I am starting to gather up Blu Rays for playing on my PS3, I don't want to pay extra for a Blu Ray when there is minimal improvement in quality. I remember hearing of a site that rates the conversion to Blu Ray. Anyone know of this or similar sites?
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#82
General discussion / Twelve soldiers shot dead at US Army Base
November 05, 2009, 10:24:53 PM
Twelve people have been killed and 31 injured in a shooting at the Fort Hood military base in Texas, the commander there has said.
Lt Gen Bob Cone said one shooter had been killed in the incident and two suspects arrested. All were American soldiers. The base is locked down.
The motivation for the shooting is not known, he said. One of the dead was a policeman but the others were soldiers.
President Barack Obama described it as "a horrific outburst of violence".
Speaking at a press conference in Washington, he said: "It is difficult enough when we lose these brave men and women abroad, but it is horrifying that they should come under fire at an army base on US soil."
He extended his condolences to the families of the victims, adding: "We will make sure that we get answers to every single question about this horrible incident."
Mr Obama said the White House was working with the Pentagon, FBI and Department of Homeland Security to make sure Fort Hood was secure.
Fort Hood, near the town of Killeen, is the largest US base in the world.
Home to about 40,000 US troops, the base lies between Austin and Waco, about 60 miles (97 km) from each city.
Army spokesman Lt Col Nathan Banks at the Pentagon earlier told the Associated Press news agency the shootings had begun at about 1330 (1930 GMT) on Thursday at a personnel and medical processing centre at Fort Hood.
A serviceman stationed at Fort Hood who asked to remain anonymous told the BBC: "I heard the emergency announcement over the speakers outside and saw people rushing to get indoors.
"In our office we're okay but we're hearing about the deaths. It's horrible and very shocking.
"We are still on lockdown. I am hearing that at least nine people may be dead. This is so terrible and frightening."
The BBC's Adam Brookes in Washington says units at Fort Hood are among those deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and some will have returned from there.
The base has a centre that deals with combat stress, our correspondent adds.
Hilary Shine, of the Killeen Fire Department told the BBC's News Channel Fort Hood was like a small city.
"It has schools, a hospital, a convenience store even. And it has a large daytime population - including civilians working on the base - with as many as 80,000 in this area during the daytime."
Local congressman John Carter, speaking to NBC News, said gunfire had erupted half an hour before a graduation ceremony was due to begin.
Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson said in a statement: "I am shocked and saddened by today's outburst of violence at Fort Hood that has cost seven of our brave service members their lives and has gravely injured others.
"My heart goes out to their loved ones
Lt Gen Bob Cone said one shooter had been killed in the incident and two suspects arrested. All were American soldiers. The base is locked down.
The motivation for the shooting is not known, he said. One of the dead was a policeman but the others were soldiers.
President Barack Obama described it as "a horrific outburst of violence".
Speaking at a press conference in Washington, he said: "It is difficult enough when we lose these brave men and women abroad, but it is horrifying that they should come under fire at an army base on US soil."
He extended his condolences to the families of the victims, adding: "We will make sure that we get answers to every single question about this horrible incident."
Mr Obama said the White House was working with the Pentagon, FBI and Department of Homeland Security to make sure Fort Hood was secure.
Fort Hood, near the town of Killeen, is the largest US base in the world.
Home to about 40,000 US troops, the base lies between Austin and Waco, about 60 miles (97 km) from each city.
Army spokesman Lt Col Nathan Banks at the Pentagon earlier told the Associated Press news agency the shootings had begun at about 1330 (1930 GMT) on Thursday at a personnel and medical processing centre at Fort Hood.
A serviceman stationed at Fort Hood who asked to remain anonymous told the BBC: "I heard the emergency announcement over the speakers outside and saw people rushing to get indoors.
"In our office we're okay but we're hearing about the deaths. It's horrible and very shocking.
"We are still on lockdown. I am hearing that at least nine people may be dead. This is so terrible and frightening."
The BBC's Adam Brookes in Washington says units at Fort Hood are among those deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and some will have returned from there.
The base has a centre that deals with combat stress, our correspondent adds.
Hilary Shine, of the Killeen Fire Department told the BBC's News Channel Fort Hood was like a small city.
"It has schools, a hospital, a convenience store even. And it has a large daytime population - including civilians working on the base - with as many as 80,000 in this area during the daytime."
Local congressman John Carter, speaking to NBC News, said gunfire had erupted half an hour before a graduation ceremony was due to begin.
Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson said in a statement: "I am shocked and saddened by today's outburst of violence at Fort Hood that has cost seven of our brave service members their lives and has gravely injured others.
"My heart goes out to their loved ones
#84
Hurling Discussion / Laochra Gael - Justin Mc Carthy
October 23, 2009, 10:58:18 PM
Just starting. Haven't seen this one yet.
#85
General discussion / Yobs floored by cage fighters in drag
October 07, 2009, 01:40:59 PM #86
Hurling Discussion / Big shock in Offaly - Birr beaten in semi final
October 03, 2009, 11:33:45 PM
Tullamore beat Birr by 2 pts tonight.
#87
General discussion / Government funds Loyalist garden
October 02, 2009, 02:25:56 PM
The Department of Social Development has part-funded a "garden of reflection" in Bangor in which loyalist paramilitaries are honoured.
The project in the Kilcooley estate is linked to the removal of loyalist murals and graffiti in the town.
Three black stones bear the names of a paramilitary group and the names of paramilitaries killed in the Troubles.
A DSD spokesman said the funds had been distributed by the Housing Executive under a neighbourhood renewal project.
It is not yet known how much funding was allocated to the project.
Alliance Party assembly member Stephen Farry said he had written a letter of complaint to Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie about the "glorification of terrorism".
"She has been very clear in her support for a shared future - if DSD have funded this, it's the very antithesis of a shared future and serious questions have to be asked.
Local community worker Mark Gordon said he appreciated some people may have concerns but the garden was open to everyone.
"One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter," he said.
"Why is it that when loyalists within this community choose to honour their dead that suddenly there's an uproar?"
In 2007, Ms Ritchie set a 60-day ultimatum for the UDA to decommission its weapons after shots were fired at police during rioting in the Kilcooley estate.
When the deadline passed, she withdrew £1m in funding from a project aimed at transforming loyalist areas. A High Court judge later quashed her decision because she had not followed proper procedures.
The project in the Kilcooley estate is linked to the removal of loyalist murals and graffiti in the town.
Three black stones bear the names of a paramilitary group and the names of paramilitaries killed in the Troubles.
A DSD spokesman said the funds had been distributed by the Housing Executive under a neighbourhood renewal project.
It is not yet known how much funding was allocated to the project.
Alliance Party assembly member Stephen Farry said he had written a letter of complaint to Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie about the "glorification of terrorism".
"She has been very clear in her support for a shared future - if DSD have funded this, it's the very antithesis of a shared future and serious questions have to be asked.
Local community worker Mark Gordon said he appreciated some people may have concerns but the garden was open to everyone.
"One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter," he said.
"Why is it that when loyalists within this community choose to honour their dead that suddenly there's an uproar?"
In 2007, Ms Ritchie set a 60-day ultimatum for the UDA to decommission its weapons after shots were fired at police during rioting in the Kilcooley estate.
When the deadline passed, she withdrew £1m in funding from a project aimed at transforming loyalist areas. A High Court judge later quashed her decision because she had not followed proper procedures.
#88
General discussion / Captive for 18 years - Jaycee Lee (Ch4 now)
October 01, 2009, 09:04:18 PM
Starting now
#89
GAA Discussion / Dirty Dubs attack family on holiday for wearing Cork jersey
September 22, 2009, 11:32:10 AM
Football jersey sparks attack on Cork family by Irish holidaymakers
By Eoin English
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
AN Irish family on holidays in Spain was viciouslyattacked by a mob of fellow Irish holidaymakers because one of them was wearing a Cork football jersey.
The victims, from Farranree, Cork, blamed a small group of young drunken Dubliners for the unprovoked attack on the Costa del Sol after the All-Ireland final on Sunday.
They were scratched, punched, and dragged on to the ground and were then kicked about the head by a gang of up to 10 men and women.
They did not require hospital treatment, but were badly shaken. They were recovering from their injuries in their apartments last night.
Speaking from the family home yesterday, Caroline O'Connor said it was a disgrace that Irish people would attack other Irish people abroad.
"I think they were justusing the Cork jersey as an excuse and were looking for a fight," she said.
Her parents Noreen and Michael, her sister Elva, 25, her brother-law-in Liam Manning and sister-in-law Kathy Waugh were among a group of extended family members who flew out to Malaga the weekend before last for a holiday in the popular Montemar resort.
They went in to the town on Sunday afternoon to watch the All-Ireland final.
Noreen and Michael returned to their apartment afterwards, but Elva, Liam and Kathy went to JC's Bar where a group of Dubliners were drinking. Liam was wearing a Cork jersey.
Ms O'Connor said Elva, Liam and Kathy left the pub after words were exchanged. "They said things like: 'You should be ashamed for losing the match and wearing that jersey', and 'you should go away and hang yourselves'. So they walked away," she said.
"But the group followed them outside and they started running."
The gang caught them from behind and attacked them, she said. Ms Waugh was pinned to the ground and the gang tried to steal her rings.
Ms O'Connor said the gang threatened Elva that if she didn't stop screaming, they would "put her into a coma".
Mr Manning was beaten about the head by at least three men. The two women suffered scratches, had clumps of hair pulled out and suffered black eyes.
Read more: http://www.irishexaminer.ie/ireland/football-jersey-sparks-attack-on-cork-family-by-irish-holidaymakers-101473.html#ixzz0RpUnD7Ps
By Eoin English
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
AN Irish family on holidays in Spain was viciouslyattacked by a mob of fellow Irish holidaymakers because one of them was wearing a Cork football jersey.
The victims, from Farranree, Cork, blamed a small group of young drunken Dubliners for the unprovoked attack on the Costa del Sol after the All-Ireland final on Sunday.
They were scratched, punched, and dragged on to the ground and were then kicked about the head by a gang of up to 10 men and women.
They did not require hospital treatment, but were badly shaken. They were recovering from their injuries in their apartments last night.
Speaking from the family home yesterday, Caroline O'Connor said it was a disgrace that Irish people would attack other Irish people abroad.
"I think they were justusing the Cork jersey as an excuse and were looking for a fight," she said.
Her parents Noreen and Michael, her sister Elva, 25, her brother-law-in Liam Manning and sister-in-law Kathy Waugh were among a group of extended family members who flew out to Malaga the weekend before last for a holiday in the popular Montemar resort.
They went in to the town on Sunday afternoon to watch the All-Ireland final.
Noreen and Michael returned to their apartment afterwards, but Elva, Liam and Kathy went to JC's Bar where a group of Dubliners were drinking. Liam was wearing a Cork jersey.
Ms O'Connor said Elva, Liam and Kathy left the pub after words were exchanged. "They said things like: 'You should be ashamed for losing the match and wearing that jersey', and 'you should go away and hang yourselves'. So they walked away," she said.
"But the group followed them outside and they started running."
The gang caught them from behind and attacked them, she said. Ms Waugh was pinned to the ground and the gang tried to steal her rings.
Ms O'Connor said the gang threatened Elva that if she didn't stop screaming, they would "put her into a coma".
Mr Manning was beaten about the head by at least three men. The two women suffered scratches, had clumps of hair pulled out and suffered black eyes.
Read more: http://www.irishexaminer.ie/ireland/football-jersey-sparks-attack-on-cork-family-by-irish-holidaymakers-101473.html#ixzz0RpUnD7Ps
#90
General discussion / Mountbatten memorial sparks row in Donegal
August 27, 2009, 01:27:56 PM
A row has broken out in Donegal over council plans to erect a memorial to Lord Mountbatten and the other victims of the Mullaghmore bombing.
Four people, including two children, died when the IRA detonated a bomb on his boat off the coast of Sligo thirty years ago.
Sinn Féin have said they oppose the monument because it would be wrong to single out any one incident.
But the Fianna Fáil Mayor of Donegal, Brendan Byrne, says it should go ahead.
"As mayor of Donegal I'm not erecting a memorial to a member of the British Royal family.
"I'm erecting a monument to the four people who perished needlessly, senselessly, as Mullaghmore some 30 years ago."
Eighteen British soldiers were killed later that day when two booby-trap bombs exploded beside Narrow Water Castle near Warrenpoint in County Down.
Four people, including two children, died when the IRA detonated a bomb on his boat off the coast of Sligo thirty years ago.
Sinn Féin have said they oppose the monument because it would be wrong to single out any one incident.
But the Fianna Fáil Mayor of Donegal, Brendan Byrne, says it should go ahead.
"As mayor of Donegal I'm not erecting a memorial to a member of the British Royal family.
"I'm erecting a monument to the four people who perished needlessly, senselessly, as Mullaghmore some 30 years ago."
Eighteen British soldiers were killed later that day when two booby-trap bombs exploded beside Narrow Water Castle near Warrenpoint in County Down.
#91
General discussion / 14 yr old swept away trying to rescue dog
August 21, 2009, 11:40:15 AM
The search for a missing 14-year-old boy in a river in County Antrim has resumed.
It is understood James Elliott jumped into the River Bush at Stranocum to rescue a dog and was swept away.
His father, another 14-year-old boy and the dog were rescued from the river on Thursday.
The alarm was raised at 1500 BST on Thursday. A number of agencies carried out a search of the area until the light failed on Thursday night.
James, is a pupil at Dalriada Grammar School in Ballymoney, and a talented footballer with Linfield FC's youth section.
His PE teacher, John Devlin, has been watching the rescue operation and said they were hoping he was still alive.
"This is going to be devastating when we all come back together into school next week," he said.
"But we still stand here, hope and cling to the thought that he is hanging on out there.
"He is a very gritty individual and we can only just hope and pray at this point."
It is understood James represented Northern Ireland at a youth football tournament last year.
The principal at Dalriada Grammar School, Tom Skelton, said the teenager, who is to enter Year 11, "wanted to be nothing but a professional football player".
"He was a very bright, bubbly boy, always full of beans," he said.
"I was just talking to the caretaker this morning who said he was constantly having to retrieve the ball from the roof of the school for him - he loved playing football, he was well-liked by his classmates and held in high regard by the staff.
"We're absolutely devastated by the news."
DUP assembly member Mervyn Storey said the situation looked very bleak.
"It is very difficult when you have situation when you are hoping that it's a rescue, but looks more and
more like a recovery," he said.
Ballymoney mayor Frank Campbell, who was at the scene, said the river was "running really fast" because of the amount of rain that had fallen in the last few days,
Police said a number of agencies have been involved in the search, including HM Coastguard, the RAF, Bann River Rescue, the Royal Navy and the Fire Service.
Police search teams and the police helicopter are also returning to the scene.
Related to this story:
It is understood James Elliott jumped into the River Bush at Stranocum to rescue a dog and was swept away.
His father, another 14-year-old boy and the dog were rescued from the river on Thursday.
The alarm was raised at 1500 BST on Thursday. A number of agencies carried out a search of the area until the light failed on Thursday night.
James, is a pupil at Dalriada Grammar School in Ballymoney, and a talented footballer with Linfield FC's youth section.
His PE teacher, John Devlin, has been watching the rescue operation and said they were hoping he was still alive.
"This is going to be devastating when we all come back together into school next week," he said.
"But we still stand here, hope and cling to the thought that he is hanging on out there.
"He is a very gritty individual and we can only just hope and pray at this point."
It is understood James represented Northern Ireland at a youth football tournament last year.
The principal at Dalriada Grammar School, Tom Skelton, said the teenager, who is to enter Year 11, "wanted to be nothing but a professional football player".
"He was a very bright, bubbly boy, always full of beans," he said.
"I was just talking to the caretaker this morning who said he was constantly having to retrieve the ball from the roof of the school for him - he loved playing football, he was well-liked by his classmates and held in high regard by the staff.
"We're absolutely devastated by the news."
DUP assembly member Mervyn Storey said the situation looked very bleak.
"It is very difficult when you have situation when you are hoping that it's a rescue, but looks more and
more like a recovery," he said.
Ballymoney mayor Frank Campbell, who was at the scene, said the river was "running really fast" because of the amount of rain that had fallen in the last few days,
Police said a number of agencies have been involved in the search, including HM Coastguard, the RAF, Bann River Rescue, the Royal Navy and the Fire Service.
Police search teams and the police helicopter are also returning to the scene.
Related to this story:
#92
General discussion / O2 Broadband
August 19, 2009, 09:09:11 AM
Getting messed about by BT and thinking of switching as I am an O2 customer so get it cheaper. Read good reviews regarding their customer services. Anyone got it?
#93
General discussion / End of an era
July 17, 2009, 11:42:35 AM
Teletext gets the hammer. No more cheap holidays or reading about footballers "bagging a brace"
Times Online
At a time when the internet was nothing but a distant dream and pressing the red button just turned the television off, Teletext was the king of instant information.
But yesterday, 35 years after the service first flickered into life, it was announced that the news and information provider, one of the last technological bastions of the pre-internet age, will be closed prematurely.
Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the Daily Mail and a division of Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), had planned to close Teletext to coincide with the switchover to digital television in 2012. But the company said that the growth of the internet, as well as recent poor financial performance, had pulled the service into the red. Associated said that it would close Teletext two years ahead of schedule, in January, citing the poor economic climate and dismissal by Ofcom, the communications regulator, of the prospect of future state support for the venture.
The company said: "As anticipated, the continued fragmentation of television audiences and the growth in the use of the internet has resulted in a significant reduction in the audience and the volume of commercial activity generated by the television services.
RELATED LINKS
The digital future: the verdict
BBC overbudgets £250m for digital switchover
Carter paints his digital picture and signs off
"In addition, Ofcom has indicated that it is not persuaded of the need for public intervention in the delivery of a public commercial Teletext service beyond 2014 and this has also contributed to the decision to discontinue the public service. Current economic conditions have accelerated this process, leading to today's announcement."
Originally known as Oracle, the service was first transmitted on ITV in 1974, with the BBC launching its own Ceefax in the same year. In 1993 Oracle closed and the franchise was awarded to Teletext Ltd.
News, music reviews and puzzles were some of the most popular offerings, leading to the business posting profits of £30 million, on revenues of £80 million, in its 1990s heyday.
Mike Stewart, the group managing director of Teletext, said that the service had been loss-making for three years after seeing its revenues halve since 2003. He said: "Usage may be half its peak but we still have 11 to 12 million viewers a week, and most internet businesses say you could make plenty of money with that. But we can't get the economics right.
"It's been a difficult transition from analogue to digital. We need five times the amount of digital spectrum just to match our analogue service. Given this is a service invented in the 1970s, Teletext has proved capable of developing a variety of services, but it is difficult to get away from the fact it was invented as long ago as then.
"We introduced services before the World Wide Web: fast text teasers, or hyperlinks, or banner ads. There is still a place for this sort of service, but it will evolve."
The company started talks with its 70 staff at its West London headquarters yesterday. The brand will live on through its profitable travel websites as well as the broadcast of Teletext Holidays on the Freeview platform.
The BBC, whose Ceefax attracts a weekly average of 5.5 million users, said that it will continue to provide analogue Ceefax until the digital switchover is completed.
A spokesman said: "However, as 90 per cent of the UK is already using digital television, the BBC Red Button service is now providing digital text services as an alternative to Ceefax.
"The service also provides 24-hour news and sports information and offers audiences enhanced video content around large events such as Wimbledon, Glastonbury and The Proms and is accessed by 10 million people each week."
[/b]
Times Online
At a time when the internet was nothing but a distant dream and pressing the red button just turned the television off, Teletext was the king of instant information.
But yesterday, 35 years after the service first flickered into life, it was announced that the news and information provider, one of the last technological bastions of the pre-internet age, will be closed prematurely.
Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the Daily Mail and a division of Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), had planned to close Teletext to coincide with the switchover to digital television in 2012. But the company said that the growth of the internet, as well as recent poor financial performance, had pulled the service into the red. Associated said that it would close Teletext two years ahead of schedule, in January, citing the poor economic climate and dismissal by Ofcom, the communications regulator, of the prospect of future state support for the venture.
The company said: "As anticipated, the continued fragmentation of television audiences and the growth in the use of the internet has resulted in a significant reduction in the audience and the volume of commercial activity generated by the television services.
RELATED LINKS
The digital future: the verdict
BBC overbudgets £250m for digital switchover
Carter paints his digital picture and signs off
"In addition, Ofcom has indicated that it is not persuaded of the need for public intervention in the delivery of a public commercial Teletext service beyond 2014 and this has also contributed to the decision to discontinue the public service. Current economic conditions have accelerated this process, leading to today's announcement."
Originally known as Oracle, the service was first transmitted on ITV in 1974, with the BBC launching its own Ceefax in the same year. In 1993 Oracle closed and the franchise was awarded to Teletext Ltd.
News, music reviews and puzzles were some of the most popular offerings, leading to the business posting profits of £30 million, on revenues of £80 million, in its 1990s heyday.
Mike Stewart, the group managing director of Teletext, said that the service had been loss-making for three years after seeing its revenues halve since 2003. He said: "Usage may be half its peak but we still have 11 to 12 million viewers a week, and most internet businesses say you could make plenty of money with that. But we can't get the economics right.
"It's been a difficult transition from analogue to digital. We need five times the amount of digital spectrum just to match our analogue service. Given this is a service invented in the 1970s, Teletext has proved capable of developing a variety of services, but it is difficult to get away from the fact it was invented as long ago as then.
"We introduced services before the World Wide Web: fast text teasers, or hyperlinks, or banner ads. There is still a place for this sort of service, but it will evolve."
The company started talks with its 70 staff at its West London headquarters yesterday. The brand will live on through its profitable travel websites as well as the broadcast of Teletext Holidays on the Freeview platform.
The BBC, whose Ceefax attracts a weekly average of 5.5 million users, said that it will continue to provide analogue Ceefax until the digital switchover is completed.
A spokesman said: "However, as 90 per cent of the UK is already using digital television, the BBC Red Button service is now providing digital text services as an alternative to Ceefax.
"The service also provides 24-hour news and sports information and offers audiences enhanced video content around large events such as Wimbledon, Glastonbury and The Proms and is accessed by 10 million people each week."
[/b]
#94
General discussion / Fickle football fans.........Maldini retires with jeers ringing in his ears
May 25, 2009, 08:46:47 PM
As the yanks would say.........Go figure.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2009/may/25/serieafootball-acmilan
Five European Cups, seven Scudetti, three intercontinental titles, five European Super Cups, and a Coppa Italia. Over the course of 25 years (30 if you include his apprenticeship), Paolo Maldini has helped Milan win everything there is to win. And then to do it all over again. Few have drawn such widespread admiration from team-mates and opponents alike. "Quite simply the best there is," was the description used by the Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero this week. Last month Sir Alex Ferguson named the defender as his "favourite" player on any team that he had managed against.
Sadly it seems that the only place such opinions are not shared is on San Siro's own curva sud. Yesterday Maldini made his 900th appearance for Milan, leading them out against Roma in his last match at San Siro and perhaps also his last anywhere. At the outset he was applauded by a capacity crowd, while Roma's players emerged from the tunnel in shirts carrying the slogan "Thanks Paolo, great captain". But by the end the voices of dissent had begun to make themselves heard.
"Thanks captain. On the pitch you were an undying champion but you had no respect for those who made you rich," read one of the banners prepared by Ultras. "For your 25 years of glorious service you have the thanks of those who you called mercenaries and misers," read another. If the message was not necessarily scathing, it was certainly pointed. Next came a giant Milan shirt bearing the number six and accompanied by the words "There is only one captain, [Franco] Baresi".
What was supposed to be a day of festivity quickly soured. Milan were beaten 3-2, and could yet lose third place to next weekend's opponents Fiorentina, but it was not for the result that Maldini left the pitch with a face like thunder. "I am proud to be nothing like them," he said of the supporters who had goaded him – a small minority, it must be said, but enough to make themselves heard – as he departed. Exactly 20 years earlier, on 24 May 1989, many of those same fans would have been praising Maldini as he collected his first European Cup winners' medal after a 4-0 trouncing of Steaua Bucharest.
Gazzetta dello Sport described the scene as surreal but to those unfamiliar with the finer points of Milan's recent history, it might even have seemed an outright shocking one. Maldini, after all, is everything a supporter could wish for – the longest-serving one-club man in history, talented but also a grafter and a man who only ever appears in the newspapers for the right reasons. Just about the only things known about his private life is that he is married to his sweetheart from his teenage years, Adriana Fossa, and that he owns over 100 pairs of jeans.
Nor does Maldini carry around any great sense of self-importance. Many commentators and pundits have lamented the fact that he never won a Ballon D'or, but the player himself has always shrugged and acknowledged that such awards usually go to forwards. His reaction to being named player of the year by World Soccer magazine in 1996 was one of faint bewilderment. Indeed, he actually named Baresi, Milan's captain at the time, in his acceptance speech as the one defender who truly did deserve such an accolade.
But the one thing that Maldini has never done is kowtow to fan opinion, and it is for this alone that a more selfish element resent him. When Milan supporters caused a game between the Rossoneri and Parma to be suspended for more than five minutes by throwing oranges and other objects on to the field during their miserable 1997–98 season, Maldini was publicly critical of their behaviour. After Milan won the league the following year, he retired quickly to the dressing room to celebrate with Alessandro Costacurta instead of staying out to thank the fans.
That was not the only occasion on which he refused to condone supporter protests, but the fact that such instances are remembered at all reflects only on the pettiness of such fans. Maldini has only ever been interested in winning, and if anything his objection to such actions is a reflection of his belief that they do nothing to help his team do exactly that.
Maldini wasn't the only one to come under attack at San Siro, however, and the fact that he did at all was undoubtedly also an indicator of the growing frustration among supporters about the general direction in which the club is currently moving. A far greater percentage of the critical banners on display at San Siro were aimed at Silvio Berlusconi rather than Maldini, as the club's owner was criticised for wasting his money on "cons and trading cards". It is no secret that Milan are in significant debt, and the fear that they will sell Kakà to Real Madrid this summer is palpable.
Such a departure would doubtless be a disaster for a side that have leaned heavily on the Brazilian this season. But not nearly as sad as seeing one of the greatest defenders of all-time leave the club he dedicated his entire career to with taunts and whistles in his ears.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2009/may/25/serieafootball-acmilan
Five European Cups, seven Scudetti, three intercontinental titles, five European Super Cups, and a Coppa Italia. Over the course of 25 years (30 if you include his apprenticeship), Paolo Maldini has helped Milan win everything there is to win. And then to do it all over again. Few have drawn such widespread admiration from team-mates and opponents alike. "Quite simply the best there is," was the description used by the Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero this week. Last month Sir Alex Ferguson named the defender as his "favourite" player on any team that he had managed against.
Sadly it seems that the only place such opinions are not shared is on San Siro's own curva sud. Yesterday Maldini made his 900th appearance for Milan, leading them out against Roma in his last match at San Siro and perhaps also his last anywhere. At the outset he was applauded by a capacity crowd, while Roma's players emerged from the tunnel in shirts carrying the slogan "Thanks Paolo, great captain". But by the end the voices of dissent had begun to make themselves heard.
"Thanks captain. On the pitch you were an undying champion but you had no respect for those who made you rich," read one of the banners prepared by Ultras. "For your 25 years of glorious service you have the thanks of those who you called mercenaries and misers," read another. If the message was not necessarily scathing, it was certainly pointed. Next came a giant Milan shirt bearing the number six and accompanied by the words "There is only one captain, [Franco] Baresi".
What was supposed to be a day of festivity quickly soured. Milan were beaten 3-2, and could yet lose third place to next weekend's opponents Fiorentina, but it was not for the result that Maldini left the pitch with a face like thunder. "I am proud to be nothing like them," he said of the supporters who had goaded him – a small minority, it must be said, but enough to make themselves heard – as he departed. Exactly 20 years earlier, on 24 May 1989, many of those same fans would have been praising Maldini as he collected his first European Cup winners' medal after a 4-0 trouncing of Steaua Bucharest.
Gazzetta dello Sport described the scene as surreal but to those unfamiliar with the finer points of Milan's recent history, it might even have seemed an outright shocking one. Maldini, after all, is everything a supporter could wish for – the longest-serving one-club man in history, talented but also a grafter and a man who only ever appears in the newspapers for the right reasons. Just about the only things known about his private life is that he is married to his sweetheart from his teenage years, Adriana Fossa, and that he owns over 100 pairs of jeans.
Nor does Maldini carry around any great sense of self-importance. Many commentators and pundits have lamented the fact that he never won a Ballon D'or, but the player himself has always shrugged and acknowledged that such awards usually go to forwards. His reaction to being named player of the year by World Soccer magazine in 1996 was one of faint bewilderment. Indeed, he actually named Baresi, Milan's captain at the time, in his acceptance speech as the one defender who truly did deserve such an accolade.
But the one thing that Maldini has never done is kowtow to fan opinion, and it is for this alone that a more selfish element resent him. When Milan supporters caused a game between the Rossoneri and Parma to be suspended for more than five minutes by throwing oranges and other objects on to the field during their miserable 1997–98 season, Maldini was publicly critical of their behaviour. After Milan won the league the following year, he retired quickly to the dressing room to celebrate with Alessandro Costacurta instead of staying out to thank the fans.
That was not the only occasion on which he refused to condone supporter protests, but the fact that such instances are remembered at all reflects only on the pettiness of such fans. Maldini has only ever been interested in winning, and if anything his objection to such actions is a reflection of his belief that they do nothing to help his team do exactly that.
Maldini wasn't the only one to come under attack at San Siro, however, and the fact that he did at all was undoubtedly also an indicator of the growing frustration among supporters about the general direction in which the club is currently moving. A far greater percentage of the critical banners on display at San Siro were aimed at Silvio Berlusconi rather than Maldini, as the club's owner was criticised for wasting his money on "cons and trading cards". It is no secret that Milan are in significant debt, and the fear that they will sell Kakà to Real Madrid this summer is palpable.
Such a departure would doubtless be a disaster for a side that have leaned heavily on the Brazilian this season. But not nearly as sad as seeing one of the greatest defenders of all-time leave the club he dedicated his entire career to with taunts and whistles in his ears.
#95
General discussion / Linfield/IFA™ Player arrested in Spain
May 19, 2009, 10:45:29 AM
Linfield captain William 'Winkie' Murphy has been arrested while on a stag trip to Spain, the football club has confirmed.
The 35-year-old defender was arrested in Torremolinos on Friday night.
In a statement, the south Belfast club said: "A number of Linfield players travelled to Spain at the weekend for what was a private trip.
"Whilst there, William Murphy was arrested and is currently being held by the Spanish authorities."
Two years ago, Murphy was arrested after being caught up in a fake cash scam while on another stag party on the Spanish island of Majorca.
The player returned to Northern Ireland after putting up bail and it is thought Friday's arrest may be connected to this.
The Linfield statement added: "Linfield players Stephen Douglas and Michael Gault have remained in Spain until William's parents arrive to offer support to their son.
"At this stage everyone connected with Linfield FC would send their best wishes to William and especially his wife Irene and two daughters at this most difficult time.
"Hopefully William will be home where he belongs in the near future
The 35-year-old defender was arrested in Torremolinos on Friday night.
In a statement, the south Belfast club said: "A number of Linfield players travelled to Spain at the weekend for what was a private trip.
"Whilst there, William Murphy was arrested and is currently being held by the Spanish authorities."
Two years ago, Murphy was arrested after being caught up in a fake cash scam while on another stag party on the Spanish island of Majorca.
The player returned to Northern Ireland after putting up bail and it is thought Friday's arrest may be connected to this.
The Linfield statement added: "Linfield players Stephen Douglas and Michael Gault have remained in Spain until William's parents arrive to offer support to their son.
"At this stage everyone connected with Linfield FC would send their best wishes to William and especially his wife Irene and two daughters at this most difficult time.
"Hopefully William will be home where he belongs in the near future
#96
General discussion / Toddler found alive after two days in the woods
May 08, 2009, 08:09:12 AM
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090507/ap_on_re_us/us_missouri_child_found
ARCADIA, Mo. – Thirsty, dirty and tired after spending two days and nights barely clothed in the wet, chilly woods of Mark Twain National Forest, 3-year-old Joshua Childers was ready to go home.
The boy was lying on the ground of a hollow near a creek bottom Wednesday afternoon when a volunteer searcher spied his bare bottom.
"Hey, bud!" called out Donnie Halpin, a 57-year-old construction worker from nearby Fredericktown, who wasn't sure whether the grimy figure was even alive.
But Joshua sat right up and grinned at his rescuer.
"You ready to go home?" Halpin asked.
"Yeah," said Joshua.
The boy was wet and only wearing a T-shirt and one tennis shoe. Halpin called 911, then wrapped the child in his shirt, scooped him up and carried him about a half-mile to a house.
"He hung on to me pretty tight," said Halpin, who didn't have any water for the child but gave him some candy. "Outside of a few scratches, he was in really good shape."
Joshua had slipped out of his family's mobile home near Arcadia in rural southeast Missouri around 11:30 a.m. Monday, while his father slept and his mother talked on the phone.
Terry Schulte, the boy's grandmother, told KSDK-TV that Joshua told her he was on his way to visit her. She lives about five miles from his home, and he was found covered in ticks about a half-mile away. Somewhere along the way he lost his pull-up diaper and one of his sneakers, which searchers found near a pond Monday.
Halpin discovered Joshua around 4 p.m. Wednesday while walking along an all-terrain vehicle trail about three miles from the boy's home, after first spotting some stray dogs sniffing at something.
"I'm going to put him up for the Grizzy Adams Award, send him bear-hunting with a stick," his overjoyed father, Adam Childers, told reporters, marveling at his son's survival skills.
"It's undescribable how grateful we are," Childers said. "I mean, you doubt if God's actually with you for awhile, and then something like this happens, and you know he's there."
Madison County Sheriff David Lewis said searchers had been growing increasingly pessimistic about their chances of finding Joshua alive. He figured three days was about the limit for the boy's survival in the wild without food and water.
"It's a miracle," Lewis said. "I'm so happy, you can't believe it."
Hundreds of volunteers from as far away as St. Louis, 100 miles to the northeast, came to help in the search. So did professional search and rescue crews from dozens of agencies. The Missouri State Highway Patrol brought in planes. The state Water Patrol brought in divers and sonar. Dozens of dogs, horses, ATVs and even donkeys scattered in the miles around the tiny home that sits along the wild, rocky terrain of the Mark Twain National Forest.
The area is home to bears, mountain lions and snakes. Heavy rain Tuesday night and Wednesday morning swelled creeks in the area.
"I don't know how he did it," Adam Childers said. "I don't know grown men that could do it. But all I can say is he's a tough little bugger."
Doctors have told him that his son is a little dehydrated but otherwise fine, Childers said. The child was evaluated and listed in fair condition, first at Iron County Hospital and later at Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Crystal City, where he was transferred because it has a larger pediatric unit.
The boy has been asking for milk and hot dogs since his rescue, Childers said.
#97
General discussion / Tricolour ban for Irish gymnasts
May 06, 2009, 01:33:05 PM
Beats having another saccer thread.....Gentlemen start your engines.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8035267.stm
A council row has broken out over the flying of the Irish flag at a gymnastics competition in Newry.
The Irish National Gymnastics Association tournament this weekend can play the Irish national anthem, but not fly the Irish flag, the council said.
Sinn Fein's Pat McGinn said councillors opposed to the move had "failed miserably" to promote tolerance.
UUP councillor Danny Kennedy said he did not want to see the council "naively used" by political elements.
Mr McGinn said, as a former mayor, he had attended events when the union flag was flown and the "British national anthem was played".
"It's sad that we have a national sporting championship and what we are doing is bringing it into a more complex row. We've turned it purely politically," he said.
Mr McGinn accused opponents of the proposal of referring to "foreigners" during the debate.
Danny Kennedy denied the remarks were made, and said the issue was a "pre-election stampede" by Sinn Fein.
"The Irish national anthem is not the anthem of this part of the UK. In my view it won't promote good relations," he said.
Ciaran Gallagher, head of the Irish National Gymnastics Association, said he was disappointed.
"It's an international sport, it does not have some of the social and political connotations that maybe other sports in Northern Ireland have," he said.
"This is the first time we have ever encountered it in our organisation in relation to one of our events so it's kind of confusing and upsetting."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8035267.stm
A council row has broken out over the flying of the Irish flag at a gymnastics competition in Newry.
The Irish National Gymnastics Association tournament this weekend can play the Irish national anthem, but not fly the Irish flag, the council said.
Sinn Fein's Pat McGinn said councillors opposed to the move had "failed miserably" to promote tolerance.
UUP councillor Danny Kennedy said he did not want to see the council "naively used" by political elements.
Mr McGinn said, as a former mayor, he had attended events when the union flag was flown and the "British national anthem was played".
"It's sad that we have a national sporting championship and what we are doing is bringing it into a more complex row. We've turned it purely politically," he said.
Mr McGinn accused opponents of the proposal of referring to "foreigners" during the debate.
Danny Kennedy denied the remarks were made, and said the issue was a "pre-election stampede" by Sinn Fein.
"The Irish national anthem is not the anthem of this part of the UK. In my view it won't promote good relations," he said.
Ciaran Gallagher, head of the Irish National Gymnastics Association, said he was disappointed.
"It's an international sport, it does not have some of the social and political connotations that maybe other sports in Northern Ireland have," he said.
"This is the first time we have ever encountered it in our organisation in relation to one of our events so it's kind of confusing and upsetting."
#98
General discussion / What a tackle..........
May 01, 2009, 08:55:46 PM #99
General discussion / Man breached "muscle squeeze" ban
April 29, 2009, 11:41:06 AM
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/8023559.stm
A 47-year-old man broke a ban on him approaching young men and touching their muscles, a court has heard.
Akinwale Arobieke, of Toxteth, Liverpool - known as "Purple Aki" - was jailed in 2003 for harassment.
Liverpool Crown Court heard Mr Arobieke asked a 17-year-old to show him his biceps - after a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (Sopo) was imposed.
Mr Arobieke denies approaching the boy and breaching the Sopo in June last year, two months after it was made.
The court heard Mr Arobieke had a "predilection" for approaching young men and touching or feeling their muscles.
His reputation had spread across north-west England and was considered by many to be an urban myth, the jury heard.
'Very frightened'
The prosecution said the Sopo was imposed in April last year and banned him from approaching males under the age of 18, touching their muscles and asking them to squat.
Trevor Parry Jones, prosecuting, said two months later Mr Arobieke approached a 17-year-old in the street in Birkenhead and asked to see his biceps.
When the teenager realised it was "Purple Aki", he ran away "very frightened and very shaken", Mr Parry Jones said.
Speaking from behind a curtain, the teenager said: "As I turned a corner I heard a sound behind me so I turned around and he was there.
"He said he had noticed me around the area and asked me had I been working out.
"He asked me how much I could bench (press)."
Allegation 'false'
The boy told the court that Mr Arobieke then pointed to his arms and asked to see the youngster's biceps.
The boy said: "As soon as I heard that I realised who it was. I backed away and told him I had to go.
"I felt sick and walked away as fast as I could. I went to a friend's house and looked back but he had gone."
The following month the youngster picked out Mr Arobieke in a video identity parade organised by police.
Mark Barlow, defending, told the jury that Mr Arobieke had once been convicted of the manslaughter of Gary Kelly, a distant relative of the victim, but the conviction was later quashed by the Court of Appeal.
Cross-examining the teenager, Mr Barlow said: "Your allegation is a false one, borne out of connection between Gary Kelly and your family and an opportunity to get back at Mr Arobieke."
The trial continues.
A 47-year-old man broke a ban on him approaching young men and touching their muscles, a court has heard.
Akinwale Arobieke, of Toxteth, Liverpool - known as "Purple Aki" - was jailed in 2003 for harassment.
Liverpool Crown Court heard Mr Arobieke asked a 17-year-old to show him his biceps - after a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (Sopo) was imposed.
Mr Arobieke denies approaching the boy and breaching the Sopo in June last year, two months after it was made.
The court heard Mr Arobieke had a "predilection" for approaching young men and touching or feeling their muscles.
His reputation had spread across north-west England and was considered by many to be an urban myth, the jury heard.
'Very frightened'
The prosecution said the Sopo was imposed in April last year and banned him from approaching males under the age of 18, touching their muscles and asking them to squat.
Trevor Parry Jones, prosecuting, said two months later Mr Arobieke approached a 17-year-old in the street in Birkenhead and asked to see his biceps.
When the teenager realised it was "Purple Aki", he ran away "very frightened and very shaken", Mr Parry Jones said.
Speaking from behind a curtain, the teenager said: "As I turned a corner I heard a sound behind me so I turned around and he was there.
"He said he had noticed me around the area and asked me had I been working out.
"He asked me how much I could bench (press)."
Allegation 'false'
The boy told the court that Mr Arobieke then pointed to his arms and asked to see the youngster's biceps.
The boy said: "As soon as I heard that I realised who it was. I backed away and told him I had to go.
"I felt sick and walked away as fast as I could. I went to a friend's house and looked back but he had gone."
The following month the youngster picked out Mr Arobieke in a video identity parade organised by police.
Mark Barlow, defending, told the jury that Mr Arobieke had once been convicted of the manslaughter of Gary Kelly, a distant relative of the victim, but the conviction was later quashed by the Court of Appeal.
Cross-examining the teenager, Mr Barlow said: "Your allegation is a false one, borne out of connection between Gary Kelly and your family and an opportunity to get back at Mr Arobieke."
The trial continues.
#100
General discussion / Spybot
April 20, 2009, 09:45:39 PM
My laptop has been running slowly lately so i have tried to run Spybot to see if there is anything needs terminated. About a quarter of the way through the scan it turns the laptop off. Any reason why it would do this?