Author: Stilgherrian

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Episode 45 is online, Peter Costello!

Screenshot of Stilgherrian Live episode 45, showing Pong playing with his hair

Episode 45 of Stilgherrian Live, the Fame Edition, is now online for your viewing pleasure.

I was surprised that the Swine Flu Panic didn’t win “Cnut of the Week”. T’was only second place (28%). Jim Carrey (for suggesting vaccines are the real worry — yes, when I want advice on epidemiology I’ll ask an actor) was equal third place (20%) with cockroaches who refuse to die when confronted with a veritable tidal wave of insecticide.

Does than mean Jim Carrey is a cockroach? That’s a shame. It means I can’t poison him.

Photograph of Peter Costello as Cnut of the Week

Our winner, on 32% of the vote, was Peter Costello, who still refuses to shut the fuck up about… well, I just wish he’d shut up full stop. Go away, Peter.

The program also contained an unusual use for a cocktail shaker. It has to be seen to be believed. Although that may be over-selling it.

Congratulations to Jason Appleby, who won a t-shirt for his efforts at nominating the Swine Flu Panic, thanks to our new friends at King Cnut Ethical Clothing.

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Episode 45! Cnuts! Prize! Exclamation marks!

Photograph of King Cnut t-shirt reading: U R A CNUT®

It’s Thursday. There will be a Stilgherrian Live tonight. Nominations are now open for “Cnut of the Week”. And there’s a prize!

Please remember the rules. For “Cnut of the Week”, we’re looking for people, organisations or other entities who are futilely trying to hold back the tide of change. It has to be something in the news in the last week, and you have to explain yourself.

Nominees have to be not merely doing bad things, but failing to notice or adapt to the change around them.

And did I mention the prize? Everyone who nominates and leaves a valid email address goes into the draw for a free t-shirt of their choice from our new friends at King Cnut Ethical Clothing.

(Of course, neither they nor us are as lame and unethical as to share your email address with anyone else. I for one have site policies about this sort of thing, and so do they.)

Cnut of the Week graphic

Nominations for “Cnut of the Week” are open until 8.30pm Sydney time, and you must nominate at the website to be eligible.

Then at 8.30pm you should be watching Nick Hodge‘s program @NickHodge before Stilgherrian Live starts at 9.30pm.

Who do you nominate, and why?

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No, we are not the same, Snarky Platypus!

Photographs of fictional Ja'mie King and Stilgherrian

On the right is perhaps one of the best photos of me ever, taken by @funkycoda on Saturday and posted by Miss Wired. Snarky Platypus reckons I look like Ja’mie King, that’s “her” on the left. Ahem.

Now I’m not that sure that I like this comparison. However Courtney Gibson says, “Ja’mie is a beautiful and sweet-natured Australian girl in the first flush of womanhood — at least u can feel flattered.”

Should I be flattered? Really?

[Update 28 April 2009: Edited to correctly credit the photo.]

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This is just to say…

I am, of course, the third-last person on the entire planet to listen to This American Life, the US public radio program presented by Ira Glass. But now I have. And in doing so, I stumbled across some amusing poetry.

The poems are based on an original by William Carlos Williams, called This Is Just To Say. In an episode of This American Life entitled Mistakes Were Made, program contributors created their own versions.

My favourite is the trio by Shalom Auslander:

1
I’m sorry you’re overweight
And drinking
And feeling like everything
In your life
Is doomed to failure
But this is probably why
Mom said
I was her favorite

2
It sucks, little doe
That I hit you
with my car

But at least
You weren’t alive
To watch the hunters
Shoot your children

3
He was a troublemaker, okay
And didn’t know when
To shut up

Still
We never would have killed him
If we’d known he was the Lord

There’s not much poetry here. Should there be more?