Best Vox Pop Ever

Ever wondered what you would say if you were confronted by a TV camera and a nosy reporter?

Here is one possible answer.

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Happy Birthday, Apple Macintosh

I have never owned an Apple “Mac”.

I have tried to use them but I have been too contaminated by Gatesware.

Yes, since you ask, I am strongly monolingual as well!

Yet I acknowledge that the Mac has an extremely important position in the history of home computing.

So, in honour of its 25th anniversary, here is the TV commercial which kicked the whole show off.

Secret London wartime tunnel complex for sale

A once-secret 1940s tunnel complex under the centre of London that housed military intelligence and linked the Cold War hotline phone between Washington and Moscow has been put up for sale. Former state telephone monopoly BT says the 1.6 kilometre long network of tunnels below Chancery Lane underground station is now surplus to requirements. The complex was dug in 1942 as a bomb shelter for 8,000 people during World War II but was taken over by military authorities as a communications and intelligence centre.

The Public Records Office used the site, known as Kingsway Tunnels, after the war to store historic documents. The Post Office later took over the property as a more secure location for its long distance phone exchange, including the 1950s hot line directly connecting the White House and the Kremlin. When telephony was split from the Post Office, the tunnels passed to British Telecom, now privatised and known as BT. In the 1980s the Government used part of the complex as a temporary backup for its top secret Pindar war control bunker.

Sales agent Farebrother said there had already been a lot of interest in the now disused property. It has a total floor area of around 7,100 square metres but can only be reached by two street-level lifts, restricting its potential use. Farebrother partner Niall Gallagher said there had been an “eclectic” mix of enquiries. “Private individuals, companies, corporations, government departments – we’ve got the whole spectrum at the moment,” he added.

Several potential purchasers appear to be fronts for a shadowy organisation known as “Torchwood” which seems to operate out of a blue police box.

To Pay Excitement

Sometimes language can get in the way.

Here is the ultimate sight gag.

Check out the eyes of the hosts for a bonus laugh – – –

Thanks, Jeff.

A Number Quiz

I found this over on snoopythegoon‘s site. It is a wonderful bit of absolutely essential information!

 

24, 48, 40, 5, 18, 6×7, 510, 250

What do these numbers have in common?

And the answer is…

Strange World #18; Synchronicity

A little scene setting here.

A Mafia Boss. A TV.

A show about a Mafia Boss being arrested. No, not the Sopranos.

A nice quiet evening in.

Suddenly the front door bursts in and the Carabiniere make an arrest!

Synchronicity? Coincidence? Too Far-fetched?

It happened!

Michele Catalano, 48, suspected of being a senior commander serving under the latest “boss of bosses” Salvatore Lo Piccolo, who was arrested this month after nearly 25 years on the run. Police said Catalano was watching the concluding chapter of the TV mini-series The Boss of Bosses, recounting the arrest in 1993 of real-life Cosa Nostra leader Salvatore “Toto” Riina, when he was detained.

Catalano faces charges of drug trafficking and extortion.

Lo Piccolo had taken over the reins of the Sicilian crime syndicate from Riina’s successor Bernardo Provenzano, who was arrested last year after 40 years on the run.

Police say the arrests have seriously weakened the Mafia.

I’m wondering if he was allowed to watch the end of the show – or if he will become the NEXT big Italian TV series. 

The Immortal Doug Anthony AllStars

More self-indulgence.

No, there is no message here!

Ugly Coyote segue Phone Sex

 

Rare Timberlake Disease Fatal?

Justin Timberlake, for those who don’t know, is an American pop and R&B singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer, and actor. He came to fame as the lead singer of pop boy band ‘N Sync and has won four Grammy Awards as well as an Emmy Award. In 2002, he released his debut solo album, Justified, which sold over seven million copies worldwide. Timberlake’s second solo release, FutureSex/LoveSounds, was released in 2006 with the U.S. number-one hit singles “SexyBack”, “My Love”, and “What Goes Around… Comes Around”. With his first two albums, Timberlake has sold over 15 million albums worldwide. For a decade his partner was the now troubled Britney Spears.(With grateful thanks to Wikipedia)

With all that success, there are rumours that his life may tragically be shortened by an unusual disease!

Back in 2005, Timberlake discovered that he was suffering from a throat condition. What his medical team referred to as “nodules” were subsequently removed from his throat.

But what if they were not the normal “nodules” we expect to find on the larynx?

What if they were cellulosiverous Isoptera?

Doctors have revealed that there is no need for general panic as the disease appears to be genetically confined to the Timberlake family and is, in general, unlikely to affect the majority of the population. Although there is a possibility that the no longer stick-like Spears could also be harbouring the infection.

Isoptera would totally infest the Timberlake body and all his internal cellulose could be being consumed by these small, white, parasitic little critters.

By termites!

LOL DeadCat

Some years ago a friend was doing some renovations on his abode.

Breaking through the floor, he found a mummified cat in the sealed space beneath the floor.

He was named “Morris” for reasons far too complicated to go into here.

It is time the perp’s were found!

For those who may choose to avoid this, do not go over the jump – – –

Study: Iraqis May Experience Sadness When Friends, Relatives Die

July 25, 2007

CHAPEL HILL, NC—A field study released Monday by the University of North Carolina School of Public Health suggests that Iraqi citizens experience sadness and a sense of loss when relatives, spouses, and even friends perish, emotions that have until recently been identified almost exclusively with Westerners.

“We were struck by how an Iraqi reacts to the sight of the bloody or decapitated corpse of a family member in a way not unlike an American, or at the very least a Canadian, would,” said Dr. Jonathan Pryztal, chief author of the study. “In addition to the rage, bloodlust, and hatred we already know to dominate the Iraqi emotional spectrum, it appears that they may have some capacity, however limited, for sadness.”

Though Pryztal was quick to add that more detailed analysis is needed, he said the findings cast some doubt on long-held assumptions about human nature in that region.

“Contrary to conventional wisdom, it seems that Iraqis do indeed experience at least minor feelings of grief when a best friend or a grandparent is ripped apart by a car bomb or shot execution style and later unearthed in a shallow mass grave,” Prytzal said. “Last December’s suicide-bomb killing of 71 Shiites in Baghdad, for example, produced unexpected reactions ranging from crumpled, sobbing despair to silent, dazed shock.”

Iraqis have often been observed weeping and wailing in apparent anguish, but the study offers evidence indicating this may not be exclusively an outward expression of anger or a desire for revenge. It also provocatively suggests that this grief can possess an American-like personal quality, and is not simply a tribal lamentation ritual.

Said Pryztal: “When trying to understand the psychology of the Iraqi citizenry after four years of war, think of a small American town roiled by the death of a well-known high school football player.”

According to Pryztal, the intensity of the grief does not diminish if the mourner experiences multiple bereavements over time. “If a woman has already lost one child, the subsequent killings of other children will evoke similar responses,” he said. “In the majority of cases we studied, it appeared as though those who lost multiple kids never actually got used to it.”

Though Pryztal expects the results of the study may be of some interest to students of Arab psychology, he did concede that the data may not be entirely accurate because it was gathered directly from Iraqis themselves.

“Almost all the Iraqis we interviewed said the war had ruined their lives because of the incalculable loss of friends and family,” Pryztal said. “But to be totally honest, these types of studies can be skewed rather easily by participant exaggeration.”

Psychologists and anthropologists have thus far largely discounted the study, claiming it has the same bias as a 1971 Stanford University study that concluded that many Vietnamese showed signs of psychological trauma from nearly a quarter century of continuous war in southeast Asia.

“We are, in truth, still a long way from determining if Iraqis are exhibiting actual, U.S.-grade sadness,” Mayo Clinic neuropsychologist Norman Blum said. “At present, we see no reason for the popular press to report on Iraqi emotions as if they are real.”

Pryztal said that his research group would next examine whether children in Sudan prefer playing with toys or serving as guerrilla fighters and killing innocent civilians.

The Onion

(Published in the Archive without alteration or comment. The “Humor” tag was added in a moment of blackness)

101 Uses For A John Howard #18

The crayon of the inventful Kudelka combines the inanities of Politics and Game Shows.

I know Andrew O’Keefe had an illustrious personage in his ancestry And I am quite sure there were illustrious Howards in the past.

Such a pity the present generation has fallen so low!

After thirty-odd years on federal parliament, it’s about time Johnny moved on to something a bit more substantial and in a way it’s like his entire political career has been a training ground for becoming host of Deal Or No Deal. You’ve basically got a whole studio of people trying desperately to guess how much money they’ve got in their suitcases while a disembodied all-powerful overseer issues take-it-or-leave-it ultimata from on high. Not a lot of security, but a perfect blueprint for a modern industrial relations strategy.

The pilot episode could have John as host with Peter Costello as contestant. Whenever Peter tries to make a deal, John could shout NO DEAL! This could go on for at least 12 years.

Louise Barry Speaks

What they won’t advertise on TV!

I have blatantly stolen this from Ashleigh.

If you are an Australian and value your country, please steal it and post it on your blog as well.

The Truth by John Howard

I was wrong.

You can trust John Howard. He says you can!

Iphone

Ok, I finally weakened.

Here , for the one reader who has not seen it is the infamous Iphone Vid.

It’s been around for six months, So long in fact that some bloggers have forgotten they have already posted it and are posting it anew.

Anyway, it’s a bit of fun.

And I haven’t posted it before.

Not that I remember.

Actually, I went to the doc’s today – – –

“I just hope it’s not Alzheimer’s,” I said to him, “Maybe there’s some kind of memory medicine you can give me. See, I’m getting terribly forgetful; I lose track of where I’m going or what I’m supposed to do when I get there. What should I do?” I asked glumly.
“Pay me in advance,” the doctor promptly suggested.