Nuxx:MPG.2585f0d9fdffb8f59896ce@news.zen.co.uk

Path: num2.nntp.dca.giganews.com!num1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!number.nntp.dca.giganews.com!border2.nntp.ams2.giganews.com!border2.nntp.ams.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!multikabel.net!newsfeed20.multikabel.net!dedekind.zen.co.uk!zen.net.uk!hamilton.zen.co.uk!shaftesbury.zen.co.uk.POSTED!not-for-mail Message-ID:  From: Guy Cuthbertson  Newsgroups: uk.rec.cycling Subject: Re: Revenue-Raising Tickets for Parking on Private Land Date: Sun, 6 Dec 2009 16:49:02 -0000 References:   Lines: 65 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-15" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit User-Agent: MicroPlanet-Gravity/2.9.13 Organization: Zen Internet NNTP-Posting-Host: 2443b229.news.zen.co.uk X-Trace: DXC=fXOmGW>M<`\6GGoT]EbD@Wnok4Z\, simon@simonmason.karoo.co.uk says... > > "Guy Cuthbertson"  wrote in message > news:MPG.2585b97c742a699896cd@news.zen.co.uk... > > I'd love to see the car-haters explain how this isn't blatant anti- > > powered private transport, money-making, bullying behaviour from > > councils which are supposed to *serve* the people rather than > > persecuting them. > > > > There was an even worse case around here when a guy who ran a chip shop had > a punter trip over a flag stone and injure himself on the pavement outside. > They guy sued the council, but the title deeds showed the chip shop owner > was responsible for that bit of the pavement, so he was sued for something > like £10,000. It had to come out of his pocket too as he wasn't insured.

Could you clarify what point you're making in relation to my post please? I'm not sure whether you're agreeing with me or not. I must admit I had thought that you'd disagree, since you seem to think that how contrary it is to common sense. Although maybe that only applies to motorists: do you think, for example, that it would be a good thing to start arresting people for smoking cannabis at home and putting them in prison for 5 years? Such people are clearly breaking "the law" after all, and nor is it some historic law that everyone ignores these days: "the law" has recently been changed so that such heinous acts are punishable by 5 years in jail (2 years apparently wasn't enough). So do you think treating such people in that way would benefit society or not?
 * all* enforcement of *all* laws is automatically desirable, no matter

Also it's still illegal for anyone else to be in the room when a homosexual act is taking place between two people. Do you think all in the room should be arrested and charged in such cases, before being made to apologise to their victims (whoever they are)? If not, why is it OK to apply common sense there, but not when it comes to parking, bus lanes or speeding? Why do you seem to be so rigid about laws against motorists, but not about any other laws? Maybe you have a prejudice against motorists without even realising it?

As far as what you describe is concerned, I think the problem there is the ludicrous "compensation culture" that we now have...whether or not the council owned the land, there shouldn't have been a compensation claim against the landowner, and there certainly shouldn't have been a ruling in the plaintiff's favour. FFS, if someone is stupid enough to trip somewhere that no-one has, and it's obviously their fault more than anyone else's, they should put it down to experience and move on. If they get seriously injured then that's unfortunate, but unfortunate things do happen sometimes, and it doesn't mean they have a right to find someone else to blame.

Obviously if a company has been clearly negligent and there's a real danger of injury that one would not reasonably expect then that's different, but I detest this "Oh shit, I've injured myself because I wasn't careful enough...rather than taking responsibility, can I blame anyone else for it in order to make the consequences easier for myself?" that we now seem to get so often. It's only encouraged by no- win-no-fee (though I can also see that no-win-no-fee is very useful to some people who have genuine claims, so the answer is not to ban such practices, the answer is to apply some bloody common sense to the matter as a whole, just like with "decriminalised" parking enforcement and so many other things these days, particularly when it comes to anti- motorist nonsense).

Bye Simon. (BTW do you know where Nobby Anderson is? You're friends with him aren't you?  He seems to be sulking...do you know why?)