In the news

Nearly a month old but I was surprised to find such an honest account of the situation in Syria (more specifically Damascus) by a western Journalist in a mainstream newspaper.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10770311/Syria-As-the-bombs-fall-the-people-of-Damascus-rally-round-Bashar-al-Assad.html

I took an uber in manchester yesterday, fast, hassle free and the cabby wasnt a cunt.

Free taxis from them this weekend in Manchester.

If it puts that Addison Lee cunt out of business it's got to be a good thing (although I suspect they'll be just as bad).

Uber charge a fair price and give you a realistic estimate up front. Blacks cabs and other cab companies are sneaky and rip people off.

For me that is all there is too it.

Uber charge a fair price and give you a realistic estimate up front. Blacks cabs and other cab companies are sneaky and rip people off.

For me that is all there is too it.

^ agreed, I think theyre mainly mad because the technology used by Uber will stop them being able to rip customers off

sod the black cab industry. they enjoy far too much undeserved privilege considering they account for a vanishingly small number of daily journeys in london and the amount of pollution and congestion they cause as a result. the USP of their entire industry is predicated on a laughable anachronism that technology and market forces has made obsolete. they're basically red telephone booths on wheels.

gertcha

sod the black cab industry. they enjoy far too much undeserved privilege considering they account for a vanishingly small number of daily journeys in london and the amount of pollution and congestion they cause as a result. the USP of their entire industry is predicated on a laughable anachronism that technology and market forces has made obsolete. they're basically red telephone booths on wheels.

^This, x1000. Lazy cunts, stupid vehicles, insane prices. Fuck 'em.

15 minute lunchbreak stroll along strand. 3 cabbies operating a 'red light optional' policy, many unhappy peds.

I think that by threatening to strike, the cab drivers are actually doing a lot to advertise uber at the moment.

England really is stuck in the '70s right now, huh?

Indeed, never heard of it, now know what's Uber is.

^ yep, me too, never heard of them until this morning, have now installed app. Bye Bye black cabbies; won't miss you.

It's been banned elsewhere (Brussels at least). I'm guessing if that's their goal their not bothered about people knowing about it.

Will it be London 2016? Capital could be set to relive 2012 as Rio preparations slammed by Olympic chiefs

Bring it on!

Indeed, never heard of it, now know what's Uber is.

^ yep, me too, never heard of them until this morning, have now installed app. Bye Bye black cabbies; won't miss you.

In that case click my link or use code UBERD3 and get yourself a free £10 credit.

.

Will it be London 2016? Capital could be set to relive 2012 as Rio preparations slammed by Olympic chiefs

Bring it on!

What an absolutely rubbish story. 100% unlikely. I can't stand how people still write stories like this as clickbait even though at the end they then admit that:

A spokeswoman for the International Olympic Committee said the question of the Rio Games being moved to London was a “non-starter and unfeasible”.

Wondering the idea/story was initiated by the IOC to put the fear in Brazil. There's no reason a country as wealthy as Brazil cannot get the games together in two years. Unfortunately, that will obviously result in money being spent on the olympics rather than the dozens/hundreds/thousands/etc. of other things which need it.

Brazil is something like the 8th richest nation in the world I think (too tired to check right now) but with a massive gap between the few super-rich (half of whom live in London!) and the many more woefully poor.

It would be great to see some of the extremely disadvantaged residents benefit from the Rio games and its (sorry to use this overused term) 'legacy' but I fear the plans they have made to date wont stretch that far. Too soon to tell I suppose though this is an optimistic official report: http://www.olympic.org/news/rio-2016-working-to-deliver-lasting-legacy/208557

Re: black cabs

I'd add to all of the above: the general perception that cabbies are notorious tax cheats. Not something I can prove personally, but can't see the fairness in an industry who doesn't contribute trying to have a say in how this city is run.
The technology of uber would make them easier to monitor, and that alone is reason enough for me to want the change cabbies are trying to block.

Bloody Germans, coming over here, buying our property:

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/11/london-property-empire-controversial-german-landlord

Take VAT (etc.)

Jimmy Carr - that's repugnant and morally wrong
Gary Barlow (Tory supporting, massive donator) OBE

Cunts

http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2014/may/12/gary-barlow-urged-to-give-back-obe-over-tax-issues

to be fair, jimmy carr is a cunt too.

indeed, but he was vilified as a cunt, wheres Bawlow is held up as some sort of moral crusader

only by the same sort of intellectual pygmies that buy his records / vote tory.

i didn't even know he could play the oboe.