Dr_T

I haven't read the fine print about the joint USA/Canada/Mexico bid, but does this mean that all 3 countries are given automatic entry? This would be a major boost for Canada, currently 79 on the rankings and has only ever made the final tournament once. If they stick with the 32 team format it will put pressure on spots for some of the fringe countries. If the United Kingdom made a joint bid bid and England, Wales, Scotland and Nth Ireland all got automatic entry it would be even more pressure. Not such a problem if the predicted expansion to 48 occurs though.

Asking an Australian for thoughts on soccer is a bit like asking an Englishman for thoughts on cooking or a German for thoughts on comedy, but ........I will be cheering for Australia who will struggle for a point in the group stage. I put a $5 bet on Belgium to win for my Belgian work colleague so I will go for them to win the show.

Sort of surprised she held on as long as she did, but the former host of Australia's version of "The Weakest Link", Cornelia Frances has died. http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/actor-cornelia-frances-dead-at-77/news-story/493593f5715a20c25ff14e70d8c96908 I think I posted a link about her here once before with the same photo as in the linked article, but is that a living corpse or what?

Would a letter to the Editor of the Guardian bemoaning the tragic (yet timely) death of Filipino screen legend, Spanky Manikan count as QO if it got published? I could be a $3 postage stamp from first.

My tip for George HW is May 4th (Star Wars Day). I will be in the USA that day visiting Seattle for work. After that I will be in Toronto which is interesting considering events earlier today.

Will Darrell get a DDP QO? Considered him in passing for this year....he has been in my 50 for a few years, but wasn't sure whether he was quite the obit material (despite being Australian-seems most half noteworthy Aussies get a mention).

This might just be what George needs. Perhaps he should surround himself with sexy nurses (in the style of Young Mr Grace) which might keep him going for another 10 years. Recent reports suggest he is a fan of the female form after all.

Sad to see that R. Lee Ermey has died. Full Metal Jacket is one of my favourite movies and it was Ermey that made that movie stand out from the other Vietnam movies. Holy dog shit! Texas? Only steers and queers come from Texas, Private Cowboy, and you don't look much like a steer to me, so that kinda narrows it down. I bet you're the kind of guy that would fuck a person in the ass and not even have the goddamn common courtesy to give him a reach-around.

Hard to tell - but I'll vote no 2. I might discreetly caress their neck a little before deciding which to take home (maybe not home, wife would NOT be happy). Being Australian I have been watching the Comm Games when I can and it is very entertaining. It must be like watching the Olympics as an American. I watched Semenya's race and what stands out is how she is physically so different from not just the female middle distance athletes but also the male. I would be interested to see how she would fare against an elite male 400m runner (over 1500m) who would have a similar build to hers. I would be very interested to see how she would go in the 200/400m races against women, to me she looks like she is not competing in her most suitable event. I have sympathy for Semenya (and those who race against her) as it would seem that she is a genuine intersex athlete. I don't have the same sympathy for Laurel Hubbard (formerly Gavin) who is a NZ weightlifter who was competitive at National level in NZ as a male lifter who changed sex and became a worldbeating female lifter. There seems to be some debate about the advantage obtained in these sorts of sports by growing up to have a man's body, but while there seems little doubt that post-transition she will not be able to perform as well as pre-transition, she still has an advantage over a cis-woman. The various committees seem to have allowed political correctness overwhelm common sense.

Another of my favourites. A man goes to the doctor. The doctor says, "What seems to be the problem?" The man says "Well doctor, the problem is not me it is my wife. She has lost interest completely in sex, we haven't done it for 2 years. I need something to give her the urge again." The doctor says, "Well this is highly irregular, but we have this new experimental treatment. Put one of these pills in her tea and it should give her a powerful urge." The man takes the pills home and put one in her tea. He then thought to himself, "Gee it has been so long and she has been so disinterested," so he put a second one in there for good measure. He then thought, "It has been a while for me as well, maybe I should take a pill so I can keep up." He put a pill in his own tea and then they drank. A few moments later his wife ripped off all her clothes and jumped on the ground, spread her legs wide and yelled, "I NEED A MAN!" Then the man ripped off all his clothes, bent over and yelled "SO DO I!"

A little old perhaps but it gave me a laugh. Did you know that the year before the divorce, Sir Paul gave Heather a plane for Xmas. The year before he gave her a Gilette Ladyshave for the other leg.

I have some sympathy for bachelorette. I think here we are trying to make out the difference between a woman who is single and having fun (bachelorette) from one who stays home night after night with her 7 cats dreaming about the day she will finally be able to wear her mother's wedding dress which is 5 sizes too small and stinks of naphthalene (spinster). Otherwise if anyone deems her marital status germane to the conversation she would merely be single.

I have a list as long as your arm for this. The overuse of the word "awesome" has already been mentioned but is probably my number one (like when the checkout girl says awesome when you give her the correct change). I intensely dislike the pronunciations of kil-om-et-er, instead of the correct kil-o-mete-r, and the English pronunciation of vitamin. Something which has crept into the younger generations is that when they are playing someone at sport, they might say that Australia is "versing" South Africa at cricket on Thursday. That is just plainly horrible.

This was recently on Stefan Karl Stefansson's Twitter feed. It’s not until they tell you you’re going to die soon that you realize how short life is. Time is the most valuable thing in life because it never comes back. And whether you spend it in the arms of a loved one or alone in a prison-cell, life is what you make of it. Dream big. If we make the obvious inference then it seems that he is definitely in the sooner rather than later pile. Sad cause he seems like quite a nice fellow with a young family, but maybe not such a bad joker after all.

My DDP team Pity Da Foolz is currently sitting 2nd (but just a QO for Spanky Manikan out of first-not holding my breath though). I guess this qualifies me for a self assessment of my chances. RIP Falkholt, Elias, Miller, Nevin, Cryne, Goodwin (and Manikan) The good oil hereabouts suggest that Stefannsson, Stiles, Bracknell, and McCain should score, not 100% convinced about 1 or 2 of these but who am I to argue with the collective genius. The other picks I am happy with are Ricketts, Butts and Frates. I think Anne Hamilton-Byrne will die but I think she was a poor pick as she is only worth 5 points. Of the others (Lima, Willesee, Cappotelli, Nolan, Bain), I think 1 or 2 might score but probably not strong picks on balance. Predicting somewhere around 13-14 hits and 150 points-a good enough score but not enough to challenge for the podium. Worst miss: Marieke Vervoort especially if she qualifies for the unnatural death bonus (which I think is dubious for reasons mentioned earlier).

Have I missed some news about Stefan Karl Stefansson? There seems to be consensus that he'll score this year but I can't see anything much in recent news suggesting a decline in his health. In other news, last I looked Colin Butts hasn't tweeted for a while which is unusual compared with his normal patterns. Could be a bad sign?

One for the midyear comps I think. Don't think seeing 2019 is a possibility, actually looking at the photos I think St. Patricks Day looks to be a stretch. She was a very famous actress in her day (late 70s/early 80s) who enjoyed a renaissance of sorts when she hosted the Aussie version of The Weakest Link. Most noteworthy Aussies seem to get some kind of QO so might help somebody somewhere. http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/tv-legend-cornelia-frances-determined-to-battle-cancer/news-story/43956d98a4c925a149d836991cad6797

News just breaking about the death of former Australian, NSW and Canterbury rugby league player, Steve Folkes. It distresses me a little when I hear about sports people I watched as a child, teen, and now with ever increasing frequency, adult, dying of natural causes. http://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/bulldogs-legend-steve-folkes-found-dead/news-story/561b418e50de0bc481476fd6f1a087c1

I think the death of John Mahoney has been picked up in at least one other thread. But for your convenience here is a link: http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/flashback/frasier-star-john-mahoney-dead-at-77/news-story/19a896c49f6dea3f1fca5c163624f119 One for the List of the Missed as he was selected by 1 team in 2017 if not other years.

Bit of a long post, but courtesy of The Bloodhound Gang. It's quite a read. Only from 1999, so I don't know about the whole "Songs that wouldn't be made now" thing, but highly questionable content. I was lonelier than Kunta Kinte at a Merle Haggard concert That night I strolled on into Uncle Limpy's Hump Palace lookin' for love It had been a while In fact, three hundred and sixty-five had come and went Since that midnight run haulin' hog to Shakey Town on I-10 I had picked up this hitchhiker that was sweatin' gallons Through a pair of Daisy Duke cut-offs and one of those Fruit Of The Loom tank-tops Well, that night I lost myself to ruby red lips Milky white skin and baby blue eyes Name was Russell Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Well I find it's quite a thrill When she grinds me against her will Yes a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Well, faster than you can say, "shallow grave" This pretty little thing come up to me and starts kneadin' my balls Like hard-boiled eggs in a tube sock Said her name was Bambi and I said, "Well that's a coincidence darlin' 'Cause I was just thinkin' about skinnin' you like a deer" Well she smiled, had about as much teeth as a Jack-O-Lantern And I went on to tell her how I would wear her face like a mask As I do my little kooky dance And then she told me to shush I guess she could sense my desperation 'Course, it's hard to hide a hard-on when you're dressed like Minnie Pearl Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Well I find it's quite a thrill When she grinds me against her will Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' So, Bambi's goin' on about how she can make all my fantasies come true So I says, "Even this one I have where Jesus Christ Is jackhammering Mickey Mouse in the doo-doo hole With a lawn dart as Garth Brooks gives birth to something Resembling a cheddar cheese log with almonds on Santa Claus's tummy-tum?" Well, ten beers, twenty minutes and thirty dollars later I'm parkin' the beef bus in tuna town if you know what I mean Got to nail her back at her trailer Heh, that rhymes I have to admit it was even more of a turn-on When I found out she was doin' me to buy baby formula Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Well I find it's quite a thrill When she grinds me against her will Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Day or so had passed when I popped the clutch Gave the tranny a spin and slid on into The Stinky Pinky Gulp N' Guzzle Big Rig Snooze-A-Stop There I was browsin' through the latest issue of "Throb" When I saw Bambi starin' at me from the back of a milk carton Well, my heart just dropped So, I decided to do what any good Christian would You can not imagine how difficult it is to hold a half gallon of moo juice And polish the one-eyed gopher when your doin' seventy-five In an eighteen-wheeler I never thought missing children could be so sexy Did I say that out loud? Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin' Well I find it's quite a thrill When she grinds me against her will Yes, a lap dance is so much better when the stripper is cryin

@Death Impends I commend you on your view considering that it is against your interests as a competitor.

@Toast I think there is a world of difference between a physically healthy person killing themselves and euthanasia. If nothing else then having the bonus apply to suicide means that we don't need to wait for the outcome of coroner's reports before allocating points for accidents and drug overdoses (and what would we do with open findings?). For the most part, euthanasia just allows people suffering awful diseases the chance to say goodbye while they are still mentally and physically capable of meaningful interaction. It is the disease that kills them not the drugs or the person administering the drugs. I think there are a lot of grey areas in the Unnatural Bonus and it is a bit of fun to argue them occasionally. If someone was to have a non-fatal stroke which made them fall over on the street and get run over by a car....is that unnatural? I would say it was the stroke that killed them, others would say the car. Either way I would be happy for the points to be awarded or not awarded. I think there was a case a couple of years ago where the bonus was applied for someone who hit their head on the ground after an aneurysm or some such. That one I found surprising. However, in the case of euthanasia, in an authority where euthanasia is legal I don't think awarding the bonus is either within the wording of the rule (not an accident/murder/suicide) or the spirit of the rule. If it occurs where euthanasia is not legal then it may then be within the wording of the rule (i.e. it is then a murder/manslaughter or suicide) but still outside the spirit of the law.

Unless there is an extra page of rules that I don't know about it, the rule about the "unnatural event" occurring in the same year as the death is unwritten. However there is ample precedent and so I have no problem with it not applying to Falkholt. From the DDP page: Unnatural causes: +3 for murder, suicide or accident (but not State executions). I think it could be argued very strongly that under Belgian law that none of these would apply to Ms Vervoort's death should it come by euthanasia. Personally I have a very liberal view of euthanasia and thus do not consider it as unnatural. Has there been a precedent set for the bonus being awarded to someone who has been euthanized? This 3 (6) points could be decisive come December.

Thanks to everyone who cleared up the unwritten rule about why Jessica Falkholt doesn't qualify for the Unnatural Death Bonus. Using some of the same logic (it is to reward the player for picking someone who passes from something sudden and unexpected) then surely the same must apply for Marieke Vervoort should she elect to be euthanized. Euthanasia is borderline anyway as being unnatural (depending on the circumstances/point of view) and Ms Vervoort has flagged for some time her intention to end things on her terms, so perhaps the bonus is inappropriate?

From 1988, comedian Austen Tayshus who got famous with "Australiana" put out a satirical offering called Highway Corroboree. It poked fun at the expense of celebrating the Australian bicentenniel while highlighting a number of social issues which were troubling Australia at the time (and still do). Probably the edgiest line was (in mocking Aboriginal accent). "Eh, what's the easiest way to get a neck like a goanna....Get arrested in Brewarrina. My cousin Albert, he get arrested in Brewarrina. They took away his tie, they took away his belt, they took away his shoelaces....Cunning little bugger, hung himself with his toothbrush." Bearing in mind that there had been a spate of Aboriginal suicides in custody, enough to warrant a Royal Commission. Even though it was a satirical piece I don't think it would fly 30 years on. I went to a concert of his in 1989 when I was at uni. A woman tried to get her money back because his show was full of expletives. When he saw what was happening he engaged the lady until she cried. As she was leaving he yelled "And you can fuck your shoes when you get home cause there's been a cunt in 'em all day." Classy!