Brendan

Forced small talk about the weather and the bus covers up the uneasiness of the office dwellers more used to having work or alcohol there to lubricate their interaction. Reg examines his shoes and shifts uneasily. He catches Maureen?s eye, smiles and quickly looks away again, the familiar heat of embarrassment rising from under his cardigan and up his neck. They said that there would be food but Reg has packed some sandwiches just in case. He scratches in his bag intently, avoiding eye contact with anyone else. Egg and cress wrapped in wax paper. Long buried memories of hot summer field trips with school surface and suggest that his choice of filling may not have been the wisest.

Well can you think of any other individual who has a national day of celebration named after them?

I just see it as pointless. Why not raise money to put a stop to foreign companies and governments exploiting Africa. And then send a few men with guns around to the various corrupt despots that pass for leadership on the continent and tell them to run their fucking countries properly and provide their people with the services they need.

Fruit flies maybe Mockney http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3790531.stm

Snake! I know a girl who's tough but sweet She's so fine she can't be beat She's got everything that I desire Sets the summer sun on fire

Were there dates on the graves? Would be interesting to see if they are First or Second World War. My uncles fought in the South African infantry in the Second World War but they were mainly involved in North Africa and Italy. I think in the First War there were more commonwealth troops involved in France which may have meant that they were based in England and ended up being buried here.

Slippers, old ladies slippers that's it.

EDT? I was referring to under the tree with a few cans of Diamond White. If however you require a slightly more refined atmosphere there are loads of other pubs. The CPT is good as are the Gowlett, Plough and the Mag. But you know pubs are like marshmallows, white and pink and fluffy but gooey when you cook them. Or is that bunnies? I can never remember.

Goose Green.

Sounds quite entertaining actually.

Yeah, you tell 'em.

Oh Christ are we on to this again? Tell you what guys, I?m off to start a Science vs Religion thread. ;-)

Huey, when I said: ?Does a group of people who are from the same place, have the same culture beliefs and social structure, are vulnerable to the same things and are distinct from other groups in the world not have the right to self determination?? I was not talking about going back in history to what people feel they have some hereditary right to. On that basis according to my lineage I should demand the right to vote in Britain, Ireland, Belgium, South Africa and the Netherlands*. Likewise every Jew, Christian and Muslim on the planet should get a flat in Jerusalem. I was thinking more along the lines of a group of people who currently have significant enough common interest and mutual identification to see themselves as a distinct group or even a nation, regardless of whether they have had this historically or if it has developed over the last couple of generations. Is there space to allow them self determination in a globalised world? It is a question I often ask because I come from a country that is home to a number of different nations rather than being a nation in itself and I currently live in a country which does the same but in a very different way. *Whereas as it stands I can only vote in Britain, Ireland and now South Africa too apparently. Oh and Europe too. Which is admittedly all a bit bemusing.

Does the fact that he is a paedophile and gets away with it because he is rich not seriously bother anyone?

I liked the first one. Have recorded the second and will probably watch it Sunday. The Mash has this to say: http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/arts-%26-entertainment/fears-grow-that-red-riding-may-have-been-shit-200903101632/

Can?t imagine why there would be a need for this in an area with as many Indian restaurants as ED has.

Marmora Man Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Suggest that the discarded mantra of "Education, > Education, Education" is the best place to start > but really mean it and fund it this time - and > don't constrain it with meaningless ideology or > bureaucracy. Hallelujah, and relearn the fact the education isn?t all about the subject matter but about teaching the child to be a strong, questioning and robust individual. If they have that they can easily figure the rest out.

Good points Huguenot but let?s take your opening statement which is one of a personal belief rather than a factual situation. Does a group of people who are from the same place, have the same culture beliefs and social structure, are vulnerable to the same things and are distinct from other groups in the world not have the right to self determination? This is an important question globally considering the current tend towards globalisation. London being what it is may be a microcosm of what will happen globally in time. I don?t have an opinion personally but I think it is an important question to ask before you start having opinions. Sorry to veer of topic there MM. This has nothing to do with who I may or may not choose to vote for.

So if you had 2 genetically identical pairs of gerbils. You put 1 pair inside a vacuum cleaner and the other inside a film star?s bottom. How many generations will it take before they evolve into 2 distinct species?

Yes.

How many generations of gerbils will it take before they develop the ability to survive inside a vacuum cleaner?

Do not bother me with your petty concerns mortal.

That makes sense though Huguenot because evolution is an adaption to enviroment and culture can influence your environment.

Unlike Darwin?s original ideas on evolution it is not just random mutations that may or may not work out for the best. The current thought is that evolution is actually an adaptive trait, different organisms of the same species can evolve the same traits to cope with their environment without being directly related to each other. It can also happen at different rates depending on conditions. (I do have references for this and will dig them out when I get home this evening) Still 50 generations and 500 years aren?t long enough for anything significantly noticeable to have evolved genetically. (well as far as I know but I'm no expert) Now what would be interesting is if you had 2 sets of genetically identical individuals. Identical twins perhaps. 1 set male and the other female. You paired them off into 2 couples and dropped them in 2 completely different environments isolated from any other genetic interference. An artic tundra and a tropical archipelago perhaps. Then you observed their offspring and how over the generations they evolved differently to adapt to their environments. You could then measure how many generations it will take until they became 2 genetically distinct species. You would have to be immortal though and perhaps have 2 planets at your disposal for the experiment to work properly.

At any stage has any of A or Bs forefathers worked in a secret government laboratory and suffered a freak accident exposing them to radiation and/or toxic waste?