Friday Open Thread | 26 comments (26 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 11:28:53 AM EST

Guardian - BBC receives almost 1,200 complaints over Ukip election coverage

The BBC has received almost 1,200 complaints about its coverage of the European and local elections, saying it was biased towards Nigel Farage's Ukip.
The BBC has received 1,190 complaints accusing it of either having given too much coverage to Ukip, or being biased in favour of Nigel Farage's party.
It is thought to be the most complaints the BBC has ever received about its coverage of a party during an election.

the BBC has bents backwards to enable ukip in the last few years, Farage is the most frequent guest ever on its political discussion show, Question Time. Which makes him the John McCain of British politics. Yet at least McCain was a Presidential candidate for one of the two main parties.

Farage is merely a professional controversialist and part time bigot.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 11:35:49 AM EST

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

Well Farage doesn't waffle or equivocate, which makes better TV, plus I bet the BBC get bored out of their skulls with the rest of the cast of characters, one slimier than the others, all pretending to be decent people while they act out their monstrous delusions. Farage lays it out there, no bones. Love him or hate him, he's a character, like Boris, who also is a raving manic, but joined at the hip with the Establishment.

Farage is coming from the electoral id, almost punky with his cocky pout and laddish body language. Clever tongue but completely uninspiring as a leader.

Thank God I don't have to see him on TV though, seeing Berlusconi still sucking media oxygen here is enough of a hurl factor. Farage daily would definitely have me running off screaming into the night.

But come on, it's not like Straw, Blair, Barroso, Ashton or Kerry aren't as bad or worse.

And they're masters of truthiness...

'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty

by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 09:14:21 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (4.00 / 3)

He's exactly the politician described in the American President;-

We have serious problems to solve, and we need serious people to solve them. And whatever your particular problem is, I promise you, Bob Rumson is not the least bit interested in solving it. He is interested in two things and two things only: making you afraid of it and telling you who's to blame for it. That, ladies and gentlemen, is how you win elections.

Rabble rousing may make good telly, but it's barely a step away from demagoguery. Farage may well be good copy, but ukip as a party is stuffed to the gills with racists, homophobes and general misogynists. And they are prepared to legislate on such beliefs, yet there is practically no examination of this in the media.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sat May 31st, 2014 at 03:24:51 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

The Daily Beast - Arthur Chu - Your Princess Is in Another Castle: Misogyny, Entitlement, and Nerds

I was going to write about The Big Bang Theory--why, as a nerdy viewer, I sometimes like it and sometimes have a problem with it, why I think there's a backlash against it. Then some maniac shot up a sorority house in Santa Barbara and posted a manifesto proclaiming he did it for revenge against women for denying him sex. And the weekend just generally went to hell.
So now my plans have changed. With apologies to Big Bang Theory fans, this is all I want to say about The Big Bang Theory: When the pilot aired, it was 2007 and "nerd culture" and "geek chic" were on everyone's lips, and yet still the basic premise of "the sitcom for nerds" was, once again, awkward but lovable nerd has huge unreciprocated crush on hot non-nerdy popular girl (and also has an annoying roommate).
This annoys me. This is a problem.
Because, let's be honest, this device is old. We have seen it over and over again. Steve Urkel. Screech. Skippy on Family Ties. Niles on Frasier.

I found out today that one of the guys at work is a Pick Up "Artist", a misogynistic community of men who study the "science" of how to pick up women. Presumably to use them and lose them in a few hours before moving on to the next victim.

So this was an appropriate find.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 11:47:51 AM EST

Here's the problem (4.00 / 7)

After spending time with my family recently, which includes a formidable bunch of empowered women, including my own daughters, I'm so glad my mother was someone.

_{It is rightly acknowledged that people of faith have no monopoly of virtue
- Queen Elizabeth II}

by eurogreen on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 02:39:48 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Here's the problem (4.00 / 7)

I've gone off on a bit of a tangent there. The problem is that a lot of men have a great deal of trouble adapting to a world in which women are empowered. Because if we pay attention to the popular culture surrounding us, women remain the reward to which a man is entitled if he plays by the rules.

_{It is rightly acknowledged that people of faith have no monopoly of virtue
- Queen Elizabeth II}

by eurogreen on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 03:06:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Well said (none / 0)

That made me think of this tautly written article I enjoyed today.

Editing While Female - Susan B. Glasser - POLITICO Magazine

'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty

by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 09:26:36 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (4.00 / 2)

Since last year I looked into PUA offerings, after recognizing own lousy nerdy dating "resume". So I will chip in. The PUA online commerce is very active, with products of variable quality and creative payment policies. To get to the good stuff, you need patience and to be less stingy. And deep down, (more or less) everything boils down to guy's character, social intelligence. Women are human beings? Certainly. Especially when it comes to emotions, a guy has to look at a woman humanly without reciprocity expectation. Elliot surely failed at that.

Many guys objectively need good info and help, to overcome the first (pretty strict) dating hurdles and to be more delightful to the girls they fancy. Staying a "gamma" guy can be no less painful than some injustice. On the other hand, that pain and confusion is a part of the evolutionary game, socially acceptable without much argument. Male neediness is a big turn off sexually. These emotions go beyond intellectual or moral understanding.

The PUA community gives more real guidance to baffled guys than anyone else - by far. But eventually, a guy has to take initiative himself to figure out relationship subtleties. One particular confusion for me was "tic-for-tac", "I'll scratch your back, then you scratch back" tips. These equivalence suggestions are not helpful at all. A guy has to show a good deal of determination, leadership, own direction instead. Looking for feedback is just weak - it leads to a down "tic-for-tac" spiral soon.

The relationship basics are not that hard - but then, is there a point to enlighten everyone? Confused young men and women are part of the social game: status and resource competitions, hierarchy joys. This touches primal habits of human species - and perhaps deep evolutionary imperatives of population size control.

by das monde on Sat May 31st, 2014 at 07:55:06 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 1)

I read his manifesto to try and get some insight into his psyche and it is horribly fascinating, as he is very articulate and has a memory for detail.

A textbook example of narcissistic grandiosity ("I am magnificent!") coupled to a shyness around women.

Add exposure to extreme wealth, pop culture celebrity and a complete buy-in to the uber-consumerist values of the time and space he inhabited, then make guns childishly easy to obtain, and the perfect cocktail of self-loathing and misogyny had nowhere to go except into punish mode, enraged envy providing the fuse.

I can't recommend reading it, but I did learn a little from it.

'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty

by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Sat May 31st, 2014 at 09:40:40 AM EST
[ Parent ]

World Cup posters (none / 0)

Design your own World Cup posters | Football | theguardian.com

Brazilian illustrator Cristiano Siqueira has created 32 posters for ESPN to celebrate the teams competing in the World Cup this summer. Inspired by his efforts, we would like you to create your own World Cup posters and share them with our readers

Some of Siqueira's originals are rather off:

Germany is "Die Mannschaft" instead of "Nationalelf", all in cringe-inducing Gothic letters, but at least Özil is the biggest figure.
For Italy, Balotelli is shown in his trademark pose – but in a shirt!
For the Netherlands, the central figure is recently weak van Persie, rather than Robben.

I actually liked the reader contributions better, especially Roysie the Riveter.

_{*Lunatic*, n.

One whose delusions are out of fashion.}

by DoDo on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 02:14:42 PM EST

Re: World Cup posters (none / 1)

He, the poster captioned "3 lions and a cuppa" sums us up very well tho'

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 03:00:58 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (4.00 / 2)

South African news site apologises for #EWNCartoon: http://t.co/4fvEhOxKHB #EWNMustApologise #StopUnderminingVoters pic.twitter.com/ardxFXYRLv
— The Stream (@AJStream) May 30, 2014

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.

by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 03:34:41 PM EST

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

Sounds like any government anywhere in the neo conservative world

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 04:42:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

Google wants to reinvent transportation, Apple wants to sell you fancy headphones - Vox

There were two striking pieces of business news this week from America's leading technology brands. On the one hand, Google unveiled a prototype of an autonomous car that, if it can be made to work at scale, promises to end mass automobile ownership while drastically reducing car wreck fatalities and auto-related pollution. Meanwhile, Apple bought a company that makes high-end headphones.
Which is to say that Apple's playing checkers while Google plays chess.

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.

by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 04:05:10 PM EST

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

You can't help thinking they're probably right in that assessment

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 04:44:10 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (4.00 / 5)

Google is still, more-or-less, run by its founders who are, to an extent, techno-nerds.

Apple is just a consumer electronics company.

She believed in nothing; only her skepticism kept her from being an atheist. -- Jean-Paul Sartre

by ATinNM on Fri May 30th, 2014 at 06:30:47 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 1)

ATinNM:

Apple is just a consumer electronics company.

...which has hired some excellent techno-nerds to actually design useful objects of grace.

Schmidt is no Jobs.

I suspect Google will outrun Apple longterm, (if they don't merge that is), it will be interesting to observe.

'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty

by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Sat May 31st, 2014 at 09:44:56 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

Google founders have yet to face serious competition in their core Search Engine business. So I expect them to out-preform Apple in the near term, say to the end of this decade. How they will do in the long term is unpredictable.

If the collective "weight" of the egos at Google and Apple were merged in a single company the density would create a black hole, destroying the planet. I don't see any prospect of that happening.

She believed in nothing; only her skepticism kept her from being an atheist. -- Jean-Paul Sartre

by ATinNM on Sun Jun 1st, 2014 at 12:54:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 1)

Google are diversifying: their core business is unreliable. Remember how quickly thier domination happened.

Apple had a near death experience. They focus.

by Colman (colman at eurotrib.com) on Sun Jun 1st, 2014 at 01:06:25 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

What hand you favor shapes your moral choices

The differences between dog and cat people

by das monde on Sat May 31st, 2014 at 09:42:25 AM EST

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 1)

Introverted, open-minded, sensitive, non-conformist? Me?

Miaow.

_{It is rightly acknowledged that people of faith have no monopoly of virtue
- Queen Elizabeth II}

by eurogreen on Sat May 31st, 2014 at 05:14:39 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

I like both, I like animals.

However, I expect dogs to like me back and am surprised if they don't. I'm never surprised if cats are indifferent to me. So I go with the animal which reciprocates

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Jun 1st, 2014 at 06:23:00 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

The handedness thing is interesting. Especially as most of the supermarkets I go to have their entrances on the RH side of the internal layout, so that the whole shopping experience is to the left.

Or do they expect people to be subtly repelled by shops with entrances on the left

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Jun 1st, 2014 at 06:25:47 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 1)

RH entrances promote the more profitable counter-clockwise traffic. Without a choice provided, people follow what there is.

by das monde on Sun Jun 1st, 2014 at 12:26:33 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Friday Open Thread (none / 0)

Great link!

Thank You.

She believed in nothing; only her skepticism kept her from being an atheist. -- Jean-Paul Sartre

by ATinNM on Sun Jun 1st, 2014 at 12:42:49 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Friday Open Thread | 26 comments (26 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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