European Tribune - Community, Politics & Progress.

Stay indoors and you might get away with it. Or you can feature on one of those live cop tv shows.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 11:18:02 AM EST
[ Parent ]

We had a few fighter jets passing a couple hundred meters from the office - at low speed though, thankfully.

Un roi sans divertissement est un homme plein de misères

by linca (antonin POINT lucas AROBASE gmail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 11:32:12 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Same here (none / 0)

in my case, it was more than a couple - it's the air force training for the 14 July parade, and they fly just over La Défense.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (jeromeguillet@yahoo.fr) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:09:38 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Same here (4.00 / 3)

The building right next to where I used to work (Where InWales was a week or two ago) was used as a navigation point/ electronic bombing target by Low level airforce Jets, tens of times a day, just about 90% of the year.

Apparently in the UK you're not allowed to complain and actually have the airforce do anything about it unless your community is larger than 10,000 people. On top of that if you claim that they were actually flying below the minimum legal height, the RAF will not do anything about it , unless you can give the registration number from the plane. which are normally either side of the tail, in letters 4 inches high, not painted in anything highly visible, and travelling past at 400 miles per hour. Even if you can give them the serial number, the usual excuse is that they are above the minimum height , just you are standing in a place where you can't view effectively and properly judge the height, even when they are between you and the valley floor, and the valley is less tall than the minimum height. Occasionally they install a mobile radar at the top of one of the valleys to check. strangely that always seems to happen during the quiet times of the year.

Complain enough and you get invited to a talk where they tell all about the necessity of training, but not why it particularly has to be you they're training over. Local farmers have taken to writing messages with weedkiller in the grass for Pilots. ranging from Pam fod Hast (Welsh for what's the rush) to the much less subtle Piss Off Biggles! (which backfired, because many pilots detoured to read the message after it was spotted in the ariel photos on an airforce flight simulator)

I'm tired of this backslapping, aint humanity great BS, we're a virus with shoes Bill Hicks

by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:48:25 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Same here (4.00 / 2)

They used my high school as a marker and would fly over frequently. I know the school complained plenty because the planes really were hugely disruptive but we we based in a tiny village where the county's cast-offs and bastards were all sent so nobody cared.

Ad astra per aspera

by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:54:01 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Same here (none / 1)

And they always choose beautiful quiet places to fly over. I mean, bloody hell, we won the Falklands, can't they go down there and fly over W Falkland, which is just like Wales except it's empty

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:54:04 PM EST
[ Parent ]

We have swine flu (unconfirmed) at work.

Beat that :)

by Sassafras on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 11:52:25 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Apparently they aren't testing for it anymore? Too expensive with the number of cases now.

Is anyone oinking?

Ad astra per aspera

by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 11:59:56 AM EST
[ Parent ]

I got that impression about the testing. Stay at home and call us if you're dying seems to be the order of the day for any flu-type symptoms.

Schools aren't closing any more-there's no point. But we're sending home our sore throats and headaches fairly smartly. None of the usual "Have a drink of water, dear, and tell me how you feel after playtime."

by Sassafras on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:09:04 PM EST
[ Parent ]

But we're sending home our sore throats and headaches fairly smartly.

We did that for a couple of weeks until everyone came to terms with the fact that it was also allergy season and you just can't keep an entire office home for an extended period of time out of sheer paranoia.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:11:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]

People are being told not to go to swine flu parties.
Are there any of those round your way?

Ad astra per aspera

by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:14:58 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Haven't heard of any.

I think at least one parent at my son's school has had it, though.

by Sassafras on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:20:19 PM EST
[ Parent ]

damn, hope the person who had it wasn't the person sneezing near me in the Bus station next to the shopping centre yesterday.

I'm tired of this backslapping, aint humanity great BS, we're a virus with shoes Bill Hicks

by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:30:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Yes, if we sent home every child with a sniffle, we'd have an empty school.

by Sassafras on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:19:07 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Sorry, that was a facetious remark. Current advice is that anyone with flu type symptoms should stay at home and call their doctor or NHS Direct for advice. On no account should they go to their doctor's surgery.

by Sassafras on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:14:10 PM EST
[ Parent ]

There was an article about swine flu procedures in Helsingin Sanomat today. The doctor interviewed was saying that he hoped that employers would no longer ask everyone who gets sick to get a note from the doctor. If everyone has to go to their health center before being able to take any sick leave, the flu will spread even faster.

(Normally you need a note either right away or after 3 days of illness, depending on your employment contract.)

You have a normal feeling for a moment, then it passes. --More--

by tzt (tztmail at gmail dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:02:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

We had some suspected cases here (meaning they'd not tested positive for known strains of flu but were not tested for swine flu). My friend got sick & went to the doctor. She was told the only people being tested for swine flu now are patients who are so ill they require immediate hospitalization. Which means the reported numbers of confirmed cases are actually being kept artificially low.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:09:11 PM EST
[ Parent ]

This is good news because the number of deaths is still low.

I've seen a serious CDC estimate of a million cases total in the US. Since deaths are still barely into three figures, this makes swine flu very much less lethal than ordinary flu.

Also, the demographic peak is around 20-25. Kids get it, teens get it, young adults get it. Older people are much less likely to get it. Anyway over 50 is almost guaranteed not to get it.

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:23:45 PM EST
[ Parent ]

"artificially low" makes it sound like a conspiracy - it's now being treated as a normal flu - hospitalise and treat the really ill - because there's bugger all else they can do.

by Colman (colman at eurotrib.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:31:37 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Uhg. I didn't say there was a conspiracy.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:42:13 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Can-Do (none / 0)

We have the President of the United State fly by our windows at the office when he leaves or arrives in DC.

Beat that.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:51:05 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Can-Do (none / 0)

We had swine flu cases across the street from our office.

The President of the United States lives down the street from our office. When he's not living in DC. Or Hawaii. Sometimes we pass each other coming and going.

We had hazmat people close our office for moon-suited inspections after anthrax was found in the Congressional mail-room. (We get lots of books from LoC.)

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:04:13 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Can-Do (none / 0)

Hmm, okay, fine. You win.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:05:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Can-Do (none / 1)

Oh. And we gave the world Milton Friedman.

Beat That! Swine flu, Shmine flue...

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:12:07 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Can-Do (4.00 / 2)

My city's former mayor is famous for getting caught smoking crack on camera during a drug bust with an ex-girlfriend and then saying, "Bitch set me up."

He was then reelected when he got out.

Win.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 07:37:26 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Can-Do (none / 1)

Side note: I still say "Bitch set me up" should've replaced the DC motto when they put out the DC quarter.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 07:38:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Wednesday Open Thread (4.00 / 7)

And the last wed. of my sojourn to the midwest. its been hot, cold, rainy, dry, foggy and even very beautiful. Typical midwest in high summer. the grandkids have had a ball, first experience with lightning bugs, bunches of cousins, swimming, a few minor injuries and lots of space to run in. I'll have to come back in January to cure myself of the longing for this place. Best wishes to all, I've dropped off the news cycles and know nothing thats not local

Got to town and opened the paper to find that a girl I went from first grade through high school had died unexpectedly and went to the funeral, strange that I hadn't seen her in over 35 years and now I won't, though we'd had some e-mail contact.

Anyway, just thought I'd drop in and say hello.

"I said, 'Wait a minute, Chester, You know I'm a peaceful man...'" Robbie Robertson

by NearlyNormal on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 11:13:30 AM EST

No place like the rural midwest or south to decompress, at least if you have roots there and aren't freaked by the culture.

If sanity be culturally normative, then by the norms of this culture I claim insanity.

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer at eurotrib.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:11:14 PM EST
[ Parent ]

The Associated Press: Obama praises ceremonial leader

President Barack Obama heaped lavish praise on Italy's largely ceremonial president Wednesday, lauding his "integrity" and describing him as a "great leader."
It might sound like the standard compliments a visitor might make after being hosted in the splendor of Renaissance-era Quirinal Palace. But in a country whose real leader, Premier Silvio Berlusconi, is under fire from a sex scandal, the words had a special ring.
Even if Obama did not intend any snub of Berlusconi, the embattled premier has been under a barrage of attacks over his moral fitness to lead Italy and become a flashpoint for criticism of preparations for a summit of world leaders in earthquake-stricken L'Aquila.

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 11:55:41 AM EST

de Gondi:

The U.S. no longer "needs" a lobotomized berlusconian Italy. ...
...
Berlusconi must go. He's no longer useful. The world has other priorities. He's decrepit. Europe needs another Italy, certainly not this charade of sleazy racists and wannabe fascists.
Italy is in dire need of a political earthquake.

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:00:49 PM EST
[ Parent ]

This is deeply embarrassing: I didn't know Italy had a President.

A bit of Googling reveals Germany also has a President. Great Britain does not. Spain, I can't tell.

Wow. I feel like I just failed 5th grade.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:04:31 PM EST
[ Parent ]

poemless:

Spain, I can't tell

Spain, like Britain, is a monarchy, therefore it has a King and not a President. However, in Spanish usage, the "prime minister" is the "president of the government" in opposition to the "president of the republic" when Spain was one.

In Italy, Napolitano is il Presidente della Repubblica and Berlisconi is il Presidente del Consiglio (Chairman of the Council [of ministers]).

See wikipedia: Head of state

Head of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes personifying the continuity and legitimacy of the state and exercising the political powers, functions and duties granted to the head of state in the country's constitution and laws. In nation states the head of state is often thought of as the official "leader" of the nation.

Wikipedia Head of government

Head of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the head of government is often styled Prime Minister, President of the Government, Premier, etc. In presidential republics or monarchies, the head of government may be the same person as the head of state, who is often called respectively a president or a monarch.

And DoDo's European countries' confusing political systems... (May 11th, 2006)

In afew's Villepin a cinder, Chirac toast? diary, a discussion developed on the arcane complexities of the French and other representative democracies. I thought, why not illustrate it all with silly little graphs. Jérôme likes graphs, so now I'll turn this a story - with new, slightly less silly graphs...
Let the 'whose political system is best' debate begin...

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:12:15 PM EST
[ Parent ]

For instance, in the US (4.00 / 16)

the head of State is Obama
the head of Government is the chairman of Goldman Sachs

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (jeromeguillet@yahoo.fr) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:17:03 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: For instance, in the US (4.00 / 5)

So, the US is a financial oligarchy with a popularly-elected figurehead president?

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:22:08 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: For instance, in the US (4.00 / 4)

thanks, i alwasy wondered who the actual head was. D'ya reckon he's the magi of the Illuminati ? {hides}

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:47:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: For instance, in the US (none / 0)

I don't think the Illuminati are accepting automated trading farms as members just yet.

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:19:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: For instance, in the US (none / 0)

And here I was thinking it was Evan Bayh.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:52:56 PM EST
[ Parent ]

You've misunderstood. I meant the title, not the job description I didn't know there was anyone in Italy called the President.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:50:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]

In fact there are two people, one of them being Berlusconi.

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:12:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]

I thought he was PM.

Migeru, sometimes the more you talk, the more you confuse me. You can interpret that as a sign of my intellectual short-comings, but I thought you should know. In case you're under the impression that you're enlightening me.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:16:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]

In English he's PM. In Italian he's Presidente del Consiglio which means "chairman of the council [of ministers]".

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:18:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

It's the same in German, as well as Hungarian, BTW, with the further complication that in Hungarian, President doesn't have a Latin root:

figurehead President: köztársasági elnök (lit. 'Republican President')
PM: miniszterelnök (lit. Minister President).

*Traitor*, n.
A benighted individual who perceives an illusory distinction between serving his nation and abetting the criminals who govern it.

by DoDo on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:49:08 PM EST
[ Parent ]

As Mig said, Spain has a King. I only knew that because I remember him getting really pissed off when HUGO! called the previous Spanish PM a fascist. The King looked like he was debating whether to walk out or eat him.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:56:15 PM EST
[ Parent ]

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:42:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Beautiful move by Obama (4.00 / 3)

how can Berlusconi criticize that? But he must clearly see the snub, even if he will most certainly ignore it.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (jeromeguillet@yahoo.fr) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:12:19 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Beautiful move by Obama (none / 0)

So I guess B&M won't be guesting with ~~the babes~~ ~~the girls~~ their daughters at his island mansion then ?

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:50:30 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Beautiful move by Obama (none / 0)

But they have such even tans....

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:56:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Beautiful move by Obama (none / 0)

Hm - everyone's making a fuss about Obama's pitting Presidents against PMs, defering to the former. But maybe it's not poltical machinations. Maybe he just wants to keep the girls away from those lascivious PMs.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:10:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Beautiful move by Obama (4.00 / 3)

Pity that's it too late to test your theory with the previous President and PM of Israel.

by gk (g k quattro due due sette "at" gmail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:14:03 PM EST
[ Parent ]

FT.com / Companies / Banks - Bern to block UBS handing records to US

The Swiss government on Wednesday waded into the legal battle between UBS and the US authorities by saying it would forbid the bank from handing over confidential client information if a crucial court case next week required it.
Bern warned it might go as far as confiscating the data, should a US court in Miami rule the bank was obliged to transfer the client names requested.

"Ne te courbe que pour aimer..." René Char

by Melanchthon on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:01:11 PM EST

Guardian - The headscarf martyr: murder in German court sparks Egyptian fury

Will UBS lose regulatory approval to operate in the US or with US citizens as a result?

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:02:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Or in Switzerland... (none / 0)

Don't be sure they'd necessarily choose one over the other... both big "Swiss" banks are heavily geared towards the US market...

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (jeromeguillet@yahoo.fr) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:11:24 PM EST
[ Parent ]

New online survey tool (4.00 / 2)

Mindtracker

I thought this was interesting, but dangerously exploitable...

In short, a company can pay to put up any linear timed presentation such as a TV ad . As a member of the panel for that survey (anyone can join), you watch the video with your mouse on a horizontal scale and able to move from left to right to the extremities of the scale. Your movements are recorded and collated with results from other panel members.

In the survey I tested, it was a video of Prime Minister's question time from Parliament, with Harriet Harman and William Hague. One extremity of the scale said Harman, the other Hague. I moved my pointer to left or right (or centered) according to who I thought was 'winning' the exchange.

Panel members get paid for joining a commercial survey. Minimum 50p - if I understood correctly.

Some profiling questions are asked before the survey. I have no idea how secure such information at the site may be.

You can't be me, I'm taken

by Sven Triloqvist on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 12:56:59 PM EST

Re: Wednesday Open Thread (4.00 / 5)

Haven't seen this mentioned

It was while Marwa el-Sherbini was in the dock recalling how the accused had insulted her for wearing the hijab after she asked him to let her son sit on a swing last summer, that the very same man strode across the Dresden courtroom and plunged a knife into her 18 times.
Her three-year-old son Mustafa was forced to watch as his mother slumped to the courtroom floor.
Even her husband Elvi Ali Okaz could do nothing as the 28-year-old Russian stock controller who was being sued for insult and abuse took the life of his pregnant wife. As Okaz ran to save her, he too was brought down, shot by a police officer who mistook him for the attacker. He is now in intensive care in a Dresden hospital.

how does a man with a known history of violent abuse get to be allowed to carry a knife into court during his own trial ??

The policeman had a choice of shooting the guy with the knife or the brown guy; guess which choice he made ?

why is the German govt staying quiet over this ? I mean, c'mon guys. this is not hard.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:02:09 PM EST

It's no more staying quiet, and is claiming that the circumstances were unclear to them (i.e. they claim they did not have information about the racist motive). I'm not sure they are honest, but, at any rate, the silence of regional and local authorities is more damning, and the one-week silence of the media the most damning -- they could have reported what they hear even as rumours.

*Traitor*, n.
A benighted individual who perceives an illusory distinction between serving his nation and abetting the criminals who govern it.

by DoDo on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:14:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Biting commentary in the left-wing taz daily:

Kommentar Mord im Gericht: Deutschlands langes Schweigen - taz.de KOMMENTAR VON KARIM EL-GAWHARY		Commentary on murder in court: Germany's long silence - taz.de COMMENTARY BY KARIM EL-GAWHARY [taz's Middle East correspondent in Cairo]
...		...
Hätte das große Schweigen in der Politik auch so lange angedauert, wenn ein Jude in einem deutschen Gerichtssaal niedergestochen worden wäre, nachdem der Täter zuvor antisemitische Parolen gerufen hätte? Axel W. mag ein Einzeltäter sein, aber war er nicht von einer weit verbreiteten antiislamischen Atmosphäre angesteckt?		Would the big silence in politics have persisted this long, had a Jew been stabbed in a German courtroom after the perpetrator voicing anti-Semitic slogans beforehand? Axel W. may be a lone offender, but he was he not infected by a widespread anti-Islamistic atmosphere?
Wann immer es einen Anschlag muslimischer Fanatiker gab, wurden die deutschen Politiker nicht müde, Deutschlands Muslime aufzufordern, Stellung zu beziehen, um den Generalverdacht von sich abzuwenden. Nun stehen die Deutschen zumindest in Ägypten unter dem Generalverdacht der Islamophobie.		Whenever there was an attack by Muslim fanatics, German politicians never got tired calling on Germany's Muslims to take a stand, to ward off the general suspicion on them. Now, at least in Egypt, it's the Germans who stand under under the general suspicion of Islamophobia.
Wo waren in der vergangenen Woche die Stimmen in Deutschland, die den Anschlag im Gericht verurteilten? Sie waren nicht zu hören. Mit einer ganz bemerkenswerten Ausnahme. "Man muss kein Muslim sein, um sich gegen antimuslimisches Verhalten zu wenden, und man muss kein Jude sein, um gegen Antisemitismus vorzugehen", sagte der Generalsekretär des Zentralrates der Juden. Danke, Stephan Kramer, für diese deutlichen Worte. So selbstverständlich sie eigentlich sind, so selbstherrlich wurden sie in der letzten Woche von der deutschen Politik übergangen.		Where were the voices in Germany denouncing the attack in the courtroom in the past week? They were not to be heard. With a very notable exception. "You don't have to be a Muslim to stand against anti-Muslim behavior, and you don't have to be a Jew to act against anti-Semitism," said the Secretary of the Central Council of Jews [in Germany]. Thank you, Stephan Kramer, for these significant words. As self-evident they really are, so high-handedly they were passed over by German politics in the past week.

*Traitor*, n.
A benighted individual who perceives an illusory distinction between serving his nation and abetting the criminals who govern it.

by DoDo on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:34:32 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Can't resist sharing this;-

Access to the Neil Armstrong Museum in Ohio is exellent. There's only one small step.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:07:01 PM EST

Europe's most expensive cities (4.00 / 2)

The Guardian has calculated the top 50 most expensive cities in the world. Using New York City as the baseline, Europe lands 20 of the top 40 most expensive cities in the world. Here's the list:

Europe Rank 2009	World Rank 2009	World Rank 2008	City	Country	Index 2009
1	4	8	GENEVA	SWITZERLAND	109.2
2	6	9	ZURICH	SWITZERLAND	105.2
3	7	7	COPENHAGEN	DENMARK	105
4	11	10	MILAN	ITALY	96.9
5	13	12	PARIS	FRANCE	95.1
6	14	4	OSLO	NORWAY	94.2
7	16	3	LONDON	UK	92.7
8	18	16	ROME	ITALY	91.2
9	19	21	HELSINKI	FINLAND	90.5
10	21	19	VIENNA	AUSTRIA	89.3
11	29	25	AMSTERDAM	NETHERLANDS	85.7
12	30	45	BRATISLAVA	SLOVAKIA	84.8
13	37	28	MADRID	SPAIN	82.1
14	38	43	LUXEMBOURG	LUXEMBOURG	82.1
15	38	31	BARCELONA	SPAIN	82.1
16	41	39	BRUSSELS	BELGIUM	81.6
17	46	18	ST PETERSBOURG	RUSSIA	81.3
18	47	37	MUNICH	GERMANY	81.2
19	48	40	FRANKFURT	GERMANY	80.9
20	49	38	BERLIN	GERMANY	80.8

by Magnifico on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:49:03 PM EST

Whoops (none / 1)

*sigh* make that "Europe lands 20 of the top 50..." New York City is the baseline of 100.

by Magnifico on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 01:57:01 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Whoops (none / 0)

We. must. be. doomed.

I'm tired of this backslapping, aint humanity great BS, we're a virus with shoes Bill Hicks

by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:06:55 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Whoops (none / 1)

And make that Mercer, not the Guardian, doing the calculation.

*Traitor*, n.
A benighted individual who perceives an illusory distinction between serving his nation and abetting the criminals who govern it.

by DoDo on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:17:43 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Europe's most expensive cities (none / 0)

Unless something has changed dramatically, I have trouble believing London is cheaper than New York.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:58:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Europe's most expensive cities (4.00 / 2)

I'd like to know what factors they are based on. The perspective of a visitor is clearly different from a resident, but I can usually get a decent hotel in Paris or Milan for around 50 Euros, and for slightly more (and slightly lower definition of "decent" in Zurich). This is close to impossible in NY. Does anybody have a breakdown of these studies, so that we can decide both whether figures are plausible, and, more importantly, are the relevant for us, or merely relevant for bankers deciding where to put their bonuses.

by gk (g k quattro due due sette "at" gmail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:09:20 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Europe's most expensive cities (none / 0)

I stayed at a hotel on 57th St in Manhattan, and I think our rate was only about $80/night. This was definitely not low-end, being in Midtown, walking distance to Times Square, Rockefeller, the Park, and all that.

I was thinking of house prices, mostly. The median in London, last I checked, was about £350k, while in New York it was about $400k.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 07:29:32 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Another bit of video legerdemain from the man upstairs.

Helen will no doubt have it worked out in a jiff ;-)

You can't be me, I'm taken

by Sven Triloqvist on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:16:50 PM EST

I'm still not sure if you're gently mocking me for stating the obvious as if it's a revelation.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:57:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]

No, I was genuinely impressed when you got the first version - most people imagine a digital trick.

You can't be me, I'm taken

by Sven Triloqvist on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 04:30:21 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Ok, so how long do you want everyone else to ponder before I reveal.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:02:25 PM EST
[ Parent ]

No shoot away!

You can't be me, I'm taken

by Sven Triloqvist on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:07:23 PM EST
[ Parent ]

False wall, hole cut at an angle.

But it took me a lot longer than Helen to work it out!

by Sassafras on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:14:36 PM EST
[ Parent ]

I was thinking caravan porthole, less messy, right shape and it's about the right height.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:42:57 PM EST
[ Parent ]

But then again, I did realise that you, as a video professional, would be more susceptible to the low tech con, cos you'll be imagining all sorts of blue screen gizmos cos that's your meat and drink.

But somebody like me, who has no visual imagination, can see right through it cos I see it prosaicly.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:04:41 PM EST
[ Parent ]

That is probably true ;-) (the first part)

You can't be me, I'm taken

by Sven Triloqvist on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:08:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Kartoffelrechner (4.00 / 4)

Spiegel: Conmen Pass Off Potatoes as Laptops

They look remarkably like laptops.
Two German men who spent €620 thinking they were getting a great deal on second-hand laptops and mobile phones ended up with a bag containing four kilos of potatoes...
The two bargain hunters, aged 26 and 31, were standing outside a hairdressers' salon in Braunschweig, northern Germany, when three men sitting in a car beckoned them over and showed them a treasure trove of laptops, mobile phones and digital cameras...
Police said the three sellers were aged 20 to 30, had blonde hair and spoke English and that the number plate was probably British.

by Magnifico on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:24:01 PM EST

Kissinger on Versailles, Obama, Realpolitik (4.00 / 5)

Spiegel has an interview with Henry Kissinger discussing the Treaty of Versailles. He also likes Obama to a "chess player" when it comes to politics, but there is no mention, at all, about the 'Great Game' of Afghanistan, especially ironic in that:

Kissinger: I believe that Obama has a unique chance to conduct a peaceful American foreign policy. I do not see any conflicts between such major countries, China, Russia, India, and the U.S., which will justify a military solution. Therefore, there is an opportunity for a diplomatic effort. Moreover, the economic crisis does not permit countries to devote a historic percentage of their resources to military conflict. I am structurally more optimistic than a couple of years ago.

The U.S. is still fighting two hot wars and has military bases spread across the planet. (When is Europe going to ask the Americans leave, by the way. It could really save my country some bucks if Europe did.) Anyway, I thought this was amusing:

Kissinger: Let me say a word about realpolitik, just for clarification. I regularly get accused of conducting realpolitik. I don't think I have ever used that term. It is a way by which critics want to label me and say, "Watch him. He's a German really. He doesn't have the American view of things."

by Magnifico on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 02:41:24 PM EST

Re: Kissinger on Versailles, Obama, Realpolitik (4.00 / 2)

I regularly get accused of conducting realpolitik. I don't think I have ever used that term.

He just did....

by gk (g k quattro due due sette "at" gmail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:12:31 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Kissinger on Versailles, Obama, Realpolitik (4.00 / 3)

And isn't that how it's done?

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 05:28:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Five six-figure jobs that are not in banking (7 July 2009)

Following the immeasurable popularity of our article a few months ago on the top 20 best paid jobs not in banking, and in light of the fact that Hays' boss says lost City jobs are not coming back ever, we have decided to follow up with some more information on six figure alternative careers, and how to move into one.
Unfortunately, if the jobs below are anything to go by, six figure salaries in other industries are presaged by at least five years' training.

What, they thought you could make 6 figures without training!!!???

A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds; a man of deeds and not of words is like a garden full of turds — Anonymous

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 03:42:28 PM EST

ZOMGWORK?!?!!!1!!!11!!1oNEone

Senior civil servant, up to £205k? Jesus. We top out at about the equivalent of £120k.

And since when does the UK have dentists? (ducks)

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:02:36 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Wednesday Open Thread (4.00 / 4)

We have dentists. It's just that they don't talk to poor people.

A short and incomplete list of other jobs worth at least £100k:

Corporate IT sales and consultancy
Certain (rare) kinds of journalism
Creative director, advertising (can be much more than £100k)
Writing (top best sellers are worth > £100k)
Accountancy, especially corporate tax 'management'
Upper-middle management in almost any corporate
Certain (rare) kinds of engineering consultancy
Lobbying and PR
Top end of music engineering and production
Head teacher in education
Any number of jobs for lawyers

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:35:43 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Book featuring football, black magic, politics, the world cup, and history. more sellable written as a seemingly factual conspiracy book or as a novel?

I'm tired of this backslapping, aint humanity great BS, we're a virus with shoes Bill Hicks

by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 08:10:18 PM EST
[ Parent ]

The subject matter says "male readers", so the fake factual reporting might fly. But either way you have to offer it as fiction. Getting it published depends on finding an agent, then whether it takes an editor's fancy. Getting it made into a "bestseller" depends on whether the editor thinks it's a good career move for her/im, and has a stable enough position with enough clout in the publishing house (which is not about to be taken over by another) to get big enough backing for the book. Lotsa hoops.

When locusts move on, they leave nothing behind

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Thu Jul 9th, 2009 at 03:14:57 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Mini Odds & Ends: (4.00 / 2)

World of Weirdness from the Obama-Russia summit:

Obama repeatedly referred to Putin as the President.

Obama joked about Sasha looking like a spy when she was at the Kremlin.

Obama thanked Russian businessmen for giving the US a good deal on Alaska.

Sasha and Malia reportedly fed tame doves, made dolls and gingerbread and looked at crown jewels.

Michelle was interrogated by orphans whom she then took to watch folk dancers.

Putin was apparently peeved to have to get up early for a 1 hour breakfast with Obama, and sans joint statement.

Rumour has it the two had an argument as Obama left. They were still trading words as he got in the car.

Obama met with opposition leaders. No word on Medvedev's plans to meet with Ralph Nader when he comes to America.

Putin spent the summit looking at tractors and chilling with Hell's Angels and I am not even making that up.

The Obamas dined in. Moscow was insulted.

Medvedev wore jeans. No one knows what that means.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:40:26 PM EST

Re: Wednesday Open Thread (4.00 / 4)

Adventures in publishing:

Left: Dec 07
Right: May 08

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Wed Jul 8th, 2009 at 06:50:24 PM EST