The creation of the US 'Patriot Act' and the later creation of the 'Departement of Homeland Security' (DoHS) has really paid off.
For starters the 'Patriot Act' enables companies like Dell to use it to extort information from people who call them, so that they can later use that information to spam you, and even sell the information to others who want to spam you. If you, upon calling Dell, refuse to give out your personal information they will not answere your questions or put you through to any departement. They will simply say "we have to get your information because of the patriot act". Read it all at Political Gateway.
As for the new departement who were going to crack down on terrorists and others who threatened the US, they seem to be stuck in a rut. One of their last targets was the Pufferbelly Toys shop outside Portland, Oregon - this according to Associated Press. It seems agents visited the store to demand removal of a toy called Magic Cube on ground it was an illegal copy of the good, old Rubiks Cube. The patent for Rubiks Cuba had, according to the manufacturer of Magic Cubes - based in Washington state - expired some time ago, and therefore anybody was free to make copies of it. The agents on the case was in fact from a sub-departement of the DoHS - the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency! A spokeswoman told AP that "One of the things that our agency's responsible for doing is protecting the integrity of the economy and our nation's financial systems and obviously trademark infringement does have significant economic implications."
Having successfully tossed out smokers from restaurant all over the US, people are now on the lookout for new groups to ostracize, as a member of Cigar Aficionados staff experienced at a New York restaurant.
So while in Norway they are hunting for suger and alcohol-users, in the states they seem to have opened the hunting season on foul language.
I've taken the liberty of posting the whole text below:
The man and his wife arrived about halfway through my meal at Craft, one of my favorite restaurants in New York City at the moment. I knew that I might be in trouble when they sat down, and he said in a boisterous way to my colleague from Wine Spectator and myself, "Are we in a good section?"
We answered: "Very good. I hope you enjoy your meal."
I was talking about matters to do with the magazine as well as getting caught up with American trends, from politics to sports. I had just arrived a couple of hours before from Rome. We had drunk a good amount of wine and the conversation was very jolly and buddyish, with the usual swear word thrown in for good measure.
About an hour later, I was signing the check for dinner. Just before we left the table, our dining neighbor cleared his throat and interrupted our conversation.
"You know, as one businessman to another," he said loudly, "you should really do something about your language."
"Excuse me?" I asked, looking perplexed at my colleague. I thought that I didn't hear him correctly.
"You should really cut your swearing," he said. "You said 'the f-word' 14 times since we have been here, and my wife and I are shocked by such language."
For a moment I thought that the guy was joking. I smiled, even laughed. But then I saw his face. He was not a happy diner. And, apparently, his wife was also suffering from some form of indigestion over my dinner conversation.
I felt sort of hot under the collar, thinking to myself that this was America, and the last I heard, the Constitution still included the First Amendment. I was just exercising my constitutional rights.
"Well. First I would like to tell you that I am not a businessman," I said. "And second, it is rude to eavesdrop on someone's conversation."
When I began thinking about it, the couple hadn't spoken the entire time we were next to their table. They has been listening to our conversation instead.
He answered, "You're not businessmen? Then if you worked for me, I would fire you for using such language."
I thought we might be speaking different languages for a moment, but I proceeded to tell him that it would be very doubtful that I would work for him, and that I didn't see anything wrong with the conversation I had had with my friend. It wasn't as if I was screaming the word "f-word" or any other sexual-oriented verb around the restaurant. The staff and manager at Craft hadn't been to our table to ask us to hold it down. They, in fact, couldn't have been any friendlier.
I decided to waste some sarcasm on my new surrogate mother. "I do apologize for swearing and I hope that I didn't ruin your meal by using the f-word so often. This is an excellent restaurant and it would be a shame that you didn't enjoy it due to my terrible language."
He seemed even more pissed off. And he told me that I had not ruined his dinner and that he and his wife had enjoyed the restaurant very much.
With that, I got up and told him that there was no use in carrying on this conversation. "Sorry again for my language," I said. "I hope you enjoy your meal."
It's funny. The experience reminds me of numerous occasions a few years back when I would light up a cigar in restaurants in the United States a few years back. I would nearly always end up apologizing to someone for my smoking. I even once apologized for having an unlit cigar in my mouth in a restaurant.
In any case, I guess some restaurants are soon going to need to have "swearing" and "non-swearing" sections. Furthermore, I probably should cut back on my swearing and I should be more careful with my conversation in restaurants from now on.
Just two days left 'till the first ever Oslo Whisky Festival.
Can't wait to go.
Mmmm... Whisky!
120 whiskies to sample, and only two days in which to sample them...
Martin, your result is Young’s Special Ale!
Cheers! You’re the cult classic Young’s Special Ale – the mature resident of the Wandsworth area of London. You have the sort of balance that good breeding provides and your imbibed knowledge makes you both intelligent and insightful. You are the brew everyone wants on their pub quiz team, but you must remember that not everyone is enthralled by the fine details you can regurgitate at will. If you can learn to give other people some elbow space at the bar you will go far; at least as far as the next pub anyway, assuming you haven’t over indulged in yourself. Your 4.6% alcohol content may take its toll. With your knowledge and breeding there is a danger that people may find you arrogant and distant. You need to involve yourself with all levels of society from that delightful barmaid who might top up your glass for free to the glamorous lady Mayor who might buy you a pint in return for your intellectual assistance.
Take the test at Tickle (you must register before they give you your result, but fake a name, email and such works out just fine - Via).
So I didn't get the job as was at an interview for a couple of weeks ago. But on the other hand I'm off to a new one this friday.
Hadn't noticed the ad before yesterday since it's based in another town than the one we're moving to, but it's only about half an hours drive or so. This one is for the new tax-free operator at the Norwegian airports, Travel Retail Norway. I filled out an online form (they're using Manpower as recruiters) and registred my CV. Then I had to do an online test (verbal and numerical) which went quite allright (20/25 on verbal and 30/30 on numerical).
About three hours after I'd completed this test, I got a call for them - wanting me for an interview. Originally thay wanted me for this wednesday, but since Robin and I are off to Denmark on Wednesday this wasnæt all that good. So we agreed on friday instead. So I'm off for another busride on the midnight-express.
Finally we've gotten around to putting doen the floor. About an hours worth of not too hard work, and we where done.
Too bad I sort of twisted my ankle again in the process - and it still wasn't 100% from when I twisted it during the dance at the British Ambassadeur's. Damn.
Ah well, nothing to do about it, just lay down and take it easy.
London authorities are threatening to remove all Routmaster (doble-deckers) buses from traffic. A campaign to save them has been started at the SaveTheRouteMaster-website. There's a online-petition for you to sign at Petition Online.
Yours truly was signature number 8700.
Got this one off the Freedom & Whisky -blog.
Accroding to a story in The Daily Record it seem's that political correctness has gone mad in Glasgow's Mitchell Library.
Getting coffee without the traditional milk in it is quite a feat a times in Britain, you must express your desire with clear words otherwise you get it with a splash of milk - something which isn't that pleasurable for those of us who drink it pure.
Now it's getting worse. A customer at the coffee shop at the formentioned Mitchell Librarytried to order 'Black Coffee, Please' and was refused service on the grounds it was a racist prase. The correct term was 'Coffee without milk'.
To the Mitchell Library Coffee Shop - what's the correct term for white or brown sugar?
Nothing much happened this weekend, only a bit of dancing.
Friday night was the 35th Aniversary Ball at the British Ambassadeur's Residence. A grand affair, with food, drink (Glenfiddich, Highland Park and Laphroaig) anddancing. Which of course more or less ended with me twisting my ankle and therefore had to sit out the last few dances.
My ankle was also the reason for me not dancing at all at the OSCDG Ceilidh on Saturday. The only time earlier in the day I put weigth on it was while making pizza (both for lunch and the pot-luck dinner at the Ceilidh), the rest of the day was spent on the couch with my leg up. The evening was great fun - even though I couldn't dance a step. But we scored on the raffle and went home with a bottle of dry Sherry and a box of chocolates - we had donated a bottle of Drambiue I bought two years ago on the Lerwick-Bergen ferry (glad to be rid of it).
Sunday was a true lazy Sunday morning, midday, afternoon and evening. Nothing at all happened - splendid.
It seems like there's a must for celebrities to be absolutely out of their minds.
Well duh! Some might say - of course they're crazy, it's the only way to succeed in this mad world.
The latest proof comes from a survey in Britain by Sky Digital, where 1000 brits have voted for the strangest and weirdest names celebs give their children.
(ps. reading the list might reduce your respect for humanity)
The top-20 list is as follows:
1. Moon Unit (Frank and Gail Zappa)
2. Fifi Trixibelle (Paula Yates and Bob Geldof)
3. Satchel (Mia Farrow and Woody Allen)
4. Apple (Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin)
5. Daisy Boo (Julia and Jamie Oliver)
6. Rumer (Demi Moore and Bruce Willis)
7. Peaches (Paula Yates and Bob Geldof)
8. River (Arlyn and John Phoenix)
9. Rocco (Madonna and Guy Ritchie)
10. Nell Marmalade (Helen Baxendale and David Eliot)
11. Maddox (adopted by Angelina Jolie)
12. Tiger Lily Heavenly Hirani (Paula Yates and Michael Hutchence)
13. Dweezil (Frank/Gail Zappa)
14. Brooklyn (Victoria/David Beckham)
15. Eugenie (Sarah Ferguson/Prince Andrew)
16. Zowie (Angie and David Bowie)
17. Rolan (Gloria Jones and Marc Bolan)
18. Phoenix Chi (Mel C and Jimmy Gulzar)
19. Coco (Courtney Cox and David Arquette)
20. Romeo (Victoria and David Beckham)
Tonight's the night.
The OSCDG's 35th Anniversary Ball at the British Ambassadeur's Residence.
Time to dress up and get hold of some of that etiquette I've been hearing so much about.
According to this report in the Norwegian daily Adresseavisen, monday was an historic day in Chicago, USA.
Last year Chicago was the most violent city in the USA with 600 murders and 3000 serious violent offences.
But on monday the statistics was as follows:
Murders: 0
Stabbings: 0
Shootings: 0
The chief of police is not optimistic when it comes to keeping up this record... strangely enough.
Finally the US have started coming clean. In a CIA-report it's established at Iraq did not have any weapons of mass destruction (WMD) nor had they any programs to produce or procure such weapons. Isn't this what the UN-group clamied before the US went to war?
Two years ago (hopefully) soon-to-be-ex president Bush said that Iraq "possesses and produces chemical and biological weapons" and "is seeking nuclear weapons." This has now finally been denied also by US sources (the rest of the world have sort of known about it for some time now).
So why the blipping h**l is Bush still in office? They wanted to almost courtmartial a guy who's only crime was to lie about a sexual affair - while a guy who lures the country to go to a bloody war is a friggin' hero?
And he's got the nerve to go out and say that John Kerry isn't fit to lead the 'free world' in wartime. Well if you'd been truthful from the start Bushy, there wouldn't have been a war, would it? I'm probably going to be banned from the US for life for writing this, but can somebody please put Bush jr. back in to the mental institution from whence he came?
Last dancing season (read: just before the summer break) I was invited to join the advanced class of Oslo Scottish Country Dance Group. Nothing much invovled except a few extra dance-evenings.
While in Scotland I got a call requestion my precense at a demo-dance, which I could not attend due to the fact I wasn't in the country at the time. Now I'm invited again, and this time I'm available. It's 15 minute danceexhibition at the British Embassy for tourismofficials (BTC or something, I think).
Looking forward to it.
