Latest blog about metric:
Hi, everyone,
On Thursday, 2018-05-24, the Liberian government announced that it would convert to the metric system.
In an announcement published in The Liberian Observer, the Minister for Commerce and Industry stated the " the government is committed to adopting the metric system to promote accountability and transparency in trade.”
The newspaper article quotes him as saying:
International agreements and decisions concerning trade and the social well-being of people increasingly require mutual recognition of measurements and tests among nations. The absence of such mutual recognition is considered a non-tariff technical barrier to trade and an impediment to environmental and health related decision making.
All of these agreements rest upon the development of equivalence of national measurement standard and the reliability of the link between national measurement standard and the relevant testing services in each country,
We are aware that to develop as a prosperous and industrialized nation and to gain competitive edge both within the ECOWAS region and on the global stage, there is no other choice than to rely on a developed national quality infrastructure that will provide the needed services to local producers and service providers.
The government will remain dedicated to following steps ECOWAS member states took to adopt the metric system to strengthen trade and industrialization, protection of health and safety of the consumers and the environment.
ECOWAS – The Economic Community of West African States
I’m sure that this is no surprise to any of you.
Best wishes,
Peter Goodyear,
Melbourne, Australia
_____________________________________________________________________________________
From: "Ressel, Howard R (DOT)"
Does that leave the US and Myanmar or has Myanmar converted or will they convert as well.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
On May 31, 2018, at 20:00, Mark Henschel wrote:
How can we get this information out to our Congressmen and Senators?
Mark Henschel
On Wed, May 30, 2018 at 4:11 PM, Peter Goodyear wrote:
Hi, everyone,
Myanmar announced its intention to convert to the metric system in 2015, but there has been only one mention of it in the news since then, according to Google.
The original announcement has been taken off the internet, but there is this video of a news announcement posted on 2015-10-22, and this magazine article from last year.
As I recall the Federal German Institute for Legal Metrology was announced as assisting Myanmar in the original news release. It is possible that the programme has stalled because it is not part of the new government’s agenda, but this is speculation.
According to this discussion on Reddit, which includes a comment by an observer there, you can see metric speed limit signs in Myanmar, but everyday mention of weights and measures is still Imperial. There are several inks there to follow, if you have the time.
I have had a quick look through the Myanmar Government web site, but most of the English-language pages are blank.
Best wishes,
Peter Goodyear,
Melbourne, Australia
_____________________________________________________________________________________
It isn’t light. It’s more like fog. Ever since I heard the news about Liberia, I have been singing a nursery rhyme parody to myself:
The States stand alone,
The States stand alone,
Hi-ho the derry-o,
The States stand alone!
(Or, if you prefer “the United States IS,” then, “the States STANDS alone.”)
I feel ashamed about this!
How much rhetoric is now going to flow about “American exceptionalism?” My sixth grade teacher had a great line that explains such an attitude: the marching boys were “all out of step but Jim.” At the very moment in world history in which uniformity of action in the international community is vital, the U.S. has to be an unconscious objector! Aren’t we one of the founders of the BIPM?
Still a lot of WOMBAT to clear away! More like 5000 km now.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The US or state by state need to follow Australia where metrication went quite smoothly.
John Altounji
http://bit.do/tounj
As the U.K. brings back imperial measurements, is it time for Canada to drop them?
Hi, everyone,
On Thursday, 2018-05-24, the Liberian government announced that it would convert to the metric system.
In an announcement published in The Liberian Observer, the Minister for Commerce and Industry stated the " the government is committed to adopting the metric system to promote accountability and transparency in trade.”
The newspaper article quotes him as saying:
International agreements and decisions concerning trade and the social well-being of people increasingly require mutual recognition of measurements and tests among nations. The absence of such mutual recognition is considered a non-tariff technical barrier to trade and an impediment to environmental and health related decision making.
All of these agreements rest upon the development of equivalence of national measurement standard and the reliability of the link between national measurement standard and the relevant testing services in each country,
We are aware that to develop as a prosperous and industrialized nation and to gain competitive edge both within the ECOWAS region and on the global stage, there is no other choice than to rely on a developed national quality infrastructure that will provide the needed services to local producers and service providers.
The government will remain dedicated to following steps ECOWAS member states took to adopt the metric system to strengthen trade and industrialization, protection of health and safety of the consumers and the environment.
ECOWAS – The Economic Community of West African States
I’m sure that this is no surprise to any of you.
Best wishes,
Peter Goodyear,
Melbourne, Australia
_____________________________________________________________________________________
From: "Ressel, Howard R (DOT)"
Does that leave the US and Myanmar or has Myanmar converted or will they convert as well.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
On May 31, 2018, at 20:00, Mark Henschel wrote:
How can we get this information out to our Congressmen and Senators?
Mark Henschel
On Wed, May 30, 2018 at 4:11 PM, Peter Goodyear wrote:
Hi, everyone,
Myanmar announced its intention to convert to the metric system in 2015, but there has been only one mention of it in the news since then, according to Google.
The original announcement has been taken off the internet, but there is this video of a news announcement posted on 2015-10-22, and this magazine article from last year.
As I recall the Federal German Institute for Legal Metrology was announced as assisting Myanmar in the original news release. It is possible that the programme has stalled because it is not part of the new government’s agenda, but this is speculation.
According to this discussion on Reddit, which includes a comment by an observer there, you can see metric speed limit signs in Myanmar, but everyday mention of weights and measures is still Imperial. There are several inks there to follow, if you have the time.
I have had a quick look through the Myanmar Government web site, but most of the English-language pages are blank.
Best wishes,
Peter Goodyear,
Melbourne, Australia
_____________________________________________________________________________________
It isn’t light. It’s more like fog. Ever since I heard the news about Liberia, I have been singing a nursery rhyme parody to myself:
The States stand alone,
The States stand alone,
Hi-ho the derry-o,
The States stand alone!
(Or, if you prefer “the United States IS,” then, “the States STANDS alone.”)
I feel ashamed about this!
How much rhetoric is now going to flow about “American exceptionalism?” My sixth grade teacher had a great line that explains such an attitude: the marching boys were “all out of step but Jim.” At the very moment in world history in which uniformity of action in the international community is vital, the U.S. has to be an unconscious objector! Aren’t we one of the founders of the BIPM?
Still a lot of WOMBAT to clear away! More like 5000 km now.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The US or state by state need to follow Australia where metrication went quite smoothly.
John Altounji
http://bit.do/tounj
As the U.K. brings back imperial measurements, is it time for Canada to drop them?