Delicious LiveJournal Links for 11-22-2010

[andrewducker]

• Doctor Who and the plastic plastic Roman - some thoughts on Steven Moffat's use of the meta.
  (tags: meta DrWho)
• Labour admit having got it wrong on civil liberties. If they get it right then I might even be able to face voting for them.
  (tags: labour uk government liberty)
• McDonald's and PepsiCo to help write UK health policy
  (tags: government uk health EpicFail)
• Julie Taymor's Spider-Man production looks fucking amazing.
  (tags: theatre JulieTaymor costumes superheroes spiderman)
• Retinal Injuries from a Handheld Laser Pointer. Eww!
  (tags: lasers health)
• DNA testing removes only piece of evidence that put executed man at the crime scene.
  (tags: evidence usa dna)

Comments

[burkesworks.livejournal.com]

Encouraging words there from Blinky; I do hope he follows it up with deeds. I'd rather like to be able to vote for a pro-civil liberties Labour Party again.

Less encouraging, though, is the way that weaselly Tory Alex Deane of Taxpayers' Alliance subsidiary Big Brother Watch has now replaced good-to-the-bone Phil Booth of No2ID as the go-to man for any quotes on civil liberties.

[robhu.livejournal.com]

This seems like an interesting article: http://www.slate.com/id/2274736/

[andrewducker]

That is fascinating. I've linked it for tomorrow.

Interesting comments too - apparently doing 4 days of 9 hours is quite common for both parents, as that way they only need to put kids into childcare for three days a week. Innovative approach.

[channelpenguin.livejournal.com]

not keen on the Spidey stuff (and I'm in NO way a hardcore Spidey-fan). Just Artistically it doesn't push my buttons. Too CGI-ish.... and over-posed. I understand going for stylism but it misses the mark for me - clumsily/unnaturally posed in not an appealing way.

Ain't art strange, in a good way, the way the same thing appeals to some and not to others.

[channelpenguin.livejournal.com]

Hmm I don't get any comments for that article.

Sounds very laid back and lovely - but I personally couldn't hack any sort of financial dependence. Wonder if they have a low divorce rate? Or maybe just a high re-marriage rate if so.

The Dutch are very much "people of their word" as far as I have seen and been told - if they make an arrangement or say they are going to do something - then they do it, without fail (and for workmanship type things, as far as I have seen, to high standards). Everything is very neat and tidy in the towns and streets - there seems to be some sort of community responsibility/pride going on (maybe cos they have more free time!). Transport runs on time.

As an perticular example of what I think of as the Dutch personality, there seemed no scruffy boats in the Netherlands at all - all were kept immaculate (there are many on the UK and a far few in Germany and even in Denmark). One UK guy left his boat there over winter and came back to find it sparkling as the bloke on the boat next to him and his wife had been sweeping it off and keeping it clean all winter! (They are quite looney as sailors though - go out in tough weather and take chances with depths.)

So maybe all this means they can relax a bit more and not worry about other people living up to their obligations?

[andrewducker]

Tis possible.

I'm fine with the Dutch way of doing things, provided that women who _want_ good jobs can have them. If they get looked down on for wanting to be independent then obviously that would be bad.

[robhu.livejournal.com]

Another thing of interest to you: http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/pov-mobii-tegra-10-inch-tablet-andr/806175

[andrewducker]

There's a whole bunch of Android tablets hitting the market about now, most of a quality I wouldn't wish on anyone. I'll wait for the rush to die down, and some decent reviews :->

[skington.livejournal.com]

However, he said the DNA database and CCTV cameras had resulted in convictions and people wanted more CCTV "because they want to feel safe".

Still not quite there on civil liberties.

[robhu.livejournal.com]

The hardware on this one looks pretty good. I think MeeGo is the thing to have though, not Android.

[andrewducker]

I'm attached to some of the apps for Android (although not majorly) and I want a tablet with a decent ecosystem. So far Android looks like it will have the best mix of freedom and ecosystem for me. If MeeGo starts showing signs of that then I might be interested in it too, but at the moment I can't see what I'd gain from it.

[0olong.livejournal.com]

That's one of the most underwhelming admissions of wrongness I've ever come across. Basically, he was saying they got it just a tiny bit wrong (specifically when pressing for 90-day detentions without trial) but what with all the terrorism and whatnot that was only to be expected...

[draconid.livejournal.com]

I saw an Android tablet at work today and it looked horrendous (and by the sound of it, didn't perform too brilliantly either). I worry with all these terrible Android tablets coming out that Android tablets will get a bad reputation and so people will stop making them. Let's hope that some decent ones come out soon!

[draconid.livejournal.com]

I love my Maemo phone and so can't wait to see a MeeGo tablet. I hate that Android is so integrated with Google. I just hope that they get it right first time, rather than pairing it with not-so-great hardware, like Nokia did with the N900 (not that I have a problem with the N900, it's one of the best performing Nokia phones I've had, it's just a shame it's a brick).

[andrewducker]

I worry the same thing. I want a decent Android tablet, and I'm not going to get one if they destroy the market.

[pennski.livejournal.com]

I want a dematerialised Tardis!

[khbrown.livejournal.com]

I suspect there are lots of people, both male and female, who _want_ good jobs but cannot get them.