In The News I Heard...

A ZDNet artical (02/11/06) explained the agreement between Novell and Microsoft. Its no wonder the Open Source and FSF community are suspicious. As the artical puts it these 'foes' are indeed forming an alliance, but against what? Is the alliance to deal with the (Microsoft's) customer demands as mentioned by Brad Smith? Is it to stave off the rise of CentOS and its counter part RedHat? With the biggest software company in the world plugging your software and optimising it to run on their software then which other linux vendor is getting squeezed?

So the Highway's Agency has decided to commence with work on widening the M1 to 'ease' traffic congestion. The No Widening M1 Alliance has stacks of evidence to say its not a good idea and the HA's own report says in the long run the widening of the M1 will only cause more traffic. So everyone is right! Right? If two wrongs don't make a right, surely two rights must make a right? A spokes person for the business transport alliance said on camera that businesses need the M1 widening to ensure the travel routes used by delivery trucks are "effect". That thousands of jobs are at stake if this infrastructure was not updated (not using his own words of course). And there are traffic management measure (like toll charges which the transport alliance support) that can be used to control the amount of traffic ensuring that in 2021 the problem does not reoccur (and the needle runs horiztonally across the vinyl make that comic sratching noise)... Did the penny just

I read in The Press (Mirfield, Dewsbury, Huddersfield, Heckmonwike) that a 13 year old female had some 'abusive and sexually explicit remarks' made about her on a website hosted in the USA. If it were my daughter, I too would be sad and angry. When I first scanned the artical my initial thoughts were of the young lady in question. How must she feel? How did things get this far? After that other questions started to filter into my mind. 1. Exactly how many people came across this website? 2. Was it a smart move to go to press with this story? 3. Do I really care? Piczo.com is a website aimed at kids. You have to sign up (which is free) and then you can create your own webpage with many bells and whistles. To answer question 1, you have to be a member to get in. Okay I know of a back door in, and had a look at the forums, but you still have to sign up to reply. There is very little intelligent life on Piczo.com forums. Skipping question 2, what wasn't known is now out in the

Metro 24/10/06 someone wrote into questioning the need for religon. Saying that it would be an insult to unbelievers to even suggest that it is not possible to be a decent human being without religion. Well, I don't know the stats of believer's to non-believers stand at but here are two points; 1. You had to be a believer at some point to become a non-believer (both directly or indirectly) 2. If you did not have religon as a guide then how would you know how to be a decent human being? Lets take the first point. I'll throw in words like community and peer pressure. You (in general terms) live in a land where I think the believer's out number the non-believer's. Non-believer would be directly and indirectly influenced by the believer's. As a non-believer you will want to fit in and any other behaviour outside that of the larger community would be unacceptable and you would bow to the peer pressure to conform. May be you started out as believer but choose to copou

Metro 16 Oct covered a story about more students being hounded by the banks. For all future uni students here is a little trick. Sign up for a telephone number that pays you everytime someone calls you. Give this number to banks, utility companies, websites, etc and watch the cash roll in.

Well now this is going too far. The Metro reports that radical muslims are accusing Apple Inc (maker of Apple MacIntosh computers and iPods) of mocking Islam. The latest Apple shop, they believe, has a likeness to the Kaaba structure inside Islam's most sacred mosque in Mecca. If thats the case why haven't they complained about the rubik's cube, Apple cube iMac and all things made in a cube shape? Tell you what guys, why don't you patient the Kaaba design and whoever you think has infringed of the design you can take them to court. You jokers should do a Google search for cube buildings, then get a life or join the real world.

Now come on people get a grip! Why are you, and you know who you are, terrorising bollard cleaners for earning a wage. So what if its more than you earn? If you want to earn that much then why not join them? If you think that the wages for street sweepers, line painters and bollard cleaners are too high then take it up with their employers and let the workers get on with their job. Here is a question for you. Why don't you go hurling abuse at those train, gas, water and over paid fat cats for collecting bonuses just for turning up and delivering poor services? The answer... you're rare end would be hauled into jail so fast your necks would take years to catch up. Stop picking on the weak or pick on everyone.

Spare a thought for Caydee-Lee who was mauled to death by two Rottweilers guard dogs. As a parent of two kids, my heart goes out to the family. You cannot blame the dogs. With their track record of child related attacks well publicised and document, you have question the wisdom of leaving a toddler in the care of such beast. If that thugs and criminals cannot be control and it requires people to breed and keep such animals to provide (such a false sense of) safety anywhere, who do you blame for this tragic death?

The twins joined at the torso have been released from hospital! Something great to write about for once. I would like to wish them the best of health and life. I pray that Maliyah's kidney transplant is a success. Isn't the pace of medical advances amazing

Necrophilia, yes this is the story of three young men in Wisconsin who attempted to dig up a grave so one of them could shag a corpse. Twisted, stupid, sad or all three? What sort of losers would do such a thing? Surely there are many other beautiful women in Wisconsin. Then again looking at their ugly mugs thats probably the only way the could get sex (if you can call it that). On the bright side at least the had some sense to get some condoms on the way. I feel sorry for the family of the poor lass though my thoughts are with you...

So Hugo Chavez thinks GW Bush is the devil.Well with the attempted coup that the CIA bungled, because Chavez refused to fall in line (see: www.venezuelasolidarity.org.uk) this is a lesson in how to increase your popularity at the expense of you boss...ahhem, cough, cough... fellow leader. Don't get me wrong Chavez has done great work in Bolivia and with Cuba but hitting someone when they are down (even if they are the bad guy) is a cheap trick (though the bad guys do it).

In Metro 12/09/06 there was a reply to the previous day's headline concerning high street shops closing because more people are shopping on the internet. The author quite rightly stated facts about shopping in stores that I agree with. Examples having to go through crowded shops, 15 minute wait to pay for items, commission based sales people trying poor performing stock. Of course state the obvious, and the best thing about internet shopping, you don't have to cross the street, take public transport, drive or walk to get your favourite shops. Heck you can bring up all your usual haunts in brower tabs (nice and tidy for FireFox users) and compare prices. The question that has to be asked is, what exactly are high street shops doing to remove these problems? Is there anything they can do? I for one believe that high street shops should be banished from cities. Move them to big retail parks built on brown field land with good rail and bus links. All the empty shops should then be