Posts by terlan

Re: the tin foil hat wearer in me is deeply troubled

"@charlie clarke: i never said it would be impossible. Think of the benefits that the revolutionairies you mentioned would have found from having facebook."

Vladimir Lenin has invited you to an event : Storm the winter palace 25th october

Tzar Nicholas wants you to help him plant crops in farmville

Leon Trotsky poked you

Vladimir Lenin likes the page Karl Marx's 100 silly kitty pictures

Joseph Stalin has sent you a friend request

Re: Why all the death and destruction

If you want a good old fashiopned point n click, grab a copy of Ben There, Dan That! and Time Gentlemen, Please

You can get the pair of them for about £3 on steam at the moment. £3 for two great wee games.

Great point and click adventures very sam and max / DOTT monkey island like. Language can be a little more mature than say monkey island and simon, but very british sense of humour to them.

and hey... its 3 quid for 2 games. plus... theres a demo. so try before you invest the really serious sum of £3.

did I mention it was only £3 for these two games?

Re: @tapeworm - Govt can't keep the pace?

"Cyclists have every bit as much right to be there as you do. Especially as they have paid road tax for cars they're not using."

Sorry but there is no such thing as ROAD TAX in the UK.

There is an annual VEHICLE TAX, which hasn't been linked to road mainentance since about 1937. And its a per vehicle tax, so cyclists dont have that covered just because they own a car, as the vehicle tax only covers that vehicle. But then cycles would be exempt from it probably.

However, they also dont have compulsory insurance, sometimes in the thousands of pounds, to cover their liabilty for damage to other vehicles and injury to people. Nor do they require to have ANY formal training or testing before they are let loose on the public roads. Anyone can walk into a shop, layout a wad of cash for a bike and begin riding on the road without knowing the differnce between a giveway sign and a stop sign. They also dont have to have their vehicles maintained and inspected by government testing stations every year. Nor is there a vehicle database of cycles registration marks that police or other authorities can use to identify the owner of a bike should he decide to break a law or say damage a vehicle or a person in a collision and decide to flee the scene.

Now theres no reason why cyclists should be made to at least take the theory test before being allowed to ride certain roads, for example dual carriageways certain busy commuter routes, national speed limit areas etc, to show they have the responisbility and sensibilities to do so. A yearly check to enrure their vehicle is fit to be on the road, has proper lighting etc. Mandatory laws regarding safety equipment and visibile clothing for cycling at night say. And some for of third party liability insurance to assure the rest of us that if some dozy plonk on a bike slams into the side of your car while its sitting at lights and damages it, you can at least rest in the knowledge his insurance will cover the cost to repair damages to paintwork.

Then cyclists can quite rightfully claimn to be entiled to the same rights as motorists, when they are treated the same as them in every aspect of road use, not just the bits cyclists like.

So while I agree that cyclist do have the right to be on the road, and many have the greatest of intentions at times, such as saving the enviroment (carbon footprint of their rather expensive to make lycra outfits, bikes and other equipment not withstanding) and staying fit. there are a huge number running about without any regard for fellow travellers on the road, an over inflated sense of entilement, no clue what so ever about basic road signs, ettiquete or safety or ride in low visibility without lights or proper high visibilty clothing. And are simply a danger to themeselves and other road users. And these are the ones making the rest of you look bad and annoying drivers the most.