PINK magazine editor Cynthia Good has managed to persuade Atlanta city council to part with $1,000 in order to change 50 ‘Men at Work’ signs. Public Works Commissioner Joe Basistatold FOXNews.com

“It seemed like the right thing to do”

City union leader Gina Pagnotta claimed female public workers had complained about the signs years ago.

“It is a little bit biased to say ‘Men Working’, Women are working, too.”

Herein lies another example of political correctness gone mad. For anyone to feel a ‘Men at Work’ sign bears any kind of significance and to take offense to it, flies in the face of good sense. I have always considered the term man to be synonymous with human. I can imagine a feminist reading that will be baying for blood but frankly these people need to get a grip. This is not one more small victory in the endless struggle for gender equality, it’s weak minded pettiness that has been pandered too by politicians afraid to stir up a group of voters.

I would much rather the Atlanta city council put the money towards something worthwhile like helping victims of domestic violence. Moreover, I would much rather Cynthia Good spent her time campaigning for something worthwhile like equal pay for women.

In short: I wish people would get a grip of what’s important and stop wasting time and money.

Last year Oscar Pistorius was refused clearance by the IAAF to compete in the 2008 Olympics. This was one of the very few triumphs of common sense last year. However, roll on 2008 and on the 16^th of May the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned this ruling. One can only assume they were overcome by a heart-warming story and the burning desire for an 80s Montage Moment.

I am finding it difficult to put into words how angry this makes me. Athletics should be a pure sport in which the worlds best athletes push their bodies and minds to the limit. It should not be a school sports day where the fat kid gets a head start and there are no real losers. I may come across as crass and cruel but it’s what I believe to be right. This is a slippery slope: What happens is Oscar fancies taking up swimming? Can he detach his blades and strap on some flippers?

I have said it before and I’ll say it again. He is clearly an amazing bloke and should be very proud of what he has achieved but I don’t see the logic of giving someone a leg-up on the competition because they are at a disadvantage. This is a contest between the very best athletes in the world and if you aren’t good enough then I don’t care why you’re not good enough. You just aren’t.

I will concede that there are many complexities with regards to athletics and the rules of competition and I agree it’s tough to figure out where the line is to be drawn on technological advancements. Where do supplements become drugs? Where do advanced training shoes become unfair aids.

I don’t know the answer to those questions but I do know this: whatever is allowed for one should be allowed for all, so unless the CAS wish to see all runners going round the track wearing carbon fibre stilts I think they should take a long look at this decision and their need for an engineered fairy tale.

They have effectively taken away the level playing field that makes sport possible. To quote Arthur Caplan:

“He may not have a marked advantage, but his artificial limbs make him too different from those he competes against, and too unlike those who have raced before. It’s not about giving him an opportunity. The issue is that Pistorius risks destroying exactly what he wants to do — compete in a sport.”

- Arthur Caplan, Ph.D., is director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania.

Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War
Adopted on 12 August 1949 by the Diplomatic Conference for the Establishment of
International Conventions for the Protection of Victims of War, held in Geneva
from 21 April to 12 August, 1949
entry into force 21 October 1950

Part II
Article 13

Prisoners of war must at all times be humanely treated. Any unlawful act or omission by the Detaining Power causing death or seriously endangering the health of a prisoner of war in its custody is prohibited, and will be regarded as a serious breach of the present Convention. In particular, no prisoner of war may be subjected to physical mutilation or to medical or scientific experiments of any kind which are not justified by the medical, dental or hospital treatment of the prisoner concerned and carried out in his interest.

Likewise, prisoners of war must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity.

Measures of reprisal against prisoners of war are prohibited.
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Here is your good news story for the day… I think… sort of.

 

An 80 year old man continually called his wife’s mobile phone after her death in 2005 so that he could hear her voice. However, after a system upgrade by Verizon, the voice mail message was lost.

Charles Whiting was distraught, “Now they took her voice away”.

Here comes the good part: Verizon managed to restore the message from a backup archive so Mr Whiting can once again hear his late wife’s voice everyday.

“I’m glad they rescued it,” Whiting said. “I’m very happy.”

Well done Verizon and hooray for backups!

photograph by valerio lo bello

Amongst the farce that was the Heathrow Terminal 5 opening there is a story about a dance musician that lost his laptop.

Calvin Harris was returning from America when his laptop bag went missing. What makes this especially troublesome for Calvin is that said laptop contains the only copy of his new album… Ooops.

This is what a Columbia Records Spokeswoman had to say on the matter:

“He has lost the only copy of the new album.”

“It is a big cause for concern - months of work have gone into that.”

“They have offered about £750 in compensation.”

“You can’t really put a price on something like a new record.”

Yes you can love, my friend that works at HMV does it several times a day.

I’m amazed at how stupid this guy is. I know if I had worked on a project for 7 months I would have more than one copy of it, especially if I was carrying it around the world with me.

I appricate that the pople in charge of the Terminal 5 opening couldn’t organise a pissup in a Brewery. However, for this guy to be pining for compensation based on lost data seems crazy. You have been compensated for the loss of your physical items, anything else that you cannot retrieve is down to you being a moron.

I guess what you really can’t put a price on, is good sense.