megilleland

Byung-Chul Han: ‘The smartphone is a tool of domination. It acts like a rosary’ I came across this article in El Pais and an interview with the South Korean-born philosopher Byung-Chul Han where he discusses digital subjugation, the disappearance of ritual and what ‘Squid Game’ reveals about society. By combining quotations from great philosophers and elements of popular culture, Han’s latest book Undinge (or Nonobjects), which is yet to be published in English, analyzes our “burnout society,” in which we live exhausted and depressed by the unavoidable demands of existence. He has also considered new forms of entertainment and “psychopolitics,” where citizens surrender meekly to the seduction of the system, along with the disappearance of eroticism, which Han blames on current trends for narcissism and exhibitionism. This narcissism runs riot on social media, he believes, where the obsession with oneself makes others disappear and the world becomes a simple reflection of us as individuals. The philosopher strives to recover intimate contact in everyday life – he is known for his interest in gardening, making things with his hands and sitting in silence. He despairs of “the disappearance of rituals,” which also makes entire communities disappear along with them. We become lost individuals, in sick and cruel societies. The Burnout Society: Byung-Chul Han in Seoul/Berlin (2015) English Subtitles And with Boris meeting the financial cartel today this is worth a look: And now they want to take away your gas boiler.

The person responsible for dropping cat litter around Muir Close garages must have come out of isolation as I came across another load that had been dropped in the last few days. Hasn't this person got a black waste bin to put this rubbish in or are they homeless?

The only good thing with contactless is you actually swipe what it costs eg costs £7.13 - no need to take £10 out of ATM and have to pocket the change.

Who cares about the Carers? I've just signed Carers UK's petition asking the Chancellor to fund care now to help millions of older people, disabled people and carers who are desperate for better care. At the moment they're being ignored by the Government's reforms, which won't start until 2023. You can help by signing the petition too - it only takes a minute.

How Lincoln University regenerated the east Midlands city Could the benefits seen in Lincoln since the university’s inception be replicated in similar areas such as Hereford? When the University of Lincoln was first built on a derelict rail goods yard, it’s said that one of its buildings was designed to be converted into a shopping centre if the university didn’t work out. While that may be an apocryphal story, it speaks to the tremendous success of the university and its value to the local community. Since its inception in 1996, Lincoln has grown from 500 students to 14,500, generating £430m for the local economy annually. In this small east Midlands city of 99,000 people it is a vital presence: one in six people either works with the university or studies there. Local residents say the university has transformed Lincoln from provincial backwater to a culturally thriving, diverse city, with new shops and restaurants springing up to accommodate students and the graduates who stay to work in hi-tech businesses supported by the university. Maybe a chat with those involved with Lincoln's success would be useful for Hereford Council.

Just like government. Fast track contracts for their friends and brown envelopes in their pockets. Government needs to stop misleading the public and come clean. £37bn has been allocated to test and test contracts. Where has that money gone? We should not need to drag government to court to get an honest account. The problem is that they have had plenty of time over the years to perfect the money making machine.

All this rubbish in a small area at the back of Sherborne Close created by a group of idiots getting together most afternoons, some drug dealing. Where are the local community police on their bikes, after all the council want us to get out of our cars. What's happened to Neighbourhood Watch? These are most probably the people who go on about saving the planet when they can't even look after themselves.

Free bus travel at weekends within Herefordshire ALL bus travel within Herefordshire will be free on weekends from now on, Herefordshire Council has pledged. Thanks to investment as part of the £6 million Covid-19 recovery fund, anybody will be able to hop on and off any bus in the county, as many times as they like, without paying a penny. The only condition is that the journey must be entirely within the county. To help people make the most of the scheme, there will also be additional services on Sundays, serving several locations including Bromyard, Ledbury, Leominster, Kington and Colwall. No information has been released yet about the extra services. Coun John Harrington, cabinet member for infrastructure and transport, said the scheme would make it easier and cheaper to travel, helping connect people and boost recovery from the pandemic. With the free travel starting this Saturday, he said: “We are very pleased to be able to offer free, unlimited weekend bus travel for the whole county for what we hope will be at least a year.

In The Hereford Times today: Idea for new advertising board in Hereford unveiled A NEW digital billboard could be coming to Hereford, if Herefordshire Council agrees to plans and does not think it would make the A49 dangerous for drivers. Alight Media, based in London, has asked the council if it can put the digital screen – which would be 6.4 metres wide and 3.4 metres high – on land at the Richmond Place Club in Edgar Street. Documents submitted with the plans showed the adverts would be mainly seen by traffic heading southbound. And while consultants recognise there was currently no advertising at the site, it did feel as it was an "appropriate location for a landmark advertising site". They said The Richmond Club Place had been severely impacted by the coronavirus lockdowns so money from adverts would "assist significantly to the survival of the club along with the opportunity to advertise upcoming events at the club to the local community". Anything to distract drivers while they wait to cross Greyfriars Bridge.

Is the main stream media aware of his feat or are they still dragging covid, lockdown and Boris through the press. Good news is no news as far as these tearsheets are concerned.

Hereford Times reader's letter highlighting the same problems all over the city.

Smartphones for not very smart people. As we move forward in the technology age so we unknowingly lose more of our freedom. until we enter a new digital serfdom. This is where consumers give up their personal and private information in order to be able to use a particular product or service. Serfdom is a system of forced labor that exists in a feudalistic society. It was very common in Europe during the medieval age. In this system, serfs or peasants do a variety of labor for their lords in exchange for protection from bandits and a small piece of land that they can cultivate for themselves. Serfs are also required to pay some form of tax often in the form of chickens or crops yielded from their piece of land. Hassan Khan in The Next Web points out that the decline of property ownership is indicative that we are living in a digital serfdom. In an article he says: “The percentage of households without a car is increasing. Ride-hailing services have multiplied. Netflix boasts over 188 million subscribers. Spotify gains ten million paid members every five to six months. “The model of “impermanence” has become the new normal. But there’s still one place where permanence finds its home, with over two billion active monthly users, Facebook has become a platform of record for the connected world. If it’s not on social media, it may as well have never happened.” Joshua A. T. Fairfield elaborates this phenomenon in his book “Owned: Property, Privacy, and the New Digital Serfdom.” Fairfield discusses his book in an article in The Conversation, stating that: “The issue of who gets to control property has a long history. In the feudal system of medieval Europe, the king owned almost everything, and everyone else’s property rights depended on their relationship with the king. Peasants lived on land granted by the king to a local lord, and workers didn’t always even own the tools they used for farming or other trades like carpentry and blacksmithing. “Yet the expansion of the internet of things seems to be bringing us back to something like that old feudal model, where people didn’t own the items they used every day. In this 21st-century version, companies are using intellectual property law – intended to protect ideas – to control physical objects consumers think they own.” In other words, Fairfield is suggesting that the devices and services that we use — iPhones, Fitbits, Roomba, digital door locks, Spotify, Uber, and many more — are constantly capturing data about behaviors. By using these products, consumers have no choice but to trade their personal data in order to access the full functionalities of these devices or services. This data is used by private corporations for targeted advertisement, among others. This system of digital serfdom binds consumers to private corporations who dictate the terms of use for their products or services. “In the coming decade, if we do not take back our ownership rights, the same will be said of our self-driving cars and software-enabled homes. We risk becoming digital peasants, owned by software and advertising companies, not to mention overreaching governments.”

EXCLUSIVE: Channel 4 to air Wuhan Covid19 investigation David Malone has spent the last few months making a documentary film for Channel Four with co-producer Jan Klimkowski. Focusing in depth on what happened at Wuhan, the film sets out to answer the question, “Has the narrative surrounding Covid19 at the Wuhan lab been engineered?’ It will air on Four this coming Sunday 22nd August at 10 pm BST. Earlier this week, The Slog gained an exclusive interview with Malone.

Landline phones will be axed by 2025: Digital switchover leads to fears elderly and vulnerable will struggle to cope if they're forced to rely on mobile technology * Millions of customers will be pushed online for first time or must rely on mobile * Upgrade will impact services that rely on the existing telephone network like alarms, phones in lifts, payment terminals and red telephone boxes * Concerns over older and vulnerable households which are not online, do not use a mobile phone or live in a rural area with poor connectivity being left behind * Around 6 per cent of homes– roughly 1.5 million – do not have internet access Is this going to affect you and your relatives? Technology taking over humanity. I have a smart phone but hardly use it. Still use the old style flip phone no problems. The internet is getting to be a joke with the sites' cookies wanting to collect all your data to sell on to third parties. The dictatorship wanting to track you 24 hours and social interaction a thing of the past - just do as your told or else.

Now Covid has gone off the boil it's time to ramp up the fear with Climate terror. All this pushed out by the United Nations for all the world's governments to impose on our lives. You can't beat a bit of control to keep the plebs in place.

Agenda General scrutiny committee - Tuesday 10 August 2021 10.15 am * Attendance details * Agenda frontsheet PDF 422 KB * Agenda reports pack PDF 2 MB * Add meeting to your calendar using VCS format Venue: Three Counties Hotel, Belmont Road, Belmont, Hereford, HR2 7BP Contact: John Coleman, Statutory Scrutiny Officer Link: Watch the meeting on the Herefordshire Council youtube channel Title of report: Freehold Disposal of the Town Hall, St. Owens St. Hereford Meeting: General scrutiny committee Meeting date: Tuesday, 10 August 2021 Report by: Statutory Scrutiny Officer Classification Open Decision type This is not an executive decision Wards affected Central Purpose To consider proposals for the disposal of the Town Hall, St. Owen Street, Hereford within the context of the council’s overall asset management strategy. It is important to note that the method of the disposal has not yet been determined. The general scrutiny committee has identified this decision from the council’s Forward Plan and has added this to their work programme as pre-decision call-in. There are a range of services accessed by members of the public that are currently operating from the Town Hall. Namely, the county Coroners, registrars, storage, car parking enforcement, Custodians services and IT data room. The Town Hall also hosts two external local tenants, notably, Hereford City Council and the Business Improvement District (BID) Recommendation(s) That: a) The Committee reviews the proposals for the disposal of the Town Hall and determines any recommendations it wishes to make to the executive, which may enhance the effectiveness of the plans. Alternative options 1. There are no alternative options, this is a report for scrutiny to consider the council’s proposed decision within the context of a wider overall asset management strategy. Key considerations 2. The Town Hall, in St. Owens St, in Hereford is one of the County’s most iconic public buildings. The Edwardian building was opened in 1904 and houses the town's civic administration, including council chambers and the registrar's office. The property is a grade II* listed building in a prominent position in the city of Hereford. 3. The now expired Herefordshire Council’s Corporate Property Strategy, 2016 to 2020 notes that the Town Hall, along with other significant public buildings such as the Shire Hall will be retained for public sector occupation and use. A new Strategic Asset Management Plan is being developed to take forward a new way of managing our assets for the future and current conditions. 4. On 5 July, the Council published a statutory notice that it would be taking a key decision to dispose of the Town Hall, in St. Owens Street. 5. The council currently operates a number of services in the buildings, namely the Coroner, Registrars, Parking Services and Electoral Services. The council also delivers a range of other functions including weddings, inquests and citizens ceremonies. It is proposed that plans are developed and implemented to relocate these services within the council’s property portfolio. The building also plays host to two external tenants, Hereford City Council and Hereford Business Improvement District (BID). 6. Many of these statutory services will continue to require having physical buildings within the county to continue to deliver their services for the residents of Herefordshire. 7. The City Council approached the Council with regards the future management of the asset. Further to discussions with the City Council regarding a potential interest in taking over the management of the Town Hall building, the Council commissioned a survey in 2019 to understand the condition at that time and take a view on backlog maintenance and estimated cost. The survey identified that a total of £1.8m maintenance or repairs were potentially required. 8. Previously, maintenance works to the front elevation of the Town Hall were identified and incorporated in the capital bids for the year 2017/18. The front porch had settled by approximately 50mm and was required to be supported by scaffold to keep the front entrance open and safe. 9. A sum of £421k for stonework repairs at the town hall was approved by full council as part of the capital programme in December 2016. Current Finances Associated with the current running costs and income generated 10. The running costs of the Town Hall, based upon 2019-20, as 2020-21 figures are unreliable due to Covid 19 as a true reflection of usual expense, are as follows:. a. Building & Maintenance – £47,778.96 b. Cleaning - £49,398.43 c. Rates - £66,765 d. Utilities - £30,000 TOTAL: £193,491.00 11. The Income generated from the Town Hall (2020-21) show the following e. Rental income- £25,809 f. Services Charges - £11,864 g. Other income - £190 (in 2019/20 this income was approximately £6k) h. Income generated from other sources, namely car parking fees (2019-20), was £8,465 TOTAL: £28,738.00 Community impact 12. The current proposals support the Council’s County Plan (2020 to 2024) to further rationalise our property holdings to deliver efficiencies as well as new income streams to support our services. Environmental Impact 13. The council provides and purchases a wide range of services for the people of Herefordshire. Together with partner organisations in the private, public and voluntary sectors we share a strong commitment to improving our environmental sustainability, achieving carbon neutrality and to protect and enhance Herefordshire’s outstanding natural environment Equality duty 14. Under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, the ‘general duty’ on public authorities is set out as follows: A public authority must, in the exercise of its functions, have due regard to the need to – a) eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited by or under this Act; b) advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it; c) foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it. 15. The public sector equality duty (specific duty) requires that the council consider how we can positively contribute to the advancement of equality and good relations, and demonstrate that we are paying ‘due regard’ in our decision making in the design of policies and in the delivery of services. Our providers will be made aware of their contractual requirements in regards to equality legislation. Resource implications 16. There are no resource implications from this committee reviewing the responses. The resource implications are set out within the reports. Legal implications 17. There are no direct legal implications arising from the recommendations. Risk management 18. These are set out in the appended reports Consultees None Appendices Appendix A: Town Hall Data – General Scrutiny Committee Background papers Herefordshire Council – Corporate Property Strategy 2016 – 2020

In The Guardian today: Hay festival in disarray as director quits after bullying claim upheld Exit of Peter Florence adds to list of woes that include two years of Covid cancellations and a sex assault claim against a Gulf royal. You could write a book on this!

JULY 21, 2021 A statement from Mayor of Hereford Paul Stevens regarding Hereford Town Hall; “The City Council was abolished in 1998 when the new Herefordshire Council was formed. All assets of the City Council transferred to the new unitary council. In 2000 the City Council was recreated as a Parish Council. The only assets that were returned were the allotments. The Town Hall could have been returned at that time but the new council decided not to do that. Since then the building has been owned and maintained by Herefordshire Council. They have had the opportunity to raise funds from renting parts of it out including our offices, Mayor’s Parlour, silver museum and tourist information centre, from weddings and other events. The unitary council did suggest selling it back for £2m but this was not a reasonable offer and nothing came of it. That was around 2010. Since then there have been some works but nowhere near enough to keep the building in a reasonable condition. We discussed an arrangement whereby the City Council could take the building over providing the essential and most urgent repairs were done, but this was not acceptable to Herefordshire Council. At that time they would have cost about £1.8m for urgent work, with another £4.2m to find over three to five years. More recently we discussed the possibility of a third party forming a charitable trust who would have been able to bring in the essential external funding to enable the building to be kept for future generations and used as a centre of live arts as well as a civic building. That fell through because their trustees needed reassurance about the current and most urgent repair needs. Setting up a charitable trust to replace them would take about a year and is the only way we can get external funding to try and restore the building. We are not prepared to take it on with huge outstanding repair liabilities that would fall to the City’s tax payers. We are prepared to work with Herefordshire Council, and anyone else who is willing to help with the project, to try and secure a future for the building.” by Connor Powell

Hastily abandoned low-traffic schemes could cost councils funding Transport minister warns local authorities not to remove cycle lanes or other reduction measures without evidence of their failure Councils which rip out cycle lanes or low-traffic neighbourhoods before giving them a chance to work or without evidence they are failing could lose future central government funding, ministers have warned. In a sign of the growing frustration within government at some councils, both Conservative and Labour, which have removed active travel schemes in the face of sometimes noisy objections, transport minister Chris Heaton-Harris is formally writing to the leaders of all English local authorities with transport responsibilities. In separate comments, Boris Johnson warned councils that he was serious about boosting active travel, saying that “trying to squeeze more cars and delivery vans on the same roads and hoping for the best is not going to work”. “I support councils, of all parties, which are trying to promote cycling and bus use,” the prime minister said. “And if you are going to oppose these schemes, you must tell us what your alternative is.” In his comments, Johnson directly tackled the charge from opponents of low-traffic neighbourhoods and similar schemes that they simply move traffic to other roads, saying: “Of course some journeys by car are essential, but traffic is not a force of nature. It is a product of people’s choices. If you make it easier and safer to walk and cycle, more people choose to walk and cycle instead of driving, and the traffic falls overall.” Heaton-Harris’s letter, being sent on Friday, warns councils that if schemes installed using central government money, such as funds provided to boost walking and cycling during Covid, are then hastily abandoned, this could affect future grants. “Premature removal of schemes carries implications for the management of the public money used in these schemes and for the government’s future funding relationship with the authorities responsible,” wrote Heaton-Harris. Wonder if the Bridge Street scheme came under this scheme?

Expect more: One in seven shops now vacant across the UK Retailers call on government to amend business tax rates in response to changing shopping needs and habits More than one in seven shops are now vacant on UK high streets, retail parks and shopping centres, the highest proportion since at least 2015, as the Covid-19 pandemic ramped up pressure on already weakened retailers. Fashion stores have been hit particularly hard, with a major shift to online shopping during the pandemic, and a lack of parties, events and nights out to dress up for. Shopping malls, which tend to house more clothing stores, are now searching for tenants for a fifth of their units, according to research from the Local Data Company and the British Retail Consortium. Yes everything now comes to you in a cardboard box. No need to step outside your house, just want the government and the big corporations want - total control.

After the tree clippings above have lain on the ground since July 2020 I decided to clear up the mess myself and take 2 large builders' bags of debris to the tip this afternoon. I did it while a friend sat in with my partner. Pity that the council couldn't manage it, but over the years asking them to do anything you have more chance of winning the lottery.

UK water firms can raise prices temporarily to offset Covid costs The UK’s water regulator is to allow utility companies to increase prices temporarily starting next year to offset higher bad debt costs because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Water companies from April will bear 25% of bad debt costs where these are more than 2% of non-household revenue, and non-household customers will bear the rest, the Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) said in a statement. The regulator added that the adjustments to price caps would apply for a minimum of two years. Utilities have been struggling with a sharp drop in water consumption by businesses as virus restrictions have moved people out of office buildings and into remote working, while defaults have also been rising. The largest water companies in the UK include Thames Water, United Utilities, Severn Trent and the South West Water owner, Pennon. “These decisions aim to protect the interests of non-household customers in the short and longer term … as the business retail market continues to feel the impacts of Covid-19,” said Georgina Mills, Ofwat’s business retail market director. _________________________________________________________ I would have thought that if there is a drop in water consumption and people using meters to save water, I can't see why water companies can ask for more money, but it's no surprise. Same with all the other utilities - they have got the public over a water barrell.

How tidy is your street, your estate. Seen any rats yet? We have had tree cuttings left on the ground since July 2020 even though they were reported several times since , there is even a Christmas Tree lying on the ground. It appears the council can take away a useful litter bin, but can't empty the ones which regularly overflow. Could that be the reason for the problem? If we didn't have several volunteers who take it on themselves to try and keep Newton Farm tidy we would be under a land fill site by now. Have you seen any councillors walking around the estate? What's their impression? Maybe they would like to knock on a few doors and seek residents views, but now the elections are over I imagine they have gone back down their burrows.

Not only central government putting money into their friends' pockets, but together with local authorities bleating that they have no money due to poor financial control, things don't bode well for the future and for us citizens. Nobody really Cares because they have no Respect for the electorate, are thoroughly unAware of what is happening under their noses, all resulting in a complete lack of Pride for their surroundings. Years going by, nothing happening of benefit and money washing down the drain.

Cheung Chung-kiu, a Hong Kong-based property tycoon, sought permission to partly demolish and reconstruct 2-8A Rutland Gate, in Knightsbridge, in order to create his vast new home, which experts said could be worth up to £500m when completed. Question raised in The House of Lords this week by Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative) Introducing higher rate bands for Council Tax, especially a re-evaluation of all properties to reset the levels of payment (bands). As some Lords said there is a great disparity in what people pay especially in London and South East compared to rest of the UK. Top council tax band in Westminster is only £1655.12, while living in the Herefordshire countryside you will pay in top band £4308.44 - Bromyard and Winslow.