Zarley

But surely they know enough to understand losing £160,000+ of taxpayers money due to a lack of due diligence means the CEO is incompetent? Why do we allow incompetent people to hold power over us? Why do we give in to bullies? Why can't we at least fine the incompetence? Maybe that would sharpen a few minds. I just don't understand why senior civil servants are bullet-proof. Something's got to give and I'm sick and tired of it always being ordinary people who do the giving.

Are you saying thats why he wouldn't resign? Is there any reason why MHKs can't put the pressure on and call for his resignation? Maybe if MHKs made more noise about CEOs making a mess of things, the CEOs might be a bit more careful about ensuring due diligence has been carried out.

If Lewin had any self-respect he'd resign. What's stopping MHKs calling for him to do so? Is there a rule against them doing so, or is it just a case of "it's not the 'done' thing"?

Speak for yourself.

Sounds to me like the person who really needs to resign is Lewin. Until the CEOs of dysfunctional departments are held accountable, nothing is ever going to change regardless of how many department ministers resign or get sacked. Getting rid of ministers is shuffling deck chairs while the ship is sinking, when they should be fixing the engine.

My friend was an empathetic, kind-hearted person and his death was (for me) all the more troubling for knowing that the train driver would have also suffered greatly. He must have been truly in a bad place to inflict that kind of horror on another human being. It breaks my heart in so many ways.

Pennsylvania isn't yet one of those states, but they're currently working to try to change that. https://deathwithdignity.org/states/pennsylvania/ I've only skimmed through the proposed bill, but it looks like he wouldn't have been eligible anyway as his illness was chronic, not terminal, although it could have gone that way given a few more years. But yes, a very sad ending to a good man's life. Sad either way really as the pain he endured must have been horrendous. A lose/lose situation.

A friend of mine (in Philadelphia) ended his life that way five years ago this November. He didn't have a terminal illness, but he did have a chronic illness that caused him immense pain and suffering and hugely impacted his quality of life. Due to the opioid crisis in the US, he struggled to obtain adequate pain relief. It was a traumatic shock to all of us who knew and loved him. None of us saw it coming as he'd always been quite stoic about his circumstances. He left a note apologising, saying he just could no longer face the pain. Why he chose a train with which to end his life, he didn't say. Assisted dying (as the bill is written here) wouldn't have helped him but I do wish he had had a more dignified option for ending his life. I miss him.

Theres a lot to be said for bygone days when people weren't expected to carry a phone and be contactable 24/7. When the internet and social media didn't dominate people's social lives. When disinformation and conspiracy theories weren't available at the touch of a button that you carry with you everywhere. The other day someone said they were posting from a pub while watching sports and having fun with a few friends. I wondered how this could be so when he was busy arguing with someone here. Doesn't sound like a fun time to me and either he was neglecting his friends, or they were ignoring him and so he may as well argue on here. You see this behaviour everywhere. People limiting their face-to-face interaction with others because they're too busy arguing with an anonymous stranger on an internet platform. Even the way old school TV is being taken over by on-demand streaming will have a detrimental effect on social interaction. It used to be that at work or school, people would discuss the latest popular TV series the morning after it aired. Today you get asked not to, as some are saving it for the weekend and don't want to hear spoilers. A small thing perhaps, but the internet is encroaching on face-to-face human social interactions in a myriad of small ways and they add up. As we are social animals, I can't see the increasing drive to live our lives online ending well. Maybe younger people don't see what's happening because they've grown up in the digital age. For clarity, this doesn't make me angry, it just makes me sad that younger generations are seemingly welcoming increasing social isolation with open arms. Is it really any wonder why depression, anxiety, and polarisation is increasing in today's society? TLDR: pushing people to utilise the internet in every aspect of their lives is a recipe for social disaster.

Ah... so it wasn't a stand-alone wall? I've been down there for a look (inspired by chat here ages ago) but thought it was remnants of a stand-alone. Thanks John, learn something new every day.

And to think I nearly called you Phanny!

Isn't there also a possibility the cops have a tail on them, hoping they'll lead them to any additional stash? Or is that only "as seen on TV"?

Thanks for that Phants. I'm a fan of his channel but I hadn't seen that particular video before.

No that was just CrazyDavey passing through. He's hot stuff. Allegedly.

There is an arrivals doorway down at the far end. On the right if you're outside the building facing it. I'm not sure the existing cash machine gets enough use these days to warrant a second one at arrivals, if that's what your beef is. If in fact you had a cash machine beef rather than just not realising there's an arrivals entrance to begin with.

Ignore it. Maybe it will get bored and go away.

I think Kopek must have confused Indian Muslims with Indian Hindus. Sacred cows are Hindu.

And where do they stage their poop-in? You guessed it... Peel beach!

It's a tangential six degrees of separation thing. You can link any subject to doggy doo or litter in six steps or less. 1) Tesco takes over Shoprite. 2) Subway closes as a direct result. 3) Main demographic affected by said closure is teenagers. 4) Teenagers will no longer have Subway wrappers and take away cups to throw on the ground in the surrounding neighbourhood. So there you have it; Tesco to litter in four simple steps.

So they hire a few extra dinner ladies, or dinner gents for that matter. There're plenty of people for whom a couple hours over dinner would suit to top up a pension or ease back into work from being on incapacity. But then I remember that government only ever wants to increase the numbers of higher paid office grunts, not lower paid boots on the ground grunts. Kids have plenty of time in a day in which to exercise their freedom and independence. During school hours they should be concentrating on learning, not roaming around the town littering and generally being prats. I'm willing to bet that kids who have been off campus for lunch take much longer to settle back down to their afternoon lessons than kids who've stayed on campus. I think what gets me most about kids littering is, well, they're contributing to the pollution of a planet they're going to have to live on for decades to come. They're damaging their own future. I understood that from an early age, how can these kids not also see it? 😂 Right?!? Only in my case I remind myself of my mum. I don't get my knickers into quite the twist she did, which is a small consolation. Eh? If that's the first place your mind went to following my comment, then you're sick in the head. Maybe someone needs to have a look at your hard drive.

I agree. The school should provide a decent, nutritious hot lunch (with cold options available) and keep them on campus throughout the whole school day. As a bonus, there'd be a huge reduction of litter around Peel if they did this. Yes, QEII students littering during their lunch break is a pet peeve of mine. Theres a noticeable reduction in litter during the summer holidays, so its obviously the kids doing it. I've seen them walking past bins and dropping their wrappers/bottles etc on the ground anyway. Grrr. End of today's rant.

Not a bad idea. I'm all for keeping them as close to the school as possible during their lunch break.

Peel Fisheries chip shop at the corner of Church and Christian Street is the closest chippy to QEII; the ones on the quay and prom are just a bit too far for them to walk down, queue up, and get back in time for classes. Can't really see them using the caffs in Michael Street. They'll have to get used to buying the meal deals etc like the kids did before Subway rocked up. One thing is certain; they will continue to eat on the hoof, while discarding the empty packets along the way, anywhere but in a bin.

The kids at QEII will be about the only ones who will miss Subway. They must account for a good percentage (75+% at a guess) of that particular Subway's turnover.

Does anyone know where to find a photo or drawing of the area where the "Douglas old sea wall and plaque" is, when it was still the functioning sea wall? It's behind Dealz, on Howard St. (the lane behind Dealz) a little way from Loch prom.