laws

Portugal

2001 decriminalised the possession of cannabis, heroin and other narcotics. the idea was the treat addiction as a crises of public health. so in port

Singapore

Chewing Gum Ban: In Singapore, the sale and importation of chewing gum are prohibited. This law was enacted to maintain cleanliness in public spaces and prevent gum-related litter and vandalism. However, there are exceptions for therapeutic gum with medicinal benefits.

Netherlands

Bicycles

since 1994 in a collison between car and cyclist, motorists are assumed to be at fault 

Belgium

Landlords who do not meet energy efficiency standards are not allowed to raise prices of rent

It's worth noting that rent control measures do exist in Belgium, particularly in certain regions or municipalities, which can limit the extent to which landlords can increase rent prices. These measures are generally implemented to protect tenants from excessive rent hikes and ensure affordable housing.

Finland

Eliminate homelessness by providing housing to those who need it 

cost less to the UK + Australia 

Scotland

"right to roam" law, which allows people to access most land and inland water for activities such as walking, cycling, and wild camping. This law provides individuals with the freedom to explore and enjoy the country's landscapes.

Spain

While not a specific law, the concept of siestas in Spain is deeply ingrained in the country's culture. Many businesses, especially in smaller towns, close down for a few hours in the afternoon for a siesta—a traditional break or naptime.

Sweden

Similar to siestas, Sweden has a cultural practice called "fika." It involves taking a coffee break with pastries or snacks and is considered an important part of Swedish social life. Many workplaces have designated fika breaks.

Germany

In Germany, it is illegal to leave a pet alone in a car, even for a short period. This law is in place to prevent animals from suffering in extreme temperatures inside vehicles.

UK's Education

 94% of pupils in Britain are educated at state schools and 83% of those who take A-levels are as well

in 2013, 57-61% of state school pupils were admitted to oxford or cambridge 

in 2022 - 68% of pupils admitted to oxford were from state school

best state schools are in London:

School Borough

Queen Elizabeth’s School Barnet

Wilson’s School Sutton

Henrietta Barnett School Barnet

Tiffin Girls’ School Kingston upon Thames

St Olave’s and St Saviour’s Grammar School Bromley

Tiffin School Kingston upon Thames

Sutton Grammar for Boys Sutton

Nonsuch High School for Girls Sutton

The Latymer School Enfield

Holland Park School Kensington and Chelsea

China's coastal chaos

 ports of Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Shanghai are at the heart of global supply chains

China’s position in the western Pacific also exposes its southern and eastern coasts to about a dozen typhoons a year

The number of people dying from floods has fallen, thanks to better emergency warnings and faster evacuation. But the economic damage from floods is increasing, and few people are well prepared.

Coastal land, though, is China’s most valuable. Officials would prefer to continue building on it. Giant construction projects are ongoing all along the coastline. In Shantou, a port city on the south coast known for its fierce typhoons, a 22,000-seat stadium was recently completed beside the sea. It is surrounded by construction sites which will become industrial parks and residential buildings.

Officials are betting on sea walls to protect such assets. 

Scotland & the gender recognition act

 Very different to the rest of the UK 

You can change your sex without surgery / long waiting period 

huge step for trans and lgbtq+ community in scotland 

Self ID law

problem are male rapist who identify as women and are now moving to female prisons 

also means that as a boy (age 16) you could have a sex change and ask to be placed in a girls school or dorm 

brighton wind farms

 Rampion wind farms apparently booming with tourism 

A lot of engineers especially from China

currently 116 wind turbines 

but they want to add 90 more (taller ones) 

UK Leisure Centres

 Swindon Oasis Leisure Centre 

1970s - 1980s 

Indoor Leisure Centres are now protected by Historic England 

Wave machines and slides and many sell alcohol 

Ships and Castles in Cornwall - set to close

Center Parcs Dome, Center Parcs Architects, Sherwood, 1987

South Africa

Run by the ANC which has governed SA since 1994, and is the ruling party which continues to deliver presidents, although the national vote has dropped significantly over the last decade due to political corruption within the government, most recently Zuma 

Drifting into Sino-Russian by choice - Ukraine has draw attention to it's non-alignment, even when Russia annexed Crimea, SA did not condemn the Russians during the UN General Assembly 

in 2010 SA became the S in BRICS and it's the smallest economy

Cyril Ramaphosa now president, became the first head of state to receive a private tour of the white house in Sept 2022, and also the first head of state to have a state visit in UK under King Charles 3rd 

AGOA until 2025, might get an extension , it promotes economic growth through good governance and free markets, specifically to sub-saharan Africa Countries 

and it provides sub-saharan African countries with duty-free access to US market for around 5,000 products 

Why does the SA have preferential trade terms through AGOA when it is a de facto supporter of a wartime enemy 

so much oil and gas has been exported from sub-saharan countries in 2022 

2021 was 1.5 bn usd and 2022 was 4.5 bn usd, Nigeria was the main exported

SA is not the sub-saharan African power it was in 2000 

- there are rolling blackouts

taps are regularly dry 

organised crime is rampant 

its also considered a Russian sympathiser 

Ramaphosa and the sofa saga, his farm (which he doesn't own) contained half a million usd inside a sofa and it went missing and instead of reporting the missing money to the police he only reported it to his security measure, he said the money was there for the sale of a buffalo to a Sudanese business man 

Ramaphosa was Nelson's right-hand man and helped draft the constituition 

John Fante & BEE notes on California

‘The old folk from Indiana and Iowa and Illinois, from Boston and Kansas City and Des Moines, they sold their homes and their stores, and they came here by train and by automobile to the land of sunshine, to die in the sun, with just enough money to live until the sun killed them, tore themselves out by the roots in their last days, deserted the smug prosperity of Kansas City and Chicago and Peoria to find a place in the sun. And when they got here they found that other and greater thieves had already taken possession, that even the sun belonged to the others; Smith and Jones and Parker, druggist, banker, baker, dust of Chicago and Cincinnati and Cleveland on their shoes, doomed to die in the sun, a few dollars in the bank, enough to subscribe to the Los Angeles Times, enough to keep alive the illusion that this was paradise, that their little papier-mâché homes were castles.’ 
–John Fante, Ask The Dust

‘I come to a red light, tempted to go through it, then stop once I see a billboard sign that I don’t remember seeing and I look up at it. All it says is ‘Disappear Here’ and even though it’s probably an ad for some resort, it still freaks me out a little and I step on the gas really hard and the car screeches as I leave the light.’ 
–Bret Easton Ellis, Less Than Zero

What’s ‘real’ anyway?

This isn’t an observation of reality, but a regard to unreality. What’s real and unreal anyway? I wrote a dissertation on the style of documentation being the most convincing form of deceit. But I concluded that reality is immobile, unreachable, and too theoretical to care about. I also concluded that honest intention was the closest thing to being quote on quote real.