Brooks misled the juries:
i'm going to win eurosong. it may come as a shock...
Not least to the EBU, finding a United Station winning their Eurosong contest.

but the lastminute entry by me will win.
So last minute that it's not eligable: Brooks-TV having singularly failed to show last year's contest without any commercials in it.

there were many great entries...but my entry was the one with the most bribe money behind it.
You see, when the voting is done by phone poll in 23 countries, you need a really big bribe to force a win.

Besides, let me be frank, your singing made the Lithuanian entry sound tuneful.

So, onto the contest itself. I was impressed by the German song, "Reise Nacht Jerusalem", playing in Turkish, English, German and Hebrew, all in three minutes. The Spanish entrant was brightened by her dress, which resembled a loudly striped deck chair. Britain was flat, Iceland had lots of glitter, Sweden a shock in pink. Estonia played Irish music while dressed as Greeks. Portugal looked like Hanson might be in 15 years; Austria reminded me too much of the Banana Splits cartoon, while Bosnia's man was the bloke with the shrunk head from South Park.

From the bottom to the top... Two songs failed to break 10 points: Spain (1) wasn't much of a surprise; but the failure of Cyprus (2) amazed me. No real shocks to find Portugal, Lithuania, France, Poland and Ireland score under 20. Turkey got 21, should have been more. These get "F" grades.

"D" grades: Malta and Norway perform around expectations; Belgium can count themselves a little unlucky, but Britain should have done much better. These songs scored 32-38.

"C" grades: I predicted nothing for Slovenia. They got 50, including 27 from the first five juries - enough for the lead. Austria impressed more than I expected, scoring 65. 71 for the Netherlands (too low) and Denmark (higher than I expected, but not a bad tune at all) rounds this group out.

"B" grades: 86 for Bosnia, the second worst song (behind Poland) on the night. Were the juries watching the same show as the rest of us? Estonia made 90 points without ever featuring in anyone's top two, which is a wonderful result. Israel mounted a firm defence of their title; 93 points and 5th place was perhaps a little more than they deserved.

"A" grades: For a repetitive of last year's winner, Croatia did very well, scoring 118. Germany just pip Bosnia to the night's Over-Achievers Award, racking up 141 points and third place. Iceland came second, with 146 points, but finished some way behind Sweden's 163.

The winning song, "Take Me To Your Heaven", has the piano riff off "Waterloo", the verve and energy of Darlene Love's "All Alone On Christmas", the sax break and chorus harmonies of every Abba song, and becomes the second winning Swedish entry in nine years. Expect a massive hit across Europe.

Odd little thing. When I was in Toronto, my Laa-Laa jacket initially had a Kyle South Park pin on it. People had trouble understanding me. When I added a Newfoundland flag to Kyle, I got that bit more comprehension. Now, there are many reasons that could be behind this - I may have talked more slowly, or pronounced words in a more expected way - but it could be because the flag gave early warning of an unfamiliar accent ahead.

As for Terra Novans sounding like Brits: not in my experience. Some sound Irish, but less than people from Liverpool.

Chelle, the First Lady of Cool Things, with Dr Luuuurve
me + ed (my hubby) :+) = 93%
Coolness! (natch)

me + iain weaver = 75% (went up since i became 1st lady of cool)
You do me down, dear lady. Honourofics are there because they apply. Like Cory is the Laa-Laa of the Desert (inter alia). Or Sunshine Shana is Shana. But 3/4 of a kiss anyway.

But this all leaves Paulo to ask
What I'd like to see now, though, is their source code...
Knowing this lot, it probably runs on a converted MS Abacus, using active server pages, and a random number generator from 0 to 100.

Either that or it contains Flight Simulator as an easter egg.

In Musinews, we hear that an anti-abortion grouping takes offence at the concept of Lilith Fair, and urges a boycott of the related product. In related news, weaver takes delivery of volume 3.

Angela
I never said I was a Pascal fan
To be fair, I kinda think he's over-rated. His greatest invention, the Triangle, is a straight rip-off of Fibbonacci and Pythagoras. And his work with rabbits was just a cover for something far less savoury, I'm sure. His logic (as we've seen) was shot. [enough dissing math types - ed]

Jonathan
everyone seems to mispell my name that way.�Yet, I've never met someone who actually spelled it that way.
[quick beckon] Over here, chuck. 94% of British people with the long name are "Johnathan"s.

I don't believe you have a right to happiness at someone else's expense.
OK, fine. So, if something that would make you happy would also make one person, somewhere, unhappy, you wouldn't do it? If it might, possibly impinge on someone else you don't know?

I'm not sure what you've defined as the "impossible" that you're ruling out...� I was defining "impossible" as the two people getting back together.�I have the impression that you were defining differently.
Not really. I'm defining "impossible" as something that cannot happen. It is possible (though still hugely unlikely) for a deserting partner to return.

If a person wants to spend their entire life waiting for a "one in a million" chance, they have every right to do so.�I may find it foolish and wrong, but they can still do it.
There we must disagree. Clearly, trying to change your mind is going to be a waste of all our times, so I won't try.

For exposition, then: the main point of difference seems to be that I see nothing intrinsicly less in being single. If it's what feels best for you, then do it. Don't listen to other people who insist on pairing you off with every man/womin they meet. Being unattached can be - and is - a positive choice.

Brendan, not on Seaweed Radio CCLII
Actually, no, I don't listen to it unless I have to!
Confessions! (But good call. It went downhill when they stopped playing the American hits in 92.)

Victoria, welcome. I'm twenty..something.

Codsall: showers & 15 * Over 50 and out. Curses.
The theme from "Shaft" was his audition for the role of chef.

the career of isaac hayes in one line

In the bad pun corner, it's Sara.
Guys CAN have multiple orgasms - its just harder for them too.
Hurrah! for bad puns.

Chadboy, hello.

Priestess Mighty Max Cory, the Laa-Laa of the Desert, Slayer Falcon and Mr Loaf defender has far too long a name.
Being myself rather desperatly in love with someone who, not only can I not be with, but who doesn't ever want to speak to me again, I'm intrigued by this discussion.
Maybe we ought to swap notes. Here's a C-sharp.

I'm sixteen for Cods sake [Brem reference. Brem?]
ISTR that that was a Ben-ism. But you're probably right.

I'm getting to a point where I'm over the relationship.
What 'e' is one of the seven deadly sins, coloured green?

that in no way means I need to jump into another one right away.
Good point. If it's meant to happen, it'll happen. If it's not, it won't. Shocking, really.

I will not, in fact, be Across The Pond,
Shame! Shame!

What is peckishness?
Hunger. For food. Only, not quite so pronounced as hunger, more a slight emptiness.

Laura
List the major betrayals in your life.
It's politer not to. Most of them have happened to me, though I've been guilty of at least one.

What do you think a soul mate is?
The person who just fits in with you, like, totally.

Do you think you have found yours in your life?
Yes. This ties in with the previous topic rather well.

Do you think there is only one?
Well, I've only found one so far, and I'd be surprised if there were another. Stranger things have happened.

Apparently,
Im waiting for the "Kristine you big dolt" posts!
This can be arranged... Whatever floats your boat...

Lovers don't finally meet somewhere.
They're in each other all along.
Ew, gross.

Laura
Most women put in 2-4 hours a day, after an 8 hour work day, at home doing cooking, cleaning and care of the children. This happens in even the most liberated households. I am sure there are exceptions, of course, but this is a commonality. A role not shared equally with most male partners.
Even with all the hedging, there's something sticking in my gullet. Forinstans, take my parents. Dad cooks, cleans, washes up and irons. Mum feeds the washer, does the bathroom. Beds are made between them. Kids are tended between them. It's always been this way.

Betsy
we like each other and that's all that matters. I'm not expecting a serious commitment here and all but at least I know he likes me.
Hurrah! It's a result!!

This is the slot reserved for A Song For Eurosong. Only I don't have any more songs to review. Don't forget to watch the show, tomorrow night. It will be great.

you b*stards!

but I'll tape the whole thing and watch it on Sunday...
And I thought I was obsessed...

Speaking of things European, it would be remiss of me not to mention the all-conquering Manchester United side. Winning the Premier League is one thing. Winning the Cup is another. Winning the European Cup as well is quite amazing. And coming from 1-0 down to 2-1 up in second half injury time is the most breath-taking feat in many years of sport.

Seeing the three trophies side by side in the Homecoming Event last night: isn't the Euro Cup big, and the FA cup tiny.

on replay saturday afternoon, the quality was much better. must have been a bad line.

In "The Princess Bride", there's the character
buttercup
Is this film a complete ripoff of that great Bis-powered cartoon The Powerpuff Girls? I think we should be told.

Paulo
what is the current status of Shim City III? (also known as Mark Town (?), the Millenium Get-Together,
Not if I have anything to do with it, it won't. You see, the millennium isn't until August 2000 (if you're marking the first settlement of Vinland, now Terra Nova). And the calendar millennium doesn't end till 12.31.00.

It will be the End Of The 90s Bash, on the not unreasonable grounds that (er) it won't be the 90s when it's finished.

the Y2K survival gathering,
And that is almost half a century away (:

Is it still active? How many people are planning to go?
After blowing out the last two editions, I can't very well miss this one. Especially as there's no transoceanic flying involved.

Dates? Places?
All in good time, I'm sure. Let's let Markanshim return from their sojourn over the pond...

That said, I really can't wait...

Brendan
a NKOTB comeback! Has the world no shame?
Well, one of the songs is not going to set the world afire. But Jordan Knight's track has a certain something that could launch a solo career. Behind ex-members of Take That, natch.

And what is it with this Ricky Martin guy anyway? Can he even sing?!
Brendan, do you not listen to your own station's output? Did you not play "Un Dos Tres Maria" to death 18 months ago? Or "The Cup Of Life" last summer?

Angela quotes a lot of bible readings to support her points. I'm not going to touch those with a bargepole, as every discussion that goes there gets very heated, very quickly. However, I am going to pick apart her finale:
a logical argument about why it's better to believe than not to believe, it's called Pascal's Wager
Named, of course, after the great French mathematician, Blaise Pascal. Middle of the 17th Century.

There are 4 possibilities:
You believe in God and he doesn't exist.
You believe in God and he does exist.
You don't believe in God and he doesn't exist.
You don't believe in God and he does exist.
[case-by-case analysis snipped]
All things being equal, if you believe in God, you are covered. If you don't believe in God, there is a 50% chance you are f*cked.
Let me restate this another way.

1) Either God exists or doesn't.
2) If God does not exist, there is no afterlife.
3) If God does exist, and you believe in it, you go to heaven.
4) If God does exist, but you don't believe, you go to hell.

Now, all that everyone agrees on is point 1). God does or doesn't exist. Now, that states nothing about whether this God would save its followers and punish the rest; or whether said God rewards sceptics and gets nasty with sheep; or rewards everyone; or no-one; or...

The points 2, 3 and 4 have no logical connection to premise 1. They rely on an assumption of Christian faith, or secular humanist principles, removing all other options. The argument, therefore, reduces to "if you are a Christian, belief in God is superior, from this game theory model." That falls down as a tautology.

Personally, I can't follow it for the more fundamental reason, inconsistent with my theological calculus, that it posits a vengeful deity, complete with human flaws of jealousy and revenge.

More: http://home.lbcc.cc.ca.us/mlawrence/pascal.html

Emily, on People of the Century
Hitler is up there, in terms of affect on the world. Other people I thought of: Ghandi, Stalin, FDR,
Maybe I'm missing something, but why FDR?

whoever invented the computer
Again, Charles Babbage wasn't of this century. More the 1800s. Though the people behind the transistor might have a good case.

Also Florence Nightingale (poster girl of the aseptic nursing revolution), Jenner (pioneer of vaccines), Fleming (antibiotics, not Bond), Anne Frank and her family, Marconi of the communications revolution (and making another apt use of Signal Hill), Einstein, Curie. And then there's a list of politicians as long as one's arm. Maybe even Queen Elizabeth, who has given support and encouragement for half the century, and adapted to amazing changes.

BHX: cloud & 21 * weaver posts are a mail-list exclusive
Turnham Green ...and Tim has placed himself in nid there

playing mornington crescent... badly

Don't say you weren't warned. This is your print out and keep guide to all 23 competing tunes, with a brief review. Numbers are order in which they'll compete: this is for the televoting.

The Favourites (true odds < 20/1):
14 Cyprus - Eurodisco from out of nowhere
13* Iceland - Hookladen, catchy, cool
11* Netherlands - A fine, rocking country song
04 Croatia - It's Dana International Part II!
15* Sweden - Bouncy, jolly number, a lot like Abba
05* UK - Mellow soul.
23* Estonia - Enya puts in shock appearance!

Dark Horses (20/1 - 25/1):

03 Spain - Never quite catches fire
21 Germany - Heavily cliched, and that will hinder
19 Israel - More jollities than one can shake a stick at
07 Turkey - A fortnight in the sun in a three minute song

Midtable Tedium (25/1 - 33/1):

18* Austria - What's Austrian for Alisha's Attic?
02* Belgium - Breezy number, but unremarkable
20* Malta - A tad too boppy for my liking
10 France - Celine Dion meets Mariah Carey

Fifteen Points Would Be Good (33/1 - 45/1):

09* Denmark - Boyzone goes female on us
01 Lithuania - Dolores Cranberry over Enya's backing
12 Poland - Towering Ballads 'R' Us
17* Ireland - Ooomphless slow number
08* Norway - Clearly a rejected Backstreet Boy

The Dreaded Nul Points Looms (50/1 or worse):

22 Bosnia-Herzegovina - Tedious, turgid
06* Slovenia - Dull, dull ballad
16 Portugal - Reminds me of the Barenaked Ladies, oddly

Songs marked with * will be sung in English (or an approximation thereof.) Contrary to earlier reports, Turkey has now dropped a plan to switch from Turkish to English half way through. Israel will sing in Hebrew, with an English phrases thrown in for good measure, just like last year. Bosnia's chorus provides a neat summary of the plural declensions of the French verbs etre (to be) and avoir (to have). The other five countries sing in their national tongues (French, Portugese, Polish, Lithuanian and Spanish). And Germany will sing mostly in Turkish.

Dana International, last year's winner, will perform a Stevie Wonder number during the interval. According to our reporter on the spot, babe of the contest will be Croatia's Doris; this marks the first time the name Doris has been used in conjunction with pulchritude since the foundation of the Contest in 1956.

Further web links:
The official site: www.eurosong99.co.il/
Fan sites: www.eurosong.net/
www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~ajs/
The organisers: www.ebu.ch/tv/cec_frm.htm

Article extracted from wvr-news 1.21; all rights reserved.
BHX: sun & 24 * Diamond of light, shining so bright

musiquote: "diamond of light", the estonian entry.

referring to wb's cancellation of the season finale of buffy. bad move.

Owing to the delicate situation and sensibilities of our viewing audience, certain parts of this weaverpost have been expunged. In their place are the items that would have gone out originally. You're with weaverposts, a proud non-affiliate of WBTV: ACME programming by Wile E. Coyote.

The First Lady of Cool Things, Chelle
in the middle of "dying" the ceiling EXPLODED with all these pieces of silvery glitter ... they fell ALL over us, it was raining glitter!
Tell me, when did shim become stage manager for Hole?

Paulo
Say that you have two writers. One of them writes about love, romance and relationships, while the other one writes about.. umm, well, football. Which one would you consider the best one?
It depends on who they are. If the football writer is Patrick Barclay, and the romanticist any agony aunt, footy wins. If it's Decca Aitkinhead against Gareth Southgate, I'm with the relationships.

When it comes to judge crimes of this kind, there's always the risk of going too far into one sense or another... child abuse and the new laws passed recently in Spain, according to which the word of the victim would be enough to sentence the accused, even if there are no proofs of any other kind
I'd hope that wouldn't happen in an Anglo-Saxon system; certainly in England, even confessions with no other evidence are not enough to convict.

Laura
What do you think of daytime talk shows? Do you think they have any redeeming value or do you think they are purely manipulative?
Please, before dissing the genre totally, please come to Birmingham and listen to Ed Doolan one day. Ed is probably the most respected radio broadcaster in the Midlands, and talks equally well with Tony Blair as the old lady from number 54.

His show primarily helps people with their little troubles in life - a holiday flight that ran a day late, a found cat, or a question that bugged everyone down the pub. It's not unfair to suggest that Ed proves himself to be one of the people every single programme. He doesn't politicise, he just helps.

What do you think causes people to come on a talk show and air their problems?
In this case, because they know that someone will help.

Woud you ever go on a talk show? If so, for what reason/topic?
Either because I needed someone to bounce off, or coz I can help someone else out.

Ed Doolan airs on BBC WM and BBC CWR 9-12 Sunday-Friday. Other daytime talk show hosts are inferior. Period.

Have you seen 'Four Weddings and a Funeral'?
At last, one I can say yes to.

Thumbs up or down?
Up. A long way.

Favourite/Least favourite moments?
The first 15 words, which mean the film always airs on [4] at 9. Rowan Atkinson as a vicar. Signing.

[Incidentally, 4Weds is back on [4] this Sunday at 9. Synchronicity or what?]

And the notional sequel (starring Hugely Grant, with the same writers and similar plot), "Notting Hill", is the must-see film of the summer. Never mind Space Battles, go see Huge.

taking off that sunscreen song...

A Song For Eurosong 23/23

And finally, the Estonian entry. Sung in English, the title is "Diamond Of Night", performed by Evelin Samuel & Camille. Songwriters are Priit Pajusaar, Glen Pilvre & Kaari Sillamaa.

I don't know if anyone else around here knows of the Adiemus project, led by Karl Jenkins and Miriam Stockley. Or appreciated the connection between Tori's "Choirgirl Hotel" album and Enya. Coz that's the place this track is in. Ethereal vocals, over shimmering, pizzicato strings, a strong percussive base, and a major key tune. Eurosong fans: see "Nocturne", Norway's 1995 winner, and "The Voice", Ireland's entry in 1996, also (er) a winner.

This may just go the same way.

Those of you who want to stake some hard-earned cash might consider this Estonian entry (14/1), Belgium, Croatia and Turkey (all 20/1), or Israel (33/1).

Which leads to Brendan
And Ireland are going to win again. Probably.
Not through their own entry, I suspect. But given that Estonia's entry sounds like it should be Irish, they're back in there fighting (: Ireland are 12/1 with Lidbrokes.

Nieske
Holland is going to win!!!
Dutch: oh, the rolling country number. They have an excellent chance. Top 5, for sure. Only 8/1 in the betting.

I'm not really an eurovision-aholic (or whatever...)
A Euro-song-phile? Part of the European Song Mountain?

but I would really like to see the Netherlands winning
It's about time the Dutch won...

And Bobbsy
Great Britain will surely come from Eurovision victorious
They may be 4/1 favourites with the bookmakers, but I think those are way too short odds. On the other hand, it is a blatantly Eurosong song... Also up the top end, as usual.

Look out for the summary, cut out and keep guide to Eurosong on a list near you tomorrow. The show on Saturday night throughout Europe (Saturday afternoon on Spanish language stations in the USA, and [IIRC] A&E in Canada, Sunday morning in Australia) Consult the website, www.eurosong99.co.il Or wait for my report Sunday.

Back to Laura
List the natural phenomena that really unnerve you.
Thunderstorms. A blowy storm I'm fine with, even next to a cliff edge. Snowstorms are okay. But thunder is bad.

I think that if you are going to be with someone you should be honest .. It hurts so much when you catch someone in a lie, or you realize that they lied to you at one point.
There's no arguing with that one! Good points.

TFLOCT Chelle
the hard truth is you can't trust anyone. :+)
Can we trust you on this?

Now, what, pray tell, is wrong with people with ages in double digits appreciating a fine comedy? No-one suggested "Spice World" was a work of art, or hugely intelligent, or life altering, or anything other than silly. Unlike Intergalactic Conflict, or whatever.

Brendan on 'The Devil's Own'
Another Americanisation of the Irish 'problem'. Misguided is probably how I'd describe it.
On a good day... or complete drivel and hogwash dressed as sensible and/or accurate comment.

in true s*d's law, we found the next day it would finish its run on itv.

Elizabeth
TIME magazine is having a poll on who was the most important person this century.
My vote's with Karl Marx. Despite his untimely death late last century. Just shows what a mechanistic invention the century is.

keyoneohthree on Owen Hart
is this a hoax, or is it for real?
It is tragically for real. I've a transcript of the commentary from usenet. Makes chilling reading. [David Boothroyd is thanked]

Francis
If I can't trust someone to tell the truth in peacetime, I won't risk mine and others' lives to that someone in wartime.
This leads to an interesting position when one's commander is clearly not to be trusted with the truth. One the one hand, the perfectly noble decision not to trust a proven liar; on the other, the clear rules to obey superiors first and ask questions afterwards. Heck, you know what I'm getting at y'all.

one of the issues governing negotiations with the government of the Republic of Yugoslavia is that of saving face for Slobodan Milosevic.
Of course, if we're to believe Jamie Shea (NATO briefings, 13h UTC daily) and the British MoD briefings (10h30 UTC daily, not Sunday) there's no domestic face to save. So our diplomats are trying to save something that our military people are saying isn't there. I'm confused!!

Good to hear from Francis again, anyway.

Angela
According to my knowlege of the use of the term - unless a man is taking specific medications or suffering from a specific illness, he will not have multiple orgasms
Let me apply Holmes' Rubric: medicines were not taken, so either I'm ill, or Angela's definition or information are not accurate. None of these are ruled out. Yet.

Nieske
we're going on vacation in August (to England... anyone wants to meet? i'd love to get to talk to all of you
Weaver waves a grubby paw in the air. If you're visiting Stratford on Avon (Shakespeare's place), let me know. It's just down the train line for me.

Keep an eye on things when I'm gone. Keep a lid on things.
BHX: showers & 17 * wvrposts are mail-list exclusive.

musiquote: keep a lid on things, the crash test dummies

Chelle
when humans first lived, their life span was somewhere around 20 years of age, but the onset of fertility and ability to reproduce was not much different than today (say 12 or 13) and the death rate at birth was astonishingly high (more than 50%, if i remember right) and if you work out the math taking all those things into consideration, on average, if people procreated only with their own family members, eventually the given family unit would die out because there would be no one left to procreate with one another.
But then the whole of humanity would have passed away within a finite number of generations (iterations). On some very back of a napkin calculations: a 50% rate of death during birth, 20% of children whose mothers die survive, and a geometrically-distributed model of births per fem, mean 3.5, 50% of births fem. That reduces a population of 2000 to 1 inside 11 generations.

A stable population would require 30.98% death-in-birth rate, 3.5 kids per fem. Or 50% death, 6.666 kids per fem.

Crucially, this model takes no account of relationships between generations, which would increase the numbers.

Sara
Those are feelings, and you can't rationalize them, and say 'do the best you can' and 'don't make yourself miserable' - because its not like that.
Hurrah! Someone who knows of the road I'm coming from. I'm still too fragile to discuss these things in any great detail right now. But I am a good deal happier than I was the back end of last year.

I'm not saying that the solution is to fall in love with someone else - just that you can't always just let go - it has to be time for you to do so
And who is to say it ever will be time?

Brendan, hope you caught Jewel on Radio 2 (UK) last Saturday. Playing live in the famous Maida Vale studios. Kewl. "I fancy the guys in red (for the cup final); they're all cute and stuff."

Five days to go, and it's Song For Eurosong 22.

The song from Bosnia is called "Putnici", sung by Dino & Beatrice. Music and lyrics are by Dino Dervishalidovic. The song replaces the original winner, "Starac I More". That was disqualified for being previously released.

It's a good substitution, replacing a dull bloke strumming his guitar with a bloke strumming a guitar. It starts flamenco, but soon drops into a monotone. It picks up a little during the chorus, and might be decent with a lot of hearings. But Eurosongs need to be immediate, and this isn't.

Sara
I think its about time for another london get-together - what does everyone say? is anyone interested? *smiles* Let me know, and I'll start planning it!!
ISTR that Cory and/or Sash!a would be in the country over the summer. Any dates, or is it all off?

Owing to my moving house, I'll be out of circulation till mid June. So hold it early that month .. (;

Speaking of the slayer...
Are you mocking the great and powerful Meatloaf?????? Iain, this could bode badly for you.
Au contraire, mon ami. There's always a certain peckishness in the stomach after listening to his choons for three hours straight. And his records are more agreeable than the dish. Though not as agreeable as a whole evening of Buffy (:

Well, with Australia in a position of having to beat Bangladesh or face certain elimination from the World Cup, remember that you can catch live commentary from the Lords.org website. Hurrah for technology!

BHX: sunny spells, 17 * Eurosong: 5 days and counting.

A few points. Don't read any supreme incidence into the slightly revised email address: it's simply that hotmail has been so slow recently that I've shifted most items to this account. Mails to another system will still be read.
I'll be moving house in a couple of weeks time. Any snail mail to my old address (40 .. 2EJ) will still reach me, eventually. Phone number won't. New address and (when I'm in) number on the usual basis.
And maybe I should have spoilered Thursday's post. But I have no regrets for not doing so. Baker's been convicted and given life in jail.

Which leads on to Paulo and the pome
most of the accusations in it would fall into Eric Raymond's definition of "holy wars": "in a holy war, most of the participants spend their time trying to pass off personal value choices and cultural attachments as objective truths". Don't know if anybody else gets this mental connection...
I think I see where you're coming from, but many of the items mentioned were more general fem things than ideosyncracies (sp?) Applicable on a general level, and appreciated by many, even if not quite literally true.

Shana
this bug just went "WHAM you're sick!" and I was.
Terrible little beastie! Away wi'ye!

I couldn't even keep water down, that's how bad it was
Sounds like the one that hit me a couple of weeks back ):

that's a loud ringing in chigley, an item in bagpuss' shop, and kevin officially obsessed

And websites? www.mscl.com is good. So's www.mun.ca/muse/ And the ones in the sig.

wow. drawing comparisons with the ira and future sound of london in one swoop

Paulo recalls
"When the going gets tough..." by Billy Ocean (80s rocks!!!)
Far more than a crap Irish boy band covering this in a style that would disgrace a karaoke singer down the pub. And all in the name of charidee.

Alysa
I've never started any rumors
Who told you that?! Hey, Jean, there's a girl who says she never started any rumours...

Laura
listening to the new Lilith Fair CD's!!! The live version of 'Kiss Me' (Sixpence None The Richer) is soooo pretty!!!!
Jolly good. I've ordered that one, and the Dawson's soundtrack, from a well-known online store. With the single in the stores this week, I'll have more kisses than the Prince store.

What singer or band do you find yourself listening to most frequently?
In a week - Geri Halibutanyway.
Over a month - the New Radicals, Britany Spears, the BNL
Over a year - Spices and spinoffs, Tori, any decent singer-songwriter (being female helps).

What CD's are getting the most play in your life?
Right now: Geri's single, the Grammy nominees, Robbie Williams' "Ego", said BNL, and the best of Sinatra.

can someone change from being a good person, to bad, or a bad to a good?
IME, it's possible. Unlikely, rare, not to be expected in the normal run of things, but possible. Most of that would be accounted for by different perceptions of the same person.

Johnathan
Funny, thought I said that.�If not, then I said something really similar.
Checking my archive, it's option b.

If ... you will only be happy if someone else isn't, then I'll be glib again.�Get over it!�Stop living your life in other people's eyes.
This advocates complete freedom of treading on toes.

I do not believe people have either the responsibility nor the power to make someone else happy if they don't want to be.�So, deal with your own happiness and let them deal with theirs.
As does this. Let people deal with their own happiness, or lack thereof.

People do have to the power to make others miserable, and to this, I say STOP!
...and then comes the 180-degree turn. So, on the one hand, it's fine to do your own thing so long as it makes you happy; on the other, you can't make anyone else unhappy.

No wonder fine brains have trouble with this concept.

What "happy" means to 2 different people is just that, different.
I guess it all depends on what the meaning of "meaning" is.

Or not.

one of two things will happen.�They will decide they never want to see you, or they will compromise their beliefs and the two of you will never be truly happy.
Sherlock Holmes 101: once one has ruled out the impossible, the possible must be considered, no matter how unlikely it is. It is possible for t'other person to see that they have, in fact, messed up. It may be heavily unlikely, but it's possible. (And may happen anyway in future lives, but that's a whole other topic)

the spouse never comes back, and the person has wasted (yes, wasted) their lives waiting for something that is not going to happen.
Charging that someone has wasted their life is a very serious one indeed. You may consider that their life hasn't amounted to much, but you're not living in their shoes 24/7. They may be doing something else that you don't get to see.

it's their own damn fault for not moving on, for not making something out of their lives.
Isn't this a little presumptive?

you can just be the best "you" that you can be.�And be proud of yourself for getting up in the morning, for continuing to fight and to work.
Why is this inconsistent with waiting for someone else to see their error?

Judy
Although you appreciate all you have and all you get. Sometimes there is something or someone who is just missing in your live that would just make you "sublimely happy". :) And it is not lying in your hands if that something or someone will become a part of your life.
At least that how I see Iain's comment. (Tell me if I am wrong, Iain!)
Spot on, Judy. Couldn't try to put it better myself.

Quoting me,
>It's always a he, isn't it
I know, sorry. It is not always a male driver who drives like stupid drunk idiot.
It isn't? It isn't? Well, that's news to me, it is indeed.

AndiWD
If you can read this, thank a teacher.
Shan't. Some of us are self-taught readers. And resent being assumed to be dependent on others to do that.

more from this poster in the comment tags

A double dose of Song For Eurosong

20/23: Malta

The copy I have is dubbed from the television speaker, and isn't good quality. From what I can tell, it's a decent girl group song, the sort that the Spice Girls would reject but pass on to their favoured protegees.

Maybe I should have asked at local radio stations: PBS, the Maltese station behind their entry, mailed all the EBU's radio stations with copies of this in April. I think that's in breach of the rule that says thou shalt not promote outside thine own territory, but I'm probably wrong.

The song will either do tolerably well, but could be just so mediocre as to end up with a single point score. Which would be a comedown after finishing 8 behind last year's winner.

Eurosong 21. It's Germany

The German song will be "Reise Nach Jerusalem", sung by group S�rpriz, composed by Eurovision veteran Ralph Siegel. The song gained its place after the disqualification of the song "H�r Den Kindern Einfach Zu" which won the vote for the German selection.

There's some form of controversy regarding the next two entries. Germany and Bosnia both found their songs had been previously published. This is a respectable, upbeat number, but it plods along in a statesmanlike way, with plenty of twiddly bits, and cascading chords, but never raising the eyebrow. Not going to do much, really.

Helene, welcome.

so before you say what you desire... * CDS: sun & 17

musiquote: hepburn, i quit

A couple of things that are linked.

First, Deborah Orr in a column from The Independent yesterday.

The Old Bailey trial of Richard Baker, the disc jockey denying four rapes, two indecent assaults and one attempted indecent assault, is disturbing in many ways, but one of the most striking aspects of this man's testimony is his use of "the Clinton defence". He claims that he did not rape his four accusers because, he says, his sexual attacks did not involve penetrative sex, rather in the manner that Clinton denied having an affair with Monica Lewinsky.

He does admit to stalking the four women, attacking them, terrorising them, intimidating them and indecently assaulting them. But their rape, he denies. Anyway, he considers rape to be "battering you black and blue and leaving you for dead". Others may consider this to be a little closer to a definition of murder, but at least it has the dubious merit of being entirely distinguishable from "date rape", or from what some people, more than likely the President of the United States among them, prefer to call "bad sex".

Although it would be comforting to be able to write off Baker's ideas about rape as outlandish, the truth is that many young men foster beliefs about rape and violence against women that are as reprehensible as Baker's.

In a poll conducted last year by the Zero Tolerance Trust, it was found that one in five men thought it acceptable to rape his wife; one in seven believed that raping a girlfriend was OK if they'd been going out for a long time; one in ten believed rape was fine if the man was "so turned on, he can't stop"; and nearly half of the sample of 2,000 young people in Manchester, Glasgow and Fife considered that violence or abuse against women was sometimes excusable.

While we all know that until recently it was legally impossible to rape your wife, at least these young men appear to recognise that all sex without consent is rape. That "rape is rape is rape is rape is rape" has long been a feminist mantra, which is why Fay Weldon got into such hot water with the sisters when she declared that "worse things than rape can happen to a woman".

But, in some respects, the Baker case affirms her view. For what we are hearing about from the Old Bailey is pretty wild: that under the law the occurrence of penetration is what makes a man a rapist, and that under the law the sexual ordeal his victims have undergone would somehow be diminished if they had experienced every physical manifestation of his misogyny except the intrusion of his penis into their vaginas. For, again drawing a Clintonesque distinction, Baker has admitted to forcing a 15-year-old, Miss E, to perform oral sex on him, but denies her allegation that he had sex with her in three positions.

This certainly worries me, and confirms my view that in sex-crime cases there is too much attention paid to what the penis is doing, and too little paid to what is the aim of the consciousness attached to the penis. My misgivings about blanket definitions of rape began a few years ago when two British "date rape" cases provoked a heated debate.

In one, a woman has sex with a man, Austin Donnellan, whom she says she didn't want to have sex with, and he walks free. The other undergoes nothing more than a baroque pass, but sees its perpetrator, Angus Diggle, sentenced to prison for three years as a sex offender.

The phrase "date rape" didn't putter over the Atlantic until years after my own experience. But when it arrived I realised that it was a worthless, even dangerous, distinction when it came to sexual violence against women. I still don't believe that anything would have happened if I had reported that man to the police. It would have been his word against mine. But I do wish that I'd told everyone I knew what had happened to me and warned them against falling into the trap that I had.

I do believe that there are different kinds of rape and sexual violation, and that the distinctions are all to do with the kind of kick a man is after when he forces any kind of sexual advance on another person. The law should reflect that, because at the moment our definition of rape is both too broad and too narrow to protect us.

We need to rethink our definitions of rape so that men cannot stand in a dock making petty physical distinctions that they claim stop them from being rapists, and so that ordinary young men stop believing that sometimes rape is not an unforgivable violation. Most of all we must find a way of making it clear that men rape women with their minds as well as with their sexual organs.

--

And, second, one that's been doing the rounds at work

Everday I give thanks to the Goddess
I have two mounds upon my bodice
I shave my legs, I sit down to pee
I can justify any shopping spree
Not to a barber, but a beauty salon
Can get a massage without a hard on
Can balance the checkbook, pump my own gas
Can talk to my friends about the size of my ass
I always save money by using coupons
Can admit to others when I am wrong
Don't drive in circles at any cost
So I don't have to admit when I am lost
Don't act like I'm in a timed marathon
Every time I go to the john
Let me tell you men
Listen to me boys
Those things in your pants
That you treat as toys
You love them more then we ever will
We would rather suck on a cold pickled dill
I spend two hours preparing for a date
Only to find you're two hours late
I don't watch movies with lots of gore
Don't need instant replay to remember the score
I won't lose my hair
I don't get jock itch
And just cause I'm assertive
Don't call me a bitch
I don't wear the same underwear everyday
The food in my fridge has no sign of decay
I don't go to Sears
To look at the tools
I don't cheat at poker
I follow the rules
I don't read magazines about cars
Don't pay for drinks at bars
I don't punch my friends just to say "Hi"
And it's o.k. for me to cry
I know all you men
Think that you're "IT"
But compared to a woman
You just ain't SHIT!

Brum: sunny & 21 * More like this on wvr-news at onelist

Beware of marauding Spanish and Italian fans at Villa Park tonight. The Last Ever Cup-Winners' Cup Final is contested between the team that knocked Chelsea out, and the team that knocked out the team that knocked Haifa out. Wilkomen in Birmingham.

Judy
What really drives me crazy is people who don't use their blinker at all!!!! How should other people know where they want to go? You drive behind someone and suddenly he just turns right or left without a warning!!!!
It's always a he, isn't it. One person on the telly has fitted a video camera on his centre mirror, and lets police have edited lowlights of his tapes. Apparently, there have been prosecutions...

Jason
I've only posted two or three times in the last year so I wouldn't be surprised if no-one remembered me!
Like an elephant, we never forget. Not all of us at the same time.

I'm going to make an effort to post more.
Hurrah! Excellent idea.

Chelle
our spirits can cut a rug at the prom, whaddya say?
Well, you know what happened now. Not that I'm letting too much slip to this barrel of gossips...

Sunshine
I'm glad once I hit 13 I was allowed to choose if I wanted to go or not :)
You got out at 13? Some of us had to wait till gone 16 ):

the muse

Amanda Labonte is news editor of The Muse, MUN's campus newspaper. She also gives the impression of having a halo more shiny than the sun, and has all the spirit and joie de vive of the yellow Teletubby. The nicknames follow.

Paulo, quoting me, quoting someone else

"Faith, hope and charity.
Love is the greatest of the three.
Love without faith is hopeless, you see..."
[Ten points for anyone who can identify that song]

isn't it taken from the Bible? From St. Paul's letter to the Corynthians? (sp?)
Only the first two lines are from Saul. The rest (well) aren't.

And isn't this precisely what the choir is singing at the end of the movie "Three colors: Blue", which music was composed by Zbigniew Preisner?
I'll take your word on that, oh movie expert.

Or are you talking about something more britpop?
More modern, certainly. It's from an American gospel singer, Frances Nero, who had a minor pop hit in 91 with "Footsteps Following Me", whence come the lyrics above.

On nottinghill.com
They will probably include spoilers for Star Wars, in an attempt to drain public from it...
Naah. Notting Hill opens June in the UK, Star Bores doesn't land till mid July.

Russ, welcome
will M.S.C.L ever be released on PAL video in the UK?
Good question. I know that they're only coming out in the North American markets now, four years after the show aired. Your best bet may be to keep an eye on some of the digital and cable channels for news of reruns. Channel 4's rights must have expired by now, leaving the field free for Trouble / Rapture / Disney / Granada / Carlton to pick them up.

In Ohio, Alison, welcome.

A Song For Eurosong [19/23]

The Israeli entry for Eurosong 99 is "Yom Huledet", "Birthday". It will be performed by boy-band Eden, half of the four members are Israeli and half are of American origin. The members are Doron Oren, Refael Dhaan, Gavriel Butler and Edi Butlet. The song is written by Moshe Datz, Gavriel Butler, Jacub Lymai and Jacky Oved. Moshe Datz is a popular Israeil singer who represented Israel with his wife Orna as part of group Duo Datz in 1991, with Kan. Moshe also composed the 1995 entry Amen.

Eden has a strong act to follow, Dana International winning the contest last year, and Israel also won last time they held the contest in 1979. Why change a winning formula? This is an upbeat number that sounds a lot like early Take That or Backstreet Boys.

We wondered if Eurosong was ready for disco last year, found it was, and see more of the same this year. Key change at 2:22, in a song primarily sung in Hebrew - except for the title line, "Happy Birthday to you." Another one to put on the Should Do Well stack. A stack that's becoming rather too full.

Sash!a
What sort of boots are best?
Doccers. No other boot fits the bill.

neither heat nor the editor have websites

Do you get any magazine subscriptions?
Nope.

What is your favourite magazine?
Probably EW.

List the things you will not tolerate no matter what.
Bad grammar in public speeches. They've planned what they're saying to the last word, they're trying to make an impression, but they have to mess up.

Lying. An honest "don't know" is infinitely preferable to deception.

Failing to learn from ones mistakes. Anyone can screw up, that's being human. Not learning from those errors is plain daft.

Deliberate intolerance.

Petty mindedness, refusal to admit being wrong, the jobsworth attitude.

Blatant discrimination on age, sex, colour, shoe size.

Do you read the newspaper? Daily? Weekly? Only on Sundays?
As mentioned above, I get Friday's Grauniad, and read that across Saturday. Occasionally, I'll add a Sunday to the mix, but usually wait for Monday's more comprehensive sport sections.

What newspaper do you read most often?
In hand: Times, Graundia, Independent. On the web: those three, plus Toronto's Sun, Hartford's Courant, St John's Telegram. Occasionally: Sport First, Sunday Telegraph.

five live - with real audio

Donald
Billy Bob Gates all mighty Hotmail has amazingly encountered a glitch.
Only one? Good day...

Better put the world domination on hold Bill, untill you can fix Hotmail. (a world dictator with a poor email system will get mocked at all the World Leader Jeopardy competitions).
Even worse, [email protected] might get annoyed at the lack of progress with his mail, and launch a pre-emptive attack to "diminish and degrade" the microsoft war machine. Spokesman [email protected] regrets the civilian casualties, but points out that Gatesovic's habit of crashing machines daily does make them legitimate targets. Just so long as NATO's planes aren't powered by NT, they won't crash, added Shea.

Microsoft stock is down 94%.

Jo debates school uniforms, and takes issue with
"Others who do not belong"!
Consider the context. Uniforms are being used to distinguish between the pupils of one school, who have an implicit right to be on the grounds, and those of another school, who don't. It is a sad fact that people wearing the colours of other schools are only ever there for competitive purposes - whether that's organised sport, or gang warfare.

the uniform "final solution">
Oh, quit abusing the language. You want us to draw conclusions with Hitler's "final solution", don't you. Do you seriously think this is justified? Can you explain any moral equivalence between the two?

imagine being an undersized girl at a prestigious private school, leaving the safety of the school gates and travel home, past many kids from underprivileged schools and areas - instantly recognisable as an easy target from "that snob school".
Unsettling, yes. But it would be easy to work out which school such a person attended no matter what they wore. Not using uniforms doesn't address the social inequality that's at the root of your concern.

school uniforms are outrageously expensive in comparison with, say, jeans and T-shirts.
Comparing like for like, this is a valid point - schools and outfitters benefit from a monopoly position. However, every school I know of - even in the poorest parts of the West Midlands - had some form of help for families who needed it.

Dressing children all the same, instilling a "them and us" mentality,
How are the two linked? Does a separatist mind-state come only from dress, or is it based in other factors as well? Factors such as the prevailing ethos of the school.

schools should encourage discussion of why lookism
?Que? Quis "lookism" est?

exists, and why we as human beings have a need to identify and target victims.
A debate that might well be won by a pro-uniform camp, in order to discourage the differences you seem dead set against.

Laura
Ask yourself if you want to be happy. If you do, then do something about it.
Glib words. How do they square with actions, especially if your hapiness can come only at someone else's. Or if the steps to your hapiness are blocked.

Cheeky casts his mind back four years

I didn't know what ICQ, IRC, FTP, HTTP,
No? Where had you been (;

MP3, Linux, Open Source,
In fairness, neither had I for these three.

Internet Explorer or Windows 95 was.
At that time, those two were vapourware. Promised, but not delivered till August. (Anyone remember ie1? Crap, wasn't it.)

Oh my. Listening to ozfm, and there's a PIA (public information announcement) in the style of "Wear Sunscreen". "Don't have a camp fire. Don't throw trash out of your car window. Gas prices will rise."

Johnathan
I seem to remember them examining the carbon dating process as well, suggesting that it isn't as accurate as we would like to believe.
Even allowing again for experimental error (something I'm sure they'd have figured in originally), we can't get a date before about 1000 AD. Still way too late to be around at the time of Pilate.

Dan
I heard that it was the image of Leonardo Da Vinci on the shroud, and it is thought to be the oldest known example of a photograph. Apparently the Catholic Church of the time commisioned it.
Interesting theories. Sound more plausible than the "it's a face of Jesus" ones. Though how come the Vatican has changed its story on what the object is, and done so in the space of decades? Where's the hotline to Rome when we need it?

Bobbsy
Perhaps I should post to the list about my strange name duality
Yes, perhaps you should...

Chelle is right. Sister Machine Gun rock. mp3.com now, guys.

Kids on the back seat cause accidents. Accidents on the back seat cause kids
Brum: cloudy, rain later, 19 * icq 14441391

Kevin kinda brought this on himself
I know that the world is not a strictly logical place, but there's not too much else that so many people agree on, so as a tip for all, try not to phrase things so that folks can twist them around on you.� (Time for someone to twist around what I said...)
So, Kevin, this theory of yours that Cartman's Mom is not a Dirty Slut, but is, in fact, the offspring of the Mayor of South Park and Officer Barbrady...

Sasha
it's the essential guide to seeing Sash this summer!!!!
As opposed to the essential guide to seeing Sash! (the Belgian dance act with just one song) this summer. Here, for the sake of revealing everything we know, is the Essential Guide to Seeing Sash! This Summer:

1) Don't.

Dan, Bobbsy, welcome. Thanks for the link; it does seem to keep a more level head than some I've seen on the topic.

Sara, on adamaneve
Jesus would have to have told this story to everyone, since they couldn't possibly have known it themselves (either that.. or its made up by someone.)
I'm filing under option B. A complete make up job.

[random plug]
NPR.org gets a million hits a day. Over 50% of them have never heard the station, according to a representative quoted on Radio Netherlands. I've heard some of the real audio on there, and it's great.
[/random plug]

Johnathan
(Supposedly, the shroud of Turin, which is supposed to have Christ's face etched into the fabric.� Saw a fascinating special on this where they tried to either prove or disprove if it was a fake or not.� Very interesting, but they didn't prove a thing.)
We may have watched different shows... but the Shroud was dated in 1988 as being from 1260-1390, and hence a blatant fraud. There's no historical record of it existing before 1260, either.

Joey
why is there this liposuction advertisement everytime I log on to yahoo?
Good question. It seems the b*stards have moved away from graphical banner ads in favour of text based ones for other yahoo "products" and "services" (aka ad chances). They killed the reason for webwasher! You b*stards!

What is the definition of a serial dater?
Someone who has one or two dates with a large number of people, but never books themself twice for the same night (otherwise they would be a parallel dater). And sorry it's not so funny, but other people beat me to the gags.

Chelle
there are 7 stoplights.� of those 7, while i had the green, 4 times someone ran a red light!� and i don't mean like, they snuck through and then my light turned green soon after.. i mean, it was BLATANTLY green and these people just drove right through going the other way.
They wouldn't get away with that over here. Crossing a red light is a 75-quid-three-point penalty, unless there's a darned good reason (like, avoiding an accident, or a cop tells you to.) Twelve points takes your license away for a year.

what is everyone's biggest driving pet peeve?
Well, I don't drive myself, so my worst annoyance is people who ignore pedestrians and cyclists. Like, pull out at junctions and block the pavement, or rev annoyingly when I'm walking at a sensible place.

what do you think should be done about people who just plain can't drive?
License, shredder, test, retake.

what should we do with ourselves?
Get helecopters piloted by computers. Nice, LINUX ones. I wouldn't trust an NT powered helecopter, lest it crash.

Laura, on Star Wars
What do you think the main theme of the story is?
Merchandising Rules.

Felicity, welcome also to the home of bizarre and fun conversation.

Angela's dislikes...
The method of decorating plates in restaurants which is to make it appear like someone has held a fistful of Stuff from a high altitude and then released it with great force so it can splatter "artistically" over the plate.
Are we sure it's deliberate, and not just the reaction of some patrons to the fare?

American food commercials.
They're commercials. And they're American television commercials. I'm with this one already...
Mom presents the family with some wholesome nourishing Food and GUESS WHAT!? It isn't f***ing good enough! "Meatloaf again!" they whine.
Take them to the stereo, put in Mr Loaf's Greatest Hits CDs, and make them listen to it all. Without anything to eat. See if they turn the dish down three hours later...

People who race to the gas station to fill up before the gas prices rise 4 cents a gallon.
With petrol is as cheap as it is in the US, this seems silly. UK motorists pay 80p per litre ($2 per liter for Canada, $5 a gallon for the US), which means a 3% increase in cost will pay off.

"Live from the scene" news stories that show the newsperson standing forlornly in the middle of the night in front of the local courthouse ... everyone went home hours ago.
What is wrong with a reporter joining the presenter in the studio? If nothing else, it saves the OB cost, and lets the reporter get her story just right.

Does coffee on restaurant menus always have to be listed as "served piping hot"? Not only is the universally used menu-ese boring but it's also a big fat lie.
Not quite. Under EU directive 96/1009/EU, "chaud d'pippe" is defined as any temperature that would bend a pipe cleaner (as specified in 91/3255/EU) held at a height of 5cm over a regulation mug (93/199/EU). That makes "piping hot" anything above 35.41 Celsius (95.738 F)

Police Talk
Where the officer is proceeding in a north-westerly direction along code E2F 3T9 (walking along the high street). Or reviewing the latest in a series of melodic/lyrical combinations that are intended for consumption in a continent-wide festival in or around 13 days from now. That's

A Song for Eurosong 18/23

The Austrian entry is "Reflection", sung by 17 year-old Bobbie Singer, music by American-born Dave Moskin. "Bobbie Singer" is the stage name of Tina Scho�er. She has had one hit in Austria, "Egoistic".
This is an upbeat song, with a performer that sounds more like a chipmunk than the throaty standard of the rest of the entries. It sounds like a lot of other songs in general, and any Alisha's Attic tune in particular. Which, it has to be said, is no bad thing.
Dark horse? Quite possibly.
[Full disclosure: weaver was filmed by Austrian tv for a promo clip before last year's contest. He knows not if the clip aired.]

that'll be off "gordon"

the T.V. experiences that touched you most deeply.
obMSCL: Three days into student house, watching show on little black and white telly, hearing shriek as Rayanne's troubles in "Other People's Female Relations" hit. Someone else is watching. It's not just me. Is there an email exchange group, I wonder...
Buffy's pilot episode. You guys had built it up into something amazing, and it didn't let me down.
Being able to not watch wall-to-wall coverage of Diana's Dead. BBC2 showed Sunday cricket, (4) had Italian football. I'd not planned to watch either, neither had Ali, but a break from the moroseness was needed. And it confirmed my view that I don't want to be a part of a country that makes such a mess of people's lives.
A lot of people have mentioned the Colombine shootings. It didn't get wall-to-wall coverage over here, owing to the time difference, a bombing in London the previous weekend, and NATO finally admitting blowing up a refugee convoy. Lead story for Wednesday, but in proportion to the other stories.

What would you take on an airplane to read?
"Namedropper". Lisa's sister's book. Light, frothy, and you may be able to identify some of the characters in it. Or a tabloid paper from the place I'm leaving, or other small format periodical (SI is good: Billboard is not.)

Paulo
Go Arsenal!!!! (but we want Anelka for Real Madrid anyway).
Go MUN in Barca! One European Championship and no Danish goalkeeper (or something like that). Good luck with Anelka, he's a snip. Whatever the price.

Well, if it's the 16th, Cory has been with us for three years. Hurrah! And shimelle's collage days are over, right?

Codsall: cloudy & 14 * England in Cricket Match Win Shock! * Midland Metro starts 5/31

Mae's off. Bu**er.

Sara invites me to
run, run to a Tempo store.
If I started from home now, I might get to the nearest one - in Banbury - in about 14 hours. Even by train, it's over an hour away. ): But AIUI, the discs are limited by the capacity of the system, which implies a national rollout. But not over the country boundary (sorry, Brendan)

its possible that time was measured differently
Way back when scientists say the earth was formed, the year lasted around 450 days. Thanks to the moon's dragging all the water around the planet, it's slowing in rotation by ickle bitty bits. That explains the leap seconds, put in to slow time down by (roughly) one second every 18 months. That's over a minute a century.

the phrase i was looking for was "cloning". d'oh!

roman time divided the day into 12 hours, so a june hour is twice as long as a december hour.

Matthew
Maybe, just maybe, God is actually an Extra-Terestreil being with what appear to use to be Super-Human powers.
Maybe we should ring him up and ask him. Eli, would you be so kind as to do that? It's a local call for you, given that God is a Maccabi Haifa supporter...

Sara
assuming that the bible is true, then god is one sexist pig.
Maybe the Christian god is one sexist pig. From what little contact I've had, I don't think the Jewish god is as iniquitous. Remember Lillith, the original womin, who told Adam exactly where to get off, and found her story on the cutting room floor a few thousand years later? Emily? Alysa? Anyone?

[And, yes, that's the same Lillith that has a fair]

How can so many women worship him, knowing that? yeah right I was put here to please men.
One moment, my phone's going...

Ah, well, apparently that's a little bit of sloppy editing. The original quote was "Womyn are here to please men just as much as men are to please womyn, and look who gets multiple organisms."

the bible goes to the attitudes of the time. just about everything in it, bends to the attitudes of the time.
Ah, but which time? 800BC, when the Pentatuch was first written? 500AD, when the Bible settled down to the standard lineup? 1600AD, when King James commissions a new translation?

Shana~ a girl who spent most of her younger life in catholic church.
Och, bless, it's annoying, isn't it. Now, where's Father Laa-Laa Bonte when we need her?

Bringing up the line to Time Zone Central, Sunshine

May 15th @ 8pm EST = May 16th @ 4am GMT
5.15.20h EST = 5.15.21h EDT = 5.16.01h UTC = 5.16.03h CET = 5.16@083

If you go at 04h GMT, you'll miss the first three hours.

Kevin
If the father doesn't have anything to do with it, should child support be enforced?
Good point. I think it's fair that, if the parent with custody prevents reasonable contact with the other parent without good reason (well-founded fear of abuse, or something similar), then the parent with custody forfeits enforcement rights over any maintainance payments.

Or, if ma won't let pa see sproggy, and ma doesn't have a good reason, then ma can't ask judge wiggy to collect money from pa.

Sara
I can say that hardly any males I used to know worried about the girl getting pregnant, while the girl worried constantly about it.
My mileage seems to vary. A lot. Maybe I'm weird...

bbc cricket commentaries are usually available on cricinfo.org.

don't mind Sasha, she just upset because her team are NOT third on the ladder. In fact they are ninth.

Don't forget, young man, the season is a marathon. Not a sprint. And seeing as how there's months yet to go...

it's bauhaus.

Laura
Do you think it is possible to have long lasting love, as in a lifetime or a marriage?
Yes. To the former. AFAIC, the latter implies the former.

Do you think that one is capable of loving more than one person at a time?
Not unless you've "chef" on your apron. Or you're referring to something other than romantic/sexual love.

What do you think constitutes true love?
A sense of belonging together, and pining time apart.

What is your favourite thing to drink?
Still (not sparkling) lemonade

What drink do you most commonly order?
Tea in Britain, cappuccino in foreign parts.

What drinks are in your house right now?
Tea, coffee, lemon tea, orange juice, squash.

frances nero's 1991 stormer, "footsteps following me".

Also respect, compassion, honesty, and mild sillyness.

Does anyone have any scars? How did you get them?
One over my left cheekbone, from chicken pox. One on my right calf, from time immemoreal. One in my heart, deliberately inflicted a year or so ago. And two at the top of my mouth, where teeth once were.

Let me get this straight. Boris Yeltsgin sacks his prime minister (again), the whole cabinet (again), faces impeachment trials (again - no, I'm thinking of Billy Gobbler) and still wants us to take his country seriously.

notting hill: not a follow-up to four weddings and a funeral. honest.

Jason
I am still on mail-list. Not that anyone would notice.
Weaver coughs and splutters. You've been rather quiet...

My week is actually about to get a whole lot worse but that's a long story....
Spill, do.

"We appear to have lost Washington. We had it a moment ago, but it must have slipped down the back of the sofa when the DOG ran across the screen just now."

A Song for Eurosong 17/23

Two weeks tomorrow till the Greatest Moment In European Cultural Events. This time: Ireland.

"When You Need Me" is performed by Bronagh and Karen Mullan known professionally as The Mullans, written by Bronagh Mullan. The song scored maximum points from all the Irish televote regions.
In spite of that, I'm not convinced that it's all that. A slow ballad that lacks any oomph, and seems (on the copy I have) to be pitched somewhat flat. Key change at 2:25 will be the first in ten minutes.
After winning in 92, 93, 94 and 96, Ireland's about due a win. Next year, maybe.

chelle
one night he asked me over to see Conan the Barbarian (insert pause so the list can laugh) and we ended up kissing on his couch
OK, guffaw. It may not be the most romantic of movies, but there's plenty of well-muscled, tanned, lithe flesh. Something for all tastes, except possibly the Leo di Laine fan club.

Laura
when I ordered a diet coke the waiter said "diet pepsi, okay" not is diet pepsi okay, just a statement, not a question. Ugh. I want to say no and walk out!!!
Then do so! If you ask for Brand X, and they serve Brand Y, they've not fulfilled the contract (by unilateral variation), and implicit consent (you not leaving) may not suffice to allow the change. So you may not have to pay for something you didn't order.

Why do you think teen movies are so popular?
It's a phase. Teens are the hip demographic right now, just as thirtysomething was the fashionable age ten years ago. Next decade could have the pendulum swinging to the 70somethings.

Let's not forget, there were no good teen movies between Pretty In Pink's era (1986-7) and Clueless (1995).

you mean there are people who don't do the dishes daily?

Paulo quotes David Mamet on Holocaust films
I don't like the fact of the Jewish people being exploited, whether in the name of good or ill. For example, everything that has been said about Diana, including this, is gossip.
Well, only up to a point. There are people who recount their memories, in which said trollope featured directly or indirectly, and they're talking about themself. That may be solipsistic and selfish, but it ain't gossip.

They're all exploitative about that dead person. Just so, attempts to picture Jews going to the gas chambers are exploitative, even if they're done for the best reasons in the world.
It may be Mamet's opinion that "Schindler's List" was exploitative. I'll let him have that. But that's only an existance proof: there exists a film that exploits the Holocaust. It's not a general proof: his assertion does not exclude a counter-example.

-The only response is silence?
-I think so.
-Is that the only legitimate response to someone else's grief?
-Absolutely so. It's in the Talmud that you're not supposed to say anything when someone is in mourning. What's there to say?
Equally, why should one be silent when there's something one wants to say? Certainly, the pendulum seems to have swung too far towards the vocalisation of grief, and it appears unsettling and intrusive. But any "always do this" deserves to be treated with a good deal of caution.

Donald
Go Leafs Go(14 wins and I get to party really really hard)
Shurely 10 more wins?

Angela
A woman's right to say yes and mean yes ... and the right to prosecute when those assertions aren't respected.
I kinda object to being hauled before the beak for saying no to someone who says yes to me.

carefully as I realize that only the Jews were singled out for total destruction
So were gays. And Communists. Some historians believe that active Christians would have followed.

Matthew
What happens at the Prom?
People walk up and down, and maybe sunbathe.

Can I have an invite?
It's in the post.

What shal I wear :-) hehe
Anything you like. Though I suggest you do wear something. Unless it's a nudist prom...

If anyone needs a date, I am available. I won't actually be there in person (it's the middle of the night) and all that, but the thought's there.

(C) MCMXLIX * Brum: cloud & 15
We shouldn't write our history books till the final results are in
Weaver posts are a mail-list exclusive. Here and nowhere else.

newsyquote: jamie shea, chief nato rep, warns about judging the success too soon

Memo to self: Do not attempt to have a dentist poke about inside your mouth, then travel two hours in a bumpy, crappy car, eat omelette from a dodgy caff and not expect to make like Stan when Wendy speaks. Coz I've done that. I'm not proud of it, it hurt like heck, but everything's back to normal now.

Chelle
so i'm wondering why iain t. weaver's passport has a different name on it.
Because my parents didn't have the foresight to give me the name I've grown into. I believe Brem's folks made a similar blunder.

Cory, thanks for the quotes. Especially
"Whatever happened to the still-beating heart of a virgin? Nobody has any standards anymore." -Rupert Giles
Well, if he wants to know, all he has to do is look inside...

And there's the classic
"Three. What an odd number" - Ben Slade.

ob-canada.com-link

I can't think of anything I'd enjoy better. Except maybe sex with Buffy! (who needed something to look forward to and is getting excited)
Would someone please tell. What is it with Buffy? Why do 97.6% of red-blooded males, and a number of other males, want to whisper sweet nothings into her ear? Yes, there's Curvy Bits there. But the lass has no taste in men, preferring the older chap at the expense of more regular (like, alive) guys. Now, that Willow's something else...

Is anyone not going to the new Star Wars film?
Weaver waves hand about again.

Do you think it'll be bigger than Titanic?
On the opening weekend, maybe, because of the hype. But it's set for a critical mauling, has even less plot that Tit & Ick (which takes some doing), and has a vibe of All Puff and No Substance.

There's the Critical Overhype. This from Janet Maslin in the NYT "When a film becomes the nexus of such a complex marketing juggernaut, inevitable consequences include weariness and even d�j� vu. Nobody on this planet will be able to approach the Star Wars prequel, The Phantom Menace, with a sense of discovery. So much commerce rides on this product, so much advance flogging has been necessary, that the film's own innate appeal is compromised."

Also, there's the ludicrous conditions attached to the screening (must be in the largest auditorium for at least 25 years, thou shalt not sell popcorn, thou shalt hand over 40% of thy profit...) that a lot of the independent cinemas round here have said Fekov. They may only account for 8% of the UK market, but if this is repeated worldwide, that's US$80 million off the takings.

In summary: no, it won't. It may not even beat the dollar receipts for Jurrasic Pork.

A Song for Eurosong 16/23

Page four of my notes, it's Portugal. "Como Tudo Come�ou", which means "How It All Began" is sung by Rui Bandeira, lyrics by T� Andrade, music by Jorge do Carmo.

Portugal just scraped admission to this year's contest, following Latvia's withdrawal. They're making the best of their break, with a guitar-heavy song and a vocalist who should be with the Barenaked Ladies. It's a boppy, happy number that would go down a treat in the US market. That, though, suggests it won't play well away from the Atlantic coast of Europe. Big numbers from the west won't win, but should ensure direct qualification for next year.

Laura, on Argentia
Maybe we should send Scully and Mulder out to check on it!
They'll never go. You know how Fax Smoulder refuses to have anything to do with Canada, or anything to do with places away from the West coast. Put them together and you have (ooh) a real pain in the butanyway.

What do you think about group sex?
Even less advisable than in doubles.

Donald
Iceland, the only evidence above water of the mid-atlantic ridge.
Pshaw! The Azores. St Helena. Tristan da Cahuna. Ascension Island. All are on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. All are above water.

But I'd like to go back to China and this time do Tourist things!
Like, hitting the US embassy with maps wrapped around stones? Or adding to the CIA intelligence by offering them L.I.N.D.A. Snell?

On Winnie's characters: if you have to pin me down to be one, make it Kanga. And don't come bleating that someone else is already that; the world is big enough for more than one of each character.

Sasha
I can remember fighting to be the last to go up to bat in softball.
One time I played softball at school, I managed to get hit in a very painful area. while at bat. Enough to give me a hobble (not a walk) to first.

Kris
In the Air Tonight
What the hell is this song about!!??
The Commodores song, or the Phil Collins one?

In the "Wear Sunscreen" corner from Austria, it's Judy!
Never eat yellow snow!
It will turn your insides out and make you do ten crazy things before lunchtime.

Annie
we agreed to go to one of those dinner and mystery type things.
Ooh! A mystery dinner! Always cool. Especially if someone decent's doing the cooking.

Marissa is back! Hurrah!

Brendan
when's Jewel playing near you?!
IIRC, from a teletext item from a few days ago, she's playing at the "Wicked Women" breast cancer event in September / October. Eyes peeled for more details.

Joey
I fell asleep. And when he did talk, he spoke like a surfer.
Och, darling. Terrible, terrible luck. But not terrible looks.

Looks aren't everything, and this guy should been seen and never heard.
Some people are just like that. Still, you can string two words together without giggling, which is more intellectual stimulation than he usually gets...

ShanaSun
the train had to be going at least 100mph at times!
It can't have been a Virgin train then (:

I almost got bounced out of my seat!
That needs not be fast: there's a stretch of track on my route home that's tooth-shakingly bumpy, even though trains are limited to 40mph (65kph) over it.

BHX: showers & 17 * It's all about quality, not quantity. Especially tv coverage.
weaver posts are exclusive to mail-list. See the whole picture.

newsyquote: johnny burk, outgoing bbc chief, on his pet news projects.

keyoneohthree presented
25 Lines from Star Wars that can be improved if you substitute the word "Pants":
Let me add:
"This film is excellent."
"The best tents are made of recycled plastic."
[This list is complete pants - Ed]

Joey's
bff is going to be in a fencing competion at the end of the month. She comes back from Virginia and has to leave already. :( I haven't seen her since Jan.
That's a shame. But it's great to know that other people treat their white picket fences seriously. Waddaya mean it's not that sort of fencing?!

And I have a date with an ex model tomorrow.
Oh, cool! How'd it go?

Neysa
I'm going to have my own table to display my photography stuff
They liked it, non?

el danes, natch

Who do you most look forward to see act?
I'm waiting to see more AJ Langer. I'd like to see more Devon. Either of them. And what's Lisa doing? And Tom? Jared, Wilson, Mary-Kay I know of, and couldn't give a flying about whoever played Patty (brain fade).

When you see them acting in something new, do you have trouble looking at them as someone other than their 'My So-Called Life' character?
Not really, though Lauren in ILYK struck me as a grown-up Rayanne for about five minutes. It didn't last the ad break. And it may have been deliberate.

I actually get stressed out when the score gets too tight and they are losing...or winning.
What if they're drawing? (:

Eric
I even like watching Auto Racing, the anti-sport of all anti-sports! I have to find something to do with my Sunday mornings, since there is no one to read the paper and eat bagels with :-)
Formula One I like, if it's in Monaco, Montreal, Monza, Melbourne, Spa or Hockenheim. The other ten circuits have no character. Indy Cars I do like, coz of concepts like drama, excitement, and overtaking. Thank heavens for Eurosport.

Corinne, welcome.

Andrea
I try to get one pay-per-view movie a month for like $3 and then I tape it so I can watch it again.
Darned WOK-TV employ clever copy protection so that trick wouldn't work. I understand that something similar will happen for ONdigital's PPVs from the summer. Double darn.

Laura
Most people prefer 'normal email list mode'
Pah! You'll get a higher signal to noise ratio if you choose digest mode. Just think of all the header crap you can throw away, never to be seen again.

Quoting me
>"And she's watching him with those eyes". He had Hall & Oates' "Maneater" in mind.
Nope.
Eck-scuse me [/patty] Were you there when he said it? I don't think so. He did have that tune in mind, and those words do appear in that tune. Dig it out and play it sometime.

>None of those, either, at least not for the Music Quote Game.
What music quote game? I am confuzzled. Though if this is a case of a) identify everywhere a quote turns up and b) nominate the one that the quizmaster has in mind, I'm best out of it.

A Song For Eurosong [15/23]

Just three weeks till the event, and we're up to Sweden. "Take Me To Your Heaven", performed by Charlotte Nilsson, composed by Lars Didriksson & Gert Lengstrand. The song has been renamed for English: the original title was "Tusen Och En Natt". The version I have is the Swedish version, but it's a bouncy, bouncy, bouncy number. Upbeat, sweet little love song, with just a faint echo of "Waterloo" in the chord arrangements. Another one for the (rather large) Hit pile.

Incidentally, British listies may be interested to know that WOK ONE will pick up Buffy again on May 28, albeit three episodes after the BBC left it on Thursday.

Billboard starts publishing an Internet Sales Chart: the first #1 is the Cranberries' new album, "Hatchet The Berries". All online sales count, apart from those from amazon.com and those concluded privately.

Later...

Codsall: cloudy & 17 * Bint Of The Week: Geri Halibut

It's been ages since I did one of these.

NAME: Iain T. Weaver, unless I'm staying at a hotel, when I have to book in by the name on my passport and credit card.

NICKNAME: weaver, brains, Dr Pop, others

HOMETOWN: Right now, Codsall, near Wolverhampton, UK. Subject to change over the next month or so.

BORN: Wolverhampton, Nov 1 197x.

CURRENT RESIDENCE: ibid.

CROUTONS OR BACON BITS: croutons

FAVORITE SALAD DRESSING: mayo

WHAT DO YOU DRINK: Tea, coffee, squash, juice, lemon tea, the odd G&T.

BRAND OF SHAMPOO: Heddenchoulders.

HAVE YOU EVER GONE SKINNY DIPPING: Noooooo

DO YOU LIKE TO MAKE FUN OF PEOPLE: Only the famous, and those who ask for it.

FAVORITE COLOuR: Signal red (#ff0000), royal blue (#1818ff), medium dark green (079000), pinky-purple (around #ff00dd), sunny yellow (#ffff00)

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN CONVICTED OF A CRIME: No.

ONE PILLOW OR TWO: Two

PETS: Nil

FAVORITE TYPE OF MUSIC: Melody, and sensible lyrics.

DREAM CAR: Dream, or nightmare?

TYPE OF CAR YOU DRIVE NOW: Train ticket

WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CAR: Ibid

TOOTHPASTE: Colgate

FAVORITE FOOD: Pizza, pasta

DO YOU GET ALONG WITH YOUR PARENTS: Just about

DO YOU GET ALONG WITH YOUR IN-LAWS: Yes, but they don't talk to me much.

FAVORITE TOWNS TO CHILL IN: St John's, Birmingham, London, Shrewsbury

FAVORITE SOFT DRINK: Juice

FAVORITE TYPE OF FAMILY GAMES TO PLAY: Game of Life

WHAT IS YOUR BAD TIME OF THE DAY: Around 2pm

ADIDAS, NIKE, OR REEBOK: Doccers!

FAVORITE PERFUME OR COLOGNE: The German one

FAVORITE WEB SITES: cricket.org, canoe.ca, mun.ca/muse/

FAVORITE SUBJECT IN SCHOOL: Maths

FAVORITE TYPE OF MOVIE: comedy

LEAST FAVORITE SUBJECT IN SCHOOL: Craft

FAVORITE ALCOHOLIC DRINK: ibid

FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH: baseball, ice hockey, cycling, toboggan, biathlon

MOST HUMILIATING MOMENT: pass

WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN THE SEX YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO: Brains, a presence, a sense of humour.

SAY ONE NICE THING ABOUT THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU: He is keoni, and he proves that Hawaiians aren't just interested in sun, sea, sand and surf. They're far cooler than that.

PERSON YOU SENT THIS TO WHO IS LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND: Myself.

PC win Rhondda?!?!
Codsall: sun & 17 * weaver posts are exclusive to mail-list

Faye
are you supposed to be e mailing me?
You signed up for this list? Then everything's working.

i was just a bit surprised coz i just checked my e mails from 4 days ago and i have recieved 172
We've been quiet, then.

Johnathan
I once stood in a supermarket where a child was running wildly all around, completely out of control, and finally, the kid ran around a corner smack into me, fell down, and started to cry.  And, the mother started to yell at me for getting in the child's way.
If it had been me, said mother would have gone away with (at best) a flea in her ear; at worst, having one or other of us thrown out of the store. As I see it, it's my public duty to ensure that stray kids don't cause a public nuisance. If that means pulling them off a stack of beans, or telling them to be quiet, then I'll do that. And damn the parents. Double damn if they object.

Where are the lines?  Where are the limits?
Parents have a basic duty to the rest of society not to allow their charges to cause forseeable annoyance. If they flunk that, and only if they flunk that, do I jump in.

Is there any behavior that warrants a "good old fashioned spanking?"
Depends what that is. Physical intervention to attract a child's attention is sometimes needed. But "wait till your father gets home to slipper you" sends messages that a) mom cannot discipline, b) father is someone to fear, c) physical violence is acceptable to exact revenge.

Annie
my prom is on May 27 and no one in my limo can agree on what to do afterwards. Does anybody have any ideas?
Arrange with a golf course near you to wander around near the clubhouse. Get close(r) to nature...

Is there anyone else that isn't on the friendsofmscl list, also?
Weaver waves hand and jumps up and down. And it's a fact that I won't be there anytime soon.

counterblast

Every four years, we watch the Olympics and marvel at the dedication of the atheletes.
Nope, every four years, we watch the Olympics and indulge in petty nationalism. "Our Jamaican's better than your Jamaican," cried one Canadian after Donovan Bailey beat Linford Christie in 96. "What is wrong with Britain?" as the UK wins one gold. The US coverage messes with concepts such as time (it's twisted) and other nations (they don't exist) to portray the nation as a winner at everything.

All of this is ugly, but to change it, we would have to change all of America.... basically, dismantle capitalism.
Much as I hate to act as Tony Blair's speaker, consider the Third Way he makes so much of. The free market, guided by government to achieve agreed social aims. (Yes, just Thatcherism by any other name; let's not go there...)

d'oh! telstar, the tornadoes transatlantic #1 from 1962...

Paulo
GIF was invented in 1987-89, it can store only up to 256 colors (did True Color video cards exist back then?).
Not sure about 24-bit colour, but a monitor my folks bought in 89 handled 16-bit colour. It wasn't particularly top of the range, either.

JPGs work way better with photorealistic images, while GIFs are better for drawings and, generally speaking, pictures where there are no "soft" gradients
This is quite, quite accurate.

in my personal experience, JPGs have always offered a better image quality with a smaller file size.
The only exception I find is for images using very few colours in large blocks. Such as a company logo, or a flag. A GIF of that is smaller than a JPEG, and (IMO) looks better too.

Shobi writes about school uniforms. His bottom line is this:
a compelling reason for uniforms would be needed for the public schools to implement such a program. I just don't see an important reason.
Part and parcel of building up a sense of School Community? Surely this should be a decision taken at a school-by-school (or even grade-by-grade) level, by the head teacher in consultation with the governors and parents.

Taking away students ability to dress themselves does not take away the feelings of insecurity or superiority or negate the inclinations towards "fitting in" or "standing out" that many of them feel.
Would a greater sense of community within a school ease or enlargen such feelings? Consider uniform as a part of that process.

Wouldn't you be better served by other visual cues that a violent perpetrator might wear, such as gang colors
Or having staff that pay attention to their surroundings?

or clothing that can conceal rifles?
Ever tried hiding an Uzi up a pair of school trousers? It would be kinda obvious...

children's rights should not be trampled on for the convenience of adults
What right is being impinged by uniforms?

10,000 represents about 0.3% of the school-age total, but does not include those pupils who have been excluded from the mainstream school system

having the government mandate conformity
Why take this decision by government - national, state or town? Leave it to the individual school.

Indoctrination is fine & legal for private schools, but has no place, IMO in public schools.
1) A school is a school. A child is a child, no matter where or how educated. 2) Where does the school's promotion of an agreed moral calculus end, and indoctrination begin?

Shobi's argument seems - to me - predicated on an error. He's confusing government with democracy. If a community wishes to live their lives in a way the rest of us find strange, offensive or just barmy, that is their perogative. Whether we like it or not, the democratic process in schools is dominated by adults. Sure, children can and should have an appropriate input, but not to the exclusion of the other members of their community.

Remember, it's possible for the person in the street to influence the decisions of the school's governors. Write to the head. Contact your council. Parents - present and future - have a lot more clout yet.

Eric
Bonus points for anyone who can tell what JPG (or JPEG, to be precise) stands for
Is it Joint Picture Experts' Group?

Mrs Ball
What is everyone doing for Mother's Day?
1) Gaining points by doing it for Mothering Sunday, half way between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday.

2) Cards

3) Breakfast in bed

4) Keeping her talking at church (this was not difficult) while cooking lunch (this was).

She never washes up Sunday, so we couldn't do that.

lyrics.ch

A Song For Eurosong [14/23]

Cyprus is to be represented by "Tha 'Nai Erotas" -- "It Will Be Love", performed by Marlain Angelides, written by Giorgos Kallis & Andreas Karanikolas.

This starts as a soft ballad, but turns into a Eurodisco track at 1:15. It then continues in a manner that would make Robert Miles green with envy, before leading up to an anthemic chorus at 1:45, repeated at 2:30. It reminds me a little of "Until You Saved My Life", one of the rejected UK entries.

If the Eurosong voters are in the mood for a fast track, this is going to win. If they're not, it will be massive anyway. Whichever happens, the song could turn into a hit under its own steam.

may 28, to be exact

Do you enjoy it?
Very much so.

Do you have a favourite character?
Willow, most of the time, though if Xander's on a good night..

Do you think it shows a real portrayal of teenage life
There's a lot of hyperbole involved, concealing a grain of truth we can all identify with.

Do you think that the new show 'Angel' (spin-off with David Boreanaz and Charisma Carpenter) will be as good as 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'?
They're getting rid of Cordelia? Great! She annoys the heck out of me.

Did you see the film 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'?
Nope.

Angela
All men will have a tiny computer chip (called a "Rudolph") implanted in the tip of their noses. When they lie or cheat their noses will turn bright red and begin flashing.
Wouldn't it be cheaper to make it flash when they're telling the truth? Like, cheaper on batteries?

All criminals will be sent to a man-made island in a really really far far away place. You fuck up, you're gone, you're history!
You're leaving yourself open to gross miscarriages of justice.

Co-Presidents Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen...
Vice President Macauley Culkin
Where's Dan Quayle when we need him?

A meat substitute so perfect will be created that no cow need ever look nervous again
In which case, there will be no need to grow other cereals, there will be no cows, no sheep, and the whole rural economy throughout the world collapses.

Brendan
eagerly awaiting 'Cruel Intentions'
It's great. You'll love it. Best $10 I spent on a movie.

Ulrike
English has no different articles, nothing like nominativ, genitiv, dativ and akkusativ
Now I'm regressing to Latin lessons again. Quintus exanimatus erat, et cetera.

Brendan, hope you're feeling decently better soon.

Local election day in the UK yesterday, Snowy's Swingometer has these results:

SCOTLAND: Lab 56, SNP 28, C 13, LD 16, SSP 1, Ind Lab 1 [14 results to declare] 65 required for overall maj: Lab projected 8 short.

WALES: [Results not yet in: counting began 9:30 BST, @396]

SOUTH STAFFS: C 37 (+9), Lab 10 (-5), LD 1 (-3), R 2 (+1), Oth 0 (-2). C hold.

Join wvr-news, the home of odd comments, at onelist.com
Brum: sun & 17 * the smell of success, or nicotine?

telequote: friends, where rachel smokes

So-Called Angels...

"So I have a zit..."

All godless acne

Even Patty gets redemption

God cleanses all
Candle less gaol

Joy was not warm

Cold angels seal

The cops are not up to speed

Dense locals lag

People I've told off lately. Well, I'm not really the ticking-off type. Sure, a few people round here might have had an unhappy mail from me after they posted a picture or sound to the list. But if you do that, you kinda deserve ticking off. I find that there are ways to express my displeasure without directly saying "Aaah! You boobed! EEdjit!!"

For instance, staffer phones up work to say that a program doesn't work on his machine any more. Look through files, find we tested his machine before letting him have it, and he's had it one week. Ask if he's installed anything. Find there's AOHell and ie5 on there. Point out that we have had problems with other people installing AOHell software in the past, that we've not tested ie5 and have no plans to make it generally available, and that he was warned in his induction to ask us before installing new software. Then, almost without taking a breath, offer a way out: employ a courier to get his machine to us, or let us look at it next time he's in the office.

Result: staffer knows his mistake, how it happened, what everyone will do to put it right, and not to do it again.

Laura
Did you watch 'Party of Five' when it first debuted?
On and off: [4] put it in the 5:30 Sunday graveyard slot, through which I was working two weeks in three. What I saw, I liked, and picked up season 2 when that aired 6pm Wednesday.

What is your opinion of it?
Patchy. Some parts were great - end of S2, most of S3, others - including every season finale - stretch the boundaries a little too far.

Do you watch it now?
No. One: [4] are running Dawson's Creek in that slot. Two: Charlie's cancer coincided with something similar at home, and the show became politically incorrect to watch. I am, however, waiting for the new season, probably in August. (Oi! Elizabeth! SPOILERS!)

Favourite character?
Two years ago, it was Julia. Right now, I'd have to pass.

How do you think it compares to 'My So-Called Life'?
When it's bad, I worry that MSCL would have slipped to this. When it's good, the comparisons are there.

Into the second half of

A Song For Eurosong [13/23]

Iceland is represented by "All Out Of Luck", sung by Selma Bj�rnsd�ttir. According to the publicity blurb, Selma is a popular singer/actress who played Sandy in the musical Grease last Summer. The words are by Sveinbj�rn Baldvinsson and the music is by �orvaldur Bjarni �orvaldsson.

This is an upbeat number, in the style of Gina G's "Ooh Ah Just A Little Beat", with lyrical content on how her man has kinda blown it this time. This has something of a hook, far more than the distinctly pervy entry from Iceland in 97. Keep an eye on this one: it won't win, but could amass a lot of small votes from everywhere. No key changes.

Laura
Do you have any piercings?
Tangential note: another great piece from the Forrest clan in the press over the weekend. Lisa's sister Emma, in the Grauniad, on piercing, hair dying and tattoos as symbols of feminine disenchantment.

Speaking of Brits, hello, Michaela.

Skeie
ATTN!!! LILITH/SARAH EURO/UK FANS!!!!!!!!!!!!
But the message was deleted, coz attachment's Don't Happen Here Anymore. What should we know?

Kris
It would be like someone calling Deca by his real name.
No, Deca is his real name. I've seen the passport, and that's, like, what it says.

the baby leafs lost ):

Donald
(12 more wins and the stanley cup is MINE I TELL YOU, MINE)
95 more wins and the Calder Cup comes home ):

Mark, then Laura
>Kris's videos won't work because of the NTSC/PAL formatting
Unless of course Ulrike has a VHS VCR.
VHS has nothing to do with it. US/Canada uses one system (525 lines, 30Hz), Europe uses another (625 lines, 25Hz). VHS just records what it sees from the video input, whether it's NTSC, PAL, SECAM or RGB.

actually, this is based on bbc fixed muxing; real figures are about 40% of that

Deca
My choice for happy pop song of this summer: "Eurodisco" by bis
Wasn't that the happy song for last autumn? Strange days...

Wombat
I'd like to be on AM radio, just so SOMEONE will listen to my political views
You mean you don't have Significant Speech on FM? No Radio 4, no BBC WM, no CBC Radio One? Just music from 88 to 108? How, er, dull.

What's an FDR?
It's a wonderful French drink, made with strawberries and red wine: fraise d'rose.

Brendan
good ole Tower Records! The place to go for soundtracks!
Not in Brum: if you want soundtracks, go to the top floor of the Big HMV. Possibly my second favourite record store floor in the UK, behind the top of Virgin Oxford Street.

On the Sunscreen song
I like it a lot - a nice change from the crap we usually play on Atlantic.
Please note, I didn't say that. He did. All I have to put up with is Happy99 being spread by the manager of The Wolf.

geri's song

And it's good advice - I'll have to record it for future reference!
If you missed Cheeky telling where to find John Safran's "Not the Sunscreen Song" a month ago, let me know. If you want Geri Haliborange's new single as an ra, let me know. Maybe I'll have cheese, maybe I wont. Maybe I'll have banana, maybe I won't. Incidentally, I'm sure I've heard the hook from "Look at me" someplace before. Garbage? Sleeper? BNL? Anyone any ideas?

Judy is back. Hurrah!

Johnathan
We WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  First Place!!!!!!!!  We're going to Nationals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hurrah!

Sara
91% of accidents in the UK are caused by men.
What sort of accidents? Car accidents? People banging their thumbs with hammers? Dropping full glasses of coke over the carpet?

that article

Brum: sunny & 17 * live like cannonballs, careless and free

musiquote: the animal song, savage garden (fluffed)

Okay, finding the fake coin in two weighings. We know it's lighter than a real one.
1) Weigh 1-2-3 against 4-5-6. This will show one pile is lighter than the other, or both are of equal weight. It'll tell which has the fake coin. Call the three suspect coins A-B-C.
2) Weigh A-B. One will be lighter than the other (it's that one) or they're the same (it's C).

First Noel's House Party is cancelled. Then Julia Pargeter leaves home. Now we find that Verve won't be inflicting a fourth bout of whining, sub-Seahorses tripe on an innocent music world. Life has its good points...

Goodness. Monica and Chandler discussing children and marriage way back in season 1, with Ross' child emerging. Irony, or planning?

Laura
Do you listen to the radio? How often?
Too right, a lot

What are your favorite channels? Are they online accessible?
Locals, FM:
107.7 The Wolf, 107.4 Telford FM (starting tomorrow!) - both mix music from the last 30 years with local speech and chat.
100.7 Heart FM, 96.4 BRMB - ACR and CHR, resp.
BBC WM, BBC Shropshire - talk based local programming.

Locals, AM:
Sunshine Radio 855, Radio Maldwyn 756 - see Wolf/Telford, but Maldwyn plays fifty years.
AFN Munich. They have baseball commentaries.

Nationals, FM:
BBC Radio 2 - all sorts of new and old music
BBC Radio 4 - current affairs and intelligent conversation. And that daily documentary of rural life, The Archers.
Classic FM - it plays classical music. Oddly.

Nationals, AM:
BBC Five Live - News and sport and entertainment.
Radio 10 Gold - Dutch and with the best music mix.

On Short Wave:
BBC World Service - Unbiased opinions of the news.
Radio Canada International - great to wake up to.
Merlin Network One - country, rock, media news and more great music.

Already webcast:
OZ-FM - the rock of the Rock
WKOC The Coast - Chesapeke Bay's finest attraction
MIX 99.9 from Toronto plays rock, FAN 590 is sport, CHMR 1010 is talk radio done properly. (Talk Radio UK, take note) And VOCM inspires the CBC's BCN, though I only listen to their 7:45 newscast

Would you ever want to d.j.?
Already do. After weaver.radio, I've been working at Wolverhampton's hospital radio station, doing requests and other entertainment.

What would your lineup be like?
Two hours a week, twenty discs to spin, no commercials but I do have to hit each hour's news. About half are requests, most of the rest are early rock n' roll or 50s stuff, but there are later tunes.

Ideally: a blend of music, primarily from the last 15-20 years, with an emphasis on melody.

Regular viewers of my web site and listeners to Telford FM might be able to spot a connection somewhere, eventually.

Angela
Scrummy is a made up word, not a real one so you'd be unlikely to find it in any dictionary sweetie!
That said, it's in wide enough currency to be part of common British English usage, and it may well be in the new Shorter Oxford, to be published over the summer. If it's not there already...

Laura, from a lawyer"don't think what happened before was big enough to be used in judgement or consideration now"

From: the Office for Regulation of Yaweh's representatives, Reincarnation, Occult Practices, Karma, and Other Sundry Religions Not Covered by Established Churches.
To: A. N. Lawyer.

Dear MR Lawyer,
We here at OFFYAROCKA have received the documentation regarding the sale of your soul to B. El-Zebubb Enterprises, 66 Shady Avenue, Black Forest. It is our duty to inform you that the contract you signed does not conform to OFFYAROCKA's criteria, as set down by a panel of independent deities. In particular, there's no mention of an improvement in inter-personal skills, something that you could clearly benefit from.
Unfortunately, it appears that the group with which you signed does not accept the authority of OFFYAROCKA to resolve these disputes, preferring to use their own methods, based around a solution of brimstone and fire. If you can take advantage of our services, please contact us.
Yours, Sue Grabbitan-Runne LLb (Ms)

I said no. I said hell no. I won't do it.
Can't blame you in the slightest.

In what movie did John Lithgow play an interdimensional alien stuck in a human body?
Isn't that "Third Rock" in a nutshell?

A Song for Eurosong #12/23

Brooks
a group called "the white wolves" has claimed responsibility for a bombing in london of a gay pub where two people were killed and over seventy injured.
'Tis a terrible affair. Death toll rose to three during Saturday.

this comes soon after other bombings in black and bangladeshi neigbourhood (responsiblity was claimed by antoher far right group).
The same group, according to the Met. They've nicked four people over the matter, bailed three and are still quizzing one. There are reports that a cache of explosives has been found, too, but that's not being confirmed.

these bombings, and other "hate crimes", are in an attack on us all.
Indeed they are. Yet the aim - to turn white against black, and gay against straight - has utterly failed. It's trite to say that "the whole country" is doing something, especially as this has been misappropriated on so many occasions. But it's fair to say that almost the whole country is doing what they can to bring the half dozen mavericks responsible to justice. Where they'll be tried as common criminals, no more, no less.

Sara on the Spice Girls
I NEVER hear about them anymore..its great!!!!
Do remember to avoid [4] next Wednesday night, when there's a one-hour fly on the wall documentary with Geri Halibut. With a single that was new at #134 on The Official Weaver.Chart last week, and should rise to around #90 in this week's chart. It's not released for another eight days...

loads of people say that NKOTB paved the way for groups like n sync, and the spice girls, and b*witched, and all of them
Trace the lineage back, through the Bay City Rollers, the Osmonds, the Monkees, the Beatles, Frank Sinatra, Fred Flintstone...

wow..what a short Iain post!!
Indeed it was. Thanks to the unique way in which weaver.posts are funded, we're now broadcasting on full power again.

Angela
I am stunned and shocked at the above reply.
May I recommend a slight tweak of your Y-Iron detection kit? Talk offlist if you want.

CDS: sunny & 19 * shi-shi-shi-shineon

musiquote: house of love, shine on