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4. november 2002
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Dyke Bailiff From Hell
A friend of mine just started up her blog, everythingthatsucks, with a story about her day in court. Have a look!
8:46:35 PM 
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Blind in 5th Place in NYC Marathon
"Marla Runyan, the first legally blind Olympian and attempting a marathon for the first time, was the top U.S. finisher. She was fifth overall, just ahead of defending champion Margaret Okayo." (CNN/SI)
Just completing a marathon is impressive. Completing it while being blind is a great accomplishment. Making it at #5 is where I run out of descriptive words.
4:56:48 PM
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Hey, I know that guy!
 I was a bit surprised when I read an article in a local newspaper about the new hot music phenomenon Ugress (name of band would translate 'weed', but not the smokable kind, mind you).
In fact, I worked with the guy behind the band, Gisle Martens Meyer, for two years. He was a brilliant programmer with a somewhat unusual style in clothing. I remember he cut back on the work to dedicate himself to music. That seems to have been a good career move. His recent debut album "Resound" quickly claimed the 2nd spot in the Norwegian charts. I think we call that success!
Considering that he's an expert in web design and intranet programming, it is no surprise that his web site is great. And you can of course download and listen to his funky jazz-style music before deciding to buy the album.
ObGeekAnecdote: Good programmers leave comments in their source code, to help other developers understand and maintain it later. One day we found this comment in Gisle's code, 'explaining' the rationale behind a quite complicated routine: "Pray to God that this works!"
PS: By an amazing coincidence, I posted a stupid error message screenshot here just a couple of days ago. Guess who actually both made and emailed me that screenshot, back then? Bingo!
3:08:14 PM
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Western Saharan Receives Rafro Prize
 Yesterday, Sidi Mohammed Daddach received the Thoral Rafto Memorial Prize 2002 in a ceremony here in Bergen, Norway. Daddach of Western Sahara has been imprisoned for 24 years, 14 of which under death penalty, because of his struggle for human rights and independence for Western Sahara, occupied by Marocco since 1975.
In the ceremony, Daddach thanked for the support and appealed for increased international pressure on the Maroccan authorities, so the political prisoners and the disappeared of the Saharawi people can have their dignity as humans back.
Secular Blasphemy wrote about the prize when it was announced.
From a Norwegian article in BA.
12:19:50 PM
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No Crisis for Low-Cost Airline RyanAir
The Irish low-cost airline Ryanair has experienced a soaring profit as crisis has hit the traditional carriers. Second quarter net income rose 73 % to €112 million (~ US$ same). Customers have been willing to accept less comfort to save on airfare, and budget airlines like Ryanair and Easyjet have experienced good times when the traditional carriers struggle.
11:23:58 AM
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No Cancer Increase After Three-Mile Island Nuclear Accident
 The worst nuclear accident in US history, the release of radio active gases from a Pennsylvania nuclear power plant in 1979, has not lead to any significant increase in cancers, a new comprehensive study shows.
This study simply confirms what all evidence has demonstrated ever since Hiroshima: low-intensity radiation does not cause cancer in humans. Radiation does not ever cause mutations in humans. These are facts rarely reported in the media Doomsayer envirionmentalists has used the media unscrupelously to make the public believe otherwise, which has seriously undermined one of the safest sources of energy we have.
2:45:45 AM
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Islamic-based Party Wins Turkey Election
The AKP party, with its root in Islamic fundamentalism, wins the Turkey election, possibly with a landslide. A legal process is underway to ban the party in the strictly secular state, which means Turkey can be facing a serious constitutional crisis. Also, the military has earlier forced Islamist parties from power when they won elections.
2:08:52 AM
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© Copyright 2002 Jan Haugland.
Last update: 01.12.02; 02:50:37.
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