A group for British DU members. http://www.democraticunderground.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Thu, 23 May 2013 07:57:19 Thu, 23 May 2013 07:57:19 Saw this tweet


[blockquote]Trident offers no deterrent value against current threats, N.Korea and terrorist can't be deterred[/blockquote]

Time to re think the threats really facing the UK. 25 billion on nuclear weapons that will never be fired while terrorists slip through so easily?... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10884003 Thu, 23 May 2013 05:58:47 It is 100 years since the British state began officially collecting historic buildings and sites - and opening them up to the public. The acquisition of hundreds of places saw the creation of what was, in effect, an outdoor museum of national history.

In England, much of the work of protecting an... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10884002 Thu, 23 May 2013 04:27:08 Because it more accurately reflects the government's political stance...

A condom allows for inflation, halts production, destroys the next generation, protects a bunch of dicks, and gives you a sense of security while you're actually being screwed.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphot... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883995 Wed, 22 May 2013 07:00:46

Some of Britain’s most successful and eminent business leaders have accused Eurosceptic MPs of putting “politics before economics” and abandoning the national interest in their calls for Britain to leave the European Union.

In a letter to The Independent, the group issues a trenchant riposte ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883976 Mon, 20 May 2013 04:15:44 [i]
David Cameron risked a major blow to his authority after he defended one of his closest friends over claims that he had described Tory activists as "mad, swivel-eyed loons".

The Conservative co-chairman Lord Feldman, a tennis partner of the Prime Minister, was forced to deny making the remar... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883972 Sun, 19 May 2013 10:36:36 In 1927 Claude Friese-Greene shot some of the first-ever color film footage around London. He captured everyday life in the city with a technique innovated by his father, called Biocolour.

Though we usually think of French names like Lumiere and Melies when we think of early film pioneers, Friese... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883968 Sat, 18 May 2013 11:54:10 (Reuters) - Shares in state-backed Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L) on Friday rose above the level which the government regards as its break-even price following its 20.5 billion pound rescue of the bank, raising hopes a sale could be imminent.

Lloyds shares rose 1.2 percent to reach 62.13 pence at ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883964 Fri, 17 May 2013 08:21:41 [div class="excerpt"]The Ukip leader was left stranded in the middle of Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, surrounded by around 50 nationalists and socialists calling him a racist, but demanding that he: “Go home to England”.

Police officers attempted to persuade two taxi drivers to take Mr Farage away from... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883960 Thu, 16 May 2013 15:31:43 Google's tax policy is devious, unethical and far from the company's stated aim to 'do no evil', MPs said today.

In a damning indictment of the Internet giant members of the Public Accounts Committee said they did not believe their claims that they were not effectively selling advertising in the ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883955 Thu, 16 May 2013 08:23:46 Rise of the 'super-commuter': Number of Britons travelling three hours each day for work soars by 50 per cent in five years

The number of ‘super-commuter’ Britons who take 90 minutes to get to work has soared by 50 per cent in the last five years, according to a new report.

The study shows the... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883952 Thu, 16 May 2013 05:28:35 Fewer than one in five presenters at major broadcasters over the age of 50 are women, a new study reveals.

Research compiled from figures taken from the main UK broadcasters found that just 18% of presenters over 50 are women. BBC television and radio, Sky, ITN and Channel 5 combined have just 26... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883951 Wed, 15 May 2013 18:24:20 Women at high risk of breast cancer could be forced to endure long waits for genetic testing and extra screening for the disease because NHS services for such patients receive too little money, cancer experts have warned.

Some experts in Britain's most common cancer are expecting the NHS to face ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883949 Wed, 15 May 2013 08:32:20 http://www.democraticunderground.com/12212571

Can somebody from the UK weigh in with more information about Sarah Teather, MP, and the political stance of the Liberal Democrat Party. I'm curious as to why it's called a "centre-Left party" and how it differs from the Labour Party.

... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883941 Tue, 14 May 2013 10:19:19 The prime minister's adviser on enterprise has told the cabinet that the economic downturn is an excellent time for new businesses to boost profits and grow because labour is cheap, the Observer can reveal.

Lord Young, a cabinet minister under the late Baroness Thatcher, who is the only aide with... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883932 Sun, 12 May 2013 12:37:01 From Paul Bernal's blog, with suitable illustrations:

Mr Gove was extraordinarily arrogant.

Painfully arrogant.

He believed that he knew how everything should be done. He believed that everyone else in the world was stupid and ignorant.

The problem was, Mr Gove himself was the one who wa... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883926 Sat, 11 May 2013 04:03:49 Eighteen-year-old Andrew Brackin has just been given the offer of a life time.

He's been handed $100,000 (£67,000) to go and live in San Francisco and work on his own tech idea.

The teenager from London is one of 20 young business people now being sponsored by Peter Thiel, the co-creator of Pa... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883920 Fri, 10 May 2013 14:13:00 Radical cleric Abu Qatada would return to Jordan voluntarily if the country ratified a treaty drawn up with the UK government, the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (Siac) has heard.

The treaty deals with the use of evidence obtained by torture.

Abu Qatada's lawyer, Edward Fitzgerald QC, ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883919 Fri, 10 May 2013 10:41:08 Labour has a mountain to climb to win the next election outright, and is still failing to chalk up big enough leads on image or leadership to make it likely to secure an overall majority, according to polling which will be put to a Labour conference to be addressed this weekend by Ed Miliband.

Th... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883915 Fri, 10 May 2013 04:47:32 Conservative MPs are seeking to engineer a vote on an EU referendum by tabling an amendment to the Queen's speech next week, expressing regret that the government's legislative programme does not contain a bill introducing a referendum.

The move has the support of hardline Eurosceptics such as Jo... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883914 Thu, 09 May 2013 11:17:01 I'm listening to a new CD from my favourite singer. No names because it'll sound like a cheap publicity stunt.

(S)he sings...

"I had a surplus of regret
A hundred hooks I'd not slung yet"

In Australia, it means "get lost", "go away". The line doesn't seem to fit in with my interpretation ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883904 Tue, 07 May 2013 10:16:55 A 91-year old British man who has fought a campaign for long-term expats to be able to vote in British general elections has lost a ruling at the European Court of Human Rights.

Harry Shindler says the current voting ban on anyone living abroad for more than 15 years infringes his rights.

Desp... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883903 Tue, 07 May 2013 07:36:14 People living abroad will no longer be entitled to a British state pension based solely on their spouse's work history, under government plans.

Pensions Minister Steve Webb said some of those claiming a married person's allowance had never been to the UK.

Some 220,000 overseas residents receiv... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883895 Mon, 06 May 2013 04:22:02 Leaving 0.7 bill out of Queens speech shows Camerons weakness + lurch to right. + yet another eg of @nick_clegg's impotence.#brokenpromise @ivan_lewis MP

He fails to forget that the world willl not be a better place automatically with 0.7% legislation and that aid is not a silver bullet and that... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883886 Sun, 05 May 2013 08:10:24 [div class="excerpt"]Deputy House of Commons Speaker Nigel Evans has been arrested on suspicion of rape and sexual assault, Press Association sources say.

The 55-year-old Conservative MP is being questioned about alleged attacks on two men in their 20s, the sources said.
...
The alleged offence... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883879 Sat, 04 May 2013 15:48:58 The only surviving German second world war Dornier Do 17 bomber is to be raised from the English Channel in an operation announced on Friday.

The plane's retrieval from the Goodwin Sands off the Kent coast more than 70 years after it was shot down during the battle of Britain will mark the bigges... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883847 Fri, 03 May 2013 07:03:59 A legal challenge to the Scottish government's plans to introduce minimum pricing per unit of alcohol has failed.

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) took action against the proposal, which it said would breach European law, after it was passed by MSPs.

A Court of Session ruling dismissed the ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883846 Fri, 03 May 2013 06:06:00 Stuart Hall's secret life as a serial sex offender was exposed on Thursday as the veteran BBC broadcaster admitted 14 offences involving 13 victims dating back to the late 1960s, including an assault on a nine-year-old girl.

Hall, now 83, confronted one girl in the staff quarters of a hotel withi... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883838 Thu, 02 May 2013 17:19:56 Guardian published this back in March :

Bank of Ireland doubles and triples tracker mortgage payments

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2013/mar/02/bank-of-ireland-mortgage-rates-double-triple

Now today for some obscure reason the subject has come to the fore again :

Is this a warning of ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883831 Thu, 02 May 2013 06:32:28 (Reuters) - Tax havens such as Bermuda and the Cayman Islands will work more closely with Britain and other European countries to fight tax evasion, Chancellor George Osborne said on Thursday.

With governments in most advanced economies short of tax revenue after the financial crisis, pressure ha... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883830 Thu, 02 May 2013 04:34:45 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22362762

And once again, media attention, especially US media attention, is on this so-called poor-helpless girl when there's little focus on finding the true murderers of Meredith. And for her to accept such a astronomical amount for a book makes her loo... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883823 Wed, 01 May 2013 12:31:15 A section of the South West Coast Path in Dorset has been destroyed by a massive landslip.

Portland Coastguard said the cliff fall happened overnight at St Oswald's Bay, east of Durdle Door.

A coastguard spokesman said: "It is huge - a massive fall has taken out part of the cliff. It is rather... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883822 Wed, 01 May 2013 05:06:57 [div class="excerpt"]Omar Mohammed Khan, Mohammed Hasseen, Anzal Hussain, Mohammed Saud, Zohaib Ahmed and Jewel Uddin all admitted preparing an act of terrorism between 1 May and 4 July 2012.

The group took a homemade bomb to an EDL rally in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, but arrived after the event h... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883812 Tue, 30 Apr 2013 05:52:25 People in their 70s across the UK will be offered a vaccine against shingles from this September.

Experts have been recommending routine immunisation against the disease, which causes a painful rash, for some years.

The government-led programme will target 70, 78 and 79-year-olds in the first ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883810 Tue, 30 Apr 2013 05:28:44 A headteacher found hanged at her primary school was concerned it would lose its top Ofsted rating months before she died, an inquest has heard.

The body of Helen Mann, 43, was discovered at Sytchampton endowed first school, near Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire, on 5 November.

Mann had bee... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883808 Mon, 29 Apr 2013 19:28:43 The chief executive of Oxford city council, Peter Sloman, has hit out at the government's planned changes to the welfare system claiming the reforms – including the bedroom tax and benefit caps – have taken £34m out of Oxford's local economy.

Speaking at the Guardian's fifth Local Government Lead... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883806 Mon, 29 Apr 2013 18:53:42 Primark says it will pay compensation and offer emergency food aid and to victims of the Bangladesh factory collapse who worked for its supplier.

The clothing store chain said its team in Bangladesh had been "working to put in place immediate and long-term help for victims of this disaster".

I... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883805 Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:32:23 In a letter released to the Observer under freedom of information rules, Owen Paterson told the chemicals company Syngenta last week that he was 'extremely disappointed'by the European commission's proposed ban. He said that 'the UK has been very active' in opposing it and 'our efforts will continue... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883803 Mon, 29 Apr 2013 10:21:46 Danny Alexander, a Treasury minister, ordered departments to make sure senior civil servants are on the payroll by the end of last August.

He issued the ultimatum amid public outcry that the Government was allowing people to opt legally to pay corporation tax at 20 per cent, rather than income t... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883797 Mon, 29 Apr 2013 06:13:53 Is it just that they don't understand what the internet is; or are they simply the whiniest babies ever to stand for election?

[div class="excerpt"]UKIP Slams Tory Election 'Smear Campaign'

But a party spokesman hit back, saying: "UKIP has been subject to a co-ordinated smear campaign.

"We ... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883795 Sun, 28 Apr 2013 18:24:17 [div class="excerpt"]High-performing Catholic schools are to be given considerable influence over the running and performance of struggling secular schools under plans being drawn up by the Church and government.

Catholic schools are currently bound by strict rules that mean they cannot form fede... http://www.democraticunderground.com/10883792 Sat, 27 Apr 2013 16:13:32