Sounds like b*llox.

In what way? The guy seemed genuine, or are you talking about the way he was treated by his employer?

:lol: @ Ernie

I did see a marked increase in 'able bodied young men' doing dying swan acts when the new rules came in on disability/fitness to work. Someone obviously had the bright idea that a visit to A&E must mean that they are unfit to do any work whatsoever :evil:

Big Bloke is right and it's a common scenario. I was talking to a tradesman a few weeks ago who had worked for the same firm for 20 years and was made redundant in favour of foreign workers who had been there for 1 or 2 years. They were paid the same rate but apparently the employer saves on National Insurance contributions.

I wasn't aware of this 'employer benefit', does anyone know if it's true ?

Tried that plastikote but it looked like it had been painted on by a 3 year old with a wire brush. Must be me :oops:

Were the original forks knackered?

What spray paint did you use as I can never get a decent finish with cans ?

Like it BTW :wink:

What's more worrying is that they had to allow him to try again…..

…..""We passed on relevant safety advice and advised him that the best way to Southampton would be by train. However, he said he would get some fuel and get underway but asked us if he went left or right when he came out of the Swale."

It is unknown whether the man made it to Southampton. " :lol:

For 11 years this has been the case… then a single moment of madness

Hats of to you both for still retaining that level of urge after 11 years…….but at the same time, only once in 11 years 8O

Junkyard wrote

EDIT: yes davidr that is the kind of attutude that will make them want to engage positively with society

On the contrary, they are very happy to engage positively with society and take full advantage of education, health services etc. Problem is that they haven't quite comes to terms with the taxation aspect which enables them to enjoy these services!

He's just gone into her house to point out the error of her ways…….

……..or grovel :roll:

Dame Duffy if she comes out to meet the press and says how wonderful he is ?

Whichever way you look at it, he has probably alienated a sizeable proportion of core Labour voters.

ie.
Granny
Working class
Labour voter because she has always voted Labour, as has the rest of her family
Concerned about immigration
Concerned about unemployemnt
Concerned about education of her grandchildren

Asked a reasonable question (albeit with 'undertones') and then only says what he really thinks when he is talking to a flunky.

My take is that he is happy to take the votes and tolerate these 'uneducated peasants' as long as they toe the line and allow him to continue to discuss 'proper' issues with those he perceives to be worthy of his time.

Right-wing press.

The BBC are virtually looping it. Hardly 'right wing'!

It would be a shame not to do winter as well :?

She was probably a bigoted woman.

Of course she must be, having the audacity to challenge the PM and screw up his carefully arranged 'people' visit :roll:

Yes, he's just said that and claims it was because he wasn't allowed to answer the question which was apparently re eastern europeans.

The sound ecitors will be working overtime as the conversation was a bit garbled originally and there were inaudible parts on the live transmission.

BBC news now. He's squirming like a good'un.

Looks interesting but dodgy on several levels !

Loved this bit

"The Sibher Pass route, which takes travellers through some unforgettable landscapes, is currently being flattened and widened by hundreds of workers, most of whom were last week inexplicably wearing fluorescent orange Royal Mail jackets. "

Don't mind it if there is space to get past (which there usually is) it's the ones who turn the bike square to the trail so they don't have to look over their shoulder that get me. I don't get too het up about it though as I'm usually glad of a breather at any opportunity :o

Same thing happens on the piste but usually it's a bit wider.

I would seriously advise him that helmets are only for gay losers and would point him in the direction of the narrowest, rockiest DH chute with no escape route/chicken run.

Should do the trick :wink:

Don't think the levers should make any difference as long as they are for 'v' brakes. Used mine with standard Avid levers and also Dia-Compes on drops and very impressed with power and modulation.

Make any adjustments via the caliper and not on the lever cable adjuster.

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."

I love that Ghandi quote.

Ghandi !!!! :lol: :roll:

As for those who start their own businesses – more tricky – but we can flesh out the finer details once I'm nearer to seizing power.

ahem
""Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."

Talky – it was mildly entertaining the first time……not anymore :roll:

OTOH there's not been a lot of discussion of the Poll Tax here yet. That was fair wasn't it?

………………….runs off to cut wrists………

This very statement reveals the extent to which right-wing thatcherite ideologies have affected the minds of people…

This very statement reveals the extent to which left-wing Marxist ideologies have affected the minds of people…

I would still preferred to have had a choice rather than felt pushed into having to change – does that make sense?.

I agree with that BM. My situation was similar in that I didn't have much choice in the matter and it was a career path I wouldn't ordinarily have considered but I'm very glad it's panned out the way it has. :D

Quite right Edukator, this is, after all a cycling website. So can someone please find Hora a roadbike as a matter of priority.

I give it 2 weeks before it's back on the classifieds as either 'not for me' or 'bling upgrade required' :wink:

So much hatred and vitriol from people against Thatcher and her govenment of the time seems to me to be rather disturbing as well as being quite pointless.

Valid points Bikingcat and I totally agree. I suspect some of the posters on here weren't even around to know what it was actually like at the end of the last labour government.

What I find interesting is that we are only now getting a balanced thread. Most of the time on STW you get the impression that anybody who is not (far) left of centre has to be so socially inept that they don't deserve a vote and anyone who disagrees has to be a moron or morally corrupt. Maybe it's because most of the 'lefties' are mouthy gits with more time on their hands to bang on endlessly about a utopian ideal instead of getting on with it. Classic example is union meetings/training. Expensive hotels, worthy talks but what will they have achieved at (considerable) members expense – usually fuckall :roll:

I was named after a famous general which my father served under – and he wasn't British.

Eisenhower?

Sadly, people are increasingly blind to the social contract (let alone old fashioned shit like communities and mutual support) and are only concerned with self-preservation and their own immediate gratification.

Yup

Another legacy of Thatcher.

Really? Most of the people I meet with that sort of attitude are as far removed from Thatcherism as it is possible to get. Are you really saying that it was entirely her fault or simply that she created the environment for an inherently greedy population to pursue their non-altruistic goals unchecked?

Edukator

Are you Hora's intelligent brother? You are wasted in France m8, you should be writing speeches for Dave 8)

But aren't double barrelled names increasingly common due to women not necessarily taking the husbands name in marriage? No big deal nowadays IMHO.

Annunziata is quite a different story and Willy should be ashamed of himself ……… 8O

I must be getting old. I had to turn the sound off and then all I could think of was 'I hope that bird doesn't scratch the tank with those heels' 8O

You still see sports people wearing them occassionally, rugby players etc. probably as they are wearing a gumshield.

Haven't they also been 're-marketed' as an anti-snoring aid?

Tron

I'm not familiar with Derby (I live 3 miles from Durham) and I'm not saying it's all rosy. There are still some very poor areas (eg. Easington where Billy Elliot was filmed) but there were 'poor areas' even when the mines were operating. The NE was hit very hard with the demise of shipbuilding, mining and steel to name but a few, there has been a good deal of regeneration and influx of new business and overall things are better. IMHO of course. :wink:

Towns that used to rely on mining are still fairly grim places, over 25 years on from the miner's strike

I live in a former pit village and work primarily in a former pit town. I can assure you that it is far from grim. I didn't live in the area 25 years ago but from talking to colleagues, film footage etc etc. I would say that, on the whole, things are considerably better than they were when the area was reliant upon mining.

Konabunny

I'll keep my eyes open for some of these middle class IT spods in the next few hours and let them know that they should be 'down the pit' doing a proper job instead of enjoying the countryside. :wink:

Follow me it's easy…………..

…..said to me by a 12'ish year old on shonky old rust heap of a bike with one brake before taking me down a steep, wet, rooty trail which ended with a completely 'hidden' ramp launching you across a 6' wide gully. 8O

He then gave my bike a pitying look, followed by " I'm getting a new bike with gears for my birthday!

From a non-political point if view, I for one am not sorry to see the back of the coal industry. It is rare that I have to treat someone with pneumoconiosis nowadays, for the simple reason that the vast majority are dead!

Regardless of which political side of the fence you sit, the standard of living has improved immensely. Whether that is despite the best efforts of the Tories and entirely due to the wonderful work of socialists is a risible argument and one I'm pretty bored with, especially coming from the armchair (particularly 'leftie') pundits on here who are so blinkered they tend to ignore +ve and -ve aspects of both political camps to suit their arguments.

I will be out on my bike in an hour or so, breathing in relatively clean air on a rolling green countryside, something which could not have happened a few years ago.

THEN
NOW

even some great roadie action on the TV to watch?

That would cheer me up, as long as it wasn't backstage at a Marilyn Manson gig :wink:

It's all this bloody politics and crap long winter. It's sunny today, Call me Dave will be in power in couple of weeks and everyone will be pedalling around gay as a daffodil :lol:

As Raouligan says and you can't go far wrong. Which part of Durham are you starting from ?

You could try and find the Neil Gander Book. He used to post on here as Goosey but don't know if he's still around ?

Damned near gave myself a heart attack trying to keep up with him on the hill from Lanchester up to his house 8 or 9 years ago :o

Oh, I assumed it was an "old" performance.

You assumed correctly and it's me who is 'tired' :oops:

Watching it now – excellent