Law being an ass
For a few months I was an NTL customer. I found them to be the most incompetent, unreliable, disorganised, shambolic and complacent company that I have ever had to deal with. My problems stemmed from the fact that I moved house. NTL’s computer system couldn’t cope with that so my the account for the old house was ‘closed’ and I was given a new account for the new house. Except the old account wasn't closed and NTL billed me twice. Even after receiving two letters from the Chief Executive assuring me that that my account was clear and not in debt I was still chased by NTL’s hired gun lawyers, who (I was told by one such lawyer) also considered NTL a shambles but were making a good living out of it.
Ashley Gibbins is therefore a hero. And he’s been found innocent in a court of law. If NTL spent the money they have wasted prosecuting Mr Gibbins on improving their service then maybe people would be less inclined to abuse them in the first place.
Caller swears revenge on helpline
CUSTOMERS who rang the helpline of one of Britain’s biggest cable television companies were stunned when they ran into a message featuring a tirade of four-letter words.
“Hello, you are through to NTL customer services,” it said. “We don’t give a fuck about you, basically, and we are not going to handle any of your complaints. Just fuck off and leave us alone. Get a life.”
What they were listening to was the voice of Ashley Gibbins, an irate customer who had discovered that it was possible to change the company’s recorded message asking customers to hold the line. He was wreaking revenge for being put on hold for an hour. NTL complained to the police and Mr Gibbins, a taxi driver from Redcar, Cleveland, was arrested and taken to court accused of making a grossly offensive message. Teesside magistrates decided yesterday that the message, although offensive, did not reach the “grossly offensive” standard for prosecution under the Communications Act 2003 and acquitted him. Mr Gibbins, 26, who was trying to order a broadband internet connection, stumbled across the facility to change NTL’s recorded message while pressing the “star” key on his telephone to access a number of options. John Nixon, his solicitor, said: “He pressed his star key twice and that gave him access to the command centre, so he was able to record a new message. NTL admitted that it was a serious security flaw in their system.”
Vicky Turner, 39, from Billingham, Teesside, was one of the NTL customers who heard the message during the two hours before it was removed. “I was horrified and shocked,” she said. “But I have to admit that the second time I heard it I had to laugh because I agreed with what the message said.” She said that she rang the line to buy a Middlesbrough football match, which was on pay-to-view. “I was put on hold for 1½ hours, by which time the match had started, so there was no point buying it. But when I did get through to a human being I was cut off. I thought I would call to complain, but I got the message first.”
Malcolm Padley, a spokesman for NTL, said: “We are as outraged as any customer who tried to contact the line. We absolutely apologise for any offence caused.” Mr Gibbins faced six months in jail or a £5,000 fine. He did not get broadband because the company removed him from its list of customers. Alan Byfield, the chairman of the magistrates, said that he and his colleagues had consulted The Chambers Dictionary and decided that the words were offensive but not grossly offensive. A spokeswoman for the Crown Prosecution Service said: “The main question was whether the message was deemed to be offensive or grossly offensive.”
So there you have it. The word fuck is offensive, but not grossly offensive. I wonder why its still beeped so often on TV.
Ashley Gibbins is therefore a hero. And he’s been found innocent in a court of law. If NTL spent the money they have wasted prosecuting Mr Gibbins on improving their service then maybe people would be less inclined to abuse them in the first place.
Caller swears revenge on helpline
CUSTOMERS who rang the helpline of one of Britain’s biggest cable television companies were stunned when they ran into a message featuring a tirade of four-letter words.
“Hello, you are through to NTL customer services,” it said. “We don’t give a fuck about you, basically, and we are not going to handle any of your complaints. Just fuck off and leave us alone. Get a life.”
What they were listening to was the voice of Ashley Gibbins, an irate customer who had discovered that it was possible to change the company’s recorded message asking customers to hold the line. He was wreaking revenge for being put on hold for an hour. NTL complained to the police and Mr Gibbins, a taxi driver from Redcar, Cleveland, was arrested and taken to court accused of making a grossly offensive message. Teesside magistrates decided yesterday that the message, although offensive, did not reach the “grossly offensive” standard for prosecution under the Communications Act 2003 and acquitted him. Mr Gibbins, 26, who was trying to order a broadband internet connection, stumbled across the facility to change NTL’s recorded message while pressing the “star” key on his telephone to access a number of options. John Nixon, his solicitor, said: “He pressed his star key twice and that gave him access to the command centre, so he was able to record a new message. NTL admitted that it was a serious security flaw in their system.”
Vicky Turner, 39, from Billingham, Teesside, was one of the NTL customers who heard the message during the two hours before it was removed. “I was horrified and shocked,” she said. “But I have to admit that the second time I heard it I had to laugh because I agreed with what the message said.” She said that she rang the line to buy a Middlesbrough football match, which was on pay-to-view. “I was put on hold for 1½ hours, by which time the match had started, so there was no point buying it. But when I did get through to a human being I was cut off. I thought I would call to complain, but I got the message first.”
Malcolm Padley, a spokesman for NTL, said: “We are as outraged as any customer who tried to contact the line. We absolutely apologise for any offence caused.” Mr Gibbins faced six months in jail or a £5,000 fine. He did not get broadband because the company removed him from its list of customers. Alan Byfield, the chairman of the magistrates, said that he and his colleagues had consulted The Chambers Dictionary and decided that the words were offensive but not grossly offensive. A spokeswoman for the Crown Prosecution Service said: “The main question was whether the message was deemed to be offensive or grossly offensive.”
So there you have it. The word fuck is offensive, but not grossly offensive. I wonder why its still beeped so often on TV.
And speaking of wasting money on futile prosecutions, how does this sound? Ridiculous, do I hear?
Student arrested after 'gay' horse jibe
A student at Balliol College was arrested and detained in custody for a night after he verbally abused a police horse early on Monday morning. Sam Brown, a third year English student, had his fingerprints taken and was released with a fine of £80 following the incident which took place on Cornmarket Street.
Brown was fined for “causing harassment, harm or distress”, after he repeatedly called the officer’s horse “gay”.
Brown and his friends, including former Balliol JCR President Daniel Konrad-Cooper had emerged from the Cellar Bar and were surprised to encounter two mounted policemen.
Brown inquired, “How do you feel about your horse being gay?” of one of the policemen, stating that his colleague’s was clearly not gay. After repeated comments on the sexuality of his horse, and despite warnings from the policeman about his behaviour, Brown’s offer of an apology to the horse was rejected and he was handcuffed and taken by the officers to the police station.
The arrest was made at 2.20am on Monday morning, and Brown was in a state which he described as “pissed out of my head”.
He had tried to escape the police by hiding in a doorway in Ship Street, but was found after back up had been called for. A total of six policemen were involved in making the arrest.
One member of the party, Matthew Williams, a former LGB rep of his college, told the policeman that he found it offensive that the term “gay” was being interpreted as a derogatory insult.
Brown said that the police officers had been “very nice about it”, adding, “I think they realised how absurd the charge was.” He was accompanied to the station by one of his friends, who kept a “vigil” outside his cell. Brown reported his cell to be “comfortable”, but admitted that his state of drunkenness was such that he was not particularly aware of his surroundings. “I felt more sorry for my friend who was stuck in the freezing corridor”, he said.
Student arrested after 'gay' horse jibe
A student at Balliol College was arrested and detained in custody for a night after he verbally abused a police horse early on Monday morning. Sam Brown, a third year English student, had his fingerprints taken and was released with a fine of £80 following the incident which took place on Cornmarket Street.
Brown was fined for “causing harassment, harm or distress”, after he repeatedly called the officer’s horse “gay”.
Brown and his friends, including former Balliol JCR President Daniel Konrad-Cooper had emerged from the Cellar Bar and were surprised to encounter two mounted policemen.
Brown inquired, “How do you feel about your horse being gay?” of one of the policemen, stating that his colleague’s was clearly not gay. After repeated comments on the sexuality of his horse, and despite warnings from the policeman about his behaviour, Brown’s offer of an apology to the horse was rejected and he was handcuffed and taken by the officers to the police station.
The arrest was made at 2.20am on Monday morning, and Brown was in a state which he described as “pissed out of my head”.
He had tried to escape the police by hiding in a doorway in Ship Street, but was found after back up had been called for. A total of six policemen were involved in making the arrest.
One member of the party, Matthew Williams, a former LGB rep of his college, told the policeman that he found it offensive that the term “gay” was being interpreted as a derogatory insult.
Brown said that the police officers had been “very nice about it”, adding, “I think they realised how absurd the charge was.” He was accompanied to the station by one of his friends, who kept a “vigil” outside his cell. Brown reported his cell to be “comfortable”, but admitted that his state of drunkenness was such that he was not particularly aware of his surroundings. “I felt more sorry for my friend who was stuck in the freezing corridor”, he said.
Police horses have feelings too you know.
posted by phylos @ 14:25
2 Comments:
yay ashley - it's nice when people get to have a direct route like that to take out they're irritations
as for the hores - i wonder how the horse rejected his apology - some people really need to get a handle on their personal emotions - i can't believe the police men were actually that offended
I was interested in the 'gay horse' slander story and, living at a stable yard, decided to go and 'accuse' the largest horse in the yard of being gay. The owner took little notice and responded with a nonchalant "he probably is". It is strange, then, that the police horse apparently took such offence.
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