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I think the Onion is funny, I also doubt anyone could ever think it was a real paper.
We are arming Syrian rebels who support ISIS, who is fighting Iran, who is fighting Iraq who we also support against ISIS, while fighting Kurds who we support while they are fighting Syrian rebels.
The people in the past who convinced themselves to do unspeakable things were no less human than you or I. They made their decisions; the only thing that prevents history from repeating itself is making different ones.
-- Adam Serwer
My blog
I really should be surprised at you posting this, I should.
The people in the past who convinced themselves to do unspeakable things were no less human than you or I. They made their decisions; the only thing that prevents history from repeating itself is making different ones.
-- Adam Serwer
My blog
I really should be surprised at you posting this, I should.
In fairness The Private Eye does satire far subtler than The Onion...
Dakka Bingo! By Ouze "You are the best at flying things"-Kanluwen
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"almost as good as winning free cake at the tea drinking contest for an Englishman." -Reds8n
Seal up your lips and give no words but mum.
Equip, Reload. Do violence.
Watch for Gerry.
Amaya wrote:Yeah it's a bit daft. The American team doesn't even have all the best players available on it and they're still beating top 5 teams by 20+ points. The women's team hasn't lost an international game in something like 6 years.
It's almost as bad as if they had American Football in the Olympics.
It isn't so much about one country dominating, but about the quality of the field in other nations. So in basketball, for instance, the US utterly dominates, but that's because they happen to be a remarkably powerful team. The nations they are going up have their own professional leagues, and are pretty strong sports. One extremely good side beating good sides isn't bad sport, it's actually pretty good sport.
So that'd be a very different prospect to a sport where one country is very strong and no-one else gives two gaks about the sport, like American Football.
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Kilkrazy wrote:Cricket is much more widely played than baseball.
There's been a few issues keeping cricket out of the Olympics. There's the difficulty in producing decent facilities - its unlikely a non-cricketing nation could produce the international standard pitches needed for a decent game. Another issue was the length of games producing a really impractical playing schedule - though that's not a problem any more with T20.
The big issue, though, has always been that the Olympics wants every event it hosts to be the pinnacle of national competition in that sport. The IOC being the IOC they haven't been very good at sticking to their own rules, producing nonsense like Olympic soccer being miles less important than the World Cup, and not even a fully fledged top level sport. But it's still a fairly solid rule, and cricket already has World Cups in ODI and T20 which matter more than Olympics.
Also, with the densely packed international schedule in cricket now, the ICC isn't looking to add another tournament. Rather, it's looking to scale back the amount of cricket played.
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Testify wrote:Anyone know if there's a medals-per-capita breakdown?
Why? What could it possibly tell you?
This message was edited 4 times. Last update was at 2012/08/13 06:58:55
“We may observe that the government in a civilized country is much more expensive than in a barbarous one; and when we say that one government is more expensive than another, it is the same as if we said that that one country is farther advanced in improvement than another. To say that the government is expensive and the people not oppressed is to say that the people are rich.”
Adam Smith, who must have been some kind of leftie or something.
Amaya wrote:North America and Carribean - 161 medals
Transcontinental Countries (Eurasian) - 120 medals
Asia - 173 Medals
Europe - over 300 Medals
Damn Europe you scary.
Well Europe is fairly big, and also lots of countries. So countries like Germany will specialise in a few things GB don't and France in something else etc etc. Where as a big country like China or USA, while they will have good athletes in a huge variety of events, they aren't quite as specialised. Maybe.
Anyway, opening ceremony was great, the sport was great, the closing ceremony was great. Overall London 2012 wins.
I have to say I think Sebastian Coe has to be the worst representative for London 2012. He comes across like a bad politician, probably because he is. "When our time came we did it right" <- terrible line, not something to base an entire speech around.
rodgers37 wrote:
Amaya wrote:North America and Carribean - 161 medals
Transcontinental Countries (Eurasian) - 120 medals
Asia - 173 Medals
Europe - over 300 Medals
Damn Europe you scary.
Well Europe is fairly big, and also lots of countries. So countries like Germany will specialise in a few things GB don't and France in something else etc etc. Where as a big country like China or USA, while they will have good athletes in a huge variety of events, they aren't quite as specialised. Maybe.
Anyway, opening ceremony was great, the sport was great, the closing ceremony was great. Overall London 2012 wins.
I think it probably has more to do with the fact that sports funding is mainly a privilege of the developed world and the majority of developed nations are in Europe.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2012/08/13 10:59:04
I tried to record TaeKwon Do and shooting on three different occasions because those events were on at 4.38Am in the morning to make time for important events like syncronized women's water dressage diving interspersed with deep personal stories. My dvr picked up badminton, men's volleyball, and field hockey. EPIC FAIL.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2012/08/13 14:31:25
-"Wait a minute.....who is that Frazz is talking to in the gallery? Hmmm something is going on here.....Oh.... it seems there is some dispute over video taping of some sort......Frazz is really upset now..........wait a minute......whats he go there.......is it? Can it be?....Frazz has just unleashed his hidden weiner dog from his mini bag, while quoting shakespeares "Let slip the dogs the war!!" GG
-"Don't mind Frazzled. He's just Dakka's crazy old dude locked in the attic. He's harmless. Mostly."
-TBone the Magnificent 1999-2014, Long Live the King!
If you're going to add anything, I suggest the following.
Women's 3x3 beach volleyball. Women's 4x4 beach volleyball. Women's 5x5 beach volleyball. Women's Rhythmic Pole Dancing. Women's Team Rhythmic Pole Dancing. Baseball. Darts. <--- How are there 5 different shooting events and no darts? Poker. Hide and Go Seek. Paintball. Who wouldn't want to shoot some Ruskies with a paintball?
This message was edited 3 times. Last update was at 2012/08/13 14:32:51
kronk wrote:If you're going to add anything, I suggest the following.
Women's 3x3 beach volleyball.
Women's 4x4 beach volleyball.
Women's 5x5 beach volleyball.
Women's Rhythmic Pole Dancing.
Women's Team Rhythmic Pole Dancing.
Baseball.
Darts. <--- How are there 5 different shooting events and no darts?
Poker.
Hide and Go Seek.
Paintball. Who wouldn't want to shoot some Ruskies with a paintball?
Women's mud volleyball?
insaniak wrote: Sometimes, Exterminatus is the only option.
And sometimes, it's just a case of too much scotch combined with too many buttons...
rodgers37 wrote:
Well Europe is fairly big, and also lots of countries. So countries like Germany will specialise in a few things GB don't and France in something else etc etc. Where as a big country like China or USA, while they will have good athletes in a huge variety of events, they aren't quite as specialised. Maybe.
Anyway, opening ceremony was great, the sport was great, the closing ceremony was great. Overall London 2012 wins.
Meh, maybe I'm biased, but I enjoyed the opening and especially the closing serimonies of Vancouver alot more...
I mean, you just can't one-up things like light-up moose antlers and a giant vegas style song-and-dance routine that includes giant inflatible beavers!
No wonder there were no incidents on the Thames, look who joined the Royal Marines...
We are arming Syrian rebels who support ISIS, who is fighting Iran, who is fighting Iraq who we also support against ISIS, while fighting Kurds who we support while they are fighting Syrian rebels.
mattyrm wrote:No wonder there were no incidents on the Thames, look who joined the Royal Marines...
Am I the only one who sees the bloke (thats how you Brits say it right?) right in the middle and thinks "wow thats some huge earings that guy has on. I'd be afraid of them too."
-"Wait a minute.....who is that Frazz is talking to in the gallery? Hmmm something is going on here.....Oh.... it seems there is some dispute over video taping of some sort......Frazz is really upset now..........wait a minute......whats he go there.......is it? Can it be?....Frazz has just unleashed his hidden weiner dog from his mini bag, while quoting shakespeares "Let slip the dogs the war!!" GG
-"Don't mind Frazzled. He's just Dakka's crazy old dude locked in the attic. He's harmless. Mostly."
-TBone the Magnificent 1999-2014, Long Live the King!
The poor man really has a stake in the country. The rich man hasn't; he can go away to New Guinea in a yacht. The poor have sometimes objected to being governed badly; the rich have always objected to being governed at all
We love our superheroes because they refuse to give up on us. We can analyze them out of existence, kill them, ban them, mock them, and still they return, patiently reminding us of who we are and what we wish we could be.
"the play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king,
Experiment 626 wrote: Meh, maybe I'm biased, but I enjoyed the opening and especially the closing serimonies of Vancouver alot more...
I mean, you just can't one-up things like light-up moose antlers and a giant vegas style song-and-dance routine that includes giant inflatible beavers!
Yeah, you're biased. I thought the opening and closing ceremonies were among the best ever.
The closing ceremonies got me thinking about just how much musical talent comes out of that little island. Line up the top 10 British bands ever vs the top 10 American bands ever, and it's not even close. The Brits have heavier hitters at the top and better depth over decades. It's amazing.
Regarding team handball, a columnist here (Bill Simmons) recently wrote that it's an event the U.S. should completely dominate. After watching a couple matches...I have to agree. Take a bunch of men's and women's college basketball players who didn't get to play pro ball, and you'd have a team on another level athletically. Clearly they'd have to learn the game, but the general skill set translates pretty well overall. Get an experienced coach from overseas to prep the team. My bet is that they'd be a medal contender in 4 years and would easily win the thing in 8.
Personally, I found the closing ceremonies to be a complete bore. It seemed to be a compilation of all of Britain's worst bands. Seriously, instead of having "Madness" could they not have gotten Jimmy Page/Robert Plant up there? Those two are among Britain's best known musicians thanks their involvement with Led Zeppelin, the greatest band in the world! Also, where was Sting, Elton John, Adele, or any representatives of Britain's contributions to the Punk movement, like the Sex Pistols or the Clash? Nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, please enjoy One Direction, Stomp, some random bald guy in an octopus, and the Pet Shop Boys wearing ridiculous costumes.
The only highlight of the bloody thing was Eric Idle singing Always Look on the Bright Side of Life, though the song was only a *little* out of place at what was supposed to be a happy event.
And I'm sure NBC's coverage didn't help me enjoy it at all. Could the commentators not shut up for just two minutes? Plus, it was filmed so choppily that the whole event just felt chaotic and cluttered-I really didn't know where to look.
Thankfully, Austin Powers was on the next station, so I just watched that. I'd rather see a Scottish sumo wrestler making fart jokes than be forced to suffer through those closing ceremonies. Which is a big shame, because the actual Olympic games were just great, definitely the best I've ever seen.
Credit to Brian May who can still swing an Axe and Madness who are still ace (but play a different songs ffs!) but the rest of it was poor.
One direction - who?
fatboy slim - don't have someone whos act is just standing there and pressing play and you won't need a stupid fething octopus.
Jessie J - someone please put some clothes on the tart.
Russell Brand - seriously what was that fething creep doing there?
And then there was the awful Spice Girls, my god they are showing their age. They were already in taxis at the start, there was no need to drive them about the place just drop them off at the train station or feed them to the squaddies.
I had to watch all this guff just to hear the Who. They could have suspended wih all the crap had them play a 2 hour set then say nice one to the athletes and helpers, over to you Jaques to blow out the flame then finish with Pinball Wizard as the Spice Girls were mounted on Fireworks to assplode over the London skyline.
Eric Iddle was alright, but they should have had John Cleese goose stepping accross too.
All in all a real damp squib after a great opening and really entertaining games.
How do you promote your Hobby? - Legoburner "I run some crappy wargaming website "
Some_Call_Me_Tim? wrote: Personally, I found the closing ceremonies to be a complete bore. It seemed to be a compilation of all of Britain's worst bands. Seriously, instead of having "Madness" could they not have gotten Jimmy Page/Robert Plant up there? Those two are among Britain's best known musicians thanks their involvement with Led Zeppelin, the greatest band in the world! Also, where was Sting, Elton John, Adele, or any representatives of Britain's contributions to the Punk movement, like the Sex Pistols or the Clash? Nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, please enjoy One Direction, Stomp, some random bald guy in an octopus, and the Pet Shop Boys wearing ridiculous costumes.
The only highlight of the bloody thing was Eric Idle singing Always Look on the Bright Side of Life, though the song was only a *little* out of place at what was supposed to be a happy event.
And I'm sure NBC's coverage didn't help me enjoy it at all. Could the commentators not shut up for just two minutes? Plus, it was filmed so choppily that the whole event just felt chaotic and cluttered-I really didn't know where to look.
Thankfully, Austin Powers was on the next station, so I just watched that. I'd rather see a Scottish sumo wrestler making fart jokes than be forced to suffer through those closing ceremonies. Which is a big shame, because the actual Olympic games were just great, definitely the best I've ever seen.
Just my thoughts.
_Tim?
We had The Who, Madness, Brian May, and Muse, which was good.
The rest of them could feck off.
And really, they should have had Tom Chaplin on with Briam May, not Jesse J. He's the only one I've heard sing with Queen who even comes close to Mercury. Take a look at see what I mean. :-
Either him, or Freddie on the truck telly's, like they did Lennon.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2012/08/14 12:21:28
I would argue that some of the choices (one please don't try and bypass the swear filter, it's there for a reason. Thanks.reds8n direction) were poor, but Norman Cook was/is a major figure in the dance and rave culture of the 80's and 90's and continues to influence music today. The UK have given the world more in music than Punk and that poisonous witch Adele (Sorry, I relay dislike her. Shes a manufactured artist who produces bland mass market pap and a horrible horrible person). They covers so much at the opening they had to find something new.
What I didn't like was the bizarre "Churchill reading Shakespeare" bit, and the Only Fools and Horses bit. That would have made no sense at all to anyone not from the UK. Apparently NBC described Del Boy and Rodney as been "Folk hero's, somewhat like robin hood"
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2012/08/14 12:37:20
insaniak wrote: Sometimes, Exterminatus is the only option.
And sometimes, it's just a case of too much scotch combined with too many buttons...
One Direction, whilst not to my taste whatsoever, are pretty much the biggest boyband/group in the world right now , possibly even the biggest band.
they've sold out massive music venues is incredibly short times, less than 1 minute for Madison square IIRC. The hysteria when they went to America was almost on Beatles level of WTFedness.
.. *shrugs* no, me neither.
The poor man really has a stake in the country. The rich man hasn't; he can go away to New Guinea in a yacht. The poor have sometimes objected to being governed badly; the rich have always objected to being governed at all
We love our superheroes because they refuse to give up on us. We can analyze them out of existence, kill them, ban them, mock them, and still they return, patiently reminding us of who we are and what we wish we could be.
"the play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king,
Showing your true colours there mate? No need to be a drama queen!
Fine we apologies about the one direction jibes.
Oh and Ray Davies should have been left at whatever care home he was residing in. I love the Kinks but he looked a bit dazed and confused by the whole event poor feller. I had to turn he Tv up to hear him.
And while I'm ranting again, fething Liam fething Gallagher useless fething feth. What was he doing there? I was beginning to think it was a continuing list of people that needed to boost their profiles and then he turned up to confirm it! He was so nasal he didn't even sound like himself. What was the point?
Wonderwall? Wonderwhyhefethingbovvered more like! Did he bother? You can never tell wih that fethwit. Still the best bend in the world is it Liam - what an arse.
How do you promote your Hobby? - Legoburner "I run some crappy wargaming website "
Liam Gallagher way way too nasal, West End Girls was a really odd choice, and Jessie J did kind of a poor job with Queen (she was fine on her own song). Other than those bits, I thought the closing ceremonies were pretty darn great.
And shame on all of you ( ) for going all negative after that awesome pic d-usa posted. Let's look at that one again:
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This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2012/08/15 02:09:51
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huge earings that guy has on. I'd be afraid of them too."
