Figuring it was probably best to give Kim Kardashian a break for awhile, because she has got bigger problems at the moment – like looking fashionable in maternity wear – it’s time to turn to one of her other sisters.  This admittedly does have a Cinderella-like quality to it.  Because compared to Kim, the others don’t seem to quite stack up the same. This time around, it’s Khloe Kardashian who has been placed on The Cheese Wheel. Why exactly? Well… There’s simply the fact that Khloe Kardashian is a Kardashian.  Kind of a no-brainer that one!  There was some consideration about putting the entire Kardashian family on here this time around, but it’s a cheese wheel and not a cheese platter. Yes, Khloe is known by many other references.  Here, keeping things a bit polite, she can just be referred to as the “husky Kardashian”. Then, there are the allegations of missing ...

Who won the first round? Around one year ago, the quietly brilliant Taiwanese mobile manufacturer HTC got the jump start on its bigger rival Samsung when it launched the HTC One. It was an attractive handset with a gigantic screen and was almost universally well-liked by internet reviewers. While the chassis was slick, the phone’s biggest detraction was its skinned version of Android known as Sense 4. From a hardware perspective it was a powerhouse and looked set to crush the competition. It was months ahead of the looming Galaxy S3 and better looking to boot. It was going to be the smartest of the smartphones, and with its dashing looks it was set to conquer the Android market and restore HTC to power, glory and righteousness. And then it flopped. It flat out belly panned in the market. People held on to their money and patiently awaited the arrival ...

Dead Before His Time Shain Gandee, the star of MTV’s reality show Buckwild was found dead inside his red Ford Bronco.  Three bodies were found, Shain Gandee, his uncle David Gandee, and a third unidentified person.  No foul play is suspected, and police reports believe that the three likely died from carbon monoxide poisoning; with the truck having been submerged up to its windows in mud. Shain was only 21 years old. In a statement issued by MTV:  “Our thoughts and prayers are with them.  Shain had a magnetic  personality, with a passion for life that touched everyone he met and we will  miss him dearly.” A sad time for those who knew Shain and the others personally, or had watched Shain Gandee on television. Empathy and Reframing to Grieve In no way to make light of the situation, it is interesting the way in which society (or societies, as attitudes do differ) deal with both celebrities and ...

Chuck Norris has recently been seen without a beard. Although Chuck Norris Facts knows he hasn't always had a beard, he now faces his toughest challenge yet...

An Ongoing State of War North Korea has declared that it has entered a state of war, and will use wartime protocols to deal with its counterpart South Korea. As a country, North Korea has been largely shut off from, and closed to, the rest of the world.  Where things often taken for granted elsewhere, such as mobile phones and even magazines are not allowed to cross the borders.  This speaks to the level of control the government – or, dare it be called a regime – exerts upon its citizens.  Methods such as this are used as a means of media control.  To stifle the ease, and freedom of speech; and promote the party line (and propaganda) of the ruling body politic.  If one thinks about how hard it is to monitor and censor statements made, especially in real time, on mobile phones, the link between their availability and the level of a society’s ...

If you live in a part of the world that follows an essentially Christian custom, then there are two days in the year that have special significance.  These being Christmas Day and Good Friday.  If nothing else, from a secular perspective, this has translated into these two days continuing to be maintained as public holidays.  For Good Friday especially, no other day in the calendar is presented as quite so sacrosanct. On this day, many people even if not strictly Christian, will tend to observe the custom of eating fish (or seafood) and avoiding other meats. An explanation offered is usually something suitably vague, to the effect of: “We don’t eat red meat on Good Friday because that would be eating Jesus.” Best to ignore what happens on other days then.  Or churchgoing Sundays with bread and red wine. From this, how many have truly questioned the reason for the Good Friday custom?  The vague adage ...

It guides building design in Hong Kong.  Recently it was used in the design of the Australia 108 skyscraper to be built in Melbourne, Australia. It’s called feng shui.  (If you’ve never heard of it before, enjoy being surprised by the correct phonetics!) An ancient Chinese tradition, often linked with Taoism, it serves as a guide to the orientation of buildings both internally and externally.  To maximise auspiciousness, and the flow of qi.  It is a combination of geomancy and Chinese astronomy, the traditional five elements (wu xing) and the concept of yin-yang. With the Australia 108 to be tallest building in the southern hemisphere, there’s a lot riding on its completion. Even the chosen number, 108 storeys, was to maximise feng shui compliance and appeal.  (The number 8 is considered lucky.) Yet was all of this clever marketing by property developers and architects to attract rich Chinese investors? Some dismiss feng shui as superstition.  ...

Enter Off-Centre There’s probably the need for a warning here.  What follows will likely contain some ‘big’ words.  There’s probably also the need for a disclaimer.  What follows began with the intention of including no mathematics, whether that continues to hold by the end of the writing may be somewhat different.  So, given the presence of ‘big’ words and mathematics are reportedly inversely related to the number of readers, things are bound to go wrong. Anyone still there?  Anyone… If you are, it may be a long read.  To explain the concept of uthinki will not be something instant.  It’s about exploration.  Amongst other things, attempting to understand whether the crowd provides wisdom, or madness. Why the Jokers are Wild Is it serious, or not? That’s a resounding yes.  An emphatic no.  And also a maybe, just for good measure. As alluded to in the title, should the choice be left ...

“Psst…  Want to buy this?  It’s worth $500, but you can have it right now for only $49…” There’s something appealing in the idea of getting a bargain.  Somehow, paying less for something than it is supposedly worth. The rather dubious, yet familiar, statement at the start of this article need not just be confined to back alley deals and crowded markets though.  It’s something that most, if not almost all, mobile phone companies do. The question is then, why are we so blind to this? From the standpoint of the mobile service provider, the strategy is at least twofold.  One, it appeals to consumers’ innate sense of getting a bargain.  Two, if the consumer goes over the cap amount, then the company can charge the inflated rate for usage. Yet as a customer, is it really worth all the weighing up and judging what is and isn’t included in a cap when it ...

That there are inconsistencies with discrimination is likely little surprise.  The nature of discrimination is to differentiate and discern differences.  That anti-discrimination can also be so inconsistent or contradictory, however, warrants further thought. The issue of same-sex marriage, or gay marriage to use another term, is something which continues to strike discord amongst many. There are those for it.  Often gay couples, annoyed and dismayed by the fact that two consenting adults whom love one another are all too often unable to be married.  Apart from an expression of love and commitment, marriage has various legal and financial ramifications conveyed to a spouse but not necessarily to a de facto partner. There are those against it.  Often drawing a line in the sand on religious grounds, that a marriage must be between a man and a woman.  That somehow, allowing same-sex marriage supposedly degrades the institution of marriage and may pave the way ...