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Last updated on August 8th, 2017 at 05:05 pm
Latest Daily Telegraph column is here. Speaking of the Telegraph, I’ve now been working there for two weeks following a six-year absence.
First day, everyone from security guards to the CEO dropped by my desk to welcome me back. This was unexpected and very touching. It’s good to be home.
- Congratulations on your new job, Tim. I’ve heard that News Corp is a friendly workplace.Posted by Evil Pundit on 2006 12 01 at 11:36 AM • permalink
- #3: That’s some carbon footprint ya got there, Mark; sounds like the equivalent of a size 13 triple-E. Have you contemplated walking from Monroe to, say, Los Angeles in order to atone for your profane assault on Mother Gaia? BTW, is your wife’s recipe for chili available for general distribution? Sounds like some excellent stuff!
- from the column:
You remember Russia; they’re the guys who brought us such environmental triumphs as Chernobyl.
chernobyl is in ukraine. hrm, unless you meant “russia” metonymously for “soviet union”…
Posted by benson swears a lot on 2006 12 01 at 12:09 PM • permalink
- Hmmm.
What I find hilarious is the possibility that the emissions of greenhouse gasses is in fact staving off an incipient ice age.
Posted by memomachine on 2006 12 01 at 12:24 PM • permalink
- This is OT –
But a century ago, pieces of a strange mechanism with bronze gears and dials were recovered from an ancient shipwreck off the coast of Greece.
Historians of science concluded that this was an instrument that calculated and illustrated astronomical information, particularly phases of the Moon and planetary motions, in the second century B.C.They said their findings showed that the inscriptions related to lunar-solar motions, and the gears were a representation of the irregularities of the Moon’s orbital course, as theorized by the astronomer Hipparchos. They established the date of the mechanism at 150-100 B.C.
The Roman ship carrying the artifacts sank off the island of Antikythera about 65 B.C. Some evidence suggests it had sailed from Rhodes. The researchers said that Hipparchos, who lived on Rhodes, might have had a hand in designing the device.
Hipparchos. Hipparchos? Paco?
Paco! Where is my one-of-a-kind Sumerian bronze mead home brewing still you “borrowed” from my house while I was campaigning with the Swift Boaters against John Kerry in 2004? I want it back!
Posted by wronwright on 2006 12 01 at 01:18 PM • permalink
- My apologies Tim. I didn’t mean to ignore your post with my urgent message to paco. I also am very glad to see you welcomed back by your former employer. I hope they do whatever it takes to keep you. Even it is means ridding the grounds of ultra liberal columnists, providing you a company car, monthly bonuses, a generous expense account, and weekly foot massages by Margo who could probably use the work.
(please note that I posted my previous OT comment at this thread because I couldn’t post it with the more recent one since we hadn’t worked up to comment #10 yet, and I just know Andrea is watching waiting for that one chance to smack my somewhat sensitive behind with that paddle of hers, outlawed in most states of the USA)
Posted by wronwright on 2006 12 01 at 01:28 PM • permalink
- Paco! Where is my one-of-a-kind Sumerian bronze mead home brewing still . . .?
Heh. Well, you see, wronwright, Junior Johnson was over to the house and he was really ogling the thing and I kinda figured that, maybe, since my pa put him away in the pen for a while, I ought to do something to smooth out any lingering bad feelings, so I, uh, swapped the still for a little Ford racing car he had carved out of a bar of soap when he was in jail. But, but . . .I’m sure this is going to have a lotta collector value one day! It’s one-of-a kind, made personally by a NASCAR legend, and it’s even got his name carved on it . . . see that ‘X’, right there on the bottom of the gas tank? Ok, ok, it’s not his name, exactly, but that’s his mark, for sure.
- The other day I watched “Reefer Madness, The Musical.” A silly, camp re-tread of the infamous, fear-mongering and completely dishonest 1936 government propaganda film which hyped the dangers of “The Devil Weed” marijuana.
It got me thinking; how long till someone produces “An Inconvenient Truth, The Musical.” A silly, camp re-tread of the infamous, fear-mongering and completely dishonest 2006 Gorean propaganda film which hyped the dangers of “Global Warming”?
Bring on the dancing eco-babes!
- “Vanity” is right. Most everytime I read about some eco-nut trying to save the planet, the general attitude is, “Hey, lookit me! I’m being a good role model! I’m doing good for Mother Gaia™, I am!!!!!”
Sarah is a classic example. She’s hyping her walk well before setting forth. She’s going to document her journey, live, on the INTERNET. And no doubt she’ll arrive at the PM’s house, petition in hand, amidst a blaze of camera flashes.
It’s all about the environment, or so they say. Sure, Sarah. Sure. I might take Sarah and her ilk a leeeeeetlemore seriously if they weren’t so self-centered about their role in saving Mother Gaia™.
Seriously. The farmer who minimizes the use of pesticides and controls erosion on his/her farm, while economically producing food, does more for the environment in one growing season than Sarah will ever do on her silly walk.
Unless, of course, Sarah minimizes her “eco-footprint” during her journey by having no support vehicles and carries everything on her back (or uses a hand cart); forages for food and water (including buying along the way); and bathes only when she reaches the appropriate facilities (such as a stream, or borrow’s someone’s shower).
In short, she has to really “rough it” on her journey. Having done it myself on longterm backpack camping trips, I know it can be done…..if one is sufficiently motivated and dedicated.
Updating her blog during the journey would be difficult without some sort technological support, so I suppose this would be something to flex on. But not much; there are plenty of work arounds on that aspect.
But I really don’t believe that Sarah will do all that; all things considered, it’s very hard work. I could be wrong, and Sarah might surprise me. But I’m confident that we’ll see Sarah strolling down the road with an recreational vehicle not very far behind.
Posted by The_Real_JeffS on 2006 12 01 at 02:15 PM • permalink
- Benson-swears-a-lot said:
chernobyl is in ukraine.
True, but in 1986 Ukraine was still a satellite state of the USSR and being run from Moscow.
Congratulations Tim. May it be a long, happy a nd prosperous association.Posted by Sonetka’s Mom on 2006 12 01 at 02:17 PM • permalink
- paco, let me go a bit slower with this inquiry.
Why …
was my bronze mead making still …
the one that I went back to 3,000 BC Sumeria for …
which makes it a one of a kind artifact …
and extremely precious to me …
and yet brazenly stolen by you while yours truly was away from home spreading the good word for George Bush …
found in a Roman ship that sank off the island of Antikythera about 65 B.C. ?
—————————————————————————————————-
Junior Johnson my ass. I would just bet the poor man is getting testy by now having been made your personal skate goat for the shenangians of you and your multinational corporate conglomerate. Truth be known he probably wasn’t even responsible for running that moon shine. I bet your daddy was running that operation (this was NC, right?)and old JJ had to take one for the home team. Poor man. I think I will cry for him.Posted by wronwright on 2006 12 01 at 02:43 PM • permalink
- Why was my bronze mead making still … found in a Roman ship that sank off the island of Antikythera about 65 B.C. ?
It was like this. Junior got a gander at the Tardis, and said, “Hot Damn! I’d shore like to take that puppy out for a spin!” And he already had the still loaded up in a pack, so he took it on board, but when he made that 90-degree turn over that city with the unpronounceable name, the still fell out of the cargo bay (I continue to have a little trouble with that lock thingy) and it went right through the deck of tht Roman ship.
Naw, you’re all wrong about Old Paco; he’s an honest lawman. Why, everytime I mention your untaxed mead operation, I see him taking notes, and later he calls the ATF office in Washington. Which I’ve been meaning to tell you, but, what with one thing and another, it just slipped my mind. Excuse me, but isn’t that your doorbell ringing?
- Wronwright, not be be pedantic, but it’s scape goat not skate goat.
Errr, not that I know anything about goats. Nosiree, I don’t know nothin about no goats.
Posted by joe bagadonuts on 2006 12 01 at 03:37 PM • permalink
- Oh, enough with the Antikythera Mechanism already! Trust wronwright to use it for illicit distilling processes (and dare Paco to say that one three times real fast).
Truth is, Junior J confided to me that Sumerian mead was cutting into the moonshine trade, so a contract was put out to get rid of the competition. At the time wronwright was off somewhere doing some kind of p.r. for somebody named Busk… Rove… Bush… something like that, therefore unavailable, so they settled for the Mechanism instead. It’s supposed to still be sleeping with the fishes. Dodged a bullet that time, wron. Literally.
- #24 paco –
Naw, you’re all wrong about Old Paco; he’s an honest lawman. Why, everytime I mention your untaxed mead operation, I see him taking notes, and later he calls the ATF office in Washington.
There seems to be some confusion in translation. I use this mechanism to make Sumerian beads, not mead. Um, I guess you could say I’m getting in touch with my feminine side (which is a whole lot better than some guy in prison getting in touch with it).
(Let me just envision this for a minute. paco, Junior Johnson, and quite possibly Stoop Davy Dave. All in my Tardis. No wonder it’s been revving when I start it up. I sure hope they didn’t mess up the time line)
Posted by wronwright on 2006 12 01 at 04:38 PM • permalink
- #26 RebeccaH –
Truth is, Junior J confided to me that Sumerian mead was cutting into the moonshine trade, so a contract was put out to get rid of the competition.
How can it cut into the moonshine trade? I only use it to make Sumerian style mead for me. Just for me. Just like those kegs I clandestinely bring back from the store rooms of Sargon the Great. Just for me. Not for paco. Not for Michael Lonie. Sure as hell not for McEnroe or MarkL. And yet everytime I turn around, everyone seems to be sipping sun golden mead, the Sumerian style. How? How can this be?
Believe me, I’ve assigned this riddle to a PI, one with a fairly good reputation and a secretary with gams to die for. But after one week and thousands of dollars in fees and expenses, he’s given me nothing but promises that he’s close to finding the answer. He just needs a little more time to finish the keg, whatever hell that suppose to mean.
Posted by wronwright on 2006 12 01 at 04:48 PM • permalink
- First day, everyone from security guards to the CEO dropped by my desk to welcome me back.
How sweet! I don’t suppose they were still “continuing enquiries” about the disappearance of a certain CEO’s corporate Roller 6 years ago?
Posted by Stop Continental Drift! on 2006 12 01 at 04:57 PM • permalink
- #33. Nope. Though I too lament SDD’s absence.
Of course his not posting also means that I haven’t had to buy a keyboard or monitor in a while.
Posted by joe bagadonuts on 2006 12 01 at 06:13 PM • permalink
- Readers of my blog would have known about the Antikythera mechanism over a year ago.
But then, has the NYT bothered to correct many of the Furphies it printed about Iraq which have since been exploded as thoroughly as a Palestinian grandma?
As in Izvestia and Pravda, what is true is not news, and what is news is not true.
- I’ll start buying the Telegraph. You attracted a nice swarm of nitpickers there, Tim. Whilst trying to pick you up on a logic fallacy, they made one of their own: treating your argument as if it’s the main reason behind climate change skepticism.
Looks like you just have to keep bashing them over the head with the big facts, like comparing humanity’s entire CO2 output to that of nature’s, and the amount of total CO2 to total greenhouse gas (whilst pointing out the unproven speculations behind positive feedback/forcing values). But I guess there’s only so many times you can write the same stuff. Will they ever listen, ever challenge their force-fed dogma? The doubts over climate change are clear for anyone with half a brain and an ounce of education to analyse.
You see, even now I still get confused and think it’s all about science. Silly me. Time to pray.
- Cool. I think one of the guys who tests cars for the Tele lives next door to where I am here – I remember him saying something like that, and there is a constant stream of cars – everything from the Lotus Elise to that monster 2 tonne Bentley coupe, etc. Check it out, Tim – you might want that job instead. The guy lives in Pymble, and the wife works for the Australian, I think.Posted by Stuart Lord on 2006 12 01 at 06:45 PM • permalink
- The “problem” with pointing out the tiny effect on global greenhouse gases of our entire nation, is that it invites enviro-nuts to point out the undoubtedly large effect caused by their real hate object, i.e. The Great Satan.
Of course, anything that might provoke them into wackier, more extreme behaviour is probably a good thing!
- Tim, it looks like some newspapers in my part of the world need to send a delegation to Australia to see what you guys are doing right.Posted by Andrea Harris, Administrator on 2006 12 01 at 07:00 PM • permalink
- But rhinardman, one of them quoted Latin!
Ad captandum vulgus, I suppose, is their preferred method of communication.
Just reflecting on the title of Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth.” Doubt I’m the first, but was thinking: it’s that second word, “Inconvenient” which really bugs me. Because even if it were all true, the likes of Gore won’t be inconvenienced one iota, whilst for the common people, it’s an absolute disaster.
“I’m sorry, sir, but you have lung cancer. We can operate, removing a significant portion of lung tissue. You’ll need some chemo, which is wretched, and you’ll require supplemental oxygen for the rest of you life, which won’t be long as there is a good chance the bugger’s already spread and is resistant to all drugs. And if that doesn’t finish you off, the emphysema will. Sorry for the inconvenience.”
- Forget the security guards, if Blair keeps on with this enviro-sceptic thing, Rupert may be forced to release the hounds.Posted by Margos Maid on 2006 12 01 at 08:39 PM • permalink
- Tim, they were just inventorying the stuff on your desk in case anything goes missing from one of the other cubicles. Lambert warned them about you conservatives…Posted by richard mcenroe on 2006 12 01 at 09:19 PM • permalink
- Steve Milloy’s up to his usual interesting stuff. Love it when when the doomsayers over-predict within a limited time-frame. For their own good, they need to reign in the pessimism, or else some people might stop trusting them.
- Tim, why the heck didn’t the Telegraph commission a new photo of you, instead of dusting off that one from years back?
Sheesh…lazy buggers.
Posted by Quentin George on 2006 12 01 at 09:45 PM • permalink
- #52: Naw, Miranda cleans toilets at the United Nations. That puts her deep within the decision loop of the UN bureaucracy.Posted by The_Real_JeffS on 2006 12 02 at 01:31 AM • permalink
- page three girls, can you put in a good word for them?
Maybe Margo could do with the extra cash
AAAAAAHHHHHHHGGGGGGGHHHHHH!Gouges own eyes out….
Posted by Stop Continental Drift! on 2006 12 02 at 08:35 AM • permalink
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