MetaFilter posts by Voyageman.
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Now we know why French was required in school : échangisme, libertinism, Cléopâtre "For the past 18 months Jean-Charles and Sylvie have had a standing date with each other and with a changing cast of instantly made new best friends at a private club in central Paris called Cléopâtre...échangisme, she said, is something more interesting than the movies to do on a Saturday night...nearly 50 restaurants, clubs and saunas in Paris openly cater to heterosexual adventurers. " Time to bring back Plato's Retreat. [NYT reg req]
posted on Apr-30-02 at 8:42 PM
All coach seats are not created equal Every inch counts. Airplane coach seats with extra inches of stretching room. Print out and keep handy for when you fly.
posted on Apr-29-02 at 8:25 PM
Understanding what makes America tick "The belief that America is exceptional, in the double sense that it is superior and that it is different...The United States had a mission, a manifest destiny, to change the world in its image. This conviction echoes down through American history....Other countries—France, Britain, Russia—have from time to time in their history felt a sense of mission, of carrying their civilisation to other peoples and territories. But in their cases it has been episodic and not deeply rooted—usually limited to when their power was at its zenith and usually clearly recognisable as a rationalisation for what they were doing for other reasons. In the case of the United States, it has been constant and central." [Centre of Independent Studies in Sydney via aldaily] American Exceptionalism. Mix it with sole super power status and massive military might. Should make it quite an intoxicating ride these next few years.
posted on Apr-4-02 at 11:16 AM
On average people laugh 18 times a day "It makes us less stressed, lowers our blood pressure and reduces anxiety. It's more common than sex, eating or singing." Still 18 times a day doesn't sound like its enough. Simple solution. "Tickle, the most ancient and reliable stimulus of laughter, is undervalued..."
posted on Apr-3-02 at 6:42 AM
Airplanes, movies, guided missiles, submarines, the electric chair, air conditioning , the fax machine - in 1870 " Alvin Toffler, John Naisbitt, Faith Popcorn: all of them famous prognosticators. Yet each comes off a piker when compared to the true master of industrial clairvoyance, Jules Verne."
posted on Apr-1-02 at 8:57 PM
Happy Easter egg hunting "Could be in computer software, movies, music, art, books, or even your watch. There are thousands of them, and they can be quite entertaining, if you know where to look." [Originally referenced in comment in Nov 2000, but perhaps worth another swipe.]
posted on Mar-30-02 at 7:03 PM
Immortal classics I remember as if it were today when I first listened to Marvin Gaye's "Whats Going On" when it first came out. This album has never tired. "What's Going On was the first album out of Motown to include the printed lyrics of the songs in the album liner. Marvin Gaye had something to say and he wanted to make sure people got the message. Thirty-one years later, we're still getting it." Always bewildering why an album becomes immortal.
posted on Mar-29-02 at 11:20 AM
Middle East war predictions "..what we are witnessing looks like joint preparations by the Palestinian Authority, Syria, its Lebanese client, Iraq, and Iran, for war on a regional scale, against both Israel and U.S. interests. I fear we may face a major, sudden, external assault on Israel, meant to precede U.S. action against the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq, and indeed prevent the U.S. from going there by enmiring it in the defence of Israel. [From The Ottowa Citizen, lead link in today's Wall Street Journal Best of the Web]
posted on Mar-27-02 at 3:52 PM
Beauty and the Labor Market "Plastic surgery has become one of those things--like reading the tabloids and watching The Home Shopping Network--that Americans like doing and love ridiculing others for doing. Depending on whose numbers you believe, more than seven million of us went under the knife last year"...I had no idea... "In cold, hard economic terms, being attractive helps you get ahead." ...Now I get it, now I understand.
posted on Mar-26-02 at 2:12 PM
Sneak peek at the new look for the Wall Street Journal "Print buyers were presented with non-disclosure agreements when shown the pages...No media buyer was shown the front page, redesigned for the first time since the 1944." Pretty esoteric subject, but still remarkable how much influence the "look and feel " of a newspaper can have on its reader. Hard to imagine the WSJ looking different. It must be a very tough endeavor to get right. (IMHO the recently revamped Int Herald Tribune looks way messier and more confusing than before.)
posted on Mar-25-02 at 1:50 PM
Like Benny Hill, Monty Python, Mr Bean, Eddy Izzard, et al , before him, looks like Sacha Baron Cohen, aka Ali G. is finally heading this way. Although the London Times denounces him, while "frighteningly" proclaiming his latest movie will be a massive hit, and the BBC is royally pissed off, there's no holding him back. Next stop is America and he wants to be massive in da States. Some prior discussions going back all the way to May 2000 here, here ,here, PS You can catch a glimpse of him the next time Shaggy's Me Julie video plays.
posted on Mar-22-02 at 12:42 PM
2002 National Magazine Award Finalists Maybe the heavily nominated New Yorker will some day turn a profit. Then again, maybe that's not what it's all about (sure helps when the parents have deep pockets).
posted on Mar-21-02 at 9:26 AM
"The messy desk is not necessarily a sign of disorganization. It may be a sign of complexity ...what we see when we look at the piles on our desks is, in a sense, the contents of our brains." I do feel better.
posted on Mar-20-02 at 6:52 AM
2 hours of Playstation vs. 2 hours with a good Book If true, (big if given source) life as a parent just got more complicted. Maybe our children's toys really do need to be "smart" .
posted on Mar-19-02 at 6:18 AM
New York's hidden world of ethnic pharmacopoeia [nyt reg req] Always cherished Witch Hazel, but these are true eye openers: " Dr. Chase Nerve and Blood Tonic, with liver concentrate: for simple anemia and associated symptoms such as that tired feeling-nervousness-lack of appetite ; S.S.S. Tonic, iron and 12 percent alcohol, and Canadian Healing Oil, turpentine, oil of tar and creosote: universal liniment for strains and sprains; Safi the Blood Purifier : for skin diseases such as acne vulgaris, boils, skin rashes, blemishes, urticaria, checks nose bleeding, cures constipation, corrects indigestion, improves complexion , and helps you stay slim and smart... [btw] This isn't the 19th century, this is New York, 2002. " One years supply of Safi now on its way.
posted on Mar-17-02 at 9:37 AM
"World's largest and most complete private collection of eyeglasses" Galleria Guglielmo Tabacchi in Padua, Italy, with objects dating back to " ..1285, when glasses were first created in Venice...". Check out Elton John's shades in Celebrities - he too belongs in the 13th century.
posted on Mar-14-02 at 2:04 PM
Family of Man Part 2 Many will remember Edward Steichen's (the first photo curator of the New York Museum of Modern Art besides being one of photography's greats) epic 1955 Family of Man exhibition for the MOMA and the ubiquitous book memorializing it. This is a worthy attempt at keeping that 50's spirit alive. PS all photos taken with Leica cameras, and for any Leica fanatics, take a peek at the just unveiled Leica M7 while you are at it.
posted on Mar-8-02 at 10:54 PM
CONELRAD "Control of Electronic Radiation" US invasion early warning system. Before Bush's Color Coded Alert System and before Kennedy's Emergency Broadcast System. Relive that special 50's feeling [Real Player req]
posted on Mar-7-02 at 9:38 PM
What sleeping postures reveal Curiuously accurate. "People say we gotta watch while he sleeps, for it is the only time that body is not under suppression, but never judge Mr. Nice Guy from one posture" They claim it applies to women too.
posted on Mar-4-02 at 5:04 PM
60's British Pop Culture Shirley Bassey. Tom Jones. Sandie Shaw. Cliff Richard. Petula Clark. Gordon Banks. Jane Brikin. Charlotte Rampling. Twiggy. Julie Christie. Patrick McGoohan. Peter O' Toole. Terence Stamp. What a decade. Oozing coolness.
posted on Mar-3-02 at 12:36 PM
Will this spoil the party in Canada ? (NYT reg req) Great victories by the men and the women. Sure. But then one is reminded again in the NYT today about last week's controversy - "The judge, Marie Reine Le Gougne, said the pressure she felt was unlike any in her 14 years of judging, that it intensified as the Olympics drew near and that it came from one country, Canada" You cant help but wonder.
posted on Feb-24-02 at 2:35 PM
The America-Hating British? In the UK's Spectator : "And this time it’s not just the usual America-haters at the Guardian and the BBC, but the likes of Alice Thomson, Stephen Glover, Alasdair Palmer, Matthew Parris, my most esteemed Telegraph and Speccie colleagues...many people over here had no idea quite how ridiculous you are. You’re shocked by us, we’re laughing at you. In fairness, instead of coasting on non-existent diseases and wild guesses at the weather, the always elegant Matthew Parris at least attempted to expand Guantanamo into a general thesis. ‘We seek to project the message that there are rules to which all nations are subject,’ he wrote in the Times. ‘America has a simpler message: kill Americans, and you’re dead meat.’ This caused endless amusement over here. As the Internet wag Steven den Beste commented, ‘By George, I think he’s got it!....’ PS What is an internet wag anyway?
posted on Feb-11-02 at 8:45 AM
Yasir Arafat , in his own words: "The Palestinian Vision of Peace." New York Times Op-ed contribution this weekend, in case it was missed (reg req)
posted on Feb-4-02 at 8:54 AM
I think I'm turning Japanese I really think so Someday, the cell phone will be the only contraption I use. (Hopefully in this century.)
posted on Jan-29-02 at 6:43 AM
The "Pardon Effect" - economic theory applied to the death penalty Pardons increase homicide rates. "The pardon effect is a matter of simple market economics... pardons reduce the chances that convicted killers will pay the ultimate price for committing murder. Thus a pardon represents a decrease in the cost of committing the crime and is accompanied by an increase in the homicide rate. Conversely, if you increase the "cost" of committing murder by executing a larger share of convicted killers, then economic theory suggests that the murder rate will fall" . The chairman of the economics department at the University of Colorado claims to have the data to support the theory from their analysis of all 6,143 death sentences handed out between 1977 and 1997 in the United States.
posted on Jan-24-02 at 2:02 PM
writingclasses.com "The largest private creative writing school in the United States" they claim. Everything is covered, yet nothing on weblogs. How is it possible.
posted on Jan-13-02 at 4:05 PM
Poor Prince Harry Drug rehab clinic it is. Also chips thumb playing football and puts foot through a glass door at party. Wonder if its all connected. PS Rehab for weed and alcohol only? Fishy.
posted on Jan-12-02 at 2:14 PM
Sprint sets this summer for nationwide 3G launch in US Huh ??? Everywhere in Europe, which is supposedly so much more advanced, the talk is how far off the 3G roll out is, how carriers may go under because of the prices paid for spectrum, how hand sets won't be available, how it will take years to make any money. I mean, the best they can currently do is 76,000 people on the 30-mile by 10-mile Isle of Man. Yet a nationwide 3G network in the US this summer ? We should be so lucky. It's hard enough for the phone companies to get DSL to work. (PS Voicestream's 2.5G GPRS service in NYC does work well most of the time.)
posted on Jan-10-02 at 8:06 PM
Sex and the Kitchen (NYT article) Anyone watch TV cooking shows? "She is voluptuous. She licks her fingers and likes to flick her hair as she flirts with the camera. And her cooking show, "Nigella Bites," has created a sensation in Britain, where it is one of the country's most popular cooking programs." Our compatriots across the ocean have done quite a 180 since The Two Fat Ladies. Our Emeril's days are numbered. What is it about food and sex anyway?
posted on Jan-9-02 at 1:50 PM
Toxic Exposure Near Ground Zero EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman said a week after the attacks: "I am glad to reassure the people of New York...that their air is safe to breathe and their water is safe to drink." Yet now: "Dust taken from an air vent in the apartment building's hallway contained 555 times the suggested acceptable level for asbestos.....Many of those who live or work downtown report strikingly similar symptoms: nosebleeds, sore throats, bronchial infections and an endless racking cough." How long do we need to wait until we see some full blown investigative reporting?
posted on Jan-8-02 at 9:42 AM
Himalayan Art Project Take a look when you next have a quiet moment. "There’s too much beauty upon this earth for lonely men to bear" (R. Le Gallienne).
posted on Dec-30-01 at 6:31 AM
New Year's Resolutions 4 days to go, can't start the year without it, so here goes - yet another one which will make me feel good but I will inevitably break: learn something new by taking all the free seminars at Fathom, the best learning site I could find. And you?
posted on Dec-28-01 at 4:40 AM
All You Need To Know About Aphrodisiacs. Forget mistletoe this holiday season, try onions instead, or better yet, brush up on your mathematics.
posted on Dec-25-01 at 4:22 PM
"Why do so many young Americans end their own lives?" With so much attention focused on understanding why Islamic youths are so driven to suicide, this article I ran across about U.S teenagers really hit me hard: "The suicide rate for Americans aged between 15 and 24 tripled between 1950 and 1994.....but when it comes to working out why young people end their lives, much of the clarity of the research disappears."
posted on Dec-21-01 at 4:04 PM
Famous Name Changes What a turn off when you find out Paul David Hewson, Vincent Damon Furnier, William Michael Albert Broad are your favorite rockers (inside)
posted on Dec-20-01 at 3:20 PM
Cards of the 50's and 60's I'll trade you Derek Jeter for Uncle Fester anyday.
posted on Dec-19-01 at 10:32 AM
Have a favorite vehicle? Looking for a late night, post-office party romp, well keep an eye out for the Spanish or Italian gent in his Porsche Boxter, or the Chesire lady in her Volkswagen Beetle. Be sure to stay clear of stick shifts and men from Southeast England.
posted on Dec-18-01 at 9:20 AM
"The Finns don't even know what prosciutto is." Pork barreling in the European Union courtesy of Berlusconi, Chirac and Schroeder.
posted on Dec-17-01 at 8:16 AM
Roboflies. Microbugs. Mesicopters. No need for a missile defense shield after all. The future of military defese technology lies with MIT, Berkeley, Stanford, and the US Defense Department. Gives new meaning to the word entomophobia.
posted on Dec-12-01 at 11:40 AM
Royal Madness From Domitian of Rome (51-96) "the Emperor who tortured flies" to Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816) "the Queen who thought she was already in hell", from Erzsébet of Transylvania (±1561-1614) "the countess who bit her servants" to "Mad" Ibrahim I of Turkey (1615-1648) " the Sultan who drowned his entire harem." Here's to a saner future for up-and-comers King Zahir Shah in Afghanistan and King Simeon in Bulgaria, and all other reigning monarchs.
posted on Dec-10-01 at 9:41 AM
In Depth Sports Instruction Impress the boss and in-laws with keen command of fly-fishing and golf (skimboarding and rock-climbing). Check out comprehensive Gear Consultant videos. Also handy for finally deciding on new sport to plug into the 2002 new year's resolution.
posted on Dec-8-01 at 4:50 PM
Rapid Detox "In the world of addiction medicine, no technique for treating heroin users has ever been more controversial" According to the article, in the US, 980,000 use heroin, 175,000 are enrolled in government programs receiving daily dose of methadone, and only 1,000 rapid detox procedures are done a year. "Patients want it" Dr. Gevirtz says, "because it gives them a compassionate and comfortable way to get clean." Shouldn't they get it?
posted on Dec-7-01 at 7:09 AM
Shedding Writer's Block 30 minute hot shower does it, but wide open to other suggestions.
posted on Dec-6-01 at 6:11 AM
Here Comes the Sun Beware NY Times. Watch your flanks NY liberal establishment. Lord Conrad Black to back Smarter Times Ira Stoll and co in new conservative daily paper. Will they make it? (PS. Apparently are looking for editorial staff "willing to work long hours in an entrepreneurial, start-up environment") Start spreadin' the news, these little town blues are melting away, it's up to you, New York, New York...
posted on Dec-4-01 at 7:46 AM
Jack (Nicholson) wins Kennedy Center Award. Arguably the best American actor alive today. Even gets Bush and Cheney to come together for first time (NYT) since 9-11. Neptune, New Jersey should be proud.
posted on Dec-3-01 at 6:57 AM
AIDS Timeline:1926-Present with comprehensive links, thanks to Sister Mary Elizabeth of the Sisters of St. Elizabeth of Hungary and AEGIS (AIDS Education Global Information System), "...a service the Centers for Disease Control calls 'the best of its kind'..." (See How Aegis Began) People making a difference.
posted on Dec-1-01 at 5:02 PM
"It's not propaganda, it's the truth" Rumsfeld declared. OK, but leaflets with radio broadcasts, and Information Programs, is this the best we can do? How about some Daffy Goes to War, even some inspirational Soviet and Cuban communist posters, as we do battle on the psyops war front?
posted on Nov-29-01 at 3:40 PM
"Has time come for Old Rubber Lips to fade away?" While US's Jan Wenner personally gives Mick Jagger the Rolling Stone 5 star classic rating, the UK's Guardian/Observer slams him, finding "...the failure to sell Jagger to a contemporary pop audience is intriguing..." What is going on.
posted on Nov-25-01 at 4:44 PM
"Modern Spiritualism", dark room seances, tin trumpets, and mediums While the Taliban are off hijacking Islam, John Edward and Crossing Over conduct the injustice at home, hijacking time-honored "Modern Spiritualism" so he and his clan can personally profit from his cruel form of emotional abduction. Thankfully, his attempt to deliver the 9-11 victims on national television was cancelled.
posted on Nov-23-01 at 7:58 PM
Speakers Corner, Hyde Park, London Have always heard so much about this. Wild debates all Sunday long, no rest for the weary. Martin the Sex Speaker, Simon the Bulgarian and Barry the Marxist Mystic; who knows, do they have their own web sites ? Any other Speakers Corners one can go to, or is this purely a British phenomenon?
posted on Nov-21-01 at 1:39 PM
posted on Apr-30-02 at 8:42 PM
All coach seats are not created equal Every inch counts. Airplane coach seats with extra inches of stretching room. Print out and keep handy for when you fly.
posted on Apr-29-02 at 8:25 PM
Understanding what makes America tick "The belief that America is exceptional, in the double sense that it is superior and that it is different...The United States had a mission, a manifest destiny, to change the world in its image. This conviction echoes down through American history....Other countries—France, Britain, Russia—have from time to time in their history felt a sense of mission, of carrying their civilisation to other peoples and territories. But in their cases it has been episodic and not deeply rooted—usually limited to when their power was at its zenith and usually clearly recognisable as a rationalisation for what they were doing for other reasons. In the case of the United States, it has been constant and central." [Centre of Independent Studies in Sydney via aldaily] American Exceptionalism. Mix it with sole super power status and massive military might. Should make it quite an intoxicating ride these next few years.
posted on Apr-4-02 at 11:16 AM
On average people laugh 18 times a day "It makes us less stressed, lowers our blood pressure and reduces anxiety. It's more common than sex, eating or singing." Still 18 times a day doesn't sound like its enough. Simple solution. "Tickle, the most ancient and reliable stimulus of laughter, is undervalued..."
posted on Apr-3-02 at 6:42 AM
Airplanes, movies, guided missiles, submarines, the electric chair, air conditioning , the fax machine - in 1870 " Alvin Toffler, John Naisbitt, Faith Popcorn: all of them famous prognosticators. Yet each comes off a piker when compared to the true master of industrial clairvoyance, Jules Verne."
posted on Apr-1-02 at 8:57 PM
Happy Easter egg hunting "Could be in computer software, movies, music, art, books, or even your watch. There are thousands of them, and they can be quite entertaining, if you know where to look." [Originally referenced in comment in Nov 2000, but perhaps worth another swipe.]
posted on Mar-30-02 at 7:03 PM
Immortal classics I remember as if it were today when I first listened to Marvin Gaye's "Whats Going On" when it first came out. This album has never tired. "What's Going On was the first album out of Motown to include the printed lyrics of the songs in the album liner. Marvin Gaye had something to say and he wanted to make sure people got the message. Thirty-one years later, we're still getting it." Always bewildering why an album becomes immortal.
posted on Mar-29-02 at 11:20 AM
Middle East war predictions "..what we are witnessing looks like joint preparations by the Palestinian Authority, Syria, its Lebanese client, Iraq, and Iran, for war on a regional scale, against both Israel and U.S. interests. I fear we may face a major, sudden, external assault on Israel, meant to precede U.S. action against the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq, and indeed prevent the U.S. from going there by enmiring it in the defence of Israel. [From The Ottowa Citizen, lead link in today's Wall Street Journal Best of the Web]
posted on Mar-27-02 at 3:52 PM
Beauty and the Labor Market "Plastic surgery has become one of those things--like reading the tabloids and watching The Home Shopping Network--that Americans like doing and love ridiculing others for doing. Depending on whose numbers you believe, more than seven million of us went under the knife last year"...I had no idea... "In cold, hard economic terms, being attractive helps you get ahead." ...Now I get it, now I understand.
posted on Mar-26-02 at 2:12 PM
Sneak peek at the new look for the Wall Street Journal "Print buyers were presented with non-disclosure agreements when shown the pages...No media buyer was shown the front page, redesigned for the first time since the 1944." Pretty esoteric subject, but still remarkable how much influence the "look and feel " of a newspaper can have on its reader. Hard to imagine the WSJ looking different. It must be a very tough endeavor to get right. (IMHO the recently revamped Int Herald Tribune looks way messier and more confusing than before.)
posted on Mar-25-02 at 1:50 PM
Like Benny Hill, Monty Python, Mr Bean, Eddy Izzard, et al , before him, looks like Sacha Baron Cohen, aka Ali G. is finally heading this way. Although the London Times denounces him, while "frighteningly" proclaiming his latest movie will be a massive hit, and the BBC is royally pissed off, there's no holding him back. Next stop is America and he wants to be massive in da States. Some prior discussions going back all the way to May 2000 here, here ,here, PS You can catch a glimpse of him the next time Shaggy's Me Julie video plays.
posted on Mar-22-02 at 12:42 PM
2002 National Magazine Award Finalists Maybe the heavily nominated New Yorker will some day turn a profit. Then again, maybe that's not what it's all about (sure helps when the parents have deep pockets).
posted on Mar-21-02 at 9:26 AM
"The messy desk is not necessarily a sign of disorganization. It may be a sign of complexity ...what we see when we look at the piles on our desks is, in a sense, the contents of our brains." I do feel better.
posted on Mar-20-02 at 6:52 AM
2 hours of Playstation vs. 2 hours with a good Book If true, (big if given source) life as a parent just got more complicted. Maybe our children's toys really do need to be "smart" .
posted on Mar-19-02 at 6:18 AM
New York's hidden world of ethnic pharmacopoeia [nyt reg req] Always cherished Witch Hazel, but these are true eye openers: " Dr. Chase Nerve and Blood Tonic, with liver concentrate: for simple anemia and associated symptoms such as that tired feeling-nervousness-lack of appetite ; S.S.S. Tonic, iron and 12 percent alcohol, and Canadian Healing Oil, turpentine, oil of tar and creosote: universal liniment for strains and sprains; Safi the Blood Purifier : for skin diseases such as acne vulgaris, boils, skin rashes, blemishes, urticaria, checks nose bleeding, cures constipation, corrects indigestion, improves complexion , and helps you stay slim and smart... [btw] This isn't the 19th century, this is New York, 2002. " One years supply of Safi now on its way.
posted on Mar-17-02 at 9:37 AM
"World's largest and most complete private collection of eyeglasses" Galleria Guglielmo Tabacchi in Padua, Italy, with objects dating back to " ..1285, when glasses were first created in Venice...". Check out Elton John's shades in Celebrities - he too belongs in the 13th century.
posted on Mar-14-02 at 2:04 PM
Family of Man Part 2 Many will remember Edward Steichen's (the first photo curator of the New York Museum of Modern Art besides being one of photography's greats) epic 1955 Family of Man exhibition for the MOMA and the ubiquitous book memorializing it. This is a worthy attempt at keeping that 50's spirit alive. PS all photos taken with Leica cameras, and for any Leica fanatics, take a peek at the just unveiled Leica M7 while you are at it.
posted on Mar-8-02 at 10:54 PM
CONELRAD "Control of Electronic Radiation" US invasion early warning system. Before Bush's Color Coded Alert System and before Kennedy's Emergency Broadcast System. Relive that special 50's feeling [Real Player req]
posted on Mar-7-02 at 9:38 PM
What sleeping postures reveal Curiuously accurate. "People say we gotta watch while he sleeps, for it is the only time that body is not under suppression, but never judge Mr. Nice Guy from one posture" They claim it applies to women too.
posted on Mar-4-02 at 5:04 PM
60's British Pop Culture Shirley Bassey. Tom Jones. Sandie Shaw. Cliff Richard. Petula Clark. Gordon Banks. Jane Brikin. Charlotte Rampling. Twiggy. Julie Christie. Patrick McGoohan. Peter O' Toole. Terence Stamp. What a decade. Oozing coolness.
posted on Mar-3-02 at 12:36 PM
Will this spoil the party in Canada ? (NYT reg req) Great victories by the men and the women. Sure. But then one is reminded again in the NYT today about last week's controversy - "The judge, Marie Reine Le Gougne, said the pressure she felt was unlike any in her 14 years of judging, that it intensified as the Olympics drew near and that it came from one country, Canada" You cant help but wonder.
posted on Feb-24-02 at 2:35 PM
The America-Hating British? In the UK's Spectator : "And this time it’s not just the usual America-haters at the Guardian and the BBC, but the likes of Alice Thomson, Stephen Glover, Alasdair Palmer, Matthew Parris, my most esteemed Telegraph and Speccie colleagues...many people over here had no idea quite how ridiculous you are. You’re shocked by us, we’re laughing at you. In fairness, instead of coasting on non-existent diseases and wild guesses at the weather, the always elegant Matthew Parris at least attempted to expand Guantanamo into a general thesis. ‘We seek to project the message that there are rules to which all nations are subject,’ he wrote in the Times. ‘America has a simpler message: kill Americans, and you’re dead meat.’ This caused endless amusement over here. As the Internet wag Steven den Beste commented, ‘By George, I think he’s got it!....’ PS What is an internet wag anyway?
posted on Feb-11-02 at 8:45 AM
Yasir Arafat , in his own words: "The Palestinian Vision of Peace." New York Times Op-ed contribution this weekend, in case it was missed (reg req)
posted on Feb-4-02 at 8:54 AM
I think I'm turning Japanese I really think so Someday, the cell phone will be the only contraption I use. (Hopefully in this century.)
posted on Jan-29-02 at 6:43 AM
The "Pardon Effect" - economic theory applied to the death penalty Pardons increase homicide rates. "The pardon effect is a matter of simple market economics... pardons reduce the chances that convicted killers will pay the ultimate price for committing murder. Thus a pardon represents a decrease in the cost of committing the crime and is accompanied by an increase in the homicide rate. Conversely, if you increase the "cost" of committing murder by executing a larger share of convicted killers, then economic theory suggests that the murder rate will fall" . The chairman of the economics department at the University of Colorado claims to have the data to support the theory from their analysis of all 6,143 death sentences handed out between 1977 and 1997 in the United States.
posted on Jan-24-02 at 2:02 PM
writingclasses.com "The largest private creative writing school in the United States" they claim. Everything is covered, yet nothing on weblogs. How is it possible.
posted on Jan-13-02 at 4:05 PM
Poor Prince Harry Drug rehab clinic it is. Also chips thumb playing football and puts foot through a glass door at party. Wonder if its all connected. PS Rehab for weed and alcohol only? Fishy.
posted on Jan-12-02 at 2:14 PM
Sprint sets this summer for nationwide 3G launch in US Huh ??? Everywhere in Europe, which is supposedly so much more advanced, the talk is how far off the 3G roll out is, how carriers may go under because of the prices paid for spectrum, how hand sets won't be available, how it will take years to make any money. I mean, the best they can currently do is 76,000 people on the 30-mile by 10-mile Isle of Man. Yet a nationwide 3G network in the US this summer ? We should be so lucky. It's hard enough for the phone companies to get DSL to work. (PS Voicestream's 2.5G GPRS service in NYC does work well most of the time.)
posted on Jan-10-02 at 8:06 PM
Sex and the Kitchen (NYT article) Anyone watch TV cooking shows? "She is voluptuous. She licks her fingers and likes to flick her hair as she flirts with the camera. And her cooking show, "Nigella Bites," has created a sensation in Britain, where it is one of the country's most popular cooking programs." Our compatriots across the ocean have done quite a 180 since The Two Fat Ladies. Our Emeril's days are numbered. What is it about food and sex anyway?
posted on Jan-9-02 at 1:50 PM
Toxic Exposure Near Ground Zero EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman said a week after the attacks: "I am glad to reassure the people of New York...that their air is safe to breathe and their water is safe to drink." Yet now: "Dust taken from an air vent in the apartment building's hallway contained 555 times the suggested acceptable level for asbestos.....Many of those who live or work downtown report strikingly similar symptoms: nosebleeds, sore throats, bronchial infections and an endless racking cough." How long do we need to wait until we see some full blown investigative reporting?
posted on Jan-8-02 at 9:42 AM
Himalayan Art Project Take a look when you next have a quiet moment. "There’s too much beauty upon this earth for lonely men to bear" (R. Le Gallienne).
posted on Dec-30-01 at 6:31 AM
New Year's Resolutions 4 days to go, can't start the year without it, so here goes - yet another one which will make me feel good but I will inevitably break: learn something new by taking all the free seminars at Fathom, the best learning site I could find. And you?
posted on Dec-28-01 at 4:40 AM
All You Need To Know About Aphrodisiacs. Forget mistletoe this holiday season, try onions instead, or better yet, brush up on your mathematics.
posted on Dec-25-01 at 4:22 PM
"Why do so many young Americans end their own lives?" With so much attention focused on understanding why Islamic youths are so driven to suicide, this article I ran across about U.S teenagers really hit me hard: "The suicide rate for Americans aged between 15 and 24 tripled between 1950 and 1994.....but when it comes to working out why young people end their lives, much of the clarity of the research disappears."
posted on Dec-21-01 at 4:04 PM
Famous Name Changes What a turn off when you find out Paul David Hewson, Vincent Damon Furnier, William Michael Albert Broad are your favorite rockers (inside)
posted on Dec-20-01 at 3:20 PM
Cards of the 50's and 60's I'll trade you Derek Jeter for Uncle Fester anyday.
posted on Dec-19-01 at 10:32 AM
Have a favorite vehicle? Looking for a late night, post-office party romp, well keep an eye out for the Spanish or Italian gent in his Porsche Boxter, or the Chesire lady in her Volkswagen Beetle. Be sure to stay clear of stick shifts and men from Southeast England.
posted on Dec-18-01 at 9:20 AM
"The Finns don't even know what prosciutto is." Pork barreling in the European Union courtesy of Berlusconi, Chirac and Schroeder.
posted on Dec-17-01 at 8:16 AM
Roboflies. Microbugs. Mesicopters. No need for a missile defense shield after all. The future of military defese technology lies with MIT, Berkeley, Stanford, and the US Defense Department. Gives new meaning to the word entomophobia.
posted on Dec-12-01 at 11:40 AM
Royal Madness From Domitian of Rome (51-96) "the Emperor who tortured flies" to Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816) "the Queen who thought she was already in hell", from Erzsébet of Transylvania (±1561-1614) "the countess who bit her servants" to "Mad" Ibrahim I of Turkey (1615-1648) " the Sultan who drowned his entire harem." Here's to a saner future for up-and-comers King Zahir Shah in Afghanistan and King Simeon in Bulgaria, and all other reigning monarchs.
posted on Dec-10-01 at 9:41 AM
In Depth Sports Instruction Impress the boss and in-laws with keen command of fly-fishing and golf (skimboarding and rock-climbing). Check out comprehensive Gear Consultant videos. Also handy for finally deciding on new sport to plug into the 2002 new year's resolution.
posted on Dec-8-01 at 4:50 PM
Rapid Detox "In the world of addiction medicine, no technique for treating heroin users has ever been more controversial" According to the article, in the US, 980,000 use heroin, 175,000 are enrolled in government programs receiving daily dose of methadone, and only 1,000 rapid detox procedures are done a year. "Patients want it" Dr. Gevirtz says, "because it gives them a compassionate and comfortable way to get clean." Shouldn't they get it?
posted on Dec-7-01 at 7:09 AM
Shedding Writer's Block 30 minute hot shower does it, but wide open to other suggestions.
posted on Dec-6-01 at 6:11 AM
Here Comes the Sun Beware NY Times. Watch your flanks NY liberal establishment. Lord Conrad Black to back Smarter Times Ira Stoll and co in new conservative daily paper. Will they make it? (PS. Apparently are looking for editorial staff "willing to work long hours in an entrepreneurial, start-up environment") Start spreadin' the news, these little town blues are melting away, it's up to you, New York, New York...
posted on Dec-4-01 at 7:46 AM
Jack (Nicholson) wins Kennedy Center Award. Arguably the best American actor alive today. Even gets Bush and Cheney to come together for first time (NYT) since 9-11. Neptune, New Jersey should be proud.
posted on Dec-3-01 at 6:57 AM
AIDS Timeline:1926-Present with comprehensive links, thanks to Sister Mary Elizabeth of the Sisters of St. Elizabeth of Hungary and AEGIS (AIDS Education Global Information System), "...a service the Centers for Disease Control calls 'the best of its kind'..." (See How Aegis Began) People making a difference.
posted on Dec-1-01 at 5:02 PM
"It's not propaganda, it's the truth" Rumsfeld declared. OK, but leaflets with radio broadcasts, and Information Programs, is this the best we can do? How about some Daffy Goes to War, even some inspirational Soviet and Cuban communist posters, as we do battle on the psyops war front?
posted on Nov-29-01 at 3:40 PM
"Has time come for Old Rubber Lips to fade away?" While US's Jan Wenner personally gives Mick Jagger the Rolling Stone 5 star classic rating, the UK's Guardian/Observer slams him, finding "...the failure to sell Jagger to a contemporary pop audience is intriguing..." What is going on.
posted on Nov-25-01 at 4:44 PM
"Modern Spiritualism", dark room seances, tin trumpets, and mediums While the Taliban are off hijacking Islam, John Edward and Crossing Over conduct the injustice at home, hijacking time-honored "Modern Spiritualism" so he and his clan can personally profit from his cruel form of emotional abduction. Thankfully, his attempt to deliver the 9-11 victims on national television was cancelled.
posted on Nov-23-01 at 7:58 PM
Speakers Corner, Hyde Park, London Have always heard so much about this. Wild debates all Sunday long, no rest for the weary. Martin the Sex Speaker, Simon the Bulgarian and Barry the Marxist Mystic; who knows, do they have their own web sites ? Any other Speakers Corners one can go to, or is this purely a British phenomenon?
posted on Nov-21-01 at 1:39 PM
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