Hi Kev,

Can’t offer any help with the housing issue, except to say hang in there, don’t give up without a fight.

However, I can sympathise with dealing with Alzheimers/Parkinsons in a loved one, in my case it was my Father-in-Law. I know only too well that it can be soul destroying watching a close family member become a shadow of their former self. I felt absolutely helpless, as the situation was totally beyond my/our control – all I could do was offer support to my wife.

Just remember, you are not going through this on your own. Many of us are physically too far away to offer to buy you a pint and lend an ear in your local, but I think many of us are always willing to offer a virtual pint and a listening ear on the forum, or if you want to ‘vent’ your frustrations in less public way feel free to PM me and we can do it “off line” via PMs or emails.

Keep you spirits up mate, you have always had a way with words, always able to cut through the cr@p and get to the nubb of the issue, I have no doubt you can use that skill wisely if/when tenancy discussion get tough.

All the best
Paul F

Always amuses me to think that people are astonished by this sort of news….

Communications of any sort have always been open to, and subject to, “eavesdropping” or covert interception, written letters have been opened and reclosed, phone lines have been tapped, and word-of-mouth discussions “listened to” by third parties since the year dot – on-line surveillance is really only the natural extension of that approach.

Why are people so sensitive to the thought that their e-comms are not “100% secure”?

If “people” are interested in reading my day-to-day texts, emails etc then I always assume they can do so at any time, but if anyone is watching what I do then I suspect they must be bored out of their minds with the minutae of life of a typical (I assume!) British 50-something male…. :p

I am less worried by covert “listening” by the authorities than I am by the risk of cyber criminals finding their way into my finances.

CCTV, on-line surveillance – whatever, get over it people, if you are doing nothing wrong then what’s the problem?

My attitude to those that try and convince people that “Big Brother is Watching You” is soemthign to be worried about is that if you’re worried about others reading what you’ve written, or watching what you’re doing, then you probably shouldn’t be doing it (or writing it) in the first place. Get a life! Or, if you’re really worried, invest in an Enigma machine 😉

Huge relief – long may the lack of interest continue!!:dev2:

Ditto

Problem is, even when ‘Eng-er-land’ inevitably get knocked out, we will still face hours of televised matches on mainstream channels featuring countries that the majority of us don’t care about…:mad:

I suppose the good news is that, now having access to digital TV, I/we have more channels on which to try find something else to watch, though most of that currently seems to be news about Septic Bladder and his involvement (or not) in the alledged bribery (or not) surrounding Qatar World Cup – yawn…….

Thankfully it is not always a one way event…

Idiots.

It amuses me that a State that is member of the EU still permits this level of cruelty (to the bulls, not to the idiots 😉 ).

Likewise, I wonder how the Pamplonians find a way around the EU Health and Safety rules and regulations…. I can just imagine the UK’s approach would involve a multi step risk-assessment resulting in all bulls being segregated from runners by a solid barrier so high that a bull could not jump it, all bulls’ horns being blunted, all runners running in full helmets and body armour, and all runners having to sign a multi-page disclaimer in triplicate, plus town council charging a massive entrants fee to cover the “all risks” liability insurance they would feel they need to put in place to cover their own ar$es….

Still, it’s Darwin’s principle in action again, anyone who feels this is a sensible event to enter deserves to have their genes removed from the pool…. and I doubt those “lost” genes woud be missed by the rest of us ;-).

authoratative sources.

Charlie, are you saying the internet isn’t an authoritative source! Surely not!!

If it says so on the web it MUST be true….. 😉

Unfortunately Charlie too many people these days wouldn’t know an authoritative source if it bit them on the leg…. 🙁

Can passports be revoked?

I suspect not unfortunately, but I totally agree with the sentiment. Anyone holding a UK passport but proven to be involved in these murders should be barred from ever re-entering UK.

As Charlie says, saddened is not the word, even “revulsion” barely comes close…

Of course, what we are witnessing is little different than the (misguided) Middle Age crusades that were fought to “convert” people to Christianity, so I am not sure the “West” can claim to be whiter than white, but most developed cultures now seem to agree that violence/fear is not the best way to “sell” your religion or and/or values to the unbeliever. Shame a minority among the modern Muslim community still seems to enjoy living in the Dark Ages – most Muslims believe their faith expects them to live a peaceful life, not go waging war on others, especially when many of those others profess to follow the same underlying religion…

I fear the worst is yet to come, how can anyone ever try to “reason” with an indoctrinated religious sect who see martyrdom as a virtue? And if we try to use force rather than reason aren’t we lowering oursleves to their level…..and short of eradicating every single person who believes in IS and their current methods, we risk leaving a lingering trace of hatred that will simply rise again at a later date.

I fear solving this issue will make the (former) problems in Northern Ireland and the current Palestinian situation look like walks in the park…:apologetic:

How can anyone vote “Yes” with so little info to go on…?

And, of course, once Scotland is no longer part of UK it will no longer be an EU member. Sure, the EU may simply “rubber stamp” an application to join, but it seems that if they insist on retaining the pound that could be a major barrier to entry. And I doubt EU will accept another new member State unless they are happy to “pay their way” in terms of paying subsidies etc, and of course, Scotland will not necessarily gain any benefit from any EU “concessions” England may negotiate. Has Salmond actually asked the EU what conditions they are likley to set if Scotland wishes to join as an Independent State? Has he publicised the EU’s answers for the electorate to read and consider?

So, not only are there questions over car tax, but any Jocks who travel in EU States (including England, Wales and NI) may find they are no longer entitled to free emergency medical treatment, as their EH1C cards (or whatever they are now) may no longer be valid…

And they may not be able to bring in as much booze and ciggies as they want (for personal consumpton) from EU States, just the usual restricted “International allowance” – unless of course Salmond is happy to see a potential source of import duty revenue lost. Only small things among a myriad of other “disadvantages” in Independence that seem to be as yet unconsidered by many, let alone the fact the are still unanswered, but two small things that may well impact upon the cost of a voter’s holiday “sur la continent” .

Salmond will definitely find his place in history is assured, albeit possibly for reasons he may not have expected – any dream of being seen as some sort of “Braveheart II” seems unlikely to be his long-term epitath.

Voting “No” always leaves room for a another referendum at a later date once more details have been worked out (and/or leaves room for a gradual approach to self-rule via “Devo-Max”), but voting “Yes” really is a “**** or bust” decision, with no option to retract that decision however unpleasent the consequences may start to become.

How could anyone possibly vote “yes” when so much of the consequence is unknown? However much someone might want Independence surely common sense says you don’t vote for something that is so poorly defined. Voting with your “heart” is fine, so long as you undertand it may well hit you hard in the wallet at a later date. It’s all very well believeing a man who says that oil revenue will give you a life of luxury in a land of plentiful milk and honey, but what happens when the oil revenue starts to runs out, where’s the money to fund your life of luxury going to come from then -Westminster won’t be diverting public funds your way in hope of buying your votes at a General Election, as you won’t be sending elected members south of the border…?