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He was found guilty of inciting racial hatred by a jury of his peers.

And yes, we take that pretty seriously over here.

But not, he notes, if a Muslim cleric says something bad about Jews or Israel. That's okay. Just not soccer players, yes?

You're correct that there was no jury but this was because he had admitted to the offense.

His lawyer would have warned about the possible consequences of this as that is part of their job.

As a UK citizen, I have to question the sanity of this judgement. The gentleman in question is suspended from Swansea University at present (and, of course, unable to attend as he is in jail). He has admitted being very drunk when he tweeted. He has admitted initially claiming that his twitter account had been hacked after realising what he had done.

It is hardly a good use of a prison place, or cost effective, or a deterrent to put a drunk student who has done something stupid in jail. If we did that to every drunk stupid student just in Swansea, we'd have jails overflowing even more than they are now, every night of the week.

A long period of Community service and a requirement to do a meaningful race relations awareness course and, perhaps, a ban from social networks and alcohol would have been more than sufficient. Jail? It serves no useful purpose in this case and is ridiculous, and I say that as someone who is usually for longer prison sentences for proper (meaning violent) offenders.

It now transpires that in fact, what I've just written, if it is considered to criticise the judiciary, may well be breaking the UK Law: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17522730 Now I hate Peter Hain as much as the next man, but that's law's more of an ass than he is.

He was found guilty of inciting racial hatred by a jury of his peers.

And yes, we take that pretty seriously over here.

That's funny. Over here, we call it running for president.

He was found guilty of inciting racial hatred by a jury of his peers.

And yes, we take that pretty seriously over here.

If you're going to be found guilty of something, it damn well better be justified, and the result of something like this is the difference between a crime and free speech. I guess I'm missing the part about the mass riots with hundreds lying dead or wounded in the streets. Perhaps you could help elaborate the justification here in laying out a sentence that will likely ruin a young mans life.

He was found guilty of inciting racial hatred by a jury of his peers.

And yes, we take that pretty seriously over here.

But, apparently, not freedom of speech.

Oh granted, the guy is clearly an asshole (even if he was drunk when he posted them). But I really don't think you should be imprisoned just for being a racist. He should get kicked out of school, sure, because the school doesn't want to be affiliated with someone who does that shit. But a criminal sentence for saying something? You do realize that it isn't a very big step between that, and a criminal sentence for saying anything a majority of people don't like, right? Can't have a democratic government without freedom of speech, and that includes the right to say hateful things, for good or for ill.

I realize the UK doesn't have laws protecting what he did. I'm saying maybe it should, because not having them is worse than this guy not going to jail, in the long run.

I made a similar submission this morning regarding this issue.

This guy is being prosecuting for making critical remarks about British soldiers.

These guys were sent to prison for encouraging rioting on Facebook.

The BBC has more information here.

Everyone believes that Democracy won the cold war over Communism, but given what's happening in the west today, how true is that?

He was found guilty of inciting racial hatred by a jury of his peers.

And yes, we take that pretty seriously over here.

Max Mosley.... his Nazi-themed orgies

That is exactly the reason why he is taking legal action. The whole Nazi themed bit was made up* by the News of the World to sell more news papers. Yet hear you are repeating it as if it were true. I'm no fan of MM - he may be a pervert but he's not a Nazi pervert.

* http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/24_07_08mosleyvnewsgroup.pdf

Page 54, section 232

Did Canal+ not already try to sue NDS over this back in 2002?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/1868140.stm
http://onhistory.co.uk/timeline/2002/03/12/tv-firm-sues-over-1bn-piracy-loss

we're on the edge of that. watch the video. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-17183890

Combined with the high noise level and it's a wonder they manage to make anything taste even remotely appetising.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11525897

Previous research has linked high noise levels, such as found on aircraft, with the perception of blandness in food. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11525897

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4251968.stm

The test dives all went well past the 8,000 meter mark and I'm sure the sponsors wanted the deepest point moniker attached to the venture. There are many mountains more challenging to climb than Everest but everyone want to go to the highest none the less.

All along he's said that it's about the science and having reached the deepest point I'm sure they'll be visiting those places that maximise the science. James Cameron says he does not want this dive to the deep to be a one-off, and wants to use it as a platform for ocean exploration.

Having reached the deepest point there is no where marked off limits and there are several other ventures out there on the same Race to the bottom of the Ocean quest.

The test dives all went well past the 8,000 meter mark and I'm sure the sponsors wanted the deepest point moniker attached to the venture. There are many mountains more challenging to climb than Everest but everyone want to go to the highest none the less.

All along he's said that it's about the science and having reached the deepest point I'm sure they'll be visiting those places that maximise the science. James Cameron says he does not want this dive to the deep to be a one-off, and wants to use it as a platform for ocean exploration.

Having reached the deepest point there is no where marked off limits and there are several other ventures out there on the same Race to the bottom of the Ocean quest.

I think it's entirely possible that this happens a lot more in Europe (which has relatively easily-crossed land borders with "third world hellholes") than the USA. I see articles about in in the news fairly regularly.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/6459369.stm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-14857004
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-14732841

I think it's entirely possible that this happens a lot more in Europe (which has relatively easily-crossed land borders with "third world hellholes") than the USA. I see articles about in in the news fairly regularly.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/6459369.stm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-14857004
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-14732841

I think it's entirely possible that this happens a lot more in Europe (which has relatively easily-crossed land borders with "third world hellholes") than the USA. I see articles about in in the news fairly regularly.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/6459369.stm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-14857004
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-14732841

I think you are getting your terminology mixed up, this is nothing about IMSI.
Instead, it's about IMEI numbers, which are sent from the phone to the celltower every time the phone authenticates with the service provider.

Yes, in theory that's what supposed to happen, and that's what I was initially told.

In actual practice, "10% of the IMEIs are not unique" according to BT, that's why the IMEI is usually factored with another (usually network-related) id to make sure a collision doesn't happen.

That's why I believe the term IMSI would be more appropriate in this case.

What's more, China has just forced lawyers to swear allegiance to the Communist Party.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-17470818

That's not just massively distasteful in regards to activists and regular people, that has enormous implications for doing business in China.

Business means contracts, and contracts means contract lawyers. Making lawyers hold allegiance to the Party and not the rule of law is a major spoke in the wheel of doing business with China. Australia has already found the current system is pretty shaky with the Rio Tinto "spy" debacle. That's enough to make Huawei unattractive, but with the business environment actually getting worse, forget it -- not interested at all.

Just be glad the Germans didn't win a medal . . . . I'm sure they had "Deutschland über alles" and the swastika flag prepared, too.

Quite.

Their Kampf - Hitler’s book in Arab hands.
Mein Kampf for sale, in Arabic

Hitler book bestseller in Turkey
Mein Kampf, best-seller au Qatar
MEIN KAMPF: Palestinkian Best seller
Mein Kampf: Best Seller on the Streets of Bangladesh
Hitler memorabilia 'attracts young Indians'

Hitler's book now available even in Kurdish

Henrik Ahrens, a German citizen living in Erbil and country director of Media Academy-Iraq, a German-funded academy for training and consulting media outlets in Iraq, says seeing Hitler's book in the bookstores of Erbil makes him disappointed, because it is the only book that has a connection to Germany in the market and it is pure Nazi propaganda. "I was living and traveling in other countries in the Middle East and I know that Hitler's book is a best-seller in many countries in the region. I felt that the success of Mein Kampf is related to the existence of Israel, a Jewish state, and a general anti-Semitism in the region. The Nazi ideology and its anti-Semitism match the irrational hate and prejudices of many people in the region. It's sad but true; many people can identify with its content."

Ahrens added that "Here in Kurdistan, it is a bit special because people consider themselves Arians. But the only ideology that distinguished the German people between Arians and non-Arians (Jews, for instance) was Hitler's Nazi propaganda. So, they feel like we're part of one family. But as a matter of fact, Germans didn't identify with being Arian before Hitler and they don't do it today. I guess that most of those who mention these common roots want me to feel welcome. But it actually makes me feel awkward. I feel very welcome, respected and well treated in Kurdistan and even in the non-Arian parts of Iraq."

The Al Qaeda Reader and Mein Kampf
Is today's Jihad a Nazi movement?"

Just be glad the Germans didn't win a medal . . . . I'm sure they had "Deutschland über alles" and the swastika flag prepared, too.

Quite.

Their Kampf - Hitler’s book in Arab hands.
Mein Kampf for sale, in Arabic

Hitler book bestseller in Turkey
Mein Kampf, best-seller au Qatar
MEIN KAMPF: Palestinkian Best seller
Mein Kampf: Best Seller on the Streets of Bangladesh
Hitler memorabilia 'attracts young Indians'

Hitler's book now available even in Kurdish

Henrik Ahrens, a German citizen living in Erbil and country director of Media Academy-Iraq, a German-funded academy for training and consulting media outlets in Iraq, says seeing Hitler's book in the bookstores of Erbil makes him disappointed, because it is the only book that has a connection to Germany in the market and it is pure Nazi propaganda. "I was living and traveling in other countries in the Middle East and I know that Hitler's book is a best-seller in many countries in the region. I felt that the success of Mein Kampf is related to the existence of Israel, a Jewish state, and a general anti-Semitism in the region. The Nazi ideology and its anti-Semitism match the irrational hate and prejudices of many people in the region. It's sad but true; many people can identify with its content."

Ahrens added that "Here in Kurdistan, it is a bit special because people consider themselves Arians. But the only ideology that distinguished the German people between Arians and non-Arians (Jews, for instance) was Hitler's Nazi propaganda. So, they feel like we're part of one family. But as a matter of fact, Germans didn't identify with being Arian before Hitler and they don't do it today. I guess that most of those who mention these common roots want me to feel welcome. But it actually makes me feel awkward. I feel very welcome, respected and well treated in Kurdistan and even in the non-Arian parts of Iraq."

The Al Qaeda Reader and Mein Kampf
Is today's Jihad a Nazi movement?"

Why be a douche about it? For one thing, you didn't even address the question. He did not ask: "Wow, this is neato! How can we apply this methodology to protecting starships?!!" He was asking about the use of magnetism in general to protect spacecraft from radiation. This is by no means a silly question or one steeped in ignorance. Instead, you went on a long tangent about the unsuitability of transient magnet fields and EM pulses -- relevant to the article but irrelevant to the question. I didn't even read your whole reply until I had read some of the responses to it. The problem was not with GP's question but rather with you.

The only reason I'm replying to this is because your post was one of the worst, most arrogant replies I've ever read on Slashdot. And that's saying a lot. Contrary to popular opinion, most scientists are quite humble when dealing with questions from the public. Humility gets instilled in you when everything you say is subject to scrutiny by equally or more knowledgeable peers. Your comment is more suggestive of a physics grad student rather than someone who has spent years working as a scientist.

If I read a copy of the "Anarchists Cookbook", am I now a terrorist?

Well, in the UK it'll get you a prosecution: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7030096.stm

He was found not guilty ( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/4059335.stm ) but another day...

If I read a copy of the "Anarchists Cookbook", am I now a terrorist?

Well, in the UK it'll get you a prosecution: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7030096.stm

He was found not guilty ( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/4059335.stm ) but another day...

The protein structures behind memory are beginning to be understood:

(Discovery of mBDNF) http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3747716.stm
(CaMKII association) http://www.jneurosci.org/content/31/25/9170.abstract?sid=e8ce0965-4b50-4ee4-913b-16d422f25230
(RNA handling of the proteins) http://www.newswise.com/articles/making-memories-how-one-protein-does-it

We're now very close to understanding how memories form and are activated.

"The fourth victim was Myriam Monsonego, seven, daughter of the head teacher, who was reportedly grabbed by the hair and shot in the head."

From: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17428860

Is that good enough for you? Cunt.

It looks like the Daily Mail actually did proper journalism there for once. There's some more recent BBC coverage of the same raid though, if that helps.

But in that case the intention/motivation/circumstances make a difference between being a criminal and not. In this case, both groups are criminals, the intention is irrelevant... at least, under English law, which is all I really know anything about.

The BBC's headline was particularly silly in this regard: "Data theft: Hacktivists 'steal more than criminals'" - as the BBC of all news groups should have someone available to point out that it's not stealing, and that hacktivists are criminals.

Of course, the whole story is rather silly as it seems to be based only on reported data breaches; presumably a hactivist breach is more likely to be noticed/reported than someone breaking in to take data for unlawful uses. They're more likely to want to keep the breach quiet so they can keep doing what they do.

Really? Have a look at the following links please:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16897068
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16759324
http://www.hotnews.ro/zoom.html?desc=Foto:%20Mediafax&imgUrl=http://media.hotnews.ro/media_server1/image-2012-02-10-11476127-41-oameni-izolati-glodeanu-silistea.jpg (yes, that is the roof of a house beneath the snow)

I have no idea where you live, but you don't really know what the winter was like in Europe. And there were sequences of days with temperatures below -20 C in various places (also note the cold record from the Netherlands mentioned in the first article).

Really? Have a look at the following links please:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16897068
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16759324
http://www.hotnews.ro/zoom.html?desc=Foto:%20Mediafax&imgUrl=http://media.hotnews.ro/media_server1/image-2012-02-10-11476127-41-oameni-izolati-glodeanu-silistea.jpg (yes, that is the roof of a house beneath the snow)

I have no idea where you live, but you don't really know what the winter was like in Europe. And there were sequences of days with temperatures below -20 C in various places (also note the cold record from the Netherlands mentioned in the first article).

BBC Worldwide made more than half of its (2009) revenue from abroad.

The aim (was) to generate two-thirds of revenue from abroad by 2012.

  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8149767.stm

Perhaps try the BBC article: Mercury has been 'dynamic world'

"Many scientists believed that Mercury was much like the Moon - that it cooled off very early in Solar System history, and has been a dead planet throughout most of its evolution," said Maria Zuber, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

"Now, we're finding compelling evidence for unusual dynamics within the planet, indicating that Mercury was apparently active for a long time."

Dr Zuber and her colleagues used laser measurements from Messenger to map out a large number of impact craters, and found that many had tilted over time. This suggests that geological processes within the planet have re-shaped Mercury's terrain after the craters were created.

A process called polar wander can cause geological features to shift around on a planet's surface.

In theory, the process of convection going on within the mantle could drive such changes. But Dr Zuber said this would be unusual in Mercury's case, because the mantle is so thin.

Another potential explanation could be that features on the surface were distorted as the planet's interior cooled and contracted. This fits in with observations that some surface features on Mercury have been exposed to high levels of stress.

One of the predictions of man made climate change is that Europe will get colder because the Gulf Stream will weaken: http://www.bbc.co.uk/climate/impact/gulf_stream.shtml I think it's clear we have some man made climate change going on here however I don't believe its possible to pin any specific weather event on it. How much is man made is up for debate and I really don't have any confidence that we have the individual or political will to make significant changes until and unless undeniable writing is on the wall that there is NO other course of action. People cling to what they want to believe if it fits there world view, especially if its in their short term economic interest. I guess getting older has made me a cynic :(

Android has voice dictation too hasn't it ? Plus it has to serve up all those mobile ads, so it might still use more data though not to the user's benefit.

I'm sure that as soon as selective breeding took place the result, it is no longer a natural process, but one that was influenced by humans.

Well, there's there's 'natural', 'normal', and 'un-natural' (and I don't mean the latter in the sense of some abomination).

Natural would be breeding in the wild -- whatever makes them do well and pass on their genes. This is what they do without us.

Normal would be breeding two horses in the hopes of trying to get one where you get a desirable trait for that breed. This is selective breeding. It's influenced by people, but it's not like it's ceased to be a natural process -- horses do occasionally get to mate and mares still give birth.

Un-natural is where you take things to an entirely new level. Goats which produce spider silk proteins, glow in the dark cats, venomous cabbage. No matter how hard you try to cross breed goats, or cats, or cabbages ... you can't really express any of those traits. It's just not there to be expressed, because it doesn't occur naturally in those kinds of things.

Still even if they did find a species, they could patent the proper way to cultivate it.

How? By describing what kind of plant species it is, what temperature and soil conditions it thrives in, what kind of acidity?

That's called gardening and botany -- I don't think you can patent those.

Do you think the world would be a better place without the US, the West, and the ability to project and protect principles of freedom and liberal democracy, even if imperfectly?

At what point did the US project or protect liberal democracy? We are more concerned with the profitability of our businesses than with the rights and freedoms of foreign citizens (sometimes we are even more concerned about business profits than with the rights or freedoms of Americans). How are we projecting liberal democracy in Saudi Arabia or Kuwait? How are we projecting liberal democracy in South America? How about Africa?

I know some people might be stunned to learn this, but the primary mission of the foreign intelligence agencies is FOREIGN intelligence.

Why would anyone be stunned by it? The real question is not whether the NSA is gathering foreign intelligence, but what is being done with that intelligence. We know little because of the secrecy; what we do know is this:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/820758.stm
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+REPORT+A5-2001-0264+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN&language=EN

What is that? Foreign intelligence operations being used to promote the interests of US businesses and harm the interests of their foreign competitors? We are really pushing liberal democracy with that one, right?

We only push for "democracy" when it coincides with favorable policies for US businesses, period. If a dictatorship is friendly to US corporations, we would never dream of trying to subvert the dictator or promote democracy. We put on a great show of things, criticizing censorship and other human rights abuses, but at the end of the day our foreign policy puts corporate interests first and foremost.

He lives in London. A car is probably the slowest, most annoying, and most expensive means of transport in this city. Even the car-loving Top Gear guys had to admit it.

I wouldn't be so sure. The Scottish Government is already proposing to ban cash payments for scrap metal, in an (in my opinion futile) attempt to combat the trade in stolen materials.

I wouldn't be surprised if this was the first in a long line of laws that will end up eliminating cash payments for most things, for the supposed sake of crime prevention.

I've been okay with the elimination of cash for things like parking meters or buses - anything where having a pocket full of change is generally required, or there's a logistical cost in accepting cash - and it's obviously not feasible to accept cash online, where a huge amount of business is done these days. But I think the outlawing of cash payments is a step too far.

Brits are using withdrawing money from ATMs more than ever. Let's face it, with card fees and lack of privacy, cash will never fully go away.

The summary specifically states that AND gives a link:

Not just a link but the same link and somehow he is rated +3 informative right now. I wonder if I can get +5 for this brilliant post

"Injured in crash which damaged the nerves in her arm, she has reached the limits that can what be accomplished with nerve transplants. She can move her arm but doctors have given up hope of restoring use of her hand. So she wants doctors to amputate the hand and replace it with a bionic version that does work."

The doctor, Oskar C. Aszmann, first performed a similar operation last year.

The summary specifically states that AND gives a link:

Not just a link but the same link and somehow he is rated +3 informative right now. I wonder if I can get +5 for this brilliant post

"Injured in crash which damaged the nerves in her arm, she has reached the limits that can what be accomplished with nerve transplants. She can move her arm but doctors have given up hope of restoring use of her hand. So she wants doctors to amputate the hand and replace it with a bionic version that does work."

The doctor, Oskar C. Aszmann, first performed a similar operation last year.

And it was also covered by the BBC.

http://www.physorg.com/news180722781.html
"Researchers have known for more than 20 years that a reaction by a patient’s own immune system against the artery wall can trigger a heart attack."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/274921.stm
"Heart failure may be caused by a malfunctioning of the body's immune system, according to new research."

there's a lot more out there.. google it...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17431109
"Due to restrictions built into Apple's mobile operating system, the team was unable to run tests on the iPhone."

they takin our jaaabs

Queue jumping rapists more like it

What other culture besides these muslims condone rape and force rape victims to marry their rapist?

http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/Quran/002-rape_adultery.htm

http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/travel/news/queensland-woman-tells-of-her-jail-hell-in-united-arab-emirates/story-e6freqwo-1226028684306&date=2011-03-27

http://www.stonegateinstitute.org/1856/bangladesh-sharia-brutality-raped-girl

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/jan/04/france.jonhenley1

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7708169.stm

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/sydney-nsw/sharia-law-applied-secretly-in-sydney/story-e6freuzi-1226057808947

and, of course, this is where it is all going to end up:
http://weaselzippers.us/2012/01/05/australia-islamic-leader-wants-to-implement-sharia-law-in-heavily-muslim-suburb/

Do you want to have these people in your country?

No, seriously. Australia takes all sorts of refugees from all over the world. Having thousands of muslims forcing their way in is not good.

Someone knocks at your door. Your daughter opens it. A muslim man bashes his way in and rapes your daughter. Your daughter is now forced to marry this rapist or face death by stoning. How do you feel about this?
Just don't say anything to your local cleric or you will stand in the pit with your daughter as they stone her to death.

If you think this is complete horse shit then you either need to read more about the topic, or go live in a muslim country for a while

Australia has taken in the English, the Italians, the Greeks, and a whole host of other countries. So far as I can see they are friendly and welcoming to just about anyone. But. Can you blame them for not wanting a bunch of self admitted rapists?

First, they say the network will be built in three years.

8 (diggers) * 0.1km / week * 52 weeks / year * 3 years = 41.6km 73 miles (117.5km)

But then, they said the project would complete 2018... so then it adds up... but still a little unclear.

The underground length is about 22 km, i.e. around 44 km of tunnel (one for each line). 3 years gives enough time for the tunnelling and ancillary work on the underground parts. Once that is done there's still building the stations (including connecting to the underground), laying the track etc, a lot of work on the existing suburban stations required, and aquiring the trains (something the Department for Transport are notorious for; the invitation to tender has only just been released and it's likely to be a touchy issue for the government) - hence the estimated 2018 date.

like the small one in Gloucester did last year... not only did they lose track of where it was, when they finally restarted it back on the correct path, it cut through a major telephone cable that hadn't been correctly identified on the maps they based the route on... (oh for heck's sake, my google fu is poor this afternoon... it was a major local news topic about it being lost, yet I can't find any of the articles now...)

That's sincerely reassuring then, and I thank you. I hadn't thought they could successfully reinforce tunnels a tenth of a kilometer wide.

Um, what?

The tunnel diameter is 6.2 metres, i.e. a bit bigger than the cross section of a train + emergency walkway. The new, underground station platforms will be 250 metres long (wow!) but still only ~18m diameter (my guess from the mock-up video). Presumably they've planned for enough space for most of the "some 1,500 passengers ... carried in each train at peak periods" to get off at a single station.

Tunnelling can cause problems though. For example, London's local Quake II level (see picture) required some special work to avoid the Houses of Parliament collapsing.