|
10773. judithathome - 8/11/2004 4:12:19 AM I wasn't drawn and quartered but felt as though I'd had the verbal version of that happen...we didn't get home til after 11pm and I will never go to one of those windbag events without dinner ever again.
Folks, we have the Bush administration in microcosm in my little village. Last night, the three councilmen who have the government in a stranglehold forced the Mayor to cede power to them in lieu of being sued (by them and the city administrator) because he shut down city hall for one day when they tried to fire the police chief. The Mayor doesn't have a spare six hundred grand laying around so he gave in...
It was depressing to see what can happen when three guys get big heads and decided to rule according to whim and not the wishes of the residents. Ah well...such is democracy.
10774. robertjayb - 8/11/2004 4:20:55 AM You should have layed about vigorously with your viper-headed walking stick. 10775. Magoseph - 8/11/2004 4:22:24 AM Ah, thanks, Pelle, I wish I could read that site, then I could show my knowledge of her mother country to my first daughter-in-law. She's such a beautiful Swedish specimen and she can cook Swedish Meat Balls to perfection. 10776. Magoseph - 8/11/2004 4:55:58 AM Well, Juds, come elections, they will regret what they have done. 10777. judithathome - 8/11/2004 5:03:33 AM Yes, I think they will. And one member of the audience alluded to that very thing as he addressed one of the three, the one up for re-election in May, and the look on the council member's face was total surprise, as though he sees no possibility of being unseated whatsoever.
I can't wait for the campaign to begin! 10778. robertjayb - 8/11/2004 5:47:57 AM Relief in the jayb household! The one-and-only son has decided at last, at long tedious last, where to go for an MBA. After months of deliberations similar to those which preceded the invasion of Normandy, and after much travel and many interviews, he will attend Rice University---about two miles from his house in Houston.
I hope they have a program in decision-making.
10779. judithathome - 8/11/2004 6:11:38 AM Rice! Impressive! 10780. Jenerator - 8/11/2004 6:39:16 AM Rice is top-notch, Jay. Hearty congratulations to you, and the family. That's wonderful! 10781. Jenerator - 8/11/2004 6:41:07 AM Judith,
I share your frustration. In fact, one city council member is after my husband. It seems that he has a friendship with a prominent person, and the council member is jealous.
Youw ould not believe theintrigue and drama the turd has caused in our family.
Plus, to make it worse, he's all smiles when it's just me around. 10782. judithathome - 8/11/2004 6:51:14 AM Jen, I think when people are elected to office, a large portion of their brains is sucked out and is replaced by a super-ego. 10783. Jenerator - 8/11/2004 6:54:31 AM You got that right! 10784. PelleNilsson - 8/11/2004 2:45:05 PM Good news robert!
Now 8,999,955 Swedes and counting. 10785. alistairconnor - 8/11/2004 4:39:00 PM That counter reminds me of a Dr Seuss bedtime story, where bureaucrats are frantically counting the creatures that are falling asleep across the world.
So, how do they do that? Sweden is so tightly controlled and surveyed that they literally tally the differences between births, deaths and migration in real time...
Or it's simply an estimation -- I hope they adjust it for seasonal variation? All those extra deaths in summer from heatstroke? or falling, dead drunk, into the ocean on a Baltic cruise? 10786. alistairconnor - 8/11/2004 4:45:54 PM Ah. Given that Swedes are too demographically mature to have children any more, and in fact too bloody blasé to even bother with sex (except for recent immigrants, but don't worry Snow, that'll wear off) -- the increase is actually net immigration minus deaths.
I'll keep an eye on the counter : there ought to be the requisite 34 New Swedes by the end of my working day. 10787. PelleNilsson - 8/11/2004 4:59:40 PM I don't know exactly how they do it. The system has been set up for the occasion. It is not an estimation but its is not exactly real-time either because events don't get registered until the appropriate paperwork is completed.
Strictly speaking the system does not tally "Swedes" if that is taken to mean Swedish citizens but persons who have permanent residence status in Sweden. 10788. PelleNilsson - 8/11/2004 5:01:11 PM And it won't be possible to say who became Mr or Ms Nine Million. 10789. Magoseph - 8/11/2004 5:26:43 PM My daughter-in-law forgot the time last evening because she was reading "A Concise History of Sweden" in her store, Pelle. Let me tell you, this is a first for her to stay there one more minute than she needs. Moreover, she's a person who reads only 'House Beautiful' type of material.
I'd like to have that counter on my desktop, but I don't know how to download it.
10790. PelleNilsson - 8/11/2004 6:37:47 PM I'm glad to hear that, Mago.
That document, or rather series of documents, is heavily linked both within my website and externally. Moreover, it is not well done because it was my first experiment with web publishing. I strongly suspect that any attempt to move the stuff to your box would result in a massive mess and not much else.
Of course you could always copy the pages one by one to a Word document and save it, but why? The site won't go away. 10791. SnowOwl - 8/11/2004 6:48:21 PM If only my grand-daughter had held off her arrival for a few days she might have been the nine millionth Swede.
Alistair, there was a big fuss here when we reached our 4 million mark. The baby who was considered to be the 4 millionth NZer was feted and received quite a lot of attention in the media.
10792. SnowOwl - 8/11/2004 6:50:50 PM Congratulations to your son, Jay. We're also celebrating the fact that our #2 son, after being a dilettante for far too many years has finally got a real job (and he's only 30 mumble)!
He has a dynamic girlfriend from the Czech Republic and I promised her a medal if she got him working. Obviously her powers of persuasion are a lot better than mine, and now she's waiting for the big award ceremony.
|
