when, other than stated above that it would not be my personal preference.

However, surely the real issue here is the sad loss of a fellow cyclist, and the fact that in all liklihood the penalty for the driver will in no way reflect the seriousness of the crime. (Think Rhyll Cycling Club 4).

This incident sounds to me a wee bit like the Dunwich Dynamo where the fella was killed in 2007. Anyone who was there would know that there was no way that any driver on that road could have been unaware of cyclists, yet the driver on the DD came round a corner and managed to take 3 over the bonnet. To the best of my knowledge no charges were ever raised. (Interesting to compare those two incidents to the witch hunt for the fella on a mountain bike last year who knocked down and killed the pedestrian, Lynch mob or what?)

Best legacy for all these people would be to campaign for justice for cyclists.

Sorry, I didn’t intend to introduce the blame game to this thread. However, having done so the argument is a bit like the “well she asked for it, wearing a short skirt and being drunk” excuse for rapists. No way is it acceptable to kill people, however, I have to say I wouldn’t ride on the A1 at anytime for any price. This incident explains my reasons better than I ever could.

Local to me they used to Time Trial on the A12, I can remember a number of fatalities over the years, and I have to be honest I could never understood why people would want to do it and still don’t.

Confirms my long time decision only to ride seriously off road. Great sympathy and sadness at yet another victim to the car.

Did I read the article correctly? Surely the Time Trial wasn’t on the A1?

AAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Naaarich Shitty Go’wn Dowun! Gown Dowun!

I think we have gone through a period when too many children and people have been given to understand”I have a problem, it is the Government’s job to cope with it!” or “I have a problem, I will go and get a grant to cope with it!” “I am homeless, the Government must house me!” and so they are casting their problems on society and who is society? There is no such thing! There are individual men and women and there are families and no government can do anything except through people and people look to themselves first

A quote from Thatchers interveiw with Womans Own. Loosely it can be interpreted as “Sod you Jack I’m alright”. Probably the most honest statement she ever made. For those who support where she was coming from what she was actually talking about is a total free market where all controls were off. You are now experiencing the impact of one element of it. Yep thats right the big bang and so called freeing up of the Banking system which was today described rather well by the chair of the parliamentry committee looking into it as “Bankers have made an astonishing mess of the financial system!”
Another is the crap kids have been fed at school, i.e. one mans tax cut is another mans child eating Turkey Twizzlers, Chips and being fast trcked toward obesity. It goes on and on and on. Another example: There has been a lot of talk of the poor equipment our armed forces have had to deal with. When the Falklands kicked off we had to get one aircraft carrier back from scrap and the other from the Australian Navy who we’d sold it off to. One mans Tax Cuts is anothers son fighting without the tools to do the job. All of these things take generations to resolve, and have been hugely worked on by the present government at significant cost.
I for one am grateful for that.

On the other hand you’ve got Labour with over regulation and all their dogmatic issues which have been well thrashed out and don’t really warrant repeating here.

The truth is that neither side is wholly right or wholly wrong, and that is the fact that Nick Clegg etc should be capitalising on and frankly wiping the floor with the other two over. However, successive Liberal leaders have been weak, naieve and spinless, (not to mention having closets that have been embaressingly unclean). Personally rather than vote for them I’m likely to give my local Liberals a real piece of my mind over their continuing failure to offer me the viable alternative that I desperately want.

Bah! Politics, don’t get me started!!!

Don’t get me wrong I used to be an avid follower, boyhood heros in my house were Graham Hill and Jim Clarke FFS ! Its just that in the current era I find it tiresome, processional and irrelevant.

For example in terms of passing I would say one of the best things they could do would be to demand tyres that don’t produce marbles and therefore allow the racing line to be greater. Perhaps throw in a standardised engine, such as for arguments sake any 1.8 litre mass production car engine which can be modified up to say a producing a maximum of X Rpm or Y Horsepower, (that would make the sponsorship from the big car companies much more likely). Race to be run on Z(ed) litres of fuel which can be put into the car at a maximum of 2 fuelling stops throughout the course of the event. Obviously one of those would be for qualifying and therefore if you chose to run light to qualify the second would be a full load for the race and so on. This would force the research down the track of producing max power from minimum fuel and therefore into developing relevant technologies in realtion to the current world situation. Cap drivers salaries to a % of the teams total turnover. I don’t believe you can really cap teams expenditure, as there are more ways of concealing that than there are bull dog clips behind Joan Rivers face.

I don’t think it takes a genius to make it interesting, just the will.

What I really don’t get is how folk can find it interesting as it stands at the moment.

lets face it – 2007 the title race was between Kimi, Alonso and Hamlton right up to the end of the season.

2008 – Hamilton and Massa right up to the last race, with Kubica in with a shot too, until BMW stopped developing the car about 3 or 4 races from the end.

So whats that then 3 out of 20 drivers who could have won it after the first few races of the season? So in fact I got my figures wrong that’ll be 85% who don’t get a look in then!