Nice People Thread No. 15, a Cyber Summer

oldandhappy

Life is not forever so enjoy.......I know this is true

vivatifosi

GDB2222 wrote: »

I just saw a couple of minutes. Russia - stunning visuals, but a so-so song. Followed by Czech Republic - a stunning girl dressed up in a sack and singing a song that made me switch channel.

On that basis, UK would have to be p155 poor not to make the top 10. I'm hoping!

The Russian entry is stunning... stunning in its audacity at copying last year's Swedish winner. It probably will win, they have arguably the best chance, but it isn't my favourite song this year by a long way.

I'm as surprised that Russia's odds are so short. They are evens in most instances, the best odds you can get are 23/20. This is crazy. Yes it is the favourite, yes there is the hype. But this is Eurovision and nothing is certain.

I much prefer the French and Belgian songs. From tonight, my favourites were Malta and the Netherlands. Oh, and I like ours of course:D.

vivatifosi

oldandhappy wrote: »

Life is not forever so enjoy.......I know this is true

Are you ok o&h?

Pyxis

PasturesNew wrote: »

Can't Pay, We'll Take it Away, channel 5 - evicting a retired couple into the cold. They've no car and she's crying because they're having to leave all their belongings in there for now.

He worked all his life as a caretaker, with a tied house, but retired and benefits didn't cover the rent after the rule changes. He'd been offered a place in Birmingham, even though they'd always lived in Isleworth, London. He'd tried to get work, but failed. He'd been topping the rent up with his life savings until they ran out.

Bailiffs were shocked/affected by it - they were a "regular elderly couple" who got behind on their rent and they didn't like turning them out in the cold, each dragging a suitcase behind them.

EDIT: At the end of the programme they give you an update on all the cases. They were rehoused, in Birmingham.

EDIT 2: Somebody posted about it on the Shelter Facebook, but I can't see they ever responded.
https://www.facebook.com/ShelterUK/posts/10153773751368999

I'm playing devil's advocate here.
Seeing things from a very objective viewpoint, and leaving aside the emotional aspect.

I've watched the programme a few times, though I didn't see this particular one, so correct me if I'm wrong.
From what I understand, there is correspondence in play well before an eviction. Did they ignore those letters? Did they think it would all go away if they did nothing? Did they try to negotiate a settlement with the landlord? Did they get help from debt Counsellors?

The Bailiffs going in is usually the last resort for a landlord. Remember that the landlord hadn't been getting his/her full rent for a while. That's not a satisfactory state of affairs. It's an unpaid bill like any other. Unpaid bills are someone else's loss of income.

Don't get me wrong. I have every sympathy for an elderly couple in these dire straits, but please, please don't always cast the landlord in the role of D..k Dastardly. If he/she is not receiving their rightful rent, they are fully entitled to repossess the property, after due course of the law.

What would you do, if you were relying on income from a letting, and that income dried up because the tenants wouldn't/couldn't pay?

Yes, of course it's sad. It's sad if they didn't ask for help, or get any help. It's sad if they ignored the letters leading up to the eviction.
What's the answer, though?

Generali

It's hard. Ultimately if you rely on someone else for your income you are at their mercy. Voters have decided that the welfare bill needs to come down so people on welfare are getting less money.

I didn't see the program but it does sound like some poor decisions were made. Mrs Generali's uncle was a vicar, hardly a well paid job, and he got a BTL place while in tied accommodation to have a place to retire to. I've known people in the military do the same.

People that make poor long-term decisions put themselves at risk. I guess as a society we have to decide how much of that risk we are prepared to take on collectively and how much remains with the individual. My take on it is that by taking more risk on collectively we encourage poor decision making. I realise that isn't generally a popular view.

Generali

For PN:

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/!!!!-thick-internet-users-puzzled-by-not-particularly-hard-maths-question-20160510108729

Replace the !!!! with s, h, i & t.

oldandhappy

Good morning Bonjour Hello me old cobber;)
....my clock says 8.10am but when I post I see a much earlier time so I would think settings have to be changed but where do I see that?

I have never seen weeds grow so fast I guess that reflects why the veggies and plants do so well also on this soil which was a mountain way way before my birth apparently....Montalembert near the church is my humble abode.

Pyxis

Pastures, can I reassure you that every 'you' in my last post was the impersonal 'you' and not you, IYSWIM! :A

I wasn't arguing against what you said so much as taking a very objective view about the whole situation.

Yes, it was a ghastly situation, and very strange that they had been allowed an extra week but still got evicted early. That isn't good at all, and defies explanation.

People that make poor long-term decisions put themselves at risk. I guess as a society we have to decide how much of that risk we are prepared to take on collectively and how much remains with the individual. My take on it is that by taking more risk on collectively we encourage poor decision making. I realise that isn't generally a popular view.

What Generali says here is probably the crux of the matter.


I don't know what help there is out there for people in these situations, but as you rightly say, people have to know about the help before they can use it. That's the big tragedy here, really, and I feel for the couple.

michaels

Generali wrote: »

For PN:

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/!!!!-thick-internet-users-puzzled-by-not-particularly-hard-maths-question-20160510108729

Replace the !!!! with s, h, i & t.

Strangely although the visible link has the ! when I click on it it goes straight through to the s... version.

vivatifosi

Looking at the maths question, I can see that it could be challenging for a year two student. They are only little, it won't be that long since they learned to count beyond ten. The question isnt "what's 63 plus 2" it's more complex than that and requires them to understand two calculations, as well as the context.

I'm not saying that the question shouldn't be there, rather that we aren't seeing it through the eyes of a six year old. The hardest part for them may not even be the numbers, but knowing once they've got them whether the context means,they have to add two, or subtract them.

If otoh this was a question for an eleven year old, the other group taking SATS, then it would be very easy.