Interesting perspective you have. Where do you live?
The actions of the children are not because the parents don't give a shit - many parents (I'd guess most/almost all) care a lot about their kids. At the same time it's difficult to keep children permanently indoors, and it's pretty difficult to keep tabs on their outdoors activities. When both parents are out at work struggling to pay the bills (have you seen the rise in council tax/gas/electricity/water bills recently?) they're not around to look after the children.
So what are the kids meant to do? The green areas are all paved over or have 'no ball games' signs up. The roads aren't safe to play. There are few places to go in the evenings, especially if you're short on cash - and many people are short on cash.
Delinquency is almost inevitable.
DNA testing is indeed not the answer. Making the parents accountable may help, but may cause other problems - including potentially significant amounts of child abuse. ASBOs are a poor idea, poorly implemented and teach children not to respect the law and not to trust the Government.
I don't have the answers. I don't think it's as bad as you portray, and I don't think you're showing sufficient understanding of the environmental factors that lead to the situation we're in.
My grandfather liberated Bergen Belsen. My father fought in wars. Fuck, I was born in a war-zone, bullets rattling off the shutters. I grew up under terrorist attack.
Strangely I manage not to have nightmares. Many of my relatives died before I got to know them and it insults me when people pretend that knowing a "holocaust survivor" makes them special.
This isn't just a privacy breach. This is another step towards totalitarianism, and that does equate to fascism and does cause serious concern to many people. They aren't insulting the holocaust, they're identifying the initial steps that may lead to another and expressing a desire to avoid that path.
So fuck you and your self-indulgent nightmare fueled self-righteousness.
At the age of 3 I drove a pedal-car half a mile, found my sister in her school, got discovered by a teacher, waited until the head could borrow a van big enough for me, my sister and my pedal-car, got taken halfway home and found my mother who had noticed i was missing but kind of assumed i'd show up again soon enough.
She was right.
She'd also been shopping in the meantime. Lots of worrying there, sure.
Aged six we moved to a new country. First day at school, I was taken to school by my mother, then left to walk home alone at the end. A year later, I started catching the bus to (a different) school. No parental involvement, left the house alone, got home that night alone.
Children are remarkably capable, given the chance. Too many parents don't give them the chance. It's why we have such a fucked up society, and is one reason why the government can get away with treating the population so shabbily.
Oh please. The conservatives encourage family values.
Of course, that translates to giving married couples greater tax and welfare benefits as compared to co-habiting couples, who are also better off than single people.
Unless you mean family values in the traditional sense, where the woman suffers domestic abuse and the children are sent out to work in dangerous and unpleasant conditions to supplement family income?
The Government hasn't lost trust in its people, it's merely exposing the logical derivation of professional career politicians in a time of increased media coverage of crime and greater ease of societal control through technological means. It's actually surprisingly difficult to not use these capabilities when they're available.
If you worked for MI5 and were being measured by your ability to spot and prevent potential terror attacks ahead of time then you'd want access to this data too. If you worked for the police you'd want the whole population's DNA on file as this would significantly improve your crime resolution rates. If you were the London mayor and needed a significant addition to your revenues to pay for your re-election you'd start charging people for using the roads.
Oh, maybe not that last one. That really was just Ken being a complete cunt.
Trust in the people just doesn't come into it. Which is probably a good thing, because the people have entirely lost trust in the fucking government. Descent into mass civil disobedience is the logical outcome; I'm just not sure how soon.
Don't forget those of us that don't live in or near to London but resent subsidising its public transport then being charged twice the price to use the damn thing, so have an oyster card that only gets used once every few months.
As for the fucking congestion charge.. that could almost be specifically designed to fuck over people making an occasional visit to the city.
It distresses me when people spend so much money on an inferior piece of technology - it's cash that could be going towards achieving greater economies of scale for the better technology I'd rather have.
It also bewilders me when people are so rabidly defensive about said inferior, overpriced piece of technology, so I take great delight in highlighting to them that they did indeed pay over the market rate for a sub-standard phone.
Plus of course it was late in the evening, I'd had a few drinks, I'd been watching Liverpool and I was in the mood for winding up some Americans. It's a great sport.
I can buy phones with Skype clients already built in. I can use Skype with my current phone. I can use Skype (or any VoIP service) with GSM with any UK carrier.
Why is the iPhone so special? Screwing over the customer is why. Great selling point.
You toss the iPhone a "very pretty UI" line, but how many of your "phones designed by checklist" have a 320x480 screen and a big enough battery to power it for hours? A decade ago I had a handheld device with a 480x160 screen and a big enough battery to power it for hours. To be fair it wasn't a phone.
I can now buy a device a similar size with a 800x352 screen, a big enough battery for over 5 hours talk time (rather more if you're merely playing with it) and it also happens to have a full qwerty keyboard, 3G support, a 3.2M camera and built-in GPS.
Did I mention it costs £180 less than the iPhone?
So remind me.. why the fuck would I want to be cramped by a mere 480x320 screen that has to use its limited space to display a keyboard?
The iPhone does have a very pretty UI, but the phones "designed by checklis"t have pretty fucking good real-world end-user productivity, and I wouldn't toss that away for all the eye-candy on the planet.
One of the common statistics often cited by video game industry trade groups is that the average age of a gamer nowadays is around 30 years old. What you might not know, however, is that among game players between the ages of 25 and 34, women far outnumber men, according to a new study by the Consumer Electronics Association (as reported in The New York Times). --http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/study-women-gamers-outnumber-men-in-25-34-age-group/68821/?biz=1
Yep, really narrow definition of "all demographics". 13 year old boys. Hell, welcome to 2008.
It is prejudice, you don't have an accurate view of the gaming market, and there's nothing wrong with being in touch with your inner teen.
Yeah - if you're willing to take a drug test just to get the job.
GCHQ were very polite when they suggested I would be better not applying to them if I wasn't willing to be tested, despite my assurances I've never taken drugs.
And by the way, the EU has been very good for my country. Without the EU we would have more pollution, unhealthier food, higher unemployment, severe trade and budget deficits, a devalued coin, higher unemployment, and software patents. That's ironic. In my country, with the EU we have all those things.
Although we only have higher unemployment once.
As for reducing the size of a democratic government, reducing the size does not automatically lead to tyranny. Removing a lot of the bureaucracy around government can be achieved without reducing its democratic credentials. The collapse of the soviet system is a poor example as it was far from democratic to begin with.
Do it as calmly and non-violently as you like. The first thing is they invite you to join them in another room. They then arrest you on suspicion of causing a public disturbance, or under any of sixteen anti-terror laws. Now they have the legal right to take your fingerprints, your DNA and lock you up for 30 days without charge.
Frankly you need to just start refusing to go to Heathrow. It's your only hope.
If I had absolute certainty that the data collected would be secure then I'd have far fewer issues about it.
The truth is, it wouldn't be secure. Even if (and it's unlikely) the Heathrow systems were secure, it wouldn't be long before the police gain access to that data. Then HMRC. Then every other public sector agency, criminal and person receiving misdirected random post containing CDs.
So no, I can't get enough security when it comes to the precious data. Since the security benefits at the people level are marginal in the extreme I don't perceive any real benefit either.
None of which even matters: I'd rather risk dying in a terror attack than live in fear of one. I'd rather several thousand people a year die in terror attacks than reduce civil liberties to prevent one.
When I go to the US my details are taken, my fingerprints, photos, credit card numbers that were used to book the flight, which hotel I'm staying at, departure date, hire car details. So don't go.
And stop flying through Heathrow. Refuse to let them take your fingerprints.
It doesn't take many people to start making this stand and the airlines and airports will start complaining to the Government about their reduced revenue.
No civil disobedience required, just a small amount of personal sacrifice. Or are you personally selling out while decrying the rest of us for doing so?
Clearly you wish to exacerbate the continual knee pain I already suffer on flights. It already hurts being unable to straighten my legs, now you want me to keep them continually bent even further?
That's odd. Have you always had feet that don't extend further forward than your shins and ankles?
Because in airline seats, my shins are always tight against the seat in front. The gap below the seat is thus important for my feet to extend into. Despite this (or perhaps because of it) I am usually in constant knee pain during and after flights.
You're terribly fortunate that you don't have this particular issue.
The answer is turn up at the latest possible moment. More time for you before the flight, and you get the same rear row that you'd have had anyway, without the annoyance..
Slashdot Mirror
The situation for the person you've replied to is even worse - they didn't even get convicted of a crime, just held in prison while awaiting trial.
Interesting perspective you have. Where do you live?
The actions of the children are not because the parents don't give a shit - many parents (I'd guess most/almost all) care a lot about their kids. At the same time it's difficult to keep children permanently indoors, and it's pretty difficult to keep tabs on their outdoors activities. When both parents are out at work struggling to pay the bills (have you seen the rise in council tax/gas/electricity/water bills recently?) they're not around to look after the children.
So what are the kids meant to do? The green areas are all paved over or have 'no ball games' signs up. The roads aren't safe to play. There are few places to go in the evenings, especially if you're short on cash - and many people are short on cash.
Delinquency is almost inevitable.
DNA testing is indeed not the answer. Making the parents accountable may help, but may cause other problems - including potentially significant amounts of child abuse. ASBOs are a poor idea, poorly implemented and teach children not to respect the law and not to trust the Government.
I don't have the answers. I don't think it's as bad as you portray, and I don't think you're showing sufficient understanding of the environmental factors that lead to the situation we're in.
My grandfather liberated Bergen Belsen.
My father fought in wars. Fuck, I was born in a war-zone, bullets rattling off the shutters.
I grew up under terrorist attack.
Strangely I manage not to have nightmares. Many of my relatives died before I got to know them and it insults me when people pretend that knowing a "holocaust survivor" makes them special.
This isn't just a privacy breach. This is another step towards totalitarianism, and that does equate to fascism and does cause serious concern to many people. They aren't insulting the holocaust, they're identifying the initial steps that may lead to another and expressing a desire to avoid that path.
So fuck you and your self-indulgent nightmare fueled self-righteousness.
hmm. Mine.
At the age of 3 I drove a pedal-car half a mile, found my sister in her school, got discovered by a teacher, waited until the head could borrow a van big enough for me, my sister and my pedal-car, got taken halfway home and found my mother who had noticed i was missing but kind of assumed i'd show up again soon enough.
She was right.
She'd also been shopping in the meantime. Lots of worrying there, sure.
Aged six we moved to a new country. First day at school, I was taken to school by my mother, then left to walk home alone at the end. A year later, I started catching the bus to (a different) school. No parental involvement, left the house alone, got home that night alone.
Children are remarkably capable, given the chance. Too many parents don't give them the chance. It's why we have such a fucked up society, and is one reason why the government can get away with treating the population so shabbily.
bah, etc.
Oh please. The conservatives encourage family values.
Of course, that translates to giving married couples greater tax and welfare benefits as compared to co-habiting couples, who are also better off than single people.
Unless you mean family values in the traditional sense, where the woman suffers domestic abuse and the children are sent out to work in dangerous and unpleasant conditions to supplement family income?
The Government hasn't lost trust in its people, it's merely exposing the logical derivation of professional career politicians in a time of increased media coverage of crime and greater ease of societal control through technological means. It's actually surprisingly difficult to not use these capabilities when they're available.
If you worked for MI5 and were being measured by your ability to spot and prevent potential terror attacks ahead of time then you'd want access to this data too. If you worked for the police you'd want the whole population's DNA on file as this would significantly improve your crime resolution rates. If you were the London mayor and needed a significant addition to your revenues to pay for your re-election you'd start charging people for using the roads.
Oh, maybe not that last one. That really was just Ken being a complete cunt.
Trust in the people just doesn't come into it. Which is probably a good thing, because the people have entirely lost trust in the fucking government. Descent into mass civil disobedience is the logical outcome; I'm just not sure how soon.
Don't forget those of us that don't live in or near to London but resent subsidising its public transport then being charged twice the price to use the damn thing, so have an oyster card that only gets used once every few months.
As for the fucking congestion charge.. that could almost be specifically designed to fuck over people making an occasional visit to the city.
It distresses me when people spend so much money on an inferior piece of technology - it's cash that could be going towards achieving greater economies of scale for the better technology I'd rather have.
It also bewilders me when people are so rabidly defensive about said inferior, overpriced piece of technology, so I take great delight in highlighting to them that they did indeed pay over the market rate for a sub-standard phone.
Plus of course it was late in the evening, I'd had a few drinks, I'd been watching Liverpool and I was in the mood for winding up some Americans. It's a great sport.
I can buy phones with Skype clients already built in.
I can use Skype with my current phone.
I can use Skype (or any VoIP service) with GSM with any UK carrier.
Why is the iPhone so special? Screwing over the customer is why. Great selling point.
I can now buy a device a similar size with a 800x352 screen, a big enough battery for over 5 hours talk time (rather more if you're merely playing with it) and it also happens to have a full qwerty keyboard, 3G support, a 3.2M camera and built-in GPS.
Did I mention it costs £180 less than the iPhone?
So remind me.. why the fuck would I want to be cramped by a mere 480x320 screen that has to use its limited space to display a keyboard?
The iPhone does have a very pretty UI, but the phones "designed by checklis"t have pretty fucking good real-world end-user productivity, and I wouldn't toss that away for all the eye-candy on the planet.
Yep, really narrow definition of "all demographics". 13 year old boys. Hell, welcome to 2008.
It is prejudice, you don't have an accurate view of the gaming market, and there's nothing wrong with being in touch with your inner teen.
Nice prejudice.
Meanwhile you've missed out on decades of games like Sim City, Railroad Tycoon, or even Zork.
Gamers are well represented amongst all demographics; there are a lot in their 30s and 40s, and a lot of women too. The games being sold reflect this.
Just because you're too lazy/busy to take a look at the options available doesn't mean they're all geared towards another population segment.
Yeah - if you're willing to take a drug test just to get the job.
GCHQ were very polite when they suggested I would be better not applying to them if I wasn't willing to be tested, despite my assurances I've never taken drugs.
I'd rather be on the dole..
Although we only have higher unemployment once.
As for reducing the size of a democratic government, reducing the size does not automatically lead to tyranny. Removing a lot of the bureaucracy around government can be achieved without reducing its democratic credentials. The collapse of the soviet system is a poor example as it was far from democratic to begin with.
Finding a job that doesn't require travel to the US isn't so hard. For most people, finding one that does would be rather harder.
Similarly, there are over 200 countries in the world. Go to two new ones every year on holiday. Let me know when you run out and need to visit the US.
These aren't major sacrifices. And yeah, I do know people that have made them.
Taking fingerprints at the airport is evidence of living in fear, and will not stop terror attacks from killing me.
It fails on all counts.
Do it as calmly and non-violently as you like. The first thing is they invite you to join them in another room. They then arrest you on suspicion of causing a public disturbance, or under any of sixteen anti-terror laws. Now they have the legal right to take your fingerprints, your DNA and lock you up for 30 days without charge.
Frankly you need to just start refusing to go to Heathrow. It's your only hope.
If I had absolute certainty that the data collected would be secure then I'd have far fewer issues about it.
The truth is, it wouldn't be secure. Even if (and it's unlikely) the Heathrow systems were secure, it wouldn't be long before the police gain access to that data. Then HMRC. Then every other public sector agency, criminal and person receiving misdirected random post containing CDs.
So no, I can't get enough security when it comes to the precious data. Since the security benefits at the people level are marginal in the extreme I don't perceive any real benefit either.
None of which even matters: I'd rather risk dying in a terror attack than live in fear of one. I'd rather several thousand people a year die in terror attacks than reduce civil liberties to prevent one.
And stop flying through Heathrow. Refuse to let them take your fingerprints.
It doesn't take many people to start making this stand and the airlines and airports will start complaining to the Government about their reduced revenue.
No civil disobedience required, just a small amount of personal sacrifice. Or are you personally selling out while decrying the rest of us for doing so?
As opposed to "Who's the daddy now?" which is used to fantastic effect in the film Scum and probably pre-dates the sexual connotations of daddyhood.
I can see how one might lead to the other, but I wouldn't call the activities in Scum sexual. Well, apart from the rape, of course.
I see clouds.
Anyway, he said 'forever'.
Clearly you wish to exacerbate the continual knee pain I already suffer on flights. It already hurts being unable to straighten my legs, now you want me to keep them continually bent even further?
Sadist.
That's odd. Have you always had feet that don't extend further forward than your shins and ankles?
Because in airline seats, my shins are always tight against the seat in front. The gap below the seat is thus important for my feet to extend into. Despite this (or perhaps because of it) I am usually in constant knee pain during and after flights.
You're terribly fortunate that you don't have this particular issue.
Just wtf do you need to purchase 2-3 cellphones a year for? You give one away every time you get laid or something?
The iPhone can have as pretty a UI as it likes; until it gets a qwerty keyboard on it I don't want one.
The answer is turn up at the latest possible moment. More time for you before the flight, and you get the same rear row that you'd have had anyway, without the annoyance..
And where the fuck exactly am I meant to be putting my feet?