Posts tagged “uk”
I can't give blood in the UK because I'm a gay man who's had sex. The National Blood Service calls it "behaviour based" policy, but that's just weasel words for discrimination. Sign the petition to overturn this ridiculous ban.
Blair wants to identify troublemakers before birth. Surely no one's ever explored where that road leads.
A foiled plot to blow up transatlantic flights dominates the news, but deprived of actual carnage, media scramble for content. Meanwhile, 24 young British Muslims are arrested, and nobody should be surprised. We've done nothing to address the genuine grievances driving this radicalization.
BBC answers Bob's bird question: don't touch dead birds, and only call the Defra helpline under specific circumstances. Turns out Bob did the right thing with his single dead bird. The advice has some ambiguity, but it's good enough for non-grammar nerds.
Smoke-free clubbing is coming and I'm thrilled, even though it's nanny-state overreach and I'm a hypocrite. Also I didn't actually read the article properly -- the ban isn't until summer 2007.
New Woman readers have ranked David Cameron just above James Blunt on the sexy list. Blair's probably annoyed, but spare a thought for numbers 93-99, beaten by a podgy-faced Tory. Worryingly, his policies almost make sense too.
Stunning sunset over the UK today has me feeling spring's promise. Also discovered "anablog" -- I'm redefining it as notes you scribble on paper while traveling to post later. I have a massive one from my Tobago trip still waiting to go up.
I updated my voter registration online via an amusingly dodgy council website, only to be thanked not for completing the form, but for "using the Internet" in general. You're welcome, Islington. We'll keep using it.
After July 7th, I emailed my former Muslim coworker M to get an unfiltered view on British Muslim anger. He confirmed many are furious, but condemned the bombings as un-Islamic. His ranked grievances: Palestine, Kashmir, Iraq, Bosnia, and Western hypocrisy. This isn't hatred of freedom. It's anger at specific things we did.
Bluewater's hoodie ban is a lazy, blunt instrument that will catch chemo patients and cold-eared tourists alongside actual troublemakers. Give security staff the discretion to make real judgements. Zero-tolerance policies are an abdication of responsibility, not a solution.
Stuck at Gatwick for two hours, bored out of my mind and surrounded by chavs. Misery loves company.
Tory poster generator fun. And yes, I know the grammar's dodgy, but Labour get away with "Forward, not back" so let's not go there.
Went to the dogs at Walthamstow for a friend's birthday. Thought we'd be in the posh enclosure. We weren't. Instead: frozen scampi, 1970s decor, and wall-to-wall Essex. Never again.
Back from a 6,000-mile trip to cold, smelly London, but at least I have broadband again. Also, calm down about Prince Harry, and apparently I'm borderline Asperger's. Please take these tests and tell me they're meaningless.
Chavs have hijacked Burberry, and it's killing the brand: UK sales are down 40%. Nike and Gucci survived similar associations, but their products have genuine appeal beyond the label. Burberry's camel check pattern was always sustained purely by brand association. Strip that away and you're left with something genuinely hideous.
Grade inflation is real and inevitable given the vicious cycle: examiners reduce syllabus to boost pass rates, so teachers teach less, so students learn less, requiring further reductions just to maintain results. Pass rates were never meant to rise indefinitely; they exist to indicate relative ability and enable selection.
Spent way too long figuring out that freedom2surf broadband requires a dial-up connection with the number **0,38** (yes, with a comma). Their website is useless. Save yourself hours of misery and just use those two facts.
A list of weblogs by Warwick University students, for no particular reason.
Support the BBC.
The BBC announces plans to sell off its technology division, putting 1,400 jobs at risk. On the same day, a power cut takes them offline. Who's responsible for BBC power? The very division they're selling. You couldn't make it up.
Tom Coates nails the Tories: aside from the odd Letwin horror show, the only press they get is from their regular attempts at televised suicide.
A BBC reporter spent 7 months secretly embedded in the Greater Manchester Police, completing full training and covertly filming colleagues daily. His report airs tonight claiming overwhelming evidence of institutional racism. This is going to be a hell of a story.
Dabs.com has appalling customer service: no phone support, useless one-line email responses, and zero concern for customers. My order was delayed a week due to their incompetence. I'm switching to Overclockers and warning everyone I know to avoid Dabs entirely.
Stealth Disco has consumed my office and, inevitably, me. Also: Jason Mraz is great, the RIAA is suing Share Bear, Angle Grinder Man is our sad answer to the Naked Cowboy, and Teen Girl Squad is getting weird.
Bloggers don't change lightbulbs, they link to discussions about it. Also, the Tories want to shut down the BBC website, which would be a disaster. The BBC provides something the market doesn't: impartial news. Thankfully, the Tories are completely unelectable anyway.
Taking my last ever exam in just over an hour. Not scared at all. Also, stumbling across record UK unemployment figures this morning was not ideal timing.
A British think-tank wants to give children the vote to counter the outsized electoral influence of elderly voters. Lowering the voting age to 14 sounds reasonable, but parents voting on behalf of infants? Not so sure about that part.
I want to bring "quidnunc" into common usage as slang for a busybody gossip. Also, Network Rail's excuse for their anti-freeze heaters failing was that they froze. Yes, really.
Britain's response to a bus hitting a tree? Cut down the trees, naturally. Also, someone is exploring quantum mechanics through the medium of sheep.
I think speaking English is useful in England, but shouldn't be a citizenship requirement. Citizenship is about state protection and loyalty, not language. Culture and language shift over time; you can't legislate that. Encourage English learning, even fund it, but don't make it mandatory.
Celebdaq is a BBC celebrity stock market game where you trade fake money on famous people's fame. It's totally addictive. Start with £10,000, win £100 real money weekly. Play now and buy Beckham.
British kids can't play, marshmallow roasting is deadly, Austin Powers 3 is rubbish (though Beyonce helps), the stock market refuses to dramatically collapse, and 80s TV makes you smarter. Just another day in the news.
Back in Winchester, the world's only one-horse city. Staying at Erasmus Park, surviving on dialup, table football, and shameless self-documentation. Mass emails feel pushy, so the journal it is. Projects pending: my third-year project, a site update, and GayGeeks.org, my transparently desperate attempt at internet dating.
Back in Warwick after the holidays. Foggy but not freezing. Missed half my first lecture due to a nearby plastics factory fire snarling all the buses. Started swimming with Dan, London sales trip this weekend, and an assignment due Monday. Busy times.
Finally got ADSL and it's glorious. 576K downstream and I couldn't be happier. Also learned BT's pricing is actually mandated by Oftel, not greed. NTL still useless though.
Hooked on Big Brother again, only seven days in and already despising most of the housemates. My revision is suffering, but Channel Four has done it again.
Found an amusing Telegraph piece about Telford being wiped out by an asteroid. The article is ostensibly serious, but the list of things that would be "tragically lost" from this middling English town is priceless. Also: genetically modified babies with three biological parents are apparently a thing now.
Disappointed by London's May Day anti-capitalism protests. Five thousand protesters, six thousand cops, and everyone behaved themselves. Germany had firebombs, Australia had riots, but London managed nothing but cyclists. Anarchism has really gone downhill.
Recovering now, but Warwick's IT department has cut off my in-room internet. Posts will be sparse, so check Slashdot and Wired yourself. Also: it's sunny and warm in England. Remarkable.
