cornerstone

Here's another bit of info: In the 1500's, the consequences of speaking out of turn in society were so fatal / get stabbed / get beheaded that it became very awkward to mention truths beyond social etiquette. So people had to find a very subtle way to impart truths to friends and family without fear of insult. What they would first do is to offer to build the person an extension on their house - which of course was gratefully received. This stage would take several weeks to complete. But their generosity hid another purpose, which was they need a room of an adequate size to smuggle in an elephant. When the home owner arrived and walked into their new extension for the first time they would be so surprised by the presence of an elephant that they would barely even notice the friend shouting "You...fucked...my...wife! You muthaf...." Thus the phrase 'the elephant in the room'. [Artist's Impression]

Where's Pugwash when you need him It was a fun read, but alas it's a well-known hoax. It's all bollocks. I mean seriously - 'saved by the bell' - ever seen a boxing bout? http://historymedren.about.com/od/dailylif...a/bod_intro.htm

Great photos! Tokyo's a fantastic place, Osaka too. Looking forward to going back soon.

He's banned here I'm afraid. You may have to blow the dust off the dial yourself

verbal is a good guy, and this is a bit of a grail watch for me....but the movements are indeed very risky. Bear in mind that this watch probably had some seconds at six mod work done already - I don't know if or how that impacts on anything. This watch is so gorgeous I'd probably wear it even if it wasn't working! That's no consolation - but it's an absolute beauty.

Great link - much appreciated.

We should get a new one for sure - it's a lot of fun as an idea, and can make guest appearances at GTG's!

Looking forward to seeing a wrist shot of this beaut!!

Three words: Topless Ladies Wrestling Although come to think of it topless ladies soccer, AFL, cricket, hockey, golf, college football, and dominoes all sound fine too.

What took you so long? We've just been keeping the thread warm waiting for you.

I think you're right. It's a lot more tribal with a lot of pride, but at a 'it starts the day you're born' level (not necessarily a good thing). Partly because the set-up is more 'local' on one level (not vs teams miles away), and that it's global on another. You can fly to Peru or Cameroon, crack open a beer and talk footy if you're so inclined. From local disputes to the World Cup, folk find ways to get one over one another. And it happens to be the global currency in sporting terms. Good points are when the underdog comes out of nowhere to slay the giant. There are quite a few competitions where that's possible. The World Cup really is a gathering of the world - much more true spirit than the Olympics. Looking forward to South Africa!! Here's a famous moment....the Norwegian commentary from Norway beating England in 1981. "Maggie Thatcher your boys took a hell of a beating...." See if you think he's pleased....

Welcome Watchdog. Make sure to read and search before asking us experts questions... You weren't tempted by 'Watchdog888'? Or even better 'WatchUnicorn'! That was a fun week.

Cool - I'll give this a listen.

Welcome

But cheaper too. A gen Sub may be built like an ox, but by comparison I'd sleep like a baby if was an Asian 21J ever got killed in cardboard box stacking accident. Welcome to the concept of a 'beater'

You just have to wear that into the AD Let them untangle it all for your change... What a wonderfully thoughtful gift. Awesome. And Happy Birthday!!

In other news, Cuddly Knut's PR crisis management team has announced a new range of tasty dinner sauces....

And from the polar bear's perspective STEP ONE: "Mmm a snack!" STEP TWO: "Looks meaty" STEP THREE: "Tasty!!" STEP FOUR: "Guys, you're going to need a bigger fishing rod for that...."

This is all over the world's media, but I think we can all tut at her failure to read Nanuq's posts... STEP ONE: "I have an idea!" STEP TWO: "This is going to be fun!! This is definitely a good idea" STEP THREE: "Okay...not a good idea...!" STEP FOUR: "Get me the f*$k out of here!!!!!"

Ziggy can fix it.

Finally something that actually fits TwoTone!

This should be post of the year!! But Samurai, the tale is in the telling....tell us the story!!

Where else? I found it on an abandoned laptop on the train home. Either that or in the Guardian. I blame his secretary, or whoever typed it up. Look at the pathetic effort to write 'SECRET' on it, they haven't even used bold or underline. Don't they use those big red 'top secret' stamps any more? I reckon if they did, he'd still be in a job. "Oh, yeah, better put this back in the folder.." Or perhaps why not just have office stationary with secret written already written on it....have a secret laser printer, and a not-secret laser printer. I'm just sayin' Jeez, I think half the members of this forum could run a better intelligence operation. Number 1: we all have the right watches. That's definitely covered. Plus we're able to communicate with people around the world. I'm able to speak English slowly in almost 110 countries, for instance. Pretty much, if you can communicate with King, I reckon you're going to do just fine talking while waving a gun at people.

As they say, these anti-globalization protests are now pretty much worldwide I don't rate that policeman's chances for a sympathetic 'just doing your job' audience. The Met used their 'get out of jail free' card on shooting that Brazilian. And they've been caught out trying to hush this one up. To cap a bad week for them, the top anti-terrorist policeman in the UK has just had to resign. See if you can work out what how he screwed up.... ...