Nik Nak’s Daily Teaser — 5th June, 2023.

5th June, 2023.

Arrrgh … 

It’s Monday morning, and I’m up early: to go to my weight management class.

Provisionally … ?

I think I’ve lost something.

But here’s hoping.

At any rate … ?

When you want to get out early … ?

That’s not the time for YouTube to play Silly Buggers!

~≈Ç≈~

Moving on, briefly: and with an awareness of the time?

I’m out of work: and claiming benefits.

So?

Take an interest in news about the benefits system.

Including anything about a proposed Basic Income system.

It is — so you know — an benefit that’s not means tested, and at a level guaranteed to keep people above the poverty level.

It sounds good: but I’ve always felt that some of the schemes proposed are … possibly impractical.

At any rate … ?

According to a BBC report?   It seems that a think tank called Autonomy are to run a small scale — very small scale, some thirty people big — pilot: and are seeking financial backing for it.

The BBC’s piece give very little in further detail: beyond the fact the scheme is supposed to pay some £1, 600 a month.

An amount that I’d find useable.

Quite what the practicalities of the scheme would be?

After all, there’s extra funds available to those of us on Universal Credit, and not on others: and if we’re on UC, we can claim free prescriptions, and various forms of medical treatment.

Whether those thirty people could claim those, is a whole other matter.

Either way?

I can only hope this project gets the backing it needs: and can produce useful results.

~≈Ç≈~

Nik Nak’s Daily Teaser — 5-6-2018

5th June, 2018.

I’ve a definite confession to make … I like some of Radio Four’s Monday night comedies.

One of the classics?

One of their classics, of course, is the ever listenable Just a Minute: fronted since 1967 by presenter, Nicolas Parsons.

He’s 94: which is one hell of a good innings

But … ?

For the first time in his fifty years presenting the show, he missed an episode: last night’s.

Which was a sombre affair, as a result.

I think I can understand that.

Nicolas being off is understandable: is is 94, after all.

But it’s mildly worrying to see.

~≈§≈~

There’s something else I’ve seen, that struck me.

The news from Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference: that Apple will be re-designing Safari, their browser, so that it will be able to block the various tracking tools used by — very specifically — Facebook.

With the recent row over Cambridge’s Analytica’s use of data from FB?

And with ongoing tracking by various advertisers?

That’s possibly a good move: in the original iPhone update, Apple refused to build in an ability to use the battery draining Flash.

And encouraging the uptake HTML5, with it’s more efficient use of power in doing the same job.

Personally?

I can’t help but think that — and the various upcoming parental controls — are a good thing.

~≈§≈~

Nik Nak’s Daily Teaser — 5-6-2017

I’m … very unsurprised, this morning.

Theresa May, the Prime Minister, has officially condemned various shades of tech company.

Along with others in her government, she’s criticised both social media, and companies that use end to end encryption, for allowing radicals a ‘safe space,’ in which to plan.

OK, I can appreciate that … 

But Ian Duncan Smith made — completely unintentionally — a minor point: in an Andrew Marr show interview, yesterday.

He said words to the effect of “Parents don’t know what their children are doing, online.”

Now, yes: tech companies could be doing more.

But what are we as parents doing to keep our children away from radicalisation?

You?

Me?

The family next door?

If the answer’s “I don’t know what they’re up to,” or “I don’t know how to use a computer”?

We’re just as bad as the tech giants.

~≈ß≈~

There’s something else that’s unsurprisingly surprising.

In a nice way.

I managed to catch this week’s episode of Dr Who, last night: The Lie of the Land.

And couldn’t help but notice the 1984 references.

After all, the monks base is a giant pyramid with ‘Truth’ written all over it, whose controllers are keeping the boiler-suited population oppressed by re-writing history: complete with ‘Memory’ police enforcing it.

So I asked him about it, via Twitter.

Turns out he is.

I’m happy!

~≈ß≈~