nothing good. nothing fresh. i promise. since January 2001

ENGLISH: THE NEW WORLD LANGUAGE

good economist.com article on the triumph of English. "The real reason for the latterday triumph of English is the triumph of the English-speaking United States as a world power."
posted by Say It Loud at 12:30 PM

ICELAND TO USE HYDROGEN TO REPLACE FOSSIL FUELS

Virtually all of its electricity and heating already comes from hydroelectric power and the geo-thermal water reserves tapped from the hot rock layers lying just beneath the surface of Iceland. Now they are working on getting their fleet of trawlers converted to hydrogen power. Then comes buses/cars.

posted by Say It Loud at 12:26 PM

NICE! (from Vocabula Review)

"Of all the words in the English language, few have more varied careers than nice. Its meaning has altered more often than that of most other words, and it has always borne several different meanings simultaneously. It was once a verbal chameleon, whose instability might have threatened its survival; it is now much overworked and has sunk to the verbal equivalent of a food extender, or flavoring-101."

The fifteen principal definitions of 'nice' in the Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition:

1. foolish, stupid, senseless — 1290 to 1560

2. wanton, loose-mannered, lascivious — 1325 to 1606
(of dress) extravagant, flaunting — 1430 to 1540
very trim, elegant, or smart — 1483 to 1540

3. strange, rare, uncommon — 1430 to 1555

4. slothful, lazy, indolent — 1440 to 1604
effeminate, unmanly — 1573 to 1681
tender, delicate — 1562 to 1710
over-refined, luxurious — 1621 to 1720

5. coy, shy, affectedly modest — 1400 to 1634
reluctant, unwilling — 1560 to 1676

6. to make it nice to display reserve or reluctance; to make a scruple — 1530 to 1677

7. fastidious, dainty, difficult to please in matters of food or cleanliness; refined — 1551 to 1782
particular, precise, strict — 1584 to 1861
fastidious in matters of literary taste — 1628 to 1770
precise of strict in matters of reputation or conduct; punctilious, scrupulous, sensitive — 1647 to 1887
refined, cultured — 1603 to 1874

8. requiring or involving great precision, accuracy, or minuteness — 1513 to 1840

9. not obvious or readily apprehended; difficult to decide — 1513 to 1885
minute, subtle — 1561 to 1870
precise, exact, fine — 1710 to 1867

10. slender, thin — 1590 to 1604
unimportant, trivial — 1592 to 1601

11. critical, doubtful, full of danger or uncertainty — 1596 to 1682
delicate, needing tactful handling — 1617 to 1777

12. entering minutely into detail, attentive, close — 1589 to 1864
(of the senses) able to distinguish or discriminate in a high degree — 1586 to 1873
(of judgment) finely discriminative — 1597 to 1845
delicate or skilful in manipulation — 1711 to 1807

13. minutely or carefully accurate — 1599 to 1875

14. (of food) dainty, appetizing (especially of a cup of tea!) — 1712 to 1974

15. agreeable, a source of pleasure or satisfaction — 1796 to 1975


posted by Say It Loud at 2:25 PM

let the fun begin! Mavericks is open for contest season!

"On Saturday, dozens of riders assembled on a beach near cliffs at the north horn of Half Moon Bay. The gathering signaled opening the "window of opportunity" for the Quiksilver Men Who Ride Mountains contest.

"From now until March, contest director Jeff Clark (the break's legendary pioneer) will search buoy reports for suitable swells, select a contest date and provide 24-hour notice. That allows 22 invitees and 20 alternates time to grab their boards and reach this place where huge green walls loom from the sea, then explode in thunder and foam."
posted by Say It Loud at 12:20 PM

AND SINCE WE'RE AT WHATEVER DUDE....

might have already posted this... Mariah Carey's Unholy Shriek of Death... but it still brings tears to my eyes:

"She was so popular and talented that her first 1,100 singles went to number one. "Hero" and "Vision of Love" gave teenage girls across the country inspiration to be better people and something besides "Greatest Love of All" to sing at the talent show. At one point Mariah could've released an LP of her greatest greasy bathtub farts and it would've went platinum seven times.

"Then, at the height of her fame, she married her record producer, the head of Sony.

"And that's when it happened.

"Mariah realized that she was so rich, so powerful, so young that she didn't even NEED to sing quality songs. She released her "Butterfly" album and divorced her husband, some six-hundred years her senior. Off went the effort, off went the innocence, and off went all but half an inch of her clothes.

"In went half a million gallons of make-up, in went the hair dye, and in went the impossibly giant and floppy plastic chest."

posted by Say It Loud at 4:19 PM

WAR ON DRUGS: THOUGHTS FROM WHATEVER-DUDE

"Most arrive at that experimentation crossroad where you either head down the path that allows a vice to consume a life and motivate your every movement. Or you travel down the road were a drug of choice simply serves as a recreational tool to unwind, have a little fun and let a mind float through the clouds for a bit.

"Shouldn't that be a right living in a free society? Why does this country continue to obsess like a lovestruck teenager over personal choices and trivial matters such as buying a dime bag, or easing problems with a puff puff session in personal homes. Why do we harshly criminalize non-violent offenders who need assistance not prison cells, if it doesn't infringe on others' rights, and directly hurt anyone else? Why do only celebrities get the help they need, and chance after chance?"

more
posted by Say It Loud at 3:58 PM

BIN LADEN FEARED TO HAVE SEGWAY SCOOTER

"Picture Al Qaeda terrorists able to zip around cities on their dastardly errands at 12 miles an hour for only 5 cents a day. What a tremendous costs savings and convenience that would be for them," said Army Gen. Tommy Franks.
posted by Say It Loud at 2:54 PM

RIGHT BRILLIANT

letters from morrisey to a pen pal in the early 80s.
"No, no, no, you wouldn't want to go to Moscow. It's far too draughty . Big countries are. And you would be completely lost in Germany. Think of all the intellectual pressure? I'd rather imagine you in say, Majorca or Benidorm. And wouldn't the Australian bush be better than Glasgow? America is very like England - except, of course, for the language."
posted by Say It Loud at 12:15 PM