Beyond Beasts - Taliban Nazis....

HORRIBLE!

BUT THE LARGER QUESTION IS WHAT KIND OF SOCIETY AND BELIEF SYSTEM FACILITATES THE PRODUCTION OF SUCH MONSTERS?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1285508/Taliban-execute-boy-seven-accused-spy.html

New evidence that Britain is "down at the heels"...

How bloody daft can the gvmnt get?

http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/fashion/uk-teens-taught-to-wear-high-heels-20100609-xwjg.html

La Belle Montreal or The Democratization of Beauty

Random Musings: About a week ago business took me to Montreal. One of things I always notice is the pretty universal prevalence of beauty and grace among its female denizens.

Yes, I have reached that stage in life where one can appreciate feminine pulchritude as one appreciates any other beautiful natural vista - with no self imposed internal obligation to make a fool of oneself

Let me explain: New York, London, Paris, Sheffield, Birmingham (Alabama), Athens and Mexico City all have many exceedingly beautiful women. They are not the norm ,though, and it is clear that they know in a self-conscious way that they are beautiful.

In Montreal almost every female of just about any age you see is beautiful, graceful, and stylish in a perfectly natural way - it just is, rather than being contrived -hence the "democratization" of beauty both in its ubiquity and depth and its normative state

By way of example: I am stuck behind a garbage truck on a one-lane road. The rider who dumps the rubbish bags into the back of the lorry was a (strong but willowy) young woman who tossed the heavy garbage bags in with ballet-like grace. Her hair was neat, and the sanitation department dungarees and shirt fit her as they had been cut for her at some haute-couture joint.

Which brings me to another point, unlike the LA style of in-your-face undress clamoring for attention, the Montrealers pull off the whole thing with the way they wear clothing, not the utter lack thereof

Besides, Montreal is an incredibly beautiful city with great food, nightlife and interesting shops.

Tea tames troubles

So you know how everyone makes fun of fact that the classic British response to everything from a tough day at work to bereavement to terrorist bombings is a "cuppa".

Well it turns out in research done half a decade ago that black tea actually enhances the the brains ability to recover from stressful situations and ameliorate many of the negative physical effects of that stress.
See here:
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/media/library/tea

Now, my only problem is that the typical American tea available at your local supermarket is as bad as American beer...