Blog Storm

Posted yesterday:

Police seek to identify far north SA remains

South Australian police say they cannot rule out the possibility that part of a man’s lower torso found in a dam in South Australia’s far north is that of missing British tourist Peter Falconio.

Police say an extensive search of the dam 35 kilometres south of Marla, which started this morning, has so far failed to turn up any clues to the man’s identity or cause of death.

Inspector Peter Batley says South Australian police have contacted Northern Territory police about the possibility of the remains belonging to Mr Falconio.

“Look, nothing’s ruled out and we’re coming into this with a very open mind, so we’re not going to discount one thing or another straight away,” he said.

I felt I needed to point out a relatively minor matter. It’s in regard to the post two entries down, regarding the Egyptian lawyer who is planning to sue Israel over a passage in the Bible. Kimber posted some comments which I certainly agree with in principle, but I get the feeling she missed the point of why I posted that story. Now, bear in mind that I don’t for a second think that she diverges from my views, as she is obviously an intelligent and open-minded person (despite the satan worshipping and baby sacrifices… kidding! =D), but I felt the distinction needed to be made. Plus, I bit my tongue like a good boy throughout the whole ten commandments debacle, so I need to vent. And no, I’m not actually treating the matter with seriousness it doesn’t deserve (ie. any), but I don’t have anything else to write about…

Teachers warn of more strikes

I’ve made my position quite clear about this before, namely that you can’t pay teachers enough in my opinion, and I hope the continuing strikes cause the arrogant and intransigent state MPs get really pissed off, along with the moronic parents who whine about the inconvenience of their personal child-minding service being unavailable for a day. I realise I may be biased considering both my parents are teachers, but in my view they, along with nurses, represent the most important public positions in any healthy liberal democratic state. Why the hell anyone would want to incur 3-4 years of university debts to be employed in a highly stressful job with a first year salary of around A$40,000 before tax, with incremental annual salary increases to a maximum of around A$57,000 before tax, is beyond me. No, I didn’t just make a typographical error; a teacher who has been working for 30 years makes A$17,000 more than a first year teacher in the same position. Is it any wonder the best and brightest in the profession are being scalped by private institutions or just plain ditching the public education system altogether for career paths with better economic prospects?

An Egyptian lawyer said today he was planning to sue the world’s Jews for “plundering” gold during the Exodus from Pharaonic Egypt thousands of years ago, based on information in the Bible.

Nabil Hilmi, Dean of the Faculty of Law at Egypt’s al-Zaqaziq University, said the legal basis for the case was under study by a group of lawyers in Egypt and Europe.

“This is serious, and should not be misread as being political against any race. We are just investigating if a debt is owed,” Hilmi told Reuters in a telephone interview.

The relevant passage from the Bible, Exodus 12 verses 35 to 36 reads: “The Israelites had done as Moses told them; they had asked the Egyptians for jewellery of silver and gold, and for clothing … And so they plundered the Egyptians.”

1. describe the last dream you had (or the last one you can remember) I’m really bad with dreams, I have them often but the only ones I remember are either far too abstract to describe coherently, mainly concerned with sex or are these really cool, long, epic suspense-thriller dreams which usually involve me uncovering this conspiracy and leading a secret rebellion against it (Freud would say this symbolises some subconscious paranoia, but I think it has more to do with my repressed imagination (I used to write a lot of stories when I was younger, but I lost interest in high school)). I can actually wake up during the night, and go back to sleep and the dream continues where it left off. They’re fucking awesome, but extremely rare. I didn’t answer the question, did I?

US to build ship from WTC ruins

AFP - Steel from the ruins of the World Trade Centre will be used to build a US Navy ship called the USS New York.

Los Angeles-based shipbuilders Northrop Grumman said 24 tons would be melted down to form the front of the bow of the 196 metre amphibious assault craft, due to be delivered to the navy in 2007.

“The metal will be melted down and cast into the bow stem of the ship in a tribute to the victims and the heroes of 9/11 as well as to the courage of the New York people after the attacks,” said company spokesman Ed Winter.

Plans by a New York artist to stage a naked photo session of about 300 people in a small town in Portugal have found little support from the local Roman Catholic priest, the Jornal de Noticias newspaper reported.

Eleuterio Pais, a priest in the northern town of Santa Maria da Feira, near Porto, said the idea “had nothing to do with art”.

The plan is the brainchild of American photographer Spencer Tunick, who plans to shoot his models on Saturday as part of his world tour Nude Adrift, which has led him to photograph groups of unclothed people in cities as far apart as Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Montreal, Sao Paulo, Paris and Vienna.

Normally I take about as much of an interest in Hollywood entertainment news as I do in the sex lives of my grandparents, but this one caught my eye.

Cameron Diaz breaks her nose

Justin Timberlake’s girlfriend, Cameron Diaz, has broken her nose whilst holidaying in Hawaii to celebrate her 31st birthday.

She was surfing with her sister and a couple of mates when someone’s board hit her face. She says she’s totally bummed because she can’t go surfing any more. But it could’ve been worse if the board had not been made of foam.

excerpts from BBC News

US anti-abortionist executed

In a last statement before his execution, Hill thanked God for his family and urged anyone against abortion to do what they could to prevent it. “Two of the last things that I would like to say - if you believe abortion is a lethal force, you should oppose the force and do what you have to to stop it. May God help you to protect the unborn as you would want them to be protected.” Among the hundred demonstrators who gathered outside Florida’s Starke Prison, many hailed the former Presbyterian minister and father of three as a hero. At the time of Hill’s death, they stood and held hands. Many carried placards proclaiming that he is now a martyr for his cause.

Former US prisoner of war Jessica Lynch has signed a deal with publisher Alfred A Knopf reportedly worth $1.58 million.

The publisher said the book, I Am a Soldier, Too: The Jessica Lynch Story, will be written by former New York Times reporter Rick Bragg and is due for release in November.

The 20-year-old supply clerk was captured by Iraqi forces on March 23 near the city of Nassiriya.

Eleven other US soldiers were killed and nine wounded in the incident.

She became a symbol of American patriotism during the war, which generated controversy as accounts of her rescue in Iraq varied.

An early media report quoted unnamed US officials saying she engaged Iraqi soldiers in a fire fight despite being wounded before being captured.

“Flashmobbing” has arrived in New Zealand - reportedly leaving a city burger bar with a load of unwanted food to throw away.

The “flashmob” phenomenon, which is sweeping the United States and Europe, uses the internet and text messages on mobile phones to organise crowds that appear suddenly, perform prearranged mass acts and disperse as just as quickly.

About 200 people piled into Burger King in Auckland’s Queen Street and mooed like cows at lunchtime, the New Zealand Herald said, reporting the country’s first “flashmob”.

As they arrived, staff quickly prepared 100 buns, 10 chickens, eight baskets of fries and four trays of meat patties, but nobody ordered anything.

I just felt I needed to squash what seems to be a common misconception sweeping the world today, particularly in light of the release of the second instalment on DVD. A mere glance at the IMDb Top 250 will provide you with enough proof of the bafflingly widespread nature of the problem.

# 10. Enya: Enya needs killing. Now.

# 9. George Lucas Syndrome Part 1: Peter Jackson is a producer, not a director. And it shows. Then again, if Scorcese had been put in charge, would it have changed much? Probably not. Just pay the actors to run around and talk a bit and let computers and blue screens do the rest.