In the news

sometimes but they don't find weapons (obv anyone with a weapon on them takes one look at the scanners set up at the gate and walks away) and they usually mostly find weed grinders when they search bags

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/deputy-prime-minister-takes-green-cars-up-a-gear

the governments big green initiative has been revealed... 500 million quid to get people into electro cars.

if only there was some other form of accessible, sustainable transportation that would benefit from half that amount and improve the lives of twice the amount of people...

/can you spot the deliberate error in the paper?
//for a given value of deliberate.

^ Another issue with this is the high environmental cost of producing the batteries.

Worth it if you have a really bad smog problem, and you have to shift pollution (though Hydrogen cars are also a way around that...) but they could spend the same amount of cash to get people into efficient small city cars and would probably reduce net pollution more*.
*educated guess but if somebody gives me £££ and a few months to do a life cycle analysis... ;)

Also, this means Prius will be the next **** taxi driver car, already happening in Belfast and on electric you don't hear them coming. So extra startle points when you look over your shoulder as you do anyway.

We could really do with some modern trains up north.

90% of the ones running where I want to go are older than I am.

This really made me mad;

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/28/britain-plutocrats-landed-gentry-shotgun-owners

The quicker we can be rid of this pox of a government, the better.

Yup. In the absence of sufficient renewable electricity sources to run these electric cars you're only shifting the CO2 emissions from the car's exhaust pipe to a coal or gas plant somewhere else.

My mum has an electric car. But that is back in Oslo where electricity comes from hydroelectric dams. I can't say I feel the same enthusiasm for electric cars here in Blighty.

I'm sure I'm not the only one on here who went to a few of his parties
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/10785472/Acid-House-King-jailed-for-sophisticated-cyber-attack-on-UK-banks.html

Sad. Clever guy gone bad.
He could've been doing useful stuff for the same amount of money..

^^ But the efficiency of a Coal power plant is significantly better than a car engine? So you're still having a small impact, as well as showing demand which might lead to more fundamental moves towards a low energy economy

Well is it? If so aiming for more efficient coal power plants supplying electric cars instead of legislating for more efficient petrol powered cars could perhaps work.
An argument in favour of your suggestion is that a publicly controlled coal plant would concentrate the control and management of emissions in one place rather than just hoping that individuals will follow incentives and buy more efficient cars.
Not sure about actual numbers though.

That was meant as vague grasping at straws. I wholeheartedly agree that it is a fairly stupid investment in 'green' policy, when things like rail and light rail would be a far better beneficiary

I stupidly looked at the Mail website, Leeds stabbing kid liked computer games and heavy metal,,,,,,,,,

Careful everyone, so do I!

We could really do with some modern trains up north.

90% of the ones running where I want to go are older than I am.

So?

This steam train did 200kph in 1938..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LNER_Class_A4_4468_Mallard

Most trains these days are lucky to even run if I'm to believe all the commuters :)

Yup. In the absence of sufficient renewable electricity sources to run these electric cars you're only shifting the CO2 emissions from the car's exhaust pipe to a coal or gas plant somewhere else.

My mum has an electric car. But that is back in Oslo where electricity comes from hydroelectric dams. I can't say I feel the same enthusiasm for electric cars here in Blighty.

Electric car = coal-powered car + lots of plastic and harmful chemicals

Moving the environmental impact into the grid, for example to a coal powered station, makes an ultimate transition to a low carbon economy easier in the future. Changing one power station is a lot easier than persuading car owners to switch en masse. Breaking the dependency between the two earlier rather than later is sound project management in my opinion.

True but what is the environmental impact of electric cars? Where do they get the material for their batteries? What happens to their batteries after they're dead? etc

Isn't there some story about the Prius burning more fuel from its global manufacturing background than you could ever save from the battery use? Could be horseshit, I dunno.

I'd prefer people to stop using cars when they're clearly not needed.

So?

This steam train did 200kph in 1938..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LNER_Class_A4_4468_Mallard

Most trains these days are lucky to even run if I'm to believe all the commuters :)

Mallard was withdrawn from service 25 years after it was built.

My train this morning was a Pacer, which Northern Rail will keep trundling along until the Disability Discrimination Act exception expires.

We have some shiny tracks with overhead wires that'll be ready soon so we're getting some late '80s 319s.

FTA:

Drivers pay no road tax or congestion charge on ULEV. The average journey made by motorists is just 7 miles...

so much fucking failure.

This really made me mad;

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/28/britain-plutocrats-landed-gentry-shotgun-owners

The quicker we can be rid of this pox of a government, the better.

So full of bollocks that article tho Andy. The percentage of license holders who use them for shooting game is around 5%.

The majority of license holders are using them for skeet or trap shooting, go down to any range and you'll meet more builders and scaffolders than poshos

the license should go up IMO but it's misleading of the article to represent it as a 'break' for toffs

go down to any range and you'll meet more builders and scaffolders than poshos

Knowing the builders and scaffolders I know this makes me even more worried!

So full of bollocks that article tho Andy. The percentage of license holders who use them for shooting game is around 5%.

The majority of license holders are using them for skeet or trap shooting, go down to any range and you'll meet more builders and scaffolders than poshos

the license should go up IMO but it's misleading of the article to represent it as a 'break' for toffs

The shotgun license issue is just a tiny part of that article. It's the subsidies on grouse moors, the categorisation of pheasants as both wild animals and livestock to suit the rich (who else can afford pheasant shooting?) and the ridiculous disparities in the council tax system that annoy me.

Even so, why should the state subsidise shotgun licenses? We don't do it for passports or driving licenses, so why are the essential background checks for shotguns not charged straight through to the license holder?

Because the rich shouldn't be made to do anything so crude as pay for something, it's beneath them don't you know?

Even so, why should the state subsidise shotgun licenses? We don't do it for passports or driving licenses, so why are the essential background checks for shotguns not charged straight through to the license holder?

Agreed, as I stated. £200 notes for a 5 year license is reasonable IMO.

I was casting my opinion on the mis-representation of that particular section of the article as being a posho only pursuit

in essex everyone has a shotgun, but they shouldn't have to pay full price for the license as theirs have all been sawn down to be much smaller. so really half-price or so would be fair.

Mallard was withdrawn from service 25 years after it was built.

My train this morning was a Pacer, which Northern Rail will keep trundling along until the Disability Discrimination Act exception expires.

We have some shiny tracks with overhead wires that'll be ready soon so we're getting some late '80s 319s.

these are the manchester-marple trains too

worst.