BigDummy – Member

As a moral proposition, the idea that making sure that the UK gets the last word in a nuclear exchange trumps the preservation of some sort of functioning human civilization in the future is pretty appalling. And threatening to do something that is not morally permissible is pretty poor form.

The point of Mutually Assured Destruction is that it stops either side from using nuclear weapons. It ceases to be a moral decision (noting that Hitler, Stalin and various other famous despots weren’t particularly renowned for their strong sense of morality) and becomes a simple strategic one i.e. if we destroy them then they’ll destroy us. This assures no one launches a nuclear attack. In order for this to work all sides need a credible nuclear capability and the belief that the opposition will use it in extremis.

The problem with unilateral disarmament is that it relies on the “morality” of the remaining nuclear powers – if they decide it’s moral to wipe out opposing countries, for example to reduce global overcrowding or because they follow a different “morally corrupt” doctrine or religion, they can. Human history has many examples of genocide and nuclear weapons just provide a more efficient means of achieving the aim.

The best solution would be for no country to have nuclear weapons but given we’ve opened Pandora’s box we need a balance of power that maintains the status quo and guarantees nuclear weapons are not used – Trident is the UK’s contribution to that balance.

CaptJon – Member

Isn’t the UK one of the bullies with Trident one of the sticks?

In the eyes of much of the world – yes. Many people on this thread seem to be unaware of just how unpopular the UK is in large parts of the world – “the Great Satan” (used interchangeably with the US) to Iran, “the Old Fox” to the remainder of the Middle East, the old colonial power who appropriated swathes of their natural resources to much of the globe.

We’re therefore not just a small island in the North Atlantic that no one cares about – we’re the world’s sixth largest economy with global interests. We achieved this by judicious trading, diplomacy (often involving gunboats) and good old fashioned invasion over the last few centuries so it’s hardly surprising that we’re not that popular – and that’s not just with developing countries like Iran and North Korea but also old strategic rivals (and fellow nuclear powers) like Russia and China. Our involvement in recent conflicts as the prime ally of the US probably hasn’t helped either but actually in my experience it’s our colonial actions that the rest of the world really remembers.

So why retain Trident? It’s not impossible to imagine a scenario where the US slips into isolationism and reduces its commitment to NATO – particularly given that the remaining allies aren’t meeting their 2% spending commitments. An independent British nuclear deterrent acts as an insurance policy against another World War starting in Europe and (combined with effective conventional forces) gives us a reasonable chance of holding on to what we acquired over the last two centuries.

Or to put it another way – if we put the stick down lots of other bullies are going to try and take our dinner money.

is the design of the numo that bad then ?

No, not in my experience, I’ve had one for 4-5 years and never found it an issue. It would however stop you getting moisture from your breath inside the numo which may be a reason to do it if such things bother you; that’s only really an issue with down mats though.

Personally when bike packing / canoe or lightweight camping I prefer the minimum faff which for me is just blowing it up the traditional way…

Gary – that sounds like too much hassle for me. My poor commuter goes weeks without a clean…

What about on long day rides – do you need to carry some with you to re-apply at regular intervals?

Looks good.

Anyone use it on a commuter?

Any updates from those that bought around Christmas?

Did it work through winter?

How was it with mud and also the recent (brief) dry period for off road use?

Anyone successfully use it for commuting? If so how often did you re-apply?

Thinking of giving it a go so grateful for any feedback.

I’m a fan of these: http://www.whackjob.co.uk/product-cat/trail-tees/%5B/url%5D.

They’re “technical” so can be worn for riding as well.

Ben – that makes sense, thanks for the response.

There’s 1 hole each side of the rim, off set from each other by about 6 inches – the join appears to be equidistant between the 2. They’re UST rims but presumably I should still seal the holes to prevent water getting and increasing the rotating weight?

Is this standard on UST rims or is it just that Easton wheels are designed for dusty Californian trails and don’t consider wet / muddy conditions? If it’s the latter it doesn’t bode well for effectiveness and longevity of the seals in the X4 hub…

So after all the Friday inspired craziness and hilarity (you guys…) no one actually knows why the hole’s there?

Some form of buff / headover? My 4 year old loved her Hello Kitty buff / fleece neck warmer; presumably there’s a boy equivalent.

Couple of pairs of decent warm wool socks – surprising hard to find we found.

Sunglasses – you can buy in resort fairly reasonably if you can’t find anything suitable in UK, arguably more useful than goggles.

Skis, boots and helmet are normally provided by the ski school.

Worth putting his name in all of his kit and we found some bungy cord attaching the gloves / mittens through jacket help prevent dropped gloves and cold hands.

Scott, done and thanks for all the great work at QECP.

Women’s health can be quite aesthetically pleasing, dependent on your tastes it could the best option for exactly the same reason (as CFH points out) that Men’s Health is a poor choice…

It’s 1.41Kg for an 18″ which is effectively a medium.

Thanks Andy – it was a C456 frame for sale in the classifieds that started the thought process but after a bit of research the full Deore build works out cheaper if I’m not going to cannibalise my hardtail.

That was my first thought but the pike’s 200ish g lighter…

Small v large may be the most likely explanation just wondered if I’d missed something obvious.

Will do – thanks.

So full membership (i.e. not associate) is all that’s required? You only get a CTC membership card not a specific bike park one?

I really like these:

https://www.alpkit.com/products/gourdon-20

Had mine about 4 years and despite significant abuse it’s still fairly bombproof. It’s been used mountain biking, skiing / snowboarding, commuting and as a general day sack. There aren’t many bells and whistles but its simplicity is, for me, one of its attractions.

Admittedly I do have other (bigger) rucksacs which I use for cragging and winter climbing and a smaller Evoc pack with in built back protector for riding…

Mark,

Yes I do – I’ll drop you a line.

Cheers

Tallie

Anybody fancy a ride tomorrow?

Late notice I know but the stars have aligned and I’ve a rare day with no work or childcare commitments. I’m based in Hillhead and will be carless tomorrow. Currently planning to head up to the SDW via the Meon Valley disused railway line, turn right and head to QECP for lunch and a lap. I may cheat a little on the way back and cut through some lanes, dependent on how my legs are holding up, but will ultimately head back via the Meon Valley again. Anyone care to join me for some or all of this ride? Pace will (of necessity) be fairly steady!

Alternatively if anyone has any better route ideas I’m open to suggestions.

I’ve just gone through this process with a similar budget 2-4K but the nearer 2 the better. I considered an outback, Impreza Gx and BMW 3 / 5 Touring but ended up with a TDCI Mondeo for just over 2K – seems hard to beat based on running costs and reliability.

This vid really helped enthuse my 3 year old – she really liked watching it and wanted to be just like the “little” boy.

Isn’t it virtually the same plot as Olympus is Down?

Is there a reason Hollywood often releases 2 films with very similar plots / premises within months of each other?

A quick update in case anyone has a similar issue. I drilled out the grub screw (bit of a PITA and took a while) and replaced it with one of these:
http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/solderless-barrel-nipple-5-mm-x-7-mm-prod21366/%5B/url%5D

I had to do a bit of work with a hacksaw and file to make it fit…

All in all a bit of a bodge but it all works now…

Hora – I know you’ve a long and proud history of spouting absolute gibberish on here but I couldn’t let this pass:

Most amateur rugby players are **** in their 40/50’s+.

Why? Mental. Almost self-destructive.

I and most of my best mates are “amateur rugby players” in our 40s and 50s – many still play vets rugby, some stalwarts are still playing senior rugby (mostly front row), a lot are involved in the game as coaches or refs; some have moved onto other sports such as mountain biking or golf. I don’t know anyone who’s “****” – a few people are managing injuries but that’s no different to other sportsmen.

The drinking culture in rugby has changed a great deal over the last 20 years and while a post match drink / night out is still (thankfully) very much part of the game you’re less likely to see mid week drinking – certainly for 1st XV in the higher amateur leagues.

As to why? Rugby creates a sense of comradeship, fraternity and team spirit – a sense of being a part of a greater whole. Hard to explain but a great feeling – that you’d rather get hurt than let your mates down.

Reverbs are still going for £180 at on one – 31.6 only.

Only had mine for a couple of rides but very happy – at the moment I can’t see how the Thompson can be £135 better…

You can’t get to the base of the bolt. I may resort to attempting to drill out but given it’s only a 3mm grub screw I suspect I’ll damage the thread in the spool. I suppose I could try re-tapping but I reckon it’s high faff with a low chance of success.

Hopefully it is just a case of disconnecting the spring – it looks the same as the older RS.

Found them here in case anyone else is looking for the same thing:

http://si.shimano.com/#seriesList/6

Not sure if it was a browser compatibility issue or user error but it took me a fair bit of messing around on the Shimano Tech Docs site to find…

Bump.

All good stuff but, without wishing to appear patronising, on a day ride you can get away with a fairly minimal first aid kit (ie just a field dressing) and improvise if required so long as your basic knowledge of first aid is ok. If you don’t know what to do then no amount of plasters, steri strips etc will help you.

I’m not really a fan of foil blankets – ime they’re fairly useless if it is genuinely cold. The SOL bivi bag is pretty good although it’s a bugger to get back into its bag once you’ve opened it…

I think one of the key bits of kit in winter is a decent belay jacket (ie a warm hooded synthetic jacket) – instant morale if you have to stop for a mechanical or injury.

Thanks gents.

This is a quite useful link although a couple of years old now:

http://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/page.php?id=398

I thought when he did Genia right on the line as the Lions attacked he got it wrong though as I thought Genia was the tackler so could get up and play the ball without being offside.

AA – it wasn’t Genia he penalised, it was the next 2-3 aussies driving through the ruck that failed to stay on their feet – they had hands all over the deck. Agree with the majority of the rest of your comments particularly Youngs excellent performance.

On second watching Philips defence for the first try was poor – he was way too hesitant backing off Genia and gave him way too much room.

Open sides are also better looking and more successful with the opposite sex than blindsides

Very true although it is all relative…

In the SH, particularly NZ, openside is seen as one of the key positions – of similar importance to flyhalf which is one of the reasons I find England’s “all back row positions are interchangeable approach” so frustrating – Back, Dallagio and Hill were the last balanced backrow we had. A good openside is the key link man between backs and forwards and is key to quick ball as well winning the odd turnover – watch McCaw for the epitome of this.

thats a team issue, the balance of the backrow is all wrong.

I’d agree with that and imo it’s down to Croft – not because he’s playing badly – he’s doing exactly what’s being asked of him. I just don’t think his style of play is suited to delivering quick ball against a modern SH team. That said I’m not sure who’d replace him in the lineout if he was dropped?

Hooper was neutered by playing centre for a big chunk of the second half and I don’t recall the Aussies getting pinged much at the breakdown apart from the obvious professional foul on their 5 metre line? They also got a couple of turnovers when we got isolated but it was more their ability to slow our ball down / prevent us getting quality quick ball that I found frustrating.

Just to stop any paranoia I’m English and a long (suffering) time England fan so country of origin has nothing to do with it. I’ve thought the same about Croft ever since the last Lions tour – he’s great if you’re on top but can cost you in a tight game. As an aside I do get frustrated with England’s / the Premiership’s inability to acknowledge that open and blind side are different positions that require different skills and characteristics.

Croft didn’t have a bad game (apart from one basketball pass on the wing when he could have just taken and given) – he did exactly what he always does and probably what he was selected for – excellent lineout and hung around out wide looking to use his pace. I’m just not sure this is the right option against Australia given we’re clearly struggling at the breakdown.

Warburton wasn’t great and Tipuric should probably get a run out if there wasn’t the captaincy to consider.

Phillips didn’t have a great game but it wasn’t all his fault – we were under a lot of pressure at the breakdown. We didn’t play the ref particularly well but this was exacerbated imo by playing Croft at blindside; for all his excellent lineout and loose play we really missed a classic blindside. I think Croft unbalances any backrow he plays in – not an issue if your tight 5 are dominant but if you’re struggling at the breakdown you really miss a competent practitioner of the traditional blindside dark arts.

I think the same thing happened last time in SA.

Thanks – I’ve just spent 20 min in the garage and managed to re-attach the crank but I’ve no confidence in it and suspect you’re right. Looks like I’m in the market for a new BB and chainset…

Del – thanks for the response and I understand your point; however, as the father of 2 kids under 3 and a busy job I’ve limited time to spend on bikes each week and I’d rather spend that time riding which is why a quick fix appeals.

As I live in the South the Enduro is massively over biked for 99% of the riding around here which is why it largely gets ignored in favour of a singlespeed steel hard tail – if I’ve got to change the BB plus chainset and then have the standard chainguide and bashring compatibility faff it’ll probably not get ridden for another couple of years…

In short the question still stands.