Earl Aelfheah

Really interesting discussion here. It's difficult to respect the views of people who support Farage, Trump, Musk etc. Why should we, when their views are deplorable. But then that exact 'deplorable' label, as we know, is counterproductive and drives people to double down / switch off to more progressive views. How do you actually help change minds? We're currently spiralling into dark places culturally and politically imo. The amount of open racism, even amongst front line politicians here and in the US is astounding to me. Feels like we're going backwards. The influence of social media and the tech billionaires / bros, is a powerful and largely malignant one. There was an enlightening (and frightening) bit of journalism by Sky this week about Musk's influence on British politics. He has a strange obsession with the UK and London in particular (as do many on the US right wing): https://news.sky.com/story/the-x-effect-how-elon-musk-is-boosting-the-british-right-13464487

Except you have no evidence for this. Calling people you disagree with lobbyists, or saying that they work for the council is just a way of trying to delegitimise what they may say, without engaging with it. It is not good faith debate. And it's ironic, that for all your dismissal of people's opinions as being those of 'lobbyists' with an agenda, you're quoting the AA as though they're an independent source - they are an actual lobby group that campaigns on behalf of motorists. You can have legitimate differences of opinion, or put different interpretations on things, but that's different to stating things that are just false. For example, saying that a street is now more dangerous for pedestrians, when pedestrian collisions and injuries have fallen, or that pollution has increased, when it has actually fallen - those things are demonstrably untrue. That is misinformation. You can have your own opinions, but you can't have your own facts. Arghh - he drew me back in 😉

They're not wrong to blame the previous government for leaving a mess. But they made stupid promises on taxation, which made it impossible for them to fix things. They should never have made those promises, but having done so it would be stupider still not to correct course imo. Breaking their manifesto pledge is the better of two bad options. More austerity / cuts to services just aren't going to wash with the public. They have to raise money in the short to medium term.

After being prosecuted, their faces often turn rouge

There is a great fireworks event every year in Battle. A bit like the Lewes one, but slightly smaller / more manageable. It’s not just you. Definitely seems to be a bit more subdued this year locally

It’s either cancel a Christian holiday or remove the flags and surrender to the wokerati in one Kent village. What a terrible bind for the reform types 🤣 https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/nov/03/beyond-ironic-reform-led-council-says-flags-must-come-down-so-christmas-lights-can-go-up

Old article, but suggest that Southwark has, at least in the last, been relatively good at pursuing rouge landlords https://www.londonpropertylicensing.co.uk/southwark-council-take-most-landlord-prosecutions-london/#:~:text=Southwark – 131 prosecutions (3 civil,data on civil financial penalties)

Totally fair Sue. My apologies, got drawn in again 🤦‍♂️ 🤣

That’s great. Yes, let’s hope it wasn’t at taxpayer’s cost

But it didn't. We have air monitoring data that shows that pollution dropped. Your 'it must have done' assumption can be (and has been) objectively tested and is objectively wrong. This is just completely untrue. You've said the LTN increased pollution. Just two examples are quoted above (see your comment on 12 Sept).

If you’re referring to the implementation of the LTN (?), the modelling done pre-implementation (commissioned by the council) forecast a reduction in pollution. The pollution monitoring post implementation has shown significant improvements in air quality. If you want to winge about your fine for another year, please try and at least keep it to this one thread so that we don’t have to keep hearing about it across the whole section.

You're quite wrong. You're actually just demonstrating your inability to ever accept an error. You've made statements about pedestrian safety, pollution and crime - All of which there are good data for and which demonstrate those claims are objectively false. You've deflected from the topic again on this thread, by first misrepresenting something I said, and then using it to re litigate all this other nonsense. And why? Because you've spent nearly a year refusing to accept any responsibility for a fine that was issued quite properly.

That is not true. You’ve actually suggested that the LTN has made pollution worse more than once. But in a couple of examples I can be bothered to find, you said: and... The air monitoring data is clear that pollution has massively improved. So this is simply not true. On road danger at the junction, you did say the junction was more dangerous now for pedestrians than it was previously: But that's not true either. The data shows the opposite and this was pointed out to you. When challenged and provided with the data on both these claims (and others you've made) demonstrating that they are objectively wrong, you've doubled down or deflected. And this is what you're doing again. The fact is that nearly a year ago you got a fine after being caught driving in a bus lane (or 'across a bus lane' if you prefer). This is easily avoidable. Yes it sucks. But you're just incapable of admitting error. It's always double down, deflect, claim conspiracy. It's so, so boring.

@Rockets If you want me to go back and dig out all the false and completely unevidenced statements you’ve made I can, but it’s very boring. Perhaps easier would be to simply ask where you’ve ever accepted a ‘mistake’. Just once? This is not true. Again, you’ve fallen for Rockets kicking up dust. Southwark publish figures for successful appeals annually. The admin error you’re referring to happened this year and is not included in the most recently published figures.

I’m not interested in re litigating this here. But this is not all you said on crime. And what about your claims about pollution?

Yes, it was clearly to do with the Dulwich LTN. It was the wider initiative that the LTN scheme was part of. The consultation (Southwark's largest ever) showed majority support for the aims set out under the ‘Streets for People’ strategy, which included things like improving road safety, reducing the amount of cut-through traffic etc. The LTN was designed to, and did, contribute to meeting those aims. You seem to think the consultations took the form of a single survey which amounted to a yes/no referendum. It is more complicated and has been discussed to death. And again: “The point is, and it's demonstrated again on this thread, that rather than ever admit an error, you double down or deflect. My one loosely worded comment - quickly clarified, is literally all you've got, and you have referenced it repeatedly, any time you're challenged on a matter of fact and don't want to admit having made a ‘mistake’. It's a bit sad.”

Nope. Read before you respond. He’s never going to marry you. Yes, it did go to appeal. The human judged that he was driving in the bus lane. You can actually read their response above! Again, they waive thousands, as previously pointed out. People defending Rocks refer to them as TF Hell on this thread, but sure, they’re both cool and awful depending on the point you want to make. I have not of course ‘celebrated each and every fine’, or any fine. But after almost a year of Rocks winging and spinning up conspiracy theories I am certainly not joining his embarrassing pity party.

This is pretty desperate. I doubt anyone cares, but as you keep relentlessly referring back to it... I said in June, in reference to two separate schemes it was being claimed were unpopular, that: When you asked what I meant, I clarified: Are you still disputing the Sydenham Hill one too? Re. the LTN, there were several different consultation exercises that relate to it (from memory around 4 or 5 at least), so yes, probably I should have been more specific in my original comment. But it was not remotely 'aggressive' and it was not untrue - it arguably lacked detail, which I provided when asked for clarification. It's worth noting that the 'streets for people' consultation was Southwark's largest ever consultation. It was the wider initiative that the LTN scheme was part of, and its aims (supported by a majority) were largely met. This is very different to making a stream of demonstrably unevidenced, and objectively false statements, which are not clarified or corrected when challenged. There are frankly too many to go through, but from the top of my head, examples include you stating that: The Dulwich filter increased crime, when crime has been broadly flat since 2018, and trended down against the London average There is increased road danger, when data shows a reduction in collisions and serious injuries. That there is increased pollution across the area, when local air quality monitoring demonstrates there to have been significant falls. The point is, and it's demonstrated again on this thread, that rather than ever admit an error, you double down or deflect. My one loosely worded comment - quickly clarified, is literally all you've got, and you have referenced it repeatedly, any time you're challenged on a matter of fact and don't want to admit having made a ‘mistake’. It's a bit sad. When you drive along, or 'cut across', an active bus lane, you are liable to be fined. Most people would take that on the chin, perhaps, understandably feel a bit annoyed about it. But they would accept some responsibility and move on, at least if they're an adult. Again, you search out dubious sources of information and / or cherry pick anything you can find online to convince yourself you're not at fault. It's really very, very childish and extremely boring. The bus lane is clearly marked. You got caught breaking the rules. There's no conspiracy. It's a fair cop. Almost a year later, it might just be time to put on your big boy pants and accept it. You're not a freedom fighter, sticking it to the man. You're just relentlessly moaning about getting caught out on a local internet forum.

This claim doesn't get any truer the more you repeat it. I said that in the "Dulwich Review Consultation Report (August 2021) 55 per cent supported the aims set out in its ‘Streets for People’ initiative". That's not aggressive. It's a fact. You repeatedly misrepresent that comment when challenged on your numerous, objectively false and misleading claims... a little ironic. Cut through all the usual nonsense and you're just relentlessly moaning about getting fined from being in a bus lane when you shouldn't have been, whether that's driving in it (as the appeal letter says), or driving across it, as you say. Neither change the fact that you were correctly issued with a fine and you've been throwing a very long, slow, public tantrum about it over many months now.

I don’t really care how long he was in the bus lane. There is no reason to be in it. Yes, I’ll admit I’m a little skeptical of Rockets claims on this forum as he has repeatedly made statements that are objectively untrue in the past; Often doubling down or deflecting when caught out. He also spent a long time ducking the question of whether he’d actually been fined (you implied the suggestion was outrageous / a personal attack at the time). It is not easy to ‘clip’ the bus lane making that turn - not without clipping the curb, and the appeal notification he posted says that he was driving along the bus lane - is that not what happened? So use your own judgment / form your own opinion. But I actually think it’s irrelevant. If you drive across a clearly marked bus lane, there is a good chance you’ll be fined. Just drive with more care. And if you have made an error, maybe chalk it down to experience / take it on the chin. No one, not even Rockets is suggesting that the fine was issued in error, or that he didn’t break the rules, or that the rules aren’t clear. So it really comes down to being annoyed. Which is fine, but it was a year ago! We’ve heard about it repeatedly across multiple threads. That’s relentless.

You think that we should just drive in the bus lanes? And then complain that it's 'unfair' if you get fined? Sounds like childish entitlement to me.

According to the appeal outcome you shared, they upheld your fine on the grounds that: “…you must not enter the bus lane too soon and drive along it before reaching the turning.” [my emphasis in bold] Is that not what happened then? Because it certainly suggests you were caught driving in a bus lane 🤔 No one would disagree with this. If you're fined incorrectly, you should absolutely challenge it. Conversely, where an individual drives in a clearly marked bus lane and gets fined accordingly, they should probably take it on the chin.

You get caught driving in a bus lane you shouldn't have been in, spend a year moaning about it across multiple threads, and if anyone suggests it’s turned into whiny nonsense and is boring af they must secretly work for the council. Got it 🤣🤣

What’s a bit off? You got a fine for driving in a bus lane, when you shouldn’t have been driving in a bus lane. Suck it up. What is a bit off, is winging about it across multiple threads for close to a year.

Were you unaware that driving in the bus lane might result in a fine? I doubt it. Were you unaware that you were in the bus lane? Again, seems unlikely. Do you think that the use of FOI requests to get hold of confidential internal guidance to staff dealing with the bulk processing of appeals, in order to work out where you may be able to get away with breaking the rules, suggests someone being caught out just trying to follow the rules? No. You’re not fighting the good fight, you’re throwing a very public slow motion tantrum because you got a fine.