HAL9000

A police officer told me three people had been stabbed - no fatalities. Peckham Rye Station was closed. So was part of Bellenden Road behind the station. The northern-most part of Rye Lane was opened by around 12:30.

It's supposed to be ironic, BTW. Since you ask about the other thread, the boys turned out to be younger than I had initially thought - so "little boys" is not inaccurate.

What part of "hypothetical question" do you not understand?

Hypothetical question: what if some bloke was caught taking surreptitious photographs of two little boys playing with a broken gardening tool and a wheelie-bin?

Loz Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I mean, do you seek further clarification before > replying to anyone here? I don't think the occasion as arisen since I've been on the ED Forum (until now, that is) but I have done so in the past. The post in question looked (to me) like a hastily typed, knee-jerk reaction from a protective mother in response to an emotive subject ? personally, I wouldn?t have launched a proactive attack under those circumstances.

RosieH Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Taking what Steph said at anything other than face > value would be jumping to conclusions. Did you miss the bit about seeking further clarification before jumping to conclusions? What Steph said doesn't quite make sense - it seems illogical: for example, why call the police before acting unilaterally? Without giving her the opportunity to rebut or clarify the inferred allegations, any conclusions drawn therefrom are based on assumptions. It's a matter of fairness - that's all.

It led to three posters jumping to conclusions without bothering to seek further clarification - hardly inspires confidence in their opinions, IMHO.

I've met Steph - my impression was of a well-spoken, kind-hearted and well-balanced young woman.

I admire your anal retentiveness. Your first attempt to politicise the argument failed miserably. Undeterred, you bounce right back with another mish-mash of verbal diarrhoea that merely demonstrates an even deeper lack of comprehension: unless you are trying to argue that I am more authoritarian that the majority of posters on this thread, you'd do well to stop digging. The fact that you are "disturbed" does not bother me at all. I'm entirely satisfied with the outcome: the boys were chastised ? end of. If you have a relevant and fresh issue to raise in this debate - go ahead. Otherwise find someone who was born yesterday to draw into a faux political argument.

Huguenot Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > If you reckon you're a leftie I don't. Where on earth do you get that idea from, anyway? I've visited enough police states to know that they can flourish at both ends of the political spectrum. > I bet you can't even spell Solzhenitsyn. I wouldn't class jumping to conclusions as delusional, but it's a step in that direction. In fact, I wasn't citing a political colour but rather referring to the psychological preferences and personality attributes known as Right-Wing Authoritarianism: Authoritarian submission ? a high degree of submissiveness to the authorities who are perceived to be established and legitimate in the society in which one lives. Authoritarian aggression ? a general aggressiveness directed against deviants, outgroups, and other people that are perceived to be targets according to established authorities. Conventionalism ? a high degree of adherence to the traditions and social norms that are perceived to be endorsed by society and its established authorities, and a belief that others in one's society should also be required to adhere to these norms. There's no doubt that these attributes characterise many of the opinions expressed within this thread.

It never occurred to me that they were doing anything illegal: I wasn't aware of the new knife laws. I was expecting the post to precipitate an interesting discussion about the moral decline of our society blah blah blah. Not a right wing backlash. We live and learn.

They sound like the sort of cats I'd like to own. I love the bit about humping the other cat and eating its food as well.

Pierre Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > It wasn't? So it's been edited to include the > parentheses? Why? It seems the Administrator changed the original title, probably because it was felt to be unsuitable in some way.

Ladymuck Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > HAL9000 Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > > I don't think I'd be so quick to share a similar > > experience with the forum again. > That's a shame... The reason I said that was because I was concerned that some busybody would report the thread to the police and I'd find them on my doorstep demanding a statement - or worse. > ...posters are virtually anonymous The police can identify virtually any poster's location within minutes via their IP address. This forum automatically logs every poster's IP address. Naturally, I agree with everything else you said :) Thank you for the kind words - I'm blushing.

This may help: St. Pancras Amenities

hpsaucey Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- >... that work in anti-gravity. I think you've just invented something far more interesting :)

jollybaby Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > surreptitiously include a group of arabs Been there, done that! I was caught photographing unveiled women in Damascus, Syria and almost lynched by a mob. My camera was smashed and I had to make a run for it. [i've edit this post to add that I was just photographing a souk scene which happened to have people in the shot - it wasn't done surreptitiously.] On another occasion I was arrested/rescued by the Police from a mob in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia after photographing a bizarre traffic accident where a dumper truck had got itself stuck under a flyover - the bystanders thought the photographs would be used abroad to humiliate Arab drivers! The police confiscated my film.

???? Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Is the camera by the knee and the run away a new > reportage technique? As an old school reportage photographer, I used a mechanical film camera (usually a Leica or a Russian look-alike) with near silent leaf shutter and a wide-angle lens preset for focus and exposure. From a standing start I could capture 'the decisive moment' in less than a second and be on my way before the subjects had even realised they'd been photographed. One cannot do that with a typical digital camera. It needs at least five seconds just to boot. By the time the auto-focus, auto-exposure, zoom and all the other bells and whistles kick in and then trying to frame the shot in a sunlit view screen - the opportunity has been and gone. Even if you get there in time, the shutter latency is more likely to snap a picture of ones shoes than the subject. Perhaps that is why the chap was shooting surreptitiously? A digital camera user would definitely need stealth to capture traditional reportage-style photographs today. [Having said that, the latest CMOS sensor technology is said to overcome most of the above latencies.]

If we had more covert police surveillance cameras, that might deter the miscreants? The police could finance the project via a pay-to-view website of the candid images they capture? Problem solved, I reckon. Win-win all round!

Perhaps we should all start wearing hoodies?

... Boldly he rode and well, Into the jaws of Death, Into the mouth of Hal Rode the nine thousand. Sorry, couldn't resist :)

The words of Dylan Thomas (supplimented by Nick Chopper) are quite apt. Anthem for Doomed Youth Willfred Owen (September - October, 1917) What passing-bells for these who die as cattle? Only the monstrous anger of the guns. Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle Can patter out their hasty orisons. No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells; Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs, ? The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells; And bugles calling for them from sad shires. What candles may be held to speed them all? Not in the hands of boys but in their eyes Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes. The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall; Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds, And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds. Time for bed said Zebedee.

An initial subjective reaction often gives way to a more objective view after due consideration. It is sometimes wise not to act on the knee-jerk reaction. I experienced this transition during the wheelie bin stabbing thread and was accused of appearing inconsistent.

HAL9000 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > None of the orbital lunar mappers have conclusively > identified any [Apollo] landing sites ... Lo and behold, a couple of low res images from the Reconnaissance Orbiter were published on July 15, 2009, just four days before my post! (See 2nd & 3rd links below.) I include three particularly interesting links if anyone else wants to read the latest on this subject: Apollo Moon Landing Hoax Accusers Apollo Moon Landing Hoax Conspiracy Theories Independent Evidence for Apollo Moon Landings

We just don't know who is photographing whom these days. The police have high-resolution cameras fitted with telephoto lenses all over the place: they can capture close up images from miles away. Shops are equipped with covert and overt security cameras. Tiny body-worn cameras are available on eBay: they are so small, they can be hidden in the toe of a shoe. Tiny cameras are ubiquitous in mobile phones and PDAs. YouTube features candid clips filmed in toilets and hotel rooms - harder material is available on dedicated spy cam porn sites. We are probably only aware of the tip of the surveillance iceberg. Can we turn back the technological clock? I don't think so.