Magere Hein

Metric, by a long way. Of course it's nice to express speed in furlongs per fortnight, but meters per second makes so much more sense. Good, bad or ugly? regards, Hein

The technical term is troller. regards, Hein

Windsor! regards, Hein

Goodness, that almost invoked DL::AddSpammerToList("Monoclinic"); regards, Hein

Dutch musician and composer Willem Breuker died yesterday. regards, Hein

Nice Job. Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. regards, Hein

He's doing pretty good for being in his 90th year.Name another 89 year old man who could perform a tour of Canada, before going on to the USA, before flying home to Britain, before resuming a full list of engagements two days later. That is why he's not on the list. He is old - but not ill or ailing. Of course it's possible that his ticker gives in while he's screwing the missus, but I don't think that's going to happen. regards, Hein

The Washington Times believe that Hosni Mubarak will be dead within eighteen months. I wouldn't want to bet a single euro on information that has its source in U.S. and Western intelligence agencies. However, since there is some evidence that Mr Mubarak is indeed in poor shape I will seriously consider him for my 2011 DDP team. If he makes it to 2011, that is. regards, Hein

Killing Joke, of course. Karl or Groucho? regards, Hein

I'm not fond of dogs, but this one from New Zealand I rather like. regards, Hein

As we say in Dutch: "Wat 'n sof." It was one of those who-scores-wins matches. The Dutch side had their chances, but didn't score. The best team won. regards, Hein

Our favourite ex-president atttended the closing ceremony of the World Cup. A highpoint in a, for me, cheerless night. Perhaps he gets the hint. regards, Hein

New pictures show Castro in rare public appearance: BBC website. regards, Hein

I don't think so. I think they insured that risk. More importantly: the Dutch Ministery of Justice has already said that this is a lottery and that thay may not pay more than EUR 100,000, the equivalent of 222 households getting free power for a year. I suppose the TV commercials cost a multiple of that. regards, Hein

I was cautiously confident in a good result for the Dutch. Now I shudder with fear. Oh well, we'll know more in 10 hours. Netherlands 1 Uruguay 1 (41st minute) Hmm. regards, Hein

Dutch author Jan Blokker has died at 83. A death notice in Dutch can be found here. regards, Hein

Nasr Abu Zayd, not exactly a cleric but rather a liberal Islamic theologian, died yesterday in Cairo at 66. In 1995 Dr. Abu Zayd's teachings got him declared an apostate, after which he fled to the Netherlands, where he taught at the University for Humanistics. regards, Hein

I was cautiously confident in a good result for the Dutch. Now I shudder with fear. Oh well, we'll know more in 10 hours. regards, Hein

Happy 234th, US of A! regards, Hein

Banned from his own funeral and forced to wait outside. One may ask why a communist's funeral should be held in a catherdral, but it's nice to learn that the church holds no grudge at all. regards, Hein

From which follows that on July 3, 2013 Paul McCartney will be found dead in a cup of tea. regards, Hein

I hope your right but i fear the worst. We will see. I also would love to see Ghana beat Urugauy. We did it! Netherlands 2 - 1 Brazil regards, Hein

According to the BBC news site American scientists have developed a method to predict what chances individuals have to live beyond 100. We need to know more about this. We also need genetic information of our favourite celebrities. regards, Hein

Is God on his side like? Now that would be ironic, considering Mr Hitchens' writings on some of God's self-proclaimed ground crew. regards, Hein

Yes, it's a real shame as Portugal used to be one of my default teams to support, being England's oldest ally, 600 years+ Now I would like Holland to win it, but I think it will be Argentina. Tomorrow's match against Brazil will be a toughy, it's true. Yet, I think the Dutch have a chance to beat them, be it less than a coin flip. If they can raise their game a bit and avoid losing the ball needlessly, they can play pretty much the same game as Brazil: defend and break. Not a pretty sight, but effective as long as they can keep patient. Of course I'm not looking forward to a penalty shoot-out, but I can imagine Brazil don't either. The Dutch scoring first would certainly help. As an aside: the first World Cup match I saw live on TV was the Netherlands-Brazil match at the 1974 World Cup. I watched the match in the village pub of Bourscheid, Luxembourg, which was filled solid with Netherlands supporters. At that time it was widely believed the Dutch would lose. The Dutch beat the incumbent champion 2-0 and made it to the final, which they lost to West Germany. It was a hard-fought match. Luis Pereira was sent off for a foul against Johan Neeskens. The pub trembled as if in an earthquake. regards, Hein