The real stinger for Brazil is not that they screwed up in front of the whole world, it's that they paid $14 billion for the honor of screwing up in front of their own fans. Maybe they should have let someone else get that particular honor ...

Was the World Cup this big of a deal in the US last time around? I know that I'm geographically in a place surging with immigrants, many of whom have brought a love for the game along with them. I also know that I work in a very international environment where there is a lot of contact with other countries. But it seems that even for that the ( Read more... )

Went back to LJ's homepage for the first time in a while. I note the new look, and I've got to admit it looks better than it once did, but it doesn't seem to be doing much in the way of improving the content on the site. The problem with LJ was never really the appearance, it was that everyone on it just sort of left for a whole host of reasons. ( Read more... )

Transcript of the practice run for the press conference in commemoration of Thailand's twelfth coup.

Three Generals sit at a table in front of the cameras in pressed green uniforms. Respectively they are LEFT, RIGHT, and CENTER

( Same old, same old )

Perhaps to be specific, when I said there would be no war in Ukraine I should have said there will be no western war in Ukraine. Whether there will be a long drawn-out revolt and proggle in Eastern Ukraine is still up for debate, but the West seems particularly uninvolved. Perhaps luckily, for once nobody in the West seems too interested in ( Read more... )

As befits the actual nature of the situation, it's now been several weeks and there's been no sign of war in Ukraine. In fact, things have gotten a little calmer, with the Russians deciding to withdraw a battalion of the 15th Motor Rifle brigade back to its home base ( Read more... )

So I have to admit, I didn't get Crimea right. I was betting on an independent quasi-Abkhazia in place of Crimea, a sort of Russian puppet state, not outright annexation. Annexation is a dangerous step, since it's the first outright annexation of a major territory by a larger country that I can remember since India and Sikkim, and with even less ( Read more... )

( Apparently I'm in a Really, Really weird mood )

Within twenty-four hours there may be a war in the Ukraine. Or there may not. It's hard to tell. At this point, most speculation is trash, and will rapidly become unhinged by events. What I have noticed is that, at least among the commentators I read, there is a fairly narrow window of possibilities to the only question that matters: How will this ( Read more... )

Every once in a while I buy used books online. It's practical, especially if you're looking to buy books that aren't very common. It's usually a good experience ( Read more... )