As a result blogging will be light to non existent till Friday evening at the earliest.
Enjoy the blogger posts right and left columns, they're well worth a read.
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Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Now I'll admit it's entirely possible that the Bradford men were members of the EDL, I do think it a bit unlikely though. Though out of 14 arrests, 9 appear to have been locals and it's entirely possible that those from out of the area weren't from the EDL either. So I'm going out on a bit of a limb here and saying that the violence at the EDL demo was almost entirely that of the counter-protesters. Not that you'll have gotten that impression from reading the MSM or the police reports, though it does confirm to an extent that what I watched from the live feeds was what was really going on.Two men are facing charges, three have been fined and eight people have been bailed after two rival demonstrations in West Yorkshire.The right-wing English Defence League (EDL) and its Unite Against Fascism (UAF) opponents held separate protests in Bradford on Saturday.Fourteen protesters were arrested after several skirmishes broke out.Police said a 37-year-old Bradford man and a 23-year-old Walsall man had been charged over the incidents.The Bradford man is charged with possessing an offensive weapon and has been bailed to appear at the city's magistrates' court on 8 September.The Walsall man has been charged with a public order offence and has been bailed to appear at Leeds Magistrates' Court on 6 December.Six men - five from Bradford and one from Wakefield - and two youths from Bradford have been released on bail while inquiries continue.They were arrested on suspicion of offences including wounding, violent disorder and criminal damage.A 42-year-old Wolverhampton man, a 23-year-old man from Birmingham and a 24-year-old man from Halifax were released from custody after being issued with fixed penalty notices for disorder.A 32-year-old Bradford man was arrested on suspicion of assault and later released without charge.The cost of policing the demonstrations is expected to be "several hundred thousand pounds", police said on Sunday.Hundreds of officers from West Yorkshire Police were supported by colleagues from 13 other forces during the operation to keep the groups apart.Police contained several hundred EDL supporters behind a temporary barricade in the city's Urban Gardens as about 300 people gathered for an event hosted by UAF about half a mile away at the Crown Court Plaza.
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The SAS is facing the greatest cuts since the end of the Second World War with veterans being forced out and a Territorial Army regiment set to close.
The Director of Special Forces, a major general who cannot be named, will meet with reserve SAS soldiers this week to inform them that their services are no longer required.
Already more than 40 veteran SAS men have been given their marching orders after the Army said it can no longer afford to pay them.While British special forces are seen as one of the greatest global assets Britain has to offer and are particularly coveted by the US, they are expensive accounting for an estimated £2 billion out of the £37 billion MoD budget.However, like the rest of defence the SAS has had to make cuts and getting rid of the “old and the bold” and part of the TA is seen as the best solution.Under the Strategic Defence and Security Review, under with the Ministry of Defence has to make cuts of between 10 and 20 per cent, the SAS will also lose either 21 SAS or 23 SAS, its two TA battalions who also contribute to the war in Afghanistan.“Sadly the director (DSF) is going round this week to talk to people because it looks likely we are going to lose a reserve regiment,” an SAS source said. “This is modern times and all we can really afford is the fighting young blades who deploy on operations.“DSF is doing the sensible thing and is looking at them in the eye and saying the pot is this big and here are the options and this is why.“It very unfortunate and inevitably will take something away from UK special forces but that is the reality of it.”
There has also been outcry that the SAS is losing its most experienced men who have served on operations since September 11th.
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Bottles, stones and a smoke bomb were thrown during demonstrations by a right-wing campaign group and their opponents in Bradford.And the Daily Mail.
EDL supporters began throwing bottles, cans and stones over the barricade towards opponents gathered opposite Urban Gardens, shortly after 1400 BST.
A smoke bomb was also thrown over the temporary 8ft-high wall separating the two groups, landing on the ground and exploding by uniformed police officers.
EDL supporters began throwing bottles, cans and stones over the barricade towards opponents gathered opposite the Urban Gardens.Do not believe the reports, anyone watching the live feed can tell you that it was (as usual) the UAF and their supporters throwing the missiles and the smoke bomb, the MSM appear to be doing their usual stitch up job.
A smoke bomb was also thrown over the temporary 8ft high wall separating the two groups, landing on the ground and exploding by uniformed police officers.
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UP to 800 Muslims in UK jails may have been turned by fellow inmates into fanatics ready to launch a new wave of terror attacks.
Now bearing in mind that this is the religion of peace here and we all know how harmless some out there would like us to believe they are, you'd have thought our prison service would have kept the radicals and the easily lead apart. Well in any sane society they of course would, but these are prisoners and criminals who apparently have more human rights than us ordinary folk. Prisons have long been notorious as training grounds for criminals as petty thieves mix with experts and pick up new skills, this wasn't really too much of an issue when all they were doing was being criminal, rather than potentially murderous fanatics, well save for their victims of course and often enough the local criminals were well known to the police anyway.An alarming report by defence experts warns that the security services face a “significant challenge” in spotting and keeping tabs on possible suicide bombers and other jihadists as they are freed from prison over the next five to 10 years.The Royal United Services Institute’s study, released today, predicts a switch from highly-planned outrages such as 9/11 and the London 7/7 bombings to attacks by lone suicide bombers with only slight links to Al Qaeda and using home-made explosives.The authors warn: “Perhaps some 800 potentially violent radicals, not previously guilty of terrorism charges, will be back in society over the coming five to 10 years.”The report also says that many of those caught in the anti-terror campaign of recent years were not convicted of very serious charges and will, therefore, be freed fairly soon.
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Motorists are to be offered a £200 bribe to surrender their residents’ car parking permits under proposals being drawn up by Brent Council in North London.I may be wrong, but I suspect the take up of the scheme will be very, very low, parking permits are like gold dust in London and once you've lost it, I doubt you'd get it back.
The Labour-controlled authority is hoping that the incentive will persuade motorists to enrol in car clubs, whose members will be allowed to park free of charge.
Under the proposals, motorists who give up the permit for two years will be given a £200 voucher which can be used towards the cost of a bike, public transport or the subscription to a car sharing scheme.
Brent wants to promote the scheme as “incentives for residents to reduce non-essential car use and contribute to combating climate change.”Ah yes the old climate change myth as fervently believed by politicians, socialists and enviroloons all over the land and practically no-one else.
According to Cllr Jim Moher, the council cabinet member with responsibility for transport, the proposals are likely to appeal to people who want to help fight climate change.Wonder how many want to discard an efficient and personal transporter, only politicians, socialists and enviroloons all over the land and practically no-one else one would suspect.
“It is very attractive for people who want to discard their car and help deal with a growing problem.
“I would certainly consider it,” said Mr Moher, a car owner himself. “I would have no problem towards contributing to this sort of thingSays the politician, socialist and enviroloon.
The council is also proposing to join the growing number of local authorities who vary permit charges according to the environmental friendliness of the car.Money, money, money, I could understand it if they went by the size of the car and how much space it took, but I fail to see what business it is of theirs what kind of car the residents drive.
However the council’s initiative was welcomed by both environmental and motoring groups.Campaign for Better Transport is not a motoring group, it's a fake charity (site still down what the hell is going on?) Environmental groups are often enough fake charities too and want us all to live back in the middle ages riding horses or walking ( except for politicians, socialists and enviroloons who need efficient transport to tell us how to live)“There is huge pressure on parking spaces. It’s good that it is being offered cash as an option rather than people being forced to surrender their permits.“Brent is showing a far more sympathetic approach than some other boroughs,” said an A spokesman.Stephen Joseph, executive director of the Campaign for Better Transport, added: “That is very innovative and it will be interesting to see if other councils follow their lead. This is a carrot rather than a stick.
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
An MP repeatedly shouted that the new expenses system was an “abortion” during a meeting with officials, according to records that disclose in full the abusive and sometimes violent reaction of politicians to the stricter regime.They still don't realise that the public still see them as being a bunch of crooks, they still don't realise that it isn't their money either, it comes from you and I via taxation and we now want to see value for money.
Another MP hit the computer of an official at the new Parliamentary allowances watchdog and threw paper at him, while a female member warned she was “going to murder someone” during a training session.
One male MP reduced a volunteer with the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority to tears as he was being told how to submit his expenses claims, and another turned up at its offices just to declare that he would “attack” the organisation at every step and to claim that its senior staff were “idiots”.
The details of “bullying” and “intimidating” behaviour towards IPSA workers and volunteers, published by the watchdog in response to Freedom of Information requests, are likely to heighten fears that many MPs have still not accepted the changes made to their expenses system since its widespread abuse was disclosed by The Daily Telegraph more than a year ago.
In order to restore trust and transparency, it was agreed that payments for second home and office expenses should be handled by a new, independent body rather than the House of Commons fees office, and that claims would have to be made by a computerised system rather than on pieces of paper. In addition, MPs are no longer allowed to claim as much as they previously could on rent nor obtain home furnishings.
Some MPs have objected strongly to the new regime being imposed on them by IPSA as they believe it is too bureaucratic and time-consuming, as well as not leaving them with enough money to run their constituency offices or homes outside Westminster.
It has been disclosed that IPSA staff introduced an unofficial football-style system of red and yellow cards to discipline MPs who were rude to them, and put up signs stating that abuse would not be tolerated.
Now IPSA has published logs of 10 “incidents” recorded by staff since the general election, which disclose the full extent of the hostile treatment they have received. However the names of the MPs involved have been – like many of the expenses claims published by Parliament – redacted.
The first states that an MP travelling in a lift described his experience of the new expenses system as “awful” and declined an offer of help, explaining that all IPSA staff were “------- idiots”.
Late last month, according to the second incident, an MP met an IPSA official with three of his staff in attendance, creating an “intimidating” atmosphere as they greeted the scheme with “ridicule and derision”.
As the member was taken through the new expenses system, he repeatedly exclaimed: “This system is a ------- abortion!”
The IPSA worker said they found this “deeply inappropriate and inoffensive” but the MP’s staff “laughed and agreed” with the term.
The MP went on to claim that only “rich people and losers” would want to be politicians as a result of the new system, and that Prof Sir Ian Kennedy, the IPSA chairman, “has no idea what we do”.
On May 10th, just days after the general election, an MP turned up at IPSA’s office to announce he would not be taking part in an induction session and “threw his personal details form across the desk”.
When told he would have to do so, he became “angry and aggressive” and “struck the laptop on the facilitator’s desk and loomed over them in an intimidating manner”.
The following day, an IPSA volunteer “burst into tears” after spending 10 minutes trying to explain the system to an MP who was “very difficult and disruptive”.
The MP claimed the system “reduced him to a cipher” and made him “not want to represent his country as an MP”, although he later brought a box of chocolates to apologise.
At another training session the next day, a female MP was “rude, abrupt, disparaging”, refusing to sign a form as required and then stating: “I am going to murder someone today.”
Another MP appeared at the door of the IPSA office just to “aggressively” declare: “I am going to attack you at every step.”
A female MP turned up stating: “I want my Travelcard!” and when told it had not arrived, declared that IPSA staff had “obviously lied to her”.
Another woman politician refused to leave the watchdog’s office until she had received her Travelcard, rang the Commons Speaker to tell him what was happening and refused to let IPSA staff answer their telephones.
An IPSA spokesman said: “These instances relate to the early days of operation. IPSA is focusing on getting on with its job which is managing the new regime governing MPs’ expenses – that means checking and processing thousands of claims each week. Last week alone, for example, IPSA handled 4,000 claims and paid £650,000 to MPs.”
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That quote seemed a little wrong to me, so I did a little checking and up popped the British Crime Statistics 1997 - 2002. as reported in the Independent.Labour has urged the government not to scrap anti-social behaviour orders (Asbos), claiming such a move would "leave communities helpless".Shadow home secretary Alan Johnson said the orders, introduced in 1999, had been a "success".He accused the coalition of a lack of commitment to tackling crime.Last month Home Secretary Theresa May signalled Asbos could be scrapped in England and Wales, with police adopting a more "common sense" approach.Ministry of Justice figures show 55% of the almost 17,000 Asbos issued between June 2000 and December 2008 were breached, leading to an immediate custodial sentence in more than half of the cases.But Mr Johnson insisted the orders had worked, saying: "Everyone remembers that under the last Tory government crime rocketed and anti-social behaviour was classed as low-level nuisance and not taken seriously.""This time around, Tory Home Secretary Theresa May is wrongly claiming that Asbos don't work.
A Mixed batch, however the records appear to show in many areas that crime was actually falling in some areas under the Tories, particularly robbery, firearms and homicide and increased under Labour. So crime hadn't rocketed at all and Alan Johnson is lying and trying to kid us, When it comes to anti-social behaviour though a quick google produced these results
HOMICIDE
Position in 1997: Murder, manslaughter and infanticide accounted for 611 deaths in 1997, of which 133 were carried out with a sharp instrument.
What has Labour done? Home Office has brought tougher sentences for carrying illegal firearms. Crown Prosecution Service is cracking down on causing death by dangerous driving.
Position in 2002: There were 858 offences initially recorded as homicides in 2001-2002, compared with 849 last year. May be revised downward slightly but trend is upward.
Verdict: A problem. Home Office minister John Denham admitted the figures were "an area of real concern". Number of men fatally shot rose by 41 per cent last year.
VIOLENT CRIME
Position in 1997: Violent crime was tumbling when Labour came to power. The British Crime Survey of 1998 shows that violent offending fell by 17 per cent between 1995 and 1997.
What has Labour done? After criticisms over falling police numbers, Labour has bankrolled recruitment campaigns for more police officers and has backed growth of CCTV schemes.
Position in 2002: Quarterly crime figures to last September show a 23 per cent increase (2 per cent when adjusted for recording changes), but the long-term trend is downward.
Verdict: Mixed. Since 1997 the British Crime Survey suggests that violent offending has fallen by 27 per cent. But large sections of the public remain convinced otherwise.
FIREARMS
Position in 1997: The use of firearms in crime rose during the 1980s and early 1990s, peaking in 1993, after which it began to fall. By 1997-98 it had dropped to the same level as 1990.
What has Labour done? Faced with frightening levels of gun crime, the Home Secretary has announced five-year jail terms for gun possession and a ban on carrying replica weapons.
Position in 2002: Gun crime offences have risen sharply during the past two years, climbing by 35 per cent last year to a record high of 9,974 offences.
Verdict: A major failure. The annual rise in gun crime was the fourth in succession and ministers are only just realising the havoc being caused by drug wars.
BURGLARY
Position in 1997: Improvements in household security had begun to take effect by 1997 election. 1998 BCS shows burglary offences fell by 17 per cent between 1995 and 1997.
What has Labour done? Labour has not prioritised this area of crime but has claimed credit as the effects of security measures have continued to drive burglars into other areas of crime.
Position in 2002: The BCS shows that since 1997, burglaries have fallen by 39 per cent. But recorded crime statistics show burglaries rose by 5 per cent in that period.
Verdict: Mixed. The BCS shows that there has been a significant fall in the fear of burglary as public concerns have shifted towards being attacked on the streets.
ROBBERY
Position in 1997: An area that was rising when Labour came to power. Muggings increased by 1 per cent, with 390,000 offences reported to the BCS between 1995 and 1997.
What has Labour done? The growth in use of mobile phones has helped fuel a surge in robberies since the last election. Anti-Street Crime Initiative introduced in 10 urban police forces.
Position in 2002: Robbery went up by 13 per cent in the year to last September. But the last quarter of that year had a 10 per cent fall compared to the same period the year before.
Verdict: Still a major problem. Robbery remains a key area of concern and although the overall numbers are falling, only six of the 10 big city forces hit their targets.
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Well, there's always 2026 I suppose.Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has told Fifa inspectors England's bid for the 2018 World Cup is "unbeatable".The Fifa delegation, which will write a report on England's bid to host the World Cup, began their four-day visit with a reception at Downing Street.Mr Clegg said: "I believe this is an exceptionally strong, unbeatable bid. We in this government believe in it, we hope that you will believe in it."The hosts for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups will be revealed on 2 December.England face stiff competition in the battle to stage football's premier tournament in eight years' time, with Russia, considered by many to be one of the favourites to succeed.
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
"The European Arrest Warrant should not be feared," says Graham Watson, the Liberal Democrat MEP who piloted the legislation through the European Parliament (as so often with things that really annoy Euro-sceptics, their authors turn out to be British.) "It is a crucial tool in ensuring criminals cannot hide behind national borders. It has brought justice to the perpetrators of murder, rape and terrorism."I wonder what Edmond Arapi thinks of this claim?
Edmond Arapi, a Staffordshire waiter, was seized under an EAW issued by Italy after being sentenced to 16 years in absentia for a murder in Genoa in 2004. Yet he never left Britain in 2004. He spent time in Wandsworth prison before the Italians finally admitted it was a case of mistaken identity.Or Deborah Dark.
Deborah Dark, who was cleared of drugs charges in France in 1989, found herself detained whenever she tried to travel. Unknown to her, French authorities had won an appeal against her acquittal in 1990. Fifteen years later, they issued an EAW, which was only dropped in May.Colin Gabriel.
Colin Gabriel was demanded by Spain after a passport with his name on it was found in a boat that had been carrying drugs. He denied it was his and British judges said the evidence against him was "thin", but could not halt his extradition.There are others.
Michael Turner, from Dorset, and Jason McGoldrick, from Plymouth, were extradited on an EAW and held without charge in Hungary, accused of owing business creditors £18,000. They spent nearly three months in tough jail conditions before police even interviewed them. They were freed after five months and have never been charged.Even foreigners staying here have problems.
Dimitrinka Atanasova, a Bulgarian legal secretary, fled to Britain after threatening to expose her boss – the country's chief prosecutor – for misconduct. That same chief prosecutor then personally requested her extradition from Britain on what a British judge agreed were "bad-faith", or trumped-up, charges of murder. Crucially, her case predated Bulgaria's EU membership and adoption of the EAW. She was freed, after several months in Holloway Prison, but could be rearrested under a warrant at any time.And there is a regular flight back to Poland from Biggin Hill in Kent of handcuffed Poles arrested and deported at the request of the Polish legal system often for such things as smoking cannabis, stealing a bicycle, or receiving a stolen mobile phone. The defendants will have been seized from their homes by a special police unit. They will often have been held in British custody, and will continue to be held, sometimes for months, until their appeals against extradition are dismissed, as they almost always are.
Andrew, who, cannot speak Greek, spent almost a year in some of Europe's least civilised prisons. At Patras, he was unable to wash, and was taunted by the guards as an "English ------." They made him pack his kit with handcuffs on, laughing at his inability to manage it, then squeezed toothpaste into his bag, so he got to his next prison with toothpaste all over his clothes.So yes, Graham Watson MEP who guided this odious and dangerous bit of legislation through the EU, you are a traitor, you're ultimately responsible for the arrest and detention of scores of your fellow countrymen (then again he's a Scot so might not care all that much about the English) who are often held without trial for years in foreign prisons and you tell us that the European Arrest Warrant should not be feared. You've forced our legal system to hand over our people on the most flimsiest of evidence and prevented them from fact checking the evidence, nor of preventing flagrant abuses of the warrants themselves. It costs us money to hold the people that have been arrested under the EAW and if or when we hand them over, there are few safeguards as to how quickly they will be dealt with.
At Korydallos, he witnessed three riots. He would lie in bed, said his father, "and cockroaches would be dropping from above. He'd wake up in the morning with them crawling on him''.
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Women who drink to excess are almost twice as likely to need emergency contraception, such as the morning pill, than those who remain within safe limits, a study found.Ok, we'll take as read the right of people do do with their bodies as they wish so long as they aren't harming others. It should not be the business of the state to tell us not to drink and not to have sex when drunk, nor do the invented 14 units a week impress any more, we know it's a lie plucked out of thin air by the BMA in a report and yes we've noticed that it's getting smaller every year too.
British researchers found women who exceeded their weekly alcohol limit were also far more likely to have an abortion.
The study of 25,000 individuals also found the proportion of teenage girls who blamed alcohol for losing their virginity more than doubled over the past 60 years.
The University College London study, published on Friday, also found the number of people drinking to excess had tripled in 10 years.
The study, reported in the Journal of Public Health, suggested that increased alcohol use was linked to a rise in women engaging in unprotected sex.
The study’s conclusions come amid growing concerns about the rise of binge drinking following the relaxation of drinking laws.
Government figures have shown that one in four people – a total of 10 million – is estimated to be putting their health at risk by drinking more alcohol than the recommended limits.
In their study, UCL researchers examined the alcohol consumption and sexual activity of individuals aged 16 to 44 over a ten-year period.
They found that women who drank to excess, which experts say is more than 14 units a week, were 1.8 times more likely to have taken emergency contraception such as the morning after pill at least once over the past year.
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Yet government statistics reveal that speed cameras are totally ineffective at preventing the vast majority of accidents. Exceeding the speed limit was attributed to only 3% of cars involved in accidents. 97% of car crashes have nothing to do with breaking the speed limit.Claire Brixey's son Ashley, 20, was killed in a crash in Limpley Stoke, Wiltshire, in 2004 when the car in which he was a passenger landed upside down in a swimming pool after the driver lost control.A bereaved mother will lead a protest against a county council's decision to axe speed cameras.
Ms Brixey, who lives in Standerwick on the Wiltshire/Somerset border, has been a road safety campaigner since the crash.
In the protest on Friday in Trowbridge, she will urge Wiltshire County Council to reverse a decision to end its road safety partnership scheme.
Ms Brixey said: "I cannot just stand by while the council puts an axe to vital road safety services that save so many young lives here each year. They need to know how appalled local communities are about this. Most people fully support cameras and feel safer with them turned on.
"When I heard in the news the Government saying they were ending a 'war on motorists', I thought that all they were doing was enabling people to break the law and endanger lives by speeding.
BRAKE is a fake charity with its own entry at fakecharities.org ... unfortunately, the fake charity site is down at the moment, however it is known BRAKE spend 50% of its income on salaries and the majority of its money comes from public funding, to no doubt tell the government what it wants to hear. However speed cameras actually appear to cause more accidents than they prevent, as speed cameras have triggered at least 28,000 crashes since 2001, according to new research.Anyone who drives will have noticed that people on seeing a speed camera will automatically brake, even if they are going below the speed limit, putting the vehicle behind in occasional danger. Accidents were reducing before speed cameras came along, cars were being made safer for drivers and pedestrians if hit, so speed cameras were not really a major cause in road safety, though most drivers had them twigged as revenue raisers early on in their lifespan.Ellen Booth, campaigns officer for road safety charity Brake, said: "Increasingly, decisions being made on speed cameras are more about politics and less about facts.
"The fact is that speed cameras reduce speeding and save lives."
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Diposkan oleh Zainal Arifain
Two teenagers have been banned from driving after they repeatedly rode past a speed camera on a stolen motorbike.
Lewis Farmer and Sam Giess (right) turn to look at the camera
Didn't they think to wear a mask?Sam Giess and Lewis Farmer, both 18, were caught on camera five times as they took turns to trigger the speed trap in Nuneaton, Warwickshire.Officers in the town recognised them from the images.The pair were disqualified from driving for a year after appearing at Nuneaton magistrates' court charged with a total of 22 offences.Farmer, who pleaded guilty to speeding and driving with no licence and insurance, was also fined £200.Giess, who pleaded guilty to a total of 14 charges, was ordered to pay £100 in compensation and given a 120-hour community order.Speaking after the case, Detective Sergeant Owen Fell said: "We are delighted with these convictions."Giess and Farmer behaved in a reckless manner and it is fortunate that neither they nor any innocent road users or passers-by were injured."
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