The Blood is The Life 20-03-2012

[miss_s_b]

• Change to Sunday trading laws would force us into shops against our will, warn Christians
  (tags: funny )
  
• The 1930s advert that Mercedes Benz would rather forget
  Proud suppliers of the Nazis!
  (tags: history )
  
  
• Otters Who Look Like Benedict Cumberbatch
  (tags: funny )
  
• BBC News - Richard Bacon: My battle with the trolls
  I worry about the maxim "don't feed the troll". While it's certainly good advice for the victim, I worry that it's the fact that bystanders don't speak out that lets them think their behaviour is acceptable.
  (tags: internet )
  
  
• Wile E Coyote, Tragic Hero of Science
  "Wile E’s faithful adherence to scientific principles in a universe that has no respect for them is admirable. When the wrong half of the cliff falls away or the heavier end of the catapult flips upside down to smash him, Wile E goes back to his drawing board faithfully and tries again and again and again and again. He knows how the laws of his universe should work, but does not know that the gods lording over his existence are sadistic jerks who take glee in his suffering."
  (tags: heroes )
  
  
• BBC News - Doctors to challenge coalition MPs
  I hope they pay attention to the actual voting records of the actual MPs, and don't just stand agin ANY Tory/Lib Dem...
  (tags: )
  
  

Comments

[gwenhwyfaer]

Because you think voters won't be too careful about differentiating by 2015, or because you think it'll weaken the GPs' chances as a whole if they aren't careful about differentiating?

Personally I think this is a masterstroke; granted, not every GP is any good, but I can't think of any better rejuvenation of democracy than having half the professional politicians in the house chucked out on their ear by people who have a very tangible record of actually achieving something really good in the world before going off to serve - well, rescue - their country. Not to mention the commensurate effect on corruption levels. My only sadness is that as someone in a (marginally) Labour constituency I won't get the chance to vote for a GP myself. Because I really would jump at it.

[karohemd]

I love that piece on Wile E Coyote!
Not enough sleep, can't even close tags...

[strange-complex.livejournal.com]

It's a pity for those doctors that we didn't get AV, really. As it is, most people won't feel able to take the risk of voting for them, while those who do will just split the opposition vote. But given that 2/3 of them probably voted against AV last year (assuming that they are roughly representative of the population as a whole), I don't feel terribly sorry for them.

[strangecharm]

I worry that it's the fact that bystanders don't speak out that lets them think their behaviour is acceptable.

Me too. Interestingly, every time lately that I've spoken out on other people's LJs about this, I've been immediately labeled a troll, and a hater, and all kinds of other delightful things.

[chess]

It's also a shame they're not standing against Labour MPs, given the masses of NHS privatisation that happened under Labour...

[po8crg]

I worry about the maxim "don't feed the troll". While it's certainly good advice for the victim

Y'see the problem with this is that "troll" has changed it's meaning since the maxim was coined.

.... wavy lines ....

Once upon a time, there was USEnet. USEnet was an unmoderated discussion forum. Completely unmoderated until 1995, and then only for spam.

People on USEnet would come into a forum and say things that were off-topic, highly controversial, and which resulted in people having big arguments. A common example was gun control.

These were the original trolls, and the right thing to do was ignore them - if you didn't feed the troll, then they went to a different group where people got wound up more easily.

.... wavy lines ....

By the c.1995 definition of "troll", ignoring them worked. It's like the way to treat your local wind-up artist; once you stop getting wound up, they go on to easier prey.

Modern usage, which I haven't really got caught up with, is that troll = personal abuser. To my 1995 mind, that's a flamer, not a troll.

Flamers are a much nastier species than trolls. Not feeding them doesn't really work; they need to be dealt with much more forcefully.