SimonBlog

I keep seeing on the news sites how motorists feel victimised by Low Traffic Networks (aka closing rat-runs, which was done uncontroversially in Lostock Hall, Lancashire, in the late 1990s), 20 mph speed limits (again apparently fine in Lancashire but allegedly evil in Wales) and the London ULEZ (also uncontroversial until it was extended to the outer boroughs, when it became an apparent major conspiracy). Why should motorists be coddled and pedestrians (occasionally literally) crushed? Why shouldn't operators of heavy machinery (which cars are) not be subject to strict restrictions?

I'm repeating this because I love it. And adding a link. https://compactmag.com/.../why-anne-applebaum-shot-down.../ Why did Anne Applebaum declare something “not interesting” after previously publishing a rebuttal, and why was the session summarily ended? This is the relevant rebuttal, which makes me so disappointed that what Anne wrote a long essay about became "not interesting". Is it rather "this is embarassing me and I don't want to talk about it"? https://www.theatlantic.com/.../smears-against.../616824/ Why was first year student Daniel Schmidt so good at embarrassing the pros? And the same goes for his friend Chris Phillips. https://thechicagothinker.com/thinkers-christopher.../ How are these two right-wing students able to embarrass the rest? Dan made the point that "keeping your head down" helps in recruitment for elite firms, if I were recruiting I'd look for people like Chris and Dan. https://collegedissident.com/conservatives-aband

Just seen this video from 2022 and, frankly, it is embarassing for Anne Appelbaum and David Axelford. https://twitter.com/RealDSchmidt/status/1511860954472099848 Apparently they'd had softball questions from the rest of the panel from the other students. So a right-wing freshman called Daniel Schmidt asks a reasonable question (and, as he says, the details had made the news) and Anne dismisses it as "not interesting" and David ends the panel promptly. Sorry, this will not do, professional journalists should be better than this. https://compactmag.com/article/why-anne-applebaum-shot-down-my-question I do however have massive respect for Daniel. https://linktr.ee/RealDSchmidt

The CPU that runs the world (or at least nearly every mobile phone) is based on the one that was in late 1980 and early 1990s UK school computers (and not really much else except the Apple Newton and the 3DO) until the end of the 1990s (when the actual Acorn machines were going in the skip). It is a little odd that Acorn could be so innovative yet so commercially inept. But then I suppose both them and Sinclair were commercially inept in 1984 over the Sinclair QL and the Acorn Electron. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VK5AZrg3ZD8

I think the UK needs six  high speed railway lines. HS1 - London to the Channel Tunnel (as now) HS2 - London to Birmingham, Holyhead, Manchester, Sheffield and Leeds, to Glasgow, Edinburgh and Stranraer/Cairnryan via Preston, and to Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen via York and Newcastle HS3 - Liverpool to Hull (Northern Powerhouse Rail) HS4 - London to Fishguard Harbour and Plymouth (replacing the GWML) HS5 - Birmingham to Taunton via Bristol (link between HS2 and HS4) HS6 - London to Nottingham, Sheffield and Leeds via Leicester (in case HS2 runs out of capacity, this would be a straight MML replacement) There seems little case for an ECML replacement south of York, but the electrification on that and to Cambridge, Ely and King's Lynn could definitely use some TLC.  Ben  is extremely insistent on that. Two caveats. (a) HS5 could probably be delivered by upgrading the existing line wth strategic bypasses. (b) HS6 is a fallback for if HS2 gets too full.

My friend  Ben  has the attitude that people working in the public sector should avoid mistakes at all costs.  He varies on the punishment but the ones he suggests, with respect, seem grossly excessive. With the greatest respect, I disagree. Obviously fraud, malice and recklessness deserve individual punishment beyond internal discipline. He complains also about general incompetence. In most cases, however, I see that as a management failure, justifying retraining or perhaps internal discipline such as warnings or even discipline but no more. Ben might have a point in cases such as the emergency services or the NHS where any actual damage can't be remedied.

It has been suggested to me that if a police driver accidentally kills someone this deserves a long prison sentence and a £10 billion fine. I think this is unreasonable, not least because motoring is difficult and accidents, sometimes tragically fatal, happen, and motoring is much more dangerous and complicated than train driving or airliner flying. I therefore make a modest proposal, as follows: the road network will be divided into streets, on which pedestrians are allowed (with or without separate pavements but they will be allowed in the walkway) and motor-roads (on which pedestrians are not allowed) (motorways are unaffected and would continue as now) the speed limit on streets will be 20 mph or less  the speed limit on motor-roads will be as now alternative routes for pedestrians and cyclists, including free cycle lifts if necessary, will be provided to bypass motor-roads emergency services vehicles while using lights and sirens, and railed vehicles, will be exempt Driving at 20

Part of the current industrial dispute between the RMT in particular and the railway companies is the apparent insistence that, in the name of “modernisation”, that ticket offices and train guards need to remain. I am not going to comment on the whys and wherefores of the other aspects of the dispute (pay, hours, rostering, compulsory Sundays etc). But I must defend the need to retain both ticket offices and train guards. Train guards of course play a safety critical role the way flight attendants and ferry staff do (and no-one is proposing eliminating them), particularly in terms of assisting with emergency evacuation and in ensuring that all doors are closed (DOO is inadequate for this as the driver’s view is very limited, as Diamond Geezer pointed out:  https://diamondgeezer.blogspot.com/2022/12/yet-more-london-transport-news.html ). But there is also the customer service role. Lots of people don’t feel comfortable with buying tickets from machines or online, and there are lots of t

If you work in a field (such as patents) where the exact date of publication of a document is important, do not rely on the date printed on a newspaper or magazine as being the actual date of publication. It is not uncommon for weekly news magazines to reach subscribers the day before the printed date, and sometimes newspapers have early editions published before the printed date. Some magazines were traditionally sold the month before the stated month, and went on sale a day or so earlier (e.g. an October magazine might be on sale by say August 29 or so). If the document you are concerned with is such a publication, check the exact publication date carefully. It’s likely to be earlier than stated. This even ignores the question of time zones (which are maybe more of an issue for online publications). The UK Intellectual Property Office do their weekly publication run after 13:00 precisely so that patents and patent applications are not “available to the public” earlier than the date s