WHAT ATTRACTED YOUR ATTENTION TODAY?

[catgate]

This looks like a promising addition to modern living.

http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/?p=46124

[Stanley]

April Fool news item on R4 yesterday about treadmills being installed in Post Offices for use by pensioners collecting.
Then I heard what I thought was another about the government authorising GCHQ to monitor all phone calls, emails and internet use to pick up subversive activity. Problem is that it wasn't a joke! Orwell was evidently right but 28 years adrift.

[Whyperion]

"‘Communications data includes time, duration and dialling numbers of a phone call," ( Err.. thats what Comms companies use to bill the customer
anyway so no change there from what Govt knew anyway ( Of course at One time BT was state owned so everything shared with Govt anyway , didnt a previous tory admin sell it off to make it private ? ) ... or an email address. Somewhat more useless , fairly easy to spoof email addresses , use secure and anonomised ones ( get them set up outside UK and text details to PAYG handset ) and work from assorted internet cafes. Again though the master routers for .uk run off the govt controlled network anyway ( unless you build your own network - which a govt backed terrorist group could do ) so very little major information found , and side stepped by the determined anyway.

[Tardis]

Council's re-inventing the wheel to 'engage'?

http://www.feedbackonline.org.uk/

[Stanley]

Just heard that there are only two days per year when a giant Panda can mate. Makes you wonder how they survived for so long!
The 80 year old woman whose husband died from a heart attack as he was flying his Cessna with her as a passenger. Luckily she had some flight training many years ago and took over the controls. She landed safely on one engine. A bad experience but she must be proud of herself. See this LINK.
I see that James Murdoch has bailed out of the chairmanship of BSkyB. Is he still on the board? Does this mean that the decision on whether the Murdochs are 'fit and proper' persons has been defused?

[Stanley]

The fact that despite the stove in the front room still in and hot, the CH came on briefly. Must have been cold early in the morning.

[Tardis]

The Guardian leading with Amazon dodging UK taxes.

I agree with the hypocrisy of a tax regime that allows Amazon to not pay any corporation tax here on its £8 bn turnover, and not pay any VAT whilst selling and having workers in the UK.

I will not, however, be lectured by a MSM instrument who hypocritically uses the same route.

[Whyperion]

Books are zero rated for VAT , amazon would pay VAT to somewhere in the EU for its marketplace and similar fees to third parties. Any direct sales of non exempt or zero rate items amazon would be liable to VAT I think in the UK if the place of supply is the UK ( the former dodge of low value items shipped from Channel Isles was closed last year I think - its argueable VAT is a tax on the consumer and not on the supplier ). I thought the whole point against amazon was that it sold items below cost , therefore did not have any profits to pay corporation tax on. Sensibly for all multi-national companies Corporation Tax should be payable on profits generated on UK activities ( after any fair adjustment for purchase prices in / sales prices out to related entities outside of UK )

[Tardis]

Would that Amazon were only a bookseller. Music, computer games, toys, etc all attract VAT

If Amazon didn't make a profit then how would it survive?

The Guradian pays no tax because it is still paying back the 'loan' to the parent company

All perfectly legit, and these rules appear to have been followed by mayoral Candidate Ken Livingstone. £34k tax on £775k income

[Moh]

Not sure if it is true but a friend of ours from Wales has just rung to tell us a fuel strike with be announced this afternoon with immediate effect.

[Nolic]

Your friend is wrong Moh. Firstly the drivers and employers are still in negotiations at ACAS and secondly they have to give 7 days notice of their intention to take strike action. They only have until 16th April to decide or else they have to re ballot all their members. Nolic

[Stanley]

PE produced some interesting figures on army drivers qualified to HAZMAT standard needed to drive fuel tankers. They have 60 world wide. Difficult to see how they could replace over 2,000 civilian drivers.
What grabbed me was an advert on ITV last night for the Hoze-Lok automatic hose reel. In view of the hose pipe ban and the need to conserve water nationally this seems to be a bit irresponsible.

[Whyperion]

Whats the difference between a hose pipe , a flexible fitting , and a fixed pipe network ( do water cos charge more if you run copper pipework between your veggies for irrigation ) ?

[Tizer]

Stanley, you are still allowed to use a hose pipe to refill your pond `if it has fish in it' - so you can buy a Hozelock and top up your moat as long as it has a few carp in it!

[Moh]

I realised that after Nolic, if it had been April 1st I could have understood it. Just sent him an email asking if he was starting his own panic!!
What caught my attention today was in the Colne Times where 2 men (if you can call them that!!) let their two lurchers maul a cat to death in Garnet St., Barrowford, then stamp on it and throw it in the bushes. They are looking out for 2 young men wearing tracksuits, one of the lurchers was white.

[Big Kev]

PE produced some interesting figures on army drivers qualified to HAZMAT standard needed to drive fuel tankers. They have 60 world wide. Difficult to see how they could replace over 2,000 civilian drivers.

I would imagine there are plenty of training centres around the country who would jump at the chance of training them. It's only a 5 day course for an ADR.

[Sunray10]

Stanley has a letter in The Nelson Leader / Colne Times. Excellent. Well written. Wonder if our MP will take notice and reply. We will wait and see.

[Stanley]

Ray. Glad it was in the other Leader editions. Some of us have long memories but I made sure I had a copy of the letter where he promised to do better if elected! I think people are beginning to see through Mr Stephenson.
What grabbed me was an email exchange with my daughters who have evidently taken notice of my advice on nutrition. One of them saw a doctor who told her exactly what I had been telling her. She is worried now because she is beginning to sound like me......

[Tardis]

40 steps only seems to have 39, unless I'm missing one somewhere

Did Pendle remove one during the refurb for some tenuous tourist link to Buchan?

[Big Kev]

40 steps only seems to have 39, unless I'm missing one somewhere

Did Pendle remove one during the refurb for some tenuous tourist link to Buchan?

There's been 39 since I moved here

[One Carleton Gal]

went for a lovely walk with Ian and i noticed with pleasure how many clusters of Wood Sorrel were growing. When i was a girl in Carleton i loved looking for wild flowers. Wood Sorrel were a real rarity, i can only remember 2 places were they grew. If you would like to see this very delicate white flower you need to walk on Calf Hall lane and across to Esp Lane .

[Sunray10]

Stanley I think Mr Stephenson is a resonable sort of chap - and I'm not just saying that because he's on my facebook page (petitions sent to him at the House of Commons) but he takes an interest in everything local, even fish and chips which he partakes of frequently. But, we will see what happens and if he replies to your letter it will be taken note of on here, I'm sure. Oh, and I am not a Tory.

[PostmanPete]

Stanley I think Mr Stephenson is a resonable sort of chap.

I too used to think that Mr S was a reasonable chap until I saw him driving through Barlick whilst talking on his mobile phone.............
Silly chap.

[Stanley]

41 if you count the two at the Bancroft end.
CG, sorrel on Shitten Ginnel.
Thanks for that Pete......

[Stanley]

Word is that F1 mechanics going to China for the next race have been given two return tickets, one to go forward to Bahrain, the other to return home. Reason is that the F! teams are not convinced that Bahrain is a safe venue because of recent political troubles there associated with the Arab Spring.