Very early this morning, in fact at 00:22 GMT was the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere. In the geocentric view; the sun stopped travelling north, stood still over the tropic of Cancer at 23 degrees and 27 minutes north, and then began travelling south. In about 3 months time it will cross the equator, then in about six months it will stand still over the tropic of Capricorn.
What this means for us, is that the days will now start becoming lighter.
Something to look forward to!
Friday, December 22, 2006
Thursday, December 21, 2006
A day for mourning
It is a sad, sad day today. The great man, the greatest ever Australian: Shane Warne, has announced his retirement from international cricket.
Thanks for all the memories mate
Thanks for all the memories mate
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Kiwi FC v Boca Seniors
Kiwi FC surged to the top of the table with a resounding 6-0 win over Boca Seniors on the back of another solid second half. The Kiwis have played a lot of their best football in the second half of this season’s matches, regularly bringing on fresh legs and wearing the opposition down. Saturday was no different and after a rusty first half, Kiwi FC’s class and strength showed in the end to bag the points.
A combination of poor weather and defaulting opposition meant that Kiwi FC had played only once in the past 6 weeks; so they started the game a little slowly. Some good communication and patience from Cappy and Kris at the back meant that the side soon found some flow and began to dominate possession. Danny and Steve A controlled the midfield well and Kiwis regularly stretched their opposition; using the full width of the pitch. Mike and Dave made some incursive runs from their wing back positions, and Nick and Steve Mc also sought to take the attack into the opposition area, supporting the front two of James and Grog.
Though despite all their dominance, the Kiwis just couldn’t seem to put the ball in the back of the net. Cappy and Danny both came close with fine shots, Grog and Steve A also had chances and James and Nick both missed when it looked easier to score; though at least Nick made contact with the ball.
So at half time it was a rather disappointing 0-0. The lads all agreed they had played rather poorly but there was a sense that the goals would come and it was just a matter of a little more patience. Grog and Dave were replaced by Sam and Bede.
Come they did; shortly into the second half the floodgates opened. Kiwi FC continued their dominance of possession but in the second half they turned that dominance into goals. Danny started the rout after following through on a wicked strike from outside the area by Steve Mc. The goalie couldn’t handle the shot and Danny was there to hammer home the rebound. The Boca players then spent the next 5 minutes arguing with the ref that it was off-side, but he wasn’t going to change his mind, and this spurred the Kiwis on to net more goals.
The second goal came shortly afterwards. After some good build up work by Nick in midfield, James latched onto his pass and headed for goal. He played his way into the box and rolled the ball past the keeper. 2-0
Steve B came on for Steve Mc and immediately had an impact on the game. He worked hard and made some driving runs down the left; teasing the Boca defence and keeping Kiwi FC down the right end of the pitch. It was from one of these field positions that the third goal came. The Kiwis won a free kick wide out on the left, Steve A stepped up and curled a lovely ball into the box, Sam rose unchallenged and placed a perfectly directed header into the back of the net. This was getting easy now.
More goals were to come as the Kiwis kept piling forward. Cappy was making some good runs forward; passing it out of defence and then following his passes up. He wasn’t going to be denied having his name on the score sheet, some great build up work saw Cappy launch a stinging shot from just outside the box, the keeper had no chance and Cappy got his just rewards for another fine performance.
James bagged himself another shortly after that. Played through by a great pass by Steve A, he hit it low to the bottom left corner and that made it 5.
With credit to the Boca players they never gave up and still threatened the Kiwi goal once or twice, but Leighton was always on hand to clean up in goal. Kiwi FC were keen to record their first clean sheet of the season and even though a couple of times it looked like they might concede, it was the Kiwis who scored again. An excellent run into the box by Danny saw him tripped up and a penalty was deservedly earned. Smelling a hat-trick, James stepped up to take it. The kick was delayed by the opposition arguing with the ref about where it should be taken from, but the spot was marked on the ground, and nobody was going to miss from 8 yards out. 6-0
That was the last time the scorers would be troubled for the day, though Boca managed to finish the game with only 9 players after having a player sent off. It was just the result that Kiwi FC wanted going into the short Christmas break. They can look down at the rest of the league from the top of the table, ahead by 2 points still with a game in hand.
Cheers and farewell to Steve Bethune who played his last game for the club, sorry for not letting you take the penalty. Steve has been a quality member of the team both on and off the pitch and he will be missed.
A combination of poor weather and defaulting opposition meant that Kiwi FC had played only once in the past 6 weeks; so they started the game a little slowly. Some good communication and patience from Cappy and Kris at the back meant that the side soon found some flow and began to dominate possession. Danny and Steve A controlled the midfield well and Kiwis regularly stretched their opposition; using the full width of the pitch. Mike and Dave made some incursive runs from their wing back positions, and Nick and Steve Mc also sought to take the attack into the opposition area, supporting the front two of James and Grog.
Though despite all their dominance, the Kiwis just couldn’t seem to put the ball in the back of the net. Cappy and Danny both came close with fine shots, Grog and Steve A also had chances and James and Nick both missed when it looked easier to score; though at least Nick made contact with the ball.
So at half time it was a rather disappointing 0-0. The lads all agreed they had played rather poorly but there was a sense that the goals would come and it was just a matter of a little more patience. Grog and Dave were replaced by Sam and Bede.
Come they did; shortly into the second half the floodgates opened. Kiwi FC continued their dominance of possession but in the second half they turned that dominance into goals. Danny started the rout after following through on a wicked strike from outside the area by Steve Mc. The goalie couldn’t handle the shot and Danny was there to hammer home the rebound. The Boca players then spent the next 5 minutes arguing with the ref that it was off-side, but he wasn’t going to change his mind, and this spurred the Kiwis on to net more goals.
The second goal came shortly afterwards. After some good build up work by Nick in midfield, James latched onto his pass and headed for goal. He played his way into the box and rolled the ball past the keeper. 2-0
Steve B came on for Steve Mc and immediately had an impact on the game. He worked hard and made some driving runs down the left; teasing the Boca defence and keeping Kiwi FC down the right end of the pitch. It was from one of these field positions that the third goal came. The Kiwis won a free kick wide out on the left, Steve A stepped up and curled a lovely ball into the box, Sam rose unchallenged and placed a perfectly directed header into the back of the net. This was getting easy now.
More goals were to come as the Kiwis kept piling forward. Cappy was making some good runs forward; passing it out of defence and then following his passes up. He wasn’t going to be denied having his name on the score sheet, some great build up work saw Cappy launch a stinging shot from just outside the box, the keeper had no chance and Cappy got his just rewards for another fine performance.
James bagged himself another shortly after that. Played through by a great pass by Steve A, he hit it low to the bottom left corner and that made it 5.
With credit to the Boca players they never gave up and still threatened the Kiwi goal once or twice, but Leighton was always on hand to clean up in goal. Kiwi FC were keen to record their first clean sheet of the season and even though a couple of times it looked like they might concede, it was the Kiwis who scored again. An excellent run into the box by Danny saw him tripped up and a penalty was deservedly earned. Smelling a hat-trick, James stepped up to take it. The kick was delayed by the opposition arguing with the ref about where it should be taken from, but the spot was marked on the ground, and nobody was going to miss from 8 yards out. 6-0
That was the last time the scorers would be troubled for the day, though Boca managed to finish the game with only 9 players after having a player sent off. It was just the result that Kiwi FC wanted going into the short Christmas break. They can look down at the rest of the league from the top of the table, ahead by 2 points still with a game in hand.
Cheers and farewell to Steve Bethune who played his last game for the club, sorry for not letting you take the penalty. Steve has been a quality member of the team both on and off the pitch and he will be missed.
Friday, December 15, 2006
It's in the bag
After day 2 of the third test, Australia clearly have the upper hand. They are odds on favourites to win this test and take an unsurmountable 3-0 series lead.
I can guarantee this will happen. The reason I say this has not anything to do with Australia's cricketing abilities or what my prediction is of how the match will unfold. I say this because of the following quote by Kevin Pietersen:
"If our batters bat well, and we have some pretty good batters, we could still draw."
Pietersen has really been the only England player that has provided any kind of consistent resistance in the series so far. This is his mindset; he has already resigned to not winning the game. He has already given up hope of winning and now at best thinks they can achieve a draw. I imagine this is the mindset throughout the England team. They have already lost. They will not even draw the match with this kind of attitude.
The Ashes will belong to Australia once again on Sunday afternoon.
I can guarantee this will happen. The reason I say this has not anything to do with Australia's cricketing abilities or what my prediction is of how the match will unfold. I say this because of the following quote by Kevin Pietersen:
"If our batters bat well, and we have some pretty good batters, we could still draw."
Pietersen has really been the only England player that has provided any kind of consistent resistance in the series so far. This is his mindset; he has already resigned to not winning the game. He has already given up hope of winning and now at best thinks they can achieve a draw. I imagine this is the mindset throughout the England team. They have already lost. They will not even draw the match with this kind of attitude.
The Ashes will belong to Australia once again on Sunday afternoon.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
3 totally random comments on a Tuesday
The London Paper is one of 2 free papers handed out to Londoners on their way home of an evening, much like the Metro is made available for free in the morning. It touches on a couple of news stories during the day, that anyone who pays attention already knows about; this way it can pass itself off as a newspaper and not a pile of gossip crap, which essentially is what it is. Every day the average IQ of Londoners is decreased by people reading this paper.
Yesterday, on the front page of The London Paper, was a picture of Nicole Richie eating. Yes that was the story to go with it too: Nicole Richie actually eats something. How anyone can even consider this worthy of pointing out, let alone mentioning it on the front page of a paper is way beyond me.
More good news on the Mat Rogers front, it seems as though he has been reading this blog and will actually be fucking off back to league. Thanks for nothing Rogers, and no thanks for losing us the world cup either. You never had enough class to play rugby, go back to your poor man’s game; I hope one day in the near future you decide to follow in your father’s footsteps.
Graham Poll isn’t everyone’s favourite ref and he has made one or two blunders in recent past; but he was right on the mark on Saturday when he showed Manchester City’s Bernardo Corradi a yellow card for diving to try and earn a penalty in the opposition box. It was his second booking of the game and he was subsequently given his marching orders. The most refreshing aspect of the whole situation was that after the match, City manager Stuart Pearce admitted that his player had dived, did not condone it and suggested that he would have a word with the player and not tolerate that kind of behaviour at his club. Well done Stuart, you are a man who deserves much respect. A week after Sir Alex Ferguson defended his player Ronaldo who clearly dived to earn a penalty; football needs more honest people like Pearce. I will qualify this comment however by suggesting that his comments may have been slightly different if Poll had fallen for the trick and awarded a penalty.
Yesterday, on the front page of The London Paper, was a picture of Nicole Richie eating. Yes that was the story to go with it too: Nicole Richie actually eats something. How anyone can even consider this worthy of pointing out, let alone mentioning it on the front page of a paper is way beyond me.
More good news on the Mat Rogers front, it seems as though he has been reading this blog and will actually be fucking off back to league. Thanks for nothing Rogers, and no thanks for losing us the world cup either. You never had enough class to play rugby, go back to your poor man’s game; I hope one day in the near future you decide to follow in your father’s footsteps.
Graham Poll isn’t everyone’s favourite ref and he has made one or two blunders in recent past; but he was right on the mark on Saturday when he showed Manchester City’s Bernardo Corradi a yellow card for diving to try and earn a penalty in the opposition box. It was his second booking of the game and he was subsequently given his marching orders. The most refreshing aspect of the whole situation was that after the match, City manager Stuart Pearce admitted that his player had dived, did not condone it and suggested that he would have a word with the player and not tolerate that kind of behaviour at his club. Well done Stuart, you are a man who deserves much respect. A week after Sir Alex Ferguson defended his player Ronaldo who clearly dived to earn a penalty; football needs more honest people like Pearce. I will qualify this comment however by suggesting that his comments may have been slightly different if Poll had fallen for the trick and awarded a penalty.
Friday, December 08, 2006
Not this week
I haven't had much to say this week. I will say this now though:
FUCK OFF MAT ROGERS!!!
FUCK OFF MAT ROGERS!!!
Friday, December 01, 2006
North London Derby
Big game this weekend, 12:45 on Saturday it's Arse vs Spurs.
I think Spurs are in with a shout this year; Arsenal are not playing that well at the moment, they still haven't settled properly into the new stadium, though they had a midweek loss they will be looking to bounce back from. Spurs have had some good form of late and Berbatov has been at the centre of it all. None the less, form often goes out the window in derby games but I still think the Yids will fancy their chances tomorrow.
The odds I think were very generous indeed and so I have had a punt
£10 on Spurs to win at 5/1
£10 on Spurs to win 1-0 goal scored by Berbatov at 70/1
£2 on Spurs to win 1-0 goal scored by King at 250/1
Unfortunately I wont be seeing any of the match as the 12:45 kick off clashes with the time I must be arriving at Wandsworth Park for our match at 1:30. I hope that both results will go my way.
Come on you Spurs!
I think Spurs are in with a shout this year; Arsenal are not playing that well at the moment, they still haven't settled properly into the new stadium, though they had a midweek loss they will be looking to bounce back from. Spurs have had some good form of late and Berbatov has been at the centre of it all. None the less, form often goes out the window in derby games but I still think the Yids will fancy their chances tomorrow.
The odds I think were very generous indeed and so I have had a punt
£10 on Spurs to win at 5/1
£10 on Spurs to win 1-0 goal scored by Berbatov at 70/1
£2 on Spurs to win 1-0 goal scored by King at 250/1
Unfortunately I wont be seeing any of the match as the 12:45 kick off clashes with the time I must be arriving at Wandsworth Park for our match at 1:30. I hope that both results will go my way.
Come on you Spurs!
Bristol Cars
If I was asked how much the car that should be pictured above actually cost, I would not assign it a very high price tag. It’s not much to look at is it? I would guess it is at least 30 years old, takes leaded fuel, and couldn’t be relied upon to start on a cold day.
All of these things of course are wrong; otherwise this posting wouldn’t really be of any interest. The car is in fact, a current model Blenheim 3 made by Bristol Cars. It is powered by a 5.9 litre V-8 and will take you to 60mph from a standing start in 6.3 seconds. The cost? £150,000
One of the worst things about people with wealth, are those that choose to display it in the most garish and obscene ways. This is one of the reasons why I do not at all like the whole Rap/ R ‘n’ B culture in the US; apart from the fact that I don’t much care for that kind of music, the culture exists to flaunt wealth in the most ‘in your face’ way as possible. The bling bling, the ostentatious clothing, the shiny 36” wheels on huge gas guzzling SUVs. It is all rather tasteless; a consequence of ‘new money.’
I feel there is a much more refined and dignified way of displaying one’s wealth, a way that is perhaps adopted by those with ‘old money.’ The Bristol Blenheim though goes right off the scale when it comes to understating one’s wealth. Apart from those who know of Bristol Cars (and it is not a well known car brand) driving a Blenheim almost says, “I am poor.” Those who drive these cars certainly have no intention of ostentatiously showing off their wealth. I have said that if I were wealthy (which sadly I am not) I would choose to be refined with my money, however if I could afford a Bristol Blenheim, I would still be buying an Aston Martin.
There is another Bristol car however that I would be tempted to buy. However this car is so powerful I am sure I would end up killing myself and most likely a few other innocent people when I took it out on the motorway. It is the Bristol Fighter T. It certainly does look like a car you need to be rich to drive. At £350,000 you need to be more than rich. I will lean back so as to not drool on the keyboard when I type this; the Fighter T is powered by a twin turbocharged and intercooled 8 litre V10 engine. It pumps out a massive 1,012 bhp and 1,404 newton metres of torque. It will take the car from 0 to 60mph in 3.5 seconds, on it’s way to an electronically limited maximum speed of 225mph. Bristol have said they are...
"Responding to the needs of some exacting customers we have created a very special Fighter variant which, as ever, remains a compact and enjoyable car to drive around town or as an exhilarating track car. Yet it takes two people and their luggage in great luxury and ease for trans continental travel."
I would like to meet these customer who claim to need more than a thousand brake horse power.
First deliveries are in September 2007. I had better start saving.
All of these things of course are wrong; otherwise this posting wouldn’t really be of any interest. The car is in fact, a current model Blenheim 3 made by Bristol Cars. It is powered by a 5.9 litre V-8 and will take you to 60mph from a standing start in 6.3 seconds. The cost? £150,000
One of the worst things about people with wealth, are those that choose to display it in the most garish and obscene ways. This is one of the reasons why I do not at all like the whole Rap/ R ‘n’ B culture in the US; apart from the fact that I don’t much care for that kind of music, the culture exists to flaunt wealth in the most ‘in your face’ way as possible. The bling bling, the ostentatious clothing, the shiny 36” wheels on huge gas guzzling SUVs. It is all rather tasteless; a consequence of ‘new money.’
I feel there is a much more refined and dignified way of displaying one’s wealth, a way that is perhaps adopted by those with ‘old money.’ The Bristol Blenheim though goes right off the scale when it comes to understating one’s wealth. Apart from those who know of Bristol Cars (and it is not a well known car brand) driving a Blenheim almost says, “I am poor.” Those who drive these cars certainly have no intention of ostentatiously showing off their wealth. I have said that if I were wealthy (which sadly I am not) I would choose to be refined with my money, however if I could afford a Bristol Blenheim, I would still be buying an Aston Martin.
There is another Bristol car however that I would be tempted to buy. However this car is so powerful I am sure I would end up killing myself and most likely a few other innocent people when I took it out on the motorway. It is the Bristol Fighter T. It certainly does look like a car you need to be rich to drive. At £350,000 you need to be more than rich. I will lean back so as to not drool on the keyboard when I type this; the Fighter T is powered by a twin turbocharged and intercooled 8 litre V10 engine. It pumps out a massive 1,012 bhp and 1,404 newton metres of torque. It will take the car from 0 to 60mph in 3.5 seconds, on it’s way to an electronically limited maximum speed of 225mph. Bristol have said they are...
"Responding to the needs of some exacting customers we have created a very special Fighter variant which, as ever, remains a compact and enjoyable car to drive around town or as an exhilarating track car. Yet it takes two people and their luggage in great luxury and ease for trans continental travel."
I would like to meet these customer who claim to need more than a thousand brake horse power.
First deliveries are in September 2007. I had better start saving.
Thursday, November 30, 2006
It takes an eternity
Scotland is another of those progressive countries that has banned smoking in public places. The main issue as far as I am concerned is smoking in bars and pubs. As is the case also when going to Ireland, it was so refreshing to go out in Edinburgh over the weekend and not be assaulted by passive smoke in pubs.
Forget about the health effects of passive smoking; being in an enclosed room full of cigarette smoke is absolutely disgusting. It is an assault on the senses, it stinks, it hurts your eyes and it soaks into your clothes so that they reek for days afterwards.
Coming back to London after being in the wonderful smoke free Edinburgh makes you notice it even more; as soon as you step into the pub you can smell it.
Scotland and Ireland have got it right, sitting in a bar or pub is actually a pleasant experience there. Why is it not the same in England? Why is England so far behind her neighbours?
Fortunately, the government have finally voted on a blanket ban on smoking in public places. They voted on this back in February 2006. However it is not due to come in to place until summer 2007!!!!!!!!!! Why? Why does it take 18 months for this to actually be enacted? What preparations are required before this ban can be enforced that could possibly last for 18 months? Sure you’ve got to give people a bit of time to get used to the idea, but 18 bloody months?!?!
It is absolutely bloody nonsense. As with nearly everything in this country it takes an eternity to do anything. Why vote to do something in a year and half? Why wait that long? We’ve voted for it to happen, so let’s make it happen, NOW!
What's more, it is apparently going to cost £50 million to enforce the ban. How? What are they spending fifty million quid on? Are they going to make 50 million No Smoking signs? What else is required apart from saying "as of now, you can't smoke indoors" Fine, there are some costs associated with making sure everyone does comply, but FIFTY MILLION QUID? FFS!
Forget about the health effects of passive smoking; being in an enclosed room full of cigarette smoke is absolutely disgusting. It is an assault on the senses, it stinks, it hurts your eyes and it soaks into your clothes so that they reek for days afterwards.
Coming back to London after being in the wonderful smoke free Edinburgh makes you notice it even more; as soon as you step into the pub you can smell it.
Scotland and Ireland have got it right, sitting in a bar or pub is actually a pleasant experience there. Why is it not the same in England? Why is England so far behind her neighbours?
Fortunately, the government have finally voted on a blanket ban on smoking in public places. They voted on this back in February 2006. However it is not due to come in to place until summer 2007!!!!!!!!!! Why? Why does it take 18 months for this to actually be enacted? What preparations are required before this ban can be enforced that could possibly last for 18 months? Sure you’ve got to give people a bit of time to get used to the idea, but 18 bloody months?!?!
It is absolutely bloody nonsense. As with nearly everything in this country it takes an eternity to do anything. Why vote to do something in a year and half? Why wait that long? We’ve voted for it to happen, so let’s make it happen, NOW!
What's more, it is apparently going to cost £50 million to enforce the ban. How? What are they spending fifty million quid on? Are they going to make 50 million No Smoking signs? What else is required apart from saying "as of now, you can't smoke indoors" Fine, there are some costs associated with making sure everyone does comply, but FIFTY MILLION QUID? FFS!
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Piss off Rogers
Mat Rogers wants to keep playing flyhalf for the Wallabies.
Fuck off Rogers, you suck, you're a reserve utility back at best. What makes you think you could bring more to the team at number 10 than Steven Larkham does? Forget about all this backline experimentation; Larkham at 10, Giteau at 12 and Mortlock at 13, Tuqiri and Latham and another winger in there. That's the best backline combination the Wallabies have to offer, why keep messing with it? Saturday's game showed how good they can be if the forwards give them a bit of space.
There's no room in there for you bitch, you shouldn't even be thinking about the World Cup next year, you're going back to league. Why don't you do us all a favour and go there sooner rather than later? You lost the World Cup final for us last time, don't stick around to fuck it up for us again.
Wanker
Fuck off Rogers, you suck, you're a reserve utility back at best. What makes you think you could bring more to the team at number 10 than Steven Larkham does? Forget about all this backline experimentation; Larkham at 10, Giteau at 12 and Mortlock at 13, Tuqiri and Latham and another winger in there. That's the best backline combination the Wallabies have to offer, why keep messing with it? Saturday's game showed how good they can be if the forwards give them a bit of space.
There's no room in there for you bitch, you shouldn't even be thinking about the World Cup next year, you're going back to league. Why don't you do us all a favour and go there sooner rather than later? You lost the World Cup final for us last time, don't stick around to fuck it up for us again.
Wanker
Monday, November 27, 2006
Good weekend to be an Aussie
There was no risk of me missing my flight this weekend and on Friday evening travelled to Edinburgh with 5 other friends for what turned out to be a high quality boys’ weekend. It was only my second visit to Edinburgh – the last time being more than 3 years ago. It really is a great city; very picturesque, lots of places to go out and have fun, there’s a good vibe about the place and plenty of nice people about.
The purpose of the visit of course was to see Australia take on Scotland at Murrayfield. While I have seen the Wallabies play in Scotland before, it was at Hamden Park and so I was keen to visit the home of rugby in Scotland as well. Murrayfield is a great stadium and my only complaint was that there is no big screen for the purpose of seeing replays of the action. This was most disappointing as there was some scintillating back-line play from the Wallabies in the second half especially.
The Scots certainly fancied themselves before the match and given the way the Wallabies have been playing, I was predicting a close match. However Australian teams are never ones to give up and I knew the Wallabies would fancy finishing the tour on a high note. That they did and it was probably the best I have seen them play all year, finally the forwards managed to gain some kind of ascendancy which meant that the backs actually had some time and space to show what they can do. Some great backline moves in the second half especially created some quality tries; it was very entertaining to watch. The defence as well was superb especially when Scotland were pounding at the line at one stage in the second half, the Wallabies just kept repelling them. I hope the Wallabies can take a lot from the tour and improve next year so they can be a serious challengers to the All Blacks in September and October next year.
It was of course an even better weekend to be an Australian, with a crushing of England in the first test of the Ashes. Congrats to England for winning the last series, but they went on as though they had won the bloody world cup. When taken into context, they had in fact narrowly won a single test series, that’s all. The fact that they had not been able to achieve this in 18 years was the reason that they were so elated. Now it seems though the team that won that series is a shadow if its former self. The Aussies are fired up this time and by the end of the summer, the urn will be back in its rightful place and normality will be resumed; it will be proven that last year was nothing more than an anomaly.
Last year though the Aussies won the first test pretty convincingly and then faltered so the series is far from over. Things though are different this time and I don’t think anyone can see that happening again. England will take some heart from their second innings fight back, but they don’t have the skill, class, ability, or confidence at the moment to retain the trophy they fought so hard to win last year. Before the series began, you could only get a paltry 4/1 on Australia winning the series 5-0, something that has happened only once in ashes history; now the odds are even shorter.
The purpose of the visit of course was to see Australia take on Scotland at Murrayfield. While I have seen the Wallabies play in Scotland before, it was at Hamden Park and so I was keen to visit the home of rugby in Scotland as well. Murrayfield is a great stadium and my only complaint was that there is no big screen for the purpose of seeing replays of the action. This was most disappointing as there was some scintillating back-line play from the Wallabies in the second half especially.
The Scots certainly fancied themselves before the match and given the way the Wallabies have been playing, I was predicting a close match. However Australian teams are never ones to give up and I knew the Wallabies would fancy finishing the tour on a high note. That they did and it was probably the best I have seen them play all year, finally the forwards managed to gain some kind of ascendancy which meant that the backs actually had some time and space to show what they can do. Some great backline moves in the second half especially created some quality tries; it was very entertaining to watch. The defence as well was superb especially when Scotland were pounding at the line at one stage in the second half, the Wallabies just kept repelling them. I hope the Wallabies can take a lot from the tour and improve next year so they can be a serious challengers to the All Blacks in September and October next year.
It was of course an even better weekend to be an Australian, with a crushing of England in the first test of the Ashes. Congrats to England for winning the last series, but they went on as though they had won the bloody world cup. When taken into context, they had in fact narrowly won a single test series, that’s all. The fact that they had not been able to achieve this in 18 years was the reason that they were so elated. Now it seems though the team that won that series is a shadow if its former self. The Aussies are fired up this time and by the end of the summer, the urn will be back in its rightful place and normality will be resumed; it will be proven that last year was nothing more than an anomaly.
Last year though the Aussies won the first test pretty convincingly and then faltered so the series is far from over. Things though are different this time and I don’t think anyone can see that happening again. England will take some heart from their second innings fight back, but they don’t have the skill, class, ability, or confidence at the moment to retain the trophy they fought so hard to win last year. Before the series began, you could only get a paltry 4/1 on Australia winning the series 5-0, something that has happened only once in ashes history; now the odds are even shorter.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
0.999...
0.999... recurring is exactly equal to 1
How is this possible you ask?
I demonstrate
x = 0.999…
10x = 9.999…
10x – x = 9.999… - 0.999…
9x = 9
x = 1
Freaky!
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Oooops... She didn't do it!
I am very disappointed by the latest news I have received: apparently there is not any Britney Spears sex tape. Now it would have been very silly of Britney to have made one in the first place and I am pretty sure her advisors would have been certain to warn her against doing something like that. As good as it would have been to see Britney shagging on tape for 4 hours, I’m not quite sure anyone would have paid $22 million for possession of it, which is what was claimed was on offer.
Britney has always sold her image on sex; her videos are erotic, suggestive and leave little to the imagination. I don’t mind this at all and have no problems leaving MTV on when one of her songs is played. While she is watched by plenty of red blooded young men like me, she is also watched by millions of young and adolescent girls, mostly of course, in America. There isn’t anything wrong with this but we should take this into consideration when discussing America’s entirely hypocritical values with regards to sex.
A couple of years ago there was an enormous controversy in the US when Janet Jackson’s bare breast (though her nipple was covered) was exposed on national TV during the Superbowl half time show. It was a national outcry, a crime against humanity, Janet Jackson became public enemy number 1. The television station which was broadcasting the show was even sued for millions of dollars as a result.
It was really was much ado about nothing. How really is that anything different to what Britney Spears does in her videos, which earns her the adoration of people all over the country? Not to mention a hell of a lot of money!
It was just a breast, half of everyone in the world has two of them, why should it be so shocking to see someone else’s? The US would do a lot better if they showed more breasts on television instead of so many guns and violence.
Britney has always sold her image on sex; her videos are erotic, suggestive and leave little to the imagination. I don’t mind this at all and have no problems leaving MTV on when one of her songs is played. While she is watched by plenty of red blooded young men like me, she is also watched by millions of young and adolescent girls, mostly of course, in America. There isn’t anything wrong with this but we should take this into consideration when discussing America’s entirely hypocritical values with regards to sex.
A couple of years ago there was an enormous controversy in the US when Janet Jackson’s bare breast (though her nipple was covered) was exposed on national TV during the Superbowl half time show. It was a national outcry, a crime against humanity, Janet Jackson became public enemy number 1. The television station which was broadcasting the show was even sued for millions of dollars as a result.
It was really was much ado about nothing. How really is that anything different to what Britney Spears does in her videos, which earns her the adoration of people all over the country? Not to mention a hell of a lot of money!
It was just a breast, half of everyone in the world has two of them, why should it be so shocking to see someone else’s? The US would do a lot better if they showed more breasts on television instead of so many guns and violence.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Thirty Million Dollars?????
I have seen Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan; it is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen, and I do intend on seeing it again.
It is of course very popular, and as a result, is making a lot of money. However whenever you publicly make money in America, other people want to try and take some of that off you. It’s a national hobby in America to sue people and already there are plenty of reports of people filing suits against the makers of the movie. The latest one is by the Romanian villagers that were used at the start of the movie to represent a fictional town in Kazakhstan. They claim they were told they were making a documentary about poverty in Romania and they were not aware the movie was a satire. As a result, they are suing for damages due to the fact that they were represented as rapists, abortionists, prostitutes and thieves.
Of course this is absolute nonsense and proceeding with a case like this would be a complete waste of everybody’s time. Viewers of the movie are aware that it is satire; nobody is looking at the Romanian villagers used in the film and thinking that they actually are rapists, abortionists, prostitutes and thieves. We are all well aware that what we are seeing is in fact, fictional. Just like after watching Se7en, I did not think that Kevin Spacey was actually a deranged serial killer, nor do I think that Borat is a real person, or that the villagers were the people they were said to be in the movie.
So there really is no basis at all for a law suit against the makers of the movie. However no doubt there are American lawyers who are the driving forces behind these kind of actions. Suing people is their business, the more people sue others, the more money they make. Given the apparent remoteness of the village in Romania and the apparently poverty shown there; along with the fact that none of them speak English, it is quite unlikely that the villagers concerned, have ever actually seen the movie, or even knew of its existence. It is lawyers who have gone looking for them, they are the ones who have put these ideas in their heads, they are just using them for their own benefit.
The two plaintiffs in the case are suing for THIRTY MILLION DOLLARS in damages. Tell me please how two old Romanian villagers, living on the poverty line, could possibly ever imagine having 30 million dollars? Even if they actually had a fair case to launch against the movies makers, how could they ever justify that they should be paid 30 million dollars for their suffering? It is absolute and utter rubbish and it has been fed to them by greedy American attorneys who are using them for their own means.
The Borat movie did an excellent job of showing how ignorant and foolish some Americans are, and cases like this only further enforce that fact.
It is of course very popular, and as a result, is making a lot of money. However whenever you publicly make money in America, other people want to try and take some of that off you. It’s a national hobby in America to sue people and already there are plenty of reports of people filing suits against the makers of the movie. The latest one is by the Romanian villagers that were used at the start of the movie to represent a fictional town in Kazakhstan. They claim they were told they were making a documentary about poverty in Romania and they were not aware the movie was a satire. As a result, they are suing for damages due to the fact that they were represented as rapists, abortionists, prostitutes and thieves.
Of course this is absolute nonsense and proceeding with a case like this would be a complete waste of everybody’s time. Viewers of the movie are aware that it is satire; nobody is looking at the Romanian villagers used in the film and thinking that they actually are rapists, abortionists, prostitutes and thieves. We are all well aware that what we are seeing is in fact, fictional. Just like after watching Se7en, I did not think that Kevin Spacey was actually a deranged serial killer, nor do I think that Borat is a real person, or that the villagers were the people they were said to be in the movie.
So there really is no basis at all for a law suit against the makers of the movie. However no doubt there are American lawyers who are the driving forces behind these kind of actions. Suing people is their business, the more people sue others, the more money they make. Given the apparent remoteness of the village in Romania and the apparently poverty shown there; along with the fact that none of them speak English, it is quite unlikely that the villagers concerned, have ever actually seen the movie, or even knew of its existence. It is lawyers who have gone looking for them, they are the ones who have put these ideas in their heads, they are just using them for their own benefit.
The two plaintiffs in the case are suing for THIRTY MILLION DOLLARS in damages. Tell me please how two old Romanian villagers, living on the poverty line, could possibly ever imagine having 30 million dollars? Even if they actually had a fair case to launch against the movies makers, how could they ever justify that they should be paid 30 million dollars for their suffering? It is absolute and utter rubbish and it has been fed to them by greedy American attorneys who are using them for their own means.
The Borat movie did an excellent job of showing how ignorant and foolish some Americans are, and cases like this only further enforce that fact.
Friday, November 17, 2006
The odds
Saturday 3pm
West Ham 2 Chelsea 1
This scoreline will net me £650
I admit that it is not the most likely of scorelines but I think that the odds don't give West Ham enough credit.
Oh and I quite fancy winning that £120 million tonight as well!
West Ham 2 Chelsea 1
This scoreline will net me £650
I admit that it is not the most likely of scorelines but I think that the odds don't give West Ham enough credit.
Oh and I quite fancy winning that £120 million tonight as well!
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Good and Evil
One of the arguments levelled at atheists by theists is; how can you have morals without God? The answer is simple, in fact, the requirement of a God for morals to exist is in fact a far more worrying prospect.
We have to consider that the human race is the result of 4 billion years of evolution. In order for us to be here now, as a product of this evolution, human beings must have developed traits in order for us to survive as a species. Every form of life seeks to survive, even the smallest living cell is required to live and subsequently reproduce. So it is that co-operation with other living things increases our chances of survival. The living cells within our body co-operate with each other to become something greater; us. So we live as a result of the co-operation of all the cells within our body, and so do those cells live. We as humans, co-operate with each other to create a society and thus improve our chances of survival. We have a set of rules by which we live, because we need our society to survive for us to survive. We should not kill, not because some kind of God says so, but because nobody wants to be killed themselves. I do not want people to steal my possessions and so I do not steal those of others. It is by encouraging everyone else to live by these rules that we can further secure our own survival. This concept is further cemented by the fact that we feel the emotion of empathy.
This is how morals have developed within society; it is evolutionary traits amongst us that have engineered so called morals. There is no such thing as good and evil, right or wrong, these are just words. It is frightening in fact to think that many people do not kill or do not steal, because they think God has told them not to, and not because they simply should not do it. However perhaps as a whole, for the evolution of society; it has been necessary for religion to exist to enforce these rules. As much as it is fair to say that we co-operate with each other to the benefit of society as a whole; humans still have an inherent selfish nature to ensure one’s own survival above all others. Thus the fear of retribution from a higher power for breaching society’s laws can be seen as further strengthening their application. Of course no method is perfect and thus with religion we have the converse effect with people who kill because they believe they are doing God’s work.
So there is a trade off, but religion is still essentially irrelevant. There is a perfectly logical reason for the existence of morals that does not involve any kind of supernatural power. The belief in such a supernatural power, may or may not have aided in the application of these rules; regardless though such belief exists though it should not be suggested as a reason for right and wrong.
We have to consider that the human race is the result of 4 billion years of evolution. In order for us to be here now, as a product of this evolution, human beings must have developed traits in order for us to survive as a species. Every form of life seeks to survive, even the smallest living cell is required to live and subsequently reproduce. So it is that co-operation with other living things increases our chances of survival. The living cells within our body co-operate with each other to become something greater; us. So we live as a result of the co-operation of all the cells within our body, and so do those cells live. We as humans, co-operate with each other to create a society and thus improve our chances of survival. We have a set of rules by which we live, because we need our society to survive for us to survive. We should not kill, not because some kind of God says so, but because nobody wants to be killed themselves. I do not want people to steal my possessions and so I do not steal those of others. It is by encouraging everyone else to live by these rules that we can further secure our own survival. This concept is further cemented by the fact that we feel the emotion of empathy.
This is how morals have developed within society; it is evolutionary traits amongst us that have engineered so called morals. There is no such thing as good and evil, right or wrong, these are just words. It is frightening in fact to think that many people do not kill or do not steal, because they think God has told them not to, and not because they simply should not do it. However perhaps as a whole, for the evolution of society; it has been necessary for religion to exist to enforce these rules. As much as it is fair to say that we co-operate with each other to the benefit of society as a whole; humans still have an inherent selfish nature to ensure one’s own survival above all others. Thus the fear of retribution from a higher power for breaching society’s laws can be seen as further strengthening their application. Of course no method is perfect and thus with religion we have the converse effect with people who kill because they believe they are doing God’s work.
So there is a trade off, but religion is still essentially irrelevant. There is a perfectly logical reason for the existence of morals that does not involve any kind of supernatural power. The belief in such a supernatural power, may or may not have aided in the application of these rules; regardless though such belief exists though it should not be suggested as a reason for right and wrong.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Treated like a fool
I’m pissed off. I bought the new Grand Theft Auto for my PSP last week. It required a system software update to 2.81 which comes on the disc. So I performed this and started playing GTA. It seemed to work ok for a while, then the graphics started to stuff up. I turned it off and came back to it later. Now though, it wont load any UMD at all. I put a UMD in and it just keeps trying to read it, the screen freezes and I cannot even turn it off, unless I open it and take the UMD out.
So this is not very good, I had better do some investigating and find out how to fix this. First stop: the PSP website. Let’s look up troubleshooting, ah here we go The PSP system does not recognise the UMD. Ok so what does it say we should do about that?
• Check that the UMD is properly inserted. Try taking out the UMD and reinserting it.
• Check that the UMD recording surface and cassette are not damaged.
That’s it? That’s fucking it? That’s all the website has got to say about that particular problem. Thank you for stating the bleeding fucking obvious. What the hell do you think I tried doing in the first place? Who the hell actually needs to go to the troubleshooting section of the website, to realise that this is what you should try doing first?
Thank you for your help Sony but I already fucking tried doing that and it didn’t work, which is why I am looking on your website to see what else I can do.
Dickheads
So this is not very good, I had better do some investigating and find out how to fix this. First stop: the PSP website. Let’s look up troubleshooting, ah here we go The PSP system does not recognise the UMD. Ok so what does it say we should do about that?
• Check that the UMD is properly inserted. Try taking out the UMD and reinserting it.
• Check that the UMD recording surface and cassette are not damaged.
That’s it? That’s fucking it? That’s all the website has got to say about that particular problem. Thank you for stating the bleeding fucking obvious. What the hell do you think I tried doing in the first place? Who the hell actually needs to go to the troubleshooting section of the website, to realise that this is what you should try doing first?
Thank you for your help Sony but I already fucking tried doing that and it didn’t work, which is why I am looking on your website to see what else I can do.
Dickheads
Monday, November 13, 2006
Plonker
I am such a plonker
So I was supposed to catch a 7am flight to Rome on Saturday; I should have had a reasonably early night, but I thought it would be no harm to head down to the local for a couple. Unfortunately a couple turned into more than that and I didn’t get home until quite late. “I’ll just stay up all night” I announced, but then failed to prevent myself from falling asleep. Subsequently waking up well and truly after the flight had left.
Oh well, so I paid for flights and a match ticket that I didn’t get to use, never mind. The problem was that I was still in possession of Rolly’s match ticket, and he was already in Rome! So after calling him and giving him the details he said he would try and get a replacement from the Wallabies Overseas Supporters Club. I didn’t hear back from him until shortly before the game when he text me with a few expletives saying he couldn’t get into the game. I told him to get a ticket from a tout and I would refund him the money, I kindly agreed to pay €200 for the ticket. So it was that I spent the rest of the weekend counting the cost of a rugby match that I never got to see.
I could only really laugh it off as there was not much I could do about it. As it turned out it was a terrible game anyway and not really worth watching at all. But it does mean that it is unlikely I will complete my 6 nations set of teams, which is a shame. In the end I watched 3 other games of rugby, all of which were great games to watch, especially the All Blacks who were just sensational. I also went to Steve’s birthday party and had a pretty damn good time there.
So today at lunch time the whole scenario improved when Rolly told me that he had actually managed to get a replacement ticket for free and that he had been pulling my leg about the €200 all weekend. Apparently they were all having a good giggle about it at the time and I agree it was a pretty funny joke.
So I was supposed to catch a 7am flight to Rome on Saturday; I should have had a reasonably early night, but I thought it would be no harm to head down to the local for a couple. Unfortunately a couple turned into more than that and I didn’t get home until quite late. “I’ll just stay up all night” I announced, but then failed to prevent myself from falling asleep. Subsequently waking up well and truly after the flight had left.
Oh well, so I paid for flights and a match ticket that I didn’t get to use, never mind. The problem was that I was still in possession of Rolly’s match ticket, and he was already in Rome! So after calling him and giving him the details he said he would try and get a replacement from the Wallabies Overseas Supporters Club. I didn’t hear back from him until shortly before the game when he text me with a few expletives saying he couldn’t get into the game. I told him to get a ticket from a tout and I would refund him the money, I kindly agreed to pay €200 for the ticket. So it was that I spent the rest of the weekend counting the cost of a rugby match that I never got to see.
I could only really laugh it off as there was not much I could do about it. As it turned out it was a terrible game anyway and not really worth watching at all. But it does mean that it is unlikely I will complete my 6 nations set of teams, which is a shame. In the end I watched 3 other games of rugby, all of which were great games to watch, especially the All Blacks who were just sensational. I also went to Steve’s birthday party and had a pretty damn good time there.
So today at lunch time the whole scenario improved when Rolly told me that he had actually managed to get a replacement ticket for free and that he had been pulling my leg about the €200 all weekend. Apparently they were all having a good giggle about it at the time and I agree it was a pretty funny joke.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Test Match Rugby
I’m flying to Rome tomorrow to see the Wallabies play Italy. I am then flying back to London after the game. I can’t really be bothered hanging around in Italy to do anything else so I’d rather just head home. Gutted though I will be missing Kiwi FC match, it will be the first game this season I will have missed.
Anyway, the Wallabies should really beat Italy by a considerable margin otherwise there is something seriously wrong. I didn’t see the game against Wales last week and I’m keen to see how the Giteau, Rogers, Larkham inside backs combination works out. The pack needs to keep improving though and it will be a good test for them as Italy have a strong pack of forwards. It promises to be an enjoyable game to watch, it will as well complete the set of six nations sides for me; I have seen Australia play test matches against all other 6 nations sides apart from Italy. I will not however have been to every 6 nations stadium as when I saw the Wallabies play Scotland, it was at Hamden park in Glasgow. I will complete that set in 2 weeks time when I see them play at Murrayfield.
Yesterday morning was a particularly stressful time as I attempted to order a set of tickets to the Rugby World Cup 2007. Individual tickets came on sale at 8am GMT and I was at my desk in readiness to log on to the site and order them. Needless to say there were a hell of a lot of other people with the same idea and the site was overloaded. Finally after receiving so many page errors, clicking back, getting to the last page before being timed out and other incredibly frustrating obstacles; I finally had my ticket request processed, four and a half hours after I first started trying. Fortunately I have not been very busy at work this week.
So I will be attending Australia’s pool matches against Wales, Fiji and Canada as well as Quarter final 1; which hopefully Australia will be playing in if they manage to win their pool. If they do win their pool and advance beyond the quarter final, then their opponents will most likely be the All Blacks (unless the have choked already) However if Australia were to come second in their pool, they would not face the All Blacks until the final if they were to make it that far. But they have to be beaten and so it doesn’t matter whether that is in the semi final or the final itself. I think the All Blacks are the clear favourites for next year’s World Cup. They have a large squad of high quality players will lots of test experience. Graham Henry is a superb coach and his team plays excellent controlled and tactical rugby. However they can still be beaten on the day; a team that wants to win the world cup must defeat the All Blacks.
Oh and I’m also going to see Romania vs Repechage 1 in what promises to be one of the tournament’s marquee matches.
Anyway, the Wallabies should really beat Italy by a considerable margin otherwise there is something seriously wrong. I didn’t see the game against Wales last week and I’m keen to see how the Giteau, Rogers, Larkham inside backs combination works out. The pack needs to keep improving though and it will be a good test for them as Italy have a strong pack of forwards. It promises to be an enjoyable game to watch, it will as well complete the set of six nations sides for me; I have seen Australia play test matches against all other 6 nations sides apart from Italy. I will not however have been to every 6 nations stadium as when I saw the Wallabies play Scotland, it was at Hamden park in Glasgow. I will complete that set in 2 weeks time when I see them play at Murrayfield.
Yesterday morning was a particularly stressful time as I attempted to order a set of tickets to the Rugby World Cup 2007. Individual tickets came on sale at 8am GMT and I was at my desk in readiness to log on to the site and order them. Needless to say there were a hell of a lot of other people with the same idea and the site was overloaded. Finally after receiving so many page errors, clicking back, getting to the last page before being timed out and other incredibly frustrating obstacles; I finally had my ticket request processed, four and a half hours after I first started trying. Fortunately I have not been very busy at work this week.
So I will be attending Australia’s pool matches against Wales, Fiji and Canada as well as Quarter final 1; which hopefully Australia will be playing in if they manage to win their pool. If they do win their pool and advance beyond the quarter final, then their opponents will most likely be the All Blacks (unless the have choked already) However if Australia were to come second in their pool, they would not face the All Blacks until the final if they were to make it that far. But they have to be beaten and so it doesn’t matter whether that is in the semi final or the final itself. I think the All Blacks are the clear favourites for next year’s World Cup. They have a large squad of high quality players will lots of test experience. Graham Henry is a superb coach and his team plays excellent controlled and tactical rugby. However they can still be beaten on the day; a team that wants to win the world cup must defeat the All Blacks.
Oh and I’m also going to see Romania vs Repechage 1 in what promises to be one of the tournament’s marquee matches.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
The God Delusion
I have just had my copy of Richard Dawkins’ “The God Delusion” delivered from Amazon and I am very keen to begin reading it. Dawkins said in an interview promoting his book that he hoped that with his book he might convince some people that were sitting on the fence as far as religion is concerned, to conform to a generally atheist point of view. In my case though Professor Dawkins is most certainly preaching to the converted, none the less I will enjoy reading this book immensely. I am a staunch atheist, I reject all earthly religions and my belief in the non-existence of a god is tantamount to a faith in itself.
Professor Dawkins speaks my language and I will no doubt agree with almost everything in his book. It is a good feeling when someone else agrees strongly with one’s own beliefs. For me, this book will be akin to a Christian person reading the bible.
Many people when questioned about their faith claim that they just know that there is a god and that they can feel that they are right in their beliefs. This is the extent to which I believe there is not. Apart from the overwhelmingly convincing arguments against the existence of a god, and the underwhelmingly feeble arguments for the existence of god; I just feel that I am right in my beliefs.
Of course it is only in the past few hundred years that I would have been able to say something like this without being horribly tortured and executed. Gradually though over time, certainly in the western world, as knowledge and information has become more easily available to everybody, the need for religion has waned. I sincerely hope that western society will continue on its path towards secularism. Religious fundamentalism is making a comeback in the 21st century; Islamic fundamentalists are recruiting a lot of people in the Arab world to their cause. Christian fundamentalists are currently in control of the most powerful country in the world.
Ignorance breeds religion, knowledge and information can overcome it. I hope this book plays its part.
Professor Dawkins speaks my language and I will no doubt agree with almost everything in his book. It is a good feeling when someone else agrees strongly with one’s own beliefs. For me, this book will be akin to a Christian person reading the bible.
Many people when questioned about their faith claim that they just know that there is a god and that they can feel that they are right in their beliefs. This is the extent to which I believe there is not. Apart from the overwhelmingly convincing arguments against the existence of a god, and the underwhelmingly feeble arguments for the existence of god; I just feel that I am right in my beliefs.
Of course it is only in the past few hundred years that I would have been able to say something like this without being horribly tortured and executed. Gradually though over time, certainly in the western world, as knowledge and information has become more easily available to everybody, the need for religion has waned. I sincerely hope that western society will continue on its path towards secularism. Religious fundamentalism is making a comeback in the 21st century; Islamic fundamentalists are recruiting a lot of people in the Arab world to their cause. Christian fundamentalists are currently in control of the most powerful country in the world.
Ignorance breeds religion, knowledge and information can overcome it. I hope this book plays its part.
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