I heard the news today, oh boy..

[HonaloochieB]

Last evening the 'phone went and a woman asked for 'Baz', as that's a nickname of mine I confirmed I was he.

The caller seemed a little confused and said she had the wrong number, I thought the voice sounded familiar and asked her name. "Michelle" she replied. As in Michelle OBAMA.

We laughed at the coincidence and fell into conversation, for at least twenty minutes.

I recommended where she could get Ben Sherman shirts for Barack and gave her some rhyming slang to liven up the those dull official functions and also my idea for she and Sigourney Weaver to perform a thrash metal duet of Ebony And Ivory.

Anyway she was charm itself, but if you see Gordon don't tell him, he doesn't need his chips pissed on any more.

[mockney piers]

Interesting question Santerme. I think Roosevelt had been manoevering that way since '39 but without Germany's declaration it would have been a much harder sell.

Sympathy with Germany was wider than that for Britain despite the best efforts of Greer Garson, but Roosevelt was well aware that betterthw devil you know and was determined not to allow Europe to be the property of Nazi Germany.

One of the great tragedies was his death, I think the whole cold war could have been avoided (I'm not saying the US and USSR would have been pals or anything) if Truman hadn't come to power with little knowledge of the wider world and happy to listen to a bunch of advisers equally out of their depth interpret everything through a bipolar lens.

[????]

All speculation of course mockney but my understanding was that a mixture of his (Roosevelt) illness but also a bit of being hoodwinked by Uncle Jo meant that that wouldn't have necessarily have happened...by the last big conference of the war (Yalta?), Churchill was pushing for a tougher stance against Stalin in the "what we do after it's over 'suggestions'" than Roosevelt but by then GB was playing third fiddle

[Brendan]

Still the point holds true that if America hadn?t intervened Europe would very likely have ended up property of Soviet Russia rather than Nazi Germany.

[bigbadwolf]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/staffordshire/8272058.stm

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Dear, dear, Mrs. Miniver!

[Santerme]

Peckhamgatecrasher Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Dear, dear, Mrs. Miniver!

And she married(?) the person who played her son in the film.

Loved her in Goodbye Mr Chips though!

[mockney piers]

All what ifs are speculatio. Quids but I think this ones fairly robust in terms of historical analysis.

Yalta was the penultimate summit (a term coined by Churchill I believe) and Roosevelt's last.

Potsdam was the last one set amidst the destruction of war. It was where Truman was informed of the success of the Manhatten Project but uncle Joe knew all about it anyway 'use it we'll I think he said.

I think the cold war more or less kicked off in '47 as Truman was never able or willing to understand the complexities and a them and us interpretation was much easierto understand than the panoply of grievances, complex internal politics of countries, not to mention the legacy grievances and unfinished businesses of various occupations/resistances/cooperations and collaboratons that fed the many crises and conflicts across Europe, Asia, North Africa and the middle east that were burgeoning everywhere. Communist aggression was so much easier to understand.

For us or against us, sound familiar. clever people rarely achieve a great deal as they try to negotiatethere way through difficult roads. It's always the simple guys looking for simple solutions that look like they're progressing more but actually causing more trouble than they can predict. I refer as much to Blair as to Bush. Both intelligent blokes by all accounts, one trusted his advisers, like Truman, the other trusted his own instincts and principal while famously knowing very little about history.

Anyway I blather, this story is much more entertaining

http://news.BBC.co.uk/1/hi/England/Dorset/8272799.STM

[silverfox]

...'drunk on swine flu gel'

"...In March, Royal Bournemouth Hospital said it was one of many hospitals removing alcohol-based hand cleaning gel from reception areas in a bid to stop visitors drinking it..."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/dorset/8272799.stm

[bigbadwolf]

I saw that as well SF. The lengths some people/inmates will go to eh. Sounds disgusting. A bit like if Quid's and Mick Mac were doing stir and gambled on who could toss themselves off the fastest.

[Huguenot]

Jedis miss special offers - OFFICIAL

[Brendan]

It's bloody PC gone mad I tell you!

[bigbadwolf]

If he's a real Jedi then surely all he had to do was wave his hand in her face and say "You shall allow me to wear this hood", then everything would be fine.

[Huguenot]

This is not the hood you are looking for...

[Brendan]

Perhaps the employees as Tesco are Toydarian.

[SeanMacGabhann]

The first 2 lines are all you need to read, really

Nutter

[mockney piers]

I cant believ anyone as corrupt and odious, a proven liar no less, is given a platform like that.

But yeah, the first analogy simply makes you discount anything else he says in the hugely unlikely event that he has anything useful to add ... to anything.

[Mick Mac]

"Ireland rejected the nice Treaty in 2002"

Now why would you want to reject such a nice treaty?

[mockney piers]

I hope the next one gets signed in Brest *titter*

[mockney piers]

In space noone can hear you scream

clowns in spaaaaCe

[bigbadwolf]

Can we have a "what the f_ck" section please because this is just too far out there.

American obviously.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8282356.stm

[SeanMacGabhann]

I just read the same thing at lunch - but is it THAT surprising? really?

[bigbadwolf]

"but is it THAT surprising? really?"

I suppose you're right Sean. I'll probably read something even more astonishing about them next week.

[SeanMacGabhann]

Well I wasn't talking about Americans - more the Bush administration

[Brendan]

Satanism!

Satanism I tell you.

A dog eared Harry Potter book found under the bed is a sure sign that your teenage offspring has plans to sacrifice you in your sleep to the Whore of Babylon, Beelzebub and that English guy from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.