Motor

I was listening to the radio yesterday, and there was this huge debate about those little mini-motorbikes and the fact that people have been riding them round the streets and causing a bit of a nuisance. Now, I'm going to be the first to admit that if a bunch of eleven year olds started spinning round on the green outside on these little things, I'd be pretty peeved, but the government's solution of dishing out ASBO's and crushing the bikes grates with me.

The reason these kids (and adults) are getting hold of the bikes is because they are cheap, and quite probably imports. If you want to stop people getting hold of them, you need to put them out of the reach of the ordinary person by making them more expensive - perhaps whack a huge import duty on them, or charge a duty/higher rate of VAT on them?

Now, it's clear that the bikes are popular, and that the government intervening too heavily will be unpopular, so the government's solution is to pass a bill. I'll be honest, people need to make choices, and people have made the choice to enjoy these bikes. Perhaps the government should actually sit down and think "how can we work with these children rather than against them?"

Let's go back a few years, when skateboards were the issue. In the end, kids challenged the government and councils, and had skate-parks constructed. The government didn't crush the skateboards, so maybe the real issue here is that there's not enough provision of suitable places to ride mini-motorbikes? Perhaps this is where government needs to look? Mini-motorbike parks?

I get a bit annoyed sometimes by the approach that our government takes to issues. It always seems to be that when there's a problem, legislation and taking enjoyment away from people is their answer, rather than working with the people concerned and the NIMBY's who object to come to a rational, well thought out solution to the problem.

Maybe I'm just old-fashioned?

I've taken today and tomorrow off, and if today's anything to go by, heaven knows what tomorrow will bring.

The main thrust of today was to get my car through the MOT, which for readers outside of the UK is an annual roadworthiness test, without which you cannot obtain road tax or insurance. The car passed first time, but came with a list of 'advisories' which mean that you need to start looking at these things before they become problems. There's a problem with the front brake pads, a link arm, a tyre and a couple of minor things. Also, the cam belt will need changing soon.

While I was carless (or careless depending on your outlook), I did all those little things that you don't get to do when you're at work. A trip to the bank, a little shopping, a chat with the council, and I joined the local library. Hell, it's something I've been meaning to do since I moved to Swindon in January 2000... six years and eight months later, I finally managed to do it :)

In other news, I was disappointed to see that Quidco have received notification from Equitalk that they're not going to pay me my £14 cashback. I've lodged queries against this bearing in mind that I am using the service and generating them some income. On the other hand, I have received trickles of cashback from The Hut which is pleasing. Let's hope that Unibet come up trumps with their £50.... I really hope they do.