Think toilet design hasn’t changed since Sir Thomas Crapper? Well, think again. The Wall Street Journal has written a lengthy and informative article on Super Flush – the Next Generation– vacuum assisted turbo driven flushing all with only 1.6 gallons of water. And all I wanted was the US business news.

The WW2 incarnation of this most famous Royal Navy name has been found on the bed of the Mediterranean.

(Ark Royal specs)

On the wall of the living room at home, my parents have the obligatory childhood pictures of my sister and me. One of these photos is of me as a toddler, on a campsite in France, taking a bath in a washing up bowl. It’s unbelievebly cute, catching me mid-splash. It’s also the sort of simple shot that parents are afraid to take these days, whether for the photo album or a display, for fear of the busy bodies who cry paedophile at the slightest hint of naked children. With this and the whole culture of fearing single adults, particularly men, around children I’m nervous of taking pictures involving kids for my daily photos, no matter how innocent.

But there are other issues here. The most dangerous is that the overblown ‘stranger danger’ fear blinds people to family abuse. But almost as important is that there is a whole generation growing up now whose parents don’t have embarassing bathtime photos to show to future girlfriends. It’s just not right.