Plus: Facial recognition arrests at Notting Hill Carnival, TfL tries to convince people to use headphones, and the London cricket team bought by a family with 900 crocodiles.
My theory on the phone/music thing is there are both more sounds to listen to, and the way that those sounds are encountered. Eg, in the old days you'd plug your headphones into your iPod, press play and essentially ignore your iPod for a while.
On phones, however, we're constantly encountering new videos on social feeds, voice notes etc – and so if you're scrolling without headphones and encounter something you want to watch, then you're faced with faffing around mid-journey pulling out headphones for a thirty second clip/one song/etc, or just pressing play and listening on the speaker that's right there.
People have forgotten a lot of what is acceptable on public transport in general. The number of times I've been hit by someone's backpack on a full tube has gone up drastically in recent years.
There used to be signs to take backpacks in your hand or leave them on the floor, these have disappeared in the last years and now a number of people just don't "get it".
One can only hope that TFL puts signs up for everything that is not acceptable, including phones/tablets on speaker. Maybe people will feel a bit more empowered to ask the infringers to stop.
My daughter lived for a while in Freetown, Sierra Leone. She decided that while people in Britain tend to think in terms of a right to silence (which is infringed by the making of noise), there people thought in terms of a right to make noise (which the imposition of quiet would infringe).
Last time I asked someone in the quiet carriage on SW Trains to stop talking loudly on her phone, not only did she act as if I was infringing her rights, the (quiet) people around her did too.
Re: headphone-less noise in public: I've always seen this blamed on the pandemic and the general breakdown of social norms it caused. Something that _feels_ correct but one I'd love to see backed up by reporting.
Unfortunately it seems to be another thing coming from the pandemic. Since people have returned to public transport after a couple of years of being by themselves, a fair few have changed attitudes in how they act in public and often dont even notice they're being a pain.
If asked, almost all the time they do have headphones or earphones but they simply havent thought about connecting them up instead preferring the easier option that they were used to when at home alone.
Same with aggression being worse since the pandemic etc.
I’ve been out today mourning the loss of so much of Woolwich Common. It’s owned by the MoD who completely neglect their responsibilities for this unique space in urban London and leave clearing up the litter, mess and discarded tents, as well as fly tipping to The Friends of Woolwich Common.
Pretty much every wildfire is started either by vandalism or by discarded cigarettes, BBQs or glass bottles. In addition to this, illegal camping and groups of men seeking out almost hidden spots at the end of desire lines for drinking sessions are the guilty ones.
This Common has always been an almost wild space especially on its southern section and its home to over 300 plants in a wide diversity of habitats.
It is no coincidence that every time there is a fire, it’s the school summer holidays or Bank Holiday.
It’s surely not beyond the wit of those who are responsible for places at risk of fire to patrol the spaces and be a visible presence to those who have malign intent as well as ensuring that litter and BBQs, tents and cigarettes are swiftly removed and the culprits caught and punished.
When I asked someone to use headphones he likened me speaking with him in public to him punching me in public. And the TfL staff member stood there did nothing. So I'm not sure they're going to do much.
As a regular train user in and around London, I've seen both young and old being guilty of loud music and video clips on phone speakers. I get the argument that trains are a public space but I still think there should be some consideration for fellow passengers - headphones are not expensive and not hard to buy. Regardless of the offender's age, a little more self-awareness would go an awful long way!
My headphone discourse (i left it in r/london many times) is that the relationship with media has changed a lot. It is not only that wireless headphones need charging (I grasp my Xperia 1 V with love and hope it lasts many years with its headphone jack and microsd slot) but listening without headphones, in general, has become normalised, with ipads being the greatest offenders of these. But also 20 years ago the relationship with media was music you owned or you wanted, and paid attention to, in a fairly limited storage, and now it's all content that need to be public and shared in general.
I find the relationship with society in general (where main character syndrome seems to be everywhere) an interesting parallel with the changes in social media in internet: previously you used forums, chats and similar with the end of meeting these people in real life, and that does not happen anymore.
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Not much to say on other topics, maybe on the wildfires one: I fear the bbqs on these warm days and I call for their ban as they are in Spain.
My theory on the phone/music thing is there are both more sounds to listen to, and the way that those sounds are encountered. Eg, in the old days you'd plug your headphones into your iPod, press play and essentially ignore your iPod for a while.
On phones, however, we're constantly encountering new videos on social feeds, voice notes etc – and so if you're scrolling without headphones and encounter something you want to watch, then you're faced with faffing around mid-journey pulling out headphones for a thirty second clip/one song/etc, or just pressing play and listening on the speaker that's right there.
People have forgotten a lot of what is acceptable on public transport in general. The number of times I've been hit by someone's backpack on a full tube has gone up drastically in recent years.
There used to be signs to take backpacks in your hand or leave them on the floor, these have disappeared in the last years and now a number of people just don't "get it".
One can only hope that TFL puts signs up for everything that is not acceptable, including phones/tablets on speaker. Maybe people will feel a bit more empowered to ask the infringers to stop.
Try being a small woman! It’s even worse then, aggravated when they say ‘Oh, I didn’t see you’.
My daughter lived for a while in Freetown, Sierra Leone. She decided that while people in Britain tend to think in terms of a right to silence (which is infringed by the making of noise), there people thought in terms of a right to make noise (which the imposition of quiet would infringe).
Last time I asked someone in the quiet carriage on SW Trains to stop talking loudly on her phone, not only did she act as if I was infringing her rights, the (quiet) people around her did too.
Re: headphone-less noise in public: I've always seen this blamed on the pandemic and the general breakdown of social norms it caused. Something that _feels_ correct but one I'd love to see backed up by reporting.
Unfortunately it seems to be another thing coming from the pandemic. Since people have returned to public transport after a couple of years of being by themselves, a fair few have changed attitudes in how they act in public and often dont even notice they're being a pain.
If asked, almost all the time they do have headphones or earphones but they simply havent thought about connecting them up instead preferring the easier option that they were used to when at home alone.
Same with aggression being worse since the pandemic etc.
I’ve been out today mourning the loss of so much of Woolwich Common. It’s owned by the MoD who completely neglect their responsibilities for this unique space in urban London and leave clearing up the litter, mess and discarded tents, as well as fly tipping to The Friends of Woolwich Common.
Pretty much every wildfire is started either by vandalism or by discarded cigarettes, BBQs or glass bottles. In addition to this, illegal camping and groups of men seeking out almost hidden spots at the end of desire lines for drinking sessions are the guilty ones.
This Common has always been an almost wild space especially on its southern section and its home to over 300 plants in a wide diversity of habitats.
It is no coincidence that every time there is a fire, it’s the school summer holidays or Bank Holiday.
It’s surely not beyond the wit of those who are responsible for places at risk of fire to patrol the spaces and be a visible presence to those who have malign intent as well as ensuring that litter and BBQs, tents and cigarettes are swiftly removed and the culprits caught and punished.
It shouldn’t be left to volunteers every time.
When I asked someone to use headphones he likened me speaking with him in public to him punching me in public. And the TfL staff member stood there did nothing. So I'm not sure they're going to do much.
As a regular train user in and around London, I've seen both young and old being guilty of loud music and video clips on phone speakers. I get the argument that trains are a public space but I still think there should be some consideration for fellow passengers - headphones are not expensive and not hard to buy. Regardless of the offender's age, a little more self-awareness would go an awful long way!
Great call for engagement!
My headphone discourse (i left it in r/london many times) is that the relationship with media has changed a lot. It is not only that wireless headphones need charging (I grasp my Xperia 1 V with love and hope it lasts many years with its headphone jack and microsd slot) but listening without headphones, in general, has become normalised, with ipads being the greatest offenders of these. But also 20 years ago the relationship with media was music you owned or you wanted, and paid attention to, in a fairly limited storage, and now it's all content that need to be public and shared in general.
I find the relationship with society in general (where main character syndrome seems to be everywhere) an interesting parallel with the changes in social media in internet: previously you used forums, chats and similar with the end of meeting these people in real life, and that does not happen anymore.
---
Not much to say on other topics, maybe on the wildfires one: I fear the bbqs on these warm days and I call for their ban as they are in Spain.