Most people have probably heard by now but I'll post this anyway.



Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12709598

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13256676

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-17001548

I was shocked when I found out.

She is one of my favourite singers. I love her music. I grew up listening to the popular classics like ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ and ‘I Will Always Love You’, but it wasn’t until around 2007 where I went through a bit of a Whitney Houston phase and started to explore more of her songs and I’m really glad I did because they are great to listen to. Just tragic that as a result of her inner anguish she turned to drugs and self-destruction. Very sad indeed.

R.I.P. Whitney Houston.

Same here

It's a real shame to see yet another musical legend pass away so soon...
R.I.P Whitney Houston.

It's time to resurrect this thread to discuss recent topical issues...

What is your view of equal marriage?

Would you mind eating horse-meat (as briefly discussed in the 'Bourbons' thread)?

Are you worried that a fox will attack you?

Does the pope resigning bother you?

My tuppence worth:

I am in favour of equal marriage, very much so. I think these moments of realisation, of awakening, were long overdue. The idea that a man can only marry a woman is, first off, entirely, inherently incorrect (hugely so IMO), and second, if anything at all, very old-fashioned.
It's another step towards the acceptance of homosexuality in society.

Personally, I wouldn't mind horse meat at all. And I'm a very fussy eater.
If it tastes good, as people found out when they didn't bother complaining to Tesco or ASDA about it, then...well, look here! We've found another meat that we all enjoy eating!
I don't think it's right that we kill animals in the false belief that they're less important than us. They're not. No-one on this planet is of less importance than anyone else. But we do kill animals, because they taste good and they sell for neat profits. Basically.
That in mind...why should we care that the meat we eat is horse? It's meat all the same.

I've never been worried that a fox will attack me. Ever.

Finally, no, the resignation of a man with a - at best - "murky" past, does not bother me at all. I say we get rid of all of these religious people. And religion itself.

What is your view of equal marriage? Don't care at all. Don't know why it wasn't legal in the first place to be honest.

Would you mind eating horse-meat (as briefly discussed in the 'Bourbons' thread)? Absolutely not... Don't see why it's any different to eating cows, pigs, chickens etc...

Are you worried that a fox will attack you? Not in my part of the UK, no.

Does the pope resigning bother you? Nah, doesn't affect me in any way shape or form.

What is your view of equal marriage?

I do reserve some scepticism of equal (specifically religious) marriage simply due to the fact that many religious groups still oppose it based on their beliefs. Marriage is still a very religious symbol and therefore the respective religions do have to be listened to in some way - even if they are wrong! As an atheist though I am a firm believer that marriage, unions or whatever you want to call them should all be one and the same. It is, after all, the declaration of love between two people. As somebody who is non-religious, who cares whether that is not between a man and a woman? Unfortunately I have a feeling David Cameron is only so keen on the idea to divert attention away from his rapidly declining image.

Would you mind eating horse-meat (as briefly discussed in the 'Bourbons' thread)?

I'd prefer to eat what is stated on the packet! You have to wonder what they'll discover next. These things usually come in clusters!

Are you worried that a fox will attack you?

Absolutely terrified. Never lurk around in supermarket car parks after dark... that's when they all come out on the prowl.

Does the pope resigning bother you?

It doesn't bother me but it is a moment in history that won't come around again for possibly another few centuries (unless a precedent has been set!). The more concerning thing about the story should be that an elderly man is very ill.

Equal marriage should indeed be made law. If you were in charge of starting the laws of the land from scratch, and you witnessed same-sex and different-sex couples wanting to get married, I doubt you'd be able to find a logical reason for preventing either types of couple from being married. I know religion plays a part in it, but there are plenty of other laws in existence which certain religions may disagree with.

I don't think it's always necessary to have a legal bond and a certificate to show your love for, and commitment to, another person. However, it seems daft that certain couples are excluded from being able to have the same sort of marriage as other couples, and I'd like to have the option of marrying a partner.

I'm not sure about eating horse-meat - it seems a bit odd, but there's no harm in it in theory. The main concerns are whether the meat is unhealthy and/or of poor quality, and also the fact that horse-meat in non-horse-meat products is so widespread and has seemingly gone on unnoticed for quite some time.

I'm not worried about foxes.

The pope resigning isn't of interest to me, and I doubt that a new pope will have significantly different beliefs from the previous ones.

Imperial College are building new halls in ACTON!

Acton is so far away from the uni... the nearest tube station is North Acton, and it definitely isn't fit for purpose (look at South Kensington... though there are a lot of bratty kids going to the museums ), so it's going to be really expensive, including transport costs.
North Acton - South Kensington is at least 35 minutes on the tube, and that's not including the annoying interchange for the Circle line which takes ages. And rush hour tube is not something you want to be at.

There's a lot of disagreement from students, and rightfully so. Just search #AgainstActon on Twitter, there's a heck of a lot of tweets against the new halls.

The new halls are replacing the ones in Evelyn Gardens which are relatively close to uni and quite social. You can't replace them!

(I'm in Princes' Gardens if any of you coming to London want to meet me )

Imperial College, I am disappointed.

Here's Alex Jones, who some of us may know of, on the BBC today: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22832994

I must say that as an initial follower of what Alex says, for a while from 2010 to 2011, I feel sympathy towards his cause. He believes he's fighting the good fight, campaigning against all of the wrong in this world, and so on. To him, everything is magnified and this, an opportunity to present himself to millions of BBC viewers, is utterly massive for someone of his standing and his beliefs.

But he goes quite some way to destroying all chances of ever gaining credibility - here or at home - with this particular performance, I feel.
I mean, come on; if you're going to be a guest on a show with other guests on it, at least show them some decency and allow them to speak. Why hi-jack the thing? Where's the respect there?

I'm sad to have to agree with the majority and label Alex "mad", but that's the conclusion I have come to. Some of his beliefs hold weight, but the vast majority never have, can or will and I think he does himself and his reputation absolutely no favours whatsoever in this clip. Startling.

Come on. COME ON!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25458533

Tell me that's not abhorrently wrong. Explain to me how that's permissible. Explain to me how this is possibly a good thing in any way, shape, form or size.

Uncle 'World Policeman' Sam now has - supposedly - the 'authority' to rifle through your computer at a moment's notice and with no reason whatsoever. Come on. Tell me that's alright. You tell me you're happy with the 'powers that be' doing that to you on your next holiday to America.

People harp on about human rights - and how many more infringements to our human rights do we need before we wake the bloody hell up?

I'll stop there.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-28383460

They can't ignore us now.

Remembering those who died thirteen years ago in one of the worst human tragedies in memory. Also remembering the millions who have been slaughtered in Iraq and Afghanistan since. Rest in peace.

Thought I'd mention this since it's rather big at the moment - what are peoples views on the Scottish Independence Referendum next Thursday? I'm voting YES, although I have been a fan of Devo Max lately - shame it isn't an option on the ballot sheet.

Yes. It's logical. It's long overdue. It's right.

Well, the result today was just...horrible.

I made a joke on Facebook today that I wanted a real "Midnight Train Going Anywhere"...I actually do, to take me anywhere apart from the UK.

What are your predictions for the General Election?

http://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/homepage.html and http://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/homepage.html are good websites to keep track of the predicted seats based on opinion polls.

There's currently a 91% chance of a hung parliament so it's highly likely. Unlike 2010 though, it seems the seats will be so equally split between the Conservatives and Labour that a simple coalition with another party won't be possible to create a majority parliament of at least 326 seats.

I think the most likely outcome is the Conservatives and Labour getting almost getting the same number of seats, with the Lib Dems getting a very low number. From this, I suspect Labour would form a minority government with support from (or an official coalition with) the SNP. This wouldn't be a majority government though so there could be problems further down the line, with the possibility of another election soon after. I don't think it's likely that the Lib Dems will have enough seats to form a coalition or offer support, meaning the SNP would have to be involved, and the SNP are more likely to side with Labour than the Conservatives.

The prime minister choices are akin to this - would you rather be stung by a wasp or a bee?

The Scottish National Party (my own one) is predicted to have a whitewash up here...goodness knows what'll happen after that.