The Need For Speed

I'm FTTC-enabled, fibre broadband is being installed on Thursday and my ISP sent me a Technicolor TG582n ahead of the installation (my current router doesn't have a WAN port - although one of the ethernet ports can be configured as one - necessary for connecting the VDSL modem).

Because I have a number of devices (a computer and cameras - mainly security-related) around the home which are accessible via the Internet I need to set up virtual servers. It was relatively straightforward on the TP-Link, but after an afternoon and evening (and the following morning) trying to set up the TG582n, I've given up and bought one of these instead.

Bigotry

Many people seem to assume that bigotry is confined to racists, homophobes and the like; self-righteous lefties comfort themselves in their misguided belief that their right-wing nemeses are the only bigots.

This is the definition of a bigot (from Wikipedia):

A bigot is a prejudiced person who is intolerant of any opinions differing from their own or intolerant of people of different political views, ethnicity, race, class, religion, profession, sexuality or gender.

As far as I'm concerned, the socialist-types who bandy around terms such as "Tory Scum" are no better than the racists who use the "N" word to refer to non-white people. Ergo, they are bigots.

And while we're on the subject of left-whingers, to all civilised people, a crime such as this is abhorrent. And yet, in this country (the UK), there are people salivating at the prospect of the death of an 86-year-old woman; they even want to throw a party when it happens! They are no better than the people who attacked Emma Winnall.

Blogsy for iPad

I've tried a number of iPhone/iPad blogging apps, but none have come close to matching MarsEdit on the desktop...until now. Say hello to Blogsy.

Woe is TalkTalk

Unless you enjoy talking to people in call centres half way around the world, have a plentiful supply of tranquillisers or want to become an alcoholic, that is.

Two years ago I decided to get TalkTalk to supply telephone and broadband services to an apartment I'd just bought, as the install was considerably cheaper than BT. A month later I transferred the account to the tenant who moved into the flat. So far, so good.

Two months ago I asked the tenant to leave as I needed to move my ageing father into the flat. The tenant (prematurely) cancelled his direct debit to TalkTalk and between us we completed the necessary form to transfer the account back to me. A couple of weeks later I called TalkTalk and was assured that it would take 28 days to transfer the account but the service would continue.

Last week I hadn't heard anything, so called TalkTalk again and was told that the account transfer hadn't happened yet, but that he would arrange it there and then; I also gave him the tenant's forwarding address (I had also forwarded several letters from TalkTalk to the former tenant's new address).

Today, my father tried to make an outgoing call from the flat; it was directed to TalkTalk; they would only speak to the account holder (my former tenant). I called TalkTalk again and explained the situation and after being redirected and told to call this or that number, it was apparent that there was an outstanding balance on the account and so service has been suspended. I even offered to pay the outstanding balance but my payment wasn't accepted! They simply could not or would not do anything because I wasn't the account holder (even though I set the account up in the first place).

As far as I'm concerned this is ludicrous and I won't be recommending TalkTalk to anyone.

Did You Miss Me?

I thought not. The last few weeks have been spent preparing (painting, cleaning) my flat after I had to ask the tenant to leave, and moving my 85 year old father from from his (former) bungalow in Wiltshire to (the flat in) Bedfordshire. Normal service (whatever that is) will hopefully be resumed...

Encrypt Your E-Mail

We are on a slippery slope. They say that the contents of your e-mail won't be examined, but even if that's true now, it will just be a matter of time before they are. I've been saying it for years: encrypt your e-mail communication - it's free for Windows and Macintosh…or there's Hushmail.

When you post a letter you seal it from prying eyes; why is your e-mail any different?

Read more...

You are selfish

Do you consider yourself to be an altruist? You are not; you are as selfish as the next person. People are only altruists when it suits them, because their imaginary deity tells them to be or because they are simply arrogant and self-righteous (in which case, when the chips are down, they are not altruists at all).

Think of a person that you really, really dislike; they may be very wealthy or a politician whose views are the complete opposite to yours. They are not actually a bad person, but you really dislike (maybe even hate) them anyway. Imagine you're trapped in a situation with that person in which they are badly injured and in pain (and will die if not given medical treatment) but you are fine. You can escape and save yourself leaving that person you dislike to die in pain. You can also help that person to escape and receive medical attention, but in so doing it's almost certain that you will die saving them. What would you do?

Imagine the exact same situation, but the person you are trapped with is a young child. An altruist would probably sacrifice themselves to save the child. But consider this: you sacrifice yourself to save the child and that child grows up to be a dictator and mass murderer worse than Hitler and Stalin combined. And it's all your fault.

Being selfish is normal and not necessarily a bad thing.

We are not stewards of this planet

The notion that we are somehow stewards of the Earth is an outmoded religious concept formed when it was thought that humans were a separate "creation". We are nothing more than another animal species. We have no duty to prevent other species from becoming extinct; most of the animal or plant species that ever existed were extinct long before we came along. Extinction is normal.

There is no such entity as society

"And - since there is no such entity as "society", since society is only a collection of individual men - this means that some men (the majority or any gang that claims to be its spokesman) are ethically entitled to pursue any whims (or any atrocities) they desire to pursue, while other men are ethically obliged to spend their lives in the service of that gang's desires"

- Ayn Rand ("The Objectivist Ethics", 1961)

"And, you know, there is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first. It’s our duty to look after ourselves and then, also to look after our neighbour."

- Margaret Thatcher (1987)

Simplifying the UK Tax System

Here's what I think, FWIW:

• The first £10000 of everyone's earnings are tax free
• There is only one income tax rate: 20%
• Everyone pays 20% tax on all income above £10000
• Personal allowances, tax credits, child benefits, etc. are abolished
• Employers National Insurance contributions are abolished
• Eligible people pay 10% National Insurance contributions on all earnings above £10000 (waived if you make your own healthcare and pension arrangements)
• With the exception of children under 16, pregnant women and OAPs, everyone pays a nominal sum (say, £10, for every visit to the GP, A&E, outpatient visit and weekly hospital stay).
• Prescription charges reduced to £5 per item (free for children, pregnant women and OAPs)
• Only people paying National Insurance contributions (and dependents resident in the UK) are entitled to treatment on the NHS
• Lifestyle treatments on the NHS are abolished (cosmetic, IVF, gastric band surgery, gender reassignment, etc.)
• Retirement age raised to 70 for men and women
• VAT cut to 10% and applied to everything
• Additional taxes on fuel, tobacco, alcohol, etc., abolished
• Council Tax abolished and replaced with a local income tax levied at 5% (on all earnings above £10000)

Tax doesn't have to be taxing.

Terrorism Works

Muslims, animal rights activists, eco-loons, anti-capitalists, et al. All are minority groups (certainly in the UK) who get their way by using the threat of violence or scare tactics. We tolerate them at our peril.

Democratic Socialism

Democratic Socialism is an oxymoron. In general, socialists are anti-democracy (they are pro-democracy when an election goes in their favour, but see how they whinge and whine when it doesn't). They are also anti-personal responsibility and self-reliance - they are anti-freedom; your responsibility is to the state and on the state you rely. The State is Mother, the State is Father

Once is enough for me

If, at the end, you were told that you could live your life again, the only caveat being that you couldn't change anything - you would be living your life exactly as before - would you take up the offer? I don't think I would.

All You Need is Yourself

Because you are the world.