wibble Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 In years gone by past generations have created life-changing infrastructure. Power grids, railway systems, road networks, mains water, canals, telecommunications, concorde etc. etc. In the USA they had projects like the Hoover Dam and the Space program etc. In Australia they had the Snowy Mountains Scheme etc. We have just seen the end of the wealthiest era in history and looking back I can't think of a single "amazing" or "invaluable" infrastructure project that any of our governments (Tory or Labour) have delivered. The assets have been sold and the money has been pished up against the wall. Can anyone think of anything other than the Millenium Dome and the Falkirk Wheel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davemclaren Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 In years gone by past generations have created life-changing infrastructure. Power grids, railway systems, road networks, mains water, canals, telecommunications, concorde etc. etc. In the USA they had projects like the Hoover Dam and the Space program etc. In Australia they had the Snowy Mountains Scheme etc. We have just seen the end of the wealthiest era in history and looking back I can't think of a single "amazing" or "invaluable" infrastructure project that any of our governments (Tory or Labour) have delivered. The assets have been sold and the money has been pished up against the wall. Can anyone think of anything other than the Millenium Dome and the Falkirk Wheel? Internet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoJack Horseman Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 War and Hate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wibble Posted July 10, 2010 Author Share Posted July 10, 2010 Internet. Good call Dave. Which government was involved? Oh yeah ... none of them. They all wanted it banned .... and still want to censor the crap out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoJack Horseman Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Good call Dave. Which government was involved? Oh yeah ... none of them. They all wanted it banned .... and still want to censor the crap out of it. To be fair, the internet was originally created in the 60s, firstly by MIT and then by the American Military. The World Wide Web we know and love today kicked off around 1992. 18 Years ago. Even then I wouldn't say that's our generation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wibble Posted July 10, 2010 Author Share Posted July 10, 2010 To be fair, the internet was originally created in the 60s, firstly by MIT and then by the American Military. The World Wide Web we know and love today kicked off around 1992. 18 Years ago. Even then I wouldn't say that's our generation. I think it is an our generation thing, so Dave is right. But it really has little to do with any government. Most of the work was done by universities and the like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topcat Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Good call Dave. Which government was involved? Oh yeah ... none of them. They all wanted it banned .... and still want to censor the crap out of it. Actually the United states Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency had a big part to play in the development of the technology However that was almost 40 years ago so it might not be our generation The world wide web however (1990) is ours Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 The saddest thing possible, a generation of children who scientists and experts believe will have a high probability of dying before their parents. This in most part due to the internet and video games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wibble Posted July 10, 2010 Author Share Posted July 10, 2010 What I was looking for was a few examples of where all the trillions of pound of tax has gone? Some nice big tangible assets that are "owned by the people". A fleet of super-trains? A public transport system the envy of the world? A super-efficient power generation capability supplying cheap clean power to consumers and business? a public health system to be proud of?, a public education system that makes you think the furure of your kids is fantastic? Come on. Surely these governments in the last 30 yrs created something with the 50% of your cash that they took? At least we must all have a solid pension to look forward to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoJack Horseman Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 What I was looking for was a few examples of where all the trillions of pound of tax has gone? Some nice big tangible assets that are "owned by the people". A fleet of super-trains? A public transport system the envy of the world? A super-efficient power generation capability supplying cheap clean power to consumers and business? a public health system to be proud of?, a public education system that makes you think the furure of your kids is fantastic? Come on. Surely these governments in the last 30 yrs created something with the 50% of your cash that they took? At least we must all have a solid pension to look forward to? Well then I refer back to my original comment. Death and destruction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cade Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 All this current generation has created is a huge number of overpaid, spoilt bassas. The baby boomers and those immediately after them have had it all and now there is nothing left for us. You can't buy a house coz the baby boomers have bought them all to rent or bought them cheap, done them up and sold them at huge profit, denying younger people the chance to buy their first home. Everyone is now a landlord or property developer and the Govt response is to throw up "affordable" horrible, manky lego flats that will only last 15 years and are totally overpriced for what they offer the first time buyer. You can't get a pension anymore coz the baby boomers all retired at 55 and have emptied the pots. The fact that THEIR parents are also withdrawing pensions at the same time and very possibly THEIR parents too means that there are 3 generations taking pensions and only one generation working to replenish the pots. We will not get pensions worth a squirt of pish. The entire idea of pensions is daft. You work 35-40 years then take a permanent holiday for another 50 or so years after that. It's unsustainable, as we have seen. The system worked fine when you retred at 60 then died at 70. The earlier folk retire, and the longer folk live, the less money is left for us lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EIEIO Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 In years gone by past generations have created life-changing infrastructure. Power grids, railway systems, road networks, mains water, canals, telecommunications, concorde etc. etc. In the USA they had projects like the Hoover Dam and the Space program etc. In Australia they had the Snowy Mountains Scheme etc. We have just seen the end of the wealthiest era in history and looking back I can't think of a single "amazing" or "invaluable" infrastructure project that any of our governments (Tory or Labour) have delivered. The assets have been sold and the money has been pished up against the wall. Can anyone think of anything other than the Millenium Dome and the Falkirk Wheel? Quite impressed with the Channel Tunnel which I used for the first time in the last fortnight - 35 minute journey no worries about sea sickness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miller Jambo 60 Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 War and Hate. Bin skinney Laden still think the tools dead. Doug. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosanostra Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 There's been absolutely huge advances in certain surgical procedures and medical diagnostics over the last 10 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ash Cloud Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 In years gone by past generations have created life-changing infrastructure. Power grids, railway systems, road networks, mains water, canals, telecommunications, concorde etc. etc. In the USA they had projects like the Hoover Dam and the Space program etc. In Australia they had the Snowy Mountains Scheme etc. We have just seen the end of the wealthiest era in history and looking back I can't think of a single "amazing" or "invaluable" infrastructure project that any of our governments (Tory or Labour) have delivered. The assets have been sold and the money has been pished up against the wall. Can anyone think of anything other than the Millenium Dome and the Falkirk Wheel? Edinburgh trams taking you to work in 2011 or was it 2012 no wait 2013 definately i think! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dobmisterdobster Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Edinburgh trams taking you to work in 2011 or was it 2012 no wait 2013 definately i think! The trams are a big waste of money. They only replace a single bus route and they take up a lot of space on the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamboinglasgow Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 I do think that the last 100 years has seen such incredible advances in a relatively short time which should be applauded, but I also think that things are changing at an incredible rate in the last 20 years. Ok so we dont have the massive work projects of previous generations, but in terms of technology and science we have developed so much in understanding and human capability. In the last 20 years we have mapped the human genome, cloned the first mammal and that is only a small level. Look at technology, take out the iphone and look at all it does, first of all it stores thousands of songs and video, sound has been recorded since Edison, but up until even 5 years most people required to have a huge number of discs (be it vinal, tape, CD or even mini-disc) to listen to anything near the same as one small rectangle. Video is a newer invention but even that required many storage tapes to get anything near to what we had. It has a phone in it, something that has come about from 20-30 years of development from phones attached to big boxes you had to lug around, to phones the size of bricks, all the way down to what they are now. It has GPS on it, which means that wherever you are in the world, you will know your exact location due to satellites in the sky. It has touch screen, where you just press it and it does different things. And also the internet through wi-fi, we thought lap-tops were pretty great but this is just bigger then a credit card and you can access the internet through wi-fi when before we had cables. It may sound odd, but an iphone is a great demonstrater of what humans have done in the last 100 years and where we could go onto. I am fascinated by human progress, new technology and science that has been discovered. If people want to ask a great project of our generation, how about the CERN Large Hydron Collider. It has already brought so much new technology and science and that was before it was even switch on (as probably already known, the World Wide Web came from Cern as they found a way to share the information better among the different laboratories around Europe.) What they discover from when it is fully up to speed could have a huge affect on so much. And as mentioned earlier, if anyone wants an example of government spending money to improve the future they should just look at DARPA. The things DARPA are doing are amazing, they created the competition to create a fully unmanned car that could travel over a 300 mile obstacle course including in a town with other vehicles. The implications of a project like that are fantastic. They also have created a exoskeleton for soldiers to carry more then their body weight without a sweat. Was reading an article in new scientist last week about one of their latest projects which is a flying submarine (or a plane that can go underwater.) Then there is space. I think we are at the start of a great period for space travel. Obama got a lot of criticism for cancelling the moon mission, but what he has suggested instead makes great sense, NASA will use commerical companies to build rockets to take to the ISS and other projects. Point of this is that the commerical space sector will grow and be able to develop faster then some of NASA's projects. Nasa will take the role of focusing on R&D so they will try to find the technology that will allow us to go further and faster for longer. And watch out for the Chinese, their space program is developing quite quickly. I think our generation is doing a lot, but a lot is behind the scenes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Red Mist Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 You've (probably) detected structure out-with our Universe. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100310162829.htm Also, give CERN a few more years to sort their data out and we'll reap the benefits. Your generation haven't really done anything spectacular, but the little advances in technology and science etc that's lead us to this point, where we can have organisations like CERN etc is probably what you've all done best - quietly getting on with it. It'll be up to the next generation and beyond to make good use of this foundation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hound Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Humans only work well in times of war. We need another war so we build something great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reaths17 Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 naebodies mentioned the parlimentary build at hollyrood..........................and no wonder. ?40m going on ?500m for a huge eyesore built for a huge pile of manure of no relevance execpt the cost of paying for a buffering layer between us and the real controlling pile of manure. gotta be one of the biggest wastes in history and still costing us, paying them useless ******* makes the unused/possibly never used, tram lines look like a master stroke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cambo_Jambo Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 What I was looking for was a few examples of where all the trillions of pound of tax has gone? Some nice big tangible assets that are "owned by the people". A fleet of super-trains? A public transport system the envy of the world? A super-efficient power generation capability supplying cheap clean power to consumers and business? a public health system to be proud of?, a public education system that makes you think the furure of your kids is fantastic? Come on. Surely these governments in the last 30 yrs created something with the 50% of your cash that they took? At least we must all have a solid pension to look forward to? 3 letters that act like the elephant in the room of British public spending. N H S. Costs spiralling out of control, nobody got a clue how to streamline and improve performance. Now employing more staff than the Russian Army st it's peak, that is where mney is going. Thats the money of your generation disapeared. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Red Mist Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Humans only work well in times of war. We need another war so we build something great. My mate said this to me a few weeks ago - and I thought he was totally batshit until he stated why. It sort of makes sense in a sad way, but I hate to admit it. On the other hand, it would be nice if we could fund science, technology and engineering at wartime levels without actually having to do any fighting. I've been told that the 'War on Terror' could have paid for totally new rocket technology at NASA and around 60 manned trips to Mars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamboinglasgow Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 My mate said this to me a few weeks ago - and I thought he was totally batshit until he stated why. It sort of makes sense in a sad way, but I hate to admit it. On the other hand, it would be nice if we could fund science, technology and engineering at wartime levels without actually having to do any fighting. I've been told that the 'War on Terror' could have paid for totally new rocket technology at NASA and around 60 manned trips to Mars. I know what you mean, but the military brings on so much technology. But it needs to be done the right way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Red Mist Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 I know what you mean, but the military brings on so much technology. But it needs to be done the right way. Yeah I agree. I just think it's a bit sad that it has to be that way. That war drives advancement, as opposed to advancement happening simply for the sake of advancement is a bit sad, if you get me. That doesn't really make any sense tbh. I know what I'm trying to say though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Previous generations probably had the exact same rant as the OP. As JiG says, it's scary how much the world has 'advanced' over the space of a few decades. By 2050 Britain will probably be unrecognisable from now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acey Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 The saddest thing possible, a generation of children who scientists and experts believe will have a high probability of dying before their parents. This in most part due to the internet and video games. Shocking stuff, Bob. What's your source? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Shocking stuff, Bob. What's your source? No particular source but has been on numerous news and talk shows. Generally starts with health related issues particularly obesity in children due to lack of exercise. Some of the discussion centres around the amount of time spent on TV and internet, and video games. One of the suggestions was that a time of two hours per day should be the maximum for such activities, but in fact five hours a day is seen as a more accurate average. I guess that the suggestion that they will be outlived by their parents is based on their assessments of health risks attributable and based on childhood experiences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Red Mist Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 No particular source but has been on numerous news and talk shows. Generally starts with health related issues particularly obesity in children due to lack of exercise. Some of the discussion centres around the amount of time spent on TV and internet, and video games. One of the suggestions was that a time of two hours per day should be the maximum for such activities, but in fact five hours a day is seen as a more accurate average. I guess that the suggestion that they will be outlived by their parents is based on their assessments of health risks attributable and based on childhood experiences. http://www.thefamilygp.com/childhood-obesity-and-lack-of-activity.htm Counter-intuitive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2004/may/27/health.foodanddrink I don't have much success with links but here is one of many Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big D Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 You are correct Bob. It is difficult to quantify, but my mum used to be an athletics coach and at 60 she was still outrunning 16 year olds. I'm still out cycling 20 year olds at 48. Stamina is permanent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamboinglasgow Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Previous generations probably had the exact same rant as the OP. As JiG says, it's scary how much the world has 'advanced' over the space of a few decades. By 2050 Britain will probably be unrecognisable from now. Thats the thing, think of air travel, since the invention of the jet airliner, think of how that has changed our mobility. It has opened up fast travel to the masses. Think of the revloution that is currently happening in social networking and the internet. In just ten years we have gone from having to go around every shop to find a deal, to finding it all quickly at home to buying it all over the internet. Even something simple as having your friends all in a single place (on a website) which you can quickly pass on information to has great implications. I am excited by the future, always am. There are some fantastic things being developed at the moment and possibilties that could be reached in the near future (or even within the next 100 years which when you consider the length of human history is tiny.) So for example there are scientists who has discovered how to bend light around objects thus rendering them invisible, sure its at a tiny molecular level at the moment but it always starts small. Was reading an article recently about the next stage of touch screen technology where it responds to you and means you can feel what is supposed to be felt, all through the screen. That may still be a few years off but it is exciting. Robot technology is still in its infancy and can really change so much of our lives, everyday there is a new robot that can do so much. Computers are changing a lot and there is talk of so much and technology that demonstrates certain theories work for which much more powerful machines can be built. One thing that I have heard some very top scientists predict within the next 50 years is replicators. If you have ever seen Star Trek you will know what I mean, basiaclly it is a shape that can create anything you want (as long as it knows how) there and then. So you want an apple for example, it will create an apple, your want a new mobile phone it will create that too. If I was the government, I would look to invest in the science sector, so that Britain can get a head in reseach and development and thus give the country a technological edge (see Japan) and also create certain competitions which have a cash reward at the end for the team that achieves it first, just like the X prize. So you create a challenge (say for example to create a commercial rocket which can go to the moon, collect a sample and return the sample and be 40% re-usable.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wibble Posted July 10, 2010 Author Share Posted July 10, 2010 Some good examples of great creations and great changes, but my rant was really about what have our government built for us to change our lives, or even to replace the crumbling infrastructure of yesteryear? CERN would be government funded, but the iPhone wasn't. My main point is that the current system of government costs you more than it cost any previous generation. You are taxed 3 times on every penny you earn and yet the money raised hasn't produced a thing. The NHS is a fekking disgrace, the schools are chronically underfunded, all the state owned assets have been flogged off. Hard times are upon us again and it's very sad to say, but the richest generation in history have left **** all behind as a legacy for future generations. Previous generations left behind a network of canals, a network of railways, a power grid, sewer systems etc. etc. Most of the great infrastructure in the UK came from before 1970. No large infrastructure projects have been undertaken and that is a complete fekkin disgrace. Most of the things people point to are private enterprise related. The system pf government is crap. All the money is spent on a shedload of hot air and these fat twats creating jobs for themselves. /RANT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tazio Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Sat Nav if you want an example of government technology moving into the public domain. Every time you use it to find an address you are mimicking a cruise missile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bert Le Clos Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 3 letters that act like the elephant in the room of British public spending. N H S. Costs spiralling out of control, nobody got a clue how to streamline and improve performance. Now employing more staff than the Russian Army st it's peak, that is where mney is going. Thats the money of your generation disapeared. Regardless of how much money the NHS costs, I think it is a good thing. It's one of the few things Britain can be proud of, to offer medical treatment to every citizen free of charge. I'm sure your opinion of it would change were you to find yourself unemployed, which these days is not unlikely for a lot of people. Bus lanes though, there is an invention our generation cannot be proud of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Kilpatrick Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Structured financial products, such as Collateralised Debt Obligations. This allowed us to maintain a financial lifestyle we never earned. Good work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PsychocAndy Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 A new class of people in the class system. The non-working class. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ulysses Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 Every time you use it to find an address you are mimicking a cruise missile. But without so much noise, or mess, or body parts, or rebuilding costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PsychocAndy Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 But without so much noise, or mess, or body parts, or rebuilding costs. Have you seen some of the spanners that drive about thinking that SatNav is always right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tazio Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 But without so much noise, or mess, or body parts, or rebuilding costs. You've never been in a car with me have you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ulysses Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 Have you seen some of the spanners that drive about thinking that SatNav is always right? You've never been in a car with me have you? Have you seen what cruise missiles can do? Jaysus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peebo Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 One thing the current generation in the Western World has managed to do is, it seems, end full-scale wars (or the threat thereof) on our own doorstep... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamboJay Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 How about Moore's Law? or does that transend one generation The computing ability to put microprocessing into the most basic appliances has changed, and will change things further than most folk appreciate. The way we communicate via mobile technology is something that previous generations would only gawp at! However it is no big, single project like the Hoover Dam project that FDR instigated that changed the lives of virtually half a country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boomstick Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 Humans only work well in times of war. We need another war so we build something great. This is the dumbest post I've ever read. We are at war. Have been for coming on ten years. People say "It's like 1984" in an ironic way to make themselves seem smart in front of their friends. We are living in an Orwellian world. It's sad that people don't realise this. We are at war, we have created nothing. Do everyone a favour and kill yourself. (not Hound, everyone.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Red Mist Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 It's not a stupid post, he's got a point. He'll be meaning a world war. Dex, why do you keep changing the board? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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