Jan McNulty Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 He may be naff Taxi, but I find him a scream. I think Hilary Clinton should sneak up on him from behind and pull his wig off, guaranteed to win her the presidency. But it IS frightening that he could be the next president. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 But it IS frightening that he could be the next president. It is frightening to think that there are people out there who want him to be the next president. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Can you imagine a world where the US has Trump as President and the UK has Corbyn as PM? It's unlikely, but still possible ...... Less a 'special relationship' and more a relationship between 'special' people. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAB Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 I'm reminded of the film 'Idiocracy' every time I see Trump in action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 Actually I think there are worse possibilities out there among the candidates than Trump. Which, when you come to think of it, is a truly scary scenario. Although I do like the mental picture of Hillary tearing his wig off (especially if it turns out that it isn't a wig...) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 (edited) And while we're at it, we can stick Marco Rubio in there with him. President of Sweden, indeed. Could these people be any more ignorant about international affairs? Edited January 31, 2016 by Melody 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAB Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 I'm a bit lost, thought Stefan Löfven was the president of Sweden. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 He's Prime Minister. Sweden is a monarchy, it doesn't have a president. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnneMarriott Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 He's Prime Minister. Sweden is a monarchy, it doesn't have a president. Melody, this reminds me of an incident some years ago when I met a Professor of Oriental Languages from Ursinus College in Pennsylvania. I forget the context of the conversation but when I mentioned that the Queen is Queen of Canada he very rudely dismissed the notion and advised me to go away and get my facts straight. I aked him to name the President of Canada (or Australia and New Zealand for that matter). He couldn't, nor could he name the Canadian Prime Minister. He finished the conversation with the remark that Canadians would be laughing their socks off at the idea of the Queen as Queen of Canada. Somehow one would hope better from a Professor. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 Oh dear. Well, hopefully, as a Professor of Oriental Languages, he did at least know that Japan is a monarchy even if he didn't know that Canada is one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnneMarriott Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 Oh dear. Well, hopefully, as a Professor of Oriental Languages, he did at least know that Japan is a monarchy even if he didn't know that Canada is one. I actually met him in Japan and I think the topic of monarchy versus presidency may have come about because of the location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 It is frightening to think that there are people out there who want him to be the next president. I find the prospect of Americans electing him to be the Leader of the Free World extremely scary. But then, I also found/find the prospect of the inhabitants of the UK voting on major changes to its future based on purely emotional and/or knee-jerk reactions to certain aspects - especially those stirred up by the media - rather than on a full overview of the situation pretty scary, too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 Does Amazon check the validity of their market place sellers? I ordered an item which should have arrived, at the latest, last Thursday. Nothing has arrived. Tracking just shows "dispatched". I filled in the "contact seller" form only to get an automated response from Amazon saying that the seller has withdrawn from the market place. I've just wasted an hour of my life searching through the help!!! Checked up on the seller's feedback. Loads of messages put on today saying that items have not arrived. Looks as though it was a scam!!! Hence my original question. Fortunately it was not a huge sum of money but I am currently a very unhappy bunny! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 (edited) I think the best you can do is to be guided by their feedback. I'm pretty wary of Marketplace sellers with feedback percentages below about 97% (although once in a while I've risked it from someone with feedback around 93% and it's been fine). But that doesn't help you with a seller who has a sterling record and then decides to go out in a blaze of glory with a bunch of fictitious sales - that happened to me at eBay with a fairly expensive purchase from a seller with 100% feedback until the very end when it suddenly turned negative and he absconded. Edited February 1, 2016 by Melody Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I find the prospect of Americans electing him to be the Leader of the Free World extremely scary. But then, I also found/find the prospect of the inhabitants of the UK voting on major changes to its future based on purely emotional and/or knee-jerk reactions to certain aspects - especially those stirred up by the media - rather than on a full overview of the situation pretty scary, too. This is one of the downsides of the internet - the way every last blowhard can set himself up as an expert on political and social issues. There aren't any filters any more, and some people are very good at appealing to their audience's basest instincts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted February 3, 2016 Author Share Posted February 3, 2016 Did you pay by credit card Janet? If so, you should be covered and will be able to get your money back via the credit card company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 As it happens, I was able to speak to a human being at Amazon (after tweeting for help) and they could not have been more helpful. I am getting a full refund. Martin Lewis has often mentioned about buying through third party sellers and I am sure that such purchases are not covered by the guarantee. However I would have been trying that next. Actually I was very impressed with Amazon's response. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 Have we done gym etiquette yet? Last night there were two common behaviours winding me up. I like to get in, work out like a dervish with a some cardio and a tour of the machines, and get out. For other people it seems to be an alternative to an evening at home. The first thing that winds me up is people (and this is almost exclusively young women) sitting around on the machines for several minutes between sets, texting. The other is going round in groups (and this is largely young lads) - there was a group of three young Chinese lads hogginp each machine for 15 minutes at a time; not only does it lock out other people from using them, but they don't even get a decent workout themselves. To balance this, there was a positive thing last night which I'll post in room 202! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Oh Quintus, don't get me started on gym etiquette. The "sitting around texting" is so annoying, yet if you ask people if you can use the equipment, mat or whatever, they give you such filthy looks. I had to get a member of staff the other day, because two people were lolling over 3 mats, booking a holiday on their tablet computers. I know this because they were shouting out all the options to each other. And they refused to move when I asked them if I could do some stretching. Fortunately the staff member told them to either exercise or go, so they left. On the subject of exercise, I have just been to a "consultation" with the council on the subject of the new leisure centre they are planning to build. Why does anyone think that a committee of people who never exercise, or use public pools, are the right people to design a new leisure centre? For example, one man was very patronising to me, explaining that the new 25m pool was bigger than the existing 33m one, "because it had 8 lanes instead of 6." When I pointed out that although this meant the overall area of water might be larger, public swimming consists of people doing lengths in groups according to speed. Therefore, 25m is definitely, but definitely, smaller than 33m. He got really angry, said I didn't understand, and that I should step away. He really upset me, actually, and normally I am quite good at handling these things. It was a classic case of someone telling you the same thing over and over, without actually listening to what you are trying to say. I mean, has the man never seen adult swimming sessions? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted February 6, 2016 Author Share Posted February 6, 2016 Don't get me started on councils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarahw Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 I'm surprised any council has enough money to build a new sports centre! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted February 7, 2016 Author Share Posted February 7, 2016 I'm surprised any council has enough money to build a new sports centre! Ours seems to have more than enough to install a plethora of speed humps & ramps in every location possible. There are three really close together in a road near our house (they are literally about 20 metres apart) in a 20mph zone, and in a place where nobody ever speeds anyway. The fire station is just up the road as well, so heaven knows what it does to the fire engines when they have to drive over them at high speed. I'm not kidding - you have to go over them at about 12mph and even then the suspension on my car groans in protest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huddsballetmum Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Whilst we are including councils, please can I add the transport department, particularly those in charge of road repairs. I have counted the potholes on a 4 mile stretch of road that I use approximately 16 times a week i.e. every day and back to work plus trips to Leeds and back for DD. 106 serious potholes, yes I did say 106. When I speak to the council they say that the road is not a priority as it is a B road, despite it being the main road for the whole of south Huddersfield and beyond to the M1. It is so highly used that the residents of the local village it runs through have complained about the amount of traffic! I have now threatened them with a monthly bill for tracking my wheels. I await with baited breath, not holding it as I'd be dead long before the council pulled their finger out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 I'm surprised any council has enough money to build a new sports centre! It is being done as part of a massive building project on council owned land by private builders, and I think the profit the council will make on the deal is paying for a new sports centre. We have a perfectly good one already, but in typical council fashion they have paid the absolute bare minimum on the upkeep and maintenance of the building over the past 30 or 40 years. Consequently, they reckon it is cheaper to build something new, than to redo the existing one. I am also appalled about the state of the roads round here. As you say, they have enough money to stick in speed bumps all over the place, but no money to pay for the most basic repairs. And every London council seems to be making up their own rules about speed limits. I know several people who have been caught out by speed limits changing to 20 or even 15 miles an hour, when according to the Highway Code the limit should be 30. In many cases it is not clear that the speed is lower. Signs painted on roads are useless in heavy traffic, where they can't be seen. Especially if you are on a motorbike, and all your attention is on the other traffic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiz Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Reality TV shows! They are well past their sell by date and after the appalling injury suffered by the Olympic medallist Beth Tweddle at the weekend - she broke two vertebrae which have had to be fused- in that idiotically dangerous show "The Jump"-surely it is time to pull the plug on them now? My eldest ex dd didn't even bother to watch " The X Factor" this year and we turned off "The Voice" after five minutes. Does anybody still watch these things? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harwel Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Completely agree with you Fiz. These things have had their day. Just boring now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Very sad to hear what's happened to Beth: I always thought The Jump was a good step - or even leap - too far. There are just some things you shouldn't do without proper training. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus Posted February 9, 2016 Share Posted February 9, 2016 I have a suggestion for the next Celebrity Big Brother. Let all the Z listers into the house, lock them in, organise games etc and let them think all is proceeding as usual; but don't film or broadcast any of it. Then 'evict' then one at a time and just broadcast their reaction when they realise they've been locked up for weeks and got no publicity out of it. 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiz Posted February 9, 2016 Share Posted February 9, 2016 Great idea, Quintus! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted February 9, 2016 Share Posted February 9, 2016 Totally agree about the majority of reality tv shows. The Jump is a) highly dangerous and very boring tv anyway. The only reason anybody watches is to see someone fall over. Otherwise, it is just plain dull. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porthesia Posted February 10, 2016 Share Posted February 10, 2016 Oh Quintos, that is the best thing I have heard in ages!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sim Posted February 10, 2016 Share Posted February 10, 2016 I have never understood how ANY of these shows can be called 'reality'. I'm sorry, but once someone is aware of the camera, their behaviour changes, either because they want to be 'famous', or subconsciously. For me, something can only be called 'reality' if the subjects aren't aware there is a camera on them. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted February 10, 2016 Author Share Posted February 10, 2016 Boots the Chemists. I went in there this morning to buy some decongestant tablets. The assistant behind the pharmacy counter asked if they were for me (yes), had I had them before (yes) when was the last time I took one (earlier this morning) and had I been taking them for more than a week continuously (no). He then spent some time telling me that did I know that you weren't supposed to take them for more than a few days at a time, and that you needed a break from them, and that if symptoms persisted that I should stop taking them and go to see my GP. Tiresome, but all well and good I suppose, and that they have experienced knowledgeable staff on hand to tell you these things. I said I was aware of those things, and that I'd been taking decongestants for years as I had perennial rhinitis, and he said - "What's that?" Well, Boots - if you are going to have 'trained' staff on the pharmacy counter questioning people about why they're buying decongestants, at least tell them the medical term for hay-fever! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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