Early Risers.

[iL Dottore]

Although I never thought that I would permanently reside in Switzerland, let alone become a Swiss citizen, events dictated otherwise. Most notably meeting my wife at work.

 

Ultimately, moving to Switzerland and becoming Swiss was probably one of the smartest moves of my life (on a par with hooking up with Mrs iD). Switzerland is by no means perfect, but it is certainly one of the top five countries in Europe to live in. The quality of life, transport services and governmental services are all top-notch - not to mention a health system (with high standards of care and good outcomes) that will provide you with medical care as and when you need it (and one that doesn't just stick you on a waiting list and have you hope for the best).

 

Yes, all this has a financial cost but Switzerland has learnt well that "if you pay peanuts you get monkeys" so people do get paid appropriately. By UK standards, using just the conversion of costs in CHF to £, Switzerland is far more expensive than the UK. But if you look at those costs as a percentage of income, Switzerland is far cheaper than Britain.

Although both Italy and Britain are - so to speak - my spiritual homes, I certainly do not want to return to Britain for my old age (and I see no reason to return to Italy either). 

[jjb1970]

35 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

That to me suspiciously seems like a "political" arrest: high profile, a lot of media attention and thin on prosecutable evidence. 
 

Very much, I would think, a warning to a certain foreign government that They Are Being Watched.

 

All part of the cynical and dispassionate manoeuvring of Realpolitik.

 

And yes, there will be casualties.

 

In Realpolitik today's friends were yesterday's enemies and today's "brothers in arms" can be tomorrow's opponents. As Henry Kissinger reportedly said about the US that it "doesn't have friends, it has interests" an attitude taken by many powerful countries (and one British Governments of all persuasions should take note of. There is NO special relationship with the US - ceryin the eyes of the US).

 

 

I suspect they were worried about disclosure in court and potential diplomatic fallout. 

 

The evidence against him was an intercepted call with the Chinese embassy (or consulate, can't remember which but it was a Chinese diplomatic post) offering his services. In court they'd probably have had to share the tape as evidence then questions would be asked about their wire tapping activities, because it wouldn't just be the Chinese who'd enjoy seeing Canadian intelligence embarrassed in court but every other country. I imagine few here are naive enough not to realise it happens, and I don't delude myself there are valid national security concerns for it, but North American and European countries ride such a high moral horse about the sanctity of their own diplomatic posts and communications that it's slightly embarrassing when made clear that China, Russia et al are doing nothing we don't do.

 

The case itself was a bit bonkers.

 

The guy in question was a Chinese naval architect with Canadian citizenship. He was one of those people who was too clever to use the old saying. He was academically brilliant, he performed his job to an extremely high standard but he never struck me as having been overly endowed with what we call 'common sense'.

 

The thing that struck me as crazy was he was a hull structures design approval surveyor, verifying calculations and compliance with rules and standards. We had naval work including the Canadian AOPS, but AOPS was a large offshore patrol vessel designed by the Norwegians and all he did was hull structure, nothing to do with mission systems or military equipment (which isn't much on a patrol boat anyway). The classification rules and naval ship code (ANEP-77) to which the boats were designed and built are both in the public domain, with other freely available information a competent naval architect would have a pretty good idea of hull design and construction. And even then if either Canada or China was going to spy on the other to learn about ship design and construction it'd be Canada spying on China, China's naval architecture and shipbuilding expertise and capabilities were already way ahead of Canada then.

 

My thought at the time, which I still think, if it was probably a brainwave from a clever but silly individual to give China a call to see if he could make a bit of money on the side. The call was intercepted and the RCMP and others made a big deal of it only for more balanced people to intercede and ask the questions of how much do we need to reveal to prosecute an idiot who will probably be dismissed as a walther mitty imbecile? At that point the case should either have been dropped or prosecuted but nobody had the nerve to take it on the chin that somebody had created a mess to be cleaned up so it dragged on for years. However, this is pure speculation on my part and ultimately neither Canada nor the individual received justice in the case and we will never know. Even the phone intercept, it's easy to see that as open and shut but without being shared and subject to counter argument who knows?

[rockershovel]

9 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

 

Its not for everyone and those who come here with unrealistic expectations (not referring to your late father, but rather many of those on youtube who post up excited "We re moving to Australia!" vlogs) can be quickly disappointed. House prices in the capital cities are some of the highest in the world, as a result rents are shooting upwards, and we have the same "Cost Of Living Crisis" as everywhere else.

 

 

 

I can only say that my now-third-and-fourth-generation family out there have never returned. 

 

Two or three of my college contemporaries have made the move with success. Mind you, I suspect that passing through a mining college and working first in places like Botswana or Zambia has a certain pre-qualification aspect and sharpens the appreciation of when you are well off. 

 

[Barry O]

Ey up!

 

Interesting week #1 coming up. It may involve some cricket but this is very much weather dependant. 

It may also include a team ride.. but again, it's weather dependant.

 

Time to finish my tea and get odd items sorted.

 

Have a great day/evening as you can.

 

Baz

[polybear]

8 hours ago, Winslow Boy said:

Oh My Dear Bear what a cynical attitude you have. It's just pure coincidence that you happen to meet up in a Gastro Pub. Pure coincidence.

 

Possibly, but three times in a row?  Bear smells a Rat.....

 

6 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

I am struggling to think of anywhere I have been that was devoid of any positives, just as I haven't been anywhere I couldn't criticize in some way.

 

 

Never been to Stevenage then?

 

5 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

I thought it dreadful really. If he was guilty then he should have been brought to trial. If he was innocent then he lost his job and lived under a cloud for years and will probably always be stigmatised as a spy. I  have an opinion on his possible extracurricular activities but it's just that, an opinion.

 

I  get that legal teams need time to prepare their cases but 7 or however many it was years? If it was as open and shut as presented when he was arrested I'd have thought a month would have been enough time for the prosecution. 

 

If that'd been me I reckon I would've tried my luck at a compo claim.

[Hroth]

10 hours ago, polybear said:

 

Er, well since you ask.....

 

NO!!

 

(I occasionally always received "Words of Advice" from a previous Polina when out to Lunch/Din Dins/Whatever when faced with an ikky stikky gooey plate after scoffin' some sticky cake/ice cream/whatever.  She'd say "DON'T YOU DARE...." as I gazed longingly at it; for some strange reason she considered a quick wipe(s) of the paw around the plate to be "poor form".  It was often followed with "IF YOU DO I'M GETTING UP AND WALKING OUT......."

 

Needless to say A Certain Bear became rather adept at distracting her so I never was actually caught...though the resulting evidence was plain to see.  I do recall hearing those immortal words "I MEAN IT....." on several occasions, however.....😁)

 

 

 

As my mother would say, "You can't take him anywhere..."

 

7 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

Or reading John Cooper Clarke poetry-

Evidently Chicken Town.

 

The bloody cops are bloody keen
Bloody keep it bloody clean
Bloody chief's a bloody swine
Bloody draws the bloody line
At bloody fun and bloody games
The bloody kids he bloody blames
Are nowhere to be bloody found
Anywhere in Chickentown

The bloody scene is bloody sad
The bloody news is bloody bad
The bloody weed is bloody turf
The bloody speed is bloody Surf
Bloody folks are bloody daft
Don't make me bloody laugh
Bloody hurts to look around
Everywhere in Chickentown

The bloody train is bloody late
You bloody wait, you bloody wait
You're bloody lost and bloody found
Stuck in Chickentown

The bloody view is bloody vile
For bloody miles and bloody miles
Bloody babies bloody cry
Bloody flowers bloody die
Bloody food is bloody muck
Bloody drains are bloody
Colour scheme is bloody brown
Evidently Chickentown

The bloody pubs are bloody dull
The bloody clubs are bloody full
Of bloody girls and bloody guys
With bloody murder in their eyes
A bloody bloke got bloody stabbed
Waiting for a bloody cab
Bloody stay at bloody home
Bloody neighbor bloody moans
Keep the bloody racket down
This is bloody Chickentown

The bloody pies are bloody old
The bloody chips are bloody cold
Bloody beer is bloody flat
The bloody flats have bloody rats
The bloody clocks are bloody wrong
Bloody days are bloody long
Bloody gets you bloody down
It's evidently Chickentown

The bloody train is bloody late
You bloody wait and bloody wait
Bloody lost and bloody found
Stuck in Chickentown

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Stephen Hopkins / Martin Hannett

 

 

The hypnotic opening track to the LP "Snap, Crackle & Bop".

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snap,_Crackle_%26_Bop

 

If you listen to "Chickentown" on the LP, you'll hear that the Net Nanny has deleted an "effin" word or several in the lyric listing...

 

The other chillingly descriptive track on the disc is "Beasley Street"

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beasley_Street

 

The LP on utoob

 

One of my treasured vinyl records...

 

ION

 

There's an autumnal chill in the air, and it's a bit blowy out though rain is not predicted (Ha! We'll see...)

 

I'll pop out to do some food shopping after the Lemming Rush has died down!

 

 

 

Edited September 9 by Hroth
A further comment on the Chickentown lyrics

[rockershovel]

My experience of Chinese as work colleagues and students suggests that the "burden of proof" is the wrong way round; that the onus should be on them to demonstrate that they are not spies, at some level. 

 

 

[TheQ]

Mooring Awl,

3/4 hours sleep, short awake, 5 hours sleep, long awake, 3/4 hours sleep.

 

Very dull but no soggyness is forecast, I'll be shutting windows today as it cools, last night our bedroom was 24C with windows open.

 

I do wonder at the number of Chinese visiting the radar museum,  its not that many, but it's probably more than the percentage of population, most seem to be " students " or about that age... Though we have nothing that's secret, it wasn't that long ago the UK was selling and  attempting to sell radars to China.

There are so it seems approximately 152,000 chinese students in the UK one wonders how many are spys , though I expect many are not spys exactly, but are just told to report what they see..

 

Plans for today

Building maintenance 304mm to the foot scale.

Fit a replacement post box door I've built... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Tony_S]

Morning all.

It isn’t sunny, definitely cooler than yesterday, and rather overcast. Not a lot happening today according to our calendar.

Tony

[jjb1970]

I remember in the 80's the UK supplied a comprehensive upgrade package for the J-7 fighter (Chinese derivative of the MiG 21) including radar and avionics. I think it was called the J-7 Airguard. 

[Winslow Boy]

7 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

Or reading John Cooper Clarke poetry-

Evidently Chicken Town.

 

The bloody cops are bloody keen
Bloody keep it bloody clean
Bloody chief's a bloody swine
Bloody draws the bloody line
At bloody fun and bloody games
The bloody kids he bloody blames
Are nowhere to be bloody found
Anywhere in Chickentown

The bloody scene is bloody sad
The bloody news is bloody bad
The bloody weed is bloody turf
The bloody speed is bloody Surf
Bloody folks are bloody daft
Don't make me bloody laugh
Bloody hurts to look around
Everywhere in Chickentown

The bloody train is bloody late
You bloody wait, you bloody wait
You're bloody lost and bloody found
Stuck in Chickentown

The bloody view is bloody vile
For bloody miles and bloody miles
Bloody babies bloody cry
Bloody flowers bloody die
Bloody food is bloody muck
Bloody drains are bloody
Colour scheme is bloody brown
Evidently Chickentown

The bloody pubs are bloody dull
The bloody clubs are bloody full
Of bloody girls and bloody guys
With bloody murder in their eyes
A bloody bloke got bloody stabbed
Waiting for a bloody cab
Bloody stay at bloody home
Bloody neighbor bloody moans
Keep the bloody racket down
This is bloody Chickentown

The bloody pies are bloody old
The bloody chips are bloody cold
Bloody beer is bloody flat
The bloody flats have bloody rats
The bloody clocks are bloody wrong
Bloody days are bloody long
Bloody gets you bloody down
It's evidently Chickentown

The bloody train is bloody late
You bloody wait and bloody wait
Bloody lost and bloody found
Stuck in Chickentown

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Stephen Hopkins / Martin Hannett

 

Think he's talking about his home town. Bloody hell.

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, Hroth said:

 

As my mother would say, "You can't take him anywhere..."

 

 

The hypnotic opening track to the LP "Snap, Crackle & Bop".

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snap,_Crackle_%26_Bop

 

If you listen to "Chickentown" on the LP, you'll hear that the Net Nanny has deleted an "effin" word or several in the lyric listing...

 

The other chillingly descriptive track on the disc is "Beasley Street"

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beasley_Street

 

The LP on utoob

 

One of my treasured vinyl records...

 

ION

 

There's an autumnal chill in the air, and it's a bit blowy out though rain is not predicted (Ha! We'll see...)

 

I'll pop out to do some food shopping after the Lemming Rush has died down!

 

 

 

All gone. Went through there only the other week and even I didn't recognise it. God alone how much has been spent on it but it's certain multi millions if not much short of a billion. Used to my father's old 'stomping ground' when he was gainfully employed by the Municipal Authority. It was one of the oldest parts of the city and started out quite middle class. God only knows what he would make of it.

[Hroth]

5 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

All gone. Went through there only the other week and even I didn't recognise it. God alone how much has been spent on it but it's certain multi millions if not much short of a billion. Used to my father's old 'stomping ground' when he was gainfully employed by the Municipal Authority. It was one of the oldest parts of the city and started out quite middle class. God only knows what he would make of it.

 

Its sobering to realise that Chickentown and Beasley Street describes locales as they were half a century ago.  Its good to know that they've been redeveloped out of existence, though how the New stands up to the passage of time is another thing entirely...

 

[Winslow Boy]

2 minutes ago, Hroth said:

 

Its sobering to realise that Chickentown and Beasley Street describes locales as they were half a century ago.  Its good to know that they've been redeveloped out of existence, though how the New stands up to the passage of time is another thing entirely...

 

I think you've hit the nail quite firmly and squarely on its head there. They might have spent millions but some of it was just modern representations of what was there before. Of course what a place ends up like depends firmly on the type of people living there and from what I could see it didn't look good. But I suppose even scrotes have to live somewhere.

[45156]

Morning All,

 

Just happened onto  Big Jt TV on YouTube, to find that it is posting the imminent arrival for the first and possibly only time of a Beluga XL into Heathrow - According to flightradar 24, due to land at 10.48 - here's the link for those who might be interested.

 

 

Back later

 

Regards to All

Stewart

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone 

 

It was cloudy when we got o this morning, but the sun is trying to shine now, so it may be a nice day. Another day of sitting about doing not a lot, but then that’s doctor’s orders so I’ve got a reason for doing so. So, more card building construction will be done today, I’m hoping to get this block of 4 house back finished today. I’ll also have another 15 minute session on my micro layout later too. 
 

Back later. 
 

Brian

[DaveF]

It's cool here this morning, I think it will soon be time to think about getting a sweater out of the cupboard.  looking at the forecast the heating may be needed later in the week.

 

It's cleaning day, while Amanda does the big jobs I want to take some things off shelves and clean them so that they will continue to work, some of the wheels will need cleaning.  Then it will be more of the usual making things, reading and so on.  I looked up how to prune a couple of shrubs yesterday evening, it turns out they are best done in late spring after they have flowered.  So they can now be left over the winter, they are quite well shaped and not in the way.  They will also act as a windbreak for the fence if there are any westerly gales.

 

I was nearly born in Canada, Dad was offered a job there just after he and Mum got married.  In the end he couldn't go as he had an small Army disablity pension so the Canadians were not keen to have him in case it turned out that he was unable to support himself.  Apart from that I like the UK as a place, I am old enough now to be beginning to retreat into myself as far as politics are concerned.  

 

Of the countries I know I would be happy to live in Switzerland, I like Austria but am less sure about being there permanently.  I also very much like Denmark and Sweden.  I enjoy visiting Germany but would not want to be there permanently.

 

I did seriously think about France but having French friends they sort of put me off by talking to me about some of the (as they see them) downsides,  I sometimes think I should have ignored their advice but its really a bit late now. 

 

If I win the lottery then I might think again.

 

David

[The White Rabbit]

11 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

 

Needs a bigger library! 

[rockershovel]

1 hour ago, TheQ said:

Mooring Awl,

3/4 hours sleep, short awake, 5 hours sleep, long awake, 3/4 hours sleep.

 

Very dull but no soggyness is forecast, I'll be shutting windows today as it cools, last night our bedroom was 24C with windows open.

 

I do wonder at the number of Chinese visiting the radar museum,  its not that many, but it's probably more than the percentage of population, most seem to be " students " or about that age... Though we have nothing that's secret, it wasn't that long ago the UK was selling and  attempting to sell radars to China.

There are so it seems approximately 152,000 chinese students in the UK one wonders how many are spys , though I expect many are not spys exactly, but are just told to report what they see..

 

Plans for today

Building maintenance 304mm to the foot scale.

Fit a replacement post box door I've built... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All Chinese are under constant pressure and scrutiny. It's just how they are; Our Man Dave even let them build a police station for the purpose. 

 

If you work with Chinese, you soon learn to mask your screen and particularly, don't leave your PC open when you leave your desk. 

 

Don't, under any circumstances leave papers on your desk. It's nothing unusual to find them photocopying anything they find.

 

It's just what they do. They have, after all, openly declared themselves to be our enemies. 

 

 

 

 

[PhilJ W]

3 hours ago, Hroth said:

As my mother would say, "You can't take him anywhere..."

Only twice, second time to apologise.

[jjb1970]

Something I find is that quite often the countries I love to visit are not necessarily countries I'd want to live in. Japan is the prime example for me, possibly my favourite destination but I  am not sure I would want to live there. Ditto the Republic of Korea, Germany and Denmark. Countries I might like to try living in include Sweden, Switzerland and Vietnam. And although it might sound a bit masochistic I would be interested in China. Then there is the USA where it depends on which state.

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Not a bad night, woke up just after five but was soon back to sleep again. Had a little problem getting into ER's this morning, just got the ever circling arrow for a few minutes and when I did get in instead of the next unread post it took me to the latest post.

[Hroth]

1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:

Only twice, second time to apologise.

 

Even the second time can be fraught....

 

Of course, when I was little, people would compliment my mother about how well behaved I was.  I still retain vestiges of good behaviour when in public. 😁

 

I must admit, my main mode of misbehaviour when eating out is tapping cream cracker biscuits on edge before eating them...

 

Got a 503 error posting this!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Rail_Class_503

 

 

 

Edited September 9 by Hroth
503 notification...

[Erichill16]

Dont know how to quote from different topics  so -

https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/173942-beasley-street-a-1970s-post-war-concrete-station-layout/#comment-4914592

 

[45156]

Enjoyed waching the Beluga arrive - one for aviation buffs, but there were quite a few visible round Heathrow, and over 20,000 watching on Big Jet TV.  Sadly, the hage freighter was towed behind an intervening building to be unloaded which was not what had been expected, so Big Jet shut down until the departure later today.