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20thCenturyBoy
Thousand Master
Tachi said:Morning all,
Got up and went to the gym to get pumped and fully awake for the rest of the day
Got to work only 5mins late and very happy about only having to endure another 2 days of work before i can escape to tunisian beaches with a few cocktails and beers ^___^
There's nothing better than counting down the days until you go on holiday. Tunisia's great too, where exactly are you going? Souse? Hammamet?
ayase
State Alchemist
While I totally agree with Ecuador's decision and think it throws a rather satisfying (if temporary) spanner into the obvious machinations of the US and UK governments, you can't really expect them to just go "Oh fine, he released a load of classified information to the public that we'd rather have kept quiet, let him off the hook". They're bound to be mad as hell. Makes sense for him to just live in the Ecuadorian embassy now from what I understand, as if he even goes outside he can still be arrested and deported.Mutsumi said:
ayase
State Alchemist
He's the Wikileaks dude Tachi. They're trying to extradite him to Sweden on one of those "well it was consensual at the time but after the fact I decided it was rape" cases (which seem to be becoming worryingly common). All very dodgy.
It's nice enough out today that I don't need to go to Tunisia... wouldn't say no of course. Hope you have a good time!
And good luck with the interview Black. Sent off five applications myself in the last two weeks and have received nothing but rejections ("after careful consideration" say two e-mails from an address which starts with "autoreply@") ¬_¬
It's nice enough out today that I don't need to go to Tunisia... wouldn't say no of course. Hope you have a good time!
And good luck with the interview Black. Sent off five applications myself in the last two weeks and have received nothing but rejections ("after careful consideration" say two e-mails from an address which starts with "autoreply@") ¬_¬
Tachi
Mushi-shi
Wow that fills you with confidence in not only the justice system but also the job application system.
Many thanks, i'm sure i'll cancel the cancellation of leave and just enjoy the sun instead... if i wasn't so damn broke right now i'd be out repairing more of my car prior to the MOT test i have immediately as i come back to england.
Many thanks, i'm sure i'll cancel the cancellation of leave and just enjoy the sun instead... if i wasn't so damn broke right now i'd be out repairing more of my car prior to the MOT test i have immediately as i come back to england.
Joshawott said:
And no one thinks the world will end this year
**Before anyone says it, I know the mayan calendar stuff is bogus, and that it says no where that the world will end as it's just their calendar stuff ending
Also thanks guys
I'll let you know how the interview goes, had a friend go through a mock interview with me so I know what not to say
Tachi
Mushi-shi
What do your hobbies include?
"anime"
Your hired!
If only eh
Working my backside off again, i swear i've had 3 days in work and so far i feel like i've worked 3 weeks in those 3 days, completely mental.
Atleast when i get to 6pm tonight i'm going and not having to worry too much - monday i'll help them with the report in my absence then its no worries for 2 weeks ^____^
"anime"
Your hired!
If only eh
Working my backside off again, i swear i've had 3 days in work and so far i feel like i've worked 3 weeks in those 3 days, completely mental.
Atleast when i get to 6pm tonight i'm going and not having to worry too much - monday i'll help them with the report in my absence then its no worries for 2 weeks ^____^
Tachi said:What do your hobbies include?
"anime"
Your hired!
If only eh
Working my backside off again, i swear i've had 3 days in work and so far i feel like i've worked 3 weeks in those 3 days, completely mental.
Atleast when i get to 6pm tonight i'm going and not having to worry too much - monday i'll help them with the report in my absence then its no worries for 2 weeks ^____^
Hah, maybe in an alternate universe where card games meant big business
ilmaestro
State Alchemist
The posters discussion is pretty relevant to my current interests. I just bought three or four new ones, so am going to tear down and potentially throw out the stuff I currently have up, with one or two exceptions. Anyone else do this from time to time? edit: lol, apparently I missed the very first post in that discussion, which mentioned the exact same thing. Blame the default number of posts per page, not me.
Here's the thing though - that 3% might actually be way less than 3%. It might only be 0.3%. But if it's a 0.3% that you absolutely can't reach that level without, then the importance can never be overstated. Imagine if someone else did have the same "dedication, mental capacity, time or funding" as Bolt (in fact, this is surely an easier position to defend than the reverse) - would they then be as good as him? This is the far more unlikely part.vashdaman said:
As for this, you obviously don't hang out in the same circles as I do. Most of our conversations during the last couple of weeks involved something along the lines "which upper class white guy sports did we win medals in today, then?", whereas the real hype for me - and most other people, judging from what little media coverage I caught while I was out of the country - was Mo winning his two medals (well, Jessica Ennis too, but she has those abs).vashdaman said:
Feels pretty strange to see you defending the slick rich guy accused of rape, it really does seem like a lot of people have let their "USA sucks" gland secrete enough of the good stuff to pick a pretty weird champion to rally around.ayase said:
ayase
State Alchemist
Innocent until proven guilty, by a justice system with sane laws (and after reading the details of these allegations* it's fairly obvious that's not Sweden's). Besides... the powers that be are obviously out to get him in whatever way they can, aren't they? If this was any other foreign national taking refuge in an embassy over a possible, not even particularly serious sex offence do you think the government would be threatening to storm the embassy?ilmaestro said:
And since when did I hate the USA (or slick rich people for that matter)? Far from it. I hate cover-ups, cronyism and people's leaders lying to them and that goes for the entire world. Wikileaks, Assange and Bradley Manning have sought to expose these things and for that they have my support. Transparency is key to keeping people honest - We should be able to look at our leaders through a pane of glass, not have them look at us through a two-way mirror.
*So you did consent to have sex with him, but not without a condom, but you didn't actually refuse to have sex with him without a condom, and in fact you did have sex with him without a condom, but then decided a week later that it was rape? No, you know what, on behalf of everyone who doesn't want to be terrified of ever having casual sex again without having to get a signed and witnessed statement of "I consent to sex with the afore named party" or run the risk of being branded a sex offender, F*CK RIGHT OFF.
ilmaestro
State Alchemist
I didn't actually say you did, the latter was a vague assumption I would have made if I had been guessing your opinion (but obviously not one I would hold to if you say otherwise) the former was a comment about a lot of other people's opinion I've read, but I can see how it reads like I'm making a related statement about you, I should have probably put it in another paragraph but I think it could still have been misconstrued.ayase said:
I don't presume to have the full details of any aspect of this case any more than you do (or, rather, any more that I presume you to - you seem to presume a fair command of them from a cursory reading of your comments
) so yes - innocent until proven guilty... so why are you so against him facing the authorities so we can watch as they fail to prove his guilt?
ayase
State Alchemist
I see how I went a little overboard there, my apologies. Anyway, let's put that one to bed then. I've nothing against wealth or power if they're acquired fairly and used responsibly (well, the power at least, I wouldn't begrudge people frittering away their wealth however they see fit). I do have a problem with people whose wealth or power is obtained or perpetuated fraudulently or unfairly. Politicians who lie in order to win elections (or to their people when in power in order to get laws passed) and private businesspeople whose loss-making businesses are propped up by the state while they continue to draw huge pay-checks, for example. Those are opinions I imagine you've heard me express before.ilmaestro said:
I did read up on the allegations against him in some detail, mainly because being pro-Wikileaks beforehand I wanted to make sure I wasn't going to be defending a rapist. I'm led to believe from what I've read that I'm not, and if I thought otherwise I wouldn't be defending him. I think what most people are noticing (and wary of) is a distinct overzealousness on the part of the British and Swedish authorities to apprehend Assange which goes way above and beyond what is usual in similar circumstances. Are the Swedish authorities really this bothered about a guy disagreeing with two girls over using a condom? Are ours really ready to storm Ecuador's embassy for that? Maybe they are. But I sincerely doubt it.ilmaestro said:I don't presume to have the full details of any aspect of this case any more than you do (or, rather, any more that I presume you to - you seem to presume a fair command of them from a cursory reading of your comments
ilmaestro
State Alchemist
I think it's a little selective to doubt the sincerity of the political front being put up by Britain and Sweden, and yet support Ecuador's position in all of this (not to mention the potential political motivation dripping behind WikiLeaks). Leaving aside the whole discussion of whether it's OK to have unprotected sex with someone who isn't agreeing to such, which is a little too, uh, sticky a proposition for me to comment on on the basis of reading second and third hand retellings of the acts in question.
Vashdaman
Za Warudo
Don't plan to break up the current wikileaks convo, but if I may just clear up my position on the whole "genetics" thing.
As I said, that percentage is essential, but it can be overstated and the all the other hard work that goes in can be understated. Instead of running a short feature on "This is how Bolt and his peers can run so fast: slave genetics" just before the 100 meters final, I think it would have been far better for BBC to have a short feature on "the incredible amount of dedication and hard work it takes for these guys to run so fast".
And the point is that I believe there are white guys out there with that same 3% (or 0.3, or whatever percent) that bolt has. They just don't have the other 97%. It's no fluke that a small island like Jamaica which places such a big focus on sprinting produces great sprinters, and it's not to do with special genetics either.
But were you discussing why "upper class white guys had the advantage of genetical superiority in those sports"?
As I said, that percentage is essential, but it can be overstated and the all the other hard work that goes in can be understated. Instead of running a short feature on "This is how Bolt and his peers can run so fast: slave genetics" just before the 100 meters final, I think it would have been far better for BBC to have a short feature on "the incredible amount of dedication and hard work it takes for these guys to run so fast".
And the point is that I believe there are white guys out there with that same 3% (or 0.3, or whatever percent) that bolt has. They just don't have the other 97%. It's no fluke that a small island like Jamaica which places such a big focus on sprinting produces great sprinters, and it's not to do with special genetics either.
But were you discussing why "upper class white guys had the advantage of genetical superiority in those sports"?
ayase
State Alchemist
Oh vash, and there was me thinking you might have an opinion on the Assange situation.
I don't really want to discriminate between countries and perhaps some of my words have indicated otherwise, which was a mistake. It isn't "the British/Swedish/Ecuadorian/US governments" who I'm siding with or against. It is certain people in those governments whose agenda is opposed to or aligned with my own, either on an ideological level or temporarily. I haven't claimed to be unbiased in the political side of this case - I think what Wikileaks does is in the public interest and I want to see it continue, under whatever guise. As a point of principle, I don't agree with the state keeping information from its people. Ever. A lot of people might say that's dangerous, I don't really care. I'm with Ben Franklin on the idea that you don't trade freedom for security and that is a line that runs through all my beliefs about how we should be governed: I'd rather live in a free, dangerous world than a safe, oppressive one. The usual response I get to that is "would you really though" and can tell you that I have spent plenty of time coming to that conclusion and yes, I really would.
As for sex offence laws I always think "could people of any gender argue this point in court?" and I don't think a man could ever accuse a woman of sexually assaulting him by refusing to use a condom during sex, if he did actually consent to have sex with her. It would never make it anywhere near a courtroom. "I didn't really want to, but actually I did anyway" is a very different argument to "I didn't want to, and I tried to resist and they forced sex acts upon me". One is someone consenting to sex (albeit with misgivings, but they have to take responsibility for making the final decision in the positive) and the other is rape. I do honestly think the law has gotten insane enough that there's a market for those "consent to sex acts" contracts. I might start producing and selling them. Might generate some fun controversy.
I don't really want to discriminate between countries and perhaps some of my words have indicated otherwise, which was a mistake. It isn't "the British/Swedish/Ecuadorian/US governments" who I'm siding with or against. It is certain people in those governments whose agenda is opposed to or aligned with my own, either on an ideological level or temporarily. I haven't claimed to be unbiased in the political side of this case - I think what Wikileaks does is in the public interest and I want to see it continue, under whatever guise. As a point of principle, I don't agree with the state keeping information from its people. Ever. A lot of people might say that's dangerous, I don't really care. I'm with Ben Franklin on the idea that you don't trade freedom for security and that is a line that runs through all my beliefs about how we should be governed: I'd rather live in a free, dangerous world than a safe, oppressive one. The usual response I get to that is "would you really though" and can tell you that I have spent plenty of time coming to that conclusion and yes, I really would.
As for sex offence laws I always think "could people of any gender argue this point in court?" and I don't think a man could ever accuse a woman of sexually assaulting him by refusing to use a condom during sex, if he did actually consent to have sex with her. It would never make it anywhere near a courtroom. "I didn't really want to, but actually I did anyway" is a very different argument to "I didn't want to, and I tried to resist and they forced sex acts upon me". One is someone consenting to sex (albeit with misgivings, but they have to take responsibility for making the final decision in the positive) and the other is rape. I do honestly think the law has gotten insane enough that there's a market for those "consent to sex acts" contracts. I might start producing and selling them. Might generate some fun controversy.
ilmaestro
State Alchemist
Well, yes, but you don't believe in the fossil record, so you'll forgive my somewhat light treatment of the importance you clearly place on things such as "evidence" to back up these things.vashdaman said:
You miss the point. It's an advantage inherent to some people's upbringing. It's only small, it's not what makes them a good rower or sailor, and they still need to put in the other 99.7%, but boy does it sure a) help and b) stand up to discussion.
Interestingly, I can think of at least one specific other sporting instance where people have, unwisely, suggested that white people have a natural genetic advantage - but this has never been taken in the equivalent "you hate white people and don't want to give them their due" way that suggesting that Usain Bolt might have a pretty good genetic makeup for running is.