Do you remember when Kerry the Crazy Marvin Tard posted 4 days before Kevin’s birthday and got TheCommitted.net forum members enraged? We-ell, they weren’t angry for no reason. Kerry had a reputation of stirring shit up on that website.

An entire MONTH before the anniversary of when Mark and Kevin started fucking on an officially committed basis, Kerry decided to post a thread to celebrate it. Yes, Nicky & Georgina’s WEDDING anniversary and Shane & Gillian’s WEDDING anniversary are only commemorated on the date, but Mark and Kevin need a whole month. Why? Because they’re gay, obviously!

at the end of this month Mark and Kevin celebrate 4 years together so i thought it wud be nice to have a topic to say congratulations

i made a video to celebrate the anniversery ….. but ive removed it from this topic as a few vile witches haave turned it into a vile horrible topic

anyone who wants to see the video is welcome to pm me ….

No need to PM her, this is the vile video. Not entirely fascinating, is it?

When forum admin Susan asked Kerry whether she thought it might be a little early, the reply came…

well they got together in january 2005 and it is now january 2008 so it is the month of their anniversery so as it is i thought it wud be nice to have a topic for people to leave messages this month

as we dont know the correct date … just that its sometime at the end of the month …i thought a topic for this month would be nice

btw susan i thought you were a mark fan … you could say congratulations .

So yes, they need the whole month and Susan is clearly not much of a Mark fan if she doesn’t congratulate him for having a steady fuck partner for 4 years. Congratulations, Mark.

its not early its their anniversery month! so therefore i think they deserve congratulations for the whole month as we dont know the exact date and if i wanted to i cud say im actually late because they met before january 2005 but mark says january so thats why i have opened the topic

i want to congratulate an amazzzing couple who love each other more than anything on 4 years of love and 4 years of joy theyve brought alot of us seeing them so happy ………. is that so wrong!!!!

what is the problem ………SERIOUSLY

Oh so you’re actually LATE. Bad fan, Kerry. Bad, bad fan.

One member made the following comment:

Some people think they own certain members, couples or families within the Westlife sphere, they have to be first in line and have the last word.

A week or less in advance seems more than adequate for people to congratulate them. As for the correct date, if they’ve celebrated on the 28th every year then in their minds that’s their anniversary – How is it any of our business if they’re off by a couple of days? It’s the enjoyment of the day and them being happy that matters.

Very nice video btw, and great choice of song.

So naturally Kerry’s response was to attack her.

jodi ice and yay for gay … why do u have to be so bitter? ….
this is a NICE TOPIC to say CONGRATULATIONS to a WONDERFUL COUPLE im sure mark and kevin dont mind its a little early their anniversery is this month and id made the video to celebrate and i wanted to make a topic to celebrate and to remind people this important date was coming up …. so does it really matter?

and as for thinking i own mark and kevin which yay for gay insinuated … no i dont … and i dont think i do either … i am just a fan of them both and i am entitled to post a topic congratulating them if u have a problem keep out the topic … dnt turn it into a slanging match …. its for people to say nice things and congratulate mark and kevin

and jodi ice yes i put the video in because it is to do with their anniversery … u seem to think ive nothing better to do than do what you tell me not to … when this is not the case … i thought it was better to post the video and not photos … just because its my way of celebrating … some people make blends some will put messages n some may put poems whatever or make sigs i made a video to commemerate their anniversery is that such a bad thing

now i suggest u both back off and leave me alone and leave this topic for what it is supposed to be for thankyou! …… it is not the place for personal grievances thats why theres a facility for pms on this forum … use it rather than a topic set up for nice things to be said about mark and kevin … thankyou!

Lets see, first of all, IT’S AN IMPORTANT DATE! People must remember! Also, what’s wrong with making an anniversary video? Maybe the fact you invest so much time in making countless of pointless videos for a couple of strangers that will probably find this to be a slightly disturbing behaviour.

ok as i asked before if u have a personal grievance towards me pm ME! do not and i repeat do not post ur personal problems in this topic … and turn it into a nasty slanging match

i set up this topic to congratulate mark and kevin a couple i happen to think are amazing and make me smile and i just wanted to congratulate them n who gives a fuck if its early im sure if i said to mark today happy anniversery hed not go its too early fuck off! … hed be like oh thankyou … because it is not when you say something but the sentiement and thought … is that a bad thing?
i thought caring and wanting to celebrate 2 human beings love for each other was a wonderful thing … and to be honest this is the only forum ive been on where there isnt a perminant topic for mark and kevin together …where people can post photos and hold discussions and congratulate them without abuse
its like if i wanted to have a topic congratulating them on reaching 3 years and 2 weeks i could …

and i resent being called a .com type … for your information i hardly post on .com … and i am a 28 year old woman with a degree so i resent the implications of that statement …
and in this topic noone has disagreed with what you have said but just pointed out that i am able to post a topic even if its early and for your information it is probably late actually seeing as i saw kevin in november 2004 at marks hotel being picked up by marks driver and with marks case … but as mark says this month then this month it is …. and as long as they are very happy for many years to come then thats all that matters …..

now if u have any issues with me id thank you to pm me … and not clutter up this nice topic with negative comments thankyou! …

and can we get back to congratulating mark and kevin ….and saying wonderfull things about a wonderful couple ….

theres enough war in the world without people who are on the same side being at war … we all support westlife we all love mark and kevin so lets all get on …yeh?

So you’re a 28 year old woman (29 by now, it’s been almost a year since) with a degree (you’ll hear LOADS more about Kerry’s wonderful degree) and yet you stalk a guy to a degree that you know who his driver is, what hotel he’s staying at, what his suitcase looks like and you go and spread all of that on an online forum and this doesn’t seem wrong or an invasion of privacy for you. Right then!

Vix, .com moderator, replied to the topic with the following.

I just don’t get why Mark and Kevin ‘need’ this constant affirmation of what a lovely couple they are and why everything about them shows how in love they are… they’ve proved that and to have to celebrate every photo and almost every date on their calendar etc says more about the fans than their relationship. To me they’re a couple, they’re happy and probably don’t give a damn what anyone else thinks. I’d congratulate them tomorrow if I saw them on the street but to post Youtube links to videos they’ll (more than likely) never see just seems a bit silly -each to their own though!

Well DOH, that’s what I’ve been saying.

the comment about comminisism was what is called a metephor …. i was saying we live in a free state and i can post about what i want and so can you as long as its not abusive to anyone or cluttering up the boards i mean i cud understand if u closed the topic and moved my vid there but u didnt …. i wasnt meaning anytthing nasty or vindictive by it … and if offended you then i am sorry i was mearly trying to make a point about free speech as long as u arnt offending anyone ….

but i wont be accused of what i havent done and i havent been vindictive to anyone …..

you are a group of bullies! …. bullies bullies bullies bullies and 3 people have posted in here to think so we cant all be wrong! ……

and as i said post all my pms on here

Remember Kerry’s degree? Well, it’s an English degree. With that in mind. “comminisism” = communism (yes, she called the members of TheCommitted.net communists in a PM she sent to one of the moderators), “metephor” = metaphor and “mearly” = merely. And let us not discuss the bad sentence structure, the refusal to use a full stop and replacing it with 3 dots, and the lazy short spelling of words that were not very long to begin with.
Also, can you see how Kerry’s “metaphor” comes back to bite her in the ass? It’s a free state with free speech and you can say whatever you want AS LONG AS YOU DON’T OFFEND anyone, but what do you call accusing someone of being a communist?

why shudnt mark and kevin have a topic to celebrate their love for each other …. they adore each other just like shane and gill and nicky and gina and kian and jodi … so why shouldnt there be congratulation topics for mark and kevin reaching their 4th anniversery … no they wont see it but people like to say congratulations is that so bad?
their move should be celebrated too i mean we live in a world were homosexuality isnt accepted 100% in society … yet they are openly happily in love … that should be celebrated and not hidden which you seem to be suggesting …. when love is love and it should be celebrated …. so they should have a topic just like the others …. they are madly in love and one of the loveliest couples around n in a world were we see alot of fake celeb couples its nice to see 2 people so genuinly ant totally in love and they have been for 4 years and thats what this topic was about

I’m sure Mark and Kevin would just LOVE the massive spotlight you just placed on them.

oh and for your information i dont follow them around i leave the stalking to lucy and janine … and others whove moved to sligo etc thats followin em around ….

This is actually hilarious coming from someone who knows how Mark’s driver looks like, what hotel he’s staying at and what his SUITCASE looks like, and who went all the way to Sligo to hand-deliver a birthday card for Mark.

can i just say i see the lads on tour and during promo thats it …

unlike certain people i dont chase members across cities in cars i dont follow their tour buses in my car i dont go and stand outside their private homes …. and i dont take photos of members doing their christmas shopping and i dont move to sligo just to stalk them … that is stalking

i have a thing called RESPECT something you all lack on here … respect is where you dont gang up on someone … you dont use their topics for personal grievences …. FFS theres more important things in the world than wether ive posted a topic early or not its the sentiment that i wanted to congratulate mark and kevin … just as shane and gillan and nicky and gina are congratulated tooo …..

but i tell you one thing …. theyd be ashamed to have fans like you lot! the way you treat people … your attitudes the way you think your something special well can i tell you one thing
your fuck all … in fact your worse than that because of yout attitude to others your the lowest of the low …

Liar, liar, pants on fire! Vix the mod provides some insight on that (as she’s just as big of a stalker as Kerry is).

Respect – why do I pee myself laughing? Staying outside the lads’s hotel in Dublin and seeing Kevin each day ( to comment on) isn’t respect

“Their topics” – Did Mark or Kevin actually start them?

You forget one thing – I have seen you… seen you slide in front of fans saying “my friend hasnt met them”

Seen Mark saying “I’ve had photos with you before” then storming off! (I believe that was Newcastle 2007)

You don’t like the people on here -fine – your choice – you dont have to post

Some people make me ashamed to have been a Westlife fan

This was the opening shot of my favorite type of stalker behavior – accusing one another with who is the biggest stalker. Kerry fights back.

if u want to get into a slangin match uve got one

for your information my hotel bewleys … happened to be on the same rd as where the lads hotel was …. and i saw kevin more when i wasnt actually near the hotel he happened to be driving down the rd n saw us smiled and waved ……

i have never pushed in front of anyone i dont do pushing i mean im 5ft id not get far pushin past you would i love! … and i seem to remember my mate Heather coming over from usa from south dakota and you pushin your mate in front of her to kian coz it was her birthday and i just said hey shes come 15 hours on a plane from america can she just get a photo! …. and you moaned despite ur mate meetin them loads …
id never say someone hadnt met them when they had what would the point be lol plus if they have met em theyl ask themselves lol …. its only those that havent that get nervous asking …. or are u 2 senile to remember your first time! …

and how dare you bring up about newcastle … YOU WERE NOT THERE so you cannot judge and for your information mark snapped at EVERYONE That day he was in a very bad mood … so everyone got it ….
so dont try and make out he hates me! …
at newcastle my mate Donna a massive kian fan came to you knowing u are also a kian fan to ask had kian gone and you told her he had but he hadnt and you knew he hadnt despite telling her he had .. shel verify it and that was the only time shed gone to meet him … now thats what i call cruel! …

and what about running through an airport at kian shouting him and him running off the min he saw you! hahahahahaha … and put it this ive not been called a nutjob and neither have my mates ….

and as this topic is aboit them it is their topic … see its not about me you seem to think everything is about you

you wanted war … yove got it! … thing is u also forget ive seen you … and i know you

Ooooh, harsh. Vix fights back. Wooo! Can I have some popcorn here?

You don’t know me at all Kerry – or you wouldn’t post the shit you have done and carry on calling me “bitter and twisted” “a vile excuse for a person” and blatently hinting I’m homophobic and you’d better have a good lawyer because whilst I’ve listed things you’ve done I haven’t called you names and thats a whole different ball game!

I have always been honest with myself and everyone else what I’ve done regarding the lads which is why I’ll correct you on the points you have got wrong

We were there first in Nottingham and I was the one to ask Kian for the photo for my friend – yes she’d met him but ever had a photo and had been pushed out everywhere – his exact words to me were ‘If I have one with your friend I’ll have to have one with everyone’ and I replied ‘I know but will you anyway please?’ and so he stopped.

Kian’s never run from me (mind you I don’t do running, shouting etc because I don’t particularly like the attention it brings) I’m not saying he’s never said no because he has but he’s never felt the need to snap or avoid me. In fact I’m known for saying ‘I’ll be right behind you’ to my friends as whilst I love to meet people I idolise I do feel a little self conscious

I have never told anyone any of the lads have gone when they haven’t. I actually try to avoid speaking to people I don’t know and the final thing… I WAS there in Newcastle – OK I didn’t have my nose pressed against the door, I was stood back because I was only there to give Kian a letter from someone and I didn’t want anything and I and one of my friends saw every thing and quite frankly I thought Mark’s attitude was shocking but thats another issue

Yes you have seen me (obviously not as much as I’ve seen you if you didn’t notice me in Newcastle that year) but that doesn’t bother me one bit because I’m honest with myself and others about what I was like and what I have done in front of the lads so carry on. In fact whilst I’m at work today I’ll think of some moments I’m not altogether proud of myself and post them myself

Jodi-the-mod chimes in with her own story.

Hang on a minute..

I’m having a severe flashback of a loudmouth group of girls yelling about one of them being from america and having flown on a plane just to see them so needing a photo with mark in nottingham, i think it was 2004. At the hotel.
He was trying to sneak out the back quietly after the other lads had already gone and it was dark, he was obviously trying to avoid the fans so we just stood on the corner and watched from a distance…and they kept shouting at him and he kept saying no, but they kept on at him until he basically had no chance and told her to go quickly so that he could get to the concert so she stood next to him while he was half in the car.

I remember we stood there in shock, it was the first time we’d come across fans that were so rude…

It took you 5 years to encounter rude fans? Wow.

Vix comes back with another essay.

I think its stories like that that have influenced my decision not to do it anymore. I’ll hold my hand up to the fact that I followed them all over, wasted hours of my life waiting around for them etc and used to spend most of it watching – but as I put on my Bebo ‘following a boyband can be classed as a bloodsport’ And there comes a point when you think ‘Its just not worth it for what I enjoy about it’

I want to apologise for being a major catalyst in the whole explosion though, and especially for people like Diane and Dawn being dragged into what should have stayed between myself and Kerry. Diane doesnt deserve to have the memory of her first photo with Kian spoken about like that and as for Dawn – well I know who spent most of the last tour camped outside the lads’ hotels and it wasn’t Dawn – she was generally looking after her drunken, partying friends and the one time she did go to the hotel she had it ruined by a pap. On reflection I should just have let the crap continue but there is only so long you can take ‘I don’t follow them’ etc crap when its blatently obvious from all that is posted that the person does and I just flipped – not proud of myself but I don’t regret it – whatever I get called because I obviously touched a nerve

I did sit at work thinking of things I’ve done with the lads I’m less than proud of and I think waiting hours outside hotels, being made fun of by the staff, being lied to and generally made to look desperate is a major one, along with sitting in the bar waiting for them to come back because at the end of the day its their time and though barring the first time I ever met them I never asked for anything in that situation, they’re still aware of why you’re there

I’ve loved 99% of being a Westlife fan – I have made the best friends who I see away from Westlife (I don’t get the people who want the lads to come back so they can meet up with their mates – why not do it now?) And I’ve loved meeting the lads but then there is only so much any one person can have and I have never got the people who have to be there every day, ask for photos every time they see them – even if its 5 times in a week – the photos look the same and it all loses anything ’special’ it had. I hate the bitchiness, the atmosphere that comes from people all scared that someone else is getting something they’re not, the need to count, log and list every meeting. I’ve said this on .com – at some point it will nothing to anyone apart from the people involved. You’re not a hero because you’ve met the lads and had a photo or been witness to some fragment of their private life, you’re just a fan who might be deemed to be luckier than some who will never get that chance!

I always said when it stopped being fun I’d stop and I have done – and the thing is once you step away from it a little you really see what it is like and there are two sides to it

Sorry for the essay (hope the grammar’s adequate as I only have an A level in Literature )

Boy that was long. But wait till you see Kerry’s next post!

how dare YOU have ago at my mates its fine to have a go at me as you obviously have some kind of problem with me … but to have ago at someone who lives thousands of miles away and cannot defend herself and whom you do not know ….
Heather came over to see westlife it was her only chance to come over and see them … and she is one of the loveliest most polite people you could ever meet … and this trip was her one and only chance her husband you see is in the US ARMY and was due to be posted in IRAQ within a few months so while she had the chance to have a trip and see her friends and see her favorite band live she did … and the day in nottingham was her very last day in the UK … she was flying home at 5am the following morning it was her last and only chance … and i couldnt let her fly 15 hours on a plane from south dakota and only meet 3 and not her favorite when i had the chance to help her
and all we did was shout over to him and explain shedcome to see him n he was like WHAT!!!! ok she can have a photo .. and was more than happy to oblige … and we wernt rude and can i point out that if you as you say saw it all then you too ran round the back to where mark was as there was no way you could see us or him without running round to him … and he didnt want to avoid fans … he was just running very late in fact til his driver shouted him back hecame walking to us … and it made heathers year she still adores mark … she travelled back home happy her dream had come true and im glad she got to meet him because she wasnt able to come back again because her husband went to iraq the year after and then the year before last they moved to another base in Montana so she hasnt been able to come back maybe one day but at least she had her dream come true
so dont dare have a go at her or call her rude or any of us … but certainly not someone whos not here to defend themselves .. and who you do not know …

and as for my BA HOUNOURS DEGREE I worked for 3 years to get that degree … intelligence isnt mesured by spelling or grammar either i thought people who work in education would know and i also thought people who are old enough to know better would know
plus theres this thing called spell check that is avaiable for essays and dissertation … i did a 10,000 word dissertation on The Shakespearian Marriage covering Othello Romeo and Juliet and The Winters Tale …so i dont think anyone should belittle anyones hard work to get a degree especially someone who is borderline dyslexic and is dyspraxic meaning sometimes my typing is clumbsy as it effects coordination so sometimes il miss a key or something and might not notice … and the dyslexia means i have trouble spelling … my reading is perfectly fine but sentances and spelling i have trouble with although i did my degree without much assistance … which i am proud of … so when someone achieves a degree it is a fantastic achievment a culmination of 3 years hard work and noone but noone should ever belittle the achievement or question it …

Alright lets get some things straight, dyslexia is a learning disability. It is in no way affecting the way you type on a forum. Dyslexia is difficulty with READING, not writing. I also love how she uses brain development disorders to excuse the fact she’s lazy when typing.

In regards to Vix’s threats and suggestions that Kerry should get a lawler, she respondes…

why the hell do i need a lawyer? ….

and as for marks attitude isnt he permitted to have a bad day? …. unlike kian where its the good days that are shocking!!! … i mean hes the one ive had a list of taxi drivers tell me is a prick both in dublin and sligo! … i mean i dnt hate kian or adore him but im honest about what hes like and i can see where theyd get that from! … but 99% of the time mark is a lovely man .. the fact can say in 10 years thats the one bad day .. and he still tried to have photos …. unlike kian the same day who was dragging prince almost through mid air … and stormed on the back of the bus avoiding everyone including you … so pot callin kettle black! … we get it you dont like mark at all … well your very quick to criticise him or kevin! it seems

and can i just say in regards to watching me isnt that a bit creepy and it is a form of harrassment to say you are watching someone who has done nothing wrong and to hint you would ban me on there

can i just say you are a moderator and it is the admin that ban people not mods ….

And it’s not creepy following a bunch of strangers around just because they’re in a boyband, including going to their hometowns (Kerry lives in neither Dublin nor Sligo, I can tell you that. And while you can excuse going to Dublin, why the fuck would ANYONE go to that God foresaken town Sligo if it wasn’t because of Westlife?), and having conversations with VARIOUS taxi drivers about said strangers. That’s not creepy at all.

Jodi-the-mod has a different version of Kerry’s American-friend-with-soldier-husband story.

All i know is we heard loads of shouting so followed the noise but kept well back and right at the top by the corner. I know what i saw and heard and what my mates saw and heard, however you interpreted it is your problem. I stick by what i said i was shocked by the rudeness. Mark wasnt happy to oblige, he was pissed off and exasperated. He was trying to avoid fans, very obviously trying to as well. Her husband going to iraq has nothing to do with her attitude to a pop star. I’m not having a go at anyone, i am stating what i saw and how i felt. It is the truth.

But Kerry likes to lie and twist things and view things as she sees fit, so this is no surprise to me that someone else’s version of events is vastly different.

So, remember Vix told Kerry she’d better have a lawler at hand, well, she’s pretty sure she has a case there. Good luck, Vix.

Why would you need a lawyer? Well you’ve gone out and called me actual and pretty nasty names ‘vile excuse for a person’ is one linked with my name and what’s written on a messageboard is just the same as saying it – there was a very interesting court case in our area a couple of years about with some grown men who’d been taken to court for what they called people on a messageboard

Not entirely convinced calling someone names can justify wasting the time of a court of law but maybe things work differently in England. They’re terribly bored there.

But back to Kerry. The thread went on with Kerry and Vix setting up to meet at a Boyzone concert 5 months away and continued their lovely exchange of accusations, including an accusation that Kerry is… A KEYBOARD WARRIOR! Gasp. What will our girl say to this?

and as for keyboard warrier …… thats somethin im not il say what i have to say to peoples faces aswell as on here …..if its deserved il say it … thats all

and you probably dont no anyone who wont post on here because its all your mates throwing the abuse around and acting like idiots!

it is bullying and disgraceful . adults acting like 4 year olds! ….. and thinking they can gang up on someone ….

maybe its the menopause that sends you all funny loooool no idea lol too young for that lol …

Cruel, Kerry. Cruel. Just because they’re cougars and you’re a tard doesn’t mean YOU won’t be going through this funny age where you will be old enough to have given birth to the boybanders you will stalk.

Kerry continues over-sharing.

another time was in liverpool on tour and you and your mates glared at me and the only time i walked past you was to go to pee! .. and i dnt think i have to look you in the eye when i go to pee …

Thanks for that. I needed that. She then got upset with someone who quite rightly suggested she bought her degree (I’m suspecting that too, either that or anyone can get a degree nowadays).

why should i apologise to someone who said that id bought my degree! ….that is a vile thing to say to anyone and the other stuff u have said in this topic you joined in and said stuff that had me almost in tears … a grown woman old enough to have had the menopause as you said …. should not be saying nasty things on the internet to someone half her age! …. and someone who she does not know nor has she taken any time to get to know … and you cant go off what someone posts on a message boards … try actually talking to me and finding out about me from me … you may actually be surprised

Hey, they say you should respect people who are older than you. Well, Kerry, you’re not doing that so why do you expect anyone to respect you back?

when i said dont come in my topics or talk to me i was being an adult
think if you are at work and theirs a person you dont like at all … and you dont get on with and never agree with do you go over and start a conversation? no do you go where there gonna be if avoidable … do you email them no you avoid thme because you know itl only annoy you and cause trouble so i was mearly suggesting that if you and those with a problem with me kept out of my topics and didnt speak to me and avoided me there wouldnt be any problem … we wouldnt have to converse with each other in other words there would be no written interaction …. or communication …. then everyone could live in peace had harmony! … now is that not a sensible suggestion?

Yes, very sensible, Kerry. Or, you can stop shit-stirring wherever you go.

Wait. What was the topic all about again?

i made a topic for a gorgeous couple i admire and love …. to celebrate their upcoming 4th anniversary …a topic made with love and from the heart …. i made a video also from the heart to celebrate their love and if you look on youtube you will find lots of other people have made a video for mark and kevin …

and you all ruined it thankyou sooo much oh and im sure mark and kevin would be apalled and disgusted that something started with a lovely intent to celebrate 2 people being in love for 4 years
which should be celebrated just like the other couples should be …and are …

all this topic was for was to celebrate mark and kevin and yes you all are the vile witches that ruined it …

id like to thank .. the people who used this topic for what it was made for thankyouu sooo much and yes surprisingly it includes Janine too she did post congratulations .. so thankyou for that …

pleased with yourselves! …

is it me or is it just you are all against mark and kevin … or both

Oh right. Actually I tend to agree, Mark and Kevin WILL be appalled. And rather creeped out someone is spending all their time making love videos for them and stalking them in this manner.

And that’s a wrap! The thread continued on pointlessly with more fighting till the admin closed it down. Goodnight everybody! I’ll leave you with one final amusing statement from our lady Kerry.

theres one thing i do not lie and that his hand on heart …. because i HATE lies …. and anyway when you lie the only person you are lying to is yourself so why would i bother …

It was part two of The X Factor final last night – in which the nation crowned JOE the winner!

The night kicked off with the group song which was Never Forget by Take That, obviously it was as awful as they always have been but that’s half the fun isn’t it!

Next up it was time for Olly and Joe to start singing to win! It was Olly who went first and he sang his favorite song from the show which was Twist and Shout, and you can watch it here. Obviously it was fab and he seemed so nervous!

Joe sings Don't Stop Believin'

Joe was next, and he sang Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey, which you can see here. It was great and he looked so smart!

After their first songs done, it was time for the first of the star acts, and the turn of last years finalists – Alexandra Burke and JLS – to take to the stage. They sang a cool mashup of Bad Boys and Everybody in Love, and I am sure everyone noticed how amazing it was and how close Alexandra and Marvin got!!! You can watch it here!

Alexandra Burke and JLS

Following that fab performance was another X Factor veteran – Leona Lewis. She sang Stop Crying Your Heart Out, which will undoubtedly be another massive hit for her in the same way Run was. Whilst she was singing there was footage of all the X Factor contestants from this year which was nice, and you can watch it here.

It was then time for Joe and Olly to perform the winner’s song, which was Miley Cyrus’ The Climb. Olly went first and was great and then it was Joe’s turn – whose voice was much better suited to the song. You can watch Olly singing it here, and Joe singing here.

George Michael sings December Song

After these two performances it was time for the return of the star acts. Simon had told us that the acts this year would be bigger than the ones last year – Beyonce, Boyzone and Westlife – and so far Leona Lewis, Alexandra Burke and JLS hadn’t fulfilled that promise. But then, it was the turn of George Michael! He sang December Song, a nice Christmas song and he even had fake snow, and you can watch it here.

And just when you think it can’t possibly get any bigger, Dermot has the task of introducing a man who you would never think would agree to go on The X Factor – Sir Paul McCartney!

Sir Paul backstage at The X Factor

It was actually incredible that he was on, and he sang two songs! He did Drive My Car (which you can watch here) and Live and Let Die, which you can see here. Then after he had finished, Simon thanked him and told him he was through to the next round – legend!!!

After all that excitement it was time for some more – announcing the winner. On stage was Joe and his mentor Cheryl and Olly with his mentor Simon. Dermot left a suitably long pause and then announced that JOE had won!! A deserving winner and his version of the winner’s song was definetley better!

Joe and Cheryl celebrate

After just finding out that his life has changed and that he had won, Dermot hands him a copy of his single and then a microphone and he has to sing his debut single again! The other final 12 acts joined him on stage, Rachel Adedeji grabbed the mic and started shouting something in it like the idiot that she is and they all congratulated Joe. You can see him perform the song here.

Joe performs his debut single

After months of searching for a winner, there was plenty of ups and downs, surprises and shocks and slip-ups (mainly from Robbie Williams) and it was over! With Joe as the winner, and Olly as the well-deserving runner-up. And that is it, well for another year anyway. Joe’s single is available to download now and in the shops on Wednesday.

Also for any celeb-spotters interested, the celebs in the audience included Prince Harry and Chelsy Davy on Saturday night, and on Sunday – Ronan  Keating and Shane Lynch from Boyzone and Katie Price.

Images are copyright of ITV plc 2009.

]]> http://electricallanguage.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/no-podcast-this-weekend-5/ Sat, 12 Dec 2009 14:05:08 +0000 Gabor http://electricallanguage.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/no-podcast-this-weekend-5/

Sorry, there is no electrical language this weekend. It gets really hectic this time of year!

But It was my turn to record AMPed with 9 really good and varied songs, contributed by myself and 8 other podcasters.

DOWNLOAD AMPED 209

1.  Conscious Rasta (Version) by Guitoud

• Show: The Dub Zone

2.  Getting Lighter by Ché Aimee)

• Show: Suffolk And Cool

3.  Being 25 by Nicholas Alan

• Show: Kimmi and the Rock Deli

4.  Slow Motion Machine Gun by Pearl And The Beard

• Show: Mikey Pod

5.  Reverser by Seaspin

• Show: The PhiLL(er)

6.  Hiway Flyway by So Shush)

• Show: Cowboy Cantor

7.  In The Middle by 835

• Show: Eclectic Mix

8.  Walk You Home by Passenger

• Show: Three From Leith

9.  Darling Dear by Little Fish

• Show: electrical language

I entered a competition by postcard that I found on MSE as it would be an ideal Christmas Pressie for my Mum. The comp was to win 1 of 500 Boyzone Books, so the odds were pretty good!

It arrived the other day and is now sat on my pressie pile waiting to be wrapped up

Extra pressie for Mum for the price of a stamp! And a story to tell once she’s unwrapped it

I bet he's said that friggin' word at least eight times already.

“It’s only words, and words are all I have, to take your heart away.”

The Bee Gees (or Boyzone, whichever takes your fancy.)

There’s a few irritating things that crop up when watching interviews with politicians. Obviously the main one is that the majority of them look like they need touched up with a nice closed fist to the face. A close second, however, are the words that come out of their slimy little mouths.

Of course not many people really pay attention to what’s being said, because underneath nothing is actually being said at all. It’s all just words, crafted in a way to make them sound as though they’re on the ball. It doesn’t matter what questions get thrown at them, they’ve got a list of around three stupidly-long sentences going around in their minds which they will rigidly stick with until the cows come home. They live in a world in which the simpler the question asked of them, the more complex the answer must be. Politics wouldn’t be nearly as “fun” if the people involved didn’t make the viewer rant and rave and pull their hair out in sheer anger at the utter bullshit they’re hearing from the men and women who run the country. Nope – simplicity is ruled out. You can’t say yes, you can’t say no, you can’t say maybe – you just reach for those pre-packaged sentences and hope you don’t get the tone wrong.

When it comes to newspapers reporting on politics (or anything for that matter) they have a duty to use the correct quotes, construct articles in a clear and concise manner, and avoid monotony and needless repetition. Now, there’s a particular word that politicians use ALL THE TIME. If they use the word in an important quote, which is quite often, it’s fair enough that the reporters use the word in the quote when writing a story, although I pretty much think it’s one of the most pointless words in existence. However, this same word can also be found in non-quotes. Like, everywhere. If you just read The Sun then you won’t have a scooby what I’m ranting about so you may as well go read something else right now.

Here are a few examples from a top-selling broadsheet newspaper to illustrate:

…split three ways over last month’s decision to pump an extra £25 billion into the economy on fundamental differences in how they see the long-term economic picture evolving…

…new strategy for Afghanistan put on a defiant show of unity for Congress yesterday despite evidence of a personal rift and fundamental differences on tactics, troop levels…

…on hold for most employers because of uncertainty created by the election, so it’s better not to rush such fundamental change…

But, although there is a legitimate question about proportionality here, there is a more fundamental point. Ultimately, there is one person to blame for this scandal, and that is Woods himself.

It will bring together 1,250 scientists from diverse fields to study fundamental human biology and turn their discoveries…

 The events surrounding the postponement left the RFU having to deal with further negative publicity and raised fundamental questions about who ultimately should be responsible for…

Why, why, why, why, WHY is this bloody word used so much?!! I swear I read an article on David Cameron a few weeks back that had the word ‘fundamental’ FOUR times in the first four paragraphs. You can’t take the article seriously after that. In the context that it is often used, it barely means a thing. You can go back to 5 of the 6 examples, take the word out completely, and the sentences will still make perfect sense. “There is a more fundamental point” is just already badly worded. Journalism is meant to be concise. If you must use a word, what’s wrong with central? Or significant? Or essential? Or necessary? Or basic? Or main? Or important? Or crucial? Or key? Or major? Or prime? Or vital?!!

This word is beginning to ruin my life, I swear. I’m on the verge of having nightmares too, of 11 giants dressed up as the letters in the word ‘fundamental’ chasing me across the Sahara fucking desert. There’s plenty of beautiful words in the English language that you can use in place of this monstrosity. Mix it up a bit, please.

That is all.

I don’t know why, but lately I’ve been looking for songs sung by Boy Band in the 2000s. For instance from Westlife, O-Town, Backstreet Boys, Human Nature, A1, 98 degrees, Plus One and many more. Maybe because since I heard one of the dead personnel Boyzone, Stephen Gately, on October 10th, 2009, there was overwhelming sense of longing that reminds me of my past. And because it makes me get crazier, looking for my favorite songs from Boyzone’s. Like Baby Can I Hold You, Picture of You, No Matter What, Everyday I Love You. And one of the most songs I like is I Love the Way You Love Me that was released on November 23rd, 1998. I really love the lyrics. Check the lyrics below:

I like the feel of your name on my lips
And I like the sound of your sweet gentle kiss
The way that your fingers run through my hair
And how your scent lingers even when you’re not there

And I like the way your eyes dance when you laugh
And how you enjoy your two-hour bath
And how you’ve convinced me to dance in the rain
With everyone watching like we were insane

CHORUS

But I love the way you love me
Strong and wild, slow and easy
Heart and soul so completely
I love the way you love me

And I like the sound of old R ‘n’ B
And you roll your eyes when I’m sloppily off key
And I like the innocent way that you cry
At sappy old movies you’ve seen thousands of times

Back to CHORUS

(Listen to me now..)
And I could list a million things
I love to like about you
But they could all come down to one reason
I could never live without you..

Back to CHORUS

PS :
Oh yes one more thing, which makes me shocked, Stephen Gately, the Boyzone personnel died which coincided with my birthday, oh my God…..

I just got stood up for the second time in four days by the same person. Um? This is exactly what inspires bad pop songs about Boys. I just downgraded this guy -who is one of the coolest people I was friends with at Yahoo! from man to boy. Eh, time for a dance party:

1. Boys, Boys, Boys by Lady Gaga – although her boys show up, make out with her in the bleachers and buy her egss in the morning.

2. Boys – Ms. Spears sometimes needs them, so do I. Her boys know she is the one in control like Janet, Miss Jackson if you’re nasty.

3. Wild Boys- Duran Duran knew how to shine. They were futuristic Mad Max kind of sexy boys who conquered murder by the roadside and let the phone ring while they were dancing in the rain. Now that’s hot.

4. Boys of Summer- Mr. Don Henley really knew that hormones rise in the sweltering heat of summer. He pleadges his townie love will last longer than those damn ‘Boys Of Summer.’

From The Backstreet Boys promising never to break our hearts to the UK’s Boyzone – No Matter What They Tell Us, I can’t say that I’ll ever give them up but in the mean time I’m waiting for some real men to who know how to set a time and date and place and ….show!

This song had captivated me since the day I first heard it.  I know I have always avoided listening to songs that give me an eerie feeling, but this song conveys a very melancholic feeling… It’s just so hard not to fall in love with it!  Ronan Keating’s voice suits this song perfectly!  Well, to begin with, I have always loved Irish music.  I like the sound of the bagpipe (I’m not sure if it’s a bagpipe, though) and the echo effect, and not to mention the drums, they effectively make the listener feel the emotion of the song.  I love how the sounds were arranged!  So perfect!

On the side note, as much as this song captivates me, I can’t understand why anyone would want to play this on their wedding.  Then again, to each his/her own.

Here is a video by amethyst2001 from youtube using the song.

In industria muzicala putem clasifica melodiile in functie de mesajul transmis de acestea.Si am realizat o astfel de impartire:
-melodii despre bani;
-melodii dedicate copiilor;
-melodii de dragoste.

Ultima diviziune se poate clasifica si ea la randul ei.Exista melodii dedicate despartirilor,altele impacarii si altele dedicate iubirilor neimplinite,cele duse la extrema,cele imposibile si totusi posibile,de ura,durere,suparare,iertare etc.

Unele tii se potrivesc de minune,iar altele mai ca iti vine sa le decupezi si sa mai adaugi de la tine niste versuri ca totul sa se muleze dupa bunul tau plac.Am descoprit melodia care ma caracterizeaza la capitolul asta.Si este o melodie destul de banala,dar cu un mesaj destul de patrunzator pentru mine.Este vorba despre

Si nu stiu sigur ce ma face sa cred asta.Piesa este destul de veche,dar in momentul in care o ascult ma poarta cu gandul departe,acolo unde mi-as dori sa fiu.
Voi aveti o melodie a voastra la capitolul “melodii de dragoste”?

X-Factor this week was very eventful! We had Susan Boyle performing her new single of her new album, and Also we had to re-appearance of Mariah Carey! Unfortunately we don’t have the video of Mariah’s performance because X-Factor hasn’t uploaded it on YouTube but Mariah’s performance was SPECTACULAR! But here is Susan Boyle’s. Her track is called “Wild Horses”

The remaining contestants sang “Wake Me before You Go” which made all the male contestants look very… Homosexual (iTried to make it sound professional as possible!) The skinny jeans was just a NO! The X-factor Stylist needs to go back to Fashion school. If all the contestants could dance iThink this performance would be a great High school Musical moment!

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN THE X-FACTOR COMPETITION CAN NOW BEGIN!

Moving swiftly on to the Bottom two announcement, and iWas HAPPY! It was Olly & John and Edward! Can Someone shout Hallelujah!? John & Edward was in the bottom two, and iKnew they was going home, because Simon’s act was in the bottom two and once Simon’s act is against John & Edward they are bound to go home! I did say Olly would be a bit vulnerable this week. His performance was slacking something! But let the battle begin!

So Satan and his demon performed first: They performed BoyZone – No matter What. And they was DREADFUL! and iWas waiting for John & Edward to sing a Ballad for the public to see how dreadful they r! And they did! and it just proved to the whole nation that they are absolutely SH*T! They are Tone Deaf! and they just need to go home!

Olly was next and he performed “Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton” This performance by far was better than John & Edward’s Vocally! If Olly went home after this performance it would be an uproar! Because he was better than John & Edward by far!

The result judges had come to a decision and here it is: 

Well done Olly for defeating Satan and his Demons! It was about time John & Edward was sent home! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN THE X-FACTOR COMPETITION CAN NOW BEGIN!

Ronan playing guitar at the latest Boyzone Concert.

by Tripatini staff

A 1990’s Irish boy band formed from a newspaper addy, this quintet of lads had a string of hits that shot them to pop phenom-hood not just in Ireland but also the U.K., Down Under, and parts of continental Europe. After a seven-year hiatus, Boyzone reunited in 2007 and is well into a comeback, including a new album in 2010, with suave blond Ronan Keating singing lead. But they were slammed into the world media spotlight in a more tragic way last month by the death of band member Stephen Gately — also known for his London musical stage career — of apparently natural causes but under still not completely clear circumstances while vacationing with his partner on Spain’s island of Majorca. Released a year ago, “Love You Anyway” is the group’s first new tune in eight years, an addition to their greatest-hits album <i>Back Together Again…No Matter What.</i> In this video, shot against a downtown New York City backdrop, complete with classic hot-dog stand and an old-timey — and no longer in service — Yellow Cab, Gately’s the bloke propped up against the wall early on and the squirmy one at the end. Our deepest sympathies to the partner, family, and fellow band members of this talented and personable young man.<br>

Hello,  my name is Adam Radcliffe, im a male human from a little town called telford in england. Todays date is the 16th of November 2009, my birthday is on the 19th and i will be 22 years old. To the right is a montage of pictures taken over 2 or 3 years, im a vain, selfless and odd person, and im a nice guy too, some would say too nice.

Right now i am sitting in a costa coffee shop, exploiting their free internetz and drinking a creme brule flavoured latte, speculating on my future “the things i could do, and the things i could become” and i decided to start a blog,i will hopefully write a little something on it everyday. weather it will be interesting to you, is none of my concern, i simply felt like i needed somewhere to write/type the everyday goings on and things i get up too. But i also need something else to do when im not at work, or at the cinema, i vist the cinema almost every week, without fail and i guess that makes me sort of a film buff. i go by myself most the time, as i dont have a girlfriend and actually enjoy films a lot more when my only company is a large popcorn, large pepsi and large nachos with cheese and hallipinos peppers (did i spell that right?) However there are cases when you must only go see a film with your friends, films that are EPIC , “The Dark Knight” for example. Like every man, I also enjoy video games, A LOT and i have been playing them for as long as i can remember, i feel like they never get as much respect as they deserve, even though the market for them is huge and video games frequently out sell all music CD’s and DVD’s.

I dont know what im hoping to gain from the blog at this point but i do have some outlines

1. Improve Speeling/Typeing/Grammer Skillz
2. Meet some new people, or get 1 or 2 regular readers of the blog.
3. Get a second opinion on my life as it unfolds before the wordpress audience
4. mabye some relationship advice too

My Job? Right now i am working in a gym as a cleaner(not terribly exciting i know), but i don’t really enjoy doing it, not in a way which is traditionally fun…its just a job which helps me get through each day, the people who work with me are great, and im probley the most un-fit member of staff who works their. my diet mainly consists of McDonald’s and pre-prepared sandwedges  bought from sainsburys. lets not forget my cans of monster too, im addicted to caffeine, and addicted to sugar even more, which has given my teeth a healthy yellow glow. Despite this i still manage to look pretty good, and maintain a healthy weight with virtually no effort at all.

I like to think i am invincible, you can call me whatever you like or even beat me senseless and ill still laugh in your face, because i enjoy being alive, even if i dont make the most of the life given too me.my only weakness is the opposite sex, they are a mystery to me, and i often find myself falling for just about every women i meet, with no idea how to please them. (am i beginning to sound desperate?) ok ill change the subject;

I go out and drink, i stay in and drink just like everyone else, my favourite tipple is beer, Becks mostly or any german beer, however i am easily swayed into cocktails and shots if im with the right guys

So what else do i do? well not much apart from play my guitar everyday and try to think of new things i could try each day.

Where im going with this blog, i have no idea, i just decided to open the tap on my mind and let the creative juices flood the world, drowning those who dare to swim in it.

i used to make youtube videos everyday and managed to keep it up for about 200 days before youtube deleted most the videos for copyright infringement. I was unemployed and had nothing better to do, apart from look for a job of course. i did however make another youtube channel and have had one video on there for god knows how long, maybe something else will be uploaded soon, who knows.

www.youtube.com/itsactuallyadam

thanks for stopping by my humble little blog. Mabye it will be just as stupid tomorrow.

8===D

History will remember me and laugh.

Oh, what a month it’s been. While I’ve been distracted by a relapsed illness, blinds drawn against the world, the world has moved along without my attention or participation. Domestic debates over health care continue ad nauseum, and quite frankly I am worn out over discussions of the economy and the endless gaming in the Capital. It appears we are fully back to gloves off and business as usual after a brief respite. The predictability of the political cycle creates cynicism which results in apathy. The worst is when one becomes apathetic about apathy.

Things are no better elsewhere, but my attention was piqued by two ongoing issues which fall under the broad spectrum of human rights and social justice. Two issues while not dichotomous, do spin in separate orbits around the same planet. As a writer who is working at tightening up some of my random wanderings, this presents a crossroads. Do I offer both issues and then go about explaining the connection, or do I pen two essays? I suppose the twin can contain the bridge, but I’ll construct it another time.

That’s the plan, then. When I get to the other side, we can discuss my term grade. Now, off we go to serious matters.

Prima Parte
A month ago, a gorgeous young man died of a previously undetected congenital heart condition. This lovely and talented thirty-three years young fellow, Stephen Gately, was a member of the Dublin “boy band” Boyzone, a group hugely popular in the UK, including New Zealand and Australia, the Continent and Asia. The group has yet to break into the American music scene in a significant way.

Inadvertently, Gately, an actor, songwriter and one of the lead singers of Boyzone, became an unwitting poster child for gay rights back in 1999 when he was forced to come out on the eve of a titillating gossip piece in a junky English tabloid, The Sun.

“On 16 June 1999, The Sun newspaper covered its front page with what it described as a “World Exclusive” and the headline, ‘Boyzone Stephen: I’m gay and I’m in love”‘. At the age of 23, Gately sold his story to the newspaper because he feared a former member of Boyzone’s security was about to sell the story. (BBC News. 16 June 1999. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/370073.stm)

Look at that again. Gately was 23. A bottom-feeding journalist, and I use the term journalist with reservation, set about to create a sensation with a quick cash return. The result was huge storm. It remains so today. Gately, although out to a tight circle, was not prepared to be the locus of the gay youth community. Struggles ensued, but Gately soldiered on, and in 2003, after being introduced by Elton John and husband David Furnish to an internet businessman, Andrew Cowles, the pair celebrated a commitment ceremony (The Australian. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26210611-26040,00.html. Retrieved 16 October 2009).
In 2006, they registered as domestic partners in London (Pink News. http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-857.html).

It’s hard to grasp in the United States the intensity Gately’s death had on people in the UK. The outpouring of disbelief and affection from dignitaries, fans, other performing artists, and ordinary people dominated the news.

It was due to the unfortunate lack of judgement by the publisher, as well as an ill-timed case of bad taste that had Daily Mail columnist Jan Moir inciting mourners into angry activists. Her assessment was insensitive and ignorant, and read as if written by someone who had no historical sense of the past forty years since Stonewall whacked us up the side of the head in 1969. To further the offense, the piece appeared one day before the funeral. The despicable tabloid was inundated with complaints and demands for Moir’s brooming. Advertisers pulled print adverts. In every corner, Op-Ed keyboards were smoking.

A few respected popular figures made use of their access to express the general outrage and frustration. From there began a cycle of sandbox warfare. I don’t mean to make light of the situation with that term. Perhaps “ginormous pissing contest” is a more accurate description. Glib? Yes, but the picture illustrates the scene. Somewhere in the muddle people who were already in terrible pain were hurting even more.

The burden of Moir’s piece is that Gately’s death is connected in some unspecified way to the fact that he was gay.

Though the official announcement after he was found dead in a Majorca hotel room was that he died of natural causes and that there were no suspicious circumstances, Moir writes:

“Hang on a minute. Something is terribly wrong with the way this incident has been shaped and spun into nothing more than an unfortunate mishap on a holiday weekend…

The sugar-coating on this fatality is so saccharine-thick that it obscures whatever bitter truth lies beneath. Healthy and fit 33-year-old men do not just climb into their pyjamas and go to sleep on the sofa, never to wake up again.

Whatever the cause of death is, it is not, by any yardstick, a natural death.” (Jan Moir, The Daily Mail, Friday 16 October 2009)

“Her evidence for that claim is non-existent. Instead, she resorts to innuendo and goes on to make a leap of stunning illogicality by suggesting that the death “strikes another blow to the happy-ever-after myth of civil partnerships.” (Roy Greenslade Friday 16 October 2009 13.33 BST guardian.co.uk)

She further snipes on drug use the night Gately died. Witnesses and toxicology reports concur cannabis was present. Are we still labeling cannabis as a “drug?” Besides, any causal relationship between cannabis and pulmonary edema is absurd. The Medical Examiner drew no such connections or conclusions.

Furthermore, her article called into question the integrity of domestic partnerships, by suggesting that gay couples participate in risky behaviors more often than heterosexual couples. Moir’s piece was structured on homophobic misinformation.

The original Daily Mail column was initially “Why there was nothing ‘natural’ about Stephen Gately’s death” which they toned  down to “A strange, lonely and troubling death . . .” in the online edition. That was an improvement?

Stephen Fry, infamous polymath who is one of the kindest of the kind, and most gentlemanly of gentlemen was particularly exercised over the matter and used his nearly one million Twitter followers to express his initial reaction.

“I gather a repulsive nobody writing in a paper no one of
decency would be seen dead with has written something
loathsome and inhumane.”

Harsh words from a fellow rarely given to such language. A follow-up tweet gave the web address for the Press Complaints Commission. By then the news was viral. The PCC site crashed before noon.

Fry and others have endured criticism for speaking out. This is ridiculous nonsense. Thank God that when hate mongers spew their slime, we have a few artfully articulate people who can and do speak up. Fry is lovely, but he is human, and has stepped in a pile or two. He is so transparently nice that when this has happened, he immediately owns it, apologises profusely, sometimes to the point of irritation, and moves along.

Moir, in her retraction the following week, made it even worse by trying to explain herself. Her column was fluffed with defensive rationalizations. She apologised, but in that irksome way that devalues responsibility. The words, “if I have caused distress…” is a non-apology.

“I would like to say sorry if I have caused distress by the insensitive timing of the column, published so close to the funeral.” (Jan Moir, 23 October 2009, http://www.dailymail.co.uk)

There has been grumbling lobbed back over the fence from conservative sources, including Moir herself, which blame social networking for the demise of balanced opinion, thereby creating an atmosphere in which personal opinion is not respected. There has been even more grumbling over an internet fueled conspiracy to promote liberal causes by…too much enthusiasm for social networking. Pardon? Statistics show a broad majority of social network users of Twitter and Facebook do trend to fancy progressive and liberal thinking. Is that a conspiracy, or is it just a demographic?

Surely there are other examples of the value of social networking beyond mundane and gratuitous tweets by starlets? It can be a tickle. I take pleasure in following Fry on Twitter. But there are indeed more important uses available.

In June 2009, Twitter and Facebook users played a pivotal role in the Iranian elections by supporting what began as a DDoS attack against the President, after which the government shut down local internet for an hour, then restarted with a lower bandwidth and filters intended to make accessing social networks and YouTube impossible. Cell phone calling and texting was nearly impossible, and all BBC affiliated sites were blocked (Hiawatha Bray 19 June 2009 “Finding a way around Iranian censorship: Activists utilize Twitter, Web tricks to sidestep blocks”. Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2009/06/).

The response of the Global Village was to set up proxy servers. Iranian citizens and foreign journalists (many of whom kept behind doors to prevent expulsion or worse) could document the protests and inform the outside world in real-time of the atrocities wrought by the government against the protesting people. For two weeks the Green Revolution rode on the back of the internet.

I participated for five hours the first night and a few hours each day that first week by way of a temporary anonymous Twitter account. The content of one’s tweets mattered not, but the frequency did. On and on it went as users set their location to GMT +3.5, Tehran time. Hundreds of thousands of tweets overwhelmed the local server. Using proxy servers citizens were able to post to YouTube and update international news agencies. People were able to communicate with friends and family members both in and outside Iran. It was one of the few times in my life wherein I felt I was part of something much bigger than I could ever fully understand. But I now know precisely what “Global Village” means.

Put your conspiracy theories there, Ms. Moir, because the Twitter Revolution was Oz behind the curtain. The Green Curtain. You caught a piece of it yourself when you wrote your column about the late Stephen Gately. Mind your manners because news really does travel fast.

Fry is for better or worse, a celebrity in the UK. Cambridge educated at Queen’s College, Fry is a delightfully literate individual who is said to hold a BBC record for saying “fuck” on TV more than anybody else. The difference between the American style of celeb and the UK brand has to do with using one’s renown commensurate with one’s strengths. Americans don’t always grasp this subtlety.

An overwhelming majority of the publicly recognised species do not have the resources and skills to write or speak extemporaneously as Fry and his peers. But these others, primarily confined to life in the shadows of a nine letter landmark on a hill in Los Angeles do possess an even broader talent. That ability is an obligation to support specific philanthropic associations. In doing so, they induce their fans, many of whom seem unaware of conditions elsewhere, into taking up causes to improve the health and well-being of our brothers and sisters in places on the world map where the need is urgent.

Speak up! Speak up against injustice if language is your skill. Help improve the planet in other ways by using your time, talent and treasure according to your ability. Tweet for fun, but don’t forget the powerful medium for change you possess with your phone and computer.

And remember that for as far as we’ve come in Western culture, equal protection and civil rights are not universally embraced. Not even in the West. Yet.

(c)GoshGusMusic(ascap)2009

Álbum incluirá últimas gravações do cantor

O grupo musical irlandês Boyzone anunciou neste domingo que vai gravar um novo álbum em memória de seu vocalista, Stephen Gately, que morreu no início de outubro aos 33 anos por causas naturais em sua casa de veraneio na ilha espanhola de Mallorca.

Quem anunciou a novidade ao Sky News foi um dos integrantes do Boyzone e sua figura de maior destaque, Ronan Keating.

-Vamos gravar um novo álbum pelo Stephen, temos ainda algumas canções com a voz dele. Graças a Deus temos ese material, que é muito importante para todos nós e que sabemos que os fãs vão apreciar também.

Boyzone foi formado em 1993 e conseguiu inúmero sucessos, entre eles No Matter What. O grupo se separou em 2000, mas voltou a se reunir sete anos depois.

Stephen Gately, nascido em Dublin, entrou para a Boyzone no ano de sua criação, após ter respondido a um pequeno anúncio para criar a primeira boy band irlandesa.

Fonte: R7.com

Here’s a review from US genre movie website QUIET EARTH

Rating: 7.5 out of 10
Credo is a low-budget horror film directed by Toni Harman, written by Alex Wakeford and set in London. The film starts off with a group of Catholic students attempting to summon the devil himself. Of the five, Simon (the late Stephen Gately, who carries himself very well) is their leader, with his roots in Irish Catholicism; he’s seemingly obsessed with finding Satan, so as better to defeat him. Poor old Seth however, gets cold feet and runs away from the séance. Next morning, his four friends are all dead from suicide…

We then cut to another group of students, several years later, and they’ve just been evicted from their flat. Jock, a boisterous American… um… jock, has held one party too many and the landlord boots them onto the streets. Alice (MyAnna Burning) is a practical and dedicated psychology student who spends all her time in the college library studying for exams. Timmi is a shy brunette who has a secret crush, and Scott is a well intentioned nerd, who also has a secret crush. With their somewhat token and underwritten black friend Jasmine in tow, the five of them break into Eden Catholic Halls to spend a weekend of boozy fun and Ouija board tinkering.

Hands-down the best thing about Credo is this, and if you really don’t want a slight spoiler then skip to the next paragraph: It’s old-school, it’s cerebral and it’s scary, but there is no horror except that which is suggested. I live for a film that can scare me without resorting to buckets of gore, grotesque make-up or weak CGI, and once Credo gets going, it’s really an effective horror film. After a shaky start which has some pretty dodgy acting, the film finds its feet and we follow the characters through a terrifying journey in which Satan will try his best, through hallucination and time-shifts, to convince each person to commit suicide, so they die in sin and he claims their souls.

Harman has wisely chosen an incredible location for Eden, it’s a huge complex of run-down bedrooms and hallways, full of old mattresses and filthy radiators, broken lights and years worth of dust and grime, and it helps to perfectly set the tone and atmosphere for the film. Scott attaches cameras around the building too, and we get shots on his laptop in night-vision which are used effectively and add to the chills. The music and sound design warrant mention too, as they are simply terrific in turning-up the fright factor and keeping the audience tense as to the next scare, especially the microphone that Scott uses to pick up signals that humans can’t normally hear, that freaked me out completely!

In all – An effective and chilling horror film that uses inventive camera work, imaginative sound design and that overlooked little technique known as suspense and suggestion to create some real scares.

Ci siamo lasciati la quinta posizione alle spalle, e prima di andare in pausa pranzo, scopriamo chi c’è in quarta posizione. Anche qui abbiamo tre pareggi, tutti e tre con 2 voti. Per ordine alfabetico riguardo la canzone, al gradino più basso troviamo Ligabue con Piccola Stella Senza Cielo. Subito dopo i Boyzone con Baby Can I Hold You Tonight, e per finire, le  Tatu con All The Things She Said. Ci rivediamo pomeriggio, per continuare la nostra classifica. Buon pranzo a tutti, siete in ascolto su RadioBlog 235!

The sudden demise of Boyzone’s Stephen Gately a couple of weeks ago left me pondering on the nature of death and I was going to write about that. But then an article by one Jan Moir came to my attention. It created a huge furore and quite rightly so.

The day before the parents were to bury their child and at a time when he wasn’t even properly cold, she wrote an article that was stunning in it’s viciousness. In the face of the coroner’s evidence, she decided she knew best because young men don’t just suddenly keel over, never to return. Charlie Brooker’s response to this is definitely worth reading. Without the evidence that comes from actually being there, she alluded to a night out of bacchanalian proportions, hours before he died; ergo the death was an inevitable and just punishment for the celeb/gay ‘lifestyle.’ Finally, she concluded the happy ever after of a civil partnership was a myth and inexplicability linked the tragic suicide of Kevin McGee, Matt Lucas’s ex partner to Gately’s death. Of course there isn’t a happy ever after. There’s not always one in a hetero marriage either, but in planet Moir, otherwise known as the town of Stepford, all heterosexuals have long and happy partnerships and none of them have even contemplated suicide, never mind made an attempt, serious or otherwise. She’s a silly, silly woman.

Generating over 20,000 complaints to The Press Complaints Commission (PCC), losing advertising for the Mail at a time when newspapers are struggling to keep afloat and advertisers are cutting back on spending in the recession, plus spawning Facebook groups calling for her sacking is quite some achievement. You’ve got to hand it to her. As loud as the call has been for her to lose her job, I suspect she’ll be with us for some time yet. People of her ilk, like cockroaches, will continue to survive in the face of any onslaught. She’s backtracked in the last week and seems to be in revisionist mode regarding her original article. Death and outrage has upgraded Gately to “a talented young man [who] died before his time,” from her original declaration that he “could barely carry a tune in a Louis Vuitton trunk.” You’d work harder to get an upgrade on an airline. She’s also apologised to his parents. She might think a little harder before she writes again. But I wouldn’t count on it.