On the dot

A man found guilty of selling pornography was conditionally discharged for one year. What about the people who bought them? Since they are guilty of aiding and abetting a crime, were they not supposed to be apprehended too? Since the man's computer hard disk was confiscated, would it not be an easy exercise to trace them?

Cashed

Paying through a bank card is an easy method which, moreover, saves people going around with wads of cash. This technological advance, however, has yet to reach the offices of local councils. Paying a traffic fine, or for any other type of infringement, may only be done through hard cash or a cheque. The fact remains that not everyone has ready cash and, moreover, some of these people do not own cheque books.

Banking

Speaking of paying by card, it is obvious that salesmen are not giving adequate attention to whether the details on a card appear to tally with those of the person presenting it when a transaction is carried out given that a signature on a bank card is made on the black strip and the shops have no sample signature against which to check it. So, technically, anyone can use a found card in order to purchase something, unless, of course, the buyer's IUD card is demanded.

Photographs

It is also worth noting that technology makes it easy for fraudsters to take the basic details when it comes to information of a credit card's owner. All a potential fraudster needs to do to begin the exercise is take a snapshot of the number using a mobile phone camera. The name, of course, would be already provided on the receipt signed by the client. Credit cards must never be out of the owners' sight for even one second.

Traffic

Another hit-and-run accident has recently occurred at the zebra crossing at Portes des Bombes, coming up towards Valletta from the Msida side. This crossing lies at the top of a slope and, since the road is not straight, this creates a blind corner. Cars racing up often encounter a pedestrian in the middle of the street. If s/he is not swift enough to get out of the way, being loaded with shopping or if one is elderly or infirm, an accident is sure to follow. When two cars are side by side on the road at the same time, and someone pushing a buggy is on the crossing, it is just a tragedy waiting to happen.

Dogged

A walk along the Sliema front will soon develop into a game of hopscotch, given the huge amount of dog poo that is not cleaned up by owners. The signs that indicate that this is illegal are perhaps too copious to be taken seriously. Fewer signs, further apart, each one indicating the exact fine that will be meted out for infractions might do a better job.

Concerted

Another instance where traffic flow is not properly regulated occurs whenever there are concerts or other activities that attract huge amounts of traffic because public transport would not be available. Sometimes, traffic deviations are not announced far enough away from the venue itself and this means that drivers that would be going elsewhere are caught up in the flow. Reversing is not always feasible, given the flow of traffic.

Watering

One wonders how often irrigation systems of wayside flowerbeds are checked. There are areas where too much water is pumped into the soil even though the sprinkler system is supposed to guard against this, leading to obvious wastage. A case in point is the general area of Portes des Bombes, where the streets are sometimes wetter than if a downpour would have occurred.

Scammed

Not enough publicity is being given to the Sc@ms campaign, running locally this month as part of an international European Consumer Centre campaign. Scams may obtain through fax, e-mail, mail-order, snail mail, internet, the telephone, the press and other means of communication. People would not always be willing to admit they have been had. For some reason the flyers available from local councils have been printed only in Maltese.

Rubbish

It is a well-known fact that, sometimes, take-away food is not eaten in the home but in the general area of the shop itself. Why is it, then, that the majority of these outlets only provide a tiny bin, which is not emptied often enough, or none at all, at the entrance to their shops? If a client notes these bins on the way in, the chances are that s/he will be moved to use them later, when the food is eaten.

Sweeter

There still appears to be the mistaken impression that certain types of snacks do not break the Good Friday fast. It was not unusual to see people munching on these, in fact, during the traditional Good Friday visits to different churches.

Languages

Many foreign students use their Easter break to come to Malta to take English language courses. A great number of their host families reside in the San Ġwann area. Since these students avail themselves of the public transport system, they are often disappointed to find that the service is not up to par when it comes to the number 65 bus. On April 6, those who were at the bus stop before 9 a.m. remained stranded as there was no bus for almost two hours.

Streetwise

Walking along the stretch of National Road, Blata l-Bajda, in front of the buildings housing the household good showrooms, is a very dangerous exercise. For this reason there are a number of steps leading up to a raised pavement. Blocks of stone have been dislodged from this low wall for a long time now. There is a danger that the section holding up the steps will collapse soon and if this happens when someone is using them the result would be tragic.