Health & Safety - not new, and not unique to the UK (public domain poster, thanks to Wikipedia.org)
The UK Health & Safety Executive is run by largely sensible, clear minded folk that want to help us to keep doing what we do, but ideally without losing fingers, testicles or lives.
So why do they get so much flack? Why do we keep hearing tales of children not being allowed to play in snow, in case they slip and get hurt? What about risk assessments that prevent village fetes from selling cups of soup in case visitors get scalded?
Mostly it’s bullshit. Stories made up or inflated, often with important facts removed by right wingers or libertarians who want to discredit the whole idea that people do, sometimes, need third parties to come along help protect others.
Food is supposed to be hot. If you burn yourself by drinking a soup that’s just out of the pot then that’s you’re look out. Health & Safety accept that common knowledge exists.
Health & Safety Bullshitting Consultants
So how do the more ridiculous, and genuine, cases arise? Because any damn fool can set themselves up as a Health & Safety consultant. There are no qualifications required, no accreditation enforced. There are, of course, bodies that provide qualifications in the subject, but they’re not compulsory.
So if you want to use a H&S consultant, find a real one – with experience or genuine skills and knowledge of the area concerned. When I’m racing I quite appreciate it when I’m advised that my harness is incorrectly tied into place, because I don’t want to die in an accident. It won’t be an H&S consultant, but somebody who understand both the risks and the technology.
Don’t Use H&S as an Excuse for Non Thinking
If you’re someone like a teacher who’s looking after kids and you’re scared that if the children in your charge could get hurt, don’t use H&S as an excuse for stopping them from getting outside and doing stuff. Parents present their fears without using Health & Safety as an excuse, so teachers should present them a bit more intelligently too.
If, as a teacher, you start getting scared that if your kids get hurt, you’ll end up in court, then that is a valid reason to express doubts about your involvement with these children. I can understand – some parents are morons (there is no license required to become one) and they believe their children are the unflawed product of their loins. Of course, children are actually manipulative, scheming little brats that haven’t yet learned how to behave in real company. Exposing them to risks, other people, and a bit of actual life helps them to develop. So for God’s sakes, let them play conkers once in a while, even if there’s an occassional bruised forehead.
But if you try to avoid conflict by blaming a large and relatively misunderstood public body then you’re doing us all a disservice and deserve to be severely hurt in a workplace paper-cut accident. If H&S can’t work properly, we’ll all be at more risk from exploding fuel tanks and sharp, pointy hood ornaments.
Automatic Rising Bollards – in my opinion a dangerous hazard that can cause serious damage to property and injury to car occupants. Come on guys – you can think of better ways to keep traffic out….
Image by Eric “Pause” Weigle on Flickr – cc sa
I’ve already expressed my distaste for rising bollard barriers (but the video I linked to then has long gone, sorry), and it’s not difficult to see how dangerous putting strong barriers out of the line of sight of a driver can be. You can say he shouldn’t be there, but the guy in the video attached here was just turning up to service a lift. He didn’t need to have his day ruined, and a company car wrecked, because of a poorly thought out barrier design.
SaaS rocks, but it’s not the be all and end all. But it is hot right now (again) and will continue to be so for quite some time. However, Rich Internet Applications (RIAs) driven by the likes of Flex and Silverlight could be returning us to a Client Server paradigm and is probably the way forward – bringing SaaS and local processing benefits to users.
Google Docs - still BetaI just responded on the UK Business Forums to a question about SaaS and felt that it was worth re-posting the content here:
As someone who’s worked on web delivered applications for around eight years, and on client/server and mainframe (which is actually like very thin client) I feel reasonably qualified to point out a few pros and cons of SaaS:
Pros
Deployment – in either corporate or SME environments this could be a nightmare. MS have it pretty well sussed these days, however, while Apple don’t. Which possibly explains why a lot of key SaaS proponents are Apple OSX users.
Cashflow – short term costs are easier to manage.
You’re always up to date – updates are continuous and rolling.
Data is stored and managed by professionals who hopefully know what they’re doing with regards to security and integrity.
Harder to lose data when a laptop goes missing.
Cons
Performance & Productivity – it’s definitely worse for end users although many will argue it’s fine. It’s getting better, but it’s still worse – especially for expert users. I remember how quickly expert PeopleSoft users could input data.
Because of 1, designers do have to concentrate hard on slick usability, but that means flexibility has a habit of dropping.
If you’re offline it’s a royal pain – methods of getting around this are improving, somewhat, and MS again appear to have some very good tech coming in Windows 7 to make working this way more feasible, but for the moment it’s still a major weakness in all but a few sophisticated cases.
You can be very much locked-in to a provider, far more easily than with local software, and there’s very few SaaS services that are open source. Even fewer where the export/import tools are 100% seamless. Even switching from WordPress.com to self-hosted can be painful for some.
You have to trust your provider and hope they don’t mess up. MS did a contacts screw up with Hotmail a while ago during an upgrade which affected a small proportion of their users – they kept e-mail addresses, but lost names and other information. And when something is ‘free’, especially, it’s very hard to kick up a stink. In fact, it’s worth noting that a lot of these services have an ‘at your own risk’ policy in their licences. To be safe you should be backing up your online data somewhere offline, which is painful.
SaaS rocks, but it’s not the be all and end all. But it is hot right now (again) and will continue to be so for quite some time. However, Rich Internet Applications (RIAs) driven by the likes of Flex and Silverlight could be returning us to a Client Server paradigm and is probably the way forward – bringing SaaS and local processing benefits to users.
Another thing I’ll add, which I didn’t bother mentioning on the forum, is that you’ll never get the flexibility of a local application with SaaS. The power and bandwidth simply isn’t there, and never will be. My computer can transmit data internally at multiple Gigabit speeds. By the time that kind of broadband exists at a low price for mass adoption most computers will be transmitting data internally at Terabit speeds. For the ultimate in performance you’ll always want local applications. For connected, multi-service and convenient applications you’ll want to go over to SaaS. Both will co-exist, just like Client Server failed to kill off the mainframe.
Inflate a problem, lie about it, redefine some words, and hey presto! You have a way to make a new law that will probably cause a lot of harm but will tick the boxes of certain voters whilst not alienating others.
From Wikimedia - image by Julia Costa, Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 2.5
There’s some subtle xenophobia in all this too, which people forget. The notion of this law will make life a lot harder for already vulnerable foreign prostitutes, but that particular reality is completely missed because… well, knock-on consequences for foreigners are never well considered when setting legislation.
So just a short post then, something bigger to come soon. I’m getting my teeth into this subject matter – there are so many easy targets in the Campaign for Thinking.
As part one of my campaign to introduce the concept of actually thinking to UK media, pundits and government, I’m covering the nasty little idea of automatic speed limiters being introduced to cars – so that people can, basically, stop thinking about the speed they drive at. That’ll work…
This subject has been rolling along for some years now. Basically the technology now exists to be able to instruct a car what speed it should travel at.
Now, if you’re a control freak, this is like a gift from heaven. If you’re a control freak in power (yes, that includes you Jacqui Smith) then it’s even more wonderful, because it hands you a whole ton of power.
Like everything, of course, it’s not all bad. There are plenty of good reasons for speed limiting cars, trucks and even fire engines. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a good idea.
How The Pro Speed Limiters Present Their Argument
Slow, yet also lethal - public domain image with thanks to Wikipedia
There are currently a lot of fears in society, especially Western society. We’re scared of global warming, the economy, terrorism, and dying in a fiery ball of fire when some chav in a misguidedly tuned Vauxhall Nova comes careering head-on towards you as a result of massive overconfidence and a lack of skill. Throw those arguments into the air and you have some pretty strong arguments as to why we should introduce speed limiters.
Here’s a quick list of their key points:
Safety – you’ll hear this a lot. And it’s true. Go slower and if all else is equal safety will go up.
Economy – by being forced to go slower, you’ll drive more economically and be able to save the world from Global Warming at the same time.
Reduced need for thirsty, fast cars – true to a degree because what’s the point in a big V8 if you hit speed-limited wall at 70mph?
Reduced load on drivers – no need to think about speed, or worry about speed cameras.
It’s optional, there’s no need to fit a speed limiter if you don’t want it.
If you do have it, there’s an override button for those rare occasions you may need to go faster than strictly legal.
If only a minority of cars have this limiter, the effect will be to slow down others without it.
Lot’s of people are killed or injured daily, and anyone arguing against speed controls must be in favour of those deaths.
The arguments are mostly presented by different types of organisation. You have the emotionally irritating Brake, and the more calm but government funded (don’t forget this fact, they may sound independent but they aren’t) Motoring Forum, the UK Commission for Integrated Transport, and various other safety campaigners.
I can’t find a quote from Jacqui Smith on this subject, but I’m sure she’ll be along soon.
And The Argument Against
Well there has to be some rational argument against this, but unfortunately we’ve only got Safe Speed getting all the media attention on the other side. Holy Fucking Shit. I mean, really. Have you seen them? You wouldn’t trust these people to decorate your house, so why would you trust them with setting the agenda on speed limits and motoring policy?
Instead, why not get a psychologist who’s studied driving onto your show? Or, at a stretch, someone from the Institute of Advanced Motorists? But no, instead you get to listen to a muppet from Brake arguing with a muppet from Safe Speed. I suppose there’s only so many pundits to go round and the radio and TV stations pick the easiest ones they can find.
Sheesh.
But here we go – this is other people’s arguments, don’t forget. Mine come later.
It’ll encourage zombie behaviour, which is almost certainly true – in the US where freeways were once limited to the mind-numbingly dull speed of 55mph, you get to see a lot of this.
It’s a symptom of control-freakery – yep, almost certainly.
Speed doesn’t kill, it’s inattentive driving, which kind of cycles back to the first point.
It’s the thin end of a wedge which will end with all cars having compulsory speed limiters.
It probably won’t affect KSI (Kills and Serious Injuries) rates in the positive manner the pro side would like to see.
Slowing down can cause more accidents.
Thankfully, spokefolk from the RAC, AA and the likes are occassionally wheeled out to discuss such issues and they tend to be a bit more rational and thought out. But they’ve become rather dysfunctional resellers of insurance and recovery services these days, rather than the clubs and associations that they originally started out as. Consequently they have to toe a fine line between keeping customers (many of whom are the unthinking fools I worry about) and not upsetting the government (filled with the misguidedly thinking fools I also worry about) into adding more restrictions to both their customers and their businesses. So they tend towards making statements rather than take the risk of getting involved on radio or TV.
Of course, avoiding radio or TV is a sensible move for many. I’ve listened to myself on Radio and I’m clearly a rambling buffoon who doesn’t know when to shut up and who talks over others. Heaven knows what would happen if I found myself on TV. Of course, it’s not totally bad to be a buffoon – look how well Boris Johnson’s done out of it.
The best argument against this, so far, comes from the easy to respect Derek Charters, from the Motor Industry Research Association, who believes limiting speed automatically could cause accidents.
“The last thing you need is one car to be overtaking and then pull back in, in front of the cars in front, because that braking event will then cause everybody to start to slow down, which will then compress the traffic, which then causes an incident.”
The Dave’s Attempt to Think on this Subject
Oh Jesus, do we need the government controlling us just a bit more?
Would government controlled GPS units eventually be used to track our cars’ every movement?
A world full of cars doing identical speeds is so horrifically soporific that I suspect we’d be having massive pile-ups in no time.
The unthinking are the worst people to get this technology – they’ll just turn into motoring zombies.
Going faster is fun. Sometimes it’s good to be able to have a bit of fun, you know, even if it does make the world ever so slightly less safe.
All speeds are dangerous – being crushed to death by a 2mph Audi Q7 isn’t much fun either – stop people from realising how dangerous cars are and boom! more dead people.
It’ll probably mean the end of the fantastic Top Gear show.
It’ll make moving to South America far more appealing.
The key arguments for or against this idea are really just noise. The question we should be asking is at what point should drivers give up responsibility for the movements of their cars? Lane sensing technology has matured enough that you could conceivably place your Honda at the beginning of the M6 and drive all the way to Scotland without touching the wheel, brakes or throttle again, coming to a stop when the traffic in front does so, and accelerating to a set speed when it’s possible to do so. I remain to be convinced that all this is a good idea, but at least it’s entirely within the control of the driver – he can choose what is and is not switched on, and where.
GPS technology is constantly improving, as are sensors. It’s only a matter of time before we can simply climb into our cars, shout “take me to work, autocar!” and climb into the back for a nap. Sounds like a wonderful idea to me and I wouldn’t care what speed the car travelled at so long as it woke me up on arrival and neatly parked itself while I go for a pee.
Partial implementation, on a wide scale, of speed limiters or even smart cruise control could be lethal. Each car would end up driving at ever so slightly different speeds. Overtaking moves could be measured in miles, and it wouldn’t matter if you didn’t have a speed limiter – you’d be stuck behind those with them fitted. And those who choose to have them fitted would be sitting in a smug pool of self-superiority, knowing they’re driving at the maximum safe speed. They’d be wrong, of course. 70mph is safe when it’s clear and dry. It’s safe even when it’s wet. But in a deluge it’s lethal. But having given up the act of thinking about speed they would just keep their foot mashed down on the carpet. Until they eventually plough into the back of the car in front that they couldn’t see.
And that’s why this topic has made it into the Campaign for Thinking. Full automation is a good thing, it means you can go and think about something else. But a world full of drivers who believe thinking about speed is only for the government… God preserve us!
Now, could the government get on with thinking about things they could help us with? Infrastructure, international security, the economy, tax… that kind of stuff? The big, hard problems that they have the power to do something about? 3,000 people a year die on the roads. 60,000 people a year die from murders in South Africa. And providing assistance to unstable or impoverished countries could save the lives of millions. Unfortunately it’s hard to get elected on the promise of saving the lives of AIDS stricken Tanzanians, but you could save or dramatically improve the lives of more than 3,000 of them with the millions spent on speed limiter studies. Yes, I know it’s a straw man argument, but a little sense of perspective on the point of all this would be useful.
Introducing my personal, one man mini-crusade – the Campaign for Thinking. It’s going to be a scattered stream of consciousness thing. It might be good therapy for me. Who knows?
This is where my campaign to encourage people to Use Their Frickin’ Brains is starting. It’s a personal crusade, but now that 2008 has come to an end I’ve come to the conclusion that far too many people are choosing to abrogate their personal responsibilities. Possibly because the world is too confusing and complex for them, but more likely because they’re just too damn lazy to actually think for a while.
The Inspiration
Where on Earth do I start? But the item that got me the most, recently, was a story about think-tanks encouraging the use of speed limiting devices in cars. I’m not going to go into detail about it all, as that’s for a post in this section, but it’s a completely bat-shit insane idea. I can see the logic behind it, but what we have here are people who have looked at the small picture and either deliberately or inadvertantly missed the big picture. And I see it All. The. Time.
It’s driving me insane. If I see one more group of parents protesting against Wi-Fi being installed in the schools of their mobile phone toting progeny I’ll be tempted to just mow them down with my Bluetooth device. Clearly, for their safety, I need to find a release. And this is it.
The Agenda
I can’t possibly hope to pin-point every possible case of not thinking. I mean, that would need all the thinking people to devote their entire lives to the job. No, I’m going to highlight items and people in the media and political spheres who are cheerfully spreading or pormoting misinformation, rumour and displaying the primary symptoms of non-thinking.
Basically, I’m going to target the following:
People who protest
Over-zealous non-thinkers who adopt any idea like it’s a religion
Religion
Authoritarians
Libertarians
Jacqui Smith
Actually, any sod who can’t be bothered to think
Even if it was just a momentary slip
Obviously it’s all going to depend on the time I have available, but hey, I need the release.
Some articles are going to be carefully thought out, illustrated and cited. Others will be the incoherent ramblings of a guy who should probably think more too. If you don’t like what I say, tell me in the comments sections after each post.
Yes really – feel the excitement of this slimline, 200x100x40 wardrobe. Oooh!
I’m selling off a wardrobe. Yes, I know, not a terribly exciting blog post, but it’s my site :-)
Anyway, it’s an Ikea jobbie, in I believe a Birch effect veneer. Slimline at less than 40cm deep, 200cm tall and 99cm wide. There’s a couple of shelves, a shoe rack, and these nifty extending hangers which are what allow it to be a slimline unit. Handy for smaller rooms.
But well drawn charts are always fascinating. Now, combine a chart with what is sometimes my favourite subject, me, and maybe I could do something?
I’ve always loved charts.
Yes. I know.
But well drawn charts are always fascinating. Now, combine a chart with what is sometimes my favourite subject, me, and maybe I could do something?
I’m often asked what I did, when. And to be quite frank, I struggle. Stuff’s based on various hazy memories such as “well I was wearing those pixie boots back then, so must have been 1985.”
I wondered if there was a really really simple way of visualising the key things I did in each year. I reckon recent years are more important than those long ago. And to signify my general decline a spiral is probably the best metaphor for my life. SO…! Here it is, what I did in my career, in it’s most primary elements.
I’d be really interested to know if this works for you, or if you think I’m just nobbing about. Comments, please!
PS. I know that the resizing’s gorn and made it a bit soft, but life’s too short to fix that – it’s just an experiment. Sorry.
I attended Barcamp Liverpool 2008 to join fellow geeks in a spot of technology appreciation at this ‘unconference’ at the CUC. Great venue, and great to be able to give an ad-hoc presentation on WordPress for News Sites in the Café
So… I’ve always meant to be a bit more active within the geek community. I tried a spell in the late eighties/early nineties with the British Computer Society, CompuServe and CIX but sometimes found it all a bit tiresome. There were too many who’d earned their stripes in the seventies on heavy iron and, I felt, even at that time were being left behind. Of course, I must say that that doesn’t apply to all or even a majority of the people back then. But there wasn’t much of a sense of fun. It was all a bit… serious.
Barcamp Liverpool 2008 Official Logo
But you know, technology is cool. Especially today when almost everyone seems to be a geek these days. So after a successful trip to Birmingham for the first WordCamp UK I thought it was time to get geeking up in my home town! Barcamp Liverpool beckoned…
And it was worthwhile. Sadly I’d been up at 3am in the morning in order to take Romana to the airport, so I was a bit out of it. But that didn’t prevent me doing a few things anyway…
WordPress for News Sites
I was asked if I wanted to do a presentation on WordPress by one guy. And I thought… why the heck not. Now, I know a lot of people at Barcamp know WordPress, so I felt the best approach was to be a little more specific. So… I decided to talk casually in the Café about how WordPress can be used for the purpose of building a news site. I covered the basics before showing off the Caribou demo. To be honest, it wasn’t a perfect talk – I’d had half an hour to prepare and most of that was spent getting the latest WP Trunk installed on my laptop, with everything configured and ready to roll, plus a quick list of key points. If I hadn’t had a client meeting for half the morning I might have done better. But still, at one point there seemed to be about 20 people paying good attention. Frankly I was surprised – I rambled and soon realised that the best approach was to get folk asking questions. I think people enjoyed it!
Video Interviews
I ended up giving a couple. I rambled. I was tired. Lack of sleep doesn’t help me. I kept my glasses on so as to disguise the bags under my eyes.
1 Minute Pitch
Instead of pitching something we’re doing I decided to pitch a new concept we’ve been floating around the office. I was nervous, shakey and tired. I can’t even remember much about it all to be honest. The other guys did better. They had stuff like preparation – I’d had about thirty seconds to think about mine! But it’s good to practice public speaking, so why not? It was a good crowd.
But Hey…
I had a good time. But overslept dramatically as I recovered from Saturday, so didn’t make the Sunday. I hope everyone had a great time!
Sometimes you see something so cute, cutting through the dreary, cold wetness, that you have to stop and take a few quick snaps. There was nothing to say who did it, or why – but this is the kind of art I appreciate sometimes. I hope it lasts.
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