They’re confidential informants where I’m from - regional differences isn’t surprising, wonder how it’s abbreviated for other languages.

I agree. Further to that I believe protocol is that when speaking, one must address their comments to the speaker as opposed to any member in the chamber. It is mostly decorum and intended to keep a lid on tempers and direct personal exchanges that can flare up into a hubbub. Speaker is intended to be the impartial head master of the school he oversees and keep the house in order and apply the rules fairly. As you well will have seen - there are varying degrees of success in that pursuit.

I know people are reacting strongly, prob a large US contingent here and that’s understandable. It is a completely different world in the UK. The police don’t carry firearms (specialist response teams do) as they are just not as available to the general public. Knives or clubs/bats are the most common weapon encountered. Even in that context I too find the sentence pretty heavy on the face of it. The article was rubbish at giving anything other than rage-bait. It didn’t explain if there were circumstances of aggravation, does he have form (ie prior same or related offences), were there vulnerable people in the vicinity, which specific charge was he accused with (possessing or threatening with) did he plead guilty, were there mitigating factors that actually reduced his sentence as the mandatory minimum sentence for “threatening with a weapon” is six months, eg did he cooperate, is he a sole caregiver for someone at home etc.

Only thing I’ve walked away knowing is the author of the article seemed more interested in provoking outrage and upping their hit count than demonstrating any investigative nous or journalistic integrity.

I’ll take a shot at the metaphor. Delete: telling someone they can use the whiteboard (but you didn’t erase it) Secure: cleaning it off when you’re done for the next user.

They actually just meant it was suitable for use with the Nokia N95 phone.

Damn that was my favourite phone. sigh ‘Twas a simpler time.

It is because everything must end that everything is so beautiful.

Get some enzyme spray specifically for addressing pet urine. There are lots of varieties online from pet warehouse places. Nature’s Miracle is a popular one. Get the urine destroyer, the stain and odour eliminator isn’t as good.

It actually breaks down the urine residue as opposed to the other suggestions here which mask or encapsulate the smell without addressing the source.

I have used enzyme on quite a few things I thought would never be usable again - def worth their weight in gold in my experience.

Cheers bud, I was here for the calf!

Carriers have an optimising function which used to be called voting (no idea if is this way) where the connection between a phone and a tower is determined by geographical mapping of signal strength. Think: a tech driving around neighbourhoods with a briefcase computer logging signal strength from each of their towers.

That data governs which tower subscriber devices use. If this optimisation is insufficient, or if circumstances change which affect signal strength, line of sight, interference etc. your device may be connecting to a more distant tower.

There are apps that can display a map of all radio towers, the carriers that have transceivers on those towers, and which tower you are currently connected to, along with signal direction and strength data. Most phones also have a diagnostic mode you can enable which provides more data about your device’s cellular connection.

The data from such apps can be useful if you raise a complaint with your provider - of course no guarantees they’ll do anything, but providing them with quantitative data to support your request gives you the best chance of their taking action.

Thanks for introducing me to Meredith Whittaker - what a remarkable woman.

To be faaaaaaaiiiiiiiiir 🎵

To be faiiiiiir, it’s is the easiests of the ways of workins.