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The home page of Yahoo's E-mail features headlines from news services around the world. The one that led the Italian page was all about a girl calling her mother while a bear was eating her alive. What the Hell was the point of reporting that, let alone of placing it first? What do we learn from it? What good does it do? Where is the entertainment value, even? The only thing I know is that I can't get the idea out of my mind and that I am now really afraid that when I go to sleep in a few hours I'll dream about it. Thanks very much, Yahoo. Children use your e-mail in their millions, and they'll be reading this.

My older friends will have noticed that I have almost ceased to do my "You couldn't make it up dept." stories any more. The fact is that the sources seem to have dried up. I no longer seem to find stories in news sites that are merely silly, absurd, funny, or entertaining. I wonder whether it is only my impression that reporting seems to be becoming nastier and narrower.

I CAN RUN BUT I CAN'T HIDE

Date: 2011-08-24 01:06 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] joetexx.livejournal.com
I upgraded to paid Yahoo mail to avoid ads, forgetting that this would not spare me the far more offensive and timewasting news links.

Oodles of stuff I'd pay to not know. Kim Karfloofian finally nails down her jock boytoy. Leering spectres from misspent youth; my God, is Patti Smith still alive?

Today's international headline in re Libya: NATO REDEEMS ITSELF. Oh Yeah? 6 weeks ago they were just bombing to protect civilians, today, children let us dance in the streets because the wicked tyrant is fled; Oceania has always been at war with Eastasia.

"I can no longer look at the state media; I cannot read Pravda. It is crude, stupid, and full of lies."

Andrei Amalrik, 1976.

I can relate now, Andrei ol' buddy. How's Paradise workin' out? Intercede for this sinner, that I may drink new wine there when you have moved on to circles of the empyrean I shall never reach.

On a humbler level I have found I can read your LJ in my own style. How cool is that? Your words are much more restful against a blue background.

I also bummed a line from GKC as subtitle for my own LJ. Danke.

Browsing archives I see you have prepared Beef Aspic. Food entries always grab me, and aspic has always intimidated me.

I see you also list Nero Wolfe as an interest. I am an addict, must have read some of the novels and collections 20 times. You never post on him.






Re: I CAN RUN BUT I CAN'T HIDE

Date: 2011-08-24 03:10 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] fpb.livejournal.com
I am not quite as widely Wolfed as that, and what is worse the books are not in print in the UK, so I can only get them in used bookshops. But I do think highly of the stories and the writing.

You can't escape the Kardashians. They are like radioactive pollution, they spread without any apparent medium or reason. I haven't seen a single photogram of their program and I still know about them. However, they do have one redeeming purpose; they have wholly invalidated all the blonde jokes. From now on, you can no longer say "How do you make a blonde's eyes shine?" - it will be, "How do you make a Kardashian's eyes shine?" Their black hair and brown eyes seem designed by God to let all the poor blondes off the charge of having done a corner in mindlessness.

Date: 2011-08-24 02:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tigertrapped.livejournal.com
Today's headline on Yahoo is "Man's Face Bitten Off in Nightclub". The bottom of the barrel must be worn right through any time now, surely?

Date: 2011-08-24 03:12 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] fpb.livejournal.com
You'd think. But somehow, every time you've thunk that, they seem to manage to fall through to a lower barrel. The current editor is probably a fan of the Saw movies.

Newslink I AM tempted to click

Date: 2011-08-24 09:57 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] joetexx.livejournal.com
Rose McGowan reveals escape from cult

Star reveals scary childhood in Children of God


In adolescence and young adulthood I was a cultist magnet. Scientologists, Moonies, Children of God, Hare Krishnas and assorted politial wackos took one look at me and made a beeline to recruit me. They saw the moony, spiritually adrift, uncetain loser who was just born to spend 19 hours a day handing out flowers and leaflets for the Messiah.

They were half right. I was all of these things. But I also had a stuborn streak, and had already read Martin Gardner and knew about 5th Monarchy Men, the Isis cult in old Rome, Raslolnokoi, and the Millerite end of the worlders in 1844. So I smiled at the recruiters,
glanced at their literature, and made my way to the library - or the nearest bar.

Today there are 3rd generation COG and maybe 5th generation scientologists. Variuos studies have been made of these people; I'd like to see a reaally comprehensive one.

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