Baldrick

Excellent post by NickInTheNorth & one that got me thinking...a novelty in itself. This post is likely to ramble but bear with me The US/UK have stated that they "know" Iraq has WMD's, he's used them before, don't want them falling into terrorist hands etc etc etc. So, let's lets assume this "knowledge" is correct & based on up to the minute intelligence.... the US's excellent surveillance sats, agents in the field, informers etc. Even the SAS, who must have been there for quite some time. It must be up to date because no idiot any where would start a war based on intelligence thats 12-14 years old right? Right, we've got the intel, we know Iraq has them...erdo we must also know where they are. The sites holding these weapons must be under constant watch from the above mentioned sources & any attempt to move them would be reported in an instant... after all you can't put 20 tonnes of anthrax in your pocket & walk out with it! Now I'm not stupid enough to expect any government to release it's intel sources to the general public, but.... After seeing the fiasco with the US/UK on one side & France/Germany on the other surely a fone call to Hans Blix from George/Tony the Tiger saying something along the lines of.... "Ok Hans get your guys to these map co-ordinates pretty sharpish, we've had it watched for some time & you'll find what you're looking for. When you've found it, report back to the UN asap & we've got him! Saddam is proved to be a lying toad, me & Tone are proved to have been right all along, France/Germany don't have a leg to stand on & the action kicks off on Sunday" would stop all the bickering? Maybe the above is showing how naive I am but it makes perfect sense to me The fact that this isn't happening leads me to believe one of two things.... 1) Saddam doesn't have any WMD's & Bush/Blair are pushing this for other reasons not covered by resolution 1441 (or any other resolution) 2) Saddam does have WMD's but we don't know where they are! If this is the case then surely it's a highly dangerous situation? All the "legitimate" targets will have already been pin-pointed, what if one of them, close to a border contains VX nerve gas? One bomb could release this agent over a vast area & I'm pretty sure Turkey, Kuwait etc would be full of praise for the US/UK as the gas drifted across their countries! It's not possible, even Bush/Blair wouldn't be so stupid. If the WMD's are there, they must know where they are. They couldn't afford not to! The only research I have done on this subject is to watch the news, listen carefully to Bush/Blair & everyone else & make my own mind up! My conclusion is, & until I'm proved wrong always will be, that something is not right here!

We can all only work with the information we are given, there will always be different interpretations of that info, leading to different opinions. It's what makes the world go round (or not in this case). The fact that I disagree with those advocating war, based on what we know now, doesn't mean I think they are "thick". I will continue to try & put my point across but, in the end, if Bush/Blair won't listen to the millions who marched then I don't see what good it's going to do? For what it's worth, I agree with all you've said... I would just prefer it without the insults

"soundstream" & "spindoctor" as supplied with Adaptec Easy CD ver 5+ allows you to moniter the input levels & clean the resultant file of hiss etc but I think you have to convert to mp3 using another prog.

yoxer, it's obvious that you are passionate in your beliefs & I would agree with all of them, except this "I don't know whether to roll around laughing at the obvious lack of intelligence that you people display" This is a discussion forum & others are entitled to their opinion, whether you or I agree or not. I don't see that insults further our cause, do you?

Thanks to yoxer for the excellent post above I also find myself agreeing with chesters more & more, is there a cure for this? Bush & Blair are looking increasingly desperate, they've been rumbled!! They expect us to "Trust them" while all the time moving the goalposts! UN resolution 1441 is aimed at removing Weapons of Mass Destruction from Iraq, not removing Saddam Hussein from power! Yet yesterday we have Tony Blair telling a conference that " There is a Moral case for removing Saddam " & it would be "Inhumane to leave him in power"... it would seem that there is a hidden agenda here, one that resolution 1441 does not cover! After Sept 11th Bush declared a war on terror & promised to "hunt the terrorists down"... Bin Laden is still unaccounted for, no-one knows where active Al Queda cells are, we have tanks at Heathrow & the British population worried to say the least. Some one please tell me how destroying Saddam/Iraq will prevent a terrorist attack on Britain/USA????? It's utter nonsense!

Have a look at this page http://www.audiotools.co.uk/recgen.shtml you get a brief rundown of each prog & most are available as trial versions/shareware.

Sorry mate but I've just watched Tony Blair (AKA Puppet) on ITN news (sky, 15:35 21/01/03) & he's just admitted that there are no links between Saddam & al queda!!!!! & that we should concentrate on the real issue, which is the weapons of mass destruction held by Saddam. Yeah right. Don't believe everything you read in The Sun!!!! [ 21. January 2003, 03:49 PM: Message edited by: Baldrick ]

There isn't a shred of evidence that Iraq has any connection with Osama bin Laden, in fact 90% of the terrorists involved in the Sept 11th attack were Saudis. The US has constantly moved the goalposts during this whole issue. The weapons inspectors were ordered in to find evidence of weapons, in all the time they have been there all they have found 11 EMPTY chemical warheads. Now the weapons inpectors "inspecting" isn't good enough, now the Iraqi's have to "prove they haven't got them"! As stated by Chesters somewhere in this forum it's a lot easier to prove you have something than to prove you haven't. We have all been told (constantly) by Britain & the US that they have "evidence" the Iraqi's have these weapons, why aren't they telling the inspectors where to look? If they have the evidence then it shouldn't be too difficult to direct the inspectors to the stockpiles surely? According to the US & Britain Iraq is in breach of the UN resolution for "not actively co-operating"! What the hell does that mean? From what I have seen Hans Blix has no real concerns about Iraqs co-operation. Certainly Hans Blix has said that "some issues have not been resolved, some questions have not been answered" but then thats why he's there, to find the answers. While I agree that Saddam isn't the nicest guy on earth & that, yes he's used wmd on his own people, I can't see that a war is justified. A lot of people are going to be maimed & die, many of them civilians who oppose Saddams regime! I read an article from a specialist in modern warfare who stated that should the fighting get to the "house to house" stage in Baghdad, then the US & Britain can expect 30% casualties! It will be nice to see the body bags unloaded, NOT! After the Sept 11th attack the US were "going to kick bin Ladens butt", Their main priority was to capture him & destroy al queda, have they accomplished this? Nope, & they haven't got a clue where he is! al queda is still a threat & they don't know how to deal with it! Millions of dollars spent in Afghanistan with no real result... could the war against Saddam be a smokescreen to divert attention away from the failure to acccomplish what they set out to do? Of course it could. Is this current venture about controlling oil supplies? Maybe! One things for certain, it's got sod all to do with weapons of mass destruction. Sorry for the rant

This might be worth looking at "Any Recorder" here http://www.zj-fountain.com/ .

OOoops.... apologies, didn't notice that one

After every flight pilots complete a gripe sheet which conveys to the mechanics problems encountered with the aircraft during the flight. The mechanics respond in writing on the lower half what remedial action was taken and the pilot reviews this b4 the next flight.... Keep in mind that Quantas is the only airline that has never had an accident.. P=The problem logged by pilot S=The solution and action taken by engineer P:Left inside main tyre almost needs replacement S:Almost replaced left inside main tyre P:Test flight OK, except autoland very rough S:Autoland not installed on this aircraft P:Something loose in cockpit S:Something tightened in cockpit P:Dead bugs on windshield S:Live bugs on back-order P:Autopilot in altitude-hold mode produces a 200 fpm descent S:Cannot reproduce problem on ground P:Evidence of leak on right main landing gear S:Evidence removed P:DME volume unbelievably loud S:DME volume set to more believable level P:Friction locks cause throttle levers to stick S:Thats what they're there for P:Suspected crack in windshield S:Suspect your right P:Number three engine missing S:Engine found on right wing after brief search P:Aircraft handles funny S:Aircraft warned to straighten up, fly right and be serious P:Target radar hums S:Reprogrammed target radar with words P:Mouse in cockpit S:Cat installed

Fraid so!! I don't think that track days/outings encourage safe riding. They may offer a safer way of riding faster than you could on the road but then look at the downside.... the circuit is surfaced for excellent grip (giving a false impression of your & the bikes capabilities), there are (in most cases) ample run off's for any mistakes, all hazards are static (no little old dear pulling out in front of you) & worst of all...most people go with mates & end up racing....it's inevitable. You will end up going faster than the road, or your skill, can cope with. On a track you may end up with a broken fairing (not covered by your usual insurance), on the road you will end up dead! After many visits to Mallory/Oulton park etc I've learned 3 things.... 1)Don't try to keep up with with Sean Emmett, you end up dumping the bike & it costs!!!!! 2)I'm nowhere near as good as I thought I was, demonstrated by Michael Rutter passing me on the outside whilst giving me the bird with one hand 3) That track days, while they are a blast, are no comparison for everyday road riding. You may learn a little bike control (or not in my case) but it does not prepare or help in dealing with the hazards we face every day. Especially for young, novice riders! Just my opinion & each to their own etc. Seems we have drifted a little from the the topic, sorry Richard But if you can sift through the posts above I think you will find that Bridgestone & Pirelli are a good choice [ 07. October 2002, 10:21 PM: Message edited by: Baldrick ]

Nurses & prison officers... The way things are going, we'll never have enough of either

Sorry I don't agree...track days are ok for a bit of fun but teach nothing when it comes to riding on the road!It's ok pushing on a track with 40m of soft grass to crash into should you make a mistake, it don't compare to making a mistake on the road with lamp-posts, fiat punto's or buses comimg the other way! Ok it may teach a little bike control but on the road?? There's no time or space to use it... too many cans not knowing what day it is never mind which lane they should be in! Put your boy through an approved training course....it will teach him 100% more than any track day. Tyres & training, you need both with todays traffic...

Bridgestones are my personal choice. I've tried a lot of other brands, with Pirelli coming a close second, but I now stick with Bridges (pun intended). Look for "sport" tyres, not "race"...the compounds are totally different. I'm not sure what is available for your sons bike but Bridgestone make excellent "dual compound" tyres for bigger bikes. With these you get a harder compound in the center of the tyre for longer life but a softer, stickier, bit on the sides for good cornering grip. Might be worth checking out Hope this helps

It's... no it couldn't be.....?????? O I L??????

Just a little snippet taken from the BBC news website.... "The US has been going out of its way over the past few days to stress that getting weapons inspectors into Iraq is not in fact a central part of US policy." Kinda flies in the face of everything they have been telling us for past weeks! So what is the central part of the policy then? What exactly do they want? Those of us who have questioned the whole campaign on the grounds of Saddam having Weapons of Mass Destruction may be proved right ( or not, time will tell) It seems to me that Bush is determined to attack Iraq no matter what!

The fact that the UN are now likely to issue a new resolution & that other countries are now reversing their stance, notably Saudi Arabia & Russia, has forced Iraq into indicating that they will allow weapons inspections can only be good, but I wonder..... Should Iraq allow the inspectors return (remains to be seen) what then? One of George Bush's publicly stated primary aims (or THE primary aim) was to remove Saddam Hussein from power... my personal view is that the WMD issue was the excuse to achieve that aim. Now, supposing Saddam does allow weapons inspections, & he fulfils all the UN resolutions, how does George W justify the pusuit of the stated goal? After all, Saddam will still be in power (albeit less of a threat), he will still control Iraq's vast oil wealth & he'll still be a thorn in the west's side! We know Dubya wants him out, cos he's said so, but Saddam will still be there putting 2 fingers up to the US! Who's fooling Who?

I've read the replys since my previous post with interest & I'd just like to make a few points.... Fact: Israel is the only nuclear power in the region, estimated to have around 200 warheads & the means to deliver them. These weapons can only have been developed with outside backing! Funnily enough, France! With S.Africa's help. Why is it that Israel was ALLOWED to obtain these weapons? Fact: Iran, until quite recently a self declared enemy of the west (the US in particular), is being ALLOWED to develop nuclear weapons. Backed by whom & why? The fact that the present regime in Iran has some "pro-western" views & is less extreme seems to dictate that we provide them with the resources to acquire a nuclear capability. Why? It is projected that they will be "nuclear capable" by 2005/6. What will happen if the present government is overthrown & replaced by another Ayatollah Khomeini? Fact: Pakistan, itself ruled by a military junta & frequently condenmed by the west, until we needed their airspace to fly missions against Afghanistan, has been ALLOWED to develop nuclear weapons. This is to "achieve parity with India" & so prevent war on the mutual destruction basis! Does the same not apply to the middle east? Fact: China has an abysmal record when it comes to human rights, the invasion of Tibet being one example. Native Tibetans were forcibly repatriated, killed or just disappeared & the west did???...nothing! China still occupies Tibet! Despite China's record they have been ALLOWED to develop nuclear weapons, not only that, they have sold technology to Iran! Fact: Iraq is NOT KNOWN to have nuclear weapons & can/could not have acquired them without outside help. However, Iraq does possess weapons of mass destruction in the form of biological/chemical agents, as do Israel & Iran. As I stated, Iraq used these agents in the war against Iran but at the time Iraq was the favoured party, Iran was the enemy! Despite numurous international treaties to prevent the use of these weapons, the west did????.....Nothing! It didn't suit at the time, Saddam was doing us a favour. It has been stated in this thread that Saddam would sell Nuclear weapons to anyone... why only nuclear? If he's the lunatic threat to the west that we're told, why not sell (or give) some of his current crop of nasties to the terrorists? They do much the same job & are easier to smuggle. The word "pacifist" has been used, unfairly in my opinion. I would consider myself a "sceptic"! When two governments cannot provide a shred of evidence to justify an attack, when the leader of one of them (Blair) freely admits in todays British press that...quote "we don't know whats going on in Iraq" & when I've seen the inept, contradictory & downright embarassing performance of the other (Bush) at the camp David news conference.... then my support for sending our guys to war is NIL!! If the threat is as real & urgent as they would have us believe then lets see the evidence! Let them supply the other UN nations with the evidence! Not guesswork, paranoia & conjecture.

Where does this "perceived" threat from Iraq originate? The fact that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction is without doubt, he's used biological/chemical agents against Iran & his own people. This has been known since the mid 80's but nothing was done! He has had the ability to use these weapons against the west for a considerable time & has yet to do so, why is now the time to attack him? What has changed? The debacle in Afghanistan should give some clues to the sudden "political will" to wage war against Iraq.... In around 10 months of "war" against the terrorists, what has been achieved? Hundreds of lives have been lost, millions of dollars spent, the Taliban "temporarily" removed from power &, even though no evidence has been supplied or charges brought, suspected terrorists imprisoned indefinately! The Afghan campaign had one objective.... to bring Osama bin Laden to justice. It's failed, miserably. Have George Bush & Tony Blair forgotten that they haven't completed the job? They wouldn't be using this "war" against Iraq as a diversion, would they? "Kneejerk" reactions are, at best, questionable... but this rhetoric against Iraq is not that, it's being planned & that's even more worrying. None of the Arab/Moslem states support this attack, one was even quoted as saying "this could open the gates of hell" Even Iran, Iraqs enemy of many years has publicly criticised the idea... do the politicians really understand what they are about to unleash? Politicians....are they in power to help the average man in the street? Nope, they're in it for what they can get out of it. I wouldn't trust one as far as I could throw him/her, as Billy Connolly once said..."the desire to be a politician should barr you for life from ever being one"! & I totally agree with Chesters post above [ 07. September 2002, 01:20 PM: Message edited by: Baldrick ]

Red kidney beans contain Lectins which coagulate red blood cells in humans & can, if taken in sufficient quantities, cause serious illness! Fortunately cooking for at least 15 mins will de-activate the Lectins & make the beans safe to eat. Using raw seeds as bait can cause problems to any fish that eats them due to the tendency of the seed/bean to absorb water & swell, causing possible gastro-intestinal problems or even blockage. (Taken from a website that I can't find now ) Basically nip down to Tesco & buy a can of red kidney beans, these are ready cooked & perfectly safe

My favourite car? It is, & always will be, the 1972 VW beetle I paid £500 for as an unfinished project in 1977. The body work was sprayed metal flake black, it had huge wolfrace alloys & polished walnut running boards. The interior had leather momo wheel, alloy pedals & recaros... all it lacked was the engine & gearbox! Luckily I had a mechanic friend who was a VW fanatic (he made me buy it) & between us we sourced & fitted a porsche air cooled engine + gearbox... yep they do fit, eventually! After beefing up the suspension, brakes etc & fitting a race exhaust (originally from the US) it was ready to go. The whole thing took 2 years to complete! A few modifications were made to cope with the power.... the spare wheel had to be removed & replaced with a concrete block to keep the front wheels in contact with the ground under acceleration & an extended engine cover was fitted, the porsche engine didn't quite fit under the original VW one. As I was only 19 when it came to getting this thing on the road, no-one would even consider insuring it! but I found a company who insured it for £1150 TP only with a £500 excess... a lot of money back then. It was the most fun I've ever had with my clothes on On a straight road it was scary, the acceleration was savage but it was a different story on the twisty bits.... it handled like a pig. The slightest touch on the throttle in a bend & it was tail slides aplenty, & that was in the dry!! No matter how we played with the suspension, weight balance etc 200 odd bhp at the rear of something that weighed as much as a biscuit tin wasn't going to handle. I sold it in 1981 for £1100, a fraction of what it cost me in the end. I just couldn't afford the maintenance, insurance or fuel costs. Would I have it back? I'd sell my soul to the devil for the chance

Oh my god...3 Victor Meldrews! Maybe we should start the VM appreciation society? Seriously, the point of my post (if there was one) was that I know young anglers are the future of the sport but do we accept them at any price? Surely if the parents, & it turned out that the father in my original post was an experienced angler himself, can't teach their children properly then what future is there? We can read on the first page of this forum the veiled threat to angling in general & the above 2 examples only help to undermine our cause. I know my own club, Fenton AS, runs regular summer coaching sessions teaching under 18's not only how to catch fish but also how to treat them, & the surroundings, with respect... all free of charge! But they need the parents support. I don't know if other regional clubs do the same but it has to be a good thing, after all these are living creatures we are dealing with & they deserve all the care we can give them. [ 01 August 2002, 06:55 PM: Message edited by: Baldrick ]

The reason I ask is that I seem to have less & less tolerance with some of the things I see whilst fishing. An example.... I arrived at one of my favourite waters on Tuesday evening for a spot of tench fishing & headed to my chosen peg, passing a young lad (15yrs old maybe) on the way. The usual pleasantries were exchanged.... hows it going, nice day etc etc. Little did I know that the guy had a friend with him & spent the next 4 hours in constant conversation with him. Nothing unusual there you might think,nope...except that his mate was 90 metres away on the opposite side of the water, so for "conversation" substitute Shout!! 5 mins into my session & I already knew "kyles" address, his girlfriends name & his opinions on barbless hooks.... "Oh great" I thought, "I've come here for a little peace & quiet, maybe they'll tone it down in a while" Did they?... not a chance! What happened to etiquette? A bad start but it got worse.... After around an hour "Kyles" alarm started singing, he'd got a run!! Nice one, I thought, but not for long, as I had to endure a running commentary of every second of the fight from hooking to netting, bellowed across the lake to his mate. It was like catching it myself Not bad I thought as the weight (a 15lb common) was announced to everyone this side of the english channel on 3 or 4 occasions. Things went a little quiet for for few minutes with just the odd words, such as dad & 15lb, being audible... using my razor sharp powers of deduction I realised that he was talking to his dad on his mobile. The peace didn't last of course as on the instant of finishing his call his friend "Mark" was given a complete re-run of the whole episode! Being a good friend "Mark", who up to now had been limited to the odd single word reply, entered into the spirit of things by shouting back his exploits on another fishing trip. 1/2 an hour of constant "chat" ensued when "Mark" announced that "Kyles" dad was here... OH GOOD, their going thought I! I should be so lucky. Now this is where I must admit I lost control..... Kyle greeted dad with "did you remember the camera?" Now I was intrigued, what did he want a camera for? I had to have a nosey... Yep you've probably guessed, dear old Kyle had kept the 15lb common carp for 30 minutes for his dad to photograph, in his landing net!!!!! While continuing to fish 2 rods. Ok I know that I had been slowly winding up throughout the session but now steam was exiting all my facial orifices, so I wandered the 30 yards or so to kyle & his dad to politely enquire what exactly they thought they were doing. I was greeted by the sight of a lovely, prime carp lying on it's side in a landing net looking for all the world like it was about to visit it's maker. Some strong words ensued (& the odd threat of physical violence but I plead insanity me lud!) leading to the release of the fish & Kyle, his mate & his dad leaving the water in a bit of a strop. It was only when I was telling the mrs (I don't think you could find anyone less interested in fishing) & she gave me the kind of look that Mrs Meldrew reserves for Victor that I thought "Aha...maybe I've lost the plot here & need to visit the anti miserable git clinic" I've made an appointment

I've also caught using them as pop-ups on the bottom... a large shot 2-3 inches from the hook & they sit up nicely.