Metal theft. The biters bit

Yes - but so can storms, accidents and terrorist activities. You would be extremely stupid to make *anyone's* life dependent on mains power not being off for longer than an hour. It is rare, but it happens. I have experienced five power failures lasting more than an hour (in one case several days) in the past 20 years. None of them were due to criminal activity. Yes, they are infrequent, but I would still not want to bet my life on mains power.

It was obviously designed to be an *attended* system. It is therefore up to the individual to ensure that it *is* attended 24/7. As far as the alarm not being heard is concerned - what a pathetic excuse to use when someone's life is at stake! If it were myself whose partner was on such a system, I'd fit a loud siren at the very least.

It will be necessary for the carer to work out solutions to that problem. Just as a parent must work out an arrangement to ensure that their baby is not left unattended. No, it is not a particularly enviable position to be in, but it is *far* from being insurmountable. If the backup system that was provided is indequate for the environment it is to be used in, then either the environment will need to change, or additional backups fitted.

You are surely not saying that the setup would be significantly better if only there were no thieves?

What changes do you imagine would make it any better?

Maybe he did not misinterpret the actions in that particular case - though he only knows that with hindsight.

Apart from the fact that you won't get much agreement about what is and what is not "reasonable punishment".

Here's a scenario:

You lament to your teenage son that some bastard nicked all your tools from your shed and drove off with them in a van. Your son tells a few of his mates. The group of teenagers come across a parked van containing tools that your son mistakes for the ones stolen from you. He and his mates decide to grab them back. While they are doing so, the bloke your son assumes is the thief starts shouting at them from a rooftop. He and his mates shout back abuse at the supposed thief.

Is taking back the supposedly stolen tools acceptable vigilante behaviour or not?

Let's assume that he did. What then should a person do upon seeing a grown man grabbing a child in the street and inflicting GBH on the child? The observer would surely be quite justified in assuming that he was witnessing a serious case of child abuse.

What sort of action would you advocate taking if you were to witness a case of serious child abuse?

That's terrible! LOL

No. Punishment is an insignificant factor unless it is either ridiculously lenient or ridiculously OTT. There has been so much research carried out on that subject that I am amazed anyone believes that increased punishments have any chance of improving crime rates.

Imn that case you are under 12, years old, Jesus Christ, a liar, or in denial.

cite brain damage and cannabis. Sometimes people are not themselves responsible for the situations they find themselves in.

Nick

You appear not to understand the meaning of the phrase.

High-voltage cables are made equally difficult to access.

As there are with high-voltage cables

As was true of cable thieves.

So where's the big difference?

I do not agree. They are both doing something they know is forbidden for the sole purpose of getting some form of personal gratification.

What do you believe that might achive?

ISTM that if it achieves anything at all, it would be to make judges more sympathetic toward people in such a situation, and they would possibly impose more lenient sentences on any convicted of a crime.

Are you sure there is any such law involving trespassing?

Unless they'd had their windows smashed and their car scratched for being "posh".

Anyone stupid enough to get caught by a Gatso safety camera deserves to be banned. There are only a few reasons they get caught, either..

they saw the camera and ignored it

they were travelling too fast for them to slow down when they saw the camera

they didn't see the bright yellow box on a stick

they aren't paying attention to their driving and don't know what the speed limit is

None of them are make a good driver!

Why? I completely agree with Adam. Read it again.

So you expect a woman in her eighties and her ill husband to second guess the NHS, know that things should be better and fight for it. They were simply glad that he could spend his final time at home rather than being stuck in hospital tied to their machines.

SteveW

So what's the solution to you being on your final warning at work, knowing that you have no resources to fall back on if dismissed and the arranged carers don't turn up yet again, your neighbours are out, etc.? The NHS won't provide any better and you have no money to pay for anything yourself?

It's no good saying that NHS/Social services will provide. They won't. Funds are always limited and many things that absolutely should be done, aren't.

SteveW

Who said anything about a child? I said teenager - that covers right up to 19. In this case the "child" was 17-18 and taller than my, somewhat short, uncle!

SteveW