In the news

ahh it was the cycle lane thing that got my goat. that's the stuff that gets drivers all het up when they see cyclists outside of 'their' area. just very misinformed and promotes the wrong kind of attitude.

100% agree with the chill out and accomodate each other sentiment though but that was almost an afterthought at the end of the segment if i remember correctly.

what's important to remember is that he is a celebrity, which makes his opinions matter more.

the cycling lawyer guy was on there too, and was much more eloquent that muggy gryff

I started to get agitated when he was talking about cycle lanes too. But then he pointed out that the reason they were empty was that they went to the wrong places and were inconvenient to use. Unfortunately people generally form their opinions on the first thing they hear and fill in the rest with the prejudice of their choice.

Cycle Lane = dangerous.

I never ride on them, mainly because it does not put me in the primary position, AKA the safest position to be on the road.

When the Smurfway was opened, I got an incredible amount of abuse from not being on the cycle lane, before the Smurfway and the lack of cycle lane - me riding near the middle of the lane look perfectly normal to the eyes of the drivers, but no longer so with the cycle lane next to me.

Yes. To cyclists who know their stuff, cycle lanes illustrate (for the most part) where not to be. For everyone else, they're baffled and angered if you stray out of them. It's infuriating for everyone.

That what I usually tell my trainee, is to simply treat it as a 'no cycle zone'.

One protester said: "Islington has so much poverty. It's only going to exasperate it and make the gap between affluent people and people on low incomes even more."

maybe it should be in Epic Fail

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-12503901

Pistanator said: "Islington has so much dog shit. It's only going to get all dry and hard and make the gap between affluent people and people on low incomes even more evident. Tonnes of it. All over the place. Worse than fuckin' Paris."

maybe it should be in Epic Fail

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-12503901

ftfy

I really need to go to bed.

"What were we talking about just now, what's your name, where are you from, can I have a sip of your water, are you OK mate, nice one, see you later maybe, I love this track, what were we talking about just now..?"

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/feb/19/ecstasy-harm-brain-new-study

yes it does

Anyone following this?

http://www.counterpunch.org/lindorff02082011.html

The Guardian.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/20/us-raymond-davis-lahore-cia

I particularly love all the Hyperion stuff:

The non-existent Hyperion Protective Consultants does have a website (www.hyperion-protective.com), but one of the phone numbers listed doesn’t work, an 800 number produces a recorded answer offering information about how to deal with or fend off bank foreclosures, and a third number with an Orlando exchange goes to a recording giving Hyperion’s corporate name and asking the caller to leave a message. Efforts to contact anyone on that line were unsuccessful. The local phone company says there is no public listing for Hyperion Protective Consultants–a rather unusual situation for a legitimate business operation.

"What were we talking about just now, what's your name, where are you from, can I have a sip of your water, are you OK mate, nice one, see you later maybe, I love this track, what were we talking about just now..?"

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/feb/19/ecstasy-harm-brain-new-study

yes it does

Interesting reading. However, it reminds me of a a cannabis story I read when I was younger. "Weed comedown as back as heroin". They gave mice high doses of refined THC, and then gave them body flushing drugs, and the withdrawal symptoms were on par with heroin. Point being, these experiments are useful, but you've got to be careful about the real-life conclusions you make.

"Essentially we compared one group of people who danced and raved and took ecstasy with a similar group of individuals who danced and raved but who did not take ecstasy. When we did that, we found that there was no difference in their cognitive abilities." In other words, previous studies highlighted problems triggered by other factors, such as use of other drugs or drink, or sleep deprivation.

But the drug still posed risks, he said. "Ecstasy consumption is dangerous because illegally made pills often contain contaminants that can have harmful side-effects."

Basically this, plus the fact that a large number of people taking it, will be using other drug, often at the same time. It's a bit like testing the effects of cocaine without combining it with alcohol.

Ecstasy is (was in my case) fucking cool though*.

*In moderation.

I believe in all things in moderation; including moderation.

‘The Pledge’ was on last night, and it had this good line in it – ‘the problem with exact science is that it’s not an exact science’. All evidence is flawed in some way, and no chance can any study be representative to all of the people, all of the time. I take the practical evidence over the scientific in the case of pills, as I guarantee they make you forget what you’re

Agreed.

What I did think was interesting was that just raving make you a gurn.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/odd/news/a304940/cyclist-gets-9-inch-splinter-through-leg.html

Ouch.

and he got back on his bike!

Is splinter boy the new Danny Macaskill?

how do they go about repairing the track after a crash takes out a splinter that size?

Mario Vaz: fills and polishes it in no time

I heard they had to leave it in (the "splinter") over night as they tried to figure out how to get it out..