Please Sir, May I Have Another?
Posted by Hazel Stone | Filed under Buttinskis
British pedestrians can now send text messages in complete safety, secure in the knowledge that the cocoon of luuurve put in place by their government will save them from any bonks on the head:
Padded lampposts are being trialled in a London street to protect inattentive pedestrians.
A pilot scheme has been launched in Brick Lane after it was found to have the highest number of ‘walking and texting’ injuries in the country.
A study carried out by 118 118 found one in ten people has hurt themselves while focused on their mobile phone screen.
Instead of padding lampposts you might instead consider radio-tagging those head-bonkers, because sooner or later they’re going to need rescuing from a tar pit.
Come ON, people! When your government passes some stupid measure like this (which uses YOUR tax money, by the way), phone them up, succinctly point out what lobotomized baboons they are, and demand a refund!
Also rolling:
Tags: (formerly) great britain, death of common sense
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March 6th, 2008
Here in the UK that story’s been covered by this blog:
http://nannyknowsbest.blogspot.com/2008/03/dangers-of-lamposts.html
Of all the comments posted after it, this is my favourite (and that includes my own comment) – it just made me laugh so much:
” At 5:53 AM, grumpy said…
I think it’s a great idea; sometimes, when staggering back to my car, too pissed to walk home, and trying to juggle a Kentucky Fried in one hand and a cigarette and a can of lager in the other, I have been known to come into unplanned and painful contact with walls, lamposts (and pavements).
I think that EVERYTHING should be padded and that, in future, I should be able to sue any Council that neglects to ensure my personal safety in this way. ”
It’s the ‘pavements’ (sidewalks in America; ‘pissed’ = absolutely shitfaced drunk) bit that did it. Oh I have so been there so many times.
March 6th, 2008
Brick Lane is full of financial types with their heads in the Blackburrys as they nip off for a quick curry… SPLAT… Rupert has a busted head.
Hehe.
March 7th, 2008
I blame ‘texting’ whilst walking injuries on
George W. BushWilliam Wrigley Jr. It’s high time Nanny banned the ambulatory mastication of chewing gum in all its forms… and that goes for “open containers”, too!March 7th, 2008
Actually, I see a kind of logic in it. Padding will reduce costs to the NHS in that these txting id10ts may not require a trip to the emergency room, where they can wait a few years for treatment.
Personally, though, I think the treatment for breaking a leg while texting should be the same as the treatment for a horse with a broken leg.
(BTW, that is a JOKE!)
March 7th, 2008
While I’m willing to believe almost anything about this ludicrous nanny state I now seem to live in, this isn’t quite as bad as it seems. 118 118 is a telephone directory enquiries company, and they appear to be paying for the padding – I assume it will be covered with their logo and exhortations to people staggering home from the many curry houses of Brick Lane to call 118 118 to book a cab home.
Or to put it another way, it’s basically just some offbeat advertising material with a press release that’s packaged to get into the media as “news”. No tax money involved.
March 7th, 2008
When we lived in England, I had a short but civil exchange with a street vendor. When he determined I was American from my accent, he started in on how bad crime was in American and that it was because we all had guns. I told him I was from Wyoming and there wasn’t a lot of crime and a lot of people have guns there. In the course of our little argument, I noticed that his little sidewalk shop was under a pole that was missing its street sign, due to vandalism, and we had a good laugh about ‘crime’. A few months later came the Strangeways riots in Manchester Prison. If I recall, the guards were not armed, but I can’t verify that. I just remember thinking it was really bizarre that they couldn’t get it under control.
Also while we lived there the Hillsborough disaster occurred and the inquiry came up with the conclusion that 96 people were crushed to death at a soccer game because of lack of police control! Yeah….right. It really makes me sad to see the English make excuses and give over their rights.
March 8th, 2008
For heavens sake , this was an advertising stunt , just three bumpers were put up and have now been taken down .