Earl Aelfheah

Kind of surprised there isn't already a thread on this (unless I've missed it). What are people's views of what's going on? From what I can tell, the government are looking to take an already stretch service and stretch it further, without increasing the numbers of doctors, in fact actively driving many more out of the profession. I am not one to look for conspiracy where incompetence is nearly always a simpler and more likely explanation, but it does seem that both tactically and strategically, this has been handled so badly as to make one wonder... Is there something else going on?

There was a good debate on Radio 4's 'Any Answers', re. Brexit this weekend.

Unclegen - I support free schools and academies - the creation of many different providers is a good thing. But forcing academisation on successful schools who dont' want it however, is ridiculous (and very unconservative, as you wish to make this, like everything, into a pro tory political rant). It's moving power and decision making away from local communities and schools in order to centralise power in Whitehall.

Bit unfair on Fox there Seabag. He ran his own business, which isn't easy. From those plans it definitely looks like a restaurant which is great in my book. There are loads of convenience stores on the Lane.

Social media changes the scale of this stuff though. It was a really big crowd at tower bridge, in the thousands I would guess.

Forgive the typos, on my phone.

Did anyone see the thousands of kids cycling through central London yesterday, doing wheelies down the wrong side of the road, jumping lights and along the pavement? I saw a couple of very near misses. Apparently this is an extension of the motorbike / scooter thing, where kids cover their faces and ride on mass through town. All organised through social media and promoted via YouTube channels such as bikelife.tv.uk. The hashtag for yesterday's stunt was #bikestormz3 . These guys are really dangerous and the police don't seem particularly concerned with stopping it. They were about, but in very small numbers and keeping their distance. It reminded me a lot of the riots, the way that the police were just standing back. It wouldn't have taken much for somethings to kick off and they would have been powerless to stop it. A lot of the kids were putting themselves and others in danger, openly smoking weed and doing wheelies through pedestrian crossing as people had to jump out the way. All whilst the police just watched. It was a direct challenge to the polices authority IMO. Can't help speculating that the feeling of impunity will inevitably lead to escalation. Weird it wasn't reported in the news too.

Yeah, I'm not that impressed by Sadiq Khan, but Goldsmith's tactics have made pretty sure I'll vote for him. I think the attempts to imply that Sadiq Khan (who has campaigned against extremism, defied death threats to vote for same-sex marriage and stated publicly that he considers himself a feminist) is somehow allied with radical islamists is patently absurd and horribly cynical.

The passive aggressive posts wind me up, the ones that say things like "its tough when you find that you cant rely on the people you thought you could". Always followed by "you OK Hun? Message me" etc.

Otta Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > People holding vigils and > stuff for people they never knew is just odd, but > then again Christians do that stuff for Jesus > every year, so perhaps it's not so odd. That's an parallel with religion / religious dieties and death rituals.

???? Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- Anyone else concur or is it just me? I totally agree. Whilst I admired Prince and enjoyed his music, I didn't know him personally. It's sad of course, but some of the reaction seems extreme to me. Post Diana it's seems to have become the norm to grieve celebrity deaths as though they were part of your family.

It's probably not helpful to speculate. I hope no one was seriously hurt.

She's off shored it on her yacht. When the tax man approaches she sails away, sails away, sails away.

The constitutional club perhaps?

You say that kids wearing ripped jeans are acting like sheep, but they're still in the minority. Wearing regular fit chinos and a casual shirt (or whatever) is no less following a 'fashion' in the sense of it being conformity to a 'look'. It's silly to think that whatever one wears that it's not influenced by the norms and whims of others. Otherwise why would you not be wearing a comfortable moo moo and sandles?

I always thought Zac seemed quite principled / decent, but this latest attempt to insinuate that Sadiq is somehow 'dangerous' and 'extreme' is pretty awful.

Nice

If we crash out of Europe, who knows what'll happen.

It's so fashionable to be anti-fashion.

Is that an offer quids?

I agree that by taking out an injunction they have made it a much bigger story. I do have some sympathy with them however, in that this really isn't something which the press should have been publishing in the first place. It is a total invasion of privacy and potentially quite damaging to their family. I don't buy the argument that there is any public interest angle.

All nice pubs Help-Ma-Boab, although the Sylvan Post has bad acoustics.

Unless you're one of the tracksuited nitwits of course.

There can't be many people (at least amongst those who are interested) who don't already know the identity of the couple involved. The injunction seems a little ineffective. That said, I really can't see what the public interest angle would be on this one. Just tabloid salaciousness.

New Cross, Brixton, Peckham if you're more youthful than I. The white horse in Pecknam I quite like. There are some decent pubs in Dulwich too though. It's great how the whole of SE London is changing, with new places opening up all the time.