That takes me back . I was working in S. Africa in 1962/63 when they renamed the company to RTZ (Rio Tinto Zinc Corporation) . (When I was a lad! ) It was all over the news out there.
Although the NHS claims it's not something we have in this country I wonder if it is either common enough disease every year, or it simply isn't prevent enough for people to notice. The doctor said it was country wide but relatively few cases, I think my dad said 13 but he might have said 30 (bit of a mumbler). It also mentions on the NHS website that not everyone has symptoms and might not even know they have it. I was at the same place, it's where we were letting our dog swim, and had a really bad full torso rash for a week, plus felt a bit crap. I don't know if it was something else but who knows what other crap is in the water there (luckily my dog showed no symptoms of anything). I'm sure the doctor reported it and again it has to be common enough that they would look for it or recognise it.
Yes, just realised I was reading the report wrong: NOIDs causative agents: week 29 (week ending 21 July 2025) The numbers are per week, and 8 cases have been reported in the last 6 weeks. I imagine the majority of those will be to do with travel to Africa ( I read a report where some people went to Ethiopia and drank holy water which was highly contaminated, and all of them got it. They brought back holy water and other people drank it ...)
If a person had only minor symptoms, they'd probably just think it was a regular tummy upset and not even consult a doctor. Meanwhile they could still spread it. I don't know whether there's an answer - there's not enough resource in the NHS to see everyone who has a gippy tummy and do tests to find out exactly what's causing it.
Well, I can understand him not liking a Christian choral interpretation of a famous Supremes song but complaining that early on about noise levels is just a tad OTT.
Man carrying home his gardening tools arrested by armed police in Manchester I couldn't open your attached post by clicking on it in the usual way, @Tidemark, so here's a link to it for anyone who has missed it, above. If I were Samuel Rowe I'd also be demanding an apology from the idiot who flagged him up to the police in the first place. Probably someone at the bottom of the queue for an allotment, with time on their hands.
Thanks Tinkerton. I have to take screenshots of the Grauniad these days and so I only did the first part as I thought it said everything about the world we live in today.
There is more here. And if the stupidity of the Manchester police is in any doubt, read this… Man carrying home his gardening tools arrested by armed police in Manchester - suarasakti.com
Next time I see a bloke in black carrying an automatic rifle at the airport I'm going to ring the police and report him.... Clearly the Manchester police have been lobotomised. That or they don't have gardens. Or anything better to do.
Anyone planning to visit the USA soon? Have you heard about this? There is a new two hundred and fifty dollars fee for most visa applicants dubbed the "visa integrity fee" under the One Big Beautiful Bill, signed July 4th 2025. It targets non immigrant categories broadly, is non waivable and piles on top of other visa-related charges. While a refund is possible in theory, the reality is uncertain, delayed and bureaucratically heavy and this might severely suppress tourism from many countries already facing economic barriers. If you are planning to travel or supporting someone abroad, consider applying before, October 1, 2025 to avoid the fee. This'll be fun for anyone planning to go to FIFA's world cup next year or the Olympics in 2028.
