LOVE IT!!!

Basically, if you’re under 16,  in a public place after 9pm, and a police officer decides they don’t like the look of you and your mates, they can tell you to go away. Even if you are doing absolutely nothing wrong.

London and the UK’s inexplicable slide into a half-arsed, amateurish Orwellian future continues.

I can’t wait to vote in the next General Election.

Actually – can we skip that and proceed straight to the revolution?

Yay! Of course this is extremely cool. A modern wonder: fabulous, fascinating, useful, funny etc etc.

And how does the crap press react?

Evening Standard:

Daily Mail:

Google forced to black out thousands of Street View photos after privacy protests.

THOUSANDS of privacy protests in a day? Really? I doubt it. I smell journalistic licence (commonly knows as “making up numbers out of thin air”)

The London Paper:

Google privacy protest

Google forced to black out new service after London sex shop pics outrage

What a load of crap. There’s nothing in these pictures that you couldn’t get by going outside and walking around with your eyes open. As if we have anything to worry about, with about 15 CCTV cameras for every citizen.

Anyway – have a look around on Street View – it rocks!

In the meantime, here’s screengrabs of 2 of my favourite local shopfronts.

^^ I like this one  because of the lovely old advertising paintings on the walls.

^^ And this one, because it’s so cheeky and naff.

Westminster Council is trying to sting motorbike and scooter commuters for up to £400 a year for parking. A forum was set up to give people a voice to challenge this. A few people got riled up and said Really Bad Things, such as:

- anyone who supports motorcycle parking “must accept the consequences of their actions”

- and is time for “the gloves to come off”

OMG! It’s a “hate campaign”!!!! Revolution! Terrorists!

The tiresomely predicable reaction from the apparatchiks at Westminster is to sic their lawyers on the forum, and get it closed down. They throw around unsubstantiated allegations, out-of-context comments and issue threats – including “up to six months in prison or a fine of up  to £5,000.”

Is this responsible government? Is this a council that listens to its people? No – of course it isn’t. It’s as cynical and ignorant as the original idea of the parking charges. Westminster are opportunists, playing the system. You might expect this kind of stuff in China, maybe. But not London in 2009.

One would have thought that Westminster Council would be able to see that reacting to a few robust bits of rhetoric on an internet forum with legal threats would be a REALLY BAD IDEA. But no.

They have done just that.

http://forum.notobikeparkingfees.com/ has been closed down.

All this, of course, is just Westminster throwing a hissy fit because there was a pretty large demo outside (and indeed within) their doors a few weeks ago. One of the main councillors responsible for the new charges got shouted down, and he ran away in panic with his pants round his ankles.

Here’s a link to details of the next demo:   PROTEST!

WTF??!!

One gets used to seeing mangled English on T shirts and jackets of cute Japanese tourists.

But what local English-speaking person would want to be seen wearing this load of bollocks? You’d do better to print out some Spam and wear that instead.

Major demo, on Tues 31st March. Protesting against Westminster Council’s cash-grabbing and opportunistic fees. The scheme to make you pay to park your bike isn’t permanent yet. If enough people kick up an inconvenient fuss, they will quietly bin the scheme. So – protest!!!

Meet in Trafalgar Square at 5.30ish, Tues 31st March.

It’ll be noisy, shouty and fun!

Full details here

I’d love to see some inattentive customer get “humiliated” by one of the staff. Preferably some git in a suit.

Karauke: The fusion of Karaoke and Ukelele playing. In a trendy bar in Hoxton. Tres chic.

This apparently happens once a month. I had a great time at this recent event, and plan on being there again, with a few friends, next month. Maybe I’ll brush up a few songs.

Facebook fan page here.

Smart parking, with 90 degree option

Apparently this is legal parking for these little Smart cars. Nice! And it makes sense, considering the fact that they are shorter then many SUVs are wide…