Much ado about a lot

There is just so much to post about, I hardly know where to begin. I will mention, in passing, the two ladies who I stopped and helped to change a wheel this morning. Please don't drive on that silly little emergency only spare wheel. Go buy a real one. I hope they get to the University OK.

England's sword has an fascinating piece on the trial of a Muslim cleric in England. Apparently the jurors were to be excused if they were Jewish or Hindu. That's a slap in the face for 'twelve impartial people'. So Christians, Seventh Day Adventists and agnostics are OK then. What rubbish.

The Politech mailing list which I subscribe to has a piece today about a new argument between the US customs and EU officials. Apparently:

- by legal statute (title 49, United States Code, section 44909(c)(3)) and
its implementing (interim) regulations (title 19, Code of Federal
Regulations, section 122.49b), air carriers operating passenger flights in
foreign air transportation to, from or through the United States, must
provide Customs with electronic access to PNR data contained in the
automated reservation/ departure control systems ("reservation systems");

Hence the problem. Customs will become the 'owner' of this data. Current EU data legislation says this can't be. If you collect data , it must used for the purpose it was intended. Handing it over to another agency whenever they want is illegal. My brain tells me that there must be a way round this.