UK metric-system selling to be indefinitely deferred

[tombott]

Sun may never set on British Empire's pint
Campaigners and Conservative politicos claim to have won an indefinite reprieve for the traditional British pound, inch, foot and - perhaps most importantly - pint.

The BBC reports that the planned 2009 deadline for all UK/European sales to be conducted using the metric system has now been put in limbo, perhaps forever.

The Tories' industry spokesman Giles Chichester said EU commissioner Gunther Verhuegen had told him that the marking of goods in both metric and imperial could "continue indefinitely".

The commissioner agreed it was good for British and European industry to keep imperial measurements as it would make it easier for firms to sell to the US, apparently after Tory lobbying.

Chichester said: "After saving the crown on the British pint I am happy the Conservatives have persuaded the Commission that it is good not only for international business but for the British people that traditional measurements are kept."

The metric system was originally sponsored by French revolutionaries, and despite an early attempt by famed continental tyrant Napoleon Bonaparte to do away with it, has spread worldwide ever since. Resistance has been strong in the UK - as today's announcement clearly shows - but not a patch on that seen in the United States. Despite the fact that they were allied with the Frenchies against their British colonial rulers, rebellious eighteenth-century Americans never warmed to the metric system.

As the times went by, testy Yanks also refused to comply with British innovations in many areas; they refused to drink tea, pay taxes to unresponsive central government, or free their slaves, for instance. Many of these things eventually happened in America, but to this day even the lukewarm British acceptance of metric measures hasn't occurred Stateside - other than among drug dealers, anyway, and younger handgun fanciers - groups with a good deal of overlap.

But the USA is now the world's biggest market, and seemingly it is American intransigence which has saved the erstwhile mother country's measurements. Strange days indeed.

Presumably, Commissioner Verhuegen will now be reflecting ruefully that if you give these Brits an inch, they'll take a mile.

Taken from the register, and good news in my opinion!

[Mickey]

Trouble is traders can still be in trouble with trading standards if they use imperial
now isnt that dumb

[BBK]

What a complete and utter waste of time and effort. The imperial system is dead, why bother with this stupid and outdated method of measurement! Should we all go back to 240 pennies in a pound too? 100p in a pound is MUCH easier to measure. 1000g in 1kg easier than whateveritwasthatmakesa lb. The only people that benefit from this is your east end barrow boy who can still "charm" customers with his "paaahnd a paaahnd" cry.

FFS I'd even be happy buying a litre of beer. After all, a litre is more than a pint, bigger measures are a GOOD thing!!! Less time wasted going to the bar!!!

Seriously, for me this is completely and utterly pointless. No doubt a lot of time and money has been wasted ensuring old dinosaurs don't need to learn about kg, and at the same time making it more difficult for school children who need to learn both. Complete and utter waste of time and effort.

[tombott]

What a complete and utter waste of time and effort. The imperial system is dead, why bother with this stupid and outdated method of measurement! Should we all go back to 240 pennies in a pound too? 100p in a pound is MUCH easier to measure. 1000g in 1kg easier than whateveritwasthatmakesa lb. The only people that benefit from this is your east end barrow boy who can still "charm" customers with his "paaahnd a paaahnd" cry.

FFS I'd even be happy buying a litre of beer. After all, a litre is more than a pint, bigger measures are a GOOD thing!!! Less time wasted going to the bar!!!

Seriously, for me this is completely and utterly pointless. No doubt a lot of time and money has been wasted ensuring old dinosaurs don't need to learn about kg, and at the same time making it more difficult for school children who need to learn both. Complete and utter waste of time and effort.

Well each to their own, I was taught both at school and have no problems with either system.

And I don't think serving drinks by the litre is a very good idea, 500ml maybe but not 1l

[Over Carl]

Seriously, for me this is completely and utterly pointless. No doubt a lot of time and money has been wasted ensuring old dinosaurs don't need to learn about kg, and at the same time making it more difficult for school children who need to learn both. Complete and utter waste of time and effort.

I agree, but there are other ones as well - qwerty keyboard - worst possible layout, dvorak - best possible. I can't see why schools don't implement dvorak only policies for the kids. On the topic of pc's, you would have thought they would have abandoned the throwbacks to the ms-dos days by now, but they still carry on.

[GTI]

I agree with BBK, metric is the measure of science and far easier to comprehend than eights, sixteenths etc..

[drunkn_munky]

Metric just makes sense. It's just ignorant people who aren't willing to change that stop our economy from growing. To me, metric is a hell of a lot easier, although admittedly I have no idea about metric speeds.

[headsortails]

An update:-

The European Union is set to confirm it has abandoned what became one of its most unpopular policies among many people in Britain.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6988521.stm

[Freddy]

Any one fancy meeting up for a litre later?

[ant3b]

Any one fancy meeting up for a litre later?

I will but im only have a half

[headsortails]

Make mine a 0.47317647 litre.

[Sushi]

This is ridiculous. Fucking move on.

Why do people think it's patriotic to protect things like measurement as if it's a British institution or something? There's a fucking better system now just use it! It's the old fashioned arrogance and pomposity of ideas like this that I don't like about Britain.

At least the American's have an excuse for not being able to learn a new system - they're fucking stupid!

[headsortails]

This is ridiculous. Fucking move on.

Why do people think it's patriotic to protect things like measurement as if it's a British institution or something? There's a fucking better system now just use it! It's the old fashioned arrogance and pomposity of ideas like this that I don't like about Britain.

Equally it's just as stupid to change the labelling of a container for the sake of it.

[BBK]

This is ridiculous. Fucking move on.

Why do people think it's patriotic to protect things like measurement as if it's a British institution or something? There's a fucking better system now just use it! It's the old fashioned arrogance and pomposity of ideas like this that I don't like about Britain.

At least the American's have an excuse for not being able to learn a new system - they're fucking stupid!

Obviously there's a lot of stupid Brits too. Its completely moronic for anyone under the age of 40, as metric systems have been taught in this country since the 60's. I just dont understand the mentality of someone under 40 who wants to retain imperial.

[Nibb]

Make mine a 0.47317647 litre.

Actually its 0.568261485 litres.......yours is a US pint!

[Sushi]

Actually its 0.568261485 litres.......yours is a US pint!

Haha! I was gonna let that one lie!

Edit: It's a fair point, now that I think about it though - the only decent point brought up with the original article was trade with the U.S. yet it's often only the words that are the same and not the actual measurement!

[Nibb]

"I wouldnt let it lie!"

[Nibb]

I only knew because when I use a UK pint glass with a 500ml can its not full!