bedrock propositions
Discussion
Or is it preposition?.......... anyway,
these are points of fact that exist because any evidence to the contrary is either insufficient or doesn't exist at all. eg the sun will rise tomorrow morning, grass is green, ice is cold etc. Not to say that a bedrock proposition can't be changed eg. for a long period of time everyone 'knew' that the earth was flat.
What becomes intersting though is when you try to create a bedrock proposition by repetition. 'Speed Kills' being one that springs to mind. Then you hear people say 'everyone knows that speed kills'and the proof for this.... 'well, everyone knows that'. funny thing is, and I used to do a bit of mechanical maths, why isn't mr B of North Wales issuing bathroom scales to his safety camera teams? Impact is dependent not only on speed but also mass. MxVxV. In a Ford Ka this means that a 19 stone person travelling at 30MPH has the same momentum as a 9 stone person travelling at 31MPH. Should people be weighed in court and the fine adjusted accordingly?
Incidently I've had more near misses driving in the city where I work because of their heavy handed speed vans (got caught by an unmarked van at 7pm travelling at 50MPH on an empty 40MPH dual carriageway) than I've had in the last 300000 miles of driving, but at least I will have hit them at a safe speed.
these are points of fact that exist because any evidence to the contrary is either insufficient or doesn't exist at all. eg the sun will rise tomorrow morning, grass is green, ice is cold etc. Not to say that a bedrock proposition can't be changed eg. for a long period of time everyone 'knew' that the earth was flat.
What becomes intersting though is when you try to create a bedrock proposition by repetition. 'Speed Kills' being one that springs to mind. Then you hear people say 'everyone knows that speed kills'and the proof for this.... 'well, everyone knows that'. funny thing is, and I used to do a bit of mechanical maths, why isn't mr B of North Wales issuing bathroom scales to his safety camera teams? Impact is dependent not only on speed but also mass. MxVxV. In a Ford Ka this means that a 19 stone person travelling at 30MPH has the same momentum as a 9 stone person travelling at 31MPH. Should people be weighed in court and the fine adjusted accordingly?
Incidently I've had more near misses driving in the city where I work because of their heavy handed speed vans (got caught by an unmarked van at 7pm travelling at 50MPH on an empty 40MPH dual carriageway) than I've had in the last 300000 miles of driving, but at least I will have hit them at a safe speed.
It's only about 150 years ago that most people thought that they would die if they travelled faster than a galloping horse (about 30mph).
Some other speed-related dates:
1865 The Locomotive Act (Red Flag Act) imposed a speed limit of 2mph in cities, towns and villages, and 4mph elsewhere. It was also necessary to have a pedestrian carrying a red flag in front of the vehicle at a distance of 60 yards. The vehicle was required to have three drivers aboard it.
1878 The Locomotive Amendment Act 1878 made the red flag optional under local conditions and reduced the distance of the warning red flag to 20 yards.
1899 The first motorcar accident to occur that involved the death of the driver was on Harrow on the Hill in London on 25 February. [It is not reported whether the driver was exceeding the speed limit - S]
1896 First speeding ticket issued on 28 January. A Mr. Walter Arnold was fined one shilling (5p) for travelling at 8mph in a 2mph area.
Plus ca change ...
Streaky
Some other speed-related dates:
1865 The Locomotive Act (Red Flag Act) imposed a speed limit of 2mph in cities, towns and villages, and 4mph elsewhere. It was also necessary to have a pedestrian carrying a red flag in front of the vehicle at a distance of 60 yards. The vehicle was required to have three drivers aboard it.
1878 The Locomotive Amendment Act 1878 made the red flag optional under local conditions and reduced the distance of the warning red flag to 20 yards.
1899 The first motorcar accident to occur that involved the death of the driver was on Harrow on the Hill in London on 25 February. [It is not reported whether the driver was exceeding the speed limit - S]
1896 First speeding ticket issued on 28 January. A Mr. Walter Arnold was fined one shilling (5p) for travelling at 8mph in a 2mph area.
Plus ca change ...
Streaky
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