Minty

Well he was right about one thing... it certainly is a 'special' place.

I suspect it is indeed transmitting, it's just a lot further from the initial area of disappearance than first thought. It looks to me like either a hijack or wilful change of course by one the crew, leading perhaps to an eventual struggle for control taking the plane down miles from its original course.

This is the crux of it for me... there is not a lot to choose between probably 20 of the teams in that league player-wise... it's all about the coaching, the discipline, the motivation, the tactics and the ability to get your players to enact them. Barker appears to be sh!t at all of that.

I think they genuinely thought that they would be up around the playoffs or automatic promotion places and hence wanted to tie down their players with long contracts to help them with their journey up the leagues. Pahahahahahahaha.

The conversation is usually happening whilst enroute, in a car or coach... My money is on Mrs Wurzel or perhaps WhizzKidz (is that still his username?).

We should do a summer sweepstake... how many ST's will they sell?

My wife is similar - I don't know how bad you get, but she is pretty terrified. All the rational arguments in the world don't help... i.e. the age old one that you're x times more likely to be killed on the way TO the airport, than on the plane. I've explained time and again about the different noises and lights etc... it's the irrational stuff that causes it, and there is very little to get her over it, other than for her to keep flying to get used to it, or perhaps some kind of hypnosis or psychology. We have got some methods of coping and a lot of it is down to repetition and reassurance, reminding her that if there is turbulance it's just like being on a bumpy road, etc, etc. The main thing from her point of view is that she doesn't let it stop her flying, and once in the cruise, she can calm down and relax a bit if it is smooth. Take off is always the worst for her... she doesn't like landing either, but likes the fact she'll be back on the ground again, even if statistically it is the phase of the flight most accidents happen in! Thing is, most things that go wrong ARE actually controllable... only the most catastrophic tend not to be. But that is another rational argument! ;-)

http://www.transformyourlandscape.co.uk/ Tell him Minty sent you.

Sorry to hear that Viking. It seems China are getting a little antsy. Can't see that helping matters... It seems Malaysia is doing all it can with the resources at its disposal. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-26513506

Egil Ostenstad in 1998 I think.

The key is each individual having the awareness and control to moderate what they read in some way... to read from various sources rather than just one... to evaluate the source as well as the content... to not assume that everything is correct, but also to not assume that everyone has an agenda. Or in other words - to think for yourself. Which brings us nicely back to this thread, because if some of the deluded few had done that some time ago, and not just gone along with the hype, but looked into what they were being told during each of the takeovers, and even the 'share issue' (LOL!), then perhaps they might've taken a different course.

This absolutely. His comments after the game were ridiculously down-to-earth... I almost wanted him to follow it up with: "Nah, only joking, I'm f*cking brilliant, aren't I?" ... and he would've been entitled to! When you look at ALL of our international players, especially the home-grown ones, the constant between them all is their fantastic attitude and level-headedness. They don't fall for their own hype, they just go out and do the job. Hence Shaw looked so comfortable, hence Chambers looking a class apart for the U-19's (he really should've been moved up to U-21's), hence the comments from pretty much ALL the international managers about how much they enjoy working with our lads. Talent is one thing, but that attitude and dedication that has also been instilled in our players, through our Academy, is also responsible for ensuring that the players achieve as much as possible with the talent they possess.

Which is pretty much the motto of this whole thread.

Seems quite simple and effective on the face of it.

Yep, completely agree.

Whilst I broadly agree that that is often the *result* of more cyclists being on the road, it shouldn't have to be that way. It almost gives permission for drivers to do what they like because they know the result will be that cyclists will be taken out of their way. There needs to be a focus on educating all road users to reduce accidents across the board.

We do need to be careful that any accidents (and there will be accidents no matter what is put in place) are judged individually, and not jump to conclusions about the layout being a contributory factor. But I still agree that the scheme is poorly executed and is not going to help overall. BTW, I suggest most of us were 'ungrateful' about the £4m spent on Vegard Forren... just because money is spent, doesn't mean it was spent wisely! But then you know that.

I'm glad someone has gone to town on Crooks. He is abysmal. Far worse than some of the 'juvenile' or annoying ones on TalkSport or elsewhere, because you almost think they don't expect to be taken seriously... Crooks seemingly does.

Lol, thanks for clearing that up. Seriously though, it doesn't matter what is changed at any junction anywhere in the country, there will be accidents. What the council will be looking at and hoping for, is whether it reduces the overall number over a period of time. As I said before, I don't think a £1.7m scheme was ever going to change things massively and only time will tell - education and a change of habits from both drivers and cyclists would be needed to see a significant reduction in accidents. The first accident was always going to be highlighted more than any other and it's a bit of a cheap news story IMO. Nothing has really changed.

Need to know a bit more about what happened before passing judgement, although it doesn't sound particularly great if the driver left the scene...

Given Pompey's next few matches, they are far from safe IMO. Some of the teams down the bottom are getting some form, and with a game in hand for a few of them, who knows what might happen in the next few weeks. A scrappy 1-0 win at home to a fellow struggler is not any indicator of form.

I swear George and GM play tag-team with us, taking it in turns to churn out the inaccurate (and sometimes offensive) stereotypes, and general abusive behaviour.

Probably all of the above. Did you read the link I sent previously from Skeptical Science? That (again) provides evidence of mans influence to counter your belief, which I entirely understand, and would love to believe myself, but unfortunately can only see evidence to the contrary.

There's an Elfords in Southampton too - coincedence? http://www.elfordsheds.co.uk/

Depending on where you are and where 'local' is to you, this place (in Totton) is supposed to be good. Never used them myself though. http://www.solent-sheds.co.uk/