Author Archive
The difference between a ‘disc’ and a ‘disk’…
They’re pronounced the same, but, technically speaking, there is a distinct difference between a disc and a disk.
“SHUT UP!”
Re my earlier post on censorship … look at this. Creepy.
Critic — a definition
A critic is a bundle of biases held loosely together by good taste. — Whitney Balliett, Jazz critic and book reviewer for the New Yorker magazine 1954-2001. Yep, that about sums it up. Does it for me. (Of course, like beauty, ‘good taste’ is in the eye of the beholder.)
Sacred cows and calls for censorship
“Don’t mention the war” — Basil, Fawlty Towers I took some interest in a recent comment on a discussion forum which attacked a journalist for reporting bankruptcy proceedings being undertaken against a failed property developer — accusing the journalist of improper motives for the story. The critic himself has a somewhat unfortunate track record in business […]
Exodus?
I’ve always thought when facebook and twitter got mainstream the kids would leave for somewhere ‘cooler’… as happened to MySpace. Now Miley Cyrus (1.1 million followers) has [reportedly] bailed on twitter… too trivial, too intrusive, too demanding, too ADHD-inspiring would be my guess. Watch her rap yourself, and observe her own entertaining ‘explanation’… Twitter followers […]
Ripples flow from this brave woman’s stand
There’s a good article on The Independent website about the Liskula Cohen/NYC model case, which I mentioned earlier. The more I read about this gutsy woman and what she’s standing up for the more I like. Having been victimised by someone lobbing slimeballs at her from behind a mask of anonymity, she pursued Google to […]
Domain renewal skulduggery? Or scam?
I got an email out of the blue yesterday reminding me that a domain name we maintain for one of my authors Olly Newland was due to expire and needed renewing. The email looked like this: Note the expiry date: 2009-10-04. Following the conveniently-provided link (“If you wish to continue using your domain name please […]
How to protect yourself from extortion: Er, live a ‘clean’ life
David Letterman Reveals Extortion Attempt Over His Affairs – NYTimes.com By Bill Carter October 1, 2009 David Letterman, the late night talk show host, said on his show on Thursday that he had been the victim of an extortion attempt over charges of sexual affairs with staff members, claims that he conceded were true. Mr. […]
OK, now this is getting silly …
Blogger told to stop advising on immigration A blogger who came to New Zealand from Britain has been warned to stop giving immigration advice on her blog – or face prosecution under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act. The Immigration Advisers Authority says Helen Winterbottom was breaking the law by posting on avalonsguide.com, and has told […]
Q: Where does conflict come from?
A: Our innate Superiority complex It is strangely easy for us as human beings to see ourselves as separate from others … or in an ‘us’ while ‘the others’ consist of a ‘them’ — and, naturally, we regard ‘them’ as inferior to ‘us’ in every measure that matters. In the same way that herd animals […]
Handling the truth… and a parable
Col. Jessep: You want answers? Kaffee: I think I’m entitled. Col. Jessep: You want answers? Kaffee: I want the truth! Col. Jessep: You can’t HANDLE the truth! Son, we live in a world that has walls and those walls need to be guarded by men with guns. Who’s gonna do it? You? I have a […]
Pushing the boundaries
Now these guys are just playing with us. It works, though. Good for them, no comment about the product.
Potshots from behind a mask of anonymity are, by definition, cheap
I wholeheartedly agree with the court decision to order Google to identify the blogger who [allegedly] defamed this NY model. My view: People need to be accountable for their public statements. Anonymous log-ins tend — in some — to breed a recklessness and nasty damaging discourtesy. And they shouldn’t get away with it. (I still […]
