Don't you mean that their unions have got a hell of a lot further than our unions have?

That's exactly my point. Line 2 was sarcastic. Should I have added a smiley? The Germans have a much more collaborative attitude, higher labour productivity, less strikes, better conditions etc. Everyone wins.

Surely the only way to work this out is to budget what she has to spend, then decide how much you want to give her to fritter away on clothes she doesn't need, burgers and entertainment?

I'd guess a tenner a week is reasonable, get a Saturday job if she wants more. Don't take any guilt trips about rich parents – I know some lasses who have Dads worth £millions, but they tend not to be splashing loads of cash or being funny about those who can't.

I was expecting to see someone changing gear by pulling the chain over the rings with an armoured glove 😆

Do you think it is possible that the past set the conditions for the now? Perhaps we should learn from it olest we repeat the mistakes of the past?

I do, but I don't think we can generalise that if something didn't work in the past, under a different set of circumstances, that it wouldn't work now.

You didn't study History, English or Logic, did you?

You are being coy about what work you have actually done

Please forgive me for not wanting to publish my life history for all the world to see for the rest of time, on a website populated by people who don't seem to understand the meaning of "too far".

but weren't all of those rights only given to the workers due to the effect of the unions?

Here's an idea. There is the present, and there is the past. Whether something is a relevant and correct action depends on the circumstances in the present, not the past.

So saying "X happened 100 odd years ago because of Y", or "But they did all this for us" when they're currently doing something quite different, is irrelevant and illogical.

He is trying to suggest that experience counts and generatees wisdom.

Oh is he, oh great patronising one. Here's an idea for those of you who are full of experience and wisdom – being a student doesn't necessarily say anything about my age.

Again, I don't see why it's relevant. Where have you worked? Where do you work? Are you working now?

I agree if they were more servile to their masters they would be more "helpful".

Aye. The Germans are strike pretty rarely, and employers are queuing to shaft them.

Oh hang on a minute… They've gotten a hell of a lot further than our unions have.

I suppose you did a stint down the pit then worked your way up to the board of ICI then?

I've worked in both unionised and non-unionised environments. As I see it, the balance of power can be unhealthy in either.

Not an edit by the way.

This is an edit: 1984. Ballot?

Grum, have you ever been awarded a qualification in English? Because I've mentioned that several posts up…

Seems dreadfull dont we all want law breaking employers evryone knows they are the best.

What I am saying is that unions would be a lot more helpful if they were radically different to the way they are now. Remove the left wing rhetoric and counter-productive attitude problem and they might actually get back to decent membership figures, which would mean they could help a lot more people.

It's perfectly legal to sign out of the WTD as far as I'm aware.

have a problem with the minimum wage?

I'm agnostic.

The major trade unions are staffed by people with a political axe to grind. Take Bob Crow as an extreme example. He calls himself a Communist/Socialist 🙄

What the airline pilot union is full of people to the left of the Labour party

Have a look at the major unions. All pretty left wing…

Or alternately:

Distorted member's working conditions and contracts so heavily that many employers use temps for perm roles, to the benefit of recruitment agencies.

As for the Working Time Directive, it's worthless outside of a unionised environment.

Stopped Blair from sorting out public sector pension funding.

Now it seems they're trying to pick a fight with the government. All lovely stuff.

I don't see what relevance it would have, but yes, I've had several jobs.

How many union leaders would describe themselves as Communists? How many have worked with far left parties? How many unions could be described as anything but to the left of the Labour party?

The fact is, that unions represent their members interests at the cost of everyone else, and their membership is left leaning, and they have left wing political objectives. As a result, they effectively filter out anyone who isn't left wing from their membership.

I reckon school could ruin any good book. If I get a book, and I'm enjoying it, I could be through it an afternoon. If you're reading it in school, it's so drawn out…

Unions seem to be run mainly by lunatics clinging to discredited ideologies. I've no problem with organised labour per se, but I do have a problem with them getting involved in politics, funding political parties and demanding to have their interests heard over everyone else's.

As things stand at the moment, Unions effectively exclude all but Communists and charlatans.

You're surprised that the police have unmarked cars? Or you think that a GB sticker means there's no way a car can be a police car?

I thought this was going to be a thread about why university challenge has such daft questions these days!

Can hit £100 on ebay with an international listing.

See umpteen posts up where I mentioned that the British have an odd sense of class. The Daily Mail and Express are about as middle class as it gets.

Is your wireless router properly secured – with WPA rather than WEP?

If the lad were downloading films an the like, he'd also have to be watching them in the kitchen.

I can't help but wonder if half your street isn't using your broadband 😆

pulling up the ladder

You mean like the typical Labour MP, who has kids in private school, or a house in a good catchment area funded for by the taxpayer, but vehemently defends the rights of everyone else's to go to shite comps?

I certainly agree that 25% cuts are planned. I don't think Nick Clegg or David Cameron have actually said that out loud in public though. 😀

More gibberish on STW.

The XF is rear wheel drive. The Mondeo is front wheel drive. How much potential for platform sharing do you think there is? None.

TJ, the article does not state that Clegg said cuts of 25-40% are on their way. It says a 6% annual reduction in budget over 4 years.

However, he did say "Some of the hyperbole I have heard is just preposterous …" 😆

"After the spending round, we are still going to be spending £700bn of public money – more than we are now."

Nick Clegg, in TJ's above link.

The article doesn't support your claim that Clegg or Cameron have said there will be 25-40% cuts, but that they've asked for cuts of that level to be worked out.

Find a quote – them actually saying it, not what the press office or a civil servant has said.

Oh, and another top tip – get a trackball. Logitech make good ones, and they avoid the problem of old folks positioning the cursor where they want, then lifting their hand off the mouse and stabbing the left mousebutton as hard as they can.

You'd do better with 10 pints of bitter, a packet of pork scratchings and a knee trembler.

I'd go with Molgrip's suggestion. My mum used Debian for years, again, setup with a fairly simple OS. I never had to fix anything.

Now she has Windows. 🙄

IMO even with Windows in a hugely locked down state, it's a nightmare for people who don't know anything about IT – too many status messages, virus scanners, virus updates, things that you can't update without logging in as administrator etc.

Linux is functionally inferior to Windows in terms of the software available etc. but that's not really relevant to someone who can barely keep a PC running. Functioning rather than breaking or bamboozling is far more important!

TJ, if they've repeatedly said that in public, there will be newspaper articles. I'm not calling you a liar, but this is going round in circles.

Could one of you please prove the other wrong?

Well, I really like my Nevegal DTCs. 😆

it mystifies me as to why the RAF have the BBMF and concentrate all their "heritage" effort on one distinct period.

I suspect it's because there are very very few people who will complain about the Battle of Britain. There will be plenty who see the Vulcan as a pretty grim machine – after all, it was designed to deliver nukes.

Is there only one still flying now?

There weren't any a while ago. There was a massive restoration project to get back one the air. It costs an insane amount of cash just to keep airworthy.

So you are saying that departments have been asked to find 25% savings, but they won't actually get implemented?

I think his point is that the cuts are in real terms – ie, adjusted for inflation. Simply not increasing budgets in line with expected inflation each year is in effect a cut.

As for the VAT increase, it's well known that it will hit C2D&E hardest. I'd be interested to see how an average individual ends up overall considering the changes to income tax thresholds, which should help C2D&E the most…

better measurement

Different measurement. Lumens measures total light, Lux and Candlepower bias towards focussed light (that's my very rough understanding). As a result, you can have something with a very tight beam, poor total lumens, but high Lux / Candlepower – say a focussed maglite. On the other hand, you could have a very powerful light with broad beam, but it would have poor lux numbers.

Which one is better depends very much on what you want the lamp for.

As for NV kit – I suspect all the best stuff is classed as military equipment and not available to Joe Public!

Surely if we just killed all the elderly and infirm, then possibly the unemployed, we'd be out of this pickle in no time

I believe that's DC's next strategy, he's currently working with Lady T on a method for raising the dead. Genuine Social Darwinism will ensure that only the fit and well connected can survive the zombie hordes.

What does an itemised bill cost? A couple of quid? Easily worth it to see why you're getting insane phone bills.