louisiana

3) Do you accept that whilst the crime solving benefits of surveillance are considerable, there must surely be a level at which the costs to an individual's privacy and sense of freedom outweigh the potential benefits? "Absolutely. But I have to take on board the views of good people I represent and deal with every day who often have committed their lives to improving their communities. If they tell me that their area needs CCTV simply to secure evidence to use against people who are making the lives of hundreds of people a misery through anti-social behaviour or open drug dealing I will side with them. But the provision of CCTV should be proportionate and subject to review." Jowell is avoiding the question. Surveillance is not CCTV. See some of Henry Porter's comments on the Labour manifesto: "In this barely plausible document, which makes the astonishing boast: "We are proud of our record on civil liberties", there is nothing to remind us of the intrusions of state databases, the mass surveillance planned for our email, phone calls and internet usage, the new measures to allow secret interception of mail by the taxman, the attack on jury trial, the half-million people who came under some sort official surveillance last year, Britain's alleged involvement in torture and rendition?" http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/apr/18/henry-porter-manifestos-election Take a look at Terri Dowty's summary document concerning gathering of info about children 'Privacy Guide for Parents': http://dl.dropbox.com/u/626993/PrivacyGuideforParents.pdf (prepared as part of the background materials for Erasing David)

DulwichResident Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Wasn't the Lib Dem share of the vote in 2005 22.1% > rather than the 19% you mention? (BBC website) I think you are confusing "national polls" and "share of the vote". They are not the same thing, are they?

And he has people like Philippa 'gay demon cure' Stroud in his party: http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/may/02/conservatives-philippa-stroud-gay-cure

KD Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > TJMP Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > HAL9000 Wrote: > > > -------------------------------------------------- > > > ----- > > > KD - I'm familiar with the type of behaviour > you > > have described. > > > > > > I know of cases where Tessa Jowell, her > > conservative predecessor Gerald Bowden and > Harriet > > Harman have blanked > > > constituents who raised allegations against > > medical practitioners, lawyers and police > > officers. > > > > > > I think most politicians and social elites > know > > whose back to scratch and what to leave well > > alone. > > > > HAL9000 - That's a serious allegation and, I > > think, entirely untrue. I certainly have > followed > > up a whole host of allegations against doctors, > > lawyers and police officers on behalf of > > constituents. I take the view that if a > > constituent has raised the matter it should be > > properly investigated. > > > > If you PM me with details or email me direct - > > [email protected] - with details of any > > examples, I will look at them as soon as > > possible. > > > > Tessa > > > ------------------------------------------- > > Sorry, I have emailed Tessa Jowell MP (a lot) and > that?s not her email Address. > > KD Oh yes it is: during the pre-election period parliamentary email addresses are not valid any longer and incumbents have to provide a different, non-parliamentary email address.

Today's Labour mail drop: a large glossy colour leaflet and a fake letter in a window envelope. I *hate* window envelopes (have to tear them apart to recycle the paper part).

And what will happen to prices in Greece? One thing that has struck me in Hania (Crete) and on other islands is how high prices of basics are e.g. food (same thing happened in Spain with euro; some people clearly making a killing). A major cause of the unrest and rioting in Hania and elsewhere has been high prices, the cost of living, compared to average private sector wages. Being in the euro is not going to help matters at all as the economy is further squeezed.

Thanks Jonathan. Your responses really do help us understand not just what you think, but how you think.

Hurrah! I withdraw my comments. (See Debate thread for Lib Dems).

Arrogant, rambling, annoyed everyone.... This is starting to not look good. I'd love to hear views from anyone else who was able to attend the hustings. More than anything, I'd love to hear from Jonathan, just to see whether the reality fits with the reports, or not.

Check out candidates' agreement or otherwise with a range of local statements and a range of national statements: They Work For You's new home page http://www.theyworkforyou.com/ Type in your postcode... For D & WN, so far only Shane Collins (Green) has his posted. You can use the tool to encourage the other candidates to respond. This is part of a national initiative by volunteers.

I also suffer from tinnitus. I would suggest that tinnitus is relatively easy to cope with, or mine is at least, as the pitch and volume are always exactly the same, it's just a constant; and you can blank out a constant. But of course everyone's tinnitus is different. With the planes, what you hear does seem to depend on a lot on different factors. Obviously prevailing wind (which determines whether they are there in the first place!); but for example also aspect. My bedroom and office are north facing and the noise there is much louder. The south side does get the City Airport planes but they tend to be smaller and quieter. I could move my bedroom to the front of the house (facing hill and south) but that would be extremely expensive (moving kitchen, boiler, gas etc.) and would mean I'd have a ground floor bedroom on the public highway, and I don't think I'd be comfortable with that. Atmospheric conditions is obviously another factor. And what the plane is doing yet another. A plane that is turning, banking, however gently, seems to generate a lot more noise than one travelling in a straight line. Or maybe this is just affects *where* the noise is heard. And if you've got pneumatic drills going outside, or live next to a school or on a very busy road, then obviously you're not going to notice planes. In recent times I've been involved in house hunting in the SE for someone looking to buy a country estate. For every property the flight paths were examined, and a mental note taken of actual noise experienced on the ground. If you are standing in open countryside with hundreds of acres of woods and fields around you (no roads, no neighbours) and you have to raise your voice to 'loud' ever few moments as the planes go over, then it's certainly going to be a problem achieving the peaceful life. There are a surprisingly large number of places affected. Some properties were turned down mainly for this reason.

Ah, that seems helpful. How strange that it's not on DVLA site (which oddly comes very very low on search engines). Good point MP.

BARA Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Perhaps Jonathan would rather spend his time > actually meeting the electorate in person. Having > come second in the last General Election - > overtaking Kim Humphreys the Tory candidiate, > Jonathan obviously feels that the personal touch > is more important to him and his team. The LD > team have been working hard in both College and > Village Wards as far as I can see. > I was in the Village Ward yesterday and saw some > LDs going round talking to people, plus loads of > orange posters. > > BARA had a hustings last week for East Dulwich > Ward, only the labour candidates and Jonathan > turned up, no sign of the Torys or the Greens who > had personal letters and also their party was > emailed in March. > > On the same evening the Herne Hill Society held > hustings relating to the Environment. Local > Churches are arranging hustings for the DAWN > candidates - you just need to look out for the > various notices around the constituency. Since > Jonathan is a councillor - he spends a fair time > on his emails etc I would imagine so may be glad > to get out and talk. > James has already given his ( Jonathan )email - > you can always contact him. Dear "BARA" I have no idea who or what BARA is (it seems to be both a person and a thing, from your post). "Jonathan obviously feels": well, I take it that you are Jonathan's alter ego, as you clearly are able to read his mind. I haven't seen Jonathan around these parts and feel I am unlikely to. Hence my interest in him addressing residents via the forum. I would venture to suggest that a forum contribution - addressing thousands of local residents on any given day - would take around five minutes, the time it takes to "actually meet" one person or so. While "actually meeting" the same number of people would take months or years. Mr Mitchell does not seem to be showing good judgment in making effective use of his time. This is causing me to start having serious doubts about him as a candidate. One of the serious issues we have with current members of parliament has been their largely dreadful relationship with (and understanding of) communications technologies. I was hoping for better from Mr Mitchell.

Does anybody have any experience of surrendering a driving licence? (medical grounds) Apparently surrendering may be better than revoking, for the driver, but I can find nothing about the whys and wherefores on official websites (and much of DVLA website seems to point to other websites).

Cat poo on my front step. I don't have a cat.

James Barber Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Hi SteveT, > Dulwich & West Norwood Parliamentary seat has 8 > wards and roughly East Dulwich Forum covers one of > them with bits of the Camberwell and Peckham > parliamentary seat. Hi James Many of us on here live in the other wards of the constituency - not ED ward. I live in College ward. Many others live in Village ward. This is not, after all, 'East Dulwich Ward Forum'. It is the most significant online forum for miles around - until you get to Urban 75 (Brixton) for example. It has thirty times the traffic of Virtual Norwood, for example. I'm sorely tempted to vote Lib Dem this time - but finding it a little strange that the candidate is not even waving and saying hi on the most significant online forum in the constituency where he is seeking to be elected.

expat Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > >Police sirens happen once in a blue moon. > Not where we live they happen all the times as > well as the ambulances. > > >An aircraft free day once a month. Perhaps the > first Sunday of every month. > And who would foot the bill to the country and the > airlines? They estimate each airline loose about > ?130 Mill. each day they do not fly. Airlines are not charities. They are not owed a living by anybody. And at present, they are not paying for their externalities, on this and on other counts. We should all be sending them a bill for the sleep disturbance of hundreds of thousands of Londoners week in, week out. Then they might review their behaviour.

ratty Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I honestly cannot beleive that people can hear the > planes that much. Police sirens and lorries are > twenty times louder! I've noticed a massive increase in aircraft noise since first moving here in mid 80s. The worst ones are perhaps the 4.30-5.30am planes that come in one after another: there's no gap in the noise between them: as soon as one starts to fade the next one is coming in. Then the late night ones, when the ambient noise level is low. Police sirens happen once in a blue moon. Lorries I never hear. Pneumatic drills are sporadic. But aircraft noise is continuous. I really enjoyed the break from it. Enjoyed the ability to have silence, and not to have to turn on the radio to mask the aircraft noise. And to be able to sit in the garden listening only to the birds.

lilolil Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > It is the alley/passage that leads from Lordship > Lane Estate to Dulwich common. It starts inbetween > LLE ad BT exchange in Lordship Lane and comes out > close to Dulwich Park. Correction: it leads from Lordship Lane (not LL estate) to Dulwich Common, with entrance onto the park. If you lived where I live (NOT LL Estate), you would use it to access the park, whether walking or on a bike.

Thanks Just need to find out now whether they have any secure bike parking for a couple of days...

I've checked out rail (which I have to bus to) and they want me to buy two different tickets for the trip. Now that's a bit mad. Is there a good bus, or should I get my bike out?

niledynodely Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I was interested in this article by Minette Marin > http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnist > s/minette_marrin/article7060971.ece#comment-have-y > our-say > > where I found the following paragraph: > > "Harman?s thinking, like the feminist orthodoxy in > the government, is based on the following > assumptions, which have always seemed quite wrong > to me. > First, that all women want to work (for money, > outside the home). Second, that all women, > including mothers, ought to work. Third, that all > women want to do and are equally suited to doing > the same work as men. Fourth, that if the number > of women working in an organisation is less than > 50% of the total, that is in itself evidence that > women are being unjustly discriminated against. > Fifth, that motherhood is a problem that makes it > difficult for women to work. Sixth, that the > problem of motherhood can easily be fixed by paid > childcare, subsidised if necessary by the state. > Seventh, that what all mothers want above all is > ?affordable childcare? to enable them to work: > children don?t need much of their attention. And > finally, that it is for the state to sort out all > such family matters" > > I would really like to know what truth there is in > these assumptions and so have translated them into > 8 questions. Any responses to any of the questions > would be much appreciated! > > 1. Do you want to work (for money, outside the > home)? There's all kinds of assumptions there already. Want vs need? Home-office-based workers? (e.g. consultancy of many kinds, writers and editors) I would love to say I don't want to work *and* I don't have to. But I do have to work, though I don't want to. And I work from home.

???? Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Peter Mandleson describing it as 'all rather > grubby' has me pissing myself laughing at the > front of the sleazebag I think Mandy's meaning here is that it's a little grubby to be doing anything for less than a six-figure sum. A little like scrabbling for dropped pennies on a dirty pavement. Or shoplifting from Primark.

I discovered some moths inhabiting a tin in the kitchen. Ugh. But as soon as I threw that out the problem seemed to go away. I suppose wherever they are breeding...

SeanMacGabhann Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I suspect you are the only person who has written > to her this week > > probably > > And still she won't respond eh? > > tsk > > I know this bill has generated enormous amounts of > debate and traffic - I've registered my own > protest as well, but I'm not sure what kind of > meaningful response you can expect from tess at > this point, within a week The way that most other MPs are responding to their constituents. Which is to say they are referring the matter to the minister or somesuch. I mean, any response would be better than none.