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Democracy is clearly over-rated
That's the conclusion I've reached after careful consideration of the evidence. Exhibit 1 - a public vote on the In Our Times Greatest Philosopher, via Radio 4.. Karl Marx. Exhibit 2 - a public vote on the World's Top Public Intelluctual, via Prospect Magazine.. Noam Chomsky. Exhibit 3 - a panel of experts select the Philosopher/Man of the Decade, via Men's Health magazine.. Homer Simpson! [also here]. "Homer no function beer well without." I rest my case. To those who wait.. good things come
Chris, at Crooked Timber, links to it today, and Sheila, of The Variations fame, noted it previously. [My bad.. and slow] The latest Genius ad [QuickTime movie].. both, though, suggest there's a possibility of an unfavourable reaction from intelligent design/creationism advocates.. Hmm.. If only they'd put the tag-line over a cloudscape image, complete with the supreme being, glass of the black nectar in her hand, smiling serenely.. surely everyone would be happy with that? No??? Heh. This blogger has been certified..
Click to find out your rating! In accordance with BBFC guidelines. Eric the Unread got a 12A certificate.. and I get an 18, for some reason.. hmmm.. btw the quiz itself is definitely 18. See what your rating is! Created by bart666
[more]
Separated at birth?
The (new) Broom sees similarities between voices at opposite ends of the political spectrum. A Platonic solid, or a pseudo polyhedron?
Which Polyhedral Are You? I am a d4. Shrewd, petty and evil. Bwahahahaha [*evil laugh*] Hey at least it's one of the Platonic solids! NB Scrupulously scientific - knowledge of dice not required. [more]
What Muppet are you?
statler jpeg
You are Statler or Waldorf
You are Statler or Waldorf. You have a high opinion of yourself, as do others. But only because you are in the balcony seats. ALSO KNOWN AS: Those two old guys in the box. SPECIAL TALENTS: Heckling, complaining, being cantankerous QUOTE: "Get off the stage, you bum!" - What Muppet are you? - Brought to you by Quizilla Via Merk [more]
Newton's modest proposal
Newton Emerson in excellent form, once again, in today's Irish Times, foolishly bravely running the risk of comparison with a satirical giant of Irish literature with a modest proposal for the Secretary of State, Peter Hain, to consider [more]
Vox pop Onion-style
Spotted by the, allegedly, semi-retired Richard Delevan. The announcement of the IRA's final act of decomissioning, perhaps tellingly, merited only a brief mention by the satirical Onion - "I knew that Guns For Guinness trade-in program would work where so many other attempts had failed." In case you've missed it
Mick noted The Guardian's Ship of Fools' funniest religious joke the other day. In today's Guardian, comedian Emo Philips, quite rightly, points out - Hey!.. that's my joke.. and adds a couple more for the sheer hell of it. heh. we should probably juggle at this point
Government, according to Prime Minister Tony Blair, is a bit like learning to unicycle.. No, really! The admission came during a Question and Answer session with party delegates in Brighton.. chaired by Eddie Izzard.. whose presence may, or may not, have had something to do with the somewhat surreal flights of fancy between more scripted serious questions. [more]
New operating system for Northern Ireland?

At a time when Northern Ireland is awash with translations, here's a new one for your PC, sent to us by my brother. You'll need to click on the image to get the all-important detail.
A wee word...
ANOTHER deliberate slip? :o) Don't try this on Slugger...
I've been trying to roll out the idea that civility in argumentative exchange makes for crisper dialogue and a sharpening of arguments all round - with a noticable upturn in standards. Today my colleague Mark sent me these examples of 'sledging' from international Cricket matches uttered in close quarters at the crease. You'll note from the missing numbers that I've had to cut the unpublishable ones out. [more]
Arr!.. again
From the NewsBlog My pirate name is: Mad Tom Kidd Every pirate is a little bit crazy. You, though, are more than just a little bit. Even though you're not always the traditional swaggering gallant, your steadiness and planning make you a fine, reliable pirate. Arr! Get your own pirate name from fidius.org. No sex please, we're British...
THE DUP's Peter Weir has accused the TV sex industry of targeting the most vulnerable sections of society through subscriptions and text message services. Is he right, or has he just picked up Paul Berry's mobile phone at a branch meeting? Going down, apparently, doesn't go down well in North Down. Avast ya scurvy knaves!
Via the Professor. Phew, just in time. Today is/was Talk Like a Pirate Day. Keel haul the lot of them! *ahem* Alternatively - Boss, I'll be borrowin' a coupla doubloons from petty cash fer some Ho Ho's and a bottle of rum. First cause of riots discovered...
Ach, if only it were that easy. Randomshite.co.uk has a great piece on how the Kaiser Chiefs started it all up with their I predict a riot. Truly a sport for all
Via Harry's Place. Soccer [historic or not]? Cricket? Hurling or even GAA Football?.. No.. This is the sport for all.. the Scotland team retained the trophy this year.. but only because there was no Irish team involved *ahem*.. What do you think, Mick? Could we get a team together for next year's tournament? - Slugger O'Toole's Pachyderm Poloists.. as sponsored by Jameson?.. it is for charidee. heh. Police fire warning shots..
Local [chimpanzee] community representatives accused police of a heavy-handed response - "They didn't shoot at the monkey!" Rapping home the boys from Colombia
Langerland with the rap version of the return of the Colombia Three. The best is at the end: To commemorate the deal, Mr Adams gave his annual Wolfe Tone oration in Gaelic, English and Jive. The Colombia 3’s eagerly awaited debut single, produced by Eminem and Dr Dre, is due out in Autumn. Entitled ‘The Real Sinn Fein-y’, it pays homage to Eminem with its catchy chorus: “Will the Real IRA please stand down, please stand down, please stand down…” The Kit.. and the Kaboodle
Spotted by Sheila. Some wise words on blogging by Joel Achenbach in the Washington Post -
America [and everywhere else - Ed], it turns out, is full of smart, clever, creative people who happen to have no interest in working and whose employers have unwisely given them Internet access. Thus every day, on my blog, these strangers show up, just to shoot the breeze, flirt, kvetch, veer off topic and, most of all, pay zero attention to what I have written.
[more]
Before I forget...
BIT of a surprise at a pub quiz question last week in the Errigle. One of the questions asked was about a local website getting listed in Esquire's top Fifty Best things in the media. The answer was, of course, here first, but it appeared in the Irish News shortly afterwards, the day of the quiz no less. And there were quite a few Irish News staff in the bar that night. Fix! [more]
Overheard In Dubliln...
MICK has pointed out the danger of inadvertantly becoming an internet figure of fun (remember the Star Wars Kid too?) - but maybe you already are! Overheard In Dublin is best read in a broad Dublin accent. [more]
Predictably hilarious!
In Re: the ongoing debate on farming subsidies. *ahem* The Onion [Leather-clad nomads seize power in Australia! HAHAHA!!] is in brilliantly predictive mode - Government may restrict use of genetically modified farmers [with sound!].. "That said, I can't deny the benefits of an agricultural laborer who subsists on common weeds, grows his own exo-overalls, sweats pesticides, and whose six arms end in retractable plows, scythes, and harrows." Ha! Man cannot live on Guinness alone...
REMEMBER the guy from 'Super Size Me', who lived on nothing but McDonalds meals for a month? Well meet blogger Burty, who survived on only Guinness for a week. The Vacuum's funny stuff...
The guys at the Vacuum are good enough to keep me up to date with their latest issue. This one is on being funny. There's a great piece by John Morrow which includes one anecdote of the opening (and closing) of an Irish Music Nite in the old Lido cinema in Rathcoole. It's asks whether politically barbed humour in Northern Ireland is ever funny. And, rightly, sings the praises of the peerless Portadown News: [more]
The most live-bloggingest TV show ever?
Keith M isn't the only one live-blogging the 50th Eurovision Song Contest.. after covering the build-up, on the Guardian NewsBlog's Anna Pickard is taking the same approach to the festivities[although she may, possibly, just be sitting in front of the TV] - "20.27: Ah, hurrah for Norway, and long live comedy metal. If WigWam don't win this competition, I'll eat my keyboard.".. Hmmm.. And how could I have missed this - "20:11: It's Nox, from Hungary, it's no wonder Ireland failed to get through the Semi-final - they appear to have had all their tippity-tappity charm nicked by these guys." Hmmm.. again. "a delightfully improbable coincidence"
Indeed. The movie version of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy has officially taken £4.2 million at the box office in its opening weekend. heh heh. ...and I feel fine
Try again, fail better. Yesterday's attempt at humour fell a little flat.. so here we go again.. another shameless pilfering, this time from Caoimheb.. It's, possibly, The End of the World.. assuming the Vogon construction fleet doesn't get here first.. That doesn't look like Father Ted...?
The situation is normal at Channel 4, normal as in AFU that is, the unfortunate Green Party watched their election broadcast accompanied with subtitles by UKIP. Ouch. However, the Guardian ElectionBlog has a cunning plan.. we can only dream of the comedic possibilities such a situation would present here..

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