... I found some notes I had taken from way back when doing my History GCSE (more than a decade ago now), and found something I had noted down from a textbook - probably an advertisement from the time of prohibition in the United States:
'Ordinary law abiding citizens began to break the law by drinking:
" 'Come in and take a drop?' The first drop led to other drops. He dropped his position, he dropped his respectability, he dropped his fortune, he dropped his friends, he dropped finally all his prospects in this life, and his hopes for eternity; and then came the last drop on the gallows. BEWARE OF THE FIRST DROP."
Unfortunately, I don't know which textbook my teenage self noted this down from, or what the original source was, but an interesting take on the impact of alcohol, from early in the 20th century.
Thursday, September 09, 2010
Wednesday, September 08, 2010
Back to the Facebook phenomenon...
... which I still find freaky.
An excerpt from the Guardian
Eric Schmidt, Google chief executive, recently reiterated his suggestion that internet users may one day be able to change their identities in order to distance themselves from personal information shared so freely in their formative years. "I don't believe society understands what happens when everything is available, knowable and recorded by everyone all the time," he told the Wall Street Journal.
Zuckerberg takes a different tack. "You have one identity. The days of you having a different image for your work friends or co-workers and for the other people you know are probably coming to an end pretty quickly … Having two identities for yourself is an example of a lack of integrity," he was quoted as saying in David Kirkpatrick's book, The Facebook Effect.
Guardian - issues of facebook and privacy in the technological age
For me, this indicates that either Zuckerberg is behaving like a businessman and defending his business against logic, or that he really does not understand that as you get older, do different things, and interact with different people, it is perfectly normal and natural to behave slightly differently to different people, and exhibit different facets of your personality in different situations. Of course, we have one identity. But not in the way Zuckerberg either understands it, or cleverly chooses to state it. There is no lack of integrity in behaving in one way with close family members and friends, having more private and in-depth conversations, and in a more superficial (but no less polite) way with acquantices or collegues. Not everyone needs to know everything about everyone one. And only the abnormally nosy (and those who potentially lack integrity) would want to have to have that level and depth of information on so many individuals.
An excerpt from the Guardian
Eric Schmidt, Google chief executive, recently reiterated his suggestion that internet users may one day be able to change their identities in order to distance themselves from personal information shared so freely in their formative years. "I don't believe society understands what happens when everything is available, knowable and recorded by everyone all the time," he told the Wall Street Journal.
Zuckerberg takes a different tack. "You have one identity. The days of you having a different image for your work friends or co-workers and for the other people you know are probably coming to an end pretty quickly … Having two identities for yourself is an example of a lack of integrity," he was quoted as saying in David Kirkpatrick's book, The Facebook Effect.
Guardian - issues of facebook and privacy in the technological age
For me, this indicates that either Zuckerberg is behaving like a businessman and defending his business against logic, or that he really does not understand that as you get older, do different things, and interact with different people, it is perfectly normal and natural to behave slightly differently to different people, and exhibit different facets of your personality in different situations. Of course, we have one identity. But not in the way Zuckerberg either understands it, or cleverly chooses to state it. There is no lack of integrity in behaving in one way with close family members and friends, having more private and in-depth conversations, and in a more superficial (but no less polite) way with acquantices or collegues. Not everyone needs to know everything about everyone one. And only the abnormally nosy (and those who potentially lack integrity) would want to have to have that level and depth of information on so many individuals.
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Never understood taxes...
Tax code introductions
The three types of tax code
Suffix codes
One or more numbers followed by L, P, T, or Y Example: 345L, 456P or 0T The number plus ‘9’ is the amount of pay an employee can earn from you in a tax year before they pay any tax. For example a tax code 508L means the employee is entitled to £5,089 of tax-free pay in the tax year.
The letter determines how we’ll ask you to adjust the number part of the code to take account of any Budget changes that may affect the employee’s tax-free pay.
Prefix codes
Start with D or K Example D0 or K123 The code D0 means you must deduct tax at the higher rate from all pay.
The letter K means your employee has already used their tax-free allowances for the year. The number plus ‘9’ indicates how much must be added to their taxable income to make sure they pay tax on all the taxable income they have received. This may mean you end up deducting tax from their pay at higher rates than normal.
For example, K123 means £1,239 needs to be added to their taxable income to ensure they pay the right tax.
Letter only codes
BR or NT BR means you must deduct tax at the basic rate from all their pay.
NT means you mustn't deduct any tax from their pay.
Note: Only refund any tax deducted from an employee before the issue of an NT code when HMRC tells you to operate it on a cumulative basis.
DIY accounting
HMRC tax guidance for doctors
A summary from what appears to be a commercial company 'doctorstax.co.uk'
The three types of tax code
Suffix codes
One or more numbers followed by L, P, T, or Y Example: 345L, 456P or 0T The number plus ‘9’ is the amount of pay an employee can earn from you in a tax year before they pay any tax. For example a tax code 508L means the employee is entitled to £5,089 of tax-free pay in the tax year.
The letter determines how we’ll ask you to adjust the number part of the code to take account of any Budget changes that may affect the employee’s tax-free pay.
Prefix codes
Start with D or K Example D0 or K123 The code D0 means you must deduct tax at the higher rate from all pay.
The letter K means your employee has already used their tax-free allowances for the year. The number plus ‘9’ indicates how much must be added to their taxable income to make sure they pay tax on all the taxable income they have received. This may mean you end up deducting tax from their pay at higher rates than normal.
For example, K123 means £1,239 needs to be added to their taxable income to ensure they pay the right tax.
Letter only codes
BR or NT BR means you must deduct tax at the basic rate from all their pay.
NT means you mustn't deduct any tax from their pay.
Note: Only refund any tax deducted from an employee before the issue of an NT code when HMRC tells you to operate it on a cumulative basis.
DIY accounting
HMRC tax guidance for doctors
A summary from what appears to be a commercial company 'doctorstax.co.uk'
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