Sun Never Sets

Britain is just a small island off the coast of Europe. Most other nations are bigger than Britain. Britain has never really been integrated into Europe; they are partly in Europe and partly out of Europe.
In fact, the British Empire was a global rather than a European empire. This means that they have always traditionally looked beyond Europe, and did not really regard themselves as part of Europe. In fact, they were so small that other nations didn't take them seriously until it was too late and they had conquered the world.

Easy Virtue

We're all alone, no chaperone can get our number.
The world's aslumber, let's misbehave.
Timing is everything....

In Gold We Trust

It's a rather good pun in English.
There's a similar joke which goes:
"In God we trust. All others pay cash." ^_^

Gin War?

"The British wanted a way of financially exploiting the massive population of China. They chose opium to do so, because it is an addictive drug and could be manufactured in large quantities close
to the Chinese market. It was a product which created its own demand, and was therefore ideal for the purpose of exploiting the Chinese market for financial gain.
The social and moral consequences of creating many tens of millions
of drug addicts in China was irrelevant to them, of course. Like all good capitalists, the British held to the belief that "whatever makes money is moral; whatever loses money is immoral". If they didn't have opium to sell, they would have sold tobacco or alcohol or slaves, or something else. The British had excess capital from their industrialisation, which they needed to invest in new markets.
The Chinese market was just too big not to exploit - and opium was
the ideal product to use to exploit that market.
The Chinese nation was relatively backward and weak, so it could
not effectively resist that exploitation."

Racialism?

Mexico has some kind of comic book character for children which is black with red lips, a common representation of blacks in media.
In America that kind of representation is associated with minstrel,
a form of media meant to insult blacks in which whites put on black makeup and pretended to be black. In other countries (ie countries that don't have blacks) this kind of representation is innocent.
There are many traditional European toys which look similar,
such as golliwogs in Britain (which are now under attack in Britain
as being racist, since there are minorities in Britain now).
Mexico issued a commemorative postal stamp of this character,
and American blacks found out and complained.
Jesse Jackson went to Mexico specifically to complain to the Mexican President.

Battle Hymn of the Republic

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord:
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword:
His truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps,
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps:
His day is marching on.

I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel:
"As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal;
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,
Since God is marching on."

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment-seat:
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me:
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.

He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave,
He is Wisdom to the mighty, He is Succour to the brave,
So the world shall be His footstool, and the soul of Time His slave,
Our God is marching on.

Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Our God is marching on.

Public Service

Some offices have no salary. It depends on the position.
Elected officials in Dave's small town(Antigo, Wisconsin) earn no salary. Because they aren't professional politicians.
Most are employed in other jobs or retired. Other draw a salary,
and generally the more important the office the higher the salary. The President makes $400,000 a year (of course that doesn't include his benefits package, like a 747 to fly him anywhere he wants,
or living in the White House, etc.). As a rule of thumb any elected official at a reasonably high level can expect to earn far more money when he leaves office as a lobbyist.

"Brick"

Electronics are generally quite cheap.
The model of mp3 player I bought online costs about £20, which is about the average for a 2 Gb flash player. It looks quite stylish. ^_^

Podcasting

Overall we think Western European television news is good.
The BBC is the classic example, and both France and Germany
have similar English-language international news (France 24
and Deutsche Welle).

Congress

Well, you can call his office. Wether or not you'll speak to him is a different question. Dave's dad calls his Congressman all the time
to complain, but he never gets past the staffers. Then again, he is extremely mean and rude to people who work for the government.

Food For Thought

In the immortal words of Neil Armstrong,
that's one small step for McDonalds, one giant leap for China!

Insipid Commentary

CNN is considered "moderate", whereas Fox News is considered "conservative". Both are...relatively terrible.
There are some exceptions of course, Judge Napolitano's show
on Fox is good, and Lou Dobbs' show on CNN is decent.

Deconstructionist

Can I just feel bad enough to feel good?
Now I dont have a particular topic in mind.
I feel so bad I just feel so bad -- it is work-related.
I would write down how I feel and post it on PoFo.
It's kind of a self-therapy.

Hell is paved with good intentions

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153),
"Hell is full of good intentions or desires."

You should never be too impressed by people who with good manners,
They are the ones who will give a friendly wave,
even when they've stolen from you.

They are the type to sweetly welcome you,
Even as they try to uncover your secrets.

They are the kind to offer you coffee,
Even as they report you to the police.

And dont be too offended by someone who's openly rude,
Because they may be that way,
for the nicest of reasons.

Herz an Herz

The weight of these sad times we must obey;
Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.

Future Me

We have no way of knowing what lays ahead for us in the future.
All we can do is use the information at hand to make the best
decision possible. It's gonna be fine.
My whole life is gonna be fine.

Are you tired?

"I am awake
You are still sleeping
The sun will rise
Like yesterday..."
This is Vivian...Sigh...whatever...Does anyone ever feel like they're just...disappearing? I feel so much like giving up.

The Pursuit of Happyness

There is no "Y" in happiness, there is "I".
That's really a good film, I love it. It's rather too American for many people's taste, however. Even the title is a quote from the Declaration
of Independence.

Where the Wild Roses Grow

" The national flower of Scotland is the thistle, the national flower of Wales is the leek and the national flower of Ireland is the shamrock.
I dunno why England has the rose as its national flower, but there was a famous, long civil war in the Middle Ages called the 'Wars of the Roses'. It was so called because the two aristocratic families who fought each other were in control of the neighbouring counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire, and the emblem of Lancashire was the red rose and the emblem of Yorkshire was the white rose. Marx believed it was the effects of the Wars of the Roses which led England to become the first nation in the world to create industrial capitalism, because the aristocracy were largely wiped out during the civil war leaving their lesser relatives to inherit their titles and estates. There lesser relatives of the aristocratic families were already involved in commerce and industry, whereas the aristocracy itself had been hostile to commerce and regarded it as demeaning and beneath them. This is why the British aristocracy were ready to forma class alliance with the bourgeoisie in the 18th and 19th centuries, whereas in most other nations (such as France) the bourgeoisie fought and destroyed the aristocratic class. It's why we still have a monarchy and aristocracy now, whereas most other developed nations are democratic republics."

Defeat of the Spanish Armada

The UK didn't exist at that time. England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland were still completely separate countries which had not joined the United Kingdom yet; that only happened in 1707. It was only England which was at war with the Spanish Empire. As to why England won, let's just say that there was a lack of co-ordination between the Spanish army and navy, a reluctance on the part of the Spanish King to cancel the invasion when logistical problems started becoming serious, and the tactical superiority of the English Navy during the battle itself. It was a great turning point in European history - it marked the beginning of the decline of Spain and the rise of England (and later the UK).

Western Civilisation

The modern world is actually derived from ancient Rome and Greece far more than it is from the Medieval world.
There's a discontinuity in the cultural and social history of Europe during the Renaissance -- they consciously rejected the values of the Medieval period and attempted to return to the values of the ancient world. The modern Western society which the West spread across the world during the 19th century - was based on ancient Rome.

Musical Treasure

What a Glorious Feeling ! Singin' in the Rain is a very good film,
one of Gene Kelly's best. And the fake stage sets and makeup are
part of the charm of these old films.