Fix the probem, not the blame

As a father, and as a son who grew up without a father, stories like this one sadden me, everyone loses, nobody wins. There has to be a better way.

Data Protection Act Scam

I'm a freelance IT consultant, I run my business through a limited company. As such I receive several forests worth of mail from the Inland Revenue, HM Customs and Excise and Companies House, all usually demanding information or a share of my hard earned money. This morning I received a letter regarding the Data Protection Act of 1998. It suggests that I should be registered with the Information Commissioner and that if I fail to comply with regulations I could end up in a magistrates court and be fined £5,000. The registration fee is £95.00 for which I will be issued a receipt.

Now, I have worked in the IT industry for many years and know a bit about the Data Protection Act. The letter is a scam. I had a look at the Information commissioner's website and discovered that a whole list of bogus registration agencies are operating in the UK.

So, if you are an IT freelancer in the UK operating a limited company, beware.

It'll never get better if you picket

Sam and I were on a very crowded, very slow commuter train from London Waterloo last night...

"You've got a bogey Daddy."
"No I haven't."
"Yes you have."
"Where?"
"Up your nose, a big brown one."

"Ladies and gentlemen, we would like to apologise for the late running of this train. This is due to large brown bogey up the nose of a passenger in second class."

Breaking news: The RMT are planning to picket!

Shhhhh!

This new job would be OK if someone actually said something every now and again. It’s like working in a feking morgue!

Been there, left the T shirt on the train

Had a good time at Billy's Jeans on Saturday. Met several new people and have a few new blogs to link to and to add to my blogroll over there when I get some time. I even managed not to get too pissed which is so unlike me. I did fall asleep on the train and leave my commemorative T shirt on the seat when I woke up with a start at Haslemere and had to leg it out of the door. Still, I could have ended up in Portsmouth.