Notices by Ben Taylor (voxdei@qoto.org)

@freemo I watched this episode on Netflix (for the first time in years) three days ago, not realising, and thought it was a weird coincidence!

@freemo @allstartrek That's true! Maybe they'll do an episode on it like the one that explains why all the aliens are basically humans with things stuck to their faces. 😂

@freemo @allstartrek I may have been joking. I'm pretty sure the cause is that the writers didn't want to have to deal with the issue. 😂

@freemo @allstartrek
Computer: "Specify, Smith"
Captain: (Sighs) *Lieutenant* Smith
Computer: "Specify, Lieutenant Smith"
Captain: "Dammit, Lieutenant Steven Smith"
Computer: "There is no Lieutenant Dammit Smith on the crew manifest."

Can you imagine the first week at Starfleet Academy? Or a starship with a disproportionately Welsh crew so there are like ten each called Williams or Jones?

@freemo @allstartrek
Computer: "Specify, Smith"
Captain: (Sighs) *Lieutenant* Smith
Computer: "Specify, Lieutenant Smith"
Captain: "Dammit, Lieutenant Steven Smith"
Computer: "There is no Lieutenant Dammit Smith on the crew manifest."

Can you imagine the first week at Starfleet Academy? Or a starship with a disproportionately Welsh crew so there are pike ten each called Williams or Jones?

I was watching DS9 just now and it occurred to me: apparently in the future they have solved the problem of people having the same name. When talking via communicator you never hear "Sisko to Smith" and two different people try and respond. We've all worked in the place with two Bens or three Steves and there is confusion, but not in Starfleet.

The only logical conclusion is that the Federation assigns everyone a unique forename and surname at birth. Either that or you cannot be admitted to Starfleet if they have someone with your surname already.

@allstartrek #AllStarTrek

@freemo Badum-ting!

@freemo You haven't been short tempered with me that I recall, but just to say sorry you've had all that and glad you're (from the sound of it) on the right track now

@freemo My favourite was when the European Space Agency rolled their own security questions on a new satellite data portal a while back. The questions were a mix of changeable answers ("When did you last water your plants?") and yes/no answers. The minimum field length was three characters.

@freemo Does that mean there are two carbon atoms in there? C2(Head)(Hand)2(Foot)2?

@freemo No we can't. RAAAARGH!

@freemo Um… I mean I’ll read it, but work and kids to sort out in the morning, so I doubt I’ll have time to pick up the discussion then. All honesty this probably already went on longer than I wanted, I am genuinely interested in your point and I may reply later on, but I’ll be up front and say I may not. Completely understand if you don’t want to spend time explaining to me in those circumstances. 🙂

@freemo OK, sorry, I guess I’m just used to people (including me) just explaining their point to me, asked or not. That’s the internet for you! I’m interested, if you would like to explain your point to me then yes please, but I’m going to bed now so I’ll be leaving the discussion here anyway. But thank you. 🙂

@freemo As I say, apologies - I thought I understood your point. I’m still not sure I do, I’m sorry - taking the UK as an example again (my knowledge elsewhere is very limited, though entirely possible I’m also wrong about the UK), handguns are banned outside gun clubs, rifles, shotguns or certain air rifles (and cannons, slightly strangely) require either a firearms or shotgun certificate to own I believe, but once you’ve got that open and concealed carry are both legal (though you’ll get treated like a live rattlesnake if you carry a shotgun around the supermarket, I imagine). Knives that are classed as “offensive weapons” are banned in public places. If anything the knife has stricter treatment?

@freemo OK, then I think I’m misunderstanding what you were saying. The cartoon you posted seemed to be saying that gun violence was the only kind for which we blamed the weapon, for all other kinds we blamed the person behind it. I had read your words as giving the same message.

I was disagreeing with that and saying that while “blame” per se lies with the human in every case (obviously, it cannot be the “fault” of an inanimate object that something happened), we can and do address both the human causes and the weapon causes in all cases to try and reduce a given type of violence.

But like I say, I think I misunderstood your point, so my apologies.

@freemo But that was my point? Nobody's saying (well, I'm not) that gun violence is the only type that can be addressed through the legal system and all the others are just down to the perpetrator. For gun violence, knife violence, whatever, if there's a weapon involved you need both the weapon and the wielder. To address it you can/should always address both sides of that fact, surely?

And we do. I've never seen anyone say that you should address gun violence solely through gun laws, and I've never seen anyone say that you should treat knife violence solely as a problem with violent people.

@freemo We don't though? We (UK) also have laws about possession of knives that are primarily weapons (eg locking blades or "zombie" knives, and possession of offensive weapons

https://www.leics.police.uk/police-forces/leicestershire-police/areas/leicestershire-force-content/c/campaigns/2019/knife-crime/i-carry-a-knife-what-do-i-need-to-know/#:~:text=You%20can%20carry%20a%20knife,illegal%20to%20carry%20in%20public.

@freemo Yeah, your kneecaps. ;-)

@freemo Dunno about communism with extra steps. Doesn't sound very communist. Isn't it the definition of a protection racket, pretty much? Though I guess with a protection racket you pick a larger number of people who haven't paid up. Still.

Just wow. Our treatment of refugees is so inhumane that Medecins Sans Frontieres (better known for providing medical care in refugee camps near war zones) has felt compelled to spend resources to set up shop in Essex. What a shameful indictment of the UK's inhumanity towards people in need.

#refugees #migration #ukpolitics #uk #msf #MedecinsSansFrontieres

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/jan/08/medecins-sans-frontieres-treating-refugees-home-office?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other