Princess Madeleine's alley-cat former fiance looked a sure bet to succeed Tiger Woods as Dumbest Man in the World, but this waiter may have them both beat:
SYDNEY -- An Australian restaurant that refused a blind man entry because a waiter thought his seeing-eye dog was "gay" has been ordered to apologise and pay compensation. YJCMTSU
Ian Jolly was told he could not take guide dog Nudge into Adelaide's Thai Spice last May because a member of staff objected, The Sunday Mail reported. Gay dogs are a big issue in this person's life? We probably don't want to know the whole story.
More to the point, how long had that particular staffer been speaking English?
The restaurant's owners said a misunderstanding had arisen between Jolly's female companion and a waiter who understood the woman "to be saying she wanted to bring a gay dog into the restaurant".
"The staff genuinely believed that Nudge was an ordinary pet dog which had been desexed to become a gay dog," the owners said in a statement to South Australia's Equal Opportunity Tribunal. Well, sure there, Einstein, a customer referring to a neutered household pet as "gay" is far more likely than the same person asking about a "guide" dog.
The tribunal on Friday ordered the restaurant to pay Jolly 1,500 dollars (1,400 US) and offer him a written apology for discriminating against him on the grounds of disability.
The restaurant, which displays a "guide dogs welcome" sign, refused to comment to the newspaper and was unavailable to respond on Sunday. They are hiding their faces somewhere, never to be seen in public again.
Jolly told the Sunday Mail he was happy with the result. "I just want to be like everybody else and be able to go out for dinner, to be left alone and just enjoy a meal," he said. Two old friends are reminiscing over gin and tonic in a Nairobi bar.
"Say, what became of old Roberts anyway?"
"Gone native. Living in a tree upcountry with a baboon."
"Male or female?"
"Why female of course. Nothing queer about old Roberts!"
However, I think it's just possible that the gayness of the dog was not the issue, but the dogness of the dog. You do not let ordinary non-guide dogs, gay or otherwise, into restaurants, and this may have been the actual problem.
If you say "guide dog" in an Australian accent, you may understand the waiter's confusion. (I did wonder what kind of accent this woman had, but I confess that the possibility that the waiter did not have a firm grasp of English did not occur to me.)
#5
"ay" in non-Aussie English is pronounced like "eye", so "gay" would be pronounced "guy." I'm guessing when the dog was described as a guidedog, it sounded like "guy dog", or Aussie for "gay dog."
BOOBQUAKE founder Jennifer McCreight may have some serious questions to answer. Her day of action calling on the women of the world to dress scandalously and prove wrong an Iranian cleric who blames natural disasters on cleavage has started, well, disastrously. At 11am local time, a 6.9 magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan, no doubt causing thousands of Boobquake fans to hastily button up.
#5
Well, theoretically, they should all take their breasts out of their blouses entirely, because the boob counter-jiggle would actually dampen the movement of the earthquake.
It uses the same logic that increasing a fractional amount of a trace gas can cause global warming, so the science of the earthquake boob dampening effect is also settled.
The only possible problem might be if that many exposed boobs causes a mathematician to divide by zero.
Its Taiwan. IBTC was probably originally formed there. One cannot put much cleavage on a 2x4. There are notable exceptions, but over-all, it is mos def not Las Vegas.
Posted by: No I am the other Beldar ||
04/26/2010 11:30 Comments ||
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#7
The only possible problem might be if that many exposed boobs causes a mathematician to divide by zero.
I would have thought by infinity, but I discovered the hard way that I don't think like a mathematician.
#11
What we are talking about here is the female equivalent of the Stockbridge Damper, used to dampen vibrations on large power lines. If the earthquake in Taiwan was to be stopped, all the cleavage units would have needed to be fully released before the earthquake, otherwise they would not have their damping function actuated.
Here is a pic of a Stockbridge Damper:
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
04/26/2010 19:06 Comments ||
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Thanks to all that money Presidente Chavez just got from China.
(Reuters) - Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez on Sunday ordered a 40 percent pay rise for the armed forces, an increase that may help consolidate his support with troops by countering inflation ahead of legislative elections.
Chavez said the pay rise would bring a cadet's salary to 2,500 bolivars ($543). The former soldier has ramped up military spending during his 11 years in power, buying billions of dollars of mainly Russian and Chinese made arms to replace aging equipment.
"I will always be alert so that we do not fall behind," he said, making reference to a recently announced pay rise for doctors. "So that you can do your jobs and live with dignity with your families."
Such a thoughtful, loving man... for those in the groups he favours.
In recent years Chavez's socialist government has ordered some of the world's largest hikes to minimum wages and public workers' salaries, helping offset the highest inflation the hemisphere that was 25 percent in 2009 and will likely be higher this year.
Chavez has lost popularity in recent months because of electricity and water shortages and a long recession. Opposition politicians are expected to weaken Chavez's huge majority in the national assembly in legislative elections in September. The opposition has almost no seats right now after boycotting the last elections five years ago.
"Soldiers do not participate in political parties, but they are not apolitical, no man is apolitical," said Chavez, whose government granted the armed forces the right to vote.
That's even better than giving citizenship to masses of illegal aliens.
The above is quite possibly linked to this story from AFP:
War possible if Colombia's Santos elected, says Chavez
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who for years has had tense relations with neighboring Colombia, warned Sunday of worse ties, and even possible military hostilities, if Bogota's ex-defense chief Juan Manuel Santos wins the presidency, AFP disclosed. A victory by Santos in the May 30 presidential election "could lead to war" in the region, said Chavez on his "Hello Mr. President" weekly television and radio broadcast.
"Santos as president -- that could lead to war in this part of the world," the firebrand leftist leader said speaking about the conservative candidate, a close political ally of current president Alvaro Uribe.
Now he's got money, he's feeling his oats. But soon the money will be spent, and because the oil is contracted to China, he won't be able to sell it elsewhere. Nationalizing something that belongs to China is not a wise choice.
#5
One of the things that baffled me about tyrants, historically, was their reluctance to pay their troops.
Usually, you can't pay what you don't have. One of the ways to address the problem was conquering and 'looting'. Not in good form these days.
However, it wasn't just tyrants. Parliament's failure to pay the army at what they thought was the end of the English Civil War simply ushered in Part II with Cromwell and the army in charge. It was iffy in the American Revolution as well, with the personality of Washington heading off Newburgh mutiny.
#6
Just another day in paradise (snark). Looks like China is owning a lot of folks these days. If you can't beat them, buy them out. Consider the pay raise a payoff to keep the military on his side; got to keep control and order and squelch free speech in this socialist paradise.
And let it happen before November so that America can see what happens. When the Euros get whacked hard in the new currency crisis, that's when responsible pols (likely conservatives but I'd be gratified if a few liberals joined in) can point out that we're but two steps or so behind.
Nothing like a little reality testing.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/26/2010 18:07 Comments ||
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#2
Yeah right Steve.
Like our political elite will allow that to happen.
BELGIUM'S King Albert II has accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Yves Leterme's Government, after a failed bid to resolve a row between Flemish and French speakers.
"The King has accepted the resignation of the Government," a short statement said, after finance minister Didier Reynders asked to be relieved of his three-day mission to patch up deep-seated linguistic differences.
Mr Leterme offered to quit for a third time as premier on Friday, but the Belgian monarch reserved his judgment in a desperate effort to bring feuding Dutch-speaking and francophone parties back into coalition following a walkout by Flemish hardliners.
With nearly all second round votes counted, conservative Fidesz had won 263 seats, above the 258 needed for the two-thirds majority, ousting the Socialists after eight years and securing a mandate to enact reforms and revive the economy.
"Revolution happened today in the polling booths," said Viktor Orban, the country's next prime minister. "Hungarian people today have ousted the regime of oligarchs who misused their power, and the people have established a new regime, the regime of national unity."
Fidesz was last in power between 1998 and 2002 and Mr Orban can now form the first non-coalition government with a two-thirds mandate in Hungary's 20-year post-communist history.
The newly formed far-Right Jobbik gained 47 seats, behind the ruling Socialist Party, who will have 59 deputies in the next parliament.
Fidesz, which led the governing coalition in 1998-2002, has pledged to reduce bloated national and local government payrolls, simplify the tax system, grant citizenship to ethnic Hungarians in neighboring countries and halve the number of parliamentary deputies.
Halve the number of parliamentary deputies? I s'pose that makes sense, given how many voters each American congressperson represents.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/26/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
One small step for reason and one giant step to repudiate Soros.
Excerpt: Moreover, the dome was teeming with undersea life. "It was essentially an oasis," he said, "almost like an artificial reef." Take THAT, Algore, etal....
#1
The researchers are not sure exactly why sea life has taken up residence around the asphalt domes ....
Nothing greens the grass up like a bit of seepage from a low-volume production line. Anyone who's observed that effect out on the back 40 could probably given the scientists a hand in understanding what's going on here.
BANGKOK -- Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Sunday that he continued to seek a peaceful solution to the country's tense political standoff but that he would not give in to what he called intimidation by antigovernment demonstrators.
In a televised address with his military commander, Gen. Anupong Paochinda, sitting beside him, he rejected a call by the protesters known as the red shirts for a dissolution of Parliament within 30 days, saying, "The ultimatum is just aimed at getting the attention of the foreign media."
In response, the red-shirt protesters said that they would hold their ground, deepening an impasse that has seen few public overtures toward a peaceful solution. The red shirts, many of them from poor rural areas outside the city, have occupied parts of Bangkok for more than six weeks. They have been calling on the government to step down immediately and hold a new election, a demand they softened Friday, saying that they would give Mr. Abhisit 30 days to make preparations.
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Posted by: Steve White ||
04/26/2010 00:00 ||
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"Is this Al Sharpton's secretary? Anyone seen Al? This would be a good one for him!"
"Sorry. No can do. He thinks he can get more publicity marching for illegals."
A white supremacist lawyer was stabbed and beaten to death by a black neighbour who had done yard work for him at his home in Pearl, Mississippi. Snicker. Looks like they took each other out. One in life, the other in death. Like Yin and Yang. The opposite sides of the coin. One can't exist without the other. Like black and white.
A preliminary post mortem showed Richard Barrett, 67, was stabbed multiple times in the neck and bashed in the head, Sheriff Ronnie Pennington said. The cause of death was the stab wounds. The "bashed in the head" stuff happened at birth.
He had burns over 35 per cent of his body, though investigators believe he was killed on Wednesday night and his house set on fire Thursday to cover up his death.
Pennington did not disclose a motive but said neighbour Vincent McGee, 22, was charged with murder on Thursday and deputies charged three other people in the case on Friday.
Albert Lewis, McGee's stepfather, was charged with being an accessory after the fact, while Vicky and Michael Dent, who live nearby, are charged with being accessories after the fact and arson.
Pennington did not describe their involvement but said all three were being held at the county jail. He did not know if they had attorneys.
Barrett traveled the country to promote anti-black and anti-immigrant views and founded a supremacist group called the Nationalist Movement. He had a knack for publicity but little real influence, one expert said. Anti-immigrant. Exactly the same as anti-illegal immigrant. Uh huh. I'm lapping it up without even knowing it. Got any on the bottom of your feet there for me?
'Richard Barrett was a guy who ran around the country essentially pulling off publicity stunts,' said Mark Potok, who monitors hate groups for the Alabama-based Southern Poverty Law Center. Yeah, like Evel Knievel. Only thing is other people end up dying, not Barrett.
'He really never amounted to any kind of leader in the white supremacist movement.' Yeah, he'd just pi$$ people off.
His body was found on Thursday morning after neighbours saw smoke coming from his house in a rural area of Jackson.
The sheriff said McGee had not yet hired a lawyer and the suspect's mother had no comment when she went to the jail where her son was being held.
McGee was released from state prison in February after serving five years of a six-year sentence for simple assault on a police officer and grand larceny.
Barrett, a New York City native and Vietnam War veteran, moved to Mississippi in 1966, just before he founded the Nationalist Movement.
He ran it from an office in the small rural town of Learned, about 20 miles southwest of Jackson, where he also ran a school for skinheads. "Use the Gillettes. They work best."
Barrett attracted about 50 supporters to a 2008 rally protesting the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in the Louisiana town of Jena, where six black teenagers were charged with beating a white classmate.
Years earlier, he sued over a ban on Confederate flags at University of Mississippi football games.
His modest, one-story brick home with white columns and shutters sits off a winding rural road. Yellow police tape was stretched across the yard and investigators worked on the scene late into the day. Now it's a modest zero-story pile of ash.
Residents described the neighborhood as quiet and safe. Henderson Craig, who lives a few houses down, said Barrett mainly kept to himself though he was often seen riding his bicycle. Don't worry. Now that McGee is back in jail, it's safe again.
In 1994, he spearheaded an unsuccessful movement to get then-Gov. Kirk Fordice to pardon Byron de la Beckwith, who was convicted of murdering Mississippi NAACP leader Medgar Evers in 1963. Nice. Get that idea from Fred Phelps, did you?
Evers' brother, Charles Evers, said Thursday he has long thought that Barrett didn't really believe the things he said, but used them to entice people to donate money to his cause. Looks like Barret forgot the cardinal rule for success in this line of business: Put the word "Reverend" in front of your name.
'I think it was just a way he had to live,' Evers said. 'He made a living talking all that racist talk.' Looks like Sharpton and Barrett may have been separated at birth.
2. Gorb, you said, "Anti-immigrant. Exactly the same as anti-illegal immigrant." Don't know about this particular case, but that's not always true. Ever read Mark Krikorian? He's the big kahauna at a think tank called "Center for Immigration Studies." At one time he was rather forcefully against all immigration, not just illegal--though he seems to have backed off from that position of late.
Posted by: Mike ||
04/26/2010 8:06 Comments ||
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#3
I don't think you can be the victim of a Hate Crime unless you are a member of a 'protected group'.
Much like the sexual harassment training I got at work pointed out that only persons of a 'protected group' can be harassed.
So, I guess, it is impossible for a white male protestant to be sexually harassed in the state of caliphornia. I would also assume that to be the victim of a 'hate crime' you would need to be a member of a 'protected group', and he clearly doesn't qualify. Dont bombard me with with comments about how it shouldn't matter what color he is, I agree 100%, it shouldn't. I'm just giving you some observations I've picked up in the wording of the law. It was made for a select group of people not for everyone's protection.
#4
Why is it that we know so much about the stabbie and so little about the stabber? What's the background of the person who stabbed him? What are his affiliations? Who does he hang around with? Was he in prison? Did he belong to a black muslim group?
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
