Penguin68

Every week I (my family) generate about a bin and a half (or more) of rubbish (of one sort or another) - often made up of 'unnecessary' packaging. I am lucky; as someone of fixed abode, Veolia comes round each week to collect and dispose of the rubbish for me - as a community charge payer I also get free access to waste collection sites to dispose of other rubbish, or can pay for Southwark to collect bulky items. Travellers are excluded from these services (which I acknowledge they don't pay for anyway) - but they will still, in normal life, be generating rubbish at least at the rate I do. I do not excuse their fly-tipping - but it should be acknowledged that their options are limited. Better rubbish collection services can be organised on permanent traveller sites, but these are few and far between. Whilst we marginalise travellers we cannot be surprised if they marginalise us - caring as much for our sensibilities as we clearly do for theirs.

Often there are children studying in the library - it is possible that staff may have been warned about people wanting to photograph children and could have extended this to a blanket ban. As regards copyright - there may be issues where stuff is photographed and then put on to e.g. social media - which is a form of re-publishing. I have recently seen a number of re-published texts from books on my feeds. This would be different from e.g photocopies taken for private study.

Irish Travellers are a sub group of the Irish - one is contained within the other. So whereas all Irish Travellers are Irish, it is not true that all Irish are Irish Travellers. Simples. New Age apart there are only two key groups of itinerant workers who travel with their own accommodation, rather than relying on accommodation provided where they are to work. Irish Tinsmiths are one group - but the largest group (historically) of Irish Itinerant workers - Irish Navies, working first on canals and later on the railways, did not travel with their own accommodation.

Are these travellers of the Roma ethnicity? If not, the criticisms here are not directed at a race, but are directed at itinerant, nomadic people Apart from New Age Travellers (who you don't see around here) - travellers are either Roma or Irish. Attacking either can be seen as a race-based hate crime.

This is just going to go on isn't it? - as each tenant leaves, they remember that they have 'paid' for previous tenants' fly-tipping through their maintenance charges, so see doing it themselves as just getting their money's worth/ money back. Why would they want to pay twice (for the cost of removing other people's rubbish and then the cost of disposing of theirs). The maintenance charges can almost be seen as 'paying in advance' for dumping your rubbish when you go.

I think there's two issues here. I think there's a third issue as well - if these people were attacked by a group of school kids - including throwing stuff which is hardly lessening the litter problem - then this is unacceptable. Someone must have suggested to the kids, perhaps other kids, that these were 'deserving' victims. It sits with other attacks on the strange or foreign (people not like us) which are at least being reported now more frequently following the Brexit vote, and may even be happening more frequently. Whatever we think of the anti-social fly tipping actions of (some) travellers this behaviour must be seen as wrong. I hope the children, and their parents, feel some shame (although I suspect they won't). If they don't, then I certainly feel ashamed that these children come from the community in which I live.

http://thetab.com/uk/newcastle/2016/10/05/one-man-arrested-killer-clown-craze-spreads-newcastle-21011

As described by the OP it is possible that the problem may be age related - (one neighbour is in her 'late eighties') - forgetfulness leading to flooding, irascibility - all of these can be symptomatic of fairly common age related degeneration - in which case 'talking things through' is not really going to be an option. [Even loud noises, I assume music although this isn't stated, could be a function of poor hearing and sounds turned up so they can be heard]. If I am right - I hope I'm not - then there are real dangers associated with the possibility that, rather than a sink overflowing, a hot plate may be left on and burning. Are there younger people (i.e. younger family members) that can be contacted? It is possible that this is not really a case of a Problem Neighbour, but of a neighbour with very real problems.

because instead of seeing the life of their parents as a culture that goes back centuries, he sees it as a 'lifestyle choice' instead. That's certainly true of Romany travellers (possibly originating in or around the Indus Valley), and to some extent of Irish travellers (itinerant tinsmiths - known as 'tinkers' a name now seen as insulting rather than descriptive) - but it is less true of New Age Travellers - for whom this was a 20th century life-style choice.

I think what was being referred to was the disruptive effect (on teaching) of having children of very different levels of attainment (not capability) being taught together - not that these children were themselves disruptive.

Its a pop up over the Xmas run in. "Little Baby Cheeses" I so wish that were true...

All schools have a system in place for the many Children who cannot keep up with an institutional Learning, for whatever reason the child has difficulties. It is not that traveller children 'cannot keep up' with institutional learning, it is that they have not had the opportunity to do so. It would do them no service to place them with children who do have learning difficulties, and who need quite different styles of teaching, which may be wholly inappropriate for them. The initial point was made that they were automatically placed in their actual age group, when assessment might suggest they were better placed with children who were younger, but who otherwise needed no additional educational support.

So three chains/franchises replacing 3 indies? The problem with independent outlets is that, when it comes for the owners to retire/ move on there will be no continuity - obviously there are 'family' businesses (Le Chandelier, in its declared ownership was technically one of those) - but the family may not actually wish (or be able to afford) to continue the business. Le Chandelier had its remaining lease on sale for some time - so the business was always aiming to close anyway. Chains/ franchises offer continuity of delivery. When you have true independents then almost inevitably you will get (eventual) change. This only doesn't happen when an owner is able to sell the business as a going concern to someone else - but even then you get change. Both Le Chardon and Le Chandelier had formulae which were no longer (if they had ever been) cutting edge. They may not thus have been attractive businesses to buy into as going concerns (and I don't think Le Chandelier was ever offered as such).

is caused by travellers children not being able to keep up with your level of teaching, Surely the issue here is that traveller's children's education is very disrupted (necessarily) and thus that they may well not be at an equivalent age level (in terms of what they have been taught) to children in regular education. This makes no judgement (as far as I can see) about innate ability, but rather more about actual time spent learning. The less time you have exposed to teaching, the further 'back' you might be expected to be.

Le Chandelier is becoming Spinach - which I believe focuses on, but does not offer exclusively, vegetarian style cooking.

Overgrown hedges are of a particular Hazard to Blind people who are likely to walk straight into them. For anyone who doesn't know, there is a home for the blind/ partially sighted at the Forest Hill end of Underhill. Residents often walk locally, particularly (obviously) up Underhill.

They think they can do more than they actually can and come off worse than if they'd done nothing. Takes a long time to be effective. I was trained (in self defence, not formal 'martial arts) , many many years ago, by a former (wartime) Royal Marine Commando RSM. His advice was 'run first' - but if you have to fight make sure the opponent doesn't get back up. But unless you keep up practicing these skills (I definitely don't) running and screaming seem a good option. Just going to a class (or even classes) and then fancying your chances simply isn't a real option even only a few months afterwards.

If you need to use your phone (for instance for checking bus times, calling an Uber etc. (all of which are often station associated activities) it is best to stop, turn your back to the road (or have something between you and the road) and hold the phone close and firmly - all of which will tend to discourage the moped based thief. Also take account of your surroundings. Walking along the street blithely texting or checking social media only advertises your vulnerability. There are circumstances when phone usage should only be on a need to, not a nice to, basis. Of course we shouldn't have to be protecting ourselves from the malevolent - but needs must. Using your phone as a distraction from a commuting walk, for instance, may not be the wisest choice.

Rachman was a bullying slum landlord, exploiting tenants in existing slums which were hell to live in - rebuilding an existing building into 3 flats (which may be sold rather than rented) - and which don't seem in anyway to be now, or likely to be in the future, slums, isn't Rachmanism. The overseas taxation nature of the owner/ developer is an entirely different type of issue. Deplorable no doubt, but different.

How can the height of someone's hedge be of any relevance to a passer-by ? Ah, but what about a nosy passer-by? (and you are advised not to have hedges so high that a passer-by couldn't see someone trying to enter your property nefariously - but that's to your advantage not that of the passer-by) Additionally some local authorities do have bye-laws about hedge or wall heights.

I have had many good meals in Le Chardon (they did good deals at one time) although I have also had a metal staple in a piece of meat and broken glass in a salad - their lack of either apology or contrition was a marvel to behold. But the un-ordered items were 10 years or more ago - no problems (other than Parisian levels of service) since then. If the ownership is changing (as suggested by some) I hope that the basic food formula (glitches apart) remains.

some people rate rats quite highly as pets. Indeed, and these are bred from established blood lines -AND ARE VERY DIFFERENT from feral urban sewer (brown and back) rats - both carriers of (multiple) diseases (not their fault, but they are) and very destructive, which is - they will strip electrical insulation - causing fires - amongst other things. Feral urban sewer rats are simply in the wrong place - and getting rid of them is a necessity where they start to interact with us - which they do because we are their way of life. Very different from (large) field rats in e.g Vietnam, which are trapped and eaten.

My understanding is that Sainbury's is only prepared to give up prime parking spaces during relatively low use periods. Not surprisingly.

if we agree it's not acceptable for dogs or cats to die like that, why is it ok for rats? Because they are unwelcome, disease carrying vermin? Just a thought.

This topic is close to becoming Lounged. Why? because it goes down the predictable route of: Timely