*Bob*

If you must.. but you might as well just start your thread title with "spoiled middle-class Mums and Dads and their equally spoiled brats piss me right off and I wish there was somewhere I could go to get away from them". That way we could save everyone having to go through the motions.

Domitianus. We've had this thread before. James. We've heard that story before. My pet hate (well, er, one of them) is how all these oft-repeated bits and pieces (wheeled out in an 'I'm only arskin' a reeeasonable question aint I?' sort-of way are merely the first trickles of yet another 'spoilt middle classes' yawn-fest. Check-out the language in your post James.. I mean, really.. middle class / little darlings / beardy intellectuals / people carrier / yummy mummies and daddies

... aaaaand... EXHALE

Likkle puppy poo in grass Puppy owners: kick in ass.

Perhaps I can step-in and mediate at this difficult time.. sometimes people get a little hot under the collar, and it's often wise to count to ten, deep breath in.. deep breath out.. No.. doesn't seem to help. SE22 magazine is still sh*t. I hope this settles the matter to everyone's satisfaction.

Annasfield Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > You don't see white dog "excrement" (for DM) > anymore though do you? Wonder why that is...? I'm told (by dog poo experts) it's something to do with the ingredients of dog food which have changed over the years. These days even dog food has been 'Olivered'. They're obviously putting a higher quality of minced beaks, fins, hooves and giblets. GM-free and organic, no doubt.

'fashionable'?!

Many of the viewings we had before buying in ED were 'two hour slot' viewings. Mostly attended by pregnant women with a slightly panicky look in their eyes ("will it do..?"). The oddest thing was how untalkative everyone was with each other whilst viewing. Like it was a game of poker ("for God's sake, Jeremy, don't let them know we're interested.. play it COOL".

I'm always suspicious of overly new and shiny dental surgeries with all the latest gear. I prefer the ones which have obviously been around for 30 years with the same dentist at the helm. Strange that the word 'grotty' should crop-up. My last-but-one dentist was also recommended to me with the caveat that it was 'a bit grotty'. The work I had done there - including a gold crown much admired by every dentist since ("Hmmm.. nice bit of work.. where did you get that done?" ha ha) - was top drawer.

I think it was Professor Plum, in the library, with the candlestick.

More traffic-light reports after the weekend. Utterly ridiculous. Groups of puzzled-looking pedestrians standing for what seems like an eternity by their 'wait here' point just to get across a few feet of road that was perfectly safe to cross previously. Everyone is looking at each other on this and that side of the road with that 'wtf is going on?!' look. The most stupid thing about it is that when there were no lights, driver drove more carefully because yes, there were zebras there, but more likely because here was an uncontrolled junction which required a tiny amount of common-sense driving they didn't want a prang. Now there are lights. And as everyone knows, in London, Green means safe to go. Yellow also means safe to go. And red also means safe to go if you get get up against the bumper of the car in front fast enough. So even if you're a pedestrian waiting at crossing with very little car activity going-on, you don't want to cross in case someone comes hurtling down in a car, and seeing a yellow light, puts their foot down in order to beat it whilst forgetting to put their indicators on.

Surely there's no need for any questions about a Harvester? It does exactly what it says on the tin. However, since it's 2007 and not 1977, it's a tin which is well past its sell-by date and therefore ought not to be opened.

Just a minor aside.. My old history prof lived in East Berlin (before the demise of the wall, obviously). He had some interesting things to say about what East Berliners (the people, not the hot dogs) thought about the society forced upon them. He honestly felt that (for all its faults) there was a sense of 'fairness' amongst the common people, that he hasn't felt anywhere else since. He also missed the wall coming down cos he was in the pub and didn't believe it when someone came in to spread the news.

The UK press are going to go into overdrive between now and the evening press. I think the general gist is the the Portugese Police believe Mum had 'something to do with it' but not Dad, as of yet, based on (as of yet) partially revealed forensic evidence in the car they hired some weeks after the disappearance. Forensic evidence isn't foolproof though (ask the Guildford Four - though as my dear Mum would no doubt have said "if they didn't do it, they probably did something else")

Everybody is entitled to their opinions. Eg "I believe that the world is flat and that if I reach out my arms really, really far, I can touch the moon". But that doesn't stop them from being nonsense. If no-one challenged anyone on their opinions, all we'd have here would be a list of statements, and we might as well all just go home and forget the whole thing.

I don't think that's true, MadWorld. In reality, the really sad statistic is that the majority of children who come to harm would have been safer with strangers than they were with their own family.

I think everyone here can probably recall plenty of teary appeals on the tea-time news made by those who then went-on to be convicted. A lot of people will inevitably have that sinking feeling. But for now, a sinking feeling is all I'm prepared to admit to.

Phew! It's a good job we didn't tie Robert Murat to a stake and burn him after all then. About face, mob.. lead the way to the McCann residence! OR, we could wait for the possibility of any actual evidence or charges - against anyone.

Natural leaders say (and get) what they want - because they are natural leaders. Mrs T did it. Blair did it. With a million/half a million (depending on whether you're marching or policing) of the electorate out on the streets in protest, Blair still got his war. And that, people, like it or not, is a leader. DC can't even face down back-bench murmurings over a dwindling handful of Grammar Schools, for God's sake.

An EDF pub co-operative... Keef can be the pub sign, seeing as he's pretty-much there all the time anyway. Alan can source a piano (no more than ?60 though please, Alan), so that Louisa can have her old-fashioned sing-sings. I can use the piano at night for knocking-out.. er I mean.. carefully crafting my compositions. Mockney can be the official photographer. Madworld can do Reiki healing upstairs so we can save on travelling expenses (though 'the magic' will still be charged at ?50/hour, plus materials) Sean can mediate when a fight breaks out. The Admin can install peepholes in all the eyes of the paintings on the walls.

I wouldn't disagree that he tried to face-up to the militants - but he failed. Either you're electable or you're unelectable, just like DC. Just like IDS. Just like Hague. As Yoda wisely said: Do, or do not. There is no try.

I don't think there was any sort 'ensuing years of progress'. Labour were just waiting for a true leader to appear. Just as the Tories were before Mrs T arrived. British politics has always been rooted in true leaders. This is what really gets on my tits about the BUSH!-OUT! brigade. American politics has never been about true leaders. It's always been about finding someone electable and surrounding them with an army of advisors who make all the real decisions. Getting rid of Bush would be like taking the cherry of the top of an enormous sh*t-pie.

DC was making all the right moves when he first became leader. I was even a little worried. How he managed to flush it all down the pan in such show-stopping style, I'm not quite sure. Can you imagine Blair doing that? I think not. Therein lies the difference between a master at work and a risible no-hoper.

I'm in the same Gervais boat as Alan etc al. I charted his progress: those first faltering steps on the '11 O' Clock Show', where he was just appalling (contrast with Ali G's first appearances on the same show.. now somewhat ruined by ubiquity, obviously, but simply brilliant at the time). Then came 'The Office', which for some reason I didn't quite understand, everyone pissed their pants over. Apparently it was because 'I didn't work in an office' so therefore did not possess the faculty to grasp its brilliance. Which is b*llocks. It was innovative and watchable, but - call me old-fashioned here - I thought the essence of comedy was to be found in the laughter which it brings about. And the office isn't actually particularly funny. I've sat and watched it with die-hard fans. And they don't laugh much either. Just bang-on about 'how brilliant it is.. because that's just what it's like in and office' (ie a bit dull with infrequent laughs) I was then treated to some stand-up DVDs. The man has no stand-up ability whatsoever. He might as well be reading from notes. In fact, I think he may have been in one of them. If he'd have been an unknown up at a proper comedy club (and not in a room filled with his fawning fans) he wouldn't have lasted two minutes. I probably enjoyed 'Extras' more than anything else - mostly for the star appearances. But it is indeed a guilty pleasure. Once you've taken out the usual gamut of spastic, dwarf, race-related etc gags there is too much left apart from the novelty star turn. And I'm not getting all right-on. I think it's perfectly fine to make jokes about the disabled, dwarves etc.. it's just a very fine line as to how you go about it in order for it to be funny. And he's on the wrong side of it. Er.. anyway.. good luck with the tickets!

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