Pleepsie

I didn't predict a 100% success rate. As for what incentive there would be to behave.....well, not having to do another 2 years in the Army would be a wonderful incentive for most criminals - or you could increase the time for repeat offenders. I don't get 'rewarded' for being good - so why should a criminal expect a reward.

I watched the first series of 'Bad Lads Army' on TV and was struck by how many young men were turned around by the strict Army regime. Perhaps this should be the way to treat offenders - 2 years 'National Service' and no time off for 'good behavior'. If this was a minimum sentence for ANY misdemeanor I foresee petty crime plummeting like a stone.

If people want a drug free Shetland then there will inevitably be occasions when innocent people are questioned. I would think it would look suspicious to see people hanging around the North boat - even though they were only waiting for a lift - as, lets be honest, that is how drugs come into shetland. It is estimated that as much as 70% of current crime affecting our communities is, in some way drug related - certainly that appears to be the case with regard to housebreakings, many of which are committed by people who need ready cash to feed their habit. Perhaps the Labour goverment should be blamed for taking away our right to not answer such questions under their anti-terrorism banner.

Off the coast of Kent in the Thames Estuary. At least the people of Sheppey are now linked to the mainland via 2 bridges. There is another similarity you forgot to mention.... both are alive with Daddy-longlegs at certain times of the year

We have, for the first time in over 100 years, had a good medal haul at the Olympics. I wonder if the stringent drug testing is finaly giving a level playing field and allowing true athletes to shine. I well remember that the women shot-putters from Russia in the past had every thing a man desires....big muscles..moustache Ahhh, the old jokes are the best! (*** Mod - Threads merged and topic generalised ***)

Snow wrote: http://www.scottishwater.co.uk/portal/page/portal/SWE_PGP_INVESTMENT/SWE_PGE_INVESTMENT/WHAT_VIS_SHET It seems to me that Scottish Water are addressing this problem. Snow wrote If you are living with something 'rotten' beneath your feet, why don't you get a workman out to look at the problem yourself, I would have thought that your first priority as a concerned parent would be to pay for this yourself, establish the problem and only then look to see who could be made to pick up the bill - or, here's a thought...... you could pay for it yourself!!

Seems like your wish is their command

Tesco or Co-op, they are both big multi million pound businesses. The Co-op has just bought out Somerfield, and as Peter Marks, Chief Executive of The Co-operative Group said: "This is good news for consumers and for competition in the grocery market, where we will create a stronger fifth player in food and a convenience store chain with unrivalled geographic reach. So save yourselves the angst and shop with whoever is offering the cheapest deal that week - then their is only one winner.....You!

The problem is that in a place like Shetland, if someone on the 'committee' knew who the complainant was, they would find it very hard to keep the persons name secret, just by virtue of the fact that in everyday conversation they might let the name slip. I know that when I have tried to keep a thing secret (i.e. a birthday gift) I have an overpowering desire to mention the very thing I would keep quiet. As far as I'm concerned spending £9.3 million on a cinema and music venue in a town whose population is about 7,000 is obscene.

Why do visions of Funland and Craggy Island keep popping into my head....

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/2115077/Heelarius-high-heels-for-babies-go-on-sale.html Yes, just what the baby around town really needs Yes indeed! mind you I watched the weird 'baby pagent' programme on tele a couple of weeks ago... so there is definatly a mind set of woman that would buy these baby heels!

Seems to me that Shetland is very well catered for in the maternity department. Perhaps the scans are for very good medical reasons. I find it hard to believe that they would be suggested otherwise.

Some commitment! (***Mod edit - Linked the comments to the main article***)

I'm amazed that the local police only work 6 hours a day. They really would have to work 7 days a week to clock up a 42 hour week! I know for a fact that other forces work 12 hour shifts 4 days on and then have 3 or 4 rest days; 2 of those shifts being night shifts. Not so.... Are you suggesting that the police work 12 hour shifts, 7 days per week, have no holidays and never go sick? I think that a truer figure for those on duty at any one time might be between 1/4 & 1/3. It has been mentioned before but, could this number be increased by spending the money on policemen rather than cameras? I was not suggesting that this should be a 24/7 routine but merely to illustrate that it would be possible to cover Friday and Saturday nights as these two nights had been the focus of discussion. All police forces try to ensure maximum coverage for peak trouble times and I would hope that applies to Shetland too.

If you allow for half the Officer force to be on duty, that gives you 13 Officers - lets allow only 6 of those for Lerwick - now if you team each Officer with a Special Constable, that gives you plenty to have a some in cars and the rest on foot patrol.

If you had taken the trouble to read my posts properly, you would have seen that at no point have I said I am against CCTV in Lerwick. In my first post I pointed out that Detective Chief Inspector Mick Neville, who is in charge of closed-circuit television for the Metropolitan Police Force, claimed only 3 per cent of the capital's street robberies are solved using security cameras, and also the huge amount of money wasted on CCTV's. I also wondered where 13 cameras would be deployed. My second post pointed out where some were to be pointed - and at the risk of you having another hissy fit - I said that it is indeed easy policing. I'm afraid that I didn't put a smiley face at the end of my remark about 'a gossip in the street' as I had (obviously incorrectly) assumed that everyone would know it was a humorous aside.

^^^^ Good Heavens.....I seem to have touched a raw nerve. I am all for active policing. The centre of Lerwick is small enough to be patrolled on foot by officers particularly on Friday and Saturday. This would be a greater deterant to bad behaviour than any CCTV camera.

http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:DNtjm502yVgJ:www.shetland.gov.uk/coins/ViewSelectedDocument.asp%3FDocumentID%3D11717+lerwick+cctv+camera+positions&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=uk Ahhh yes, easy Policing! This could be the death knell to a good gossip on the street!

http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Britain39s-multibillionpound--CCTV-.4055450.jp 13 cameras! where are they to be deployed? The town centre isn't that big....or will it be Lerwick as a whole that is monitored?

There has to be some sort of control over how businesses dispose of their waste. A greengrocer would have a fair amount of waste each week - if it all went on his garden compost heap it would attract vermin before it rotted down. Perhaps the butcher or fishmonger might decide to leave their waste for the Seagulls to 'recycle' - very green and not taking up landfill......

I was using the word small in the context of her age - she is a little girl. Marks and Spencer, where you bought her padded bra from, do a wide range of sports bras (in her size), far more suitable than a padded tee shirt bra for doing PE. Why should I encourage her to be embarrassed, this school of thought helps to encourage body dysmorphia in young girls, and the other wonder of puberty - too many layers of clothing not a good idea. I want to encourage her to be out playing football and cricket with the boys, not skulking in an oversize jumper in the corner too scared to show herself up. I don't recall suggesting you should encourage her to be embarrassed. Why do you equate sensible clothing with baggy layers and oversized jumpers? 9 year old children - regardless of how well developed they are should wear clothing appropriate to their age.

^^^^ This may come as a surprise to you, but it is quite possible to wear a training bra (which is a bra specifically made for small girls) Under the sports crop top; which is not just for the 'flat chested' but is a snug elasticated fit which holds everything in its proper place without rubbing. This item is very popular with tennis players and ladies who partake in active sports. As far as I am aware all schools require pupils to wear a sports shirt over their underwear when partaking of PE, so training bra, crop top, sports shirt - I see no room for embarrassment with that. I most certainly am aware of the developement process of young girls. Perhaps the secret of saving them embarrassment is to dress them in sensible clothing that does not reveal the changes puberty brings.

^^^ As you can see, the average age is still 13. I would have thought that buying a padded bra would only serve to draw attention to a self conscious young girl. An elasticated, double lined sports 'crop top' would better serve a little girl for PE. They have after all been made for this specific purpose.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?xml=/global/2008/04/14/noindex/nbra114.xml "It is a product designed for girls at that self-conscious age when they are just developing " Self conscious age Its aimed at 7 year olds for heavens sake, and as far as I am aware (exept for a few rare cases) puberty doesn't start then. God only knows what the Parents they 'spoke to' were like. Tesco needs to get a grip - this follows on from the pole dance kit fiasco!

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/article1035096.ece Although this is from the Sun - I feel it must be true since the UK papers have been treading on eggshells regarding the Mccanns since they sued a couple of papers and won.