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PutneySW15 · 2/28/2026 12:20:20 AM

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Random pic 28 February 2026

John Paul Jones - he who once played keyboards and bass guitar with Led Zeppelin, and before that he was in demand as a session musician and musical arranger - being shy about about taking a bow after the World Premiere of his composition 'Her Kind': https://flic.kr/p/2rR7EyLPerformed by mezzo-soprano Dame Sarah Connolly, pianist Joseph Middleton and the Britten Sinfonia at the Wigmore Hall.

Michael Ixer ● 18m0 Comments ● 18m

Green is the colour, apparently

Well, Gorton and Denton, eh?"Permission to shout 'Bravo' at an annoyingly loud volume, sir."

David Ainsworth ● 14h16 Comments ● 1h

Grok

Most of Elon Musk's stuff is dreadful (X is a cesspit) and Grok is boring and pretty much useless. But I may, just, have found a marginal use for it in adjusting images (and I'm not talking of its unpleasant trick of undressing women and girls). The White Lion in PHS is a very nice building but, in its present state, it's a disgrace:But it does look a bit better in this fanciful Grok version, though why it called it the Royal Oak is a complete mystery. It does, though, give us a hint of what a restored White Lion might look like. N

y

Richard Carter ● 7h1 Comments ● 6h

Random pic 27 February 2026

Mini mouse is lost https://flic.kr/p/2rmJW1N

Michael Ixer ● 1d1 Comments ● 15h

Is the US trying to wage biological warfare?

"U.S. Navy’s Top Supercarrier USS Gerald Ford Suffers Raw Sewage Overflows During Deployment Against Iran""Most of the USS Gerald Ford’s approximately over 600 toilets have reportedly become non-functional at times, forcing sailors to wait up to 45 minutes or more for working facilities. According to the Navy Times, the supercarrier received an average of one "sewage-related maintenance call per day" during its 2025 deployment. Internal records show hundreds of failures of the USS Gerald Ford’s sewage system over short periods, including an internal report of 205 breakdowns in four days during 2025, forcing the carrier to seek external assistance dozens of times since 2023 to try to keep the system serviceable. The use of a specialised acid flush, costing around $400,000 per use, has sometimes been necessary to clear buildup and can only be done in port, not at sea. The requirement for sailors and technicians to work long hours to manage the problem has reportedly contributed to low morale, exacerbating the demoralisation already caused by the significant extension of the supercarrier’s deployment long past usual durations. U.S. Navy officials say the toilet problems haven’t compromised mission capabilities, but they are a serious quality-of-life concern."https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/us-navy-ford-raw-sewage-overflowsIran should shut this US carrier down, as a health hazard.

David Ainsworth ● 2d2 Comments ● 1d

Will Trump be allowed to take "yes" for an answer?

"AFTER two months of presidential threats, amid the largest air and naval build-up in the Middle East since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Americans might have expected Donald Trump to make the case for what may be an imminent conflict with Iran. Yet his state-of-the-union address on February 24th devoted just a few minutes to the subject. Not only that, he said Iran could avoid a fight if it simply uttered “those secret words: we will never have a nuclear weapon”. (Economist 25 Feb)"Iranian president reiterates Iran’s opposition to building nuclear weapons — state TV""Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has banned weapons of mass destruction, which “clearly means Tehran won’t develop nuclear weapons,” President Masoud Pezeshkian says.Pezeshkian speaks ahead of a third round of nuclear talks today with the US in Geneva. US President Donald Trump has threatened to attack Iran if an agreement is not reached on Tehran’s nuclear program, and called in his State of the Union address for Tehran to pledge not to obtain a nuclear bomb.Khamenei, who has the final say on the nuclear program, banned the development of nuclear weapons in a fatwa, or religious decree, in the early 2000s, and Iran has consistently denied seeking to acquire the weapons.However, it has enriched uranium to levels that have no peaceful application, obstructed international inspectors from checking its nuclear facilities, and expanded its ballistic missile capabilities. Prior to the June 2025 war between the countries, Israel said Iran had recently taken steps toward weaponization." (Times of Israel today)---------------------------A sidelight worth considering:-"Israel's nuclear weapons program has never been subject to formal, comprehensive inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) or other international bodies. Israel is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and maintains a policy of nuclear ambiguity. However, the U.S. conducted inspections of the Dimona site in the 1960s.""Nuclear ambiguity!" The 1960s! Utter farce.

David Ainsworth ● 1d0 Comments ● 1d

M&S

Did quick Day One recce of new M&S food store in Putney. It is far larger than I expected, and has a full range of stuff, including an impressive flowers section. I thought the lighting could have been better (the old store was well lit and felt more "open") , and I waited 10 minutes at checkout while attendants (with minimal English and little understanding of plastic cards and UK coinage) struggled. Quality is higher than competing stores, but so are the prices. It has set a commendable standard and shows how tawdry much of the rest of PHS now feels.

Alexander MacLeod ● 1d2 Comments ● 1d

M&S

Alexander MacLeod ● 1d0 Comments ● 1d

Performative government

Performative government can be defined as government in which ministers seek plaudits from fellow ideologues rather than pursue goals determined by a dispassionate analysis of costs and benefits. There are several examples of performative policies followed by the current Labour administration.The most damaging example is probably the push to net zero. This policy, which has won approval from environmentalists, has meant that British consumers and British industries face some of the highest electricity costs in Europe. The justification for the haste to achieve net zero is to create jobs and save the planet, but in fact it does neither. Thousands of jobs have been lost in the North Sea. As for saving the planet, the UK is responsible for around 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, so any action in this country would has little effect. And the notion that the UK might be a beacon of light to other countries is laughable. In fact the less oil extracted from the North Sea, the more oil has to be imported from abroad, which simply exports the pollution.Another example is the Chagos deal, pursued by the government in slavish compliance with a non- binding decision of jurists of the ICJ obsessed with anti-colonialism, even though the deal undermines the rights of the native Chagossians and jeopardises British national security.Yet another is the decision to impose VAT on independent schools. The supposed aim of this legislation is to create 6000 extra teachers for the state system. But its effect has been to force the closure of several schools, create extra demand on the state system, disrupt children’s education and place an unfair burden on parents. It’s obvious that the government is motivated by a wish to please the class warriors in the party, determined to attack the privileges of the rich, even though many of of them earn far more than some of the parents who have to scrimp and save to pay for a decent school for their children.In short, Labour put ideology ahead of common sense.

Steven Rose ● 6d43 Comments ● 1d

Ambulances to Ukraine

As some of you will remember I volunteered two years ago to drive an aid-filled ambulance to Ukraine for a remarkable undertaking known as Medical Life Lines Ukraine (MLLU). Several of you made very generous donations at that time and in total I raised over £18,000 at the time.MLLU was set up and is being run by a small group of private citizens in Wimbledon and Putney. They have done heroic work and have raised sufficient funds since the invasion began to deliver over 100 ambulances, medical equipment and other civilian rescue vehicles to the Ministry of Health in Lviv. On two occasions convoys also took supplies of dog food for the rescue dogs trained to search for survivors in ruined buildings. Photos of the very happy dogs and their handlers can be seen on the MLLU website https://www.medicallifelines.org.uk Now, I have volunteered to drive again and will be departing from Putney early on Sunday 7th September to join the other ambulances at Folkestone. From there the convoy will head across the Channel on the Euroshuttle (they transport us for free) before heading on to Lviv.Two years ago I did not think the humanitarian aid being delivered by MLLU would still be as vitally needed today as it was back then. Tragically it looks like their work will continue to be needed for years to come given the continuing onslaught by Russian missiles and drones. Ukraine remains a war zone and the regular air raid sirens remind any visitor that even Lviv, in the far west of the country, has been attacked.I have undertaken to raise at least an additional £7,000 to cover part of the cost of another ambulance in a future convoy and I am hoping that the spirit of generosity shown two years ago still lives on. I would be truly grateful if you feel able to offer your support, some for a second time of course, but others for the first time.The link to my funding page is as follows https://www.justgiving.com/page/jonathan-callaway-1 where you will see I have almost reached my initial target. I hope to raise far more of course and I can assure you every penny gets spent on humanitarian equipment. The costs of driving the ambulances to Ukraine, about 1,200 miles, are covered by the volunteer drivers, as are their return travel costs.Donations are UK gift aid compliant as they are routed through our partner British-Ukrainian Aid, a registered UK charity.Do please also share this as widely as possible with friends and contacts so I can raise as much as I possibly can for MLLU.With many thanks in advanceJonathan

Jonathan Callaway ● 233d20 Comments ● 1d

Random pic 26 February 2026

Boudicca, Westminster https://flic.kr/p/2eBpv7s

Michael Ixer ● 1d0 Comments ● 1d

Commons Levy

Why do we have to pay more for the commons Levy, they are not even cutting the grass as much these days. It stays long for ages, perhaps they should only charge the people who go over the commons.

Barbara Stevens ● 2d4 Comments ● 2d

Sainsbury's Werter Rd

Everybody must have run to M & S as Sainsbury's rather empty of customers lunch time today.

Barbara Stevens ● 2d3 Comments ● 2d

Poor Trump and Netanyahu are genuinely afeared

Can anybody really believe that 2 nuclear powers (US and Israel) are really scared by non-nuclear Iran?Predictions that Iran is within a "very short time" (weeks, months, or 1–2 years) of acquiring a nuclear weapon have been made consistently for over three decades, with significant, high-profile warnings dating back to the early 1990s.Of course, what Israel and the US want is dominance, not balance.

David Ainsworth ● 3d8 Comments ● 2d

Jim Rat really is a charmer...

Ratcliffe’s comments on Britain supposedly being “colonised” by immigrants were offensive and plain wrong – he couldn’t even get the population numbers right! But his complaint about the number of people receiving state support and relocating to the UK from abroad was particularly unpleasant, given that his failing companies have received millions and millions of £££s in state support whilst he chose to scuttle off to Monaco to avoid paying his fair share of tax. What a stinking hypocrite!

Richard Carter ● 13d31 Comments ● 2d

Taxi recommendation please

We need a reliable taxi service or minicab to take us to St George's hospital for a 10am appointment.Any recommendations please? My husband has difficulty walking.

Katrina Black ● 3d6 Comments ● 2d

Random pic 25 February 2026

A deconstructed astrolabe at the Secret Maps exhibition, British Museum
https://flic.kr/p/2rP7nbxAstrolabe. 1600sAstrolabes are moveable celestial maps used ta visualise the movement of stars. In the medieval period they were used for measuring time and location. and by astrologers to create horoscopes. People believed astrolabes could be used to reveal these 'secrets of the stars'.Astrolabes were status symbols owned by princes and monarchs, representing not only technological sophistication, but also cosmological and divine authority. This 17th-century Persian astrolabe includes a celestial map copied from one by French mapmaker Melchior TavernierNational Maritime Museum. Greenwich. London
[Text from exhibition label]