peak4

Upwards of 870,000 people disagreed with you enough to sign this petition, though there were others. Her boyfriend didn't want the prosecution to go ahead, but the press hounded someone in a fragile mental state in order to sell papers. Social media joined in, which can't have helped either. Also from Bylines; Our investigation also reveals the truth behind the worst of the news output that led almost two million people to call for a ‘Caroline’s Law’; legislation – never in the end debated at Westminster – to make it a criminal offence to publish unduly oppressive media coverage that pushed people to suicide. Sources inside The Sun tell how the tabloid bought and published a picture of Caroline’s blood-stained bed – likely to be key evidence in the then-upcoming trial – without explaining it was her own self-inflicted injuries that had caused the scene. https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/flacks-law Why is this important? Sections of the British press & media act with impunity, and more recently there have been a number of cases where they have sought to sensationalise the misfortune of individuals (mainly those already in the public eye, but not always so) to the catastrophic detriment of the individuals' mental welfare. The Jeremy Kyle show, and Caroline Flack being recent examples. We'll never truly know all of the things that were going on in Caroline's mind when she took the decision to take her life. But we do know that sections of the media were quite happy to drag her life through the wringer purely in order to sell a few more papers and it's just not right. What price is a life? This isn't the first time this has happened, and I'm concerned that without a new law, it won't be the last.

A little more here, from Bylines. Caroline Flack’s Lawyer Suggests Decision to Charge her May Have Been ‘Driven by Desire’ to Appease Media as Met Police Probe Case Questioned about the decision to re-examine the case, Flack’s lawyer, Jonathan Coad, suggested the Met Police’s relationship with the media may not be “entirely as it should be”, telling Sky News: “One suspects the reason why police made this decision was to appease the press pressure, which I remember being there… that she should be charged to rebut suggestions, ‘oh, well she’s had special treatment because she’s a celebrity’.” He continued: “So, it may be that this decision, which indeed is unusual to appeal it, was driven by a desire not to fall foul of the press, and be criticised by the press, in which case is an entirely wrong reason for the appeal to be made .”

I've no idea whether it's related to this incident, but I'm not sure hilarious is the right word, though I'm sure you've probably never come across this crowd; For those who've never heard if them, see below. These extreme message boards host some very disturbing content, with overlaps to Q-Anon etc. It's very real, and not new. Elliot Rodger: How misogynist killer became 'incel hero' BBC 2018 Minutes before Alek Minassian allegedly launched Monday's deadly attack in Toronto, Canada, he posted to Facebook: "The Incel Rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys! All hail the Supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger!" Closer to home; Plymouth shooter fascinated by serial killers and ‘incel’ culture, inquest hears Guardian A man who killed five people including his mother and a three-year-old girl was fascinated by mass shootings, serial killers and violent heroes of “incel” ideology, an inquest jury has heard. And a newspaper story of a CDHC report The online incel movement is getting more violent and extreme, report says Washington post, via archive.is No excerpt from me this time, as it's fairly disturbing stuff. The Center for Countering Digital Hate analyzed more than 1 million posts showing a rise in advocacy of rape, mass killings

Clearly I have no idea of the truth in this, but the post makes for an interesting read From Twitter Nicole Minet @mouvement33 via Threadreader https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1778566905881829792.html I've been waiting 29 years to tell this story about OJ and his days at USC. Now that he's dead I have a story that I signed an NDA for that is no longer valid.

Another one for you itvX Post Office executive warned of wrongful conviction six years before innocent man was cleared

The recipient should get a card through the door. They can then pay on collection, or line and re-arrange a delivery if required, but obviously then, they may not know the contents of the letter/parcel https://www.royalmail.com/receiving-mail/pay-a-fee

Jonathan Portes on Twitter, quoting John Burn-Murdoch. The FT article is here, via archive.is Forget boomers vs millennials, the next conflict is millennials vs each other Growing wealth inequality between thirtysomethings could soon displace tensions between young and old

To add to Anna B's comments, When I bought my first house in the 80's, and lived in until 2016, it was cheaper to rent than buy. Mortgages were in the order of 15% , but 95% loans available, so it was practical to save for a deposit whilst renting (privately or in social housing). My personal cash flow was tight, but manageable by renting out one room. Fast forward, we have zero hours contracts and rents dearer than mortgage repayments; I've no idea how a single person can save enough for a deposit these days. A rise in Buy-to-Let for private investors, coupled to a decrease in social housing stock, with the number of available properties diminished previously by Thatcher's right to buy initiative. For my parents generation, and mine to a certain extent, one breadwinner with an average paid job, could support a family; overtime and maybe part time work for a partner, helped with luxuries. Times have changed and wealth inequality, even within generations, has increased to the detriment of those at the bottom of the pile. None of this though explains the specific rise in Sheffield homelessness raised in the original post, if it is higher than a national trend. The original post of course is about registered homeless, rather than rough sleepers, though one can lead to the other.

I would send them an invoice to cover my coast as well. Their response to it would decide whether they lost any support that they might have had from me. It's a bit like when there's a problem with a purchase; it's how the seller deals with the issue that is the mark of an good honourable vendor.

Pretty much as it's always been; if no postage shown, or under value postage, the recipient pays an additional charge + handling before the letter/parcel is released (or even viewed sometimes). 'I paid £5 for unpaid postage and was angry to receive a Lib Dem campaign leaflet' The Star A Sheffield man has shared his anger after paying £5 in unpaid postage only to receive a political leaflet from his local Liberal Democrat campaigner. Residents in Crookes have shared they received notes from Royal Mail explaining postage had not been paid on a delivery addressed to them. But upon paying to receive their delivery, they discovered a political letter from the Sheffield Liberal Democrat council candidate, Jordan Barry.

One reason why punctuation is so important; I would suggest that there probably should be a comma (at least) after unsafe, or split into two sentences completely The whole paragraph is about "Unsafe convictions", as shown by the header shown in the Sky News link. Unsafe convictions As early as March 2013 Lord Arbuthnot said he told the Post Office that its convictions of sub-postmasters could be unsafe as evidence of flaws within Horizon had been unearthed by forensic accountants Second Sight, who were hired by the organisation to investigate allegations. i.e. rewritten slightly to make the meaning clear in this particular context. As early as March 2013 Lord Arbuthnot said he told the Post Office that its convictions of sub-postmasters could be unsafe. [replace comma for clarity] He argued that evidence of flaws within Horizon had been unearthed by forensic accountants Second Sight, who were hired by the organisation to investigate allegations. Nothing at all to do with whether Lord Arbuthnot's evidence was unsafe,

Here's a starter for 10, I believe is the expression. Secret recording 'final proof' former Post Office boss Paula Vennells knew about Horizon issues itvX The politician, who campaigned for justice for wrongly convicted sub-postmasters, says the secret recording of a meeting in 2013 attended by Paula Vennells - exclusively revealed by ITV News last week - answers a question campaigners have been asking for years about what she knew and when. On July 2 2013, in a meeting with independent investigators Ian Henderson and Ron Warmington from Second Sight, Ms Vennells was made aware of allegations that Sub-postmaster branch accounts could be accessed remotely. This is something the Post Office had denied for years as hundreds of Sub-postmasters were convicted. She was also told by the investigators that the company’s position in denying Horizon faults was both “dangerous” and "stupid", according to the recording. A very real question from me, is did the prosecuting solicitors and/or barristers know as well?

I'm not disagreeing with you at all; One of the reasons for favouring the expression "Climate Change", over "Global Warming", is that the actual effect of global warming, even by a very small amount, is likely to lead to more extremes of local weather. Trying to convince someone sceptical about climate change, by referring to global warming, whilst enduring an extreme cold spell is always likely to be problematic. Our current wet spell, and the warmest March in recent records, may be an example of more extreme weather conditions, without actually being extreme (as in immediately life threatening). The UK is better placed than many countries in terms of food security, but we still depend on imports as well as our own home grown crops etc. We are unlikely to starve , but cost of living may increase.

When you say "chargeable" do you mean premium rate, or just a number not included in your own call plan? As far as I know premium rate numbers have been banned for some time. 0800 ( & 8080??) numbers are free of course from a landline (and a mobile??), and geographic landline numbers are often included in mobile & fixed line phone contracts. I think 0300 numbers are free from a landline, but not always from a mobile; do check up on that as I might be behind the times. 0844, and 0845, I think are local call rate, but may or may not be included in a contract's minutes; again check your own contract(s). 0870, and 0871, I think are versions of a premium rate number. It's going to get even more confusing when we lose copper landlines, and everyone has to use broadband/IP phone numbers. SayNoTo0870 is worth exploring for alternative numbers https://www.saynoto0870.com/search.php

I've no idea what you're talking about. I've replied in a thread/topic, not addressing you personally, apart from when you took issue with me using the word "only"

Bear in mind there's a difference between those classed as homeless and those sleeping rough. It's hard to find the exact numbers just reading the press etc, as the terms are often wrongly used interchangeably, (including by me when I've been careless) There's also several different definitions of Homeless depending on where you look. This BBC report suggests 4000 in Sheffield, but others vary from about 700 upwards. These folk have a roof over their heads, but it might be in a hostel, refuge, or other temporary accommodation, or sofa surfing at a friends house; still classed as homeless though. The rough sleepers, those with no roof at all, who were housed during Covid lockdowns, were smaller in number, but I'm not clear on how many exactly. At one point I remember reading (from the Archer project maybe??) there were 14 in Sheffield, though inevitably that number will vary a bit as folk move around. This report comes up with completely different numbers of Homeless, but suggests that last year, Doncaster had the highest number of rough sleepers in S Yorks with 20 in total, so 14 in Sheffield might be about right.

Did you notice on which side of the fence the survivors were buried?

Here you go, closed in 1988 I think https://www.sheffieldhistory.co.uk/forums/topic/16060-the-barley-corn-hotel/

Did you actually read the whole article, including the embedded links, such as this one EXPLAINED What is - and isn't - in Scotland's new Hate Crime Act?

I was wondering whether to reply here, or in the feedback thread, but it does seem directly relevant to this topic. Are the "new" rules really that different to those of most other forums & websites? Yes, they are longer, with more specific clauses then previously on here, but the law(s) in England/Wales & Scotland has also changed since the some earlier editions; site owners & lead moderators do have legal responsibilities too. Most T&Cs seem to deal with these legalities & responsibilities, just trying to ensure contributors treat each other with respect, and generally being a welcoming place for all visitors. For interest, there's a copy of the rules from 2016 preserved here on The Internet Archive. Broadly the same from what I can see, maybe with some additions due to those who sought to circumvent the original T&Cs. I'm sure clarification, or even requests for re-wording, would be considered on the feedback topic.

Except that it's not likely to happen like that; the "new" legislation seems to be getting wildly misrepresented. Patrick Harvie defends 'wildly misrepresented' Hate Crime Act National Scot, but plenty of other sources & authors PATRICK Harvie has defended the Hate Crime Act, saying the legislation is being “wildly misrepresented” and dragged into a “culture war space”. Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday Show, the Scottish Greens co-leader said “people on the right in particular use phrases like free speech as though it only means the freedom to be abusive and vile and unpleasant and prejudiced”. He said the idea that police would target comedians and theatre actors “couldn’t be further from the truth”. Harvie, meanwhile, said "no individual people" are exempted from the legislation but Police Scotland had "said very clearly that the media reports that that comedians or others would be targeted are complete nonsense." He added: "The law is essentially most of it bringing up to the common standard, hate crime legislation that was much of it already in place, but in disparate places in different bits of legislation, it's consolidating that altogether, so it will be simpler. "And it's also ensuring that the stirring up hatred offences which have been part of the criminal law for decades now, in relation to stirring up racial hatred, for example, that that applies to every other group."

No the article doesn't say "only", but I thought the context made the point itself. You may not be blaming small boat asylum seekers for the national housing shortage, but many others do. We have pretty much the highest level of homeless in Europe, with a below average number of asylum seekers, so compared to the rest of Europe, it's unlikely that the main reason for housing shortage (in Sheffield or the country as a whole) is asylum seekers, as some would have us believe. So yes only 45% of a comparatively small number of people, can be contributing overall population increase in the UK, The very high level of overall immigration to the UK is clearly an issue, which needs further exploration (arguably elsewhere) for a whole variety of reasons, but the queries on this thread were originally about homelessness in Sheffield, where the number of asylum seekers probably has little effect. Sheffield population seems to be growing at about 0.7% per year, so clearly our infrastructure needs upgrading to suit. The annual % change hasn't varied much since 2000, but homelessness in Sheffield has apparently recently risen. Note that homelessness and rough sleeping are not synonymous, though I should have made that clearer in my previous post, much of which was about the latter. Rough sleeping snapshot in England: autumn 2022 HMG Something happened to the Sheffield population 2001 ish in Sheffield; The large increase in Chinese students didn't show until about 15 years ago from what I can tell, but most of them will be in specific student accommodation, so not competing in the private rental market. Sheffield, UK Metro Area Population 1950-2024

I've just added a post query on this elsewhere on the forum (changes & feedback)

If there is a will to do so, the homeless population's lot can be improved hugely, as can be seen from Milton Keynes to Finland. Like so many other things in our current politics, it depend on whether those in charge prefer to help or weaponize a problem. Compassion, not cruelty, is the answer to rough sleeping – we have the proof in Milton Keynes The Guardian When the home secretary calls living in tents “a lifestyle choice” something has gone seriously wrong in her understanding of rough sleeping. Five years ago, Milton Keynes, where I am a councillor, was labelled a “tent city”. Today, no one needs to sleep rough on our streets. Suella Braverman could learn a lot from how we did that, and how it could be replicated elsewhere. For a start, we didn’t make giving people tents a civil offence. Tents are a symptom, not the cause. Finland finds it pays to house the homeless Tortoise Media In Finland, only about one in 1700 people is homeless. The equivalent figure for the UK is about one in 250. How have the Finns done it? By building homes for the homeless, making ending homelessness a national priority and looking after the homeless once housed. Homelessness fell in Finland by 40 per cent between 2019 and 2022 and is down by 20,000 compared with the 1980s, in a country of 5.5 million. The government estimates it saves €32 million a year by housing those who would otherwise sleep rough, chiefly through reduced healthcare costs. A Paradigm Shift in Social Policy How Finland Conquered Homelessness Der Spiegel a long article, but well worth reading, for anyone with a genuine interest in homelessness. For years, the number of homeless people has been rising in Europe. But not in Finland. The country's Housing First program aims to eliminate the problem by 2027. But how? There's an interesting list on Wiki; re-index it on homeless per 10,000 population, and see that we come 38th from highest https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sovereign_states_by_homeless_population Noticeably about the highest proportionally in Europe of homeless people. Also note that the UK has below the average number asylum seekers per capita in Europe. Refugee Council, but slightly out of date Small boat crossings only amount to about 45% of UK applications. BBC

It really can't help when access to mental health services in this country is potentially so difficult, and the topic is being used by some to stigmatise those suffering, and help promote culture wars. This article from MIND last year pretty much mirrors the thread's title Mental health must not become a new front in the culture wars Mental health must not be allowed to become a new front in the culture wars. Otherwise, the nation risks taking a gigantic step back when looking after its mental health. But when the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions says Britain’s approach to mental health culture is in danger of having “gone too far” that is exactly what he risks doing. What the Secretary of State's words did, deliberate or otherwise, was distract attention from the real issue. Lost in the noise of “mental health culture” having “gone too far” was yet more evidence of the perilous state of mental health services and skyrocketing poverty, so often the cause of mental health problems.