ZEDRAY

I come from London, a place where the transport system is permanently run at capacity, where a single rush hour breakdown can send out waves of commuters, choking up alternatives for miles around.

Compared to this daily occurrence, my second 24 hour German rail strike once again seems like a bit of a let down.

It turns out most of the drivers from the old government run West German DB are still on privileged no strike contracts, which comes with the perk of never being able to be fired (nice work if you can get it). East Germany, for historical reasons doesn’t have this kind of legacy provision, so their hapless commuters are suffering a lot more than we are here.

Knowing well in advance which drivers were legally obliged to turn up for work, DB were able to plan which services to run and which to cancel. They published an updated list of services online and even integrated these changes into their computerised booking system.

Half the connections for my Friday Düsseldorf to Oldenburg route simply disappeared, but the only delay I experienced was when I didn’t have to wait so long (out in the cold) for my Bremen connection.

Telling it like it is.  In a sane world this man would aready be president click
Another gem from Rep. Bernard Sanders vs. Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan click

A journalist scratches the surface of Brittan’s corrupt housing system. click

I feel really sorry for the woman at the end, who sounded like she was about to cry as she described how her house is facing demolition at the hands of corrupt council redevelopers.

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As housing prices tumble, more homeowners will experience “negative equity”, that is, when the current value of their home is less than the sum of their mortgage. This is the very definition of modern serfdom. click

The USA accountant-in-chief David M. Walker talks about serious demographic problems that politicians the world over wont touch with a barge pole. (press + video)

Land is a natural resource that existed before mankind walked the earth.

Landowners do not create land values… click

Logical Fallacies and the Art of Debate
Logic & Fallacies - Constructing a Logical Argument

Bank of England chiefs deliberately fuelled a consumer boom they knew would massively boost house prices and personal debt to avert a recession, a former governor said today. [daily mail, sky news]

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