The Off Topic Topic

[Admiral Yi]

Hence 'beyond the Pale' , a phrase I feel should have been deemed un-PC and retired a long time ago.

Why?

[mongers]

Hence 'beyond the Pale' , a phrase I feel should have been deemed un-PC and retired a long time ago.

Why?

See upthread for discussion, for me it has a suggestion of 'the barbarian Irish' beyond British rule in the Dublin area.

[Admiral Yi]

Anyway, the reason I found the factoid about the Guiness founder interesting is because of the sectarian beer divide in Northern Ireland.

[crazy canuck]

Pale, in the phrase refers to a fence line - not the Pale in Ireland.

 

[Threviel]

Anyway, the reason I found the factoid about the Guiness founder interesting is because of the sectarian beer divide in Northern Ireland.

The what?

[Admiral Yi]

The what?

Papists drink Guiness, Proddies drink Bass or Scottish lagers.

[Threviel]

The what?

Papists drink Guiness, Proddies drink Bass or Scottish lagers.

Did not know that, I guess it makes some sense...

[Jacob]

But in terms of the Pale of Settlement - isn't "beyond the pale" from the Jewish perspective? Same way as it's from the English perspective? The pale is safe and acceptable, beyond it monstrous and dangerous.

I couldn't tell you, to be honest. I walked away from that conversation after it started. The people who advanced the position, however, were pretty confident in their assessment... but that's typically the case I find.

[celedhring]

Just learnt that Maine is the closest US state to Africa. It blew up my brain.

[Grey Fox]

Just learnt that Maine is the closest US state to Africa. It blew up my brain.

Angles are a bitch, eh. Probably means that there's a Canadian province or 2 that are closer than Maine is.

[The Minsky Moment]

Fox News has spent the last few weeks hyping the trial of Michael Sussman, an attorney accused of the less than spectacular crime of failing to inform DOJ about the identity of his client.  Why this great interest?  Because the client was the Princess of Darkness Herself.

Sussman was just acquitted. 

How does Fox lead the story: "Ex-Clinton campaign lawyer accused of lying to the FBI in Trump-Russia case learns his fate"

Classy all the way.

[Razgovory]

  This was their big case.

[Valmy]

Two small Catalan publishers have created a label of "atemporal classics of environmentalist, feminist literature, with a commitment to justice and equality".

First book published is "Dune" 

I mean, it's nice to finally have a Catalan edition of Dune (surprised it took that long). But I'm not sure that is what they are going for...

Well, at least it covers the environmental part... 

Bene Gesserit count as feminists?

Justice and equality leave me at a loss though.

The book does feature some prominent female characters, which is nice. But in the end, nearly every woman in the book is there to marry or give birth to someone more important. I mean, the final paragraph is this:

"Think on it, Chani: the princess will have the name, yet she'll live as less than a concubine - never to know a moment of tenderness from the man to whom she's bound. While we, Chani, we who carry the name of concubine - history will call us wives"

You just mean the first book I guess. But the whole breeding program is designed by and run by the women. It's the men who are pawns.

But that's all weird and odd anyway. How humanity keeps being dominated by all female groups. Why are there so many all female groups? That's a weird thing to have in the future.

[Valmy]

Dune is a male fantasy of power. "Women are mysterious, almost unknowable, and possess great powers. But I, the super special male, is better than them at their own game. My special powers let me dominate everyone, not only those mysterious women but also my male competitors."

I guess if leading a massive genocide and ending up a failed blind guy in the desert is your fantasy...or being some freakish body horror worm person.

[Sheilbh]

Went to my first ever cricket match yesterday evening - I fully get the appeal now

Mad that I've lived near a bit cricket ground for almost 10 years and never gone to a game.