Reasons to be cheerful

[antongould]

Some other reasons to be cheerful:

Extreme poverty has fallen below 10 per cent of the world’s population for the first time; child mortality has fallen to record low levels; and malaria, polio and heart disease are all in decline. Because Africa and Asia are experiencing faster economic growth than Europe and North America at the moment, global inequality is also falling.

Matt Ridley said all this in an article in the Spectator suggesting that it has been a wonderful decade for the planet ..... I couldn’t see anywhere any mention of the mean temperature in 2010 and what it is now .......

[kernelbogey]

Jay Rayner reports, in The Observer, a finding by Tesco:
Christmas pudding has seen a 20% surge in popularity from last year. A whacking 48% of the population say they will now be eating it on Christmas Day, up from 40% last year. The pudding love is not evenly spread, with Bristol being the epicentre. Over 60% of the city’s population says they’ll be having one this year.

[gradus]

Lfc.

[vinteuil]

Lfc.

... not, I hope, the Légion française des combattants?

... ah yes :

https://www.londonderryfire.com/

Or, was it, perhaps -

https://limogesfc.fr/

or was it

http://www.leesburgfc.com/

http://www.linfieldfc.com/

https://livingstonfc.co.uk/

Shall we ever know?



.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

...and view 2020 with optimism and clear vision!

Something I shall certainly look forward to is the removal in January of the cataract that resulted from my recent retinal surgery. I hit 60 in February (or it hits me) so I'm looking forward to better vision in my 60s than I've had since my 20s (very appropriate for the year).

Lots of plans and projects starting next year, too.

[cloughie]

Something I shall certainly look forward to is the removal in January of the cataract that resulted from my recent retinal surgery. I hit 60 in February (or it hits me) so I'm looking forward to better vision in my 60s than I've had since my 20s (very appropriate for the year).

Lots of plans and projects starting next year, too.

Hope all goes well with that, ferney!

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

People paid on an annual salary do an extra day of unpaid work.

[cloughie]

People paid on an annual salary do an extra day of unpaid work.

Giving everyone a day off on February 29th would be no bonus for many - it is a Saturday!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Hope all goes well with that, ferney!

[MrGongGong]

People paid on an annual salary do an extra day of unpaid work.

???
Surely if you are paid on that basis you are paid by the year NOT the hour ?
And (not 100% serious ... but) maybe only those who are doing jobs that will soon be done by robots measure their work in this way ?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

???
Surely if you are paid on that basis you are paid by the year NOT the hour ?
And (not 100% serious ... but) maybe only those who are doing jobs that will soon be done by robots measure their work in this way ?

Well - it's many public sector workers (incl state school teachers) who are "paid by the year NOT the hour". A welcome development when robots are able to wander around a frezzing cold playground for an hour at lunchtime telling kids to tuck in their shirts and/or pick up that bit of litter and/or put that fag out. ("State school" - "fag" = "cigarette".) I suppose a dalek ...

[oddoneout]

Music.

[greenilex]

Robocops of the world unite...nothing to lose but your cotton wool truncheons

[Serial_Apologist]

Two good bits of news.

First, a friend just phoned to say he's got his first free travel pass, and looks forward to joint outings with me on my hitherto lone interesting architecture-spotting trips around Town.

Second, I'm to be included in the credits in a new autobiography expected to come out sometime in the new year.

[Andy Freude]

I'm to be included in the credits in a new autobiography

You mean in your autobiography? :)