I need to get out more!

ROLL ON SUMMER!!!!!

We allowed chains to monopolise the high street.

We?

Chains have dominated our high streets because shoppers aren’t discerning enough. They regularly flock like sheep and buy the “landfill” on offer, thus perpetuating a cycle of waste, keeping the shelves stocked with uninspiring intangible rubbish.

My experience of large chain retailing is of overpriced, but often mediocre/inferior merchandise, presented in lavish palaces of consumerism – large modern covered shopping centres.

The high street is failing because it is not convenient, choice is limited and prices are most often uncompetitive.

Not convenient because of commercially oblivious imbeciles in town council offices who regard motorists (customers) as a menace, make popping into your local shop virtually impossible without considerable hassle.

Choice is limited because large stores are scarce and any big chain would keep limited stock. Many chains are put off by limited footfall and high cost per square foot. They don’t have confidence in this traditional and rather outdated type of shopping experience.. The abundance of businesses that deprive shoppers of store frontage interrupting the footfall is also off putting (estate agents, banks, accountants, letting agents, solicitors, too many food outlets, and any other buildings where you can’t buy goods – think how large shopping centres are laid out).

Smaller retailers cannot make their businesses competitive due to greedy landlords’ high lease costs, uniform business rates that are not sensitive to the local market situation. Councils do not receive this tax, so have little incentive or power to stimulate local commerce. The Internet offers consumers huge choice and it’s easy to buy products at prices below a level that a high street retailer could realistically make any profit.

Local chambers of commerce are dominated by the local establishment (land owning parish councillors and significant influential business people). So any new entrepreneurs are seen as a threat to the status quo and won’t get anywhere without their approval.

Converting shops to dwellings will only happen if the high street in question has become a boarded up wasteland, as a body of traders will justifiably oppose the further demise of their shopping centre with great gusto. The local council will also have to provide some residents parking too.

1) Retailer associations should have much more control of their high street.

2) I think there should be the relaxing of parking restrictions for short stay.

3) Business rates collected by local councils and set according to the collective prosperity of the shopping area in question, with dispensation for lower footfall areas. This incentivises the council to work to improve the situation.

4) Regulation of landlords/lease renewals to prevent them from bleeding tenant shop holders dry. Landlords should feel a sense of duty of care to the local economy!

5) The whole thing needs managing with all interested parties talking to each other in a collaborative way.

6) Worst cases subject to some careful government investment – raised on the back of taxes on out of town retailing.

7) Encouraging large retailers to establish a presence in the high street.

8 ) Develop a chamber of commerce that is vibrant and dynamic – these guys need shaking up and the men past retirement age should gracefully step down and let new blood take the reins!

9) No more new shopping malls – the UK has far too many retail outlets.

10) Rather than convert traditional high streets, some of those old Arndale centre type places should be converted into housing.

Keeps your bonce warm as well as protected.

I’ve used one for several years after a novice lost control and left me no choice but to ski a large slab of glassy ice. With the best will in the world, I slipped and banged the back of my head – hard!

Wasn’t going fast, but tried to minimise the blow by stopping my head lurching backwards, which just caused me to strain muscles.

Before that, they just seems like a fashion accessory, but I wouldn’t ski without one now.

If you balk at the idea of spending £120, I’m sure a cheap BMX style cycle helmet would do the same job. They don’t come with ear pads, but you could buy a pair of Tune Ups and fit them so you can listen to your music on the lifts.

I moulded all of the skirtings in my house from planed timber, because moulded skirtings then were expensive and I had the tools to do the job, but i let the wood acclimatise to the room beforehand.

What I did was to stack the timber in the room, but with thin strips of batten between each board to allow airflow.

I weighted the top board and left the timber for a week in the room.

I did the same with several softwood panelled doors too.

These were then stable enough to be machined and fitted soon after.

Some bowed a little and the very bad stuff needed planing before fixing.

All painting occurred after fixing, filling and final sanding.

Since then, I’ve seen primed MDF skirting, which looks like an easy, but expensive solution to real timber, saving a lot of work painting.

Personally, I don’t like stained softwood – it looks like what it is: a cheap and nasty imitation of hardwood.

Also, quality finishing hardwood is not easy and most attempts I’ve seen really let down the beautiful timber beneath. You really need to spray it to get the best finish. This material also requires a very high standard of joinery and very fine sanding/preparation.

On softwood, it’s Satinwood finish every time for me, but each to their own!

Uphill gardening photos!

Pre ABS, on snow, I used to pump my brakes when I needed to stop. Worked every time.

Don’t venture out in snow these days – the popular misconceptions about snow driving, general ignorance and incompetence of others regarding this type of driving means you are highly likely to get stuck somewhere, or in an accident.

Pre ABS, on snow, I used to pump my brakes when I needed to stop. Worked every time.

Don’t venture out in snow these days – the popular misconceptions about snow driving, general ignorance and incompetence of others regarding this type of driving means you are highly likely to get stuck somewhere, or in an accident.

Real beer, well kept is vital!

Rode round Graffam Water to in christen my GF’s brand new Marin East Peak 5.5 which she bought in the shop there.

Only 9 miles and mainly flat, but surprisingly muddy in this circuit. I don’t think it would be too great in summer when pedestrians are out in force, because there are signs at the top of each hill telling you to dismount.

6th ride this year (pats self on back).

I am in that rather unusual but dreamy position of having a partner who has very similar interests to me. It’s been a very very long time coming! 😀

Garmin Edgebare nice, but a lot of money.

I rather fancy the idea of a waterproof shockproof bar mount for an iPhone and with a build in additional battery. I wonder if such a gadget actually exists yet.

Now received my new carrier, badged by Towsure, but identical to the Diamant as per the advert.

As these are also being sold under the Bosal name, it seems like the big tow bar companies are happy to have their name associated with the product.

The finish is of high quality – powder coated steel and anodized aluminium. It all seems to work well and isn’t in any way cheap and nasty.

The first road test with one bike loaded reveals that it’s very sturdy, with virtually no wobble/flex.

A doddle to quickly fit and remove and the supplied bag means that there is good protection for it and other things in the boot.

For £150, this seems like a bargain.

I hope you make a swift recovery!

I went on a shortish ride of about 8 miles on Sunday. All but the last couple of hundred yards are offroad. In that couple of hundred yards is a 30mph zone, I have to proceed along a busy road into a village and make a right turn.

Whilst safely moving across to the crown of the road an impatient aggressive speeding idiot decided not to allow me to make this manoeuvre without going right up my backside.

I moved from my path which was close to the kerb to the near the crown of the road. This happened well before the aggressive driver was anywhere near me and had he been travelling withing the speed limit, would not have caught up so quickly – if at all.

I was travelling at about 20mph and deliberately did not leave enough gap for the vehicle to squeeze between me and the kerb – the road is not wide enough. I perhaps might have considered pulling over and stopping by the kerb to wait for the occasional gap in the constant flow of traffic, but because the road isn’t really wide enough, I’d have caused a delay either way.

My manoouvre was safe and resonable given the speed limits and I have done this many times without incident, causing slight delay to the vehicle behind, just as one would if one was driving a car whilst turning right.

As I started to turn, twunt features accelerated hard (I clearly signalled my intention to turn right well in advance and took a couple of lifesavers). I estimate that he was less than 6 inches from my back wheel as he passed!

This sort of thing may not bother a lot of riders, but the fact is that the motorist showed zero concern for my safety, my life, nor any of my relatives, dependants etc!

I find this extremely bad attitude and disregard for life very commonplace these days and as a result, I never willingly ride on busy roads (hardly use my road bike ever, but now have a new bike carrier due for delivery and so this may change).

I think the people who ride in London are certifiable (apologies guys – the risk is really not worth it!). There is clearly a war going on between cyclists and motorists, judging by what I read, hear on the radio and TV..

The thing is that a cyclist has no protection. Being in a car with an aggressive motorist up your backside is bad enough, but when this happens on a bike, you really feel like teaching these people a lesson, but I don’t want my enjoyment ruined by loosing my rag over the bad behaviour of some dimwit lowlife! I also don’t want to get arrested for GBH and criminal damage, so I ride my bike off road as much as possible. I shouldn’t have to, but I value my life, mobility etc. I ride a bikes for recreation, not to get stressed out!

After about a million miles of motoring I avoid driving where I can (yeah, I’m also a car driver!!). There are too many over cautious and unduly slow drivers – especially when parking (mainly women – fact:- there has been a big increase in female drivers), traffic cameras, traffic lights, too much signage/street furniture, traffic calming, over zealous speed limits, parking control. Finally, the thing that frustrates me most are the people who can’t cope with the often pointless delays and when they loose their rag, or those who are perhaps just predisposed to being aggressive at the wheel.

Even the most experienced motorist finds it challenging to keep a lid on it at times, but in these difficult economic times and with younger drivers fuelled by testosterone, the public highway is a very dangerous place to be indeed!

Mind you, this was just an excuse really. The straw that broke the camels back.

Exactly! A highly inflammatory action for which the council are entirely to blame!

You could get a business off the ground using a lockup, although officially you probably aren’t supposed to. There will be no power, water etc, so very limited, but you need customers before you take on a commercial lease! (Unless you have pots of money that you are prepared to potentially burn).

I know people who have found very cheap bonafide commercial units in old farm buildings, but you’ll be tied to at least 6 months.

Then there are seedbed centres which are usually serviced by a receptionist and other facilities. These are mostly easy in easy out, giving the best flexibility and also will give you a lot more credibility to your customers. Not the cheapest by far however.

As banks don’t like lending money to small start ups very much these days, growing your business organically is the only choice until you have got your first few customers. Keeping overheads to an absolute minimum will help in the early stages, so blogging it in a lock up is a sensible idea, provided you don’t make a nuisance of yourself to their residents.

Do a business plan.

Good luck!

What irks me about Ryan Air is their inconsistency about hand luggage.

I was on a flight recently and the overhead locker had one bag in it that was definitely oversize. The bag would only go sideways because it was too long, so nobody else could get anything in there. The steward didn’t give a damn.

So, because I had dutifully complied with the rules, couldn’t stow my bag anywhere near where I was seated. That was a real PIA when it came do disembarking as just nobody would give way to let me retrieve it – you kow how everyone rushes out of the seat the second the plane comes to halt, even though they aren’t going anywhere for at least five minutes.

I hate the overzealous RyanAir hand luggage policy. Why can’t you take a bottle of duty free on with your hand luggage? They are bing really tight!

If they applied their rules to everyone without exception, that would be understandable, but suggesting they are cheaper than other airlines is not actually often the case.

I have flown with them because they have a higher frequency of service and so tend to be able to offer me flights at a more convenient time to suit me, bu are oftent not the cheapest.

O’leary has utter contempt for his customers, has all the charisma of a cockroach and this is clearly reflected in his business.

RyanAir would always be my last option, where reasonable alternatives are available. As for being cheap, I just don’t agree! Complacent, arrogant, mean spirited are the words I associate with this business. One day they will be displaced by a much better airline as people will vote with their feet.

Only issue I (or rather HE) has had with them, is if your car is parked up and has no bikes on, other people WILL eventually crash into it, wrecking either the rack or your bumper (as the rack collapses and then pokes a hole in your car). So don’t leave it on when not in use!

Yes, this occurred to me too, but this rack folds away and stored in its bag in seconds, so unless I’m parking where there is no chance of getting bumped, it’ll get stowed in the boot.

Diamant 2 cycle towball mount carrier

We’ll thank you so much to everyone who contributed!

My fears are completely allayed now.

I was looking at the Witter WX200, but that has no looking feature and the slightly more expensive Thule has a rather impractical tilting arrangement, you have to put the thing together, but it doesn’t fold away (unlike the really swanky top of the range Thule featured further up this thread – lovely!)

So I have opted for this rack. It’s a “QLP Diamant”, also badged by Bosal. The first Youtube video is a CGI fitting instruction video, but then the second is of a real rack with a real person! He’s a Dutch bloke so i’ve no idea what he is going on about, but one gets the general idea. The bit where he stands on it was the clincher, but this carrier looks really well engineered. It’s compact, folds flat in seconds, includes locks and looks like the easiest to fit and remove. It’s also supplied with a carry bag and you don’t have to assemble it, all for just £150!

My numerous experiences of dealing direct with Hope have been outstanding. Phone them.

Bike shops may know what they are talking about, but probably won’t know anywhere near as much as the manufacturer.

People have been getting obese for a long time now. You can’t blame any one political party!

Mass production of processed foods and the bare fact that food is relatively cheap now means that most people have become accustomed to eating far too much, especially convenience food.

Unfortunately it’s the least well educated people who don’t know when to put the brakes on. Have they not got a mirror? Do they not feel how bad it is to be obese? I can understand being overweight, but just don’t get how people get to 20-30-40 stones. Some top out at 70 stones. Who is feeding them? It isn’t them because that can’t even get out of their houses.

Something has to be done about it. My view is that we should educate people and encourage consumption of more homemade fayre. The outlawing of certain types of food would help.

Penalising people who have got to this sorry state is harsh, but if claimants are able to get this big whilst being supported by the state, the benefits they are getting are probably too great! So I believe it’s a fair policy, but as ever, pounced upon the loony left, who’ll have anyone who is perceived to be in a disadvantaged situation, who is not taking any personal responsibility for themselves, feeling like they are victims.

Remember the saying “there is nowt for nowt”

I cannot believe people do not have auto lock set on their handsets. How totally daft not to! You give away all of your contacts and grant someone carte blanche to call anywhere in the world, at your expense. Intelligent!

First off, it’s a habit of the left/far left to shout down anyone who doesn’t agree with them. If anyone opposes their way of thinking, they scream, ‘bigot’ ‘racist’ ‘far right extremist’ before a word can be uttered. This is a strategy to shut their opponents up and brand them as outcasts, out of touch etc etc. The one sided imbalance is quite tiresome!

The last Labour government even presided over the introduction of the most breathtakingly ridiculous law, combining racial and religious hatred as one and the same. None of us are born with religious beliefs and religion is entirely optional, race is not. If people want to believe in fictitious irrational nonsense, they rightly deserve to be ridiculed when they impose their ignorant ways on others, or demand special privileges. Personally, I feel that religious belief is a very private thing and should never interfere with others’ lives. Conversely, race is not a choice and to discriminate against an individual over their ethnicity is totally out of order! As one particular religion shouts loud, demanding special treatment, our EU leaders have decided that it’s easier to shut us up with a new law to make their lives easier. Fairness and democracy are out the window and debate and reason has been permanently slapped down. This is not the behaviour of successful leaders! I think the people who gave Barosso and his chums the Nobel Peace prize have a great sense of humour!

This method of silencing people with valid arguments stifles debate and denies intelligent people the right to air their views. In effect, they kill freedom of speech and democracy. If you are an intelligent person with an open mind, open ears and open eyes, you will have seen many many examples of how the EU leaders run roughshod over democracy. The EU experiment is a breathtakingly expensive failure and the far left leaders are just never going to roll over and accept this. As the old saying goes, “Turkeys never vote for Christmas”.

I care about the country I live in and believe in fairness and if you examine what is going on around you, our membership of the EU is clearly detrimental to each and every one of us British citizens (whatever your ethnic origin). UKIP is certainly NOT a racist party, that is a myth bandied about by opposing political interests. The UKIP manifesto is compelling and they repeatedly expose the wastefulness, the corruption and injustice surrounding the goings on in Europe.

The actions of Joyce Thacker and her left wing council clearly shows how prejudiced and unreasonable people of her political persuasion can be. Rotheram council’s actions are reprehensible and they need to be called to account, but hopefully, people who once supported them will see THEM as the real biggots!

Socialism seems like the answer for many, it offers a nice friendly face, giving you lots of free stuff when you haven’t earned it. If you have ever been unemployed, you will understand the harsh reality that bills still need to be paid. In this situation, the last thing you can do is rack up more debt buy spending on your credit card. One day the bill has to be paid, you have to take responsibility. It is not down to anyone else to bale you out, you are not a victim. You can’t blame the global downturn on bankers, it is the fault of successive governments and the corruption that ensues. Deregulation was the cause, the politicians wanting the extra tax revenue to further their own ends. And so the cycle continues.

We need an business environment free of red tape and high costs. We will never achieve this with our huge ongoing financial commitment to the EU. We will never achieve this with big government. We will never achieve this with huge numbers of people dependent on the state. We will never achieve this if we do not control our own borders.

Successive governments have got us into this mess and now the current lot are pandering to Barosso’s team, lying to their electorate and doing nowhere near enough to put things right.

First off, let me be clear, I hate toffs and their upper middle class privileged snivelling little existences, whatever their political leanings. These ruling classes are like a disease to UK PLC. We need doors opened for anyone with the drive and ability to reach the top, not some chinless wonder from yet another mafia like dynasty! Down with the old boy network!

Clegg, let’s face it, he’s a naive as they come! Like so many modern day politicians, they have no idea what real life is like.

I heard he wants to impose a new inheritance tax. If that’s the case, the liberal party are finished.

Why? Because, like all political manovres, the only people hit hard without fail, regardless of which party is in power, are those who earn a shade or two above average. Including your typical middle ground liberal voter!

Misguidedly, socialists believe that people who earn around double the national average are rich, but they are not. Those caught in the middle ground are also the silent and passive majority who contribute a disproportionate amount in taxes, and due to means testing, will never receive any state support if they should run into difficulties. I am talking about people who have taken responsibility for their futures and saved some of their income over a long period of time. Due to their sheer numbers, this section of society are the cash cows for all political experiments. But I digress somewhat…

Over the last 25 years, house prices and the cost of living have rocketed. Lots of young people have gone and got degrees, worked hard and are out there making what most would consider to be a good wage. But the left wing’s politics of and jealousy are incredibly destructive! The fact is that these young people canot afford to get on the housing ladder and are merely passing their supposed wealth on to their landlords etc.. There are other young people, just as well educated, but who don’t have above average incomes. These people have an impossible challenge.

It is forecast that the younger generation will become increasingly disgruntled with the older population, who have benefitted from owning a home whilst watching house price inflation dwarf that of the official inflation figures. The increased taxes the young will bear to keep public sector and state pensions enriching the lives of the older people, who already seem to have all the money, will cause huge resentment.

Enter Clegg and his great idea to impose a new inheritance tax. The hardworking overburdened young will have been thinking about when they will eventually inherit from their parents, or family, believing that their lives will get a lot easier. With the Liberal’s new tax, they will get a lot less. They will feel like their just deserts are being stolen from them, redistributed to a bunch of unworthy feckless spongers and to pay for the inefficient and often pointless government schemes/initiatives etc etc. ultimately, they will no longer be the beneficiaries and that they will feel robbed. The last straw!

The Liberals could not be more out of touch with the people they need to keep on their side. They are a lost cause, clueless and ineffectual. Just like they have always been!

The democratic system isn’t working. We have too many people who aren’t contributing. We need free enterprise and as in the past, we need circumstances that enable and encourage small businesses to lead us out of recession. Red tape and taxes are the product of the public sector. The public sector is far too over bloated, far too many are employed by councils and government agencies. To reduce red tape and taxes, to grow our economy and become remotely competitive, we need a much reduced public sector.

We also need the the feckless benefit spongers to do some work too! If you promote growth at the grass roots level, people, not big corporations benefit. Perhaps even some of the unfortunate victims of the recession would find they have some job opportunities as well.

But before any of this, the charade that is going on in Europe over the single currency needs to play itself out. This uncertainty is what is killing any recovery.

Liam Killen crashed with a suspected broken ankle

Thats a real shame poor bloke
I thought it was a course your granny could ride according to this forum ?

I was 10 metres away. Wasn’t a very spectacular wipeout. He seemed to clip the rocks at the end of the berm and then went down.

What really riled me was a French guy photographing his partner holding the French flag with Liam in the background, on the deck and in severe discomfort. Really sporting eh?? Typical!

And the course, lots of steep short climbs, pretty hairy rock sections. No easy run by any stretch! Of course, it must have looked quite tame on the telly.

There was a real sense of disappointments amongst the croud when our man was forced to drop out. I wish Liam a speedy recovery and good luck in Rio!!!

I forgot to mention, it’s the myriad of free apps and accessories you can get for Apple products that make them considerably more attractive than the competition.

What swayed me was exclusive compatibility with my navigation hardware on my boat. Since then I have bought a Sonos system because of the functionality the iPad and iPhone brings to that system.

Just about all firms seem to be writing iPhone and iPad apps. Android is catching up, but as the mainstream all buy Apple, the commercial choice for companies is to focus on Apple compatible apps first.

The worst thing about owning Apple products is iTunes, it is crxp!!

Even I, biggest Apple critic ever, have been sucked into the iSheep fold! It’s a one way street, but I am considering ‘moonlighting’ with an Android phone.

Ignore the EU directives (just as the French do). Stop paying into the multi-culti left wing experiment run from Brussels. Ignore red tape and force money lenders into funding projects with a much longer ROI than 3 years! Have engineers and people who can actually make stuff call the shots, not some toff who looks down his nose at skilled and talented people.

Also, send people like TJ to work in an Israeli Kibutz. Those sort of people will be much happier there and all the hardworking entrepreneurial types won’t have to listen to the depressing commercially naive jealous clap trap that spils incessantly from their left wing chums’ mouths. 😆

No way could I ever feel safe on there. Two ropes – one safety rope on an automatic device thingy that locks off by itself and is being tended by a experienced climber and one rope with an ordinary ab device and I still shit myself big time.

What a big girl!

It makes sense to have the experienced chap controlling the situation and hes a bastid and wants to see me suffer so he made me. thats his payment – watching me suffer

I’d have paid to watch that!

😀 After a 25 year relationship, my wife has decided she wants a divorce. Initially I was shocked, but now I’ ve got used to the idea, the loss my children will suffer through no fault of their own, the way they will view relationships for the rest of their lives. I could forgive my wife if she wasn’t so adamant that it’s ALL my fault and if she would have attended marriage guidance counselling. She just can’t bear feeling guilty and won’t take criticism of any kind. Nutter! 😆

Relationships are hard work and you have to make compromises. I tried, but reasoning and accountability are not my wife’s strong points.

Unfortunately we live in a society where individuals put their personal needs before their responsibilities. It’s OK to screw your family up, just so long as you get personal fulfilment eh!?

I blame airey fairy women’s magazines for their jaundiced perspective on modern life..married women have never had it so good, yet they are so unhappy. They can earn good money and be independent, so why do they get married? The pressure to conform no doubt. Religious and parental pressures, but children need to be brought up in a secure environment. I like the idea of marriage licences expiring. That would keep people on their toes and provide the wedding businesses a lot of extra trade.

At least I will be able to llive in peace, without a psycho offloading contiually her guilt on to me, the perpetual negative jibes that slowly grind you down, being with someone who deceives you and disrespects you.

I’ll be doing as a bloody please, awesome! 😆

Might even sail off into the sunset!

Happier days lay ahead.

Remove all the bulbs and then see if the lights are working.…

“It’s not logical captain”

Remove all the bulbs and then see if the lights are working.…

“It’s not logical captain”

What do I lose?

Sound quality!

A CD recording will beat any compressed music format.

The difference between my TEAC VRDS-7 playing a CD and streaming 320kbps lossless MP3 via my Squeezebox is marked.

The compressed format looses a lot of detail and is flat by comparison.

Perhaps it’s not the MP3 file, but the rubbish wallwart power supply or 20p DAC in the Squeezebox that ruins the sound. Either way, CD as a source beats the convenient modern alternative, hands down!

Most people have “stereos” and will never hear the difference. In view of this, MP3 streaming will eventually become the norm.

At least the situation is a million times better than a couple of decades ago when people were buying pre-recorded cassette tapes instead of vinyl.

Humans like convenience and so this comes way above sound quality in the priority list.

The world economies survive on churning out rubbish. Governments love this beacuse it earns them tax revenue, despite all the “green” rhetoric.

So don’t feel guilty for taking one or two units of the 100’s of thousands, millions of products that are churned out.

The guilt should be with corporations and governments, but seeing as they have their noses in the trough, forget it!

If you are worried about the environment and want to make a real difference, you’ll have to live like someone in the developing world.

The things we do in this country which are supposedly environmentally sensitive are usually nothing more than expensive stunts which do little or nothing to resolve the issue.

Just forget trying to be green because deep down, no authority in the developed world really gives a damn.

That’s the first vehicle i’ve seen that incorporates the representation of a foreskin! Just trust the French to come up with that!

I’m sure there’s a lot of ‘cap fits’ excuses for the despicable behaviour of these rioters. Violence should never give rise to government yielding!!

The disenfranchisement of the black community is down to attitude. Take employers for example, they like Eastern Europeans because of their alleged work ethic.

As a so called workshy unemployed person, i found this sort of racist drivel highly offensive. I couldn’t get a job because agencies wouldn’t put me forward. The reasons elude me to this day, but i can only guess.

In a copy of the Metro, i read that 40% of workers in London are not of UK berth. For the lower income bracket, this rises to 60% . I am lead to believe that most of these people are legitimate EU nationals (welcomed here with open arms – quote Jack Straw).

The great EU socialist experiment is costing us dear! Anyone can come here and benefits are world beating.

Unfortunately, the MEPs didn’t factor the benefits deadlock a lot of poorer people would find themselves in.

In summary, this riot situation has more to do with socialism than our current coallition.

I’m sure a few far left wing aggitators are at the route of this trouble. They were last time in the 1980’s. I have no doubt as i witnessed a far left wing aggitator being let out of the locked boot of a car at a petrol station on tha Epping New road, late one night after the riots ceased.

I feel very sorry for all the innocent people affected by this violence!

Hahaha, I love the passion of our lefty chums on here!

But aside from all the stuck record’s, isn’t it great that the News of The World will no longer be on the shelves? Hooray!!

My guess is that newspaper sales are in terminal decline. Who needs a newspaper? I certainly don’t have time to read a paper, or have any inclination. They are too full of lies, distoritons and political bias – boring!

The next interesting development was how the Police were exposed to have accepted large bribes to spill the beans to News Interntional reporters. These journalists are scummy people who do nobody any favours, but now the Police are looking grubby! How demoralizing for the vast majority of decent people working hard in the Police. They’ll all be tarred with the same brush!

Now Andy Coulson is in the news and even David Cameron.

Where will this all end?

I have to concede, TJ was on the money re. his comments about jail. It’s not often i have to acknowledge he was right!

One of my team got knocked down at a red traffic light on Monday. Said he got dragged along the road after being struck. He broke a rib and had a bashed up knee, but still turned up for work as usual without hardly a mention of this!

We have been telling him to report it to the Police, but he refuses. It took him 24hrs to get to see a physician.

This reluctance is exasperating because some angry and /or incompetent driver is still at the wheel of his car, putting people’s lives at risk and with complete impunity!

Routine servicing on Audi variable servicing is cheaper than what Ford or Nissan charge.

Where you’ll get mugged is if you want anything else done.

My advice is to find a local garage with good people. You’ll dave a fortune and none of these repairs need be included in the service history.

Have you missed me Ernie? 😆

This thread had nothing to do with politics, but I can start one especially for you!

I’ve been doing VAG for 14 years now.

They’re never temperamental, go like a train, are cheap to run and are low maintenance.

Quite unlike (most) beautiful women! 🙂