The UK General Election

Good result this. Best of both - Lib Dems AND Conservatives. Never thought it would happen, but this is very good news indeed.

Harsh tory policies will be restrained and trimmed with some of the better Lib Dem suggestions.

@Locke, sure, I voted on policy too. BUT I am just saying that for some people, the prospect of a leading figure not being someone you believe to get the job done CAN have an effect on the way people vote. Not necessarily us here, but SOME people. Look at Blair versus Brown. Both from the same party, yet Blair came across much stronger. Okay, the circumstances were heavily not in Browns favour, but you get the drift.


Jenson drives it like he owns it; Lewis drives it like he stole it

Good news for the Tories, even better news for the Lib Dems, and hopefully a positive forecast for the country now that 2/3 of the traditional big three have agreed to work together.

I'm quite surprised that the Conservatives gave the Lib Dems quite so much leeway on policy, but i guess that was what they needed to do to get their majority. Still, Cameron did have the option of sticking to his guns and trying to run a minority government - i think he did the sensible thing here.

The only downside is that Dr Evan Harris still doesn't have a seat

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Interesting result for sure, but I think it's good that Labour are finally out of power. We needed a change, and hopefully the mix of Tory and Lib Dem rule we're about to get will be the polar opposite of what has happened under Labour. On paper, at least, it couldn't be more different, and it's bound to produce some surprises. Uncertain and difficult but very interesting times are ahead.

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I'm quite surprised that the Conservatives gave the Lib Dems quite so much leeway on policy, but i guess that was what they needed to do to get their majority. Still, Cameron did have the option of sticking to his guns and trying to run a minority government - i think he did the sensible thing here.

It appears that Clegg backed them into a corner and forced the Tories to give better offers. After the announcement it became clear that Lib/Lab was never going to happen. Some big Labour names refused, and they also refused to work with the SNP (despite Alex Salmond saying he'd give it a shot working with Labour). So that was always a no it seemed, but the Lib Dems never let on, which allowed them to press the Tories for better options. The Tories had no choice but to let Clegg have his demands, otherwise they'd end up with no proper power anyway.

The down side for the Lib Dems is some of the more liberal, but not as well thought out voters will hate them for this. But what were they meant to do? This is the one chance to get the system fixed so they can actually run properly now. And whilst they are doing it, they can have some influence on the rest of the policies too. Whilst it isn't ideal that it is a coalition with the Tories that doesn't suddenly mean they are right wing. It just means they are working with a right wing party, and hopefully keeping them in check.

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The Lib Dems have also secured their no tax on the first £10,000 earned policy, got the Tories to scrap their inheritance tax break to the richest estates in the land, and there'll be a partly elected House of Lords!

Happy Dave is happy that a major plan of the Tories to f**k the poor and feed the rich has been thwarted. Good job Mr Clegg.

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Bloody awesome news! One of the better Lib Dem policies to counter the Tory harshness!

See, this is definitely a very good mix of both!


Jenson drives it like he owns it; Lewis drives it like he stole it

One swallow doesn't make a summer.

But aye, it's a good start.

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K*bots UK, specialist providers of 'fun science' Curriculum Enhancement days for Primary and Secondary schools in Britain.
Please find us on [en.wikipedia.org] for more information.

The first cabinet meeting will be this morning. Amongst the plans being discussed will be the scrapping of ID cards. Please, let this happen.

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They need to remove this 3 strike BS for downloading. Punishing an entire household on a guilty until proven innocent basis is not right.

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My main concern about this is for the technophobe, who hasn't got a clue about protecting their wireless network and Mr. Opportunist next door uses the 'free' internet to download something dodgy (pirated software/movie/music/child pornography/whatever) yet the ISP would have no knowledge of a 2nd user, so it would automatically be aimed at the owner of the contract, who could be a bit naive, but totally innocent.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/13/2010 11:08AM by gav.

Germany has "solved" that issue by making it illegal to have an open wireless network. Thus making everyone guilty for not being a techy! yay!

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DaveEllis Wrote:
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> Germany has "solved" that issue by making it
> illegal to have an open wireless network. Thus
> making everyone guilty for not being a techy! yay!

Thing is, that's stupidly easy to apply - routers can be sent out of the factory with pre-configured wireless encryption, and simply require the user to either set or at least know the password. Hell, i worked for one of the most short-sighted ISPs in the country and even they managed that.

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Only easy to apply if all routers come like that. What when one breaks, it isn't covered under warranty, you buy a new one and it isn't?

Turning on something like WEP is trying to put out a house fire by blowing on it.

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Its not a matter of enforcement, that law will be nie on impossible to inforce - its about a more longer term view, its about changing the culture. By introducing a law like this and educating people/companies/making them aware that this is going to be the way we do things around here people will gradually change and as time developes learn how to protect themselfs. I.e its a catalyst to change not an iron fisted statement of intent.

Although i wasn't around at the time, i would presume it is like drink driving law developing from something taken fairly flippently in the early days with a "they will never catch me, impossible to enforce" type attitude to the culture we have today where it is seriously frowned upon and carries heavy penalties. Obviously we are talking a much more serious context there with life and death but the idea still applies.

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24 Heures Du Mans 18-19 June 2005



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/14/2010 09:56AM by andrew_S.

That's a rather wild and unrelated assumption. Drink driving kills people. Downloading anything, doesn't.

It is also 3 ACCUSATIONS and you're ENTIRE HOUSE HOLD is cut off from the internet. That is guilty until proven innocent, and the whole family must be punished.

So yeah, defend that.

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I hope we can have a shift back away from the disturbing "Big Brother society" that was forced on us under Blair's government. Guilty until proven innocent, CCTV everywhere we look, ID cards, national DNA database. Some of those were initiated under the previous Tory government, yes, but under New Labour they went into overdrive, and have been taken way too far.
This stupid anti-downloading law is a case in point. It's just the kind of law which needs to go, ASAP.

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DaveEllis Wrote:
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> That's a rather wild and unrelated assumption.
> Drink driving kills people. Downloading anything,
> doesn't.
>


I don't think its wild at all - the example is used to highlight an where a law when first implemented would have been seen as unenforceable and against culturally accepted practices, just like this one, but now is commonly followed and accepted. How did that happen? Through education and communication and the same will happen here, except in a different scenario. The fact the offense and consequence is more serious may speed up the process or focus the mind but it doesn't change the theory and methodology behind culture and attitude change.

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24 Heures Du Mans 18-19 June 2005



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/2010 01:30AM by andrew_S.

I see what you're getting at, however, the implications of those two offences(if you can even call downloading an offence) are massively different.

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andrew_S Wrote:
--> I don't think its wild at all - the example is
> used to highlight an where a law when first
> implemented would have been seen as unenforceable
> and against culturally accepted practices, just
> like this one, but now is commonly followed and
> accepted. How did that happen? Through education
> and communication and the same will happen here,
> except in a different scenario. The fact the
> offense and consequence is more serious may speed
> up the process or focus the mind but it doesn't
> change the theory and methodology behind culture
> and attitude change.

Bullsh*t and you know it. You're attitude would take a turn if you were accused without having done anything wrong. This has nothing to do with methodology and teaching people right and wrong, this is about the very basics of society and human rights. The Labour Government introduced a law which states guilty until proven innocent. You can try and justify it how you want, but behind the BS you know as well as I do that that is unacceptable and needs to go.

Of course this actually assumes that what you are doing is illegal. One of my CDs is badly scratched and doesn't play. By UK law, that means I can legally download it as I own the physical copy. But the owner of the copyright (in this case Sony BMG) doesn't know that. So if they catch me downloading it, they'll make an accusation against me and without any proof at all, they will have a strike put against me for downloading something I legally own. Hell, what happens if they make a simple error and accuse somebody who hasn't downloaded anything at all? Oh, they get a strike!

It is an utterly ridiculous idea, and I hope anyone who is moronic enough to defend it is the first to suffer from it, just to watch them pull their heads from their asses just so they can fight for there own basic rights, and the right to a fair trial.

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