On 2003 Jul 13 Sunday 10:46, Terry Simpson wrote: > The article contains many falsehoods and many half-truths presented in a > misleading way. > > > "Britain finally did it-after 800 years. Some did it reluctantly, wanting > to stay with the old weights and measurement system, but after threats that > retailers could face fines up to $8,000 and possible imprisonment if they > refused to adopt the new system, Britons are obeying." > > False. You can use the old system if you want.
At a personal level, yes; but traders are bound to use metric. But it repeats the lie that there is 'possible imprisonment', and overstates the fines several fold. > "The January 1 rule states that selling most packaged or loose products in > imperial measures is now a criminal offense." > > False. You can sell these in imperial measures. ... No you cannot. Imperial measures can only be used as supplementary indicators. Metric size and pricing are mandatory. ... > "One pound of butter now weighs 0.45 kilograms," > > False. Butter is now sold in 250 g and 500 g packs. And has been for 20+ years! ... > "More than 60,000 retailers were ordered to convert 200,000 scales, at a > cost the government estimated at $54 million." > > This has been lifted from anti-metric web sites. The source appears to be > from a bizarre prediction in: > www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1994/Uksi_19942866_en_3.htm > However, the costs that were actually incurred have not been estimated. And such costs are tax-deductible. -- Chris KEENAN UK Metric Association www.metric.org.uk
